a,500 jobs to go at the energy firm npower — that's three quarters of the uk workforce. the unions describe it as a cruel blow, coming less than a month before christmas, but npower says the british market is challenging. the energy retail market is hugely challenging. the price cap doesn't help and that means companies cannot, well—run companies like e.0n, cannot secure a fair return on their investment is what we want to see a strong companies that can provide strong and secure employment. it's a terrible blow for families and for the communities that depend on thisjob. we are three and a half weeks out just before christmas and this news will have just dropped on them today, although for many of them they've been expecting it. we'll be analysing the reasons forjob cuts.

also this lunchtime... borisjohnson sets out what he says are the benefits of brexit, promising it will be easier to protect british jobs. we will back british business by ensuring that the public sector buys british. we'll scrap the tampon tax, we'll back british industry by making sure we can intervene when great british businesses are struggling. and these are some of the benefits which will directly result from leaving the eu. scotland yard pays former mp harvey proctor £500,000 compensation after its disastrous investigation into claims of a paedophile ring. arsenal sack their manager unai emery after 78 games in charge. and rediscovered — a 42—page manuscript written by elizabeth i. and coming up on bbc news, england's bowlers are frustrated on the first day of the second test in new zealand, as tom latham hits a century.

good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. 4,500 workers are to lose their jobs, after the energy firm npower announced it's closing three customer service centres in the uk. unions have called it cruel blow in the run—up to christmas, but the company, which is german owned, says it's been struggling for some time and that the british market is "particularly challenging". the cuts represent three quarters of the company's uk workforce. here's our business correspondent theo leggett. hello, penny from npower speaking. how can i help? it's one of the best—known names in the uk's energy sector, one of the so—called big six suppliers, but for years npower

has been struggling. competition in the market is intense and this year the government decided to cap the most expensive tariffs. now workers are likely to pay a heavy price. npower was recently taken over by its rival, the german company e.0n, and the new owner wants to cut costs by merging many of their operations. the energy retail market is extremely challenging. we've seen 20 companies leaving the market, 20 companies, many of which have failed, and that's because the energy retail market is hugely challenging. the price cap doesn't help and that means companies, well—run companies like e.0n, cannot secure a fair return on their investment. e.0n is expected to close npower‘s customer service centre at houghton le spring near sunderland. more than 2000 people work here. this site in hull, which employs 600 people, is also looking vulnerable, and a similar number are based at another site in worcester. all told, a500 workers,

three quarters of npower‘s staff, could lose theirjobs. it's a terrible blow for families and for the communities that depend on thisjob. we and for the communities that depend on this job. we are three and a half weeks out just before on this job. we are three and a half weeks outjust before christmas and this news will have just dropped on them today, although for many of them today, although for many of them they've been expecting it. we knew things were difficult for npower but it's probably the worst possible news that the worst possible news that the worst possible time. but while the announcement is clearly deeply worrying news for npower‘s staff, it should make little immediate difference for its customers. e.0n says their accounts will be taken over with a minimum of fuss. what is not so clear is what the impact on people's bills will be in the longer term as the big six players in the energy market become to all intents and purposes a big five. and theo is here now. the company keeps talking about a challenging market. are they right? yes, they are, because the market is

designed to be challenging. if companies are competing with one another it will push down prices and be better for another it will push down prices and be betterfor consumers, another it will push down prices and be better for consumers, but something has changed over the past year. in the past the big six in particular used to balance the lower ta riffs particular used to balance the lower tariffs to attract people who chop and change between suppliers by ramping up their standard variable tariffs, which people who didn't chop and change would be on. that was considered by the government to be unfair, that people who were not switching were not getting such a good deal, so those prices were capped, and what the energy companies say now is that it's putting the squeeze on them and making it harder for them putting the squeeze on them and making it harderfor them to putting the squeeze on them and making it harder for them to get a decent return. it's competitive for everybody. there are companies at the lower end of the market, the so—called challengers, who have been put out of business over the past couple of years, and now we're seeing companies at the top end struggling as well. e.0n and npower, effectively the company, a lot of their operations are duplicated so e.0n says their operations are duplicated so e. 0n says it's their operations are duplicated so e.0n says it's making sense to

