17/03/2016 BBC News at Six

The day after the Budget before - and new warnings about who wins,

The Chancellor called it the Budget for the next generation,

and hits back at those who say it will mean more austerity.

What I am saying in this Budget is, we have got to hold to the course

we have set out, we have got to take action on public finances now

so that we are stable and secure and we don't pay later.

But financial experts say living standards will suffer -

and Labour accuse Mr Osborne of favouring the well-off.

He has cut capital gains tax to the wealthiest 5% in our country,

and at the same time he has paid for that by cutting the benefits

We think that is, to be frank, a scandalous choice.

Parents set to lose the automatic right to be school governors -

part of the radical reforms to education in England.

And now that magic has gone - Paul Daniel dies, aged 77,

A letter I had yesterday from a lady said, "You had a marriage that

Katie is winning her battle against fast food,

fat and fizzy drinks - a special report on Britain's

Coming up in Sportsday on BBC News - England win their opening women's

World Twenty20 match against Bangladesh, led by captain

Charlotte Edwards, who top-scored with 60 runs.

At Cheltenham, Thistle Crack wins the big race of the day.

Good evening and welcome to the BBC News at Six.

24 hours after George Osborne's Budget, and it is being picked over

by financial experts, the Labour Party and even

The respected Institute for Fiscal Studies has

warned of more austerity and lower living standards.

Labour accuses the Chancellor of taking from disabled people

Those welfare changes are a concern for some Tory MPs,

too, as our political editor, Laura Kuennsberg, reports.

How does it all work, Chancellor? The day after his budget, George

Osborne's mathematics and his motivations are being questioned.

Some of the claims branded disingenuous, the sums too

optimistic. And real cuts - hardly something to celebrate. We make sure

that in uncertain times we are fit for the future, by taking action on

our public finances so that we do not pay later. And we back small

businesses, are self-employed, above all working people, by reducing

their taxes so they can help us grow the economy. Reality has arrived

along with the budget on MPs' desks. And the probability emerges that the

Chancellor only has a 50-50 chance of hitting the targets in the red

book, and accusations he is fixing the figures. I really admire George

Osborne's love of a five year plan, because it is always five years

away. He missed every single target he set for himself in 2010. And then

five years later, in 2015. And in the Tory ranks, there is also on

happiness, with rebellion brewing. Sarah Stuart from problem is one of

more than 600,000 people with disabilities who might be affected

by changes to the personal independence payments. When cases

are reviewed in future, the benefits will be calculated differently for

some. She is worried she might miss out. People like me that used to

work all the time and are now needing help from the system they

paid into, it is an or full-time. Some Tories are ready to campaign to

fight the change. This change is wrong-headed and it really hits the

wrong people. They are always tinkering around the edges - that

needs to happen so that you have a slightly fairer system. But I think

the package which has been offered up to now, which is still a

consultation, does go too far. The minister in charge admitted many

thousands of people might lose out, but the total amount will go up. We

will see more people overall benefiting from the system. It will

continue to improve year-on-year and overall we will still see an

increase in funding every year in this Parliament. What do you say to

a disabled person who might lose a vital share of their income, and the

person next door might get a tax cut? But the two things are not

linked. This is not a financial measure. It is providing a fair,

sustainable benefit which provides support and affects genuine, ongoing

extra costs. Tory Eurosceptics are plotting with Labour over the tax on

tampons as well. The Government hopes that within days, they will be

allowed to scrap it. That would help. Like with any budget, it is a

test of the Chancellor's reputation. George Osborne has got bigger

ambitions than being in charge of the Treasury for ever. So he was

trying to impress is own MPs as well as the public. His team insist he

has made the right big and bold decisions, but the budget has not

gone entirely to plan. That was such a big occasion, wasn't it? Indeed,

budgets always are. Events which changes, there is and all of our

lives. So why are some experts saying

that there could be trouble ahead, Our economics editor,

Kamal Ahmed, is here with me. You have been taking a good look at

the numbers? I have indeed, yes. Day two, and a day of in-depth

analysis of the Budget. That hitting that vital budget

surplus target is going to be very And that there are more public

sector cuts ahead in all likelihood. This time around he has responded to

bad economic news by shuffling some figures around. If he gets more bad

economic news, he will either have to abandon that target or do

something serious, some significant tax increases or real spending cuts.

Those real spending cuts could come in the year

The IFS says that if the Chancellor is to achieve his fabled budget

surplus, he will need to find a further ?10 billion of cuts

to planned spending on public services by 2021.

