this is bbc news, i'm reeta chakrabarti, the latest headlines at nine. around 11 million people in england will be living under the toughest coronavirus restrictions from midnight — amid a warning that a new strain of the virus could be linked to a rise in infections. but ministers insist that plans to relax the rules at christmas will still go ahead. many families will want to come together over the christmas period but that does not mean all the restrictions are lifted. people will still need to continue to act responsibly but we should trust people to do so. will you be changing your christmas plans? your christmas plans? get in touch with me on twitter @reetacbbc or use the hashtag bbc your questions. the education secretary threatens legal action after greenwich council in london told schools to move

to online teaching to halt the spread of the virus. a record rise in redundancies and unemployment continues to grow. 1.7 million people are now out of work across the uk. the netherlands enters a strict second lockdown, with schools and shops shut for at least five weeks. and coming up this hour. we hear how technology giants including google and facebook could face multi—million pound fines if they fail to protect children from online harm. good morning and welcome to bbc news. from midnight tonight, 3a million people in england will be living with the highest level of restrictions in tier 3. new areas, including the whole of london, are being moved into the top tier because of a very

sharp rise in the number of coronavirus infections. the measures were announced as ministers revealed that a new variant of the virus has been seen in the uk but experts say they believe the new vaccine is effective against it. greater london and parts of essex and hertfordshire are to be placed in tier 3 from midnight, facing the most severe restrictions. there can be no socialising indoors with anyone other than the people you live with, or those in your support bubble. bars, pubs and restaurants will have to close, though they can provide takeaways and deliveries. but shops, gyms and hairdressers will be able to stay open. this report byjon donnison. for many, christmas cheer is in short supply this year. the new tier 3 measures measures for greater london and parts the new tier 3 measures for greater london and parts of essex and hertfordshire mean that from midnight tonight, some 3a million people in england will be living under the highest level of restrictions.

i recognise the problems it's going to cause for hospitality and other businesses, and the effect on mental health for a lot of people, as well. but i think, unfortunately, it is the right decision and i think, in the end, taking it earlier rather than waiting to do it on saturday is probably also going to prove to be the right decision. the health secretary, matt hancock, told the house of commons that in some areas of the south—east the number of cases was now doubling every seven days. we have seen early action can help prevent more damaging and longer lasting problems later. mr speaker, these restrictions will come into force at midnight on wednesday morning. because when the virus moves quickly, we must move quickly, too. and we must take the actions that are not necessarily easy, but are effective. and there is also concern about a new, possibly faster

spreading variant of the virus that has emerged. government scientists at the porton down laboratories in wiltshire are now trying to find out whether the new strain will have a different response to vaccines, although they say at this stage there is no reason to think it will. for the hospitality industry, the new restrictions in london and the south—east are another huge blow. just two weeks after reopening after a second national lockdown, pubs, bars and restaurants will be forced to close again, unless they offer takeaway service only. under tier 3, cinemas and theatres will also have to close their doors. but the government says plans to ease restrictions for five days over christmas will go ahead. jon donnison, bbc news. let's cross to westminster now. jessica vall park as their prize.

lots of discussion of the restrictions tighten again across england over what will happen at christmas. yes, the current plan is for the christmas bubble, which is going to last five days, or six if you are travelling to and from northern ireland. it means that up to three households but no more than three can get together over the christmas period. but matt hancock, the health secretary, repeatedly faced questions last night after announcing that millions more people would go into the tightest level of restrictions after announcing that a new strain of coronavirus had emerged. whether it was the right thing to do to still relax the rules over the coming week, over christmas. there have been questions raised including from the labour london mayor siddique khan who has suggested this morning he thinks there should be a rethink along the lines of doing something, as he put it, that would make it less unsafe in terms of relaxing the rules. this is not mandatory and one of my criticisms of the government is that it does not make sense to go from tier2, to tier3,

