the government has apologised to the victims of the grenfell tower fire at the public inquiry. the apology came as it admitted a series of failings in overseeing building safety in the years leading up to the disaster that claimed 72 lives. our correspondent tom symonds reports. the aftermath of worst fire in british history. within a day the government announced a public inquiry into this disaster. now, nearly four and a half years later, there is an apology. the department is deeply sorry for its past failures in relation to the oversight of the system that regulated safety in the construction and refurbishment of high rise buildings. it apologises to the bereaved residents and survivors of the fire for such failures. but those who escaped the fire described this statement as deeply offensive. i believe there were a series of 999 calls, effectively, to the government, that they chose not to act on. there were repeated fires. you know, knowsley heights, garnock court and, in 2009, lakanal house. these were all opportunities for the government to take robust action to fortify the regulations. they chose not to do that. grenfell made the government realise thousands of homes needed to be made safe. today, it admitted not making sure the building industry was sticking to the building regulations. if it had, the government barrister said... a large scale cladding fire could—not have happened. but were the regulations themselves... well, safe? the bbc tested the grenfell cladding in 2018. it's highly flammable. yet it had the highest british rating for fire safety. one section of the regulations said it could be used on tall buildings. another was not so clear. so, it's disputed. the inquiry will decide. a bombshell hasjust been dropped on us, with this cladding. whoever is to blame, the crisis has left an estimated 500,000 people facing debt to pay for the removal of dangerous materials. it's cost the government half a billion pounds. this tragedy has already led to some change. a new watchdog has been created. the regulations have been tightened up. but grenfell�*s aftermath is not over yet. tom symons, bbc news. now on bbc news, it's the travel show — with christa larwood. coming up on this week's show: we are in finland to meet the huskies who have been saved by a unique worldwide adoption scheme. we will start taking godmothers and godfathers for the dogs. we get a taste of sustainable scottish cooking in glasgow. it is just really important that i know that it is good and ethical, and good for the environment. and i find out the secret to a long and healthy life here in sardinia. prendilo, prendilo cosi. all this and you live a long life! it's a pretty good way of life, i think. theme music plays. hello and welcome to the travel show, coming to you this week from the beautiful island of sardinia. this place is known for its white sandy beaches, its fascinating ancient history, and it is also one of the best places in the world to live if you want to reach a grand old age. i will be finding out why later on. but first, there is nothing like travelling across an arctic landscape on a sledge, a snowmobile or on skis. when the pandemic hit and tourism dried up, these winter modes of transport were put on ice. but that wasn't an option for the sledge—pulling huskies. we visited lapland to find out how our furry friends have made it through the long, dark night of the pandemic. iso—syote, just 150 kilometres south of the arctic circle, on the border of finnish lapland. the scenery here is the stuff christmas is made of. in my view, the only thing that would improve this christmas—card style landscape is a sled dashing through the snow. move over vixen, blitzen and rudolph — the huskies are in town. this is absolutely incredible — it really is. we are visiting a husky farm, where recent heavy snow falls have ushered in the start of the tourist season. this farm belongs tojonna, aka the husky mumma, who looks after 96 huskies. i love to be in the cold, and sometimes we can have —40 degrees here, and huskies love to be in cold temperatures too. i remember the first time snow comes, it is like, woo hoo! here we go, it is time to go again. howling and barking. i think the huskies know what is coming. i think they know they are going for a ride. that sound! jonna's role is similar to that of a sports coach. she has to rotate her squad so her dogs don't get tired, know who plays well with who, and knows who performs best in certain positions. the two in front are the clever ones, leading the pack. into the middle we take the fast ones, and to the back, the strong ones, the power dogs. the tourists arrive and the sled rides begin, as the huskies take them off deep into a winter wonderland but this new season was never a given. huskies are rough and tough to survive these harsh winters but no matter how rough or tough you are, no—one was prepared for the global pandemic, which unfurled in early 2020. finland, like most of the world, entered the long dark night of covid—19 and tourists were unable to visit. tourism was hit hard but where snowmobiles, skis and snowshoes can be put away until times improve, these huskies still needed to eat. did you want me to grab some buckets for you? 0k, please. it's dinner time down on the farm and whilst here, i thought i'd lend a helping hand. here we go, grub�*s up! she looks really, really appealing. 