05/01/2018 BBC News at Ten

Tonight at 10:00pm, an apology

from the parole board after victims

of a black cab rapist aren't told

that he is about to

be let out of jail.

John Worboys, who was jailed

for drugging and assaulting

passengers in 2009,

is about to be released.

The parole board head says victims

should have been told.

We believed all the victims had been

told about that decision,

but we're checking today exactly

what did happen,

because clearly

something went wrong.

We'll be asking what could change as

a result of this controversial case.

Also tonight...

President Trump brands

a controversial new book

about his presidency as phoney

and full of lies.

But its author says he stands

by every word of it.

The one description

that everyone gave -

everyone has in common -

they all say he is like a child.

New car sales have fallen

for the first time in six years,

with demand for diesel cars plunging

by almost a fifth.

More than 2 billion paper cups

thrown away every year.

MPs call for a so-called latte levy

of 25p a cup to help recycling.

The East Coast of America

in the grip of an Arctic blast.

Temperatures could fall to minus 40

in some places tonight.

Coming up on sports day on BBC News,

the Merseyside derby kicked off the

FA Cup third round weekend. Could

Liverpool hold onto their lead

against neighbours at Anfield?

Good evening.

The chair of the Parole Board has

apologised unreservedly to victims

of the serial sex attacker

John Worboys, after some of them

were not told of his imminent

release from prison.

The black cab driver was jailed

in 2009 for offences against 12

women, but detectives later said

they believed he'd attacked

more than 100.

MPs are now calling for an inquiry

into why some victims were not

informed and whether their views

were sufficiently

taken into account.

Our Home Editor Mark Easton reports.

Rapist John Worboys has become

symbolic of the charge that police

and prosecutors in England and Wales

still don't take violent

sexual crimes against

women seriously enough.

The London cabbie, who drugged

and raped or sexually assaulted

numerous women in the back

of his taxi, is to be

released after nine years -

a parole board decision that has

prompted fury and questions,

not least - were victims ignored?

58 MPs have written

to the Justice Secretary calling

for an investigation into why some

of Worboys' victims were not

told their attacker would soon be

back on the streets.

I think it's very difficult at this

point in time to know what role

the victims have had in the decision

to give John Worboys parole.

They do have a clearly defined role

and what we're asking

is that the Secretary of State act

to ensure that has happened.

The head of the parole board has

apologised unreservedly to victims

who say they were not informed

of Worboys' imminent release,

accepting that the news must have

been very distressing.

The Ministry of Justice

says some victims had

chosen not to be informed.

But the questions raised by this

case go beyond the management

of Worboys' release from prison.

One urgent question -

why was parole granted?

It's likely he accepted guilt

for his convictions,

but quite how the board decided

he now poses no risk

must remain secret.

I'm not allowed by law to explain

the reasons for our decision.

And I've said before,

I'd like to get that changed.

And so if this pushes the idea

that the parole board processes need

to be much more open and transparent

and we get support for that,

then I think some good will have

come out of all this.

We need to understand

whether he's admitted guilt

in relation to the offences

that he was convicted

for and the police need to look

again at the possibility

of prosecuting him for those

many further offences

for which he is also suspected.

Given that more than 100 women have

said Worboys tried to drug

and sexually assault them,

the question why were so many

allegations not prosecuted

is being asked once again.

Allegations from 83 women

were referred to the Crown

Prosecution Service,

but only the experiences of 14

were raised at his trial

because prosecutors believed

the evidence in the other

cases was not good enough

to secure a conviction.

One of my clients, due to a very

poor police investigation,

did not succeed in having

her case prosecuted.

She was told by the police,

who reinvestigated it later,

that it didn't matter if her case

didn't go forward because there

were enough that were going forward.

Scotland Yard and the CPS have both

issued statements tonight

defending their actions in the case.

The Director of Public Prosecutions

at the time, Keir Starmer,

who was not involved

in the decision-making,

has urged victims to take any

allegations to the police.

I think these decisions

were nine years ago.

It's very important that you go

to the Crown Prosecution Service

and get an accurate readout

of the decisions that were made,

particularly if further allegations

are likely to be made now.

Thank you very much indeed.

