this is bbc news, i'm ben brown. the headlines at 2:00: west midlands police say three boys aged eight, ten and 11 have died after being pulled from an icy lake in solihull on sunday. some of the officers went in wasted, one of my officers was trying to punch through the ice to actually rescue the children themselves. snow, ice and fog cause widespread travel disruption in parts of the uk with hundreds of motorists and air travellers stranded. the government will hold an emergency cobra this afternoon on how to deal with a wave of strikes — including in the nhs and on the rail network. new figures show the uk

economy shrank by 0.3% between august and october — with the country expected to be in recession by the end of the year. and in sport — england's cricketers clinch a historic test series win in pakistan — theirfirst in the country for 22 years. west midlands fire service say it's a "tragedy beyond words." three boys, aged 8, 11 and 12, have died afterfalling into a frozen lake in solihull, in the west midlands. they were rushed to hospital, after being pulled from the water at babbs mill park. a fourth boy who's six,

remains in a critical condition in hospital. officers continue to search the lake, but say they have no information, other children maybe missing. our correspondent, phil mackie has sent us this report, which some viewers may find distressing. just after 2:30pm yesterday, four children had fallen through the ice. police officers raced to help. a few minutes later, firefighters arrived and took over in the water. there was a massive emergency response. the search to see if there were any others continued into the night. four young boys were pulled out and were taken to hospital, all had suffered cardiac arrests. today, we had confirmation of the news everyone feared, three have died, the other aged six is still critical in hospital. we've worked very closely with our colleagues in west midlands fire service and also in west midlands ambulance service, and this has been a realjoint effort.

it is incredibly sad that we do not have any better news for you today regarding yesterday afternoon's incident. the boys' deaths are a tragedy beyond words, and the thoughts and heartfelt sympathies of everyone here at west midlands fire service are with their families, friends and the wider community at this distressing time. they are still not sure if there's anyone in the water, as initial reports suggested there may have been five or six children playing on the ice. compared to the rescue operation that was going on yesterday afternoon and last night, things have scaled down considerably. but you can still see police officers wading through the ice cold water as part of the recovery operation in appalling conditions. the news has affected everyone here, many of whom have come to pay their respects. as mothers and as grandparents, we couldn't imagine how last night went for that family and them parents, as a mother. it's not something you have to... you try not to think about. the prime minister has sent his

condolences via the local mp, both of whom have children of a similar age. since i've heard the news, like many people i've been in shock. it's a great tragedy, this is a real close knit community, and to hear about children playing on the ice and falling through, just all of it, the shock and anguish is very real at the moment. the children's school, a short walk from where the tragedy happened, was shut today. grief remains the overwhelming emotion. there are questions about safety and whether children are fully aware of the dangers of playing on ice. yesterday's incident is a stark reminder to us all of the dangers of open water, especially during the winter months. frozen lakes, ponds, canals and reservoirs can look picturesque but they can be lethal. there are no greater warnings of this than yesterday's tragic events. let's talk to our

correspondent, nick garnett. nick, at that news conference given by the emergency services, they were choosing their words very carefully, when they? are not giving away too much more information because they said loved ones of those involved didn't actually want them to give out too many details? m0. didn't actually want them to give out too many details?— didn't actually want them to give out too many details? no, they were there really — out too many details? no, they were there reallyjust _ out too many details? no, they were there really just to _ out too many details? no, they were there really just to give _ out too many details? no, they were there reallyjust to give us _ there reallyjust to give us up—to—date, but the families obviously, understandably, just want to be left alone at the moment. this is just to be left alone at the moment. this isjust an utter tragedy, to be left alone at the moment. this is just an utter tragedy, just in the run—up to christmas, behind me there is a housing estate, right next to this country park and it is a housing estate that is getting ready for christmas, christmas lights around, people have been out with christmas shopping, walking backin with christmas shopping, walking back in the shops and then this has happened, this weekend. this was after two or three days of very cold weather, the ice had started to form on the lake and then yesterday

morning there was some snow here, that then covered parts of the ice, no one knew how deep it was, how thick it was and people hadn't realised that temperature had started to rise and they had been a thaw under the eyes had started to melt. as the children went out onto the ice, i understand they had been planning to go down to the water's edge and there is a path that runs all the way around, a popular dog walk, a popular area just to go walking, children had been done there before but they all went down to go and play on the ice, not knowing that the ice was actually thinner than it had been over the last 2a hours. one went in and the ice cracked, they all went into the water. immediately there was an emergency operation put under way and paramedics and fire officers and the police came, there is a police station just a couple of miles away from where we are now. they came down and i have seen the video footage that was filmed from a block

of flats opposite of the scale of the operation, as paramedics ran and did everything they possibly could, if i roughjumped into the did everything they possibly could, if i rough jumped into the water, waste deep himself, just trying to break the ice with his hands and get through. when they did get the four young boys out, they were all in cardiac arrest. resuscitation efforts started here at the scene with paramedics, that then continued further on when they went into hospital as well to try to save their lives. overnight, three of the boys died, one six—year—old remains in hospital in critical condition. they have been flow was being laid, toys being laid, and peoplejust standing around and hugging each other. it standing around and hugging each other. ., , standing around and hugging each other. . , ., , ., ., . standing around and hugging each other. . , ., ., . ,. other. it really was a heroic rescue attem t, other. it really was a heroic rescue attempt. wasn't — other. it really was a heroic rescue attempt, wasn't it? _ other. it really was a heroic rescue attempt, wasn't it? by— other. it really was a heroic rescue attempt, wasn't it? by the - other. it really was a heroic rescue . attempt, wasn't it? by the emergency services. at the news conference they were issuing a fresh warning to people not to go onto the ice in these very cold conditions? yes.

people not to go onto the ice in these very cold conditions? yes, and cruciall , these very cold conditions? yes, and crucially. that _ these very cold conditions? yes, and crucially, that is _ these very cold conditions? yes, and crucially, that is not _ these very cold conditions? yes, and crucially, that is notjust _ these very cold conditions? yes, and crucially, that is notjust to - these very cold conditions? yes, and crucially, that is not just to this - crucially, that is notjust to this area. we are having a cold snap across the country, it will be here for another 24—48 hours, the message is out from this fire and rescue service has been argued around the country and it is for the rest of the country, don't go on the ice —— rack has been echoed. we don't live in canada, in areas of the world where the ice is thick enough to walk on, it is just simply too thin. the weather temperatures in this part of the world, they change so rapidly and show that a thaw comes and immediately the ice starts to break and so the warning from the fire and rescue teams, and from the police, is stay off the ice.— police, is stay off the ice. indeed, thank ou police, is stay off the ice. indeed, thank you very — police, is stay off the ice. indeed, thank you very much _ police, is stay off the ice. indeed, thank you very much indeed. - snow, ice and fog have caused serious travel disruption across the uk, particularly in the south of england. all flights at stansted airport were suspended overnight, though they've now resumed, and there have also been delays

at heathrow and gatwick. train companies have warned passengers to check before travelling. here's duncan kennedy. this is what many side roads in south—east england have looked like today. plenty of others have been completely blocked. we came across this young driver near paddock wood in kent. his tyres caught an icy patch and he hit a concrete post. he was shaken but unhurt. for others here, it's been a morning of energy sapping clear ups in. what do you make of the conditions this morning? they're great for children, but they're not the best for businesses and commuting. these are all cars. every kind of travel system has been hit by the snow. dozens of cars were abandoned on the m25 and hertfordshire. some motorists were stranded for more than 12 hours.

i've never seen snow like it. as soon as i hit the m25, it wasjust chaos. there were many different parts where we were just stranded and we didn't see any emergency services. nobody can get through. the gritters and snowplows were out in gloucestershire as parts of the east and south west were also carpeted by the snow. major airports have seen more than 100 flights cancelled. not only here at heathrow, but at stansted, gatwick and luton as well, hitting pre—christmas travel plans for thousands of passengers. trains have also been badly affected, especially in rural places like here in kent, where commuter and other services have been severely reduced. euston is just one of the stations full of people rearranging their plans.

southeastern, southwestern, southern and greater anglia all report severe disruption. just like london underground services. in east sussex, the christmas spirit was flowing for a0 people forced to take refuge in a pub. the bear inn at burwash laid on hot drinks and mattresses amid the log fires. so we trekked here, two miles, a two mile journey from the other pub. and sure enough, pauline, wilson and her team welcomed us with open arms and made hot food, hot drinks and said, "you can all stay." the effects of this weather will play out across today. there'll be clear ups, disruption and some chaos for many hours to come. let's speak to our correspondent, howard johnson — who's at euston station. what is the situation of air and across the railways? it is

what is the situation of air and across the railways?— what is the situation of air and across the railways? it is a case of lanes, across the railways? it is a case of planes. trains _ across the railways? it is a case of planes, trains and _ across the railways? it is a case of planes, trains and automobiles, i across the railways? it is a case of. planes, trains and automobiles, we have spoken to lots of people who have spoken to lots of people who have been moving across from gatwick airport, from stansted airport, trying to move to other airports across the country, after birmingham, to connect to a flight that will get them back to their home country, we have seen delays caused by the london underground having staff issues. we have also heard of a lot of points and signals are frozen over which has caused a disruption on the trains here, we have seen on the board all day on the departures board delays and cancellations. but people are making their way onto trains, so we're not seeing a situation where people stranded herejust seeing a situation where people stranded here just yet. seeing a situation where people stranded herejust yet. but seeing a situation where people stranded here just yet. but as the light fades, there is a concern that people might get caught up, given that tomorrow there is a planned industrial action of train workers. the theory is, if people cannot get home tonight, they might be stranded in london. as the light fades, people here are beginning to get

concerned and more people are coming here and getting on any train that they can to get home as quickly as possible. weight in the run—up to christmas, travellers are possible. weight in the run-up to christmas, travellers— christmas, travellers are quite worried if— christmas, travellers are quite worried if they _ christmas, travellers are quite worried if they can _ christmas, travellers are quite worried if they can get - christmas, travellers are quite| worried if they can get around, christmas, travellers are quite - worried if they can get around, get two destinations, that combination of industrial action under the weather making things potentially really difficult over the next few days. really difficult over the next few da s. �* , ,., , ., ., really difficult over the next few da s. , , ., ., ., days. absolutely. i heard from one family who — days. absolutely. i heard from one family who said _ days. absolutely. i heard from one family who said they _ days. absolutely. i heard from one family who said they tried - days. absolutely. i heard from one family who said they tried to - days. absolutely. i heard from one family who said they tried to come | family who said they tried to come down here three times this year but had been caught up in industrial action and therefore had cancelled their plans, but they have finally made it down for a trip to london that had been planned for a long time. now they were raising their way back to manchester, in the hope that they could get home, i haven't seen them at the train station this afternoon, so, fortunately, i think they got onto a train and made their way back. but there is this concern about, if you get caught here tonight, i have heard the last train back to glasgow, for instance, could be from 7:30pm, then there might be

issues, getting back. i have even heard from a friend of a friend who is looking for accommodation, they were trying to make their way back to france today, but the flight was cancelled and they had to hastily make a booking at a hotel to stay overnight, try to get the plane tomorrow to france.— overnight, try to get the plane tomorrow to france. thank you very much. the headlines on bbc news: west midlands police confirm three boys aged eight, ten and eleven have died after being pulled from an icy lake in solihull on sunday. snow, ice and fog cause widespread travel disruption in parts of the uk with hundreds of motorists and air travellers stranded. the government will hold an emergency cobra this afternoon on how to deal with a wave of strikes — including in the nhs and on the rail network.

new officialfigures new official figures today show that the british economy shrank by 0.3% in the three months to the end of october, the in the three months to the end of october, the chancellor in the three months to the end of october, the chancellorjeremy in the three months to the end of october, the chancellorjeremy hunt is warning the situation will get worse before it gets better. with the office for budget responsibility, already suggesting the uk, has tipped into recession. our economics correspondent, andy verity reports. in edinburgh's district, toys galore has been open for more than a0 years. these are not times of plenty. because the pound is much weaker than last year, most of the toys are imported, they have been getting more expensive. some cost so much now that they no longer a wet stocking. it is an affluent area, but even here people are feeling the pinch. but even here people are feeling the inch. ~ .,, but even here people are feeling the inch. ~ , .,, but even here people are feeling the inch, ~ , .,, ., but even here people are feeling the inch. , .,, ., , pinch. most people are struggling, because they _ pinch. most people are struggling, because they have _ pinch. most people are struggling, because they have seen _ pinch. most people are struggling, because they have seen all- pinch. most people are struggling, because they have seen all the - pinch. most people are struggling, l because they have seen all the costs go because they have seen all the costs 9° up, because they have seen all the costs go up, interest costs, fuel costs, fuel costs, yet their wages have not cashed down i kept up. although they

will still buy a toy for some birthday, someone was my christmas, they might buy a smaller toy or they might not go on a trip to a toy shop on a saturday. what make the economy grew by 0.5% in october, that was largely a bounce back from september to soar in 0.6% full, largely because of the extra bank holiday for the queen was my funeral. three months between august and october showed a 0.3% full, showing the uk is on course to be officially in recession. it is on course to be officially in recession-— is on course to be officially in recession. it is clear with this wa s recession. it is clear with this ways peeple _ recession. it is clear with this ways peeple are _ recession. it is clear with thisj ways people are experiencing recession. it is clear with this - ways people are experiencing from hi-h ways people are experiencing from high inflation, holding back consumer spending and uncertainty holding _ consumer spending and uncertainty holding back investment, that they will he _ holding back investment, that they will be some form of a recession. but it_ will be some form of a recession. but it is— will be some form of a recession. but it is only as these recessions develop — but it is only as these recessions develop that you can really assess how long — develop that you can really assess how long they are going to last. services — how long they are going to last. services for consumers, from restaurants to shops to sports venues also saw a modest bounce back

in october from september. venues also saw a modest bounce back in octoberfrom september. we are in the midst of what is being predicted the midst of what is being predicted the tighter squeeze on living standards since the i9a0s. there is still 8.9% down on pre—pandemic levels. still 8.9% down on pre-pandemic levels. , , .., , levels. these figures confirm this is a very challenging _ levels. these figures confirm this is a very challenging economic. is a very challenging economic situation here and across the world. it will get worse before it gets better. but we have a plan that will more than half inflation over the next year, and if we stay the course we can get back to the strong economic growth that we need. activity in manufacturing dropped by i.8%, the activity in manufacturing dropped by i.8%, the sector has now been in a slump since the summer of last year. the figures also suggest that the economy produced a a% less electricity and gas in october than the year before. temperatures higher and prices are soaring, households and prices are soaring, households and firms put the heating on for an average of only 2.8 days. that was two months ago. that was then, this is now.

senior officials will be attending a cobra meeting stop they will discuss the possibility of using military personnel to cover walk—outs by border force and ambulance crews. also this week there will be four days of disruption on the railways, as a0,000 rail staff go on strike. after a breakdown of talks, more than 100,000 royal mail workers are involved in it to make days of industrial action. involved in it to make days of industrialaction. if involved in it to make days of industrial action. if you are a learner driver, check your test data this week, because examiners are set to walk—out over pay, pensions and job security, in scotland and the north—east of england affected, other areas could be hit later. health workers in northern ireland, including nurses, technicians and administrative workers have gone on strike, they rejected a pay offer last week, that was below the rate of inflation and the royal college

of inflation and the royal college of nursing will begin its first strike in more than one century on thursday over 100,000 nurses taking part demanding better pay. so every corner of the country now is feeling the effects of this rolling wave of strikes. today, it's health workers in northern ireland. as it stands, they say there's no incentive for staff to stay in the nhs. the pace simply isn't good enough. they have had ten years extensively of pay cuts. they cannot afford to make ends meet at this point in time. they cannot afford to fuel their cars. they can't afford to heat their homes. they really do need to secure a decent standard of living. everywhere the issue is the same salaries. workers have been squeezed too far. the strikes on the railways will be stepped up this week and last right across the holiday. royal mail staff have already been out and will be again in the coming days, following ambulance drivers and borderforce officers in action. starting this week, nurses

to their biggest union, the rcn, has said if the government were to sit down and have realistic and honest talks about pay, it may well recommend its members call off the strikes, but there's no sign of that. we would have to take money away from patients waiting for operations to then fund additional pay. and if everyone on the public sector were to get an increase in line with inflation, that would be costing £28 billion at a time when the government has to get inflation under control. that 28 billion figure has been disputed as an overestimation. while the government appears to be toughening its position, labour has stepped in criticising ministers for what it says is a profound lack of leadership. at the same time, the labour leader and his shadow health secretary don't want to be seen to be backing the highest pay demands. labour would be willing to negotiate with the nurses. we want toi he honest, from the point of view of the opposition,

inflation plus 5% is not a figure that we could reasonably offer if we were in government today. but given that unison and the royal college of nursing have offered to talk and to negotiate and to compromise, i don't understand why the government isn't biting their hand off. instead, ministers will today be discussing using the army to drive ambulances and carry out passport checks at our borders. so the outlook for compromise looks bleak. any thaw between the government and unions unlikely this side of christmas. david grammaticus, bbc news, westminster. downing street is stressing there will still be serious disruption as a result of industrial action, despite damning despite the army being drafted in full subnets talk to our political who is at westminster, jonathan, just because of up there, because we got this meeting of the cobra government emergency committee later. just tell us more about what they are going to be discussing?— be discussing? yes, ben, in a little bit later this _ be discussing? yes, ben, in a little bit later this afternoon _ be discussing? yes, ben, in a little bit later this afternoon at _ bit later this afternoon at ministers from the departments across government will come together for that meeting of the cobra body, as it is known, the government's

