hospital a&es in england record their worst ever waiting times last month since records began. a thousand patients waited 12 hours on trolleys without being cared for by any medical staff at all. there is a breaking point, we wonder how long our hard work and goodwill and our enthusiasm and care and professional attitude, how that can be sustained over a long period of time. making things worse, and report finds that social care is being undermined through a lack of government funding. we're with doctors and paramedics in east london and at a care home in sheffield to hear from patients and staff. also tonight... businesses are warned an interest rate rise could come soon though it's kept at nought point five per cent today. -- 0.596. mps could be expelled under new proposals to deal with harassment and bullying at westminster. shocking new evidence of the plastic ensnaring animals and polluting the water in the arctic. and running for grenfell, the firefighters who were at the tower that night doing the marathon in full kit

to help the survivors. blow for the british team on the eve of the winter olympics, snowboarder katie ormerod is out after breaking her heel. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. new figures have revealed january to be one of the toughest months everfor a&e departments in england. and hospital—only a&es recorded their worst ever figures since records began. trolley waits continue to be a big problem too, with 1,000 patients waiting more than 12 hours to be cared for by any medical staff at all. the four—hour wait target for patients was missed, for the 30th month in a row with over 85% of patients

seen within that time, slightly better than december. the target is 95%. this comes despite non—essential treatments being cancelled to relieve the pressure. our health editor hugh pym reports. the nhs flat out with staff working ata the nhs flat out with staff working at a frantic pace just to keep services running, that is the picture which emerges from the figures forjanuary in england, a service overstretched and under intense strain. business in leeds says that even though thousands of routine operations were postponed to help the system, the pressure was intolerable. — — the system, the pressure was intolerable. —— this nurse. the system, the pressure was intolerable. -- this nurse. it is not sustainable, it is how long we can maintain this professionalism and keenness and caring attitude, it will not go but it is wondering... people will crack. 0k, will not go but it is wondering... people will crack. ok, let's see, we will go right on to cambridge road in a column at. in some areas, schemes are trying to curb the

numbers going to hospital, here, a senior anc consultant is out on the road with a paramedic, taking hospital care to patients at home. -- a&e. it is hospital care to patients at home. —— a&e. it is a partnership between london air ambulance, london ambulance service, and barts health. they see an elderly man with dementia who has been in and out of hospital. they insure that he is safe to be left at home with his carer. we carry with us a laptop, giving direct access to the same... job! giving direct access to the same... job! that we have... yes, we have got anotherjob. that job is to meet up got anotherjob. that job is to meet up with another ambulance crew, which has picked up a woman with chest pains, tony's experience as a co nsulta nt chest pains, tony's experience as a consultant means he can reassure the patient that she is safe to stay at home. presumably this is a relief by jim at yes, i don't want to go to hospital, four hours. in the three and a half months since relaunched asa and a half months since relaunched as a seven day a week service, more than 300 patients have been treated at home, who otherwise would have

needed ambulances to take them to a&e and some of them would otherwise have been admitted to hospital, so beds have been freed up for others. zombies looking after you well, nice and smooth. liza is in a residential home, carers were concerned about her condition. —— this team have been able to carry out a range of checks and treatments to help as they where she is. we have gone to patients and put a smile on their face and the face of their families, eve ryo ne face and the face of their families, everyone has come away making everybody see that the nhs has done the best job they everybody see that the nhs has done the bestjob they can for them. everybody see that the nhs has done the best job they can for them. but they recognise the huge pressure every day across the nhs. there is a lot of frustration, at the end of the day we want to be able to say that we have done the best for our patients and when the system makes that difficult that can be very frustrating, working in an overly congested system sometimes leaves us feeling that recently cannot deliver the best possible care for patientss. they are trying to deliver that level of care but as

