Another 16,298 coronavirus cases and 504 deaths have been reported in the UK.
Last Friday, there were 16,022 cases, and 521 deaths - with a 460.3 seven-day average.
Coronavirus-linked deaths in the UK, within 28 days of a positive test, yesterday passed 60,000.
On Thursday, the government reported 14,879 cases and 414 deaths.
The total number of confirmed cases in the UK now stands at 1,690,432, with 60,617 deaths.
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However, the number of deaths involving the virus could be even higher.
Office for National Statistics figures that record deaths where COVID is mentioned anywhere on the death certificate as a possible factor - along with additional data from recent days - put the figure at 76,000.
Another 1,364 people with COVID-19 were also admitted to hospital, according to latest government daily figures.
Talks on a post-Brexit trade deal with the EU are at a "critical phase" as they go down to the wire in London.
Brussels' chief negotiator Michel Barnier did not head back home on Friday morning as some expected, and a briefing he was meant to hold for EU diplomats was cancelled.
He was tight-lipped as he headed back in for a fresh day of discussions, only telling reporters it was an "important day".
Image:Multiple deadlines for a deal have come and gone
Prime Minister Boris Johnson's deputy spokesman admitted that "time is in very short supply" and "we're at a very difficult point in the talks".
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Image:The UK's new relationship with the EU will start on 1 January 2021
Conversations have dragged on late into the evening several times this week, with sandwiches and takeaways seen being delivered.
With less than a month to go until the moment where the UK will either fall into a no-deal trading relationship with the EU or enter a new relationship, the pressure is on.
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The UK left the EU on 31 January 2020 - but is in a "transition period" for the rest of the year and has followed many of the same rules and held on to the benefits of membership apart from political representation.
That was designed to limit disruption, so citizens and businesses only had to prepare for one change on 1 January 2021.
But both sides said they wanted these negotiations over by mid-October and constant talk of a pressing deadline has seen discussions pushed closer to the cliff edge.
Image:The UK is continuing to follow most EU rules under the transition period
Charles Michel, head of the European Council, did not even set a deadline of 10 December - when EU leaders are due to gather for a summit - when asked by a journalist if that was the latest point a deal could be struck by.
"It's unfortunate that it took longer than planned but we're still currently negotiating and Michel Barnier is leading the negotiations, so we'll see over the next few days what the next steps are," he said in a briefing on Friday.
Alok Sharma, the business secretary, said earlier that "we are at a critical phase".
"It is fair to say that we are in a difficult phase, there are some tricky issues still to be resolved," he admitted.
Image:Alok Sharma said there were still 'tricky issues to be resolved'
The issue preoccupying negotiators this week is believed to have been the EU's demand for what is known as a "level playing field".
This concerns the issue of state subsidies and standards which could seriously affect competition once the transition ends.
Mr Barnier was due to brief 27 national envoys to Brussels on Friday by video conference.
But a spokesperson for the group, Sebastian Fischer, confirmed the meeting would not go ahead "due to the ongoing intensive negotiations in London".
He added: "Keep your fingers crossed and stay tuned!"
On Monday the House of Commons will re-consider the controversial Internal Market Bill, including two clauses which ministers have admitted would break international law. The legislation would break the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement signed by the UK and EU last year and Brussels had threatened to walk away from trade deal talks if it was passed in the House of Commons.
The Government has always said the legislation was needed to protect the UK's internal market in the event of a no deal.
But today the Prime Minister's spokesman appeared to indicate the controversial clauses would remain in the Bill even if an agreement is reached by Michel Barnier and David Frost over the weekend.
It was previously assumed the parts of the Bill which offended the EU would be removed if a deal was struck.
Speaking this afternoon, the Prime Minister's spokesman said: "The clauses represent a legal safety net to protect the integrity of the UK's internal market and the huge gains of the peace process.
"Of course, we are committed to working in the joint committee to find a solution but we have an obligation to the people of Northern Ireland to ensure they continue to have unfettered access to the UK under all circumstances."
In the Brexit divorce deal agreed last year, the UK and Brussels promised to set up a joint committee which would look at goods travelling from the UK mainland to Northern Ireland and determine which would be at risk of entering the EU's single market.
Those goods deemed "at risk" of crossing into the Republic of Ireland would then be subject to trade tariffs.
But the Prime Minister's controversial legislation would allow the UK to unilaterally determine which goods must fill out the necessary export declaration forms.
The plans have left the EU furious and have accused the UK of going back on its word.
