this is bbc news live from washington and london. the former republican president george w bush has issued a statement warmly congratulating joe biden for winning an election he said was "fundamentally fair". thats adding to the pressure on president trump to accept the results of tuesday's us election. president trump finds solace on the golf course, though on twitter he continues to assert that the election has been "stolen". joe biden has encountered every british prime minister for the last a0 years. he described the incumbent as a clone of donald trump, a comparison boris johnson

is keen to ignore. there is far more that unites the government of this country and government in washington anytime at any stage then divides us. the number of confirmed coronavirus cases gci’oss the world passes 50 million. the queen attends a ceremony to mark remembrance sunday to honour the dead from the two world wars. people across the uk observe a two minute silence. and — kamala harris will make history by becoming the first female, the first black and the first asian—american vice—president.

hello and welcome — i'm laura trevelyan in washington, christian fraser is in london. joe biden is spending his first full day as the president elect of the united states, and already the work is under way. his advisers have begun discussing who will fill the most important posts in his cabinet. a top priority is expected to be a new national strategy for battling the covid pandemic. joe biden himself attended church this morning in wilmington, delaware. on saturday night, mr biden said he wanted to "restore the soul" of america and promised to heal and unify the country. in the past few hours, the former republican president george w bush issued a statement congratulating joe biden on his election victory. president bush said... the statement will increase pressure on senior republicans to recognise the projected result. in the past couple of hours, the president has tweeted again.

he's said... donald trump has yet to concede the election. his campaign says it will contest the legality of the votes in several states but has shown no evidence that anything went wrong. nick bryant reports now from wilmington, delaware, mr biden‘s home town. cheering. for democrats across america, a night both of celebration and catharsis. joy borne of the certainty that joe biden will become the occupant of the white house. relief that donald trump will soon have to make his exit. the coronavirus turned this into a drive—in victory party, a multiracial and multi—generational gathering that looked like a tableau of modern day america. kamala harris. the night began with a historic first. never before has a woman become vice—president—elect,

or a person of colour. kamala harris, joe biden‘s running mate, has achieved both. while i may be the first woman in this office, i will not be the last. because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities. the president—elect of the united states of america, joe biden. cheering. after nearly 50 years in public life, no wonderjoe biden was in a rush to reach the stage. and he did so wearing what has become his trademark face mask — a piece of cloth that has become a political symbol, in a country that the pandemic has driven even further apart. tonight, we're seeing all over this nation, all cities in all parts of the country, indeed, across the world, an outpouring ofjoy, of hope, renewed faith in tomorrow being a better day.

he presented himself as an elder and a healer. let this grim era of demonisation in america begin to end here and now. a leader who can restore the soul of america. the bible tells us, to everything there is a season. a time to build, a time to reap and a time to sow, and a time to heal. this is the time to heal in america. joe biden says he wants to bring this country together, but it's in such a state of disunion. there isn't even agreement on who has won this election. the white house is looking more like an elegant bunker, under siege from democrats calling for donald trump to concede. but the president continues to make unsubstantiated claims the election was rigged, that some giant fraud has been committed. the only sighting of him

this morning, as he left the building to play golf. in delaware, the night ended with the kind of tv spectacular we normally associate with donald trump. a show of the democratic reality, thatjoe biden is the victor. nick bryant, bbc news, delaware. nomia iqbal is in wilmington, delaware. we had more than hundred 30,000 coronavirus cases here in the us yesterday. how has the president—elect planned on tackling that even before he's inaugurated in january? that even before he's inaugurated in january? yes, laura, mr biden is making coronavirus his number one priority. that was one of the key messages that he campaigned on, and tomorrow, we are going to hear about

