21/12/2011 Look North (East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire)

Good evening and welcome to BBC Look North. The headlines tonight:

Police step up the battle against gangs killing wild animals in

Lincolnshire. They're driving across the fields

at night using high-velocity rifles, night-vision technology and heat-

seeking technology, as well. Cracking down on metal theft - one

council says it's seen a significant reduction.

How people power could be harnessed to generate electricity.

And the revival of vinyl as LPs come back in fashion.

And it looks mild in the run-up to Christmas. Join me for the latest

Police say armed gangs with high- powered rifles are spreading fear

though rural communities in Lincolnshire. They shoot wild

animals for sport or for food. There have had more than 600

reported cases in the last four months of hare coursing - an

outlawed practice where hares are chased and killed by dogs. Simon

Spark is live with this story in the village of Nettleham near

Lincoln. Simon, this isn't a new crime, but how concerned are

police? The of they are concerned and the figures that you put do

sound horrific. They also are based on the weather we had last year

which was very bad and not us many cases were reported. But they are a

worry for farmers and also for villages like the ones here. Here,

we have more damage caused overnight. They were shooting as

they went around the corner. It's another farm in another battle

against rural crime. This time, trespassers coming onto land to

shoot, maim and kill any wildlife they can. Anything that has moved

has been shot at. General of damage to gateposts, chains broken, block

smashed, anything to get them into the land. This latest incident was

on the land of Christmas tree grower William Rose, but it's a

common problem for many farmers. They are driving across the fields

at night, using a high-velocity rifle, night vision goggles and

heat-seeking technology as well. They callously leave the carcasses,

the dead bodies on the ground, really. They are not doing it for

food, they are just doing it for the hell of it. It adds to a

growing list of major crimes in recent months. During a nine-month

period last year, 40 tractors were stolen from farms. In September

this year, 1,400 sheep were stolen from Stenigot near Louth, and

another 23 were taken from Epworth just this month. And between 1st

August and 5th December, 630 hare coursing incidents were reported to

Lincolnshire police. And they too are getting equipped. Special

vehicles with numberplate recognition cameras and night

vision are helping but vigilance and working together is still a

main defence. It is not just about me trying to combat it on my own,

it is about working together and working with the local fans --

farmers and the landowners and the gatekeepers.

Simon, what are the police doing to reassure people? You could say they

are casting their net wider, they are collaborating with other forces

to gather intelligence and of course, they are gathering help

from farmers. Earlier in the month, one farmer factory called a meeting

with the police and another 50 farmers turned up in support to

raise their concerns. From that, they have managed to start up a

scheme were they all liaise with each other and talk to each other.

A lot of these gangs are coming in from other counties and better

something that is dangerous, obviously, to tackle head on with

the weapons that they have and also, with the intelligence they can

gather from farmers and other forces, they can use that to help

bring them to justice. I'm joined by Louise Robertson from

the League Against Cruel Sports which campaigns against hare

coursing. Good evening. Why should we be so concerned about hare

coursing? This is a barbaric form of animal cruelty. Fees are not

people accurately, a cross hairs and allowing their dogs to chase

them. These are organised gangs of criminals killing wildlife just for

the sake of it. The members of the public are aware of this, and then

as reported to the police. Some will say this isn't a blood sport

but actually, a traditional activity that has gone on in the

countryside for a long time. Hare coursing, organised traditional

hare coursing is illegal and the types of hare coursing we are

seeing now is illegal and must be reported to the police. Often, the

people carrying out these types of activities are often involved in

other sorts of crimes. When you hear that it is not for food or

anything else but just for fun or just for the hell of it, how does

that make you feel? It makes me livid, it is horrific that people

can inflict cruelty on animals and get pleasure out of it. It is also

worrying for the people living in these communities that these

individuals are going out in the dead of night with lethal weapons.

