06/03/2013 BBC News at One

Britain will provide armoured vehicles and body armour for force

area's opposition as the foreign secretary says the situation is

reaching catastrophic proportions. A million people have now fled the

crisis. William Hague says as the crisis becomes increasingly extreme,

Britain cannot look the other way. Syria has become the top

destination for jihadists anywhere in the world, we are seeing a rise

in sectarian violence. A crackdown on pay-day known companies, they

are told to clean up their act or face being shut down by the summer.

A radical overhaul of the way child abuse allegations are handled in

England and Wales is announced. need to get this right. What be

don't want our guidelines in five whooping years, when somebody says

that they were wrong. Thomas Cook, the world's oldest travel company,

and out his plans to cut 2500 jobs in the UK. And why they are turning

back the time in Cornwall. A rather curious addition, this is nearly 60

ft long and it is a replica of a Bronze Age boat. Later, eight men

are arrested on suspicion of grooming and raping an underage

girl. And University Challenge - how Imperial College's new campus

could bring 3000 jobs to the Good afternoon. The foreign

secretary William Hague has announced that Britain will provide

armoured vehicles and body armour to the opposition in Syria to try

to end a crisis that has reached what he called catastrophic

proportions. He said the humanitarian situation was becoming

increasingly desperate and extreme and said Britain could not turn the

other way. The UN says the number of refugees who have fled Syria has

now reached 1 million, --. Every day thousands of Syrian refugees

stream across the border into neighbouring countries and beyond.

The vast majority, women and young children. Many severely traumatised

by the bloodshed they have witnessed. This growing flood of

refugees, prompting the UN to issue a stark warning. If you want to

avoid an explosion in the Middle East, if you want to guarantee the

peace, stability in the countries around, it is important to find a

political solution for the problem before things get worse. Conditions

in the Refugee Council in Jordan, as elsewhere, are very tough. More

than a third of a million Syrians have already fled here, despite

promises of help from the international community, no way

near enough is being provided. And back inside Syria itself, the civil

war continues unabated. The rebels claimed to have taken more ground

but still show no sign of toppling the Assad regime. To achieve that,

they say European countries must now lift their arms embargo.

regime is sent -- still bombarding every village, every city, there

used surface-to-surface long- distance missiles, they used to

admit missiles against civilians. To stop the killing and destruction,

we need to alter. For the time being of the Foreign Secretary says

Britain will not supply weapons to the rebels but in Parliament today,

he did promise of a kind of assistance. It will certainly

include armoured four wheel drive vehicles, as well as personal

protection equipment including body armour. This 19-year-old was the

millionth of Syrian citizen to Reg -- register as a refugee. The fear

of all the countries looking after them is there could beat 2 million

refugees sing because the international committee is doing

too little to stop the conflict -- soon. Let's speak to our

correspondent at a refugee camp in Jordan now. The foreign secretary,

speaking a short time ago, talking about the increasingly desperate

situation. What is it like there? Well, I came here three months ago,

and it was an expanding camp. But in the period since, it has

exploded in terms of the number of people coming here. There are now

100 and 1000 people in this camp and you will find that right across

the region, and not just in Refugee Council. There are tens of

thousands of people who have camped out in abandoned buildings. I have

seen them as far into Europe as Greece, across Turkey, or all of

the borders of Syria. The conditions, according to the UN, is

that they are running out of money, they have just 20% of what they

need to be able to cater for these people as a now. They thought they

would be at that stage by June, but the sheer weight of numbers

crossing the borders of Syria has put the UN relief effort into a

very dire situation. There has been a stark warning from the Foreign

Secretary this lunchtime, he said it is essential that Syria is not

allowed to turn into a breeding ground for terrorists. That is a

fairly widespread concern. The dilemma of for Britain in providing

non-lethal military age to the armed opposition is that to people

who in many parts of Syria are at the forefront of attacks against

the government are jihadist grips with a strong Islamist sympathy.

