this is bbc news. i'm ben brown. the headlines at 11:00: patients are dying in corridors — the stark warning from more than 60 a&e doctors who've written an open letter to the prime minister. i think i was trolley number 12, two more people came after me and they said we cant take any more trolleys and then the ambulance said we would have to wait out side. plastic—free supermarket aisles and a 5p bag charge extended to small shops — theresa may lays out her 25 year plan to improve the environment. the former owner of bhs is found guilty of failing to give information to the pensions regulator about the collapse of the company's scheme. rescuers continue to search for survivors after the california mudslides. eight people still missing and 17 people are now known to have died. and on newsnight tonight, does anyone else have the appetite for a second brexit referendum? nigel farage says he's warming up. we talk to his successor. plus the first uk tv interview with the trump author michael wolff. good evening and

welcome to bbc news. dozens of senior doctors who run accident and emergency departments in england and wales have written a stark letter to the prime minister warning that patients are dying prematurely in hospital corridors and conditions are at times intolerable. they say thousands of patients are left in the back of ambulances waiting to get into a&e. and very high rates of flu recently mean that some hospitals are running out of beds. today there's fresh evidence of the pressure a&e units are under. more than 300,000 patients waited longer than they should in december. staff managed to see 85% of patients within four hours —

that's well below the 95% target — and some of the worst figures since records began. this report from our health editor hugh pym. a long wait in an overcrowded a&e unit, that's what 87—year—old yvonne had to endure. it was ten hours before she saw a doctor, and hours more before she was admitted to a ward. her daughter, esther, used herscarf to secure her in a wheelchair, because for some of the time, there was no trolley. it was just heaving with ambulances, ambulance drivers, patients on the ambulance trolleys, and it was literally wall—to—wall, both sides, corridors just full of patients. it was like, "gosh, how long is it going to take us to get through?" and with scenes like this filmed by a patient, senior a&e doctors say they're so concerned they've written to the prime minister setting out some of their own experiences.

over 120 patients a day managed in corridors, some dying prematurely, an average of 10—12 hours for a decision to admit a patient until they are transferred to a bed and patients sleeping in clinics as make—shift wards. they say nhs winter planning failed to deliver what was needed. there is no doubt that our emergency departments are facing the biggest crisis that we have had for over 15 years. we absolutely must work together as system leaders at every level in order to find both short—term and medium—term solutions. the prime minister insisted again there had been extensive measures to prepare for winter. for the first time ever, urgent gp appointments being available throughout the christmas period, that was a decision taken to improve the service for people but also to ensure that the nhs had that better capacity to deal with these winter pressures. for the opposition, the problem is really about funding.

money's got to go in now, but it should have gone in earlier. even if the chancellor announced billions today, you can't spend it all by tomorrow. while the debate goes on, rosie can only reflect on a humiliating experience in a&e. she was in severe pain because of a gynecological problem and was bleeding heavily but she was examined in a crowded corridor. i think i was trolley number 12. and there were trolleys, then, all the way up. you can't see to someone's dignity, you can't ensure that they're having a private conversation and that if they break down in tears, which, i think i did, i'm pretty sure that i cried as well but you can't look into anybody‘s right to privacy or anything like that. at some hospitals like ipswich they say careful planning paid off and though staff were stretched, they coped with the pressures. at times over the really busy

new year period there were trolleys down the corridor here but at this a&e unit things do seem to have calmed a little this week, with fewer patients coming through the front door of the hospital, though no—one's complacent about what the weeks ahead may bring. the medical director told me that flu was a significant concern. we've worked really hard to get our staff vaccinated but we're not at all complacent. i think the next two months are going to be a challenging time. we are looking still to get flu vaccinations for vulnerable patients and staff members and the battle isn't over. and with the latest figures showing the highest numbers of flu figures in seven years, health leaders call for vaccinations for nhs staff to be compulsory. some hospitals have greater than 90% vaccinations for their health workers, others less than 20%. this has to be an issue of leadership but we need people in the health care sector to protect their patients. we have a duty of care

to our patients. flu's been an even bigger problem for scotland's hospitals, a teenager died after catching the virus which developed into pneumonia. scotland and wales as well as england have missed a&e waiting time targets. one answer, say the consultants in their letter, is a big increase in social care funding to allow more patients to leave hospitals to be cared for in the community. it's a debate gaining momentum as the nhs‘s bleak winter continues. hugh pym, bbc news. the prime minister has pledged to eliminate avoidable plastic — as part of a far—reaching plan to improve britain's environment. theresa may's urged supermarkets to introduce aisles where shoppers can buy products with no plastic packaging. a small charge for disposable plastic bags will also be extended to all shops, not just big retailers. 0ur political editor laura kuenssberg reports.

