also this afternoon, was this young man the victim of synthetic opioids flooding into the uk from china? a warning that longer, hotter british summers could mean more disease—spreading mosquitoes. i believe in miracles since you came along, you sexy thing. and why hollywood superstar timothee chalamet thinks people in hull have britain's sexiest accent and coming up on bbc news: england's test squad to tour india has three uncapped players, including somerset�*s shoaib bashir, who only made his first—class debut this year.

good afternoon. at the covid inquiry, the prime minister, rishi sunak, has apologised to all those who suffered as a result of the government's decisions during the pandemic. he's also expected to face questions about his controversial eat out to help out scheme, aimed at helping the hospitality sector. scientific advisers have already told the inquiry they didn't know about the plan until it was announced — and there were concerns it would spread the virus. our political correspondent pete saull has been watching. it was at news conferences like this that many of us got to know rishi sunak. he had been promoted to chancellorjust before sunak. he had been promoted to chancellor just before a sunak. he had been promoted to chancellorjust before a global pandemic struck. of course a lot of politics has happened since then. he has moved from number 11 to number ten and this morning made the trip across london for a grilling of his actions at the time of covid. quite something to see a current prime

minister taking an oath and being cross—examined. first things first, an apology. i cross-examined. first things first, an apology-— an apology. i 'ust wanted to start b sa in: an apology. ijust wanted to start by saying how — an apology. ijust wanted to start by saying how deeply _ an apology. ijust wanted to start by saying how deeply sorry - an apology. ijust wanted to start by saying how deeply sorry i - an apology. ijust wanted to start by saying how deeply sorry i am | an apology. ijust wanted to start. by saying how deeply sorry i am to all of those who lost loved ones, family members through the pandemic, and also all those who suffered in the various different ways throughout the pandemic and as a result of the action is taken. much of this morning _ result of the action is taken. much of this morning has _ result of the action is taken. much of this morning has focused - result of the action is taken. much of this morning has focused on - result of the action is taken. much of this morning has focused on the relationship between rishi sunak and borisjohnson. was the then chancellor to powerful an influence over the prime minister? i chancellor to powerful an influence over the prime minister? i581??? chancellor to powerful an influence over the prime minister?— over the prime minister? i saw the prime minister _ over the prime minister? i saw the prime minister probably _ over the prime minister? i saw the prime minister probably more - over the prime minister? i saw thei prime minister probably more than over the prime minister? i saw the | prime minister probably more than i saw my own wife at this time. we are working closely together as a general rule i was able to participate in everything ifelt general rule i was able to participate in everything i felt i needed to. participate in everything i felt i needed te— participate in everything i felt i needed to. �* , needed to. and he defended his former boss _ needed to. and he defended his former boss against _ needed to. and he defended his former boss against the - needed to. and he defended his i former boss against the accusation that he presided over a chaotic workplace. it’s that he presided over a chaotic workplace-— workplace. it's right there was viaorous workplace. it's right there was vigorous debate _ workplace. it's right there was vigorous debate because - workplace. it's right there was| vigorous debate because these workplace. it's right there was - vigorous debate because these were incredibly consequential decisions

for tens of millions of people. in all spheres, whether it was health, education, economic or social, these were incredibly big decisions the likes of which no prime minister had taken in decades. rishi likes of which no prime minister had taken in decades.— taken in decades. rishi sunak has been portrayed — taken in decades. rishi sunak has been portrayed by _ taken in decades. rishi sunak has been portrayed by other - taken in decades. rishi sunak has| been portrayed by other witnesses taken in decades. rishi sunak has . been portrayed by other witnesses as a strong anti—lockdown voice, more concerned with protecting the economy than saving lives. his argument he was just doing his job. my argument he was just doing his job. my constitutional responsibility as chancellor of the exchequer was to make sure the prime minister had the economic, the analysis and the advice relating to the economic and fiscal implications of the decisions that he was considering. he fiscal implications of the decisions that he was considering.— that he was considering. he will face more _ that he was considering. he will face more questions _ that he was considering. he will face more questions this - that he was considering. he will. face more questions this afternoon, including in all likelihood on this, the eat out to help out scheme of summer 2020. the virus had retreated somewhat and the chancellor served

it up in an attempt to boost the economy but did he and the wider government sidelined the scientists? peter saul, bbc news. as we've heard, the covid inquiry is hearing evidence about whether or not rishi sunak�*s eat out to help out scheme spread the disease and cost lives. our correspondent nick eardley has been assessing the data. thanks, ben. there was only a brief mention of eat out to help out this morning. we are expecting a lot more this afternoon. let's start off with the context. this was july 2020 — when the eat out to help out scheme was announced. cases are low — around 4,300 a week. this is the situation when the discounts began — the start of august. again they are pretty low. remember, there was often a delay between infection and it showing up in the figures. but look what happens over the next few weeks.

