the bbc is told the national living wage is set to rise to £9.50 per hour in this week's budget. the build—up of warming gases in the atmosphere rose to record levels last year, despite the pandemic. the prime minister says he's worried next week's climate change summit may not reach agreement on solutions. it's going to be very, very tough, the summit. and i'm very worried because it might go wrong. we might not get the agreements that we need. it's touch and go. it's very, very difficult, but i think it can be done. and i think if you look at what the uk has done, we've cut our own co2 emissions massively. and coming up in sport on the bbc news channel: good news for england cricket fans, as ben stokes is added to the ashes squad who will head to australia next month. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. the united nations says afghanistan is heading for catastrophe with millions facing starvation, and the harsh winter months still to come. the world food programme has warned 22 million people, about half the population, are suffering hunger on a daily basis. and the bbc has found evidence that some families are even selling their children to make ends meet. international aid has dried up since the taliban seized power in august, while the world debates how to deal with the new regime. our correspondent yogita limaye reports from afghanistan. her report contains distressing images and details from the start. this is what starvation does to a country. to its tiniest lives. this six—month—old. bournemouth three months ago. afghanistan was barely surviving before the taliban took over, but no foreign funds which propped up this country have been frozen. putting at leasti million children at risk of dying. in frozen. putting at leasti million children at risk of dying. in this ward, one in five will not make it. this child weighs less than half of what he should. his father among millions who have no work. his mother told us, his twin is in a room next door. this hospital is full. some babies are already sharing a bed. while we were there, six more children were brought in. it's the only facility for hundreds of miles. because, without foreign money, most hospitals are collapsing. doctors and nurses among masses of government workers who haven't been paid for months. a third of the country's people don't know where their next meal will come from. we travelled out of herat to a rural settlement. tens of thousands displaced from remote provinces by decades of war and severe drought. no means of income, barely any food. some days families here don't eat. they have sold whatever little they had. and now some are forced to do the unthinkable. this baby girl has been sold by her family. we are hiding their identity to protect them. her husband used to collect rubbish, but even that earns him nothing now. once the baby is able to walk, she will be taken away by the man who bought her. he has paid more than half of the £400 she has been sold for. that will get the family through a few months. they have been told the girl will be married to his child, but no one can be sure. we know there are other families here have sold their children and even while we have been here another person came up to one of our team and asked if we would like to buy their child. the desperation in the urgency of the situation is hard to put in words. there is no more time left to reach the people of afghanistan. it cannot wait while the world debates whether or not to recognise a taliban government. nearby, aid agencies hand—out parcels that might save some children from hunger. alone, they can't provide for the staggering needs. giving the taliban money without guarantees on human rights and how the funds will be used is dangerous. but afghanistan is sinking fast. millions here will not survive the winter. yogita limaye, bbc news, herat. it could soon be compulsory for nhs staff in england to be vaccinated for coronavirus. the health seceratry sajid javid says he's leaning towards such a policy, though no final decision has been taken. it comes as the government announces an extra £5.9 billion for the nhs in england, with the money used to help clear the backlog of people waiting for tests and scans, and to buy equipment and improve it. our health corrrespondent dominic hughes reports. the nhs is facing a huge backlog of non—urgent diagnostic tests and procedures. this new money, known as capital funding, that pays for equipment and infrastructure, is designed to clear by the end of this parliament most of that backlog. nearly £6 billion will be used in part to fund a big expansion of diagnostic tests. that means more ct, mri and ultrasound scans. the government aims to create 100 one—stop shop community diagnostic centres across england, including more than 40 already announced. what that really means is investment in physical things that are really going to make a difference in tackling that waiting list, things like the community diagnostic centres, buying ct scanners for example, for more checkups and tests, investment in equipment, in beds, buildings, surgical hubs, and investment in it. as part of the uk's funding formula for the nhs, a proportionate amount of money will also go to the health services in scotland, wales and northern ireland. health experts have welcomed the extra money, but they point to the persistent problems around staffing. extra scanners are no good if you don't have the trained staff to operate them and interpret the results. without the staff, we can't deliver these services and deliver on this investment. and we have to remember, this isn'tjust about waiting lists, it's