Quite how the British government ensures that none of the military

aid or if they do provide any arms, how they ensure that doesn't get to

the Islamist groups is going to be one of the biggest challenges.

Thank you. Some of the UK's biggest pay-day loan companies to have been

accused of widespread irresponsible -- irresponsible lending have been

told they have three months to change the way they operate or face

being shut down. The Office of Fair Trading says they have found deep-

rooted problems in the industry. Pay-day lenders have been taking

over Britain's high street and are the target of a pincer movement

from the Office of Fair Trading and the government today. Ministers,

promising a much tougher regime and the OFT's three-month ultimatum

coming after they found customers were not being assessed properly.

Police found evidence of irresponsible lending and failing

to comply with the standards across the country. This is not just a

handful of rogue lenders it is about businesses across the sector.

A government clampdown means pay- day lenders will face curbs on the

number of adverts they put out and when they can show them. They could

face unlimited fines or closure if they break lending rules and there

will be tougher supervision. Stricter controls might have helped

Christopher from Durham, whose debt quadrupled because he couldn't

clear it. I would never advise anybody to take a pay-day loans out,

never. Not even for �10. Because once you get the first one you have

got to get a second one, then the third, then the 4th, just so you

can cover the interest. The flood of adverts and internet promotions

has helped turn this into a �2 billion industry. The lenders say

they do try to assist customers in trouble. We have measures in place

to help people who are in financial difficulty, so we have a repayment

plans in place if we see somebody who has got into difficulty, we

will freeze their interest and the fees, help them pay back their

loans. Regulators are being given the power to cap excessive interest

rates, the Treasury is saying the time is not right to use that power

despite today's revelations. The Office of Fair Trading found today

that too many people were being trapped with high-cost loans. They

found that although the loans were supposed to be paid back within 30

days, more than half of pay-day lenders's revenue came from

customers while having to roll over the loans because they couldn't

afford to pay the money back. It is asking the Competition Commission

to investigate a sector which it accuses of preying on a captive

market of people desperate for cash. A major overhaul of the way

allegations of sexual offences against children in England and

Wales are handled has been announced. The Director of Public

Prosecutions says he wants the Jimmy Savile scandal to serve as a

watershed for the criminal justice system. Keir Starmer says he

believes police and prosecuting lawyers have sometimes adopted an

over-cautious approach in cases of sexual assault involving children.

Jimmy Savile's crimes spanned more than 50 years. His hundreds of

victims never saw him brought to justice, but the Savile scandal has

been described as a watershed for child protection in this country.

