this is bbc news — these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. a ban on travellers into the uk from south america and portugal has come into force. the transport secretary says the precautionary step was taken because of fears of a new variant of coronavirus. some of them which are more easily transmitted, are obviously of greater concern and it's really as a precautionary principle. we are so close now, we have 3 million of these vaccines in people's arms in the uk, we want to make sure we do not fall at this last hurdle. us—president electjoe biden promises nearly 2 trillion dollars in a stimulus package to tackle the coronavirus pandemic and kick—start the american economy. a powerful earthquake on the indonesian island

of sulawesi has killed dozens and left thousands homeless. the uk economy shrank by 2.6% in november as the second lockdown hit economic output after many businesses were forced to close. and celebrities, including the footballer marcus rashford, join campaigners demanding the government review its policy on free school meals. hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. researchers say the latest variant to emerge, the one in brazil, could be contributing to soaring covid infections there.

it's thought the new variant is more infectious that the original one that started the pandemic. brazil has struggled to contain the virus, and has the second highest number of deaths after the united states. in a grim reminder ofjust how deadly this virus is the global deaths recorded has almost reached 2 million. in response to the new variant a travel ban on arrivals from south america into the uk has come into force this morning because of concerns about the covid variant discovered in brazil. passengers from 13 south american countries including brazil, argentina and chile will be banned from entering the uk. the ban also applies to portugal which has strong travel links to brazil as well as the islands of the azores. lorry drivers from portugal will be exempt. the travel ban is prompted by fears of how quickly the new variant may spread through the region since brazil borders 10 countries. uk citizens and permanent residents will be exempt from the travel ban but they and their families will have to self—isolate for 10 days on arrival.

our business correspondent theo leggett has this report. in a huge graveyard near sao paulo, the latest victims of the covid pandemic are being buried. the virus has swept through brazil, leaving more than 200,000 dead. now a new variant has emerged which it's feared could prove significantly more infectious than the original version. the british government wants to prevent it arriving here, and so it's announced a new wave of travel restrictions. from this morning, travellers from 13 south american countries, including brazil, argentina and chile will be banned from entering the uk. the ban also applies to portugal, which has strong travel links with brazil, as well as the islands of the azores. but lorry drivers from portugal will be allowed in. the islands of cape verde, off the coast of west africa, are included in the ban as well. the new restrictions do not apply to british citizens or residents. there aren't that many flights going on.

brits will still need to repatriate so it's not that nobody would be able to come in up until now, but of course everybody that has come here will have had to, by law, quarantine themselves for ten days. we don't want to trip up at this late stage, we're so close now that we want to make sure we do absolutely everything possible to give us the best chance of beating this virus which is why it's so important that we do act quickly on these things. for the embattled travel industry, it's yet another blow, although with relatively few flights currently coming into the uk, it will make little difference in practice. a similar ban already applies to flights from southern africa, which is also home to a worrying new variant of the virus. meanwhile, as of monday, all passengers boarding planes, trains or boats to england will have to provide evidence of a negative covid test. the new rule had been due to come into force today, but was delayed to give passengers more time to prepare. anyone who fails to produce a test result will face a fine of £500.

covid vaccines are holding out the prospect that one day, the pandemic could come to an end, but in the meantime, covid restrictions are becoming tighter than ever. theo leggett, bbc news. and speaking again this morning the transport secretary explained why the mutation from brazil has raised concerns. we had a look at this particular mutation as opposed to many thousands, very carefully, and we saw there may be an issue not so much that the vaccine will not work, in fact scientists think it will work but the fact it is more spreadable, as with the version we have got here and wanted to act as quickly as possible. as it happens, there haven't been flights coming from brazil in the last week. jon dent, travelled to brazil with his wife carla in october so that her family — who live in goiania — could see their daughter luiza, for the first time. they are due to fly back to the uk on 6 february. jonjoins me now.

i guess you are in a state of limbo just now? i guess you are in a state of limbo “ust now? , i guess you are in a state of limbo 'ust now? , �* , ~ ., just now? yes, it's the unknown that's so hard _ just now? yes, it's the unknown that's so hard at _ just now? yes, it's the unknown that's so hard at the _ just now? yes, it's the unknown that's so hard at the moment. l just now? yes, it's the unknown - that's so hard at the moment. really struggling to understand when we will come back because if anything, with covid, who knows how long things take?— with covid, who knows how long thinustake? ~ ., ., ., ., . things take? what information have ou been things take? what information have you been able _ things take? what information have you been able to _ things take? what information have you been able to gather— things take? what information have you been able to gather together i things take? what information havej you been able to gather together so far? i appreciate this travel ban has just come into force. so far? i appreciate this travel ban hasjust come into force. so it's early days. hasjust come into force. so it's early deve— hasjust come into force. so it's earl da s. , �* , ., , early days. yes. i've been advised to contact — early days. yes. i've been advised to contact my _ early days. yes. i've been advised to contact my airline, _ early days. yes. i've been advised to contact my airline, british - to contact my airline, british airways, which i'm going to do today but so far, no information at all. 0k, but so far, no information at all. ok, so it's not a case of you coming back and going into quarantine, for example? back and going into quarantine, for examle? ., ., , ., , example? no, the only hope i have is erha -s example? no, the only hope i have is perhaps the — example? no, the only hope i have is perhaps the british _ example? no, the only hope i have is perhaps the british government - example? no, the only hope i have is perhaps the british government will l perhaps the british government will organise some flights for british citizens out here. we are getting no information on that. as far as i was aware i was going to go back and do quarantine, as i should. but this,

now, who knows? you quarantine, as i should. but this, now, who knows?— quarantine, as i should. but this, now, who knows? you are at least with family- _ now, who knows? you are at least with family. which _ now, who knows? you are at least with family. which i _ now, who knows? you are at least with family. which i guess - now, who knows? you are at least with family. which i guess is - now, who knows? you are at least with family. which i guess is a - with family. which i guess is a fortunate position to be in. in terms of what's going on with the variant in brazil, is that a big story, lots of people talking about it and concerned about it? yes. it and concerned about it? yes, absolutely- _ it and concerned about it? yes, absolutely. the _ it and concerned about it? yes, absolutely. the new _ it and concerned about it? yes, absolutely. the new variant - it and concerned about it? yes, absolutely. the new variant is l absolutely. the new variant is definitely the topic today and at the moment, in brazil, and of course, the cases arising here so people are worried. bud course, the cases arising here so people are worried.— people are worried. and do you recret people are worried. and do you regret now _ people are worried. and do you regret now you _ people are worried. and do you regret now you did _ people are worried. and do you regret now you did decide - people are worried. and do you regret now you did decide to i people are worried. and do you i regret now you did decide to make this trip? 0bviously even quite a while ago, didn't you, in october, before we knew about this variant but you know, hindsight is a wonderful thing!— but you know, hindsight is a wonderful thing! hindsight is a wonderful thing! hindsight is a wonderfulthing! _ wonderful thing! hindsight is a wonderful thing! my _ wonderful thing! hindsight is a wonderful thing! my family i wonderful thing! hindsight is a wonderful thing! my family in l wonderful thing! hindsight is a i wonderfulthing! my family in brazil wonderful thing! my family in brazil had not met my newborn daughter so i don't regret it at all. my only concern now, we are ok, we are happy, obviously, my mother, back home, she is the one probably most worried about the next time we will see her and she will see her

granddaughter. at}! see her and she will see her granddaughter.— see her and she will see her granddaughter. see her and she will see her ruranddauhter. u, , �* granddaughter. of course. and in terms of i don't _ granddaughter. of course. and in terms of i don't know— granddaughter. of course. and in terms of i don't know what i granddaughter. of course. and in terms of i don't know what your | granddaughter. of course. and in i terms of i don't know what your work position is, where you are expected back to work at a given time, date? what's the situation in terms of the pressure to get back to the uk? fortunately, the company i work for, have been excellent, they have completely understood and i am continuing to work remotely, i am blessed and fortunate for this. i think there's many people worse off than i am and i am actually 0k professionally, so no concerns there. ,, . , professionally, so no concerns there. ,, ., , , ., ., professionally, so no concerns there. ,, ., , ., there. 0k. stateside, you and your famil and there. ok. stateside, you and your family and i— there. 0k. stateside, you and your family and i hope _ there. 0k. stateside, you and your family and i hope you _ there. 0k. stateside, you and your family and i hope you eventually i there. 0k. stateside, you and your. family and i hope you eventually get back, you will, of course, but we just don't know how long it's going to take, do we? —— stay safe stop lots of people will be in this position, not knowing, but thank you so much for talking to us. the us president—electjoe biden has set out a rescue plan worth nearly two trillion dollars to combat the pandemic and stimulate what he called a sinking economy. the plan includes one—off payments of moo dollars to all adults and extending unemployment benefits to millions more people.

mr biden, who takes office next wednesday, is also promising a mass vaccination campaign. here's our north america correspondent, david willis. in the worst affected nation on earth, the coronavirus is having a devastating effect. hospitals are at breaking point as cases have spiralled to around 200,000 per day. food banks are inundated as the collapsing economy has caused many businesses to lay off their workers. joe biden promised to make combating the coronavirus his number one priority, and less than a week to go until taking office, he's unveiled a plan aimed at containing the virus and getting the economy back on track. one that will cost this country nearly $2 trillion. we not only have an economic imperative to act now, i believe we have a moral obligation. in this pandemic, in america,

we cannot let people go hungry. we cannot let people get evicted. we cannot watch nurses, educators and others, lose theirjob when we so badly need them. we must act now and act decisively. a month after the first shots were administered here, america's vaccination programme is off to a sluggish start. mr biden is pledging billions of dollars to expand testing and vaccination efforts, and enable schools to reopen safely by the spring. he is also pledging larger sums to help individuals worst affected by the crisis, all of it paid for with borrowed money. but necessary, he believes, in order to prevent the world's largest economy from further slipping into the abyss. all this, of course, at a time of deepening political unrest. packed close together and mostly mask free, last week's protests at the capitol building were not only another potential super spreader event,

they also underlined the fact that many here still believe the virus is a hoax. forjoe biden, there is more than one kind of healing to be done. ironically, perhaps, the day that he is due to be sworn in, marks a rather grim anniversary, the anniversary of the first confirmed case of covid—i9 in the united states. david willis, bbc news, los angeles. let's get more on this and speak to dr leslie vinjamuri, director of the us programme at chatham house. welcome to you, as ever. joe biden had already talked, hadn't he, about his plan to try and combat the virus, 100 million vaccines in his plan to try and combat the virus,100 million vaccines in his 100 days in office, his first 100 days, people wearing masks, getting children back to school, boosting the economy. this to $1 trillion package, what sort of inroads could that make and is he going to be able to get that through congress quite

easily? to get that through congress quite easil ? ~ ., . ~' to get that through congress quite easil ? ~ ., ., ,, ., easily? well, it would make an extraordinary _ easily? well, it would make an extraordinary difference, i easily? well, it would make an i extraordinary difference, remember, congress has been fighting over this and only managed to agree a very small portion of it at the last minute. after many months of deep partisanship, so the question now, as you rightly say, is will he be able to get this through? it would make a massive importance to many americans because the focus, of course, is on the unemployment insurance, raising the stimulus checks of $2000 a month on a child tax credit, investment in education, so schools can reopen in the first 100 days of his administration. and then, of course, a huge injection of cash into helping public health workers and a vaccination programme, the focus very much as one that's looking at public health and low income americans so he's taken that inequality agenda and it means a huge amount to him and he is articulating that very clearly in

his speech. he recognises many americans at the very top are done very well through the pandemic and he is looking to take care of that larger number of americans. the question you ask rightly is can he get it through and i think this is going to be the crucial question. he will be and will need, even with having a very slim majority in the senate, really only won by the vote at the vice president, he will have to get at least ten more republicans and keep the democrats but there is also the potential that he could use also the potential that he could use a budget reconciliation measure to get quite a lot of measures through. the other thing is this takes us through, if successful, until septemberand through, if successful, until september and then of course, there is still going to be a need for more stabilisation over the economy, long after that but i think, you know, he's off to the right step. 0ne after that but i think, you know, he's off to the right step. one big question that looms, of course, is what happens with that question of a senate trial and does it get in the way of any effort to really bring

people together for the stimulus? let me come back to that in just a second. so we're looking at the financial stimulus. second. so we're looking at the financialstimulus. but second. so we're looking at the financial stimulus. but also come in terms of the message after the trump approach of spawning science and the experts, frankly, and antique mask wearing. will it be difficult, tonally, forjoe biden to turn the message around and convince enough americans to play their part in what he wants to do?— he wants to do? well, yes, there is a lane he wants to do? well, yes, there is a large percentage _ he wants to do? well, yes, there is a large percentage of _ he wants to do? well, yes, there is a large percentage of americans i he wants to do? well, yes, there is. a large percentage of americans who are wary of the science behind the vaccine so even once you get, you saw the problem of delivering and persuading a percentage of americans to take the vaccine, so there is an uphill battle. beyond a shadow of a doubt we've had four tremendously tragic years in america when it comes to the question of how science figures into our public policy debates, the role of facts. but, you know, i think we are seeing such

devastation in terms of the number of lives lost, the fact that the pandemic is out of control and people want to get back to work. and they want to participate in daily life so i think, you know, the momentum is certainly on the side of president—elect biden and i think we will see really quite a transformation in the first 100 days. transformation in the first 100 da s. , transformation in the first 100 da 5, , ., transformation in the first 100 da s. , ., , days. sorry to interrupt you, back to the point _ days. sorry to interrupt you, back to the point you _ days. sorry to interrupt you, back to the point you were _ days. sorry to interrupt you, back| to the point you were introducing, with the senate trial to come, how much of a distraction or indeed impediment, will that be tojoe biden �*s plans in his early days in office? biden 's plans in his early days in office? ~ , ., biden 's plans in his early days in office? ~ ,, ~ ., , biden 's plans in his early days in office? ~ ~ ., , , biden 's plans in his early days in office? ~ ~ ., , office? well, you know, this is a real concern _ office? well, you know, this is a real concern and _ office? well, you know, this is a real concern and it's _ office? well, you know, this is a real concern and it's not - office? well, you know, this is a real concern and it's not yet i office? well, you know, this is al real concern and it's not yet clear when that trial will begin. it is certainly possible that might get deferred and i think it might be a goodidea deferred and i think it might be a good idea for the senate to delay so there is time for them to focus on getting the nominations thatjoe biden will need, to put his team in

place, many of those need senate confirmation is, getting this package through and any other number of measures. it will undoubtedly of the senate if they immediately take up the senate if they immediately take up a trial and a lot of people don't want a delay. but certainly something to be said and it's fully within the realm of possibility that the trial will be deferred. that's something that's certainly under consideration right now.- something that's certainly under consideration right now. thank you very much- — rescuers are searching through the rubble of a partially—collapsed indonesian hospital after an earthquake struck the island of sulwesi, leaving 35 people dead. the 6.2—magnitude quake came just hours after an earlier, smaller tremor. hundreds of people were injured and thousands displaced by the quake, which hit towns on the west of the island the hardest. tanya dendrinos reports. searching through the rubble,

this is the aftermath of a 6.2 magnitude earthquake which struck the indonesian island of sulawesi around 1 am on friday. hours after a smaller quake was recorded. the panic palpable here. authorities trying to create some space for medical teams after a person was pulled from the wreckage. thousands left their homes fleeing to safety when they felt the tremor, which lasted for around seven seconds. no tsunami warning was issued, but the damage from the earthquake is clear to see. multiple buildings have collapsed, including a hospital. the death toll has continued to climb and hundreds have been injured. for now, though, the focus remains on finding anyone still trapped. hoping for survivors. indonesia has a history of devastating earthquakes and tsunamis, and authorities have warned residents to remain wary.

translation: the buildings were hit by two quakes i and at least 28 aftershocks. and because the epicenter is near the beach, there's a possibility of underwater landslides. so there's still tsunami potential if the epicenter of the next aftershock is on the beach or near the coast. it's forced some to higher ground, doing all they can for now, hoping the worst is behind them. tanya dendrinos, bbc news. tens of thousands of businesses will now receive payments to cover their losses during the first national lockdown after a supreme court battle with insurers. thousands of claims were made on business interruption policies, but firms were told that they were never intended to cover such unprecedented restrictions. today, the court found in favour of small firms — potentially costing the insurance sector hundreds of millions of pounds.

