this is bbc news, these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. scientists say the uk risks a coronavirus "catastrophe" in the new year without tighter restrictions. the military will provide remote support to schools and colleges in england with coronavirus testing, as they begin to re—open next week. but pressure to delay the start of term is growing. germany approves a new rapid coronavirus test that can give results within a0 minutes. the company that developed the process says it enables mass testing, based on the highly reliable pcr technology. spain says it will set up a registry of people who refuse to get the covid vaccine, and share it with other eu nations. but the list will not be made accessible to the public. french fashion designer pierre cardin — who was hailed for his visionary creations —

has died aged 98. hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. the head of the national health service in england has warned that workers are "back in the eye of the storm" as coronavirus cases continue to rise. simon stevens praised the efforts of staff at the end of what he said was — for most — the toughest year in living memory. hospitals in england are currently treating more covid patients than at the peak of the first wave in april. it comes as the government is set to decide whether to strengthen tiered restrictions in england this evening. here's our health correspondent, catherine burns. every christmas, the nhs chief executive puts out a message thanking staff.

today, an acknowledgement that it's been the toughest year most of us can remember and it's not over yet. we are back in the eye of the storm. with this second wave of coronavirus, sweeping europe and indeed this country. the number of covid patients in england peaked in the first wave in april at nearly 19,000. over the summer, things got much better but since september, it's been climbing. now at more than 20,000, it's higher than that first peak. welsh hospitals are treating their highest level of covid patients now. in northern ireland, there is a warning the next few days could be critical and in scotland, doctors say there is a danger services will be overwhelmed. in the first wave, the nhs cancelled most other work so it could focus on covid. this time around, it's been trying to keep other things going but now, more staff are being redeployed and routine operations being put back. we are 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. some hospitals are asking staff to cancel their annual leave. mid and south essex nhs foundation trust says it hasn't made this request lightly. staff in london and the south—east say they are under intense pressure. we are doing all that we can and will continue to do all we can to keep everyone safe and make sure everyone is cared for, but i do think that if we continue with the current rate of admissions, we are very, very close to becoming overwhelmed. winter is always the hardest time of the year for the nhs and that's never been truer than now, but vaccines mean there is hope ahead. by late spring, we think that with vaccine supplies coming on stream we will have been able to offer all vulnerable people across this country this covid vaccination.

catherine burns, bbc news. dame donna kinnair is the chief executive and general secretary of the royal college of nursing. lovely to see you. what are your nurses going through at the moment if they are working on a covid ward? 0ur if they are working on a covid ward? our members are telling us they have been under the most immense pressure, if you are just had the head of the nhs saying. we have had a nursing workforce crisis because many nurses themselves are getting sick. actually, they havejust many nurses themselves are getting sick. actually, they have just been struggling with this virus as we hit the third wave, as indeed they have been working since march. does the word overwhelm to fill right to? we hear it time and time again. word overwhelm to fill right to? we hear it time and time againlj word overwhelm to fill right to? we hear it time and time again. i think it does feel right now because actually it has highlighted what has happened when we have got tens of thousands nursing vacancies in the nhs england, and we know that critical bed occupancy is reaching

levels that can be unsafe. 0f critical bed occupancy is reaching levels that can be unsafe. of course nurses are stepping up to the plate, they are doing the best they can, that each and every one of those patients need highly chain nursing staff. have you got nurses who are being asked to cancel leave, for instance? i'm sure they are because, as you know, we have a50 thousand members and there will be messes there, i have spoken to nurses this morning that were telling me that they have been overwhelmed with the amount of patience walking through the door and with the high level of occupancy in critical care. don't know, what is your understanding of why we are not seeing the nightingale is not being used at the moment? —— donna. nightingale is not being used at the moment? -- donna. you have to start the 90 goes, that is a problem, it was almost fine at the beginning of the pandemic will be locked else and actually we stopped giving cancer ca re actually we stopped giving cancer care and all the rest of the care thatis care and all the rest of the care that is essential, we know it we cannot afford to do that now,

