on our health service, could robots in our hospitals be part of the solution? and after more than a quarter of a century — standing is back at premier league football matches. good evening. there's new guidance that secondary school pupils in england should go back to wearing masks in class, to slow the spread of the omicron variant. it's hoped the move will prevent disruption of the new school term, and the guidance will bring england into line with the rest of the uk. unions have welcomed it — but they're warning that staff shortages could again lead to some children being taught at home. sanchia berg reports. in scotland, pupils have been wearing masks as they learn with the windows open for the last few months. the picture is similar now in northern ireland and wales. next week, english secondary students will follow suit as the government tries to reduce the spread of covid in schools. around half of children over 12 have been double—jabbed — not enough to keep the virus out. the face coverings is very much a short—term measure, simply to the 26th of january when it will be reviewed because we recognise it is not something many children will want to wear. it recognises the priority of ensuring face—to—face education is made available — that's our number one priority. some are worried that this could affect children's learning, which has been so disrupted for the last two years. thank goodness, there's very low risk to children so i'm very wary — i will listen to what the government says — but i am very wary about imposing masks on children in schools because i worry about their well—being, anxiety and mental health, which has already suffered because of school closures during lockdown. but it's backed for now by the teaching unions. if this is a short—term fix as the government says, and one of a number of different measures including ventilation and moving ofsted to the sidelines, if that's going to do what we all want and keep young people in their school or college, then that will, i think, be a price worth paying. what difference will it make to transmission in the classroom? masks work in several ways. first of all they trap the virus if you are infected and don't know it. they protect you from incoming virus if you are not infected and don't know that you're talking to someone who is infected. but also, the masks, if you wear them, stop you from picking your nose, scratching and picking your lip and self—inoculating that way. so the masks have several benefits and also if you are wearing a mask it is actually, people tend to be more careful. but being more careful can come at a price for education. it's helpfulfor some parts and it's not helpful because when you're asked a question and the teacher doesn't understand what you're saying, they're going to have to tell you to repeat and repeat, until the point where you have to take your mask off and repeat it, and then they'll understand. but it's helpful because the covid is spreading a lot and affecting a lot of people in the uk. nobody wants another lockdown, where even with support from schools children fall behind with their lessons, become vulnerable, isolated, even put at risk. but across england, head teachers are looking at contingency plans. they will only know next week whether to put them into effect when they can see how many staff and pupils are absent with omicron. sanchia berg, bbc news. public sector leaders have been told to prepare for the worst—case scenario of up to a quarter of their staff being off work because of covid. the uk has seen record numbers of daily cases over the festive period. ministers have been asked to develop "robust contingency plans" in case of large—scale workplace absences. here's our business correspondent katie prescott. this cumbria care firm has been short—staffed and finding it tough to recruit for a while. bosses say they've got enough work for at least another a0 people. now omicron has decimated their rotas. it's going to be difficult. we may be in a position as a care sector where not everybody is going to get the care they need. in fact, the unfortunate truth, we are not going to be able to provide care for everybody that needs it, and that's obviously a major worry. this lack of carers has a knock—on impact on hospitals too, as people are unable to be sent back home once they are well enough. it is what's happening there that's a real worry. to try and keep vital services like hospitals open, public sector leaders are being asked to make contingency plans for having ten, 20 or even up to 25% of their staff off at any one time. solutions to that could include drawing on pools of former workers, former teachers in schools for example, or prioritising certain services. shortages are also hitting the hospitality industry. this popular italian restaurant had to shut before christmas as staff fell ill. we got to a point at the end of the first week where we were very short—staffed but managed to work a rota and managed to get remaining staff to pick up shifts. but around the 22nd we finally reached the critical mass of casualties and of 2a staff we ended up with just five who were negative, me included. when it comes to businesses such as restaurants and bars, ministers across the uk are being asked to look atjust how bad things could get and to work out what they need to keep going through this time. labour says this announcement shows the government is leaving contingency planning to the very last moment. the most recent restrictions in england, set out in the government's plan b earlier in december, are expected to be reviewed this week. katie prescott, bbc news. well, due to the holiday period, the government's latest coronavirus figures aren't complete, but there were 137, 583 new infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period in england and wales alone. 