this is bbc news — the headlines: borisjohnson defends the government's decision not to impose further covid restrictions in england before the new year — and says as many as 90% of those seriously ill haven't had a third vaccine dose. the overwhelming majority of people who are currently ending up in intensive care in our hospitals are people who are not boosted. but the scottish parliament is being recalled to address the record numbers of covid infections in the country. high demand for covid pcr tests leaves people waiting for days — and pharmacists warn of patchy supplies of rapid testing kits following changes to self—isolation rules. we don't know when these are going

to be available, so it's very difficult to plan and let our patients and other people know in terms of when to come back and when it's going to be in the pharmacies. soaring energy bills, rising taxes and stagnant wages will leave millions of families struggling in 2022 — according to a leading think tank. england and manchester city footballer raheem sterling says society must never let its guard down over racism in the game. we tend to address it for that period, you know, that five days of that week and then normally we brush it up under the carpet, things are all fine now. and we go back to a sun—soaked coventry — as the city finally got to celebrate the start of a covid—delayed year as the uk's city of culture.

hello, welcome to bbc news. the prime minister has defended his decision not to impose more covid restrictions in england — saying that the omicron variant is "obviously" milder than the delta strain. borisjohnson also again called for people to come forward to get their boosterjab. speaking at a vaccination centre in milton keynes, the prime minister said that the "overwhelming majority" of patients in intensive care were people who hadn't had a booster shot. meanwhile, the scottish parliament will be recalled this afternoon as first minister nicola sturgeon delivers an update on rising coronavirus infections. the scottish government has already introduced new measures, including one—metre physical distancing at large events, with limited numbers. pressure is also mounting on health authorities in the uk to look again at how long people should isolate after a covid infection. in the united states, that periot has been cut from ten days to just five.

and uk pharmacies are warning that people are turning up to request lateral flow tests roughly every five minutes and often cannot get one due to low supplies. the government booking portal shows there has also been a shortage of pcr tests in england today. more on all that but first lets listen to what the prime minister had to say. the omicron variant continues to cause real problems. we're seeing cases rising in hospitals, but it is obviously milder than the delta variant and we're able to proceed in the way that we are. but there's one reason and one reason only why we're able to do that, and that's because such a huge proportion of the british public have come forward to get vaccinated and, particularly, to get boosted. and we've done about 32.5 million, maybe more, boosterjabs now

and that is allowing us to go ahead with new year in the cautious way that we are. but i cannot stress too much how vital it is for everybody to get that boosterjab, particularly the 2.4 million people who have had two jabs but haven't yet had their booster and they had two jabs more than six or seven months ago, so they're eligible for that booster, but they're not yet coming forward to get it. so i would say to people, come forward and get your booster, it's a fantastic thing to do. it makes a huge amount of difference to you, it protects you, and i'm sorry to say this, but the overwhelming majority of people who are currently ending up in intensive care in our hospitals are people who are not boosted. and i've talked to doctors who say the numbers are running up to 90% of people in intensive care who are not boosted. if you're not vaccinated, you're eight times more likely

to get into hospital altogether, so it's a great thing to do. it's very, very important. get boosted for yourself and enjoy new year sensibly and cautiously. why have you acted differently to the other devolved nations? i think that we've looked at - the balance of the risks together. we generally concert our strategies together. we see the data showing that, yes, the cases are rising and, yes, hospitalisations are rising, but what is making a huge difference is the level of booster resistance, the level of vaccine—induced resistance in the population. and what we need to do now is really finish off that work, and i've no doubt at all that by january 1st, by the new year, everybody, every adult in the country will have been offered the slot to get a booster, they'll be given a slot to get one.

