this is bbc news. these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. the coronavirus vaccine developed by astrazeneca and oxford university becomes the second vaccine in the uk to receive regulatory approval. britain's health secretary says the first jobs will be in the new year. today's news is great news for the ability of the vaccine to make us safe, and make us say faster than we previously could have done. the uk regulator has proved that two standard doses should be given at an interval of between four to 12 weeks to be most effective. the effectiveness was high, up to 80%, when there was a three month interval between first and doses,

which is the reason for our recommendation. the news comes as more parts of england are expected to be moved into the highest level of coronavirus restrictions, tier 4. politicians in the uk are debating legislation, which would put the eu trade deal into uk law. the vote is expected in the next half an hour. hello and welcome if you are watching in the uk or around the world. the uk medicines regulator has approved the oxford—astrazeneca coronavirus vaccine, paving the way for millions more people to be immunised in the new year. the uk has ordered 100 million doses — enough to vaccinate 50 million people. the vaccine is much easier to transport and store than the pfizer biontech one already in use, and is also much cheaper. our health correspondent

anna collinson has the details. the approval of the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine is a huge moment, and with pressure on hospitals intensifying, it could not have come at a better time. this is a really significant moment in the fight against the pandemic, because the vaccine is the way out, and the approval of the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine brings forward the date at which we are going to bring this pandemic to an end. after cramming years of work into a matter of months, jabs will begin to be administered on monday. this morning, the head of the uk regulator insisted no corners had been cut. the safety of the public always comes first. the mhra's approval has been reached following a thorough and scientifically rigorous review of all the evidence. the announcement comes four weeks after the uk approved its first coronavirus vaccine.

while the pfizer and biontech jab must be kept at freezing temperatures, the oxford one is both cheaper and can be stored in a fridge. this makes it easier to reach the most at risk groups, particularly those in care homes. the hope is around 2 million patients a week could soon be vaccinated. the government target is an ambitious target, and we are working with him to define this. i did not mean to say that it is not achievable, but i meant to say that the government is committed to vaccinating people we can go to 2 million, and when i said it is difficult. i did not mean to say that it is not achievable, but i meant to say that the government is committed to vaccinating people as quickly as we can. the uk vaccine roll—out will now focus on administering first doses to as many vulnerable people as possible, which will prevent severe infection after three weeks. the second dose is vital, because it

provides longer term protection. patients will now wait up to 12 weeks to receive it. because of the design of the trial, some people got second doses at different time intervals. this allowed an analysis of the effectiveness of the vaccine if you were to be able to delay from four to 12 weeks. the effectiveness is high, up to 80%, with a three month interval. the vaccine uses a harmless virus which causes colds in chimpanzees and is altered to look like coronavirus. the body produces antibodies and t cells to fight it off. if a person is infected in the future, their body knows to attack. what we are hoping is that we will hear more approvals elsewhere in the world, which means that we can really start moving the vaccine to all the vulnerable people in different populations to have the greatest possible impact. while the vaccine approval has been called a game changer, it will be months before we see any real effects. until then, it is likely tougher restrictions will be needed to try and bring the virus under control this winter. anna collinson, bbc news.

our health correspondentjoins us 110w. our health correspondentjoins us now. this is a really significant moment, both in terms of approval and also the new advice on dosage. this is a very significant moment, for three main reasons: we now have two vaccines approved in the uk against coronavirus, and this vaccine has some logistical advantages. it can be stored at normalfridge advantages. it can be stored at normal fridge temperatures of up to six months. compare that to the pfizer vaccine that needs to be stored at —70 degrees. that means it should be easier to get this vaccine to more people, for example in care homes, who are particularly vulnerable, and as you mention, we've got a new strategy now, set by the medicines regulator. they say that people can have the first dose and then wait up to 12 weeks to have the second dose, and that buys us more time to vaccinate more people. the data suggests that people who have the first dose do get some significant protection after, say, 21 days of having thatjab, and then

they must go on to have that second dose to get longer term protection. but we've also ordered up to 100 million doses of this vaccine. if you combine that with the pfizer vaccine that we have, we should have enough doses to vaccinate the whole population. what is the government saying about the timeline, the roll—out of all of this, and how much is it likely to ease the current pressures that we are seeing in hospitals? the government says the first people should expect to get the vaccine on the 11th of january, so monday next week, that they will be invited, so they will ring them, not to turn up for the vaccine, but the hope is to get this vaccine, but the hope is to get this vaccine out as quickly as possible. in terms of reducing hospital pressures , we in terms of reducing hospital pressures, we know hospitals particularly in london and the south are under particular pressure right 110w. are under particular pressure right now. what we understand from the data right now is that this vaccine does prevent people from getting severely ill, so that should stop people going into hospital with coronavirus. we don't know yet

whether this vaccine can stop people from passing on coronavirus to others, so it is really important, experts say, that the usual measures, such as washing our hands and containing a safe distance from others continues, particularly into the new year. thank you for the latest update. millions more people in england are to be placed under the toughest tier 4 coronavirus restrictions as case numbers continue to rise. the health secretary, matt hancock, will set out the details of which areas will change in a commons statement later. it comes amid growing concerns over the increasing pressures on the nhs. our correspondent charlotte wright reports. the challenge facing the nhs is laid bare, with reports yesterday that covid patients have been cared for in ambulances on hospital forecourts. winter pressures, coupled with rising coronavirus cases, mean icus in london and the south east are now running at more than 100% capacity. it's been really, really tough. every time i start my shift,

i walk into my intensive care unit, and i'm just greeted with a sight that takes me aback every time — of row upon row of patients, extremely unwell. yesterday saw the highest single day rise in coronavirus cases in the uk since mass testing began, at 53,135, while infection rates in lower—tier areas of england have risen rapidly. now some of the government's scientific advisers are calling for tougher measures. it's early days yet to see whether the tier 4 restrictions have been sufficient to control the virus. of course, that's going to be a bit difficult to judge, because everything's different over christmas anyway. but i think we're going to need at least tier 4 level restrictions, and we're going to need to keep a very close eye on what's happening over the next week or two to decide whether we need to strengthen that further. later today, the health secretary is expected to announce changes to the existing restrictions,

with the west midlands and parts of the east midlands and lancashire possibly heading for tier 4, forcing the closure of businesses such as nonessential shops, gyms and hairdressers. absolutely devastated again that we have just got going after reopening on the 2nd of december, where just getting of december, we're just getting back on our feet again, and we've got to stop again. i really think that, yeah, they're just going to shut everybody down again. the government say that they don't take these decisions lightly, but keeping everybody safe and protecting the nhs is a priority. charlotte wright, bbc news. before we return to the brexit debate in the house of commons, let's take a look at what we are expecting from westminster for the rest of the day. in just a few minutes, a result is expected on the post—brexit trade deal.

after that, around 3pm uk time, the health secretary, matt hancock, will make a statement on the tier system for england with millions more expected to face tougher restrictions. at around 4pm the education secretary, gavin williamson, will make a statement on schools in england. and later today there will be a downing street coronavirus briefing at 5pm uk time. we'll bring all of those key developments here on bbc news. the prime minister, borisjohnson, has urged mps to "open a new chapter in our national story" by backing his post—brexit trade deal with the european union in a commons vote later today. mps are currently debating legislation, which would put the eu trade deal into uk law. they're expected to back the measures — a day before the end of the transition period. our political correspondent nick eardley reports. after a four and a half year journey, the brexit process is entering its final hours. this morning, an raf

plane arriving in london, carrying a copy of the trade deal which will change the uk's relationship with europe. in brussels this morning, european leaders put pen to paper. the prime minister will add his signature in downing street later. is this the final hurdle for brexit, prime minister? first for boris johnson, though, a trip to the commons. mps recalled from their winter break to sign off on the agreement, reached on christmas eve. now, with this bill, we're going to become a friendly neighbour. the best friend and ally in the eu could have. working hand in glove whenever our values and interests coincide, while fulfilling the sovereign wish of the british people to live under their own laws, made by their own elected

parliament. that is the historic resolution delivered by this bill, and, mr speaker, resolution delivered by this bill, and, mrspeaker, i resolution delivered by this bill, and, mr speaker, icommend resolution delivered by this bill, and, mr speaker, i commend it to the house. labour are officially backing the deal, saying the alternative would be far worse. after four and a half years of debate and division, we finally have a trade deal with the eu. it's imperfect, it's thin, and the consequence of the prime minister's political choices. but we have only one day before the end of the transition period, and it's the only deal that we have. with tory mps united behind it, the deal will pass comfortably. some labour mps will abstain, unhappy at the terms. and dozens from other parties will vote against — northern ireland's mps, the liberal democrats and the snp. it is a choice between a future defined by this disaster of a deal, or the future the snp is offering

to the scottish people, an independent nation at the heart of the european union. the legislation will be passed through parliament today at breakneck speed, and should be signed into law tonight. and although today's proceedings lacked some of the drama we've seen in recent years, they mark an important point. for some, the start of a new era for the uk, in which it can forge new relationships and sign new trade deals as a sovereign country. for others, a moment which will see a loss of international clout, as we leave a major trading bloc. after years of debate, the decision has been made, and the process is nearly at an end. a new relationship is about to begin. nick eardley, bbc news, westminster. let's go live to nick and westminster. a huge document debated ina westminster. a huge document debated in a matter of hours per stop you have watched all of that debate, just give us your overall assessment. that was quite

controversial, the fact that this huge document, about 1500 pages all income is being debated in a matter of hours. by and large, though, i think there is an acceptance from the two main parties, from the conservatives and from labour, that this is done now. the trade deal has been agreed, it is the best deal thatis been agreed, it is the best deal that is on the table come in the sense that there isn't time to renegotiate another one, so it has to be passed. i think there will be some abstentions on both the labour and the conservative benches when that vote happens in around half an hour's time, but not a significant amount to change the result. this is going to pass comfortably with labour and conservative support. there will be other opposition parties that vote against it. that's not insignificant, especially the fa ct not insignificant, especially the fact that there is a lot of opposition from the scottish and northern irish mps, but it will task up northern irish mps, but it will task up to believe. nick, we were living there because we will go straight back to the commons, because closing argumentsjust being

back to the commons, because closing arguments just being made. back to the commons, because closing argumentsjust being made. rachel reeves for the labour opposition, michael gove will follow that predicament but let's listen in. let me say to all members, including my own party, we are not indifferent to the outcome of this vote today, so we should vote accordingly. because here we are, on the 30th of december, and tomorrow trading relationships that have served us well for decades will expire. it is not about whether you wanted to remain or leave, it's not about whether you think this deal is good enough. we know that it isn't. but voting for this deal now is the only way to avoid no deal. let me turn to what this deal does for our economic prosperity, because while we will vote for this bill later, we are fully aware of its limitations and we will hold the government account to them. for

farmers, car—makers, the chemicals industry, they will face extra delays, cost and bureaucracy and taking the goods to european markets and few will thank the government for the gift handed to them on christmas eve wrapped up in e7 billion bureaucracy, tied with the red tape of over 200 million customs declarations. in over 80% of our economy is made up of services, yet not one of the 1246 pages of this treaty gives any additional opportunities to those sectors. how has that come to be? the eu have a trade surplus of goods with us and they fought to keep it. we had a trade surplus on services and this government has done nothing to protect it. and the failure of this conservative government to stand up for our cultural industries is as unforgivable as it is inexplicable. as tim burgess and many others have rightly said, so many british exporters will face added barriers

to tour and showcase their talents across europe and as i've said the reality of poor preparations will bite hard. ports are underfunded and the hauliers go unhurt and the 50,000 customs agents that the government promised would be delivered or not in place. the tories have had four and a half yea rs tories have had four and a half years to get ready for this moment and their incompetence must not be allowed to hold our great country back. in recent days the chancellor of the duchy of lancaster has also claimed that the end of the transition period will mean that a tory government can now tackle inequality and injustices. but let mejust say this, inequality and injustices. but let me just say this, mr deputy speaker, it is not the eu that created the bedroom tax, the need for food it is not the eu that created the bedroom tax, the need forfood banks or slashed funding for social care. the minister need not look to brussels for someone to blame, but to the tory governments that he had served underfor the to the tory governments that he had served under for the last ten and a half years. in a few moments time,

this house will divide and despite all our reservations there are now just two paths ahead for this country. one is the prime minister's limited and unimpressive deal with the european union but down the other is the chaos of ending the transition period with no deal at all. which will mean substantial ta riffs all. which will mean substantial tariffs and barriers to trade and no agreement on security cooperation. there is no other option now, and to abstain is to fail to choose and to suggest somehow that we are in different between these two paths before us. i am not. different between these two paths before us. iam not. i different between these two paths before us. i am not. i don't believe other members are either. this is johnson's deal. where neither option is ideal. but a limited deal is better than no deal at all and it is a foundation on which we can build, so labour will choose the better of two paths, for businesses, workers, trade unions and jobs and our

security too. we are not this deal‘s cheerleaders. far from security too. we are not this deal‘s cheerleaders. farfrom it. this is the prime ministers deal and he and his government will own it we will hold them to account for it. and thatis hold them to account for it. and that is why my right honourable friend the member for that is why my right honourable friend the memberfor hoban that is why my right honourable friend the member for hoban and saint pancras and myself have tabled seven amendments today to show how labour would do this differently and build on the deal —— whole on and st pancras. he has covered the economic impact of the agreement and the lack of information to the schengen information system on protecting work and environmental statements, on the erasmus programme and on performers and artists permits and on the duty of the trade cooperation council to report to parliament and crucially on support and information for businesses. this is an important day. but labour is thinking about tomorrow. we are firmly focused on making this the best country for all of our citizens, where ever you

live, whatever your parents do, whatever school you went to whatever your talent and ambitions, we will back you the way. this must be the country where you can look forward to starting your career, developing your skills, creating and growing businesses, locating yourjobs in our towns and cities and trading around the world. that is our ambition for the talent on britain and we want to share it with the world. throughout these negotiations and preparations the tories have brought chaos where the country crave ability. they sought to break the law and labour will uphold it. they seek to break alliances where we will forge them. that is the way to project our values and stand up for the uk's national interests. the eu commissioner found solace for the uk's national interests. the eu commissionerfound solace in the words of ts eliot last week. as we look to bring our country together, to write a new chapter in our story,

i turned to the words of the franco polish scientist marie curie. she said, nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. now is the time to understand more so that we may fear less. . mr speaker it is important that this bill passes today, as limited as it is, because no deal is no solution for our country. we vote on the foundations of a deal that labour will build on. though we have left the eu, we remain a european nation with a shared geography, history and values and interests. thejob of securing our economy, protecting our national health service, tackling climate breakdown and rebuilding our country has only just climate breakdown and rebuilding our country has onlyjust begun.

