the use of a more intense form of radiotherapy cut treatment times dramatically — doctors running the trial are jubilant. when i got the results, i was literally, i was blown away. i mean, it was probably one of the best days of my career. i think it's fantastic news for patients and it's brilliant news for the nhs. tragedy on a merseyside motorway after a school bus overturns — killing 15 year old jessica baker and the driver. the drive—by murder of the rapper tupac shakur in 1996 — a man in las vegas is charged.

rishi sunak says he's "slamming the brakes" on 20 mph speed limits and low traffic neighbourhoods. police arrest a man in his 60s over the felling of the sycamore gap tree in northumberland. and european elation at the ryder cup in rome — after they stun the states. 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. we begin tonight with news of a significant advance in the treatment of prostate cancer. an international trial has found that thousands of men every year

could be successfully treated with a more intense form of radiotherapy which would significantly shorten the time it takes to treat them. prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men with 52,000 cases diagnosed every year. one in eight men, and one in four black men, will be affected. and 12,000 die from it every year. the study was led by the royal marsden hospital in london, which said the treatment could help 8,000 men a year, and would help ease pressure on the nhs. here's our medical editor fergus walsh. there was no pain or inconvenience. the treatment was just so easy and swift. there was no downside to it. alastair kennedy—rose feels extremely fortunate to have had his prostate cancer treated in just five sessions of radiotherapy. eight years on, the 64—year—old is still cancer—free.

it was almost as though i'd never had prostate cancer because i didn't have any symptoms to start with and the treatment was so easy, ultimately so very effective. he was treated here at the royal marsden hospital in london as part of a pivotal trial involving nearly 900 men at 38 hospitals in the uk, ireland and canada. all the men had medium risk prostate cancer which had not spread. after five years, 96% of the men who'd had five high doses of multiple beam radiotherapy were cancer—free, compared to 95% who'd had at least 20 doses of standard radiotherapy. both groups had low side effects. the pink area is the prostate gland... the medical director of the royal marsden led

the international trial. for him, this is a big moment. when i got the results i was literally, i was blown away. it was probably one of the best days of my career. i think it's fantastic news for patients and it's brilliant news for the nhs. so what are the implications? well, it's going to be an enormous change. i expect though the nhs will rapidly adopt this, so instead of giving 20 doses of radiotherapy we can give five. if we extrapolate that across the whole nhs that's hundreds of thousands of doses of radiotherapy that are going to be saved. and in a system which, you know, is quite under pressure, that's going to be very welcome. another likely change is less use of hormone therapy in future. none of the men on the trial was given any and so were spared the side effects, like extreme fatigue, hot flushes and low libido. it will mean a better experience for thousands of men with prostate cancer every year, who will be able to have all their radiotherapy treatment in just a week and without the need

for hormone therapy. very quiet, peaceful. alastair�*s prostate cancer was picked up after a simple blood test. he wants all men over 50 to get themselves checked. and fergus is here. this feels very significant. these results are _ this feels very significant. these results are about _ this feels very significant. these results are about to _ this feels very significant. these results are about to be - this feels very significant. these results are about to be released | this feels very significant. these l results are about to be released at a radiology meeting in the us and they are important because they herald quicker, kinder treatment for thousands of men which will save the nhs money, so a win win. it is worth stressing that this is for men whose cancer is confined to their prostate but who are at medium risk of it spreading long—term. those with more aggressive cancer will be given other options like hormone therapy and prostate removal. treatment is generally getting better. most prostate removal is now robot

assisted and keyhole surgery which comes with fewer side effects and we now have the first gene targeted treatment. but we also need a screening programmejust treatment. but we also need a screening programme just like we have with bowel and breast cancer. men over 50 can ask for a blood test to check for levels of a particular protein. it is a useful test but it isn't completely reliable. eventually we may have mri scans which are likely to be used for screening but that is probably still a decade away. screening but that is probably still a decade away-— a 15—year—old girl, named tonight asjessica baker, and a driver have been killed after a coach overturned on the m53 this morning. it was taking pupils to two schools on merseyside when it crashed with dozens of children on board. most hospital patients have since been discharged but police say a 14—year—old boy suffered life—changing injuries. 0ur correspondent judith moritz reports. it's the school run which ended in tragedy. the children on this bus should have

