funding for this presentation is made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, union bank, and siemens. >> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> somewhere in america, there's a doctor who can peer into the future. there's a nurse who can access in an instant every patient's past.

and because the whole hospital is working together, there's a family who can breathe easy right now. somewhere in america we've already answered some of the nation's toughest health-care questions. and the over 60,000 people of siemens are ready to do it again. siemens. answers. >> and now, "bbc world news." >> the staggering cost of a health crisis that is like no other, $600 billion this year to look after the mention of sufferers from across the globe. >> the 35 million people with dementia will double in just 25 years. by 2015 it would exceed 115 million people.

>> welcome to "gmt." also in the program would get a rare glimpse inside north korea in a rare day that may see the handover of power. british spies coming in from the cold? mi6 publishes its early history. wherever you are in the world, your country is being afflicted by an epidemic that is keeping pace with it the great game of the population the cost of taking care of -- keeping pace with a great gareying of the population. care of those the dementia will be $600 billion across the globe.

>> it cannot be done cheaply in the financial pressure is expected to increase. today's report sums up the financial impact of dementia of around the world. the global cost of the year it is estimated to be over $600 billion. the report points out that it is much higher than the revenue of wal-mart and costs are predicted to almost double by 2030. >> the numbers of people with dementia are increasing worldwide, the largest is hitting middle income countries. we estimate to 35.5 million people with dementia, in 20 years it will be 65 million, 15 million people worldwide.

>> india it is pinpointed in the report as a country that is likely to see a sharp rise in dementia cases. like other countries that has a rapidly aging population. the parliament passed a law three years ago to try to force younger people to care for their older relatives. james draper, bbc news. >> later we will be talking live to an alzheimer's research champion. efforts to overturn the ban on gay people, lady gaga thrown himself behind the campaign. but ever the outcome, it is bound to be a major issue in the november 5 election. >> the pop star does not often

try to dress like a senator, but she came to this rally in the state of maine to make an appeal to the u.s. congress. west don't ask, don't tell is wrong and unjust. fundamentally it is against all that we stand for as americans. >> don't ask don't tell was passed in 1993, the first time that gay people were allowed to serve in uniform, since it was passed more than 30,000 soldiers have been discharged for being gay. >> we have thousands of patriotic americans serving their country, giving great sacrifice for the armed services and commitment to our nation. they're being thanked by being fired. those people deserve our

respect and gratitude, not a pink slip. >> i will put an end to don't ask, don't tell. >> president obama has made his position clear. much of the work has been left to congress. the vote to repeal the law may be repealed by this man, do not wash the change in the law. others do not want to change at all. >> if congress votes to repeal the current law it will be replaced by a current policy that accommodates the lesbians and gays in our military. this factor would be very disruptive to the armed forces. >> don't ask, don't tell hits one of the big spot lights in american politics, a decade-long fight over values.

no matter what the decision, you expect the fight to carry on into the midterm elections. >> 9 american soldiers have been killed in a helicopter crash in afghanistan. it is not clear what caused the crash. there has been a protest in sweden after a far right parties joined the parliament, getting more than 5% of the vote. north korea it is calling its biggest political meetings in decades, it could be the start of the handover of power in the world's only hereditary communist dictatorship. kim jong il may use the conference, as it was previously

postponed. our chinese correspondents traveled to the border for the report. >> this is the only concern vote of, taken about 15 years ago. soon, north korea could have a new leader. the glimpse of what is happening inside of this broken, secretive nation. a city with decrepit factories and only minimal traffic on the road. as the son of kim jong-il is being groomed, people are starving to death in the streets. >> the people are very weak. many of them starve.

