this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. the uk government extends the toughest restrictions to three quarters of england's population, as deaths from coronavirus soar to 981, confirmed on wednesday. but — light at the end of the tunnel. the uk gives approval for the astra zeneca vaccine — with the firstjabs due to begin, next week. it's a moment to celebrate and have some optimism about where we've got to today and moving forward. the uk and eu sign an historic trade agreement — after british mps give overwhelming backing to boris johnsons‘ brexit deal. and rescuers search for people missing, after a landslide sweeps through a village in norway.

hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk, on pbs in the us or around the world. millions more people in england are entering tougher restrictions for covid—19 as the second wave of the virus continues to spread at an alarming rate. the uk authorities have announced a further 50,023 new infections, recorded in the latest 2a—hours. the average number of new cases reported per day in the last week is nowjust over 40,000. and 981 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, 500 deaths were announced every day. here is our medical editor, fergus walsh.

amidst the terrible toll the virus is taking — there was other news which gives hope for the future. the uk medicines regulator gave the go—ahead for the approval of the oxford vaccine, which is a fantastic achievement for british science... it's a great day, we are very proud. this is a really significant moment in the fight against this pandemic. it is, i think, again, a changing moment. this is the vaccine — more than any other — that will eventually bring coronavirus under control. unlike pfizer's, which needs ultra low temperatures, the oxford astrazeneca vaccine can be transported in a fridge, meaning every care home in the uk should now be in reach. the medicines regulator said no corners had been cut. with this approval of the second vaccine, we are another step closer in helping to defeat this virus. 0ur clear message is that you can have every confidence in the safety, in the effectiveness and in the quality of covid—19 vaccine astrazeneca. the vaccine uses a gene from the spike shaped protein

on the surface of coronavirus. this is put inside a modified harmless virus. the vaccine instructs human cells to make the spike protein, which prompts the immune system to create antibodies, which can recognise and destroy coronavirus. and it stimulates t—cells, which should destroy cells that have become infected. so just how effective is the vaccine? the latest estimate is it gives 70% protection against covid three weeks after the first dose. the nhs will now hold back giving the second dose of all covid vaccines until 12 weeks so more people can get protected. the most pragmatic thing to do is to give as many at risk people as possible the first dose of the vaccine, because we know that from three weeks after the first dose, there is a very good level of protection, and nobody in the clinical trials

at that point after their first dose was in hospital with covid or experiencing the disease. this is now a race between the vaccine and the virus, that means getting millions of doses approved quickly. we will shift a bit more than 500,000 doses this week to start being used on monday, and from there, we will rapidly escalate the deliveries. i really think, by the end of march, we will be in a very different place. what many want to know is, when will they get immunised? prime minister, how many people will be nhs immunise every week, because surely, it needs to be in the millions? the best answer i can give at the moment is that we will have millions of doses, tens of millions of doses, by the end of march. we are working to get the programme going as fast as we can. i don't want to give you specific numbers at the moment.

much of the production is done in the uk, like here in oxford, unlike the more expensive pfizer jab, which is produced in belgium. there are many manufacturing facilities like this all over the world which are producing in bulk quantities of oxford—astrazeneca vaccine. the aim is to have three billion doses of the vaccine by the end of 2021. to deliver a safe and effective covid vaccine in less than a year is a stunning achievement. the challenge now, to ensure rapid roll—out to those who need it most. fergus walsh, bbc news. more areas in england are being placed under hope for the future, the uk regular gave the go—ahead for the oxford astrazeneca vaccine through making the uk the first country in the world to approve it. fergus walsh

has that story. in birmingham, just time for a last trim before tier 4 restrictions at midnight. after a tough year, another bitter setback for owner dale. absolutely devastated again that we have just got going after reopening on the 2nd of december. we are just getting back on our feet again. how many more times can we be locked down? the bills keep rolling in. it is really difficult to keep coming back. in england, more than three quarters of the population will be in tier 4, the highest level of restrictions. health secretary matt hancock told mps the new more contagious covid variant was driving infections up. unfortunately, this new variant is now spreading across most of england and cases are doubling fast. it is therefore necessary to apply tier 4 to many other areas, including remaining parts of the south—east as well as large parts of the midlands, north—west, north—east and south—west. this is a global crisis but let us be clear,

this is a national emergency. our national health service is becoming overwhelmed. i hope the tier 4 restrictions are enough but many believe even tougher restrictions are now inevitable. but public health experts believe restrictions and lockdowns can only do so much. it lasts for three or four weeks and then it wears off so it is doubly important that regardless of which tiers we are in we continue to take the test and more importantly maintain social distancing, and hand washing and two metre rules. rising case numbers are hurting the health service. already buckling under pressure in the south and east infections are now growing in the north and west. burnley has already been hit hard by the pandemic this year but has again seen a rapid growth in cases, and it is notjust businesses that will be affected by new restrictions — the local hospice depends on the money raised each year by a charity shops.

