this is bbc news. the headlines at 10:00: two people are arrested in connection with the drone sightings which brought gatwick airport to a standstill. passengers are still suffering delays and cancellations — but the airport aims to run a full schedule of flights today. a row over the money for donald trump's border wall results in a partial shutdown of the us government. a british warship arrives in the black sea in response to russia's seizure last month of three ukrainian navy vessels and their crew. also coming up this hour... transforming the lives of hundreds of babies while still in the womb. surgery for unborn babies with spinal defects is to be made made routinely available on the nhs in england. and in half an hour, there's a festive feel to the travel show, as the team takes on the snow and extreme temperatures of finnish lapland. good morning and welcome to bbc

news. police have arrested two people in connection with the illegal use of drones, which has caused huge disruption to flights into and out of gatwick airport. sussex police say a man and a woman are in custody but that investigations are continuing. flights were suspended for a third day yesterday because of a new drone sighting, before operators were assured the military measures put in place made it safe for the runway to re—open. gatwick airport says it aims to run: "a full schedule" today operating 757 flights carrying over 124,000 passengers. the airport say passengers should expect some delays and cancellations as they continue to recover operations following the three days of disruption. munaza rafiq has more. after hundreds of cancelled flights,

this was the reaction when passengers heard they were up and running again. cheering and applause. it came after the airport was closed forjust over an hour after the sighting of another drone. they told us that the flight was cancelled and that we had to collect our luggage. after unprecedented disruption, flights had resumed just after 6:00 on friday morning. many woke up after a night on the airport's floor. virginia goncalves from cornwall is seriously ill and spent the night in an airport chair. it's horrible. it's...it goes against your human rights, isn't it? i have stage four cancer, widespread to the bones, for god's sake. last night, sussex police said they had arrested two people suspected of involvement in the illegal use of drones. meanwhile, flights have continued throughout the night at the country's second busiest airport as it attempts

to deal with the severe backlog of passengers. munaza rafiq, bbc news. 0ur correspondent, jenny kumah is at gatwick for us this morning. what is the picture there today? inside the terminal it is busy. frustration amongst passengers because some of the delays. 0ne flight because some of the delays. 0ne flight coming in from barbados which said it was delayed by over 2a hours. the message from the airport is check the status of your flight because there are some cancellations and delays. since the disruption, there have been three days of disruption, 150,000 passengers have been disrupted. around 1000 flights have been affected. yesterday there

was the prospect of even further disruption when around 5pm and there was a further sighting of a drone. this led to the suspension of flights for around 90 minutes. 11 inbound flights were diverted to other airports and there were delays to some flights. the message from the airport and the police, they do have measures in place to make the airfield said. the airport says it is hoping to run a full schedule today and they are hoping to run around 750 flights and transport around 750 flights and transport around 120,000 passengers. around 750 flights and transport around 120,000 passengersm around 750 flights and transport around 120,000 passengers. in terms of this weekend, it would normally be extraordinarily busy at all the major airports and they are dealing with the consequences of the flights they lost as well as the flights they lost as well as the flights they are scheduling to run normally today? there is a big backlog they are trying to deal with. the number

of flights, for example, three flights from barbados but had been delayed and a number of other areas have been affected. there has been criticism of the government for taking its eye off the ball. they have responded by saying they did bring in changes this year. drone owners have to be registered and also they will be responding to a consultation and bringing in draft legislation in the new year. jenny at gatwick, thanks very much. so how can a drone cause so much chaos? and what can be done to prevent this? we can speak to philip ingram, a former british army intelligence 0fficer, whojoins us. let me ask you about the events we saw over the last couple of days, we re saw over the last couple of days, were you surprised at how quickly the drone activity could bring the airport to a standstill? no, i am

