this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughan jones. our top stories: the us senate over—rides donald trump's presidential veto for the first time, just weeks before he leaves office. more than 20 million coronavirus cases now recorded in the us. with over 350,000 deaths, the country has the highest numbers in the world. scientists confirm the new variant of the coronavirus first identified in the uk is the ‘most serious change in the virus since the epidemic began‘. rescue teams in norway recover a body after wednesday's landslide — nine other people are missing. the rush to buy goods in cuba — price hikes are possible, as the country abolishes one of its currencies

# last christmas i gave you my heart and the very next day, you gave it away. and, after a wait of 36 christmasses — wham's festive classic finally tops the uk singles charts. this is bbc news. the headlines: the us senate has over—ridden donald trump's presidential veto for the first time, just weeks before he leaves office. the republican—controlled senate voted overwhelmingly to approve a defence bill mr trump had blocked. the legislation restricts his welcome to our viewers on pbs powers as commander in chief in america and around and is seen as a rebuke the globe. first, the republican—controlled us senate to the president. has overturned president trump's veto of a $740 billion defence bill, handing the republican the united states has now president the first veto defeat recorded more than 20 million of his presidency weeks cases of covid—19, before he leaves office. doubling the number in less than two months. johns hopkins university says nearly 350,000 americans have died with the virus. vaccination is continuing, with more than three million nasr 13, two—thirds of the people said to have nasr13, two—thirds of the senators voting, koren being received jabs president, having voted in the

affirmative, the bill, on research confirms the new coronavirus variant discovered reconsideration has passed the in the uk has a much quicker objections of the president of rate of transmission. the united states, to the scientists say the variant, contrary, notwithstanding. now identified in 18 countries around the world is the "most serious change in the virus mr trump had criticised a clause that would lead since the epidemic began" and to the removal of the names of confederate generals from us military bases. the move is seen as affects more of the under 20s. a humiliating rebuke of the president. evelyn farkas is a former deputy assistant secretary of defence in the 0bama administration. i asked her what she thought about this vote. well, i think it shows a couple of things. first of all, obviously with the loss of the presidential election, donald trump has lost power. he no longer has any real influence, with one exception, of course, there were some people who did vote with him, vote to hold up his veto, and those are the people who want his political base to support them. so there are some republican politicians over whom he has some influence, but he has lost a lot of influence.

the other thing it shows us is that this bill is really important and there are very strong political constituencies that are stronger than president trump that allied to keep this bill on track and have it pass. that's interesting. you are someone who knows probably more about this bill than most, why is it so sacrosanct there? yeah, so i should say there's another part of my resume — for seven years, i worked on the senate armed services committee, essentially helping, as a senior staffer, put together this bill. it's the annual defence authorisation bill, it authorises the $741 billion coming up for next year, and also provides authority to the department of defense and the department of energy in the case of the nuclear arsenal. why is it important? because it pays the military salaries, the salaries of our military personnel and civilians. included in here was a pay raise. it also covers the cost of running military installations and bases. practically every state has a base or a military installation, so you can see, there is a lot of political support for this bill in the american society.

well, given that, why do you think donald trump chose to veto it? well, there was a provision in there that was introduced by senator elizabeth warren — one of his political nemeses or enemies — and that provision called for renaming ten different military facilities — i believe they are all army installations. these installations have names on them right now of confederate war fighters, so people who lost the american civil war but have continued somehow, especially in the south, to be respected in a way that's unusual for the losing side. the white nationalists, of course, they have rallied to the confederate flag and the cause of the lost confederacy because, of course, the confederates were fighting to maintain slavery — which, of course, is white supremacy. and so president trump was pandering to the white supremacists and, frankly speaking, he is, for all intents and purposes, himself a white nationalist, and so he was opposed to that provision introduced by senator warren.

but that provision was in the bill and received the support of the majority of the republicans on the committee and in the chamber as well, in the senate and the house. 0k, well, mrtrump clearly had his reasons to veto it and republicans have their very strong reasons to defy president trump. do you think we can learn anything from this outside of this particular bill, or was this just an issue that actually, republicans couldn't possibly turn their back on, or does it signify a slipping away of influence of donald trump? yes, it shows us the latter. so it shows us that there is a limit to this president's influence, that his influence is slipping. now, i would venture to say that if he had vetoed or tried to veto the defense authorisation act in its entirety in the past, he would have also had a problem — although i know

he did manage to have his veto prevail in other instances. there are other provisions in this bill that he also didn't like that make it harder for us forces to be removed, for example, overnight from places like afghanistan and syria, but i think it shows demonstrably he that the president's power has weakened substantially and if it weren't for the fact that he still has this hardcore, frankly far—right base, this constituency, he wouldn't have had any of the senators standing up for his interests and his prerogatives. the united states passed another unwanted milestone in the coronavirus pandemic — recording more than 20 million cases. that's more than any other country in the world. according to gfx johns hopkins university — there are now 20,007,149 cases in the us. 346,408 people have lost their lives during the pandemic. on wednesday alone, more than 3,000 900 people died of covid—19 — a new daily record.

