And the rain band pulls away to the continent, some sunshine behind, but then our focus is to be wintry showers and further north. Lower levels across england, northern wales and then likely to become particularly heavy into the early hours of monday morning. Hello, this is bbc news. The headlines millions of people in the uk face tougher covid restrictions, as rule changes come into force. As the uk grapples with a new strain of coronavirus, france, spain and sweden confirm their first case of variant. Former mi6 officer and soviet spy george blake has died aged 98 in moscow. Now, ben thompson reflects on how the uk economy, businesses and jobs suffered throughout the coronavirus pandemic and how things changed, from the ways we work and travel to how we shop, in review 2020 the business year. Ive struggled getting out of bed some days, because what do you do with yourself when your whole world is turned upside down . We lost 90 of our revenue overnight. 2020 was the year that changed just about everything. The coronavirus pandemic affected how we live and how we work. It upended our social lives, changed our Shopping Habits and impacted how and where we could travel. I think this is by far the biggest crisis we have ever faced and clearly requires us to take very quick and deep action. For the country, it led to the biggest economic slump in a generation causing thousands of people to lose their jobs across the uk. And so, as we grapple with its impacts on our lives and our livelihoods, we will assess how long it could take for the country to recover. And amid all of this turmoil, we wonder whether covid has given us reason to stop, to reassess, and perhaps to do things differently. People realise that they can actually work from home, they can have a better worklife balance. Sweeping and extraordinary measures to deal with coronavirus, the forced closure of pubs, restaurants and gyms and an unprecedented rescue package for workers and businesses. The Prime Minister announces the toughest restrictions on daily life in living memory. There are just no easy options. The way ahead is hard. And for business it began here. A National Lockdown forced the closure of all but essential retailers. Office workers stayed at home, balancing laptops on kitchen tables. Fewer commuters meant empty trains. There was less stress for some, but more for others. Those battling noisy neighbours or even noisier children. Whats his name . My name is christian. His name is christian. Video calls became the norm, testing our wi fi and our patience to limit. Just talk to me. 0k, can you hear me all right . I was appalled when i kept hearing people in government and elsewhere saying we have to get back to work as if we have not been working. This covid period weve been working longer and harder than ever before. Those who couldnt work from home faced entirely different challenges. With their businesses shut, factory workers, shop staff and those working in bars, restaurants and hotels found themselves out of work. Their wages were paid instead by the government from the support scheme we came to know as furlough. I am placing no limit on the amount of funding available for the scheme. We will pay grants to support as manyjobs as necessary. The furlough scheme was intended to be a temporary fix to a short term problem, designed to discourage employers from laying off staff and to see them through the worst of the lockdown. But its extension means that the scheme will have been running for a whole year. Since launching in march, more than 9 million workers have had their wages subsidised through the furlough scheme at a cost of over £40 billion. Alongside other measures to tackle the crisis, the total cost has hit more than £200 billion. But with Government Income squeezed as tax receipts from workers and businesses fail, the government was forced to borrow more to cover the cost. The government is likely to borrow more than £370 billion for the whole of this financial year. Its a level never seen before in the uk except during two world wars. Ive struggled getting out of bed some days because what do you do with yourself when your whole world is turned upside down . Yet despite the cost, those schemes did not help everyone. People like mark whitaker. Who started a curtain fitting business while still employed, but he did not earn enough in the last tax year to qualify for the income support scheme that was introduced to help self employed workers. Dont make me beg for it. You did not make anybody else beg for it, why are you making me beg for it . Its not fair, for goodness sake. How important were government measures . Things like grants and loans. And of course thatjob scheme, the furlough scheme . The chancellor was very clear he could not save every business or everyjob. The furlough scheme certainly left a lot of people behind. A lot of people who are self employed, who did not have enough of a tax return history to submit it, they cannot verify their incomes. Some individuals who are part self employed also fell through the cracks and worse still are the individuals that are still building their business and therefore were reinvesting their income into their business and did not have an income to declare for themselves. They were also left unsupported. And those individual stories tell us whats happening in the wider economy. With businesses closed and workers stuck at home, the economy shrank by more than 20 in the months after lockdown. It was the biggest fall in gdp on record. By the end of april, the economy was a quarter smaller than it was before the crisis began. Unemployment meanwhile began to creep higher. Slowly at first, cushioned by the furlough scheme, but gathered speed as a recession