17/06/2011 South East Today


17/06/2011

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Welcome to South East Today, I'm Polly Evans. And I'm Rob Smith.

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Tonight's top stories: 840 jobs are going from kent, with the closure

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of military research centre Fort Halstead.

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Surely we want to keep those jobs in the area. The heartbreaking

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letter from a ten-year-old girl to her father who is missing, believed

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murdered. Also in tonight's programme:

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Patients in Hastings and Rother wait longer to see a consultant

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than anywhere else in the country. Give local unemployed the pick of

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fruit picking jobs - a plea as 20,000 permits for EU workers are

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handed out. And shining a light on the collection of a lifetime. A

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leading expert's 6,000 moths go up for auction in Sussex.

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Good evening. A specialist military research centre at Fort Halstead is

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to be closed, with the loss of 840 jobs from Kent. The government has

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announced that operations are being moved to Salisbury. Staff at the

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site carries out research into explosives. Experts there

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investigated the Lockerbie bombing and the July 21st failed attempt to

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bomb London. What all the jobs are being relocated to other sides, it

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will have a huge impact on the local economy -- whilst all the

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jobs. Staff at Bath -- Fort Halstead have been described as

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some of the most talented and creative engineers. Security is

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tight. Many people are under -- unaware of what happens here. The

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Defence Science and Technology Laboratory it is a bond of the

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military defence. Work here included the investigation into the

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Lockerbie bombing. They -- their technological expertise helps to

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support operations in Afghanistan. 850 jobs will be lost. But will

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have a disastrous effect on Kent's economy. The man who led the

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Balkans taskforce said that if the Argentines invaded tomorrow, there

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will be nothing we could do. It is a large number of very highly

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skilled jobs which we cannot afford to lose. Politicians were quick to

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react and locals were absorbing the news. It will make it quite hard.

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Many shops are going downhill any way as the EC, and it is

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disappointing news. 840 jobs is a lot to absorb. I think it is going

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across all the public sector jobs. The we have to make the best to bed.

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Every job loss is a disaster. move is planned to take five years,

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but we know from other closures in the region but talented staff often

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move more quickly for personal reasons commonly is -- leaving the

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local economy struggling. reporter has been following the

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story. You have been in Sevenoaks this afternoon. What we actually

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getting to the news? -- what reaction are you getting? A lot of

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people I spoke is that they were shocked and disappointed other news.

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Earlier, I spoke to a newspaper journalist who said that these are

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highly specialised jobs. It is not like these employees can go to

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another company in the town and walked straight into another job.

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No doubt there will be a lot of worry amongst employees here this

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evening. Fort Halstead was built in 1892 as

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one of a ring of fortresses around London. It was home to the

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scientists who developed the UK's first atomic weapons. In 2006, the

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site was sold to international property company Hines and to

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Deutsche Bank for an undisclosed sum. To lose such a key employer

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will be a huge blow to the nearest town, Sevenoaks. It is a very sad

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day, particularly for the surrounding villages. They have

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done a lot of stuff here, a lot of good work has gone on here in the

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past. It has been a big employer of the local community round the

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villages. There will be a lot of sad people tonight. The Defence

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Science and Technology Laboratory, part of the Ministry of Defence,

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said they'll be more efficient if they consolidate onto two operation

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sites. It means 840 jobs will be lost to the Kent economy. 170 will

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be relocated to Portsdown West near Portsmouth, 670 to Porton Down near

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Salisbury. But it's likely to affect many more, the people whose

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livelihoods depend on providing services to the site. And it's the

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latest blow to the South East economy coming just months after

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drugs company Pfizer announced the planned closure of its plant in

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Sandwich with up to 4,000 job losses locally. Let's get some more

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analysis from our business Correspondent. Can you give Bath

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defence of the impact of this closure? -- give us a sense? It is

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the money they spend all our economy, about to the drop that

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keep -- are the jobs that keep it moving. And this comes so soon

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after the decision to move the Pfizer plant in San which, pressure

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will be on the government to help the south-east economy. Yes, we

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need the government to oil the wheels of the economy in the south-

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east. We're talking about tipping the development potential in the

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Thames Gateway. We have got to be ongoing problem with all our

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seaside coastal towns. We need more money for this part of the country.

