0:00:04 > 0:00:06Winter piles on the pressure - the government apologises
0:00:06 > 0:00:09to patients as thousands of non-urgent procedures
0:00:09 > 0:00:12are postponed.
0:00:12 > 0:00:15More than 50,000 people in England could now face delays in treatment
0:00:15 > 0:00:19to allow the NHS to deal with the most urgent cases.
0:00:19 > 0:00:23I want to apologise for the fact we have regrettably had to postpone
0:00:23 > 0:00:26a number of operations.
0:00:26 > 0:00:31We are trying to do it differently this year.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34Labour says the NHS is underfunded, understaffed and in crisis.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37Also tonight.
0:00:37 > 0:00:39Blowing through the UK - Storm Eleanor brings winds of up
0:00:39 > 0:00:41to 100 miles per hour, leaving thousands of
0:00:41 > 0:00:48homes without power.
0:00:48 > 0:00:53I'm reporting live from Portree in North Cornwall where part of the
0:00:53 > 0:00:56harbour wall collapsed this morning and we are now waiting anxiously for
0:00:56 > 0:01:00high tide.
0:01:00 > 0:01:01My nuclear button's bigger than yours -
0:01:01 > 0:01:04Donald Trump's boast to North Korea after its leader says America
0:01:04 > 0:01:05is in range of a strike.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08A man dubbed a hero at the Manchester Arena attack now
0:01:08 > 0:01:10admits stealing from two of its victims.
0:01:10 > 0:01:13The bionic hand with a sense of touch - we have an exclusive
0:01:13 > 0:01:16report on the woman who's been testing it out for scientists
0:01:16 > 0:01:17in the real world.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20Proud parents - the UK's first polar bear cub for 25 years is born
0:01:20 > 0:01:23at the Highland Wildlife Park, though it's not yet been seen.
0:01:23 > 0:01:26And coming up on Sportsday on BBC News, we look ahead
0:01:26 > 0:01:27to tonight's London derby.
0:01:27 > 0:01:29Arsene Wenger's Arsenal host rivals Chelsea in the fight
0:01:29 > 0:01:38for Champions League football.
0:01:53 > 0:01:54Good evening.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57The Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has apologised to patients
0:01:57 > 0:02:00after hospitals were told to delay tens of thousands of non-urgent
0:02:00 > 0:02:03operations and out-patinet appointments in England this month
0:02:03 > 0:02:06so the health service can cope with the winter pressures.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08The Prime Minister acknowledged the decision was "disappointing
0:02:08 > 0:02:12and frustrating" for all those affected but she insisted
0:02:12 > 0:02:17that the NHS was better prepared for this winter "than ever before".
0:02:17 > 0:02:20Senior doctors, though, have warned that they're struggling to cope.
0:02:20 > 0:02:22Labour says the NHS is in crisis.
0:02:22 > 0:02:31Our health editor, Hugh Pym, has the latest.
0:02:32 > 0:02:37Cancelled operations bring new worries for patients like Anna. She
0:02:37 > 0:02:40is due to have facial reconstruction surgery. That an appointment next
0:02:40 > 0:02:43week but that is in doubt and her hopes of the operation happening in
0:02:43 > 0:02:48January seem likely to be dashed. It's impacting my life quite a bit.
