denims makes money from renting store space to arcadia brands, arcadia's collapse could scatter a rescue the department store igd sports, another 12,000 jobs at risk. the pandemic has been brutal to businesses with underlying health issues. suddenly, you had covid, which left you with a perfect number retail, those retailers who did move on during that perfect storm of the ones who are going to suffer and die, and that was happening to arcadia. but they are not alone. 0ther arcadia. but they are not alone. other retailers are in a perilous position as we stand today. stores are open in scotland and will open in england on wednesday, as administrators try to sell off christmas stock and maybe some bits of the business. simonjack, bbc news. let's catch up with our business presenter, ben thompson, whojoins us business presenter, ben thompson, who joins us now. just on that last point, ben, the most terrible news for arcadia employees, potentially for arcadia employees, potentially for those working at devon them says welcome about these stories will still be open for the foreseeable future

arcadia groupjumped by the paper say their market share for the arcadia group jumped by a the paper say their market share for the arcadia groupjumped by a third over ten years, that new technology line from daisy, this is a man a p pa re ntly line from daisy, this is a man apparently who wanted all its e—mails printed out so he can read them on paper. what do you make of them on paper. what do you make of the demise? we must not lose sight there are 13,000 jobs here in a big hole in the pension fund.|j there are 13,000 jobs here in a big hole in the pension fund. i think daisy is complete and the right. it is easy for arcadia to point to the pandemic which has undoubtedly been a short cause to their demise but nevertheless clearly they have falle n nevertheless clearly they have fallen behind in e—commerce race and these faction empires all have tried to move away from bricks and mortar where they can, they have seen coi'isuitiei’ where they can, they have seen consumer demand has gone. that is a long—term factor which came to roost here. most interesting is the empire, who

arcadia's brand once dominated high street fashion. its chains have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. but its problems stretched further back than that, as it struggled to keep up with online retailers. the company, which includes topshop, burton and dorothy perkins, would be the biggest retail collapse of the pandemic. if it went into administration, shops are expected to still trade for now, while they try to find a buyer. the arcadia group has more than 500 stores, employing 13,000 people. topshop alone accounts for 250 shops and concessions in 170 towns and cities across the uk. senior sources at the company told the bbc they do not expect a last—minute rescue deal. the offer of a £50 million loan from mike ashley's frasers group has reportedly been dismissed. there is also the added uncertainty for thousands of arcadia staff, as there is an estimated £350 million hole in the company's pension fund. the bbc understands he is currently on his superyacht, lionheart, which is docked in monaco's harbour. he has so far decl

arcadia has beenin good to see you. arcadia has been in trouble for a while actually selling some ways we are not surprised to hear that it's having a very, very tough time in 2020? unfortunately not. there was a financial restructuring in 2019 with landlords and pension funds that the company has as he said been cut struggling and a classic example of how companies potentially go bust very slowly and then at the end quickly and the final straw has probably been the second round of lockdowns across the united kingdom which have kept shoppers away and stores closed and also again putting pressure on arcadia's week online offering unable to compensate for the loss of physical sale. do you think we will see a fire sale of some of these names on the high street that we have known for decades? good question, some of those cases that wallace or evans or dorothy perkins have not made money for a long time, topshop has been the standardbearer for a while and they someone tried to sell it to private equity four years ago and it

let's start, as we saw, a lot of the papers focusing on what's happening with arcadia. maya, these are some of the huge huge shops that we know, real high—street staples like topshop. i don't know if you and your friends, topshop. i don't know if you and yourfriends, i spent topshop. i don't know if you and your friends, i spent many an topshop. i don't know if you and yourfriends, i spent many an hour waiting for my friends outside the top shop, the mega one on oxford circus not far from top shop, the mega one on oxford circus not farfrom here. waiting for my friends to do that shopping experience and to think that that could potentially go, not least the thousands of jobs, it's could potentially go, not least the thousands ofjobs, it's a big story. i think one of the cool things, or things we should be talking about is the fact that more than 13,000 jobs could be at risk. —— one of the core things. i think one of the other things. i think one of the other things that this shone a light on, this has been in the spotlight before, is sir philip green in the huge am