took hold. Forecasts say the jobless rate could hit seven and a half percent, with more than two and a half Million People out of work by the middle of next year. Compared to our peers, especially across europe, the uk has been the second worst performer in terms of where we are in terms of gdp compared to the precrisis levels. A lot of this is to do with the high exposure to services and the reliance on Household Spending for economic growth. In addition, also the length of the lockdown. Most European Countries had far shorter lockdowns but the uk restrictions lasted well into the summer. That inevitably had a negative impact as well. And that could hit younger people the hardest. Reggie nelson works in the city and mentors people looking to start their careers. But for those aged between 16 and 2a, thejobless rate is three times higher than average and particularly affects those from poorer economic backgrounds. Just to paint a picture youve got young People Living at home, probably house sharing, probably sharing a room with siblings if they have any. If theres monetary challenges then their parents are trying to work to keep up with the electric and wi fi and all of those things combined. You have to remember some of them might not even have working devices or slow devices. Young people are going to a market thats already competitive, covid has just made that even more competitive and trying to navigate that while studying and not having that certainty of a career has made it a lot more challenging. Where are your hopes for 2021 . I know its a tough question, isnt it . No one knows whats going to happen but what are you advising young people about what next year might look like . So, what im telling my young people is this wont last forever but also to use this time to upskill, use this time to develop your skill set, to find out what you want to do, build your network so that when things do return to a more normal state, youre in the best position to leverage off that and utilise that. I think institutions now are definitely seeing how they can become more agile and nimble, they want different thoughts and they want diversity of thought as well and young people can definitely bring that because they bring a new dynamic in thinking. Butjust how long will it take the economy and jobs to recover . That depends on how long it takes for normal life to resume, dictated by the mass rolled out of a vaccine. And as england, wales, scotland and Northern Ireland enforce their own restrictions, firms are learning to respond and adapt on a more local level. But fears of additional lockdowns not only impact our ability to work, shop and socialise but also our outlook on the economy and our willingness to spend again. And that cant come soon enough for the ailing hospitality industry. Its been one of the hardest hit by the pandemic pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels all bore the brunt of the lockdown restrictions, despite spending millions on new Safety Measures to protect customers and staff. Social settings were still blamed for helping spread the virus. Places relay on a high footfall, they have incredibly low margins, and in city centres like london they struggled to get into double digit revenues this year. Kate nicholls represents hospitality firms and says the industry, which employs more than 4 Million People in the uk, has been unfairly penalised by the restrictions. 0ur stock has gone to waste, we have literally poured the beer down the drains because it is no longer good to serve. It costs you money in stock every time you open or close those doors, so this constant yo yo because industry money. With the number of hospital admissions and deaths falling by the summer, bars a nd restau ra nts were able to reopen. But with fewer tables, restrictions on numbers and new measures to limit the spread of the virus, it was not business as usual. Can ijust take her temperature . The government encouraged us back out too with its eat out to help 0ut scheme offering cutprice meals. Two of these for less than a fiver, two meals for less than a fiver, you cant go wrong. I went back to the manager and said, youve made a mistake here. He said no its not a mistake, its half price. Its success took many by surprise. The month Long Programme served up more than 160 million meals. I think the industry sees that as a good policy that was designed to boost Consumer Confidence, it was not just about eating out but getting people back into the high street and getting them back to work, getting them on public transport and it worked. If you look around, Consumer Confidence has not taken a knock during the second lockdown. The only thing they have not been able to do is come and enjoy hospitality safely. Just how angry are the owners of pubs and restaurants and bars that once again they are not able to reopen even though perhaps gyms and conference centres, and sports venues can reopen . The industry feels hard done by because it is now identified as the only area subject to restrictions as you can go to the gym, you can go shopping and you cannot go to a pub and have a drink with a friend. We know this is the time of year when many businesses make the majority of their money. The money that will see them through the rest of the year. Will they all reopen in january or february if they can . Its a very bleak winter for the industry and i think theres about a million and a halfjobs and hospitality alone that could be at risk because we dont have that cushion of profits from december trading to get us through to easter. There was confusion too with hairdressers allowed to reopen in some parts of the country in july. But nail salons and beauty spas were forced to stay closed for