24/12/2013 BBC News

The stormy weather is still causing widespread disruption across the UK.

More than 100 flood warnings are in place and thousands of homes are

still without power. At Gatwick Airport, dozens of flights are

cancelled, We will have the latest on the travel problems, as the

severe weather moves northwards. The other headlines... An appointment to

see the GP - millions of patients wait a week or more, say doctors'

leaders. And a sunny Christmas treat in Melbourne, as cricket fans gear

up for the start of the Fourth Test. Good evening. The stormy weather is

still causing widespread disruption. Southern England has been badly

affected, but the storm has since been heading to Northern Ireland,

Wales and Scotland. Five people are now thought to have died in separate

incidents because of the extreme conditions. The Environment Agency

has around 150 flood warnings in place for England and Wales, where

flooding is "expected", and more than 250 flood alerts where flooding

is "possible". Trains have been cancelled, roads flooded and there

have been long delays and cancellations at Gatwick Airport.

And power cuts have affected more than 150,000 homes. Suppliers are

warning that some customers may still be affected on Christmas Day,

as our correspondent Jon Kay reports.

Suddenly, Christmas seems rather irrelevant. For some, there are more

pressing matters to deal with. In Kent, this lady has cancelled her

family celebrations. Her home should have been full of Christmas cheer

today. Instead, it is full of water. Christmas is off for us. I was

having my sister over for Christmas dinner, and I have had to put her

off because I cannot cook for them. And she is not the only one. For

many, Christmas plans have been turned upside down. This was Redhill

aerodrome in Surrey this morning. Near Bath, the River Avon burst its

banks, flooding this restaurant. The tables may have been set for

Christmas dinner, but the crackers will not get pulled. I have got to

phone round people and tell them what has happened. People are not

going to be very happy, and I am not happy. Across southern Britain,

hundreds of people have been rescued from their flooded cars. Near

Bristol, this lady returned to find her vehicle under water. Tonight, a

warning for motorists. People always underestimate the dangers of

floodwaters. The rivers will continue to rise over the next

couple of days, even though it might not be raining. On the railways, it

has been another day of disruption, with landslips and hundreds of trees

falling onto the tracks. This train hit one of them near Taunton,

leaving exhausted passengers stranded overnight for eight hours.

Nightmare at Christmas! Horrible. Although there had been some

nightmare stories, train companies say they were prepared for this

storm and they have put alternative arrangements in place. They have

been helped by the fact that Christmas is midweek this year, so

generally, journeys have been staggered across several days. If

these holiday-makers thought they were getting away from the Christmas

stress, they were wrong. At Gatwick, thousands of would-be sun-seekers

have spent the day waiting to fly. Disruption to the power supply at

the airport has caused delays and cancellations. I am just trying to

remain positive, hoping that I will get home on time. My main worry tens

of thousands of people have been left without electricity because of

the storm. Like this man, in Kent. Suppliers say some customers will

still be without power for Christmas Day. You think you are on top of the

game and you have got everything prepared, and now, it rather takes

the edge of things a little bit. The longer it goes on, the more so.

There are still serious concerns tonight, even though the storms have

moved on from southern Britain. This river in Surrey is expected to peak

in the early hours of Christmas morning. As we mentioned, the severe

weather was heading towards Scotland this afternoon, with the Northern

and Western Isles among the worst-affected areas. The Met Office

has warned that gale-force winds could reach 80mph in exposed areas.

Our Scotland correspondent, James Cook, has the latest. All day, the

storm has been battering the West Coast of Scotland. It has cut power,

caused damage and left the Christmas plans of many families in tatters.

For the few ferries which did brave the waves, the crossing was rough.

This was the last sailing of this particular ferry. The passengers

knew they were lucky to be on it. We thought we might have a long drive

round. We are going back to the parents-in-law. We are just bad that

we were able to get over. But many other people were not so lucky.

Looking at the boiling seas, it is easy to understand why so many

ferries have been cancelled. It is simply not safe. But the result for

many families is a Christmas Day which has been ruined. Other modes

of transport are also finding it is tricky. At this airport in

Shetland, this plane struggled to get off the ground safely. And there

were some bizarre scenes, like seaweed on the street in Oban. The

advice is always the same, plan your journey, give yourself a bit of

extra time. And the snow has now arrived. Thousands of homes are

already without power, and thousands more are being urged to prepare for

Christmas by candlelight. For the latest on the weather

problems, we can talk to our correspondent Sangita Myska at

Gatwick Airport. But first, Sophie Hutchinson at Waterloo Station in

London. Just bring us up to date on how it is looking, our most people

going to get away? We think so, yes. The situation here has

significantly improved now. This morning, if you looked at the

departure boards, they were full of cancellations and delays, but now,

as you may be able to see, most of these trains seem to be running on

time for stop about a third of them are still cancelled or delayed.

Network Rail says that last night, the storm made it extremely

difficult for emergency teams to play and repair the tracks. Now,

they say most of that work has been completed. That it has been a very

frustrating day for passengers, with many of them laden with presents and

suitcases and a number of dogs here in the station. But the message is,

come to the station, you may have to wait but you will get away in the

end. And to Sangita Myska at Gatwick Airport. Has it improved at all?