emergency response committee, it varies from time to time who actually attends the meeting, depending on the particular events that it depending on the particular events thatitis depending on the particular events that it is responding to. in this case it will be chaired by the cabinet office minister oliver dowden, there will be ministers from the ministry of defence, the home office, the health department, as well as the department for transport as well. they are discussing what we are told, mostly, those plans that you have mentioned, as you heard in damien�*s report, for members of the armed forces to fill in for border. and ports and airports when they go out on strike in the coming days, also to drive ambulances as well, if there strikes go ahead as planned. but while the government has said it will do everything it can to mitigate the impact of these strikes, it also accepts that there is only so much that it can do and thatis is only so much that it can do and that is reflected in the tone of what we have heard from downing street over the last couple of hours, that is that people should still expect serious disruption as a result of these strikes, that there

will be challenging days to come when the strikes actually take effect and that in the case of ambulances, the ability to respond to emergency call—outs will be significantly reduced. ministers are clearly trying to prepare people for some very, very difficult situations come, as the impact of these strikes actually hits. this cobra meeting this afternoon as part of the government's attempts to mitigate the disruption, but it is still laying the blame for the strikes, squarely, at the door of the trades unions, who it is accusing of making unreasonable, unnecessary and unaffordable demands.- unreasonable, unnecessary and unaffordable demands. thank you very much. as unaffordable demands. thank you very much- as you — unaffordable demands. thank you very much. as you heard _ unaffordable demands. thank you very much. as you heard a _ unaffordable demands. thank you very much. as you heard a little _ unaffordable demands. thank you very much. as you heard a little earlier, - much. as you heard a little earlier, health care workers in northern ireland, members of unison and the northern ireland public service alliance go on strike over pay and staffing levels, let's get more on that from our ireland correspondent who is at a hospital in west

belfast, chris.— who is at a hospital in west belfast, chris. , , , ., ., belfast, chris. yes, this is one of dozens of— belfast, chris. yes, this is one of dozens of picket _ belfast, chris. yes, this is one of dozens of picket lines _ belfast, chris. yes, this is one of dozens of picket lines across - dozens of picket lines across northern ireland today, this one at the royal group of hospitals in west belfast, these workers are among thousands who have come out on strike today, they have been on industrial action short of a strike for about one week now, but this is the day that they have walked out, the day that they have walked out, the dispute is about pay and conditions, as you can hear the beeps from a passing car is in support and also a rather upbeat playlist is giving people going on what is a very cold day to be out picketing, but don't mistake all about, for a lack of determination, these workers say they have had ten years of their pay gradually being eroded, last week the civil servants that are in effect running northern ireland, in the absence of a devolved governments, they made a announcement of a £1a00 per person a pay rise, but the unions rejected

that, they said it because of the rising of the leading, that very high inflation rate, that didn't amount to being a rise at all, in fact in reality it was a pay cut. so the bosses of all of the health trusts in northern ireland have issued a joint statement, saying that they wish their staff would be rewarded fairly in their pay. rewarded properly in their pay. while they haven't said it explicitly, what many here are reading that as is a coded expression of frustration at the political situation. all of this industrial unrest is happening at a time when there hasn't been locally elected ministers in place for quite a few weeks now and there has been a fully functional devolved government for ten months, the democratic unionist party is currently blocking the restoration of a power—sharing executive at stormont over its opposition to the brexit trade border with the rest of the uk. the question of the strikers,

particularly enthusiastic supporters passing there, the question about the strikers are asking is who is their message was directed at they are certainly sending that message to the politicians who they hope will be back in power at stormont sooner rather than later. but they are also directing a message at the government in westminster, who recently stepped in to set a budget for northern ireland, because there were no local ministers in power to do so. so they say they want a fair pay rise in line with inflation, they want better conditions, and these workers say that they are striking to protect the health service, because they say one of the major problems is the staffing shortages, that is leading to northern ireland having the longest hospital waiting times in the uk and the argument of people here on the picket line is that if you don't pay workers well enough, friendly people don't choose to work in health service, they go on to choose to work elsewhere.— service, they go on to choose to work elsewhere. chris, thank you very much _ work elsewhere. chris, thank you very much indeed. _ iran has carried out a second

public execution linked to the nearly three—month wave of anti—government protests. the judiciary says majid reza rahnavard was hanged in the city of mashhad. he was convicted of stabbing and killing two members of the security forces. the first execution linked to the protests took place on thursday. it was roundly condemned by western countries. a minute's silence has been held acrossjersey, and flags on official buildings have been lowered, after five people died in a suspected gas explosion, at a block of flats on saturday. police are continuing to search for four people who are still missing and warn the recovery operation could take weeks. our correspondent, danjohnson is in the capital st helier for us. this is a disaster that has shaken at this island community, does it everybody here very hard, it was an enormous explosion that destroyed the small block of flats that stood

just up there where the orange arm of that to get now stands, there is very little left of the building, just a pile of rubble which search teams have continued going through because they are still searching for four people who are missing. we know five people lost their lives and the declaration over the weekend was that the search effort would turn into a recovery operation, because there was no hope of finding any survivors. this morning people across the island fell silent at 11am for a minute that was respected by people from the emergency services, people who were involved in the search here, they stop their work for a moment, people who were working on the harbour here in jersey boys for a moment, they lined up jersey boys for a moment, they lined up and bowed their heads in respect, notjust up and bowed their heads in respect, not just for the lives up and bowed their heads in respect, notjust for the lives lost but of too much that have hit the island this week, a fishing boat sankjust a few days ago whether the loss of three fishermen, so people here on the island have had a lot to deal with in the last week, there is still a huge clear of going on here,

the explosion was so powerful that even buildings a couple of hundred metres away were affected, there is endless investigation into the cause of the exposure going on and whether it could be prevented, because the emergency services were called about a potential gas leak on friday night, just hours before that exposure. these messaging platform twitter is launching its subtraction service will stop it will get a blue tick badge of verifying their account has been verified. people subscribing on apple devices will have to pay more. the initial launch last month was suspended after a rash of fake accounts. now, let's see what the weather is doing. not as much snow around now compared with what some saw yesterday and last night, just a few flurries through the midlands, drifting towards past of north—east wayland, quite muggy conditions —— rack

north—east wales. far north of scotland, as you the evening, even if temperatures a drop below freezing, they will trouble began to go through the night and when it a significant ice risk. with it few view so lorries have been limited amounts of impact, north—west england, one or two of the northern ireland. spreading into the main in scotland, again —15 possible in the aberdeenshire, a cold night where the snows lie in east anglia and the south—east, —5 or below, at least it should be a brighter star is due tomorrow. make use conditions, north wales, north midlands and north england. brightening up through the day. hazy sunshine in the south, snow flurries in scotland, southwark, another cold day. potential for snow in south england later. hello this is bbc news with me, ben brown. the headlines: west midlands police say

three boys aged eight, ten and 11 have died after being pulled from an icy lake in solihull on sunday. some of the officers went in waist deep. one of my officers were trying to punch through the eyes to rescue the children. snow, ice and fog cause widespread travel disruption in parts of the uk, with hundreds of motorists and air travellers stranded. the government will hold an emergency cobra meeting this afternoon on how to deal with a wave of strikes, including in the nhs and on the rail network. new figures show the uk economy shrank by 0.3% between august and october, with the country expected to be in recession by the end of the year. sport now, and for a full round—up, we go over to the bbc sport centre.

good afternoon. a good new era for english cricket with ben stokes captaining and brendon mccullum in charge, because they pulled off another thrilling victory in pakistan, winning the second test by 26 runs, and with that, they sealed an historic series victory. mark wood led the charge on day four, taking three crucial wickets, which earnt england their first test series win in pakistan since 2005. joe wilson reports. one team needs six wickets, the other 157 more runs, a classic test match conclusion, with mohammad nawaz on the attack for pakistan. they lost just one early wicket. shaquille was guiding, surviving, and look at the science — it was heading pakistan's way. just 65 to win now, england getting desperate.

i touch on nawaz�*s glover and he was gone. shaquille was out caught as well. well, was he? the on field umpire thought so but ask his colleagues to study these replays. did the bowl touch the ground? the official gave the decision in england's favour. well... by, official gave the decision in england's favour. well... a big moment in _ england's favour. well... a big moment in the _ england's favour. well... a big moment in the game, - england's favour. well... a big moment in the game, this. - england's favour. well... a big - moment in the game, this. ahmed took on the bowling — moment in the game, this. ahmed took on the bowling for _ moment in the game, this. ahmed took on the bowling for an _ moment in the game, this. ahmed took on the bowling for an entertaining - on the bowling for an entertaining 17, there was still hope. mark wood was too quick to often form a mode here. did you get that? oh, yes. 27 runs from the target, muhammad ali's bat touch this and that was all out. england had found another route to victory. brute england had found another route to victo . ~ , ., ., �* victory. we understand what we've mana . ed victory. we understand what we've managed to _ victory. we understand what we've managed to achieve _ victory. we understand what we've managed to achieve today. - victory. we understand what we've managed to achieve today. come i victory. we understand what we'vel managed to achieve today. come to pakistan and win is obviously very difficult. it turned out to be another down to the wire game again. england have won twice in pakistan

this month. they won twice there in the preceding 60 years, and with ben stokes, the extraordinary happens just about every day. england's women have continued their great form on their tour of west indies. after winning their one—day series 3—0, they eased to a victory by 8 wickets in the first t20 match. set a target of 106 to win in antigua, they reached it with over seven overs to spare. opener danni wyatt starred with 59 not out offjust 3a balls. china's yan bingtao has been suspended from attending or competing on the world snooker tour with immediate effect as part of an ongoing investigation into match—fixing. the world number 16 won the masters last year, and has been suspsended by the sport's governing body. five other chinese players have already been suspended as part of the investigation into allegations of manipulating the outcome of matches for betting purposes. compatriot liang wenbo was also banned in october.

speaking at the english open — where bingtao was due to play today — chair of the wpbsa jason ferguson says they're tackling corruption in the game. every sport, there are people behind the scenes in every sport, trying to corrupt live sport every day of the world, every night of the week, it is going on all the time, and that is not about whether you are in the uk or wherever you are, there are various markets around the world where betting goes on and we have seen it in every sport, whether that is football, tennis, cricket, all sports have had issues. this is our issue to deal with today and we will deal with it and we will bring it out into the open and suspend players, hence the ongoing inquiry. the rugby football union say they are prepared to be flexible in the hope of allowing wasps and worcester secure places in next season's championship. they had previously given today's date, the 12th december, as a deadline for those interested

in buying the former premiership clubs, who both went into administration this year. they expect to have a decision ahead of christmas, which may allow worcester and wasps to start next season in the second tier of english rugby. that's all the sport for now. with the cold weather and longer nights, it's peak time for using energy. last night, the national grid, the electricity operator for the uk, started to prepare some of its contingency plans to help support the network. and with temperatures in the minus figures at the moment, many families will be worrying about rising bills. here's rachel stonehouse with a reminder of some of the best ways to save money on your energy bills this winter. lucy and georgia are third year students in cardiff and worrying about energy bills is a daily issue in their shared house. our bill comes through every month and we are like, "oh,

my gosh, we need to stop." so it has really stopped us from putting the heating on, using the oven as much, you know, everything we would normally do has to be thought about now. but living in a really cold house for a long time can impact our physical health and our mental health. so what can lucy and georgia do to keep costs down? here are the bbc�*s five tips which could save as much as £500 a year on a typical energy bill. if you rent, you might need to check with your landlord first. one, turn the thermostat down to 18—21 celsius when the heating is on. two, consider reducing your boiler flow temperature to 60 degrees. three, turn your radiator valves down. turning down the radiators, not having them on full blast when we have the heating on was a new idea to me. other things you can do to keep your costs down — draught proofing your doors and windows.

keep your showers to under four minutes if you can. and you can also get an energy efficient shower head which costs around £10 to buy. for a girl, it's not realistic to have a four minute shower! but in the times we're in now, i feel as though we are going to have to try and do that. for washing your hair and stuff like that, it's going to be varied. research shows that younger people and those in shared housing are less likely to have made energy saving changes to their homes. so, will lucy and georgia make any of these permanently? i think it's something we can probably keep up. but at the moment, we have been finding it a bit more difficult. i think those sorts of tips would be quite useful. rachel stonehouse, bbc news. one of the reasons put energy prices are so high is the war in ukraine. it's been almost 10 months since russian soldiers invaded ukraine, but despite hundreds of thousands

of reservists being called up, russia is no longer advancing in any meaningful way on the battlefield. president putin insists that russian soldiers on the ground are — as he describes it — "fighting brilliantly" and he calls them "heroes". but there are some who refuse to fight. we've heard testimony from servicemen, relatives and activists which suggests that some of them have been subjected to mistreatment, threats and even violence to try to force them back to the frontline. our russia editor, steve rosenberg, has been listening to some of their stories. the official view from the kremlin is that russians believe their war in ukraine is a noble cause. one they are ready to die for. but after ten months of fighting, not all the soldiers think that. sergei has agreed to tell me about his son, stas, an army officer. we have changed their names to protect their identities.

deployed to ukraine, his son refused to fight. he told me it was a difficult decision for him to take, i told him, better to take it. this is not our war. it's not a war of liberation. i will put that in writing, that i refuse to fight, he said. he and several others who refused had their guns taken off them and were put under armed guard. sergei travelled to the front line in ukraine to try to secure his son's release. eventually, stas was sent back to russia, and revealed the full drama of his detention — how russian soldiers had tried to force him to fight. they beat him and then they took him outside as if they were going to shoot him. they made him lie on the ground and told him to count to ten. he refused, so they beat him over the head several times with a pistol. he told me his face was covered in blood and then they took him into a room and told him,

you're coming with us otherwise we will kill you. but someone there said, i'll take him to work in the storeroom. and there are other stories. these mobilised russian troops were locked in a cellar after they said they won't go back into battle. basements turned into dungeons for those who don't want to fight. human rights activists say cases like these reflect the pressure russian soldiers are coming under in ukraine from their own commanders. translation: it's a way of making j people go back into that bloodbath. but it's not possible to force people to fight in a war. the commanders know only violence and intimidation. they are used to it. why are some russian soldiers in ukraine refusing to go back to the front? in some cases, it is a moral decision.

but for many others, having experienced the horrors of the battlefield, it is simply an attempt to stay alive. later, i speak to the mother of a russian lieutenant. she says he contacted her from ukraine to tell her he had been put in a basement after disobeying orders to advance. he was with four other officers. they hadn't been seen for five months. translation: l was later told i that the building they were in was shelled and that all - five men were missing. they said no remains were found. it doesn't make sense, it's absurd. the way my son was treated wasn't only illegal, it was inhuman. - russia has inflicted enormous suffering on its neighbour. it's threatening its own people, too. my son told me, i never thought my own country would treat me this way. people here don't understand how

much danger we are in, not from the opposing side but from our side. for this war, the kremlin is demanding total support. steve rosenberg, bbc news, russia. prosecutors in greece have frozen all assets of a greek member of the european parliament, eva kaili, who's been arrested in belgium, accused of corruption. ms kaili was allegedly caught with bags of cash at her home. investigators believe this was money she received from qatar, in return for supporting the country in debates at the european parliament. doha denies bribing meps. belgian prosecutors have charged four people and seized more than $600,000. the european commission president ursula von der leyen commented on the case a short while ago. the allegations against the vice president of the european parliament

are of most concern, very serious. it is a question of confidence of people into our institutions, and this confidence and trust in our institutions needs higher standards of independence and integrity. the headlines on bbc news: west midlands police have confirmed that three boys, aged eight, ten and 11, have died after being pulled from an icy lake in solihull at the weekend. snow, ice and fog are causing widespread travel disruption in parts of the uk, with hundreds of motorists and air travellers are stranded. the government is holding an emergency meeting of its cobra committee this afternoon on how to deal with a wave of industrial action, including in the nhs and on the railway network. motor neurone disease charities have given a cautious welcome to a long—awaited announcement of how millions of pounds of funding

grants will be allocated. the government promised £50 million last year and has today revealed how nearly 30 million of it will be spent — with a promise to "fast track" the remainder to other research projects. it follows intense campaigning from charities and those living with the condition, including the former rugby stars rob burrow and doddie weir. will batchelor reports. five sportsmen whose passion and commitment on the pitch has been surpassed by a new level of courage against the cruellest of opponents. from the former rugby league star rob burrow, sharing his own personal challenges of living with mnd, to his great friend kevin sinfield, raising awareness and funds through extreme physical challenges. and the charity set up by the rugby union legend doddie weir. he died last month, but his legacy lives on. last year, along with other mnd campaigners, rob burrow and the former footballer stephen darby travelled to downing street and convinced the government to commit

to investing £50 million overfive years to help find new therapies and eventually a cure. but more than 12 months on, campaigners said the money had still not materialised. this was something the health minister was challenged on last week. what does very, very shortly mean? because patience is running out. within days, not weeks. days, not weeks. now the government has finally announced where nearly £30 million of the 50 will be going, including £8 million for early phase clinical research, £12.5 million to support frontal temporal lobe dementia research, and £6 million overall to join relevant research programmes together. the department of health is inviting mnd researchers to apply for a share of the remainder. the secretary of state's plans do fall short of an mnd research institute, which is what we're really looking for. but we are cautiously optimistic. there are some details that we would like to talk to the secretary of state about at the earliest opportunity.