it does not make sense to go from tier 2, to tier 3, tier 3 and a potentially genuine fabry have another lockdown if the virus spreads too fast. january is the busiest time of the year for the nhs, we know this from previous years. imagine this january, nhs, we know this from previous years. imagine thisjanuary, how we would feel if the nhs was overwhelmed because of those five days of christmas and you have seen in america, the consequences of thanksgiving and the impact it had oi'i thanksgiving and the impact it had on the death rates. of course, this was a four nations agreement so the government across northern ireland, wales, scotland and england all agreed to the christmas bubble idea. auk agreed to the christmas bubble idea. a uk government source told me this morning there are no plans to review the christmas bubble for the next week and it has been an issue that has been put to the chief secretary to the treasury, stephen barclay this morning. we are not going from tier3to this morning. we are not going from tier 3 to some kind of tears are evolved and what we are saying is in a limited sense, many families who have not been together all year, who will want to see each other, that three households can come together for that christmas period. it is not that all restrictions are being

lifted. it is a recognition we don't wa nt lifted. it is a recognition we don't want to criminalise families forcing each other over the christmas period. one of the reasons the garment has looked to do the relaxation was because of concerns that people who are really desperate to see their families and might break the rules anyway, frankly, over the christmas period, say they have made this provision and allowa nce have made this provision and allowance but given what we heard yesterday, and given the plan to relax the rules next week, the government will still face charges, potentially confusing the public health message but as i say, no indication yet they are set to change their plans. many thanks, our political correspondentjessica parker reporting from westminster. joining me is steve mcnamara, general secretary of the licensed taxi drivers' association. also i'm joined by susan michie, professor of health psychology and director of the centre for behaviour change at university college london, and a member of the independent scientific advisory group for emergencies. good morning to you both. thank you for joining good morning to you both. thank you

forjoining us. news that pretty much half of england is now living with the highest level of restrictions on tier 3. can i ask you first, steve, this will have had a tremendous effect on people working in the licensed taxi driving industry. our industry has been 100% decimated, not so much by the virus but by this tory government's measures taken. it has completely and utterly wiped out the london economy, there's been virtually nobody in london since march, as you are now aware, we are now seeing boarded—up the are now aware, we are now seeing boa rded—up the economist are now aware, we are now seeing boarded—up the economist dutch —— such that many doubt it will ever but come back to anything like it was. the truth of the matter... my members have not had any money at all since march. the 20% that are at work are earning probably 20% of their income. it has been an absolute catastrophe for us. back in

march, we were adopting new electric vehicles at the rate of 50 per month. we were predicting an all electric fleet by 2024, the best cab service in the world, the most advanced cab service in the world, and the cleanest cab service in the world and all of that has now gone backwards and we are now starting to see the finance companies repossessing the vehicles... and chasing my members for the outstanding balances. it has been an absolute disaster. ok, steve, your line is not great but i think we got the gist of what you were saying. you spoke first of all about the tory government. i think most would accept that any government of any political complexion is faced with a real dilemma in this unprecedented situation. susan, how do you characterise the kind of level of risk with which we are living now when it comes to the virus? extremely high. we have got a combination of factors that the last lockdown was really very partial, in that we had universities and schools

open, we had many more people travelling into work. and so the community transmission was never brought down to a lower level again. so we came into this at quite a high level. it is now rising exponentially in many parts of the country, as we have been told. we are coming into the winter season. the virus likes cold weather so we will transmit more rapidly and it will transmit more rapidly and it will survive longer in the cold and plus we spend more time indoors which means that one of the main routes of transmission which is by aerosols, where people, even if they are breathing out, and especially if they are talking loudly or singing or shouting, will emit aerosols that stay in the air for many hours. so you can walk into a shop or a cafe and somebody has been affected hours previously, you breathe that in and you can become infected. and we now have a situation where the nhs is already under severe strain in some parts of the country. this is a

whole other dimension that is incredibly risky. can i ask you first, susan, you heard what steve has had to say about the devastating effect that these repeated movements from lockdown into tight restrictions and so on... absolutely. the terrible economic effects this is having on his members, what would you say to him? i would say to him, and to everybody, many countries around the world have avoided this, what they did was listen to the who advice, come down very hard and fast to suppress it and then develop a really good test, trace and isolate system, because one is always going to get outbreaks but if you don't have a good, test trace and isolate system, those outbreaks just escalate into what we have got now, another wave. the key thing, escalate into what we have got now, anotherwave. the key thing, in order to protect people'sjobs, to protect small businesses, to stop