a task force that he's setting up, and this task force will have more than two dozen scientists and technology experts and they will be working together to try and come up with a safe vaccine that they can deliver to the american people at some point. as you mentioned there, the numberof some point. as you mentioned there, the number of cases have been going up. it's reaching that grim number of 10 million cases, recorded cases. mr biden has always taken the pandemic very seriously, we saw that during his campaign, very scaled—back campaign. he had very few people around him, always wearing a mask. so that will be his priority come monday. how difficult will this be for this in our gresh. .. will this be for this in our gresh... inauguration will this be for this in our gresh. .. inauguration committee will this be for this in our gresh... inauguration committee that ta kes gresh... inauguration committee that takes over? because we read last year that there were hundreds of jobs that were unfilled within state department within the defence department, within the home security, ambassadorial positions around the world that they were unfilled. do they have to do more this time then perhaps an incoming

transition might expect to do? possibly. but, you know, these are all challenges that the democratic party are taking on board. they know that they've got a lot to do. you know, joe biden campaign to become presidents, there were two things he said he stood for, he stood for workers who built this country and also bringing together the country, those key values of trying to heal the nation. so, you know, it is a big job that he will be doing. what's interesting is even though we are not seeing the presidents conceding, for the biden team here in delaware, it'sjust hitting the ground running, got their transitional website up, and we have heard that's come tomorrow, we should expect some names that will be bounded around that could potentially make up a biden administration. there's lots of people in washington that were part

of the 0bama government. i'm sure they will be trying to get a job. i don't know if you are betting people, but i'm sure you can probably consider people to judge might get of piece of that cabinet, he's beena might get of piece of that cabinet, he's been a very good attack dog for mr biden on the campaign trail. so there is lots of work that the president—elect has to do now, but we can expect more announcements in the week. those will be fascinating. nomia, thank you very much. what do you make of this, laura? to some of his appointments have to be more centrist in shape, the likes of senator chris coons of delaware who is more to the middle of the party, doesn't have be people like him because they have to be confirmed by a republican senate? well, we don't know it's a republican senate yet, do we? because there are likely to senate seats up for grabs. yes, so we don't know. and it's senate seats up for grabs. yes, so we don't know. and its key, really, isn't it? most likely, the political gravity there as you say is pushing eve ryo ne gravity there as you say is pushing everyone towards the centre, the

fa ct everyone towards the centre, the fact that donald trump didn't win, the fact thatjoe biden did, the fa ct the fact thatjoe biden did, the fact that the senate is at best with a narrow republican majority, yes, that would suggest more centrist candidates for the big jobs. some any posts to feel as welcome with a pointer making, particularly of the state department, because he didn't attach as much significance in america's rolls overseas. the president loved temporary appointments, didn't he, christian? 0h, appointments, didn't he, christian? oh, that's right, yeah. so many of those investors positions have been left them deeper so long. so it's interesting to see who gets those posts. between now and inauguration day on the 20 january... —— so between now and inauguration day on the 20th january — that's around 70 days, we enter the transition stage, where the biden team prepare to take over from trumps administration, and the biden team have already set up a transition website. building up to the day he takes office, joe biden will have to pick people to serve in his cabinet — and fill the top jobs in his administration — such as the white house chief of staff and secretary of state.

members of the transition team go into the federal agencies to get briefed on things like looming deadlines and budgets. the aim of the transition period is to ensure a smooth transition of power between the out going trump administraion and the incoming biden government. so what goes into a transition? chris lu headed the 0bama transition team and joins us now. is its, chris, about putting people in charge of the transition team first? do you need the right people at the head of that transition team before you even think about filling those senior posts? well, unfortunately, given that short amount of time, as you say come about 70 days, it's all of it. it's putting people in place, it's figuring out what your policy is going to be and it's figuring out how you use all of these federal agencies that implement their programmes. so, there is a lot to do, and the fact that we are now five days after election day means five days after election day means five days after election day means five days where that planning hasn't

necessarily happen. and there are increasing concerns right now in the united states about whether president trump will provide the cooperation that previous preps to you presidents have provided, and if that cooperation is not provided, how does that impede the biden team's efforts? your transition team was taking over from team's efforts? your transition team was taking overfrom george team's efforts? your transition team was taking over from george w. team's efforts? your transition team was taking overfrom george w. bush who was pretty magnanimous, as we see again, demonstrating in a statement that he puts out. how much more difficult is it to become if you are taking over from a president who doesn't believe he's been defeated? you are absolutely right. president 0bama was effusive in his praise for president bush and the cooperation we received. in many ways, the transition happening now is much harder than what we dealt with in 2008. we certainly had an economic downturn then as we do now, but we are also dealing with the pandemic and you are dealing with an outgoing administration that really hasn't embraced this concept of peaceful transfer of power that we have had for 200 years in this

