fergus walsh, thanks for— -- the one solace. fergus walsh, thanks forjoining _ -- the one solace.cy cobra committee to discuss the continued threat posed by storm christoph. the emergency services in south yorkshire and greater manchester have already declared major incidents. people living in the north west, yorkshire and the midlands are being urged to prepare for the risk of significant flooding with up to 2,000 homes being evacuated in didsbury. judith mortitz is there tonight. while there are more than 300 flood alerts and warnings across england, there are nowjust four of alerts and warnings across england, there are now just four of the alerts and warnings across england, there are nowjust four of the most severe level, two of those were declared in the last few minutes and they are on merseyside, and the other is at didsbury where i am, and the environment agency has told us that this is the area where 2000 or so properties are being evacuated. we have seen people leaving here but also other residents and they are going to chance it and they are moving things upstairs and

fergus walsh is with me now. fergus walsh is with me nowm fergus walsh is with me now.and alarmed about, just to focus on the fact that there is hope, as the prime minister says — we could be in the final phase of this battle, even though it is a painful one and involves lots of sadness for lots of people. so when you listened to the prime minister earlier, going through the various categories of people, the kind of timetable for vaccination, what was your thoughts? what can you offer viewers in terms of guidance? well, i think what it shows is that there isa i think what it shows is that there is a way out, there is a path out of this pandemic which the vaccine will deliver, and every single person who gets immunised, it is one more chipping away of the power and strength of coronavirus. but it is going to get worse before it gets better. now, i've done some totting up better. now, i've done some totting up of the figures in the over 70s, day care home residents and workers, the front line health care workers — some debate among me and my collea g u es some debate amon

fergus walsh, approve it for all ages. fergus walsh. thank _ approve it for all ages.. _ borisjohnson says endless talk endless about a scottish independence referendum is completely irrelevant now while the uk battles the pandemic. the prime minister was speaking on a visit to scotland today. the snp said his trip was not essential and said he was panicking as opinion polls show declining support for the union. 0ur scotland correspondent lorna gordon reports. from the lighthouse covid testing lab in glasgow... to a community vaccination centre being set up with the help of the army, to this vaccine manufacturing plant, there is no mistaking the message the prime minister was sending with growing talk of another vote in scotland's future, boris johnson was here to emphasise what he believes the benefits of the country remaining united. i the benefits of the country remaining united.- the benefits of the country remaining united. i think endless talk about a _ remaining united. i think endless talk about a referendum - remaining united. i think endless talk about a refe

fergus walsh, those aged 65 and over. fergus walsh. thank — those aged 65 and over. germany areju5t some of the eu member 5tate5 struggling to get hold of enough vaccine 5upplie5. vaccination5 are having to be postponed before the roll—out has really begun. germany'5 health minister says the country's facing a shortage well into april, and warned of at least ten tough week5 ahead. jenny hill reports on the difficulties germany is facing. a waiting room without any patients. a vaccination centre without any vaccine. germany relied on the eu to place its order5, a decision which may have come at a cost. translation: we really feel it here. people keep asking us why we haven't been vaccinated yet. at the end of the day, these are political decisions which i have to accept, but i am looking forward to the time when we have enough vaccine and can get on with it. no touri5t5 now for city guide tere5ia. immunity would bring life back to marburg'5 5treet5, restart the german economy. butju5t 2% of the population have had their first dose of the vaccine so far. even so, she t

and our medical editor fergus walsh is here.ated, still a lot of uncertainty about months ahead. that's right, so 5 million protected so far, 10 million still to go, because there are 15 million in those top four priority groups, with the target of reaching them by mid—february. now, protection builds after immunisation, it takes about three weeks, but even then it's not total, especially after the first dose were so given the very high rates of coronavirus those who have been immunised have been told to be very careful indeed and stick to the lockdown rules for now. it's not clear, they may still be able to pass on the virus. there is no doubt that the lockdown is suppressing the virus, but if the outbreak is shrinking at all it's not happening fast enough. more and more people are out and about than they were in the first lockdown and we have this more contagious variant. we see the effect on hospitals. nearly double the number of covid patients is at the number of covid patients is at the first peak in april, more i see yous

fergus walsh, bbc news. fergus walsh, bbc news.e still under intense pressure with the increasing number of covid patients arriving, and doctors say they are seeing more younger patients in the 30s and 40s compared to the first wave. 0ur health editor hugh pym — with camera operator harriet bradshaw and producer dominic hurst — have had access to film at croydon university hospital in south london. it is loud and clear. covid is serious. the numbers are definitely increasing and they are still increasing every day. i don't think i have ever known the whole system be as stretched as it is right now under pressure. this is a&e, but not as you know it. all staff are in full protective equipment. they know that most patients coming in have either tested positive or have symptoms. how are you feeling now? it's the breath that's the problem, and the cough. can i have a little listen, is that all right? this man is a consultant here. just sit forward for me a little and take a nice deep breath. and he is assessing this woman, who has just

