it follows controversy over an exemption to covid vaccine rules. a state of emergency is declared in kazakhstan, following mass protests sparked by surging fuel prices. it isa it is a victory for anyone who wants to be on the right side of history. and, four are cleared in bristol of criminal damage, after the toppling of a statue during a black lives matter protest. and coming up in the sport on the bbc news channel: wales could play their home six nations rugby matches in england, away from their cardiff base because of covid restrictions. good evening. borisjohnson insists the current level of covid restrictions in england is "helping take the edge off the omicron wave", and that the government is taking a "balanced approach" to the pandemic. but new figures highlight the scale of the challenge. the latest survey from the office for national statistics shows that one every in 15 people across the uk had covid in the run up to new year's eve. that's the highest level of infections recorded by the ons since the pandemic began. now rules on testing are to change to try to help cope with demand. anyone who has a positive lateral flow test but no symptoms won't have to confirm the result with a pcr test. number 10 says it's "not a sensible use of pcr capacity" when prevalence of covid is "extremely high." with more details, here's our deputy political editor, vicki young. a new year, a familiar problem. are you gambling with - the nhs, prime minister? england has fewer restrictions than many other countries. borisjohnson says his plan b — which is more masks, covid passports and working from home — will stay in place but that's it for now. in the commons, he was bullish about the strategy. this is the balanced and the proportionate approach that we've taken to covid. we've been able to keep this country open, keep our economy moving — more open than any other comparable economy in europe, and they know it, mr speaker. with a huge rise in cases, the testing system has been under strain, so today, a change in england and wales. if you don't have covid symptoms and your lateral flow test is positive, you'll still have to isolate but won't have to confirm the result with a pcr. staff shortages, though, remain a major problem. in hospitals and other sectors, services are being cancelled or delayed because so many are in isolation. the labour leader is one of them, after testing positive for the second time. his deputy stood in. doctors, nurses, carers, teachers and pupils can't get the tests they need now to do two tests a week. emergency workers are reportedly stuck in isolation because they can't get their hands on a test — the government has been asleep at the wheel, mr speaker, and the result is total shambles. before christmas, the prime minister was under huge pressure after his own mps defied him and he had to rely on labour votes to get his covid plans through. borisjohnson is the kind of politician who instinctively prefers to let people make their own decisions. but even if he wanted to introduce tighter restrictions, that would mean another damaging fight with his own mps. so for now, he's leaving things as they are, while admitting parts of the nhs might feel overwhelmed. theresa may. today, tory mps were more supportive, but are now pushing for an exit plan. it is not in the national interest to partially or wholly shutdown sectors of our economy every time we see a new variant. so will my right honourable friend to take this opportunity to inform the house as to whether and how the government will be changing its approach when new variants arrive? we have got to have a plan to live with this virus — like normal — for ever. when is he going to set that plan out? for now, though, mrjohnson is watching and waiting to see the full effects of this latest covid wave. vicki young, bbc news, westminster. well, the latest figures do suggest a steep rise in infections across the uk. in the north west of england, infection rates have doubled in a week and are running ati person in every 15 contracting covid. that's about 8% of the population. our correspondent, dominic hughes, has been finding out how local health authorities are coping. across the north west of england, the omicron variant is building. infections are spreading. and while it might be a relatively milder form of the virus, the numbers involved mean hospitals are feeling the pressure. the rise in cases of omicron is absolutely enormous. it's rising very, very rapidly indeed. i think what will probably happen is it will keep rising, but it will peak fairly soon, and our hope is that this lasts for more weeks rather than months. the most recent data shows how fast omicron has spread in the north west of england. just before christmas, an estimated 3.2% of the population in the region had coronavirus — around one in 30 people. by new year's eve, that number had more than doubled to 7.8% — one in 15. january is always a really tough month for the health service, but as well as the usual winter pressures, there are now a growing number of covid patients arriving