tonight at 10: the desperate plight of thousands of rohingya refugees stranded near the border with bangladesh. they're fleeing violence in myanmar, and they're part of the world's fastest—growing humanitarian crisis. so many young children we're seeing here today. this has to be one of the biggest single day influxes of refugees from across the border, just over there, in the whole of this crisis. in the past seven weeks, more than 500,000 rohingya have left their homes. we will have the latest. also tonight... nhs hospital targets for cancer care, a&e treatment and planned operations are being routinely missed across the uk. there'll be no more charges to call the universal credit helpline, after strong criticism from mps and campaigners. the football association apologises to two female players, after it was found they had been the victims of racial remarks by a former coach. my overwhelming emotion really is just relief,

because it has been a long process, getting to this point. and, two decades after the emergence of his dark materials, philip pullman talks to us about a world in chaos. and coming up on sportsday on bbc news: could chelsea make it three wins from three in the champions league group stage? one of three british clubs in action tonight. good evening. we start tonight with the world's fastest—growing humanitarian crisis, as thousands of rohingya refugees are spending a fourth night stranded near the border with bangladesh. hundreds of thousands have left their homes in myanmar, where they'd faced a military

offensive, following claims that militants were guilty of attacking police checkpoints. more than half a million rohingya muslims have now fled across the border into bangladesh. over the past three days, some 15,000 refugees have been stranded with limited food and water. my colleague, clive myrie, is in the port of cox's bazar, and he sent this report. in the distance in myanmar, where rohingya villages have burned in recent weeks and the people have been driven out, there's another fire. it's ethnic cleansing says the un. and the purged are fleeing for their lives, into neighbouring bangladesh. translation: in my village, many were killed, but my son had just been born, so we have only now been able to escape. we haven't had time to name him. what's going on in myanmar, why have you had to flee? another man we came across spoke of violence and murder.

translation: on the way we saw many dead people, their heads and limbs chopped off. the slaughter took place house by house. as we drew closer to the border, nothing had prepared us for the full extent of the day's exodus. almost as far as the eye could see, left and right, a tide of humanity. between 10,000—15,000 people had crossed the border in one night. young and old, hungry, exhausted, traumatised, and for the weak, it's a painful journey into exile, with the searing heat stinging the skin

infection of this child, beneath an unrelenting sun. they'd been hiding out for close to a week, to avoid detection along the border. this, a first meal without having to watch their backs. a man makes a call to tell relatives he's made it. while others, parched and desperate, take their chance with the filthy water all around. well as you can see, they're carrying with them whatever they could salvage from their villages, their homes, that they say they were burned out by the myanmar military. look at that little baby there in a basket, and there's another one here, on the other side... so many young children we're seeing here today. this has to be one of the biggest single day influxes of refugees from across the border, just over there, in the whole of this crisis. manyjust don't have the strength to walk, including this lady. she gave birth to a healthy baby boy just hours before crossing into bangladesh.

born on a river bank, he first opened his eyes to see a cruel world in which it seems there's no place for or the other rohingya muslims. "i begged god to save us", her husband mohammed tells me. "we hadn't eaten for two days, and she went into labour. i don't know what will happen to my baby now. he's so fragile." the new arrivals could end up in one of these, the giant tented camps, built in a matter of days, on hillsides freshly stripped of trees. the largest will soon become the biggest refugee camp on earth. i've seen a lot of these crises around the world and i really wasn't quite prepared for the degree of suffering and despair, and yet these people are very resilient, they have not lost hope, they're still thinking they can make a life again in their home country. we are resolved to go back and find

more resources for them, until we can bring them home. but some have died seeking sanctuary. this week, a boat carrying 60 rohingya muslims escaping myanmar capsized. 14 perished — most of them children. for the bangladeshis, the mass influx of so many refugees is difficult to control. after a delay, these rohingya muslims should begin moving to an established refugee camp in the coming days. the border remains open, but for those still wanting to escape myanmar, the fear is that soon the gates could shut. tens of thousands are already massing on the frontier, ready to make their dash for survival. it is the sheer speed at which this crisis has unfolded that really