it has been a huge hit for us this year. we have been full throughout the pandemic. 0ur hospice at home services are also caring for more people in the community. to then close our shops is a real kick to us. parts of england that have seen relatively low case numbers in recent months like taunton in somerset now find themselves in tier 4. it is clear we are heading into the new year in the middle of a second wave that has yet to show any signs of subsiding. it is a place no one wanted to be. dominic hughes, bbc news. the republic of ireland has extended a ban on travel to the country from the united kingdom and south africa untiljanuary sixth due to the new more infectious variant of covid—i9. ireland's prime minister, mihul martin, has also announced that tough public—health restrictions will remain in place for the next four weeks to try and stop the spread in his country. i've always been clear

that we will do what we need to do to suppress the virus when it is growing, and it is now growing exponentially. the truth is, that with the presence of the new strain and the pace of growth, this is not a time for nuance in our response. we must apply the brakes to movement and physical interaction across the country. we must return to full scale level five restrictions for a period of at least one month. argentina's medical regulator has approved the oxford astrazeneca coronavirus vaccine — following quickly on the heels of the uk. the country has a contract to buy more than 22 million doses, which will be delivered in 2021. it has already begun vaccinating health workers with the russian sputnik vee vaccine, as it prepares for a possible second wave of the virus. the us is expected to approve the astrazeneca—oxford vaccine in april — three months after the uk.

it has already approved the moderna vaccine — but that programme has come under scrutiny. 0nly around two million americans have received the first dose of that vaccine, far short of the goal of 20 million by the end of december. in florida hundreds of seniors spent the night sitting in lawn chairs outside vaccination sites in lee county. they got in line after the state's governor, ron desa ntis, disregarded official guidelines and opened up the vaccinations to more people than recommended for this phase of the process. sara girard is an investigative reporter at wink news a local tv station in florida and earlier explained why these queues are forming... so, basically, when the governor announced that people over the age of 65 would be included in this roll—out, lee county said, ok, it's first come first serve. so that led to a lot of people coming out to these locations, some 2a hours in advance, as you said, they brought their lawn

chairs, they brought things to read, just to sit there in order to get the vaccine as one of the first people getting the vaccine. and surrounding counties have now started doing appointment services or even drive—through services, and appointments are just getting filled up extremely quickly. here in lee county, they are still working out logistics. i spoke to people online who said they wish they didn't have to do it this way, but they think it's worth it to get the vaccine as soon as possible. so were you talking to people who had actually spent the night outside in line waiting for this? yes, and a lot of them told me this wasn't sustainable. so i talked to people who woke up at two or three o'clock in the morning, one gentleman i spoke to got there at 10am the day before the next day when they were going to give out the vaccine at 9am, so he waited 23 hours to get the vaccine this morning, and people are really lining up outside of these facilities,

and social distancing isn't always prevalent, but people are wearing their masks. again, a lot of them feel as if it's worth taking that risk to go out and get the vaccine right now. so you touch upon the mask wearing of people who are in line — a lot of comments on social media that these vaccine lines could themselves become super spreader events. what are you hearing? so, there was an incident earlier this week in bonita springs, which is just south of here, that location saw an overwhelming amount of people. the facility actually only thought they were going to give out 300—1100 vaccines that day, but 1,000 people showed up. so all lot of confusion began to happen. people were pushing, actually, some people were pushed out of line. eventually, tickets were handed out by law enforcement, so there was a concrete number of people who were guaranteed the vaccine, and the rest had to come another day. since then, there has been a lot more controls put in place. the county doesn't recommend people come out and do this. they are saying don't come until 8am

when it starts at 9am, but people are choosing to go out and wait in these lines. yes, they are big crowds. i went to a couple of locations yesterday, and they cut the line off at 600 people and they gave 600 vaccines. the uk prime minister has told the bbc his new trade deal with the european union means the country will have its cake and eat it. but as mps voted overwhelmingly for the deal, more than four years after the referendum, he refused to acknowledge that new barriers to doing business with the eu will come into force in less than 48 hours, only admitting that there will be ""changes". he was speaking to our political editor laura kuenssberg. signing on the dotted line over there, then a short hop for the 1246 page document — the cargo of an raf plane to get back here. ready for boris johnson's signature. here it is.

