14/12/2011 BBC News at Ten


14/12/2011

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Another leap in the number of unemployed - it reaches a 17-year

:00:05.:00:11.

high. The latest count is more than 2.6 million - young jobseekers are

:00:11.:00:18.

hit hardest, with more than one in five out of work. There are some

:00:18.:00:21.

new private sector jobs - but they're dwarfed by public sector

:00:21.:00:30.

losses. The central economic claim that he made, that the private

:00:30.:00:35.

sector would fill the gap left by the public sector, has not been met.

:00:35.:00:39.

His plans are for more spending, more borrowing, more debt, more of

:00:39.:00:42.

the mess that we started with. We'll be looking at prospects for

:00:42.:00:46.

2012. Also tonight... The euro takes a beating over fears that

:00:46.:00:50.

last week's summitry is already unravelling. The biggest ever sale

:00:50.:00:54.

of bank branches - Lloyds prepares to sell more than 600 to the Co-Op.

:00:54.:00:57.

The face of the Liege killer - Belgian police say they've found

:00:57.:01:06.

another body in a shed belonging to Nordine Amrani. Barack Obama calls

:01:06.:01:09.

time on the Iraq war he once opposed but now calls an

:01:09.:01:17.

"extraordinary achievement". And a royal tour like no other - senior

:01:17.:01:20.

members of the family will go to the four corners of the world for

:01:21.:01:30.
:01:31.:01:56.

Good evening. Unemployment has risen to its highest level since

:01:56.:01:59.

1994, with Britain's youth, once again, coming out worst in the

:01:59.:02:03.

search for work. The latest figures show that the total number of

:02:03.:02:08.

people out of work rose by 128,000 in the three months to October.

:02:08.:02:13.

It's now 2.64 million. As our chief economics correspondent, Hugh Pym,

:02:13.:02:15.

reports, hopes of a resurgent private sector matching job losses

:02:15.:02:25.
:02:25.:02:29.

in the public sector have yet to It was a promising start to the

:02:29.:02:35.

year for the jobs market, but then it went into reverse. High-profile

:02:35.:02:38.

cutbacks like those in one engineering firm symbolised the

:02:38.:02:42.

growing uncertainty. So did job cuts announced by BAE Systems,

:02:42.:02:45.

which are yet to show up in the official figures. In Northern

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Ireland, the jobless total actually fell slightly, but that did not

:02:50.:02:54.

help Kevin Davison in Belfast. He has been looking for work in the

:02:54.:02:58.

construction industry, but has had no joy so he is heading to

:02:58.:03:03.

Australia, and he is not the only one. Out of our masters course of

:03:04.:03:09.

36 people, about 35 of them will be going to Australia. It is a mixture

:03:09.:03:13.

of architects, engineers and planners. One of the key debates

:03:13.:03:16.

this year has been over the possibility of the private sector

:03:16.:03:19.

taking up the slack as the Government cut back public

:03:19.:03:23.

employment levels. The latest figures suggest that private

:03:23.:03:26.

employers are not creating enough jobs to compensate for losses

:03:26.:03:30.

across the public sector. There was a big gap over the three months to

:03:31.:03:34.

a big gap over the three months to September. Public sector employment

:03:34.:03:39.

fell by 67,000, to the lowest level in eight years. The number of

:03:39.:03:40.

private sector employees increased private sector employees increased

:03:40.:03:44.

by just 5,000 over that time. That provoked fierce clashes in the

:03:44.:03:49.

House of Commons at Prime Minister's Questions. He cannot

:03:49.:03:52.

deny that the central economic claim that he made, that the

:03:52.:03:55.

private sector would fill the gap left by the public sector, has not

:03:55.:04:01.

been met. He has broken his promise. It is this government that has got

:04:01.:04:06.

interest rates down to 2%. That is why we have the prospect of growth,

:04:06.:04:11.

whereas his plans are for more spending, more borrowing, more debt,

:04:11.:04:15.

more of the mess that we started with. But the spectre of

:04:15.:04:19.

unemployment rising close to levels seen in the 1980s is hovering over

:04:19.:04:23.

the economy, with analysts predicting continued increases next

:04:23.:04:29.

year. The economy is at best bumping along the bottom.

