this is bbc news. the headlines... more than ten years after killing his girlfriend — former paralympian oscar pistorius is released on parole. a bbc investigation finds some online pharmacies are selling prescription—only drugs without robust safety checks. a warning over the lack of foster carers in england — with one charity saying thousands more are needed. and — enjoying a taste of success — the last dinner party are named the bbc�*s sound of 202a. former athlete oscar pistorius has been released from prison on parole, more than ten years after killing his girlfriend, and is now at home. the south african has served just over half of his jail sentence, following a crime and trial that dominated international headlines.

he shot reeva steenkamp multiple times through a bathroom door on valentine's day in 2013, later claiming he mistook herfor a burglar at their home in pretoria. reeva's mother says she's serving a "life sentence." from pretoria, daniel de simone sent this report. commentator: oscar pistorius is champion! | oscar pistorius, convicted murderer, today leaves prison on parole. he was once a paralympic and olympic superstar nicknamed the blade runner. his victim was girlfriend reeva steenkamp, a law graduate and model. pistorius murdered her on valentine's day 2013 by shooting four times through a locked toilet door at his home. his trial absorbed the world. pistorius claimed to have shot reeva by mistake, thinking an intruder was in the house. i got to the bed and then i realised reeva wasn't there. at first only found guilty

of the equivalent of manslaughter, he was convicted on appeal in 2015 of murder, withjudges saying his story was inconsistent and improbable. reeva's close friend says she's heard no evidence he's changed. i want to know, has he been given proper anger management therapy? and in saying that, this rehabilitation, have they focused on all of that? because in my opinion, oscar walking around as a free man without the necessary training and treatments and psychiatric evaluations, he is deadly on the streets. in november, pistorius was granted parole with release set for today. for five years, he'll live under conditions and could be returned to prison if he breaches them. campaigners against male violence say his release sends a terrible signal. oscar's release is an indication that we have a serious problem, that there's, i guess,

a normalisation of leniency when it comes to predators, when it comes to anyone who commits any type of femicide or gender—based violence. reeva steenkamp�*s mother says the void left by her murder can never be filled by anyone else. a bbc investigation has found some online pharmacies are selling prescription—only drugs without robust safety checks. bbcjournalists, posing as patients, were able to obtain more than 1,600 prescription—only pills from 20 online pharmacies without any kind of proof they were ill, as divya talwar reports. that's a good one. katie needed help. she'd become dependent on medications. she was going through a very traumatic time in her life. and she's just such a bright, beautiful, bubbly person. christine and ken's daughter katie was 38 when she overdosed on prescription medication.

she'd become dependent on anti—anxiety and opioid prescription medicines. she was able to buy medications online, lots of medications, medications that she knew would do her harm. although her gp had stopped prescribing the medicines to her, katie was able to get them from legitimate online pharmacies instead. the coroner at her inquest said her doctor had never been contacted by the pharmacies to check the drugs were even safe for her. you know, you see a gp or you see your doctor, it's personal. they've got your records there, whereas online pharmacies have no record of any previous medical history or anything, and you can just tell them anything you like. the pharmacy regulator says online pharmacies must get all the information they need to make sure a medicine is safe and appropriate. we wanted to find out

what checks were in place, so we attempted to buy three prescription—only drugs online — a painkiller, an anxiety drug and a sleeping medication. we've been able to buy more than 1,600 tablets of prescription—only medication. in fact, we've got more than the reported lethal dose of one of the medications here. and we've been able to get all of this without showing a single prescription. of the 35 we approached, 13 online pharmacies refused to sell to us without permission to consult our gp, access to some medical records or proof of a valid prescription. but at 20 pharmacies we were able to put in false information to answers to online questionnaires to buy one or more of the drugs, and didn't need to provide any further evidence, either to prove our medical history or that the drugs were even suitable. i've spoken to several people who say they've lied to bypass online safety checks, including a woman we're calling sophie. what made you try and get