the list of retail failures is a long one, but arcadia is the biggest for years. there are 444 stories and hundreds more concessions within other stores. there are 13,000 workers whose jobs are at risk and an estimated £350 million hole in the pension scheme. this is, or was, thejewel in the ground that in truth slipped many years ago. once a powerhouse of fashion retail led by the king of the high street, now a business in ruins, led by a man considered the unacceptable face of capitalism. but this is not about one person. this, tonight, is about the 13,000 people who are facing a very uncertain christmas and thousands more in a very troubled high street retail sector. simon here, thanks so much for talking to us today. i spoke to one arcadia worker — who didn't want to be identified — who said the uncertainty had come at the worst possible time. a lot of us are feeling a bit anxious because we don't know the full extent about what's happening ourselves. for us, it's about money around christmas time, bills have to go out, we don't know if we can afford stuf

the collapse of arcadia would be the biggest failure yet. topshop had the best inexpensive fashion, totally kept up with the trends. philip didn't manage the business brilliantly and new fashion businesses which are digital natives have found it much easier to adapt to the shopping climate now. the owner is sir philip green, colourful and controversial. he built one of the biggest clothing empires in the country, courting celebrities along the way. but then he sold bhs for £1 and it collapsed a year later. do you mind not looking at me like that all the time? it's disturbing. point leaving him facing the fury of mps and having to cough up millions to the pension schemes. he has gone from zero to hero and now it looks as though he is going back to zero again. philip's style worked really well for a while, but it's been working progressively less well. today's retail industry needs huge investment and it's never been his style to invest much in his businesses, as was exemplified by the dividend of about 1.2 billion that he and his family took

in a statement, arcadia says... patrick 0'brien who is a retail research director at data and analytics company globaldata, explained that arcadia's problems won't come as a suprise to many in retail. anyone who has been watching the market will know, arcadia has been struggling for a number of years and covid—19 has really accelerated its decline. may be a little bit of a surprise that it might go into administration before christmas, when they should be getting a bit of a cash flow boost, but really this was just a matter of time. and what has the main problem been? has it been high street stores suffering because of online trade? that is undoubtably a part of it, but what you have got here is a bunch of brands under the arcadia banner, none of which have been invested in properly and which have really lost their resonance with the core target market that it is addressing. so those people have been moving on to more digitally savvy brands who are dealing things like social media and engaging with their target ma

the list of retail failures is a long one, but arcadia is the biggest for years. there are 444 stories and hundreds more concessions within other stores. there are 13,000 workers whose jobs are at risk and an estimated £350 million hole in the pension scheme. this is, or was, thejewel in the ground that in truth slipped many years ago. once a powerhouse of fashion retail led by the king of the high street, now a business in ruins, led by a man considered the unacceptable face of capitalism. but this is not about one person. this, tonight, is about the 13,000 people who are facing a very uncertain christmas and thousands more in a very troubled high street retail sector. simon here, thanks so much for talking to us today. i spoke to one arcadia worker who didn't want to be identified who said the uncertainty had come at the worst possible time. a lot of us are feeling a bit anxious because we don't know the full extent about what's happening ourselves. for us, it's about money around christmas time, bills have to go out, we don't know if we can afford stuff for ch

debenhams and arcadia are intertwined because arcadia is the biggest concession partner inside debenhams was up as things stood last weekjd sports was closing in ona last weekjd sports was closing in on a deal to acquire debenhams but now it is now in doubt given the arcadia ownership question. mike ashley has been after debenhams for a long time and let's see, he is probably the last man standing. covid is accelerating the changes on our high streets, and it a turbulent end to the year. emma simpson, bbc news. our top story this lunchtime... the effectiveness of lockdown: coronavirus infections in england have fallen by about a third. and still to come — fewer cows, more trees, meadows and wetlands, as the government outlines its plans for the future of england's countryside after brexit. coming up on bbc news... fresh calls for concussion substitutes to be introduced in football after a collision of heads sees one player hospitalised with a fractured skull and the other allowed to play on. back in march, italy was seen as being the global epicentre of the pandemic as cases and deaths

