this is bbc news. i'm maryam moshiri. our top stories... a stark warning from the world health organisation — the pandemic will last longer because of the unequal distribution of vaccines. the 620 will meet at the end of october, we need them to say, "where are we against those commitments?" and i can tell you today, you are not on track. you need to really speed it up. britain's health secretary rejects calls to reintroduce covid restrictions in england — even though he admits cases could reach 100,000 a day in the uk. the growing danger women face in nightclubs — we talk to one of the victims of "spiking".

over a comedy special they say was transphobic. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. the world health organisation has told the bbc it believes the coronavirus pandemic will go on for a year longer than it needs to because of the unequal distribution of vaccines. it comes as a group of charities have criticised the uk and canada for themselves using doses from covax 7 the global programme to ensure vaccines are distributed fairly. naomi grimley reports. it's the question we all keep asking — when will this pandemic end? not as soon as it could is the answer from the world health organization because of uneven vaccine distribution across the world. there have been plenty of summits about vaccine donations to poorer countries,

but the exasperation of who officials is clear to see. we need a stock take, the 620 will meet at the end of october, we need them to say, "where are we against those commitments?" and i can tell you today, you are not on track. you need to really speed it up, or you know what, this pandemic is going to go on for a year longer than it needs to. covax was the international programme set up to ensure all countries — both rich and poor — could get enough vaccines to cover at least 20% of their population. but it hasn't worked out as planned. the vast majority of vaccine doses administered have been in richer countries. africa especially has been left behind. a new analysis from a group of charities called the people's vaccine alliance shows the huge gap between what the world's richest countries have promised to give the poorest versus the number of doses delivered so far. the uk and canada have been

singled out for particular criticism, as both countries acquired some vaccines from covax for their own populations, even though they had their own supplies. on the one hand, every country thatjoined the covax facility was entitled to obtain vaccines, but these two countries obtained many, many doses through bilateral agreements that could best be characterised as hoarding. so the idea that they would then double—dip and take more vaccines from the covax initiative really is morally indefensible. the uk has stressed it helped kick—start covax and was one of its most generous financial supporters. the canadian government told us it's now stopped procuring vaccines from covax. as it became clear that the supply that we had secured through our bilateral deals with different companies, like astrazeneca, pfizer and moderna would be sufficient for the canadian population, we then pivoted the doses

that we had procured from covax to be donated back to covax, so that they could be redistributed to developing countries that needed those doses. the latest warning from the world health organization is that the pandemic will continue deep into 2022. it's urging pharmaceutical companies and wealthy nations to make sure low—income countries are now prioritised in the queue for life—saving vaccines. naomi grimley, bbc news. covid restrictions are likely to be reimposed in england if progress in giving people their booster vaccinations is not satsifactory. that's the warning from britain's health secretary, sajid javid, who said that the number of new infections could rise to 100,000 a day, our health editor hugh pym has the latest. queues of ambulances waiting to hand over patients at some hospitals tell their own story — the nhs under intensifying

pressure, coping with a range of health conditions, and all that before winter has started to bite. and today, the health secretary struck a more downbeat note, with a warning about the outlook for covid cases. they could go yet as high as 100,000 a day. we are also seeing greater pressure on the nhs. across the uk, we are now approaching 1,000 hospitalisations per day. health leaders say, with those covid numbers adding to the existing strain on hospitals, intervention is needed now, in the shape of the government's plan b, setting out tougher measures which could be implemented. when you have the combination of winter pressures, covid pressures and the backlog, put all of that together, you've got a perfect storm, and that's why we need to do everything we can to reduce the pressure, and that's why we need plan b now. the government says it will introduce plan b if there is unsustainable

pressure on the nhs in england, with steps like making face coverings mandatory in some settings, asking people to work from home and introducing vaccine passports. in northern ireland, face coverings remain a legal requirement in crowded indoor spaces. it's the same for masks in wales. proof of vaccination at nightclubs is needed and people are encouraged to work from home. scotland's strategy, similarly, includes vaccine passports and face masks in schools and some other settings. ministers say the strategy in england for now is to focus on the continued roll—out of vaccines, boosterjabs and first and second doses for those who haven't already had them. but the big unknown is whether that can happen fast enough to help slow any future spread of the virus. here, gareth is getting a third dose. he's eligible because he is undergoing treatment for cancer and his immune system has been compromised. i feel great, actually. ifeel a lot more confident going forward. i am a great believer

