after staging a hate crime against himself. the high court rules that the wikileaks founder julian assange can be extradited to face charges in the united states. and, it's not over yet — england captainjoe root leads a recovery in the first ashes test in australia. and coming up in the sport later in the hour on the bbc news channel: we'll have the latest from abu dhabi ahead of the climax to the formula one season, we've had first practice. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. in the last hour, an inquest has concluded that police mistakes probably contributed to the death of three young men who were killed by a serial killer. the jury found that errors and omissions made by detectives after stephen port killed his first victim meant that he was free to kill three other young men before being caught. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford has this report. four lives cruelly cut short by a serial killer. fashion student anthony walgate from hull, gabriel kovari from slovakia, young chef daniel whitworth from kent and forklift driverjack taylor from dagenham. all murdered with the date rape drug ghb. but the police could have stopped the killing. the men's bodies had all been discovered in the same small area of barking in east london over a period of less than a year and a quarter. but detectives simply didn'tjoin the dots. they didn't investigate. they didn't do the smallest of things that you would expect a police officer to do. they didn't do theirjob, as simple as that. it all began injune 2014 when 23—year—old anthony walgate was found dead outside stephen port�*s flat in barking. it was port who had called the ambulance, and almost immediately the police errors started mounting up. the mistakes are too many to list but they went on for 15 months before port was finally arrested for murder. and by that time, three other young men were also dead. after anthony walgate died and port reported the body, detectives missed this record in the police national database of port at barking station with a man who could barely walk after taking ghb. and they failed to examine port�*s computer which would have shown him repeatedly searching for videos of young men being raped while unconscious on drugs. anthony's mother is convinced a better police investigation would have stopped port within weeks of her son's death. all the other victims would have been saved if they could have just actually been bothered to investigate anthony's murder. stephen port was arrested on suspicion of lying about moving anthony's body. but the investigation of the death went no further and he remained on bail, free to kill again. ten weeks later, a second body was found in a church graveyard less than 400 metres from stephen port�*s front door. it was gabriel kovari, another gay man in his 20s. detectives didn't connect the two deaths and did so little that the officer tasked with liaising with gabriel's family never spoke to them. and just over three weeks later, in the same corner of the same graveyard, the body of daniel whitworth was found. he had what appeared to be a suicide note around his neck in which he also said that he'd taken gabriel's life. detectives just accepted what written when in fact simple checks would have shown he was nowhere near barking when gabriel died. it meant that for months police were telling daniel's family that he'd killed himself and gabriel when, in fact, he'd been murdered. it does make you angry and upset, yeah, and distressed. because it has obviously had tragic consequences, you know. in march 2015, port was jailed for lying to police about moving the first victim's body. for now, the killings stopped. but so did any further investigation of the first three deaths. then in september 2015, three months after stephen port was released from prison, the body of jack taylor was found metres from where the previous two bodies had been discovered. this time there was cctv, recovered not by detectives, but by a parks police officer on his bike. it showed the dead man meeting a tall stranger in the middle of the night. but it still took the persistence of jack taylor's sisters to persuade officers to make a public appeal using the pictures. we asked and we were told no. we asked again and we were told no. and then eventually they listened to us and they did put it out. and thank god they did do that because obviously then we found out who that was. working from google late at night and making handwritten notes, the sisters had spotted many of the key suspicious factors linking the deaths that the police had missed. they told me they now want some of the incompetent officers involved to be sacked. i don't think they should be in the position they are in anymore. i don't think they should have thatjob. we've ended up with anxieties and things that we didn't even know existed, sleepless nights, god knows what. our whole world tipped upside down. but they get promoted. they get to carry on their lives. and that's shocking. it's very shocking. the metropolitan police has refused to accept that the four men's deaths were investigated so badly because they were gay, that officers either made prejudiced assumptions, orjust didn't care enough about the men. but it has agreed that officers were incompetent, describing some of the errors as astonishing. daniel sandford, bbc news, barking. 0ur correspondent helen wilkinson is at the inquests. 0ur correspondent helena wilkinson is at the inquests. there is at the inquests. are some devastating findings here, there are some devastating findings here, not least for these young men's families.