this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. an hour on the phone between borisjohnson and the eu commission president has failed to break the deadlock on a post—brexit trade deal. ursula von der leyen says with differences remaining on three critical issues talks between eu and british teams will resume on sunday. whilst recognising the seriousness of these differences, we agreed that a further effort should be undertaken by our negotiating teams to assess whether they can be resolved. russia starts its covid—19 immunisation programme even though its sputnik v vacine is still undergoing final—stage testing. french police clash with protesters in paris

during the latest demonstrations against a proposed new security law. and venice lights up some of its best—known sights but this year, it looks as if only locals will be allowed to visit them. hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world — and stay with us for the latest news and analysis from here and across the globe. brexit negotiations will re—start tomorrow, although after a lengthy phone call between prime minister borisjohnson and the president of the european commission, ursula von der leyen. it's still not clear whether britain and the eu will be able to break their current deadlock over fishing rights, competition rules and how the agreement

will be enforced. but the sense of urgency is clear, as the uk's brexit transition period ends on the 31st of december come what may. our political correspondent chris mason has more. the prime minister on the phone this afternoon trying to see if the brexit trade deal is possible. he was talking to ursula von der leyen, the president of the european commission. big differences remain between the two sides, and afterwards, she said... whilst recognising the seriousness of these differences, we have agreed that a further effort should be undertaken by our negotiating teams to assess whether they can be, these issues can be resolved. we are therefore instructing our chief negotiators to reconvene tomorrow in brussels. the day began with the eu's chief brexit negotiator michel barnier checking out of his hotel in london with talks paused.

any hope for a deal? in the full and a half years since the eu referendum, we have all become wearily familiar with loose talk of deadlines but this time it really is it. the uk left the eu at the end of january and since then has been in a transition period where very little has changed, but that runs out at the end of this month so if there is going to be a trade deal, it has to be sorted in the coming days. it will be decided politically, not in the negotiating chambers. they will be compromises, i suspect, on both sides. what the prime minister will have to protect, the key issues of control, not giving control away to the european union in pursuit of economic outcomes, but they will be, in my view, it is in everyone's interests to come to a deal.

fish, how many are allowed to be caught by eu countries boats in uk waters is one of the big remaining disagreements. along with competition rules and how any deal is enforced. if we have a deal, at least there is some certainty. even if we have a deal, we have to adjust. the government has sent out a letter to every business in the country, saying check, change, though. well, check what? change what? go where? big changes are coming to the uk's relationship with the eu, whether there is a deal or not, and a big few days lie ahead. chris mason, bbc news at westminster. our correspondent nick beake in brussels says it's still not clear whether the two sides will be able to hammer out a deal in the end. i was talking to one eu diplomat this evening who suggested that this actually can be viewed as a whole

pa rt actually can be viewed as a whole part and parcel of the inevitable choreography you get before a deal is sealed. in other words, you throw ina bit is sealed. in other words, you throw in a bit of drama, a dollop of intrigue and lo and behold a deal is done. but the majority view here in brussels this evening as they are concerned. very few people believe they will be a trade deal and that is not just because they will be a trade deal and that is notjust because it is haggling over the price of fish, that is of course very important topic in these negotiations, fish is something we have heard a lot about. but it goes to the heart of competition rules that underpins the single market, it is sacred in the eyes of people in the city and i don't want to give the city and i don't want to give the uk an unfair advantage in the future. i think the key, really, the uk an unfair advantage in the future. ithink the key, really, is is the eu able to say, if there is a deal that yes we have got what we wanted, is boris johnson deal that yes we have got what we wanted, is borisjohnson got to say i have got what i have wanted and not sacrificed any sovereignty. at

this late stage, that is really tricky to do, i think. trade and transport organisations in northern ireland have expressed their concern about the stalemate in the post—brexit trade negotiations. they have urged borisjohnson and ursula von der leyen, to reach an agreement quickly. from belfast, mark simpson reports. whichever way the brexit negotiations go, there is huge interest in northern ireland. but some business groups say they're tired of waiting for answers. we would hope, and i'll use an old ulster phrase, that the eu and the uk would just simply wise up, get the deal done. this is too important for the games and we need to make sure that people understand what the rules are going to be from the ist of january and relationships are improved. first of all we need a deal, that will be vital to reducing any barriers between trade between gb and northern ireland. then we need an implementation phase because industry and government simply isn't ready for january the 1st. and lastly, we need special derogations on retail food movements coming into northern ireland and post and parcels. politicians here have their differences are brexit, but they all agree and one thing —

