'fine across much of england whether fine across much of england and wales but in western scotland are still pretty windy. outbreaks of rain. avery are still pretty windy. outbreaks of rain. a very mild. 16 to 17 degrees in the western isles last night. it lasted briefly. tonight, clear skies breaking, developing one or two areas, two to three degrees early in the morning and some spots. by the afternoon, a case of sunny spells and temperatures around about 11 to 12 degrees. perhaps a little wetter in northern ireland and western scotland. a quick look ahead to new year's eve. it is looking pretty good. mostly dry. this is bbc news. i'm rachel schofield. the headlines at 3pm. the mayor of sydney says the new year fireworks display will go ahead as planned,

despite a petition calling for it to be cancelled because of nearby bushfires. five people have been stabbed in new york state during hanukkah celebrations at the home of an orthodox rabbi. this is domestic terrorism. these are people who intend to create mass harm, mass violence, generate fear. calls for an independent inquiry after the new year honours data leak, in which the addresses of celebrities, politicians and police officers were published online. restoration work on big ben will pause for one night only, so its famous bongs can ring in the new decade in london. coming up in half an hour, we'll bring you some of the highlights of the victoria derbyshire programme over the last year, including our exclusive film on the burning of plastic waste in indonesia, and the 11—year—old liverpool fan who knocked himself

unconscious on a lamp post while running after his hero, mo salah. the mayor of sydney says the city's famous new year's eve fireworks display will go ahead despite a call for the event to be cancelled because of the bushfire crisis affecting parts of australia. more than a quarter of a million people have signed a petition urging the authorities to spend the money on fighting the blazes instead. more than 80 fires are still raging across large areas of new south wales. a warning — this report from phil mercer in sydney contains flashing images. it's arguably the world's most dazzling fireworks display, but thousands of people want sydney

to scrap its new year's eve spectacular. they say it would be an insult and could traumatise some of those affected by the bushfire crisis. sydney's lord mayor, clover moore, said she shared the deep sympathies of those who'd signed the petition, but stressed that the fireworks were planned months in advance and most of the budget had already been spent. so, barring catastrophic fire conditions in sydney on new year's eve, the event seems certain to go ahead. in between now and then, the authorities are warning of severe—to—extreme fire dangers across much of south—eastern australia, much of the heavily populated parts of australia. that includes south australia, victoria, tasmania and new south wales, where more than 80 fires continue to burn. volunteers are a vital part of the emergency effort. many have been fighting

the flames for weeks. the government says they'll be able to apply for about £3,000 in compensation, for taking time off work to battle the blazes. good morning, ladies and gentlemen. this is a very prolonged fire season. this is putting additional demands on ourfirefighters in particular, and it means that the turnouts and the callouts have been far more extensive than in previous years, going well and beyond and above what is normally expected of those who are engaged in volunteer service. the money and the gesture from the government are broadly welcomed by the volunteers on the front line. it's tough. the payment isjust a recognition of what we're doing. it doesn't compensate us for what we're losing, but it's recognition. when your brigade is tired and exhausted and you're seeing people going out again and again and again, and you're doing 12—hour shifts and it's really strenuous, hard work, you really do feel

like you want to be helping, and you really do feel like you're obliged to do that. so, like, for me, it means i use my annual leave. their work is far from over. dangerous fire conditions and extreme heat are forecast for south—eastern australia from tomorrow. phil mercer, bbc news, sydney. two people are in a critical condition in hospital in new york state after a man wielding a machete attacked people attending hanukkah celebrations. three others are also being treated for stab wounds. eyewitnesses said the attacker entered the home of a rabbi in monsey, with his face covered, and began stabbing people. leigh milner has this report. it was supposed to be a night of celebration at this rabbi's house in monsey, just north of new york city. then this happened. someone came in, face covered with a scarf, started stabbing

people. five people in total were stabbed. two of them were taken from the scene in critical condition, including one of them, a senior, in very critical condition. according to the orthodoxjewish public affairs council, one of the victims was stabbed at least six times. it comes just a day after new york city police said officers were stepping up patrols in heavily jewish districts like monsey after a spate of anti—semitic threats and attacks. we were scared but we were not surprised because this is not the first incident in new york. this is not the first incident in rockland county. it's horrible. you know, my parents were survivors of the concentration camps and they told me how fearful it was to be jews and they always said we can't let it happen again and i'm scared that it's happening again. shortly after the attack, the suspect fled but was later taken into custody by the police. his motive is not yet clear.

