It's eight o'clock on Monday, the 4th of December.
The prime minister will confirm that Britain's nuclear defences will be replaced, but there are expected to be cuts in the number of warheads and submarines.
Investigators are trying to find the cause of an explosion and blaze at a fireworks factory, that killed two fire-fighters.
The UN secretary-general, Kofi Annan, says life for Iraqis now is worse than when Saddam Hussein was in power.
It's been a frustrating day for England's bowlers at the Ashes Test in Adelaide.
TRIDENT
Tony Blair will confirm today that he wants to maintain Britain's strategic nuclear deterrent. He's expected to recommend to Parliament that a new generation of nuclear-powered submarines be built to carry Trident missiles. But it's thought the plans -- set out in the government's White Paper -- will also leave open the option of cutting the submarine fleet from four to three, and reducing the stockpile of nuclear warheads. Here's our Defence Correspondent, Paul Wood:
WOOD: Whatever the finer points of the government's announcement later today, we know that Britain will still be a member of the nuclear club, and the missiles will be carried by submarines. Defence officials familiar with the White Paper say putting the warheads on planes or even a land-based weapons system has been considered and rejected - and it probably won't be a case of extending, at least by much, the existing vanguard submarines, which start going out of service around 2022. The most likely decision will be for new vessels to be commissioned. These new submarines would carry the existing Trident missiles and warheads, but would be capable of taking any successor missile. In order for Britain to meet its international treaty obligations on disarmament, the total number of warheads may well be cut, and perhaps, too, the number of submarines could be reduced from four to three. But officials discount reports that the new generation of submarines will be built abroad. They say the capacity to do this exists in Britain.
FIREWORKS
An investigation has begun into an explosion and blaze at a fireworks warehouse near Lewes in East Sussex, in which two firefighters died. Twelve people were injured in the fire, which has now been brought under control. The Chief Fire Officer for East Sussex, Des Pritchard, told the Today programme it had been a difficult night for his crews:
PRITCHARD: There are still three people still in hospital - two fire-fighters and one member of the public. Currently, there is a two-hundred-metre exclusion zone around the site. We believe there may be a set of cylinders involved in fire, and we need to keep those cylinders cool for twenty-four hours.
KOFI
The UN secretary-general, Kofi Annan, has said the situation in Iraq is now "worse than civil war". In a BBC interview, Mr Annan -- who will soon step down after ten years in office -- said the war hadn't improved the situation for Iraqis; in fact, he suggested that life was better for them under Saddam Hussein. Lyse Doucet spoke to Mr Annan in New York:
DOUCET: Kofi Annan called the US-led invasion of Iraq one of the most difficult times during his decade in office. Over the past few months, he's warned of a country sliding towards civil war. Now, he told the BBC, it was worse than that. Was it, I asked him, a mistake? What did he make of some Iraqis' anxiety that life was now worse than under Saddam Hussein?
ANNAN: I think they are right. If I were an average Iraqi, I would make the same comparison - that they had a dictator, who was brutal, but they had their streets; they could go out; their kids could go to school and come back home without a mother of father worrying: "Am I going to see my child again?"
DOUCET: Clearly still pained by a war he didn't believe in - and wishes he could have stopped - Mr Annan said Iraq needed the help of its neighbours and the international community.
PSYCHIATRIC
The author of a report, which examined killings committed by psychiatric patients released into the community, has called for more attention to be paid to the warning signs. The five-year study found that most of the patients who went on to kill had been in contact with health services the week before -- and although there were warning signs, they weren't judged to be sufficiently serious to cause alarm. The national clinical director for mental health, Professor Louis Appleby, told us staff should always bear past patterns of behaviour in mind:
APPLEBY: One of the reasons that staff are fooled is that they are sometimes very affected by how a person appears on the day, so if a patient seems reasonably well on a particular day, they can make the assumption that they're going to be OK for the next few weeks or longer. And they make a judgement that risk might be low, even though, if you look at the whole history of a person, there are clearly reasons to be concerned about them at all times.