our business correpsondent vishala sri—pathma joins me now all of this unfolding in the last hour or so since we spoke, it's good news for thousands of small businesses who say the court decision was like death for the businesses. fin decision was like death for the businesses.— decision was like death for the businesses. . . , ., , businesses. on that decision, they ruled, specifically _ businesses. on that decision, they ruled, specifically the _ businesses. on that decision, they ruled, specifically the wording i businesses. on that decision, they | ruled, specifically the wording they found in favour of small firms receiving payments from business interruption insurance policies. as you have been hearing all morning, these small businesses back in the first lockdown in march, phoned up these insurance policies and asked for a coverfor these insurance policies and asked for a cover for loss of earnings because of restrictions, they were told no, some of them were told these sort of policies only covered by very specialist policies that covered pandemic tight restrictions and were refused, this decision by the supreme court has rejected that appeal from the insurers and said actually, these firms are eligible to go ahead and make those claims,

tens of thousands expect to receive payments. clearly, this will cost the insurance sector hundreds of millions of pounds. but for businesses, it could mean that they could operate post—pandemic, at a time they are probably worried about how far they can trade into the future. , , , , how far they can trade into the future. , , ,, ., , ,., ~' future. one business owner! spoke to described _ future. one business ownerl spoke to described how— future. one business owner! spoke to described how they _ future. one business owner! spoke to described how they had - future. one business owner! spoke to described how they had been i to described how they had been literally going around their house, looking at things they could sell on ebay in order to try and keep the business viable, to sustain the business. i suppose the question is how quickly will the insurers have to pay out?— how quickly will the insurers have toa out? to pay out? that's right. as lots of --eole to pay out? that's right. as lots of people will — to pay out? that's right. as lots of people will know, _ to pay out? that's right. as lots of people will know, anyone - to pay out? that's right. as lots of people will know, anyone that i to pay out? that's right. as lots of people will know, anyone that has| people will know, anyone that has ever made a claim, it can be quite complicated, you've got to go over the wording and that's what they were debating today, the judges the wording and that's what they were debating today, thejudges in the supreme court, going over the wording to see if this could work for small businesses. and so they have to put the processes through and receive payment and clearly for any business, cash flow is key, it is really important to keep ticking

along. clearly, there is some support available to them from government schemes but it will be crucial but they receive that cash injection quite quickly so they are able to sort of trade as quickly as they can when restrictions are eased. ., ~ they can when restrictions are eased. ., ,, , ., ., , eased. ok, thank you, and i will be s-ueakin eased. ok, thank you, and i will be speaking in — eased. ok, thank you, and i will be speaking in a _ eased. ok, thank you, and i will be speaking in a little _ eased. ok, thank you, and i will be speaking in a little while _ eased. ok, thank you, and i will be speaking in a little while to - eased. ok, thank you, and i will be speaking in a little while to the i speaking in a little while to the owner of a small business to get his reaction to the news from the supreme court. lockdown restrictions in november pushed the uk economy back into decline, according to new figures out this morning. gross domestic product — gdp — is the sum of the value of goods and services produced in the economy. it shrank by 2.6 percent in november — showing that the closure of non—essential in england had a big impact on the whole economy. 0utput was 8.5 percent below its level last february — the final month before the pandemic hit britain. joining me now is sarah hewin, head of research for europe and the americas at standard chartered bank good to have you with us. what do you read into these figures, figures

forjust you read into these figures, figures for just one you read into these figures, figures forjust one month, it has to be said. , ., . ., , forjust one month, it has to be said. , . . ., , �*, said. yes, i mean, clearly, it's reflecting _ said. yes, i mean, clearly, it's reflecting the _ said. yes, i mean, clearly, it's reflecting the impact - said. yes, i mean, clearly, it's reflecting the impact of i said. yes, i mean, clearly, it's reflecting the impact of the i reflecting the impact of the lockdown. i think there are perhaps two chinks of light there, the decline was not as bad as we had expected, manufacturing and construction continue to grow, services were hit, not surprisingly, but not quite as badly as feared. and it does seem as if consumers have shifted a lot of their spending to online spending so as ensuring the economy keeps going. does this mean we won't _ the economy keeps going. does this mean we won't have _ the economy keeps going. does this mean we won't have a _ the economy keeps going. does this mean we won't have a double i the economy keeps going. does this mean we won't have a double dip i mean we won't have a double dip recession, a lot of speculation around that.— around that. yes, i mean, the technical _ around that. yes, i mean, the technical definition _ around that. yes, i mean, the technical definition of - around that. yes, i mean, the technical definition of a i around that. yes, i mean, the i technical definition of a recession is where you have two successive quarters of negative growth. the current quarter, the first quarter of 2021, is almost certainly going to be negative but the fourth quarter could probably stay

positive, given that the downturn we saw in november wasn't quite as bad as we had expected and it's likely given some of the easing of restrictions in december, that the monthly december gdp number will be positive. so we will get a downturn in the first quarter but the fourth quarter will probably be marginally positive so, in technical terms, we have avoided a recession even though it may not feel like. so have avoided a recession even though it may not feel like.— it may not feel like. so with restriction _ it may not feel like. so with restriction still _ it may not feel like. so with restriction still very - it may not feel like. so with restriction still very tight i it may not feel like. so withj restriction still very tight on it may not feel like. so with i restriction still very tight on the other side of the scales, more people getting vaccinated. i guess businesses are just holding on and hoping for that point when things start to shift towards the positive, but more people are able to get out and more businesses are able to reopen stop but it's a very, very tricky time for them, isn't it? kind of trying to have the point of balance where they can sustain things onto the situation gets better. ~ , ,., , things onto the situation gets better. ~ , , ., u ., ., better. absolutely, the vaccination programmes _ better. absolutely, the vaccination programmes do — better. absolutely, the vaccination programmes do give _ better. absolutely, the vaccination programmes do give us _

better. absolutely, the vaccination programmes do give us great i better. absolutely, the vaccinationj programmes do give us great hope better. absolutely, the vaccination i programmes do give us great hope for the future. i think we are already seeing some signs as well of a lift in sentiment, there are reports of people booking holidays so although businesses will require social distancing measures to be eased, they will be struggling over the next few weeks and possibly months. more broadly for the economy, this return to optimism is going to be really significant and hopefully, once we get into the second quarter and certainly the summer months, we will see a strong recovery in activity. will see a strong recovery in activi . ., ., ~ will see a strong recovery in activi . ., ., ,, ., will see a strong recovery in activi . ., ., ., activity. sarah, thank you for your thou~hts activity. sarah, thank you for your thoughts today. _ let's return to our top story now. researchers say the latest variant to emerge — the one in brazil could be contributing to soaring infections there. it's thought the new variant is more infectious that the original one that started the pandemic. dr chris smith works

as a consultant virologist at addenbrooke's hospital in cambridge and presents the the naked scientist podcast. hejoins us now. good to see you. what do we know about the new variant, the one that the uk and other countries are making efforts to try to keep out? how does it compare to the other variants that have emerged? this emerued variants that have emerged? this emerged fairly — variants that have emerged? try 3 emerged fairly recently, scientists are studying the genetic code of the virus because if you look at where the changes are, you can then look at which bit of the code they affect and that bit of the code determines how that bit of the virus works and so it gives you some clues. it shares some changes with the new variant we have here in the uk but there are others and it also has a lot in common with the new variant detected in south africa. 0n the eastern cape and has quite quickly eclipsed all of the cases accounted for in south africa, the same is happening in brazil. it looks like

this virus has changed in such a way that makes it more transmissible because it's changed on the outer coat of the virus. and that makes it probably more readily transmissible to another person but the other thing it might do is to change the shape of the virus in such a way that it shape of the virus in such a way thatitis shape of the virus in such a way that it is less well recognised by the immune response that we make in response to either past infections, so having had the infection before we made an immune response, or the vaccine, and the both of those are reasons to be worried. let vaccine, and the both of those are reasons to be worried.— vaccine, and the both of those are reasons to be worried. let me pick ou u- reasons to be worried. let me pick you up on — reasons to be worried. let me pick you up on the _ reasons to be worried. let me pick you up on the last _ reasons to be worried. let me pick you up on the last point, _ reasons to be worried. let me pick you up on the last point, there i reasons to be worried. let me pick you up on the last point, there is l you up on the last point, there is the concern about it being more easily transmissible therefore more people get ill, end up in hospital, more deaths, potentially. but with the new variants, everyone is looking at whether they are susceptible or not to vaccinations. so give us more detail on that. well, what scientists are doing and the experiments are ongoing at the moment, as having identified where these new variance differ from the existing parent strain of

coronavirus, they are now engineering the changes that they have picked up into laboratory copies of the coronavirus so that you can individually, one by one, test those variations and see what sort of a difference they make to the behaviour of the virus and in that way, you can work out what difference i really may, rather than when they are altogether, you can work out what the individual contribution is. it's early days. some of the studies have demonstrated the changes do not render the viruses beyond the reach of the protection confirmed by the vaccine, that's encouraging, but they do nevertheless make the virus potentially more easily to transmit so even though it may mean people who are already immune to it cannot catch it, because it is spreading better it is going to get to more people and inevitably, there will therefore be more severe infections and therefore more potentially deaths because there are just more cases. it could also be a stepping stone for the virus to make its way towards a state that is more resistant to the vaccine and that is

why researchers are watching it and thatis why researchers are watching it and that is why steps are being taken like the one in the uk to encourage people, discourage travel, from affected areas that could bring the virus to our country.— virus to our country. globally, governments _ virus to our country. globally, governments are _ virus to our country. globally, governments are looking i virus to our country. globally, governments are looking at i virus to our country. globally, i governments are looking at these variants, increased transmission, hospital cases, debts, and they are looking also at the roll—out of vaccination programmes and i guess they are trying to discover and it may be much too early to do that, at what point they can say enough vaccination has taken place to allow economies to open up.— vaccination has taken place to allow economies to open up. welcome at the moment, economies to open up. welcome at the moment. the — economies to open up. welcome at the moment, the focus _ economies to open up. welcome at the moment, the focus is _ economies to open up. welcome at the moment, the focus is on _ economies to open up. welcome at the moment, the focus is on reducing i economies to open up. welcome at the moment, the focus is on reducing the l moment, the focus is on reducing the mortality rate. because we know who the people who are most susceptible and most vulnerable from coronavirus infection are, they are chiefly older people, people in care homes and so on, and also those people exposed a lot, people in certain occupations, for instance, health care workers and doctors, people who drive professionally, and therefore

have close, personal contact for prolonged periods. those people are being vaccinated in order to cut down the caseload, cut the routes of transmission and cut the mortality rate. but longerterm, transmission and cut the mortality rate. but longer term, once transmission and cut the mortality rate. but longerterm, once we transmission and cut the mortality rate. but longer term, once we have got through that and the target here in the uk is to get to 15 million people by the 15th of debris, ambitious but not impossible, what will then happen is that more vaccine will have inevitably become available because at the moment, the bottleneck is there's not enough vaccine being supplied fast enough to get it into enough quickly enough. this will change quickly. and so, by february — march, we will then see a second phase of the vaccination which is to get as many people vaccinated as possible to suppress the spread of the virus in the population and that, coupled i hope with the arrival of better weather, will do what happened last summer, we got levels really low, and then we are able to ease many restrictions on things resembling normality, began to recover and alongside that, we will then see people beginning to re—establish

travel and so on. at the moment, certainly, a difficult time.- certainly, a difficult time. doctor chris smith, _ certainly, a difficult time. doctor chris smith, thank _ certainly, a difficult time. doctor chris smith, thank you _ certainly, a difficult time. doctor chris smith, thank you for i certainly, a difficult time. doctor chris smith, thank you for your | chris smith, thank you for your time, we appreciate it. labour is demanding a statement from the home secretary, priti patel, after it emerged that 150,000 arrest records were accidentally wiped from police databases. the home office says it is assessing the impact of the glitch, which happened last week, but insists no records of criminals or dangerous persons were deleted. charlotte wright has this report. the police national computer is a vital tool for bringing perpetrators to justice. used to store and share criminal records information between forces in investigations across the country. but it has been revealed that 150,000 of its biometric entries, including dna and fingerprints, have been wiped by mistake, after the files were accidentally flagged for deletion. the home office says the missing entries relate to people arrested and released, where no further action had been taken.

and not criminal or dangerous persons. but it's thought, if it's not recovered, it may hinder further investigations. 0ne anonymous source told the times newspaper that it was potentially catastrophic, saying, if the data has been deleted, police will not be able to connect evidence at crime scenes to the perpetrator. it is also reported that the deletion meant the processing of visa applications was suspended for two days as they are cross—checked against the database. though the home office says it is operating as normal. the error has been attributed to a technical issue, and deliberate activity such as a cyber attack has been ruled out. but labour's shadow home secretary has described it as an extraordinarily serious security breach that presents huge dangers for public safety. the home office says the technical issue has now been resolved and it is working at pace to assess its impact. charlotte wright, bbc news.

celebrity chefs, charities and campaigners including the footballer marcus rashford are pressing borisjohnson to overhaul the provision of free school meals. in a letter to the prime minister, they call for a strategy to help end food poverty among children. this week mrjohnson admitted that some food parcels being sent to families in england were inadequate after pictures were widely criticised. jon donnison reports. the campaign over free school meals, led by marcus rashford, has already forced the government into several changes of direction. ministers have been accused of coming up with temporary, short—term measures to deal with a long—term problem. now, a number of celebrities including jamie oliver and emma thompson havejoined the footballer and over a0 charities and educational leaders to write to the government to call for change. we've signed the letter because the last few months have

really shown up the cracks in our school food system. whether it's the use of food parcels, or vouchers, or giving people cash during lockdown, or whether indeed to feed children during the school holidays. and also, most importantly, making sure that every child that lives in poverty is able to access support. the letter calls for the government to conduct an urgent, comprehensive review into free school meal policy across the uk and to provide recommendations for the next spending review. this week, borisjohnson condemned as inadequate a number of meal parcels after images of them were shared on social media. but the government insists it is committed to making sure no child goes hungry, as a result of the pandemic. it is schools' choices how they deliver this support. the schools have the contracts with their caterers. we've given them the choice between doing a parcel,

which has to produce the food for the five days for the child. or a local voucher, or a national voucher. on top of that, we've done masses and masses more. we've put in this covid winter support fund, which is another 170 million support for children, young people and their families all through christmas with parcels and food packages. downing street says the prime minister will respond to the letter soon. jon donnison, bbc news. a senior doctor has warned that myths about vaccines could lead to people of south asian heritage turning down their invitation to have a covid—19jab. dr harpreet sood is leading an nhs anti—disinformation campaign, and says there's growing evidence that many in these communities are being put off by false information. i'm joined now by dr masoon ahmed, the chief medical officer for black country and west birmingham clinical commissioning groups.

doctor, very good to have you with us, i spoke to a guest earlier about this, it is really concerning, the idea that people might miss out on something that could save their lives just because of fake news and misinformation? livesjust because of fake news and misinformation?— misinformation? good morning, annita, absolutely. _ misinformation? good morning, annita, absolutely. let's- misinformation? good morning, annita, absolutely. let's be i misinformation? good morning, l annita, absolutely. let's be clear, the vaccine is safe and effective and it is really important that you're not only protecting yourself, but you are protecting others around you. certainly for our communities, thatis you. certainly for our communities, that is a message that we really need to hit home with. in that is a message that we really need to hit home with.- that is a message that we really need to hit home with. in your area what have you _ need to hit home with. in your area what have you been _ need to hit home with. in your area what have you been hearing - need to hit home with. in your area what have you been hearing aboutl what have you been hearing about this? are you hearing about people being concerned about the vaccine or are you hearing conversely that many are you hearing conversely that many are quite happy to take it? 50. are you hearing conversely that many are quite happy to take it?— are quite happy to take it? so, we have a very _ are quite happy to take it? so, we have a very diverse _ are quite happy to take it? so, we have a very diverse population i are quite happy to take it? so, we have a very diverse population in i have a very diverse population in the black country and west birmingham, it is 1.5 million, and so, we are listening all the time. we have 2a primary care networks that are up and running as vaccination centres, and one

important thing is that our staff are always engaging with patients as they are coming through getting their vaccines done and talking to them about some though the challenges. sometimes it can be misinformation but sometimes it can be other things such as making appointments or travel et cetera. it's really important we understand why people might not be attending. and if we take this head on, talk to us about some of the myths that have cropped up and debunk them for us. well, i suppose the easiest ones to debunk our the microchips and the sg. debunk our the microchips and the 56. we debunk our the microchips and the 5g. we have got people going around making videos, spreading them through what's up, and facebook, talking about things that are not based in logic or in science, and really, just creating a social media storm, if you like, and this has been perpetuated through these forums. at the same time, i think there are sometimes concerns that are very real, that we can answer.