leigh milner, bbc news. well, just a few moments ago the governor of new york state andrew cuomo described the attack as domestic terrorism. if anyone thinks that something poisonous is not going on in this country, then they are in denial, frankly. how many incidents do you have to see from coast—to—coast? hostility based on religion, based on race, based on creed, based on immigration status. it's all across the country. it is an american cancer that is spreading in the body politic, an american cancer, turning one cell of the body against the

other. hence we become intolerant of differences, then we are intolerant with america. —— once we become. i also believe the situation has gotten so bad, rightly, that we have to increase our legal enforcement, not just with to increase our legal enforcement, notjust with more police, but we have to change the laws to pull this what it is. this is terrorism. it is domestic terrorism. these are people who intend to create mass harm, mass violence, generate fear, based on race, colour, creed. that is the definition of terrorism. and just because they don't come from another country doesn't mean they are not terrorists, and they should be prosecuted as domestic terrorists, because that is what they are, and

i wa nt because that is what they are, and i want this state to be the first state to have a domestic terrorism law. for more on this, we're joined by chris buckler live from washington. strong words from andrew cuomo. tell us strong words from andrew cuomo. tell usa strong words from andrew cuomo. tell us a bit more about how this has been playing out. very strong words, and andrew cuomo spoke surrounded by members of law enforcement in the states as well as members of the jewish community, and there is a real anger inside the jewish community because, as was mentioned, there has been a spate of anti—semitic attacks and there was a real concern in new york in particular about the number of attacks on members of thejewish community, and a realfeeling they need to be protection. it must be said that new york police have stepped up controls, and the city mayor, bill de blasio, had talked at length about his concerns and want people more needed to be done, but ultimately the jewish community feels that it has not been protected

in the way it should do, and this area has got a very large, ultraorthodox population, and they feel that more still could be done, and andrew cuomo believes that what could be done, talking about the idea that potentially there could even be a domestic terrorism state law of some sort of put in in new york, an attempt tackle these problems. in the last year, we had an attack just problems. in the last year, we had an attackjust over a year ago in pittsburgh in a synagogue, and earlier this year an attack in san diego at a synagogue, all of which led to deaths, and there is a feeling that this needs to be addressed, that hate is a real problem in america at the moment and that something needs to be done.|j noted that andrew cuomo was broadening the debate in that press conference, talking about attacks on lg btq conference, talking about attacks on lgbtq communities, and saying it was not just a lgbtq communities, and saying it was notjust a question of anti—semitism, but he talked about anti—semitism, but he talked about an american cancer of intolerance of other people and other

people'sviews. he is a democrat and i was waiting for a more political point didn't come in the bit i heard, but i wonder if there has been a response from the white house. not as yet. andrew cuomo only spoke a short time ago, there is no doubt that to an extent it was a political statement as well as reaction to this attack, and there was concern about division inside america, and that is right to the white house and some of what president trump has said, for example, some critics attacking him for at times appearing to suggest that there was an equivalence involving white nationalism, a famous moment in which president trump appeared to, as critics would say and he would deny this, but flirt with white nationalism. the white house would argue they have done their best to tackle anti—semitism, and earlier this month there was an executive order signed specifically to try and tackle anti—semitism on college

campuses in the us, and that is a recognition by the administration that there is a problem, but they are trying to do something, as people keep on saying, but i think that pressure is only going to grow, particularly when you hear the testimony of some of those who were inside that house. remember, for a religious celebration, to celebrate chanukah with their friends and fellow members of the jewish community, and then they were subjected to something that was just horrific, an attack in which some people were stabbed multiple times, they are still in hospital, and the suspect will be charged with five cou nts suspect will be charged with five counts of attempted murder. he was not named in the news conference, but it was said they will be charged with five counts of attempted murder. you can imagine that, among the people who witnessed it, and some have talked about seeing the blood and seen people being seriously injured, that will scarf that community for some time. —— that community for some time. —— that will

scar. there are calls for an independent inquiry after a data breach which saw the addresses of more than a thousand people on the new year honours list made publicly available online. the files included the details of celebrities, senior police officers and politicians. one of those affected, iain duncan smith, called the leak a "complete disaster". katharine da costa reports. more than 1000 people will be honoured, among them celebrities, sport stars, and politicians, including musician sir eltonjohn, cricketer ben stokes, former tory party leader iain duncan smith, and former director of public prosecutions alison saunders. there are also security, counter—terror, and justice personnel, as well as chief co nsta bles. but a list containing their home addresses was accidentally published by the government on friday evening. iain duncan smith, who is due to be knighted, described the data breach as a "complete disaster". he told the sunday times...

