welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines... beijing condemns what it calls "unacceptable" and "unscientific" restrictions on chinese travellers as it stops issuing visas to individuals from japan and south korea. the former vatican treasurer and australian cardinal, george pell, who was acquitted of sexual abuse allegations three years ago, has died aged 81. from one extreme to another — one of america's driest states is being battered by torrential rain and floods. and the first big awards ceremony of the year takes place in the next few hours — the 80th golden globes awards ceremony in los angeles.

welcome to bbc news — broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world. we begin in china where authorities have stopped issuing short—term visas to individuals from south korea and japan, in retaliation for covid restrictions imposed on chinese travellers. inside the country, state media are downplaying risks from the virus. officials from several major cities and provinces have said the infection rates are past their peak — and officials in beijing say it's discriminatory to single out chinese travellers. translation: regrettably, some countries disregard science and their own covid situation, they are

bent on imposing restrictions on china. china firmly reject this and will take reciprocal measures, we called the relevant countries to base their measures on facts and science and take proportionate measures and not use this to engage in political manipulations. we can now speak to the travel writer and blogger, steve rohan, who worked in china for six years. he joins us live from the capital of armenia, yerevan. when you surprised that china has decided to stop short—term visas from south korea and japan? goad from south korea and japan? good evenina. from south korea and japan? good evening- no. _ from south korea and japan? good evening- no. i— from south korea and japan? good evening. no, iwasn't, _ from south korea and japan? good evening. no, i wasn't, what - from south korea and japan? (emf. evening. no, iwasn't, what was from south korea and japan? (emf. evening. no, i wasn't, what was more surprising was china opening up so quickly. so, to see them stopping... sorry, there is a bit of a delay, let's carry on. why don't you continue with what you are saying.

yes, basically, iwas continue with what you are saying. yes, basically, i was surprised that china opened up so early and i think basically they had their hand forced by growing discontent at home so them closing the borders again is something that i thought would happen, to be honest.- something that i thought would happen, to be honest. given that that hasn't _ happen, to be honest. given that that hasn't happened, _ happen, to be honest. given that that hasn't happened, why - happen, to be honest. given that that hasn't happened, why do - happen, to be honest. given that| that hasn't happened, why do you think china has made this sort of move and come out in this way talk about retaliation and reciprocity? basically, i think they see it as a political. it is more about saving face and showing that china is not stashed still strong. —— china is still strong. stashed still strong. -- china is still strong-— stashed still strong. -- china is still stronu. , ., still strong. the chinese government say infections — still strong. the chinese government say infections in _ still strong. the chinese government say infections in the _ still strong. the chinese government say infections in the country - still strong. the chinese government say infections in the country have - say infections in the country have peaked, i know you have written extensively about travel inside and outside of china, in terms of how this is being perceived by people thinking of going to china, is this

reassuring? might people be reassured by this? i reassuring? might people be reassured by this?— reassuring? might people be reassured by this? i think it is too earl to reassured by this? i think it is too early to be _ reassured by this? i think it is too early to be reassured. _ reassured by this? i think it is too early to be reassured. i _ reassured by this? i think it is too early to be reassured. i have - early to be reassured. i have friends in china at the moment still and many, many people are in the hospital that the moment, covid has really taken over, so i think it is still far too early for any sort of reassurance.— still far too early for any sort of reassurance. ,, ., ., , reassurance. indeed. steve rohatyn, travel writer — reassurance. indeed. steve rohatyn, travel writer and _ reassurance. indeed. steve rohatyn, travel writer and blogger, _ reassurance. indeed. steve rohatyn, travel writer and blogger, thank - reassurance. indeed. steve rohatyn, travel writer and blogger, thank you | travel writer and blogger, thank you forjoining us on the programme with your thoughts. some newsjust in... cardinal george pell, former vatican treasurer and leading roman catholic conservative has died in rome at the age of 81. the australian cardinal was convicted of historic child sex abuse charges in 2018, but released from jail in 2020 after his conviction was crushed by the country's high court. reports say he died following complications from a hip replacement surgery. speaking to the bbc in 2020,

after his release from jail, george pell said his conservative christian views drove public opinion against him. he added that there was "no doubt" that his direct style and traditional approach to issues such as abortion had contributed to a hostile atmosphere. to the uk now and senior managers in the nhs in england and wales are warning that wednesday's strike by ambulance staff could be more damaging than the strike which took place before christmas. thousands of paramedics and support staff in the uk's public health system will take action in the dispute over pay. ministers at westminster have raised fears over the lack of specific agreement on the nature of emergency cover. they have published a draft new law requiring a minimum level of safety during strikes in certain sectors. our health correspondent dominic hughes has the latest.