what do you think i should look for? a grand vision, we were promised, a plan to look after the spaces around us for years to come and the prime minister trying to spot political opportunity, too. the environment is something personal to each of us but it is also something that collectively we hold in trust for the next generation and we have a responsibility to protect and enhance it. top of the list, cleaning up plastics that harm wildlife on land and sea, more charges for plastic bags, possible taxes on containers and encouraging shops to use less. but over time, a long time, with no new law to underline the change. in years to come, i think people will be shocked at how today we allow so much plastic to be produced needlessly. it truly is one of the great environmental scourges of our time. so we will take action at every stage of production

and consumption of plastic. you are talking about ideas taking place over 25 years with no legal guarantees. if actions speak louder than words, do you really believe this problem is acute and urgent? this is an inspiring plan, it is a long—term plan, it is about the next 25 years. but it is a plan that speaks to everybody with an interest in our environment. everybody who wants to ensure future generations are able to enjoy a beautiful environment and a beautiful place in which to live. looking on, alongside the white—faced whistling ducks, green campaigners pleased there is a plan. but not quite convinced that a government that also believes in fracking and building high—speed rail really means it. the problem about talking about a 25—year plan, in the absence of hard measures about what they will do here and now, is this is a government where most commentators question if it

will last 25 months, or possibly even 25 days. what we need to know is what are the actions happening in 2018 to make a difference. theresa may says conservation and conservatism have always gone hand in hand, but this is not just about principles, or policy, or this new environment plan, it is also about politics and how the tories fell back at the general election. anxious that millions of younger voters turned to labour then, the tories have tried to detox their image with those groups, greening their credentials, banning microbeads, plans to end the sale of ivory. what does labour make of the plastics plan? 25 years is far too long. the plastics culture has to be challenged. the throwaway society culture has to be challenged and the pollution of our rivers and seas by plastic waste is absolutely dreadful. the prime minister believes her promise is the right one to make. her hope — to create a habitat more friendly to her political breed. laura kuenssberg, bbc news.

dominic chappell, who was in charge of bhs when it went bust in 2016, has been found guilty on three charges of failing to provide information demanded by the pensions regulator. the scheme had 19,000 members and a shortfall of 571 million pounds when bhs collapsed. he'll be sentenced at a later date. our business correspondent, simon gompertz, explains what followed the firm's collapse. in that time since then, mps, the insolvency service have been investigating but also the pension regulator because the company had a huge deficit in its pension scheme and they have been tried to get to the bottom of that. on three

occasions they made legal orders, section 72, to dominic chappell all of which thejudges section 72, to dominic chappell all of which the judges found he illegally neglect that it refused to respond to and that it is what he has been found guilty of this evening. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news this evenings a woman has appeared before magistrates charged with murdering a man whose remains were found buried in a garden at stockport in greater manchester. barbara coombes, who's 63 and believed to be the daughter of the victim, kenneth coombes, is also accused of fraud. she'll appear at manchester crown court tomorrow. the former ukip leader nigel farage says he's on the verge of supporting a second referendum on britain's membership of the european union. he said a second vote to leave could "kill off" the remain campaign for a generation. he said he thought the leave vote would be even higher if there were another poll.

the foreign secretary boris johnson has joined with other european foreign ministers to call on donald trump not to reintroduce sanctions against iran. mrjohnson said the current arrangement was the best way of stopping iran acquiring nuclear weapons, and no one had yet come up with a better diplomatic solution. the lingerie company rigby & peller said it is ‘deeply saddened' after losing its most prestigious customer — the queen. it has held the royal warrant since 1960. but the decision to cancel it came after the retailer's director a regular visitor to buckingham palace wrote a book called storm in a d cup. newsday is coming up to you at midnight. now on abc news it is time for newsnight. how badly our nhs targets being this? how badly our nhs targets being missed ? we asked the health secretary last week, and he couldn't answer.

why won't you tell me what the number is, the percentage? it is not my target, it is your own number. because we don't have a number to publish, there is no number that i'm sitting on that i am not telling you. it will be published next week and i don't know what that number will be. today we got the true figures. waiting time performances in a&e are at their worst level for 1h years. we hearfrom one doctor who is feeling it first—hand. a&e is at breaking point. we are exceptionally, exceptionally busy. doctors and nurses are being pushed to the limit. and patients are having to wait far too long for the care they deserve, and it is just unacceptable. i'm reaching the point in thinking that we should have a second referendum on eu membership. the whole thing?! of course. why do both sides still think they would win if we asked the country to vote all over again?

and what does europe make of us? we'll ask the president of the eurogroup. we'll also bejoined by the author of "that" trump fly—on—the—wall book, fire and fury, michael wolff. and we report from the ruins of mosul in iraq, where some estimate that 10,000 people lost their lives. in some parts of mosul, the smell of death is pungent even after months since the battle for the city ended. the bodies of many residents are still trapped under the rubble. good evening. it's getting harder by the day to pretend the nhs is not in crisis this winter. like a rubber band you keep pulling and pulling, said one consultant today, eventually it snaps. staff have described patients dying prematurely in corridors. but if you want harder figures, they're here for the taking. waiting times performances in accident and emergency departments have reached their worst level in 1a years. today a letter from the heads

of more than 60 a&e departments in england and wales warned the prime minister that the current level of safety compromise is at times intolerable. last week, i asked the health secretaryjeremy hunt how far off target the waiting figures were. he didn't have the number. but today we heard performance levels were the worst result since the introduction of the target in 200a. here's chris cook. accident and emergency figures are the most visible sign of the strain now placed on the english nhs. rising patient demand has overwhelmed the service's ability to cope. let's take a look at monthly a&e performance going back to 2010. since then, emergency departments have been aiming to deal with 95% of patients within four hours. that target, that is the dotted line. that has proved harder in winter months. marked in by these grey bars.