in the vaccination programme. sajid javid ruled out plan b for now, but he warned that, if people didn't come forward forjabs, the government might have to step in. am i saying that, if we don't do our bit, get vaccinated, you know, all those behavioural changes that we can make, that we are more likely to face restrictions as we head into winter? i am saying that. i think we've been really clear that we've all got a role to play. he also announced deals to secure two new treatments for covid patients, which would be available for the nhs if approved by regulators, but that could be a few months away. in the meantime, the virus threat is still looming. hugh pym, bbc news. the united states says it's time to engage in a sustained dialogue with north korea with the goal of achieving a complete denuclearisation of the korean peninsula. the us ambassador to the united nations, linda thomas—greenfield, repeated washington had

no hostile intent towards pyongyang and was willing to meet north korean officials without any pre—conditions. she also condemned pyongyang's latest missile test as the security council met to discuss the issue. soo kim is a former cia analyst and shejoins me now from washington. thanks so much forjoining us on bbc news. what do you make of what has been said by the us? it of what has been said by the us? it is of what has been said by the us? , ., , of what has been said by the us? , a, , ., of what has been said by the us? , a, , ., a, of what has been said by the us? , a, , s, a, us? it is really not a huge departure. _ us? it is really not a huge departure. i _ us? it is really not a huge departure, i think, - us? it is really not a huge departure, i think, from l us? it is really not a huge . departure, i think, from what president biden had said in the beginning when he said he was going to not accord kim any freebies, a rescue would chill his reciprocating actions. one different thing is we have been hearing from us officials that the us is obviously open to dialogue anytime anyplace, but this is a new twist, where they

are calling out other countries that are not doing their part to enforce sanctions, ie, china and russia, so the policy line will remain the same, but with a variety of voices coming out to speak on behalf of the government, shows the definition of the policy, so i am curious to hear about that. how much damage, if at all any, was done during the trump administration, and there is movements towards a closer relationship between both countries? i relationship between both countries?— relationship between both countries? ~ ., countries? i think we need to oint countries? i think we need to point out _ countries? i think we need to point out that... _ countries? i think we need to point out that... go - countries? i think we need to point out that... go ahead, i point out that... go ahead, sor . point out that... go ahead, sorry- i _ point out that... go ahead, sorry- i am _ point out that... go ahead, sorry. i am afraid _ point out that... go ahead, sorry. i am afraid that - point out that... go ahead, sorry. i am afraid that we l point out that... go ahead, . sorry. i am afraid that we have lost soo kim, which is a shame because we were getting into our chat about the latest move

from washington to engage with pyongyang. more on that, as always, on our website. pyongyang. more on that, as always, on ourwebsite. let's move on now. experts in the us state of florida are investigating whether suspected human remains found in a park belong to brian laundrie. he's the boyfriend of a young woman found murdered in the state of wyoming last month. gabby petito, who kept a travel blog, went missing weeks earlier, while on a road trip with mr laundrie. aru na iyengar reports. a possible breakthrough on a florida nature reserve. police using sniffer dogs have been searching for brian laundrie, the fiance of gabby petito, whose body was discovered in wyoming in september. brian laundrie went home to florida after her disappearance, but went missing himself soon afterwards. his family say he went for a hike and never came back. earlier today, investigators found what appeared to be human remains and other personal items, such as a backpack and notebook belonging to brian laundrie. these items were found in an area that, up until recently,

had been underwater. the case has provoked widespread media interest. gabby petito's body lay in the wilderness before she was found for over a month. police say she was strangled. mr laundrie has not been charged with any crime relating to the killing of gabby petito, but the fbi issued a federal arrest warrant and charged him with fraudulently using her debit card after her death. the couple had packed their lives into a camper van for a cross—country adventure, starting injuly. they documented theirjourney in a stream of social media posts, but life was not sunny under the surface. this video emerged as the couple travelled through the state of utah. two people came to us and told us that they saw him hit you. they were interviewed, but no further action was taken. she sobs gabby petito was crying, talking to officers about her mental health. the murder has triggered a debate about domestic violence, over the amount

