this is bbc news. the headlines: ten million people have now been given the first dose of a covid—19 vaccine — the health secretary says it's a hugely significant milestone. dramatic results suggest the astrazenica vaccine does reduce the spread of coronavirus. that is really good news, it's very positive, because we know the vaccine�*s the way out of this and this information from oxford shows that the oxford jab works. coming up at 5pm, the prime minister and chief medical officer chris whitty will be giving a briefing at downing street — stay with us as we bring that to you live.

rising tensions over post—brexit checks at northern ireland's ports — the prime minister calls for urgent action from the eu. remembering captain sir tom moore — a minute's silence is observed in the house of commons, and the nation is urged to clap for him at 6pm tonight. british stars lead the pack as this year's golden globes nominations are announced — daisy edgar—jones, olivia colman and jodie comer are all up for awards. hello, good afternoon. a huge milestone has been reached in the uk's coronavirus vaccine programme this afternoon, which health secretary matt hancock has called hugely significant. ten million people have now been

given their first dose of either the pfizer or oxford astrazeneca vaccine. meanwhile, new research suggests the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine may reduce the spread of coronavirus by reducing transmission. a warning this report from our health correspondent anna collinson contains some flashing images. it's been the great unknown — would vaccines stop coronavirus from spreading? now a study suggests the oxford—astrazeneca jab could have a substantial effect on transmission. people given two jabs, the numbers halved, meaning they could protect others, reducing infections and come in time, restrictions. it reduces the chances of someone who's exposed to getting the infection, and if they don't get the infection, they can't pass it on, so it decreases the risk of transmission in the population. there is one word of caution in that one of the things this

virus is doing as it produces new variants is actually to try and avoid exactly that happening. as well as potentially showing an effect on transmission, the study found the vaccine could also be 76% effective after a single dose for three months. we know that vaccines are the way out of this, and this new information from oxford shows that the oxford jab works. and given all the questions that have been raised and what's going on internationally, i think it's very important that we show the world that the oxford jab works and works well. a separate study has provided some more good news, this time about our immunity to the virus. data claims most people still have antibodies in their blood for at least six months after they're naturally infected. while scientists can't yet be sure, this could mean people are protected from covid for up to half a year. but amongst the hope, there are still concerns

about the recent emergence of variants which may be more resistant to some vaccines. enhanced testing is taking place in some parts of england. cases of the south african variant which have no link to foreign travel have been detected in these areas, prompting concerns it's spreading in the community. what we are looking to do is to surge testing into those geographies in order to increase... it's to do, even greater reach, even faster turnaround to identify how much community spread there is of these potentially dangerous new variants and to break those trains of transmission as fast as we possibly can. residents in the surge testing areas are being strongly encouraged to stay at home as much as possible and to get tested, regardless if they have symptoms.

it is important to reassure people that, you know, the variant doesn't cause any more severe disease, you know, so, you know, we've been in a third national lockdown since the beginning ofjanuary, and that's the advice that we should continue to follow. to keep ahead of the variants, the race is on to vaccinate as quickly as possible. the head of astrazeneca say they are hoping to have their nextjab ready by the autumn. anna collinson, bbc news. we just wejust had we just had today's daily coronavirus figures. they have just been published by the government. i can tell you just over 19,000, 19,202 people have tested positive for the virus in the latest 24—hour period. there were also a further 1322 deaths reported in the last 2a hours. so those are the figures. an increase in the numbers of cases but thatis increase in the numbers of cases but that is often the case on a wednesday and in terms of the number of deaths, a slight reduction by

about 120 on the previous day. the home secretary has said the government is still working on the "programming" of its new hotel quarantine policy and will be announcing a start date in "due course". speaking at a vaccine centre this morning, priti patel said the government is "working hard" with operational partners. we have to work with operational partners. in fact, i've said this many times — whether it's hoteliers, whether it's tying into our existing systems around passengers coming in, passengers travelling and actually making those connections. there are logistical and operational considerations and factors that we will have to take on board. our teams across government, our officials and ministers are working on that right now. our political correspondent leila nathoo is in westminster. the home secretary sounding quite bullish about hotel quarantine controls but the prime minister came under some pressure today of border controls at prime minister's