0:02:48 > 0:02:55I drool quite a lot now which is quite frustrating, and I am very
0:02:55 > 0:02:58uncomfortable with it. I think it will improve my quality of life
0:02:58 > 0:03:03quite a lot to have it.Today the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt pushed
0:03:03 > 0:03:07for explanations, said sorry to those patients affected.I want to
0:03:07 > 0:03:13apologise for the fact we have had to regrettably postpone a number of
0:03:13 > 0:03:17operations. We are trying to do it differently this year. Last year we
0:03:17 > 0:03:21cancelled a lot of operations at the very last minute so people got a
0:03:21 > 0:03:27call the day before to say their operation wasn't going ahead. That
0:03:27 > 0:03:30is obviously very undesirable. We want to do it in a much more planned
0:03:30 > 0:03:35way.Surely the NHS, be running properly and the government if you
0:03:35 > 0:03:39have to cancel a months worth of operations.I think it's important
0:03:39 > 0:03:43to recognise that these pressures are pressures we are seeing all over
0:03:43 > 0:03:48the UK in Scotland and Wales, where the NHS is being run by different
0:03:48 > 0:03:52political parties.The Prime Minister said she recognised that
0:03:52 > 0:03:56for people who had had their operations postponed it was
0:03:56 > 0:04:01disappointing and frustrating. She said NHS staff were doing a
0:04:01 > 0:04:04fantastic job. NHS England and the government is a extensive
0:04:04 > 0:04:08preparations for winter were carried out but if that is the case, the
0:04:08 > 0:04:11question is why were official instructions and cancelling
0:04:11 > 0:04:16nonurgent operations extended this week? Here at St Mary 's in west
0:04:16 > 0:04:19London, they've planned to treat more people without needing
0:04:19 > 0:04:23overnight stays. The idea is to keep beds free for those who really need
0:04:23 > 0:04:27them. It's been tougher than they expected because patients this year
0:04:27 > 0:04:32are sicker than they were.The numbers are largely the same but the
0:04:32 > 0:04:36intensity of the illnesses we've been seeing this year is very, very
0:04:36 > 0:04:40significant. We've really had to work very hard to find appropriate
0:04:40 > 0:04:44places to nurse patients who have got serious conditions. I think a
0:04:44 > 0:04:49number of things play into this. The weather, we know we are beginning to
0:04:49 > 0:04:54see an increase in the number of flu cases and all of that builds up to
0:04:54 > 0:04:58quite a problem for us on Sundays. Throughout the day there were
0:04:58 > 0:05:02reports across the country of the highest level of stress that
0:05:02 > 0:05:06hospitals. Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre asked patients to
0:05:06 > 0:05:10avoid A&E because of numbers. Southend and Plymouth were also said
0:05:10 > 0:05:14to be under extreme pressure.When you've got ambulances backed up
0:05:14 > 0:05:17outside hospitals, hospital saying they are overcrowded and people
0:05:17 > 0:05:23waiting on trolleys for hours and hours it is a crisis. It's because
0:05:23 > 0:05:27of seven years of underfunding and cuts to our NHS, and the government
0:05:27 > 0:05:32burying their heads in the sand.NHS Scotland said there had been a 20%
0:05:32 > 0:05:36increase in A&E visits before Christmas. The Lanarkshire health
0:05:36 > 0:05:39board has cancelled non-urgent procedures. The Welsh government
0:05:39 > 0:05:43said thousands of hours had been lost for ambulance crews waiting to
0:05:43 > 0:05:47hand over patients at hospitals. It is early in the New Year and the NHS
0:05:47 > 0:05:52across the UK is already struggling, and it's patients who are in the New
0:05:52 > 0:05:54Year and the NHS across the UK is already struggling, and it's
0:05:54 > 0:05:58patients who are injuring the consequences.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00Storm Eleanor has swept across the UK, causing flooding,
0:06:00 > 0:06:02power cuts, damage to homes, and disruption to motorists.
0:06:02 > 0:06:05Gusts of up to 100 miles per hour were reported in the Pennines,
0:06:05 > 0:06:07and thousands of homes were left without power across
0:06:07 > 0:06:09Northern Ireland, Wales, the Midlands and South West England.