that what happens next could have major implications. obviously we've been very heavily focused on covid over the past 12 months and this has really slipped down the agenda. what happens in this regard will have huge implications for both businesses and households alike, not least in terms of the choices of available goods and also their prices. stormont politicians know all about difficult negotiations and the thin line between a breakthrough and a breakdown. the focus is on political leaders in brussels and london. they have been through the issues many times before. now it's crunch time... ..once again. all people in belfast, dublin and across europe can do is wait, to see whether a last—minute deal can be done. mark simpson, bbc news, belfast. the world's first mass

coronavirus vaccination programme is under way in russia. doctors are using the sputnik v jab, which was cleared for use by president putin, even though it has not yet completed its trials. however, its developers say that so far, it appears to be more than 90% effective. the first inoculations took place at clinics in moscow — as russia announced a record single—day number of confirmed coronavirus infections. the bbc‘s sarah rainsford has more. this is one of the moscow clinics that is now rolling out russia's sputnik vaccine to the population. first of all, doctors, medics generally, health workers, teachers and social workers have been invited to receive the vaccine. now, sputnik v is still in an experimental form, more trials for its safety and its efficacy are still under way. but the chief doctor at this clinic has said she is confident it is fine to roll it out now.

translation: this vaccine has been officially registered. we have enough research to know that it is 92% effective. and if there is a choice to get sick or have the vaccine, then this is a dangerous disease, the answer is obvious. this is a leaflet that patients are given before they get the jab and it talks about some of the possible side effects, although it sets out that they should be pretty minimal and last maybe one to three days, perhaps some weakness, perhaps some sickness or a fever. and it suggestsjust taking paracetamol. now, some 5000 people have supposedly signed up already to get this vaccination in the mass roll—out, although we have only seen a handful or so he actually getting the jab. translation: we see how sick people get, so we have no doubts at all about getting vaccinated. we use protective clothing, of course, and now we are getting the vaccine as early as possible. from the very start, russia's treated this quest for a covid vaccine as something

of a race. certainly it declared itself the first country to register a vaccine, sputnik v, back in august, even before the mass trials had begun. now it is moving very quickly to roll the vaccine out for use by the population at large. there are still questions about how much it can actually produce of sputnik v, though. manufacturers unable to quickly scale up their production. president putin has said 2 million doses should be available for people this year. and then next year, russia plans to roll this out much faster, much wider as the number of covid cases in the country continues to grow. here in the uk, the latest government figures show new infections continuing to fall. there were 15,539 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. the average number of new cases reported per day in the last week, is now 14,400. 1,365 people were admitted to hospital on average

each day over the week to last tuesday. 397 deaths were reported — that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test. and that means on average in the past week — 427 deaths were announced every day. this takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 61,014. and staying on that theme, the opposition labour party has revealed that its leader sir keir starmer is self—isolating. a member of his private office staff tested positive but the labour leader says he's not showing symptoms. in line with government advice, he will work from home until wednesday 16th of december. next week will see the start of the coronavirus vaccination programme after the pfizer biontech vaccine was approved for use in the uk. but the nations' four chief medical officers are urging caution, saying it will only

have a marginal impact on the numbers in hospital this winter. so, mass testing is likely to be key to containing the virus. but there are concerns here too, after the rapid turnaround tests used in a pilot in liverpool missed half of all cases. katherine da costa reports. council staff here in wolverhampton are preparing to roll out mass testing from monday. nose and throat swabs are taken but instead of being sent to a lab, lateral flow tests provide results within half an hour. but there is concern they are not as accurate as standard pcr tests, so more people could be told they are negative when they are not. if those people then go out and they visit their grandparents, they stop socially distancing and so on because they believe they haven't got covid, that's not going to help, it could actually make it worse. in wolverhampton they hope rapid testing will help them move out of tier 3 by detecting those without any symptoms and getting them to isolate. that is what happened following

a trial in liverpool last month. the government said mass testing helped towards reducing the rate of infection, but figures from the pilot showed tests missed half of all cases. health advisers say they still have a value. we've been very clear that this test finds people that we couldn't otherwise. what we are doing here is we're doing case detection. we are not trying to say people do not have the disease if their test is negative. we're trying to say, you do have the disease and now we want you to go and isolate for ten days. trials of mass testing are being explored across the uk. in england the tests are also being used in schools, care homes and by students before they head home for christmas. behavioural experts say that could send mixed messages. the problem is that this is being used, for example, with university students, to say if you get a negative result on two occasions, you're all right to travel home. because this is being done in this way, it's communicating that somehow those people are not infectious. they may still be infectious

after two such negative test results, so the government urgently needs to explain that this test is for identifying those who are infectious so they can isolate. it is not for reassuring those who test negative. coronavirus is highly contagious... this new public health video has just been released as a reminder that even with mass testing and vaccines on the way, we still need to be vigilant to stop the spread of the virus this winter. katherine da costa, bbc news. the headlines on bbc news... an hour on the phone between borisjohnson and the eu commission president ursula von der leyen has failed to break the deadlock on a post—brexit trade deal. russia starts its covid—19 immunisation programme even though its vaccine is still undergoing final—stage testing. the mayor of moscow says thousands of key workers have signed up for a jab.

