and a boost to the travel industry — as demands for foreign holiday bookings increase after testing rules were eased. hello, good afternoon. welcome to bbc news. welcome to bbc news. novak djokovic has applied for leave to remain in australia on the grounds that he had covid last month. his lawyers said he was given a medical exemption from the country's vaccine rules by the organisers of the australian open. but he was refused entry by immigration officials when he landed in melbourne on wednesday. a court hearing will decide on monday whether he should be deported. but on the day that novak djokovic�*s legal team says he tested positive for covid, serbia's post office presented him with postage stamps in his honour — the men's world no one tweeted about it the day afterwards, on the 17th. it comes as renata veracova, a czech doubles player, left australia this morning after her visa was cancelled because of her covid—19 vaccination status. djokovic, who has said he's opposed to vaccination, had been granted a medical exemption to play in the tournament in a decision that infuriated many australians. our correspondent shaimaa khalil has the latest from melbourne. the world's top tennis player is spending the weekend in an immigration detention hotel. and his supporters have turned up for a third day. this is novak djokovic arriving in melbourne on wednesday. the documents his legal team presented to the court state he'd received the exemption from tennis australia with a follow—up letter from the home affairs department saying he was allowed into the country. his legal team added that onjanuary the 1st djokovic received a document from home affairs telling him his responses indicated he met the requirements for quarantine—free arrival into australia. what is becoming clear is a breakdown in communication among those making the decisions, and what the judge has to look at and examine is exactly which rules apply. is it state government rules or federal government rules? and until a decision is made about whether novak djokovic can remain in australia, the world number one is still stuck in this immigration detention hotel, and in the middle of a huge controversy. this particular set of incidents, the victorian government was not briefed on the matter. in terms of how people got into the country, that's a matter for the federal government. last night his mother offered some reassurance. novak, i think... he said he is ok, but i'm not so sure. but he is mentally very stable, and he is waiting. that's what he can do, waiting until monday morning to see what they are going to decide. the tennis tournament is only a few days away, and what is normally one of the biggest highlights here is turning into a political and diplomatic embarrassment for australia. and shaimaa told us that for the moment novak djokovic is staying put in the immigration detention hotel. yes, there has been a request for him to be moved to a different facility, a different place, one with a tennis facility where he can train. of course, this is why he is here. he is here to compete in the australian open and that is still in doubt. but we are unclear whether he will be moved to a different place or he will stay put for the rest of the weekend ahead of the decision, of course, on monday on whether he will be deported or remain in australia. it is yet another twist, these details that have emerged in this story. and of course again, many questions about what exactly went wrong in the decision—making process. what happened between novak djokovic announcing that he was coming to australia to defend his title and him ending up in an immigration detention cell? our balkans correspondent guy delauney gave us the view from the serbian captial belgrade. there is increasing optimism in serbia that novak djokovic might after all be able to play in the australian open tennis championship. the media here full of pictures showing the time they say when they think novak djokovic caught coronavirus in december, which would then prove that he was positive at that time and should have a medical exemption for entering australia. they show him at a basketball match in belgrade hugging a player from barcelona who later tested positive for coronavirus. and they say that shows he should qualify to enter australia under the rules that if you are recovered from coronavirus you should be allowed to enter and that was the condition that was promised to professional tennis players. there has also been positive noises from the government of serbia. the prime minister revealing that she has been speaking to australia's ministry of foreign affairs and that they have been able to improve conditions for novak djokovic. the delivery of all important gluten—free food and exercise equipment to allow him to at least get some sort of glimmering up and a sim card and a laptop so he can keep in touch with all of his supporters at home. it is still, of course, on the hands of the authorities. but people in serbia really do hope that when court goes into session on monday, it will be the key to novak djokovic getting back on the kind of court where he usually dominates. we will keep you up—to—date with any developments in that story. now our main story back here... up to half a million flat owners across the uk may no longer face the cost of