new data protection laws were brought in last year, giving regulators more power to penalise those who fail to protect personal data. the cabinet office confirmed the list was only visible for an hour. in a statement, it said... the former head of the civil service, lord kerslake, is leading calls for an independent enquiry. the cabinet office says it has report the matter to the information commissioner's office and is looking into how this happened. but privacy campaigners have expressed concern at what they say is an inexcusable mistake. data experts warn the government

could face legal action, notjust from the data watchdog, but from those who've seen their personal details leaked, information many may have wanted to keep private. katharine da costa, bbc news. well, earlier, ispoke to our correspondent katy austin and asked what the reaction to the leak has been. reaction has reflected the seriousness of the incident. there are several things to think about here. it is not just that there are celebrities who want their privacy protected, there are also security figures, senior policing figures, and their address in the wrong hands would really pose a security risk. we have heard iain duncan smith, who is being knighted, calling this a complete disaster and saying very serious questions need answering, and also lord kerslake, the former head of the civil service, has expressed shock at this, and he says that is because the honours process is a well—worn process, it happens every year, it's very well established, so the fact a mistake

has been made looks bad and has serious consequences. what do you think the implications are for the cabinet office, who oversee this? when we contacted them yesterday, they acknowledged it had happened and apologised and they said they had tried to take it down as soon as possible, so the list with the addresses on was only up for around an hour, perhaps less. the cabinet office also says it is contacting everybody affected, although that will not happen immediately, because there are lots of people on the list and maybe they are being prioritised. tae kwon do starjadejones told the bbc last night she had not been contacted yet. there is also the fact that data protection regulation has been tightened very recently, with gdpr coming in, which many viewers will have heard of, and we know the information regulator will be making enquiries. that's the information commissioner's office, which has powers including being able to levy a fine.

we can await the outcome of their investigation, but many experts say, if a fine is levied, it would not be stratospheric levels, like millions, because although this is a serious breach because of the nature of those involved, the scale of it is relatively small, so we will have to see what happens. whatever happens with the ico enquiry, questions are being raised because we live in an era where the importance of data protection is very high in everyone's awareness, so how this got onto the internet for even a short time is the key question. message from the page - the headlines on bbc news... a quarter of a million people sign a petition calling for sydney's new year's eve fireworks to be cancelled five people are injured in a knife attack in new york state during hanukkah celebrations at the home of a rabbi. calls for an independent inquiry

after the new years' honours data leak — in which the addresses of celebrities, politicians and police officers were published online. in sport, south africa have beaten england 107 runs in the first test. england 107 runs in the first test. england were bowled out for 268, chasing 376 for victory. rangers get their first chasing 376 for victory. rangers get theirfirst win at chasing 376 for victory. rangers get their first win at celtic park since 2010, is there to— one victory moves them within two points of the premiership leaders with game in hands. england's data matthew fell is the first player through to the semifinals of the world darts championship after beating dimitri van den bergh 5—3. there will be more from the bbc‘s sports centre throughout the day. cctv footage which appears to show a missing firefighter on the night he disappeared has been released by police. 33—year—old anthony knott went missing during a work night out

in lewes in east sussex on the 20th of december. sussex police are hoping the footage — showing his distinctive walk — may help them to track his movements before he disappeared. iran has said a british—australian woman who's reported to have gone on hunger strike in prison must serve her sentence. kylie moore—gilbert, who was jailed for spying, is being held in the same prison as the british—iranian woman nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe and two french academics. a group of former labour mps who lost their seats in the election have called for "fundamental change" at the top of the party. in a letter to the observer, the group — which includes former mp for wakefield mary creagh — said "cronyism" in the party and labour's "unwillingness" to stand up to anti—semitism were repeatedly raised as issues on the doorstep — and that issue shamed the traditional values of the labour