ambulance service, is the patient breathing? it's calm but busy in this control room for the north i will make that request for you, ok? so don't worry. preparations are under way for another strike day tomorrow. taking part are members of the two biggest unions, the gmb and unison, including ambulance crews and call handlers. all this, when the health service is already under intense pressure. the strike comes on top of a really, really difficult winter. i've not faced anything like this in my whole nhs career. dr chris grant says we will all have to think carefully about how we use the service. i'm really confident that we're doing everything we possibly can to deliver a high quality service. but i think i've got to be brutally honest as well, is that there are some patients that we simply won't be able to send an ambulance to. but the public know that, and they know that we'll do everything we can to prioritise those who need us the most. so we have to be honest with the public, but i think as long as the public know we'll do everything we can to protect them, i think we'll work well together. and was there a faint or blackout just before the injury? the message from the ambulance service is pretty straightforward. they are asking us tomorrow to take stock, to think carefully before

calling for an emergency ambulance. to ask ourselves, is this really a life—threatening emergency? something like a heart attack, stroke or a seizure? if the answer to that question is yes, then absolutely do call an ambulance, and they are confident the measures they put in place to mitigate the strike action will mean help can reach you as soon as possible. not everyone will be joining the picket lines tomorrow. daniel works for the west midlands ambulance service. he's not striking, but understands why others might. personally, for me, it was more about kind of patient safety. so bearing in mind if a lot of staff are off on this strike, we have to factorise into account kind of patient safety being compromised. and, for me, that was something i didn't wish to kind of be a part of. and concerns over patient safety are one factor that ministers say is behind new legislation introduced today, to ensure minimum service levels in england, scotland and wales are maintained in the public sector during strikes. whilst we absolutely believe in the right to strike,

we're duty bound... we're duty bound to protect the lives and the livelihoods of the british people. the british people need to know that when they have a heart attack, a stroke or a serious injury, that an ambulance will turn up and that if they need hospital care, they have access to it. but for paramedics like paul, a gmb union rep with 15 years experience working in the north west ambulance service, this strike is notjust about pay. it's also about how well paramedics are able to care for their patients. the quality of care comes when we're available to respond to those who need us. we're now not available to respond to those who need us because we're sat in hospitals or sat in the ambulances queuing for hours upon hours. and that stops us being able to deliver that quality care that we want to deliver to our patients. so where the government has said they're going to introduce minimal levels for people who take strikes moving forward, we don't

meet minimum levels now on a day to day basis. i cannot stress enough how difficult it is for us to be able to deliver that care to patients. across most of england — and all of wales — the nhs is braced for another tough day of industrial action. dominic hughes, bbc news, preston. to california now where heavy rainfall which began on sunday has led to flooding in parts of the state — killing at least 15 people. nearly 50,000 people have been ordered to evacuate at the rain keeps falling, the rivers rise and fears of landslides grow. 10,000 people, living in the celebrity coastal town of montecito near santa barbara, have been ordered to leave. warnings of flooding and high winds are in place, across much of california, with more cyclones expected. jon donnison reports.

large parts of the state are already under water following back—to—back storms and there is more to come. in less than 12 hours, we have received more than eight inches of rain, with seven to eight inches still forecast to fall. in seven to eight inches still forecast to fall. ., ., , to fall. in other words, even more water- tens _ to fall. in other words, even more water. tens of _ to fall. in other words, even more water. tens of thousands - to fall. in other words, even more water. tens of thousands of - to fall. in other words, even morel water. tens of thousands of homes have already had to be evacuated, hand visible thousands more have been left without power. irate hand visible thousands more have been left without power. we worked hard the last — been left without power. we worked hard the last week _ been left without power. we worked hard the last week to _ been left without power. we worked hard the last week to make - been left without power. we worked hard the last week to make sure - been left without power. we worked | hard the last week to make sure this didn't happen. and it wasjust... and in some areas, the extreme rain has brought other dangers, too. in the town of montecito in santa barbara county, the whole community has been told to leave. the area is home to the duke and duchess of