0:06:09 > 0:06:16Chris Page reports.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19After the swirl of the storm, the sound of sauce was never far in
0:06:19 > 0:06:25Northern Ireland today -- the sound of saws. In south Belfast Eleanor
0:06:25 > 0:06:29brought down a tree, garden fence and power lines. Residents said they
0:06:29 > 0:06:33had never seen whether caused such destruction.All of a sudden the sky
0:06:33 > 0:06:39lit up and these power lines touched each other and it was like Guy
0:06:39 > 0:06:46Fawkes. It was box, it was unbelievable.As well as frightening
0:06:46 > 0:06:47experiences, there were many dramatic sides. The workers whose
0:06:47 > 0:06:54job it is to bring back normality have had a huge challenge. Engineers
0:06:54 > 0:06:59have restored electricity to most of the 25,000 homes which lost their
0:06:59 > 0:07:03supply during the height of the winds.We have to bring in crews to
0:07:03 > 0:07:08cut the trees, we have to bring in digging crews to dig out polls and
0:07:08 > 0:07:13replaced polls and free string lines. All of this takes time and
0:07:13 > 0:07:16effort, and essentially to restore small numbers of customers at a
0:07:16 > 0:07:22time.The damage to homes, trees and the fallen power lines all showed
0:07:22 > 0:07:26there was a danger to people's lives last night as Storm Eleanor blew
0:07:26 > 0:07:30through. But most followed the official advised to stay indoors and
0:07:30 > 0:07:33in Northern Ireland no one has been injured as a result of the severe
0:07:33 > 0:07:38weather. But there were some risk-takers, as the storm swept
0:07:38 > 0:07:42across the UK and Ireland. In Galway one driver tried to make it through
0:07:42 > 0:07:51as PC invaded the roads. -- the sea. The Channel Islands took a
0:07:51 > 0:07:53hammering, the seafront and jersey was an unappealing place to be when
0:07:53 > 0:07:59Eleanor hit. In Clevedon, Somerset, the promenade was out of bounds and
0:07:59 > 0:08:02the emergency services were on stand-by as the winds whipped up the
0:08:02 > 0:08:07waves. And Wales also suffered. Anglesey was pounded by fierce gusts
0:08:07 > 0:08:13and ferocious tides. But the weather was at its worst and the other side
0:08:13 > 0:08:18of the Irish Sea. In Belfast and ruin areas, roads have been
0:08:18 > 0:08:24unblocked, Dave Breacker year dub and electricity mostly back.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28However, people here will remember storm Eleanor for a long time. Chris
0:08:28 > 0:08:31Page, BBC News, Belfast.
0:08:31 > 0:08:32Well let's go to Cornwall now.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35Jon Kay, the storm swept through there last night -
0:08:35 > 0:08:38but it's not over yet?
0:08:38 > 0:08:41It's not. People here are waiting nervously to find out what tonight
0:08:41 > 0:08:47's high tide in the next few minutes could bring. It was about 4am that
0:08:47 > 0:08:52people heard a crack and then a crash and then about 20 metres of
0:08:52 > 0:08:56the harbour wall, the old harbour wall which protects this community
0:08:56 > 0:09:01collapsed into the sea. This is what it looked like in the daytime. It
0:09:01 > 0:09:07left a great big gap in the defences which are meant to protect this
0:09:07 > 0:09:10small coastal community. The authorities have worked all day to
0:09:10 > 0:09:15try to work out how to do it. They cleared some of the rubble away and
0:09:15 > 0:09:19try to create a bank which will give some kind of protection. It's too
0:09:19 > 0:09:23big a gap to fill in by high tide tonight. They've cleared people
0:09:23 > 0:09:28away. It is as close as we are allowed to be. Members of the
0:09:28 > 0:09:31Environment Agency are here, the Coast Guard are here and people who
0:09:31 > 0:09:35live in the houses around here are urged to go to a nearby community
0:09:35 > 0:09:39centre to take shelter to make sure their homes and properties are safe.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42We spoke to people who put their Christmas presents upstairs to try
0:09:42 > 0:09:46to protect them against any possible flooding. The good news is at the
0:09:46 > 0:09:50moment it seems the tide is lower than it might have been. Hopefully
0:09:50 > 0:09:54it won't be too bad. There's more bad weather to come in the next
0:09:54 > 0:09:57couple of days. This part of the world knows all about bad weather
0:09:57 > 0:10:02but it's not over yet. Sophie.Thank you.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05President Trump has boasted on Twitter that his nuclear button
0:10:05 > 0:10:07is "much bigger" and "more powerful" than North Korea's.
0:10:07 > 0:10:11It was in response to a warning from North Korea's leader
0:10:11 > 0:10:14Kim Jong-Un that America was in range of a nuclear strike.
