the prime minister prepares to welcome his new mps to westminster before they take their seats in parliament tomorrow. a new wall of blue — many of the 109 new mps won their seats at the election in areas traditionally held by labour. it's quite surreal. the last time you remember these sorts of things, it's first day at big school, isn't it? and here we go. i'm live in westminster, where we'll get our first feel of what the new government is going to look like, and what the new opposition may look like, too, as the race to replace jeremy corbyn gets under way. also on the programme this lunchtime: a minute's silence in new zealand a week after the volcano that left at least 16 people dead and around 20 in a critical condition. doctors predict thousands of people could have their christmas ruined by flu as they urge people to get vaccinated.

around £50 million worth of jewellery is stolen from the home of formula one heiress tamara ecclestone. # sleep in heavenly peace and no longer on his own — the man who spent 20 christmases alone finds plenty of friendship at last. and coming up on bbc news... manchester city face tough opposition in the last 16 for the champions league — they've drawn real madrid. three other english teams — tottenham, chelsea and defending champions liverpool — are also involved. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. boris johnson is preparing

to address his new mps, who have been arriving in westminster before they go to the house of commons tomorrow. some of the 109 new mps are from labour strongholds which had never voted conservative before. later this week, the government will set out its plans in the queen's speech. it's then expected to try to pass crucial brexit legislation on friday. meanwhile, the fallout from labour's defeat continues with party officials saying they are expected to meet early in the new year to agree the timetable for replacing jeremy corbyn as leader. simon mccoy is in westminster. for mps, including those 109 new ones, it's the first day back. but parliament today has a very different complexion from the last one — many of the freshly—elected conservatives represent areas of northern england and the midlands traditionally held by labour. we're expecting some kind of mini reshuffle this afternoon. we'll find out who the new culture secretary is, and that'll be crucial as the focus turns on the future of the bbc licence fee. there'll be a queen's speech on thursday, and it's thought

the withdrawal agreement bill on leaving the eu could be put before mps as early as friday. meanwhile, the battle has begun for the future of the labour party, with the leader and shadow chancellor saying they will step down in the new year. our political correspondent helen catt reports. on their way to westminster. tory mps are still over the moon and having turned red seeds blue. thank you! go it is the start of a new journey for them and possibly for the conservative party too. the arrival of so many mps representing new seats could change the government's focus. it has already swelled its ranks, bringing its majority to 80. it is a bit surreal, it is happening, we can get these things done, excited. a lot of pressure, it is daunting, but we are going to get started. first day of

big school, isn't it? here we go. the new mps will get help but not much time to settle in. tomorrow they will be formally sworn in, then then on thursday there will be a queen's speech setting out the plans for the next day, and by friday they will be debating major policies as it is expected the eu withdrawal bill will be reintroduced. you have a prime minister who has a very big mandate from the british public, a majority in parliament which enables him to get things done, and that message, i'm sure, will not have been lost on our european friends and partners, they can see there is and partners, they can see there is a stable government now in the uk with a very big mandate, with the public behind the prime minister, andi public behind the prime minister, and i would expect european leaders 110w and i would expect european leaders now to want to work productively with the prime minister and the negotiating team that he will assemble. the government wants to be seen to be acting swiftly and decisively on brexit, but it is also keen to show that it listen to what voters told at last thursday, particularly those who lent to the

conservatives their vote. that means acting on areas like the nhs, so thursday's queen's speech will include a commitment to upping its annual budget by tens of billions of pounds over the parliament and enshrining that in law. for some more familiar conservative faces, it's already back to work, including some who were notably absent during the campaign. the election wasn't about me, it was a choice between the prime minister and jeremy corbyn, the country made a wonderful choice. in downing street, the chancellor was certainly sounding confident. this afternoon will add some more faces to it as empty places in the cabinet are filled. helen catt, bbc news, westminster. the fallout from labour's defeat continues, and this morning shadow foreign secretary emily thornberry says she is taking legal action against the former labour mp caroline flint over accusations she labelled leave voters "stupid". she was speaking to reporters this morning. caroline flint has told somebody else that i had spoken to somebody else — that person unknown

