this is bbc news. the headlines: the ayes to the right — 358. the noes to the left — 234. today at 5:00, mps back mps have resoundingly backed the prime minister's plan the prime minister's brexit plan for the uk to leave the eu for the uk to leave the eu by the end of january with a majority of 124 in the commons. on the 31st of january. the eyes to the right — 358. the noes to the left — 234. the duke of edinburgh is being treated in hospital in london for what's being described it was a decisive victory as a pre—existing condition. for the government — a us diplomat‘s wife, anne sacoolas, is charged with a majority of 124. with causing the death by dangerous now is the time to act together, as one reinvigorated nation, driving of 19—year—old harry dunn. one united kingdom. underwater motorways — heavy rain and floods have put we recognise the clear message from the british public last week, the brakes on the christmas getaway in parts of southern england. however they voted in the referendum of 2016 and understand their determination to end the never ending cycle of the brexit debate. the bill now goes on to further scrutiny in the house sport with lizzie greenwood.

of commons and house of lords. mikel arteta says it's the other main stories an honour to become on tonight's programme: the new arsenal manager on a three the duke of edinburgh is being and a half year deal. treated in hospital in london — he for what's been described and a half year deal. has been appointed on a thre| as a pre—existing condition. a he has been appointed on a three and a half year deal replacing the sack a us diplomat‘s wife, anne sacoolas, is charged with causing the death previous manager. he won the cup by dangerous driving of 19—year—old twice in three years and it has been harry dunn. underwater motorways — working as a coach at manchester heavy rain and floods put the brakes on the christmas getaway, city. he decided to move there. when you have dreams, you cannot stop it. in parts of southern england. so you have to follow your dreams. arsenal announce the appointment of former manchester city 0f assistant mikel arteta so you have to follow your dreams. of course that was the important pa rt of course that was the important part of his career as a football player coming back home is important as their new head coach. for him and one of the best teams in england. and of course we wish him in halfan in half an hour, i will be looking all the best. the results i'm pretty back at the best films of the year, films from around the world from sure he is going to do an excellent spectacular block busters to hidden job. a huge move for both the art—house gems. that's all in review 2019, the year in film, with me, manager and the club. what are the faithful make of it? not proven that mark. he is the best trained by the best

manager in the world so let's see we can do for us. not experienced but let's see how it goes. it cannot be any worse in the previous one we had. i feel like to get the fans over he has to sort things out in it's 5:00, our main story is that the midfield and once he does that i mps have voted in favour of borisjohnson‘s eu withdrawal think people will be ready to back him. but it will be hard work and i bill — paving the way for brexit don't expect anything straightaway. get behind them and see how it goes. to take place at the end of january. more for you in sports day at half its passage was all—but—guaranteed past six. thank you. because of the big majority the conservatives won now on bbc news, take a front—row in the general election. seat as film critic mark kermode takes a look back at the big mps voted by 358 to 234 releases of the year in review 2019: the year in film. in support of the bill — and a warning, this film contains some flash photography. a majority of 124 — meaning a number of labour mps voted with the government. 0ur political correspondent, nick eardley, has this report. after months of intense drama here, suddenly, it seems so simple. to

back the brexit deal, borisjohnson is now succeeded. the ayes to the right 358, the noes to the left 234. as expected, a significant majority. confirmation we are unclear as to leave back of the net! "back of the net", cried one tory mp. earlier, borisjohnson had said passing the deal would allow the country to start to move on. now is the time to act together as one reinvigorated nation, one united kingdom, filled with renewed confidence in our national destiny and determined at last to take advantage of the opportunities that now lie before us. jeremy corbyn criticised the government's handling of brexit but acknowledged voters had sent politicians a message. we recognise the clear message from the british public last week, however they voted in the referendum in 2016, and we understand

their determination to end the never—ending cycle of the brexit debate and get back to solving the day—to—day issues that challenge them in their daily lives. labour officially opposed the deal today but a number of mps abstained, and six rebelled, voting with the government. so what were they voting for? the legislation now rules out any further extension to the transition period during which uk courts will now be able to reconsider rulings made by the european court ofjustice. gone is a protection for refugee children in europe with family in the uk, and also a clause on strengthening workers' rights. those things, ministers say, will be dealt with in separate legislation, but that is not enough for labour. we warned before the general election that the prime minister's brexit deal was a terrible deal for our country and we still believe it is a terrible deal today. while the government argues the election result gave it

