02/08/2013 South East Today

John Young. And I'm Chrissie Reidy. Tonight's top stories. Drilling has

now begun at the site in Balcombe, where protesters have gathered for a

ninth day. A former soldier who lost �750,000 to online gambling says the

government needs to put pressure on the industry. I've gone from being a

director of a financial services company to losing it all. A new look

for roadworkers in East Sussex. Helmet cameras to catch out

motorists who drive dangerously. Equestrian ecstasy. One year on from

a golden Olympics, international competitors go head to head at

Hickstead. The sound of a gentler age, the unique harp workshop taking

finally started today after a week of protests at the West Sussex

village of Balcombe. Protestors have held a minutes' silence to mark the

moment. Today, as the anti-fracking protests entered their ninth day,

two more people were arrested as they tried to prevent lorries

entering Cuadrilla's site. Sara Smith has been monitoring today's

developments. Each lorry arriving at the site has received a similar

welcome. This time, though, it wasn't just shouting but a direct

clash between protesters and police. A man and a woman were arrested for

assaulting police officers, to the furious the crowd. The day had

started on a very different note. The news that drilling had begun

prompted a minutes silence. On the site, work was finally underway. The

search for oil is just stage one. It's a long way off any decisions

over whether or how to bring it to the surface being made. We are

drilling a six inch hole in the ground. I do want to put it in that

context because it sometimes gets overblown that this is a massive

engineering operation. That will take a month or a month and a half

to complete. If we find oil, we will test that oil and see what rate it

flows that. At the camp, numbers have been swelled by protest

supporters from the Northwest. Lancashire is the only county in the

UK with fracking has taken place so far. We are showing support here. We

are hoping that when the time comes for the rich to come a Lancashire,

some of these nice people here will come and support us. Manuel is able

to dash-macro boll Comte resident. feel very strongly that our village

is going to be turned into an industrial site. I don't think

people realise just what it entails. Cuadrilla's attempts to assure

people their plans will pose no threat were providing much-needed

fuel, falling here on deaf ears. The company behind all this, Cuadrilla,

first courted controversy when it started fracking for gas in the

north-west. What exactly have they done so far in Sussex? Today they

started test drilling for oil which they know is there - it was found

during exploration in the 80s. They say that if they find a significant

amount of oil that they can't raise by conventional drilling, they may

apply to frack for it. This would mean a new planning application from

West Sussex County Council, which could take at least nine months. The

company are not expecting to find any gas - it's all about oil. Now

the drilling has begun, what other protest is planning to do? They say

they are going to stay. They store have an important message to get

across to Cuadrilla and to the government. More tents have been

arriving and being pitched here during the day. Despite the scenes

you saw earlier, those clashes and arrests, these protests have largely

been very passionate but very peaceful as well. For Cuadrilla,

they have started drilling today but behind schedule, later than they

planned. They've asked for an extension to their licence. That was

due to run out in September, but they say they want to continue their

exploration works now they've started the job, they want to get it

done. A former city high flyer has today urged people to be aware of

online gambling, after he lost his wife, his children and his job over

his addiction. In all, Justyn Larcombe, who lives near Tonbridge,

reckons he's lost �750,000. He decided to speak to this programme

to put pressure on the industry and, as Robin Gibson reports, remind the

public how badly it can go wrong. He is a former soldier who has served

his country. The story of his downfall is simple but

all-too-familiar. Gambling has completely changed everything I do.

I've gone from being a director of a financial services company, quite

successful with a nice wage and nice house and cars and what everyone

else would see as success, a beautiful wife and 2-macro boys, to

losing it all. It didn't take long, he didn't need high street bookies.

