restrictions in england. the nhs under strain from coronavirus — more trusts in england declare critical incidents — and 17 hospitals in greater manchester put some non urgent surgery on hold. scotland's first minister nicola sturgeon is due to address parliament later today as covid cases continue to rise. there's a growing backlash in australia after tennis star novak djokovic is allowed to enter the country without a confirmed covid vaccination, to defend his australian open title. ajudge in new york is considering whether to dismiss a civil case accusing prince andrew of sexual assault. he's said he'll reveal his decision "pretty soon". and in a rain—affected fourth ashes test, england's bowlers battled hard to try to restore some pride against australia. though, good morning. —— hello. the government is looking to change the rules on covid tests in england — to ease staffing shortages by reducing self isolation periods. under the plans if you test positive on a lateral flow, but don't have symptoms, then you will no longer be asked to take a follow—up pcr test but you will still have to isolate. cabinet ministers will meet in the next half hour — the prime minister will ask them to back his decision not to impose any further covid restrictions in england, despite soaring levels of infection. last night the prime minister said he hopes the country could "ride out" the current wave, but accepted that part of the nhs would feel overwhelmed in the coming weeks. seven hospital trusts in england have declared critical incidents so far. in greater manchester alone, 17 hospitals are pausing some non—urgent surgery. in scotland, nicola sturgeon is expected to announce whether she will be cutting self—isolation time for those testing positive from ten days as the scottish parliament holds a special virtual session. the french president has caused controversy by using a slang term to annoy unvaccinated people in france into getting jabbed. and tennis star novak djokovic has caused fury in australia after recevieng a medical exemption to play in the australian open without having a covid vaccine. the first of our reports from jon donnison is about the pressures facing the nhs. derriford hospital in plymouth is one of a growing number to declare a critical incident because of omicron pressures on staffing levels, as well as the growing burden of those needing care. hospitals in blackpool, norfolk, wiltshire, morecambe bay and lincoln have also raised the alarm. in plymouth, they are warning the situation is increasingly complex. we have got patients who are coming in who are absolutely covid positive and they need to be in a designated area of the hospital. and those numbers are increasing. and then we've got patients who are in hospital, who tested negative on admission but then don't have symptoms, and then develop symptoms and then are testing positive. and in manchester last night, 17 hospitals a pause on non urgent i7 hospitals put a pause on non—urgent surgery citing the rising impact of covid—i9 and staff absence levels of around 15%. those hospitals are under pressure notjust because of the number of patients coming in with covid, but also because unfortunately, many of our staff are now isolating because they themselves have covid as well. and it's those two pressures, the patients coming in and the reduction in our staffing, staff being available, that is having the impact at present. although pressure on intensive care might be less severe than in previous waves, the omicron variant is so transmissible, it's seen the numbers with covid in hospital in england alone double in under a fortnight. the prime minister isn't thinking of more restrictions at the moment, but he admits the next few weeks will be hard. there will be a difficult period for our wonderful nhs for the next few weeks because of omicron. i just think that we have to get through it as best as we possibly can. we will give the nhs all the support that we can. but in the meantime, the thing we've got to do as responsible members of the public is follow the guidance, try to stop transmission as much as we can and get boosted. there is some evidence that cases in young adults might be flattening off, but the worry now is that older adults are becoming infected, adding even more to the strain in the nhs. that's why government advisers are warning that hospital admissions could be going up for quite some time. jon donnison, bbc news. let's talk to our chief political correspondent adam fleming. tell us more about these plans to essentially treat a lateral flow tests as good as pcr tests. there are a few meetings _ tests as good as pcr tests. there are a few meetings in _ tests as good as pcr tests. there are a few meetings in whitehall. are a few meetings in whitehall today, the cabinet meeting, the covid operations committee meeting and there are discussions at various levels above various things but one of those discussions is about changing guidance when it comes to testing. at the moment of the rules are if you have symptoms you go and get a pcr test and then isolate if it is positive. lots of people are doing lateral flow tests when they don't have symptoms. the guidance for that is if you get a little red line for a positive lateral flow test then you should get that backed up test then you should get that backed up with a confirmatory pcr test and isolate if you are positive. it's the second part that will change. ministers will say you do not have to get a pcr test to confirm your initial lateral flow test. that would mean there would be less demand on pcr tests. it's a bit of a change to the status of lateral flow tests as you implied with your question, because they have always been seen as second class. this would kind of give them almost parity