huge diviends paid out, huge debts taken on, customer bills rocketing. we'll be asking how thames water got into this mess and what the future holds for its millions of customers. also tonight... the first images of the wreckage of the titan submersible which imploded last week in the north atlantic with the loss of five lives. in ukraine, the devastation following a russian missile attack on a pizza restaurant. the dead include three children. madonna has postponed her world tour after a stay in intensive care with after a stay in intensive care with a serious infection. and on newsnight at 10.30 we'll go deeper behind the headlines and speak live to key players

on today's big stories. plus, a first look at tomorrow's front pages. good evening. the biggest supplier of water in the uk — thames water, with 15 million customers — is on the brink of collapse with debts running into billions of pounds. the company is in talks to secure extra funding and the government says it is ready to act whatever happens. thames water, which was privatised back in 1989, is currently owned by a group of private equity and investment funds. the firm has been repeatedly criticised for its poor performance in dealing with water leaks and sewage pollution. its chief executive resigned abruptly yesterday. the state of the uk's water and sewage networks has become a big political issue,

with some experts accusing the privatised suppliers of prioritising dividends for shareholders over investment. our economics editor faisal islam has the latest. the british water industry has bobbed along in a stream of profits and easy money since privatisation 30 years ago. but now something far murkier is emerging under the surface. today it emerged the government is on standby to take the nation's largest water company, thames water, back into effective government control as it struggles to raise the funds it needs to stay afloat amid a surprise resignation from the chief executive. i was concerned to hear the ceo had resigned abruptly, but we need to make sure that thames water as an entity survives. there is a lot of work that the government is trying to do on resolving sewage.

up until now, or certainly up until now, the regulator has been focused on keeping consumer bills down, but there is a lot of infrastructure work that needs to take place and we need that entity to survive and continue going. thames has been ranked thejoint worst in the country for water treatment, sewage pollution and leaks, and all this came after rising multi—billion pound debts and payouts, especially to the previous owners. absolute scandal, what has happened. huge dividends paid out, huge debts taken on, customer bills rocketing, sewage being dumped into our rivers. so the government must come forward and explain what are they going to do to sort this out. thames water has £14 billion worth of debt — that's high by industry standards, and worth about 80% of its value. interest payments on more than half of that are linked to inflation, which has been very high. it is also seeking to invest about £11.5 billion to reduce leaks and sewage discharges. much more investment of this sort, an 18—mile tunnel under the capital to replace victorian sewers, is now required, but at

a time of high inflation and rising interest rates. this is clearly a mess, but the expectation in financial circles is that shareholders will provide the funds to keep thames water going. but the question is how did this come about in an industry that should be so simple, providing a product that everybody needs and provided in monopolies of several million customers with no competition. and the answer is in hugely complicated structures, huge debts and lots of regulation. in a statement, thames water said it notes recent press speculation and continues to maintain a strong liquidity position, including £41; billion of cash and committed funding — but this is what sarah bentley, the chief executive who resigned this week, told the bbc three months ago. we are trying to reverse decades of underinvestment where there was cost—cutting, the business was hollowed out,

and we are having to re—hire engineers, bring talent in, really rebuilding a broken business. that takes time. a picture emerges of a creaking system that when money was cheap saw debt piled on mainly to the benefit of shareholders, and now when the public demands more investment and better services, faces funding difficulties, with the taxpayer having to wait in the wings. quite a few things to talk about with faisal islam. first of all, customers watching wondering what the future is in terms of the supplier. and secondly, what is your thought on how this moves on the debate about how these companies are owned? the debate about how these companies are owned? , ., _ owned? the first thing to say there is no threat — owned? the first thing to say there is no threat to _ owned? the first thing to say there is no threat to physical _ owned? the first thing to say there is no threat to physical supply, - is no threat to physical supply, that's the point of the contingencies made by the government, what is known as a special administration regime is being prepared, as a standby option, and that in fact would mean it wouldn't be a normal insolvency if it got to that, it would be

