01/04/2014 BBC London News

pollution levels will be that little bit lower. Thank you. That is it

from us this evening, now we join the BBC news teams where you are.

Tonight on BBC London News: Accused of using public cash for electoral

gain, the Mayor of Tower Hamlets hits back, claiming the BBC's

racist. Panorama stands by its journalism. We speak to charities on

both sides of the argument. Also tonight, flood`hit homeowners

get access to Government cash from today to help repair their

properties. I am in Berkshire, one of the county 's worst affected by

flooding, speaking to people who still have a long way to go to make

good the water damage. Plus, a warning to property

investors from one London borough ` leave homes empty and you could be

fined thousands. And how an old hair`raising art`form

takes centre stage at London's circus festival.

Good evening. First tonight, the Mayor of Tower Hamlets, accused by a

BBC programme of diverting public grants for electoral gain, has hit

back, claiming the allegations are driven by racism and Islamophobia.

Panorama found that Lutfur Rahman, the Bangladeshi Mayor of Tower

Hamlets, has more than doubled funding for Bengali and Somali`run

charities and cut funding for other organisations. Mr Rahman

categorically denies that this was done in return for support in a

forthcoming election. Alex Bushill reports.

It is a borough whose politics has long been mired in controversy.

Today it's mayor and the BBC... I will work for you and each and every

member of Tower Hamlets. Lutfer Rahman is accused by Panorama of

favouring Bengalis run charities with council funding. Other

organisations saw their funding drop a 25%. Not so, say one of the

biggest beneficiaries. It runs this lunch club and its manager told me

they have been favoured by councils of all political persuasions, not

just this mayor. Before him, the Labour Party was here. They funded

us. I think it is racist. What about other organisations? Give to

everyone. Speak to those who have lost out and another picture

emerges. This man has worked for the same charity in the borough for many

years. He fears his funding will be cut further if he is critical of the

mayor and his organisation is identified. In previous years the

process of applying for and getting grants was reasonably transparent.

In recent years, the process has become muddied and has resulted in

reductions in funding which in turn has meant reductions in services we

provide and the number of staff we ploy. There was no comment from the

town Hall today. The mayor refuse to be interviewed. He released a

statement saying that the painting `` portrait by Panorama bore little

relation to the truth. He accused the BBC of Islamophobia and

campaigning on behalf of his opponents in next month 's's

elections. The BBC apologised unreservedly after a list of secret

sources from the documentary were leaked to him by one of the

researchers. Nonetheless, the programme makers defended their

journalism. We have checked our figures and we are satisfied they

are robust. They will be presented to the government in Jude time. The

Secretary of State's experts will decide whether they are right or

wrong. The local MP weighed in as well. I think it is irresponsible

for the mayor of Tower Hamlets to go around making accusations of racism.

He will run out of people who he does not consider racist. The

government has said it will look at the claims saying it could send

inspectors into the borough to investigate.

Lots more to come tonight. I am in Los Angeles where they are using

revolutionary technology to track crime before it starts. London is

planning to go the same way. Thousands of people whose homes were

flooded over the winter will have access to Government cash from today

to help repair their properties. Homeowners can get up to ?5,000 as

part of the scheme, topping up any money they get from insurers. We can

find out more from Alice Bhandhukravi who's by the River

Thames now. Water levels have receded here. This

area was once completely flooded. There is still a long way to go for

people rebuilding their homes and livelihoods. Today news of the

government grant was welcome. Maggie has her work cut out. Since her home

was flooded the entire ground floor has had to be stripped and she has

had to move out. This was the kitchen. You can see everything has

gone, cupboards, walls, all of the units. It is likely to be expensive.

