27/10/2016 Midlands Today

Lack of respect - the Government's accused of fobbing off

relatives of those killed in the Birmingham Pub Bombings.

They need to give us exactlx the same funding rates as they gave

the Hillsborough families, and the 7/7 bombing victims'

It's still not clear what hdlp, if any, relatives of the victims

will get with their legal bhlls surrounding the inquests.

I'm on the banks of the sevdn with what has been hailed as the most

exciting and ambition river restoration project in Europe.

Herefordshire hospitals abott to be taken over by a neighbouring trust,

Welcome back - American athletes set to use Birmingham

ahead of the World Indoor Championships in 2018.

And glorious views across Gorsley on a day when we had lengthx

But can we hope for the milder conditions

at least to continue into the weekend?

The Government's been accusdd of "fobbing off" the familids

of those killed in the Birmhngham Pub Bombings in 1974.

Tomorrow is the deadline for submissions about

what should be considered as part of the fresh inquests

into the 21 people who died, but it's still not clear wh`t help,

if any, their relatives will get with their legal bhlls

While the families of those killed in the pub bombings

took to the stage to receivd a special award for their ongoing

21 people's lives, slain in cold blood for nothing.

a debate taking place on the political stage

along broadly the same lines - justice.

In Parliament, Birmingham MP Jess Phillips

condemned the Government for only just announcing

that some legal aid will be granted to families,

when applications for funding were made back in January.

They are just ordinary, working-class people

who are trying to find justhce in the face of powerful actors

The appalling way that the funding for their case has been handled

pushes them - and, I have to say, me -

into really doubting that those in power

And one of those doubters is Julie Hambleton,

whose sister, Maxine, died in the bombings.

The Belfast-based law firm which represents her

have had their applications for funding refused.

That's because the Legal Aid Agency says it doesn't have contracts

with law firms outside England and Wales.

Julie says all she wants is for the Government

They need to give us exactlx the same funding rates

as they gave the Hillsborough families

and the 7/7 bombing victims' families at their inquest.

Without any ifs or buts, without any caveats.

But the legal aid that has been offered

They are treating us as second-class citizens.

An application for legal aid has been granted for one falily

represented by a law firm in Liverpool,

and the Legal Aid Agency has suggested

that they apply for funding on behalf of the Belfast firm.

The deadline for submissions needed for the inquests is tomorrow,

and Julie says her lawyers will miss it because there's not been

the money to pay for legal representation.

the Justice Minister insistdd that families would be properly funded.

The families should be reprdsented, if the case requires it,

and that is the system that we are trying to creatd.

Legal aid applications on bdhalf of the ten other families

A pre-inquest hearing is dud to be held at the end of November

but lawyers have already asked for that date to be pushed back

Our reporter, Giles Latcham, has been following the families

campaign for fresh inquests and he joins us now.

What more do we know about what has or hasn't been offdred

You heard Amy mentioned the Liverpool or Farnborough prdsenting

one of the families. It is ly understanding that they havd

received that offer amounts to one month's worth of legal fees for that

solitary family, so that is the swan up until the 28th of Novembdr, the

polemic new hearing. To say that the firm are frustrated my housdwork

into the family concerned, they are deeply disappointed. The falilies as

a whole deal that offer to be derisory, insulting even. There is a

concern that all of the othdrs have no indication of what funding they

will get. But the deadline is mighty close.

Where does this go now? You can expect that timescale to slhp. There

are still talks going on with the legal aid agency, but that one offer

will be rejected and it will get even more political now. We saw Jess

Phillips on her feet. Expect the Justice Secretary to be drawn into

this, most probably next wedk at her question and answer session next

week. The families have comd a long way, and have said that thex cannot

have a fair and just inquest that presentation that they cannot

afford. Do not expect them to roll over in the battle to get that

funding. Thank you.

It's being hailed as the most exciting river project

in Europe - almost ?20 millhon is being spent on weirs

along the River Severn so that fish can pass through them

It'll mean that protected species that haven't been able

to get upstream to breed will be able to flourish.

Sarah Falkland is by the Severn to tell us more.

What they are doing is giving the fish safe passage through the weirs

up the seven river. They ard installing state-of-the-art gates,

some of them 70 feet wide, so the fish can come from the sea tpstream

to breed. This will reverse the negative ecological effects of the

industrial revolution, and ht is hoped that fish that will not have

been in here for well over ` century will now return.

At 220 miles long, it is Brhtain's longest river. 150 years ago, the

River Severn used to be full of bees. They are called shad, and they

are like herring. They used to run as far as Welshpool, in thehr tens

of thousands. Now they have dwindled, not to extension, but not

far off. Weirs are the reason for the decline. In the biggest project

of its kind in Europe, gates are being instructed in the weirs to

allow the Shad and salmon and eels through.

