this is bbc news i'm clive myrie. the headlines as the spread of covid accelerates, health leaders warn of significant pressure on the nhs. they're urging the public to strictly follow coronavirus restrictions. we're now at a really dangerous point and we are finding it difficult to get ambulances off—loaded because they have got no cubicles to put patients in and they have no cubicles to put patients into because there are no beds on the wards. borisjohnson now says he can't rule out a third lockdown in england, after christmas. but labour says the prime minister needs to change the rules on household mixing before then. he's sort of saying, well, i'm not when to change the rules. it's up to you families and communities commute take responsibility. that's not the act of a prime minister. the prime minister should say,

i will take the difficult decisions, not hand them over to individuals. and the r—number across the uk has gone up, another indication of the rapid rise in covid cases. also on the programme... headteachers say the last—minute demand for the testing of secondary schoolchildren across england, is a shambles. the chief constable of greater manchester police says he's stepping down, after his force is placed in special measures. a brief visit to the eu parliament for the uk's chief brexit negotiator, as the two sides continue to try to hammer out a trade deal. like father like son. wayne rooney announces his 11 year old has signed with manchester united. good evening.

the reproduction rate of coronavirus across the uk is going up again. the r—number now stands at1.1 to1.2, which means that every ten people will on average infect between 11 and 12 other people — increasing the spread of the virus. the government's advisory commikttee— sage says this represents the average situation over the past few weeks rather than the situation as it stands now. the news comes as health leaders warn if the pandemic isn't brought under control, hospitals could be overwhelmed. and as northern ireland joins wales in announcing a post—christmas lockdown, borisjohnson hasn't ruled out a third national lockdown in england. meanwhile, millions more people in england will move into the tier 3 band of coronavirus restrictions tomorrow, with london and the east midlands will now overtaking the north of england for the number of infections. our health correspondent katharine de costa reports. gosport in hampshire, one of the areas in the south preparing to enter tier 3 from tomorrow, joining two thirds of england living under the highest level of restrictions.

parts of the south—east, east of england and london are seeing a rapid rise in new infections and hospital admissions. health leaders are worried. they're faced with 10% fewer beds due to social distancing, staff off sick or self isolating, with some now having to cancel non—urgent operations even before we hit the peak winter months. we're now at a really dangerous point where we are finding it really difficult to get ambulances off—loaded. there are no cubicles to put patients into because there are no beds on the wards. all of that cycles back to, there's an ambulance outside in ed that can't go out to the next patient who needs it. latest official figures show cases were rising across the uk in the week to last saturday, with infections now higher in london and the east midlands than in the north of the country. there have been stark warnings that mixing over the festive period could lead to a third wave. the four nations have agreed not to ban christmas but have each issued stricter guidance

for smaller, shorter gatherings. to protect the nhs, northern ireland has announced it willjoin wales in starting a new lockdown after christmas. the whole system is 104% overcapacity and that has been consistent for the last few weeks. we've failed over the last eight weeks to make the harsh decisions and bring in the severe restrictions we needed, and as a result, the health service is being overwhelmed as we speak. the scottish government has also said tougher restrictions may be needed, and in england, the government has not ruled out another lockdown. obviously, we're hoping very much that we will be able to avoid anything like that, but the reality is that the rates of infection have increased very much in the last few weeks. here, where i am in the north—west, in bolton, they have actually done a fantasticjob in bringing it down. with around 18,000 covid patients in hospitals across the uk, there is concern we could pass the peak of the first

wave within weeks. the fear is too much mixing now could pile on the pressure in the new year, when hospitals are at their busiest. katharine de costa, bbc news. the labour leader, sir keir starmer said the government needed to show "true leadership" in tightening the measures of christmas in order to prevent the need for even tighter restrictions. nobody wants a third lockdown. it is hugely damaging on health grounds but also for the economy crowd groans is got to show some leadership. people know what's going on. they are fearful that the nhs -- they don't want a further locked on, they wa nt don't want a further locked on, they want a prime minister that has the leadership to say that these other tough decisions i need to make. what you mean by toughen up? at the moment, the prime minister is not going to toughen up the regime over christmas. most people can see that we are heading for real problems. so he's got to, you know, those restrictions, using the restrictions, using the restrictions, i think will be the next big mistake for the prime

minister, and rather than sort of saying, i'm not going to change the rules, it's up to families and communities to take responsibility, that is not the act of a prime minister. the prime minister should take the difficult decisions are not hand them over to individuals. what is the decision if you were the prime minister? the message would be, having looked at the figures in the last week, they are heading in the wrong direction, that is not where we wanted to be and i'm afraid we're going to have to change the over christmas and we are going to have to toughen up how often people can see each other and for how long they can see each other, and we would have to work with the prime minister on this because it would be better if there is one approach, but not to sit back and watch the figures go in the wrong direction and say, i'm not going to change the rules, but it is over to you to decide how you want to interpret them. what about the five days? in wales they have brought it down to two households which seems a step in the right direction and maybe we can talk about the numbers within the household but what we can't have is a prime minister who as he has