She will be taking up the Government's offer of a grant. I do

not know how far it will go. The whole place has had to be gutted on

the ground floor. The plasterboard has been taken off. The remnants of

the flooding are as visible as much outdoors as in, from sandbags to

sodden lawns. This couple whose floor had to be replaced will also

be hoping for some financial help. We have not finished yet. Any help

is likely to be good for you. Yeah. The carpet was ?1000. Like all other

homeowners, they will have to reply for the repair and renew grant

through their local council. There is a simple online application form

and they `` and we process it and recover the money from the

government. We have already had 13 applications as of an hour ago for

something which only went live today. No shortage of applicants.

Maddie is getting help from her friends and hopefully a little bit

of cash from her council. I am nervous but I have to look forward

and hope things get better soon. The funding has to go towards what is

being called flooding resilience and resistance measures, as opposed to

pure repair work. It can be for work already carried out or yet to be

carried out. Who determines what constitutes flooding resilience, it

will be down to local councils. Many thanks.

A 45`year`old woman and her toddler who were found dead in Hackney

yesterday have been named by police as Valerie Forde and Real`Jahzarah

McKoy. Ms Forde had had previous contact with the Met and the

incident has now been referred to the Independent Police Complaints

Commission. A 53`year`old man has been arrested on suspicion of

murder. A black policewoman who is suing the

Met for racial and sexual discrimination says that the force

has not learned lessons from a report which branded them

institutionally rascist. The 1999 Macpherson Review looked at the

investigation into the murder of Stephen Lawrence. Carol Howard told

the tribunal that they continue to discriminate. Scotland Yard says it

will robustly defend the claim. Union leaders say they fear budget

cuts at Kew Gardens could mean 125 jobs will be lost and affect

scientific research. ?5 million has got to be saved at the Royal

Botanical Gardens in the coming year. Directors say they hope to

avoid any compulsory job cuts or reductions in research.

Investors who buy properties in the capital and leave them unoccupied

could face fines of up to ?60,000 in one London borough. Islington says

it has a number of homes which are bought to capitalise on London's

housing market and are often left empty, without being rented out. The

council says it contributes to the current housing crisis. With more

details, here's our political editor, Tim Donovan.

There is a buzz of building along the city road but how many of these

new apartments will become homes Quetta ma Islington Council

estimates over the past few years around 300 properties in this part

of the borough have been bought simply to leave vacant accruing

value `` how many will become homes? It may be the time to use planning

flowers to charge owners as much as ?60,000 for flats left empty ``

planning powers. We want to make this realistic and workable but also

radical. How long would a flat have to be empty? We want to avoid flats

which left empty for 365 days a year. If someone comes for one

shopping day a year, that is not readily occupied either. Some said

they were not sure how it would be promoted. They may have legitimate

reasons `` how it would be implemented. The whole thing seems

exceedingly difficult. It seems to be a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

Islington claims it would raise money to go towards providing more

affordable homes. The Chancellor George Osborne introduced a 15% rate

stamp duty in the budget on property bought by companies. There is a

reluctance to intervene too heavily in the market. Councils have the

power to levy an extra 50% of council tax on properties left

vacant. But it is hard to establish at the moment whether a property has

been left empty. Some say the trend is exaggerated. Islington council

says it could work because it would require owners to prove use, say

through producing a utility bill. Others will take some convincing.

Immigration Minister insisted today that a Mauritian student must be

deported. He said all of the facts of the case involving the

19`year`old had been considered but were not of an exceptional nature

required for his intervention. The A`level student has been detained at

an immigration centre. Looking at the facts of the case, we concluded

that as ministers it is I think exceptional when you intervene in

the process. After weighing this heavily, we felt there was not this

justification for us to intercede. This week, as dust from the Sahara

has been making the capital's poor air quality even worse. BBC London

has learnt that the Mayor's plans to try and get people to stop driving

during high pollution have been dropped. Campaigners have criticised

the move as a missed opportunity. Our environment correspondent, Tom

Edwards, has more. It has been covering cars all over

the capital, dust from the Sahara. It has been adding to the pollution

already caused by traffic. In 2010, the mayor said he would try to

persuade drivers not to use their vehicles during episodes of high

pollution. They are called action days and work in the same way as

warnings given to commuters to avoid busy stations during the Olympics.

