07/03/2012 BBC News at Six

Six soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan, the biggest British

loss of life there in six years. At the scene, Afghan troops fired

at Taliban insurgents as the soldiers' bodies were recovered.

This is a desperately sad day for our country and desperately sad, of

course, for the families concerned. It's a reminder of the huge price

that we are paying for the work we are doing in Afghanistan.

It brings the death toll of British soldiers in Afghanistan since the

war began to more than 400. Also on the programme:

1,700 jobs are to go, most held by people with disabilities as Remploy

closes over 30 factories. It's very hurtful because I've made

a lot more friends, got so many friends here now and it just hurts.

How diabetics are ten times more likely to have a limb amputated in

some parts of England than others. And a study of gorillas brings

scientists a step closer to understanding what makes us

Good evening. Welcome to the BBC News at Six. Six British soldiers

have been killed when their armoured vehicle was caught in an

explosion in the single biggest British loss of life in the Afghan

war for six years. Five of the soldiers were serving

with third battalion, the Yorkshire regiment, the thors from the Duke

of Lancaster's regiment. Their families have been told. The

people's called it a desperately sad day.

The soldiers were travelling north to Lashkar Gah when the explosion

happened just over the Helmand border. Quentin Somerville joins us

now from Lashkar Gah. Even for the hardened fighters here

at the British base, this came as a shock. They are asking the

questions how could so many of their colleagues be killed in a

single explosion in such a heavily armoured vehicle?

At the base in Lashkar Gah, the flags fly at half-mast.

It marks a landmark British loss. Six of their comrades gone, killed

in a single explosion. The size of the loss left most in this camp in

shock. You feel it in your gut. I mean, it's a sickening blow. But

one thing I've learned over the years is that these young soldiers

are incredibly tough and resilient, so they grieve and it's right that

they grieve and we all do, but in many ways, it makes their resolve

even stronger. We've travelled along this road

before, highway one is the country's main road. It and the

surrounding areas are notoriously dangerous. The six British soldiers

were travelling along the route. They were on what was described as

a routine patrol from a nearby base. It was dark as they approached lash

ka Durai, here they left the road. They were travelling in a Warrior

armoured troop convoy, which is heavily armoured, but the explosion

was still able to cut through its underbelly, one of the largest

blasts they've seen here. The explosion tore through the vehicle,

killing everyone inside. The wreckage of the vehicle and the

remains of the men have now been returned to base. Initial

assessments appear to und Kate this was a very large Taliban bomb which

was extremely well placed -- indicate. One officer said this

isn't a change in insurgent tactics, it was just rotten luck.

David Cameron paid tribute to the sacrifice the men had made.

This is a desperately sad day for our country and desperately sad, of

course, for the families concerned. It's a reminder of the huge price

that we are paying for the work we are doing in Afghanistan, the

sacrifice that our troops have made and continue to make. I do believe

it's important work for our national security right here at

home, but of course this work will increasingly be carried out by

Afghan soldiers and we all want to see that transition take place.

Increasingly, British soldiers are focused on handing control to

Afghan forces, most will leave by the end of 2014. But today, that

seems a long way off. Especially in the town of

Warminster, the home of the Yorkshire regiment where five of

the six soldiers served. I was quite upset because first we didn't

know who it was so I was panicking, but it's just sad. It just brings

it home that my husband is going in April and that I just hope he stays

safe. The men who died had only been in

Afghanistan for little over a week. Even as Britain's part in this war

grows smaller, they won't be the last to leave their homes for

Helmand and to sacrifice their lives for a far off country.

So we expect that soon the names of those men will be released. The

investigation into the circumstances around their deaths

will continue. In one week's time in the small chapel behind me here

in Lashkar Gah base, a vigil will be held to commemorate the

sacrifice and the loss of those six soldiers.

Quentin, thank you. The loss of life today has pushed

the death toll among British troops in Afghanistan since operations

began beyond 400. It's prompted new questions about Britain's role in

Afghanistan and the plan to end combat missions there.

Our Defence Correspondent, Caroline Wyatt is here.

The number of British military fatalities in Afghanistan had

slowed, but these latest deaths bring the total killed to 404 since

2001. The attrition rate is not as bad as it was at its peak when 108

were killed in just one year in 2009. Last year, the death toll was

lower, at 46. 11 of the dead were just 18, the

oldest was 51. Each death leaves behind a family whose life is

changed forever by that loss. The toll of the dead mounted slowly at

first after British forces went into Afghanistan after the 9/11

attacks on New York. But in 2006, when British troops went to Helmand,

the numbers of dead and injured soared in a conflict that's lasted

longer than the two World Wars combined.

