tonight at ten: the uk and france reach agreement to resolve the border crisis, but thousands of lorries are still stuck on roads and car parks in kent. the queues are stretching for miles — ministers say part of the solution to clear the backlog is to introduce mass covid testing for lorry drivers. this will take two or three days for things to be cleared and before that hauliers should not move themselves to kent, it will not speed things up for you. you're better off waiting where you are and waiting for further instructions. the backlog kept building all day — some drivers had spent two nights in their vehicles, many waiting to get home to their families. well, i'm very frustrated. i'm stuck here for two days. so, we don't know how much time will take to sort this problem.

we'll have the latest on the deal struck this evening, but flights from britain are still banned by more than 50 countries worldwide. also on the programme: the intense pressure on hospitals acoss the uk, as scientists say the new variant of the virus demands even tougher measures. i actually think the whole country needs to be in tier 4, because we have to get ahead of it, and we're not ahead of it right now, we're behind it. the plight of homeless young people in the pandemic, as charities call for more government support for food and shelter. and we talk to world heavyweight champion anthonyjoshua, who warns that amateur boxing clubs are struggling to survive. and coming up in sport on bbc news: the first two efl cup quarter finals are done. a shock in west london too, as championship brentford knocked out newcastle of the premier league.

good evening. an agreement has finally been reached between the uk and france to restart the flow of passengers and freight between the two countries. the armed forces will be part of an operation to test lorry drivers. the system is called a lateral flow test and delivers a covid result in around 20 minutes. it will take several days for the new system to clear the backlog, with some 3,000 lorries in kent waiting to cross the english channel. the french closed the border on sunday, amid growing concern about a new variant of coronavirus spreading to all parts of the uk. flights, ferry services and eurostar trains will resume services tomorrow morning, but these will only be available to french nationals, eu citizens and people with residency in france, if they've tested negative for covid, less than three days before travelling. 0ur transport correspondent

caroline davies has the latest. parked nose to bumper, almost 3,000 lorries stranded in kent. this is 0peration brock in action, a way of keeping kent's roads moving by diverting lorries to an empty airstrip. this is manston airfield and as you can see, there's just been a steady stream of lorries coming past me since i have been standing here. it is looking like over there, it is already filling up. some in the industry worried that as many as 6000—7000 lorries were heading to dover today. along the route in, miles from the port, lorries tucked into lay—bys or parking lots. by the side of the road, we meet hameed from turkey. he showed us his bread, yoghurt, eggs and tea that he carries with him to keep him going. with a few words of english, he told us he has come from leeds and got stuck here on his way home.

many of the drivers here now have empty lorries after dropping their food and goods off for christmas. everything was ok. .. these drivers arrived on sunday. they are trying to get home to bosnia and italy. we were hoping to go back to our homes for new year with our family, to celebrate, but now, it is not going to happen, not this year. we don't have a bathroom, we don't have anything. we are stuck here, maybe for days. by this evening, frustrations were starting to show, with a spontaneous protest outside the port's entrance. and then a breakthrough. any passengers going to france, and at the moment, i'm afraid that is mostly french citizens returning with one or two other exceptions, will lead exceptions, will need a lateral flow test ora pcr test but a test within the 72 hour period before they go to france. of course, anyone coming this way,

and again, we are not encouraging anyone to travel right now, will need to follow our rules which are self isolation for ten days or a test to release after five days. and further news on lorry drivers. from 6am tomorrow, the army and nhs staff will begin the process of testing hauliers at marston airport. they will be using the lateral flow test rather than the pcr test, which is much faster, around half an hour. if the driver test is negative, they will then be free to go to france, regardless of their nationality. tonight in dover, there was still anger and confusion. this is not good. that is horrible things. and now they say they need a pcr test, how? is it possible? you can see, the queue. we have our test because we were thinking about this when we were thinking about going to romania. we had our test already, but they didn't say anything about it. many in the industry were hoping for a deal but know this will be

a logistical challenge. if it is the way it has to be done, they will have to find a way but it will be very slow, and it will have a long—term impact on our ability to move our fresh and chilled food. this evening, the government are asking hauliers not to travel to kent. many will spend a third night here in their vehicles. and they are still not certain if they will get back for christmas. caroline davies, bbc news. 0ur transport correspondent caroline davies is in dover. we talk about clearing this backlog, you hinted there, how long do you think it is going to take realistically? well, this won't be instantaneous. there are thousands of lorries parked up across kent and many other smaller vehicles in dover tonight. the government has said it will take two to three days to clear the backlog of hauliers. the testing won't just be the backlog of hauliers. the testing won'tjust be taking place here and this due to be more information tomorrow. speaking to some of the people who are in this smaller

