09/01/2014 Spotlight

George. Thank you. That's all so it's goodbye from me and on BBC One

we join Counting the cost of the storms. A

warning that some of the damage could be too expensive to repair.

Good evening. Landmarks, roads and harbours have

all been affected. But, tonight, there's a question mark over how

much can be put right. At some point, there would be a

series of storms that could make any sort of repair viable to do.

Also tonight: Using the casualty department for coughs and colds.

Hospitals say too many patients are using A for minor ailments.

The cancer charity closing its day centre. St Luke's says it'll put the

savings into other services instead. And, the World War I widow paying

tribute on a special banner, marking 100 years since the start of the

conflict. Work to repair storm damage in

Cornwall alone is likely to cost more than ?2 million. The council

says repairs are underway in urgent areas which include Towan Beach in

Newquay, and Seaton Beach near Looe. Devon is still assessing the cost.

In Somerset, water levels are starting to recede. But many areas

remain on alert, and there are calls for more help to prevent flooding.

But there are also questions in storm`hit areas about how long we

can continue our battle with the elements to protect the coast. In a

moment, I'll be speaking to an expert in coastal erosion. But

first, Spotlight's David George reports from Mullion in Cornwall.

The 120`year`old peers which make up Mullion Harbour took a battering

this week. Dozens of huge granite blocks weighing more than one tonne

each have been washed away. Granite coins which make up the surface have

gone, there is a large hole in this side. The harbour was built in 1890,

here is a red picture of the work underway. It was given to the

National trust in 1945. It has declared a policy of managed retreat

in the face of climate change. Barry Mundy is the fifth generation of a

fishing family who have worked out of the harbour. It is a shame the

trust with their many helpers couldn't just do a little bit of

general maintenance. The trust has spent money here in

the past, but it has been repair. They have been reactive rather than

proactive. Any continued effects of the weather, rain and the sea, might

exacerbate the problem. Obviously, increase cost. And may well lead to

the National Trust deciding ultimately that this is as far as

they want to go with them. The National Trust says it has spent

half ?1 million repairing Mullion Harbour in 20 years. It says it will

repair it again this time but it does not rule out allowing them to

collapse if they are more severely damaged. We have decided we would

continue maintaining and repairing but, at some point, there would be a

series of storms that could make any sort of repair and not viable to do.

The harbour would eventually then returned to the Cove. Just here is

one tiny example of the power of those waves.

This is one of the granite coins from `` which is quite heavy, washed

up 100 metres away. It will take someone a very long time to pick

these up. Dr Mark Davidson is an expert in

coastal erosion at the University Of Plymouth. I asked him what sort of

impact the recent storms have had on the South West coastline.

It is definitely a very severe storm. We often don't see these for

several decades. It is a perfect storm, all the factors came

together, spring tides, no pressure, strong winds. The effects

have been widespread across the South West Coast line. We have seen

rock structures dating back thousands of years, buildings also

some of which have withstood huge storms before, but had disappeared.

What do you make of the scale of the damage wrought across the region?

It is extraordinary, all those things are testament to the

magnitude of this particular storm which is truly huge. There has been

a debate how much can be done to defend those communities against

similar weather in future. Is it time for some areas to think,

we will never beat mother nature, we will have to manage the retreat.

Maybe. One problem is that coastal managers have two act on

insufficient information. They may not know what the

probability of an extreme storm is, and what impact it might have and

whether it is worth spending millions on coastal defence. What

are your thoughts? In terms of the magnitude of this

storm, how many more are we likely to see? The indications we have come

at a paper was published last year, showing the predictions are that the

magnitude of storms globally are only likely to increase over the

next decade. I think we will see more of this

sort of thing. If anything, it is likely to get more intense. What

about the damage we have not yet seen.

We have seen things crumbling away. Presumably a lot of structures have

been weakened by the storm, so we could see more damage down the line.

Often, the response is immediate, sea wall scrambling.