sussex, including many stars including the tv staff ellen degenerate. irate including the tv staff ellen degenerate.— including the tv staff ellen deuenerate. ~ . ., degenerate. we are about nine feet out. -- ln de —— ln de generes. this latest extreme weather in california comes back on the back of extreme forest fires and record low temperatures a few weeks ago. well staying with the effects of climate, it's believed europe — and the polar regions — were the areas hardest hit by severe temperature changes, caused by climate change last year. according to new analysis — europe experienced its warmest summer on record, while some parts of greenland were up to eight degrees warmer than average in september. overall, 2022 was the fifth warmest year on record,

which means the last eight years in a row, were each the warmest yet measured. here is our climate editor, justin rowlatt. france had a brutal summer. it recorded its hottest ever year and lowest levels of rainfall. the perfect conditions for the wildfires which swept the country, destroying crops and threatening homes. the gironde region in the south of the country was very badly hit. i think it's really frightening, in terms of having things prepared for an escape if we need to. which, again, sounds totally crazy when i say it out loud that, you know, we might need to escape from where we live. but it gives you some sense of security that you are preparing things and that things are there and ready to go if needs be. it was a similar story across the continent, which experienced its worst drought for 500 years. some of europe's mightiest rivers

hit record low water levels, including the danube, the rhine and the loire, as the uk, germany and spain also experienced record heatwaves. this shows average surface temperatures worldwide in 2022. blue areas are below average, but look at the hotter than average red areas. europe, particularly western europe, is especially hot as is much of northern asia. wales also recorded its highest ever temperature during a year in which global temperatures were 1.2 degrees celsius above pre—industrial levels. now, governments have committed to trying to keep global temperature rise to within 1.5 degrees to avoid the worst of global warming. but scientists say time is rapidly running out. if we look at the current level of emissions and current level of warming, we will hit 1.5 degrees some time in the early 20305.

so we're already living on borrowed time effectively and borrowed emissions. the most dramatic warming of all is happening in the coldest places. temperatures over the centre of greenland, where eight degrees higher than average in september. antarctica experienced a record period of intense warmth, too. more evidence of how our world is changing. justin rowlatt, bbc news. you're watching newdsay on the bbc. still to come on the programme... hitting the shelves after days of making the headlines. prince harry's book — goes on sale around the world — and is already breaking records. day one of operation desert storm to force the iraqis out of kuwait has

seen the most intense air attacks since the second world war. tobacco is one of the biggest industries but the industry is nervous of this report, this may tend to make people want to stop smoking cigarettes. there is not straight that is unaffected. buildings were demolished. this woman said she had been given no help and advice by the authorities. she stood outside the ruins of our business. tens of thousands of black children in south africa have taken advantage of new laws and enrolled at formerly white schools. the night sees the 9000 performance of the mousetrap. but agatha christie would have been the last person to want it cancelled.

this is newsday on the bbc. beijing condemns what it calls "unacceptable" and "unscientific" restrictions on chinese travellers — as it stops issuing visas to individuals from japan and south korea. paramedics and support staff in the uk are taking further strike action in their dispute over pay and conditions. after days of publicity, prince harry's autobiography has gone on sale — and it's already the uk's fastest selling non—fiction book ever. more than 400,000 copies have been sold in a day. much of the book's content is already public, after copies were mistakenly put on sale early in spain and that series of interviews from prince harry. here's our royal correspondent, nicholas witchell. unpacked at midnight. after all the leaks, the revelations about his own life

and the claims about the lives of others, the book itself — set out for display, ready for business. a royal read — a special offer at half price. the doors to this book store opened... good morning, everybody. ..to discover one particularly loyal customer queuing. advance orders have been high... thank you very much. ..and these early readers were keen. i can't wait to read what he's got to say, and i can't wait to listen to the audio. to leave the family, . to leave their country, i want to know, in his words, why? the book has gone on sale in countries around the world. here it is in singapore. and this is the french edition, on sale in paris. the biggest demand is expected to be in the united states. there, the queue to buy was a little larger. and, like london, the first to buy had high hopes for the book. we find them fascinating. we find their marriage fascinating, their love story. and ijust think this is going to be a great addition to the next chapter of their story.

i'm a psychologist, so i'm more interested in the sort of family dynamics, despite the obvious wealth and whatnot. the drama, trauma, loss, tragedy. and here, in many different languages, is one man's version of those difficulties. the book, the audio book are out there now. anyone who is so inclined can read or listen to them and make up their own mind. but where does this leave the monarchy and the royalfamily? well, first of all, it's important to distinguish between the two. the system of constitutional monarchy has been part of this country for centuries, and it's weathered any number of ups and downs. right now, of course, there's a new monarch — charles iii. harry's claims, particularly against camilla, the queen consort, have been wounding, but do they matter? this is a series of revelations that have really re—entrenched both sides. those who are great supporters of the monarchy will continue to be so.