But with police saying Worboys

may be Britain's most

prolific sex attacker,

did the original

punishment fit the crime?

This is a guy who drugged 12 women,

who carried out a campaign

attempting to rape a very large

number of women and who has served

rather less than ten years in prison

and is now said to be safe.

It's pretty surprising.

Worboys will have to comply

with stringent controls

while on parole, but his release

reactivates the debate about how

the criminal justice system

still treats perpetrators

and victims of sexual violence.

Mark is with me now.

This case has certainly caused a lot

of anger. What's likely to change

because of it?

I think the

government will have to look at some

of the questions raised by the case.

The head of the parole board himself

said there should be a review of the

rule that applies to automatic

secrecy to parole board rulings. The

committee of MPs that holds the

Ministry of Justice to account will

want to look at that. They will also

want to ask questions as to why

victims were apparently not told in

advance of Worboys' imminent release

despite the guidance. I think they

will also want to look at the

decision of the Crown Prosecution

Service, only to prosecute on such a

small number of allegations. 14

women out of more than 100. Is there

a better way to ensure victims do

not feel their experiences are being

ignored? As to the sentencing, the

type of sentencing Worboys received

was imprisonment for public

protection. That's an indeterminate

sentence, it's a sentence that

actually no longer exists. It was

introduced to deal with people whose

crimes were not severe enough to get

a life sentence, but could pose a

significant risk to the public on

release. There might be questions on

how you deal with those kinds of

dangerous prisoners more

effectively. I think the case will

reopen discussion about how justice

can best deal with offenders like

that and also more general

soul-searching on how police and

prosecutors can be more responsive

to the sensitivities around sexual

violence.

The author of a controversial

new book about Donald Trump's first

year as US President says everyone

he'd spoken to at the White House

described the President

as like a child, in need

of instant gratification.

The book, called Fire and Fury,

went on sale this morning -

four days early -

after the White House tried

to block its publication.

President Trump has called it

a phoney book - full of lies.

Our North America Editor,

Jon Sopel reports.

Not quite Harry Potter,

but at midnight last night,

they were queuing to get their hands

on Fire And Fury.

And if Donald Trump had the powers

of the young wizard,

he'd have made this book disappear.

But he doesn't, and this damning

portrait is now available

for everyone to read.

Wwhat I'm most looking forward

to is seeing what we all know

is going on just below the surface.

I'm expecting the White House to be

as absolutely dysfunctional

as the leaks would make it seem.

I don't think anyone really gets

tired of palace intrigue.

The picture it paints of life

in the West Wing is unsparing -

allegations of marital strain,

of tears and tantrums,

of dysfunction and improvisation.

And at the epicentre of every

storm, Donald J Trump.

I will tell you the one

description that everyone gave,

everyone has in common -

they all say he is like a child.

And what they mean by that is he has

a need for immediate gratification.

It's all about him.

And the gravest charge of all -

Wolff alleges that a number

of his unnamed sources told him

that the President was mentally

unfit to remain in office,

a charge that brought this response

from the President's spokeswoman.

It's disgraceful and laughable.

If he was unfit he probably wouldn't

be sitting there and wouldn't have

defeated the most qualified group

of candidates that the Republican

Party has ever seen.

The President has been on Twitter

to rubbish the book saying:

But that's not how

Michael Wolff remembers it.

I absolutely spoke to the President,

whether he realised

it was an interview or not,

I don't know, but it certainly

was not off the record.

The author says he

stands by every word.

Although with anonymous sources

it's hard to fact-check.

The most remarkable

thing about this is -

given Michael Wolff's track record -

why White House staff gave him

access to the inner sanctum

of the West Wing for months on end

as virtually a semi-resident.

The author was asked this

morning what he had to say

about the threatening legal letter

the President's lawyers had sent.

His reply?

Where do I send

the box of chocolates?

Jon Sopel, BBC News, Washington.

One of the killers of the toddler

James Bulger has been charged

with offences relating to indecent

images of children.

Jon Venables was recalled to prison

in November and his trial will be

held in an unnamed court.

Venables and his friend

Robert Thompson killed

two-year-old James in 1993 -

when they were both aged ten.

It's the second time he has

been recalled to prison

over child abuse images.