:04:29.:04:32.

Employment levels are unlikely to rise, at least for the next year or

:04:32.:04:37.

so. There was some positive news from the supermarket chain

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Morrisons, which says it will create 7,000 new posts next year,

:04:43.:04:51.

as it opens 25 new stores. But gas has to be set against more gloomy

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news from the troubled giant Thomas Cook, which increased its target

:04:55.:05:00.

for store closures to 200. More than 600 jobs are at risk. The

:05:00.:05:05.

economy is generating and cutting jobs every month. Workers can only

:05:05.:05:09.

hope the balance is positive. Right now, it isn't. Hugh Pym is with me

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now. Explain this - the Government says one measure of unemployment

:05:13.:05:19.

has not actually gone up by much. Yes, if you look at the narrower

:05:19.:05:23.

measure, the so-called claimant count, it has not gone up very much

:05:23.:05:28.

at all in the last couple of months, it is stuck at 1.6 million,

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although that is still relatively high. But I think most analysts

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would say these figures could have been worse. It is worth pointing

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out that the unemployment rate here in the UK is still below that of

:05:40.:05:44.

the US and France. It is still an international problem. But that is

:05:44.:05:48.

not much consolation for those people looking for jobs into next

:05:48.:05:52.

year. As we have been hearing, pretty sluggish growth is being

:05:52.:05:56.

forecast by most commentators, not creating enough jobs to bring down

:05:56.:06:00.

unemployment. But if things turn out to be worse than predicted,

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because of a major eurozone crisis, it could be even worse for

:06:03.:06:08.

unemployment. One thing is building, that unemployment is not going to

:06:08.:06:18.
:06:18.:06:19.

European markets have fallen amid fears that the deal negotiated last

:06:19.:06:22.

week to stop the crisis in the eurozone may be unravelling. In

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Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel warned that sorting out the

:06:24.:06:26.

eurozone's problems would take years, but insisted that Britain

:06:26.:06:29.

remained an important EU partner, despite David Cameron's use of the

:06:29.:06:32.

veto. As our political editor, Nick Robinson, reports, some other EU

:06:32.:06:39.

leaders also have reservations about the way forward. Ever since

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David Cameron sat alone, without allies, one against 26, the debate

:06:43.:06:47.

has been - was this dangerous isolation, or what in Victorian

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times they used to call splendid isolation? President Sarkozy seems

:06:53.:06:57.

to be in no doubt. He has been reported as described in David

:06:57.:07:02.

Cameron's behaviour as like that of a petulant child. It gave France

:07:02.:07:07.

what it always wanted, a plan for a treaty with no British involvement.

:07:07.:07:11.

But Germany's Chancellor Merkel was much more conciliator meet today,

:07:11.:07:14.

telling the German parliament there was still time for Britain to join

:07:14.:07:22.

TRANSLATION: I regret very much that Britain has not been able to

:07:22.:07:27.

join us on this journey. But it is beyond any doubt that Britain will

:07:27.:07:34.

remain a very secure partner in the European Union. Only David Cameron

:07:34.:07:39.

refused last week to sign a new EU treaty, but now others are

:07:39.:07:42.

beginning to express doubts. The Hungarian Prime Minister does not

:07:42.:07:46.

want to lose control of business taxes. The Swedish leader needs

:07:46.:07:50.

opposition support. The Irish might need a referendum, and they are

:07:50.:07:55.

worried about the idea of new taxes which affect Dublin but not London.

:07:55.:07:57.

