there's mounting criticism of the decision to release serial six attackerjohn worboys. —— sex attacker. the former black cab driver has spent nine years in prison for attacking 12 women. the head of the parole board apologises that some of his victims weren't told he is to be released. when we released the information about the decision, my understanding today is that we believed all the victims had been told about that decision, but we are checking today exactly what did happen, because clearly something went wrong. police said in 2010 they believed worboys had assualted more than 100 women. we'll discuss what might happen now. also this lunchtime. the number of new cars sold fell last year for the first time in six years. diesel car sales were sharply down. a serious case review into the murder of two—year—old jeremiah regis—ngaujah wants improvements to safeguarding children — though says his death couldn't have been predicted. as customers in the us queued

at midnight to get hold of the explosive new book that president trump tried to stop, the author speaks out. they all say he's like a child, he has a need for immediate gratification. it's all about him. the latte levy — could a 25p tax on disposable coffee cups improve recycling? and coming up in the sport on bbc news, frustration for england's bowlers in the final ashes test. steve smith and usman khawaja score freely in sydney to put australia on top. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one.

the chair of the parole board has apologised unreservedly to victims of the serial sex attacker john worboys, after some of them were not told he's to be released from prison. the black cab driver was jailed in 2009, for offences against 12 women — but detectives later said they believed he'd attacked more than 100 women between 2002 and 2008. a group of mps has written to thejustice secretary, calling for an investigation into whether the views of worboys' victims were heard in the decision to release him on parole. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford reports. he toured the streets of london in his black taxi for six years. police think he may have raped or sexually assaulted at least 105 women after drugging them. he was given an

indeterminate sentence, which means he can't be released until he's no longer a risk to the public, but john warboys is about to be freed after less than ten years. so the key question for the three members of the parole board was, isjohn warboys still a danger to women? in ruling that he should be released they must have decided that he isn't a danger, but they haven't made public their reasons for freeing a man suspected of being one of the most prolific sex offenders of recent yea rs. most prolific sex offenders of recent years. the parole board is not legally allowed to give reasons for its decision, but the chair of the board did give this explanation. what's important to understand is that the parole board's duty is not took ina that the parole board's duty is not took in a sense have another go at the trial, but to assess what his risks will be going forward and that's what they did. at his trial, john warboys was only convicted of attacking 12 women and only one of those convictions was for rape, so

thejudge set a those convictions was for rape, so the judge set a minimum sentence of eight years which means the police and crime panel seclusion service are now being asked why they didn't bring further cases. the parole board has also had to apologise because several ofjohn warboys' victims had not been told of the decision to release him before it became public yesterday. this is perhaps a reflection of the way in which women who are victims of rape are treated generally and until the criminal just are treated generally and until the criminaljust is agencies get this right we've got a crisis in this country around it. the warboys case has highlighted flaws in the criminal justice system from has highlighted flaws in the criminaljustice system from the start. initially the police failed to investigate it properly. then only 12 cases were brought to trial, even though there were ultimately suspicions of over 100. and now a man who a judge said shouldn't be released until he's no longer a threat is about to walk free from prison after ten years. daniel

sandford, olman is here. bbc news. clive colman is here. the pa role bbc news. clive colman is here. the parole board has made its decision. what are the legal options? the only mechanism for challenging is by way ofjudicial review. technically any decision by any public body or authority can be challenged by way ofjudicial review, if it's being argued it was unlawful. here it will be argued that no reasonable tribunal could have come to this decision, but the problem here is a practical one. we don't know the reasoning here, so it's a difficult challenge, but there may be a way of doing that. we are also looking at the result of the story at reform of the result of the story at reform of the parole board itself, its decisions are made in secret if you like in private, the chair of the board, nick hardwick, favours, in fa ct board, nick hardwick, favours, in fact is he wants a public consultation on whether this should be opened up, whetherjustice should not only be done but seem to be done. it's opened to the public for insta nce done. it's opened to the public for

instance in canada. there are cost of locations, there are implications for victims perhaps having to relive their experience —— there are cost implications. and also whether the victims knew this would be public and allow the case to be assessed for risk. the critical thing is kabaddi further charges, i think that's very difficult. it's not entirely impossible. there are issues about the passage of time, about the effect of the publicity in the original trial that might have on victims, but the cps remain under a duty to consider any evidence that the police provide to them to look at charging, and if there's a realistic prospect of conviction then they must charges. clive colman, many thanks, our legal affairs correspondent. sales of new cars fell last year, for the first time in six years. the industry body, the society of motor manufacturers and traders, says the number of cars registered was down by 5.7% compared with 2016, while diesel sales fell by almost a fifth because of concerns about pollution.

