another breakthrough in the battle against coronavirus — a vaccine which data suggests is nearly 95% effective. after these trials in the united states — its makers moderna describe the discovery as a crucial milestone. i broke into an ear—to—ear grin when i had the numbers. —— heard. it really exceeded our best hopes. and it is an incredibly exciting moment for us as a company, and the world, as we start to develop tools to fight the virus. well, the markets have reacted positively. we'll be assessing this latest bit of good news with our medical editor. also this lunchtime. on a day he hoped to "reframe" his premiership after days of in—fighting — boris johnson is instead self—isolating in downing street. it doesn't matter that i am as fit as a butcher's dog,

feel great, so many people do in my circumstances. and actually, it doesn't matter that i have had the disease and i'm bursting with antibodies. we've got to interrupt the spread of the disease. a warning from patients and staff — at a hospital in an area with the highest covid rates in the country. for the doubters out there who don't believe in it, it is here, and this is very busy. the nurses don't stop. i personally don't cope well in a lockdown situation, i hate every minute of it. but i would be the first to say our restrictions now are probably not tight enough because we are getting too many patients coming in. hopes that families will be allowed to visit residents in all care homes before christmas — after successful trials for rapid testing of visitors. three, two, one, ignition. launch of the space taxi — a private rocket carries four astronauts to the space station and saves nasa billions of dollars.

and coming up on bbc news — time to put pen to paper. the boss of mercedes says he's confident lewis hamilton will sign for another year after claiming his record equalling seventh drivers‘ title. good afternoon, and welcome to bbc news at one. a second coronavirus vaccine has been found to be highly effective at preventing covid—i9 infections. interim results suggest it's 9a.5% effective at stopping symptomatic infections. the trial is ongoing — and the us firm moderna plans to apply to regulators in the coming weeks to get approval for emergency use of the jab. the results come hot on the heels of similar results from pfizer, and add to growing confidence that vaccines can help end the pandemic. our health correspondent

dominic hughes reports. hot on the heels of last week's breakthrough, another promising candidate, this time from a us company called montana which has announced the results of a trial involving 30,000 people. the company is reporting the vaccine is nearly 95% effective. i broke into a grin when i heard the numbers, it exceeded our best hopes and it is an exciting moment for us asa and it is an exciting moment for us as a company, as the world, as we develop tools to fight the virus. it isa develop tools to fight the virus. it is a moment only because we realise we have a lot of work to do but it isa we have a lot of work to do but it is a great moment. the moderna vaccine is one of the number being tested around the world, there are now 48 in developing, iith world, there are now 48 in developing, 11th in the final stage of testing. 0ne developing, 11th in the final stage of testing. one of those is the pfizer vaccine announced last week

with early results suggesting it can prevent more than 90% of infections. two others at final stage are also being trialled in the uk, the university of oxford vaccine and another. and a third uk trial for janssen which aims to recruit 6,000 participants. experts warn when it comes to a vaccine we participants. experts warn when it comes to a vaccine we need to keep options open. 0ne vaccine might not suit some parts of the population, one might be better for one age group, or one population diversity, it is important we develop the other vaccines because it is unlikely one size will fit all. 0ne size will fit all. one reason why the uk government has options to buy a total of 350 million doses of six different vaccines. negotiations to buy a significant number of moderna there is said to be at an advanced stage. ministers say preparations for running at the pfizer vaccine are

well under way. we may be able to roll it out before christmas, but almost certainly the vast bulk of the roll out, if the safety data proves it is safe and thatis safety data proves it is safe and that is still not known, we still do not have a vaccine, but even if we do, it is likely the bulk of the roll—out will be in the new year. with alternate vaccines potentially coming on stream there will not be a choice over which we get, some may work better for different parts of the community. the committee has decided who will be the most prioritised and that starts with the elderly, people in care homes. but obviously if something comes up that a vaccine works differently in different age groups that may need to be modified. there are still many questions around all the vaccines produced so far, how long will immunity last, how will they work in older age groups, will they stop people falling ill and from spreading the

virus? but still what we are seeing with development is remarkable, a process that normally takes years compressed down to months. 0ur medical editor fergus walsh is here. is this a cause for optimism or excitement? both. if i could be even more excited than last monday. we have another covid vaccine using a similar approach which has proved over 90% effective. it is in a way confirmation that result last week was not some kind of freak. it suggests that science is going to find a path out of the pandemic for us. find a path out of the pandemic for us. and other vaccines as dominic said ina us. and other vaccines as dominic said in a report are on the way. i am really hopeful now, even more than last week, we are moving in the right direction. we need to be cautious, it is early data, we need the safety data, but it is looking

