since the start of the pandemic, leaving some children anxious for their future. i don't know what's going to happen when she doesn't get enough bills paid and i don't want to be living out on the streets. and a bbc investigation into how breeders are illegally cutting dogs�* ears, driven by demand on social media. and coming up on the bbc news channel, sport or show? the fallout continues in formula i with mercedes considering an appeal after losing to max verstappen and red bull. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. there have been long queues outside vaccination centres today after the booster programme was extended to all over 18s in england, scotland and wales by the end of this month. in northern ireland, boosters are currently only being offered to people over 30. huge demand meant the nhs england website crashed as people tried to book booster appointments and the website ran out of lateral flow tests. it's been confirmed that at least one person has now died in the uk with the new omicron variant of coronavirus and it's thought at least ten people are in hospital with it. it's spreading fast — within the next 48 hours, its expected to be the dominant variant in london. here's our health editor, hugh pym. they were queueing for boosters in plymouth this morning and there were lines of people hoping to getjabs in solihull. in hungerford, some had come a distance to have their booster today. we come a distance to have their booster today.— come a distance to have their booster today. come a distance to have their booster toda . ~ ., _, ., booster today. we have come from near portsmouth, _ booster today. we have come from near portsmouth, about _ booster today. we have come from near portsmouth, about an - booster today. we have come from near portsmouth, about an hour i booster today. we have come from | near portsmouth, about an hour and booster today. we have come from i near portsmouth, about an hour and a quarter. pare near portsmouth, about an hour and a auarter. �* , ., near portsmouth, about an hour and a auarter. �* ,, .,, ., ., quarter. are you hoping to get a booster walk _ quarter. are you hoping to get a booster walk in? _ quarter. are you hoping to get a booster walk in? we _ quarter. are you hoping to get a booster walk in? we were - quarter. are you hoping to get a | booster walk in? we were hoping quarter. are you hoping to get a - booster walk in? we were hoping to but we have — booster walk in? we were hoping to but we have heard _ booster walk in? we were hoping to but we have heard there _ booster walk in? we were hoping to but we have heard there is - booster walk in? we were hoping to but we have heard there is a - booster walk in? we were hoping to but we have heard there is a three l but we have heard there is a three orfour but we have heard there is a three or four hour wait. but we have heard there is a three orfour hour wait. i but we have heard there is a three or four hour wait.— or four hour wait. i am part of the vulnerable _ or four hour wait. i am part of the vulnerable group _ or four hour wait. i am part of the vulnerable group and _ or four hour wait. i am part of the vulnerable group and i _ or four hour wait. i am part of the vulnerable group and i don't - or four hour wait. i am part of the vulnerable group and i don't want i or four hour wait. i am part of the i vulnerable group and i don't want to ruin my— vulnerable group and i don't want to ruin my christmas, that's the main reason _ ruin my christmas, that's the main reason. , ., ., ~ reason. maybe we will not make it today then- _ reason. maybe we will not make it today then- we — reason. maybe we will not make it today then. we will _ reason. maybe we will not make it today then. we willjust _ reason. maybe we will not make it today then. we willjust keep - today then. we willjust keep trying — today then. we willjust keep trying te _ today then. we will 'ust keep t inc. ., today then. we will 'ust keep t in. _ ., ., , today then. we will 'ust keep t inc. ., ., , , ., trying. to the opening up of the booster programme _ trying. to the opening up of the booster programme and - trying. to the opening up of the i booster programme and warnings trying. to the opening up of the - booster programme and warnings about the rapid spread of omicron meant high demand in many areas. people in this queue for walk were told earlier it could be a four hour wait. that has now come down a bit but the message from nhs england is if you want to make sure of your booster book it online. the ability to do walkins depends on capacity at each local site. the prime minister warned again about the potential threat created by the new variant. sadly, yes, omicron is producing hospitalisations and sadly at least one patient has now been confirmed to have died with omicron. so i think the idea that this is somehow a milder version of the virus, i think that is something we need to set on one side. the think that is something we need to set on one side.