Often, the effects take longer to be realised. The undercutting of sea

cliffs is something which may undermine it and later may cause

problems. In Somerset, there's relief the

floodwaters in some parts of the county are receding. But, for one

community near Taunton, villagers remain on high alert. An evacuation

centre was set up in the village of Westonzoyland last night, amid fears

that 50 homes could be at risk. Tonight, that threat remains. The

government is being asked for funding to help the county cope with

what one Somerset MP is calling the worst floods for decades. Clinton

Rogers reports. On the sodden streets of

Westonzoyland, they were carrying on as normal. Or as normal as you

could, considering the flood waters here are continuing to rise. I am

petrified. I have never had it before like this. It is coming

nearer the house. Last night, a full emergency plan swung into action, as

swollen rivers threatened to flood 50 homes. The Red Cross, local

councils and volunteers set up an emergency evacuation point in the

community centre. In the event, it wasn't needed. The water is within

inches of properties. People living here say they have never seen

anything like it. Never as bad as this. The water flooded a little

last year. Nothing like this. Amid increasingly bitter recriminations

about what is causing this, the local MP has accused the Environment

Agency of taking a dangerous gamble with people's lives by neglecting

the rivers and water courses. The agency has continually said dredging

the rivers is not the entire answer. In any case, they can't afford it.

Civic leaders are not so certain. It will have to do things differently.

Clearly what they are doing isn't working with the weather conditions

we are experiencing. What does different mean? Dredging or managing

the land differently? Maybe looking at all those things. Long term,

there has to be an answer. In the short term, people in many

communities just want the water to go away, and soon.

Political pressure for the government to do more to help

communities affected by flooding continues to grow. Our political

editor Martyn Oates is with us. More MPs have spoken out on this today?

Two dozen MPs into separate debates in the Commons have both pressed the

government to do more to ensure our rail links are protected during

severe flooding. Every time we have floods in the far south`west, our

vital rail link is either severed completely or severely disrupted.

Is he confident that within existing resources and budget that we are

giving sufficient parity to flood prevention measures?

Referring to the budget dealing with these things. Two days ago, his

colleagues on the select committee questioned whether the budget is

even adequate. There are concerns about the emergency funding the

government gives to local authorities.

The government has activated a scheme providing money for local

authorities to deal with immediate repairs. It would not be applicable

to the ?2 million worth of capital is a nature which Cornwall has

announced it needs, coastal defences and road repair. In Cornwall, it

would need to stump up nearly ?1.5 million of its own money to activate

this kind of funding from government, and the council says

despite severe weather in several recent years, it hasn't benefited

from any of this money so far. A daycare centre in Plymouth for

people with cancer and multiple sclerosis is to close. St Luke's

Hospice wants to put the quarter of a million pound saving into other

services. As John Henderson reports, some of the people who use the

centre are shocked at the announcement.

80`year`old Pat spends a lot of time at home. She has multiple sclerosis

so getting up isn't easy. The years, she has made a trip to this

Plymouth daycare centre. In three months it is closing. Pat is

horrified. It is such a break in the often lonely and miserable times at

home when you are feeling ill. You get there and everything

diminishes and becomes a minor problem instead of a major one.

Another centre regular is Denise who also has multiple sclerosis. Very

disappointed, very sad it is going. People like Pat, I have made a

friend, and I look forward to seeing her, but unless I get a taxi or my

carer to take me out to see her, I probably won't see her again. The

centre is run by St Luke, this is its dedicated hospice. The charity

wants to improve this area of its work. Increasingly, the move is to

look after people at home where the majority of patients want to be. We

have had to take some difficult decisions about the services we

provide. The day centre will close to 70 users in three months. Pat

said she will go as much as she can, but after then she is not sure what

she will do. A Devon man who turned his house

into a shop selling illegal tobacco to people, including school

children, has been given a suspended jail sentence today. Roger Gerrey

was selling fake brands in what the judge described as "blatant trading

in black market material". Two raids on his house in Newton Abbot found

around ?27,000 in cash and tobacco. Hamish Marshall reports.

Roger Gerrey walked from court today, a guilty plea and health

issues ensured he was not in a prison van. From his Newton Abbot

house he sold counterfeit and illegal tobacco. Business was brisk,

among them, schoolchildren. And a trading standards officer who bought

rolling tobacco for ?36. We found a substantial stash of tobacco ready

for sale. We have estimated it was up to ?14,000 of tobacco in the

confines of his domestic premises. Plus a substantial amount of cash he

had garnered from sales. The 65`year`old admitted the money came

from selling illegal tobacco. The cash has been forfeited by the

court. Nobody knows where Gerrey was getting his stock from. These are

fake authentic looking brands making it easy for him to pass it off as

genuine. Previously, magistrates decided they did not have sufficient

powers to deal with the case, so Gerrey ended up before a judge. In

passing a jail sentence suspended for two years, the judge told Gerrey

this was not an insignificant enterprise, it was blatant trading

in the black market and even after one raid by Trading Standards he was

deeply committed to carrying on. Gerrey had little to say on leaving

court. I don't want to talk. Why did you sell to schoolchildren? I have

nothing else to say. He was left in no doubt if he starts up his

business within two years he will go to jail.

