deposit for a plastic bottle? mps say that it would reduce waste and help protect the ocean from pollution. hello, a very good morning to you. it is friday the 22nd of december. welcome to bbc news. the foreign secretary, borisjohnson, who is in moscow has insisted that britain cannot ignore issues such as cyber activity, the treatment of gay people in chechnya. he said that he wa nts people in chechnya. he said that he wants relations to improve. he went to meet sergey lavrov. it is the first official visit from different secretary for five years. they warned that they are read willing to retaliate on cyber attacks, but want to cooperate on international track challenges. in the last hour, the two men appeared in a news conference. they said that the two countries showed why together despite their difference. the recent form the length of my absence, is of course that this is a difficult time in the relations between the uk and russia, and sergey lavrov himself has just russia, and sergey lavrov himself hasjust said. we russia, and sergey lavrov himself has just said. we can't ignore those difficulties. we can't pretend that they do not exist, and we don't share a common perspective on events in ukraine, orthe share a common perspective on events in ukraine, or the western balkans, oi’ in ukraine, or the western balkans, or the prime minister theresa may has said, all russian activities in cyberspace. but, we speak up, for the lgbt community in chechnya, and elsewhere, as people would expect. but, with they would also expect, that britain and russia, as two big countries, should be able where possible to coordinate and work together on the issues that matter together on the issues that matter to our voters and matter to the people of the world. i believe, that having talked to many times to sergey lavrov input at particular after hour, is today, that there are things that we can do together as the five members. across the range of dossiers. we are joined now by emily taylor, editor of the journal of cyber policy at chatham house. a good daddy with this morning. does what boris johnson good daddy with this morning. does what borisjohnson say good daddy with this morning. does what boris johnson say this good daddy with this morning. does what borisjohnson say this morning go further than what you have heard from the uk government before on this issue of cyber security? in a way, as you would expect, as he was a guest in russia, at the moment, yea rs a guest in russia, at the moment, years choosing his words much more emphasising common ground, than some of the statements we have heard. both run theresa may and also from the secretary of state, michael fallon. i think, the secretary of state, michael fallon. ithink, that the secretary of state, michael fallon. i think, that there is an element in this, that is a thing that we should be hopeful about, is that we should be hopeful about, is that it that we should be hopeful about, is thatitis that we should be hopeful about, is that it is to be effected that all states will seek to in a way, wrap weaponised cyberspace, just as they seek to improve their position internationally by any means, lawful oi’... internationally by any means, lawful or... but, at the same time, we also need states to cooperate and think about the peaceful use of cyberspace, and emphasised common ground, think about ways in which states can work together, particularly amused times when international cooperation is used to be on the decline. i think, it would be on the decline. i think, it would bea be on the decline. i think, it would be a very useful thing for cyber security in general. the former conservative foreign minister, sir malcolm rifkind raised the question this morning about cyber defence of capability. he said it is something that we don't normally talk about. we haven't used it. i don't know for certain when we have used it, at all, recently. what is the uk cyber offensive capability? all states will seek to keep the exact detail of their offensive capability to some extent under wraps. but, the uk has acknowledged in the past that it is developing defensive capabilities, and other states are doing so, as well. whether or not they admit it. the idea is to be as ready to defend oneself, and that includes taking appropriate measures — theresa may signalled this, saying that we know what you're doing, and we will respond in kind. the cyber environment is not detached from the rest of life, so if there is an opportunity to use that sort of environment, than states will do so. at the same time, we also need states to cooperate and improve the general level of security, and finding common ground when they can. that is incredibly poured in. be talk of retaliation, the public talk of retaliation from the uk in this arena, though, that seems to be, almost an ideological shift from the uk? i'm not sure if it is ideological, i think it is very much in line with international law. you can see, for example in the telling manual, that international rules apply to cyberspace, and where a state is behind, a tax of one kind oi’ state is behind, a tax of one kind or another, that there is a scale of responses that can be made in a lawful way. whether that is reprise, oi’ lawful way. whether that is reprise, orjust going for retort and is, or the expulsions of diplomats, for example, that we saw in the us after alleged interference with the us elections, which of course, russia denies. 0k, emily taylor. editor at the journal of cyber denies. 0k, emily taylor. editor at thejournal of cyber security denies. 0k, emily taylor. editor at the journal of cyber security at tatham house. in good morning to you. going into this, both sides acknowledging very nick openly that relations between them are at a very low point, but, borisjohnson talking about pragmatically areas with the uk and russia can cooperate. was this matched by russia? yes, i think so. i think russia? yes, i think so. i think russia very much welcome this meeting taking place at all, as we know, it is the third attempt for borisjohnson to come here to moscow, and hold these talks. i think russia has been sending the message over the last couple of days that it does work fight, and that it is open to renewing dialogue, dividing ways to normalise relations. but, boris johnson, again, saying that that will not be easy, and that this meeting does not mean that things are back to normal. it is not business as usual. there are still some very serious areas of contention. i think those were raised during this press the briefing, this press conference following their talks. there were some moments, where the atmosphere seemed a little chilly, though other members of banter between the two men. but, behind thejokes, think there were some serious points being made. borisjohnson talking about allegations, of meddling, sergey lavrov denying russia had been involved in meddling, for example in the bricks are processed in the uk. —— brexit process. before this, some people were leading him to be extreme in chilly, and did think that the case. i do think that russia wants to be seen to be a player on the world stage. it is important for people to be coming here. what happens next, what is the follow on from this meeting?” here. what happens next, what is the follow on from this meeting? i think the follow—on is that the lines of communication are now open. i think thatis communication are now open. i think that is what britain was hoping to get from this. i think that is what it takes away from this meeting, the fa ct it takes away from this meeting, the fact that there is now a direct dialogue. we were talking to senior officials, here, and they were saying that that was what was most important. when it comes to issues such as syria and audrey, what you now have our two permanent members of the security council, who can actually talk about their huge differences, in those... critically in syria, and north korea. so, i think, russia makes the point time and again that it does have a position on these issues, and it is an important player. i think, that is true, so in that sense, the very fa ct is true, so in that sense, the very fact that these two men have begun talking will be important going to allwood, and that italy, in terms of syria, wendy situation moves from conflict to discussing how the pieces put in place. i also want to ask you, while all of this was going on, we have the ukrainian security service same that they have arrested an individual who has been photographed with theresa may at downing street, arrested him, accusing him of being a russian spy. has there been any response from moscow to that? not that i have heard, no. this is of course a ukrainian national who was working as an interpreter to. one of them for ukraine's prime minister. he is a man who would certainly be involved in a very high level meeting. i think that will be a degree of concern about that. it was not something that i had mentioned during session of the talks between borisjohnson during session of the talks between boris johnson and his during session of the talks between borisjohnson and his counterpart here in moscow, but i think if that is confirmed, and he was acting on behalf of the russians, and it will behalf of the russians, and it will be of course, is some concern between all involved. thank you very much, sarah. now, here, the prime minister has said the first genia allegations of inappropriate conduct by former cabinet minister, damian green, was when she read about them in the press at... her comment on her visit to cyprus, comes after kate maltby told bbc news that she spoke to a senior danny street eight about his behaviour, last year, that was before mr green was promoted. she complained that he repeatedly touched her knee in a pub in 2015, and later sent a suggestive text. well, as we mentioned earlier, the prime minister reacted to kate maltby‘s comments. i first learnt of these allegations when kate maltby wrote about these in the time. i recognise that she was extreme distress by what had happened. damian green has recognised that, and he said that in the letter that he wrote to me. he has apologised, and i think that is absolutely the right thing to do. we adjusted to take you to a news conference is being given by carles puigdemont. this is about the result of the catalan elections. through the continuity of the concentration, which has not been... which has not been interrupted at any time, through democratic expression. which is not violent, and the expression of our wishes, and above all, thirdly, political and public expressions of the people. this is the country, the opposite —— the contrary, the opposite of what the 155 regime imposed. they tried to break catalonia. there were certainly a deep difference in this political difference. they're wanted to break our institutions. in 1975, the first president of the catalan government was elected. they have interrupted the public policies which look for the benefit of the country. this must end. a correction is needed urgently. and, mariano rajoy had the perfect opportunity to support solutions. and not create more problems which he created. so, lam more problems which he created. so, i am ready to meet in brussels with mariano rajoy. i am ready to do so, because there has to be new policies, in spain and europe. for political solutions, not repression. and, the way that it has started, considering that the mobilisations on the 1st of october, which you have seen directly, are part of the violence strategy. i think, with the goodwill of mariano rajoy, he should repatriate all of the police that have been sent especially to catalonia, in september. he should re move catalonia, in september. he should remove those who are taking illegitimate decisions in the name of the government. i would also call for moderation in the most radicalised social sections, who called, go for them. radicalised social sections, who called, go forthem. and radicalised social sections, who called, go for them. and also, radicalised social sections, who called, go forthem. and also, he should not take any other decision in the name of our government. with no prior conditions, and in any case, i think this is time for the political recipe, which rajoy failed at. rajoy has only demonstrated a greater mobilisation of the catalans. greater votes for independence. we have beaten the record. on the 27th of september, we haven't