— set on one side. the head of nhs encland, set on one side. the head of nhs england. with _ set on one side. the head of nhs england, with the _ set on one side. the head of nhs england, with the prime - set on one side. the head of nhs england, with the prime minister| england, with the prime minister today, now has to oversee a major acceleration of the programme. this is a hue acceleration of the programme. this is a huge challenge for the nhs and for the _ is a huge challenge for the nhs and for the country. the prime minister has told _ for the country. the prime minister has told us — for the country. the prime minister has told us and public health experts _ has told us and public health experts have told us that the rate at which — experts have told us that the rate at which the omicron variant is spreading _ at which the omicron variant is spreading presents a serious threat and i_ spreading presents a serious threat and i have — spreading presents a serious threat and i have no doubt that the nhs and their amazing staff will step up. with more than 100,000 people booking overnight for boosterjabs in england, the website crashed at times. so is the new target offering every adult a booster by the end of the month achievable? gps in england have been told they can set aside some routine work to focus on more vaccinations. at this practice where there is limited space for people to sit after theirjabs there is limited space for people to sit after their jabs they say there must be a clear message. we sit after theirjabs they say there must be a clear message.- sit after theirjabs they say there must be a clear message. we do need the government _ must be a clear message. we do need the government to _ must be a clear message. we do need the government to get _ must be a clear message. we do need the government to get onside - the government to get onside and make it very clear to the public that there are consequences. for example, there will be less gp appointments available and people will have to wait longer. people will have to wait longer. people will also have to wait longer for hospital appointments and may even have routine operations pushed back. pharmacists are concerned. they say to step up the vaccination effort they must be allowed to drop routine form filling unless... irate they must be allowed to drop routine form filling unless. . ._ form filling unless... we also have the business _ form filling unless... we also have the business as _ form filling unless... we also have the business as usual _ form filling unless... we also have the business as usual we - form filling unless... we also have the business as usual we need - form filling unless... we also have the business as usual we need to l the business as usual we need to look aften — the business as usual we need to look after. we need to look after patient _ look after. we need to look after patient boro on an ongoing basis. this red _ patient boro on an ongoing basis. this red tape and unnecessary things are ongoing — this red tape and unnecessary things are ongoing it will be very hard. we need _ are ongoing it will be very hard. we need to— are ongoing it will be very hard. we need to release our staff and workforce to be able to look after that and — workforce to be able to look after that and reach deadlines. as workforce to be able to look after that and reach deadlines.- workforce to be able to look after that and reach deadlines. as well as rueues that and reach deadlines. as well as aueues for that and reach deadlines. as well as queues for boosters _ that and reach deadlines. as well as queues for boosters there _ that and reach deadlines. as well as queues for boosters there was - that and reach deadlines. as well as queues for boosters there was very | queues for boosters there was very high demand for lateral flow tests with ordering online temporarily suspended although officials said there were no shortages. the scale of the booster challenges acknowledged in all the uk's nations. in some areas military assistance has been drafted in. senior health sources say the end of your target is highly ambitious and delivery may yet take longer. hugh pym, bbc news. the rules about who can get a booster vaccine — and how — vary across the four uk nations. in a minute we'll hear from our correspondents in wales, scotland and northern ireland — but first here is sophie hutchinson in england boosterjabs are available for everyone aged 18 and over, as long as you had your second dose at least three months ago, and there are some walk—in appointments, but you have to be prepared to queue. 0therwise, anyone aged 30 and over can book their boosterjab online, from two months after their second dose, although the online system did go down earlier today when more than 100,000 people tried to book their jabs. but, from wednesday, that online system will also be opened up to anyone aged 18 and over. the aim is to give every adult in england the chance to book a booster by the end of the year, and that is a big challenge. to get yours go to the nhs england website and look for "book a coronavirus vaccination." in wales, you have to wait for an invitation for your booster. don't call them, they'll call you. so far, everyone aged 65 and over should have received an offer of an appointment. people in their early 40s are now getting dates. today the welsh government said it will try to fast forward the deadline, offering every adult a third dose by the end of december. that'll mean extending hours, stretching staff, and offering more walk—in centres. there is no online booking system, but there is more information at the