windy, abigail is at unsettled, windy, abigail is at times and heavy rain interspersed with sunshine and showers and what you will notice as it is going to start turning cooler as you move through the week and you can see that here on the outlook chart. i this is bbc news the headlines at 1l the household energy supplier octopus energy has reached a deal to buy bulb, one of the companies which collapsed last year amid soaring wholesale gas and electricity prices it will be good, for octopus to take over bulb and leave the tax—payer of the burden of running it for the moment. the head of the royal navy orders an investigation into allegations that female recruits have been sexually abused and harassed on submarines. president biden condemns an attack on the husband of senior democrat nancy pelosi, saying there's too much vitriol in us politics. the ministry of defence has accused the russian government of �*peddling false claims�* after moscow said uk forces helped

with a drone attack on russian fleets near the crimean port of sevastopol. there's major disruption to rail services across scotland due to a 24—hour walkout by scotrail workers. more than 2,000 rmt members are on strike. and at li.30pm here on the news channel, bbc wales investigates — and today the team is asking, what's killing our rivers? good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. i'm samantha simmonds. the household energy supplier octopus energy has reached a deal to buy bulb, which was one of the largest energy companies to collapse last year because of soaring wholesale gas and electricity prices. the government has spent billions of pounds keeping the company afloat since it went into administraton. the agreement means octopus will take onboard bulb's one and a half million customers. our business reporter ramzan

kamali has the details. bulb is the biggest - green energy company... it was the biggest energy company to go bust. last november, bulb found itself in administration. it was only kept going by the government, who pumped hundreds of millions of pounds into the business, but now a deal has been struck that it is hoped will give relief notjust to customers, taxpayers, but also hundreds of staff. today, octopus were confident that the takeover of bulb's customers would be smooth. octopus has got a great track record of bringing large numbers of customers across. so for, example, when avro failed — it was the largest company to date — we were able to look after those customers and staff pretty seamlessly, and i think with bulb, the experience we've got means we're probably the natural choice. in total, 1.5 million bulb customers will move across to octopus. last november, the government had to bail out the firm with a £1.7 billion loan. but earlier this year, the independent office for budget responsibility predicted the total bailout package would be £2.2 billion.

this deal could save taxpayers millions. i think it'd be good, you know, for octopus to take over bulb and relieve the taxpayer of the burden of running it, for the moment. also, it will make the bulb customers, obviously, give them more comfort that someone is actually running their business and looking after them in the best way possible. the government expect the deal to be finalised by the end of next month and will make octopus one of the country's largest energy providers. no—one�*s going to see prices going up as a result of this agreement. people should just sit tight. for now, the service will carry on exactly as it does — provided by the same people. energy bills have been in sharp focus for millions of households, and though this is welcome news for the energy, high energy prices continue to hit consumers hard. ramzan karmali, bbc news. joining me now is stuart lloyd—evans, he's an energy market consultant at the utility market experts.

bulb collapsed in november last year and was bailed out by the government, why has it taken so long to find a buyer? it government, why has it taken so long to find a buyer?— to find a buyer? it was by far the bi est to find a buyer? it was by far the biggest of _ to find a buyer? it was by far the biggest of the — to find a buyer? it was by far the biggest of the companies - to find a buyer? it was by far the biggest of the companies that i biggest of the companies that failed, it was too big for any individual company to take in one go. and given the chaos in the market, the low margins and negative margins, there have not been many people looking to buy it, so ultimately you have ended up with a competition of one potential buyer which led to this result. this it creates certainty for the customers and employees but they were not that many buyers for these companies. could other energy companies go bust in the foreseeable future? it’s in the foreseeable future? it's ossible in the foreseeable future? it's possible this _ in the foreseeable future? it�*s possible this winter. prices have been quite low, but news headlines around how tight things may get and blackouts that may happen in the winter. it depends what happens but i would hope we are to be the worst of it, but it is possible given some

of it, but it is possible given some of the external events. can of it, but it is possible given some of the external events.— of the external events. can the government — of the external events. can the government do _ of the external events. can the government do anything - of the external events. can the government do anything to - of the external events. can the - government do anything to mitigate the fluctuations in the market? i think they have done what they can for this winter by putting the cat in place for domestic and business customers which is good. the legislation to deliver that cleared parliament last week, which means things can happen behind—the—scenes. —— the cat in place. beyond this winter, the uncertainty is still there. if you look at wholesale prices, at the moment will deliver it into next summer and beyond, there is no sign of prices dropping below the current cap level, so the government is looking into next summer and winter as to what it's going to do. summer and winter as to what it's going to de— summer and winter as to what it's going to do— going to do. explain the wider context for — going to do. explain the wider context for us, _ going to do. explain the wider context for us, because - going to do. explain the wideri context for us, because prices going to do. explain the wider- context for us, because prices have come down in recent weeks compared to 18 months ago, but still a lot higher than a few years ago, why is that? is it all to do with the in ukraine? . �* , . ., that? is it all to do with the in ukraine? . �*, . ., ., . ukraine? that's a lot of what has ha--ened ukraine? that's a lot of what has