Well, it seems that thousands of passengers are still in a state of

misery. Many of them have been left in limbo today. Yesterday a river

burst its banks, leading to the flooding of the airfield's

substation and also the North terminal, meaning that 26 out of 250

flights being cancelled. Passengers have taken to Twitter. Today, one

said, Gatwick airport is a disaster zone. Power failed, no computers,

baggage everywhere, as are people on floors. The airport authorities have

apologised, and they are asking all passengers to check carefully travel

information before setting out to Gatwick.

For updates on the weather and the latest road and rail information,

you can visit our website... Doctors' leaders say millions of

patients in England are having to wait a week or more for an

appointment with their GP. The Royal College of GPs says its members

expect waiting times for appointments to get worse next year.

Our health correspondent Jane Dreaper has more details.

Patients value being able to see their GP quickly, but the latest

figures suggest this is getting harder in some practices. The Royal

College of GPs says family doctors expect the situation to get worse

next year. GPs' leaders have looked at the results from a large official

survey of patients . most said they had a good experience in making

appointments, but there was a slight rise, to 15%, in those who had to

wait a week or more for a slot with their nurse or doctor. Royal College

of GPs says this represents a problem for millions of people in

England. We are worried that the situation is going to get worse,

because we have had three years of falling funding for general

practice, and we have not got a lot more GPs in the pipeline. We are

training three or four hospital doctors for every GP that we are

training at the moment, and that balance is not right. Labour are

calling for the return of a target Darren teeing a GP appointment

within 48-hour is. They say this would help patients. If it is for

normal consultation, it can be up to a week. Not too bad. I can have it

next day if it is urgent. GPs say the ageing and growing population is

keeping them busy. The Government wants doctors to do more

consultations over the phone and by Skype so that fewer patients have to

go to the waiting room. The Government says it has already

recognised the need to increase the number of GPs and is funding extra

training places. Ministers point out that most residents are happy with

their family Dr. There are a reports of renewed

violence in South Sudan, in East Africa. It is thought hundreds of

people have been killed in recent days, including many shot by the

South Sudanese security forces. The fighting has taken place in several

areas, including the capital, Juba, and is linked to political tensions

between the president and his former deputy. Our Africa analyst James

Copnall has more details. The UN says it has found a mass

brave in a rebel controlled area. There have been reports of security

forces in the capital killing civilians. A military spokesman has

denied that charge. The fighting continues to spread. These

government troops hope to retake two key towns which had been captured by

the rebels. It all began with reports of an attempted coup in the

capital just over a week ago. Troops loyal to the president of fighting

rebels under the command of his former vice president Riek Machar.

The president belongs to the largest ethnic group in the country, while

Riek Machar belongs to the second-biggest. Oil is the

country's main source of wealth. The UN peacekeepers are short of men and

equipment. A vote on sending over 5000 more soldiers will take place

soon. Until then, the message is clear - the world is watching. The

United Nations will investigate reports of human rights violations

and crimes against humanity. Those responsible at a senior level will

be held personally accountable and they will face the consequences.

South Sudan split away from Sudan only two years ago, but now even

those born after independence and know the bitter taste of war.

A surgeon in Birmingham has been suspended following allegations that

he marked his initials on a patient's liver. University

Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust said it was investigating the

claims. The letters were reportedly found by another surgeon during a

follow-up operation. Alan Turing, the computer pioneer

and wartime code-breaker, has been given a posthumous royal pardon. It

relates to his conviction in 1952 for homosexual activity. Ministers

said Dr Turing was an exceptional man, whose work at Bletchley Park

saved thousands of lives during the Second World War.

Cricket, and England have promised to boost their game ahead of the

Fourth Test against the Australians on Boxing Day. Kevin Pietersen has

been sharing his views on the team's troubled tour, as our chief sports

correspondent, Dan Roan, reports from Melbourne.

You know things are going well when even Father Christmas is on your

side. For Australian cricket fans, Christmas has come early, having

been gifted the Ashes by an England team who have given their support is

very little to feel festive about. We owe it to a lot of people who

have paid a lot of money to come over here and support us, especially

in Melbourne and Sydney. We have let a lot of people down, and we now

need to turn ourselves on, and that starts today. Geoffrey Boycott says

you are a mug and you should be dropped, you want to respond to

that? I have the greatest admiration for the way Geoffrey Boycott played

for England but the way he played and the way I play are totally

different. It is the barmy Army, rather than a few wise men, who have

made the cricketing pilgrimage to Melbourne, and somehow, they have

remained faithful. It has not been great, we have been a bit gutted,

but we are here to win and turn things round and show the Aussies we

can play cricket. Dead rubber, but we England are having to prepare for

the Fourth Test here at the MCG without the man who was their best

spinner, Graeme Swann, who has retired in the middle of the series.

The fallout from his shock departure continues. His parting shot was to

accuse certain unnamed players of arrogance. He denies suggestions

that it was aimed at Kevin Pietersen, but the England batsman

does not seem convinced. Do you think he was being rude to you? You

should come and see what I get called when I am fielding on the

boundary. There are a lot worse things I have been called. Out in

the middle, England's batsmen have struggled with an Australian barrage

all tour. Let's hope this guy has a lot more success with