is why on their day of conviction, i ordered an independent inquiry into the events at the countess of chester hospital, making sure the families that have answers. i asked the police liaison officers to meet these families at the earliest possible opportunity for options as to the form the inquiry should take. it was clear their wishes were for a statutory inquiry, with the power to compel witnesses to give evidence under oath. that is why i am confirming this to the house today. this inquiry will in quiet the case's wider circumstances, including the trust's response to clinicians who raised the alarm and the conduct of the wider nhs and its regulators. and i can confirm to the house that lady justice regulators. and i can confirm to the house that ladyjustice thirlwall will lead this inquiry. she is one of the country's most seniorjudges, currently sitting in the court of appeal and with many years of experience as a seniorjudge and a senior barrister before that. before making this statement, i informed the victims' families of her appointment, which was made following conversations with the lord chiefjustice, the lord chancellor and the attorney general. i have raised with ladyjustice thirlwall that the families should work with her to shape the terms of reference. we hope to finalise these in the next couple of weeks, so the inquiry can start the consultation as soon as possible. i have also discussed with ladyjustice discussed with lady justice thirlwall discussed with ladyjustice thirlwall by the families' desire for the inquiry to take place in phases, so it provides answers to vital questions as soon as possible. i will update the house when these terms of reference are agreed and continue to engage with their families. that was the health secretary steve barclay talking in the house of commons. just a reminder, we are expecting to hearfrom commons. just a reminder, we are expecting to hear from the education secretary at the very latest update on the concrete story involving schools across the uk. so we are keeping an eye on events in the commons. as soon as that starts, we will return and hear what gillian keegan has to say. but now, time for the business and samantha, you are looking at the grain deal? yes, that's right. let's start in sochi, where some high level discussions are taking place between vladimir putin and turkey's recep tayyip erdogan, with the russian leader saying he's open to renewing the black sea grain deal. the previous agreement was crucial for providing a safe passage for ukrainian grain exports and helped ease a potential global food crisis. russia quit the deal injuly, complaining that its own food and fertiliser exports faced internatoional sanctions and other obstacles. but president erdogan believes a new deal may be in place soon. joining me now isjoe glauber — senior research fellow at the international food policy research institute but also was former chief economist at the us department of agriculture. welcome to you, good to have you on the programme. do you think that president erdogan's optimism is well placed, how close do you think a deal is? it placed, how close do you think a deal is? , ., ., deal is? it is hard to say. the demands _ deal is? it is hard to say. the demands for, _ deal is? it is hard to say. the demands for, that _ deal is? it is hard to say. the demands for, that russia - deal is? it is hard to say. the demands for, that russia has deal is? it is hard to say. the - demands for, that russia has that this agreement have been on the table for the last year. every time the agreement had come up for renewal, putin had raised the issue of having access to the swiss system for the russian banks, to loan money for the russian banks, to loan money for exports and then also the reopening of this ammonia pipeline that goes from the plant on the volga river to ports around odesa. in your view, how much influence do you think president erdogan could have with vladimir putin? president erdo . an have with vladimir putin? president erdogan certainly _ have with vladimir putin? president erdogan certainly has _ have with vladimir putin? president erdogan certainly has become, - have with vladimir putin? president erdogan certainly has become, has| erdogan certainly has become, has been quite prominent in trying to broker this agreement. he brokered the original agreement. he has a lot are at stake, a lot of grain goes through the bosporus and i think he has been time and time again has gone back to putin to try to get him to reconsider and to get into negotiations. that said of course, russia just bombed the ports on the danube river, hit the ports around odesa again. it has been a very tense situation over the last six weeks. , ., ., tense situation over the last six weeks. , . ., , weeks. yes, and in that six weeks since the grain — weeks. yes, and in that six weeks since the grain deal— weeks. yes, and in that six weeks since the grain deal ran _ weeks. yes, and in that six weeks since the grain deal ran out, - weeks. yes, and in that six weeks since the grain deal ran out, what| since the grain deal ran out, what impact it having on the global food shortage and food insecurity so much of the globe is suffering? it shortage and food insecurity so much of the globe is suffering?