replacing dangerous cladding on their properties, under new government proposals. the plans, due to be announced by the housing secretary michael gove next week, would instead see developers forced to pay. our business correspondent simon browning has the details. it's a building safety crisis. an estimated half a million people live in homes wrapped in flammable materials. added to that a missing fire breaks, defective insulation and flammable balconies. but who is to blame, and who should fix them? up to now the government's approach was for dangerous cladding removal to be paid for by the building safety fund. it was only for buildings more than 18.5 metres in height. everything else was to be covered by either developers paying, or via a loan scheme for leaseholders. it's meant blocks like this, austin apartments in the south—east london, were previous cut off from government support because it is below 18.5 metres. but on monday, michael gove, the levelling up secretary, is expected to say that will change and lower height buildings will get support. government will try to secure up to £4 billion from developers towards the cost. and if they don't pay for it voluntarily, it is understood the government will use the law to enforce it. flat owners this morning have cautiously welcomed the news. it does lift a layer of anxiety, but there is no absolute clarification in how developers are going to pay. but there is already concerned that house—builders won't pay when asked. well, they won't choose to pay. they will have to be dragged to the table to offer something up. i suspect it relies on showing will, whether it is by sampling the buildings, and showing that these buildings were not built to spec. the home builders federation said of the largest house—builders had already spent or committed £1 billion to remediate affected buildings, and that whilst house—builders were committed to playing their part, there were other organisations involved in the construction, which should also be involved in remediation costs. labour said the new measures appear far less significant than they sound. but making thousands of homes safe after the grenfell fire continues to be a huge financial challenge for the industry and government. simon browning, bbc news. well, as i say let's talk to someone who hopes he will be helped by this government change in the plans, what we think will be announced next week. we're going to talk to someone who lives in one of those lower height buildings, lower than 18 metres which these new rules are meant to help. were going to talk to paul. he is ace folks person for a and our cladding scandal campaign group. just explained some of the issues you've been having in the building you live in. first issues you've been having in the building you live in.— building you live in. first of all, thank you _ building you live in. first of all, thank you for— building you live in. first of all, thank you for covering - building you live in. first of all, thank you for covering this - building you live in. first of all, i thank you for covering this story. i live in a block that is about 12 metres. and prior to the announcement or the leak of the announcement, i would announcement or the leak of the announcement, iwould have announcement or the leak of the announcement, i would have received no financial help from the government to cover the cost to remove the dangerous cladding. the good news today is that if we are to believe what michael gove is said he will announce on monday, then i will receive some of the money to cover the cost of removing that dangerous cladding. the challenge is two fold. for people like me. number one, i cannot sell my flat. it is unsellable. it is worth £0, which is a burden in itself. more importantly, numbertwo, a burden in itself. more importantly, number two, with the cladding still there, it is technically dangerous in terms of fire. the news today is good news. the devil is in the detail. i remain cautiously optimistic, but we need to see where this money is going to come from. in to see where this money is going to come from-— to see where this money is going to come from. , ., ., i. ., come from. in terms of how you have been living — come from. in terms of how you have been living for— come from. in terms of how you have been living for the _ come from. in terms of how you have been living for the last _ come from. in terms of how you have been living for the last few _ come from. in terms of how you have been living for the last few years - been living for the last few years since we more discovered about this sort of cladding, what position are youin? sort of cladding, what position are you in? do you know if it is actively dangerous or are you in a situation where you are having to pay for around—the—clock fire watches, which we know has been happening in some buildings. what have your outgoings been so far? unfortunately the main toll is a psychological one. and that comes from knowing that our building is wrapped in timberwood cladding which is hugely fleming —— hugely flammable. we know that living in unsafe flat. the main cause has been sleepless nights worrying about that. but also, worry about the potential bill that is going to land on our doorstep, of tens of thousands of pounds. we heard the news yesterday of one of our