at hospitals, as well as staff themselves falling sick or having to isolate because of the virus. that's why the royal bolton is one of 17 hospitals across greater manchester where non—urgent surgery has been suspended. staff absences aren't just affecting hospitals, but community nursing teams and care homes too. yesterday, the prime minister talked of riding out this wave, but local leaders warned there will be some tough weeks ahead. we believe we need to be more vigilant than that, and, you know, recognise that this month will present real challenges. that was the message we were getting from our experts this morning. it's going to be a very difficult month. and as the virus spreads from its london epicentre, what's happening now in the north west could well be seen right across the country. well, there are huge pressures across the health and care system wherever you look, and despite incredible and extraordinary effort at the front line, we have got patients who are waiting too long to have their 999 call answered, and also we've got people who are waiting too long to be seen in accident and emergency departments. we also know there's pressures in terms of people being able to access mental health and community services. with more sick patients and a growing number of absent staff, some hospitals are now approaching the limits of what counts as safe care, and that means taking some tough decisions on what they can and can't do. dominic hughes, bbc news, manchester. the government's latest coronavirus figures show there were just under 195,000 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. on average, there were over 183,000 new cases reported per day in the last week. there were 17,276 people in hospital being treated for coronavirus yesterday. 334 deaths were reported in the latest 2a hour period, that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive covid test, but that figure does include a backlog of hospital deaths reported overnight by nhs england covering the period from the 1st to the 11th january. on average in the past week, 171 deaths were announced every day. on vaccinations, more than 34.5 million people have had a boosterjab, which means more than 60% of people aged 12 and over have now had three vaccine doses. scotland is to cut the coronavirus isolation period from ten days to seven, in line with the rest of the uk. from midnight, anyone who tests postive will be allowed to leave their homes if they record a negative lateral flow test on days six and seven. restrictions on social distancing, large gatherings and hospitality are, however, expected to remain in force untiljanuary 17th at the earliest. here's alexandra mackenzie. another new term overshadowed by coronavirus, as some children in scotland returned to the classroom. i thought they would put another lockdown on school, i did think that, and i was hoping that was going to happen. i actually feel 0k about it because we've had coronavirus a few months ago. up to a quarter of the staff were off at the glasgow gaelic school because of covid. it is going to cause some challenges. i we are going to have to think about reorganising classes i and having teachers cover i for their absent colleagues. at a virtual session of the scottish parliament, the first minister said isolation rules would be relaxed from ten days to seven for those with covid — dependent on negative tests, and household contacts can take lateral flow tests from midnight tonight instead of isolating. these changes are significant and they are not completely without risk. however, at this stage of the pandemic, they do strike an appropriate balance. this comes after weeks of pressure from opposition parties. the first minister previously said it would spread infection even further. i also welcome the changes to self—isolation, which the scottish conservatives have been calling for since day one. when they were introduced, we said this policy was not sustainable. every other part of the united kingdom made the change, but scotland was left as an outlier. hospitality has struggled with so many staff isolating. the announcement came as a welcome relief to many. common sense has prevailed. it has been reduced. the ten days on its own was unsustainable. - the last few weeks, it's felt - like you're almost being punished. the scottish government said at least one in 20 of us now has coronavirus. the number of new cases recorded yesterday was more than 16,000, and in the last week, the number of people in hospital has almost doubled. as businesses prepare for the new rules, the first minister warned this phase of the pandemic is possibly the most challenging so far. alexandra mackenzie, bbc news, glasgow. the travel industry has welcomed the relaxation of the rules for people arriving in england and wales from overseas. those who are fully vaccinated will no longer have to take pre—depa rtu re tests from the early hours of friday morning, and those arriving from sunday morning will be able to take a lateral flow test rather than a pcr. our transport correspondent