three and a half years after the eu referendum, mps finally back a brexit deal and it's with a big majority. the ayes to the right, 358. the noes to the left, 234. the noes to the left, 234. after four failed attempts and more than a year of bitter political wrangling, they vote in favour of borisjohnson‘s eu withdrawal bill. now is the time to act together as one reinvigorated nation, one united kingdom. another step closer — we'll be looking at what happens next with the uk set to leave the european union in six weeks today. also on the programme... the duke of edinburgh is admitted to hospital in london for treatment for what buckingham palace describe as a pre—existing condition. the death of harry dunn,

the teenage motocylist hit by a car in august, now extradition proceedings begin after an american woman is charged with causing his death by dangerous driving. hampering the christmas getaway — flooding closes the m23 in sussex as parts of southern england are inundated. and big discounts on the high street as retailers try to make the most of last—minute christmas shoppers. and coming—up on bbc news... mikel arteta is announced as the new head coach of arsenal. the club's former captain will be the youngest manager in the premier league. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. three and a half years after the uk voted to leave the eu, mps have resoundingly voted in favour of the

government's brexit bill. it paves the way for borisjohnson to deliver his promise that the uk will leave the eu at the end of next month. the prime minister won the vote easily by 358 votes to 234. six labour mps rebelled and voted with the government. the withdrawal agreement, now approved in principle by mps, says the uk will leave the eu on the 31st of january and imposes a transition period until the end of 2020, when we still abide by eu rules. it says we will pay the eu a "divorce bill" of around £33 billion. it sets a framework for trade talks between the uk and the eu, but if no agreement is reached it sets out a plan for dealing with the northern irish border, with a customs border down the irish sea. our deputy political editor john pienaar has more. we're leaving. we're through the looking glass. everything looks the same, but nothing will be the same again. the last lonely protester was there, fighting a cause that, today, became officially lost.

the eyes to the right — 358. the noes to the left — 234. cheering. a thumping victory for borisjohnson‘s eu divorce deal. but from the start, today, his big win was guaranteed. he came with an appeal for unity on his terms, to seek reconciliation in tones of triumph. this is a time when we move on and discard the old labels of leave and remain. in fact, the very words seem tired to me, and so now is the moment to come together and write a new and exciting chapter in our national story, to forge a new partnership with our european friends, to stand tall in the world, to begin the healing! this moment in history was his. three and half years after the referendum, the new pm felt strong enough to declare britain after brexit would set its own rules and standards, not follow the eu's. the very essence of the opportunity of brexit is that we will no longer outsource these decisions.

with renewed national self—confidence, we will take them ourselves. and that's what worried his beaten rival. we warned before the general election the prime minister's brexit deal was a terrible deal for our country, and we still believe it's a terrible deal today. this deal will be used as a battering ram to drive us down the path of yet more deregulation. and towards a toxic deal with donald trump and... what's new in the withdrawal agreement bill? the pledge to match eu workers‘ rights, like other earlier compromises, has gone. ministers now say a new uk law will guarantee those rights. on child migrants, no eu obligation now to take in unaccompanied minors with british relatives. but the pm says the uk will go on taking them in. and no extended brexit transition.

the law will require the uk's clear of eu rules by december 2020, with or without a deal. so the pm winning the brexit war doesn't mean peace. the snp sees brexit as a spur to independence. the people of scotland must have their say over their future, rather than the broken brexit britain that he wishes to impose upon us. the election and brexit has left a bitter legacy, wounded brexiteers feeling vindicated, remainers defiant on their pro—european values. those values are now under threat from this trumpian, populist government from right—wing populism bigots everywhere. we were told we were fascists, we were nazis, we are extremists, and what did we do? all we wanted was to honour the referendum. brexiteer ministerjacob rees—mogg kept a low profile during the election. not today. at last, we've got the result we need. we will now get brexit

