this is bbc news i'm martine croxall. the headlines at 8:00. the rising number of migrants trying to cross the english channel is declared a major incident by the home secretary. a tourist bus is hit by a roadside bomb near the giza pyramids in egypt killing two people. following an explosion in leicester in february, three men are found guilty of murdering five people. the music retailer hmv is being put into administration placing more than 2,000 jobs at risk. and in half an hour, i'll be looking back at a turbulent 12 months in our high streets. that's review 2018: the retail year with me, emma simpson. the home secretary sajid javid has declared a "major incident" after a surge in the number of migrants trying to cross the english channel in small boats. 75 people have reached the uk in the past three days.

but only one of the five patrol boats operated by the border force is currently operating in the channel. a major incident declaration means the issue has become a home office operational priority — and that a senior civil servant heads up a gold command structure that reports to the home secretary daily on its progress. 0ur correspondent duncan kennedy sent us this from dover. it's been another flat, calm day out here on the channel which is why we have seen yet more sailings today, two more, in fact, bringing a total of 12 more migrants, and overall the total since november has gone up to 220 migrants who have made this crossing. which is why tonight we have had this from the home secretary, sajid javid. that he is declaring this major incident. huddled in life jackets, these were some of today's arrivals off the coast of dover. two boats with 12 men, cold and disorientated, and are now in the hands of immigration officials.

they'd managed to get across despite the presence of this border force cutter that we filmed off folkestone today. the boat is currently britain's only major channel patrol vessel. tony smith, who once ran border force, says it isn't enough to stop a disaster at sea. out on the channel we do need more capacity to enable us, notjust to spot these small boats, but also to intercept them and i think it needs an international effort really in collaboration with the french law enforcement agencies to prevent them coming in the first place. tonight the home secretary sajid javid has declared the rising number of migrants a major incident and says he is considering whether another border force cutter is required. that's certainly what some refugee charities are calling for. but, wouldn't more patrol boats lead to more migrants? i think the uk has an overinflated sense of its own attraction for asylum seekers.

in the grand scheme of things, very few asylum seekers want to come here. the journey is arduous and i think if we make that last bitjust that little bit safer i don't think it's going to suddenly pull in hundreds of thousands more people. the government says that although this is the only border force cutter currently patrolling off the coast of kent, they don't want to put more resources into this for fear of attracting more migrants. the argument being that if the migrants and smugglers in france get wind that it's safer to cross the channel then they'll be tempted to make the crossing. so, just how many are trying to come over? well, in addition to today's i2 migrants, there were 23 people yesterday and a0 on christmas day. making a total of around 220 since november. really what we need to do is to stop people making these journeys in the first place. so, more patrol boats is part of the answer but it is also having the resources on the ground we need, working in partnership

with the french, to identify gangs and stop them making the crossings in the first place. the numbers of people trying to reach britain are nothing like those who came into southern europe in 2015. but with the home secretary now getting involved these channel crossings are taking on a different and more urgent character in britain's response. duncan kennedy, bbc news, in dover. with me now is steve valdez symonds, refugee and migrants rights programme director at amnesty. thank you forjoining us. welcome to bbc news. what sort of risks are these people prepared to take in crossing the channel like this? you have to remember the people we are talking about have already taken extreme risks even in getting to europe, let alone crossing to europe and getting to france, they have probably moved, many of them, over many, probably moved, many of them, over any probably moved, many of them, over many, many months through different countries forced on from one to the

next because of the lack of safety and security for them in the places they have been through. many of them have probably been raped or tortured, subject to slavery in places like libya long before they arrived in northern france. the risks they will take if left in the desperate circumstances that many of them have been left in four months and months on end in france are, as you can see, extreme. the fact is that if the response is simply again and again to try and stop people's journeys, that will only force people to take greater risks than they have before. how much blame do you lay at the feet of the traffickers, though, who make very expensive promises and still put lives at risk? there are many people exploiting the situation in the most cruel ways, and so smugglers and traffickers who exploit people in these circumstances, yes, of course,