— men's families. yes. these are absolutely _ men's families. yes. these are absolutely damning _ men's families. yes. these are | absolutely damning conclusions men's families. yes. these are - absolutely damning conclusions for the metropolitan police. the family have always thought they could have been a different outcome had the deaths of these young men been investigated properly and had they taken the concerns of family and friends seriously. we now know, as we have been reporting in the last half an hour, thejury has we have been reporting in the last half an hour, the jury has concluded here that failings by the metropolitan police contributed to the deaths of three men murdered by the deaths of three men murdered by the serial killer stephen port. we are not talking about, as you heard in daniel's report, one or two or three mistakes, a catalogue of mistakes, they simply did notjoin up mistakes, they simply did notjoin up the dots when they were investigating the deaths of these three young men. simple checks were not done, and despite the fact that these four young men were found in a similar area, these four young men were found in a similararea, infact, not these four young men were found in a similar area, in fact, not farfrom similararea, infact, not farfrom where similar area, in fact, not farfrom where we are, and they were all found after having had a lethal dose of the drug ghb. the family are furious at the incompetence of the police who made the mistakes. they are also very angry that some of those officers whose performance was found to be well below the standard, have also been promoted, and also, as daniel mentioned there, they believe there was bias because these young men were gay. the met police have denied there was any prejudice but have apologised for their failings. but have apologised for their failinus. ., . ~ ,., but have apologised for their failinus. ., ~ ~ ., ~ failings. helena wilkinson, thank ou. the prime minister is facing continued pressure after it was revealed that his director of communications, jack doyle, attended a christmas party in downing street on 18th december last year. that gathering, as well as two others, are the subject of an investigation by cabinet secretary simon case. number 10 has this lunchtime said they have full number 10 has this lunchtime said it has full confidence in mr doyle. ione wells has the latest: simon case is borisjohnson —— boris johnson's director of commune occasions and he was at the party in december and this matters because he is in charge of the government has messaging. first that no party happened and then that no rules were broken has come underfire happened and then that no rules were broken has come under fire this week. ministers have toed the party line, saying they don't know what went on, but will that stand the test of an investigation? the cabinet secretary, _ test of an investigation? tue: cabinet secretary, i'm test of an investigation? tte: cabinet secretary, i'm sure, is investigating all these questions will stop so we will see the results of that in due course. but last christmas i was spending my time getting trade deals over the line. some have gone further with the chief whip mark spencer claiming to the bbc this was a covid meeting, despite the bbc being told food and drink was served, games were played and invites were sent out in advance. while the government because my transparency and honesty is under scrutiny, the prime minister is facing separate allegations of misleading his own advisor over a £54,000 donation from tory peer lord brownlow towards the refurbishment of his flat in downing street. the tory party has been fined nearly £18,000 for not properly declaring the donation. in may, borisjohnson is's independent adviser on standards lord geidt cleared him of wrongdoing and said he wasn't aware of how the costs were paid until fabry this year. but the electoral commission said yesterday boris johnson the electoral commission said yesterday borisjohnson had sent a whatsapp message to the donor in november last year to ask for extra money for the works. no 10 said the prime minister did not withhold information from lord geidt, but the bbc understands lord geidt is unhappy with what has emerged and labour accused the prime minister of misleading his own adviser. this labour accused the prime minister of misleading his own adviser.— misleading his own adviser. this is 'ust the misleading his own adviser. this is just the latest _ misleading his own adviser. this is just the latest in _ misleading his own adviser. this is just the latest in allegation - misleading his own adviser. this is just the latest in allegation of - just the latest in allegation of dishonesty from the prime minister, and we have had a lie upon lie in relation to the party is going on in downing street. the prime minister is not fit for office. the downing street. the prime minister is not fit for office.— is not fit for office. the heat on the prime _ is not fit for office. the heat on the prime minister _ is not fit for office. the heat on the prime minister is _ is not fit for office. the heat on the prime minister is not - is not fit for office. the heat on the prime minister is notjust i the prime minister is notjust coming from the opposition. there is a mounting tory rebellion growing over his plans to introduce covid passports in england and former ministers are among those publicly criticising his leadership. t do criticising his leadership. i do wish him well. _ criticising his leadership. i do wish him well. i— criticising his leadership. i do wish him well. i know - criticising his leadership. t gr wish him well. i know he can do this but at the moment, if i was him looking in the mirror, i would be saying, surely i can do this better. mps will vote on the new coronavirus regulations in england on tuesday. but the more telling will be the vote on thursday when people in north shropshire will be electing a new mp. it is there that a true test will be held about whether this prime minister is starting to cost the party votes. let's get more on this from our political correspondent ione wells. there's pressure from mps on other fronts. that's exactly right, after weeks of negative headlines about sleaze, now negative headlines about sleaze, now negative headlines about honesty, both about christmas parties last