02/03/2017 North West Tonight

general and as it is World Book Day we have the writer

More than a dozen people have been arrested, and over ?1 million

worth of drugs seized, in raids across the region today.

It's part of a police crackdown on those profiting

Yunus Mulla is here with the details.

This was a significant police operation featuring more than 100

14 raids took place in Merseyside and four in Lancashire.

As well as the drugs, the police seized a ?100,000 pounds in cash.

We were out this morning with officers in Merseyside.

An early morning raid at a large house in Thornton in Merseyside.

The gates smashed as police gain access to the property.

Officers suspected the person who lives here is profiting

They're here to look for drugs, cash and luxury items.

We're looking at evidence of a lavish lifestyle such

as really nice cars, watches, jewellery, clothing.

The property behind us is a nice property, expensive carpets,

decoration, TVs and plasma TVs in every room.

Without any obvious means of paying for those items,

Some of the items seized during today's raids included BMW

cars, flat screen TVs and thousands of pounds in cash.

Police powers mean many of the objects will be sold at auction.

20% of the money raised will go back into fighting crime.

In these kind of operations, the teams involved,

the shifts that they work, it's incredibly expensive

to have a really good and effective counter-gang operation.

If the Proceeds of Crime Act enable the police to gain

back funds legitimately, illegitimately to help support that,

then it's a good thing to help tackle those gangs.

Police here in Merseyside say it proves they will search relentlessly

and across borders to track down those profitting

The new Chief Constable of Lancashire has been announced.

Andy Rhodes, who is currently the force's deputy Chief,

will take up the post in June after the retirement

He will be confirmed in the job later this month.

Lime Street Station in Liverpool will remain closed until at least

next Thursday, after 200 tonnes of rubble fell onto the tracks.

Engineers are assessing the damage, and plan to resume

The rail union claims a train came within seconds of hitting the debris

when it dropped onto the line on Tuesday night.

The Morecambe and Lunesdale MP, David Morris, will face

no police action over General Election expense claims.

He was one of 24 Conservative MPs alleged to have broken election laws

over money spent on a campaign bus during the 2015 election.

Mr Morris said the claim was made correctly by

Fire officers are warning lives are being put

at risk by fires started on illegal fly-tipping dumps.

In Wirral alone, for example, officers say there were an average

of 50 fires every month last year - which distract them

Furniture, clothing, even an old boat, left

in a backstreet in New Ferry and set alight in the middle the night.

My partner woke me to the noises, we thought it was raining at first,

the crackling noises, and then he woke me

to say it was a fire at the back of the houses.

We thought the house had been set on fire.

What may have started as a fairly small fire can get out of control

and spread fairly quickly and as you see on this

occasion, it spread to a number of out buildings,

It's been that intense, it's cracked the windows on some

This kind of call-out has been, all to common here.

Over an eight-month period last year, firefighters were called to no

fewer than 400 fires like this in Wirrell alone.

There's a cost to the service and a risk to lives.

Whilst our fire appliances are dealing with these,

what we'd call, anti-social behaviour deliberately-started

fires, they could be required elsewhere for something more

So it's taking a life-saving resources away from

These two men were sent to prison last week

Across the water too, the local authority is trying

to curb the illegal dumping that leads to the fires.

Think about where your waste is going.

Is it going to an approved site or is it going to a hedgerow

or an alleyway which will then be set alight by other people

Fly-tipping continues to be a nuisance.

In Merseyside, they are warning it's a danger to.

All this week we've been touring the region, talking

to people about their hopes and fears for Brexit.

Tonight it's High Peak, on the edge of the Peak District,

where the EU Referendum vote was split by only 600 votes.

Here's our Social Affairs Correspondent, Clare Fallon.

In a Britain divided over Brexit, we've come to High Peak,

the most divided place in the region.

On the hills above hay fields, David Mellor's family have been

Ask how many sheep he's got, and all he'll tell you is a lot.

He's less cagey about his views on Brexit.

Because I remember before we went in the European Community, EEC,

This is an area where opinion was sliced down

John Mettrick runs a small abattoir as well as his shops,

and says that means that means he can tell customers where

But he thinks EU regulations have been a burden,

So I'm hoping, you know, when the Brexit talks begin and that,

that the Food Standards Agency will be able to, once we are out,

to look at the regulations and actually make them proportional

to the risk, and also make them more science-based and more up-to-date,

so that little abattoirs, who are the vital connection

between the farm and the plate, can still stay viable.

Because at the moment, they're hanging on by a thread.

As Theresa May put it, Brexit means Brexit,

Healing the rifts between friends, family and communities will be one

Sir Ken Dodd had a date at the palace today

The Knotty Ash entertainer - who started his career

more than 60 years ago - will be 90 later this year.

He might well have been tickled pink.

But the King of the Diddy Men left his famous tickling sticks behind,

Ken Dodd received his Knighthood from the Duke of Cambridge,

during the Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace.

We enquired about each other's health and he asked me how

She said, doctor, doctor, can I have some more sleeping

Born the son of a coal merchant in 1927 in Knotty Ash,

Sir Ken made his professional debut at the Nottingham Empire in 1954.

We shall have one or two glasses of tickle tonic then I will go back

to Knotty Ash up north, Knotty Ash on Merseyside,

and I shall see the Diddy Men there so I will give

and I shall see the Diddy Men there so I will give your regards to them.

Throughout 2017, he's touring the nation with his Happiness Show.

And you left your tickling sticks back in the hotel?

Even though I bought several down with me,

all red, white and blue, ready just in case,

The honour is well-deserved and, as Sir Ken will tell you,

he's not planning on hanging up his tickling

Arise, Sir Ken. How much comic you can imagine asking.

Good evening. Spring has been chilly over the last couple of days. This

the bracing conditions that some of the bracing conditions that some of

us has seen. Some snow over the high routes were there could be some more

tomorrow night. Generally just over the highest level. Today was better

was more in the way of sunshine, was more in the way of sunshine,

lines of showers have developed over the last couple of hours moving

through the Isle of Man, Cumbria and Lancashire. And that's how we stay

as we move into the night. Over the next couple of days, there was a

mess of weather fronts, and area of low pressure for each weather front.

As we speak, this is how it is looking right now. A line of showery

rain over the Isle of Man and Cumbria. That's not causing us many

significant problems. From day one, yes and much night train in Cumbria.

But most of us, a dry picture. The breaks cloud filled in now and the

tempered his will hover at the two to five Mark depending on where you

are. Tomorrow morning, that line of rain still in the northern parts,

some sunshine in the morning if you are lucky, but the cloud is

building. Since we last spoke, the rain is a wording earlier. With

that, as it goes throughout the region in the night, there will be

outbreaks of showery, wintry spells, and the temperatures through the day

are not great. National forecast is an expert if you'll get the

weekend, we have more rain in the forecast. Rain at times this

weekend, not all the time. Good evening. Things are turning

more unsettled today was not bad. The sun was setting the moon was

putting in appearance, this lovely was captured in the Highlands of

Scotland. Cloud amounts have been increasing over the last few hours,

coming in from the west. It's also coming up from the south. Most of it

is rain bearing cloud. Some snow in the hills of Northern Ireland and

more snow to come in Scotland overnight. Northern Scotland,

particularly with north-east, we will see the lowest temperatures, a

touch of frost by dawn. Rain setting into South Wales and Southern

counties, temperatures 7-8. It will be a wet start to South Wales and

the southern counties of England. On the roads, take care because there

will be extra