country. on top of that, given covid—19, it is very possible that this whole transition will have to be conducted in a virtual setting. is there a worry, chris, that president trump is feeling so hostile towards the president—elect that he might actually try and sabotage the transition actively? well, there's not a way you can actively sabotage it other than not cooperating. and so certainly, if you don't co—operate, that impedes the initial success of your successor. but it also has significant national security and homeland security considerations. you know, the 70 day period of time, there is going to be, you know, political leadership leaving these agencies, there's going to be new people getting ready to take over, we know that there are foreign adversaries that would love to take it vantage of this tenuous period of time, and it's one of the reasons why previous transitions have been characterised by cooperation. this

is bigger than one president's political interests, it's about our national security interests. indeed, so. chris, thanks so much for joining a. thank you. welcome as we have been reporting to my president terms remains unwilling to concede defeat and has vowed to contest election results on several fronts. in georgia where the margins are tight there will be a recount — althouthoe biden's lead has stretched in the past day to just over 10,000 votes with 99% of the ballots now counted. mr trump also wants a recount in wisconsin — his lead there just over 20,500. and the trump campaign has now filed a lawsuit over ballots cast on election day in arizona that it says were incorrectly rejected. in arizona commits joe in arizona commitsjoe biden in the lead, 18,550 with 90% of —— in arizona commitsjoe biden in the lead, 18,550 with 90% of -- 97% in arizona commitsjoe biden in the lead, 18,550 with 90% of —— 97% of the ballots counted. arizona's secretary of state, says the president is "grasping at straws". if the election result is challenged — it would require the president's

legal teams to begin their fight in the state courts, before it got anywhere near the supreme court. and so far no evidence has been provided for the alleged voter fraud. senior figures in mr trump's republican party have largely remained silent, but one report in the us media suggests his adviser and son—in—law, jared kushner, has tried to persuade him to concede. speaking on nbc‘s meet the press, republican senator, mitt romney, said mr trump was within his rights to question the results and he would remain an important influence in the republican party, irrespective of the outcome of the election. he has every right to call for recounts because we are talking about a margin of 10,000 votes here or less in some cases. and so a recount could change the outcome. he wants to look at irregularities, pursue that in the courts, but if as expected, those things don't change the outcome, he needs to accept the inevitable. he is without question the most powerful voice in our party. he will have an enormous impact on our party going forward.

i believe the great majority of people who voted for donald trump want to make sure that his principles and his policies are pursued. so, yeah, he is not disappearing by any means. he is the 900 pound gorilla when it comes to the republican party. well, what kind of relationship is the president elect likely to have with borisjohnson? the uk prime minister said today that he was looking forward to working with mr biden on climate change — as well as on international trade — and security. but as our diplomatic correspondent james landale reports, there are some tricky issues ahead. from the days of margaret thatcher, joe biden has been no stranger to britain, making it his business to know the prime ministers of the day. at least, until now. for borisjohnson has yet to meet the president—elect and the two men have their differences. mr biden has described the pm

as a "physical and emotional clone" of donald trump. and as for brexit... had i been a member of parliament, had i been a british citizen, i would have voted against leaving. views shaped in part by his ancestry. mr biden, a quick word for the bbc? bbc? i'm irish. he's made clear that peace in northern ireland should not become a casualty of brexit, with a uk—us trade deal very much on the line. a warning repeated by allies. there are of course significant concerns here about how any departure arrangement, final status, between the uk and eu might impact the border in northern ireland. from downing street, the prime minister insisted the us was britain's closest, most important ally, and there was a good chance of a trade deal. there is far more that unites the government of this country and government in washington,