thank you, mr speaker. it's a real pleasure to follow the honourable lady and while we do disagree on much, she gave a characteristically thoughtful and punchy speech and she isa thoughtful and punchy speech and she is a great credit to her party and i wish her and her family is a great credit to her party and i wish her and herfamily well as is a great credit to her party and i wish her and her family well as they wrestle with coronavirus. can i thank you, mr speaker, the staff of the house of commons and everyone who allowed us to come back for this debate today. can i also thank the negotiators on both sides who have concluded this historic agreement, lord frost and his team, michel barnier and his. and can i also thank the thousands of civil serva nts thank the thousands of civil servants who have been working through years now in order to bring us through years now in order to bring us to this moment. i also want to thank everyone who has spoken, 59 members and i want in particular to pay tribute to those who have been arguing for our sovereign future outside the european union for many yea rs, outside the european union for many years, the members for chingford and woodford green and north shropshire in particular and our heart goes out to owen and his family. i also want

to owen and his family. i also want to thank those who argued in the referendum that we should remain in the european union, but who in this debate gave considered and thoughtful speeches and their support for the deal in front of us, and clear pointers for the way forward. the members for winchester and huddersfield, tunbridge wells and huddersfield, tunbridge wells and morley, leeds central and tonbridge and malling all made impressive speeches recognising the importance of democracy. and democracy is why we are here. more people in the 2016 referendum voted to leave the european union than have ever voted for any other proposition in our history. and now four and proposition in our history. and now fourand a proposition in our history. and now four and a half years later, we can say that we have kept faith with the people. this deal takes back control of our laws, borders and waters and it also guarantees tariff free and quota free access to the european market as well as ensuring our security and it is a good dealfor aviation, haulage, data, legal services and financial services and

it leaves us as sovereign equals. sovereign equals with the eu. it also builds on the withdrawal agreement concluded by my right honourable friend the prime minister and it is important to remember there are now 4 million eu citizens who have chosen to make their home in this country. a vote of confidence in britain and its also the case we concluded the northern ireland protocol, an imperfect instrument, certainly but one that it sure is that we leave as one uk, whole and entire so we can begin a new special relationship with our friends in the european union. i wa nt to friends in the european union. i want to turn to some of the debate andi want to turn to some of the debate and i want to turn first to the arguments made... not quite yet... to the argument made by the leader of the opposition. he spoke as usual, eloquently but not perhaps with 100% conviction. and that's no surprise. he argued we should stay in the european union and argued for a second referendum and argued we should stay in the customs union and

argue still for a level of ecj jurisdiction and at every turn he has tried to find a way as closely tied to eu structures as possible. but now he says he will not put opposition to brexit on his leaflet at the next general election. given the result of the last general election when he did put opposition to brexit on his leaflet, i can well understand. because his attitude to the european union is rather like his attitude to his former leader, the memberfor his attitude to his former leader, the member for islington his attitude to his former leader, the memberfor islington north. he spent years trying to keep as close as possible and now he wants us to forget all about it. his time in the shadow cabinet when he was arguing for the member of islington north to be prime minister and for the uk to be prime minister and for the uk to be under eu structures presumably, in the words ofjeremy corbyn, was a period when he was present but not involved. as a good former director

of public prosecutions, i know he does not want us to take account of any of his previous convictions and indeed i am gratefulfor his support. he was also right in calling out the leader of the scottish national party, because of course what the scottish national party today are doing is voting for no deal. he is absolutely right. what has he said in the past customer nicola sturgeon said no deal would be a catastrophic ideal and said the snp could not countenance in any way or no deal and said snp mps would do everything possible to stop no deal except actually voting against it today. indeed so opposed to no deal where the snp that the member for edinburgh south west went to court to ensure that if the prime minister took it out of the european union without a deal, he would go to jail. now the leader of the snp is voting to ta ke now the leader of the snp is voting to take it out of the eu without a

deal. he is doing something that his own party said should be an imprisonable offence. so what is he going to do now? turn himself in question or submit to a citizens arrest at the hands of the member for edinburgh south west. if his party follows through on its previous convictions, and of course i will previous convictions, and of course iwill campaign previous convictions, and of course i will campaign for him and the cry will go out from these benches, free the lochaber one. after the 2014 referendum the snp became the party that just would not take referendum the snp became the party thatjust would not take no referendum the snp became the party that just would not take no for an answer. now that we have got a deal they are asked for they are the party that will not take yes for an answer. inco systems, incoherent, even at the risk of self incarceration, the snp are prisoners ofa incarceration, the snp are prisoners of a separatist ideology which puts their narrow nationalism ahead of our national interest —— inconsistent, incoherent. he did touch on fish, the leader of the

snp, but what he did not give us where the figures. i've got them here. if we look at the increase in stocks, north sea hake, up relatively by our west of scotland up relatively by our west of scotland up by relatively by our west of scotland up by 188%, west of scotland —— scotla nd up by 188%, west of scotland —— scotland called up by 54%, north sea sold up by 295%, all because we are out of the common fisheries policy which he would take us back into. this deal today, this bill today, opens a new chapter because the people of britain voted notjust for a new settlement with the eu but a new settlement within the uk. genetic sequencing and investment in general dynamics, a fair deal for farming and fishing stocks for coastal communities and of course, this deal also allows us to regulate more smartly and effectively for the future, whether its artificial intelligence, quantum computing, our participation from 2020 and our investment in science will make us a

science superpower and it's appropriate we should think of that on the day that the oxford astrazeneca vaccine, a uk initiative, part of britain, a global nation, collaborating with others in the pursuit of knowledge on the relief of pain, on the day that that vaccine is approved by the m ra. let's remember the difficulties and challenges of this year and also remember how important it is that we should all now contemplate and recognise that there are no such things any more as remainers or leave us, what we all are britain's dedications —— dedicated to a brighter future, stronger together, sovereign again, dedicated to ensuring a future of sharing, solidarity and excellence, and that is why i commend this bill to the house. the question is that the bill be read a second time. as many of that opinion say aye. on the contrary say no.

the speaker calls for division. we have about 15 minutes. no surprise, the two final speakers encapsulating the two final speakers encapsulating the fundamental thrust of their arguments. yes, and it was interesting to hear michael gove say it's time to move on, we are not leavers or remainers any more, it's time to accept this is done and that

is what will happen today, this is the first vote of mps will have, it will go through fairly comfortably, there may be some abstentions in the conservative party and may be a view labour mps who vote against a deal, other opposition parties are opposing it but i think it will have a comfortable majority, it then goes to the house of lords and we think buy around midnight tonight it will have cleared parliament completely and been signed into law and it's worth remembering that's a significant moment in what has been a long drawn out process. it's been four and a long drawn out process. it's been fourand a a long drawn out process. it's been four and a half years since the referendum that saw the uk about to leave the eu. it feels strangely calm around westminster today which is in part due to the pandemic and there are not as many people in central london but it's a far cry from some of the days we have spoken

before on these big brexit votes when the result was on a knife edge. the fact the conservative party has a comfortable majority and the labour leadership is backing this deal means in many ways there will bea deal means in many ways there will be a chance for parliament to move on. the opposition we will see in those votes when they are counted over the next 15 minutes will be significant, especially at northern irish and scottish mps, we may hear more about that in months to come but this is a big moment and the end ofa but this is a big moment and the end of a four but this is a big moment and the end ofafourand but this is a big moment and the end of a four and a half year process. we will be back to you in a short while, we think around ten minutes, perhaps it will slip a little bit. let's speak to chris morris, nick was talking about the years leading up was talking about the years leading up to this, finally we reach the fork in the road. and the devil is in the detail, scrutiny is an issue,

after more than 40 years of contentious history, four years of argument about brexit, not much more than four hours of debate on the entire future relationship and whatever your perspective on leaving the eu, from the brexiteer side or those who wish to stay, that is not ideal and there was a lot in this agreement we haven't debated properly, from the brexit say that is true as well about what it could mean infuture, is true as well about what it could mean in future, whether it's on fishing or these rules of fair competition and a level playing field, there are things that are not yet decided, especially what exactly can the uk do with this newly won sovereignty? is it just can the uk do with this newly won sovereignty? is itjust theoretical sovereignty? is itjust theoretical sovereignty? we from john redwood, on the brexiteer wing of the tory party, saying he wants to see the measures that will put sovereignty into practice and the issue,

especially on rules for fair competition, is yes, the uk has won the ability to break away in the future from eu regulations but there will be a price to pay and when push comes to shove, economic elite will not be worth paying? and i suppose the same is true on either side of the same is true on either side of the debate because the focus now shifts to the mechanics, whether individuals or data or qualifications or security, the mechanics of how this will work. this partnership council will be created which is a new bureaucracy of almost endless meetings between the two sides, within that council there are more than 20 committees and working groups and one or other will meet almost continuously over the next few years because a lot in the next few years because a lot in the agreement still needs to be put into practice and a different government in the future can interpret this agreement in a

different way, i think that will be a challenge not just different way, i think that will be a challenge notjust for the conservatives but at the next election for labour, what they say about that because there are a lot of things in the agreement where you could have closer cooperation in theory and a future government could go to the eu and say we want more market access and the eu will come back and say here is the blueprint but in return you have to accept more obligations so the idea that the debate and the argument about europe is over, ifear i have to tell viewers of this is not the case, they are our closest neighbours, we need a good relationship with them but to get that relationship going in the right way, whatever your perspective, will ta ke way, whatever your perspective, will take detailed argument for years to come. we were talking about that while watching those scenes in the house of commons but let's talk now for the next few minutes to the former director of communications

former director of communications for labour and former director of communications for labourand a former director of communications for labour and a leading campaigner against brexit, alistair campbell, and martin howard, a barrister specialising in intellectual property and chairman of the pro—brexit group lawyers for britain. i might break away to get the vote itself but merton, i will start with you, your headline thought at the moment we have reached just now. my headline thought is that we have regained art sovereignty or at least have 90% got there, there are still problems over our sovereignty in northern ireland and there are still problems in not having recovered ourfisheries for the next five years but we have recovered our sovereignty. we have much greater freedom to set our own laws according to our own priorities. our parliament must now

be much more responsive to the wishes of electors because parliament cannot hide behind, we have to do this because of europe any more, and what we make, we have freedom, what we make of it depends on our choices. alistair campbell, where do you think we have reached? i think we have reached the end of the first long stretch of the road and one of your correspondence that we have hit a new fork in the road, it depends what flows from this, that depends on the decisions people in parliament take. ijust feel very sad that a relationship which has never been perfect but which has been broadly very positive both for the uk and for europe is coming to an end in this way and i agree also with your correspondent who said the debate felt very strange where you had people like martin and the people he knows in the erg saying

the bits they don't like about the deal, labour even more so sink why they are really don't like the deal, but all coming together and saying we now have to vote for it and move on. i don't think there will be much moving on because as mertonjust said, whether you're coming from my end of the argument or his, there is so end of the argument or his, there is so much now that depends on future negotiation and decisions the british government now have to make and upon those decisions will then float further consequences that may impinge upon our relationship with the eu. let me ask you about what you have publicly said in the last few days, that the labour leadership is making a mistake in voting for this. you were accepted with the size of the government majority that they would win anyway so it isn't what you are recommending by saying they should abstain just posturing?

