Rules that Insurance Firms must issue pay outs for losses suffered during the first lockdown. British meat exporters say new customs systems post brexit are not fit for purpose, with perishable goods delayed for hours because of extra checks and paperwork. And the premier league boss warns footballers to tone down celebrations and set an example during the pandemic. And coming up in sport on bbc news, joe root makes good on his promise to deliver the big scores. The england captain moves to 168 not out, as england dominate the first test against sri lanka. Good evening. The uk is closing all its travel corridors from monday as concerns grow about new variants of the coronavirus. Anyone arriving in the uk will have to present a negative test and will still have to self isolate for up to ten days. The new border restrictions will be reviewed in a months time. It comes as the Prime Minister urged people to stay at home this weekend with hospitals across the uk under extraordinary pressure. More than 37,000 people are currently being treated for coronavirus a Record Number with the peak not expected for another ten days in most places. A quarter of the patients are under the age of 55. Tonight, hospitals in nottingham and newcastle, amongst others, are standing ready to accept intensive care patients from london, to try to ease the pressure on the worst hit areas. But the Prime Minister said there was hope with more than 3. 2 Million People already vaccinated in the uk. Heres our health editor, hugh pym. Ventilator beeps this hospital was one of the first to fill up with seriously ill Covid Patients last march. Now, the same things happening again, only more so. Like many other hospitals in the south east of england, Northwick Park is under severe strain. There are more patients now than there were in march and april and may and if those numbers continue, then it doesnt matter how good we are at looking after covid, welljust run out of beds. Because of pressure on Critical Care unit like that, hospitals in nottingham have been asked to take Covid Patients from london and the south east and newcastle is also set to receive patients from further south, even london. Trust leaders say hospitals around england have been asked to help by boosting capacity. We know we now are moving patients, a small number of patients, from london to other parts of the country because londons Critical Care capacity is very, very full. Thats not something we would normally want to do but i hope in one sense its a reassuring sign of how far the nhs will go to treat every single patient who needs care. Some hospitals in london and the south east of england are so stretched that patients are having to be moved hundreds of miles for treatment. Does this not suggest that not enough was done by the government to prepare the nhs for the second wave . A huge amount was done to prepare the nhs and has continuously for the last year and, actually, even in london, where the situation has been toughest, the london nhs has been under huge, huge, huge pressure but they really have been coping magnificently. A social media site has brought together impressions from the nhs front line. 0ne doctor said. Another entry said. Another doctor reported. Admissions to hospitals like this one in kettering involve patients who got the virus a couple of weeks before. As for new cases, there are tentative signs of a change of direction. Recent case numbers show in the last week, northern ireland, wales and scotland have all seen case numbers fall. Its the same in england, with more cases in a bigger population, including dips in hotspots like london. But in some Council Areas like knowsley, halton and the isle of wight, there have been increases. Officials believe the peak of infections may have passed in some areas but not hospital admissions. It takes a while between people first getting infected to getting ill enough to go to hospital. So that peak will be a bit later, in every area of the country, a bit later than the peak of infections and then the peak of deaths, unfortunately, is a bit later still. So, the peak of deaths, i fear, is in the future. A decisive reversal of those trends may only come once there have been widespread vaccinations but progress is being made, with a million more people jabbed across the uk this week. Hugh pym, bbc news. And you can see a full report from Northwick Park hospital on newsnight tonight on bbc two at 10 30. So, the uks borders are being tightened from monday morning. But for how long . And what impact will it have . Heres our transport correspondent, caroline davies. While most of us are being told to stay at home, today saw another announcement about international travel. Yesterday, passengers from south america and portugal were banned from travelling to the uk to stop the spread of a new covid variant from brazil. Today, the Prime Minister announced another measure to tighten up travel. To measure to tighten up travel. Trr protect us against the risk of as yet unidentified new strains, we will temporarily close all travel corridors from 4am on monday. Todays announcement is not a travel ban, its about quarantine. Combined with earlier policies, it means from monday anyone travelling to the uk will have to show they have a negative covid test less than 72 hours before they depart. When they arrive, they must now quarantine for ten days, no matter where they have flown from in the world or pay for a covid test on the fifth day. If it is negative, they can leave quarantine early. As well as airports, the policy applies to eurotunnel and seaports but wont apply to those arriving from ireland. The government say this step is needed because its difficult to predict where new variants may come from. Passenger flights are already significantly