happened since _ ukraine? that's a lot of what has happened since the _ ukraine? that's a lot of what has happened since the beginning i ukraine? that's a lot of what has happened since the beginning of| ukraine? that's a lot of what has - happened since the beginning of this year, but before that, coming out of covid there was a massive increase in demand for gas around the world, particularly in the far east, which lifted the demand for gas. so we need to replenish the gas into europe that was coming from russia, and everyone trying to look around the world to bring it in, and that uncertainty remains. just explain this deal and _ uncertainty remains. just explain this deal and how _ uncertainty remains. just explain this deal and how it _ uncertainty remains. just explain this deal and how it sits - uncertainty remains. just explain this deal and how it sits in - uncertainty remains. just explain this deal and how it sits in the i this deal and how it sits in the wider context of the energy crisis. earlier, a correspondent was saying to me that the government is still going to have to continue paying for this gas company. i going to have to continue paying for this gas company-— this gas company. i imagine they will, it's this gas company. i imagine they will. it's not _ this gas company. i imagine they will, it's not totally _ this gas company. i imagine they will, it's not totally clear, - this gas company. i imagine they will, it's not totally clear, but. this gas company. i imagine they will, it's not totally clear, but i l will, it's not totally clear, but i think there will be a new company set up which customers and assets will be transferred into, which will effectively start from zero. that will be what octopus purchases. so all of the losses that have been built up to date will still be passed through to customers through future increases in their bills, so

you are starting with a new company. thank you. the head of the royal navy has ordered an investigation into allegations of bullying and sexual harassment against female recruits in the submarine service. several women who served in the fleet have told the daily mail they faced mistreatment from all ranks. the first sea lord, admiral sir ben key, said any form of harassment would not be tolerated. our defence correspondent paul adams has been giving me more details. they run the full gamut of sexual and physical assault. women being punched and hit by their male colleagues. male colleagues exposing themselves. women having their underwear stolen. and a bizarre rape list in which women are ranked according to the women that their male colleagues would rape in the event of a catastrophic event under water. and remember, these events are going on, on long missions at sea, in cramped confines on a submarine. women often felt they were unable to complain or report any of this. these allegations are in the daily

mail, not our investigation, we have not spoken to the women involved but clearly the navy is very alarmed by this. as you say, admiral sir ben key said he is deeply disturbed and he said the allegations are abhorrent, sexual assault and harassment has no place in the royal navy and will not be tolerated, he said. he has initiated his senior team to investigate. but campaigners say part of the problem is the royal navy should not be investigating itself, they want all such complaints to be investigated by an independent body. president biden has condemned a violent attack on the husband of the leading democrat nancy pelosi. paul pelosi was beaten with a hammer at their home in san francisco. he suffered a fractured skull and injuries to his right arm and hands, but is expected to make a full recovery. a man was arrested on charges including attempted murder. the attack has stoked fears about political violence in the run—up to the 8 november midterm elections. it's reported the same chant was used by this guy they have

in custody that was used on january 6th in the attack on the us capitol. i'm not making this up. this is reported, i can't guarantee it, but i can tell you what's been reported. the chant was, "where's nancy, where's nancy, where's nancy?" this is despicable. there is no place in america... there is too much violence, political violence. the ministry of defence has accused the russian government of "peddling false claims of an epic scale" after moscow said uk forces helped with a drone attack on russian fleets near the crimean port of sevastopol. russian authorities say one warship was damaged in the attack overnight. ukraine has not yet acknowledged the incident. they also claimed that british forces were involved in the explosions which damaged the nord stream gas pipelines last month. responding to all the claims, the mod said moscow was resorting to "invented stories to detract from their disastrous handling of the illegal invasion of ukraine".

the past few minutes, russia says it has suspended its participation in the deal to export agricultural produce from ukrainian ports following the attack on ships in crimea,. the un secretary general had urged all parties to renew the deal on ukrainian grain exports, which is due to expire next month. organisers say thousands of protestors have taken part in marches around the uk calling for reforms to the childcare sector and parental leave. these were the scenes at one of the march of the mummies event in leeds city centre this morning. campaigners say maternity and paternity leave should be ringfenced and properly paid and alljobs should be flexible by default. the government says it is "committed to supporting working parents and helping them participate at work".