done throughout the pandemic, has been too slow to act, and it was obvious we have got a problem, and it is obvious the nhs is struggling, and we owe it to everyone in the nhs and to the health and economic future of the country, to take tough decisions. keir starmer there. our head of statistics robert cuffe is with me. let's talk abut the national picture first, robert. the r-rate, that is the clearest indication that this spread is accelerating. yes, so what the r—rate in the uk between 1.1 and 1.2 means is that infections are probably going to double between every two and a half — ten weeks, and that depends on where you live, but we've got r—rate in conjunction with hominy people habits, and together, they don't give a great picture. one in 100 people in great britain probably have the virus at

the moment. that's the estimate that comes from the office for national statistics, that's roughly around the level in the same ballpark of where we were when we went into lockdown, going into lockdowns in november. so you add that to an increasing epidemic, and overall, it doesn't paint a happy picture. more regionally now, london seems to be on the rise, and the east midlands as well. is there any particular reason why? it's hard to know exactly why. this is the first week that we have seen the north of england fall off the top of the unhappy tree of the area with a high rate of infections. broadly across the uk commute could split it into four areas, london, the east of englund, the southeast, rates are probably going up pretty quickly. in the north of england and scotland, we think r—rate might be around one. it looks like the number of people in hospital is starting to tick up in the north of england. cases may be going up, but nowhere near at the same rate as down in the south and

east of england. then across the midlands and in the southwest, cases are rising, but in general, from a lower level. so you have a slightly mixed picture for the east midlands. very briefly, is it possible to sort of work out what the situation is in northern ireland and wales, which are two areas that are going to have stricter coronavirus rules after christmas than in england. welcome in northern ireland is a really interesting example, because it tells us it's notjust about really interesting example, because it tells us it's not just about the two numbers, it's notjust about the infections, the big difference is the ability of the health system to cope. northern ireland has fewer infections, half the rate of infections, half the rate of infection of great britain, and hospitalisations aren't rising at the same rates, but winter pressures are coming in as well. colder weather, demands on hospital always goes out, and that is the big difference between northern ireland and great britain, and that's one of the reasons why they've been one of the reasons why they've been one of the first to take that very big step

of introducing the lockdown after christmas. very interesting point to make. head teachers and unions have criticised the government's plans to carry out mass covid testing in secondary schools in england. they say yesterday's announcement that most secondary pupils will study online for the first week of next term, while schools set up a testing scheme, has come too late. charlotte wright reports. it is the last week of term for pupils across the country, but as classmates wind down for christmas, teachers in england say they are scrambling to make arrangements for the government's new testing plan forjanuary. we are still making sense of this whole thing at the moment. the rhetoric is very much battle of britain but the reality, i'm afraid, feels a bit more like dad's army. we tried to make sense of this this morning and we are hoping to make progress today and to make sure first and foremost that our families understand what's going to happen. the idea is that primary schools in england will go straight back on the first day of term but in secondary schools, only years 11 and 13 will be

allowed into the classroom. the others will learn remotely, until the 11th of january, while schools set up a rapid covid testing scheme. are you expecting schools to reopen on the fourth or 5th ofjanuary? but the announcement was not made until thursday and appearing before the public accounts committee just hours earlier, the permanent secretary at the department for education was unable to give any details. it is ludicrous that we have, we are at the end of term, the final day for any school in england is tomorrow, and you are sitting here today and you can't tell us any more detail about what might happen on the 4th or 5th ofjanuary next year. i entirely accept this is very difficult for people but... it's notjust difficult, it's impossible. today, teaching unions say making these arrangements will be a huge logistical effort.

we've got 1,000 children and they all have to be tested twice in the first week. where are we going to get those staff from? and some parents agree... it was sprung on us yesterday, so it is childcare in the new year, if both of them go back or if only one of them goes back, we don't know yet. working at home worked quite well, we figured out how to do it, but i feel like year sevens they won't really have settled into the high school environment. a similar scheme has been announced for wales, where a full return to the classroom is expected by the 18th of january. the government is confident it will be a success. we are sure that 11 million lateral flow tests will be available in schools from the 11th of january next year, it is a massive logistical exercise, we are testing, as i said, 5.5 million secondary school students. this is a very good news story

and it is all about making sure we can keep schools open. but with just hours left of the autumn term, some teachers and parents tell us they are sceptical. charlotte wright, bbc news. i can talk now to dr patrick roach who is general secretary of the nasuwt — the teachers' union. hello to you. thanks very much indeed for being with us. you may have just heard the education minister there, nick have just heard the education ministerthere, nick gibb, saying that this is a good new story. well, of course, you know, it's good news that the government is finally listening, that it needs to significantly ramp up the testing system in schools. the problem is here how it the government has gone about doing that. we are extremely concerned and schools are extremely concerned and schools are extremely concerned that a last—minute announcement on the last day of term has given schools no time at all to prepare to put in the proper

logistical arrangements that would be needed to ensure that any mass testing system can be effective. what kind of things need to be put into place to make this work? well, imean, into place to make this work? well, i mean, firstly, it starts with government having made clear a workable plan. at the moment, its last—minute, it's badly designed, and it's an unworkable approach to testing in schools from january. we need more resources. we need clear guidance. we still don't have guidance. we still don't have guidance from the department for education about what a testing system and approach will look like come january. and we system and approach will look like comejanuary. and we also need additional personnel in schools to deliver that testing system from the 11th of january, and we have deliver that testing system from the 11th ofjanuary, and we have had no satisfactory answers to any of that so satisfactory answers to any of that so farfrom satisfactory answers to any of that so far from the government, and it's desperate that those answers are forthcoming. where is the money coming from for this? well, our

