good morning, welcome to breakfast with charlie stayt. our headlines today: hospitals under extreme pressure as the new year begins. rising covid cases mean some seriously ill patients are being moved to hospitals on the other side of the country. a new era in the uk's relationship with the european union, as the brexit transition period officially ends. and, bringing in the new year during a pandemic — no crowds, but london's skyline is lit up with messages of thanks to covid heroes. good morning. tributes are paid to tommy docherty. the former manchester united and scotland manager has died at the age of 92.

and it is a cold start to 2021. —7 in parts of wiltshire. will things warm up? full forecast here. good morning. it's friday, the 1st ofjanuary. our top story. as most people across the uk seem to have heeded calls to stay at home on new year's eve, some hospitals in london and the south—east of england say they are now under extreme pressure because of rising coronavirus cases. they say some seriously ill patients are being moved to intensive care units in other parts of the country, as our health correspondent, katharine da costa, reports. like several major hospitals in the capital, university college london has had to rapidly increase critical care capacity to cope with the surge in covid patients. it's caring for more than 200, with numbers rising by the day. staff can't always

provide one—to—one care. what we're having to know do is stretch those ratios. so one intensive care nurse is finding themselves looking after two, three. in some places at the peak they were looking after four or five patients at a time. that puts a phenomenal amount of stress on the team. pressure too at southend hospital. a shortage of staff saw the trust declare a major incident on wednesday. some patients have had to be transferred to cambridge. another sign of the unprecedented pressure hospitals are under. staff are already stretched. they themselves are suffering from the effects of covid—19 through being ill themselves, being off work or having to self—isolate because of exposure. so there is a real risk of health services becoming overwhelmed because of lack of staff and inadequate number of beds, and because of the pressure everyone is under at the moment. so what does declaring a major incident mean? government money to reopen

mothballed wards in community hospitals. people sent to other hospitals in the region or further afield. and the fire brigade could drive ambulances. that's something being considered in buckinghamshire, after the council and hospital trust also declared a major incident this week. we are trying to actually look at the ways in which we can persuade people to use other alternatives, other than coming into the hospital, the a&e department. and also, we are looking at ways in which we can deploy resources across from other departments, such as the council, into the hospital. from the hospital's point of view as well, they're looking at cancelling some of their non—urgent operations, to free up resources for covid patients. some hospitals in the south—east are now so stretched, patients arriving at a&e are being treated in ambulances. others are having to be sent across england for treatment. and some health leaders are warning we've yet to see the impact of mixing over christmas. what we're going to see

in the coming weeks is these numbers really increasing, because we know there is a real lag between people being infected with covid and the symptoms coming out. so typically, it can be a two—week journey from someone realising they've been infected to perhaps being hospitalised. so the pressure is going to continue to mount and it is going to be quite a nail—biting journey for the nhs. it's a tough start to the new year. for many the roll—out of vaccines can't come soon enough. katharine da costa, bbc news. the uk's chief medical officers have defended their decision to delay giving the second dose of a covid vaccine to more than half a million people. it comes after a leading doctor's union described the plans to delay the second dose by up to 12 weeks, as "grossly unfair". but the chief medical 0fficers said getting more people vaccinated with the firstjab "is much more preferable". the uk has completed it's formal separation from the european union, leaving the single market and the customs union. the brexit transition period expired

at 11 o'clock last night, when the new trade deal came into effect. the government has warned there will be some disruption over the coming weeks. 0ur political correspondent, jessica parker, has more. big ben chimes. big ben marking the hour last night. boris johnson described it as an amazing moment for the country. it is one that some will regard with huge optimism, others with deep regret. but for brexit supporters, a long fought because coming to fruition. all decisions will be made in the house of commons through a system of transparency and accountability. i used to say to my constituents, i'll give you £100 if you can name me any of the members of the european parliament that represent you, and haven't lost a penny. the last ship leaving dover before the new rules kicked in. the uk left of the eu last january, but it was yesterday evening that the transition period ended and largely brought that departure into effect.

new border checks are coming in. change is here. unfortunately, because of the late negotiation of the deal, many of the actual details of how these checks will be done, and what the documentation looks like, have still not really reached those who are going to be working under them, and still worse, those who are going to enforce them. on new year's day there is expected to be relatively little freight traffic. the immediate impact of brexit in some areas may be less instant or obvious than others. nevertheless, significant changes are here, whether on trade, travel, immigration or security. civil servants of my generation have spent the last 40 years trying to remove obstacles to working, living, travelling to europe. and tonight, those obstacles, many of them, are coming back. life will get more difficult, more expensive, more cumbersome, dealing with europe. muted new year celebrations across the uk last night. and while coronavirus continues

for now to shut down much of society, those changes brought by brexit could well become more apparent in the months ahead. jessica parker, bbc news. the changes mean no more free movement between the uk and europe. so what does this mean for travellers? anna holligan is in amsterdam's schiphol airport. and i, tell us what these differences will mean in practice? well, this time last year if you'd woken up and font —— fancy spontaneously hopping on a flight to spend new year's day here in amsterdam, you could have done. this year you can't. that is a combination of brexit and covid. all eu nations have restricted travel from outside the eu. that rule now applies to the uk. it is essential travel only. if you do arrive here at ship airport, you will need to show a covid negative test that has

been taken within 72 hours of arriving here. beyond that, uk passports are still valid, but they need to have six months on them. so you need to check whether they run until the summer. they must be less than ten years old. bringing a pet. your old pet passport will no longer be valid. you need to get a new animal health certificate from your vet. in terms of coming to actually stay and work here, free movement is over now. that means you can, as a british citizen, commander spent up to 90 days here in any eu country within 180 to 90 days here in any eu country within180 days. beyond that the rules vary from country to country. in the netherlands you would need a work visa if you wanted to stay for longer. there are also changes to, for example, duty free and that kind of thing. but really the best advice is to check before you travel. the people in tier 4 at the moment aren't allowed to travel at all. it could be many months before we actually see what the real impact of

this will be for those hoping to do a bit of channel hopping in the summer. thank you very much. muted new year celebrations have taken place all over the uk, with events either cancelled or scaled down due to the pandemic. in london, a televised display was held over the river thames. meanwhile, in scotland, crowds of people gathered at edinburgh castle, despite warnings to stay away. greg mackenzie has more. an hour after leaving the eu behind, the uk left 2020 behind. these were fireworks, but done in a covid—secure way. a dazzling display on the thames televised on the bbc at midnight. over the o2 arena, images filled the skies, including a tribute to the nhs and to captain sir tom moore. there was even a special mention for something we've all had to get used to, zoom calls.

before tonight, police had warned people to stay away. 0n london's embankment a few hundred people did gather. on any given new year's eve there's normally 10,000 people along the embankment awaiting the fireworks to see in the new year. unfortunately, it's been cancelled. and the advice from the police denied to many people turning up here, is to go home. it's been very like, quiet. there's police everywhere. so it's just like, it's not like the usual. no, the police have been lovely, it's been fine. it's been nice. we went to the tate britain earlier. the lights are still up. people are jolly. celebrations all over the uk have been either cancelled or toned down. at edinburgh castle, a single bagpiper welcomed in the new year. while the majority stayed away, some people were turned away by the police. instead of the usual fireworks for hogmanay,

this was the replacement. a series of videos showing drones forming images over scotland's skies. many of us may have seen in the new yearfrom our homes, as the pandemic continues to restrict life in the uk. but with 2020 now at an end, we'll be all hoping for a better 2021. greg mckenzie, bbc news. new year celebrations have also been scaled back around the globe. a firework display went ahead in sydney harbour, but people weren't allowed to gather to watch it. in auckland, people could attend because new zealand's strict lockdown and border closures have been so effective. sir david attenborough has praised mankind's ability to pull together after a tough year, in a special new year's message. the veteran broadcaster says the need to take action against climate change has never been more urgent. today we are experiencing

environmental change as never before. and the need to take action has never been more urgent. this year, the world will gather in glasgow for the united nations climate change conference. it's a crucial moment in our history. this could be a year for positive change. for ourselves... ..for our planet... ..and for the wonderful creatures with which we share it. a lot of people listen very carefully when sir david attenborough speaks. that was his new year message. and we will be speaking to two people involved in the making of sir david's new series, a perfect planet, after eight thirty this morning. amazing images from that.

