22/08/2012 Newsnight

Tonight in hock up to its neck Greece pleads for just a little bit

more time. But after the long hot summer is the promise of September

action about to materialise? We'll ask the world biggest bond trader

if the printed money's soon going to rain down. Fear of clothing in

Las Vegas. He's third in line to the throne, he's naked, but Fleet

Street wont touch it with a barge pole. Have they suddenly developed

a conscience or have they got the fear of Leveson in them. We have

Neil Wallis, a former deputy editor of the News of the World, the

publicist Max Clifford and Vanessa Feltz. The airwaves have been alive

with male politicians sounding off about rape. In her first interview

since resigning Tory MP Louise Mensch says she's fed up with them,

and has challenged David Cameron to put women in senior positions in

the Justice Department. Also its game over for the man who stole

multi millions from Polly Peck shareholders. He protested his

innocence until the end. A man worth hundreds of millions of

pounds, spending dozens of millions of pounds a year on charity, what

Good evening. Global investors have sitting like hawks on telephone

wires watching the drama in Athens as the Prime Minister, Antonis

Samaras begs for his colleagues for more time. Since July big stock

markets have risen of the expectation in the end the European

cl bank will intervene, but with people waiting for the news, to see

if they're stepping in to purchase the debt and ease the crisis the

As our mini-heat wave comes to a end, Continental Europe have been

suffering under dangerously high temperatures for weeks. The Euro

crisis, which is over a thousands days old, is suffering again. And

shock horror, Greece is in the frying pan. It want a two-year

extension on the 130 billion Euro loan on troick ker, which was

agreed last March. The new Greek Prime Minister, Antonis Samaras

hosted the conference, with Jean- Claude Juncker who alongside the

rest f the troick ker, bailed Today body language expert were

deployed to see if there were changes in the mood at least.

have to discuss, the lengthening of the period, and other die mentions

of the problem, when we are taking the findings of the troika.

Any economy in prolonged recession, with soaring unemployment,

particularly among young people, cannot stand on its own feet.

Afterwards, Mr Samaras invited Mr Juncker to further talks in his car.

Can you join me in my car. Tomorrow he flies to France, before jeting

to a nipier Berlin, for talks with Merkel measuring, who he will hope

is fully refreshed and upbeat after her holiday in Salzburg But

creditor nationness the north are cooler on the yfd of a pause in

Greek repayments. German MP, hinted today that Germany was already

throwing good money after bad by lending money to Greece. "what's

the point of the German taxpayer IOUs if the debtor will not pay."

Why give Greece more time when it is barely making the structures it

agreed to. There is a recognition amongst the troika, there is need

to provide relief for the new Government can meet its fiscal

targets. But that of course, creates additional financing meeds

and that's a difficult conversation amongst the creditor countries.

Meanwhile something big is the offing in Frankfurt. Home to the

European Central Bank. It looks set to finally use the biggest monetary

weapons in the Arsenal, through a programme of unlimit buying, that

means the ECB will buy up Government bonds of weaker eurozone

countries in the hope of ending the volatility which doged the zone for

almost three years. Expect to hear new C words in the coming weeks,

conditioningality and convertability. It is the strings

if it is to buy bonds on the open ended basis. The Spanish and

Italians may formally apply for a bailout from the bailout programmes.

As convertability that might account for the softening of the

German stance of late. If the future of the currency is called to

doubt, that is you cannot convert the currency, the Germans hay allow

the ECB whatever, and we mean whatever is necessary, to save the

single currency. That talk of major intervention has already stopped

the slide in the Euro against most currencies and dramatically lowered

Italian and Spanish borrowing costs, down 11 and 17% respectively. If

all markets, politicians taxpayers and the weather, were to line up

correctly, could we ever arrive at Utopiaville, where coolness lives

comfortablely, side by side with southern spending heat. We could

see them buy time to slowly and incrementally, and deliberately

move towards a banking and political union. Unless we

eventually get to debt neutralisation or monetaryisation,

or both, we will not see eqib lib reium in the area. It remains a hot

issue, but citizens drift towards a banking, fiscal and political union,

which few would have forecast, even a year ago. Well watching that from

a studio in California, is a man who knows a thing or two about the

market, Mohamed El-Erian is CEO of the world's largest bond investors.