stopped. and we have gained votes in the plebiscite. this is time for the recipe i asked, right at the beginning, from rajoy. by right at the beginning, from rajoy. by political recipe. politics cannot be done without dialogue. whether he likes the theme we have to discuss, this is what he has to do. we need to find solutions. for whom? for the citizens. those who have suffered the consequences of the 1st of october the catalans. stopping the cultural world. stopping the representation abroad. this is bad for the economy, for the people. those who wish to live in their country and have the right to. on the other hand, we have also shown over use and decades, that the country has gone what —— shown over the years and decades. whether separatists or not, we want a better country. the 155 does not guarantee it that is a direct threat. it is a time to correct things, to repair the damage incurred. and for recognition. this is a message i wanted to convey on behalf of catalonia. if you have any questions, please ask. studio: that is the catalan separatist leader carles puigdemont calling for the spanish prime minister mariano rajoy to come to brussels, to talk to him, to have dialogue, to find a solution to the situation in catalonia, asking him to go to brussels because carles puigdemont is there in exile. the elections yesterday left the situation and murky. they have a majority, the separatist but the biggest single party is one that opposes separatism. clearly, the separatist parties feel they have the victory here. they are now putting pressure on mariano rajoy to talk, to start dialogue about a solution for catalonia. we understand mariano rajoy will be speaking this afternoon to give his reaction to the election. we await to see if he makes a direct response to see if he makes a direct response to ca rles to see if he makes a direct response to carles puigdemont. the dark blue british passport is to make a return after brexit. the government said what it described as the "classic" colour would be reintroduced from october 2019. here's our home affairs correspondent tom symonds. what does brexit mean? it turns out, brexit means no more european burgundy. brexit means british blue. and on the new passport, the e word is nowhere to be seen. some like this bbc newsnight reporter will rejoice. at passport proclaims not some civil servant's at passport proclaims not some civil serva nt‘s dream but at passport proclaims not some civil servant's dream but the reality of what we are, where we feel we belong and, for some people, pocket sized burgundy simply isn't british. the past is something so many people still have fond memories of. the british blue passport was with you for many years. on the travels with the family for many, many years. i am pleased to let people know we are going back to the classic blue and gold design. not quite. the classic 1980s—era passport was bigger, hard—backed. the eu one, definitely easier to slip into a shirt pocket. the new british passport will be broadly of the same design. the government says the new colour will not cost any more. passports are redesigned regularly to make them harder to forge. the blue one will start appearing in 2019 as passports are renewed. tom symonds, bbc news. we are joined now from westminster by nigel farage, who has long campaigned for a return to the blue passport. it is back to blue, you are happy and you tweeted a return to british passports means we are becoming a proper country again. we're getting oui’ proper country again. we're getting our national identity and individuality back. passport index says 76 other countries have a blue passport, it is hardly a mark of individuality. the most important thing is not the colour or that it is great to go back to that navy blue colour. the important thing are the first two was on this passport which says european union. that is going to disappear which is more significant than the colour. we will get british passports. for those of us over a get british passports. for those of us over a certain age, we will get british passports back. for a younger generation, they will have a proper british passport for the first time in their lives. i campaigned for this all the way through the referendum and for many yea rs through the referendum and for many years for that. proper countries have symbols. proper countries have flags. they have anthems and passports are part of that package andi passports are part of that package and i couldn't be happier. do you really think it matters to a majority of people, for and against brexit, what passport it is. it matters if you have a british or european passport. that is what matters. frankly, the colour is secondary. you tweeted happy brexmas with images of a burgundy and blue passport, perhaps was it insensitive of you to do that when there are many people, you are looking surprised, but there are concerned about post—brexit, for example, what might happen to their businesses in terms of trading regulations. there are people saying where is our £350 million a week for the nhs? was that insensitive to tweet about that when there are serious issues people want a nswe rs there are serious issues people want answers do? there are serious issues in all walks of life, every single day. was it insensitive to celebrate the fact we will be british and not european? no. we should be shouting it from the rooftops. all those of us it from the rooftops. all those of us who supported brexit, the last two months have been deeply frustrating. we've seen delays, we've seen very large bills being paid, continuedjurisdiction we've seen very large bills being paid, continued jurisdiction of foreign courts. there are millions of us who voted brexit who are very unhappy with the government. today, we have got a brexmas present and we will get our passports back. that is the first tangible victory we have had since the referendum. it is something we should celebrate. you reflect on the last couple of months and a few weeks ago you were not happy and a few weeks ago you were not ha p py after and a few weeks ago you were not happy after those all—night talks in brussels where theresa may said a deal had been done to allow movement onto the next age of talks on trade. you said this isn't brexit. —— next stage. does the colour and passport colour really represent a major step forward for you? it is a tangible game but we have lots more to do. we need a government with vision and thatis need a government with vision and that is sadly lacking. thank you very much. the christmas getaway begins — and for millions of motorists heading off for the festivities. you may be packing your bags and getting ready to step out the door. hundred of roadworks are temporarily lifted. helpfully! but there are still warnings of delays as its expected to be one of the busiest days of the year on the roads, as well as on the trains today. let's cross live to our correspondent ian palmer, who is at london's euston station. is it busier than normal, perhaps? busier than normal but helped by the fa ct busier than normal but helped by the fact that a planned strike by virgin trains is not going ahead. network rail will be carrying out its busiest and biggest christmas investment programme between frankly tomorrow and the beginning of the new year. that will affect all mainline routes throughout the whole country, frankly. great western railway is asking passengers to com plete railway is asking passengers to complete their journeys railway is asking passengers to complete theirjourneys by tomorrow because paddington railway station is going to be closed between the 27th of december and christmas eve. west coast mainline is halting its journeys between preston and lancashire... sorry journeys between preston and lancashire. .. sorry lancaster between christmas eve and 27. anyone going between london and carlisle isco is being asked to go through edinburgh, which will add an hour to your journey. —— and edinburgh, which will add an hour to yourjourney. —— and glasgow is being asked. either we spoke to were bracing themselves ahead of their particular journeys. hopefully we will be okayed. if not, we willjust hopefully we will be okayed. if not, we will just have hopefully we will be okayed. if not, we willjust have to go and have another press sakho. yeah, the trains are relatively 0k —— have another prosecco. hopefully we will start again tomorrow. we haven't got a seat allocated. on a bit worried. we should be ok because it's the middle of the day, now. probably chaos later. there was meant to be a train strike on virgin trains but they stopped the train strike today, which is good. that is the trains, what about the planes and automobiles? on the roads, the rac is expecting around 11.5 million journeys in the run—up to christmas if that wasn't as enough for you. if you are watching this, you will be making a road trip today, you are probably a bit too late. frankly, the rac is saying if you're not completed in terms ofjourney time by lunchtime, you are going to be in foran by lunchtime, you are going to be in for an awful lot of delays. the m25 is the major player and that will be gridlocked in either direction from mid—afternoon this afternoon. the motor—mac six between staffordshire and merseyside will be busy. —— the m6. on the friday before christmas of last year, the biggest non—accident tailback was on the a303 at stonehenge. seven mile tailback. you might know that particular stretch of road that goes between east— west between cornwall and the south—east. that was the busiest place last year. the roads are incredibly busy, if you are going to be going on them today. gatwick airport say they will handle around 2 million passengers. it will deal with 130 passengers today alone. 11.5 million people will travel to foreign shores leading up to christmas. you can imagine if you are travelling by aeroplane, if you're going to the airports, they are advising that you get there at least an hour earlier than you normally would. thank you. a hugely important element in the christmas getaway is the weather. simon king has the weather. tha nkfully thankfully it is fairly benign, the weather across the uk, it shouldn't cause too many problems. the main risk might be mist and fog particularly over higher ground. seems like this with fog in worcestershire like this morning. for many it is a mild day, temperatures getting into high single figures, double figures. some brightness across the far north—east of scotland, down the eastern side of scotland, down the eastern side of england into the east midlands this afternoon but elsewhere, pretty cloudy, misty and murky, that hill fog across the higher ground of scotland. north—west england, and across wales. this evening and tonight, not a great deal of change. there will be more misty nests around, more rain coming into the far north—west of scotland. —— more mist around. saturday, far north—west of scotland. —— more mistaround. saturday, repeat performance for many, lots of cloud around. christmas eve, more rain moving its way into scotland, eventually into northern ireland as well. christmas day itself, another mild day. rain spreading across the north and west, that will go further south and east, turning colder across scotland later in the day. that could bring a bit of snow, but for most of us it will be a green christmas, goodbye. hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: borisjohnson has held talks in moscow with his russian counterpart, sergei lavrov. it's the first visit to russia by a british foreign secretary for five years. mrjohnson acknowledged there were "difficulties" in anglo—russian relations but said he wanted the situation to improve the prime minister has denied that she knew about allegations of inappropriate behaviour made against damian green before she appointed him first secretary of state. the old—style dark blue british passport is set to make a return after brexit. the government says the "classic" colour with gold writing will be reintroduced from october 2019. it will replace the current burgundy one which was introduced almost 30 years ago to match other eu passports years ago to match other eu passports. it could turn out to be a very busy day for travellers with more than a million people expected to take to the roads on the last working day before christmas. drivers and rail passengers are being warned to expect delays in some parts of the