28/10/2016 Channel Islands News

Welcome to BBC Channel Islands. These are Friday's headlines:

Guernsey's population is growing, but not in the right directhon.

Bedding in for business - an industry once worth

multi-millions struggles to stay afloat.

Dawah ourselves and at least two other people in the market here

They have now stopped trainhng and it is only as left on the island. #

there were. California dreaming -

Jersey's cricketers get ready And with Halloween weekend fast

approaching, I will be letthng you know whether it will be dry if

you're out trick-or-treating. The full forecast later in the

programme. Guernsey's working

population has fallen. The latest figures from the States

show that there's been a drop in the number of people

aged between 16 and 64. It comes at a time when the number

of pensioners is increasing. Mike Wilkins reports

on the demographic time bomb. At the end of last year,

Guernsey's population was 62,50 , It is the largest

increase in five years. But it is not necessarily in the age

group that the Government is hoping. The number of pensioners

is increasing, but critically, the working age

population has fallen. It may sometimes feel like there's

a lot of people pounding the pavements in town,

but last year, the working `ge group And when you look back further,

almost 2000 people have been lost from this group over

the last five years. That's a lot of people who could be

paying income tax. So why is the working

population declining? Some feel there isn't enough

diversity in the economy for younger workers, while others feel

the island's restrictive This woman is responsible

for Employment and Social Sdcurity. She says it's unclear

if the population management regime will help when it comes

into force in April. I'm sort of getting mixed mdssages,

because I hear some negativhty about some of the population. I think

because we are not there yet and it will not come into force until next

April, people are starting to have some concerns about certain elements

of that policy. I think it hs one of those things that until we `ctually

enter the policy, it will bd work in progress.

It's long been forecast that Guernsey would have an ageing

population, but now, what were future forecasts

are playing out as problems in the present.

Jersey's mail order plant industry has shrunk by almost two thhrds

A recent farming statistic report showed revenue fell from ovdr

?23 million in 2012 to just over ?8 million last year.

It is the lasting effect of the loss of low value consignment relief

There is now only one business still trading,

Only a few years ago, businesses like this one in Jersey

were generating tens of millions of pounds.

But now that value has fallen by 70%.

That is pretty much entirelx down to the loss of low value consignment

relief. There were ourselves and at least two other people in the market

here, they have now stopped trading here, they have now stopped trading

and it is only us left. We had to cut costs and Ledson people go. I

just our prices, obviously when you just our prices, obviously when you

put prices up, sales go down. So that is the biggest change hn the

could have prevented this if they could have prevented this if they

had acted more quickly. I think if we dealt with it differentlx at the

time, we probably could havd got a better deal for locally grown

product. But by the time th`t had happened, the case had alre`dy

started and I think... That is despite acknowledging the v`lue this

industry brings to this isl`nd. Politicians say there is nothing

they can do to support its future. It is unfortunate, there is nothing

I would like more than to sde that industry continue. It emploxs lots

of people and brings money hnto the island. We have fought as h`rd as we

could to keep it going, we won't to the High Court, spent a lot of money

on top lawyers, we could not secure it, the judge made this dechsion and

we are left with the conseqtences. Although many have stopped trading

in the island, this one rem`ining company hopes to grow the industry

even without the help of Jersey s Government.

Alderney States will pay up to ?120,000

to provide an extra 150 flights to Guernsey

It says it's in a bid to boost economic activity

The Government's underwriting the flights and says that if

Aurigny puts on the flights and they're sold out,

then it won't cost the Statds of Alderney anything.

Described as the "largest t`x evasion network in the world" -

Guernsey and Jersey have cole under fire in the House of Commons.

The UK Shadow Home Secretarx, Diane Abbott, criticised

the Crown Dependencies and Overseas British Territories

during a debate on a bill about financial crime -

looking at issues like monex laundering and tax evasion.

The MP said there needs to be more focus on places

If you're missing the view of a golf ball-like structure

in Jersey's skyline since the weather radar was removed

this summer - don't worry, a similar one has been

A 2.5 tonne fibreglass dome was lifted

onto the airport's new flight radar at Les Platons this morning.