this yo—yoing of more or less restrictions all the time, is to listen to the public health expert, look at what has worked in many, many countries around the world, and change the resource structure away from these commercial companies who don't have the experience and expertise, to the public, locally —based infrastructure, the local authorities, the primary care, coordinated by the nhs, with people with lots of experience and expertise. and where they have been given the resources to do the job, they have done a magnificentjob with really good results. the other syste m with really good results. the other system has failed, month after month after month and continues to fail. we have really got to turn that around now in order to protectjobs and to protect lives. ok, that is a point you have made repeatedly, actually, to be fair to you. steve, imean, you actually, to be fair to you. steve, i mean, you have said that you have had no help from government. your members have had no help from

government or in london from city hall. we put that to the treasury and they have pointed to schemes like the self—employment income support scheme, to income tax deferrals, mortgage holidays... yeah, ya. there has been attempts and there is a recognition of the great economic kit that people are taking. no, i constantly hear that from the treasury. we get written questions in the house and verbal questions in the house and verbal questions in the house and verbal questions in a house and we write to just about everybody. ultimately, what they say is, "we have tried and there is always universal credit". the reality... for our members... many people, ironically, many of those that have invested in the vehicles we were told to buy, that through various tax reasons, capital allowa nces through various tax reasons, capital allowances and the way the tax year is structured, how completely and utterly fallen through the cracks. we have repeatedly explained this. many places around the country has been getting specific aid from local authorities. in london, the mayor has sun is out to dry and all i keep on hearing from him is that we need

to lockdown more. and destroy what is left of the economy. the reality is, it is notjust us, there's many... people who are absolutely... what we need to hear now is going to help rather than hinder. sorry, you are cutting out again just as you are cutting out again just as you are making a very important point but maybe i can finish it for you, you are saying that a lot of drivers have invested in electric cars because there was a move to get the entire fleet to electric and that has hampered people's ability to claim more financial help. i am just going to end with a final question to susan which is that we are talking now about christmas and the fa ct talking now about christmas and the fact that the rules will be relaxed over christmas. but we are also being urged to be cautious. it is a very mixed and complicated message, isn't it? it is. i think it is very mixed and complicated message, isn't it? it is. ithink it is a shame we are where we are but i think what the government needs to do now is say that we are in a very different situation than when they agreed those five days and the message should be, just because you

can see people, does not mean that you have to see people. if you really care about your loved ones, keep them alive long enough for them to get vaccinated. we are only a few months away from vulnerable people getting vaccinated and we really don't want to be putting people at risk over christmas, where they may get seriously ill or even die. so just because you can, does not mean that you have to do. in addition, if you are going to see loved ones, as much as possible, do it outside where it is so much safer than indoors. and if you are indoors, rememberto open the indoors. and if you are indoors, remember to open the doors and windows, keep new air circulating so wrap up warm and just remember, you know, as you come into the house, sanitiser or soap, really think about keeping the two metre distance from people, not touching the same services. just do everything you can to keep other people safe, especially those you love. —— not touching the same surfaces. are all

clear advice, thank you forjoining us. greenwich council has until 10 o'clock this morning to withdraw its request for schools to move teaching online — orface legal action from the government. the leader of the borough council wrote to all head teachers in the area advising them to shut from this evening. the education secretary said using legal powers is a last resort, but added that "continuity of education" was a national priority. this morning the council doubled down on its position, issuing a new statement saying it made the decision based on public health information. the council said greenwich currently has seen the highest rates of coronavirus since march, with cases doubling every four days. it added cases were increasing amongst young people — with 817 children of school age testing positive for the virus. 4,262 children, and 362 staff, are also currently self—isolating in the borough,

an increase of 640 people since friday. the headlines on bbc news. review —— nnoo review of christmas restrictions as london goes into coronavirus reflections from midnight. millions of people in england face tougher restrictions from midnight — and a warning that a new strain of coronavirus could be linked to a rise in infections. a council in south london faces legal action from the government unless it withdraws an order to close all schools in the next hour. hospitality and retail sectors are the hardest hit as a record the pandemic is continuing to have a toll on the economy. more people were made redundant between august and october than at any time on record. the office for national statistics says 370,000 people lost theirjobs during that time.