members are asking that exact question, where is the money coming from for this? schools are already struggling to cope with the additional cost pressures that have come from keeping schools coated secure and provide safe. —— cove insecure. the desire to deliver mass testing will cost additional money. and the government has said that some additional cash will be forthcoming, but we still don't know how much that will be and it doesn't look as if that's going to be anywhere near adequate to meet the demands of a mass testing regime. so government need a coherent national plan. they need to back up with resources and they need to put in place the infrastructure that's needed, that's necessary with the personnel that are necessary, to deliver a credible and effective testing system in schools for next year. is that your charge that throughout this pandemic, hospitals have been taken care of in terms of

trying to ramp up capacity to deal with the problems that ensue from this coronavirus? business, the furlough scheme, various loan schemes and so on and so forth to try to keep the economy going. is there a sense that in the middle of all of this, schools have been an afterthought, and that not enough attention has been paid to the issues that were bound to develop as a result of this crisis. well, we have certainly seen a catalogue of chaotic, in some respects, shambolic handling of the pandemic as far as schools are concerned. but you know, i'm not going to be making an argument that somehow, the nhs doesn't need to have that support and those resources, which absolutely come of the country does rely on, but schools need that support and they need the resources as well. we cannot simply continue on the basis of expecting schools to

step up to the challenge when government isn't coming in with the additional resources that schools so desperately need in order to keep pupils and indeed the workforce safe and secure. you cannot deliver cope and secure. you cannot deliver cope and safety on the cheap. if schools deliver health and safety, then they need the resources, they need the support and they need the guidance to be able to do that effectively. 0k, to be able to do that effectively. ok, we will end it there. doctor patrick, general secretary, thank you so much forjoining a. thank you. we just wejust got from we just got from public health england the latest covert figures. they say that the uk has recorded 489 new deaths in the latest 24 hour period. that is down from 532 on thursday. the uk has recorded 28,507 new coronavirus cases that, again,

is down on yesterday's total of 35,383. so come if's recorded 489 overall new deaths in the last 24 hour period, and there are no 28,507 new coronavirus cases recorded in the latest when he for our period. —— 21; the latest when he for our period. —— 24 hour period. greater manchester's chief constable is to step down with immediate effect after the force was put in special measures yesterday. our correspondent mark edwardson is following this story from salford. tell us more about what's happened today. clive, the news of ian hopkins resignation broke about an hour and hopkins resignation broke about an hourand a hopkins resignation broke about an hour and a half ago, and as you rightly say, it follows greater manchester police being placed into special measures yesterday. that was over its failure to record more than 80,000 crimes in the space ofjust one year. it's only the second force in the country ever to face special measures, the first one was cleveland, and it does mean that gmp will face much closer scrutiny from

the home office, the college of policing and the national police chief's council. what has mr hopkins been saying himself?” chief's council. what has mr hopkins been saying himself? i will redo a statement from him, if you don't mind, clive. he said today, "these are challenging times for greater manchester police. the force has a long—term strategic plan to address theissues long—term strategic plan to address the issues raised by the inspectors. " and he said, "i believe this plan should be executed by a chief constitutional —— constable who can oversee it from start to finish." he goes on to say, "considering what's best for gmp and the communities we serve, and given my current ill health, i have decided to stand down from the post of chief constable with immediate effect. " from the post of chief constable with immediate effect." but the background is that the suggestion that this force simply has not been recording crimes reported. absolutely. a 80,000 of them in the space of one year, that was from a report by the majesty —— her majesty inspector at. it said it was deeply troubled last week by how the cases

we re troubled last week by how the cases were being handled by gmp. without proper come as a put it, investigation. the watchdog was particularly skating over the force's failure to close investigations without telling the families of the victims involved. it also said the service from ingrid's second—largest police force to victims of crime was a serious cause of concern. —— england. now, the premise or has been in greater manchester today, but we don't believe for the moment that boris johnson had anything directly to do with ian hopkins's resignation. but mrjohnson has set in the past that the people involved in greater manchester's record, which put it into special measures should consider their future. mark, thanks for that. appreciated. a secure centre for children accused of crimes has been holding them in near solitary confinement — despite having been previously told to stop. three watchdogs have used their legal powers for the first time to order the ministry ofjustice to take urgent action against the rainsbrook secure training centre. boys and girls have been locked

in their rooms for almost 24 hours a day as a quarantine measure. amanda spielman is ofsted's chief inspector. hi there. thanks very much indeed for joining hi there. thanks very much indeed forjoining us. hi there. thanks very much indeed for joining us. on hi there. thanks very much indeed forjoining us. on the face of it, this seems appalling. that is absolutely what it is. these are children, they look after children between the ages of 12—17. we found children as young as 15 who were spending day after day locked in their rooms for 23 and half hours a day when they should get at least four and half hours out of their rooms. is it usualfor four and half hours out of their rooms. is it usual for institutions to ignore official requests to stop doing something that shouldn't be done? no, it's most unusual. we wrote jointly to the minister back in early november and had a prompt reply assuring us that urgent action would be taken. this hasn't happened. we went back to visit the centre again and found that children

