this is bbc news. the headlines... the hospitality sector welcomes the decision not to impose further covid restrictions in england before the new year, describing it as a lifeline, but ministers say further restrictions hinges on the number of hospitalisations. at the moment, we don't think that the evidence supports any more interventions beyond what we've done. but obviously we've got to keep it under very close review, because if it is the case that we start to see a big increase in hospitalisations then we would need to act further — and that's why we have to keep it under close review. the french government call their new covid measures "proportionate", as rules for remote working and public gatherings come into force next week. more young children are being forced to work on the streets, as afghanistan's humanitarian crisis deepens. we'll bring you a special report from kabul.

it's all over — australia thrash england to win the ashes, after a dismal collapse in melbourne. at half past, we will reflect on the lives lost throughout the last 12 months, including the actor christoper plummer and the prince philip duke of edinburgh. that's in we remember. the hospitality sector has welcomed the decision not to impose further coronavirus restrictions in england this week, describing it as a "lifeline" to pubs, bars and clubs relying on new year trade for their survival. the health secretary, sajid javid, announced yesterday

that the government would wait untiljanuary before re—evaluating the situation in england. but scotland, wales and northern ireland have all introduced further restrictions this week. people in wales and scotland are living with curbs on hospitality, including the closure of nightclubs. and all three nations have imposed restrictions on social mixing indoors. some of the scientists who advise the westminster government say ministers in england are acting "on the optimistic end of the spectrum" in terms of assessing the impact of the omicron spread. record numbers of coronavirus cases were recorded in england on christmas day. here's our political correspondent, iain watson. with christmas celebrations coming to a close, there had been fears of a much bleaker new year. with covid cases continuing at high levels, scotland, wales and northern ireland have all imposed new restrictions. but in england, the emphasis for the time being is on caution, not compulsion.

we think some 90% of cases now across england are this new omicron variant, so it shows you just how quickly it has spread. we have had news in recent days that it's milder. now, that in itself isn't good news enough — that's good news, but we know that it spreads very rapidly, so we have to set that news against that. but whilst we should all absolutely remain cautious, we don't think there's any need for any further measures until the new year but, of course, we will keep that under review. many in the hospitality industry welcomed the fact that there'll be no new restrictions in england before new year — the night time industries association said it was amazing news — but some businesses say that even the existing restrictions have hit them hard, and they're still looking to the government for more help. it feels that, if there isn't some intervention that happens within the next sort of week or so, there'll be a lot of hospitality business like mine that will go out of business comejanuary, february, because we do not have the reserves to be able to weather the storm. with no new restrictions before the new year,

parliament won't need to be recalled from its winter break. the ayes to the right, 369... 100 of borisjohnson�*s own mps rebelled earlier this month against the introduction of covid passes in england. if the prime minister had tried to push more measures through this week, he could have faced even fiercer resistance. as long as the nhs is not overwhelmed, then we stay, keep the uk open for business, keep our schools open — because the collateral damage to wider society and the economy of any lockdown measures are very much underestimated. but ministers are still concerned about the effect of self—isolation and sickness on nhs staffing levels — so they've given no guarantees that there won't be more restrictions injanuary. and labour is calling for the government to publish the data and advice it receives when making its decisions. england is now on a divergent path from scotland, wales and northern ireland... ..but it's not yet clear whether that will also lead to different results in trying to keep the virus under control.

iain watson, bbc news. i've been getting some more reaction from our political correspondent, ione wells. we've had some scientists today, like professor andrew hayward from sage, the government's scientific advisory group, warn that this is on the more optimistic end of the data being interpreted by ministers at the moment, but we did have a message from the environment secretary george eustice today and he said while obviously at the moment they do not think any further interventions in england are necessary, the data would need to be kept under review if hospital admissions start to rise again. while we know the infection rate has been rising, we always predicted it would, we have known that for weeks — the key question is how many of those infections will translate into hospitalisations and there is early encouragement from what we know in south africa that you have fewer hospitalisations and the number of days they stay in hospital if they go to hospital is also significantly lower than in previous variants so at the moment we don't think

the evidence supports any more interventions beyond what we've done but we have to keep it under very close review because if it is the case we start to see a big increase in hospitalisations then we would need to act further and that's why we have to keep it under close review. this leaves england very much out of step with the other nations of the uk. that's right. we've seen wales, scotland, northern ireland introduce restrictions when it comes to things like restrictions on hospitality, the numbers of people who can gather for both for private and public events, also reintroducing measures on social distancing, so as you say england very much diverging from the other nations of the uk and i think this ties into what is becoming a little bit of a political gamble for the prime minister at the moment. andrew watterson is a professor of public health at the university of stirling. he says the policy of the westminster government is a complete divergence of that in scotland, wales and northern ireland.