fergus walsh, our medical editor. let's move on to the dave's are main story.ited states, beforejoe biden is sworn in tomorrow as the nation's 46th president. but in a break with tradition, mr trump will not be attending his successor�*s inauguration, as he's decided to fly to his resort in florida in the morning. thousands of soldiers have been deployed around washington dc in the biggest security operation ever seen for a presidential inauguration, and much of the us capitol, the home of american democracy, has been fenced off, following the riot by mr trump's supporters a fortnight ago. one the eve of mr biden�*s inauguration, let'sjoin our north america editor, jon sopel, in washington. it has been a presidency that has defied all that convention and why should it end any differently? joe biden has now arrived in washington, dc a few moments ago and will spend the nightjust across the street from the white house. but donald trump and mr biden will not meet. instead, tomorrow morning, donald trump will be up early. he has awarded himself a military parade an

fergus walsh, our medical editor.infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. the average number of new cases reported per day in the last week is now 54,833. 407 deaths were reported, that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test, but today's figures don't include scotland and are usually lower after the weekend. that means on average in the past week 611 deaths were announced every day. it takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 75,431. as we've heard, the covid threat is to be raised to the highest level five across the uk, following a warning from all four chief medical officers that the health services are at risk of being overwhelmed within three weeks. with coronavirus cases continuing to rise rapidly, driven by the new variant of the virus, the number of covid—19 patients in hospitals across the uk is also increasing sharply. our health editor, hugh pym, has the latest. on the front line of a major london hospital today. here at st george's, staff say it's exception

fergus walsh, thank you.wer rate. only 500 people had been given the jab in the first week. at least 25,000 were vaccinated today. tonight, the french prime minister jean castex said the vaccine will shortly be offered to all over—75s, as he expressed concern that the virus is still spreading too fast in france. 0ur paris correspondent lucy williamson has been to a hospital in the southern city of saint—etienne. for france, this is not a vaccine to be delivered in a hurry. these tiny vials may be endorsed by doctors, but they carry a political risk. at saint—etienne's new vaccination centre, the first doses to arrive are for staff, not patients — a new push to increase vaccinations and public confidence in them. until now, only residents of elderly care homes were eligible for the jab. this week, it's being offered to firefighters, domestic carers and all medical staff over the age of 50. we are dealing with a technocratic system which is not reactive enough, and only wants to follow regulatory schedules with

and 0, fergus walsh.ian tang, consultant virologist at the leicester royal infirmary and associate professor in the department of respiratory sciences at the university of leicester. a very good morning to you and welcome to bbc news. to pick up what fergus walsh was saying, he thinks this vaccination is a game changer so this vaccination is a game changer so is that your view as well? yes, it is much easier to roll out to the general population across all the different centres even those without ultralow storage capabilities. and also i think the roll—out to the rest of the world is really important as well. so i think the game changer if you want to use that term. we have two vaccine is available now but if you only get one dose of either of them, how much protection does that give? the figures vary between the vaccines in the trials but from what i have seen and heard, 50—70% efficacy after one dose for both jabs and that's a pretty good response. thing about things like influenza, they could be anythi

fergus walsh, bbc news.l work around the clock until every victim of saturday's plane crash is found. they have pinpointed the location of the black boxes and hope to retrieve the vital evidence by using specialised equipment. 0ur reporter freya cole has the latest. it is a delicate and sensitive operation. piecing together parts of the ill—fated plane which crashed into the ocean on saturday. along with the metal and mechanics are people's belongings, bags of clothing, the sorry sight of life jackets. 62 people were on board, including several young children. authorities have found some human remains and say it is their priority to make sure everybody is accounted for. translation: we will do everything to meet the needs of the families until all the victims of flight sj—182 are found. this flight attendant is the first victim to be identified. he was age 29. flight data have revealed the plane dropped more than 3000 metres in less than a minute shortly after take—off from jakarta airport. an ocean surveill

fergus walsh, bbc news.cines is encouraging, america's top infectious disease expert dr anthony fauci says we can't become complacent in fighting the virus. it is an incentive to do what we have been saying all along — to vaccinate as many people as we can as quickly as we possibly can. because mutations occur, because the virus has a playing field, as it were, to mutate. if you stop that and stop the replication, viruses cannot mutate if they don't replicate. germany and france have tightened their border controls, overfears new coronavirus variants might spread in europe. berlin says most visitors from britain, ireland, portugal, braziland south africa will be banned from saturday. most non—eu nationals will be excluded from france from sunday. the european union remains opposed to a blanket travel ban. the drama surrounding share—dealing in the us company gamestop continues to rumble on. regulators on both sides of the atlantic have issued warnings about the volatility of the market — amid fears small inv