they just sit in one place and die. i once saw someone sitting on a public toilet without moving, they were too weak to move and they died two days later. >> there is some food, but very few have the money to buy it. these people have just one meal for day because the kim jong il economic policies have been disastrous. himself weekend likely by a stroke, he made a rare visit to china last month. looking for chinese support for his son's succession. other north koreans told us that his son is too young and

inexperienced. one woman who escaped correa hopes that the regime collapses after skipping to china. >> i was shocked, we could have had enough food if the leaders gave up some wealth, they do not care about the suffering of ordinary people. >> the stories that north koreans tell paint a grim picture of a growing hunger and hardship. with it, something new, growing discontent with that of the regime voiced in a way you may not have ever heard before. now he is crewing his 20- something year-old son, an unknown quantity, to takeover of this impoverished and nuclear- armed nation.

one daughter was caught attempting to skate north korea and is now in a political prison o. >> it makes me angry, i would like to shout out loud. my daughter is going to die in prison. kim john hill has made us lose our homes and suffered. what will happen to north korea under his son? >> manion share her feelings, asking if a man in his 20's can lead north korea. will the regime collapsed? would mean simply more misery for the people? >> 122 people have been hurt quickly after a spectator stand collapsed at a car race in brazil.

it is thought at least 500 people were sitting on the structure. authorities are looking into the accident. reports are coming from delhi of a foot bridge collapsing near the main commonwealth games stadium in the city. the facilities were due to open in just two weeks time, athletes accommodations were called unsafe and unfit. there are concerns that countries could pull out of the games. >> there is the commonwealth games village, meant to house the athletes coming in a couple of days. we are only allowed to go this far, but some of the advance teams said that they are shocked at the conditions they found. apartments are still not ready, plumbing and wiring not completed, described is not

clean and filthy. that is that the only problem. down here, if you look you can see 3030, stagnant water. flood water collected, a breeding ground for mosquitoes and disease. some of the countries like new zealand, scotland, canada, say that they would like the teams to be moved into hotels if things are not clean up in time. a massive embarrassment for the organizers. >> still to come, why has an infestation of bedbugs cause mayhem in manhattan? could belgium ceased to exist as

a country? some of them have been asking that after inconclusive elections last june and they have been without a government for over 100 days. there are politicians who think it might be better to split belgium into two. >> the schools are open but belgium has been without a government for 100 days. the main political parties are split between the flemish speaking majority in the french speaking minority. the status of brussels in the flemish speaking part of the country is a point of contention. at some point they will have to make a deal, but it is likely to take some time yet. >> i am optimistic, that is immoral to the in belgium.

>> politicians continue to argue that there is a caretaker administration in place in it seems to be to reach a good job. >> on the administrative level there are still caretaker's that have been there for a last few years. they have strong negotiating knowledge. the risk will be bigger during the presidency. there will be a change of government. >> belgium is so experienced at these things that run with only a caretaker -- that it can run with only a caretaker, but government spending and balance the budget cannot be finished without a strong coalition mcgovern. abc news, brussels.

-- bbc news, brussels. >> this is "gmt." our main story, dementia could be the most significant health crisis of the century, it will cost us $600 billion worldwide this year alone. north korea has announced a gathering of the elite of next week to decide the future of communist leadership. what about quantitative easing, jamie? >> the american recovery is turning out to be thorough and more painful than some had anticipated. there's a new plan to attempt to stimulate the world's largest economy. with, the tools available are limited show of ports from new york. >> for the millions of americans struggling to find work -- find work, the latest

economic news is cold comfort. economic research declared that america's longest recession since the great depression officially ended in june says that it is too soon to start celebrating. >> the biggest problem with that the economy is the lackluster jobs growth, which really starts at the small and medium jobs level. they need to find a way to get that money into the hands of the small and medium business meetings. >> the last month in meeting ended with the statement that they are ready to provide additional stimulant if needed by pumping more money into the economy.

the fed did everything in its power, the work is over but the economy is far from back to normal and the american central bank remains mired in another challenge, shoring up a fast file recovery. >> despite all that, the aviation industry is recovering stronger and faster than anyone could have predicted. after experiencing the worst downturn the industry has ever faced, carriers around the world are expected to make a profit of $9 billion, much higher than the forecast from june. the cost of your jeans, t-shirt, and more could be going out.