website... what about more restrictions? well, ministers from the welsh government will meet again at the end of this week, but they have already suggested more measures are likely. from today, everyone over 30 will be able to book a booster online. that will be extended to people aged 18—29 later in the week. there are drop—in centres in four health board areas, fife, tayside, forth valley, and ayrshire and arran. nicola sturgeon has said she wants to be able to offer a booster to everyone who is eligible by the end of the month. her health secretary has warned that new restrictions to curb the spread of 0micron are, as he put it, "inevitable". the details of that are expected tomorrow. in northern ireland, anyone who is 30 or older can have a booster at a walk—in vaccination centre, like this one at the ulster hospital near belfast. you can book in advance if you are over a0 or have a health condition which means you are particularly vulnerable to covid. pre—booked appointments are also available at gp surgeries and many local pharmacies. the devolved government says it is recruiting hundreds of new vaccinators, and it is aiming to offer as many boosterjabs as possible before the end of the year. for more information, you can go online at... and if you want more information about boosters and how to get them where you live, you can go to the bbc news website. the latest coronavirus figures for the uk show there were 54,661 new infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. on average, there were nearly 52,000 new cases reported per day in the past seven days. the latest figures show there were 7,372 people in hospital being treated for coronavirus. 38 deaths were recorded — that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test. on average in the past week, 119 covid—related deaths were recorded every day. over the past week, on average, 425,869 people have had a booster vaccination every day. and more than 23.5 million people in total have now had a boosterjab. the health secretary has told mps that while people are "weary" everyone needs to "step up" to make the booster programme work. but dozens of tory mps are preparing to vote against another part of the government's plans to control the omicron variant tomorrow, introducing covid passports for access to some venues and large gatherings. the expected rebellion is likely to be borisjohnson's biggest defeat yet. 0ur political editor, laura kuenssberg, has more. a new national mission, according to westminster, a new national queue. notjust two hours to wait, but at this vaccination centre within a stone's throw of the commons, sometimes it was as long as seven hours. once you get to the door, you still need to sit in there, because there is a queue, a 45 minute wait. 45 minutes, even once you are in the door. but the government's aim now, above all, is to get boosters in our arms, fast. the hope, avoiding closing the nation's doors once again. the renewed threat of 0micron means that we have got more work to do to stay ahead of this virus. we can, if we all play our part, and boosters are the key. we have achieved so many phenomenal things over the last two years, and i know we are weary... but it is on all of us to pick up, to step up, and to do some phenomenal work once again to play our part and get boosted now. despite the chaos of the last few weeks, labour does want you to listen. i say to people feeling let down or lied to, that i do trust the chief medical officer. i do trust the chief scientific advisor and i do trust the nhs. the prime minister might not lead by example, but the rest of us can, and we, the labour party, trust you, the british people to do the right thing. boosters have rapidly become borisjohnson's priority yet after a very shaky few weeks in number ten, sitting at the table doesn't necessarily mean you are in charge. and borisjohnson's own party knows it. there's precious little objection to the booster programme, but many tory mps are so frustrated at how number ten has been handling things of late that they will show that tomorrow, by voting against the plan for covid passports where, in england, you will have to show your vaccine record or a negative test to get into some venues. the political mood has turned so dark that dozens of tory mps now feel free to bash number ten. more than 70 tories are expected to vote against the passport plan, and are only too happy to talk about it. we have this instinctive discomfort about this step that we seem to be taking, that is causing a lot of those, giving us a lot of reason to just pause and reflect on this. it will be very difficult to vote for it. it's a question of how effective they actually are, and evidence from other countries suggests they are not very effective, but also i have a problem with the government requiring people to do that. we are not a "papers please" society. - this is not nazi germany. 0k? _ it is the thin end of- an authoritarian wedge, and that's why we will resist it. that dramatic criticism won't lead to defeat. labour backs the plan, so it will pass the commons tomorrow, but no government, no prime minister wants to lose the argument with its own side. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. people in england havejoined the rest of the uk in working from home where possible today as part of the restrictions to tackle the rising number of covid infections. network rail has reported a 20% drop in footfall at stations in london, birmingham and manchester as commuters stayed home. but many businesses fear it will mean quieter town and city centres in the run up to christmas. our business editor simonjack has more. make sure that the video call is unmuted, working from home, here we go again. the work from home message was heard loud and clear at this housing association in norwich, but half of its 1400 strong workforce don't have that option. but half of its 1400 strong 50% of our staff have to work from their vans, and in our tenants' homes. for the 50% who can work in the office, we have really clear instructions that if you can work from home, do work from home and, if you absolutely need to be in the office, then we have a desk booking system which means we can monitor how many are coming in and at the moment, that is less than 5%, from today. so, we were here injuly when you arejust getting everyone back in. yeah. this marketing agency boss told me six months ago, how happy she was to have staff back in person, so today felt like a setback. we have just started to really find our feet as a business together as a business together again, and now all of a sudden we are back to working in our living rooms and trying to maintain a culture that we have onlyjust been able to recreate after the last lockdown. home working is not for everyone, but sophie said she felt better prepared this time. we didn't get much notice, but what i remember we have learnt from the last time is that a routine is super important. fresh air is really important and taking a bit of a time from your work day to kind of get outside, otherwise your house can feel consumed by work. and of course fewer workers like sophie means fewer customers for city centre businesses. it's not exactly the same time this time around. for one thing, employers have done it before, they know what's involved in working from home and, secondly, although hospitality venues like pubs open, they are still seeing a big hit to business, and, crucially, they are not seeing the same level of financial support. cancelled party bookings and thinner passing trade means slimmer pickings at what should be a bumper time. people are spooked because of the working from home thing, and we haven't got the safety net that we had before, from the government, the furlough scheme is gone, the vat relief is going, and there are not as many schemes to offer their support, so we are really quite nervous. compared to last week, road and rail traffic in england was down between 15—40%. economically, this is not a lockdown, but it's not welcome and, according to business groups, should not last any longer than necessary. simonjack, bbc news, norwich. 0ur medical editor, fergus walsh, joins me now. let's clear up one thing first of all. the prime minister said last night that everyone eligible aged 18 and over in england will have the chance to have their booster before the new year. but he also talked about everyone being offered a jab before new year. which is it? my my understanding is that it is on offer, the chance to book your booster before the end of the year but it is inevitable that some appointments will be injanuary, but the ambition will be to do the vast majority of those in the coming days. that's important because having your booster cuts your risk of getting infected with 0micron by 70% whereas two doses really doesn't protect you, likely, protect you from getting infected with 0micron, but either two or three doses of vaccine should give very significant protection against severe disease. it is uncertain what the 0micron wave is going to do. it is going to lead to a huge number of cases but encouraging news from south africa where they had a massive spike in cases but are much smaller proportion of 0micron cases going into hospital, compared to delta. so, although we will see a huge number of cases here, that may put a lot of pressure on the nhs in part simply because people are testing positive, we will have a lot of nhs key workers off not because they are sick but because they have tested positive, and that in itself could have a big impact. the time is 15 minutes past six. our top story this evening... the drive to increase the booster programme — thousands queue as 0micron is now estimated to make up 20% of new infections in england. and still to come — productions boom. we take a look at the record amount being spent on making tv shows here in the uk. coming up on sportsday on the bbc news channel, champions league draw chaos, as uefa are forced to put the balls back into the pot for a second time, after a technical problem declared the first set of ties void. alongside the surge in demand for designer dogs during lockdown, a bbc investigation has found networks of breeders offering to arrange to cut dogs' ears to create a look popular on social media. cropping a dog's ears is illegal in the uk — but bbc wales investigates has found fraudulent pet passports being offered to help hide the origin of illegally mutilated dogs. wyre davies reports. good boy, griff. you've been such a good boy. lockdown has been boom time for the dogs business. so these are what are known as micro bullies. the whole purpose