also about the demand in mental health services, the pressure on ambulances, a&e departments. those pressures show no sign of easing as nhs staff across the uk face the ongoing impact of the pandemic. the health secretary says around 100,000 health workers are still not yet fully vaccinated, and he's actively looking at making jabs compulsory for staff in england, bringing them in line with care home workers. it's a move some experts believe could backfire. when we speak to our members, they say, you know, it's really tricky, because in some ways mandating the vaccine for covid—i9 could be helpful in increasing the number of people vaccinated, but on the other hand, what if it leads to some staff wanting to leave their roles and that would be really challenging. staffing remains the single biggest challenge the health service faces, but given the time it takes to train people, that's a problem that will take years to solve and there is a danger the extra money at wednesday's budget may be wasted if the staff aren't available to use it properly. dominic hughes, bbc news. the bbc understands the national living wage is set to rise to £9.50 an hour. the chancellor's expected to confirm the rise, which applies to all those aged 23 years old and over, in his budget on wednesday. let's speak to our political correspondent damian grammaticas. what more do we know? what we have been told is the _ what more do we know? what we have been told is the national _ what more do we know? what we have been told is the national living - been told is the national living wage, this applies to those aged 22 and over, for those below that age it's the national minimum wage. it is a six and a half percent increase. below 22, the increase will be roughly the same amount. we expect to get more details later today. it follows a recommendation from the low pay commission which had this number at the top end of expectations. the government is looking to increase that figure up to £10.30 in a couple of years' time. inflation is running at about 3%. they say this applies to many people have been on front lines of the pandemic and have had a lot of job insecurity, so it's the pandemic and have had a lot of job insecurity, so its welcome for them, but it feeds through. other workers may look for pay increases, public sector workers, now 2.5 million of them, have had pay frozen and that could imply that their pay could look to go up, too. so this could look to go up, too. so this could then feed through to higher costs for employers, higher prices for consumers, higher prices for all of us. so it's a difficult circle to square, but the details will probably come on wednesday in the budget. probably come on wednesday in the budaet. . _, ., budget. damian grammaticas, our olitical budget. damian grammaticas, our political correspondent _ budget. damian grammaticas, our political correspondent in - political correspondent in westminster, thank you very much. downing street has released a recording of the prime minister taking questions from schoolchildren on climate change this morning, and he told them of his concerns about the forthcoming cop 26 climate change summit. it's going to be very, very tough, this summit, and i'm very worried because it might go wrong. and we might not get the agreements that we need, and it's touch and go. it's very, very difficult, but i think it can be done. and i think if we look at what the uk has done, we've cut our own co2 emissions massively. meanwhile, gases which cause atmospheric warming rose to record levels last year despite the pandemic. a report by the world meterological organisation shows that concentrations of co2, methane and nitrous oxide rose by more than the average rate over the last decade. the report's authors say this will drive temperatures above the limits set out in the paris climate agreement. let's get more from our environment correspondent matt mcgrath. matt, the report says the world is way off track for capping rising temperatures? indeed, it is. as you heard, the prime minister is pointing out he is concerned about the failure of cop26. scientists from the world meterological organisation say the physical facts of climate change are not getting any easier, are not helping him out in that respect. they put a report today that says, as you pointed out, concentrations of c02 as you pointed out, concentrations of co2 and other warming gases rose in the atmosphere, despite the pandemic. and this is because co2 and other gases last for centuries, so even a small bit of extra emission that goes up into the atmosphere will add to that total. they are really worried about that because it pushes us away from the tempter goals in the paris agreement, but there are also worried for another reason is. trees suck up large amounts of co2 and their concern to higher temperatures we are experiencing right now might make those sinks become sources and will make the trouble much worse in years to come, so there are concerns emissions are still high and could get higher if nature is not particularly kind to us. thank you very much _ particularly kind to us. thank you very much indeed. _ petrol prices have reached their highest ever price. motoring organisations say the average price paid for a litre of petrol is now 142.94 pence, beating the previous record set in 2012. diesel prices remain a little below its all—time high. analysts say its due in part to a doubling of the oil price since last year. thousands more drivers in london will face extra charges from today, as the city's ultra low emission zone expands to 18 times its previous size. motorists whose vehicles are