i put these circumstances, yes, of course, iputan these circumstances, yes, of course, i put an awful lot of blame on them. but at the same time, who is creating and sustaining the circumstances were these exploitative people get to operate? it is governments, governments who are refusing to take responsibility for people fleeing war and persecution and governments who are refusing to take responsibility for migrants in very desperate circumstances who are left with their lives being squandered for months or years on end. a former senior immigration official david wood has been speaking about this in light of the current surge in numbers and his view is that you are in effect creating a demand if you go out into the channel and rescue people. surely it is sending the wrong signal that we will pick you up wrong signal that we will pick you up if you take to the channel if —— in an inflatable. i'm sorry to say, the idea that anybody is sending a signal by rescuing people at sea thatis signal by rescuing people at sea that is detrimental is nonsense. if people are in danger of their lives then they need to be saved. this is

exactly the sort of nonsense we have heard in response to the desperate circumstances were thousands of people have drowned in the mediterranean, and we have seen in the past when search and rescue has been withdrawn more people die, and i'm afraid the same sort of thing happens in northern france. if you don't provide safety and security for people they need to they are to, ta ke for people they need to they are to, take more desperate risks. the dublin agreement says you are supposed to claim asylum, if that is what you are claiming, in the first pa rt what you are claiming, in the first part of the eu that you arrive in. clearly, a lot of people are not doing that if they are travelling across france, say, to get to the channel, and it is only when they arrive in britain that they do that. let's knock something on the head there. the dublin agreement is an arrangement between states, european states, and it says nothing about the legal obligations upon individuals seeking asylum. they are under international law not required

to make their asylum claim in any particular country at all, and they are doing nothing wrong in seeking to find somewhere safe. the problem with the dublin arrangement is that it has meant an awful lot of pressure is put up on countries like greece and italy to try and deal with all of the people arriving in europe, or nearly all of the people arriving in europe, most of whom come at these moments in time across the mediterranean and it is not sustainable. so, of course, what happens is people arrive in greece and are left in atrocious conditions for months, and indeed years on end. if they can they will try to move to the next country in the hope of finding somewhere safe. we see that right across europe at the moment because countries are refusing to come together and share responsibility rather than leaving it to their neighbours. as we know, the home secretary has now declared this a major incident, which means

there is a senior civil servant in charge of a gold command structure and daily reports are given to the home secretary on the status quo. what, in your view, should britain be doing either to stop this flow of dangerous trafficking, or to welcome people in? what should we be doing? well, actually, the two points you make, iwon well, actually, the two points you make, i won at the same. if you want to stop the dangerous journeys, then you have to find and provide safe routes for people to travel and those who have good claims for security and asylum to be granted them without having to rely upon smugglers. —— they are one and the same. the major emergency going on in the world has been going on for yea rs if not in the world has been going on for years if not decades, because u nfortu nately, years if not decades, because unfortunately, governments like our own, including our neighbour governments in europe, have refused to ta ke governments in europe, have refused to take responsibility and left most of the responsibility for hosting refugees in countries that host vastly greater numbers of people in much more difficult and unstable

circumstances. that needs to change. steve valdez—symonds from amnesty, thank you forjoining us tonight. and we'll find out how this story — and many others — are covered in tomorrow's front pages at 10:30pm and 11:30pm this evening in the papers — our guests tonight are — political commentator, giles kenningham and the defence editor of the evening standard, robert fox. three people have been killed in an explosion on a tourist bus in egypt. two vietnamese tourists and an egyptian tour guide were killed near the pyramid complex at giza, just outside the capital city cairo. authorities say ten vietnamese tourists and the local driver of the coach were also injured in what the egyptian interior ministry has described as a blast caused by an improvised explosive device. a woman has been charged with murder following the deaths of two children in margate. samantha ford, who is 37, was arrested yesterday after two young children were discovered at a property in the middle of the night. they were taken to hospital where they were confirmed to have died. samantha ford is due to apear at canterbury magistrates'

court on saturday. three men have been found guilty of the murder of five people — including a mother and her two sons — in an explosion at a shop in leicester. the blast destroyed a supermarket and the flat above, where a family lived. the court had heard that the men caused the explosion in order to make an insurance claim. a warning that this report by our correspondent kathryn stanczyszyn contains distressing images from the start. a massive explosion rips through a building, tearing a hole in this city street. people who witnessed it thought a bomb had gone off. but instead, it was caused by a fire, started deliberately to profit from an insurance claim. it destroyed a polish shop and the flat above it. mary ragoobeer, two of her teenage sons, sean and shane, and shane's girlfriend, leah reek, who had arrived 10 minutes before,

