this is bbc news. i'm mike embley with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. us president—electjoe biden complains his transition team are not getting the co—operation from the trump administation on crucial matters like national security. the uk reports a record a0 thousand new infections in the past 2a hours doctors say some services are stretched to the limit. we see patients coming in who have covid symptoms but we also see other patients coming in with other problems who turned out to be covid positive, and between out, there was a great deal of difficulty getting those patients through into the wards. a prominent saudi human rights activist who campaigned for women to be allowed to

drive is jailed for six years. her family deny the charges. we are going to be appealing the verdict, even though we don't have any hope. also in the programme, a major study of the atlantic ocean has discovered species previously unknown to science. hello and welcome. with just over three weeks until he takes over at the white house, the us president electjoe biden has complained that his team is not getting the co—operation it needs from the outgoing trump administration. the comments follow a dispute between mr biden‘s transitition team and president trump's newly installed pentagon chief chrsitopher miller. mr biden‘s team denied agreeing to this pause. speaking

joe biden and knowledge that some departments had given him good access. we have discovered roadblocks across a lot of aspects of. right now not getting the information we need with the outgoing administration, in key national security areas. it is nothing short in my view of irresponsibility. he noted the security agencies had suffered enormous damage to their capacity under donald trump's presidency at a time when they are facing challenges posed by both china and russia. the president—elect said it was important to his administration to get a clear picture of the budgets and planning in order to avoid confusion that america's enemies could exploit, and he stressed the importance of making sure information was not lost on the handover between the two administrations.

william cohen served a secretary of defence for bill clinton from 1997 to 2001, as well as a longstanding republican representative in both the house and senate. you served a democratic administration, thank you so much for talking to us. as you know president trump's newly installed pentagon chiefs as security transition meetings arejust being security transition meetings are just being rescheduled after a mutually agreed holiday pause and he is still committed toa pause and he is still committed to a full and transparent transition. what's wrong with that? my answer is there are no holidays from history, there are no holidays from national security, it's not as if you can take off to go play golf and leave the world to turn on its own, sojoe biden needs to have his team briefed in great detail on issues affecting our national security and he is not getting that. our nation is put at risk. there is no more, well i won't say no more but one of

the most dangerous periods of time is between an election and the new administration. joe biden, by virtue, as many years in the senate dealing with intelligence and is two years as the vice president, he is on intelligence, he is up—to—date, but it's the details that really matter and he needs more information, and this is like a relay race. you want the person who is handing off the bat on, you want to be running when you catch it so you can be a full speed when you take the baton and continue on, and what president trump is doing and we are seeing that, by vetoing the defence authorisation bill, putting at risk where we are going to be in terms of budget planning for the defence department for the coming yea rs, department for the coming years, so i would say that the president has walked away from his responsibilities on many occasions, but right now this is one of the most critical, given the activities of president putin, who he continues to defer to on each and every occasion, so it

doesn't surprise me, it should in fact alienate his greatest supporters who believe that they are patriots and that he isa they are patriots and that he is a patriot. patriots don't put the country at risk, so i am disappointed. we have had four secretaries of defence in four secretaries of defence in four years so whenjoe biden says it has been hollowed out in the defence department, he has much to point to. what major security threats or challenges would you say the biden administration should be focused on, and what difficulties might be caused by the roadblocks, that he alleges are being thrown up by the outgoing administration? the most outgoing administration? the m ost rece nt outgoing administration? the most recent attack by president putin has been on the cyber security, attacking our infrastructure, putting at risk our ability to function as a civil society, in the event they have implanted types of monitors and bots and other types of malware inside our critical infrastructure, that would be one. subtly on the budget side, that is trying to manage the transition in a way