now the weather with matt. ami am i the first person to say it, matt, happy new year? you are. happy new year to you as well. and to you too. happy new year from the bbc weather centre. a cold start to the new year. —7 at the moment in parts of wiltshire. very cold indeed. icy conditions down here and other parts of the country. dense fog to content with a gross of central and south—eastern england. some will linger. not as much snow around today. 0utbreaks linger. not as much snow around today. 0utbrea ks of linger. not as much snow around today. outbreaks of rain, sleet and may be some hills now are england and wales. compared with yesterday, scotla nd and wales. compared with yesterday, scotland and northern ireland, a much brighter day. a few showers of rain into shetland and north—eastern parts. as it hits the hills across scotla nd parts. as it hits the hills across scotland it could give a covering of

snow. dry for much of scotland and northern ireland. brightening up in northern england later. the odd spot of light rain or drizzle. it will stay chilly. some spots struggling to get above freezing. showers down eastern counties of england overnight. some return to northern ireland. wintry ones across scotland. widespread fast —— or frosting to tomorrow morning. cold for the first few days of 2021. thank you. kat is jointly on the sofa to have a look at the inside pages for the sport as well. let's take a look at today's front pages. the guardian is among a number of papers to mark the end of the eu era on its front page, four years, 27 weeks and two days after a referendum that split the country almost down the middle. coronavirus also plays heavily in the first newspapers of the new year. the daily mail reports that a million people in england have now been given a covid—19 jab, but says serious questions remain about the race to vaccinate the rest of the nation.

the daily mirror leads with a smiling 86—year—old care home resident, who is pictured clinking glasses in hopes of a better year ahead. and this is what the online version of the new york times looks like. the world says goodbye and good riddance to 2020, is the headline there. kat, it is the time of the year, people look back and look forward to. what about the inside pages? lots of looking forward, and looking back as well, of course, because of the sad news of the death of tommy docherty. he worked and played at so many clubs. they have a phrase in football, more clubs thanjack nicholas. he was one of the original... his age was extraordinary. 92. we will talk about it more in the sports news. this interview with mark clattenburg caught my eye. it is in a lot of the papers today. talking about referees

being the most hated species in football. he studies his —— he says he still has nightmares. we couldn't enjoy any of the big moments of his career. because? he is so afraid of making a mistake and doggy abuse he would get. who would a referee? do you think that scrutiny has got greater? yes, definitely. with va are only make sense social media. people can fire off a criticism. it stuck with him. all of the papers, which i have been really enjoying this morning, looking ahead through the events we will savour most in the events we will savour most in the next year. of course, the 0lympics. the next year. of course, the olympics. the euros. we have got the masters, the ryder cup, the solheim cup. we have got the paralympics, of course. so much to look forward to. wimbledon will hopefully be back. but obviously there is always that if. if 2020 has taught us anything, there is always an if. that's true.

this is in the obituary section. this is in the obituary section. this is in the obituary section. this is janet and gallo, who i must admit i've never heard of before. she died aged 8a. she made her name in the picture here as the young girl captured by the monster in the 1942 film ghost of frankenstein. played by bela lugosi, with lon chaneyjunior as the monster. she was this little girl cast in the film as a child. to be carried by a frankenstein monster onto a roof. she was given the role, she said, because the producers, she was then five years old, and she was chosen for the role because the director reckons he wouldn't be afraid of lon chaneyjunior in his green frankenstein make—up. she said she wasn't frightened of him at all. here is a little twist at the end of the story. she lost her mother when

she was a young girl. and lon chaney junior, who played frankenstein, offered to adopt real life. and did he? no, because her father was still alive and he thought he could cope. when her mother died, the actor who played frankenstein offered to adopt her. what a story. she died aged 84 after a remarkable career. she fell out of the movies and did other things. what a lovely story. enjoy that. see you later on. new year celebrations have been taking place around the world overnight, but scaled right back to try and curb the spike in coronavirus cases. fireworks displays and other public gatherings were cancelled. paul hawkins reports. normally round, times square this year was closed to the public. instead, only vips and 40 front line workers and their family were allowed. forget the crowds, new york

came back massively on its new york celebrations because of covid. —— cut back. in france,... in france they had music maestro jean michel jarre live from his studio playing at a virtual notre dame cathedral. the reality, however, was somewhat different. translation: it's too bad because especially in this neighbourhood we are used to having a great atmosphere. and we don't see that today. it's too bad. australians also stayed indoors. their fireworks were cut to seven minutes. the uae did it like this. and in the place where coronavirus began, it was new year like usual. the chinese are reaping the rewards of tough lockdowns and a zero tolerance approach. no more social distancing. instead, socialising and parties. remember that? paul hawkins, bbc news. we can now talk to reporter

nancy chen from cbs. nancy is in times square. happy new year to you. give us a sense of what it was like in new york? charlie, good morning. happy new year to you as well. typically speaking, more than a million people come here to times square every new year's eve to see the ball drop and ring in the new year. some people wait 24 hours 01’ new year. some people wait 24 hours or longer in order to stake out that prime location and get that good spot to see the ball drop. but instead of this year, this is as quiet as times square will ever be, with people being told to stay away. this entire area closed to the public. people telling people to stay home and stay safe. we are looking at some of the images. as you describe it, a very different kind of atmosphere. can i ask you a slightly bigger, wider question about society more generally in america? these about society more generally in america ? these have about society more generally in america? these have been extraordinary times wherever you

live in the world, but in america too you have a new president about too you have a new president about to start. how is the mood whilst the coronavirus is still so rife in the country, but new changes in the new year ahead? well, i think any time there is a new year there is a new sense of optimism about what might be coming in this new year. but that might being said, 2021 is being hailed in that coronavirus cases have been surging across the country. we still have, now officially in this month, january 2021, a new president that will be inaugurated. what about you, nancy, did you get to do anything or where you just working all the time?|j did you get to do anything or where you just working all the time? i got a chance to see a little bit of that confetti come down. it is a very nice treat at the end of a very long year. nancy, good to catch up with you. that was the view in times square this morning. very different this year as it has been all across

the world as well. so, as we've been hearing, new year's eve has certainly been different, but that hasn't stopped people celebrating in a new, socially distanced way, as breakfast‘s jayne mccubbin reports. this was a year like no other. quiet, small, the fireworks were there to see it in, but the crowds were not. this is what new year look like in derby. i'm quite a pyjama wearer. especially 2020. i wear pyjamas pretty much every day, but ijust thought, because their brand new, why not save them for a special occasion? and why not for the new year? we all have. the old school friends mark the end of 2020 in entirely appropriate attire. and, this year, some of you are on your own and some of you are together, but you're all doing it remotely. both: yes.