Hearing German politicians, particularly, saying that it

wouldn't really matter, if Greece left the Euro, what's your

assessment of that? I think long- term it would be better for the

eurozone if Greece were to exit, sixly because Greece has enormous

problem generateing economic growth and jobs within the zone and Greece

has too much debt so. The solution within the eurozone is difficult.

The problem is there is no short- term solution. There is no killer

rap to get Greece out without disrupting the rest of the eurozone

so no-one makes the decision or go down in history as having that

decision made. We have to muddle through again. Are you betting on

that? What I'm thinking is going to happen, I want to make a distinct

what is likely to happen and what should happen. What is likely to

happen is very messy compromise that involves giving some more time

to the tkpwreecks but not very much. And - Greeks and involves the

creditor giving more money, but not very much, and it will break apart

in a few weeks anyway. That's what likely to happen. What should

happen is people step back, recognise they've been adapting the

wrong approach for the last three years, and making the courageous

decision. We will end up getting to the difficult decisions but

unfortunately, they're going to be forced on Greece, rather than taken

by Greece. The expectation is, and the ECB will come in and Hoover up

Spanish and Italian bonds, Hoover up their debt. Do you think that's

the most likely thing to happen? I don't think the E contribution

becomes will do that for Greece. I think the ECB will make a distinct

tweeng Greece on the one hand and Spain and Italy. And that is a

really important distinction that the ECB wants to make and should

make, because Spain and Italy are not where Greece is. In terms what

they'll do for Spain and Italy, expectations are high, people

listen very carefully to the President in London, when he said

the ECB is committed to serving the Euro, and do whatever it takes, and

believe me it will work, that's what he said. Markets will see

words translated into actions, we don't think the translation is that

simple. How disappointed will you be if this doesn't happen? I think

that the market in general, will be disappointed. All of us should be

ready for renewed volatility. We've had a wonderful four weeks of

tranquuillity, that tranquuillity was caused by words, not actions.

Now we need actions. And I think it will be very hard for the ECB to

deliver what both Germany wants which is can't and what Spain and

Italy want which is cash. Right, and they're going to have to strike

the delicate balance, and it is a very delicate balance to strike.

looks like the ECB will do whatever it takes, this will be a open-ended

of all debt and printing money, what will that do to the global

markets? So F the ECB, does that, and I stress, if, in capital

letters, because it is still uncertain, first, that would be

tremendous support for Italy and Spain. That would come down. Second

it would undermine the long-term credibility of central banks,

central banks are not supposed to take on the credit risk. This is

for the fiscal agencies, so there's a question about the functioning of

institutions, third, it would impose significant political stress

within the eurozone for the reasons you heard earlier in your report.

Which is the Germans don't think that's the right approach to

solveing the problem, they want conditionality, rather than cash.

So I think it would solve short- term but come plicate the eurozone

long-term. The three things, neutralisation, conditionality and

acceptance by citizens in Europe. So far it's been difficult to meet

the three criteria. Thank you very much for joining us x. Now, when

Prince Harry got his kit off in a Las Vagas hotel room, perhaps he

had expectation what went on in a private room in Vegas, stayed in

Vegas, he reckoned without a camera phone, and American chat website,

has been snapped naked. Like father like son, Prince Charles naked

appeared in 1949, but Prince Charles was not a in clairch with a

naked woman. Not a single newspaper has done images of Prince Harry,

but the Sun which looks nothing like Prince Harry, they were taking

no risks. Is it because editors have come on overbarb flee about

privacy or fear Lord Justice Leveson is breathing down their

necks? Here is Stephen Smith. Keeping a low profile, in cerise

bermudas and straw panama, the third in line to the throne has

been enjoying down time in Las Vagas, after the duelties of the

Olympics. He challenged, Ryan Loche to a race in a nightclub pool. Not

sure that was the legacy, everyone was talking about. The Prince

invited a whole bunch of people back to his sweert for a few rubers

Overnight, celebrity web sites in the States ran fuzzy snaps of a

naked Prince Harry, in clinchs with women, also wearing very little.

Christmas for the tabloids, or so you'd think. It is a fantastic

story, he has no clothes on in a bear hug with a lady which appears

to be wearing no clothes in a hotel room, literally any journalist

worth his salt, whether at one end of the market or the other, would

have said, thank you God. It doesn't affect Prince Harry at

aufplt because in a way, people would say, he's 28-year-old army

officer, he's single and cavorting with ladies who wish to be Kay

vorted with, so where are the issues. There are none, accept one,

Leveson. Air strikes yes, Leveson, with his Lordship's judgment coming

soon, British newspaper websites so far declined to run the pictures.