i don't believe so, i don't like abstention but sometimes in the parliamentary process they can play a useful function. if there was a genuine danger that because of the parliamentary arithmetic that no deal would happen, itotally parliamentary arithmetic that no deal would happen, i totally would get that and i thought keir starmer explained his position well, it's just that i don't agree with it because on the politics of this now going forward, every time, and we saw, less so from michael gove but certainly from borisjohnson, the weight he is so political, so ruthless about the politics of this, every time labour tries to expose things going wrong and tries to put forward different propositions and tries to craft this new relationship that rachel reeves was talking about, they will say you voted for it. but the flip side is true, you

we re it. but the flip side is true, you were always good at painting your opponents into a corner and had the opposite decision been made it would have been easy for borisjohnson to say you were against brexit, you refuse to accept the public‘s decision, you are ignoring a deal, that would have been the easiestjob in the world. he did that anyway because he said you don't really mean it so dare i suggest boris johnson is having cake and stuffing it down his face, i think that keir starmer already has a problem with the labour party because of the approach to jeremy corbyn, he now has a lot of problems because of a lot of people who will feel...|j has a lot of problems because of a lot of people who will feel. .. i am going to interrupt you because we have the vote. the ayes to the right, 521, that knows macro to the left, 73. the ayes have it. there it

is, the labour party voting with the conservatives, the number decisive. 521 -73 conservatives, the number decisive. 521—73 so the numbers down. we broke away from alistair campbell but let me bring in martin howe because alistair campbell was making the point that this is not really the end of all those negotiations are around brexit and sovereignty, you only have to look at fishing because in five and a half years we will return to this, let alone any divergence because you get to the same problem that you would get to possible tariffs, possible reduction in access to markets, this is not the end of it. it isn't the end of it but one thing i hope will happen increasingly over coming years is

that we realise that our relationship with europe is not the be all and end all and although it obviously will remain an important relationship, there are other relationships which will become increasingly important, are relationship with other trading partners, for example the possible joining of the trans pacific partnership, which would open up a very large market for us and i think once we get used to the idea that we don't have to focus on the european union all the time, it's important relationship with it but it is only one of a number of important relationships. it's our largest market and the american deal you are talking about, potentially with a new president, it could take a long time. i didn't mention an american deal, i mentioned the transpacific

partnership which is different from the us is not a member of the transpacific partnership the us is not a member of the tra nspacific partnership although canada is an australia and a number of eastern pacific states. the general point is that this obsession with europe, we have to distort ourselves in order to trade with europe, i'm very hopeful that will diminish. on the fishing issue it is a disappointment that we didn't get back control of our waters, we got an increased quota share that builds up an increased quota share that builds up but we have to be ready to build up up but we have to be ready to build up our trawler fleet and indeed to wish our trawler fleet that under no circumstances will this arrangement be extended beyond five and a half yea rs, whatever be extended beyond five and a half years, whatever happens, because we

need to do that to get investment going in building up ourfleet. alistair campbell was trying to get backin alistair campbell was trying to get back in there. you wanted to make a point. just to say this is why i was quite surprised that the erg which martin advises has backed this, he is for example the possibility of cross sectoral rights that if we do something on fishing the eu don't like, they can then block our access in other ways and there is still a continuing role in certain limited circumstances for the ecj and i was interested, i saw owen paterson's speech where he talked about the suicide of his wife but then made the point that he was abstaining because of what he saw about the real difficulty is in regard to northern ireland which i thought was a red line for the erg soap what all

this says is that anyone who thinks we are at the end of the debate, i think it's the start and i agree with your reporter who warn your viewers the brexit story is not going away for a long time and the point about these partnerships with other countries, you're right there isa other countries, you're right there is a big focus on trade but a lot of the big powers in the world, especially the us, we should not underestimate how much they look to us underestimate how much they look to us and their relationship with us in the past because of our strong position in the eu. martin, a final point from you... ijust position in the eu. martin, a final point from you... i just wanted to pick upa point from you... i just wanted to pick up a particular point alistair raised about northern ireland, we have not regained sovereignty over northern ireland because under the northern ireland because under the northern ireland because under the

northern ireland protocol, eu laws over a wide sector, the internal market relating to goods applied within northern ireland, there are restrictions on trade between great britain and northern ireland and all those are subject to the continuing jurisdiction of the european court. do you feel let down by that given borisjohnson was clear about do you feel let down by that given boris johnson was clear about that before the election? the reason why we didn't say this agreement impinged on legal sovereignty is because those problems are not in disagreement, they are in the withdrawal agreement and the issue... but there is no change that bears upon that which i thought had beena bears upon that which i thought had been a problem for the erg. sorry, what is or isn't a problem for the erg, i advise them but that's for them to say. let me ask a quick final thought to both of you, come

january the 1st, what do you hope this country can do that it couldn't do before? we can refashion our relationships with the rest of the world in a way that we become a global power and a global trading nation again. northern ireland, its unfinished business, it cannot carry on long term with the sort of arrangement but we have sovereignty back, we have 95% of our sovereignty back, we have 95% of our sovereignty back, we have 95% of our sovereignty back, we do have some unfinished business to go. alistair campbell, a final quick thought from you. the political argument is that brexit is now finally done, the country can unify. do you think that is likely in any way? i think the country is sick to death of hearing about brexit and it has worries about the pandemic but i think this will not

go away as an argument, it's interesting that martin's claim on sovereignty jumped by 5% interesting that martin's claim on sovereigntyjumped by 5% during our interview, i don't know what we said to increase it. i think when reality kicks in for businesses, people trying to travel, students who want to be in europe, frankly i think people will come to regret this. i don't sense any will in parliament for there to be a drive to undo what has happened but i think as people look at the detail of this, we will look at the detail of this, we will look back and think what on earth have we done to ourselves? alistair campbell and martin howe, thank you for joining campbell and martin howe, thank you forjoining us so quickly after getting that vote. let's go back to westminster and back to nick ea rdley. westminster and back to nick eardley. when the votes came, the number is decisive, 521—73. eardley. when the votes came, the number is decisive, 521-73. yes, i'm just looking to see if we had the

final breakthrough but it sounds largely as we expected, the majority of tory and labour mps voted for the deal, the other opposition parties voted against it and i suspect there will be some from the conservative and labour parties who have abstained, but it is a significant moment. there may be a couple more of these moments later in the day, remember this bill has to go to the house of lords and will then potentially come back to the house of commons if there are any changes before it is passed into law this evening but a significant moment and it means after four and a half years the brexit process in parliament, certainly in terms of exiting the eu and starting a new relationship for trade, that is done. we have in the next couple of minutes got that announcement from the health secretary matt hancock in the house

of commons, it's a really busy day there at westminster, news about the changes on tears. we are just getting breaking news in advance of that statement that lancashire will move into tier 4. are you hearing those details as well?|j move into tier 4. are you hearing those details as well? i have spoken toa those details as well? i have spoken to a few mps who have been briefed on this and i think we are about to see significant parts of england moved into tier 4, potentially a large part of the country taken into that message where people are told not to leave the house apart from essential reasons. we don't have a full list of areas but i suspect some parts around london will be added to it and i am hearing a concern not just about added to it and i am hearing a concern notjust about cases in london but also parts of the north of england so we may see parts of the north—east and north—west added to that top tier, tier 4. some areas

iam hearing to that top tier, tier 4. some areas i am hearing will go into tier 3, the second top tier, so we are seeing more restrictions there as well and it seems like at the start of 2021 the majority of england will be either in tier 3 or tier 4, the two highest years, those changes are due to start tomorrow and it looks like they will be significant. just to bring up pictures from the house of commons because our busy schedule there, after this brexit session concludes we will get matt hancock going through in much more detail all the changes on the tier system, the movement of many more millions into the top tier of tier 4, announced there on the floor of the house of commons and we have had pretty much a clear steer that this would happen but there are voices, scientific voices, one thinks of the

alternative sage group that have already said today that tier 4 itself is not enough and they are pushing for a national lockdown now. yes, there are some who think basically all of england should go into the full list of restrictions which would see everyone told to stay at home. i don't think the government wants to do that, it wa nts to government wants to do that, it wants to hold onto that tier system for england that it brought into place at the start of this month but it sounds like a large swathes of england will be very close to lockdown over the next few weeks. i think large parts of the country in the next hour or so will be told they are going into tier 4 if they are not already, some being put into tier 3 and all against that real concern about rising cases pretty much across england, especially related to that new variant of the

virus that was discovered in the uk which we have been speaking about over the last couple of weeks. it's worth bearing in mind that two weeks ago tier 4 in england didn't exist, this has been a rapidly evolving situation in the last couple of weeks, the concern about that new variant led to that new tier being brought in in england and it's worth pointing out that scotland, wales and northern ireland are already backin and northern ireland are already back in lockdown, there are a few exceptions in scotland outside the mainland but a real concern about rising cases there so we will hear a sombre message from the health secretary when he gets on his feet in the next few minutes. we will hear from the in the next few minutes. we will hearfrom the prime minister around 5pm uk time on his take on the latest when it comes to the virus. add into the mix in an arc about the school situation in england, i'm

hearing from some contacts in the industry they expect some sort of delay in parts of england to the start of the school year which is due to start next week but clearly a concerning picture in the short to medium term in the uk when it comes to the virus, some of the edge taken off that i suspect by the news about the oxford astrazeneca vaccine being approved to get rolled out next week but the message from the government is all doubt that is around the corner, there are still some pretty difficult weeks ahead. a very busy afternoon so i will let you get away as we return to pictures of the commons, we had that vote on the second reading it now of putting into uk law what has been agreed, a decisive 448 majority. there will be an amendment placed by the snp which will be voted on and i think that is

what is happening there. at this point we will leave our viewers on bbc world news as we continue to see these scenes from the house of commons. in order to allow the safe exit... commons. in order to allow the safe exit. . . that commons. in order to allow the safe exit... that third reading has passed, just as the second reading did quite decisively, the speaker just going through more details. let's bring in chris morris who has been watching things and when we are talking to our guests, pretty much agreement that there is unfinished business. in particular a couple of warning shots from martin howe, a legal adviser to the hardline brexit wing of the tory party, he said in no circumstances should the fishing deal to be extended, he means there is this five and a half year transition period during which the amount of fish u—boats can catch in

uk waters will drop by 25% and the implication is that is it but he says we need to go further than that but the deal says if that is the case of the eu has the right to impose tariffs which means we have a tariff rate deal for now but that is not guaranteed in future. his second point which i think is really pertinent, northern ireland is unfinished business and that is partly on sovereignty because the writ of the european court of justice still runs in northern ireland but there is also the problem but if you want to keep that land border open between northern ireland and the republic, there needs to be some border some work and the choice borisjohnson made was commit you don't have to call it a border if you don't want to, but some regulatory checks in the irish sea between great britain and northern ireland, and because northern ireland, and because

northern ireland, and because northern ireland is in the single market for goods, it can still trade without any checks with the eu and we will hear continually from scotla nd we will hear continually from scotland in this very important year coming upfor scotland in this very important year coming up for scottish politics, if northern ireland can have that, why can't northern ireland can have that, why can't we? huge strains on the union. in terms of practicalities for businesses, in terms of the advice on the computers that the government have been urging businesses to look at on line four months, they have been complaining that they get to a certain part and it says to be decided, it has now been decided but they haven't got long to get their requisite bits in place. they only got the detail on boxing day, 1300 pages for which unique lawyers and technical experts to go through all that so there will be mitigating factors about the fears of disruption at the borders come new year's day. number one is that the

uk is delaying checks on staff coming into the country by six months so the 1st ofjuly next year is another deadline, the other thing is another deadline, the other thing isa is another deadline, the other thing is a lot of businesses will try hard not to trade across the border between great britain and the eu, not just between great britain and the eu, notjust in the first couple of days but the first couple of weeks of january. one reason we saw gridlock at ports well before the covid closures was because people were stockpiling and it's only when those stocks start to run i had that problem is at the border might occur. chris morris, thanks for taking us through all that. let's head back to westminster because we are not that far from the announcement in the house of commons with the focus turning to the changes in coronavirus restrictions are round and then, more places being put into tier 4. nick eardley is there and you have found out more detail. we got the good news this

morning about the oxford astrazeneca vaccine being signed off for use in the uk, that is the one that the uk has bought a lot of but we will now get the bad news that significant extra parts of england will be put into the top tier of restrictions, the stay at home message where people can only leave the house for specific reasons. mps have been briefed in the past hour by some of the scientists on this and it looks like the list of places going into tier 4 will be quite extensive, taking in parts of the south—east of england, some of the north—east, parts of the midlands, we don't have a list of specific areas... matt hancock is on his feet. the approval this morning of the oxford astrazeneca vaccine is a world first for britain and the single biggest ride we have been able to take sent

this pandemic began. it is almost a year since we first heard about what we now know as covid—19 circulating in wuhan. within weeks the scientists at porton down had sequenced the viral genome and scientists at oxford received the genetic code for the new virus, and like the great british codebreakers before them they set to work at lightning speed, we took the decision to back them with funding and access to the nhs for clinical trials and partnered with astrazeneca who have done a brilliantjob to develop a safe and effective vaccine at speed. i am sure the whole house willjoin me in congratulating everyone involved in this huge british success story which is not just this huge british success story which is notjust a triumph of science and ingenuity cracking a modern day enigma but a victory for all because the oxford vaccine is

affordable, it can be stored at normalfridge affordable, it can be stored at normal fridge temperatures and offers hope not just normal fridge temperatures and offers hope notjust for this country but for the whole world. like so much else, it has been a big tea m like so much else, it has been a big team effort, and whilst this is a great british success, it is also the british way that we are at our best when we collaborate with people from around the whole world and this is another example. the vaccine's programme has shown britain as a life sciences superpower, the brexit deal this house has just passed with a very significant majority has helped us, will help us to strengthen this yet further. i want to thank the national institute for health research, the uk vaccine's network, the vaccine task force, astrazeneca of course an oxford university and all the volunteers who stepped up for science and took pa rt who stepped up for science and took part in the trial, and all those who have been involved in making this happen. from the beginning, we have focused on the vaccine as a way out

of this pandemic, and now it is a reality. we need to vaccinate as quickly as supply allows, following the necessary safety checks of course, and the nhs stands ready to accelerate deployment at scale from monday 4th of january. we have a total of 100 million doses on order, which, combined with the pfizer vaccine, is enough to vaccinate every adult in the uk with both doses, and we will of course vaccinate according to thejcvi a priority, but today's news means that everyone who wants one can get a vaccine. we already have 530,000 doses available to the uk from monday, with millions due from astrazeneca by the beginning of february. mr speaker, the clinical advice is that the oxford vaccine is best deployed as two doses, up to 12 weeks apart, and the great news is people get protection after the first dose. this means we can

accelerate the speed at which we can vaccinate people for the first 12 weeks before we return to deliver the second doses for that longer term protection. it brings forward the date on which we can lift the restrictions that no one in this house wants to see any longer then are absolutely necessary. but, mr speaker, we must act to suppress the virus now, not least because the new variant makes the time between now and then even more difficult, and so whilst we have the good news of the vaccine today, we also have to take some difficult decisions. the nhs is under very significant pressure, there are over 21,000 people in hospital with coronavirus right now, and we can see the impact that this is having. the threat to life from this virus is real, and the pressures on the nhs are real too. i wa nt to pressures on the nhs are real too. i want to put on the record my thanks to all those working right now in

