in the first election since china tightened its control, people in hong kong are voting in a poll where every candidate has been vetted for their loyalty to beijing. hello and welcome to bbc news. the uk health secretary sajid javid has said that ministers are discussing the latest coronavirus data almost hourly with scientific advisers, and said the government will "do what is necessary" when asked about possible further measures. omicron continues to spread across the uk and is thought to now be the dominant variant in england and scotland, replacing delta. government advisers have been calling for further restrictions to be brought in to help restrict the spread. sajid javid said that it is time to be �*cautious' about social interactions and was asked on the andrew marr show if he could rule out further coronavirus restrictions in the coming days. it isa it is a very sobering analysis, we take it very seriously. there are gaps in the data and our scientists, they recognise that. for example, on severity, hospitalisations. but we will look at this data, we will take into account other factors and then decide whether further action is needed or not. i think the action we have already taken, the plan b measures including the communications around that, as you have just referred to... communications around that, as you have just referred to. . ._ have just referred to... sooner rather than _ have just referred to... sooner rather than later, _ have just referred to... sooner rather than later, they - have just referred to... sooner rather than later, they say. - have just referred to... sooner i rather than later, they say. they are and i understand _ rather than later, they say. they are and i understand that, - rather than later, they say. tie: are and i understand that, and rather than later, they say. tie11. are and i understand that, and if you wait until data is absolutely perfect, it may well be too late and i think that is a central point they are making. i think that is a central point they are making-— i think that is a central point they aremakinu. , . . . , are making. may be too late already. we do have — are making. may be too late already. we do have to _ are making. may be too late already. we do have to challenge _ are making. may be too late already. we do have to challenge data - are making. may be too late already. we do have to challenge data and - we do have to challenge data and underline some things and take into account a broader set of factors. to be absolutely clear, you're not ruling out a circuit breaker or new restrictions coming in before christmas?— restrictions coming in before christmas? ., ., ., ., , christmas? there are no guarantees in this pandemic, _ christmas? there are no guarantees in this pandemic, we _ christmas? there are no guarantees in this pandemic, we have _ christmas? there are no guarantees in this pandemic, we have to - christmas? there are no guarantees in this pandemic, we have to keep i in this pandemic, we have to keep everything in view. let's talk to labour's shadow health secretary, wes streeting. would you like to be —— would you like there'd be a circuit breaker? as to what specific measures are necessary, i think there is some debate and we are seeing the chief medical officer, the scientific advisers later today to test some of their assumptions and to inform our own thinking on what might be necessary. but there is no doubt that some action is necessary. sage have been clear about that, they were clear on thursday. since then were clear on thursday. since then we have seen nothing, heard nothing from the prime minister and this morning sajid javid gave an interview on the andrew marr programme that effectively made him look like a hostage to his own party. conceding on one hand that action is necessary but behaving as if he is somehow a bystander rather than the health secretary. the reason for that is because he has over 100 conservative mps who are holding him to ransom, saying they will not even vote for the most mild restrictions that we voted on in parliament this week and so the government is paralysed because of the conservative party's political problems and the prime minister's weakness and that is a worrying situation for the country to be in. so what you would do, you said he would have conversations with scientists later to inform your position. stuff has emerged about the scientists thinking pretty clearly and that is basically there are scientists within sage saying that based on current modelling, hospitalisations could peak between 3000 and 10,000 a day and deaths between 606,000 a day unless new restrictions are brought in immediately. the daily number of —— 600 and 6000 a day. that immediately. the daily number of -- 600 and 6000 a day.