this is bbc news, i'm ben brown. the headlines at 5. labour accuses liz truss of being "lost in denial" as she tells mps she will not reduce public spending to pay for her package of tax cuts. what we will make sure is that over the medium term, the debt is falling, but we will do that not by cutting public spending, but by making sure we spend public money well. does she think the public will ever forgive the conservative party if they keep on defending this madness and go ahead with her kamikaze budget? it comes amid growing fears of a recession — latest figures show the uk economy

shrank unexpectedly by 0.3% in august. manchester crown court hears how a nurse, accused of murdering babies on a neonatal ward, tried to kill a premature baby girl on two consecutive night shifts. after the latest russian attacks on ukraine, nato says sending air defence systems there is a top priority. blood supplies fall to a critically low level in england, prompting nhs blood and transplant to declare its first ever amber alert — hospitals may have to postpone some elective surgery. and scientists successfully transplant tissue from a human brain to that of a newborn rat and say the hybrid organoids can not only play the 1970s video game, pong, but will also help with research into brain disorders. but will also help with research we but will also help with research will be talking live �* the we will be talking live to one of the experts involved.

good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. the prime minister has said she'll absolutely stick to her promise not to cut public spending. she was speaking at the first prime minister's questions since last month's mini budget, which provoked turmoil on the financial markets. the labour leader sir kier starmer said she should reverse what he called her "kamikaze" economic plan. it comes amid renewed turmoil in the bond markets, and fears of a looming recession — latest figures show the uk economy shrank by 0.3% in august. from westminster — leila nathoo. a government weathered by storms of its own making. it's hard to believe this was only liz truss's second outing at prime minister's questions. have you wrecked the economy, prime minister? her budget—in—all—but—name not yet three weeks old set out

a programme of major tax cuts, but it triggered turmoil in the financial markets, prompted a rise in mortgage rates and caused unrest within her own party. in the commons, the labour leader sir keir starmer attacked the measures and called for the government to change course. who voted for this? not homeowners, paying an extra 500 extra on their mortgages. who voted for this? not working people paying for tax cuts to the largest companies. who voted for this? not even most of the mps behind her, who know you can't pay for tax cuts on the never—never. does she think the public will ever forgive the conservative party if they keep on defending this madness and go ahead with her kamikaze budget? mr speaker, what our budget has delivered is security for families

for the next two winters. it has made sure that we are going to see higher economic growth, lower inflation and more opportunities. the way that we will get our country growing is through more jobs, more growth, more opportunities. but lower taxes have to be paid for somehow. sir keir pressed the prime minister on a pledge she made before she took office. during her leadership contest, the prime minister said, "i'm very clear. "i'm not planning public spending reductions". is she going to stick to that? absolutely. a clear commitment. what we will make sure is that over the medium term, the debt is falling, but we will do that not by cutting public spending, but by making sure we spend public money well. the fallout from the budget has

overshadowed the prime minister's first weeks in office. she has already been forced into a major u—turn on scrapping the top rate of tax, with pressure coming from both outside and within her party, there is more that could yet come unstuck. leila nathoo, bbc news, westminster. and leila joins us now from central lobby in the houses of parliament. i gather the prime minister is actually going to talk to tory mps on the night of 22 committee of backbenchers.— on the night of 22 committee of backbenchers. , , , ., ., backbenchers. yes, this is a regular meetinu backbenchers. yes, this is a regular meetin: of backbenchers. yes, this is a regular meeting of backbenchers _ backbenchers. yes, this is a regular meeting of backbenchers in - backbenchers. yes, this is a regular meeting of backbenchers in the - meeting of backbenchers in the conservative parties. today the prime minister is addressing them. this is the first week back from the break from the bardic conference. quite a long conversation the prime minister is having, many of who are incredibly anxious about the governments plans and the message thatis governments plans and the message that is coming across. today you heard liz truss committed quite clearly in the commons under questioning from keir starmer that they would be no reductions in the public spending. clearly what is coming across as the government tried to find ways of squaring that

circle, looking to reassure her about the people within their party in the financial markets at their economic plans, their measures of tax cuts do have some credibility and there is a way of paying for them. liz truss was questioned by keir starmer about her pledge during the leadership campaign where she said she wouldn't have it spending because it should she win power. she made that repeated commitment today. i think there is an argument that she was making that there was big spending package on energy bills. so i don't think it's beyond question that departments could still see their budgets squeeze. especially because inflation is running so high, their budgets could be eased into anyway because of that. i think today's meeting is part of an ongoing plan to members of her own party deeply sceptical about her plans are the reactions they have caused. , ., caused. even if she said that, reiterating — caused. even if she said that, reiterating that _ caused. even if she said that, reiterating that promise - caused. even if she said that, reiterating that promise thatl caused. even if she said that, - reiterating that promise that there won't be any cuts to public

spending, there were lots of analysts and observers saying, hang on a minute, the governments arms just don't add up. this on a minute, the governments arms just don't add unm— on a minute, the governments arms just don't add up-— just don't add up. this is a problem for the government. _ just don't add up. this is a problem for the government. dave - just don't add up. this is a problem i for the government. dave announces huge package of measures and are now playing catch to announce it as two rest of that package. remember, where ending for the end of the month when the chairs or kwasi kwarteng will announce the plans was up kwarteng will announce the plans was up in the interim there is a vacuum with the government needs to fill and reassure there is continued volatility, moving on every government announcement, clearly today was a move designed to reassure her backbenchers they would be no public spending cuts. of course there after nerves in the financial markets to think how then will those tax cuts be paid for and that big tattooed of support with energy bills? i think the prime minister looks like she's being backed into a corner. you're already hearing mutterings from conservative back backbenchers calling for there to be some reconsideration of that