we re centre again and found that children were still getting this absence of care, so we invoke the urgent notification procedure, we bring to the minister, he must reply to us within 28 days, and the onus is now on him to take urgent action. given that there is an epidemic, a pandemic of coronavirus, measures do need to be taken in some form, don't they but certainly not the. that's correct. phe guidance does require that new children arriving have a period of self isolation, but that shouldn't mean being locked in their cells all day or virtually all day, and it's another secure training centre which is managing to operate despite covert restrictions. do you think children should be continued to send to this unit while this controversy is taking place? well, it's clearly extremely important. this shouldn't be a very difficult thing to fix, the centre has

leaders, their youth custody service monitors on site, this should be something that is very straightforward to sort out promptly. as i've said, it's something that they've known about, it's something that simply doesn't seem to have had the attention it needs. briefly, do you think children should still be sent to the centre bearing in mind that the people who are running it are ignoring your requests? no child should be sent somewhere to be locked up for 23 and half hours a day. very briefly, let's talk about the suggestion that, rather the fact that schools have to get in place a testing regime for coronavirus in the new year. late notice, the unions say, what are your thoughts on all of that? well, i've said consistently that it's better for children to be in school than learning remotely. so it's clearly not ideal to have so many out of school for the first week of term. if this testing regime reduces the

number of children who have to be kept out of school down the line, then perhaps it will be valuable enough, the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks, but the timing of the announcement is incredibly difficult for schools. i know the department for schools. i know the department for education won't have wanted to make the announcement on the last day of term and were probably working day and night, but it's put a huge burden on schoolsjust working day and night, but it's put a huge burden on schools just as they break up for christmas. i can absolutely understand the frustration. we will leave it there. thanks forjoining us. thank you. thanks forjoining us. thank you. thank you. the eu's chief brexit negotiator, michel barnier, has told the european parliament that talks about a trade deal with the uk have reached a "moment of truth". borisjohnson has said today that the talks are "looking difficult" — and has called on the eu to "come to the table with something themselves". our political correspondent nick eardley is in westminster. is all about fish again? yeah, it's one of those issues that is symbolic

for both sides. so, where we are at the moment as they are talking about how many european boats can fish in uk waters after the ist ofjanuary, but also how long it takes before new rules come into place. so, understandably, that usa and they wa nt understandably, that usa and they want to wait as long as possible to bring in the new measures, and it wants as many european boats to come into uk waters and fish as possible. the brits are saying, no, we want this to be phased in pretty quickly, and we want a lower number of european boats and. so those talks are continuing, interestingly, michel barnier, the eu chief negotiator is also speaking to some of the coastal states this afternoon about exactly what they want from this process, which might be a hint that they are trying to work out some sort of compromise, but it's not there yet, and there is still that outstanding issue of competition rules is welcome and side wants to allow the other two

have a competitive advantage, for example, with state subsidies, the government giving money to companies help them with competition. so, where are we? well, it's really hard to tell at this stage. it looks like there is only a few things that are left to be sorted out, but they are important things. they are difficult things. that's why they've not been sorted out yet. so when michel barnier says there are only a matter of hours to solve this, he's maybe being slightly less flexible than he would be if it came to its, but we are getting close to the pension and there are still big things to solve. so, we are talking about these discussions potentially going up to christmas and then after christmas. the deadline, supposedly, being the 3ist the deadline, supposedly, being the 31st of december. if you are a brexit watcher, that may be something that refers over the next few weeks. one is that the uk parliament will need to be re called uk parliament will need to be recalled if there's any deal.

remember, the mp5 have all gone on their christmas holidays already, so bring ina their christmas holidays already, so bring in a process which gives them a couple of days to get back to london to debate any trade deal if it happens. the other is the european parliament wants to look at this. now, the european parliament's main group said that they wanted a deal ratified by the uk and the european union by sunday so that they could have a proper look at it and decide whether they were going to vote for it are not. remember, they do have a really important vote on this, and in theory, they could say no to the trade deal. i think in practice, if it goes after sunday, if it goes on after sunday, they will probably still find a way to pass it if ideal is ratified. likewise, i think that there is a bit ofan likewise, i think that there is a bit of an urgency with some european states to try to get this done as soon as possible so that they can properly scrutinise the deal before it is signed off. i've given up completely, clive, putting proper

guidelines on when these talks could go on until. both sides said they aren't good to walk away, so ultimately come of the date that both chief negotiators will have circled in red pen on their calendars as the 315t of december because that's when whatever happens, things are going to change. you are the only one who's given up trying to predict this one. nick, thanks for that. from a leaping lamb to battling pigeons. two of the winning entries to this year's rspca young photographer competition. now in its 30th year, thousands of amateur young photographers have entered pictures of animals, from the furry to the furious. jack surfleet takes a look at some of the winning entries. from a mobile phone snap of a guilty —looking dog taking a forbidden nap on a sofa taking fish are taking a break from fishing by a river in hampshire. the rspca young photographer awards is in its 30th year and the limits imposed on photographers during a pandemic, a new category

