hello this is bbc news. the headlines... brexit talks will now continue as both sides agree to carry on with negotations after being unable to come to an agreement on trade. eu chief ursula von der leyen said it was worth going the ‘extra mile‘ we have accordingly mandated our negotiators to continue the task and to see whether an agreement can be reached, even at this late stage. following the decision to continue the talks, the prime minister has held a conference call with members of the cabinet. the body which represents nhs

trusts in england warns the prime minister that relaxing coronavirus restrictions will lead to a third wave of infections. chancellor angela merkel has announced tighter coronavirus restrictions that will apply across germany from this wednesday tilljanuary the 10th. anthony joshua knocks out kubrat pulev to defend his heavyweight world titles and set up a potential super fight with tyson fury. let's return to the news that within the last hour, the european commission president, ursula von der leyen has said talks between the uk and the eu will continue — in an attempt to reach a negotiated settlement on a post—brexit trade agreement. a uk cabinet meeting is being held now, and ireland's foreign minister has welcomed the news — saying a deal is "clearly very difficult, but possible." today was supposed to be the final day to agree a settlement before the end

of the transition period during. let's listen again to what the ec president had to say. good afternoon. i had a constructive and useful phone call with prime minister borisjohnson and we discussed the major unsolved topics. our negotiation teams have been working day and night over the recent days and despite the exhaustion after almost one year of negotiations, despite the fact that deadlines have been missed over and over, we both think that it is responsible at this point in time to go the extra mile. we have accordingly mandated our negotiators to continue the talks and to see whether an agreement can be reached, even at this late stage. the negotiations continue here in brussels. thank you so much.

our political correspondent nick eardley is at downing street. we have had thatjoint statement, we have had boris johnson we have had thatjoint statement, we have had borisjohnson brief in the cabinet. at the moment the two side keep talking, they are going as they say, the extra mile. deadlines in this process have been about as reliable as a chocolate teapot. the reason they matter is the big question was always, is either side prepared to walk away? put their hand up and say, we do not think this can work. neither side has been prepared to do that. all the mood music we heard on the andrew marr show this morning was about how both sides wanted to really exhausted all options before calling this a day. that is exactly what has happened. the fact that talks are continuing matters because it suggests both sides think it is all to play for,

that it sides think it is all to play for, thatitis sides think it is all to play for, that it is possible those unresolved issues can somehow be resolved. the language from ursula von der leyen was quite important, talking about constructive talks, talking about going the extra mile. gone are the warning from the last few days that no deal was the most likely outcome. borisjohnson said 48 hours ago that it was now very likely the european union would not have a trade—in in place with the uk when the transition period ends on the 1st of january. we do not know whether anything substantive has happened, whether either side has given an order owing to the other saying we can compromise if you move closer to us on can compromise if you move closer to us on that thing to get this over the line. the talks will continue, or to get back up and running, pretty much immediately. there is no new deadline suggesting the process could go on for a good few days yet. for the first time in 72 hours, it

seems both sides think there is some ground for a bit of optimism. thank you for the update. after that news that the brexit deal talks are going to continue, that both sides are going the extra mile, the organisation representing british retailers, including supermarkets, said "every passing moment of uncertainty makes it harder for busiesses to prepare effectively for the 1st of january. " the british retail consortium said its members were increasing their stocks of tins, toilet rolls and other longer life products. it said the main impact of changes from january would be on fresh produce such as fruit and vegetables, and warned the public there was no need to buy more food than usual. earlier i asked katrin pribyl, a german reporter based in london, about this morning's developments. germany was always saying it would do anything to actually get a deal.

they would never walk away. they will try to negotiate anything till the very last minute. let's be honest, like, germany would be hit quite badly with a no deal scenario. they have been trying to get an agreement done. we know mrjohnson wa nted agreement done. we know mrjohnson wanted to talk to angela merkel and emmanuel macron but the eu said you had to keep talking to ursula von der leyen and the eu has a whole, not to individual leaders. do you think that might have made a difference to these negotiations? frankly, i was a bit surprised that emmanuel macron and angela merkel both said we do not want to talk to borisjohnson. we both said we do not want to talk to boris johnson. we have both said we do not want to talk to borisjohnson. we have seen it with the withdrawal agreement before that, he was obviously talking to

the irish prime minister back then. i think at the moment by what they wa nt to i think at the moment by what they want to demonstrate is unity and that they actually are behind, there isa that they actually are behind, there is a common line behind michel barnier and i cannot think they really don't want to even get involved in that. obviously, they are behind—the—scenes but, you know, it is always a bit difficult, you know, in the eu 27 angela merkel and emmanuel macron are big players but i think they literally want to demonstrate unity, demonstrate that they are all in one block in those negotiations. time is so short now. what is your hunch? do you think that even at this 11th, almost 12 hour, can there be a deal? maybe i ama hour, can there be a deal? maybe i am a bit too optimistic but i think both sides have so much to lose with ano both sides have so much to lose with a no deal. so i do think they would