and when unknown and where unknown — and she still won't tell us, that people were supposed to be stupid. i would never even think that, let alone say it. it's a complete lie! so i've said to caroline, come on, this isn't true, you know, withdraw it, and i'll give you until the end of the day. and she refuses to, so i've had to go through all the hassle of instructing solicitors, and that's what we're doing, we're having to take legal action. let's go to our assistant political editor, norman smith. we will come to that in just a moment, but first of all a new day, a new cake, a new government. moment, but first of all a new day, a new cake, a new governmentm moment, but first of all a new day, a new cake, a new government. it is a new cake, a new government. it is a huge moment, and borisjohnson's message to his 109 new mps will be you have to deliver, obviously on brexit, you have to deliver on the extra investment into the nhs, but the government too has to deliver on its commitment to those communities that feel they have been left behind

as traditional northern working—class constituencies which many of them voted tory for the first time, and that means providing extra resources , first time, and that means providing extra resources, extra investment, giving those communities the attention which they feel that they have been ignored for years over. secondly, i think you will want to tell his mps that this is a moment of real change. it is not going to be business as usual, this is not just another tory party that is going to do things the same way as david cameron or theresa may, this will be a conservative government that, yes, is prepared to throw the plates around a bit, smash a bit of crockery to get things done, is ready to front up to established institutions like the bbc, like the civil service. but it comes with, i guess, a risk too for borisjohnson, in that he has no excuses. he can't blame a recalcitrant parliament, he can't blame a shattered opposition. he can do whatever he wants to do, so if he does not deliver, then the only person who can take the blame is borisjohnson. only person who can take the blame is boris johnson. and let's talk about the labour party and the rifts

within it, whichjust seem to be deepening. you sense that labour is sinking into a very deep, dark hole from which it may all frankly may not emerge. we see that in the personal animosity now with emily thornberry threatening legal action against caroline flint, and you just kind of thing, sit down, have a cup of tea, sort it out. that is overlaid by deep political divisions, those who blame the defeat and jeremy corbyn, those who blame it on brexit, those who blame it on, frankly, too left wing and agenda, those who think it was all down to the party being too london centric, those who blame the media, those who blame remainers, and we have a cluster of people seeming to position themselves as possible contenders, and i think the real dangerfor contenders, and i think the real danger for labour now is that they sink into an incredibly brutal, long civil war, which will not make them any more electable. norman, thank you very much, norman smith.

one of borisjohnson's main priorities as prime minister will be negotiating our future relationship with the eu after brexit, including a trade deal. i'm joined now by our reality check correspondent chris morris. what is he going to be trying to achieve on trade? well, trade deals with all sorts of people, including the united states, but first and foremost a new trade arrangement with the eu, our largest trading partner, and he has said he will do that by the 31st of december 2020, the end of next year. that is a very tight timetable for any trade deal. the reason it is that tight as he has guaranteed there will be no extension to the transition period after brexit, when all the rules and regulations stay the same, and for that 11 month period the uk will remain part of the single market and the customs union. what kind of deal could be done? we are going to hear a lot about zero tariffs and zero quotas, which sounds great, is good, but it is not what many companies trading with europe at the moment enjoy in terms of completely frictionless trade, there are still

other checks that companies would have to deal with under a zero ta riffs have to deal with under a zero tariffs and zero quotas deal. the other thing, of course, when you talk about tariffs and quotas, you are talking about goods, not services, and services is a large pa rt services, and services is a large part of the british economy, so there is a lot to be done in a very short time. and you have to ratify any deal as well. ratification is important and does not get done in a couple of days. there are two levels, though. ratification can be donein levels, though. ratification can be done ina levels, though. ratification can be done in a few months if you have a fairly simple agreement. now, of course, the prime minister says he wa nts course, the prime minister says he wants something ambitious, but if it becomes too ambitious, it becomes what is called a mixed agreement, and that means things that deal not just with the competence of the eu on things like customs but also impinges on national sovereignty, issues that national governments deal with, then you need to get a deal with, then you need to get a deal ratified by parliaments all across the eu, 28, 27 other countries, national and sometimes