the nhs, and in particular those, including our chief medical officer, who have been working selflessly on the boards over christmas. they deserve our thanks and gratitude and support, and we owe it to them to fulfil our responsibility to keep the virus under control. sharply rising cases and hospitalisations that follow demonstrate the need to act where the virus is spreading, and you will have seen mr speaker that yesterday alone, 53,135 new cases were registered, the majority of which are believed to be the new variant. unfortunately, this new variant. unfortunately, this new variant is now spreading across most of england, and cases are doubling fast. it is therefore necessary to apply tierfor fast. it is therefore necessary to apply tier for measures to a wider area, including the remaining parts of the south—east, as well as large parts of the midlands, the northwest, northeast and the south—west, and i have laid a comprehensive list in the library of the house published on gov.uk. even

in most areas not moving into tier 4, cases are rising too and it is therefore necessary to apply tier 3 measures more broadly too, including liverpool and north yorkshire. the rest of yorkshire remains in tier 3. these changes will take effect from one minute past midnight tomorrow morning. the new variant means three quarters of the population are now going to be in tier 4, and almost all of the country in tiers three and four. and i know that tier 3 and tier 4 measures place a significant burden on people and especially businesses affected, but i'm afraid it's absolutely necessary because of the number of cases that we've seen. but where we are still able to give places greater freedoms, we will continue to do so. mr speaker, today isa continue to do so. mr speaker, today is a day really of mixed emotions, the joy that we have in the vaccine giving us a route out of this pandemic, the pride that britain is the first country in the world once again to approve this british

vaccine, the sorrow at the deaths and the suffering that the virus has caused, and of determination that we must all stick at it during the difficult winter weeks ahead. we end 2020 still with great challenges but also with great hope and confidence that in 2021 we have a brighter future ahead and i commend this statement to the house. was always, i thank the secretary of state for advance out of his statement and i totally understand why he has had to come to the house this afternoon to move further areas into tiers three and four. we are as he says, almost the whole of england is now in a form of lockdown, and for my constituents in leicester and i'm sure honourable members from greater manchester will be greatly worried that our areas have now been in a form of restrictions for months and months and months, it is having a huge impact on cities like leicester and areas in greater manchester as

well. he has also moved liverpool into tier 3. liverpool was the great success story, so is it his view that the massive lateral flow testing is not enough to contain the spread of this virus, and our constituents will be asking how long he expects these lockdowns to be in place. we will vote for the regulations tonight because the situation we're in is truly horrific, as he has outlined, the scotla nd horrific, as he has outlined, the scotland —— virus is out of control. in the last two weeks nearly half a million cases reported. in england, there are now more patients in hospital, over 20,000, than at any time in this pandemic. admission is rising day by day, including was 2000 on christmas day. hospitals are close to or at surge capacity, we see ambulances queueing up outside hospitals because there are not enough beds for patients. we have london hospitals requesting to tra nsfer london hospitals requesting to transfer patients in need of intensive care to yorkshire. front

line health care workers warn of oxygen supplies running low, so can he assure us there will be no disruption in oxygen supplies through this second wave? our nhs staff are exhausted, morale is low, staff are exhausted, morale is low, staff absence is said to be double its normal level, leave for many is cancelled, and this time there is no evening applause on our streets, just long, dark, hard nights for our nhs staff. the nightingales were opened at great expense and fanfare, but now we hear that some of them, such as london's, have been emptied. will they be used, and if so, given the staff shortages we know there are across the nhs, how will they be staffed ? are across the nhs, how will they be staffed? there are reports today that only one in eight retired nhs staff, just 5000 out of an eligible 30,000 who applied, have been brought back to help. shouldn't we be making full use of this resource, especially to help with vaccination? today's astrazeneca news is indeed a tremendous boost and i congratulate

all involved, but can he confirm how many doses we currently have today ready to go? because we are in a crisis now. mass vaccination needs to start straightaway. we need to go hell for leather to get these jobs rolled out with no delay. we have already lost more than 600 health care workers to this virus, including a disproportionate number of black, asian, minority ethnic staff. front line nhs staff need the protection of the vaccine asap. will he set a clear target for when all nhs front line staff will receive the life—saving jab, and can he tell us when all care home residents and staff will be vaccinated? and residents and staff will be vaccinated ? and he residents and staff will be vaccinated? and he will recall that i raised with him the situation facing those with terminal illness. can he clarify what the jcvi's guidance is for that group today? this is a race against time, because the more the virus circulates, the more opportunities it has for further variants to emerge. the new

b 117 variant is 56% more transmissible, it is the dominant strain in london, and the east of england. the nerve tag minutes from 18th december suggest it could add at least 0.4 to the r. given the first lockdown brought r to about 0.6 and the second to about 0.8, it surely means it will be harder to bring infections under control and so hard measures will be needed. so will he publish, in real time, the advice he is receiving from sage on restrictions needed? advice he is receiving from sage on restrictions needed ? this advice he is receiving from sage on restrictions needed? this is a global crisis, but let us be clear, this is a national emergency. our national health services becoming overwhelmed. i hope the tier 4 restrictions are enough, but many believe even tougher restrictions are now inevitable. does he agree? we need not put more lives in jeopardy when vaccines are so near. let's give the achievements of our

scientists the best chance to save lives. the country has sacrificed so much in 2020. let's not repeat the same mistakes. we must start 2021 by doing everything it takes right now to save lives and support our nhs. only then can we look forward with confidence and hope. thank you very much, mr speaker. well, he's quite right, that there are problems with the challenges thrown up by this virus right around the world, and we are seeing some of the news from other parts of europe today, in terms of the impact on other countries. but he's also right that, thanks to the approval of this vaccine, alongside the pfizer biontech vaccine, the end is in sight. and that should give us hope that whilst we have difficult weeks ahead of us, we also can see the route out of this pandemic and to normal life returning with all that

means and entails was copy talked about the pressures on the nhs, and there are significant pressures on there are significant pressures on the nhs. one of the advantages of having a national health system is that when one area of the country faces particular challenges, then others can come to its mutual aid, and this is in process, it is happening, and it does mean that people are sometimes being taken across the country to receive care where there is spare capacity, and thatis where there is spare capacity, and that is necessary, and that is how the system works, when it is under significant pressure. they asked about the vaccination of nhs staff, andi about the vaccination of nhs staff, and i can confirm that thanks to the decision taken today, announced by the regulator, we will be able to accelerate the vaccination of nhs staff who are already in priority group two, as well as of course the over eighteens in the care home residents and staff. he asked about the number of vaccines we have available mr speaker, which i mentioned in the statement, we have

530,000 across the uk that are available for deployment in the first week of january, and the available for deployment in the first week ofjanuary, and the nhs is doing a fantasticjob of co nsta ntly is doing a fantasticjob of constantly increasing and expanding the scale of its operation. and finally he asked about what more could be done in the areas where rates are very high and continuing to rise, and the true answer to that, mr speaker, is that it is on all of us and it is about how everybody behaves because if we collectively decide to stop this by taking personal response ability are not coming into contact with others u nless not coming into contact with others unless it is absolutely necessary, thatis unless it is absolutely necessary, that is how we can slow the spread of this virus, within of course the tea rs of this virus, within of course the tears restrictions, which are necessary , tears restrictions, which are necessary, but ultimately it is about how we all behave, that is how we will get through the next few

weeks together, and then the vaccine can come and save us. the news from astrazeneca is fantastic, and he and indeed british science in general deserves enormous credit, but the nhs now is busier thanit credit, but the nhs now is busier than it was last april. in parts of london, it looks like it may fall over. but back in april, schools we re over. but back in april, schools were shut. next week, primary schools are due to reopen. in september, we came to regret allowing university students to go back en masse, but some universities are going to start to go back from next week. why, in the middle of winter, when the nhs is under such pressure, when we have a dangerous new strain of the virus, are we taking such huge risks? shouldn't our entire focus for the next eight to 12 weeks be on saving lives, getting the first dose of the

vaccine out to every single vulnerable person, stopping the nhs collapsing and putting nhs front line staff at the front of the queue for the vaccines, so that we keep safe the people upon who our safety depends? can ijust remind members who are not in the chambers that they should have the same dress code, even though they are virtual. it is only fair that we treat each other with the same respect. secretary of state. i share my right honourable friend's desire and strategy of keeping this virus suppressed where we get the vaccine rolled out as fast as possible, and one of the other good pieces of news from this morning's announcement is that we can roll this vaccine out faster, because we only need to give the second dose after 12 weeks, it means we can get the vaccine into more people, the first dose, which the data shows gives that immunity,

which means that we can get through the protection of the nation faster than we previously could have done. on the points he raises about education, of course these are important points. the education secretary is setting out in a statement shortly the details of how we are going to manage the very difficult balance between needing to keep children in education as much as possible whilst also ensuring that we don't add upward pressure on the r and we don't spread the virus any further, and i commend to him the education secretary's statement. the snp spokesperson dr philippa whitford. thank you, as chair of the all—party group on vaccination, i absolutely welcome authorisation of the astrazeneca vaccine. storage in normalfridges will the astrazeneca vaccine. storage in normal fridges will make it much easier to deliver here, but particularly in low and middle

income countries, which would have struggled to maintain the cold chain at -70 struggled to maintain the cold chain at —70 degrees as required for the pfizer vaccine, but delivering the vaccine will still be a herculean task for all four uk health services, and they will struggle if they are also dealing with surging covid cases. hospitals in london and the south—east are already reporting shortages of critical care beds and even oxygen, so there is an urgent need to get the new variant under control. does the secretary of state recognise that when dealing with a spreading infection, getting ahead of it is critical? only taking action once cases in an area are soaring is simply too late to bring it under control. all three devolved nations are already under level four restrictions to try and prevent the new variant getting a grip and getting out of control, so with greater levels of the new variant in england, and as hejust

greater levels of the new variant in england, and as he just stated, cases rising everywhere, does the secretary of state not think it is also time to put the whole of england and tight and tearful restrictions? well, i havejust announced the need to move a significant proportion of —— proportion of england and to tearful restrictions and i welcome the implicit support for that measure, but also where it is possible to keep some of the freedoms that we all cherish, then i think we should, and that is the basis of the tiered approach that we are taking. i have coursework in her support for the roll—out of the oxford astrazeneca vaccine, this will happen right across the uk from monday, and it has been a pleasure working with jean freeman, the snp government's health spokesman, cabinet secretary, in edinburgh, in holyrood, to make sure that this vaccine that has been

bought and developed and supported so effectively by uk science and right across the country, that it can be deployed properly to everybody in the whole uk on a fair and equitable basis according to their clinical need, and i'm looking forward to working very hard to make sure that happens. thank you, mr speaker. there will be many businesses in gloucestershire that are gutted to be placed in tier 4, and it makes the roll—out of the vaccine even and it makes the roll—out of the vaccine even more and it makes the roll—out of the vaccine even more important, but there is a worrying increase of anti—vax information in stroud. it is causing a lot of distress and upset is causing a lot of distress and u pset lots is causing a lot of distress and upset lots of people and it is appalling our gloucestershire hospital trust had to spend their precious time during this pandemic defending themselves against films on social media that were wrongly claiming the hospital is empty. will

the secretary of state assist me to reassure stroud about the vaccines and encourage people not to share covid information from unofficial sources to stop this dangerous, damaging and disrespectful behaviour? yes, mr speaker, i strongly agree with my honourable friend, who speaks very powerfully about the need for proper authorised information about these vaccines, which save lives, and we've been very careful to ensure... studio: we will briefly come away from matt hancock, just going through some of the key things. he started by talking about the approval we had a day of the oxford university astrazeneca vaccine, he described that as the single biggest stride forward. he talked about a british success story, said it gave hope not just of the uk but the whole of the world. he said it brings forward the day we can lift restrictions no one wa nts to day we can lift restrictions no one wants to see. before then going to

make those announcements, moving more areas into tier 4 so the rest of the south—east, the north—east, parts of the north—west and parts of the south—west all being moved up into tier 4, that's the top tier, with most of the rest of england being moved into tier 3. matt hancock saying three quarters of england's population now is in tier 4, and almost the rest of it is in tier 3. you heard some of the questions pushing him, wasn't it time to move the whole of england into tier 4, but three quarters of the population currently in tier 4. now i mention the midlands, so let's head there and speak to phil mackie, who is there for us. did they recognise this was coming? yeah, i think there was an air of resignation this morning, there was a sense that certainly where i am, birmingham, the black country, perhaps on the other major cities in the west midlands would be into tier 4, and parts of the east midlands,

but actually i think the extent to which there is tier 4 arrangements have been put in place and the urgency, because these will take effect tomorrow, has probably caught some people by surprise. roughly 6 million people by my calculation across the midlands will find themselves in tier 4 tomorrow. it is probably easier to say the places that aren't in it. tier 3 will be worcestershire, herefordshire, shropshire, telco memory and rutland in the east midlands, everywhere else will be tier 4 from tomorrow morning. i have with me the conservative mayor for the west midlands. you have just conservative mayor for the west midlands. you havejust heard conservative mayor for the west midlands. you have just heard the announcement as well. like i said, not a complete surprise but perhaps gone further, in terms of geography, than we were expecting?” gone further, in terms of geography, than we were expecting? i think that is fair. people will be disappointed, businesses frustrated but i think the majority of the view will be that is understandable, numbers here have been rising steadily in recent weeks, so tier 3 restrictions haven't helped the virus at bay, and frankly we want to act quickly to prevent the sort of numbers we have seen in london.

