this is bbc news, i'm shaun ley. the headlines at 12 o'clock. former united nations secretary general kofi annan dies aged 80 in hospital in switzerland after a short illness. sagthern’india’fafes—itswrst as fleeds hates triaasrsé landslides . and left nearly two hundred people dead. india's prime minister narendra modi has met senior officials to try to help co—ordinate the relief effort, as forecasters predict more heavy rain. here, ministers plan a new plastics tax for items such as takeaway boxes and coffee cups after the public back tough action in record numbers. we hope that with the right intelligent responses and tax incentives that we at the treasury can design, in the weeks ahead we can design, in the weeks ahead we can makea can design, in the weeks ahead we can make a real difference that will last for many years to come. also coming up this hour. a state funeral is taking place in genoa for some of the people killed in the motorway bridge collapse. and at 12.30 the click team

reminisce about a summer of sport — that's in half an hour's time on bbc news. hello, good afternoon. the former un secretary general kofi and man has died today aged 80. he was secretary general of the united nations for ten yea rs general of the united nations for ten years until the end of december 2000 six. mr ant and dc was the first sub—saharan 2000 six. mr ant and dc was the first sub—sa ha ran africa 2000 six. mr ant and dc was the first sub—saharan africa and to hold the position. he later served as un special envoy for syria, leading u nsuccessful efforts special envoy for syria, leading unsuccessful efforts to find a solution to the civil war. mr annan was awarded the nobel peace prize jointly with united nations in 2001 for helping revitalise the organisation. kofi annan‘s family

announced his death in a joint statement is set with the kofi annan foundation just before 11 o'clock today. it said: it is with immense sadness that the annan family and the kofi annan foundation announce that kofi annan, former secretary general of the united nations and nobel peace laureate, passed away peacefully on saturday 18th august after a short illness. wherever there was suffering or need, he reached out and touched many people with his deep compassion and empathy. he selflessly placed others first, radiating genuine kindness, warmth and brilliance in all he did. he will be greatly missed by so many around the world, as well as his staff at the foundation and his many former colleagues in the united nations system. he will remain in our hearts forever. people have been paying tribute to kofi annan over twitter. former uk prime minister tony blair wrote: "i'm shocked and distressed to hear the news about kofi. he was a good friend whom i saw only weeks ago. kofi annan was a great diplomat, a true statesman and a wonderful colleague who was widely respected and will be greatly missed. my deepest sympathy

to nane and his family." secretary—general of the united nations ant nio guterres, the former portuguese prime minister, tweeted "kofi annan was a guiding force for good. ijoin the world in mourning his loss. in these turbulent and trying times, his legacy as a global champion for peace will remain a true inspiration for us all." earlier this year mr annan sat down with zeinab badawi from the bbc‘s hardtalk programme to mark his 80th birthday. she asked him whether he thought the world was a more troubled place in 2018 than when he left as un secretary general. i think i went through difficult moments at the un. you've referred to some of them, including the iraq war. but the world is particularly messy today. when we look at what is happening in the middle east, what is happening in some parts

of africa, some parts of asia, and also the fact that i don't see strong leaders around who could cope with that. so you don't think there are strong leaders in the world today? i mean there's donald trump in the white house and he's making very strong, robust statements about syria now, for instance, saying that the suspected chemical attack in duma that we've just seen recently killing dozens of people including children, needs a robust response? different people have different definitions of leadership. studio audience applauds. i believe that leadership is not about the individual. when you have macho leaders who believe they have to shine, and it all has to be about them, that what is required is the welfare of society and the people they serve. are you referring to donald trump, though?