things like about the content, whether there are any animal products, whether there are any foetal cell lines within the vaccines, and in those cases, the advice is very clear, that these vaccines are safe, they are effective, but also they don't include animal products, they don't have embryonic cells within them. and therefore what i would say to anyone that's got concerns, go through those trusted channels, go to your gp, go to your community leaders, faith leaders, really, we are all working very hard together to get the message out, and really understand what the people who really are trusted with sending out that message are saying. aha, really are trusted with sending out that message are saying.- really are trusted with sending out that message are saying. a very good oint that message are saying. a very good point indeed — that message are saying. a very good point indeed and _ that message are saying. a very good point indeed and a _ that message are saying. a very good point indeed and a very _ that message are saying. a very good point indeed and a very strong - point indeed and a very strong message there. and of course, as we have covered extensively since this pandemic began and it emerged that people of south asian heritage were disproportionately being affected by covid, it is therefore so important

that people in that community actually do get along to their vaccination centres and have this job? vaccination centres and have this “ob? , �* vaccination centres and have this “ob? , ~ ., , ., vaccination centres and have this “ob? , ~ ., ,., , job? yes. and that is one community out of many — job? yes. and that is one community out of many we _ job? yes. and that is one community out of many we have _ job? yes. and that is one community out of many we have that _ job? yes. and that is one community out of many we have that are - out of many we have that are vulnerable, it is important to realise that. in terms of the south asian community, yes, we have had to understand how best we can get our messaging right. has understand how best we can get our messaging right-— messaging right. has that been particularly _ messaging right. has that been particularly problematic - messaging right. has that been particularly problematic in i messaging right. has that beenl particularly problematic in terms messaging right. has that been i particularly problematic in terms of people looking at this fake news and being worried by it?— being worried by it? listen, as problematic— being worried by it? listen, as problematic as _ being worried by it? listen, as problematic as with _ being worried by it? listen, as problematic as with our i being worried by it? listen, as problematic as with our other| problematic as with our other communities. i think one of the key thing is to understand is that different communities have different challenges. and so to just focus on one is wrong. we are understanding all of our communities as best we can. we have engagement teams that are out and about talking to the public in a socially distant manner, of course, over the phone et cetera but really trying to understand what those concerns are. and i think is the vaccination programme rolls out

and we start going down the priority list, we really need to make sure that we are capturing the concerns with every group. that we are capturing the concerns with every group-— with every group. really good to talk to you. _ with every group. really good to talk to you. dr— with every group. really good to talk to you, dr masoon - with every group. really good to talk to you, dr masoon ahmed, | with every group. really good to i talk to you, dr masoon ahmed, from the west country and west birmingham clinical can mission groups. tens of thousands of uk businesses will now recieve payments to cover their losses during the first national lockdown after a supreme court battle with insurers. thousands of claims were made on business interruption policies, but firms were told that they were never intended to cover such unprecedented restrictions. today the court found in favour of small firms, potentially costing the insurance sector hundreds of millions of pounds. and in fact we have just had a and in fact we havejust had a brief statement from the association of british insurers. it says all valid claims will be settled as soon as possible and in many cases, they say, the process of settling claims has begun. the association goes on to say that it welcomes the clarity

of the supreme court ruling and what it will bring to a number of complexity shoes. —— complex issues. joining me now is daniel duckett, he's the owner of the lazy claire patisserie in belfast, and he's been directly impacted by this ruling. a smile of relief on your face, i imagine?— a smile of relief on your face, i imauine? ~ , ,., ., , imagine? absolutely, it is a really aood da imagine? absolutely, it is a really good day for _ imagine? absolutely, it is a really good day for thousands _ imagine? absolutely, it is a really good day for thousands and i imagine? absolutely, it is a really- good day for thousands and thousands of insurance who were left with very little clarity, until now. we are extremely proud of this judgment and it is a unanimousjudgment extremely proud of this judgment and it is a unanimous judgment as well, which is even more telling. with thatjudgment, we can now take our claims forward and look at the future, as opposed to having to worry. i had to take out an extra business loan, we would have been out of debt. we actually would have been out of debt in a couple of months but now we are in debt for another five years, with our small

business loan. so, this claim will help us get out of that debt. it is an extremely good day for us today. going back a couple of hours, while you were waiting for this decision and looking back at the last year and looking back at the last year and the financial impact on your business, one guest i spoke to earlier was talking about her worries around the survival of the business and the impact on her mental health as well of not knowing what was going to happen. what has that period been like for you? it’s that period been like for you? it's been that period been like for you? it�*s been frustrating. from day one, we knew that we had a cover because the wording was so clear, and then to wait four weeks to actually get the first rejection, and then to get another massive rejection, and you continue to look at the wording, to figure out, and my reading this wrong, am i completely mistaken? and the days go by, there is no income, there is no cover, and we've been fortunate that we have gone back to take a ways and so we have had some income, but there are many, many

businesses who have been completely closed, they cannot trade, and they are facing closure in the face, they are facing closure in the face, they are really struggling for cash. and this could have been delayed, sorry, this could have been delayed, sorry, this could have been delayed, sorry, this could have been prevented. if the insurers had just even offered interim payments, there would still be businesses in operation today who we have heard have had to unfortunately close because they just don't have the cash to continue. it is that sad situation, it is what some people are actually facing already. 50. it is what some people are actually facing already-— it is what some people are actually facing already. so, today, daniel, i ruess it is facing already. so, today, daniel, i guess it is about _ facing already. so, today, daniel, i guess it is about relief, _ facing already. so, today, daniel, i guess it is about relief, it - facing already. so, today, daniel, i guess it is about relief, it is - guess it is about relief, it is about hope and making plans for the future? , , . ,., future? yes, exactly. we can start to fi . ure future? yes, exactly. we can start to figure out _ future? yes, exactly. we can start to figure out what's _ future? yes, exactly. we can start to figure out what's next. - future? yes, exactly. we can start to figure out what's next. we i future? yes, exactly. we can start to figure out what's next. we can l to figure out what's next. we can have that weight off our shoulders and we can get back to business. other businesses can say, ok, where do we go from here? how do we consolidate some of these loans we have had to take out? how do we pay

back other credit facilities that they have no have needed to take? it is a big weight off everybody�*s shoulders. thejudgment has been extremely positive for us and we are extremely positive for us and we are extremely happy with the fact that the supreme court not only ruled in our favour but also overturned many of the arguments that the insurers had put forward. so, it's clear that this is right, this isjust, so we have had a very good day today. really good of you to talk to us, thank you so much, and happy baking. thank you. a senior american official has told the bbc that the united states is on track to pull 2,500 troops out of afghanistan by the end of the day. all us troops are due to leave this year as part of an agreement

the trump administration signed with the taliban. the pullout marks the beginning of the end of the us�*s 20—year war in afghanistan. our correspondent yogita limaye is in kabul and she says there are concerns about what will happen when the troops leave. i think questions are really being asked about what lasting gains have been made in 20 years of war. this withdrawal is part of an agreement that the trump administration signed with the taliban last year. according to it, all us forces have to withdraw by spring this year. but many are questioning whether the conditions that were laid out in that agreement have been fulfilled on the ground. the nato chief has warned that this withdrawal is hasty and if they do it too soon, there would be a heavy price to pay. i also asked that question to vice—president amrullah saleh, who believes that the mission that international troops came here on has not been accomplished. he talked about the threat of al-anda. violence has been surging over the past several months and the humanitarian situation

is really quite staggering. the afghan government is trying to negotiate a peace deal with the taliban, but these are two parties that have really been sworn enemies of each other. the vice—president even now says the taliban is a terrorist organisation. when you have those two parties talking to each other, there are serious questions and serious doubts about whether a resolution can ever be reached which would be agreeable to both those sides. the three options on the table are a power—sharing agreement between the afghan government and the taliban, a taliban—led government or some taliban members joining the existing government in afghanistan. but there is really no clear indication of whether a resolution will ever be reached. and that is really what the people here are worried about, that if all international forces were to withdraw before a sustainable peace deal is reached, the taliban could be back in power here in afghanistan.

competitive video gaming, or e—sports, is big business and one of the highest—earning players has been speaking exclusively to the bbc about his success. johan sundstein has won around $7 million to date and travels the world, competing in front of thousands of fans. but the pandemic has forced him to change tack, asjoe tidy reports. johan sundstein has climbed some of the highest heights in gaming. he's lifted the most viable trophy in e—sports, not once but twice. add to that countless other individual tournament wins, and the 27—year—old tops the list as the richest e—sports player ever. so, with $7.1; million in prize winnings, what does a gaming—obsessed champion buy? a 17—bedroom gaming complex in portugal is a good start. growing up, i really wanted to revolve my life around games and now, i have this thing dedicated to games, and it's a wonderful thing.

johan has been a professional for ten years now, playing dota 2, a hugely popular multiplayer fantasy battle game. he is known online as notail and is originally from denmark. wejoined him on a busy weekend of competition, four online matches in a tournament with $500,000 at stake. johan's team manager has just kicked us out of the game room, the players need complete focus, they don't want any distractions, including cameras and us in the room, so we're watching it next door on a projector. this is the feed that's being pumped all over the world, hundreds of thousands people are watching this. in a flurry of spells and fireballs, we watch asjohan�*s 06 team trounce their opponents. they call it, they are done! like many e—sports stars, johan's video game habits started young. i had my first game boy when i was still doing potty training. how many hours were you playing when you were 13, 14, when you were really starting to get into it? up to 12 hours, sometimes more. during weekends, it would be more. i'd be playing 20 hours, if i could.

the tournament that madejohan and his team—mates mega—rich is dota 2's the international. it's by far the most lucrative tournament in e—sports, with a $34 million prize pool the last time it was held. the pandemic has hit some e—sports hard. physical competitions have been cancelled or held without crowds, whilst others have gone online. you go on a big stage and there's a crowd, it's a lot easier to feel that this game really matters. there's a lot of eyes on this game, your blood starts going, the adrenaline is there. how much intensity is there at the high level of your sport? there's a huge dark side to this, and it's the mental strength that it can take. and there's also the group aspect to it that amplifies it. i get negative myself, i get very sad, sadness is my number—one enemy, and it keeps saying hi to me. johan and his team—mates are looking ahead and hoping for the return of the international this summer. a 27, in e—sports terms, he's old.

i think i've got plenty of years left. i used to be young and now i'm the old one. i don't feel old yet at all, it really still feels like i'm 20, and we're just getting started. so, how have e—sports been affected by the pandemic? i'm joined now from stockholm by christopher alesund, a swedish professional valorant player. christopher, you have named the best player in the world twice, so what has the last year been like for you? it was a very special year. i was lucky enough to travel a little bit before the pandemic really started, but it has been very weird in a way because i haven't been travelling at all, it feels like. i am used to travelling way, way too much, basically i usually only spent three months per year at home. e-sports by their nature — months per year at home. e-sports by their nature lend _ months per year at home. e-sports by their nature lend themselves - months per year at home. e-sports by their nature lend themselves to - their nature lend themselves to being played online, i guess you don't have the atmosphere of the big competitions but in many ways, it has still worked well, hasn't it?

oh, for sure. fortunately, we have got a perfect scene in a way that we can continue our sports and play online, but the sad part is that we cannot see our fans that we want to and actually play in front of live audiences in big arenas around the world, with hundreds of thousands of viewers back home watching. but we have adapted pretty well if you ask me and i think we got affected bedtime for a lot of people like me who are used to travelling so much but at the end of the day, it is a pandemic going on and we did the best we could and i think we were successful. best we could and i think we were successful-— best we could and i think we were successful. there have been some issues because — successful. there have been some issues because of— successful. there have been some issues because of internet - successful. there have been some. issues because of internet provision and variation in internet provision, that some players in some parts of the world haven't been able to take part as they would want? film. the world haven't been able to take part as they would want?— the world haven't been able to take part as they would want? oh, yes, of course. because _ part as they would want? oh, yes, of course. because e-sports _ part as they would want? oh, yes, of course. because e-sports in - part as they would want? oh, yes, of course. because e-sports in general| course. because e—sports in general is such a global thing, it is not just some parts, you have people in sweden or the uk, but you play with people all over the world. it is not

easy for players that come from north america, brazil or even the asian region to compete against the people in europe, for example. so it has been locked in indifferent regions. luckily for us, we had some things from america and brazil who travelled to europe to compete against the best of europe but that was just for a short period of time, when things became a little bit better, but now it seems to be more lockdowns all over the world, so it is back to being just regional in a way. is back to being 'ust regional in a wa . , ., , ., is back to being 'ust regional in a wa . , .,, ., ., is back to being 'ust regional in a wa. , ., ., way. so, christopher, what do you think the future _ way. so, christopher, what do you think the future is _ way. so, christopher, what do you think the future is for _ way. so, christopher, what do you think the future is for e-sports - think the future is for e—sports post—covid? do you think some of these big competitions will stay online or will we get back to the scenes that we saw in the report just before this conversation, the big competitions, with lots of fancy? i big competitions, with lots of fan ? ., , big competitions, with lots of fan ? .,, ., big competitions, with lots of fan ? ., ., ., fancy? i hope and i look forward when we go _ fancy? i hope and i look forward when we go back— fancy? i hope and i look forward when we go back to _ fancy? i hope and i look forward when we go back to the - fancy? i hope and i look forwardj when we go back to the normal, fancy? i hope and i look forward i when we go back to the normal, or the norm, basically. it all depends on how the progress goes with the vaccine and all that kind of stuff. but at the same time i am not a doctor so i don't know how long that

is going to take and everything is going to go back to normal. so i think for maybe the next six months it is going to be pretty much the same, it is going to be locked more into different regions, more online than before, and more tournament organisers online instead of having live tournaments. but when we come to the point where everything goes back to normal, i think we are going to have a lot more cool new ideas that came up with the online part, with a lot more webcams being introduced to see the players themselves and interacting more with themselves and interacting more with the fans online which can also turn into off—line events. so when it comes to that point, it is going to be a much better state for the e—sports scene. be a much better state for the e-sports scene.— be a much better state for the e-sports scene. great to talk to ou, e-sports scene. great to talk to you. thanks _ e-sports scene. great to talk to you. thanks very _ e-sports scene. great to talk to you, thanks very much. - e-sports scene. great to talk to you, thanks very much. now, . e-sports scene. great to talk to | you, thanks very much. now, as e-sports scene. great to talk to - you, thanks very much. now, as we spend more time at home during lockdown... many of us have turned to a good book to keep us going. the duchess of cornwall

is starting her own book club to help bring people together, with her first four favourites now up on instagram. here's our rentertainment correspondent colin paterson. hello, and welcome to my reading room. the duchess of cornwall, becoming the richard and judy of royalty, by launching her own book club. to me, reading is a great adventure. i have loved it since i was very small, and i'd love everybody else to enjoy it as much as i do. herfirst four picks have been announced today, and on the list is the architect's apprentice by the turkish writer, elif shafak. istanbul is a city of easy forgettings, things are written in water overthere, except the works of my master, which are written in stone. and she is thrilled to have been chosen. i felt honoured, and i think it's very meaningful that it's happening at a time when we are all going through tunnels of anxiety and uncertainty across the world with the pandemic, with the lockdown.

and all the repercussions. i think this is a moment across the world when we need books all the more, when we need the art of storytelling and especially empathy. and during the pandemic, book clubs have been a real source of comfort to many by going online. but the books keep us going, really, don't they? meet the luton wine and dine book club. this is what they've been reading lately. matt haig's the midnight library, the book we're going to be reviewing next week. a very life—affirming story. richard osman's one, yeah, i really enjoyed it. i seem to have gone through a bit of a phase of doing murder stories. shades of grey by - the authorjasper fforde. so, it's sort of post—apocalyptic sci—fi but with a monty - python sense of humour. so, what advice do you have for the duchess of cornwall in running a book club? the book club is its members, so be democratic, that's how we run our book club. put a book out in a pandemic, they said, it'll be fine. the author nikesh shukla's new memoir, brown baby, is published next month. he believes book shops will still be

shut when it comes out, but he totally understands the rise of reading in lockdown. a book can be a mirror and you can see yourself in it and that can be an empowering thing, especially in times of uncertainty. but at the same time, a book can be a window, which can take us to different places, different lives, different cities, you know, different planets, different times. and it's notjust adults who have been helped. i miss my friends. reading is a way to forget that. it is estimated that almost 40% of children are reading more than normal. oh, look! and there, and here. that's where we live. that is certainly true in the case of the murphy family. it could possibly be quite an isolating, scary time for the children at the moment. mum, no talking!

you can talk, too, you can talk with me, yeah? but i think even though they are apart from their friends in school, they've got books that are familiar and that they love and characters they love. you're watching bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather with matt taylor. hello. yesterday's snow led to pretty cold start today uk—wide, and where you saw rain, that has led to a number of flood warnings in place across england. latest details on the bbc weather website, more rain to come tonight as well. add onto that the icy, snowy, flooding starts, lots of fog, too, across parts of central and northern england, some of which will linger into the afternoon. struggling to shift, maybe lifting into low cloud. elsewhere, most having a dry and brighter day than yesterday. some showers east of kent and across shetland this afternoon, but most staying dry, cold though and where the fog lingers, temperatures struggling to get above freezing.

milder towards the west, with the breeze picking up, with another weather system aproaching off the atlantic. another rain—bearing one, rain initially across ireland through the evening and into western scotland, wales and western england through the night. but with temperatures dropping below freezing in many areas, that rain will quickly turn to snow over the higher ground of scotland, the pennines, the peak district, even at low levels in eastern scotland and northeast england, we could see up to 20cm of snow covering the higher ground. milder air pushing in through the day with these weather fronts, so not going to snow all day. initial snowfall in scotland and england on the high ground, turning increasingly to sleet and rain. but during the morning, we could see snow across east anglia and the south east giving a covering in places, before that turns back to rain in the afternoon. brighter conditions following on for most after a cloudy start. the rain lingering longest in east anglia and the south east, and the chill, but most milder than it has been for a while,

sunshine and showers and highs of 10 degrees. saturday night into sunday, a ridge of high pressure building into the south once more, meaning a risk of frost and ice around on sunday morning, but a bright day for much of england and wales, lots of sunshine around. clouding over a bit from the north and west and we could see some splashes of rain in the north of northern ireland but more particularly towards the west of scotland through the day. temperatures still holding up at around 8 degrees, around where we should be for this time of year. into next week, looking like atlantic weather systems are going to dominate conditions, so it could be quite wet and windy at times, particularly for england and wales, and temperatures staying higher than they have been over recent days.