of attention accorded to white women compared to other missing persons. in addition, whilst the two separate searches for the pair were going on, other bodies of missing people were found. the fbi says investigations in florida are likely to continue for several days. aruna iyengar, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news — still to come... the wonder of whisky — how a drop of the hard stuff may help fuel cars — and combat climate change. a historic moment that many of his victims have waited for for decades. the former dictator in the dock — older, slimmer. and as he sat down, obedient enough. dawn, and as the sun breaks through the piercing chill of night on the plain outside, it lights up a biblicalfamine now in the 20th century.

the depressing conclusion, in argentina today it is actually cheaper to paper your walls with money. we've had controversies - in the past with great britain, but as good friends we have always found _ a good and lasting solution. concorde bows out in style after almost three decades in service. an aircraft that has enthralled its many admirers for so long taxis home one last time. this is bbc world news, the latest headlines a stark covid warning from the world health organisation — the pandemic will last longer because of the unequal distribution of vaccines. britain's health secretary rejects calls to reintroduce covid

restrictions in england — even though he admits cases could reach 100,000 a day in the uk. here in the uk, police forces have been asked to look urgently at reports of women being spiked by needles in nightclubs. there have been reports across the country of clubbers blacking out after having felt a sharp scratch. our correspondent jo black reports. after covid, it was supposed to be the freshers' week they never had. but on this night out at a club in nottingham, second—year university student sarah buckle became so unwell, she ended up in hospital. out of nowhere, i seemed to just stop communicating. i couldn't talk. it was as if someone had just turned a switch. the 19—year—old believes she was the victim of an injection spiking. i was almost screaming out for help and then almost going unconscious and coming back round and choking, and they could just tell immediately, wait, it's not that she's had too much to drink, something's really, really wrong.

i have no memory of anything. i think my earliest memory will have been around 9am. my hand was throbbing and a bruise was starting to develop. posts on social media talk of similar incidents, and now a petition calling for compulsory searches at nightclubs has been signed by more than 130,000 people. and groups from more than 30 universities around the uk havejoined a campaign calling for a boycott of nightclubs at the end of this month. the problem of people having their drinks spiked in night—time venues has been reported for many years, but now there are new fears about the rise of injection spiking. however, only a small number of police forces across the uk say they've had reports of this happening. despite this, young people we spoke to today in nottingham said they were worried. i won't go out. i won't. it's too worrying. you shouldn't have in the back of your thought, "is someone going to stab me with a needle and spike my drink?",

or anything like that. so, yeah, it's really concerning. it's one thing to worry- about your drink being spiked, but having stuff injected - into you that you don't know what it is, anything i could happen to you. it's terrifying. the home secretary, priti patel, has now asked police forces for an urgent update on this issue. and today, at the home affairs select committee, questions about the scale of the problem. do you think police forces are taking this seriously enough? every chief constable takes this as top priority. violence against women in general. sarah says it will be a long time before she can enjoy another night out, but she hopes her story will be a warning to others. if you feel unwell slightly, orjust think you've had a bit too much to drink, go home, and if you think something more sinister might have happened, do not be afraid to contact the police. jo black, bbc news, nottingham. paris hilton has spoken about her alleged abuse

as a teenager as part of a push to change laws governing youth care facilities. to change laws governing she has spent months campaigning for safeguarding and reform at residential programmes aimed at troubled teens. at a washington dc event with lawmakers and rights advocates, she spoke about her experience. i was strangled, slapped across the face, watched in the shower by male staff, called vulgar names, forced to take medication without diagnosis, not given a proper education, thrown into solitary confinement in a room covered in scratch marks and smeared in blood, and so much more. i wish i could tell you that what i experienced and witnessed was unique or even rare, but sadly it is not. every day in america children in care settings are being physically, emotionally and sexually abused.-

