01/07/2011 East Midlands Today

Our top story tonight - a woman's jailed for crying rape.

Amber Mills accused a former lover - but later admitted she'd made it

Also tonight - the city schools facing a parking levy bill of

�500,000 a year. And a wagtail in the works - the

tiny bird that's brought a building First tonight, the damage done by

women who make false allegations of rape. Innocent men arrested, police

resources wasted and genuine victims discouraged from coming

forward. One Derby woman who told police she'd been raped was today

jailed for 16 months. She'd accused a former lover but later admitted,

"I suppose I was just being evil". Simon Hare was in court.

Rape victims are entitled to anonymity. But Amber Mills, seen

here hiding her face, is no such victim. She'd told police she'd

been raped by a former boyfriend - but she'd made it up just to get

back at him. Derby Crown Court heard he was arrested and

questioned over that and another allegation that he'd indecently

exposed himself to her. Mills later admitted, "I suppose I was just

being evil". She pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice

and tonight finds herself behind bars.

Sentencing Mills took 16 months, the judge said that this was a

planned, despicable, determined and sustained attempt at revenge. He

added that significant police resources had been wasted by the

investigation into her totally false allegations. Officers from

Derbyshire police's Operation Diamond unit, which investigates

sexual crimes spends hours investigating the claims. They're

very, very rare occasions that people make false reports, my

officers will get to the bottom of it and those people will have to be

prosecuted because it is wrong. Police time is so scarce and

resources are so difficult at this moment that it should not be wasted

on false allegations. The false -- the judge also said that false

allegations have not only affect the confidence of the police but

also have an impact on conviction rates and a genuine victims of rape.

Earlier, I spoke to Sue Younger of Victim Support. She says that false

rape allegations can have serious consequences. They are very rare

indeed, although they do receive a lot of media coverage, which often

leads people to believe that they happen more often than they do.

Let's take the effects on the victim - the person who has been

falsely accused, usually a man. It is devastating, isn't it?

Absolutely. It is ethically wrong to make false allegations of rape,

and the things that can happen can be very severe. It can affect homes,

jobs, relationships. It can be very traumatic. Does it also affects the

way that genuine rape victims feel about reported it? Yes, it can

devalue Gabriel rape victim's experience, because they can often

feel that they can't come to court. -- a real rape victim. It is very

difficult to get the help and support that they need and deserve,

and that is where Victim Support comes in. Every rape investigation

can be very complex, so if you are talking about wasting police time,

it costs an awful lot of money.. does. It wastes a lot of people's

time. It should not happen. A drink-driver who injured a

policeman and narrowly missed a group of pedestrians has been

jailed for six months. 25-year-old Andrew Richmond was trying to get

away when he pinned the officer's leg between his car and a patrol

vehicle. His escape had been blocked by a level crossing on

Sawley Road in Long Eaton. A short time later, Richmond crashed into a

house and parked cars - and almost hit six people who were walking

past. Meanwhile, Leicestershire Police

say they are disappointed at the high number of people arrested

during their summer campaign against drink-driving. Officers

arrested 100 in just 30 days. Almost a quarter will appear in

court in the next month. Police praised pubs for offering free soft

drinks for designated drivers. Still to come on the programme -

the clutch problem that's halted a digger at a building site. Namely,

the clutch of eggs being hatched by a wagtail under the wheels of this

Next year, schools in Nottingham face a potential bill of more than

�500,000 just for parking. It's because of the workplace parking

levy, which comes into force next April. Schools now face a choice.

Pay up from money that could be used for education, or pass on the

costs to those who drive in - staff and sixth-form students. Mike

O'Sullivan has this report. Driving into school, this sixth-

former at the Trinity Catholic School in Long Eaton in Nottingham

parks on side. From next April, he could have to pay an estimated �279

per year just to do that. I decided to drive to make it easier for me

to get to school and to save money and make my student life easier.

Having to pay would be another cost on running my car. The school has

around 80 parking spaces. Its individual bill for the thirstier

could be around �22,000. -- the first year. Governor has have to

decide whether the cost is borne by the school or passed on to

employees. It is assessed on the car parking spaces in the school

area, so the students have to drive in and are subject to the same

costs. Elliott says he will continue to drive in, but try to

park on the street. Mike O'Sullivan reporting there. So - schools

affected. Who else will be liable for the charge - and who will

escape it? Here's the workplace parking levy zone. It's estimated

it contains around 38,000 parking spaces. The levy's being put in

place to help pay for public transport projects in Nottingham.

