queue to get the vaccine. absolutely! the jcvi made a very special case for father christmas and he will be at the top of the list. that's excellent. that is very reassuring to hear, thank you to jenniferfor that reassuring to hear, thank you to jennifer for that question. reassuring to hear, thank you to jenniferfor that question. i have to say, i have had the prime minister in the studio, debates on brexit and elections and i have never seen brexit and elections and i have never seen the volume of messages that have come through to us this morning for you in particular, and i think people are very much appreciate the fact that when they ask you a question or you are asked ask you a question or you are asked a question, they get a straight a nswer a question, they get a straight answer so a question, they get a straight answer so thank you for your time this morning and we hope you get an opportunity to go and watch your beloved boston united before too long. absolutely! thank you very much. and we absolutely love a straight answer.

that's it for this special edition of your call on bbc radio 5 live and your questions answered on the bbc news channel. thanks to all of you who called and to england's deputy chief medical officer, jonathan van—tam. i hope that was an informative question and answer session for you with professorjonathan question and answer session for you with professor jonathan van—tam, question and answer session for you with professorjonathan van—tam, we cannot answer all the questions sent to us but hopefully we got through some of the key areas people wanted to know more information about. and took one of the other main stories today, students sitting gcse and a—levels in england next year will be awarded more generous grades to

compensate for the disruption to schooling in the pandemic. pupils will get advanced notice of exam topics and be allowed to use memory aids. measures will also be put in place to help students who miss exams because of self—isolation. here's more from our education editor, bra nwen jeffreys. heading home to self—isolate, year 11 at this secondary school. just before it was confirmed, some shared their gcse fears with me. i have a lot of worries about gcses because i really feel like there's not much being done about the amount of time we missed. but i'm especially worried about english and maths because those are a must have for any sixth form. i prefer to be in school to learn. so the disruption to that is just going to really knock my focus off my education. so would narrowing down the topics in each subject help? i think that will be the most beneficial thing, one of the most beneficial things that they can do, because it really like, gives you that tiny bit

of hope that we need at this time, just so then we get that little bit of help that we notice. i wish there was a bit more done done honestly. i feel like, obviously it's going to help, but it might not be enough to really make everyone feel comfortable with what they're doing, because personally, i'm not confident with what i'm doing, but i feel like it will help a little bit. how will gcse and a—level exams work in 2021? grades will be more generous than normal, mainly in line with 2020. advance warning of some topics will be given, but not the questions. some study aids will be allowed. that could be a formula or a vocabulary list. and special measures will be used to work out grades for an exam missed. after a term of covid disruption, this does give schools a bit more certainty. but they're going to have to wait until january to find out what topics will be in which exam papers. and there's still one big unanswered question.

how do you take account of the fact that some kids have missed so much more learning than others? so an expert group will look at that bigger picture, but grades aren't likely to be adjusted. and here, they're worried about disruption after christmas. if we stick to the plan and the continued disruption across the country happens right through until, whether it's march or april, i think you're going to have a massive impact on the well—being of young people and families. and we're going to see a very unfair system and probably a return to the debacle of last summer. northern ireland also plans to hold exams, but in wales, they've been cancelled. while scotland only plans to have exams for highers. schools are still dealing with coronavirus. faith in these plans will be tested in the next few months. branwen jeffreys, bbc news, herne bay.

more on that story coming up and talking to the shadow education secretary very soon but we can return to the question and answer session we had with professor jonathan van—tam, the deputy chief medical officer for england and jonathan van—tam, the deputy chief medical officerfor england and our health reporter philippa roxby is with me now. this year we have a listen to interviews and discussions with so many virologists, epidemiologists and so on i think it feels like there has never been more important time to really clear messaging when it comes to dealing with coronavirus, the process of rolling out vaccines and so on. we we re rolling out vaccines and so on. we were getting a lot of comments from viewers praising jonathan van—tam for being a very clear in his messaging so what were the key thing is to pick out of what he said? messaging so what were the key thing is to pick out of what he said7m was really interesting he picked up on some technical issues with the pfizer vaccine. we know it has to be stored at ultracold temperatures and he said that makes it a very delicate vaccine and there was a challenge with getting it into care

homes as a result because there is only so many times you can open the door of the fridge and take it out. there are limits to what you can do with it when you have ethaw it to fridge temperature. —— when you have thawed or it up and there will be an overlapping of the priority groups so overlapping of the priority groups so it won'tjust be care home residents and workers first but a mixture of nhs staff and care home residents and over 805. mixture of nhs staff and care home residents and over 80s. interested he used the word blending and there is concern about the technical challenges because of the delivery and storage of the vaccine, about what exactly will happen with residents in care homes put that one question we did not get to was someone question we did not get to was someone who works in a care home in a very remote area wondering if they —— where they would be in all of this. he seem to suggest the oxford astrazeneca vaccine which is being sent to the mhra, the uk regulator, for approval would be better suited