seems to have caught everyone by surprise, governments, the un, all the aid agencies and there has been criticism that at the slow pace of the response to the drama that has been unfolding here. yes, the bangladeshis have been under a lot of pressure today to move more quickly, to try and howls bose rohingya muslims you saw in my report. we understand tonight assurances have been made that over the next few days they will be moving to more permanent camps that are dotted around the area here. but they would argue that this is a massive crisis and this is a poor country and it would be difficult for any country to deal with the numbers flooding in here, and anyway they are keeping the border open, so those people who are fleeing what they say is persecution across the border, they will still be able to find sanctuary here. i will be taking some of your questions, if you want to contact me about the

situation here, over the next half an hour. you can contact me. with that it an hour. you can contact me. with thatitis an hour. you can contact me. with that it is back to you. clive myrie with the latest on that humanitarian crisis on the bangladesh — myanmar border. the performance of hospitals across the uk has worsened with targets for cancer, a&e and planned operations being widely missed, according new research by the bbc. england, wales and northern ireland have not hit any of their three key targets for 18 months. scotland has hit one of them. four years ago, the key targets were met across england 86% of the time. this year, it's zero. in northern ireland, they were hitting targets 25% of the time. now, that's also zero. in wales, in 2012—13, didn't hit the targets. four years on, that's still at zero. scotland's health boards previously achieved 42%. now the goals are being met 8% of the time, and that's

the best in the uk. the bbc has launched an online nhs tracker which will allow people to see how their local services are performing. 0ur health editor, hugh pym, reports. a major hospital, busy as always and, like so many, not hitting its a&e target. that's supposed to be 95% of patients dealt within four hours. but here at northwick park in london, they say they're doing everything they possibly can. every single number that we have coming in is a human being, it is a patient, it is somebody with relatives and they all have to be treated as best as we can. so reaching numbers is, in a way, to clinicians less important. when the pressure goes up, sometimes we feel that we can't give the best care, but we keep going. it's not simply an a&e problem, patients arrive here consistently throughout the day, but the whole system gets clogged up if elsewhere in the hospital patients who are medically fit can't

leave, and so free up beds. hopefully, you will be going home today with our team. at northwick park, they work closely with local authorities to assess elderly patients and organise care away from the hospital, but demand for beds is high and they know it'll get higher as winter sets in. the targets don'tjust cover urgent care, there's one for planned operations and many hospitals are struggling with that. could you pick it up, please. in cornwall, lynn had to wait seven months for each hip to be replaced in turn at her local hospital, the target is four—and—a—half months. each day you find that there are less and less things that you can do that you take for granted. you assume that you're going to able to get into the fridge and then you find that you can't reach the shelf on the bottom and then you can't reach the middle shelf of the fridge. it becomes more and more difficult just to function. some hospital trusts are often hitting targets like this one,

north tees and hartlepool, with innovations like having a senior nurse at reception deciding which patients really need a&e and which could be dealt with elsewhere. we don't want patients sat in a&e if they can be seen in the urgent care centre more quickly, more efficiently with a minor injury or a minor illness. for those patients who come to the department who have more serious complications, they're obviously in the right place then. one of the trust directors told me they talked a lot to other local hospitals, discussing the best ways to cope with the challenges. a lot of the things that we do have been in response to pressures, were we trying doing something differently to see if it would worked and, if it has, we've carried on, if it hasn't, we tried something else. so there are some bright spots, but for england as a whole it's a consistent story of missed targets since early 2016. well, it is absolutely true that some people are waiting too long for their treatments and we are working night and day to turn that around. but it's also true that more people than ever are being treated within the target times.