got to keep the party alive, haven't you? this is what new year look like in salford. what's the plan, girls? joy to the world. joy to the world, without a doubt. eh, we're drinking, we've not had our tea yet. doreen and dotty are two of the golden girls who promised to stick together through lockdown mark one and mark two. a friendship of over 40 years that made headlines around the world. there's somebody missing from your lovely threesome, isn't there? where's carrol and how's she doing? she's 0k. she's a bit fed up, like the rest of us, that we are in tier 4. we sometimes take three steps forward and four steps back. that's how it seems, with this virus. she has such a bad chest, you know. her health is poor, so... she has to be careful. shall we say cheers to you all

and especially to carol? especially to carol. we're thinking you, carol. and, next year, will be good, i promise you. yeah, it's going to be so good. absent friends are the true meaning of hogmanay. should auld acquaintance be forgot and never brought to mind... at this time of year, jim's house would ordinarily be filled with musicians and family. instead, it ‘s stripped back to staying home — just him, his wife, his mum. if anything, it focuses us right down to actually what's important. important is not about, you know, all the fireworks going off over the top of edinburgh castle, or all those sorts of things. the importance is yourfamily and friends and where they are, anywhere in the world. there were no fireworks at edinburgh castle, no crowds. only this amazing drone show live

stream at around the world, masterminded by ed. we have heard people saying they are watching it from alaska, uzbekistan, australia, america. all parts of europe, russia, china, hong kong. edinburgh's hogmanay has always been a global event, it's always brought people from all over the world. but what's great is that, in this unusual year, that audience are coming to see what edinburgh's doing at hogmanay online. that's a great thing for us. so we're really, really pleased. everyone's staying home and doing the right thing? absolutely, absolutely. and away from the virtual parties, this is what new year looked like in a care home in winchester. hurray. can't fill it, because i can't open it.

cheers. with no family of her own, this is dorothy's family — her fellow residents in meadway. tonight, they say goodbye to a hard year in isolation, mostly without visitors. what are you guys doing tonight? 0h, partying, i think. yes. some of us are staying up until the actual new year, partying. of course, we can't have the visitors, but, amongst ourselves, this lovely family here, we've made the best of it and it's been joyous. last night, we came together however we could to give thanks for what we still have and expressed hope for what lies ahead. if 2020 were a person, i'd say, "you might think that you've won over us, covid—19, but you haven't, because we are going to be successful."

2020, you've done your best, but you will not beat humanity, not beat the common strength and bond that people have, and the kinship and determination of people to survive. i'd like to say thank you for bringing out the positive in a lot of people. it's shown a lot of good and generosity in a lot of people. i haven't seen two of my children and two of my grandchildren for the last year, which is terrible, yeah. but it's all going to be different. it's going to be happy, joyful. it's got to be. god owes us. 2021, aye, come over, and you're welcome. aye, cheers. slainte.

really interesting, kat, how people have been doing things differently. last night, i guess, more different. it will shine a spotlight anyway on how different things are at the moment. yeah, from many people. just early to bed, woken up by the fireworks. where there a lot? no, manchester was absolutely popping. it was beautiful. we are going to start with some sad news for the world of sport. the former manchester united and scotland manager, tommy doherty, has died at the age of 92. affectionately known as the doc, he was best known for his five seasons in charge at old trafford. united were actually relegated in 1974, whilst he was manager, but came straight back up to beat a really successful liverpool side in the fa cup final a couple of years later. he managed 12 clubs in total, including chelsea. his family say he died peacefully at home after a long illness. there have been some lovely tributes by those who knew him best. one of the game's greatest ever characters. the minute you got in

a dressing room with the doc, it was fun, it was laughter. he took the pressure off all the players in the build—up to any game, whether it be a league game or whether it be a massive game, like an fa cup final, that you mentioned, back in 1977. wonderful company. if you were in his company you never wanted to leave it. and had he stayed at old trafford for a bit longer, who knows what could have happened? there are a couple of games in the premier league today, and manchester united will be without striker edison cavani for their game against aston villa. that's because the striker has been banned for three games for a racially offensive social media post — which he deleted and apologised for. cavani has also been fined £100,000 by the fa and has to complete a "face—to—face" education programme. andy murray has pulled out of a tournament in florida next week because he doesn't want to take any risks ahead of the australian open. murray had accepted a wild card to start his season at the atp event in delray beach, but he says he's concerned about the increasing rates of coronavirus and the transatlantic

flights involved. the australian open starts on the 8th of february, and players will have to pass a series of covid tests duiring a two—week quarantine before the tournament starts. roger federer is not going to be there because he has not recovered from his knee surgery. and in the quarantine period the players are going to be locked inside their hotel rooms for 19 hours a day. they literally have to stay in their rooms. it will be interesting to see who takes it on. see you later. thank you. headlines coming up.

good morning and happy new year. hospitals in london and the southeast are now under extreme pressure following a surge in the number of people requiring treatment for coronavirus. hospital trusts across kent and essex say they have started moving severely ill patients to intensive care units in other parts of the country to cope with demand. nearly 56,000 more cases of coronavirus have been recorded in the latest 24—hour period. the uk's chief medical officers have defended their decision to delay giving the second dose of a covid vaccine to more than half a million people. it comes after a leading doctors' union described the plans to delay the second dose by up to 12 weeks, as "grossly unfair". but the chief medical officers said getting more people

vaccinated with the firstjab "is much more preferable". the uk has completed it's formal separation from the european union — leaving the single market and the customs union. the brexit transition period officially came to an end at 11 o'clock last night. the government has warned there will be some disruption over the coming weeks. despite the changes, northern ireland will remain in the eu single market for goods, and eu customs rules will apply at its ports. muted new year celebrations have taken place over the uk, with events either cancelled or scaled down due to the pandemic. in london, there was a televised firework and lights display over the river thames, which included tributes to nhs staff and captain sir tom moore. meanwhile in scotland, a single bagpiper welcomed in hogmanay at edinburgh castle. those are the main stories. here's matt with a look

at this morning's weather. it is cold, a lot of frozen pavements, puddles and roads particularly in parts of england. good morning and happy new year. minus seven degrees in the outskirts of andover and salisbury. some of the warmest air in the far north of scotland. it will feel colder as the day goes on here. you can see blue colours indicating cold air across much of europe. something less cold pushing southwards. the weather front bringing a lot of cloud to england today. dense fog towards southeast and across the midlands and some of that will linger. merely rain showers rather than wintry showers are crossed england and wales. snow across the hills of

scotla nd wales. snow across the hills of scotland in the afternoon. much of scotland, northern ireland, later northern england, having a brighter day than yesterday. this evening and overnight, the skies will clear from the north but plenty of cloud to the south and east with showers. but with the clearer weather elsewhere, temperatures more widely below freezing tonight into tomorrow and cold est of freezing tonight into tomorrow and coldest of all, parts of western scotland, north—west england. the setup through the weekend, high pressure to the west and low pressure to the west and low pressure to the east and northerly winds to begin, bringing wintry showers in northern scotland with snow across the tops of the mountain is here. showers in west wales and cornwall, some of them heavy. there could be sleet over higher ground. much of the country will have a dry and bright saturday and after a frosty start it will be cold. that changes on saturday night into

sunday with low pressure dominant to the south. high—pressure to the north, changing the wind direction to an easterly. it means showers along eastern coast will drive inland initially. mainly rain. the best of the dry weather in scotland and northern ireland and here we will see the best of the sunshine. temperatures 3—6. as we go into the start of next week, easterly winds. normally at this time of year they can bring bitter air but we are tapping into air from south—east europe so it will not be quite as cold but temperatures staying below where they would be at this of year. 3-6 where they would be at this of year. 3—6 celsius expected. a little bit of snow over the hills. it will stay cold. you will be delighted to know we are staying with weather right now. so what, if you can be bothered, frankly. more news and sport to come,

