05/09/2014 BBC News at Six

A ceasefire in Eastern Ukraine - as pro-Russian rebels and Ukrainian

forces reach a deal. It follows a day of intense fighting

as rebels pushed forward into one of the region's biggest cities.

Throughout the morning we have heard the sound of heavy shelling. In the

distance there are rebels, using rocket fire. We have seen Ukrainian

jets and heard outgoing artillery. There's a show of force at the NATO

summit and a hardline message for Moscow despite the ceasefire.

There has been a clear message sent to Russia that what Vladimir Putin

is doing is indefensible and wrong. 1,000 British troops will

join a new NATO rapid reaction force.

We'll have the full details. Also tonight:

Warnings over e-cigarettes - they should be stubbed out,

say researchers who believe they do more good than harm.

Migrants march in Calais, amid claims of police brutality,

as hundreds continue to try and cross the Channel.

And Root hits India for six as England save some face

in the one-day Test series. Tonight on BBC London.

The grief of a local community after a woman is beheaded

in her garden in Edmonton. And police shoot dead a man who was

threatening a woman with a knife at a house in Islington.

Good evening and welcome to the BBC News at Six.

After almost five months of fighting in Eastern Ukraine and more than

2,500 deaths, a ceasefire between pro-Russian

rebels and Ukrainian government forces has been declared.

End to end fighting was due to end 2 hours ago -

though there were reports of some shelling after the deadline.

The Ukrainian government said it was a

"preliminary deal" amid scepticism about whether the deal would hold.

Earlier there had been heavy shelling at the port of Mariupol.

If this was the last morning of war, the opposing forces seemed

determined to spend their fury. These men from a far-right Ukraine

militia, defending Mariupol. From the apartment blocks, the

soldiers watched rebel movements. Below them children played on, as if

oblivious to the unfolding battle. While the civilians then watched the

smoke rise from the explosions. Throughout the morning we have been

hearing the sound of heavy shelling. In the distance now you can hear

rebels, using rocket fire and we have also seen Ukrainian jets

overhead and heard outgoing artillery. It seems with the

ceasefire hours away, both sides are trying to gain as much military

advantage as they can. In this ambulance, wounded civilians for

whom a ceasefire came too late to save them from tragedy.

Among them a woman whose young grandchildren were killed hours

before the peace deal was signed. This woman saw her granddaughter,

aged six, and disabled grandson, aged ten, cut down by an explosion.

She said when she held her granddaughter, that the whole left

side of her was sledded. She was in shock. The little boy was in his

wheelchair and it was really difficult, there was blood all over

his wheelchair. She doesn't know how to survive

this. The images in front of her eyes.

Despite the promise of peace, some families are still fleeing.

Value entira is a widow who is too afraid to stay any longer. But they

have promised a ceasefire, do you not believe in that? God willing

that it will happen. If it does we will come back.

As they wait to see if the ceasefire endures, the people of the East know

that the next hours and days are crucial. After all that they have

suffered only the test of time will convince them that peace is really

coming. Well events

in Ukraine have dominated the NATO summit in Wales today.

Leaders have agreed to set up a rapid reaction force rapid

reaction force - partly in response to events in Ukraine.

Britain will contribute 1,000 troops.

New members And NATO said it's door remains open to new members despite

EU sanctions. Separately, leaders said European Union

sanctions against Russia would go ahead despite the ceasefire.

Our Diplomatic Correspondent Bridget Kendall sent this report.

Britain's Red Arrows, here this morning.

. Theres have discussions about the dangers posed by Russian aggression

here. So news of the ceasefire agreement has been met with hope and

trepidation. Confirmation coming from the Ukrainian President

himself. A guest here, lobbying for NATO protection, even though the

Ukraine is not a member. Once the news came through that the Russians

and the rebels in Belarus had concluded a deal, he took immediate

action. I have given an order to the chief

of my military to declare a ceasefire in half an hour. Though

some details of the agreement are sketchy, he is hoping for a swift

implementation. We are expecting in the very near

future to release the hostages. Most probably it should happen tomorrow.

We are ready for providing the significant steps including the

de-centralisation of power. Part of the deal, it seems, is the

withdrawal of heavy weaponry, the humanitarian corridors and the

presence of foreign observers. It sounds good but it is not clear that

there is agreement on the future of the eastern Ukraine, the key to the

conflict. Without that it must all be precarious.

