well. >> good afternoon britain. it's 12:00 on thursday the 9th of january. i'm tom harwood and i'm emily carver. in the next few minutes, we're bringing you an exclusive interview with a survivor of child sexual abuse. it comes as mps vote against a new national inquiry into grooming gangs. we're live throughout the show in rotherham. >> yes. and in other news, rachel reeves is absolutely nowhere to be seen today as she fails to turn up in parliament to address increasing bond market turmoil. this, as the cost of government debt soars beyond the levels reached under liz truss and the pound plunges. >> sunset boulevard in ruins as the iconic hollywood sign faces complete destruction, as firefighters admit they have zero chance of containing the flames that have engulfed los angeles. we're live on the ground as 130,000 people are now

evacuated, and in the last few minutes, foreign secretary david lammy has unveiled the world's first sanctions regime to tackle people smuggling gangs. >> this comes ahead of a bilateral meeting between starmer, keir starmer and emmanuel macron. later on today we'll be live in westminster. >> yes, also throughout the show today, looking at the concerning situation in the financial markets, the cost of government debt, the highest in decades now, the pound plunging and an urgent question in the house of commons a little bit earlier this morning. what on earth is the government going to do about it. >> yeah. and why was rachel reeves not there? to answer that urgent question at a time of market turmoil? you've got business confidence on the floor. you've got the pound plunging as as tom says, you've got the cost of government borrowing high higher than when liz truss after the mini—budget.

absolutely. and. and where is she? she sent her deputy. >> we'll all remember the events of october 2022, when gilt yields the amount that you can get back if you if you own government debt spiked. but the spike now is higher than what it was in october 2022. lots of people very concerned about this. a fascinating headline on the on the bloomberg website today saying, this is like the 1976 debt crisis. i mean, this is serious stuff. it could mean emergency announcements. it could mean spending cuts. we're keeping a close eye on this over the course of the day. >> yeah. and on the same day as all this is going on in the markets. and rachel reeves is nowhere to be seen, liz truss, she's ordered lawyers. she's taking legal action against keir starmer for continuously saying that she was responsible for crashing the economy. yes. we've all seen caught sight of this letter that's been issued to keir starmer. so that's an interesting one, an interesting one. >> and it also goes into the

fact that if pension funds were structured in the same way now that they were in 2022, we would have seen a similar sort of panic. i mean, the only reason that people aren't panicking in the same way that they were after the mini—budget is because there's been massive reform to there's been massive reform to the amount of debt, the amount of government debt. pension funds are allowed to hold. i mean, if it was still structured, the ldi crisis, if it was still structured the same way that before the crisis after crisis, this would be a real moment of national jeopardy. yeah. >> so is rachel reeves up to the job? gbnews.com/yoursay. but it's the headlines with sam. >> very good afternoon to you. the top story this lunchtime. well, massive wildfires in los angeles continue to wreak havoc there with flames reducing buildings to rubble. firefighters say the hollywood hills blaze is expanding rapidly

with no chance of containment inside. the fire, which started on wednesday, is now threatening the iconic hollywood sign, while sunset boulevard is lined with destroyed buildings. among the victims are paris hilton and other a—list celebrities who have lost their homes. here. meanwhile, the foreign secretary has unveiled world first sanctions to tackle people smuggling gangs targeting the cash that fuels their operations. prime minister sir keir starmer says the measures will freeze assets, ban travel and smash their lucrative business model. it comes after over 36,000 people crossed the channelin over 36,000 people crossed the channel in 2024, fewer than in 2022, but still a major concern for the government. well, as i say, david lammy has been setting out those details and he's been calling it a significant part of the solution to kerb dangerous crossings. >> we can strengthen borders, smash the gangs and get those with no right to be here, return to their countries. there are

those who have told me that this isn't a progressive issue. i'm afraid they're wrong. there is nothing progressive about leaving the most vulnerable, exploiting, letting criminal gangs get rich and commit more crime on british streets. >> in other news, chief secretary to the treasury darren jones has insisted public spending will be in line with what was set out in the budget. that's despite borrowing costs hitting a 27 year high. the pound has also fallen to its weakest since april, fuelling speculation the chancellor could either raise taxes again or cut spending to balance the books. and in a rare move, the treasury stepped in last night, calling market speculation pure guesswork and insisting uk debt remains among the lowest in the g7. it means all eyes now turn to the office for budget responsibility, whose forecasts could determine the government's next steps. former prime

minister liz truss has taken legal action today against sir keir starmer, demanding that he stops claiming that she crashed the economy in a cease and desist letter seen by the telegraph. truss's lawyers argue the statement is false and defamatory, and suggests that it hurt her chances of re—election. the dispute focuses on the aftermath of truss's mini—budget in september 2022, which caused market turmoil, but her team say didn't lead to an economic crash. they highlight a report stating the economy, they say, actually grew faster after the mini—budget. truss is now demanding that sir keir starmer stops repeating the claim or face further legal action. farmers are voicing their frustrations and protesting outside this week's oxford farming conference, with the government facing mounting criticism over their policies. concerns are growing about tax changes and a lack of support, with many in the agricultural community saying they feel overlooked. in his speech to the conference earlier, the environment secretary, steve reed, unveiled labour's long

term vision, including a 25 year farming roadmap focusing on, he says, boosting profitability and ensuring food security. his speech follows strong backlash, though, from farmers over last year's budget, which included and introduced inheritance tax for agricultural businesses worth more than £1 million. weather, news and travel chaos continues to sweep across the uk as heavy snow and winds have caused widespread disruption. temperatures plunged to —11 c last night, with more snow and ice warnings still in place, affecting rail lines and airports. manchester airport was forced to close both of its runways, and transport for wales says it shut several rail lines due to damage from the bad weather. the health security agency has also extended its cold weather health alert until sunday, warning of serious health risks , and the princess health risks, and the princess of wales has wished his wife catherine a happy 43rd birthday,

praising her strength over the past year. in a heartfelt message shared on social media, william wrote that george, charlotte, louis and i are, he says, so proud. happy birthday catherine, signing off. we love you.the catherine, signing off. we love you. the princess of wales has, of course, returned to royal dufies of course, returned to royal duties after undergoing preventative chemotherapy following her cancer diagnosis last year. and alongside that message, kensington palace also shared a previously unseen photo of catherine showing her smiling in a very relaxed black and white portrait. very happy birthday to princess catherine from gb news. those are the latest headlines. i'll be back with you in half an hour. now, though, it's over to tom and emily. >> good afternoon britain. it's eight minutes past midday now. a survivor of the rotherham grooming gang scandal has told gb news she is disgusted and angry after a vote for a

national public inquiry was voted down in the house of commons last night. >> yes, elizabeth, which is not her real name, told charlie peters that she was especially sad for all of the survivors around the country who have not received local investigations ehhen received local investigations either. well, we can now speak with gb news national reporter charlie peters with all the details live in rotherham. charlie, thank you very much indeed. please tell us. >> well, elizabeth actually considers herself fairly lucky because in rotherham, like many survivors here, she welcomed an independent investigation that revealed in 2014 that some 1400 children had been abused. a year later, the casey report found that counsellors here belonging to the labour party tried to cover up that abuse. 1511