THE HEADLINES AT 0800 ON THURSDAY 28TH DECEMBER

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It's eight o'clock on Thursday the 28th of December.

Six men have died in a helicopter crash off the Lancashire coast -- a seventh is missing.

A British soldier has been killed and three others wounded in southern Afghanistan.

The government of Somalia says Islamic fighters have withdrawn from the capital, Mogadishu.

England have lost the fourth Ashes Test -- inside three days.

HELICOPTER 1

The bodies of six men have been recovered from the sea off Lancashire after a helicopter came down in Morecambe Bay. The aircraft, which was carrying five passengers and two crew members, had been travelling from Blackpool Airport to a gas platform. Search teams are still looking for the missing person. From Blackpool, here's Steve Blears:

BLEARS: It's emerged the flight delivering a new shift of gas rig workers was in sight of the platform when it came down in Morcambe Bay, around twenty-five miles off the coast. Detective Superintendent Mick Gradwell, from Lancashire Police, says staff waiting for a return flight home raised the alert:

GRADWELL: There was a very quick response - rescue response - 'cause people were on the drilling platform, waiting to be picked up, and they actually saw the helicopter ditch in the sea, and they managed to warn the emergency services, who responded to it. The witnesses are being brought to Blackpool Airport, so they can be spoken to, to see if we can piece together - with the civil aviation authorities and the other agencies - what's gone on.

BLEARS: As two RAF helicopters and two lifeboats headed to the scene, a rescue boat was launched from the rig. Today, efforts will continue to salvage wreckage from the water. Gas rig workers who witnessed the accident have already been flown back to help air accident investigators. They'll try and piece together how a routine flight - in apparently calm and clear conditions - ended in disaster.

HELICOPTER 2

Michael Mulford from the RAF's rescue centre at Kinloss told the Today programme that the chances of finding the seventh person alive were diminishing:

MULFORD: In the rescue business, really never say never, but you have to temper that with being quite realistic about someone's chances of survival. As each hour goes by, clearly the fears grow for the safety of anyone still in the water.

AFGHANISTAN

A British soldier has been killed in an explosion in Afghanistan. Three other soldiers were wounded in the blast, which happened in Helmand province in the south of the country. Anu Anand reports from the Afghan capital, Kabul:

ANAND: A statement released by the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force said an explosion took place Wednesday in southern Helmand province, where more than five-thousand British troops are currently stationed. The explosion killed one British soldier and seriously injured another. Two others escaped with minor injuries. The soldier who suffered serious injuries is said to be in a stable condition. According to the statement, the explosion happened south of a town called Garmsir. Its cause is as yet unknown, as there were no Taleban forces in the area.

SOMALIA 1

The interim government in Somalia says the Islamic militias which have been in control of the capital, Mogadishu, have abandoned their positions. Government forces, backed by Ethiopian troops, are now poised to enter the city. Here's our Africa Correspondent, Peter Biles:

BILES: Ethiopia's military intervention in support of Somalia's weak transitional government appears to have been decisive. According to reports from Mogadishu, the rival forces of the Union of Islamic Courts have been dispersing and leaving the city. It's thought that many are heading south to their last remaining stronghold: the port city of Kismayo. Earlier, the Union of Islamic Courts said they would hand power to the people of Mogadishu. In effect, that has left a power vacuum and raised fears of a resurgence of the clan warfare that has ruined Somalia over the last sixteen years. Less than twenty-four hours ago, the Ethiopian troops were advancing rapidly towards the Somali capital in an effort to defeat the Islamist militias. It's possible the Ethiopians could enter the city within hours. But they may face a hostile reaction from the local population, who are traditionally opposed to any Ethiopian meddling in Somalia.

SOMALIA 2

Abdi Rashid A Sed is special emissary for President Yusuf of the transitional Somali government. He told the Today programme the Islamic militias had started a war they couldn't win:

A SED: That was their mistake, and, eventually, they have collapsing. Nobody defeat them, but they disintegrated; and we are planning an orderly takeover of the Somali capital.

BLAIR

Downing Street has revealed that Tony Blair is paying to stay in the mansion in Florida where he's on holiday with his family. The house, in Miami, belongs to the Bee Gees' singer, Robin Gibb. Mr Blair has been criticised in the past for using the holiday homes of rich friends without paying for them. Here's our Political Correspondent, Robin Brant:

BRANT: There aren't many people who think that Tony Blair shouldn't be allowed a holiday once in a while, but there have been constant questions about whether he and his family pay their way - or do they get a freebie from people who may want to influence the prime minister's decisions? This time, Downing Street says the Blairs are "making a payment" for the use of the waterside mansion in Florida. The spokesman wouldn't say how much was being paid, or to whom exactly, but they added that there is a a private commercial arrangement between the Blairs and Robin Gibb. In the past, the prime minister is thought to have made a donation to charity in lieu of paying the singer, Sir Cliff Richard, for the use of his Caribbean holiday home.