not. the airport authorities have w011 not. the airport authorities have won responsibility and that is passenger safety. as soon as any threat get into the airport area they have to stop operations if they believe an aircraft can be endangered. those operations to mitigate the effect is search for the drones and identify those responsible, is their technology that will allow that to happen, or is it in that will allow that to happen, or is itina that will allow that to happen, or is it in a sense, trying to shut the sta ble is it in a sense, trying to shut the stable door after the horse has bolted in this case? it is a bit of both, all airports have procedures in place if there is a drone incident. the threat of a drone hitting an aircraft or causing damage or worse, to an aircraft. ai rcrafts damage or worse, to an aircraft. aircrafts are tested monthly with drones flying into a controlled airspace and procedures work in finding them. this was unprecedented, a deliberate attack to disrupt and it did disrupt air traffic in and out of gatwick. now

we have this president and we can see what it can do, will it focus minds are particularly in government and in transport circles to try and ensure that an airport isn't put in this situation again. once one person has done this other malicious people might want to repeat the act at airports around the world? very much so, the civil aviation authority are working on a security management system and this will management system and this will manage the risk affects. i was at a conference at the end of november and we discussed drone threats around airports and this scenario wasn't part of the discussion. so the new threat is there, it is out and it will be mitigated against. you are saying despite these conferences, nobody had thought this could happen? well, they thought it could happen? well, they thought it could happen? well, they thought it could happen but you look at all the different events that could happen and you look at the most likely, you

look at the least likely, look at the one that caused the most disruption and those that would cause the most disruption. this would fall into the category of least likely. why would somebody do it unless it was a terrorist act? procedures are in place to monitor terrorist activity to see if it is being picked up on. random individuals, disgruntled ex—employee to gatwick airport carrying out something to disrupt, their only motivation is to disrupt, it is very difficult to defend against. we don't know the circumstances and thatis don't know the circumstances and that is just an example you have offered. there could be other explanations. but in terms of the technical and military response, he would have heard a lot of over the last few days, why don't they just shoot the thing down? what goes up, must come down and that is the same with drones and bullets. you don't

wa nt with drones and bullets. you don't want bits of ordinance flying around in an airport situation over built—up areas where you cannot control where they land. they are difficult to shoot down. the military brought in a series of capabilities that would allow them to put external and warnings around to put external and warnings around to identify where the drones were coming from and potentially disrupt them, but more of an identification on their tracking capability. good to speak to you, thank you very much. a partial shutdown of the us government has come into effect after congress adjourned without reaching an agreement on a revised spending bill. president trump had demanded the legislation include $5.7 billion for the mexican border wall, but with a threshold of 60% needed in the upper house, it failed to gain support in the senate. 0ur north america correspondent, david willis, explained what's likely to happen next. both houses of congress are set to reconvene in the morning at noon and they will presumably start all over again to try to find an agreement.

white house representatives, including the incoming chief of staff, mick mulvaney, and the president's son—in—law, jared kushner, have been on capitol hill. they spent about five hours at congress throughout the day, basically shuttling backwards and forwards between senate, republicans and democrats, trying to get beyond this impasse, but with both sides fairly entrenched it's looking increasingly unlikely there will be some sort of solution to this any time now. president trump, though, did put out a video on his twitter feed this evening and he said in that that he thought — or hoped — that the shutdown would not last long, in his words. a british warship has arrived in the black sea in response to russia's seizure of three ukrainian navy vessels and their crew last month.

the defence secretary, gavin williamson, says the presence of the royal navy will send a strong message to moscow. 0ur defence correspondent, jonathan beale has more. these are the increasingly volatile and contested waters of the black sea. and navigating his way through them, britain's defence secretary steering a ukrainian gunboat. just a month ago, russia seized three sister boats nearby off the coast of crimea, land now also occupied by russia. but he's here to visit a royal navy warship docked in ukraine's port of odessa — hms echo, a lightly armed service vessel, or what moscow calls a spy ship. it's meant to send a clear message. what we are saying to russia, what we are saying to president putin, they cannot continue to act with no regard or care for international laws or international norms. this is why he's intervened.