because when you look at what has happened by that recent attack, and we saw one also last year. sure. and you know, he referred to bashar al—assad, president of syria, as an animal, as a gas killing animal. and he has said, "we've got to have a response, get ready for nice new smart missiles in syria." i don't approve of that. not only do i not approve of that, i like the secretary general‘s position. the secretary general of the united nations? yes, he said what is required is unfettered investigation to determine who was responsible, hold them to account, and then show that impunity is not allowed to stand. that was kofi annan talking on hardtalk a little earlier this year. ghana was the home country kofi annan. the president of ghana mourns kofi annan

and released a statement saying "i extend, on behalf of the entire ghanaian nation, our sincere, heartfelt condolences to his beloved widow, nane maria, and to his devoted children, ama, kojo and nina, on this great loss. iam, however, comforted by the information, after speaking to nane maria, that he died peacefully in his sleep. consummate international diplomat and highly respected former secretary general of the united nations, mr kofi annan was the first from sub—saharan africa to occupy this exalted position. he brought considerable renown to our country by this position and through his conduct and comportment in the global arena. he was an ardent believer in the capacity of the ghanaian to chart his or her own course onto the path of progress and prosperity. undoubtedly, he excelled in the various undertakings of his life, leaving in his trail most pleasant memories. his was a life well—lived." the president went on to say that in

honour of kofi annan and his death, gha na's national flag will fly at half mast for one week, across the country. that statement from the president of carno. —— that is a statement from the president of ghana. 0ur correspondent imogen foulkes is in bern for us now. with so many un staff based in switzerland there must be a sense of sadness at losing a man who was such afamiliar sadness at losing a man who was such a familiarface sadness at losing a man who was such a familiar face and such a friend to many of his colleagues. you're absolutely right, we will all miss him greatly. just a couple of years ago, i was with kofi annan, chairing ago, i was with kofi annan, chairing a little debate in geneva in which he was taking part and often with these events in geneva you don't fill the room that this time it was packed. people were queueing outside to get into an assembly hall which holds hundreds of people. just about

every un worker in geneva who could get one hour off was in that room. they wanted to cure the former secretary—general talk about the issues facing the world. he was greatly, greatly loved in geneva, particularly because of his dedication to peace promotion, to humanitarian issues. that is what most people in geneva, in international aid agencies, worked in. they liked somebody who would raise the things that they were working on, the things they were doing, speaking with the voices of them, affected by war, famine or environmental disaster. the work that the un often relatively quietly does, what we normally see the sides of the security council or the general assembly but kofi annan raised the profile of the humanitarian work that the un doesn't forceps that mac —— for that

he was greatly loved after he ended his post as un secretary—general, and continued his peace promotion, not just and continued his peace promotion, notjust in geneva but around the world he will be greatly missed. one of the priorities he established was the fight against hiv and associated illnesses that can affect those who have contracted the virus come he launched the global aids fund, he was very active in that. and in africa come his continent, hiv had done terrible things. how important was he in raising the profile of african issues within the un?|j think african issues within the un?” think you did a very good job with that but also, for example, he looked at places he could go to which other un secretary general is perhaps had not thought of. ivan is

that he could explore to get this issue which at that time was devastating sub—sa ha ran africa, issue which at that time was devastating sub—saharan africa, so he worked, for example, with rock stars like bono and he worked with the tony blair— gordon brown on debt relief, not popular subject among industrialised nations who have learnt a lot of money to africa, but he raised that profile and he worked together the world health 0rganization, to put pressure on the pharmaceutical companies. we have developed this drug, why is it so expensive? why can only people in america and europe afford it? make it cheaper. make it accessible to the millions who are suffering from hiv on the continent of africa. i think that is a huge achievement. it's never enough. the united nations can never do enough. what he achieved there is enormous. what he achieved there is enormous. what he achieved in raising the profile of

humanitarian issues generally is enormous. he was, as we have said, you for a number of reasons. one of which was that he was a career diplomat. did that make a difference? did it make it easier for him to navigate this buys and an organisation or did it make him a bit too defensive of the un as a whole? —— this byzantine organisation. it depends who you talk to. you can't be un secretary general without getting criticism, it's an organisation made above 193 states and sometimes the secretary—general has to say, things aren't working on your part, what can be do about it? leaders don't like that. so obviously he's not a lwa ys like that. so obviously he's not always going to be popular but you are right, he was a career un diplomat. he understand inner workings of it. personally i think he could look at parts of the un and say that needs reform. he worked at