year, but also this investigation into the refurbishment of his flat. this is certainly starting to upset a number of conservative mps, disgruntled by the amount of e—mails they're getting from constituents about some of these matters, particularly the christmas party and there is also growing up set among conservative mps about the new coronavirus restrictions in england with 51 of them now saying that they are opposed to the new regulations and likely to vote against them. i understand as well that at cabinet where these measures were signed off, a number of senior cabinet ministers also vocally expressed their opposition to these new restrictions. so i think this will be a difficult vote for the government in the house of commons on tuesday, but perhaps an even stickier vote for them on thursday where electors in north shropshire will be replacing the mp 0wen paterson whose resignation for breaching lobbying rules triggered lots of those headlines about sleaze. so certainly attest there for the prime minister himself. in the meantime, perhaps in a bid to try and alleviate some of the pressure on him at the moment, it has been confirmed downing street will not be having a christmas party this year. will not be having a christmas party this ear. ., ~ , will not be having a christmas party this ear. ., . , ., ~ will not be having a christmas party this ear. ., ~ , ., new rules about face coverings have come into force in england — meaning wearing a mask is compulsory in indoor settings including cinemas, theatres, museums and places of worship, unless you're medically exempt. ministers hope the move will slow the spread of the new 0micron variant. it brings england's covid measures more into line with the other uk nations, as our business reporter esyllt carr reports. at the big screen, some big changes. at this cinema in birmingham, they are getting ready to ask customers once again to wear face coverings while they are watching a film. it has been a bit of a rush, putting up signage, getting the message out to customers has been important as well, that we are still open, even though you've got to wear masks now. from today, new rules apply in england, bringing it closer in line with the rest of the uk. now, face coverings are compulsory in most indoor public venues, like cinemas, theatres and places of worship. under—12s are exempt. masks have already been reintroduced in shops, hairdressers, and on public transport, but you still won't have to wear one in pubs and bars. i've never stopped wearing my mask. even on the travel, i never have. i'm going to see spider—man next week. wearing a mask in a cinema is going to be annoying, to be honest. it the film is two hours long, i think it's a good thing. - new rules on facemasks are part of the government's plans to try and limit the spread of the new 0micron variant. it is too early, really, to fully understand either the severity, or the amount that this variant is going to escape either the vaccines or the immunity you get from previous infection, but, it certainly appears highly transmissible, and that's why it's important for us all, really, to take precautions now. as venues put the new rules in place, it's unclear how far they can make people follow them. an issue ministers acknowledge. it is difficult to enforce. i'm not expecting junior members of staff to put themselves at risk, but they need to work with local authorities and indeed the police in the most egregious situations. last night theatre goers were already following the new rules and, despite the uncertainty, theatre owners were relieved the new restrictions didn't go further. we are delighted that we can stay open at 100% capacity. because none of the big shows can stay open at 50% capacity. which is what we had before. the restrictions are due to be reviewed early next year, but, for now, and in this crucial festive period, the show remains on the road. esyllt carr, bbc news. scotland's first minister nicola sturgeon has said the country could see a "tsunami of infections" from the 0micron variant of covid. she said it could become the dominant form of coronavirus in scotland by the beginning of next week. the first minister said that cases appeared to be doubling every two to three days. 0ur scotland correspondent james shaw is in glasgow. tell us more about what the first minister has been saying, james. tt minister has been saying, james. tt was a very stark warning, the kind of warning we have not heard from nicola sturgeon for quite a long time, since the dark days of the first and second waves. essentially what she was suggesting was that scotland could be facing another wave of coronavirus, and that is because of the nature of this new variant, 0micron. the way it was described by the first minister and by the experts, the health experts with her, is that it spreads much more easily. they said it had what they called a high attack rate, and that means essentially if you are in a room with a group of people, 50% of the people in that room will get the disease, if one person, one infectious person is in that room. and that is what lies underneath the advice which came from public el scotland yesterday, and was emphasised by the first minister today, that people should defer their christmas parties. this doesn't have the force of law, it is only advice, but she pointed to a number of cases where it seems there have been super spreader events. a party involving accident & emergency staff in lanarkshire, many scotrail staff in lanarkshire, many scotrail staff off work at the moment, these are the kind of situations that indicate you nicola sturgeon and her medical experts that there is a real threat from this new variant of coronavirus.