in november, a ukrainian tug boat was rammed by a russian vessel. shots were fired at the accompanying flotilla, blocked from entering the narrow kerch straight. to do what we can do, working with you to ensure your loved ones are back home with you. 2a ukrainian sailors are still being held, these their anxious relatives waiting for news. the uk's defence secretary listened to their pleas for help — they even sent a letter to the queen. viktor has not seen his wounded son, vassil, since he was captured. he says, "i feel pain, i feel helpless. we are looking for the support of britain to get them released." the presence of this royal navy warship here in odessa is to provide ukraine with reassurance in the face of what they see as russian aggression but britain is not looking for a confrontation with russia, and this warship

is not expected to sail through the kerch strait. does anyone else want one? the defence secretary says this is not a provocation, but a show of solidarity. the crew of hms echo will be here for christmas. it's quite a long stint, isn't it? and other british warships will be returning next year. jonathan beale, bbc news, 0dessa. four stowaways found on a cargo ship in the thames estuary have been detained under the immigration act, after the vessel's crew was threatened. the grande tayma left nigeria 11 days ago. the group are thought to have armed themselves with iron bars, forcing crew members to retreat to the bridge of the ship. no one was injured. home ownership among 25 to sa—year—olds has risen for the first time in three decades, according to new research by the resolution foundation. the think tank, which focuses on people with lower incomes, warned that first—time buyers

still face barriers to getting on the housing ladder. our business correspondent joe miller has more. backin back in the 1980s, around half of young brits owned a home. in the decade since, the number of first—time buyers under 35 has dropped dramatically to just 25%. but there is some good news at last. a rise of almost 3% in those able to get on the property ladder. the resolution foundation which crunched the numbers, say tweaks to stamp duty and longer mortgages helped, but it is the banks which made the biggest difference. after the financial crisis lenders took less risk and now they are taking a bit more and being more generous with first—time buyers in terms of the loa ns first—time buyers in terms of the loans they give them. also house price growth has slowed significantly over the past years. they say it equates to 190,000 more

young families who have their own home this christmas. but the good tidings are not evenly spread. while yorkshire and the humber, scotland and the north—west of england saw strong growth, the number of 35 is declined in the east of east midlands and there is no popping champagne corks yet. the thing tank says renting is still the norm for the overwhelming number of young people. the headlines on bbc news: two people are arrested in connection with the drone sightings which brought gatwick to a standstill — the airport aims to run a ‘full schedule' of flights today a row over the money for donald trump's border wall results in a partial shutdown of the us government. a british warship arrives in the black sea in response to russia's seizure last month of three ukrainian navy vessels and their crew. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's lizzi greenwood—hughes. plenty going on this weekend,

lizzie? good morning. it isa it is a busy time for football, as always. liverpool have guaranteed the number one spot in the premier league for christmas after they beat wolves 2—0 at molineux. they're four points clear of manchester city, who play today. nick parrott reports. liverpool haven't had a happy christmas for five years. nowjurgen klopp and his men have delivered an early present to their fans. this wasn't as comfortable a victory as the scoreline suggests, though — playing at molineux isn't easy. manchester city could only draw here. chelsea lost. and liverpool rode their luck at times. they could easily have slipped up with the rain lashing down. but the difference between the good and the great comes down to making the most of your chances. that is just what mo saleh did. the egyptian‘s goal took him to the top of the league scoring charts and he was on song with an assist, too, taken brilliantly by virgil van dijk.

with more prolific strikers, wolves might have got something. but liverpool could have scored more, too. the team that's top of the table christmas usually ends up as champions. the pressure is now on manchester city. nick parrott, bbc news. so the attention now turns to manchester city. a win today against crystal palace will reduce that gap tojust a point. manchester united take on cardiff this evening as 0le gunnar solskjaer starts his era intrim manager. ashley young has been speaking to former united strike dion dublin about what has been going on at old trafford. why do you think it has not clicked? there is so much talent. i am not sure, it is about building confidence. the talent in the squad is unbelievable. you need the discipline and character, the heart and desire and the winning mentality. when you work at a club like this, that comes in abundance.