this is bbc news. these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. a ban on travellers into the uk from south america and portugal has come into force. the transport secretary says the precautionary step was taken because of fears of a new variant of coronavirus. some of them which are more easily transmitted, are obviously of greater concern and it's really as a precautionary principle. we are so close now, we have 3 million of these vaccines in people's arms in the uk, we want to make sure we do not fall at this last hurdle. tens of thousands of small businesses are to receive insurance pay—outs covering their losses during the first lockdown, after insurers lost a legal challenge at the uk supreme court. us—president electjoe biden

promises nearly two trillion dollars in a stimulus package to tackle the coronavirus pandemic and kick—start the american economy. a powerful earthquake on the indonesian island of sulawesi has killed dozens and left thousands homeless. the uk economy shrank by 2.6% in november as the second lockdown hit economic output after many businesses were forced to close. and coming up this hour: it's one of the oldest tricks in the book — magicians are celebrating 100 years of sawing someone in half. hello and welcome if you're watching

in the uk or around the world. there are growing concerns about the new coronavirus variant discovered in brazil. infection rates in the country are soaring, amid concerns that this variant could be more transmissible. brazil is one of the countries worst hit by coronavirus with the second highest number of deaths after the united states. in a grim reminder of the toll taken by covid—i9, thejohns hopkins university say nearly two million people have now died across the world. in an effort to contain the new variant, passengers in brazil and 12 other south american countries, including argentina and chile, are now banned from entering the uk. the ban also applies to portugal which has strong links to brazil, as well as the islands of the azores although lorry drivers from portugal are exempt. uk citizens and permanent residents are also exempt, but they and their families will have to self—isolate for ten days on arrival.

our business correspondent theo leggett has this report. in a huge graveyard near sao paulo, the latest victims of the covid pandemic are being buried. the virus has swept through brazil, leaving more than 200,000 dead. now a new variant has emerged which it's feared could prove significantly more infectious than the original version. the british government wants to prevent it arriving here, and so it's announced a new wave of travel restrictions. from this morning, travellers from 13 south american countries, including brazil, argentina and chile will be banned from entering the uk. the ban also applies to portugal, which has strong travel links with brazil, as well as the islands of the azores. but lorry drivers from portugal will be allowed in. the islands of cape verde, off the coast of west africa, are included in the ban as well. the new restrictions do not apply to british citizens or residents.

there aren't that many flights going on. brits will still need to repatriate so it's not that nobody would be able to come in up until now, but of course everybody that has come here will have had to, by law, quarantine themselves for ten days. we don't want to trip up at this late stage, we're so close now that we want to make sure we do absolutely everything possible to give us the best chance of beating this virus which is why it's so important that we do act quickly on these things. for the embattled travel industry, it's yet another blow, although with relatively few flights currently coming into the uk, it will make little difference in practice. a similar ban already applies to flights from southern africa, which is also home to a worrying new variant of the virus. meanwhile, as of monday, all passengers boarding planes, trains or boats to england will have to provide evidence of a negative covid test. the new rule had been due to come into force today, but was delayed to give passengers more time to prepare. anyone who fails to produce a test

result will face a fine of £500. covid vaccines are holding out the prospect that one day, the pandemic could come to an end, but in the meantime, covid restrictions are becoming tighter than ever. theo leggett, bbc news. in the next few minutes, we will speak more about the variance in brazil specifically with our health correspondence, but before we do that, in terms of the travel ban, let's talk to carolyn in brazil. thank you forjoining us. when we're expecting to come back to the uk? i was expecting to come back in january, but then i got my flight ticket changed to february, but now i don't know any more. i ticket changed to february, but now i don't know any more.— ticket changed to february, but now i don't know any more. i mean, what are the airline _ i don't know any more. i mean, what are the airline saying _ i don't know any more. i mean, what are the airline saying to _ i don't know any more. i mean, what are the airline saying to you, - i don't know any more. i mean, what are the airline saying to you, for - are the airline saying to you, for

example? 50 are the airline saying to you, for examle? , are the airline saying to you, for example?— are the airline saying to you, for examle? , , ., example? so they say they cannot romise example? so they say they cannot promise anything _ example? so they say they cannot promise anything due _ example? so they say they cannot promise anything due to _ example? so they say they cannot promise anything due to the - example? so they say they cannot promise anything due to the new i promise anything due to the new variant and everything, so i had several friends trying to get back to the uk as well with cancelled flights, so my flight now is on the 5th of february. it was not cancelled yet, but they can't say that it will happen, so i am just going to have to wait. 50. that it will happen, so i am 'ust going to have to wait.�* that it will happen, so i am 'ust going to have to wait. so, i mean, ou are going to have to wait. so, i mean, you are still _ going to have to wait. so, i mean, you are still smiling, _ going to have to wait. so, i mean, you are still smiling, that's - going to have to wait. so, i mean, you are still smiling, that's good, | you are still smiling, that's good, but you are stuck there. you meant to be getting back to the uk for work? , ,., ., to be getting back to the uk for work? , ., ., , ., work? yes, so i am a designer and i was supposed _ work? yes, so i am a designer and i was supposed to — work? yes, so i am a designer and i was supposed to get _ work? yes, so i am a designer and i was supposed to get back _ work? yes, so i am a designer and i was supposed to get back to - work? yes, so i am a designer and i was supposed to get back to carry i work? yes, so i am a designer and i | was supposed to get back to carry on with my work but i will have to wait. i am smiling because i am here with my parents so i am safe, but at the same time, it is quite stressful having to... not knowing when i am getting back and see my partner and

everything. getting back and see my partner and eve hina. , , . ., everything. very unsettling. what has our everything. very unsettling. what has your experience _ everything. very unsettling. what has your experience of _ everything. very unsettling. what has your experience of the - everything. very unsettling. what i has your experience of the pandemic been like they're in brazil and, for example, how are your parents managing a doll of your older relatives? to managing a doll of your older relatives?— managing a doll of your older relatives? ., , ., , , relatives? to be honest, it is quite stressful at — relatives? to be honest, it is quite stressful at the _ relatives? to be honest, it is quite stressful at the moment _ relatives? to be honest, it is quite stressful at the moment here. - stressful at the moment here. brazil, i think... stressful at the moment here. brazil, ithink... so, we are stressful at the moment here. brazil, i think... so, we are not in lockdown and especially now with the holidays and new year's eve and everything, everyone was celebrating in groups and not being very careful, to be honest, so it is quite stressful. managing that and, well, my parents are old so i am always concerned about them and they are taking care of themselves, but it is really difficult when other people around don't. i’m it is really difficult when other people around don't. i'm interested that ou people around don't. i'm interested that you have _ people around don't. i'm interested that you have seen _ people around don't. i'm interested that you have seen people - people around don't. i'm interested that you have seen people not - that you have seen people not obeying rules or not being careful because, of course, we hear a lot about the dreadful death toll in brazil. , , , , ., ,

brazil. yes, yes. it is really... peole brazil. yes, yes. it is really... people do _ brazil. yes, yes. it is really... people do not _ brazil. yes, yes. it is really... people do not do _ brazil. yes, yes. it is really... people do not do social- brazil. yes, yes. it is really... - people do not do social distancing, so you go to the supermarket and everyone is so close to you and all the places are crowded, so it is a bit stressful. i think people are not taking it seriously, the way they should. not taking it seriously, the way they should-— not taking it seriously, the way they should. not taking it seriously, the way the should. , ., they should. well, we wish you and our they should. well, we wish you and your family — they should. well, we wish you and your family all _ they should. well, we wish you and your family all the _ they should. well, we wish you and your family all the best. _ they should. well, we wish you and your family all the best. thank - they should. well, we wish you and your family all the best. thank you | your family all the best. thank you very much indeed. thank you and all the best yourfamily. our health correspondent michelle roberts is with me. you have just been you havejust been in you have just been in a you havejust been in a briefing about the very latest. bring us up—to—date. i about the very latest. bring us up-to-date-— about the very latest. bring us up-to-date. about the very latest. bring us u-to-date. , , , .,~ up-to-date. i was 'ust speaking with professor wendy — up-to-date. i wasjust speaking with professor wendy barclay _ up-to-date. i wasjust speaking with professor wendy barclay who - up-to-date. i wasjust speaking with professor wendy barclay who is - up-to-date. i wasjust speaking with professor wendy barclay who is an i professor wendy barclay who is an expert in viruses. she also advises the government about new and emerging threats such as: a virus. they have been looking at these new variants and she says there is evidence that the brazil strain, one of them, the brazil variance that people are worried about, has actually been found in the uk

already. obviously, it is a bit like the south african one, so it is not becoming dominant here. the one we are seeing in the uk is still the new variant of coronavirus that we have seen in kent's moving to london and elsewhere in the uk, but it is something they want to keep a close monitor on and see what is happening because the changes that the virus is undergoing seemed to be in a part of the virus that helps it get into cells and the concern is that we need to check that the vaccines we currently have work just as well. there is no suggestion yet that they won't, but that is something they want to check, that the immune system can still fight off this virus. , ., , , ., virus. yes, of course, they need to monitor that- _ virus. yes, of course, they need to monitor that. so _ virus. yes, of course, they need to monitor that. so there _ virus. yes, of course, they need to monitor that. so there are - virus. yes, of course, they need to monitor that. so there are two - monitor that. so there are two variants in brazil that the health laboratories are saying they know one of them is already in the uk. that's correct, yes. mr; that's correct, yes. my understanding - that's correct, yes. my understanding is - that's correct, yes. my understanding is that when someone is tested for covid or if they test

positive, they are not told which variant they have, are they? to what extent... i am curious about how they manage to monitor now we are talking about so many different variants. , ., ., variants. the uk is world leading in this alon: variants. the uk is world leading in this along with _ variants. the uk is world leading in this along with other _ variants. the uk is world leading in this along with other experts - variants. the uk is world leading in this along with other experts in - this along with other experts in different countries. it is looking at what variants are out there, closely monitoring. if you were tested for coronavirus, you would not be told what variants you have, but scientists are looking at the data, they are analysing the sequence of the virus to know exactly where it fits in the family tree, if you like, whether it is the type we first got or how far away it has mutated from that and then a new group of scientists today have been set up to look at growing things in the lab to study them further to see how they behave, so we have the sequencing, now it is checking what is happening, are they spread more

easily? to the vaccines work? someone who has had the infection before, would their natural immunity still fight off the variance? these are very big questions. there is no massive concern, but they are checking to answer all of these questions. checking to answer all of these questions-— checking to answer all of these ruestions. . ~' , ., , . the uk supreme court has ruled in favour of small businesses who said they should receive insurance payouts for losses incurred during the first national lockdown. many thousands made claims on business interruption policies, but were told that they were never intended to cover such unprecedented restrictions. our business correspondent vishala sri—pathma joins me now. well, this will come as an enormous relief to a lot of small businesses. explain the significance of this ruling. it explain the significance of this rulina. , . , ruling. it is a stunning win, reall . ruling. it is a stunning win, really- in — ruling. it is a stunning win, really. in the _ ruling. it is a stunning win,

really. in the last - ruling. it is a stunning win, really. in the last hours, i ruling. it is a stunning win, i really. in the last hours, you are seeing the supreme court found in favour of small firms receiving payments from the business interruption insurance policies you have just been talking about, so the reason this is so significant is that back in the spring lockdown of last year when we were first told to shutdown, businesses that had these policies. their insurers and asked if they could cover for loss of income. a lot were told no that only specialist policies covered this type of pandemic style restrictions, so clearly a huge blow for any company that was hoping to rely on that money and it is really quite impactfulfor their that money and it is really quite impactful for their cash flows and costs, so this is gone to the supreme court, thejudges on costs, so this is gone to the supreme court, the judges on the supreme court, the judges on the supreme court, the judges on the supreme court have gone over the wording, the wording is really quite key when it comes to claiming and taking up policies and they have ruled in favour of the small firms. it is going to cost insurers quite a lot of money, hundreds of lives of

pounds, but for these businesses it might mean they are able to trade post—pandemic. might mean they are able to trade post-pandemic— might mean they are able to trade post-pandemic. really interesting, very significant _ post-pandemic. really interesting, very significant ruling. _ post-pandemic. really interesting, very significant ruling. thank i post-pandemic. really interesting, very significant ruling. thank you . very significant ruling. thank you very significant ruling. thank you very much. let me also just tell you that in relation to that story, for viewers in the uk, i will be talking to richard lead, the lawyer who represented the small businesses at the supreme courtjust after 11:30am here in the uk, so i will speak to him in the next little while. 2021 is going to be a momentous year for germany — angela merkel is due to step down in the autumn, after 16 years as chancellor. the race to replace her gets underway officially this weekend, as her christian democrats meet — online — for a delayed conference at which they'll choose a new party leader. our berlin correspondentjenny hill reports on the men vying for the topjob. when she speaks, the world listens.

but angela merkel is preparing to leave office, stepping down this autumn after 16 years in power, leaving her party with a problem — how to replace her. three men are vying for the job of party leader. armin laschet is the cheerful and popular prime minister of north rhine westphalia. he touts himself as the continuity candidate. norbert rottgen is mrs merkel�*s foreign affairs expert and former environment minister. he has run an energetic digital campaign targeting women and young voters. and after a decade away from politics, millionaire businessman friedrich merz excites traditionalists in the party unnerved by angela merkel�*s centrist politics. this senior politician is one of 1001 delegates who will vote this weekend in a secret ballot. we don't need someone, she says, who just wants to differentiate themselves from angela merkel. these were good times for germany,

but after 16 years, we do need a fresh start. what matters to me is that we as a people's party win more female voters, more people from immigrant backgrounds, that we have gender parity in the government and that we improve our policies on climate change and digitalisation. you might assume, and it has often been the case, that the new party leader will become germany's next chancellor. it's not that simple. it will be spring before the party finally decides who is going to lead them into that election as their chancellor candidate. after all, they've got to be sure he's going to win. and the pandemic has shifted the political landscape, raised the profile of other politicians. the health ministerjens spahn and the bavarian prime minister markus soder have performed well under pressure. both men insisted they don't want the topjob, but no one believes them. the young people, they know only a woman being chancellor for nearly 16 years, so we all ask ourselves,

will a man be able to be chancellor? but on the other hand, angela merkel, she became chancellor in 2005. she also had to learn to fill this position. these are extraordinary times and for germany it will be a momentous year. angela merkel has dominated european and international politics for years. here at home, thanks to her handling of the pandemic, she's more popular than ever. nine months before an historic general election, it is anyone's guess as to who will replace her. the problem for her party is who whichever candidate they choose, they will not be angela merkel. the us president—electjoe biden has set out a rescue plan worth nearly $2 trillion to combat the pandemic and stimulate what he called a sinking economy. the plan includes one—off payments of $1400 to all adults

and extending unemployment benefits to millions more people. mr biden, who takes office next wednesday, is also promising a mass vaccination campaign. here's our north america correspondent, david willis. in the worst affected nation on earth, the coronavirus is having a devastating effect. hospitals are at breaking point as cases have spiralled to around 200,000 per day. food banks are inundated as the collapsing economy has caused many businesses to lay off their workers. joe biden promised to make combating the coronavirus his number one priority, and less than a week to go until taking office, he's unveiled a plan aimed at containing the virus and getting the economy back on track. one that will cost this country nearly $2 trillion. we not only have an economic imperative to act now, i believe we have a moral obligation.