— 600 and 6000 a day. that certainly tells us that — 600 and 6000 a day. that certainly tells us that action _ 600 and 6000 a day. that certainly tells us that action is _ 600 and 6000 a day. that certainly tells us that action is necessary, - tells us that action is necessary, it gives us a worst—case scenario and the rangers within it that you have set out. we want to test what the likely scenario is. we need to see what is going on with the nhs workforce with the rate of infection there and the impact on staff absences because that would be a big factor. there is still a number of things we don't know in terms of the severity of the disease for people who contracted and the efficacy of the vaccine in mitigating against those harms and preventing transmission. there are whole number of variables we don't know, there are quite a lot we do know which i necessitates action. i think what we need to work out is what action, what steps could be taken now but still safeguards people's christmas and help people to have a safe christmas this year but what action is necessary to stop the nhs being overwhelmed, particularly into january and fabry. the lesson i have experienced is you need to act sooner rather than later because delaying means severe restrictions for longer. i don't want to see severe restrictions, i don't want to see us plunged into severe restrictions for a long time and so the question is, given we know all of this, why hasn't the government set out a plan? they have known this since thursday, they have access to more live data and information and more live data and information and more policy advice than the opposition parties do. we don't get advice as it were from civil servants or scientists. i don't understand why the health secretary has been on the tv this morning saying on one hand that action is needed but failing to set out the action on the other hand. it is not acceptable. i action on the other hand. it is not acceptable-— acceptable. i wonder what your comments _ acceptable. i wonder what your comments are _ acceptable. i wonder what your comments are on _ acceptable. i wonder what your comments are on the - acceptable. i wonder what your l comments are on the resignation acceptable. i wonder what your - comments are on the resignation of lord frost because in his decision to go, he has talked about also the approach to covid. and he has said that he hopes the economy can get back on track soon, the country can bet that it might get back on track and not given to the coercive measures we have seen elsewhere. i think it is a sign ofjust how much political pressure borisjohnson is under and borisjohnson�*s weakness as a leader means he is not taking the action the country needs and i think that is pretty reprehensible. where the prime minister should be leading at the moment, he is in hiding, hiding from his own party, from his backbenchers and failing to lead. that is an abdication of responsibility and our message to the government is you don't have to be held hostage by your own backbenchers, you can work with labour because we will act in the public interest... aha, labour because we will act in the public interest. . ._ public interest... a quick final fiuht, public interest... a quick final fight. you _ public interest... a quick final fight, you have _ public interest... a quick final fight, you have got _ public interest... a quick final fight, you have got these - fight, you have got these conversations later today, will you formulate a view by the end of the day? obviously we are heading for christmas, at what point do you want to put pressure on the government in terms of your perspective? $5 to put pressure on the government in terms of your perspective?— terms of your perspective? as they sa , we terms of your perspective? as they say. we haven't _ terms of your perspective? as they say, we haven't had _ terms of your perspective? as they say, we haven't had the _ terms of your perspective? as they say, we haven't had the briefing i say, we haven't had the briefing yet, we will listen to what they have to say, that will absolutely inform our view. our message to the government is don't shilly—shallying about, dithering and delaying, set out a plan. the wales first minister has set out a plan for wales which gives people clarity and certainty to plan ahead beyond christmas into the new year. that is the kind of plan we need for england and we don't have one. the best thing for the government to do is to formulate a plan with the best scientific advice and a machine of the civil service at the back to support them and then come to capital like labour and then come to capital like labour and we will absolutely act in the public interest and put party politics to one side and public health first.— governments around europe are imposing tight restrictions in reaction to the rapid spread of the omicron variant. the netherlands has announced a stringent christmas lockdown, in an attempt to prevent a new wave of cases. all non—essential shops, bars, restaurants and other public places are shut as of this morning under the new measures introduced. dutch prime minister, mark rutte, says it's "possibly the hardest moment of the pandemic." anna holligan reports from the hague. a final flourish of festive cheer before dutch cities shut down for christmas. department stores and toy shops weren't ready for this level of footfall, while hair and beauty salons squeezed clients in for a last—minute shave. translation: it was nice to go to the city for a little _ while before the lockdown. translation: it's too busy - everywhere, but i have to come to get presents before the christmas holidays. under the new measures outlined on saturday, all non—essential stores, bars, restaurants and other public places are to shut from sunday. essential shops such as supermarkets and pharmacies must close by 8pm. and as previously announced, schools are closed until at least january the 9th. the prime minister delivered the message in a sombre tone. translation: omicron is spreading even faster than feared _ and so we must intervene now to prevent much worse. this is