BLEARS

It's emerged that the Labour Party chairman, Hazel Blears, has taken part in a demonstration against plans to close a maternity unit in her constituency. Ms Blears -- who's a Cabinet minister -- joined a protest outside Hope Hospital in Salford, in Greater Manchester. Her spokesman said she believed closing the unit would be the wrong thing to do.

PAY

The leader of the TUC, Brendan Barber, has called for a national debate about the level of executive pay -- claiming that it's risen seventeen times faster than the average wage in the past six years. Mr Barber said the divide between higher and average earners was causing serious concerns about relations in the workplace. Our Labour Affairs Correspondent, Stephen Cape, reports:

CAPE: Mr Barber says it's now time to ask if the pay of directors is having a divisive effect on society and the economy. The TUC leader, in a forthright message, complains that, over the years, "plump felines became fat cats, and now they are dangerously obese". According to the TUC, in the last six years the package for executives has gone up by a hundred-and-five per cent more than the cost of living. In contrast, average wages have risen by up to six per cent over inflation. In a similar tone, Mr Barber is also critical of huge bonuses and pensions pots for directors in the UK's top hundred companies. At the same time, he says, they're happy to cut the benefits of their own staff.

STATINS

The government says the NHS in England could save eighty-five-million pounds a year if doctors prescribed cheaper statin drugs. Ministers say some health trusts are spending much less than others on the medication, which lowers cholesterol and helps prevent heart disease. Here's our Health Correspondent, Adam Brimelow:

BRIMELOW: Statins are a vital part of the government's campaign against heart disease. The amount prescribed has gone up by a hundred-and-fifty per cent in the past five years. The annual cost to the health service in England has risen to six-hundred-million pounds. Ministers say the NHS could get a better deal if more doctors opted for cheaper, but equally effective statins. They say this is already starting to happen, saving money which can go back into care. The British Medical Association says the first duty for a doctor is to prescribe appropriately for each individual patient -- and that won't always be the cheaper statin.

POLAR BEARS

The United States government has announced plans to list polar bears as an endangered species, because their icy habitat is melting. Environmentalists say the move could force the Bush administration to take stronger action against global warming. Owen Clegg reports:

CLEGG: It's estimated there are no more than twenty-five-thousand polar bears living in the wild, and this number could decline drastically as the Arctic ice floes upon which the bears survive melt away. Now, without admitting the cause of this melt, the US Fish and Wildlife Service is reviewing the bear's status. Environmentalists, like David Doniger, believe that by invoking the protections of the Endangered Species Act, the US government may eventually be forced to cut back on its emissions of greenhouse gases:

DONIGER: It is a big deal today to have the Bush administration recognise that global warming is threatening the existence of the polar bear. Now it's up to the administration to do something to stop the global warming that's threatening the polar bear.

CLEGG: The United States is the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Since taking office in 2001, President Bush has refused to make the link with global warming, but the plight of the polar bear may force that position to change.

HAJ

The annual hajj pilgrimage is getting under way in the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca. More than twenty-three-thousand British people are among the estimated three-million Muslims from around the world taking part.

CRICKET

Cricket: England have lost the fourth Ashes Test against Australia. They're now four-nil down, with one match left to play. Our correspondent, Peter Baxter, reports from the Melbourne Cricket Ground:

BAXTER: While not as shocking as the last day in Adelaide, this England defeat is as devastating in its completeness. They've been dismissed for 159 and 161, with today only Strauss with 31; Cook, 20; Flintoff, 25; and Read, 26 not out, getting to 20. Lee took another 4 wickets; Clark, 3; and Warne, another 2. Australia's innings had lasted only another hour this morning, all out for 419. It left England 260 runs behind, and the procession started in the third over after lunch; Cook, Bell and Pietersen before tea, when the score was 90 for 4. Pietersen's promotion to number 4 saw him bowled by Clark for 1. Strauss's departure in the first over after tea paved the way for the three-day finish; and, two-and-a-quarter hours after tea, Australia were celebrating a victory by an innings and 99 runs.