katie austin is at st pancras international station for us tonight. good news for travellers and the hard—pressed travel industry? yes. hard-pressed travel industry? yes. this marks — hard-pressed travel industry? yes. this marks a _ hard-pressed travel industry? yes. this marks a return _ hard-pressed travel industry? yes. this marks a return to _ hard—pressed travel industry? yes this marks a return to pre—omicron arrangements. from this weekend, international travel is about to get cheaper and easier again forfully cheaper and easier again for fully vaccinated cheaper and easier again forfully vaccinated passengers. no predeparture vaccinated passengers. no predepa rtu re tests vaccinated passengers. no predeparture tests and a lateral flow test upon arrival into england, although if that is positive, a pcr test will be necessary to stop the uk government says with omicron now the dominant variant, it is proportionate to cautiously reduce testing measures at the borders. this has been welcomed by the travel industry, which had said the current measures were hitting demand at a crucial time. measures were hitting demand at a crucialtime. so measures were hitting demand at a crucial time. so there is more optimism now from businesses, although the past couple of months have shown us just how quickly things can still change and there are plenty of other countries who still have pretty strict entry requirements in place. scotland hasn't yet confirmed whether it will be following england's lead with these changes is that wales has confirmed that it will, although the welsh health minister said he was doing that reluctantly and was concerned about how quickly the uk government was in reopening international travel.— government was in reopening international travel. thank you for that. international travel. thank you for that- katie — international travel. thank you for that. katie austin _ international travel. thank you for that. katie austin at _ international travel. thank you for that. katie austin at st _ international travel. thank you for that. katie austin at st pancras i international travel. thank you for that. katie austin at st pancras in | that. katie austin at st pancras in north london. across europe, governments are struggling to contain the omincron variant, leading to a record number of cases in some countries. the government of italy, which reported a record 189,000 covid infections today, is making vaccines mandatory for the over—50s. and in france, where 335,000 cases were reported president macron used controversial language to say he wants to make life more difficult for people who haven't been vaccinated. mark lowen reports from rome. bravissimo! the youngest to be armed in the endless battle against covid. five—year—old edoardo gets his first jab, as italy steps up vaccinations for children. maybe too small to grasp how the pandemic has changed their world, but, say parents, they, too, must fight it. why did you want to vaccinate your son? because i love him. his father and i really love him and want him and all his little friends to go back to a normal life. so, this is the least we can do. respect science and respect our children. "it was ok," says edoardo. "did it hurt?" i asked. "just a little bit." they do their best here to soften the experience with certificates of bravery, a rite of passage for the pandemic generation. you can see the smile on their face when they ask to you, "now i can see my friend?" you can say, "yes, you can play with them," and everything, because now the vaccine for covid—19 is so important for everything. when italy became the first country in the west to fall to the virus in 2020, it was the first in the world to impose a nationwide lockdown. but today, despite record cases, its streets are once again busy as it, like much of europe, tightens vaccine rules instead — to some resistance. in france, a heated debate in parliament over mandatory vaccination for restaurants and trains was suspended amid opposition protests over an interview with president macron. he told a newspaper he aimed to bar the unvaccinated from social activities, using the slang word "emmerder", or "to piss them off". on the streets of paris, mixed views on the colourful language. translation: to piss people off, . i think that's a bit out of place i for a president to say. translation: the message - is that he wants to improve things, but his form of words wasn't great. at the vaccine centre, they're ramping up shots before schools resume next week, hoping to stem the omicron surge. among the messages, "my biggest dream is that covid ends." sometimes children just put it best. mark lowen, bbc news, rome. as we've been hearing, more than 3.7 million people in the uk would have tested positive for coronavirus in the week ending 31st december, that's according to figures from the office for national statistics. the infection rate increased in all the home nations. in england it was one in 15. in wales, one in 20, with the same rate in scotland. in northern ireland it was one in 25. all the