14/02/2014 Look East - West

to British coastlines, with winds of up to 80 mph. That's all from

Hello and welcome to programme`macro. Up to 2`macro

inches of rain and winds gusting up to 60 mph, increasing. The

sentencing begins Joanna Dennehy and the man dash`macro the men who

helped her. We will be here later with the Tornado jets in the Thames

Valley, how the RAF is helping to map the floods. The highs and lows

of professional sport, why fans in Northampton do not know whether to

laugh or cry. First tonight, the weather warnings in place for wind

and rain as the latest storm affects the region. The Met Office has

issued amber and yellow warnings saying there could be up to two

inches of rain and gusts of up to 60 miles an hour. Tonight is usually

one of the busiest travel nights of the year as most schools have

started half term. Ben Bland has the latest on the weather and joins me

now. The rain has been falling steadily through the afternoon and

the early part of the evening and the wind at the minute is not too

bad, but we are expecting it to pick up from 8pm. This, people are still

dealing with the aftermath from last week as another storm sweeps across

are part of the country. Exactly one week ago, this woman walk up to find

her home flooded, the day her house was being sold. She looked out to

find her street had become a river. Everything was in boxes, it has all

been ruined. Worse was to come. By 10am I should have exchange

contracts, but the people buying my house found out what had happened,

so they came down, came in on Saturday afternoon and they said, it

is not too bad. Then they did ring and say they were backing out. A few

doors down, her neighbour showed us how badly his home had been

affected. The flood water may have gone, but look at the furniture

which was damaged. He was not just affected, look over the fence, in

the front garden, hundreds of pounds worth of furniture which was

damaged. As the resident still tried to dry out their homes, more heavy

rain and strong winds are arriving this evening. The winds will

continue to increase tonight. Not quite as strong in

Northamptonshire, but Cambridge will get the worst. Given how saturated

the grounders, trees could come down and cause disruption. This Friday, a

busy time on the roads, PA 14 was already slow moving this afternoon

as the highways agency braces itself for disruption. We have increased

staff levels and we are ready to do with anything that happens. If there

is debris, we can deal with that we will monitor the traffic situation,

if we get a lot of congestion, we can inform travellers and they can

perhaps delay their journey. In Luton, a desperate attempt to stop

the pitch getting waterlogged in the hope that the match tomorrow go

ahead. We have had a couple of postponements and at the end of the

day, we want to play football, so we have brought in this cover, brought

it down from Glasgow yesterday. Other parts of the country may be

hit harder, but there is no shortage of rainfall here. The winds are

expected to pick up as the evening and the night goes on, are parked

dash`macro across parts of the country, gusts of up to 60 mph are

expected. One of the big concerns is the effect it will have on

transport, on the roads, police are telling us that a tree has fallen

down on one road in Cambridge. No injuries, but it is causing

congestion. Another stretch of road has been closed due to an accident.

On the railways, ticket restrictions have been lifted. Airports are

operating as normal, but check with your airline. This is one of the

busiest nights for travel, the start of half term, if you're venturing

out, take it easy, go a bit slower. Serial killer Joanna Dennehy

appeared in court today for the beginning of her sentencing hearing.

In the dock alongside her were the three men who helped her. At one

point, Dennehy told the court she was not sorry for having killed

three men. Our Home Affairs Correspondent Sally Chidzoy was at

Cambridge Crown Court. This was the first time Joanna Dennehy has been

seen in court since she pleaded guilty last November to the three

murders in Peterborough and 2`macro at attempted murders in Hereford.

Brought to the court for sentencing, her barrister said his client

'spos`macro offending was that the high`end of the criminal scale.