73 deaths were recorded, that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive test in england and wales. and our political correspondent damiam grammaticas is here. the government is still saying nothing in the data to warrant further restrictions in england at the moment but there's an important review this week? that is right, these measures in england, were brought in in the middle of december. there was a battle in parliament, barely 100 conservative mps, some talking about the last chance saloon, and we had mask wearing, work from home and covid passes. in other parts of the uk have gone further, with distancing measures, limits on numbers of people who can meet in nightclubs. here, ministers have been sent today, no sign in the data of the need for more restrictions for which they would have to go to parliament but they are bringing in other things, parliament but they are bringing in otherthings, mask parliament but they are bringing in other things, mask wearing in schools. labour has been critical in saying the time for contingency planning was weeks ago, sorting out ventilation in schools. the key things will be the hospitalisation data and pressure on workforces, the nhs, doctors's union is talking about being under extreme pressure possibly affecting care. and they are meeting on that. a second 15—year—old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder, following a stabbing in south london. zaian aimable—lina — who was also 15 — died after being stabbed in the heart at ashburton park in croydon on thursday. another 15—year—old boy who was arrested on suspicion of murder has been released on bail. meanwhile, a 16—year—old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder, following the death of a teenager in west london on thursday. the 16—year—old victim was stabbed in a park in the hillingdon area and hasn't yet been formally identified. a huge fire has ripped through the south african parliament building in cape town, causing extensive damage and destroying the national assembly. police have arrested a man who's facing charges of house—breaking, theft and arson. our southern africa correspondent nomsa maseko reports. an historic building on fire. plumes of smoke engulfing south africa's parliament. within hours, the fire tore through the complex and completely destroyed the main debating chamber. sirens. more than 60 fire fighters battling to extinguish the blaze. the damage is significant and there are fears that some parts of the structure which was built in the late 1800s could collapse. the entire parliamentary complex is severely damaged, waterlogged and smoke damaged. so there is going to be damage extensively. the roof above the old assembly chamber, the old assembly hall, is completely gone. many high—profile south african politicians including president cyril ramaphosa were in cape town for the funeral of archbishop desmond tutu, which took place at st george's cathedral, a block away from the parliament precinct. this is devastating news. it is a terrible and devastating event. particularly after we gave the arch what i would call the best sendoff yesterday. the minister responsible for government infrastructure said fire fighters managed to contain the blaze from spreading further. this is a very sad day for our democracy because parliament is the home of our democracy and parliament is also a strategic, a key point. the building was empty for the new year holidays and no casualties were reported. this is the second fire in south africa's parliament in less than ten months. the first was caused by an electrical fault. this time around, a suspect has been arrested and faces charges of arson, housebreaking, and theft. he is expected to appear in court on tuesday. nomsa maseko, bbc news. sudan's prime minister abdalla hamdok has announced his resignation — less than two months after being reinstated as part of a political agreement with the military. it comes after another day of protest against the country's military rule — sudanese forces fired tear gas at tens of thousands of protesters in the capital khartoum and shot dead two people in the city of omdurman. thousands of people in amsterdam have been protesting against the dutch government's coronavirus lockdown measures. riot police were used to break up the gathering. the netherlands went into a sudden lockdown on december 19th with the government ordering the closure of all but essential shops as well as restaurants, hairdressers and gyms. 20 conservative mps and peers have called on the prime minister to tackle the spiralling cost of living. five ex—ministers are among those who have written to the sunday telegraph arguing for a cut in environmental levies and the