27/05/2014 Midlands Today

Hello and welcome to Midlands Today. all from the BBC News at Six -

Hello and welcome to Midlands Today. The headlines tonight. A

sale of Birmingham City Football club a step closer ` the parent

company in advanced talks with a British consortium. The hidden river

valley getting a multi`million pound make over, restoring habitats and

reducing flooding. Join me at the Hay Festival where books and

literature are being celebrated. But, there's much more to broaden

your mind here. And the Bank Holiday weekend may have proved to be a huge

disappointment and today didn't anything to raise hopes, but the

start of June might. Find out more later.

trust helps teenagers chase similar dreams. We promised ourselves that

when we got better, and I say better because it's like suffering an

Georgia wrote this bucket list of about.

Georgia wrote this bucket list of things she wanted to do. Now, people

are trying to fulfil them. There's even a scuba diving scholarship on

offer for a suitable youngster. I had no idea that she'd written a

bucket list. To be honest, I'm a little bit superstitious and I'd

probably have said, don't be doing that. But, as it is, it was done.

She must have done it, from the writing and the content, when she

was about 15. Walking around in a chicken outfit for the day, raising

money for charity. It shows what Georgia was like ` give blood, save

a life. Dye your hair ginger. Georgia did dye her hair and like

Steve's police colleague Nikki Burkitt, who fulfilled wish number

nine with Steve's help, raising ?1,500. It's the next best thing for

Georgia doing it, isn't it? Oh, yes. Everything on that list, she'd have

definitely done. Three students received a trust grant to head to

Morocco, building an irrigation channel to prevent flooding.

Meanwhile 11`year`old Emma was given ?250 towards a wheelchair. Born with

cerebral palsy, she needs it to get around more easily. Emma's

wheelchair adapts to allow her to take part in sports and other

activities such as this after`school cycling club here this primary

school in Telford. If I keep using my bike I might get stronger muscles

because I don't have to pedal with my legs. I use my arms instead.

Georgia's impact has been positive. But the man who strangled her at his

parents' home in Wellington wants to appeal against his whole life

sentence. Last December Stafford Crown Court was told that Jamie

Reynolds had the potential to become a serial killer. The Williams hope

to attend the appeal court. I will be there for whatever for Georgia. I

will stand up for her because there is nobody else that's going to do

it. Joining me now is Chief Inspector

Richard Langton, from West Mercia Police, who's the chairman of the

Georgia Williams Trust. Good evening. When you created this

charity, did you ever imagine you would top ?60,000? No expectations

at all. If I'm honest 12 months ago we had no idea where this journey

was going. I had no idea what we were doing. What we did understand

was there was a real urgency to act and to capture the public feeling.

To put some order and structure around a spontaneous fundraising

that was happening. 12 months on to be talking about having raised

?60,000, we've succeeded our wildest expectations. There was a real sense

of just doing something to try and make a situation right. The more

that we explore this idea, the more support and passion was coming out

for it. We very quickly established a charitable trust. Since then the

story has touched so many hearts and minds. Also, it has fired

imaginations. We've had some extraordinary fundraising. George's

list has really hit a note with people. There is lots more planned.

We can see how the charity has made an impact. You were based in

Wellington at the time of the murder and were a colleague of George's

father. As a fellow officer, had that affect you and your colleagues?

It had an extraordinary impact on everybody involved. It was so

personal. We like to think the trust, even in those early days,

gave an opportunity for colleagues to have something positive to focus

on. I speak on behalf of colleagues, but also on the other

organisations that meant a lot to Georgia such as the air cadets and

the local football team. All those people whose lives she touched can

look to the trust now and in the future for a positive memory and

legacy. Is there an ultimate aim for the trust? To keep it going. To find

new and exciting ways to raise awareness and funds so we can

translate that money into grants to help young people. Thank you. You're

watching Midlands Today, good to have you with us. Coming up later in

the programme ` Life after Europe. I'll be asking what next for

outgoing MEP Nikki Sinclair. And ahead of its first festival, the

Black Country gets its own anthem. It may have been a bank holiday

weekend here but over in the Far East it was very much business as

usual stop for 24 hours share`trading in Birmingham

International Holdings was suspended on the Hong Kong stock exchange.