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You can read more on the story on our website and on our political

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editor's website. In a moment: Kent tightens up cross

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channel controls in it's bid to provide gold standard security for

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the London Olympics. The ten-year-old daughter of a man

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believed to have been murdered in Sussex has written a heartfelt

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letter to him on the eve of Father's Day. Gary Hampson

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disappeared in January. A murder inquiry was launched up his bug was

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found at the Garage in Brighton where he worked. In -- in a letter,

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his daughter says she misses them and bushes and nightmares would go

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away. -- Mrs him and which is her nightmares would go away. I love

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you, I miss you, how did you die? I miss everything. I wish my night

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mayors would go away. The voice of a Broken hearted Girl who simply

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misses her daddy. Facing her first Father's Day without him. Gary

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Hampson was first -- last seen in January in Portslade. His daughter

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as well as the police want to know where he is. She is aware that the

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other children in her class are making cards for their fathers, and

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yet she knows that her father has been murdered and we cannot find

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his body. Wherever you are, I hope you're happy. I wish I could see

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your big, blue eyes again. Described as a devoted dad who saw

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his daughter three times a week, she penned this letter had not only

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to explain how she feels, but because she wants to help to find

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him. Investigating officers found blood at the garage where Gary work

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and said he was killed in a violent way and that someone knows the

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location of his body. I would urge them to come forward to contact the

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police. They don't need to leave their name or telephone number, but

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I would urge them to make that call and to put this little girl out of

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her misery. Two people have been charged and three arrested in

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connection with the case. Nothing can bring back this little girl's

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father of the Sunday, but she had that knowing what had happened will

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make her nightmares go away. -- she hopes. Happy Father's Day, I love

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you, Daddy. That was the daughter of Gary

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Hampson reading her letter to him for Father's Day.

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Five men are to appear in court charged with the manslaughter of a

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farmer in Sussex. The body of 53- year-old Julian Gardner was found

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at his farm in Robertsbridge last October, as -- after what police

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believe was a bungled robbery.Today the Crown Prosecution Service says

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five men will be prosecuted for manslaughter and a sixth for

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conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

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The government is being urged to do more to improve the service to

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Hastings by rail. New trains were announced for the Thameslink line

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from Brighton to Bedford. A better rail service is essential, they

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said. More patients in Hastings and

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Rother are being made to wait longer for NHS treatment than

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anywhere else than the country. Figures obtained by the BBC's that

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showed that most hospitals are meeting the 18th beat target, but

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more than a quarter of GP referrals have to wait longer than that at

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this hospital. A was referred here by my optician at the end of last

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year. My appointment has only come through today, six months later.

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probably waited about 12 weeks from going to the GP to get a referral.

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I was referred by my GP for physiotherapy after I injured my

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knee. That was over five months ago and I'm still waiting to get an

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appointment. We are really impressed with what they're doing.

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Hospitals across the country are expected to treat patients within

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18 weeks of referral by their GP. On average, 90 % of patients in

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England are treated within that time. But in Hastings and Rother,

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the latest figure is just 75 % of patients. The worst performance in

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the whole country, and that fact has displeased the local MP. I am

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worried by this. I want to reassure them that I will take action to

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find out what can be done. Instead of having some knee-jerk reaction,

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the best thing to do it is to look under the bonnet. Let's see what is

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going on. NHS suffix says there has been delays the patient having

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tests and getting their results. To clear this backlog, they have put

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in additional diagnostic settings. They believe those delays will be

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cleared by the end of this month. But one patients group says there

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has been a UK-wide steady rise in the number of complaints about

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waiting times over recent months. Nine added 10 health authorities

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can completed in 18 weeks -- nine out of 10. It has got worse over

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the last year. It is our third of the NHS Prime Care trusts who are

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not complying. The Department For Health has waiting times goes up as

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well as down. John, you have been studying these waiting times. What

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is causing specific delays in Hastings and Rother? The areas of

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treatment but nothing the most delays, according to the Department

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For Health figures by April, are orthopaedic and trauma treatment.