uk, as many begin their christmas getaway. let's catch up with the latest sporting news. with the ashes already gone england are likely to decide between two potential debutants for the fourth test. and they could well go for mason crane... who'd become the youngest specialist spinner to make his debut for england since 1927. the hampshire leg spinner is just 20 and if he's preferred to tom curran would come in for the injured craig overton on boxing day at the mcg. crane does have some experience in australia. but when he was playing grade cricket there this time last year. did he think he'd be coming back with england? it never crossed my mind last year, but as we get closer, it becomes more of a reality. i am prepared, so, yes and go to have to get my true head round it and train hard. it was back in 1989. and in the final game of the season the gunners won at anfield to claim the league title in dramatic circumstances. the stakes aren't quite as high this time but even with both languishing way behind premier league leaders manchester city... jurgen klopp's team don't want to be heading home for christmas with a defeat... we have to be ready for a different challenge. they are talented, and can creates chances. we need to be spot—on, dawn of the players need to be spot on in this particular of the game. it looks likejonny evans could well be one of the big names to move in the january transfer window after west brom failed to convince him to sign a new contract. the defender has 18 months left on his current deal and it's understood he has no intention of extending his stay at the hawthorns. manchester city, arsenal and leicester all expressed interest in the northern ireland international in the summer. stoke manager mark hughes says he doesn't recognise stories that he has only one game to save hisjob. they're just above the premier league bottom three after only one win in their last eight games... and reports have surfaced that defeat in their next match and a half year reign. hughes says "the longer it goes on, clearly, the more difficult it gets. but i don't sense any apprehension about where we are." fifa have put the media rights for the eworld cup up for sale. it's the gaming version of the tournament that'll be played in russia next year which is expected to attract massive global audiences of young fans. qualifying for the eworld cup on the popular fifa game and just like the real thing there'll be 32 players competing in the main event. but in the gaming tournament they'll be playing for cash and not the famous trophy. ashleyjohn baptiste has been at a church this morning which is continuing to help support so many grenfell victims. this church has been a key pillar in this local community for years. it's led a pastor called derek olsen, who's been leading this church for 2h years. since the grenfell tower fire, it has become a key hub of support for survivors. on that tragic morning on the 14th ofjune, which was of course when the fire occurred, the church became a makeshift donation centre. in handing out food, clothing and other essentials to survivors. it's been over six months since the fire and it still continues to provide 95 grenfell tower fires with food, tonight, pretty significant night for the church. because it will be hosting a christmas dinnerfor grenville survivors. —— grenfell survivors. it's important to flag this is a dinner for all survivors, regardless of religious background. volunteers are currently preparing halal food for the muslim guests. there was a lot of activity going on, as you can see. we have volunteers, lovely volunteers here, very excited, preparing the dining tables. i assure you this is a church hall. it looks like a dining room at the moment. apart from, well, the religious logos at the back. anyway, hello, how are you feeling about tonight? quite excited. fantastic. it will be good fun. great. we can speak to the pastor of this church, derek wilson. tell us, pastor derrick, about christmas and what else you have planned for survivors tonight? we are very excited for the survivors, putting on this banquet. since we got together with the team about a month ago, thinking what we could do for the survivors, because they are going to still be in the hotel at christmas. we thought, let's put in a banquet as close to christmas as possible. we got on the phone and started to solicit companies to help us. his royal highness provided the christmas decorations. we have casablanca providing the chairs and table. look at this wonderful 5—star spread provided by touching class design. as well as the ritz hotel, waitrose, tesco and quite a few others have come on board. can we just look at this cake? this is an extraordinary looking cake. is this a donation? geena cakes. this is the business. nativity scene, as you can see. it's a work of art. what food do we have on the menu tonight? we have the special guests here, muslims, halalfood being prepared for them we also have turkey. potatoes, rice. we have gateaux. these are being provided by waitrose and tesco. more broadly, how have you been supporting survivors for the past six months? for the past six months this has been a one—stop place where survivors can come for donations, coming from all over the country. clothes, toiletries, and food. also, comfort. spiritual. they find this a safe haven to come to, they feel safe coming in. as long as they need us, we will continue to be here. that was ashleyjohn baptiste for that report. mps are considering a deposit scheme for plastic bottles. they are considering holding firms responsible for the amount of plastic they produce. the uk uses around 13 billion plastic bottles every year. nearly half are put into landfill, incinerated, or left as litter. many ultimately find their way into the sea. the mps are urging the government to introduce a deposit and return scheme for bottles as soon as possible. they want a new rule obliging all cafes, pubs, and restaurants to provide free tap water so people can top up their own refillable bottles. and they want many more public water fountains. the mps also proposed a sliding scale of charges on plastic packaging. so firms using easy to recycle materials pay least, and those using difficult to recyle plastic pay most. ministers say they are consulting with firms to find the best solutions to what they say are serious problems with plastic waste. a policeman in the state of florida has been dragged for more than half a mile clinging to the club door —— cardle, a mile clinging to the club door —— ca rdle, after a mile clinging to the club door —— cardle, after he tried to arrest someone for taking drugs. the whole incident was filmed on his body camera. a police officer in florida putting on protective gloves. this car pulled over with two suspects inside. the officer has spotted what he believes could be heroin and needles, and is about to search the vehicle. but the driver has other ideas. it's going to be in front of cambridge... whoa, whoa! clinging to the open door and with one foot in the car, he is hurtled along at high speed. despite his shouts, the driver shows no sign of slowing down. for the officer, this unexpected ride is only ending one way. amazingly, the officer gets back on his feet, the suspects now long gone, but the video camera is still recording. you're a hero! awesome. the pembroke pines police force later posted this footage on facebook. the officer somehow unharmed. when i got there i saw heroin and syringes... and with the evidence they need to pursue these dangerous drivers... we got the camera. good job. all captured on camera. with one of the busiest atlantic hurricane seasons, and storm ophelia battering parts of the uk, 2017 has been a busy year meteorologically. what you may not know though is that the the weather in space was as tumultuous as it was on earth. nasa recorded biggest the biggest solar flare for over a decade in september, which caused radio blackouts, but why should a flare have such an impact? matt taylor has been to cambridge to get the answer from the british antarctic survey. there are few sites in this world more spectacular than the aurora borealis, the vast displays of covers dancing before the skies, a result of gases in our atmosphere reacting to the arrival of charged particles from the sun. these displays were captured in september, following one of the most powerful solar flares in a decade. it's a pretty side of space weather but other changes above our atmosphere could have a catastrophic impact on our daily lives. one organisation monitoring these dangers in space is the british antarctic survey from the ideally placed ice station. it's a very, very radio quiet... we pick up radio signals in the antarctic, which we can't do elsewhere, we detect special types of radio waves. those charged particles, when they are accelerated at very high energies, they pose a risk of damage to satellites. in fact, they are called killer electrons, because they have been known to kill spacecraft in the past. one of the largest solar flares ever to have been witnessed was the carrington event. named after the british astronomer who observed it in 1859. he sketched what he had seen on the sun, telegraph systems went haywire worldwide. scientists have estimated that something similar today could cost billions, if not trillions, given our ever—increasing reliance on satellite technology. colour coded out here, you can see the first radiation belts. these are the regions of very high energy charged particles. electrons. they are trapped inside the earth's magnetic field. geostationary orbit is out here. in the outer edge. and the gps satellites, they fly pretty much through the heart of this radiation belt where the radiation is most intense. ideally you want satellites to be stationed in between the radiation belts? there is a gap between the inner and outer belt, where the radiation levels are much, much lower. but there are periods where that region gets filled in with high energy charged particles. that is a high—risk period for those spacecraft. that could have a big impact on daily life here on earth, can't it? if you think we rely more and more on our satellites for mobile phones, for tv, for internet, for all kinds of communications, banking, that kind of stuff, yeah, it's a really important, major part of our life in the modern world. so, next time you gaze skywards or simply pick up a smartphone, just think how seemingly small changes in the sun could cause sudden and drastic changes to the way you live your life. matt taylor, bbc news. and you can see more on that, as well as an insight into the fake snow industry, on weather world, tonight at eleven thirty. in a moment a summary of the business news this hour but first, the headlines on bbc news: the foreign secretary, in moscow, says britain can't ignore russian cyber activities but he wants relations to improve. theresa may denies she knew about allegations of inappropriate behaviour against damian green before promoting him , before promoting him, saying she first learnt about them in a newspaper. catalan separatist parties win a majority in the region's elections — plunging spain into renewed crisis. i'm victoria fritz. in the business news this morning: its been a big year in the world of business and economics for the uk. we talk to a leading economist about what it all means and what we can expect for the new year. britain's biggest high street bookie is gobbled up by its online rival — gvc, they own foxybingo. the deal is worth about £4 billion. the deal follows mounting pressure on the industry over betting machines, which have been blasted as the "crack cocaine of gambling" by shadow culture secretary tom watson. and — turning the tide on plastic pollution in our seas. mps says people should pay a deposit on plastic bottles to help cut waste. the report also advocated the provision of free drinking water at all places that serve food and drink. we're coming to the end of the year and it's about time we take a look at where the uk economy stands, and what the prospects are for next year. stocks—wise, many of the stock markets are at record highs, including the ftse 100. but this conceals some broader worries about britain's slowing economy. morale amongst consumers is sinking, inflation seems to be curbing our spending habits. and today it's been revealed that for the first time since 1987, we've been, over the course of the whole