Since then, not much. We should be using an Olympic style travel demand

light. Up to one in ten people might change their behaviour so on smog

days or other days when there are big events on, what we can do is

encourage people to work at home, maybe walk or cycle, use public

transport, but not drive a diesel vehicle into the most polluted parts

of London. In Paris recently, some cars were banned on Sundays to

reduce pollution. According to this data from Kings, twice during that

week London's air`quality was actually worse. City Hall now

believes changing driver behaviour does not work long`term and has

dropped action days. Instead there is a proposal for an ultralow

emission zone and hybrid buses. We need to tackle it across a whole

range of ways. Cleaner vehicles, encouraging planting more trees,

tens of thousands of more trees, encouraging people to walk and

cycle. There is no doubt London still faces a serious problem. But

it is starting to come down. The capital still faces potential

European fines over its poorer quality. Campaigners say action is

needed much more quickly. On that note, still to come this

evening, air pollution remains high into tomorrow. There is fresh air

eventually. A day when you can wash the Saharan dust off the car. The

forecast coming later. Next, to what extent should

technology be used to help fight crime? Well, the Met's planning to

test a new type of computer software which aims to predict where a crime

is likely to occur. A similar scheme is being used in Los Angeles where

it's getting great results, as our home affairs correspondent Guy Smith

explains. We are here to make sure you don't get hurt. Starting his

shift in the foothill area of Los Angeles, and a computer has informed

the police where the crime is likely to happen. In the past, officers

like John would rely on instinct and knowledge of the street. Policing

was more of an art, now it is also becoming a science, using technology

like this to stop crime before it starts. These boxes show tiny areas

of no more than 500 foot by 500 foot. We want to be visible, we want

to make sure people can see us. We want to tell the bad guys, whatever

you think you are going to do, you are not going to do it here and now.

It wasn't long before suspected bad guy was questioned. Dale Welch is 43

and an alcoholic. He has been in trouble before with the LAPD but

this time he has done nothing wrong, and Sergeant Gompertz lets

him go. I have seen what the LAPD have done to people but lately they

have been more co`operative, more relaxed, and they give you a chance

now. 20 years ago they were sticking pins in a map, now they are using

software to predict crime. There is no forecasted crying for this 12

hour period except for in this box. This captain is an evangelist for

predictive policing. He collect data like memorabilia. We have seven

years of data run through an algorithm, showing us where we need

to be and when we need to be there and that is why we are using the

most accurate tool we have. Over the last year, crime has fallen by

almost 30%. Burglary this year is down dramatically. We still ask the

officers to use their knowledge and experience when they get there, we

are just telling them where is the highest probability crime will

occur. The idea came from one of America's top universities.