package of tax cuts. i think that's interesting to observe that might be direct in terms of whether prime ministers critics might coalesce around, calling for a pause orfor some of those tax cuts to be delayed. some of those tax cuts to be dela ed. . ~ some of those tax cuts to be dela ed. ., ~ i. some of those tax cuts to be dela ed. . ~' ,, , . fears the uk economy will go into recession intensified after new figures show it shrank unexpectedly by 0.3% in august. and there's continuing turbulence on the financial markets — the bank of england has insisted its emergency intervention on the bond market to support pension funds will end this week. our business correspondent ramzan karmali has more. within three weeks of the chancellor's mini budget, the warnings over his actions are coming thick and fast. yesterday in washington, the international monetary fund said that higher prices in the uk would stay here for longer and that the government's current course of action was at odds with what the bank of england is

trying to do to get inflation down. imagine a car with two drivers, each of them with a steering wheel, and one wants to go left on the other wants to go right. one is the central bank, trying to cool off the economy so that price pressures will ease. and the other one wants to spend more to support families but beyond that is going to add to aggregate demand. the imf believes that the chancellor's tax—cutting plans will only boost growth in the short term. and economists appearing front of mps today were not optimistic. we are not going to hit medium term 2.5% growth in this economy at the moment. this is something that will have to be nurtured over decades. yesterday at the imf meetings, andrew bailey, the governor of the bank of england, came underfocus. the bank has had to intervene in the bond market to help ensure the viability of many pension funds. he insisted that the current bond buying programme would come to an end this week,

a move not welcomed by the markets. sterling has fallen in response to what you said, that they have three days. does that complicate matters? no. i'm afraid this has to be done for the sake of financial stability. since the mini budget on september the 23rd, the pound has slumped in value against the dollar and the cost of government borrowing has risen dramatically, which has sent a fixed mortgage rates rising at record speeds. the city is desperate for clarity on how the chancellor's proposals will add up, and although he has brought that date forward to the end of this month, to many, that is not soon enough. the first thing is that the chancellor needs to reveal his plan. the government is playing its cards either very close to its chest, or literally doesn't know what its hand of cards is. growth right now also looks hard to come by. the uk economy unexpectedly shrank in august, and for small businesses like this source producer, things are already tough. things are definitely

reducing in terms of sales. because it is something customers cannot sometimes afford. the government says it is confident in its growth plan, but the pressure is intensifying on the chancellor to come up with a credible debt plan, and quickly. ramzan karmali, bbc news. our business editor simonjack explained why the bank of england has decided to stop supporting the bond market on friday. it was a short—term emergency programme to fight what was an outbreak of instability in the financial market which threatened some bits of the pension industry, not a huge part of it, but an important part. they came in and said, we will buy up these bonds so that they are not sold off in a fire sale and create disorder in the financial markets. but they were not trying to bring interest rates down. this was not an exercise in bringing interest rates down, it was about financial stability. they are going to end that this friday.

what has happened in the bond markets, the cost of government borrowing, which has a massive knock—on effect for all of us, it dictates the price of our mortgages, is that the cost of government borrowing, which did come down when the bank of england got involved, has slowly crept right back to where it was before the bank of england intervened. and while it is undeniably true that interest rates have gone up around the world, it is also undeniable that the mini budget and those questions around how the books are going to balance did spook the markets big time, and they are right back in the questioning, nervous, unsettled place they were before. what will be their response to the statement from the prime minister we have had about no cuts in public spending, what is your view on how the government will balance the books? that is baffling in a way, because as things stand, he has a £60 million a year hole in public finances. how is he going to feel that?

how is he going to fill that? one answer is to reverse some of the tax cuts they announced on the 23rd of september. that would be politically difficult. the other one is to have massive swingeing spending cuts. there may be a bit of sleight of hand here. they might be saying, we are spending this money on capping energy bills, and maybe they are factoring that in to the overall rise in public spending. but that still could mean, because inflation is so high, big cuts in departmental spending. at the moment, the markets are scratching their heads. they remain unconvinced about the medium—term plan. simonjack, our business editor. manchester crown court has been hearing that a nurse accused of murdering babies on a neonatal ward tried four times to kill a premature baby girl before succeeding. lucy letby is charged with murdering seven babies and attempting to murder 10 others at the countess of chester hospital in 2015 and 2016. she's denied the charges. our reporter rowan bridge joins me now from outside manchester crown court.

just bring us date with what's been happening today in court. meiji just bring us date with what's been happening today in court. well today was day three _ happening today in court. well today was day three of _ happening today in court. well today was day three of the _ happening today in court. well today was day three of the prosecution - was day three of the prosecution outlining their case against the nurse lucy letby at crown court. we're distressing evidence across the whole of today. in court we heard how time and time again babies who were doing well with suddenly and unexpectedly suffer life—threatening episodes or dies. in the prosecution say the one constant in all of those cases was the presence of lucy letby. this morning we heard the case of child l, morning we heard the case of child i, all the children have been given anonymity so addressing them by letters of the alphabet. child i, premature baby who lucy letby is accused of attempting to kill four times, succeeding on the fourth attempt in 2015. nickjohnson, the prosecution said the case was extremely upsetting case and said