and sexually abused. paris hilton. around a hundred people have protested outside netflix�*s headquarters in california over the airing of a comedy special by dave chappelle, which they say was transphobic. earlier i spoke to our north america correnspondent david willis about the story and he explained the controversy. dave chapelle, in which he made various remarks about lgbtqi+ people, he said that gender is a fact and accuse them of being too sensitive. that was immediately met with protests from lgbtq people are posted on social media and elsewhere that his comments were harmful, and that he was basically profiting from free speech. dave chapelle was paid about $20 million for his special on netflix. today saw about 100 demonstrators gathering outside the netflix ho.

they can be formed into three different groups, those who support dave chapelle and his right to free speech, those who believe that his remarks were potentially harmful to transgender people, and those who are opposed to transgenderism as a concept, they chanted "love you, don't change yourself". much of the controversy has been brought about because netflix said they brought it on themselves by issuing e—mails to staff in which they defended dave chapelle, who has of course made a lot of money for netflix, and basically appeared to turn a deaf ear to the whole controversy. since then netflix has somewhat backed down, and issued a statement saying, "we understand the deep hurt that has been caused by this, and we respect the decision of any employee who chooses to walk out."

netflix�*s co—ceo has admitted that in his words, he screwed up in its his response to the controversy initially. a lockdown in the australian city of melbourne will end in a few hours, after 70% of the population received its second dose of covid—19 vaccine. melbourne has had six lockdowns and in total has spent more than 260 days under tough coronavirus restrictions, which included a night—time curfew. it recently gained the unwelcome designation of the world's most locked down city. queen elizabeth cancelled a trip to northern ireland and is resting for the next few days, according to buckingham palace. her majesty, who celebrated her 95th birthday in april, will stay at windsor castle but is still expected to attend the global climate change conference in glasgow later this month. our royal correspondent nicholas witchell reports. the queen at windsor castle last night, hosting a reception for global business and other

leaders, doing what she's done for nearly 70 years now — representing and gently canvassing support for britain. she was, by all accounts, in good spirits. it was the latest in a series of engagements over the past eight days. she was at westminster abbey last tuesday, using a walking stick for the first time at a public engagement. two days later, she was in cardiff, for the opening of the welsh parliament. at every engagement, there are lines of guests, all of them anxious to meet her and have a few moments of conversation. in addition, there's the daily business of monarchy — audiences, many of them now by video call. ah, there you are. this was earlier this week. the queen in windsor, speaking via cyberspace to the new governor—general of new zealand. good morning, how are you? oh, of course, it's good morning, isn't it, to you? this afternoon, this 95—year—old monarch should have been boarding a flight

to northern ireland, for a series of engagements there tonight and tomorrow. but this morning, buckingham palace issued this short statement. the queen is not unwell, but she is 95, and there's obviously a need for anyone of that age to pace themselves sensibly. and that's all, officials insist, that's happening here. there are, it's understood, no covid—related concerns. the queen has, of course, received her double vaccination. what royal officials and doctors will be focused on is her role at the forthcoming cop26 summit, when the queen will be hosting all the visiting leaders. they will want to be sure that she is fully rested for that. nicholas witchell, bbc news. governments all around the world are trying to find ways to tackle climate change. one of the biggest problems

is our use of fossil fuels. whether it's warming our homes or powering our vehicles finding an alternative is crucial. now, a company in scotland is exploring a solution that seems a little unusual. the bbc�*s tim allman has the story. there is apparently an old proverb that says what whisky will not cure, there is no cure for. but, does its magical properties extend to saving the environment? well, maybe. here at the glengoyne distillery, they have been making whisky for almost 200 years. but it is what they throw away that could turn out to be so useful. from these malted barley grains, a biofuel is created that can power this car. this is made from living carbon, from the residues of an industry that is one of the most important