We can't afford another Savile moment is the message from the

Director of Public Prosecutions. need to settle this and get this

right. What we don't want our guidelines which in five or 10

years somebody says or were wrong and didn't really work. There will

be a new approach when it comes to witness credibility which will mean

a sharper focus on the suspect, not just the person making the

complaint. And the plan is for a more consistent response from the

professionals. There will also be a rethink on concern at the Fort --

of false allegations, which is said to have resulted in too much

caution. There have been cases where adults have been wrongly

accused and some police and prosecutors are said to have

adopted an over-cautious attitude, fearing allegations were false. Now

the pendulum will swing the other way and that is worrying some

lawyers. We are concerned to make sure the pendulum doesn't swing too

far, we have experience of wrongful convictions and miscarriages of

justice in this area and are clearly worried that what we should

do is achieve a balanced side genuine victims to obtain justice,

but we don't wrongfully convicted people again at of crimes they

didn't commit. Like many victims, Patrick Raggett was too afraid to

speak out when he was a child. He suffered years of abuse by a

Catholic priest. He welcomes the new approach and says all those

involved with children have to communicate better. Teachers,

social workers, therapists, the police, they all have to come

together to try to improve their collective understanding of child

sexual abuse and acknowledge, frankly, how it is much more

prevalent a then people ever dream of. The Director of Public

Prosecutions says the national debate over child protection will

go beyond those involved in the criminal justice system. The

Governor of the Bank of England has proposed a radical shake-up of the

Royal Bank of Scotland, West -- mostly owned by the taxpayer. He

says in its current form, the band -- back is holding back the economy

and should be split up. We should devise a plan which should enable

U2 restructure RBS, divided into a bank, it could be a new RBS, a

healthy bank, capable of lending to the UK economy and attracting

funding and therefore could be sold back to the private sector

relatively soon. It doesn't mean being decisive in dealing with

those activities, going to the other part of the bank. I'm joined

by our chief economics correspondent. Something of a

challenge to the Chancellor, this? Is indeed, quite a bombshell from

the Bank of England. Government policy is to keep going with RBS

with a stake of more than 80% held by the government to try and get it

in order and try and start selling the shares at some stage. Only last

week the management of RBS were saying they could have it ready for

a share flotation towards the end of next year. Sir Mervyn King is

basically saying that approach is not right, it is better to accept

the fact that the taxpayer will make losses, hold on to the bad

assets in the public sector and float off the healthier side of the

bank. Has there been any reaction from the Treasury or from RBS?

are not saying anything in public, I think they are rather taken aback

by the Governor's comments. The Treasury are pointing to remarks by

George Osborne last week that this idea was put to him, he did not

rule it out but said there are big obstacles. To make it happen

committee would have to nationalise RBS, take the existing private

shares after market, that would cost a lot of money and be hard to

justify. It didn't look like he was in favour last week. RBS are making

it clear they think they have done the right thing. But a big

intervention by Sir Mervyn King. Thank you. More questions on

banking and bank bonuses at today's PMQs. Our political correspondent

Ministers do not think this will work, because banks will simply put

up salaries, and also, they think some banks will leave the City. On

the one side, you have got Tory MPs getting up the Chancellor for not

doing enough to stand up to Europe, to stand up for the City, and on

the other side, Ed Miliband accusing him of doing too much to

stand up for bankers and for the wealthy. But here's his difficulty

- the economics and politics of this story are out of sync.

Economically, the Chancellor believes he has to resist this EU

plan, but politically, being seen to be standing up for bankers'

bonuses is a bit like being seen to be going on a late night rampaged

through the Blue Peter garden, it is not going to win you many

friends. Our main headline - Britain will provide certain

equipment to the opposition in Syria, in a bid to end a crisis

which has reached catastrophic proportions. Coming up, the

increasing cost of childcare, with parents getting hit by bills which

are rising at twice the rate of Seven days of national mourning

have begun in Venezuela following the death of President Hugo Chavez

yesterday. President Chavez was a controversial figure, who polarised

opinions at home and abroad. Last night, thousands of people filled

the streets of Caracas, chanting his name. A state funeral will be

held on Friday. For these mourners, Hugo Chavez was more than just a

President. He was an icon. They are struggling to come to terms with

their loss. Chavez has not died, the revolution goes on, this lady

says. President, I know you are up in heaven, you will be our died,

she says. Hugo Chavez was a hero to some, as well as a generous donor

of aid. For them, he was the socialist revolutionary torchbearer

who dared to defy the United States, even insulting George W Bush at the

TRANSLATION: He fought for his country, a friend who gave his life

for the Liberation of the Venezuelan people. He gave it for

all the ante imperialists and anti- capitalists of the world.

former soldier brought great charisma to the job. One of his

first acts as President was to nationalise the oil wells. The

revenue funded grants for the poor which gave him huge popularity. But

the mainly middle-class opposition said he was a dictator who stifled

enterprise and ruined the economy. Vice-President Nicolas Maduro is

now the caretaker leader. He could win in the elections, but what of

Hugo Chavez's revolution, will it survive? It depends on whether his

successor is able to maintain the strengths of Hugo Chavez, but

tackle the weaknesses, the inflation, the homicide, the

personal insecurity, corruption, nepotism and so on. If they cannot

do that, then it will unravel. is a deeply divided country.

