13/12/2011 BBC News at Ten

Tonight at 10.00pm, an attack on a Christmas market in Belgium leaves

several people dead and many injured.

Shoppers fled as a lone gunman armed with a pistol and grenades

fired at a crowd including young children. I saw on the market all

the people lying down bleeding between the glass. I stopped my car

to see if I could help some people. As emergency services rushed to the

scene, police revealed the attacker had a criminal record for firearms

offences. But they rejected any notion of a

terrorist link. We'll have the latest.

Also tonight: At the Old Bailey one of the men

accused of murdering Stephen Lawrence is heard using racist

language in a police video. How James Murdoch WAS sent messages

discussing the scale of wrongdoing at the News of the World.

The world's biggest experiment brings us closer to understanding

the secrets of the universe. think it is one of THE great

scientific discoveries of all time, certainly of the last hundred years.

OLD NEWSREEL: Elizabeth Taylor was voted Best Actress.

And the late Elizabeth Taylor's stunning collection of jewels will

Good evening. A gunman has opened fire on a crowd of Christmas

shoppers, including teenagers and young children, in the Belgian city

of Liege. He killed as many as five people and injured at least 120

others. Officials confirmed the gunman was known to police with a

record for drugs and firearms offences. But they denied there was

any terrorist link to the attack. From Liege our correspondent

Matthew Price reports. They ran for their lives this

afternoon, away from the bustling main square where the killing had

started, a city centre under siege, "Faster," she shouted, "Run!" As

the most vulnerable ran for safety. I am shocked, still shocked. I saw

one man shooting people, you know, and some explosions, two or three,

and all the people were running from there to here. Seconds later,

this was the scene. The gunman threw three hand grenades into the

crowds - one at a bus stop. Several people died. More than a hundred,

we're now told, were injured, some critically. And I saw on the market

all the people lying down bleeding between the glass. I stopped my car

to see if I could help some people. By now, nearby lay the gunman. He

killed himself, the police said. He had previous convictions for arms

dealing and drug possession and had been released early from prison.

This morning, Imrani had been summoned for police for questioning.

Why we don't know. He left his home in Liege carrying a backpack

containing two guns and several grenades, then he headed for the

city's main courthouse on the central square and on to the bus

stop. For several hours today Liege was a city of unimaginable

confusion and fear. Special Forces sealed off the main square, office

workers huddled inside. This evening the Belgian King and Queen

arrived in Liege to see the misery for themselves. At the scene of the

attack, prosecutors say they don't yet know why this happened. What

everyone here does know is that this was a day of panic, of death,

that few will forget. We can talk to Matthew who is in

Liege for us tonight. Are the officials there, police, able to

make more sense of why this happened? Publicly, at least,

they're not, no. They haven't given any motives. The Justice Minister

this evening has said he doesn't believe this was a case of

terrorism. He doesn't believe any mental illness played a part in

this. The attacker was clearly known to this. He'd already been in

prison back in 2008 after a large cache of weapons was found at his

house. He was also in there on drugs-related offences, and it's

believed he was being taken in or had been asked at least to attend a

police questioning at some point this morning. Now, does that raise

the suspicion, the possibility, that he was back on the police

radar for some reason? Did they have him under surveillance? Were

they concerned possibly that he might cause a threat of some sort

to the public at large here in Liege? Those are all questions that

will have to be answered in the coming days. But as far as the

police investigation in the square goes, tonight it has been reopened.

We know that David Cameron, the Prime Minister, has sent a message

of condolence, spoken to the Belgian Prime Minister this evening

to offer his condolences, and in hospital, some of those - over a

hundred injured - some we understand are in a critical

condition tonight. Thank you very much. Matthew Price for us in Liege.

One of them, on trial for the murder of Stephen Lawrence, has

started giving evidence at the Old Bailey. Gary Dobson denied having

any involvement in the stabbing of the black teenager in 1993. The

court was played secretly recorded video footage which showed Mr

Dobson and David Norris, who also denies murder using obscene racist

insults. Our home affairs correspondent Tom Symonds reports

from the court. Gar gay, brought to court today by prison van, has been

questioned by police, cross- examined in an inquest, and today

he faced an Old Bailey jury. Before his appearance, a 1994 police video

covertly filmed in his flat was shown on screens. Stephen's parents

and the jury watched as he and his friends exchanged a stream of

racist views, including more than In another section, Gary Dobson

Under cross-examination, Mr Doe Dobson admitted he was both

disgusted and embarrassed by the He told the jury while Stephen

Lawrence and his friend Duane Brooks were being attacked by a

gang of white youths close to this bus stop, he was at home in his

parents' home nearby listening to music and playing on his computer.