french police clash with protesters in paris during the latest demonstrations against a proposed new security law. as we've been reporting, coronavirus vaccines are starting to roll out, but scientists say it's even more important to try and keep covid—19 under control, as we look forward to relaxing lockdown restrictions. and to do that, they believe it's crucial to break the chain of transmission. for instance, backwards contact tracing — where the source of an infection is found — can result in two to three times as many cases being traced and isolated. that's because 20% of people create clusters of infections accounting for 80% of the cases. our science correspondent rebecca morelle explains. we need to break the chains of transmission, but coronavirus does not spread evenly from person to person.

this event at the white house is a prime example. while most people won't pass the virus onto anyone, scientists estimate thatjust 20% of infected people are causing 80% of covid cases. it is known as super spreading and in the rose garden, one person is thought to have infected at least 11 others, including donald trump. with respect to super spreading events and that seems to relate both to the activities that people are doing, how many people are in the room, how close they are, but also there seem to be some people that do just excrete more vii’us. stopping super spreading could be the key to fighting covid—19, but you need to discover the source of an outbreak. and that means tracking and tracing in a different way. contact tracing is all about detective work. the forward contact tracing, if i test positive, it means finding all the people that i could have

given the virus to and asking them to self—isolate. but for backward contact tracing, it means finding the person who gave the virus to be. because if they passed it to me, they are more likely to have infected other people also, so then their contacts are identified and asked to self—isolate as well. if we just go forward then because a lot of cases weren't spreading infection to others, potentially, you could miss that large part of transmission where super spreading is happening, so going backwards has the advantage that you can identify those clusters, identify who else was there and potentially prevent any onward transmission. we estimated that looking backwards as well as forwards could prevent two or three times more infections and hence transmission than byjust looking forwards alone. in the uk, the spread of coronavirus seems to be slowing and if numbers fall more, backwards tracing could be a way to get ahead of the pandemic. rebecca morelle, bbc news.

to paris now where protestors have been clashing with riot police — over calls for a new security law to be dropped completely. this is despite the government back tracking on the most controversial clause — concerning limits on filming police officers on duty. our reporterjothohnson has more. this our reporterjothohnson has more. was the scenl paris this was the scene on the streets of paris on saturday as peaceful rallies over a controversial draft security law turned violent for a second consecutive weekend. officers fired tear gas and a pocket of demonstrators set cars and barricades on fire. shop windows we re barricades on fire. shop windows were smashed by some hooded protesters and a bank was ransacked and torched. the protest started

over a clause in a draft security law which aimed to restrict how people share images are fond duty police making it a criminal offence if there was an intent to harm their physical or psychological integrity. the public backed down in the face of pressure and said the controversial clause would be rewritten but protesters want the law to be scrapped completely. translation: france must distinguish itself being in the core of great democracies. it often has this habit of curbing freedom is. the week nationwide protests have become a problem for president macron‘s government. in an interview on friday, he acknowledged that some

police officers are violent and said race was a factor. but lash out at an earlier violence in paris. translation: i can't let it be said that freedoms are being curtailed in oui’ that freedoms are being curtailed in our country and i can't say there is no democratic debate. sometimes little vibrant. at least i will a lwa ys little vibrant. at least i will always be the guarantor of that but today we are facing violence which is sometimes unprecedented. images of music reducer michelle sattler being kicked and punched by three white policeman last month shocked the nation. human rights activists say they might never have been made public if they knew security law had already been in force. john public if they knew security law had already been in force. jothohnson, bbc news. when the first coronavirus cases were diagnosed in europe, many were traced back to ski resorts. that's led several eu governments to call for ski resorts to remain closed over this winter. but switzerland, which is not

an eu member, has decided to keep its slopes open. imogen folks reports. a grand opening for a brand—new ski lift, yea rs a grand opening for a brand—new ski lift, years in the making, gust half $1 billion. but we are in the middle ofa $1 billion. but we are in the middle of a pandemic. switzerland's neighbours france, italy and germany have closed their ski slopes this christmas but the swiss don't want to bow to pressure. it won't be the same during summer time when we say italy has to close, the see of the beach or we would say the same to france. i think every country has to do what is best for the country and this is the position of switzerland. the new lift will with people out in just 15 minutes but even in switzerland, there are restrictions. masks, distancing and leftjust two