You could bet online whenever he liked, at home, sometimes in the day

and sometimes in the middle of the night. He became more desperate as

his losses mounted. And when he thought he'd run out of things to

sell, he remembered his military ceremonial sword will stop he'd

planned to leave it to his sons. cried when I left the antiques shop

because it hurt. But I'd spent the �200 within probably 2-macro hours

that afternoon. It was everything. Gambling had become my life. It was

a complete fabrication because those people around me didn't actually

know what I was doing. The online gambling industry has been blamed

for destroying lives and families. Justyn Larcombe says there should

now be a one-stop shop, an online register, so if someone signs

themselves up to self exclude, it shouldn't be allowed onto a gambling

website again. Charities agree. really important to have the self

exclusion mechanism that works. But the government has an opportunity to

change that with its new bill, by providing this one-stop shop for

self exclusion. We do keep an open mind about these things and are

always happy to try new initiatives. But gambling is an

activity that comes with risks associated and we'd be the first to

accept that. The question then is, what are the right tools and

mechanisms to provide the maximum number of protections for the

maximum number of people? He says the government should now force the

industry to police itself, developing its own systems to deter

gambling addicts. Before too many other families lives are ruined. In

a moment, cutting down the number of scenes like this. Calls for speed

limits to be reduced on country roads, from a woman who survived a

smash. Roadworkers in East Sussex are to wear helmet cameras in an

attempt to catch motorists who drive dangerously. The county council says

the move is designed to protect the workers, and any evidence of bad

driving, such as using mobile phones or speeding, will be handed to the

police. He's been working for highways for the past decade but in

the last be years, Lee says he faces physical and verbal abuse from

motorists on a regular basis. That's why he's happy to wear a head

camera. I don't think we should have to go this far but it's the way

we've got to go now, it's not fair on the workforce. It's good they are

protecting us and realise something has got to be done about it. East

Sussex county council says it's been forced to ask workers to wear

cameras because this year they're been ten reported incidents of

assault. Of those, three have ended in successful prosecutions and a

further three are about to go to court. Only yesterday we had one of

our guys who mans the road closure, he had his feet driven over. It's

not acceptable. We will not accept that. We're working with the Sussex

Police and will prosecute people. Cyclists have used head camera is to

highlight dangerous driving. In situations where there are no

witnesses, footage can be crucial in securing prosecutions. But critics

are concerned about a surveillance society. I'm amazed people have to

go round with recording devices in their hearts. Dash-macro they have

to because they are being threatened. I'm not a big fan of the

surveillance society these days. It's a sad comment will stop I'm not

worried about it in this instance, no. I think there's a lot of

aggravation on the roads which is unnecessary. The council says the

head cams are to improve the safety of workers and won't be used to

police parking offences. A 19-year-old man and a 16-year-old

girl have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a petrol

station manager, from West Kingsdown in Kent, was run down by suspected

fuel thieves. Lekshmanan Ashok Kumar was carried half a mile down the

road on the bonnet of a car when he tried to stop the driver from

leaving without paying for fuel on Wednesday. He's now no longer in a

critical condition in hospital. A man charged with the murder of

Michael Polding, from Sussex, has pleaded not guilty to his murder at

Lewes Crown Court. Ricardo Pisano also denied GBH but admitted

preventing his burial. Mr Polding's decomposing body was discovered in a

flat in Kemp Town in Brighton last July. A family doctor from Swanley

in Kent has pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a string of

patients and taking intimate pictures at his GP practice. Dr

Barend Delport had 500,000 indecent images on his computer when he was

arrested at his home in Eynsford. Our reporter Jon Hunt joins us from

outside the surgery in Swanley now. Jon, how were Dr Delport's crimes

discovered? Police learned about these crimes when the mother of a

female child contacted them to say that Doctor Delport had taken

intimate photographs of her when she'd only come in to complain of a

stomach ache. He was arrested at his home and detectives there discovered

this huge stash of photographs, some downloaded off the Internet, some

taken during medical examinations. Today, he pleaded guilty to 26

offences, which included three counts of indecent assaults on

children, and 12 counts of taking indecent images of children. Dr

Alison Milroy is from NHS England. You were involved in this

investigation. This was a monumental breach of trust. Speaking as a GP

myself, and someone that works at NHS England, trying to make sure

that the GPs give the best possible care they can, I'd like to say we

are devastated by what this individual doctor has done. His

behaviour was unacceptable. I'm sorry to anybody who has been harmed

by his behaviour. I'd like to say a big thank you to anybody who came

forward, most particularly to the mum who raised the very first

concern with the police. If anybody has concerns about their care from

Dr Delport, there's a confidential NHS helpline. I believe the number

will be on your website. I will give details in a moment. What issues

does this phrase about the taking of photography during medical

examinations? The positive things that have come out of the

investigation that we've started things like we've developed a policy

for medical photography in general practice, which has already been

shared with the GPs in Kent and Medway. It makes it clear to GPs

what is appropriate to photograph and the proper way to do it. But in

addition, if there are concerns that come out of the investigation about

the way that GPs are supervised, we will make sure this is shared with

the NHS as a whole. As we heard, there are details on our website if

you've been affected by this case or host its biggest ever Pride event

with over 100,000 people expected to join the celebrations. It's 40 years

since Brighton's first gay pride march in 1973 and some would like to

see the political message of the 70s still to play a prominent part.