regional parliaments. i don't think thatis regional parliaments. i don't think that is possible in the timeframe of next year, so we are looking at a more simple agreement, which is a possibility — is still difficult — and there would have to be further negotiations in the future. chris, thank you very much. as we were saying, this is also about ratifying any deal, and talks are under way in belfast to try to restore devolved government, where the main parties are under pressure to work together again. chris pages at stormont for us, what are the chances? well, i do think there is a sense that there is greater optimism in connection with these talks than there have been in previous rounds of negotiations that have failed. it is now almost three yea rs have failed. it is now almost three years since the power—sharing government made up of the democratic unionists and sinn fein collapsed. since then the storm and to some has not sat, ministers have not been in office, but public services are creaking under the strain of not having any ministers at the helm. ——

the stormont assembly. infrastructure projects have been delayed and school principals are complaining of a funding crisis, so all of this has translated into politicians taking a lot of heat on the campaign trail during the general election, the run—up to the vote last week, and the two biggest parties, the dup and sinn fein, they are still the biggest parties in northern ireland, well, both of them suffered a drop in vote share. sinn fein maintained the number of mps, seven, but there overall number of votes fell, and the dup lost two out of their ten mps. votes fell, and the dup lost two out of their ten mp5. the thinking is that perhaps there is a tipping point may be in the public mood, people are saying, we can't stand for this any more, you have got to get back into government at stormont, there are still sticking points, not least the legal status of the irish language, which has been the biggest disagreement during the recent years. sinn fein want legislation to protect the irish

language, the dup say they want a broader law to look at all aspects of culture, including those that are important to unionists. so some hard talking to be done, difficult issues to overcome, but a legal deadline out of the middle ofjanuary for an agreement. chris page, at stormont, thank you very much. sophie, the new government begins its first week with a commons majority of 80. the politics of the last three years — the deadlock, the in—fighting, and the inability to move things on — may now be a thing of the past. but this is westminster, and only a fool will try to speculate on what happens here next. that's all here from here — back to you in the studio. simon, thank you. a minute's silence has been held in new zealand a week after a volcano erupted on white island, killing and injuring a number of people. 16 people have died and two are missing presumed dead. about 20 people remain in intensive care with severe burns. phil mercer reports. a week ago, the white island volcano erupted without warning. a minute's silence has been observed in new zealand

to remember those killed and injured by its fury. families of some of the victims have gathered on a navy ship a short distance away. onboard, there were hugs, while others stared in silence at the island. later, to the sounds of a maori lament, relatives joined mourners on the mainland to pay their respects. i would say it was beautiful. there's a great sense of unity, of people coming together, and clearly the focus was around remembering the event, reflecting on what's happened in the last week since that event, and thinking about the people who remain affected. what happened on white island has devastated so many lives. several survivors have terrible burns and remain in intensive care. the new zealand government is turning its attention to what could have

prevented the tragedy. a health and safety investigation has started, and a broader inquiry could follow. our thoughts continue to be with the families of those who have passed, and with those who were injured. as i've said many times, there remain now questions to be asked and questions to be answered. the bodies of two more victims have yet to be found. police believe they've been washed out to sea. tomorrow, divers will again search in waters contaminated by the volcano. the shockwaves of this disaster spread far beyond new zealand's bay of plenty. about 47 visitors were on white island when it erupted, including those from australia, the united states, germany, china, britain and malaysia. phil mercer, bbc news, sydney. doctors in england are urging parents to get their young children

vaccinated against flu after a surge in suspected cases. under a third of two and three—year—olds have had a jab. the number of patients reporting flu—like symptoms has risen by nearly a quarter in the last week, and the situation could worsen over the christmas period. andy moore reports. for many people, it's an annual ritual, but many others are still missing out. doctors say most people over the age of 65 have been vaccinated, but a lot of two and three—year—olds, regarded as so—called super—spreaders, have not. that's because there was a delay in vaccine delivery from the manufacturers. at the end of the first week in december, only 28% of this age group had got the jab. but now the problem has been sorted and parents are being urged to act now. some school vaccination sessions may not happen tilljanuary, but parents can take their children to a gp right away.

