the new variant of coronavirus is confirmed as being much more transmissible than the original strain. it's left hospitals struggling to cope with a steep rise in numbers. experts say that, even with a lockdown, it could spread fast. the number of cases over the same period could triple, so this is more or less the most

serious change in the virus we have seen since the epidemic began. it comes as the uk's four chief medical officers defend the plan for 12 weeks between the two doses of coronavirus vaccine. also in the programme... the start of a new chapter in uk relations with the eu, as the brexit transition period ends. and as the uk celebrates the new year in a muted way, police issue fines to some for breaking covid restrictions. good afternoon. new analysis has confirmed that the new variant of coronavirus has a much quicker rate of transmission than the original strain. researchers at imperial college london say that even with a lockdown similar to the one in england

in november, the number of cases would still triple, and that this was "the most serious change in the virus that we've seen." it comes as the government reported another 53,285 new infections. the surge in cases has left nhs emergency staff at "battle stations," according to medical leaders, with health workers exhausted and struggling to cope. our health correspondent dominic hughes reports. it might be a new year, but there is no letup in the pressure on hospitals in london and the south—east. a surge in seriously ill covid patients mean staff are being pushed to the limit. intensive care beds are a real pinch point. some patients are being moved from kent to bristol and plymouth where there is spare capacity. that in itself is not unheard of but doctors say it shows the pressures they are working under. if the number of cases don't begin to reduce fairly soon, and

indeed reduce sharply, we would be ina indeed reduce sharply, we would be in a situation where the health care infrastructure not just in a situation where the health care infrastructure notjust in london but across the entire country is overwhelmed. and it's notjust rising patient numbers. the staff themselves are falling ill, meaning resources a re themselves are falling ill, meaning resources are getting stretched. everybody is reporting a lot of pressure. everybody is saying it's really difficult to off—load ambulances because our departments are full, because in turn our hospitals are full. its very fast rating because you can't look after patients the way you want to and you feel helpless when you know there is a sick patient in an ambulance that you just can't get into a department because there isn't space. in order to provide some relief the nightingale hospital in london is being made ready for non—covid patients but still hospitals report the situation remains very difficult. when we are seeing major london trusts, as we have seen in the media today, basically saying they are under real pressure, they are at more than double the normal

rate of icu admissions, then we see they are turning whole floors into additional icu space, that's when we know we are in a very, very challenging place. this surge in patient numbers is being driven by the new variant of the coronavirus. it is more contagious and is affecting more younger people. it's having an impact notjust on hospitals in london and the south—east but right across the country. new research highlights the impact the new variant of the virus is having on the our number, the rate at which it spreads. under a lockdown, maybe over the course of two or three weeks the cases might have decreased by 30%. but with the new variant present, with the increase of r number, with this increase of r number, with this increase of r number, with this increase of 30% we get a massive increase, the number of cases over the same period could triple so this is more or less the most serious change in the virus we have seen since the epidemic began. the best

defence against the virus remains maintaining social distance, good hygiene and wearing face coverings, but the big concern is as the new variant spreads the extreme pressure is now evident in london and the south—east will soon be seen across the country. dominic hughes, bbc news. the uk's chief medical officers have defended the covid vaccination plan, after criticism from a doctors' union. people will receive the two doses of the oxford and pfizer vaccines 12 weeks apart, although initially it was planned to leave 21 days between the pfizerjabs. the british medical association said cancelling patients booked in for their second doses was "grossly unfair". the government says they've delivered a million doses of the vaccine, but some are concerned about the speed of roll—out. our health correspondent jim reed has more. it's the great hope to end this pandemic and return life to something like normal. more than i million people in the uk have now

received the first dose of this vaccine made by the drugs companies pfizer and biontech. the injection needs to be given in two doses. originally, those were meant to be three weeks apart. now doctors are being told to delay those second appointments and rebook, leaving a longer, 12 week gap. the union representing doctors and some individual gps said cancelling people at the last minute was grossly unfair. there are both practical implications, like actually having to have a conversation with over 1000 patients about the fact that the arrangement you've made no longer applies, and no, you don't know what's going to happen next, and no, you don't know what that means for the efficacy of the vaccine, because they were told that you definitely need two doses. but there's also the implications for trust, for trust in us as doctors, trust in us as their own gp. pfizer has said it has only tested the effectiveness of the vaccine when the two shots were given up to three weeks apart.