Why? So that the parent company of Birmingham city football club were

able to confirm they'd received an offer from interested party a

minority purchase of the football club. Earlier today we had this

statement from the acting chairman. He said the IHL remains in advanced

talks with the British consortium with a very strong North American

investment fund. So is the light at the end of the tunnel? Steve McCabe

is from the Birmingham city University business School. Is the

light at the end of the tunnel? For blues fans I hope so. It depends

what they get. That is the $94 million question isn't it? Surely

any potential purchaser would want 100% control. This may be the first

step to complete ownership. So that they are going to have to take a

hit? Quite clearly. How important is it to retain their listing on the

Hong Kong stock exchange `` they will want to keep hold of it. The

club's owners thanked the fans for their patients. Is there any chance

this deal would be concluded before the start of the season? The fans

must be at the end of their tether. They need new players. Thank you

very much indeed. Our Environment Correspondent David

Gregory`Kumar joins us now from beside the banks of the

River Tame in Warwickshire. Tonight we're roughly halfway

between Tamworth and Birmingham. This is Kingsbury Water Park,

the River Tame just over there. It's a site full of dog walkers,

sailors and bike riders. Today we've seen woodpeckers, heron,

sand martins and barn owls. And all of this is part

of the massive new This valley is getting a

multi`million pound make over. You will spot 20 of wildlife, which is

amazing because the river is a hostile habitat these days. The

whole river and many other rivers have seen a lot of man`made features

putting `` put in. Ready to try it and get water from one place to the

other. `` really. We are trying to slow the flow down to hold water

back, and that will end up... Reduced flooding is one benefit of

this new project, stretching from Birmingham to Tamworth, North

Warwickshire to save the Staffordshire. At its heart is the

River Tame, not about by people and industry but now being returned to a

more natural state. `` knocked. It will be a huge task, but right

across the Midlands all our waterways need a bit of love. Here

in Worcestershire this man has seen plenty of extreme weather. We have

had deeper nesting for the first time in over ten years. `` dipper.

So we are seeing signs of improvement.

The restoration of the Tame Valley were easily be the biggest project

of its kind in the Midlands, and it is not just about flooding or even

helping wildlife. There are also canals involved, and

as part of all this is food rich will be restored by the canals and

rivers trust. `` footbridge. Back on the banks of the River Tame,

somewhat a lot football pitches are said to be radically transformed. We

will let people explore wetlands in the flesh, and put in some viewing

platforms. They are even aiming at creating jobs as part of the scheme,

helping wildlife is not just for the birds.

Earlier here we were lucky to see some of the newest arrivals, five

adorable baby barn owl chicks. Stefan Bodner has ringed hundreds of

chicks over the past decade, but last year was the worst year on

record, hardly any chicks were born here. This year though, things are

looking up. Five chicks, perhaps slightly small

but looking healthy otherwise. The parents are probably in one of the

other boxes. Once the chicks start growing it gets pretty crowded and

smelly, and they shift of two another box and sit there and then

come back and provision they done in the evening or the middle of the

night. We find the parents in a nearby box,

hopefully this year barn owl numbers will begin to recover.

And we'll have more on barn owls later in the week.

In the meantime, if you want to learn more about the Tame Valley

project or even get involved there's more details and a link on my blog

A year on from her murder, Georgia Williams' parents talk

of their pride at the legacy created by their daughter.

Your detailed weather forecast to come shortly.

Also in tonight's programme ` not just about books, how the small

border town has built a worldwide reputation for the Hay Festival.

As the dust starts to settle after the European elections,

the outgoing MEPs will be starting to think about their futures.

One of them is Nikki Sinclaire, formerly

of UKIP who stood this time for the We Demand A Referendum Now Party.

You have five weeks left, what are you going to do after that? It is

too early to say. I have been working for 20 years trying to force

this issue, so I will probably keep the pressure on that. So staying in

politics, because the amount of energy required for this type of job

is immense, but then when you stop, what do you fill it with? It has

been 80 hour weeks for five years, so what I am going to do now, that

is a good question. I will always be working towards what I think this

country needs. Will you see `` will you be standing at the General

Election? I think that is extremely unlikely.

I think it was Tony Benn that said he was going to retire to actively

engage in politics! Everyone was predicting UKIP would

do well, but did you think they would do quite so well, over 27% of

the vote? I do congratulate them. I thought it became Nigel Farage

versus politics, and I think the machine came in and people wanted to

protest. He calls himself the fox in the Westminster henhouse. I call

upon the main parties to be the farmer with the shot gun and shoot

the Fox. I mean, not shoot Nigel Farage but shoot the issue. They

need to call this in and out referendum. Nigel Farage is only

representing the frustration of the British people, and the main parties

have been ignoring that for far too long. It is about time they actually

listened to the British people and gave us that referendum.