with the majority of i24 and the sun is metaphorically shining. and look at this at the bottom of your screen. the uk's celebrity pm signing autographs for tory mps. so, reason for celebration in government tonight, we will leave the eu by january the 31st at the latest. but, defining and negotiating britain's future relationship with the eu and the world could be tougher and take longer than boris johnson predicts. no doubt who's in charge now or whose job it is to make brexit work. john pienaar, bbc news, westminster. so, how will the brexit process pan out in 2020? both the house of commons and the house of lords will debate and vote on the withdrawal agreement bill throughout january before it is enacted into law. the uk will leave the eu on january 31st and enter into a transition period, where a new trade deal between the uk and eu will be negotiated. they have until december 3ist next year to reach

an agreement and if they don't, the uk could find itself out of the eu without any kind of trade deal in place. and john joins me from westminster. getting brexit done, it will not be a quick process, will it? no. get brexit done turned out to be a useful political slogan and helped borisjohnson win. nothing in politics is simple, least of all brexit. today in the house of commons, an historic milestone was passed, but we are some way away from the final destination. the idea of ruling out any extension to the brexit transition period may or may not mean we leave the eu with a trade deal. some in government believe we could be heading for a phased trade deal, slashed out over weeks and months, may be many years into the future. meanwhile, at home, no one has spoken about boris

johnson, maybe he has been too busy dealing with challenges, but his stated mission now is to end austerity and reunite the country, rich and poor, north and south. that isa rich and poor, north and south. that is a very ambitious political idea. even so, defining an idea, even giving it a name, that is even so, defining an idea, even giving ita name, that is a even so, defining an idea, even giving it a name, that is a very different thing to actually pulling it off. the duke of edinburgh has been admitted to hospital in london to be treated for a pre—existing condition. buckingham palace says prince philip travelled from sandringham in norfolk this morning following advice from his doctor. our royal correspondent nicholas witchell is outside the hospital. do we know if it is serious?‘ precautionary measure is how the palace is describing it, and certainly i do not detect any alarm. concern, of course, he is 98, but not alarm. he was brought from sandringham by road this morning in

an ordinary royal vehicle and we are told he walked into the hospital. perhaps the most telling indicator is that as the duke was coming from road by norfolk to london, the queen was travelling from london to norfolk by rail to begin her christmas holiday. what might this pre—existing condition be? the palace is saying nothing about that. it isa palace is saying nothing about that. it is a year—and—a—half since the duke had a hip replacement operation, six years since abdominal surgery, operation, six years since abdominal surgery, eight years since the most serious episode, which was an emergencyjust before christmas when he was admitted to papworth hospital with chest pains and he had a stent admitted into an artery. it is certainly the case that we have been told that they expect him to stay in hospitalfor a few told that they expect him to stay in hospital for a few days and i sense the hope is that he will be back at sandringham with the royal family in time for christmas. nicholas witchell, thank you. nicholas witchell, thank you. the wife of a us diplomat

is being charged with causing the death by dangerous driving of the teenage motorcyclist harry dunn who died in a road crash in northamptonshire in august. after the accident, anne sacoolas flew back to the united states under diplomatic immunity. extradition proceedings are now under way. tonight she said she would not return volunarily to the uk. duncan kennedy reports. i'm just hoping it's going to be the right choice today. ha rry‘s pa rents, charlotte and tim, travelled to london not knowing what today would bring. but, at the cps headquarters, they were told the main suspect was being charged with dangerous driving. harry's family have spent four months waiting to see if charges would be brought in his case. we really do feel it is one huge step towards that promise to harry, and that in itself is one hell of an achievement as a family to have, and as parents we can't be any more satisfied with ourselves.

harry's dad, tim, was also moved by today's events. bit speechless at the minute. i am still in shock from the meeting, and... i'm sorry. anne sacoolas has already said she was driving the car that collided with harry dunn. there was no sign of her at her home outside washington, dc today, but her lawyers said anne is devastated by this tragic accident and continues to extent her deepest condolences to the family, they say anne will not return voluntarily to the united kingdom to face a potential jail sentence for what was a terrible, unintentional accident. today's decision to charge anne sacoolas comes nearly four months after harry died, here on this road in northamptonshire. in statements through her lawyers, she has already admitted driving on the wrong side of the road, and now harry's family say it's time for her