but in a letter, the uk's chief medical 0fficers said the great majority of initial protection came from that firstjab and that spreading out the vaccine shots will mean more people can be reached more quickly. let's vaccinate as many people as possible and try to get control of this infection, because at the moment, lookdown on its own, i'm sure it's helping, but on its own, it's not controlling infection. at least we come in armed into the new year with two vaccines which are highly effective at preventing severe disease. next week, hospitals like this one should start to get a second vaccine, designed by scientists from oxford university, which will be easier to store and faster to roll out. but again, only around 500,000 doses will be available on day one, far less than originally thought. the government says tens of millions more jabs will be available by march. getting all those to the vulnerable people who need them will now be crucial as the health service

battles the next winter wave of this pandemic. jim reed, bbc news. 0ur health correspondent dominic hughes is in salford. the vaccine is on its way but we remain ina the vaccine is on its way but we remain in a very serious situation, don't we? yeah, it's a real contrast, as we start this new year, the great news we have been listening to about the vaccines with overi million people now having their first overi million people now having theirfirst dose, overi million people now having their first dose, but we know hospitals in london, the south—east and elsewhere in the country are facing what is being described as a nail—biting few weeks. that's because we know the thousands of people who are now testing positive for the virus, some of those will sadly fall very ill in the coming weeks and they will end up in hospital and be needing care. there is also a big issue around staff sickness because nhs staff themselves are not immune to this virus. they too are falling ill. so they are dealing with an increasing

number of patients while they themselves are struggling to staff their wards. we know it's also not just intensive care, general beds are also filling up in hospitals will stop i was talking to a doctor here in greater manchester who was saying that while they had a relatively quieter first few weeks in december, after what had been a very busy period in october and november, things are starting to get busy here too. that's the great fear, where london and the south—east are leading, the rest of the country will follow, driven by this new, very contagious strain of the virus. many thanks, dominic hughes in salford. the latest government figures show there were 53,285 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. and 613 deaths were reported — that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—i9 test. it takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 74,125.

a new era has begun for the united kingdom after it completed its formal separation from the european union. the uk stopped following eu rules at 11:00pm last night, as replacement arrangements for travel, trade, immigration and security co—operation came into force. borisjohnson said the uk had "freedom in our hands", but opponents of leaving the eu maintain the country will be worse off. our home editor mark easton is in dover. the government had warned there may well be disruption in the first weeks, maybe even months, after the implementation of brexit. but so far, this significant change in britain's relationship with europe has been without new year fireworks. the dawn of the new year, and at the uk border in dover, the start of a new chapter for cross—channel relations. brexit is now a reality.

these lorries needing to navigate a tangle of red tape, customs checks and regulatory inspections, plus of course covid test, before being permitted to cross the border. 20 miles outside the port, hgvs reach a police checkpoint. they need to have a kent access permit, nicknamed a kermit to demonstrate paperwork is in order. european truck drivers heading to the continent seem sanguine about the hassle. was it difficult for an extra? no. has it been difficult for you today? no. it's ok. i like england! traffic is usually light on new year's day but with details of the trading deal with details of the trading deal with the eu published less than a week ago, many import export companies are delaying journeys with fears of widespread disruption to freight in the next weeks and

months. many shipments we had booked for next week have been cancelled and they are choosing to get their supplies from europe rather than coming from the united kingdom stop so coming from the united kingdom stop soido coming from the united kingdom stop so i do see that there is going to be some problems with suppliers. 1651 days since the uk voted to leave the european union, and finally brexit has become a reality. now we shall see what that choice means for our relationship with our nearest neighbours, and for britain's standing around the globe. todayis britain's standing around the globe. today is the first day of our com plete today is the first day of our complete independence from the european union. technically, we were independent on the 31st ofjanuary last year, but of course we have just gone through the transitional period and now that is completed so we can say absolutely clearly that britain is a sovereign, independent state. taking control of our borders has meant new infrastructure, new it systems to speed up customs processing, but they remain largely

u ntested. processing, but they remain largely untested. new inland border facilities. but the largest is still not ready to open. fingers are being firmly crossed. what the government is trying to do is essentially by itself more time in a few more areas. they will be waving import controls on goods coming into the uk to allow them to get the necessary systems and infrastructure in place to manage that. the government accepts there will be bumpy moments as people adapt to the new post—brexit environment but insists that today marks the moment when united kingdom takes back control of its destiny. mark easton, bbc news, dover. northern ireland will continue to follow many of the eu's rules. 0ur ireland correspondent, emma vardy, is in belfast. any sign of the changes making any difference yet? just the first signs will stop you have to remember that brexit me in something different here in northern ireland to the rest of the uk because of that special arrangement which means northern ireland stays effectively within the

