28/01/2014 BBC Newsline

That's all from the BBC News at Six. And on

Good evening. The headlines: A gas fitter admits causing the death of

two teenagers by carbon monoxide poisoning. Distressing detail from

the first witnesses to give evidence to the institutional abuse enquiry.

A controversial play looks set for a full house after a council

climb-down. David Ford stands by his decision to

change the rules for those applying to be Chief Constable. And there is

more rain in the forecast as well as a slight fall in the temperature.

I will have more shortly. A gas fitter from Coleraine has

admitted causing the deaths of two teenagers on the north coast. In the

summer of 2010, Neil McFerran and Aaron Davidson were overcome by

carbon monoxide gas in an apartment in Castlerock. George Brown was due

to go on trial next week accused of killing the teenagers by incorrectly

installing a boiler. Today, he pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

There is flash photography in this report.

Three and a half years on, the families of two teenagers killed in

a holiday tragedy today heard a gas fitter as accepted it was his fault.

This is 52-year-old George Brown seen here at an earlier court

hearing. The tragedy happened in this seaside apartment in August

2010. Aaron Davidson and Neil McFerran and another teenager came

here for a weekend break and were waiting for exam results. The

holiday at the apartment was to end in tragedy. Unable to make contact

with the 18-year-olds, their parents came to the village. Inside, a scene

of horror. Aaron and meal were dead and their friend was seriously ill.

The teenagers had been poisoned by carbon monoxide gas. In the days

that followed, George Brown's name was made public. The Health

Secretary -- the Health and Safety Executive advised him to turn them

off. He was charged with health and see the breaches at properties

across the north coast. He was set to contest those charges. -- he was

charged with health and safety breaches at properties across the

north coast. This case sparked the biggest hub and saved the

investigation of its kind in Northern Ireland. This is the first

case of its kind. Manslaughter has been proven. It is a tragic event in

relation to the deaths of Aaron and meal. After the short hearing, the

families hugged one another but were too emotional to speak. Brian was

granted continuing bail and will be sentenced on the 14th of March.

People who were abused in children's homes have been recalling the

traumatic details of how they were treated. One former resident said

the behaviour of nuns at a Sisters of Nazareth home in Derry was

bordering on psychotic and lighter couldn't -- likened them to a

concentration camp. They will hear evidence from those who lived in C

-- 13 institutions from 1922 to 1995. You may be upset by some of

the details in our next report. Life at the children's home tells a

different story from the photographs at the time. Three former residents

were the first to give accounts. One described their home is a hellhole

saying the Sisters of Nazareth regularly kicked and punched them.

The behaviour of the nuns was bordering on the psychotic. The

judge said their presence was ominous and that fear of what was

going to happen next. He described the damage done as permanent and

said some of the former residents are still the boys who left. They

are sad, lonely and broken even though they are in their 60s. One

person was sexually abused by an older resident at the home. He said

he screamed and a nun came in and when he tried to explain what

happened, she slapped him and said he was evil and was going to hell.

The man who is now 74 said the boys acted as a gang beating him in he

blacked out. There were times when he thought he was going to die. He

said he was aware that some of the younger nuns were not happy with

what was going on but beatings with bamboo sticks and canes were regular

occurrence. Two of today's former residents said they used Jeyes

fluid. He regularly wet the bed and was forced to be stripped naked and

bathed with others. The enquiry is protecting the

identity of witnesses but one waved that protection today to allow his

voice to be heard. Such places should not have existed. There is no

excuse for those times. They were kind people burn. People knew about

children and could care for them properly even back in the 50s. There

is no excuse. The Enquirer will hear from more people who stayed in the

homes late in the week. To another distressing case and a court in

Coleraine has been told that an alleged victim of sexual abuse

originally told the police she had been raped 2000 times. It was

between age of 16 -- six and 13. The woman's father, and a friend denies

sexually abusing her and brother during the 1990s. A police officer

told the trial that the women gave details of the attack. The officer

said she had been wrong in her original statement.

The funeral has taken place in Limavady of Simon Chase who died in

a suicide bombing in Afghanistan. Several hundred people attended the

service at Christ -- at Christ Church. Some businesses closed their

doors as a mark of respect. He had been living in Limavady with his

partner and two sons. He had been working with an EU mission in Kabul

when he was killed ten days ago. The search for a new Chief Constable

has barely started but it is already the subject of a sheeted political

dispute. The DP and Sinn Fein have reacted furiously to a decision by

the Justice Minister to change the rule of governing the appointment.