— threat from this new variant of coronavirus. , ., , ,, ., , ., , ., coronavirus. james short in glasgow, thank ou. coronavirus. james short in glasgow, thank yom -- — coronavirus. james short in glasgow, thank you. -- james _ coronavirus. james short in glasgow, thank you. -- james shaw. _ the number of people who would test positive in the uk for coronavirus remains above 1 million for a third consecutive week. estimates from the 0ns survey suggest that, in england, one in 60 people are estimated to have the virus. the numbers are stable in wales and northern ireland, and have decreased in scotland. the american actorjussie smollett has been found guilty of disorderly conduct after faking a hate crime against himself. known for his role in the tv series empire, smollett claimed he'd been attacked by two men in an assault that was both racist and homophobic. but a jury found he had lied to the police — prosecutors say he'd staged the incident in order to raise his profile. 0ur north america correspondent nomia iqbal has more. he was once a rising star. but for the last three years jussie smollett has been fighting for his reputation and career. the 39—year—old has always maintained he was the victim of a racist and homophobic attack. but a jury didn't believe him. they found him guilty of lying to police. the story goes back to january 29, 2019. smollett was known then for his role in the hip—hop drama, empire. he had claimed he was set upon by two men who targeted him for being black and gay. there was huge support for him from celebrities and politicians, including the now vice president kamala harris. but a police investigation eventually claimed he staged the whole thing, and he was arrested. at his trial, prosecutors said he did it to boost his profile and help his tv career. the two alleged assailants, brothers from nigeria, ended up being key witnesses, testifying againstjussie smollett. they said he had paid them to carry out the fake attack. but he repeatedly told the jurors the money was for personal training sessions and there was no hoax. jussie smollett now faces a possible prison sentence. huge support for him turned into deep anger when he was charged, with many who once stood by him now accusing him of taking advantage of the pain and anger of racism. nomia iqbal, bbc news, washington. the time is 20 past one. our top story this lunchtime. failings by the metropolitan police meant the serial killer stephen port was free to kill again, after the death of his first victim. coming up, a bbc investigation finds teenagers being targeted by companies to get lip fillers. coming up in the sport in the next 15 minutes on the bbc news channel: what a way to cap an unbeaten year with the red roses — the england forward zoe aldcroft families are facing a �*double—whammy�* of rising bills next year, according to bbc research, as council tax across much of england is likely to increase at the same time as national insurance. two—thirds of councils in england that responded to a bbc survey said they were considering a rise in council tax to help fund services. 0ur political correspondent alex forsyth reports. ryan is an entertainer. he is also a dj, an artist, and is employed as a youth worker. he has multiplejobs, but he says finances are still tight. it has hit us hard, and with the constant rise in utility bills, especially gas and electricity, everything isjust a constant worry at the moment. and i sort of became reliant on credit cards to be able to survive. ryan lives in norton in north yorkshire and his council tax could be going up next year, another growing bill on the pile. it's always on my mind. i never ever stop thinking about paying things off, and it's hit me very hard. the council here, like many, is facing rising costs and demand for services. there is particular pressure on care for children and adults. the government's already putting up national insurance to help pay for social care, but initially, most of that will go to the nhs, so some councils say they are still facing funding shortfalls. if you look at the ten—year record of this council, i think we have been moderate in our increases, but there comes a point where, in actual fact, those people who are on lower incomes are probably the people we need to increase council tax to raise money to actually provide the services to help them. council tax has been creeping up in recent years because the government's told local authorities they can increase it by a certain amount to bring in money to help pay for services. so it isn'tjust this authority, north yorkshire. in fact, two—thirds of councils across england have told us they're looking at putting up council tax next year too. no final decisions have been taken, but councils are expecting to be able to increase tax by up to 3% from april. that is less than in recent years. it could mean an average of around £40 more on bills. it all depends on where you live. some councils in the north say lower property values, which council tax is based on, means they can raise lesser than in parts of the south. if council tax was the only source of council funding, poorer areas would lose out, but actually councils get a lot of their funding directly from government. and how that money is distributed will be crucial in making sure that poorer areas don't see their funding fall behind. the government says it is investing £5.4 billion over the next three years to improve the lives of those who receive care. as well as an additional 1.6 billion in core local government funding for each year, which will allow councils to increase their spending on vital public services". back in north yorkshire, there is understanding about the need to pay for services. but some worry too. we don't like it going up but we're happy with the service we get, to be honest. i don't mind paying more council tax if it means more help for the elderly, infirm, care budgets and police and fire brigade. i have no qualms about it. you mind paying a bit more if it means you get a good service? no, i hate paying more. i'm a single parent, so it's ridiculous. i my council tax is crazy. it's120—odd—pound per month, j and i even struggle to pay that. councils won't set their tax rates until next year, but the prospect of another bill going up doesn't, for many, feel very bright. alex forsyth, bbc news, north yorkshire. the us government has won its appeal at the high court that julian assange should be extradited to stand trial there. washington wants the founder of wikileaks to face charges of publishing classified documents. his extradition was blocked injanuary because of concerns about his mental health, but nowjudges have ruled that assurances given about mr assange's treatment allow the move to go ahead. our legal affairs correspondent dominic casciani was at the hearing. what happens now, dominic? this meansjulian _ what happens now, dominic? tt 3 meansjulian assange is what happens now, dominic? tt 3 means julian assange is one what happens now, dominic? tt 3 meansjulian assange is one step closer to extradition. 