Those cuts could fall most heavily on non-protected departments such

as the Home Office and Justice - they may have to find a further 13%

The Chancellor also announced income tax cuts - increasing the personal

allowance and taking 585,000 people out of the higher 40p rate of tax.

But according to one analysis, that cut tends to be more

It will boost the incomes of the richest 20% of households

That figure for the poorest 20% of households?

There was some better news for the Chancellor today.

The Bank of England said wage increases were stronger and that

productivity was rising - and after the bad news

on productivity yesterday, that will come as a welcome

For this manufacturing firm, Mr Osborne's pledge to support

The Treasury made productivity improvements - crucial

for maintaining growth - a central part of the Budget.

If you put your efforts into your staff and machinery and invest back

into the company, you are getting more work, you are widening your

capabilities and strengthening your reputation.

One final thought - never underestimate Mr Osborne's

ability to find a little extra something behind the fabled

As one government source pointed out to me, yesterday's figures

were so poor, things - before the next election -

For as long as anyone can remember, parents have played a part

in running schools by being governors.

It is all part of the sweeping changes, including making

all state schools academies - published by the Government today.

Labour says it will be costly and disruptive,

but the Government argues parents will have more choice.

Here's our education editor, Branwen Jeffreys.

Schools across England are facing a massive shake-up. Teachers will have

to prove their classroom skills to qualify. And all schools will become

academies within years. Rebecca Jones is a parent governor at this

primary school in Manchester. Under these plans are elected parent

governors will go when it becomes an academy. Parents give immediate

feedback if there is an issue. And if you don't have the parent

governors, I don't think the parents would feel able to approach the

school about issues. Which one of these pictures to you think is going

back into the past...? Like most primary schools, it is still run by

the council. But that will have to change within the next six years.

Tell me which one you are choosing... Samantha Kinghorn

headteacher here. She resisted pressure to become an academy

before. But what about other government plans? Headteachers who

move to a struggling school will get more time - at least two years, to

turn things around before the inspectors arrive. That would be

welcome. At the moment I feel sometimes that Headteachers are a

bit like football managers. You make one mistake or you have only been in

a school for one year, and you are pumped off! So what friends will it

make to their education? The only these changes taken together are

meant to give headteachers and schools much more freedom to shape

what they teach. It will also create huge change of schools -- huge

chains of schools competing with each other across England. The

question is, who holds them to account? Steve Lancashire is the

chief executive two primary school chains. He says they use the Freedom

of being an academy to offer something different. They are held

to account, he says, through their results. All of our schoolchildren

will go to a capital city in a foreign country to experience a

foreign culture. It is distinctive about what we can provide as a group

of schools, rather than individual schools, and as an academy rather

than as a council school. The Education Secretary tells me she

wants parents to have a bigger say, so why get rid of elected parent

governors? We want governors to be there because of the skills they

bring. I think there are much more effective ways for parents to be

involved rather than just having a couple of parents on the governing

bodies. We want to set up a parent portal so that parents know what is

going on and better complaints mechanism. Schools will still have

to try to impress parents, but there is no guarantee there

to try to impress parents, but there transition to the new system.

EU leaders in Brussels are making yet another attempt to tackle

the large numbers of migrants and refugees trying to reach Europe.

The proposed plan would see migrants arriving in Greece sent

But Turkey wants a number of concessions from the EU.

Our Europe correspondent Damian Grammaticas

It sounds like there are still a number of obstacles in the way?

There are. This grand bargain has real problems still to overcome. The

first one, is it legal? One leader coming here today said it was on the

edge of legality, because international law and human rights

law says that refugees arriving all have to have their cases heard

individually. There is not the infrastructure in Greece to do that.

That is one problem. Secondly, those concessions Turkey wants, things

like speeding up his free access for Turkish people to the EU - many

European countries very unsure about giving concessions to Turkey at a

time when they have real worries about human rights in Turkey. And

Turkey also wants the speeding up of its accession talks to the EU.

Cyprus, an EU member, is not recognised by Turkey and has said it

will block that. Lots of problems ahead.

Paul Daniels, one of the country's most popular entertainers,

has died at the age of 77, just weeks after being diagnosed

He died at his home in Berkshire in the early hours of this morning.

For 15 years, he was a well-known fixture on Saturday night TV

with his programme The Paul Daniels Magic Show.

# You're going to like this, going to like this...

If the ball's in my left hand, it's in my left hand,

if it's not in my hand, it's under the cup.

He was fast, funny, and very skilful.

He took old-fashioned magic and refashioned it

He became a fixture of the Saturday night schedules.

He had started in northern clubs, combining magic with a cheeky

You're supposed to go one, two, out the way,

He devised a catchphrase to deal with hecklers.