there's a noticeable increase. by mid—september, cases are around 26,000 a week. there were a lot of changes happening at the time — schools had gone back, more of the economy had opened up — so you can't assume this is just because of eat out to help 0ut. it's also worth remembering that the biggest spikes — which led to the january lockdown — came later. see here a huge increase in the winter months. however, we've heard from some of the experts advising the government. they think the scheme would have contributed to the rise in cases. just a flavour of what we have heard from the inquiry so far. we ve heard chris whitty — the chief medical officer at the time — called it "eat out to help out the virus . we ve heard jonathan van tam say it didn't feel sensible him. 0ne adviser even referred

to rishi sunak as dr death. there has been a study into this. the university of warwick thinks it added around one in six cases — that's pretty significant. but not everyone is convinced. other experts have said the scheme is unlikely to have had a big impact on how winter 2020 played out. and have a look at this — a comparison with other european countries. have a look at france and spain, big increases there, bigger than the uk. france and spain didn't have eat out to help 0ut. there's also the economic argument we've heard from rishi sunak.

hospitality was struggling — you had to balance economic priorities over summer with health needs. so it's complicated. the answer is quite nuanced in truth. but two things that are tricky for the prime minister. 0ne — government experts have said they weren't consulted. two — a number of the same experts have concluded the scheme probably wasn't a good idea. take this from former chief scientific adviser patrick vallance. when asked if the scheme was likely to have contributed to deaths he said that was highly likely. all questions rishi sunak likely to face later. thank you. well, it's a difficult week for the prime minister, with the fate of legislation on his flagship rwanda policy resting in the hands of various factions of the conservative party. they're holding key meetings today to decide whether or not they'll support the bill. rishi sunak claims his legislation will stop the most legal challenges against asylum seekers being sent to rwanda. the vote on the bill is tomorrow,

and our political correspondent hannah miller is at westminster now. what is your latest information on how tory mps might vote on this? this meeting of the right wing group d arg group of mps is still going on at the moment. but they have essentially sought their own legal advice on the rwanda legislation and they have given us a summary of what it says. they say that the rwanda bill provides a partial and incomplete solution to what they see as the problem of the courts potentially being able to stop asylum seekers from being sent to rwanda. they say would require very significant amendments which are potentially outside the current scope of the bill and that the final bill they would like to see would look very different. it's unclear at

the moment exactly what they are going to do about that. essentially they face three choices, they could choose to back the bill tomorrow and then hope to make the changes that they want to see further down the line, that would get rishi sunak off the hook for now but could potentially spell trouble in january. they could choose to abstain which is a problem if enough of them choose to do it, or they could vote it down, the problem for the government is they already say they have gone as far as they can with this legislation and they have other groups of conservative mps also meeting later on who are worried this already goes too far. so the challenge in navigating this legislation is very much still on rishi sunak�*s plate. thank you. the bbc has learned dozens of deaths in the last six months have been linked to super strength synthenetic opioids called nitazenes. they can be many times stronger than heroin, and are coming into the uk from china. the mother of a young man thought to have died from a fatal overdose

linked to the drugs fears there could be an epidemic. she's been talking to our midlands correspondent, navteonhal. he was funny. pretty. brilliant dancer. so kind. just kind. every month, simeon mcanoy, a salesman, would travel on three buses to deliverflowers to his mum. i'm not going to have that this month. or any other month. from now on. simeon died just nine weeks ago from a drug overdose. he was 33 years old. an inquest will determine his cause of death but the coroner has told his family that a new potent synthetic opioid was found in his system, known as a nitazene. it's believed that at the time, simeon thought he was taking heroin. we're sitting in the living room, resting in a box. it's all we've got left.