lucy letby�*s actions had been persistent, calculated and cold—blooded in her attempts to kill. the court also heard how the death of child i, lucy letby asked the parents if they like to bath the child they said they would put up and said lucy letby went into the room smiling and said how she'd been there for the child eyes first bath well. and subsequently in an interview she admitted sending a sympathy card to the parents even though that was something that would normally be done. the court was told there was a pattern emerging where babies were on the edge of death who were in the care of lucy letby, if they were transferred to another hospital would make a dramatic recovery. only then to be brought back into her care and suddenly find themselves deteriorating again. we were also told the common themes around the methods to attack babies, whether that would be injecting them with air into the stomachs, meaning that was going to function properly, poisoning them with insulin or deliberately causing harm to them. in one case accused of physically

attacking a baby and using the fact they had a blood disorder to try and cover the fact that they had been attacked. by the start of 2016 the prosecution say in one case a paediatric consultant started to notice the coincidence between unexplained deaths and the presence of lucy letby. they say he went in to check on a debt that lucy letby was looking after in an incubator and say that in fact at that point when they walked in lucy letby was trying to kill the baby in the incubator. lucy letby denies all the charges against her. the prosecution is expected to finish wrapping up their opening tomorrow in the case is expected to last six months. thank you very much. the headlines on bbc news... labour accuses liz truss of being ”'ost in denial" as she tells mps she will not reduce public spending to pay for her package of tax cuts. it comes amid growing fears

of a recession: latest figures show the uk economy shrank unexpectedly by 0.3% in august. manchester crown court hears how a nurse, accused of murdering babies on a neonatal ward, tried to kill a premature baby girl on two consecutive night shifts. police investigating the disappearance of 19—year—old leah croucher have identified human remains at a property where some of her possessions were found. leah croucher was last seen on cctv in milton keynes in february 2019 — police have found the teenager's "rucksack and personal possessions" at a house in the city. our correspondentjo black has the latest from milton keynes. as you to say there, leah crouchy was last seen about a half a mile away from where and standing talking to you now. in february 2019 it was

the day after valentine's day so she was captured on cctv. her parents have launched numerous appeals and if you drive around the city of milton keynes you can see plenty of posters with her face, milton keynes you can see plenty of posters with herface, obviously appealing for information. the police said that on monday they were contacted by a member of the public and whatever it was said in that call or however that contact was made has led the police to come here to this address and milton keynes. there's been lots of activity going on here today. you can see police tape, police men manning this cordon and lots of members of the public and lots of members of the public and neighbours and residents coming out to see what is going on. we've also seen people coming in and out, somejust going in now, people in forensic suits. we were told that they had found leah crocher�*s rucksacks and personal possessions and as a result of that a murder investigation was launched. a few hours ago we have been told that human remains have been discovered.

leah crocher�*s parents are being kept updated and supported by specialist officers. defence ministers from the nato military alliance are meeting in brussels to discuss how to step up support for ukraine after this week's russian missile attacks. nato's secretary general has said sending more air defences to the country is a "top priority" ukraine's president — volodymyr zelensky has called for what he calls an �*air shield' against future russian attacks. our correspondent in kyiv, hugo bachega has the latest. in zaporizhzhia, a city in the south of the country that's become a frequent target by russian forces, officials say a rocket hit a residential area overnight creating a huge crater, there were no casualties. and this morning seven people were killed after a russian attack on the ukrainian controlled town

in donetsk as the government said the central market was hit saying that there was no military logic for such an attack. and this is what the ukrainians have been saying, that russia has been responding to military defeats on the battlefield by attacking civilian sites and civilian infrastructure. and the ukrainians have been saying they need air defence capabilities to protect cities from the threat of russian missiles. at the nato summit in brussels, the us defence secretary said ukraine had made some significant gains and changed the dynamics of the battlefield. in the past few minutes — the us defense secretary lloyd austin has been speaking after that meeting of nato defence ministers. in the past few days putin has given us all another grim preview of a future in which the appetites of aggression autocrats outweighed the rise of peaceful states. we would

all be less secure in a world where big powers could assault their peaceful neighbours and trample their borders by force. in of free citizens of ukraine have an inalienable right to govern themselves and to choose their own future. these are bedrock principles and they underpin the international order that makes us all more secure. this contact group will stay true to those values. regardless of the outcome of any individual battle and we will not waver in our support for ukraine's right to defend itself from russia's imperial ambitions. ukraine's forces have used systems like high bars to change the dynamics of the war that putin started. and that's helped ukrainian forces seize the initiative during their counteroffensive. so we will

continue to rush in the capabilities to help ukraine in the current fight. i commend the contact group members who have moved heaven and earth to get weapons and equipment into the hands of the ukrainian forces. at the same time, our allies and partners are driving hard to sustain ukraine's defenders for the long haul. as a conflict has evolved the mission of this contact group has evolved as well. so today the contact group underscored our shared commitment to keep on supplying ukraine's defenders with the capability that they will need in the difficult weeks, months and years ahead. we discussed ways to do even more to train ukrainian forces who are making such impressive views of their capabilities. we push to galvanise our industrial bases to the fire of production for the systems to defend ukraine even while

meeting our own security needs. the us defence secretary. the nhs in england has declared an amber alert for critically low blood supplies for the first time. a spokeswoman said there were just over three days worth of overall blood stocks, but supplies of o—type blood, which is important during emergencies and when someone's blood type is unknown had fallen to below two days. what we really need people to do is, if you're an existing donor and you're either a low positive or old negative we would really like you to make an appointment and donate it one of our centers. we're welcoming people to all of our centres the best way to do that is to do that through our app for that we're asking specifically for existing donors because we already know your blood group and we know you know what it takes to donate. yes, that