fergus walsh, bbc news.ish nationals in hong kong will be able to apply for a uk visa using a smartphone app to protect their privacy and security. the british home secretary, priti patel, told the bbc it was absolutely vital to give applicants some protection. the new visa comes into force on sunday. it's being introduced after china imposed a security law on hong kong. here's our diplomatic correspondent, james landale after months of protests from pro—democracy campaigners, beijing last year imposed a tough new security law on hong kong. britain said this deal was broken as they tried to protect the territories autonomy. so ministers are offering a way out for those british nationals who want it. so for us in particular, we've made a promise to the people of hong kong when it comes to safeguarding and preserving their liberties and freedoms. particularly as they are being restricted by the chinese government, and this is one of a kind, a bespoke visa route to provide freedoms, safety, security. so who's e

fergus walsh: this is the front line in the ward. every patient we are looking after has covid. we cannot cope with a big spike, we just can't. every day, some battles are won. is one of the doctors here? and some are lost. all the patients here are critically ill. we're planning for many more patients, so all our theatres to be full of covid patients and possibly beyond. it is, you know, none of us have ever seen anything like this. the staff here are dealing with the biggest challenge ever faced by the nhs. they can save many of the patients. sadly, not all of them. and still, more patients keep coming every day. ed thomas reported from a hospital in lanarkshire and the experiences of a wide range of patients, young and old. suspected covid—i9? yes. look beyond the daily statistics. these are the lives changed forever. that's you completely breathing on your own. i'm a lucky one. i'm seeing my family tomorrow. from those trying to save the sickest... we've had three deaths, which has totally floored the staff today. it's probably t

fergus walsh, bbc news.ritish nationals in hong kong will be able to apply for a 5—year uk visa in a move that has angered china and could see diplomatic repercussions. the visa is being introduced after china imposed a security law on hong kong. paper applications will be accepted from sunday and a smartphone app coming in a few weeks will improve privacy and security. speaking to the bbc, the british home secretary priti patel told the bbc it was absolutely vital to give applicants some protection. here's our diplomatic correspondent james landale. after months of protests from pro—democracy campaigners, beijing last year imposed a tough new security law on hong kong. britain said this deal was broken as they tried —— britain said this brokered was agreed with china as they tried to protect the so ministers are offering a way out for those british nationals who want it. so for us in particular, we've made a promise to the people of hong kong when it comes to safeguarding and preserving their liberties and

fergus walsh, bbc news.e to vaccinologist dr peter hotez from the baylor college of medicine in houston. he welcomed novavax trial results. it looks like it's going to be another important vaccine. so now we've got the two mrna vaccines, we have the astrazeneca—oxford vaccine, we will hear thej&j vaccine soon, and the novavax, we have a recombinant and protein vaccine. and some people may ask why you need all these vaccines, well, there's limits in the capacity for production for any one of them, so the more we have the more shots on goal, the better globally we have a chance to beat this pandemic. and then in terms of the variants, where are we up to with knowing how much protection existing vaccines will provide against, for example, the variant that has been found in brazil and the one that has been found in south africa? yeah, the south african one is really worrying people because we are seeing diminished protection with both the pfizer and moderna mrna vaccine and we heard about the result today from t

fergus walsh, bbc news.work around the clock until every victim of saturday's plane crash is found. they have pinpointed the location of the black boxes and hope to retrieve the vital evidence by using specialised equipment. 0ur reporter freya cole has the latest... it is a delicate and sensitive operation. piecing together parts of the ill—fated plane which crashed into the ocean on saturday. along with the metal and mechanics are people's belongings, bags of clothing, the sorry sight of life jackets. 62 people were on board, including several young children. authorities have found some human remains and say it is their priority to make sure everybody is accounted for. translation: we will do everything to meet the needs of the families until all the victims of flight sj—182 are found. this flight attendant is the first victim to be identified. he was age 29. flight data have revealed the plane dropped more than 3000 metres in less than a minute shortly after take—off from jakarta airport. an ocean surveill

very. 0ur medical editor fergus walsh has been given rare access to the intensive care wards for tonight'sal report. this year's gcse and a level students will now be assessed by their teachers with classrooms remaining empty until at least the middle of february. as it becomes illegal to leave home in england without good reason, mps prepare to vote on the new measures tonight. 0n the dayjoe biden is set to be confirmed as next president — donald trump tells supports he will fight on and never concede the election. and changing gear in a pandemic — how one company has managed to survive by helping the most vulnerable. coming up on sportsday later in the hour on bbc news, we will look ahead to the second of the league cup semifinals. it is a manchester derby later this evening at old trafford. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. for the first time since april the uk has recorded more more than 1,000 daily covid—related deaths — one of the highest numbers ever recorded here. right now, london is at the epicentre of this crisis. hospitals now have more covid patients being admit

fergus walsh for us there.re sciences for a new variant there could be resista nt to variant there could be resistant to vaccines. the japanese people are in mourning following the death of emperor hirohito. thousands converged on the imperial palace to pay their respects when it was announced he was dead. good grief! after half a century of delighting fans around the world, charlie brown and the rest of the gang are calling it quits. the singer paul simon starts his tour of south africa tomorrow despite protests and violence from some black activist groups. they say international artists should continue to boycott south africa until majority rule is established. around the world, people have been paying tribute to the iconic rock star david bowie who sold 140 million albums in a career that spanned half a century. his family announced overnight that he had died of cancer at the age of 69. the world's tallest skyscraper opens later today. the burj dubai, has easily overtaken its nearest rivals. this is bbc news