what a christmas lockdown looks like on my local high street in the hague, most of the shutters have gone down and they won't be rolled up again until at least mid—january. this lockdown is being presented by the politicians as a response to the highly contagious omicron variant, but critics argue it needs to be seen in the wider context — the slow response to the delta variant and the slow roll—out of the booster vaccine programme, which has meant that hospitals here in the netherlands have no extra capacity to deal with an influx of omicron cases. the dutch are seeking to speed up that booster programme. the over 60s have just been invited to get theirs and it's hoped that within a month everyone in the netherlands who wants a booster shot will have the chance to get one. this is usually a highly organised society, the dutch don't like chaos. this last—minute lockdown coming just days before christmas underlines the urgency of the situation here. there is some good news — father christmas will still be allowed to deliver presents. his message to the nation — merry christmas, happy lockdown. germany has become the latest european country to ban most travellers from britain. from sunday, german nationals and residents arriving from the uk will need to quarantine for two weeks, regardless of their covid vaccination status. there were protests in several german cities on saturday against covid—19 measures. thousands of people marched in dusseldorf and frankfurt, where there were clashes between demonstrators and police. hundreds of demonstrators gathered in barcelona and bilbao in spain to protest against covid—19 passes that are now required to enter bars, restaurants, gyms and care homes. with a nationwide vaccination rate of nearly 80%, spain has been largely spared the latest wave sweeping across europe. elsewhere in europe hundreds gathered in the italian city of turin against the extension of a covid—19 state of emergency, which runs to the end of march next year, and the so—called green pass certificate. the uk's brexit minister, lord frost, has resigned, because of his concerns about the current direction of the government, including its approach to tax and to covid restrictions. it's another set—back for borisjohnson after by—election defeat in north shropshire and a conservative rebellion over plan b covid measues. the health secretary, sajid javid, was asked for his response to lord frost's resignation on the bbc�*s andrew marr show. i'm sorry to see him go. i think he's been an outstanding public servant, he has done great things for this country, not least in helping to get brexit done. but he is resigned out of principle, i think you can see that, i know all about retiring out of government on principle and he has made that decision and i think we have to respect that. he will be missed. he has his views. i think the direction of travel in government... he thinks it is the wrong direction. well, he is entitled to his views, of course he is, but my own view in terms of the direction of travel, dealing with this pandemic of course, which was something that no one expected at the time we won the last election, but also getting on with the priorities of the british people, whether that is investment in the nhs, the levelling up agenda. let's talk to our political correspondent charlotte rose. quite a bombshell about lord frost this morning. quite a bombshell about lord frost this morning-— quite a bombshell about lord frost this morning. absolutely, you could hear in the answer _ this morning. absolutely, you could hear in the answer from _ this morning. absolutely, you could hear in the answer from sajid - this morning. absolutely, you could hear in the answer from sajid javid, | hear in the answer from sajid javid, hear in the answer from sajid javid, he said he was sad to see him go and he said he was sad to see him go and he is a man of principle and i think thatis he is a man of principle and i think that is one of the issues. lord frost had made it clear his views about brexit, he saw it as an opportunity for the uk to become a country that had less regulation, low taxes and a free—market economy and in his opinion, that was not the direction that the government was following, perhaps taking a slightly softer stance when it came to the dealings with brussels and that was something he was very unhappy with. the reaction to that has been quite clear from some of borisjohnson�*s backbenchers was that there were messages from a whatsapp group of 100 conservative mps that were published by sky news last night, one of them called a very worrying, and another said it was a disaster and another said it was a disaster and another said it was a disaster and a third said that lord frost was and a third said that lord frost was a hero. in response, the culture secretary nadine dorries, also part of that group, told the rest of the group they should show more loyalty to borisjohnson, she tried to remind then he delivered brexit and an 83 seat majority for the party. after she made those comments, she was removed from the whatsapp group with serial brexiteer steve baker saying enough is enough. so clearly those views from the rank and file of the conservative party being felt very clearly last night. what of the conservative party being felt very clearly last night.