tonight at ten, more evidence of the growing pressures on the nhs due to the rising numbers of coronavirus infections. the london ambulance service says boxing day was one of the busiest ever days in its history, with covid—19 adding to the strain across the uk. talking to trust leaders overnight. they are under no illusion about how challenging this is. in scotland, doctors say health services could be overwhelmed, if there's a surge in cases, because of christmas. also tonight. the roll—out of the pfizer biontech vaccine begins for millions of people across the eu. borisjohnson promises big changes for the uk following his brexit trade agreement.

and storm bella blows in with 100 mile an hour winds, adding to flooding chaos. good evening. there's more evidence tonight of the intense pressure on the nhs as covid—19 infections continue to rise right across the uk. the london ambulance service says boxing day was one of the busiest ever days in its history, with many calls due to the usual winter pressures but compounded by the coronavirus. and in scotland, doctors say health services could be overwhelmed if the relaxation of covid restrictions for christmas triggers a surge in cases. the warnings come as the latest government figures show the number of new infections is increasing. there were 30,501 new cases recorded

in the latest 24—hour period. but the true number is likely to be higher, as some parts of the uk haven't reported their numbers. 316 deaths were recorded, of people who'd died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test, taking the total across the uk to 70,752. with more on the strain on the nhs, here's our correspondent, sangita myska. hospitals and other front line services are under mounting pressure tonight in some parts of the uk. that's the warning from the nhs. the bbc has learned that student paramedics and two other ambulance services outside the capital have been called in to assist after a sharp rise in calls. the london ambulance service says that yesterday, boxing day, was one of its busiest ever, with calls up by more than 50% compared to last year. i never want to say that the nhs is going to be overwhelmed

because we see the nhs being endlessly innovative and ingenious in how it can actually manage to spread incredibly thin resource, but i think it's worth remembering that things are incredibly challenging. meanwhile the welsh government has described the nhs their as stretched to the limit and working to full capacity. annual illnesses, staff shortages and the rapid spread of the new coronavirus variant yesterday led cardiff and vale university health board to tweet this stark appeal. the art of proning patients, and that is about moving patients when they are in intensive care from their backs on to their stomachs and vice versa, and this process is quite heavy lifting, it involves five to seven individuals.

medical students and others answered the call in large numbers and the health board later tweeted that while staffing remained challenging, the critical care unit remains open. in scotland, clinicians are issuing more warnings, this time that the nhs could be overwhelmed. mainland scotland is now in tier 4 restrictions. the new, faster—spreading variant, combined with the temporary easing of restrictions on christmas day could, they say, have created the perfect storm for an nhs that is already overstretched. sangita there are so many people hoping that the roll—out of vaccines is going to help. undoubtedly the national immunisation programme will have a part to play in solving the problem. we know we have over 600,000 people in the uk immunised already and of course we've heard the news today that the oxford

scientists are hoping that their vaccine will be approved this week for use but this is a complicated picture. there are three factors at play that have created this pinch point. 0ne play that have created this pinch point. one is nhs staff themselves who have treated kobe to patients and have picked up the virus and are isolating or shielding —— treated covid patients. we have the winter illnesses that always put pressure on the nhs and thirdly we have this highly infectious variation of the virus that is now spreading across the uk, so what does that mean? in the uk, so what does that mean? in the short—term the nhs is going to remain under huge pressure. thank you. and across europe, the pfizer biontech coronavirus vaccine is being rolled out as countries including france, spain and italy begin their vaccination programmes. more than 14 million people have been infected across the continent,

and strict lockdown measures are currently in place in nearly all eu member states. damien mcguinness has more now from berlin. the european vaccine roll—out has begun. in berlin, mobile teams are taking the first vaccines from this distribution centre to those who need it most. the elderly in nursing homes. this airport once provided a lifeline for west berlin at the height of the cold war. it was closed down in november to make way for a larger airport, and now it's been turned into a mass vaccination centre, providing yet again a lifeline for berliners, but this time in the fight against the pandemic. the first person in berlin to get the vaccine this morning was gertrude haase, 101 years old. translation: i told myself that i didn't have to be among the first. i wanted to see what it was like for the others. but a little later i thought, come on, i'll do it, too. in italy, where fatalities among

health care workers have been particularly high, there was relief, as doctors and nurses were among the first to get the jab. in denmark, a moment of vaccine humour. "let's hope it works," says the doctor. "if it doesn't, i'll come back to haunt you," replies the 79—year—old. in some countries there are worries that not enough people will want the vaccine, so to boost support some european leaders have also gone first, including the czech prime minister and, in greece, both the president and the prime minister. translation: i believe that every greek today is smiling underneath their mask. in getting vaccinated first, greece's political and state leaders want to send the message that the vaccine is safe and effective. across europe, elderly people have been isolated, afraid and vulnerable. now, they are the first to be protected. damien mcguinness, bbc news, berlin.