questions, didn't he might get a yes, two things on this. the policy seems to be hanging in limbo somewhat. it has been announced but taking some time to work through the practicalities of bringing it in. the second thing is it will only apply to a specific list of countries at the moment. 30 odd countries at the moment. 30 odd countries that are currently on the so—called red list of countries to watch out for, where potential coronavirus variants are spreading. that is where travel from those countries has been banned and any british citizens then coming into the uk will have to go into this mandatory hotel quarantine. but at prime minister's questions today, keir starmer questioning boris johnson on why this wasn't a blanket policy. his argument was, why are schools closed but the board is open and referring back to advice given to borisjohnson by government scientists to try and contain the spread of new variantsaying closing the borders would be one tool to tackle that. borisjohnson was quite clear. he said he didn't think it

was practical to close down the uk entirely. he was talking about the need for food and medicine to come in. i don't think that's quite what labour are in. i don't think that's quite what labourare arguing in. i don't think that's quite what labour are arguing for. they are talking about getting down the numbers of people coming in drastically faster but i think for now, the government seems committed to keeping the hotel quarantine policy limited to a certain group of high—risk countries. that doesn't mean a list of countries won't get reviewed periodically and quite regularly but at the moment it won't be a blanket ban and certainly when the policy was announced, the idea was that in itself was going to act as a major deterrent, alongside other requirements like having to give a reason now for travelling, to really bring down international travel numbers and the numbers of people coming into the uk. leila five o'clock _ people coming into the uk. leila five o'clock there _ people coming into the uk. leila five o'clock there be _ people coming into the uk. leila five o'clock there be another downing street press briefing led by the prime minister and he is bound to want to talk about their significant new number of vaccinations, 10 million so far?

absolutely, a huge success to have vaccinated that many people with their first doses. clearly something their first doses. clearly something the government is very proud of. but, of course, it raises questions with the speed of the vaccine roll—out gathering pace in this positive news about the effects of the vaccine on transmission, it does raise questions now about the political decisions that come down the track. what will the government do with these new positive bits of news? how will they act upon this information question at the message we are hearing so far from ministers is still one from caution. you had matt hancock this morning still pointing to high numbers of people in hospital. still the fact cases were still at a high level, although they are coming down, they are coming down from a very high level. and of course, related to the broader question, the question of the risk of new variants and questions around whether the vaccine will work as effectively or at all on any potential new variants. still a grey area there but plenty of

people who are calling for there now to be much more of a definite programme to set out the release of restrictions in england. there has been pressure from tory mps already, saying restrictions really need to be unlocked as soon as we are getting to the end of the most vulnerable cohorts being vaccinated. because remember, the 10 million people is notjust a number, it's because of the government does not priority list, the most vulnerable people, the people most at risk of dying and other serious disease who are getting vaccinated first. so thatis are getting vaccinated first. so that is a big issue there and there are certain tory mps calling for restrictions to be relaxed. boris johnson will be setting out a road map in the coming weeks, he says, to provide some sort of outlook for how the economy and schools will reopen. there is pressure on him already from the welsh government and scottish government, announcing schools are planning to reopen there within this month. so the positive

news of the vaccination does come with some more pressing political issues for boris johnson. leila many thanks. issues for boris johnson. leila many thanrs- we — issues for boris johnson. leila many thanks. we will — issues for boris johnson. leila many thanks. we will hear _ issues for boris johnson. leila many thanks. we will hear more - issues for boris johnson. leila many thanks. we will hear more in - issues for boris johnson. leila many thanks. we will hear more in the - thanks. we will hear more in the run—up to the downing street press conference at five o'clock that for the time being, thank you. joining me now... professor sir rory collins joins me now, he is the uk biobank principal investigator and british heart foundation professor of medicine and epidemiology at the university of oxford. good afternoon to you professor collins. ,., ., good afternoon to you professor collins. ., good afternoon to you professor collins-_ the - good afternoon to you professor collins._ the uk | collins. good afternoon. the uk biobank is _ collins. good afternoon. the uk biobank is a _ collins. good afternoon. the uk biobank is a biomedical- collins. good afternoon. the uk i biobank is a biomedical database, collins. good afternoon. the uk - biobank is a biomedical database, a major biomedical database and you have been looking at how long antibodies persist in people who have been affected with covid—19. just talk us through your findings so far. . . so far. that is right in the uk biobank involves _ so far. that is right in the uk biobank involves half - so far. that is right in the uk biobank involves half a - so far. that is right in the uk. biobank involves half a million so far. that is right in the uk - biobank involves half a million men and women, when we recruited them in