How seriously do the police take such crimes when it is in the

middle of the night? I think the police take it very seriously. The

number of incidents that have been reported is very encouraging. Often,

these sorts of crimes to go under- reported because of the remote

places they are happening in and the fact that they are taking place

at night but we are seeing joined up working from police forces those

that these criminals are being prosecuted and brought to justice

for what they are doing. Thank you. Can the police stop the gangs

killing wild animals in the county? What is the impact on the rural

areas? What measures should be taken to deal with crime in those

parts of the county? Your thoughts on this one if you like to get in

In a moment: The children getting messages from

the Middle East because their The world's biggest security firm,

G4S, has won a �200 million contract to run office departments

at Lincolnshire Police. 500 civilian staff could be affected in

the police control centre and several other departments could be

privately run when the deal is finally concluded. Chief officers

say it will save millions of pounds, but secure jobs.

A man from Hull has been remanded in custody after being charged with

the rape of a ten-year-old girl almost 30 years ago. Magistrates

heard how 49-year-old Michael Acey was arrested after detectives re-

opened the case. Police say new DNA evidence has come to light. Michael

Acey will appear before Hull Crown Court in the New Year.

A woman has broken down in tears in the witness box, as she told

Lincoln Cown Court why she'd murdered her partner. 43-year-old

Julie Dixon has been giving evidence in a hearing to decide why

she killed David Twigg. The 46- year-old was locked in a cupboard

before his business in Burgh Le Marsh near Skegness was set on fire.

and joins me now. What did Julie Dixon say? She started by answering

the most important question. Julie Dixon's Barrister asked "why

did you strike the match and start the fire?" She replied "I was going

along with the plans we'd already made and to go along with his

wishes." Asked "Whose idea was it that David Twigg should die in a

fire? Julie Dixon replied: "David's" Her Barrister asked: "For

about how long had David been talking about suicide?" Ms Dixon

said "Probably since he heard about the bankruptcy." David Twigg

declared bankrupt last year. Julie Dixon's family - see here -

listened as she said that over seven years, the couple had

borrowed almost �400,000 to pay off business debts and bills. She said

he'd known about the debts for past four years and she had never taken

money from the business for herself. She said Mr Twigg was "distraught"

when he was made bankrupt, but despite that the couple had gone on

to spend two thousand pounds on a holiday in America. Julie Dixon

originally claimed David Twigg had been attacked by masked men, before

changing her story to say they'd made a suicide pact. The hearing

continues tomorrow. North Lincolnshire has seen a

significant reduction in metal thefts. Humberside Police figures

show that during two weeks in June there were 72 reported thefts of

metal in that area. Six months on the latest figures show just 15

thefts. Scrap metal dealers have been working more closely with the

police and local council. This scrap metal merchants in

Scunthorpe has always tried to turn away metal they suspect is stolen.

But taking a stand is sometimes not easy. Some who were accepted and

walk away but we have been threatened. It can be quite

frightening. But Steve is among a number of dealers who've signed up

to a new scheme with Humberside Police and North Lincolnshire

Council. Any new customers, will start asking from ID. It has got to

stop asking -- stop people selling stolen metal. Metal theft is a

widespread problem. In East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire we've

seen churches lose their lead and cables snatched from substations

and railway lines. In North Lincolnshire, they seen a downward

trend in thefts and say it's down to a number of initiatives. We have

been increasing the amount of visible patrol. We have been

targeting the offenders. We have been doing awareness raising and

perhaps most importantly, working together with the scrapyards so

that we are working together so they can help us to try to

eliminate the way of disposing of this type of metal. But local

initiatives, while apparently successful, can only go so far.

British Transport Police now set- aside from terrorism, metal theft

is now the biggest concern. A group of MPs are pushing for need

legislation to bring in a national licensing scheme for dealers.

Honest dealers simply want a level playing field and hope that local

initiatives like this one will help bring this about.

Bosses at BAE Systems in Brough are believed to be looking at ways of

redeploying their workforce in the green energy sector. The aircraft

manufacturing site faces being mothballed with the loss of almost

900 jobs. Management at the defence giant have told local MPs they're

looking at other options for staff facing redundancy. I think the fact

that the Humber could become a hub for renewables is quite important

in this debate and we need to look at the possibilities that that

opens up. There is potential, there, as well.