good. all that said, how quickly could we get it here? the moderna vaccine, we don't have advance orders for that but the company told me this morning they have been in discussions with the uk government, and they hope to be able to supply doses here by spring 2021. we should not count on a vaccine to help us out really this winter. this is for 2021. so, for the next few months, we are going to have to rely on all the things we have been, social distancing, hand hygiene, etc, but it looks like 2021 could be very different as a result of vaccines, to the current situation we are in now. thank you very much. borisjohnson has said he is feeling "fit as a butcher's dog" on his first working day self—isolating in downing street. the pm and several other tory mps have been told to isolate by nhs test and trace —

after a meeting at downing street where one of the mps later tested positive for covid—i9. 0ur political correspondent chris mason reports. this was last thursday morning. the prime minister had a breakfast meeting with some of his mps including the man on the right, lee anderson who, the day after, lost his sense of taste and later tested positive. and so, the prime minister is holed up in his downing street flat until a week on thursday. the good news is nhs test and trace is working ever more efficiently. the bad news is that they pinged me and i have got to self—isolate. it doesn't matter that we are all doing social distancing, it doesn't matter that i'm as fit as a butcher's dog, i feel great, so many people do in my circumstances. and actually, it doesn't matter that i have had the disease and i'm bursting with antibodies. we have got to interrupt the spread of the disease. his neighbour's getting some fresh air, though, the chancellor was in east london this morning. like all other businesses

and organisations over the past few months, he's been learning to do things differently. we are doing a lot of meetings on—line. the prime minister already this morning, you have seen the video he has put out. we are getting on with delivering people's priorities. the pm it is not the only one doing a stint of domestic incarceration. 0ther mps at the same meeting left with a beaming picture with the boss and later an instruction to stay at home. so, borisjohnson has been told to stay in here. on friday, his chief adviser dominic cummings was told to get out. after the volcanic disputes and dysfunction in number 10 recently, today was meant to be about a reset. it still will be, i'm told, but it will be a remote one. the capacity of covid to cripple our plans strikes once again here at the heart of government. after the comings and goings, the prime minister is now staying inside when he'd really hoped to be out and about sweeping up the mess of the last week. and we can speak to chris now.

not the start of the week the prime minister wanted. quite. good afternoon. the grand plan was the prime minister would be out and about, before the events of last night, that downing street said the prime minister would be self—isolating. his team had been setting out what they hoped would look like an energetic plan for the coming weeks, trying to secure a brexit deal, lots of covid meetings, a plan to meet northern conservative mps who have been grumbling about a lack of attention particularly around regional instructions of a couple of weeks back, conversations with the chancellor about the upcoming spending review, on the environment, a ten point plan. all about emphasising the prime minister's agenda which he still

has, but with a likely change in emphasis given the departures of a couple of days ago. instead, he finds himself in there for the next ten days. still lots of questions about what was going on with that meeting on thursday, did it need to happen physically? what about those photos where it didn't look like they were anywhere near two metres apart. conversations going on along those lines. instead, the prime minister trying to make a virtue of the fact he has to follow the rules and stay in his flat coming in the hope plenty of others do, at a time when the virus is still looking shaky, those numbers, and emphasising the importance of sensible behaviour. chris mason, thank you. there's growing concern amongst health bosses in hull — as the area has become the worst hit in the country by covid—i9. the council's leader has described the local situation as a ‘health

emergency" and urged the prime minister to take more action to support the city including possibly tightening local restrictions. vickyjohnson has been to the intensive care unit at hull royal infirmary — and sent this report. stepping through to the sharp end of this pandemic. hull's intensive care unit. out on the street, people are getting tired of the restrictions. here on the front line, they are battle weary. it's overwhelming. i've never had a year like this in my whole career as a nurse. you have a sense of dread about what the next few months will be. during the first peak in the spring they had 112 patients at hull royal infirmary with coronavirus, today there are more than 150. they are expecting even more. it feels like it could rapidly escalate out of control. with nothing that we can really do to prevent it. we are getting busy and it's getting busier at an alarming rate. getting patient after patient. seeing a greater number of admissions than we saw last time. laura isjust 3i.