was introduced this year. small world meant aspiring entrants did not have to venture far from their homes to capture images like this busy bee. the overall winning picture was taken by 17—year—old jake kneale who, by using a camera trap setup, cut this image of a roe deer buck passing through a gate. when an animal walk—through, hopefully facing towards the camera, notjust getting its backside, it all fired off and you get the picture, hopefully. jake's entry was just one of 11,000 images in this year's competition, including molly tolsson's picture of her pat lam lodging including molly tolsson's picture of her pet lamb launching himself from a hay bale. the competition aims to encourage an interest in photography and an appreciation of the natural world. thomas scott one four his

pigeons, the dispute. pigeons are an underrated bird and i think this... if we can get a unique perspective of these come in and offer look species, than that can speak far more volumes to species, than that can speak far more volumes to us species, than that can speak far more volumes to us than actually you are traditional shots of a lion out in the savannah, so i do like the atmosphere in the mood that it conveys. the panel ofjudges were particularly impressed on those that focus on the animals around us daily, lifting the ordinary to the extraordinary. now it's time for a look at the weather with darren bett. it's mild and windy and also very wet in some areas, the main focus of the heavy rain remains over south wales and south—west england and we have this amber rain warning from the met office. travel disruption is likely. other western areas seeing rain continuing through the evening and gradually the rain band pushes east and then we have clearer spells and showers following from the west. windy overnight, and as a result it will be mild, 8—10c.

tomorrow morning we have rain to clear away by mid—morning from most eastern areas, and then we have sunny spells and bands of showers being blown inland by strong winds and more frequent showers over more western parts of the uk. not as mild as today but not bad temperatures, around 9—12c. it will be a cooler start on sunday, and again we have sunshine and showers, most of those in the west and wetter and windier weather in scotland. elsewhere, more in the way of sunshine. a cooler day on sunday but the winds won't be as strong. hello, this is bbc news with clive myrie. the headlines... as the spread of covid accelerates, there's growing pressure on the government, with health leaders urging people to strictly follow coronavirus rules. we're talking about rapidly increasing numbers of cases,

but also hospital admissions, particularly in london, the southeast and the east of england, and that is a real, real concern. borisjohnson now says he can't rule out a third lockdown in england after christmas, but labour says the prime minister now needs to change the rules on household mixing before then. he's sort of saying "i'm not going to change the rules, it's over to you, families and communities. "you take responsibility. " that's not the act of the prime minister. the prime minister should say, "i'll take the difficult decisions," not hand them over to individuals. headteachers say the last—minute demand for testing head teachers say the last—minute demand for testing of secondary schoolchildren across england is a shambles. the chief constable of greater manchester police, ian hopkins, is standing down with immediate effect. the force is now in special measures after failing to record a fifth of all reported crime. a brief visit to the eu parliament for the uk's chief brexit negotiator, as the two sides continue to try and agree a post—brexit trade deal.

sport and for a full roundup from the bbc sport centre, here's gavin. uk sport will spread its budget across more sports and notjust those where medals can be won. plans have been outlined in the last hour to reduce the funding of some of the more successful sports like rowing and modern pentathlon in favour of trying to get more people involved in others — basketball, climbing, fencing, skateboarding, surfing, table tennis and weightlifting are the big winners. there is a chance that some of the metals will be affected, but we still believe the efficiency will be able to deliver great results because the system is still about winning and great success. but how that success is delivered is important. but the belief there is longer term, we're not talking massively long—term, reasonably short to long term. i think we'll have every sport doing it better.

actually, the commitment from all of us actually, the commitment from all of us behind these decisions is actually do increased success across the board and an increased positive environment from every member of staff. it will be a positive experience for them. they were supposed to be under way right now, but scarlets against toulon in the champions cup was called off earlier this afternoon, less than two hours before kick off. the french side pulled out over concerns around a scarlets player testing positive for coronavirus in the game against bath last weekend. scarlets withdrew the player and his close contacts from training before naming the side ahead of this fixture, which satisfied european rugby organisers. but toulon still chose to not to play. both teams won their opening matches last week. england's 2014 world cup winning captain, katy daley—mclean, has retired from international rugby. the 34—year—old played in four world cups, leading the team to victory in paris six years ago. she also won nine 6—nations titles. mclean will continue in her player/coach role at sale sharks. she said the decision will let her spend more

time with her family, including her 16—month—old daughter. chemical giant ineos is expanding its sporting portfolio and becoming a one—third shareholder in the mercedes formula 1 team. they already have a cycling team, a sailing team and interests in football. it comes as toto wolff, the mercedes team principle, remains in charge of the team for a further three years. he's signed a new deal with the world champions to increasee his holding in the team to a third as well. the move reduces daimler‘s shareholding from 60% to create three equal partners. and is lewis hamilton also about to sign a new contract? well, mercedes tweeted hinting as much, with hamilton saying he plans and wants to be at the team next year. the football association are not taking action over crowd related incidents at millwall and colchester this month, where some supporters had booed players taking a knee before matches to highlight racial inequality and fight discrimination. the fa say they'll continue to monitor and investigate if any more incidents occur. it comes after footballers said they overwhelmingly

support the gesture, in a survey by the players' union, and stated they wanted to continue with "this act of solidarity". it follows recent protests by fans at millwall, colchester and cambridge united in the last fortnight. newcastle head coach steve bruce fears two of his players are suffering from long—term covid—19. he's revealed the pair will remain out of action for a while, following the recent outbreak at the club. it forced newcastle to shut their training ground for more than a week while their game at aston villa was postponed earlier this month. certainly a couple of the players in particular, its had a damaging effect. it will be a week or two, it will be longer than that. so, will just have to accept it. it's the well—being of the players, too. we're not just well—being of the players, too. we're notjust talking about injury.