Joanna Dennehy sat at the back of the dark away from her accomplices

who were all on the front row, surrounded by security officers She

appeared calm, relaxed and often smiled as she and Gary Stretch

leaned towards each other and exchanged words. The court was told

that she accepted she had behaved in a volatile way and she had

manipulated men. Her barrister said it was her case that she was not in

sexual relationships with the men, she stabbed to death her friend

Lukasz Slaboszewski, John Chapman and landlord Kevin Lee, who she made

where a black dress before he died. Then unexpectedly, Joanna Dennehy

spoke out about Kevin Lee. In a raised voice, she told the court

there was no sexual interference, it is hearsay. I was going to assault

him in a dress, I put him in a dress, it was humiliation, pure and

simple, there was nothing sexual about it. Just as she was leaving

the court in handcuffs, that was the second outburst. In the presence of

victims's relatives, she said she wanted everyone to know, I am sorry

for the attempted murders, but I am not sorry for the murders.

Sentencing will be later this month at the Old Bailey. A man has been

convicted today of the murder of a Northampton coin collector last

July. Mark Ellson, who's 41 and of no fixed address, was found guilty

of the killing of Guiseppe Micheli, who was known as Joe. He was found

dead at his home in Bants Lane in Duston. He'd suffered head injuries.

A driver has been left with a fractured skull after a road rage

attack in Bedfordshire. The incident happened on Wednesday afternoon on

the slip`road at Junction 11 of the M1. Both drivers got out of their

cars after stopping at the traffic lights, where a fifty four year old

man was hit over the head. It appears that this was a random

attack, possibly done out of road rage and the victim was just on his

way home. The next thing you know, he is being attacked and has an

nasty head injury. Look East has learnt that the police have been

called in to investigate allegations of fraud within the Luton South

Labour Party. It comes just a fortnight after the party launched

an enquiry into allegations of membership irregularities. Our

political correspondent, Andrew Sinclair is in our newsroom and

joins me now. So what's the latest? Bedfordshire police confirmed today

that they are investigating what they call historical allegations of

electoral fraud relating to postal voting. I understand that this

relates to the 2011 local elections in Luton, but sources in the party

had said that the allegations may stretch back over many more years.

The police started working on this yesterday, they have been handed

documents and are going through them to assess the strength of the

allegations. How did this all come to light? We reported that Labour

had launched an enquiry following a Sunday Politics programme which

discovered there was an ease in the local party about membership

packing, were a couple of members get dozens more members to join the

party so they can influence candidate selections. Labour say

that as a result of that enquiry, a small number of members alleged

potential criminal activity and we told them to So, is this linked to

the previous allegations about membership irregularities? Go to the

police. No. That is an internal party member. We understand that

that enquiry has concluded that there was no wrongdoing in Luton

South. That will supply is a few people in the local party, what we

are talking about today is an allegation of fraud. Staying with

politics and the region's oldest and longest`serving MP has been

re`selected to stand at the next General Election. Members of the

Saffron Walden Conservative Assoication decided by an

overwhelming majority last night to back Sir Alan Haselhurst. He'll be

77 at the next election. Some members had suggested it might be

time for someone younger. And there's more on our Sunday Politics

show, looking at the future of Surestart children's centres and

council cuts. That's Sunday, BBC One at 11 o'clock. Choosing the

healthiest items to go in your shopping trolley isn't always

straightforward. Now Cambridge researchers have been involved in

developing a smartphone app that reveals how good a product is for

you. It comes as the government is trying to improve the clarity of

food labelling. Louise Hubball reports. But it comes to choosing

the healthiest option, the supermarket can be a confusing

place. There seems to be so many labels, so many choices and so

little time. Imagine an app were a quick scan of the bar code can

reveal not only add nutritional breakdown, but suggestions of what

may be better for you. The food switch app has been developed with

the Cambridge `based government funded research centre. What it does

is offer you a quick and easy way of reading the food labels and offering

you a really quick solution to finding those healthier

alternatives. Around 80,000 supermarket products are stored on

the database and it is already a success in Australia and New Zealand

and developers hope it will take off here. Is this a black`and`white

issue? What do shoppers make of it? I would not use it personally. I

like junk food! I do not like people telling me what I should and

shouldn't eat. It is a good idea. When you pick things up, you forget

what is in it. I would like to know what is in my food. The app is free

and the team responsible say it is impartial. We wanted to make clear

that the developers behind it have been developing labelling in the UK

and we are doing this for the benefit of customers. While the app

compares healthier options, in these challenging times, it does not

compare price. Later Dan is here with the weather and that

an officer had accidentally turned on a back`up system which left the

main controls useless. The ferry was holed below the water line. No one

was injured in the crash. Covers have now been put over back`up

control buttons so they can't be pressed by mistake.