been safely on their way to lessons, but they never made it. just after 8am this morning, in rush hour on the m53 motorway on merseyside, this coach taking pupils to two different schools overturned. all three emergency services raced to the scene, including a fleet of ambulances. with so many children on board, a major incident was declared. tonight police said that 15—year—old jessica baker was killed in the crash and the driver of the bus has also lost his life. fill" crash and the driver of the bus has also lost his life.— also lost his life. our thoughts are with the family _ also lost his life. our thoughts are with the family at _ also lost his life. our thoughts are with the family at this _ also lost his life. our thoughts are with the family at this time. - also lost his life. our thoughts are | with the family at this time. family liaison officers are providing special support to both families and we are working with schools, and councils to make sure the necessary trauma support is in place for the children on the bus.

a 14—year—old boy is said to have suffered life—changing injuries. all local hospitals were put on alert and a temporary centre for the wounded was set up. we have taken a number of patients to surrounding hospitals to be treated for minor injuries. 50 children were transported to a casualty clearing centre at the emergency service training centre in wallasey. of those 50, 39 have now been discharged. the remainder have been taken to hospital for further treatment. the children were going to two neighbouring schools — the boys to calday grange grammar school, and the girls to the neighbouring west kirby grammar school, where the teenager who died is thought to have been a pupil. trauma support is being offered at both schools, especially for children who were travelling on other buses in convoy with the one that overturned and who saw the crash happen. the m53 motorway in the wirral has been closed all day whilst the emergency service work to recover the bus and find out what caused it to crash.

no other vehicle is thought to have been involved. this is one of the bridges which runs over the motorway. you can see that merseyside police have cordoned it off. they tell us they need to secure the entire area whilst their investigations are continuing. the police are asking witnesses of the crash and drivers with dashcam footage to come forwards urgently. tonight two families are grieving, and with a large number of children impacted, both physically and emotionally, two school communities are reeling. judith moritz, bbc news, wirral. the killing in 1996 of the hip—hop artist tupac shakur in a drive—by shooting stunned the music world. today, 27 years later, police in las vegas charged a former gang leader with his murder. 0ur north america correspondent barbara plett usher reports. tupac shakur is still one of the bestselling and most influential rappers of all time.

he took off after the release of his debut album in 1991. just five years later he was gunned down, his career cut short. shot on the las vegas strip while waiting at a red light. hit by bullets fired from a passing cadillac, he died six days later. now, after 27 years, police have finally arrested a suspect. 27 years... 27 years. for 27 years the family of tupac shakur have been waiting for justice. we are here today to announce the arrest of 60—year—old duane keith davis, aka keefe d, for the murder of tupac shakur. keefe d was the leader of a gang that was feuding with tupac�*s record label, death row records. police said the whole thing started with this fight at a las vegas hotel. tupac and record executive suge knight punched and kicked a rival gang member. keefe d is accused of then hatching

a plan to retaliate. put your hands up. fast forward to july this year, police raided keefe d's home in a los angeles suburb. he's the man on the right. the case had been revived in recent years using his own words about the incident published in a memoir. tupac�*s musical legacy was honoured at the hollywood walk of fame earlier this year. the questions surrounding his death have also gripped his fans. they may soon get their answers. barbara plett usher, bbc news, washington. rishi sunak says he is putting the brake on the so—called "war on motorists." ahead of the conservative party conference this weekend, he's told the sun newspaper that 20 mph zones and low traffic neighbourhoods shouldn't be imposed on communities in england. 0ur political correspondent iain watson reports. rishi sunak has been doing more to set out his political