for most nhs staff, that has been harder than ever this winter. one of the problems contributing to the difficulties in the nhs is patients remaining in hospital because suitable care for them outside isn't available. and a lack of government planning and funding is undermining social care at a time when demand for it is increasing, that's the verdict of the national audit office. it says low pay means adult care services in england can no longer fill key posts. here's our social affairs correspondent, alison holt. it isa it is a busy lunchtime at northfield nursing home in sheffield, demanding work for the care staff... who are looking after residents who may have dementia, problems walking or a range of chronic health conditions. joyce, good afternoon, only me, sorry to bother you. today's national audit office report outlines just how difficult it is to find people to do this vital work, but for residents like 97—year—old joyce, the staff make all the

difference. it is absolutely essential, if, you know, i see the same phase coming in in the morning and thinking, it is a friend. the nursing lead here, tammy ardon, says that recruiting staff is a real issue for them. —— tammy ardron. that recruiting staff is a real issue for them. —— tammy ardronm issue for them. —— tammy ardronm is not as attractive as the nhs, where you have your salary packages, enhanced rates of pay, unsociable hours... and i think that it is hard work, it is busy and constant, you have to be on the ball 2a hours a day. residential and nursing homes are dealing with an increasing number of people with really complex needs and they need the skilled staff to deliver that care. and that is why this report says the government must have a strategy for a sector struggling with low pay and low prestige. there was a staff turnover in

2016/17 of nearly 28%, councils spent 5.3% less than five years before the despite increasing demand. the report is clear that councils struggling with government cuts are not covering the real costs of care, according to the boss of this home, some providers have had no choice but to close or risk the quality of what they are doing. the only way that these operators can continue, is to cut the standard, because fundamentally, the funding issueis because fundamentally, the funding issue is impacting on the resources, the workers, and the delivery of care. a survey of local authorities in england published today says that nearly all planned to put up council tax to try to cope with growing demands for adult and children's social care. 80% still fear for their financial stability. the government insists it is addressing these pressures. that is why they are getting more resources, real terms increase over two years,

social care in particular, adult social care in particular, adult social care in the budget, over £2 billion allocated yesterday in parliament i announced an additional £150 million. this may relieve short—term pressures but in the long term i accept that we need to change the approach to social care. the department for health and social ca re says department for health and social care says it will publish a strategy for the health and care work short —— shortly. interest rates have been held at 0.5% but there's speculation the next rise could come as soon as may. the bank of england has signalled that rates could rise earlier and faster than it thought three months ago with the global economy expanding at its fastest pace in seven years. here's our economics editor kamal ahmed. stitching together a better story on the economy, orders for this firm in manchester are booming, it is a story repeated around the country,

leaving two —— leading to a positive assessment from the bank of england. last 12 months, growing by 20%. europe has been much stronger than that and so we have more than doubled what the growth rate has beenin doubled what the growth rate has been in the uk. i am cautiously optimistic about the future, we are making major investments over the next 12 months. for the governor, simple reason for the better news. 90% of the world economy is growing above trend, the global expansion is increasingly being driven by investment. uk net trade is benefiting from this robust global demand, and the past depreciation of sterling. the economy is heating up, the threat of interest rate rises to control inflation has increased. governor, this is a warning on interest rates, that they are likely to come earlier, and then to rise more rapidly than you originally expected. it will be necessary, likely to be necessary, to raise interest rates to a limited degree,

ina interest rates to a limited degree, in a gradual process... the bank of england has upgraded growth, this year it is expected to rise from 1.596 year it is expected to rise from 1.5% toi.7%. year it is expected to rise from 1.5% to 1.7%. next year, better news as well, growth is up from 1.7%, to 1.8%. but prices will continue to rise, deflation is now expected to be at 2.9% by the end of the year, with wages chasing to keep the bank of england expects that wages will accelerate, unemployment falling further, strong demand for labour, and fewer people entering the labour force. together that means higher wages. it will not necessarily feed into stronger consumption, households are wheezed, buys still high inflation. —— households are squeezed. better news on the economy from the bank of england but that news laced with a very significant signal on interest rates, if you have a mortgage, if you borrow money, be ready for

