for killing seven babies and attempting to kill seven more. a little bit of a wobble there out of the gate, and it hasn't gone... a big disappointment in the paralympics as britain's kadeena cox crashes in the final at paris 202a. and they're three months into their round—the—world cruise, but they've not left shore. and coming up on sportsday later in the hour on bbc news, we'll show you what happened in the champion league draw, with five british clubs involved and a brand—new format. good evening. smoking outside in pub gardens,

restaurants, playgrounds and sports grounds could be banned under plans being considered by the government. health experts have welcomed the proposals, but some businesses are concerned about the impact an outdoor ban might have. the latest research shows 6.4 million people still smoke in the uk. almost 80,000 people die every year as a result of smoking, despite the ban on indoor smoking across the uk being in place in 2007. 0ur correspondent danny savage has been to york to hearfrom smokers, non—smokers, and businesses which could be affected. we all know smoking is bad for our health, but plenty of people still choose to do so. so what about the latest idea to restrict it, ban in it pub gardens and outdoor restaurants in england and possibly elsewhere in the uk? remind everyone... we showed the prime minister's views to people in a pub garden. over 80,000 people lose their lives every year because of smoking. that's a preventable death. it's a huge burden on the nhs,

and of course it's a burden on the taxpayers. so what do they think? we're all sat having a drink in the sunshine here in york. some people lit a cigarette, and instantly you smelt it... and you don't want to do that? i personally don't want to do that, and i have to say that i'm anti—smoking. unless you're banning it full stop, there needs to be places - for people to have a smoke. but whilst we're eating, i don't particularly want to smell it. i i think it's ludicrous, personally. simon runs the pub and six others. i think it's another restriction on hospitality trying to survive. it's going to impact our sales, and it takes away the freedom of choice for people who want to do something outside where it's ok for them. smoking was banned in enclosed public spaces across the uk about 17 years ago. now it could be potentially stubbed out here too, stopped out here too, which will please many, but frustrate some. if you are a smoker and it is what

you like to do and to be outside, i kind of think maybe you should have that freedom to smoke outside. not in children's playgrounds, but... in a pub garden? in a pub garden, yeah, but in a sectioned—off area. in york, local bylaws already forbid smoking in these outdoor seating areas. so they can't smoke sitting there? no. but they can literally come the other side of the barrier here, stand here and smoke perfectly legally? yeah, yeah, yeah. policing it can be difficult, though. people try and hide it from us. like, they'll stick their, like, cigarette down here, - but you can literally see the smoke and you can smell it. _ obviously it is - a restaurant as well. that's kind of, like, _ why we don't, you know, allow it. i like, it makes sense not to allowi as well because people are eating, there's kids eating. health authorities say there is no safe level of exposure to second—hand smoke. making it more difficult to light up in public could be on the cards. danny savage, bbc news, york.

more from ian watson, our political correspondent in westminster. how certain are we that the smoking ban will now be extended in england? from what i am hearing, there are no ifs abouts that the smoking ban will be extended. it will be put to consultation, but it is possible it will be extended notjust to be a garden is, as we've been hearing about the outside hospital, play parks, universities and football stadiums. who has been firing this anti smoking gun within government? i'm told the start of pandemic press conferences, england's chief medical officer sir chris whitty has been 0fficer sir chris whitty has been emphasising to ministers that further restrictions on smoking could get people who are long—term sick back into work, reducing the benefits bill, and narrow inequalities in health. but there has been some pushback from civil servants in the business department, who, as we are hearing, are worried about the effect it will have on the hospitality industry. it is also created sharper political dividing

lines here at westminster, because half of the current crop of conservative leadership candidates backed rishi sunak�*s proposal to ban the next generation from smoking, and because these proposals affect existing smokers, now five out of six conservative contenders have denounced them variously as nannying, impacting on freedom, and even as cowardly. but the big majority, and with support of opinion polling, it seems almost certain that the labour government is going to press ahead. thank you very much. iain what's in there. a 17—year—old boy has been found guilty of murdering 15—year—old holly newton in january last year. guilty of murdering 15—year—old we can't name him because of his age. holly suffered 36 injuries in a knife attack in hexham. she had complained about the boy "stalking" her hours before she was repeatedly stabbed and her mother had arranged a meeting with police for that evening to discuss her concerns. let's speak now to our correspondent alison freeman, who's outside newcastle crown court for us now.