For those for whom such a loss is all too familiar, these latest

deaths will bring back the anguish. Conrad Lewis was just 22 when he

was shot dead by a Taliban sniper a little over a year ago. He was a

353rd British fatality. The tragedy for me would be if we left them

before the state was having its own level of security. So if the police

and the Afghan National Army were not in a position to make sure that

they'd got an element of control on that country, then I think I'd

start to think that maybe we had been a tragic waste of life.

process of handing over responsibility to Afghan forces is

well under way. The UK currently has 9,500 troops in Afghanistan,

but that will start to fall. British forces are due to finish

their combat role there by the end of 2014, although some will stay on

to train their Afghan counterparts. Clearly, the task for British

forces in Helmand remains perilous. Perhaps even more so when their

numbers start to come down. But the Government insists the UK must see

this mission through. They are fighting in the deserts of

Afghanistan, a battle to ensure that we are not fighting the

terrorists on the streets of Britain's cities.

But many will ask what it is that Britain and the rest of the

alliance really hoped to achieve in Afghanistan by the time those

combat troops withdraw, perhaps with yet more lives lost.

I think the objective for Britain and the other allies in Afghanistan

is to leave behind some sort of sustainable Afghan administration

so that whatever happens next, good bad or indifferent, is the

responsibility of the Afghans themselves. If there is a decent

interval before anything goes wrong, we can say that we left after again

Stan in reasonably good shape. The rising toll of the dead is not

the only price that Britain's paid. More than 5,000 had been injured in

Afghanistan and will have to live with that legacy.

Despite the unpopularity of the war itself, the past years have seen a

surge in public support for the Armed Forces and for their families

back at home. The Government knows that the

latest losses will renew the questions over whether these

sacrifices are worth it, but Britain's strategy in Afghanistan

is tied to those of its allies and the need to ensure a dignified end

to the campaign. Thanks Caroline. Remploy which

provides and finds work for people with disabilities is planning to

close two thirds of its factories, putting more than 1,700 jobs at

risk. The Government's cut its financial support and ministers say

they are better ways of helping disabled workers. The move is

supported by Disability Rights UK, one of the largest disability

organisations, but union leaders say it's an attack on vulnerable

people. Our Deputy Political Editor, James Landale, reports.

NEWSREEL: This is part of a non- profit making organisation...

up after the Second World War, state subsidised factories for

disabled workers. More than half a century on, most of the segregated

factories are not making money and ministers believe it would be

better to use the �3 20 million subsidy to help disabled people get

jobs in mainstream employment. never going to be easy to make

these decisions, but what we are trying to do is make sure the money

we've got, protected money, is used more effect fly and absolutely

every penny that is saved in the process will be reinvested back

into supporting disabled people. That means that 36 of the 54

factories will close, many in Wales, potentially making more than 1,700

people redundant. They'll get about �2,500 and help to find jobs, but

workers leaving this factory were not happy. It's very hurtful

because I've made a lot more friends, got so many friends here

now and it just hurts. They want us to work, they don't want mainstream

employment because they'll get bullied out there. I know, I've

been there. Some disability groups say the Government is doing the

right thing. For every one person that's funded by subsidising a

loss-making factory, we can get at least eight people into employment,

so what this is about is more jobs for more disabled people.

Labour in Government began the process of shutting Remploy

factories but today these changes were the wrong plan at the wrong

time. These are in communities where there are twice as many

people chasing every job as the national average. It will be hard

to get people sacked by Remploy back into work. The Government is

convinced that supporting disabled people in mainstream ement

employment is the way forward and they've got the backing of some

disabled groups. But making hundreds of disabled people

redundant at a time of high unemployment will come at some

political and personal price. United Nations humanitarian chief,

Valerie Amos, has held talks with the Syrian Foreign Minister in

Damascus, trying to secure access for aid workers in the worst-hit

areas. She went to Homs and paid a brief visit to the devastated

district of Baba Amr. Lord Blair who was Head of The Metropolitan

Police until 2008 has told the Leveson Inquiry into press ethics

that he didn't ask the questions that now look so obvious,

concerning the forces' investigation into phone hacking.

He also confirmed that while he was commissioner, his son did work

experience at the Sun newspaper. Police searching for the former

EastEnders actress Jemma MCluskey who went missing six days ago say

divers have found a body. The 29- year-old played Kerry Skinner in

2001, a 35-year-old man has been arrested.