she admits she never took the threat of the virus seriously. until now. i didn't wear a mask because of my mental health. i thought i wasn't going to get it. itjust proved me wrong. i've never really been ill. sharon has been in intensive care for a fortnight and admits she has been fighting for her life. very bad. yes. i maybe thought at one point is it going to go too far, they can't do anything for me? and ray had this message to those who don't think things are that bad. for the doubters out there who don't believe in it, it is here. and this is very busy. the nurses don't stop. staff here tried so hard to keep other services going but now routine operations and appointments are having to be cancelled. staff who would normally work in operating theatres are going to be redeployed here to support the nurses and

doctors working here in intensive care. as in march, coronavirus is disrupting the whole functioning of the hospital. eight months into this pandemic, the doctors and nurses are quite simply running on empty. i've got nurses in there who have been here a lot longer than i have, they are starting to buckle, you rely on them staff. they are seeing it at home, work, there has been no let—up since the last time. does it take its toll? it does. i have two little ones at home and to have to come home from here, and i go home and i try and click into mum. you've been here with infected patients. most of us are getting fed up with the restrictions on our lives but the nurses here think we could do more. i personally don't cope well in a lockdown situation, i hate every minute of it, but i would be the first to say restrictions i'iow are probably not tight enough because we are getting too many patients coming in. sentiments echoed by the trust's chief

executive. today the leader of the city council has called the local situation a health emergency and has urged the government to take action to support the city. vickyjohnson, bbc news. and we'll have a special programme at 4.30pm covering the downing street press conference led by health secretary matt hancock talks to thrash out a post—brexit trade agreement have resumed in brussels, with both sides calling for compromises to be made. in a moment, we'll be live in brussels. but first, our reality check correspondent chris morris takes us through the key sticking points. any free trade deal agreed in the next few weeks won't be particularly ambitious. there hasn't been time for that. but even with fairly limited aims, negotiators are still struggling with some familiar themes. first — the level playing field — measures to ensure companies on one side don't have an unfair advantage over their competitors on the other. all trade agreements have them but the eu wants the uk to stick particularly closely to its rules

on things like workers' rights, environmental regulations, and especially state aid or financial support for businesses. the uk, on the other hand, says the whole point of brexit was to break free from following common rules. second — fisheries. the eu is pushing for maximum access for its boats to continue fishing in uk waters. whereas british negotiators say the uk is now an independent coastal state, and its boats will get priority. if there is no agreement on fishing, eu boats will lose out badly. but the uk won't get the access it wants to the eu markets where it sells most of its fish and many other things besides. then, there is the governance of any future agreement, that is partly about the overall structure of any deal, but also, how a new agreement would be enforced, and how disputes would be settled. another sensitive issue, implementing the brexit withdrawal agreement, signed last year, especially the protocol on northern ireland, and the land border which now divides the uk from the eu.

the uk's internal market bill which could override parts of the northern ireland protocol has added to eu concerns that the uk may not live up to some of the commitments it has made. so, plenty of issues to resolve, and it normally takes years to do a trade deal. but this process only has a matter of weeks left. deadlines have already come and gone. any last—minute agreement needs to be added to hundreds of pages of legal text, and it all needs to be translated into all eu languages, and ratified by parliaments on both sides before the end of next month. even with a deal, the uk's relationship with the eu will be very different outside the single market and the customs union. there will be far more bureaucracy for businesses that trade across the border. and free movement of people in both directions will come to an end. any agreement would do very little for the trade in services, but it would mean avoiding tariffs or taxes on goods crossing the border. is that enough to tip the balance?

well, even at this very late stage, there are no guarantees. politicians on both sides need to make concessions on some pretty fundamental issues. but we may know more before the end of this week. 0ur europe correspondent nick beake is in brussels. if they had an equivalent phrase for deja vu there, they would be using it. simon, i know it and you know it andi it. simon, i know it and you know it and i think everyone watching knows it. these brexit deadline seem to come and go. the latest they had in mind was this thursday, a video call of the 27 eu leaders is taking place andi of the 27 eu leaders is taking place and i hope they would be able to look at something but it looks highly unlikely this will happen but i tell you what, this one deadline is not going away, six weeks until the end of the year, the transition phase ends then, britain ‘s position in the transition period will end. 0ne in the transition period will end. one thing they are looking at from the european side, ijust talked to a few people over the last few hours, whether there is a