but now it's time for weather world with nick miller and sarah keith—lucas. this time on weather world... 2020's biggest storms. floods. fire. and record heat. in another hot year, despite coronavirus lockdowns, despite coronavirus lockdowns leading to an unprecedented drop in carbon emissions. i'm here at london's national maritime museum, where i'll be walking around a world of records from another remarkable year of weather. and i'm in bbc weather‘s climate check studio, reporting on 2020's record—breaking hurricane season and looking at the climate trends that could change our weather in 2021. also on weather world, as wet as it gets. as the uk endures two of its top three wettest days on record, how a warmer world can also mean a wetter one. and oscar and i are back with more tips on how you can

record your own weather at home. this time, where to put a thermometer to get an accurate reading. welcome to weather world from london's national maritime museum, a museum dedicated to great britain's seafaring heritage. that's basically sailing versus the weather. it's the largest museum of its kind in the world, a world, of course, that in 2020, seemed so very different because of coronavirus, masks, and all. and the pandemic has severely limited our ability to travel and experience the weather beyond our own backyard, which is why i've come here, to their great map of the world where i can at least do some virtual globe trekking to bring you some of 2020's weather highs and lows. but, spoiler alert, when it comes to heat,

there are more highs than lows. for our starting point, north america and phoenix, arizona. it set a new record injuly for its hottest month on record and then break that straightaway in august, and set a record for the number of days above 110 fahrenheit. that's 43.3 degrees celsius. 53 in total. the previous record, 33. that is shattering a record. in europe, france set a record for the number of consecutive months with above—average temperatures. and, injerusalem, 42.3 degrees celsius in september. it has never been recorded any hotter here. japan, in august — 41.1 celsius and that ties the national record here. a record first set back in 2018. and it's notjust those high temperatures by day that are contributing to the warming world. it's when it's not cold enough at night. for example, in australia,

sydney in november with a record warm night where the temperature did not drop any lower than 25.4 celsius. there are some cold weather records, too. it was cold in parts of the usa in october. but the cold records are heavily outnumbered by the hot ones. and even where you expect it to be cold, well, it's simply not cold enough. in february, news of heat from antarctica. a temperature of above 20 degrees celsius recorded there for the first time. perhaps an outlier, but the longer trend is clear. the world meteorological 0rganisation says temperatures on the antarctic peninsula have risen by almost three degrees over the past 50 years. meanwhile, in the arctic, more worrying data in 2020, with the second lowest extent of summer sea ice since satellite monitoring began over 40 years ago, followed by a record late start to its annual refreeze.

but if news of heat records sounds familiar, they came in a year that, because of covid lockdowns, we saw a record drop in carbon emissions — the very thing that is blamed for playing a major role in causing temperatures to warm. well, we can talk to dr emily shuckburgh, cambridge university's chief climate scientist. we spoke on this programme at the end of 2019 and actually about carbon emissions. it seemed impossible that we'd get a drop, but that is what has happened in 2020. but put that into context for me. how significant, how sustainable is that? well, it's probably no surprise that as a consequence of the global lockdowns that we have seen around the world, emissions are likely to be somewhat lower this year, may be around about 7% lower. emissions are likely to be somewhat lower this year, maybe around about 7% lower. but that's emissions. the concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are still rising rapidly. if we look back in earth's history, the last time concentrations

were so high, was around about 3—5,000,000 years ago, when temperatures were 2—3 celsius warmer than they are today and sees with some 10—20 metres higher. 2020 is likely to be the hottest, or second hottest year globally, what stands out for you in 2020 in terms of heat and heat trends? we have seen places around the world with exceptional heat. california was particularly warm and that was then associated with wildfires that caused absolute devastation. we also saw devastating wildfires in australia at the start of the year and, sadly, those look set to return. sydneyjust recorded its hottest november on record. but it's notjust been heatwaves and wildfires that we have seen. we have also seen devastating flooding. when it comes to attributing that to climate change, there is natural variability, as well. how difficult is that, or is it more clear—cut? climate change is increasing the risk of those sorts of extreme weather events. so we can't say a particular extreme weather event was caused by climate change,

as such, but, as the temperatures as the temperatures rise, the risk of having extreme heat waves increases and also the risk of other extreme weather events similarly increases. in terms of heat, the poles seem to be suffering the most. why does that matter so much? as that ice melts, it finds its way into the oceans and it rises sea levels globally. and we're seeing an accelerated rate of ice loss from those ice sheets and an acceleration in sea level rise. emily, for now, thank you. we'll talk to you later in the programme about what we might expect in 2021. even the places you wouldn't think would get any hotter did in 2020, like here in the usa — the infamous death valley in california, where the temperature hit 54.4 degrees celsius. that could be the highest temperature ever reliably recorded on earth. but what does heat like that actually feel like? we asked brandy stewart, who works

in death valley national park. it does feel like you are opening a door to an oven. all of our buildings in the park are air conditioned, so it's nice inside. but, really, any time i open up the door from my house in the morning to go outside it, it feels. . .you can just feel the heat on your face immediately. heat seekers, i think theyjust want to feel what could be the hottest reliable recorded temperature on earth. just to have that experience. also to see the heat kind of rising from the asphalt on the roads. everything is radiating heat. so a lot of our hottest summers have been within the last five years. and so that is a concerning data point — that we are seeing hotter and hotter summers —

and that can still have effects in death valley national park and have effects on the plants and animals and the people that live there. brandi stewart from death valley, where you expect it to be hot, but now to the notjust unexpected, but unprecedented. let me walk across to africa and take you to a country, somalia, here on the horn of africa, which, since reliable records began, has not been hit by a hurricane—strength cyclone. all that changed in november. cyclone gati underwent explosive intensification as it moved into somalia from the arabian sea, bringing not only destructive winds, but also a year's worth of rain in just two days. cyclones are the same type of storm as typhoons and hurricanes, and when hurricane hanna made landfall in texas injuly, it was the first of a record—tying six hurricanes to hit the usa in an extraordinary 2020 atlantic season. sarah has that story. thanks, nick.

the 2020 atlantic hurricane season was like no other. we haven't got time to go through every record it broke because there were just so many storms exceeding all forecast expectations. not only a record total of storms, but the majority being the earliest on record for their number. these are the storms that developed just during the month of september — a record ten in total. and in september, the list of preplanned storm names ran out, which meant meteorologists had to start using the greek alphabet for only the second time to find new storm names. hurricane ita, which hit central america in november, was a record—tying 28th named storm of the season, bringing severe flooding here to honduras. and to guatemala, where more than 150 people died in floods and landslides. after, storm theta took the season to a record 29 storms. central america was in the eye of a hurricane again as iota became

only the second maximum category 5 storm ever recorded in november. and although it weakened slightly before making landfall in nicaragua, the destruction it wrought was widespread and devastating. and of the 12 storms to hit the usa, hurricane laura, in august, was the strongest in the state of louisiana in at least 160 years. so what's the weather science that can explain such an active hurricane season? that's a question i put to drjennifer collins, a professor of geosciences at the university of south florida. first of all, we have to look at some of the large—scale time circulations that have been going on. so the atlantic multidecadal 0scillation. this is in a positive phase. it has been since about 1995. and a positive phase of the amo tends to bring warmer sea surface temperatures,