longer. Their close contact treatments were deemed too risky, despite screens, masks and visors. And by november many were forced to close again as additional restrictions were brought in to stem a growing second wave of infections. Elsewhere, theatres, music venues, events and exhibitions remain in the dark about their chances of reopening. Most need to sell at least 60 of their tickets just to pay the bills. But with social distancing, curfews and limits on group gatherings, many warn thats just not viable. We are going to have to save the theatre and save the arts, and save the jobs. Applause. It leaves hundreds of thousands of actors, musicians, technicians and backstage staff without work. A government grant worth more than one and a half billion pounds was designed to offer support, but the industry says more is needed. Many smaller regional venues that rely on touring productions have closed for good. And whilst londons theatre land is showing signs of life as restrictions begin to ease, not all the bright lights will come back on. And while the future for places like this remains unclear, for retail there was a reprieve. Shops were able to reopen and salvage some of the year in the lucrative run up to christmas. But for others, that came too late. Many familiar names disappeared from our high streets this year, and then in december came the collapse of two giants of retail. More jobs at risk on the high street as arcadias Administration Leads to more trouble at debenhams. 12,000 jobs are likely to disappear from the high street as debenhams goes out of business. In many ways this is the worst week for high Street Retail that we have ever seen. Even before the pandemic, high Street Stores were contending with online rivals, but as covid closed nonessential retail those without a website saw business disappear overnight. It was a painful contrast to the panic buying that emptied supermarket shelves amid soaring sales of toilet roll, flour, eggs and pasta. Absolute nightmare to be perfectly honest. Not a lot on the shelves left. No toilet roll at all. Its been a roller coaster. I never imagined i would end up doing a story about loo roll, how much we produce of it, for the national news. But in a way, thats how the pandemic, for me, started to unfold. In retail. Because we all knew that the lockdown was brewing so what did lots of people do . They made a dash to the shops to stockpile. When the lockdown came, the high street effectively shut. Those town centres so eerily quiet and for the high Street Retailers, those sales just evaporated. Overnight they went into crisis mode. Some would say the pandemic has just speeded up change that was happening already. There was a big move online, the high street was already struggling. Is that how you see it . Has this just brought forward the change . Parts of retail were in turmoil before lockdown because of the shift online, but meanwhile they still had the fixed cost of all the shops and if the spending shifted online, the economics of running all the stores they were grappling with. And lots of businesses were either going into administration, doing restructuring, closing shops, but now the pandemic has speeded up was already happening. I think a lot of the weaker players, when this pandemic struck, exposed their problems even more. And thats why we have seen a whole string of businesses fall over. Emma, is there any reason we can be optimistic or hopeful about retail next year . Because things are likely to look very different, arent they . A lot of people think the high street is dead. Its not. Itsjust changing. We know that theres too much retail space in the uk. Were talking about a reinvention of town centres. But whos going to fill the gaps . Residential, workspace, civic community, independent retailers who have tended to do or survive this pandemic a bit better than the big chains. So there is hope there, its just changing very quickly. I thought that we would be saved, but not this time. Sorry. 2020 also disrupted our travel plans. Flybe was an early casualty, a sign of the hardship to come across the industry. A collapse in early march before lockdown even began. It was already struggling, but with travellers put off flying, bookings had slumped and its network of regional connections were severed. 2000 jobs were lost. Then came cruising. In the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. We have not stepped out of this cabin since we were quarantined on the 11th of february. Infections aboard several ships left them turned away from ports, unable to off load passengers. The diamond princess just one of a0 ships with affected passengers, all of them confined to their cabinets. Governments around the world did not know what to do and they didnt want to allow ships to dock and perhaps let passengers off into their communities. So the ships were really put in a spotlight but dealt with that very well. The cruise industry has probably done more with any other sector of travel. More than hotels, airlines etc to make sure its really safe for health and safety and hygiene, from testing and committed to testing everybody before they board ship. They are ready to restart but unfortunately the Foreign Office advice is that brits still cannot take an ocean cruise, so very tough times for the cruise industry. Closer to home as the first National Lockdown began, so too did a ban on all but essential travel. Trains and stations lay eerily quiet. A massive government bailout designed to keep near empty trains running for key workers essentially nationalised the network. Restrictions also left Holiday Plans in ruins. Planes grounded, hotels empty. Travel firms were deluged with requests for refunds. Some offered vouchers