year, borrowing more to fund our lives, than we've been saving. confidence among businesses, however, is on the up. business investment is starting to come back. but it does depend how big your company is, and what sort of business you're doing. larger companies report the weakest business prospects as well as the biggest concerns about the impact of brexit. economists have the unenviable task of making predictions about what all of this actually means. simon french is the chief economist at panmure gordon. consumers holding back, small businesses raising a glass to 2018. why do we have a tale of two halves when it comes to the uk economy? good morning, victoria. and we've had quite a lot of turbulence in the uk economy, the devaluation in the sterling and uncertainty of a brexit. all over the last 12—18 months. different businesses are impacted differently by that. some of the smaller companies who are not exporters, who don't worry too much about changes in our trading relationship with europe going forward have seen a real advantage as some of the larger companies, who are worried they are going to have disruption in their product lines, going forward, they are much more cautious in 2018, that explains the difference. earlier this week, imf managing director christine lagarde said british economic growth was likely to slow further next year. assuming she, and others are right, how well prepped are we to manage this decline? well, the uk economy is doing very well on a number of measures. certainly, thejobs market, unemployment at a a0 year low thereabouts. since the financial crisis in 2008—2009, quite a bit of debt paid down, as a proportion of gdp. we go into this potential slowdown in 2018 in fairly decent health. the fly in the ointment, though is that we still don't know what that trading relationship will look like going forward. we also don't know whether a lot of the debt thatis don't know whether a lot of the debt that is being accrued because the generosity of the international investors, whether their confidence is going to be retained against the backdrop of quite difficult political measures. regardless of the outcome and cloud of uncertainty of those negotiations, normal people and business owners have to make decisions. where do they stand going into the next year? it varies business to business. the businesses we are speaking to ourfinding plenty of investable opportunities markets are open to it. we talked about some of the business metrics in the data this morning being quite upbeat. but, really, it's those companies that have been very reliant particularly on international labour and international labour and international trading relationships with the uk as a landing craft that are much more uncertain. that's really going to be the schism we will see again repeated in 2018. thank you. have a very merry christmas. are you prepared for christmas? have you bought the turkey or the nut roast? if you are a vegetarian? if you're leaving it late — you're not alone. today is expected to be the busiest day of the year for food and drink sales. the boss of sainsburys says his supermarket will deliver groceries to one uk household every second. ben thompson has been spending the morning at one of their rivals, stocking up. really busy a8 hours for the big supermarkets. we are expecting to spend a staggering £1.5 billion over the next two days as we stock up on all of that food and drink before the big day. and the supermarkets are the big day. and the supermarkets a re clearly the big day. and the supermarkets are clearly gearing up. interesting, prices are higher than this time last year, we talked a lot about inflation. but still sales expected to be up on last year. jennifer, nice to see you, from morrison's. how do you prepare for this, with the right stuff on the right shelves at the right time? it is a busy time of the year and we are doing everything we can to prepare. to put into context, we will approximately sell twice as much this week compared to a normal week. it is a challenge. 1000 lorries on the road delivering stock to our stores and we have a new online stock ordering syste m we have a new online stock ordering system to make sure we have the right stock on the shelves at the right stock on the shelves at the right time. it is all hands on deck. everyone from head office is in store to support. it is pretty stressful. you need to get it right and also for the customer. talk me through what you are doing. and also for the customer. talk me through what you are doingm and also for the customer. talk me through what you are doing. it is stressful for customers, we are doing everything we can. one of the things we have heard, they can forget a key christmas item on christmas eve and they have forgotten it. primary source, sellotape, batteries for toys. a numberof sellotape, batteries for toys. a number of things sellotape, batteries for toys. a numberof things in sellotape, batteries for toys. a number of things in store to help. we have got some arrows in store and fiona, on the back of her t—shirt, she has a list of the ten most commonly forgotten items. good morning, please show us the list. these are the things people have forgotten. batteries, tinfoil, sticky tape, can resource, napkins, biscuits, brandy butter, bread source, stuffing —— cranberry source. all sorts of things. jennifer, thank you. i have my shopping and that huge list for you, see you in the new year, have a great christmas. nice jumper! staying with all things food and drink. poundland has removed the image of a box of twinings tea from a controversial social media advert — which we will not be showing you on bbc news. it is the closest and quickest way to get myself sacked! you might not have any idea what we're talking about — but it's caused quite a ruckus. twinings says the picture, which uses a teabag, misuses their product. some on twitter have been wondering whether the poundland ads are even real — but the firm has confirmed that they are. if you're completely confused — go take a look at the story on the bbc website. ww. bbc. co. uk/news/business. more twinning than twinings. let me just update you a few more stories before we look at the markets. the price of bitcoin has tumbled by nearly 20% today. this follows a week of warnings from global regulators as well as some high—profile security problems at two cryptocurrency exchanges. the rugby union team, wasps, has overstated its profit by over a million pounds. auditors found that the club had essentially put the money in the wrong part of its accounts, but in doing so, the club has breached the promises its made to its bondholders. its debt levels are now too high. there's a meeting in the new year to see if they can agree revised terms to those that own bonds in the club. and finally, most people lavish their generosity on friends, family and good causes. but some select a more unusual recipient, the exchequer. 15 "patriotic gifts", totalling £180,000, were made to the nation in the tax year to march. the money was used to nibble away at the national debt. but before you think we're a nation of scrooges, we gave £9.7 billion to charity over that same period. ftse 100 touches new record high. it's been supported by buoyant commodity stocks, boosted by a rising oil price, and a late dip in the pound. the lack of volumes exacerbated price moves. lots of traders are already in the pubs. in the city of london, i am sure they are having a christmas drink already! on the corporate news side — ladbrokes coral has agreed to be bought by its rival gvc. the name might not be familiar but they already own sportingbet and foxy bingo brands. have a look at the website for a bit more business news and have a merry christmas, goodbye. the festive season is well under way and today we'd like to introduce you to one of japan's year—ending traditions which sees orchestras and choirs across the country performing beethoven's famous ninth symphony ode to joy. this year, one conductor has gatherered 10,000 singers together. ode to joy singing ode to joy. singing. everyone in fine voice. it's time to check out the weather forecast with simon king. it is the christmas getaway. if you are travelling over the next few days, things are looking fairly benign in terms of weather, probably good news. the only thing that could cause problems is fog. it was quite a misty and foggy picture. interference snow is going to be ha rd to interference snow is going to be hard to find as we go to christmas day. for many, a green or brown christmas. this afternoon, we could see some rain moving into the far north—west of scotland but otherwise cloud around. brighter skies in the north—east of scotland, more chilly compared to the rest of the uk, six or seven celsius but cloudy skies for much of northern ireland, northwest and mid wales, with hill fog over the higher ground. in the east of the pennines, you might see some brightness in the afternoon. but it is mild. 11, 12 celsius for this afternoon, perhaps some patchy drizzle in southern areas. through this evening and tonight, the breeze will pick up across the far north. with that, more rain spreading into the far north of scotland. elsewhere, we are looking at lots of cloud, mist and mark developing into the early hours of saturday morning. —— mistand the early hours of saturday morning. —— mist and murk. the early hours of saturday morning. —— mistand murk. not changing the early hours of saturday morning. —— mist and murk. not changing from what it is at the moment. saturday and into the weekend, this area of high pressure with the air coming in from the mid—atla ntic, high pressure with the air coming in from the mid—atlantic, that is why it is so mild. flirting towards the north of this area of high pressure is this weather front. it is going to make gradual progress further south. the wind picking up further across scotland and northern ireland on saturday. that rain is edging south. for most, again, a very similar picture to what we've had for most of this week. lots of cloud, mist hill fog into this afternoon. temperatures getting into double figures, 10—12. christmas eve, rain spreading its way further south. there could be some showers across wales. perhaps the cloud not quite as low on christmas eve. 11 degrees, not changing very much at all. christmas day, mild weather. that rain will spread further south. and east. this is christmas day. not much snow but if you find it it will be over the highlands. later on in the afternoon as the rain clears away. caldaire digging in behind. some wintry showers but cloudy and with that, some rain spreading in as well. goodbye. this is bbc news. the headlines at 12.00pm. the foreign secretary, in moscow, says britain can't ignore russian cyber activities but he wants relations to improve. where there are areas where we can cooperate and make a difference, on foreign policy, and we certainly should. theresa may denies she knew about allegations of inappropriate behaviour against damian green before promoting him, saying she first learnt about them in a newspaper. the ousted catalan leader has offered to meet spain's prime minister, after separatist parties won a majority in the region's elections a majority in the region's elections. back to blue, the british passport will revert to its old colour when the uk leaves the eu. also — the great christmas getaway begins in earnest today. an estimated 1.3 million drivers are expected to take to the roads on the last working day before christmas. and paying a deposit on plastic bottles. mp‘s think this could cut waste and protect our seas from pollution. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. the foreign secretary, borisjohnson, who is in moscow, has insisted britain cannot ignore issues such as russian cyber activity, events in ukraine and the treatment of gay people in the chechnya region, but said he wanted relations to improve. mrjohnson is in russia to meet his counterpart sergey lavrov. it's the first official visit to moscow by a british foreign secretary for more than five years. borisjohnson has warned russia that britain is ready to retaliate to cyber attacks, but also said he wants to cooperate with president putin on international challenges. in the last hour, the two men appeared together at a news conference, the foreign secretary said the two countries must work together despite their differences. the reason for the length of my absence, is of course that this is a difficult time in the relations between the uk and russia. as sergey himself has just said. we can't ignore those difficulties. we can't pretend that they do not exist, and we don't share a common perspective on events in ukraine, or on the western balkans, or as prime minister theresa may has said in russian activities in cyberspace. we speak up for the lgbt community in chechnya, and elsewhere, as people would expect from us. but, they would also expect that britain and russia as two p five countries, should be able where possible, to coordinate and work together on the issues that matter to our voters, that matter to the people of the world. i believe, having spoken many times to sergey lavrov, and especially after our conversations today, that there are things that we can do together as p5 countries, across the range of dossiers as sergey lavrov has said. earlier i asked our moscow correspondent sarah rainsford whether russia is open to building stronger links with the uk. yes, i think so. i think that russia welcomes this meeting taking place at all, as we know that it is the third attempt for boris johnson to come here to moscow for these talks. i think russia has been sending the message over the last couple of days that it does welcome that fact, and that it is open to renewing dialogue and finding ways to normalise relations. but, ithink, obviously, borisjohnson is saying that that is not going to be easy, and that this meeting will not mean that things are back to normal, or business as usual. there are serious errors of contention. “ areas —— areas of contention. i think those were raised during this press briefing, press conference , following the talks. there were some moments where the atmosphere seemed a little chilly, there were other moments of banter between the two men. but, behind the jokes, i think there were some serious allegations being made. borisjohnson talking boris johnson talking about allegations of meddling. sergey lavrov denying that russia has been involved in the brexit campaign in the uk. interesting that that was the uk. interesting that that was the tone that russia chose to adopt. people were expecting this to be extremely chilly, but i think that russia wants to be seen to be a player on the global stage, though therefore it is important for people like borisjohnson to therefore it is important for people like boris johnson to come to moscow, as far as russia sees it. what's next? what happens next, what is the follow on from this meeting? well, i think the following —— follow—on is that the lines of the communication are now open. i think thatis communication are now open. i think that is what britain was hoping to get from this. i think that is what people take away from this meeting. i think there is now a direct dialogue. going into a... when it comes to issues like syria and north korea, what we now have is two permanent members of the security council. north korea look for areas where russia can be helpful in resolving the stand—off ambitions of north korea. i think russia make the point time again that it does have a position on these issues, and that it is an important player, and i think that is true... we're joined now by sir malcolm rifkind, who served as foreign minister in the mid—1990s. i think the mood going into this meeting was one of caution, but pragmatism. do you think that the channels of the medication are improved compared to a fewer hours ago? lets not get too excited. it is certainly better to talk than not to talk. i think one of the important things in the last two years, is that because we had deep differences with each other over ukraine and crimea and so forth, that we broke off the kind of contact that we should have been even more important than the law. many years ago, some of the said about somebody, i did like that man, that get to know him better. hopefully, that is what is happening. i think what we should realise, is that there are two fundamental types of issues, covered in the talks by sergey lavrov and borisjohnson in the talks by sergey lavrov and boris johnson today. in the talks by sergey lavrov and borisjohnson today. one is the foreign policy issues. ukraine, the middle east and syria. that will ta ke middle east and syria. that will take a long time to sort out. there are real fundamental differences, there. but, more immediately to the point, if russia 12 improved relations, they have got to stop using cyber attacks to a interfere any domestic life of the united kingdom. we had gchq, a national cyber security centre publicly, it's never happened before, they publicly mentioned that they have got hard evidence that russia has been attacking our energy supply, our power stations, our communities and is of the structure, our media and so forth. that is the form of the... we have never done that to russia, and yet, because there is an old kgb background, you think this is the right thing to do, notjust in the uk, but denmark, germany, the united states and other countries. so, how far should britain go in of retaliation and using cyber offensive capability if necessary? this is a very delicate issue. but you're quite right to mention it. we do have, and the russian should realise that we do have a cyber offensive capability, which way, i don't think, very often used. i am not, now days every to the detail of its capability. if the russians continue to interfere, then they must expect a response in kind, which will not only be damaging to relations, but will make it even more difficult than the common approach to international issues than we should be working together on. it is notjust on questions of ukraine and north korea. there are immediate questions, whether or to bea immediate questions, whether or to be a lot of common ground. on nuclear weapons, for example, the possibility, accidental or otherwise, the use of nuclear weapons has become more serious in the last year or so, than at any time in the cold war. or on account of terrorism. there are obvious areas for chris cobb operation, but when you get a constant interference in our —— cooperation. when you get cousin interbred in our domestic life, then that poisons the relationship. —— constant interference in our domestic life. a few years ago they poisoned a british citizen on the streets of london. they must not do that again if they have got any common sense at all. what are your thoughts on the calculation is that the russians will be making in all this. whether they will think it is in their interest to work together all these areas? whether cooperation would be of mutual benefit, versus areas where, as you have mentioned, interference in critical infrastructure in terms of cyber security. there was a conversation sometime ago, with a former russian foreign minister, and he'd take me slightly by surprise, because he said, actually be decision that he has taken —— britain has taken to leave the yukon means that the russians will spend more time, not less time, on relations with the uk. they cannot slump as together with the rest of the year. they have got to assume that britain will make its own conclusions. sometimes it will be the same as europe, and sometimes different. we become a slightly higher warranty at a fellow member of the security council of the united nations. if you look at the map of europe, you got the eu which occupies every part of europe in the centre. you have got russia, on one side, and the united kingdom on the other side, and that means that the uk and russia, in different ways, and with different alliances, and are nevertheless part of regional politics as the main maritime country of western europe. it has to be taken into account by the russians, to a greater degree than their hat in the past. ok, thank you so much. the prime minister has said the first she knew about allegations of inappropriate conduct by former cabinet minister damian green was when she read about them in the press. the comment comes after the woman who made the allegations, kate maltby, told bbc news that she spoke to a senior downing street aide about his behaviour last year — before mr green was promoted. ms maltby complained that mr green "fleetingly" touched her knee in a pub in 2015, and later sent her a "suggestive" text. earlier the prime minister reacted to kate maltby‘s comments. i first learnt of these allegations when kate maltby wrote about these in the times. i recognise that she was extreme distress by what had happened. damian green has recognised that, and he said that in the letter that he wrote to me. he has apologised, and i think that is absolutely the right thing to do. lets talk to our political growth bond on. crucial to this is the timeline of events. absolutely, the suggestion that downing street may have been aware of these gains made by kate maltby before damian green was promoted to first secretary of state. the effective deputy premise, thatis state. the effective deputy premise, that is a serious claim, but one denied by downing street, where the primaries that this morning on a visit to cyprus. making it clear, that theresa may herself was not aware. what kate maltby is alleging, is that she told a senior downing street aide, as she puts it, about her concerns, and that would suggest that those concerns, perhaps were not taken seriously enough, and no action were taken, but remember, that this investigation, into damian green, although it began with these claims by kate maltby, it also expanded into taking into account an investigation into pornography that was found on parliamentary computers, of damian green back into that and eight, and it was that, claims surrounding that that eventually led to damian green's sacking, rather than any connection to these claims made by kate maltby. one area that continues to remain problematic, but from the government's point of view, the point of view of the metropolitan police, and a number of formal officers, is what those former officers, is what those former officers knew, what information they may have held onto, when it released it, in all of this, any investigation. gas. the investigation. gas. the investigation that began by the cabinet office, when kate maltby made these allegations, in the times newspaper about the suggestive text message, bad damian green touching her knee, that then was widened to include investigations to claims made by police officers about the raids that took place almost a decade again, on damian green's parliamentary office. that was when it computer was seized and pornography was bad on that computer. damian green had always strenuously denied both of these separate allegations, the kate maltby allegations, and the claims that he viewed or downloaded pornography on his parliamentary computer, but, in the end, what is cabinet office investigation found, was that he had misled the public, by stating that he wasn't told that pornography was found on his parliament she can be done, when in fa ct, parliament she can be done, when in fact, he had been informed by his lawyers. that is what eventually led to his departure, but yes, questions have turned as to how the police we re have turned as to how the police were able to hold onto this information for almost a decade, and then bring it out into the public domain, when another investigation was carried on. the happy many cultural support of tory mps, and from all —— calling into question the police officers' conduct. the metropolitan police have themselves preferred officers to the information commissioner, who will now investigate as to whether any offences have been committed by those officers. quite a confusing set of events. two separate aspect really of this investigation into damian green, but certainly, as as the claims made by kate maltby, damian green has apologised, he had a lwa ys damian green has apologised, he had always denied that he recognised her version of events, and has apologised for making her feel uncomfortable, certainly that was what the prime was reiterating earlier this morning. thank you very much. former catalan president carles puigdemont has called for direct talks with spanish prime minister mariano rajoy on the region's independence crisis. mr puigdemont made the offer during a news conference in brussels, one day after separatists won joining us now is the bbc‘s tim willcox who is in barcelona... asking mariano rajoy, for talks, how likely do think it is that