and people with mnd don't have time to wait. half of them will die within two years of diagnosis, and we need a treatment and cure for this devastating disease. mnd is currently a disease without a cure, but the hope is that this funding will pave the way for a breakthrough. will batchelor, bbc news. national highways, the government body that manages england's major road network, has defended smart motorways after a software failure meant that stranded vehicles were at risk of being driven into. in an exclusive interview with look north, their director of operations, duncan smith, said there will be further outages. spencer stokes reports. smart motorways, roads with the hard shoulder has been removed to create more capacity, radar signs and cctv then added to improve safety. but on october 26th, that safety net disappeared, software failure saw staff lose

control of the signals on smart motorways for nearly four hours. they couldn't close any lanes with the red x symbol, putting drivers who had to stop on the motorway at potential risk of being driven into. for the first time, national highways has spoken about what happened. in that period, our ability to set red xs was switched off, that wasn't an ideal situation, but one we managed through other measures such as extra patrols on the network. but it wasn't just switched on and off again, it was off nearly three hours — a long time. when we brought the system back—up, we experienced some unexpected faults, that is why it turned into four hours. the outage led to outrage from rotherham's mp. motorists are 100% playing roulette with their lives every time they go on a smart motorway.

the latest data shows in 2020, conventional motorways with a hard shoulder carried 60% of traffic and accounted for a.5% of all fatalities. in comparison, smart motorways carried less traffic, just 3.3%, but were safer, accounting for 0.6a% of fatalities. but the figures are disputed, with critics arguing the data needs to simply address whether the absence of a hard shoulder was a factor in a death or it wasn't. it is difficult to ascertain the decision—making of drivers when there is and is not a hard shoulder whether what their behaviour would have been if the hard shoulder was there. what i feel personally is that smart motorways provide a level of assurance to be as a motorist that overrode stone. but that extra level of assurance is only there when the technology works,

and it will continue to be switched off for maintenance at quiet times. drivers aren't told when. i'm not wanting to give the impression we switch it off for any other reason than essential upgrades, and those are by exception rather than the norm. smart motorways remain controversial, safety data overfive years is being measured before new ones are constructed. national highways say they are the safest type of road, but drivers remain unconvinced. nasa's uncrewed orion capsule has splashed down in the pacific, ending a three—week test mission. the flight prepares the way for the return of astronauts to the moon. our science editor rebecca morelle reports. after a million mile journey through space, our blue planet comes into view. it's time for the orion

spacecraft to come home. with images taken from the capsule just after it entered the earth's atmosphere, orion has travelled faster and hotter than any space vehicle has done before. the spacecraft about to go subsonic. a series of parachutes open, rapidly slowing the capsule down. three good main chutes for orion. and there it is. high over the pacific, america's new ticket to ride to the moon and beyond now in view. then splashdown. the artemis mission is complete. from tranquility base to taurus—littrow to the tranquil waters of the pacific, the latest chapter of nasa'sjourney to the moon comes to a close. we are adventurers, we are explorers. we always have a frontier. and that frontier is now to continue exploring the heavens. three, two, one.

and liftoff of artemis i. the mission blasted off in november from the kennedy space center on the most powerful rocket nasa has ever built. and over the course of 26 days, it performed a close flyby of the moon twice, capturing stunning images along the way, revealing remarkable detail of the lunar surface. the capsule also flew far beyond, further than any spacecraft built for humans. no people were on board this time, it's a test flight. instead, mannequins covered in thousands of sensors recorded data from the voyage. and this is vital because the next step is to get astronauts on board and eventually land them on the moon. when you take, just like a test campaign, you take a bunch of small steps that add up to something amazing like this. exploration is not going away. humans have been exploring the earth for as long as humans have been on the earth. and we're going to continue

exploring deep space. the capsule is now being recovered and taken on board a navy ship to be assessed by the mission team. they'll be poring over data to see how the spacecraft has fared. preparations are already under way forfuture missions, with new crew capsules being built. we can have a look inside orion's capsule to see what it's going to be like for the astronauts when the rocket eventually does have a crew. at five metres wide, that's more than 15 feet, it is big. it can accommodate four people inside. in fact, there's more than twice as much room as the apollo astronauts had for their missions to the moon in the 1960s and 70s. roger on that. we leave as we came, and god willing, as we shall return. it's 50 years since astronauts were last on the moon with apollo 17. their footprints are still preserved in the dust. no—one thought it would

take so long to return. but now others may soon be making their mark, as the moon is within humanity's sights once again. rebecca morelle, bbc news. with less than two weeks to go, there's a late contender for this year's christmas number one. mark and roxanne hoyle, better known as the youtubing duo, ladbaby, are aiming once again for the festive top spot, and have brought in help from the money saving expert, martin lewis. our entertainment reporter, daniel rosney has more... #we # we built this city on sausage rolls... #. for the fifth year, they are back. of the last what might years, thanks to all of your amazing support, we have been able to do something truly phenomenal. itruiith have been able to do something truly phenomenal-—

phenomenal. with not one or two, or three... # come and sing and dance to sausage rolls... #. but four christmas number ones. profits will be donated to food bank charity the trust will trust, saying they had to do something when people are struggling more than ever. funds will also be split with the band aid foundation because they are releasing a version of this 198a classic. # feed the world, let them know it's christmas time again... # they said they were excited to see what we were going to do. like # they said they were excited to see what we were going to do.— what we were going to do. like the oriainal, what we were going to do. like the original. there _ what we were going to do. like the original, there will _ what we were going to do. like the original, there will be _ what we were going to do. like the original, there will be some - original, there will be some celebrities involved this time around. it is top secret for now, other than... around. it is top secret for now, other than. . ._ around. it is top secret for now, other than...- financial. other than... hello. financial exert other than... hello. financial exoert martin _ other than... hello. financial expert martin lewis. - other than... hello. financial expert martin lewis. i - other than... hello. financial expert martin lewis. i don't i other than... hello. financial- expert martin lewis. i don't think eve one expert martin lewis. i don't think everyone is _ expert martin lewis. i don't think everyone is ready _ expert martin lewis. i don't think everyone is ready for _ expert martin lewis. i don't think everyone is ready for martin - expert martin lewis. i don't think. everyone is ready for martin lewis's singing _ everyone is ready for martin lewis's singing voice. i genuinely don't. it is so _ singing voice. i genuinely don't. it is so good — singing voice. i genuinely don't. it is so good. in the beginning we had to convince — is so good. in the beginning we had to convince him to stop singing, and by the _

to convince him to stop singing, and by the end _ to convince him to stop singing, and by the end of it we had to convince him to— by the end of it we had to convince him to stoo — by the end of it we had to convince him to stop-— him to stop. first but could trump the beatles _ him to stop. first but could trump the beatles to _ him to stop. first but could trump the beatles to have _ him to stop. first but could trump the beatles to have the _ him to stop. first but could trump the beatles to have the most - the beatles to have the most christmas number ones. but they've got tough competition from mariah carey. got tough competition from mariah care . �* , . got tough competition from mariah care.�* ,. ., got tough competition from mariah care. ., .,, carey. i've beaten mariah carey before. come _ carey. i've beaten mariah carey before. come on, _ carey. i've beaten mariah carey before. come on, we _ carey. i've beaten mariah carey before. come on, we can - carey. i've beaten mariah carey before. come on, we can beat. carey. i've beaten mariah carey - before. come on, we can beat mariah carey. before. come on, we can beat mariah care . , ., , before. come on, we can beat mariah care. “ , carey. daniel grozny, bbc news. first or the _ carey. daniel grozny, bbc news. first or the beatles. _ carey. daniel grozny, bbc news. first or the beatles. let's - carey. daniel grozny, bbc news. first or the beatles. let's see - carey. daniel grozny, bbc news. l first or the beatles. let's see what the weather is doing. here is matt. hello. the snow may have had impacts across some southern areas into today, but it's been the cold that's felt more widely. coldest start to a day since january 2021. coldest of all braemar in aberdeenshire, —16 as we began the day. so, how long is this cold spell going to last? we notice the blue colours remain in force throughout this week. a little blip of milder air very close to the south. that could have some impact tomorrow night. but it isn't until this weekend, especially sunday, we could see a wholesale pattern change. out there, back here and now, we've also got to add to the cold, some mist and fog around still lingering.

a murky day across parts of central eastern england. that drifting a bit further northwards. a lot of sunshine elsewhere, a few wintry showers in eastern northern ireland, some in the very far north of scotland. but for most it is colder there. some not getting above freezing all day long. temperatures dropping again this evening and with it, a significant ice risk, especially where you've seen the wintriest of the weather through the past couple of days. so into tonight, to go with that ice risk, a few snow flurries midlands into north west england. a limited amount of impacts, one or two to the east of northern ireland, but more especially in the very far north of scotland, drifting around in some strengthening winds. but —15 again, possibly in aberdeenshire. and east anglia, south east, a cold night tonight, we see some clearing skies and some hazy sunshine for tomorrow. now, tomorrow, the snow is going to be mainly across northern scotland, drifting its way down through eastern areas, could make it into the north east of england by the time we hit tomorrow evening. a lot of dry weather, a lot of sunshine. sunshine hazy across the south, another very cold day. but that little blip of milder air i mentioned, that's this rain here getting close to the southwest later in the day and into the night. the thing is, that's

going to push into colder air, and that could give some more significant snow across parts of devon, cornwall, somerset, dorset, especially as we go through tuesday night and into wednesday morning. could be a bit further south. we'll keep an eye on that for you. but once that clears through, midweek onwards, the northerly winds are back, meaning better visibility. snow mainly to the north and east of scotland, and to a limited degree, in the north east of england. however, through wednesday, winds will strengthen — 60—70mph gusts, blizzards across orkney, shetland and the north of the mainland. a lot of dry and bright weather elsewhere. but with that wind, don't even think about those as your temperatures. it's going to feel much, much colder in the wind. and then, to see the week out, we've got that northerly to begin with. still some further wintry flows in the north. this is what will bring the more significant change on sunday. and you can follow all those changes where you live on the bbc weather app.

this is bbc news. i'm ben brown. the headlines: west midlands police say three boys aged eight, ten and 11 have died after being pulled from an icy lake in solihull on sunday. some of the officers went in waist deep. one of my officers tried to punch through the ice to rescue the children themselves. snow, ice and fog cause widespread travel disruption in parts of the uk with hundreds of motorists and air travellers stranded. the government will hold an emergency cobra this afternoon on how to deal with a wave of strikes — including in the nhs and on the rail network.

new figures show the uk economy shrank by 0.3% between august and october, with the country expected to be in recession by the end of the year. this year's golden globes nominations have been announced — dark comedy the banshees of inisherin leads the way with eight nods, followed closely by science fiction film everything everywhere all at once with six. and in sport, england's cricketers clinch a historic test series win in pakistan, theirfirst in the country for 22 years. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. west midlands fire service have called it a "tragedy beyond words."

three boys, aged 8,10 and 11, have died afterfalling into a frozen lake in solihull, in the west midlands. they were rushed to hospital, after being pulled from the water at babbs mill park. a fourth boy, who's six, remains in a critical condition in hospital. police are continuing to search the lake, but they have no information that other children may be missing. our correspondent phil mackie has sent us this report, which some viewers may find distressing. just after 2:30pm, four children had fallen through the ice. police officers raced to help. there was a massive emergency response. a search to see if there were any others continued into the night. four young boys were pulled out and were taken to hospital, all had suffered cardiac arrests. today, we had confirmation of the news everyone feared, three had

died, the other aged six is still critical in hospital. we have worked very closely with our colleagues in west midlands fire service and also in west midlands ambulance service, this has been a realjoint effort. it is incredibly sad that we do not have any better news for you today regarding yesterday afternoon's incident. the boys' deaths are a tragedy beyond words, and the thoughts and heartfelt sympathies of everyone here at west midlands fire service are with their families, friends and the wider community at this distressing time. they are still not sure if there's anyone in the water, initial reports suggested there may have been five or six children playing on the ice. compared to the rescue operation that was going on yesterday afternoon and last night, things have scaled down considerably. but you can still see police officers wading through the ice cold water as part of the recovery operation in appalling conditions. the news has affected everyone

here, many of whom have come to pay their respects. as mothers and grandparents, we couldn't imagine how last night went for that family and their parents and as a mother. it is something you try not to think about. the prime minister has sent his condolences via the local mp, both of whom have children of a similar age. since i have heard the news, like many people i have been in shock. it is a great tragedy, this is a real close knit community, and to hear about children playing on the ice and falling through, just all of it, the shock and anguish is very real at the moment. the children's school, a short walk from where the tragedy happened, was shut today. grief remains the overwhelming emotion. there are questions about safety and whether children are fully aware of the dangers of playing on ice. yesterday's incident is a stark reminder to us all of the dangers of open water, especially during the winter months. frozen lakes, ponds,

canals and reservoirs that look picturesque, they can be lethal. there are no greater warnings of this than yesterday's tragic events. snow, ice and fog have caused serious travel disruption across the uk, particularly in the south of england. all flights at stansted airport were suspended overnight, though they've now resumed, and there have also been delays at heathrow and gatwick. train companies have warned passengers to check before travelling. here's duncan kennedy. that all important travel. this is what many side roads in south—east england have looked like today. plenty of others have been completely blocked. we came across this young driver near paddock wood in kent. his tyres caught an icy patch and he hit a concrete post. he was shaken but unhurt. for others here, it's been a morning of energy

sapping clear ups. what do you make of the conditions this morning? they're great for children, but they're not the best for businesses and commuting. these are all cars. every kind of travel system has been hit by the snow. dozens of cars were abandoned on the m25 and hertfordshire. some motorists were stranded for more than 12 hours. i've never seen snow like it. as soon as i hit the m25, it wasjust chaos. there were many different parts where we were just stranded and we didn't see any emergency services. nobody can get through. the gritters and snowplows were out in gloucestershire as parts of the east and south—west were also carpeted by the snow. major airports have seen more than 100 flights cancelled. not only here at heathrow, but at stansted, gatwick and luton as well, hitting pre—christmas

travel plans for thousands of passengers. trains have also been badly affected, especially in rural places like here in kent, where commuter and other services have been severely reduced. euston is just one of the stations full of people rearranging their plans. southeastern, southwestern, southern and greater anglia all report severe disruption. just like london underground services. in east sussex, the christmas spirit was flowing for a0 people forced to take refuge in a pub. the bear inn at burwash laid on hot drinks and mattresses amid the log fires. so we trekked here, two miles, a two mile journey from the other pub. and sure enough, pauline, and her team, welcomed us with open arms and made hot food, hot drinks and said, "you can all stay." the effects of this weather

will play out across today. there'll be clear—ups, disruption and some chaos for many hours to come. our correspondent howard johnson described how passengers are being affected at euston station. we have spoken to lots of people who have been moving across from gatwick airport, stansted airport, trying to move to other airports across the country, up to birmingham to connect to a flight that we get them back to their home country. we have seen delays caused by the london underground having staff issues and we have also heard of a lot of points and signals are frozen over which has caused disruption on the trains here. we have seen on the departures board all day delays and cancellations, but people are making their way onto the trains, so we are not seeing a situation where people are stranded here just yet. as the light fades here, there is a concern that people might get caught out,

given that tomorrow there is a planned industrial action of train workers, so the fear is if people cannot get home tonight, they might be stranded in london. so as the light fades, people are beginning to get concerned and more people are coming here and getting on any train they can to get home as quickly as possible. i they can to get home as quickly as ossible. , , , ., possible. i guess in the run-up to christmas. _ possible. i guess in the run-up to christmas, travellers _ possible. i guess in the run-up to christmas, travellers are - possible. i guess in the run-up to christmas, travellers are quite i christmas, travellers are quite worried about whether they will be able to get around, get to destinations, that combination of industrial action and the weather making things potentially really difficult over the next few days? absolutely. i heard from one family who said they tried to come down here three times this year but had been caught up in industrial action and therefore had cancelled their plans, but they had finally made it down for a trip to london that had been planned for a long time. now they were racing their way back to manchester in the hope they could get home. i have not seen them at

the train station this afternoon so fortunately i think they did get onto a train and made their way back, but there is this concern that if you get caught here tonight, i have heard the last train back to glasgow for instance could be from 7:30pm, then there might be issues getting back. i have even heard from a friend of a friend who is looking for accommodation. they were trying to make their way back to france today, but their flight was cancelled and they had to hastily make a booking at a hotel to stay overnight and try to get the plane tomorrow back to france. howard johnson at their at euston station. it has emerged that representatives of the royal college of nursing are to meet the health secretary tonight, just days before planned industrial action in england and wales. senior ministers will attend a meeting later this afternoon of the government's "cobra" emergencies committee — they'll be looking at contingency

plans for a wave of planned strikes by public sector workers. and they'll discuss the deployment of military personnel and civil servants to help cover walkouts by border force officers, and ambulance crews. also this week, there'll be four days of rail disruption, as a0,000 staff go on strike. after a breakdown in talks, more than 100,000 royal mail workers are involved in two days of industrial action. if you're a learner driver, check your test date this week. examiners are set to walk out over pay, pensions and job security, with scotland and the north east of england affected. other areas could be hit later. healthcare workers in northern ireland, including nurses, technicians and administrative workers, have gone on strike. they rejected a pay offer last week that was below the rate of inflation. and the royal college of nursing will begin its first strike in more than a century on thursday. over a hundred thousand nurses are taking part, demanding better pay.