a mandate, the snp says in scotland the picture is very different. scotland could not have been clearer last week. we did not vote for brexit and returning the snp with a greater mandate shows that scotland still totally and utterly rejects brexit. but borisjohnson knows he now has the numbers to do what he wants. the oven is on, so to speak, it is set at gas mark four, and we can have it done by lunchtime. today's vote is not the end of the brexit process, farfrom it, there are still months of intense trade talks to come, but the battles that have raged here for many months are essentially over. borisjohnson has a majority and with it the ability to get his brexit deal through. look at the bottom of the picture, tory mps asking borisjohnson to sign copies of the withdrawal agreement. there are still hurdles for him in parliament and there will be scrutiny in the new year,

but the government has the numbers — brexit is happening. knitterrdly, bbc news, westminster. 0ur chief political correspondent, vicki young, is here. what happens next? the other side of christmas recess. the other side of christmas recess. the bill will come back, got through its first stage today can make it through the rest of the stage is you know, pretty quickly, three days, if hours of debate, then it goes to the house of lords, where i don't think anybody really thinks there will be too much trouble, of course, the uk leaving the eu at the end of january. and then straight into trade talks. but i think the main thing is the change in atmosphere the house of commons after so many months, years, really, of wrangling as mps tried to have their say. you could just see the difference. you know, the despair of the phases of labourmps, know, the despair of the phases of labour mps, the delight of the faces of conservative mps. we started the year with a vote, it was a historic defeat. the conservatives many thought were down and out. now we've

ended the year with this, you know, huge majority for boris johnson. ended the year with this, you know, huge majority for borisjohnson. you know, there are going to be problems ahead. there are certainly in northern ireland, lots of northern ireland mps very unhappy with the deal as it stands. we know about the tensions with scotland and that desire for another independence referendum. then, of course, there is labour. six labour mps voting with the government today. some abstentions, some in the shadow cabinet command that issue which has been such a problem forjeremy corbyn for the labour leadership is still unresolved, and that's going to carry on throughout their own leadership contest. the other thing we will be looking at the new year. vicki, thank you very much for that summary. with me now, is the former international trade secretary and conservative mp — liam fox. you are very welcome this afternoon, joining us here in bbc news. when you spoke in the commons much earlier today, you said the prime minister was absolutely right to rule out any further extensions to the transmission period, you said that gives clarity and certainty. but doesn't it also puts an unnecessary pressure on a government which has a big majority, isn't it

better to get the right deal rather than a fast one? well, i think that the entire dynamic has changed now. notjust in the uk following the election victory of borisjohnson, but also in the eu. up until now, i thank you can properly characterize it as if there were always some hopes in brussels that maybe we just wouldn't leave. and if we put enough impediments in the way, maybe we would just stay. that is now clearly not going to happen. i think that it is much more difficult to get an agreement if that you think they can extend and extended. which, of course, would require more british contributions to the eu budget during that time. i think it's right now to say to both sides, we need to getan now to say to both sides, we need to get an agreement. we already have huge advantages compared to most other trade agreements and that we already have zero tariffs, zero to fees, zero quotas, which are one of the errors that normally takes up the errors that normally takes up the time. when boris johnson talks about moving forward as one reinvigorated nation, one united kingdom, he must know that significant chunks of that united

kingdom do not feel the same way that he does. scotland, of course, and there is deep unease in northern ireland even among the dup mps who don't agree with this version of the withdrawal bill as it stands. how is he going to bring all of the nations along with him? well, of course, it's kyle and the snp were going to the general election saying this is not about independence, and as the elections was over, we have a mandate for another referendum. elections was over, we have a mandate for another referendumm was in their —— manifesto, wasn't it? but they spent a lot of time saying it's not just it? but they spent a lot of time saying it's notjust about that but a range of other issues, so they can't claim a mandate on that. they say there's been a material change in circumstances since 2014. the fa ct in circumstances since 2014. the fact is that the people of scotland voted to remain in that the united kingdom, than the united kingdom parliament gave a referendum to the whole of the uk, where everybody spoke counted the same in that referendum. the snp can't get over the fact that they lost the referendum on independence. they just need to do that, because the