Earlier this week, Mr Barnier told EU27 ambassadors that the return of the clauses would cause a "crisis" for trade talks as there would be a fundamental breakdown in trust between the two sides.
The Prime Minister's intentions to introduce the clauses even if there is a deal will only add to tensions.
However, both sides currently remain committed to reaching a trade agreement in the coming days.
The EU transition period ends on December 31 and any agreement must be ratified in parliaments on both sides before it can come into effect, meaning there are just days left secure a deal if it is to be in place by January.
Mr Barnier is in London this week as intense negotiations continue. Express.co.uk understands talks between the two side continued well past 11pm last night.
The EU chief negotiator also cancelled his Eurostar train back to Brussels this morning to remain in the UK for further talks.
Mr Johnson's spokesman said today: "We are committed to working hard to try and reach agreement with the EU.
"Talks are ongoing - there are still some issues to overcome.
"Time is in very short supply and we are at a very difficult point in talks."
Negotiations have been gridlocked for months, with neither side willing to give ground to the other.
Fishing rights and the so-called level playing field remain the biggest areas of contention.
Sean Marett, chief commercial officer for BioNTech - the company that, with Pfizer, makes the vaccine that the UK has approved - says each of the batches coming out of the manufacturing site in Belgium have to be approved for a "quality check".
The doses are then packed and shipped, he says. The first batch arrived by Eurostar into the UK yesterday and was taken to a "safe storage facility".
"In terms of precise numbers of each batch, I can't give you that detail. But what I can tell you is that we made these vaccines in advance and we were waiting for approval," he says.
"This means we release them and they're shipped to the UK."
"Let me be very clear, we check for quality, we ship. It's December, we've committed doses to the UK, they will be shipped every day that we can. And you can expect, next week, more shipments to arrive in the UK."
Marett says the vaccine has been tested in 43,000 people and the typical side effects are fatigue and sometimes a headache.
"In most cases it's no different from when people get a flu injection," he adds.
A rare "thundersnow" event has taken place in Edinburgh - with alarmed locals contacting police after thinking they heard explosions.
The phenomenon happens when thunder and lightning mix with a heavy snowstorm - sometimes causing loud claps that can be confused with explosions.
One person said it sounded like "a sonic boom" - and another said they were rudely awaken by the thunder claps in the middle of the night. Others thought construction work had started early.
— Police Scotland Control Rooms (@polscotcontrol) December 4, 2020
At about 5am on Friday, Police Scotland Control Rooms tweeted: "We have received a number of calls regarding people concerned about explosions heard. Please do not be alarmed, we are currently experiencing thunder and lightning."
One follower replied: "It was very loud like an explosion. I can imagine why some folks were concerned as the house shook and the car alarms in the car park set off."
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It was the coldest night of autumn/winter so far, with -9.6C (14.72F) recorded at Altnaharra, Sutherland, in the Scottish Highlands, according to the Met Office.
The coldest night of the year is still -10.2C (13.64F) recorded at Braemar in Aberdeenshire on 13 February.
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Image:Heavy overnight snow fell in parts of England, including in Carrshield in the Pennines and forecasters say more may be on the way
Parts of Britain woke up to snowfall overnight - and forecasters are warning that further wintry weather may be on the way.
The Met Office said wet snow fell on Friday morning across parts of Kent, and this may spread northwards in the South East of England.
Rain, sleet and snow is also expected across a broad swathe of Scotland and northern England.
Motorists were warned that travel conditions could be challenging due to surface water and "possible slushy accumulations".
Image:A snowplough clears heavy overnight snow in Carrshield in the Pennines
Brighter weather - and even some sunshine - is expected over the weekend.
Temperatures going into next week are expected to be lower than the average annual temperature, which is usually about 7C to 9C (44.6F to 48.2F).
Commuters were plunged in to travel chaos this morning as Scotland was battered by rain, sleet, snow, thunder and lightning.
A winter weather wipeout has led to roads and schools being closed across the country, following a night of storms so wild people were roused from their sleep.
Rail passengers are also affected, with ScotRail warning of "significant disruption to services on multiple routes" due to heavy snow.
The Queensferry Crossing, which links the M90 between Edinburgh and Fife, was shut to all traffic due to falling ice and snow.
The closure resulted in huge tailbacks as the bridge was closed for more than three hours, after it was blocked off in the early hours, reopening just after 9am.
Traffic was diverted over the Kincardine Bridge, affecting the M90, M92 and M91.