protected in terms of the supply. you are absolutely right, there are bigger questions here, a bigger canvas being looked at. there could, for example, not specifically because of this issue, but in general be price rises for all water customers to pay for this investment backlog and many will be wondering what has happened since privatisation. we know tens of billions of pounds have been taken out of the sector and paid for in dividends, to get right now there is a need for lots more investment. and this is part of a more general story we have continually talked about witches during the period of very low interest rates, what happened as previous shareholders used borrowing to help pay money to shareholders, now when the public is demanding more investment and fewer leaks and less sewage put out into the waterways of the uk, now interest rates are higher and it is more difficult to fund that. for now the government of the, the finance markets, they are hoping that we will get shareholder injection of money. that's the hope. but

preparations are made in case that doesn't happen. preparations are made in case that doesn't happen-— preparations are made in case that doesn't happen. faisal islam, thank ou ve doesn't happen. faisal islam, thank you very much. _ doesn't happen. faisal islam, thank you very much, our _ doesn't happen. faisal islam, thank you very much, our economics - doesn't happen. faisal islam, thank. you very much, our economics editor. the first images have been published of the wreckage of the titan, that's the submersible that imploded on a deep dive in the north atlantic with the loss of five lives. us coastguard say the submersible�*s landing frame and a rear cover were found in the debris. the vessel imploded on isthjune a short time after starting its descent to the wreck of the titanic on the sea bed. 0ur science correspondent jonathan amos has more details. a sombre moment at quayside as the debris from the titan submersible was unloaded. ship workers attempted to cover the fragments but some pieces were still clearly identifiable. a titanium end cap from the cylinder—shaped carbon fibre sub with a large hole where a viewing window was once positioned. the rear equipment bay thrown clear in the violent implosion that occurred nearly four

kilometres down. and the landing frame the sub used to sit on a flat surface. the question now is whether investigators have enough material to reconstruct what happened. the key parts to look at our the interface between the acrylic window and the titanium hemispherical dome is, the end caps, and also the area where the carbon fibre would have been bonded to the titanium flanges. i can see from the footage that both of those components were recovered, which is as much as we can hope for. seeing the debris, sure would have been a painful sight for the families of the five men who died. british explorer hamish harding, the british pakistani businessman shahzada dawood and his son suleman all perished along with french diver paul—henri nargeolet the ceo of 0ceangate. recent days have seen concerns

highlighted about whether the sub was built to the best standards and with sufficient testing. these are all issues now that the us and canadian authorities will probe as they examine the debris. somewhere in this tangled mess may be clues to what went so tragically wrong. jonathan amos, bbc news. at least 11 people are now known to have died at a busy pizza restaurant in a town in eastern ukraine when it was hit by a russian missile. three children were among the dead, including 14—year—old twin sisters. dozens more were injured. emergency services in the city of kramatorsk have spent the day searching for survivors. 0ur correspondent andrew harding is there and sent this report. outside the ruins of a popular restaurant, anxious relatives and friends, still waiting for news late this afternoon here in eastern ukraine. another body, the 11th so far, is brought out, to the distress

of those hoping for word of more survivors. among those already confirmed dead, these twins, ia—year—olds yuliya and anna. this was the scene in the city of kramatorsk last night, moments after a russian missile hit the restaurant and a nearby hotel. untranslated speech. shock and panic amongst survivors. man: we've just been shelled. we just... we just got shelled. in kramatorsk. "my daughter is still inside, her name is irina," said this woman. later irina was found, photographed here under the rubble just before she was rescued. but the death toll has continued to rise. the rear lounge was a favourite venue for young ukrainians,

international journalists and ukrainian soldiers taking a break from the nearby front lines. rescue work continued through the night. it's become a grim routine now in a big industrial city that's been repeatedly targeted by the kremlin's forces over the past year—and—a—half. and this time a new twist — ukrainian security services releasing this photo of a local man they've just arrested, describing him as a russian agent who allegedly sent video footage of the restaurant to the russian militaryjust hours before it was destroyed. did the kremlin deliberately target this particular restaurant? in a sense, it doesn't matter. russia sent two big, powerful missiles crashing into the centre of a crowded city at a busy time of day. civilian casualties were almost inevitable. "rescuers are still busy clearing the rubble," says this medic.