scottish people don't want to break away from the rest of uk. if you wa nt away from the rest of uk. if you want certainty and clarity if you get to this time next year and those talks haven't gone as you hope they will, as boris johnson talks haven't gone as you hope they will, as borisjohnson has suggested. in the interest of certainty and clarity would you be prepared to extend the transition rather than go to wto rules? welcome i think we will be able to do it command we are much more able to do it if we actually set... in that scenario i set out though?|j it if we actually set... in that scenario i set out though? i think we wa nt scenario i set out though? i think we want to avoid that scenario by actually setting a timescale that says we know the date by which we have two reach an agreement, as i say, many of the things that would normally take up time in a trade in its renegotiation are already settled in our relationship with the european union. we do have issues around that i was talking about my comments today, but it's possible to solve those issues if both sides wa nt to solve those issues if both sides want to do so. of course, it's usually in the use of interest to do so as well, because we have a huge trade surplus with the united kingdom. if it took a bit more time to get eyes dotted and tees crossed,

could you envisage a small extension to the transition? i think we maintain the deadline, because that's the best chance of getting an agreement. 0k, liam, thank you very much. that's it from me at westminster — back to jane in the studio. i thank you very much. now, the rest of today's main stories. the duke of edinburgh has been admitted to hospital in london for what buckingham palace has described as observation and treatment in relation to a pre—existing condition. the palace says the move is precautionary. it's expected that prince phillip, who's 98, will be in hospital for a few days. 0ur correspondent, angus crawford, is outside the hospital in central london for us. what's being said about this hospital stay, angus? well, what we know is that the duke of edinburgh came here today not by ambulance but by car, he was driven down from the sandringham estates, and he walked unaided up the steps into the hospital that king edward vii

hospital that king edward vii hospital here as i say by himself. we believe this was on advice from his own medical adviser. so this was a prearranged appointment for what they say is a pre—existing medical condition. there will be some treatment administered, we believe, and the hospital says that he will spend some time under observation over this weekend, which means it's perfectly possible that the duke may end up back home at sandringham for christmas with the rest of the family, and it appears that the message coming out of buckingham palace at the moment is that there really is no immediate cause for concern. angus crawford in central london, thank you, and let's talk a little bit more about that with our role correspondent, nicholas witchel. as the duke was being driven down to london, the queen was heading the opposite way. joan, i think that's almost the most telling detail of all. that as the duke was being

admitted as a precautionary measure, the queen was not deviating from her plan to go from buckingham palace up to sandringham to begin her christmas break. and i think that if there were any real concern, that plan would've been modified to me think the fact that the royal family are proceeding with their christmas arrangements without any change tells us that this is indeed a precautionary measure. but, of course, the fact that underlines everything is that he is 98 years old. and an admission to hospital at the age of 98 is bound to be concerning, though, i don't detect any alarm on this occasion. what might this pre—existing condition be? welcome a buckingham palace is saying absolutely nothing about that. we recall though that he had a hip replacement in april of last year, might it be something to do with that? in the past, he has had bladder infections, he also had exploratory abdominal surgery six years ago. the most serious medical incident wasjust years ago. the most serious medical incident was just before

years ago. the most serious medical incident wasjust before christmas eight years ago in 2001, when he was taken eight years ago in 2001, when he was ta ken by eight years ago in 2001, when he was taken by helicopter and that was an emergency case, he had chest pains, and was taken to hospital and had a stent inserted in an artery. but we don't know which of those conditions possibly might to be the pre—existing condition that requires observation and some treatment. or whether it's something else, he said chest infections, that lots of people have at the age of 98, which is more serious, as i say, there is no sense of alarm, and i'm sure there is every hope and perhaps expectation that he will be rejoining the rest of the family at sandringham for christmas. yes, all right, thank you very much for now. nicholas witchel, thank you. the crown prosecution service has charged an american woman, who was involved in a fatal car crash outside an raf base in northamptonshire, with causing death by dangerous driving. anne sacoolas, the wife of a us intelligence officer, went home to the us after the death of 19—year—old harry dunn in august. harry dunn's mother