in this pandemic, in america, we cannot let people go hungry. we cannot let people get evicted. we cannot watch nurses, educators and others, lose theirjob when we so badly need them. we must act now and act decisively. a month after the first shots were administered here, america's vaccination programme is off to a sluggish start. mr biden is pledging billions of dollars to expand testing and vaccination efforts, and enable schools to reopen safely by the spring. he is also pledging larger sums to help individuals worst affected by the crisis, all of it paid for with borrowed money. but necessary, he believes, in order to prevent the world's largest economy from further slipping into the abyss. all this, of course, at a time of deepening political unrest. packed close together and mostly mask free, last week's protests at the capitol

building were not only another potential super spreader event, they also underlined the fact that many here still believe the virus is a hoax. forjoe biden, there is more than one kind of healing to be done. ironically, perhaps, the day that he is due to be sworn in, marks a rather grim anniversary, the anniversary of the first confirmed case of covid—19 in the united states. david willis, bbc news, los angeles. here in the uk, the impact of the second lockdown in november on the economy is becoming clearer, with gdp pushed back into decline after six months of consecutive growth. the economy shrank by 2.6% in november when nonessential shops were forced to close. it means that the british economy is 8.5% below pre—pandemic levels. the chancellor, rishi sunak, says the figures show "things will get harder

before they get better" and highlight the "scale of the challenge" faced. but he says there are reasons to be hopeful for the coming months, such as the vaccine rollout. we can speak now to the shadow chancellor anneliese dodds who's in oxford. hello. hello there. what do you make of them? well. _ hello. hello there. what do you make of them? well, obviously, _ hello. hello there. what do you make of them? well, obviously, these i hello. hello there. what do you make of them? well, obviously, these are l of them? well, obviously, these are concernin: of them? well, obviously, these are concerning figures. _ of them? well, obviously, these are concerning figures. just _ of them? well, obviously, these are concerning figures. just as _ of them? well, obviously, these are concerning figures. just as you i concerning figures. just as you said, they reveal that in november, our economy shrank by almost 9% compared to the previous november, so we are seeing a varies scene the economic impact and actually the uk's economic impact and actually the uk's recession after the virus hit was the worst of any major economy. it was the worst in all of the g7 countries, so we have a mountain to climb. there are many things that need to be done to try and protect our economy, in particular, the

chancellor needs to have a much, much longer perspective than he has so far. far too often, we have seen support only announced that the last—minute. we saw that yet again with the lockdown we are in now when the prime minister did not mention economic support at any time when he announced the new lockdown. we then had a very limited announcement from the chancellor afterwards about business support but not about the many other issues facing especially british families right now, for example those having to juggle the care of their children, education of their children at home with work, so we really do need to see much more forward—looking from this government. they have suggested they will not be making any announcements around the economy until the start of march, the time of the budget. i think that would be a serious mistake when we see such low levels of economic confidence right now. but you reference the g7. isn't one of the reasons that the uk is badly hit because the country is so reliant on the services sector and

look at what has to shutdown in a pandemic? pubs, bars, restaurants, things that make up so much of the uk economy is not allowed to function so grim though the stats might be, they are not surprising, are they? it is the nature of the uk economy. are they? it is the nature of the uk econom . ., economy. some of the impact undoubtedly _ economy. some of the impact undoubtedly does _ economy. some of the impact undoubtedly does flow - economy. some of the impact undoubtedly does flow from l economy. some of the impact l undoubtedly does flow from the nature of our economy and, in fact, the impact over many, many years, i would say, of the lack of a strong industrial strategy around manufacture does impact, but if you dig into what has happened in many other sectors not related to services, we have had a very strong impact as well and i really do think that the government needs to be much more far—sighted around this and actually put itself into the shoes of many businesses. just this morning, i was talking to some involved in hospitality and they

were saying they found it incredibly difficult when, for example, they have not known sometime from week to week what the wave support system was going to look like. they do not know how long their business grants are meant to last for, they do not know whether there is going to be a continuation of their business rates holiday, for example, and it makes it very hard for businesses to plan, to keep their workers on and we have seen record redundancies in the uk already but also to be planning to employ new people and that is what we really need to see, new vacancies being created in the uk for people who are unemployed to move into. qm. who are unemployed to move into. ok, but in the middle of a pandemic, there is still a way to go. what would you actually be doing if you were chancellor? how would you be creating those jobs and giving that support? these businesses can't open for quite some time. ida. support? these businesses can't open for quite some time.— for quite some time. no, they can't, and they really _ for quite some time. no, they can't, and they really need _ for quite some time. no, they can't, and they really need to _ for quite some time. no, they can't, and they really need to have - for quite some time. no, they can't, and they really need to have that i and they really need to have that confidence first of all that there will be that clear strategy from

government, making sure vaccination is as speedily as possible. obviously labour has been calling for the government to rapidly accelerate vaccination. we have set out a number of ways that the government could do that, really speed this process up, but in addition, we think those ambitions around job creation have got to be far stronger. around job creation have got to be farstronger. look around job creation have got to be far stronger. look at what countries like germany and france are doing, you werejust talking like germany and france are doing, you were just talking about the us as well moments ago, the way that, for example, they have been backing the green jobs for the future, how that could transform communities all across the uk, for example, if we focus on retrofitting energy inefficient homes. we have not seen that ambition from the government and that is a big problem when we have such a large nub of people who are unemployed in the uk. ii you are unemployed in the uk. if you were chancellor, _ are unemployed in the uk. if you were chancellor, you _ are unemployed in the uk. if you were chancellor, you would i are unemployed in the uk. if you were chancellor, you would be i were chancellor, you would be creating jobs in the green economy, without your focus?— without your focus? well, we do think that focusing _ without your focus? well, we do think that focusing on _ without your focus? well, we do think that focusing on those i without your focus? well, we do j think that focusing on those jobs without your focus? well, we do i think that focusing on those jobs of the future is very important. we

have seen quite a lot of rhetoric from the uk government but sadly we have seen very little action and labour, after a major consultation with 2000 different organisations and individuals, we have set out concrete ways that the government could be building those newjobs. our ambitions were twice as strong as what the government itself thinks it could achieve in the short—term, but there is a lot else that needs to be done as well. we have seen for example the kick—start and restart schemes announced by government, focused on those who are unemployed, but unfortunately it seems like lessons from previous schemes have not been learned. we know these systems work when they really involve local businesses, local colleges, local authorities, there has not been thatjoint working at local level to the same extent with the schemes and actually, sadly, worryingly, they are pulling in a very small percentage of unemployed people so far, so people are becoming unemployed, expecting there

to be support and sadly there is not that help there that there needs to be so people can rapidly get back into work. ., , ,, ., ., into work. labours shadow chancellor, _ into work. labours shadow chancellor, we _ into work. labours shadow chancellor, we must i into work. labours shadow chancellor, we must leave| into work. labours shadow i chancellor, we must leave it into work. labours shadow - chancellor, we must leave it there, thank you very much. you're watching bbc news. and we will talk more about gdp and the economic figures over the course of the next couple of hours. now it's time for a look at the weather with matt taylor. hello. yesterday's snow led to a cold start and the rain has led to a number of flood warnings in place across england. the latest details on the weather website. mooring to come tonight as well. add onto that the icy, snowy flooding start, lots of fog across central and northern england, some of which will linger into the afternoon, struggling to shift, perhaps lifting to low cloud and away from there, most having a dry and brighter day compare to yesterdays. some showers across the

east of kent and shetland, but most are staying dry, cold and where the fog lingers, temperature struggling to get above freezing. mother towards the west where the breeze sticks up, another where the front approaching, lots of rain across ireland as we go through the evening and then into western scotland, wales and western england through the night with deborah dropping below freezing for a while across many areas, that rainbow quickly turned to snow over the higher grounds of scotland, pennines, peak district and even low levels across north—east england and east of scotland, perhaps as high as 20 centimetres or higher ground. mild air will push on as we go through the day with these weather fronts, so it will not snow all day long. initial snowfall across octonaut northern in london high ground turns increasingly to sleet and rain but for a while, during the morning, we could seasonal across east anglia and the south—east before that turns back to rain as we go through the afternoon. brighter conditions following on from most after a cloudy start, the rain lingering

longest across east anglia and the south—east and the chill but most actually milder than it has been for actually milder than it has been for a while with some training showers and a height of around ten or 11 degrees. as we go through saturday night and into sunday, ridge of high pressure tried to build across the south once more which means there will be a risk of frost and ice around into sunday morning, but a bright day for much of england and wales, lots of sunshine around. clouding over a little further north and west and we could see splashes of rain in the north and northern ireland and particularly in the north and west of scotland through the day. temperatures holding up at around six to 8 degrees, where we should be for this time of year. as we go into next week, looks like atlantic weather systems are going to dominate conditions, so could be quite wet and windy at times, particularly for england and wales. temperatures staying higher than they have been over recent days.

hello this is bbc news with jane hill. the headlines. one of two new coronavirus variants to have emerged in brazil has been found in the uk. a ban on travellers into the uk from south america and portugal has come into force. the transport secretary says the step was taken because of concerns over the new variant. some of them, which are more easily transmitted,

are obviously of greater concern, and it really is a precautionary principle. we're so close now, we've got 3 million of these vaccines in people's arms in the uk, we want to make sure we don't fall at this last hurdle. tens of thousands of small businesses are to receive insurance pay—outs covering their losses during the first lockdown, after insurers lost a legal challenge at the uk supreme court. the uk economy shrank by 2.6% in november as the second lockdown hit economic output after many businesses were forced to close. us—president electjoe biden promises nearly $2 trillion in a stimulus package to tackle the coronavirus pandemic and kick—start the us economy. we will talk more about the ruling

in the supreme court, small businesses, soon. sport and for a full round—up, from the bbc sport centre, here's jane dougal. joe root has been leading from the front on day two of the opening test in sri lanka. he's passed his century, giving england a healthy lead. after rain delays, root got to 168 not out when they stopped for tea. it's started raining again in galle, the covers are still on, so they're yet to come out for the final session. there was also a really impressive debut for dan lawrence, who hit a half—century. england are 320—1; — that's 185 runs ahead. a century from marnus labuschagne gave australia the edge, after the first day of the deciding test against india in brisbane. it was thanks in part to some missed opportunities — he was dropped twice, as india's fielders let down an inexperienced bowling attack. but labuschagne went on to make his fifth test ton, as the home side reached 274—5

at the close. former west ham women's manager matt beard has taken over at bristol city women until the end of the season. he's standing in for tanya oxtoby, who's on maternity leave. beard left west ham by mutual consent in november and hejoins a bristol city side sitting at the bottom of the women's super league with just two points from their opening ten games. his first match in charge is away to everton on sunday. beard won the league with liverpool twice. the former manchester united manager sir alex ferguson has praised marcus rashford over his free school meals campaign, calling it an "astonishing" achievement. rashford was given a tribute award by the football writers' association last night, recognising his work off the pitch. he has shown to young people in particular there is a different way of dealing with life. he has shown great humility,

he has shown courage to do what he did, so this achievement is well—deserved and he should be recognised for what he has done. so, marcus, well done — fantastic achievement. defending champion stuart bingham, is through to the semifinals of the masters snooker in milton keynes. he beat shaun murphy by 6 frames to 3 — with the help of this double on the pink. last year, bingham became the oldest winner to lift the trophy, at the age of a3. coverage resumes at one o'clock, across the bbc. england's netballers will be playing a three—match series against a superleague all stars side next week. this replaces the games againstjamaica, that were postponed because of the pandemic. the matches will be played behind closed doors at their training base in loughborough, with strict covid protocols in place. they'll be up against international stars who play for superleague clubs. ben ainslie's, ineos team uk, have made a great start in their bid to qualify for the america's cup.

they won their opening two races of the challenger series in auckland, having struggled forform in recent weeks. ainslie and tactician giles scott helped beat crews from the usa and italy. that's all the sport for now but there's more on the bbc sport website, including the news that alex sanderson is leaving saracens to become the new director of rugby at sale sharks. thank you. let's get more on the news that the supreme court has ruled in favour of small businesses who said they should receive insurance pay—outs for losses incurred during the first national lockdown. many thousands made claims on business interruption policies, but were told that they were never intended to cover such unprecedented restrictions. joining me now is richard leedham, the lawyer who represented the small businesses in their battle at the supreme court.

your thoughts? it is a vindication for the stance that insurers and indeed the regulatory body fca took for this claim. it provides clarity for this claim. it provides clarity for businesses. small to medium size enterprise businesses, smes, affected by covid, has given clarity that the government put in place action to restrict their losses and this gives them insurance cover. business interruption policies, so by definition for business owners the business was interrupted. with the business was interrupted. with the insurance argument at the time that this situation facing the country is so extraordinary that

there was some sort of exemption for them? ., ,., there was some sort of exemption for them? ., , ., . there was some sort of exemption for them? ., ,., . ., , ., them? not so much an exemption, there argument _ them? not so much an exemption, there argument centred _ them? not so much an exemption, there argument centred in - them? not so much an exemption, there argument centred in that i them? not so much an exemption, l there argument centred in that these policies were never intended to cover what actually happened, but the way the weekly phrase that, they said the losses fell under the but for clause. a local authority deciding to close that particular business also because of a local outbreak of covid, but what they say is no, there has to be an outbreak near the relevant business, but that itself is not the cause of the loss, it is the government action as a result of all of the cases of covid and that's

what gives the clarity that businesses have been wanting. understood, so how quickly do you think any of these businesses can get some funds, brutally? i think any of these businesses can get some funds, brutally?- get some funds, brutally? i think that is the big — get some funds, brutally? i think that is the big question. - get some funds, brutally? i think that is the big question. as i that is the big question. as everyone knows, insurance claims have to be adjusted, insurance cannot simply say we was 20,000... the adjustment process has been going on in the background since march and one has to bear in mind, many businesses have been shut down completely three times and are currently shut down and have not received any money at all from their insurers. whilst the more complex claims might take a little while, one would hope that for a small business that is clearly being shut down, the money can be paid quickly within weeks, and there is no reason that cannot happen now.— that cannot happen now. correct me if i am wrong. _ that cannot happen now. correct me if i am wrong, this _ that cannot happen now. correct me if i am wrong, this ruling _ that cannot happen now. correct me if i am wrong, this ruling today i that cannot happen now. correct me if i am wrong, this ruling today is i if i am wrong, this ruling today is about the first lockdown? have

things changed, has insurance approaches and policies changed since there is that we are talking about back in march, april, may? you are riaht, about back in march, april, may? you are right. it— about back in march, april, may? you are right. it is— about back in march, april, may? gm, are right, it is to do with the first lockdown and restrictions imposed but can be read across to all the subsequent restrictions. what has happened and policies that have expired since march as we understand it, generally anything to do with covid in these policies is being specifically excluded in the main. if that has happened and they have renewed their policy of the march, they would not be covered. some policies in place in march have covered for multiple claims, second and third lockdown could be claimed under the same policy. insurers have to look at their policies and as a lawyer i am afraid i would have to say you have to look at each individual policy to see which

particular lockdown you might be able to claim under.— particular lockdown you might be able to claim under. good to talk to ou, ou able to claim under. good to talk to you. you are _ able to claim under. good to talk to you, you are clearly _ able to claim under. good to talk to you, you are clearly very _ able to claim under. good to talk to you, you are clearly very much i able to claim under. good to talk to you, you are clearly very much in i you, you are clearly very much in demand. get back to your e—mails. a senior doctor has warned that myths about vaccines could lead to people of south asian heritage turning down their invitation to have a covid—19jab. dr harpreet sood is leading an nhs anti—disinformation campaign, and says there's growing evidence that many in these communities are being put off by false information. i'm joined now by dr carter singh mbe. he is a gp in nottinghamshire who has been looking into the impact of covid on bame communities.

good morning. do your conversations and consultations lead you to think there is a lot of concern or a lot of misinformation about the vaccine? yes, there is growing evidence that there have been some concerns and anxieties amongst members from not only the black, asian and orator communities but also members of the southeast asian communities about the vaccine. some of these may stem from religious or cultural beliefs which are commonly held by these communities but we cannot ignore the fact that there are many myths and lots of misinformation that has been actively propagated on social media which might be discouraging and confusing some members of the community against wanting to be vaccinated. , community against wanting to be vaccinated-— vaccinated. this information i believe, suggestions - vaccinated. this information i believe, suggestions for i

vaccinated. this information i i believe, suggestions for example that the vaccines contain alcohol? exactly, vaccines, myths including that the vaccines contain alcohol, meat products, microchips to do with the sg meat products, microchips to do with the 5g network and contain fatal cells i have seen on the intranet and social media which are complete we are untrue. —— foetal sales. if people from southeast asian communities do not use english as theirfirst communities do not use english as their first language, these communities do not use english as theirfirst language, these messages their first language, these messages need theirfirst language, these messages need to be communicated in languages they understand and via media platforms they commonly accessed. we also need to make sure we are buying engagement from faith and religious leaders in the community so we can work collaboratively to dispel and

debunk these myths. and when the trust of people belonging to these minority communities. you trust of people belonging to these minority communities.— trust of people belonging to these minority communities. you have half answered what _ minority communities. you have half answered what i _ minority communities. you have half answered what i was _ minority communities. you have half answered what i was going _ minority communities. you have half answered what i was going to - minority communities. you have half answered what i was going to say i answered what i was going to say because i was going to say for example it would seem obvious to get the message out there in languages other than english as a sensible first step. gps like yourself, i suppose, what do you try to do? get as much information out there as you can using your websites and so on? do you feel you are fighting a lone battle in this? ida. do you feel you are fighting a lone battle in this?— battle in this? no, i think we are workin: battle in this? no, i think we are working collaboratively - battle in this? no, i think we are working collaboratively with i battle in this? no, i think we are working collaboratively with nhsj working collaboratively with nhs england, the royal college of general practitioners. it is a collaborative approach. we do what we can through our websites, word—of—mouth and during the pandemic i created a lot of different videos to do with navigating this confusing time for ethnic minority communities, there was a great uptake for that. but the

tragedy here is the second by communities and people from southeast asian communities were the most hard—hit and disproportionately affected by the pandemic. —— the bame communities. but it is important for people to protect their families, important for people to protect theirfamilies, communities and most importantly the nhs. one of the sectors hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic is care homes, where it has had a heartbreaking impact on residents and their loved ones. for them, vaccination can't come soon enough. we've been hearing from residents — and staff — about what it means to finally see some light at the end of the tunnel.

people think at my age, i'm too old, it's wasted. but i don't think it is because i don't feel old. i have a nice man friend, we hold hands occasionally when we're both feeling miserable. my name isjoan wilson and i'm now 94 years old. hello. my name is lilia higginson, i am the care home lead of kepplegate care home. it's our vaccination day today. come and meet our family. i'm very emotional. at the same time delightful when we heard they were coming into our care home for a vaccine for our 15 residents. i feel happy that i've had it. it's notjust to protect me, it's protecting other people. if you can imagine losing a grandparent and then losing 16 grandparents in the space of a week

to ten days, it is absolutely devastating. hi, i'm andrea. i am the registered manager at oak springs care home in liverpool. now i'm happy to say that we have been covid—free for several months now. all our residents have been vaccinated, all our staff have been vaccinated. i felt very honoured, really. i'll be able to see my. grandson who i haven't seen for nine months. i did feel very privileged getting the vaccine. hi, i'm gail howard. i'm the registered manager of lakeside care home in standish. it's like the light at the end of the tunnel really. we've all been desperate for this time to come.

it's just a really good feel, a good vibe in the home. upsy daisy. .-.. marion. — this is my best friend winnie. we've known each other since we were 14. - we used to go to the cinema and dance at the weekend. i that's it. i didn't feel a thing, did you? just felt a prick. did you really? yeah. oh, yeah, i did. i didn't feel a thing but winnie did. - a kiss and a cuddle? i'm not one for kisses and cuddles. there is light at the end of the tunnel but we are going to get through it. we're just nearly there. at last this says we can beat that virus. we're getting, like, - armour to fight this virus. goodbye, everybody. the headlines on bbc news. one of two new coronavirus variants to have emerged in brazil has been found in the uk.

