Virginia Giuffre would have viewed Prince Andrew giving up his titles "as a victory", the ghostwriter of her posthumous memoir told BBC Newsnight.

The book, Nobody's Girl, co-written by Amy Wallace, details Ms Giuffre's encounters with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell - and more details of her allegations about Prince Andrew, which he has always denied.

In the memoir - released on Tuesday - Ms Giuffre described three occasions where she alleged Prince Andrew had sex with her.

Ms Wallace spent four years writing the book with Ms Giuffre, who took her own life almost six months ago.

In the book, Ms Giuffre said she had sex with Prince Andrew on three separate occasions. She says the third occasion was on Epstein's island as part of what Ms Giuffre called "an orgy" with Epstein and approximately eight other young women.

Prince Andrew, who reached a financial settlement with Ms Giuffre in 2022, announced on Friday that he was voluntarily deciding not to use his titles including the Duke of York, an honour received from his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II.

He is also giving up membership of the Order of the Garter - the oldest and most senior order of chivalry in Britain.

But there are still calls for them to be formally removed.

Ms Wallace said: "I can speak for Virginia; I know that she would view it as a victory that he was forced, by whatever means, to voluntarily give them up."

She called it a "symbolic gesture" which has made "modern history in terms of the royal era", describing it as "a step in the right direction".

"Virginia wanted all the men who she had been trafficked to, against her will, to be held to account, and this is just one of the men.

"Even though he (Andrew) continues to deny it, his life is being eroded because of his past behaviour, as it should be," Ms Wallace said.

Ms Wallace went on to say there was a period when Prince Andrew "indicated he was willing to help investigators in the US" but he was "never available, for some reason".

"That's something he could still do. He could say, as he has repeatedly, 'I still deny that I was involved... however, I was in these houses and I was on that island and I was on the jet and I saw things, and I know how much these women have suffered and I would like to share what I saw," Ms Wallace said.

Ms Wallace said the private jets used by Epstein "had been remodelled in order to afford many bedrooms - they were designed as flying trafficking agents, they were there to use girls in".

She added: "Prince Andrew was on at least one of those jets that I know of, if not more.

"He has to take sort of the measure of his own moral compass - he said in his settlement with Virginia that he now acknowledges the pain that these women and young girls had suffered. If you really feel it, do something about it."

Speaking about Ms Giuffre, Ms Wallace said: "I'm sad and I'm honoured to be able to speak at least a little bit on her behalf to stand up for her.

"She wrote this book to try to help other people, to make the world a better place.

"She deserves all credit for whatever role she played in forcing Prince Andrew to relinquish a few more of his titles but she deserves all credit even more than that for being brave enough to stand up to say 'this isn't right'."

The memoir, which the BBC bought from a book store in central London days before its official release, paints a picture of a web of rich and powerful people abusing young women.

At the centre of the abuse was Epstein and his former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year sentence on sex-trafficking charges.

Ms Giuffre says that even decades later, she remembers how much she feared them both.

Epstein was convicted in Florida in 2008 for soliciting prostitution from a person under the age of 18. He died in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

The Conservatives say more than 2,000 prisoners serving sentences for rape, stalking and grooming will have their jail time cut because of the government's new sentencing plan.

The opposition party has tabled an amendment to the sentencing bill - which is in the House of Commons for the second reading on Tuesday - to make sure offenders of the most serious crimes stay locked up for longer.

Shadow justice minister Kieran Mullan has called the government's plan "a betrayal of victims", while Labour have accused the Tories of "rank hypocrisy" after they left prisons "at breaking point".

The sentencing review recommends releasing some offenders earlier from prison if they have behaved well.

The review set up to look at alternative punishments to jail after prisons became dangerously overcrowded.

It recommends offenders on a fixed length prison term could be released after serving a third of their sentence, providing they behave well.

Under this "earned progression scheme", prisoners released early will be monitored with enhanced supervision in the community, followed by a period on licence, which is unsupervised.

The Conservatives have said in addition to more than 2,000 serious offenders having their jail terms cut, Labour's changes will also benefit over 62% of jailed rapists.