of the breed is to try and make them as small and stocky as possible. these dogs were seized from a cardiff—based breeder. christopher may liked to show off and advertise his dogs online. he was recentlyjailed for breeding without a licence. he was also convicted of another crime, cutting off their ears. sadly, there is a demand for dogs with their ears mutilated. this is what he should look like, look. it's purely an aesthetic, to achieve a certain look that some people think is attractive. it's illegal to cut a dog's ears like this in the uk. but at the moment you can import one with its ears already cropped. there are laws in place to protect animals, but we've found plenty of backyard breeders who are staying one step ahead of the authorities to make some serious cash. social media is awash with breeders. many run legitimate businesses, but others seem very keen on dogs with cropped ears. we've got a guy, he's nothing to do with us, but we do use him. all of my dogs have been done by him. we went undercover and spoke to one breeder. he offered us one very young puppy for £13,000. say hello. and describes what can be done to her ears. and obviously then... if it ever comes back to us, we are going to say that it was present when you collected it. after that, nothing to do with us. the breeder denied doing anything illegal. we showed our evidence to an expert. i would say his practices are abhorrent. he's ultimately advocating an illegal, painful, unnecessary mutilation. it is all for cosmetic reasons. there is no health benefits to these dogs at all. the uk government says the planned changes to the law would restrict the importation of dogs with cropped ears and puppies under six months old. but as part of our investigation, we got hold of a blank foreign pet passport. this is what allows some breeders to claim they've imported a dog with cropped ears to hide illegal activity here. an activity that can generate huge profits but in which designer dogs are often made to suffer. wyre davies, bbc news. you can watch the full investigation — the hidden world of designer dog breeding — at 7:35pm tonight on bbc one wales, and on iplayer. anne sacoolas, the american woman accused of causing the death of harry dunn by dangerous driving, will now face a court hearing here in the uk. harry dunn was killed in august 2019 when his motorbike was hit by a car driven by anne sacoolas near raf croughton, northamptonshire. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford is here. there has been a dog it campaign by the parents of harry dunn. anne sacoolas left the country 19 days after her car collided with harry dunn's motorbike and him dying there as a result of that collision. the us claimed _ as a result of that collision. the us claimed she _ as a result of that collision. tue: us claimed she had as a result of that collision. tte: us claimed she had diplomatic immunity, britain felt they could not do anything to stop leaving the country but in december 2019, she was charged with death by dangerous driving and since then there has been a big diplomatic engagement between britain and the us to find out some way of solving this. boris johnson said that presidentjoe biden himself was actively involved in that. there was a great sense in the british government of the injustice felt by the family of harry dunn, but it was never quite clear how this thing would be resolved. it looks as though anne sacoolas will attend a court hearing on the 18th of january at westminster magistrates' court in london, but she will do so by video link from the united states. what isn't clear from what the cps has said is whether she is facing the original charge of death by dangerous driving or some other kind of lesser charge, or the hearing will take some other form. it will be interesting to see how this resolves itself.— be interesting to see how this resolves itself. ., ,, , ., the fear of poverty gnaws away at dayjanta samuels. he says he worries about ending up living on the streets, and he isjust nine. his family is among many who are facing a cost of living storm this christmas amid soaring bills and falls in their pay according to a new report. the tuc says millions of workers are set to have the worst christmas wage squeeze in nearly ten years. inflation hit its highest rate in a decade last month, and is expected to increase further. 0ur social affairs correspondent michael buchanan reports from the west midlands. school over, dayjanta and his mother head home. but their flat isn't the sanctuary it should be. money worries dominate. this one, he worries, so i can't let him see everything else, because he's a deep thinker. christine works 35 hours a week as a carer, but her salary just covers the bills. i mean, he asks me, "mum, are you up with your bills now? "you can manage them?" and things like that, you know? do you worry? yes, a lot. because i don't know what's going to happen when she doesn't get enough bills paid and i don't want to be living out on the streets. his dream is to be a footballer, to earn lots of money. so you can help your mum? yeah. and i wish i was older, so i could pay the bills with her. he will sometimes ask me to pray for him. and, by the time i pray for him, that calms him down and he goes off to sleep. christine earns £1,200 a month but often needs a