the ft, joe, main story, front page story arcadia colla pses story, front page story arcadia collapses into administration as crisis claims biggest retail victim. as we were saying about a0 mad minutes ago, it‘s not all down to the pandemic, joe. no, it's not. and arcadia has been behind the times with respect to its rivals without especially getting into e—commerce was that we‘d seen them losing market share, by mark h&m, over the last to three years it didn‘t come as in an immediate consequence of the pandemic clearly it‘s been going on over time. you recognise the likes of dividends there has been this problem with the bricks and mortar retailers in recent times. clearly arcadia, at the end of the road with this one. 0bviously, terrible news for the 13,000 jobs at risk. not expecting immediate redundancies but where they go from here, who knows? massive moment in british retail. daisy? yes, i think it is worth a flip through the papers the mirror calling him greedy. it's no surprise that the daily mirror it be a big band. not many people are either within business journali

what do you think lies in store for arcadia? we don't know what will happen on monday, but there is hope that in some way some of these brands can continue. if they were to continue, what would need to change? one of them has got a future, that is topshop. it is still a decent business, it needs a bit of love and care, it needs an investment, it needs some really good top—notch leadership. the other brands, as i said earlier, are past their sell by date. i think that deals will be done around those brands, mainly to shift stock. they will become labels rather than a meaningful business in their own right. and i'm afraid it will mean that quite a lot of people are sadly going to lose theirjobs. you talked about philip green and the way he ru ns about philip green and the way he runs as nurses. how much you about philip green and the way he runs as nurses. how much you think he isa runs as nurses. how much you think he is a businessman had to do with the demise of arcadia?” he is a businessman had to do with the demise of arca

arcadia has been in trouble for some time? yes, arcadia has experienced a decline since its high heyday. 0ther fashion retailers have come to the four that were quicker to seize upon the potential of internet shopping. arcadia has avoided collapse before, but it has had to cutjobs and cut its number of stores. now it has about 13,000 employees and about 500 stores. they have had to close for long periods of time this year because of the government's coronavirus restrictions. in a statement today, arcadia said it had a material impact on trading across businesses. the group had been trying to secure a £30 million of emergency funding, but it seems that hasn't worked out. administrators could be called in as early as monday. what does that mean in practice? it means the search would be on to find a buyer or buyers to try and rescue the brands that include, as you say, topshop and dorothy perkins, and save as many jobs as possible. we understand that shops would continue to trade. so customers wouldn't suddenly see the shops clo

store are arcadia. so it's things like ms. selfridge, therefore, if that goes under, it could put that in doubt too. ben, thank you very much. it's a grim picture, is dick? it'sjust a reminder isn't it that wall street does not mean street as they say in america. you can see shares taking off in companies like amazon, but that doesn't translate necessarily. now, and for the 13,000 people whose jobs are at risk, that doesn't mean very much at all. now. stay with us, plenty more to come on the programme. hello again. well, it's been another pretty grey day for most of us, but a big improvement in my book. at least we could see more than a few hundred metres. the mist and fog having cleared out of the way by patches of rain. that rain's been pushing southwards over recent hours, and you can just make out this little line of rain just coming into parts of merseyside on the radar picture. that's actually the cold front, and to the north of the cold front, that's where we had some proper sunshine working in a

the question then is if buyers can be found for arcadia's brands, and who they might be. katy austin, bbc news. the european union and the uk have resumed brexit trade talks, with just five weeks to go until the transition period ends. the eu's chief negotiatior, michel barnier, has travelled to london for talks with his british counterpart, david frost. it is the first time they have met face—to—face since mr barnier went into self—isolation after a member of his team caught coronavirus. the two sides are still at odds over fishing, fair competition — including state aid — and over how disputes will be settled. the snp has pledged to extend free school meals in scotland to provide breakfasts and lunches for all primary pupils. speaking at the party's conference, which is being held virtually, the deputy first minsterjohn swinney said if the party retained power after the holyrood elections it would expand the scheme at a cost of around £230 million per year. also speaking on the first day of the conference first minister nicola sturgeon called for a new indepe

the question then is if buyers can be found for arcadia's brands, and who they might be. katy austin, bbc news. britain and france have announced an agreement to double the number of police officers patrolling beaches in northern france to stop migrants attempting to reach the uk in small boats. under the deal the uk will contribute around £28 million, towards a series of preventative measures. our correspondent, simonjones, gave us more details about the agreement. so far this month, around 700 migrants have succeeded in reaching the uk by boat. the total for this year is around 8,000 people. that is a big increase on the whole of last year, and about four times more so far this year. priti patel, the home secretary, has been under pressure, not least from her own conservative mps, to get to grips with this issue. she has held a virtual meeting with her french counterpart, and agreed a series of measures that britain will pay for. the chief one will be stepping up patrols by french officers on beaches in northern france. it is a huge area of coastline there. we are not