this comes as a ban on travellers into the uk from south america and portugal has taken effect. tens of thousands of small businesses are to receive insurance pay—outs covering their losses during the first lockdown, after insurers lost a legal challenge at the uk supreme court. the government has launched an independent review into children's social care — which it claims 'will not shy away from exposing problems where they exist�*. josh macalister is chair of the independent review of children's social care. i think it is worth explaining, if you can, first of all, why this is so badly needed. as i understand it particularly in relation to outcomes, life after care for

children. outcomes, life after care for children-— outcomes, life after care for children. ~ . . , children. we have in england every ear children. we have in england every year 750,000 — children. we have in england every year 750,000 children _ children. we have in england every year 750,000 children who - children. we have in england every year 750,000 children who end - children. we have in england every year 750,000 children who end up| year 750,000 children who end up needing a social worker. this is a huge part of the public sector that often goes unseen but for those children and their families, often goes unseen but for those children and theirfamilies, it is often goes unseen but for those children and their families, it is a hugely important group of professionals that are there to help them, often at their moment of greatest crisis. families where they may have issues with violent relationships between parents, issues around substance misuse. for some of those children, some of those 750,000 children, they end up in care, around 80,000 of them. the outcomes for that group of children is often far too poor. we need to do better as a country to back children. better as a country to back children-— better as a country to back children. , ,, . . ., ., , children. this is such an enormous sco e, children. this is such an enormous scone. such _ children. this is such an enormous scone. such a _ children. this is such an enormous scope, such a huge _ children. this is such an enormous scope, such a huge amount - children. this is such an enormous scope, such a huge amount of - scope, such a huge amount of problems to grapple with. who are you going to be hearing from, how do you going to be hearing from, how do

you envisage this panning out? it is so substantial, isn't it, what you have to achieve? it so substantial, isn't it, what you have to achieve?— so substantial, isn't it, what you have to achieve? it is. my 'ob is to listen reauy — have to achieve? it is. my 'ob is to listen really deeply h have to achieve? it is. my 'ob is to listen really deeply to _ have to achieve? it is. my job is to listen really deeply to particularly | listen really deeply to particularly the children, young people, care experienced adults, parents, grandparents, people who have had social workers and the life who have tried to help them. i am sure i will hear inspirational, hopeful stories of change but i think i will also hear really painful stories of where the system has let people down. i think by listening to those people we will be able to get some fairly clear and blunt messages that we need to put forward into this new system when the report is published. another big part of this is making sure that the new system we end recommending does notjust try to find a compromise between lots of different viewpoints. lots of people work in this profession and system. we need to come up with a bold, radical plan that really addresses

theissues radical plan that really addresses the issues and does that as soon as possible. the issues and does that as soon as ossible. �* u, , the issues and does that as soon as ossible. �* u, , ., the issues and does that as soon as ossible. �* u, , . h, possible. because there are some fiuures possible. because there are some figures around _ possible. because there are some figures around this. _ possible. because there are some figures around this. i _ possible. because there are some figures around this. i found - figures around this. i found extraordinary, so much worse than i would have thought, for example 25% of all people who are homeless are people who have lived in care. 24% of the prison population, similar way. i suppose that is why i am slightly staggered at the scope of what you have to achieve, because those figures tell a really desperate story. something is going wrong! desperate story. something is going wronr! ~ , ~ desperate story. something is going wrong! absolutely. we have these hu . el wrong! absolutely. we have these hugely pernicious _ wrong! absolutely. we have these hugely pernicious cycles _ wrong! absolutely. we have these hugely pernicious cycles that - wrong! absolutely. we have these hugely pernicious cycles that too l hugely pernicious cycles that too many people are caught in, whether children or adults, where they themselves as a child grow up without safety, stability and love that lots of us can take for granted. going into adulthood without the psychological and physical home to go back to, the safety net, it has a huge importance

in employment prospects or criminal justice system. some have children themselves and get stuck in the same cycle with another social worker knocking on the door. i think lots of the people that work in children's social care see this themselves and are desperate for big, radical change to take place. and that is what the review offers us the chance to do, it is the first time really in 30 years we have had a review of this scope. this breadth. the government will have to listen to recommendation doesn't respond to those.— listen to recommendation doesn't respond to those. what insurances have ou respond to those. what insurances have you been _ respond to those. what insurances have you been given, _ respond to those. what insurances have you been given, what - respond to those. what insurances have you been given, what advicel have you been given, what advice will be acted on? that is what is crucial, what will make the difference. it crucial, what will make the difference.— crucial, what will make the difference. , ., . ., difference. it is to the credit of the government _ difference. it is to the credit of the government they - difference. it is to the credit of the government they have - difference. it is to the credit of- the government they have appointed this review to be independent, given

broad terms of reference, not to try to constrain it unnecessarily. this review has not been prompted by a crisis or a particular case of abuse were a child has died, and that has often been the prism from which we have looked at changes in children's social care before. that is really positive. the other aspect of this is, i am positive. the other aspect of this is, lam really positive. the other aspect of this is, i am really encouraged today that the response to my appointment has been welcomed across the political spectrum and by a number of sector bodies. i think that means that myjob now is with that fair wind over the next year as we do this review, to make sure i am engaging proactively with ministers and civil servants, as well as everyone out there who runs the system and uses the system, to make sure we come up with a plan that can be implemented but is radical. really, really interesting to talk to you, i hope you will talk to us

again. you are the founder of a social work charity yourself, front line, which i am sure is what you have been chosen. the independent reviewer of children's social care, the major piece of work now getting under way. seven minutes to 12. it's one of the oldest tricks in the book — sawing a woman in half. now, magicians around the world are celebrating 100 years of the classic illusion. our correspondent david sillito reports. hello, everybody, my name is michael] fitch, magician, and this is my wife, helen. it's not quite las vegas, but for magician michael] fitch and his wife and assistant, helen, a windy carport is at least a covid safe space to show off a magic show classic. cutting a woman in half.

whenever anyone says, you know, "oh, you're a magician," the first line, we hear it every day is, "oh, can you saw my wife in half?" or, "can you saw my husband in half?" for some reason, that illusion has stuck in everybody�*s mind and captured their imagination. ok, so, here we go. now, i used to go do this to my sister, she is now my half—sister. 0k, check this out. so i take the blade, and i push the blade, there, right the way through the middle. there we go. now, it would only right for me to do this, and, now, my wife is twice the lady she used to be. ladies and gentlemen, my wife! thank you very much. michael and helen, and the 100th anniversary of a very famous illusion. sawing a woman in half. this is also a celebration

of something else. a magical partnership. and this is the man who created it. pt selbit, carrying out his famous illusion in the 1930s. he didn'tjust invent the trick, he was one of the pioneers of the type of magic that relies on a female assistant. and this is paul daniels and debbie mcgee, re—enacting that original trick. but back in the '205, not everyone was impressed. it was performed for the first time on stage without an audience to a bunch of agents and bookers, and nevil maskelyne, who was the owner of one of these, the owner of the very venue the illusion was performed in for the first time, dismissed it. but the audience loved the illusion and pt selbit, real name percy tibbles, also created pincushion girl, stretching a woman, indestructible girl.

it was clear that the female assistant was the key attraction and a big part of the magic. would i be right in saying that a lot of the work is going on inside the box? of course, yeah, all the hard work goes on inside the box. michaeljust has to stand there and put some blades in, put some knives in. what?! he gets the easy part. yeah, definitely. no, that's not true! it's magic, it's magic, and it's all me, it's magic. so is this another example of men of men doing all the talking, claiming all the glory, while the women do the work? well, it's always the way, isn't it? always the way, it's always women who do the hard work, yeah. 100 years on, it is a magical land mark, and perhaps also a good moment to think about who is actually doing the magic. david sillito, bbc news, colchester. always the woman doing the hard work, brilliant! now it's time for a look at the weather with matt taylor.

hello. yesterday's snow led to a pretty cold start today uk—wide, and where you saw rain, that has led to a number of flood warnings in place across england. latest details on the bbc weather website, more rain to come tonight as well. add onto that the icy, snowy, flooding starts, lots of fog, too, across parts of central and northern england, some of which will linger into the afternoon. struggling to shift, maybe lifting into low cloud. elsewhere, most having a drier and brighter day than yesterday. some showers east of kent and across shetland this afternoon, but most staying dry, cold though and where the fog lingers, temperatures struggling to get above freezing. milder towards the west, with the breeze picking up, with another weather system aproaching off the atlantic. another rain—bearing one, rain initially across ireland through the evening and into western scotland, wales and western england through the night. but with temperatures dropping below freezing in many areas, that rain will quickly turn to snow over the higher ground of scotland, the pennines, the peak district, even at low levels in eastern

scotland and northeast england, we could see up to 20cm of snow covering the higher ground. milder air pushing in through the day with these weather fronts, so not going to snow all day. initial snowfall in scotland and england on the high ground, turning increasingly to sleet and rain. but during the morning, we could see snow across east anglia and the south east giving a covering in places, before that turns back to rain in the afternoon. brighter conditions following on for most after a cloudy start. the rain lingering longest in east anglia and the south east, and the chill, but most milder than it has been for a while, sunshine and showers and highs of 10 degrees. saturday night into sunday, a ridge of high pressure building into the south once more, meaning a risk of frost and ice around on sunday morning, but a bright day for much of england and wales, lots of sunshine around. clouding over a bit from the north and west and we could see some splashes of rain in the north of northern ireland but more particularly towards the north and

west of scotland through the day. temperatures still holding up at around 8 degrees, around where we should be for this time of year. into next week, looking like atlantic weather systems are going to dominate conditions, so it could be quite wet and windy at times, particularly for england and wales, and temperatures staying higher than they have been over recent days.

this is bbc news. i'm jane hill. the headlines: one of two new coronavirus variants to have emerged in brazil has been found in the uk. a ban on travellers into the uk from south america and portugal has come into force. the transport secretary says the precautionary step was taken because of concerns over the new variant. some of them which are more easily transmitted, are obviously of greater concern and it's really as a precautionary principle. we are so close now, we have 3 million of these vaccines in people's arms in the uk, we want to make sure we do not fall at this last hurdle. tens of thousands of small businesses are to receive insurance pay—outs covering their losses during the first lockdown, after insurers lost a legal challenge at the uk supreme court.

the uk economy shrank by 2.6% in november as the second lockdown hit economic output after many businesses were forced to close. us—president electjoe biden promises nearly two trillion dollars in a stimulus package to tackle the coronavirus pandemic and kick—start the us economy. and coming up this hour: it's one of the oldest tricks in the book — magicians are celebrating 100 years of sawing someone in half. one of two coronavirus variants discovered in brazil has been detected in the uk, according to a leading scientist. professor wendy barclay —

who's head of a new project set up to study the effects of emerging mutations — said the variant was 'probably introduced some time ago'. in the last hour i've been speaking to our health correspondent michelle roberts who has heard from professor barclay and the group which advises the government. they have been looking at these new variants and she says there is evidence that the brazil strain, one of them, the brazil variant that people are worried about, has actually been found in the uk already. obviously, it's a bit like the south african one, so it's not become dominant here. the one we are seeing in the uk is still the new variant of coronavirus that we have seen in kent moving to london and elsewhere in the uk, but it is something they want to keep a close monitor on and see what's happening because the changes that the virus is undergoing seem to be in a part of the virus that helps it get

into cells and the concern is that we need to check that the vaccines we currently have work just as well. there is no suggestion yet that they won't, but that's something they want to check, that the immune system can still fight off this virus. yes, of course, they need to monitor that. soto be clear, there are two variants we think in brazil that the health authorities are saying that they know one of them is already in the uk. that's right, yes. correct me if i'm wrong — my understanding is that when someone is tested for covid or if they test positive for covid, they are not told which variant they have, are they? to what extent... i am curious about how they manage to monitor now we are talking about so many different variants. the uk is world—leading in this along with other experts in different countries. it is looking at what variants are out there, closely, closely monitoring. if you were tested for coronavirus, you would not be told what type

of variant you have, but scientists are looking at the data, they are analysing the sequence of the virus to know exactly where it fits in the family tree, if you like, whether it is the wild type we first got or how far away it has mutated from that and then a new group of scientists today have been set up which are looking at growing things in the lab to study them further to see how they behave, so we have the sequencing, now it is checking what is happening, are they spread more easily? do the vaccines work? someone who has had the infection before, would their natural immunity still fight off the new variants? these are very big questions. there is no massive concern, but they are checking to answer all of these questions. michelle roberts there. concern about the new brazil variant has led to a ban on flights from south america to the uk which came into force today.

the ban also affects portugal and cape verde as theo leggett reports. in a huge graveyard near sao paulo, the latest victims of the covid pandemic are being buried. the virus has swept through brazil, leaving more than 200,000 dead. now a new variant has emerged which it's feared could prove significantly more infectious than the original version. the british government wants to prevent it arriving here, and so it's announced a new wave of travel restrictions. from this morning, travellers from 13 south american countries, including brazil, argentina and chile will be banned from entering the uk. the ban also applies to portugal, which has strong travel links with brazil, as well as the islands of the azores. but lorry drivers from portugal will be allowed in. the islands of cape verde, off the coast of west africa, are included in the ban as well. the new restrictions do not apply to british citizens or residents. there aren't that many flights going on. brits will still need

to repatriate so it's not that nobody would be able to come in up until now, but of course everybody that has come here will have had to, by law, quarantine themselves for ten days. we don't want to trip up at this late stage, we're so close now that we want to make sure we do absolutely everything possible to give us the best chance of beating this virus which is why it's so important that we do act quickly on these things. for the embattled travel industry, it's yet another blow, although with relatively few flights currently coming into the uk, it will make little difference in practice. a similar ban already applies to flights from southern africa, which is also home to a worrying new variant of the virus. meanwhile, as of monday, all passengers boarding planes, trains or boats to england will have to provide evidence of a negative covid test. the new rule had been due to come into force today, but was delayed to give passengers more time to prepare. anyone who fails to produce a test result will face a fine of £500.

covid vaccines are holding out the prospect that one day, the pandemic could come to an end, but in the meantime, covid restrictions are becoming tighter than ever. theo leggett, bbc news. away from coronavirus, just to bring you some news from the courts. we are just hearing that the son of the lockerbie bomber has just lost a posthumous appeal against his late father's conviction. that is just coming few in the last few moments. the only man convicted in relation to the bombing of pan am flight 103 over lockerbie died a few years ago but his son had been engaged in a legal battle to have his name cleared but he hasjust legal battle to have his name cleared but he has just lost that posthumous appeal against his father's conviction. that has just come through in the last few

minutes. if there are any comments from the court in relation to that, we will bring them to you but that is all we know at this stage. the uk supreme court has ruled in favour of small businesses who said they should receive insurance pay—outs for losses incurred during the first national lockdown. many thousands made claims on business interruption policies, but were told that they were never intended to cover such unprecedented restrictions. our business correspondent vishala sri—pathma explains why this ruling is so important. the reason this is so significant is that back in the spring lockdown of last year when we were first told to shutdown, businesses that had these policies phoned up their insurers and asked if they could cover for loss of income. lots were told no that only specialist policies covered this type of pandemic style restrictions, so clearly a huge blow for any company that was hoping to rely

on that money and it has really quite impacted their cash flows and costs, so this is gone to the supreme court, the judges on the supreme court have gone over the wording, the wording is really quite key when it comes to claiming and taking out policies and they have ruled in favour of these small firms. it is going to cost insurers quite a bit of money, hundreds of millions of pounds, but for these businesses it might mean they are able to trade post—pandemic. let's discuss what this ruling at the supreme court could mean and how helpful it will be for so many small businesses which we know have been hit so hard since march of last year, the beginning of the pandemic. kathryn hardy runs beauty by kathryn salon in buntingford good afternoon. hello. what do you

make of all— good afternoon. hello. what do you make of all this? _ good afternoon. hello. what do you make of all this? explain _ good afternoon. hello. what do you make of all this? explain for - good afternoon. hello. what do you make of all this? explain for our - make of all this? explain for our viewers what has happened to your business during lockdown. so viewers what has happened to your business during lockdown.- business during lockdown. so we closed back _ business during lockdown. so we closed back at _ business during lockdown. so we closed back at the _ business during lockdown. so we closed back at the end _ business during lockdown. so we closed back at the end of - business during lockdown. so we closed back at the end of march | business during lockdown. so we i closed back at the end of march last year until... closed back at the end of march last yearuntil... i closed back at the end of march last year until... i think we reopened on the 14th ofjuly and then we were able to work for a few months but we were restricted in what treatment we could do, full contact treatments, until the middle of august, so obviously for a lot of businesses in the beauty sector that primarily work on the face, for them, they could not go back to work either. fortunately, we do nails in that kind of thing which is a massive part of what we do and then we closed again on the 11th of november and then reopens on the 2nd of december and then were closed again on the 19th of december and obviously have not returned as of yet. obviously have not returned as of et. �* , ., , ., obviously have not returned as of et. �* , ., obviously have not returned as of et. ,~/ , yet. and did you try to make claims on our yet. and did you try to make claims