a deeply distressing case, alison. tell us about the scenes in court today? yes, there were sighs of relief and cheers from the public gallery when the 17—year—old boy, who can't be named because of his age, was found guilty of murdering holly newton, who wasjust 15, back guilty of murdering holly newton, who was just 15, back injanuary of last year. the court had already heard that the boy, who was 16 at the time, had followed holly for around 45 minutes before making himself known to her in the town centre and persuading her to go into the alleyway where he carried out a brutal and sustained attack. the attack was so sustained that the knife broke during it. she was stabbed and slashed a total of 36 times. the boy admitted manslaughter, said he had carried out the stabbing, but claimed he could not remember it. it is said he

had gone blank during it. but today, thejury here at had gone blank during it. but today, the jury here at newcastle crown court said they didn't believe him, and he was found guilty of her murder. he was also found guilty of wounding with intent against another boy who we can't name who tried to help holly at that time. the defendant is due to be sentenced on october 31. alison, thank you. alison freeman there. dishonest shopkeepers and market traders have been buying stolen goods from shoplifters and selling them on to consumers in a worrying new trend, according to the british retail consortium. a former prolific shoplifter who stole goods worth "tens of thousands" of pounds has told a bbc investigation how he regularly sold the items to other shops and stole to order. the government is promising new laws to tackle the crime. from leeds, our correspondent jim connolly reports. perfume, always a staple. box sets, cosmetics, leather handbags. a big box of lego can be £100.

this is ross, for decades one of leeds' most prolific shoplifters. he says he's been clean from crack and heroin for five months and says he hasn't shoplifted in that time. previously, he was stealing £300 worth of stuff every day to fund his addiction. i know it's in the tens of thousands. you've stolen tens of thousands of pounds? yeah, i'm ashamed to say, yeah. i think i'd be a gold medallist if shoplifting were a sport. shoplifting costs the country billions of pounds. what do you think about that? i feel guilty and ashamed. it's simply desperation. ross only made money if people were willing to buy stolen goods. "whisky, vodka, bailey's, tia maria, honey, cheese, washing tablets and liquid if you can, please, mate." messages from a middleman, daily requests to steal to order. and even more surprisingly, his customers also included other shops all across the city. if i had a bag full of stuff, i'd know which shop

to go to to sell it on. and we'd discuss a price, and i'm out of there with the money. it sounds crazy to say that, doesn't it? it's the economics, isn't it, i suppose. i literally was a wholesaler at the end of the day. experts say 70% of shoplifters are addicts like ross, but there's no escaping the fact he's a criminal — 23 convictions in two decades, including 15 for shoplifting, but he's never been to prison. leeds has been described as the shoplifting capital of the uk, and, yes, rates here are high. but the story of ross and the city in general applies up and down the country. 350 miles away in truro, cctv captures thieves in this shop on a near—daily basis. they seem to be choosing something specific, so this could be an instance of where they're stealing to order. what really angers him is where he believes some of the stolen goods end up. we were able to follow a chap straight from a theft, hot on his heels, followed him to the store, actually took pictures of the cash

being exchanged and off they went. now, that was the first time i was able to actually, completely, 100% say stolen goods are being taken and sold on. those that represent shop owners just want more police action. this is absolutely vital- if we are to deal and to address the increasing trend that we're - seeing of unscrupulous businesses taking on local product that has been stolen to order _ in their local communities. the national police chiefs' council told us it's almost impossible to trace most shoplifted goods, but insisted it's focused on ensuring those involved are brought to justice. shopkeepers i've spoken to are left exasperated, and they just want to see an end to their profits walking out the door. jim connolly, bbc news. a rise in fuel duty is to be expected in the next budget, according to the motoring organisation the rac. it says it would normally oppose a rise, but claims that retailers

haven't passed on the five pence per litre cut introduced in 2022 and instead have boosted their own profits. the prime minister refused to rule out a rise in fuel duty. the chancellor rachel reeves will set out labour's first budget on october 30, which sir keir has warned "will be painful". housing people who are homeless is costing councils over parents in england are being told to ensure their children are fully vaccinated against diseases such as measles, meningitis and polio before they return to school. the uk health security agency said just one case can quickly lead to a wider outbreak, and if children are unvaccinated, they are at greater risk of becoming seriously ill. here's our health correspondent catherine burns. after six weeks of freedom, enjoying the last few days of the school holidays. how are you feeling about going back to school? all: happy! it's half— happy, half—sad. while they play, health authorities are asking parents to check if their children are up—to—date with their vaccines this term