the fans of the sussexes will feel as supportive of them as they always have been. but really, for the institution in the middle, itjust carries on. it's seen far worse than this before. i mean, this might be a scandal, but it's not a crisis. and as for the book, at the center of it all? it's already the fastest selling non—fiction book in the uk the publishers have ever known. nicholas witchell, bbc news. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines... president lula of brazil has been meeting state governors, in the wake of sunday's attack on government buildings in brazilia. the president inspected the damage at the supreme court — he condemned again the attempts by bolsonaro's supporters to overthrow the newly installed government. the former chief financial officer of the trump organization, allen whyzelberg, was sentenced to five months injail. he was found guilty

of a 13—year tax fraud scheme ——allen weisselberg was sentenced to five months injail. he was found guilty of a 13—year tax fraud scheme at the trump organization — after evading $1.76 million in unreported income. weisselberg plead guilty to all charges against him — admitting that he and other executives received compensation to save money for the company and its executives. the french government is setting out plans to reform the pensions system, under which many workers still retire at the age of 62 — much earlier that many other advanced economies. the proposal is for most workers to stay in the workplace for two or three years longer, to qualify for a full pension. the 80th golden globes awards ceremony will be taking place shortly in los angeles. steven spielberg's �*the fabelmans' — �*top gun: the maverick�* and the �*avatar�* sequels are just some of the films that will compete for the much coveted gongs. but, it is uncertain how many nominees will attend due to the controversy that has surrounded the awards in the last two years —

the los angeles times revealed there were no black members of the committee that votes for the winners and there hadn't been a black member since at least 2002. there were also allegations of ethical misconduct. for more on this i am joined now by clayton davis, who is the senior awards editor at variety. he joins us now from los angeles. it's going to get you on the programme. hollywood's biggest party is back but will holly would show up? is back but will holly would show u . ? ., ~' is back but will holly would show u? ., ~' , ., is back but will holly would show u? ., ~ ,, ., is back but will holly would show u? ., ~' a, ., ., is back but will holly would show up? thank you for having me. i think we are going — up? thank you for having me. i think we are going to _ up? thank you for having me. i think we are going to see _ up? thank you for having me. i think we are going to see a _ up? thank you for having me. i think we are going to see a lot _ up? thank you for having me. i think we are going to see a lot of- up? thank you for having me. i think we are going to see a lot of stars - we are going to see a lot of stars tonight and a lot of the ones that are nominated. the only ones we know for sure won't be there and that are actually boycotting due to past controversies are brendan fraser, he accused former president of sexual molestation a few years ago and he won't be attending tonight. tom cruise is also not expected to

attend but after returning three golden globes is wanes, this year he is actually filming the next mission impossible movie so it is a ij get out ofjailfree card impossible movie so it is a ij get out ofjail free card but everyone else we should expect a sea of the red carpet. else we should expect a sea of the red carpet-— red carpet. there was so much controversy — red carpet. there was so much controversy over _ red carpet. there was so much controversy over this _ red carpet. there was so much controversy over this awards . controversy over this awards ceremony, particularly over the lack of diversity within its ranks, has not improved? it of diversity within its ranks, has not improved?— of diversity within its ranks, has not imroved? ., , ., , not improved? it has improved. they have added more _ not improved? it has improved. they have added more than _ not improved? it has improved. they have added more than 100 _ not improved? it has improved. they have added more than 100 members| not improved? it has improved. they i have added more than 100 members of its ranks, a lot of them are from diverse backgrounds and ethnic backgrounds. however, they still have some work to do and this is their step in that direction, and i don't want them and i think a lot of people will sickness that signalled this to them, the work is not done yet, there are still problems with their problematic members but there are great people within the organisation, theyjust need to clean up what they have, they made

great strides and this is a toe dip in the pond to see if hollywood is willing to take them back and embrace them back fully because they are an important stop on the oscar train. ., , ., , are an important stop on the oscar train. ., i. , .,, train. indeed, and you put aside the controversies _ train. indeed, and you put aside the controversies through _ train. indeed, and you put aside the controversies through -- _ train. indeed, and you put aside the controversies through -- for - train. indeed, and you put aside the controversies through -- for the - controversies through —— for the moment until about the excitement in terms of what has been nominated. any particular favourites to win? banshees of nish erin and everywhere all at once are battling out further best picture and i'm expecting the banshees film to rein triumphant in that race. on the drama side, you have elvis, directed by baz lerman, going against stephen spielberg's fabelmans, and i'm effecting elvis to win that race, just like bohemian rhapsody did a few years ago, they