party. at least five people have been killed by an explosion at a military graduation parade in yemen. authorities say the blast happened in the southern town of al—dhalea. no one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. for more on this, i've been speaking to our world service middle east analyst, alan johnston. this attack coming in a town north of the port city of aden, al—dhalea. this is territory where a powerful military organisation called the security belt forces likes to recruit young men into its ranks, and this attack happened during a parade that was celebrating the passing out of the latest batch of recruits to the security belt forces. images we have coming from the scene showing a crater and the blast having gone off near a stand where guests would have been watching the parade as it unfolded,

although we understand the parade had finished just moments before this attack. security belt forces are backed by the united arab emirates, but they are very much part of the yemeni government's coalition that confronts the houthi rebels, who are based in the north, and soon after this attack security belt forces personnel blamed this attack on the houthi rebels, saying that it was a missile strike, and saying they had arrested some people close to the scene who were linked with the houthis, suggesting that these people may have been coordinating the strike in some way. denmark will start using live video to help people who call the emergency services in and around the capital, copenhagen. anyone with a camera phone will be able to stream video direct from the scene to call handlers without installing an app. there's been a year—long trial, which the authorities say was successful. karl riley

reports. denmark's main emergency call centre where dispatchers give critical advice to callers as ambulances make their way to the scene. from the start of 2020, callers here may be asked to share live video as a trial of the technology becomes permanent. translation: it makes a big difference. we find we use the video calls a lot where there is a lot of panic or when people are having difficulty understanding the instructions that we're giving over the phone. in the year—long trial of 700 video calls, more than 40% of the emergencies were re—categorised once dispatchers could see the scene live. so, how does it work? operators can send an sms to mobile callers with a link that opens up their camera and shares video from their device, but only if there's another person at the scene to administer the first aid. translation: it's a way to guide the patient since we can monitor the situation. so, someone can help put an unconscious person in position.

if it's a cardiac arrest, are you pumping the right place at the chest? are you pumping deep enough? all this happens when the ambulance is on its way, as fast as possible. the scheme has already been credited with saving one live. the person has a heart attack and was helped by colleagues on a video call. he's welcomed the roll—out, saying he's sure it will help many others. karl riley, bbc news. boats carrying 31 migrants have been picked up as they attempted to cross the english channel. two have been taken by french authorities to france and the british borderforce intercepted a third. all of those found, including a pregnant woman, are thought to be in a safe condition. police in london are investigating a racially motivated hate crime in the hampstead area during thejewish festival of hannukah. it follows the appearance of offensive graffiti in a number of locations in north london, including a synagogue and shop fronts.

the images include a reference to 9/11 and an anti—semitic conspiracy theory over the new york attack. the conservative councillor for hampstead, oliver cooper, said he was sickened to find such anti—semitism in his neighbourhood. no arrests have been made. the family and friends of a british man and his two children who drowned in a spanish resort‘s swimming pool have expressed their devastation at the news. gabriel diya, 52, his daughter comfort, nine, and his son praise—emmanuel, aged 16, died on christmas eve. spanish police believe the deaths happened after they got out of their depth, but mr diya's wife, 0lubunmi, says all three could swim and she believes there was a fault with the pool. it's very devastating, because ijust broke the news to my older sister this morning. she has made a u—turn from where she was going and she is coming to see her as well. the family is upset.

my mother is 92 years old. i can't tell my mum. we are in a devastated state at the moment, very devastated. i saw the name diya and it didn't immediately register that it was my friend. i saw the name diya and i said, ok, this has to be a nigerian family, most likely a british minority family, so i went to look for gabriel diya on google, and then i saw the twitter account, and when i clicked on the twitter account, i saw this picture and i saw my friend right beside him, and immediately i was just broken. i was broken, i was upset, i was sad, i was weeping. and i was angry. i was really angry, no, this can't be happening to someone so close