on your insurance? _ yet. and did you try to make claims on your insurance? yes, _ yet. and did you try to make claims on your insurance? yes, i— yet. and did you try to make claims on your insurance? yes, i did. - yet. and did you try to make claims on your insurance? yes, i did. back in the summer. _ on your insurance? yes, i did. back in the summer, to _ on your insurance? yes, i did. back in the summer, to begin _ on your insurance? yes, i did. back in the summer, to begin with, - on your insurance? yes, i did. back in the summer, to begin with, backj in the summer, to begin with, back in the summer, to begin with, back in march, i did not think we would be closed for very long so then back in the summer, i tried to but i was told that the insurance company could not pay out because it didn't cover this sort of thing which, obviously, you know, in hindsight, a lot of us did not have pandemic cover but it is great news to hear today that we will be getting some kind of pay—out. i have called my insurance company today, but i am yet to hear any more from them. but obviously it is a massive, massive help to businesses. i was reading last week that 1000 salons in the uk alone have been unable to return to work because there is no financial support which is terrible for a business that works... is all business that works... is all business owners will know, you work

so, so hard sorted then not have that financial support behind you to be able to return. i that financial support behind you to be able to return.— be able to return. i imagine today that insurance _ be able to return. i imagine today that insurance companies' - be able to return. i imagine todayj that insurance companies' phones be able to return. i imagine today - that insurance companies' phones are ringing off the hook, but do you have any idea how much you might be able to claim for? how much you might get? i am interested able to claim for? how much you might get? lam interested in, you know, what proportion that is of how much you have lost and how much it will help you. this much you have lost and how much it will help you-— will help you. as of yet, i am still waitinr will help you. as of yet, i am still waiting to — will help you. as of yet, i am still waiting to hear, _ will help you. as of yet, i am still waiting to hear, so _ will help you. as of yet, i am still waiting to hear, so i _ will help you. as of yet, i am still waiting to hear, so i am - will help you. as of yet, i am still waiting to hear, so i am not - will help you. as of yet, i am still| waiting to hear, so i am not 100% sure yet, but obviously, i know from my business alone how much money we have lost. i think i worked out that so far, since march, we have been closed for 28 weeks which is a long time for a business to be closed. i'm very grateful for some financial support that we have got, but everyone knows, it's the issue of cash flow, having the money to pay—out though we have furlough, you

still need to have that money to be able to pay it out and then get it back so it is difficult so an insurance pay—out for alas of earnings would be a huge help. it sounds like you have been able to use the furlough scheme, but have you had to lay off staff? how many staff did you have at the start of all of this?— staff did you have at the start of all of this? ., ., . , . all of this? know, fortunately, i am ve , all of this? know, fortunately, i am very. very — all of this? know, fortunately, i am very. very lucky _ all of this? know, fortunately, i am very. very lucky and _ all of this? know, fortunately, i am very, very lucky and have _ all of this? know, fortunately, i am very, very lucky and have been - all of this? know, fortunately, i amj very, very lucky and have been able to keep everyone on because we have a great team and i would never have wanted to get rid of anyone. i am so fortunate and very grateful for the furlough. for most businesses, it is an absolute life—saver, but again it is cash flow, having the money to pay—out and then sometimes you wait a good few weeks to get that money back again and you have rent to pay on your premises, you have your bills still continuing, i think i have read that i am on salon forum and people have said that insurers were advising getting a bounce back alone but why should someone get into debt for something that is not

theirfault and it into debt for something that is not their fault and it is out of their control that they are close to? such a tou . h control that they are close to? such a tough time _ control that they are close to? such a tough time but _ control that they are close to? such a tough time but we _ control that they are close to? such a tough time but we hope today was my grilling gives you some comfort —— we hope that today's ruling gives you some comfort. one of many small businesses that it sounds like will benefit as a result of that ruling today in the supreme court. the us president—electjoe biden has set out a rescue plan worth nearly $2 trillion to combat the pandemic and stimulate what he called a 'sinking' economy. the plan includes one—off payments of $1400 to all adults and extending unemployment benefits to millions more people. mr biden, who takes office next wednesday, is also promising a mass vaccination campaign. here's our north america correspondent, david willis: in the worst affected nation on earth, the coronavirus is having a devastating effect.

hospitals are at breaking point as cases have spiralled to around 200,000 per day. food banks are inundated as the collapsing economy has caused many businesses to lay off their workers. joe biden promised to make combating the coronavirus his number one priority, and less than a week to go until taking office, he's unveiled a plan aimed at containing the virus and getting the economy back on track. one that will cost this country nearly $2 trillion. we not only have an economic imperative to act now, i believe we have a moral obligation. in this pandemic, in america, we cannot let people go hungry. we cannot let people get evicted. we cannot watch nurses, educators and others, lose theirjob when we so badly need them. we must act now and act decisively.

a month after the first shots were administered here, america's vaccination programme is off to a sluggish start. mr biden is pledging billions of dollars to expand testing and vaccination efforts, and enable schools to reopen safely by the spring. he is also pledging larger sums to help individuals worst affected by the crisis, all of it paid for with borrowed money. but necessary, he believes, in order to prevent the world's largest economy from further slipping into the abyss. all this, of course, at a time of deepening political unrest. packed close together and mostly mask free, last week's protests at the capitol building were not only another potential super spreader event, they also underlined the fact that many here still believe the virus is a hoax. forjoe biden, there is more than one kind of healing to be done. ironically, perhaps, the day that he is due to be sworn in, marks a rather grim anniversary, the anniversary of the first

confirmed case of covid—19 in the united states. david willis, bbc news, los angeles. the headlines on bbc news: one of two new coronavirus variants to have emerged in brazil has been found in the uk. this comes as a ban on travellers into the uk from south america and portugal has taken effect. tens of thousands of small businesses are to receive insurance pay—outs covering their losses during the first lockdown, after insurers lost a legal challenge at the uk supreme court. we will talk more about coronavirus

restrictions and be joined we will talk more about coronavirus restrictions and bejoined by we will talk more about coronavirus restrictions and be joined by the mayor of greater manchester but first sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, england have an impressive lead at stumps on day two of the opening test in sri lanka, withjoe root passing his century. despite several rain delays, root got to 168 not out when they stopped for tea. it's the england captain's first test century in more than a year. the rain didn't stop and both sides agreed to call it a day. there was also a really impressive debut for dan lawrence, who hit a half century. at stumps england are 320—4. that's185 runs ahead. former west ham women's manager matt beard has taken over at bristol city women until the end of the season. he's standing in for tanya oxtoby, who's on maternity leave. beard left west ham by mutual consent in november and hejoins a bristol city side sitting at the bottom of the women's super league with just two points from their opening ten games. his first match in charge is away to everton on sunday. beard also won the league with liverpool twice.

the former england flanker alex sanderson has left saracens after 17 years to take over as director of rugby at sale sharks. sandersonjoined sarries as a player in 2004 and became part of the coaching team there 12 years ago. with sale, he's back at the club where he made more than 100 appearances, and he succeeds steve diamond, who stepped down in december after a decade in the role. england's netballers will be playing a three—match series against a superleague all stars side next week. this replaces the games againstjamaica that were postponed because of the pandemic. the matches will be played behind closed doors at their training base in loughborough, with strict covid protocols in place. they'll be up against international stars who play for superleague clubs. ben ainslie's, ineos team uk, have made a great start in their bid to qualify for the america's cup. they won their opening two races of the challenger series in auckland, having struggled forform in recent weeks.

ainslie and tactician giles scott, helped beat crews from the usa and italy. stephen maguire takes on yan bingtao in the quarter—finals of the masters snooker in milton keynes this afternoon — that starts at one o'clock and it's live on the iplayer, as well as the bbc sport website and app. and the winner has a match against the defending champion stuart bingham to look forward to, after he beat shaun murphy by 6 frames to 3. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more for you in the next hour. thank you, see you a little later on. let's bring you some news through from the office for national to to six but not the sort of news we might normally expect from them at this point because we are reliant, of course, on the ons for keeping track of the data around coronavirus and prevalence. we are just hearing from the ons which are

saying that delays in laboratory tests means they need to conduct further quality assurance on data in this week's infection survey statistics. it essentially means a delay, we are not going to get the statistics we normally get on a weekly basis and have not been given a date as to when that information might come through saying we want our latest figures to be the highest quality so more investigation needs to be done on that in terms of tracking covid and the spread, so if you might have been expecting some figures today, it would appear they are not coming from the office for national statistics and assuming i have read that correctly, we do not know when they are coming but we will keep an eye on that. the mayor of greater manchester says the current coronavirus restrictions do not need toughening up in the region — as long as people follow the rules. over the last week — greater manchester police have dealt with more than 1,000 reports of covid—related rule breaking,

623 of those related to house parties. well, let's talk to the mayor of greater manchester andy burnham. good afternoon. it afternoon. des-ite good afternoon. it afternoon. despite it _ good afternoon. it afternoon. despite it seems _ good afternoon. it afternoon. despite it seems quite - good afternoon. it afternoon. despite it seems quite a - good afternoon. it afternoon. despite it seems quite a lot l good afternoon. it afternoon. | despite it seems quite a lot of house parties in your neck of the woods, you feel that the restrictions are broadly as they should be?— should be? yes, i do not think we should be? yes, i do not think we should always _ should be? yes, i do not think we should alwaysjust _ should be? yes, i do not think we should always just think _ should be? yes, i do not think we should always just think of - should be? yes, i do not think we should alwaysjust think of more i should be? yes, i do not think we i should alwaysjust think of more and should always just think of more and more restrictions as our first response to managing things. let's look more at enforcement, so we are taking action against those still holding gatherings. the vast majority of people are not, i should say, they are following the rules very, very rigidly but a persistent minority, unfortunately. we have had call—outs, as you say, to around 600 house gatherings last week, a significant number of fixed penalty notices given. some of these addresses are repeat offenders and

we have made that clear now and so much tougher action will be following if this carries on but there is a further issue around enforcement that i need to mention which is around the workplace. greater manchester police were called out to 175 workplaces last week and i think the thing about this lockdown compared to the april lockdown of last year is that many, many more people are in their workplace this time than was the case last year. there are about double the amount of traffic on our roads which tells you that many more people are going into work and what we have discovered from a survey of greater manchester residence is that one in ten of those people are saying to us that their workplace is not safe and i think this is an issue that has not ever in this pandemic received the attention that it needs and it should receive attention because we have more people in work, one in ten are telling us their workplace is not safe and i think that is a major gap in our defence against the spread of

this virus. ~ , ., , _ , . this virus. when people say they are worried that — this virus. when people say they are worried that their _ this virus. when people say they are worried that their workplace - this virus. when people say they are worried that their workplace is - this virus. when people say they are worried that their workplace is not i worried that their workplace is not safe, does that mean they are working in an environment where, for example, there is not space to socially distance, that sort of thing? socially distance, that sort of thin ? ., . , socially distance, that sort of thin? , ., socially distance, that sort of thin? . i, socially distance, that sort of thin? , . , , ,, thing? exactly that, yes. this is where the _ thing? exactly that, yes. this is where the national _ thing? exactly that, yes. this is where the national regulations. thing? exactly that, yes. this is i where the national regulations do not help us at all. the workplace regulations around covid safety say that people should... or businesses should maintain two metres distancing or one metre distancing if there is some mitigations in place, but here is the real killer bit, wherever possible, so it is a bit, wherever possible, so it is a bit of a get out clause, unfortunately, and we have had complaints all the way through that distancing is not being observed in some workplaces. not all by any means, but certainly in some workplaces and i afraid the rules nationally create a grey area and thatis nationally create a grey area and that is exploited by some and it is compounded by the fact that for many people working in, let's say, warehouses or other locations where they are not on fixed contracts but

on zero—hour contracts, we have also discovered that self isolation payment for those people who cannot get wage cover when they are off work is not reaching enough people at all. about four out of five people are being turned down for that and i think newsnight has exposed this over the last couple of nights, so we have unsafe workplaces, and people are unable to take work with time safely off work and so you can see how the virus could be spreading under the radar. there is increased traffic on the roads but does that mean more people are going to work? doesn't that mean that people are driving because they are told to avoid public transport? it is a bit of both. i would not say it is a complete read across the workplaces, but it is a good proxy and we are picking up from trade union colleagues here in the north—west that there are many more people in their workplace this time than was the case last year.

employers are less willing to follow people, even though they still could, or let people stay—at—home. i would say to the governments that they need to get that stay—at—home message over much more firmly again and ask for the support of businesses across the country with regards to that. as i say, a lot of people are still in work and have been throughout this pandemic and some of them are in unsafe workplaces and i would say, before you load more restrictions on the public and take away more liberties, how about really focusing on the gaps in the enforcement of the current restrictions because i do not think we can justify imposing more on the public until you can look them in the eye and say we have done everything we can to enforce what we currently have in place. but the message about work from home if you can, i mean, that is said at every single number ten briefing? we hear it time and again, please work from home if you possibly can. i think the government would say it is trying to get that message out there and i expect if rishi sunak were here, he would say he had set up the

furlough scheme, so they would argue that they are doing things in that space. that they are doing things in that sace. , ,., that they are doing things in that sace. , , ., space. yes, with some 'ustification, they would, — space. yes, with some 'ustification, they weuta. and h space. yes, with some 'ustification, they would, and lb space. yes, with some 'ustification, they would, and i and _ space. yes, with some justification, they would, and i and not _ space. yes, with some justification, they would, and i and not making . they would, and i and not making this a political point, ijust think it needs to be emphasised more particularly to employers is what i am saying because we are hearing from trade unions that there is a reluctance from employers this year to follow people. they would rather people stay in work and that seems to be quite a big change between the first lockdown and the one that we are currently in. if people are going to stay in work and the government is not going to ask employers to make a change there, the enforcement of workplaces becomes much more critical and i think the health and safety executive have been a bit silent during this pandemic. they need to play a much bigger role working with trading standards and local police to investigate breaches of regulations in the workplace. greater manchester police and our councils are going into workplaces where we get reports, we encourage

the public to come forward and say if they feel their workplace is unsafe, but we need more focus on this issue at a national level as well as getting test, trace and critically isolate working properly. it looks to me at the moment as though everyone is saying vaccination is its, the media only really reports vaccinations and i understand that and it is crucial, but we will need a fully functioning test trace and isolate system as we come out of this national lockdown to manage a safe exit route out of restrictions and it is not currently in place. we need to get our eibar, that ball. fit, in place. we need to get our eibar, that ball. �* . ~ in place. we need to get our eibar, that ball. �* a ., . that ball. a quick thought about that ball. a quick thought about that because — that ball. a quick thought about that because it _ that ball. a quick thought about that because it is _ that ball. a quick thought about that because it is not _ that ball. a quick thought about that because it is notjust - that ball. a quick thought about that because it is notjust the i that because it is notjust the media talking about the vaccine, we are talking like gdp figures today and rishi sunak�*s response is that one of the ways out of all of this and the economic damages is causing is the roll—out of the vaccine, so it is the government saying it is the vaccine which will take us through this, so what is your point

about that? do you think testing trace has been forgotten because people are naturally quite excited about the idea of a vaccine? exactly that, that about the idea of a vaccine? exactly that. that was _ about the idea of a vaccine? exactly that, that was my _ about the idea of a vaccine? exactly that, that was my point _ about the idea of a vaccine? exactly that, that was my point is _ about the idea of a vaccine? exactly that, that was my point is really - that, that was my point is really edgy made it quite well for me the government only to the vaccine and it feels a little bit now that test and trace has been forgotten when really we cannot forget about that. you just reported before you came to me about the ons reporting that there are difficulties now with lack capacity and testing so there is an issue there. the tracing side of this has never worked properly and the last bit is the isolation side of it and still many people on low wages are not getting that self isolation support payments, so this isolation support payments, so this is going to be needed in the middle part of this year when the vaccination programme continues to take effect, just a manager safely out of restrictions and it is not currently in a place where it can do that, and that is why i am saying it is vaccination plus test, trace and isolate which will get us out of this pandemic. for isolate which will get us out of this pandemic.— isolate which will get us out of

this tandemic. ., ., . ~' , ., this pandemic. for now, thank you very much- — now it's time for a look at the weather with alina jenkins. more rain and snow in the forecast as we head through the night and into tomorrow but for the rest of daylight hours mostly quiet and dry but still very cold particularly where we have lingering fog through the midlands and into parts of eastern england, temperature struggling to get above freezing. best of the sunshine across eastern scotland and north—east england, wind strengthening as the day goes on. the band of rain pushing its way into northern ireland than eastwards. furthersnow into northern ireland than eastwards. further snow in scotland, northern england, parts of east anglia, south east england. the rain, saturated ground, flood warnings in place. ice. tomorrow potentially wet and windy, further snow for a time parts of scotland,

north—east england, south east england where it starts to clear away. furthershowers england where it starts to clear away. further showers piling into parts of northern scotland and northern england, tomorrow not feeling as cold as it has done over the last few days.