instead, prompting fury from customers who demanded their money back. Were just chasing them. Were just asking them, please, please, please will you refund us . They wanted to look after their customers but theyjust could not. When you buy a holiday you give the money to your travel agent or Tour Operator and that goes on to the suppliers in the chain. They had to wait for that money to come back down the chain in order to pass it back to the customer, so it was a really, really tough time. Even when restrictions were eased at home, foreign getaways remained out of reach. With borders all but closed, the holiday hotspots in spain, italy and greece lay empty as brits holidayed a little closer to home. Byjuly, travel corridors were open with countries with low infection rates. It gave the industry a much needed boost, but with destinations added and removed from the list every week, booking a trip became a gamble at best. Half a million britons are thought to be in france right now, they face a scramble to get home on flats, ferries and trains here at st pancras. Its no wonder that travel firms have struggled. Ba, just one of the giants forced to ground thousands of flights. It laid off 10,000 staff. Its boss told me injuly that covid was a crisis never before seen in the industry. Its a very worrying time for everybody, but i think the figures speak for themselves. This is the deepest crisis and by far the biggest loss. British airways will lose or has lost more than one quarter than the record loss in history. These are really extreme times. So what happens next . With more meetings now done online, the days of long distanced Business Travel may be over. And with a looming recession, budgets may be squeezed as well. And for consumers, after months of lockdown, demand to get away may bounce back. But with disposable incomes also feeling the pressure, the travel industry is in for a rough ride. How long will it take for things to get back to something resembling normality . Im really hopeful it will get back, its going to take some time. Many companies were reporting record years in 2019 and will get take a while to get back to that. Certainly the signs are strong, demand for the second half of 2021 and beyond. I think people have been cooped up at home and they are now thinking, well when i get out im going to do something really good. So they are looking at longer durations with bucket list holidays. It will come back. The problem is which companies are going to be there by that time in order to take them . And could the same be true of our town and city centres . Will we ever work in quite the same way again . Is the daily commute for Office Workers really a thing of the past . Theres no way we will not have a Simple Office environment. We will work substantially from home but come into the office a couple days a week because we need to. The notion that its gone entirely i think is wrong. And thats because offices are where theres collaboration, where theres teamwork and creativity. 0ur town and city centres need them too. The bars, the shops, the cafes and the restaurants that have sprung up to serve the morning coffee. The lunches with colleagues, and the after work drinks. Psychologists say its all too easy for working from home to become living at work. We have much more personal disposable time from the two hours or two and a half or three hours a day commuting. Thats wonderful to get rid of that. But heres the worry i have. The worry in the future is will people manage their time . And im just worried. The evidence is if you consistently work long hours you will get ill and be less productive. I have worries about that, that we have to learn how to do this. Yes, we are learning now, covid has forced us into a big learning experiment. However, we have to clock off at some point in time. For many, 2020 was a year to forget. Professionally, socially and financially. The vaccine offers the hope of a return to something more normal. But how long does that take . What even is normal anymore . Coronavirus has changed the way we live and the way we work. Its made us reassess whats important. But perhaps the true impact of this pandemic will only be felt many, many years from now. Hello. We have a rough night ahead. Courtesy of storm bella. This deep area of low pressure sinking down from iceland named by the met 0ffice. Heavy rain sweeping all areas of the uk, strong winds likely to be damaging and destructive, particularly to the south. To the north, colder air following particularly to the south. To the north, colder airfollowing in will allow showers to turn wintry, risk of ice first thing on sunday for northern england, Northern Ireland and scotland. The winds are the primary concern, potentially gusting up primary concern, potentially gusting up to 80 mph along the Southern Coast of england and wales, widely to 60 mph inland in england and wales. They will start to ease as we move through sunday morning, the rain falls away to the continent. Some sunshine following behind but then the wintry showers are further north. Even to lower levels across north wales, north england, Northern Ireland and scotland and is likely to be particularly heavy on into the early hours of monday morning. This is bbc news. These are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. Millions of people face tougher covid restrictions as rule changes come into force. As the uk grapples with a new strain of coronavirus, there are now confirmed cases in france, spain and sweden. Millions of americans face losing Unemployment Benefits as the standoff between donald trump and congress over a coronavirus stimulus package continues. Former m16 officer and soviet spy george blake has died aged 98 in moscow