vehicles here in dover, they are just desperate for new news about what will happen. what will it take to get them home. they look at the queue and lose hope of being able to get back in time for christmas. this is going to be a big operation. the government have said that they think that they will be able to get people through as quickly as possible. everyone here is just through as quickly as possible. everyone here isjust hoping through as quickly as possible. everyone here is just hoping that they will be able to not have to sleep in their vehicles for too many more nights. thank you. our business editor simonjackjoins me. the impact on business and what are people tell you? this is a demonstration of how important the route is to british business and how quickly things can start to go wrong. toyota said it would shut at lunchtime, which it did, 36 hours earlier than they would have done,

because they are out of parts. the supermarkets are clear to say we have got the stock, it is there, the shelves will be filled, but tesco already had a limit of three items or things like pas a they have added loo roll and egg and soap, they say to smooth demand. another supermarket said people were shopping heavily but rationaly. if we don't see the congestion lifting soon, there is no reason to suspect it will move in the next its—hours, we will see shortages of fresh food beginning after christmas. in many ways the government had said it is a stress test of their plans for brexit, businesses keen to stress

how interdependent this shows our economies are and the message is please do a deal soon. thank you. as we said, the transport chaos has been caused in the main by widespread concern about the rapid spread of a new variant of coronavirus, which some experts say is transmitted more easily. the uk's top scientist sir patrick vallance warned that further restrictions would probably be needed in more areas. in england at present some 17 million people are under tier 4 rules — the highest level — where people are being told to stay at home and not leave the area. scotland is moving into its highest alert level 4 on boxing day and northern ireland will begin a lockdown on the same day. wales, where the nhs is under great pressure, has already entered a new national lockdown, as our health editor hugh pym reports. which way are we going? into c. 0n the nhs front line in south wales. at morriston hospital in swansea, there's been a surge in covid patients and the virus is said to be

running rampant in local communities. this footage and interviews with patients were provided by the local health board. very scared, i've never been so scared in all my life. now i'm off oxygen, feeling stronger all the time, you know. still quite emotional. it's frightening, really. people have got to realise what is going on in here. if they don't see it first—hand, won't know. they think everything is hunky—dory. it is not. some people don't take this seriously. all the uk's nations have come up with new restrictions to try to curb the spread of the virus. city streets are a lot quieter. there is speculation in england now over whether tough measures might be extended more widely. this map shows the tier system in england. the dark red area, london and the south—east, is in tier 4 with the toughest restrictions because of the spread of the variant of the virus. 0range shows those parts of england that are in tier 2, some of which are bordering that tier 4 block.

now, in terms of cases per 100,000 people, the blue line shows what's been happening in the tier 2 areas furthest away from the south—east, for example, in the north of england. and cases have gone up a bit since early december. but the red line shows what's been happening in tier 2 areas closest to the south—east and tier 4. and you can see infections have gone up a lot since early december. some communities are split down the middle between tier 2 and tier 4, and the virus with the new variant doesn't respect boundaries. there have been calls for every area to be put on the same footing. i actually think the whole country needs to be in tier 4, because we have to get ahead of it and we are not ahead of it. right now, we are behind it and hospital admissions, for instance, are shooting up in the south and they are not yet in the north and we just don't want to see it happen everywhere. there have been warnings, though, that further lockdowns might be damaging for people's well—being.

we know from the first lockdown how important it is for people to get the support that they need. and also, the implications of lockdown for people's mental health and the implications of not getting that support. as pressure on hospitals intensifies, questions have been asked about why the nightingale hospitals have not been put to greater use. this one in exeter is the only one currently taking covid patients. senior specialists say it is all a question of staffing. it's very easy to create space and to buy equipment and drugs. but what you can't do is create a highly skilled member of staff who can work in critical care at short notice. the only way... even back in april, the only way we would have staffed the critical care in the nightingale hospitals is by diluting staff in the nhs. nhs england says the nightingales are a backstop and will be used if required.