combine the operations and cut costs. u nfortu nately for a500 combine the operations and cut costs. unfortunately for a500 people working for npower, that means bad news in the run—up to christmas. theo theo leggett, thank you. the prime minister has said he'd introduce a new system of state aid after britain leaves the eu. borisjohnson says restrictions from brussels have made it difficult to help companies that are in danger. mrjohnson was setting what he's called his ‘brexit roadmap' for what will happen if he wins next month's election. but he's been forced to defend a decision not to take part in a tv debate on climate change. 0ur political correspondent helen catt reports. boris johnson's borisjohnson‘s big boris johnson's big pledge borisjohnson‘s big pledge is getting brexit done. now he says if elected he could start passing laws immediately that could only come in when the uk stops following eu rules, the date he has set, the ist of january, 2021. rules, the date he has set, the ist ofjanuary, 2021. we will rules, the date he has set, the ist of january, 2021. we will back british business by ensuring that

the public sector buys british. we'll scrap the tampon tax. we'll back british industry by making sure we can intervene when great british businesses are struggling and these are some of the benefits which will directly result from leaving the eu. in addition, we will also take steps to ensure that the australian style points based immigration system is in place by the ist of january, 2021. alongside him, former labour mp and prominent vote leave campaigner gisela stuart. she told leave us not to vote for her old party. voting for brexit this time does not make me a tory now, or in the future. labourd's focus today is on regional investment through boosting green industries including some specific proposals and leave voting areas. they say the tories could have given government help to industry even while in the eu. could have given government help to industry even while in the sum doesn't follow that they are going to make any investment in our region is, in ourjobs, in dealing with the

climate emergency. that doesn't follow, so i'm afraid this is the distraction, but the truth is far from the image they are trying to portray. the snp says it still believes the uk is likely headed for a no—deal brexit. the government isn't standing down the preparation it's done for that outcome. that is not a single person who thinks a trade deal can be done by the end of next year and he said he won't ask for the extension, the transition period to be extended, so i know deal brexit is back on the table and that would be catastrophic. while borisjohnson was keen to get back to brexit, he is facing accusations of picking the scrutiny he faces after choosing not to take part in a channel for debate on the climate last night. instead, a reminder, the icecaps are melting... the broadcaster replaced him with a block of ice. we face this climate emergency, the biggest existential threat to this country, and the prime minister wouldn't show up, not just contempt i think for the next

generation but also showing completely that he is unfit to run this country. the tories have complained to the regulator 0fcom. tonight, another chance to hit the parties debate, the leaders of the lib dems, plaid cymru and the snp will bejoined by lib dems, plaid cymru and the snp will be joined by senior figures from labour, the conservatives, the brexit party and the greens for a seven way debate. catt, bbc news. 0ur political correspondent jonathan blake is in cardiff where the bbc will host its seven party election debate tonight. what exactly are we expecting in this one? the set for tonight's seven way election debate here in the senate macro in but cardiff. the party representatives will be standing up these podiums in a few hours' time, some represented by their leaders, not all, so rebecca long—bailey is here, the shadow business secretary for labour, chief secretary of the secretary representing the conservatives, the snp leader nicola sturgeon and lib dem leaderjo swinson are taking

part. for the greens it's their sole mp before the election, caroline lucas, adam price, the leader of plaid cymru will be representing his party and as well the brexit party chairman richard tice. nick robinson will be hosting and chairing the debate, putting questions to the party representatives. there will be questions from the audience as well. less tha n questions from the audience as well. less than two weeks until polling day for the main parties the challenge staying on message and sticking to their key promises and pledges. for the others, smaller parties, it's a bit of exposure for them and chats to cut through and perhaps grab photos' attention. these debates do have the potential to up interesting key moments which can change the dynamic of the campaign. we'll have to see if that is the case tonight. jonathan blake reporting there. and a reminder tonight's election debate live from cardiff between leaders and senior party figures starts at 7pm on bbc one. you can get live fact checking and analysis from our reality check team on the bbc news website, app and the news channel.

scotland yard has agreed to pay nearly £500,000 in compensation to the former conservative mp harvey proctor. it follows the disastrous police investigation into false claims of a vip paedophile ring. mr proctor‘s home was raided as part of operation midland. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford is here. £500,000 in compensation, a huge amount? £500,000 in compensation and £a00,000 in legalfees on amount? £500,000 in compensation and £a00,000 in legal fees on top of that, so the best part of £1 million to harvey proctor. it's been paid out because by raiding his house and by not being careful enough that his name didn't then get out into the media and then compounding it by a senior officer telling the media later that they believed the allegations were credible and true, the police had essentially allowed