The first and Deputy First Minister 's have intervened telling the

Alliance minister, David Ford, that the issue must go to the executive

as a whole. Matt Baggott announced he will

retire when his contract ends in September. They have held talks

about the process to appoint his successor and for replacing his

deputy, Judith Gillespie, who is retiring in March. David Ford he

announced -- David Vaughan -- David Vaughan 's -- David Ford said he was

changing the rules. He says they have to have served a minimum of two

years as an assistant Chief Constable outside of Northern

Ireland. They said they were surprised by the announcement. A

number of members told me they believe David Ford overstepped a

mark and has undermined their authority. The board had discussed

changing the two Gable but decided nothing would be done until after

Matt Baggott's successor was appointed. -- two-year rule. Here we

have a board in the middle of a process of appointing both a new

deputy Chief Constable Andy Chief Constable. In the middle of that,

the Minister decides to change the fundamental rules on how to actually

recruit that individual. It is absolutely unforgivable. It is

unforgivable after the starting pistol has been fired. It is

unheard-of that the Minister should interfere in this way. Be deputy and

-- the first and Deputy First Minister has said is that his

decision is significant and controversial and want to be

discussed by the executive. The Justice Minister said they were

wrong. What I am certain of is my decision was the correct decision.

He signalled he doesn't plan to withdraw his proposal. I will be

happy to go to the executive meeting and explain for the benefit of

ministers that I will be putting in a paper in the next few days. I will

explain why it has been appropriate to carry that out. The SDLP have

joined in the criticism. They have hit out at Peter Robinson and

marking McGuinness, accusing them of political interference and send the

recruiting poster should be left to the policing board alone.

Police say they have spoken to a 12-year-old boy in relation to car

crime is on New Year's Eve. They say they are continuing to investigate a

series of incidents where cars were driven erratically and at speed in a

west Belfast area. The boy is to take part in the youth conferencing

where young offenders get the chance to understand the impact of their

actions and to make amends. A report has found the probable cause of a

plane crash in Cork that killed six people was a loss of control during

an aborted landing. The Manx2 plane crashed on approach to Cork airport

from Belfast. The flight was February 2011. What

happened that day, Shane? A month after the plane crash which was

fatal, investigators reported on what happened. The final report is

about why. The Manx2 plane was on its third and final attempt to land

at Cork airport in thick fog. The captain was less than 30 metres from

the ground but already it was too late. The right wing of the blame

tipped the runway, the plaintiff Dover and crash landed. Both engines

caught fire. Six people died, four passengers and two crew members. Six

passengers survived. The initial report found there was a power

mismatch between the two engines and that the crew had made a number of

bad decisions including underestimating the severity of the

weather. What does the report say? Today's report reiterates those

points. It finds that the crew was very tired and they continued with

their dissent even though they couldn't see where they were trying

to land. It finds that the captain reversed engine thrust in flight

which is prohibited and it also says the crew had been mis-paired. The

Spanish captain had been promoted by a few days and is English copilot

had only joined the company a few weeks earlier. There was inadequate

command training and also inadequate supervision and oversight of the

Spanish chartered operation by the Spanish authorities. Still to come:

We are on board HMS Caroline as restoration work begins on that

famous piece of maritime history. There is a saying that there is no

such thing as bad publicity. But is that true about this play? The Bible

abridged has been given the go-ahead. There were claims amidst

some unionist councillors that it was blasphemous. Today, the heater

box office was very busy and virtually all enquiries were from

people wishing to buy tickets. -- theatre. 100 and tickets had been

sold for the two performances for today but now it looks like they

will be sold out. -- 150. We were told it was not very popular so I am

not quite sure why everybody was making the fuss. Now we are almost

sold out. The last time we had controversy like this was The Life

Of Brian I had to support them because I do not like being told

what I can and cannot go to. All the gossip about it made me want to come

and see it. It just goes to show the publicity you get trying to have a

play band. If you tell people not to do something they are more likely to

do it. This applies to all parts of our community. The DUP said people

had contacted them with genuine concerns. They also said they

believe elected representatives should have a say about what kind of

play is put on. If you are a pavement or teacher you must be fed

up telling pupils they have to work hard. A County Antrim grammar school

has taken a different approach and created a parallel universe. It has

pretended this is GCSEs results day and has put students through the joy

and trauma they can expect in August. Our reporter was there.

Almost 200 GCSEs students are getting their results seven months

in advance. This is a novel idea to concentrate their minds. Instead of

just handing out results of the mock exams informally this is the full

dress rehearsal. They get a pep talk from the rentable and are

interviewed by teachers. Have they got good enough grades to stay on or

will they have to leave school? This is a dry run but it is a glimpse of

reality. For some of the pupils be grades showed they are on track. I

got three A stars five Es and to bees, it shows I have done well with

my revision. For others it was a rude awakening. I was not too

pleased with my results, I know I can do you want better and this has

given me the motivation. Why didn't you do better? Not enough revision.

There was a significant improvement in percentage terms when we tried

this last year. We were delighted with that and felt the sense of

motivation. Many parents must be post is telling the teenagers to up

their game. This could be the way to get results. It has given my son the

blue she needed. The aim is to get them studying hard. No train travel

hit a modern-day record last year with almost 13 million journeys.

More carriages are being put on at peak times of low it can be a case

of standing room only for some passengers. Here is our business

correspondent. The train network has never been busier. Significant

passenger growth in 2013, some rush-hour trains now six carriages

long, twice the normal length, even then, it can be standing room only.