go literally, like, even further than the deadline, i would say, to actually get something done. we are talking about a deal which is already quite thin and not... the disruption would already be massive. with no deal, it would be quite a disaster for a lot of businesses and companies. tony connelly, europe editor of the irish broadcaster rte, told me about the significance of the irish response. he told me that had been progress overnight and things are zeroing in to the issue of the level playing field. things are zeroing in with the european union's real concern about what would happen if the uk from eu standards. would it be british companies an unfair

advantage over european ones? then the level playing field but no longer be level and then again, if the eu improved or tightened standards on various fields like the environment and so on overtime and the uk did not come again could you have an unfair situation? what they seem have an unfair situation? what they seem to be looking at is how quickly could the eu retaliate if they feel that the uk has diverged and that has caused a negative effect or a trade distortion or some kind of unfair advantage for uk companies? how quickly could the eu do that? would it be automatic, would it be horizontal? meaning there could be a distortion in one area but the eu could retaliate in the other and the uk could retaliate as well. that seems to be where the cursor is settling at the moment that they do not know the details of what kind of mechanism orfix not know the details of what kind of mechanism or fix they are going to

get out of that. clearly, the feeling in brussels says they should not be beyond the power of experienced trade negotiators. boris johnson and a ursula von der leyen saying they want to go the extra mile. do you think that quite deep philosophical divide on competition policy and level playing field can be bridged? the feeling is that they certainly should make an effort, whether they can get there or not. as your correspondence said, everything else has been done, apart from fisheries. if they can get the level playing field right, the feeling is fisheries can be sorted bya feeling is fisheries can be sorted by a classic negotiation over numbers that again, to come so far been so close to the ist of january and not go the extra mile and find a mechanism, some clever workaround that both sides can say, that is fairenough, we that both sides can say, that is fair enough, we have more or less

met our red lines and i think they will try to do that. in a few seconds, do you think there can be a deal? the feeling now is it is more likely than perhaps it was yesterday oi’ likely than perhaps it was yesterday ora likely than perhaps it was yesterday or a few days ago. that is the latest from tony connelly. nigerian security forces said they have located the kidnappers of hundreds of students abducted from their secondary school. the students were abducted on friday night from an all—boys secondary school in the kankara area of katsina state. a military—led offensive to rescue the children is reportedly underway. our nigeria correspondent, mayeni jones has the latest. the government has already released a statement saying they are determined to trace all the missing students. we don't yet know how many students are missing but eyewitnesses say it could be as many as 400,

about half of the 800 pupils who attended the secondary school in the north—west of nigeria. the army said that they exchanged gunfire with the armed men and they have got additional support from the air force. who would have been responsible for this? it is an horrific act, kidnapping school children from their school. it is not the first time that something like this has happened in nigeria and who do we think might be to blame? yes, it is not the first time large numbers of students have been kidnapped in nigeria, especially in the north, viewers will remember the famous case of the girls who were kidnapped in the north—east of the country back in 2014 leading to widespread support across the world including from the then first lady michelle obama. this kidnapping is slightly different, it is in the north—west of nigeria, it is not an area where islamist militants have been active traditionally in the past. in that area what tends

to happen is you have a lot of kidnappings for ransom. here they are referred to as bandits, armed men who target soft targets like schools, like civilians and try and get money from them. no group has yet claimed responsibility for the act but because of the geographical location, at the moment we are thinking it is more likely to be kidnappers than it is to be islamist terrorists. poland has been rocked by weeks of protests over a ruling by the constitutional court, which has all but outlawed abortion. the ruling — which bans termination even in cases of foetal defects — hasn't come into force yet, but critics say it will drive even more polish women to seek abortions abroad. those countries include neighbours such as the czech republic, from where our correspondent rob cameron sends this report. once it comes into effect,

poland's strict new law will make abortion all but illegal. it will only be possible in cases of rape, incest, or where the mother's health is in danger. it has forced thousands onto the streets, and some to leave their homeland. anna, not her real name, grew up in a conservative catholic household in southern poland, but an unwanted pregnancy changed everything. so i was 22 years old, i was studying at the time and i still had one year left, and it was an accident. i found out pretty soon and it was a shock. i had no clue what i was going to do, but i knew one thing for sure, that i could not tell anyone who could probably help me. and i believe that you ordered pills over the internet, abortion pills, and they never came.