0n the menu today is meat and fish, served with soaked dog biscuits. with 96 hungry mouths to feed every day, jonna's food bills are sky—high. yeah, it is about 45,000, 50,000 euros per year. so last year when the pandemic hit and the world began to close its borders, no more tours, no more safaris, and you still had all these huskies to feed, what was going through your mind? first when the borders were closed, i was like, a little bit feeling — for a few moments — depressed. what will happen now? how we can take care of the dogs? 0n the day after finland's lockdown was announced, jonna went for a cold water swim, a popular finnish pastime, and it was here where inspiration struck. i get up from there and i find that we will start taking godmothers and godfathers for the dogs — husky parents! husky parents — love it. jonna spread the news of her adopt a husky scheme on social media and through the finnish press. soon potential godparents came forward from all across finland and as far afield as norway, germany, the netherlands and hong kong, to start sponsoring the huskies. for the huskies we have their own bank account, and the money from the godparents go to that account, and i am very, very strict that when we take money out of that bank account, giving, buying food for the dogs, and doing this, if you need to have some payment for the vet or something, so it goes only if we need it for huskies. jonna knew her plan had to work, as if it didn't, the consequences would have been dire. that is something i don't even want to think about, because when the lockdown started, there were people talking about, if there is no people coming, if you don't have enough money to give food for the dogs, take proper care of the dogs, maybe you have to put them down. and that wasn't an option for me. no. not at any time, it was like totally, don't even think about it. it has been well over a year since the adoption scheme started, and with godparents donating anything from 3 to 360 euro, jonna has covered her costs. all the huskies are happy and healthy, ready to do theirjob that they love so much. so did you realise you were the first in the season to go out with the huskies on the sled today? no! laughs. we didn't know it. it was good to hear the dogs were even more excited than us. the future looks bright but uncertain. and if borders do end up shutting again, and the farm can't take visitors, at least the huskies have their godparents. a family who would never see them go hungry. if you're feeling inspired to wrap up warm and explore a winter wonderland this year, here are some of the things you should look out for. santa claus has officially declared the christmas season open. he lives at his official home town of rovaniemi in lapland which is open all year round. it is worth popping into the post office, where the elves there have received more than 18 million letters from children all around the world. for some spectacular scenery while skiing, head to iso—syote, finland's southernmost fell, located between lapland and lakeland. the ski resort there is surrounded by a national park which happens to get the biggest snowfall in the country, with up to two metres falling annually. the frost covered old spruce forest is also perfect for hiking if skiing isn't your thing. meanwhile, for the more daring, mountain biking through the snowy tundras in yllas and rovaniemi. and as the daylight hours are very short in december and january, you mayjust catch the northern lights during your biking adventure. just remember to take a head torch with you. 0rganise to stay in a bike hotel which offers customised services for cyclists, including special tours and a variety of rentals. still to come on the travel show: we'll be in glasgow, taking on a challenge from a local chef. i try not to cook anything that's farmed. if i've got meat on the menu it is always something that's wild. it has to be the highest quality, freshest, otherwise it just doesn't work. wow, look at his! buon giorno, signor cabras. and i'll learn the secret to a long and healthy life here in sardinia. thank you. laughs. i can drink to that. so, don't go away. next up, we're in glasgow, the scottish city that recently played host to the latest un climate change conference so, what better place to take up a sustainability food challenge? let's join kate hardie—buckley as she visits a local chef to help create a truly scottish dish using only the food she can find in the wild. i'm back in glasgow, a city i first fell in love with as a student here in