fergus walsh, bbc news.rnment figures show there were 46,169 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period, which means that on average, the number of new cases reported per day in the last week is 57,851. 529 deaths were reported, that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test. this number is usually lower after the weekend. on average in the past week, 926 deaths were announced every day. the total number of deaths so far across the uk is 81,960. there are 13,000 more covid patients in hospital in england today than there were on christmas day, bringing the current total tojust over 32,000. 0ur health editor hugh pym has been to croydon university hospital in south london, where doctors say they are seeing a greater number of younger patients in their 30s and 40s compared to the first wave. hugh filmed his report with camera operator harriet bradshaw and producer dominic hurst. it is loud and clear. covid is serious. the numbers are definitely increasing and they are s

fergus walsh, bbc news, derby.r period, which means that on average the number of new cases reported per day in the last week is 42,026. as you can see, that number is falling. across the uk, an average of 39,068 people were in hospital with coronavirus over the seven days to sunday, including suspected cases in wales. 1,820 deaths were reported. that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test. as we've heard, that's the biggest single total reported so far. on average in the past week, 1,218 deaths were announced every day. the total number of deaths so far across the uk is 93,290. let's get an update on the uk's programme of mass vaccinations. 343,163 people have had their first dose of one of the three approved covid—19 vaccines in the latest 24—hour period, taking the overall number of people who've had their firstjab to 4,609,740. borisjohnson has chaired another meeting of the government's emergency cobra committee this afternoon to discuss the danger of flooding caused by storm christoph. e

fergus walsh, thank you.lped by a ventilator, there is another alternative, it is called ecmo specialist intensive care life—support machines which pump oxygen life—support machines which pump oxyg e n into life—support machines which pump oxygen into the patient‘s blood allowing the patient‘s lungs to rest. 0nly allowing the patient‘s lungs to rest. only a few dozen patients have the treatment but now they are under pressure to take on more. sophie hutchinson has been given rare access to an ecmo unit at the royal pa pworth access to an ecmo unit at the royal papworth hospital in cambridge. they are the sickest patients we've ever seen, even for they are the sickest patients we've ever seen, even for patients on ecmo. is everybody ready? the patients are very poorly and in bigger numbers than we have ever had them. these are among the very sickest patients with covid—19 in the country. and this award is their last hope. their lungs are so damaged by the disease that even ventilators haven't helped. and they'

our medical editor fergus walsh has the latest.atiently in line, health care workers in newcastle, the over 80s in bristol. manchester, london and birmingham among seven mass covid vaccination centres which opened today in england. i've lost a lot of relatives, so i needed to show people that there is nothing wrong with the vaccine. it has been tested and we need to get the vaccine. we have grandchildren, great—grandchildren, and to not be able to see them is really hard. i feel very relieved. i feel that this is the way back, i really think that. i can't understand anybody, you know, not wanting to have it. are you getting the astrazeneca or the pfizer jab? the prime minister, in bristol, said the uk had immunised more people than any country in europe, but the sense of urgency is palpable with hospitals close to being overwhelmed by covid patients. it's a race against time because we can all see the threat that our nhs faces, the pressure it's under, the demand in intensive care units, the pressure on ventilated beds, even the sh

fergus walsh, bbc news.2,618 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. the average number of new cases reported per day in the last week is now 57,234. on average, there were 27,983 covid—19 patients in hospital in the last week. 1,162 deaths were reported — that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test. it means on average in the past week 714 deaths were announced every day. it takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 78,508. the head of nhs england has warned that every region now has more covid patients in hospital than at the peak in april. sir simon stevens said 10,000 people had been admitted to hospital since christmas day alone. 0ur health correspondent dominic hughes reports. at the norfolk and norwich university hospital, they are treating one of their own. emergency department nurse estrella catalan is now a patient. desperate to return to work but still fighting the virus. i want to help. for estrella's colleagues, these have been some

fergus walsh, bbc news. the novavax vaccine, which has been shown to be 89% effective in large—scale uk trials. joining us now is vaccinologist dr peter hotez from the baylor college of medicine in houston, texas. very good to have you with us. what you make of this announcement, these findings? yeah, it looks like it is going to be another important vaccine. so now we have the two mrna vaccines, we have the astrazeneca 0xford accent, we will hear thejohnson will hear the johnson & johnson vaccine will hear thejohnson &johnson vaccine soon, and the novavax, we have a recumbent and protein vaccine. in some people may ask why you need all these vaccines, but there are limits in the capacity for production for any one of them, so the more we have the more shots on goal, the better globally we have a chance to beat this pandemic. have a chance to beat this pandemic— have a chance to beat this andemic. �* , ., pandemic. and then in terms of the variance, _ pandemic. and then in terms of the variance, where _ pand

