14/10/2012 BBC Weekend News

Five Royal Marines are charged with murder over the death of an

insurgent in Afghanistan. They now face a court martial. It is the

first murder case involving British troops in the Afghan conflict.

Former BBC executives confirm Jimmy Savile was questioned decades ago

about rumours of sexual abuse. The government says former defence

chiefs could be banned from contacting ministers after claims

that rules on lobbying have been Start the cameras.

And the Austrian skydiver whose leap to earth was watched by

millions around the world, as he jumped from the stratosphere into

the record books. Good evening. Five Royal Marines

are facing a court martial after being charged with murdering an

insurgent in Afghanistan last year. It is the most serious allegation

faced by British troops since the mission began there in 2001. The

Marines were arrested last week in the UK, after video footage was

found on a laptop computer. Our defence correspondent reports.

The alleged murder took place in Helmand last year, when 3 Commando

Brigade one their fourth tour of duty in Afghanistan. The incident

only recently came to light but the Royal Military Police obtained a

video stored on a laptop. It followed what has been described as

an engagement with an insurgent, an exchange of fire, and it is

believed the video shows British military personnel are discussing

what to do with a wounded and captured man. The Ministry of

Defence is giving few details but it is being urged to spell out what

happened for the say core of morale. It has to be made very clear, very

quickly, why these charges have been brought exactly because if

that is not made clear rapidly, then it will have a very corrosive

effect on the morale of other soldiers fighting there. If the key

question is whether the Marines broke the rules of war. In

Afghanistan, British personnel have to follow a strict rules of

engagement which dictate when they can open fire, but they are not

made public. They are also banned by the Geneva conventions to insure

the humane treatment of those captured in battle -- also abound.

The case is now in the hands of the director of service Prosecutions,

independent of the military command. He is expected to order a court

martial, overseen by a civilian judge and advised by a military

panel, without a jury. If found guilty of murder, the court has a

power to sentence up to life imprisonment. The court is open to

member of the public. However, with matters of national security, as

with any trial, with the in the military environment or civilian

law, the matters may be heard in private if they are of the

sensitive nature. Unlike Iraq, where there had been serious

allegations of abuse, there have been few question so far of the

conduct of British military personnel in Afghanistan.

Commanders and politicians had hoped they would leave with their

heads held high but this incident threatens to undermine and damage

reputations. And Jonathan Beale is here now.

Clearly very serious charges, but what are the broad indications?

The immediate concern for commanders on the ground is the

safety of British troops, and that is why we have not been told

exactly where this incident took place. What will be the reaction of

local Afghans and the response of the Taliban? It is not as if the

Taliban Abbe a new rules of law but it is important for British

soldiers to be seen to be taking the moral high ground. The bigger

issue is the mission itself. The Chancellor recently asked why

British troops would be spending another two years in Afghanistan.

There are genuinely a lot of people asking why they are staying there,

why they are putting their lives on the line when there are questions

about the mission. Equally people will be asking that question and

say, why are they fighting and dying when the soldiers can end up

in a court of law and they can face murder charges? This will fuel that

debate as to whether the mission is worthwhile, and that is why the

Ministry of Defence are taking these allegations is seriously. It

is not just about the reputation of the five Royal Marines, it is about

every Bideford has served and is serving in Afghanistan, and about

the success of the mission -- everybody who has served.

It emerged today that BBC executives questioned Jimmy Savile

in the 1970s about allegations of sexual abuse involving young girls.

A former head of Radio 1 said he asked the former presenter about

rumours of abuse, but Savile For six decades, Jimmy Savile led a

double life. He was a TV and radio star and his accusers say, a

paedophile, who preyed on vulnerable teenage girls. More than

once, it seems, figures in authority looked into his

activities but took no action. Among them, a senior BBC executive,

a boss at Radio 1 in the 70s and 80s. He said this this week: One of

my colleagues reminded me. On one occasion she was in the office with

me, and I asked: What's all these rumours we hear about you, Jimmy?

And he said, that's all nonsense. It is easy now to say, how could

you just believe him? There was no reason to disbelieve him. He is the

sort of man who attracted rumours. That sounds like a casual

discussion, but another executive said the meeting was formal, and

they had been asked to attend as a witness. There were other missed

opportunities. A former police officer said he reported big

complaints of a nurse at Stoke Mandeville in the 1970s but was

told to drop the allegation. In 2007, Surrey Police questioned him

about alleged child abuse at his school. And the Sunday Telegraph

claimed a 15-year-old Dancer on Top Of The Pops committed suicide in

1971. But it can be hard after so many years to get to the truth. For

instance, the Sunday Telegraph quoted a former bouncer at adults

or in Leeds, where Jimmy Savile was manager in 1958. The bouncer is

quoted as saying that Johnny's -- Jimmy Savile faced a court

appearance for interfering with young girls but that the case was

dropped after he paid off the police. Today, the balance has said

Jimmy Savile did not pay off the police but the girls' families.

Either way, if he had been exposed back then, it may have finished his

career. It could have nipped this in the but because he would have

been disgraced. The club would have sacked him straight away because of

bad publicity and that would have been the end of the story. Instead,

the police account of Jimmy Savile's victims has now reached 60,

over the past 60 years. The Austrian skydiver Felix

Baumgartner has jumped from a balloon 24 miles above the earth,

smashing an altitude record that had stood for more than 50 years.

He become the first person to break the speed of sound in freefall

before landing safely with a parachute. Pallab Ghosh watched the

drama unfold. Stand-up on the exterior step, keep

your head down. A salute and then a fall to earth like no other.

and the angels will take care of you. He is falling faster than the

speed of sound. 840 mph. Smashing the sound barrier. No one knows

what effect that will have on the Then something goes wrong. Felix is

spinning. Unless he can stop spinning, blood will rush to his

head and Felix may die. Using his experience, he regains control.

