britons returning to the uk from the chinese city worst hit by the coronavirus outbreak are to be quarantined for two weeks. it comes as british airways announces it's suspending flights to and from mainland china — the government plans to evacuate 200 british citizens tomorrow. over 130 people have now died from the virus in china — one briton who's there says he would willingly be quarantined. we don't want to put the uk public at any risk and, you know, if this makes it safer for those, then that's what's necessary. as the government steps up its efforts, we'll be asking what precautions people should be taking here. also this lunchtime... the grenfell tower fire inquiry — companies involved in the buildings refurbishment say they want immunity from prosecution before

giving evidence. thousands of seriously ill patients in england and wales are having to wait more than an hour for an ambulance to reach them, a bbc investigation discovers. an announcement is expected on whether the north of england's biggest rail operator northern is to be nationalised. and the challenges facing scientists looking at climate change in one of the harshest environments on the planet. and coming up on bbc news... on the planet. world number one rafa nadal has a mountain to climb in melbourne, after going two sets down to dominic thiem in their australian open quarterfinal. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one.

any britons returning from the chinese city of wuhan, which has been hit by the coronavirus, are to be put in quarantine for m days, the department of health has announced. people are likely to be taken to a military base once they arrive home, and may be asked to sign a contract before boarding the plane, agreeing to being placed in quarantine. it's thought around 200 british nationals are in wuhan. the virus has caused more than 100 deaths, and spread to at least 16 other countries. it comes as british airways suspended all direct flights to and from mainland china, because of the outbreak. here's richard galpin. the empty streets of wuhan, the city where this epidemic began. and where many people are holed up in their homes, including 200 british nationals who have finally been told planes are being chartered to get them back to the uk. but it's been chaotic. the british government

initially saying when they arrived in the uk they would have to make their own way home and then go into isolation. but now the government is saying they will be quarantined immediately on arrival, possibly in a military base. khan lambert who lives in wuhan has lost his place on tomorrow because my flight out because of the mix—up but welcomed the change of policy. khan wrote. i am happy that they have been listening and put it in place. we don't want to put the uk public at any risk and if this makes it safer for those that that is what is necessary i think. other countries have been much quicker to get their citizens back home. this group of japanese arriving in tokyo earlier today. and the australian government has been quick to announce that this migrant detention centre on christmas island will now be used to keep people returning from china in quarantine. they will be transported to christmas island

where we will also be putting in place a team that will be travelling there to provide medical support and that will be supplemented as is necessary by other defence support. australian scientists have also taken the lead in tackling the new coronavirus, replicating it in the lab for the first time. this step makes it possible for a lot of things to move forward that have been delayed and we are just delighted to have been able to fill that gap in the space between 2am saturday morning when the first case was diagnosed in australia and monday when we believe we had the virus growing in culture. here in the uk emergency procedures are now being put into place, staff in protective clothing straight treating patients in birmingham yesterday who had been in wuhan and had virus —like symptoms. but experts are calling for,.lj had virus —like symptoms. but experts are calling for,. i suspect 20 full analysis is done, those who probably would have died anyway,

these tend to be people who are very seriously ill to start with or compromised. of the virus is continuing to spread across china and other countries. so far there is no sign of it weakening. richard galpin, bbc news. our china correspondent robin brant is in shanghai. are we getting a better understanding now of the scale and impact of this outbreak? yes, we are hearing from senior economists in the chinese government to the last hour, they think three things, this is going to have a more severe impact on the chinese economy than the sars outbreak, very comparable respiratory illness back in 2002. it could shave 1% off economic growth in china in the first quarter of the year. down from six to 5%. they predict it could peak they think by the middle of february and end by the middle of february and end by

the end of march, that is very optimistic. one other thing we are given a good idea about is how the government acted early on, there is an interview that has emerged in the last hour, the state—run newspaper here with a very senior medical expert leading the national health commission, the agency charged with trying to contain a solid brick. he has been asked about the government acting slowly early on and he says the government did hesitate, when the government did hesitate, when the government did hesitate, when the government officials make decisions they take politics into consideration, stability and whether people can enjoy spring festival as well. an admission there i think from a senior official at the top of government that the chinese government that the chinese government hesitated early on in terms of full disclosure. many thanks. our correspondence robin brant. our medical correspondent fergus walsh, is here. the government is clearly stepping up the government is clearly stepping up its efforts, should people here be taking precautions?” up its efforts, should people here be taking precautions? i don't think they should be talking any more precautions than they would normally