charlotte charles gave this reaction to today's development. i just want to say a massive thank you to the public and the media. we feel we have taken a huge step in the start of achieving the promise to harry that we made, and that in itself to us as parents to make that promise to him, the night that we lost him, that we would seekjustice, thinking it was going to be really easy, knowing the circumstances that night as we did... we had no idea it was going to be this hard and it would take this long, but we really do feel it is a huge step towards that promise to harry, and that in itself is one hell of an achievement, harry's mother talking to journalists earlier. 0ur correspondent, duncan kennedy, sent us this update from

the crown prosecution service. although the american state determines that it was disappointed by the news that answer coulis had been charged today, the foreign secretary dominic raab said that this was a step in the right direction and called on mr sik lewes to come back from the united states to come back from the united states to face justice here in britain. her lawyers have also issued a statement on her behalf saying, that and is devastated by this tragic accident, and continues to extend her deepest condolences to the family, but the statement goes on to say she will not return voluntarily to the united kingdom to face a potentialjail sentence for what was a terrible but unintentional accident. now, we sentence for what was a terrible but unintentionalaccident. now, we have spoken to extradition experts, and they say there is a good track re cord they say there is a good track record of the united states sending people back to britain to face court cases here. whether that's the same in this case, because she initially

claimed diplomatic immunity in this country, we don't know. there are also the comforting factors that her husband works on an intelligence base here in the united kingdom, had worked on an intelligence base, that too may be a complicating factor. ultimately, this will go before the courts both here and in the united states, and that's a process that could take many months. heavy rain is causing major disruption for thousands of people embarking on a christmas getaway. road and rail journeys are being disrupted in parts of southern england on one of the busiest travel days of the year. both the railway line and the m23 motorway between london and brighton were closed because of flooding — while a landslide near guildford caused further problems. tolu aday—yohyay reports. across the southeast of england today, the evidence of rainfall

overnight, flooded roads causing disruption for drivers on one of the busiest travel days of the year. in buck's stud in east sussex, one couple told us how they were unable to leave their home because of the water. it was quite forceful, and it got up to the height of the brickwork there, you can see it got, it's about 18 inches, two feet deep, and when i was wandering around the garden trying to rescue things, obviously, it was all up over my knees and quite strong. we are raised above ground, and we have three steps, but it was actually laughing the top, almost going over the top steps, so it was about three inches from the kitchen door. much of the disruption has involved those heading for gatwick, the country's second busiest airport. in west sussex, the 23 was partially closed after a nearby river burst its banks. this is what the rain lead to in surrey, a land and slipped near to guilford, causing major disruption along the male railway

line. what i would like to do is ta ke line. what i would like to do is take the opportunity to say a massive apology to our passengers who have been disrupted, notjust as a result of guilford, but across the whole of the southeast. at this time of year, i know how important the railway is, and i can't help but apologise, i'm really sorry. the environment agency has issued about 60 warnings across england, where flooding is expected. as well as 200 alerts which one of possible flooding. the big christmas get not off to the best start. services have been held for the two people killed in the terrorist attack at london bridge last month. the funeral of jack merritt, who was 25, took place in cambridge, and a memorial service was held for saskia jones, who was 23, in stratford upon avon. they were stabbed to death by convicted terrorist usman khan during a conference organised by cambridge university. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford reports.

they had graduated from cambridge university a year apart with masters degrees in criminology. jack merritt was 25, saskia jones, 23. both were at the start of their adult lives, but, today, they will be mourned after being killed in the fish mongers hall attack three weeks ago. at the holy trinity church in stratford—upon—avon, where william shakespeare is buried, close family and friends of saskia jones were remembering a sensitive, committed young woman, who wanted to join the police. who was working on a prisoner education project, but was killed by one of those she was helping. terrorism often seems, something far away, that it's not going to affect this sleepy town in warwickshire. but this has really brought it home that this is something that really can affect peoples lives here in stratford, and people have been very touched and moved by that and shocked by it. at great st mary's in cambridge,