— of the globe is suffering? it may surrise of the globe is suffering? it may surprise peeple _ of the globe is suffering? it may surprise people to _ of the globe is suffering? it may surprise people to find - of the globe is suffering? it may surprise people to find out - of the globe is suffering? it may surprise people to find out not l surprise people to find out not much. that is largely because we have a lot of grain in the world right now. the people who have been hurt the most have been ukraine, ukraine producers, in the sense it forces them to use more costly trade routes. that means lower prices for ukraine producers. we have seen what the impact has been in the last year since production has been down 35-40% in since production has been down 35—40% in some cases. that is likely to continue if they don't have access to the ports in odesa. they have been getting a little bit out through the danube river, bordering romania, but there has been a lot of recent aggression with bombings and drone attacks on those facilities. joe glauber, great to get your analysis, thank you forjoining us. now to china. beijing has said the premier will attend instead of president xi. the reasons have not been given for his absence is that it takes place against a backdrop of china and us trying to reset relations from a historic low point. but it's also been viewed as a blow to president modi and highlights disagreements between g20 members. earlier i spoke to rory green, chief china economist. i began by asking how significant president xi's absence will be. it how significant president xi's absence will be.— absence will be. it is very significant. _ absence will be. it is very significant. it _ absence will be. it is very significant. it is _ absence will be. it is very significant. it is difficult l absence will be. it is very| significant. it is difficult to absence will be. it is very - significant. it is difficult to put ourfinger on why he is not going but it is the first time since he became president that he is not attending. it looks like a combination of domestic and international factors that are at play here. domestically, the economy in china is weak. that is for sure and xi has a very important set piece political event coming up in october — november, as happens once every five years. really important for the political economy and that may be keeping him in china, rather than travelling to india. but as you highlight, the international aspect, this just highlight, the international aspect, thisjust widens the highlight, the international aspect, this just widens the gap between the us and china and i agree, it is a snub to modi who met xi in a couple of days ago down in south africa. i want to ask you about a story the financial times is reporting on. chinese banks have extended billions of dollars to their russian counterparts after russian sanctions were imposed last year. how does this report square with your knowledge of china— russia relations at the moment? knowledge of china- russia relations at the moment?— at the moment? china- russia economic— at the moment? china- russia economic relations _ at the moment? china- russia economic relations have - at the moment? china- russia economic relations have only l at the moment? china- russia l economic relations have only got closer since the russia— ukraine conflict began and a key part of thatis conflict began and a key part of that is financial. almost the entire west, the western sector has been cut off from russia, with china stepping in to fill that void. so a big gain in market share for the chinese banks. a big increase in revenue usage in russia. and then increase in trade, oil, commodities, manufactured goods. big games for china across the board with its russian ally.— china across the board with its russian ally. china across the board with its russian all . ., , , russian ally. rory green there. in other news... _ russian ally. rory green there. in other news... apple's _ russian ally. rory green there. in other news. .. apple's new- russian ally. rory green there. in other news... apple's new iphone russian ally. rory green there. in i other news... apple's new iphone is set to have a new lightning charge point when it is unveiled later this month. showing you pictures of ryanair there. month. showing you pictures of ryanairthere. european month. showing you pictures of ryanair there. european your law rya nair there. european your law requires ryanair there. european your law requires phone manufacturers to have a common charging system by 2024 to save money and cut waste. apple argued against the law saying it stifles innovation and harms consumers. here in the uk, as there has been questioned over issues its finances are stopping it to do more to stop soaring prices. in a letter to one of its co—owners, the billionaire issa brothers, the committee demanded an explanation of the grocer�*s "complex" company structure and details about loans and investments. an asda spokesman said it was co—operating with the committee's inquiry. barbie has become this year's biggest box office hit so far, overtaking the total taken by the super mario bros movie. the barbie movie has now made $1.4 billion globally, beating the $1.3 billion taken by super mario bros. the film has also helped the us summer box office reach the $4 billion mark for the first time since the pandemic. that is it for the business news. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. preparing for a challenging journey, these skaters call themselves the skater bills. are getting ready and are skating from barry to anglesey in three days to raise funds in memory of theirfriends in three days to raise funds in memory of their friends wayne and james, who both had brain tumours and died after receiving end of life care at the nightingale house hospice in wrexham. irate care at the nightingale house hospice in wrexham.