Casualty departments in the South West were put under extra strain

this Christmas by patients turning up with minor ailments such as

coughs and colds. Doctors fear it diverts attention away from patients

who really need help. The problem was particularly bad in Torbay,

although the hospital says it still managed to maintain its targets for

seeing patients within four hours, despite the extra pressure. Our

South Devon reporter John Ayres is there now.

We all get coughs and colds at this time of year, but accident and

emergency is not the place to come. You should see your GP or

pharmacist. Many are coming to accident and emergency which puts

pressures on the doctors and people who need their care.

Accident and emergency is a busy place at the best of times. Over

Christmas it was especially so, made worse by patients turning up with

minor ailments which would be normally dealt with by a pharmacist

or GP. I am a highly skilled doctor but my resources are to deal with

the emergency patients who have critical illnesses, an accident with

life`threatening injuries. That is what we are here to deal with. GPs

and minor injuries units are for other things.

Units have been busy over Christmas. Tor basal 1400 patients,

well above the regional average. A similar story in Devon and Exeter.

And Plymouth. To give an idea how much accident and emergency was

slowed up, 65 patients in Torbay waited more than four hours to be

admitted. 49 ab... Had to queue up to bring patients in. There is a

campaign encouraging patients to take their elements to GPs but is

the message getting across? We have a very good system of care out of

hours. Maybe people aren't as aware. One thing they can do is, if they

are not sure, they can phone NHS Direct. They can either take advice

or be advised to contact the GP. They confirmed their GP surgery.

They will be redirected to the out of hours service. The fear is

patients go to accident and emergency because they will struggle

to access out of hours services, something doctors say should not be

a problem. The message from the NHS is, first, ring your GP.

If it is out of hours, there should be a telephone number ten a new how

to contact an out of hours GP. There is a perception there is a problem

contacting GPs out of hours. Judith has e`mailed saying she had

difficulties at weekends and her message was not to get ill on a

Saturday or Sunday. The company behind plans for a

luxury hotel on Drake's Island in Plymouth Sound is trying for the

third time to get permission to re`develop the site. Planners turned

down the original scheme, saying they hadn't been given enough

information about how wildlife might be affected. The company now says

it's consulted environmental experts as part of its new application.

A widow from Devon, whose husband served in the First World War, has

become the first person to pay tribute to a loved one on a special

memorial. The banner to help people remember relatives who took part in

the conflict is to tour Devon, to mark the centenary of the outbreak

of fighting. Poppies will be sewn around the six`foot`tall banner,

each one in honour of someone who died. Emma Thomasson reports.

A widow's special tribute, 93`year`old Dorothy Ellis is the

phone last collection at the last surviving widow of a First World War

veteran. Her husband had been shot, gassed and left for dead. The world

would be a far better place if people remembered the awful things

that happened. Maybe there wouldn't be so much trouble in the world.

Dorothy's puppy will be added to a special tribute to those involved in

what was supposed to be the war to end all wars. Part of a special

banner which will tour Devon this year. Anyone who comes to see it can

mark up a puppy with a message. They gave their life for their country

and they ought to be remembered for that.

They are not having a party. They are away fighting a terrible

condition. As the troops are today. Work on the banner which includes

intricate design work has taken six months. The painting took six

weeks. The horse is called Polly who went to war with her master. He came

back but she did not. This will help form a unique record of how the war

affected Devon. They can remember by writing on the poppy, but they can

also write in the book by the side. They can have their memories of

their grandparents. Things which will stay there forever. That book

will be given to us to look after. Talks are underway to find a final

resting place for the banner once it is taught is complete.

Some good news. Two Exeter Chiefs rugby players have

been included in the England senior squad for the forthcoming Six

Nations' campaign. For the first time, 20`year`old Jack Nowell is

amongst the 35`strong party for the tournament which starts on the 1st

of February. The winger and BBC South West Sportsman Of The Year

made his breakthrough into the Chiefs' first`team last season.