0:10:14 > 0:10:16Meanwhile North and South Korea have conducted their first direct
0:10:16 > 0:10:18communication in nearly two years using a dormant hotline
0:10:18 > 0:10:22run by the Red Cross.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24Our correspondent Rupert Wingfield-Hayes reports
0:10:24 > 0:10:30from the South Korean capital, Seoul.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33On Monday, Kim Jong-Un welcomed in the New Year with a more
0:10:33 > 0:10:36conventional display of fireworks than the sort he's been firing
0:10:36 > 0:10:40off throughout 2017.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42But anyone who was hoping his New Year message would carry
0:10:42 > 0:10:48an offer of peace and goodwill was quickly disappointed.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51"The entire United States is within range of our nuclear
0:10:51 > 0:10:54weapons", he said, "and the nuclear button is always on my desk".
0:10:54 > 0:10:59"This is reality, not a threat".
0:10:59 > 0:11:01That was all the excuse President Donald Trump needed,
0:11:01 > 0:11:04and as we have now come to expect, his response came
0:11:04 > 0:11:09in a Twitter tirade.
0:11:30 > 0:11:34So 2018 has begun pretty much as 2017 ended, with the president
0:11:34 > 0:11:36of the United States and the dictator of North Korea
0:11:36 > 0:11:39hurling threats at each other, while the rest of the world looks
0:11:39 > 0:11:43on mostly in dismay.
0:11:43 > 0:11:48But here in Seoul, 2018 has begun at least with a glimmer of hope,
0:11:48 > 0:11:51because as of this afternoon, North and South Korea are talking
0:11:51 > 0:11:55to each other again by telephone.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57Out of the blue, Pyongyang suddenly reconnected the hotline
0:11:57 > 0:11:59between the two Koreas that Kim Jong-Un had personally ordered
0:11:59 > 0:12:05cut-off two years ago.
0:12:05 > 0:12:09In his New Year address, Kim also said he was prepared
0:12:09 > 0:12:12to send a team to take part in the Winter Olympics
0:12:12 > 0:12:16which begin here in South Korea in a little over a month.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19The US State Department accused North Korea of attempting to drive
0:12:19 > 0:12:23a wedge between the US and its South Korean ally.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26And it could be right.
0:12:26 > 0:12:30But for the 20 million people of Seoul who live within firing
0:12:30 > 0:12:33range of North Korea's artillery, any sign that Pyongyang is willing
0:12:33 > 0:12:38to talk is a New Year gift they will welcome.
0:12:38 > 0:12:43Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, BBC News, in Seoul.
0:12:43 > 0:12:45Six people have been arrested on suspicion of belonging
0:12:45 > 0:12:48to the banned far-right terror group National Action.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51The five men and one woman were detained during raids
0:12:51 > 0:12:53in Cambridge, Banbury, Wolverhampton,
0:12:53 > 0:12:56Leicester and Stockport.
0:12:56 > 0:13:00All six are being held at a police station in the West Midlands.
0:13:00 > 0:13:04A homeless man who was hailed a hero for helping some of the injured
0:13:04 > 0:13:07at the Manchester Arena bombing, has pleaded guilty to stealing
0:13:07 > 0:13:10a purse and a mobile phone from victims of the attack.
0:13:10 > 0:13:13Chris Parker appeared at Manchester Crown Court earlier today.
0:13:13 > 0:13:23Danny Savage is outside the Manchester Arena for us.
0:13:23 > 0:13:27Chris Parker became famous after the Manchester Arena bombing. He was the
0:13:27 > 0:13:30homeless guy who rushed in to help people, that's what everyone
0:13:30 > 0:13:33believed because that's what he told everyone in the aftermath of the
0:13:33 > 0:13:42bombing. But afterwards, when investigators started looking at the
0:13:42 > 0:13:47CCTV, a different story began to unfold. Although he did help some
0:13:47 > 0:13:50people, he undid all of that good by stealing from some of the victims.
0:13:50 > 0:13:55The CCTV showed him going to one woman, Pauline Healey, repeatedly
0:13:55 > 0:14:00going to her before he eventually took a handbag with her purse in the
0:14:00 > 0:14:04hours that followed he used her bank cards in fast food restaurants.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08Today at Manchester Crown Court he pleaded guilty to theft and fraud.
