01/01/2018 BBC News at Six

One of Britain's most

successful businessmen,

killed with his family

in a seaplane crash in Australia.

The plane plunged into

a river near Sydney -

Richard Cousins, his two sons,

his fiance, her daughter

and the pilot were on board.

1400 cars destroyed

after a ferocious fire

ripped through a multi-storey

car park in Liverpool.

Police are investigating

the overnight deaths of four young

men in unrelated knife

attacks across London.

Deal with your own rubbish -

China's message to Britain as it

stops recycling

imported plastic waste.

Good evening.

Air accident investigators

in Australia say it may take months

before they know why a seaplane

carrying a prominent British

businessman and his family

crashed on New Year's Eve.

Richard Cousins -

who ran a multi-billion

pound catering company -

was killed along with his

two sons, his fiance,

her daughter and the pilot.

They were on holiday and returning

to Sydney after a family outing.

Phil Mercer reports from Sydney.

The wreckage of the seaplane lies 13

metres below the surface

of the Hawkesbury River.

One of the victims was the British

businessmen Richard Cousins,

the chief executive of the world's

largest catering firm,

Compass, who was due

to retire later this year.

The company confirmed his

death in a statement.

Mr Cousins, who was 58, died

alongside his fiancee Emma Bowden

and her 11-year-old

daughter, Heather.

Also on board the seaplane that

crashed into Jerusalem Bay -

William Cousins, who was 25,

worked for Open Britain,

a pro-EU group set up

in the aftermath of the Brexit vote.

Colleagues said they were shocked

by news of his death.

His brother, Edward, who was 23,

had recently graduated

from the University of St Andrews.

Losing both my godson

and his sibling, and my

brother-in-law as well,

has left a huge hole.

They had a lot of friends.

They had...

They were very, very popular lads.

And that's because they've had

a fantastic upbringing,

from both my sister and Richard.

The pilot, Gareth Morgan, had done

more than 10,000 flying hours,

9,000 of which were on seaplanes.

The pilot had collected Mr Cousins

and members of his family

from an exclusive waterfront

restaurant, and was heading back

to Rose Bay on Sydney Harbour.

Shortly after take-off,

the plane plummeted into the water.

Investigators say it quickly sank,

and there were no survivors.

This is people that have come over

on holidays to visit Australia.

They were in one of the most

beautiful parts of the world.

And for this to happen to them

at a place like that is nothing

more than just tragic.

It could take months to work out how

and why a routine sightseeing trip

would end in utter disaster.

Air crash investigators

have begun their work.

Their task won't be easy.

The wreckage of the seaplane has

been submerged in more

than 40ft of water.

And although these idyllic bays

and inlets are geographically close

to Sydney, the crash site is tucked

away and hard to get to.

Sydney Seaplanes,

which owns the aircraft,

has suspended all its flights

until further notice.

Phil Mercer, BBC News, Sydney.

Four young men have been

stabbed to death in London

in a 24 hour period either side

of the New Year celebrations.

Three men, aged 17, 18 and 20,

were killed yesterday.

A fourth victim, another

20-year-old, died after being

stabbed in the early

hours of this morning.

Police say the deaths are unrelated.

Ben Ando reports.

Late morning, Enfield, north London.

The victim, aged 18.

Early evening, West Ham,

the victim, 20 years old.

Three hours later, Tulse Hill,

south London, a teenager of 17.

And then in the early

hours of New Year's Day,

a 20-year-old man killed

in Old Street.

All four, stabbed to death,

but according to the police,

none of the murders are linked.

Tragically, there are four families

who awoke this morning

to the heartbreaking news that

they've lost loved ones

to the callous use of

knives as lethal weapons.

Our detectives are working

tirelessly today and going forward

to bring those who've committed

these murderers to justice.

The three murders before midnight

take the total number of fatal

stabbings in London for 2017 to 80.

That compares with 60 in 2016.

Police say the reasons

for the increase are complex,

but it underlines the importance

of stop-and-search.

In November, a campaign to convince

teenagers not to carry

knives was launched.

London needs me alive...

One campaigner who lost a son

to knife crime says youngsters need

more help to make the right choice.

So I don't carry a knife...

They are living in total fear.

They weren't born killers.

They didn't just become like that.

It's a process.

And now, what we've got to do

is unravel that process,

stage by stage by stage,

to get to the core of

the individual, which is the state

of their heart and the state

of their mindset.

As work goes on at the scene

of the first knife killing

of 2018, the question is,

will is worrying trend continue?