there's major disruption to rail services across scotland due to a 24—hour walkout by scotrail workers. more than 2,000 members of the rmt union are taking part in the strike, with trains running on just three routes in the central belt and all other services cancelled. our scotland correspondent alexandra mckenzie is at queen street station in glasgow. this is saturday afternoon in queen street station, it would normally be very busy with shoppers, but as you can see, it's deserted. the trains are standing idle and the board behind me is almost blank. as you said, three services running in scotland, mostly around or all around the central belt. you can get a limited service from here to edinburgh or if you want to go to glasgow central station, you can go to lanark.

but absolutely nothing outwith the central belt, and the trains running will stop at 6:30pm this evening. if you want to travel around other cities in scotland, dundee, inverness, aberdeen, there is absolutely nothing available today. that's because scotrail workers, more than 2,000 of them belonging to the rmt union, are on strike. they have had an offer of pay that has been rejected, a 5% increase plus a £500 payment. that has been rejected, and the rmt union has said that industrial action will continue for as long as necessary. israelis head to the polls on tuesday for their fifth election in four years. the current coalition is fighting to stay in power, as former prime minister benjamin netanyahu attempts a comeback. but to do so, he's relying on the growing strength of an ultranationalist, far right alliance.

meet the new army of young voters in israel, putting theirfaith in ultra—nationalism. they're waiting for their hero. and enter from the far right, itamar ben—gvir. he's the follower of a racist movement and wants to expel what he calls disloyal arabs. ben—gvir rouses his supporters over security. translation: they should not see the light of day, _ a death sentence for the terrorists. ben—gvir electrifies his fans. they are excited because they feel they're on the verge of getting a lot stronger. a man who many felt could be kept to the fringes of israeli politics could be about to enter its government. polls suggest his party could get more seats than ever for the extreme right in the coming election. listen, i love israel and... ..thejihad. why do you want to ask the man they want?

they want kill me and kill you, thejihadis. why do you want to expel palestinians you say are disloyal, mr ben—gvir? where tensions flare, ben—gvir will be there to pour on fuel, say his critics. in occupied eastjerusalem, he pulled out his gun, calling for palestinians who throw stones to be shot. he taunted them, saying they'd be mown down. former prime minister benjamin netanyahu, or bibi, rallies his own base. he's nurtured the extreme right, hoping to boost coalition numbers for a return to power. this veteran observer of israeli politics thinks it's a fateful moment. it's a question of what type of democracy and what type of country does it want to have. on the one hand, you have forces like itamar ben—gvir and his partner, bezalel smotrich, led by benjamin netanyahu, who want to change the type of democracy that we have in the state of israel, want to take us potentially into a dark moment. the current coalition's election ads

warn that netanyahu needs the far right�*s backing as he tries to swerve corruption charges, which he denies. the incumbents say they're tough on security amid spiralling violence this year. the policies affect the many. in the occupied west bank, the army is still blocking roads from nablus over palestinian gun attacks and after a soldier was shot dead a fortnight ago. it is a slow road and palestinians call this collective punishment. back at the rally, ben—gvir�*s fans think only his party can keep them safe. there are people that have target, have go and they go forward. they don't care what is on their way. what do you mean by that? they have a target. they go forward. what do they believe? where we should be. and they go there. their opponents call them pyromaniacs as they portray themselves as patriots.

israel's race to break its election deadlock sees a battle over how far the far right will reach. tom bateman, bbc news, jerusalem. the headlines on bbc news. the household energy supplier octopus energy has reached a deal to buy bulb, one of the companies which collapsed last year amid soaring wholesale gas and electricity prices. the head of the royal navy orders an investigation into allegations that female recruits have been sexually abused and harassed on submarines. president biden condemns an attack on the husband of senior democrat nancy pelosi, saying there's too much vitriol in us politics. sport and a full round—up from the bbc sport centre. this was not the return to brighton

graham potter would have wanted. it is currently 3—1 brighton after leandro trossard's open and two own goals in the first half. kai havertz has pulled one back in the second half. spurs are currently losing 2—1 to bournemouth. newcastle are leading aston villa. earlier, manchester city beat leicester 1—0, moving them back to the top of the table. you can keep across the scores on the bbc sport website, and the scottish premiership there as well. rangers currently 3—1 up against aberdeen at ibrox. one of four games under way. both hibernian and st mirren with their why light