Three men will be sentenced tomorrow for their involvement in

the biggest so-called Ponzi fraud scheme ever to have been

investigated by the police. One of the men has already pleaded

guilty to defrauding investors of �115 million. A jury cleard two

other men of deceiving investors but found them guilty on lesser

charges. Matt Prodger has the story. They appeared to be financial

wizards, but the only trick was making people's money disappear-

Londoner, Kautilya Pruthi, admitted being the mastermind, a career

fraudster once jailed in America. Kenneth peacock and John Anderson

were today found guilty of lesser offences. They spent the money

renting these luxury homes, they travelled to meetings by helicopter

and one of them even brought a private jet. These super cars

seized by police are some of the few remaining assets to be

recovered from a massive scam. John Anderson told investors they

were putting money into a loan business but police found no

evidence of it. He and his co- defendant, Kenneth Peacock, were

cleared by a jury of misleading investors but found guilty of

unlawfully accepting deposits. People's lives have been devastated.

They've lost homes, pension funds and there are people in the latest

stages of their lives that are haven't to start again and face

decisions that they wouldn't have to normally. From this office in

wealthy Knightsbridge, nearly 800 people were persuaded to part with

their money, promised returns of up to 20% a month. Among the victims

were former cricketer Darren Gough, seen here on Strictly Come Dancing

a few years ago, the actor Jerome Flynn of Soldier Soldier fame was

another who lost money. What the investors didn't know is

that it was a massive Ponzi fraud scheme, the mastermind, Kautilya

Pruthi would take money from new investors and use to it pay out to

existing investors, he then squandered the rest on a lavish

lifestyle. When the supply of new investors dried up, the scheme

collapsed, owing �115 million. Bevis Nathan and his partner from

Bath lost nearly �500,000, all the money they had. I was naive and

ignorant because I had good friends who said it was a good idea and I

trued them and because it was perfect timing -- trusted them. I

didn't really trust the high street banks and didn't know what to do

with the money because I never invested money before in my life so

I was perfectly set up for the job, as its were, really. 2t men behind

the scheme will be sentenced tomorrow mornings, less than �3

million of the money is expected to Our top story tonight. Six British

troops have been killed in Afghanistan bringing to 404 the

number who have died there since 2001. Coming up, Prince Harry with

the Jamaican Defence Force on the latest leg of his Caribbean visit.

In the Business News we will talk to Michael Woodford, the ex-boss of

a Limpar's pooh-pooh the whistle on a multi-billion-pound fraud and I

will reveal the world's richest What makes us uniquely human and

sets us apart from the great apes? It's a question that's puzzled

scientists for generations. But now they have come a step closer to

understanding what makes us different. For example, how we have

managed to develop language and the ability to think abstractly.

Researchers in Cambridge have deciphered the genetic code of the

gorilla, the last group of great apes to be sequenced. So scientists

can now look for the missing DNA link between them, Chimps,

Orangutans and us. Our Science They are one of our closest

relatives. They are sociable and live in communities. In the distant

past, humans were little different from guerrillas. Hundreds of

thousands of years ago, we think we were very similar and we lived in

small social groups in Africa, and at some point, humans developed

language but we don't know what that spark was. Studies in the

Sixties showed apes were intelligent, chimps, in particular.

They can solve problems and use simple tools and even put on a show.

But of course, humans can do much more. So what happened in the

distant past that enabled our species to rise above our fellow

apes. It could be down to genetics. The DNA of humans and apes is 98%

identical but somewhere in our genes, are tiny differences, which

enabled our species to stand upright, develop bigger brains and

crucially learn how to think. Researchers in Cambridge have

decoded the DNA of guerrillas and now, for the first time, they can

compare our DNA with that of all the other apes and discover the

changes that made our species unique. Amongst those are the

changes which allow Einstein to come up with the theory of the

relativity and Shakespeare to write Romeo and Juliet. I couldn't put my

finger on exactly the key elements now, but I think through the study

and others being carried out we are making progress in understanding

the genetic forces behind human evolution and it's going to be an

exciting time. So far researchers have discovered humans separated

from guerrillas 10 million years ago, much earlier than some

scientists thought and something in their genes prevents them from

suffering from dementia. A finding which could help of medical

researchers find a cure for sanity, but the ultimate sign to the prize

would be to discover what makes us so different from them.

If you're a diabetic your chance of losing a foot or leg to an

amputation is ten times higher in some parts of England than others

according to a major new study. It's been described as a national

disgrace by the leading diabetes charity. And the researchers say

specialist care needs to be better organised to reduce the amputation

rate. Our health correspondent Branwen Jeffreys has the details.

It's a serious disease affecting a growing number of people. Already

2.9 million people in the UK have diabetes. By 2025, that is expected

to rise to 5 million. In England, care varies from one place to

another with distressing consequences for some patients.

physiotherapist it teaches you to go good leg, bad leg. Barry Smith

had his left leg amputated below the knee. Diabetes leads to nerve

damage and loss of sensation in feet, so when he stood on a rose on,

I didn't feel it. It was treated months later. Eventually, a doctor

had to tell him there was a stark choice. I will never forget what he

said. He said, Barry, you can die with it on or you can live with it

off. And that might sound harsh, but I've always seen the funny side

of that. You've got a lot of choice, haven't you? If you want to live.