- care at the nightingale house hospice in wrexham. we lost two close friends _ hospice in wrexham. we lost two close friends who _ hospice in wrexham. we lost two close friends who were _ hospice in wrexham. we lost two close friends who were very - hospice in wrexham. we lost two | close friends who were very active, loved being outdoors and setting challenges. so we thought this would be an epic challenge to do. the u-rou be an epic challenge to do. the grorrp have _ be an epic challenge to do. the group have been putting in plenty of training over recent weeks to try and get used to skating through the very varied terrain they will face and the possibility of all sorts of weather. plenty of energy from the first push on a journey covering almost 280 miles up and down the hills and mountains of wales, from barry island to the isle of anglesey in memory of two friends and their own adventurous spirit. you're live with bbc news. let's turn to a worrying development as the world faces rapid increases in the cost of living. an increase in the cost of living. an increase in the cost of living. an increase in the number of children forced into commercial sexual exploitation or other harmful forms of work. the research has been carried out by the international labour organisation and according to their estimate, around 1.7 million children are involved in the practices. the director—general said the situation was getting worse and often it was down to the way families felt they had to respond to the global inflation. in some families, it really has been the difference between having one meal a day or not and therefore the temptation of bringing the young girl for example to the street or tried to entice them to go for the sex work increases. therefore increases the risk of sexual abuse, sexual exploitation and therefore the worst form of child labour. fit, the worst form of child labour. a really troubling comment. let's try and put that into context. commercial sexual exploitation is a difficult issue to track with many countries having no publicly available database for the illegal activity. kenya is one such country and has been identified by the us state department as both a source, a transit country and a destination for the crime. one recent study estimated more than 2400 children aged between 13 and 17 were currently subject to child sexual exploitation in two regions around the port of mombasa. we are bringing you a series on the cost of living impact on children around the world and the first comes from barbara plett asher and we should warn you, you may find some of the details distressing. in mombasa, life is hard for those on the margins, but tough economic times are making it even harder, forcing some parents to take painful decisions. this mother washes clothes a few times a week to support her three children. she doesn't want us to use her name. the money for school fees quickly runs out. there's barely enough for food, so her daughter has to find work. she's started selling her body. she's 14 years old. as a parent, it's not easy to tell a child to do something like that. i would like her to go to school like other children, but because i don't have any means, she's forced to do thatjob. my heart is broken and i don't want it to continue. she's not the only one. we've spoken with a woman who runs a brothel. she told us she's been getting more and more young girls. at this shelter, a rare moment ofjoy celebrating a birthday party. these children were abused, abandoned or trafficked, some forced into the sex trade. rescue centres are struggling to meet the growing needs. everyone wants to survive. they've been giving away their children for exchange of money. and has it always been that way, or is it more so now? now it's more so because there is no money. there is no money. there is nojob. "we are tired." that's the chant at protests against rising prices and higher taxes. there's anger and frustration across the country. it's the poorest kenyans who've been hit the hardest. and in mombasa, they can tap into a thriving business. mombasa has long been a well—known hub for child sex tourism, but covid and the increasingly harsh cost of living have helped push the sex trade online and further underground, drawing even more children into the industry. kenyan police are fighting back against the dark trade in child sex. they track down suspects using cyber tips from a database in the united states. then, search phones and computer drives for explicit material about children. up against an economy of depravity that feeds on desperation. this woman is in charge of the unit. she says there's no data on whether the recent cost of living crisis has driven more children into the sex trade. but her team has begun monitoring it. of course, of course it is a major contributor into child sex trafficking. so we would say that poverty, would say that unemployment. there are so many children that are dropping out of school. and then you find that they're getting to this especially in the coastal region. one girl who hasn't escaped the streets told me about the despair that shapes her young life. we're using her words, but not her voice. i am afraid, because i know that when you're sleeping with a man, you can get hiv or become pregnant. sometimes i feel so hungry. and when i look at other children, they don't suffer. sometimes i think that i have no reason to live. barbara plett usher, bbc news, mombasa. thousands of teachers in south korea are going on strike and attending a mass rally to honour colleagues