this is bbc news. i'm shaun ley. the headlines at 10:003m. a beatle, a bee gee and a ballerina. ringo starr and barry gibb are knighted in the new year honours. strictly judge darcey bussell is made a dame. the labour peer lord adonis, who's quit as the government's infrastructure adviser, claims brexit is infecting the entire conduct of government. and one of the really depressing things about the government at the moment, which i think is unfortunately a reflection of the brexit malaise which is sweeping whitehall. is the government has become hyper—sensitive to any criticism. thousands of iranians take to the streets of tehran in a show of support for the government after two days of opposition protests. millennials will enjoy the biggest "inheritance boom" of any post—war generation, but not until they're into their 60s, a report says. also in the next hour... australia's batsmen dug in to force a draw in the fourth ashes test in melbourne. captain steve smith scored yet another century as australia batted out the final day to save the fourth

test against england in melbourne. the draw means england avoid a whitewash. in halfan in half an hour on bbc news, the travel show explores the diverse communities, histories and traditions that form a constantly changing map of india. good morning and welcome to bbc news. the former beatles drummer ringo starr, barry gibb of the bee gees, and the former deputy prime minister, nick clegg, have all been knighted in the new year honours list. starr said it was "great" to be acknowledged for his music, while gibb said the knighthood was as much his brothers‘ "as it is mine". stars from the world of sport who are recognised include the wales and lions rugby union captain, sam warburton, and the world cup winning england cricket captain heather knight, who both receive an obe. our entertainment correspondent lizo mzimba has more details. # twist and shout! # twist and shout. more than 50 years after beatlemania, the fab four‘s drummer has been honoured

with a knighthood... # what would you do if i sang... # tragedy! former bee gee barry gibb said he was humbled and very proud to be made sir barry. # with no—one to love you, you're going nowhere. war horse author and one—time children's laureate michael morpurgo, who too has been made a knight, hopes his award highlights the importance of literature for young people. reading is a great bastion against stupidity and bigotry and ignorance. it is the greatest weapon we have, really. and the greatest assistance we can give them is to make them readers.

strictlyjudge darcey bussell, who has occasionally performed on the programme too, is to be made a dame. i'm dicky roper. i'm the night manager. those being made cbes, the next highest level of award, include actor hugh laurie for services to drama, and best—selling riders authorjilly cooper. absolutely knocked out. knocked out — i was thrilled. i couldn't believe it. i mean, suddenly to get a letter, you know, and one thinks "ooh, god, it's a bill, a gas bill or something". and it's this heavenly thing, saying "you're a cbe". it's wonderful. # i've got to run away. singer and campaigner marc almond is made an obe for services to arts and culture. musician and producer wiley, known as the ‘godfather of grime‘, is made an mbe. commentator: pass to warburton.

brilliant catch by the captain! in the world of sport, sam warburton, who has captained wales and the british lions, is made an obe. most of those being honoured are ordinary people doing extraordinary work, like efe ezekiel, who acts as a mentorfor young people. of course, young people are everything to me. i'm passionate about them and passionate their life, their well—being and their welfare, so for me to be recognised for my passion is one of the greatest honours ever, so i'm in complete gratitude and appreciation. the majority of honours do go to people who are not in the public eye but who have given exceptional service. and in 2018, the honours committee say they will be looking to particularly recognise individuals who were involved in the response to, and the aftermath of, the london and manchester terror attacks, and the fire at grenfell tower. lizo mzimba, bbc news, buckingham palace. also on the list is the first british astronaut helen sharman

who joins the order of st michael and st george — one of the highest honours — for services to education in science and technology. and she's with me now. congratulations, and its second time round for use. i know, such a pleasure and a great honour. absolutely thrilled. i got an obe in 1993 for services to space. and this cmg is for services to science technology education outreach. it's what i have been doing in my non—day job. where i am a manager at imperial college london, but this is a lot of what do outside that. it varies, travelling to international countries, as well as what i do in this country. i have always felt very strongly and passionate about as needing to understand science a lot more. you did a lot of work in the years immediately following your