actually we have a staffing crisis that means we cannot do everything. now, many hospitals are trying their best to keep essential services open, like cancer care, but we know with the rise in the numbers going back to above the level that we saw the beginning of this pandemic or at the beginning of this pandemic or at the peak of this pandemic previously, but actually we will have problems. in some other countries, we know front—line medical staff have been among the first to be vaccinated, when your nurses expecting to get the vaccine? what have you been told? we the vaccine? what have you been told ? we have the vaccine? what have you been told? we have been told that actually one of the things it was deemed that health and care workers we re deemed that health and care workers were proud to additional vaccine. we know that we needed older patients over 80 and they have been vaccinated at the moment. but we know that is essential that all nursing staff get this vaccine to be able to to work and deliver care safely to all patients. when you look to the long—term, how

worried are you about the mental health of some of your nurses?” think that is something we have to address, we are trying to address it now. 0bviously when you are giving your best, you do not have time to think about yourself. it won't be until we get some letup that that will kick in, people will recognise that the mental health has been impaired by some of the things they have seen. nurses all over, don't forget, witnessing notjust patients suffering, but also some of their collea g u es suffering, but also some of their colleagues as they have nursed them in this morning i was talking to a nurse that that they told me that they had a patient in intensive care. in fact, just after lunchtime, another nurse told me that one of their colleagues had passed away. you can see that the care they are given, nursing their own colleagues in the storm of it, as well as losing their friends and families and colleagues. dame donna kinnair, thank you forjoining us. it is so ha rd thank you forjoining us. it is so hard for your nurses at the moment.

i hope you know there is a lot of empathy and support for them all over the country. thank you. thank you. margaret keenan, the first person in the world to receive the pfizer vaccine, has received her second jab. there is some flash photography coming up. the 90—year—old grandmother received her first injection on december 8th, as we're seeing here. today, 21 days later, she had her boosterjab at coventry‘s university hospital. 0fficialfigures say more than 520,000 people have received their first dose of the vaccine in the uk. let's go to germany now, where the health authorities have approved a new rapid coronavirus testing machine that can give results within a0 minutes. the company behind it says it's based on highly reliable pcr technology — as damian mcguinness has been explaining from berlin. the test itself is exactly the same as traditional pcr test, its called, which is the standard test that's mostly used and that's the most reliable test. now, that usually takes a very

long time because what it does, it analyses the genetic material in the virus, it has to get sent to a lab, which can take a day or two, it also, in the lab, can take a couple of hours to usually analyse this test to get the test results because the temperatures have to soar right up, then it has to go right down and that has to happen again and again and again. it's quite a complicated technology. then the test results have to get sent back to the people and it is generally done in large batches. now, all of that can take a couple of days, that's the traditional test we know. what this new technology does, which has just now, as you say, been approved here in germany, is it's essentially the process of getting those results from exactly the same technology is much quicker. so, it's a small box which is portable and what you can do is you essentially put in the samples which have been taken from people who are being tested, eight at a time, and within a0 minutes, they have a new technology which means you can... this high and low temperature cycle, which is usually done in the lab, can be done there in this special machine.

now, so far over the past couple of months, they've been testing this at munich airport. they say it seems almost as reliable as when you get the results from the lab. they say it's, so far, about 90% reliable as that, but they're going to keep using it now to see if it can be as reliable as the pcr test. if indeed it is as reliable as the usual lab results that we get sent back then that is indeed good news, because it means you can really turn round the tests, the reliable tests incredibly quickly. we do already have fast tests, they're called antigen tests, but they're not as reliable, so that is the issue there. so this is really, the speed is there but it's also the reliability that is crucial, so it could be a game changer. james badcock is a journalist from madrid and he told me about a planned register of people who have received the vaccine in spain, which the government wants to share with other eu countries. the health minister, salvador illa, yesterday mentioned this registry, and i think it has taken people somewhat by surprise

because he was quick to point out that it doesn't mean that the vaccine is mandatory, people are free to choose. but still, the idea that central government is talking about keeping a registry, especially when health is a regional, you know, competence in spain, has surprised many people in a country which is riven by political controversy over the handling of the crisis, where the second and third—largest parties day in, day out say the government is lying and misleading people about its handling of the coronavirus crisis, about the number of deaths, about the number of infected. i mean, this will... you know, i have looked at social media, this is already playing into those kind of divisions that we have seen throughout the crisis. other major politicians have not yet reacted to the idea.