direction of travel recently. defying expectations, the conservatives held on in the uxbridge by—election injuly by opposing the extension of london's low emission zone. he's since delayed the ban on new petrol and diesel cars and is now signalling he's the motorists' friend. most people are getting around in their cars. it's important that when they do that the roads are well maintained and actually we should be investing more in road maintenance and potholes. and tonight the prime minister went further down that road, telling the sun newspaper he is going to slam on the brakes in the war against motorists. the prime minister's looking at limiting local councils' ability to introduce blanket 20 mile an hour speed limits, reducing the amount of round—the—clock bus lanes and there's already a review of the imposition of low traffic neighbourhoods in residential areas. but councils of all political colours — yes, including conservatives — have imposed 20 mile an hour restrictions. but with around 440,000 people signing a petition against an expansion in labour—run wales, the government sees a political opportunity in england.

rishi sunak is setting out his political dividing lines with a labour ahead of his party conference this weekend. he's hoping to put his opponents on the spot, challenging them on whether they'd reverse his plans for motorists. and we'll see the same approach adopted across a whole range of policy areas as we move closer to the next general election. but in east bristol not everyone thought there was political mileage in the prime minister's plans. i think the 20 mile an hour is good, it's proven to be a lot safer. i've got young children, so i'm for the 20 mile an hour speed limit. 30 was fine, providing you kept to 30, it's absolutely fine with us. 20's going to be a problem. and labour questioned the prime minister's priorities. while there are clearly issues to address for drivers, i think a lot of people will be quite shocked that this should be the priority when people are really struggling with the cost of living and struggling to access

basic public services. rishi sunak will drive to his party conference in manchester tomorrow. there's a train strike. but with many voters using their cars every day, he is now hoping to gain ground on labour. iain watson, bbc news. a second person has been arrested in connection with the felling of the sycamore gap tree at hadrian's wall. police say a man in his 60s is in custody and assisting with enquiries. earlier a 16—year—old boy, who was arrested yesterday, was released on bail. alison freeman reports. for many it wasn'tjust a tree — it was a special place. but today, forensics teams pored over the stump of this world—famous tree, taking photos and gathering samples that would help the police investigation. earlier today, a 16—year—old boy arrested on suspicion of criminal damage was released on bail. but tonight, northumbria police said they'd arrested a man in his 60s in connection with their inquiry. people are still sad

and angry about the loss, but now thoughts are turning to whether the tree can be salvaged. so, trees can recover from extreme events like this but they will grow differently. so, some trees can produce suckers from the bottom but they become multi—stemmed. what was significant about this tree was its form in the landscape. so it could never look the same? it would never look the same and it would also take 200 or 300 years. photographer ian has taken thousands of pictures of sycamore gap over the years. i feel really upset for the photography community because a lot of beginners choose this spot because it gives you that rule of thirds, you know? it gives you everything you need from a good photograph. so the beauty of this place as it was may have been lost but people are hoping there may be some answers as to why soon. alison freeman, bbc news, northumberland. a 17—year—old boy has appeared at

croydon magistrates�* court charged with the murder of 15—year—old elianne andam, who was stabbed to death on her way to school. the boy — who cannot be named because of his age — is also charged with possessing a kitchen knife in a public place without good reason. an nhs hospital trust in nottingham failed to send more than 400,000 digital letters and documents to gps and patients about their care over nearly 10 years. it is the second incident in england involving unsent nhs letters uncovered by the bbc this week. the trust says it carried out a full investigation in 2017 into the failure, and will now review it again. sharon barbour has the details. i saw the story breaking about newcastle. an nhs trust has apologised after it failed to send out 24,000 letters to patients... at the end of the story, they said, could this have happened anywhere else? and ijust thought, yes.