0:14:08 > 0:14:12He will be sentenced at the end of the month and has been told he may
0:14:12 > 0:14:16go to prison. Many people raised lots of money for him after those
0:14:16 > 0:14:22events and thought he was a hero. He was in store to get more than
0:14:22 > 0:14:26£50,000 from public donations. He now will not get that money and
0:14:26 > 0:14:30instead is looking at going to prison. He went from hero to zero
0:14:30 > 0:14:36over a matter of weeks.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38Our top story this evening:
0:14:38 > 0:14:40Winter piles on the pressure - the Government apologises
0:14:40 > 0:14:41to patients as thousands of non-urgent NHS
0:14:41 > 0:14:43procedures are cancelled.
0:14:43 > 0:14:44And still to come:
0:14:44 > 0:14:47Polluting the planet - almost all the plastic in our oceans
0:14:47 > 0:14:49comes from just 10 rivers.
0:14:49 > 0:14:54We report from one of them, India's Holy river the Ganges.
0:14:54 > 0:14:56Coming up on Sportsday on BBC News:
0:14:56 > 0:14:58Mason Crane will become the youngest England spinner
0:14:58 > 0:15:02to make his debut in 90 years - as we look ahead to final
0:15:02 > 0:15:07Ashes Test in Sydney.
0:15:17 > 0:15:19This is a bionic hand - the extraordinary thing
0:15:19 > 0:15:22about it is that the person wearing it can actually feel
0:15:22 > 0:15:24what they're touching.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27But until now it has only ever been used in labs.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30Now for the first time the bionic hand is being tested
0:15:30 > 0:15:37out in the real world.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40Our Medical Correspondent, Fergus Walsh, has been to Rome to meet
0:15:40 > 0:15:42the woman who's been using it - to see what difference
0:15:42 > 0:15:44it makes to her life.
0:15:44 > 0:15:45Here's his exclusive report.
0:15:45 > 0:15:47A bionic hand with a sense of touch.
0:15:47 > 0:15:52And here is the proof.
0:15:52 > 0:15:54Blindfolded, Almarina Mascarello knows whether what she's
0:15:54 > 0:16:01holding is soft or hard.
0:16:01 > 0:16:09She gets it right every time.
0:16:09 > 0:16:13Over lunch, she told me that nearly 25 years after losing her hand
0:16:13 > 0:16:17in a factory accident, it is almost like it is back again.
0:16:32 > 0:16:34TRANSLATION: The feeling is spontaneous, as if it
0:16:34 > 0:16:35were your real hand.
0:16:35 > 0:16:38You are finally able to do things that before or difficult.
0:16:38 > 0:16:39Like getting dressed, putting on shoes.
0:16:39 > 0:16:41All mundane but important things.
0:16:41 > 0:16:42You feel complete.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44The world's first peeling bionic hand, given to this Danish man,
0:16:44 > 0:16:45never left the lab.
0:16:45 > 0:16:50The technology was just too bulky.
0:16:50 > 0:16:56Now nearly four years on, it is portable.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59Allowing Almarina to go back to her hobby of car mechanics.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03All the electronics are in her rucksack.
0:17:03 > 0:17:06Here is how it works.
0:17:06 > 0:17:11Sensors in the fingertips are linked to a computer.
0:17:11 > 0:17:17This converts the signals into a language the brain will understand.
0:17:17 > 0:17:19The information is relayed to it via tiny electrodes implanted
0:17:19 > 0:17:25in nerves in Almarina's upper arm.
0:17:25 > 0:17:28This represents a significant advance in neuro prosthetics,
0:17:28 > 0:17:34the interface between machine and the human body.
0:17:34 > 0:17:38The next patient won't need to have a rucksack to carry these
0:17:38 > 0:17:39electronics, because they're going to be miniaturised
0:17:39 > 0:17:43and implanted under the skin.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46And the team here are hoping to do the same with a bionic leg
0:17:46 > 0:17:53which will have pressure sensors in the foot.
0:17:53 > 0:17:57Engineers, computer scientists and surgeons from several countries
0:17:57 > 0:18:00are involved in this EU funded research.
0:18:00 > 0:18:04A truly humanlike bionic hand is still decades away.
0:18:04 > 0:18:11But the team here think it will happen.