He stayed in his bedroom, he told the jury, until 11.45pm when he

went around to his friends, the Acourts, to borrow a CD. They have

also been investigated by police. The news of Stephen's murder, not

far away, was beginning to spread. The prosecution alleges a tiny spot

of Stephen's blood on his jacket proves he was involved. The

defendant says he didn't like it and never wore it. Other forensic

evidence was discovered on a multi- coloured cardigan. Gary Dobson told

He was pressed why he denied to police knowing this man, David

Norris, his codefendant, despite these surveillance pictures of them

together. He said he didn't think David Norris had been arrested. He

didn't want to give them a name they didn't have. The Stephen

Lawrence murder trial continues tomorrow.

The President of the European Commission has accused David

Cameron of rejecting a compromise deal on offer at last week's EU

summit. Jose Manuel Barroso said the safeguards demanded by Britain

would have undermined the integrity of the single market and weren't

possible. Downing Street said Mr Cameron had been seeking equal, not

preferential, status for the UK's financial services industry. Our

European editor Gavin Hewitt has more details. At the European

Parliament today, David Cameron was the man who everybody seemed to

want to talk about. His use of a veto to protect British interests

has already drawn comment from the French President and the German

Chancellor. Today it was the turn of the President of the European

Commission to criticise the British for demanding safeguards.

United Kingdom in exchange for giving its agreement asked for a

specific protocol on financial services which, as presented, was a

risk to the integrity of the internal market. This made

compromise impossible. Downing Street denied the Prime

Minister had any intention to undermine a single market, but the

prevailing view here, at least, was that Britain was now on its own.

politics, there is one golden rule - you only walk away if you're sure

that the others will come after you to win you back. When you are

invited at a table, either it is as a guest or otherwise, you are part

of the menu, dear colleagues. French member of the European

Parliament went further and demanded Britain be punished for

acting selfishly. TRANSLATION: I think the British

rebate is now up for question. Citizens' tax moneys should be

spent on something other than compensating selfish nationalism.

Solidarity is not a one-way street. He was referring to the rebate

negotiated by Margaret Thatcher and worth about 3 billion euros a year

to Britain. Some British MEPs saw the crisis leading to Britain's

exit from the EU. What you have decided to head off on the Titanic

towards economic and democratic disaster, and we're now in a

lifeboat. Britain is going to make the great escape. We're going to

get out of this union. We'll be the first European country to get our

freedom back. There's no question that David Cameron's use of a veto

last week has irritated many people in Europe, but increasingly, as

time has worn on, other national politicians in Parliament have

raised concerns about the deal to enforce budgetary discipline struck

here last week. Even though the focus has been on

the Prime Minister and the use of the British veto, there are

increasing doubts as to whether last week's summit has eased the

eurozone crisis. To examine the fallout, let's turn

to James. More evidence today of tension

within the cool significance That's right. Today the him demsecretary

Chris Huhne said it's not good for Britain to be isolated. He said,

"Playing Billy no Mates is no fun and not protecting Britain's

interests." Earlier in Cabinet he complained about how the Lib Dems

in his view hadn't been consulted enough during negotiations. Clearly

those tension still there. But although the coalition is bruised I

don't get the sense it's spoiling for a fight. Both sides seem to

agree Mr Cameron was right to try to protect Britain's financial

services. Both sides agree it's right to go out there and try to

smooth ruffled feathers in Europe. Today there is a poll in the Sun

that seems to suggest that many people support David Cameron's veto.

The usual Cavett caveats should apply. This is just within opinion

poll. Think of it - the keafrts in Government that's just endured a

national public sector, is try that's just extending its spending

cuts by another two years and got itself in a fight in Europe is

tonight in one opinion poll two points ahead of Labour - I think

James Murdoch, the chairman of News International, was sent details

three years ago that phone hacking was rife that the News of the World.