it is not really clear what the registry is for. the minister talked about it, so that we know why someone has not had it but one thing would be the health authority noting down, ok, this person said no, but another thing seems to be keeping a separate registry of names. he also said that this information, perhaps not the names, but this information of people who are rejecting the vaccine would be shared with other european countries. 1,500 military personnel are going to help roll out mass coronavirus testing in schools in england next month — although the british government is keeping the plan under constant review. they will hold webinars and give telephone guidance to staff, with children mostly carrying out tests themselves. but teaching unions say schools haven't been given enough time to make plans and some head teachers are calling for the government to delay the start of term. damian grammaticas reports. in less than a week, empty classrooms should start

filling again. millions of children heading back to school but will it be safe? the government's plan is in secondary schools there should be mass testing of pupils and staff, much of it done by students themselves under supervision. it's a huge logistical challenge. it's not going to be easy. it will be difficult, we are in a national emergency but it will make a huge difference to teachers and children and hopefully mean that schools will remain open. the opposition wants the government's scientific advice to be published but those giving it believe getting children in class is a priority. we do need to do what we can to make sure our children are in school, we know for some children virtual learning is a real challenge and that is what worries me, that we will increase the divide between those that will thrive with virtual learning and those that will not. to assist the idea is 1,500 military personnel who have already been running testing to help out. not in schools but remotely, giving guidance online

and over the phone. we are educationists, we can support the government, commits it's good we're going to have some members of the army but for three and a half thousand secondary schools, 1500 troops doing webinars probably is not the government response we were looking for. the return to school is staggered across the uk. in northern ireland, children start face—to—face teaching next week. in wales, most should be back by the 11th of january. in scotland, it won't be before the 18th. many head teachers feel they simply don't have time to prepare. things have just come through to schools very late and i think it's certainly led to a lot of stress and panic over the christmas holidays to try and get people recruited. our community has been excellent since we've had press coverage, since we've talked to our community, we've had some volunteers but we still have nowhere near enough. schools have stepped up right the way from march, delivering online learning, turning things at the turn of a coin.

we are very used to being adaptable, we really want this to work but we don't know where we are going to get the volunteers from. and without space for testing in schools or the trained personnel to oversee it, what many head teachers really want — a mobile unit to help make mass screening work. damian grammaticas, bbc news. breaking news on the uk eu post—brexit trade deal. we know mps here in the uk will be voting on the deal tomorrow and significantly we have just heard that the deal has won the backing of the er g, that is that a group of eurosceptic mps. they have released a statement saying that they believe that this statement, this agreement preserves the uk's sovereignty on that statement went on to say our overall conclusion is that the agreement preserves uk's 70 as a matter of law and respects the norms of international sovereign to sovereign treaties. a level playing field goes

further to comparable trade agreements, the impact on the practical exercise of sovereignty is likely to be limited, if addressed bya likely to be limited, if addressed by a robust government. 0n the edge of support coming from the e r g, the eurosceptic mps within the conservative party for this post—brexit trade deal. remember, that will be voted on tomorrow by mps here in the uk. scotland's first minister nicola sturgeon has urged people to stay at home for hogmanay and only celebrate with their own households. 1,895 new cases of covid—19 were registered in the last 2a hours. this is the highest daily number recorded, though more people are now being tested. it is nevertheless indicative of a rising, or what appears to be a rising trend of cases again. and that really must make all of us, yet again, sit up and take notice of this. we also think that the new strain is contributing to faster

spread of the virus, and so my main message to people is to make sure that you are not visiting other people's houses right now. that is the most important thing of all. and, unfortunately, that includes hogmanay and new year. this year, i know we all desperate to kick 2020 into touch but we must do that safely in the safest way to do that this is to be in our own homes, with our own households. nicola sturgeon. the latest headlines on bbc news: scientists say the uk risks a coronavirus "catastrophe" in the new year without tighter restrictions. the military will provide remote support to schools and colleges in england with coronavirus testing, as they begin to re—open next week. but pressure to delay the start of term is growing. germany has approved a new rapid coronavirus test that can give results within a0 minutes. the company that developed the process says it enables mass testing, based on the highly reliable pcr technology.