scotland has met its a&e performance standard in some months, but has fallen short in other areas over the last year. the nhs in every part of the uk is having to cope with the same pressures — rising patient numbers and limited resources to handle that. hugh pym, bbc news. to find out how your local hospital service is performing on waiting times for cancer, a&e and planned operations, go to the bbc‘s nhs tracker at bbc.co.uk/nhstracker. you can put your details in and see what your local services are doing. ministers have been forced to abandon charges for calling a helpline about the new universal credit system, after strong criticism from campaigners and mp5. the calls, often made by people in financial difficulty and facing waits for the new benefit payment,

currently cost up to 55 pence a minute. the announcement was made ahead of a commons debate about the implementation of universal credit, which labour says should be put on hold because of the problems. 0ur social affairs correspondent, michael buchanan, reports. for some, this is the front—line of welfare provision. in newcastle's west end, the food bank has seen more people forced here due to problems with universal credit. the biggest welfare reform in decades, currently claimed by 600,000 people nationwide, is creating rent arrears, debts and hunger. there's nothing in my cupboard, not a thing. so i didn't want to go to my mam's for breakfast this morning because you feel embarrassed, do you know what i mean? you don't want to have to do that first thing in the morning, just for a bit of breakfast. i keep having to go to cash converters, i'm selling stuff, do you know what i mean? they know me quite well in there, ithink, like, you know what i mean? i'm in every week with something

to sell, whether it be cds, dvds. as shaun and margaret struggle on, the minister pushing through universal credit acknowledged the benefit was creating what he called "some hard cases." good morning, david and neil. david gauke refused to pause the rollout however, although he did concede to one labour demand — calls to the universal credit helpline, which can cost up to 55p a minute, will be made free. given the recent attention and concern that this could place a burden on claimants, i have decided that this will change to a free phone number over the next month. the speaker: jeremy corbyn. that wasn't enough for labour however, who went on the attack again. the fundamental problems of universal credit remain — the six week wait, rising indebtedness, rent arrears and evictions. will the prime minister now pause universal credit and fix the problems? it is a system that is working because more people are getting

into work and pausing universal credit won't help those people, who will be helped by going to universal credit, getting into the workplace and bringing home more pay for their families. all parties agree with the principle of universal credit, simplifying the benefit system, but a parliamentary debate later revealed more divisions. birkenhead food bank, after talking to other food banks who have experienced the rollout, believe they will need 15 tonnes more food this christmas. the fundamental problem of a minimum six week wait and that means this our constituents, who are living on the edge, and we're talking about real people's lives here. back in newcastle, the political toing and froing seems a world away, but with ministers intent on pushing on with the rollout of universal credit, the impact of that decision is likely to become very noticeable. michael buchanan, bbc news. the football association has

apologised to two female players for the way it handled their allegations of bullying and racism. an fa investigation found that mark sampson, the former england women's manager, had made racial remarks to eni aluko and drew spence. mark samson has always denied wrongdoing. he lost his job due to an unrelated complaint in a previous role. eni aluko claimed the fa's attitude had been "dismissive" and said today she felt vindicated. 0ur sports editor, dan roan, reports. having had her complaints of bullying and harassment dismissed by two fa enquiries, eni aluko arrived in westminster today to give evidence, and got an apology. the governing body admitting the striker and a team—mate had been subject to racially discriminatory remarks by the former england women's manager. my overwhelming emotion, really, is just relief because it has been a long, long process. i was always honest and truthful about those comments and about other comments that i've raised

and about the culture of the team under mark sampson. and so i feel vindicated. sampson was sacked last month for inappropriate behaviour in a previous coaching job. based on new evidence, the same barrister who'd previously rejected alu ko's complaints today accepted the manager had twice made ill—judged jokes, including one about her nigerian family bringing ebola to the uk. she did not conclude sampson was a racist and stood by her original conclusions. the fa had previously agreed to pay aluko an £80,000 settlement. but today she sensationally accused chief executive martin glen of asking her to publicly say the fa wasn't racist in return for the full pay—out. he effectively suggested that if i wrote a statement, a favourable statement, saying the fa are not institutionally racist, that they would think about releasing the money. i felt that was bordering on blackmail.

