20/10/2011 North West Tonight

Good evening. Welcome to NorthWest Tonight with Ranvir Singh and Roger

Johnson. Our top story... Taken by a single punch - why

Adam's father decided to come face to face with his son's killer.

I wanted him to know exactly the damage he had done and the

consequences of his behaviour that night.

Can restorative justice work? Also tonight...

Can Lord Heseltine do it for Liverpool again? The former

Minister for Merseyside outlines his blueprint for the future. We

will be speaking to him. Why the North West Ambulance

Service has spent �10 million on taxi trips for patients over the

past three years. Join me with that the urban apples

that have been turned into cider. Well,, welcome, welcome!

And standing up for stand up - the comedy festival having the last

The former Deputy Prime Minister, Lord Heseltine, published his

latest vision to reinvigorate Liverpool today. He has worked with

the former boss of Tesco, Sir Terry Leahy, to make recommendations to

the Government. Among the plans, a call for

thousands of new civil service jobs on Merseyside, and a directly

elected Mayor to champion the city. In a moment we will be asking him

her that as possible at a time of Government cuts. First, Angelina

Socci reports. He was once the minister for

Merseyside. It was 1981 when Lord Heseltine came to Liverpool

following the Toxteth riots. His aim - to highlight deprivation and

persuade others to finance the regeneration of the city. 30 years

on and with his knowledge of the area, Lord Heseltine is hoping he

can now help shape its future. And this is the report that has

been presented to the Prime Minister. The 50 page document has

been drawn up after meetings with politicians and business leaders on

how to encourage economic growth. It includes moving thousands of

It includes moving thousands of It includes moving thousands of

civil service jobs to Liverpool. A Government commitment to have a

directly elected mayor with powers. Benefit claimants to carry out

community work to receive their money. And to change high speed

rail proposals so they connect rail proposals so they connect

Manchester and Liverpool directly. Liverpool desperately need more

employment opportunities for residents. But we need more

businesses here in the city. But again, they are all good ideas, and

we're hoping the Government will work with us to produce some of

those ideas, bring them to realisation.

Because of the benefits we have seen in Liverpool over the last six

years, we do not have the high levels of national aplomb that we

were used to in the 1970s and 1980s. It is still clear of the economy

needs all the support it can get. But it seems that the people of

Liverpool have their own ideas on how the city could be improved.

Added really like to see more jobs and the area, but I think Liverpool

is to wink at a good job. There is plenty of empty factory

space and things like that. It needs cash in the City to give

people jobs. They're putting buildings up and

taking beautiful buildings Darren. They are just destroying the city.

The council needs to get a grip. -- taking beautiful buildings Darren.

While there are many obstacles to overcome, business leaders hope

this new vision will help Liverpool's economy grow.

A little earlier, I spoke to the report's co-author Lord Heseltine.

I began by asking how confident he is that the Government will take

any notice of his recommendations. Well, the reaction from the Prime

Minister has been encouraging, but it is up to the Government to

decide. You have talked about relocating a

lot of civil service jobs to Merseyside. Is that a realistic at

a time of public sector cuts? We referred particularly to the

Green Investment Bank, which is up for decision-making. Much of the

import of this recommendation is that we need directly elected

mayors so that Manchester and Liverpool have a voice, like London

has with Boris Johnson and Scotland has with Alex Salmond.

He is that about weakening the south-east's economic grip?

Yes. The south-east has a monopoly of power, and that is a mistake. It

has happened over a long period of time, and at Terry Leahy and I

agree that we need to disperse that power to recreate the strength and

independence of the great English cities. We need to focus attention,

concentrate resources and create a system of proper, effective,

accountable leadership to lead localities.

You have talked about re-routing that the high-speed rail links to

like Manchester and lovable. That is presumably key to enabling that

economic prosperity. It is very important. One

recognises that Merseyside was built on the Mersey. The great

river works, and we want to see a renaissance in all of that, with a

more thriving port, cleaning it to make it one of the most attractive

rivers in the urban world, creating jobs and expertise that goes with

that. You look at each city in its context and you see what its

strengths are. The fact is, over the last 30 years English cities

have seen a renaissance on a scale not seen since Victoria ruled the

country. If your child was killed, would you

be willing to come face to face with the person who took their

life? Dave Rogers from Blackburn has just faced that agonising

decision. His son Adam was killed by a single punch two and half

years ago. This week the man convicted was released from prison.