love a good musical biopic and it has been doing very well on the circuit. , ., ., , has been doing very well on the circuit. , . ., , . ., , has been doing very well on the circuit. ., ,. ., , circuit. this awards ceremony coming off the back — circuit. this awards ceremony coming off the back of _ circuit. this awards ceremony coming off the back of a _ circuit. this awards ceremony coming off the back of a pandemic _ circuit. this awards ceremony coming off the back of a pandemic we - circuit. this awards ceremony coming off the back of a pandemic we have i off the back of a pandemic we have all been through in the cinema industry, movie theatres, all of that, having gone through so much of evil as well, what is your sense of where it is heading the next few years roger mark —— gone through so much up evil. years roger mark -- gone through so much no evil-— much up evil. there is a feeling of worry throughout _ much up evil. there is a feeling of worry throughout the _ much up evil. there is a feeling of worry throughout the hollywood l worry throughout the hollywood industry, such as we see some box office returns. stephen spielberg movie isn't going to make its money back on his personal project, people start to worry but avatar is doing very well and should continue to do well, probably crossing the $2 billion mark thatjames cameron said it needed to do in order to break even, and we still have more of those movies to come, but something like top gun maverick shows people will come to the theatres. it is

going through a transformation and an evolution but nobody was to see the movie theatres die. i an evolution but nobody was to see the movie theatres die.— the movie theatres die. i certainly don't, it is — the movie theatres die. i certainly don't, it is one _ the movie theatres die. i certainly don't, it is one of _ the movie theatres die. i certainly don't, it is one of my _ the movie theatres die. i certainly don't, it is one of my favourite - don't, it is one of my favourite places to go to. what is your top picture? places to go to. what is your top icture? , ., ~ places to go to. what is your top icture? , . ~ i. picture? elvis and i think you will see colin farrell— picture? elvis and i think you will see colin farrell when _ picture? elvis and i think you will see colin farrell when the - picture? elvis and i think you will| see colin farrell when the leading actor and michelle yellow and cate blanchett and michelle yellow will be the second asian to win —— win -- -- win —— —— three.

we will have lots more in later hours of newsday, thank you for joining me, do stay with bbc news. —— michelle yeoj both —— michelle yeoj the low pressure drives our weather, there will be heavy downpours for some of us through the day and over the next few days often we will see rain strengthening winds, mainly still quite mild for the time of year but gail is developing, overnight rain sweeping eastwards, by the time we get to six o'clock, most of us generally frost free but heavy showers from the word go pushing in from the north and the west. you can see the proximity of all these isobars on the chart, that is showing us that it's going to be a blustery sort of day, plenty of showers driven

in from the atlantic. so, the heaviest of the downpours will be in the west during this morning. parts of scotland, northern ireland and also then pushing into wales in western england too. gales around coastal parts of the english channel, through the irish seacoast, up towards the western isles for instances of 60 mph gusts possible there. but even further inland, we're looking at 30, possibly a0 mph gusts of wind through the day on wednesday. so, a blustery day, heavy downpours reaching eastern areas during the afternoon after a fairly bright morning here. and temperatures a little cooler than recent days. about seven to 11 degrees, feeling colder if you are exposed to the brisk wind and those heavy showers that many of us will see. some snow for a time over the high ground of scotland too. overnight, showers ease in the north but the next batch of heavy rain sweeps eastwards across much of england and wales. so, it's giving a really quite damp start to thursday morning, i think. could be a touch of frost with some sheltered glenns of scotland but still mild to start the day towards the south on thursday. and thursday's weather driven by yet another low pressure system, this time just moving in towards the northwest. this occluded front bringing some

heavy showers but down towards the south, we also get some heavy rain across england lingering on the frontal system and combined with skills that are once again with gails that are once again going to develop in the english channel run some of this average seacoast intruding in the day across the northwest too. so, the next band of rain crosses from the east to west, following scattered heavy downpours moving in from the northwest. temperatures still about seven to nine in the north but up to 13 possibly 1a down towards the southeast. so, it stays mild, a hint that through the weekend, things turn a little less unsettled those temperatures are going to drop a little bit until we get to someday. bye— bye.

no turning back now. ijust need to get there. even if it isjust the debris field, i will be very happy, paying my respects in the debris field.