with the fa's bosses then asked to explain themselves, glenn denied any blackmail attempt and defended his organisation's handling of the saga. i regret that the two comments, the inappropriate banter, have been made. it's not right for an fa employee. but i do think the spirit, with which we approached the whole concerns, have been good. some mps, however, were not impressed. i have to be honest with you, i have never heard such shambolic evidence about the governance of an organisation as i have heard today. the fa chairman admitting mistakes have been made. there certainly were systemic failings historically which have contributed to today's mess. i am not here to tell you this is the fa's finest hour. and soon it got even worse for the chairman. putting aside all the fluff about about, you know, institutional racism, no institutional bullying, it... i'm not trying to hide behind it, right? because... "fluff" is not the word i would use to describe it. language matters in

many of these cases. i apologise for phrasing it badly. this has become a scandal that's threaten to engulf the entire fa and exposed its handling of safeguarding, whistle—blowing and alleged discrimination. and with the revelation tonight that sampson is considering legal action over his dismissal, the repercussions could be far from over from the governing body after one of the most bruising days in its history. dan roan, bbc news, westminster. in china, president xijinping has declared a "new era" in chinese economic growth and announced his ambition to play a more significant role in world affairs. mr xi was addressing the communist party congress, an event which takes place in beijing every five years. in a speech, lasting three—and—a—half hours, he set out his vision for the coming years, including reforms to the economy, more environmental protection and intensifying his campaign against corruption. 0ur china editor, carrie gracie, has more details.

like no other party conference — nearly 90 million members, more than 2,000 of them here, and they're are all tight—lipped on the way in. speaking chinese the first time i came to one of these was 25 years ago and the striking thing is, that the choreography just doesn't change. china's changed; it now has more billionaires than the united states, but the ruling party is making the point that whatever else happens, its political rituals... ..go on and on. china — a global power which affects us all, but with politics as secretive as north korea. there are rumours of a rift between the men at the top, but on stage, there's only one voice. translation: the banner of socialism with chinese characteristics is now flying high for all to see. it will be an era that sees china moving closer to centre stage. "socialism with chinese

characteristics" means socialism that allows for private enterprise and brings economic growth. he's determined he won't be swept away, like communists in the soviet bloc. translation: no stone's being left unturned and no tolerance shown. applause a firm message against corruption there. behind the rhetoric of this speech there is a clear mission statement, that only a disciplined and united party under his firm leadership can survive. he's already disciplined nearly 1.5 million people — no wonder they follow his every word. xijinping has set out his goals — modernise the economy, clean up pollution and build a mighty army, and it's a strategic vision notjust for five years, he's looking ahead 30 years. but it's the party's vision — insiders only. that speech lasted nearly

three—and—a—half hours, which has made delegates late for lunch. hunger and political survival... ..two good reasons not to talk to the bbc. but some delegates were inspired. it sends the message that for china, for the development of china, for the future of china, that the communist party and the people are full of confidence. it's nearly 30 years since a peaceful democracy protest, right here in tiananmen square, was crushed by the army. today, china is far richer and far stronger, but it's all—powerful leader is more determined than ever not to give his people a say. carrie gracie, bbc news, beijing. president trump has been accused of making insensitive comments to the widow of an american soldier who died in combat.

the president made a phone call to mayesha johnson as she went to receive her husband's coffin. he's been accused of saying that sergeantjohnson must have known "what he was getting into", but mr trump says has he proof the account was fabricated. 0ur north america editor, jon sopel, is at the white house. people are more than used, jon, to the president make, well, controversial remarks. has he crossed a different kind of line this time? huw, you would imagine if there was one subject that was sealed from the political dog fight it would be a widow grieving over her husband's coffin and the president's private call to her. but not in today's washington. the white house has reacted furiously and blamed a democratic congresswoman who happened to be in thear car with the widow when the call came through. her account has been made public also backed up byjunaid hussain‘s mother as well and the white house said that was

deplorable. 0f white house said that was deplorable. of course, it was president in the first place who politicised this issue by making false accusations about his redcressors and the way they dealt with the families of fallen heros. the president also stands accused of all of this, but in the middle of it all of this, but in the middle of it all you have a woman grieving over her husband and yet under the political spotlight in a way she could never have imagined. jon, many thanks again, jon sopel there with the latest for us at the white house. an estimated four million people in the uk are said to be in "financial difficulty" and are failing to pay their bills according to the city watchdog, the financial conduct authority. the fca's latest survey found a range of concerns from difficulties meeting mortgage payments and rent, to dwindling savings and a reliance on credit cards and loans. 0ur economics editor, kamal ahmed, has been studying the findings. meet helena ventham, working as a part—time teacher in london, struggling,