for approval would be better suited for care homes and he suggested that that would be the vaccine to wait for the doing that which may be approved before christmas he said. it is possible that we get to different vaccines and they will be suited for different groups of people. and an interesting question around a vaccine certificate, the phrase that the caller used because people are obviously starting to think beyond the pandemic, starting to very carefully imagine life beyond all this and what they might beyond all this and what they might be able or not to do. that's right, people are thinking about all relative they would like to see in far—flung places, like australia, how to get there and prove they have had the vaccine. he suggested there was no firm information on whether there would be a vaccine certificate as yet but that in digital records there would certainly be clear information about who had had the vaccine, which won and how many

doses but it's clear they haven't quite thought through that process yet —— which vaccine. quite thought through that process yet -- which vaccine. thank you so much for that, philippa roxby taking stock of what we heard from professorjonathan stock of what we heard from professor jonathan van—tam this morning. brexit talks stretched late into last night as the clock ticks down to the deadline for a trade deal. several pizza boxes were delivered to the westminster venue where talks have been taking place late last night, as officials from london and brussels tried to hammer out a deal. the transition period ends on december 31st, but there's fear that unless a deal is agreed by the middle of next week, it can't be turned into law in time. sending live animals abroad for slaughter will be banned in england and wales, under government plans announced today. the environment secretary, george eustice, has told the bbc the measures could be in place by the end of 2021 and would cut the amount of time animals spend in trucks in the uk. our political correspondent helen catt has more. only a few thousand of the millions of animals bred for meat in the uk end up being shipped to europe for slaughter.

but their long journeys can cause them distress and even injury. so there have been calls for decades for the practice to be banned. now the government says it will be in england and wales, it hopes, by the end of 2021. we think we've struck the right balance here. this will remove the trade that i think most people are concerned about, which is predominantly the export of lambs for slaughter to continental europe. but it will enable high—value breeding stock still to be traded. those tend to be transported in very good conditions. an outright ban like this was impossible under eu law. we know that, because a council in kent tried it in 2012, after more than a0 sheep had to be put down at the port in ramsgate. the high court ruled it was a breach of eu free trade rules. there had been fears a ban may not be possible under global trade rules either, but ministers are confident this is in line with them. the rspca has always said to the government, we don't mind how you get to your goal of stopping live

exports, we just want to stop them. the end goal is the most important thing, how to stop all of our live animals going abroad and us losing control over where they go or how they're killed. that, for the rspca, is the most important thing. that will improve animal welfare. ending live animal exports has often been held up as one of the things that the government could and would change once we leave the single market and the customs union next month. it was a promise too in the conservative manifesto at last year's election. so it won't happen in time forjanuary the ist. but the political will to make the change does seem to be there. the government also plans to cut the number of hours animals can spend in transit within the uk. the national farmers' union has warned that any big changes could have a massive impact on the uk's food supply chain. helen catt, bbc news. sport, and a full round—up from the bbc sport centre. good morning. i guess you're starting with the

fa ct i guess you're starting with the fact that fans were back in some football grounds and what i different it must have made the players? and it sounded so emotional for those listening on the radio, even for those listening on the radio, even the referees who got a bit of stick, i'm sure they missed it as well but especially for the players. what motivation for those home teams able to have supporters back. last night, football felt complete again, its life and soul had returned as, for the first time since march, fans were able to attend english league football matches. they were at six grounds, including 2,000 at shrewsbury town for their league one match against accrington stanley, and our sports editor dan roan was there. football and fans united put out some of the lucky 2000 shrewsbury supporters allowed back inside almost nine months after sport was forced behind closed doors. almost nine months after sport was forced behind closed doorsm almost nine months after sport was forced behind closed doors. it is wonderful once again to have our supporters in the ground. it has been a lonely place for many weeks, i have been the pa for over a0 years andi

i have been the pa for over a0 years and i don't think i realised how important the fans are to a game of football. having had to pass temperature checks and been allocated seats according to household groups, fans also had to wear facemasks household groups, fans also had to wearfacemasks on a household groups, fans also had to wear facemasks on a ground that, when full, can hold five times as many. we were obviously thinking financially doing this because we had not built the stadium, everybody isa had not built the stadium, everybody is a season ticket holder tonight so it isn't ideal financially but it important as a small step to getting back to full crowds and proving to everybody that football can operate safely in an outdoor environment. half—time refreshments were available but only outside the ground and for those who had to wait so long to return, this and evening to cherish. we have missed it so much and it feels so different to actually watch live football again, you forget having watched it at home so you forget having watched it at home so it was fantastic. just the supporting your team and getting behind them, the atmosphere, seeing your friends and everything, the match day experience. for clubs like