borisjohnson has promised that "big" changes are on the way for the uk following his brexit trade agreement with the european union. in an interview with the sunday telegraph, he says he wants to focus on "leveling up the country" and "spreading opportunity." however some have accused him of "caving in" to the eu, pointing out the deal doesn't cover services, which accounts for around 80% of the uk economy. here's our business correspondent, vivienne nunis. glad tidings of greatjoy. 1,200 pages of detail spelling out britain's new trading relationship with the eu. mps and others are poring over the fine print. this morning, the chancellor tried to dispel any fears the uk might be worse off under this new trade agreement. for those who were anxious about the economic implications of leaving, they should be enormously reassured. the free trade deal means that when it comes to the price of french cheese or spanish tomatoes,

there should be little change, according to the chair of the uk's largest supermarket chain. the administrative cost associated with having to make a customs declaration for people sending goods into the uk will be there, but they're very modest. i don't think it will make any material difference to the prices consumers pay. but the future isn't so clear cut on other important aspects of uk—eu trade. today, the prime minister told the sunday telegraph, "0n financial services, the deal does not go as far as we would like". obviously, we would have loved to have had more in there on financial services and professional services and services in general. it's 80% of the uk economy and 70% of the eu economy. but it's the norm for deals such as this, a free trade agreement, that they are focused on goods. the chancellor says the uk will remain in close dialogue with the eu on how things will work

moving forward, including financial services. this is, though, the largest free trade agreement in history. it rules out added taxes on imports known as tariffs, and quotas limiting how much can be bought and sold. but there will be more checks, red tape and delays when goods move across borders. that's better than no deal but not ideal, says labour. this is a thin deal, it's not the deal that the government promised, and there are large areas of our economy, for example, financial services, that employs one in 1a people in our country, where there aren't clear elements within this deal where much more work will need to be done. despite criticism, the labour leadership will urge their mps to support the deal in the commons on wednesday. also this week the government expects to sign a free—trade deal with turkey, matching the customs agreement the country with blossoms.

—— with brussels. many deals carry over existing trading terms from when the uk was in the eu. let's take a look at some of the day's other top stories. a 15—year—old boy is critically ill in hospital, after being struck by a police car in stockport. it happened on boxing day as officers were heading to a report of a domestic disturbance. an investigation has begun. police have been searching a house in tennessee in connection with the explosion of a camper van on christmas day in the city of nashville. three people were injured in the blast, and dna tests are now being carried out after human remains were found nearby. officials say they're looking for a number of individuals. the hugely—popular american wrestler and actorjon huber has died. he was a1. better known to fans as brodie lee or luke harper, his wife says he passed away after a battle with a lung complaint, not related to covid—19. millions of americans have

temporarily lost unemployment benefits to cope with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, after donald trump refused to sign into law a bill that would have continued the payments. the package, worth $900 billion, or £665 billion, was approved by republicans and democrats on capitol hill, after months of difficult negotiations. let's talk to our washington correspondent, nomia iqbal. 14 1a million americans are affected by this. why isn't the presented signing the bill? —— why isn't the president signing the bill. the surprising thing is that democrats and republicans who normally can't agree on day and night, agreed on something really complicated, the stimulus package. what's probably not surprising here is president trump's reaction. what can an outgoing president who is clearly still aggrieved and angry at losing an election do to remind people that he still president? he can refuse to

sign an important bill that both parties want him to sign. his own treasury secretary helped to negotiate the bill. mr trump says he wa nts negotiate the bill. mr trump says he wants more individual payments for americans and less money on foreign aid. while he's playing golf millions of americans are facing having to deal with losing their unemployment benefits, and many face the prospect of eviction. but once adding uncertainty to this as well is that with this package comes a spending bill which funds government agencies so if mr trump doesn't sign the bill they could be a partial government shutdown next week. they could renegotiate the bill but there's another way around president trump, a veto override. congress would have to round up quite a lot of votes, a two thirds majority in the house and senate, to effectively dismiss donald trump's position. if they do that and the bill goes through and is enacted into law it

makes president trump something he really doesn't want to be, com pletely really doesn't want to be, completely irrelevant. thank you. well, the us president—electjoe biden has warned of "devastating consequences" if mr trump continues to delay signing the unemployment benefits legislation. mr biden will become the 46th president in just three weeks' time. tackling the coronavirus pandemic will be his biggest challenge at home, but in foreign policy he says he wants to in his words "restore america's leadership on the world stage." with his assesssment of the challenges, here's our world affairs editor, john simpson. america is back, ready to lead the world, not retreat from it. once again at the head of the table. now thatjoe biden is about to take over the white house and donald trump's moving out, governments right around the world are heaving sighs of relief. i'm not actually walking into the real 0val