here's our political correspondent damian grammaticas. every corner of the country now is feeling the effects of this rolling wave of strikes. today it's health workers in northern ireland. as it stands, they say, there's no incentive for staff to stay in the nhs, the pay simply isn't good enough. they have had ten years extensively of pay cuts. they cannot afford to make ends meet at this point in time, they cannot afford to fill their cars, they cannot afford to heat their homes. they really do need to secure a decent standard of living. everywhere, the issue is the same. salaries, workers say, have been squeezed too far. strikes on the railways will be stepped up this week and last right across the holiday. royal mail staff have already been out and will be again in the coming days, following ambulance drivers and border force officers. in action starting this week, nurses too, their biggest union, the rcn, has said if the government were to sit down and have

realistic and honest talks about pay it may well recommend its members call off the strikes. but there's no sign of that. we would have to take money away from patients waiting for operations, to then fund additional pay. if everyone on the public sector were to get an increase in line with inflation, that would be costing £28 billion at a time when the government has to get inflation under control. that 28 billion figure has been disputed as an overestimation. while the government appears to be toughening its position, labour has stepped in, criticising ministers for what it says is a profound lack of leadership. at the same time, the labour leader and its shadow health secretary don't want to be seen to be backing the highest pay demands. labour would be willing to negotiate with the nurses. we want to be honest from the point of view of the opposition, inflation plus 5% is not a figure we could reasonably offer if we were in government today. given that unison and the royal college of nursing has offered to talk and negotiate and compromise, i don't

understand why the government isn't biting their hand off. instead ministers today will be discussing using the army to drive ambulances and carry out passport checks at our borders. so the outlook for compromise looks bleak. any thaw between the government and unions unlikely this side of christmas. damian grammaticas, bbc news, westminster. downing street is stressing that there will still be "serious disruption" as a result of the industrial action, despite the army being drafted in. the government's holding a cobra meeting this afternoon to discuss the situation, as our political correspondent jonathan blake explains. little later this afternoon, ministers from departments across government will come together for that meeting of the cobra body as it is known, the government's emergency response committee. it varies from time to time who actually attend the meeting, depending on the particular

events it is responding to, but in this case it will be chaired by oliver dowden and they will be ministered from the ministry of defence, home office, health department as well as the department for transport as well and they will be discussing we are told mostly to date those plans you mentioned, as you heard in damien's reports, the members of the armed forces to fill in for border force staff at ports and airports when they go on strike in the coming days and also to drive ambulances as well, if those strikes go ahead as planned. but while the government has said it will do everything it can to mitigate the impact of these extracts, it also accepts there is only so much that it can do. —— impact of these strikes. that reflects what we have heard from downing street, people should still expect serious disruption as a result of these strikes, there will be challenging days to come when the strikes actually take effect and in the case of ambulances, the ability to

respond to emergency call—outs will be significantly reduced. soap ministers are clearly trying to prepare people for some very, very difficult situations to come as the impact of these strikes actually hurts. —— so ministers. this cobra meeting is the government's temps to mitigate disruption, but it is still blaming the trade unions for these strikes who it is accusing of making unnecessary and unaffordable demands. healthcare workers in northern ireland, members of unison, and the northern ireland public service alliance, have gone on strike over pay and staffing levels. our ireland correspondent chris page is in belfast. this is one of dozens of picket lines across northern ireland today, this one at the world group of hospitals in west belfast. these workers are among thousands who have

come out on strike today and they have been on industrial action for a week now but this is the day they have walked out. the dispute is about pay and conditions. as you can hear, the beaks from passing drivers in support and also a rather upbeat playlist to keep people going on what is a very cold day to be out picketing, but do not mistake all that for a lack of determination. these workers say they have had ten years of their pay gradually being eroded stop last week, the civil servants that are in effect running northern ireland, the absence of a devolved government, made an announcement of £1a00 per person pay rise, but the unions rejected that and said because of the rising cost of living, that very high inflation rate, that did not amount to being a rise at all. in fact, in reality, it was a pay cut. the bosses of all the health trusts in northern ireland issued a joint statement saying they

wish their staff would be rewarded fairly in their pay, rewarded properly in their pay. while they have not said explicitly what many here are reading that has as a coded expression of frustration as the political situation. while all this unrest is happening at a time when there has not been a locally elected ministers in place for quite a few weeks now and there has not been a fully functioning devolved government for ten months. the democratic unionist party is currently blocking the restoration of a power—sharing executive at stormont over its opposition to the brexit trade board up with the uk. so the question with these strikers today, one enthusiastic supporter joe pasteur, the question they strikers are asking is who is their message at best directed at? —— supporter drove past there. they are directing their message at the

government in westminster who recently stepped in to set a budget for northern ireland because there were no local ministers in power to do so. they say they want a fair pay rise in line with inflation, they want better conditions and these workers say that they are striking to protect the health service because they say one of the major problems is staffing shortages which is leading to northern ireland having the longest hospital waiting times in the uk. the argument of people here as if you do not pay workers well enough, frankly people do not choose to work on the health service, they choose to work elsewhere. let's talk about all the problems facing the health service now. thank you very much indeed for being with us. we are seeing an nhs facing such a

difficult winter, aren't we, with all the problems it was already facing and now on top of that we have industrial action? if facing and now on top of that we have industrial action?— facing and now on top of that we have industrial action? if you look at what has _ have industrial action? if you look at what has been _ have industrial action? if you look at what has been having - have industrial action? if you look at what has been having silly - have industrial action? if you look i at what has been having silly health service, it is almost hard to believe it could be happening. that the roots of this go back many years. it is not the pandemic. we have not had a proper workforce strategy for many years now. —— having with the health service. which alleges to staff to deal with the unknown in the pandemic and staff dealt with that magnificently and at the same time we have such rising inflation and clapping is all very nice but people are finding it very nice but people are finding it very difficult to afford to heat their homes and i think it is very difficult right now and i was really pleased to hear you say that they health secretary agreed to negotiations with the nurses because as you said, it is 100 years since the last strike so it is pretty exceptional right now. could that be a otential exceptional right now. could that be a potential breakthrough, _ exceptional right now. could that be a potential breakthrough, the - exceptional right now. could that be a potential breakthrough, the fact . a potential breakthrough, the fact they are at least going to talk? it

has to be, hasn't it? nothing will begin with a stand—off where one side does not talk to the other, it has to be part of understanding the way forward and i agree with what has been said with the need to modernise the nhs, some parts work exceptionally well with up—to—date digital kits and others do not and there are ways we can make the nhs more efficient, but we are suffering a major amount of vacancies in the nhs right now that is making it even more difficult for the staff who remain who are having to work even harder in much more exceptional circumstances right now. you talked about those — circumstances right now. you talked about those staffing _ circumstances right now. you talked about those staffing shortages - circumstances right now. you talked about those staffing shortages and i about those staffing shortages and the kind of crazy economics of the nhs, because it has emerged today that nhs hospitals in england paid as much as £5,200 to agencies in the last yearfor a single as much as £5,200 to agencies in the last year for a single shift by a doctor. that cannot make sense, can it? it doctor. that cannot make sense, can it? ., , ., ., ~

doctor. that cannot make sense, can it? ., , , ., ., it? it does not make sense at all. clearly there _ it? it does not make sense at all. clearly there are _ it? it does not make sense at all. clearly there are some _ it? it does not make sense at all. clearly there are some agencies i it? it does not make sense at all. i clearly there are some agencies that are exploiting these survey shortages and actually when you are a managerfaced with shortages and actually when you are a manager faced with a shortages and actually when you are a managerfaced with a night shortages and actually when you are a manager faced with a night shift where your doctor has just phoned in sick, what are you going to do? this reflects the earlier comments about there has not been proper workforce strategy and we have not invested in our workforce and this has gone on for many years, and i do not know why that is. sometimes it seems to me that it takes so long to trainee doctor that you will not see the benefits in this parliament, so it just does not get addressed because it takes ten years or so, so we need now have agreements for what our workforce plan will be for the next couple of decades, because the situation we are in right now, it is crazy are you saying that we are just under investing? brute crazy are you saying that we are just under investing?— just under investing? we hear governments _ just under investing? we hear governments say _ just under investing? we hear governments say again - just under investing? we hear governments say again and i just under investing? we hear. governments say again and again just under investing? we hear- governments say again and again and ministers say again and again we are

investing record sums in the nhs etc and we still hear experts like you say there is not enough money or staff? ~ . ., ., say there is not enough money or staff? ~ .., ., ., . say there is not enough money or staff? ~ ., ., . ., staff? we could have a much longer debate about _ staff? we could have a much longer debate about where _ staff? we could have a much longer debate about where all— staff? we could have a much longer debate about where all the - staff? we could have a much longer debate about where all the money i staff? we could have a much longer. debate about where all the money has gone, because i think there are areas we could target but it is certainly not in staffing. we have not invested and this year, the argument has always been it takes a lot of money to trainee doctor and the figure i quoted, but if someone is having to pay £5,000 for one shift, you will easily recruit that in a year in agency fees. we need to train more doctors. we have relied on a doctor is coming from overseas and they are fantastic, but more and more countries want those, we are in competition with other countries who pay higher wages, so it is a difficult situation right now. it is notjust difficult situation right now. it is not just doctors, difficult situation right now. it is notjust doctors, although clearly this agency fee is highlighted here, but we have one in ten vacancies in the nhs. we have compounded that, we

do not train or invest, we have had other things that may have been mentioned before around the pensions issue which has made it a disincentive for senior doctors to stay on, not to retire or do additional shift and we have to address these issues. that is being addressed now and that has gone on for many years and some doctors have retired because it. we have done it to ourselves in some regard. we have not invested, we have not trained. refer you back to something jeremy hunt said, he said he really wished, and i'm paraphrasing, that actually they had looked at the whole workforce planning, particularly around medics, when he was secretary of state, made that investment, because we would be reaping the benefits of that now but we are not. very interesting to get your perspective, thank you very much. thank you. perspective, thank you very much. thank you-— perspective, thank you very much. thank ou. ., , .., thank you. one line of news coming into us on the _

thank you. one line of news coming into us on the health _ thank you. one line of news coming into us on the health service. - thank you. one line of news coming into us on the health service. two . into us on the health service. two unions have voted to accept the scottish office. this is cut unison and unite to have voted to accept the scottish government pay offer of around 7.5%. member is of the royal couege around 7.5%. member is of the royal college of nursing and they are still voting on whether to accept. that is coming in from our health editor. so they are voting to accept the scottish government pay offer of 7.5% and as we mentioned at the beginning of that interview, the health secretary is going to be meeting leaders at the royal college of nursing this evening, so we will have to wait and see if there is any kind of breakthrough are not. new official figures show britain's economy shrank by 0.3%,in the three months to the end of october. the chancellor, jeremy hunt, is warning the situation will get worse before it gets better,

with the office for budget responsibility already suggesting the uk has tipped into recession. our economics correspondent andy verity reports. in edinburgh's morningside district, toys galore has been open for more than a0 years. but these are not times of plenty. because the pound is much weaker than last year, and most of the toys are imported, they have been getting more expensive. some cost so much now that they're no longer worth stocking. it's an affluent area but even here people are feeling the pinch. pretty much most people are struggling because they've seen all the costs go up, interest costs, fuel costs, food costs, and yet their wages haven't kept up. everything is getting squeezed. i think that although they will still buy a toy for someone's birthday or someone's christmas, they might buy maybe a small toy, or there might be not the trip to a toy shop on a saturday. the economy, in other words all the goods and services the uk produces, grew by 0.5% in october but that was largely a bounceback from september, which saw a 0.6% fall, largely because of the extra bank holiday for the queen's funeral. the three months from august to october showed a 0.3% fall, suggesting

the uk is on course to be officially declared in recession next year. it's quite clear that with the squeeze that people are experiencing from high inflation, holding back consumer spending and uncertainty holding back investment, that there will be some form of a recession. but it's only as these recessions develop that you can really assess how long they're going to last. services for consumers from restaurants to shops to sports venues also saw a modest bounceback in october from september. in the midst of what's predicted to be the tightest squeeze on living standards since the 19a0s, they're still 8.9% down on pre—pandemic levels. these figures confirm that this is a very challenging economic situation here and across the world. it will get worse before it gets better. but we have a plan that will more than halve inflation over the next year and, if we stay the course, we can get back to the strong

economic growth that we need. activity in manufacturing dropped by 1.8% and the sector has now been in a slump since the summer of last year. the figures also suggest the economy produced a% less electricity and gas in october than a year before. with temperatures higher and prices soaring, households and firms put the heating on for an average of only 2.8 days. but that was two months ago. that was then, this is now. andy verity, bbc news. a minute's silence has been held acrossjersey, and flags on official buildings have been lowered, after five people died in a suspected gas explosion at a block of flats on saturday. police are continuing to search for four people who are still missing and warn the recovery operation could take weeks. our correspondent danjohnson is in the capital st helier for us.

this is a disaster that has shaken the silent community i think. it hit everyone here very hard. it was an enormous explosion that destroyed a small block of flats that stood just up small block of flats that stood just up there where the orange arm of that digger now stands. there is very little left of the building, just a pile of rubble which search teams have continued going through because they are still searching for four people who are missing. we know five lost their lives and the declaration over the weekend was that the search effort would turn into recovery operation because there was no hope in finding any survivors. this morning people across the island fell silent at 11am for a minute. that was respected by people from the emergency services, people involved in research here as well to stop their work here for a moment. people working in the harbour here in jersey paused for a moment. they lined up and bowed their heads and respect, notjust of the lives lost in this explosion but of two tragedies that have hit the island

this week, a fishing boat sankjust a few days ago with the loss of three fishermen, so people here on the island have had a lot to deal with in the last week will stop there is still a huge corrupt going on here. the explosion was so powerful that even buildings a couple of hundred metres away were affected. there is an investigation going on into the cause of this explosion and whether it could have been prevented because the emergency services were warned about a potential gas leak on friday night just hours before that exposing. now it's time for a look at the weather with matt. not as much snow around now compared with yesterday and last night. a few drift in the midlands, drifting towards north—east wales later. murky conditions at the moment, a few showers to the east of northern ireland and the far north of scotland, but even if temperatures have got above freezing they will drop below again as we go into the night, and with it a significant ice

risk. snow flurries have had limited impact in the midlands and north—west england, but more significant snow in the north of mainland scotland. —15 possible in aberdeenshire, a colder night where the snow was lying in east anglia and the south—east, minus five celsius or below but it should be a brighter start tomorrow. one or two isolated snow flurries, brightening through the day. hazy sunshine in the south, snow flurries to the north and east of scotland could have an impact. more details on half an hour. we are going to take you straight to the house of commons, because there is an urgent question from labour's wes streeting on the government's

preparations. abs, wes streeting on the government's preparations-— preparations. a cobra meeting on contingency _ preparations. a cobra meeting on contingency planning _ preparations. a cobra meeting on contingency planning for - preparations. a cobra meeting on | contingency planning for industrial action in the nhs. he came before the house on the subject twice last week i departmental questions and for the opposition day debate. we are all hugely grateful for the hard work and dedication of nhs staff, so we deeply regret that some union members had voted for industrial action. our priority must be to keep patients safe, which begins with keeping the door open. the secretary of state wrote to the rcn on saturday asking for further discussions as a matter of urgency. at the same time we are working with the nhs to minimise the disruption to patients if the strikes go ahead. we are engaged with providers, professional bodies and trade unions to agree safe levels of cover should any action take place. ministers this afternoon, including the secretary of state, are attending a cobra meeting focused on contingency plans, which drawn extra support from other places including service personnel in the private sector. with the nhs already under

significant pressure from the covid pandemic and winter pressures, we remain deeply concerned about the risk strikes a pose to patients. i want to be clear, even at this moment of uncertainty, people must keep coming forward to get the care they need. people should continue to use nhs 111 if they need. people should continue to use nhs111 if they need medical help, and dial 999 in the event of an emergency. for retreat —— for routine treatment, hospitals will make sure things go ahead. inevitably, any strike will mean patients will have their treatment delayed and patients will be contacted if the appointment is delayed. it is our hope that patients can be spared from unnecessary industrial action, which is no one's interest, especially with this difficult winter. we have had constructive meetings with rcn, unison, unite and the gmb, and we look forward to further discussions to find a way forward together that is in the best interests of the patients we all serve. i

is in the best interests of the patients we all serve. i thank you for granting _ patients we all serve. i thank you for granting this _ patients we all serve. i thank you for granting this urgent _ patients we all serve. i thank you j for granting this urgent question. the power— for granting this urgent question. the power to stop these strikes and lies squarely with the government and the _ lies squarely with the government and the secretary of state. the royal— and the secretary of state. the royal college of nursing and unison have said _ royal college of nursing and unison have said they will call off strikes this week— have said they will call off strikes this week if they are willing to negotiate with them seriously on p5y~ negotiate with them seriously on pay. this — negotiate with them seriously on pay. this is a reasonable offer of compromise that is surely too good to refuse. — compromise that is surely too good to refuse, so what on earth are they playing _ to refuse, so what on earth are they playing at? — to refuse, so what on earth are they playing at? after 12 years of conservative government, patients can no _ conservative government, patients can no longer get seen on time, staff— can no longer get seen on time, staff have — can no longer get seen on time, staff have been pushed to breaking point, _ staff have been pushed to breaking point, and — staff have been pushed to breaking point, and they can't even be bothered _ point, and they can't even be bothered to try to negotiate to prevent — bothered to try to negotiate to prevent strikes going ahead at the worst— prevent strikes going ahead at the worst possible time for patients and the nhs _ worst possible time for patients and the nhs. the government should ask themselves why nurses feel they have to take _ themselves why nurses feel they have to take industrial action for the first time — to take industrial action for the first time in more than 100 years under— first time in more than 100 years under a — first time in more than 100 years under a conservative government. ambulance — under a conservative government. ambulance workers are set to them for the _