this medication online? i wanted to lose some weight. i was getting married and felt under pressure to drop a dress size, so i ordered some prescription weight loss injections online. i said i was 19 stone, which is a lot more than i actually weigh. i didn't need to send a picture or speak to anyone or prove anything about my weight. when i took it, after a few days i felt really bad. i didn't feel hungry and just couldn't really eat anything. i stopped functioning, so i did stop taking them. looking back now it was just too easy to lie and to get whatever i wanted. the general pharmaceutical council says it expects pharmacy owners to identify which medicines are appropriate to supply online. it says it has made it clear that medicines liable to misuse are not suitable to be supplied online unless further safeguards have been put in place — and it's taken action where pharmacies fell short of its professional standards. but some of the high—risk

drugs katie was able to buy appear to still be readily available online. itjust needs to be better regulated with more background knowledge than just dishing out a few pills. it's just... it's people's lives. katie needed help. with more on this is divya talwar. tell us about that. better regulation, how likely is that to happen? regulation, how likely is that to ha--en? regulation, how likely is that to ha - en? . regulation, how likely is that to hauen? . , ., happen? the general pharmaceutical council, happen? the general pharmaceutical council. the — happen? the general pharmaceutical council, the regulators _ happen? the general pharmaceutical council, the regulators say _ happen? the general pharmaceutical council, the regulators say that - council, the regulators say that online pharmacies should get as much information as they can before an individual is able to obtain the medication. what we found is that guidance is open to huge variation. in some cases, 13 pharmacies refused to sell without further checks such as speaking to a gp, access to

medical records or prescription. but in 20 online pharmacies we were able to obtain vast amounts of medication without any robust safety checks. just answering a few online questions about medical history. so there is a huge variation in guidance and the regulator says that they will crack down on pharmacies that don't follow but there are issues in the current system because people that shouldn't be getting hold of prescription only medication are able to do so. in hold of prescription only medication are able to do so.— are able to do so. in your report found that _ are able to do so. in your report found that people _ are able to do so. in your report found that people were - are able to do so. in your report found that people were able - are able to do so. in your report found that people were able to l are able to do so. in your report i found that people were able to lie to get hold of it. we found that people were able to lie to get hold of it.— to get hold of it. we spoke to several people _ to get hold of it. we spoke to several people that _ to get hold of it. we spoke to several people that they - to get hold of it. we spoke to several people that they had | to get hold of it. we spoke to . several people that they had lied through their teeth, gave false answers to questions online just to get hold of medication. you heard from one woman who lied about her wait to get hold of weight—loss injections. there is clear harm that can be done if people are able to get hold of medication that they can't get hold of. you also heard

from the parents of the woman who overdosed, she lost her life. imilli overdosed, she lost her life. will do pharmacy _ overdosed, she lost her life. will do pharmacy say if the people aren't telling the truth the risk is theirs, what is their push back? clearly, there are issues of communication because some people are accessing online pharmacies legitimately, they don't have intention to misuse. but there are a significant number of people that may be vulnerable, that shouldn't be getting hold of this medication. the issueis getting hold of this medication. the issue is communication because pharmacies don't communicate so i could get hold of the same medication from multiple pharmacies without either of them knowing. and also, my gp doesn't necessarily need to know as well. so the issue is they need to be better communication before an individual is able to get hold of prescription only medication. thank you. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news.

bbc news — bringing you different stories from across the uk. oh, dear! kezia is 17 months old. she's thriving. when she was born, times were tough for her mother, alice. so when her midwife delivered a special basket full of items, it meant the world. it was such a relief to not have to worry how i was going to afford everything, that she had somewhere safe to sleep, but also that so much care and thought had gone into putting this basket together. the moses project began life in 2016 on a kitchen table. run by a local church, it's grown and grown. this year it's provided 200 moses baskets packed full of essentials from baby grows to toiletries and some little luxuries, too. we support families that are facing hardship, maybe from a workless household, refugees that have come into the country and don't have any other family support. for more stories from across the uk headed to the bbc news website.

you're live with bbc news. foster carers are in short supply at the moment — with one charity warning that around six thousand more are needed in england alone, to meet current demand. jayne mccubbin went to meet two couples who have fostered children — and say it was the best decision they ever made. we've received so much more back than we've ever given, and that's been really lovely. "i love my nikki because she cuddles me, she takes me on holiday, she brings me to school and she gives us pocket money." laughs. "best carer ever. " c-a-r-a. nikki and geoff started fostering nine years ago, and the family tree in their home carries all the names and all the faces of all the children they've ever looked after.