reforming un peacekeeping, trying to make peacekeepers more accountable and encouraging the countries or donate them to hold their troops to account if something goes wrong or if abuses committed on a peacekeeping operation. he didn't get much credit for that. he worked ha rd get much credit for that. he worked hard on it. the un is not perfect, no individual is perfect and no individual, even the secretary—general, can reform the un or by itself. but kofi annan tried, with some success. not with total success. ban ki—moon, who came after kofi annan also tried, not with com plete kofi annan also tried, not with complete success, and the current secretary—general antonio guterres is doing the same. but we need the united states to get on board with that and they don't all agree, there are national, regional and factional differences. image and folks in switzerland, thank you. one of the best images doing the rounds ——

imaging folks —— imogen foulkes, thank you. one of the best images which also illustrates the sense of humour of kofi annan is when he appeared on sesame street and was attempting to reconcile differences between two of the characters there! a massive relief operation is under way in southern india to help hundreds of thousands left homeless by the worst floods in the area in 100 years. the south western state of kerala has been most severely hit. at least 171 people have died there in the last ten days. katy austin reports. rain comes to kerala every year. not like this. people are walking miles to safety through what officials say are the worst floods for a century. translation: after 36 years, it is the first time that such flooding is happening here. it is a disaster for the whole population. a third more rainfall than usual has fallen this season,

with devastating effects. boats and helicopters are being used to rescue people, including this pregnant woman. hundreds of thousands are now homeless and living in 1,500 emergency relief camps, waiting and hoping while volunteers cook for them. men, women and children forced to flee to safety. but the camps are increasingly crowded and some are under threat from rising waters. flooded roads are making it difficult for badly needed humanitarian aid, like food and bed sheets, to reach kerala. india's prime minister narendra modi has now arrived in the region to see an area whose deluged infrastructure and population are struggling to cope. across india, close to 1,000 people have been killed in the current rainy season and there are more downpours to come. katy austin, bbc news. 0ur correspondent yogita limaye is in kerala and

gave us this update. while scores of people have lost their lives in flooding, torrential rain has also caused other disasters like here behind me, the mud became loose because of continuous rainfall and slipped all the way down onto this which used to be a two storey house. nine people were killed here. there was one family, some relatives and some neighbours as well. that is really how difficult this rescue operation is. it's notjust about evacuating people who are stranded in flooded areas. a large part of kerala is also hilly, so it's about taking people who might be at risk in parts like these out of here. thousands of troops have already been pressed into action and more are coming in from other parts of the country. airlift operations are being conducted, people are being rescued by boat, basically any way possible. india's prime minister modi has been in the state assessing the damage

and there is a real sense of fear and despair among people here aboutjust when is this nightmare going to stop? rescue operations are under way across kerala — dozens of military helicopters involved in operations much like this one. 0ne pregnant woman was winched up by a rescue helicopter whilst in labour. with her waters already broken! twenty—five—year—old sajita jabeel gave birth to a healthy boy just after her rescue. good news there out of all the sadness in kerala this weekend. two people were winched down to help get her into the strop — with a doctor brought along to over see the rescue. we will bring you more news on kerala when we get it and seek ordination efforts by local and

state authorities. —— the coordination efforts. a state funeral for some of the victims of tuesday's bridge disaster in genoa is under way, led by italian president, sergio mattarella. some families are reportedly staying away from the ceremony because of anger at the government. they are blaming its failure to maintain properly the infrastructure of the country for the accident. the bodies of a couple and their nine—year—old daughter were discovered this morning, bringing the total of dead up to at least 41 people killed when the motorway bridge collapsed — with several still unaccounted for. 0ur correspondent james reynolds has been in genoa — he says the funeral itself is not without controversy. this state funeral is for just under half the victims of the genoa bridge collapse, and it is of course a chance for politicians, family members, relief workers and also members of the public to come together and to pause. it is worth saying that many families have chosen not to take part in this ceremony.