time in space in schools, trying to encourage youngsters to get interested in the world beyond the world, as it were. how has that changed and developed over the yea rs, 25 yea rs, changed and developed over the years, 25 years, nearly? 25 or 30 yea rs years, 25 years, nearly? 25 or 30 years ago we were very condescendingly talking years ago we were very condescendingly talking about the public understanding of science. but the people who did do the science communication then, tended, with a few notable exceptions, they tended to be scientists who perhaps were not academically mega talented. it was seen as not academically mega talented. it was seen as the kind of thing that if you are a serious academic commie wouldn't do that sort of work. but now the tables have turned. and many scientists organised science cafes, science clubs in schools. a whole load of stuff going on. all the science festivals. it's bringing science festivals. it's bringing science to life and making it releva nt. science to life and making it relevant. is that now starting to reverse some of the trends people are worried about, some of the number of young people considering

careers in science and studying science at higher levels?” careers in science and studying science at higher levels? i think so, but it takes a long time for that to spin. i think life is looking much more optimistic, but science is just part of society now. it's not something you learn at school and forget about, it's releva nt, school and forget about, it's relevant, and it has tangible benefits to society. you were appointed to the order of st george and st george in the new year honours. it was originally ordered to those in the napoleonic wars. it's now awarded to those for extended non—military service in foreign countries. i wonder if it is my training in the soviet union. spaceis my training in the soviet union. space is hardly this country! and i have worked elsewhere, i have worked with the british embassy in moscow. i was affiliated with the science museum as well, i have been part of their exhibitions. i did work with

their exhibitions. i did work with the exhibition on the cosmonauts. spaceis the exhibition on the cosmonauts. space is international, as is science. it's something that is a common language, in many respects, for people worldwide. were you surprised when you found out you we re surprised when you found out you were getting this award, giving you already had an honour? really surprised. i had a letter through the letterbox from the cabinet office. i thought i had done something i'd really bad, or it might be something really exciting. i never expected it. but it's made me really happy. it's recognition for what i have done since my space flight for what i have done since my space flight instead of the actual flight, which was 26 years ago now. hard to imagine it was all that time. doctor helen sharman, obe, and now cmg as well. lord adonis, who's resigned as the government's infrastructure adviser, has accused ministers of becoming "hypersensitive to any criticism".

the former labour cabinet minister says that brexit has "infected" the entire conduct of whitehall and has vowed to "relentlessly" oppose the eu withdrawal bill in the house of lords. it would speak volumes about how they value independent advice if they value independent advice if they were indeed proposing to dismiss me. the whole point about the national infrastructure commission is that it's an independent body giving advice to the government without the favour. one of the really depressing things about the government at the moment, which i think is unfortunate reflection of the brexit malaise sweeping whitehall, is the government has become hypersensitive to any criticism, anyone who criticises them on brexit or anyone else. even if they are supposedly independent advisers. they get attacked. so michael heseltine, who was on my commission, got sacked from the commission, even though it's an independent commission, a few months ago, because he opposes brexit. and now you tell me they were thinking of dismissing me for expressing perfectly legitimate concerns. lord adonis speaking to breakfast

earlier. our political correspondent emma vardy is here. it's quite a resignation, but not hugely surprising, but the tone of the resignation letter is excoriating. he gave it with both barrels to the government, accusing theresa may of allying herself with ukip and being on the tory hard right. he didn't hold back. but he has been a really outspoken critic of brexit. he has attacked the government again and again. it seems his differences have now become so great that he had no choice but to go. of course, numberten great that he had no choice but to go. of course, number ten says that if he had decided to resign they would have pushed him out the door. it's clear from his would have pushed him out the door. it's clearfrom his round of interviews this morning that he is bitter about how the resignation was handled. there was a draft resignation letter that was leaked out. then number ten started briefing the media. he has lashed out again at the government this morning, saying that anyone who

wishes to stand against brexit, in his view whitehall has become a very difficult place to be. the government says he hasjumped before he was pushed, but he has indicated he was pushed, but he has indicated he was pushed, but he has indicated he was going to go anyway because he was very he was going to go anyway because he was very unhappy about what happened with the east coast mainline rail franchise. he had a realfalling out with the government over this, something he felt was completely the wrong decision by chris grayling to allow stagecoach to get out of the franchise arrangement some years early. he said it was a bailout costing the taxpayer millions or billions of pounds. the government says that it isn't a bailout. crucially, lord adonis says that his opposition to chris grayling was suppressed. he wanted to shout it from the rooftops but life was made difficult for him. he was even told that things might get awkward if you keep attacking the government's position on this. that was another key pa rt position on this. that was another key part of it. last month the government announced the bailout of stagecoach and virgin, the private operators of the