figures are the highest recorded by the ons since its survey began. well, let's get more analysis from our health editor, hugh pym, who's here. this is a stark reminder of how fast this is spreading, hugh? yes, clive, a startling figure, 3.7 million people in the uk with the virus at the end of last week. it was 2.3 million just one week before. the significance of this ons survey is that it covers households and picks up people who have not come forward for tests because they don't know they got the virus. we've seen a bit of a slowing in the rate of growth in london, the epicentre, but a marked acceleration in areas of the north of england and scotland, wales and northern ireland, showing just how extensively omicron is now spreading. with hospital admissions, they are onlyjust over half what they are onlyjust over half what they were in january last year during the surge then, that is largely because of the success of the vaccine programme, and omicron is less serious, but admissions are still going up week on week, by 60%, so they will still be watched very closely by policymakers. we've had this deaths figure, very high, relatively, of 334 a single day, but it does follow two days of underreporting in england because of delays with the data. we are getting quite close, though, to a total of 150,000 deaths during this pandemic. hugh pym, thank you. the row over whether the world number one men's tennis player, novak djokovic, will be able to play in the australian open has deepened tonight after his visa was revoked to enter the country. the player, who had been forced to remain at melbourne airport for several hours, is reportedly filing an injunction to prevent his deportation. djokovic was given a medical pass for the grand slam tournament, prompting criticism that he was getting special treatment. our sports correspondent natalie pirks has the very latest. it's the story that has gripped australia. �* . . . . it's the story that has gripped australia. �* . . , , ., australia. access denied, an extraordinary _ australia. access denied, an extraordinary visa _ australia. access denied, an extraordinary visa bungle i australia. access denied, an i extraordinary visa bungle sees australia. access denied, an - extraordinary visa bungle sees novak djokovic detained under armed guard at melbourne airport... this djokovic detained under armed guard at melbourne airport. . ._ at melbourne airport... this was nomia iqbal. — at melbourne airport... this was nomia iqbal, in _ at melbourne airport... this was nomia iqbal, in the _ at melbourne airport... this was nomia iqbal, in the last - at melbourne airport... this was nomia iqbal, in the last hour, i at melbourne airport... this was l nomia iqbal, in the last hour, the defending champion has been told his visa has been revoked and he will be deported. visa has been revoked and he will be de orted. ., ., visa has been revoked and he will be deorted. ., ., , ., deported. failed to provide appmpriate _ deported. failed to provide appropriate evidence i deported. failed to provide appropriate evidence to i deported. failed to provide i appropriate evidence to meet the entry— appropriate evidence to meet the entry requirements to australia and his visa _ entry requirements to australia and his visa has — entry requirements to australia and his visa has been cancelled. his team had _ his visa has been cancelled. h 3 team had been patiently waiting for answers. his coach posted this picture saying, not the most usual trip down under. you can say that again. last time novak djokovic won the port tournament, he was facing a public less than enamoured of the idea of watching him play in their country. it idea of watching him play in their count . . . idea of watching him play in their count. ,,. ., ., idea of watching him play in their count. ,,. ., country. it is his choice not to be vaccinated. _ country. it is his choice not to be vaccinated, which _ country. it is his choice not to be vaccinated, which is _ country. it is his choice not to be vaccinated, which is fine, - country. it is his choice not to be vaccinated, which is fine, and ii vaccinated, which is fine, and i think the government here has made the choice of, you should be vaccinated. you might even get boos when he gets onto the court. you have someone _ when he gets onto the court. you have someone coming from overseas and all— have someone coming from overseas and all of— have someone coming from overseas and all of a _ have someone coming from overseas and all of a sudden he has been exempt, — and all of a sudden he has been exempt, i— and all of a sudden he has been exempt, i think it is an absolute disgrace — exempt, i think it is an absolute disgrace and i won't be watching it. officials _ disgrace and i won't be watching it. officials had denied prioritising djokovic, who is on record as being against the covid vaccine. they said only a handful of exemptions were granted following a robust review involving independent medical panels. a recent covid infection was the most common reason. but the djokovic incident soon became a diplomatic one. earlier the serbian president said the country was doing everything to see that harassment of novak djokovic is brought to an end immediately. but while the player was flying earlier, the australian leader was clear, tennis australia might have found him to be exempt, but he still had to prove his case at the border. we but he still had to prove his case at the border.