there are growing concerns about a new variant of the coronavirus after more analysis confirmed it has a much quicker rate of transmission than the original strain. the variant has now been identified in at least 18 countries around the world after it was originally found here in the uk. its now putting enormous stress on british hospitals. our health correspondent dominic hughes reports. it might be a new year but there's no let—up in the pressure on hospitals in london and the south east. a surge in seriously ill covid patients means 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's spare capacity. that in itself is not unheard of, but doctors say it shows the pressures they're

working under. if the number of cases don't begin to reduce fairly soon — and, indeed, reduce sharply — we would be in a situation where the health care infrastructure — notjust in london, but across the entire country — is overwhelmed. and it's not just rising patient numbers. staff themselves are falling ill, meaning resources are getting stretched. everybody‘s reporting a lot of pressure. everybody is saying that it's really difficult to off—load ambulances because our departments are full because, in turn, our hospitals are full. it's very frustrating because you can't look after patients in the way you want to, and you feel helpless when you know there's a sick patient in an ambulance which you just can't get into a department 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've seen in the media today, basically saying they are under real pressure, they are at more than double the normal rate of icu admissions than they would see, they are turning whole floors into additional icu space, that's when we know we're in a very, very

challenging place. this surge in patient numbers is being driven by the new variant of the coronavirus. it's more contagious and it's affecting more younger people, and it's having an impact not just on hospitals in london and the south east, but right across the country. and new research highlights the impact the new variant of the virus is having on the r number — the rate at which it spreads. under the lockdown, maybe over the course of two to three weeks, the cases would've decreased by something like 30%. but if the new variant is now present, with this increase in the r number, all of a sudden instead of a decrease 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 that we've seen since the epidemic began. the best defence against the virus remains maintaining social distance, good hand hygiene and wearing face coverings, but the big concern is that as this new variant spreads, the extreme pressures now evident in london and the south east will soon be

seen across the country. let's get some of the day's other news. a panel of indian medical experts has recommended the emergency use of a coronavirus vaccine, a key step towards starting a nationwide immunisation programme. india's drug regulator is expected to give final approval to the vaccine produced by astrazeneca and oxford university. iran has told the un's atomic watchdog that it plans to start enriching uranium to a level far higher than allowed under the international nuclear deal. it's the most significant breach of the agreement since the us withdrew from the accord in 2018. the new york stock exchange says it will delist three chinese telecommunications firms because of their alleged links with china's military. the move comes after president trump signed an executive order in november

barring us investments in chinese companies that were seen as a threat to national security. rescuers in norway have found a body in the debris of homes swallowed up by a landslip near 0slo on wednesday. it's the first confirmed fatality. emergency workers managed to get into the crater on foot for the first time but nine people, including children, are still unaccounted for. vince soodin reports. it's a race against time. rescuers are accelerating the search for children, women and men hidden in a huge, dark crater filled with clay. but it's a high—risk operation as the ground is still not safe and workers are surrounded by precarious clay walls. emergency workers have managed to get into the crater on foot for the first time. they have to carry styrofoam boards to spread their weight in areas where ground remains unstable.

today, the first body was recovered. translation: we've found one person. unfortunately, they've been confirmed dead. we're working intensively to search the area, and it's a risky search. many are affected by this tragedy. there are people who have lost their houses, everything they own and now, also family members. this father is one of those waiting for news. his girlfriend and 13—year—old daughter are missing. translation: i wish i could switch places with my daughter. she could be here and i could be missing. it is unreal. i never thought this could happen. a giant army vehicle called a paver has been sent to gjerdrum. it's equipped with a steel bridge in which rescuers can move along, but the ground is still too shaky for the 50—tonne machine to be deployed. a vigil was held for those missing on new year's eve. police have said the search will continue during the night.

heavy rainfall is believed to have made the soil under the homes unstable. there will now be questions as to why the construction was permitted in the first place. vince soodin, bbc news. stay with us on bbc world news, still to come: swept off her feet, but not swept away. how a surfer in hawaii saved a woman from drowning. the most ambitious financial and political change ever attempted has got under way with the introduction of the euro. tomorrow in holland, we're going to use money we picked up in belgium today, and then we'll be in france, and again, it'll be the same money. it's just got to be the way to go. george harrison, the former

beatle, is recovering in hospital after being stabbed at his oxfordshire home. a 33—year—old man from liverpool is being interviewed by police on suspicion of attempted murder. i think it was good. just good? no, fantastic! that's better! bells toll this is bbc world news, the latest headlines: the us senate has over—ridden donald trump's presidential veto for the first time, just weeks before he leaves office. they voted overwhelmingly to approve a defence bill mr trump had blocked. more than 20 million coronavirus cases have now been recorded in the us. with over 350,000 deaths, the country has the highest numbers in the world.