to home. the scottish author and artist alasdair gray has died, aged 85, following a short illness. a graduate of the glasgow school of art, his murals feature in many public buildings in glasgow while his debut book, lanark, has been described as one of the masterpieces of 20th century fiction. first minister of scotland, nicola sturgeon paid tribute to him as one of scotland's literary giants. it's been more than two years since big ben's famous bongs were paused to allow for essential maintenance work to be carried out. but new year's eve just wouldn't feel right without those iconic chimes. so, for one night only, they will return to ring in the new decade in london. tim muffett reports. it's one of the world's most familiar and regularly misnamed buildings. but for two years, the elizabeth tower, which houses the giant bell, big ben, has been

surrounded by scaffolding. repairs that have left big ben itself largely silent. here it is, big ben. here it is, big ben, yes, indeed, all 13 tons of it. it's been quiet largely for the last few years. feels a bit odd? it does feel very odd. it's been way too quiet for my liking. this is, what, the biggest refurbishment project that's ever ta ken place since it was first built. so, the clock mechanics are taking apart every single small piece and then putting it all back together, which hasn't been done before. so, a massive challenge for them. it's that clock mechanism which, for more than 150 years, activated the hammer that strikes big ben. so, for special occasions during the repairs, such as remembrance sunday and new year's eve, a new device has been needed. what we've got here is a tolling — automatic electric tolling motor, which obviously wouldn't have been available when this was first built. this produces the power needed to then lift the big ben hammer, which is, as i say, very heavy, 300, 400 kilograms, and strike it 12 times.

last new year's eve, all went to plan. big ben bongs. are you nervous in the run—up to midnight? i think there's always got to be a bit of nerves because it shows, one, that you care, and also, that it's obviously a really, really big moment. cheering. the new speaker of the house of commons, lindsay hoyle, has said he won't stand in the way if mps vote for big ben to also be struck on january the 315t, the day the uk's set to leave the eu. during a tumultuous time in british politics, hidden from view, this four—year refurbishment has continued. all of the stone that we put onto the tower is hard—carved, which is a phenomenal thing to say, brilliant, and it may take them between three and four weeks to produce a carving such as this crown that you can see along here. so, a real labour of love. so, this is the eastern clock face, high up the elizabeth tower, and the most striking thing is the colours. it's not the black paint we're

familiar with, but gold and blue. so, we found that as we scratched back through the layers, we were scratching, basically going back through time, and found that this was the colour that it was originally. so, it's really exciting to find that blue colour as we went back through the layers. and it's prussian blue. prussian blue, yeah. this is gold leaf. and we've reglazed the whole of the clock face with hand—blown opal glass. even standing here, on a rainy day, surrounded by scaffolding, you see that — that's one of the faces of elizabeth tower...big ben. yes. it's so iconic. to actually be able to stand here and — i won't touch the gold, but i will touch in between — it's — not many people can do that. in 2021, the scaffolding will disappear and the world's most famous bell will again be heard not just on special occasions, but every hour, every day. tim muffett, bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather with tomasz.

hello. it's been a mild, damp day for most of the uk today, and tomorrow will be fairly similar. some sunshine in the forecast. slight difference for scotland and northern ireland. today, a bit of cloud and rain, but the thinking is tomorrow the clouds will be a bit more substantial and there will be more substantial and there will be more rain heading into the north—west of the uk. tonight, you can see outbreaks of rain throughout the western isles, but dry for the bulk of scotland, northern ireland and the rest of the country. overnight, temperatures three or 4 degrees where the sky is clear. where the cloud hangs around, a bit milder. perhaps some rain getting in glasgow and edinburgh tomorrow, possibly belfast as well, but for england and wales it will be a dry day with temperatures of around ten oi’ day with temperatures of around ten or11, day with temperatures of around ten or 11, very mild, and day with temperatures of around ten or”, very mild, and new day with temperatures of around ten or 11, very mild, and new year's eve is looking mostly dry. the only

thing we are watching out for is a bit of fog. hello, this is bbc news with rachel schofield. the headlines: the mayor of sydney says the new year fireworks display will go ahead as planned, despite a petition calling for it to be cancelled because of nearby bushfires. a man has stabbed five people at the home of a rabbi in new york state. eyewitnesses said the attacker entered with his face covered, wielding a large knife. a former head of the civil service has called for an urgent inquiry into the new year honours data breach, in which the addresses of celebrities, politicians and police officers were published online. and restoration work on big ben will pause for one night only, so its famous bongs can ring in the new decade in london.