we'll have more for you in sportsday at half past six. as the uncertainty over whether a post—brexit deal will be struck with the eu, business groups say many firms are anxiously stockpiling. stena lines says its ferry route between dublin and holyhead has had its busiest three weeks on record. brian meechan reports. keeping spirits up during a tough year. this distillery turned to making hand sanitiser during the pandemic instead of making whiskey. now it's back to the dayjob. these barrels would have stored whiskey in the past, but now they're part of the visitors display here at the distillery. the company has had to stockpile, preparing for brexit, even though it's not been entirely clear what exit will mean for it. clear what brexit will mean for it. so, this is our spirits safe, which catches any spirits that we make off the stills. its chief executive, steven davis, says that's about stocking up on goods from the eu, as well as selling more to it

before january the 1st. we import very high quality glass bottles that we use for presenting our product. they come from france. and there's always a very careful planning task to make sure the glass arrives on time, and that's made a lot more difficult now because of the uncertainty of, will there be tariffs? will there be additional import taxes? what will happen? so, that's part of the challenge. there were tailbacks of trucks on the roads around holyhead yesterday, a combination of the weather, staff's absence due to covid and exceptional demand. there's been congestion ports across the uk in recent weeks, there's been congestion at ports across the uk in recent weeks, problems many feel will be worse if the uk and eu don't reach a trade deal before january. in terms of the business mood, it is anxious because we've had a lot of uncertainty. and let's not forget this comes on the fact there is very little bandwidth left in so many businesses because they have been trading through a global pandemic,

and now have to try and work out what to do with the change of trading environment with the eu. so, for any business that feels that they're not going to be affected, i would say do not stick your head in the sand. john raymond tra nsport‘s 120 vehicles have never been busier. the bridge end based holier says warehouses are also packed. it's extremely busy at the moment. work rates have increased exponentially on what they would ordinarily be at this time of year, further exacerbated by covid and staff pressures. we're managing to deal with things in the most pragmatic way possible. holyhead port will soon be a main gateway into and out of the eu. talks continue between the uk government and the european commission about whether that will be under a new trade deal or not. without an agreement, there are concerns holiers may bypass holyhead completely, using ports within the eu instead. let's take a look at the situation

on the m20 a little earlier, in the run—up to the channel tunnel freight junction near folkestone. these are the pictures of lorries queuing from around half a mile back. rod mckenzie is managing director of policy & public affairs at the road haulage association. thanks forjoining us. real headaches, clearly, for your members. there's no question about that. in the to january the 1st and with no deal so far, as far as future trade is concerned, it seems your members are trying to cut the number of possible journeys there might be injanuary by stocking up now or actually trying to take more goods over there. hello. clearly, faced with a crisis and this is a

crisis, what they do is the best possible contingency they can. so what we are seeing at the moment is a lot of businesses like supermarkets stocking up on things that are not perishable, that they can that are not perishable, that they ca n store that are not perishable, that they can store for a long time, and part of the reason for that is to avoid paying tariffs on those products if there is a no deal. but deal or no deal, no one should be in any doubt that there is a huge amount of red tape paperwork that needs to be cut through, and if you make one mistake, theoretically, you could be stopped at the border and held up. clearly, if you are in a queue, that will make it even more broad immaculate —— more problematic. in kent, ifear it immaculate —— more problematic. in kent, i fear it is the shape of things to come. given what businesses are trying to do to sort of preempt any problems there might

be in january, of preempt any problems there might be injanuary, do you think with all this work that's going on now, january might actually be quite quiet if there is no deal? january is traditionally quite quiet. it sort of picks up in mid—january, and that's because most of the things that's because most of the things that we need and want have already been delivered for christmas. so, i don't think we'll necessarily see massive queues on the 1st of january, i might be wrong. certainly by the middle, the problems that there are, and are big problems in there are, and are big problems in the it systems in the number of customs agents available who can process all this red tape, and the borderfacilities, which is all about having the customs in place. places if you can park lori's, because they haven't got the right paperwork. —— park lorries. and then

that laurie is going to be held. do you think there could be of move towards other avenues trying to get across the channel? perhaps other ports are going to become choked and clogged. think about the straight over calais. it's the shortest one across and it's very quick. in a supply chain world where we depend onjust in time, very rapid deliveries, that is a very attractive proposition. the other ports, you basically have to spend much longer travelling on a boat, and that's going to be a problem. also, they simply don't have the capacity that dover has to process 10,000 lorries a day. none of the other ports can get anywhere close to that. we're seeing the pressure on ports now that containers, stacked up in places like

felixstowe, and the normal flow of ships from the far east is quite disruptive. we've also talked about the irish question, which is a massive problem with the tss system. it's really not fit for purpose at the moment. many thanks for that. rod mckenzie. an appeal for 200 volunteers to take part in a drugs trial for an advanced form of multiple sclerosis has been launched by the national hospital for neurology. 130,000 people live with ms in the uk and researchers hope the use of an existing statin drug may help slow disability. the bbc‘s caroline wyatt, who has ms and is taking part in the trial, looks at how research is progressing despite setbacks from coronavirus. it's a disease that affects the brain and the central nervous system, the hunt is on for drugs that can help once the damages done in more advanced ms.