Quite right too, say some: We have to remember that although this is

Prince Harry, and two girls, this is a 27-year-old, single male who

hasn't done anything wrong and who ought to be allowed something of a

private life. The palace played this exactly right, saying they

won't make any comment whatsoever about it. Now, over and above that,

there isn't any scandal that he's done something that is wrong.

There's no criminal aspect of it, there's no leadership aspect of it,

so he's entitleed to have a private life. So it seems that while the

old media will of course be invited to royal photo OPs, such as the

work out with Bolt, but less obliging on other stories, like

websites which lie out Leveson remit. One well known gossip site,

written here, posted the Harry pictures. At the end of the Leveson

Inquiry, and summation of News International barrister gave to the

inquiry, he actually said, it is all right for the Fawkes blowing,

they will have a advantage if they clach down on us, so the newspapers

are aware this situation cannot exist. And as things get difficult

for the old dead tree press, it is to my advantage the Leveson Inquiry

It had all been going so well for Prince Harry.

So, as we countdown to tomorrow morning's papers, what do you do if

you're an editor? Risk the wrath of the owner, the lawyers? So I'm the

editor of the Sun, I have loads of other issues flying around me, I

don't want to embarrass Rupert Murdoch or cost myself my job, in

case I get it wrong. The bold move should be to run the damn things. I

understand that links later, and Herbert Smith will be all of you,

but there's a reason for doing T it is not as though, it is a hole in

the wall camera. This is obviously, clearly surrounded by a group of

other young people and said that's rather good, we'll have a picture

of that. This strip pool party is bad for who exactly? Harry, the

palace, the press? It is beginning to look like a cue.

Joining me now, we have the evergreen PR tkpwruer rue, Max

Clifford, victim of phone hacking, Feltz felt and Neil Wallis who is

on police bail as part of the phone hacking investigation, and unable

to answer any questions involving that investigation. If you were at

the height of your powers, one of the tabloid papers, would you have

printed? PreLeveson yes, now no. Because you're afraid, it is either

a good photograph or not. situation is fun, it's a good

classic newspaper situation. The problem is, in this post-Leveson

era, where newspapers are sixly terrified of their own shadow, they

daren't do things that most of the country, if they saw it in the

paper, would think, that's a bit of a laugh, there there would be no

harm done, and they would not think any worse of either the paper, or

of Prince Harry. If you thought it was a laugh, what is the public

interest defence in these piketures? It is straightforward.

He is the third in line to the throne, he has been on the world

stage for weeks and weeks. He is supposedly, rounded by police

security officers. The truth is, those girls: Clothed or unclothed.

Those girls are a group he met at the hotel. That's fine if you are

my 27-year-old son, but this is the third in line. For goodness sake F

he were in a state or public capacity, if he was suddenly,

striping off, at the Olympic Games in full view of the billion viewers,

that would be shocking, and that would be a matter of public

interest. What he does, in a private hotel room, is what we

expect him to be doing, he is a young fellow, he is not married or

on state business not representing the Queen, he is having a good

laugh. He deserves it, he has been a great ambassador. Any editor who

says Prince Harry is doing what he does in private, get naked and cop

off, with the opposite sex, that tickles their fancy, and say it is

is a private matter S right. If one of the young women, came to you

with that photograph, would you take it to a paip sner There's no

point because they wouldn't publish it. In a previous life, pre-

Leveson? I wouldn't have done, because I have a lot of time for

Prince Harry, I like him. Permly, I wouldn't have done, and I think

from a PR prers spective, this won't affect his popularity, in

terms of what he does with the armed forces, he does a lot in the

kids and charities. I have seen him, he has done a lot he and William to

make the Monarch as popular as they are today. It is about why the

editors make the decision to do that. You see, this is a perfectly

reasonable point of view, and if an editor sits and say on journalistic

decisions I will decide to or not, that's fine. They're not, that's

not the reason, it is not in the Sun tonight. Hang ong, I want to go

back, absolutely, Harry is a really decent guy, the Olympics, he's done

so and ofpblt but you represent Rebecca Lewis, David Beckham was

perfectly decent guy, wasn't he? David Beckham was married.