mariano rajoy will agree to those talks? com pletely rajoy will agree to those talks? completely unlikely. i think there isa completely unlikely. i think there is a zero chance of happening at the moment. this is obviously a compete err repeat message from carles puigdemont, that he is open to dialogue. he is opposed to direct rule on this region, under article 155, balding what they say is an illegal referendum. we are really back to the status quo, from a few months ago. what is extraordinaire, is that this was a big political gamble, by mariano rajoy. he was attending to restore normality, and the appetite the end dependence movement, but it has backed a thickly that type —— but it has spectacularly backfired. they will try and spin it, that the popular vote, if not the number of seats, is in favour of unity with spain, some 52 and a half percent of catalans who voted want to remain part of spain, but the crucial red arithmetic here, in terms of putting together any coalition, is that the only parties that can do that are the secessionist. they are the parties that the two leaders are either in prison in madrid, all ca rles either in prison in madrid, all carles puigdemont, the former president of the catalan parliament, who is in self—imposed expert exile in brussels. he has been speaking in the past couple of hours or so. let's just remind ourselves of what you say. lam i am ready to meet in brussels with mariano rajoy, and i'm ready to do so. mariano rajoy, and i'm ready to do so. because, there has to be new policies in spain and europe for political solutions, not repression. those were the comments of carles puigdemont. germany is calling for reconciliation within the constitution, within the law of spain, and eu law, but it is going to be very difficult to see how you are going to move this process forward , are going to move this process forward, because both sides, are so in fact to be opposed to each other. we are backing to hear from in fact to be opposed to each other. we are backing to hearfrom mariano rajoy within the next hour, after a cabinet meeting, but his options will be limited. this is the worst possible scenario as far as he is concerned. if they have the secessionist grouping in the catalan parliament, in effect opposed to what budget once, will they accept that, as long as they stay within the confides of the law, and soon make another push or declaration of independence. there is a lot to play for, here, but it is not a good result as far as by minister is concerned. the headlines on bbc news: the foreign secretary, in moscow, says britain can't ignore russian cyber activities but he wants relations between the two countries to improve. theresa may denies she knew about allegations of inappropriate behaviour against damian green before promoting him, saying she first learnt about them in a newspaper. the former catalan leader, carles puigdemont, has called for talks with spain's prime minister, after pro—independence parties won a majority in fresh elections in catalonia. it is time now for some of the sporting news. england has selection issues for the rashes. it could for mason crane. the handsome leg—spinner is just 20. if he is preferred to tom curran, he would come in for the injured craig overton. craig does have some expressed in australia, but when he was quit playing great cricket there last year, did you think you would be coming back with england? it's never really crossed my mind. i like to kind of any present, and i was just worried about the next game, and what was going on from there. is never crossed my mind last year, and as it got closer, it has become a bit more real, and i have got to be prepared as if i am going to play. yes, i've got to get my head about it -- yes, i've got to get my head about it —— around it and... rangers have appointed graeme murty as manager until the end of the season. he's been in temporary charge since the sacking of pedro caixinha and had been given thejob until the end of the year at least after the club failed in their attempts to talk to aberdeen boss derek mcinnes about taking over. rangers are currently third in the scottish premiership. stoke manager mark hughes sez he doesn't recognise stories that he has only one game to save hisjob. win in their last eight games and reports have surfaced that defeat in their next match against west brom could spell the end of his four and reports have surfaced that defeat in their next match against west brom could spell the end of his four and a half year reign. hughes sez "the longer it goes on, clearly, the more difficult it gets. but i don't sense any apprehension about where we are." the last time that arsenal amd liverpool met on a friday night it was back in 1989... in the final game of the season the gunners won at anfield to claim the league title in dramatic circumstances. the stakes aren't quite as high this time. but even with both languishing way behind premier league leaders manchester city... jurgen klopp's team don't want to be heading home for christmas with a defeat... we have to be ready for a different challenge on friday. arsenal can create chances, and we need to be spot on, but all the players need to be spot on in a specific part of the game. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more for you in the next hour. the dark blue british passport is to make a return after brexit. the government said what it described as the "classic" colour would be reintroduced from october 2019. here's our home affairs correspondent tom symonds. what does brexit mean? it turns out, brexit means no more european burgundy. brexit means british blue. and on the new passport, the e word is nowhere to be seen. some like this bbc newsnight reporter will rejoice. a passport proclaims not some civil servant's dream but the reality of what we are, where we feel we belong and, for some people, pocket sized burgundy simply isn't british. the passport is something so many people still have fond memories of. the british blue passport was with you for many years. on the travels with the family for many, many years. i am pleased to let people know we are going back to the classic blue and gold design. not quite. the classic 1980s—era passport was bigger, hard—backed. the eu one, definitely easier to slip into a shirt pocket. the new british passport will be broadly of the same design. the government says the new colour will not cost any more. passports are redesigned regularly to make them harder to forge. the blue one will start appearing in 2019 as passports are renewed. tom symonds, bbc news. simon calder is travel editor of the independent and so has got through a fair few passports in his time. you have got one of the current uk passports, the burgundy, and you have got the older style, the dark blue. some people would have seen this. as have a close look at it. this one, in a lot of people, thought, we will get that back. with the old hard cover, because it's not been to work, because the rules on whether a cost —— what a passport must look like, are set by the international civil aviation institution. they say it has got to be on that format. it will be that sort of cover on that design. the feel of the dimensions will be what we have got now, except with a different cover. but, there are a million of us in the summer of 2019, who will get exactly these, but with in nasty words, european union crossed out. that means that they will be able to get burgundy once, while they are running down the stocks of the burgundy passports. that will continue until october 2019, will get the brand—new ones. there is also, going to be, do i have to get a new passport? no, you don't. even if you get one on the very last day that they we are in the europe union, after we leave, we will maintain citizen of a british passport. it is just that the status of it being the european union ‘s passport will end. we must have these passports up until 2029. but, in terms of where that passport can get you, it hasn't a reduced capability, doesn't it? in the sense that what checks and so on that we have to go through at destination. yes, there are lots of countries that britain has a direct bilateral relationship with, and that's when change. but, there are a number of people in which it is bigger seated ona people in which it is bigger seated on a europe—wide basis. those will need to be renegotiated individually, and on of back, we have absolutely no idea what rules will be in place for us going into europe after brexit. there are strong clues from the european commission saying that we may well need to register online, and plays some money. and tell them where we are going to go, before we go on a trip to europe, but there is no certainty as there is about so much as to do with travel. there are lots of things that we still don't know. i know that you have been running an online poll, a twitter poll, which is currently still running, and you are asking people, what is your preferred style of cover, burgundy eu? ordark preferred style of cover, burgundy eu? or dark blue? or couldn't care less ? h ow eu? or dark blue? or couldn't care less? how is that looking? very unscientific survey is, what we have had hundreds of responses. a very solid 50% of people simply could not ca re solid 50% of people simply could not care what their possible cover looks like. among the rest, it is split between people who want to keep the youth, as people are looking for two new dark blue version. thank you very much. the christmas getaway begins — and for millions of motorists heading off for the festivities. you may be packing your bags and getting ready to step out the door. hundred of roadworks are temporarily lifted. helpfully! but there are still warnings of delays as its expected to be one of the busiest days of the year on the roads, as well as on the trains today. let's cross live to our correspondent ian palmer, who is at london's euston station. is it busier than normal, perhaps? —— to judith. -- to judith. they are calling it frantic friday. i don't want to tempt fate, but at the moment, looking at these goons behind me, as you can see, the northwestern motorways a re you can see, the northwestern motorways are moving very well, but it is early on in the day. they are predicting that it will get busier later on. let's find out how busy. i have been talking to roz, you run the centre here, and it is looking ok, but i don't want to tempt fate. you are predicting that the traffic is going to peak later on. tamagotchi dickwella. we're expecting the getaway to start around apm this afternoon. you'll get image of people getting in early getaway, and also last—minute shoppers. the effect that happen due to about eight o'clock this evening. so, between about apm and a pm. there are plenty of motorways that go past the old trafford —— trafford centre. where are the pins went? wed you think it will be particular busy? —— where are the pinpoint, where do think it will be particularly busy? buddy and 56 with the m6, that will be steamy busy, particular iran defied pm must expend time. so, what does —— particularly around the 5pm or 6pm time. highways in don't have lifted about 400 miles... we have opened as many lanes as we possibly can, so that people have got as much chance as they can. there are these restrictions still in place. it is a 50 mph zone around some part of the network. how are you opening the lanes? overnight closures, just talk to me about this scheme is, and how they will be listed? any of the bad ones that we normally do every night, we're not doing any over the christmas period, at all. speed restrictions are on there, and to help keep the traffic moving as well. they should find that normally, if you drive around through the m—16 normally at night, you will find a lot reductions, but they would be that of the christmas period. i know you're keen to get the safety of mass —— safety message out there. what is it you are advising people to avoid that? prepare your vehicle. these are very simple things. check you have got screen wash, check your tyres, check you have got pen plenty of fuel. if unfortunately, you do get some traffic, make we've gotten saxon drinks. most importantly, listen to the traffic news, and check the websites, make sure that you know what is going on. so that you can plan what you're doing. what is going on. so that you can plan what you're doinglj what is going on. so that you can plan what you're