Paul Daniels was almost as famous for his toupee and his glamorous

assistant, Debbie McGee, 20 years younger.

They eventually married, which amused some people greatly.

What first, Debbie, attracted you to the millionaire

I really got the giggles because when I first worked

But the things that attracted me to him,

Our life has been full of laughter and that's what it's been the last

few weeks, up until the last 48 hours when he slipped into a sleep.

But even minutes before he slipped into that sleep,

he was smiling at me and joking and singing Beatles songs.

I had a letter yesterday from a lady who had met us and she said,

"The thing is, Debbie, you had a marriage that

Off-screen, he devised the special effects for Phantom Of The Opera

and he was an inspiration to a younger generation

Everyone I know had a Paul Daniels magic kit -

that was the first time people would learn how to do magic.

And his TV shows, I missed a lot of them because I was a bit too

young, but having looked back on them and all the magic he did

on YouTube, he will always be one

of the greatest magicians of our time.

For 20 years he was one of Britain's most popular

Three years ago he recalled routine offers of sex early in his career

and admitted he could not be sure all the women he had slept

He could be chippy and some thought him smug.

He fell out with BBC managers who dropped his show

in the 1990s - but there was no doubting his popularity

Paul Daniels who died today, aged 77.

A warning from financial experts that wages are set to fall,

but George Osborne says we have to stick to the plan.

rugby match, a row over racist language in the sport.

Coming up in the sport, England win their opening women's World T20

match against Bangladesh, led by captain Charlotte Edwards who top

scored with 60 runs. Health professionals have welcomed

George Osborne's tax on sugary drinks in his Budget yesterday,

but warn that it "will not be a panacea" for the nation's

obesity crisis. Treating conditions linked

to obesity cost the NHS in England ?5.1 billion in the last year,

and in children, it still remains one of the most serious

public health challenges Our correspondent Jeremy

Cooke has this report. It is a global epidemic,

fuelled by fast food, Modern-day snack food is not

love, it's a killer. One in three of our ten-year-olds

is now obese, their futures Unless we turn this round,

this is going to be with us not only for the coming generation

but for the generations Katie is 15, loves singing and drama

and going to the movies. Her battle against weight has been

a lifelong challenge. 14-year-old Becky likes R

music and Justin Bieber. She too is working hard

to shed the pounds. When it comes to calories,

for both girls, the problem has been It was like a pot of Pringles,

an iced coffee, a croissant. Chocolate cereal and I would have

in my lunch rolls and crisps. I would have, like, chicken nuggets

or just something out And then your mum would

give you your supper? Yeah, and I would have lunch

and I would have breakfast. For their parents

it is a major worry. They know that obesity can

destroy children's health Why didn't you, as a mum,

simply feed her less food? We hid bread in places

like the laundry basket Now Katie is fighting back,

has found the strength to lose two stone and is determined

to lose more. I'm around 16 right now and so,

like, obviously I will see when I get to where I want to be

but roughly like ten stone Katie is on the right road,

using exercise and diet. For others, though,

the challenge is still daunting. Four out of five obese children

will become obese adults. Overweight young people

look relatively healthy, they get up and about,

they move around, they do things But when they are in their 40s

and 50s, you find that the body Becky is doing well, going

to the gym, choosing healthy food. But being overweight can also bring

psychological problems and for her, the bullying started

at primary school. I would feel like I was always

being talked about so I would walk round a corner and there

would be a group of people. Even if I didn't know them

and they were laughing, I would think they

were laughing at me. It's hard to see your child

sort of feel that way. I don't think there's anything

quite as heartbreaking than when your child tells

you that they hate themselves and they don't want to look

at themselves in the mirror. Counting calories, choosing water

instead of fizzy drinks. Overweight children

need this kind of help. They can't take responsibility

for their own actions, they are children and they are

vulnerable to the actions and the decisions of

the adults around them. Health professionals have welcomed

news of the sugar tax but say it is only a first step

towards tackling the childhood And tomorrow we'll be looking

at the role of the food industry An inquiry into child abuse in care

homes in North Wales, criticised for exposing only

a fraction of the abuse carried out, Lady Justice Macur said

there was "no evidence" of abuse What's the reaction been

to today's findings? Perhaps inevitably for some abuse

survivors, today has been a day of disappointment, some saying they

lost trust in the authorities many years ago. It is worth considering

that some of these crimes happened for decades ago when vulnerable

children, put into the care of the state, became the victims of

sustained sexual abuse. In the following years they were silenced.