that was another explosion... gunfire. as defence correspondent for the bbc, i reported on many wars. but the most frightening thing wasn't bullets or bombs, but the invisible damage being done by ms, a slow insidious shredding of my nerves. i first came to this hospital almost 20 years ago when they told me that i might have ms, but it wasn't finally diagnosed until 2015. and now i'm in the more advanced stages of the disease, i'm coming back to this hospital to take part in a trial to see whether an old drug can be used for a new purpose in ms. the ms step two trial is testing a high dose simvastatin, an old drug that lowers cholesterol. an earlier stage of the trial showed it may help slow the rate the brain shrinks, and in doing so, perhaps slow the progression of disability. it's not as full as the baseline, but it's quite full, isn't it? professorjeremy chatway is leading the trial

and already has 800 volunteers, but they're looking for more. there is an urgent need to develop medications that can have an effect on progression, and here we have with simvastatin, actually, the simplest of possibilities. we know it very well, it's been used in millions of people around the world, it has a very good safety profile, and so we feel that it could have a role in progressive multiple sclerosis, but we have to prove it. patrick burke is also taking part in the trial. turnaround... he's a former computer analyst forced into medical retirement, as his ms got worse. it's taken everything away for me. i mean, i can't drive, i can't run. i fall over, i fell over this morning just taking the plug out of a socket. i go up the stairs so slowly, it's like walking in golden syrup. other trials have been delayed by coronavirus, it's also led to many fundraising events being cancelled with an impact on the charity's funding future research. we expect to lose about £10 million.

this year, it's about 30% of our income, 5 million next year. this is a huge loss to us, and with the disruption we've seen, this will no doubt slow the development of new treatments that are desperately needed for people with ms. those with ms hope that by the end of this trial in three years time, of this trial in three years' time, if simvastatin has proved to work, we mightjust be one step closer to stopping at least some of the damage done by the disease. caroline wyatt, bbc news. half of people will form a bubble with friends or relatives from other households at christmas, despite government appeals for people to show caution in the face of a spikein infections. in the face of a spike in infections. that's according to a survey for the office for national statistics today. the laws in england, scotland and northern ireland allow up to three households to gather next week with slightly tighter rules in wales. our home editor mark easton has been talking to a cross—section of people to see what they make of the plans. tis the season to be jolly careful,

says the prime minister, so how will britain celebrate christmas in this strangest of years? i've watched people's reaction to the decision to relax the regulations on festive get—togethers just as the pandemic threatens to overwhelm parts of the nhs. with the help of analyst britain thinks, we've assembled a focus group of people from across the uk. well, season's greetings to you all. i'm interested to know how your christmas plans have changed, and specifically, how many people will you be sitting down with at christmas dinner? there will be seven. there'll be six of us. six. five. four of us. by myself, so one. i work in the nhs, so i don't really want to put anybody at risk. so, for that pure reason, i've decided that i want to spend christmas alone. that's very noble, i have to say. this year, there'lljust be the two of us, and there's no point in getting the turkey for two,

so we'll probablyjust have chicken. we're actually planning to have our christmas dinner outside. i'm hoping that it doesn't rain. in the garden? yes, so our plan is to have two little tables outside, distanced, and have lots of blankets and may a little fire. and maybe a little fire. what do you all think about the government's plans to relax the restrictions so that families and friends can come together, albeit with this morning to be especially careful? warning to be especially careful? i don't think it's a good thing. warning to be especially careful? i think we will pay the price for it come january. natalie, you're nodding, i can see. i think they should have just left it in lockdown through the whole christmas period and then start 2021 a fresh year. if there had been a lockdown christmas, people would have just said, "no, to hell with it, it's christmas." at least this way, there's guidance. the vast majority of people will be responsible and mature about it, but you'll get that minority who think, "well, i can so i'm going to."

and if there were no rules in place, it'd be anarchy. this just seems like another massive super spreader event that's been endorsed by the government. they don't want to be the people who cancel christmas. i think it's a big mistake. part of me's really looking forward to christmas because i'm a big kid and i love christmas. i'm buzzing for it, honestly. the one thing that has been getting me through this entire year is christmas is coming. well, thank you to all of you for your time and your opinions. however you celebrate, i wish you a peaceful, a merry and of course, a safe christmas. in a moment, sophie raworth will be here with the bbc news at six with much more on the rising coronavirus cases in the uk. but first, a little earlier, i spoke to dr daniele bryden, vice dean of the faculty of intensive care medicine. she explained some of the pressure her colleagues have been facing following a steady rise in the number of people being hospitalised with covid. well, we have data on our intensive care beds and the sort of patients

that are occupying those beds, and we have seen an increase in the number of admissions directly related to covid. we're at a position where we're also trying to keep going with other nhs activity, catch up with the backlog from the summer, so there is a pressure on intensive care beds up and down the country. are you going to be able to cope? well, we always have pressure in the winter anyway but at the moment, this is considerable pressure, more than we would normally see at this time of year. as has already been mentioned, we've got the additional complexity of separating patients that are coming to hospital with covid from those that don't have covid, and that does impact on how you lose your beds and how you can throw patients through you use your beds and how you can throw patients through various parts of the hospital. and do you see things getting worse because of the relaxation of rules for a few days over christmas? i mean, everybody understands that people want to see their families