relief. i'm not actually walking into the real oval office! this is an exact replica in a norfolk film studio much used by hollywood movies. but when joe studio much used by hollywood movies. but whenjoe biden sits at that desk for the first time, he's going to be taking charge of a country whose standing in the world hasn't been as low as this in decades. right around the world there are offences to be mended and alliances to be built up again. america is back. multilateralism is back. diplomacy is back. that means taking the lead in nato again after four years of complaints about other members plus threats to cut america's contributions. and another major priority, rejoining the paris climate accord, which donald trump said damaged american interests. joe biden hopes to revive the nuclear agreement with iran, which trump

tried to kill off. iran, the big european countries and britain are all enthusiastic. trump's one foreign policy success was getting two golf states plus sudan to recognise israel. trump cited strongly with the israelis and cut aid to the palestinians. how easy will it be forjoe biden to be able to change this? even more important for him is how he'll approach russia. the russians meddled in the 2016 us election and seems to have hacked into some of america's most fundamental secrets. there's a lot of unfinished business with russia. i think together with the uk and europe we'll have to again sit down and decide what kind of serious signals we send to russia and its behaviour must change. we have a maximum of four years, probably two yea rs, to really maximum of four years, probably two years, to really do things together with our allies. and there is the

most complex problem of all, china. what should joe biden‘s approach be? work with china. compete with them ina work with china. compete with them in a persistent and effective way, be prepared in the event of conflict to cooperate with china, and some critical issues that are before us like combating global climate change, dealing with the covid—19 pandemic. at 78, time isn't exactly onjoe biden‘s side. but for the outside world, he has one huge advantage. he isn't donald trump. john simpson, bbc news. storm bella has brought winds of more than 100mph to many parts of the uk, along with heavy rain. the met office has also issued yellow warnings for snow and ice, meaning disruption is likely in parts of wales, north—west england, scotland and the whole of northern ireland. here's chi chi izundu.

storm bella making her presence known on british shores. winds of up to 106 miles an hour have been recorded on the isle of wight overnight. bringing down trees, causing damage to cars and homes, and huts alongside brighton beachfront. train operators have issued warnings about delays and cancellations because of debris and flooding on the railway lines. but parts of the uk are still reeling from heavy rains over christmas, like cirencester in gloucestershire. residents trying to adapt. more than 70 homes were without power and the environment agency has warned that some river levels around the country are still rising. this is ducklington farm in oxfordshire, where farmer helen's priority has been the safety of her animals. the amount of rain we've had in the last few days has made it

very difficult for us. we have over 3,000 sheep and we've had to move 1,200 of them in the last three days, so the whole of christmas we've been moving sheep. they‘ re all pregnant, and their welfare is our priority at the moment, but finding dry ground is almost impossible because it's just completely saturated. the met office has issued three yellow weather warnings about snow and ice in parts of scotland in particular, the north—east, areas in the north of wales and northern ireland. officials say they're working hard to help those in need, but have added there may be at least another day of harsh weather to come. chi chi izundu, bbc news. now with all the day's sport, here's jane dougall at the bbc sport centre. good evening, clive. we'll start with the results from the premier league. match of the day 2 follows the news, so if you want to wait, now‘s the time to leave the room. liverpool have dropped points at home for the first time this season. they drew with struggling west brom. sadio mane put liverpool ahead early, but they failed to capitalise

on further chances and west brom equalised late on with a headerfrom semi ajayi. liverpool are still top of the league. in the other fixtures, patrick ba mford's penalty was the difference as leeds beat burnley1—0. it finished 2—2 between west ham and brighton. and in the late game, tottenham drew 1—1 against wolves at molineux. in rugby union, wasps held on to beat sale sharks, but there was a lengthy delay as wasps wing zach kibirige had to be stretchered off with a head injury. wasps trailed at the break, but in the second half, youngster charlie atkinson burst through to score his first premiership try for the visitors. it finished 26—23. the welsh grand national was abandoned because of a waterlogged course. it's been rescheduled for the 9th of january. but racing at kempton did go ahead, with a shock winner in the desert orchid chase. the two—time champion chase winner altior had been favourite, but 20—1 outsider nube negra took victory by three—and—a—half lengths.

andy murray is to be given a wildcard for the australian open, two years after he made an emotional announcement at the same tournament that he was to retire from tennis. murray subsequently underwent hip resurfacing surgery and won the antwerp open seven months later. he's a five—time finalist in melbourne and will compete at the delayed tournament in february. there's more on the bbc sport website, including the latest on the boxing day test match in melbourne, where india lead australia. that's it, clive. thank you, jane. before we go, imagine working for 80 years of your life. well, postmistress kay white has achieved just that, and is now retiring in shropshire at the age of 93. she's seen it all, from world war two to the wholesale transformation of the postal service. she's also been honoured by the queen. that's it. there's more throughout the evening on the bbc news channel, but now on bbc one, time

for the news where you are. have a very good night.