our business presenter ben thompson joins us now. what do vigurs tillerson pipes no great surprise? good morning, the figures paint a picture of an economy which is struggling to keep people in work as spending habits change and businesses cannot operate in any way like normal. that 370,000 jump in any way like normal. that 370,000 jump in the number of redundancies is actually a biggerjump than the number ofjob is actually a biggerjump than the number of job losses immediately after the 2008 financial crisis so that tells you just how severe this impact is being felt in the jobs market. it also takes the total number of redundancies since all this began to 820,000. 820,000 jobs lost since february as the pandemic has taken hold. as you touched on, the biggest sectors affected our hospitality, perhaps no great surprise. you have been talking about that this morning, too, as the

capital begins its entry into tier 3 restrictions, meaning that those hospitality venues have to close. we know many other parts of the country are already facing those restrictions and are not able to open so many staff have been placed on government furlough schemes. it is worth bearing in mind also that the furloughs scheme hides to a certain extent the number of people out of work because they are still classed as being employed even though for all intents and purposes, they are not working and their salary is being funded by the government. that'll take the job loss rate in the uk to 4.9%. —— that all takes. it is slightly below what we we re all takes. it is slightly below what we were expecting, some four because had said it could hit 5.i% we were expecting, some four because had said it could hit 5.1% but the government's own watchdog suggests that the unemployment rate could hit 7.596 that the unemployment rate could hit 7.5% by the middle of next year, with 2.5 million people out of work. with figures like that, it really suggests that this is going to get much worse before it starts to get better. when do we think things

might start to improve? that is the big question. that can only begin to happen, i think it is safe to say, when we can all go about our business as usual. that means returning perhaps to the office, because remember, if we are not working in the office, there are so many bars, restaurants, cafe is in shops that rely on the passing trade. the transport network relies on us trade. the transport network relies on us commuting into the office. all of those things need to change. and also, business needs to be able to operate something like normal. we know that the mass roll—out of the vaccine could help to a certain extent. it could make it a little easierfor extent. it could make it a little easier for things extent. it could make it a little easierfor things to get extent. it could make it a little easier for things to get back to normal. but nonetheless, i have been talking to a lot of economists recently, talking about whether this could be a jobless recovery. that is to say that normally when the economy starts to pick up speed, jobs are created once again. it helps create more employment as businesses open and expand and invest but there is a real concern this time around that businesses may be looking at alternatives and

thinking maybe now is the time to invest in robotics, artificial intelligence, into automation because it is worth remembering that robots are not susceptible to things like coronavirus. it might be worth them investing their money now so that if there is a repeat of this in future they are not susceptible in the same way. what we have seen in the same way. what we have seen in the past is that when the economy picks up and jobs are created, this time around, i am told, it could feel very different. time around, i am told, it could feelvery different. on time around, i am told, it could feel very different. on that sombre note, thank you very much. business correspondence ben thompson, there. a new strain of coronavirus has been found which is growing faster in some parts of england. so far, 1,000 confirmed cases have been identified in the uk. they're predominantly in the south of england, although cases have been identified in nearly 60 different local authority areas, with numbers increasing rapidly. in the commons yesterday, the health secretary said this new strain of the virus was "highly unlikely" to be resistant to vaccines. joining me now is dr muhammed munir, a virologist from lancaster university.

good morning. how worried should we be about this new mutation of the virus? yes, well, thank you very much for having me on the show. since the government announced there isa since the government announced there is a new variant circulating in the uk, particularly in the london region, we have been looking into the data that is already available publicly, anyone can access that. 0ver publicly, anyone can access that. over the 50 sequences are available and out of those, we are looking at one mutation in the spike protein at 501 position that has been identified and that is not really the binding site. it is not to do with the way the virus latches onto the body so it could affect the transmission of the virus but literally, it has no impact on the vaccine efficacy itself because when we talk about the vaccine effectiveness, we talk about the vaccine effectiveness, we talk about the vaccine response effectiveness, we talk about the vaccine response against multiple

sites within the spike protein and evenif sites within the spike protein and even if one mutation occurs, it is not going to significantly impact the effectiveness of the vaccine. so thatis the effectiveness of the vaccine. so that is really interesting, so you are suggesting that it means that the infection can spread faster but that the vaccine should go on being just as effective as before? yes, absolutely. if we look at the original virus that was first sequenced in wuhan, and then we compare it to the virus that is currently circulating in most of the european countries and america, there are hundreds of mutations that have occurred but they have literally no or very little impact except one mutation that was at g 614 d mutation which means in the spike protein at 614 position, there has been a spelling mistake which could lead to increased transmission. similarly, anything that happens to the spike protein that happens to the spike protein that makes the structure on the top of the virus, the corona structure changes concerning because the spike