to avoid an outbreak of measles. measles spreads incredibly quickly if children aren't vaccinated. this group are all protected, but there is no reason that anyone needs to catch it. it could be eliminated if enough people have the jabs, so the target is for 95% of children to have two doses of the mmr vaccine before they start school. we're not hitting that target. which is the reason for this public health campaign. if we're not vaccinated... ..we�*re not protected. we're worried about a big surge in measles cases this autumn. we have already seen over 2,000 measles cases this year in england, and that is very concerning. ezra barrett was unprotected when he got measles at three months old. babies can't get the mmr vaccine, which protects against it, until they're one. ezra ended up in hospital with

pneumonia struggling to breathe. when we had measles, - we were really, really shocked, and we were really concernedj about how it would affect him and if he would recover, - what the recovery would be like. health authorities are taking vaccine buses like this out into the community, trying to make it easier for people to getjabs. but for now, as well as getting the uniform and the stationery, the message for parents is to consider measles too. being a mum, you want to protect your children as much as you can, so vaccination is my way of protecting my children. it is to make sure that the vulnerable are taken care of. vaccinations were a key part of raising the children. - the hope is that this generation of school children can grow up measles—free. catherine burns, bbc news. the time is 18:14. our top story this evening: the government looks at tougher rules on outdoor smoking in a bid to cut deaths linked to tobacco use.

and power is flowing from the shetland islands to mainland britain for the first time. we will have more. and at 6.30. nine children and two adults have been taken to hospital after a suspected "chlorine leak" at a swimmimg pool in wembley. coming up on sportsday in the next 15 minutes on bbc news, interim manager lee carsley names his first england squad — and there are four uncapped players, including chelsea's noni madueke. in paris, the paralympic games are under way, and on day one, there have already been medals for the british team, but disappointment for one of its biggest stars, as kadeena cox crashed out of her final. 0ur sports correspondent andy swiss is in paris. britain's first paralympic champion in paris, courtesy of a new teenage sensation. poppy maskill is just 19 years old, but in her 100 metres butterfly final she was unstoppable. victory for the youngster, a world

record, and she is now the paralympic champion. the first day of the games, and the first medals for britain came in the velodrome. steve bate, who's visually impaired, and his pilot chris latham lost their pursuit final to the dutch duo. they finished second in tokyo, and they finish second again here. but bate was still delighted with his silver. and it was also silver for daphne schrager, also beaten in herfinal, but tears ofjoy on her paralympic debut. but there were tears of a different kind for one of the british team's biggest names — kadeena cox coming off her bikejust seconds into her time trial. it hasn't gone according to plan. and her title defence was over before it had barely begun. cox, who has multiple sclerosis, still has another event here, but as she was helped from the track, her heartache was all too clear. there were better fortunes in the table tennis for 14—year—old bly twomey, one of the british team's youngest members, winning both of her opening doubles matches,

including in the mixed event with josh stacey. great britain wins three games to one. meanwhile, who's this? former liverpool manager jurgen klopp swapping the dugout for the stands as he watched the parabadminton. and in the wheelchair rugby, there was a great start for britain as they beat the world champions australia. magical stuff. yes, it's only day one, but the early signs are promising. yes, some impressive performances from the british team, and what a performance that was from 19—year—old poppy maskill, britton�*s first paralympic champion of these games. but by contrast would crushing disappointment for kadeena cox after her crash in the cycling. she said afterwards she just didn't feel comfortable. she says she has picked up a sore knee as a result of that crash but says she is confident

she will be ready for her next event at the weekend. thank you very much, andy swiss with that update. according to figures released by the government today ——housing people who are homeless is costing councils over a billion pounds a year, according to figures released by the government today that is up 52% on the previous year. a record number of families in the uk are now living in temporary accommodation. charities say a failure to build enough social homes combined with more evictions has caused homelessness to spiral. concerns have been raised by a growing number of experts about the trials of lucy letby. she was convicted of killing seven babies in her care and attempting to kill seven others and jailed for life last year. now there have been claims that vital evidence may have been misinterpreted although others insist those claims are misguided and that the trials were fair. it comes as lucy letby has lodged papers with the court of appeal, to seek leave to appeal against her most recent conviction