with pcr tests. but also it would mean that many fewer people go into the official testing system. you know what it's like when you get a pcr test, bar codes this qr code that, text message this and you are kept quite an eye on, with the lateral flow test it is left up to the individual person to scan the qr code on the test and then upload it. the government would have a lot less oversight of what is actually going on by relying more largely on lateral flow tests. the health and social care administered gillian keegan was doing interviews this morning and would not be drawn on the change because it is still to be finalised but she touched on some of the changes to the testing programme and the increasing confidence in the lateral flow testing programme that means you could make a decision like this. as i say, i don't have any official news on that. but i know the teams are looking at testing and testing regimes. as i say, we have introduced so many lateral flow tests now that, you know, and they are very accurate, the lateral flow tests, you know, they are really accurate if people are infectious, so i guess they are looking at the regimes all the time in terms of what makes sense. but i don't have any, as i say, official news. but teams will announce it once they have come to their conclusions. we understand that the prime minister is meeting his top team right now to talk about the fact that he doesn't want any more restrictions in england. the first thin . restrictions in england. the first thin he restrictions in england. the first thing he will _ restrictions in england. the first thing he will do _ restrictions in england. the first thing he will do is _ restrictions in england. the first thing he will do is recommend l restrictions in england. the first | thing he will do is recommend to restrictions in england. the first - thing he will do is recommend to the cabinet that plan b carries on as it is until the end of january because strictly speaking there is a review point of that today. quite interesting the way the prime minister phrased it at his press conference yesterday when he talked about recommending to the cabinet, i think that is borisjohnson trying to show a more collegiate side after the criticism he got from his colleagues last year. so there is that. i'm sure there will be a discussion about does the government need to go further, because case numbers are going up massively? the hospitalisations are going up quite a lot and there are voices out there saying we need a more proportionate approach with more restrictions. this afternoon the action will move to parliament because parliament is back after christmas recess and the prime minister will do a statement to mps updating them on all of this stuff so that's where we will get a lot more detail. i think lots of conservative backbenchers will be looking for clues about is there a plan b plus being worked on in the background that could potentially speu background that could potentially spell more restrictions in the near future? i think they will also be looking for that end point of plan b, because it is meant to expire on the 26th of january. but if you listen to the prime minister he talks about pressure on the nhs for several weeks longer which to me suggests a timeline that goes beyond the end of january, suggests a timeline that goes beyond the end ofjanuary, which suggests a timeline that goes beyond the end of january, which would create potentially some political problems for the conservative party. cheers, adam. thank you. dr leon danon is associate professor in infectious disease modelling and data analytics at bristol university, and is a member of the goverment�*s advisory disease modelling group spi—m — and he's speaking to us in a personal capacity. what do you think of this latest idea to treat lateral flow tests as good as pcrs? it idea to treat lateral flow tests as good as pcrs?— good as pcrs? it is a reasonable idea, good as pcrs? it is a reasonable idea. lateral _ good as pcrs? it is a reasonable idea, lateral flow— good as pcrs? it is a reasonable idea, lateral flow tests - good as pcrs? it is a reasonable idea, lateral flow tests are - good as pcrs? it is a reasonable idea, lateral flow tests are well. idea, lateral flow tests are well accepted in the community, lots of people are taking them and they also show when people are most infectious stop pcr tests, there is some delay in those, they are obviously more sensitive. there has been quite a of debate about what a pcr test towards the end of your infectious period actually means and whether finding out that you have covid with a pcr seven days after you are infectious is a useful piece of information for people to act on. and lateral flows are somehow more useful, they are obviously less sensitive but they are what they are, they are something that people can take at home on a regular basis to prevent further infection to other people. i suppose what we are now being asked, how we are being asked to view them is if you have a positive lateral flow then you are going to get a positive pcr. flow then you are going to get a positive pcr-— positive pcr. yes, that's quite likel . positive pcr. yes, that's quite likely- the _ positive pcr. yes, that's quite likely. the delay _ positive pcr. yes, that's quite likely. the delay with - positive pcr. yes, that's quite likely. the delay with getting i positive pcr. yes, that's quite - likely. the delay with getting your pcr results is still there. if you get a positive pcr it is not necessarily that you are still infectious so i can see both sides of that argument. find infectious so i can see both sides of that argument.