It is the fierce fighting on the ground in the east of the Ukraine up

to the last-minute that made everyone wary. So NATO is only

giving a cautious welcome. Warning Russia that new Western sanctions

are still on the table. We should be clear that the

sanctions that we agreed last Saturday in Brussels, that would go

ahead, they will go ahead, they will be put in place. But of course, if a

ceasefire and a proper peace plan is put in place then it will be right

to look and see how the sanctions could be potentially removed if the

proper milestones are reached. NATO is beefing up its presence in

Eastern Europe. Holding exercises here in Estonia and stationing a new

rapid reaction force in Poland to the clear irritation of Russia. A

ceasefire in the Ukraine may anybody the offing but the deeper rift

between Russia and NATO is now going to be hard to reverse.

Our Political Editor Nick Robinson is at the NATO summit.

This summit was billed as the most important

in NATO's history, with the Ukraine and Islmaic state dominating the

agenda, how successful has it been?

As the jets were screaming overhead, inside the leaders were able to

watch pictures of the fighting continuing in the eastern Ukraine.

Then hours later on, this golf course in Newport, you get the Petro

Poroshenko, marching out to declare, that the fighting will end, that

there will be a ceasefire. What is intriguing is what they put it down

to. Behind me there is the military hardware, about the talk of

supporting Eastern Europe, sending troops to the area to give NATO

commitment to protect it and yet President Obama and David Cameron

insist it is economic, not military power, that forced Vladimir Putin to

blink. If that is, he really has blinked. He has crossed many red

lines before, including sending his own troops into a neighbouring

sovereign country. The worry that they have is that when he thinks

attention is elsewhere, that he aabandons the promise of a

ceasefire. That is the test of the summit. With President Obama now

saying that his mission on leaving Newport is to create an

international coalition to degrade and destroy the forces of the

so-called Islamic State, can these NATO leaders concentrate on two huge

tasks at the same time? Can they live up to the words they have

issued at the end of this summit? . Some of Britain's top experts

in smoking and addiction say thousands of lives

could be saved every year if smokers switched to electronic cigarettes.

Their advice contradicts recommendations from the

World Health Organisation which said last week that e-cigarettes should

be banned indoors. As our Health Editor Hugh Pym

reports, it's left many smokers confused.

Getting a clear picture in the debate is not getting easier. Last

week health chiefs warned of the dangers of E-cigs, now it is said

that is misleading and they are safer than cigarettes.

No surprise that they are popular among the staff at this

Lancashire-based E cigarette business, Totally Wicked. Some

smokers are switching to session session as they have nicotine.

And experts backing session session say that tens of thousands of

unnecessary deaths can be avoided. If people are to switch completely

to session session and even if they carried on using them for the rest

of their live, we are looking at cutting the number to no more than a

few thousand and at worse. A huge potential public health gain.

In less than a decade, the suggestion session have gone from a

standing start to a ?1. 8 billion global business. But last week's

report say that the use of session session reports amongst

adolescencents had doubled globally. That is why some argue there is a

danger of enticing younger people into a habit that they may later

regrechlt The worry is that the cigarettes may

be used to get a bunch of young people into the nicotine habit. High

addictive. We need more information and regulation. The beginning of a

new surge with session session but we don't know enough about them yet

to say thumbs up. With mixed messages coming from the

medical profession. Perhaps it is not surprising that businesses are

taking differing views. In pubs like this one you are allowed to use

session session in the bar. But here they are banned. Management

at this bar say it is too difficult for the staff at busy times to work

out who is smoking tobacco and who is using suggestion session.

-- E cigarettes. There is a big marketing push as the

major tobacco companies have been buying up leading brands. Another

twist in the often confusing story. It is vapour, not tobacco smoke.

The Lord Mayor of London, Fiona Woolf has replaced Lady Butler-Sloss

as head of the government's inquiry into historical child abuse.

She'll lead an inquiry panel which will include child abuse experts

and at least one victim of abuse. Well, our Home Affairs correspondent

Tom Symonds is with me. How has the appointment been

received? A mixed reaction. She has no experience of child protection.

She said that made her ideal as a chair for the inquiry. But some

victims of child abuse are saying she is too much a part of the

establishment. She is the Lord Mayor of a City of London, an office that

dates back to 1189. They say she is not a good person to judge if the

establishment covered up allegations of child abuse. Perhaps with that in

mind, the Home Office was quick to announce the panel to work with her.

Including a victim of child abuse, somebody that chaired the deputy

chair of the National Children's Bureau and a well-regarded

barrister, experienced in criminal law. But the enquiry will take a

long time. Suggested two years. It is said that they want as much as

possible in public. Gordon Brown says he will lead a

drive for Scotland to gain powers in the United Kingdom if the Scots

reject a referendum this month. Telling the BBC that the "no" vote

was not a vote for things to stay the same. Nicola Sturgeon urged

voters to back independence, saying there may not be another chance.