David Cameron began this week talking of the benefits of standing

:07:57.:08:02.

alone. And yet tonight, he told a meeting of Tory MPs that it might

:08:02.:08:06.

not end up being Britain as one against the other 26 in Europe. He

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has had a boost with his own backbenches, a boost in the opinion

:08:10.:08:16.

polls, and a boost today at Prime Minister's Questions. Ed Miliband

:08:16.:08:20.

chose today's to play the men, not the ball, mocking coalition

:08:20.:08:27.

divisions. He read out an old coalition document, promising a

:08:27.:08:32.

whole new style of government. more collegiate approach. Mr

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Speaker, I'm bound to ask, what's gone wrong? No-one in this House is

:08:40.:08:42.

going to be surprised that Conservatives and Liberal Democrats

:08:43.:08:48.

do not always agree about Europe. But let me reassure him, he should

:08:48.:08:54.

not believe everything he read in the papers. It is not that bad. I

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mean, it is not like we're brothers or anything. Tory MPs, waving and

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cheering, suddenly like their leader. Labour MPs, sitting in

:09:07.:09:12.

silence, are beginning to have doubts about theirs. His assistants

:09:12.:09:18.

say it is judgments, not jokes, which will count in the end. All

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the debate about what David Cameron did or did not do may soon be

:09:22.:09:26.

irrelevant. The euro plummeted today on the markets. The agreement

:09:26.:09:35.

he did not sign did not end the Lloyds is preparing to sell 632 of

:09:35.:09:38.

its branches to the Co-operative Bank. If the deal goes through, it

:09:38.:09:42.

would be the biggest of its kind. The sale is being forced on Lloyds

:09:42.:09:45.

under EU competition rules. As our business editor, Robert Peston,

:09:45.:09:55.
:09:55.:09:56.

reports, it would make the Co-op Britain's seventh biggest bank.

:09:56.:10:02.

Lloyds is selling 632 branches, and the preferred bidder is the Co-op.

:10:02.:10:07.

The buyer, unlike the big banks, is owned by its customers, not by

:10:07.:10:12.

investors. People talk about creating a people's bank. Well,

:10:12.:10:16.

look no further, we are the people's bank. We are owned and

:10:16.:10:21.

controlled by 7 million members. That's very different as a business

:10:21.:10:26.

model to the plc world. That is the world in which the current big five

:10:26.:10:30.

banks operate. If the deal goes through, it would be a bit of

:10:30.:10:34.

history, because, for the past 20 years, building societies, owned by

:10:35.:10:38.

their members, the likes of Abbey National, Northern Rock, Bradford &

:10:38.:10:43.

Bingley, the Halifax and Woolwich, became banks, listed on the stock

:10:43.:10:47.

market. But this big chunk of Lloyds looks as though it is going

:10:47.:10:52.

in the other direction, to become part of what is known as a mutual.

:10:52.:10:57.

The Co-op would get a business with �36 billion of customers' deposits

:10:57.:11:01.

and savings, and with a share of the current account market standing

:11:01.:11:07.

the current account market standing at just under 5%. It would be a big

:11:07.:11:09.

enough organisation, many would enough organisation, many would

:11:09.:11:13.

think, to give the big banks a run for their money. If it goes through,

:11:13.:11:17.

it would be good, it would be a strong challenger to the dominant

:11:17.:11:23.

four banks in the high street, but it will leave behind a huge Lloyds

:11:23.:11:25.

bank with 2,500 branches, and a quarter of the current account

:11:25.:11:30.

market, so the Government must make them go further. Among the branches

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being sold are all 150 for Cheltenham and Gloucester branches.

:11:35.:11:40.

That will pose a dilemma for many of customers. Lloyds will want them

:11:40.:11:44.

to transfer across to the new owner, likely to be the Co-op, but will

:11:44.:11:50.

the customers think that is a great idea? For Lloyds, 41% owned by

:11:50.:11:55.

taxpayers, it was a busy day. The board announced it was confident

:11:55.:11:58.

that its chief executive, who had taken a leave of absence because of

:11:58.:12:03.

their Georgian, will be fit enough to return in January. -- because of

:12:03.:12:10.

exhaustion. But this deal is not done yet. There are hurdles,

:12:10.:12:13.

approval by the regulator, integration of computer systems,

:12:13.:12:16.

and possible objections from customers. But if it does go

:12:16.:12:26.
:12:26.:12:36.

through, it would change banking as The mother of one of the men

:12:36.:12:38.

accused of killing the black teenager Stephen Lawrence 18 The

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mother of one of the men accused of killing the black teenager Stephen

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Lawrence 18 years ago says Gary Dobson was at home at the time.