friends who got a bill for £85,000 and that wasjust to remove who got a bill for £85,000 and that was just to remove the cladding. that was on top of all the insurance costs and the cost of fire safety patrols. you are talking about a huge amount of money for individuals like myself which would become financially crippling. let's hope that the extra money promised from the government does actually come. are right, paul, i'm sorry we don't have any longer, but hopefully we can talk again once we know more. and as you say, the mental toll, you make an important point about that. thank you so much. that is paul who lives in one of the lower height flats and their floor —— and therefore hopes that next week what will be announced will help him and others. at least 21 people have died in freezing temperatures in northeastern pakistan after their cars were trapped in heavy snow. the chief minister of punjab province has declared the mountain resort town of murree — where a thousand vehicles are still stranded — as a "disaster area" and has urged people to stay away. let us get more on this from our correspondent shumaila jaffrey in islamabad. when you read some of the details of what is going on in this resort town, it is horrifying. bring us right up to date with how many people you think are stuck there and what is going on. it is people you think are stuck there and what is going on-_ what is going on. it is one of the... authorities _ what is going on. it is one of the... authorities say - what is going on. it is one of the... authorities say that l what is going on. it is one of the... authorities say that a | what is going on. it is one of- the... authorities say that a good number of tourists have not... interference thousands of... i am so sorry were going to try to establish the line. there is so much break up it is very hard to make out what the latest details are and it is an important story because there are so many cars stuck there, people urged to stay away. some people literally freezing to death in their vehicles. let's hear the latest report on all of that from janie mitchell. a day trip to enjoy their inspector called the first snow of the season turned to tragedy. tens of thousands including families flocked to the popular resort town after snow began falling on tuesday. many travelled from islamabad ill—equipped to deal with the blizzard conditions. the pakistani army has been brought in to help clear snow and rescue those trapped. and the hope is to begin air lifts when conditions allow. helicopter service will soon be started, but the weather is not good right now. as soon as the weather gets bad there, god willing, we will start helicopter service to rescue any people trapped. start helicopter service to rescue any people trapped-— any people trapped. many of the casualties died _ any people trapped. many of the casualties died from _ any people trapped. many of the | casualties died from hypothermia any people trapped. many of the - casualties died from hypothermia as temperatures fell to minus eight celsius. others were reported to have been succeeded by exhaust fumes as they kept their cars running to keep warm. these narrow roads became clogged with the sheer number of vehicles. others were blocked by fallen trees brought down by the weight of snow. local people are delivering blankets and food to those who were stranded. on friday, the government closed all roads leading to this resort town to stop any further influx. pakistan's prime minister has expressed his shocked and upset at the deaths. he suggested that the local administration was caught unprepared. he has ordered an inquiry to ensure such a tragedy does not happen again. it is 2:16pm. you're the latest had nines... tennis grand slam champion novak djokovic had a vaccine exemption to enter australia because he had covid in december, according to court documents. flat owners in the uk won't have to pay to remove dangerous cladding from lower—height buildings under new government plans, the bbc understands. at least 21 people have died in north—eastern pakistan after heavy snowfall trapped them in their vehicles. the family of a woman who has been missing since new year's day have said they are "shocked and distressed" by her disappearance. 28—year—old alice byrne was last seen leaving a friend's flat in marlborough street in the portobello area of edinburgh, between 8am and 10am last saturday. detectives believe she potentially headed in the direction of the promenade and beach. the family have urged anyone who has seen ms byrne or who has any information to come forward. the authorities in kazakhstan say they've arrested the former head of the domestic intelligence agency on suspicion of high treason. karim massimov was sacked from the national security committee by president tokayev on wednesday as violence that followed anti—government demonstrations escalated across the country. dozens of people have been killed in the protests. the us has questioned kazakhstan's decision to seek russian military aid to deal with an ongoing wave of violent unrest. from moscow our correspondent, caroline davies, has the latest. we know that there has been some internet access particularly in the capital, although that has been shut off many people since then. and we know that russia has that president tokayev