for a few people it can be very serious. it is really important as many people as possible get vaccinated. you are not only protecting yourself when you have a job but reducing the possibility of spread, so protecting everybody. around 25 million people are eligible for a free flu jab but last year, around 7.5 million failed to take up the offer. the latest figures show gp consultations for flu—like symptoms have risen 24% in just one week. the vaccinations this year are said to be a good match for the strains of the virus that are circulating. flu levels are expected to rise over christmas and the new year, so the advice is for at—risk groups to get the jab as soon as possible. doctors say it may be the difference between a christmas to remember and one to forget. andy moore, bbc news. thieves have reportedly

stolen £50 million worth ofjewellery from the home of tamara ecclestone in london. she was on holiday at the time. the daughter of the former formula one boss, bernie ecclestone, was said to be shaken and angry after the robbery on friday night. jon donnison is in kensington. yes, £50 million worth ofjewellery reportedly stolen, quite a heist. this is known as billionaires row, one of the most exclusive neighbourhoods in the country. tamara ecclestone's house has more than 50 rooms. police say on friday night they were called out to a burglary just after 11 o'clock, night they were called out to a burglaryjust after 11 o'clock, and they say an amount of high—value jewellery was stolen. they say no arrests have been made at the moment. tamara ecclestone is said, a spokesperson for the family, has said they were shaken and angry. they were not there at the time

because they had travelled overseas on holiday for the christmas holidays, but clearly a pretty audacious heist. this street has several big embassies on it, so very high security with armed police at the bottom of the road, and presumably the house itself has pretty high security. the sun newspaper is reporting the three thieves got in through the back of the property, rifled through the house and found the safes with the jewellery inside. at £50 million, thatis jewellery inside. at £50 million, that is a huge heist, had to think ofa that is a huge heist, had to think of a robbery on this scale anywhere in the world. thank you. our top story this lunchtime: a new wall of blue — many of the 109 new mps arriving in westminster won their seats in areas traditionally held by labour. and still to come — why water firms will be cutting the average bill by £50 over the next five years. coming up on bbc news... both manchester city and arsenal

are refusing to comment after senior figures from arsenal were pictured outside the home of mikel arteta. the city coach is one of the favourites to become the new arsenal manager. india's prime minister, narendra modi, has appealed for calm after more viole nt protests over a controversial new citizenship law. there's been anger because the legislation allows non—muslims from bangladesh, pakistan and afghanistan, who entered india illegally, to become citizens. some critics say the law is anti—muslim, while others — especially in border regions — fear large—scale migration. yesterday police broke into the campus of a delhi university to break up a demonstation. they have been accused of using excessive force. anbarasan ethirajan reports from delhi. police in northern india firing tear gas to break up a student rally at the aligarh muslim university.

the students were holding a demonstration showing solidarity with their counterparts in delhi, who took to the streets on sunday against the controversial citizenship law. critics say the law is anti—muslim, while others fear large scale migration. police and the students accuse each other of pelting stones. hours earlier, students cowering in fear at delhi's famous jamia millia islamia university. police say they forced their way in after some violent protesters took refuge inside the university. more than 50 students were injured. we are protesting against the bill which the government has passed, which is discriminatory for one particular community. it's against the muslims. it's against the ethos of india. it's against the secular ideas of india. ijust want to make it clear nobody is scared.

people in hong kong are protesting and they are not scared. we are not scared. the police have come under severe criticism for allegedly using brute force against the peaceful protesters. they say several police officers were also injured. the protests in delhi have sparked a spontaneous outburst of anger across many indian universities. this is the first time a large number of india's muslims have taken pa rt in protest against the government. critics have warned that the new citizenship law is discriminatory towards muslims and will polarize people along religious lines. so far, the government has showed no sign of backing down despite widespread divisions. but the protests have taken them by surprise,

posing the first major challenge to this popular hindu nationalist government. anbarasan ethirajan, bbc news, delhi. the water regulator in england and wales has ordered suppliers to cut the average bill by £50 over the next five years. ofwat says firms must also reduce leaks by 16% as part of an efficiency drive. water companies had previously warned they could challenge such demands. our business correspondent theo leggett is here. how could they achieve the cuts? ofwat saying the water companies are expected to spend £51 million over the next five years, and £13 billion of that will be a new investment. despite that person says that because money is cheap to borrow, because money is cheap to borrow, because there's lots of new technology out there they can develop, they can become more efficient and therefore reduce the average bill by £50. that doesn't mean everyone's bill goes down by