for one attempted murder. gill dummigan has more. guilty. nurse lucy letby is the most prolific baby killer in modern times. lucy letby�*s murder trial last year was one of the longest in british legal history, following a six year police investigation. she perverted her learning to inflict harm, grief and death. six expert medical witnesses and many former colleagues testified against her. you have 110 remorse. there are no mitigating factors. the case against letby was wide ranging: blood test results showing that two babies had been overdosed with insulin, x—rays indicating air injected into others, an apparent confession note at her house, and a rota which showed her on duty for every suspicious collapse or death. this is the famous duty roster... this chart was a key part of the prosecution case. so this chart appears to be very convincing. but there are a number of issues with it. a big thing is that it only describes 25 of the bad events that happened in this period. it doesn't include any of the events

that happened when lucy was not on duty. there were at least six other deaths and other collapses. professor green says he doesn't want to cause the babies' parents any more pain, but the questions have to be asked. the danger is that this evidence can be very compelling to the non—professional, and overinterpreted. another crucial part of the prosecution case were blood samples from babies who'd collapsed with low blood sugar. they indicated exceptionally high levels of insulin, leading to the charge that letby had deliberately poisoned the babies by adding a synthetic version to their feed bags. the problem is that the method of analysis used was probably perfectly good for a clinical point of view, but not a forensic toxicology point of view. the website of the testing lab states that if synthetic insulin is suspected, the results should be verified externally. but that didn't happen because the babies recovered.

i don't doubt that the preterm infants had had low blood sugar, but there could be other reasons for that. others also question the charge that letby injected air into babies' blood vessels, causing often fatal blockages known as an embolism. at the appeal court hearing, one doctor who co—wrote a paper used by the prosecution in the original case spoke for letby�*s defence. the defence claimed the distinctive rash he'd outlined wasn't that described by witnesses in her case. the defence called no expert witnesses in the original trial. by contrast, six testified for the prosecution, in particular retired paediatric consultant dr dewi evans. dr evans told me that he'd referenced 18 research papers on air embolism, not just that contested one, and that his findings had been backed up in court by a radiologist and a neonatal pathologist. 0n the subject of the rota, he said he'd chosen those cases because they were the ones that seemed to him to be either suspicious or unexplained,

and that he hadn't known at that point that lucy letby had been on duty. the crown prosecution service points out that the court of appeal rejected letby�*s case. there's a 58 page judgment explaining why. much has been made of the fact that the case is circumstantial — no one definitively saw letby committing a crime. but some think that's missing the point. people often say, well, circumstantial evidence can't prove guilt. that's simply not true. tim 0wen kc has spent a0 years as a defence lawyer. he also co—hosts a legal podcast which has examined the letby debate. a circumstantial case can bel a powerful case, but in order to understand it, you have to look at the totality. - he's dealt with many miscarriages ofjustice, but says as this stands, there's no proof that this is one. i'm seeing lots of peoplej putting forward theories. they are making assumptions without the solid basis for it. i but still, the questions continue.

now, a letter signed by 2a experts has asked for the forthcoming letby inquiry to take those questions into account. you're not saying, though, are you, that you think she's innocent? i have no idea whether she's innocent or not. my concern is simply about the possibility that this was not a safe conviction. i don't know whether she's guilty or not. i don't think anyone knows except lucy letby. the inquiry is due to start on september the 10th. gill dummigan, bbc news. power is flowing from the shetland isles to mainland britain for the first time, from this — set to be the uk's most productive onshore wind farm. shetland is the windiest part of the uk — and the 103 turbines on project viking can generate enough electricity to power nearly half a million homes, according to its operator, sse. 0ur scotland editor,

james cookjoins us. good evening. the blades aren't going at the moment, they have been on and off today for testing and at some point the company has actually paid not to generate power if there is enough in the system at that moment. but when they are working what happens is the parent is taken undersea through a big table and joins the british mainland grid —— the power is taken. that is the first time shetland has been connected to the grid and it enables the power generated here, far more than these islands need, to be used where it is needed around the country to power homes and businesses. we hear a lot about the energy transition these days. this is what it looks like — a huge new wind farm sending electricity south to the mainland to help the uk move away from oil and gas towards renewable power. where we're standing now, it's taken close to 20 years to get this built. only four years to actually build

it, but 16 years to consent it and get through all those processes. so we will need to accelerate that. we need to do a lot more of these projects, a lot more offshore wind projects as well. so does that mean that people will have to be prepared for more of the countryside to look like this? yeah, i think so. but equally, we're here to consult on that. and we're here to explain a bit more about the pylon project. more wind farms mean more pylons to carry the power south, sparking opposition on the mainland in aberdeenshire. we're hugely worried about the industrialisation of our countryside. we live in one of the most beautiful parts of the world, and we're looking at thousands of acres being taken up with essentially industrial projects. there are campaigns in essex, there are campaigns in lincolnshire. the rest of the uk doesn't know what's coming. up the coast in aberdeen, they're worried too, for a different reason. this remains the heart of the uk's oil and gas industry, and here they suspect the labour government wants to shut them down as quickly as possible.