the question is are we getting people coming forward to take advantage of those slots? and that's what needs to happen. let's talk to our political correspondent peter saull. a staunch defence from the prime minister, of his decision not to impose any restrictions in england? at the end of that interview, you didn't see it, but he was asked where he had been for the past nine days. we had not heard from the prime minister since well before christmas. there had been questions about why england is out of step with the other home nations in terms of restrictions as the case numbers continue to surge, record numbers almost on a daily basis we are getting at the moment. but today he appeared pretty emboldened by the emerging data, going as far as saying that it is obvious now that the omicron variant is less serious

in terms of people ending up in hospital than the previous delta strain. it is something he feels he can go as far as saying that, it may be the case that some scientists may dispute that, they may want to see a bit more data. but he feels vindicated with the approach he has taken. not introducing limits on social gatherings, which is the case in the other home nations. stressing once again, this is always the case with the prime minister, the importance of the booster roll—out saying, he is confident they will hit the target of offering a third dose to all adults by the end of the year. the question is, whether everyone actually takes up the offer and he offered the stark statistic to back up his argument that 90% of covid patients in intensive care have not had their booster shots. putting the hard sell on people who haven't yet either been vaccinated or had the booster. fine haven't yet either been vaccinated or had the booster.— or had the booster. one of the problems _ or had the booster. one of the problems facing _ or had the booster. one of the problems facing the _ or had the booster. one of the l problems facing the government or had the booster. one of the - problems facing the government is there is such a big staff shortages,

especially in the national health service. pressure on the government to cut the isolation period, and we have seen it happening in the united states, from ten days to five days? yes, the british medical association described this as the elephant in the room. if anything was going to prevent the nhs from being overwhelmed, fine if you are not getting overwhelmed by the amount of people in intensive care units, but what about the amount of staff there? the self isolation has been cut from ten down to seven days in england. there is a debate raging in the other home nations about whether they should follow suit. and increasing calls for england to follow the american�*s lead, cutting it down to five days. conservative mps have started to say they favour that approach and some scientists have said they have, too. the government holding firm, saying they have no current plans to reduce the isolation period further. ok. have no current plans to reduce the isolation period further.—

isolation period further. ok, thank ou ve isolation period further. ok, thank you very much- — high demand for covid pcr tests is leaving people around the uk waiting for a prolonged period of time to get tested. pharmacists are also warning of patchy supplies of lateral flow tests, following changes to self—isolation rules. the association of independent multiple pharmacies says staff are struggling over the shortage. dr leyla hanbeck is its chief executive the reports we are getting from around the country, every two to five minutes, people are coming into pharmacists asking for a test. because of the shortages, because of the inconsistency and patchiness of the supply, we are having to tell people that we don't have them in stock. it is not something we are happy to do, but unfortunately it is out of our control. we have to have consistency in supply. because without that, it is very difficult. patients come in and they are expecting to get the flow test,

they have the code. and also the bureaucratic burden that goes around with it will need to be addressed. it is very important that the government prioritises this. it is part of the guidelines for people to do a lateral flow test and if that is part of the guidelines, people are being responsible doing that and the government needs to make sure the supply is steady and consistent. we don't know when they will be available. it is very difficult to plan and let our patients know in terms of when to come back and when it will be in the pharmacy. the scottish parliament is being recalled this afternoon as first minister nicola sturgeon delivers an update on rising coronavirus infections. she's expected to tell ministers figures will rise further over the coming days. meanwhile the deputy first minister has urged people not to travel to england for new year celebrations to get around the more stringent covid—i9 restrictions north of the border.

let's speak to our scotland correspondent, alexandra mackenzie who is in glasgow. what are we expecting to hear from nicola sturgeon today?— what are we expecting to hear from nicola sturgeon today? parliament is bein: nicola sturgeon today? parliament is being recalled. _ nicola sturgeon today? parliament is being recalled, a _ nicola sturgeon today? parliament is being recalled, a virtual— nicola sturgeon today? parliament is being recalled, a virtual parliament l being recalled, a virtual parliament at two o'clock this afternoon. not completely unusual, parliament was recalled this time last year to discuss brexit. today that will be to discuss coronavirus. we are not quite sure at this stage what we are likely to hear. we are not necessarily expecting to hear of any more restrictions in scotland, but we do understand there is likely to be pressure on the first minister to reduce the period of self isolation, thatis reduce the period of self isolation, that is still ten days in scotland. so there has been pressure from tory party, also from labour, who put out a statement yesterday. they have said they want confirmation on this.