our business correspondent theo leggett has the details. for the past few years car sales in britain have been booming. in 2015 and 2016, the industry set new records, but now, it may be going into reverse gear. 0verall new car registrations were down 5.7% last year, according to the society of motor manufacturers and traders. that's the first decline in six yea rs. that's the first decline in six years. no one is panicking just yet. by years. no one is panicking just yet. by historical standards 2017 was still a pretty good year. more than 2.5 million new cars were registered, the third highest level ina registered, the third highest level in a decade, but over the past few months the decline has accelerated. in december, registrations were down more than 14% compared to last year. and sales of diesel cars across the year we re and sales of diesel cars across the year were down more than 17%. 0verall if you look at the economic

performance of the uk, growth is slowing. all the indicators around economic confidence are weakening especially when it comes to people's enthusiasm about making big—ticket purchase, like a car. declining demand for diesel cars is a big problem for the industry. campaigners blame them for high levels of urban pollution the ss —— the society of motor manufacturers says consumers are confused and unwilling to buy them. experts ee, unwilling to buy them. experts agree, even though new models are much cleaner, diesel has an image problem. diesels can only recover if the facts can be made clear. if the fa cts the facts can be made clear. if the facts around the lower pollutant levels, the economic benefits of running one, can be made plain and clear, that really will need someone in senior government to stand up above the parapet and say something positive about diesel, and make the fa cts positive about diesel, and make the facts clear around it. people within the industry say confusion over diesel may be causing environmental

harm by encouraging drivers to hang onto older, dirtier cars, rather than swapping them for cleaner, new models. meanwhile the fall in sales is expected to continue throughout 2018. theo leggett, bbc news. the book everyone is talking about is out. the author of this book, fire and fury, an incendiary account of donald trump ‘s life in the white house has spoken for the first time since its publication. michael wolff says the president behaves like a child. president trump tried to get this book's publication halted and has dismissed it as full of lies. donjohnson has the details. you've heard the headlines, now you can read the substance of fire and fury. rushed out at midnight in the us after threats from the president's lawyers. you are bobbing what i'm most looking forward to is seeing what's actually, what we all know is going onjust

seeing what's actually, what we all know is going on just below the surface. were imagining who in the white house has actually said this. no one gets tired of the intrigue. i'm expecting the white house to be as absolutely dysfunctional as the links would make it seem. this chitchat, the president's burgers in bed, the vanity, the apparently strained relationship with the first lady, but there is also serious criticism of donald trump ‘s intelligence. his chief strategist steve bannon suggested using the constitution to force him out because he didn't believe donald trump was fit for office.|j because he didn't believe donald trump was fit for office. i would say the one description that eve ryo ne say the one description that everyone gave, everyone has in common, they all say he is like a child. and what they mean by that is he has a need for immediate gratification. it's all about him. the white house says the book is full of mistakes. it's disgraceful

and laughable. if he was unfit he probably wouldn't be sitting there, wouldn't have defeated the most qualified group of candidates the republican party has ever seen. and the president couldn't resist a few words on twitter. i authorised zero access to the white house. 0nly full of lies, misrepresentations, and sources that don't exist. this is an account of a deeply divided administration, with staff who don't think the bosses up to the job and a family dynasty that is closing ranks. it may not make any difference to trump's loyal supporters, but it's damaging to the president. ice cold in washington but it's the white house where things are really frosty. dan johnson, bbc news. a serious case review has recommended improvements be made to safeguarding children in wolverhampton, following the murder of a two—year—old boy in 2016. but it found that the brutal killing ofjeremiah regis—ngaujah by his stepfather, who used extreme physical punishment on the child, could not have been predicted.