for me, at my age, i am still a winner and want to win all the time. a lot of people will tell you, when i come off the training pitch, if i have lost in training, it hurts, i am not nice to be around! there's a big night of uk boxing tonight with the english heavyweights — dillian whyte and dereck chisora clashing at the 02 and at the same time, also on pay—per—view but in manchester — josh warrington will fight carl frampton for the ibf featherweight title. both fights are expected to be very close and the clash of timings has irritated many boxing fans and in particular the warrington—frampton promoter frank warren. it is disrespectful to the sport and disrespectful to the fans. it is the time of year when people maybe can't afford to pay for two events. it is ridiculous. there is no sense to it. i have no problem with competition, but it is stupid competition. you will not put on man

city and man united, playing 3pm, saturday, on the same day. it does not happen, in the same town. they split the teams up to make it work to make sure you have a maximum audience. you need a maximum audience for your sport because he want to grow your sport. every christmas, the world's top showjumpers travel to the centre of london for the 0lympia international horse show. it's a week long event — and this afternoon is the one they all want to win — the world cup qualifier. britain's ben maher is one of the big names competing, not only for the huge prize money but also for the points which count towards a place in the world cup final next year. the olympic gold medallist in 2012 has had a great year and a win at olympia would be a nice christmas present. it is 0lympia, one of the best horse shows in the world. for many reasons, riders alike riding here. london is a great atmosphere and i

have done many shows this year and you don't get the same atmosphere like you do in this building. it is the big one of the week. that's all the sport for now. lizzie, thank you very much. surgery to repair the spinal cord of unborn babies is to become routinely available on the nhs from next spring. nhs england says the procedure, carried out during pregnancy, will help to correct spina bifida, when the bones of the spine don't form properly and the spinal cord is left exposed. here's our medical correspondent, fergus walsh. i might not go too much deeper, frank, because we might need membranes in a second. this hospital in belgium has trained british doctors to carry out surgery to repair spinal defects during pregnancy. now families won't need to go abroad for treatment. thank you very much. hands crossed. spina bifida develops during pregnancy when the bones of the spine don't form properly. this can cause a bulge from which spinal fluid leaks out.

the condition can cause a range of lifelong health issues such as paralysis, bladder and bowel problems, and affect brain development. the delicate surgery happens at around 26 weeks pregnancy. the womb is opened and the baby's nerve tissues are pushed back into the spinal cord, which is then closed. the pregnancy continues for another three months. this must be my baby! hello! this is baby ayesha from belgium meeting the british surgeon who corrected her spina bifida when she was in the womb. doctors expect she will walk normally. two pregnant women in the uk have had the surgery this year. now it will be routinely available in england. a combined team at london's university college and great 0rmond street hospitals hope to treat 10—20 babies each year. fergus walsh, bbc news. joining us now is gina lavis.

she was 2a weeks pregnant when she went to belgium in 2014 to have the surgery performed on her unborn daughter, frankie — who is now four years old thank you for being here this morning, how is she? she is doing really, really well, thank you. she had the operation in the womb, that must have been a frightening prospect? it was frightening and when we got the diagnosis, it was devastating. it is something you wouldn't want anyone to go through. what did you understand about spina bifida at that stage? at that stage, we did know much about it apart from it was a problem with the spine and she would probably never walk. which isa she would probably never walk. which is a horrible thought when you are carrying your child with all the

hopes and prospects you have. when the doctors tell you this might be an option? we found out that 90 weeks and it was probably 20 weeks weeks and it was probably 20 weeks we found out from mr welsh that it could be done. this is in plymouth, but you couldn't do the surgery there? no, it had never been done in there? no, it had never been done in the uk, which we didn't realise at the uk, which we didn't realise at the time. we had to go to belgium to have the surgery. did you have to pay for this? we were funded through the nhs. they funded the majority of the nhs. they funded the majority of the surgery and we the bit left over. even so, you have the stress and that of travelling. it didn't solve the problem, but it mitigated the effects, can you explain it? we we re the effects, can you explain it? we were told we'd be lucky if frankie could sit up unaided. with surgery she is unable to walk short distances and use her wheelchair the