in winter to try and minimise the spread of respiratory viruses like flu, and hygiene, covering your mouth when you are coughing, that sort of thing. it is not clear where these 200 or so people are going to be quarantined. there is talk of a military base. we can't get any clarity from the government at the moment about which one map where it might be, and remember that in the last couple of weeks, more than 1001 400 people have flown in from wuhan, nine out of 10 haven't been traced. -- 1400. nine out of 10 haven't been traced. —— 1400. they have been asked to quarantine themselves, self isolators, matt hancock called it. we arejust isolators, matt hancock called it. we are just relying on their goodwill and public spiritedness not to go back to work and mix in crowded places. and do we know in terms of the deaths what sort of people have died, where the people with conditions already? the majority seemed to be elderly people

with underlying health conditions, and this is a moving target at the moment, but it would seem that this is less lethal than sars, which killed one in 10 people, but it may be more contagious. the next couple of weeks are going to be crucial to know whether the extraordinary effo rts know whether the extraordinary efforts that the chinese have done to lockdown 35, 40 million people will be enough to stop this spreading throughout the world. fergus walsh, many thanks. every week thousands of seriously ill patients in england and wales are waiting more than an hour for an ambulance to reach them, a bbc investigation has found. people suffering medical emergencies such as heart attacks and strokes are not meant to wait more than 18 minutes, and experts warn the delays are a threat to patients' lives. nhs bosses have blamed rising demand, and ambulances being delayed at a&e. here's our health

correspondent, nick triggle. derrin cozart was at his home in northumberland on his own when he collapsed. he came to and rang 999. over an hour later, an ambulance arrived. he was dead. he had suffered a gastric haemorrhage, causing massive internal bleeding. the case is now being investigated by the north east ambulance service. his partner, mark mitchell, has been wondering whether the delays cost him his life. nobody will ever know whether an ambulance arriving eight minutes or 18 or 38 minutes later, derrin would have still have been alive. but the fact we don't know the answer to that doesn't mean there shouldn't be accountability somewhere to say, when we don't meet these targets, people die. the bbc has been investigating long waits for emergency ambulance responses like this and has found they have been quite common since the start of 2018.

the highest priority calls are split into two categories by the nhs. immediately life—threatening cases are basically situations where a patient is not breathing, where their heart has stopped or where they are bleeding uncontrollably. long waits are very unusualfor this small group of patients known as category one by the nhs. in england, only one in 270 take longer than 30 minutes to reach, but for patients in the next most serious category, long waits are much more common. one in 16 take longer than an hourto reach, and this can include patients having strokes, heart attacks and fits. that works out at over 4000 waits of over more than one hour every week in england, far worse than the target response time of 18 minutes on average. significant problems are also being reported in wales, where each week, more than 1000 calls take

longer than one hour, although there are some differences in how they categorise patients there. nhs bosses blame rising demand and delays handing over patients at a&e. it is not easy, but let's be clear, all our staff are working flat out to keep all of our patients and everybody safe as possible. many ambulance service said they had increased staffing only to find the extra resource largely swallowed up by delays at a&e. nick triggle, bbc news. companies involved in the refurbishment of grenfell tower have asked for immunity from prosecution before appearing at the new phase of the inquiry. they want a legal guarantee that they will be protected when they give evidence. 72 people died in the disaster in 2017. our home affairs correspondent tom symonds is at the inquiry in central london. tom, what is there argument? anybody

who gives evidence in a public inquiry has the right not to incriminate themselves, because a public inquiry is not a court of law. what they are asking for is for the chairman of the inquiry sir martin moore—bick to request a note from the attorney general from the senior government lawyer saying if they were to say something or give some evidence that gave them a problem criminally, it couldn't be used in any prosecution. remember the police are carrying out a major criminal investigation into grenfell tower. chairman will consider that ata tower. chairman will consider that at a hearing tomorrow but it really wasn't popular with some of the people standing around me here, the victims of grenfell tower. there we re victims of grenfell tower. there were audible in the hearing room when this became known. —— audible grounds. another development today, the royal borough of kensington and chelsea has said it is not going to get involved in what it has described as the merry—go—round to blame between companies involved in g re nfell tower. blame between companies involved in grenfell tower. it has made an apology today for what it called a series of failings at its building