Passengers on a ferry into Hull arrived more than four hours late

this morning. The Pride of York was unable to use the King George Dock

terminal because of a broken lock gate. The vessel eventually docked

at the Rotterdam quay in the Humber just before midday. P&O Ferries say

tonight's sailing to Rotterdam could also be delayed by up to an

Still ahead tonight: How we could soon be making every step we take a

step towards saving the planet. And the return of retro music players

as vinyl sees an increase in If you have a big you are proud of,

send it in. -- if you have a picture. Tim Everett says this is a

low light shot, and he is trying to bring some class to defer to a slot.

We do not mediate, but thank you very much for that! -- we do not

Someone says, where does Paul Hudson get his Beenham shirts from?

-- doing home shirts from. Let's look at a headline. It is a mild

one. Temperatures are in double figures, and it looks like that

will last through tomorrow. Christmas Day looks very mild

indeed. No chance of a white Christmas. We are in a warm sector.

Tomorrow will see temperatures around 11 degrees. There has been a

lot of cloud. Some subtle breaks in the cloud sheet. I think this

evening and overnight will be dry it with variable amounts of cloud.

There will be some clear spells. Certainly, a mad and frost-free

night, with temperatures down to eight Celsius -- a mild and frost-

free night. The sun will rise at 8:17am, setting at 3:42pm. A dry

day tomorrow with a variable amounts of cloud. Some spells of

sunshine a possible, and some quiet -- some quite nice temperatures. We

are looking at 10 in Hull Garbutt 11 in Lincoln, Grimsby and towards

Boston -- 10 in Hull, but 11 in Lincoln. Christmas Day looks cloudy

I was humiliated yesterday. Somebody said, poll has a day off,

has he done to get your fake tan? Scientists at University of Hull

think they may have found new ways to harness human energy. It would

mean every step we take is helping to save the planet. Caroline Bilton

has more. It is a typical rush-hour at York railway station, where

thousands of commuters are hurrying to get to their next destination.

Approximately 11 million people pass through this station every

single year. With every step they take, they generate up to six Watts.

At the moment, that his energy that is wasted, but what if that could

be collected in some way and used to power things, like display

screens, audio systems and even the light? It is something Jim Gilbert

from University of Hull has spent years working on. How on earth

could we use humans in a train station to generate energy? There

are lots of people around, all moving, and if we can take a bit of

energy from each of those people, and put it together, we get a

useful amount of energy. We do not need to take large rebate to make a

useful contribution. Do you need to have a constant food for? You can

store energy. -- constant foot fall. One man who shot the -- one man has

are the potential of human energy was Trevor Bayliss, famous for

inventing the wind-up radio. They invented issue that could charge

your mobile as you walk. -- a shoe. We developed a device that fits in

the bottom of the shoe. When you walk, it stores energy. You could

charge your mobile phone, and I part -- and iPod, any electrical

device. At that idea was sadly ruined after September 11th.

idea of harvesting energy, however, is not new. This company in Israel

has developed a system to use vibrations from passing cars and

trains to generate power. Back at Hull University, Jim is working on

a staircase that can generate energy with every step you take.

That movement converts to electrical energy. We have a lot of

work to do to find out how much force people can apply to it, make

it comfortable and reduce the nice, and make it so people do not notice

their giving energy into their system. -- reduce the noise. It is

one of the number of ideas that the team are working on. The staircase

is far from Venice, but there is a lot of Minister -- there is a lot

of interest in it. Harvesting energy from our movements and

vibrations and is to be cost- effective, but the research being

carried out at Hull University maybe a small step towards saving

the planet. Fascinating. At now, for five-year-

old Phoebe Birney, hearing a recorded message from her mother

will be an early Christmas present. Claire Birney is serving with the

RAF in the Middle East, and is one of many parents who have sent a

special CD home for Christmas. Tarah Welsh reports from RAF

Waddington. She has got brown hair, blue eyes, she sometimes wears

earrings. Claire Birney has been working away from October. She will

not be home for Christmas, but has sent her daughter his special gift.