2009-10. we and women, when we recruited them in 2009—10. we asked if they would be willing to take a small blood sample every month for six months. because we wanted to extend the range down to younger people, whether their children or grandchildren would help, more than 100,000 people volunteered and we selected 20,000 who represented a good mix across the country, including social economic status and ethnicity. what this showed was that people who had been affected, around 8%, their antibody levels remained high for a remarkable length of time. so 99% at three months and 88% at six months had antibody levels above are kind of arbitrary threshold, which shows they have a good immune response. probably a bit conservative in terms of the proportion that still have an

immune reaction. so what uk biobank is showing, which reinforces data from studies from health workers who have been infected showing much lower rates of reinfection, and the results published today from the oxford trial of vaccination, is that the response to infection and vaccination, in terms of the antibody response, is really quite long, which is very encouraging. so these things, two things together, that if you get the oxford astrazeneca vaccine, you are less likely to be infectious. plus the fact, you're finding that six months after being infected by covid—19, you have strong resistance to it. these are both causes for optimism? yes, and infact these are both causes for optimism? yes, and in fact also in the oxford vaccine trial they showed not only where people not infectious but also that they had antibody levels and

protection against being infected after the first dose for some months, which of course was the rationale for the government delaying the second dose, because there was protection after the first one. i think the observation in uk biobank and in the health worker studies, that antibody levels and they are much lower risk of reinfection continues for as long as six months opens the opportunity to look at delaying second doses even longer. look at delaying second doses even [on . er. . look at delaying second doses even loner. ., , , ., longer. oh, that is interesting, for how long? — longer. oh, that is interesting, for how long? well, _ longer. oh, that is interesting, for how long? well, i _ longer. oh, that is interesting, for how long? well, ithink— longer. oh, that is interesting, for how long? well, i think in - longer. oh, that is interesting, for how long? well, i think in the - longer. oh, that is interesting, for. how long? well, i think in the same wa that how long? well, i think in the same way that we — how long? well, i think in the same way that we needed _ how long? well, i think in the same way that we needed to _ how long? well, i think in the same way that we needed to do _ how long? well, i think in the same l way that we needed to do randomised controlled trials to find out whether vaccines were better than not using a vaccine, as in the trials of the moderna and the pfizer vaccine and also the new oxford

vaccine, we do need to do randomised controlled trials to see how long we can delay the second dose. but the fact that you are void reinfection after infection for up to six months and you have antibody response, which after an infection goes up to six months, and the evidence from the oxford vaccine trials does suggest it would be very important to evaluate the possibility of longer delays and the benefit to that would be that instead of giving second doses to people who have had a first dose 12 weeks later, we would be able to use the doses we have to vaccinate many more people more rapidly with the first dose. so protect many more people initially and then, provided the evidence supported it in a randomised controlled trial, give the second doses later. ok, that is very good to talk to you. thank you so much. professor

collins from the university of oxford, thank you. a group of conservative mps are calling for england's schools to reopen earlier than the suggested earliest date of 8th of march. the covid recovery group — whose members have challenged the government's lockdown restrictions — want england's schools to reopen on the 22nd of february, as layed out in scotland by nicola sturgeon yesterday. i'm joined now by mark harper, conservative mp for forest of dean and the chair of the covid recovery group. good afternoon, mr harper. run through why you want schools to open after the february half term. what we have said is with the very positive news, which you have set out clearly in your news report, about the vaccine roll—out going quickly and the efficacy of those vaccines, we think the government should look urgently at whether it could bring back at least some

pupils straight after the february half term. so initially the government had said it wanted to do this review after the 15th of february target date for getting the first four priority groups vaccinated. publish a road map and then get schools back from march the 8th. scotland is looking to bring schools back more quickly than that though is that we think we would need to see a good reason for it not to happen more quickly in england as well. 50 to happen more quickly in england as well. ., .. ., ., to happen more quickly in england as well. ., ., ., well. so the vaccination programme is proceeding _ well. so the vaccination programme is proceeding well _ well. so the vaccination programme is proceeding well but _ well. so the vaccination programme is proceeding well but there - well. so the vaccination programme is proceeding well but there is - well. so the vaccination programme is proceeding well but there is no i is proceeding well but there is no suggestion that the government is going to meet its target of vaccinating all the over 70s before mid february, which is partly why the decision is going to be taken a little bit later. well, if we proceed at the pace we are going, we may well hit it a little quicker than that. i think the schools, it's becoming clearer literally every day, as we see further study is published, that the harm done to children for keeping