The ?2 million investment will protect the tracking epuipment

from the weather, as well as use less energy

Frame Football is coming to Jersey this weekend.

It's a sport which enables people with disabilities to play

It's proved popular in the TK, where leagues are now played.

Now a Jersey football coach has teamed up

with the Cerebral Palsy Sport organisation to hold an event

at Springfield tomorrow in the hope it will develop into

I came across frame football through Twitter. I saw some features on it.

It really got my imagination. I have been really pleased by the

progressive nature of the rdsponses I have had. There seems to be real

enthusiasm on the island to promote enthusiasm on the island to promote

disability sports. Jersey's cricketers

are in Los Angeles, hoping to win promotion to the highest level

in their history. They play their first match

in World League Four Our sports editor Tim Pryor looks

ahead to the tournament. Jersey won the right to plax in this

six-team event by clinching the Division Five trophy on

home turf back in the summer. They beat their near neighbours

and rivals Guernsey on their way to the title, but now they leave

the home comforts of Grainvhlle Farmers Field and the indoor

training centre Jersey have played at this level

twice before and on both occasions There's an optimism, though, that

this time could be different. This time, I feel like we h`ve

worked really hard and we h`ve a bit more experience. There are ` lot of

youngsters in the squad but we have had experience of these tournaments

now. And what an opportunity to play

cricket on the international stage, just a dozen miles down

the road from Hollywood. Oman, Bermuda, Italy,

Denmark and the hosts America stand in the way of promotion

to Jersey's highest level ever. You might think it a daunting

prospect - especially playing the USA with its population of 20

milion to choose players from - but Jersey did beat America before,

back in 2008, and now look forward to trying

to beat them again. -- 320 million. Massively excited.

Have done a lot of prep going into this. Excited to see that all the

hard work pays off. Looking forward to it.

Included in Jersey's squad are teenagers Harrison Carlxon

and Jonty Jenner, hopeful of becoming Hollywood's newest stars.

And we'll have highlights and reaction from Los Angelds

here on BBC Channel Island News over the next week, and the very latest

From Los Angeles to New Zealand now -

and Guernsey sportsmen are benefiting from the knowledge

and experience of a former Olympian this weekend.

Kiwi Caroline Powell took team bronze in London 2012

for equestrian eventing, and now she's in Guernsey,

hoping to shape the stars of the future.

Taking tips from a trainer at the top of her game.

In the world of equestrian dventing, Caroline Powell has

Now this Olympic medallist hs giving something back, with a thred-day

intensive training course for riders in Guernsey.

The interest in these things is immense.

I think it's gaining inform`tion from someone of this experidnce

It's valuable to everyone and the membership certainlx gets

Riders of all ages and abilhties have signed up, and will be put

through their paces in the three eventing disciplines of dressage,

Seeing horses and riders improve and seeing the jockeys have those

light bulb moments and the horses enjoying it and getting

the stimulation into the whole training process -

you know, every horse has a different learning pattern,

and just working them out - I get a lot of satisfaction out

of it and just seeing the gtys walk out of the arena with a big

smile of their face is quite important for me.

It's a rare opportunity for riders in Guernsey,

who don't often get the chance to work with international

We only ever get one person every year, or even every two years,

so there hasn't been anybodx for a couple of years, really.

So it's really good that she's come over.

Caroline has been impressed with what she's seen so far.

So much so that there are plans to make these training sesshons

Roisin Gauson, BBC Channel Hslands News, Guernsey.

The weather's been feeling rather eerie this week

ahead of Halloween, so, Bee, what does

And looks like it will be another mild Halloween, the third one in a

row. But it will not be amazing sunshine this weekend. It whll be

dry. Slowly it will brighten up and we will see is mist and fog

tomorrow, then some decent of sunshine. Very quiet weather across

our patch over the next few days, thanks to this area of high

pressure. Very little changd over the weekend. There is a lot of cloud

trapped underneath at high so it will not be beautiful blue skies.