ambulance workers are set to them for the first — ambulance workers are set to them for the first time since 1989. it should — for the first time since 1989. it should be _ for the first time since 1989. it should be obvious by now what the conservative agenda is. they know that patients are going to suffer this winter and they have no plan to fix the _ this winter and they have no plan to fix the problems of their making, so instead _ fix the problems of their making, so instead of— fix the problems of their making, so instead of taking responsibility for their failure, they want to use nurses— their failure, they want to use nurses and paramedics as scapegoats to avoid _ nurses and paramedics as scapegoats to avoid the _ nurses and paramedics as scapegoats to avoid the pain. it is a disgusting plan, a dangerous plan, and it— disgusting plan, a dangerous plan, and it is— disgusting plan, a dangerous plan, and it is a — disgusting plan, a dangerous plan, and it is a plan that will not work, because _ and it is a plan that will not work, because the — and it is a plan that will not work, because the public know the power to stop these _ because the public know the power to stop these strikes is in their hands, _ stop these strikes is in their hands, and if they fail to act now, patients— hands, and if they fail to act now, patients will never forgive them. how many— patients will never forgive them. how many operations have already been _ how many operations have already been cancelled? how does the minister— been cancelled? how does the minister expect those on the waiting list to— minister expect those on the waiting list to feel— minister expect those on the waiting list to feel if their operations are cancelled — list to feel if their operations are cancelled because of their gross negligence? can he tell patients which _ negligence? can he tell patients which services will be impacted if the strikes go ahead? and isn't the secretary— the strikes go ahead? and isn't the secretary of state embarrassed at cobra _ secretary of state embarrassed at cobra today, asking the army to come in to clean—

cobra today, asking the army to come in to clean up— cobra today, asking the army to come in to clean up their mess? even at this last _ in to clean up their mess? even at this last minute, it is not too late to prevent — this last minute, it is not too late to prevent the strikes from going ahead _ to prevent the strikes from going ahead. perhaps the minister can tell us whether— ahead. perhaps the minister can tell us whether the meeting with the rcn later today will involve discussions on pay, _ later today will involve discussions on pay. and — later today will involve discussions on pay, and if not, why not? because that is— on pay, and if not, why not? because that is all— on pay, and if not, why not? because that is all it _ on pay, and if not, why not? because that is all it takes, just a few minutes— that is all it takes, just a few minutes or hours of talk can avoid strike _ minutes or hours of talk can avoid strike action. why won't they do it? the fact— strike action. why won't they do it? the fact is— strike action. why won't they do it? the fact is that labour is all over the place when it comes to strikes. they criticise ministers while admitting the unions' pay demands are unaffordable. the gentleman opposite and his party leader are too tied to their union paymasters too tied to their union paymasters to be on the side of patients. he knows that we have an independent pay review body, and it is important that both sides respect that independent body. an independent body whose recommendations we accepted this year in full, meaning that over1 million nhs staff have

been given at least a £1a00 increase in their page. that is on top of a 3% pay rise last year at a time when the pay was frozen across the wider public sector. the rcn, one of the union is taking action, is asking for an increase 5% above rpi. based on the latest figures, that is an increase of 19.2%, or equivalent of 6.5% of the nhs budget. to meet such demands, we would have to take away funds for clearing the backlog, something the responsible government would wish to do. throughout this period we have sought to have a balance process, and those in the private sector will not be getting a 19% uplift, and there is a clear need to be fair to the wider economy. we have got to avoid inflationary pressures that would make us all poorer in the end. we will continue to listen to the concerns of colleagues notjust about pay but about many other

issues affecting the working lives of those in the nhs and work with them to make those improvements in a range of areas, from working conditions to patient safety, because we believe there is so much that we can agree on. strike action is in no one's best interest, and we will keep working so the nhs continues to be there for those who need it most. continues to be there for those who need it most-— continues to be there for those who need it most. with your indulgence, ma i need it most. with your indulgence, may i send — need it most. with your indulgence, may i send our— need it most. with your indulgence, may i send our heartfelt _ need it most. with your indulgence, may i send our heartfelt sympathies to the _ may i send our heartfelt sympathies to the parents of little boys who have _ to the parents of little boys who have lost — to the parents of little boys who have lost their lives in the west midlands — have lost their lives in the west midlands overnight and say thank you to the _ midlands overnight and say thank you to the emergency services, many of them _ to the emergency services, many of them working in the nhs emergency services, _ them working in the nhs emergency services, the man shall have done their— services, the man shall have done their best — services, the man shall have done their best for them they have pulled out and _ their best for them they have pulled out and those they were unable to say. out and those they were unable to say we _ out and those they were unable to say we do — out and those they were unable to say. we do have an independent pay review _ say. we do have an independent pay review process in this country but it seems— review process in this country but it seems we are coming to an interesting juncture on that. either we believe — interesting juncture on that. either we believe in the process or we don't _ we believe in the process or we don't we — we believe in the process or we don't. we can't be in a situation where _ don't. we can't be in a situation where everything is agreed until it is simply— where everything is agreed until it is simply not, and then ministers

are negotiating pay. that is not what _ are negotiating pay. that is not what ministers do. on patients, i'm -lad what ministers do. on patients, i'm glad the _ what ministers do. on patients, i'm glad the minister mentioned at the end of— glad the minister mentioned at the end of his — glad the minister mentioned at the end of his remarks, we must keep them _ end of his remarks, we must keep them as— end of his remarks, we must keep them as our— end of his remarks, we must keep them as our focus. i have more information— them as our focus. i have more information about my train service over the _ information about my train service over the next few weeks than i do about— over the next few weeks than i do about health services. is the minister is satisfied that patients have enough information about what is being _ have enough information about what is being affected and when, and how much _ is being affected and when, and how much that— is being affected and when, and how much that will impact on the back log? _ much that will impact on the back log? i_ much that will impact on the back log? i suspect none of this will help— log? i suspect none of this will help some of those workload pressures impacting on our nhs.| pressures impacting on our nhs. i thank pressures impacting on our nhs. thank him pressures impacting on our nhs. i thank him for his question and echo his comments on the tragic events in solihull and the boys who lost their lives, and the heroic actions of those in the emergency services. he is also right to say that we have an independent pay review body. we either agree and accept that that is the process will be don't. on advice to the public, he is right, we have more to do in this space.

derogations are still being worked through, both with individual unions and trust. patients should continue to call 909 as normal if it is an emergency, if someone is seriously ill or injured. if they do not have life threatening conditions, use nhs 111. ambulances will still respond to 999 calls, and if patients have appointments, please turn up unless advised to do so. he is right to make the point about communications, and i will be ramping this up when we know more about derogations. that was the minister —— a minister for was the minister —— a ministerfor health answering questions in the comments about the government contingency plans for industrial action in the national health service. indeed, the proposed strike action in the national health service. he was saying, the minister, that there is a cobra government emergency meeting this afternoon to discuss those contingency plans. wes streeting for

labour was saying the government should be asking itself why workers, why nurses in particular in the health service, want to go on strike for the first time in a century. i just want to bring you up—to—date with the latest news on that suspected gas explosion injersey. we know that at least five people are confirmed to have died in that suspected gas blast. flags have been lowered and a minute's silence has been held injersey. we are hearing now from jo cox, chief executive officer of island energy, saying the flats that exploded on saturday were not on the gas network. she said an engineer attended with the fire service on friday night to investigate reports of a smell of gas, and that they followed standard

procedures. that engineer is yet to be interviewed. recordings from residents are yet to be reviewed, but that was on friday, before the explosion, and she said it was too early to say if it was definitely a gas explosion that caused the blast, but the size of the explosion does point towards gas as being the most likely cause. more on that as we get it. let's pause for you and bring all the sports news. ben has got that for us. great news for england's cricketers. very good news for england's cricketers in pakistan. we start with the world cup. anticipation building ahead of the two semifinals tomorrow, following in glen's exit on saturday, questions linger about gareth southgate's future. what has he been saying? he southgate's future. what has he been sa in: ? . , , southgate's future. what has he been sa im? , ., ~' southgate's future. what has he been sa in.? , ., ,, .,

saying? he has been talking about a very difficult — saying? he has been talking about a very difficult 18 _ saying? he has been talking about a very difficult 18 months. _ saying? he has been talking about a very difficult 18 months. no - saying? he has been talking about a very difficult 18 months. no doubt i very difficult 18 months. no doubt that saturday's defeat the french will still hurt southgate and the players but in the aftermath of that he talked about his fluctuating emotions and if he has learnt one thing from being in thejob emotions and if he has learnt one thing from being in the job for six years, it's that after exits from major tournaments, years, it's that after exits from majortournaments, he years, it's that after exits from major tournaments, he takes time to just have a breather and work out what his next move is. he still has two years left on his contract, which would take him up to and beyond the next european championship, but he has sort of revealed that since they lost to italy on penalties at the european championship 18 months ago, he has faced all sorts of criticism, and they were booed off the pitch in the nation's league, remember, overthe summer, when they lost to hungary at molineux. he said that really hurt. he said he will take a lot of time to consider his future. no doubt that his record is the best among england managers when it comes to major championships, but now a lot of people are saying, well, is at the end of the road for southgate?

should he carry on? was the former fa chairman, greg bike. his should he carry on? was the former fa chairman, greg bike.— fa chairman, greg bike. his record for the england _ fa chairman, greg bike. his record for the england manager _ fa chairman, greg bike. his record for the england manager is - for the england manager is significantly better than anyone has been, _ significantly better than anyone has been, probably since sir alf ramsey. you could _ been, probably since sir alf ramsey. you could say he is not ruthless enough. — you could say he is not ruthless enough, but you could also say about some _ enough, but you could also say about some that _ enough, but you could also say about some that are ruthless that they don't _ some that are ruthless that they don't get — some that are ruthless that they don't get on with the players at all. don't get on with the players at alt he — don't get on with the players at alt he is — don't get on with the players at all. he is clearly a very good national— all. he is clearly a very good national manager, and there is no guarantee — national manager, and there is no guarantee we could get someone better— guarantee we could get someone better to — guarantee we could get someone better to replace him.— guarantee we could get someone better to replace him. focusing on the teams that _ better to replace him. focusing on the teams that are _ better to replace him. focusing on the teams that are still _ better to replace him. focusing on the teams that are still there, - the teams that are still there, tomorrow's semifinal, croatia against argentina, a lot of argentina fans in doha are cheering them on. a good job that this is at the stadium to the north of us here in doha, over80,000 stadium to the north of us here in doha, over 80,000 you can pack in there. the final will be on sunday. there will be thousands of

argentinian fans. leonel there will be thousands of argentinianfans. leonelskull there will be thousands of argentinian fans. leonel skull only has talked about the importance of the senior players in the squad. messi and others have been doing their bit, going to the younger players like alvarez and saying, look, don't worry about this. we didn't ever get the chance to really enjoy it. why can't you just go out and enjoy it and play freely? obviously all those players are trying to do their best for lionel messi, trying to deliver the one prize that the greatest player perhaps that we've seen for generations has never won. but then, of course, we have croatia as well. luca mod rich, their captain, it will also be the last world cup. the croatia manager was facing the media and he didn't like the line of questioning when they said to him, you are playing quite a boring brand of football. look what they did in russia, getting through to the final either through extra time or penalties. he said, look, we are in

a world cup semifinal. that is the end of the story. very much so. looking forward to that. thank you forjoining us. in the cricket, england have secured an historic victory against pakistan, winning the second test by 26 runs. the tourists needed 157 to run on day four with six wickets in hand, and were going nicely until mott would turn the game in england's favour. three wickets. ollie robinson grabbed a final one, from muhammad ali, taking england 2—0 up in the three test series. england have only one that twice in pakistan in their history before this series. we understand what we've managed to achieve today, and to come to pakistan and win is obviously very difficult. it turned out to be another down to the wire game again. yeah, couldn't have gone any better for us in these first two games. it's another great game to be a part

of. more on that on the bbc sport website. more at a:30pm. thank you very much. the latest headlines. west midlands police have confirmed that three boys, aged eight, ten and 11, have died after being pulled from an icy lake near selby hole over the weekend. snow, ice and fog are causing widespread disruption in parts of the uk, with hundreds of motorists and air travellers stranded. steve barclay, the health secretary, is due to meet the royal college of nursing leadership tonight. it comes days before nurses' planned walk—out over pay. in the last half an hour, two unions have accepted a deal that was offered by the scottish government to health workers there. with the cold weather and longer nights, it is of course peak time for using energy. very expensive energy, and last night the national

grid, the operator of electricity for the uk, started to prepare some of its contingency plans to help support the network. with temperatures in the minus figures at the moment, many families are of course worrying about rising bills, soaring bills, actually. brian hall is senior insight and analytics consultant at energy saving trust, an organisation that promotes energy efficiency. good to have you with us. what is your message to people? it is obviously a time when it is so cold, and energy are so expensive, and people are looking for any sort of ways to keep their bills down. it is definitely crunch time for these energy price rises. we knew the winter would comment now it is really here. people have got to think about, people are already thinking about what they can do to cut costs. the message is, there are things most people can do to cut the cost of their energy without spending a fortune. run

cost of their energy without spending a fortune.- cost of their energy without sendin: a fortune. , ., spending a fortune. run us through our to spending a fortune. run us through your top tips. _ spending a fortune. run us through your top tips, then. _ spending a fortune. run us through your top tips, then. the _ spending a fortune. run us through your top tips, then. the first - spending a fortune. run us through your top tips, then. the first one i your top tips, then. the first one is to net your top tips, then. the first one is to get to _ your top tips, then. the first one is to get to grips _ your top tips, then. the first one is to get to grips with _ your top tips, then. the first one is to get to grips with your - your top tips, then. the first one i is to get to grips with your heating controls, make sure you understand what they do. make sure they are not set up to high at any point, but not too low either. there was no point heating rooms you don't need to heat, add no point heating the home when there was nobody there, so get your programmer and your room thermostat and dial is set properly so that you are just heating the bit you want and not eating anything else. you can look at all your appliances around the home. make sure you don't use those. the same with anything, don't use it more than you need to, don't use it at a higher setting then you need to or for longer than you need to. if you can wash clothes at 30, wait until it is full, that will save money.

the same with the dishwasher. and set it on a short setting to save you money. turn lights off when you are not in the home. fit energy—efficient light bulbs when you are replacing them. draught proofing around windows and doors is a fairly cheap and straightforward way to cut the amount of heat you are losing and you can do it pretty much straightaway. then all the longer term things like looking at insulation in your heating system if you own the property and you have got the time to work on that. obviously that is longer term, insulation, something people will want to think about, i'm sure, in the coming months. what about the usual sort of message, don't have a bath, have a shower?— bath, have a shower? certainly a short shower _ bath, have a shower? certainly a short shower will _ bath, have a shower? certainly a short shower will use _ bath, have a shower? certainly a short shower will use a _ bath, have a shower? certainly a short shower will use a lot - bath, have a shower? certainly a short shower will use a lot less l bath, have a shower? certainly a l short shower will use a lot less hot water. ., , ., , ., short shower will use a lot less hot water. ., , ., ., , ., water. how short is a short shower? if ou can water. how short is a short shower? if you can get _ water. how short is a short shower? if you can get it _ water. how short is a short shower? if you can get it down _ water. how short is a short shower? if you can get it down to _ water. how short is a short shower? if you can get it down to about - water. how short is a short shower? if you can get it down to about four. if you can get it down to about four minutes, that will save you quite a bit of money. if it's more than seven minutes, then you're not

really saving much compared to a bath, but it does also depend on your shower head and all sorts of things. those are rough figures. what sort of thing is to use a lot of energy? for example, a tumble dryer — that uses quite a lot, doesn't it? dryer - that uses quite a lot, doesn't it?— dryer - that uses quite a lot, doesn't it? , ., , doesn't it? they are quite hungry, es. if doesn't it? they are quite hungry, yes- if you — doesn't it? they are quite hungry, yes- if you have — doesn't it? they are quite hungry, yes. if you have got _ doesn't it? they are quite hungry, yes. if you have got other - doesn't it? they are quite hungry, yes. if you have got other ways i doesn't it? they are quite hungry, yes. if you have got other ways to | yes. if you have got other ways to dry the clothes, that is great, but it's not easy at this time of year. generally, the things that get hot use the most energy. although, then again, there are things that are on all the time. the oven on the kettle use a lot while they are on. the fridge and freezer are on 2a—7, so that also adds up to quite a bit. just making sure that you are not overusing an appliance and that you are not using things up to higher setting. don't put too much water in the kettle, just as much as you need. don't have the oven on if you have another cheaper way to cook that same meal. just being a bit

more savvy, thinking about it, getting to know what the tips are, and remembering to apply them. interesting, brian, thank you for all those tips. they sound obvious when you say them, but you need to think about them and may be just be reminded of things like not putting too much water in the kettle. brian horne, thank you very much, senior insight and analytics consultant at the energy saving trust. nominations for next year's golden globes have been announced, with the dark comedy the banshees of ensuring leading the pack, with eight nods. the awards are trying to rebuild the reputation of the last year's event was marred in controversy over a lack of diversity and even alleged corruption. let's talk to colin paterson. good to have you with us. let us touch on that controversy. why have they been in trouble in the last year or so? it

why have they been in trouble in the last year or so?— last year or so? it emerged about 18 months ago — last year or so? it emerged about 18 months ago that _ last year or so? it emerged about 18 months ago that the _ last year or so? it emerged about 18 months ago that the hollywood - last year or so? it emerged about 18| months ago that the hollywood press who run the golden globes did not have a single black member, and this had been the case for 20 years. hollywood went into meltdown. companies like netflix and amazon said they would refuse to enter their films said they would refuse to enter theirfilms in said they would refuse to enter their films in the golden globes. stars like tom cruise returned the three golden globes he had won, and earlier this year, injanuary, when the golden globes took place, they were not televised and no one went due to this hollywood boy caught. so this is the background of what has been going on, but they have brought about changes. they have completely changed the structure a few votes. there are now 200 people who vote, far more than ever before, and nbc have announced that they will televise the golden globes on a one—year trial deal next year to see if they have learnt their lessons, and most importantly for the ratings, will the stars be willing