Allegations all the time. I never didn't say it was. But David

Beckham was a family man and the whole brand of Beckham was family,

family. That's how he was being solid to the world, Rebecca, if the

allegations were true, showed that was rubbish and hypocrisy. And the

public were being deceived, that's a justification, if there was any

in that situation. There's nothing Prince Harry is pretending to be.

What is the line now though, I think you would say, that actually,

public interest defence may be 20% now? Absolutely right. It is

totally changed. As Neil said, basically, before Leveson, and

since Leveson, it's totally changed. And my experience, probably, 80%

would have made the front page, don't. Why is it a bad thing that's

changeed What you're suffering from is knew neutered newspapers. Max is

a great example, he mentioned David Beckham's story, do we believe if

the story arose now, whether we would get it in a newspaper, I

would suspect, that most editors would be embarrassed if you put it

to them, because they would be frightened of the consequences,

because if you got attacked by Leveson, he would lose your job. If

your paper was criticised, the advertisers would flee. You're

saying to me, actually the papers are neutered and editors are

sitting on legitimate stories? Dels a load of stories, people have

come to me, in the last two or three years, were legitimate public

stories, exposing paedophiles, editors are frighteneds because

this is their private lives, therefore we can't go will.

there a bad effect? This is fabulous, awakening of a dormant

conscience, if fear is the catalyst for the conscience, who cares. If

there's some kind of moral, awakening, then it is about damn

time because they're far too many people's lives have been paid fast,

if you ask the public, are you suffering a dreadful dirth, is

there a famine of fabulous stories you feast, the public will say,

what, they wouldn't know what you're talking about. Have you seen

this page, it is not, you seen the photographs., It is something else,

everyone has seen the internet, that's hilarious. The reason the

Sun that is done this, is Leveson. The point of it is, that if you

take away the significance of Prince Harry today. What we're

talking about is an issue whereby, we have a culture, that means that

here in Britain, in Ireland tonight, you stand on the border, one foot

on one side, the Irish, herald has the picture ton its front page. You

stand on the other side on the border and the British newspapers

are too scared to show that picture. Yet you go on the web, and all over

the world you can see these piketures. The only people who

can't are British newspapers. It is a response face nat, decent.

The point is it is the next stage of news, isn't it? As you said,

it's on the web. Lots have looked at it, would you have bought a

newspaper if it was in it? To have a good look, he looks fantastic, I

would buy a centrefold with Prince Harry looking like that. It is he

will straight wheen News of the World closed and Sun took over. It

is nothing like it the News of the World, because the British public

wanted the scandal, the things that are exposed in the News of the

World, that doesn't happen any more. Whether it is a good thing or not

it another matter. We talked about:. British public miss it.

In advance of Leveson, finally on the question of the Royal family.

It will be a very, very, interesting paper that would

publish anything in the Royal family now, do you think it is off

limits, do you think they've successfully managed the PR. They

were off limits until 40 years ago, and suddenly, things were appearing

that you would never have dreamt off. Now the Royal family, along

with everybody else major store is getting massive protection, mainly

because of Leveson and everything has changed out there. There's an

argument for and against, you must have a free press, and responsible

press, but now, the press's hands are tied behind their back. It is

the bad guys that get away with it as a result. The Conservative MP,

and author, Louise Mensch wrote a piece in today's Daily Telegraph,

about MPs attitude to rape. From Henri de Galle to Todd Akin to the

mouriesry Senate race. What could be her last salvo, she challenged

David Cameron to put a woman in the senior department. She's fed up

with male politicians demeaninging the more risk crime of rape. Here

are a few of the comments that annoyed her. Not everybody needs to

be asked prior to each insertion, some people believe that when you

go to bed with somebody, take off your clothe and have sex with them,

and then fall asleep, you're already in the sex game with them.

It seems to me first of all, from what I understand from doctors,

that's really rare, if it's a legitimate rape the female body

that's ways to shut that whole thing down. Assume that didn't work

or something, I think there should be punishment, but the pun yushment

ought to be on the rapeest and not child. The allegations are rape

though aren't they? It is well worth people watching us tonight to

go go on-line and discover what they can about the allegations how

they were made. Who made them, what those people who made them, did

afterwards. And, looking at what happened. Serious rape, I don't

think many judges give five years for a forcible rape, frankly. The

tariff is longer than that. And a serious rape, where violence, and

unwilling woman, you attach much longer than that. A few comments

from prominent people. Louise, first of all, there's a serious,am

Biff lens here amongst male politicians and not just men, about

the idea of a violent stranger rape, and coercion in the home? This

gradeation, which is recognised in Swedish law in a strange way?