He was copied into a series of e- mail messages that have now been

released by the parliamentary committee investigating the scandal.

Mr Murdoch's OSCE is confident that he did not read the full exchange

of messages and was not aware of any widespread wrongdoing. -- says

he is confident. James Murdoch, one of the most

powerful figures in the British media, with his reputation on the

line about what he knew and when about phone hacking at the News of

the World. And it is the verdict of MPs at the Culture, Media and Sport

Committee that he anxiously awaits. Here he is, denying to MPs that his

colleagues made him aware of phone hacking into 1008. The one never

happened was Colin Myler and Tom Crone showing me the evidence or

telling me about widespread criminality. To UMPIRE: Game there

is new evidence in the form of an email stream.

-- today. There is an allegation that phone hacking is rife at the

News of the World at the bottom of these emails. It looks at the

nightmare scenario, the transcript known as the For Neville email,

saying that phone hacking was wider than they had initially admitted.

The then editor of the News of the World, Colin Myler, then writes to

James Murdoch to say it is as bad as they feared. Today James Murdoch

says that he did not read the explosive stuff at the bottom of

that emails Green, because he got it on a Saturday, probably on his

Blackberry, and instead arranged to have a meeting about it. What is

the judgment of the Select Committee? This is more evidence

that James Murdoch is at best negligent. Not reading a serious

emails brought to you by your editors and lawyers strikes me as

being pretty stupid. I am sure that the committee will reflect that in

its report. Today James Murdoch reaffirmed his testimony that until

a year ago he was not aware of widespread phone hacking. But in

insisting that he has not misled MPs, he has raised questions about

his diligence as a manager. There has been a slight fall in the

rate of inflation according to the Government's preferred measure, the

consumer prices index. It was down in November to 4.8%, compared with

5% in October. That is still well above the official target of 2%.

For hard-pressed households and the countdown to Christmas, it is a key

question. What is the cost of living? It was up 4.8% over the

year to November. And what is happening at this Sheffield cutlery

maker illustrates the problems caused by inflation. Costs

including energy and metals have gone up a lot. The company feels it

cannot pass on those costs to customers and so has that to freeze

the wages of their staff. That means that workers like Jim

Stringer have suffered with their wages frozen but the cost of living

going up by about 5% annually. He and his wife are finding it hard to

make the sums add up for their family budget. I do go to the

supermarket and if something has suddenly jumped by 20 pence, I do

not buy it. Simple as that. I look for an alternative or I cut it out,

basically. We don't seem to have a pot of savings for if there is a

problem, such as reduced hours at work, or being made redundant. I

would be very concerned about how we would actually cover the costs

and the mortgage. The annual rate of inflation has fallen a bit. That

is partly because bread prices were down 1% over the month. Other food

prices were up, with meet up by 1.6%. Petrol prices were lower by

0.4% over the month. There is no doubt that shoppers will continue

to experience the squeeze on spending power in the run-up to

Christmas and the latest drop in inflation is not much consolation.

Looking beyond the new year, the trend is likely to continue. Most

economists expect inflation to fall rapidly throughout 2012. We are not

going to see a repeat of a hike in VAT which we saw at the beginning

of this year. In addition to that, the commodity price increases which

have played a major part have flattened out. Through it inflation

is likely to fall and so is packed full price inflation. -- food

inflation. So is petrol price inflation. For many people at

Christmas shopping, the prices will still seems steep.

Coming up: The crisis on the High Street and what can be done to

revive our town centres. Researchers at the Centre for

Nuclear Research near Geneva say they have found tantalising hints

of the elusive Higgs boson particle, whose existence might help explain

the workings of the universe. When Peter Higgs suggested the existence

of this particle half-a-century ago his ideas were dismissed.

Researchers in Geneva say they are now on the verge of entering a new

age in scientific advance. In an underground laboratory near

Geneva, the world's largest experiment is honing in on one of

the greatest mysteries of the universe. Firing particles through

a circular tunnel, scientists are closer to understanding the basic

building blocks of matter. They are causing collisions that reveal what

is inside. This afternoon, a long awaited announcement. We are here

today to hear the latest results on the sign for the Higgs boson.

of the brightest minds in physics gather at in one room, comparing

its findings on two different experiments suggesting that this

particle exists, which has been hidden until now. We still need

more experiments to find the definite answer on the Higgs boson,

to Be Or Not to Be? There were tantalising hints today. Scientists

have delved ever deeper into atoms and the strange world inside them.