who've taken their own lives. school staff are demanding better protection against bullying by the parents of pupils after a young teacher died by suicide injuly. our 0ur correspondence our correspondence sent us this update. this is now the seventh week that teachers from all across south korea have gathered here in seoul to protest. and they've been building momentum week by week and it's culminated today in this strike. it all started with the death of a young primary school teacher. the 23—year—old died by suicide and it emerged after her death that she'd been under this extreme stress at school and that she was dealing late at night with these complaints from parents. and what this has done is open this pandora's box here in south korea, where teachers all across the country have started sharing their own stories of being harassed by what they say are overbearing parents, who are just completely fixated on their children's success. so the teachers say that it's not uncommon for them to be called any hour of the day and at weekends on their mobile phone by parents who are incessantly complaining. and some of these complaints can be serious. teachers say that they can be accused of child abuse if they send a child out of the classroom or they try to restrain a violent child and they can be accused of emotional abuse even for telling a child off. so they say that it's got to the point where they don't feel that they can safely teach because they can't discipline their students. the government has been listening to teachers' cries, it says, and it has unveiled a number of new guidelines in the past few days to hopefully make it easier for teachers to control their classrooms. but the teachers here want a more systemic reform. they want this child welfare act here to be revised. they say it's this act which means that they can be removed from their post if they're accused of child abuse. but this has exposed an even deeper issue here in south korea. the society here is hyper competitive and so much hinges on academic success. so parents feel this enormous pressure that their children have to do well at school if they're going to get into the best universities. and this pressure, of course, trickles down to the children. but we're also learning that it is affecting the teachers, as well. so this is about more, some say, than just fixing these broken classrooms — it is about reforming korea's entire approach to education. a word from the burning man festival, organisers say people will be able to leave the festival at noon at closing time. thousands of people trapped by the torrential rain and mud. that newsjust coming into bbc news. let's continue with our main story that has dominated the uk political agenda for the last few days. rishi sunak saying it is utterly wrong to blame him for failing to tackle the issue of unsafe concrete in school buildings as thousands of children return to the classrooms after their summer break. 100 schools in england and scotland closed door partially shut. we can head to robert, currently looking at some of the figures behind this crisis. over to you. thank you very much. funding for schools and investment has been down about a third in the last few years compared to the last few years of the conservative government. here is the conservative government. here is the amount of money the department spends every year on investment in buildings, it and notjust schools but universities in early years as well but mainly schools. you can see it was rising pretty steadily under labour, kind of peaking in 2010. that was when the building schools for the future programme really landed and the money started to come through. the programme had flaws and when the numbers came in 2010, the conservatives came on in 2010, they cut the programmes that then the investment fell hitting a low point investment fell hitting a low point in 2014. they started their own schools rebuilding programme around then and you can see that it has started to increase a bit and slated to go up even further in the future in the coming years but it is still only reaching the level we saw in the mid—20005. do you want to apologise to parents and pupils and you to play? i do you want to apologise to parents and pupils and you to play?- and pupils and you to play? i think that is completely _ and pupils and you to play? i think that is completely and _ and pupils and you to play? i think that is completely and utterly - that is completely and utterly wrong. one of the first things i did as chancellor in my first spending review in 2020 was announce a new ten year school rebuilding programme for schools. so rishi sunak, as you heard there, was accused by a senior civil servant of having significant role in this and he was pretty robust in his defence. it is fair to say that the government have lined up about 50 schools a year for rebuilding or significant refurbishment and the last programme that they ran, that i referred to a couple of moments, between 20—14— 21 was running at about that speed as well. so they have been delivering a lot and they never committed publicly to deliver say 100. so the stories that have been going around about the figures halving are probably not fair on the prime minister. you can see they have been putting about 2.5 billion a year into maintaining, refurbishing and rebuilding school since about 2016 and it is set to rise over the coming years, up to about £3 billion. so it is also not fair to say that the government had cut the amount of money going into this field, but it is fair to say that they are probably