—— their eye on third spot. we are into the final seconds at bramall lane, where england have a mammoth score on the board over greece at the rugby league world cup. what a performance it has been. young becomes the leading try scorer at the tournament, after scoring four first—half tries. steering england clear of danger. ryan hall scored his third try at the world cup. england running away with it in sheffield. 9a—4, the score, the largest margin of victory at the tournament so far. wales are out of the world cup at the quarterfinal stage

after being beaten by defending champions new zealand. they scored nine tries as they won 55—3 against wales, including two from portia woodman, which earned her a place in the record books. she overtakes england's su day as the rugby world cup's all—time leading try scorer. no regrets, we asked the girls to give their all and show some heart. new zealand definitely stepped up from the pool game, and... it is testament to our defence. georgia taylor—brown has beaten the usa's taylor spivey to retain her super league title for the second year in a row. it was an all british podium at the inaugural super league triathlon in saudi arabia. the grand finale of the slt season, and it was a day to remember. taylor—brown also took home $50,000 as champion, just over £43,000.

australia's matthew howser won gold, but hayden wilde won the title finishing third in the race. jonny brownlee finished second. that was enough to snatch third overall. the mexican grand prix this weekend, ferrari's charles leclerc was unhurt after a crash in friday practice. he lost control and span backwards into the barrier, bringing his session to an end and causing a red flag for barrier repairs. his team—mate carlos sainz topped the first session. mercedes' george russell was quickest in the second. that is all the sport for now. more on the website. bbc.co.uk/sport

rescue workers in the philippines are distributing aid to almost half a million people who have been affected by a severe tropical storm which has brought flash floods and landslides, killing at least 45 people. earlier i got the latest from richard gordon, chairman and ceo of the philippine red cross. the situation has been very bad, the typhoon claimed 42 lives already, in a landslide and floods. a lot of the country is flooded, a lot of the provinces, at least 45 provinces have been affected, ii the most severely. crop damage is high. transportation has stopped and a lot of people are stranded. we are approaching the holidays, people are beginning to go for the all saints day, the traditional holiday where they go to their provinces. so a lot of them are there to visit and most of them didn't bring enough money, so they are going hungry in the ports. the red cross is trying to handle the situation by giving them hot meals.

doing the same thing with water in the areas. certainly a lot of people have lost their homes in that landslide. we are trying to figure out those most affected, particularly those who have lost their families, particularly orphans. how much coordination is there between aid agencies such as yourselves and the government? i was in the senate, the national disaster co—ordinating law... the red cross is a subsidiary of the government. the red cross is with a subsidiary of the government. we are trying so hard to alleviate human suffering. the cycle of disaster and poverty, it's not the first time we have been hit by a typhoon. we have maybe 2a typhoons each year, seven will be serious, like this one. this was a sleeper typhoon, it came in and we thought it wasn't

going to be that strong, and suddenly it became very strong. this area wasn't even in the path of the typhoon originally. so some areas have been flooded out. in the meantime, it's traversing the central philippines area, hopefully it will be out by tomorrow, but nonetheless it is still wreaking damage and floods. bringing challenges in terms of food scarcity. because the trucks will not be able to supply food, hopefully there will be enough food in the areas, and people won't have to suffer more deprivation. given that this wasn't expected in terms of the severity and the widespread nature of the geography it has covered, how prepared were you at the red cross? well, we have conducted... we are announcing an emergency

appeal, a humble appeal to try and get support, as well as the international red cross community... it's important because of the disaster reserve emergency fund... hopefully we will be able to cope and it doesn't get any worse. it may not appear to cause severe enough damage, but after a few days you will find out that there are people whose lives have been overturned in the flash of a flood or a landslide. the global hair extension and wigs market is worth over 6 billion dollars and is being driven by demand for the most affordable type of hair — synthetic. but that hair is made up of plastic fibres, which are not biodegradable. combating plastic waste is a key issue at next month's cop27 climate summit in egypt. so is there a way of making synthetic hair use more sustainable? the bbc�*s eunice gatonye reports.