higher bills, and if you are a saver, at last, get ready for better returns. the bank did warn again about brexit risk but for britain, exporting nation, good news for the rest of the world, keeping the economy buoyant. the japanese ambassador has warned that japanese firms in the uk are worried about access to the eu after brexit. afterjoining the prime minister in downing street for a meeting with japanese business leaders, he warned no firm would be able to continue to operate here if they're not profitable because of brexit trade barriers. our business editor simon jack is here, in a way it's a statement of the obvious but it raises the stakes too for the prime minister. backin back in september 20 16, three months after the referendum result, a very detailed 15 page document was outlined by the japanese government, hopes, fears, concerns over brexit, nissan, toyota, honda, they have been enormous investors. —— backin back in september, 2016. they still

make half of all the cars here, mostly for export. they are worried if there will be customs hold—up, tariffs, regulatory barriers, they wa nt to tariffs, regulatory barriers, they want to see customs unchained, all of these things still not resolved. the ambassador put it best: if profits are hit, investment will be hit, he called it a high—stakes game. talking of high—stakes, sharp words today from david davis, brexit secretary for brussels, they published a document saying they wa nt to published a document saying they want to find a way of punishing the uk if we try to bend the rules during a transition period, said it was a mistake to make document public. they said the language was discourteous. —— they said it was a mistake to make that document public. mps could lose their seats or be expelled under new plans to tackle bullying and sexual harassment at westminster. a new code of conduct is to be set up for all those working in there, along with an independent complaints procedure. alex forsyth reports. this report from alex forsyth

contains some flash photography. in the bars and backrooms of westminster, claims of bullying, intimidation, sexual harassment, allegations that prompted investigations and some resignations. and reflection on how to change a culture that allowed abuse. the leader of the house, lord president of the council. today, mps from all parties unveiled their plans. it is a right, not a privilege, to be treated with dignity and respect at work, and this ambitious report is a major step towards a safer and more professional environment. part of the problem had been those working here are often employed directly by mps, with only political parties to complain to. so this report proposes a new code of behaviour for everyone working in parliament and a new complaints and investigation system, independent of political parties. and there will be sanctions for inappropriate behaviour, anything from an apology to a possible suspension. in the worst cases, mps could face a public vote to keep seats,

not under new rules but using existing ones. there are some questions about the fact complaints will be kept anonymous but broadly, the report has been welcomed, beyond the detail, some are worried this alone will not bring about the change in culture that is really needed. damian green was one of those accused of inappropriate behaviour which he has always denied. his accuser says that today's report is a welcome step but a bigger shift is needed. you cannot make people take things seriously unless there is a serious culture change. that concerns me in parliament. there is still a lot of mps who don't understand why behaviour they have been getting away with for 20 years, people are suddenly noticing and complaining about, that is the problem. the focus on this shadowy issue might have started the process of change, but most recognise there is still a long way to go. our top story this evening: hospital a&es in england

record their worst ever waiting times last month, since records began. and still to come... the latest superhero film from marvel with an all—black cast of actors playing the heroes. coming up on sportsday in the next 15 minutes on bbc news... six changes in the six nations for scotland, as they look for a change of fortune against france following their opening day thrashing by wales. there is shocking new evidence of plastic rubbish contaminating even the remotest ends of the earth — the pristine wilderness of the arctic. animals are becoming ensnared in plastic waste, while scientists say there are far more plastic particles in one litre of sea ice than in open water. they say they've found plastic pollution almost everywhere they've looked in the arctic ocean. our environment analyst roger harrabin has been to tromso in the norwegian arctic to see for himself.

plastic pollution has reached the furthest corners of the planet. arctic sea ice is created when sea freezes. it looks pristine but it definitely is not. in fact, ice cores show sea ice contains more fragments of plastic per square metre than anywhere else in the open ocean. it's because sea ice freezes from the top and that's exactly where the plastic bits are floating. one litre of melted sea ice contained 234 plastic fragments like these. we have a situation in the world now that there is nowhere that's so far away that it's not affected by plastic waste. there's plastic on the beaches too. this local conservationist is trying forlornly to clear it up. here's what plastic does.