Some 3,500 premises will have to licence their parking spaces. And

each space will cost �279 a year in the first year. That's at current

estimates - no guarantee it won't go up because of inflation. So,

what about charging Nottingham's schools? Is it really fair to

charge even pupils to park at school? We put that to the council.

A painter park your car, or wherever you are parking at, or

whether it is in town or wherever it is. -- paying to park your car.

It is something you have to take into account when you were deciding

whether you can afford to have a calf.

Mike O'Sullivan can rejoin us. A landmark day for the project? Yes,

because from today, businesses and organisations can actually apply

for a workplace parking levy licence. So they're having to think

hard now about the number of parking spaces they have, and the

number of vehicles that regularly use their site. That's because the

council will be enforcing all this with ANPR technology in a special

van, costing around �90,000. This is technology that recognises and

records number plates. They'll be making regular sweeps of premises

to check who is regularly parking there. That could mean an extra

bill in some places. The businesses and organisations will also have to

decide whether to pay the levy themselves, or pass on the charge

to the car user. Now if they do, the car user will have to pay VAT

on top. But the city council says that won't apply if the business or

organisation starts up a tax arrangement called a salary

sacrifice. But whether or not that would apply to a sixth-former or

student isn't clear. Registration has to be completed by October the

Not everyone will have to pay. The NHS is not liable, so hospitals, GP

surgeries, the emergency services will not pay. What about Nottingham

City Council? Yes, they will be charging their own people, too,

based on salary grades. A union will ballot staff at

Nottinghamshire Police over whether to take industrial action in a

second round of redundancies. But also needs to save �46 million over

the next four years. The union Unison claims Nottinghamshire

Police has announced 746 redundancies. The police, though,

accused the union of using inflammatory language and said the

eventual number of redundancies is expected to be a fraction of that

they get. The consultation period to decide

the future of children's heart surgery in Leicester ended today. A

government review is considering stopping specialist operations at

Glenfield Hospital as part of a nationwide changes, but supporters

have spent weeks is any campaigning. Already, 20,000 responses from the

East Midlands and petitions with more than 100,000 names have been

handed in to ministers. Tesco shareholders have been

lobbied by 100 pig producers. Members of the British Pig Industry

Support Group say that a rising feed prices mean that they

currently lose �10 on every paid that they sell to Tesco. They want

the supermarket chain to follow Waitrose, Morrisons and McDonald's

in supporting producers with higher payments.

A fundraiser for the Maggie's Cancer Care Centre in Nottingham

has been jailed for a year after admitting trying to steal from the

charity. Emma Critchley was told by the judge the offences were so

grave that prison was the only option. Sarah Teale has been

following the story, and reports from Nottingham Crown Court.

Yes, this is Maggie's Cancer Centre, which is due to open later this

year. It'll be a place of support and care for cancer patients and

their families. Emma Critchley was the well-known face behind a

campaign to raise �500,000 towards the building of it. But today

Nottingham Crown Court heard how the mother of two actually tried to

steal money from the charity instead. The 36-year-old from

Kirkby Woodhouse received a cheque for �3,500 from a cancer patient

who had held a garden party to raise money for the charity project.

Critchley blanked out the payee details and tried to pay it into

her account instead. The bank raised the alarm and she was

arrested. We heard today that when she committed that offence in 2009,

she was already on police bail for stealing �8,000 from the East

Titchfield Neighbourhood Management Team - a community group where she

volunteered. Her defence solicitor urged for a lenient sentence,

saying Critchley was three months pregnant and suffering depression

and mental health problems. But the judge told her that the offences

were so grave she had to go to prison. She was sentenced to 12

months behind bars. The Gedling MP Vernon Coaker has

today officially opened a new flood defence scheme on the River Trent.

The scheme at Burton Joyce is designed to protect some 300

properties in the village. Construction has cost almost

�500,000. Experts say the new defences reduce the risk of

flooding to just a 1% chance in any year.

Today, steam train started running again and took Matlock from the

north. The old track used to provide an express service between

Manchester and London - but it closed as a result of the infamous

rail cuts of the 1960s. So, 43 years on, the reopening's been a

great day for steam buffs. Heading into Matlock, a steam-

hauled train full of enthusiasts, with plenty more on the platform,

there to witness a historic moment. The peak rail line - since the

1960s - ended here. But today, exactly 43 years to the day since

steam trains - indeed ANY trains - approached Matlock from the north,

the first arrived from that direction since 1968. We have been

struggling for six years to get all the negotiations ready but we made

it. We are here now, so it is wonderful. It's taken well over a

decade to build the connection from the old Riverside station just

north of Matlock. Finally, in April, the last connections were put in

place, meaning the rails were at last open again into Matlock

station itslef. Passengers can now arrive from Derby on National Rail,

cross the bridge, and travel north with Peak Rail. Shareholders and

enthusiasts who've backed Peak Rail were on the first train back north.

