>> morning 930 on monday the 6th of january 2025. our first show of january 2025. our first show of the new year live across the uk. britain's newsroom with andrew pierce and bev turner. >> good morning. thank you so much for joining >> good morning. thank you so much forjoining us. so tech much for joining us. so tech billionaire elon musk has said that nigel farage is not fit to lead reform uk. we're going to be looking at the reasons why the founder of x has turned on nigel, as it was only on

saturday when farage said this . saturday when farage said this. >> beside him, he's got elon, who is a proper hero, who believes in free speech and free speech doesn't mean you agree with every single word that everyone says. >> and in an exclusive, gb news reveals that civil servants delayed compensation plans for grooming rape gang victims as labour resists calls for a national inquiry. are they worried about their muslim vote? we'll have the latest. >> heavy snow is causing transport chaos this morning as millions of brits return to work. there is more cold weather on the way. have you been affected or is it a lot of fuss about nothing? >> and are they finally going to end the backlog? the prime minister sets out his latest plans to cut nhs waiting list times this morning. one of those changes, one of those milestones. remember those and find out how many millions of

taxpayer money is being spent on interpreters for non—english speaking benefit claimants. >> brace yourself. >> brace yourself. >> and today is the day when solicitors can expect to receive the most calls of the year to begin divorce proceedings. it's why it's called national divorce day. are people sick to death of their partners after the christmas break? no divorce here. >> not yet. >> not yet. >> we're reunited. >> we're reunited. >> the year is young. >> the year is young. >> we are reunited. >> we are reunited. >> it is so nice to be back. it genuinely is really, really nice to be back. well, i speak for myself. no, no, it's good to be back. >> it's been a good break and great to be on gb news. and i've had great viewing figures and listening figures last year. we want to continue to build on that and a big, big, big story today with the row between nigel farage and elon musk. curiously, reform don't want to put up anyone to speak to us at the moment. >> yeah, well anybody watching,

you're welcome. we're here until midday gbnews.com/yoursay so you can talk to each other and also to us first, though, at the very latest news headlines with sophia hill. >> thank you. bev and andrew. very good morning. it's just gone 9:30. i'm sophia hill with the latest headlines from the gb newsroom. our top story gb news can reveal civil servants delayed compensation plans for child sexual abuse victims. government sources have told gb news that when attempts were made to raise the issue, they were pushed into the long grass by senior officials. gb news national reporter charlie peters told us the latest earlier on dates. >> there has never been a thorough investigation. a gb news we found over 50 different towns and cities where this was going on. the independent inquiry looked at six. none of them are on that list. it is a sham for wes streeting to hide behind it and say we need to do more. we can look back at this report. i'm afraid it's not good enough. >> survivors a government

spokesperson from the civil service said timely advice is provided to ministers to help them make decisions in line with them make decisions in line with the civil code. key reform figures have voiced their support for nigel farage, after tech billionaire elon musk said he doesn't have what it takes to lead the party. chairman of reform uk, zia yusuf, posted on x, labelling nigel farage as the most impactful british politician of our lifetimes. the tech billionaire is about turn appeared to be linked to a disagreement over tommy robinson. in his response, farage said well, this is a surprise. elon is a remarkable individual but i am afraid on this i disagree. my view remains that tommy robinson is not right for reform, and i never sell out on my principles. it comes just weeks after farage travelled to florida to meet with musk about possible funding for his party. and weather warnings persist across the country this morning as many commuters are suffering travel disruptions from severe weather. major roads have been blocked and railways lines blocked. manchester airport's runways were closed early on this morning because of heavy

snow but have since reopened. travel disruptions are due to flooding from thawing snow and heavy rain. as it stands, there are 60 flood warnings and 260 flood alerts in place. this also all comes after the most of the uk saw heavy snow or icy rainfall over the weekend, and reaching the coldest night of the winter so far at —i3.3 degrees. and the government has unveiled their new pledge to cut the list of waiting to cut the list of patients waiting for more than 18 weeks for nhs treatments in england by nearly half a million over the next yeah half a million over the next year. sir keir starmer is set to lay out these plans in a speech this morning, as part of a drive to deliver 2 million extra appointments by the end of next yeah appointments by the end of next year. the plan will expand access to community diagnostic centres and surgical hubs, alongside reforms designed to enhance patient choices and tackle inefficiencies. the british medical association has welcomed the news, but they are sceptical about whether it can be delivered. those are the latest gb news headlines for

now. i'll be back in half an houn now. i'll be back in half an hour, but now it's back to andrew and bev for the very latest gb news direct to your smartphone, sign up to news alerts by scanning the qr code or go to gbnews.com/alerts. >> very good morning. welcome back. britain's newsroom 2025. you look thrilled. >> andrew pierce, i am thrilled to be back. actually, yes i am. >> did you have a nice christmas? a very good break. >> very nice. saw family. saw friends. it was very nice. >> it was very nice. mine was. mine was similar. it was. do you know what? that was quite a long time that we were off gb news. that's probably the longest. yeah, it's the longest you've had lie—ins in years. >> i can't remember how long. >> i can't remember how long. >> do you feel a bit jet lagged? >> do you feel a bit jet lagged? >> i rather like being jet lagged.i >> i rather like being jet lagged. i have to say, get used to it. yeah, because the starts are early. but, but. but i didn't miss bev. no, i've just been asked in my ear, so. and

she didn't miss me. so let's not let's not pretend. but the. but it was. but it's good to be back. and there's so much to get into because this is a big year, we shouldn't forget as well. >> today, i think you're moving on a little bit too quickly there from the fact that you didn't miss me at all. i missed you, i did miss you, andrew pierce. because you know what? i did a show on new year's eve here. oh, yeah. and i did a couple of a little bit. a couple of bits over christmas. there were a few moments when i thought, oh, if andrew was here, he'd be taking the mickey out of this. probably would. and we'll have a little bit more of that sort of irreverence this morning that you've come to know and expect, particularly about the weather. >> i think it's a bit of snow. hello. it'sjanuary. it happens. and any excuse for the train companies to disrupt the service. they don't normally need snow to disrupt the service. >> exactly. >> exactly. >> wrong leaves on the line. wrong rain, wrong wind. it's ridiculous. get a grip. >> we will be giving you a bit more of that realism here in britain's newsroom in 2020. >> an amber weather warning. what's that about? >> but let's get back to the news of the day then. as you

were just about to talk about before i interrupted you for not missing me. and this is about, of course, the grooming gangs and the reform party story, because the two issues are very much connected. >> they are. and this kicked off. you rememberjess phillips, off. you remember jess phillips, who's the minister for effectively safeguarding minister, has ruled out a request from oldham council for an international inquiry. she says do it yourself. that's right. and of course, the suspicion is jess phillips, who is a west midlands mp, a birmingham mp, she nearly lost her seat at the election. a huge majority nearly overturned when an independent muslim candidate stood against her. is she worried about upsetting the muslim vote? oh, i'd say without a doubt. >> and this is why these two stories are so interesting and why they've come together in a sense, because, of course, tommy robinson, controversial character, has got dragged into this debate. >> who's in prison? >> who's in prison? >> who's in prison? >> who is in prison? elon musk has jumped >> who