I am on the express and not for too long so it is not too bad. There has

been a huge difference in terms of comfort. Things like Wi-Fi are very

popular. I come from the countryside in. This is how journey numbers

stack up. In 2012 the were just over 11 million and last year that

increased to just short of 13 million. 20 new trains have gone

into service over the past two years and that investment has paid

dividends. We now have record levels and it is impressive. It would not

compare with what happens in the south of England, decoding, here is

some standing but we are we have additional capacity we will put it

in place. Enterprise servers also saw some increased passenger use

last year and there should be a multi-million pound refurbishment

programme for trains secured. Local train fears have been frozen for

2014 which, says Stormont, is mainly down to this increase in numbers.

Restoration work has finally started to turn the famous World War I

fighting ship, HMS Caroline, into a floating museum in Belfast. Millions

of pounds will be spent on the conversion. Our reporter has been on

board the ship. HMS Caroline is famous because of its involvement in

the battle of Jutland in 1914. It has been in Belfast since the 1920s

and since then its engines have been taken out and it has been used as a

training ship. It has fallen into poor repair since then but it

secured money to start fix it up today. The captain is here to tell

me more. I is the ship so special? She is the last floating survivor

from all those ships that fought in the battle of Jutland almost 100

years ago. Tell me about the money and what it will be used for. It

will come in different parts, we effectively have the title which is

1.1 million from the Memorial fund to save this chip in Belfast. That

package is to prevent further wind and water ingress -- ship. We are

getting water into some areas of the ship. How confident are you that you

will get the 10 million plus that will turn this ship into a fitting

museum? I am confident we will get it. You have to be mindful that the

lottery expects the quality submission. If we do the work

properly I believe we could have a compelling submission to release the

money. It is full steam ahead here for this little piece of our

maritime history. Last year's Ulster hurling final will at last be played

this weekend, six months later than originally scheduled. Here's

Stephen. The final between Down and Antrim was meant to be played last

July. It's the showpiece occasion of the local hurling season. But

rearranging the match has proved to be PR disaster for the sports

governing body, the Ulster Council. And it's still not straightforward.

In a fixtures farce, Downs players were originally scheduled to be in

places for two different matches at the one time. Now they must play

twice in 24 hours this weekend. Mark Sidebottom has the story. Hurling in

Ulster is stuck in the mud and it is a matter of some conjecture as to

whether the sport is sinking or surviving. The 2013 final was to be

played last July it was rescheduled for November but that is during the

close season and it did not happen. February 22, 2014 was then agreed

but County Down had been double booked for that day. It has been

devalued almost to the point that it does not matter if it is not played,

what does that say to you? If they had played it on the original date

this would not have arisen. We need to take a step back now, see what

happened and learn from it in the future. It has turned into the

ultimate nightmare, the Ulster Council is accused of neglecting the

game. The Gaelic players Association has starkly warned this is not good

enough. They have to be held accountable here, in the modern era

it is not good enough. The games are pivotal to the overall success of

the association. That is why we are here today and why we do what we do.

The gloss has been taken off this Ulster final. Hopefully the interest

generated through the game not being played can be used proactively to

ensure this does not happen again. The 2013 and 2014 provincial finals

will now be played in the one calendar year and County Down will

be forced to play twice in the one weekend. Five years ago this week

Rory McIlroy recorded his first ever win as a professional golfer at the

Desert Classic. This week he's back at the venue in Dubai with former

champions of the tournament to celebrate the events 25th

anniversary. This tournament has always been good to me. I had a

couple of invites when I was an amateur. I always enjoyed watching

it on TV. I will always remember my first win, it is always there shall,

first official when, your first is always going to stay with you for

the rest of your life. I can basically remember every shot that I

plead. Jimmy Callacher has completed his move from Glentoran to Linfield.

The defender had signed a pre-contract with Linfield, but the

two clubs have now reached a financial agreement, which leaves

the 22-year-old free to play for David Jeffrey's side. -- played.

Good luck to the Belfast Giants for tonight. Now the weather. It was a

case of West was best today. We had some dry weather and sunshine with a

picture here of Londonderry. It was a different picture in the east, the

rain might not have been so heavy but the fields were sodden. This is

how one field in County Antrim looked this morning after another

inch of rain fell last night. Eastern counties are closer to the

low area. Not too much rain around at the moment but it is likely to

get wetter as the night goes on. After midnight and during the early

hours the rain in the east will extend further west. They could be a

few breaks in the cloud allowing temperatures to get close to two

degrees. Generally frost free. Tomorrow morning we will start in

the West, there will be some dry weather. Some chilly temperatures

for a while. Over towards Belfast, Antrim, down and armour the

temperature will pick up. Lots of splashes and water lying around on

the roads. It will stay wet through the morning but gradually drying up

in a lot of places through the afternoon. County Down perhaps

holding onto damp weather for much of the day. A breeze will pick up

from the East. Friday night will see the showers die out and temperatures

could drop close to freezing. The weather fronts will stay away from

us for one day on Thursday, we should see some dry weather but it

will feel cold. Writer on Thursday, the rain back for Friday and the

weekend and the is already an early warning for that wool stop that's

all for now, goodbye.