the question then is if buyers can be found for arcadia's brands, and who they might be. katy austin, bbc news. face—to—face talks have resumed in london to reach agreement on a brexit deal between the eu and the uk. the eu's chief brexit negotiator michel barnier said deep divisions remain. borisjohnson has also spoken to the irish prime minister and underlined his commitment to reaching an agreement, which respects the uk's sovereignty. the number of coronavirus cases recorded in the united states has passed 13 million, as the pandemic continues to surge. nearly 265,000 americans have died with covid—19. around 90,000 are in hospital. a further spike in the infection rate is expected, as millions have travelled for the thanksgiving weekend despite public health warnings to stay at home. 0ur north america correspondent david willis reports. in the worst affected nation on earth, coronavirus cases are growing at an alarming rate. the united states added more than a million new cases of covid—19 in the space of less than a week, and on hospital wards and amongst he

the question then is if buyers can be found for arcadia's brands, and who they might be. katy austin, bbc news. the number of coronavirus cases recorded in the united states has passed 13 million, as the pandemic continues to surge. nearly 265,000 americans have died with covid—19. around 90,000 are in hospital. a further spike in the infection rate is expected, as millions have travelled for the thanksgiving weekend, despite public health warnings to stay at home. our north america correspondent david willis reports. in the worst affected nation on earth, coronavirus cases are growing at an alarming rate. the united states added more than a million new cases of covid—19 in the space of less than a week, and on hospital wards and amongst health care workers, the strain is starting to show. when the news says we've reached a new death toll, i don't understand that. but as a front line health care worker, i can understand, and i can describe the sound a zipper on a body bag makes. health experts urge people to avoid travelling over thanksgiving, fearing the holiday week

of course, arcadia group did have problems before the coronavirus pandemic. it is absolutely true, though, that the restrictions that have come with coronavirus, shops having to close for a period of time, have really added to those difficulties and yes, it does look like arcadia is set to enter administration at some point tomorrow. in practical terms, the stores would continue to trade for the time being, although of course they can't yet in england until later in the week, but when they do reopen they would carry on trading and the search for a buyer or buyers for those brands really starts. i think it is fair to say that his style of business had become slightly outdated and yes, his brands weren't as quick as others to seize on the opportunities of digital. others, you might think of boohoo, have done very well online and lots of competition on the high street as well. i think it is worth mentioning at this time, there is going to be a focus in the coming weeks and months on other things like pensions as well because we do think the arcadia group has had

what do you think about the other brands within the arcadia umbrella. dorothy perkins, miss selfridge, evans. lesser brands, but still well known on the high street. i am not sure if evidence exists any more. one by one, all the brands have started losing their identity, going down on profit, so it is a bit of a domino effect where the crown jewel, topshop, if they are not doing well than the others will follow. susie, good to talk to you. thank you very much indeed. thank you. the headlines on bbc news: the prime minister appoints nadhim zahawi as minister for the deployment of coronavirus vaccines. a warning that hospitals in england could become overwhelmed with coronavirus cases, if mps don't back new restrictions. iran's president rouhani blames israel for the assassination of a top nuclear scientist, saying his country won't be deterred from its nuclear ambitions. sport and for a full round—up from the bbc sport centre, here's jane dugal. good afternoon. we start with manchester city, who are currently in action against burnley. they have just g

what's gone wrong for arcadia? well, it's notjust a pandemic, although of course it's really accelerated the trends. arcadia group was really struggling with, for example, it used to be really leading the fashion packed with high—profile collaborations with high—profile collaborations with the likes of kate moss, for example, but its face really stiff competition online. also, high mark in the high streets. it was facing this problem before, but certainly the pandemic has accelerated those and from the group into chaos because of course, it's 500 stores had to close, notjust here, but in other parts of the world as well with lockdown ‘s enforced. and it certainly seems as though tinkering around the edges and trying to get rent productions and trying to reduce the footprint of stores is simply too little too late. and they we re simply too little too late. and they were in talks and sir philip green was trying to get, i don't think extension is the right word, but some sort of lifeline until christmas. i don'