that, some might say, could be sooner rather than later. hugh pym, bbc news. the latest government figures show there were 36,804 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. the average number of new cases reported per day in the last week, is now 31,743. 1,909 people have been admitted to hospital on average each day. 691 deaths were reported, that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test. it means on average in the past week 486 deaths were announced every day. it takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 68,307. 0ur health editor hugh pym is here. can we talk about the pressure to bring restrictions to a higher level infar more bring restrictions to a higher level in far more parts of the uk is to

mark where is that debate now?m whitehall tonight, there has been an intense debate on a committee of health ministers and officials about what to do about the restrictions in england. their recommendations will go to england. their recommendations will gotoa england. their recommendations will go to a cabinet committee tomorrow morning and then there will be an announcement and there is intense speculation that tier 4, the toughest restrictions, will be moved out of it to a few other areas of southern england but also, very popular —— very probably, some areas in tier2 popular —— very probably, some areas in tier 2 elsewhere in england being moved into tier 3 which involves pubs, bars and restaurants having to close a pa rt pubs, bars and restaurants having to close apart from takeaway and delivery. there could be quite a lot that affects people in that. in scotland, the government is looking at its restrictions to take effect on boxing day, when the whole of mainland scotland moves into its highest level, level four, curtailing retail and what is allowed to open and even looking at the legal backing for getting people to stay at home if at all possible. the backdrop to all of this is the

surge in cases, a 61% increase week on week around the uk. hospital admissions are up 18% and the total number of patients with covid in uk hospitals is now nearly 19,000, not very far off the peak seen in april. the nhs is going to be busy right through christmas and beyond and i think ministers and officials will be as they work very hard to try to find the means of curtailing this virus. hugh pym, our health editor, many thanks. as we've heard, leading scientists say they have high confidence that the new variant of the virus is easier to transmit than other variants. but there are many unanswered questions about the characteristics of the new variant and how it's managed to become the dominant strain within a matter of months, as our science editor david shukman explains. it takes scientific detective work to discover the genetic clues about how the virus is changing. the uk does more of this than any other country. maybe that's why the new variant

was spotted here first. in any event, scientists say it does seem to cause infection more easily, and it is now spreading. this map, based on the latest data, shows how the new variant has been found across most of the uk, and it's got to other countries, too — confirmed in the netherlands, denmark and italy — and it's probably in germany and further afield. australia has found it as well. researchers say the new variant may become the dominant form of the virus. at the moment, the trajectory is clearly that this is increasing extremely rapidly, and we have seen this before, so we saw a variant which emerged injanuary becoming the dominant form in the earlier part of this year, and what we are seeing with this new variant is that it's actually increasing far more rapidly than that previous variant ever did. a crucial question is whether the vaccines can handle the new variant. everything so far suggests they will.

the scientists behind the pfizer—biontech vaccine say tests on other mutations have proved that. we are confident that this will be the case, since in the past we have tested more than 20 virus variants with different types of mutations, and the result was always that the vaccine induces immune response which is so bold and attacks multiple positions in this virus protein. and what does the new variant mean for when we'll get out of this crisis? well, one estimate for the most vulnerable people and health care workers in the uk is they may be immunised by the middle of next april, if everything goes according to plan. and 67% of the entire population by mid—july. that would achieve what is called herd immunity, basically when the virus can't spread much more. but because the new variant seems to infect people more easily, it could be that 80% of the population has to be vaccinated to achieve that herd

immunity, and that would take longer, maybe running into next august. another concern is whether children are more at risk from the new variant. there is no firm evidence of that so far, but scientists are watching closely. and from the labs that found the variant, a message has been relayed by the world health organization, to make sure that when every country tests for the virus, they can detect the new version. david shukman, bbc news. the european union's chief negotiator michel barnier has told eu ambassadors that fishing remains the biggest obstacle to a post—brexit deal with the uk. mr barnier said earlier the talks were at a really crucial point, adding that he was giving it the final push to reach agreement. britain's transitional agreement with eu rules runs out at the end of the year. labour has warned that