— very clearly last night. what about the practical _ very clearly last night. what about the practical stuff, _ very clearly last night. what about the practical stuff, everyone - the practical stuff, everyone wanting to know what will happen with christmas and any more covid restrictions. i with christmas and any more covid restrictions-— restrictions. i think it was interesting, _ restrictions. i think it was interesting, some - restrictions. i think it was interesting, some of- restrictions. i think it was interesting, some of the l restrictions. i think it was - interesting, some of the comments restrictions. i think it was _ interesting, some of the comments by sajid javid just now when he was askedif sajid javid just now when he was asked if he could categorically rule out any further restrictions before christmas. he said there are no guarantees with anything in this pandemic, we have to keep everything under review. of course that will sound worrying to people, but it has been the case throughout the pandemic politicians, borisjohnson pandemic politicians, boris johnson in pandemic politicians, borisjohnson in particular has always insisted this christmas will be significantly better than the last one but that was before the omicron variant was discovered. we know that ministers have been lacking and speaking to their scientific advisers from the sage advisory group and minutes from their meeting on thursday said stricter measures could be needed including reducing group sizes, increasing physical distance in, reducing the duration of compacts and closing high risk premises. clearly the government is not saying it has any intention to pursue those measures. if our christmas and we don't yet know about after christmas but we know that is the advice they are getting and they are also receiving warnings if we stick with the current measures, the plan b, wearing masks, working from home, using covid passes that the scientists warned them they could be a peak of hospitalisations of 3000 a day in january. a peak of hospitalisations of 3000 a day in january-— a peak of hospitalisations of 3000 a day in january. people in hong kong are voting in the first election since china imposed sweeping changes on the territory's political system. every candidate has been approved by a pro—beijing committee and most opposition groups are not taking part. early figures suggest a low turnout. our correspondent danny vincent is in hong kong and has the details. this is the first election for the legislative council since beijing imposed a sweeping reform of the electoral system. now, this year, according to the reform, it means that only people that i deemed patriotic to the country are able to stand. furthermore, since this city has seen a lot of turmoil since 2019, there was an introduction of a national security law around a year ago. that means that many of the would—be candidates, many of the pro—democracy camp, are either, many people have been arrested or essentially fled the city. so this election is quite different from past elections here in hong kong. many of the pro—democracy candidates that many of these supporters would look to vote for simply are not able to stand this year. the most powerful storm to hit the philippines this year is now known to have killed 98 people. it first struck the philippines on thursday, before tearing across other parts of the country. the typhoon is now heading towards vietnam, but is not expected to make landfall there. howard johnson reports from manila. philippine president rodrigo duterte has conducted an aerial inspection of the areas ravaged by the storm. images posted on social media by the president's aides show extensive damage to the dinagat islands, siargao and surigao city. typhoon rai, the strongest storm to hit the philippines this year, destroyed homes, uprooted trees and toppled power lines, leaving more than three million filipinos without electricity. on the popular tourist island bohol, the government has declared a state of calamity, which improves access to national emergency funding. with internet communication slowly being restored, more images of the devastation of the island leyte have also emerged. numerous online disaster donation drives have been set up to support communities most in need. but despite the awful circumstances in cebu, these newlyweds made the best of a bad situation by using the devastated city as a backdrop for their photos. super typhoon rai has now left the philippines and is moving over the south china sea towards vietnam, although the eye of the storm is not expected to make landfall there. howard johnson, bbc news, manila. police in australia say a sixth child has died as a result of a bouncy castle accident on thursday. the 11—year—old boy was being treated in hospital following the disaster in tasmania. the children fell several metres after the bouncy castle was blown into the air by a gust of wind. chileans go to the polls today to vote for a new president. there are two candidates with very different political views on chile. in a country that has traditionally been viewed as the region's most stable economy, yet has seen widespread protests in the past two years, who will chileans pick? katy watson sent this report from santiago. just a few days ahead of the vote, there was a political earthquake, the death of general pinochet�*s widow lucia hiriart was for many a celebration. 