harvey proctor‘s name to get out there as a man accused of murder, although he was never even charged with that and it turned out of course that the allegations against him were completely false. so that's why the scale of this pay—out, harvey proctor saying today he hopes the size of the award will deter police from assuming the guilt of an innocent suspect and misleading judges in order to obtain search wa rra nts judges in order to obtain search warrants in future. the met police have now spent close to £5 million on this in terms of their investigation, the settlements they've had to make, paying for northumbria police to investigate carl beech, the original man who made the allegations, so £5 million of public money has been spent on this. this is of course money that would have otherwise been spent fighting crime and richard enrique as thejudge who fighting crime and richard enrique as the judge who looked into all this believed that the police could have nipped this all in the bud by just making a few more proper investigations about carl beech‘s original allegations and all that money could have been saved. daniel sandford, thank you.

one of the world's leading climbers has fallen to his death in mexico. american brad gobright, seen here in 2017, was abseiling after scaling a sheer rock face with a colleague, when both men fell. his partner survived. a man who shot dead his heavily pregnant ex—wife with a crossbow has been jailed for life. ramanodge unmathallegadoo, who's 51, was sentenced at the old bailey for a minimum term of 33 years, for what was described as a "brutal and evil attack" on sana muhammad. it happened in east london a year ago. it's black friday — when shoppers are hoping for a bargain and store owners are hoping for a boost to their fortunes. 0nline retailers expect consumers to spend more than last year — around £8 billion over what is now an extended eight—day period. our business correspondent emma simpson has been spending the morning at a retailer's warehouse in greater manchester.

yes, you join me at misguided, the online fashion retailer, at this huge warehouse. they are already packing and processing goods that have been ordered. it's in full swing here. now, black friday, love it or hate it, people will be spending a lot of money today. misguided reckon it will be their busiest day of the year. to find out how it's all going i'm nowjoined by the ceo and founder. tell is about today? most definitely this is our busiest day of the year. we have a target of around 100,000 orders today and we are already halfway through that so it's going to x x —— exceed expectations. payday making a difference? it's the first time black friday has fallen on a payday, it's usually in important to our customer base and we are seeing it come to already. we've been bombarded by discounts for weeks now. it's the novelty of black

friday wearing off? most definitely not, this is where we offer the deepest discounts so customers are lapping it up and we have to stay in this game. should retailers worry about encouraging conspicuous consumption must remark that we are going to end up buying stuff we don't really need is jamaat we are a retailer and we have to listen to oui’ retailer and we have to listen to our customer. 0ur retailer and we have to listen to our customer. our customer loves a discount. everyone is playing this game of giving discounts so if we don't play it, we die. your products are already cheap, you are discounting like mad, can you make a profit? we can, we've traded black friday for four years in a row and we are able to navigate it in a way which they can make money. we are able to navigate it in a way which they can make moneylj we are able to navigate it in a way which they can make money. i guess you've got to be in it because eve ryo ne you've got to be in it because everyone else's? 100%, other retailers are discounting like crazy. we've been reviewing them this morning and we are not as aggressive as everyone else in the market but we are still seeing the numbers come through so it's a bit ofa numbers come through so it's a bit of a bloodbath out there. a lot of retailers have excess stock and this is the best time to clear it. thanks very much, we'll let you go. pleasure. it's certainly going to be

busy here this afternoon. emma simpson reporting there. the time is 1:15. our top story this lunchtime. a,500 jobs are to go at the energy firm npower — that's three quarters of the uk workforce. and coming up — the hidden historical truth about the author of this ancient manuscript found at lambeth palace. coming up on bbc news, mo farah is back on track for the olympics. the champion announces he will defend his 10,000m crown in tokyo next year. thousands of students across the world are walking out of class today, to demand stronger governmental action on climate change. the global protests are taking place ahead of the next un climate conference which starts in chile on monday. one of the first protests was in the australia a country which recently dealing with bushfires blamed on changing weather patterns. caroline davies reports.