eu single market for goods while the rest of the uk becomes separate. that means lots of new checks and controls on goods crossing the irish sea from great britain and arriving here at northern ireland's ports. that is done because of checks take place here then no goods are needed for goods travelling further south over the irish land border, keeping that board are invisible. this is effectively the new irish sea border and the first ferry from scotland crossed the irish sea and arrived here in belfast this afternoon, so the goods on board that ferry would have needed new customs declarations, any food products might have needed new inspections. there are bound to be teething problems. this represents a great big change and we had from steno line this afternoon that some lorries arriving at holyhead in wales were not able to cross the irish sea to dublin because they didn't have the right paperwork with the goods they were transporting so this represents a big change. it will be a learning curve for businesses involved and what we see

is the new irish sea border becoming a reality. emma vardy in belfast, thank you. let's speak to our political correspondent, iain watson. it isa it is a new era, but we are yet to feel the full effects. certainly, those who campaign for brexit will see today as the day that effectively marks the uk's independence from the eu, the gaining of the uk's sovereignty. the question is that four and a half yea rs question is that four and a half years after a referendum which convulsed conventional politics, which saw two general elections, we are intoa which saw two general elections, we are into a third prime minister, can we really say that brexit is done? i'm afraid the answer is, not quite, actually. this new trade deal says very little about financial services, so very little about financial services, so access very little about financial services, so access to eu markets still has to be settled. we are free to choose to diverged further from eu review rules, but there could be

further trade barriers and political arguments. if you live in scotland, you certainly haven't heard the last brexit. at the scottish elections, the snp plan to make their opposition to brexit part of their campaign. boris johnson said opposition to brexit part of their campaign. borisjohnson said this should see the end of the rancorous bickering over europe, and sir keir starmer is keen to move on as well. but the consequences of brexit are yet to play out. police forces across the country have issued notices to people for breaking covid restrictions to celebrate the start of the new year. in essex officers handed out more than £18,000 worth of fines. 0ur correspondent sarah campbell has more, and a warning — her report contains flashing images. the message to stay at home had been clear and largely listened to. but not everyone stop to the rules as they welcomed in 2021. —— stuck to they welcomed in 2021. —— stuck to the rules. in edinburgh, a lone piper replaced the traditional

street party and fireworks, which had been cancelled. that didn't deter revellers who still wanted to celebrate hogmanay in the scottish capital. across the uk, the police we re capital. across the uk, the police were deployed to enforce covid restrictions which ban large gatherings of people. the embankment in london, usually at the centre of the new year celebrations. it's been very like quiet, and there's police everywhere, so it's just very like quiet, and there's police everywhere, so it'sjust like, it's not like the usual. the police have been lovely, it's been fine, it's been lovely, it's been fine, it's been nice. a midnight firework display was kept secret in the hope that people would be deterred from visiting the capital. numbers were vastly down on the thousands who would normally be here, but flare—ups in tourist hotspots like piccadilly circus kept the police busy throughout the night. we had sporadic gatherings of people who just won't take note of what is being 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 pretty quickly, so to speak, and weren't a problem for us in terms of what we've laid on. several police forces reported the need to issue fines to wake up illegal gatherings. essex police publish these images after seizing equipment and issuing fines totalling £18,000 early morning on new year's day, and back to deserted streets, the party is over, and the hope that any flouting of covid regulations won't lead to any further increase in infections. sarah campbell, bbc news. 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. they famously burnt a million pounds, buried their brit award near stonehenge and persuaded tammy wynette to sing with an ice cream van. now the klf are finally allowing their music to be played on streaming services for the first time. the first of a five—part compilation series appeared on spotify at midnight, while their remastered

videos have been posted on an official youtube account. the band famously deleted their whole back catalogue after winning the brit award for best band in 1992. there's more throughout the evening on the bbc news channel. we're back with the late news at 10.30. now, on bbc one, it's time for the news where you are. goodbye.

you're watching bbc news with reeta chakrabarti. more now on the news that the uk is beginning life completely outside the eu, no longer part of the single market or customs union. the transition period ended at 11 o'clock last night. the new relationship has meant an end to free movement of people between the uk and europe. in 2019, before covid, british travellers made more than 66 million european trips. anna holligan reports. this time last year, if you wanted to spontaneously catch a flight to spend the new year in amsterdam, you could have done. this year, if you are in the uk, you can't. and that's because of a combination of brexit and covid—19. travelling from non—eu nations into the eu is currently restricted to limit the spread of the virus.