about 300 the average rate here in at the moment, so the quicker will react the quicker we can without the other side. i know birmingham, the black country, coventry, solihull, the areas you represent have really struggled being in tier 3, now the retail sector is going to be hit, those small businesses like the barber around the corner here will be shut as well. is there enough help coming from central government? categorically we understand why this decision is being made and everyone understands the quicker we move in, the quicker we will move out and of course there is the vaccine on the horizon to give us the ultimate hope. but at the same time we have got to think about the support for businesses. these are viable businesses, they have only come through nine months of disruption, we need to say more money needs to be put on the table particularly to help the hospitality sector and also some of the other small businesses that are now going to have to close. britain's second city, before pandemic, a bright future, businesses moving here, this is

almost like a lethal blow to the west midlands, what has happened over the past... i don't think it is a lethal blow, of course it is a huge setback and you only have to look at the increase in people claiming unemployment benefits will stop we are not unusual compared to other parts of the country and we will have to think really hard about how we bounce back. we have some advantages, city of culture, commonwealth games coming up, some big investments like hsz, some big sectors we are investing heavily so because it will be a really tough recovery but this place has bounced back many times before and do so again. in terms of coming out of tier 4 and tier 3 where this is still in place, how a government given you any idea what is required for things to start easing again? they haven't but there is a lesson, if you look at the previous lockdowns, even in november, december, it took about four or five weeks for the numbers really to return and then trend downwards and the reason i think the decision has been made correctly today is that actually once numbers begin to go

one way, they tend to be sustained for a period, so one way, they tend to be sustained fora period, so we need one way, they tend to be sustained for a period, so we need to see that turn and then hopefully sustained permanently as the vaccine comes into play at the same time. should we have come out of the lockdown at the beginning of december or should we have stayed in it, even up to christmas, just to try and get those numbers down before we got to this position? i think it was right to come out. the numbers were trending very rapidly as we came out of the lockdown, new talked about businesses, a lot of businesses were able to trade through december and that was definitely beneficial and that was definitely beneficial and that has helped people's morale, the ability to trade through december, so ability to trade through december, soi ability to trade through december, so i don't think it is right to say we should have stayed in all along, and rememberthe new we should have stayed in all along, and remember the new ingredient we should have stayed in all along, and rememberthe new ingredient is the new strain, and that is another reason why we have had to act very quickly now. we are not getting very much information from the region's hospitals, are you hearing news from on the ground, how are they coping? ido hear on the ground, how are they coping? i do hear news from on the ground almost daily frankly and this is the other reason why i think people will say this was the right decision. our numbers here, our hospitals are not

at as high level of occupation as they were in april but they are heading towards that level, so we haven't seen quite the scenes we saw on the television yesterday from the south—east, but again i would say act now decisively before those scenes come, because numbers in hospital across the west midlands are definitely increasing steadily. thank you very much, andy street the conservative mayor for the west midlands, clearly asking again for more government support, particularly in these areas which have been in higher tiers, or had lots of restrictions for a very long time. it is deserted in birmingham city centre again today, it has been deserted for months, even when the shops reopened there was a brief surge but not many people coming back in, the officers remain open, all of the night—time economy remains shut. it is not the city you would expect it to be this time of year, and until they sort of businesses can reopen i suppose not just for birmingham but the other big cities in the midlands, north and elsewhere in the country, they are desperate to get back open and they would really want to see certainly those infection rates come down so there is some of restrictions being eased. thank you

very much for taking us through all of that. i mentioned the midlands have moved into tier 4, northeast, parts of the north west and parts of the south west all moving up into tier 4. when you translate that into numbers, it means an additional 20 million people will be in tier 4. the government's covid—19 strictest restrictions from december 31. that means a total of 44 million people now in tier 4 or 78% of the population. it is worth having a look at what those restrictions actually mean. in tier 4, the stay—at—home order will be issued to residents, although those who have to travel for education or work may continue to do so. social mixing will be restricted to meeting one other person in an open public say. all non—essential retail will have to close, along with hairdressers, nail bars and indoor entertainment

venues, indoor leisure facilities must close, like james and indoor swimming pools, people should not leave a tier 4 area except for limited areas, including work in education, and the guidance for the clinically extremely vulnerable, well, that is to stay at home as much as possible. so that, the latest, in terms of what tier 4 means. those are the new areas. let means. those are the new areas. let me bring you another line of breaking news, because the premier league fixture postponed full‘s premier league match at tottenham, that match called off because of the new coronavirus cases at the west london club. the game was due to start at 6pm gmt, at the tottenham hotspur stadium. fulham requesting for the fixture to be postponed and the decision was confirmed, three hours before kick—off. so the latest, in terms of cancellations of

premier league games. we saw the same at manchester city earlier in the week. we were watching just a few moments ago matt hancock making of the announcements about the tier macro restrictions. also starting that statement talking about the approval today of the oxford astrazeneca vaccine, saying it was the single biggest stride forward, saying it showed that life sciences in the uk show that we were a superpower, and it said it gave hope for all, notjust the uk but the rest of the world. he was pressed by the shadow health secretary about how long these tier measures would stay in place. talked about the covid situation being horrific, with the pressures on hospitals, staff exhausted and morale low, and asked about the number of doses ready to 90, about the number of doses ready to go, matt hancock saying 530,000 vaccines available for deployment in the first week of january. let's look at that approval for the oxford astrazeneca vaccine in more detail

now. the approval of the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine is a huge moment, and with pressure on hospitals intensifying, it could not have come at a better time. this is a really significant moment in the fight against the pandemic, because the vaccine is the way out, and the approval of the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine brings forward the date at which we are going to bring this pandemic to an end. after cramming years of work into a matter of months, jabs will begin to be administered on monday. this morning, the head of the uk regulator insisted no corners had been cut. the safety of the public always comes first. the mhra's approval has been reached following a thorough and scientifically rigorous review of all the evidence. the announcement comes four weeks after the uk approved its first coronavirus vaccine. while the pfizer and biontech jab must be kept at freezing temperatures, the oxford one is both cheaper and can be

stored in a fridge. this makes it easier to reach the most at risk groups, particularly those in care homes. the hope is around 2 million patients a week could soon be vaccinated. the government target is an ambitious target, and we are working with them to define this. we can go to 2 million, and when i said ambitious, i did not mean to say that it is not achievable, but i meant to say that the government is committed to vaccinating people as quickly as we can. the uk vaccine's roll—out will now focus on administering first doses to as many vulnerable people as possible, which will prevent severe infection after three weeks. the second dose is vital, because it provides longer term protection. patients will now wait up to 12 weeks to receive it. because of the design of the trial, some people got second doses at different time intervals. this allowed an analysis of the effectiveness of the vaccine if you were to be able to delay from four to 12 weeks.

the effectiveness is high, up to 80%, with a three month interval. the vaccine uses a harmless virus, which causes colds in chimpanzees, and is altered to look like coronavirus. the body produces antibodies and t cells to fight it off. if a person is infected in the future, their body knows to attack. what we are hoping is that we will hear more approvals elsewhere in the world, which means that we can really start moving the vaccine to all the vulnerable people in different populations to have the greatest possible impact. while the vaccine approval has been called a game changer, it will be months before we see any real effects. until then, it is likely tougher restrictions will be needed to try and bring the virus under control this winter. anna collinson, bbc news.

—— let's go back to westminster. jonathan blake, you were talking about that vaccine and today's developments. what are they saying about numbers and roll—out? developments. what are they saying about numbers and roll-out? the health secretary confirmed it is the government's intention to start having this vaccine given to people inafew having this vaccine given to people in a few days, the 4th of january, so that is a lack of a week or so since the approval we heard about this morning and as we have heard there were 100 million doses of the vaccine which had been procured by the uk in advance of disapproval so thatis the uk in advance of disapproval so that is enough for 15 million adults to be vaccinated using the oxford astrazeneca vaccine in the weeks and months to come. there have been questions about why the need for those few days of daylight between the approval and the vaccine starting to be given out but there are logistical concerns about this

doesn't have to be capped at such low temperatures, limiting the transport and roll—out of other vaccine, the pfizer biontech vaccine, the pfizer biontech vaccine, there are still issues of supply and logistics which need to be overcome to start having it injected into people's arms but matt hancock confirmed it will be the 4th of january when this new vaccine start to be given out. i spoke earlier to one of those involved in oxford and they made the point it was significant to get approval in such a quick time but almost as important is the strategy to be talking about elongating the time between the first and second dhows to get more people with the vaccine inside them. yes, and the government has faced questions over that with the first vaccine that is already

being given out, some, not least former labour prime minister tony blair, said they should get more people having the firstjab so there could be more of the population that are partially vaccinated before having the second jab which needs to be given two weeks later for the vaccine to take its full effect but so far the government has stuck to its strategy and working its way down the list of vulnerable groups of people, starting with those working and living in care homes and then the over 80s and age groups below that and that is the hierarchical list which will be followed for the new vaccine when it is rolled out. let's turn to the other part of the announcement, the restrictions and so much of england in tier 4, 70 8% of the population. what is the government's reasoning when it comes to resisting the person to have the whole of england

in tier4or person to have the whole of england in tier 4 or the whole of the country in a national lockdown? the health secretary was asked about that after his statement and he said while there was a need to put large parts of england now in that highest level of restrictions, he said that where possible to allow people some extra freedom or to continue thinking of some of the limited freedoms enjoyed under tier 3 and a lower tea rs, freedoms enjoyed under tier 3 and a lower tears, he would still look to do that and it was right to do that where possible, but that question reflects the pressure on the government to go further than it has done, he said there was very short—term measures, he is not calling at a national lockdown, it is not technically a national lockdown in england because about 20% of the population are still in tier 3 and now only a tiny number below that, tier 4 is effectively

the conditions we have seen in earlier national lockdown is, only being able to meet with one other person out hours, the message overall to stay at home with nonessential retail and all hospitality illnesses closed. we we re hospitality illnesses closed. we were in birmingham getting reaction to that, and the obvious question was right which is that you have an announcement like this, you move tiers and businesses say what extra help can we get? are we expecting a further announcement to come from the chancellor answering those points? i am sure they will have to commit there is nothing we are expecting immediately to hearfrom the treasury or the chancellor but at every term during the pandemic when restrictions have changed, the impact on businesses has been felt immediately and there have been calls for extra help to support those businesses worst affected. the treasury has put in place funding

that will be available to the new areas coming into tier 4, the highest level of restrictions, but the impact will be felt immediately as these new allocations will come in at midnight tonight so as of tomorrow, new year's eve, many more parts of england waking up under tier 4, the highest level of restrictions and the impact of that in terms of employment, job prospects and businesses as well. jonathan blake, thank you. let's go back to the commons because matt hancock is still giving more details and answering questions raised by what he has announced and questions around the vaccine. he will be followed after the statement by the education secretary, gavin williamson, talking about changes to school returns injanuary williamson, talking about changes to school returns in january so williamson, talking about changes to school returns injanuary so we will play at that as soon as gavin williamson is on his feet on the

scottish first minister also due to give an update from holly ruud in the first little while, there are pictures of light from there so i busy afternoon, we will try to hit all those live statements when they are made so stay with us on bbc news, a lot of new information emerging in the next couple of hours but we will pause to catch up with weather details. we have more rain, sleet and snow forecast this week across northern and western parts of the uk and ice will continue to be a risk, that could lead to disruption so stay tuned to the forecast. as we head into tonight mostly wintry showers will be across scotland into northern ireland and western parts of england, wales and the south—west, significant snowfall over the hills of scotland, mainly rain to the coast but it will be cold wherever you are, certainly

central and eastern england could see —5 so for thursday, new year's eve, largely dry and bright for much of england and wales, wintry showers, scotland and northern ireland, significant falls of snow over scottish hills and cold. new year's day, over scottish hills and cold. new yea r‘s day, scotland over scottish hills and cold. new year's day, scotland and northern ireland will be bright, further wintry showers near the coast but cold and great for england and wales.

welcome is. let me show you the live pictures from holly ruud because we expect to hear from pictures from holly ruud because we expect to hearfrom nicola sturgeon giving an update on coronavirus restrictions in scotland, we have seen the latest changes announced in the house of commons by matt hancock so we expect nicola sturgeon in the next little while so as soon as she is on herfeet in next little while so as soon as she is on her feet in holyrood we will return and play you are her comments. she might also talk about what we have seen in the commons in terms of that brexit vowed earlier so that is coming up in the next little while. we havejust so that is coming up in the next little while. we have just had a brexit vote in the last hour, mps have overwhelmingly approved the post—brexit trade deal with the eu, the vote was backed in the commons by 521 votes to 73. laura kuenssberg

asked the prime minister about the new barriers that will be in place following that deal. how can you justify your claim that people can somehow do more business with the eu? we will be able to do things differently here, support our businesses and develop, whether it's biosciences or free ports, all the things we want to do differently in the uk to drive our economy were not having any barriers to trade with the eu. that'sjust not the case, there will be some new barriers. i can go through at this, there will be more checks on animals or plants, if you are a musician if you want to perform in europe you will need a work permit, you will need more paperwork if you want to take your dog on holiday. it's not true there will not be more barriers. you have more political control but you cannot say there won't be friction.