to understand where the money is and supposed to go, where he will inherit a budget that has only been prepared for him, so thatis only been prepared for him, so that is critical, but it is two things. externally we have to be concerned about russia, potentially china, but mostly russia, and we have to be concerned about what the president himself is doing. when he has a meeting in the oval office and the subject of martial law is raised, and you have people in the pentagon saying what is he going to do in the next three weeks, that may put us in a position of having to respond militarily to a domestic crisis? that is something that has been talked about, written about, the president has denied it his former national security adviser general flynn talked about it openly, and more and more people are concerned he is still looking for an excuse to try and have a coup over the united states and reverse the election, so they worry inside the pentagon and they have to be concerned on the exterior,

for external threats as well. thank you so much for talking to us. well let's stay in the us because the democratic—controlled house of representatives has voted in favour of increasing the aid sent to individuals under the latest coronavirus stimulus package from $600 dollars to $2,000. the initiative was suggested by president trump, but was opposed by his republican party. it's unlikely to be approved by the republican—led senate. but ahead of the vote, democrat house speaker nancy pelosi said she hoped for bipartisan support. i hope it will enjoy a strong bipartisan support. the president of the united states has put this forth as something that he wants to see and part of his signing of the legislation yesterday, i hope that will be, that view will be shared by the republicans in the senate. there've been a record number of cases of coronavirus

in the uk over the past 2a hours. the figure, more than 41,000, may include cases not recorded over the christmas period, but it underlines the worsening situation, as a new, more infectious variant of the virus appears to be gaining ground. more than 350 new deaths have also been recorded, taking the overall total in the uk above 71,000. here's our health editor, hugh pym. there was a stark message today from homerton university hospital in east london. nurses and doctors are incredibly stretched caring for very sick patients. no one should underestimate the impact the infection can have. one hospital in south—east london has declared an internal incident because of the high number of covid patients. the queen elizabeth hospital in greenwich said it was working with health partners and patients were getting the care they needed. elsewhere in the capital, patient numbers continue to rise, with the variant of the virus found initially in the south east of england spreading more rapidly.

accident and emergency departments reported intense pressure. i was on on christmas day, and it was wall—to—wall covid. so we see patients who are coming in who have covid symptoms, but we also see other patients coming in with other problems who turn out to be covid—positive. and between that, there is a great deal of difficulty getting those patients through into the wards. the medical director at one big hospital trust spelled out what they were facing. things have been really challenging over the last few days. i suppose the best illustration for that is on christmas eve we had about 170 patients with covid across our hospital sites, and today, we have around 242, so a very large increase has occurred over the last few days. the number of covid patients in hospitals in england reached a peak in the first wave of nearly 19,000 in april. then it fell away during the summer before picking up again from september, and it's now above the level of that previous peak.

so, what does that mean in practice? hospitals need more beds for covid patients and in some cases are moving staff from other areas to care for them. already some less urgent work is being cancelled. health leaders say the postponement of more routine operations and procedures will become more widespread. sadly, it's inevitable that as the infections rise and the admissions rise, that actually we see disruption to other services. we're desperate, our members are desperate to keep that disruption as low as possible, but unfortunately some of our elective and planned services will be disrupted, both in hospitals and in other settings as well. doctors in scotland have warned that their health system is severely stretched and are concerned that the limited household mixing on christmas day will have spread infections. inevitably, there will be a cost for this. one of the things that we're particularly concerned about here in scotland is that the new year

festivities will shortly be upon us. of course, there's no relaxation for those festivities, and it is extremely important that households don't mix. an official at public health wales has said that health services are under enormous pressure in an incredibly challenging situation. a significant proportion of the nhs workforce in wales is said to be off sick, a familiar story in other parts of the uk. hugh pym, bbc news. let's get some of the day's other covid—related developments. the health ministry in spain has announced the country's death toll from covid—19 has topped 50,000. spain has been hit hard by the second wave of the virus, and introduced a six month ‘state of emergency‘ in october. all 27 european union member states are embarking upon a mass vaccination programme. a total of 416 million people will need to be vaccinated across the continent. these pictures are from belgium, where residents of care homes were among the first to receive the vaccine.