sima kotecha reports. two—year—old jeremiah regis. to those who knew him, happy, smiling, contented. but at home, he was being beaten by this man, chevaze mcgregor. in november 2016, an inflicted regime of brutality eventually killed the child. in this cctv footage, the 27—year—old is seen losing his temper. jeremiah‘s mother was sindyann regis, a woman who had been hit by previous partners. today's serious case review said that more questions should have been asked about who she was involved with. it says the response to prevent repeat victimisation was less effective. women who have been subjected to domestic abuse are vulnerable to two kinds of repeat victimisation — by the same person

or by future partners. however, it says nobody could have foreseen the murder. this review, a very thorough review, makes it very clear that the level of violence that was inflicted on this child by this man was not preventable, predictable, was not predictable by his past behaviour by his history. that is all very well, that this is the fifth death of a child at the hands of an adult in the past eight years. surely there is something significantly wrong here. that absolutely is not the case. you have to look at each case on a case—by—case basis. it was inside this block of flats where jeremiah was regularly beaten by mcgregor. in the end, it was one heavy blow that ended his life. he died from multiple organ failure after his abdominal injuries caused septic shock. chevaze inflicted more than 100 injuries on the child, including a skull fracture and a bite mark to his chest. as this police body map shows, he was hurt all over

after being repeatedly struck by a belt and rod. detectives described mcgregor as controlling, manipulative, violent. like all serious case reviews, the aim is to learn lessons and prevent deaths like this one. a defenceless child taken from his family in a painful and unfathomable way. and we can speak to sima in wolverhampton now. as you suggested there, the problem is that his death, sadly, was not the only one in a certain period. that's right. this is the fifth death of a child at the hands of an aduu death of a child at the hands of an adult in wolverhampton over the last eight years and as you heard the chasse, that it was not predictable. however, there will be questions asked why it happened again and this afternoon we've heard from the nspcc. in a statement it says that it's vital that professionals leave no stone unturned when dealing with

families with complex needs, to ensure all decisions made in the best interests of the child and the family asa best interests of the child and the family as a whole, it goes on to say, we must all be alert to the warning signs of abuse and be to speak out if a child is at risk, as it could save a life. sima kotecha, thank you. our top story this lunchtime. the head of the parole board apologises after some victims of serial sex attackerjohn worboys were not told of his release. and still to come... why drinkers of this fizz are getting in a tizz. coming up in sport, serena williams pulls out of the australian open, four months after giving birth to her daughter. she says she can compete but it's just not good enough. a massive winter storm

is causing serious disruption in the eastern united states. 17 people are believed to have died as blizzards swept across much of the region. thousands of flights have been cancelled and there are widespread power cuts. in boston, firefighters had to rescue motorists from flooded streets, nearly 12 inches of snow have fallen in the area. weather forecasters are referring to the freak conditions as a "bomb cyclone". chi chi izundu has the latest. it's been several days of unusually cold weather hitting parts of the united states. from florida, the first snowfall for 30 years. can you believe that this is tallahassee, florida ? where wildlife not used to the temperature are having to be rescued. while over in maine, flooding is also problematic. while we were out here flooding just moments ago, the ground underneath us collapsed. thousands of flights

have been cancelled, schools have been shut and parks closed in parts of new york state. blocked roads, black ice and power cuts mean a state of emergency has been declared, with up to 17 deaths are being attributed to the weather. what is quite clear is this is a serious, serious storm. between the very low temperature, the strong winds, the driving snow, everyone should take this one very seriously and take precautions. so what is a bomb cyclone? it's when a storm creates a sharp, rapid drop in atmospheric pressure meaning winds of up to 70 mph, feeling like —40, several inches of snow and dangerously freezing temperatures. state officials clearing what they can say they have emergency shelters, food, blankets and generators on stand—by to help those in need. the weather is expected to continue over the weekend and for some, it brings the opportunity to sledge, build a snowman, even play a game of ice hockey.