to turn up this year? that ratings, will the stars be willing to turn up this year?— ratings, will the stars be willing to turn up this year? that will be interesting- _ to turn up this year? that will be interesting. let's _ to turn up this year? that will be interesting. let's talk _ to turn up this year? that will be interesting. let's talk about - to turn up this year? that will be interesting. let's talk about the | interesting. let's talk about the nominations. the banshees of ensuring, by the maker of in bruges. they divide the best film category a bit of drama and comedy. this is in comedy, but as you say, it is a dark comedy, but as you say, it is a dark comedy, set in 1920s ireland. it is about feuding friends. colin farrell is nominated for best actor, brendan gleeson and barry keegan nominated and supporting categories, and kerry condon, four irish actors all nominated for this bill. last year we had belfast doing so well, and this year this is the one representing ireland. let's talk

about avatar _ representing ireland. let's talk about avatar the _ representing ireland. let's talk about avatar the way - representing ireland. let's talk about avatar the way of - representing ireland. let's talkl about avatar the way of water. representing ireland. let's talk - about avatar the way of water. james cameron back. it is about avatar the way of water. james cameron back-— cameron back. it is not even out et, but cameron back. it is not even out yet. but it _ cameron back. it is not even out yet. but it has — cameron back. it is not even out yet, but it has the _ cameron back. it is not even out yet, but it has the two _ cameron back. it is not even out yet, but it has the two big - yet, but it has the two big nominations at the golden globes, nominated for best film drama, and it also has james cameron, the man that brought about all those technical innovations for the first film and has done it again, it would seem with this one, he is nominated for best director. in the golden globes, you don't get the technical categories. it is about acting and films. when it comes to the oscars, this might well be the film, if it is had not got the most nominations, it will be up there, because it will do so well in the technical categories. a good day for avatar. will it be a good day for the crown in terms of tv nominations? imelda staunton took— in terms of tv nominations? imelda staunton took over _ in terms of tv nominations? imelda staunton took over the _ in terms of tv nominations? imelda staunton took over the role - in terms of tv nominations? imelda staunton took over the role of - in terms of tv nominations? imelda l staunton took over the role of queen elizabeth ii for the fifth series. she is nominated for that. jonathan pryce is nominated for playing the duke of edinburgh, and it is

nominated in series and a nomination for the actor playing princess diana. four nominations for the crown in the tv categories. no matter how much they change that cost, the american awards ceremony is still absolutely love the crown. colin, good to talk to you. thank you for that rundown. colin patterson, our entertainment correspondent. let's see what the weather was looking like. matt taylor has the latest forecast. hello. the snow may have had impacts across some southern areas into today, but it's been the cold that's felt more widely. coldest start to a day since january 2021. coldest of all braemar in aberdeenshire, —16 as we began the day. so, how long is this cold spell going to last? we notice the blue colours remain in force throughout this week. a little blip of milder air very close to the south. that could have some impact tomorrow night. but it isn't until this weekend, especially sunday, we could see a wholesale pattern change. out there, back here and now, we've also got to add to the cold, some mist and fog around still lingering.

a murky day across parts of central eastern england. that drifting a bit further northwards. a lot of sunshine elsewhere, a few wintry showers in eastern northern ireland, some in the very far north of scotland. but for most it is colder there. some not getting above freezing all day long. temperatures dropping again this evening and with it, a significant ice risk, especially where you've seen the wintriest of the weather through the past couple of days. so into tonight, to go with that ice risk, a few snow flurries midlands into north west england. a limited amount of impacts, one or two to the east of northern ireland, but more especially in the very far north of scotland, drifting around in some strengthening winds. and east anglia, south east, a cold night tonight, we see some clearing skies and some hazy sunshine for tomorrow. now, tomorrow, the snow is going to be mainly across northern scotland, drifting its way down through eastern areas, could make it into the north east of england by the time we hit tomorrow evening. a lot of dry weather, a lot of sunshine. sunshine hazy across the south, another very cold day. but that little blip of milder air i mentioned, that's this rain here getting close to the southwest later in the day and into the night.

the thing is, that's going to push into colder air, and that could give some more significant snow across parts of devon, cornwall, somerset, dorset, especially as we go through tuesday night and into wednesday morning. could be a bit further south. we'll keep an eye on that for you. but once that clears through, midweek onwards, the northerly winds are back, meaning better visibility. snow mainly to the north and east of scotland, and to a limited degree, in the north east of england. however, through wednesday, winds will strengthen — 60—70mph gusts, blizzards across orkney, shetland and the north of the mainland. a lot of dry and bright weather elsewhere. but with that wind, don't even think about those as your temperatures. it's going to feel much, much colder in the wind. and then, to see the week out, we've got that northerly to begin with. still some further wintry flows in the north. this is what will bring the more significant change on sunday. and you can follow all those changes where you live on the bbc weather app.

this is bbc news. i'm ben brown. the headlines: west midlands police confirm that three boys aged eight, ten and 11 have died after being pulled from an icy lake near solihull over the weekend. some of the officers went in waist deep. one of my officers tried to punch through the ice to rescue the children themselves. snow, ice and fog cause widespread travel disruption in parts of the uk with hundreds of motorists and air travellers stranded. the government is due to meet with the royal college of nursing tonight — it comes days before nurses'

planned walk—out over pay. we will continue to listen to colleagues' concerns, notjust about pay bit about many other issues affecting the working lives of those in the nhs and work with them to make those improvements in a range of areas from working conditions to patient safety. new figures show the uk economy shrank by 0.3% between august and october, with the country expected to be in recession by the end of the year. england's characters clinch a historic test win in pakistan, the first in that country 22 years. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. west midlands fire service have called it a "tragedy beyond words." three boys, aged eight, ten and 11, have died afterfalling

into a frozen lake in solihull, in the west midlands. they were rushed to hospital, after being pulled from the water at babbs mill park. a fourth boy, who's six, remains in a critical condition in hospital. police are continuing to search the lake, but they have no information that other children may be missing. our correspondent phil mackie has sent us this report, which some viewers may find distressing. just after 2:30pm yesterday, four children had fallen through the ice. police paramedics and firefighters were all called and did all they could. there was a massive emergency response. a search to see if there were any others continued into the night. four young boys were pulled out and were taken to hospital, all had suffered cardiac arrests. today, we had confirmation of the news everyone feared — three had died, the other aged six is still critical in hospital.

we have worked very closely with our colleagues in west midlands fire service and also in west midlands ambulance service. this has been a realjoint effort. it is incredibly sad that we do not have any better news for you today regarding yesterday afternoon's incident. the boys' deaths are a tragedy beyond words, and the thoughts and heartfelt sympathies of everyone here at west midlands fire service are with their families, friends and the wider community at this distressing time. they are still not sure if there's anyone in the water. initial reports suggested there may have been five or six children playing on the ice. compared to the rescue operation that was going on yesterday afternoon and last night, things have scaled down considerably. but you can still see police officers wading through the ice cold water as part of the recovery operation in appalling conditions. the news has affected everyone here, many of whom have come to pay their respects. as mothers and as grandparents,

we couldn't imagine how last night went for that family and their parents and as a mother. it is something you try not to think about. the prime minister has sent his condolences via the local mp, both of whom have children of a similar age. since i have heard the news, like many people i have been in shock. it is a great tragedy, this is a real close knit community, and to hear about children playing on the ice and falling through, just all of it, the shock and anguish is very real at the moment. the children's school, a short walk from where the tragedy happened, was shut today. grief remains the overwhelming emotion. there are questions about safety and whether children are fully aware of the dangers of playing on ice. yesterday's incident is a stark reminder to us all of the dangers of open water, especially during the winter months. frozen lakes, ponds, canals and reservoirs

can look picturesque, but they can be lethal. there are no greater warnings of this than yesterday's tragic events. our correspondent nick garnett is at the lake. is it any clearer this evening what happened? because as we were hearing there, this is a tragedy beyond words, such a really harrowing story. i words, such a really harrowing sto . . , ., _ words, such a really harrowing sto. . , ., story. i have been told by one erson story. i have been told by one person who — story. i have been told by one person who lives _ story. i have been told by one person who lives nearby - story. i have been told by one person who lives nearby thati story. i have been told by one - person who lives nearby that there had been talk of, the children had been talking about going down to the lake and playing by the lake for 2a hours beforehand. it had been between themselves are slightly planned and when they went down, as we all know now, tragedy struck when a four of the children went on to the lake and the ice cracked underneath them. it had been snowing during the morning which had raised the temperature slightly which started a saw and that was what

thinned out the ice and it led to this tragedy. —— started a thaw. behind me you can see part of the lake and officers from fire and rescue services have been wading through in a dry suit is scaring the bottom, checking to see if anyone was still under the water. it looks like there were no other children involved. the police say they have no cases of missing children, no one has reported their children missing. sony hope is there is nobody there and that police search has now been scaled back to try and make sure that things can start down there move away. but has happened up here is people who live nearby have been coming to pay their respects and if we cross the road now, and we go over to where the floral tributes have been laid, there are balloons here, there are messages of love and

support. one says you will forever be in our dreams. and our thoughts and prayers. another one says sleep well, little children. there are teddy bears here, balloons, candles being lit and this is now the focus of the attention of the people living here. you can see as well be houses behind me, that is how closely houses after the lake and the children will have come from this area and across to one single road and gone down to a lake that is usually used for walking their dogs and playing around and fur 36a days of the year is a peaceful, happy, safe place, but then this tragedy happened. safe place, but then this tragedy ha ened. , ., ~ safe place, but then this tragedy ha ened. , . ~' , . happened. yes, thank you very much to do. as happened. yes, thank you very much to do- as i — happened. yes, thank you very much to do. as i said, _ happened. yes, thank you very much to do. as i said, such _ happened. yes, thank you very much to do. as i said, such a _ happened. yes, thank you very much to do. as i said, such a really - to do. as i said, such a really harrowing tragedy. nick, thank you very much indeed for bringing us up to date. also some breaking news to bring you on at the rail strikes in the last couple of minutes, members of the rmt rail union on network rail have rejected the latest pay offer. they will go ahead with two

a8—hour strikes this week, so that is just coming into us from the rmt union. just to repeat that, the rmt union. just to repeat that, the rmt union on network rail rejecting the latest pay offer and going ahead with their two a8 hour strikes this week. the met office says the current freezing temperatures are likely to remain in place for the rest of this week. snow, ice and fog have caused serious travel disruption across the uk. more than 100 flights have been cancelled with london airports the worst affected. here's duncan kennedy. that all important travel. this is what many side roads in south—east england have looked like today. plenty of others have been completely blocked. we came across this young driver near paddock wood in kent. his tyres caught an icy patch and he hit a concrete post. he was shaken but unhurt.

for others here, it's been a morning of energy—sapping clear—ups. what do you make of the conditions this morning? they're great for children, but they're not the best for businesses and commuting. these are all cars. every kind of travel system has been hit by the snow. dozens of cars were abandoned on the m25 in hertfordshire. some motorists were stranded for more than 12 hours. i've never seen snow like it. as soon as i hit the m25, it wasjust chaos. there were many different parts where we were just stranded and we didn't see any emergency services. nobody can get through. the gritters and snowploughs were out in gloucestershire as parts of the east and south—west were also carpeted by the snow. major airports have seen more than 100 flights cancelled. not only here at heathrow, but at stansted, gatwick and luton

as well, hitting pre—christmas travel plans for thousands of passengers. trains have also been badly affected, especially in rural places like here in kent, where commuter and other services have been severely reduced. euston is just one of the stations full of people rearranging their plans. southeastern, southwestern, southern and greater anglia all report severe disruption. just like london underground services. in east sussex, the christmas spirit was flowing for a0 people forced to take refuge in a pub. the bear inn at burwash laid on hot drinks and mattresses amid the log fires. so we trekked here, two miles, a two mile journey from the other pub. and sure enough, pauline wilson and her team welcomed us with open arms and made hot food, hot drinks and said, "you can all stay."

the effects of this weather will play out across today. there'll be clear—ups, disruption and some chaos for many hours to come. let's find out more about what's in store for us. our weather presenter matt taylor is here with me now. good to see you. first, any more snow on the way?— good to see you. first, any more snow on the way? there will be, but not in those — snow on the way? there will be, but not in those areas _ snow on the way? there will be, but not in those areas that _ snow on the way? there will be, but not in those areas that were - snow on the way? there will be, but not in those areas that were badly . not in those areas that were badly affected yesterday where all the travel impacts were. the main focus of the snow during the rest of the working week likely to be in the north and east of scotland, potentially north—east england as well, but mainly falling as showers and so snow amounts will vary but strong winds without will make it feel especially cold. could change next weekend though. this feel especially cold. could change next weekend though.— feel especially cold. could change next weekend though. this is such an i blast, next weekend though. this is such an icy blast. where _ next weekend though. this is such an icy blast, where has _ next weekend though. this is such an icy blast, where has it _ next weekend though. this is such an icy blast, where has it come - next weekend though. this is such an icy blast, where has it come from? i icy blast, where has it come from? we have seen a big change in weather patterns, it has been such a warm year so far and we are now seeing an area of high pressure build across greenland and when that is in place, whence come all the way from the

arctic and because it sat in place for this length of time, it is a continuous flow and that will continue through this week. last night we saw coldest conditions in the uk since he started 2021, so almost two years. —16 in parts of aberdeenshire and even this afternoon, the same at spots, braemar, balmoral, did not get above minus nine degrees, so it is that widespread cold affecting most of us and ice is that added insult to injury as well. the most of us and ice is that added insult to injury as well.- insult to in'ury as well. the big question. — insult to injury as well. the big question, how _ insult to injury as well. the big question, how long _ insult to injury as well. the big question, how long will- insult to injury as well. the big question, how long will it - insult to injury as well. the big | question, how long will it last? certainly is through sweet, mild air close by tomorrow which could bring a little bit of snow to southern counties but looks like the big change could come on sunday. not before we see more snow before things turned out to rain. it doesn't like a big weather pattern change, back to normal conditions for decemberfrom change, back to normal conditions for december from sunday onwards. and part of the reason it feels so cold is because it felt so warm up until november really, unseasonably warm, but there was talk about this

being the warmest year for a long time, may be on record. has this cold snap lowered the average so it will not be the warmest year? it will not be the warmest year? it will lower the average of this month but it would need to be significantly lower for the whole month to stop us from being on target for a warmest year on record. that is just how warm it has been. what was the third warmest on record, every single month has seen above—average temperatures. —— automat was the third warmest on record. but we could drift back to normal so this pattern should come to an end. . ~ normal so this pattern should come to an end. ., ,, , . to an end. thank you very much indeed. and you can keep up to date with all the latest news by taking a look at the live page online, where you'll find up—to—date advice and details of today's travel disruption. there's quite a lot that disruption.

the government is due to meet the royal college of nursing leadership tonight which comesjust royal college of nursing leadership tonight which comes just days before the nurses' planned walk—out over pgy- senior ministers are attending an emergency cobra meeting in whitehall right now to discuss the government's response to a wave of upcoming strikes. they're expected to suggest using the military and civil servants to cover border force staff. we've already heard that armed forces will be deployed to hospital trusts ahead of the upcoming ambulance staff strike. but the government warns there will still be "serious disruption". nurse strikes are among them, and in the last half hour the shadow health secretary, wes streeting, questioned the government on their preparedness for the strikes. so instead of taking responsibility for theirfailure, they want so instead of taking responsibility for their failure, they want to use

nurses and paramedics as scapegoats to avoid the plane? it is a disgusting pan. it is a dangerous plan and it is a plan that will not work. because the public know the power to stop these strikes is in their hands and if they fail to act now, patients will never forgive them. how many operations have already been cancelled? how does the minister expect those on the waiting list to feel if their operations are cancelled because of their gross negligence? can he tell patients which services will be impacted if these strikes go ahead? is the secretary of state not embarrassed at cobra today asking the army to come in to clean up their mess? it is even at this last minute not too late to prevent these strikes from going ahead. perhaps this minister can tell us whether the meeting later today will involve discussions on pay and if not why not? because thatis on pay and if not why not? because that is all it takes, just a few minutes or a few hours of talk can

avoid strike action. why won't they do it? mr avoid strike action. why won't they do it? ~ ,,, ., ,, avoid strike action. why won't they do it? ~ avoid strike action. why won't they doit? ~ , ., do it? mr speaker, the fact is that labour is do it? mr speaker, the fact is that labour is all _ do it? mr speaker, the fact is that labour is all over— do it? mr speaker, the fact is that labour is all over the _ do it? mr speaker, the fact is that labour is all over the place - do it? mr speaker, the fact is that labour is all over the place when i do it? mr speaker, the fact is that | labour is all over the place when it comes— labour is all over the place when it comes to _ labour is all over the place when it comes to strikes. they criticise ministers — comes to strikes. they criticise ministers while admitting the union's — ministers while admitting the union's pay demands are unaffordable. the gentleman opposite and his— unaffordable. the gentleman opposite and his party leader are too tied to their union — and his party leader are too tied to their union paymasters to be on the side of— their union paymasters to be on the side of patient gray. he knows that we have _ side of patient gray. he knows that we have an — side of patient gray. he knows that we have an independent pay review body and _ we have an independent pay review body and it — we have an independent pay review body and it is important both sides respect _ body and it is important both sides respect that independent body. an independent body, mr speaker, his recommendations we accepted this year's _ recommendations we accepted this year's increase in full, meaning over— year's increase in full, meaning over i _ year's increase in full, meaning over1 million nhs staff have been overi million nhs staff have been given— overi million nhs staff have been given at— over1 million nhs staff have been given at least a £1400 increase in their— given at least a £1400 increase in their pay — given at least a £1400 increase in their pay. that is on top of a 3% pay rise — their pay. that is on top of a 3% pay rise last _ their pay. that is on top of a 3% pay rise last year at a time when pay rise last year at a time when pay was — pay rise last year at a time when pay was frozen across the wider public _ pay was frozen across the wider public sector. our health editor