New car sales fell for the first

time in six years last year.

The demand for diesel cars

dropped by almost a fifth -

mainly because of concerns

about about pollution

and higher taxes.

Industry experts say they expect car

sales to continue to fall this year

because of a decline in business

and consumer confidence as well as

confusion over diesel cars.

Our Business Editor

Simon Jack reports.

2017 was the year the showroom

shine began to fade.

For the first time in six years,

sales of new cars fell,

dragged down by a plunge

in diesel sales.

It started with revelations that

Volkswagon and other manufactures

had hidden the amount of harmful

particles that they

were pumping out.

Customers lost faith,

governments clamped down,

and it led to confusion.

Would you buy a diesel?

No, I wouldn't.

Why not?

Because they are not so good

for the environment.

I'm worried about the future,

for my children and everything.

I did want a diesel car initially

and then we heard on the news

somewhere that within a couple

of years' time, we won't be

allowed to use diesel cars.

At a nearby garage,

customers, and even staff,

had similar concerns.

Perception today is that they are

bad for the environment.

Perception 18 months ago, two years

ago, were that they were the best

thing since sliced bread.

For years and years, they told us

diesel was safe, diesel was better.

And everybody has gone out

and bought diesel cars.

If they want us to go petrol,

what do we all do about diesel cars?

That customer confusion about diesel

has been showing up in the sales

numbers big time in 2017.

Right up to March, the sales

were hanging in there, just about.

After that, there is a precipitous

fall in the sale of diesel cars

and in fact here in December,

down a whopping 31%.

Now you would think that those

buyers would be buying other types

of vehicles like petrol,

but even petrol sales

were down in December.

So what is going on?

There is a lot of evidence that

diesel owners have simply held off

from buying a new car,

rather than going out and buying

a petrol or an electrified vehicle,

they want to know if it's

the right decision.

They need reassurance.

That will take very senior

members of the government

to put their weight behind it.

Motoring organisations agree

the government needs to send

a much clearer message.

Newer diesel vehicles,

typically those that have come

onto the market since 2016,

are actually some of the cleanest

that are coming onto the road.

And they are much cleaner

than the older diesels, and indeed

some of the older petrol vehicles.

But as its stands, the government

wants to ban the sales

of new diesel and petrol cars,

but not until 2040.

However, it's already letting

councils introduce their own charges

to tackle pollution.

It's already been

introduced in London.

The thing is, as drivers ditch

diesel to reduce one

type of air pollution,

carbon dioxide emissions -

higher in petrol cars -

have seen their first rise

in 20 years.

Simon Jack, BBC News.

Let's take a brief look at some

of today's other stories.

A man who murdered three

of his former partners has been

jailed for 26 years.

Theodore Johnson admitted beating

and throttling Angela Best

after she met another man.

He already had two

manslaughter convictions.

He pushed his wife off a ninth-floor

balcony in 1981 and strangled

a former partner in 1993.

House of Fraser which has 59 stores

across the UK has confirmed tonight

that they have contacted some

of their landlords asking

for rent reductions.

The company is due to

publish its Christmas

trading results next week.

They have been trying to cut

costs and revive sales.

Apple has said it recently

discovered flaws in some computer

processor chips that affect

all iPhones, iPads

and Mac computers.

The flaws could allow

hackers to steal personal

information from devices,

but there's no evidence

this has happened.

The firm says it will release

updates within days.

The Queen's granddaughter

Zara Tindall has

announced she's pregnant.

It will be her second

child with her husband,

the former England rugby player Mike

Tindall.

The announcement comes just

over a year after Zara

suffered a miscarriage.

The growth of solar energy,

using the sun's light

and heat to harness power,

throws up promising possibilities

for the way we live our lives.

And in Africa there are already

signs it can transform

homes in the poorest

and most isolated communities.

As our correspondent

Andrew Harding reports,

this latest revolution that's under

way could have an even bigger impact

across the continent.

On a flooded path in the rural

Zambia, Africa's past

meets Africa's future.

There's the old broken bridge,

a symbol of the creaking

infrastructure still holding back

development on this continent.

And there, perched on Judith's

head, sits the future.