PINOCHET
Doctors treating the former Chilean leader, Augusto Pinochet, say he remains in a serious, but stable condition in Santiago, after suffering a heart attack. General Pinochet -- who's ninety-one -- had surgery yesterday, but doctors have ruled out a second operation, describing it as too risky. Daniel Schweimler reports from Santiago:
SOUND: CROWD CHANTING
SCHWEIMLER: Several hundred supporters of the former president of Chile, Augusto Pinochet, gathered outside the military hospital where he's being treated. Many were waving Chilean flags or carrying posters of the man who governed Chile for seventeen years after coming to power in a bloody coup in 1973. Motorists hooted their horns in support as they went past - a large police presence controlling the Pinochet supporters, the traffic and the journalists outside the hospital. There's no sign of the many thousands who opposed Augusto Pinochet, or the families of the three-thousand or so people killed or disappeared under his military government. The former president was taken to hospital early on Sunday morning after suffering a heart attack. Staff operated to widen a blood vessel, and, at one stage, he was so serious, a Catholic priest was called to give him the last rites.
VENEZUELA
Hugo Chavez has won another six-year term as Venezuela's president. Mr Chavez -- an outspoken critic of America -- said the result was a defeat for the "devils" who wanted to dominate the world.
WELSH
Plaid Cymru has accused army recruiters of deliberately targeting schools in deprived areas of Wales, where other jobs are scarce, to try to replace increasing number of soldiers leaving the armed forces. The Ministry of Defence has rejected the claims, insisting that visits to schools are made by invitation only. But Leanne Wood, who speaks for Plaid Cymru on social justice, told us army recruitment in schools should be banned:
WOOD: The army is haemorrhaging soldiers. Fourteen-thousand left last year, according to the MoD's own figures, and the situation in Iraq is obviously responsible for that, because Iraq makes a career in the army look pretty unattractive. So to me it looks as if, in order to counteract this problem, the army are pinning their hopes on attracting people with few opportunities, few avenues out of poverty, and you could say that that's a form of exploitation.
CRICKET
Cricket: after a difficult day in the field, England have finished day four of the second Ashes Test in Adelaide on 59 for one. That's a lead of 97. With the latest details from the ground now, we're joined by Peter Baxter:
BAXTER: Another hard day for bowlers produced two star performances, both persistent and patient. Matthew Hoggard, for England, took another three wickets to finish with 7 for 109, and Michael Clarke, for Australia, made his third Test 100. The seventh wickets stand of 118 between Clark and Warne probably took Australia to safety. Both were victims of Hoggard - Clarke for 124, and Warne for 43. They came together when Giles had cut short of the revival of fortunes of Adam Gilchrist, just getting into his stride when he held out for 64. Hoggard bowled 42 overs for his 7 wickets - a splendid display. It left England 19 overs to face in the evening, and at the end of the day, they lead by 97, for the loss of Cook for 9. They're 59 for 1.
COPPER
The number of thefts of copper cable from railways across Britain has doubled in the past year, at a cost to the industry of three-million pounds. The North East is the area worst-affected - in one stretch of line, thousands of metres of cabling were ripped out, causing huge travel delays. Similar thefts have cost the electricity industry five-million pounds. Here's our Business Reporter, John Moylan:
MOYLAN: Gangs have been ripping out cables that power signalling systems and points. They then strip out the copper to sell on as scrap. Network Rail says the incidents don't put passengers' safety at risk, but they cause severe delays and need immediate repair - that's left the industry with a three-million pound bill in the past twelve months. A spate of break-ins at sub-stations have cost the electricity industry five-million pounds this year. They've also been associated with two deaths and several serious injuries.
BT
BT is launching its first television service this morning. BT Vision will face stiff competition from other providers, such as BSkyB and the cable television companies. This morning, BT has announced a deal to offer Premiership football. More details from our Business Correspondent, Rory-Cellan Jones:
CELLAN-JONES: BT has wanted to get into television for years, and now the internet is making that possible. BT Vision will allow viewers to download programmes via a broadband phone line, with customers paying for what they use, rather than facing a mandatory subscription. In entering a crowded field where viewers can choose between satellite, cable and free-to-air channels, BT needs to offer something different. Like others before, it's hoping football will be the key. This morning, it's unveiled a deal with the Irish sports channel, Setanta, which means it can offer forty-six live Premiership games, and two-hundred-and-forty recorded matches, from next season.
PREMIER
The firm which owns Hovis and Mr Kipling cakes has backed a takeover by Premier Foods, which owns Branston Pickle and Angel Delight. Premier is offering one-point-two-billion pounds for RHM, whose other brands include Paxo and Bisto.
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