04/12/2013

:00:08. > :00:11.Tonight at Ten: More spending cuts on the way in the Chancellor's

:00:12. > :00:16.Autumn Statement, to be unveiled tomorrow. The message from Number 11

:00:17. > :00:20.is that budgets will be cut by an extra ?1 billion for the next three

:00:21. > :00:23.years. But ministers are keen to underline their long-term plans for

:00:24. > :00:33.major investment in big building projects. What you will see in the

:00:34. > :00:39.Autumn Statement are the next steps in the long-term plan, which will

:00:40. > :00:43.turn the country around and get it out of our difficulties with debt

:00:44. > :00:46.and deficit. We'll have more detail on the eve of the statement and

:00:47. > :00:48.we'll be assessing the strength of the economic recovery. Also

:00:49. > :00:57.tonight... A special report from the Central African Republic on the

:00:58. > :01:04.immense human cost of the civil war. TRANSLATION:

:01:05. > :01:09.They killed my father and took his body. I do not know what will happen

:01:10. > :01:12.to me now. Record fines for some of the world's biggest banks, including

:01:13. > :01:17.RBS, after they rigged interest rates. Nigella Lawson tells a court

:01:18. > :01:20.she's not a drug addict but admits using cocaine on two occasions in

:01:21. > :01:23.the past. And England say they are all set for the second Ashes Test

:01:24. > :01:32.against Australia, which starts tonight.

:01:33. > :01:39.Coming up on BBC News, nine games in the Premier league tonight and there

:01:40. > :01:55.have been plenty of goals. We will bring you all the results.

:01:56. > :01:59.Good evening. The Chancellor is to announce more spending cuts for

:02:00. > :02:03.Whitehall departments, when he delivers his Autumn Statement

:02:04. > :02:08.tomorrow morning. The hardest hit will include the Home Office and the

:02:09. > :02:11.Department for Work and Pensions. Budgets will be reduced by an extra

:02:12. > :02:16.?1 billion for each of the next three years. But he'll allocate ?150

:02:17. > :02:20.million for school kitchens to increase the provision of free

:02:21. > :02:23.meals. And he'll confirm plans for major building projects with ?25

:02:24. > :02:29.billion being invested by the big insurance companies. There will be

:02:30. > :02:33.an update on the forecast for economic growth. Robert Peston will

:02:34. > :02:39.be looking at strength of the recovery. But, first, our deputy

:02:40. > :02:49.political editor looks ahead to the Chancellor's statement. It is a

:02:50. > :02:52.closed book for now. When George Osborne opens up his Autumn

:02:53. > :02:57.Statement tomorrow, you knows it will not be all smiles. When he

:02:58. > :03:02.leaves them 11 for the House of Commons, it would be another number

:03:03. > :03:07.that will matter - the extra 1 million -- ?1 billion a year he will

:03:08. > :03:14.cut. He needs the money to pay for more tax breaks and free school

:03:15. > :03:18.meals. Some departments will be protected but there were now be more

:03:19. > :03:22.cuts for welfare, business and the Justice Department is, on top of an

:03:23. > :03:28.exposed in ?10 million squeeze. Today, the man who will make those

:03:29. > :03:31.cuts had what he hoped will be better news. The Chief Secretary to

:03:32. > :03:35.the Treasury went deep underground to see tunnels being dragged to

:03:36. > :03:41.spread electricity across London and promised support for similar

:03:42. > :03:48.infrastructure projects. We are making real progress in delivering

:03:49. > :03:52.an infrastructure fit for purpose. It will demonstrate a long-term

:03:53. > :04:03.vision. It is a plan which will help to secure long-term investment and

:04:04. > :04:07.lead sustainable, strong and long-term growth. There will be no

:04:08. > :04:12.new public money but the government will raise cash by selling off its

:04:13. > :04:17.stake in Eurostar and six insurance firms have promised to spend money

:04:18. > :04:22.as well. Labour has said there is not enough progress. Isn't it about

:04:23. > :04:25.time the government actually invested in the fundamentals to

:04:26. > :04:30.strengthen our economy for the long-term? When will all these

:04:31. > :04:36.reheated releases finally translate into diggers on the ground? The

:04:37. > :04:40.government said that subsidised prices for onshore wind farms and

:04:41. > :04:44.solar energy will be cut substantially over the next five

:04:45. > :04:49.years. In return, there will be extra support for offshore wind, but

:04:50. > :04:58.not until 2018. The deal that please Tory MPs and the Lib Dems.

:04:59. > :05:06.We have the energy security we need and we are getting better value for

:05:07. > :05:09.money. The Prime Minister said the long-term plan of making cuts was

:05:10. > :05:15.paying off and hinted the government was ready to go further. If the

:05:16. > :05:20.economy continues to grow and the sun continues to shine, we should be

:05:21. > :05:25.fixing the roof. That means, not just getting rid of our deficit

:05:26. > :05:30.but, in good years, trying to put money aside. The Chancellor is

:05:31. > :05:34.putting the final touches to his speech. His message, the economy is

:05:35. > :05:37.recovering but there will be more pain before the job is done. The

:05:38. > :05:40.Chancellor will deliver his Autumn Statement against a backdrop of

:05:41. > :05:43.improving economic forecasts. But critics say it is a recovery based

:05:44. > :05:48.on the wrong foundations - a possible property bubble and

:05:49. > :05:50.consumer spending. Robert Peston has been taking soundings at a busy

:05:51. > :06:05.shopping centre in Kent. Lovely! If it is Christmas in a

:06:06. > :06:13.shopping mall, the huge Bluewater in Kent, I am bored. The day before the

