this is bbc news, i'm lukwesa burak. the headlines at 11:00pm: the eyes to the right, 358. the noes to the left, 234. after four failed attempts and more than a year of parliamentary wrangling, the government's withdrawal bill passes with a significant majority. now is the time to act together, as one reinvigorated nation, one united kingdom. the duke of edinburgh is admitted to hospital in london for what buckingham palace describes as a pre—existing condition. the teenage motorcylist harry dunn, hit by a car in august. now, the american woman involved is charged with causing death by dangerous driving.

unrest in india. six dead in further protests against a government law that it is claimed discriminates against muslims. and at 11:30pm, we will be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers, yasmin alibhai—brown and lucy be resfo rd. good evening. 3.5 years after the uk voted to leave the european union, mps have resoundingly voted in favour of the government's brexit bill.

the legislation now paves the way for boris johnson to deliver his promise that the country will no longer be a member state of the eu by the end of next month. the prime minister won the vote easily, 358—234, with six labour mps backing the government. the withdrawal agreement says the uk will leave the european union on 31 january, but allows for a transition period until the end of 2020. during this time, the uk will still have to abide by eu rules. there will be a so—called divorce bill of around £33 billion paid to brussels for commitments the uk has already signed up to, and the agreement sets out a plan for the border with northern ireland, effectively creating a customs barrier down the irish sea. with more, here is our deputy political editorjohn pienaar. 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 ayes 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 the 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. 3.5 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 is 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 is 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 is 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, and bigots everywhere. we were told we were fascists, we were nazis, we're extremists. and what did we want?

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 that we need. we'll now get brexit with the majority of 124, 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 31 january 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 is in charge now, or whosejob it is to make brexit work. john pienaar, bbc news, westminster. so this is the brexit timetable for next year. both the commons and the lords will debate and vote on the government's brexit bill injanuary, before it becomes law. then, at the end of the month, the uk will leave the eu and the transition period begins, during which a new trade deal

with brussels will be negotiated. but the end of the year, 31 december, is the cut—off date for an agreement, and failure to reach a deal would mean tariffs on trade. let's hear more now from our deputy politcal editorjohn pienaar, who is at westminster. nothing in politics is truly simple, and certainly not brexit. today in parliament, the johnson administration cruised past and historic milestone, but it's fair to say we still have no very clear idea of the destination, or even with any certainty how long it will take to get there. now, ruling out any extension to the brexit transition, that may or may not mean britain leaves without an eu deal. some in government believe we could end up with a phased trade deal, after long negotiations stretching over many months, maybe years. and as for the home front, well, we know what thatcherism means, we have heard

about blairism, but you don't hear talk ofjohnsonism, and maybe that's because until the election he was so busy getting around and getting beyond political obstacles. there was no time or space to develop a political philosophy, still yet to give it a name. but his mission now to do away with austerity, to unite the country, north and south, rich and poor, that counts is a big idea. but whether or not you call it that, whether or not you call it johnsonism, it's still a very long way from being able to say mission accomplished. the duke of edinburgh has been admitted to hospital in london for treatment for a pre—existing condition. buckingham palace says prince philip travelled from sandringham in norfolk this morning on the advice of his doctor. from norfolk, maria veronese reports. apart from the heightened security and press pack, the queen's arrival at king's lynn station at lunchtime was low—key, so low—key, in fact,

that many of the passengers were unaware they had just shared their journey with the head of state. know, was she? that's why there's so much police and everybody. i didn't know she was riding. she was on the train, you have just know she was riding. she was on the train, you havejust missed her. know she was riding. she was on the train, you have just missed herlj did get to see her, no, but i didn't think she would be there when we saw the police. bless her heart, she is wonderful. she is truly wonderful. 0ne family managed to give the queen flowers a nd 0ne family managed to give the queen flowers and briefly speak to her. when we came out, she just said are these for me? how lovely, thank you very much. and what did you think of that? not many people get to meet the queen, do they? no, well, we

we re very the queen, do they? no, well, we were very lucky. soon after the queen arrived, she had emerged the duke of edinburgh, who spends most of ourtime in duke of edinburgh, who spends most of our time in sandringham, had today travelled on the opposite direction, to london. a palace spokesman said the 98—year—old had travelled to the king edward vii hospital by car and was receiving treatment for a pre—existing condition. last january, prince philip escaped with minor injuries after a car crash near the sandringham estate. it is traditional at this time of year for the queen to oversee christmas preparations at sandringham before herfamily preparations at sandringham before her family arrives on christmas eve. they will undoubtedly be hoping prince philip will be well enough to join them on christmas day. the wife of a us diplomat is to be charged with causing the death by dangerous driving of the teenage motorcyclist harry dunn. the 19—year—old died in a road crash in northamptonshire in august, and shortly afterwards, anne sacoolas left for the us. she is now however refusing to return to the uk,

citing diplomatic immunity. harry dunn's mother, charlotte charles, says today's development is a huge step towards justice for her son. here is duncan kennedy. ijust hope and hope that it's going to be the right choice today. harry's parents, 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's one huge step towards that promise to harry, and that in itself is one hell of an achievement, us 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'm still in shock from the meeting, and... i'm sorry. anne sacoolas, here on her wedding day, has been interviewed by british police. she has been staying at a house outside washington. although there was no one in today, her lawyers said...