i don't know how i'll ever come back from it. simeon died here in birmingham, but his death is not the only one linked to nitazenes around here in recent months. it's become a problem in this city and across the country. nitazenes can be hundreds of times stronger than heroin. national crime agency data shared with the bbc shows that nitazenes have been linked to at least 5a deaths in the last six months, with a0 more awaiting further testing. it's believed that a crackdown on heroin production in afghanistan has led to an increase in synthetic opioids being found in the drug supply here. the national crime agency says nitazenes are an absolute priority and is working with other agencies to target criminals involved in their supply. they're likely to being produced in illicit labs within china and they are probably coming into the uk through a number of different vectors,

but including fast parcels and post. amy has been using heroin for more than 20 years. she has tried nitazenes dozens of times in recent months but is now in hospital seeking treatment to stop using them. we've agreed not to use her full name or show herface. it's like a blanket but it's like a warm rush across your body. itjust puts you out like a light. i mean, they call it gouching. you're just out of it for at least an hour. it's too dangerous. you know, i want to, i've got to stop it. there's too many people that i know that are dying off it. god, one of these days it's just going to be me. drug charities say they're worried about the impact nitazenes are having on drug users. they are warning them of their dangers, encouraging safer use and calling for more testing. the government said it would ban 15 new synthetic opioids,

including the one linked to simeon's death, butjackie wants to see more being done. i want awareness. the government to step in and protect our young people. otherwise this is going to become an epidemic and we are going to lose a lot of young people. navteonhal, bbc news. heavy fighting continues in gaza, where hamas has warned that the hostages it still holds will die unless israel frees more palestinian prisoners in exchange. israel claims its troops have so far killed some 7,000 fighters from hamas — designated a terror organisation by the uk government. the united nations general assembly is likely to vote tomorrow on another call for a ceasefire in gaza. 0ur middle east correspondent yolande knell is injerusalem. yolande, how do you see the chances of another truce?

it's qatar that mediated that previous deal, exchanging israeli hostages for palestinian prisoners and an increase in aid going into gaza. qatar says it is still trying to mediate a new truce but the opportunity is narrowing for such a deal and that has led to that chilling threat from hamas that unless israel agrees to its demands, not a single israeli hostage will make it out of the gaza strip alive. israel remains adamant that it will not end this war until it has defeated hamas and you look at the israeli media at the moment, there are analysts talking to israeli military officials say they want to continue the war with this intensity, that is with several army divisions deep inside gaza until the end of this month but there is speculation that will not and because you have so much domestic

pressure with families of hostages calling for a release deal and growing international pressure over the dire humanitarian situation in gaza. ., ~ the dire humanitarian situation in gaza. . ~ ,, the dire humanitarian situation in gaza. . ~ ., ., the uk s health security agency is warning that longer and warmer summers could increase the risk of disease—spreading mosquitoes becoming established in this country. the agency has been looking at the potential health effects of climate change and what the future could look like in a "plausible worst case scenario". our global health correspondent tulip mazumdar reports. the aedes albopictus mosquito, also known as the asian tiger mosquito, so—called for its distinctive white stripes and the fact that it is native to tropical and subtropical areas of south—east asia. but as our planet warms, the uk's health security agency is warning that parts of the country could become

idealfor these bloodsucking insects to establish themselves here and start spreading diseases such as dengue, zika and chikungunya. although generally not deadly, they can cause severe illness. if these mosquitoes become established in the uk, there will be a set of actions that we will take with local authorities to try and prevent their growth in our environment. so, there are interventions that we can take to modify the environment, to reduce the risk from those mosquitoes. and that will also potentially include advice to people in their home, particularly in terms of how we store and manage water, for example, in our gardens and outdoors. the mosquitoes have already been responsible for local outbreaks of dengue fever in france in recent years. scientists now predict london

could see regular infections by 2060. it is the uk hsa's job to look out for and protect us against these kinds of threats. it also warns of a rise in heat—related deaths and flooding in the future. but it says this planning is for a plausible worst—case scenario and points out that many of the threats can still be avoided if action is taken now. tulip mazumder, bbc news. meanwhile it's crunch time at the cop28 climate summit in dubai, where delegates from almost 200 countries are trying to negotiate a global agreement on limiting carbon emissions. the summit is in dubai and our climate editor justin rowlatt is there. what are they hoping to agree on? and is it likely to be a meaningful agreement? well, let me say we have just got the latest text, it has literallyjust just got the latest text, it has literally just dropped just got the latest text, it has literallyjust dropped in the last

few minutes, and i should warn you, we think we have few minutes, and i should warn you, we think we have not few minutes, and i should warn you, we think we have not the few minutes, and i should warn you, we think we have ont the latest we think we have got the latest text, we hope this is accurate, also i am literally analysing it on the hoof, it seems to be fairly strong, it is a much more complex text, it talks about reducing fossil fuels, so, facing down fossilfuels, it talks about the need to increase renewable energy, switch to low—carbon technologies, it talks about and accelerating a sustainable, affordable and inclusive energy transition, but listen, what's really interesting, there appears to be no options here. this appears to be a final text, there is no, normally they have an option which says, or no text at all, or, otheralternatives to... this looks really like quite a comprehensive agreement that recognises something the world has never done before, that at the heart of the problem that the world faces on climate change is fossil fuels, they produce the emissions warming our atmosphere, this says we need to face fossil fuels down. let's see if it is passed now.—