is our key message today, if you're an existing donor we would love to see you can. an existing donor we would love to see you can-— an existing donor we would love to see ou can. ., , ., ,, ., ., see you can. that is the appeal from nhs blood and transplant. our health correspondent catherine burns has more on this. this could mean possibly cancelling up this could mean possibly cancelling up to 1% of elective surgery. so this isn't going to affect emergency or cancer care or transfusions for patients who have long—term conditions. but this is the last thing we need with a waiting list at about 6.8 million people waiting for treatment. as to why this is happening, the main reason is staff shortages and sectors. we're talking about donor care, the people who look after you when you give blood. right now, this is an ongoing problem since the pandemic. existing donors are being asked to make appointments of possible but it might not be that easy because there is just a handful of cities in england right now that have more

than 50 free appointments this week. catherine burns, our health correspondent. catherine burns, our health correspondent. the uk's supreme court has been hearing a second day of legal arguments on whether the scottish parliament can legislate for a second independence referendum — without the agreement of westminster. it will be several months after two days of submissions from united kingdom and scottish government. our scotland correspondent alexandra mackenzie reports from the supreme court. you sat through two days of these hearings. it's all wrapped up now. just give us a summary of where we're. it just give us a summary of where we're. . , just give us a summary of where we're. ., , , ~ just give us a summary of where we're. .,, , ~ ., ., we're. it has finished. a lot of leral we're. it has finished. a lot of legal debate, _ we're. it has finished. a lot of legal debate, legal— we're. it has finished. a lot of legal debate, legal argument | we're. it has finished. a lot of - legal debate, legal argument over these two days for the first of all, from the scottish government and then from the uk government. these scottish government wants to hold a legal, independent referendum next october. but doesn't have consent from the uk government. the uk government says that is not possible

because the union between scotland and england is a reserved matterfor west minister. so yesterday we heard most of the argument from the scottish government, that was given by the lord advocate. she said a referendum would be an advisory want. so asking the opinion of people living in scotland. she said that would have no immediate impact in law or on the union. she was arguing that a legal referendum would be possible next year. she also talked about a draught referendum bill that she said she didn't feel competent to sign that off for it to start its process through scottish parliament. she wanted to come here doing to the supreme court to seek legal clarity on that. so james ed, kc took up the

case for the uk government. he said this government to make no ruling on that draught referendum legislation because it was incomplete at this stage. he said the lord advocate was right not to sign off on the referendum bill. he said the proposed legislation would impact on the union so could not legally go through the scottish parliament. he said it was perfectly obvious that the scottish government wanted to end the union so he said legally there should be no independence referendum next year. many opposing views heard in the supreme court behind me here. we're not expecting thatjudgment anytime soon. it's likely to be several weeks or even months. our scotland correspondent alexandra mackenzie is at the supreme court in central london.

there are calls to offer all women an nhs health check once they turn 45 so they can discuss the menopause with their gp. a group of mps — who've been investigating the issue — say the current level of support is "completely inadequate". our correspondent anjana gadgil has this report. misunderstood, misdiagnosed and ignored. common complaints from women going through the menopause. it's an issue highlighted by these celebrity campaigners who went to parliament injune to tell their stories. a heat that you can never imagine, like a fire was set at your feet that grew further and further up into your body. your hormones are always fluctuating so you have this yo—yo effect. so, sometimes you think it's gone away, i've got it under control, and then itjust comes back full force. menopause usually happens between the ages of 45 and 55 when periods stop due to lower hormone levels. the months leading up to that are called the perimenopause, where symptoms can start,

including hot flushes, night sweats and migraines. what i'm classically seeing is that women will be on their knees, so they've got the point where they've sort of put up with symptoms because they don't want to disturb the doctor. i've had some women who have genuinely come and seen me and think, "i thought i've got dementia, doctor." women will have palpitations, anxiety, panic attack, mental health symptoms, lack of libido, which can really impact relationships as well. for the past year, a group of mps from all parties have heard from menopausal women, doctors and employers. today, their recommendations will be presented to the government. they include inviting all women for a menopause checkup at a5, scrapping prescription costs for hrt in england in line with the rest of the uk, and more training for gps. the shortage of hrt also needs to be addressed. the increased demand is down to the pressure groups and the campaign groups and the davina effect and everything else that we've seen.

that drives women to go to their gp and to ask for hrt. what the government are not doing is working with the manufacturers to make sure they're producing enough hrt and it's readily available. other recommendations include better support for women in the workplace. 51% of the population will experience menopause. it's an experience women are increasingly more willing to share. anjana gadgil, bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather. hello. it has been a pretty cloudy afternoon for most parts of the country with just a few bright or sunny spells around. they up the tickets clouds across northern england, wales and the midlands where we see outbreaks of light patchy rain on this cold front. that front will continue its cells within each would bring a wet weather overnight across southern england. i wouldn't be surprised if we saw a pulse of rain for a time working across wales, the midlands and east

anglia. with the cloud across southern areas can be mild, temperatures 12 degrees in london but with clearer skies in the north of the uk will be a cold night with the temperatures low enough for a touch of frost in the countryside, something gardeners may want to take note of. tomorrow, rained for a time across southern england and perhaps parts of east anglia. we will also see another band of rain working into the northwest of the uk. but between these juice system, much of northeast england in eastern scotland it should be a fine day with some bright or sunny spells. still model for england and wales with temperatures closer to average in scotland. the headlines labour accuses liz truss of being �*lost in denial�* as she tells mps she will not reduce public spending to pay for her package of tax cuts. what we will make sure is that over

the medium term, the debt is falling. but we will do that not by cutting public spending, but by making sure we spend public money well. , , ~ making sure we spend public money well. , , ,, , , . well. does she think the public will ever forgive _ well. does she think the public will ever forgive the _ well. does she think the public will ever forgive the conservative - well. does she think the public will ever forgive the conservative party if they— ever forgive the conservative party if they keep on defending this madness and go ahead with the kamakaze budget? it comes amid growing fears of a recession: latest figures show the uk economy shrank unexpectedly by 0.3 per cent in august. manchester crown court hears how a nurse, accused of murdering babies on a neonatal ward, tried to kill a premature baby girl on two consecutive night shifts. after the latest russian attacks on ukraine, nato says sending air defence systems there is a top priority. and scientists successfully transplant tissue from a human brain to that of a newborn rat and say the hybrid organoids can not only play the 1970s video game, pong, but will also help with research into brain disorders.

sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, scottish football will introduce video assistant referees next week. after nearly three years of testing. the first game featuring var will be hibernian�*s premiership meeting with stjohnstone at easter road. fifa have given their approval for the technology to be used at all top flight matches. as well as those from the semi finals onwards in the two cups. once all but one of the scottish league clubs voted in favour of var. the start date was originally set for after the world cup. but it has now been brought forward. rangers have what will likely be their final chance to save their

champions league campaign tonight. but ibrox might provide a crucial weapon in their attempts to do that by beating liverpool. jurgen klopp's side won when they met last week in what was their first ever competitive game. it left rangers without a point. but klopp insists they won't be underestimated this won't be underestimated is a tough situation but it a this is a tough situation but it is a challenge and we always face challenges and we go for it and i'm sorry for people who expected that we would go again and fly again and compete with everything. no, that is not the case, i cannot promise we'll fly tomorrow but i can promise will fight, definitely. untilsomeone fight, definitely. until someone tells fight, definitely. untilsomeone tells us of the fight is over. english domestic rugby's financial problems have deepened with wasps withdrawing from their premiership game against exeter at the weekend, saying they intend to go into administration "within days". the club, who have won the league title six times, and are currently based in coventry,

are still hopeful they'll eventually find a buyer, but not before taking the step that will likely relegate them. it follows worcester�*s decision to do the same, and their subsequent suspension from the premiership. wasps face a winding up order from hmrc because of an unpaid tax bill of 2 million pounds. england have continued their preparations for the t20 world cup with another win over australia, taking theirwarm up series in the process. they beat the home side in canberra by 8 runs, asjoe wilson reports. reaching for the stores here just butler. the australian filter beneath the balljust in england struggled earlier on. constructing the recovery with an impeccably timed 82. support. the ball was still travelling fast when it reached the cloud, not easily fielding, is it to? trying to make the catch here was david warner, he hit the ground hard and passed a concussion test and back to back, we

needed 179 to win one of the major with a shaky start. it soon, england were trying to restrain. midair magic. ten david continued the chase, d 20 cricketers throwing up but they were never beat this. by sam curran, eight behind, these winning moments build momentum. the football association of ireland and the republic of ireland have apologised for any offence caused by a pro—ira song sung by the players after they qualified for the women's world cup by beating scotland. footage released on social media showed the team celebrating in the changing room at hampden park after the match. and their manager admits it has taken some shine off their achievement, vera pau saying there's no excuse, and that "we apologise from the bottom of our hearts. of their responsibilities"

great britain have won three out of three so far at the wheelchair rugby world championship. as they prepare to take on france in their fourth match tonight. after victories over switzerland and germany, the paralympic champions beat new zealand earlier today in denmark, pulling away in the fourth quarter to win 55—50 that's all the sport for now. being taken by the social media platform. a bbc investigation has found that up to 70 per cent of donations sent to displaced families in syria via tiktok are being taken by the social media platform. middlemen gave vulnerable families — including dozens of children — access to phones and accounts — so they could livestream for hours at a time, begging for digital gifts. hannah gelbart has more details: chanting: send me gifts! they're asking for help, for follows, for gifts. this is a new trend on tiktok. working with bbc arabic, we found more than 300 tiktok

accounts posting these kinds of videos with viewers sometimes spending more than $1,000 an hour in total on gifts. the idea behind tiktok gifts is to reward creators for interesting content. these gifts are bought with real money and can cost up to $500. the gifts are converted to a virtual currency that you can withdraw as cash. but how much of that goes to the families? and how much does tiktok take for itself? you can see there's a pattern. the children seem to be saying the same kind of things. they are asking for likes and gifts and if you listen closely, sometimes you can hear there's a voice off—camera actually telling them what to say. like, like, like. we asked a localjournalist to visit a camp in north—west syria. mona lives here with her six daughters. they go on tiktok for two or three

hours at a time several times a day. she is saving up to pay for medical treatment for her daughter sharifa who is blind. translation: | tell them | about my life in the camps and how we lost our home. and about my daughter's situation, so that people will support me. hameed also lives in the camp and is known as a tiktok middleman. he sold his livestock to buy a phone and now works with 12 different families, setting up their accounts, filming, and withdrawing their earnings. he says most of the gifts' value is taken by tiktok before it even reaches his account. translation: the lion is the biggest gift. - it's worth $500, but by the time it reaches the money transfer shop, it's only $155. tiktok wouldn't tell us how much commission it takes on gifts in the app, so we decided to check for ourselves. we asked this localjournalist to go live from an account in syria. we sent him $106, around £90 in gifts, from another account. then he went to withdraw the money.

from the $106 in gifts we donated, tiktok took 73. that's almost 70%. the money transfer shop charged a further 10% and people like hameed, who provide the phones, take a cut of what is left. so, from those $106, our syrian family would have just $19, and often, the families we spoke to get much, much less. in a statement, tiktok said that this type of content is not allowed on their platform and they would strengthen their global policies around exploitative begging. a charity that works in the camp told us it could help support these families as an alternative to making money from tiktok live streams. but there are still hundreds of families going live from camps in syria every day. and the lion's share of the money donated lines the pockets of tiktok itself. hannah gelbert, bbc news.