to return to britain. it was near this american air base the accident happened. harry was killed last august. two weeks later, anne sacoolas left the uk, claiming diplomatic immunity. last month, the family launched legal action against the foreign office for its handling of the case. the foreign secretary, dominic raab, today called on mrs sacoolas to return, and legal experts say the chances of extradition are good. i think they are extremely positive, because, as far as i can see, every request that has been sent by the united kingdom to the us has been successful. harry dunn's family and their supporters have fought this case together and have been told the home office will launch extradition proceedings next week. his parents say they will now put up a christmas tree for the son they refuse to give up on. millions of people are beginning

the christmas getaway tonight, but many are being hampered by flooding. the m23 in west sussex was closed for a time after being completely flooded. heavy rain has led to many parts of southern england being inundated, with roads and railways affected. our correspondent tolu adeoye reports. across the southeast of england today, the evidence of heavy rainfall overnight. flooded roads causing disruption for drivers on one of the busiest travel days of the year. in buckstead 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, it's about 18 inches — two feet deep, and when i was wandering around the garden trying to rescue things, obviously, it was up over my knees and quite strong. we are raised above ground, and we have three steps, but it was actually lapping the top,

almost going over the top steps. so it was about three inches from the kitchen door. much of the disruption has involved routes heading for gatwick, the country's second busiest airport. in west sussex, the m23 was partially closed after a nearby river burst its banks. and this is what the rain lead to in surrey, a landslip near to guilford, causing major disruption along the main railway line. what i would like to do is take the opportunity to say a massive apology to our passengers who have been disrupted. not just 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 only apologise, i'm really sorry. the environment agency has issued about 80 warnings across england, where flooding is expected, as well as more than 200 alerts that warn of possible flooding. the big christmas getaway, not off to the best start. tolu adeoye, bbc news.

our top story this evening... three and a half years after the eu referendum, mps finally vote through a brexit deal in the house of commons. from captain to coach — arsenal announce their former player mikel arteta as the club's new manager. coming up on sportsday on bbc news... can the european champions become the world champions? liverpool get ready for the club world cup final against flamengo in qatar. five days before christmas, and there are already big discounts in the shops, as retailers try to make the most he of the last—minute rush. after a tough year for the high street, stores are doing everything they can to attract customers, including a record number of pre—christmas discounts. emma simpson reports from nottingham. # dashing through the snow in a one—horse open sleigh...

a bit of festive cheer. it feels like we are ready for it. retailers are hoping we are also ready to splash the cash over the next few days. some clothing, some cheeses, some gift vouchers and pjs. well, i'm on a tight budget but i've pushed the boat out a little bit, yeah. i always do, especially because i've got a new grandson. do you think you are going to spend a bit more this year than last year? i have spent more this year than last year. christmas, it's when many retailers make most of their sales and profits. 2019 has been hard going with a few casualties along the way. now they have got to make up for lost ground. skating on thin ice, it's a pretty good metaphor for most high street retailers this year, given all the problems on the high street. and department stores have had more

challenges than most. what is selling well then? so it has really caught the imagination this year, family pj sets. jessica shepherd is on the top team at debenhams where they are pulling out all the stops. what we have seen in the last few days is an increase in footfall for stores and online, and customers are spending. it's really hard to say, given the timing of the election, if that is down to customers feeling more confident as a result of the election, or if this is just that inevitable increase in spend we see in those final few days before christmas. is debs going to be a christmas winner? we are in good shape, but there is still all to play for. they are doing discounts like so many others. it feels like the boxing day sales already, prices slashed to drive demand. every christmas there are always some winners and some losers. the winners will out perform, they've really got the product on offer and the pricing right for their customers, but at the other end of the spectrum i think it is possible that we will see more casualties

in the early part of next year because this period is so crucial for many retail businesses. that means attracting shoppers. this weekend could make all the difference. emma simpson, bbc news, nottingham. the next governor of the bank of england has been named as andrew bailey. he will replace mark carney in march. he is currently head of the city watchdog, the financial conduct authority. his newjob means he will oversee the setting of interest rates each month, to keep the cost of living stable. he'll supervise the financial system, to ensure it is well run and no banks are running out of cash. issuing uk banknotes and storing the uk's gold reserves are also the bank's responsibility. our economics editor, faisal islam, reports. a changing of the guard at the institution responsible for our money and our banks. a new man taking over