but recently they took on a new role to help deal with a crisis for kids in care. unfortunately, more foster carers are leaving than new ones are coming in. why? well, i think the word that keeps coming up is support, all the time. not enough support. of course there's the financial issues as well. but i think that the biggest thing is support and that's why mockingbird is so important. the mockingbird scheme creates a model of care which is just like an extended family. nikki and geoff are the central hub home, where they offer advice and respite to several satellite homes where children are placed. lol is lots of love. lots of love, yeah. you give me lol. it sounds like you love this job. we do, it's the best job in the world. i had a message on the support group today from a carer saying, if it wasn't for mockingbird and the support i get from other carers, i couldn't do what i do — so that says it all. and they're all in front of you on our wall. so important for the children to know that they are still in our lives...

i don't want people to think we're sugar—coating this because it can be a very challenging job, can't it? yep. we owe it to these children to be the best we can be. we have to be fully trained. trauma informed training is vital. all of the children have suffered some form of trauma. so in order to give them the care they need, we have to make sure we focus on the professional element as well. this is from one of the parents. "to geoff and nikki, thank you for being so caring "and loving to my girls, and truly you are angels. "i will succeed with the girls." yes, that's from a birth parent. this work is life—changing — but for the second year running the number of foster carers is in decline as need increases year on year. better training, more practical and financial support are the things nikki and geoff believe will encourage more carers to sign up, just as others leave. this is isobel and lee, who are in spain right now looking

for their retirement home. after 20 years of fostering, lia will be their very last long—term placement. it couldn't end with anybody that i could be more proud of. she is the most important young person that we've had staying with us, and we've had a lot of young people. i would say that i love them very much and i appreciate _ everything they've done. they're very important to me. this is a relationship for life, isn't it? it definitely is. lee and isobel have given me a great kick up the backside _ and i appreciate it so much. so lots of holidays in spain, yeah? yes. 100%. 1000%. lia is part of our life, simple as. this is the power of fostering, but also the reality. too many foster parents are leaving,

with too few people to take their place. all those lovely children that have come through your life will probably be watching this on telly. what would you like to say to them? well, you know that we love you. it's been a privilege to have you in our lives. now go out and achieve the great things that you all can because you're all so special. and what would you say to anybody watching this who is curious, who's thinking about fostering? don't miss out on what we've had. speak to your local fostering service and hopefully you'll enjoy what we've enjoyed. it's life changing. you know, you can change a child's life. with previous winners including adele, stormzy and ellie goulding, the bbc "sound of...." prize can be a great indicator of new music acts who are going to become huge. so, look out for "the last dinner party" — the group has just been named "the sound of 2024". they're an all—female rock band who only released their debut single eight months ago. our music correspondent, mark savage, went to

meet them. (tx next) # but how you touch me. one of the uk's most talked about new bands, the last dinner party, have just won the bbc sound of 202a. # turn to the altar of lust. and you might be wondering why there's a spare seat here. and here's the moment they find out the news from one of their heroes. florence! whoo! you've had the most amazing year. i know how overwhelming it can be. so ijust wanted to be here to give you my love and tell you have won radio 1's sound of 202a. for australian—born bassist georgia davies, getting the endorsement of her idol meant the world. i discovered her music when i was like nine, and i was like, oh my god. like, i feel understood and, like,

connected to a person. and she lived on the other side of the world. and so for her to say, like, that she's proud of us, it'sjust, like, so insane. the last dinner party formed four years ago when all the members were studying at university in london and released their debut single last april. after they wrapped up their interview with radio 1, i sat down with them for a chat in london's george tavern. this is where you played your first show two years ago. what are your memories of that night? very little. how many songs did you have? five. it was a really short set. like, i remember like rehearsing for like maybe a year or so before we did our first gig. because of covid and everything, we couldn't actually do a gig. so it felt like a really good feeling to actually go out for the first time and share it with an audience.