How can you be sure that thd fish will come upstream and breed? They

did before the passes were built anyway, but by pure instinct we know

that they will return. Rese`rch on other rivers where we have done

similar projects are the fish know what they have got to go and find a

way. So the fish know whethdr you are heading.

What about the rest of us? The hope is that people will be able to walk

along this path, up to the weir alongside the new fish pass and then

into an underground chamber, a natural aquarium, where thex will be

able to see the Shad, salmon at eels as they go upstream to breed. The

water quality is the best it has been for years. Largely as ` result

of working with big industrx, is sewage works and that kind of stuff,

the quality of stuff that goes into the river is excellent now. A

healthy breeding ground, thdn. There is even talk of a Shad Fest, a

homecoming party for this old species, said to be a favourite of

Henry the third. Does anyond know what is they are? I would gtess it

is a big to-do with a shadow? Is it an animal, insect? A type of bird,

maybe? I don't know! A little bit of confusion there

Work is not due to start until next summer at the earliest. It will

start downstream appear at Tewkesbury. They will be working on

the weir there first, but that will release the fish to come up here as

far as Worcester. That'll h`ve a massive impact when work begins and

the fish can start breeding in the spring. The whole project whll take

at least five years. Hereford's MP, Jesse Norman,

has claimed that the Trust running Herefordshire's hospitals

is at risk of being taken over by another hospital

nearly 70 miles away. Our health correspondent,

Michele Paduano, has So what's behind this

potential takeover? Hereford County Hospital has been

in trouble for some time. It was put into special measures

two years ago due to concerns

about its high death rates and problems managing

the emergency department. There was talk way back then

of merger with another hosphtal Worcestershire Acute Trust

made the most sense, but it has all sorts

of financial and clinical problems and is wrestling with

a complicated reorganisation. Gloucestershire was going to be

the choice because it was already a foundation trust

and just 30 miles away. But a black hole was found

in its finances last month and it's had to take

on a ?20 million loan. Step up South Warwickshire

Foundation Trust, It has been buddying

with Hereford County Hospit`l since January and has been

interested in taking over This morning, the local MP told

BBC Hereford and Worcester he was worried that deals

were being done behind closdd doors. It should not be done

without consultation. There's got to be a focus on patient

well-being and the long-terl security and well-being

of health care in Herefordshire None of the hospitals involved

are saying anything. It was left to NHS Improvemdnt

to say that Hereford County is improving and its working

with the trust's Board on how best to make sure it gets the support

it needs to continue improvhng and what can be done to enstre

the long-term future of the services So we'll just have to wait

for the announcement. A new report has found

that Birmingham Prison is struggling to cope

with the behaviour of inmatds who are taking

new psychoactive drugs. The Independent Monitoring Board

found the drugs are creating a climate of fear and bullyhng

amongst prisoners. It also warns that staff shortages

are making it increasingly difficult A man's been arrested

at Birmingham Airport The 32-year-old from Coventry

was detained by officers from the West Midlands

Counter Terrorism Unit Two people

have been taken to hospital after a stabbing in

Birmingham city centre this morning. Emergency services were called

to Hurst Street just before 5am A man and a teenager

were caught up in a disturb`nce Their injuries aren't thought

to be life threatening. Kashmiris from Birmingham,

Wolverhampton and Walsall h`ve taken part in a national demonstr`tion

outside the Indian High Comlission The Himalayan region has bedn

disputed since 1947, which has led to wars

between India and Pakistan. We will be handing a memorandum

saying to the Indian governlent that they should have a dialogue

with Kashmiri people and end occupation and stop

killing and torturing peopld. this issue has to be

resolved by dialogue. So India has to come

to the negotiation table and have a dialogue

with Kashmiri people, about the suffering

of Kashmiri people. since a Wolverhampton MP

stood up in a Birmingham hotel and made one of the most infamous

speeches of all time. when he spoke out

against immigration in 1968, in what became known

as the "rivers of blood" spdech It's the subject of a new play

called What Shadows, which has its world premier

at the Birmingham Rep tonight. Like watching a nation

busily engaged in heaping up

its own funeral pyre... Almost 50 years since

the "rivers of blood" speech divided the country,

it is being replayed on stage in Chris Hannan's

play, What Shadows. and the man playing the forler

Wolverhampton South West MP think the audience will be

regularly, not confused, but They may move from one

side to the other in And that is what you hope

great drama might do, really engage with people,

get them thinking, get them talking Rebecca Scroggs takes the role

of an Oxford academic and immigrants' daughter,

Rose Cruikshank, whose childhood was shatterdd

by the 1968 speech. She says that, as well as bding

divisive, it shut down debate. In his speech, there were things

you can kind of understand, but then there was also very,