but that isn't just a case for the arcadia group. it would be really unfairto paint arcadia group. it would be really unfair to paint that picture. the brands within the group have been suffering for years, through underinvestment, when perhaps the organisation could have made decisions about redeploying money into the brands rather than making dividend payments, as these fashion brands have had to evolve quickly to make new ways of contacting and engaging with a very demanding consumer, but in addition to that, also sorting out its pensions deficit, which is one of the things dogging it right now. the only consolation on that i suppose from pensioners and those who were by hoping to drop pension in future yea rs hoping to drop pension in future years as i understand the pension fund gets first pick as it were of the money, and it clearly needs it. there are regulators as well which can help support it, and we can't talk about this without shining a light on notjust the employees of the organisation but all those affected in its supply chain as well. talks of numbers of up to 30,00

arcadia could become britain's biggest corporate collapse of the pandemic so far. also tonight: the toughest restrictions, but some of the lowest infection rates — anger in places like kent's tunbridge wells at england's new tier system. fishing and access to british waterfor eu boats — a key sticking point as brexit negotiations resume

the question then is if buyers can be found for arcadia's brands, and who they might be. katy austin, bbc news. boris johnson has appointed nadhim zahawi as a health minister responsible for the deployment of coronavirus vaccines. downing street said he would take on the role until at least next summer. it comes as hospitals in england have been told to prepare for the roll—out of a coronavirus vaccine from mid—december. nhs providers, which represents hospital trusts in england, says intensive work is going on to prepare for the first doses of the jab — but the time—frame will depend on when and if vaccines are approved by regulators. face to face talks have resumed in london to reach agreement on a brexit deal between the eu and the uk. the eu's chief brexit negotiator michel barnier said deep divisions remain. borisjohnson has also spoken to the irish prime minister and underlined his commitment to reaching an agreement, which respects the uk's sovereignty. the government has appointed the network rail chairman, sir peter hendy, to establish whether the train,

the question then is if buyers can be found for arcadia's brands, and who they might be. katy austin, bbc news. and we'll be taking an in—depth lookat the papers with our the political editor of the sunday mirror and people, nigel nelson and the political commentator, jo phillips — that's coming up after the headlines. and, before that though time for a look at the weather with darren bett. hello. quite cool in northern england where we have had thick cloud with outbreaks of rain though that should ease off overnight. it has been quite chilly in scotland but here we had blue skies and sunshine after a frosty start, temperatures are falling quickly now. we see some cloud pushing into central and southern scotland but most of it will affect northern ireland, england and wales, onto hills for, temperatures 5 or 7 degrees, frost more likely in the north—east with clearer skies and temperatures down to —5 in some places by morning. away from here a lot of cloud on sunday morning, the mist lifting in england and wales, brighter skies in west wales, northumberland looks

of course, arcadia group did have problems before the coronavirus pandemic. it is absolutely true, though, that the restrictions that have come with coronavirus, shops having to close for a period of time, have really added to those difficulties and yes it does look like arcadia is set to enter administration at some point tomorrow. in practical terms, these stores would continue to trade for the time being, although of course they can't yet in england until later in the week, but when they do reopen they will carry on trading and a search for a buyer or buyers for those brands really starts. because there are some attractive brands and therefore people who have actually made a success of the online, for example, top... man? topshop, yes. a very successful brand, but. that is seen as the jewel in the crown and is likely to attract interest. it might be a bit harderfor attract interest. it might be a bit harder for others, attract interest. it might be a bit harderfor others, burton, dorothy perkins, evans as well. we don't really think sir philip green is goi

the question then is if buyers can be found for arcadia's brands, and who they might be. katy austin, bbc news. protests are taking place in paris against a new law restricting sharing of images of police officers. the demonstrators argue it undermines the freedom of the press to document police abuses. the government says the law protects security services from receiving online abuse. the action comes days after the distribution of disturbing footage showing police officers beating black music producer michel zecler. president emmanuel macron called the officers' action "shocking". mark lobel reports. pursued by the police for not wearing a face mask, then, set upon in the reception room of his music studio by those he thought were meant to protect him. caught on this cctv footage that has struck a nerve in france, the black french music producer michel zeckler is brutally punched, kicked, hit and allegedly racially abused. the three officers seen here, two in uniform and one plainclothed, have been suspended and questioned in police custody. the violent scenes continued