like many millions of people, to make ends meet. we've been living in shepherd's bush since last september and even within that time frame it's become more difficult to pay the rent. we live in a two bed flat and i think probably a couple of years ago that would have been quite affordable for us. my partner has a good job in the city, in it, and i'm a working mum part—time. we're going to move out of london within the next year because we just can't afford to live in this part of london any more anyway. the country's leading financial regulators say helena's story is not unusual. there are significant numbers of people in the uk who have suffered some form of financial difficulty and in particular, we highlight the age group from 25—34, whereas many as 13% of people have missed bill payments and got themselves into some kind of financial situation. what this survey reveals is the financial stress so many people are under. half of us, 50%, could be considered to be economically vulnerable.

then there's the 4.1 million people who have failed to pay an important bill in the last six months. and the 5.1 million people who say they would struggle with an increase in rent or mortgage repayments of as little as £50 a month. next month, the bank of england could increase interest rates for the first time in 10 years, what effect might that have? the cost of credit and the cost of things like mortgages will go up for some households and that would mean they will have less money to spend on other things and therefore the implication will be for slower consumer spending and potentially weaker economy. we are spending, we're in work, employment is at a record high, but that income squeeze conditions and whilst it does, worries about making ends meet are only likely to get worse. kamal ahmed, bbc news.

—— continues. in malta, the prime minister, joseph muscat, has said "no stone will be left unturned" in the hunt for the people who murdered the investigative journalist daphne ca ruana galizia, who was killed in a car bomb attack earlier this week. in her work, she'd repeatedly accused the island's government of corruption. her son has described malta as a "mafia state." from the capital our correspondent, daniel sandford, sent this report. two days on from the murder that shocked this island, scenes of crime officers finally started poring over the road where malta's best—known journalist was killed. the police have enlisted the help of bomb specialists from the netherlands and the fbi. daphne ca ruana galizia wrote scathing articles about corruption on the island and about the ruling labour party. and on monday someone ended all that with a car bomb. the maltese prime minister and his wife were the target of some of her criticism, but today he told me no expense would be spared

in finding the killers. we want them caught. i think, besides the family, the person who really wants most this issue to be settled is myself. and i'm determined to get to the bottom of this. the prime minister is so keen for the killing to be solved because at the moment it hangs like a shadow over his administration. people have even speculated that someone in his government might have been involved, so tonight he offered what he called a "substa ntial reward" for information leading to the murderers. even daphne caruana galizia's closest friends can't work out which of her enemies would actually want her dead. but they know she chose to ignore the dangers. she must have been aware of the risks. she didn't... she didn't talk about them much, you know? she took them in her stride, let's say. a new memorial appeared opposite the law courts today,

to a woman whose lonely anti—corruption campaign appears to have cost her her life. daniel sandford, bbc news, valetta. the author philip pullman is best known for his trilogy of fantasy novels, his dark materials, which sold millions of copies. now, 20 years after the start of that series, he's back with a new book featuring one of the original characters. he's also keen to share his often forthright views on the real world which, he says, is in a "state of turmoil." he's been talking to our arts editor, will gompertz. the inn was an old stone built, rambling, comfortable sort of place. there was a terrace above the river, where peacocks, one called norman and the other called barry, stalked... philip pullman, reading from his latest book la belle sauvage, in which he returns to the fantastical world of dust and demons he created in his dark materials. it sees the return of lyra, who is now sheltering in a priory from her own father, in a story that pits liberals

against totalitarian oppressors. i think the greatest menace to the world is the point of view that says one size fits all. there's one answer and we have it and if you don't believe it, we're going to kill you, or torture you, or imprison you, or burn you or whatever. the book is set in oxford — one of the world's great centres of education, a subject, as an ex—teacher, on which the author has some views. i think the way in which we educate children now discounts, greatly discounts the importance of the imagination, and overemphasises a culture of getting things right and getting the right answer and ticking the right box and rewarding it in a quantitative way. "yes, you got four out of five, you've got a bit of room