30 years after the return of democracy, this was a moment many people had been waiting for. herman's brother was one of the disappeared. translation: today, the wife | of a dictator, a tyrant, has died. there's no doubt she had a big influence in his life. so those of us who suffered are celebrating the end of a dynasty. chile has become used to protests these past couple of years. an economically stable, yet deeply unequal country, it's been shaken up by demands for change. and this is the candidate trying to forge a new path for chile. a former protest leader turned politician determined to turn the page on the country's past. there's no way that we can make our country stable if we try to impose one vision over another. politics cannot be just for professionals like just for, you know, these old guys with a tie and talking in difficult language in offices. but not everyone is convinced of boric�*s politics. andres shows me his cafe that was ransacked by protesters. overnight, 70% of his business was destroyed. "i came down here and cried. "ten years of work destroyed in a matter of hours," he tells me, and it took him months to return, so traumatised and fearful of what had happened. it's this fear that far—right candidatejose antonio kast has capitalised on and helped him to win the first round. a man who's spoken fondly of the country's military past, he's been compared to brazil's bolsonaro and to donald trump. in the crowds, there were plenty of symbols of the american far right, including a trump hat. translation: he was the best president in history. _ he represents me, kast has the same right—wing politics. the past few years of protest seem poised to change a new direction for chile. for the people here, order and stability is more important. and if that means voting in a man who has praised the dictatorship, then so be it. chile's history is dark and still haunts people. these elections have brought fear to the fore, making them remember the past when having to decide the country's future. katie watson, bbc news, in santiago. the acclaimed british architect, richard rogers, has died at his home in london. he was 88. he gained international attention in the 1970s for his part in designing the modernist pompidou centre in paris. david sillito looks back on his life. it's hard to exaggerate what a shock this building was. the pompidou centre's facade with its confusion of pipes, ducts and external corridors was revolutionary — the work of renzo piano and a young british architect called richard rogers. the building itself is inside out. in other words, what you usually see inside, which are those long, dank, dark corridors which you have in big institutional buildings — and it is an institution, theoretically, though i dislike the word, it's an institution — there's long, dark corridors on the outside. they're actually the fun. the inside out design made the interior airy and open and equally important was the public space outside. this was �*60s egalitarianism inspired by the piazzas of his home town, florence in italy. his parents had arrived in britain in the �*30s. the young richard rogers struggled at school, he was dyslexic, but he got into art college and then trained as an architect where he met another future superstar of british architecture, norman foster. their high—tech style, though, took a while to win favour. his inside—out lloyd's building in london was not to everyone's taste. it's what his royal highness, the prince of wales, described as a carbuncle on the face of whatever you like to call it. but his moment had come. madrid airport with its huge bamboo roof won the stirling prize. the millennium dome was signature rogers, again, innovative technology to create a huge, flexible space. but not all his plans were popular. proposed transformation of london's southbank was fought off by residents, but it didn't stop politicians seeking his advice on reshaping cities. it was a very major part of my outfit which is about trying to create a world which is influenced for the better, through public space, through private space and so on. the welsh zenith, terminal five at heathrow. he was bold, colourful and has more than left his mark. the richard rogers vision was of a city that was open, sociable, welcoming. if you don't want to know who won the strictly come dancing final, mute your tv and look away now. that has been long enough! there are the winners. the eastenders star rose ayling—ellis has become the first deaf contestant to take home the glitterball trophy. rose and her partner giovanni pernice beat tv chef john whaite and johannes radebe in the final. tv presenter aj odudu was forced to drop out due to an injury. joining me now is robin windsor, a former strictly professional dancer. he danced with lisa riley and deborah meaden. welcome, thank you forjoining us. what is your reaction to the winners? i what is your reaction to the winners?