down. Heathrow airport handled just over a million passengers in december, down nearly 83 on last year. There has been criticism that this policy would have been more effective if it had been introduced earlier. ,. , � , ,. Earlier. Lots of the British Public will say that earlier. Lots of the British Public will say that we earlier. Lots of the British Public will say that we are earlier. Lots of the British Public will say that we are really earlier. Lots of the British Publicl will say that we are really worried about the variant in other countries. Other countries have taken measures. We were slow to it and they will be wondering why this didnt happen sooner and why the delay now until monday. Didnt happen sooner and why the delay now until monday. During the summer, delay now until monday. During the summer. The delay now until monday. During the summer, the travel delay now until monday. During the summer, the travel industry delay now until monday. During the summer, the travel industry saw. Summer, the travel industry saw travel corridors as a lifeline. It kept people going on holiday. Today, many say they support the suspension so long as travel corridors can come back later this year. If so long as travel corridors can come back later this year. Back later this year. If we are auoin to back later this year. If we are going to have back later this year. If we are going to have an back later this year. If we are going to have an aviation back later this year. If we are i going to have an aviation sector coming out of this, we need to open up coming out of this, we need to open up in the summer. We look forward to having conversations with the government about that but for the here and now, we are absolutely clear we will support the government. Clear we will support the government. , government. This is one of many travel policies government. This is one of many travel policies the government. This is one of many travel policies the government i government. This is one of many i travel policies the government have introduced. The question now is whether it will make a significant difference in keeping the country safe. Caroline davies, bbc news. 0ur deputy political editor, vicki young, is in westminster. Almost a year after the pandemic began, why now . Almost a year after the pandemic began. Why now . Almost a year after the pandemic began, why now . They have been criticised for began, why now . They have been criticised for not began, why now . They have been criticised for not being began, why now . They have been criticised for not being as began, why now . They have been criticised for not being as strict i criticised for not being as strict as other countries. They are using quarantine as the main tool. Their point being if someone comes into the country, if they are not going out, they are not spreading it and thatis out, they are not spreading it and that is the approach they are taking. The logic of doing it now is because of these new variants, weve been very good at isolating and finding them once they are here but they want to find them before they get here and they cannot be sure where they are coming from. One minister described all of this as a safety first approach. They say they dont want to fall at the last hurdle, so what is going to give us over that hurdle . It is the vaccination programme. And here there has been some remarkable progress. We have heard over 3 Million People in the uk now vaccinated and they dont want to have that good work and progress undermined by new variants coming in. So some good news amid some still bad news on deaths and hospitalisations. Still bad news on deaths and hospitalisations. Vicki young in westminster, hospitalisations. Vicki young in westminster, thank hospitalisations. Vicki young in westminster, thank you. The growth in the number of confirmed cases has slowed. The latest government figures show there were 55,761 new Coronavirus Infections recorded in the latest 24 hour period the first time its crept above 50 thosuand this week. But numbers are still almost 14 down on this time last week. On average the number of new cases reported per day in the last week is 51,221. Hospitals have had an average of 35,1117 covid 19 in patients. 1,280 deaths were reported, thats people who died within 28 days of a positive covid 19 test. On average in the past week, 1,066 deaths were announced every day. The total number of deaths so far across the uk is 87,295. Lets get an update on the uks programme of mass vaccinations more than 316,000 people have had their first dose of one of the three approved covid 19 vaccines in the latest 2a hour period, taking the overall number of people whove had at least one jab to more than 3. 2 million. Knowsley on merseyside has the highest rate of coronavirus cases in england. In the last three weeks alone, the number of new infections has been doubling on average every week. Our special correspondent, ed thomas, has been to knowsley to find out why case numbers just keep rising. The messages are clear, they are heard and seen. Stay safe. Thank you. Stay safe. From asymptomatic testing to the specialist covid prevention officers. I am part of the covid team. You have probably seen us wandering around. Yeah. But despite this, in knowsley, covid cases have surged, and not all lockdowns are equal. Are you hearing more and more people have got covid . Yes, definitely. Its every other person saying, oh, such and such a person has got it. Its scary. Amanda has to work. Bills and rent need to be paid. I wake up through the night, so its just stressful. Whats tomorrow going to bring . Im just about covering my bills and there is no spare cash. Knowsley is one of the most deprived parts of england. Its been a perfect storm. The Public Health