Returning to you, a couple of years ago you were arrested on suspicion

to defraud the European Parliament. You are still on bail. How has this

affected you personally? It hasn't been helpful, and it is obviously

not very nice, that our snake clear I refute all allegations. `` let us

make clear. It has been absolutely awful. I haven't even answered

questions on this for 18 months, it has just hanging over my head. You

feel, well, I am innocent so it is absolutely frustrating. It is an

anomaly in our legal system but I don't think should be allowed to

carry on. `` that identifies that `` that I don't think. You will pick up

?32,000 in severance pay. Will you take it? It was me who leaked this

document. Unlike the BBC... Will you take it? I cannot get a job in

another Parliament, most people get a redundancy payment, and unlike the

BBC I am quite transparent. Thank you for joining us.

around the world to a small town on the Herefordshire`Welsh border.

The festival attracts thousands of literary fans each year `

but Hay is not just about books, as our Arts Reporter Satnam Rana

The Hay Festival, known for its celebration of books and literature.

For 27 years people have been coming here to explore and challenge their

minds. But this is the other side of the

festival, hands`on experiences. For local businesses it is also a

showcase. It is one thing to go for the intellectual element of reading

books, but working with your hands is also really exciting, and

thought`provoking. You can see the excitement we are generating here.

This has become a festival which is looking to the future. Away from the

main site, fashion students are making ethnically and

environmentally sustainable garments. The festival's about

culture, and I think fashion's are really important part of that. `` a

really important part. This is a festival which has grown

year`on`year, attendance is in fact up a 16% already with a quarter of a

million people coming through the doors.

And it is an integral part of the local economy as well, generating

?60 million for Hay on Wye and they surrounding region.

Thousands come here for the two week period. This year some locals may

spot themselves on this, a film about rubble life which is

premiering at the Festival tonight. `` rubble life. This footage was

shot by a local businessman. It is all made up of countries shows, the

Queen's visit, weddings and birthday parties, it is a beautiful

collection. So away from books and literature, there is plenty to

experience. You turn to somebody who is next to

you in the queue and you've got stuff to talk about, and they are

here because they are open`minded and they want to have a good time.

The Hay Festival is a field full of fun for anyone who involved ``

enjoys life, books, people and thinking.

The Black Country is famous for its industrial heritage,

the delicacy of faggots and peas, and of course the long`time debate

over which towns north of Birmingham are actually within its boundary.

And from today the Black Country has its own official anthem,

composed ahead of the area's first ever festival next month.

Performed with pride and passion for the Black Country past and present,

the official anthem for an area steeped in history.

This year it was time to celebrate ourselves again. We wanted to get

out and celebrate the black complete, remind people we are still

out to have a good time and enjoy ourselves. `` black country.

The version of the patriotic classic I Vow To Thee My Country has been

composed in honour of the region's first Black Country day in July.

There have been small communities of people celebrating, but now we have

the full council back in it. This also celebrates the invention

of the world was Mac first steam engine.

Aside from celebration, the song has a certain poignancy, dedicated to

Steve Evans, magician and comedian he died in January following a two

He shared his story on radio, television and online,

touching the lives of people from all over the world.

We are so proud to be able to get involved in an initiative like this

and celebrate the diverse community of the whole of the black country,

and use an anthem like this to raise much`needed funds for the hospice in

memory of Steve Evans. Tip from Tipton, top of the charts.

Any sun on the horizon? There is, but you will have to wait

to the end of the week. Currently we are continuing where we left off

which means more unsettled conditions to come. We start with

some wet, cloudy conditions, but those temperatures begin to pick up

as the week goes on and finally we end with some drier weather by

Friday. But really it is this one occluded front that is proving to be

the nuisance. It floats southwards, but it is the length it takes to do

this that will mean rain with us for the next couple of days. But then

the high pressure builds in behind us, bringing improvement by the

weekend. Currently we have still got the debris of today's rain to get

through, and it is still quite rain `` wet in parts of Stoke and

Lichfield. But you can practically locked the part of this `` the path

of this front. The rain is starting to intensify in quite a few places,

but we will see some heavy outbreaks from time to time tonight.

Temperatures will remain in double figures for most at around 10

Celsius. As we head into the morning tomorrow, although it is still wet

during that time, we will find the rain is and confine itself to

northern parts of the region. If we get any breaks, I think the best we

can hope for in terms of temperatures if `` is 15 Celsius.

Otherwise it will be around 12 or 13. Further outbreaks of rain

continuing through tomorrow night, but it will study drier up in a few

places with patchy mist and temperatures around 11 Celsius.

Drying up by Friday. European leaders gather in Brussels

to work out how to respond to the shock

of the anti`EU election results. Rolf Harris begins his defence

against allegations of sexual abuse, A year on from her murder,

Georgia Williams' parents talk of their pride at the legacy created

by their daughter. And the sale of Birmingham City

Football club a step closer `