— what is your reaction to the winners? ~ , ., ., , ., winners? i think you would be hard ressed to winners? i think you would be hard pressed to find _ winners? i think you would be hard pressed to find anyone _ winners? i think you would be hard pressed to find anyone that - winners? i think you would be hard pressed to find anyone that would l pressed to find anyone that would say this was notjust pressed to find anyone that would say this was not just the pressed to find anyone that would say this was notjust the best pressed to find anyone that would say this was not just the best final but the best series that strictly has ever put on. i think we finally got to a point where i didn't mind who won last night because representation won. we had a same—sex male couple for the first time in the first ever deaf contestant and i think having that representation was everything. fiend representation was everything. and so that was key for you in terms of making it the best final, the best series. what about the standard of dancing? the series. what about the standard of dancin: ? ., . series. what about the standard of dancin. ? . . ., ., dancing? the dancing again, it tram ed dancing? the dancing again, it tramped every _ dancing? the dancing again, it tramped every year _ dancing? the dancing again, it tramped every year so - dancing? the dancing again, it| tramped every year so far, that dancing? the dancing again, it i tramped every year so far, that is coming from me who has been on the show. it was the best series and standard of dancing we have ever had. rose a very worthy winner and i think it has been amazing for giovanni as well to show a side of him and to win that glitter ball he has been after for about seven ears. ~ ., ., ,, ~ has been after for about seven ears. . . ., y., 4' , years. what do you think will be the im act of years. what do you think will be the impact of having _ years. what do you think will be the impact of having the _ years. what do you think will be the impact of having the same-sex - years. what do you think will be the i impact of having the same-sex couple impact of having the same—sex couple and also the level of understanding that will roll out from rose being the first deaf winner?— the first deaf winner? rose for example. _ the first deaf winner? rose for example. not _ the first deaf winner? rose for example, notjust _ the first deaf winner? rose for example, not just for - the first deaf winner? rose for example, not just for deaf - the first deaf winner? rose for- example, not just for deaf children around example, notjust for deaf children around the country in the world but for deaf people everywhere, it shows you can do anything you want to even if you have some kind of difficulty in life and have something different that you can prove you can do whatever. for me personally, if i was a young boy or a wish when i were young by that i could see two men dance together like that, it would have made my life a lot easier. i know whatjohn and johannes have done will have made so many people around the world know it is ok. and there was lots of apprehension about two men dancing together on the show but as soon as they started and you see week on week on prime—time tv, it becomes a marble and all of those haters at the beginning have all become lovers. i the beginning have all become lovers. ., . lovers. i thought i detected some emotion in _ lovers. i thought i detected some emotion in your _ lovers. i thought i detected some emotion in your voice _ lovers. i thought i detected some emotion in your voice when - lovers. i thought i detected some emotion in your voice when you i lovers. i thought i detected some i emotion in your voice when you are saying that. talking about that, it is a long time since you were a little boy, where something like that would have made a difference, and i don't mean in terms of your age, it is 2021 and this is a first, but now it has happened, it normalises it.— but now it has happened, it normalises it. . , , ., ., normalises it. there has been a lot of resistance. _ normalises it. there has been a lot of resistance, every _ normalises it. there has been a lot of resistance, every time _ normalises it. there has been a lot of resistance, every time it - normalises it. there has been a lot of resistance, every time it was - of resistance, every time it was mentioned in the past, finally it is here and things are moving forward and i get a little bit choked up about it, watching the dancers last night, i was in such admiration what they have done and johanne is, it looked like he was going to burst into tears every time, johannes. fiend into tears every time, johannes. and a ruick into tears every time, johannes. and a quick final — into tears every time, johannes. and a quick final thought, absolutely gutting for aj. a quick final thought, absolutely gutting for al— a quick final thought, absolutely cauttin foraj. ~ , , gutting for aj. absolutely terrible, she would have _ gutting for aj. absolutely terrible, she would have been _ gutting for aj. absolutely terrible, she would have been an _ gutting for aj. absolutely terrible, | she would have been an absolutely where the winner so i was devastated by the fact they had to miss the final but hopefully they will get on the tour together and win that and hopefully come back for the christmas special next year because she is an absolute dream.— christmas special next year because she is an absolute dream. thank you. merry christmas. _ this is bbc news. the headlines: in the uk the health security says it is time to be cautious about social interactions and refuses to rule out tighter covid restrictions before christmas in response to the rapid spread of the omicron variant. germany bans british travellers and the netherlands goes into full lockdown as europe ramps up its fight against the spread of omicron. the uk's brexit minister lord frost resigns citing concerns about what he called the government's "direction of travel", now on bbc news, it's time for political thinking with nick robinson. she's been called the strictest headteacher in britain, a teacher