fergus walsh, bbc news.ital in the uk. the head of nhs england, sir simon stevens, marked the moment with a visit to the hospital in newcastle where they were treated to thank staff all over the country for a year of extraordinary work like no other. since those first two patients were admitted, more than 320,000 people have been been treated with covid, with about one person admitted to critical care every 30 minutes. our health editor, hugh pym, reports. a year ago, high drama — planes bringing in the first britons from wuhan in china. nobody knew if they had coronavirus or not. passengers were moved swiftly off the plane and taken on coaches to a hospital to quarantine. a short time before that, a foreign student called nhs 111 from a hotel room in york. he was studying at the city's university and was suffering high fever and a cough. his mother, also staying there, felt unwell. both were taken to a hospital near hull, then to newcastle's royal victoria infirmary, the uk's first known coronavirus cases.

fergus walsh, bbc news.eaking to those on the front—line of the coronavirus pandemic here in the uk. in his final report from the royal london hospital, clive looks at the impact covid—19 is having on patients, their families and the entire national health service. and a warning, some viewers may find some scenes upsetting. hello, am i speaking to shamima? my name is dr healy, i'm ringing from the royal london hospital. it's about your husband, asif. consultant marie healy�*s words will sting. one of her covid patients isn't doing well in intensive care. he is quite sick, he could die from this, by the way, i'm sorry to have to say that. we've only been married for two years. he's the light of your life. he is. you know, he's never been away from me for even a day. this is shamima, who already knows loss in this pandemic. on your wedding day? yeah... her brother—in—law was buried last month, a victim of covid—19, and this week her father—in—law died from the virus. it has, yeah... now her husband's life hang

that sobering report from fergus walsh.ident trump, in a statement this morning has said that though he still ‘totally disagrees' with the outcome of the election, there will be an orderly transition of power. with me is jan halper—hayes — political commentator and former worldwide vice president of republicans overseas, and drexel heard ii — political strategist and executive board member for the california democratic party. he was also a member of barack obama's election campaign. thank you both forjoining us today. do you see a direct connection between donald trump a's do you see a direct connection between donald trump as speech to his supporters yesterday in washington, dc where he said we can never take back our country with weakness, and the events that unfolded at the capitol building a short time later, jan halper—hayes? actually, it was the women for america first who had organised this, and they had been promoted it for at least two weeks. starting with a rally on the fifth in the evening, and they are the ones

as our medical editor, fergus walsh, reports, 65 new centres have opened today.g for the main feature, this cinema in aylesbury in buckinghamshire is now a covid vaccination centre, no popcorn on offer but the chance for people to get a jab in the heart of their community. this mosque in birmingham is the first in england to offer the vaccine. bame groups are at higher risk of covid so centres like this could be important in increasing uptake and countering misinformation about the jab. uptake and countering misinformation about the jab-— about the “ab. there is nothing to be about the jab. there is nothing to be worried _ about the jab. there is nothing to be worried about. _ about the jab. there is nothing to be worried about. we _ about the jab. there is nothing to be worried about. we are - about the jab. there is nothing to be worried about. we are open i about the jab. there is nothing to be worried about. we are open to tell you it is genuine and this is in line with the teachings of islam. is there any other way of tackling this pandemic than the vaccine?

fergus walsh bbc news.ed its lockdown tilt marched as we been hearing the prime minister is says it's too early to say whether england's covid restrictions will be able to end in the spring for top let's cross over to our political correspondent who joins us now. the message today very much from the prime minister caution and concern. and no dates on the diary. and concern. and no dates on the dia . ~ , , ., and concern. and no dates on the dia , ., ~' diary. absolutely not. i think there's a _ diary. absolutely not. i think there's a couple _ diary. absolutely not. i think there's a couple of— diary. absolutely not. i think there's a couple of reasons l diary. absolutely not. i think. there's a couple of reasons for that. firstly the government can't be sure at this point that the cases of coronavirus being reported are slowing. or reducing. at enough of a rate to see the overall percentage of the population, proportion of the population who has covid—19 to be coming down. and the spread of coronavirus to

our medical editor, fergus walsh, has the latest. waiting patiently in line. health care workers in newcastle. the over 80s in bristol. manchester, london and birmingham, among seven mass covid vaccination centres which open today in england. i've lost a lot of relatives, so i needed to show people there is nothing wrong with the vaccine, it has been tested and we need to get it. we have grandchildren, great grandchildren and to not be able to see them is really hard. i feel very relieved. i feel this is the way back, i really think that — i can't understand anybody, you know, not wanting to have it. are you getting the astrazeneca or the pfizer jab? the prime minister in bristol said the uk had immunised more people than any country in europe, but the sense of urgency is palpable, with hospitals close to being overwhelmed by covid patients. it's a race against time, because we can all see the threat that our nhs faces, the pressure it is under, the demand in intensive care units, the pressure on ventilated beds, even the shortage of oxygen in some places. by