shrewsbury to start making money again from gate receipts, they need again from gate receipts, they need a lot more fans in the ground and just this but it is about more than finances. this is a hugely encouraging return of the passion and atmosphere that sport has missed and atmosphere that sport has missed an out for so long. still no fans at old trafford with greater manchester in tier 3, and united could have done with the support as they lost to paris saint germain in the champions league. neymar got two goals in a 3—1 win for the french side, manchester united also had midfielder fred sent off. they will still qualify for the last 16 if they avoid defeat against rb leipzig in theirfinal group game. it was a brilliant night for chelsea, and their striker olivier giroud. he got all the goals in their a—0 win away at sevilla. they had already qualified for the last 16, and will now finish top of their group. championjockey oisin murphy has spoken for the first time since being banned for testing positive for cocaine. in an exclusive interview with bbc sport, the irishman admitted that his reputation

has been damanged. he's serving a three—month ban, and says that investigators had accepted that he hadn't taken the drug. i became aware of a situation where cocaine was present in my environment. and i saw it there and idid not environment. and i saw it there and i did not remove myself from that situation immediately. and when you sign for yourjockey‘s license every year, you have to abide by the rules, and that was my error. and i have got to, you know, i very much have got to, you know, i very much have no self—pity, i made a mistake i have to live with the consequences. tyson fury will remain on the shortlist for this year's bbc sports personality of the year award, despite saying he wants to be taken off the list. the world heavyweight boxing champion tweeted that he was the people's champion, and had no need for verification, or any awards. but a bbc spokesperson said, "the shortlist was decided by an independent expert panel, which looked at sporting

achievement, and on this basis he will remain". and up against five other contenders. decided on the 20th of december. that's all the sport for now. lovely to see those funds. pubs, bars and restaurants in jersey are set to close from midnight in order to tackle a surge in covid cases. takeaways and shops can stay open but people must follow the two—metre social distancing rule. the circuit—brea ker measures are expected to remain in place until the ath of january. 56 new cases were identified there yesterday, the biggest daily total recorded so far. the former president of france valery giscard d'estaing has died at the age of 9a, after contracting covid—i9. he led the country from 198a until 1981 and is credited for pushing for greater european integration. i think those dates are wrong. president emmanuel macron

said his predecessor had transformed france during his time in office. students sitting gcse and a—level exams in england next year will be awarded more generous grades to compensate for the disruption to schooling during the pandemic. let's speak to the shadow education secretary, kate green. good to have you with us and thank you for your time do you welcome this, do you think it's sensible plan? we have been waiting for a long time for a plan, students have been asking since september how they will be examined fairly next summer and it has been a very anxious time for them and very difficult for their teachers who have had to prepare them for exams but did not know what they would look like. i am glad we finally have a plan although it very late in the day. i don't think it goes far enough to address some of the fundamental inequity is that students have suffered where they had a significant disruption to their learning. so i am disappointed

that some of the suggestions that labour made that could have helped to address some of those unfairness as have not been taken up by the government. for viewers who don't know what those suggestions were, perhaps you could outline them. clearly that is an issue that has been raised again and again since the announcement, the concern that a student in some particular areas where perhaps individual schools have been badly affected by covid or the broadly area had been, they will be atan the broadly area had been, they will be at an even greater disadvantage so how do you level up in that scenario? in greater manchester, for example, where i am an mp, we have been under significant covert instructions for months and our stu d e nts instructions for months and our students will have suffered more lost learning and perhaps in other parts of the country. i ask the secretary of state a couple of weeks ago if you tell me how many times stu d e nts ago if you tell me how many times students had been absent from school andi students had been absent from school and i still don't have that information but don't think that we have suggested that could help to recognise where learning has been significantly disrupted, more

optimality in the exam papers so stu d e nts optimality in the exam papers so students would at least know that would be a part of the paper that they could answer where they had cover that part of the syllabus even if they had to miss other parts —— more optionality. we also suggested a regional dimension to standardising results so that different regions of the country that have suffered more disruption could be reflected in the way that end grades were moderated. i recognise we are in a very difficult situation this year and there is no perfect answer put i am however worried that if we cannot have fair exams eczema we need to have a plan band if exams eczema we need to have a plan b and if it is relying on teacher assessments, schools need to know about that as well now so they can gather the right data about pupils' performance and they don't have that information yet from the government. it may happen, the secretary of state has suggested he will ask his expert panel if he thinks that would be necessary, but schools need to