thirds full. these are not exactly the conditions the swiss wanted for this grand opening but out there, the snow, what they call white gold here, is falling. italy and france have their beaches, switzerland has eight ski slopes and closing them even for a few weeks seems unthinkable. this is how many swiss hope to spend this festive season, evenif hope to spend this festive season, even if their european friends but joined them. for more than a century, the alps have been the place people go to recuperate, to restore their health. why not this winter, too? because we believe we have to live with covid—19, there is no way around it and people need vacations, people need mountains, people need fresh air and sunshine and that is our aim, to make it possible. and so it switzerland is going it alone. it's slopes are open for business despite covid—19. to some em i look like but is method

here, if the christenson new year period goes well and above all safely, switzerland stands to make a tidy profit while its neighbours are left empty—handed. imagine folks, bbc news, band. votes are being counted in kuwait, in the country's parliamentary election — overshadowed by the coronavirus pandemic. these were kuwait's first elections since the new emir took office in september. infected voters were allowed to have their say too — at five designated polling stations. nisrine hatoum reports from kuwait. this years elections are different as it is happening during a pandemic. strict measures were imposed in all polling stations and coronavirus —positive voters were allowed to vote in specific schools. the soon—to—be elected legislators will have to face various

challenges. corruption, liquidity crisis, housing crisis, freedom of expression, and women's rights. these elections have 29 female candidates. a record number since women were first allowed to vote and run for office in kuwait 15 years ago. the elections come at a time when kuwait is putting much effort to end the gulf crisis that has been ongoing since 2017. to italy now, and the city of venice is usually a year—round tourist hot—spot, but it's much quieter than usual at the moment. to control its second wave of coronavirus, italy has toughened up its travel restrictions and this year's christmas lights have been switched on without much of a bang. sophia tran—thomson has this report.

not the grandest of celebrations but in 2020, moments like this are worth celebrating. this christmas is different from the others. u nfortu nately different from the others. unfortunately like everyone else around the world we are experiencing the same challenges but i strongly believe in positivity. this italian artist was invited to decorate christmas this year in venice and chose to illuminate the brightest attractions. my purpose is to light up attractions. my purpose is to light up the stands with light, culture, new emotions. from the garden country to the doge polish and the rialto bridge, all of the city's most popular attractions are shining bright. for many christmas travellers, news that all foreign arrivals landing in italy after december 21 will need to quarantine for two weeks is disappointing but for two weeks is disappointing but for venetian locals, in a time of darkness for many, it is a unique

opportunity to reclaim and enjoy the city for themselves. you're watching bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather. hello. well, saturday was quite a chilly day, and it looks as though sunday is going to be every bit as nippy, and no change over the next few days, it's going to remain colder than average for the time of the year. a few showers in the forecast for sunday, but also plenty of sunny spells. now, low pressure is quite close to the uk this evening and into sunday, so there's always the possibility of spits and spots of rain, but more significantly, that area is still streaming out of the arctic, it's spreading across the uk and other parts of western europe. so here is the forecast through the night. showers affecting parts of scotland, the north of england too, maybe one or two affecting the far south of england. the coldest weather will probably be across western areas

where it's going to be clear, temperatures could dip down to —3 degrees in some rural spots, but most major towns and cities probably around freezing or evenjust above. so the forecast for sunday, the best of the weather across scotland and northern ireland, certainly some sunshine on the way for edinburgh, glasgow, belfast as well, but this central swath of the uk, so yorkshire down into the peak district, and also parts of wales, always a bit more cloudy and the possibility of a few showers, and it is going to be chilly, only 4 degrees in some areas and another chilly evening on the way sunday night. so, monday's weather map and the jet stream, you can see this big dip in thejet stream, this pattern is not going to shift certainly through the early parts of the week, so that cold air keeps streaming in from the north. now, monday itself isn't looking too bad across the uk. there will be a fair bit of cloud, some mist and murk around, but it should be dry at least during the daytime. on the evening, you can't miss this, this weather front will approach the north sea coast,

and by the time we get to monday night and into tuesday, that weather front will roll in from the east, and there is a possibility of some sleet and mostly hill snow, i think, across parts of scotland and northern england. you can see the white stuff there falling across the pennines and the southern uplands of scotland. but the south, i think, should miss that, so here it's going to be clear. so the forecast for the next few days, you can see the temperatures are into single figures. the weather will change a little bit, but i think broadly speaking, it's going to be mostly cloudy with some sunshine from time to time. bye— bye.

hello. this is bbc news. we'll be taking a look at tomorrow mornings papers in a moment — first the headlines. brexit talks between the uk

and the eu will resume on sunday after a phone call between boris johnson and the president of the european commission — but both sides say significant differences still remain. whilst recognising the seriousness of these differences, we agreed that a further effort should be undertaken by our negotiating teams to assess whether they can be resolved. and more rapid testing is introduced in areas in the highest tiers of restrictions in england — but there are concerns about their accuracy. hello and welcome to our look ahead to what the the papers will be bringing us tomorrow. with me are the broadcaster lucy beresford and joe twyman, the co—founder and director of deltapoll.