discernible change in tone or content from the british side. now that dominic cummings has left downing street. he, of course, key architect of the brexit project. if you look at the tweets lord for us, the uk ‘s chief negotiator sent out in the last 24 hours or so, he said he would only sign up to a deal if it took back control of british trade, british waters, who of course came up with that phrase? dominic cummings, the british say they are not shifting on this, it is, simon, i'm afraid to say, a crucial, crucial week. thank you. it's coming up crucial week. thank you. it's coming up to 20 past one. our top story this lunchtime. another breakthrough in the battle against coronavirus — a vaccine which data suggests is nearly 95% effective and still to come — how scotland's football celebrations put a 43 year year back at the top of the charts. coming up on bbc news, ireland left with a dilemma for the number 10 shirt and the captaincy for this weekend's autumn nations cup clash with england afterjonny sexton

is ruled out with a hamstring injury. families should be allowed to visit residents in all care homes in england before christmas — after successful trials for rapid testing of visitors. the health secretary matt hancock says it is his goal to ensure testing is available at all homes. it comes as a pilot scheme begins today which would allow more contact between residents and their families. jayne mccubbin reports. these are the images that have marked a long eight months of isolation and separation for so many. today, a very small number of care homes will finally open their doors, with regular testing for relatives. here's our lovely bunch. wave, everybody! this is meadway in winchester. the best home north of the south pole. jayne laughs. and one of the luckiest, because it's one of only 20 homes taking part in this pilot, and residents like john are so excited.

you're going to be able to have visits with your daughters, and you're going to be able to give them a hug and hold their hand for the first time in eight months. hugs? i'm not sure. am i going to be able to hug them? that's what i've been longing to do since christmas. yeah. 0h, it'll be marvellous! it's made possible through the use of lateral flow tests, the kind of tests being used in liverpool's mass screening right now. up to two relatives or friends can have regular tests to facilitate the kind of visit that hasn't been possible since early march. do you remember that visit? i do, yes. i had afternoon tea with my friend in my room. it was lovely. how much have you missed that? oh, yes, indeed. there's nothing like the one—to—one contact. yes, the hug gives you something, doesn't it, the hug? this was the first time simon

saw his 98—year—old mum marjorie after lockdown mk i. since then, visits have been restricted to video conference calls, or at a distance in the garden. today, that all changes. i think the advantage, if it all comes off, is it opens up all possibilities. when i see mum, i can talk with her, i can hug her, i can hold her. it'sjust going to be great. but all of this will have to be in full ppe. masks and gloves are still essential, and will still be a barrier to communication. it's very hard for these new tests to perform very well. they're very simple technologies. they're not going to be able to detect virus like the pcr test does. they give you a very immediate assessment of whether you have a lot of virus right now, but it doesn't mean you're going to be clear of the virus and safe. for those homes not included, the wait has been unbearable.

for those lucky few, it is the first tentative step towards the normality they have been longing for. jayne mccubbin, bbc news. 0ur social affairs correspondent alison holt is here. visits by christmas, that is the promise, how likely is it? that is the big question, certainly the health and social care secretary matt hancock was sounding very confident this morning that it would be possible to rule out testing roughly care homes in england. but the pilot is only starting today, involving 20 homes, not the 30 we we re involving 20 homes, not the 30 we were originally told were going to be involved. it's being rolled out in areas of low prevalence of the virus so hampshire, cornwall, devon. there will be regular testing offered to one family member or one friend, and that should allow them to have more meaningful visits that we heard about from that report but ppe will still be there and there

will still be restrictions and measures. the department was saying any national roll—out will be phased and dependent on the results of this pilot but for the many relatives and residents who have been desperate for this, they have been calling for it since the summer, they don't see any reason why if care homes are made a priority, why this shouldn't work and they point to scientific advice which suggests the risks from visiting are low and also to visiting are low and also to visiting guidance in scotland, wales, and northern ireland which is already more generous. alison, thank you. alison, thank you. nineteen million nhs dental treatments have been missed since the start of the coronavirus lockdown in march — according to figures seen by bbc news. the british dental association has warned the health secretary that the drop in patient numbers could result in hundreds of dentists across the uk going bust over the next year. and it's notjust the dentists who are suffering — as dan johnson reports. the pain started to become excruciating. like i would imagine acid being poured in the eye.