hugh pym is with me. royal college of nursing representatives will be meeting the health secretary tonight. is that a breakthrough? is that significant? do you think the fact there will be some sort of talks between the government and the royal college of nursing? it is government and the royal college of nursina? ,. . , nursing? it is certainly interesting. _ nursing? it is certainly interesting. i- nursing? it is certainly - interesting. i understand the nursing? it is certainly _ interesting. i understand the health secretary got in touch with the royal college of nursing over the weekend to invite them to come in for a discussion, but there were no preconditions set. equally, there was no concession of anything and the rcn view is they would take up this invitation and they are meeting early this evening. on paper, they are quite a long way apart still, but the rcn say that the steve barclay has been prepared to talk about everything except pay and therefore they are getting nowhere, so they have to go ahead with the strikes. steve barclay has said his door is always open, he will talk about terms and conditions, but he will not talk about pay because they have gone along with the recommendations of the independent pay review body will stop that is to

award a.5% to many health workers in england and the welsh government has taken the same tack, whereas rcn wanted 5% above rpi inflation which is now 19.5%. so we do not know if there is move forward yet, we will have to wait and see the outcome of these talks. have to wait and see the outcome of these talks-— these talks. maybe there will be talks about _ these talks. maybe there will be talks about talks. _ these talks. maybe there will be talks about talks. what - these talks. maybe there will be talks about talks. what would i these talks. maybe there will be i talks about talks. what would the nurses going on strike actually mean in our health system, do you think? it is all set to happen on thursday, at some hospitals in england, as almost all welsh health boards and in northern ireland and it is basically going to affect a routine planned treatment and care operations which can be put off. that would mean quite a lot of disruption for patientss but certainly the notifications to patients of the postponements are onlyjust going out, so many will not have heard yet what will happen and there are a lot of detailed

negotiations going on at trust and board level between the rcn and local management on what constitutes emergency care, because that will be preserved. the rcn are absolutely keen to get across that if it is an urgent or emergency case, they will be seen in hospitals, but in terms of some of the detail, we are just waiting to see the outcome of those discussions. just waiting to see the outcome of those discussions-— discussions. just very quickly, a development — discussions. just very quickly, a development in _ discussions. just very quickly, a development in terms - discussions. just very quickly, a development in terms of - discussions. just very quickly, a development in terms of health j development in terms of health workers in scotland?— workers in scotland? yes, the scottish government - workers in scotland? yes, the scottish government made i workers in scotland? yes, the scottish government made a i workers in scotland? yes, the - scottish government made a higher offer average around 7.5% and two health unions balloted their members on it and they have got a mandate to accept that offer, so no strike action by those unions. we wait to hear what the rcn will do in scotland and the gmb union. thank ou. just a scotland and the gmb union. thank you- just a quick— scotland and the gmb union. thank you. just a quick word _ scotland and the gmb union. thank you. just a quick word about - you. just a quick word about industrial action on the railways, we mentioned it earlier but i will repeat this because i know it affects a lot of people, rmt union members at network rail have rejected an updated offer which of

the organisation network rail had described as the best and final offer, so the rmt have rejected that in an electronic referendum. so that is the latest on the railways. let's talk more widely know about the government's and response to the wave really of industrial action we are seeing this winter. david wallace—lockhart is our political correspondent. there is a meeting of the cobra emergency committee, it is turned away i think? they are talking about contingency plans for some of these strikes. . , ~ contingency plans for some of these strikes. . , . ~ ., strikes. that is right. we know there are _ strikes. that is right. we know there are many _ strikes. that is right. we know there are many sectors - strikes. that is right. we know. there are many sectors planning industrial action in the days and weeks ahead, but specifically with two of those sectors there seems to be government plans to draft in the military and some civil servants to try and ease the pressure that is going to be shown there, so paramedics, ambulances is one of

those areas and the other is border force, but number ten at pains today i think to stress that this is not the sort of solution that will mean everything then works perfectly. the prime minister's official spokesperson saying there will still be serious disruption when it comes to both ambulances and border force despite the fact that the military would be drafted in. as you mentioned, there is a meeting just now of the cobra emergency committee which is the group that the government convenes often when there is some sort of a pressing problem that it has to deal with, so that will be chaired by oliver dowden, chancellor of the duchy of has know, a cabinet position that quite often deals with big issues and the relevant ministers from effective departments will also be the vote as i said there, number ten it really stressing that this does not mean

that their ambulance system for example is going to work as it normally does when all the paramedics are at work because simply bringing in the army does not mean there is a system there. the government probably sounding like it wants to hold firm on the idea of increasing any pay offer, saying they respecting independent pay bodies and the recommendations made. they are warning about the complications that could come with inflation pay rises which they believe would embed those rising prices we are currently seeing and seeing in the long term that would hurt workers, but of course we are hearing from the unions that they have members who are really struggling with the rising costs of living they are seeing and they simply need to see higher pay increases than those currently on the table from the government. but certainly it looks like trying to plug some of the gaps with using the military and some civil servants, not something i am sure the government will be particularly big fans of doing and they do seem to be

stressing that there will be difficult days ahead this month. david, thank you very much indeed. let's talk more about what the government might do. joining us now is paul netherton, expert on contingency planning and former deputy chief constable for devon and cornwall police. thank you very much indeed for being with us. that cobra emergency meeting is going on now and the government are looking very hard at how to avoid some of the worst impactss of this industrial action we are seeing this winter. yes. we are seeing this winter. yes, cobra is designed _ we are seeing this winter. yes, cobra is designed so _ we are seeing this winter. yes, cobra is designed so it - we are seeing this winter. 1a: cobra is designed so it brings together all the partners, the ministers, all the government departments and they will go through those plans identifying where the risks are and what they can do to mitigate them.— risks are and what they can do to mitigate them. what sort of things can they do- _ mitigate them. what sort of things can they do- ? _ mitigate them. what sort of things can they do. ? we _ mitigate them. what sort of things can they do. ? we have _ mitigate them. what sort of things can they do. ? we have heard - mitigate them. what sort of things can they do. ? we have heard a . mitigate them. what sort of things j can they do. ? we have heard a lot of talk about bringing in the military, the army and quite a lot

of controversy over that?- military, the army and quite a lot of controversy over that? yes, it is alwa s of controversy over that? yes, it is always difficult _ of controversy over that? yes, it is always difficult when _ of controversy over that? yes, it is always difficult when you _ of controversy over that? yes, it is always difficult when you are - always difficult when you are bringing in military the hunger strike or industrial action, there is sensitivity around it. —— around a strike. it is to identify the core services, what must continuo to operate come what may, and that is about saving lives, making sure the core services are there and the ambulance service will continue to deliver those services. it is where they have to stop the additional services, the like to have rather than the must have, those will be stopped. then you have additional workforce, whether that is for management or other key players within those organisations, and the last resort is then using the military to backfill and they will be used for things like driving vehicles, moving people around, the nonessential services. i

vehicles, moving people around, the nonessential services.— nonessential services. i suppose, eo - le nonessential services. i suppose, people talk _ nonessential services. i suppose, people talk about _ nonessential services. i suppose, people talk about going - nonessential services. i suppose, people talk about going to - nonessential services. i suppose, people talk about going to the i people talk about going to the winter of discontent in the 70s, obviously there are differences, but there are similarities in the sense you have a lot of unions, a lot of workers, either taking or proposing industrial action at the same time and that imposes a real burden on the national infrastructure, doesn't it? ~ , the national infrastructure, doesn't it? ~ y ., the national infrastructure, doesn't it? �* , ., “ , it? absolutely. one of the key problems _ it? absolutely. one of the key problems of— it? absolutely. one of the key problems of using _ it? absolutely. one of the key problems of using the - it? absolutely. one of the key| problems of using the military, it? absolutely. one of the key i problems of using the military, a lot of the military people who are in say the medical units are actually nhs workers, so they will be conflicted because on one hand they may be taking industrial action, but has a military personnel, they will not be able to, so you will have those kind of conflict going on, but yes, it is getting very tricky. there are a large number of strikes going on, but there are plans for industrial action, there are plans for emergencies and of course we are adding things like the weather into that as well at the moment, so the

emergency services will be stretched at the moment and obviously cobra will be looking at a whole range of issues and identifying what is important and where resources need to be put. ok. important and where resources need to be ut. ., ., ,, ., new official figures show britain's economy shrank by 0.3% in the three months to the end of october. worse before it gets better, with the office for budget responsibility already suggesting the uk has tipped into recession. our economics correspondent andy verity reports. in edinburgh's morningside district, toys galore has been open for more than a0 years. but these are not times of plenty. because the pound is much weaker than last year, and most of the toys are imported, they have been getting more expensive.

some cost so much now that they're no longer worth stocking. it's an affluent area but even here people are feeling the pinch. pretty much most people are struggling because they've seen all the costs go up, interest costs, fuel costs, food costs, and yet their wages haven't kept up. everything is getting squeezed. i think that although they will still buy a toy for someone's birthday or someone's christmas, they might buy maybe a small toy, or there might be not the trip to a toy shop on a saturday. the economy, in other words all the goods and services the uk produces, grew by 0.5% in october but that was largely a bounceback from september, which saw a 0.6% fall, largely because of the extra bank holiday for the queen's funeral. the three months from august to october showed a 0.3% fall, suggesting the uk is on course to be officially declared in recession next year. it's quite clear that with the squeeze that people are experiencing from high inflation, holding back consumer spending and uncertainty holding back investment, that there will be some form of a recession. but it's only as these recessions

develop that you can really assess how long they're going to last. services for consumers from restaurants to shops to sports venues also saw a modest bounceback in october from september. in the midst of what's predicted to be the tightest squeeze on living standards since the 19a0s, they're still 8.9% down on pre—pandemic levels. these figures confirm that this is a very challenging economic situation here and across the world. it will get worse before it gets better. but we have a plan that will more than halve inflation over the next year and, if we stay the course, we can get back to the strong economic growth that we need. activity in manufacturing dropped by 1.8% and the sector has now been in a slump since the summer of last year. the figures also suggest the economy produced a% less electricity and gas in october than a year before. with temperatures higher and prices soaring, households and firms put the heating on for

an average of only 2.8 days. but that was two months ago. that was then, this is now. andy verity, bbc news. the libyan man suspected of making the bomb that blew up an american plane over the scottish town of lockerbie in 1988 is due to appear in court in washington in the next few hours. there has been no official explanation about how abu agila masud ended up in us custody. the families of the victims have said they are both concerned and delighted about the arrest. let's talk to our north america correspondent nomia iqbal. tell us more about what we do know about the arrest of this court appearance. this about the arrest of this court appearance-— about the arrest of this court appearance. about the arrest of this court auearance. a , ., appearance. as you say, he is due to a- ear in appearance. as you say, he is due to appear in the — appearance. as you say, he is due to appear in the court _ appearance. as you say, he is due to appear in the court behind _ appearance. as you say, he is due to appear in the court behind me - appearance. as you say, he is due to appear in the court behind me and i appearance. as you say, he is due to appear in the court behind me and a | appear in the court behind me and a couple of hours' time and this comes two years after the charges were

made against abu agila masud. he is accused of being the lockerbie bomber, accused of making the bomb, are setting the timer on the device fitted to explode in the plane in 1988, but as you say, there are questions about how he got here. first, the reason why the us thinks he is their man is because at the height of the libyan revolution back in 2011, when he was captured, he is said to have confessed to being the lockerbie bomber, confessed to have played a role in that. there are questions about the validity of his confession because lawyers are saying for him, while actually the confession was extracted at a time he was in the custody of warlords who had questionable human rights records, and the other things you pointed out was how he got here. we know last month he disappeared and was said to have been kidnapped by a libyan militia group at his residence in tripoli and it was widely speculated then he was being brought her to the us, but bear in

mind libya is a country that is still hugely torn by civil war, there are competing governments, competing prime ministers, so there is no official extradition agreement, so it is not really clear who negotiated him to be released here, but of course for many of the families, american families, british families, american families, british families, this is a real important moment because they feel that finally there is going to be accountability for what happened nearly 3a years ago, but there are others, for example one whose daughter was killed in pan am, he believes the un should decide where the trial is held, it should be on a neutral territory and not in the us.

now it's time for a look at the weather with matt. how much longer will the cold snap go on? this how much longer will the cold snap to on? �* , ., how much longer will the cold snap oon? m ., how much longer will the cold snap coon? ., go on? as low as it was last night in some areas. _ go on? as low as it was last night in some areas. -15 _ go on? as low as it was last night in some areas. -15 celsius - go on? as low as it was last night in some areas. -15 celsius in - go on? as low as it was last nightl in some areas. -15 celsius in areas in some areas. —15 celsius in areas of aberdeenshire and similar to come tonight. a few snow flurries this evening and overnight in the north midlands, north wales, north—west england, a limited amount of impact. more significant snow in the north of scotland, and more widespread impact from ice. temperatures down to -15 impact from ice. temperatures down to —15 or 16 in the grampians. the brighter start to tomorrow in the south—east. a few isolated light flurries in north england and north wales. the strong wind will add to the chill. light winds, mostly a bright day with dry conditions. the

high clouds drifting across later on, which turns the sunshine hazy, linked to a weather system which will bring rain through the english channel on tuesday night. into wednesday, devon, cornwall, somerset and hampshire could see some snow. we will keep you updated. hello this is bbc news with ben brown. the headlines: west midlands police confirm that three boys, aged eight, ten and 11, have died after being pulled from an icy lake near solihull over the weekend. some of the officers went in waist deep. one of my officers was trying to punch through the ice to actually rescue the children themselves. snow, ice and fog cause widespread travel disruption in parts of the uk with hundreds of motorists and air travellers stranded. the government is due to meet with the royal college of nursing tonight —

it comes days before nurses' planned walk—out over pay. we will continue to listen to the concerns of colleagues notjust about pay but about many other issues affecting the working lives of those in the nhs. we will work with him to make those improvements in a range of areas, from working conditions to patient safety. members of the rmt union in network rail have rejected the latest government pay offer and will go ahead with two strikes this week. new figures show the uk economy shrank by 0.3% between august and october with the country expected to be in recession by the end of the year. and this year's golden globes nominations have been announced — dark comedy the banshees of inisherin leads the way with eight nods, followed closely by science fiction film everything everywhere all at once, with six.

sport, and for a full round up, we cross over to the bbc sport centre. good afternoon. we start at the world cup in qatar, where it's a rare day without a match but anticipation is building ahead of the two semi finals, starting tomorrow. is building ahead of the two semi all is building ahead of the two semi the force that is i us. all the force that is indo half for us. what has southgate had to say? —— ollie foster. more than at any time during his six years in charge, he appears to be in two mind as to whether or not to carry on. it is a natural point to reflect on his position after a major championship exit. he has had three of them. we heard over the weekend how his emotions always fluctuate, he said, after going out to a major championship, be at the world cup four years ago, the european championship last year at the final stage, orthat championship last year at the final

stage, or that quarterfinal defeat on saturday to the french. but he also revealed how hard and difficult the last 18 months have been, since they lost that euro is final. the criticism he has faced. remember, they had that awful run in the nation's league leading into this qatar world cup. booed off the pitch over the summer after a a—0 defeat against hungary. that really hurt, so he is going to wait and see as to which way his emotions go. there is no doubt that he has got the best record at major championships of any england manager. but seasoned football writers who have been to world cups long before gareth southgate came along, there seems to be a split now as to whether he should carry on. he was the former fa chairman, greg bike. for england manauer, fa chairman, greg bike. for england manager. he — fa chairman, greg bike. for england manager. he is— fa chairman, greg bike. for england manager, he is significantly - fa chairman, greg bike. for england manager, he is significantly better. manager, he is significantly better than anyone has been. therefore i think— than anyone has been. therefore i think you — than anyone has been. therefore i think you have to say, yes, you

could _ think you have to say, yes, you could say— think you have to say, yes, you could say he is not ruthless enough but you _ could say he is not ruthless enough but you could also say about someone who was _ but you could also say about someone who was ruthless, but they don't get on with— who was ruthless, but they don't get on with the _ who was ruthless, but they don't get on with the players at all. he is clearly— on with the players at all. he is clearly a — on with the players at all. he is clearly a very good national manager, and there is no guarantee we could _ manager, and there is no guarantee we could get someone better to replace — we could get someone better to replace him. we could get someone better to replace him-— replace him. thus my cute semifinals. _ replace him. thus my cute semifinals. few _ replace him. thus my cute semifinals. few would - replace him. thus my cute | semifinals. few would have replace him. thus my cute _ semifinals. few would have predicted either at the start of the tournament. tomorrow's seems to be about two players as much as it is about two players as much as it is about two players as much as it is about two teams. the about two players as much as it is about two teams.— about two teams. the croatia ca tain, about two teams. the croatia captain. 37 — about two teams. the croatia captain, 37 now, _ about two teams. the croatia captain, 37 now, so _ about two teams. the croatia captain, 37 now, so it - about two teams. the croatia captain, 37 now, so it will. about two teams. the croatia captain, 37 now, so it will be| about two teams. the croatia i captain, 37 now, so it will be his last world cup. what a player he is. modric. and lionel messi, the argentina captain. that will be a terrific semifinal. argentinian support here in qatar here is huge. over a0,000 will be willing argentina on. and lionel messi, the one trophy he is yet to win. the

argentina boss says he has been instrumental, notjust on the pitch. he scored one of the penalty to loose to knock out the netherlands the other night. but with those younger players, trying to loosen them up and say, just go back to basics, enjoy it against croatia. as for the croatians, they have had a couple of penalty shoot outs, just like in russia four years ago. the croatian manager has said that, though, we are in a world cup final, thatis though, we are in a world cup final, that is the end of the story. he didn't like that line of questioning when they suggested croatia were a little bit boring. it won't be a boring semifinal, that one. definitely not. enjoy it. many thanks for now. england have secured an historic series victory in pakistan, winning the second test match by 26 runs in multan.