were spending sunday evening together at home. all four were killed. the light went out of our world on that terrible night, and it is so difficult to put into words how much we miss leah. she was an amazing, inspirational young lady who was just starting out on her life adventure. we know leah worshipped shane and they adored each other. and they were taken from this world. we are so grateful to the family for making leah so welcome. she loved being there and knowing she was always happy there gives us some comfort. also killed was 22—year—old viktorija ijevleva, who was working in the shop at the time. she'd been conspiring with three men — hawkar hassan, arkan ali and aram kurd. they wanted to claim £300,000 in insurance because the business was failing. this cctv footage shows them buying more than 20 litres of petrol the day before the explosion. they also bought other flammable materials to intensify the fire. the jury heard the three men had deliberately

left viktorija ijevleva, who was arkan ali's partner, in the shop to die because she knew too much about the scam. they also believed they would get more money if people were killed. aram kurd ran the polish supermarket. prior to the explosion he moved the cctv camera outside the shop to obscure the view. here he is at the scene just seconds afterwards. he had been in the basement when it happened. then, an hour later, talking to police. just go through how it all came about. the bbc spoke to him the next day, before he was arrested. how are you feeling at the moment? i don't know how to tell you. never have i felt how i am now. the three men will be sentenced next month for the murder of five people. a cynically planned fraud with no regard for human life. kathryn stanczyszyn, bbc news, leicester. one of the most familiar names

in british retailing, hmv, has confirmed that it's calling in administrators. the move affects more than 2,000 staff at 125 stores throughout the uk. sales at the music and film retailer have been hit by competition from online retailers and streaming services. it's the second time in five years that hmv has hit serious financial trouble, as our business correspondent rory cellan—jones reports. there's some flash photography coming up. from david bowie... ..to eltonjohn... ..to take that. they all chose the most famous name in high street music to launch an album. but that was then. now, hmv has collapsed into administration for the second time in five years. the main reason? people are finding other ways to get music and movies. netflix or spotify. i don't ever buy anything. no, i don't buy any. i download everything. i like movies but i'm not bothered about having them on dvd

all the time and stuff like that. so it wouldn't be that bad for me, to be honest. hmv‘s current owners bought it out of administration five years ago. but today they said an extremely weak christmas and a poor outlook for music and dvd sales next year meant they couldn't go on trading. when it comes to physical sales, hmv is still a major force, with around a third of all music sales in the uk and about a quarter of the dvd and blu—ray market. but both are in decline and a big fall in recent months in sales of dvds seems to have pushed the firm over the edge. don't you get sick of it all? the rise of streaming services such as netflix and spotify means millions no longer choose to own dvds or cds, making the environment for a high street entertainment retailer ever harder. i don't think that's the whole story. i mean, obviously hmv have seen a change in terms of sales as people

move to digital access models. but actually, i think what we're seeing now is something akin to some malaise on the high street generally with high rent and rates and a very torrid christmas trading period this year. i bought my first records in hmv. it was kind of like a magical place. jimmy martin went on to work at hmv for 15 years and now helps run this store specialising in second—hand vinyl. he says there's still a place for music on the high street. for music on the high street. i think it's all about making what you're selling more desirable. i think there is a future for hmv. it's all second—hand product, the same way we do. i think there's a future for them to sort of diversifying and i think record shops can be as exciting as they were to me in 1985 when i first went into them. for now, the 125 stores remain open.

the search is on for a buyer who believes that a business which has been through almost a century of change can still have a profitable future. rory cellan—jones, bbc news. the headlines on bbc news. the rising number of migrants trying to cross the english channel is declared a major incident by the home secretary. a tourist bus is hit by a roadside bomb near the giza pyramids in egypt killing three people. following an explosion in leicester in february, three men are found guilty of murdering five people. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's tolsen. good evening. 0le gunnar solksjaer has asked two of his underperforming players, romelu lukaku and alexis sanchez, to follow the example of paul pogba at manchester united by stepping up their game. the new caretaker manager couldn't say if either will go straight back into the side once they're fit with united's next game in the premier league on sunday at home to bournemouth. i cannot do anything for their performances on the pitch. paul has done it himself. the players have done their performances.