food bank to feed her family. the 47—year—old regularly skips meals herself. i've lost so much weight. people said, "oh, you lose the weight, christine." i can't even say much to them because i say to myself, "a pity you don't know what is happening right here." 50p an item now, it's all got to go. at the market in west bromwich, money is getting tighter, say traders. energy and petrol price rises making bargains a premium. this is not an area of high unemployment, but manyjobs are low—skilled. people here don't work less, theyjust don't earn as much. weekly wages in this area are about £80 lower than they are in the rest of britain. and this is most of my baking accessories, so cake boxes, turners to decorate, crowns. you bake cakes to sell? yes, i do it as a hobby. halima bibi is a part—time librarian and a full—time hustler. so you've got this one, it's normally around £100, i paid £20 for it. buying cheap, selling high. so the idea is eventually to sell it, see if i can make something from it. all of this is my wedding resources. creating value — profit — where she can. you work in the library, you've got three other side hustles. yes. and you shop in the promotional aisle. and a lot of people will only find that out about me now, because i've not shared that with them because — i've been embarrassed of it. the divorced mother of two says many people, including colleagues, can be unsympathetic. they don't understand disadvantaged people. they will, like, go, "you are too stingy," and i'll go, "no, i'm not stingy." i have everything for my children, but i do it on a budget. with the season of giving fast approaching, many families increasingly feel they have nothing left to give. michael buchanan, bbc news, west bromwich. if you've watched any big international tv dramas of the past few years, chances are the uk could well have played a role in bringing the story to the screen. the industry here is enjoying something of a golden age. a record £4 billion was spent making tv shows in the uk in the past year — almost double the figure before the pandemic. here's our media correspondent, david sillito. i do suppose if i were forced to take a wife, you would be the least objectionable option. is that meant to be a compliment? bridgerton. 0utlander. thank you for returning lady bolton safely. - game of thrones — all made in the uk. this is bad wolf in cardiff, just one of a number of new studios to have opened up in south wales. the tv industry is absolutely booming at the moment. there has been a fourfold increase in drama production in the uk over the last seven or eight years. which means that if you tot it all up, spending has gone from around £400 million in 2013 to 4 billion — a tenfold increase. tv drama now employs more people than the steel and coal industry. this is a story about across the whole of the uk. so, you've gotjobs being generated by productions which are now taking place in cardiff at bad wolf studios, where you have his dark materials. you've got productions taking place in scotland, where you've got investment in edinburgh, new studios there and 0utlander about to enter its sixth series. you've got investment taking place in new studios opening in liverpool, yorkshire and across the uk. driving this are the new streaming services, the government's tax break, and a reputation for success, which the boss here at bad wolf feels owes much to northern ireland and game of thrones. i think that the success of game of thrones and the success of what that show gave to belfast and the region was probably very influential. she's a fine woman, your sister. netflix, amazon, disney — a multibillion—dollar global tv battle, and the uk is reaping the benefits. david sillito, bbc news, cardiff. time for a look at the weather. here's tomasz schafernaker. it certainly looks like december outside, but it doesn't necessarily feel like it because it is really quite mild and the mild weather is here to stay for the next few days. race guys, pretty much the story right now, and not an awful lot will change tomorrow. there is a weather front crossing us, giving some rain in northern parts of england and wales and once it clears with all of that damp on the ground we will see mist and fog first thing in the morning and quite a temperature contrast between the south of the country and the rest of it, around freezing also in the scottish lowlands, double figures on the south coast of england. a couple of things happening tomorrow. 0n the one hand we have high pressure developing across the continent, which will establish itself across the uk soon and at the other hand, a weather front is brushing the uk, with outbreaks of rain sneaking into the lowlands of scotland, but for the lowlands of scotland, but for the most part, northern ireland, wales and england, it will be a mostly dry day with temperatures may be seven in liverpool, but generally speaking a little bit milder than the average only gives us at this time of year. tuesday night into wednesday, high pressure in the south again, weather fronts wednesday, high pressure in the south again, weatherfronts in wednesday, high pressure in the south again, weather fronts in the north and increasingly this weather front will become weaker, there will be less rain on them so just dribs and drabs in the north of the country on