there will be changes and we have been clear with people they have to get ready for january the been clear with people they have to get ready forjanuary the 1st but from the point of view of uk exporters, they now have the advantage that they will only have one set of forms to fill out for export or rent the whole world. they said that was having your cake and eating it. they said you couldn't have free trade with the eu unless you conformed with eu laws.” remember that and your negotiators... that has turned out not to be true. and your negotiators have achieved that. i want you to concede... so you are having your ca ke concede... so you are having your cake and eating it. you said publicly there will not be new barriers. that is not true. there will be new barriers. in no doubt, i cove red will be new barriers. in no doubt, i covered this for many years, there

are already immense barriers to uk services, there is no internal market for services. as for the city of london, it is the greatest financial centre on earth and they will adapt and prosper mightily. many children will now not be back at school this time next week, more people will be living under limits near loughton, ambulances are queueing outside hospitals and there are more daily coronavirus cases than at any point. hasn't the government been too slow? you said people could get together at christmas and then they couldn't. haven't you been caught out?m christmas and then they couldn't. haven't you been caught out? if you look at what the tiering is, there isa look at what the tiering is, there is a good graph that shows the impact of tier3 is a good graph that shows the impact of tier 3 on the old variant of the virus and it was getting it down and working. but it wasn't enough. what we were not able to

budget for was this new variant. the pfizer and the astrazeneca vaccine, when they enable us to begin to and lock from all the things we are doing, we cannot yet give you that answer. the spring is unquestionably correct but to be more precise than that now is impossible. the crucial message now is that people should not in any way think this is over. borisjohnson not in any way think this is over. boris johnson speaking there not in any way think this is over. borisjohnson speaking there too laura kuenssberg. we will have more reaction on that story and on the changes to the tier system and we expect to hear from changes to the tier system and we expect to hearfrom nicola sturgeon in terms of changes for coronavirus in scotland. she hasjust in terms of changes for coronavirus in scotland. she has just got to in terms of changes for coronavirus in scotland. she hasjust got to her feet so let's dip in. 2045, that

represents 11.3% of the total number of tests and the total number of confirmed cases is now 24,831. that isa confirmed cases is now 24,831. that is a significant number of new cases, a record high for a day and it represents the severity of the situation we face, 1133 people in hospital, 41 more than yesterday and 69 people in intensive care, and 43 additional deaths have been registered in the past 24 hours of patients who tested positive. 137 deaths have been registered in the past seven days and that takes the total number of deaths to 4510. national records of scotland have not published their usual weekly update because not all registration offices have been open but the figures published last week showed the total number of deaths is now over 6000. each one of those deaths

is heartbreaking so again i want to send my condolences to everyone who has lost a loved one. there are three issues i want to cover today, the first is the oxford astrazeneca vaccine that has earlier been authorised for supply in the uk by the medicines regulator. that is obviously good news and means there are now two effective covid vaccines are now two effective covid vaccines are available in the uk, the oxford astrazeneca vaccine is logistically easier to deliver than the pfizer one and the uk has secured a higher number of doses. it is not recommended that the second dose of both vaccines can be given up to 12 weeks after the first rather than three, so we can now prioritise giving a first dose to as many people as possible rather than providing two doses in a short time so that will allow more people to be

vaccinated quickly. we have been preparing for the deployment of the oxford astrazeneca vaccine for some time and it will be administered in scotla nd time and it will be administered in scotland from monday the 4th of january. as of sunday more than 92,000 people had received their first shot of the pfizer vaccine but more people will now get their first dose of a vaccine sooner than anticipated. the second issue i want to touch on other restrictions now in place. on boxing day orkney, shetland and the western isles moved to level 3 protections but at the same time the rest of scotland moved to level 4. that is not the way any of us wanted to end 2020 but these new restrictions reflect the severity of the threat posed by this new variant. analysis by public health scotland shows that yesterday

at 42.8% of positive tests processed for scotland in the lighthouse laboratory network had the gene dropout, that is indicative of this new strain. it's higher than the 38% suggested by ons analysis beginning of the week of the 14th of december and that compares to just 6% at the end of november so this new strain appears to be becoming the dominant one in scotland and that is a cause for concern given it is thought to be significantly more transmissible. asi be significantly more transmissible. as i indicated before christmas the severity of this challenge means we cannot rule out the need for restrictions that are even tighter than those in the current level 4. we continue to assess the situation ona we continue to assess the situation on a daily basis and will keep parliament updated should any changes be required over the remainder of the festive period. as

we learn more about the new variant, we learn more about the new variant, we continue to review when pupils can we continue to review when pupils ca n safely we continue to review when pupils can safely return to class. the new strain has already made a normal scheduled return impossible but we continue to assess whether it is possible to reopen schools as planned on the 18th of january. that is what we all want and remains our planning assumption but we will continue to put the safety of pupils and staff first and we will ensure as much notice as possible to pa rents of as much notice as possible to parents of any changes we consider necessary. for now we must do as much as possible to suppress transmission, limiting interactions with people in other households beyond those that are essential and to remind everyone, are very strong advice right now is people should stay at home as much as possible and when we go out we should stay as close to home as possible. with a

few limited exceptions for essential purposes, none of us should visit each other‘s homes right now or travel to other local authority areas and less for an essential purpose and there must be no nonessential travel between scotland and other parts of the uk and that advice also applies to overseas travel. we should remember the advice on face coverings, avoiding crowded places, cleaning hands and surfaces, keeping two metres from people in other households and self isolating and getting tested immediately if you have symptoms. testing centres are open through the festive period so if you experience covid symptoms do not wait, book attest immediately. it's also worth noting that the nhs 24 mental health hub is open right through the festive period. the support of this

kind is especially vital at a time when so many of us are missing loved ones and normal social interaction so if you feel the restrictions are affecting your mental health and you need help or advice, don't hesitate to call the number 111. finally i wa nt to to call the number 111. finally i want to say a few words about hogmanay tomorrow. i know most of us, andi hogmanay tomorrow. i know most of us, and i speakfor hogmanay tomorrow. i know most of us, and i speak for myself, hogmanay tomorrow. i know most of us, and i speakfor myself, will hogmanay tomorrow. i know most of us, and i speak for myself, will be glad to see the back of 2020 and today's news about the new vaccine should give all of us greater hope for the year ahead but for now it's vital to do everything we can to suppress this virus, especially given the risk of the new variant. that's important to keep ourselves and our loved ones safe and to protect the nhs so we must mark this new year responsibly, and i take no pleasure in saying this, that means no gatherings, now house parties,

now first footing, instead we should bring in 2021within our own homes. this new strain is very serious and our prospects for the rest of the new year will be better if we get it off toa new year will be better if we get it off to a safe start so i urge eve ryo ne off to a safe start so i urge everyone to be responsible, i know it's hard and especially for young people but it's how we best protect ourselves and our loved ones and it helps the nhs, and i need our help just now. in scotland so the numbers in numbers in hospital and i see you are not at the peak of the first wave but the nhs is under pressure so everything we do to stop the virus spreading helps reduce the number of people who end up in hospital and icu beds and that really matters for a number of reasons. is this awful year draws to a close, that may thank everyone across the country for your sacrifice and patience and looking out for each other. we have every

reason to believe spring 2021 will bring better times but we must first get through the difficult weeks of winter so let's stick with it and keep looking after each other and it may end by wishing everyone across the chamber and at home, when it comes, a better and brighter new year. i now turn to questions. ruth davidson. i thank the first minister for advance sight of her statement. we all look forward to scotland's share of the 100 million doses of the new vaccine. despite this positive development of a vaccine with fewer logistical challenges than the pfizer one, people across scotland will be concerned by the rising rates of transmission caused by the new variant, which makes today's announcement so welcome and timely, and people will want

information. on the 23rd of december a list of vaccination centres was published which included hospitals and gp surgeries intended for use from january to vaccinate all over 80s. we must be hopeful this next phase can be concluded quickly and we can move on to wider cohorts of the population. that will almost certainly require greater infrastructure than that and so can the first minister update us on the work being undertaken to identify and secure venues work being undertaken to identify and secure venues for mass vaccinations and when a list of these will be published? the national figure of trained vaccinate is is around 4000 people at every health board will need enough staff to deliver across the region so can i ask the first minister what confidence she has that each area has a staff they need and can she publish a breakdown on the number of trained vaccinate is by health board? we will look to publish

updates on all of that as soon as possible and then on an ongoing basis as regularly as possible. i have confidence in both the centres and the infrastructure in terms of where the vaccine will be delivered and also in our estimates of numbers of people available to do that. we ta ke of people available to do that. we take nothing for granted and there is no complacency, i and the health secretary are receiving daily updates on the progress of vaccination which is going well so far but we need to make sure we can pick up the pace to meet the increased supply we are now likely to have with astrazeneca... increased supply we are now likely to have with astrazeneca. .. nicola sturgeon answering questions, talking about the rise in cases in scotland, 43 deaths in the last 24 hours, welcoming the news of the oxford astrazeneca vaccine but going on to talk about the rise in cases, saying the new strain was now

becoming dominant in scotland and that was worrying given the speed of spread. she said they would continue to monitor the return to schools, think they still hoped schools would restart on the 18th of january but would look to see whether that was possible, she talked about hogmanay saying there should be no first footing and concluded the initial statement by saying the situation in scotla nd statement by saying the situation in scotland is serious, i cannot stress that enough. we are due to hear from gavin williamson about the situation with english schools injanuary and a plan, that in a couple of moments at westminster but now it's whether. staying cold for the rest of this way, further wintry showers, in the short term it looks like much of scotland, northern ireland and western codes of england and wales seeing wintry showers, issues with ice for the next few nights likely

to cause disruptions so the cold air with us, these weather fronts accentuate in the rain, sleet and snow, areas of rain to the south—west of england, it could turn to snow as it moves east, certainly inland and over higher ground, plenty of wintry showers across northern and central scotland, further wintry showers for northern ireland, northern and western wales, only the best drier weather will be central and eastern england. overnight we continue with wintry showers across northern and western coast, central and eastern areas seeing clear skies so colder temperatures down to —5, around western coast hovering around one or two celsius. for thursday, western coast hovering around one or two celsius. forthursday, new year's eve, this feature brings more substantial rain, sleet and snow

across scotland, some settling snow inland and over hills and further showers for northern ireland stretching down into western wales but much of south and east england will be dry but with variable cloud and spells of sunshine but there is temperatures on the low side. as we move through new year's eve night we will continue with wintry showers across northern and western areas and ice will be a risk. as we move into friday, new year's day, this weather front moving out of scotland into england and wales will weaken so it could bring a great day for england and wales, could see some spots of light rain and drizzle, for scotla nd spots of light rain and drizzle, for scotland and northern ireland a brighter day with a few wintry showers across northern coast, again cold with temperatures from four to 6 degrees and then for the first weekend of january, it 6 degrees and then for the first weekend ofjanuary, it will stay cold, variable sunshine, a greater

chance of seeing some wintry showers across north sea coast. this is bbc news. these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. millions more people in england have been placed under tougher tier 3 and tier 4 coronavirus restrictions, as case numbers continue to rise.” coronavirus restrictions, as case numbers continue to rise. i know that tiers three and four measures plays a significant burden on people, especially on businesses affected, but i'm afraid it is absolutely necessary because of the number of cases we have seen. the uk's education secretary is due to set out new plans for the start of the school term in england, and in an hour, boris johnson the school term in england, and in an hour, borisjohnson will hold a coronavirus briefing at downing street, so do stay with us for that. the coronavirus vaccine, developed by astrazeneca and oxford university

becomes the second vaccine in the uk to receive regulatory approval. borisjohnson to receive regulatory approval. boris johnson signed the to receive regulatory approval. borisjohnson signed the post—brexit trade deal with the european union. after his parliament approved it. he says it is not the end of the relationship with europe. we will be able to have a wonderful partnership with the eu, in which we are able to do our own thing, and we will be able to be supportive, friendly and i think that actually it's a great deal also for our european friends. hello, and welcome to bbc news. millions more people across england willjoin the toughest tier of covid restrictions from thursday. the midlands, the north—east, parts of the north—western parts of the south—west are on those —— are among

those escalated to tier 4. it means three quarters of the population of england will be under the highest level of restrictions, where people are asked to stay at home. in the next few minutes we are expecting an update on the situation for schools in england from education secretary gavin williamson. it comes as the uk medicines regulator approves the use of the oxford vaccine, marking a landmark battle in the fight against coronavirus, and there's more. the prime minister will lead a briefing on coronavirus from downing street at 5p and this evening. so more on all of those stories in the next hour. now more on the tier macro announcement by matt hancock. sharply rising cases are hospitalisations that follow demonstrate the need to act where the virus is spreading and you will have seen that yesterday alone 53,135 new cases were registered. the majority of which are believed to be the new variant.