Ben Ando, BBC News, south London.

Police investigating the death

of a woman who was killed

in a North London park over

Christmas, have arrested a 31 year

old man on suspicion of murder.

The body of Iuliana Tudos -

who was 22 and of Russian

and Greek origin -

was discovered in Finsbury

Park last Wednesday.

Police say she died of a stab wound

to the abdomen and a head injury.

Eye witnesses have been

describing a huge fire

which destroyed up to 1,400 vehicles

in a multi-storey car

park in Liverpool.

The blaze at King's Dock,

next to Liverpool's Echo Arena,

is said to have spread after one

vehicle caught fire

yesterday afternoon.

Firefighters worked

through the night and many people

were forced into temporary

accommodation as nearby

buildings were evacuated.

Danny Savage has the story.

It was shortly after dark yesterday

evening when fire took hold

on the multistorey car park

on Liverpool's famous waterfront.

The Fire Service says a small fire

in a Land Rover spread rapidly.

This is a photo taken

of it at the time.

As the blaze spread,

cars could be heard exploding.

The car park is next

to the Liverpool Arena,

where an International horse show

was taking place.

Those attending helped get

the horses to safety.

I just took it upon myself.

I said, right, OK, everyone,

listen to me, we are going to bridle

up the horses and we are going

to get them out.

I want you to all leave calmly now,

use this exit or use the tunnel.

It was soon a huge blaze.

Merseyside Fire and Rescue say

it is one of the worst

they'e ever dealt with.

This was a challenging incident.

Let's be, let's be under no

illusions about that.

The crews worked very hard indeed

to prevent the spread of this fire.

The fire burned for

much of the night.

All the car owners could do

was watch and accept they would

never see their vehicles again.

I've got a vehicle in there, yeah,

so I'm unsure at the moment

where it's going to be.

We can't get anywhere near it.

Are you holding out

much hope for your car?

Looking at the flames, no.

CHUCKLES

This morning the blackened building

was surrounded by fire engines.

It's likely it will have

to be demolished.

In the remains of this multistorey

car park there are many

hundreds of cars which have

been totally destroyed.

But we understand that right

on the rooftop level are some cars

which are almost untouched.

And after the fire had been

put out this morning

And after the fire had been put out

this morning after many hours,

some dogs, which had been left

in those cars were safely rescued

and reunited with their owners.

As the dogs were handed back

to their owners there was a hug

of gratitude for the firefighters.

The insurance bill will run

to millions of pounds

but thankfully no one was hurt.

Danny Savage, BBC News, Liverpool.

In Iran, another ten people have

been killed overnight

in anti-government protests -

that's according to state TV.

These are the latest deaths

after days of country-wide unrest

which began as a protest

against the falling

standard of living.

But now some of the anger has been

directed at the all-powerful Islamic

clerics who rule the country.

Rana Rahimpour reports.

on and on. Once again, thousands of

people have taken to the streets.

They are angry at unemployment,

rising prices, and what many think

is widespread corruption. It's the

boldest challenge to the country's

leadership in nearly a decade. The

demonstrations began in the

north-western city, a key base for

President Rohani's most outspoken

critics. And has quickly turned into

a widespread antiestablishment

movement. This is the biggest show

of dissent in Iran since the

post-election rallies of 2009. They

were large in size but limited to

urban areas of the country like the

capital, Terence. This time the

protests are more widespread with

towns and cities all over the

country looking for social,

political, and economic change. --

the capital, Tehran. Authorities are

continuing to suspend social media

platforms out of fear they will be

used to organise more protests. The

BBC has received reports of text

messages, like this one, being sent

to people urging them not to take

part. A handful of pro-government

marchers are attempting to counter

the wider demonstrations, but with

limited information coming out of

the country it's difficult to gauge

how many people are involved. In the

last 24 hours, President Rohani has

spoken out twice against the

protests. Accusing Iran's enemies of

instigating the armrest.

TRANSLATION:

Our victory against the

US and its regime is unbearable for

our enemies. Our success in the

region is intolerable for them. They

are after revenge and are trying to

provoke people.

But his words have

failed to calm the situation. In

certain areas of the country

unemployment is as high as 60%, and

reports of extreme corruption have

Iranians frustrated and hungry for

change. At least 12 people have died

since the protests began. And with

no sign of stopping that number

looks set to rise. Rana Rahimpour,

BBC News.