older and more polluting will have to pay £12.50 a day to drive anywhere inside the designated area. it's the first such scheme in the world and will be watched closely by other cities like newcastle, edinburgh and manchester which are planning to introduce their own low emission zones. leigh milner reports. the extended ultra low emission zone, one of the largest pollution charging schemes in the world. the principle is the polluter pays. the original zone before covered just central london, but the expansion means it will be 18 times larger. campaigners say it will help clean the air for pedestrians. what makes me cross and frustrated is that it's not my pollution that the children are breathing in, its other people driving past in their cars, and the fact my children have to walk down those roads to get to school, they have to breathe in that pollution. they have no choice, and we have no way to stop it. if your vehicle runs on diesel and it was made before september 2015, or if you use petrol and it was made before 2006, then you will have to pay £12.50 a day to drive in the zone. if you don't then you could get a £160 fine. similar measures have already been introduced in other cities, such as birmingham, where its new clean—air zone, launched injune, is already making a difference. what we are seeing is that the rate of compliance, the rate at which people are upgrading and replacing vehicles, and particularly in the business sector, is increasing. for instance, with hgvs, and coaches in particular, they are above 90% compliant now. the existing zone in central london has cut pollution, but despite the health benefits many say they simply can't afford to replace and upgrade their vehicles. it literally is our lifeline. it's our only car that we've managed to find in years now that fits all three car seats in as it needs to. i've got twins with autism and another youngster as well. i haven't got the money to pay every time i go to the hospital. i live in chingford, so i'm right on the edge of it. it's a radical change, but one that many cities across the world will be looking at closely. leigh milner, bbc news. a teenager who's alleged to have shot and killed 15—year—old keon lincoln in birmingham earlier this year, has denied ever holding a gun. the 14—year—old also told birmingham crown court that he'd never carried a knife. keon lincoln was shot and stabbed outside his home in handsworth on 21st january. five teenagers deny murder and weapons offences. phil mackie is at the court. bring us up to date on what has been said. to bring us up to date on what has been said. ., . ~' ,, bring us up to date on what has been said. ., ., ~ i. . ~ ., bring us up to date on what has been said. ., ., ._ bring us up to date on what has been said. ., ._ ' said. to take you back to january 21 this ear, said. to take you back to january 21 this year. that _ said. to take you back to january 21 this year, that was _ said. to take you back to january 21 this year, that was when _ said. to take you back to january 21 this year, that was when keon - this year, that was when keon lincoln was killed outside his home in handsworth in birmingham. video shown at the start of the trial showed the attack, it lasted around 40 seconds and showed a group of people get out of a car, chase him outside his street, one of them firing a gun and the others carrying knives. that is when he died. the prosecution at the start of the trial describe it as a short and brutal attack. today after 2.5 weeks, the prosecution finished its evidence and the first defendant started to give evidence. he is the 14—year—old they allege was the gunman in the attack. he was asked by his barrister, do you carry a knife. he said no. have you ever seen a handgun or carried one. he said, no, sir. he said on the day of keon lincoln's death he had been elsewhere. he was supposed to have been at school but after logging on in the morning for a remote section he logged off and spent the day with friends. he said he knew keon lincoln because they had been at school together but he didn't know him very well and keon lincoln had left his school one year earlier. he denied being at the scene of the attack and said he was in a flat elsewhere. he has been giving evidence today. this afternoon he will be cross examined. he has already admitted lying to the police in his first interview. the trial here is expected to last another couple of weeks. phil here is expected to last another couple of weeks.— here is expected to last another couple of weeks. phil mackie from bombin: couple of weeks. phil mackie from bombing thank — couple of weeks. phil mackie from bombing thank you. _ the time is 1:15pm. our top story this lunchtime: the world food programme says afghanistan is on a countdown to catastrophe, with millions facing starvation with evidence that some families are even selling their children to make ends meet. and coming up, we hear what businesses and residents in burnley are looking for in this week's budget. and coming up in sport on the bbc news channel, not giving up. ole gunnar solskjaer says he will fight on despite his "darkest day" as a manager following manchester united's 5—0 defeat to liverpool. on wednesday, the chancellor will set out his tax and spending plans in his budget. he has to balance the need to deliver his party's election promises, while also finding ways to pay back some of the costs of covid and also deal with the impact of rising prices. our business presenter ben thompson has been back to his hometown of burnley to find out what people there want from the chancellor this week. burnley in east lancashire. a town