director here believes that inequality is fuelling covid cases. We have a low wage economy, we have low car ownership, so people have no choice other than to travel. People have no choice other than to go out to work. A lot of people in our communities have uncertainty around theirjobs, and they may fear that, actually, if they take the precautions they are supposed to do and self isolate, they may not get money coming in. I live on the 13th floor and i think that im safe up there because its down here. We spoke to peter during the last wave in knowsley. Since then, two family members have died with covid. Im keeping myself safe, keeping my distance and if somebodys going to come close, i say, woah, and ill back off. What has covid done to your extended family . Decimated it. A single parent, he works on Food Production lines across the north west. If you dont work, you cant play, and playing is eating, surviving, clothes on your back, food on the table. If you dont do that, you are going to struggle. Do you worry when you go home to your daughter . Of course, im scared to go anywhere near her. On average, covid cases in knowsley have doubled every week for three weeks. All i want to do is get my needle. The government promised. For Vulnerable People like edward, a sense of helplessness. I had long covid for ten weeks in april. Ive been in the royal twice. But the new covid, lots of people are catching it. How does knowsley get out of this situation . By following the rules and getting the injection. The vaccine . Yes. After three National Lockdowns and months of restrictions, that is the hope so many here are relying on. Ed thomas, bbc news, knowsley. Ever since the new variant of covid emerged in the uk, there have been questions about its impact on children and whether they are more likely get it or help spread it. 0ur science correspondent Rebecca Morelle reports. Children have been one of the pandemic� s biggest puzzles, with the young less likely to get the virus than adults, but does the arrival of the new variant change this, initial data was analysed for all ages, and something stood out. This red barfor 10 to 19 year olds suggested the new variant was particularly infectious for this group, compared with the old one, in blue. But this was during novembers lockdown, when much was closed apart from schools, and this may explain that bump. The latest evidence shows the new variant is 50 more infectious, but not especially for children. Its just that its better at infecting everyone across every age group. Is the new variant different for younger and older children . Nurseries are still open in england and wales, and scientists think the youngest are less likely to catch the variant and pass it on than older kids. We know that, in all variants, children less than ten were less susceptible but, you know, susceptibility and transmissibility increased by age. Especially over the age of 15, transmission dynamics are almost similar to adults. Does the new variant make kids more ill . The latest evidence suggests that it isnt causing more severe disease in the young. Children can need hospital treatment, but they still make up a tiny proportion of cases overall. We are seeing slightly more children because there are more people being infected, but we are not seeing children being disproportionately infected and certainly not seeing wards full of children with covid. With classrooms empty, schools are part of the uk lockdown, but this isnt about risks to children, its about controlling the spread of the virus. The science of the variant is fast moving, and researchers will continue to monitor its impact on the young. Rebecca morelle, bbc news. There have now been more than two million covid 19 related deaths around the globe since the disease first emerged a year ago. The United States remains the worst affected country in terms of total deaths, with almost 390,000 deaths followed by brazil, india, mexico and then the united kingdom. Some eu nations are receiving fewer than expected doses of one of the coronavirus vaccines as us pharmaceutical firm pfizer slows shipments. The company has warned of delays in delivering it from its belgian plant. But Pfizer Biontech says it will be boosting production in the long term. Six European UnionMember States have described the reduced shipments as unacceptable. Stricter rules are to be introduced for retailers, including supermarkets, in wales, amid concerns about safety for customers and staff. From early next week, shops will have to display social distancing signs, provide sanitiser for hands and trolleys, and limit customer numbers by law. The Supreme Court has paved the way for tens of thousands of Small Businesses to receive insurance payouts for the losses they have sustained during the coronavirus pandemic. The case was brought by the Financial Conduct Authority and a group of firms whose insurers had refused to issue payments on their Business Interruption policies. The ruling could prove a lifeline for companies struggling to stay afloat. Our Business CorrespondentKevin Peachey reports. A patisserie, a holiday cottage, a photography studio and a skin clinic varied Small Businesses, owners united in fury when their insurance claims for lost earnings in lockdown were turned down. Now they and tens of thousands of other small firms have been given hope of a payout. Running a hair salon in central london, james is one of them. It will enable our business to keep going, and weve got debts to pay down, and weve got employees that we are responsible for, so being able to get through this difficult final phase of the pandemic, a payout would mean the world to that. Insurers had argued many Business Interruption policies were never intended for such unprecedented restrictions in a