"Keir Starmer is putting criminals before communities and letting predators out early," Mullan said.

"Under Labour's plans, thousands of the most serious would no longer be treated as such, an insult to thousands of victims across the country."

The amendment tabled by the Tories wants to ensure offenders of the most serious crimes - including rape, sexual offences against children and grievous bodily harm - will not benefit from the government's early release scheme, a press release said.

• Early prisoner release plan worries police chief
• BBC In-Depth: A scheme helped prevent sex offenders committing more crimes - then it closed. Why?

But sentencing minster Jake Richards accused the Conservatives of "feigned outrage" and said the government is "cleaning up the mess" left by the Tories.

"The Conservatives' rank hypocrisy is shameful. They built this crisis, then feigned outrage when the consequences arrived," he said.

"They took our prisons to breaking point, released thousands of serious offenders early and pushed Britain to the brink of a situation where police could no longer make arrests and courts could no longer prosecute."

Labour have said the worst offenders - those on extended fixed sentences or life sentences - will never benefit from early release.

President of the Prison Governors' Association Tom Wheatley said successive governments have failed to deliver the prison spaces needed to deal with dangerous overcrowding.

"The sentencing bill seeks to address this issue by reducing the amount of time offenders will spend in custody," he said.

"The alternatives are either spending more taxpayers money on building and running prisons or to continue to release prisoners earlier than the courts intended, as both this government and previous Conservative governments have done."

Other amendments to the sentencing bill proposed by the Tories include requiring courts to collect and publish detailed data on sentencing, making judges' remarks available to the public within two days, and extending the time victims have to challenge lenient sentences.

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Defence Secretary John Healey has said European troops are "ready to deploy" to Ukraine in the coming weeks if Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin agree on a ceasefire.

After a surprise call last Thursday, the US and Russian presidents are planning to meet in Budapest, Hungary. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has not been invited but said he is ready to join.

Asked if troops could deploy if a deal was reached in the next two weeks, Healey said: "If President Trump can broker a peace, then we will be ready to help secure that peace".

But he added that Ukrainians must be the "people who will decide how and what" is negotiated in any peace talks.

Members of the "coalition of the willing", an alliance of 26 European nations founded in March by UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to guarantee Ukraine's security, had been "developing detailed plans, in the event of a ceasefire", Healey said.

Under the plans, UK troops could join a multinational force to secure Ukraine's border.

The work of "over 200 military planners from 38-plus nations over the last six months" had meant forces were ready to deploy when needed, Healey said.

The government were expecting to spend "well over" £100m on sending troops to Ukraine, with some funds already used to prepare the deployment, Healey said.

Speaking at the London Lord Mayor's Annual Defence Lecture, Healey also said Vladimir Putin views Britain as his "number one enemy" because of the country's support for Ukraine.

The defence secretary also warned of a "new era of threat" and said the risk of wider conflict in Europe has not been as great since the end of World War Two.

During the speech, Healey also announced British soldiers will be granted new powers to shoot down drones threatening military bases.

Four British airbases used by US forces reported mystery drone sightings last year, while drones have disrupted airspace across Europe a number of times in recent months.

The new powers will only apply to military sites, but could be extended to civilian locations such as airports.

Healey said the introduction of a "kinetic option" would enable British troops or Ministry of Defence (MoD) police to shoot drones posing a threat to a military site in the UK.

The announcement followed reports that a White House meeting between Trump and Zelensky ended in a "shouting match", as US officials pushed Ukraine to give up land to Russia.

Zelensky had gone to Washington to ask the US to supply sought-after Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine to strike deep into Russian territory.

But reports suggest Trump had instead insisted Zelensky surrender the entire eastern Donbas region to Putin. Russia controls 70% of Donetsk and nearly all of neighbouring Luhansk.

The Financial Times reported Trump had warned Zelensky that Putin would "destroy" Ukraine if he did not agree to its terms, citing sources familiar with the conversation.

In the more than 1,300 days since Russia invaded Ukraine, Putin has become increasingly reliant on support from North Korea, Iran and China.

According to Healey, Russia has suffered over a million casualties and devoted 40% of its government spending to the military.