— at the border. we await his presentation _ at the border. we await his presentation and _ at the border. we await his presentation and what i at the border. we await his i presentation and what evidence at the border. we await his - presentation and what evidence he provides to support that. if that evidence is insufficient, then he won't be treated any different to anyone else and he will be on the next plane home. there should be no special rules for novak djokovic at all, none whatsoever. special rules for novak d'okovic at all, none whatsoever._ special rules for novak d'okovic at all, none whatsoever. another win in melbourne would _ all, none whatsoever. another win in melbourne would have _ all, none whatsoever. another win in melbourne would have moved i all, none whatsoever. another win in i melbourne would have moved djokovic clear of rafael nadal and roger federer with a record 21 grand slams, but instead of giving up for a shot at history, he is working on an injunction to prevent his deportation tonight. natalie pirks, bbc news. the business secretary, kwasi kwarteng, has been chairing a virtual meeting, with representatives of the energy industry, to consider ways of tackling what providers are calling a "national crisis." the cost at which they have to buy gas on the wholesale markets has shot up, threatening more bankrupticies among providers. our business editor, simonjack, is here with me. what if anything can the government do, and are the price rises for us inevitable?— inevitable? price rises are inevitable, _ inevitable? price rises are inevitable, we _ inevitable? price rises are inevitable, we know i inevitable? price rises are i inevitable, we know enough inevitable? price rises are - inevitable, we know enough about what has happened to wholesale prices, we know that the energy prices, we know that the energy price cap is going to go up in april, probably by about 50%. the government knows it has got to do something to mitigate that and they looked at some of the options today. abolish the 5% vat on energy fuels, said the labour party today. too blunt, said the government, it means better off households will also benefit. what about taking the green levies, a substantial part of our bill, and defer those? tricky when we have just had a climate summit and those levies are designed to wean our soft fossil fuels. what about merging it into general taxation? the chancellor doesn't want to add to the tax burden because at the same time as the new price cap comes in, also we will have an increase in national insurance. what does that leave? it leaves targeted support, something like the warm homes discount, which you can apply for if you receive certain benefits, you could increase that amount or expanding eligibility for that. others in the energy industry say these price rises are so big and so wide that narrow targeting won't work, they will have to figure out what to do before seventh february because that is when they will set the new price cap to come into effect in april, and thatis to come into effect in april, and that is when the cost of living squeeze we are seeing will really intensify. a state of emergency has been declared in kazakhstan, where protests sparked by surging fuel prices, have broadened into unrest over corruption and authoritarian rule. in the country's largest city, almaty, demonstrators seized the airport and stormed government buildings. the kazakh president, kassym—jomart tokayev, who has sacked his government, says there will be a "tough" response to the protests. our diplomatic correspondent paul adams has the story. explosions. across this vast country, scenes of tension and turmoil. people shout. in almaty, running battles lasted on into the night. the police struggled to maintain control in this, kazakhstan�*s biggest city. this is the fourth day of protests. what began as demonstrations over energy prices, now morphing into something more serious. "they said kazakhs wouldn't take to the streets," says rafik, "but we've grown tired and we've had enough." earlier, protesters stormed city hall, security forces responding with tear gas and stun grenades. president tokayev said terrorist gangs were trying to take over parts of the country. in an address to the nation, he threatened tough action and declared a state of emergency. he's called on neighbours including russia for help. far to the west, in the port city of aktau, more crowds on the streets where it all began at the weekend. a sudden jump in the price of liquefied natural gas, used to power cars, caused fury. but the protests have now tapped into other, long—standing grievances, corruption and economic