today's decision to charge anne sacoolas comes months after he died on this road in northamptonshire. in statements through her lawyers, she has already admitted driving on the wrong side of the road. now, harry's family say it is 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.

they were so upset, they went to washington to plead for anne sacoolas to return. but the americans seemed reluctant, with the state department today expressing its disappointment over the dangerous driving charge. yet british lawyers say extradition is possible. i think they're 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 in the next week. his parents say they will now put up a christmas tree for the son they refuse to give up on. duncan kennedy, bbc news. millions of people are beginning the christmas getaway tonight, but many are being hampered by flooding. the m23 in west sussex was closed for several hours after being completely flooded. heavy rain has led to many parts of southern england being inundated, with roads and railways affected. 0ur correspondent tolu adeoye reports.

across the south—east 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 got — it was 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 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 led to in surrey — a landslip near to guilford, causing major disruption along the main railway line. what i would like to do is to 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 south—east. at this time of year, i know how important the railway is, and i can but 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. the headlines on bbc news: 3.5 years after the eu referendum, mps finally back a brexit deal, with a majority of 124. 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 motorcyclist hit by a car in august. now, extradition proceedings begin, after an american woman is charged with causing his death by dangerous driving. the top democrat in the us congress, nancy pelosi, has written to president trump, inviting him to give his state of the union speech on the 4th of february amid the impeachment battle. the annual speech would come during or soon after his trial in the senate, where he is likely to be acquitted. he was formally impeached by the house of representatives on wednesday. let's get more on this with our correspondent, peter bowes. he has also taken a shot at nancy pelosi on twitter. what is the

latest? the white house has said the president is accepting nancy pelosi's invitation, and of course this is all very routine. it happens about this time a very year. but this is no ordinary year. in many respects, these two archer —— and these two are arch enemies, or at least they are at the moment. nancy pelosi and her democratic comrades have been instrumental in impeaching the president. the trial is likely to be happening in the next few weeks, just before the state of the union address. so it is really setting up, perhaps, a victory lap, in some senses, for the president. the chances are he will be found not guilty, acquitted of the two charges he faces, because there is a republican majority in the senate. certainly it will be a very unusual, indeed quite a unique atmosphere, when this happens, in the very chamber that impeached the

president. before february four, what is the likely schedule in this impeachment process? that's a fascinating question. we don't really know. we had expected to trial in the senate to take place in the first week, or at least the start of the first week of january, but there are a few technicalities to go over before them. the charges, the articles of impeachment, as they are called, have to be transmitted to the senate by nancy pelosi, and she hasn't done that. she is actually hanging onto them. the reason for that seems to be that she is not satisfied with what she expects the process to be in the senate. she needs to make some decisions, she needs to know which of her democratic colleagues could act as the chief security, if you like, the impeachment managers, as they are called. she is not entirely happy with what she thinks is going to happen in the senate. probably the democrats not getting those witnesses that they want, the

republicans want a quick trial with no witnesses. those details are still being sorted out. so the start date of the trial in the senate may be delayed a little bit. now, as often happens in situations like this, president trump turns to the court of popular opinion. how was his fan base reacting to all of this? his fan base remains extremely loyal. as they have done throughout his entire presidency. they don't seem to be moved at all by the allegations that have been made in the house of representatives. those we re the house of representatives. those were pushed largely, almost entirely, by the democrats. if anything, and donald trump has been talking about this, his fans may be fired up to support him even more, perhaps encourage their friends and neighbours to get behind the president has well, because they believe the process has been unfair against him. they believe and echo what a lot of republicans are saying, but there is no hard evidence against the president, and

that this is in some respects a witch—hunt. it has not really affected his numbers, as far as his item supporters are concerned, across the country, it is pretty much a divided nation, roughly 50—50 in terms of those people who believe the president should be impeached and those who do not. peter, thank you very much indeed. the former welsh secretary alun cairns has been cleared of breaking the ministerial code over a former aide's involvement in the collapse of a rape trial. mr cairns, here on the left, had been accused of knowing about the role of ross england, who's on the right. but a government inquiry found there was "no direct evidence" to suggest the cabinet minister had been told of mr england's involvement. the duke and duchess of sussex have been spending private family time in canada over the thanksgiving and christmas period, it's been confirmed. a spokeswoman for harry and meghan said the couple, and baby son archie, are enjoying sharing the warmth of the canadian people