Juliette Parkin reports. Pride is proud of its past. Fuelled by what

was regarded as homophobic legislation of the Thatcher years,

the gay community in Brighton marched for their rights in the

early 90s, and some feel the event has lost a key message. P stands for

pride but it also stands for politics as well. People think

that's a dirty word, but we are in a country where the Queen is the head

of Commonwealth, and 41 out of 54 of those countries, homosexuality is

illegal there and in 2-macro it's a capital offence. This is a gay pride

march in London in 1979. It was the first UK city to host the event.

Brighton saw a sore dash-macro minority take to the streets in 73.

Today the event is much bigger and more flamboyant, so has it become

more party than protest? It's not just about a party, it's a

celebration. We've had two weeks of arts and film, history, walks, we've

had an exhibition at the library. With thousands expected on the city

's streets, policing Pride is a major operation, this year involving

over 200 officers. It's been very difficult. It really has stretched

what is going on in Balkan. That said, if somebody needs a police

officer they will get one. They are setting up today ahead of tomorrow's

event. But the party comes with a price tag, and this year it is

expected to be around �500,000. Ticketing the event in recent years

has helped raise funds and control numbers. It is hoped Pride's past

will not stop the party. Juliette is at Madeira Drive, where the parade

starts tomorrow. Juliette, we're expecting lots of colour and

celebration tomorrow, but some are hoping there will be more to it than

that. That's right. This stretch of sea front is expected to be packed

with people, not only taking part in the parade but also those who come

down to watch. Nobody is saying I don't have fun and don't enjoy the

party, they are saying that Brighton is such a liberal city, that is

something to be celebrated. But campaigners are saying, let's not

forget those communities across the world who don't enjoy such freedom,

where it's still illegal to be gay. There will be a political message

during the parade in support of gay in Russia who are currently

experiencing depression. Our top story tonight. Energy company

Cuadrilla has started drilling at the site in Balcombe as

anti-fracking protesters gathered for a ninth day. Two people were

arrested as scuffles broke out between campaigners and the police.