and who came? how many people were here? 20? yeah, it felt like loads, though. i remember like standing on the stage and looking out and being like, "hi, i'm king of glastonbury!" # and you can hold me like he held her. # and i will, like nothing matters. the first song anybody heard from you guys was nothing matters, which is such a statement as a debut single. where did that song originate? i was in love! so many stories. once, when i was a young boy! itjust came from a place of extreme love and, er, carnality. and then i didn't really think it was anything until i kind of bought it to my friends here. it was a ballad initially? yeah, yeah, it was, it was kind of slow on piano.

like, i didn't write it and think, "oh, yeah, this is a big anthem and this is cool and big and electric." and then emily wrote a guitar solo and i was like, ah, that's what it should be! for the last 22 years, the sound of poll has predicted success for artists like adele, stormzy and dua lipa. # maybe it's the loving in your eyes. this year's runner up was the singer songwriter olivia dean. and in third place was the korean superstar dj peggy gou. but the last dinner party were the runaway winners with this year's voters. this has alljust happened. it's still sinking in. but how will you celebrate? shall we go for a drink? yeah, we're going to have a pint. stay with us we are keeping an eye

on ceremony in paris where european leaders have been arriving to pay homage to the former president of the european commission who died just after christmas at the age of 98. we have already seen in the crowd picked aubin from hungary, and others. this will be presided over by the president. and it has been many years since he was in the european stage but he is still well remembered for trying to set up his vision of a deeper political union within europe. and he was also a socialist minister, finance minister. we will bring you more on that in about ten minutes' time. stay with us here on bbc news.

the weather has caused a lot of disruption over the past few days with relentless, heavy rain. still lots of flood warnings in force. the weather is going to be improving over the next few days, it's going to be drier and colder but it will take several days for those floodwaters to fully recede. so, the satellite image shows this curl of cloud that brought all the wet weather yesterday and overnight, too. it is clearing gradually towards the east, so low pressure starting to move away from eastern england, this area of low pressure close to the north—east of scotland. so, not completely dry out there today, more rain for northern and eastern scotland, rain clearing from norfolk and kent. a few more showers for western areas coming in on that north—westerly breeze. generally, more sunshine for northern and western parts of the uk, whereas towards the south and east you are more likely to keep the cloud. and temperatures somewhere between four to 10 degrees north to south. and then through this evening and tonight, the cloud and rain start to clear away for most, it does stay a bit cloudy in the east, but lighter winds and clearer skies are a recipe for quite a cold night, there will be a bit of frost

and mist, fog patches for some. whereas towards the east of england, you just keep that low cloud and it is just about probably frost free. a chilly start to saturday for most of us, the mist and frost and fog patches clear away from northern ireland, parts of scotland and wales as well. a few showers still for coastal parts of the irish sea, whereas further east you still have the odd spot of light rain coming out of this cloud, but much, much drier thankfully than it has been. temperatures a little cool under the cloud, five — 7 degrees towards the east but around nine in the sunniest skies towards the west. and then good news as we head through sunday as high pressure, a very welcome area of high pressure builds across the uk. squeezing away most of the showers, not 100% dry, we could see some showers coming in that breeze through the english channel and one or two across the north—east of scotland. some mist and fog patches could linger in the central belt, it could linger in the central belt, it could be a little bit murky for some of us where you have the mist and

fog, particularly with that wet ground. high pressure stays with us into monday, it drifts a little further towards the west and the wind will rotate around that area of high pressure, bringing in a colder air mass so it will feel different through the course of next week. it is looking colder, some mist and frost and fog but much drier than it has been.

live from london, this is bbc news. more than ten years

after killing his girlfriend, former paralympian oscar pistorius is released on parole. israel's defence minister outlines proposals for the future of gaza — once the war against hamas is over. flooding causes chaos in parts of the uk and northern europe, with rivers bursting their banks and people fleeing their homes. hello, iam lauren hello, i am lauren taylor. former athlete oscar pistorius has been released from prison on parole, more than ten years after killing his girlfriend, and is now at home. the south african has served just over half of his jail sentence, following a crime and trial that dominated international headlines. he shot reeva steenkamp multiple times through a bathroom door on valentine's day in 2013, later claiming he mistook herfor a burglar at their home in pretoria.

reeva's mother says she's serving a �*life sentence'.