protein is not only important for the entry of the virus into the body but critical for the vaccine responses. as it stands, it is not really a major concern. however, there is something that we have to really focus on, that any mutation in the spike protein needs to be tested in an experimental setting to make sure it is not affecting transmission or vaccine efficacy. this is not the first mutation, we have seen, is it because you are absolutely, this is one of the hundreds of mutations we have noticed and out of those hundreds of mutations, there are only 108 mutations, there are only 108 mutations that are re—occurring, coming ona mutations that are re—occurring, coming on a frequent basis. that is not very —— that is very common in viruses and stars is no exception, as the virus circulates in any population, it acquires and accommodates some of the mutations and they become prominent and predominant in many of those countries. for example, if we talk about the sars to virus in the world, there are two or three strains which become usual for any

country. similarly, some viruses can become more successful in replication, therefore become predominant and spread further in the uk but those mutations might not have any impact on the vaccine efficacy. i wanted to put the views ofa efficacy. i wanted to put the views of a fellow expert to you, professor hugh pennington, a distinguished expert, who is writing in one of the papers today, suggesting the government and the health secretary specifically, by talking about this new variant of the virus, and by linking it to the further tightening of restrictions, the entry of more places into tier 3, that he is launching a new project fear, this is according to professor pennington, to justify the further tightening of restrictions. do you think that finding this new variant of the vaccine justifies a further tightening? well, if there is strong evidence that this particular strain is more successful in replication,

it is successful in causing more severity of the disease or it is spreading more, or there is a fear about vaccine efficacy, certainly we need to do something and act very decisively. but if i could have the possibility to say that, i think it is certainly an image or statement from the government to say at this stage, when there is not much information available. most of the information available. most of the information we in the scientific community have acquired has been acquired through the genetic analysis of the information since the announcement. i think it is really important to make sure that this specific mutation that occurs in the spike protein has some releva nce to in the spike protein has some relevance to the disease severity or the vaccine efficacy before those are made publicly, you know, announced. if there was really a serious concern, then of course without announcing any new mutations, the restriction has to be tightened up because what we don't wa nt tightened up because what we don't want is that a strain that can affect the vaccine efficacy can

become predominant circulating in the population. that would jeopardise the vaccine campaign and also will increase the risk of the transmission of the virus much more profoundly than what we are seeing now. really interesting. thank you for joining now. really interesting. thank you forjoining us. the netherlands has announced a five—week lockdown over christmas — the country's toughest coronavirus restrictions to date. from today, non—essential shops, cinemas and museums will close, while cafes and restaurants will be restricted to a takeaway service. protesters gathered outside the prime minister's office as he made the announcement on national television. we can now speak to our correspondent anna holligan. controversial in many ways, and clearly pretty tough. in a sense, yes. those protesters really illustrating some of the divisions in dutch society over the scale of the strength of the lockdown that is

needed at the moment. many people in the netherlands have been dreaming ofa the netherlands have been dreaming of a relatively relaxed christmas but then over the weekend, people where sharing photos of city centre is crammed with christmas shoppers and the infection rate here at the moment is almost double the government's worst case scenario. so there is a sense of inevitability about this full on lockdown, actually, compared to what has been in place here in the past. all nonessential shops are closed. museums, theatres, gyms, saunas, amusement parks, all shut down. the restau ra nt amusement parks, all shut down. the restaurant and amusement parks, all shut down. the restau ra nt a nd cafe amusement parks, all shut down. the restaurant and cafe is an cannabis cafe is will be allowed to continue serving takeaways as they are now. the hotels will stay open over the holidays, too, but they won't be allowed to serve food or drink or even room service. from tomorrow, things go even further, a step the dutch prime minister, mark rutte, had said he had been determined to avoid. schools, secondary and primary, will be closed for an extended festive break, until the