which are conducive for hurricanes. and so we have this positive phase of the amo but superimposed on that, what's gone on this year, is we also have a moderate la nina. we'll be talking more about la nina later in the programme. but what is its influence on hurricanes? well, when you have la nina, you tend to get weaker upper—level winds. we tend to get lower wind shear because of that. and that's conducive for these hurricanes to form. so with warm sea surface temperatures that we've had this year, lower vertical wind shear, that's really provided the right breeding grounds to provide this record—breaking hurricane season. is it possible to say with any certainty what effect climate change may be having on hurricanes? when we talk about climate change is actually strongest when we're attributing types of extreme events such as heatwave that are more closely connected to human—caused global temperature increases. confidence tends to be lower

with some other type of events, such as hurricanes. as you can imagine, with global warming, we're seeing glaciers and ice sheets melting. and, as they melt, the sea levels rise. well, when a hurricane's strong wind pushes that water onshore as storm surge, this results in even greater flooding. so we are already seeing impacts of climate change and global warming on hurricane impacts. jennifer collins, thank you. now, on the other side of the world and that record—breaking atlantic storm season, similarly intense storms in the western pacific ocean are known as typhoons. and in 2020, in contrast to the atlantic, the pacific has been quieter than average. the season started late, had a record quietjuly, and has been unusually overshadowed by the number of atlantic storms. that said, the season roared into life in october with five

storms going into vietnam, bringing huge rainfall totals and widespread flooding. and also in october, super—typhoon goni hit the philippines with such intensity, it now holds the record for the strongest to make landfall there. but in contrast to what we've seen in the atlantic, it's thought stronger wind shear through the atmosphere helped to limit the overall number of pacific storms in 2020. nick: now some of your weather watcher pictures from an early december snowfall. scenes like this in the uk are forecast to become increasingly rare as temperatures rise. the met office says unless global carbon emissions reduced significantly, by the end of the century, lying snow will have disappeared from all but the highest ground. you can become a weather watcher by signing up at bbc.co.uk/weatherwatchers.

sarah: still to come on weather world, a familiar winter scene in the russian city of vladivostok, but you won't believe what happens next. i'm at the national maritime museum in london using the great map here to do something the pandemic does not allow and that's travel around the world, sort of, to tell the story of 2020's highs and lows. we've talked a lot about heat, and the warmer atmosphere can contain more moisture. it's basic physics. so when it rains, it really rains, and the results can be disastrous, as we saw in southern europe in october. a house is swept away by flash flood, as storm alex brings a deluge to southeast france in october, with more than 600 millimetres of rain injust 24 hours. floods and record rain have been a recurring theme of 2020's weather, like here injapan injuly,

where the country's meteorologists said parts of the country had been hit with extreme levels of rainfall that had never been seen before. parts of east africa had the most intense seasonal rains in a century, affecting nearly six million people, according to the united nations. the wet weather in 2020 and 2019 led to the worst locust swarms seen in decades, devouring and devastating crops as they swept across east africa. in the uk, a succession of storms in february made it the wettest february on record. and then, in a soaking 0ctober, the uk had its wettest day. three named storms hit the uk in february, producing severe flooding, particularly in parts of england and wales. 0n the 15th of the month, the uk had its third—wettest day on record, but even wetter was to come

on october the 3rd, when, according to the met office, enough rain fell across the uk to more than fill scotland's loch ness, to make it the uk's wettest day on record. the city of oxford had its soggiest 0ctober since back in 1875, when the rain caused extensive flooding. we know that because the city is home to the radcliffe weather station, the uk's longest continuous rainfall record dating back to the 18th century. its director is professor richard washington. it really woke us up on the 3rd of october, where we had one of the wettest days in the entire record — 60 millimetres of rain fell and it rained 27 out of 31 days in october. so it was pretty clear that the rainfall record was the one to watch. rainfall, generally, is very complicated.

there's all sorts of things that occure with the creation of rain and in the summer months, thunderstorms that bring very heavy rain are quite different from the large mid—latitude cyclones that feature in the autumn months. generally across the globe as a whole, we are seeing an increase in rainfall intensity and the sort of intense rainfall events that we measured recently in oxford are part and parcel of that trend. whether you're part of the world will be wetter or drier than average going into 2021 could depend on what's happening in the tropical pacific ocean, where meteorologists have declared a la nina event is under way. this is a phenomenon where easterly trade winds strengthen and push warm water towards the west. this, in turn, warms the air, which rises, generating storm clouds. la nina years tend to bring a lot of rainfall to southeast asia and australia. in fact, australian forecasters are predicting a wetter than average summer in most of the country. 0n the other side of the pacific, the warm water is replaced by cool water, which wells up from the deep ocean and drifts westwards.

this cools the air, so cloud and rain struggle to develop. so the western side of south america will be drier than normal. but la nina also has impacts far beyond the tropical pacific. it can bring wetter southwest monsoons to south asia, and, already, 2020's wet season brought india 9% more rainfall following a 2019 season that came in 10% above average. the first time since the 19505, two consecutive years have been wetter than normal. and will la nina offer any hope to those areas devastated by wildfires in 2020, including here in the us state of oregon in september? in fire—affected areas, the influence of la nina is a mixed picture. in the amazon, la nina could bring long—awaited rain. northern brazil can often see increased rainfall in la nina years. northwestern states of the usa — washington and oregon — are likely to have a wetter than average winter.

but further south it could be a more worrying story. la nina can divert much—needed rainfall away from california. this la nina event is forecast to peak early in 2021, but its influence could be felt much further into the year. nick: well, we can talk again now to dr emily shuckburgh, cambridge university's chief climate scientist. and, emily, with regard to la nina and its cooling effect, could it be that its cooling effect means that 2021 is cooler than 2020? well, it looks as though we're entering a la nina phase, which will extend through the northern hemisphere winter. and those la nina phases are typically associated with slightly cooler global temperatures. whether or not that turns out to dominate above the overall warming trend that we're seeing, to mean that 2021 is slightly cooler, we'lljust have to wait and see. but the overall trend that we're on is very much one of warming

and our current rate of warming — we're already more than one degree celsius warmer than pre—industrial times, and we're on track to reach 1.5 degrees of warming over the next 20 years or so. and of course, all being well in 2021, we'll be post—pandemic. the global recovery will be under way. carbon emissions will start to go up again. how much is this, do you think, an opportunity for a reset so that we don'tjust go back to the pre—pandemic world? well, that, i think is critically important, isn't it? if we're to limit the impacts of climate change, we need to reverse that increase in emissions and decrease emissions by a similar amount to the amount that we've seen a decrease in emissions this year. but that needs to occur year on year on years, so that we halve our global emissions over this coming decade and we reach net zero emissions globally by around about the middle of the century. dr emily shukburgh, thank you so much for talking to us again on weather world. my pleasure.

with working from home being so commonplace this year, many people have got more time to watch and record the weather around their homes. 0n the last installment of weather world, my son 0scar and i showed you how to make your own rain gauge. this time, we're looking at measuring air temperature. so, 0scar, what's the first thing we need? a thermometer like this one. great. so we've got a thermometer. let's take a look at the best place to put it in the garden to get the most accurate reading. so, 0scar, how about we put this thermometer up here? no, because it's in the sunshine giving you the wrong temperature. you're right. if we put a thermometer in direct sunlight, that means the sunshine warms up the surface of the thermometer — a bit like it would warm your skin on a warm, sunny day. so then you get a recording of the temperature of the thermometer, not the true air temperature. so we need shade. yeah, let's find somewhere else. so this is a shady spot. 0scar, how about we put the thermometer here?