Absolutely delighted. It has been a long time coming. We are remaking

history. We have to make sure we look after these things and pass

them on. Peak Rail's next ambition is continue the tracks northward

from Rowsley South station. We want to push on to Bakewell. There'll be

a public steam-rail festival from Matlock for the next three days.

But Jackie Statham's just happy that ALL passengers can - once

again - enjoy trips from a proper station.

This year's big summer clean got under way in Nottingham today. It

is about making the city a better place to live in and visit. They

have a helper in this dog. She hates to see rubbish on the street

and picks it up so there owner can put it in the bin. The clean-up

runs until the end of August. We have got this dog who is not an

employee of the council, but likes to pick up bits of rubbish to get

them put away. If she can do it, the rest of us can, as well.

Everyone should have one like that! Are Work to build a new Highways

depot near Newark has been held up, and it's for a very unusual reason.

A bird weighing in at around 25 grammes has stopped a digger

weighing 17 tonnes in its tracks. Jim Harris has more.

Work ground to a halt here at the new Highway depot at Bilsthorpe. It

wasn't machine failure, or even a strike. It was a small pied wagtail

measuring about 4 inches long that stopped this digger. At the end of

last week, the machine was digging away and the birds kept following

the machine and browned. They were underneath and we could see the

nest, so we brought the machine back. The this is where the bird is

nesting. There is no way we can get a camera in there, so we are going

to use my smartphone. Project is on the lights and I am using my phone

as a camera. -- Roger. The results weren't great - that's the nest

next to the suspension. The bird's obviously wiser than I thought,

though. While we were busy under her home, she'd moved to a place of

safety and was keeping a motherly eye on us. The management are

fairly unruffled about their visitor. The driver's busy on

another vehicle and hopefully the project will still be on time.

has been there eight days so far. The gestation time for the eggs is

10 to 13 days and from then, there is another 13 days before the

fledglings are ready to leave the nest. We are looking at 15 days

before she is gone. So for now, that JCB stays put till nature's

Still to come - becoming clean- shaven for the first time in over

30 years. Quite a revelation for him, as well as his wife and kids.

What if she doesn't like it?! Time for sport and news of some

tennis success. It is and often we start with tennis but because of

the success of Britain's newest rising star, he was a trained in

Nottingham. We met Adrien Brody after his

quarter-final yesterday and today, he made it into the final with a

storming win over Jason Kubler. He won the match in straight sets. He

goes to the final with the chance of being the first British boy's

champion since 1962. No pressure, then! I don't feel any because I

wasn't expected to make it this far anyway. I have already done quite

well, so I don't know what to say. He later captain and wing with

victory in the doubles quarter- finals, too, so he has got a busy

weekend ahead. Nottingham Forest have confirmed the return of former

star and Republic of Ireland midfielder Andy Reid. Reid was last

seen in a Forest shirt in early 2005 before leaving on a five

million pound deal to play for Tottenham. He's also had stints at

Charlton, Sunderland and Blackpool. He's back on a two year deal and is

new manager Steve McClaren's first signing. And confirmation that Paul

McKenna is leaving the City Ground. His deal with Hull was completed

today. Leicester City look to be close to

another big-money signing. Peterborough say they've accepted a

three million pound bid from the Foxes for Craig Mackail-Smith. The

striker wasn't with the Leicester squad today - as they returned for

pre season training. Ross Fletcher was there.

It feels like they've barely been away - and now they're back and

getting ready for another promotion campaign. Yes, the football pre

season is officially here - even though there's still plenty of

cricket to be played. While Kaspar Schmeichel is being

put through his paces, the rest of the squad are doing the dreaded

bleep test. It is good to have the data on them, and see if someone

needs to work harder. It is the worst day in the calendar for me. I

was on a beach yesterday and today I was doing the big test, so it was

a shock to the system. There was also a first glimpse of

new signings Lee Peltier and Neil Danns as they mixed it with the

rest of the squad. Sven says he wants another 2 or 3 signings to

improve on last season, when a playoff place slipped away. There

were 10 or 15 games that you could pick something about we could have

done better. I am sure the manager and the staff have looked at it

over the summer, and we will be looking at that in the pre-season.