fergus walsh, bbc news. labour's lisa nandy joins us now from wigan.on people in that top for priority groups, including all over 80s should receive the vaccine, any one of the vaccinations? is this a feasible plan? i think it's feasible if the government has done enough to get the building blocks in place in order to deliver. i know the nhs is working flat out, but i'm hearing this all over the country. but we have been saying to the government for months, this is the next thing that's coming. when the vaccine is finally here and approved, we need to be ready to go. we seem like that so important in the last few weeks and with the new strains of the virus emerging here in the uk and in south africa. there may be other strains of the virus that are more resista nt to strains of the virus that are more resistant to the vaccine. so it is a race against time and want the government to be much clearer about their target and how they will deliver them, and what they will put in place to make sure those on the ground who are having to do this will able to do

fergus walsh, our medical editor, many thanks.tive of nhs providers, which represents hospitals trusts in england. good morning to you. we can't be under any illusions now about the pressure on the nhs. how would you characterise the situation that we are in? well, i think chris whitty summed it up. this couldn't be more serious as far as the nhs is concerned. i was speaking to a chief executive last week has been in the nhs for a0 years, he is the chief executive one of our outstanding trusts and he said, i've never seen pressure like this before. so, the nhs is under huge and enormous pressure. and that is why my message today has to absolutely echo chris whitty‘s, which is that each of us have got an individual decision here about what we do and how we behave, and as he says, we need to think about whether, when we step outside our front about whether, when we step outside ourfront door, do about whether, when we step outside our front door, do we absolutely need to do that? and we need to reduce going outside the front door fo

studio: a truly sobering report from fergus walsh. we can get more from the front line of the nhs.oining uk intensive care society. thank you forjoining us on bbc news today. what you are seeing at work, does that reflect the sort of pressures we see in that report? yes, i think every hospital is facing the same issue at the moment. you see on the daily news, the surge in people who are presenting with symptoms. it ends up hitting us a little later. most people will end up presenting to hospital some time between about day five and day ten of their illness. what you are seeing now is a steep rise, we see a week later, and we are already in trouble, which is why your colleagues and those we have heard speaking now, are raising the alarm. unless this flattens off quickly, we are already very stretched across london and this can only get worse. how does what is happening now compared to the peak last year? there are far more. at the latest count we had 40% more people in with covid then we had in the first wave and that number is still going up. we are better organised and prepared th

our medical editor fergus walsh reports.e again, science has triumphed in the fight against coronavirus. the us firm novavax has released results of its british trial showing the first proven efficacy against the new, more contagious uk variant. there were more than 15,000 volunteers on the trail throughout the uk. over half the cases of covid recorded were the result of the new variant. the results showed the vaccine was 95% effective against the original covid strain and over 85% effective against the new uk variant, giving an overall efficacy of 89%. the former head of the uk vaccine task force said that in a separate trial in south africa, the vaccine had shown it protected against the variant of concern there. it's a fantastic result because it shows the novavax vaccine is effective against both the uk variant as well as the south african variant and has shown phenomenal efficacy, and it's made in teesside so not only have we trialled the vaccine to show its safe and effective but we are also making it too, so we'll be

here's our medical editor fergus walsh. so you are going to be famous today? yes.t is the biggest immunisation programme ever in the nhs. this medical practice near edinburgh became one of the first in scotland to administer the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine to scores of the over—90s. it is exciting. it feels like you are part of history. it feels like christmas time. itjust gives us hope for the future that we can help our patients and it just gives us the light at the end of the tunnel. those who received it will need to maintain social distancing. they won't be fully protected. but there is a strong mood of optimism here. it is going to make a tremendous difference. it will make me feel more comfortable going out to the shops, for shopping and things like that, you know. but it has not all gone smoothly. queues of up to three hours were reported yesterday at this vaccination centre in llandudno, north wales. the health board apologised, saying the training of new vaccinators led to the delays. you can see what we do... the health secretary matt hancock was due to s

be giving the vaccine and then we should see this thing really ramping up. 0ur medical editor, fergus walsh virologist at addenbrooke‘s hospital in cambridge and presents the the naked scientists podcast. hejoins us now. good to have you with us. fergus touched on the differences between the two vaccines, the oxford astrazeneca vaccine and the fighter vaccine in terms of how they are stored but can you tell us a bit more about the differences between them? —— and the pfizer vaccine. and how efficient they are. the pfizer vaccine is a genetic vaccine and have taken the genetic code from the virus which it uses when in fact one of our cells to make one specific pa rt of our cells to make one specific part of its outer coat, the s protein or spite we hear about. that is crucial because that part of the virus is what it uses to grab hold of and infect our cells so if you provoke an immune response against that, you stop it in its tracks. by wrapping up that in an oily bag which is what pfizer have done and injecting it into the body, you basically get ourselves at the sight of the injection to