had a phone call with president putin and that in that call, he said that things were stabilising in the country and thanked moscow for the troops that they along with several other countries have sent... aan promised to send into kazakhstan and what they are calling a peacekeeping mission to try to ease the situation in kazakhstan. and as you mentioned, the main news that we have heard from today is that the authorities in kazakhstan detaining the former domestic intelligent agency head, karim massimov, on suspicion of treason. now he is a very close ally of former president who was in power from 1989 until 2019, but retained a very prominent position in politics behind the scenes. he was also the head of the security council in kazakhstan as well. the fact that there has been this particular arrest of someone who is so incredibly close to the previous president has fuelled further rumours that have been swirling that there is a power struggle at the heart of politics and colic stand at the moment. —— at the heart of politics and because asked on at the moment. —— at the heart of politics and because asked on at the moment. now the current president president tokayev was the hand—picked successor from the former, we have also heard from the former president's spokesperson today saying that the former president has not left the country. and that he is in contact with the current president, however, this recent arrest will do nothing to quell those rumours that president tokayev, the current president, is trying to secure and cement his position. as promised, let's try to return to our correspondent in islamabad. we want to hear about the latest. take us back to the beginning because it was terribly difficult to hear you, i'm afraid. remind us how many people are trapped. what is going on there because so many people ventured to this area, didn't they? yes. disasterzones ventured to this area, didn't they? yes. disaster zones have been declared there. the military has been declared aaannn to help with the rescue. they are saying that they have been clearing the roads and that they have pulled out thousands of cars from the snow. and they are providing st food and blankets for those who are still stranded. it is told they will be able to complete the rescue operation tonight, but it will depend on the weather. and there is forecast for more rain and snowfall. many feared that there can be more people trapped under the snow. aha, people trapped under the snow. a desperate situation for so many people as you are suggesting. are there also questions being asked of there also questions being asked of the authorities? because it seems that there were warnings about this a week ago that too many vehicles going to the area. could nothing have been done to deter people? absolutely. the local authorities were caught unaware and they did not intervene on time and by the time they started responding to the situation, things had already gotten out of hand. as a result of this delay of taking the right decisions at the right time and stopping the inflow of traffic to the area, thousands of people had to spend a night on the roads in the snow storm freezing in their vehicles. and some of them died of hypothermia. obviously, problems with access given conditions and huge concerns about food and water and so on. the real basics. about food and water and so on. the real basica— real basics. absolutely. that is why the have real basics. absolutely. that is why they have involved _ real basics. absolutely. that is why they have involved the _ real basics. absolutely. that is why they have involved the military - real basics. absolutely. that is why they have involved the military and | they have involved the military and now the authorities are saying that they have declared an emergency in this area and the surrounding ones and they are trying to provide relief to the people and trying to rescue those people. but again, there is a forecast of more snow and rain. and it will depend on the weather conditions if they will be able to complete this mission tonight as they were hoping to do. goodness, thank you very much. she is keeping an eye on the situation from islamabad. travel firms say the demand for foreign holidays has started to recover following the relaxation of coronavirus travel rules across the uk. from this weekend, fully vaccinated travellers and under—18s arriving in the uk no longer need to take a pre—departure lateral flow test. tim muffett has the details. it's been a brutal time for the travel industry. lockdowns and restrictions have meant that for almost two years huge numbers of holidays have been cancelled. hello, flitch travel. but it seems there are grounds for optimism. a number ofairlines and operators are now reporting significant increases in bookings and inquiries. we're starting to see the pent—up demand that's been there for months and months now start to transition in terms of bookings, but it is off a very low base and we're hoping the next few weeks we will start to see even more demand come through. and which destinations are proving popular? the most interest we're seeing with destinations are spain, and this time of the year the canary islands is doing exceptionally well. actually, 30% of everything we are selling is for a january departure, so for the next