they really are out of step. if we are looking at evidence about transmission, which is clearly what scotland, wales and northern ireland did, they have come to very different conclusions about what the risks are and about what the figures are telling us. england has the highest seven—day positivity rate just before christmas across the whole of the uk and therefore one would have expected a more precautionary and preventative approach, but that's not what we have seen. so i think there is a real mismatch between what some of the data are telling us at the moment about transmission and what is happening in terms of policy and prevention. william lees—jones is the chief executive of jw lees brewery and pubs, based in the north west of england. is it isita is it a relief, this decision from the government? it’s

is it a relief, this decision from the government?— is it a relief, this decision from the government? it's a huge relief. this is one — the government? it's a huge relief. this is one of _ the government? it's a huge relief. this is one of the _ the government? it's a huge relief. this is one of the most _ the government? it's a huge relief. this is one of the most critical - this is one of the most critical weeks in our business for the whole year, so the fact were open and we took mitigation in place is a good thing. took mitigation in place is a good thin. ~ , ., took mitigation in place is a good thin._ . took mitigation in place is a good thin. ~ i. ., ., . thing. when you look at the advice to eo - le thing. when you look at the advice to peeple that _ thing. when you look at the advice to people that there _ thing. when you look at the advice to people that there are _ thing. when you look at the advice to people that there are no - to people that there are no restrictions on going to pubs or the hospitality venues but people are being advised to be cautious, you worry it would effectively have the same impact where people awake and hit making the decision for themselves and decide to stay in rather than going to a pub or a bar? i think people are going to make up their own minds. this time last year we lock down pubs on christmas day and they didn't reopen until april the 12th. even then it was just for outside and at that point we had no vaccines. so, if the vaccine programme is our way out of the nightmare, what is?—

programme is our way out of the nightmare, what is? what's been the tou~hest nightmare, what is? what's been the toughest aspect _ nightmare, what is? what's been the toughest aspect of _ nightmare, what is? what's been the toughest aspect of the _ nightmare, what is? what's been the toughest aspect of the past - nightmare, what is? what's been the toughest aspect of the past year - nightmare, what is? what's been the toughest aspect of the past year for i toughest aspect of the past year for you as a pub chain? i toughest aspect of the past year for you as a pub chain?— you as a pub chain? i think the anxie . you as a pub chain? i think the anxiety- for — you as a pub chain? i think the anxiety. for those _ you as a pub chain? i think the anxiety. for those people - you as a pub chain? i think the . anxiety. for those people working you as a pub chain? i think the - anxiety. for those people working in hospitality who are all optimistic and for those people who use hospitality, a lot of people live on their own, they crave other and we talk about pubs being that third place that people like to come to to meet other people and so it seems that these big open spaces that we've made safe have somehow been ostracised. that seems very wrong at a time when if people are going to meet at home, they are going to meet in an unsafe space. in my mind, the most difficult thing has been perhaps the loneliness and mental illness that people are talking about because of lockdowns. it is a

ve real about because of lockdowns. it is a very real issue _ about because of lockdowns. it is a very real issue for— about because of lockdowns. it is a very real issue for many _ about because of lockdowns. it is a very real issue for many people. i i very real issue for many people. i just wonder whether people would have made that sacrifice in the run—up to christmas and perhaps not gone to pubs and bars because they were going to see family, they didn't want their christmas plans to be jeopardised and are perhaps didn't want their christmas plans to bejeopardised and are perhaps more willing to go out and take that chance for this period up to new year and the new year itself? certainly, the risk that the english government are taking is a risk that's worth taking and in some ways, traditionallyjanuary that's worth taking and in some ways, traditionally january and are very quiet in the pub and restaurant trade. and so, by allowing people to be open it's going to save the government a lot of money in terms of the support they would need to give the trade if they were going to close us down. frankly, we would rather trade ourselves out of the challenges we have rather than be relying on hand—outs.