following their recent tour of south africa. it has already been announced they will not be joining the queen and other members of the royal family at sandringham on christmas day. australia's prime minister, scott morrison, has apologised for going on holiday while intense bushfires wreak havoc across the country. he cut short a family trip to hawaii after two volunteer firefighters died while tackling a huge blaze near sydney. there's a state of emergency in new south wales amid a heatwave which has produced this week two of australia's hottest days on record. there have been more mass protests in india today, with at least six people killed in demonstrations, over new citizenship laws. the new governor of the bank of england has been named as andrew bailey. he'll replace the current head mark carney, who'll step down in march after seven years in thejob. the bank is responsible for setting interest rates every month, in an attempt to keep the cost of living stable. it also supervises the financial

system, making sure it's well run, and that banks don't run out of cash. and it issues uk banknotes, as well as keeping safe the country's gold reserves. here's our economics editor, faisal islam. a changing of the guard at the institution responsible for our money and our banks. a new man taking over from mark karley as britain's most powerful unelected official — the 121st 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 crisis'. 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. there have been more mass protests in india today, with at least six people killed in demonstrations, over new citizenship laws. it's being claimed the legislation discriminates against the country's 200 million strong muslim population, with many fearing they could become stateless. but the move by prime minister, narendra modi, is popular with his hindu supporters.

from delhi, here's rajini vaidyanathan. is this a moment of reckoning for the world's largest democracy? as anger over a controversial citizenship law intensifies. scenes of defiance, protesters ignoring cu rfews, police accused of heavy—handed tactics. hundreds of thousands across this vast and diverse nation have taken to the streets to oppose a law they say discriminates against muslims. it offers fast—track citizenship for illegal immigrants from three neighbouring countries, except muslims. the government says it is to protect religious minorities fleeing persecution. india prides itself on its secular principles. the right to equality for all citizens. many fear that by making religion a condition of citizenship, that core fundamental

principle is now at stake. muslims say they are living in fear. the government is planning to publish a nationwide register of citizens for which everyone would have to prove they are indian. those who can't, will be considered illegal immigrants, but only non—muslims afforded protection under the new citizenship law. translation: i do not trust the government, she tells me. if they do not accept my documents which prove i'm indian, then what will i do? pressure is mounting on indian's prime minister narendra modi, but he still has huge support for his hindu nationalist agenda. tonight in delhi, a group of his supporters came out to defend the citizenship act. a lot of people are saying that it is against the muslims, but it is not against muslims. it is only for... it is not against anyone, it is for minorities and for neighbouring countries,

pakistan, afghanistan and bangladesh where islam is the main religion. this week's large—scale protest represents the first real dissent against mr modi's government. some fear the country is inching closer to becoming a hindu state. and worried that india's secular soul is at stake. "a new era in human space flight." with those words, the new starliner capsule blasted off from cape canaveral this morning. it's a craft that one day could take space tourists into orbit as paying customers. starliner is on a test flight to the international space station, but the voyage hasn't gone as well as hoped, as our science correspondent jonathan amos explains. and lift off for the starliner, a new era in human space flight.

a new era perhaps, but notjust yet. boeing launched its starliner capsule on time from cape canaveral in florida, but the automated ship then failed to carry out its commands properly. when it came off the top of the rocket, it was supposed to fire its engines to increase its height. it did, but at the wrong time and for too long. the starliner put itself in the wrong part of the sky. it can no longer reach the space station and will have to come home. the american space agency has been overseeing the development of the capsule. nasa has provided milestone payments to help boeing bring the vehicle into operation. and despite the setback, the agency is staying positive. if we would've had crew in there, number one, they would have been safe. to be very clear, our crew would have been safe. and in fact, had they been in there, we very well may have been orbiting or docking with the international space station tomorrow had they been in the spacecraft. so a lot of things went right today, and i want to be really clear, a lot of things went right

and this is why we test and because we are now in orbit and because in fact elevating our orbit, we are going to get a lot more data and a lot more information in the coming days. so this is all very positive. nasa has not been able to launch its own astronauts to orbit nearly nine years. when it retired the shuttles in 2011, it ceased to operate space vehicles. and it bought seats to the space station in russian capsules instead. nasa would rather spend its money handling rides on american—built space taxi services. another enterprise, the california space—x company, has already completed a test flight of its astronaut capsule. the dragon craft made a flawless trip to the orbiting lab in march. space—x looks set to start flying astronauts for real in the next few months. quite how far behind today's events put boeing is unclear. engineers will need to inspect the starliner when they get it back on earth. nasa is determined that it should have a choice of capsules

in the future. boeing is certain to try again. with causing his death by dangerous driving. the uk's christmas number one has been won by the unlikeliest of pop