if you would like to see more. you can search for "tiktok begging in syria on iplayer to watch the full documentary. more now on the economy — and huge movements in the bond market have seen the cost of government borrowing temporarily rise to its highest level since 2008, according to figures published this afternoon. the market volatility came after the bank of england confirmed that, from friday, it would no longer intervene to stabilise prices. the bank of england stepped in over recent weeks to buy government debt to try to prevent pension funds collapsing. but how does the gilt market work? our business reporter, noor nanji takes a closer look. this is a complex area of economics and we will start by 20 explain. let's look at what exactly this market is. it wants to spend more

thanit market is. it wants to spend more than it raises and taxes, so it borrows money by selling gilt. gilt is another word for uk government bonds, ious. i promise to pay money backin bonds, ious. i promise to pay money back in the future and pay regular interest payments in the meantime. the government sells bonds to investors and they can sell them to each other. now, the price on those bombs depends in part on how much faith investors have that their money will be repaid. the uk government has a reliable ball or or and is very likely to pay the steps back. so, the interest rate is charged which would normally be with relatively low. but one event made people look at things a little differently. many budget on the 23rd of september. that budget announced plans to cut taxes financed by borrowing but with little details on how it will be paid for. the government said the measures will boost economic growth and that will

increase government revenues and help pay for the tax cuts and that should help to calm the market. but it spooked people who are investing in uk government debt and are worried that the uk has become a less reliable borrower than it used to be in lots of them started selling their bonds, pushing the price down. now, something you need to understand about bonds is, if the price goes down, and the effective interest rates goes up. and that interest rates goes up. and that interest rates goes up. and that interest rate makes it more expensive for the government to borrow. and that means more government money is spent on interests instead of public services. and it also pushes up interest rates on other things. notably, mortgages. if you are about to remortgage or buy a house, that is going to be more expensive. it could push friends up too. it also cost a lot of chaos for pensioners because they hold a lot of bonds and

they do not have much choice in the matter. the value of the bonds are falling, some of the need to sell the bonds quickly to raise money and making the situation worse and so, last month, the bank of england had to step in and started buying the bonds to stop the price is falling too fast. that acts as a kind of backstop because the price will not fall, but know what the bank is prepared to offer for them. some pensions have invested more complicated arrangements, which are meant to match their investors more closely to the pension payments they will make in the future. but they're not forcing them to sell this one presses or lowers. so the big question is, when will this end? the market are waiting for the 31st of october when the government is going to publish details of how it's going to publish details of how it's going to fund those tax cuts and stop the debt spinning out of control. trevor greetham is head of multi asset at royal london asset management, which is the uk's largest mutual life, pensions

and investment company. give a short take of what is going on in the bond market and where it's going now and how it affects pensions in particular. i thought there was a _ pensions in particular. i thought there was a great _ pensions in particular. i thought there was a great explainer - pensions in particular. i thought there was a great explainer that pensions in particular. i thought- there was a great explainer that you displayed in ever sense the many budget a few weeks ago, there has been a lot of doubt about exactly what plans the government has to pay for the tax cuts that they are pushing through. today, we are from the prime minister they do not intend cut spending, but the danger is, the approach will not be strong enough. as a result of that, these long—term interest rates and the gilt will rise quite sharply in the next week or so, keeping some

stability in that market and help the pension funds to raise the money they need to meet some of the losses that they may have and long—term interest rates and keeping the market functioning and it is up to the government to restore credibility in the catch is, in the bank of england said we are not going to help you be the 14th of october in terms of preventing losses on these bonds, but after winter the 31st of october for the budget responsibility report that people are hoping will restore credibility. and still, in the next week or so, it will affect pensions but also peoples mortgages because you can think of the government tax cuts and energy bills and simply putting a foot on the accelerator by the bank of england try to control inflation so that does not break everyone to see higher interest rates than what she would done because of this government package

and that does mean higher mortgage rates and increased risk. the and that does mean higher mortgage rates and increased risk.— rates and increased risk. the make of en . land rates and increased risk. the make of england said _ rates and increased risk. the make of england said they're _ rates and increased risk. the make of england said they're not - rates and increased risk. the make of england said they're not going i rates and increased risk. the make| of england said they're not going to do any more of this intervention after friday in the pretty firm and pretty adamant about that and they said that the pension funds in particular need to get their house in order in terms of their investment portfolio by then. they think trevor has actually gone. possibly too long a question for him. but i do not know. i dazzled them with my economic knowledge there, maybe. we got the gist of what he was saying. )australian researchers have grown brain cells in a lab that can play the 1970s tennis—like video game, pong. the team say the so—called "mini—brain" has the ability to sense and respond to their environment.