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That is in Hastings and Rother. In April, there were 110 patients

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waiting beyond 18 weeks for treatment in those areas. But it is

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not a completely bad picture. If you are going for other treatments,

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There is an opportunity for crime gangs to it use this increase in

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population to sell their illegal wears more effectively and

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efficiently. This is just because we will be very busy. We will

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increase our work resources and intelligence exchange, and react to

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this issue. What we will keep these organised crime gangs on the back

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foot. 840 jobs are to go from Fort

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Halstead, near Sevenoaks. The government has announced their

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opposition -- their operations will be moved to Portsmouth and

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Salisbury. Join me for the prospects of

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tonight's cricket, and are next look at the Football fixtures.

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We have a Met Office weather warning in force that rain.

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And as the fruit-picking season gets underway, the government has

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issued 21,000 work permits to EU workers, a London to spend up to

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six months picking fruit. But one Kent MP is calling for a review of

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the scheme, and says attic time of high unemployment, more should be

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done to give jobs to local workers. Our political editor has the story.

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It is still only 10am, but these workers have already been picking

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strawberries and raspberries for five hours. At this farm, the full-

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time workers are mainly British, but the seasonal staff come from

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primarily eastern Europe. As a society, we have come away from

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doing hard manual work. It is not what people I used to. Most of our

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pay is done on a basis where average earnings are over �7 an

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hour. We although unemployment has fallen

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by 88,000, the MP for Rochester argues that in the current climate

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of high unemployment, jobs like fruit-picking should be given to

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local people. We should have a debate on whether we should be

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giving more opportunities to domestic workers as part of our

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programme to control immigration, and it may well be that higher

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wages have to be paid. The rate of youth unemployment

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remains high, with one in 516-24- year-olds out of work. While the

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majority of fruit pickers may not achieve the minimum wage, most are

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earning above the minimum wage, but that does not seem to be enough to

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take many into the industry. It is not something I would be interested

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in. I would definitely do it. seems too early to get up in the

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morning for a. Farmers say, as long as local

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people do not want the seasonal work, they just will employ people

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from further SEs. Mark Reckless will be telling

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Natalie Graham why he thinks unemployed people should be

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encouraged to pick fruit on the When no play is possible for the

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cricket, it is the ideal type for the sports fans to turn their

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thoughts to the football. Our reporter is that the County Ground

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in Hove a head of tonight's Twenty20 game between Kent and

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Sussex. This weather is just not cricket, is it? It is shocking. It

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is a real shame, because they were expecting 6,500 people. These p 20

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matches are exception a popular. -- T20. Sussex and Kent are hoping big

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investment programmes will pay off. Ken's cricket ground has long been

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considered one of the most attractive in the country. During

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the winter, millions of pounds have been spent on a major refurbishment.

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Tomorrow evening, there will be permanent floodlights. A fantastic

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time for the club. What could be better than coming back to

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facilities where a significant amount of investment has taken

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place in? It has breathed a whole new life into the activities of the

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County Cricket Club, and herald the start of an exciting future.

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Wobbling under floodlights will be a new, exciting developments,

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Sussex had been doing it for over a decade. In Kent, they had made a

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major improvements to their grander Hove. We have improved player

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facilities, improved member facilities, improved spectator

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facilities and better corporate facilities. All of those become

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available on match days for any member of the public a high of four

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parties, celebrations, and conferences, or conferences. Elton

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John is coming down next Sunday. Both Kent and Sussex will hope

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their exploits on the pitch will keep their customers satisfied and

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:19:57.:19:58.

attract new fans. There has been mounting speculation

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as to who will be the first League opponents at Brighton's new

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American Express Community Stadium. It will be Doncaster Rovers who are

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their opponents on Saturday. It was Rovers who Brighton last played in