— infectious so i can see both sides of that argument. and the motivation is to try and — of that argument. and the motivation is to try and reduce _ of that argument. and the motivation is to try and reduce the _ of that argument. and the motivation is to try and reduce the period - of that argument. and the motivation is to try and reduce the period of- is to try and reduce the period of time that people are having to isolate for, so you would start as soon as you get your positive lateral flow, soon as you get your positive lateralflow, as soon as you get your positive lateral flow, as opposed to waiting for your pcr a few days later or whatever. for your pcr a few days later or whatever-— for your pcr a few days later or whatever.- is _ for your pcr a few days later or whatever.- is it _ for your pcr a few days later or whatever. yes. is it possible to sa , dr whatever. yes. is it possible to say. dr leon — whatever. yes. is it possible to say, dr leon danon, _ whatever. jazz is it possible to say, dr leon danon, where we are in this wave? me say, dr leon danon, where we are in this wave?— this wave? we are still on the u ward this wave? we are still on the upward trajectory, _ this wave? we are still on the upward trajectory, the - this wave? we are still on the upward trajectory, the daily . this wave? we are still on the - upward trajectory, the daily cases that were recorded yesterday, as your piece showed, were over 200000 and is likely to be an underestimate due to delays and the fact that there has been some shortage in the amount of tests people can actually take. it is still growing. i don't think there is any evidence of it slowing down anywhere in the country just yet so the only way the numbers are going to go is up still. i think we need to remember that we haven't yet seen a peak of this epidemic due to the fact that people are no longer able to get covid at all. so that means where it is going to peak, how high it is going to be and when that is going to happen is uncertain. wejust don't when that is going to happen is uncertain. we just don't you do when that is going to happen is uncertain. wejust don't you do not know, we haven't seen it yet, the previous peaks were due to lock down or some other intervention measures that were imposed. it is uncertain times. we don't know how high it's going to get, we don't know how many people can still get infected and it's a risk that is quite serious. why do you say it is a risky place to be and it's quite serious? because we don't know how high it can go. there are still some uncertainty in the data some uncertainty in the data some uncertainty in the number of people that can still get infected, whether it's because omicron is evading immunity or whether it is because it is more transmissible, there is still uncertainty around those numbers and so we don't know how high we can go. but numbers and so we don't know how high we can go-_ numbers and so we don't know how high we can go. but we do know that for most people. _ high we can go. but we do know that for most people, particularly - high we can go. but we do know that for most people, particularly if- for most people, particularly if they are fully vaccinated, the symptoms will be mild if they do get it so that is a positive thing will stop that is absolutely a positive. that is excellent news that omicron appears to be milder, so the estimates are in the range of 20%-50% that it is half estimates are in the range of 20%—50% that it is half as severe or down to maybe even as fifth as severe as delta. to put that into context, alpha was 50% more severe and delta was 50% more severe approximately than alpha so omicron is around the same as the virus we saw in march 2020 so that's where we are in terms of severity. the positive side of the story is lots of people have been vaccinated and obviously they are protected. how much we are escaping immunity with a micron is still uncertain. ianthem much we are escaping immunity with a micron is still uncertain.— micron is still uncertain. when you talk about the _ micron is still uncertain. when you talk about the risks, _ micron is still uncertain. when you talk about the risks, do _ micron is still uncertain. when you talk about the risks, do you - micron is still uncertain. when you talk about the risks, do you mean | micron is still uncertain. when you | talk about the risks, do you mean a risk to the economy, to the nhs because of staff shortages? that is art of the because of staff shortages? that is part of the risk. _ because of staff shortages? that is part of the risk. it _ because of staff shortages? that is part of the risk. it is _ because of staff shortages? that is part of the risk. it is clear- because of staff shortages? that is part of the risk. it is clear that - part of the risk. it is clear that staff in the nhs are isolating, lots of staff are isolating due to the sheer numbers of people that are being infected with omicron. they obviously have to isolate because they are putting vulnerable people at risk. i think that means that the capacity of the nhs is lower than we think it is. is capacity of the nhs is lower than we think it is. , ., capacity of the nhs is lower than we think it is. , . ,~ capacity of the nhs is lower than we think it is. , . a i. think it is. is that the risk you are talking — think it is. is that the risk you are talking about _ think it is. is that the risk you are talking about or _ think it is. is that the risk you are talking about or is - think it is. is that the risk you are talking about or is there l think it is. is that the risk you - are talking about or is there some other risk we have not discussed? no, the risk i was referring to was simply the number of cases we have got and the fact that if you allow cases to rise to times, three times, four times the levels of previous peaks, even with a lower severity rate you