and loved ones over christmas and that a lot of people have felt isolation this year. it's been a real issue for them. but we would like people to be very vigilant about the fact that covid hasn't gone away and that we do have an ongoing duty to stop the spread of covid. we need to make sure that we protect people who are vulnerable, and we need to make sure that we follow the rules and we try as much as we can to keep the transmission of covid down. but is it a mistake to relax the rules in your opinion, from what you've seen? where we're at the moment is we are looking after the patients that come to us, whether they have covid or non—covid needs, and we just want to make sure that we can accommodate anybody who comes to critical care over the next few weeks. so, everybody has a small part to play in making sure that we can treat anybody who needs intensive care. is it looking to you as if we are going to be entering, potentially, after christmas,

a third lockdown in england? we're looking at our beds and our usage of beds and we're trying to support each other, various units are trying to support each other where they're geographically close to each other, to make sure that we maximise the bed usage. but really, those kinds of decisions are not directly health care decisions. we're focusing on making sure that people have the care that they need. so, yes, you're boxing and coxing, as it were. you're using beds in different areas to help different areas. but from the evidence you've seen from the rising infection rates, from the rising r number as well, is a third lockdown sensible? we have, all of us, the ability to impact the spread of covid, and we do that in our own small way by making sure that we obey the rules

and that we keep the transmission of covid down. that's the most effective way of making sure that intensive care beds are available for people who need them. the nightingale hospitals could be up and running as well. that would alleviate a lot of pressure. we are looking at intensive care beds, we are looking at the beds within nhs hospitals and we have surge capacity built in that. we did a lot of work in making sure hospitals support each other in terms of resource, whether that be the equipment or moving patients between hospitals if ca re moving patients between hospitals if care was appropriate. so, that's the way we are planning to use the resource over the next few weeks up you mentioned staff there. the other problem with the nightingale hospitals apart from getting them up and running as soon as possible is that you need staff to help run them. if they're rushed off their

feetin them. if they're rushed off their feet in established hospitals, that's going to be difficult. we don't have any more staff, that's true. we haven't had any more staff over the course of the year since the first wave, really. but what we are doing very much is making sure that staff keep healthy, both mentally and physically, and making sure we have good staff testing in place so that people are able to come back to work if they have any symptoms of covid and turn out not to be covid. so, we're doing our very best to make sure we keep our staff at work and where they want to be. we ended the week with some very mild and wet weather. a lot of rain across parts of wales in the southwest of england. that is moving away slowly eastwards out into the north sea, showers coming in behind around that area of low pressure. rain across eastern england moves through, but it will be long before

these bands of showers accomplishing in. some sunshine in between. blowing in on some quite strong and gusty winds, still a mild day on saturday. not as mild a saturday, but temperatures around 9—12 c. those showers do continue into the evening, particularly out towards the west, but it's not completely dry, even across eastern parts of the uk. the air is getting a bit colder as the weekend goes on. those showers continued to get blown in and around that area of low pressure with the stronger winds. further south, the showers should be further between. more sunshine and gradually, the winds will ease as well. but it will be a bit colder on sunday, still not cold for the time of year, temperatures around 8—10 c. the size of a bit of rain approaching in the far southwest —— the signs. some wet and windy

weather in from the southwest into many parts of the country over night into monday morning. it's a little bit quicker now, so it should move fairly quickly, but it will be england. we could see some wintry showers coming in across parts of scotla nd showers coming in across parts of scotland for a while. it's colder in scotland, northern ireland, the far north of england. double figures further south, 13 in southern england. still got the hang back of cloud here on this weather front, producing rain and drizzle. the next area of low pressure thinking about coming in on tuesday. for northern parts of the uk, a few showers but dry with some sunshine. cloud will be increasing further south, they getting up and we will start to see rain and drizzle coming in —— sickening up. quite chilling again and scotland, northern ireland. that area of low pressure does arrive during tuesday night and into

wednesday. the winds are going to strengthen and really pick up in many areas. as we move into that cold aira many areas. as we move into that cold air a chance of sleet and snow. for many, it's wet, windy and probably going to feel quite cold as well, 6—7 to the midlands. let's head closer to christmas. the area of low pressure moves away in for christmas eve, and we get a northerly wind coming down. it could bring one or two showers. it may be cold enough for the audit wintry flurry as well, but generally for christmas day, if you are hoping for a white christmas, probably dry in most parts. but it will be feeling colder. the winds should attend eased down and beyond christmas day, the win to change. bring in less cold air, but the weather will turn more unsettled from boxing day

onwards with some wet and windy weather lightly to sweep down from the northwest. goodbye.

tonight at six. the prime minister says he hopes to avoid a third national lockdown in england — but doesn't rule it out. the virus is spreading faster again across the united kingdom, with the crucial r number now back above 1. hospitals are very active at the moment, a lot of them are operating at capacity, as we've said, and to add a third spike on to that, a post—christmas surge i think potentially is extremely serious. also on tonight's programme. mass testing for more than five million school pupils in england at the start of next term is undeliverable say head teachers and unions. a cyclist and runner — how so—called long covid has proved debilitating for this 38—year—old. now there are calls for more research into