21/03/2017 London News

He was the man accused of "a sweetheart deal"

with the Government to scrap plans to raise council tax by 15%

which would have triggered a local referendum.

Today, an attempt to oust David Hodge, the leader

of Surrey County Council, failed. Helen Catt has the story.

It was the backroom row that became embarrassingly public

Could the Prime Minister explain the difference between a sweetheart

The substance of what he is asking is, has there been a particular deal

with Surrey County Council that is not available

Today, the man who caused his leader to squirm was unrepentant.

In Surrey, he faced down a vote of no confidence

Liberal Democrat opponents pointed to miss-sent text messages

which sparked rumours of a sweetheart deal,

and to a secret recording leaked to this programme.

I think talk of secret deals and gentlemen's agreements doesn't

In the end, his fellow councillors backed David Hodge 47-8,

his future, it seems, secure, although he didn't

want to speak to us this evening after the meeting.

This was the last full meeting of Surrey council before

elections on May 4th, and as several councillors

observed this morning, that is when we will get the final

verdict on this episode from the voters.

Scotland Yard is facing two separate investigations tonight.

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary has been asked

to look into how the Met handled allegations of electoral fraud

and malpractice in Tower Hamlets, while a whistleblower is claiming

the force used hackers in India to spy on campaigners.

Remind us what this relates to? Remember these chaotic scenes in

Tower Hamlets, when Lutfur Rahman was re-elected as mayor? There has

been criticism since then that the Met failed to get involved in

investigations of fraud in the run-up to polling day for this

election. In 2015, Lutfur Rahman was removed from office. He was found

guilty of electoral fraud at a special High Court hearing, but no

one has faced any woman or prosecution. Just last month, the

London Assembly accused the Met of major failings and today, the deputy

mayor for policing has written to HMI sea and asked them to look into

the Met's own investigation. That has been welcomed by some in Tower

Hamlets. Up to 2014 and the immediate

aftermath, the police We saw, far too often,

letters ignored, letters unopened, requests for action,

nothing being done. We need justice to be seen to be

done and we need justice delivered and we need

closure on this matter. We mentioned another investigation,

allegations that the Met hacked e-mails of environmental

campaigners? That's right, the IPCC is looking into claims that the Met

used hackers in India to target campaigners including some from

Greenpeace. This came to light rather mysteriously in an e-mail

sent to Baroness Jenny Jones. She explained what was said.

The letter alleged that the Metropolitan Police had been

hacking illegally into e-mails of people who were not criminals,

were not serious criminals by any stretch of the imagination,

It struck me that it was something we really don't expect

our police force to do, and that we have to stop.

So very serious stuff, and if true, this hacking would be unlawful.

Azman communications can only be hacked to combat major crime or

terrorism and then you'd express permission from the Home Secretary.

Scotland Yard tonight told us these allegations are deeply troubling.

The Met says it will provide the IPCC with its fullest possible

support. It's a move welcomed by motorists,

but one that's angered They're facing a ban on overtaking

along stretches of the M11 in Essex. The restrictions, being introduced

next week, are to improve the flow of traffic,

especially around Stansted Airport. Our transport correspondent

Tom Edwards has the story. As we found out today on the M11,

it does not take long to get stuck It can be frustrating

for others and cause Now, on a section of the M11

just outside London, overtaking by lorries

will be banned. The lorry ban will take place

on this section of the M11 between 7am and 7pm

on the uphill sections. What is really interesting

is the wider picture and what it Congestion is a huge issue.

This is the M25, where they are using the hard shoulder

to try and reduce delays. With more vehicles on our roads,

the authorities are now looking at cheaper solutions

to free up capacity. The overtaking ban on the M11

will be between junctions eight at Stansted Airport

and junction nine. If you get stuck behind a massive

queue of trucks all going at 40 mph, it makes quite an impact and there's

going to be a long queue of traffic. All lorries do 56 miles an hour, and

some are slower. You are going to have a long queue of traffic which

will make it worse. You have different weights

and loads, and if there's a slight incline, it can slow you down

and you can probably get stuck Motoring groups have

welcomed this ban. It should start by the end

of the month, and it probably A whirl of cream with unusual

toppings - and a recreation That's what we can expect

to see in one of London's Today, the latest commissions that

will grace the fourth plinth were announced -

and Alice Bhandhukravi has been It's quite literally one

of the biggest platforms an artist can get in one of London's

most famous sites. The fourth plinth in

Trafalgar Square has been home to many exciting projects over

the years, from the ship in the Today, it was revealed the current

thumbs up will be replaced by two A reproduction of an ancient Iraqi

treasure destroyed by Isis, and a dollop of cream

with a cherry on top. Trafalgar Square is a special place,

a place of heritage, a place where democracy,

happens and it is a bold move for the city to place

in that space a piece People have responded

to the idea of it. The winning entries are both

in their own way political statements on the era

we are living in. I've been reconstructing the

artefacts looted from the museum. Unfortunately, that project has

grown to include the archaeological sites destroyed in the

aftermath of the Iraq war. Thinking of cream as this

celebratory but unstable substance, and then adding the cherry,

you know, it has this very jubilant thrust into the air that maybe harks

back to Nelson's Column somewhere There are also elements creeping

in that perhaps suggest something more malevolent,

something more sinister. Both artists have plenty of time

to complete their full scale works. The ancient Iraqi treasure

will replace the huge thumbs up next March,

followed by the giant dollop Finally, how George Clooney

surprised an 87-year-old fan He unexpectedly turned

up at her care home in Sonning with flowers

for her birthday. Staff had written to the actor,

who lives nearby, saying it would make her dreams come true

if he popped in. They wrote a letter,

I believe, and sat and waited, I know the flowers won't last

for ever, but the card will. That's it for now from me,

but let's find out what We had probably the best day of the

week today in terms of sunshine. For the rest of this week, it is staying

chilly and I will be when times. The low pressure is spending a few days

with us. It will lead in later tonight. For the time being, we have

dry and clear conditions, with a bit of a breeze blowing again. You might

just get to work without the use of the Bromley, but keep one with you

because this rain pushes up from the south-west of the north as we go

through the day -- keep a brolly with you. Feeling chilly tomorrow,

temperatures resolutely in single figures. When you factor in the rain

and wind, it will feel quite chilly. A murky start to Thursday. But on

the outlook, you can see things gradually improve through Friday and

Heavy rain, snow and ice are all in the forecast once again. It was

quite a wintry scene today, especially in Scotland. Some very

cold looking winter skies here, and we had some snow falling at times in

West Lothian. For a while earlier today, there were quite a few

showers running through central Scotland, all in that cold air.

Right now, we have two areas of cloud, one in northern Scotland and

this deepening area bringing heavy rain into south-west England and

Wales overnight, with snow over the hills. That wetter weather will move

into the cold, icy weather in Scotland, so we could see snow over

the hills in Scotland. Eastern parts of England will be dry, clear and

chilly. The lowest temperatures will become Scotland, especially where we

have that covering of snow. Quite icy conditions overnight and into

the morning. Further south, if we get some snow moving