challenges we have rather than be relying on hand-outs.— health officials in the us have halved the recommended isolation time for people with asymptomatic covid—i9 from ten to five days. the centers for disease control says this must be followed by five days of wearing a mask around others. the measure is expected to alleviate disruptions caused by staff shortages in many areas because of infections. new restrictions come into effect in germany today. demonstrators took to the streets in towns across eastern germany overnight to protest against the new rules. they include a limit on private gatherings to ten vaccinated people and the closure of all night clubs. students of all ages will have to wear masks in school, and sports competitions will be held behind closed doors. unvaccinated people are already banned from much of public life and only two are allowed to meet in private. other countries across europe are also tightening restrictions as infections rise and the omicron variant spreads

across the continent. in france, a record of more than 100,000 new cases on saturday means tougher restrictions. remote working is now compulsory where possible, and public gatherings have been cut to 2,000 people for indoor events. with the festivities over and memories made, france is now snapping back to the reality of the pandemic. president macron convened a remote cabinet meeting to review the latest data on the omicron variant. and his government's verdict is clear — cases are surging, and more restrictions are needed, at least for the next three weeks. starting on monday, all public gatherings will be limited to 2,000 people for indoor events, and 5,000 for outdoor ones. all spectators will also have to be seated at concerts. food and drinks can only be consumed while seated at bars and restaurants. and they will be banned on all

public transport as well as cinemas. working from home will now be mandatory three days a week, where possible. and masks will be compulsory in outdoor city centres in addition to public transport. france's prime minister said he knows this all sounds like a film without an ending. translation: i know these measures can sometimes i make people feel fed up, but since the start of the crisis, the president, like his government, has sought only to protect you. the government is preparing for a huge wave of omicron cases, having already hit a record number in the last few days, registering more than 100,000 positive cases for the very first time. that's why france is offering a third booster shot after three months instead of four. but there is a fear that hospitals

could buckle under the pressure, and that more measures will be needed. translation: with the omicron i variant leaving the wave to continue to expand would not only mean putting pressure on hospitals but especially that would mean putting pressure on all of society, because there will be one to i.5—million people who would have to self—isolate each day. the government has warned it will introduce passes that would make vaccines mandatory for certain activities by january 15th, that's if parliament approves. but it did stop short of imposing a lockdown on new year's eve. a silver lining, as france prepares for a fifth wave of the pandemic. the latest headlines on bbc news. the hospitality sector welcomes

the decision not to impose further covid restrictions in england before the new year describing it as a lifeline — but ministers say further restrictions hinges on the number of hospitalisations. the french government call their new covid measures "proportionate", as rules for remote working and public gatherings come into force next week. more young children are being forced work on the streets. as afghanistan's humanitarian crisis deepens, we'll bring you a special report from kabul. if you're a cricket fan this is the moment you're dreading. apologies to be the bearer of bad news if you're a cricket fan. england's ashes hopes are over. 3—0 down now in the five—match series, and no way back after slipping to another heavy

defeat in melbourne. joe root and ben stokes resumed this morning on 31—4, but england were bowled out forjust 68, injust an hour and 20 minutes, there lowest score in australia in 117 years. our sports correspondent joe wilson was watching. 100,000 seats at the melbourne cricket ground. did one person give england half a chance? ben stokes can defy all the odds — sometimes. oh, he's got him, there's the comeback. the bowling here was just too good — stokes knew it — gone for 11. england's collective collapse was so painful because it was so predictable. bairstow — lbw — given. a bowler playing in his very first test match, scott boland took over — joe root out for 28. well, that's one to celebrate — and the catcher, david warner, certainly did. england's resistance vanished. never mind making australia bat again — england couldn't even keep going until lunch.

boland — six wickets for seven runs. and it was australia's future who wrapped it up — 22—year—old cameron green... oh, there we go! ..dismissing 39—year—old james anderson. 68, all out. i'm absolutely gutted. bitterly disappointed. you turn up today and you walk out to bat with ben stokes and you feel like anything's possible. er...you know, we're bitterly disappointed to find ourselves in this position. the whole mystique of the ashes is the concept of the ultimate competition. well, as the two teams shook sanitised hands, the gulf between them had never seemed so wide. joe wilson, bbc news. contrasting fortunes for both teams, the aussies building a strong test team while england have a lot of work to do to become comeptive again.