three weeks. as of yesterday, fully vaccinated adults and people under 18 arriving in the uk no longer need to take a predeparture covid test. from tomorrow, they will only have to take a lateral flow test instead of a pcr test on day two after arriving. i'll be booking something either this afternoon or tomorrow. getting away for my 50th after a really rubbish two years. just really excited to get some sunshine. somewhere safe, don't mind wearing a mask, just to get there. any increase in foreign travel is coming from a very low base. and easyjet says flight bookings to lanzarote are up fourfold compared to last week. and jet 2 expect bookings this summer to be back to pre—pandemic levels. a glimmer of hope, perhaps, following two years of gloom for the travel industry. tim muffett, bbc news. as coronavirus cases continue to rise across india, new restrictions have come into effect in the capital, delhi — restaurants, markets and most shops will be closed until monday. gail maclellan reports. bharat�*s shop sells everything for the kitchen and more. but with fewer customers and takings down, he has been badly hit by the pandemic. yet, despite india's capital delhi locking down over the weekend, he remains upbeat. translation: the way corona cases are on the rise this lockdown, the weekend curfew is a must. for the past two years, we have faced losses and we will face the same in the future. i will be happy when the amount of cases are lower and there is no lockdown. as the authorities grapple with a fresh surge in cases, partly fuelled by the fast—spreading omicron variant, most businesses here are still recovering from last year's outbreak that overwhelmed hospitals and crematoriums. but daily case numbers had, since then, stayed reasonably low — until last week. all residents besides essential workers will now be asked to stay home from friday night to monday morning. this is a big concern, big challenge. we have seen that over the last eight days, the figure has gone very high — from 10,000 cases to more than one lakh, in just eight days. so with this period, the number will be much higher in the previous weeks. more than 200,000 people died across india last spring, after a wave of delta variant infections that brought the health care systems to its knees. india's [181,000 known covid deaths is the world's third highest toll behind the us and brazil, but under—reporting is widespread and some studies have estimated its actual toll could be up to ten times higher. the omicron variant is expected to hit hard but with fewer cases expected to need hospital treatment, some experts warn another lockdown and its economic impact is just not worth it. just briefly have a look at the scene in paris this... as well this afternoon. our going on specifically about faxing passports. i am trying desperately to find out how many people have turned up to this protest at the moment. clearly a very wet day in paris. that might have had an impact as well. that protest is ongoing. we've had some fairly ripe language from the president they are. about his despairing attitude if we could call it that for those who have not had a vaccine yet. there are about 5 million people who still are about 5 million people who still are not vaccinated against covid—19. we will take a look at the weather here in this country. now it's time for a look at the weather with louise lear. i suspect there were a few bedraggled people this morning. it has been a miserable start to the weekend. this weather front has brought some rain sweeping its way towards the east. it is starting to bring a change. this was the site for most of us first thing this morning. however, as the rain starts to ease away, we've got some brightness coming through. the only exception to that is perhaps across east anglia and southeast england. there will be sent a spell followed by sharp scattered showers. northern ireland will see a little bit of sunshine this afternoon. the showers could be quite torrential from time to time. heavy with hail, thunder and a little bit of wintriness on the higher ground. that will continue into the evening across western scotland and northern ireland turning wintry in the hills as the temperatures fall away. clearer skies mean the temperatures will fall into single figures. a chilly start and possibly a touch of frost. cold, but sunny to greet us first thing on sunday morning. plenty of showers in the northwest continuing in the morning and they woke gradually drift their way across the borders into the pennines in the afternoon. for most of us it will be dry, more sunshine coming through, a little bit colder with the wind direction changing. we will see the temperatures around six to 8 degrees. high pressure is trying to build aaannn for the start of the new week and it will do so as we go through the week i had. we still have got this weather front which will bring cloud and rain. as high continues to build, fog could be an issue. and it could linger. that could stay pretty bleak for many. in comparison to the weather that we have seen, it is certainly going to be drier and quieter. on monday we have got the weather front bringing wet and windy weather. it might go into northern ireland as well. a lot of cloud on monday. top temperatures between seven and 11 degrees. monday night into tuesday, greater