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Years ago says Gary Dobson was at home at the time. His mother

:12:54.:12:59.

insisted that her son was in all evening. Gary Dobson, on the left,

:12:59.:13:05.

and his co-defendant, David Norris, A minute's silence has been held in

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the Belgian city of Liege to remember the victims of yesterday's

:13:08.:13:11.

gun and grenade attack. Today, the body of a woman has been found

:13:11.:13:15.

close to the home of the gunman, Nordine Amrani. It takes the number

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killed to six. From Liege, here's our Europe correspondent, Matthew

:13:17.:13:27.
:13:27.:13:34.

They came to pray and to mourn. To contemplate at the focus of so much

:13:34.:13:41.

misery. To try to comprehend the incomprehensible. It was here that

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a 33-year-old gunman showed so much blurred. Here that one of his

:13:46.:13:54.

bullets hit a school boy, whose friend was killed.

:13:54.:14:00.

TRANSLATION: Everybody ran. Everyone was panicking. I heard

:14:00.:14:07.

gunshots. I had been hit. I managed to get onto the bus. These were the

:14:07.:14:12.

scenes moments after one of the grenades had exploded. At least one

:14:12.:14:18.

teenager died on the spot. More than 120 people were injured. 24

:14:18.:14:25.

hours ago, he chose this vantage point for himself. He knew he had

:14:25.:14:31.

the potential to kill and injure bus numbers of people. He threw

:14:31.:14:37.

three grenades and started firing on the crowds below. Just up there,

:14:37.:14:44.

the police say he shot himself. This is the killer. He was the gun

:14:44.:14:49.

fanatic, now turned mass murderer. His killing spree started earlier

:14:49.:14:54.

than first thought. It was in his garage that the body of a cleaner

:14:55.:15:02.

was found. Police said he had shot her. Up the road, his home, with a

:15:02.:15:09.

string of weapons, drug and sex offences, the police knew him well.

:15:09.:15:16.

So do the pupils at the school of two of his victims. They paused to

:15:16.:15:21.

remember and to reflect. The bullet scars are a cause of fascination

:15:21.:15:26.

and horror. The glass will be repaired and the buses are moving

:15:26.:15:33.

again. Life goes on. Not for the victims they are remembering this

:15:33.:15:38.

evening. Not for 17 month-old Gabriel. His mother heard a bang

:15:38.:15:44.

and saw his eyes rolled back in his head. I wish I had died, instead of

:15:44.:15:52.

him, she said. Coming up on tonight's programme: 30 years ago,

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the Queen visited Tuvalu. Now, as part of the Diamond Jubilee, the

:15:56.:16:06.
:16:06.:16:06.

It is harder to end a war than to start one. That was the message

:16:07.:16:09.

from President Obama today, as he welcomed home American soldiers

:16:09.:16:13.

from Iraq. Mr Obama, who opposed the war at the outset, said Iraq

:16:13.:16:18.

was not a perfect place. After nine years of fighting, American troops

:16:18.:16:21.

had helped to turn the tide towards peace. The last US soldiers are

:16:21.:16:25.

expected to withdraw from Iraq within days. Mark Mardell sent this

:16:25.:16:35.
:16:35.:16:36.

report from Fort Bragg in North Carolina. The President of the

:16:36.:16:40.

United States. The president and first lady came with lavish praise

:16:40.:16:45.

for the troops. He said they were incredible. Their hearts had been

:16:45.:16:50.

touched by fire. This war ended with a march towards home. I am

:16:50.:16:58.

proud to finally say these two words. I know your family's degree.