The leader of North Korea,

Kim Jong-Un, has warned

the United States that he has

a nuclear button on his desk,

ready for use, if his

country feels threatened.

But his televised New Year's Day

speech also seemed to open up

the possibility of better relations

with neighbouring South Korea -

from where our correspondent

Sophie Long reports.

Just after the first sun of 2018

rose over the Korean peninsula,

Kim Jong-un delivered his New Year's

address live on state-run

television, with an

unsurprisingly defiant message

for the United States.

TRANSLATION:

The entire

United States is within range

of our nuclear weapons -

and the nuclear button

is always on my desk.

This is reality, not a threat.

Perhaps more surprising

was the olive branch he appeared

to offer his neighbour,

South Korea.

He said he hoped the Winter Olympics

they're about to host

would be a success.

And said he was considering sending

a delegation to the Games.

That comes as music to the ears

of violinist Won Hyung Joon.

For ten years, he's tried and failed

to organise a peace concert

with these young South Koreans

playing together with

North Korean musicians.

He now hopes to make that happen

at the Pyeongchang opening ceremony.

We have hope that the Olympics

is coming, and everyone

is coming, and it's beyond,

you know, political difficulties.

So, I really wish North Korea will

come, and especially with musicians,

and we'll be able to play together.

The South Korean government has

welcome to the appeal

for dialogue, saying it,

too, is willing to engage.

After a year of nuclear tests

and missile launches,

young people living in Seoul

welcomed the New Year,

writing down their wishes with hope

that tensions might now reduce,

if only in the very

immediate future.

I feel optimistic, I think

everything is attitude,

and if we go in here with the right

attitude, the right approach,

I think we can solve the situation.

As a citizen of this country,

that's all I can really wish for.

It is obvious to anyone in the world

that we are in a very tense

situation right now.

And I think that means we have

hope for the future.

Sophie Long, BBC News, Seoul.

Now, if you've been bagging up

all that excess plastic packaging

from your Christmas presents,

have you thought where it ends up?

Each year, a quarter

of our plastic waste is shipped

to China in vast quantities.

But from today, China will not allow

the import of what it calls

"hazardous foreign waste" -

that's likely to have

a big impact here.

In the first of a series of reports

on how we deal with plastic waste,

Robin Brant reports from Shanghai.

Tono has been recycling for decades.

-- China has been. He has made a

living out of bashing, breaking up,

and disassembling. He's been doing

it for five years. It's hard work he

tells me. Tiring. But he's not a

green warrior. He does it because

there is money in it. China needs

the raw materials, so much so that

Chinese workers have been sorting

through dual waste shipped in from

abroad. But the government is

stopping that. -- your waste. China

has long been the destination of

much of the world's waste. It has

imported 7.3 million tonnes of

plastic alone in 2016. The UK sends

1200 tonnes of it to China every

day. Most of that is ending, and

here is why. China has become a much

richer but much dirtier country. It

is blighted now by home-made

pollution and contamination on a

vast scale. The government claims

some foreign waste is dangerous and

the last thing this country needs is

even more of that.

TRANSLATION:

China is putting the

onus back on all of the waste

exporting countries. You need to

show the responsibility of disposing

your own waste and your own sources

of pollution.

The band presents a

problem for China, though, because

it still needs the cardboard, the

paper, the high end clean

polystyrene like this which is easy

to ship here, easy to turn into

something to sell, and sometimes

sending it back to the country it

came from. Somewhere in there are

polystyrene fish boxes. From

Grimsby. This business on the

outskirts of Shanghai ships them,

chips them, he eats them, and turns

them into this... Billions of tiny

plastic pellets. Because it was

cycles them into skirting boards and

picture frames. -- because it

recycles. Some of it heading your

way. China's ban means the boss will

now have a problem with his supply.

Just keeping the factory running, we

need about 50,000 tonnes of recycled

plastics. China's recycling will not

be enough.

The tough restrictions

will hurt some businesses here, but

the government's view here is,

tough, delivering a cleaner China is

paramount for the Communist party

politicians. A green revolution, you

might call it. Robin Brant, BBC

News, Shanghai.

It's called the Loony Dook -

when more than 1,000 people

who've paid for the privilege -

dive into the freezing waters

of the Firth of Forth

to celebrate New Year's Day.

Many of the revellers

at South Queensferry wore fancy

dress while others stuck

to more traditional swimwear.

The annual fundraising event

has been taking place

for more than 30 years.

The participants were rewarded

with a bowl of porridge

for taking the plunge.