todayit today it started in australia. weeks of damaging bushfires that have destroyed hundreds of homes, persuaded many onto the streets. earlier this year my hometown was on the front lines of the bushfires and i guess that kind of shocked me into realising this is something that is happening and it's time i do something about it. i'm here because i'm terrified about the fact the government is doing nothing when there are fires going on in the rest of australia and people are dying. in delhi, where much of the city's air quality was designated hazardous this month, clouds filled the streets, banging drums and demanding change. in tokyo, hundreds marched, some inspired by the student who initiated the first friday strikes. i was really inspired by greta's actions so i always wanted to take

pa rt actions so i always wanted to take part in it and then i found the information of this climate march on instagram so here i am. i thought if ididn't instagram so here i am. i thought if i didn't act now it would be too late. from the philippines and bangkok, is the world woke up the protests started in spain and italy. across the uk over 100 strikes are planned. in london, schoolchildren joined adult protesters in parliament square, marching past downing street. today's protests are taking place a week before the un climate conference in madrid. this is an opportunity for the clouds to say to leaders that they want more action on climate change and they wa nt action on climate change and they want it faster. many will be watching to see weather the increasingly frequent demonstration on the words streets turning to global promises. caroline davies, bbc news. two south korean pop stars have been jailed for gang raping drunk and unconscious women. one of the men shared video footage of the rapes on a phone chat group. it's one of several scandals surrounding the country's k—pop industry in recent years. 0ur correspondent laura

bicker is in seoul. jung joon—young raise to celebrity fame and is a very high profile singer and tv presenter. he will now spend six years behind bars for raping women while they were unconscious, filming it and sharing it on unconscious, filming it and sharing itona unconscious, filming it and sharing it on a chat room with celebrity friends. 0n the chat room after he posted one of the videos, one of them said, ha, ha, ha.judge said posted one of the videos, one of them said, ha, ha, ha. judge said he treated victims is a pleasure tool. choijong—hoon treated victims is a pleasure tool. choi jong—hoon was also charged with raping women while they were unconscious, thejudge raping women while they were unconscious, the judge said raping women while they were unconscious, thejudge said he showed no remorse has been sentenced to five years in prison. this is one of the biggest k—pop scandals in

recent yea rs of the biggest k—pop scandals in recent years but it is notjust a k‘p°p recent years but it is notjust a k—pop problem. our team insulted an investigation and found that rich, powerful men were prepared to pay hundreds of thousands of pounds to have women targeted in clubs, drugged and taken to a nearby motel to be raped —— our team drugged and taken to a nearby motel to be raped —— ourteam in drugged and taken to a nearby motel to be raped —— our team in seoul. now women are beginning to speak out and the high—profile nature of this crime means it is coming out of the shadows and into the light. thank you. arsenal has sacked its manager unai emery after just 18 months in charge. the club is currently enduring its longest stretch without a win since 1992. 0ur correspondentjoe wilson is at the emirates stadium — joe, was this inevitable?

yes, i think it was. when unai emery arrived here his potential was pretty strong, he had done well back in his native spain with sevilla, they dominated the europa league. full seasons. i think what he struggled with is communication. struggle to get his message across in the media and clearly to the players because arsenal are in a really poor run of form, they've won four times really poor run of form, they've won fourtimes in really poor run of form, they've won four times in the premier league, eighth in the premier league, miles off the pace. last night they lost again here in the europa league. even more significant than that, more significant than the boos at the final whistle a weather empty seats. thousands of supporters stayed away. that is unsustainable, every business needs its customers. arsenal felt they had to act, it's interesting they've already appointed as an interim manager, freddie and berg who was part of the great arsene wenger era. arsenal

might be thinking they are missing him after his 22 years in charge. is clearly a reconnection —— ljungberg is clearly reconnection with that past. what about the idea of pocketing a moving from spurs to arsenal? surely not but it's a fun thought —— pochettino. in the run—up to last christmas gatwick airport was brought to a standstill by drones. well, to stop the same thing happening again — hundreds of thousands of people have until tonight to register their drones. but with time running out — the civil aviation authority says not even half the country's drone pilots have done so. here's our transport correspondent tom burridge. before this weekend, anyone of us could buy almost any type of drone online or from a shop and fly it safely in an open field away from people, buildings and vehicles, as long as you don't

lose sight of it, fly it in an airport's exclusion zone, or above a00 feet. but now there are new restrictions. fall foul of the new rules and you could face a £1,000 fine. atjust 80g, this is well under 250g, so it isn't covered by the new regulations. 0k. whereas these two drones are appreciably heavier than 250g. so the new rules apply? and the new rules therefore apply. let's just take it up to maximum height. talking us through the new rules is drone pilot instructor simon smith. into sport mode. the first big change is that before a beginner like me can take the controls... right and left... ..it‘s off to the classroom. "and when must you have insurance for flying your drone or model aircraft?" a 20 question, multiple—choice quiz. "which of these is the main reason for not flying above a00 feet?" anyone of any age can still fly a standard—sized drone, but you have to pass this test first. yay! i passed. i just press up. so, now i'm allowed to fly a drone for the first time.