industries in the scottish economy and we can take their residue and turn them into something that we need right now made from sustainable resources. what they end up with is acetone, butanoland what they end up with is acetone, butanol and ethanol, chemicals used in everything from fuel and food production to medicine and cosmetics. the company behind it says this is a sustainable and environmentally friendly process. environmentally friendly process-_ environmentally friendly rocess. , ., process. our view is that we can continue _ process. our view is that we can continue to _ process. our view is that we can continue to use - process. our view is that we can continue to use this - process. our view is that we can continue to use this in l can continue to use this in everything from health care to hygiene, and we can make it for more sustainable resources. we are not telling everybody in the world what you can do but showing how we can innovate and do things differently. this -lant do things differently. this plant can _ do things differently. this plant can produce - do things differently. this plant can produce around 1 million litres of biochemicals and they want to build five more refineries in the next five years. whisky has been described as liquid sunshine. sunshine brings light, and hope. tim orman, bbc news. after the uk was handed

a crushing defeat at this year's eurovision song contest, the bbc has announced it will work with tap music — which counts dua lipa, lana del rey and ellie goulding among its clients — to select a song and act to represent the uk in 2022. singerjames newman was the only artist this year to score zero points from both the jury and public vote, coming bottom on the leaderboard. one of the world's biggest live music events, the 66th edition of the contest is due to be held in turin in italy, next may. let's bring you some live pictures now from the spanish island of la palma where the lava can be seen spewing from the cumbre vieja volcano. the eruption began in mid september — has already covered over 700 hectares of land with molten rock and destroyed about 2,000 buildings.

that is it from me and the team. you are watching bbc news. goodbye. hello. thursday is going to feel chilly — especially when we contrast it with the temperatures we had at the start of the week, when we were getting daytime highs in the high teens, even the low 20s. and it will feel all the more cold because we'll pick up a keen northerly wind. the cold air plunging in behind this weather front, sinking south overnight. ahead of it, some heavy rain which will pull off into the continent. and then, through thursday daytime, we open the floodgates for cold air to sweep all the way south through the uk. we'll start the day with some cloud and rain to the south, the weather front pulling away, making way for lots of sunshine come the afternoon — but there will be some showers to the northwest, and they will be wintry across the hills and mountains of scotland.

the wind a notable feature, gales possible down the north sea coast. these are the temperatures that you'd see on the thermometer — but, factor in the wind, those temperatures along the north sea coast will feel more like 11—5 celsius. we continue with showers streaming into the north and west as we move overnight thursday and into friday. quite a chilly night, as well — in sheltered eastern spots, there could be a patchy frost — we're sitting in quite cold air, but the strength of the wind will protect many from actually seeing bits of frost. through friday daytime, though, the winds will start to ease back a little as a ridge of high pressure builds in from the atlantic. still some showersjust managing to sneak into the top of that ridge, a bit of cloud under it, as well — perhaps not the faultless blue skies of thursday, but it should just feel a little bit milder because the wind won't be quite as cutting. but, for things to really become milder, we need to get to the weekend, and it's all about the change in wind direction. as we say goodbye to this ridge of high pressure,

it pushes away to the east and we start to pick up a south—westerly. for saturday, i think, actually, a lot of fine weather across the uk. there'll be some cloud closing in to the west, and we will see some rain for northern ireland by the end of the day. but the temperatures lifting up, we should hit the mid—teens, but it will feel so much warmer because we're moving back into a more atlantic airstream. sunday, greater chance of some showers just about anywhere across the uk — sheltered eastern areas favoured for the driest and brightest weather. temperatures possibly up to 15—16 to the south.

this is bbc news — the headlines. the world health organisation has told the bbc it believes the coronavirus pandemic will go on for a year longer than it needs to because of the unequal distribution of vaccines. it comes as a group of charities have criticised the uk and canada for themselves using doses from covax. experts in the us state of florida are investigating whether suspected human remains found in a park belong to brian laundrie. he's the boyfriend of a young woman found murdered in the state of wyoming last month. gabby petito, who kept a popular travel blog, went missing weeks earlier. around 100 people have protested outside netflix�*s headquarters — over the airing of a comedy special by dave chappelle — which they say was transphobic. netflix staff and transgender activists staged the walkout in los angeles. demonstrators are calling on netflix to fund more trans and non—binary talent.