a no—deal brexit would have an "abolutely catastrophic" impact on the uk, and that the current problems around dover would bejust a taste of what could follow. 0ur europe editor katya adler is in brussels. bring us up to date on the latest signals from the talks. as you say, michel barnier, the eu's chief negotiator, said they are really in the final push to try to find a deal thatis the final push to try to find a deal that is fairfor the final push to try to find a deal that is fair for both sides. the eu says the prime minister has been in contact with ursula von der leyen, the european commission president. the leaders always said they would stay in close contact and frankly, we've got nine days to go until the end of the transition period so this would be the time to make those final political compromises to reach a deal... 0r final political compromises to reach a deal... or not. michel barnier says that all of the issues now have mainly been agreed between the two sides are almost agreed but you know, the overarching sort of motto 01’ memo

know, the overarching sort of motto or memo if you like for these negotiations has been that nothing is agreed until everything is a great and i can tell you where there is no agreement and that is our vision, the eu demand to maintain fishing rights in uk waters after brexit and the government says there are other outstanding issues as well. so if you say to me, 0k, bearing all that in mind, can there still be a deal this side orjust the other side of christmas, i would have to say to you, yes, very possibly, but absolutely not definitely. katya adler, thank you for the latest in brussels, our europe editor, there. borisjohnson has swept aside the objections of the lords appointment commission, and nominated the businessman and brexit supporter peter cruddas for a peerage. mrjohnson is the first prime minister to ignore the commission's advice on a nomination since it was set up 20 years ago. labour accused mrjohnson, who received £50,000 from mr cruddas for his campaign to become party leader, of "cronyism".

mrjohnson said mr cruddas was one of the uk's "most successful business figures". homeless charities have written to the government asking them to spend more money on trying to prevent young people from sleeping rough. the charity centrepoint say young people are facing "a winter like no other", with rising levels of homelessness among those aged 16—25. ministers say they're investing over £750 million to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping next year. 0ur social affairs correspondent michael buchanan has been speaking to two young people made homeless in recent months. covid has cost me my family home and my relationship with my family. i was just on the road. i was just walking up and down with my black bags, staying on park benches, staying in tower blocks and stuff like that. the city is a lonely place when you're homeless, time a constant enemy. joshua spent six weeks sleeping on london's streets. the pandemic cost the 20—year—old hisjob in construction.

tensions built up at home, and his mother couldn't cope. my mum called me and was, you know, she said, yeah, she can't manage no more, and she said, you know, she doesn't want me back at the house. the locks were changed and everything. i think, at the time, i was kind of scared, because i basically don't have a home any more to go to and stuff like that, you know? the little clothes and stuff i had, they actually got stolen from me while i was sleeping on a bench. there are more young people sleeping on london's streets than ever before. figures have risen by almost 50% in a year. more than one in ten of all rough sleepers are aged between 16 and 25. and the problem is not confined to the capital. in brighton, charities say they saw a 60% rise in homelessness among young people following the initial lockdown. at this soup kitchen, they have seen a new trend — children coming through. we have seen more and more young people, and even under 16, like 14

and 15—year—olds that are spending maybe one, two, three nights on the street, mixing with the older guys and drinking and taking drugs and stuff. and that's a bit of a worry, simply because they'll get picked up and led into crime. urban or rural, homelessness can hit anywhere. the pandemic cost dan hisjob, his girlfriend and his home. a lot of homeless people haven't ever done anything wrong. it's just they've fallen on hard times and can't get out of it. so, to realise that that was coming my way was scary. the 25—year—old was rescued by amber house, a residential unit for young jobless people in sussex. his parents‘ home was too small for him to return to after he lost hisjob in retail. coming here saved him from rough sleeping. there's always hope. there's always somewhere. i think a lot of young people, because of the stigma attached to being homeless, become afraid to ask for help. a lot of people might have just come across people that don't have the time for them, but there is always someone.

charities say more of this kind of specialised accommodation is urgently needed to prevent young people from being forced onto the streets. i wouldn't wish that situation on any young person my age at all, because it's really, really ha rd. if covid never came around, life wouldn't have changed so dramatically as it has now. michael buchanan, bbc news. scotland's first minister nicola sturgeon has tonight apologised after a photograph was published showing her standing up in a bar in edinburgh without a facemask. the rules are that drinkers in scotland must wear a mask unless seated. 0ur scotland correspondent james cookjoins me from glasgow. what more do we know about this? welcome this was at a wake following a funeralfor a welcome this was at a wake following a funeral for a civil servant, welcome this was at a wake following a funeralfor a civil servant, a colleague of the first minister, in edinburgh. the scottish sun published a front page which we can have a look at now and you can see