but at nottingham in 2017, the number of letters and documents not sent was far higher. they found it was a huge issue. a lot of letters had been unauthorised. how many? 411,000. no one at nottingham hospitals knew that those letters to gps and the documents hadn't been sent, that they were still here. i thought it would be all right now because the hospital would just, "hands up, we've got this problem, we found out about it, we are dealing with it," but that wasn't the case. a serious incident was declared, and some of the most critical cases were dealt with, but the trust says that 390,000 letters and documents remain on their system. information is absolutely vital to patients themselves, as well as, of course,

to the people looking after them. it's totally shocking that that many people have been affected by this problem for so many years. the health regulator, the care quality commission, have told us they knew nothing about it but are now planning a meeting with the trust. it was assumed that the risk to patients was low. the reputational risk was high. and that was repeated again and again. in response to our investigations, the nhs says it now wants all its organisations to check their computer systems that send correspondence to patients and gps. the government's told us that it's going to work with the nhs and will take action where necessary. nottingham hospitals say they found no significant harm to patients and confirmed they will now carry out a review of their original investigation, but there are wider fears that more trusts could be affected. this happened in nottingham in 2017, which is one year before it

happened in newcastle. if they had gone public and said, look what we did, it wouldn't have happened at newcastle. i would be very surprised if there's only newcastle and nottingham in the whole of the uk. sharon barbour, bbc news, nottingham. a state of emergency has been declared in new york after torrential downpours triggered flash floods, turning streets into rivers. in some places more than 10 centimetres of rain fell in just a few hours. from new york, here's nada tawfik. a morning of chaos in new york as torrential rain caused flash flooding. commuters became trapped as major roads and expressways turned into rivers. new york officials, declaring a state of emergency, warned residents the situation was dangerous and life—threatening, and urged them to stay home. every one of the city's subways was impacted, with services suspended on 17 lines in brooklyn, where gushing water

inundated the tracks and turned stairs at the grand army plaza station into a waterfall. low—lying areas here were already saturated by days of steady rainfall and an additional seven inches are expected in some parts of the region — remnants of tropical storm 0phelia. oh, my god. new york city emergency services are responding to calls of people trapped in flooded basements, and so far six people have been rescued. no deaths have been reported. the water has begun to recede in some areas, but with the downpour expected to continue into saturday, relief will be slow. nada tawfik, bbc news, new york. the charity barnado's says that tens of thousands of children are forced to sleep on the floor each night as theirfamilies can't afford to buy a bed.

a survey for the charity found that 6%, or more than 1 in 20, children in britain, did not have a bed in the past 12 months, while 9%, oralmost1 in 10, had been forced to share a bed with another family member. 0ur social affairs correspondent michael buchanan reports. we had the mattress there. and then we had the chair there, because some nights i'd sleep on the chair. and this is what the mattress was on, so it was very cold. for three months last winter, 16—year—old ash slept on a mattress in this room with her nine—year—old sister, while her mum slept on the sofa. you've got a sore back, you've got a sore neck. like, you can't really move much of a night—time, because the second you move, you've lost all your heat. but also, like, mentally, it's draining, because you're not getting the proper sleep that you need. the family couldn't afford to heat their home so gathered in the one room to keep warm. ash's bed had broken years earlier, so had long slept on a mattress.

your sleep is, like, it's a very important part of your life because without it you don't have the energy to do anything. you get to the point where you just, you're just miserable. like, you can't be happy if there's nothing to be happy about. how are we doing, mark? is it these two that we're getting in? at this charity in leeds, they've distributed almost 5,500 children's beds since they were set up five years ago. most referrals come from schools. 2,500 beds have been handed out in the past year alone as cost—of—living pressures stretch family finances. we will provide beds in increasing numbers to provide that immediate support for the families and the children that need that. we will also provide the wraparound support for families as well, because the next time they need a bed, we want their progression to be at a point where they don't need us. we are not a charity that wants to be here, and we don't believe anybody

in society actually wants charities like us to be here. hi, we're here from zarach. we've got your beds for you. the charity supports calls from barnardo's for benefits to be both raised and changed so that families have more money to buy essentials. bed poverty is one illustration, i think, of child poverty. families are having to make very, very difficult choices between heating and eating. they are just about managing, and there is no money for nonessential provisions within the home. ministers say they are providing households with record financial support, but for ash, a new bed from barnardo's was the most welcome help. it definitely makes a huge impact, not only of how you sleep but how you feel in the morning, because i can wake up in the morning and i'm not immediately in a bad mood, because i'm warm and i'm comfortable. michael buchanan, bbc news.