Still to come Drdot-macro we watch a Kent woman who had to be cut out of

her car after another vehicle slammed into the back of her on a

rural road is backing a campaign to reduce the speed limit through her

village. Becky Dunster has joined more than 500 other villagers to try

and reduce the speed limit between Matfield and Brenchley. At the

moment it's the national limit of 60mph. Last year, more than 1,200

people died on rural roads in the UK. That's nearly double the number

who died on urban roads. But despite the high number of deaths on rural

roads, urban roads have three times more accidents. Rebecca Williams has

tonight's Special Report. It was a lucky escape. Becky Dunster had just

parked outside her house when another car crashed into her. Her

head smashed through the windscreen, and she is now calling for a change

to the road speed limit, along with fellow residents. I didn't know if I

was going to get out of the car. I didn't know if that was it, because

I was so trapped. I was bleeding everywhere. I just didn't think I

was going to survive it. When the accident happened on this country

road in Matfield, where more than 500 residents have signed a petition

to change the speed limit from 60 mph to 30 or 40 mph. I think the

drivers themselves are confused. Suddenly changes to 40 and then it

goes back to 30. There's so many examples of that throughout Kent and

Sussex. Last year in Kent there were over 4000 collisions, 50 people died

and 474 were seriously injured. But it would seem you are more likely to

have a fatal accident on a rural road man in an urban area. That's an

issue the government is addressing. Last year they outlined proposals to

change speeds and country roads from 60 to 40 mph. However, in January it

was decided that any decision should be made at local level, with the aim

of ensuring country roads are safe. They can be narrow, twisting, there

can be hills with lots of blind spots. Drivers can think because

there's less traffic and because it's a beautiful place to be that

it's actually a lot safer than it is. Drivers really do need to think

about their speed on rural roads. Kent county council insist they do

all they can to keep road users safe. They say fatalities have

fallen significantly in recent years. It's a heavenly sound often

thought of with being part of an ancient age. It's an ancient

instrument, harps were used 4000 years ago in ancient Persia, but

they're still in demand today. And if you want to buy one, chances are

it might be made at Godstone in Surrey, where the country's only

pedal harp manufacturers have just taken on a couple of new

apprentices. If it sounds like this and looks like thisdot-macro then it

was most likely made here in Godstone. They are the only UK

manufacturers of the pedal harp. price of a harp has come down

enormously. Some Victorian hops, you could have bought a small village

for the price of them! They aren't the cheapest of instruments to take

up, it's true, but making them as a craft that takes years to learn,

something one of the apprentices understand all too well. It's been

difficult. When you are young you think you can do it but there's a

lot to it. I make the bodies of the instruments. The bodies similar to

an acoustic guitar. It is where the sound is produced. That sound is

perhaps more familiar in an orchestra, but one of their hearts

made it into mainstream music as it took to put stayed with the band

Florence and the machine. And it's a complicated bit of kit. It is made

up of around 2000 pieces of metal that take up to 12 weeks for the

team to make and can cost upwards of �10,000. Despite their cost, the

team receive a steady order for the instruments, which has allowed them

to train up two apprentices, so the skills needed to make a pedal harp

are not lost. It makes you want to fall asleep but we've got a crack on

with some sport now. Love it or hate it, we're up and running again. The

new football season begins in earnest this weekend with all four

of the south east's clubs in action tomorrow. Neil Bell joins us from

Chatham. Neil, there was high drama when the Gills were promoted as

League Two champions in May, what are their prospects up in League

optimism around these parts, and they are the return of strikers Cody

Macdonald and the big man, Adebayo Akinfenwa, they struck up a great

understanding three seasons ago. On paper it seems like a great idea to

reunite them and, while Cody Macdonald has had a couple of quiet

years, big Bayo was in impressive form last season with 17 goals for

Northampton Town. And 31 now, gone away and scored a lot of goals. I've

got a bit more experience to pass on to the younger strikers. I'm looking

forward to this season, it should be fun. Elsewhere in League One,

Crawley Town take on cash strapped Coventry City. While in the

Championship, Charlton Athletic travel to newly promoted

Bournemouth. After a summer of intrigue and rumour, Brighton fans

will be delighted to get back to action. Tomorrow's trip to Leeds

will be new head coach Oscar Garcia's first competitive fixture.

I'm very excited to go there, to start there. I would prefer to start

here with all the fans playing at home but we have to play against all

the teams in the championship. We have two start there and will play

there. This time last year, millions of people were celebrating the

success of our equestrian team at London 2012. Many of those medal

winners, together with most of the rest of the world's best

competitors, are at Hickstead in Sussex. Indeed, this afternoon our

show-jumping team competed in this country for the first time since

winning gold. Lovely weather, huge crowds and some superlative riding

from a variety of British competitors made London 2012 one of

the most memorable Olympics ever for our home-grown horse men and women.

Today, many of them were at Hickstead, the UK's premier

equestrian centre. You hear a lot from the foreign guys who are here,

it's nicely old-fashioned, a lot of traditional things are happening

here and it's a completely different show to Rotterdam or other places.

It's got its own character, the ring is unique in itself. The crowds are

great here. We love coming here. Many of today's competitors are

Hickstead regulars but, remarkably, Olympic hero Scott Brush has never

competed in Sussex before. He's very impressed. You don't get too many

grass rings now, with the way the weather can affect it. It's really

hard to keep it perfect. I must say, if you do get a grass rings that is

well maintained and looked after, it is the best service for horses to

jump on. There's no doubt attendances this weekend will have

been boosted by last summer's success. When we went up to the

Olympic Park, seeing the smiles on the faces of the kids, they were

loving it. You can't buy that, you can't create that in a classroom,

the NHS can't deliver that sort of medicine. That, for me, was very

special. It didn't really hit me properly until the parade in

London, where so many of the placards just said thank you.

seems very likely there will be more British success to cheer over the

next couple of days. Plenty of top-class sporting action this

weekend. Kent and Sussex cricketers are in action, the show-jumping at

Hickstead and the football. Take your pick. We need some decent

yesterday. Yesterday turned out to be the warmest day in August we've

had since 2003. Today we managed to reach the mid-20s. Canterbury got up

to 26 Celsius. On the flip side, Brighton struggled to get to 22. A

bit of a south-westerly breeze around today as well. That continues

through the weekend. It gets quite a bit stronger tomorrow. It will be

cooler over the weekend but the main picture will be sunshine and showers

will stop tonight, we've got a fair amount of showers left in clusters.

Not all of us will see those. There should be some sunny spells all the

way through this evening. Temperatures down to about 15 or 16

tonight. Somewhat cooler than last night. In the middle of the night

those showers will clear away and we are left with some remnants of

cloud. Tomorrow we have further bands of showers moving in through

the morning. Again, not all of us will have those. There's a fair

amount of sunshine around tomorrow, so it could be quite pleasant. The

showers move off in the afternoon, leaving us with a pleasant

afternoon. Temperatures only just reaching the low 20s. The

south-westerly breeze really picks up tomorrow. We're looking at the

breezy day along the Dover Straits. Tomorrow night we've got a fair

amount of cloud through the night, but it should be largely dry. Cooler

again, temperatures down to 14 or 15. Sunday, it should remain largely

dry. Monday, we've got quite a wet day ahead, some rather heavy rain is

on the cards. It should start to clear from the south-west. Tuesday,