of nearly 90,000, and it's where i was born and grew up. and it has been a labour stronghold for more than a century. but at the last election the town put its faith in tory promises to level up, to create jobs, opportunity and growth. this week we'll find out how the chancellor plans to do that. so i've come home to find out what people here are hoping for. levelling up here means something very different. this firm makes audio equipment for the music and movie industry. it's made in burnley but made famous in hollywood. its boss says the chancellor just needs to make it easier for businesses to operate, without imposing big ideas from westminster. as much as anything what we want to do is get any help we can to carry on doing what we are doing, rather than have somebody parachute a great political idea on our heads. i think its support for what we're doing and enabling us to do it better and faster. but there are other pressures, too. soaring energy bills and rising prices mean the cost of living is going up for everyone. incomes are being squeezed. can the chancellor deliver anything to ease our personal budgets too? we need better pay. if we don't get better pay people are going to struggle. stores like these, i don't think they will stay around long if we don't have money to spend. you've just got to pay for what you got to pay. if not, work more hours. and for people like jane, who runs a restaurant nearby, rising food and staff costs make it harder to balance the books. feeling like we're being constantly squeezed by the government for more. and i think they do that because they understand how resilient independent business people are and they know we will fight to keep what we have got. if you're going to help businesses, show us how you are going to help them. on wednesday we will see the details of the chancellor's plans. spending and investment is perhaps the easy part. much harder is creating jobs, opportunity, growth and optimism in places like my hometown. ben thompson, bbc news, in burnley. a new report says many councils are still not paying home care providers enough to cover costs such as the time spent travelling between visits. the home care association says demand for services to support people in their homes is growing, but care companies are losing staff because of low pay. last week, the government announced a £162 million fund to help recruit care workers in england. here's our social affairs editor, alison holt. for 16 years denise has been driving around south yorkshire caring for people in their own homes, whatever the weather. doing myjob is great reward, great satisfaction. every day is different. you meet different people in different circumstances. her company looks after a lot of people paid for by their local authority, but today's report says many councils don't cover the real costs of care, including travel time. she loves herjob but understands why many are put off. you recruit people but when they go out there and they realise that you're getting up at five in the morning and sometimes you won't get home until 11 at night and you might nip home forfive or ten minutes, the money does not be level with the job for what you do. how have your interviews gone this week? i've had a couple, | a few not turn up. back in the office, they've had to hand back some council contracts because they can't recruit enough staff. they want to be able to offer more pay. right now i think we are about 25% underfunded. that 25% would, yes, it would address the terms and conditions we need to look at for our amazing care workers, but it would also mean we could invest in our office teams, give them some more support for the work they are doing. and look at other methods. we are miles away at the moment in terms of the rates that are being paid. the association representing uk homecare companies calculates that the minimum cost of an hour of home care is £21.43. that covers the minimum wage, pensions, travel, training, backroom staff and 62p for profit or investment. but on average uk councils and health and social care boards pay £18.45 an hour, with one local authority paying just £12.68. and in cumbria, the local authority pays the second lowest average hourly rate at £13.85. it means kelly's company has stopped council work. concentrating on private clients means, rather than short time slots, people are supported in the way they want. with it being such a lovely day, we managed to have a little walk by the river as well. it wasn't planned, but sometimes that's very much what the role is. if there is an opportunity to do something, we'll do it. the standard of care that we deliver simply can't be delivered for the price that the local authority are willing to pay. and that's tragic. it's tragic for the people in the community, and it's tragic for the people that are desperate waiting for care and they simply can't get it. councils say government reforms should increase the fees they pay for supporting people who are older or disabled, but they aren't sure the money will go far enough. alison holt, bbc news. one of saudi arabia's former top intelligence officials has described the country's de—facto ruler, crown prince mohammed bin salman, as a "psychopath". saad al—jabri claims the crown prince suggested he could assassinate the country's former king abdullah. here's our security correspondent, frank gardner. two men at war with each other. on the left, saudi arabia's all—powerful crown prince, mohammad bin salman. on the right, doctor saad al—jabri, the former saudi number two in intelligence will stop he fled to canada after the crown prince seized power four years ago. he said he was targeted by a hit squad. i he said he was targeted by a hit su uad. . he said he was targeted by a hit suuad. . ., ., ., squad. i am here to sound the alarm about a psychopath _ squad. i am here to sound the alarm about a psychopath killer _ squad. i am here to sound the alarm about a psychopath killer in - squad. i am here to sound the alarm about a psychopath killer in the - about a psychopath killer in the middle east, with infinite resources. a psychopath with no empathy, doesn't feel emotion, never learn from his experience. and we have witnessed atrocities and crimes committed by this killer. the have witnessed atrocities and crimes committed by this killer.