Then there is another problem. adviser... It is misting up. Felix

cannot see his instruments. He does not know how high he is or when to

pull his shoot. His experience helps him again. Safety first. He

Mission in control, jubilant. His The dangerous part of the mission

over, plain sailing the rest of the way. It is way more difficult than

everything I have done so far and I think I am done. Felix forced to

his knees, in celebration and exhaustion, after the jump of his

life. If you want to see the whole of

that job on earth -- a job to earth, you can do it on the BBC website.

The government says former military leaders could be banned from

contacting ministers and officials if an investigation shows they have

been abusing their access. The Sunday Times secretly filmed

retired officers appearing to offer to help arms companies gain access,

and win contracts. They deny any wrongdoing, but Labour is calling

for a wider inquiry. Our political correspondent reports.

They have been in the heat of battle, directing troops, but today

next six former military officers have come under fire of a different

time -- kind. Accused of trying to influence how the government awards

defence contracts. Those in senior ranks cannot work in the private

sector until two years after they have stood down. This former

commander of the naval fleet says rules are there to be broken.

have to be slightly careful. There is no reason I cannot see ministers,

but there is some criteria on that. How do you get round that? Yes, you

just basically ignore it. Ignore it? Yes. And a former lieutenant

General, Sir John Kiszely, president of the Royal British

Legion, suggested he could use Remembrance services to gain access

to ministers. I am waiting for the Queen standing... And we are

working for this company... Royal British Legion says it is

investigating. Sir John Kiszely denies any wrongdoing and there is

no evidence any of the former officers named by the Sunday Times

broke a new rules, but the Defence Secretary said the allegations are

damaging and he may restrict the access that former officers have to

current staff. If they are abusing that access for commercial purposes,

then we will have to tighten it up or shut it down a. A few months

before becoming prime minister, David Cameron predicted lobbying

would be the next big scandal waiting to happen. In the coalition

agreement, both parties said they would introduce a new register

doosra greater light on lobbying activities. The MoD said any

lobbying by former members of the top brass has been ineffective but

pressure is growing for the government to introduce new rules

are more quickly. They need to be stringent, there needs to be

careful gathering of information and regulating of lobbyists. The

revelations today are pretty damning and seedy and it seems to

be the case that senior military officials had been willing to lobby

on behalf of the defence in the street. Tonight, as former senior

officers fight for their reputations, there are calls for a

wider look at you influences government policy, and why.

David Cameron is to sign an historic agreement with Scotland's

First Minister tomorrow, granting the Scottish parliament powers to

hold a referendum on independence. The Prime Minister will travel to

Edinburgh to meet Alex Salmond, following months of delicate

negotiations. Our Scotland political editor is in Edinburgh

now. This is remarkable achievement. In

January, the proposal was put forward by the UK government that

they would put a legal underpinning to the referendum because they want

to end the uncertainty. David Cameron believes the uncertainty

itself is damaging and he wants to give legal backing to that a

referendum. Alex Salmond has the mandate. We will have a referendum

by 2014 and a single question, Independent's only, with no talk of

devo max, but there is a clear thing as well. When the two leaders

tomorrow agreed regulations for their referendum, they are also

agree in implicitly and almost explicitly that they will be bound

by the outcome, that they will respect and endorse the outcome of

the referendum, whatever it is. Zimbabwe is preparing for a

presidential election amid growing concern that President Mugabe will

try to prevent a free and fair vote. After a violent election campaign

four years ago, Mr Mugabe, who is now 88, was forced into a power-

sharing deal. Andrew Harding has this report from Harare.

Busy, calm, almost normal. For four years, Zimbabwe has enjoyed a

political truce. The economy has stabilised. Instead of higher

inflation, the American dollar. But trouble is looming again. 88-year-

old, and attending a colleague's funeral, President Robert Mugabe is

campaigning for re-election. He makes it sound benign. We will be

given to the election soon. Let people vote the way they want to.

Do to others as you would have done unto you. But Zimbabweans remember

be horrific state-sponsored violence that accompanied the last

campaign, and today with the generals responsible still very

much in power, they wonder how much has changed. It is worrying that

the same people who were in control seemed to be in control today. The

army is still very much involved and that is the most worrying

aspect, the militarisation of the process. It is never easy to gauge

the level of fear in any society but it is revealing to come to a

small town like this in Zimbabwe and simply try to talk to people

about politics. Sick and tired of ZANU-PF. Do you think it is

dangerous to say that in public? Yes. Very dangerous. There is a lot

of intimidation. Do you think people are watching this now?

They are. The man who hopes to defeat President Mugabe next year

sounds confident that a new constitution will finally ensure a

free and fair election. No one wants a repeat of 2008, no one

wants to reverse this country's fortunes to them. Across the

political divide. But his ZANU-PF prepared to give up power? Mugabe's

bitter rival, Morgan Tsvangirai, it would not be allowed to win, so it

says our political correspondent. That result would not be acceptable.

What do you mean by "he will have trouble, Morgan Tsvangirai"?

were just not accepted. Isn't that clear? -- we were just not accept

it. The so a nation is sliding towards another showdown.

Tennis, and Heather Watson has won the Japan Open. It is the first

time a British woman has won a WTA singles title since 1988. The 20-

year-old from Guernsey beat Chang Kai-Chen from Taiwan, describing it

as one of the best days of her life. It was a disappointing day though

for Andy Murray, who lost the final of the Shanghai Masters to world