scotland, and while i know the city best for its buzzing night life, i'm now here to explore its authentic and growing food scene. i've come to meet rosie healey, one of glasgow's innovative chefs who's on an ambitious mission to serve mostly wild meat and locally foraged vegetables. i worked in london as a chef and then i got an opportunity to open my own restaurant in glasgow. i try not to cook anything that is farmed, so if i've got meat in the menu, it's always something that's wild, like pigeon or venison. it has to be of the highest quality, freshest, otherwise it just doesn't work. rosie has lined up some adventurous places for me to collect our ingredients for our dish. so you're going to go and get some wild venison from an estate in inveraray and you're going to go and meet andrew and he's going to give you a basket of lovely things to take away. "a basket of lovely things" sounds fab! andrew wilson is taking me foraging for mushrooms in the forest. so there's one there. it looks like a butterfly. yeah. beautiful. edible? no. not edible. no. with andrew's trained eye, we forage on. so we have an edible one. it's called an amanita fulva, which is not a very catchy name, but... laughs. it's kind of a bit like an oyster mushroom. it's got lots of umami — it's quite a delicate flavour. great. so we've got one mushroom for rosie after our trek through the woods. we soon stumble upon a whole troop of fungi for me to collect. there's a baby one there — a micro—mushroom. it's really, really therapeutic being out here and foraging and getting your fingers dirty in the soil. very relaxing. next up, i'm heading to nearby ayrshire for some local seasoning. gregorie marshall co—founded blackthorn salt and built this graduation tower to harvest salt from seawater. we're standing on top of a thorn tower, which is ultimately using the elements that we have here to evaporate water so that we can make salt. gregorie runs seawater down through the blackthorn branches, with their high—surface area, so he can later extract his delicious salt flakes from the concentrated water. that's pure sea salt, then? it certainly is, yeah. wow. we're using the wind, we're using the sun and by doing that, we're not using any energy so it's trying to make sure that we are doing it as much as we can. my last ingredient challenge is taking you back into the wild, up to the scottish highlands. oh, yeah — i can see two, four, five of them. that's it. they are such peaceful—looking creatures. wow. it's magnificent. tom kirsop shares his passion of the west highlands with travellers. part of his job is working to conserve the environment forfuture generations. so, tom, tell me about what you do then? so i am a deer stalker on the argyll estates in inveraray and i look after the deer numbers and i keep them in a balance — as you have to, because they don't have any predators. and what were the predators before? would've been wolves and bears, lynx — but of course, we've interfered with that, taken them out of the equation, so it's just us now. and what do you say to people who would think, "0h, "deer stalking is cruel, it's inhumane?" if you were to leave them and let them go out of control, all you look aboutjust now, the place is beautiful and green and lush and plenty grass — that isn't the case throughout the year. if you have an unhealthy, unbalanced number of deer, there isn't enough food for them, so they then start starving, they then get disease, which is not good for the herd, it's not good for the animals, so we have to play our part and keep the numbers are down — it's as simple as that. it's time to cook with rosie. i'll fire the venison, and then i'm going to cook the mushrooms and the blanched cavolo nero and some of these runner beans with some garlic and parsley and butter. you don't wash your mushrooms ever? i do not wash them. i do brush them, i'll get you a wee brush. i'm really intrigued by your interest to focus on wild ingredients. so, it's just really important that i know that it is good and ethical and good for the environment. we've just had a spontaneous splash of sherry added to the dish. that smells divine. 0ur venison with fresh forest vegetables. mmm, my god. very rich flavours but not overpowering. the taste of scotland, genuinely. proud of yourself? very! laughs. welcome back to sardinia. now, this island has been designated a blue zone which means the people living around here have longer and healthier lives than almost anyone else on the planet. it's one ofjust five blue zones dotted around the world and if you live here in sardinia, you are ten times more likely to live beyond 100 years than if you lived in the united states. and here, in this quiet unassuming town of teulada, they have a higher number of centenarians than anywhere else in sardinia and i'm hoping to find out what's the secret. buon giorno! come in, buon giorno. salvatore, i'm christa. good to meet you. buon giorno. so you're 94 — i mean, in these parts you are practically a spring chicken, no? so, what is your secret? would you show me how to prepare your soup? 0h, certainly! so, small? 