u nfortu nately, to be the new variant. unfortunately, this new variant is now spreading across most of england, and cases are doubling fast. it is therefore necessary to apply tierfor fast. it is therefore necessary to apply tier for measures to a wider area, including the remaining parts of the south—east, as well as large parts of the midlands, the north—west, the north—east and the south—west and i have laid a, hence of list in the library is housed and published on gov. uk. of list in the library is housed and published on gov.uk. even in the most areas not moving into tier 4, cases are rising too and it is therefore necessary to apply tier 3 measures more brightly too, including liverpool and north yorkshire. the rest of yorkshire remains in tier 3. these changes will take effect from one minute past midnight tomorrow morning. an additional 20 million people will be in tier4 an additional 20 million people will be in tier 4 of the government's covid—19 restrictions from new year's eve, meaning a total of 44 million people will now be in tier 4, 70 8% of the population of

england. let's take another look the restrictions for areas in tier 4, the highest level of restrictions. a stay—at—home order is issued to residents, although those who have to travel for educational work may continue to do so. social mixing will be restricted to meeting one other person in an open public space. all nonessential retail will have to close along with hairdressers, nail bars and non—entertainment venues. indoor leisure facilities must close, like gyms and indoor swimming pools. people should not leave a tier 4 area except for limited reasons, including work and education, and the guidance for the clinically extremely vulnerable is to stay at home as much as possible. let's talk to our political correspondent jonathan blake. something like this was expected post—christmas, and looking at the numbers... yes, for letter, you only have to see the rate at which cases were rising in recent days. the number of new positive coronavirus tests being reported to know that action was

almost certainly going to be deemed necessary , almost certainly going to be deemed necessary, and that is why the health secretary matt hancock explained to mps this afternoon that new parts of england are being put under tier 4, the highest level of restrictions possible. so now more than 70% of the population of england will be under tier 4, and most of the other parts of the country will be moved up to tier 3. it is simply because cases of the new coronavirus have been rising at such a pace that tough action has been deemed necessary to try and contain that and ultimately curb that upward trend of infections. so as of midnight tonight, first thing tomorrow, large parts of england will be waking up under tier 4. it is not a national lockdown but it will feel for the vast majorityjust like that because the conditions, the restrictions will be such that you can't meet in groups of more

than two people outdoors, and the message overall is now as 2021 begins, more like stay at home than happy new year. there has been that ongoing tension between risk to life and risk to livelihoods, you know, whenever lockdowns have got stricter, there has been paying economically speaking, at westminster are there any voices saying this isn't necessary, or this shouldn't happen? yes, there has been consistent voices, certainly among conservative mps, saying just that and they have deeply resisted these further measures the government has attempted to take at various points. we have seen that in objections raised at the house of commons and at westminster that the government hasn't given mps enough time to dictate or approve these measures “— time to dictate or approve these measures —— debate or approve. it will only get a retrospective vote. the government has tried to involve

local leaders and mps come in terms of determining which restrictions are appropriate for their areas, through to what we see now and ministers taking action from the centre of government because simply they believe they don't have the time or the freedom to discuss it and to wait for these restrictions to come in. there are a lot of people looking at these measures are not approving of them, and in some cases not thinking they are necessary , cases not thinking they are necessary, but ultimately as we have seen the pressure increase on the nhs in england in recent days and weeks, ministers clearly feel the situation is so serious now that they have no choice but to act. and those mixed emotions likely to continue as we hear about schools? yes, we will get an update shortly from the education secretary gavin williamson and he is widely expected to outline an extension to the christmas break for secondary schools and possibly universities as well in england. we don't have the

details as yet, we don't know what he will announce, but parents watching and waiting anxiously to hear what this will mean for the return to term just next week, which was expected already, the government is planning a staggered return for secondary school pupils in the first weeks of january, but it seems like thatis weeks of january, but it seems like that is going to be expanded, and some pupils at least will be kept away from school for longer because there are increased concerns now about the spread of coronavirus, specifically the new variant which has been discovered here in the uk, spreading more quickly among secondary school age children, as well as adults, but will have to wait to see what the education secretary gavin williamson has to say in the commons shortly. jonathan, thank you very much, in fa ct we jonathan, thank you very much, in fact we have just had the daily figures through for the number of coronavirus cases in the uk. 981 deaths reported. 50,023 cases, covid

—positive cases, reported over the last 24 hours, there's just in, showing still that great pressure on the nhs that the health secretary spoke about. early in the day he told parliament 21,000 people are now in hospital with coronavirus. the uk medicines regulator has approved the oxford—astrazeneca coronavirus vaccine, paving the way for millions more people to be immunised in the new year. that is the positive news of the day on the health front. this comes as we have those further figures, the 981 deaths recorded within 28 days ofa 981 deaths recorded within 28 days of a positive test. when we come to this new vaccine, the uk has ordered 100 million doses, enough to vaccinate 50 million people, and on the upside, this vaccine is much easier to transport and to store than the pfizer biontech one already in use. it is also much cheaper. our health correspondent anna collinson

has the details. the approval of the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine is a huge moment, and with pressure on hospitals intensifying, it could not have come at a better time. this is a really significant moment in the fight against the pandemic, because the vaccine is the way out, and the approval of the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine brings forward the date at which we are going to bring this pandemic to an end. after cramming years of work into a matter of months, jabs will begin to be administered on monday. this morning, the head of the uk regulator insisted no corners had been cut. the safety of the public always comes first. the mhra's approval has been reached following a thorough and scientifically rigorous review of all the evidence. the announcement comes four weeks after the uk approved its first coronavirus vaccine. while the pfizer and biontech jab must be kept at freezing temperatures, the oxford one is both cheaper and can be stored in a fridge.

this makes it easier to reach the most at risk groups, particularly those in care homes. the hope is around 2 million patients a week could soon be vaccinated. the government target is an ambitious target, and we are working with them to define this. we can go to 2 million, and when i said ambitious, i did not mean to say that it is not achievable, but i meant to say that the government is committed to vaccinating people as quickly as we can. the uk vaccine's roll—out will now focus on administering first doses to as many vulnerable people as possible, which will prevent severe infection after three weeks. the second dose is vital, because it provides longer term protection. patients will now wait up to 12 weeks to receive it. because of the design of the trial, some people got second doses at different time intervals. this allowed an analysis of the effectiveness of the vaccine if you were to be able to delay from four to 12 weeks. the effectiveness is high, up to 80%, with a three month interval.

the vaccine uses a harmless virus, which causes colds in chimpanzees, and is altered to look like coronavirus. the body produces antibodies and t cells to fight it off. if a person is infected in the future, their body knows to attack. what we are hoping over the weeks ahead is that we will hear more approvals elsewhere in the world, which means that we can really start moving the vaccine to all the vulnerable people there are in different populations to have the greatest possible impact. while the vaccine approval has been called a game changer, it will be months before we see any real effects. until then, it is likely tougher restrictions will be needed to try and bring the virus under control this winter. anna collinson, bbc news. our health correspondent nick triggle, we werejust our health correspondent nick triggle, we were just hearing that the uk will be first to get this vaccine. how quickly, people will be asking, are

they likely to be able to get it from their gps? we understand it was not to be rolled out as early as next week. there are already millions of doses of the oxford astrazeneca vaccine in the country. these will be sent out to the local vaccination centres across the uk, and along with the pfizer vaccine, patients will be getting the vaccine next week. this will be essential, we are next week. this will be essential, we a re really next week. this will be essential, we are really in a race against time now. 25 million people in the nine priority groups, 12 million of them are over 65. now i understand talking to gps that they can vaccinate perhaps 2 million people a week if there is a good supply of the vaccines. so that will mean it will be a number of weeks, perhaps the end of february, before we really see an impact on the serious illnesses and hospitalisations which of course as we have just been

reporting on the rise. what do we know about how much safer you are once you've had the first dose, the first of two? that was the interesting development today, the move to essentially what is a one dose strategy, or at least to start with. i'm sorry to have to stop you but gavin williamson is going to his feetin but gavin williamson is going to his feet in the house of commons, let's hear what he has to say about schools. throughout we have been adamant that the education of children is an absolute priority, and that keeping schools open is uppermost in all of our plans. the magnificent efforts of all the leaders, teachers and staff in all of our schools and colleges have ensured that settings are as safe and covid—secu re as ensured that settings are as safe and covid—secure as possible, but we must always act swiftly when circumstances change. the evidence

about the new covid variant and rising infection rates have required some immediate adjustment to our plans for the new term. this is of course a rapidly shifting situation, but some things remain constant. we continue to act to preserve lives and safeguard the national health service, and we continue to protect education by putting children first. above all, our response is proportionate to the risk at hand and makes every use of a contingency framework that we put in place earlier this year. the latest study we have from public health england is that covid infections among children are triggered by changes in

the community rate. the study also says that the wider impact of school closures on children perspective element would be significant. i'm quite clear that we must continue to do all we can to keep children in school. taking all these factors into account means we have had to make a into account means we have had to makea number of into account means we have had to make a number of changes for the new term in order to help with breaking chains of transmission and to assist with keeping all of our children and our education settings as safe as we can. the fact that we have managed to do this so successfully throughout the entire pandemic is due to the incredible dedication of all our teachers, leaders and support staff, and i know that the house willjoin me once more in thanking them for the thing they continue to do to help children

continue to do to help children continue learning safely as possible. accordingly, we will be opening the majority of primary schools as planned on monday 4th of january. we know how vitally important it is for younger children to be in school for their education, well—being and wider development. in a small number of areas where the infection rates are highest, we will implement our existing contingency framework, such that only vulnerable children and children of critical workers will attend face—to—face. we will publish this list of areas today on the gov.uk website. i would like to emphasise that this is being used only as a last resort. this is not all tier 4 areas, and the overwhelming majority of primary schools will open as planned on monday. the areas will also be reviewed regularly so that schools can reopen at the very earliest

moment. ongoing testing for primary school staff will follow later in january and we will be working to establish an ambitious testing programme, helping to break chains of transmission and reducing the need for self isolation where stu d e nts need for self isolation where students and staff test negative for the virus. we have already announced our intention for a staggered return to education for this term for secondary age pupils and those in colleges. because the covert infection rate is particularly high among this age group, we are going to allow more time so that every school and college is able to fully roll out testing for all of its pupils and staff. i would like to thank school leaders and staff for all of their work in preparing this. this kind of mass testing were not

just help children and young people, it will benefit everyone in the community. it will break those chains of transmission. this in turn will make it safer for more children to return to school. all pupils in exa m yea rs , to return to school. all pupils in exam years, including 11th of january with all secondary school stu d e nts january with all secondary school students returning full—time on the 18th of january. during the first week of term on or after the 4th of january, secondary schools and colleges will prepare to test as many colleges will prepare to test as ma ny staff colleges will prepare to test as many staff and students as possible, and will only be available to billable children and the children of key workers. the 1500 military personnel committed to supporting schools and colleges will remain on task, providing virtual training and advice on establishing a testing

process , advice on establishing a testing process, with teams on standby to provide in person support if required by schools. testing will then begin the following week in earnest, with those who are in exam yea rs earnest, with those who are in exam years at the head of the queue. this is in preparation for the full return of all pupils in all year groups on the 18th of january in most areas. to allow this focus on establishing testing throughout the first week of term, exam year groups will continue to have lessons remotely in line with what they would receive in class, and only vulnerable children and children of critical workers will have face—to—face teaching. as with primary schools, we will be applying our existing contingency framework for education in areas of the country with very high rates of covid infection or transmission of the virus. this will require secondary schools and colleges to offer face—to—face education to only exa m yea rs , offer face—to—face education to only exam years, vulnerable children and children of critical workers, with remote education being given to all

of the students, if they are in one of the students, if they are in one of those contingency framework areas. we're also asking universities to reduce the number of stu d e nts universities to reduce the number of students who return to campus at the start of january, prioritising stu d e nts start of january, prioritising students require practical learning to gain their professional qualifications. all university stu d e nts qualifications. all university students should be offered two rapid tests on return, in order to reduce the chance of spread of covid. to support remote education and online learning during this period, the government expects to deliver more than 50,000 devices to schools across the country on the 4th of january alone, and over 100,000 altogether during the first week of term. this is in addition to the 560,000 devices that have already been delivered, as we continue aiming fora target been delivered, as we continue aiming for a target of over1 million devices to be distributed for children who need the most. this

programme has now been extended to include students aged 16 to 19 in colleges and schools. so often, mr speaker, we have had to close things down to try and beat this awful disease, but with schools, our best line of attack is to keep them open, using mass testing tools that we now have available, so that we can ensure that children are able to continue to gain the benefit of a world —class continue to gain the benefit of a world—class education. as we continue to hear more encouraging news about the vaccine roll—out, i am more determined than ever that children will not have to pay the price for beating covid. mr speaker, i have spoken many times of my determination that we cannot let covid damage the life chances of an entire year of children and students. with these plans, which allow for rapid testing in a controlled return of schools, i'm

confident that we can minimise the latest health risks posed by the virus, andi latest health risks posed by the virus, and i commend the statement of the house. we go to stratford to the shadow secretary of state, kate green. mr speaker, before i begin, i would like to place on record my thanks, and the thanks of the whole labour party, to every leader, every teacher and lecturer, the support staff and professionals and social workers who have moved mountains to keep children and young people safe and educated in the face of enormous. they deserve notjust the thanks of this house but genuine support, and i hope when he stands up support, and i hope when he stands up again, the secretary of state will give more information about that support. may i also thank the secretary of state for advance sight of his statement but the truth is we should not be in this position. only days before many schools should have

been opening again to all pupils, the secretary of state has announced that many will not be returning as planned. this delay and disruption to children's education is a direct result of government's failure. they have lost control of the virus. now they are losing control of children's education. the cost to pupils, the pressure on staff and the challenges for families caused by school closures are huge, but we know that action must be taken to control the virus. so is the secretary of state confident that the measures he has announced today will control the virus, and will he publish sage's advice on this issue? there is consensus across the house that the best place for children is in school but the government has failed to give schools the support they need to make that happen. for months, labour has been calling for mass testing in schools will stop the secretary of state announced it

just before schools broke up for christmas, creating huge additional work for overstretched school staff, but just two weeks work for overstretched school staff, butjust two weeks later it is clear his plan has failed and many schools will not open as planned next week. can he tell us how many schools do now have testing infrastructure in place and how many will have it next week in the week after? can he guarantee that every school will have the testing it needs when due to open again? mr speaker, the secretary of state announced that some primary and secondary schools will not reopen to pupils in january, it will be a cause of huge concern to parents will stop can he tell us how many primary and secondary schools will not be opening, how many pupils will be affected, and will students not in exa m affected, and will students not in exam classes receive remote teaching by their school is closed? i am hugely concerned that even with school open to them the most vulnerable children may simply not be able to attend. can the secretary of state tell me how he plans to

keep them safely in school in the place —— in the weeks ahead? i am glad his announced an increase to remote learning but our concerns remain that it is not sufficient to support all pupils. can he guarantee every pupil will have the device and the connectivity they need to learn, and will he ensure this is available for every child who school isn't open? will there be any support for pa rents for open? will there be any support for parents for children who can't attend school? can he confirm that pa rents attend school? can he confirm that pa re nts ca n attend school? can he confirm that parents can be furloughed if they have childcare commitments? can this also happen on a flexible basis that allows parents and particularly mothers to balance work with caring for their children? many people who are clinically extremely vulnerable will be concerned about a return to school, whether they are vulnerable pa rents of school, whether they are vulnerable parents of a child or a vulnerable member of staff. what reassurance and support can he give to them? mr speaker, it has been reported in recent days that teachers will be prioritised for vaccination, but an announcement today suggested they