the photograph of the first minister, talking to three elderly women, apparently, at a social distance but not wearing the tartan facemask which she had been wearing when she left the crematorium. the first minister has given a statement to the paper and the scottish government has provided the same statement to the bbc this evening, saying, "this was a stupid mistake and i'm really sorry. i talk everyday about the importance of masks so i'm not going to offer any excuses. i was in the wrong". we'll there is damage nicola sturgeon politically? well, she is riding high in the polls in scotland. it could have been worse. her opponents will of course call her a hypocrite but it could have been worse, she could have been driving to test her eyesight to stirling castle and she wasn't but nonetheless, she's broken her own law and she says she is kicking herself. james cook, there, thank you for the latest from glasgow. church services will be much quieter than usual this christmas — notjust because of restrictions on movement, but also

because worshippers of all religions have been asked not to sing, to reduce the risk of spreading the virus. but a team of scientists from university college london is using lasers and high—speed cameras to try to see if wearing a face covering could make singing safer. 0ur health correspondent catherine burns takes up the story. singing. a sign of the times. the words are more than a thousand years old but with the 2020 twist... ..a facemask. but what does that have to do with this? la! religion and science, two parts of professor lawrence lovett‘s life. he says that most of the evidence on face coverings looks at coughing and sneezing. he wants to know what difference they make to singing. i think that singing in communal worship is incredibly important, it's an absolutely central part of worship. and if it's safe to do, then i will be the first person to do it.

if it's not safe to do, i'm for certain not going to do it. this is where the choir stands in this synagogue. they are still allowed, but must be socially distanced. so they've limited the amount of music during the services here. across england, government guidelines for churches, mosques and temples say that the rest of worshippers cannot join in singing or chanting. i don't think any church leader ever thought they'd be in the position of standing in front of their congregation and saying, "don'tjoin in, please don't sing". sarah hunter is a church of england lay minister and choir director and one of the volunteers taking part in this study. coronavirus is mostly spread through droplets from coughs, sneezes and people talking. so, sarah has to breathe, speak and sing... la! ..with and without a facemask. it's normally filmed in the dark with a high—speed camera and a laser to show up the droplets. hello. these pictures are slowed down 100

times less than reality. a volunteer singing a note without a mask. you can see lots of droplets swirling around. but the researchers say when someone wears a surgical—type facemask, either singing or speaking, there are almost no droplets at all and any that do get through travel more slowly and so can't spread as far. most of the volunteers so far have been christian and jewish, but the team wants other faiths to take part, too. i'm hoping that we can get as many people as possible to get involved in the trial. especially when i think there's been such an emphasis on physical health, but spiritual health has been largely ignored. the study hopes to influence government policy on worship and will also look at how volume affects droplets. so maybe worshippers will be able to sing together, but quietly. catherine burns, bbc news. the world heavyweight boxing

champion anthonyjoshua has warned that the next generation of boxing stars could be lost to the sport, if it fails to be supported financially during the pandemic. he said he was making a substantial donation to help amateur clubs, many of which were forced to close during lockdown. it follows his recent successful world title defence, which has paved the way for an all—british title fight against tyson fury in the new year. he's been speaking to our sports editor dan roan. he may be on top of the boxing world, but anthonyjoshua is now fighting for those starting out in the sport. the heavyweight champion making what he has called a substantial donation to boxing's governing bodies to help amateur clubs survive the pandemic. today, in the finchley gym where it all began for him, he told me why such places needed help. i am a professional now, but i am so close to the grassroots sport. i believe in the next 10—15 years you will see the next, you know, leaders of tomorrow coming through. it's not going to be 10—15, it is going to end up being 20—30

years due to this period of a lost generation, and that is why it is important to keep these gyms open. joshua stepped in after the government left boxing out of a £300 million rescue package for cash—strapped sports hit by the pandemic last month. we just want to raise the eyebrows of people in power to somehow think in the future, if there is ever an opportunity to invest in sports again, to try and include boxing. you know, 300 million is a substantial amount. even £3,000 to a boxing gym makes a massive difference. without grassroots, there is no tyson fury, there is no anthonyjoshua. the news was welcomed here at the sting like a bee initiative near salford, which tries to tackle anti—social behaviour through boxing, and, like many gyms, is in a deprived area. especially, like, now, because everyone is inside cos of coronavirus, lots of people are staying inside and just watching the tv and playing computer games.