are going to get similar numbers to what you saw in the previous peaks. there are all of these knock—on risks. isolating and these knock—on risks. isolating and the fact that we are taking people into hospital when there is a clear need, that also means the knock—on effect on those that don't have a very clear need are under a higher risk. . .. very clear need are under a higher risk. ., ~' , ., , very clear need are under a higher risk. . .. , ., , . very clear need are under a higher risk. . ~ i. , . , ., risk. thank you very much, dr leon danon, associate _ risk. thank you very much, dr leon danon, associate professor - risk. thank you very much, dr leon danon, associate professor in - danon, associate professor in infectious disease modelling and data analytics at bristol university and also a member of the government's modelling group called spy government's modelling group called spy m. —— spi—m. staff shortages continue to blight retailers and hospitality firms. let's talk to kate nicholls, ceo of uk hospitality. thank you forjoining us. the prime minister said yesterday we can ride this out without further lockdown, do you agree? it is this out without further lockdown, do you agree?— this out without further lockdown, do ouauree? , , ., do you agree? it is welcome news for our industry. — do you agree? it is welcome news for our industry, meaning _ do you agree? it is welcome news for our industry, meaning businesses- do you agree? it is welcome news for our industry, meaning businesses in. our industry, meaning businesses in england will not be subject to the severe economic destruction is we have seen across scotland, wales and northern ireland which is having a devastating effect on business viability and jobs in those parts of the uk. this means our businesses can remain open, we can continue to provide work for our staff and we have a much better chance of getting through the omicron wave without seeing a negative impact on livelihoods and jobs. so i think what we welcome is balanced, proportionate, pragmatic approach that looks at protecting lives but also protecting the impact on livelihoods and the need to protect those. ., ., , ., , those. how bad are the staff shortages — those. how bad are the staff shortages within _ those. how bad are the staff shortages within pubs, - those. how bad are the staff- shortages within pubs, restaurants and so on and so forth? me shortages within pubs, restaurants and so on and so forth?— and so on and so forth? we are seeinr and so on and so forth? we are seeing staff— and so on and so forth? we are seeing staff shortages - and so on and so forth? we are seeing staff shortages and - and so on and so forth? we are l seeing staff shortages and seeing people having to isolate but it is manageable within our business is at the moment. we are not seeing the same levels that we saw within the summer when we had a higher wave of cases across the summer and we had issues to do with the pingdemic. clearly january is a quite a issues to do with the pingdemic. clearlyjanuary is a quite a time for hospitality business and we are managing to balance our staff and customers and make sure that we are keeping both safe, but at the moment we are not seeing staff absences impact on our ability to deliver for our customers.— impact on our ability to deliver for our customers. what about the plan not et our customers. what about the plan not yet signed _ our customers. what about the plan not yet signed off _ our customers. what about the plan not yet signed off by _ our customers. what about the plan not yet signed off by the _ not yet signed off by the westminster government to drop the requirement to have a confirmatory pcr test if you test positive on the lateral flow, pcr test if you test positive on the lateralflow, the idea being that you can start your isolating sooner which means you can get back to work, school or your normal life or whatever it is sooner?— work, school or your normal life or whatever it is sooner? again, really welcome, whatever it is sooner? again, really welcome. we _ whatever it is sooner? again, really welcome, we appreciate _ whatever it is sooner? again, really welcome, we appreciate the - whatever it is sooner? again, really welcome, we appreciate the fact i whatever it is sooner? again, really| welcome, we appreciate the fact the government has been keeping these matters under review, ministers have been working with us throughout christmas to understand the impact on the economy these testing policies and anything that can be done to make it clearer for people what they need to do if they test positive for omicron, how they should self—isolate, how they should protect themselves and then as you rightly say when they can come back to work, when they can come back into society is really welcome so that we can keep society moving, we can keep the economy moving, and we can keep the economy moving, and we can learn how to live with this virus which we are going to have seen for many months.