the question then is if buyers can be found for arcadia's brands, and who they might be. katy austin, bbc news. shops in france havejust reopened four weeks after the country enforced a partial lockdown to fight the resurgence of coronavirus. french stores are hoping for a sales bonanza on black friday, which the government put back by a week to stop online retailers getting an unfair advantage in the run—up to christmas. meanwhile it was a similar story in the city of geneva where shoppers queued to get into nonessential shops that have been closed since november 1st, due to the rising numbers of covid—19. the measures in geneva were the strictest of the second wave in switzerland — which also saw the closure of bars and restaurants in the region. the american singer, cher, is in pakistan to mark the end of a long campaign to free an elephant living alone at islamabad zoo. the elephant, named kaavan, became the focus of a campaign by animal rights activisits amid concerns about the conditions in which he was being kept. the singer has paid for the 36—year—old a

they make up the arcadia group, with more than 500 stores. topshop alone has some 250 shops and concessions in 170 odd towns and cities across the uk. rigs and mortar stores have become an albatross around any big company's neck and i have been new and flashy companies that have grown up digital natives and started their business digitally and they are much more nimble and able to adapt that many of the arcadia businesses. the owner is sir philip green, colourful and controversial. he built one of the biggest clothing empire is in the country, courting celebrities along the way but then he sold bhs for a pound and it collapsed a year later. can you not look at me like that all the time, it's disturbing. leaving him facing the fury of mps and having to cough up millions to the pension schemes. he has gone from zero to hero and now it looks like he's going back to zero again. philip's style worked really well for a while but it has been working progressively less well. the retail industry today needs huge investment and it has never been his st

despite the problems of arcadia, sir philip green, who i’u ns of arcadia, sir philip green, who runs the company, has a personal wealth of £930 million. this is an almighty fall for the empire of a man once dubbed the king of the high street. brash, brave, brilliant, bully. whatever your view, sir philip green is undeniably one of the big beasts of british retail. it's going to be about old fashioned shopkeepers, old fashioned operate. this is not any more financialjinx. this is going to be about knowing your business. from miss selfridge to dorothy perkins, his clothing brands are on every high street. but it is topshop and its links with high fashion that's driven the group's success. it's just a label, isn't it? yeah, but it's the style of clothes. it's kate moss! yeah, it's kate moss. everybody wants to be like kate moss. it's kate moss. she's gorgeous, man. she's stunning. it matters that much? beautiful figure. tall, beautiful. but it's just a label? it's kate moss! but it's the same thing as with designer clothes, you know? why do they say that you can spend, you know, £500

let‘s look at this arcadia, these huge high street staples, and end of an absolute era. i think the high street was under a lot of pressure before this crisis struck with rising rents of people shopping online, chemist there was already significant headwinds for the retail industry, and this isjust going significant headwinds for the retail industry, and this is just going to be the biggest casualty of all so far. looking at 13,000 job losses which are shops like topshop, burton, evidence of a real stables of the high street. it is run by philip green, a controversial figure, he‘s been, he set up arcadia many years for famously to get a 1.2 billion dividend back in 2005, famously sold bhs for a pound in 2015, settled with a massive pension deficit of £571 million, 1.3 billion in debt. don‘t get me wrong, i‘m a capitalist, i believe the profit motive, i believe that entrepreneurship should be welcomed at people who take risk should be rewarded, what i don‘t like is when people don‘t pay their fair share of tax, they live in tax havens, and they get knighted for

senior sources at the arcadia group have told the bbc they do not expect any last0minute rescue of the clothing empire built up by sir philip green. around 13,000 people are employed by the group, which owns uk high street brands such as topshop, dorothy perkins and burton. speaking to the bbc, an insider dismissed talk of any possible rescue. administrators could be appointed as early as monday. our business correspondent katy austin has more arcadia group did have problems before the coronavirus pandemic. it is absolutely true, though, that the restrictions that have come with coronavirus, shops having to close for a period of time, have really added to those difficulties and yes, it does look like arcadia is set to enter administration at some point tomorrow. in practical terms, the stores would continue to trade for the time being, although of course they can't yet in england until later in the week, but when they do reopen they would carry on trading and the search for a buyer or buyers for those brands really starts. i think it's fair to say that his style of business had become