while for others, it's a chance to experiment. chi chi izundu, bbc news. laura trevelyan is in new york. laura, ifeel laura, i feel cold just looking at you. well, i can tell you it's a lot colder than it looks. just look at this fountain behind me here in the park. it is frozen solid. it's currently —12 celsius and the mayor of new york has warned that tonight, the temperatures could drop to —20 nine. that would be the same temperature that it is on mars, that's how cold it is. these are historic lows for new york city, so in the wake of that extraordinary blizzard that we saw yesterday, all of this cold air from the arctic has been sucked in and for the next

three days, we're going to have these subzero temperatures, so what officials are worried about in new york is actually not so much the blizzard but the after effects, the black ice, the sleepiness, this phenomenal cold and how it will affect the vulnerable, the homeless, the old. the city is coming back to life, airports have reopened, snowploughs and 700 salting machines are working hard. so the city has gone into overdrive. further up in new england, there was historic flooding in boston and the mayor of boston has asked, is this to do without changing climate? remember, we had all those hurricane i was covering those in the summer, and now this extreme deepfreeze. well, goodness, laura, thank you very much. laura trevelyan out there in the cold in new york city. our own

weather forecast coming up at 1:30pm. north korea has accepted an offer by the south to hold talks next week. the meeting will be the first between the two countries for more than two years, and will reportedly focus on finding a way for north korean athletes to attend the winter olympics, which take place in south korea next month. the talks will take place on tuesday, in the demilitarised zone that divides the peninsula. sophie long reports from seoul. the first talks between the north and south korean governments for more than two years will take place here, the village of panmunjom, which straddles the border between the two countries in the demilitarised zone. the south's offer of high—level talks was accepted via fax. translation: regarding the agenda, both will discuss the pyeongchang winter olympics and ways to improve ties between south and north korea. it came just hours after the united states and south korea agreed to suspend joint military drills. they say exercises like this one are defensive but the north korean leader sees them as rehearsals for invasion. both south korean and us marines are taking part in this exercise

in the mountains of pyeongchang. they are training together to deal with winter war conditions and temperatures of below minus 20. but these drills will stop for the duration of the winter olympics and paralympics. the south korean president moonjae—in has said the games could be a ground—breaking chance to de—escalate tensions on the korean peninsula. xin gu—sop hasn't seen his sisterfor 70 years. he and 61,000 others whose families remain divided by the border hope these talks could be a prelude to change. translation: i am old now and i don't know how many more years i will live. it is my only wish that i meet my sister once and for all. this is the wish not only for me but for all divided families. but others are sceptical about kim jong—un's motives. the commander of us forces in south korea said

they are keeping their expectations at an appropriate level. my mission remains the same, to quietly and under control operate a military force in greater and greater readiness in the event that it's the negative outcome, not the positive one. but scepticism didn't stop president trump claiming credit for the potential thawing of relations. does anybody really believe that talks and dialogue would be going on between north and south korea right now, he tweeted, if i wasn't firm, strong and willing to commit our total might against the north? sophie long, bbc news, seoul. we're now all used to paying for plastic shopping bags — could we now be made to pay extra for disposable coffee cups? a committee of mps says not even 1% of the 2.5 billion

cups we use every year are recycled; part of the problem is that paper cups contain a plastic lining which requires specialist recycling. so the mps are calling for a 25p charge — on top of the coffee price — to pay for better facilities. john maguire reports from one of the uk's only disposable—cup recycling plants. coady, copy mac everywhere. but what happens to the cups once we finish ourdrink? happens to the cups once we finish our drink? it's a massive business. brits drink 8 million takeaway cups every day and while many boast the logo, the reality is that —— the recycling logo, the reality is that less tha n recycling logo, the reality is that less than 1% is recycled. mps say it is time for action. we have to make a revolutionary shift, a revolution in the coffee industry. people want fair trade for coffee growers and we

also need to make sure that the cups are... the money would be used to improve recycling. they want clearer labelling and they want all cups to be recyclable or a total ban by 2023. within this bail is half a tonne of coffee cups which have obviously been used, compacted and brought here to the factory. the problem in this process is the two types of materials used — plastic on the inside to make it waterproof and then cardboard on the outside to give the cupboards rigidity. but if you do separate them, then you can produce this. 100% recycled paper. we have the capacity to recycle about half 1 billion we have the capacity to recycle about halfi billion cups. the

reality is we are only doing a fraction of that because of these apply to us. it's not about recycling the cups themselves, but having the cups themselves to re cycle. having the cups themselves to recycle. i've got a megaphone and i'm not afraid to use it. waste campaigners say the system needs a radical overhaul. if we were to get any significant number of cups to pla nts any significant number of cups to plants like that, we would need dedicated bins only for coffee cups and we would need them everywhere. that's not a practical solution. the real solution is for the coffee cup giants to come up with a proper recycla ble cu p. giants to come up with a proper recyclable cup. the mps though argued the success of the plastic shopping bag fee which sauron 83% reduction in its first year means that with cooperation from government, the industry and consumers, there is a solution. the answer, they believe, is in our hands. john maguire, bbc news, cumbria. apple has confirmed that all iphones, ipads and mac computers are affected by two major flaws in computer chips.