"they are looking for people who are trapped, whether alive or dead." another air raid siren, but the rescue work goes on regardless. andrew harding, bbc news, kramatorsk. one of the leading figures vying to be the conservative candidate for mayor of london has decided to withdraw from the contest. daniel korski was one of three candidates shortlisted by the conservatives ahead of next year's election. he said he was withdrawing from the race because the pressure on his family following allegations by a journalist that she had been touched inappropriately by him in 2013. mr korski has denied the allegations. our political correspondent helen catt reports. last night, daniel korski was on his way to a hustings, adamant he was staying in the race despite the accusation made against him. but this evening he's withdrawn. he continues to deny he did anything wrong,

but in a statement he said... the tv producer and novelist daisy goodwin used an article in the times yesterday to name mr korski as the man who she said had groped her during a meeting at 10 downing street, where he worked, in 2013. people have to decide who they choose to believe. there is no reason why i would come forward other than the fact that this happened to me ten years ago. i was shocked by it. i can't say that i'm a victim, but i was shocked by it. yesterday mr korski strongly denied the accusation. i didn't do what's been alleged, i absolutely didn't do that. ten years ago, when it happened, nothing was said to me. seven years ago, when this first came out, nobody alleged anything to me. ijust didn't do

what's being alleged. mr korski did have a number of big—name backers, but he had lost some supporters since daisy goodwin's article was published. one told the bbc that his withdrawal from the race had become inevitable. this evening, daisy goodwin said it showed that women could speak out against misbehaviour in the workplace and be believed. the race to be the tory candidate for london mayor continues. for the remaining two, a quick hug before another hustings as they vie to be their party's choice to contest the capital. helen catt, bbc news. in france, president macron has said the fatal shooting of a teenager by police in paris is unforgivable. the 17—year—old was killed last night after failing to stop when ordered to by police. his death sparked protests and clashes with dozens of cars set alight. thousands of police have been deployed in the city tonight, as our paris correspondent lucy williamson reports. gunfire. last night, one spark set nanterre

alight and the government on edge. the shooting of 17—year—old nael here yesterday igniting the long cold war between french suburbs and french state. the police traffic track was caught on camera, a brief discussion at gunpoint. then as nael drives off the officer appears to shoot him through the window at point—blank range. his mother said in an online video that they'd taken her baby away. translation: he was still a child. he needed his mother. he kissed me goodbye in the morning and said, "i love you, mum." an hour later i was told that someone shot my son. what shall i do? he was my life. he was everything to me. the death of young people at the hands of police here in the

paris suburbs has sparked rage and riots against the state before. what's adding to the anger this time our initial claims by police that nael drove into officers before he was shot, a narrative that's contradicted by the video that's emerged. president macron and his government have come out strongly against the police actions. translation: a teenager has been killed. _ this is inexplicable and inexcusable, and the first thing is to express affection, shared sorrow and support for his loved ones. france's star footballer kylian mbappe was among those reacting on social media, saying, his "france was hurting for the little angel nael who left much too soon." france's national assembly held a minute silence today as the country held its breath.

parliament and suburbs, the two sides of france marking the death of a teenager in their own very different ways. lucy williamson, bbc news, nanterre. the singer—songwriter madonna has postponed her world tour after her manager revealed that she'd been in intensive care with a serious bacterial infection. this news came in in the last half hour or so. our correspondent sophie long is in los angeles. sophie, what have you learned? we don't sophie, what have you learned? - don't have many details at the moment. what we know, according to her manager, on saturday and madonna developed what he called a serious bacterial infection which led to her spending several days in intensive care. we are told her health is improving and she is expected to make a full recovery, which is good news, but at the moment we are told she is still undergoing medical care so her team has decided to suspend

all commitments, including the celebration tour which was scheduled to kick off in vancouver next month, to kick off in vancouver next month, to mark the 40th anniversary of her break—out single holiday. it was highly anticipated, 98% of tickets sold out immediately, fans buying 690,001 day. when she released a video announcing the tour she told fans she was really looking forward to exploring as many songs as possible and to give the fans to show they had waited for. 2016 was her last major arena tour with rebel heart. but it seems like now they will be waiting a little longer. sophie long, thank you. the health secretary steve barclay has announced a national investigation into mental health inpatient services. it will examine how nhs trusts can learn from deaths in their care and how to improve inpatient care for young people. he also announced a public inquiry into services at essex partnership university