from mark carney as britain's most powerful unelected official — the i2ist governor of the bank of england. the chancellor announcing the news at the treasury. 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. mr bailey is a long—term veteran of the bank of england. at one point lending his signature to all banknotes as chief cashier. he was asked to head up the city watchdog, and there have been a series of questions about whether his organization should or could have intervened earlier in mismanaged funds, saving schemes, and misbehaving banks, including from mps. are you too nice to bankers? i don't get up in the morning hoping that people will love me. don't become chief executive of the sna if you want to be loved. the bank of england resembles a fort for a reason, and notjust the gold in its vaults. the decisions made here really do matter. for avoiding recessions,

for the value of the pound in your pocket, for steering away from bank crises. the decision to appoint andrew bailey as governor is meant to communicate stability, continuity and credibility. he'll be in charge here for eight years, and, yet, significant change could be on the way for the british economy within months. just as the new governor steps into his role, he's going to be faced with the immediate prospect of brexit. and that will mean a radical change in the way that the uk economy trades with the rest of the world, not least with its biggest trade partner. big changes, such as brexit and trade wars, mean central bankers are under considerable political pressure. do you want this new governor to stand up to you and to the prime minister? i want him to uphold, vigorously, the independence of the institution. i think that it's critical. with the economy still sluggish, plenty of challenges ahead for the new man at the institution known as the old lady.

faisal islam, bbc news. the former welsh secretary, alun cairns, has been cleared of breaking the ministerial code in connection with a former aide's role in the collapse of a rape trial. mr cairns — on the left — had been accused of knowing about the role of former aide ross england — here on the right — in the collapse of the trial. but a government investigation found there was "no direct evidence" to suggest the cabinet minister had been told. australia s prime minister, scott morrison, has apologised for going on holiday while worsening bushfires rage across the country. he cut short a family trip to hawaii after two volunteer firefighters died while tackling a huge blaze near sydney. fires are raging across australia amid a heatwave which has produced the nation's two hottest days on record. a funeral and a memorial service have taken place today for the two victims of the london bridge attack. jack merritt and saskia jones were stabbed to death by the convicted terrorist usman khan when they attended

a conference at fishmonger‘s hall next to the bridge. our home affairs correspondent, daniel sandford, reports. at the cambridge university church of saint mary the great, jack merritt‘s mother and father and girlfriend, leanne o'brien. his body in a wicker coffin, in keeping with the ethical life he'd tried to lead. jack merritt was 25 years old and had a masters in criminology from cambridge. in the service, his friends and family recalled a compassionate young man who felt compelled to help people, and whose politics was love, not hate. it is a tragedy, jack's death, but his life, as his father said in the service, his life was a triumph, and we have to hold onto that and jack's legacy of commitment to those on whom society is all too happy to turn its back. jack passionately believed in others, and so should we.

in stratford—upon—avon, at the holy trinity church, where william shakespeare is buried, the family and friends of saskia jones were gathering to remember her. she died in the same attack as jack merritt, and also had a masters in criminology from cambridge. she planned tojoin the police to work with victims of crime. she was with jack merritt at a prisoner education conference near london bridge three weeks ago when one of the participants, who had recently been released from a long sentence for terrorism offences, stabbed them both to death. the cambridge university vice—chancellor said that the way they died should not eclipse their lives and the way they had helped others. daniel sandford, bbc news. nasa and boeing's demonstration flight of a capsule designed to take astronauts to the international space station is being cut short. the sta rliner was launched by an atlas rocket from florida,