But in recent months Moscow has intensified attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure, prompting emergency power cuts across the country.

European leaders have expressed concern over Trump's shifting stance, with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warning on social media that "appeasement never was a road to a just and lasting peace".

Finnish President Alexander Stubb said "the only ones who can decide on the land issue are the Ukrainians themselves".

Speaking to the BBC, Stubb said Finland, a member of the coalition of the willing. would never recognise Crimea, or the regions of Donetsk or Luhansk, as Russian.

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A preliminary report into last month's funicular crash in Lisbon that killed 16 people including three British nationals has detailed a litany of failings.

Portugal's Air and Rail Accident Investigations Bureau said an underground cable - which acted as a counterweight between two carriages and broke, prompting the crash - was defective and had never been certified for passenger transportation.

It said the cable was not technically suitable and was acquired in 2022 by the company that runs Lisbon's public transport, Carris.

The 140-year-old Glória funicular, popular with tourists, derailed and crashed into a building on 3 September.

There were 11 foreigners among those killed, including the three British nationals, while another 20 people were injured.

The preliminary report released on Monday said there had been no oversight by engineers at Carris and the cable was not tested in advance before being installed.

The supervision and maintenance of the funicular by a company outsourced by Carris also did not work properly, apparently giving the Glória funicular the all-clear on the morning of the disaster - though it is not certain if the check actually took place that day.

In addition, the state body that looks after all of Lisbon's funiculars did not cover the Glória one, as it should have done, the report said.

The emergency brake system, which the driver correctly tried to apply when the cable snapped, did not function properly and was never tested in advance, it says.

Lisbon's mayor Carlos Moedas, who was re-elected on 12 October despite opposition accusations he had failed in his duty of oversight over the city's funiculars, told SIC television that the report "reaffirms that the unfortunate tragedy... was due to technical and not political causes".

Carris issued a statement stressing it was "not possible at this time to state whether or not the non-conformities in the use of the cable are relevant to the accident", referring to a passage in the report that notes the same cables had previously been in use in the Glória funicular for 601 days without incident.

"At this point in time, it cannot be said whether the use of this type of non-compliant cable intervened, or what intervention it had, in the rupture... and it is certain for the investigation that there were other factors that had to intervene," the statement added.

The company stressed that although the cables had been brought into use under the current board of directors, who took office in May 2022, the acquisition process took place under the previous board.

The full report will take about 11 months to be completed.

Meanwhile, all Lisbon cable cars have been ordered to be out of service until the necessary safety checks are put in place.

Former National Football League (NFL) running back Doug Martin has died aged 36 while in police custody in California.

The Oakland Police Department said the former American football star - who played for teams including the Tampa Bay Buccaneers - died after being involved in an alleged home break-in and a struggle with officers on Saturday.

"While attempting to detain the individual, a brief struggle ensued," the department said, adding Martin became unresponsive and was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

His family announced his passing and said his cause of death was "unconfirmed".

"It is with great sadness to inform you all that Doug Martin passed away Saturday morning," his family told US media. The family asked for "privacy at this time".

In a statement, Martin's former team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, said they were "deeply saddened to learn of the sudden and unexpected passing of Doug Martin".

"From his record-setting rookie season in 2012 to his multiple Pro Bowl selections during his six seasons as a Buccaneer, Doug made a lasting impact on our franchise," the team added.

Born in Oakland, California, Martin was Tampa Bay's first-round pick in the 2012 NFL draft. During his first season, Martin rushed for 1,454 yards and made 11 touchdowns.

Martin spent six of his seven NFL seasons playing for the Buccaneers, and was nicknamed the "Muscle Hamster" because of his high strength despite being relatively short for a professional player at 5ft 9in (1.75m) tall.

But he struggled with injuries and was also suspended in 2016 for four games for violating the NFL's drug policy, after testing positive for a banned substance. He apologised and went to a drug treatment facility.

Martin also played for the Oakland Raiders, which is now in Las Vegas, at the end of his career in 2018.

Victims of sex abuse by members of the Catholic clergy have expressed hope after meeting Pope Leo at the Vatican for the first time.