the university church and almost the university church — an almost simultaneous funeral service forjack merritt, whose body was in a wicker coffin in keeping with the ethical way he lived his life. he'd helped run the learning together project that organised the conference next to london bridge, at which they were killed. saskia jones and jack merritt had both been at the event in fish mongers hall three weeks ago when the attacker who had recently been released from a long prison sentence for terrorism offences — suddenly started stabbing people. the vice chancellor of cambridge university wrote this week of the unspeakably tragic loss of two bright young people, and ask that the manner of their deaths should not overshadow the way they live their lives. ——overshadow the way they lived their lives. daniel sanford, bbc news. the head of the financial conduct authority — andrew bailey — has been named the new governor of the bank of england. mr bailey will be the 121st governor of the bank of england

and will succeed mark carney when he leaves in march. the chancellor made the announcement. i am delighted to announce that the next governor of the bank of england will be andrew bailey. when we launched this process, we said that we were looking for a leader of international standing, with expertise across monetary, economic and regulatory policy. and in andrew bailey, we have found just that. he was the standout candidate in a competitive field. without question, he is the right person to lead the bank as we forge a new future outside the eu and level up across our great country. sajid javid speaking this morning. the prime minister of australia, scott morrison has apologised for going on holiday in hawaii this week — while the nation

endured raging bushfires and record temperatures. two volunteer firefighters have died while being deployed to a huge blaze near sydney and the fire service say it would be a "miracle" if more homes were not lost tomorrow. phil mercer reports there's no end in sight to australia's brutal summer. many of the bush fires are unstoppable. they are easily started and spread quickly. more lives have been lost and houses destroyed. in new south wales, 100 fires are burning, and the emergency services are stretched to the limit. the firefighting effort is a military—style operation. a squadron of water—bombing helicopters is supporting hundreds of boots on the ground. this is a giant air crane — a helicopter that is flying in to suck water out of the dam, to be used on the main fire front that's just over the ridge.

and this sort of operation is happening time and time again. two volunteer firefighters were killed when a tree fell on theirfire engines south of sidney. the tragedy prompted australia's prime minister to cut short a holiday in hawaii. scott morrison has apologised for going overseas during a time of crisis. it's just unfortunate that it's come at such an awful time, particularly for those living in and around sidney and new south wales. and it's just devastating to be here and seeing what's happening there, so i'm pleased to be returning. as the debate over the prime minister's leadership rages, so do the fires. for those on the front line, it's exhausting and dangerous work. it was scary. and, er, when you see flames come over the top of you, and it's that hot that you can feel the burning through protective

clothing and masks, where you're actually breathing hot air and the air's hurting the back of your throat, it is hot. in south australia, a catastrophic warning has been issued, and emergency crews are battling 120 fires. parts of new south wales are bracing for similar conditions on saturday. officials say it would be a miracle if more homes weren't lost. residents in vulnerable areas have been told to leave — while they can. phil mercer, bbc news, bago, new south wales. boeing's attempt to revive nasa's human space flight programme has been cut short, after its uncrewed astronaut capsule failed to dock at the international space station. the aerospace compa ny‘s sta rliner astronaut capsule was due to spend a week at the i—s—s following the launch of a demonstration mission at cape canaveral this morning. however, it failed to reach the required orbit to dock after burning too much fuel as it fired its engines.

the starliner is expected to land in new mexico in the next 48 hours. time for a look at the weather. here's nick. what a terrible day in terms of rain and flooding, particularly for people making an early start on the christmas getaway. there is a bit more rain in the forecast as we go through this weekend, more especially across southern most parts of the uk, but then, again, this is where the ground are saturated. we really don't need rain elsewhere, it's looking like showers. i thoroughly went into the day across parts of eastern england, but, look, that reigned as clear as we go into the night. for the show is spreading across parts of england and wales, it could be heavy infantry, some to northwest scotland as well, watch out first fog, that can be dense and slow to clear and places in the morning. across northern britain, there may be a touch of frost. into the beacon, batch of showers running northwards

to start today, some of those have become of the bargain in northern ireland slow to clear. for many of us though into the afternoon, it is looking dry, there will be a few sunny spells around, away from us southern england a freshening wind, we are bringing in more rain, it's going to make for a wet end to the day. not as much rain as we have seen recently, but some saturated ground, problems as a result of that. double figures here single 00:27:30,395 --> 4294966103:13:29,430 figures elsewhere.