this is bbc news. i'm clive myrie. the headlines at 11: more than 2,500 patients being treated for neurological conditions in northern ireland now need their cases re—examined. it's because of concerns over the work of a consultant. what has this all been about? why did nobody spot this earlier? why did nobody spot this earlier? why did nobody spot this earlier? why did nobody stop this earlier? these are patients with a wide range of neurological conditions, some of which are significantly serious and complex. a bbc investigation finds that youtube stars are being paid to promote essay writing services for students, in effect helping them to cheat. youtube says it has taken down some of the videos. don't waste your time doing your essays, but these people do it for

you. go essays, but these people do it for you gog essays, but these people do it for you. go and essays, but these people do it for you.goan.d , your in forjohn bercow, the leader of the house of commons. he says he was bullied by him and paid tens of thousands of pounds to leave his job and to shut up about it all. mr bercow denies the allegations. good evening, and welcome to bbc news. in the biggest ever recall of nhs patients in northern ireland, more than 2,500 people are having

their neurology cases re—examined. the belfast health trust has written to some patients seen by doctor michael watt because of concerns they might have been misdiagnosed or given the incorrect treatment. some of those affected have conditions such as multiple sclerosis and parkinson's disease. for three years cathy was prescribed strong medication that she was later told she did not need. it basically stole my life for a few years. i became like a zombie. then i got another new consultant and he reduced my dose and said i should not have been on it. ifelt so much better. until i got the letter today. what has this all been about. why did no—one spot it earlier?

why did i have to go through this for so long? concerns about dr watt‘s work were first raised by a gp in 2016. belfast health trust now wants to reassess everyone in his care. certainly, this is a significant number, and within the neuroscience division, we have never been involved with a recall of this scale. these are patients with a wide range of neurological conditions, some of which are debilitating, complex, and significantly serious. recalling some 2,500 patients is a huge task, among them are children with brain conditions and people living in pain. the review may also be extended to consider patients of dr watt‘s who have died. i believed that i had ms and i told my family, i told my employers. maeve believed she had ms for several months and even told her children, until she found

out that was wrong. that was a bit of a shock and that meant that i had to go back and tell all those people that i had told. the trust has apologised for the worry that has been caused. it said dr watt has not seen any patients since june last year, but he remains an employee. from saturday, 200 extra clinics will provide appointments to reassess patients. many anxious to know whether the medication they are on is correct or if the condition they thought they had has been misdiagnosed. emma vardy, bbc news, belfast. a bbc investigation has discovered that some stars on the video—sharing platform youtube are being paid to promote essay writing websites to school children and students on a big scale. a company based in ukraine is paying the online personalities to encourage people to pay for essays. the universities minister told the bbc that the revelations undermined education and said youtube, which is owned by google, had a moral responsibility to act. our education editor,

bra nwen jeffreys, has this exclusive report. back in the action, boy! youtube channels reach millions each day. i'm back with another prank. we're checking out a compilation of really stupid people! the creators have huge influence, influence that business wants to buy. want to give a shout—out to all of you... i'm going to ask for 5k likes if you want a part two this time. our investigation has uncovered the youtube stars selling cheating, paid by a company in ukraine, promoting a service to students that could land them in serious trouble, targeting teenagers using the people they trust. and don't waste your time doing your essays.

let these people do it for you. if you guys are struggling in school or college, check out edubirdie.com to hire a super—smart guy to do your essays for you. super—smart geek. plagiarism—free! we're helping you cheat. you won't get in any troubles, guaranteed. it's going to get you an a+. this is clearly wrong, it's clearly wrong because it is enabling cheating, potentially on an industrial scale. it's normalising cheating. we're not talking about the video ads you usually see. these are youtubers themselves, talking about pranks, gaming, dating. then they tell you about a company called edubirdie. ok, so i'm going to interrupt this video and give a shout—out to the sponsor, edubirdie.com. if you guys are playing too much fortnite and have no time to write your essays... go to edubirdie.com, 100% plagiarism free. this is for every school kid watching my videos, i know that there's loads of you out there. we found more than 250 channels with videos sponsored by edubirdie, videos viewed hundreds of millions of times,

and that's just the ones in english. some youtubers say they'd never accept this kind of sponsorship. how do you balance studies with social life? ibz and courtney are students at cambridge university. they promote hard work and study on youtube channels. having seen the edubirdie ads, were they in any doubt this was the selling of cheating? no, not at all. in plain sight — i think as soon as you hear it, whether the influencer mentions cheating or not, you know, ok, i'm not doing this work, i'm about to hand in work that i didn't write, it's not copy and pasted, it won't be plagiarised, but it's not my work, it's cheating. how powerful is that message when it comes from a youtuber you trust? you will see big youtubers saying it, and that can influence small youtubers to promote it as well, and then it will have a massive impact on young children and teenagers. and now imagine you have all these essays to do,

and now you have a solution that is being promoted by your favourite person. so how easy is it for students to buy essays? we asked edubirdie.com to write two from scratch, one english gcse, the other degree level. we got them marked. a "c" for the english essay and 60% for the university assignment. not quite the a+ promised on youtube. edubirdie told us youtubers had creative choice and total freedom in what they said and it was clear that anything obtained through the website should only be used as a sample or a reference. but it's notjust adults being offered cash. this 15—year—old is one of several children who have accepted edubirdie money. they basically write your essays for you, and it is 100% plagiarism—free. his mum told us she was shocked.