east coast rail franchise. i believe that was a mistake. the government has tried to silence me since and of criticising it, even though i'm an independent adviser. i thought that position was unsustainable as well. this is not the last we'll see of lord adonis. the eu withdrawal bill comes to the house of lords next month. he says he will work with other parties to defeat the government. but clashes with the government. but clashes with the government have become so great that it is said his resignation was long overdue. the white house has said the world is watching how iranian authorities respond to anti—government protests in several cities. in a statement, it said iranians were fed up with the regime's corruption and its squandering of the nation's wealth to fund terrorism abroad. the us state department condemned the arrests of protesters yesterday. according to state media,

today's rallies mark the end of unrest that shook the country in 2009. dozens of arrests have been made during anti—government protests in the last two days, leading to a warning from the us. jon ironmonger reports. iran is beset by the worst public unrest for almost a decade. there have been two days of widespread protests and outbreaks of violence, particularly in the western city of kermanshah, where police used force to disperse the crowd. and the capital tehran, with reportedly dozens of arrests. what began as frustrations about the rising cost of living, have escalated, becoming a broader campaign of defiance against iran's clerical rule. videos posted on social media showed demonstrators chanting death to president rouhani, and death to the dictator, referring to ayatollah khamenei. the united states has become one of the first countries to respond publicly to the protest. a white house statement said iran's leaders have turned a wealthy country into an economically depleted rogue state, whose chief exports aref violence, bloodshed and chaos. whose chief exports are violence, bloodshed and chaos. iran has suggested government opponents are behind the protests, and historically the regime has

sought to repress political uprisings. there hasn't been the style and the precedent of authorities to really listen to what people want, and to cave in to their demands. the style and the precedent seems to be, crackdown as forcefully as you can, crush it, make sure it doesn't really tip things over. and then wait until the next time that things erupt. and it is a powderkeg. sooner or later, something will have to give in. in spite of the protests, iranian state tv says pro—government rallies would go ahead this weekend to commemorate the support in 2009 of president ahmadinejad, raising the prospect of bitter counterdemonstrations. john ironmonger, bbc news. joining a stout is the bbc persian special correspondent. —— joining us now. do we have any sense of whether

the protests were spontaneous, the ones that started on thursday? the anti—government protests, it seems, from what we gather, and bits and pieces of information and statements from hardliners and others, it seems that initially a demonstration was organised by the hardliners in the north—eastern city of mash on thursday. it was supposed to be against rising prices, against the rising cost of living and against the president rouhani government because hardliners wanted to put him down. but that demonstration quickly got out of control and expanded. it became a very political demonstration against, not only the government, but the regime as a whole. the clerical regime. and it has spread to towns nearby. and yesterday it spread throughout the country to big cities. the protests

and demonstrations we have today, we re and demonstrations we have today, were organised by the government, pro—regime, and have happened every year since the eruption of trouble in 2009. from what you're saying, there is a sense that there are different forces inside iran. the regime, if you like, and some those conflicts have effectively played out through the protests. some of the disputes within the government and regime. initially that is how it started. interestingly, one of president rouhani's lieutenant ‘s yesterday made a speech yesterday warning the hardliners not to start this kind of thing. he said, if you start demonstrations like this, you are not going to be the people who will control it in the end. so it was a warning from president rouhani against these people. but this is the past, really. we have moved forward in the sense that

demonstrations have got a lot bigger than any of these people expected. the whole regime is under question. people are out on the streets calling for the mullahs to go. they don't want the regime of mullahs. they want the regime to step down. they want the regime to step down. they want the regime to step down. they want iran to stop spending money on wars in places like iraq, yemen, and spend money inside iran. they want political prisoners freed. so it has become very political.m there a generational thing here? many of those in the regime date back to 79 and the revolution and the period immediately afterwards. but the population of iran is much younger on average. of course the population is much younger. and things have moved on since 1979 and the revolution. but iran remains a

revolutionary state. who claims the street is still very important, as you see today. today, there are government—sponsored demonstrations. basically, the idea is that we bring pro—government people out on the streets, sponsor them, and bring them out to claim the streets in a show of force. today, basically, is a show of force, trying to claim the street and saying, we are in the majority and we will control the streets. thank you forjoining us. it be interesting to see how things develop over the next couple days. the headlines on bbc news... more than 1100 people are recognised in the new year honours with recognition for ringo starr, barry gibb and darcey bussell. peer lord adonis has criticised the government after he resigned as an adviser on