we should warn you, this report from our medical editor, fergus walsh, contains some flashing images.ightback against coronavirus. 82—year—old brian became the first person in the world to receive the oxford astrazeneca vaccine since it was approved. he has dialysis three times a week and so is clinically vulnerable. the vaccine means everything to me. it's the only way of getting back to a bit of normal life. the virus is terrible, isn't it? it was here in oxford that this vaccine was created and where trials began in april last year — so fitting that it should be one of six hospital trusts in england to begin administering the injection. it was a huge privilege. every single patient that was vaccinated over the last couple of weeks have got their own personal stories to the difference it will make for them. the queue to receive the vaccine is already forming here. there is huge public interest in the rollout out of this vaccine. the government has ordered 100 million doses. the key question is, how quickly can the priority groups be immunized? there are 31 million people in those pr

we should warn you, this report from our medical editor fergus walsh contains some flashing images.gainst coronavirus. 82—year—old brian became the first person in the world to receive the oxford astrazeneca vaccine since it was approved. he has dialysis three times a week and so is clinically vulnerable. the vaccine means everything to me. in my mind, it's the only way of getting back to a bit of normal life. you know, the virus is terrible, isn't it? it was here in oxford that this vaccine was created and where trials began in april last year — so fitting that it should be one of six hospital trusts in england to begin administering the jab. also among the first to be immunised was the doctor who led the global trials of the oxford jab. he emphasised the importance of mass vaccination. fantastic getting it myself. anyone who is eligible for the vaccine, which every one it is, needs to come forward and be vaccinated because he has to have a massive rollout over the next few months, and we need speed to do that. the oxford astrazeneca vaccine can be stored in a fridge — a key advant

more from our medical editor, fergus walsh.coronavirus. 82—year—old brian became the ist person in the world to receive the oxford astrazeneca vaccine since it was approved. he has dialysis three times a week and so is clinically vulnerable. the vaccine means everything to me. it's the only way of getting back to a bit of normal life. the virus is terrible, isn't it? it was here in oxford that this vaccine was created and where trails began in april last year. ——created and where trials began in april last year. so fitting that it should be one of six hospital trusts in england to begin administering the injection. it was a huge privilege. every single patient that was vaccinated over the last couple of weeks have got their own personal stories to the difference it will make for them. the line to receive the vaccine is already forming here. there is huge public interest in the rollout out of this vaccine. the government has ordered 100 million doses. the key question is how quickly can the priority groups be immunized? there ar

in that excellent and very disturbing report from fergus walsh just now, we saw that of course it isn'tat can be affected. i think in the next phase of the roll—out, once the most vulnerable groups have been immunised, hopefully, as soon as possible, then teachers, on a personal level, i would certainly endorse the idea that teachers should be prioritised. that decision will be debated over the next month byjcvi and we expect to have a phase two plan by next february. but you think that should happen ahead of people, who are, for example, over 50? that's not what i said, the first phase needs to be implemented. the model that we have got from uk epidemiology is very clear that the best way to bring down the pressure on hospitals and the number of sick people and the number of people dying is to immunise on an age prioritised approach, so bringing down the age limit as we work our way through. and bringing in also people with co—morbidities over the age of 50. we need to prioritise those people alongside the front line health care workers as well. after that, then i think teachers would

our medical editor, fergus walsh, is with me now.strazeneca vaccine but all the figures are going in completely the wrong way? absolutely. looking really serious. more serious than at any time of this pandemic in the uk. absolutely vital that we have the positive news of the roll—out of this vaccine. it will start small in a small number of hospitals but by the end of the week the nhs has said that over 1000 vaccination centres across the uk will be involved and between the pfizer and the astrazeneca jabs, they hope soon to be able to get up to2 they hope soon to be able to get up to 2 million immunisations a week. that is absolutely vital because there are still 30 million people above the age of 50 who are in the priority groups who need immunisation. even if 2 million of those were done every week, they will not get their first dose by easter. in terms of protection, it looks like both will give at least 70% protection against covid but more importantly, they should protect against severe disease and that will be important for the

our medical editor fergus walsh reports. immunization drive in the history of the nhs just keeps growing. this supermarket pharmacy near birmingham started offering covid jabs today to the over 75s, one of more than m00 vaccination sites in england alone. what a contrast in madrid, where supplies of vaccine have all but dried up. the spanish capital has canceled all appointments for around two weeks. the eu where slow off the mark in ordering vaccine, and now want some of the uk's supply of astrazeneca doses. in may, the uk government was the first to sign a deal with astrazeneca for 100 million doses of its covid vaccine. it wasn't until august three months later that the european union signed an agreement for up to 400 million doses. last month, the uk's mhra became the first regulator in the world to approve the oxford astrazeneca jab. tomorrow, the european medicines agency is meeting and is expected to approve the vaccine, but for the moment, it remains unlicensed in the eu. we had assembled our short list of vaccines..

it takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 79,833. 0ur medical editor fergus walsh isfigures and the awful thing is, it's going to get worse? it will, sophie, there are now 31,000 covid patients in hospital across the uk, that is up 50% since christmas day and 10,000 higher than at their peak in april. and coronavirus cases are surging. that has yet to show up in the hospital data because of the lag between infection and people falling seriously ill. so the number of deaths seems certain to keep on rising. i have seen first hand this week the pressure is in intensive care, their stress on staff is greater than at any time in this pandemic. but there is hope. a third covid vaccine approved today, the moderna jab is 95% effective against covid disease. the immunisation programme with the oxford and pfizer jabs will be ramped up from monday but more than 2 million people per week we'll need to be immunised if the target of 15 million being offered the jab is to be reached by mid—february. difficult weeks ahead. the numbers in hospital won't start to fall u nless the numbe

we can speak now to our medical editor, fergus walsh. this is an important moment.better, all 31 million people who are in the priority groups getting that vaccine. now the big question is, how soon that will happen. that will ta ke how soon that will happen. that will take place in around half a dozen hospitals to begin with, but for monitoring patients for any sudden side effects, but that was exactly what happened with the fejzic vaccine. but by the end of the week, they should be something like 1000 immunisation centres around the uk up immunisation centres around the uk up and running. as you indicate, this is a huge logistical programme that needs to be put in place, isn't it yellow it is absolutely massive. an army of volunteers, retired nhs workers, current nhs workers who don't normally do immunisation, people like physiotherapist, plus people like physiotherapist, plus people with first aid training like cabin crew have been called on to ta ke cabin crew have been called on to take part in this. some of those who have expressed concern about the amount of

overall number of people who've had their firstjab to more than 4.2 million. 0ur medical editor fergus walshust now, we saw clive's report, it is still such a grim picture. it now, we saw clive's report, it is still such a grim picture.- still such a grim picture. it is, and clive's — still such a grim picture. it is, and clive's report _ still such a grim picture. it is, and clive's report really - still such a grim picture. it is, l and clive's report really showed still such a grim picture. it 3 and clive's report really showed the brutal impact that covid is having on london because my hospitals but i can tell you that it is a similar picture in hospitals throughout the uk, they are under intense pressure and there are almost 30,000 covid patients in hospital. that is 16,000 more than at the peak last april. and cases are, thankfully, beginning to fall but it will take a few weeks for those to have an impact on debts, and even once we do pass the peak of deaths, there will be a relentless death toll from this pandemic in this latest wave throughout the winter. we pandemic in this latest

our medical editor, fergus walsh, is here now. it isa it is a huge task, this. is it on track? i was down at epsom racecourse this morning, a real positive attitude they're both from the vaccinators and the largely over 80 to be immunised. a massive take up. the big question is will they reach those 15 million people in the top four groups by those 15 million people in the top fourgroups by mid those 15 million people in the top four groups by mid february? it is a very ambitious target. the prime minister has said the current total is 2.4 million people who have received their first dose. it's not going to have a sudden impact on nhs hospitals because it takes awhile for the protection to come through. but those top four groups account for 88% of all deaths. 0k. thank you very much. on that theme... the arrival of the vaccine has also offered fresh hope to thousands of care home residents. and as the roll out continues for those at the top of the priority list, john maguire has been finding outjust how it's affecting people's lives. people living in care homes have been among

our medical editor fergus walsh reports. vaccine trials keep delivering results beyond all expectations. these volunteers in southampton are among tens of thousands worldwide testing the vaccine from janssen, part of the pharmaceutical giant johnson &johnson. we part of the pharmaceutical giant johnson & johnson.— part of the pharmaceutical giant johnson & johnson. johnson &johnson. we have a single shot vaccine — johnson &johnson. we have a single shot vaccine which _ johnson &johnson. we have a single shot vaccine which can _ johnson &johnson. we have a single shot vaccine which can protect - johnson &johnson. we have a single shot vaccine which can protect very l shot vaccine which can protect very highly, 85%, against severe disease and complete protection against death and hospitalisation after day 28, a finding across the world in all the regions, independent of age and independent of strain. the results from _ and independent of strain. the results from the _ and independent of strain. the results from the us biotech

our medical editor fergus walsh is here. let's talk about the vaccinations.over 80s in the uk have had theirfirst dose, so almost four out of five. it takes three weeks for protection to build, and even then it will only be partial, but they will all need their second dose, but it is very, very positive news. very high uptake. and the uk is immunising people at a faster rate than almost any country in the world. and the government says it is confident it will reach its target of offering a first dose to 15 million people by mid february, and that includes all the over 70s and those who are clinically extremely vulnerable, who account for almost nine in ten covid deaths. �* ., account for almost nine in ten covid deaths. . ., ., ,., , ., , deaths. and what about this drop in new infections _ deaths. and what about this drop in new infections today. _ deaths. and what about this drop in new infections today. it _ deaths. and what about this drop in new infections today. it is _ deaths. and what about this drop in new infections today. it is very - new infection