Raring to go today? Yes. In two weeks' time we will know. The

polls are tight. Today the two campaign, "yes" and "no", continue

to scour Scotland for everlast vote. One question not on the ballot paper

is whether Scotland should get more powers from Westminster. And 400

miles south, that is what this former Prime Minister promised if

Scotland votes to stay in the UNNing. Gordon Brown told me he

would lead the drive here to give more powers to Scotland.

People will know that the majority party in Westminster, in Scotland,

the Labour Party, it is determined to deliver the powers and when the

referendum is over, the issue will not go away. We will ensure on the

floor of the House of Commons we push for the timetable and delivery.

A rare Westminster appearance by Gordon Brown, a cornerstone of the

"no" campaign. Labour thinks what that then

supporters are tempted to vote for independence as they don't trust

politicians in Westminster to give Scotland what it wants, if the votes

are a "no". All the three main parties have sketched out plans for

more tax and social policy to be devolved. But it does not convince

the campaigners for independence who say that Gordon Brown failed to give

powers to Scotland when he was the Prime Minister.

What I believe is that this is the only guaranteed opportunity that we

have to win our independence. That is why I say to people out there, if

you are more convinced than not, because a few people are 100%

convinced about anything but if you are more convinced than not, vote

"yes". A campaign that is felt remote from

Westminster for months is gripping MPs. And the party leaders. Labour

knows that their vote could be decisive.

After months of fighting, a ceasefire in Ukraine,

but Europe could still impose further sanctions against Russia.

Catch of the day - a spectator gives England a lesson in fielding.

Later on BBC London, the academy that is one of the top ten

competence of schools in the country. And an exclusive tour of

the new London Irish training camp ahead of the rugby season.

The high street, often used as a barometer for the economy,

New research from 650 towns across England, Scotland and Wales

suggests the number of empty shops is coming down.

The latest figures show just over 13% of shops are empty.

That's the lowest number for four years and it means 1500 shops are

As Emma Simpson reports, it's good news for many towns

The empty shops are slowly being re-let. Sid cup is on the up. An

empty supermarket is now a gym, in a high street that has been spruced

up. This affluent town lost its way, competing against the big

out-of-town shopping mall 's. But it is finding new ways to bring people

back. The traditional high-street probably is dead, but you have to

look at a different way. We are bringing gems onto the high Street,

adult education, training centre, little shops to enable businesses,

young entrepreneurs to train and move on for the future. This

entrepreneur has made a difference. First, she turned an empty store

into a thriving cafe. Then she revived this business. And she also

bought the empty shop next door. So why invest so much on her

high-street? I know this place has a lot of potential and many residents

have money to spend, and let's keep it here. Here is another vacant unit

that is being refurbished. This town is being turned around. Three years

ago, one in five shops were empty. Now, it is just one in 20. And this

is not the only place where things are looking up. Today's research

suggests the overall picture on high streets is improving. We have 400

more filled shops than in previous months, but we also have significant

polarisation up and down the country. Not all the towns are

getting better. The majority are stable or improving but a

significant number are continuing to get worse. That means we still have

way too many of these. And with billions of pounds worth of shop

leases coming up for renewal, further challenges lie ahead for the

high Street. Around 200 migrants have marched

through Calais this afternoon demanding their "human rights and

freedom" amid allegations of poor Extra officers have been deployed

in the town to cope with the increase in the number of migrants

trying to get to Britain illegally. Our correspondent Duncan

Crawford is there. A day of protest by the migrants.

They are just getting some food from a local charity. Security has been

stepped up in and around the port because of earlier this week the

storming of a ferry. And tonight it is being reported that 300 migrants

were discovered in 69 different lorries in just one day in Calais.

That underlines how many people are desperate to get to the UK.

On the road to Calais, more migrants arrive, hoping to reach a better

life in Britain. Police say they have recently become more bold,

trying in ever greater numbers to sneak onto lorries and cars. For

many returning holiday-makers, the port crossing is now anything but a

relaxing experience. You have to watch and you see loads of people

trying to climb in. They are on the side of the road. We said, you look

in that mirror and I will look in mine. You have to keep an eye out

because they try to get into your vehicle. It is worrying. Today,

hundreds of migrants demonstrated in the town, calling for better living

conditions. They also complained about the way they have been treated

by police. People here say they are in a desperate situation. Many of

the migrants come from East Africa. They have told me they have left

their homes to escape poverty and persecution. Almost all of them have

repeatedly tried to enter Britain. And every week, more migrants come

to Calais hoping to make that journey. This man comes from Saddam.

He paid 1000 euros to go by boat from Libya to Italy before arriving

here last month. He says he has already risked his life seven times

trying to reach Britain. Sometimes inside the truck. But most success.