they said they want to stop staff absences, in their words, piling absences, in theirwords, piling pressure on businesses and services. there have been staff absences because of people having coronavirus and also people having to self—isolate. the scottish labour party have also called on some kind of, what they call, a plan from the snp to keep schools open as we go into the new term. for the first minister, that has always been a priority to keep schools open for as long as possible. there has been no indication schools are likely to have a longer school break. but they will certainly be asked about that this afternoon at the parliament. this comes in the context of the rising number of omicron cases. we saw in scotland the largest number of daily cases on boxing day, that

was more than 11,000. we will get an update on the figures that virtual parliament this afternoon. nicola sturgeon is also expected to encourage people to be boosted. what she means is for people to make an appointment to go and get their boosterjab by the end of the year, by hogmanay. you also mentioned the concern about people possibly travelling south of the border for hogmanay and new year celebrations because of tougher restrictions here in hospitality. also a cancellation of some events, the main hogmanay celebration in edinburgh was cancelled again this year. the deputy first minister, john swinney, urged people this morning not to travel south of the border for hogmanay celebration. ok. travel south of the border for hogmanay celebration. ok, thank you ve much hogmanay celebration. ok, thank you very much indeed. _ millions of families in the uk

are facing a "cost of living catastrophe" according to a leading think tank. the resolution foundation says stalling wages, rising taxes and soaring energy bills means, from april, households face an increase in their living costs of nearly £1200. the government says it's provided more than £4 billion worth of support for families. the chief executive of the resolution foundation if is torsten bell and he explained why the pressures on household budgets are particularly strong now. everyone's already feeling, in their pockets, the cost of prices rising more quickly than their wages. we had the highest inflation in ten years back in november with 5%, and that's projected to get over 6% by next april. so, this is... you know, yes, we have seen fast price rises before, but this will be a very different feel to it, particularly because a lot of it will come all in one go in april next year as we see a particularly large rise

in energy bills and tax rises at the same time. lawyers for prince andrew have filed papers to try to stop a us civil case — in which he's accused of sexual assault. the documents question whether the woman making the allegation, virginia giuffre, can bring the case in new york — saying she lives in australia rather than in the united states. prince andrew has denied all the allegations against him. a merseyside police officer has been sacked for gross misconduct — after it emerged he'd shared racist and homophobic pictures. the guardian, which broke the story, also reports that he took selfies at a murder scene. an anti—corruption inquiry into the behaviour of ryan connolly uncovered several years of misdemeanours. merseyside police said connolly's behaviour was "deplorable" — and his dismissal sent a "clear message" that any abuse of office would not be tolerated. the hong kong pro—democracy media outlet stand news has said it's shutting down, after hundreds of national security

police raided its offices. seven former and current employees were arrested,, for publishing what police described as "seditious publications". stand news, set up in 2014 was the most prominent remaining pro—democracy publication in hong kong. its closure raises further concerns about media freedoms in the former british colony, which returned to chinese rule in 1997 with the promise that a wide range of individual rights would be protected. our correspondent danny vincent has more. i'm standing outside the offices of stand news here. this news outlet is considered one of the last pro—democratic publications in hong kong. earlier in the year, apple daily, perhaps the most popular tabloid newspaper in the city, was raided, several times. many of their executives were arrested and it seems that something similar has happened here at stand news today. former and current members of staff from stand news were arrested.

one individual, also the chairman of the hong kong journalists association, has been released. there are a number of stand news journalists currently inside the stand news office. earlier they were speaking to lawyers and trying to decide what would happen next. they are not currently speaking to the media but there are journalists here, still outside here, trying to get a glimpse inside this news organisation and trying to speak to people when they come out. there was a large media scrum after the police arrived in the early hours of the morning. we heard there were more than 200 police officers raiding the premises, they took boxes of what the described as journalistic material out of the office. many of the journalists here definitely feel that this is once again seen as another attack in the city against the freedom that the press should have.

sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here'sjohn watson. arsenal�*s manager got covic again? good morning. yes, very unfortunate. it means he'll miss the new year's day match against manchester city. arteta first contracted the virus in march 2020, which prompted the shutdown of football at the start of the pandemic. he's now isolating but is still expected to undertake media duties tomorrow ahead of the game. the england manager gareth southgate says it's vitally important that he and his squad use their platform to make a difference as they continue to fight against racism. england players began taking the knee during the euros in the summer, and southgate says he knew things had to change

during england's 5—1win against montenegro in march 2019. southgate's comments came during an interview with raheem sterling while the forward was guest editing for radio 4's today programme. i wasn't aware until close to the end of the game when danny rose got booked and there was a reaction from the crowd. i didn't realise earlier in the game that from the other side of the pitch there had been racist abuse going on. when we got back into the changing room and i am having a go at danny forgetting booked. i had to apologise on the plane because it suddenly emerged this had been going on during the game. i didn't like the fact the boys could mention in the changing room at half—time or report it. so for me it was like, this is awful,

how is this environment where our players are allowed to be abused on the pitch and they don't even feel comfortable to report it or feel anything is going to happen. even now i know that we would all worry about, even if we reported, is anything going to be done about it? but at the least this had to be a team where we were united on how we saw it. and we could send a message to young kids watching that i think the lads may be didn't realise how powerful that would be going into a tournament. chris woakes admits england's cricketers were under—prepared for their ashes tour, but he says they can't use that as an excuse for the their performances. england are 3—0 down in the series, with the ashes already lost and two matches still to go. woakes says now is not the time to feel sorry for themselves.

asa group as a group of players, we have to take pride in what we do. obviously, no one means to perform badly, no one means to lose the way we have. we are trying extremely hard to put things right. but i think that is test cricket. it is called test cricket for a reason, it is difficult, especially when teams get on top. we have to show some character, show some fight. novak djokovic has pulled out of this week's atp cup in sydney, heightening speculation he could skip the australian open next month. the world number one is yet to confirm if he's received the coronavirus vaccination, having previously expressed his oppostion to it. all players and staff competing in melbourne must be jabbed or have a medical exemption. and andy murray has been practising in melbourne ahead of his appearance at the first grand slam. he was handed a wild card to compete where he's previously reached the final five times.

best of luck to andy murray in that tournament. that's all the sport for now. children in schools have for years been taught about the dangers of drug and alcohol addiction. now increasing numbers of pupils are also learning about the dangers of compulsive gambling. a group of families who lost relatives to suicide have created a hard—hitting educational programme, which they say will save lives. just a warning, you may find some of this report from our ireland correspondent chris page upsetting. it's notjust the damage that this does to the person who has the addiction, it's the damage it does to all the family. anniversaries, birthdays, christmas, family gatherings — when he should be there, he is not. lewis keogh was a passionate sportsperson, but he kept

his gambling a secret from his team—mates, friends and family. when he was 3a, he took his own life. he says, "every day is a struggle. all i want is a bit of peace. please understand addiction is cruel. and that's his exact words. deep down, when he left that note for us, it really was a cry for help for others. the fact that he couldn't get this illness of his highlighted. that thought has driven pete and sadie and other bereaved families to design a ground—breaking education programme. you're going to love this place, man. - it's easy money. the charity gambling with lives plans to take the project to schools across the uk after it is piloted in northern ireland. it is an addiction that impacts a lot of people. the sessions have made

a strong impression on these pupils in east belfast. i wasn't really sure about gambling and how addictive it could be, but now i understand that it is a really bad problem. it helps maybe in the future, in case someone is going through it, and you can help them. it is on your phones, on sports, everywhere you look. _ gambling is there. and their teacher thinks the topic should be a bigger part of the curriculum. it is something they were aware of as such, but not to the extent of the harm that it can cause. addiction has always been covered within the pastoral curriculum, but a gambling addiction is definitely going to have to be more at the forefront. it is estimated that around 340,000 adults in great britain have a harmful gambling habit. so, too, do about 55,000 young people aged 16 and under. here in northern ireland, more than one in 50 adults has a gambling problem. that is four times the rate in the rest of the uk.