Under the terms of restorative justice, Dave was given the option

of meeting his son's killer. He did, and says, while it was upsetting,

it was definitely worthwhile. Nazia Dave and Pat Rogers today with the

baby who will never meet his uncle. Adam Rogers was on a night out with

university friends two years ago when he was attacked in the centre

of Blackburn by 16-year-old Billy Upton. A single punch knocked the

24-year-old to the ground and he received serious head injuries from

which he never recovered. Today his father Dave came face to face with

his son's killer. I wanted to let him build exactly

the damage he had done, the consequences of his behaviour that

night, and how it had affected so many people. I wanted to be able to

tell him that face-to-face. Dave and Pat faced the agonising

decision to turn their son's life support machine off when tests

showed there was no brain activity. Meeting Billy Upton, who has been

released on probation, is part of a restorative justice process.

We had lost our son and did not want to have a life ruined because

of what had happened. It would have given us no satisfaction at all.

Adam carried an organ donor card. We filmed his parents when they met

Mark, one of five people to receive organs following Adam's death.

Meeting his killer was a difficult decision for Dave.

We feel, on the other hand, it would be a tribute to Adam's memory

if he was able to succeed in this. Pat was also offered the chance to

meet Billy Upton today. She said The BBC has discovered that the

North West Ambulance Service has spent almost �10 million ferrying

patients to hospital appointments in taxis. Union leaders say they

are shocked by the revelation. But managers insist it is the most

efficient way of transporting patients when there are no non-

emergency ambulances available. Our Chief Reporter, Dave Guest, has the

When it is a matter of life and death, of course this is the best

way to get to hospital. For more routine visits, though, many

patients rely on these non- emergency ambulances to get them

there. The north-west Ambulance Service has 500 of these non-

emergency ambulances. But, with more than 2 million patients

requiring non-emergency, but essential, transport to and from

hospital each year, there are not enough of these to go around. So,

when one of these is not available, the Ambulance Service books a taxi.

In fact, it has booked the brother of lot of taxes over the past three

years. -- it has boot rather a lot. Since April 2008, NWAS has spent

just short of �10 million on taxis. The everyone in the service was

aware that a certain amount was being spent on taxis, but this

figure of �10 million in three years has taken everyone a bat.

That accounts for a third of the total spent by all ambulance trusts

in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

A -- taken everyone by surprise. We spent �42 million per year on

our patient transport service. But you are still spending a lot

more on other and -- than others ambulance services in the country.

That is correct, but we are the largest Ambulance Service in the

country. We did not be cheaper to buy more

non-emergency ambulances? If they are expensive piece of

equipment, so it would not work out more cost-effective.

The latest figures from the Home Office say crime is falling across

the region. There were reductions in Merseyside, Cheshire, Cumbria

and Lancashire. In Greater Manchester, it is at its lowest

level for 11 years. The force says despite budget cuts it is finding

new ways to cut crime. Our workforce is shrinking and will

fall further, but a our opportunity is to use it to modernise. In

Greater Matt -- Greater Manchester we have to 0.5 million eyes and

ears. We urge people to keep supporting police teams, because if

we have no money we have to use it smarter.

The police are asking holidaymakers for help to trace six fugitives

from the North West who are believed to be on the run in Spain.

The men include Kevin Parle from Liverpool, who is wanted in

connection with two murders. The Government says it wants to ensure

that Spain is no longer a safe haven for criminals.

More than 40 MPs are calling on The Sun newspaper to release all its

records connected with its coverage of the Hillsborough football

disaster. It comes after the Government agreed to disclose all

Cabinet papers and related documents about the tragedy in 1989

in which 96 Liverpool supporters died.

And today the Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish has criticised a

retired judge who suggested families of the victims should move

on. Sir Oliver Popplewell chaired the inquiry into another football

tragedy - the Bradford City fire. He says people in that city did not

harbour conspiracy theories and behaved with quiet dignity. But

Dalglish - who was also in charge at Anfield in 1989 - says the

implication is totally unfair. He added that the families have

been fantastically dignified in their approach. The parents of an

aid worker killed during a rescue mission in Afghanistan have

accepted a posthumous award for their daughter from Manchester

University. Linda Norgrove was taken hostage last September, but

died when a grenade was thrown by soldiers trying to rescue her. She

studied for her PHD in Manchester and has received the University's

Outstanding Alumna Award. I think it is to celebrate the life

she had, of which was her aid work coupled with the fact she had

travelled all over the world and led an extremely full life. It is

an honoured to pick up this award. We understand there are about four

per year, one in every 10,000 graduates, so that is quite an

Allcott -- quite an accolade. When the banks were in trouble, we,

the tax payer, bailed them out. But tonight, a businessman from

Warrington - whose company has just folded with the loss of 80 jobs -

claims the banks aren't doing the same to help businesses.

John Ascroft says his firm had just reported its biggest profits and

landed its best contract when his bank pulled the plug on funding.

Today he accused Lloyds TSB of corporate vandalism. They insist

they did all they could to help. Here is our Economics Correspondent,

Jayne Barrett. One bank.