not far from the all-time high. levi's has already warned that the increase in prices will be passed on to consumers. crops have been devastated and there are fears of a bad harvest in the u.s. and china. there is money that people feel they need to pump into the economy along with other markets, we can show you what happened in the asian markets. that is it. >> thank you very much indeed. let's go back to our top story, the growing cost of care in the people suffering from dementia. one cannot help but be impressed by these numbers and realizing

what a mess of crisis this is. >> absolutely. we have got time to do something about it, but we need to act now. >> $600 billion this year alone, what with a b in 2015 when there could be 150 million people? >> we have seen a doubling of figures and it is important that we act now. there are massive differences that we can make, if we could delay the onset. research is the only answer to that. >> do you think that the government recognizes the scale of the problem? >> it is a game and the u.k. government has an advisory group on it. the main thing is we have got to recognize that there is no time. we must start investing in the

search now. we hope to double low shortly, looking at things like cancer and heart disease, the recent of those diseases are being seen as having made a difference to people's lives, we need to do that with dementia. >> we have spent about half of the amount? flex a very small amount compared to heart disease. we need to invest in the economic burden of the disease and wife research is a real

investment that we should be making right now. >> it has a big impact on the wider family. >> is unusual in that you have the health care costs and even more substantial costs to the society. a growing problem in the developing world as well. >> real-life james bond, dusting off old files, having taken up the unusual step of opening up the past. >> test torpedo boats created by

1909, secret agents would be smuggled behind enemy lines. for the first time today, mi has opened up its archives to tell the stories of its early years. it was an exciting opportunity. >> i was like a child in a sweet shop. what they do is they tell the secret story of this most secretive of british organizations. >> this was the headquarters of the british secret service. its existence was denied by government and it was here at the secrets were kept. >> like this woman used to pass information to her lover during world war ii.

>> she worked in the british liaison office, able to provide to him what he thought was genuine information, things pulled out of waste paper bins. >> the history also recounts the individual facts of bravery. but stories stopped abruptly in 1949, just as the cold war is beginning. it seems that some secrets will remain hidden. let's let's hear about a creature that knows no boundaries. a massive bedbug outbreak in new york. the latest place to be hit is a major store in manhattan. laura has more. >> a site this -- strikes dred into the heart of a new yorker.

the bed bug exterminator. his job is to take down the creature not seen here for half a century. nike has had to close its flagship store in the most exclusive shopping district in manhattan. the bedbugs have struck again. >> really? >> gross. i feel like it is everywhere. >> not surprising. one city movie theater was forced to shut down temporarily not even the city's most famous what bridget famous landmark has been scared, the basement of the empire state building. why is new york city such a breeding ground for these tests? scientists think that they may be been carried by tourists and that the creatures have become

more resistant to modern pest controls. one thing is for sure, they are spreading. >> it has to do with trucking. they are hitching rides into offices and stores. >> new yorkers hope that when the weather cools down, bedbugs will die out. meanwhile, authorities are searching for ways to exterminate these unwelcome guests. >> enough to make you want to scratch, is it not? if you have views on that story or any other you have seen today, but love to hear from you on bbc.com, our facebook page, any way that you like, you can follow me on twitter, i would love to hear from you. that is about it for this edition of "gmt." coming up later on "pc world news america, close both the growing problem of obesity in

china. that is on "bbc world news america." stay with us right here on "bbc world news," fenty more to come. >> funding was made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, and union bank. >> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major

corporations. what can we do for you? >> i'm julia stiles. >> i'm kevin bacon. >> i'm kim cattrall. >> hi, i'm ken burns. >> i'm lili taylor. >> i'm henry louis gates, jr., and public broadcasting is my source for news about the world. >> for intelligent conversation. >> for election coverage you can count on. >> for conversations beyond the sound bites. >> a commitment to journalism. >> for deciding who to vote for. >> i'm kerry washington, and public broadcasting is my source for intelligent connections to my community. >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles. presented by kcet, los angeles.