they claim it's the first ever "sentient" lab—grown brain, but other experts say describing the brain cells as �*sentient�* is going too far. our science correspondent, pallab ghosh, has the details. these little white blobs are clumps of rain cells that have been grown in the lab. and collecting cells similar to this to a computer, you can see the tiny wires sending electrical impulses in and out. it learned to play a 1970s video game called pong, the rectangle on the screen. the many rain moves a white line to try to stop the doctor getting past. we line to try to stop the doctor getting past-— line to try to stop the doctor caettin ast. ~ ., . ., . line to try to stop the doctor caettin -ast. ~ ., . ., . ., getting past. we have the chance for dru: getting past. we have the chance for drug discovery _ getting past. we have the chance for drug discovery and _ getting past. we have the chance for drug discovery and understanding . drug discovery and understanding intelligence. the next stage such as cybersecurity management and more autonomous devices and perhaps you can even lead to sentiment and fully

autonomous robots that can act and change in the real world. the change in the realworld. the researchers _ change in the realworld. the researchers plan _ change in the realworld. the researchers plan to _ change in the real world. the researchers plan to see if these many brains can become worse at playing the game after they are toast with alcohol, just as a human player would. many brains are also being grown in the uk lab in order to study rain development. it is taken researchers much to study these small brains and we can see these small brains and we can see the results on the screen here, it's because they perform similar to human brains even though it is at a very rudimentary level but the researchers are taking great care in the way that they develop the technology. the way that they develop the technology-— technology. that may be the otential technology. that may be the potential much _ technology. that may be the potential much further - technology. that may be the potential much further down | technology. that may be the - potential much further down the line to resemble something like intelligence and cognition and we want _ intelligence and cognition and we want to— intelligence and cognition and we want to make sure that we know ahead of time _ want to make sure that we know ahead of time where that boundary is so that we _ of time where that boundary is so that we do— of time where that boundary is so that we do not accidentally stumble over it _ that we do not accidentally stumble

over it. ,. , , ., ., ~ over it. the scientists are working with ethics _ over it. the scientists are working with ethics experts _ over it. the scientists are working with ethics experts to _ over it. the scientists are working with ethics experts to develop - over it. the scientists are working | with ethics experts to develop new rules to regulate their research. will these mini—brains brains developed _ will these mini—brains brains deveiorred to _ will these mini—brains brains developed to where - will these mini—brains brains developed to where they - will these mini—brains brains developed to where they can| will these mini—brains brains - developed to where they can feel pleasure — developed to where they can feel pleasure or— developed to where they can feel pleasure or pain, _ developed to where they can feel pleasure or pain, how— developed to where they can feel pleasure or pain, how might- developed to where they can feel pleasure or pain, how might we i pleasure or pain, how might we consider— pleasure or pain, how might we consider them _ pleasure or pain, how might we consider them the _ pleasure or pain, how might we consider them the moral- pleasure or pain, how might we consider them the moral statusj pleasure or pain, how might we i consider them the moral status if they are — consider them the moral status if they are and _ consider them the moral status if theyare and i_ consider them the moral status if they are. and i will— consider them the moral status if they are. and i will we _ consider them the moral status if they are. and i will we regulate l consider them the moral status if. they are. and i will we regulate the use of— they are. and i will we regulate the use of this — they are. and i will we regulate the use of this research _ they are. and i will we regulate the use of this research and _ they are. and i will we regulate the use of this research and future - use of this research and future technology? _ use of this research and future technology? these _ use of this research and future technology? these are - use of this research and future . technology? these are questions use of this research and future - technology? these are questions that we have _ technology? these are questions that we have not— technology? these are questions that we have not began— technology? these are questions that we have not began to _ technology? these are questions that we have not began to consider. - we have not began to consider. today's — we have not began to consider. today's mini—brains— we have not began to consider. today's mini—brains are - we have not began to consider. today's mini—brains are long i we have not began to consider. i today's mini—brains are long way we have not began to consider. - today's mini—brains are long way off from becoming self—aware and many researchers believe that it is unlikely to ever happen. but we agreed that they do need to proceed with caution. with me now is professor karl friston, a theoretical neuroscientist at university college london. it is fascinating, amazing and also a little bit scary, this idea of

creating mini—brains. it is a little bit scary, this idea of creating mini-brains. it is terribly excitin: creating mini-brains. it is terribly exciting and _ creating mini-brains. it is terribly exciting and i— creating mini-brains. it is terribly exciting and i am _ creating mini-brains. it is terribly exciting and i am alerted - creating mini-brains. it is terribly exciting and i am alerted to - creating mini-brains. it is terribly exciting and i am alerted to the l exciting and i am alerted to the scary part and much rests upon the definition of sentiments, doesn't it? teaming sentiment in the sense of simply making sense of information supplied to these mini—brains. orthe kind information supplied to these mini—brains. or the kind of sentiments associated with consciousness and this is a remarkable and beautiful study showing for the first time that allowing these little mini—brains, two act upon their world and they can organise, behave in a way in the way that we behave and it speaks to enormous potential or having a sandpit and experimental model of brains that we can now interrogate, we can perform experiments on in a way that we could not do on a living

rain. �* , . ., way that we could not do on a living rain. �*, ., ~ ., rain. it's a kind of artificial intelligence _ rain. it's a kind of artificial intelligence and _ rain. it's a kind of artificial intelligence and with - rain. it's a kind of artificial intelligence and with the i rain. it's a kind of artificial - intelligence and with the difference between a brand like this, i many rain and a kind of minicomputer, if you like him ultimately? that rain and a kind of minicomputer, if you like him ultimately?— you like him ultimately? that is a treat you like him ultimately? that is a great question. _ you like him ultimately? that is a great question. in _ you like him ultimately? that is a great question. in my _ you like him ultimately? that is a great question. in my world, - you like him ultimately? that is a great question. in my world, the | great question. in my world, the distinction between artificial networks and biological networks and things that mimic biological suborganizations and there are profound differences and some sense of the experiments that reflect a trend in artificial intelligence and machine learning and aspirations to make computer intelligence more like human or biological or biometric intelligence and by the key things you from these little mini—brains is an enormous speed up in the rate in which they learn and in which they self organise and appear to infer