One decision. And a chain reaction felt in this Warrington company,

and more than 100 others. I met John Ascoft outside his old offices,

Broker Assistance Ltd. Until last week he had handled motor insurance

claims here. Today it is in the hands of administrators.

We had a thriving business that had just secured and was implementing

its largest ever contract win. Everything was looking good.

But when that contract was delayed by two months, he had a funding gap.

His bank, Lloyds, decided to cover part of that, but not all. The

company collapsed. Just an act of corporate vandalism.

It is bad enough to think any supplier of funding would do this,

but for a bank majority-owned by the taxpayers, I find it absolutely

appalling. Today I went to another company in

Worsley. They had relied on work from Broker Assistance managing car

repairs. Up until Monday of this week, this

was full of staff... Owed �130,000, Steve Vare laid off

half his staff on Monday. By Tuesday the company had to fold.

The impact it has had on my business and the supply chain, the

suppliers we work with, it is catastrophic.

The collapse of Broker Assistance will effect IVM, 120 repair firms

and many other businesses. Lloyds and many other businesses. Lloyds

October last year it went to great lengths to find a solution.

Administration is always a last resort, but it became clear that

that this would not meet its forecast. We were left with no

forecast. We were left with no option but to appoint an

administrator. So is this a case of a bad business, or bad banking?

John Ascroft claims Lloyds's patience ran out at the wrong time

and with devastating effect. If it had not, he and others would still

be in business, employees would still be in work.

The two parties seem to disagree over what has happened, but more

broadly speaking there has been a ongoing concern about banks not

spilling what they are supposed to be doing with businesses.

There has come and 12 months ago the British Bankers Association set

up the finance forecast forum. Today, a Private Business said they

spoken -- said they had surveyed at their members and they believe that

has not gone far enough, the relationship has broken. A couple

of problems are the lack of alternative funding and that the

increased caution in the banking system. A significant problem is a

risk management. In the past, local managers were delegated that

responsibility. It was their decision to build a relationship

with clients, have a deep relationship and understanding of

their businesses and assess whether the risk was worth it. Now this

climate means the bank is less inclined to have that intimate

relationship and take that level of risk. Also, there are sectors they

do not want to touch with a barge pole. But there are still many

problems in this and all that has been backed up by the Bank of

England, who agree this is a problem that needs looking into.

Lots of businesses have said at the personal relationship has gone.

Absolutely, we would love to hear from any businesses. Please e-mail

Still to come in North West Tonight...

Cider from city - the scrumpers turning urban apples into a new

brew. And the teenager who has become an

internet sensation thousands of miles away - can she crack the

charts here, too? Millions of people have seen my

stuff, as so why cannot didn't get my head around the numbers. -- I

cannot get my head around the Reports have been filtering through

all day about the death of Libya's former leader, Colonel Gadaffi.

These were the scenes today after officials from the transitional

authority said he was killed in an assault on his home town of Sirte.

Over the last few months we have followed the Libyan community in

Manchester - the largest in the country. Sarah Mulkerrins is with

some of them now in Rusholme in Manchester.

I am here on the streets of Rusholme where residents are coming

out in force to celebrate the death of Colonel Gaddafi. We may be 1,600

miles away, but the feelings and emotions are just as strong.

Joining me is a man who fled from Libya 33 years ago. How has today

been? Today was not the celebration of

the death of a man of a human or a person Frostrup today we celebrate

the death of a tyrant, and evil, who killed many thousands of people

across the world, not just in Libya. We are celebrating the death of

Gaddafi, and we should be joined by the world to celebrate the death of

this evil who celebrated people all over the world.

How did you get the news today? at this afternoon we heard from

various sources. The main one was Al Jazeera. We

heard that they captured Gaddafi. We didn't believe that, because we

had heard that so many times, the court his sons and they run away

and so forth. We did not celebrate yet. About 4pm the confirmation

came and we were really... I don't even know how basically to describe

how I felt. You two daughters are here. It must

be a big day for the family and the future of Libya?

We brought the flag that we came out in front of the BBC with the

first week. Thank you, and best of luck with

the rest of the celebrations. As you can see, hundreds of people

from the Libyan community have taken to the streets here in

Rusholme this evening to celebrate what they believe is the death of

Colonel Gadaffi. Well, the celebrations look set to continue

here in Rusholme well into the Now, you'd probably think of it as

a rural industry, but a group of cider makers have found there are

rich pickings to be had - from the back streets of Manchester.

I quite like the occasional sip of cider. They have collected

thousands of apples from people's gardens, parks and roadside trees.

Most of them would have gone to waste, but now they are being

turned into a new brew called Moss Cider. Our Environment

Correspondent, Colin Sykes, reports. In the last days of the apple

picking season, there are Bramley apples we came to be harvested.

