milder and the death rate significantly lower, though experts caution more data is needed. here in the uk, there s a rush to offer booster covid vaccines to every adult in england, in response to the rapid spread of the omicron variant. it follows prime minister boris johnson s statement last night where he said there was a tidal wave of omicron coming . now on bbc news, a response by the leader of the opposition to yesterday s statement from the prime minister. good evening. christmas is a time for family, friends and neighbours. to be with them, yes, but also to care for them and protect them. this christmas, once again, we are at a critical moment in our fight against covid. the new variant, omicron, is spreading fast. the argument that we don t know enough about it doesn t stack up. we may not be certain how dangerous it is but we do know that lives are at risk. and again, our nhs is at risk of being overwhelmed. if that happens, more people will die. so, we must all do
the government to account in the coming weeks. that is also in the national interest. meanwhile, i m asking all of you to do your bit, too. at this time, we need leadership, leadership that the country can trust. it s a big national effort and we all have our part to play. get britain boosted. protect the nhs and save lives. and from my family to yours, i wish you a very happy christmas. that was a response by the leader of the opposition to the prime minister s statement yesterday. ben wright in westminster dtl. what would you pick out as being most significant of that?- what would you pick out as being most significant of that? well, this certainly wasn t most significant of that? well, this certainly wasn t a most significant of that? well, this certainly wasn t a party political - certainly wasn t a party political pick that he was making in the traditional sense. the labour leader made it clear that in his words, it was the patriotic duty of his party to support the
against so called islamic state in iraq s second city, mosul. they ve taken the city s airport, a key staging point in the battle to drive militants from the western half of the city. our correspondent quentin sommerville was there as iraqi government troops fought their way in. before the attack came the rockets and artillery. it s day five of the offensive to retake western mosul. slowly, the forces make their way past a suspected is car bomb, torched en route. these armoured columns are now moving forward to mosul airport. the attack for the airport is under way. all night long, we ve heard coalition aircraft and iraqi artillery slam this area just to the north of us. the onslaught had cleared this village of is fighters and civilians. it s eerily quiet as the men proceed on foot. a local man tells the special forces there were up to 100 is here yesterday. they ve hidden bombs all over. so the men took to higher ground. and we followed at a safe distance. as the day went o
The nhs that has done so much good since labourfounded it almost 75 years ago. as leader of her majesty s opposition, it is my solemn duty to challenge the government where necessary. the health, safety and security of our nation and its people must always be the first priority. that s why we will always support measures designed to protect public health. that includes the measures in plan b. we are a patriotic party. and it is our patriotic duty to vote for these measures to ensure that they go through. in doing so, we are supporting the nhs and supporting our country. but rest assured, i will still hold