0ptions meansjulian assange is one step closer to extradition. options for him are really narrowing now. these yellow ribbons of protest behind me tell part of the story. his supporters think he is a warrior for truth and justice but the high court and the lord chiefjustice in particular said he must stand trial in the united states because not only has a court found that he should face 18 counts of computer intrusion, hacking and leaking state secrets but today they said the us assurances were good enough to make sure that he couldn't kill himself in a us prison, and that includes allowing him to serve a sentence, back home in australia where he is from, so what happens now is the case goes through the procedural phase back to the home secretary, unless julian assange phase back to the home secretary, unlessjulian assange can get it into the supreme court at the last moment. he has 14 days to try and mount that case, possible other challenges, but it is looking very tricky indeed for him.— challenges, but it is looking very tricky indeed for him. thank you, dominic casciani. _ it is against the law for anyone under 18 in england to be given dermal fillers or botox—style injections for cosmetic reasons. but a bbc investigation has found some beauty practitioners are still offering them to younger teenagers on social media, despite the government saying businesses who do not check clients' ages will face prosecution. our health correspondent anna collinson has been speaking to liv — she first had lip filler when she wasjust 16. so, this is the first time i'd ever had my lips done. and that's is when i was 16. and she said, like, you are going to be addicted now. now 19, liv has visited multiple practitioners for lip fillers. she often found them on social media. some were still in training. it will be discounted usually, like, a lot cheaper, and it is obviously more directed at people that are younger, that probably have less money. no mandatory training is required to buy or inject fillers. complications include disfigurement and even blindness. a few months ago, it became illegal for under—18s to receive fillers in england, but is the law working? we created a facebook account for a fictitious teenager called jenny, including an image of a 16—year—old girl, generated by an ai programme. it is against the site's rules to promote the sale of fillers, butjenny was able to send hundreds of messages. so, more than 180 businesses replied tojenny, and the majority of the responses were "no". here is an example. "hi, jenny, sorry, i can't book you in, because you are under the age of 18." but, we found more than one in five beauticians appeared willing. we shared our findings with some of those who fought for the under—18 ban. that's devastating. so, it's either absolute negligence, or they are completely unaware, and eitherfactor, poses a significant risk. following our investigation, facebook says it's now blocked certain search terms, to make it harder for its users to find treatments like fillers. liv supports the filler ban, but understands the pressures to look a certain way. when i was 15, 16, you look at someone who is getting all these, i something like, like mine, - and you think wel i'm going to make myself look like that, then, because that's what everyone wants to look like. people are making filters that make your lips look bigger. they change your entire face. they are so damaging. england's cricketers have revived their fortunes in australia — with a much improved performance on the third day of the ashes keeping the first test alive. england finished still 58 runs behind in their second innings — but that's a lot better than things seemed earlier in the day, asjoe wilson reports. brisbane, an expanding sporting city. it will host the olympics. ashes cricket, let's remember, is a marathon. so, england began the third day of this test still trying to take australian wickets. 0ptimism and energy running on empty. ben stokes was fit enough to bowl. travis head was thrilled to bat. commentator: travis head takes him on down the ground _ and gets it all the way. thus stood the match. australia built a lead of 278. travis head made 152 and that was just the start. now england batted. rory burns, a touch from the glove and that was him gone for 13. haseeb hameed, a glance off the bat, and he was out just when he was settling in. but 2021 has been a record—breaking year of run scoring forjoe root. the captain's 50 here was greeted by plenty of england fans. well, it is queensland! dawid malan was passed 52. commentator: that's a glorious drive. - now this was getting interesting. encouraging. as the shadows lengthened, the lead reduced. the evening came, root and malan remain. i think the first hour is really important for us tomorrow and then we can start thinking about how well we can play. but we need one more good 100—run partnership to put a good score on the board and, you know, who knows what could happen? with two days to come, it felt like a victory to bejust 58 runs behind. joe wilson, bbc news. time for a look at the weather. here's tomasz schafernaker. good afternoon. the weekend is almost upon _ good afternoon. the weekend is almost upon us _