can you tell me more about that? i was supposed to receive the pills within a week. after a week, nothing happened. i think it was, like, nine days that i waited. and then i got the letter from customs that there was a package for me, and they don't know what is inside and they would like me to come for interrogation and they would like to find out what it is and why i ordered it. instead, anna came to prague. after providing a fake work contract, a hospitalfinally agreed to carry out the procedure. when polish women come here to the czech republic, they will find notjust expressions of moral support, but access to something that is legal, safe and provided on demand. not all clinics will carry out the procedure on foreigners, but finding one that will has now

become slightly easier, thanks to a new ngo set up by polish women and based here in prague. we realised, when we started hearing about what is happening in poland, that even getting an abortion that would be a result of an illegal action, of some sort of crime like rape or incest, is really difficult, because you have to go through the whole legal procedure, and some women just give up, because they are being victims, they are being treated as criminals. there are no official figures for how many polish women make the journey to the czech republic each year to terminate their pregnancy. it could be hundreds or several thousand. anna has never told herfamily about her abortion. she still goes back to see them but says she never wants to live in poland again.

pro and anti donald trump values have turned violent. four people are in hospital in washington with stab wounds after clashes at rallies for and against president trump. police made at least twenty arrests as they tried to separate far—right supporters from left wing demonstrators and campaigners linked to black lives matter. david willis reports. tensions between black lives matter supporters and a right—wing group. please hear pepper spray. more than 20 people had been arrested and some treated for stab wounds. the rally had been called to

support donald trump's unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud, intended as a show were forced to marry days before the electoral college meets two formally electjoe biden as president. it brought thousands onto the streets in support. we have a republic to save and a constitution to stand up for you cannot let individual states at lawless me in a land built on laws. the event had been planned for weeks. mr trump expressed his surprise on twitter and his delight. did not know about this but i will be seeing them, he wrote. only to pass over the rally a short while later on his way to a football game in new york. all this as the president—elect was attending church and then hospital, where he is being treated for a foot injury incurred while playing with one of his dogs. on friday the us supreme court

rejected a challenge to mr biden's victory in four key battleground states. he is due to take up office injust over a month's states. he is due to take up office in just over a month's time. back to brexit and the fact that the eu and the uk are to continue talking. it was thought talks on a trade deal would end today but boris johnson and ursula von der leyen have agreed to go the extra mile. let's talk to the former permanent secretary to the brexit department and a specialist partner in a firm helping companies in their dealings with the eu. thank you for being with the eu. thank you for being with us. do you think... it sounds like there is good news that the two sides have agreed to keep talking. are you optimistic there can be a deal? we are bouncing around between

optimism and pessimism. not entirely surprised they have stretched the deadline again. deadlines have proved very elastic. the formal legal hard stop on this is not actually until the end of the year, the 31st of december. the fact they have found a bit more space must be a good thing. if the talks can continue. there is hope. the longer it goes on, there is less time for scrutiny of any deal by both european parliament and the uk parliament and there are a lot of businesses out there waiting to find out on what terms they will be trading ina out on what terms they will be trading in a few days' time. a lot of the difficulty in these talks seems to be about competition policy, the eu fear that in the long run the uk might try to undercut the eu and the british insistence on

sovereignty. and that be narrowed, these differences, there philosophical divisions be narrowed inafew philosophical divisions be narrowed in a few days? that should be possible. they have already narrowed it quite a laugh. they have agreed on non—regression clauses, both sides saying we will not drop standards from where they are now. both sides accept the other may want to diverge over time and there may bea to diverge over time and there may be a difference. i think both sides accept that in no circumstances, the other side would have the ability to retaliate in terms of keeping the level playing field level by imposing terms. the arguments about how that is done and surely there is a way forward that would allow both sides the understanding that any retaliation like that would be proportionate, there would be reviews and so on and so forth, it

should be a way forward to allow them to come to a deal on that. of course there is not very much time now. not much time. as she mentioned, businesses must be tearing their hair out at the moment. so little time until the deadline. exactly. even if we get a deal, there is a huge change coming for our trading relationship with the eu at the end of this year, a very big change. if you are trading in goods or services across that border, there is a very big change coming. businesses obviously put a lot of effort in getting ready for that. not all have completed their preparations by any means and many now simply do not know whether they will be having to pay tariffs for the goods that they import, or ta riffs the goods that they import, or tariffs charged on the goods for export. there is a lot of uncertainty. on top of coronavirus,