but then suffered technical problems, which left it in the wrong orbit. the setback could delay nasa's attempts to resume human space flights from the us. arsenal has named mikel arteta as its team's new head coach. a former captain of the club, he described his appointment as "a huge honour". the 37—year—old has signed a three—and—half—year deal and will take charge after tomorrow's match at everton. here's natalie pirks. big expectations, little experience. the youngest manager in the premier league finally settled into the arsenal hot seat today. theirformer player with theirfuture in his hands. i'm extremely happy and proud to have a new opportunity to be the manager of this football club. i'm preparing for a few years for this challenge to come. i know the expectations, i know the level, and i know the stature of this club and what it deserves. for the last three years,

arteta's been learning his craft at manchester city. as pep guardiola's assistant, he's won plenty of silverware — including back—to—back premier league titles. but whilst it's hoped he'll win trophies here, his first immediate job is to lift the general cloud that's hanging over the club, as they've slumped to tenth in the league. he's not really proven, but he's been trained by the best manager in the world, pep, so... let's see what he can do for us. he can't be any worse than the previous one we had. so, yeah, yeah, buzzing for that. good to have him back here. arteta knows the club well — he played for the gunners more than 100 times, and almost got the manager's job two seasons ago. but, instead, spaniard unai emery won over the arsenal hierarchy, only to be sacked 18 months later. this appointment has been protracted, and from manchester city's point of view, fractious. but, today, arteta's former boss only had kind words. i wish him all the best, so, the results, i'm pretty sure, he's going to do an excellentjob.

back in 2016, arteta bid a tearful goodbye to the arsenal faithful. will those fans still afford him the same love now he's the boss? natalie pirks, bbc news at the emirates. in the past half—hour, the uk's christmas number one single has been revealed. it's lad baby, who's claimed the top spot for the second christmas running with his charity single i love sausage rolls. # i love sausage rolls # so put another one in the oven, baby # i love sausage rolls he scored 93,000 chart sales in the past week, fending off competition from stormzy and dua lipa. the youtube star described it as a "christmas miracle" — something we can all agree on. he shot to fame after blogging about returning from a lad into a dad of two. time for a look at the weather. here's chris fawkes. a lot of flood warnings tonight in

england. yes, the flooding situation is getting a bit worse, with the number of flood warnings increasing. this was the picture in ringwood in hampshire with the river even nearby overflowing its banks. we have got 82 flood warnings in england, the majority in southern england and east anglia, and seven in tayside and one in wales. there is the troublesome area of rain working out into the north sea but over the other side of the atlantic, this curve of cloud will be bringing more rain to southern england on saturday, so we are not out of the woods yet. it is a slightly improving picture overnight, but they will be further showers for wales, southern england and the midlands, and also western scotland. it will turn murky in northern ireland with dense patches of fog developing. looking at the weather in more detail on saturday, that cloud is this weather system just running into the english channel on saturday. eventually that will bring

more rain. we start with showers across england and wales, they will push north, reaching northern ireland and scotland in the afternoon, and at the same time the cloud. to thicken and bring rain to southern england, eventually spreading to south wales, the midlands and east anglia. it could bring 20 to 30 millimetres of rain which, falling the saturated ground, could mean further localised flooding. the rain will clear away from east anglia on sunday morning, and what follows is generally a brighter kind of day, a mix of sunny spells and shock scattered showers, with the showers most frequent in the north—west. temperatures for most between seven and ten. next week, although we start on a showery theme, it looks like it will turn drierfor theme, it looks like it will turn drier for a theme, it looks like it will turn drierfor a time, but cold mornings with some frost and fog on the way, before the rain returns. in the short term, we could see further problems with flooding because of the heavy rain. that's all from the bbc news at six, so it's goodbye from me.

on bbc one, we nowjoin the bbc‘s news teams where you are.

this is bbc news. your headlines. mps this is bbc news. your headlines. m ps vote this is bbc news. your headlines. mps vote overwhelmingly in favour of boris johnson's plan mps vote overwhelmingly in favour of borisjohnson's plan to pull the uk out of the eu at the end of january. now is a time to act together as one reinvigorated nation, one united kingdom. the duke of edinburgh is admitted to hospital in london for treatment for what buckingham palace described as a pre—existing condition. the death of harry dunn came of the teenage motorcyclist hit by car in august and now proceedings begin after an american woman is because with charging his