More than 100 people died under the trucks, and some refugees broke a

hand or a leg, even a head. Extra police patrol the port. Ferry

companies have welcomed the increase in security but say it is up to the

European Union to do more. I am reassured that there is enough

police force to tackle the issue. But surely the EU could possibly

sort out the problem where it originates. At a nearby truckstop,

drivers check for stowaways. More migrants will almost certainly try

to cross into Britain tonight. It has been going on for years and the

authorities are no closer to finding a solution.

The Green Party is calling for a wealth tax on the top 1%

of earners in an effort to rebalance the economy.

The party's leader, Natalie Bennett, said the Greens' general election

manifesto would also include a guaranteed income for every adult

and child in Britain, including asylum seekers and prisoners, as our

political correspondent Ross Hawkins reports

Selling the Greens isn't easy. Even here in Solihull, outside

Birmingham, where they are the second biggest party on the council.

But now, they say they can put money in your pocket. The pitch includes

pounds for a ?10 per hour minimum wage by 2020, a wealth tax for

people worth over ?3 million, and a guaranteed taxpayer funded income

for every man, woman and child, whether they are in work, or not.

Adults would get ?80 per week each, replacing several benefits. But do

voters like the idea? Yes, but what if people are not working and

staying at home, compared to people that are working? Very good. Paid

for by the taxpayer? That is not good. Some in the Green Party dream

of seizing the attention of voters on the left in the same way that

UKIP has managed on the right. The party knows it has a long way to go.

Down the road at their conference, they think they have to be bold,

with policies like a guaranteed income aimed at nothing less than

restructuring society. I am thinking of visiting a food bank, and the

staff were telling me about a father of two young daughters who arrived,

and they were worried about the state he was in. His benefits had

been sanctioned through no fault of his own and he had no food to put on

the table. In the sixth richest country in the world in 2014 we need

to say, enough. Would prisoners get the money as well? Yes. They are

members of our society. I would expect you would see some kind of

charge, in the same way that food and lodgings, some sort of charge

would take most of it back. She accepts many will not like the idea

but hopes enough will embrace it for the Greens to hold onto their one

seat in the House of Commons and challenging others next year.

Cricket - England have managed to avoid

a whitewash by winning the last game of the one day series against

Questions still remain about Alistair Cook's captaincy,

however, after what is England's fourth consecutive home series loss

Like a some are waiting for a barbecue to ignite, four months,

cricket watchers have been looking quizzically at Alastair Cook. If

one-day cricket is a sprint these days, the leader should be a

pacemaker. He hit two fours in the first over and made 46. But when the

captain was out, the run rate was stalling towards four per over, and

England stuck in the cycle which brought them one win in the previous

seven matches. But Joe Root hit an exceptional century. As England

walloped 170 in the last 20 overs. Jos Buttler helped. These are

critical times. The 50 over World Cup is looming and England have

never won it. Are they serious contenders? England supporters love

a surprise. England are not that far away. A bit of mystery in the

bowling attack but they are not that far-away. For people to say, get rid

of the captain, three months before the World Cup, you might as well not

go. There is no point going. If you don't think we can win the World

Cup, making stupid decisions like that would be crazy. Chasing 294,

England were all out 41 runs short. Rush India were all out. But they

had a ready won the series with ease. Cause for English

encouragement? You can guess which interpretation Alastair Cook might

choose. A look at the weekend weather now.

choose. A look at the weekend weather now.

It is not looking bad. This picture sums it up pretty well. Some

sunshine on the way but dark clouds on the horizon, so it will not be a

completely dry weekend but for most of us, most of the time, it will be

dry and quite bright with some sunshine. Today, you will notice on

the satellite picked sure, it has been a varied cloud cover across the

country. This is the weather front which has been bringing rain to

Scotland and Northern Ireland. Through Friday night and into

Saturday, it will be sinking further south, so places like Newcastle, the

Lake District, further south into Yorkshire and northern parts of

Wales will have some rain. Towards the south, areas of cloud, some mist

and fog as well but not cold. A little bit colder in Scotland.

Through Saturday morning, some rain across northern parts of England,

Eastern counties as well. Through the afternoon, the mixture of

sunshine between the clouds and maybe the odd shower, but for most

of us, most of the time, it should be fine. Sunday, another area of low

pressure develops in the North Sea, swinging back into Scotland. Here,

it will not be quite so good with some rain around. But for the vast

majority of the UK it is looking fine. In Newcastle yesterday we were

advertising fine weather for the Great North Run, and that remains

the case. Some sunshine there, although the morning might be a bit

chilly. By the afternoon, around 16 or 17 degrees. Next week,

high-pressure anchoring -- anchoring its self across the UK, which means

mostly dry weather. There will be some sunshine around, but the nights

are getting longer, so with clearer skies at night it will be a bit

colder. Our main story:

After months of fighting, a cease-fire in Ukraine, but Europe

could still impose further sanctions against Russia. Now, time for the