national infrastructure. thousands of pro—iranians government supporters are attending rallies today after two days of antiestablishment protests. sport now, and a full round up, from the bbc sport centre. we start in melbourne where australia held england to a draw in the fourth test. england had been hopeful of a first win of the series thanks to an unbeaten 244 from alastair cook but australian captain steve smith died in to bat out the final day with yet another century. the good news for england, it will not be a whitewash. patrick gearey is in melbourne for us. patrick gearey is in melbourne for us. on a day on which england would have hoped to complete a dramatic and exciting first victory of this ashes series, ended in a somewhat anti—climactic drawer. the reason, the familiar obstacle of steve smith, the australian captain, who

scored his third century of this ashes series and has now scored more than 600 runs in the series. it was he who batted australia through to see out the draw. england had a glimmer of hope earlier in the day when opener david warner tried to slog joe root‘s bowling. it went straight up in the air and gave root a bit on his birthday. england then got rid of shaun marsh before lunch thanks to a good catch from jonny ba i rstow. thanks to a good catch from jonny bairstow. they had real hope of getting into the australian lower order but smith then batted alongside mitchell marsh to see australia through the rest of the day. the scoring was very slow. the pitch was lifeless, and the atmosphere drained out of the mcg. so there will not be a 5—0 ashes win for australia, as two of the previous three england trips over here have seen, but england did morale boosting win either. we now go to sydney to see if england can get theirfirst go to sydney to see if england can get their first victory of the series. and we will all hope that it's a bit more exciting than this

one. are you getting tired of batting at any point, stephen? no, i'm enjoying it. it's a shame we had to call it off in the last hour. i could have had another hour out there. it was good fun. i'm enjoying it at the moment. i feel i'm hitting the ball really well. hopefully i can end the series really well in sydney as well. very proud with the way we went about it. to come off three very difficult games and put ina three very difficult games and put in a performance like that, it's very pleasing. that's what we are about as a side. i think that's a fair reflection of what we are capable of as a team, and on a very unresponsive footitt, to perform how we did on the first and second stay with the ball was outstanding. the spec unresponsive wicket. staying with cricket, the england women skipper heather knight has received an obe in the queen's new year's honours list. her teammates tammy beaumont and bowler anya shrubsole are awarded mbes.

shrubsole wasn't even the first person in herfamily to find out! i had ihada i had a letter through the post that my mum gave me when i came back. she had actually accidentally opened it because it did not show the name, just the address. she opened the post, so she knew a day before me. what were your feelings? first of all was the opportunity to meet the queen, because i love the green. it's my best shot. i was surprised, it took a couple of minutes to take it took a couple of minutes to take it all in. also in the new years honours list british and irish lions captain sam warburton has been awarded an obe. the welshman led the lions in the drawn test series against world champions new zealand during the summer. a full list of honours can be found on the bbc website. celtic‘s long domestic unbeaten run may be over, but nothing would give them greater satisfaction than a seasonal victory over their old firm rivals rangers this afternoon. the leaders would move 14 points clear of rangers with victory

at parkhead this lunchtime. they are always great fixtures to be involved in, wherever they are at. but it's always special to be involved in these games at celtic park. the last game, it's been an incredible year for us and we want to win it. they always pressure games look forward to. but in this cycle of games, we have been so busy. we only played a few days ago, on boxing day. all the focus is on those games, but the minute that finishes, then of course we look forward to this. festive football continuing. you can find out more on the bbc sport website. that's bbc.co.uk/sport and i'll have more for you in the next hour. egypt's former president mohamed morsi has been sentenced to three years in prison and fined over half a million dollars for insulting the judiciary.