not giving enough. they are putting in enough money for 50 schools, the department for education asked for their money for education asked for their money for 200 schools. they are giving £3 billion, the department asked for £4 billion. everyone asks for more than they want but need versus the state of disrepair is pretty significant and has only become more significant in the recent days after all we have been hearing about the state of concrete. robert, thank you very much. a reminder and i will show you live pictures from the house of commons. we are expecting in the next little while to hear from the we are expecting in the next little while to hearfrom the education secretary, an update from gillian keegan, currently health is being discussed but we are expecting that in the next little while. so as soon as that starts we will carry it live here on bbc news was that we think in the next 15—20 minutes. people across the uk are being urged to be vigilant amid across the uk are being urged to be vigilantamid an across the uk are being urged to be vigilant amid an increase in sightings of the asian hornets. it feeds on honey bees and there are fears the hornet could have catastrophic consequences for the uk's bee population for years to come, and for the country's biodiversity. our science correspondent helen briggs reports. an unwelcome visitor to britain — sightings of the asian hornet are on the rise, and beekeepers are concerned. this time last year, we had an apiary full of bees, we wouldn't be able to be standing where we are without bees flocking around us. this year, we have lost ten of our 17 hives in quick succession, and we have only got a couple of left now. asian hornets arrive in cargo, or are blown across from mainland europe, where they're now widespread. the asian hornet shouldn't be here at all, it's a non—native species, but sightings have rocketed in the past year, particularly in this part of kent, and in the last hour alone, i've seen several. these insects are going to settle here, and they're going to predate on all insects, especially the honeybee, that's their natural food source, and they'll end up destroying or overcomplicating beekeeping for everybody and reducing the diversity in the kent area and the whole wider england. scientists are keeping a close eye on the invasion. as an alien species, the hornet�*s bad news for british insects. the asian hornet is also called the yellow—legged hornet, and those yellow legs give it away. it is also quite a dark hornet. this is a queen here. here is our native hornet, which is much more of a browny species. we are transporting all sorts of plants, animals, fungi outside of their native ranges to places where the local sort of environment has not evolved along with them, so they cause many threats to food security, to our native animals and plants. the nests are quite up to the top of the tree and they're really hard to find. in another part of kent, a team from the national bee unit has been called out to find and destroy nests. and they need your help. they say you should report any of the sightings of the insect. this is the time of year now that you will particularly see them in your garden, if you have fruit, you know, if you have plums, if you have pears, if you have apples, these things will be attracted to them for the feed. they will also be attracted by the other insects on those. so if you see something in your garden that is hovering around that looks darker than usual, that's got yellow legs, you'll see it land, please take a picture, go on the asian hornet app, have a look, compare it and please report it. government scientists say there is no evidence the invasive species is established here. the public�*s being urged to be extra vigilant amid multiple sightings in kent and beyond. helen briggs, bbc news, folkestone. we are about to take a short break. we are about to take a short break. we have a busy hour coming up because we are expecting to hear from the education secretary in the commons. the latest on that story and all of our other headlines coming up in a moment or two, don't go away. live from london — this is bbc news. the school concrete crisis deepens. the school concrete crisis deepens. the education secretary apologises after being caught out on camera saying that ministers weren't getting enough credit for handling the issue. does anyone ever say, you know what, you've done a bleef’ good job, because everyone else has sat - on their_ and done nothing? no signs of that, no? i would like to apologise for my choice language there. that was unnecessary. but it was an off—the—cuff remark. gillian keegan is expected to give an update on that controversy in parliament soon. we will be live with that. in other news — northern ireland's chief of police quits — following a series of controversies — including a major data breach. kenya hosts africa's first climate summit — an attempt to try to tackle a problem affecting the whole continent. hello, i'm matthew amroliwala. welcome to verified live, three hours of breaking stories, and checking out the truth behind them. let's start with the story that's dominated the uk political agenda for the last few days. rishi sunak says it's "utterly wrong" to blame him for failing to tackle the issue of unsafe concrete in school buldings. as thousands of children return to classrooms today after the summer break, it's emerged that more than 100 schools in england and scotland will be closed — or partially shut. it's over safety concerns about what is known as raac — a type of concrete, that's known