thatis uncertainty. on top of coronavirus, that is not great for businesses. what is your hunch as things stand? i know it is really difficult as a distant observer of all of this. the two sides, compared to the dinner last week, boris johnson two sides, compared to the dinner last week, borisjohnson and ursula von der leyen seem to be on better terms. they put out a rather amicablejoint terms. they put out a rather amicable joint statement. could we be heading for a very last—minute trade deal? let's hope so. there is absolutely of course no guarantees in this. i suspect the prime minister has been pulled hither and thither in terms of his political judgment of what is the best thing to do over the next few days. there area to do over the next few days. there are a lot of folk out there who will be hoping there is a because their businesses will be badly impacted if there is no deal. i think we are probably in the safest place right now, still on the fence. it is very difficult to call. you are permanent

secretary of the brexit department 2017 to 2019. we are actually going to go to here from the prime minister, i think, to go to here from the prime minister, ithink, in to go to here from the prime minister, i think, in the next few minutes. borisjohnson minister, i think, in the next few minutes. boris johnson has minister, i think, in the next few minutes. borisjohnson has been giving his reaction to that decision to continue the talks. he and ursula von der leyen, the eu commission president had agreed to go the extra mile. let's listen to what boris johnson has been saying in the last few seconds. i have just talked to ursula von der leyen and updated the cabinet about the contents of the call. the idea was that when we went out on wednesday, the hope was that we we re out on wednesday, the hope was that we were going to be able to finish things off today if there was a deal to be done. as things stand, and this is basically what ursula and i agreed, iam this is basically what ursula and i agreed, i am afraid we are still

very far apart on some key things but where there is life, there is hopeful that we are going to keep talking. the uk certainly will not be walking away from the talks. people would expect us to go the extra mile. i repeated my offer that if it is necessary to talk to other capitals, and i am very happy to do that, the commission is very determined to keep negotiations on the way they had been done between us the way they had been done between us and the commission. that is fine. but i have got to repeat the most likely thing now is that they had to get ready for wto terms, australia terms. and don't forget, everybody, we have made huge preparations for this. we had been at this for four and a half years. a long time, perhaps more intensively than previously but we have got ready and anybody who needs to know what to do, get on to the government website on the transition pages and see what

needs to be done. either way, whatever happens, the uk will do very, very well. you have always said you needed to see political movement from the eu. have you seen any at all? centimetres, millimetre isa any at all? centimetres, millimetre is a political movement in the last few days? sam, we're always happy to talk make progress where we can. i do think that as i say, there is a deal to be done if our partners want to do it. but we remain very far apart on these key issues. you know what they are. the uk cannot be locked into the eu's regulatory orbit and we have obviously got to ta ke orbit and we have obviously got to take back control of our fisheries, four and take back control of our fisheries, fourand a take back control of our fisheries, four and a half years after people voted for it. those are the points. i think that it is very clear what the uk is talking about. let's see what we can achieve. in the meantime, get ready with confidence

forjanuary the 1st, trade on wto terms if we have to. if you listen just to ursula von der leyen, the european commission president's statement today, he would think no deal is slightly less likely. she was a bit more optimistic. it ursula is optimistic, and that is great because we won... as far as i can see, there are some serious and very difficult issues that currently separate the uk from the eu and the best thing to do now for everybody is to follow up all the work that has been done over the last four and a half years, a colossal amount of preparation at our ports go everywhere a cross preparation at our ports go everywhere across the uk, get ready to trade on wto terms. there is a clarity and simplicity in that

approach that has its own advantages. it is not where we wa nted advantages. it is not where we wanted to get to but if we have to end up with that solution, the uk is more than prepared. the bottom line is great you won't say there has been political progress from the eu but you will not say there hasn't been. the uk should continue to try. that is what the people of this country will want me to do. we are going to continue to try. we are going to continue to try. we are going to continue to try. we are going to try with all our hearts and be creative as we possibly can. we cannot do is compromise on that fundamental nature of what brexit is all about, which is as being able to control our laws,, control our fisheries. it is very simple, i think ourfriends get fisheries. it is very simple, i think our friends get it. we fisheries. it is very simple, i think ourfriends get it. we remain willing to talk, will continue to do so willing to talk, will continue to do so but, in the meantime, let's get ready for the wto option and that is what i told the cabinet. that is

borisjohnson what i told the cabinet. that is boris johnson speaking in what i told the cabinet. that is borisjohnson speaking in the last few minutes, commenting on the agreement to keep talking with the eu in an attempt to agree a very last minute trade deal between the eu and the uk. you are watching bbc news. the pioneering black country music star, charley pride, has died from coronavirus complications. he was 86. in the 19705, charley pride became the best selling performer for rca records after elvis presley. he was inducted to the country music hall of fame in 2000. singer dolly parton said she was heartbroken at the news, and called him one of her oldest and dearest friends.

good afternoon. borisjohnson and the european commission president, ursula von der leyen, have agreed to continue talks to try to break the deadlock over a post—brexit trade deal.