:16:58.:17:07.

Welcome home. -- families agree. Welcome home. This was a tricky

:17:07.:17:11.

speech. President Obama had to praise the military. He did so the

:17:11.:17:17.

sacrifice meant Iraq was now sovereign, stable and self-reliant.

:17:17.:17:23.

It is harder to end a war than begin one. Everything that American

:17:23.:17:29.

troops have done in Iraq. All the fighting, the dying, the bleeding,

:17:29.:17:34.

the building, the training and partnering, of all of it has led to

:17:34.:17:40.

this moment of success. This speech is intended to draw a clear line

:17:40.:17:48.

under a wall that divided America and divided America from its allies.

:17:48.:17:52.

The foreign policy of President Obama has been driven by the desire

:17:52.:17:58.

to rehabilitate America in the eyes of the world. A war based on the

:17:58.:18:02.

false premise that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction

:18:02.:18:08.

began in shock and all and what looked like an easy victory. It was

:18:08.:18:16.

ill thought-out and descended into a turmoil of violence. This has

:18:16.:18:22.

changed America. The fact the war did not go well, after Saddam

:18:22.:18:29.

Hussein got removed, has, I think, made Americans, at least for the

:18:29.:18:36.

time being, more reluctant to consider military action. As long

:18:36.:18:45.

as no military action of any significance is required, that is

:18:45.:18:50.

fine. If our obligations get triggered, and there is a question

:18:50.:18:58.

of our reliability as an ally, that is not fine. For some, the price is

:18:58.:19:05.

more personal. 4500 American troops have been killed in Iraq. The

:19:05.:19:10.

operation has cost United States one trillion dollars. Many ask, for

:19:10.:19:17.

what? Matt went to Iraq wanting to change the world. He left thinking

:19:17.:19:24.

that war was never the answer. lost my first friend in an IED

:19:24.:19:29.

attack and another friend to a suicide attack. This war will be

:19:29.:19:35.

with us, the soldiers who served and the Iraqis who endured, for a

:19:35.:19:40.

very long time to come. They are home quicker than many expected.

:19:40.:19:45.

The President tango into an election without quibbles or

:19:45.:19:49.

Cabinet. -- can go. The former legal manager of the News of the

:19:49.:19:52.

World said today that he told James Murdoch there was direct and hard

:19:52.:19:55.

evidence that phone hacking at the paper extended beyond a single

:19:55.:19:58.

reporter. Tom Crone told the Leveson Inquiry into press ethics

:19:58.:20:00.

that he showed the News International chairman a printout

:20:00.:20:06.

of a key e-mail at a meeting three years ago. James Murdoch has always

:20:06.:20:16.
:20:16.:20:18.

claimed he did not know phone The formal legal manager of News

:20:18.:20:22.

International, Tom Crone, told the inquiry that James Murdoch was

:20:22.:20:26.

briefed about the extent of phone hacking. The executive chairman of

:20:26.:20:31.

News International has always claimed he was not told the full

:20:31.:20:35.

story. Yesterday he conceded he was sent e-mails which she did not

:20:35.:20:41.

fully read. Tom Coke -- Tom Crone recalled a meeting with Mr Murdoch.

:20:41.:20:49.

He claims they discussed the severity of the situation. This

:20:49.:20:56.

document clearly was direct and hard evidence. The inquiry also

:20:56.:20:59.

heard from the former editor of the News of the World, Colin Myler. He

:20:59.:21:05.

was asked about the publication of parts of the diaries of Kate McCann,

:21:05.:21:11.

which she said left her feeling violated. He thought the

:21:12.:21:16.

representative of the McCanns had given them the go-ahead. They paid

:21:16.:21:22.

a significant sum into the Madeleine McCann fund. There was an

:21:22.:21:27.

acceptance and acknowledgement that there had been a misunderstanding.

:21:27.:21:32.

We made it very clear that the last thing we wanted to do was to cause

:21:32.:21:37.