it is passed now. justin rowlatt, our climate _ it is passed now. justin rowlatt, our climate editor, _ it is passed now. justin rowlatt, our climate editor, thank - it is passed now. justin rowlatt, our climate editor, thank you i it is passed now. justin rowlatt, i our climate editor, thank you very much indeed. the time isjust coming up much indeed. the time isjust coming up to 20 minutes past one. our top story this afternoon. the prime minister defends the decisions made by the government during the covid pandemic when he was chancellor. and making panto accessible for all — with relaxed performances. coming up on bbc news... girona stun catalan rivals barcelona, beating them 4—2, a result which takes them top of la liga. there are fears that signs of cancer in pregnant women are being overlooked, with symptoms often dismissed as related to the pregnancy. every day, two women are diagnosed with cancer while expecting a child.

louise beevers from lincolnshire was told she had breast cancer while pregnant. she's been speaking to our reporter alex moss. so, thank you for filling the room up, and ifeel really loved. she'd turned a0 and found out she was pregnant with her fourth child. she also learned she had cancer. i was called back in and saw the surgeon and was told it was cancer. surgeons operated quickly. baby suzy arrived in august, but not long after, she found out the cancer was terminal. no one healthcare professional would put a time limit to how long i've got left. and that in itself is really difficult to deal with because i need to put plans in place for my children. you know, for... ..special birthdays, life events. at the start of her pregnancy, she found a lump in her breast,

but she was reassured it was likely due to her being pregnant. i knew it wasn't right for me. and ijust wish i'd persisted at that time as opposed to accepted. i really, really do, it could have been a whole different story than the one i'm telling now. experts say there needs to be a greater awareness within the healthcare profession to spot cancer early in pregnancy and save lives. because breast cancer is a disease that becomes more common as you get older, the likelihood of pregnancy and breast cancer occurring at the same time increases. one of ourjobs is to make sure that we educate healthcare professionals involved in the care of pregnant women about how breast cancer itself can present at that time. we've got two childrenl who've lost their mum, one who was only weeks old, i one who was three—and—a—half. pete lost his wife to cancer not long after the birth of their second child.

there just was nothing that's . tailored specifically for a cancer diagnosis in or around childbirth. so he set up a charity to help those diagnosed with cancer in pregnancy. the reality is, it should _ and could be any health professional that somebody comes into contact l with in pregnancy, whether it's. a midwife, a health visitor, - a community nurse, whether it's the gp, the point is, if somebody shares a concern with you, - it is your responsibility to try| and take that forward and try and escalate that or at least - signpost them into a path where it will get them diagnosed early. louise is now spending whatever time she has left making memories with her family. i urge anybody who finds anything remotely unusual, just please go to the gp, and if you're not referred, insist on being referred, it's two minutes, and then hopefully it will be nothing. louise beevers ending that report.

bbc news has learned that around 200 former members of afghanistan's special forces who were trained by britain face imminent deportation to their taliban—controlled homeland. the figures were gathered by a network of afghan veterans. the uk government has denied accusations of betraying the soldiers, saying it has brought thousands of afghans to safety. a teenage boy has appeared in court charged with murder after a woman was shot dead in east london. lianne gordon was killed in hackney last tuesday, and a man and a 16—year—old boy also suffered gunshot wounds. today, a 16—year—old boy was remanded in custody at barkingside magistrates court. he was also charged with two counts of attempted murder. a girl accused of the murder of the transgender teenager brianna ghey in february has told a jury at manchester crown court that she heard a scream and turned round to see her co—accused stabbing her. the 16—year—old, identified only as girl x, became visibly upset as she told the jury she saw another teenager, identified only as boy y,

stabbing brianna with a knife. when derbyshire cricketer anuj dal received racial abuse on social media he was so shocked, at first he didn t know how to react. but he turned his anger into an 18—month quest to hold his abuser to account. now he wants others to know that there s a path to restorative justice. he s been speaking to our sports correspondentjoe wilson. anuj dal is a professional cricketer. he is a vice—chair of the professional cricketers' association, and he fought abuse — with restorative justice. that was a very satisfying feeling, knowing that i'd covered all bases, and i felt as though i needed to do what i had done to be able to move on from it.