0:18:11 > 0:18:14We feel we are going more and more in the direction of science fiction
0:18:14 > 0:18:16like movies like Star Wars.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19With Luke Skywalker after the amputation of the hands.
0:18:19 > 0:18:22So fully controlled, fully natural, fully sensorised
0:18:22 > 0:18:28prosthesis very similar, identical to the human hand.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31Since we filmed with Almarina, she has had to give back her bionic
0:18:31 > 0:18:35hand because it is still in the research stage.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38But she says when it is commercialised in a few years,
0:18:38 > 0:18:40she wants the feeling bionic hand back for good.
0:18:40 > 0:18:45Fergus Walsh, BBC News, Rome.
0:18:45 > 0:18:482017 was a great year for the music industry.
0:18:48 > 0:18:51Across Britain, the amount of music we bought, streamed and downloaded
0:18:51 > 0:18:55rose at its fastest rate since the 1990s.
0:18:55 > 0:18:58And home grown artists like Ed Sheeran accounted for eight out
0:18:58 > 0:19:01of ten of last year's best selling albums.
0:19:01 > 0:19:03Our consumer affairs correspondent Nina Warhurst has been
0:19:03 > 0:19:08looking at the figures.
0:19:08 > 0:19:10# I have no time...
0:19:10 > 0:19:122018 is set to be big for Francis Lung.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15# Give it back...
0:19:15 > 0:19:18Releasing his first album on Manchester's buzzing music scene.
0:19:18 > 0:19:20Because of the internet, he doesn't need the backing
0:19:20 > 0:19:23of a big label to be heard.
0:19:23 > 0:19:26I've got the power to put it online immediately and everybody
0:19:26 > 0:19:30that is waiting for it can hear it.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33Whereas before, I would have to wait for someone to give me permission,
0:19:33 > 0:19:36wait for somebody to tell me that it is good enough
0:19:36 > 0:19:39for other people to hear.
0:19:39 > 0:19:42Last year we streamed more music than ever, 68 billion songs.
0:19:42 > 0:19:46The equivalent of more than a thousand each.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48Father Christmas brought it, and that is Elbow...
0:19:48 > 0:19:50Perhaps more surprising is how the tables have
0:19:50 > 0:19:54turned with vinyl records.
0:19:54 > 0:19:57As some who had flirted with digital returned to their first love.
0:19:57 > 0:20:02Just the beauty of having the record in your hand, I think.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04And looking after it, making sure it doesn't get scratched.
0:20:04 > 0:20:06So you like physically holding it?
0:20:06 > 0:20:09Physically holding it, looking at the artwork on the covers,
0:20:09 > 0:20:13maybe reading the song lyrics as you are listening.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16Vinyl sales were up an astonishing 26% on the year before
0:20:16 > 0:20:22with 4 million records sold.
0:20:22 > 0:20:24And the shape of the British music industry was helped
0:20:24 > 0:20:27by one Ed Sheeran.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30For the 13th year in a row, the number one
0:20:30 > 0:20:33artist was home-grown.
0:20:33 > 0:20:35Today's news is encouraging for studios like this one
0:20:35 > 0:20:40in Manchester, which is home to a small record label.
0:20:40 > 0:20:43But there's still what is termed a value gap.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45That is a disparity between the amount of music
0:20:45 > 0:20:48that is being listened to, and the amount of money that
0:20:48 > 0:20:51that is generating for the industry.
0:20:51 > 0:20:53We are getting a bit too used to getting music
0:20:53 > 0:20:56for next to nothing.
0:20:56 > 0:20:59And that isn't really the value of the music.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01The music is somebody's life's work.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04And if the business model that we currently have continues,
0:21:04 > 0:21:08artists will pay the price of that.
0:21:08 > 0:21:10So artists like Francis Lung won't be singing from
0:21:10 > 0:21:15the rooftops just yet.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19But our willingness to spend more on music as times get tighter does
0:21:19 > 0:21:21give the industry a little something to dance about.
0:21:21 > 0:21:30Nina Warhurst, BBC News, in Manchester.