what is going on in their outside world to the extent that they can since what is going on in the outside world. in that rests upon the remarkable efficiency of message passing and information processing that our brains possess and computers do not, they based upon architecture that spends a lot of energy just architecture that spends a lot of energyjust passing messages around where is the rain has an incredibly efficient and in terms of the information processing and efficient way. information processing and efficient wa . �* , , , information processing and efficient wa . ~ , , , , ., ., way. and this is 'ust the start of the journey — way. and this is 'ust the start of the journey in _ way. and this isjust the start of the journey in these _ way. and this isjust the start of| the journey in these experiments way. and this isjust the start of. the journey in these experiments in this research. he the journey in these experiments in this research.— this research. he this is a proof of --rincile this research. he this is a proof of principle and _ this research. he this is a proof of principle and very, _ this research. he this is a proof of principle and very, very _ this research. he this is a proof of principle and very, very minimal. principle and very, very minimal demonstration that sentient behaviour can be reproduced in the future and hence lots of potential

as you heard and trying to make these little sentient artefacts drunk, but you can see how you could mimic or reproduce remedy things like parkinson's disease, because now you have an opportunity to look at the behaviour of these networks and that is quite remarkable. fascinating. thank you very much indeed. theoretical neuroscience and thank you very much for your time. we go back to trevor and we were talking to trevor about the bond market and the bank of england is decision to stop its intervention in the bond market and at the end of this week, the government of the bank of england were saying that it is up to the pension funds now to get their house in order and sort out their investment portfolios by the end of the week, are they going to do that? to the time to do that

and do they have the inclination to do that? we and do they have the inclination to do that? ~ . , , and do they have the inclination to do that? ~ ., , , ., do that? we are seeing quite bit of sellin: of do that? we are seeing quite bit of selling of the _ do that? we are seeing quite bit of selling of the more _ do that? we are seeing quite bit of selling of the more liquid - selling of the more liquid securities that they can off—load to raise cash and so, every effort to do it in my hunch is that despite them the way to the end of october at the moment to hear the government's fiscal plans, the f to continue to see a lot of this in markets and still end up coming back into the next week to stabilise this again. into the next week to stabilise this aaain. ,., into the next week to stabilise this aaain. ., . ., , again. report in the financialtimes sa in: that again. report in the financialtimes saying that actually, _ again. report in the financialtimes saying that actually, between - again. report in the financialtimes saying that actually, between the i saying that actually, between the lines, reading between the lines, they will actually step back in that they will actually step back in that they will actually step back in that they will intervene again. but they came up with an outright denial of it. saying no we will not. fiend came up with an outright denial of it. saying no we will not. and they said they're _ it. saying no we will not. and they said they're trying _ it. saying no we will not. and they said they're trying to _ it. saying no we will not. and they said they're trying to prevent - it. saying no we will not. and they said they're trying to prevent sale | said they're trying to prevent sale ljy said they're trying to prevent sale by triggering fire cells but, i think but the bank will do is stop

their intervention and in the started up again and all the while putting pressure back on the government to get that fiscal sum in order and that is what they're trying to do. the bank not very long ago was talking about actually selling the bonds when it was doing quantitative easing, not buying bondsis quantitative easing, not buying bonds is forced temporarily to backpedal and it's very uncomfortable because the bank of england's job uncomfortable because the bank of england'sjob is uncomfortable because the bank of england's job is to fight inflation in this the frustr tested side of fighting inflation since 1997. so, that determination to raise as much as they need to to bring inflation down, it is a bit like the government is working against purpose with them.— government is working against purpose with them. makes you think market volatility? _ purpose with them. makes you think market volatility? you _ purpose with them. makes you think market volatility? you mentioned i purpose with them. makes you think| market volatility? you mentioned the fiscal plans which is october the 31st now, for the markets like that to be brought forward to this week which is the end of the bank of

england pulse was intervention in the bond market position or they would like it and originally the chance of may be december and that report, the 3rd of november and that now it's the 24th of october, but it's not sure that if they worked out their numbers yet. and the government doesn't want to go back on its tax cuts and it doesn't want to announce spending cuts and trying to announce spending cuts and trying to get them through parliament but if once the budget and responsibility to believe that deregulation all the other things that we are talking about will boost growth, but the economist and the responsibility are quite hard—nosed by the kind of thing. and it's a bit of a standoff and those been reflected in the volatility in the financial markets. i'm glad we got your back on the line. that of multi—assets on london asset management. thank you for your time. that is it for me and that's the good the weather forecast.

it has been a cloudy afternoon some sunny spells around in the thickest cloud being a northern england and wales in the midland when we see some outbreaks of patchy rain on the school friend efrain will continue its journey southwards bringing weather overnight in the southern england but we would not be surprised if he saw this working across wales, the midlands and east anglia. but the cloud across southern areas, 7 degrees in london but across the north of the uk, it will be a cold night with temperatures low enough for the start of frost some in the gardeners may want to take note of. and because southern england and perhaps parts of east anglia, we of the bender framework in the northwest of the uk between these two systems, wills, midlands and north east england and northeast scotland, it should be a fine day with some brighter sunny spells and still mount for england and wales closer to average in scotland.

today at six... the prime minister insists she will not cut— the prime minister insists she will not cut public spending to pay for her multi—billion pound package of tax cuts _ her multi—billion pound package of tax cuts. reporter: have you wrecked | the economy, prime minister? liz truss has been defending her economic plans during her first prime minister's questions since the chancellor's mini budget. what we will make sure is that over the medium term the debt is falling, but we will do that not by cutting public spending, but by making sure we spend public money well. does she think the public will ever forgive the conservative party if they keep on defending this madness and go ahead with her kamikaze budget? it comes as official figures show

the risk of the uk falling into a