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their final match at Goldstone Ground. Charlton Athletic would

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take on Bournemouth, Gillingham have a home game against Cheltenham,

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while Crawley will have to travel for their first game in the

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Football League. They will be going to Port Vale. They will play it

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Macclesfield. I do not know what you think about: Since --

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coincidences, but their first opponents at the American Express

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Community Stadium, the game between Crawley and Port Vale, they opened

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it. Gillingham of a plane Cheltenham for the first game in

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two successive seasons. This will be the first time at the two clubs

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have met. What are the chances of If you have had a jumper or sued

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munched to pieces by mobs, the last thing you want is to bring 6,000 of

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them to your home. -- moths. They were gathered 60 years ago by it

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reappeared entomologists in Sussex, and a being sold by the author who

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rescued the collection. Rows of moths, different colours,

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different sizes, and different species. This more than Suzie asked

:21:48.:21:58.
:21:58.:21:59.

and novelist came across a collection 25 years ago. -- moth in

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moth enthusiast. This was catalogued, labelled, her love,

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studied, by our mauves famous entomologist.

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The collection of moths was made for an exhibition in 1950 by the

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man who led the field in their study. Pictured here with his

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granddaughter. Everywhere in his house, everything was Butterfly

:22:28.:22:38.
:22:38.:22:39.

theme to. We helped him with moth collecting. He would tell us all

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about it at great length. He was the ultimate enthusiast.

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There are 60 drawers full of moths. They are much more colourful

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varieties. These are dark crimson under wings. But the star of the

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show is this unassuming little creature here. This moth was

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discovered to be breeding in the British Isles. The find it made his

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name in the Barber world. He says it is time for him to let the

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Plenty of rain. The Met Office has a weather Warning out. You have not

:23:54.:24:02.

even seen the start of the rain. With us through the rest of the

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evening. As we move towards and tomorrow morning, the rain will

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clear off, taking the cloud with it. We will start to see some bricks by

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tomorrow morning. Tomorrow it we will start with drier weather, but

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quickly, showers start to stream in from the West. The winds had been a

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key feature today. We have got speeds of 30 miles per hour. That

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is pushing be showers towards us. They will be heavy and thundery.

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Top temperatures of 18 Celsius. We start with those showers tomorrow.

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As we go through to what Sunday, they start it eased out a little

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bit. Sunday will be a better day, although we cannot rule out one or

:24:54.:25:00.

two showers. It does mean for the London to Brighton bike ride, not

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looking too bad at all. It will be a little bit warmer. As we move

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through towards the start of the new working week, we see this low

:25:13.:25:23.
:25:23.:25:25.

pressure system prev -- pushing more rain taught us. Very topsy-

:25:26.:25:33.

turvy weather. For tomorrow, some sharp showers. Sunday: A better

:25:33.:25:40.

start. But one or two showers. Back to the wet-weather for Monday and

:25:40.:25:50.
:25:50.:25:51.

to the wet-weather for Monday and Tuesday. Have a lovely weekend.

:25:51.:25:57.

840 jobs are to leave Kent from Fort Halstead. The government has

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announced that operations are being moved to Portsmouth, and Salisbury.

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Our correspondent is outside the side. This is being described as a

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blow to Sevenoaks. This afternoon, we've learnt that the laboratory

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here is moving. 170 jobs will be relocated to Portsmouth, and a

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further 672 Salisbury. The move is planned to take five years, but

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this is the latest blow to the South East economy, months after

:26:34.:26:43.

the drugs company Pfizer announced its closure. On Monday's programme,

:26:43.:26:51.

we have an exclusive investigation, looking at the dangers of cannabis.

:26:51.:27:01.
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It is a recreational a job -- drug for sale in parks. Also on beaches,

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:27:11.:27:12.

and street corners across Kent and Sussex. But there are fears new

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home-grown varieties could be wrecking a young minds permanently.

:27:18.:27:24.

I would not have done it if I lived in those years again.

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That is our home affairs correspondent looking at the

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