that means uk citizens shouldn't be coming here unless it is essential. so passengers arriving here at the airport must bring proof of a negative covid—19 test taken within 72 hours of landing. this dutch departures hall is actually much quieter than usual and it's a similar picture right across the continent. passport—wise, existing uk passports will be valid, as long as they are less than ten years old and have at least six months left before they expire. british citizens may need to show a return ticket and prove they have enough money to cover their stay. they may need to get their passport stamped and they won't be able to bring most meat or dairy products over. pet passports issued in great britain are no longer valid for travel to the eu. owners will need to get hold of an animal health certificate

from their vet for each round trip instead. the free movement of people between the uk and eu countries has ended. that means british citizens are no longer have the automatic right to live and work in the eu and vice versa. you will need to check each individual country's immigration rules if you want to do those things. uk nationals who want to stay in the eu for more than 90 days in a 180 day period will need a visa. for now, people around the globe are being advised to only travel when it is strictly necessary. anna holligan, bbc news, amsterdam. in less than three weeks, donald trump will be leaving the white house and joe biden will take office marking a dramatic shift in us politics. in the last of our series of lookaheads to 2021, our senior north america reporter anthony zurcher, takes us through his predictions for the year ahead. of course, the biggest topic

in us politics in 2021 is that there is going to be a new president leading the country. donald trump's time in the oval office is coming to an end and onjanuary the 20th, joe biden will be sworn in as the 46th president of the united states. normally in the first 100 days of a presidency, the president focuses on his agenda and his priorities at a time when his political capital is at its highest, butjoe biden pretty much has his agenda already set for him. 100 million shots in the first 100 days. his administration is going to be responsible for rolling out a coronavirus vaccine in an efficient and equitable manner. after that, joe biden is going to have to focus on the societal and economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. millions of american households are facing financial ruin.

large swaths of the us economy are all facing financial devastation. state and local government budgets are facing massive deficits because of declining tax revenue. joe biden has already said he wants to pass a new coronavirus aid package in the first days of his administration and only after that will he focus on other parts of his political agenda. does he want to expand on health care reforms passed by barack 0bama? does he want to tackle the growing cost of college education and student debt? 0r put money into infrastructure? 0r address climate change? now, the ambitiousness ofjoe biden's agenda will be determined within the first week of 2021 in two run—up elections for us senate seats in georgia. if democrats win them both, they will control the us senate as well as the house of representatives and the white house for the first time since 2010. if republicans win one, then it is two more years of divided government

and probably legislative gridlock. the other big question hanging over 2021 in us politics is what donald trump does next. he is heading down to florida. will he continue to contest the election results from there, challenging democrats and trying to undermine joe biden's administration? will he start his own conservative media company that could compete with fox news or position himself or one of his children to run for president in 202a? now, former presidents, when they leave the white house, tend to try and stay above the political fray and they slowly fade from the scenes. that does not seem likely in 2021 with this ex—president. donald trump may be leaving the white house, but as far as us politics is concerned, it does not seem like he is going to go anywhere. now it's time for a look at the weather with ben. hello. the year may have changed, but the weather, not so much.

it is still cold out there and will remain cold for the next few days. some showers and a mixture of sleet and snow and also some sunshine. in the satellite picture, you can see a lot of cloud that has been pushing its way southwards, which has been producing some rain with sleet and snow over high ground, and that has been pushing across england and wales and will continue to do so through the rest of the day. some showers across eastern coasts of england into parts of northern and north—east scotland. some of these wintry on high ground, but even to quite low levels later in the day. not a bad end to the day in northern ireland, but it will turn chilly into the first part of the evening and then through the night it will get very cold indeed particularly where we have clear skies. some showers for the north coast in northern ireland and northern scotland. and some cloud, mist and murk towards the south—east. where we have those clear skies in the west and in the north—west, that is where it will get coldest of all into tomorrow morning.

lows of —7 or —8. a chilly start to saturday with some ice around but there should be some sunshine in many spots. some showers for northern ireland, west wales, devon and cornwall and more for eastern scotland and england. some of those may drift inland towards parts of the north midlands as we go through the afternoon. could be some sleet and snow mixing in with those. another pretty chilly day on saturday. as we get into sunday, this area of high pressure wobbles its way northwards, we slightly shift the wind direction. the winds will come in from the north—east and will be stronger by sunday as well, so it is going to feel particularly raw in those strong winds. but that will focus showers into eastern areas, whereas further west it should be dry by this stage. those temperatures will struggle, as i mentioned. add on the strength of the wind and it will feel really cold and raw. into the start of next week, high—pressure to the north, lower pressure down to the south. quite a few white lines on the chart squashing together. that shows it will be windy to monday and into tuesday,

particularly across the southern part of the uk. that wind coming from a relatively cold place so it'll stay chilly actually throughout the coming week and we are likely to see some rain, sleet and snow at times.

hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: doctors warn that hospital staff in the uk are at battlestations as the number of patients with coronavirus continues to rise. they are turning whole floors into additional icu space. that's when we know we are in a very challenging place. a new era begins, as the brexit transition period ends and the uk completes its formal separation from the european union. big ben chimes. and bringing in the new year — from london to new york,

fireworks mark the start