pandemic, but they agreed with the regulators to a legal case to test various policy wordings. Now Supreme Courtjudges have sided broadly with the policyholders, the Small Businesses, in a ruling that means many, but not all, will be compensated. Each claim has to be assessed individually thats the law, and thats the regulatory requirement but insurers will work very closely with brokers, with policyholders and others to get this process moving as quickly as possible, and in many cases those policyholders have already lodged the details of their claims and supplied much of the information thats needed. Payouts of hundreds of millions of pounds will help many small firms to stay afloat, but putting their trust in insurers back on an even keel may take longer. Kevin peachey, bbc news. British meat exporters say new customs systems post brexit are not fit for purpose. Perishable goods are being delayed for hours, sometimes days, because of extra customs checks and additional paperwork. The new border rules were introduced two weeks ago at the end of the brexit transition period. The uk exports £15 billion worth of food and drink to the eu every year. A third of it is perishable meat, fish and fresh produce. The trade body says meat exports to the eu are currently at 25 of their normal volumes for this time of year. Our Business Editor simonjack� s report begins at a Meat Processing factory in shropshire. Uk lamb is highly prized. At this shropshire based abattoir, 70 gets exported to the eu. Its an export driven success story, but the well oiled machine that gets it there has a new spanner in it. Paperwork that used to take 15 minutes is now taking hours and requires vet certificates not needed before. We have been having sleepless nights and taking calls from hauliers and agents in the early hours of the morning. It has been a steep learning curve, and we see some of these problems will remain even when we get to the new normal level. For a fresh quality product trading on a daily basis, the system is not fit for purpose, and it needs to be looked at urgently. Rizvans products are still getting through, but delays are shortening shelf life, making customers frustrated and forcing them to consider other options. I feel very upset. We are thinking to buy some lambs in spain. We have some of our competitors who have all their lambs in ireland instead of the uk. Between the seller and buyer are the hauliers. No one is feeling more frustrated than pete white. We travel all over western europe every single week. Last week, for me, was probably the worst, most difficult week in this job in 20 years. We have lost hundreds of hours, dozens of days already, with our trucks waiting unnecessarily. Behind us, we are looking at the new Border Control posts that customs have set up. Near the mouth of the eurotunnel in kent, customs expert steven cock says problems on the way out mean problems on the way in. We have a situation where Border Forces car park is full, the roads are heavily congested, they are turning lorries back now. Exports are grinding to a halt at the moment. If you have a lorry that is going to get stuck on the way out, then if you are the haulier, why would you want to bring it in in the first place . So it will snarl everything up, import and export. It has been a pretty miserable time for hauliers, their drivers, and their commercial customers. The problems weve seen are at a time when ports are operating at a fraction of their normal volume. Those volumes are expected to increase. Lets hope any potential chaos will be short lived, but it seems clear additional cost and additional complexity in trading with our biggest trading partner are here to stay. After decades of friction free trade, there was bound to be disruption. The government says its working hard with business to get to what it describes as a new normal in cross channel trade. Simon jack, bbc news. The Economic Impact of lockdown measures across the uk in november has become clearer, with the latest official figures showing the economy shrank by 2. 6 during that month. The decline in gross domestic product, or the sum of value of goods and services produced in the economy, came after six months of growth. Pubs, hairdressers and others in the Service Sector were particularly badly hit, but some manufacturing and Construction Activity improved. The chancellor says the figures show things will get harder before they get better but that, with the vaccine roll out and economic support measures, there are reasons to be hopeful. Police investigations have been compromised by an error which led to more than 200,000 files being wrongly deleted from the Police National computer. The missing items include arrest records, dna and fingerprints. Its resulted in near misses during serious crime investigations, where the Computer System hadnt generated potentially crucial information, according to the National Police chiefs council. Official figures show there was a significant increase in the number of children in england suffering serious harm between april and september of last year, the period which included the first lockdown. The data has been compiled by the department for education from local authority reports on serious harm. 0ur social Affairs CorrespondentMichael Buchanan is with me now. It isa it is a big rise in a short space of time. ~. , it is a big rise in a short space of time. ~ , it is a big rise in a short space of time. ~ , it is a big rise in a short space of time. ~ ,. , time. We can compare this with a revious time. We can compare this with a previous sixmonth time. We can compare this with a previous sixmonth period, time. We can compare this with a previous sixmonth period, and l time. We can compare this with a| previous sixmonth period, and if time. We