this reindeer‘s antlers were trapped by a discarded fishing net, it died. this arctic tern met its death by starvation. this polar bear was tangled in another fishing net. we try to sell this as arctic and pristine and untouched, and it looks that way on pictures, but once you get here and you start to walk along the coastline, you get a completely other picture. the plastic is here with a vengeance. i have collected this waste in just a few seconds. some of the fragments may come from norway, some clearly don't — like this elaborate bottle for instance, or this butter tub from spain. scientists say fishing crews have caused most of the plastic pollution here. we have for years, for decades, been collecting all the garbage that we produce on—board into big waste bags, big bags, then compressing it and taking it to shore.

so where this comes from today, i'm not sure of. the fishermen say they have stopped dumping lengths of rope into the ocean, but look at that. it's clearly been deliberately cut. so sad. arctic scientists don't know yet whether the plastic tide will affect local fish stocks, but it is another human threat to a fragile environment, already being transformed by man—made climate change. roger harribgan, bbc news, in the norwegian arctic. a series of failures led to the death of a man with down's syndrome, according to an inquest. richard handley had suffered extreme constipation and had ten kilos of matter removed from his bowels before he died in ipswich hospital in 2012. michael buchanan reports. richard handley had a lifelong but

wholly manageable problem with constipation. he also had down syndrome and learning disabilities, and that, say his family, is why this man is dead. i think richard was treated differently because he had a learning disability. i think, as his sister and someone who doesn't have a learning disability, ifi doesn't have a learning disability, if i died suddenly at the age of 33, i think the reaction would be different. today a coroner found multiple failures in richard ‘s treatment. when his home in lowestoft changed from being residential care to support of living in 2010, his care deteriorated. gone was the healthy diet, who was allowed to eat what he liked and monitoring of his bowel movements was reducedlj liked and monitoring of his bowel movements was reduced. i think the main thing was the bowl monitoring, i don't see how anybody could justify getting rid of that for somebody with a chronic bowel problem. large quantities of faeces built up in richard's bowels. his

stomach was described as being as large as a full—term pregnancy woman. richard was taken to ipswich hospital where they removed more than a stone and a half of material. write to the very end, the evening when things started to go bad, until that point nobody thought his life was in danger. but the blockage wasn't properly cleared. bowel got into his lungs and he choked on his vomit. today the hospital apologised for what the coroner described as a gross failure to provide proper care. it's a waste of life, isn't it? absolutely. i don't understand how the untimely death of a 33—year—old didn't raise serious alarm bells. the coroner's conclusion reinforces what the family has always known — richard handley should still be alive.

the firefighters at paddington red watch were some of the first on the scene at the grenfell tower fire lastjune, working through the night to save as many people as they could. now nine of them have decided to run the london marathon in full firefighter‘s kit and breathing apparatus sets to raise money for the victims and their families. sophie raworth, a keen marathon runner herself, went to meet them. how is that possible? at that time of night, the roads were clear so literally two to three minutes before we got there. we could see it was well alight and we, yeah, just tried to get people out basically. it was something that, in my 23 years of service, i hadn't seen before, but we had a job to do. 71 people died that night. the fire crews, who repeatedly queued up to go into the burning tower, managed to save the lives of 65 others. it was quite chaotic.

we were there... 13 hours, i think, overall. 13, 1a hours. on a fire, even on a big job, you can get relieved, like, four or five hours later. another crew will come and relieve you from another station, but we didn't want to go anyway. we wouldn't have left anyway. the enormity of it only hit us, well hit me personally after, when i was sort of... a few days later when i'd seen what had happened. i didn't come to terms with it, i suppose just in shock initially. it's affected everyone. i mean, it's a major disaster in the centre of london in 2017. it's going to affect a large amount of people. you wouldn't be human if it didn't affect you in anyway. what kind of response did you get from the community afterwards? it was quite overwhelming, the thanks and applause you got was quite something else really. so the fact that they did appreciate us was sort of difficult to deal

with because we don't really get that day—to—day. what happened that night affected them all so deeply that nine of the grenfell tower firefighters are now training to run the london marathon to raise money for the victims and their families, and they are not making it easy for themselves. so you're going to run 26.2 miles with this on. oh, my god! how much does this weigh? 30. 30 kilos? that's like carrying a small kid. not even a small kid, that's like carrying a nine—year—old child on your back. it all means extra training, running around the fire station in between shifts. the money raised will be split between three charities, one to help firefighters and two others at the heart of the grenfell community. we are not doing it for any sort of personal gain. we just want the story to be about them, and try and raise as much money for them as possible.