them out of the classroom, both in terms of their mental health, their education and their future prospects, is really quite significant indeed. the faster we can get them back to school, i think the better. they are at practically no risk from covid and jenny harries in front of the education select committee made it clear it is the community transmission in the community transmission in the community which causes covid in schools, not the other way around. so we think of it is possible to get schools back more quickly than the 8th of march, the government should try to do so, even if itjust starts with primary schools. every week we get children back in the school is a week of that education opportunity that's being given back to them. it is accepted children are not much at risk of covid but the teachers are. where do you stand on getting teachers vaccinated?— where do you stand on getting teachers vaccinated? actually, what ou have teachers vaccinated? actually, what you have just _ teachers vaccinated? actually, what you have just said _ teachers vaccinated? actually, what you have just said is _ teachers vaccinated? actually, what you have just said is not _ teachers vaccinated? actually, what you have just said is not shown - teachers vaccinated? actually, what you have just said is not shown by i you havejust said is not shown by the evidence. the ons has said children are at —— teachers are at

no higher risk than other groups of contracting covid at all. so i don't think that's an issue. obviously, we have introduced testing in schools. it's very important we test people in schools to make sure if there is anyone with asymptomatic covid, that thatis anyone with asymptomatic covid, that that is dealt with and obviously we have run through how to isolate children. but teachers are not at increased risk and that is not widely schools were closed. teachers are more at — widely schools were closed. teachers are more at risk— widely schools were closed. teachers are more at risk from _ widely schools were closed. teachers are more at risk from older _ widely schools were closed. teachers are more at risk from older children | are more at risk from older children but are you suggesting it is the younger ones who should be brought back first? the younger ones who should be brought back first? . ,, back first? the evidence the ons studies teachers _ back first? the evidence the ons studies teachers are _ back first? the evidence the ons studies teachers are not - back first? the evidence the ons studies teachers are not at - studies teachers are not at increased risk of catching covid than other similar professions. but i do think it is sensible, you're absolutely right, there is evidence you get increased covid transmission from older students, so that i think there is a argument for starting with getting primary school children back and that is what they are planning on doing in scotland, getting primary school children back

first and only bringing that those secondary schoolchildren who have exams. i think that is a good model to look at and it is something i hope ministers in england will look at with some sense of urgency. qm. at with some sense of urgency. 0k, thank ou at with some sense of urgency. 0k, thank you very _ at with some sense of urgency. 0k, thank you very much indeed. mark harper mp. thank you. and the prime minister will be leading the downing street briefing today along with the chief medical officer chris whitty — we'll have full coverage on bbc one and the news channel from 11:30. "we feel like foreigners in our own country" — the angry claim from dup mp ian paisley, as he told the prime minister of the frustration felt by his constituents over the northern ireland protocol. britain has written to the eu asking for exemptions to checks on some goods going from great britain to northern ireland to continue until 2023. inspections are due to resume this year on some items as a temporary agreement — which was part of the brexit deal — gradually expires. checks on all goods were suspended yesterday after threats

were made to staff. our ireland correspondent chris page reports. at the moment, lorries are free flowing off ferries arriving in northern ireland. the physical checks of some food consignments are suspended for a second day. some hauliers are still driving to the inspection points, but they are being moved off. the controls had been in place for a month as a consequence of the northern ireland protocol. it is a deal to prevent checks on the land border with the irish republic, essentially keeping northern ireland in the eu's single market for goods. but unionists see the arrangement as a trade frontier with the rest of the uk which should be scrapped. prime minister, you say your commitment to northern ireland is unshakeable. i speak for all of my constituents today when i tell you the protocol has betrayed us and made us feel like foreigners in our own country. tea and sympathy will

not cut the mustard. the political strain has increased since friday, when the eu briefly tried to trigger an emergency clause which could have seen checks on covid vaccines crossing the land border. the irish foreign minister suggested there should be some changes to the protocol. i recognise there are serious issues that need to be resolved. we need to work on that with the commission today and with leaders in northern ireland. but this is not going to be solved by cutting off relationships or trying to throw away the entire protocol, without any credible proposal as to what you replace it with. images like this have highlighted tensions in some communities in northern ireland. the trade union that represents the port staff says politicians need to understand sensitivities. what we need to see happening is a scaling—back by all the political parties, pulling back, the european union and westminster, from this clash they have going on,

basically, in northern ireland, and we want to see a return to a level of normality. brexit issues are particularly contentious and complex here. businesses, workers and community leaders want quick actions and permanent solutions. chris page, bbc news, belfast. we're all being urged to clap for captain sir tom moore — and all nhs workers — at 6pm tonight. as the prime minister says he will lead the nation in a tribute to the veteran campaigner who died yesterday. his family have tweeted that they're touched by the gesture to clap for tom and will be taking part with huge love in their hearts for their father, grandfather and father—in—law. there was a minute's silence in the house of commons for captain tom — and there are growing calls for a national memorial to him. the 100—year—old world war 2 veteran raised more than £32 million for the health service during the first lockdown — and was credited with lifting the nation's spirits. john maguire reports.