Millions say they have lost a father figure. Others see an

opportunity for change. The battle for the future of Venezuela has

Police in Moscow say all three men arrested in connection with an acid

attack on the artistic director of the Bolshoi Ballet have given

written confessions admitting to the crime. One of the three is a

leading Bolshoi soloist, who was accused of ordering the attack. A

second man was suspected of throwing the acid, and the third,

of being the getaway driver. The world's oldest travel firm, Thomas

Cook, has announced plans to cut almost 2,500 jobs in the UK, and to

cut 195 of its high-street travel agencies. Our correspondent is in

central London for us. But Thomas Cook seems to have survived? Yes,

these are very heavy job losses, but as you say, this is part of a

turnaround plan to revive a struggling business. Thomas Cook

operates in markets all over the world, but right now, in the UK, it

just is not making any money. Today, we have the news that 2,500 posts

are to go, about 16% of the workforce. Also, we're going to see

the closure of 195 high street stores, as you said. That still

leaves Thomas Cook with 874 outlets. Clearly, very bad news for the

employees, but management have taken a close look at this business

and have come to the conclusion that there is way too much capacity

on the high street. People are migrating online to book holidays.

We also know that there will be job losses in administrative and

managerial posts at head offices in Preston and Peterborough. In a

statement this morning, the chief executive officer, Peter Fankhauser,

said, it is never easy to make decisions, but the company needed

to make changes to secure its future and provide continued

employment for many thousands across the UK. Of course, that will

not be much comfort to the 2,500 people whose full-time posts will

be going. The cost of childcare in the UK has risen by 62% in the past

decade, with a full-time nursery place for a tiled -- child under

two costing �11,000 a year, more than some private schools charge in

fees. The Daycare Trust says costs are rising at twice the rate of

inflation, at a time when wages are stagnating. Reeta Chakrabarti

reports. Childcare comes in many forms, including after-school clubs

like this one. According to today's survey, are all provision has

say child care is a major outlay. It used to expensive. Sometimes you

think you are better off if you do not work. Travel, rent, child care,

the big three. I find it quite reasonable here, compared to

private nursery fees, which we were paying previously. The report found

parents using an after-school club for 15 hours a week found an

for 15 hours a week found an increasing costs of 9% on the

previous year. Parents with a child under two in nursery pay nearly

�11,000 a year for full-time care. �11,000 a year for full-time care.

Investing in quality provision in the early years is really important

for children and I days. If you have high quality, affordable child

care in place, it means that parents can go out to work and

contribute to the economy. They can contribute to their family finances

as well. Child care can be as expensive as a mortgage for many

families. Ministers say that costs will be driven down by the plan to

allow well-qualified staff to look after more children than at present.

But there have been no details yet regarding government hints of a tax

break for working families. An announcement on further help is

expected soon. Today's report underlines the burden for families

across Britain. The shock after Manchester United's defeat to Real

Madrid in last nights Champions League clash has turned to anger.

The focus of the fury is the match referee, who sent off Nani in the

56th minute. Dan Roan is at Old Trafford. It was all going so well

for Manchester United here last night. It was a titanic clash with

Real Madrid. United were leading 2- 1 on aggregate, on course for a

place in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, their hopes of a

treble very much alive, but then came another fateful refereeing

decision, which appeared to turn the game, and left United

devastated. The moment the dream turned sour, when Nani collided

with Alvaro Arbeloa, in a clumsy rather than malicious challenge.