know now. the lack of certainty is causing more stress for already very stressed and worried pupils and teachers. you mentioned standardising within england, which leads me to the question of the different approaches from the four nations. do you think there ought to be uniformity in approach because otherwise you have students from england, scotland, northern ireland and wales going through a different process for their results and then applying and chasing for the same places at universities on technical courses and apprenticeships and so forth? that is not a level playing field, is it? and that is not new because of the real issue is that it is not just because of the real issue is that it is notjust the exams or assessment process that is different, different ways of teaching and assessing throughout the year vary from one country to another. in wales for example, they teach in a way that enables ongoing assessment of coursework but we don't have that set up in england put that there is

already disparity in the system and i think already disparity in the system and ithink in already disparity in the system and i think in england, where we have a system that is very much focused on an end of year exam, and end of course exam , an end of year exam, and end of course exam, the first priority must be to try to make those exams as fairas be to try to make those exams as fair as possible because that is the way our teaching and learning is set up way our teaching and learning is set up and it is the way students have been preparing and studying notjust this term but of course they have been seeing their first year of a—level and gcse studies last year also disrupted when the national lockdown came in march. do you think accurate comparisons can be made between students from different parts of the uk at the end of this applying for courses? it is always an issue because a bit different teaching patterns and assessment processes and indeed the age at which a student take a final assessment and can apply to university. you think employers or universities, the people assessing curriculum vitae, results etc, they can take care of that end of it?

they already have had to in previous yea rs they already have had to in previous years because they already have had to in previous yea rs because we they already have had to in previous years because we have never had a uniform system across all four nations but i agree with you that it will be important that they have the ability to make those adjustments and to recognise those differences and to recognise those differences and that is probably easier for universities and colleges, they understand the learning and education system and will have a good grasp of what students have been going through and it is important that we make sure that employers, those supplying apprenticeships, are properly informed as well. because it would not be fair to students who have been working incredibly hard in the last few months in the most challenging circumstances if employers did not know how to recognise and take account of that disruption and be able to understand a student's potential and what they are capable of. so it is very important that as much information and understanding as possible is built for employers about how the systems will work. kate green, thank you for your time, shadow education

secretary. we will have more analysis of that roll—out a ba csi nszky analysis of that roll—out a bacsinszky in the uk —— roll—out of the vaccines put on changes to exams for those sitting a—levels and gcses in summit next england but now look at the weather forecast. over the next few days and nights at the forecast will be a cold one and for some we have some snow. a lot of it will be in the hills but at times we could see some at lower levels but by no means are we all go to see it. today it is colder than yesterday, rain or showers, some wintry in the hills and moves across the east of england and pushes north, heavy at times across kent and sussex in the afternoon with brisk winds through the english channel and is it engages with a colder air, we will see some hill snow opened in scotland and northern ireland, sunshine and showers with showers increasingly confined to the

north and west. some heavier ones could be wintry punter and in any of the showers we could see some hail and thunder and lightning. this evening and overnight the band of rain moves up the north sea and pivot into eastern scotland and north—east england. it will be rain on the coast but inland we have some snow and potentially at lower levels again and in the south—east we have some rain but also the potentialfor some rain but also the potentialfor some sleet and snow, perhaps by morning when the children go to school so they could be a slushy acute relations. increasingly the rain and snow in scotland will turn back to rain, heavy at times with gales in the west but also drier weather with fewer showers and still some wintry in the hills. tomorrow it will feel cold wherever you are. heading into the weekend, drier conditions, still feeling cold, the driest day of the weekend will be sunday because on saturday to the low still dominates. we have all these showers rotating around us. we

should see some brightness in between and sunshine at times in northern ireland and also southern scotland. template is on saturday, still no heat wave, lighter winds and temperatures between five and 7 degrees —— temperatures on saturday. we have drier conditions on sunday, frosty after clear skies to start with and looking at some sunshine under those clear skies with still a few showers dotted around but not as prolific as a bit of a breather from what we have been used to but it will still feel cold with temperatures of 5—8 .

this is bbc news, with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. the first doses of the pfizer coronavirus vaccine are expected to arrive in the uk soon, but scientists warn restrictions will need to remain for some time. we need more vaccines, but we also need people to realise that these are not an instant ticket out of anywhere at the moment. we are in for some hard winter months, where people must continue to follow the guidance. and if you've got any concerns or questions about the vaccine, let us know. about that or any of our other stories.