his family say the last year of his life was remarkable. an apt description, too, for a man who meant so much to so many people. the government is now considering how best to honour his many achievements. i think we should find a way to make sure that we mark the memory of captain tom and thank him for the contribution that he made for the nhs. i invite members to nowjoin me for a minute's silence... and before this afternoon's prime minister's questions, mps in the house of commons paid their respects. the british world war ii veteran who raised millions forfront—line health care workers treating... captain sir tom moore was adored, notjust by us, but also, it seems, by the world. ..because he was so inspiring, so optimistic and i think, you know, it wasn't just his walking, but also that optimism that was absolutely contagious.

while the rest of us adapted to living a life locked down, the 99—year—old veteran of the second world war set off on a journey. it would take him to the top of the charts, into the record books, and around the globe, all without leaving his back garden. when you walk through a storm, hold your head up high. we talked about the twinkle in his eye. that was so evident. he was sharp, he was funny, he was humble. he was everything you'd hoped he was going to be. and to be a little part of this extraordinary story makes me so proud. it is one of the proudest achievements, i think, of my life. yeah. marvellous, isn't it? he was a huge cricket fan. the sport has embraced him and england's test captain has paid this tribute.

he loved his cricket. as i have mentioned, i reached out to talk to him and he spoke very fondly of throughout his whole life going and watching games of cricket, whether it be yorkshire or watching as well on the tv, more recently international stuff, so... from the whole cricket community, he will be sadly missed. as he inspired an army to follow in his footsteps, he became an honorary colonel of the army foundation college for young soldiers. and in a specially arranged investiture... ..he received a private audience at windsor castle with her majesty the queen, as she awarded him a knighthood. well, this is the garden in captain tom's home village in bedfordshire, where he walked his famous 100 laps. he has, of course, now taken his final step, but his name will live on through his charitable foundation

that will help people for generations to come. he will always be remembered for his optimism, his wisdom and his messages of hope. the man who walked 100 laps of his garden to help others and who implored us all to never walk alone. tomorrow you will maybe find everything will be much, much better than today. tomorrow will be a good day. john maguire, bbc news, bedfordshire. # you'll never walk alone #. and there is a special programme celebrating the life of captain sir tom moore — captain tom: we salute you — tonight at 7:30 on bbc one and you'll also be able to see it later on the bbc iplayer. the nominees for the golden globes 2021 have been announced this afternoon. there have been nominations for british talent across the board in both film and television, with six nominations for netflix

royal drama the crown — including nominations for olivia colman and helena bonham carter. actress daisy edgar—jones was nominated for her role in the hit bbc drama normal people, and steve mcqueen's film anthology small axe also received two nominations — withjohn boyega nominated for his role in red, white and blue. looking at films, the netflix drama mank has received the most nominations including best director and best drama in the motion picture catagory. there were also nominations for actors gary oldman and sacha baron cohen, as well as vanessa kirby and daniel kaluuya. now it's time for a look at the weather with susan powell. hello. whilst it looks very pretty, snow likely to become an increasing headache for the uk in the days ahead. in the short term, scotland seeing the most significant falls

but at the weekend, they threat of snow in the south as we all move into colder air. overnight, snow in the south as we all move into colderair. overnight, more snow for scotland, primarily the hills. a wintry mixture in the central belt, ice ranvir singh. rain mostly for the north midlands and northern ireland, perhaps in snow across the pennines. mild enough with clearer skies across southern england. rain moving into southern england. rain moving into southern england through thursday but temperatures here in double figures. in the north, the snow is still accumulating especially because scottish hills and mountains but increasingly to lower levels, so much so that for friday and saturday, the met office is concerned enough to have issued an amber warning that the risk of disruption across central and northern scotland for blizzards and drifting snow. that may well be extended further south through the weekend.

this is bbc news. the headlines at az30pm... ten million people in the uk have now had the first dose of a covid—19 vaccine. the health secretary says it's a "hugely significant" milestone. dramatic results suggest the astrazenica vaccine does reduce the spread of coronavirus. that is really good news, it's very positive, because we know the vaccine's the way out of this and this information from oxford

officer, chris whitty, will be giving a briefing