But sadly for the hosts, referee CuneytCakir disagreed. An incensed

Sir Alex Ferguson was said to be too distraught to speak to the

media after the match, leaving his assistant to do the job. We all

witnessed a decision which seemed very harsh, possibly incredible, at

that moment in the game. knighted had been leading, but

having been reduced to 10 men, quickly conceded twice. This

morning, the fans were in no doubt that the referee was the man to

blame. It was the changing of the game. It was such a massive game,

he destroyed it. Disgusting, really. The Turkish official is no stranger

to controversial decisions. He sent off Keith Andrews of the Republic

of Ireland last year at the European finals. Some are not so

sure it was an error. If you put your boot up that high in Europe,

you run that risk, and the referee has gone strong. But that's not how

United saw it last night. At 37 years of age, the referee was

younger than Ryan Giggs. But it is the referee who has grabbed the

headlines. For many, that game of football will go down as a great

occasion, potentially which was ruined by a contentious and poor

refereeing decision. Whichever way you look at it, it is regrettable

but once again in this competition, an occasion such as this has been

overshadowed by the conjecture over the rights and wrongs of a big

decision by a match official. United must now decide whether or

not to lodge an official complaint with Uefa about the performance of

the referee, but whatever they decide to do, it will be of little

consolation, the damage has been done.

Falmouth has not seen anything like it for 4,000 years. Today, a

replica of a Bronze Age boat will be launched at high tide. It is

50ft long, it weighs five tonnes, and it has been reconstructed to

find out more about ancient seafaring. The big question is,

when it float? John Kane reports. Yes, among the yachts and the

fishing boats here in Falmouth harbour, a rather curious addition.

This one isn't nearly 60ft-long, and it is a replica of Bronze Age

boat. It has been built by archaeologists, volunteers and

others over the past seven months. They have built it, as far as they

know, as closely to the original as possible. They have even used

replica Bronze Age tools. We can speak now to one of the experts who

has been involved in the creation of this. You're an archaeologist.

Just explain what you're doing. are plugging the gaps, making the

boat waterproof. It is just some moss, which was found on the

original archaeological excavations, so we have sourced this, ended his

being squashed into these crevices to fill up any gaps. Then, the next

layer up is going to be some tallow, some animal fat, which looks a bit

messy, but what that does is, when you smear it on top of the Moss, it

is going to make a nice, watertight seal, we hope. We will find out how

watertight later this afternoon. It has been seven months in the

building. We can see some speeded- up footage danger. You created it

out of giant logs - why do this, as a historian, as an archaeologist?

Because you can only Know him So much from finds. We know that they

had boats because you can find the goods moving across the ocean. But

what we do not know is how this boat worked. It is the only way to

test out some of the ideas. We will test out some of the ideas. We will

see if it works later. Good luck. It's time now for the weather

forecast. What a difference a day makes. We will not be reaching 17

degrees, like yesterday. Today is cooler, thanks to a good deal of

cloud around, even a few spots of rain. This was yesterday's

satellite picture, with clear blue skies for most of the UK. Today,

much, much more cloud. There are a few holes here and there. But for

most of us, it will be cloudy. It in into the later part of the

afternoon, we could see some breaks in the cloud arriving across

southern areas of Cornwall and Devon. It will certainly be cooler

than yesterday in Wales. Maybe a few spots of rain fox still to come

in Northern Ireland. There could be a little bit of sunshine on the

north coast. The best of the sunshine so far, and this afternoon,

will be across the western side of Scotland. Eastern Scotland and the

east coast of England, feeling pretty cold. Coming down into the

Midlands, East Anglia and the south-east of England, it feels

quite cold under the cloud. The south-east of England should see

some sunshine. Double figures already in Kent and Sussex. More

rain and drizzle pushing northwards into Scotland and Northern Ireland

overnight tonight. In the south, it will be particularly mild. Even

further north, it should be milder than last night. Tomorrow, there

will probably be more rain around. There will be little or no sunshine.

Quite a range of temperatures tomorrow. Chilly in the north-east

of Scotland, coming down to double figures further to the south. These

low pressures will continue to rotate out in the Atlantic, and it

is these which are bringing the cloud. Again, not a great deal of

sunshine around on Friday. So much a stronger winds for more than

parts of the UK. -- some much stronger winds. With those winds,