Judith is a solar power saleswoman

on her way to a new client.

She works for one of several

companies now making inroads.

In the countryside,

here and across Africa,

almost no one is on the grid.

The costs, the distances

are just too big.

But today, small solar panels

are changing lives and saving poor

families a small fortune

in kerosene and batteries.

Inside, a box full of software

allows the company to make

its profit, charging a monthly fee

for power for the first

year and a half.

It's much better because we don't

even really know when electricity

is going to come to a community such

as this one.

But if we have people that

are bringing in such technology,

then it's better for this community.

So you jump ahead, you leapfrog.

Yeah.

That idea of leapfrogging over

old infrastructure is not

entirely new here in Africa.

The trailblazer is something you'll

now find in almost every hand.

The speed and the success

of the mobile phone revolution

in Africa has been extraordinary.

It's transformed this continent

and it's made a lot of other

businesses start to think,

why can't we do the same?

And so, across this sun-drenched

continent, poor countries

are turning to the technology that

could transform their economies.

Financially, it makes

a lot of sense.

Economically, it

makes a lot of sense.

And we believe, in the next ten

years, that the situation

will be totally different.

Solar electrification will be

a reality in this country.

And here it is in action.

The brand-new solar panel has been

charging on a roof all day.

And in a pitch dark farmhouse...

Yay!

The first taste of electric light.

Light for homework, light

for progress, as a continent seeks

to leapfrog into the future.

Andrew Harding, BBC News, Zambia.

Temperatures along the east coast

of America are expected to fall

as low as -40 degrees Celsius

in some parts tonight

as a brutal cold spell

continues into the weekend.

At least 19 people have died

since a powerful blizzard hit much

of the east coast yesterday.

The storm also caused floods

which have now frozen in the

record-breaking temperatures,

adding to the problems.

Thousands of flights

were also cancelled.

Laura Trevelyan is in

New York, where it's

expected to be -29 tonight.

The morning after the snow cyclone,

and this was the scene in one

part of Massachusetts.

An all-out effort is under way

to clear mountains of snow,

and the subzero conditions

are making life very difficult.

Even the sea has frozen

in areas of New England.

Yesterday's blizzard and the frosty

aftermath are producing

record low temperatures.

The winter hurricane conditions have

brought not only heavy

snowfall but flooding too.

In coastal Massachusetts, strong

wind coincided with the high tide,

so that in Boston there was a

three-foot storm surge.

The city's mayor is blaming

the changing climate.

We are keeping an eye

on all of those different floodings.

And if anyone wants to question

global warming, just see

where the flood zones are.

Those zones didn't

flood 30 years ago.

Not far from Boston in the beach

town of Revere, and the floodwaters

which engulfed the streets have

now frozen in place,

trapping the cars in ice.

The brutal conditions closed

New York's major airports,

although they've now reopened.

New Yorkers are trying to take it

all in their frozen stride.

I'm so bundled up.

I have so many layers,

I feel OK right now.

As long as I go quickly

to work, I'm OK.

I just want it to be over with.

It's been way too long and I just

want it to be nice and warm again.

The race is on to clear away

the snow in Manhattan before it

turns to dangerous ice.

The storm brought in all this cold

air from the Arctic,

and so in its aftermath we are due

to have subzero temperatures

for the next few days.

It is so cold out here, -10 Celsius,

that already I can hardly

feel my fingers or my toes.

Can you believe this is Tallahassee,

Florida, and we are getting snow?

They haven't seen snow

in almost three decades

in that part of Florida,

and the freezing temperatures

are prompting many Americans

to experiment.

This particular trick is proving

very popular in the deep freeze.

Laura Trevelyan, BBC News, New York.

Well, Sophie, they are calling this,

in the wake of that explosive storm,

the Arctic outbreak. Look at this

gorgeous fountain behind me, lit up.

It is like being in an art gallery,

like an ice sculpture. But it is a

very cold gallery. The temperature

right now with the wind chill is -15

degrees and is going to plummet

further. The National Weather

Service is saying the average

temperatures across the north-east

are 20 or 30 degrees lower than

usual. These are prolonged historic

low temperatures we are

experiencing.

Laura, from New York, thank you,

time to go and warm up.