0k, and these are good, locally grown vegetables. if you come frequently in sardinia, you will be a sardinian girl. ah! that would be a great thing — and then i might live to 105. you're welcome! does it have longer to cook? 0k, can we come back and taste your soup? fantastic! laughs. i will most happily happily set the table for you! with the soup on the stove, salvatore and i head to the hills to find out more about the way of life here. wow, look at this! buon giorno. buon giorno, signora. oh, for me? thank you! thank you. we've been speaking with people about the secret to a long and healthy life and they seem to think it's a simple kind of lifestyle which you have here. do you think that is the secret to long life? 0h, may i? prendi, prendilo cosi. 0h, hello! we need to find your mummy to get you some milk, kiddo. so, good health and maybe a little vino as well. i can drink to that. there we go! go on, there you go! yes! found mum! all this and you live a long life. salvatore has spent the last couple of years creating a historical record, showing why this area should be properly recognised. now that you've spoken with all of these older people, you have all of their secrets, you should be expecting a good, long life, right? the secret is very simple. and, having found the secret for long life here, it was time to try it for myself. thank you! that's a serious piece of bread. mmm! how do i say, very good. la zuppa e�* ottima. salute. well, it turns out the secret to a long and healthy life — chickpeas. who knew! that's all we've got time for on this week's programme but coming up next week... 0h! i've just checked in and i havejust seen the chokes up melbourne sign. it's a big one for me because, after almost two years of travel restrictions, i'm finally able to head back home to see family and friends in australia. i hope you can join us for that and in the meantime, don't forget, you can check us out on social media. but for now, from me and the rest of the very well—fed travel show team here in sardinia, it's goodbye. hello. it looks like we have probably seen the worst of storm barra for now, the worst of the winds along coastal areas, the top gusts in west coast of wales, 86mph. around inland areas it was typically a0 or 50mph. as well as those strong winds, we had a spell of snow, briefly, over the pennines and into the southern uplands before the snowy weather moved into the highlands and grampian region. that now moved away. all the cloud that has been swirling around the centre of the storm that's crossing northern ireland and heading towards the north of england and southern parts of scotland. it's just going to sit around during wednesday. the storm continuing to weaken, the winds lessening all the while with stronger winds means it will be a milder start to wednesday. typical temperatures, 3, 4 or 5. still windy for many on wednesday, just not as windy. the strongest winds likely to be across the west and south of wales, south—west england, around 60mph on the coast for a time, showers and longer spells of rain, the wettest weather with strongest winds will be in wales. maybe cold enough for some snow over the higher parts of scotland, maybe the tops of the pennines, typical temperatures are 6 or 7. by thursday, the storm is no more, continuing to weaken, pressure rising and the wind is dropping, instead we find a weather front nosing from the atlantic. we are left with one or two showers around on thursday, lighter winds by this stage and we find some sunshine but there will be a weather front bringing cloud and rain into northern ireland, parts of wales in the south—west of england. ahead of that, temperatures showing little signs of change. the wetter weather will continue eastwards overnight, there could be more snow over higher parts of scotland, it looks like it will move fairly quickly, out of the way by friday. instead we have a north—westerly wind, probably a stronger wind as well but essentially it is a day of sunshine and showers. many southern and eastern areas are dry with the best of the sunshine, most of the showers in the north and west of the uk, could be wintry over the hills. again, temperatures not changing very much, typically 6 or7. welcome to bbc news. our top stories... a virtual summit amidst the build up of russian troops on the ukrainian border. president biden outlines �*deep concerns' — vladimir putin demands a halt to the expansion of nato. leaked footage sparks a row over what appears to be british officials joking about a covid christmas party last year — breaching lockdown rules — at number 10 downing street. with billions of passenger flights a year, at a huge cost to the environment, we ask if the aviation industry can ever achieve net zero carbon emissions. and celebrations as same—sex marriage becomes legal in chile.