— committed by this killer. the saudi embass in committed by this killer. the saudi embassy in washington _ committed by this killer. the saudi embassy in washington has - committed by this killer. the saudi. embassy in washington has dismissed the claims saying saad al—jabri stole millions of dollars from the government, which he denies. in saudi arabia, two of the doctor's children have been seized from their homes when they were still teenagers. they are now in prison accused of financial crimes which the family denies. it says the crown prince has also gone after doctor saad al—jabri's son—in—law. the saad al-jabri's son-in-law. the first night _ saad al-jabri's son-in-law. the first night he — saad al-jabri's son-in-law. the first night he was _ saad al—jabri's son—in—law. the first night he was kidnapped. he received — first night he was kidnapped. he received more than 100 lashes, he was tortured. he was beaten on his back, _ was tortured. he was beaten on his back, on— was tortured. he was beaten on his back, on his — was tortured. he was beaten on his back, on his legs. he was being told that he _ back, on his legs. he was being told that he was— back, on his legs. he was being told that he was being detained and tortured — that he was being detained and tortured as a proxy for his father—in—law, me mined out. he was even _ father—in—law, me mined out. he was even asked. _ father—in—law, me mined out. he was even asked, who do think we should arrest _ even asked, who do think we should arrest and _ even asked, who do think we should arrest and torture so ulez will come back to _ arrest and torture so ulez will come back to the — arrest and torture so ulez will come back to the kingdom. in arrest and torture so ulez will come back to the kingdom.— back to the kingdom. in 2010 doctor saad al-jabri — back to the kingdom. in 2010 doctor saad al-jabri tipped _ back to the kingdom. in 2010 doctor saad al-jabri tipped off— back to the kingdom. in 2010 doctor saad al-jabri tipped off western - saad al—jabri tipped off western intelligence about an al-qaeda bomb plot. explosives had been smuggled inside printer ink toner cartridges on planes bound for chicago. the says his help save lives. now dr saad wants the us government to pressure the saudis to release his children. i pressure the saudis to release his children. ., ., , , ., ~ ., ., children. i have to speak out. i am a- ealinu children. i have to speak out. i am appealing to _ children. i have to speak out. i am appealing to the — children. i have to speak out. i am appealing to the american - children. i have to speak out. i am appealing to the american people | children. i have to speak out. i am . appealing to the american people and to the american administration to help me to release those children and to restore their life.— and to restore their life. crown prince mohammad _ and to restore their life. crown prince mohammad bin - and to restore their life. crown prince mohammad bin salman| and to restore their life. crown l prince mohammad bin salman is and to restore their life. crown - prince mohammad bin salman is on a mission to rehabilitate his global image. after being accused of murdering journalist jamal image. after being accused of murdering journalistjamal khashoggi murdering journalist jamal khashoggi three years murdering journalistjamal khashoggi three years ago. his public investment fund has bought a majority stake in newcastle united, something welcomed by the fans and condemned by his critics. today's allegations will only add to the controversy that surrounds the west's dealings with saudi arabia. frank gardner, bbc news. the beijing marathon has been postponed indefinitely. it comes as the country tries to tackle an outbreak of the highly contageous delta variant of covid—19. officials want to restrict entry to beijing as they try to rein in the outbreak across the north of the country in the run—up to the winter olympics. cricket now, and all—rounder ben stokes has been added to the ashes squad that'll head to australia next month. he's been given the all—clear by his consultant after a second operation on a fractured finger which he broke in april. he's also taken time out to focus on his mental health. time for a look at the weather. here is louise lear. i think if you were to take a straw poll and ask people what they think of october weather so far, mild. over the next two days, quite showery. it is mild, but take a look at this stunning rainbow photo. if you get caught in the showers they mean business. this was bournemouth earlier. i suspect that's a crazy golf course down there and i suspect there won't be much of that this afternoon. showers across england and wales are pretty hit and miss but the most frequent are up in western scotland, a real cluster being driven in. blustery winds and gusts in excess of 30 mph. the rest of the afternoon, the risk of plenty of the afternoon, the risk of plenty of showers here.