2.5 billion paper

cups are thrown away

in the UK every year.

That's why a group of MPs is calling

for a 25p levy on disposable cups,

to encourage more of us

to have our hot drinks

in a reuseable cup.

Almost all of the paper cups

we use at the moment

end of up in landfill.

In fact, only one in

every 400 is recycled.

That's because the paper cups tend

to be lined with plastic,

and therefore paper recycling plants

won't take them.

Our consumer affairs correspondent

Nina Warhurst reports.

It's the smell.

It's the taste.

It's that dynamite start to the day.

But bubbling below the surface

is a whopping waste problem.

So, why are so few

cups being recycled?

Well, it's the way

that they are made.

You see, the outer paper is sealed

to the inner plastic that makes it

watertight, and separating those two

materials to reuse them

is a pretty sticky task.

And there are just three plants

in the country that can do that,

like this one in Kendal.

Environmental campaigners say it's

time that the government

rather than consumers coughed up

for more coffee recycling.

There isn't really the opportunity

for customers to do the right thing,

to recycle these disposable cups.

The facilities don't exist.

We have run schemes

in the past, in Manchester

and in the City of London,

showing if you do provide

the facilities to the public,

they will use them.

Some consumers say that they are

tired of top-up taxes.

I don't think it is

necessarily right.

We've got the charge

on the 5p bags, haven't we?

It's not ideal, but I think it's

probably necessary because they are

a massive environmental issue.

Today, the coffee

industry has fought back.

Some already use fully compostable

cups, and lots offer

a reverse levy of sorts,

a price reduction if

you bring your own cup.

There is a worry that this new tax

could be hard for some

customers to swallow.

If they are coming from the office,

for their lunch coffee,

they just might get a cafetiere

for the office, and they can just do

it in the office instead.

So you think it could be bad

for the coffee industry?

It might be, yes.

Where consumers create problems,

entrepreneurs innovate.

We think it is unique, in the sense

that it is three sizes in one.

There's a growing market

for cups that you can keep.

It is reusable and that means

over 1000 occasions,

you can use this, minimum.

So, close it up...

Non-drip, into the pocket

or the handbag.

The government must now respond

to this storm in a coffee cup

and decide whether it is them,

the coffee industry, or consumers,

who will carry the costs.

Nina Warhurst, BBC News, Leeds.

Cricket and Australia have

seized the initiative

in the second day of the fifth

Ashes Test against England.

Captain Steve Smith scored

his 6000th Test run,

as the hosts finished the day

on 193-2 to close in on England's

first innings of 346 all out.

Football, and it's been a big night

in Merseyside as Liverpool

and Everton faced each other

in the third round of the FA Cup.

Liverpool beat their

rivals 2-1 at Anfield.

Andy Swiss watched the match.

It is one of football's oldest

and fiercest rivalries.

Liverpool and Everton,

under the spotlight once more,

especially this man.

The world's most expensive defender

Virgil Van Dijk handed his Liverpool

debut and an early view of just

what this fixture means.

Wayne Rooney's enthusiastic

challenge earning him a yellow card.

If that was clear-cut, though,

this was more contentious.

A Liverpool penalty.

Everton's Mason Holgate may feel

hard done by but James Milner didn't

mind as he fired the hosts ahead.

On a chilly night, suddenly

the temperature was rising.

Holgate shoving Roberto Firmino

into the crowd and sparking

a furious reaction.

Anger on both sides but Liverpool

with the half-time lead.

Everton had barely threatened

but finally and thrillingly

they stirred into life.

A length of the pitch move

and a nervous finish.

Gylfi Sigurdsson.

Seemingly from nowhere,

they were level.

But with time running out,

it was the 75 million pound debutant

who grabbed the headlines.

Van Dijk with a most

rheumatic winner.

An unforgettable night

for him and for Liverpool.

Anfield, it seems, has a new star.

What a debut for Virgil Van Dijk,

and what a result for the Liverpool

fans. It was also a good night for

Manchester United, who have beaten

Derby County 2-0 at Old Trafford, so

two of the favourites for the FA Cup

are safely through to the next

round.

That's it.

Now on BBC One, it's time

for the news where you are.