removal of energy taxes. their call follows big rises in wholesale gas prices. the government says it is meeting suppliers and the regulator regularly to work out how to help consumers. denmark says it hopes to end the use of fossil fuels on domestic flights by 2030. the danish prime minister says flying must be made green but acknowledged the target would be hard to meet. denmark had already announced plans to reduce carbon emissions by 70% of 1990 levels by 2030. even after the pandemic has subsided, the nhs is still likely to face rising demand for healthcare, combined with staff shortages, so, one question that's being asked is — could robots help? robots are already being trialled in one hospital where both patients and staff are trying to get used to new methods of automated care. our health editor hugh pym reports. how was your previous session? good. cool do you want to do exercise again? physiotherapy robot style. extend your arms out to the side like me. could this be the long—term future of some nhs care? here at southmead hospital in bristol, they are experimenting with a robot programmed to interact with patients for simple forms of physio. another possible use might be basic bedside checks. remember not to take your medication on an empty stomach. its use for real is still some way off, but hospital leaders think this could help ease workforce pressure. everyone understands that people want more out of healthcare as they live longer. we have not enough workforce to deliver those demands. and, of course, robotics and technology can be taught to do mundane repeat menial tasks. the hospital is working with the bristol robotics laboratory looking at future care of patients in their own homes. this device can be controlled remotely to help with basic household tasks. ok, i am sending kyren to you now. be careful as it moves. technology can clearly help those who need assistance at home but might people feel they lose out from lack of human contact? in no way are we looking to replace people, because i myself wouldn't want that. so i wouldn't want to think about that as a possibility for anyone else. the idea here is to augment and improve the care provision and the quality of care that can be provided. attention, automatic transport. and away from patients, there is automation. robotic portering delivers most supplies around the hospital, including to operating theatres and meals for the wards. they even have their own lifts. because they do the heavy manual work, staff injuries have been reduced. robot technology is also at work in the hospital pharmacy. orders for medicines are processed rapidly and made ready for clinical teams. pharmacists say it improves patient safety by eliminating human error. whether they're moving supplies around hospitals or having direct contact with patients, robotic devices are thought to offer potentially major long—term benefits to the nhs. but there are big questions over what that will mean for patients' experiences and the impact on staff. i'm excited about the increased use of technology in care homes but also throughout the nhs. there is tremendous potential there. but, of course, as a scientist, i want to see the evidence, too. i want to make sure that things are safe, that they are effective, and there are no unexpected side effects or consequences. are you going to make yourself a cup of tea? they won't necessarily offer cups of tea or even look like this, but the fact that hospital leaders are working with engineers on robotics shows there is a radical vision for post—pandemic health and care. hugh pym, bbc news. the death has been announced of the renowned kenyan conservationist and politician richard leakey whose ground—breaking discoveries helped to prove humankind evolved in africa. he was 77 years old. he led a team that found an almost complete skeleton of an upright man in 1984, and fronted the landmark, seven—part bbc series the making of mankind. serving as head of kenya's wildlife conservation body he also led campaigns against poachers and the ivory trade. with all the sport now, here's john watson at the bbc sport centre. good evening. the big game today in the premier league was at stamford bridge. if you're waiting for the scores on match of the day, you might want to look avert your attention briefly. the spoils were shared in a thrilling 2—2 draw between title rivals chelsea and liverpool, both losing ground on leaders manchester city. the match a landmark moment in the top flight as spectator standing returned for the first time in 27 years. laura scott reports. stepping into a new year and a new era for football. any game between chelsea and liverpool is important but this clash took on even greater standing for supporters marking the moment fans could legally watch on their feet for the first time since 1994. this is a huge breakthrough and a victory for common sense, and a big breakthrough from the point of safety and customer choice, people have the option to stand legitimately and safely at football matches. more than 12,000 of the seats at stamford bridge are located in the new licensed standing areas, which have barriers to prevent the risk of crowd collapse. fans are still allowed to use their seats if they wish. the pilots will include four other clubs