Still to come: From M S to the NHS. One of the biggest names in

retailing helps out our hospitals. Plus the town that's top of the

table and bottom of the league at the same time!

This region has been doing its bit to help parts of the country like

Somerset and the Thames which have been hit hardest by the flooding.

Our Fire Services have sent rescue teams, farmers have sent animal feed

and troops have been filling sandbags. Now though, the help has

turned hi`tech. It came in the shape of a Tornado jet from RAF Marham in

Norfolk. It has been taking high resolution aerial pictures of the

flooding on the River Thames. Very recently those same cameras have

been used to monitor the Taliban in Afghanstan. These photographs are

being used by the emergency services to plan the relief operations. This

photo of the Thames Valley was taken by an RAF jet at 15,000 feet. It was

out for three hours and managed to cover 150 square kilometres. It's

used very rarely in the UK but is used extensively in Afghanistan. The

differences are minimal. It operates in the same way. RAF Marham usually

fly these jets over warzones, taking photos and gathering intelligence.

This week its mission has been over home territory. We can see where's

flooded, where's not flooded, and where is at risk. We can pass that

down to the ground, or civilian authorities. The photos show the

extent of the flooding around the Thames Valley. The water is at its

highest level in 60 years. The information will be used to move

sandbags and other resources. The operation has involved more than 100

RAF personnel. It was a real effort but everybody's very invested in

trying to assist wherever we can. We were doing that alongside our other

operations. The base will continue to analyse the photos over the

weekend. It could be used in future flooding operations.

One of the biggest names in British retailing has been brought in by the

NHS to help some of our struggling hospitals. Sir Stuart Rose turned

around the fortunes of Marks Spencer but now he'll be offering

leadership advice to the 14 hospitals across England which are

in "special measures". Here in the east there are three ` King's Lynn,

Colchester and Basildon, where the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt

launched the programme with Sir Stuart. The man who ran M has a

lot to learn about hospitals. Sir Stuart Rose met staff yesterday in

Basildon. Alongside the Health Secretary, he heard about changes

being made. The hospital is one of those put into special measures

after concerns about care. It's a world away from his retail

background. But he says he can bring people skills to the table. You

depend on people every day to do their job properly, do their job

skilfully... In the case of customers in a store, it's about

goods and services. Here, it's about the right service, prompt service.

Sir Stuart is someone who uses the NHS. He doesn't have private health

insurance. He's committed. But turning round hospitals is a huge

task. It's not a gimmick. I'll be judged on my success in turning them

around. Leadership comes up time and again as one of the critical issues.

Basildon has hired more staff, and care is improving. The hospital is

now run by a former nurse, who believes the NHS faces different

challenges from businesses. Sometimes we have less freedom than

an independent business. Our priority is not about the bottom

line ` important though that is, it's about the health and safety of

patients. The health union UNISON warned the NHS is fundamentally

different to retail, with patients turning to the health service when

they were at their most vulnerable. Sport now, and there can't be many

places with a club at the top of the league and another at rock bottom.

With a tale of one town and two teams... Here's Tom.

Yes, if you're a Saints fans you're on top of the world. If it's the

Cobblers for you, then Saturday afternoons have been rather gloomy.