Losing a limb is a life-changing experience. It leaves people

relying on prosthetics. What is shocking about today's report is

that most amputations in that diabetics could be avoided. On this

map, the highest rate of diabetes amputations are in dark red. Up to

10 times higher than those parts of England which are palest. In the

best areas, teams of nurses and doctors provide specialist care.

Injured feet are protected and monitored and campaigners say this

is what every diabetes patient deserves. This situation is

appalling. These are Third World statistics, not first world

statistics. We believe we can halve the number of occupations it

everybody gets the right sort of care. -- amputations. The NHS says

amputations in some areas are so high, and they hope a review will

help to reduce them. The administrators of Rangers

football club are seeking a swift sale of the club after failing to

agree cuts to players' wages. Unless a buyer is found quickly,

the administrators say the club will be in danger of failing to

fulfil their fixtures for the rest of the season. Our Scotland

Correspondent James Cook is at Ibrox now. Where does this leave

the future of the club? Well, in a great deal of doubt, that the short

answer to that because in the three weeks since Rangers were forced

into administration over an unpaid tax bill, the administrators had

been pretty positive about the future of the club. This later

statement marks a very dramatic change. Basically they have been

unable to reach a deal with the most highly paid players which

would have seen them taking wage cuts of up to 75%. Now, that deal

would have basically meant they could have staved off redundancies.

Because they have been unable to do that, they are looking at making

some of the most highly paid stars at Ibrox redundant and that, in

itself, would undermine the club and the value of the business which

would make a sale more difficult. They are in a parlous financial

situation and the administrators say they are looking to accelerate

the sale of this club but they have held at the prospect that Rangers,

founded in 1873, might not make it to the end of the season and

certainly will not be able to play European football next season.

Rangers football club is tonight staring into the abyss. James, at

Ibrox, thank you. Prince Harry has scaled down his activities in

Jamaica as a mark of respect to the six British troops killed in

Afghanistan. He spent part of the day with the Jamaican Defence Force

watching them abseil and taking part in target practice. Our Royal

Correspondent Peter Hunt sent this report.

This was captain Wales rather than Prince Harry. At a Jamaican army

base. The serving officer had been told about the latest British

losses in Afghanistan. At the camp, a chance for a reunion with a

fellow Sandhurst trainee. The Jamaican army was keen to show the

Prince their new tower for training soldiers in abseiling. Prince Harry

was meant to have been joining in here and, in the words of one of

his officials, hurling of this tower, but understandably, British

deaths enough gusto and have changed the tone of this visit. But

Harry went to the firing range and had his off before the media.

Anyone with a camera want to stand up the other end? He is the soldier

prince who has recently qualified as an Apache helicopter pilot and

wants to serve again in Afghanistan. Last night, at a state dinner, he

paid tribute to the woman who still his queen of Jamaica. She combines

all her virtues as a leader and head of state with those of being a

wonderful, caring grandmother. To whom we, her grandchildren, are

utterly devoted. It was Harry, the Royal, representing his wonderful

grandmother, who visited this youth project. Into the groove, he was

soon on to the dance floor. Let's take a look at the weather

Hello, not a date for blue suede shoes today. They would have been

ruined by the rain. Downpours and strong gusty wind. This cloud

brought heavy rain earlier. It has been sweeping away this afternoon

followed by a sunny spells and showers. This is a typical image of

a heavy shower cloud. Overnight tonight, a brisk breeze and it will

be cold than last night. The showers in western Scotland, 10

centimetres of snow on the top of the hills. A centimetre or two on

low ground, and it may turn icy. Temperatures drop in towns and

cities to 1-2 degrees. Yes, a cold start to Thursday for most of us. A

sparkling start with plenty of sunshine. Steadily through the day,

cloud pushing across England and Wales. Its days cloudy in western

Scotland with further outbreaks of rain. -- it stays cloudy. A dry and

bright day across southern England and Wales and after that cold start,

by the afternoon, temperatures in to 10-11 Celsius. It will feel

reasonably pleasant. We will see more cloud across north-west

England and one or two showers. Try and cloudy for Northern Ireland.

The same goes for eastern Scotland but in the West, a fairly strong

wind with outbreaks of rain. More on Friday, too. England and Wales,

generally cloudy on Friday. A hint of brightness in the east but

temperatures, 12-13 degrees, which leads us into the weekend where it

looks reasonably mild. A dry A reminder of tonight's main news.