any time, any stage, than divides us. we have common values, we have common interests, we have a common global perspective. there are issues where mr biden agrees with mrjohnson. being tough on russia, reviving the deal curbing iran's nuclear programme and agreeing new carbon reduction targets at a big climate summit in britain next year. above all, a president that supports multilateral organisations such as nato, unlike his predecessor. but... the hard truth is that britain outside the eu is less useful to washington, and so, whenjoe biden wants to influence europe, he will go to paris and berlin, not london. there was a time when american presidents were so important to britain that 160,000 people paid a few pounds to build a statue of one, like franklin roosevelt here. but those days are gone. joe biden's priorities will begin at home, fixing

covid and the economy. allies, trade deals, they have to take second place. so for now, a relationship, not as special as once, but more predictable than of late, with perhaps fewer tweets. james landale, bbc news. there have been contrasting scenes across america biden's victory — compair the mood of trump supporters to the scenes ofjubilation seen across us of those backing joe biden. 0ur correspondent clive myrie has been looking at the celebrations. cheering. horns blare. this is the soundtrack of the biden campaign, and now a new america. in the age of covid—19, his election rallies were drive—in and socially distanced. supporters honked in his speeches, instead of applauding. chanting: it's all over! it's all over!

0utside their cars, the president—elect‘s ecstatic supporters, no less noisy... now go home! ..in the shadow of the building where election votes are being counted. the subjects of their ire — forlorn donald trump voters across this philadelphia street. america's rancorous political divide in miniature. joe biden says he wants to bring both sides together, he wants to be a leader for all america. at the moment, they can't even share the same street without barricades and the police. donald trump lost in part because suburban women turned on him. listen to penny 0lds and her daughter, hattie, who set up a facebook group to supportjoe biden. we started with four and we ended with 142. it was incredibly empowering. and it was therapy for us women who felt disregarded.

i'm a woman in my 20s and it'sjust really important for people my age to be behind someone who supports us to the full. four more years! but tim trimble, who once called essex home, says donald trump's fight isn't over. he has not lost the election. i think because bbc and cnn and abc calls it, that's irrelevant. # it's fun to stay at the y-m-c-a...# meanwhile, on the same street in another america, they're dancing for joe, and won't sleep. clive myrie, bbc news, in philadelphia. joe biden may now be president—elect biden, but it has by no means been an easy road for him. the family bereavements he has suffered have been well reported, but what's less well known is that joe biden spent the majority of his childhood overcoming a stutter. the former vice president has been more open recently

about the condition saying it still impacts him now. his story has inspired many other who stutter, including brayden harrington who met him on the campaign trail, and was also giving the opportunity to speak live to america at the democratic convention earlier this year. hi, my name is braden harrington and i'm13 years old. withoutjoe biden, i wouldn't be talking to you today. about a few months ago, i met him in new hampshire. he told me that we were members of the same club. we... ..we stutter. it was really amazing to hear that somebody like me became vice president. an amazing guy, isn't he? well a little earlier, our colleagues jane 0'brien and james reynolds caught up with brayden and his dad 0wen —

so how does it feel to see his friend, joe biden, becoming the 46th president of the united states. it makes me feel really happy for him that he's come this far and i, ijust have the honour of meeting somebody, and his friend was saying that he would never believe that somebody who stutters would make it this far as president, and it's just crazy how far he's came and how far he will, how far he will go. it makes me nervous, but when i practice more and get used to, like some of the kind of thing i'm doing, like the speech, i kept practising and practising, and it made me a little more comfortable with it. so i did have some moments, and that'sjust because i get

comfortable with it but sometimes it just doesn't fully, make me fully fluent, but that's fine because it still showing everybody that president biden helped a kid who stutters. braden they're talking, christian come about howjoe biden helped him. you know commits money, my eldest sun has a stutter, he's 20 now, but i was talking to him this morning about it and he said nobody ever really talks about stuttering, and america come everybody is open about everything, but now stuttering finally is something else that's out in the open end being discussed. it's very interesting for my purdum speak about this. he said in the speech that i was watching that he uses the kings speech, remember the academy award—winning movie about king george vi and how he dealt with his stutter and what he does as he marks up his speech, so he puts us