the uk government has been accused by the former foreign secretary, jeremy hunt of ‘looking weak‘ for not doing enough to help british nationals detained in iran. these include the british—iranian woman nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe, who is currently serving a five—year prison sentence in tehran after being accused of plotting to overthrow the country's government. she denies all the charges. let's speak now to the liberal democrat foreign affairs spokesperson, layla moran. do you agree, does this make the government look weak?” do you agree, does this make the government look weak? i think the government, to be perfectly honest, has been a bit weak on this for some time now. we have long called for them to put more pressure on the run. there's a few things that they should and could be doing. the international order page in court thatis international order page in court that is looking at the £a00 million that is looking at the £a00 million that purportedly this is all linked to. we should also be renewing our

calls to reinstate the iran nuclear deal and our support for that, and i do think and jeremy hunt suggested this as well, that we should now be looking at sanctions. but i think one of the things that is really concerning today about this case is the letter that the foreign office sent to nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe's family that suggested they have no legal right to help by the foreign & commonwealth office. that is going to be very considering for ordinary citizens that assume that if you go to another country, you are arrested, that she would have a legal right to help from your own government. that is one of the things we need to have new legislation or look to change. in terms of pain this £a00 million debt to iran, there is a church and there might be some imaginative way to do that. do you have any suggestions?” don't. i do not think it is right that i suggest them right now. there

is an international algebra cheat code that needs to get their skates on and get this done. the government continues to suggest these two things are not linked. there is strong evidence to show that it is. jeremy hunt suggested it could be paid through humanitarian aid. there are different ways this could be done, if that is acceptable to the erroneous, then let's do that. there is also this court that there is right now. —— if that is a cce pta ble there is right now. —— if that is acceptable to the people of iran. i think dominic raab, the next available opportunity that he has to get on a plane and go and sort this out though, it is time for him to step up. it has been years that nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe and had family and her daughter and everyone surrounding this case, notjust her, there is a fellow detainee in a similar position. i think it is time for more direct intervention.

nazanin has been given diplomatic protection, has that helped that in any practical way? it seems largely symbolic. indeed. ithink to any practical way? it seems largely symbolic. indeed. i think to an extent it has not really help that much. that is one of the things that we think dominic raab should be pushing on right now. she does have the diplomatic status, he should be going there, sorting it out. let's expedite all the possible tools that we have in our box to show iran that we have in our box to show iran that we mean business. i do urge agree with jeremy hunt when we mean business. i do urge agree withjeremy hunt when he says the government is beginning to look weak now as it drags on. what do you think should be happening with schools next week with mark i am disturbed hiring from head teachers in my area, but also the head teachers unions that the government has not been consulting with head teachers on this. mass testing is a great idea in schools but clearly it is falling towards been very poorly executed. i think we need students in school, the liberal democrat position has

been always that where it is safe, they should be in school and i think most people would agree with that. but if this is going to put undue pressure on teachers to go back, remember the strain is virulent, more transmissible and we know that asymptomatic transmission happens with particularly secondary school students, i think there is a case for delay. more than that, i want to go to start talking to head teachers again, many of them have great suggestions of how this could be done better and faster. layla moran, thank you for taking the time to talk to us. thank you. legendary french fashion designer pierre cardin has died at the age of 98. he transformed the fashion industry in the 1960s and ‘70s by successfully licensing his brand name, and introducing futuristic styles. his family says he died in a hospital near paris. 0ur correspondent daniela relph looks back at his life. newsreel: another leader of the fashion world in paris, pierre cardin, takes the town by storm and reveals to breathlessly excited womanhood what they simply must be wearing by easter. pierre cardin, the fashion

world supreme innovator. for decades, his designs ripped up convention and shocked the establishment. his thirst for the new and surprising was never satisfied. born in 1922, he left school at 1a to train in making cloth. a fortune teller told him he'd be famous. he asked if she knew anyone who worked in fashion. she did. he moved to paris, clutching an address. he designed costumes forjean cocteau's film beauty and the beast in 19a6 and was soon unnerving the fashion industry itself. his 1950s bubble dress took liberties with the female silhouette. he moved young men out of boxyjackets, creating a new look for the 1960s. the beatles, in their collarless cardin suits, said he was one step ahead of tomorrow. he irritated his fellow high—fashion designers,