——competitive again. steven finn was part of the last england team to win in australia but said this tour had been very different. there's not much that has gone right if we are being quite honest. i think the lack of first innings runs has been a big problem for england, i think the lack of preparation time that they had in the build—up to the tour, they had less than a day's practice in the few weeks they had in australia in the build—up to the first test match because of bad weather which i think has a bit of a reason as to why they got into a bad run of form in their back—to—back test matches, by that i mean there's only three or four days in between each game so you just roll from game to game and it's easy to take the baggage from all of the bad performances into the next one. a combination of all of those things, i would say. the most disappointing thing over here from australians is they want to see their side challenge, ithink, and i don't think at any stage over the three games so far have they really been challenged.

the busy premier league schedule continues today with four more games. two are off though, because of covid cases. a record 103 players and staff tested positive for covid in the seven days up to and including boxing day. newcastle's match at home to manchester united did go ahead last night. and it was newcastle who went ahead thanks to this strike from alain saint maximain afterjust six minutes. but they couldn't hang on to the lead and substitute edinson cavani equalised with around twenty minutes to go. newcastle still second bottom and still with only one win from 19 games this season. very frustrated. i can't praise the players enough for an excellent performance. in and out of possession, i thought we were very good tonight, good individual performances, so really pleased. we deserved to win, and you're left with that horrible feeling of not accomplishing what you deserved to get, but very pleased

with the players. we still have steps to go. today was not a step forward. with regard to the result, i maybe, but not with regard to our performance. we need to get more physical, . we need to decrease the number of giveaways and unforced errors when we're in possession - of the ball. steps of development, we need to take. - that's all the sport for now. you can find more on all those stories on the bbc sport website. there's video highights and lots of reaction to england's ashes humiliation. i guess we will be hoping for a bit more positivity to come out of the england camp as far as results and performances go with the two tests still to come.

as the humanitarian crisis in afghanistan deepens this winter, many families are having to take drastic action just to survive. hundreds of thousands of children already had to work in the country, now even more parents are being forced to send their kids out into the streets to earn money. secunder kermani and camera journalist malik mudassir sent this report from the capital kabul. wherever you go in this city, you see children working. wafting incense into cars. picking through rubbish. even when billions were pouring into this country, many children had to help provide for theirfamilies. now amidst an economic collapse, the number is growing. coughing. it's 8am and this 13—year—old

is getting ready for work. he and his young cousins only started polishing shoes in the last few months. his father spends his days waiting for work as a labourer on the corner of the road. in the past, he earned just enough to get by. translation: i come here every day but do not earn enough to afford - a piece of bread for lunch. it's the same for everyone here. translation: i do not feel good that my child is working - but the situation is bad. we have no choice but to send them to work.

pervez and his cousins walk the streets and stick together in case other boys start fights with them. business is slow. with no customers, the boys take a break at a playground in the centre of kabul. they still have big dreams for the future. what do you want to do when you're older? when school starts again, will you go back to school or carry on working? the boys walk past the city's kebab vendors. and the displays on kabul�*s flower street. as well as civil servants demanding unpaid salaries. and huge queues outside banks.

international funding was cut off after the taliban takeover. afghanistan's foreign reserves frozen and sanctions imposed. now the economy is in freefall. have you had lunch today? why? so what will you do now? eventually they buy a single piece of bread to share between them. soon after, they find a customer. translation: even though i had my shoes shined in the morning, - i let them do itjust to help them. have you ever seen it this bad in afghanistan, economically? translation: from morning - to evening, most of those coming to my shop want to shine shoes

orare begging. 150 people like that come here every day. the money pervez earns will help feed his family today. but food prices are rising. and the rent is overdue. are you happy you're helping yourfamily? secunder kermani, bbc news, kabul. children whose parents smoke are four times more likely to take up smoking, according to a uk government campaign. the findings show 4.9% of teenagers whose parents smoke have taken up smoking, compared to only 1.2% of teenagers whose parents don't smoke. doctors have urged parents and other caregivers to give up smoking. dr nighat arif featured in the campaign video and is a family gp.