to where he think he might stutter and he put smirks through the speech, and that's how we get spirit. it was interesting, i went to watch him in north carolina before he actually got back into the race come at that point in the campaign, he was dead and buried, remember him coming off of the back of iowa and new hampshire in the primaries there. it was really interesting watching him speak because you do see the moment actually, it he gets to the point where it may be difficult, and he's learned how to change the emphasis and move away from where he might stutter in the speech onto something else. and another thing i really noticed, much to our frustration we we re noticed, much to our frustration we were waiting for an interview at the end of the line, is the amount of time he spends talking to everybody. imean, time he spends talking to everybody. i mean, everybody that was around the stage. notjust everybody that was on the stage, but somebody would say come to listen to my my mum couldn't get here today, she is sitting at home, would you speak to her? and he would get on the phone, and it took them ages, it took them about an hour to get around the stage. when he did one of the town

halls to a christian, televised town halls, he stayed on and talk to everybody in the audience afterwards, talk about real retail politics. he's very good at that, very good at that, which is why he is so popular. stay with us, more to come. hello again. our weather will stay mild for the next few days, thanks to southerly winds. those winds will be dragging in a lot of cloud and we have rain in the forecast this week, especially across western areas. now come on the satellite picture, we have a stripe of cloud across the uk the moment, bringing some damp weather, low pressure hours southwest, bringing a bit of patchy rain over the next few days. more substantial area of cloud in the mid atlantic, that's coming our way midweek to bring some heavier rain and some stronger winds as well. now, right now, we have got a lot of cloud and some damp weather, bit of light rain and drizzle crossed out in england and wales, with fog patches around already, that bob will become quite extensive. later in the nightmare across wales, england and scotland,

northern ireland, western fringes of england, the visibility probably improving later on as the next area rain moves in. that rain is associated with that next area of low pressure i showed you on the satellite picture a moment ago. now, low— pressure satellite picture a moment ago. now, low—pressure is going to continue to be quite weak, so the rain on it is going to be quite patchy as it extends in a quest northern ireland across wales, western in lynch, western scotland through the day. a very murky start across scotland and england in particular with quite extensive fog particularly over the hills. it will probably stay pretty cloudy for most of us even into the afternoon, slowly breaking up in the west, very mild, temperatures up to 16. now, that low—pressure is still hanging around as we go through tuesday, but it's we gaining all the while, so tuesday morning starting with a lot of cloud, but still patches of rain left over. increasingly, the cloud will tend to thin and break up and we should see a little bit more in the way of brightness, a bit more sunshine breaking through the cloud, still a few showers dotted around here and there. temperatures, still mild, 13 degrees in edinburgh and i'll fast

up degrees in edinburgh and i'll fast up to about 15 degrees in london. midweek sees the next area of low pressure m ove midweek sees the next area of low pressure move in, bringing a band of heavier rain and the winds start to get a little bit stronger as the isobars pinched together. so, wet and windy day coming up on wednesday, the heaviest rain always across western areas as the winds strengthen, you will probably see some brighter weather for strengthen, you will probably see some brighter weatherfor a strengthen, you will probably see some brighter weather for a time moving into some central and eastern parts of england, maybe even eastern wales too. it than this rain sets into the afternoon, turning very happy with some squally winds is welcome a very gusty, could bring down some tree branches. wet and windy weather pushes eastward through wednesday night. that's your latest weather.

this is bbc news live from washington and london. the former republican president george w bush has issued a statement warmly congratulating joe biden for winning an election he said was "fundamentally fair". that is adding to the pressure on president trump to accept the results of tuesday's us election. joe biden spent his first morning as president elect at a church service in delaware. he's already launched a transition team to help him prepare to take office injanuary president trump finds solace on the golf course — though on twitter he continues to assert that the election has been "stolen". his wife melania tweets that every legal vote — not illegal — should be counted. the number of confirmed coronavirus cases acround the world passes 50 million.