their relatives, their victims are from other parts of the country and they have simply preferred to carry out private burials. but we do know of at least two families who have said that they wanted nothing to do with any official or state ceremonies. 0ne father in particular has said that his son was murdered, and therefore, a state ceremony for that family was not appropriate. this is a chance for people here to stop, but it is not enough for this country to put aside the divisions and the arguments about why the bridge collapsed. once the ceremonies are over, once the politicians have gone, those arguments will re—intensify. an official commission will now look at the causes of the bridge's collapse and the public prosecutor here in genoa will decide whether or not anybody should be held legally responsible for what happened. its 19 minutes past 12. the

headlines on bbc news. former united nations secretary general kofi annan dies aged 80 — the un's first black african to hold the position. more heavy rain is forecast in southern india, where monsoons have caused the area's worst floods in a century. and a state funeral is under way for some of the victims of the genoa bridge collapse. retailers selling single—use water bottles, takeaway boxes and coffee cups face a new tax on plastics expected to be announced in the next budget. it comes after a record 162,000 responses to a government consultation on how to reduce waste and improve recycling. let's talk to emma priestland, a plastics campaigner for friends of the earth . emma, good to see you. we spoken about this and there seems to be

pace in the official response to concerns about % is concerns about plastic. what is driving it, do you think? the response has been incredible from the government. it is hard to the government to ignore the strength of feeling of normal citizens. i think what is driving it is, people have just woken up to the fact that lives are filled with plastic. and some of these items are essential but the majority of them are not. this question of what is what is and is not essential will be debated presumably by manufacturers and members of the public in terms of what they find convenient to use. thousands of people respond to a consultation but when it comes to them paying more for things do you think this level of commitment will be sustained? hopefully the taxes placed on these items would increase the cost for consumers. we would like to see taxes on plastic which

will hopefully lead to manufacture is using more recycled plastic in their products. and then there are other taxes like the plastic bag charge with the money is small and it serves more as a sort of awareness raising and intervention to make you think, do i need this product. you have looked at friends of the earth over years of campaigning on this, the way that different countries handle it. any lessons on how to discourage the use of single use plastic products and provides that are both affordable and practical? where should we be looking? who are the pioneers of this? the european union is doing a pretty amazing job at this at the moment. they have introduced a proposalfor a piece of moment. they have introduced a proposal for a piece of legislation that will ban plastic stores, plastic cutlery and cups and plates and things. also looking to find reduction measures for other kinds

of single use plastic items. that is not complete idiot and we don't know if it will also apply to the uk so we can look to europe, but around the world, many local sustainable solutions to the problem. we really don't need to use this level of practice. we've got to reduce it in as many ways as we can. emma priestland, from friends of the earth, thank you very much. the number of children and young adults in england and wales with type 2 diabetes has risen by more than 40% injust four years, according to the royal college of paediatrics. council leaders described the increase as "extremely worrying" and called for a boost in public health funding. the department of health says its new childhood obesity plan will get children exercising more in schools and reduce their exposure to sugary and fatty foods. i'm joined now by dan howarth, head of care at diabetes uk. good to see you. i am the son of

someone with diabetes, so i am familiar with what it means that an older age, what does it mean for a youngster? 20 years ago we never soared in children, it was more of a risk for those over a0 but as our waistlines increase, in the uk, this isa waistlines increase, in the uk, this is a disease that is shockingly starting to happen in children and young people. what does it mean in terms of what they will experience? they have much poorer outcomes than adults with type two diabetes. it is worth mentioning that still type one diabetes, which is not related to weight or lifestyle, is still very much the prevalent diabetes in children and younger people. that can still be treated, there are ways of managing type one diabetes, to minimise the impact. but the point is that there is nothing they can do about their behaviour or food intake or the rest of it. but for children