no, because the bricks reflect sunlight, heating up the thermometer. yeah, you're absolutely right. we shouldn't put the thermometer on a building. there's central heating inside the building and the bricks give off heat, as well. so we need shade, not neara building. let's find another spot. ok, so we're in the shade, we're away from buildings, how about we put it down here? no, because the ground reflects heat, too. yeah, that's right. you don't want your thermometer too close to the ground because the ground warms up and radiates that heat away. so we want it about 1.2 metres above ground surface. that's the same height as me. that's about right. yes. so you find the height of a 7—year—old, and how about this spot then? it's away from any buildings. it's not in direct sunlight and it's not on the ground. and remember, if you're recording the temperature from home, do so about the same time every day, generally about three

o'clock in the afternoon is maximum temperature. just about when you're coming out of school. so thanks for helping, 0scar. let's leave the thermomenter there and go inside and warm up. yes, please. now, earlier, we asked you what happens next as this man clear snow from his car? it just about the luckiest escape you're ever going to see on weather world, as the weight of ice contributes to some clotting plummeting from a building onto a car and almost it's owner, in the russian city of vladivostok. you have got to see this. and finally, 2020 is given us a lot of weather we'd rather forget, but never forget, the sky can also produce moments of incredible beauty, as uk photographer and astronomer matt robinson is discovering whilst living in norway, thanks to the aurora, or the northern lights. oh, wow.

and that's it for weather world from the national maritime museum and our look back at 2020. for clips from our previous programmes, go to bbc.co.uk/weatherworld. and look out for bbc weather‘s monthly climate check report. so, until the next weather world... all: goodbye. good morning, welcome to breakfast with charlie stayt. 0ur headlines today:

new year 2021 — tributes are paid to the heroes of the coronavirus pandemic. hospitals under extreme pressure as the new year begins. rising covid cases mean some seriously ill patients are being moved to hospitals on the other side of the country. a new era in the uk's relationship with the european union, as the brexit transition period officially ends. good morning. tributes are paid to tommy docherty, the former manchester united and scotland manager, who has died at the age of 92. and it is a particularly cold start to the new year first summer. —7 in some parts of south—west england. full forecast on breakfast. good morning. it's friday, the 1st ofjanuary. happy new year. our top story. as most people across the uk seem

to have heeded calls to stay at home on new year's eve, some hospitals in london and the south—east of england say they are now under extreme pressure because of rising coronavirus cases. they say some seriously ill patients are being moved to intensive care units in other parts of the country. 0ur health correspondent, katharine da costa, reports. like several major hospitals in the capital, university college london has had to rapidly increase critical care capacity to cope with the surge in covid patients. it's caring for more than 200, with numbers rising by the day. staff can't always provide one—to—one care. what we're having to know do is stretch those ratios. so one intensive care nurse is finding themselves looking after two, three. in some places at the peak they were looking after four or five patients at a time. that puts a phenomenal amount of stress on the team. pressure too at southend hospital. a shortage of staff saw

the trust declare a major incident on wednesday. some patients have had to be transferred to cambridge. another sign of the unprecedented pressure hospitals are under. staff are already stretched. they themselves are suffering from the effects of covid—19 through being ill themselves, being off work or having to self—isolate because of exposure. so there is a real risk of health services becoming overwhelmed because of lack of staff and inadequate number of beds, and because of the pressure everyone is under at the moment. so what does declaring a major incident mean? government money to reopen mothballed wards and community hospitals. people sent to other hospitals in the region or further afield. and the fire brigade could drive ambulances. that's something being considered in buckinghamshire, after the council and hospital trust also declared a major incident this week. we are trying to actually look at the ways in which we can persuade

people to use other alternatives, other than coming into the hospital, the a&e department. and also, we are looking at ways in which we can deploy resources across from other departments, such as the council, into the hospital. from the hospital's point of view as well, they're looking at cancelling some of their non—urgent operations, to free up resources for covid patients. some hospitals in the south—east are now so stretched, patients arriving at a&e are being treated in ambulances. others are having to be sent across england for treatment. and some health leaders are warning we've yet to see the impact of mixing over christmas. what we're going to see in the coming weeks is these numbers really increasing, because we know there is a real lag between people being infected with covid and the symptoms coming out. so typically, it can be a two—week journey from someone realising they've been infected to perhaps being hospitalised. so the pressure is going to continue to mount and it is going to be quite a nail—biting journey for the nhs.

it's a tough start to the new year. for many the roll—out of vaccines can't come soon enough. katharine da costa, bbc news. the uk has completed it's formal separation from the european union, leaving the single market and the customs union. the brexit transition period expired at 11 o'clock last night, when the new trade deal came into effect. let's get more from our political correspondent, nick eardley. morning to you. happy new year. and it isa morning to you. happy new year. and it is a new year that brings in some real changes. what is that going to look and feel like? good morning. hgppy look and feel like? good morning. happy new year to you too. 2021 at the point at which we are going to see the difference brexit makes. there are big changes to our relationship with europe. everything from the amount of paperwork that businesses have to do if they're sending goods from the uk over to the continent, what it means for

holidays. although you will still be able to travel visa free, there will be more rules around travel and around working in europe. there are also some big political changes. borisjohnson is also some big political changes. boris johnson is in also some big political changes. borisjohnson is in the telegraph this morning saying that this is a big moment for the country. it gives the uk that sovereignty that people we re the uk that sovereignty that people were promised back in 2016, with the referendum. things like freedom of movement are going to change. the uk has more control over how it makes decisions. but i hate to break it to you. we are not going to be com pletely you. we are not going to be completely ignoring the relationship with europe now. there are still things that need to be sorted out, dicoke things that need to be sorted out, di coke financial services, the relationship there, works. data transfer. these are specifics of what happens in gibraltar. and remember, this relationship allows the uk to make decisions which are different from europe. there are consequences. big moment, big change to our trading relationship with our

biggest partner but it is not the end of the story. although the trade deal is done, there are still certain parts that need to be worked out. nick, thank you. so how will our ports cope with all the changes? 0ur reporter simonjones is in dover this morning. simon, nick was outlining, this is the moment when the changes are actually in place. give us a sense of what that is going to be like? well, the new era is beginning here at the port of dover. and of the big question is, is it going to be a happy new year for hauliers? we have seen happy new year for hauliers? we have seen a happy new year for hauliers? we have seen a steady stream of lorries arriving here already this morning. these will be the very first lorries to head over from these will be the very first lorries to head overfrom dover to calais on the first sailing at around eight o'clock this morning. in the past we have spoken about frictionless trade between the uk and of the eu. the warning is in future there may be a degree of friction. so in reality,

when hauliers come into the port, they should have with them in a bar code. they will have got this bar code. they will have got this bar code by getting various permissions from the government for import and exports. when they come to the board, the bar code will be scanned by the ferry companies. the hauliers will go onto ferries. while they are on that journey, the will go onto ferries. while they are on thatjourney, the details in the bar code will be checked by the french customs. so when they drive off over in france, in france, in theory if everything is all right, they will be allowed to continue on their journey. if not, they will be allowed to continue on theirjourney. if not, they could be pulled over for further checks. lorries travelling from france to hear, the british government says it is going to be a more hands—off approach for the first six months while everything beds in. the big unknown though is how prepared companies are for this. and if they are not prepared, that is where potentially we could see problems, delays and disruption. simon, thank you. northern ireland will continue

to follow many of the eu's rules. 0ur ireland correspondent chris page is in belfast for us this morning. good morning. give us a sense of what are the changes will mean they are? yes, charlie. on new year's morning it is hard to imagine this is the front line for a significant shift in the economic relationship between northern ireland and the rest of the uk, but that is indeed how plenty of people see it. northern ireland is in effect are staying in the european single market for goods. that means new checks on products arriving to the likes of belfast port from england, scotla nd likes of belfast port from england, scotland and wales. the reason why these special arrangements have been put in place was to avoid checks on the land border between northern ireland and the republic of ireland. an issue which was one of the most tricky ones throughout the whole long brexit process. now the parties here in northern ireland, the political parties, already opposed to these new arrangements. unionists see this as a new trade border in