rest of the time, so it has done really well for her. for expectant mums who might think, to have that stress on top of being pregnant, they might think it is better to wait and deal with the situation when the baby is born, what advice do you have about that? a lot of the surgery is done much later on? normally the surgery is done once the baby is born. it was done very early on, 2a weeks. the baby is born. it was done very early on, 24 weeks. what would be your advice to other parents in that situation, because it sounds frightening? an operation on your unborn child when it could be done afterwards ? unborn child when it could be done afterwards? it is frightening and it is not for everyone. it is not a cure, it's not easy but i think the best thing is to be fully informed and have all the options available to make the choice. how excited is

frankly about christmas? she's really excited, looking forward to getting chocolate buttons from sa nta. getting chocolate buttons from santa. in terms of her prospects and prognosis, is this the best it's going to get or do you have hope of further improvement, more opportunities as she gets older and stronger? we don't know. she is walking, which is more than we ever expected. if walking and having a wheelchair is how she's going to be, thatis wheelchair is how she's going to be, that is fine for us. i am sure she is difficult to keep in one place as are most young children. very happy christmas to you and more important to frankie, hope she has a lovely time. thank you very much. being a parent of a child with allergies can be a scary prospect and over the christmas period it can present

an extra challenge. this autumn an inquest into the death of teenager natasha ednan—laperouse, who suffered a reaction after eating a baguette from pret a manger, thrust the issue into the spotlight. 0ur weather presenter matt taylor, who has two daughters with severe allergies, went to meet natasha's parents. you like this, do you? yeah, ido. like all families, we are looking forward to christmas, the kids especially excited as well. they've got santa coming, there's the presents, also the food, to a certain extent, but with us as a family that comes with huge, huge challenges. i have loads of allergies. i'm allergic to dairy, egg, legumes, lentils, and peas. i also have some allergies, i'm allergic to peanuts. # it's beginning to look a lot like christmas... brilliant. look at all that! daddy, what are those? you are constantly thinking

about what you are feeding them, what they are eating and up comes even more of a challenge at christmas time, especially when there's parties involved, they go out to other places, to other friends. gosh, that's got everything in it, nope. it is just one mistake that could be the difference between life and basically death. hello, lovely to see you. thank you for meeting me. i am meeting the parents of natasha ednan—laperouse. natasha was just 15 when she died in 2016, after having an allergic reaction after eating a baguette from pret a manger. christmas for us isn'tjust christmas, it's also her birthday, and we will be celebrating that without her and then christmas day... it'lljust never be the same, really, because we find it too difficult to be here on christmas day because she's missing. it is just so palpable that she's not here. natasha's parents are trying

to change the labelling of food in restaurants and take—aways. it'll be called natasha's law. do you think natasha's law would help to change things out there and to make us more confident to eat out as a family in future? most definitely. it has to, that's the whole point. companies who have not had to take allergies seriously or allergens and food seriously will now be required to and if they don't, then they will be in trouble. we will not stop until it is done, basically, because i think that is the legacy we would like for natasha. now, more importantly for those that are living, to protect those that are living so they do not come into that terrible situation that we had as a family. i was incredibly humbled to meet natasha's parents, they have been through a huge, a huge amount of distress and heartache but yet are turning that to try and help other families in the future, to stop them going to the same heartache and loss that they have. # sure it's christmas...# right, here we go.

what do you reckon to them? it has been quite a challenge so far, bringing two daughters up with allergies but i hope that things will change top a certain extent, that they can go out, enjoy christmas, just like any other family. they are allergen—free, let's see, are they tasty? all: merry christmas, everyone! now it's time for a look at the weather with susan powell. today, the fereday of the two. tomorrow, much cloudier, grey and wet in the southern half of the uk. showers for western scotland this afternoon, but generally a lot of fine weather, mild in the south. it is quite chilly for the north after

the frosty start. if you are heading out this evening, it is pretty vibe. into the small hours of sunday rain will pile into the south—west of england and wales and northern ireland. chilly night across scotla nd ireland. chilly night across scotland with a widespread frost and a few patches of fog developing. this is sunday's picture. scotland sticking out to the north will get the best of the fine and indeed if any, sunny weather to sunday. further south, more cloud around and outbreaks of rain at times but on the plus side it will be mild here once again.