in some ways it's encouraging that the figure is as low as 4.9% of teenagers. even in households where smoking is prevalent, that number must be lower than it used to be. it is slower but we are noticing that one in eight adults in england are still smokers. the impact that has is more far—reaching because it's one of the leading causes of premature death. anything we can do to cut down smoking or cut down the habit of smoking so we're not passing it on to children is definitely a good way to go. find definitely a good way to go. and then when _ definitely a good way to go. and then when you _ definitely a good way to go. and then when you look at the numbers who take up smoking as teenagers, even when their parents don't smoke, what's the way to tackle that? aha, lat what's the way to tackle that? a lot of it is recognising _ what's the way to tackle that? a lot of it is recognising the _ what's the way to tackle that? int of it is recognising the impact our behaviours have on our children. our children watch us. i'm a mother of three and even when i think i'm not

doing something that they are watching, they are actually watching me. that bad language, that bad food you're eating, not being motivated enough to exercise, smoking, all of those behaviours are little bits that your children are picking up on. as teenagers when you're at school it's going to be peer pressure possibly or other adults around you or kids who might come from us making household and that's what's going to impact your behaviour. what we need to do is try to put in preventative measures now and what a better way than at the start of the new year when people are motivated enough to say, i want to make a commitment to change that bad habit i'm doing at the moment so my health is better for the future. time to new year resolutions of course. i don't know if you know the answer to this, but do these figures relate specifically to tobacco smoking? the landscape has changed massively and there will be a lot of people who have switched to vaping.

does that include it or not? that people who have switched to vaping. does that include it or not? fit the does that include it or not? at the moment the _ does that include it or not? at the moment the campaign _ does that include it or not? at the moment the campaign is - does that include it or not? at the moment the campaign is looking i does that include it or not? at the l moment the campaign is looking at tobacco smoking. the doctors in the video with me, one is a leading researcher looking at tobacco smoking and that's where more harm is being done to our help in regards to our respiratory system, cardiovascular problems and cancer is linked to tobacco smoking. it's the tar within the cigarettes. vaping is more prevalent and we are still looking at more data in regards to the longer term effects of vaping. we know nicotine is addictive and there are ongoing studies at imperial to look at the impact of vaping in the longer term. as far as this campaign is concerned, what is the message to parents? concerned, what is the message to arents? , , , ., parents? first, smoking is bad for our hel parents? first, smoking is bad for your help and _ parents? first, smoking is bad for your help and will _ parents? first, smoking is bad for your help and will do _ parents? first, smoking is bad for your help and will do you - parents? first, smoking is bad for your help and will do you know . parents? first, smoking is bad for your help and will do you know it, | your help and will do you know it,

your help and will do you know it, you don't want to pass that behaviour onto children. if you go to the better health campaign there is free info available and it's never too late to start. impact on your health you will notice straightaway from the moment you stop smoking. a lot of people say, i tried it before and it wasn't successful. honestly, it's nevertoo late and it's always something to come back to because it is an addictive behaviour. some people enjoy smoking or use it as a coping strategy, it's something we know thatis strategy, it's something we know that is one of the leading causes of premature death. so, the better health campaign provides free resources to quit for good. thank ou. here's carol with the weather. hello again. over the next few days the temperature is going to rise to unseasonably mild levels. today, what we've got is rain pushing its way into the north sea leaving a lot of cloud in its wake, thick enough for some patchy light rain or drizzle at times. the clearer skies across

the highlands, northern ireland and parts of england and wales means that some of us will see some sunshine. but a windy day, especially with exposure in wales and the english channel. through this evening and overnight, there will be quite a bit of clear sky around, so especially in scotland, parts of northern england, we are looking at a touch of frost before this next system swings in bringing its rain from the south—west. so tomorrow, we start off with all that rain spreading from the south west steadily northwards and eastwards, behind it, there will be some residual cloud, there will still be some dampness in the air, but for some, it should start to brighten up, particularly so for north—east england and also parts of northern ireland. temperatures tomorrow ranging from seven to 16. hello this is bbc news. the headlines... the hospitality sector welcomes the decision not to impose further

covid restrictions in england before the new year, describing it