and south korea is the latest country to report cases of the variant first identified in the uk. a family of three who arrived in the country from london, in the last week has tested positive. a prominent saudi human rights activist who campaigned for women to be allowed to drive cars, has been sentenced to almost 6 years injail on charges of spying and conspiracy. loujain al—hathloul was arrested in 2018 with dozens of other female activists. having spent two and a half years in a high—security prison and as part of her sentence is suspended, she may be released in march. mark lobel reports. it was loujain al—hathloul‘s public campaigning to get saudi women in the driving seat four yea rs before women in the driving seat four years before the ban was lifted that first saw her spend weeks behind bars. she was asked by the bbc after her release in

2015 when equal rights would be achieved. equal rights? the entire package? it will take forever. i won't be alive to witness it. by the activist was detained three years later for seeking to change the saudi political system, by calling foran political system, by calling for an end to male guardianship and speaking to foreign diplomats and the media about women's writes. following an international outcry, human rights groups demanded her release. but was behind bars, herfamily says release. but was behind bars, her family says she was subjected to electric shocks, waterboarding and sexual assault. at the time, saudi authorities denied the allegations which a saudi court has now dismissed. her brother says this latest conviction, including a five year travel ban, now add salt into those wounds. a sham trial, we could put it that way. it can clearly show that the court and the trial from day one show that the court and the trialfrom day one has been politically motivated. she

started crying because she has been labelled as a terrorist basically. the un human rights office as the deeply troubling. the president electjoe biden's national security adviser agrees it is unjust, adding pointedly, the biden harris administration will stand up against human rights violations wherever they occur. but the kingdom's leadership has returned some basic human rights to help diversify its all dependent economy and after the saudi authorities controversial role in the murder of the journalist. but for many others, as loujain al—hathloul‘s brother put it,.... al—hathloul‘s brother put it,... . it's like going one step further but also going ten steps backwards. as the search for equal rights in the kingdom continues.

stay with us on bbc news, still to come: how new yorkers are banishing the bad memories of 2020 with the aid of a paper shredder. the most ambitious financial and political change ever attempted has got under way with the introduction of the euro. tomorrow in holland, we're going to use money we picked up in belgium today, and then we'll be in france, and again, it'll be the same money. it's just got to be the way to go. george harrison, the former beatle, is recovering in hospital after being stabbed at his oxfordshire home. a 33—year—old man from liverpool is being interviewed by police on suspicion of attempted murder. i think it was good. just good? no, fantastic! that's better! bells toll.

this is bbc news, the latest headlines: us president—electjoe biden complains his transition team are not getting co—operation from the trump administation on crucial matters like national security. a like national security. prominent saudi human righ‘ activist a prominent saudi human rights activist has been jailed a prominent saudi human rights activist has beenjailed for six years for teaching women how to drive. joining me now is karin karlekar, who is the director of free expression at risk at pen america.

what does this sentence mean for loujain al—hathloul and human rights generally in saudi arabia? for loujain al-hathloul she has been convicted and sentenced and she has a ready beenin sentenced and she has a ready been injailand sentenced and she has a ready been in jail and because sentenced and she has a ready been injail and because of the time served, it could be possible she is released in a few months and will be pushing the saudis to hold to that. it will be a conditional release and subject to conditions after she left ofjail. she will not be to do anything without being rested again and banned from travel for five years. it will not be a situation of freedom for her. i would say for free expression in saudi arabia in general, this is a signal that it is basically impossible to speak out in saudi arabia, to engage in basic activism, defence of human rights,