But it should start to break in places. Keeping a solid laydr of

cloud tonight, it should be dry the cloud will at times so that could be

some mist and fog. But not ` cold night, temperatures of Maind or ten.

So another great start to the day tomorrow. One to light showdrs. For

most, it will be dry. The bdst chance of sunshine will be hnto the

afternoon. Where you get sole breaks in the cloud, it could be qtite

mild. 12 spots could hit 15 Celsius. Here are the times of high water for

tomorrow. Not much in the w`ke of waves for the surfers. Slightly

larger out towards the West but clean conditions all round. Here is

the coastal waters forecast. A lot of cloud tomorrow, low cloud and

mist first thing so visibilhty picking up as we had through the

day. Halloween weekend, you can expect quite an eerie night on

Saturday. Quite a lot of cloud tomorrow and that will lower through

Saturday night into Sunday lorning. Some mist and fog at times. Sunday

will be dry, a lot of cloud, more brightness compared to Saturday

That continues into Monday for Halloween itself, it should be

night, again, the risk of some mist night, again, the risk of some mist

and fog. But staying mild. I will be back with your he`dlights

at eight o'clock, but by now, have a good evening.

was put on the adjoining buhldings to try to stop the fire frol

spreading, but as you can sde, there are still flames this evening and

there is still a big job for the firefighters to do here at Cathedral

Green in Exeter. Onto some of today's

other stories now. A man has been jailed for two years,

for driving his car at his dstranged in the car park at

Royal Cornwall Hospital. The court was shown this dr`matic

CCTV footage of 55-year-old Mark He also struck a member of hospital

staff when attempting The former treasurer

of the Newquay Hornets, Stephen Simmons, has been sdntenced

to 21 months in jail for stdaling Earlier this month he'd ple`ded

guilty to charges of fraud, A scheme which has reduced `lcohol

and drug related crime and anti-social behaviour

in Penzance and Newlyn has The National Pubwatch Award was

received at the House of Colmons. A long-awaited report on thd future

of Plymouth Airport has concluded that it would be unable to operate

passenger services without government subsidy,

the BBC has learned. The draft report from the Ddpartment

of Transport is a review of all the previous studies

into the viability of the ahrport, The BBC can also reveal that

campaigners fighting to re-open the airport would need ?9 mhllion

of Government subsidy But they maintain they can

still re-open the airport, despite the fact no public

money is available. Scott Bingham has this

exclusive report. Five years after it closed,

the future of Plymouth Airport is The question is,

is it viable or not? Various studies have reached

opposing views, so all parthes have been banking on a new Government

report to come up with a definitive Well, the BBC can reveal th`t

a draft of that report from the Department for Transport, which

reviewed all the previous studies, has concluded there is not

sufficient demand to operatd commercially viable passengdr

services from a reopened Plxmouth City Airport without

Government subsidy. That is effectively saying ht's not

viable again, isn't it? No, if you look at

the at the language... their study at the moment,

but what they said was 'would not be viable without Government stpport

in the early years.' That is because we

said we would like to see rdgional air connectivity fund

support for developing break even in the early years,

so for them to come back and say we don't see how it could be vhable

without support in the earlx days, it just seems to me

a strange kind of language. Fly Plymouth maintain

they could reopen the airport without any subsidy,

yet the plan they submitted to the Department for Transport

would require ?4 million in Government loans at launch

and a further ?5 million to cover It looks to me and to anyond else,

you're asking for 9 million quid of You have to distinguish

between the nature of subsidies and So for now, the

uncertainty continues. The Department for

Transport said the final study will be

published in due course. Plymouth City Council says

while it is seeking to protdct the airport in its local plan,

its future will ultimately be by an Meanwhile, Sutton Harbour Holdings,

which leases the report from the Council, maintains

it is not viable and says it will continue with its plans

to redevelop the The RNLI has been showcasing

the work of its beach lifegtards in the hope of recruiting more

for the region. The charity can struggle to recruit

lifeguards to some beaches hn Dorset and East Devon and it's looking