cuba, the only country in the world with two official currencies, has started phasing out one of them. the government is getting rid of the convertible peso to try to improve the economy. but that'll mean soaring prices, worrying many, even though wages are also going up. gail maclellan has more. cu ba ns ca ll cubans call it day zero. the end of a 26 year to currency system. 0ver end of a 26 year to currency system. over the next six months, convertible peso, pegged to the dollar, is on its way out. the government says it has to go to make the economy more efficient and to understand foreign investors. the only problem is, that leaves people here with the cuban leaves people here with the cu ban peso, leaves people here with the cuban peso, and it is worth 24 times less. 0r cuban peso, and it is worth 24 times less. or in other words, one us dollar equals 24 cuban pesos. that means prices will

soar by and eye watering 160%, and to make matters most, the government is also ending subsidies on many goods. —— worse. translation: subsidies on many goods. —— worse. translationzlj subsidies on many goods. —— worse. translation: i trust it is better than what we have been through. it has been a very difficult year from every point of view, economic, emotional and social. so now, with these changes, i always trust that it will be better and that things that were done had to be done now. they couldn't wait any longer. to compensate, the government is raising wages and pension payments. the new salary framework sets 32 wage levels, depending on thejob. it means that teachers, journalists, lions trainers and doctors in training, for example, will and the same salary. but 80% of people here work for the state and many are worried the wage increases won't be enough. translation: we are not prepared. 0ur translation: we are not prepared. our country, due to the situation, everyone knows that we have been living in for 62 years. having two currencies in the same country, the one

that we hard, the one that a lwa ys that we hard, the one that always existed, the cuban peso, that was always valued in gold. that continues to be the cuban peso. last year cuba's economy shrank 11%. its worst decline in 27 years, caused by us sanctions and fewer tourists because of the coronavirus pandemic. but the government says reform is needed. short—term pain for long—term gain. gail mclennan, bbc news. an australian professional surfer has been praised for running into rough seas in hawaii to save a woman from drowning. here you can see mikey wright sprinting towards the waves after realising someone was the waves after realising someone was getting swept away and be strong current. he then entered the water, which was full of sharp rocks, to reach the woman. he had to battle to keep hold of her as the waves crashed over them and swept them off their feet. crashed over them and swept them off theirfeet. but crashed over them and swept them off their feet. but mikey eventually got her up to the safety of the beach. and i

spoke to mikey on the north shore of oahu, talked me through the rescue. we're literallyjust sitting up here on our backyard and we've seen this lady getting swept off her feet and it straight away clicked that she's actually going to be in serious danger here and the rocks that she's on it, it's like all volcano rock, so it's very sharp and she was just getting dragged off the rocks and out into the ocean. 0ut into where the waves were ten foot plus. you know, obviously, by the time i got down there to her the sets weren't as big which was lucky for her and myself. as soon i seen it, i thought, this lady's going to need saving so ijumped the fence, ripped me shirt off and ran straight down the beach as quickly as i could and assessed the situation as i was running to see which was the best way to get to her.

when you were in the water, was there any doubt in your mind? there were times when you were not obviously with her straightaway, did you think it could get worse? no, as soon as i was getting close to her, as i dove in the water i said to her, come towards me, don't try to go straight in because that is where the sharp rocks were, and underneath her. i was trying to get her towards more sand and less rock but, if the waves had been bigger when i was down in the water with her, it could have been a lot more dangerous. but as soon as i got a hold of her, i said, hey, we're going to be ok, you're 0k, we're going to get in and as soon as i got repeating that to her over and over, every wave that hit us, you're 0k. amazing. was she saying anything

back at that point? at that point she was like, 0k, 0k, and she was pretty much saying 0k and i said, don't let go, just hold onto me. my sister was actually on the beach and she warned me there was a double—up coming and that's why i picked her up and kind ofjumped into the wave, copping that hit of the wave on my back and then kind of got pushed down into the rocks a little bit. she had already got scratches all over her body and i got some down my back and my arms but for the situation we were in, we both came out pretty unscathed, and at the end of the day she's safe now and to get on the beach and to see how thankful she was and to see her son come running down the beach at the time.