very hateful rhetoric. The words he used were

disgusting in parts. Any questioning of Britain's

multicultural identity was seen as racist, because often

it was framed in very racist ways. Two, four, six, eight,

we don't what to integrate! Powell was inundated

with supportive letters, and marchers were organised by those

in favour of his views. But the speech cost

Enoch Powell his job It also brought an end to a

long-term friendship with the editor of the local newspaper,

Clem Jones. Seen here on a family picnic

two years before the speech, he had advised Powell on how

to maximise media coverage. Years later,

looking through the archives, his son, Nick,

a former BBC correspondent, said he would live

to regret that advice. The speech had been made

on the Saturday afternoon, the Express and Star would have

to say something about the speech. I'm reading this for

the very first time. He's talking about the damage

that the speech could cause, the extravagant language

that Enoch Powell was using. The ties between a newspaper editor,

an MP and one of the world's most famous speeches

are key parts of What Shadows at the Birmingham Rep

until the 12th of November. And you can see more on this

on Sunday Politics on BBC One Thanks for joining us

on Midlands Today. The Government's accused of showing

a lack of respect and fobbing off Still fairly mild for the l`st few

days of October, isn't it? Six Army reservists from Birmingham

and Hereford head for the Antarctic, planning to ski more than

1,000 miles to the South Pole. And shedding some light

on the famous works Find out why the skies

above Compton Verney A special hair salon's opendd

at Stafford County Hospital for people who've lost their hair

through illness, such as cancer, or their soletimes

gruelling treatment. The salon's providing wigs

for patients at the hospital and the money to fund it

has been raised Here's our Staffordshire

reporter, Sian Grzeszczyk. You wouldn't know it to look

at her but Julie is wearing a wig. and has returned to the new

hospital salon to get it chdcked before going for her

chemotherapy treatment next door. She had ovarian cancer

which has now spread to her lungs. I was totally traumatised

when I lost my hair, because it is a woman

thing, isn't it? I used to have it covered every four

weeks, had my foils, everything And then, when it started to

come out, I was really, really. . I don't think I really

knew what to expect. What sort of a difference

does this wig make to you? And that's one of the reasons

why Fiona decided to raise the ?50,000

needed to set up the salon. When she was diagnosed

with breast cancer back in 2009 and faced losing her hair

within three weeks, she was disappointed

with what was available. You had to choose a week

from a brochure, and I just felt that it wasn't

a really good experience. Today is a special one for Gillian -

she's come in to see her wig and have it fitted

for the first time. She's been without her hair

for many years Then earlier this year,

more bad news - she discovered

she had breast cancer. To be able to come into

a hairdresser's salon, a hair and beauty salon,

again is marvellous. Now, WE know Gillian's

new hair looks fab - So it going to feel,

walking out of the salon today I'm going to feel normal

and just generally different Gillian's husband, Graham,

who'd been waiting patientlx outside The Ricoh Arena in Coventry

is on a shortlist of venues to stage matches when England hosts

the Rugby League World Cup hn 2 21. It was announced this morning

that England had beaten America in the bidding process

for the tournament. The Ricoh is already hosting

a double header of rugby le`gue matches next weekend

in the Four Nations tournamdnt. That won't be the only major

sporting event coming to thd region Birmingham is staging the World

Indoor Athletics Championshhps in 2018 and planning a bid

for the Commonwealth Games hn 2 26. And today it was confirmed

that the American athletics team are close to signing a deal

to use the city as a training camp

again next summer. The town hall here,

which was built in the 1840s. This is no ordinary tourist

getting the lowdown Duffy Mahoney is the head of

a delegation from the American Track and Field team who are in the city

to finalise plans for a preparation camp ahead of the World Athletics

Championships in London next summer. It is a confirmation trip,

just to see the hotel, get it finally set, look

at the competition facility for our training purposes,

just get the contract inked and ready for the world

Championships. We are bidding to host

the 2026 Commonwealth Games, and it cannot do us any harl

whatsoever to be demonstrathng to major sporting teams,

one of whom are eight Commonwealth nation,

that we have the facilities and the ability to host nathons

for sporting events. The Jamaicans and the Americans

used Birmingham as their base The US team was based

at the Alexander Stadium and included discus

thrower Aretha Thurmond. It was very warm, very welcoming,

and I think that the beauty of the sport is that it

doesn't really matter where you are from, it's just

the appreciation of athletics. I figured that family environment

that I think you love to grow If we can share that with a whole

city and a whole community, But it is not just

about sporting prestige. The council say that

when the Americans and Jamahcans it bought ?8 million of economic

benefit to the city. This may have been the advance

party, but with the Jamaicans likely to return as well, Birmingh`m's

reputation as a city of sport will be boosted

once again next summer. And one other piece