0:21:30 > 0:21:36The head of the revolutionly guards in Iran has claimed the week of
0:21:36 > 0:21:42unrest in the country is at an end. Thousands have been taking part in
0:21:42 > 0:21:46pro-government demonstrations today. 22 people have died in six days of
0:21:46 > 0:21:49anti-Government demonstrations, which were initially in response to
0:21:49 > 0:21:53price rises and accusations of corruption.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55The problem of plastics and the impact they're
0:21:55 > 0:21:58having on our planet - it's a subject we've been
0:21:58 > 0:21:58exploring this week.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01According to a recent study - 95% of plastic pollution
0:22:01 > 0:22:03in the world's oceans comes from just ten rivers.
0:22:03 > 0:22:06One of them is the Ganges in India.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08Our correspondent, Sanjoy Majumder, reports from the banks
0:22:08 > 0:22:16of the holy city of Varanasi.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18This looks like a drain carrying sewage.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20But it is actually a tributary of the Ganges.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23The waste along its banks choking and contaminating one
0:22:23 > 0:22:28of the world's greatest rivers.
0:22:28 > 0:22:30Every day wrappers, bottles, cups and other plastic
0:22:30 > 0:22:32waste is deposited here.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34Slowly sliding into the water and then eventually
0:22:34 > 0:22:36flowing into the Ganges.
0:22:36 > 0:22:38For centuries some of India's greatest cities have been
0:22:38 > 0:22:41built along its banks.
0:22:41 > 0:22:44Varanasi the oldest one of them.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47It's only when you come to the ancient city of Varananasi
0:22:47 > 0:22:51that you realise how this mighty River that is so central
0:22:51 > 0:22:54to the Hindu faith, that sustains the lives and beliefs of nearly half
0:22:54 > 0:23:00a billion people, is as polluted as it is.
0:23:00 > 0:23:06The Ganges is more than a river to Indians, it is sacred to Hindus
0:23:06 > 0:23:09who pray and worship along its banks and cremate their dead in it.
0:23:09 > 0:23:11From the time it flows out of the icy heights
0:23:11 > 0:23:15of the Himalayas until it gets here, its crystal clear waters give way
0:23:15 > 0:23:16to a fetid, muddy flow.
0:23:16 > 0:23:23Contaminated by the millions who live along its banks.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26Five generations of his family have lived along the Ganges in Varanasie.
0:23:26 > 0:23:35Living witnesses to its gradual degradation.
0:23:38 > 0:23:39There is an old saying
0:23:39 > 0:23:40here that the Ganges
0:23:40 > 0:23:41belongs to everyone.
0:23:41 > 0:23:44You are free to do what you want, throw what you want,
0:23:44 > 0:23:46cremate dead bodies, bathe, wash, and you
0:23:46 > 0:23:47will achieve salvation.
0:23:47 > 0:23:48But we are being irresponsible.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51We do not have the right to pollute the Ganges this way.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53Three years ago the Indian government pledged more
0:23:53 > 0:23:55than £2 billion to clean up the Ganges.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58But much of the money remains unspent and the focus in any case
0:23:58 > 0:24:00is on treating sewage and industrial effluents.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03So the only people trying to prevent plastic waste
0:24:03 > 0:24:12being dumped into the river are these scrap pickers.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18TRANSLATION: Every day we pick up about ten to 20 kilos of plastic.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21We have to sift through the rubbish and segregate the plastic.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24It is estimated that every year 1.2 billion pounds of plastic waste
0:24:24 > 0:24:25is dumped into the Ganges.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28Much of it carried into the Bay of Bengal where the river
0:24:28 > 0:24:32eventually empties out.
0:24:32 > 0:24:34A polar bear cub has been born in the UK
0:24:34 > 0:24:36for the first time in 25 years.
0:24:36 > 0:24:39The parents are both well and looking proud.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42But the cub itself has not yet been seen.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45Staff at the Highland Wildlife Park say they first heard the baby's
0:24:45 > 0:24:47cries in late December.
0:24:47 > 0:24:49But they don't expect the cub - or possibly cubs -
0:24:49 > 0:24:50to emerge until March.
0:24:50 > 0:24:55Katriona Renton reports.
0:24:55 > 0:25:01Up in the snowy hills of Highlands, listen carefully.