- virus which we are going to have seen for many months. thank you for “oininr us. the scottish parliament will hold a special virtual session today, in response to the rise in omicron cases. a cabinet meeting before the session is expected to discuss whether to reduce the period that people are required to isolate after contact with someone who has the virus. with someone who's had the virus. it's not thought that the first minister will announce any further restrictions, but she may give more details on financial help to businesses affected by the measures already in place. the welsh government is providing schools and colleges with £103 million in funding as the new term begins. nearly half will be earmarked for capital repair and improvement work with a focus on health and safety measures, including improving ventilation. the bulk of the remainder will help schools deal with the impact of the pandemic. emmanuel macron has warned he intends to make life difficult for people in france who have not been vaccinated against covid—i9. the french president said he wanted to tighten measures, including requiring people to show proof of vaccination to access public venues and transport. france has one of the highest covid vaccination rates in the european union, but more than 90% of its adult population are double—jabbed. you can get in touch this morning by sending an e—mail or message me on instagram, twitter or tiktok, it is @ vicderbyshire. japan and south korea say that north korea has fired another suspected ballistic missile from its east coast. the launch is pyongyang's first since october. japanese officials say the missile flew around 300 miles before landing in the sea. last week, north korea's leader, kimjong un, vowed to continue to build up pyongyang's military capabilities, despite international sanctions. here, a memorial to the 22 people murdered in the manchester arena terror attack in 2017 is opening to the public. the glade of light memorial is a white marble circle bearing the names of those killed — and memory capsules for each victim. a hawthorn tree planted inside the ring will bloom every year around the anniversary of the attack, on may 22nd. labour has accused the ministry of defence of "wasting" £13 billion of taxpayers' money over the past decade. the party says it has identified 67 cases of waste after carrying out an audit of official mod figures — including cancelled projects and programmes which went over budget. ajudge in new york is considering whether to dismiss a civil case accusing prince andrew of sexual assault. thejudge said he'll reveal his decision "pretty soon" — after hearing legal arguments from both sides yesterday. the prince's lawyers say the case should be thrown out because his accuser, virginia giuffre, accepted damages in 2009 from the paedophile, jeffrey epstein — in return for dropping her claims against him and any other potential defendant. prince andrew has denied her allegations, as our royal correspondent jonny dymond reports. she says she was sexually assaulted by prince andrew three times. he denies every allegation and says he can't remember meeting her. his lawyers argued the whole case should be dismissed. the civil case rests partly on this meeting in london, a night when virginia giuffre, here aged 17, says she was forced to have sex with prince andrew. when he spoke to the bbc in 2019, he denied the allegations again and again. you can say categorically that you don't recall meeting virginia roberts, dining with her, dancing with her at tramp or going on to have sex with her in a bedroom in a house in belgravia? yes, i can absolutely categorically tell you it never happened. do you recall any kind of sexual contact with virginia roberts, then or at any other time? none, none whatsoever. in new york, the lawyers battled in court for the first time. at the centre of their arguments, a deal struck between andrew's accuser and his formerfriend, jeffrey epstein. epstein paid virginia giuffre $500,000. their deal released any other person who could have been included as a potential defendant from further legal challenge by virginia giuffre. prince andrew's lawyers needed to persuade the judge that the 2009 deal covered the prince. it is unquestionable, the court heard, that prince andrew could have been sued in the 2009 florida action but was not. he was a potential defendant. the prince's lawyers demanded details of the allegations against their client, but they were slapped down by thejudge. "that's not a dog that's going to hunt here," he said. finally questions were raised as to whether the prince could even use the 2009 deal. he is a third party, the court heard. the judge said, "the only people who could enforce it werejeffrey epstein and virginia giuffre". thejudge was quite aggressive in his questioning of prince andrew's attorneys as they raised technical argument after technical argument, trying to get virginia's case dismissed. the judge did not seem to be having any of it. even if this case is dismissed, prince andrew will, say veteran royal watchers, struggle to return to his previous public life. when it comes to the monarchy, the monarchy is obviously an institution which is big enough to rise above what has happened. but when it comes to prince andrew, one has to say that one can see no role in royal life for him in the immediate future or the intermediate feature. just getting this far has damaged prince andrew, and if the case is not dismissed, it will hang over thisjubilee year. the queen's second son threatened with having to testify in a new york court. now they wait. the judge in new york says a decision will come pretty soon. jonny dymond, bbc news. let's talk to lucia osborne—crowley, she's a reporter covering courts and the law for law360, and has been following the case closely. macro detailed argument about this legal document yesterday. what would you take from that? i legal document yesterday. what would you take from that?