critical journalism or basically saying anything that the regime does not want you to say without being subject to very, very severe very, very severe repercussions. very, very severe repercussions. there are thousands of saudis facing constraints and dozens of political business in jails, some who have been in there for two or three years without any charge at all or legal process, basically for free expression. it isa basically for free expression. it is a chilling development and america have condemned the verdict you will be fighting for the release of loujain al—hathloul and fighting for overturning this sentence altogether. despite that and the murder of jamal khashoggi, they are still the darlings of they are still the darlings of the west? is the more the west can do or it will do? i would say that many governments have been speaking out so there has been speaking out so there has been some pressure on me saudi regime and we think comments from the french and german government, the government and us congress, the us relations

committee smoke up today, and senator chris murphy and a number of senators and within congress there has been a concerted effort to speak out and the murder of jamal khashoggi and the men of loujain al—hathloul. the problem is the trump administration has done nothing to hold them accountable and the crown prince for all their human rights violations and until that changes, it has been a problem. we are hopeful with any biden administration coming in in a few weeks and a few positive statements from his advisor today, that situation may change and we were the concerted efforts but without a change in the us administration, it has been a very very difficult process so farand we are very very difficult process so far and we are hoping for some more push on human rights issues from the saudis and making more political, economic cooperation and engagement on greater respect for human rights and releasing people u njustly rights and releasing people

unjustly held in saudi jails. he very much. —— thank you very much. a major 5—year study of the atlantic ocean has discovered species previously unknown to science. the project used remote—controlled deep—sea robots to reveal the ocean and its hidden ecosystems in unprecedented detail. it also showed how life in the deep is being threatened by climate change. victoria gill reports. an ocean that covers one—fifth of the earth's surface, and from populous industrial coastlines to pristine ice—filled waters, one 4.5—year study of the atlantic, exploring and taking samples from 12 regions of this vast ocean, has discovered a dozen species new to science. this creature is a zoantharian. it uses its tentacles to trap food from the water. the researchers also found shellfish and five new species of coral.

these static sea bed—dwellers provide the food and shelter that's the foundation of hotspots of life in the deep ocean. you can think of them as underwater cities. the scientists say their atlantic—wide study is just starting to map out where the most important places for life are. we can still say that we know less about the sea floor of the oceans than we do about the surface of the moon or mars. a very small percentage of the sea floor is actually being sampled. that means that pretty much anywhere you go that's new, you're going to find new species, and they might be tiny little worms, nematodes or things like that, but certainly the diversity‘s huge. and just like our natural environment on the land, life in the the oceans is being affected by human activity. as the climate changes, so do our oceans, and the oceans are changing in ways that scientists are still learning about and trying to understand. so some of these whole ecosystems and newly discovered species

could already be under threat. our oceans have absorbed nearly a third of the carbon dioxide that's been released into the atmosphere since the industrial revolution, and this has shifted the chemistry of the sea water that these animals have evolved in. we have this really terrifying prospect that, right across the global ocean, the sea is becoming slightly more acid. so we face the prospect that the corals of the deep sea are changing, their skeletons are getting more porous, as that slightly acidic sea water corrodes and damages their skeletons. it's almost like an osteoporosis. they're becoming more brittle, more vulnerable to breaking. and it's those coral skeletons that form the structures that are the buildings, the architecture of those cities of the deep sea. this research is unravelling how diverse and interconnected life in the deep ocean is. and as our world changes quickly, these insights could be key to making sure that species don't disappear before

they're even discovered. victoria gill, bbc news. it's now a year since the the world health organisation first learned of a new virus spreading in china. at a news conference, the who's emergencies chief michael ryan described the pandemic as a ‘wake up call‘, and he warned there are other emerging diseases which could be even more severe in the future. it is not necessarily the big one. this virus is very transmissible and it kills people and it has deprived so many people of loved ones but its current case fatality is reasonably low paired to other emerging diseases. this is a wake—up call. if there is one thing we need to take from his pandemic with all the tragedy and loss is that we need to get our act together. we need to get ready for something that may be even more severe in the future and we should honour those we lost by getting better at what we do every day. if there's one thing we're