Sanquhar Academy and Sanquhar Primary School, in Dumfries and Galloway, were both closed, with Dumfries and Galloway Council attributing the closures to "snow or ice" and "staff shortage due to road conditions."
In South Lanarkshire, the A70 at Hyndford Bridge, A70 at Rigside, B7076 at Greenhillstairs, and A72 at Kirkfieldbank, towards Lanark, were all blocked off to traffic to allow for snow clearing, while several schools in the area were also affected.
South Lanarkshire Council revealed on Twitter that "all schools in Clydesdale will have a delayed start, opening at 10am, due to adverse weather."
Strathaven Academy's pupils' lessons were delayed by an hour due to the disruption, while Abington Nursery Class and Black Mount Nursery Class were both closed for the day.
Twitter user Ally Clark hit out over South Lanarkshire Council's planning over the forecast.
He Tweeted: "The roads are terrible. You should help us understand why there were no or few gritters / vehicles clearing the roads in SLC. It was always forecast that there be would snow into today."
In North Ayrshire the A760, between Largs and Kilbirnie, was also closed due to the weather conditions, as also revealed North Ayrshire Council on Twitter.
And roads up north were also closed due to snowfall.
The A96 Huntly to Inverurie roads and the A90 north and southbound Stonehaven towards Edzell Woods, including the AWPR Cleanhill to Stonehaven were off limits.
While Police Scotland said The Cairn O Mount road "is anticipated to be affected also."
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Drivers were asked by the force "to anticipate the implications that this weather can bring."
Elsewhere, Police Scotland reported that the A70 Lanark Road West, just after Belerno, is closed due to an articulated lorry stuck due to weather.
The Met Office had issued yellow warnings of snow for much of the country, which are valid until 9am on Friday.
It states: "The bulk of snow accumulations will be over hills and mountains. 2-5cm of snow is possible above 150m, with transient sleet/snow at lower elevations.
"Steadily increasing amounts are likely at higher levels; perhaps as much as 10-20cm above 400m, significantly affecting higher transport routes for a time before it turns to rain."
Investigations are continuing into what caused an explosion at a waste water treatment works that killed four people.
Three employees of Wessex Water and a contractor were killed in the blast at a water recycling centre in Kings Weston Lane, Avonmouth, on Thursday.
The explosion happened at 11:20 GMT in a silo that held treated biosolids.
Wessex Water said it was "absolutely devastated" and was working with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
A fifth injured person is not thought to be in a life-threatening condition.
Fire crews described a "very challenging" scene and used search and rescue dogs in the hunt for casualties following the blast.
Colin Skellett, chief executive of Wessex Water, said the company was working with the HSE "to understand what happened and why".
What are biosolids and are they dangerous?
Biosolids are "treated sludge" - a by-product of the sewage treatment process.
Wessex Water says the sludge is treated in anaerobic digesters - oxygen-free tanks - to produce agricultural fertiliser and renewable energy.
According to Wessex Water, during the sewage treatment process debris is first removed using screens. The sewage flows into tanks where the solids sink to the bottom and are removed as sludge. The sewage is then treated biologically with bacteria that cleans the water.
Bristol-based waste management service GENeco says biosolids provide a "cost-effective alternative to bagged fertiliser".
Biosolids can produce flammable methane gas when treated with bacteria, though police could not comment as to whether this was the cause of the explosion.
Ch Insp Mark Runacres, from Avon and Somerset Police, said the explosion was not being treated as terror-related and there were not thought to be any ongoing public safety concerns.
GMB, the union for Wessex Water workers, has sent "hopes and prayers" to the colleagues and families of the four people killed.
John Phillips, GMB regional secretary, said it was a "terrible tragedy".
"This is another stark reminder of the absolute need to ensure people are able to work in environments where risks to their health and safety are properly controlled," he said.
"Whilst the cause of this tragedy is not yet known, it is essential that a full and thorough investigation takes place at the appropriate time."
One witness to the aftermath described hearing a "boom and echo" which shook the ground, followed by "a lot of commotion".
Sean Nolan said: "It was quite short-lived, I'd say about two or three seconds. Sort of a boom and echo and then it just went quiet.
"That was it. There was no smoke, there was no after-effects of it."
Bristol City Mayor Marvin Rees said the "thoughts of our city" were with the families of those who had died.
"This has already been such a challenging year, and this news of further loss of life is another terrible blow. As a city we will mourn for them," he added.
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