she didn't know her son was taking sponsorship. it's so insidious. they‘ re making it look like it's cool, actually, like it is a lifestyle choice. we showed some of the videos to the universities minister. these are the people to do it for you, written by doctors... cheating is wrong, it undermines quality, it undermines standards. never mind what edubirdie says, it is wrong. this is something that is corrosive to education, and youtube has got to step up to the plate and exercise some responsibility here. i wanted to speak to someone at youtube's london headquarters, where some of their most successful channels are on display. instead, in a statement, the company said this. and the company added they would be working with youtubers

so they better understand that in—video promotions must not promote dishonest activity. if you can't be bothered to write your essays. the perfect option for you! none of the youtubers would do an interview. alpay b told us "whether a student wants to cheat or not, it's totally their choice, everyone has got their own hustle." branwen jeffreys, bbc news. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news this evening. a man who's terminally ill with motor neurone disease has appealed to judges to allow him to die with dignity. noel conway's challenge to the law on assisted dying is being heard at the court of appeal. the royal bank of scotland is to close 162 branches in england and wales, resulting in 800 job losses. the bank cited changing consumer behaviour including the rise of online and mobile banking, but it says compulsory redundancies will be kept to a minimum. the taxi app, uber, has failed in its bid to renew its operating

licence in brighton and hove. the counci's licensing panel said it had "significa nt concerns" about data security following the news last year that uber had concealed a hack that affected 57 million customers and drivers in 2016. uber said it intended to launch an appeal. british overseas territories being used as tax havens will be forced to publish the names of investors owning companies in theirjurisdiction. ministers agreed the move faced with a potential commons rebellion on the sanctions and anti—money laundering bill. scotland has become the first country in the world to introduce a minimum unit price for alcohol. the scottish government says it will lead to lower consumption and will save lives. the price of some cheap, high strength alcohol has tripled as retailers must now ensure a unit doesn't cost less than 50 pence. but some critics say it will affect lower income households disproportionately. 0ur correspondent, catriona renton, has more detail. supporters say it's

a small price to pay. more money for strong alcoholic drinks in exchange for an improvement in the nation's health. at edinburgh royal infirmary, the first minister has been meeting people with alcohol—related illnesses. audrey duncan is recovering now, but last year was taken into hospital with the early stages of alcohol—related brain damage. now 37—years—old, she started drinking heavily in her 20s. it started as four cans of beer a day. then it was a whole bottle of

wine every night. alcohol misuse is thought to cost scotland £3.6 billion a year. when alcohol prices rise, deaths from alcohol will fall. in the opposite occurs as well. every time. —— answer. a two—litre bottle of strong cider contains more than the maximum recommended weekly limit 01:14 units. until today it cost £2.50, now it will cost at least £7.50. the price changes have been a long time coming. while the legislation was passed by the scottish parliament almost six years ago, it was delayed by a series of legal challenges. strong cider, cheap vodka and whisky sees the biggest price rises. we have many customers who run a tight and low income. they may not

have much money and they get a bottle of cider because that is all they can afford. it is not fair for them. research for the scottish government says the policy could save around 400 lives in the first five years. but there are already plans to introduce minimum alcohol pricing in wales, while in england, the home office will be monitoring how the policy works in scotland. caitrona renton, bbc news, edinburgh. that's a summary of the news. newsday is coming up at midnight. now on bbc news, it's time for newsnight with evan davis. this man says he was bullied and had to keep his mouth shut about at all. tonight he has decided to speak. he was the private secretary tojohn bercow, the speaker of the house of commons, and alleges he was mistreated by him. a prominent elected individual bullies a member of public staff. that member of staff is paid asked to sign and nda.

is that a fair reading? it is a reading of it. tonight, for the first time, he explains why he left hisjob. first time, he explains why he left his job. from time to time you would hear yourself mimic and you thought is, is that really how he sees me? it removes the dignity and we all know that any job it removes the dignity and we all know that anyjob in the land has to have some dignity. we will talk through the implications of this new latest claim, which the speaker denies. also tonight: the customs conundrum. newsnight understands theresa may is working on a plan she hopes will win over both sides of the debate. i think members of parliament are all ears to make sure that there isn't a hard border on the island of ireland, but free and frictionless trade. we are