19th of january. that is the point where we will find out whether these will be extended even further. and how do these restrictions compared to what is going on elsewhere in europe? it is really interesting, actually, and it kind of reveals some of the inconsistencies between countries because part of the reason the netherlands is bringing this in now is because there was a fear that german christmas shoppers would simply cross the border to buy their christmas gifts. in germany, it is a very similar situation. all nonessential shops are closed, and schools as well from tomorrow. christmas markets, most of them were already cancelled. and then in france, they are actually easing some of the travel restrictions so families will be able to meet over christmas. but the infection rate remains high, there, so a nationwide cu rfew remains high, there, so a nationwide curfew will be in place from i think it is 8pm. and then italy is at the moment seeing the highest number of

deaths since the end of march. the prime minister giuseppe conte has warned italians to expect a more sober christmas without hugs and kisses and that kind of thing. there will also be up curfew in place from 10pm until 6am there. and the evening curfew will be in place, probably not on christmas eve but definitely new year's eve. he did have a word of positivity, though, for the children watching. he said that father christmas would be exempt from the global travel restrictions so there is a slice of good news in there. there was a collective sigh of relief in the studio. thank you forjoining us. anna holligan reporting from the netherlands. let's take a look at the rules over christmas across the uk. three households can form a "christmas bubble" from 23rd december to the 27th. they can mix indoors in private homes — which includes overnight stays. no travel restrictions are in place in the five—day period. you can't go to a pub

or restaurant with your bubble. if you have coronavirus symptoms or are self—isolating, you cannotjoin a bubble. you can meet people outside your christmas bubble outdoors, but only in line with the rules of the tier where you staying. america's top infectious disease expert, dr anthony fauci, has said he's in favour of a "cancel christmas" message to try to prevent a spike in cases during the festive season. he said the situation in the united states had been made worse by the thanksgiving holiday last month. speaking to bbc newsnight, dr fauci warned people against travelling over christmas and offered this advice for people in the uk. my advice would be something that i think is going to sadden people because everyone wants the family warmth and get togethers that are so characteristic of the christmas season. but my recommendation would be to curtail travelling as much as you possibly can. visiting people, even though it's

such an important part of the christmas spirit, keep the gatherings, the dinners, the indoor gatherings, to as few people as possible, preferably with people that are an integral part of the household and avoid the kind of congregate settings that have been so characteristic. i know that's so difficult to accept because people already, have what we call covid fatigue, they are just tired of not leading a normal life and we are telling them, in the christmas holidays, which traditionally is the time of gathering together in the warmth of a family and friends atmosphere, we are saying to the best of your possibility, do not do that. i know that's tough! but i believe that is the only way we will prevent an even greater surge than what we are seeing. now it's time for a look at the weather with carol. hello again. the weather today is much quieter than it was yesterday and also much brighter.

more of us seeing bright or sunny skies. but there still are some showers in the forecast, particularly so in the west. some of those could still be heavy and at times, we will see some showers coming in across the english channel into parts of southern and central england. but for most it will be a dry day with lighter wind, and temperatures between about 9—11 degrees. we start off with the rain moving northwards across scotland overnight. some clear skies but then the cloud builds ahead of this band of rain wrapped around an area of low pressure coming our way and with it, we will see strengthening winds, especially with exposure in the west. through the course of tomorrow, that band of rain is going to continue to move eastwards and northwards. most of us will see some rain from it. it is going to be a gusty day wherever you are but the strongest winds will be out towards the west once again, with exposure, and our temperature range, 8—11.

hello, this is bbc news. the headlines... ministers insist that plans to relax the rules at christmas will still go ahead concerns over relaxing restrictions over christmas as london and parts of the south—east enter the toughest measures of restrictions from midnight — and a warning that a new strain of coronavirus could be linked to a rise in infections. the education secretary threatens legal action after greenwich council in london told schools to move to online teaching to halt the spread of the virus a record rise in redundancies and unemployment continues to grow. 0ne—point—seven million people are now out of work across the uk. sport and for a full round up from the bbc sport centre, here'sjohn watson. good morning. we are reflecting on the impact the new restrictions

will have on sport. the world darts championship which gets under way tonight, is one sport immediately affected. it's usually one of the most raucous events on the sporting calendar with 3,000 fans going wild at alexandra palace. and whilst there will be 1,000 socially distanced spectators there later, after that, with london going into tier 3, the event will be played behind closed doors. gutted to lose the fans because they are an integral part of our sport, there is no doubt. no more so than at the world darts championship which as you know, starts today. creates a brilliant atmosphere. but these are unusual times and we have to do the bestjob we can. as usual, with us, whatever happens, we carry on. so without fans, the event continues but behind closed doors and we keep our fingers crossed that on the next review date, on the 23rd of december, perhaps we can go back to where we thought we were today. those restrictions also mean football fans in the capital won't be able to attend games from tomorrow. but chelsea manager frank lampard wants the government to rethink that move.