17 other defendants will also be jailed. they were all accused of inciting demonstrations, defaming judicial personnel, and attempting to topple the state using twitter accounts. mr morsi is already serving a life sentence for allegedly conspiring to commit terrorist acts. police are appealing for witnesses after a man opened fire on a fast food restaurant in east london seriously injuring two teenagers. police were called to plaistow last night. two 16—year—olds were injured, one suffered a gunshot injury to the back, the second boy suffered a gunshot wound to the leg. they are in a stable condition in hospital. a 26—year—old man will appear in court today charged with the murder of mohammed aftab from rochdale. mr aftab — who was 21 — was found with stab wounds to his neck on a country lane on christmas day. his father altaf hussain said his son's death was a "devastating loss". younger people will enjoy the biggest "inheritance boom" of any post—war generation — that's according to the think tank, the resolution foundation, which analyses living standards. those born in the 80s and early 90s, so—called millenials, will have to wait for the windfall though.

the study estimates that the average age they will inherit something will be 61 years old. here's more from our business correspondentjoe lynam. young people aged between 17 and 35 hoping to get on the housing ladder could be set to inherit a lot of money from their parents. but it may come too late for some. according to the resolution foundation, the value of inheritances is set to double over the next 20 years, thanks to baby boomers aged between 50 and 70 leaving behind expensive property. but the think tank says the average age someone inherits is now 61, meaning too late for many of today's house hunters. across the piece, the financial situation, the living standards picture for millenials is quite concerning. they're earning less than those 15 — or 10 or 15 years before them were at the same age. they are much less likely to own a home, and while they might be saving into a pension, it is much less likely to be one of those gold—plated final salary pensions.

so in the round, quite a concerning picture forfar too many millenials today. so, 17—35—year—olds inheriting more money than any previous generation will only be able to use it in their old age, or by passing it onto their own grandchildren. joe lynam, bbc news. several families left homeless by the grenfell tower fire have not received extra money promised to them by the council to help cover the cost of christmas. the royal borough of kensington and chelsea has apologised saying it made a mistake, after nearly 20 households promised the relief payments missed out. if the cold weather has got you thinking about summer sunshine, there's a warning today from the consumer group which? that holiday firms may be misleading consumers. many tour operators promote money—off deals, providing travellers book by a certain date. but a study found that half the holidays advertised were the same price — or even cheaper — after the offer expired. the firms involved have all denied misleading their customers. in november we told you about a group of school

children from kidderminster, who have become pen pals with elderly residents living at a nearby care home. after five months of correspondence, the children have been able to put faces to the people behind the letters. our reporter ali fortescue went along to meet them. signed, sealed, and this time it's being handed over in person. being hand delivered. we are going to see our penpals and i am really excited. it is an unlikely friendship, but with just one mile and 80 years between them, jasmine and her school friends are finally making the trip up to barchester care home to meet their penpals for the very first time. are you jasmine? that is very nice, isn't it? that is lovely. have you got something to give, james? did you do these? we have been writing to the residents here sincejuly now, and the children have been loving receiving replies

as well as writing about events that have happened in their lives. more than 400 letters have been sent between the school and the care home, but as well as offering the chance to hand over a christmas card, it is an opportunity for the children to show off their musical talents. #jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way... i thought we would just sing the carols, not really speak to them and then go home, but it wasn't like that. we got to speak to all the residents. there is a big age gap but it doesn't matter. i gave her a christmas card, a poem, and a card. a poem, and a card that year one has done. what is it like meeting jasmine who has been writing you these letters? it is lovely, isn't it? you are a lovely girl. many of the residents here have dementia, but their carers say receiving the children's letters has

lifted their spirits. i think it's just having that connection again, letting them share their stories with people and children in particular. what it was like living back in the olden days, and the residents get to learn what it is like living now with the children and all their new technology. i loved seeing the children with us. it is a great honour to us. and also, we hope they learn a little too. this has gone so well that schools up and down the country, and as far away as australia, are starting similar penpal projects. but there's only one thing left to say for now. merry christmas! ali fortescue, bbc news. herbert of sunshine around. rain and

hill snow spreading north around scotland. confined to the mainland around the end of the day. heavy showers in the north and west but not too many. wendy to the south—west with rain heading back in by the end of the afternoon. that'll move northwards to all parts tonight. minorflooding move northwards to all parts tonight. minor flooding possible. strong wind across—the—boa rd. tonight. minor flooding possible. strong wind across—the—board. but stronger winds later tonight across northern ireland as storm dylan sta rts northern ireland as storm dylan starts to roll its way in. into tomorrow morning. the start of new year's eve with travel is disruption, severe gales affecting northern ireland, southern scotland, northern england and north wales. the strongest wind will be in the morning. rain and mountain snow. brief showers will see is all the way to the end of 2017.