hello. this is bbc news. it's the time of year when many of us take a moment to reflect, and say thank you. maybe for something that's happened this year , or for something that happened decades ago and has had a lasting effect. 50 years ago, martin stephen was visiting family in east lothian in scotland, when he nearly drowned trying to save his cousin. he was saved by the lifeboat crew at dunbar, and has finally had the opportunity to say ‘thank you'

for the very first time. hope webb reports. it was in these choppy waters exactly 50 years ago that tragedy struck. 21—year—old martin and his cousin david were climbing rocks to watch a storm roll in, when a freak wave pulled david into the water. martin was forced to jump in after him but the waves were just too strong. david was swept away and martin was left struggling against the swell. a lifeboat was deployed and the crew saved him from drowning. and now martin is saying thank you. 50 years on, he was able to speak on zoom to davy, a lifeboat volunteer there that day. lovely to meet you at last. under very different circumstances, and thank you for your involvement. what i do remember is feeling the hypothermia start in my feet, thinking oh, dear, here we go... and then i blacked out.

yeah. i was extraordinarily lucky. you were totally submerged apart from the top of your head when i seen you. you simply don't know how you survive that, i mean... to this day, i don't know why i am still here. crew member david brunton was the one who jumped into the freezing water to pull martin out that day. he has since passed away, but now his sonjamie is only learning the true story of the rescue. i remember my dad coming home, soaking wet. if it hadn't been for my mother, putting the plaque up on the wall that he got for the rescue, we wouldn't have known about it. dad wasn't keen to talk about it. i don't think it gave me a new appreciation for my dad — i loved my dad, he was a great father. but it was certainly an eye—opener on what these people can do. i suppose what they take for granted — my dad, his five brothers,

they all went out in the lifeboat, they were all crew members. so, yeah, it's incredible what they do. despite the years that have passed, martin says the bravery of those involved that day has changed the course of his life. i thought to myself, i've been given one of the most extraordinary christmas presents any human being can give. one life was tragically lost on that day, but actually david brunton did notjust save one life, he saved nine. he saved my three sons, he saved five grandchildren. and here we are, i'm 71 now. i've had an amazingly happy, wonderful life, which i am really grateful for, and all because one man, and indeed the whole crew of that lifeboat, put their life on the line to people they don't know and who they have never met. i think that is quite extraordinary. one thing that hasn't changed is the dedication of lifeboat crews

up and down the country. throughout this festive period, they will be prepared to head out and put their lives on the line for others if they're called. now, let's get the weather with ben rich. good evening. a chilly and somewhat wintry flavour to the weather as we head through the final days of 2020, but we're going to lose the very heavy and persistent rain that some of us have had over recent days. still some flood warnings in force across parts of england and wales. we have had very brisk winds thanks to storm bella. you can see this big band of cloud, that is where we had the very wet and windy weather. behind it, you can see this speckled cloud working down from the north, and we are going to stick with a northerly airflow through this week. that means it's going to feel pretty cold out there. temperatures will be below average by day, some frosty nights with the risk of ice. we'll see some rain and also some sleet and snow. amongst all of that, some spells of sunshine. heading through tonight,

some showers around and across western areas, through western scotland, northern ireland, north—west england, wales, perhaps the midlands and down into the west country, some rain and some snow over high round and perhaps even at quite low levels at times. it's going to be a very chilly night indeed. temperatures down to —8 in parts of scotland and some icy stretches to start off tomorrow morning. this slow—moving area of rain, sleet and snow could give some accumulating snow, even at quite low levels, most likely across parts of wales, the midlands, central southern england and the west country. that will slowly pivot away and we will see another area of rain with some snow across northern ireland and western scotland. some showers in eastern areas. brisk winds in the west, lighter winds further east. there will be some spells of sunshine on what will be a decidedly chilly day. temperatures between two and maybe seven. low pressure still in charge of the scene for tuesday. still a northerly wind.

where you see these frontal systems across western areas, that's where showers are likely tojoin into longer spells of rain and some snow over high ground, much of what falls from the sky at lower levels will be rain. a few showers still in eastern counties. pretty chilly, two to seven. we stick with a chilly theme as we head towards the end of the week. there will be a lot of dry weather around but some showers, too, and they will be wintry in places.

hello — this is bbc news with lu kwesa burak. the headlines... growing pressure on the nhs with covid—19 adding to the strain across the country. the london ambulance service says boxing day was one of the busiest days in its history. the rollout of the pfizer biontech covid vaccine begins for millions of people across the eu. british prime minister borisjohnson is promising big changes following his brexit trade deal. but his finance minister rishi sunak has sought to reassure the city of london that the post—brexit trade deal will not damage the financial services industry. storm bella brings gusts of more than 100mph — with roads in parts of wales and devon and cornwall