control department. that is the department of inspectors who are seen department of inspectors who are seen as department of inspectors who are seen as the last line of defence when a building has been built to make sure that it is going to be safe in a fire. the council's barrister said the series of failings and he apologised unreservedly. one of those failings was that the council failed to look at any fire risk assessment about the cladding beyond the 3rd of november 2013 when they haven't even decided what the cladding would be by that point. tom, thank you. our correspondent thompson symonds there. it has just been revealed the struggling rail operator northern is to lose its franchise and will be nationalised in march. the government hasjust nationalised in march. the government has just announced. sir the service which is run by a rebate has been accused of allowing unacceptable delays across its network. we can go live to our correspondent danny savage at leeds train station. northern has been on the ropes for well over a year and a half now. it didn't recover from the

timetable fiasco of may 2018 when it had to cancel thousands of services and were subject to many delays. it abandon services altogether on one route in the lake district out at windermere. it stopped running trains altogether. it never really recovered. passengers complaining bitterly about the lies and overcrowding. this is about them, what it means for passengers. i have been talking to some of them over the past few days. early morning at chapeltown station in sheffield. lots of commuters use this stop. the next service is half an hour behind this one, so everyone has to squeeze on. this is normal, and people are fed up with northern, who operate these services. today this is actually fairly roomy, but usually, you know, i either don't get on because it's too busy, and i had to wait for the next train. and sometimes even the train after that. at one point we had a game with the northern rail twitter

account which was how many people can we fit into your toilet. which is eight, if you want to know! eight people can fit in the toilet. because that is the only space that was left on the train? yes. and we left people at the platform. overcrowding, cancellations, and delays are an everyday occurrence. but some passengers aren't sure what difference northern losing its franchise will make. well, it's hard to say because there's the whole problem in terms of infrastructure. would the new franchise have enough trains, have enough capacity on there? would just be like rearranging the deck chairs on the titanic? we've got conductors on the train who get verbal abuse from customers as well, which i've seen in the past, which is not fair on them. they're here to do theirjob, it's not their fault the capacity is not enough. just over a year ago i travelled to work with vanessa bremner. she is another commuter on northern. her route is doncaster to leeds. at least, it was. because now, she's given up and uses the car. i know numerous people who have had to stop taking the train and have started driving. you know, leeds city council is talking about congestion charges.

we are all focused on climate change and the environment. they are all being forced into their vehicles. those that are still using the trains, even this morning at least five members of my team came in late because of delays on the trains. those campaigning for extra investment in the north say extra platforms are needed in leeds and manchester to increase capacity. stripping northern of its franchise is not a game changer. the challenges and issues on northern are not really related to the company who runs the franchise, they are to do with the failure to build infrastructure here in west yorkshire and across the pennines in manchester. few will mourn the end of northern's tenure. the passengers are not naive, they know a change in operator will not necessarily fix the problem. they are looking to the government for a proper solution in northern england. the government will now take over

the northern franchise from the 1st of march just a few weeks from now and passengers now will look to the government to say you are running the shop now and i think is going to improve. but the north really needs are more platforms at manchester to get services through more quickly and less congestion on the network. the issue for passengers, we will have to see if their lot will improve in the next few months. our assistant political editor, norman smith, is in parliament. soa so a conservative government nationalising a train company, this is drastic action! it might seem like an extraordinary decision but the government really had no choice as if they had left northern alone i think there would have been an explosion of rage amongst the poor commuters who have had to put up for the service and added to which of course boris johnson the service and added to which of course borisjohnson has said again and again that he will improve

infrastructure and transport links in the north. so this was a decision by the government had little choice but to take it back into public ownership. grant shapps in a statement said that this was just the first step and quotient rail users in the north it would take time to turn the service around but also that it is indicative of a much wider shake—up of the railways and i think the decision today gives us a sense of where the government is going. this is the second line to be taken back into public ownership after virgin trains lost their contract on the east coastline. you give the sense that the government wa nts give the sense that the government wants the public sector to have greater control of the railways, short of nationalisation. and put that together with an attempt to reverse the cuts of the 19605 you get the sense that when it comes to the railways we are going back to

