>> good afternoon britain. it's 12:00 on thursday, the 2nd of january. tom harwood. and i'm emily carver. first new details of this suspected terror attack in new orleans. 15 people are now confirmed dead and dozens more injured as the primary suspect is identified as u.s. citizen and army veteran shamsuddin jabbar. now, the fbi says it's possible he wasn't acting alone. president biden shared more details overnight. >> hours before the attack, he posted videos on social media indicating that he was inspired by isis, expressing a desire to kill , and law by isis, expressing a desire to kill, and law enforcement investigate whether the explosion of a tesla cybertruck outside the trump hotel in las vegas is linked to the events in new orleans. >> back in the uk, labour has come under fire, as gb news reveals safeguarding minister

jess phillips rejected calls to hold a public inquiry into historic sexual abuse by grooming gangs in oldham. >> and it's cold out there, isn't it.7 the met office has warned that up to one foot of snow could fall between saturday and monday, with almost all of england and wales included in this warning and the sussexes remember them, they storm into 2025 as meghan markle announces her triumphant return to social media. >> in a social media post that's confusing some people. >> yes. so charlie peters, our national reporter, revealed yesterday that jess phillips had a declined rejected calls for an independent inquiry into the grooming scandal in oldham, saying that it should all be

deau saying that it should all be dealt with locally, essentially. now charlie peters seen a letter that shows this and it's gained a huge amount of traction online and in the media, and we're going to have charlie on the show to explain exactly why he thinks that is what's gone on, what jess phillips is being accused of here, and whether there's been a huge oversight. but it just shows how much renewed interest there is in trying to tackle and trying to bnng trying to tackle and trying to bring justice for some of those victims of the grooming gang scandals across our country. >> i think i think there is a temptation for politicians of all parties to think this is a very difficult topic to talk about, but they'd rather not talk about it, brush it under the carpet, keep it dealt with at a local level. not need any intervention from the home office, not from the safeguarding minister, not from the home secretary, not from the prime minister. but frankly, it is a scandal. i mean, thousands upon thousands of children were abused by these grooming gangs over the course of decades. there are fears that in some places, this is a practice that

is still going on, and it is right to talk about it. and surely, surely you'd think that a national conversation, that it would deserve a national conversation rather than a local one. >> yeah, i mean, there's barely a town or city, it seems that hasn't been touched by this, this scandal, touched by rape gangs. that's essentially what they are. grooming gangs is the term we use in the media. but should there be.7 i term we use in the media. but should there be? i guess that's the question for today. should there be a national inquiry into this historic and as you say, still going on. it's claimed abuse in our country. is it time for that now to get it all out into the open? heads may roll. >> and that's the extraordinary thing, isn't it, that looking at the people who presided over councils that swept this under the carpet, no one's gone to prison, which is extraordinary. >> but send your badenoch is calling now for this inquiry off the back of this story. so we shall see what happens. >> we're going to be continuing

following this throughout the programme. we want your thoughts, though. gbnews.com/yoursay is the way, as always, to get involved. but now it's your news headlines. >> tom, thank you and good afternoon. the top stories. at least 15 people were killed after a us army veteran who'd expressed a desire to kill drove a pickup truck into crowds of people celebrating new year in new orleans before he was shot dead by police. the fbi has named the main suspect as 42 year old us citizen shamsuddin bahar jabar, who previously served in the us army. they've also said an islamic state group flag was found in the vehicle, and they're investigating the attack as an act of terrorism. the fbi said it doesn't believe the driver acted alone. president joe biden addressed a press conference overnight. >> the fbi has reported to me the killer was an american citizen born in texas. he served

in the united states army on active duty for many years. he also served in the army reserve until a few years ago. the fbi also reported to me that mere hours before the attack, he posted videos on social media indicating that he was inspired by isis, expressing a desire to kill, a desire to kill . the isis kill, a desire to kill. the isis flag was found in his vehicle, which he rented to conduct this attack. >> five victims have been named so far across several media outlets, among them a teenage girl who wanted to be a nurse. a graduate of princeton university and a mother of four, prime minister sir keir starmer issued the following statement the shockingly violent attack in new orleans is horrific. my thoughts are with the victims, their families, the emergency responders and the people of the united states at this tragic time. meanwhile, police are investigating after a tesla cybertruck filled with fuel

canisters and firework mortars exploded outside the trump hotel in las vegas, nevada. the driver was killed and seven people were injured, police said. without naming any of the individuals involved, officials said all of the injuries were minor. authorities are investigating whether this attack and the new orleans incident are linked. in response, incoming president donald trump posted on his website truth social saying our country is a disaster, a laughing stock all over the world. this is what you get, he said. when you have open borders with weak, ineffective and virtually nonexistent leadership, he ended with only strength and powerful leadership will stop it. see you on the 20th of january. in other news, suspected people smugglers will face travel bans, social media blackouts and restrictions on phone usage. that's under tough new laws to dismantle organised immigration crime networks. the

home office says that in an upgrade to serious crime prevention orders, the new interim orders will allow immediate action to disrupt and deter suspected serious criminality. ministers say the orders are part of a stronger approach to organised crime, which will form part of the border security and asylum and immigration bill. the number of migrants arriving to the uk in small boats is up by a quarter, as nearly 37,000 made the journey last year. shadow home secretary chris philp told gb news the measures announced by the government are going to make no difference at all. >> this is the same government, of course, the same labour party who voted against life sentences for those very same gangs when they were in opposition and on their watch since the election now six months ago. illegal immigration across the channel has gone up by 29% compared to last year, and i think it was a huge mistake of labour to scrap the rwanda deterrent before it even started. the first flight was due to take off on the 24th

of july, and labour cancelled it before that plane had a chance to leave. and i think if that had started then we would see the numbers dramatically reducing. >> however, the immigration minister, seema malhotra, says the plans will help to smash the gangs. >> these new measures will be an invaluable tool in helping tackle the criminal people smuggling gangs who are undermining our border security and putting lives at risk. and in the process, stopping them being able to, for example, destroy evidence or change their tactics if they know that law enforcement agencies are onto them. this is a really important part. it's a core foundation of our plan for change to ensure that we are strengthening our border security and stopping those criminal gangs who are putting lives at risk. these interim orders are about being able to act much more quickly against potential people smugglers. these are criminal gangs that are undermining our border security and putting lives at risk. and they must be stopped. >> in other news, uk rapper

stormzy has been banned from driving for nine months. he was sentenced at wimbledon magistrates court today for using a phone behind the wheel of a rolls royce in west kensington in march last year. the 31 year old was caught in the motor by an off duty police officer. he was also issued a £2,010 fine, which must be paid in seven days. sentencing, the judge branded his actions dangerous and judge branded his actions dangerous a