That's the point of my piece, all too often male politicians

recognise one type of rape, when a stranger holds you off out of the

bushes and rapes you. They don't want to look at the areas of

consent or believe a wife for example could say no to her husband

and be raped within marriage. They aren't interested in shades of grey.

A and that's something we have to change. When you look at it, in

England and Wales T became illegal to rape within marriage, 21 years

ago, is this a kind of relic of old attitudes or new attitudes as well?

Unbelieveablely, shocking, so it is an attitude that has gone on for

ages, we should have had marital rape for ages as a crime. It is

shocking that took us that long. Those attitudes are still there.

And people, actually for whatever reason, have sway? Yes., you mean

the politicians have sway, these are the people, this is why it is

more important than celebrities making stupid comments about rape.

These are the law-makers, that will affect how rapists are punished

lepbl slated against and recognised in the courts, and also, they set

the culture. And sometimes, women, have been driven to feeling that

men just don't get it, they fundamentally don't get it. We've

seen politicians from the extreme left, like Craig Murray naming an

accuser, live on your programme, former Lib Dem. We've seen people

from the extreme right. Ken Neath Clarke. Although I do in Ken's case,

he really did mis-speak, he was talking about aggravateing factors.

Was ust way of putting things. you have things like Whoopi

Goldberg, saying it wasn't rape, rape, it is not just men, who are

voicing these attitudes? No it isn't just men, and Helen Mirren,

made ust remarks as well. But it is far more often men than women.

Whilst it is disgraceful that whoopy as activists seekss to

justify the film maker. There is only one type of rape, when a

victim of rape does not give consent to sex. That's what makes a

in rape. How can this be addressed. What you talked about, is ask David

Cameron in a senior role. We have a female Home Secretary? It isn't

necessary change, I wish to take issue the idea I'm demanding or

challenging David Cameron to do anything, I would encourage him to

consider it. I think it would be a great idea to do it. This is

already his man, I believe. He inherited a parliamentary party

with not very women. He did a lot to change that permly and now we

have Anna, who will make a fabulous minister. David Cameron made a big

effort to change that, and you were one of the people he chose to make

that effort with. And you, potentially were a high

flyer, you could have been the woman in the Justice Department.

I'm not a lawyer. You could be one of the women who, were there to be

making changes N the law, changes in attitudes. More than you even

have done so far? Well, think, luckily you're not limit speaking

out by sitting in a parliamentary seat. The way David handled the

difficult resignation, gives him credit. He supported women in

Parliament. Do you think you were able to push the envelope, with

younger female MPs. I remember when you came on, and it was interesting,

because it was unusual to have a young Conservative, we were talking

about nextism so openly, did you contribute to the attitude no

changes I hope so. I'm not alone. There's Claire Perry, and a whole

bunch of Tory women, very many, women, Tory feminists who self-

identify as feminists, that's the important thing, to say nextism is

not about the right or the left. Femism is about women. And there

are people who support the nextist role across the political spectrum.

If we debt that across that's a good thing. On your decision, to go,

it is come plicate, but is it possible to have a senior role in

politics and raise a family? Absolutely, in my case, it wasn't

about having it all or children, as I said the Prime Minister supported

flexible working and made that happen in my case. My circumstances

are unique, it was more about a family that was split across the

Atlantic and strains of doing that, more than a working mother. The

Prime Minister has backed women and will continue to do so. Will you

ever return to front line politics again? Never say never, but I have

a lot on my plate right now. As on the Polly Peck tycoon, whose name

was synonymous with the get rich fast will be sentenced tomorrow of

ten charges of theft, between 1987 and 1990, amounting to 61.8 million

today. His conviction is the end of a fraud office investigation, which

had stalled when Nadir fled the country, two years ago, he returned

voluntarily to Britain, promising to clear his name.

We look back at an extraordinary He was the astonishingly successful

millionaire businessman. Whose FTSE 100 company was brought crashing

down by an investigation, that's taken over 20 years to complete.