the irish sea. nationalists and ci’oss the irish sea. nationalists and cross community parties are opposed to brexit altogether. the british government are already —— are very much placing the emphasis on the fa ct much placing the emphasis on the fact that northern ireland is the only place with access to the british and european markets and that should bring big opportunities for business. there will be a lot of discussions to what this means politically, particularly as 2021 marks 100 years since northern ireland came into being. but for today and the next few days, the focus will be on the practicalities, i would will affect the logistics industry, for example. and whatever lorries arrive here and into line, around 40 trucks a day will be checked. inspectors will look at what they have inside to ensure they are complying with the eu rules. chris, thank you. can i have a look at new year celebrations around other parts of the uk in a moment. —— we are going to have a look. did you celebrate in belfast? how is it

celebrated? well, certainly at midnight we heard plenty of fireworks. no one knowing i was have to —— knowing i was going to have to be up this time, i was in my bed early. but from what i heard and saw on social media last night, very quiet indeed. everybody sticking to what the health minister here has described as a curfew. that really you're not supposed to go out between eight o'clock at night and six in the morning. an exceptionally quiet new year's eve in belfast. you and me, chris, in the same boat. in bed early, miss all the fun, if there were any. we will look at some of the other thing is happening across the uk. greg mckenzie has been looking in london and edinburgh. an hour after leaving the eu behind, the uk left 2020 behind. these were fireworks, but done in a covid—secure way. a dazzling display on the thames televised on the bbc at midnight.

over the o2 arena, images filled the skies, including a tribute to the nhs and to captain sir tom moore. there was even a special mention for something we've all had to get used to, zoom calls. before tonight, police had warned people to stay away. 0n london's embankment a few hundred people did gather. on any given new year's eve there's normally 10,000 people along the embankment awaiting the fireworks to see in the new year. unfortunately, it's been cancelled. and the advice from the police denied to many people turning up here, is to go home. it's been very like, quiet. there's police everywhere. so it's just like, it's not like the usual. no, the police have been lovely, it's been fine. it's been nice. we went to the tate britain earlier. the lights are still up. people are jolly. celebrations all over the uk have

been either cancelled or toned down. at edinburgh castle, a single bagpiper welcomed in the new year. while the majority stayed away, some people were turned away by the police. instead of the usual fireworks for hogmanay, this was the replacement. a series of videos showing drones forming images over scotland's skies. many of us may have seen in the new yearfrom our homes, as the pandemic continues to restrict life in the uk. but with 2020 now at an end, we'll be all hoping for a better 2021. greg mckenzie, bbc news. new year's celebrations have also been scaled back around the world. a firework display went ahead in sydney harbour, but people weren't allowed to gather to watch it. in auckland, people could attend because new zealand's strict lockdown and border closures have

been so effective. sir david attenborough has praised mankind's ability to pull together after a tough year, in a special new year's message. the veteran broadcaster says "the need to take action" against climate change "has never been more urgent". today we are experiencing environmental change as never before. and the need to take action has never been more urgent. this year, the world will gather in glasgow for the united nations climate change conference. it's a crucial moment in our history. this could be a year for positive change. for ourselves... ..for our planet... ..and for the wonderful creatures

with which we share it. he has a new series starting on sunday the 3rd of january. and we will be speaking to two people involved in the making of sir david's new series, a perfect planet, after 8.30 this morning. some amazing images in that series. here's matt with a look at this morning's weather. new year's day is one of those days when a lot of people try to get out for a walk and get some exercise. how is it looking? layers, that is the best advice i can give today. a cold start. especially across south—west england. temperatures as low as —7. the coldest spot. a run of showers. some on the wintry side as they had the hills. dampers to conditions across parts of northern england. it rain and drizzle which will sing towards the midlands, parts of wales through the day. fog

in the south east midlands, part of the south—east. much brighter conditions further north. sony across scotland and northern ireland compared to yesterday. temperatures up compared to yesterday. temperatures upa compared to yesterday. temperatures up a little bit. showers continue in the north—east. in north—west england and parts of the north—east, patchy rain and drizzle. for some it stays cloudy. for some, temperatures between two and three degrees. this evening and overnight showers in the eastern counties living dead. some in northern scotland bringing wintriness. showers returned to northern ireland. icy conditions into tomorrow morning. and really threw the rest of the start to 2021 into next week. it will stay cold. rain and hail is not at times. as the weather in the west. thank you, matt. new year's eve was very different this year, with major public events cancelled or scaled down due to the coronavirus pandemic. police warned that they would be

fining people breaking the rules by meeting up with others. let's speak to ken marsh, who is the chairman of the metropolitan police federation. good morning too. what is the picture that is emerging this morning as to how people behaved? good morning, charlie. happy new year to you and the team. it has been quite a quiet evening for us, which we can say with gladness, really. it has been the sort of numbers we were anticipating coming into london. tier 4 has meant most places are closed. i think the public have really cottoned on last night that this is very serious, the position we're in, and we didn't see the numbers we thought we would. position we're in, and we didn't see the numbers we thought we wouldlj the numbers we thought we would.” suppose they were two elements to this. one was the big public gatherings. the numbers didn't gather, and that is a good thing. the other was about what people were doing in their homes. whether they we re doing in their homes. whether they were gatherings of people inside

domestic homes. that is harder to judge? yeah. we have had sporadic gatherings of people who just want taken out of what has been said and my colleagues have dealt with that very quickly last night. we didn't have large music events that we thought we would. the smaller gatherings were put out very quickly. they want a problem for us in terms... all the way through this the police have been very careful about how policing is done. the principle of policing by consent. there have been many challenges along the way. when people have been seen along the way. when people have been seen to break the law. is it your sense that there is a different attitude now? yeah. i mean, it has been quite an incredible year, 2020. in terms of what my colleagues have been asked to do on a daily, weekly basis. the rules have changed over and over again. i think the skills they have used have been quite

incredible. but we are at, i think, the worst period that we have been throughout this pandemic. we have more officers off now with covert or self isolating them we have ever seen self isolating them we have ever seen throughout last year. —— covid—19. this is the peak everybody talked about. i think the public to understand what is happening. talked about. i think the public to understand what is happeningm talked about. i think the public to understand what is happening. it is an important point you make. police are front—line workers, of course. and they're subject to, and we are hearing a lot about the nhs at the moment, about numbers, about those people who need to be there when they are not well themselves, because they are busy living the communities? yeah, this is a very serious issue. we weren't really affected that badly throughout the course of last year but we have seen a peak in the last three or four weeks. it is going up rapidly. we

have got probably 1200, 1300 officers off with covid or self isolating. that is projected to double in the next few weeks. it put a massive strain on my colleagues who are still at work and still performing their roles. there are no other officers available other than what is in the pond. ken marsh, thank you. giving us a snapshot of events last night. plans to delay giving the second dose of a covid vaccine to more than half a million people in the uk, have come in for criticism. but chief medical officers have defended the decision, saying it will allow doctors to immunise more of the population faster. we're joined now by dr christine tait—burkard, an infection and immunity scientist at the university of edinburgh. a very good morning to you. and happy new year, i should say. a lot of people will maybe have been bracing that sentiment, that this

