good morning. we have got a wintry mix of rain, sleet and snow. quite a lot of ice around. slippery surfaces and the potential for a travel disruption. more details in ten minutes. good morning. it s tuesday, 29th december. our top story. hospitals in england are now treating more coronavirus patients than at any other point in the pandemic, as numbers surpass the peak that was seen in april. it once again shows the strain that the nhs is under, with the head of nhs england saying health workers are back in the eye of the storm . keith doyle reports. health services across the uk are being stretched as they deal with increasing numbers of patients with covid. in london, accident and emergency departments are reporting intense pressure. in scotland, doctors say there is a danger that services will be overwhelmed. in wales, the situation in hospitals is described as incredibly challenging. and in northern ireland, the health minister said the next few days is a crucial period.
studies reveals two thirds of people recently infected with omicron say they have had the virus before. pcr tests of about 100,000 volunteers in the react study also showed that1 in 23 people had covid in the first three weeks of january. the uk and us threaten sanctions against russia, if president putin decides to invade ukraine. and in northern ireland, proof of covid 19 status to enter bars, restaurants and cinemas will be scrapped later today as restrictions begin to ease. and also coming up this hour.. the siblings who have been separated while in the care system calls for a new law to keep them together. i m ben brown live in downing street. the official inquiry into gatherings at downing street and in whitehall during lockdown is believed to be complete and could be submitted to number 10 within hours. it s understood the senior civil servant, sue gray, has evidence including photographs and whatsapp messages, and wants the report to be published in full. borisjoh
for israeli hostages. presidentjoe biden had said a pause in fighting could begin as soon as monday. the talks will try to reach a ceasefire agreement that can be implemented before the start of ramadan, on the 10th of march. the draft framework would include a 40 day pause in all military operations. reports suggest 400 palestinian prisoners which israel says are serving sentences for terror related crimes could be exchanged for forty female and elderly israeli hostages. under the proposed ceasefire, hospitals in gaza would be repaired, while 500 aid trucks would enter gaza each day. but the israeli prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, has vowed to go ahead with an assault on gaza s southernmost city, rafah, regardless of any agreement. 0ur middle east correspondent yolande knell sent the latest from jerusalem. the scramble to survive. hungry crowds gathering on the beachfront in gaza city after hearing aid lorries were heading there, loaded with flour. translation: there i
by external factors, they said. midtylland also confirmed that a team of medical experts are still trying to make a diagnosis and initiate the correct treatment. the chelsea manager, mauricio pochettino, says he does have a very good relationship with the club s owner but his future is not in his hands. he, and his team, have come under criticism after losing the league cup final to a very young liverpool side at the weekend. it is not in my hands. it is not in my hands. we have a very good relationship, with the owners and the sporting director, but it is up to them. it is always about them. it is not the coach s decision. meanwhile, manchester united manager erik ten hag has leapt to the defence of his winger anthony. the brazilian has endured a tough season so far scoring just once in 26 appearance and has struggled to live up to his £80 million price tag. i m sure, i m very confident he will do well in the future, and i know he is resilient, he is a character, and
couple of times today. we ve also seen chan tien, the female panda. a big moment for people getting this final opportunity to say goodbye to these two giant pandas. all final opportunity to say goodbye to these two giant pandas. these two giant pandas. all right, lorna, these two giant pandas. all right, lorna. thank these two giant pandas. all right, lorna, thank you these two giant pandas. all right, lorna, thank you very these two giant pandas. all right, lorna, thank you very much - these two giant pandas. all right, l lorna, thank you very much indeed and chris fawkes has the weather forecast. how chilly is it for those pandas in scotland? pandas in scotland 7 chilly pandas in scotland? chilly for them, chilly for us. we ve got temperatures will be below freezing and snow fall affecting north east england and eastern areas of scotland and this was cornwall just earlier this morning, with some quite thick snow on the ground. take a look at this chart. you can see ho