there we go. just get the feel for what the controls do. but this is only 0k because the drone belongs to simon, and he's registered. the person responsible for a drone like this one has to register it now. they have to be over 18. the cost of doing so is a mere £9. for simon, it's a step in the right direction, but... do i think it will make much difference? honestly, no. the people that abide by the rules and regulations will abide by them whether they're registered or not. tens of thousands of drone users still haven't registered, and that empty runway at gatwick and the misery passengers felt for days when drones were apparently spotted last december means airports hope more people will sign up via the civil aviation authority's new system. it is a concern to us that we haven't got everybody on board yet and we want to encourage the caa and government to ensure that they promote this, that they keep the costs to those individuals at reasonable levels so that we encourage

more people to use it. simple technology could remotely identify a drone and link it to its owner. but such a system is still not in place, so the new rules won't be easy to police. tom burridge, bbc news, in kent. the black sea is the most polluted stretch of water in europe. yesterday we brought you the first of our special reports on maritime polution. in his second investigation our correspondentjonah fisher — travelled across the region to look at what s being done to turn things around. his report begins in budapest. the front line in efforts to save the black sea is hundreds of kilometres from its shore. so this is basically a river of human poo? yeah. this is a water treatment plant in hungary. completed nine years ago, it's helped budapest clean up its rather embarrassing

waste disposal problem. before this plant was built, around half of the produced waste water was going directly to the danube. raw sewage? yeah, raw sewage. and after we have built this one, after 2010, almost 95—96% of the whole sewage is treated, biologically treated, and going like this, clean, to the danube. similar plants have been built all along the river, dramatically cleaning up the water that then empties into the black sea. the driving force for change has been membership of the european union. eu provided a framework where the combination of the regulatory framework, the regulation, and the transfer of the money, the financial support to the new member states, was one of the key factors of the improving of the situation in the danube. so this is a positive story. you are sure that the danube, and by connection the black sea, are now on their way back? the worst is over? definitely, over the last 15 years, we witnessed improvement.

the whole danube river story is a success story, in search of the promised signs of recovery, we headed to the part of the black sea closest to the mouth of the danube. the divers we are with are looking for something very specific — a once—plentiful red seaweed called phyllaphora. it is a key indicator of water quality. translation: it does seem that the sea is getting healthier. compared to previous years, i could see more phyllaphora. but we can't relax, because the entire ecosystem of the sea is still seriously damaged. there is still a long way to go, but those in charge of monitoring the black sea are now sounding cautiously optimistic. for those who despair that our planet is incapable of rising to the scale of the global environmental crisis, the black sea is an example of how, with sustained effort,

a seemingly endless tide of destruction can be slowed and, just maybe, turned. the truth behind the handwriting on this ancient manuscript has finally been discovered. the secret scribe was actually queen elizabeth i. a handwriting expert has pieced together clues from the document, after it was found in the library of lambeth palace. david sillito reports. so, giles, whatare we looking at here? it's a translation into english of a section of the work of the roman historian tacitus. it has been sitting here on a shelf at lambeth palace for hundreds of years and no—one was very interested in it until a researcher one day started looking a bit more closely and realised this wasn't

the work of a 16th century academic, but someone rather more famous. the thing that is a really exciting discovery, which hadn't been established by anybody before now, is that it is written by, and in some cases in the hand of, queen elizabeth i. so how do we know it is queen elizabeth's handwriting? well, the paper is a clue. it's the same as used in many state documents of the tudor court at the time. we also know that queen elizabeth did translations of tacitus, but the real clinching evidence is the handwriting — queen elizabeth's terrible handwriting. most of what we are looking at is the work of a scribe, but have a look at this little correction. that word ‘calm' with its rather eccentric floating ‘e' at the end. now compare it with this... and this. both proven examples

of elizabeth is very distinctive handwriting. it is the queen's translation written out for her and then amended. you look quite excited by this. it's a very remarkable discovery. it tells us about the queen and about the cultural life of the elizabethan court. so, a dusty, forgotten document has finally, after more than a00 years, revealed its royal secret. david silitto, bbc news, lambeth palace. time for a look at the weather. here's helen willetts. thank you. for once we are talking about much drier weather, a welcome relief. what a beautiful picture this is from shropshire, out and about for many parts of the country, oui’ about for many parts of the country, our first mostly dry day and a few more to come as well. with the high pressure in charge