can compare this with a previous sixmonth period, and if we previous six month period, and if we do that, we see the number of childrens deaths increased to 119, thatis childrens deaths increased to 119, that is up from 89, and the incidence of serious harm, that might be abuse or exploitation, that increased to 153 from 132. Now, the reports also say that most of the harm actually occur to children living at home, rather than, say, in a care home, and the largest increase were against children under the age of one or over the age of 16. Now, as you say, the dates cover a period longer than the first lockdown, but remember at the time there were concerns at the closure of schools in particular meant that teachers and social workers didnt have access to Vulnerable Children, and they are the professionals most likely to spot neglect and abuse. The Childrens Society tonight has described these figures are shocking and are saying, during this lockdown, it is really important that schools and social care Work Together to ensure that Vulnerable Children have access to a teacher or some other professional. For their part, the government say they are still trying to understand the impact of the pandemic but that they have spent thousands of pounds, invested thousands of pounds on charities who work with families and Vulnerable Children. Vulnerable children. Michael buchanan. Vulnerable children. Michael buchanan, thank Vulnerable Children. Michael buchanan, thank you. Ugandas president museveni has a clear lead after yesterdays election, with around half the ballots counted. But his main challenger, bobi wine, has dismissed the poll as complete sham. 76 year old museveni is the only president most ugandans have ever know, having been in powerfor 35 years. Partial results show 38 year old pop star turned politician bobi wine trailing the incumbent, but he says the election saw the worst vote rigging in ugandas history. A country wide internet shutdown which began on wednesday is still in place. From kampala, our africa correspondent Catherine Byaruhanga reports. One of my gardeners came and informed me that we were surrounded. He calls himself the hope of a new generation, but tonight bobi wine finds himself surrounded in his home. Security forces patrol the area, reminding him of the power of the government he wants removed. The army says its for his own protection. Bobi wine rejects thursdays president ial elections. He told the bbc he believes he is the clear winner. Im not calling myself a president elect yet. I am saying the results that have been communicated by the Electoral Commission are fake, they are fraudulent, they are not a representation of what happened, of what the people said. Therefore we reject them. But ugandas Electoral Commission says bobi wine needs to present evidence of his allegations. Results they have released so far show the incumbent, president yoweri museveni, has taken a decisive and early lead. The 76 year old, who is seeking a sixth term, has controlled uganda for three decades and is in charge of the army and police. He had this warning for his rivals. To all who have voted, let the counting be peaceful, nobody should try to do violence. The real power here is still in the hands of the old guard business leaders, politicians and army generals. They want to maintain the status quo for economic stability. But they will have to deal with a growing chorus of young people who believe the state has failed them and wantjobs, better education, and health care. There is anxiety here over whether the final results will be accepted. Many of bobi wines supporters stayed back to watch the vote count. Even though he is challenging the process, bobi wine has so far stopped short of calling his supporters out onto the streets. Catherine byaruhanga, bbc news, kampala. In cricket, captainjoe root scored his first test century for over a year, as england tightened their grip on the first test against sri lanka in galle. Root reached 168 not out on a rain affected day two. His stand of 173 with dan lawrence helped the tourists to 320 4, a lead of 185. The head of the premier league has warned players to set a good example and minimise unnecessary close contact on the pitch. Richard masters was speaking at the end of a week when footballers repeatedly ignored guidelines about goal celebrations. 0ur sports editor, dan roan, reports. Footballs continuation during this lockdown has been something for the sport to celebrate, but the game is now gripped by a row over players flouting controversial new rules limiting close contact, and today the man who runs the premier league broke his silence to issue this warning. We are asking them now again to adjust their behaviours on the pitch, goal celebrations, and in and around the beginning and end of matches. We are asking them to adjust their behaviour, and i think they understand why. Youve got to follow the rules, and youve got to set a good example. We get the optics, which is why we see ourselves in a privileged position. Ministers have made it clear they expect players to respect the so called no hug rule in a time of National Crisis or risk having the season suspended, but this week its been repeatedly ignored. Why is it taking so much to get the message across . Well, its a very recent adjustment, and we are making these requests and trying to get this message across in pretty quick order, and i think its going to take time to adjust to the situation, so we need a bit of time to get it right. And if players refuse or fail to do that, managers dont encourage them to do so, whats going to happen . How are you going to enforce this . We have sanctions available to us. The fas jurisdiction is on the pitch, and if the clubs are breaching protocols, then we can take action