She is rarely far away. That is why she sent me a little story. I hope

everything is OK. Through this initiative, Claire professionally

recorded a story for her daughter. 50 other parents at RAF Waddington

have done the same. It is quite difficult sometimes. It is very

emotional. You can stab the recorder with a personal message to

your child or children. -- you can start the recording. They realise

they will not be with their children. Then they record the

story. Phoebe's dad is making sure it will be a good Christmas. He

said the surprise recording makes it extra special. The CD comes in

the post, and it is to her. I managed to pick it up and give it

to hair. It was really nice. I could listen to her voice. Cloud

will not be home for two months, Sophie B has her own message to

send. -- Sophie B has her own message to send. Merry Christmas!

These well on the verge of extinction. Now, thanks to the

dedication of wildlife experts and Lincolnshire, the dormouse is

enjoying a revival. When Crompton has been to Chambers Woods Farm

near Horncastle. It is nearly a decade since his dormice were

reintroduced into the wild hero Chambers Farm Wood, and they have

been going from strength to strength. This box has been used,

and we have found some mice here. Dormouse are rarely seen as they

are nocturnal and hibernate for over half the year. Ecologist

Adrienne Bennett says they are still able to unlock how many are

living here. We have a series of boxes and a series of troops. We

check them every month through the year. -- a series of troops. Using

these checks, we report any mice we find. We can compare that from year

on year. The in 2002, 32 dormouse were released here. Since then, the

population has been growing. Ecologists here say it has been a

bumper year. The mice were released in this area here. Anne Goodhall is

a volunteer who has been caring father mice since they were

released. We went round in August and found 20 mice. That was a

record. Each month, we seem to double it. The project has been so

successful that the team are hoping to introduce a similar population

near by. Digital download may be on the

increase as music CD sales fall, but it seems that vinyl has not had

its day just yet. Sales have increased by 40 % so far this year.

One record shop in Hull says that the revival is being driven by

young people. Sarah Corker has been Christmas 1987. That was the last

time vinyl and sold CDs, and the Pet Shop Boys were number one with

this classic. Now, it looks like a record is making a comeback. Always

On My mind... This music shop owner says people of all ages aback by in

vinyl. I average customer age has fallen to about 25 -- my average

customer age. My oldest customer is 86. 17-year-old Helena became

hooked after listening to her father's collection. I come up here

every few weeks, and bright end up with a stack of vinyl. It is

addictive. It is the satisfaction of having something in your hands

that you do not get with Internet downloads. For many, nothing quite

compares to the first time you drop that needle. People are discovering

older music in their family's collection. There may be becoming

fond of there snap, crackle and pop that final gives. Having listened

to this. -- that vinyl gives. have got a few friends who have

started buying it. I think people appreciate music more than what

they used to. I think it is seen as retro. Lady GaGa is even getting in

on the action. There we are. The revival of vinyl.

Some news just in. Is this the oldest Christmas tree of any Look

North viewer? Derek Upfield says history is as old as he is, 77. It

survived the Blitz, and the flood of 2007, and still even holds some

of the original decorations bought by his parents in the 1930s. It has

sentimental value. I cannot throw it away after all these years.

There we are. That is Derek and history, 77 years old. -- Derek and

his a tree. If you have a story you think we should know about, get in

touch. A recap of the headlines. John Terry is to be charged with

racist abuse. He will appear in court by February. Police step up

the battle against gangs killing Response coming in on the subject

of the killing of wild animals after our discussion. Somebody says,

armed police should apprehend these people, take their firearms and

animals away from them and send them to prison for a long time.

Dave said, perhaps that the punishment was more severe, it

might make a difference. All equipment should be put in the

crusher. Schon said, these criminals shooting animals -- Sean

said, at the police able to defend themselves? Mac says it is soul-

destroying to look around your crops to discover her courses had

been driving on them all night. Someone else says the shooting