the hair wigs and extensions market is growing fast, as suppliers talk shop, the salon is packed with women getting the latest weaving and braiding styles. irate getting the latest weaving and braiding styles.— getting the latest weaving and braidin: s les. ~ , . braiding styles. we mostly leaned towards synthetic _ braiding styles. we mostly leaned towards synthetic hair _ braiding styles. we mostly leaned towards synthetic hair because - braiding styles. we mostly leaned | towards synthetic hair because it's much more affordable. more available. much more affordable. more available-— much more affordable. more available. . , , . ., available. rosemary runs a salon in nairobi, the — available. rosemary runs a salon in nairobi, the capital— available. rosemary runs a salon in nairobi, the capital of— available. rosemary runs a salon in nairobi, the capital of kenya, - nairobi, the capital of kenya, hairdressers here are known for their skills in braiding a synthetic

hair. translation: ., ~ u, ., translation: in a week we can have 100 clients- — translation: in a week we can have 100 clients. after _ translation: in a week we can have 100 clients. after cleaning _ translation: in a week we can have 100 clients. after cleaning the - 100 clients. after cleaning the salon, we take out their hair, it taken by the city council to landfill sites.— taken by the city council to landfillsites. ' 11:1 ., , taken by the city council to landfillsites. ' 11:1 ., landfill sites. about 1500 tonnes of waste is brought _ landfill sites. about 1500 tonnes of waste is brought to _ landfill sites. about 1500 tonnes of waste is brought to this _ landfill sites. about 1500 tonnes of waste is brought to this landfill - waste is brought to this landfill site every day, and part of it is synthetic hair from salons around nairobi. you see the smoke behind me. that's part of the waste being burned. they are concerned about the chemicals released in the atmosphere and also that those in the hair and beauty industry as well as their customers may not be aware of the damage being caused by her waist. and it's notjust burning the hair thatis and it's notjust burning the hair that is the problem. it is and it's notjust burning the hair that is the problem.— that is the problem. it is not biodegradable _ that is the problem. it is not biodegradable and _ that is the problem. it is not biodegradable and because l that is the problem. it is not. biodegradable and because of that is the problem. it is not - biodegradable and because of the nature of the size, the tiny strands, it is easier for synthetic hair to break down into microplastics. microplastics have their challenges, they get into our

water bodies easily, they can get into the soil, they can get into our food chain. but into the soil, they can get into our food chain-— food chain. but there are ways of tacklin: food chain. but there are ways of tackling the _ food chain. but there are ways of tackling the problem. _ food chain. but there are ways of tackling the problem. in - food chain. but there are ways of tackling the problem. in nairobi, j tackling the problem. in nairobi, these women are going to garbage bags to look for discarded hair extensions, which they will wash and so on. this certainly extend the life of the synthetic hair but it will eventually end up back in landfill. so is there a way to make it even more sustainable? in uganda, juliet makes hair extensions from banana fibres. the leathery fibres are hung to dry for a week. using the organic _ are hung to dry for a week. using the organic stems _ are hung to dry for a week. using the organic stems gives - are hung to dry for a week. using the organic stems gives us - are hung to dry for a week. using the organic stems gives us a - are hung to dry for a week. ii; “i; the organic stems gives us a product thatis the organic stems gives us a product that is biodegradable. when you expose it to conditions that allow it to rot, it will rot.— it to rot, it will rot. although the banana fibre _ it to rot, it will rot. although the banana fibre is _ it to rot, it will rot. although the banana fibre is expensive, - it to rot, it will rot. although the banana fibre is expensive, juliet| banana fibre is expensive, juliet said she hopes it will at least make more people aware of the problem of

single use synthetic hair, and that more awareness will mean more sustainable use of this beauty staple. now it's time for a look at the weather with stav. temperatures in the low 20s across the south—east of england, miles tomorrow as well, maybe not as warm as today, a mixture of sunshine and showers because we still have low pressure nearby. quite a few isobars, so it will be windy, especially around the irish sea coast. the air source coming up from the azores which is why it is so mild. tonight, the rain clears one northern scotland, many places will be dry, some rain pushing into east anglia and the south—east, and blustery showers into northern ireland, wales, south—west england. overnight temperatures 10—1li, holding on to the mild theme. the clocks go back an hour early on sunday. it takes us into sunday on a

mild note, some sunshine around, early rain clearing for the south—east, plenty of showers in the north. pushing eastwards. it will be mild tomorrow and not quite as warm as today.

hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: the household energy supplier octopus energy has reached a deal to buy bulb, one of the companies which collapsed last year amid soaring wholesale gas and electricity prices. the head of the royal navy orders an investigation into allegations that female recruits have been sexually abused and harassed on submarines. president biden condemns an attack on the husband of senior democrat, nancy pelosi, saying there's too much vitriol in us politics. the ministry of defence has accused the russian government of �*peddling false claims' after moscow said uk forces helped with a drone attack on russian fleets near the crimean port of sevastopol. there's major disruption to rail services across scotland due to a 24—hour walkout by scotrail workers. more than 2000 rmt members are on strike.