and will run for the rest of the season, with the possibility of standing being rolled out across the top two tiers next season. but there was a mix of opinion among those arriving at stamford bridge. i think it is a better atmosphere when _ i think it is a better atmosphere when people are standing. i think_ when people are standing. i think some fans really like it. i think some fans really like it. i don't. — i think some fans really like it. i don't. maybe _ i think some fans really like it. i don't, maybe i— i think some fans really like it. i don't, maybe i am _ i think some fans really like it. i don't, maybe i am too- i think some fans really like it. i don't, maybe i am too old. . i don't, maybe i am too old. brilliant, _ i don't, maybe i am too old. brilliant, at _ i don't, maybe i am too old. brilliant, at anfield - i don't, maybe i am too old. brilliant, at anfield we - i don't, maybe i am too old. | brilliant, at anfield we stand i don't, maybe i am too old. - brilliant, at anfield we stand any way. anticipation was high with just one point separating the hosts in second and the visitors in third. and it quickly became an entertaining encounter with four goals and frenzied celebrations by both sets of supporters, giving those monitoring the crowd's behaviour plenty in the way of data. for chelsea's goal—scorer christian pulisic, english football has finally caught up with what he experienced when playing for borussia dortmund. i know seeing that from germany lot, i know seeing that from germany lot, i definitely think it can help the atmosphere. the atmosphere was brilliant just from the fans in general. the post—match analysis now begins for researchers, too. but the early indications from chelsea were that the trial had gone smoothly, a sense largely echoed by the fans. to be honest it is a good idea people — to be honest it is a good idea people standing up, it is what people — people standing up, it is what people want. and with the barrier it is safe _ is safe. happy is safe. happy with it. as is safe. — happy with it. as long as they don't encroach on people sitting down and everyone can see, go for it. much like tonight's 2—2 draw won't determine the season, so this one pilot in isolation won't determine whether the law changes and standing becomes permanent. but both are significant moments to start the year. laura scott, bbc news, chelsea. elsewhere today, there were wins for leeds over burnley, brighton at everton, and brentford over aston villa. british men's number two dan evans inspired great britain to victory over germany in their opening match of the men's team tournament, the atp cup in sydney. evans showed some impressive early season form ahead of the first grand slam of the year, firstly winning his singles match and then combining with jamie murray in the doubles, the pair beating alex zverev and kevin krawietz. the victory coming barely a month after gb lost to the same opponents in the davis cup. and english premiership leaders leicester have made it 11 successive victories beating newcastle at welford road 31 points to 0. it was one of three matches in the english top flight, elsewhere the champions harlequins came out on top in a tight encounter, beating gloucester 20 points to 17, danny care with one of their two tries. while second—placed saracens were comfortbale winners over northampton saints. and news on two silver medals for great britain today at the bobsleigh world cup in latvia. all the details on the bbc sport website tonight. that, though, is all from me for now. ben. there's more throughout the evening on the bbc news channel. now on bbc one, it's time for the news where you are. goodbye, and have a good evening. back now to the death of the world—renowned paleo—anthropologist and conservationist richard leakey. dr leakey unearthed evidence that helped to prove humankind evolved in africa. in 1984, he led the team that found the most complete hominin skeleton ever discovered — the so—called turkana boy who lived between 1.5 and 1.6 million years ago. let's take a look at a clip of an interview he did with stephen sackur on the bbc hardtalk programme back in 2015. here he is speaking about the dangers he faced because of his conservation work in kenya, tackling the illegal trade in ivory and rhino horn. you've talked yourself about the degree to which, you know, thanks to some of the things you said, particularly about the wildlife issue in kenya, you've had people out to kill you. well, if you pick on criminals in england, you don't think they are looking for ways to get even with you? come on, this is normal human behaviour. if a strong guy comes up and fingers you, and you lose your, not only your career but your source of money, of course you're going to be unpopular. but you're not unpopular because you are white, you are unpopular because you pulled the plug on their scheme. it would happen here just as easily, and i haven't been picked on because i'm white, i've been picked on as an individual who said, "enough's enough, stop stealing the resources "of our country". people looking at you who don't know your incredible life story won't know... i mean, obviously you've had lots of health issues but they won't know, for example, that you lost both your legs in a plane crash