He is a perfect, any apple is perfect for us, we will just pretty

much anything. -- juice. Volunteer pickers move in to wash

and drip the apples. Finally pressing them into apple juice.

The people with apple trees, you have always got apples at the end

of the season, so we have a lot of people saying we have spare apples

and what better way to not let it go to waste than to turn it into

cider. A single tree will never deliver

enough through to for a commercial cider maker, but collections have

been going on throughout Manchester. This estate was built on the site

of an old apple orchard and many of the trees are still here. There

apples all over our towns and cities if you know where to look.

My cider is at fermented in that Moss Side, where the project's

creator lives. I have even had calls from Skegness

offering apples, but we are trying to keep the apples do with another

giggle that Arabia's, if we can. This season they are hoping to make

1,000 litres of cider ready for next year. Any profits will go back

into planting more apple trees. There is something really nostalgic

about what they are giving their. Very enterprising, as well. --

about what they are doing there. about what they are doing there.

A bit of football news, and Preston North End slipped out of the League

One play-off places, suffering a 4- 2 defeat last night.

They twice came from behind against fellow promotion hopefuls Sheffield

United at Deepdale, the first time through Clarke Carlisle and then

striker Ian Hume. But North End's joy was not to last, as Lee

Williamson scored twice for the visitors in the last quarter of an

Losing the funding for your town's comedy festival is no laughing

matter, but that is what happened in Southport when council cuts

threatened its future. But now 16 small business owners

have clubbed together to stand up for stand up - and are sponsoring

the event themselves. Did you read that yourself, that

No, but whoever did was very witty. Nina Warhurst reports.

What does a local stand-up do when his town's, V Festival looks like

it is for the chop? Heated to shore on itself -- himself with public

support. Give me some noise? Two of you, brilliant. In fact, all of

Southport is behind the festival, builders, dentists, jewellers, have

put in the money needed to sponsor the V Festival themselves.

I think we're fed up with all the cutbacks. Instead of moaning about

it we decided to say, right, let's make it happen, stick together as a

team and make the first will happen. And it has worked? To let hopes or!

It has. Ian Florin all the way from Manchester the Sunday, Jason

Manford. I've thing to Brendan Reilly is a

saint. He has taken this on and some

people say it is just to give work with -- for himself, but I don't

agree with that. There are still tickets available.

Will I be the funniest? I do not know. I let people decide. It is

not about the funniest, it is about how much money we raise for help

their heroes. I will be the From entertainment of that kind to

another kind. A 16-year-old from the Isle of Man

who is a superstar in Japan is now hoping to have the same success

here. Rebecca Flint is one of the most downloaded artists of all time

in Japan. It all started with her posting videos of herself on

YouTube. She looks a bit like Lady GaGa. Now

she is trying to launch her music career back home. She releases her

first UK single on Monday. Kelly Foran has been finding out more.

Rebecca Flint posted a video on YouTube that changed her life.

At just 14 years old she became an overnight internet sensation. In

the past two years, her videos have been watched online net -- millions

of times. I am at about 19 million viewers

now, considering how many people live here, of which is around

80,000. But millions of people have seen my stuff, I cannot get my head

around the numbers. An international songwriter who has

worked with the likes of Kylie Minogue has come on board to lunch

Beckii Cruel into the UK charts. It all started here, boasting videos

in her bedroom. Although she is studying for A-levels she practises

every day. I still enjoy a school, I have not

got that long left, and I can be both at once, why should I not?

Beckii Cruel has a huge fan base in Japan, but wants to be recognised

closer to home. Here and the Isle of Man she would

fit in any day of the week, but in Japan it is a completely different

story. There she is classed as a superstar.

Can she have the same success in the UK?

We will have to see. I am hopeful and positive, so, hopefully, my

dream will come true. Good luck to her. She is not the

only gorgeous women to be an internet sensation, our own Diane

is also an internet sensation. I am troubled about the thought of

being an intimate sensation. I had no idea what was going on

Would take a look at what is going to happen and the weather. It will

be cloudy and at times fairly windy, but not a bad weekend, to be honest.

We have gone strange on the graphics. Ignore the boxes. Through

the night tonight we have a lot of cloud cover and it will be thick

enough from time to time to offer some rain here and there. It will

not be pouring through the night tonight but it will be damp at

times. Last night it was very chilly, tonight we are back up with

temperatures. Five or six Celsius in rural areas, 89 Celsius in the

cities and on the coast ten Celsius. In the south-west the winds will

start to taking, fairly brisk from County Down, the cloud cover will

still be around. The rain is moving north through the morning, so will

disappear late morning. The clade bike cover will dry and thin and

break. -- the cloud cover. The south-westerly drift helps

temperatures douched. 14 Celsius. - - helps temperatures rise.

Over the weekend, temperatures up What is this a boat you being

worried about on the internet? I have no idea what you're talking