Northampton's rugby players are fighting to be crowned Premiership

champions. The football team scrapping to stay in the Football

League. Every point will matter to both sides in the closing stages of

the season as our Sports Editor Jonathan Park reports. Northampton

has a rich and varied sporting landscape. In fact, no other town in

England contains professional rugby, football and cricket teams. But if

you're a Saints or Cobblers fan, your viewing experience has been

very different this season. Northampton Town have sacked a

manager, are bottom of the league and their status as a Football

League club is in doubt. But everything is going to plan for

Northampton Saints. They're top of the Premiership, in a cup semifinal

and supplying England with a number of players. I've followed many ups

and downs. We've fallen at the final fence before. But we're growing in

confidence. We're going well. It's depressing following the football at

the moment. We win so few. We don't score. We concede bucketloads. It's

a disaster. Awful season. Saints have powered their way to the top of

Rugby Union's top flight. The Cobblers are football's basement

boys ` 92 out of 92. But a crucial midweek win against Torquay has

fired them up. Goal! It was new manager Chris Wilder's first victory

in charge. 17 cup finals to go. Whether it goes into the last ten

seconds of a game... So long as we're still in there... We'll give

it all. Saints' loss is England's gain. They're still on for a treble.

Something the Cobblers can only dream of. We want them to stay up,

obviously. It's great having them about. This town is a good sporting

town, with football, rugby and cricket. Top or bottom, different

battles lie ahead. The audience awaits for the final episodes of

this Northampton drama. In football, no game for Norwich

this weekend so there's some respite for boss Chris Hughton whose job is

coming under mounting pressure. The club's Chief Executive David McNally

told BBC Radio Norfolk he's watching the situation carefully and is aware

of the fans' concerns. He admits performances have been encouraging

despite the club boasting just one win in 11 Premier League games. He

also insists Hughton has their support with the manager still

positive he can keep them up. Norwich are one point clear of the

drop`zone. Now one team who'd dearly love to

trade places with Norwich are Ipswich. Town are just three points

off the play`offs with 16 games to go. They're at home to Blackpool

tomorrow knowing that with the top five looking nailed on, there's

going to be quite scrap to finish sixth. It's that type of league ` as

easy as you win three, you can lose three. We just keep plugging away

and try to be consistent. Hopefully by May we'll have done enough to be

in the top six. And there's some football tonight in

League One. Here are the fixtures. Olympic champion Greg Rutherford

makes his first appearance of the season indoors in Birmingham

tomorrow. The long jumper from Milton Keynes is joined by Bedford's

Nigel Levine, Andrew Osagie from Harlow, hurdler Will Sharman and

Robbie Grabarz in the high jump. For Rutherford, no chance to ease

himself into competition. He's up against the three medallists from

last summer's World Championships. He's been out with injury. That's

it. Check out the website. Let's go back to our main story now

` the strong wind and rain which have been sweeping across most of

the region today. It's the weekend and the start of the half`term

holidays, so what can we expect over the next few days? A question I put

to Adrian Gosling from the Environment Agency headquarters in

Peterborough. The rain's started to come through already. People have

seen a band of rain already. The rivers are going to react. We advise

people near the big rivers to be aware and log on to the websites. We

have a big region with a lot of rivers in it. Is Essex the main

trouble spot? What other areas are you concerned about? Everybody needs

to be aware. Those people who experienced high levels last Friday

will experience similar levels. They need to be aware and alert. Are you

expecting things to calm down after the weekend? After tonight. But

people shouldn't relax. It can take three to five days for water to go

through certain river systems. People need to be alert to that.

Especially when they're out. Take care. We're talking about the water

but there will be high winds too. Does that have a knock`on effect?

Yes. People near the coast need to be aware. There will be big waves at

the coast and slightly higher than normal tides. I advise people to be

cautious and careful. Thank you. Time for the weather. Here's the

radar picture. The Met Office have an amber warning out. Gusts of 50,

60, even 70 miles an hour. Trees could be uprooted. Inland, we are

widely covered by a yellow warning. The winds increase. Midnight to 3am

will be the wildest. Temperatures are actually rising. Eventually down

to six or seven Celsius. Tomorrow will still be windy. Saturday will

be windy, with a mixture of sunny spells. Gusts of 40 to 50 miles an

hour. They'll ease down progressively. Quite mild, actually.

Showers gradually pull away to the east. Tomorrow night it will be dry.

Perhaps a touch of frost on Sunday. Much better day then overall. The

next weather front eventually comes in. It may take till late in the day

till it reaches our region. Here's the projection.