to build on the work it already does making beaches

in our region safer for everyone. Our Dorset reporter

Simon Clemison has been testing missing today in Weymouth and

another Dorset beaches. Where there is surf,

there are, of course, surfers. Not just a ready stock to draw

lifeguards from, but whose bodies But the RNLI covers beaches on this

stretch of coastline too. Harder to find new recruits,

but they've got a Today's trainees are about

to rescue... By rolling the board, they roll

the casualty out of danger. Do you have to be like an Olympic

swimmer to do this? No, just reasonably

confident in the water. So is it knowing about what to do,

rather than being the strongest I think it's a big misconception

with a lot of people that you need to be like Hasselhoff

or something like that to bd a We have got some huge resort beaches

which are perfect for familhes to come and enjoy their day safely

and lifeguards are a huge p`rt And absolutely we see a lot more

land-based incidents, so lifeguards are highly

trained in casualty care. They are first responders

for the ambulance service so we actually deal with a lot

of incidents like that. You don't know what

would happen each day. Nice varied ages and

abilities and stuff. Are you going to work

here in Dorset, do you think? I'm mainly based in Lyme Regis,

so that's kind of where I But I think we might end up doing

work in Bournemouth as well. But the charity says

respecting the water But the charity says respecting

the water is what is important, so you don't need

to call on a lifeguard. Onto sport - Football

and Plymouth Argyle will look to extend their 12 game unbdaten run

and four point lead at the top of League Two as they welcole

mid-table Colchester Exeter City are back

in the League Two relegation zone but they've performed better

on their travels - they go to Morecambe,

who've also struggled Yeovil are at home to Grimsby

and Torquay United will look to halt a run of just one win in 10 games

when they host third from bottom And our rugby teams are in `ction

for the next three days. Let's start on Sunday

and work backwards. In the Premiership, Exeter Chiefs

have got local rivals Bath `t home. The Chiefs are hoping to get back

to winning ways but it won't be easy against a side two

places above them. On Saturday, the Cornish Pirates

are at Rotherham and Albion And this evening Jersey

are at Yorkshire Carnegie A Cornish Paddleboarder

is about to swap the waves of Polzeath for the tropical

waters of Fiji. Alex Murray has been selectdd

for Team GB to compete at the rather long-titled -

Fiji International Surfing Association's World Standup Paddle

and paddleboard championships. As Johnny Rutherford

has been finding out, Alex Murray is passionate about the

boards he makes. And his passion doesn't stop there. He knows just

how to get the best out of them He came second in the national paddle

board competition. Now he h`s been scooped up by Team GB to colpete in

the World Championships in Fiji I am as prepared as I can be, bearing

in mind I have never served there before and I will be up agahnst the

world was my best who are used to competing without wet suits in warm

do occasionally get big wavds and I do occasionally get big wavds and I

been training for the past ten months or so. Mostly here at

Polzeath and some days it h`s its day. Obviously, the conditions today

are not brilliant but the great thing about paddle surfing hs that

you can go in any conditions. But in Fiji, the words are that thd weights

can be frighteningly big and this is the first time for Alex and his

first trip to Fiji. Everybody has really wound me up about how scary

it is going to be but I am just going to try to do my best `nd

hopefully with the adrenaline of the other guys around me it will give me

a bit more encouragement to take off on one of the biggest waves I have

ever served in my life. Frol the age of 12, Alex always favoured surfing

over other water sport dischplines he tried, until you had it go at

stand-up paddle surfing. Thd beauty of the stand-up paddle board is that

other servers. For me, it enables me other servers. For me, it enables me

to go in for a very short sdssion and get as many waves as I want

because I am per this out. Ht also gives me a lot more power when I'm

doing my turns. The feeling is fantastic. It is like surfing but on

another level to surfing. 200 athletes from 30 nations gather to

compete in Fiji, which starts on the 12th of November.

Before we go to the weather with Bee - let's head back to Exeter

Fire fighters remain on the scene of the Clarence Hotel,

almost 14 hours after first being called to the fire

Tonight part of the city centre remains cordoned off.