surrounding the future of arcadia. the forced closure of our stores for sustained periods as a result of the covid—19 pandemic has had a material impact on trading across our businesses. as a result the arcadia boards have been working on a number of contingency options. as i said, we know that money it had asked for was not given to it. all eyes will be on what happens over the next few hours to see if they will release another statement before the end of play today or whether next week will dictate what happens next. many thanks indeed. face—to—face brexit talks are due to restart this week. they were suspended after a colleague of michelle barney tested positive for coronovirus for both sides say they are still significant differences to be dissolved over borders, government and fishing. boris johnson said the uk would work hard to get a deal ahead of the end of the transition period. the likelihood of a deal is very much determined by our friends and partners in the eu. there is a deal that to be done if they

arcadia would be the biggest retail colla pse we arcadia would be the biggest retail collapse we have seen during this pandemic, although its problems have been going on for much longer than that, and it could have other implications as well. debenhams, which employs 12,000 people, is in administration at the moment. jd sports has been closing in on a deal to buy it but a source close tojd sports said they would have more to think about if arcadia, which is debenhams's biggest concession holder, does go into administration. thank you, katie. 110 ten civilians have been killed in an attack by suspected islamist militants in the nigerian state of borno. the un says farm workers were targeted near the city of maiduguri. they're said to have been harvesting rice, when they came under attack from armed men. a fresh inquest opens tomorrow into the death of ella adoo—kissi—debrah, who was nine when he suffered a fatal asthma attack in 2013. of ella adoo—kissi—debrah, who was nine when she suffered a fatal asthma attack in 2013. the coroner will consider new evidence about dangerously

the question then becomes if a buyer can be found for arcadia's brands and who that may be. face—to—face talks resume in london today to try to agree a trade and security deal between the eu and the uk. the eu's chief brexit negotiator michel barnier said deep divisions remain. borisjohnson has also spoken to the irish prime minister and underlined his commitment to reaching an agreement, which respects the uk's sovereignty. iran has blamed israel for the assassination of the scientist who's believed to have masterminded the country's nuclear weapons programme. in a letter to the un security council, tehran said it reserved the right to defend its people and its interests. 0ur security correspondent gordon corera reports. the scene of an ambush. the highway where gunmen targeted a vehicle carrying one of the most important figures in iran's nuclear programme. mohsen fakhrizadeh was a scientist and senior defence official. but western intelligence services have long believed he was the driving force in iran's quest for a nuclear bomb. iran has always said its nuclear prog

yes, we expect that arcadia is set to call in administrators at some point tomorrow. stores will continue to trade for the time being when they are allowed to be reopened, while a buyer or buyers are sought for the group's brands. it is worrying is for employees, in the run—up to christmas. one aspect already attracting attention is pensions. the chair of the mp select committee on work and pension is today called for sir philip green's family to make good the deficit in that pension fund, whatever happens, as things stand, if administration goes ahead the pension funds would go into what you think of as the pensions lifeboat when members would get back slightly less than they would have expected. we expect sir philip green will not try to buy back any part of his retail empire, which did have problems including not adapting quickly enough to the new digital retail environment, before the coronavirus restrictions dealt a further blow. many thanks, katy austin, our business correspondence. “— katy austin, our business correspondence. —— correspondence. mike t

arcadia, the retail group behind names such as topshop, burton and dorothy perkins faces collapse within hours with little chance of a rescue deal. the biggest shake up to farming in england for 50 years — the government plans to reward farmers for protecting the environment post brexit. and after 400 years, thanks to a conservation programme, beavers are back on exmoor, building their first dam. and coming up in sportsday in the next 15 minutes on bbc news. we'll hear from the british doctor who helped romain grosjean escape from the burning wreckage of his car at the bahrain grand prix. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. three weeks after the end of its last lockdown, wales is to bring in new restrictions as its covid infection rate rises yet again. pubs, restaurants and cafes will be banned from serving alcohol from friday and will have to close from six in the evening. indoor entertainment and visitor attractions, including cinemas, bingo halls, museums and galleries will also have to shut. the first minister mark drakeford said without the new restrictions there coul