the man who campaigned for brexit, became prime minister because of it, and now his deal, this day, scrolled into history. what this deal does is it satisfies the request of the british people to take back control, and what that meant was that we now have the freedom to do things differently and do things better if we choose. in the knowledge that there are no barriers to... but, prime minister, that's just factually not the case. it's not true that there will not be more barriers. you have got more political control, but you can't sit there and say that there won't be extra friction. there will be changes, and we've been very clear with people that they'll have to get ready forjanuary the 1st, that things will work differently, and at the same time we cannot only exploit the advantages of a zero tariff, zero quota deal with the eu. people said that that was impossible. and they said that that was having

your cake and eating it. so i want you to see this as a cake—ist treaty. so you are having your cake and eating it? you've said it. but there will be new barriers because, if you don't admit that, honestly now, aren't people going to be really peeved when they find out? all we are doing is, i think, solving what everybody said was a kind of impossible, you know, contradiction in terms. the political screaming and shouting of the last few years only echoes in parliament's halls now. the prime minister had his day. prime minister. perhaps brexit‘s opponents have only reluctance left. it is the only deal we have. it is a basis to build on for years to come. ultimately, voting to implement this treaty it is the only way to ensure we avoid no—deal. an awkward moment for labour but only one mp voted against and a sprinkling of labour mps quit the front bench to join others abstaining.

i have the greatest respect for the result of the 2016 referendum, but this shoddy deal falls short. only the smaller parties raging and officially voting against even though no—deal was their worst case scenario. we now finally know what brexit means, we have it in black and white. it means a disaster of a deal. it means broken promises, it means economic vandalism. but not a single tory mp voted against the deal. remember, europe ended the careers of several of the prime ministers whose portraits line this famous staircase. do you believe that you have ended the conservative party's agony over europe? well, i am very hopeful that is the case. this is not the end of britain as a european country. many people will be watching this and worry that it is, that emphatically is not the case.

with the overwhelming backing of the commons, after years it is the end of one profound relationship and outwardly, at least, the calm start of another. but in the time to come, our relationship with the rest of europe may be no less complicated underneath. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. this is the scene live now at westminster. this is the house of lords, where members have been considering the government's brexit deal, formally known as the eu future relationship bill. that is of course being pushed through. this is the shadow attorney—general who is now speaking giving his opinion as to this bill. eventually, once that is finally voted on there, it's will be, well, it will be delivered, it will get royal assent, potentially tonight, perhaps early tomorrow, depending on how later majesty the queen stays up to sign it. but that's the image right now as members of the house of

lords are debating the upper house are debating the brexit spell. at least 22 people have been killed in an attack on the city of aden‘s airport in yemen, soon after a plane carrying the country's new government landed. just as passengers were about to leave the aircraft there was an explosion. the cabinet ministers are all reported to be safe. the administration has accused the houthi rebel movement of carrying out the assault. ten people have been injured — one critically — in a landslide that buried houses in the norwegian village of gjerdrum — north—east of the capital oslo. police say 11 people who live in the area are still unaccounted for, and around 700 people have been evacuated. speaking a few hours ago, prime minister erna solberg said emergency workers are still unable to reach the center of the crater because the mud is too unstable. anders thorheim is the head of national preparedness at the norwegian red cross — he gave me an update on the situation.

there are still 11 people unaccounted for just following a press brief with the police just recently, and they also proclaimed that they have reason to believe that there are people in the landslide, so unfortunately, it seems like some of these people are actually in the landslide. the numbers have been increasing all through the day, but now it seems like it has stabilised. 11 people are still missing. the search continues with helicopters and drones in the area. and have you been able to get people onto the ground, because i know that the situation was quite unstable there. well, initially what we did was evacuate the area. and now the lastest figure is 100 people evacuated. we are also providing support for the evacuees and hotels.

——we are also providing support for the evacuees in hotels. people have been lifted, also come out of the landslide by helicopter. but we have still not had the possibility to enter into the landslide due to the risk of their still being motion. into the landslide due to the risk of there still being motion. can you help us understand, is this an area prone to this? is it because of the particularly cold weather, why is this happening? this is an area that has unstable ground with a lot of this kind of mud that can be put into motion with a lot of rain. but it hasn't happened before in this scale, not at all. but it's probably a combination of all lot of rain these past months with a mild winter so far, and also with more building of houses in this area,

but the reasons for it to happen just now is not clear at all. a wildlife project in kenya was recognised in 2020 with a united nations equator prize, for its work in sustainable development. nashualai, in the maasai mara, is run by indigenous groups who manage the land, working so that humans and animals can exist side by side. 0ur africa correspondent, catherine byaru hanga, has been to visit. five years ago, this place, which we call nashulai was bare land. it was overgrazed, there were poaching activities, hunting in the area, but when we decided as a community to come together, then we have seen tremendous change in the ecosystem. this is really a story