launching ready—to—wear collections for the middle classes. and indulged in futuristic fantasies, inspired by the space age. some of it, impractical to wear. this was his proposed uniform for nurses. he was a savvy businessman, showing this 1970s collection in china, where fashion was set by chairman mao. but he spotted potential. i expect in the future, not for tomorrow but i'm sure in ten years, china will become the most important country in the world. cardin established licensing agreements, putting his name on everything, from glasses to fancy carpets. it changed the way the industry worked. he bought a castle once owned by the marquis de sade, putting on shows there into his tenth decade. still experimenting, still innovating. pierre cardin, capturing the future before it exists.

fashion designer pierre cardin, who's died at the age of 98. australia says it could deport british backpackers who flout covid rules, after hundreds were seen partying at a sydney beach on christmas day. videos of the gathering, widely shared on social media, showed hordes of young people at bronte beach in breach of regulations. the event has sparked anger among locals, with health officials calling it "absolutely appalling". sydney is battling a new outbreak after months of no local cases. breaking news from brussels, we are hearing the eu has decided to buy an additional1 million doses of the eyes biontech vaccine. the 27 nation bloc will have 300 million doses which has been assessed as safe and

effective. this tweet coming from ursula von der leyen in the past few minutes. you are watching bbc news. hello there. 0ne things for certain this week, it's going to stay very cold for all of us with overnight frost and also some ice to watch out for. what's a bit more uncertain is where we're going to see some rain, sleet and snow over the next few days. but wherever it does occur, it's likely to cause some disruption. of course, ice will be an issue on untreated surfaces, so just take care if you have to head out. so the cold pool of air pretty much right across the uk for today and indeed for the foreseeable future. this is the early morning sleet and snow which we had across northern, western parts of england and north wales, pushing on into the south west. further wintry showers likely to affect coastal areas, some accumulations over the scottish isles, but there'll be quite a bit of dry weather around too,

some sunshine to end the day. it'll stay rather grey and cold across the southeast. as we head through tonight, many areas will stay dry, through central parts that is, but around coasts, further showers are likely. we could see some wintry showers affecting north—west england, north wales with a great risk of ice pretty much anywhere, but especially where we have these showers and a cold night to come. subzero values for most of us, maybe as low as —7, maybe —8 across northern england into parts of scotland in some of the glens. for wednesday, we start off with some sunshine around. watch out for some ice first thing, particularly where we have lying snow, further showers affecting coastal areas. you could see this feature, though, running across the south—west, which could bring a mixture of rain, sleet and snow. again, uncertainty to this so you have to stay tuned to the forecast. another cold day to come and at least some areas will have the sunshine to compensate. it looks like this feature then runs across the south of the country, further showers during wednesday night around coastal areas. now, we'll have this area of low pressure as well sitting over the north sea.

that's going to introduce an area of rain, sleet and snow to the north of the uk as we head on into thursday. now, this could cause some disruption, again, the details of this a bit uncertain at the moment. it looks like we could see some settling snow across parts of central southern scotland, perhaps northern and western england and in towards wales. it could be disruptive, so you have to stay tuned to the forecast. many places, though, away from this will stay dry. a bit of sunshine, but another very cold day for us all. as we end the week, it looks like many places will see the sunshine into the weekend, winds turn a bit more north—easterly, so most of the wintry showers will affect north sea coasts.

this is bbc news, the headlines:

scientists say the uk risks a coronavirus "catastrophe" in the new year without tighter restrictions. the military will provide remote support to schools and colleges in england with coronavirus testing, as they begin to re—open next week. but pressure to delay the start of term is growing. germany has approved a new rapid coronavirus test that can give results within a0 minutes. the company that developed the process says it enables mass testing, based on the highly reliable pcr technology. spain says it will set up a registry of people who refuse to get the covid vaccine — and share it with other eu nations. but the list will not be made accessible to the public. french fashion designer pierre cardin — who was hailed for his visionary creations — has died aged 98. sport — and for a full round up from the bbc sport centre,