next week, voters go to the polls in an important by—election in rutherglen and hamilton west. they'll be voting to replace former scottish national party mp margaret ferrier, who was removed by her constituents after she broke covid lockdown rules in 2020. the labour leader sir keir starmer went there today, hoping his party can win it back from the snp. 0ur political editor chris mason reports. this contest not far from the centre of glasgow is an illustration of a crucial tussle come the next general election. yes, there are lots of candidates standing here, but all of the focus is on the battle between labour and the scottish national party. are labour reviving in races for westminster seats in scotland? the contest has come about after the former mp, who was elected on an snp ticket, acknowledged that she had broken the covid rules by getting

on a train from london to glasgow when she had covid, and when she knew she had covid. she has pleaded guilty to that but what has done for her politically is what is known as a recall petition, the first one in scotland, with folk here demanding a by—election. i was adhering to the covid rules. me and my partner couldn't see his dying grandmother, and they're out breaking rules. it's kind of like a slap in the face. to be honest, i'd be more than happy if margaret ferrier had stood again. in her circumstances, i would probably have done the same thing. i'd have wanted to bolt for home. if you've got the virus, stay in. don't go out. well, she should know better. than us, and she broke the rule. so, she deserves not to be there. the political landscape appears to be changing in scotland, and that matters, wherever you are in the uk. the scottish national party has had

a long period of dominance, but after the arrest of the former first minister — former snp leader nicola sturgeon — and the arrest of her husband, who used to run the party, could things be shifting? when labour last won a general election back in 2005, they won 41 seats in scotland. they currently hold just one. but could they be about to make inroads again? and what are the issues that really matter to people here? i mean, right now, the cost of living is obviously through the roof, and it's pretty much impossible to... to just live. the cost of living's dreadful. this country is going downhill. notjust scotland, i mean britain. it's terrible. we don't seem to be taken care of our own people. . that's right. 0ur pensioners, our- soldiers, doctors, nurses. these are all people that keep the place going, and yet they don't care. they really don't care.

in truth, labour has to win this by—election to just begin to prove that they might be able to mount a comeback in scotland. after all, they won this seat back in 2017 underjeremy corbyn. it's also true, though, that from keir starmer�*s perspective, the keys to downing street might just be jangling around in communities like this in and around glasgow and edinburgh, where the party hopes it could pick up up to a dozen or more seats come the general election. and that's why the results of this by—election will be pored over to give an insight into how well or not labour is doing. 0ur political editor chris mason there. and you can find a full list of all the candidates standing in the by—election on the bbc news website. europe's bid to regain the ryder cup got off to a dream start as they stormed into a 6.5—1.5 lead over a shellshocked united states in rome. 0ur sports correspondent

andy swiss was watching. it was a morning rush hour in rome, a 6am stampede, as fans charged to the first tee for that unique ryder cup atmosphere. the americans are here full of themselves, but there's more europeans, we're loud and we're better and we're going to win! they have all the noise. we have good play. we'll talk with our shots. but that american confidence was soon silenced. representing europe, - jon rahm and tyrrell hatton. cheering. roared on by theirfans, it was europe that showed the way in spectacularfashion. commentator: oh, my word! an inspired rahm helped bag the first point as the hosts' hopes of regaining the cup got off to a spellbinding start. unbelievable. viktor hovland gave the crowd plenty

more to shout about. and once rory mcilroy showed his pinpoint precision, europe had won all four opening matches for the first time in ryder cup history. and come the afternoon there was more joy for europe from the magnificent matt fitzpatrick. even mcilroy could only applaud. and while the us had their chances, the other three matches were all tired. justin rose dramatically denying them on the final hole. not a single win for the us. for the hosts, it could hardly have gone better. and so europe end the first day here with a five—point lead. the ryder cup still a long way from being won, but it's some start. andy swiss, bbc news, rome. time for a look at the weather. here's tomasz schafernaker.