Criminals behaving very regular and normal ways, and we attach onto

those patterns. We analyse where and when crimes have occurred, and it is

in sorting out the relevance of what has happened recently versus the

long term that we can predict when and where crimes will occur. Some

organisations are concerned. Using a computer is a good thing, but any

time officers are told to saturate a small area with police resources

with aggressive policing, there is a danger they will cross the line. If

this technology works, supporters believe you will have more of

these, empty jail cells. This is preventative. We are denying the

criminals the opportunity to commit the crime in the first place. This

is the future too. Not only the computer, but also a friendly face

in uniform. Next time when they are trying to solve a crime, it may be a

little easier. Guy's with me. As you mentioned,

these high`tech methods aren't substituting good old fashioned

policing techniques? There is always a need for intuition and a knowledge

of the street, but science and technology is playing a bigger role,

and with budget cuts, senior police leaders need to use their resources

in the most cost`effective way. With the Met police, they have a

home`grown algorithm, they have been working closely with University

College London, but they are also looking at products from abroad as

we have seen in my film, and they are looking to the most accurate

system of predicting crime in the future. Could we see this being used

more permanently here in London? Yes, they are trialling it in five

London boroughs. What took them some two or three days to number crunch

takes the computer just seconds. The jury is out in whether this will be

embraced in London because if you look at the experience in LA, 21

divisions there, and I'm told that just six or seven police commanders

are using this predictive policing. As you saw in the film, they are

having huge success and I told privately that, look, I am wanting

my tail because when I am held to account on my statistics, I no

longer have to go to the meetings but the other commanders do. Thank

you. Middlesex County cricket club are

hoping to improve on a fifth place finish last season when they start

their new campaign on Sunday. The county has been boosted following

the news that their Director of Cricket, Angus Fraser, has been

chosen to sit on the England selection panel. But the former

England bowler remains confident that his new role won't impact on

his Middlesex duties. There will be some time that it takes up, but

Middlesex are more than happy for me to do this. I think I have got a lot

to give so I am looking forward to it.

The art of circus has really evolved over recent years, competing with

theatre, ballet and dance for audiences. This year's Circus

Festival at the Roundhouse in Camden is their most ambitious yet and

includes the ancient art of hair hanging. It has to be seen to be

believed. Here's our Arts Correspondent, Brenda Emmanus.

Combining acrobatics, madcap humour, and the rarely seen skill of Russian

swing, they are enticing audiences to the Roundhouse in Camden. The

performance are months 30 international and home`grown talent

performing at the CircusFest. Contemporary circus is about

celebrating the amazing thing the human body can do, it is definitely

becoming more popular across the UK, and I think the Roundhouse is

becoming more known for doing circus. We have companies we have

been working with for three or four years who have come up through the

Roundhouse or done other things in other parts of London, making their

own shows. The rebranding of the Circus space in Hoxton last month as

the National Centre for circus arts was significant, confirming this

popery of athletic entertainment as an artform in its own right. Circus

as we know it has come of age and this year's event is the biggest and

boldest they have ever staged. From sky walking and juggling two more

left`field skills such as hair hanging. They closely guard their

performance, preferring to surprise their audience with their grace and

skills. Prepare to watch in awe. It is a secret, so with our shows we

wanted to keep this secret part of it. Circus has had its roots in

London since the 18th century and this new wave of talent have evolved

to compete and collaborate with other art forms. A lot of what

CircusFest is about is going and meeting people, being part of circus

networks, looking at how we can support the circus industry around

the world. And the Circus world comes to Camden and other venues

until the 27th of April. We have got the hair, but we cannot

do that. until the 27th of April.

We have got the hair, Leave it to the expert! We have had lots of chat

around the air pollution in London. It remains high today and will be

high again tomorrow. The pink you can see on the map is the very high

area, and elsewhere this is where it is high and it is because we have

the Saharan dust being blown in, we have industrial pollution being

blown in from the nearby continents, and then we have our own of course.

From Thursday it will freshen up. Midweek will bring very warm weather

our way with some hazy sunshine as well. This evening and overnight,

that warm feeling will continue with some cloud drifting around, light

winds and some clearer skies. We might get some showers cropping up

here and there, but the most of us it will be a mild night. We start

the day tomorrow with some sunshine, and I think we will hang onto that

for the most part through most of the morning. It might start to turn

hazy as we go through the afternoon, and perhaps something

thicker as we go to the end of the day. Temperatures will be in the mid

to high teens with temperatures of up to 22 degrees in London. As we

get to Thursday, a bright enough start of the day, but it will cloud

over. A weather front will freshen the air and make it cool as we go

into the weekend, but it looks like the fine conditions will continue

now and then. The main headlines. A report from

the National Audit Office says the Government could have achieved

better value for the taxpayer through its privatisation of Royal

Mail. The inquest into the deaths of 96

Liverpool fans at Hillsborough has heard many of the victims suffered

crushing injuries as pressure on the terraces built up.

And flood hit homeowners will be able to claim up to ?5,000 from

today as part of a government scheme. Thanks for joining us. I

will be back later during the ten o'clock news. Have a lovely evening,

goodbye. All across the country, millions of

families are waking