all looking forward to — it's welcoming a new year. in new york, they're saying good riddance to 2020 with a paper shredder and the bad memories. our reporter freya cole explains. it's a countdown to the new year, and many new yorkers are ready to say good riddance to 2020. i want to say goodbye to work and to covid—19. and gun violence on the streets. i think those are great things! throw them in the shredder! let's get rid of them! goodbye! times square new year's eve host jonathan bennett loves a gimmick. three, two, one! and he's promised next year will be better. i mean, everyone jokes with me that jonathan bennett, "you ruined 2020 cos you were the one standing there, bringing in the new year, and you're the one that kicked it off with the ball drop." but you know what, it's not my fault and, guess what, this year we're going to have a better year by bringing in 2021. and what better way to say goodbye

to the year by shredding the worst parts on good riddance day, an unofficial december 28th holiday which is needed this year more than others. we're saying good riddance to the fact that we had to cancel our honeymoon in 2020. um, being broke. covid, bad vibes and stress. and i think there's one we can all agree with. i just want to get rid of covid—19. bye, covid—19! hopefully we all get vaccinated, and we don't miss the final touch and goodbye to all our people. and goodbye, covid—19! freya cole, bbc news. just in brief, president—elect biden has said they are not getting cooperation from donald trump on crucial matters like national security. there has been a dispute with the

incoming team and donald trumpteam. and you can get in touch with me and most of the team on twitter — i'm @bbc mike embley. a very frosty night out there in the glens of scotland. temperatures are not far off —10 degrees celsius, and over the next few days, it certainly is going to be cold enough for further wintry weather. not all of it pure snow, there will probably be some sleet around as well. now, the cold air has spread across many parts of the continent. the point is it's here to stay, so we're not going to see a wave of milder air coming off the atlantic any time soon. through the early hours, we're expecting snow showers across parts of scotland and also across the pennines. you can see sub—zero temperatures here, icy conditions in some areas as well. to the south of that, i think hit and miss showers. now, this is what happens through the morning. the wintry weather, for some of us, spreads from the north

into the north west of england, through parts of the midlands, parts of wales and quite possibly the south west. the snow showers continue across parts of scotland. elsewhere in the uk on tuesday, it's going to be a mixture of sunny spells and just the odd fleeting shower, perhaps wintry. and then through the course of tuesday evening, you can see snow and wintry showers continue there in scotland. elsewhere, it's going to be largely clear. here is the forecast for tuesday night into wednesday, and we expect the next spell of wintry weather coming in from the north—west, moving across ireland and then eventually into wales. now, again, there's a lot of cold air sitting across the uk. just hints of something a bit milder nibbling in the south west, but that's pretty much it. on wednesday, the next spell of wintry weather moves across ireland through the early hours, and then the thinking is it will move into wales. remember, there's a lot of cold air sitting on top of the uk, and then that wintry weather spreads quite possibly into the midlands, the south west and the south.

north of that, it's clearer, some snow across scotland, and temperatures around freezing. notice that over the next few days, heading towards the end of the week, we see certain areas of rain and snow mixed in, circling in areas, so there could be some substantial snow towards the end of the week. i say substantial, a covering. this is what it looks like, a sneak peek of new year's day, chilly and dry for now. bye— bye.

this is bbc news. the headlines: in the uk, the daily number of confirmed coronavirus cases has passed 40,000 for the first time since the outbreak of the pandemic. there were 41,385 new cases, with 357 deaths in the last 24 hours, further increasing pressure on hospitals across the uk. president trump has signed a coronavirus relief and spending package despite previously threatening to block the bill, saying parts of it were wasteful and a disgrace. democrats have urged the president to follow up the bill with more help for struggling american workers. a senior british government minister warns travellers and businesses to expect a few bumpy moments in the coming months as the country gets to grips with the uk's new relationship with the eu. the terms of the new deal come into effect on the first of january next year. the cabinet office minister michael gove has warned there'll be some bumpy moments in the months ahead