would not be prioritisation based on occupation, and i understand the clinical priorities for the first phase of the vaccination programme, but does the secretary of state believe that not only teachers but all school staff, including in special schools, should be prioritised for vaccination thereafter, in order to protect them and safeguard children because my education? turning to exams, the government's failure to get a grip on the virus has caused huge disruption to people's education, which will continue into the new year. for the secretary of state be making any changes to his plans to reflect this? labour said time and again there needs to be a credible plan b in event of disruption continuing that means exams can't ta ke continuing that means exams can't take place fairly. this is now urgent. over 100,000 young people will be taking exams in the next few weeks inbee and other vocational qualifications. can the secretary of state tell us what he is doing to make these exams fair? the secretary

of state spoke about the expert group on learning laws but at the time couldn't tell us who was on it, when it would sit or report. can he a nswer when it would sit or report. can he answer those questions today? and i welcome the decision to delay the return of students to university in january, sadly necessary for public health. can the secretary of state confirm he has discussed this with unions and university and student representatives? in conclusion, we should never have been in the position we're in today, if the government had acted quickly, followed the science and given schools the support they throughout this pandemic, we wouldn't be facing a new year with this new wave of infections and huge disruption to the lives of pupils, their families and staff across our education system. the government have lost control of the virus, and it is children and young people across the country who are paying the price.” think you ever so much, mr speaker. ido think you ever so much, mr speaker. i do thank the honourable lady for echoing my words and my thanks to

all teachers, leaders and all those who work in our schools, colleges and childcare settings for the wonderful work that they do. she talks about what extra support, madam deputy speaker, that we are giving those schools, in terms of rolling out the largest mass testing exercise that this country has seen, in terms of ensuring that children are able to get back into school and able to have the benefits of being in school, and we are supporting them, not just in school, and we are supporting them, notjust in terms of making sure that they have the equipment thatis sure that they have the equipment that is due to be delivered to all school settings on the 4th of january, we are also supporting them with extra finance, a package of £78 million in order to help them get this mass testing programme set up, established and they are to test all stu d e nts established and they are to test all students and all staff, as they return back into secondary school. this is about taking the opportunity

to be able to have a real opportunity to beat back this virus, have a real understanding of where the infection is within the community, and making sure that schools are even safer than they have already been. she asked about the sage advice, and of course is the sage advice, and of course is the honourable lady knows full well, it is sage that publishes its advice, and it will of course publish its advice soon. that has been a public document for a number of months so i'm sure the honourable lady has had a chance to look at it and it makes clear that those schools that are placed in pa rt those schools that are placed in part of a contingency framework, there needs to be the continued delivery of remote education in those schools, and just to be clear,

those schools, and just to be clear, those children who are in exam group yea rs those children who are in exam group years will be returning back into secondary school even if they are in a contingency framework area on the 11th of january. she a contingency framework area on the 11th ofjanuary. she rightly highlights the issue of vulnerable children and i think our school system children and i think our school syste m ca n children and i think our school system can be proud, as well as our local authorities, for the amazing work they have done with those children who are most vulnerable in society to ensure we do everything to get them attending school, making sure they have the protection of school around them and those efforts working with local authorities, working with local authorities, working with local authorities, working with the police and with schools will continue, and finally she raises the issue that there are many students who were about to take examinations in technical and

vocational qualifications in the early pa rt vocational qualifications in the early part of january. those assessments will continue as planned in those educational establishments delivering them. now we go to harlow to the chairman of the select committee, robert halfon. thank you, madam deputy speaker. i believe my right honourable friend wants to keep schools open and teachers and children safe but i have worries about the effect of school closures hurting vulnerable children and putting pressure on parents. can i ask them to set out what risk assessment the government has made on the impact of school closures on pupils, on education and equality well— being and mental pupils, on education and equality well—being and mental health especially when paediatricians have stated that eating disorders among young people has gone up fourfold? will the department introduce a tracker on pupils, at least there in

exam years, working with schools and local authorities to ensure those at home get the learning they need and will they ensure that teachers and support staff get priority for vaccinations so we can reopen schools and will he thanked teachers and support staff in harlow who are doing all they can to keep children learning? i would very much like to join my honourable friend in thanking teachers and support staff who have done so much in harlow to keep children learning. the importance of school is the reason we are proceeding with opening primary schools on the 4th of january, the importance of education means this is why we are rolling out the mass testing regime to ensure secondary students across the majority of the country can return back into school. we know how important it is, children need to be in school and that is why we will do

everything we can to resist knee jerk reactions to close schools or colleges because we recognise how important it is for children's life chances for them to be in school. my right honourable friend raises the important issue of the impact of loss learning and that is why we commissioned epi and renaissance to doa commissioned epi and renaissance to do a close study on loss learning and we will be looking closely at the impact especially among exam year cohorts as well as the wider school population to make sure that is there to inform us on any future policy decisions. gavin williamson telling us about those primary and secondary schools, the majority of primary schools to open next week, monday the 4th of january, although

some will not reopen for face—to—face teaching, for secondary schools exam years, the week of the 11th of january, for others the weight of 18th of january but attendance will be reduced in a small number of areas. later we will have live coverage of the downing street coronavirus briefing led by the prime minister, at 4:50pm on bbc one and here on the bbc news channel. let's look at the impact of what we have heard. i'm joined by the head teacher atjohn payne catholic school in essex. what did that mean to you? i think we anticipated what mr williamson has announced, anticipated what mr williamson has announced , across anticipated what mr williamson has announced, across the education sector that was to be expected, my concern is that it has come late, he began his statement at 4:15pm and we

all appreciate it's not always possible for leaders to be com pletely possible for leaders to be completely in control of the situation, it is very fluid as mr williamson has said but one aspect as it is possible to be in control of is communication and school leaders since march have asked for timely consistent communication and it's fair to say that hasn't always been forthcoming by the dfe. i am sympathetic to the challenges the government face but given that school leaders are crucial to and highly supportive of government strategy to recover from a public health emergency, we could have been afforded greater courtesy in terms of the timeliness. we have one working day before we go back to school. i anticipated mr williamson plus point announcement, i could have got communication out to the pa rent have got communication out to the parent body and staff first thing this morning but i have been waiting

all day to have it confirmed. it would have been helpful to me and i'm sure to school leaders nationally had he been able to communicate sooner. are there still questions for you? mr williamson said four areas with high rates of infection there will be reduced attendance so some years or groups might not be there. looking at the state of the coronavirus in essex, that could affect you. it almost certainly will and that is a challenge because online learning requires a different type of planning and delivery, we will have some children in school for the majority stay at home, we will have children of critical workers and vulnerable children attending school. i was interested to hear the shadow secretary of state ask what provision schools are to provide for stu d e nts provision schools are to provide for students other than exam year groups next week because while my understanding from the announcement

is that it's only the stipulation that schools provide online learning for students taking exams, i don't think we can afford to allow stu d e nts think we can afford to allow students in other year groups not to have any provisions so we need clarification on that, and in education understandably the focus tends to be on student due to sit examinations. i am worried about other students, especially in year seven who missed out on their final term at primary school, were not able to benefit from transition activities and i'm concerned about their mental health and well—being and the effects of prolonged absence from school on them. tom cowan, i hear your concerns, especially for stu d e nts hear your concerns, especially for students like those in year seven, having made that huge transition, but i also wanted to ask a personal question, it has been so stressful and demanding for teachers and head

teachers like yourself. absolutely. we love our work. i'm sure i speak for every school leader nationally, we love our work and in many ways we thrive on pressure but it is challenging, it is demanding. i would be lying if i said it didn't exact a toll on school leaders and i think as a profession which as i've said is supportive of the government strategy, needs greater consideration and courtesy so it can continue to support that government strategy to recover from this crisis. i work with a fantastic group of school leaders who i'm sure are group of school leaders who i'm sure a re reflective of group of school leaders who i'm sure are reflective of school leaders nationally. we will do whatever it ta kes to nationally. we will do whatever it takes to make this work. all we have a lwa ys takes to make this work. all we have always asked for is timely

consistent communication so we interim can communicate. tom cowan, we appreciate your time on what has obviously been a trying day for you. let's cross now to newer, because you might remember it was the epicentre of the initial coronavirus outbreak in the us. the city that never sleeps was put into hibernation by covid as cases and deaths soared. covid—19 has exposed many of america's long term ailments, and for many in new york its effects haven't gone away. nick bryant sent this report from the city about how the virus has changed america and americans. christmas 2020. where the carols sound more like laments. and where the traditional decorations come with the new protocols of the pandemic. social distancing, at a time when people normally congregate together. for many new yorkers, the festive season sounds more like a misnomer. it's a time of empty chairs at the family table.

a time to think of loved ones who didn't survive the year. last time i was here was with my dad. the funfair at coney island brings back memories for angelina pryer, of herfather richard, a keen long—distance runner, who died from the coronavirus at the beginning of the outbreak. he was just 66 years old. i feel like my country has turned its back on us. i feel like i lost more than just my dad. i've lost a feeling of safety, a feeling of confidence in my living situation, in my government, in my fellow citizens. itjust feels like we're all alone. then there's the economic toll of this crisis. forjust as poverty has been

a propagator of the pandemic, the pandemic has become a propagator of poverty. good morning, everyone! please have your bags open and ready, thank you. pre—covid, this foodbank served 200 people a week. on this morning, it provided vital assistance to 200 people in the first ten minutes. these queues are as long now as they were in march. it's extraordinary to see. yeah, they keep getting longer and longer. the lines and the need keeps growing and growing. and it's harderfor us as an organisation to keep up with the need and the demand. people are gathering again in times square, the crossroads of the world. but this is a global city that's suffered so much bereavement and where the flags are still at half staff. the coronavirus outbreak has exposed so many of america's long—term ailments — its income and racial disparities, the dysfunction in washington, the rundown of its government and the politicisation of everything.

even the wearing of facemasks. 2020, the year of the pandemic, and one that people here can't wait to consign to the past. nick bryant, bbc news, new york. a reminder, stay with us because we will have live coverage is of the downing street coronavirus briefing led by the prime minister, accompanied byjonathan van tam, and stefa n accompanied byjonathan van tam, and stefan pallas, the nhs medical director for stefan pallas, the nhs medical directorfor england, stefan pallas, the nhs medical director for england, at 4:50pm stefan pallas, the nhs medical directorfor england, at 4:50pm on the bbc news channel and bbc one. such a historic day in the uk, mps have approved the trade deal with the eu. the bill bring the deal into uk law was backed by 521 to 73

votes. laura kuenssberg asked the prime minister about the new barriers that will be in place after this deal. how can you justify your claim that people can somehow do more business with the eu? we will be able to do things differently here, support our businesses and develop... whether it's biosciences or free ports, all the things we want to do differently in the uk to drive our economy while not having any barriers to trade with the eu. that's just factually not the case, there will be some new barriers. i can go through a list. there will be more checks at borders on animals or plants, if you are a musician if you want to perform in the eu you will need a work permit which you don't need now, you will need more paperwork if you want to take your dog on holiday. it's not true there

will not be more barriers. you have more political control but you cannot say there won't be extra friction. there will be changes and we have been clear with people they have to get ready forjanuary the 1st but from the point of view of uk exporters, they now have the advantage that they will only have one set of forms to fill out for export around the whole world. they said that was having your cake and eating it. they said you couldn't have free trade with the eu unless you conformed with eu laws. do you remember that? i remember that and your negotiators... that has turned out not to be true. and your negotiators have achieved that. i want you to concede... this is a cakeist deal. so you are having your cake and eating it. you said it. you said publicly there will not be new barriers. that is not true. there will be new barriers. on services, for instance... be in no doubt, i covered

this for many years, there are already immense barriers to uk services, there is no internal market for services. as you know fine well. as for the city of london, it is the greatest financial centre on earth and they will adapt and prosper mightily. many children will now not be back at school this time next week, more people will be living under limits near lockdown, ambulances are queueing outside hospitals and there are more daily coronavirus cases than at any point. hasn't the government again been too slow? you said there would be to tears, then there would be four. you said people could get together at christmas and then they couldn't. haven't you been caught out time and again? if you look at what the tiering is, there is a good graph that shows the impact of tier 3 on the old variant of the virus and it was getting it down and working. but it wasn't enough. what we were not able to budget for was this new variant.

the pfizer and the astrazeneca vaccine, when they enable us to begin to unlock from all the things we are doing, we cannot yet give you that answer. the spring is unquestionably correct but to be more precise than that now is impossible. the crucial message now is that people should not in any way think this is over. we have more rain, sleet and snow in the forecast for the rest of this week across northern and western parts of the uk and i will continue to be our risk and that could lead to be our risk and that could lead toa to be our risk and that could lead to a bit of disruption so stay tuned to a bit of disruption so stay tuned to the forecast for the latest details. in the south—west we could

see some significant snowfall to the hills of scotland, it will be cold wherever you are, certainly central and eastern england with those clear skies could seek —5 so for thursday, new year's eve, largely dry and bright for much of england and wales, wintry showers, and down into the south—west, significant falls of snow over scottish hills and cold wherever you are. fort newsday itself but looks like scotland and northern ireland will be bright, rather grey near the coast and for england and wales.

welcome to this bbc news special with me, george alagiah. we'll have coverage of the latest downing street briefing shortly. our headlines... millions more people in england have been placed under tougher tier three and tier four coronavirus restrictions as case numbers continue to rise. i know that tier 3 and tier 4 measures place a significant burden on people, especially on businesses, but i am afraid it is absolutely necessary because of the number of cases that we have seen. the move comes as a sharp rise in the number of covid—related deaths is reported in the uk, rising to 981, with more than 50,000 cases recorded. the start of school term is to be delayed in parts of england,