Kate any more distress. Another bereaved family were spoken of -

:21:37.:21:40.

the Dowlers. Following revelations the News of the World may not have

:21:40.:21:45.

been responsible for deleting voice mails on the phone of their

:21:45.:21:49.

daughter, counsel for the victims told the inquiry the solicitor for

:21:49.:21:58.

the dam or family was telephoned yesterday. -- Dower. In few of

:21:58.:22:05.

these revelations, will be Dowlers be giving their money back? - In

:22:05.:22:12.

view. They refute the allegation it attacked the Dowlers. They said it

:22:12.:22:16.

was a legitimate journalistic inquiry. With regard to the

:22:16.:22:21.

deletion of the boys rows of Milly Dowler, Lord Justice Leveson says

:22:21.:22:28.

he wants the issue clarified as quickly as possible. -- voice mails.

:22:28.:22:32.

The Government has given the go- ahead for badgers to be shot in two

:22:32.:22:35.

areas of England next year to try to stop tuberculosis spreading

:22:35.:22:37.

among cattle. The British Veterinary Association has welcomed

:22:37.:22:40.

the decision, insisting that culling reduces cases of bovine TB

:22:40.:22:45.

by 10%. Opponents believe there should be a greater focus on

:22:45.:22:50.

developing vaccines. A similar badger cull was approved in Wales

:22:50.:22:54.

but the decision was overturned in the High Court. Actress Elizabeth

:22:54.:22:59.

Taylor's famous jewels went for �75 million at an auction today. That

:22:59.:23:03.

is more than double the record for a single collection. Christie's

:23:03.:23:06.

sale of 80 items included pearls, colourless diamonds and Indian

:23:06.:23:15.

jewels. They had expected to raise some �13 million. The Queen and the

:23:15.:23:17.

Duke of Edinburgh will travel widely around the United Kingdom

:23:17.:23:20.

next year to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee. To mark 60 years since the

:23:20.:23:23.

Queen came to the throne, other members of the Royal Family will

:23:23.:23:26.

tour the world, visiting the countries where the Queen is head

:23:26.:23:31.

of state and some others in the Commonwealth. Nicholas Witchell

:23:31.:23:41.
:23:41.:23:43.

reports. The golden jubilee of 2002 brought out the crowds and took the

:23:43.:23:48.

Queen and her husband to different parts of the United Kingdom. The

:23:48.:23:51.

programme for the Diamond Jubilee is said by Buckingham Palace to be

:23:51.:23:57.

more extensive. The Queen will concentrate on the United Kingdom

:23:57.:24:02.

across four months starting at the end of March, she and her husband

:24:02.:24:07.

will go to different parts of the country. It will be a test of

:24:07.:24:13.

stamina for a couple who, by next summer, will be 86 and 91 years old.

:24:13.:24:19.

She has been doing it for of six years. That is what keeps her going.

:24:19.:24:25.

Her entire devotion to duty. It is what she gave her life full. She

:24:25.:24:35.
:24:35.:24:36.

has given her love for it. Outside the UK, the visits will be led by

:24:36.:24:41.

the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall. Most focus will be on the Duke and

:24:41.:24:46.

Duchess of Cambridge. They will be going to the South Pacific to visit

:24:46.:24:50.

the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu, which last had a royal visit when

:24:50.:24:56.

the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh went there 30 years ago. They were

:24:56.:25:06.
:25:06.:25:07.

carried ashore by islanders sitting in Kunduz. -- canoes. William and

:25:07.:25:11.

Kate can expect something similar. Prince Harry will be travelling

:25:11.:25:17.

next year as well. He is going to Billy's, Jamaica and the bombers.

:25:17.:25:26.

It will be his first foreign visit representing the Queen. -- the

:25:26.:25:30.

Bahamas. More than a century after Queen Victoria, Britain will have

:25:30.:25:34.

another opportunity to express feelings for another long-lived

:25:34.:25:39.

Queen. The programme for next year will be carefully paced. The Palace

:25:39.:25:45.

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