Nowell's club`mate Tom Johnson is also in the England camp, hoping to

add to his five international caps. Devon's Olympic silver medallist

Heather Fell has announced her retirement. To mark the end of her

modern pentathlon career, she's been speaking to other sports stars about

the challenges they faced packing away their trainers and giving up

the day job. Competitive sport has always been

part of my life. It really is all I have ever known. Pony club when I

was tiny lead to modern pentathlon and full`time training at the

University of Bath. Giving that up and looking for a real job is

daunting. As UK sport athlete, my funding ended exactly three months

after my retirement. From that date, access to the doctors, physios and

the gym here also ended. To cope with such a change, I have been

trying new things. Working with schools and charities, getting

experience in the media. I have found it harder than expected to

adjust, and wanted to find out how others have faced this leap into the

unknown. Injuries have forced Lewis Moody to hang up his boots in 2012.

He reached the pinnacle of his sport, but retirement has taken time

to sink in. You don't realise to what extent you had condition in

your life until it is gone. I was getting more frustrated but

pretending I don't miss rugby. Your wife has to tell you to disappear to

the gym and release some testosterone. It is a realisation

that part of my life is still having to find that competition, fine

things that test me and push me outside of rugby now. Stephen won

Olympic bronze in 2008. He now is working for an IT company after work

experience. You take the last stroke of the Olympic Games, and someone

ask what you are going to do now. It is all you have known. You walk into

a room and you are still an Olympic medallist. But now, they don't

really care who you are. Playing before the professional era, Brian

Moore had a legal career to fall back on. I moved to Soho and went

wild for six years. I had to go into a treatment programme because I

overdid it. It is better if you deal with these issues which are quite

terrifying when you look at them. They are unknown. When you have that

comfort and sports structure around you... All my experience is people

who cope best with retirement are those who plan before it happens.

Helping athletes find jobs is now the focus for both `` for sporting

bodies. I attended the first of this kind of

careers fair. UK sport says support like this will continue.

Time now for the weather. There seems to have been a brief

respite from the wind and rain, how long will it last? For the first

time, no yellow warning for rain from the Met Office.

But there is a yellow warning for ice instead. Good evening. A nice

day today. The star of tomorrow is not looking too bad. Mostly dry

initially. The next by the front pushes in during the day, with cloud

and rain pushing in from the West. This is the big satellite picture.

You can see the cloud to the east and west. Mostly dry weather. Not

too bad for a winter's day. But you can see the next by the front coming

across from America, crossing the Atlantic, warming up and becoming a

weaker affair, hitting a ridge of high pressure. Saturday, generally

another calm day, some sunshine before the next low`pressure system

comes in on Sunday bringing some rain. Here is more detail. You can

see the cloud ringing in a few showers. Some nice sunshine. We have

been down to Seaton in South East Cornwall. Much calmer than a couple

of days ago. We saw some coastal flooding in Seaton. Much less swell

on the sea. The waves not too big today. Things are looking calm

today, sunshine to end the day. Tonight, one or two showers around

particularly along the North Shore and West Cornwall. Those showers

will clear. East of and, Dorset, the highest chance of seeing some ice

where we see the Met Office yellow warning. Milder further to the

west. A fairly chilly start to the date tomorrow for most of us. Dry

initially, some sunshine. The weather front comes in, some

showers, turning heavier in the afternoon. But not the amount of

rain we have seen over recent days. Becoming breezy. Temperatures, into

double figures. The winds will pick up. Some rain around for the Isles

of Scilly. Some brighter spells in between. Increasingly breezy. These

are the times of high water. We are seeing winds from the

south`west. Generally good or poor visibility in the rain or showers.

If you fancy some surfing: The outlook, tomorrow, generally a

bright start, rain pushing in later. The rain clears through, generally

drier and brighter for Saturday. But we will see a fairly cold night into

Sunday. The chance of frost. Sunday starts bright initially. The next

weather front pushes through, turning wetter. Monday, sunshine and

showers. Thanks to everyone who has got in

touch with us today on Facebook and Twitter. That's all for now. We're

back after the ten o'clock news. Goodbye.

TOM: # And if there's anybody left in here

# That doesn't want to be out there... #