About 20 years ago an enquiry was held here, some 700 allegations were

looked into and many people were happy then but rumours persisted

that there may have been some people who evaded justice. Lady Justice

Macur has been through more than a million pages of evidence and she

says she is satisfied there was no cover-up, no national figure who got

away with it. But we are still left with some questions tonight, why is

it only in the last three years that some perpetrators have been brought

to court? Will some victims feel put off about coming forward to give

evidence? One thing is clear, this probably isn't the final chapter in

the story. Thank you. A brief look at some of the day's

other other news stories. Owners of dangerous dogs will face

harsher sentences if the animals have been deliberately

trained to be aggressive, under new sentencing guidelines

in England and Wales. The changes cover offences

in which a dog injures or kills a person, injures an assistance dog,

or where someone possesses Those found guilty could face

between six and 14 years in prison. College lecturers have been

on strike today across Scotland The EIS teaching union

said its members were taking to offer a fair deal and create

national pay scales for lecturers. Walk-outs are scheduled to continue

until the summer if no resolution The broadcasting veteran

Cliff Michelmore, who was familiar to audiences as far back

as the forties, has died We're going to meet,

among other people, a smoking dog called Butch and a horse-racing

butcher called Bacon. He was best known as host

of the current affairs programme Tonight, with a distinctive

and informal style. The director general of the BBC,

Tony Hall, has called him England's Grand Slam-deciding game

against France in the Six Nations Meanwhile, the Welsh Rugby union has

said it is disappointed that England prop Joe Marler has been cleared to

play despite a racial slur allegedly made against an opponent. Joe Marler

is on the bench but coach Eddie Jones has denied the decision was

made as punishment. Dan Roan's report contains

language that some viewers It is the incident that has

threatened to overshadow England's grand slam bid. When prop Joe Marler

was heard saying gypsy boy at Wells appointed Samson Lee last weekend, a

player who has been open about his traveller heritage than many

expected a ban but instead he escaped punishment and today the

Welsh Rugby union expressed their surprise, saying there was no place

for racist language in sport. We don't condone any sort of

determination, race, religion, sexuality. As an organisation I

think probably we slightly disagree with it. But that hasn't impressed

England coach Eddie Jones who hit back at what he sees as Welsh

inconsistency. If you look at the statements from Wales yesterday,

maybe they don't know about it. They clearly think it was a racist

comment? At one time they didn't yesterday but they do now. Do you

think it was a racist comment? I've said what I've had to say on that

topic. We have a grand slam in front of us. It is no wonder that coach

was the focus to be on the performance is on his side had swept

all before him and now only France in Paris stand in their way. It may

be hard to believe but less than six months ago England were at rock

bottom having crashed out of their very own World Cup here at

Twickenham after just three matches. That humiliation led to an internal

inquiry, the replacing of their captain and the sacking of head

coach Stuart Lancaster so how have they turned things around so

dramatically? We have been runners-up for the last four years.

Maybe it was a mental edge. Like I said that we have had those failures

in the past to drive us on to finally cracked it but until we win

this weekend, I'm not happy, I'm not resting. This was the last time

England won the grand slam, 2003, the same year they lifted the World

Cup but emulating that will take some doing. So far they have made

the perfect start. A bright meteor was sighted flashing

across the skies over the UK People reported seeing a bright

flash of blue or green light moving It's believed the spectacle

was caused by magnesium-white trail. Clouding of but it has been a

beautiful day for most, the warmest day of the year in the Highlands.

Not for everybody but we did see 19 degrees. Different in Aberdeen, only

eight and really quite cold, 5 degrees, a lot of coastal fog. There

were some lovely spells of sunshine for most of us today, a pleasant

spring afternoon. Things are set to change as we run through the night.

That cloud will creep steadily westwards through the night,

bringing low cloud and a spot of drizzle and coastal fog. Further

west, clearer skies, a touch of frost and mist and fog. It should

lift quickly and the best sunshine will be further west that it will be

a cold, grey, disappointing start for many tomorrow. And with the

strength of the wind on the coasts, it will feel disappointing. A lot of

low cloud around, but spot of drizzle on the cost. We might see

some breaks in the West and in Northern Ireland and West is best in

terms of the sunshine. As the day continues, some of the cloud will

creep further westwards so the sunshine state of the extreme west

with temperatures not as warm as today. We might scrape double

figures, across the north coast it will be a bit cooler and cloudier.

The high-pressure spreads to the west and keep things quiet but

cloudy and cold moving into the weekend. If you haven't already

heard, we keep the dry theme but there will be quite a bit of cloud

around and it will stay chilly. That's all from the BBC News at Six

so it's goodbye from me and on BBC One we now join the BBC's

news teams where you are.