doing. i should just ask, it is today, that is the day, pre—the weekend that you're expecting the biggest pence point. after christmas, what are you letting? the return traffic, usually boxing day and the day after. boxing day or your shoppers, so again, ran the trafford centre will be steamy busy. but, probably the 27th, as well. thank you very much, as i have said, i keep saying this, because their readers want to mess things up for the whole country by tempting and watching these roads jammed up, but at the moment, it is looking good. come back to us later on. we're expecting, as rose was saying, the jams to start possibly from about apm onwards. keeping everything crossed it doesn't get worse. thank you. let's ta ke let's take a look at the weather of special interest if you are driving. the weather shouldn't add any complications to your festive getaway. pretty quiet for most of us at the moment. a mild day with some cloud and drizzly rain. that theme continues until christmas. some brightness out there for some of us but not everywhere. this sums it up quite nicely, portsmouth harbour spinnaker tower shrouded in low cloud. a lot of low cloud across the country, some mist and fog. high pressure remaining in charge of our weather towards the cell. more wet weather towards the cell. more wet weather moving into northern areas across the next couple of days. 8-12. across the next couple of days. 8—12. you will see some drizzle coming from that cloud and hill fog especially in the western half of the country. further east, some clear spells continuing overnight. for most, certainly mild, frost free night. a bit chilly in the east of scotla nd night. a bit chilly in the east of scotland under clearer skies. tomorrow, another cloudy day, similarto tomorrow, another cloudy day, similar to today. that breeze developing will just similar to today. that breeze developing willjust help to break up developing willjust help to break up the cloud, particularly across eastern scotland, north—east england. some wet weather in northern and western of scotland. rainfall amounts building up over the next few days. some localised flooding possible across the west of scotland. more dry and mild further south and this continues towards christmas day. this is bbc news, our latest headlines. borisjohnson has held talks in moscow with his russian counterpart, sergei lavrov. the foreign secretary says there are difficulties in relations between london and moscow, but he wants the situation to improve. mrjohnson said differences remained regarding ukraine, and russia's activities in cyberspace. the prime minister has denied that she knew about allegations of inappropriate behaviour made against damian green before she appointed him first secretary of state. theresa may claims she was first made aware by an article she read in the press. the ousted catalan leader, carles puigdemont, has called for talks with spain's prime minister, after pro—independence parties won a majority in the region's elections plunging spain into renewed crisis. the old—style blue british passport is set to make a return in 2019 when britain leaves the eu. it will replace the current burgundy one, which was introduced almost 30 years ago to match other eu passports. it could turn out to be a very busy day for travellers with more than a million people expected to take to the roads on the last working day before christmas. drivers and rail passengers are being warned to expect delays in some parts of the uk, as many begin their christmas getaway. a new migrant crisis is unfolding in greece, where the authorities are struggling to cope with thousands of asylum—seekers now being held on islands close to turkey. the deal reached between the european union and turkey at the height of the migrant crisis last year reduced the number of arrivals, but hasn't stopped them completely. more than 50,000 have arrived since that deal was signed. this special report from the moria camp, on the greek island of lesbos. nestled on a greek hillside, europe's dirty secret — moria camp, bursting at the seams. it's so full, families are forced to sleep outside the wire. all around them on the ground, human excrement. this is europe's migration policy in action. more than 6,000 squeezed into a camp built for a third of that number. today, riyad from algeria didn't get any lunch as the queue was too long. every day. you can't think about yourself, your life, your future. you just think how you can keep yourself alive. nothing else. riyad has been here a year since lodging his asylum claim. waiting stuck in this place grinds many down. he showed a video of a man who was suicidal. that man wants to kill himself. he is crying and screaming. he wants to get out from this prison. there are up to five breakdowns like this every day at the camp. so, at night we went into moria to see for ourselves. what strikes you first is the rubbish everywhere. tents crammed into every corner, because thousands still arrive every day. tents crammed into every corner, because thousands still arrive every month. this family from afghanistan came two months ago. how many of you? 15. how many children? six children. how is the situation in this tent for you? very, very difficult. it's the policy of greece and the eu to keep the arrivals here on the island. processing their claims is slow, so numbers are rising. winter is here and the conditions are grim. this man and his family from iran were re—cooking food given to them for lunch to try to make it more palatable. winter is coming. no showers. toilet? no toilet. we shower inside the tent. with cool water. and moria's toilets are filthy. there's no running water, so people have to use bottled water to try to flush. that's why many choose to defecate in the fields outside. what you have to keep reminding yourself is that we are in europe. this camp has received funding from the eu, this is how europe is treating some of those who are coming here seeking protection. there's no question that it's pretty shocking. and those who can't find space in the camp are even worse off. this is it? a piece of plastic and a couple of blankets are all adnan from syria has. his 17—year—old wife is four months pregnant. officially, pregnant women should be a priority, but the system isn't working. translation: it's terrible. i'm always cold. they gave me a prescription, vitamins for my baby, vitamins and medicine for my baby, but i have no money to buy them and i don't know what to do or who to ask for help. who should help these people? the eu continues to argue about it. jonathan from congo fled here after his father, an opposition politician, was burnt to death by government supporters. translation: after the traumas we have suffered in our own countries, the situation here in moria, this is what pushes people to the edge of breakdown. to the edge of a breakdown. and as the cost of europe's indecisiveness, the desperate and destitute living a sort of limbo, dumped here on the edge of europe. meanwhile, in libya, efforts are intensifiying to repatriate some migrants who have found themselves being sold as slaves. the international organisation for migration has brought back about 1a,000 people to their home countries, and hopes to increase that next year. in ghana, the bbc‘s thomas naadi met one 30—year—old returnee who had been sold into slavery in libya. the taste of freedom back home in ghana. after many months of detention in libya, this 30—year—old left for libya in 2016 in search of greener pastures. but he faced the exact opposite. he had paid traffickers to facilitate his movement to libya through the desert. but he was captured, tortured and sold as a slave. the driver sold me to one ghana man. the man told me i should pay money, he need money in ghana. there are a lot of people, over 100 in a small room, they just beating us, beating us, everyday. i spent almost three months in that room. so, it's not easy. we arejust facing problems over there. some people are dying. if you didn't pay money, what they would do to you is not easy. they would give you a number in ghana, his wife's number in ghana. you call your mother and give the number to your mother and your mother would send over money to his wife, that guy. he told me that i should pay the money, so i called my mum and at that time my mum wasn't feeling well, so she said she has some distant... taxi. she sold the taxi. and some property, she sold it and sent the money to his wife. the government, with support from the international organisation for migration, has helped to repatriate over 300 ghanaian migrants. the iom is also helping to reintegrate the returnees into society. sylvia lopez is the organisation's representative in ghana. we will be working with government agencies but also with other development partners and ngos on the ground. connecting them to educational opportunities, vocational training is extremely important. connecting them with livelihood options. a recent study shows that four in ten ghanaians want to migrate in search of better economic opportunities. the young people in this country travelling to libya is not new. but the biggest concern is that the horrific treatment of their brothers doesn't deter most of them from travelling. the government has promised to create more jobs to stop young ghanaians from leaving the country. but until that is done, people like ahmed will continue making the dangerous journeys to libya. separatist parties have won a majority of seats called by the spanish prime minister after he dissolved the catalonian parliament and government for declaring independence. mariano rajoy had hoped the poll would restore stability but instead spain's political turmoil looks set to continue. gavin lee is in barcelona. the papers were celebrating this morning. she should be the youngest leader of catalonia as president. she is of the citizens party, the pro unity party. not enough to get a majority. that is why this man, who is in self—imposed exile in belgium, ca rles is in self—imposed exile in belgium, carles puigdemont, looking surprised. his togetherfor catalonia party came second. claimed 68 seats in parliament. therefore, they have the ball in their court to try to make up the government because the unity party simply cannot do it. we could see a deja vu of the same parties in power. coalition talks could take some time. in the meantime it is worth me giving you a sense of what it has been like for a lot of people, ordinary people, businesses as well, thousands of companies have left. because of the extraordinary events over the past few weeks. this is the managing director of leonardo hotels across spain. in barcelona, a lot of people are interested to get a sense of the effect for you and your business, given the headlines around the world and what has been happening. i cannot lie, there was some economical effect in the last few months. it went down a bit in the income that is not that there was a revolution over. barcelona is a strong, too wristed cobra. with sagrada familia, goudie. ifi if i have 85% occupancy instead of 95% it is not as bad as last year but it is getting better. october was more impacted. since then, things are in line. 85%, 90%, you are losing 10% of cost and potentially. since october, that is when there was the band referendum and headline spread because of police violence, that has had a direct effect on business here? that was in october. the worst point was in october. november, december, we didn't have as much as expected like we had last year. but it is not that there is no business here, business is fine and tourists are coming. there is no revolution on the street. let me ask you about the result last night, fragmented, seven parties and ultimately nobody can get a majority. it looks like separatists potentially back in power. how does it affect you and your business from the result last night? it is still early to tell. it is important to have stability. if it is more of the same that is ok. maybe it is a long process. this is a thriving region. i appreciate you talking to us, there is a van trying to get in. not just businesses that ordinary people who said headlines are putting people off barcelona as a region, catalonia as a region. by february, the next deadline the government has two essentially get itself together, the ball is in the court of ines aramadez. but it doesn't look like she has any support. it will be down to ca rles she