barton, arcadia groups, tesco, river island... almost everybody has visited in my showroom. there are almost 5,000 garment factories in bangladesh, employing mostly women. but could the coronavirus erase decades of progress in a matter of months? you see all this is justjeans. and those made for the uk high street. theyjust keep here like that. how many days i can keep the jeans like that? where i have the space?! factories shut down, leaving thousands of people out of work... chanting. ..and worried about how they will survive. bangladesh is the second largest manufacturer of ready—made garments in the world. this industry employs 4 million people in the country. 85% of them are women. the southern port city of chittagong. most of the clothing in these factories is made forfast fashion brands in america and europe. it's all about huge volumes and quick turnaround times. mostafiz uddin is the owner of denim expert. this is pepejeans london. he employs 2,000 workers, making jeans for big international brands. when he built the factory 11 years ago, mostafiz focused on creat

let remind ourselves of the size of the arcadia group. so, within it, topshop, dorothy perkins and miss selfridge among others. there was a major restructure last year which meant they closed down international outlets, about 13,000 jobs remain in the uk. despite the problems of the company, sir philip green, its owner, has an estimated personal wealth of more than £900 million. every empire has its day, but this is an extraordinary fall for the man once dubbed the ‘king of the high street'. brash, brave, brilliant. bully. whatever your view, sir philip green is undeniably one of the big beasts of british retail. it's going to be about old—fashioned shopkeepers, old—fashioned operators, there's no more financialjinks, this is about knowing your business. from miss selfridge to dorothy perkins, his clothing brands are on every high street. but it is topshop and its links with high fashion that striven the group's success. it's just a label, isn't it? yeah, but it's the style of clothes! it's kate moss! yeah, it's kate moss! it's kat

the collapse of arcadia would be the biggest failure yet. topshop had the best inexpensive fashion, totally kept up with the trends. philip didn't manage the business brilliantly and new fashion businesses which are digital natives have found it much easier to adapt to the shopping climate now. the owner is sir philip green, colourful and controversial. he built one of the biggest clothing empires in the country, courting celebrities along the way. but then he sold bhs for £1 and it collapsed a year later. do you mind not looking at me like that all the time? it's really disturbing. leaving him facing the fury of mps and having to cough up millions to the pension schemes. he has gone from zero to hero and now it looks as though he is going back to zero again. philip's style worked really well for a while, but it's been working progressively less well. today's retail industry needs huge investment and it's never been his style to invest much in his businesses, as was exemplified by the dividend of about 1.2 billion that he and his family too

debenhams and arcadia are intertwined because arcadia is the biggest concession partner inside debenhams. as things stood last week, jd sports was closing in on a deal to acquire debenhams but that is now in doubt given the arcadia ownership question. mike ashley has been after debenhams for a long time and let's see — he is probably the last man standing. covid is accelerating the changes on our high streets, and it's a turbulent end to the year. emma simpson, bbc news. the headlines on bbc news... wales faces tougher new corona restrictions — pubs across the country will be banned from selling alcohol in the run up to christmas singer rita 0ra has apologises for breaching lockdown rules, the prime minister "every member of the public, including including celebrities" should follow the rules. and borisjohnson calls for his mps to show "unity and resolve" as he tries to head off a rebellion over his new tier system in england let's talk to the shadow public health minister alex norris. good afternoon to you. will you be voting for or against the prime minister's motion? we will be fo

the number of people in hospital because of coronavirus senior sources at the arcadia group have told the bbc they don't expect last—minute rescue of the group. 13,000 people are employed by the group which owns topshop, dorothy perkins and burton. a bbc spokesman said they don't expect the rescue and administrators could be appointed by thursday. the number of people in hospital because of coronavirus has hit a new record high in the united states. according to the covid tracking project, there are now more than 91,000 people in hospital beds, and that number has been rising almost every day since late october. the current surge is showing no sign of slowing down and on friday the number of people infected with the virus surpassed 13 million. our north america correspondent, david willis, is following developments. let me give you one number, it is 2,752. bear that number in mind if you can. it is the figure in april, on a single day in april this year, the number of people who died here in the united states because of the coronavirus. and for six months, that figure, 2752, has bee