hardship. some vent their anger on the country's former leader nursultan nazarbayev, who remains powerful. "old man, leave," they chant. in another city, a crowd tries to pull his statue down. the us has urged the authorities to show restraint, but back in almaty, some policemen were simply giving up. the government says eight officers and national guardsmen have been killed. chaos is spreading. paul adams, bbc news. four people have been cleared of criminal damage, cleared of criminal damage over the toppling of the statue of a slave trader during a black lives matter protest in bristol in 2020. rhian graeme, milo ponsford, sage willoughby and jake skuse were charged after the monument to edward colston was pulled down and thrown in the river avon. this report from andrew plant contains some flashing images from the beginning. emerging from court after weeks on trial. nicknamed the colston four, now found not guilty of criminal damage. we just want to say thank you to so many people, because we have never been alone in this journey. so many people, like, reverberating across the world in response to it. and one thing we know now is that colston does not represent bristol. cheering. it was 7th june 2020 during a black lives matter protest that the statue of slave trader edward colston was tied up and toppled. crowd shouts. the 125—year—old bronze was sprayed with graffiti and rolled into the water of the harbour nearby. cheering. this has been a case like no other in terms of that complete polarisation of public opinion. edward colston made his fortune in the transatlantic slave trade. across the city, buildings, pubs, streets and schools carried his name. the protest made headlines worldwide. many venues began dropping the colston name. conversations began about statues and monuments elsewhere. it's not about the statue, it's really about the story that we tell of ourselves, the heroes that we lionise and those that we now wish to perhaps move away from. the defence said the toppling of the statue was justified because of edward colston�*s past. the defendants never disputed their actions, they accepted what they had done, but they said that they had a lawful excuse for their actions, and that goes again to the offensive nature of the statue. 18 months on, the plinth where the statue stood is still empty. the colston four always wanted to defend themselves in court, convinced they'd done nothing wrong that day, and today, the jury here agreed with them. three cheers for the colston four, hip—hip...! andrew plant, bbc news, in bristol. play in the fourth ashes test in sydney is about to start for the second day, with both sides evenly poised after england's bowlers made some initial headway. stuart broad on his recall took the wicket of david warner, leaving australia at the close of day one on 126 for 3. england trail in the five test series 3—0. that's it. now on bbc one, time for the news where you are. have a very good night. hello. wind and rain will actually dominate the weather for many on thursday — that's after what will be a sunny but very frosty start. even the towns and city centres will see temperatures below freezing as the thursday morning commute gets under way. but it's into the countryside that we will see temperatures in the minus double digits for 1—2. temperatures lift late into the night and into the morning in northern ireland — that's because here will be the first place to see the wind and rain spread in through the thursday morning rush hour, preceded by a little bit of sleet. strong—to—gale—force winds battering these western areas with some rough seas. strong winds accompany the rain that pushes its way eastwards, and with that, we'll see some blowing snow in the hills, and scotland, the pennines, lake district fells, maybe snowdonia for a time, giving a covering of snow in places. the rain arrives last of all in east anglia's southeast, maybe not late afternoon and evening. but here across many eastern areas, a chilly day — temperatures drop later on as skies clear and showers push in through thursday evening and into the night. so, into friday, it's back to sunshine and wintry showers — showers most frequent in the west. something milder on saturday, and with it, some rain. this is bbc news, the headlines... the world's number one men's tennis player, novak djokovic, has been denied entry to australia to compete in the australian open after the authorities cancelled his visa. the president of kazakhstan is seeking help from a russian—led regional military alliance to quell nationwide protests. during the day, demonstrators seized the airport and several government buildings in the main city almaty. france has just recorded 335,000 new covid cases — a new daily record for europe, with other european countries also seeing records broken. french president emmanuel macron has warned he intends to make life difficult for unvaccinated people in france. and the us attorney general has promised to hold accountable all those involved in the deadly attack on congress in washington a year ago.