hello, this is bbc news with jane hill. the headlines... a ban on travellers into the uk from south america and portugal has come into force. the transport secretary says the precautionary step was taken because of fears of a new variant of coronavirus. tens of thousands of small businesses are to receive insurance pay—outs covering their losses during the first lockdown, after insurers lost a legal challenge at the uk supreme court. the uk economy shrank by 2.6% in november as the second lockdown hit economic output after many

businesses were forced to close. us president—electjoe biden promises nearly $2 trillion in a stimulus package to tackle the coronavirus pandemic and kick—start the us economy. celebrity chefs, charities and campaigners, including the footballer marcus rashford, are pressing borisjohnson to overhaul the provision of free school meals. in a letter to the prime minister, they call for a strategy to help end food poverty among children. this week mrjohnson admitted that some food parcels being sent to families in england were "inadequate" after pictures were widely criticised. jon donnison reports. the campaign over free school meals, led by marcus rashford, has already forced the government into several changes of direction. ministers have been accused

of coming up with temporary, short—term measures to deal with a long—term problem. now, a number of celebrities, including jamie oliver and emma thompson, havejoined the footballer and over a0 charities and educational leaders to write to the government to call for change. we've signed the letter because the last few months have really shown up the cracks in our school food system. whether it's the use of food parcels, or vouchers, or giving people cash during lockdown, or whether indeed to feed children during the school holidays. and also, most importantly, making sure that every child that lives in poverty is able to access support. the letter calls for the government to conduct an urgent, comprehensive review into free school meal policy across the uk and to provide recommendations for the next spending review. this week, borisjohnson condemned as inadequate a number of meal

parcels after images of them were shared on social media. but the government insists it is committed to making sure no child goes hungry, as a result of the pandemic. it is schools' choices how they deliver this support. the schools have the contracts with their caterers. we've given them the choice between doing a parcel, which has to produce the food for the five days for the child. or a local voucher, or a national voucher. on top of that, we've done masses and masses more. we've put in this covid winter support fund, which is another 170 million support for children, young people and their families all through christmas with parcels and food packages. downing street says the prime minister will respond to the letter soon. jon donnison, bbc news.

we will talk later about that when i am joined byjack munro, the food writer. ——jack am joined byjack munro, the food writer. —— jack monroe. the impact of the second lockdown in november on the economy is becoming clearer, with gdp pushed back into decline after six months of consecutive growth. the economy shrank by 2.6 percent in november — when non—essential shops were forced to close. it means that the british economy is 8.5 percent below pre—pandemic levels. the chancellor, rishi sunak, says the figures show "things will get harder before they get better" and highlight the "scale of the challenge" faced. but he says there are reasons to be hopeful for the coming months,

such as the vaccine rollout. we may get a clear indication for the quarter in february. but we already knew that with retail closed, hospitality close, many businesses struggling to operate in a normalfashion, the economy shrank by 2.6%. but not as bad as the first lockdown, that one may back —— way backin lockdown, that one may back —— way back in march, businesses were caught unawares so they were not sure how to operate within restrictions. this time, firms had more of an idea about what they could and could not do. manufacturing and construction, they were able to operate pretty normally, whereas the service sector which accounts for three quarters of our entire economy struggled. places like this were shocked, nonessential retailers forced to close, but also hospitality which bore much of the

brunt of those lockdown restrictions. i think it is fair to say things will get worse before they get better, various different forecasts have told us that, indeed the british retail consortium just this week saying 2020 as a whole was the worst year on record for retail. that is why we have seen the economy contract. the more this goes on, businesses are getting a bit more adaptable, flexible, more able to respond to these restrictions so it doesn't mean an entire shuts down for them. doesn't mean an entire shuts down forthem. nonetheless, ithink doesn't mean an entire shuts down for them. nonetheless, i think the focus now for what happens next a pretty bleak weather talking about the employment picture or the economic picture, things we heard from the chancellor this morning are likely to turn a little worse before things start to improve. then thomson _ things start to improve. then thomson talking _ things start to improve. then thomson talking about - things start to improve. then thomson talking about the i things start to improve. then thomson talking about the gdp figures. from the hay, it appears

the dutch government has offered to collectively resign. the dutch prime minister's government will collectively resign and this follows the publication of a report which blamed the government for mismanagement of childcare substances over a long period —— subsidies. this was a report of the subsidies. this was a report of the subsidies given to 10,000 families who have been forced to repay tens of thousands of subsidies after being wrongfully accused of fraud. a huge story and the situation of forcing these families to repay that money, said the report, lead to unemployment, bankruptcy and divorce. it described mismanagement over the course of a decade and said that what had happened to all those families was unprecedented injustice. as a result of that

report, you might not know much about that for example, it means the dutch government says it will collectively resign, which is quite extraordinary in itself, how often do we hear about an entire government resign? pressure had been mounting over the course of the week, we are hearing from our correspondent there. mark rutte's government will collectively resign over the damning report that forced a dreadful situation onto many, many thousands of families, just coming through in the last few moments. i expect we will hear more about that but that is as much as we know at this stage, extraordinary story from the hague. it is 20 to one. we have been talking about food poverty,

particularly in light of everything marcus rashford has been doing and we have reflected today on the letter that has been signed by him by a number of high—profile chefs like tom kerridge and people like that urging the government to do more around the whole issue of free school meals and specifically the letter calls for a strategy to help and child food poverty before the summer holidays, one of these sentences from the letter sent to number ten. sentences from the letter sent to numberten. let's sentences from the letter sent to number ten. let's discuss the efforts to end child food poverty with jack monroe, a campaigner around food poverty —related issues. what do you make of the fact people are clubbing together now to write to the prime minister to urge more to the prime minister to urge more to be done? what do you think should be done? i to be done? what do you think should be done? ~' . .,

be done? i think, i welcome the letter, contents _ be done? i think, i welcome the letter, contents of _ be done? i think, i welcome the letter, contents of the - be done? i think, i welcome the letter, contents of the letter - letter, contents of the letter broadly, but i think what needs to be done is a strategy now, we need to be feeding children right now. while it is great to be looking long—term, and the only way food poverty is going to be resolved in the long term is to have an underpinning strategy that means children are not put into poverty in the first place, we also need to immediately be putting resources in and things in place like the food vouchers that were being given out in the half term holidays to ensure children are not going hungry today, tonight, next week, end of february, half term. the long term strategy is absolutely welcome but we need to face the fact that this is not a rhetorical thing, face the fact that this is not a rhetoricalthing, not face the fact that this is not a rhetorical thing, not a sort of dinner party discussion, we need to be doing this now and feeding children now.— be doing this now and feeding children now. ., . . ,, . ., children now. you have talked a lot about the voucher _ children now. you have talked a lot about the voucher scheme - children now. you have talked a lot about the voucher scheme you - about the voucher scheme you mentioned in the past, that had a lot of publicity over the recent months. what more would you like to

see done on top of that voucher scheme? what is more practical measures would you like to see put in place? measures would you like to see put in lace? ., , ., , ., , in place? poverty does not exist in a vacuum. — in place? poverty does not exist in a vacuum. it _ in place? poverty does not exist in a vacuum. it is _ in place? poverty does not exist in a vacuum, it is not _ in place? poverty does not exist in a vacuum, it is not an _ in place? poverty does not exist in a vacuum, it is not an isolated - a vacuum, it is not an isolated symptom, it is a result of many, many different causes, including changes to welfare benefits including sort of people finding themselves in difficult circumstances. it is not something you can resolve with a sort of, we willjust you can resolve with a sort of, we will just change this you can resolve with a sort of, we willjust change this one thing and it will all go away. we need a root and branch assessment of why people end up here in the first place. austerity measures have taken away from welfare provision and if the government are not honest about its own contributions to the situation

people find themselves in now, then come the end of coronavirus, and the economy is already taking a hit, people losing theirjobs and homes, surviving on very little all over the country, we are going to see it happen again. we need to put things in place to make sure that people are not ending up in poverty in the first place. one of those things that don't work and worked really well is the free school meals vouchers extended into the half term holidays. i have heard from hundreds of people overnight that their counsel have said there is no money left, you cannot have any. there was a system in place that was working, the vouchers for the school holidays. 50 the vouchers for the school holidays-— the vouchers for the school holida s. . holidays. so people have contacted ou to sa holidays. so people have contacted you to say that _ holidays. so people have contacted you to say that they _ holidays. so people have contacted you to say that they have _ holidays. so people have contacted you to say that they have been - you to say that they have been turned down or told... you to say that they have been turned down or told. . .- you to say that they have been turned down or told. .. yes. some councils have _

turned down or told. .. yes. some councils have been _ turned down or told. .. yes. some councils have been great - turned down or told. .. yes. some councils have been great and - turned down or told. .. yes. some councils have been great and put| councils have been great and put things in place and bore vouchers from the company that distributes them to distribute to their own constituents over the holidays. but people have been getting in touch saying, i have been told there is no money left. the saying, i have been told there is no money left-— saying, i have been told there is no mone left. , money left. the government says in relation to the _ money left. the government says in relation to the letter _ money left. the government says in relation to the letter sent _ money left. the government says in relation to the letter sent school - relation to the letter sent school food is essential in supporting the health and burning of disadvantaged pupils, the prime minister have been clear that no child will go hungry as a result of the pandemic, that is the insurance from number ten. but children the insurance from number ten. elif children are going hungry and have been going hungry and will continue to go hungry. maybe it is a result of austerity cuts, changes and cuts to benefits, taking away support structures that were in place to help children and families that are

no longer there. children are going hungry and ifeel no longer there. children are going hungry and i feel it is entirely disingenuous for the prime minister to make a blanket statement saying no child will ever go hungry when thousands and thousands of children went to bed hungry last night. jack monroe, went to bed hungry last night. jack monroe. the _ went to bed hungry last night. jack monroe, the food writer, thank you very much. myths about vaccines could lead to people of south asian heritage turning down their invitation to have a covid—19jab. a leading an nhs anti—disinformation campaigner says there's growing evidence that many in these communities are being put off by false information. speaking on bbc asian network radio today, the vaccines minister nadhim zahawi said the government was working hard to counter myths and misconceptions. we've got to make sure that we work together to get that message out that vaccines are safe, vaccines will protect you personally but also protect your family

and your community and i am working across government, both in terms of dealing with disinformation — we have a unit in the cabinet office that works with all the social media platforms to alert them to any disinformation and inaccuracy that has been put on social media — but also to get the information out in 13 languages from hindi to urdu to polish to arabic, farsi, of course kurdish and turkish — lots of languages. earlier i spoke to dr carter singh mbe. he is a gp in nottinghamshire who has been looking into the impact of covid on bame communities. i asked him if misinformation was affecting vacccine take up. there is growing evidence that there have been some concerns and anxieties amongst members from not only the black, asian asian minority communities but also members of the southeast asian

communities about the vaccine. some of these may stem from religious or cultural beliefs which are commonly held by these communities but we cannot ignore the fact that there are many myths and lots of misinformation that has been actively propagated on social media which might be discouraging and confusing some members of the community against wanting to be vaccinated. misinformation i believe, suggestions for example that the vaccines contain alcohol? exactly, vaccines, myths including that the vaccines contain alcohol, meat products, microchips to do with the 5g network and contain foetal cells. i have seen on the internet

and social media, which are untrue. both pragmatic and culturally competent. they need challenging. if people from southeast asian communities do not use english as their first language, these messages need to be communicated in languages they understand and via media platforms they commonly access. we also need to make sure we are buying an engagement from faith and religious leaders in the community so we can work collaboratively to dispel and debunk these myths. and win the trust of people belonging to these minority communities. you have half answered what i was going to say because i was going to say for example it would seem obvious to try to get the message out there in languages other than english as a sensible first step. gps like yourself, i suppose, what do you try to do? get as much information out there as you can using your websites and so on?

do you feel you are fighting a lone battle in this? no, i think we are working collaboratively with nhs england, the royal college of general practitioners. it is a collaborative approach. we do what we can through our websites, word—of—mouth and during the pandemic i created a lot of different videos to do with navigating this confusing time for ethnic minority communities, there was a great uptake for that. but the tragedy here is the bame communities and people from southeast asian communities were the most hard—hit and disproportionately affected by the pandemic. it is important for people to protect their families, communities and most importantly the nhs with vaccinations. dr carter singh, gp.

the brazilian variant of coronavirus found in the uk, there are two variants, remember, and we have been talking about the fact one of them has been found.— has been found. professor wendy barcla , has been found. professor wendy barclay. clarity — has been found. professor wendy barclay, clarity from _ has been found. professor wendy barclay, clarity from her, - has been found. professor wendy barclay, clarity from her, one - has been found. professor wendy barclay, clarity from her, one of. barclay, clarity from her, one of the chief scientists looking into all of this. she said this new variant, the one of concern, picked up variant, the one of concern, picked up in travellers going to japan, is not the one detected in the uk. some have been but not the one that causes concern, so some clarity. the government has launched an independent review into children's social care — which it claims 'will not shy away from exposing problems where they exist.�* the review will look at the whole process from referral through to being allocated a care provider. josh macalister is chair of the review and says that 'radical change' is needed in the children's social care system.

we have in england every year 750,000 children who end up needing a social worker. this is a huge part of the public sector that often goes unseen but for those children and theirfamilies, it is a hugely important group of professionals that are there to help them, often at their moment of greatest crisis. families where they may have issues with violent relationships between parents, issues around substance misuse. for some of those children, some of those 750,000 children, they end up in care, around 80,000 of them. the outcomes for that group of children is often far too poor. we need to do better as a country for that group of children. this is such an enormous scope, such a huge amount of problems to grapple with. who are you going to be hearing from, how do you envisage this panning out? it is so substantial, isn't it,

what you have to achieve? it is. myjob is to listen really deeply to particularly the children, young people, care—experienced adults, parents, grandparents, people who have had social workers in their life who have tried to help them. i am sure i will hear inspirational, hopeful stories of change but i think i will also hear really painful stories of where the system has let people down. i think by listening to those people we will be able to get some fairly clear and blunt messages that we need to put forward into this new system when the report is published. another big part of this is making sure that the new system we end up recommending does not just try to find a compromise between lots of different viewpoints. lots of people work in this profession and system. we need to come up with a bold, radical plan that really addresses the issues and does that

as soon as possible. because there are some figures around this. ifound extraordinary, so much worse than i would have thought, for example 25% of all people who are homeless are people who have lived in care. 24% of the prison population, similar way. population, similarly. i suppose that is why i am slightly staggered at the scope of what you have to achieve, because those figures tell a really desperate story. something is going wrong! absolutely. we have these hugely pernicious cycles that too many people are caught in, whether children or adults, where they themselves as a child grew up without safety, stability and love that lots of us can take for granted. go off into adulthood without the psychological and physical home to go back to, the safety net, it has a huge

importance in employment prospects or criminal justice system involvement. some have children themselves and get stuck in the same cycle with another social worker knocking on the door. i think lots of the people that work in children's social care see this themselves and are desperate for big, radical change to take place. and that is what the review offers us the chance to do, it is the first time really in 30 years we have had a review of this scope. this breadth. and the government will have to listen to recommendation doesn't respond to those. what assurances have you been given,

what confidence that what you recommend your advice will be acted on? it is to the credit of the government they have appointed this review to be independent, given broad terms of reference, not to try to constrain it unnecessarily. this review has not been prompted by a crisis or a particular case of abuse were a child has died, and that has often been the prism from which we have looked at changes in children's social care before. that is really positive. the other aspect of this is, i am really encouraged today that the response to my appointment has been welcomed across the political spectrum and by a number of sector bodies. i think that means that myjob now is with that fair wind over the next year as we do this review, to make sure i am engaging proactively with ministers and civil servants, as well as everyone out there who runs the system and uses the system, to make sure we come up with a plan that can be implemented but is radical. now it's time for a look at the weather with alina. a fairly quiet end to but still

cold, temperatures fell... coldest night so far franklin, snow on the ground. more on the forecast tonight and tomorrow morning. for the rest of the day largely dry, lots of cloud, best of the sunshine in northern scotland, north—east england. —— western scotland. temperatures will struggle to get much above freezing. light wind for most but wind strengthening later, head of the band of rain pushing eastwards through this evening and overnight bringing some milder air but ahead of it colder air, further snow for parts of scotland, northern england, later in the night perhaps into east anglia, perhaps south england, and where we have the rain falling into the saturated ground, flood warnings in place. risk of ice, temperatures falling below freezing. risk of ice as the night

wears on, snow likely to bring disruption tomorrow morning. the snow overnight topping up some already significant totals across parts of scotland and northern england. we could perhaps see seven centimetres of snow across parts of east anglia tomorrow morning. all tied in with the system sliding its way south and eastwards through saturday, bringing heavy rain but snow for a time in the morning across parts of scotland, northern england, east anglia, then sunshine and showers piling into scotland and northern england. not as cool tomorrow, 10—11, milderthan northern england. not as cool tomorrow, 10—11, milder than it has been across parts of scotland and northern england. sunday is a tale of two halves, high pressure building and across the southern part of the uk but the low pressure still close to the northern half of the uk, sunday much see the further showers across scotland, northern ireland, may be the far north of

england. furthersouth, dry with sunshine, not quite as cold, temperatures 559 celsius. next week, the theme really is not as cold as the theme really is not as cold as the recently. —— 5—9 celsius.

tens of thousands of small business owners celebrate as the supreme court rules insurers must pay them for covid lockdown losses. insurers — who had said the cover was never intended for such unprecedented restrictions — now say all valid claims will be settled as soon as possible. a really good day for thousands and thousands of insurants who were left with very little clarity until now. we'll have reaction to the ruling from business owners. also this lunchtime: the uk economy shrank by 2.6% in november when england was in lockdown for a second time. a ban on flights from south america has come into force, as ministers try to prevent a new variant of coronavirus which was first seen in brazil coming here.

joe root has scored his first test century in over a year as england