Gemma Hickey, board president of Ending Clergy Abuse (ECA Global), told the BBC it spoke "volumes" he had met them so soon in his papacy.

The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy, already adopted in the US, of permanently removing a priest who admits or is proven to have sexually abused a child. The Pope acknowledged there was "resistance in some parts of the world" to this, Hickey said.

The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has inherited the issue, which has haunted the Catholic Church for decades and the Vatican has struggled to root out.

His predecessor, Pope Francis, tried to address the problem by holding an unprecedented summit on paedophilia in the Church, and by changing its laws to explicitly criminalise sexual abuse, but problems remain.

A recent Vatican-commissioned report was unusually critical of Church leaders, saying victims and survivors had frequently raised the lack of accountability of bishops and superiors. Many historic cases were allegedly covered up.

ECA Global also acknowledged pockets of resistance to a zero-tolerance policy, Hickey said. "We were all being realistic."

For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive to see such a policy adopted worldwide is personal, as the Canadian said they were abused by a priest who was then shuffled between parishes.

Hickey said Monday's meeting was "historic" and "a big step for all of us".

"Hopefully this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to work with him. We have the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."

Six board members and one other representative of ECA, a coalition of victims and advocates representing survivors from more than 30 countries, sat in a semi-circle in the Pope's Vatican office, with the pontiff at the head.

During the meeting - which was scheduled for 20 minutes but lasted an hour - the Pope "mostly listened to us", Hickey said.

The Pope was "quite empathetic" hearing the story of a woman abused at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in Canada, and "tender" about Hickey's own experience, they added.

The first North American leader of the Catholic Church was "very humble, funny, [and] very down to earth", Hickey said.

"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service. I felt like he was genuine, realistic, and very open and eager to collaborate with us."

The group is hoping a change of canon law will bring about the zero-tolerance policy worldwide, and has spoken to experts and compiled documents that they will give to Pope Leo.

"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey said.

The Vatican's child protection commission 100-page report emphasised the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or negligence".

It said victims and survivors stressed the "urgent need for bishops and major superiors to be held accountable for negligence and cover-up was repeatedly stressed".

It also relayed concerns about information not being provided to victims on how their reports of abuse were being handled, and said the public should know when a Church official had resigned or been removed due to abuse or negligence.

Hickey said they told the Pope at the start of the meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a dialogue as it was for us."

After the meeting, they were hopeful for change.

"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, coming together and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the right direction."

Hickey said they told Pope Leo that "just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he appreciated that".

Demolition has begun on part of the East Wing of the White House in preparation for the construction of US President Donald Trump's new ballroom.

Construction crews on Monday tore down massive chunks of a covered entryway and windows in the East Wing, which Trump said is being "fully modernised".

The president previously said that his $250m (£186m) White House ballroom addition would be "near" the existing structure but would not change it.

"It won't interfere with the current building. It won't be. It'll be near it but not touching it - and pays total respect to the existing building, which I'm the biggest fan of," Trump said in July. "It's my favourite. It's my favourite place. I love it."

Trump announced the construction in a social media post, saying "ground has been broken" on the "much-needed" ballroom space.

"For more than 150 years, every President has dreamt about having a Ballroom at the White House to accommodate people for grand parties, State Visits, etc," he wrote.

He said the project is being privately funded by "by many generous Patriots".

The White House has served as the historic home of the US president for two centuries. The East Wing was constructed in 1902 and was last modified in 1942.

From the south side of the building, the BBC saw several large pieces of construction equipment - some adorned with US flags - near the East Wing.

Trump wrote in his post that the East Wing was "completely separate" from the White House, though it is attached to the main structure.

The covered entryway, which spans much of the East Wing's south side, appeared to be being gutted, with concrete debris and metal cables clearly visible from several hundred meters.

The activity had attracted a small number of curious onlookers who stopped to ask photographers and reporters what was going on.

One woman, who was wearing a surgical mask and a sign with an anti-Trump slogan on it, expressed her dismay. She did not identify herself.

"I don't like it," she said - seemingly speaking to nobody in particular - as she gestured at the White House from behind a yellow van that was parked nearby. "Look what he's doing to it!"