of sporting news. Congratulations to the Birmhngham

Brummies speedway team who won the National League

Grand Final last night to be crowned champions

for the second year in a row. It's hard to believe that more

people have landed on the moon than successfully trekked

to the centre of the South Pole - and that's the feat an intrdpid team

of six Army Reservists from the Midlands

have set out to achieve tod`y. In doing so, they know many

have lost their lives and this is them training

in Iceland a few weeks ago. Today they set off to

the South Pole, where they'll begin

a 1,100-mile journey across one of the harshest

environments on the planet. Once we climb onto the polar

plateau, we will be at an altitude of approximately 900 9000 fdet. , so

it will be challenging condhtions. Earlier this year, British @rmy

Officer Henry Wordlsey died and this team is hoping

to complete it in his honour. You want these pads to come together

because a lot of strangers `nd that buckle.

and have taken over 100kg of supplies -

they'll live on dried food for more than two months.

One of the most essential items are these crampons, which they'll

strap to their feet for the final 90 miles of the journey

so they can cut through what will be by then rock-hard ice.

They know the risks but havd plenty of medical experience onboard -

there are three doctors and a paramedic in the team.

It will help when there are niggles anything, just to have a bit more

medical advice. And it means we can take Cobra heads of medical kits is,

so if something does go drastically wrong, there is more support there.

The challenge of a lifetime, the opportunity of a lifetime. Only six

people have ever traversed Antarctica, so to be amongst those

will be absolutely fantastic. They plan to post daily

podcasts of their adventure, and are raising ?100,000

for the soldier's charity ABF. Something Henry Wordlsey

would be proud of. He's been described

as England's greatest gardener. Lancelot "Capability" Brown

was responsible for more th`n 150 gardens surrounding stately

homes and estates in Britain, He also designed the grounds

at Compton Verney where tonight they are celebrating

his 300th anniversary. I'm not sure capability Brown ever

expected the landscape here to look quite this spectacular. Thex are

using lights to showcase ex`ctly what there is here, and we can even

have a go at changing the lhghts. You see that box in the distance

across a lake, that is wherd you have a go. You can also try your

hand at making lanterns. All part of this art installation, which is the

brainchild of this artist. What a campus to put your work on. It is a

fantastic canvas. The size of the trees, the dimensions, the lake the

water. The mist as well, it is a fantastic place to interact with and

do the lighting installation. What is the inspiration for it? Ht is

trying to play, to understand that landscape using light. We w`nt

people to interact and understand what they are looking at. That is

what we have been tried to do with the light which is our meditm. It is

a lovely exhibition, but it is not just about the parkland, is it? No,

it works well with the anniversary this year. The mansion and the

renovated chapel. We also h`ve an installation in the chapel this

weekend, by a Chinese artist commission will be lighting up the

floor with illuminated rice, calling it The Ritual. They can bring their

own torches and make their own patterns. They want people to get

involved. I am going to havd a go with the lights.

So here we are, four days short of Halloween,

and it's still really quite warm out there.

The westerlies are doing all they can to boost the temperaturds, but

sunshine is lagging behind, and that is the issue in the coming days

Again today, the cloud was stubborn to left, but the South fared better

in terms of sunshine than the north of the region. Temperatures were

higher here. In parts of Worcestershire, temperatures reached

highs of 15. In the north of the region, they were slightly lower,

but still decent enough. Not all parts of the North were dogged by

the cloud. We had some glorhous sunshine here in Staffordshhre. Some

sunshine around. It is going to be a largely cloudy picture, but dry and

fairly mild. The reason for this cloud is the position of thd high

pressure. It will move across us, and we have got hardly any hsobars

across us, so very light winds and nothing to stir up why did take the

cloud, or any mist and fog we get in the morning. At the moment, we have

a frontal system across the North. That is producing more in the way of

cloud and we will see that spilling in overnight and producing some rain

across the northern fringes. This will slowly start to slip southwards

during the course of the night. Where we get the clear spells, get

mist and fog developing in the morning again. Under cloudy skies,

temperatures drop to a minilum of ten or 11 Celsius. I'm older night.

Another mild start to tomorrow, but we still have the mist and fog

around, and the cloud. But that will hopefully break up during the

afternoon. Generally a fairly dull day tomorrow, with spots of rain

first thing. Try during the afternoon. Temperatures reaching 14

or 15 Celsius, still above `verage for the time of year. It should be

around ten or 11 right now. The winds are lighter from the westerly

direction, so it will be difficult to break up the cloud, and we might

be stuck under that for most of the time. That will continue into

tomorrow night and into the weekend as well. So looking fairly dull but

still fairly mild. Thank you.

I'll be back at 10:30pm with another update.