— you take from that? i thinkjudge kalan you take from that? i thinkjudge kaplan showed — you take from that? i thinkjudge kaplan showed his _ you take from that? i thinkjudge kaplan showed his card _ you take from that? i thinkjudge kaplan showed his card is - you take from that? i thinkjudge kaplan showed his card is a - you take from that? i thinkjudge kaplan showed his card is a little | kaplan showed his card is a little bit yesterday, although as we have heard we don't have a decision yet. he was questioning prince andrew's lawyers aggressively and he did seem quite sceptical of the interpretation of, as you say, this legal document. this all turns on this phrase potential defendant. the question here is whether prince andrew falls under this category of potential defendant. prince andrew's lawyers were arguing that that phrase is very broad and that the parties intended to protect anyone and everyone from any suit brought by virginia giuffre. now, that is a very broad interpretation and would be quite an alarming outcome if you could essentially contract out of ever enforcing your rights against anyone, and at one pointjudge kaplan said with a sceptical tone in his voice, does this protect the sultan of brunei? you know, just as an example. prince andrew's lawyers based on their own argument had to say, yes, it does. thejudge didn't take very kindly to that. and then he put to them that there are at least two different interpretations of this clause, one is the very broad interpretation that prince andrew's lawyers are relying on, but the other is a much narrower interpretation of that clause, and that would involve any potential defendants that could specifically have been named in this lawsuit that virginia giuffre brought against jeffrey epstein in 2009, so the argument there is it is a much narrower category of people come and importantlyjudge kaplan said as with all private contract law, the thing that matters is the intention of the two parties who signed that contract. i was very interested when judge kaplan said jeffrey epstein is not here to tell us what he intended in that document, and implicit in thatis in that document, and implicit in that is that the only party who is here to tell us what she intended is virginia giuffre and that's going to this point that prince andrew wasn't a party to this document, he is not named in this document, he didn't sign this document and he didn't receive any consideration, he didn't receive any consideration, he didn't receive any consideration, he didn't receive any money in exchange for this promise, so a court will say it is not enforceable in law on behalf of prince andrew because it didn't involve him. now, ifi of prince andrew because it didn't involve him. now, if i were to guess i think that's the interpretation judge kaplan is leaning towards based on what we heard yesterday. although it is worth bearing in mind quite a lot of the prince's legal arguments were in written submissions that were not repeated in person yesterday so it could be that the judge has other arguments in mind that could work in prince andrew's favour, we just don't know. but you are right, he didn't seem to question in the same manner virginia giuffre's side in the way he seemed to question prince andrew's side. when thejudge says to question prince andrew's side. when the judge says we will know pretty soon, are you expecting days, weeks? i pretty soon, are you expecting days, weeks? . , . ._ , pretty soon, are you expecting days, weeks? . , . , ., weeks? i am expecting days. you could tell from _ weeks? i am expecting days. you could tell from his _ weeks? i am expecting days. you could tell from his tone _ weeks? i am expecting days. you could tell from his tone in - weeks? i am expecting days. you could tell from his tone in the - could tell from his tone in the hearing yesterday that he knows that people want a decision from him very quickly. but he also said to the parties i'm not going to put a time limit on that, so he also knows he has to be very careful, the world is watching this decision, it will have to be very well considered. so i think this term pretty soon in the legal world probably means a few days at the minimum. so i wouldn't be expecting it this morning or today, i think it will be sometime this week. . .. today, i think it will be sometime this week. ., ,, today, i think it will be sometime this week. . ~' , ., ., today, i think it will be sometime this week. ., ,, , ., ., ., , this week. thank you for “oining us. no worries. — this week. thank you for “oining us. no worries, thanks _ this week. thank you for “oining us. no worries, thanks for _ this week. thank you forjoining us. no worries, thanks for having - this week. thank you forjoining us. no worries, thanks for having me. i this week. thank you forjoining us. i no worries, thanks for having me. an army officer spoke of her delight of becoming the first woman of colour to complete a solo expedition to the south pole. captain preet chandi trekked 700 miles in a0 days, facing temperatures of minus 45 degrees celsius. the 32—year—old, from derby, said she set herself the challenge because she wanted to inspire others to "push boundaries". it is 9:30am. i'm not going to make a cheesy link with the weather. now it's time for a look at the weather with carol. it has been a cold start to the day, some eyes, still the chance you could run into some patchy ice on untreated surfaces in scotland, northern ireland, wales and england. this money, strong winds and wintry showers tending to fade for many although we hang onto a few in the east and also the west. temperatures today ranging from 4—8 c north to south but if you are somewhere where we have snow lying temperatures may struggle to break freezing. this evening and overnight, stills and showers along the coasts, a lot of dry weather, some clear skies, by the end of the night the wind strengthens in the west and the cloud builds and the rain arrives. temperatures not as low as they are going to be elsewhere, in fact in sheltered glens in scotland the temperature could fall as low as -10. a temperature could fall as low as —10. a frosty start, risk of ice once again put a lot of sunshine to start with and then in comes the rain bumping into the cold airfor a time and falling as snow but behind that it will rapidly turn back to rain and it