my chats with anthony and romelu and alexis, whoever has not felt they can produce their best football... i'm here to guide them and help them on the path and then it's up to them to do it on the pitch. arsenal's former long—standing chairman peter hill—wood, who presided over the appointments of george graham and arsene wenger, has died at the age of 82. he became chairman in 1982 and was instrumental in the move from highbury to the emirates stadium. he stepped down from the role five years ago because of ill health. brendan rodgers says it might not help rangers to have restricted the amount of celtic fans at tomorrow's old firm derby at ibrox. the scottish premiership leaders will have just 750 fans after their allocation was cut from the normal 7,000, but rodgers claims that could backfire on their rivals. it can work for and against you as a home team, in that situation. i think when you have predominantly the support in the ground, it can add something to the players,

either a positive or a negative. but we just have to approach the game how we always do, look at our own way of working. respect that rangers are good team. some very good results this year. like i say, we'll give them the respect they deserve and look to focus on our own game and look to play well and get the win. 0nto tennis and andy murray says he still "has some pain" in his hip, but he's in a better place in the build—up to january's australian open than he was at this time last year. murray had hip surgery in january this year, but ended his return in september to recover fully for next year. the three—time grand slam winner says he needs to play matches to see how it feels starting with the brisbane international which begins on monday. to rugby union, and there are two matches taking place domestically, with premiership leaders exeter looking to extend their lead at the top of the table away to northampton. two tries within the first ten

minutes had the hosts up, and victory would lift them to fourth. while in the pro 1a, ulster are in galway to play connacht. that game kicked off ten minutes earlier, and it's 14—7 to connacht. there's been a shock at the pdc world darts championship with 9th seed james wade knocked out by english compatriot ryanjoyce, who won 4—3. wade, who made the time semifinal stage three times in the past, had a chance to win it in the previous set when he was 3—2 up. butjoyce took the win in the decider and now goes on to face favourite michael van gerwen in the last eight. slovenian skier klemen kosi was airlifted to hospital by helicopter after a spectacular crash in a world cup downhill event in italy earlier today. kosi lost control towards the end of the course and tumbled through two layers of safety netting before

coming to a stop. his skis flew into the air as he hit the nets, and he was taken to hospital for treatment via helicopter but did retain consciousness throughout. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more for you in sportsday at around 10.25pm. thank you. new research shows that more than half a million potholes were reported by members of the public to local authorities in the uk last year. the rac says the figure proves road conditions are worsening. in 0ctober‘s budget the government pledged more than £400 million to tackling the problem. 0ur transport correspondent tom burridge reports. they're a hazard, sometimes huge, almost impossible to count. so, this is a typically damaged wheel. we see no less than six a day. sometimes as many as ten cars a day, which are only here because of pothole damage. just one garage, in one area. for the last two or three years it has been getting worse and worse. the scale of the problem nationwide,

it must run into millions and millions in terms of the cost of damage to the road user at the moment, it is really, really scary. and today we have new figures confirming a big rise in potholes on our roads. the number of potholes reported by people in 150 local authorities in england, scotland and wales rose by a whopping 44% in two years. this guy feels potholes are his calling. he argues that real investment in repairing road surfaces, instead of patching potholes up, would ultimately save money. if you did a proper investment plan, changed the culture, training, contracts, supervision, the right quality materials, 95% of potholes could be eradicated from ever appearing on our road network. the rac says councils don't have the money and the government needs to act. what we require is a long—term funding mechanism whereby local authorities can plan ahead and actually deal with the specific issue of the structural

defects, rather than simply filling in potholes. the government says it's giving councils an extra £400 million for local road repairs this year, and funding trials to identify potential potholes so roads can be repaired before they form. the family of two british women and a baby who were killed in a car crash in iceland — have described the incident as a horrifying shock and said they are deeply saddened. the 4x4 vehicle was carrying two brothers who were touring the country with their families, including two children aged seven and nine. all four were seriously injured. lifeboat crew in cornwall say a fisherman who fell overboard near newlyn whilst adjusting his nets has been amazingly lucky to survive. nathan rogers managed to cling onto his nets forfive miles, while the boat took him back to shore on autopilot. he was treated for severe hypothermia and is now recovering at home. 0ur cornwall reporter tamsin melville has the latest. we can see the man holding on,

holding onto the boat. holding on to the boat. lucky to be alive, the moment fisherman nathan rogers is pulled from the sea after being dragged five miles by his own boat. i've never known anyone to be dragged behind a boat for that amount of time and to still survive. it's amazing. having fallen overboard he had clung on to hoses connected to hauling gear and had been in the water for an hour, travelling at six knots with his boat on autopilot. crashing into the pier. the boat hit the pier in newlyn and the rescue was filmed and the alarm raised by a family on a beach clean. i saw the boat with no one on it. i saw the splash of the head bobbing up—and—down. what did you do then? i told my dad to phone 999. i was shouting, "swim, swim," but he wasn't moving at all.