listen to what toothache did to tim, and imagine dealing with that much pain. a filling that fell out, and a tooth that had shattered into pieces. there was two or three teeth next to it that had all got together and formed one big infection that had gone right up that nerve into the sinuses, and around to the top of the eye, and was basically like having somebody pushing in your eye really, really hard. he was suffering with an abscess, starting to go blind, and despite many calls and even a visit to hospital, he couldn't see a dentist because he wasn't registered, and treatment was restricted. i got the sense that they were all closed, and that if you were suffering, the best thing you could do was go home and suffer. after eight months in pain, friends covered the cost of private treatment here, but other patients are still reluctantly being turned away or kept waiting. tim's story made me cry. i know it touched the hearts of my team. it's not what you are trained

to do as a hygienist that manages a practice, my dentists staff feel the same, my staff feel the same. it is heartbreaking. we're are going to see rising gum disease, rising mouth cancer, rising anxiety, rising mental health because people lose teeth, so it does not bode well for the future of dentistry. the wait to get in here only looks likely to get longer, because dentists are still restricted in the treatments they can offer and the number of patients they can see, so they are likely to suffer more, and dentists are wondering about their future prospects. and the question being asked is, what's the government's commitment here to the future of dentistry? the department of health and social care told us priority access should be given to urgent care, and vulnerable patients. it says the nhs is working with the profession to make more treatment available. but there are questions about the way dentists will be paid in future, and what that will mean for waiting lists. here, leaving an hour between patients and the cost of mountains of protective equipment, is putting this practice and hundreds more at risk.

before covid—i9, we used to see about 20 to 30 patients a day, and we are now barely seeing ten. we arejust trying to help patients, we are open until almost 11 o'clock at night and we want to carry on doing that, but we are going to need some help. tim is now on the mend, but other patients are still struggling to get seen. if some dentists do not survive, that will only get worse. i would not recommend having this if you are poor or marginalised in any way. the difference between nhs and private could mean the difference between suffering and not suffering. danjohnson, bbc news, brighton. they‘re calling it the ‘new normal‘ in space travel — nasa‘s first fully—fledged mission has launched using a privately—owned craft — which will act as a space taxi service in the coming years. four astronauts are on board the spacex rocket — on their way to the international space station.

0ur science correspondent victoria gill reports. three, two, one, zero. ignition. a spectacular show, and a space exploration milestone. and resilience rises. not even gravity contains humanity when we explore as one for all. the launch of this spacex dragon capsule with its four crew marks a new era, one in which the us space agency buys seats for its astronauts on privately—owned spacecraft. the space shuttle, retired almost a decade ago, was the last craft that was certified to fly nasa astronauts from american soil, but now the agency will work in partnership with spacex, taking crew to and from the international space station. that‘s inside crew dragon right now. 0ur crew—i crew now coasting in low earth orbits... sunday‘s launch is the culmination of years of design and testing, but the demonstration flight back

in may was the test that the world was watching, as spacex successfully transported two astronauts to the space station and brought them home safely. the four people on this first fully operational flight, nasa astronauts michael hopkins, victor glover and shannon walker, and the japanese space agency astronaut soichi noguchi, will bring the number of crew on the international space station to seven. nasa says this will triple the amount of microgravity research that can be done. there are over 250 experiments that take place on the international space station at any one time, and they are in all sorts of different areas. a lot of the research that is done is involved in medicines, and in helping to understand how the human body works. it's a truly international endeavour, and the countries coming together is what we need in human exploration. this group will spend about six months in space, looking back on earth as the crisis of the pandemic continues to unfold.

and in a nod to a mission accomplished during this most turbulent of years, they‘ve called their ship resilience. victoria gill, bbc news. finally this lunchtime — a disco classic from 1979 has re—entered the charts — thanks to this. players sing. # yes, sir, i can boogie. # but you need a certain song...# ‘yes sir, i can boogie‘ has become the unofficial anthem for scotland‘s men‘s football team after their celebrations for their win against serbia last week — which saw them clinch a place in next year‘s euros. it has now reached number three in the uk‘s commercial radio chart — higher than the likes of sam smith, miley cyrus and ariana grande. higher than the likes of! time for a look at the weather. here‘s darren bett. simon, thank you. heading to the

caribbean first of all,