it emerged this week that tech companies have been working on a fix for the meltdown and spectre bugs, which could allow hackers to steal data. apple said there was no evidence that the vulnerability had been exploited. it says it will issue a patch for its safari web browser in the next few days. there's been frustration for england's bowlers on the second day of the final ashes test, with usman khawaja's unbeaten 91 seizing the initiative for australia. the home side have already sealed the ashes and lead the series 3—0 — but they're looking to extend england's winless run down under to ten tests. patrick gearey reports from sydney. whether by the sea or at the scg, the fundamentals are the same. score your runs, take your chances, whatever your surface, whatever your size. up to now, australia have always done that better. take dawid malan's wicket, as steve smith did, somehow. fittingly fantastic from the aussie superman but the catching went from breathtaking to cringe—making.

josh hazlewood's reprieve of moeen ali would even have looked bad on the beach. england's tail—end responded with spirit and even a few sixes before finally running out of steam and wickets on 346. so not the score england wanted but not the one they will have dreaded either. they are just about still in this test match. now they must stop australia batting them out of it. how's this for a start? cameron bancroft bowled by stuart broad for a duck. but david warner was born so close to this ground, he seems to still treat it as an extension of his back garden. he passed 50 when out of nowhere, james anderson sent him indoors. england continued to bowl with some skill but no luck and usman khawaja had found his touch. he got his half century and ended up just short of a full one. plus, smith was there. of course he was. now beyond 6000 test runs and counting. england bowlers old and new must believe he's stoppable. he's playing very well, he's obviously seeing it well. but like i said, he's only human,

so we'll keep plugging away tomorrow and i feel like if we can get him out, then we can take two or three and hopefully get a first—innings lead. so the problem is one england have faced all tour — how do you get rid of steve smith? answers to the scg asap. patrick gearey, bbc news, sydney. more than 20,000 fans of irn bru have signed a petition against a planned change to its famous recipe. the manufacturer of scotland's best—selling soft drink are changing the formula to cut its sugar content by nearly half, before a government levy on sugary drinks comes into effect. lorna gordon has the details. it's been called scotland's other national drink, a fizzy beverage with its distinctive orange colour has a loyal following but the amount of sugar in irn bru is about to be

halved and not everyone is happy. of sugar in irn bru is about to be halved and not everyone is happylj got up one morning after a night out, went for the usual irn bru and i was going through facebook and i heard the sad news. just don't do it. don't do it! you are not leaving out any option to get the original stuff. it's part of our culture. it's a scottish national treasure. up it's a scottish national treasure. up you come. ryan is storing bottles in his attic. he is also behind a petition calling for the soft drink to remain unchanged. more than 20,000 people have now signed. the makers of irn bru say the vast majority of its drinkers want to consume less sugar and they say that most people won't taste the difference but there are rumours that irn bru enthusiasts are stockpiling the drink ahead of the changes and some of the shelves in this in have already being cleared. irn bru, is ita

this in have already being cleared. irn bru, is it a popular drink here? number one seller in my shop. the last couple of days there has been a rush on it. i didn't realise until the baby yesterday what the reason behind it was. and we are short on supplies after christmas anyway. what do his customers then?” supplies after christmas anyway. what do his customers then? i like it as it is. what do his customers then? i like rahal what do his customers then? i like it as it is. i went by it changed. i think it is a great idea. that amount of sugar is bad for your teeth. arles probably stop drinking it. this punter led push back has raised irn bru's profile again. whether customers stay loyal will remain clear when the new version goes on sale later this month. lorna gordon, bbc news, glasgow. time for a look at the weather.