the lifeboat was on anotherjob when the alarm was raised. the skipper of the dream catcher was holding him out of the water until we got alongside. the fact that we passed him two miles further south and just steamed past him is quite frightening. they were just amazing, from the passing fishing boat to the crew. the crew was just there rescuing another boat. they came so fast, you know. yes, they were just marvellous. taken to hospital with hypothermia, nathan rogers has been recovering at home today. an unfortunate accident with a happy ending here but the incident has raised the dangers of fishing, particularly when alone, with some pointing to the importance of life jackets with safety measures, like locater beacons. one of the world's rarest birds — a species of duck called the madagascar pochard — has been given a new home.

a team of british conservationists from the durrell wildlife conservation trust and the wildfowl and wetlands trust have released a small group of birds at a lake in the north of madagascar. as our science correspondent victoria gill reports, it's the first step in the recovery of a species that was once thought to be extinct. 0n the brink of extinction. the madagascar pochard was thought to have been wiped out completely, but a tiny group of the birds was rediscovered just 12 years ago, at one remote lake. wetland habitats here have been so polluted and damaged that the birds were forced into a last untouched area. but as pristine as it looks, this final refuge is actually too deep and too cold for the pochards to thrive. they are clinging onto existence in a place that isn't really suited to them. the threats that they face across the rest of madagascar — which is why they've been wiped out so extensively — are vast and range from sedimentation, invasive species, pollution,

poor agricultural practices. a whole suite of different things that combine to make the perfect storm that really make it hard for a species like the madagascar pochard to survive. so, conservationists embarked on a painstaking rescue mission. after bringing a few birds into captivity to start a breeding programme, the researchers scoured madagascar for the best possible site to bring them back to the wild. lake sofia, in the north of madagascar, will be the pochards' new home. and for the world's rarest birds, the team has developed an extra level of protection. well, it might be bit of a different climate here in gloucestershire compared to madagascar, but the team at the wetlands here have been able to develop this floating aviary. the idea is, it'll keep the birds safe and get them accustomed to their new lake. there they go, swimming off, swimming off... the doors to their floating aviary have now been opened and the pochards are venturing out to explore. it's a small — but significant —

step, conservationists say, in saving one species from extinction and in protecting madagascar‘s threatened wetlands. victoria gill, bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather with louise lear. good evening. a fairly straight where the story to close the year out, it looks as though we have this area of high pressure staying with us area of high pressure staying with us until new year. it is just allowing these weather fronts to topple across the high so overnight we will see cloud and rain pushing into scotland, drifting steadily eastwards. quite a lot of cloud elsewhere, it will not be a cold night, the cloud preventing temperature is falling very fast so it will be a mild start to saturday morning but rather grey. a bit of mist and morning but rather grey. a bit of mistand murk morning but rather grey. a bit of mist and murk where the cloud breaks in places but the rain will ease away. a windy start in scotland but

the winds will ease down as the rain pushes through by lunchtime and for all of us we are into a cloudy story, largely trying to temperatures above where they should be this time of year, 10—13d. it looks as though we do it all the same with some showery rain overnight saturday into sunday clearing away to a largely dry and mild sunday. this is bbc news. i'm martine croxall. the headlines: the rising number of migrants trying to cross the english channel is declared a "major incident" by the home secretary. a bus is hit by a roadside bomb near the giza pyramids in egypt, killing two vietnamese tourists and their egyptian guide. three men who blew up a shop in leicester in an insurance scam are found guilty of murdering five people. the music retailer hmv is being put into administration, placing more than 2,000 jobs at 125 stores at risk. now on bbc news, there's no doubt britain's shopping habits are changing and the impact on our high streets has

been increasingly clear over the last 12 months. emma simpson presents review 2018: the retail year.