First there is the nucleus, with electrons orbiting around it. That

has been known about for more than a century. Inside it of protons and

neutrons, which are incredibly small. But inside them are quarks

and other minute particles. But what gives them substance or mass?

The theory is that those smallest particles travel through a force

called the Higgs field and get slowed-down by it. This is how the

Higgs boson words. You cannot see it, but you can see how it gives

particles substance, the creation of matter. That is why these hints

of their momentous. Every particle in your body is interacting with

this field, like a cosmic treacle that permeates the universe. That

is what gives particles mass and ultimately what keeps you and me

structure. The key results come from two different channels.

Results are being studied by physicists all over the world. At

Imperial College in London, the students watched the events unfold.

People have been waiting their entire lives for this. I feel quite

like this is a special moment. is nice to be here and part of the

group that has had a big part in this. This extraordinary machine is

so fast that they lent me a bicycle to get round when I last visited.

It has not given us a definitive answer. That may come next year.

These detectives have revealed vital clues about how the universe

got started. Shopping on the High Street has

reached a crisis point with many town centres fighting to survive

and some already lifeless. That is the bleak assessment by the retail

expert Mary Portas, who has put forward a number of recommendations

including lower business rates and cheaper parking charges to boost

activity in town centres. Our business correspondent has more

details. Empty shops, and all too familiar

sight on high streets fighting for survival. I am Mary Portas and I

want to find out if our traditional high streets have reached the end

of the road. Retail guru Mary porters has made a name for herself

saving failing shops. The Government wanted her to come up

with solutions for the High Street. The verdict is that they need to

deliver something new. Give a sense of belonging to a place and make it

somewhere where people want to be. Then you have a fighting chance. It

is looking at the High Street as multi-functional, social as well as

shopping streets. That is a very different shift in how we should be

looking at this. The challenge is greater than ever. One in seven

shops stand empty and the Government says that one in three

of our high streets are either to generating or failing. --

degenerating. Rotherham has been hit more than most with big

retailers deserting the Centre for out-of-town shopping centres like

Meadowhall. We go to Meadowhall because it is warm, free parking

and we have department stores and Marks & Spencer, which is where I

shop. But they are trying to turn things round here. That used to be

well worth, but it has now been turned into a bargain store. This

was Marks & Spencer and now it is a discount store. The High Street is

coming back here, but it will look very different. Mary Portas's plans

improve a cut in business rates, free parking schemes and for

ministers to approve new out-of- town developments. But there is no

guarantee that any of her ideas will take hold. It may already be

too late for some High Street. think it is a very extreme case.

There will be so few shops in those extreme cases that in fact it makes

greater sense to create a totally alternative use for that town

centre. In Stevenage, the High Street is still here but part of it

has been turned into flats. One more solution to the growing plight

of boarded-up shops on Britain's high streets.

In just a few hours in New York, hundreds of items of jewellery

owned by the late Elizabeth Taylor will be auctioned at Christie's.

The collection includes the 33 carat diamond ring given to her by

Richard Burton. Christie's say that the auction has generated

unprecedented interest around the world.

Elizabeth Taylor was voted best actress. They last of the great

Hollywood starlets, dripping with diamonds and emeralds. A product of

the now-defunct studio system, Elizabeth Taylor was taught to

exude glamour. Now her spectacular collection of jewellery is for sale.

If you have a few million pounds to spare, you could try bidding for

this diamond ring. Elizabeth Taylor called it her baby. And this

necklace, a gift from Richard Burton, who showered his wife with

gems. Every husband that she had, and she had seven that we know of,

Richard Burton twice, gave her diamonds. She loves jewellery and

there was never one that she did not laugh. -- love. She also like

pearls. Take this necklace. Richard Burton used to say that he

introduced her to the jewellery shop where they used to shop. The

auction will begin in a few hours. It is the most valuable collection

to be sold since that of Wallis Simpson. The interest has been

immense. The collection is worth at least �20 million. With potential

buyers from across the world, it is anyone's guess where the bidding

will end up. How much is the Elizabeth Taylor back to -- factor

word? It is incalculable. We will know later today. Elizabeth Taylor