trust. our health correspondent sophie hutchinson has more details. it is more than a decade since 20—year—old matthew leahy was found dead while detained in a mental health unit. his mother melanie is one of hundreds of families in essex with unanswered questions about how their loved ones died. across this nation, the families that are supporting, notjust for essex, and everyone has got such a similar story. don't get answers at the inquest, just more questions. don't know what happened to their loved ones. no one is listening, no one is held to account. honestly, it is absolutely traumatic and it has to stop. the secretary of state, stephen barclay. this afternoon, to the relief of melanie and other bereaved families, the government announced the review into the deaths of 2000 mental health inpatients in essex would become a full public inquiry with powers to compel witnesses to give evidence.

the health secretary also unveiled a plan to improve safety for all psychiatric inpatients across england, and he explained what it would examine. how providers learn from deaths in their care and use this learning to improve services, including post—discharge. how young people are cared for in mental health inpatient settings and how this can be improved. those who will carry out the england—wide investigation say nhs staff have nothing to fear about coming forward with evidence. we want to hear from them without them feeling worried about being blamed for what happened or to feel that there's going to be recriminations for them going forward to talk to us. there are long—standing concerns about how and why mental health patients die. notjust as inpatients in hospital, but also the millions — in fact, the vast majority — who are treated in the community. families in essex are now hopeful they will get answers about the 2000 deaths there.

butjust next door in norfolk and suffolk, they don't even know how many have died. this report by independent auditors is highly critical at the way the norfolk and suffolk mental health trust reported patient deaths, saying it was inconsistent and unclear. we are very aware that a report such as this being published will unearth many emotions and feelings for people from the past. i personally want to offer an apology to anybody going through that, it is not our intention. our intention is to get this system right going forward. the england—wide review, which aims to learn from deaths like matthew's, will begin in october. sophie hutchinson, bbc news. the hollywood actor kevin spacey has appeared in court in london accused of a string of sexual offences. —— in a critical report, the government's climate watchdog says the uk has lost its position as an international leader on action

to curb global warming. the climate change committee describes the recent approval of a new coal mine as "total nonsense" and says it's "markedly" less confident than it was a year ago that the uk will reach its targets for cutting carbon emissions. the government says it's committed to its carbon targets. our climate editorjustin rowlatt explains more. three, two, one... king charles helped turn on a climate clock at a summit in london this afternoon. it triggers 150 similar clocks across the major cities of the uk, counting down the seconds to 2030, the estimated deadline for limiting climate change to 1.5 degrees above preindustrial levels. but the uk's climate watchdog had a stern warning for the government today. the climate change committee said its confidence that the government would meet its own legally binding targets for cutting emissions by the end of the decade had fallen markedly. the anger and the impatience of the world will be uncontainable. at the un climate conference in glasgow two

years ago, then prime minister boris johnson vowed the uk would cut emissions by 68% on 1990 levels by 2030. the climate change committee said it just doesn't see the government showing the pace or urgency that will get us there. take flying. the government says it wants to cut emissions from aviation but it has no plan of how to persuade us all to fly less. and it's a similar story for emissions cuts elsewhere. it said the roll—out of renewables is too slow. industry needs to do more to decarbonise and many more trees need to be planted. and then there is the question of making our homes more energy—efficient. look how the uk lags the rest of europe on heat pump installations, a low carbon electric heating system. we are that little red bar right at the bottom. where is the plan to speed things up, today's report asks. well, the sad thing is that the government, having really lead the world,

has now lost that leadership because it isn't delivering. and that's the issue, it's to deliver what it has committed itself to, nationally and internationally. the committee chairman described approval for a new coal mine in cumbria is total nonsense and slammed plans to give the go—ahead to a major new oil field off the coast of the shetland islands. the government, however, denies it is off course. we've met all our carbon budgets to date, we are confident of doing so in future, but it is extremely ambitious and the committee is right, it is its job to challenge us on areas where we need to go further and faster. and challenge it has. it says there needs to be a major increase in pace and urgency if the government is to meet its legally binding climate commitments. justin rowlatt, bbc news, london's guildhall.