the railways we are going back to the future! our top story this lunchtime. britons returning from the chinese city of wuhan, which has been hit by the coronavirus, are to be put in quarantine for a fortnight. social media adverts, urging young women to become surrogate mother5, could be allowed for the first time, under plans seen by bbc news. coming up on bbc news. the women's semi final line up is complete at the australian open — as two time grand slam champion simona halep advances to the final four with victory over anna kontaveit. "it's not goodbye, it's au revoir" — that's the sign that greeted british meps above the chamber of the european parliament today, put there by a coalition of socialist parties. the parliament is expected to approve the terms of the uk'5 departure from the eu later this afternoon. the vote will mark the last stage of the ratification proce55,

before the uk leaves the eu on friday. british meps are already clearing their offices and packing to leave, a5 adam fleming reports. the work goes on in the european parliament. a5 thrilling as ever. but look at those empty 5eat5. the brits are checking out already. i never really unpacked because i never really knew if we were leaving, staying, or what we were doing. doctor david bull i5 brexiting from an office, a job, a lifestyle. and this is the piece de resistance. my brexit hat. into the box. if you look backjust six months ago, we thought this was really a lost cause because there was an extension, another extension. we thought there was going to be another one. and then things finally have sort of come to fruition. and actually, if you look back and think what we have really achieved, its really extraordinary. and i know we are leaving because they have changed the date on my badge. have they, what does it say? so it used to say until 2024.

brexit will mean changes here in the chamber of the european parliament. some of the empty british 5eat5 have been saved up for new countries thatjoin. 27 of them are being reallocated to existing member states. and they will go to people who were elected in the european parliament elections last may, who have been waiting month5 and months and months for the brits to finally leave. what's that? it's a clock, obviously. yes. this we bought in the beginning, but it stopped over a year ago. so it's been in a box. metaphor? yes! as the clock tick5 on the next phase of negotiations, labour mep jude kirton darling reckons we will have to pay more attention to this place when we are out than we did when we were in. i think we have totally underestimated the power of this parliament. and unfortunately that is to our cost. we are going to learn the hard way. because we will still have to pay attention to what happens here? because either way, we move from being a rule maker to a rule taker.

companies in the uk who want to trade with our biggest neighbour will be complying with the rules which are made in this house. they will probably be spending a lot of money on trying to lobby those rules from outside. so how will the momentous moment be marked? it's a specially designed football scarf that i had made. others have organised farewell events. i've heard rumours of bagpipes. but the rest of the eu is keeping it low key. not even like a little whiskey at midnight on the 31st? you mean to celebrate? just to mark it. you know, i don't belong to the people who celebrate sad things. no, i celebrate what cheers me up. and this is not going to cheer me up. i'm wondering what i'll be doing on february the ist. and i think it's the morning after the night before that we'll all be really i suppose aware that it's happened. and how we move on. and everyone wants to know what will happen to the british flag that flutter5 outside.

it will be lowered on brexit night and put in a museum. the uk, history. adam fleming, bbc news, bru55el5. controversial facebook and in5tagram adverts, urging young women to become surrogate mother5, could be allowed for the first time under plans seen by the victoria derby5hire programme. it's currently against the law to advertise for a surrogate, or to pay more than reasonable expenses for someone to carry a baby. jim reed has this report. caroline and ian had been trying for a baby for years, but there were health problems and a series of miscarriages. we had a black cloud over us, basically. but we were so determined that we wanted to have children, that you just keep going. ivf didn't work. so theyjoined surrogacy uk, a not—for—profit group, and met another couple who already had their own children. i remember going home to my mum and dad... sorry.

why am i crying at this bit? this is the good bit! and we got a call from surrogacy uk to say that shell and al wanted to help us to try and have a baby. shell was implanted with caroline's fertilised eggs. later that year she gave birth to twin girls. surrogacy like this is legal in the uk only if it is not for profit, though expenses can be paid. the government has now asked an advisory body, the law commission, to update the law in england, wales and scotland. under its plans, the new or intended parents will take legal responsibility for a baby at birth. a blanket ban on advertising would be lifted. something the fertility regulator has warned could lead to significant cultural change and perhaps criticism. the most controversial question, payments, is left open, with the public asked for its views on whether surrogates should receive more than just expenses. you only hear the rose tinted version of what happened, you never hear what happened when things go wrong.