has any support. it will be down to carles puigdemont. the headlines on bbc news: the foreign secretary, in moscow, says britain can't ignore russian cyber activities but he wants relations between the two countries to improve. theresa may denies she knew about allegations of inappropriate behaviour against damian green before promoting him , before promoting him, saying she first learnt about them in a newspaper. the former catalan leader, carles puigdemont, has called for talks with spain's prime minister, after pro—independence parties won a majority in fresh elections in catalonia. mps are calling for an introduction for a deposit scheme for plastic bottles to help protect pcs from pollution. they are considering making firms that use plastic packaging financially responsible for the waste they create. the uk uses around 13 billion plastic bottles every year. nearly half are put into landfill, incinerated, or left as litter. many ultimately find their way into the sea. the mps are urging the government to introduce a deposit and return scheme for bottles as soon as possible. they want a new rule obliging all cafes, pubs, and restaurants to provide free tap water so people can top up their own refillable bottles. and they want many more public water fountains. the mps also proposed a sliding scale of charges on plastic packaging. so firms using easy—to—recycle materials pay least, and those using complex materials pay most. ministers say they are consulting with firms to find the best solutions to what they acknowledge are serious problems with plastic waste. roger harrabin, bbc news. well, as christmas approaches the uk‘s hospitals are gearing up for their biggest cooking day of the year. hundreds of thousands of patients will be served a full turkey roast, perfectly timed. john maguire has been to southport hospital to see how they manage it. they are cooking with gas here at southport hospital, that on the menu today. it looks to me like a beef stew. it is going to be a huge day for the staff here on monday. they will be cooking christmas lunch for the a50 patients, 250 staff that are working on monday. they will get through something like 3,500 brussels sprouts, love them or loathe them, and 30 turkeys, but across england, a00,000 patients, the nhs is britain's biggest christmas dinner provider. i just want to show you this joint of beef that has been in the oven for a couple of hours. that is going to be absolutely gorgeous. the system, how it works these days, in most hospitals, then then go into these trays, and are placed on the tray, and later on, when lunch service really gets going, there is a team here that makes up all of the trays. they then go the large trolleys, here, to be taken on to the wards. so, everybody gets exactly what they want. it's important of course, for a hospital, that people get the correct food. let's talk to dawn, stirring away, there. what is for lunch, dawn? this is the healthy option. it is a lovely vegetable and sweet potato curry. dairy and gluten—free. preferred by our chef of the week, katie. obviously, that is for the staff. patients have a standard one week menu, but if you are on a long stay, or you are on the spinal unit, which is usually long stay, then there are extra choices. we also have renal diet, gluten—free, low residue, ethnic, lots of stuff going on. but, actually, the most popular is high—protein. they need a lot of extra calories to build themselves back up again. a lot of people in the hospital are quite old and frail. so, it's important that the food is good and, i know that we spoke to a couple of patients yesterday... no salt, we tried to obviously keep saturated fat and everything like that out. full of nutrients. well, it smells delicious. this is what the patients we spoke to on the wards, yesterday, had to say about the food, here. it's something you look forward to. to me, as far as i'm concerned... it is delicious. a surprise, because i had always heard that hospital food, you know, a bit iffy. every meal is gorgeous. it really is. you're looking busy. what are you doing? chopping up parsley? what's this for? for the white sauce. fish and parsley sauce. yes. now, you are not working on christmas day, are you? but on average, here, you serve something like 900 people. how do you manage to get the food out so efficiently? just teamwork. you work as a team. it helps the drive. everything goes smooth, you know. it's nice. thank you, paul. it really is. it runs very smoothly, here. you pop around there, steve, the cameraman, and i'm just going to look round and see the fresh food already been delivered as were here. alan, come and show us what is in the soup, if you could? because, this is, certainly smells absolutely fabulous. what have we got here? this is potato and watercress soup. it is gluten free, but we are going to put a bit of cream in it, but we don't use salt at all. no salt at all? just fresh, everything is fresh, there. we will add vegetables for taste. vegetables, and pepper, and it will taste good later on. very fresh! the seal of approval. yes. of course, of course. i would recommend that even for my kids. this is healthy. this is healthy. yes, delicious. so, if you're in southport hospital, and you have ordered that vegetable soup, you are in for a real treat. we willjust give you a quick idea about what people are going to be here if they are unfortunate enough, i suppose, to be in hospital on christmas day. this is going to be their christmas lunch. soup. delicious christmas pudding for desert, and just take a look at this. the piece de resistance, christmas dinner turkey with all the trimmings. hopefully everyone will be enjoying their christmas lunches. with one of the busiest atlantic hurricane seasons, and storm ophelia battering parts of the uk, 2017 has been a busy year meteorologically. what you may not know though is that the the weather in space was as tumultuous as it was on earth. nasa recorded the biggest solar flare for over a decade in september, which caused radio blackouts, but why should a flare have such an impact? matt taylor has been to cambridge to get the answer from the british antarctic survey. there are few sites in this world more spectacular than the aurora borealis, the vast displays of covers dancing before the skies, a result of gases in our atmosphere reacting to the arrival of charged particles from the sun. these displays were captured in september, following one of the most powerful solar flares in a decade. it's a pretty side of space weather but other changes above our atmosphere could have a catastrophic impact on our daily lives. one organisation monitoring these dangers in space is the british antarctic survey from their ideally placed ice station. it's very, very radio quiet... we pick up radio signals in the antarctic, which we can't do elsewhere, we detect special types of radio waves. those charged particles, when they are accelerated at very high energies, they pose a risk of damage to satellites. in fact, they are called killer electrons, because they have been known to kill spacecraft in the past. one of the largest solar flares ever to have been witnessed was the carrington event. named after the british astronomer who observed it in 1859. he sketched what he had seen on the sun, telegraph systems went haywire worldwide. scientists have estimated that something similar today could cost billions, if not trillions, given our ever—increasing reliance on satellite technology. colour coded out here, you can see the first radiation belts. these are the regions of very high energy charged particles. electrons. they're trapped inside the earth's magnetic field. geostationary orbit is out here. in the outer edge. and the gps satellites, they fly pretty much through the heart of this radiation belt where the radiation is most intense. ideally, you want satellites to be stationed in between the radiation belts? there is a gap between the inner and outer belt, where the radiation levels are much, much lower. but there are periods where that region gets filled in with high energy charged particles. that is a high—risk period for those spacecraft. that could have a big impact on daily life here on earth, can't it? if you think we rely more and more on our satellites for mobile phones, for tv, for internet, for all kinds of communications, banking, that kind of stuff, yeah, it's a really important, major part of our life in the modern world. so, next time you gaze skywards or simply pick up a smartphone, just think how seemingly small changes in the sun could cause sudden and drastic changes to the way you live your life. matt taylor, bbc news. and you can see more on that, as well as an insight into the fake snow industry, on weather world, tonight at 11.30pm. i will be back with you on boxing day. in a moment the news at one with jane hill. first the weather with sarah keith lucas. good afternoon. with christmas just around the corner, now, the weather is not looking particularly wintry, but in fact, it is staying quite mild. well, it's been a mostly cloudy day, but there has been a bit of sunshine. this was the view in st andrews, in fife earlier. so, some clearer skies, there. but, as we move towards christmas, it should stay mostly cloudy and mild. turning quite breezy, too, and there will be some rain in the far north, which could be problematic for a time for scotland. that rain is courtesy of this weather front. that is going to be approaching from the north, but for the meantime, it is this area of high pressure that'll be dominating our weather over the next 2a hours or so. so, a cloudy picture, as we head into the evening hours. a lot of low cloud with drizzle on the hills, and fog around north—western part of the country in particular.s the breeze picking up across scotland, and some rain pushing in from the northern isles. drier across most other parts of the country, and a frost—free, slightly gloomy start to your saturday morning, but let's take a look at saturday. it will be on improving sort of day. it will be an improving sort of day. if you are heading out for some last—minute shopping, there will be some rain pushing in across the northern isles of scotland, turning windy here too. central and southern scotland, though, drier with some bright spells from the word go. a few misty patches across northern ireland, and we are likely to see some hill fog and a bit of drizzle in parts of northern england. brighter skies towards the east of the pennines, and a largely dry start, too, for the south—east of england, fairly cloudy, and some mist and fog as we head towards the south—west of england and wales, too. the cloud and the fog should tend to break up a bit as that breeze develops, heading through the course of the day, so, some brighter intervals, for parts of northern ireland, into southern scotland, and down towards the south—east of england, too, further west across england and wales, we should keep the cloud, for, i think, much of the day. but, it is going to be mild, once again. 10—12 degrees. across scotland, though, that rain moves in from the north, and it might start to be quite persistent across parts of western scotland. that story continues into christmas eve. we have got this band of rain slowly shifting a bit further south, into northern ireland, and southern scotland, too. further south, much of england and wales largely dry, breezy and again mild. by christmas day, could be a few localised flooding problems across the west of scotland, some snow flurries on top of the highest hills, here, but rain pushing a little bit further south into northern england and western wales, drier to the south and east. britain and russia say relations between their two countries are at their worst for many years. boris johnson, meeting his counterpart in moscow, says both sides want the situation to improve. the there is no point in simply sitting on the sidelines and complaining about each other. we have to engage. we'll ask what the foreign secretary's visit can achieve. also this lunchtime. theresa may denies knowing about allegations made by kate maltby about damian green before he was promoted to first secretary of state. separatist parties celebrate winning a slim majority in the snap catalonia election — a setback for spain's government in madrid. 30 years of burgundy passports is coming to an end — the government confirms british passports will revert to blue when we leave the eu.