But before the big kick-off, and plenty of hard running!

Also back in training were Derby County. They have an Newquay Perth.

-- a new goalkeeper. What other then macro cricket

against today. The details are on the screen. -- lots of T20 games.

Bit of rugby news - Leicester Tigers Scrum Half Ben Youngs WILL

be fit for the World Cup later this year - even though he's been

through knee surgery. The keyhole operation was to trim cartilege but

his recovery has already gone well - and England expect to have him

available for their second world cup warm up game which is against

Wales in August. A year ago this week, England got

knocked out of the World Cup in South Africa. But at least some

English footballers made an impression. A local charity went

into the townships delivering coaching sessions and handing out

footballs and rugby balls. Now they've brought their skills to the

inner city here. Mark Shardlow reports. For the teenagers of this

college, a trip to Cape Town was life-changing. They coached 30,000

kids and gave out thousands of but balls. But their work also goes on

back here. Someone yesterday said they wanted to be like Jesse J.

What do you think she has had to do to get into that position? Does

anybody have a clue what intuition means? Sport and popular culture

are key in their lessons. Last week, a week focused on inspiration and

this week we are focusing on aspirations. From Beckham to

Muhammad Ali, the pupils are asked about their aspirations. My mum

because she always looks after me. Wayne Rooney. He scored the best

goal against Barcelona. My grandma, because she has always been there

for me and my mom and she is a great grandma. Then it is outside

took tiller their new footballs. is a chance to deliver themselves

out of comfort zones. They also growing self-confidence during the

public speaking, teaching the youngsters about different cultures

and integration, and re-enacting the township coaching sessions in

the playground. Just to see them happy, are learning a skill from me

makes me feel like I am a role model. The session ends with a

return to the topic of the day. Does anybody believe they behave so

well that somebody would aspire to behave like them? My little brother

because I show good manners and I help around the house. The students

really believe sport can change lives. They believe they have seen

it in the townships of South Africa and the inner city of Nottingham.

Good to have role models. Another one on the way in the form of Liam

Broady. He has done really well. Now, there are some people who you

can't imagine without a beard - 1977, the height of Saturday Night

Fever and the last time Rob had a clean-shaven. He started growing

his beard at 15 and 34 years later has decided to shave it off. His

granddaughter is the reason why. He is raising money for the neonatal

unit at a hospital where she was born. But the beers has become

legendary. I left school with a reasonable beards. I came to work

here and it has been there ever since. Some people just ask for the

man with the beard when they bring up. That will be a bit daunting!

Have you ever seen him without a beard? No, never. How are you

feeling? We have been married 26 years. I am very nervous for him

and excited, too. While he gets ready for the shade at a car

showroom where he works, here is what was going on the last time he

was clean-shaven. But Queen celebrated her Silver Jubilee and

Virginia Wade won the ladies' title at Wimbledon. We said hello to

Johnny Rotten and that the punk movement, and said goodbye to some

old favourites, too. The transformation is complete, so what

does everyone think? Aids takes years off him. It looks really

strange. -- it takes years of him up. But a robber might have to wait

a view years to find out what his granddaughter things!

-- Robert might have to wait a few years.

Could you imagine me with a beard? No, I can't. I used to have one.

That was me in 1989. That was the last time I had a beard. The great

thing about beards is that you can always remember the previous day's

breakfast! If you go to nightclubs with ultraviolet light, you can see

Now, the weather. Good news for anyone taking part in the relay

events this weekend. Settled conditions across the weekend. Two

events are happening in the East Midlands. There are high pollen

counts around at the moment, but you will be interested to know that

they are staying with us into next week. We it have a dry, settled

weather and high winds. We start that the day on a bit of all night.

-- started. -- started at the day on a beautiful note. Some sunshine

around before it gets dark this evening and then one or two clear

spells overnight. It will be fairly chilly Kohl with a minimum

temperature of nine degrees. Some rural spots get a bit cooler.

Broken cloud and sunshine to start tomorrow and then a bit of cloud it

through the day, but always some sunny spells around as well. A bit

warmer than today with a top temperature of 20. Bat high

pressure is staying with us across the weekend so Sunday is another

day of broken cloud. The settled conditions stay with us, so dry and

settled Monday and Tuesday. Up to 25 by Tuesday.