it all began last spring — in the wake of azeem rafiq's racism testimony, anuj spoke to me eloquently about the opportunity for cricket to grow. then, on social media, anuj himself was racially abused. i remember we were sat together in a team meeting ready to go and play our first game at lord's, against middlesex, and i was in full cricket mode, and all of a sudden, get a notification on my phone, i look at it and think, what on earth is going on? and it was, you know, just a direct racial abusive comment, directed to me, based off the piece that i did with you. anuj was supported by the professional cricketers' association, by the police and by counsellors from restorative justice. they found the abuser, they mediated and eventually communicated a form of apology. which left me with one big question. whether you think restorative justice worked, and the key thing is whether it worked for you? absolutely. yeah, it 100% worked for me. i feel comfortable knowing that i've put him through quite a gruelling process,

and a gruesome process, to actually go through it, and i've essentially turned his life around. the police have got a marker on him, through the process, he wasn't able to leave the country. there are going to be consequences for these individuals, and hopefully now encouraging more people to say, you don't need to hide in the shadows, you don't need to do... you don't need to brush it under the carpet. there is process in place, there is support network in place. anuj dal has a new contract with derbyshire, the best years of sport ahead of him, and the certainty of knowing he won hisjustice. joe wilson, bbc news. we're now firmly in panto season — but for some people with additional needs, the seasonal theatrical experience can be a bit overwhelming. that's why more and more venues are offering relaxed versions of their traditional shows, with many flashes, bangs and noisy songs toned down. richard forbes went to a theatre in edinburgh which has led the way on this idea.

that's your special seats. taking their seats for a special performance. more than 600 pupils with additional support needs filled the auditorium at edinburgh's festival theatre. we're going to get the lights up so it doesn't get so dark. and we're going to keep the volume down a bit so it's not so loud. we've taken out are not of the crashes and bangs that might startle you, but don't worry because all of the magic and the dancing and the jokes are still going to be there. music plays. with the music and lights toned down, everyone can enjoy the spectacle without being overwhelmed. what did you think of it? it was amazing, i liked the crocodile. that was amazing. i think when he stood on...with tinkerbell. | the children react sometimes in quite a boisterous way, it's great they can get the opportunity to do that. but if you come to an ordinary

performance, it can be socially difficult to do that. listen, listen! booing and shouting. my turn to speak... the star of the show took part in the very first relaxed panto back in 2012. saw a comment on facebook from a parent who said she just loved coming to the relaxed performance, because for the very first time she was able to take her child to the theatre or a cinema experience without worrying what other people were going to think. and i thought that that just underlined just exactly how important it was notjust for the child to be able to come to the theatre but for the parent or the carer to come with them. it's very special. and after this performance, you can see these kids are hooked. richard forbes, bbc news. now, what's the uk's sexiest accent? well, the hollywood superstar timothee chalamet has delivered his verdict — he says it's the hull accent.

so we've been there to ask the people of hull whether they think they sound sexy. music: you sexy thing, hot chocolate. i believe in miracles, where you from, you sexy thing, you sexy thing you...! my accent's real sexy. ladies and gentlemen, greetings to you all. i my name is willie wonka. star of the new wonka film timothee chalamet is one of the world's biggest movie stars right now. he's travelled the world, but it's the hull accent that's caught his attention. how do you feel about the british? i like the hull accent. you like hull? yeah. why is everyone cracking up? is it not a sexy accent? hull is sexy! #je t'aime... do you agree? yeah. he's sexy. yeah, it's just the accent i know, so yeah. - i do, yeah. - do you feel sexy? usually, yeah. are you from hull? what do you think of the hull accent? clears throat. it's lovely! especially when quarter to five and naaa... yeah, it is the sexiest accent.

i don't think it sounds i sexy personally, myself, but it's everybody's own preference. anything you desire, i'm ready. willing and able. as the hosepipe said to the fire. uuh nuuh, it snuued. ovely. lovely. yeah. i believe in miracles, since you came along, you sexy thing. # sexy thing. # keep on loving' me, darling... that was suzy lawson reporting there. now time for a look at the weather. here's elizabeth rizzini. who is from croydon, and they got a lovely accent there as well, i'm sure. you're too kind, thank you, ben, i think i would rather be from hull! nearly as good as humber! couldn't find any weather watcher photos from actual humber so instead we have beverley, just towards the north, but there is a lot of sunshine around today, it is a much

quieter looking day of weather