year will be better than last year, not least because of the vaccine, which we know is coming into play now ina which we know is coming into play now in a way it wasn't before. the government is saying one dose first in order that more people can get it. can you talk us through the rationale behind that change? well, what we have seen over the past few weeks, and with the christmas mixing in some part of the country, is that the numbers are spiralling upwards and spiralling upwards faster, which is probably also aided by a fast spreading variant we have heard all about. so now it's really a question of whether a normal lockdown and lockdown measures are making a big enough impact, or if we need more help and that help is sold in the form of the vaccine. that is why we are now moving towards a slightly delayed pattern cover three to 12

week intervalfor delayed pattern cover three to 12 week interval for the pfizer—biontech vaccine, or a four to 12 week intervalfor pfizer—biontech vaccine, or a four to 12 week interval for the oxford astrazeneca vaccine, proved this week. many people asking basic questions about efficacy. so how effective is the first dose of the vaccine, if the second dose is delayed? what level of vaccine, if the second dose is delayed ? what level of protection vaccine, if the second dose is delayed? what level of protection is offered by the first dose alone? so, pfizer, obviously, haven'tanalysed a single dose of the vaccine. but the ft has looked very delicately into the numbers and has discerned them from what has been published by pfizer in the phase three trial. we see that after ten days of getting the first dose there is a 52% level of protection. and after 14 days, there is already an 82% level of

protection. so the booster, it only adds about 15% to that protection level. which, for the moderna vaccine, which has been tested, is around the same level of 80%. when we compare that overall to the 0xford astrazeneca vaccine, that eventually reaches 70 to 90% efficacy when the second booster is administered. and, infact, efficacy when the second booster is administered. and, in fact, there is now some indication that that later booster after 12 weeks, which was tested in the oxford astrazeneca trials, actually helps to reach that 90% efficacy. so overall it makes sense to get more of the population vaccinated. but i understand it will have caused some concern for people who are already scheduled for the second dose of the vaccine and now have to wait longer. but the protection is very good from a

single dose. the reason why we get a booster is really to boost those very strong affinity antibodies, so that the virus can be killed faster, that the virus can be killed faster, that we hopefully don't spread the virus. and of the second reason is that we want the vaccine to last longer. and that's why people will still get a second dose of the vaccine, because it still makes sense to get that, but we already get a very good level of protection from the first dose. really interesting, professor. in a practical sense they will be people already who have maybe had an elderly loved one, grandparent or someone elderly loved one, grandparent or someone vulnerable, who will have had of the first dose, and now they find out there will be a longer delay before the second dose. so behaviourally, in terms of that individual‘s behaviour, what they do, how careful they are, and individual‘s behaviour, what they do, how carefulthey are, and in terms of other people's contacts with them, how should that change,

if at all, in this interim period, given that we now know in theory people would have been having the second dose already, wouldn't they? in the absence of that, what should they be doing differently? well, we all know that the vaccine is only pa rt all know that the vaccine is only part of the tool box in that the social distancing and good hygiene measures are still in place for all of us. for elderly people we know that sometimes vaccines don't work as well as they do in the younger population. and even though these vaccines have been trialled in the elderly and found to be very effective, it's still worth taking a good dose of care whilst the virus is so prominent in the population and is spreading fast. so we still have to be careful in those 12 weeks. i think another few months of zoom calls and slightly shorter and

more distanced visits will pay off in the long run if we can get more of the population vaccinated and we can of the population vaccinated and we ca n start of the population vaccinated and we can start making a dent in those numbers which look scarily high at the moment. yes. and christine, a lot of people looking for positives at the moment. clearly, the news that the oxford astrazeneca vaccine will be started to be used from this week, is hugely important. how do you see the roll—out of the vaccine is working in terms of the numbers, from here on in? well, we'll still see the pfizer vaccine being used for the more vulnerable population, especially people with immunocompromised systems, just because it is not a live vaccine contrast to the oxford astrazeneca one. and then the oxford astrazeneca one, because of its better and easier storage conditions, will be

rolled out faster. we also have many more doses of the oxford astrazeneca vaccine in total command that will allow us to vaccinate quickly. but we will need support from possibly the army in actually administering the army in actually administering the vaccine, because with the timescale that this has to be done now, and with the nhs being under so much strain from the rising caseloads of covid, this needs to be done with additional help. christine, good to talk to you. hgppy christine, good to talk to you. happy new year to you, by the way. we are talking about all of these green things but we wish you a happy new year. and everybody is hoping the same thing. the 2021 will see a dramatic change. absolutely. thank goodness for vaccines and hopefully, for a better 2021. good to speak to you. thank you. 27 minutes past seven. kat has joined you. thank you. 27 minutes past seven. kat hasjoined me on you. thank you. 27 minutes past seven. kat has joined me on the sofa. nice to have company. it is nice to be sitting down. this is a

whole new thing, because it is only you. you are starting on a side note about an amazing career in football? yes, i was just reading the obituary of tommy doherty in the times. they called him the much sacked tommy docherty. i think it is unfair. he was sacked multiple times because he managed and played for so many clu bs. managed and played for so many clubs. he lived to the age of 92. i suppose you can look at much sacked both ways. you can be much as well. incredible. affable, a character of the sport. and obviously hugely talented. but he was quite controversial. his management style wasn't to everybody‘s taste. hence the much sacked. good morning. happy new year. some sad news this morning. the former manchester united and scotland manager, tommy doherty, has died at the age of 92. docherty managed 12 clubs in total including chelsea, but he was best known for his five years at old trafford. affectionately known as the doc, he was never short of an opinion be

it about players or club directors. he had a great sense of humour too, here he is talking to terry wogan in 1988. people say to me, why did you take the job? i people say to me, why did you take thejob? isaid, people say to me, why did you take thejob? i said, to be people say to me, why did you take the job? i said, to be quite honest with you, at the time i hadn't been feeling very well. and i said, i wa nt feeling very well. and i said, i want to see my doctor and he said, tommy, get as far away from football as you possibly can. you can see why you made such a career as an after—dinner speaker. tommy docherty. there are a couple of games in the premier league today, and manchester united will be without striker edison cavani for their game against aston villa. that's because the striker has been banned for three games for a racially offensive social media post, which he deleted and apologised for. cavani has also been fined £100,000 by the fa and has to complete a face—to—face education programme. andy murray has pulled out of a tournament in florida next week because he doesn't want to take any

risks ahead of the australian open. murray had accepted a wild card to start his season at the atp event in delray beach, but he says he's concerned about the increasing rates of coronavirus and the transatlantic flights involved. andy murray therefore committing to the australian open. we're not sure which other players are. they have got to undergo this 14 day quarantine, where they will be locked in their hotel rooms 19 hours a day, only allowed to train for five hours a day, which is not much for players building up to a grand slam. if the event can happen, that is worth it. ten seconds for the great sporting events coming up this year. the european championships, the olympics, the paralympics, the ryder cup, the solheim cup, the us masters, wimbledon all the usual things. plus all the things that we re things. plus all the things that were supposed to happen last year, crammed into this year. a lot to

look forward to. it will be good. fingers crossed. bring on those vaccines. hello this is breakfast with charlie stayt. hospitals in london and the southeast are now under extreme pressure following a surge in the number of people requiring treatment for coronavirus. hospital trusts across kent and essex say they have started moving severely ill patients to intensive care units in other parts of the country

to cope with demand. nearly 56,000 more cases of coronavirus have been recorded in the latest 24—hour period. the uk has completed it's formal separation from the european union — leaving the single market and the customs union. the brexit transition period officially came to an end at 11 o'clock last night. the government has warned there will be some disruption over the coming weeks. despite the changes, northern ireland will remain in the eu single market for goods, and eu customs rules will apply at its ports. muted new year celebrations have taken place over the uk, with events either cancelled or scaled down due to the pandemic. in london, there was a televised firework and lights