with type two diabetes things can be changed. in about 7896 of children or young people with type two diabetes they are overweight or obese and although there are many risk factors to watch people get type two diabetes, genetics, or your ethnicity, being overweight is a very significant one that we can do something about. it is also shocking that these young people with type two diabetes are developing complications much earlier than their counterparts with type one, or even adults with type two. we are talking about real health problems, problems that if they have type two diabetes could be things that are stuck with for life but also things that will gradually cause deterioration in their body and the overhaul health? we know 5096 of them already have signs of failing kidneys, so they could these are ultimately going to be failing towards later in life. it's about reducing these risks that people

have of developing the harrowing complication that all people with diabetes are at risk of but it seems to be happening more in this young people population. 4096 in four yea rs, people population. 4096 in four years, in number terms it's a small number, what is it that we need to do, as simply as you can, to summarise the change of behaviour needed to make sure these numbers just don't continue to grow and grow and grow? we as a general population have a massive responsibility to ensure the future safety of this generation. the government ‘s childhood obesity plan is making some really good steps. but there's no one size fits all. we all need to ta ke no one size fits all. we all need to take responsibility in taking type two diabetes and type one diabetes very seriously, knowing that these complications can arise. we need to ensure that the foods we are eating other healthy ones, the easy choice to make. and we encourage people to

be physically active. dan is from the british diabetes association, head of care at diabetes uk, i should say. thank you dan. let's look at the weather prospects for this weekend. hello, some outbreaks of rain from northern ireland and central scotla nd northern ireland and central scotland moving north. the best of sunshine across northern and eastern parts of scotland, much of england and wales aside from the odd spot of rain is dry with sunny spells but a breezy day and strong winds for the western isles down the western and southern coasts, easing to the afternoon. temperatures up to 25 celsius, feeling cooler in the far north of scotland. 0vernight more persistent rain working into northern ireland, northern england, working slowly northwards through

scotland, to the far north, mainly dry with clear spells, further south mainly dry but a lot of cloud and humid and muggy night. rain tomorrow slowly starts to fizzle away and through the afternoon most places become dry. again cloud, but it will break and bring sunshine, raising temperatures up to 23 celsius. goodbye. hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: former united nations secretary general kofi annan has died aged 80 in hospital in switzerland after a short illness. he was the un's first black african to hold the position. the first from sub—saharan africa.

a major emergency relief operation is under way in the indian state of kerala, where heavy monsoon rains have caused the area's worst flooding for a century. thousands have attended a state funeral in genoa for some of those who died in the motorway bridge disaster. and ministers are considering introducing a new plastics tax for items such as drinking straws and coffee cups after a government consultation on how to reduce plastic waste. sport, and for a full round up from the bbc sport centre, here's holly hamilton. good afternoon, ben stokes asbo division like others on the first day of the third test against india at trent bridge. the first match since the all—rounder was found not guilty of afraid this week. but chris woakes made the breakthrough, taking a break for 35 so that indiana 65—1. a win in nottingham

would give india an unassailable 3—0 lead in the five match series. two matches kicking off today, celtic away to partick thistle and in the premier league london derby, chelsea at home to arsenal. that's still to come. a p pa re ntly apparently manchester united captain paul pogba has fallen out with managerjose mourinho. according to the manger, though, their relationship couldn't be more positive. we have been together for two years and a couple of weeks. and i have never been so happy with him as i am now. that's the truth. i cannot demand more from him, i cannot ask more from him. former two—weight world champion carl frampton wants to show the world he's "still got it" by beating australian luke jackson at windsor park tonight. some flash photography coming up.

he tops the bill in his home city with plenty at stake — admitting himself that defeat could be career ending. victory howeer would all but guarantee a world title shot but frampton says he is still ready to take on the best featherweights in the world. that is a weight off my shoulders, and then i will chill out with my family. to really focus. what message do you want to send to the world tomorrow night?” message do you want to send to the world tomorrow night? i have still got it and everyone should be fea rful of got it and everyone should be fearful of me, all the top featherweights. i've still got it. the heats are under way on the penultimate day of the european para—swimming championships in dublin. and paralympic champion ellie robinson went quickest in reaching tonight's final of the s6 50—metres butterfly — this is her best event, the one that gave her gold in rio.