Throughout that time, Asil Nadir protested his innocence. There was

gross totally, gross conduct of the graveest kind in this whole affair.

Now, it's finally ended in his conviction. The Serious Fraud

Office's long pursuit of Asil Nadir has been vindicated. 19 80s was the

get rich quick decade and no-one got richer, quicker than Asil Nadir.

Starting in the rag trade in 1980, he made an investment, that was to

He paid nearly �300,000 for a stake in a small textile company, called

Polly Peck. As it expended he devoured more and more companies,

by the end of the decade, Polly Peck had00 subridries -

subsidiaries, and he was a donor to the Conservative Party. By the end

of the decade, Polly Peck was one of the leading FTSE 100 companies.

But things started to fall spectacularly apart for Asil Nadir

when the Serious Fraud Office, raided his offices in Mayfair. They

were investigating allegations of insider trading and that triggered

the collapse of Polly Peck A very public raid, the newspapers there.

With inknew when doe, they create a cloud of you. Rl which is very

damaging. Confidence in any company, doesn't matter which company it is,

it could be a massive bank or anything else, it can have

devastating effect. The September 1990 raid was followed by a

shocking series of events x The next day, the Polly Peck share

price collapsed. The following month the company went into

administration. Then the SFO raided Polly Peck's headquarters, and in

December, Asil Nadir was arrested in dramatic circumstances as he

arrived back in London on the private jet. There was a massive

arrest procedure with dozens of armed surrounding the plane.

Ridiculous affair, and I was arrested, taken to holborn place

station x It was a catastrophic fall from grace for Asil Nadir who

was charged with theft and false accounting on a massive scale.

the company collapsed, shareholders, individuals and corporates lost a

huge amount of money, various people lost their jobs as well,

when PPI collapsed. As far as the reputation of London is concerned

as a financial centre, if that sort of thing can occur, it damages our

reputation. A mother with five young children, who had used her

savings to buy several thousands pounds worth of Polly Peck stock

was caught completely by surprise. I had a brilliant annual report

from the accountants which gave you no reason to think they would be

bad in any way, that it would suddenly go broke. Then a few days

later, complete collapse. investigation was run by the

Serious Fraud Office which was set up a few years earlier, because of

the failure to deal with the wave of financial scannedals. Its

reputation was to be severely tested during the pursuit of Nadir.

He was accused of zaeling �150 million 348 from Polly Peck's

accounts, obviously routeing it vaia the Channel Islands and

complex web of companies which the Nadir family controlled. The

prosecution said he used 25 million to buy thousands of shares to prop

up the price, and 25 million went into family trusts. Then trfs the

vanity projects. Stolen money helped buy this 17th century estate

in Rutland. He planned to turn in into a gox course. This stately

home in Leicestershire, which he bought for himself. After PPI

collapsed, the administrators, went to northern Cyprus, to attempt to

recover the cash, but found only a black hole. Did you steal that

money? Absolutely not. It makes you wonder, a man worth hundreds of

millions of pounds, spending dozens of millions of millions of pounds

on charity. What motive does he have, for God sake to actually

steal money? You steal money from an enterity you created yourself?

Absolutely not. In 1993, with his trial date approaching, he decided

to flee the UK. Asking a pilot friend to drive him to this remote

airfield in Dorset. We came right up to this gate, left the car where

it was, walked through, the engines were Turkish r turning the door was

open, within 35 seconds we were air borne. The SFO had let the man at

the centre of one of the biggest ever fraud trials, slip will you

its fingers. And they had no prospect of getting

him back. The Turkishish control part of the

island has no extradition treaty with the UK for 17 years he lived

there, beyond the reach of UK law. With Nadir out of the country,

serious questions about the SFO's conduct continued.

Tory Government minister, Michael Mates was concerned about the

taking and copying of the SFO of legally privileged defence papers,

belonging to Asil Nadir. But he was forced to resign, when it was

revealed after Nadir's arrest, he'd sent him a watch, engraved with the

words "don't let the bugers get you down". In an explosive resignation

speech, he lambasted the SFO. God, it is all coming back. Do you

remember it. Is it pain snfl This is the moment I was absolutely

disturbed, I was in despair. If one cannot come to the House,

and tell them what is wrong with the system... If one cannot speak

in this place, not about innocence or guilt, not about trial, not

about subduediesity, but what has gone wrong with the system, then

Madame speaker, what is the point of being here It is after the trial

the honourable gentlemen must give this information, that is the point.