2000 fans were at their last two matches at stamford bridge and he believes football's proved it can keep that number of fans safe. we are making it up as we go along and that is not to sound critical, that's just the fact we've never been in this position before. when you talk about if you can control the situation, i think clubs have shown so far they can. i would like to have thought there could be something done to make it exempt so we can get the 2000 number in, but that goes above my station. i am just saying what i think. the overwhelming feeling you get from hearing friends and players talking about the former liverpool manager gerard houllier, is that he was just a lovely man. houllier, who died yesterday, at the age of 73, transformed liverpool in his six years in charge. he was one of the first foreign managers to make a real impact in english football. the club's current bossjurgen klopp said he'd never be forgotten. he's a true liverpool legend and he's a true coaching

legend, if you want. he was really influential in the game. a great coach, but a human being with a really warm... a really warm feeling when you were around him. so, yeah, for all of us, it's a big loss and a really sad day. much of houllier‘s success came from the changes he made, bringing in new players, making sure they ate healthily, restricting how much alcohol they drank, and revamping the training facilities as well. and it's no wonder that everyone has been speaking of him with such affection and admiration. i was coming through with stevie g, michael owen, jamie carragher, davey thompson — young lads who wanted that guidance and discipline and needed that. so we moved forward and progressed really quickly as a club. i believe — and i know the other players do, as well — that what he did

at liverpool at that time was definitely the foundation, the platform, for what they are going on to achieve now. england's women will begin the defence of their cricket world cup title against australia in 2022. england took the crown on home soil in 2017, with victory over india. the 50—overs competition was moved back a year, due to the covid—19 pandemic, and it will now start on march the 4th, with the same six venues in new zealand hosting the 31 matches. posing for a selfie's proved costly for england's new call up dan lawrence and brisbane heat captain chris lynn. they've been fined over £5,000 each for breaching their big bash bio—bubble after agreeing to a photograph with a fan. they had their own changing room and couldn't celebrate wickets with team mates during yesterday's match with sydney thunder. what a debut it was for a—lim kim at the us women's open golf in houston. she began the day five shots off the pace but finished with three straight birdies in a brilliant round of 67, to win by one shot for her first major victory. kim, from south korea,

went in as the world number 94 but she's rocketed up to number 30. that's all the sport for now. back to you. john, thank you. more now on our main story this hour — and the tier 3 restrictions — which are the highest level of coronavirus restrictions — that will come in to force in london most of essex and parts of hertfordshire from midnight tonight. hospitality venues such as bars, pubs and restaurants must stay closed except for delivery and takeaway. people cannot meet indoors, in private gardens or most outdoor venues, except with your household or bubble you can meet in public spaces, such as parks — in up to a group of six. tim muffett has been in central london at the holborn dining rooms discussing the impact the impact on the new restrictions for the hospitality industry in the area many parts of england have already

been under tier 3 for quite some time but the move for london and parts of essex and hertfordshire, from midnight tonight, into tier 3 is going to have a huge impact, especially on hospitality, as you say. we are at holborn dining room this morning, part of rosewood london hotel. michael is the managing director. do you think the hospitality industry is being treated fairly? we don't. you know, we really don't and so many other sectors can be open in tier 3, all of retail is now open in tier 3. we really feel that hospitality, we need a specific minister, actually, overseeing these restrictions right now. how worried are you about the impact on your business and your staff? very concerned. very, very concerned. most of our team will now go home as of tuesday evening. this is the most important week in the lead up to christmas and now to have this week cut short... this presumably needs to happen for the health of people? absolutely, we don't want to get in the way of

health and safety of the public but at the same time, i really feel that the government should be working with the sector to make sure that we can stay open in these situations. you know, i don't quite understand how other sectors can be open and we can't be in hospitality. these decisions will be open to review on a weekly basis or so. what do you make of that? that is right. i think sadly that review each week may 3 you know, for christmas now, people won't know if they can have