of possibility. this is nelson. he is the co—founder of nashulai. it is a few thousand acres on the edge of kenya's famed maasai mara national reserve. but this small place has a big idea. it's one of the few, may be the only community owned and operated conservancies in kenya. here, community elders rather than western conservationists, make decisions about how the park is run. translation: we divided our land into three portions. the core area is mainly occupied by wildlife animals. during drought seasons, our animals can also graze on that area with the supervision of elders. the holding area is a free grazing land were members of the conversed conservancy can graze their animals. this is another thing that sets nashulai apart. you can see just how close this herd

of wildebeest is to the community, just over there in the horizon. traditional conservation methods often meant removing maasai communities from their land to make way for wildlife. but what this conservancy offers is the opportunity for both to live side by side, and support one another. the community is also trying to provide new opportunities. betty is a safari guide who was trained by nashulai as part of an effort to bring more locals into the tourism industry. the people in the community could not imagine this would be successful because at first many of them told me, oh my god you are going to do the work for men? you cannot get a job. but for now, actually they are... they are motivated with my work. and this makes them to encourage young girls to join us in this industry.

singing. younger maasai like betty are eager to get into tourism and nashulai still relies on it for income. but 2020 has shown how fragile it can be. kenya's billion—dollar tourism industry saw a 95% drop in visitors this year. nashulai is small compared to other conservancies but the people here want to prove that they can hold onto their traditions while protecting the environment around them. catherine byaru hanga, bbc news, masai mara. inspirational work there. inspirationalwork there. ijust wa nt to ta ke inspirationalwork there. ijust want to take you back to westminster, the scene live in the house of lords. this is where members are continuing to consider and debate that you eu future relationship bell. they are in the final stages, and we are expecting

about their little bit later. of course, the commons voted overwhelmingly in support of the bill a little bit earlier on. we are expecting a vote here, still speaking. lots more on the website. hello there. hasn't been too bad a day for many of us after a very cold start. we've seen quite a bit of sunshine around. northern scotland though has seen a lot of very heavy snowfall. we're likely to see more rain, sleet and snow over the next few days. that combined with overnight ice is likely to cause some disruption. so, stay tuned to the forecast for all the details. but in the short term, we've still got this cold pool of air across the country and these weather fronts enhancing shower activity. now, this frontjust passing to the south of england and should take any rain, sleet, snow showers with it. and then we focus in on this new front pushing in to northern scotland, bringing another round of rain, sleet and snow. mainly rain to the coast but some heavy snow inland. certainly over the high ground with some significant accumulations.

there will be further wintry showers dotted around western coast, central and eastern parts of england will see the best of the drier weather with the clear skies. so, here, it really will be cold overnight with a risk of frost and ice. so, into tomorrow for new year's eve, it's going to be a dry, very cold, frosty start for central and eastern areas. plenty of sunshine around, heavy snow continues across much of scotland, certainly over the higher ground. this will be pushing southward through the day into northern england. i think mainly rain to the coast, snow inland. there will be further wintry showers across some western areas. the best of the dry and brighter weather, central and eastern england — but here, we could see a little bit of mist and fog around. it's going to be a very cold day. now, through thursday night, it stays very wintry across the north. further showers here, and the mix of rain, sleet and snow pushes southwards into england and wales first thing on new year's day whereas further north, we start to see some clear spells developing. a very cold night to come. again, risk of ice and some frost. so, we've got low pressure to the east of the country, higher pressure to the west for new year's day. and this weather front straddling parts of england and wales and it

will bring quite a lot of cloud around, i think, for new year's day with spits and spots of light rain on it. could see some light snow over the higher grounds. it still will be cold. scotland, northern ireland, and then later northern england should see the best of any brightness through new year's day but further wintry showers will be pushing into northern coasts. and those temperatures, maybe not quite as cold as it has been — 4—7 celsius. has been 4—7 celsius. still, that is cold. and then for the first weekend of january 2021, it remains cold, some sunshine around, some wintry showers affecting north sea coasts.

this is bbc world news. the headlines...

the uk recorded 981 confirmed deaths from coronavirus on wednesday, the highest total since april. the continued spread of the virus could soon be slowed by a second vaccine from astrazeneca which has been approved. ireland's prime minister has announced a return to lockdown during january. ireland has extended a ban on travel from britain, blaming increased cases of covid—19 on the new variant first identified in the uk. borisjohnson has signed britain's post—brexit trade agreement with the european union. in brussels, ursula von der leyen signed the deal on behalf of the eu. the agreement also won the backing of british mps in the house of commons. and rescuers in norway are still searching for people missing following a landslide. houses were crushed and buried in mud after the landslide hit a village near oslo after heavy rain.