£50, in some regions it will be more and in some less, depending on what you are paying today and what your supplier is. on the other hand, the water companies can challenge this. they have until the 15th of february to look at the plans, which sets out the standards that each individual water company is expected to abide by, what they are expected to do in terms of addressing the results of climate change, building new reservoirs and setting up flood defences. if they don't like what they are reading, they can go to an authority to change plans if needs be. they have a few weeks to die just this and decide whether they are going to. it's likely one or two of them will. thank you. a legal battle about whether a negligent nhs trust should pay for a woman to have surrogate children in america has begun at the supreme court. the woman, who isn't being named, was left infertile after late treatment for cervical cancer. her condition was missed by the hospital for four years. john mcmanus is at

the supreme court. yes, this case involves a woman known only as xx, who was originally awarded half £1 million when her treatment was so invasive it left her infertile at the age of 29. the money she was awarded was used to freeze her eggs, but miss xx wants to go to california where surrogacy isa to go to california where surrogacy is a commercial progress. you pay the surrogate mother, that is not allowed in the uk, and also where there are greater legal safeguards for both the surrogates and the prospective parents. the nhs trust says that is not something that should happen, it says commercial surrogacy in the uk is illegal but the court of appeal disagreed with them last december and said they should give miss xx are greater, largerfinancial should give miss xx are greater, larger financial settlement. this that's being heard at the supreme

court today and tomorrow is the trust's attempt to stop that happening, the final move on their pa rt happening, the final move on their part to ensure this doesn't happen. the ruling is expected sometime in the new year. thank you. rail passengers in the north of england and parts of scotland have faced significant disruption on the first working day of new train timetables. nearly half of transpennine express services were either cancelled or at least half an hour late during the morning commute. the company blamed staff shortages and train faults. northern trains were also affected by a shortage of drivers. liverpool will return to their triumph after being drawn to atletico madrid. tottenham will be taking on leipzig while chelsea will face bayern munich who they defeated to win the competition in 2012. christmas can be a lonely

time for many people — and the bbc has been talking to one man — terrence — who has spent every christmas day alone for 20 years. his story touched millions when breakfast‘s dan walker surprised him with a christmas tree. his report prompted the singer john barrowman to invite him to his show and dan was there. terrence, welcome to sheffield, my friend. thank you very much indeed, thank you. thank you. i know you had a day of surprises yesterday. yes. this is the world—famous sheffield city hall. we have someone waiting for you inside, so if you'd like to come over. 0k. and we've got a surprise for him. i know, you've got a surprise for him as well, i've heard about this. yeah. maggie's got it with her. what's today been like? oh, it's been good, it's been good. yeah? i can't tell you how many... stuff that's been on twitter and facebook, it's been absolutely hectic! knocking. hello, sir. hello. terrence. come on in. hello. how are you? give me a hug.

lovely! how are you? i'm ok, it's been a bit hectic for the last couple of days. good! i grew up with older people in the household so i knew... i had my mother and grandmother always there, and even when you said about losing your mother and things like that, it just struck a chord. and to see the young people come in and want to be part of it... young people want to know, they want to help. # silent night, holy night # all is calm, all is bright...# for me, and i saw your reaction, i just lost it. all right? yes, i'm all right, thank you. you gave me a wonderful surprise, i want to give you one. i am flabbergasted because that is going to... i can't wait to put that in one of the houses! look at this! i love it! if you watched bbc

breakfast this morning... i saw a vt that they did with a gentleman who spent 20 years of christmas days all by himself, so i then got in touch with terrence and i invited him to the show tonight. cheering and applause. this is a song that i know is one of terrence's favourites, so if you get your phones out ready because this song requires, like, a candle. you'll know exactly what i'm talking about when we start. # silent night # holy night # all is calm # all is bright

# round yon virgin # mother and child # holy infant # so tender and mild # sleep in heavenly peace...# thank you, everybody. cheering and applause. i think he will enjoy his christmas this year. time for a look at the weather. here's stav da naos. it looks like it will turn more

u nsu btle towards it looks like it will turn more unsubtle towards the end