an estimated 700,000 children in england are being taught in unsafe or ageing school buildings, and in some cases there is a real risk of a collapse, causing injury or even death. a national audit office report says funding for maintenance and rebuilding is significantly short of what is actually needed. the national education union said the government is spending "nothing like enough" on school buildings. our education editor branwenjeffreys has more details. flat roofs and portakabins, prefab buildings past their best — patching up these gateshead infant and junior schools is a struggle. 25 plus years old, and they need a lot of upkeep and they are in a state of quite a lot of disrepair. this is a staircase that we can only now use as an emergency exit, because it's just not safe because of all the corrosion. so everything in this corridor is glued on, and the reason it's glued on is because of the asbestos. it is safe so long as we don't disturb it. these boilers are for our central heating and they are at the end

of their life, and they will cost in excess of £60,000 to replace. 500 schools in a worse condition are getting funding, so their bid for £5 million was turned down. we are having to patch up all the time, so it's like putting sticking plasters over open heart surgery, you know? ultimately i believe that we are doing the best we can with the delegated funding that we have, but it'll probably cost the taxpayer more in the long run. around four in ten school buildings in england are like this. many were built cheaply in the 19605 and 70s. and while they wait for cash to repair or replace, their condition is getting worse every year. circle, table in the middle, bean bags around the outside. pupils say they'd love a separate library and dining room, but what bothers them is how hot it gets in summer. well, it's harderto, like, focus when it gets hot. we have to put our feet in trays of water to make us cooler. sometimes there's leaks. and it gets too hot _ because the walls are thicker. next year this old portakabin

will have 30 pupils in it. you can see around the walls, the ceiling, it's starting to peel, there's holes in the walls. it's got windows all down one side of the south facing, so during the summer months it can become increasingly hot. this school is just dealing with ageing buildings, but 65 others in england have serious structural problems. hundreds are being investigated for dangerous concrete. here in gateshead, parents told me they want more investment. it's a lovely school, great teachers, lovely children, but they do need to invest a lot of money into a specific building like this. we need a purpose—built building and we need that kind of extra money, that extra injection of money into the buildings, because it would make a massive difference. spending on school buildings has fallen below what is needed. even so, ministers argue the investment in transforming schools is significant. branwen jeffreys, bbc news, gateshead.

the second ashes test started at lord's this morning, though it was briefly interupted by protestors from the just stop oil campaign. the ashes newcomerjosh tongue got england their first wicket, but australia have since taken control of the match — as our sports correspondent joe wilson reports. here are 11 men to play for england in a sport failing to achieve representation, out through cricket tradition to resume the ashes. lord's is part of a wider world and cricket is a sport inextricably linked to climate. just stop oil interrupted the morning session. it was brief, the powder was cleared, but not only did they get to the players, they get to the players, it was the players who took them it was the players who took them from the middle to the boundary. from the middle to the boundary. jonny bairstow is famed jonny bairstow is famed for his strength. for his strength. he is a batter, he is a batter, he is a wicketkeeper. he is a wicketkeeper. he isn't supposed to be security. he isn't supposed to be security. well, the actions of the protesters were condemned in the strongest possible terms by the mcc, which owns this ground. i understand that additional

security measures will now be in place for the remainder of the test to try to avoid another incursion. avoid another incursion. in terms of the cricket, australia were put in to bat and then batted themselves into a dominant place, initially thanks to david warner. to david warner. it took england's new ashes recruit josh tongue to stun usman khawaja. note that expression. possibly have expected. note that expression. you will see it again on david warner's face, bowled by tongue for 66, there. but now england faced steve smith. any australians in the crowd? come on, don't hide. marnus labuschagne was with him. these two are seriously good and england seriously knew it. labuschagne fell for a7, ollie robinson was quite pleased. but travis head batted with increasing fluency. all good fun, if you happen to be australian. when england seemed flat, joe root, late, struck twice. head out here, stumped. australia 339—5 on a day whenjonny bairstow dealt with far more than he could