firefighter martin gillam finishing that report from sophie raworth. the latest superhero film from marvel has its european premiere tonight in london, but what makes it different is its all—black cast of actors playing the heroes. the film's created a huge buzz on social media with many fans using the hashtag ‘what black panther means to me' to highlight its significance for black audiences. lizo mzimba reports. the free cinema trip would have been welcome enough of these american schoolchildren, their sheerjoy is because the movie is black panther. suchis because the movie is black panther. such is the film's significance, people around the world are crowd sourcing money to give black children in particular the opportunity to watch it on the big screen. people like this actress from london, she has so far raised

around £11000. from london, she has so far raised around £4000. i think it isjust a film you don't really see, you don't see black superheroes in the big blockbuster. the positive representation is good for people growing up in this area but i think all over the world. black panther is being seen as a cultural milestone. a predominantly black cast leading a big budget blockbuster. people making it a reality for kids who maybe wouldn't be able to go to the movies and experience it, i think it is beautiful, man. it's the kind of film many have been waiting decades for hollywood to make, not only a host of black role models but also strong female characters at its heart. black panther was a moment and hopefully it is one... it will obviously exist for long but this

particular moment we want the momentum to keep going. i don't think it is black panther‘s responsibility to change the world. how important was it for you making sure this was primarily a piece of entertainment, even with this huge amount of social responsibility that was inevitably going to come into the equation? that is what it is. it is not a political lecture, you know what i mean? it's a movie. it has got to work as that. and that is a movie expected to have one of the biggest openings ever, and more importantly, show others in the film world how lucrative diversity on screen can be in the 21st—century. time for a look at the weather. here's louise lear. it was cold and frosty this morning across england and wales but that will change overnight tonight

because this weather front that is moving in as we speak will introduce cloud and rain. we haven't seen that much rain across central and southern england this week and it will turn quite cold behind it. if you have been caught underneath the cloud and rain today, you have seen sites like this across parts of the la ke sites like this across parts of the lake district. in the last few hours, the rain is pepping up and we have sharper showers, turning wintry in the far north of scotland. signs of what is to come. the rain will turn heavy as it moves south and east tonight, behind it we can already see showers of wintry nature in the far north and west. but temperatures further south will hold up temperatures further south will hold up above freezing, hence the reason for the green, but further north with the blues, we could see minus four which could lead to icy stretches, particularly when you encounter those snow showers so that's worth bearing in mind first thing tomorrow. a similar story for

northern ireland and northern england. for england and wales the wintry mix of sleet and snow that will drift into lincolnshire and perhaps the south—east of england during the lunch hour tomorrow. behind it, brighter conditions, fresher and colderfor behind it, brighter conditions, fresher and colder for all of us. any showers in the north—west will be snow at lower levels. a cold nights so all change for england and wales as we head into saturday morning, but this weather front will bring snow to scotland for the early hours of saturday morning. behind it, it is rain and it will bring a miserable day for much of england and wales on saturday. a wet affair, windy with it. temperatures are degree also higher. a reminder of oui’ degree also higher. a reminder of our main story, hospital a&es record their worst waiting times last month since records began. that's all from the bbc news at six. now on bbc one we can join the bbc‘s

news teams where you are. this is bbc news, our latest headlines... interest rates remain on hold for now, but they could rise soon as the bank of england says stronger global growth could mean a rise as early as may. council tax is to go up almost everywhere in england, as local authorities say they're struggling to make ends meet. it could mean more than 40 pounds will be added to the average bill. january was one of the worst months on record for hospital waiting times