anna, not her real name, agreed to carry a baby for a friend. then something happened. i started to encounter hostility from the intended mother, but it was too late and i was pregnant. the birth was traumatic. one of the twins wa5 starved of oxygen. an investigation into medical failings took two years. pregnancy can go wrong, it has serious consequences which we cannot legislate for. the law commission is taking absolutely the wrong approach to this. we should just ban any form of surrogacy altogether. the law commission claims its plans will better protect all sides, including the surrogate. our intention is not to liberalise surrogacy, our intention is not to increase surrogacy. our intention is to provide a safe and effective legal framework. the full consultation will last until 2021 when a new law will shape surrogacy in this country for the next generation. jim reed, bbc news.

manchester united has condemned an attack on the home of one of its executives, ed woodward. a video posted on social media shows a flare being thrown outside a house in cheshire. some fans have blamed mr woodward for the team's recent performance. our correspondent, katie gornall, is at old trafford. there is a toxic atmosphere around manchester united and there has been for some time and a5 manchester united and there has been for some time and as you say the fa n5 for some time and as you say the fans are unhappy with how the club i5 fans are unhappy with how the club is being run at the moment. there are unhappy with perceived failings in the transfer market and unhappy with how far manchester united have fallen behind their premier league rivals. and mr woodward a5 fallen behind their premier league rivals. and mr woodward as the executive vice chair has increasingly been a target of their angen increasingly been a target of their anger. we have heard songs of recent games from the stands with supporters singing, celebrating the death of ed woodward and calling for

the american owner5 death of ed woodward and calling for the american owners to leave the clu b the american owners to leave the club as well. but last night a group attacked the home of mr woodward in cheshire and video appeared on social media offer someone throwing a flirt with the house. mr woodward and his young family were not a term at the time but manchester united understandably are disgusted by this and say they will ban those found responsible for life and also they released a statement saying that fa ns released a statement saying that fans expressing an opinion is one thing but criminal damage and intent to endanger life is another. cheshire police also launched an investigation but this represents a distressing escalation between the tensions of mr woodward and the fan base. yesterday, we brought you a report about the giant glacier in the antarctic, which scientists fear could be at risk of collapse. the melting of the thwaites glacier would cause a dramatic rise in sea levels, threatening to swamp many of the world's major cities. our chief environment correspondent,

justin rowlatt, has been travelling with a team of scientists on the biggest and most complex field survey in antarctic history. today, justin looks at the challenges facing the project in one of the most hostile environments on earth. antarctica is the stormiest continent on earth, and west antarctica is the most remote and stormy part of it all. so we've been out here for like, i don't know, an hour and a half, and this is the result, and it gives you an idea of why it is so difficult to operate here. all the planes are grounded. they are saying we won't fly anywhere for at least three days. it has taken years of preparation to get the scientists out here. last year two ice strengthened british ships brought hundreds of tonnes of fuel and cargo to a remote ice shelf. then a team of specialist snow vehicles dragged it 1000 miles over the ice. across some of the toughest terrain and toughest weather imaginable.

and all at a maximum speed ofjust ten miles an hour. six people can do a huge amount, but we just truck along day from day. nobody really knows where we are. and then we just suddenly turn up! delivering bounty! the us provided air muscle, flying in the scientists and their equipment and ferrying everything down to the camps at the front of the glacier. then the really hard work began. digging slow, and lots of it. the scientists need ten tonnes of the stuff to fill this. a water container the size of a small swimming pool. this will be the most southerly jacuzzi in the world, i think! a bank of boilers heats the water to just below boiling point. it is sprayed onto the ice to melt a hole almost half a mile down to where the ocean water meets the glacier.

only now, scientists deploy their instruments. the whole of this region is below sea level, which is why the so—called doomsday glacier is so vulnerable. the water can just keep on melting it. only by taking measurements here can we hope to get accurate predictions of how sea—level is going to rise in future. even if it means arousing the curiosity of some of the creatures that live here. this year's work has confirmed the scientists' fears. warm sea water is melting the ice of west antarctica increasingly rapidly, raising sea levels worldwide. the challenge now is for the rest of us, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and preparing for the rising oceans we will face in the decades to come. justin rowlatt, bbc news, west antarctica. time for a look at the weather, here's nick miller.

we have had our coldest weather