he just latched onto me and was hugging me and did not let go for a minute, saying thank you so much, you saved my mum, i thought she was gone for the first time in decades, philadelphia had to cancel its annual mummers' parade, which is believed to be one of the oldest folk festivals in america. but, despite the coronavirus restrictions, hundreds of revellers still held an unsanctioned march on new year's day. aru na iyengar reports. this was the rogue version of philadelphia's traditional new year's day mummers' parade. the official parade was cancelled months ago due to the covid pandemic. hundreds marched in costu mes. pandemic. hundreds marched in costumes. mummering is a folk tradition where amateur actors and dancers visit house to house during festivals or holidays. happy new year! we just want to ring in the new year. what do you think about

today? it is beautiful, i love that people are still getting out for it. we will be out here all day. why was it important for you to be out here? because it is tradition, just getting into the south family tradition. the aruna iyengar -- mummers' parade has not been cancelled in decades, but there are over 640,000 cases of covid—19 in pennsylvania on thursday and at this event there was little social distancing. police kept a wary eye on events. 0rganisers justified the event saying that because it was a protest, rather than a parade, it fell under the first amendment right to free speech and assembly. 0thers disagreed, saying that the protest was "dumb but predictable". elsewhere, the 2021 rose parade in pasadena became a virtual televised event. and after the official polar plunge in south boston, massachusetts was cancelled, small groups still braved the four degrees temperatures. back

to philadelphia, and the mummers' protest. any fears about the pandemic? no, we got out about the pandemic? no, we got our mask on. we'll be safe. aruna iyengar, bbc news. wham's last christmas has topped the uk singles chart for the first time, 36 years after it was first released. the festive classic was streamed 9 million times over the last week. let's have a listen. # last christmas i gave you my heart # but the very next day you gave it away first released in december 1984, george michael and andrew ridgeley‘s song was famously held off the top spot by band aid's do they know it's christmas. it's since returned to the top ten six times. richard blade is a dj with sirius xm, and he's been telling me how he felt when he heard the news. i was thrilled, it's a great song.

we play it a lot on sirius xm and i was really shocked, actually, it had never been to number one on the uk charts before. yeah, 36 attempts, i suppose! it is quite the wait, and given what we know of the huge part of the cultural landscape wham and that song is here in the uk every christmas, what about where you are? same here. it's played on so many channels. sirius xm has been playing it on multiple channels, on first wave on the big 80s, on our christmas channels, and it's one of those songs that people request all the time because they love wham and they love george. and you had quite a good close relationship with the band? i did, i was very, very lucky to know wham from their earliest days. when they first came over in 1982 i had them on my radio show, they did their first—ever live gig with me at the beginning of 1983 and i took them to the 321 club in santa monica, california and that was the first time they played live when they lip synced to young guns

and bad boys and then they did it the next night at the club i was doing in westwood. more than 39 million fans have logged into an online concert by some of the biggest names in kapok. people from 180 countries watched the special new year's day concert which was streamed at a variety of websites. bands such as tvxq and bts also had an online concert on new year's eve. now, for those of us wrapped up warm indoors, not everyone chooses to start the new year in comfort. in rome the thing to do on news year's day is this. there he goes! that's the traditional leap into the river tiber. he struck a pose there as if about to dive elegantly, but that was more of a jump. i think some of them do actually dive. you can reach me on twitter.

i'm @lvaughanjones. hello there. this cold weather isn't giving up anytime soon. it will stay for the weekend and most of next week. at least for the weekend there'll be quite a lot of sunshine around. mainly across western areas. it'll be cold and some further wintry showers, most of them across the eastern side of the country. the blue air mass indicates that cold air very much with us saturday. northerly winds pushing these showers into scotland, northern ireland and wales. plenty of them starting to go to the east coast of england. a few of them also pushing into the midlands. and there will be a covering of snow in places. but many places staying dry with the sunshine, though it will be cold. those showers start to spread a little bit further inland as we move through saturday night. further sleet and snow in places. probably the clearest of the skies in western scotland and northern ireland, so here the coldest to start sunday. elsewhere, cold again but with a risk of ice

from all the showers. as we head on into sunday, we see high—pressure in the north of the uk, lower pressure to the south and that'll start to drive in eastern and north easterly winds. some subtle changes for part two of the weekend. that will push most of the showers into eastern scotland and in eastern england and they will drive their way a little bit further west through the day and there will be some sleet and snow there, not just at higher ground. probably the best of the sun will be across sheltered western areas and it will be a cold day when you factor in the breeze. head on into monday, a similar set up, the breeze feeding in more clouds and showers to much of england and wales and could see rain and sleet across the further north, lighter winds for scotland and ireland, and quite a bit of sunshine around. we have the stronger winds for england and wales particularly along the sea coast and it will feel pretty raw as these temperatures will struggle to get much above three to six degrees. it will feel colder than it suggests. and the blue colours are still with us as we head into next week and you guessed it, yes it is going to stay cold. it will be rather cloudy in places too. quite windy for a time

and i think the winds could ease towards the end of the week, but by the end 00:28:05,186 --> 2147483051:50:47,308 of the week, we could see rain, 2147483051:50:47,308 --> 4294966103:13:29,430 sleet and snow for some of us.