Let's go live to Hamish Marshall for the latest.

The latest information I am told is there are 27 pumping appliances here

in Exeter, trying to tackle this fire this evening. Just takd a few

moments ago, I can still sed flames coming out from the Royal Clarence

Hotel. It is a big job. And through the day, thousands of gallons of

water had been used. And in fact, down at the river a special pump has

been put into the water there to bring water from the river tp hoses

through the city centre to help tackle this blaze and peopld living

in Exeter are being asked to do what they can to use as little w`ter as

possible because so much of the city's resources have been tsed on

that today. I am told that firefighters will be here rhght

throughout the weekend. Ple`se officers from across Devon `nd

Cornwall have been drafted hn. They will be manning cordons as well but

it is hoped part of the citx centre will be open for people to shop

tomorrow. As for a cause, rdnovation work on the art gallery next door, I

am told, is one possible catse. One other thing to read tonight, no one

has been injured. OK, many thanks, Hamish.

It is not looking too bad. H should be able to get out on my broom for

Halloween. Pretty much the same as the next few days. We have had very

grey skies. This sent from one of our weather watchers this morning

and very little changes over the coming days. It will stay mhld this

weekend. An awful lot of cloud about. On balance, more clotd than

sunshine, and again we will see is Kali mist and fog. The reason for is

we have got high-pressure anchored across the UK. There is no change

over the coming days. A lot of cloud trapped underneath that high, so not

much in the way of rainfall but much in the way of rainfall but

certainly a good deal of cloud. Quite a bit of Lookout as wdll,

mornings. Halloween, it shotld be mornings. Halloween, it shotld be

dry, a little bit more sunshine compared with the weekend and

against is overnight mist and fog and you can see from the satellite

picture just how much cloud we have had today. It has been breaking up

in places, so I think there has been some bright spells but generally it

is going to be quite cloudy as we had to tonight and that clotd will

lower salt mist, he'll fog xet again, the odd spot of drizzle but I

think most places will be dry. With all of that cloud, it will not be a

cold night. We could get down into single figures in the countryside.

For most, those of 10-11dC. A great start to the day tomorrow. Some

drizzle. Most places dry. It will slowly brighten as we go through the

day. We will see some sunshhne coming and going. The best bet of

sunshine on high ground. Whdre you do get the brightness, it could well

Celsius above what we would expect Celsius above what we would expect

for the time of year. Height of around 15 Celsius. So I think as we

head towards the Isles of Scilly, it will stay largely dry. Again, and of

a lot of cloud but also somd bright spells into the afternoon. Here are

the times of high water. In terms of surfing, not a great deal of waves.

Slightly more on the north coast. Further south, one to two foot and

clean. For our coastal waters, winds east to sell easterly, thred to

four. Fairweather after any mist and fog and the visibility good. By

Halloween itself, dry but cloudy. You can expect some sunshind through

the afternoon. Quite eerie overnight, actually. Once again we

will see some mist and fog so perfectly for the trick or treat is

out there. Very quiet as we head to the coming days. A lot of cloud as

I have mentioned. As we go through the weekend, we have some e`rly mist

and fog tomorrow. The cloud will be big and it could give the odd spot

of drizzle but for most of ht will be dry. Into the afternoon, we

should see some decent spells of sunshine. Those temperatures doing

well. At this time of year, we would expect- around 11-12dC. We will

probably get the mid teens tomorrow. By Saturday night, if you'rd out and

about coming to be dry. A lot of cloud so quite a mild night and that

does mean Britain on Sunday, we will seize early mist and fog. Fhgure

cloud on Sunday. So let brightness will stop but again, where xou do

get some breaks, it is cert`inly not going to be cold and it looks like

actually as we had into the side of next week things are staying

settled. Super Halloween itself another dry day with some bright

spells and staying mild. Back to you.

The experiment indeed. That is just about it from us. I will be back

with the late news including all of the latest from the fire on

Cathedral Green in Exeter. Of course, that is at 10:30pm here on

lovely evening and a good wdekend. lovely evening and a good wdekend.

Take. Good night.