shakeel made 9a before he and now was felt the pace bowling. ahmed, who took 11 wickets in the match, provided a late counterpunch getting four boundaries. england won might 26 runs and take them series with a match to spare. that is all sport for now. more at 5:30pm. with the cold weather and longer nights, it's peak time for using energy. last night the national grid — the electricity operator for the uk — started to prepare some of its contingency plans to help support the network. and with temperatures in the minus figures at the moment, many families will be worrying about rising bills. which of course are very expensive at the moment. let's talk about how you can best keep down those energy bills. rosi avis is a partnership & communication lead at manchester citizens advice.

thanks very much for being with us. what is your advice for people who are really feeling the cold this winter as this arctic snack really blasts through the country? how do they keep their bills down? thahk they keep their bills down? thank ou for they keep their bills down? thank you for having _ they keep their bills down? thank you for having me, _ they keep their bills down? thank you for having me, and _ they keep their bills down? thank| you for having me, and essentially this is five really straightforward tips that we've come up with in partnership with the climate change committee and the energy savings trust. really straightforward, quite simple, and a lot of households will be able to use them through the winter to try and reduce their costs. things such as, topping the list, using your thermostat and your timer settings to take control of your heating, and keep your household between 18 and 21 celsius. that is best for keeping you healthy and well through the winter. iltrui’hat and well through the winter. what about advice _ and well through the winter. what about advice on _ and well through the winter. what about advice on baths _ and well through the winter. what about advice on baths and showers? i think the general advice is to have a shower rather than a bath, and a

short shower at that?— a shower rather than a bath, and a short shower at that? absolutely. we would always — short shower at that? absolutely. we would always say _ short shower at that? absolutely. we would always say a _ short shower at that? absolutely. we would always say a shower _ short shower at that? absolutely. we would always say a shower uses - short shower at that? absolutely. we would always say a shower uses less| would always say a shower uses less energy than a bath, and if you can, and it is compatible, we would recommend getting a water saving shower head, or a water efficient shower head, or a water efficient shower head, or a water efficient shower head for your shower. or you can reduce your time in the shower. the average shower is around seven minutes. if you can get it down to four minutes, you could save around £90 a year. four minutes, you could save around £90 a year-— four minutes, you could save around £90 a ear. ~ . ., , ~ £90 a year. what about machines like the tumble dryer? _ £90 a year. what about machines like the tumble dryer? that _ £90 a year. what about machines like the tumble dryer? that is _ £90 a year. what about machines like the tumble dryer? that is quite - the tumble dryer? that is quite energy intensive in terms of the energy intensive in terms of the energy it uses, isn't it? is it best to limit the amount of time you are using things like that? if to limit the amount of time you are using things like that?— using things like that? if you've not the using things like that? if you've got the option _ using things like that? if you've got the option to _ using things like that? if you've got the option to use _ using things like that? if you've got the option to use an - using things like that? if you've got the option to use an air- using things like that? if you've | got the option to use an air dry, like a clothes horse kind of dryer instead of the tumble drier, that will help you save energy. we also need to bear in mind whether or not your home is well ventilated while

your home is well ventilated while you are doing that, just to make sure you don't create problems with damp if you are not letting that moist air out of the house. abs, lat damp if you are not letting that moist air out of the house. a lot of this is about _ moist air out of the house. a lot of this is about insulating _ moist air out of the house. a lot of this is about insulating homes. - moist air out of the house. a lot of this is about insulating homes. it i this is about insulating homes. it might be too late if you hadn't already, but in the long term, what is the advice to people on how best to protect yourselves from the cold when it does hit? brute to protect yourselves from the cold when it does hit?— to protect yourselves from the cold when it does hit? we know that a lot of households _ when it does hit? we know that a lot of households will _ when it does hit? we know that a lot of households will hear _ when it does hit? we know that a lot of households will hear these - when it does hit? we know that a lot of households will hear these tips . of households will hear these tips and feel a little bit worried. we are already hearing from so many people struggling to turn on the heating, to use energy through the winter, and so these tips, for example, if you are on a prepayment meter and you can't afford to top up, you won't be able to cut back any more. as you say, insulation is really key. we are ill—prepared now for a hard winter where the energy

prices are high. it's going to be really important that a good plan is put in place for insulating homes in the future, to make sure essentially that the government doesn't have to continue subsidising support through the winter. . ~ continue subsidising support through the winter. ., ,, , ., continue subsidising support through the winter. . ~' , ., , . i want to bring you up—to—date on the rail union, the rmt, because i was telling you earlier that their members at network rail have rejected the latest pay offer which had been described as the best and final offer will stop we've had a response from andrew haines, the chief executive of rmt, who says, the rmt leadership needs to think long and hard about what to do next. the strike action will cause further misery for the rail industry. this news is especially frustrating, given that we learn today colleagues represented by the unite union have

accepted the very same offer put to rmt members. that is the response from network rail. a minute's silence has been held acrossjersey and official flags have silence has been held acrossjersey and officialflags have been silence has been held acrossjersey and official flags have been lowered after five people died and official flags have been lowered afterfive people died in and official flags have been lowered after five people died in what is a suspected gas explosion at a block of flats on saturday. the recovery operation could take weeks. in the last hour, a spokesperson for island energy has confirmed that an engineer attended the property on friday night and followed standard procedures. danjohnson is in the capital, st helier. this is a disaster that has shaken the silent community, i think. it has hit everybody here very hard. it was an enormous explosion that destroyed a small block of flats that stood just up there where the orange arm of that digger now stands. there is very little left of that building, just a pile of rubble

which such teams have continued going through because they are still searching for four people who are missing. we know five people lost their lives, and the declaration of their lives, and the declaration of the weekend was that the search effort would turn into a recovery operation because there was no hope of finding any survivors. this morning people across the island fell silent at 11am for a minute. that was respected by people from the emergency services, people who were involved in the search here stopped their work for a moment. people working on the harbour posed for a moment, lined people working on the harbour posed fora moment, lined up people working on the harbour posed for a moment, lined up and bowed their heads in respect, notjust of their heads in respect, notjust of the lives lost in this explosion but of two tragedies that have hit the island this week. a fishing boat sankjust island this week. a fishing boat sank just a island this week. a fishing boat sankjust a few days ago, with the loss of three fisher men. some people on the island have had a lot to deal with in the last week and there is still a huge clear up going on. the explosion was so powerful that even buildings a couple of hundred metres away were affected. there is an investigation going on

into the cause of this explosion and whether it could have been prevented, because the emergency services were called about a potential gas leak on friday night, just hours before the explosion. danjohnson with that report. the latest headlines: west midlands police have confirmed that three boys, aged eight, ten and 11 have died after being pulled from an icy lake near solihull over the weekend. snow ice and fog are causing widespread travel disruption in parts of the uk, with hundreds of motorists and air travellers were stranded. the government is due to meet the royal college of nursing this evening. it comesjust royal college of nursing this evening. it comes just days before a planned walk—out over by nurses. —— overpay. nominations for next year's golden globes have been announced with the dark comedy, �*the banshees of inisherin', leading the pack with eight nods.

the awards are attempting to rebuild their reputation after last year's event was marred by controversy over a lack of diversity and alleged corruption. let's go through it all with entertainment correspondent colin paterson, whojoins us now. controversy — remind us of why the golden globes got into so much trouble. , ., ., ., ., ., trouble. they got into a lot of trouble. they got into a lot of trouble when _ trouble. they got into a lot of trouble when an _ trouble. they got into a lot of trouble when an la _ trouble. they got into a lot of trouble when an la times . trouble. they got into a lot of. trouble when an la times expose trouble. they got into a lot of - trouble when an la times expose a reveal that the hollywood foreign press, who vote for the golden globes, had not had a single black memberfor 20 years, which globes, had not had a single black member for 20 years, which seems kind of astounding when this is a body who are supposed to be representing foreign countries whose journalists covering the entertainment industry in california will stop hollywood was horrified. the likes of netflix and amazon said they would not enter their films in they would not enter their films in the golden globes. tom cruise famously handed back three golden globes that he had won because he said he wanted nothing to do with the organisation. when the awards happened at the start of this year,

there was no one there. it was pretty much just a press release being read out and it was not shown on tv, so this is all about the golden globes trying to rebuild themselves, ben. 50. golden globes trying to rebuild themselves, ben.— golden globes trying to rebuild themselves, ben. so, trying to rebuild, themselves, ben. so, trying to rebuild. get — themselves, ben. so, trying to rebuild, get back _ themselves, ben. so, trying to rebuild, get back to _ themselves, ben. so, trying to rebuild, get back to business i themselves, ben. so, trying to | rebuild, get back to business as normal, if you like. what are the nominations? the banshees of inisherin is a great film, i saw it, a beautifulfilm. very dark, as we said, very funny as well. by the maker of three billboards and in bruges. he maker of three billboards and in bru~es. . , maker of three billboards and in bru~es. ., , ., maker of three billboards and in bru~es. .,, ., ., maker of three billboards and in brues. ., , ., ., ., bruges. he has got colin farrell back and brendan _ bruges. he has got colin farrell back and brendan gleeson, - bruges. he has got colin farrell back and brendan gleeson, thisj bruges. he has got colin farrell- back and brendan gleeson, this story about feuding friends in the 1920s ireland, fingers being chopped off. yeah, it is very dark, nominated in the best comedy category at the golden globes, and it is doing so well, four acting nominations in total. barry qian is nominated and

kelly condon, so four i wish nominations. second best film is everything everywhere all at once, which is difficult described because it is so bonkers. it stars michelle yeo, the relation the mill asian actor. ., ., ., , ., , actor. you mentioned tom cruise. has to run actor. you mentioned tom cruise. has top gun margaret _ actor. you mentioned tom cruise. has top gun margaret got _ actor. you mentioned tom cruise. has top gun margaret got some _ top gun margaret got some nominations?— top gun margaret got some nominations? ., , ., . ,, nominations? tom cruise handed back his golden globes _ nominations? tom cruise handed back his golden globes but _ nominations? tom cruise handed back his golden globes but he _ nominations? tom cruise handed back his golden globes but he is _ his golden globes but he is nominated again this year, not for acting, which was a surprise, but as one of the producers of top gun maverick. it will be fascinating to see if tom cruise says the golden globes have done enough in his eyes by adding more than 100 new voters and changing the demographic make—up of who votes, will he go to the golden globes injanuary? that is a big moment for the golden globes. but there was another scandal. one

thing they will have to deal with is the actor brendan fraser, whom people probably know best for george of the jungle, people probably know best for george of thejungle, nominated people probably know best for george of the jungle, nominated for a different type of role here in the while, in which he plays an obese literary professor. he is nominated but he has said ahead of today that if he was nominated he would not be attending the golden globes because in 2003 it is alleged that he was sexually assaulted by a man who went on to be the president of the golden globes, and those allegations have been denied, but he says he has never been apologised to buy the hollywood foreign press and that he is not going to go, so the golden globes desperately trying to get things sorted. there they have another high—profile star saying he will not be going to the awards. let's just talk about a couple of other, well, one film and one tv show. avatar the way of water — james cameron, back. hat

show. avatar the way of water - james cameron, back.— show. avatar the way of water - james cameron, back. not even out in the us or the — james cameron, back. not even out in the us orthe uk, — james cameron, back. not even out in the us orthe uk, but _ james cameron, back. not even out in the us or the uk, but there _ james cameron, back. not even out in the us or the uk, but there we - james cameron, back. not even out in the us or the uk, but there we have i the us or the uk, but there we have avatar nominated for two awards, up for best drama and best director for james cameron. worth reminding you, avatar is the biggest film of all time at the box office. the golden globes have gone for it today. finally the crown. they got some nominations again?— finally the crown. they got some nominations again? series five and golden globe _ nominations again? series five and golden globe continues _ nominations again? series five and golden globe continues to - nominations again? series five and golden globe continues to love - nominations again? series five and golden globe continues to love the crown. imelda staunton, who took over the role of elizabeth ii, jonathan pryce, who took over the role of the duke of edinburgh, both nominated, as is the actor playing princess diana. the crown is still very much loved by the golden globes. i wonder if the netflix series harry and meghan will be nominated next year. i series harry and meghan will be nominated next year.— series harry and meghan will be nominated next year. i was going to ask about that. _ nominated next year. i was going to ask about that. all _ nominated next year. i was going to ask about that. all right, _ nominated next year. i was going to ask about that. all right, colin, - ask about that. all right, colin, thank you much indeed. national highways,

the government body that manages england's major road network, has defended smart motorways after a software failure meant that stranded vehicles were at risk of being driven into. in an exclusive interview with look north, their director of operations, duncan smith, said there will be further outages. spencer stokes reports. smart motorways, roads where the hard shoulder has been removed to create more capacity, radar signs and cctv then added to improve safety. but on october 26th, that safety net disappeared, a software failure saw staff lose control of the signals on smart motorways for nearly four hours. they couldn't close any lanes with the red x symbol, putting drivers who had to stop on the motorway at potential risk of being driven into. for the first time, national highways has spoken about what happened. in that period, our ability to set red xs was switched off, that wasn't an ideal situation, but one we managed through other

measures such as extra patrols on the network. but it wasn't just switched on and off again, it was off nearly three hours — a long time. when we brought the system back—up, we experienced some unexpected faults, that is why it turned into four hours. the outage led to outrage from rotherham's mp. motorists are 100% playing roulette with their lives every time they go on a smart motorway. the latest data shows in 2020, conventional motorways with a hard shoulder carried 60% of traffic and accounted for a.5% of all fatalities. in comparison, smart motorways carried less traffic, just 3.3%, but were safer, accounting for 0.6a% of fatalities. but the figures are disputed, with critics arguing the data needs to simply address

whether the absence of a hard shoulder was a factor in a death or it wasn't. it is difficult to ascertain the decision—making of drivers when there is and not a hard shoulder whether what their behaviour would have been if the hard shoulder was there. what i feel personally is that smart motorways provide a level of assurance to be as a motorist that overrode stone. ——that other roads don't but that extra level of assurance is only there when the technology works, and it will continue to be switched off for maintenance at quiet times. drivers aren't told when. i'm not wanting to give the impression we switch it off for any other reason than essential upgrades, and those are by exception rather than the norm.

smart motorways remain controversial, safety data overfive years is being measured before new ones are constructed. national highways say they are the safest type of road, but drivers remain unconvinced. twitter is relaunching its subscription service for a monthly fee users will get a blue tick bad chew indicating their account has been verified. their tweets will be given more prominence. people subscribing on apple devices will have to pay more. the initial launch last month was suspended after a rash of fake accounts. england's world cup dream may be over for another four years at least, but the three lions have got a feline friend who is joining them for their sad trip home from qatar. dave the cat has been winning hearts as england's unofficial mascot at the qatar world cup. the team had originally promised to adopt the stray if they won, but have stuck to the plan to bring him home despite saturday's

quarter final heartbreak. well done, dave the cat. that was dave the cat. now it's time for a look at the weather with matt. the weather forecaster. hello. the snow may have had impacts across some southern areas into today, but it's been the cold that's felt more widely. coldest start to a day since january 2021. coldest of all braemar in aberdeenshire, —16 as we began the day. so, how long is this cold spell going to last? we notice the blue colours remain in force throughout this week. a little blip of milder air very close to the south. that could have some impact tomorrow night. but it isn't until this weekend, especially sunday, we could see a wholesale pattern change. out there, back here and now, we've also got to add to the cold, some mist and fog around still lingering. a murky day across parts of central eastern england. that drifting a bit further northwards. a lot of sunshine elsewhere, a few wintry showers in eastern northern ireland, some in the very far north of scotland.

but for most it is colder there. some not getting above freezing all day long. temperatures dropping again this evening and with it, a significant ice risk, especially where you've seen the wintriest of the weather through the past couple of days. so into tonight, to go with that ice risk, a few snow flurries midlands into north west england. a limited amount of impacts, one or two to the east of northern ireland, but more especially in the very far north of scotland, drifting around in some strengthening winds. but —15 again, possibly in aberdeenshire. and east anglia, south east, a cold night tonight, we see some clearing skies and some hazy sunshine for tomorrow. now, tomorrow, the snow is going to be mainly across northern scotland, drifting its way down through eastern areas, could make it into the north east of england by the time we hit tomorrow evening. a lot of dry weather, a lot of sunshine. sunshine hazy across the south, another very cold day. but that little blip of milder air i mentioned, that's this rain here getting close to the southwest later in the day and into the night. the thing is, that's going to push into colder air, and that could give some more significant snow across parts of devon, cornwall, somerset, dorset, especially as we go through tuesday night and into wednesday morning. could be a bit further south.

we'll keep an eye on that for you. but once that clears through, midweek onwards, the northerly winds are back, meaning better visibility. snow mainly to the north and east of scotland, and to a limited degree, in the north east of england. however, through wednesday, winds will strengthen — 60—70mph gusts, blizzards across orkney, shetland and the north of the mainland. a lot of dry and bright weather elsewhere. but with that wind, don't even think about those as your temperatures. it's going to feel much, much colder in the wind. and then, to see the week out, we've got that northerly to begin with. still some further wintry flows in the north. this is what will bring the more significant change on sunday. and you can follow all those changes where you live on the bbc weather app.

this is bbc news. the headlines west midlands police confirm that three boys aged eight, ten and eleven have died after being pulled from an icy lake near solihull over the weekend. it will make some of the officers went in waist deep and one of my officers was trying to punch through theice officers was trying to punch through the ice to try and rescue the children themselves. snow, ice and fog cause widespread travel disruption in parts of the uk with hundreds of motorists and air travellers stranded. rejecting the latest pay offer and will go ahead with 2a8 hour strikes this week. the health secretary is

due to meet the royal college