hello, this is bbc news with ben brown. the headlines... the uk government promises it will be christmas as normal despite the discovery of the omicron variant of coronavirus. from tuesday, people in england will once again have to wear masks in shops and on public transport. israel will ban the entry of all foreigners for two weeks to try to prevent the spread of the new omicron variant — one case has so far been confirmed in the country. dozens of people who arrived at amsterdam's schipol airport from south africa on friday have covid—19. dutch health authorities are testing to see if it's the omicron variant. european ministers — minus the uk home secretary priti patel — meet for talks in calais today about how to stop migrants crossing the channel. now on bbc news, it's time