the industry group the betting and gaming council says it has brought in measures to tackle addiction and protect children. families who have suffered the most believe their work in schools will prevent suicides. we didn't know about this. and we are going to make sure everybody does. had lewis had the education at school, i think there is a strong chance we would still have lewis with us. i am very hopeful we are going to provide something that will save lives, it is as simple as that. our ireland correspondent chris page with that report. if you have been affected by any of the issues discussed, please visit bbc action line for support by searching bbc.co. uk/actionline. tributes have been paid to the model and transgender activist april ashley who has died at the age of 86.

ashley became only the second briton to undergo male—to—female gender reassignment surgery in 1960. she was was made an mbe in 2012 for her campaigning work for the transgender community. conservationists in mexico, assisted by scientists at chester zoo, have brought a species of fish that was previously declared extinct back to the wild. the freshwater tequila fish — which is silver and less than three inches long — has now been returned to its native habitat in the south—west of the country. here's our science correspondent, victoria gill. a little known species with an extraordinary story. the tequila fish is a small freshwater fish that lives in the rivers and lakes of south—west mexico, but it has been missing, presumed extinct, for more than a decade. and it is just one of thousands of aquatics creatures that are facing extinction but that have slipped under the radar.

small little things, but show sometimes a bit of colour when they breed, but not much interest on the global conservation aspect. now, with the help of conservationists at chester zoo, scientists in mexico have reversed that extinction, bringing captive—bred fish back to the wild. the team has now confirmed that the fish are breeding and that the population is recovering here. they are doing well. they started with the introduction of 1500 animals, so now we're about from 1500 individuals to tens of thousands and now what we're seeing is that the species is slowly starting expanding to the river system which is exactly what we wanted so that is a very good start and hopefully that will be more species looking forward. among the estimated 1 million species under threat around the world, a third of wildlife that depends on freshwater habitats, are sliding towards extinction. and the ongoing loss of clean, healthy rivers and lakes threatens our food and water supplies too. so here injalisco, mexico, the community stepped in. local people trained with the scientists to take on long—term monitoring of this vital river network to ensure

it is clean and healthy for both people and wildlife. it won't be impossible without the local community. the local people are the main actors in the long—term conservation project. it is a conservation success story that it is hoped could be repeated for other threatened habitats and species, including one that lives in just one lake in the north of mexico. the achoques, a close relative of the axolotl was saved from extinction partly by a captive breeding programme led by local nuns. and now, with the community helping to clean up the lake, here in patzcuaro, these captive—reared animals could be brought back to the wild. the success of the little tequila fish is a much needed sign of hope for one of the many small and perhaps underappreciated creatures that are facing extension. amid a biodiversity crisis, it is a sign that with people's help, nature can make a comeback. victoria gill, bbc news.

record amounts of snow has fallen in western and northern japan, blocking roads and railways and disrupting flights. thousands of homes are without power — and the situation may get worse before it gets better as more snowfall is forecast along the japan sea coast ahead of the new year. now it's time for a look at the weather with darren bett. not too much snow, but it is pretty mild? it is going to be mild right the way through the rest of this year and into the new year for a while as well. temperatures this afternoon reaching 16 degrees in the south of england. it is mild everywhere and the mild air is coming in behind a band of thick cloud and rain which is moving across scotland and into the northern isles heading into this evening. the cloud seconds later in the night and we see more rain coming in, mainly forthe

the night and we see more rain coming in, mainly for the western side of the uk. the winds are from the south or south—west which is why it is so mild, much milder than last night in the north—east of scotland as well. we start tomorrow with some cloud and rain. it will push eastwards, there won't be much rain for the eastern part of the uk, such an arriving but thickening cloud will bring rain across wales, the west midlands and eventually the north west of england later in the day. it is bringing with it, milder air all the while the temperatures reaching 16 or 17 celsius. hello this is bbc news with ben brown. the headlines: borisjohnson defends the government's decision not to impose further covid restrictions in england before the new year and says as many as 90% of those seriously ill haven't had a third vaccine dose. the overwhelming majority of people who are currently ending up in

intensive care in our hospitals are people who are not boosted.