0:25:01 > 0:25:06A sound which has not been heard in the UK for 25
0:25:06 > 0:25:09years - the cries of a new-born polar bear cub emerged from this den
0:25:09 > 0:25:13the week before the Christmas.
0:25:13 > 0:25:19And they have been heard every day since.
0:25:19 > 0:25:21This is dad, Arctos, he is in a separate enclosure.
0:25:21 > 0:25:27He can feed and play.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30For now, mum Victoria must not be disturbed, but the park is
0:25:30 > 0:25:31very excited.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33We discovered the cub when my colleague Nicky went up
0:25:33 > 0:25:36there on one of my days off and she rang me very excitedly
0:25:36 > 0:25:39to tell me that she could hear a cub in the den.
0:25:39 > 0:25:42It is a very distinctive, very loud noise that the cubs make.
0:25:42 > 0:25:44So she was incredibly excited and then
0:25:44 > 0:25:46the next day I heard the noise for myself.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49Arctos and Victoria mated last year.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51This footage shows a polar bear club born in the
0:25:51 > 0:25:52Netherlands.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55They have a high mortality rate in the first few
0:25:55 > 0:25:57weeks, due to their underdeveloped immune system and the mothers need
0:25:57 > 0:25:59for privacy means any disturbance risks cubs
0:25:59 > 0:26:01being killed or abandoned.
0:26:01 > 0:26:04Some conservationists do not believe polar Bears should be bred
0:26:04 > 0:26:06in captivity.
0:26:06 > 0:26:11What we are doing here is replicating as much as we can
0:26:11 > 0:26:13possibly the natural habitats and I think you have seen
0:26:13 > 0:26:16for yourself today the conditions that our polar
0:26:16 > 0:26:18bears are in - the space that they have
0:26:18 > 0:26:19and the enjoyment and the
0:26:19 > 0:26:28freedom of movement that they have here.
0:26:28 > 0:26:37Male polar Bears have no involvement with their offspring.
0:26:37 > 0:26:41Arctos will never actually meet his cub and the rest of us will have to
0:26:41 > 0:26:44wait until the end of March or beginning of April when all being
0:26:44 > 0:26:47well Victoria will emerge from her den with her baby or baby even
0:26:47 > 0:26:48babies.
0:26:48 > 0:26:50Time for a look at the weather.
0:26:50 > 0:26:52Here's Louise Lear.
0:26:52 > 0:26:53Here's Louise Lear.
0:26:53 > 0:27:00The talk of the town has been Storm Eleanor. These are the winds we had
0:27:00 > 0:27:05this morning, between 75 and 90mph. The storm is moving towards
0:27:05 > 0:27:10Scandinavia, down to the low countries and Germany. Behind it, we
0:27:10 > 0:27:14have this fella that is moving into the South West. That is going to
0:27:14 > 0:27:24bring some rain, some of it heavy and some gale force winds. Nowhere
0:27:24 > 0:27:27near as the strong as the night past, but there could be some
0:27:27 > 0:27:32localised flooding. Further north and east a cold start with frost and
0:27:32 > 0:27:35icy stretches. Tomorrow morning, it is all about the rain in the London
0:27:35 > 0:27:42area. Some of it persistent, moving up into the Midlands. An improvement
0:27:42 > 0:27:46in the South West and Wales. A mild start as well. The rain will linger
0:27:46 > 0:27:50in the north of England, through the Isle of Man and into Northern
0:27:50 > 0:27:56Ireland and here it will stay for much of the day. To higher ground
0:27:56 > 0:28:01there could be some sleet and snow as well. To the far knot of Scotland
0:28:01 > 0:28:09it is stays with clear skies with frost and sunshine. That stops and
0:28:09 > 0:28:14further south it is a brighter end to the day. Still breezy, but mild
0:28:14 > 0:28:19at 13 degrees. To the north we keep the cold air and that will be the
0:28:19 > 0:28:24story at the weekend. The cold air spilling down from the north and
0:28:24 > 0:28:28with a brisk north-easterly wind it will feel quite raw. So it will be a
0:28:28 > 0:28:33shock to the system as temperatures fall below the average for the time
0:28:33 > 0:28:35of the year. But it will be