The SFO's case controller, was disciplined ost cop ig and

distribution of the legally privilegeed defence papers, seized

in the 1990 raid on Nadir's office. And for failing to fully Brave the

then Attorney General. That's enough. But the judge in Nadir's

trial, ruled that her conduct, didn't affect the fairness of the

trial. The former President of northern Cyprus, who spoke to us

shortly before his death last year. He revealed how soon after Nadir

arrived back, he was asked by a member of the British Government to

have him arrested. I was shocked. I said, under my

constitution, he has committed no offence here. We cannot deport a

subject. And I cannot arrest a man just because you request it. I'm

really shocked. He was shocked. a way I said, well I haven't heard

this, forget it. Speculation about why he'd return to Britain remains.

But in January, after 20 years of investigations, arrests, claims and

counter claims, the trial of Asil Nadir finally got under way.

Wearing an electronic tag and bodyguards in tow, he arrived at

the Old Bailey. His liberty and reputation of the serious faued

office from on the line. A Dad's Army of former board directors,

financial expert, police officers, and others, would give evidence of

event that happened two decades earlier, leading to the raid on

Polly Peck. At his plush officeness Mayfair, Nadir ran things with an

autocratic management style. Under a single signatory system he was

able to move company money without any other board member having to

countersign. Nadir never dispute he moved Polly Peck's money out of

accounts in London. His defence to this complex fraud was very simple

- it was all about how business was done in Cyprus, back in those days.

As Nadir always said that, before he took any money from the company

in London, he'd always deposited equivalent amounts of money into

company bank accounts here in northern Cyprus. So there could

never have been any theft. The justification for that, was that

Polly Peck in northern Cyprus needed large amounts of the local

currency, Turkishish leera, and his family, and in particular his

Under cross-examination, Asil Nadir was asked repeatedly if he could

provide evidence of the massive deposits of Turkishish lira. He

said it was cuss tum to keep vast stores of cash in secure rooms in

wealthy houses and not keep records of the deposits. Defence witnesses

spoke about ferrying suitcases full of cash to banks. It would have

been brought in by her security guards, plural, but, even then, we

think inheritly probably you have a nx security guards going down the

street with a number of wheeled suitcases containing these vast

amount of cash. The jury agreed. Their verdict, finally delivered

just fis for the victims of the collapse of Polly Peck.

But that's not quite how Asil Nadir sees it.

Something in the region of 70 or 80,000 people lost their jobs, as a

result of the downfall of Polly Peck. Shareholders lost billions,

of pounds, how do you feel about that? Well, all I have to do is

remind you, that I was the biggest shareholder, I was the creator of

the company. So in a funny way, I've been the biggest loser in this

affair. Tomorrow morning's front affair. Tomorrow morning's front

page now, we begin the w the Sun Harry naked romp was sensation says

the Daily Mirror. Telegraph, and picture of Harry, in Los Angeles,

hours after the pictures went on- line. The palace moved to ban naked

photographs, the Prince confirmed they've spoke ton the complaints

commission. On the left hand side hups of schools face axe as GCSE

grades stall. The right to die campaigner, finds a victory in

death. The Guardian, class divide in

health widens, and Tories under pressure. Well that is all from

Newsnight tonight. The Russian media reported today that sipgel,

Sarah Brightman is in talks to become the eighth space tourist to

visit the International Space Station. We find archive of her,

that might explain why she's so keen to go.

# I lost my heart to a star ship trooper

Prospects for the weekend don't look Rosie. Thursday morning dawns

on a bright cheerful note. Cloud will thicken and we'll see rain

arriving. Before that happens across the heart of the Midlands

the sunshine will hang on in the afternoon. This is 4.00, a bright

prospect for most, the London area, certainly. Koofl at 21-22 degrees.

Further west, the cloud will be increasing, filling the sky and

producing a few showers across the West Country and Wales not a

washout, but will be getting cloudier and damper in some places,

will you the second half of the day. It won't feel that warm out there

either. Dampness filling in to south-west Scotland. Further east

and north, it will abbrighter prospect.

Long last, the heavy rain will fade away. Friday, it looks particularly

wet. Not a pleasant toned the week. Gusty winds, particularly down

towards English Channel coast. Low pressure, approaching our