in 1993. your light aircraft, the engine just cut out. you've always said that you believe that plane was sabotaged, but do you have proof of that? i have no proof that it wasn't and i have no proof that it was and i've always said what happened happened and we need to move forward. i still have reasonable grounds for thinking that it was interfered with. could i take anyone to court? do i want to follow it up? most certainly not. but do you, in your own mind, think you know who was responsible? yes, i think i know and you'll remember, after that, i went on to run the government for president moi and i talked to security services, intelligence services. yes, i've got a pretty good idea, but the point is we've got to move forward, stephen, we can't move backwards and, remember, the legs could have lost me, and they didn't. the conservationist richard leakey, who has died at the age of 77. and coming up shortly, we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers, tony grew, who's a parliamentary journalist, and journalist and broadcaster caroline frost. that's coming up after the headlines. but, first, time for a look at the weather with tomasz schafernaker. hello. it's still very mild out there. we've also had quite a few showers today, so a damp picture through this evening and overnight. it is going to turn colder, colder compared to what we have right now. so the current of mild air from the southern climes, the azores, coast of portugal and france, that air still very much over us. it's spread right across europe into belarus and ukraine and southern parts of scandinavia, but here in the north, notice that colder weather setting in, and it is preceded by this weather front here, which will be arriving in northern scotland through the course of tonight. to the south of that, notice the wind. it is still blowing in from the west, south—west, so mild air, a really mild morning, eight or 9 degrees for many of us. the north of scotland, here in stornoway, three degrees. this weather front will bring some sleet and snow to the mountains particularly, some hills as well, maybe one or two towns or cities, but it will be a slow process, so it will be moving slowly south through the course of monday. so on monday, yes, it's a bit colder in scotland, seven in aberdeen, nine in glasgow and edinburgh, which is still above the average, but double figure temperatures across england and wales. that weather front will continue to make its wayjourney further south, again a bit of wintriness here, particularly across the southern uplands, but here's another look at that weather front, the air mass graphic, showing the temperature of the atmosphere higher up. you see the cold air settling in, pushing that mild air to the south. so by early on tuesday morning, so this is the following night, you can see a frost setting in early on tuesday across more than northern parts of the country, whereas further south, we're still hanging on to some of that mild weather. so here is a weather map for tuesday. i think cold winds across scotland, and bringing some wintry showers, particularly to the hills but not exclusively. some coastal areas as well, a real wind chill for scotland on tuesday. 5 degrees in aberdeen, 5 degrees in glasgow, and closer to the seasonal normal, bang on, actually, across the south of the country. 8 degrees in london is the average this time of year. on wednesday, we are between weather systems, a weather front approaching out of the west. we are ahead of it, so i think calm weather, lighter winds and some sunshine. i think on wednesday overall, a fine, crisp day on the way. hello. this is bbc news with me, annita mcveigh. we'll be taking a look at tomorrow morning's papers in a moment with tony grew and caroline frost. but first, the headlines: secondary school pupils in england are being asked to wear facemasks in classrooms to reduce the spread of omicron. warnings of a worst—case scenario of a quarter of staff in the public sector being off work because of covid. government ministers say there's nothing in the current covid data to suggest more restrictions are required in england. fire engulfs the parliament building in south africa after its sprinkler system failed. hello and welcome to our look ahead to what the papers will be bringing us tomorrow. with me are tony grew, who's a parliamentaryjournalist, and journalist and broadcaster caroline frost. tony and caroline, look forward to talking to you in just a minute, tony and caroline, look forward to talking to you injust a minute, but first let's take a look at what those front pages are saying. according to the guardian, the government has told head teachers in england to start preparing for staff shortages by using support staff as fill—in teachers, combining classes, with some classes taught remotely and some face—to—face. the daily telegraph says that government plans to force children to wear masks in school are facing a backlash, with warnings about the long—term impact of masks on children's mental health. the daily mirror reports that the nhs is fighting a staffing "meltdown", with one in ten absent from work on new year's eve. the times leads with ministers saying there is "nothing" in the data to support further covid restrictions, as scientists suggest