the oil and gas industry- is absolutely pivotal and key to the just energy transition. it provides the jobs, - it provides the investment. we're starting to see _ resources, key equipment, drilling rigs and personnel leave the basin. and that's obviously a concern. so jobs are already going? jobs are already going. there are already- processes under way. not at enquest, but at. other companies we know processes are under way. the government insists it will protect north sea jobs for decades to come. it's also promising that greener power projects such as viking will bring down bills. back in shetland many islanders are not convinced. well, people are looking out their windows at these huge turbines that are producing far more power than we could possibly ever use, and at the same time having to wonder whether or not they can put their own heating on because of the cost of electricity here. so they're justifiably angry that there's so little benefit to the islands from these projects. sse says more wind farms will be needed onshore and offshore if the government is to meet its

target of generating all the uk's electricity from renewable sources by 2030. it says ministers will have to be brave in reforming planning laws to speed up projects like this one, and that will be controversial. james cook, bbc news, at the viking wind farm in shetland. cricket now, and joe root equalled the england record of 33 test centuries held by sir alastair cook when he reached three figures on the first day of the second test against sri lanka at lord's on thursday. a short time ago england were 342—7. 0ur sports correspondent, joe wilson, has been there watching the action. test cricket is not easy. ask 0llie pope, england's stand—in captain and subsequently struggling batter. he fell for one, and having opted to bowl first, sri lanka were on top at lord's. 0llie pope is only leading england for this series but in their team england have a man who captained

them for 64 test matches, still going strong. time to activate once morejoe root. once in the middle he waits for the bad ball and makes the most of it. it's been the same for a dozen years, the world over. the concentration which won england the first test last weekend was keeping them afloat here. six wickets down. at 4:38, joe root guided his way to the 33rd 100 of his test career, inspiring the crowd, equalling england's lebel with the commentating alastair cook. level with the commentating alastair cook. until he tried his trick shot. joe wilson, bbc news, lord's. now to a round—the—world cruise ship that has been stranded in belfast for three months.

the three year trip was supposed to begin at the end of may, but has been delayed by gearbox and rudder problems. some passengers haven't been able to leave belfast at all and the weather there has come as a bit of a shock. sara girvin has been speaking to passengers. it's billed as the global cruise adventure of a lifetime... this is our only opportunity to live on a ship. ..taking in 425 destinations, including more than 100 tropical islands. but so far, those on board are yet to leave the first port of call — not so tropical belfast. holly has been docked in the city since may with her cat captain for company. he's used to the yachting thing. he lived on a boat in the winter and he's a trouper. he's wonderful. he's raring to go. belfast has provided passengers with highs and lows. well, the worst by far is the weather. i feel so sorry for you all. i have had to buy vitamin d for the first time in my life.

you know, florida, we don't need that. the best thing, the people here have all been supportive. i'm willing to wait as long as it takes. the passengers are trying to stay positive despite their extended stay in belfast. sure, we've been frustrated at times, but really it's all been part of the adventure. it's been amazing to learn - a new country, a new culture, all the food, all the drinks. so i've enjoyed getting to know it. all the guinness! it's hoped the ship will finally launch next week. what are you looking forward to the most now? departure. they laugh. time for a look at the weather. here's louise lear. can't believe they were smiling, i know how much rain there has been in northern ireland over the last few weeks! actually, today has been

quite a quiet day and for the first time in many a week we have almost seen sunshine topping and tailing the country. there has been a few scattered showers across scotland but you can see in east lothian, a beautiful day, throughout much of the day. and a similar story for the southin the day. and a similar story for the south in cornwall, we had lots of blue sky and sunshine. a bit fresher but hopefully, certainly better. you can see high pressure building in from the south—west and that will keep things very quiet as we move through friday and into the start of the weekend. it does allow those clear skies to continue through the nitrite, and low single figures quite possible in parts of sheltered rural scotland. a chilly start to friday for some. lots of glorious sunshine coming through and on the whole a pleasant day. showers should be fairly isolated. cloud will tend to bubble up into the afternoon but it should not spoil proceedings and it should not spoil proceedings and it should not spoil proceedings and it should be a degree or so warmer than today. 24 in the south—east. 75

fahrenheit. into the weekend, the