:06:14. > :06:21.Chancellor 's check on public finances to judge whether shoppers

:06:22. > :06:27.are in the mood about the economic recovery. Are you spending or

:06:28. > :06:35.saving? I am spending at the moment but would like to say. I am saving

:06:36. > :06:43.more than I am spending. I am smart saving. Definitely spending. I would

:06:44. > :06:51.probably say saving at the moment. Spending a bit more. Spending a bit

:06:52. > :06:55.more today. In this enormous shopping centre, people are feeling

:06:56. > :07:00.more confident and spending more. With the economy as a whole, rising

:07:01. > :07:06.household consumption has been driving the recovery. If that is

:07:07. > :07:09.going to last, it has two have other sources of growth. Businesses need

:07:10. > :07:17.to be more successful and they have to invest more. A derelict warehouse

:07:18. > :07:24.near Preston. If Norman feels the recovery is built to last, he will

:07:25. > :07:27.expand his plumbing supplies business into it. He is trying to

:07:28. > :07:33.decide whether the outlook has improved enough for it to be worth

:07:34. > :07:38.taking bigger risks. No one in government really knows what it is

:07:39. > :07:43.like to run a business and sit there before payday knowing you have two

:07:44. > :07:48.feet 40, 45 malls. It is really important we are given the

:07:49. > :07:51.confidence to not just move one two steps and play it safe, but really

:07:52. > :08:04.start running because I think we can. What growth we have is faster.

:08:05. > :08:10.Japan only have .5% in America .7%. Right now, the UK is top of the big

:08:11. > :08:16.rich country recovery league table, with growth of .8%. We do hope the

:08:17. > :08:19.recovery will begin to work through to people 's pockets and wage

:08:20. > :08:24.packets over the next year or two. I do think people will be feeling

:08:25. > :08:29.somewhat more prosperous. There is an awful lot of ground to make up.

:08:30. > :08:36.Wages have fallen significantly and people will be poorer than they were

:08:37. > :08:39.in 2008. What the Chancellor will try to do tomorrow is help to

:08:40. > :08:43.sustain the recovery long enough so we start to feel richer before the

:08:44. > :08:50.general election. James Landale is in Downing Street. Tell us a little

:08:51. > :08:54.more about what you think the Chancellor is hoping to achieve in

:08:55. > :08:58.the statement tomorrow. The Chancellor is an unusual position.

:08:59. > :09:03.Forecasters suggest he is likely to have positive economic news, not

:09:04. > :09:07.just about the economy but the state of the recovery. Today, there has

:09:08. > :09:11.been an attempt to get some of the bad news out early. That is why we

:09:12. > :09:16.have learned he will make more spending cuts in Whitehall. It is

:09:17. > :09:24.emerging tonight he is likely to bring forward plans to raise the

:09:25. > :09:26.state pension retirement age, so that many people in our 40s and

:09:27. > :09:31.below are likely to have two wait till they are 68 to get the state

:09:32. > :09:35.pension. For all the positive news about the economy he is expecting,

:09:36. > :09:40.he will make the point there is still work to be done. There is more

:09:41. > :09:45.austerity to come. He wants to tell voters there is still economic risks

:09:46. > :09:49.so do not risk voting for the other side. Labour is keeping up its

:09:50. > :09:54.pressure, to keep the debate firmly locked on the cost of living. They

:09:55. > :09:59.have a new advert out talking about the cost of living bombshell

:10:00. > :10:03.reminiscent of old Tory posters. The task of George Osborne tomorrow is

:10:04. > :10:04.to try to change the subject of political debate back to the

:10:05. > :10:13.economy. The United Nations is to vote

:10:14. > :10:16.tomorrow on plans to send thousands of troops to the Central African

:10:17. > :10:19.Republic, where a tide of violence has left much of the country in

:10:20. > :10:23.chaos. In March, a Muslim rebel group overthrew the country's

:10:24. > :10:25.president and took power. Since then, many civilians have been under

:10:26. > :10:30.attack and Christian fighters have retaliated. 400,000 people are

:10:31. > :10:35.thought to have fled their homes. It is not known how many have died. Our

:10:36. > :10:41.Africa correspondent and cameraman Fred Scott have travelled to a town

:10:42. > :10:44.where 40,000 people have fled. Their report contains graphic accounts of

:10:45. > :10:52.violence and images you might find distressing.

:10:53. > :11:04.The silence is wanting and unbroken. It lasts for hundreds of

:11:05. > :11:19.miles. Abandoned villages, burned villages. And the eerie sense of a

:11:20. > :11:25.nation in hiding. Finally, we spot three nervous, ghostlike figures. On

:11:26. > :11:35.the right, this man says, we thought you were the rebels. He says his

:11:36. > :11:39.family is of six kids. The rest are hiding in the bushes, too scared to

:11:40. > :11:42.come back to the road. We are hiding in the bushes, too scared to come

:11:43. > :11:47.back to the road. We're going to see them now. As word spreads, others

:11:48. > :11:52.cautiously approach us. Months of conflict in the Central African

:11:53. > :11:57.Republic have forced 400,000 people to run for their lives. They are

:11:58. > :12:07.stranded, increasingly desperate and far from help. Disease killed this

:12:08. > :12:12.girl 's younger brother last week. We live like animals here, says the

:12:13. > :12:24.local teacher. No clean water, no food. Back on the road and far to

:12:25. > :12:29.the south, we ran into the rebels. They are mostly Muslims, some

:12:30. > :12:33.foreign. They seized power in the country weeks ago but their

:12:34. > :12:39.rebellion, by no means the first here, has collapsed into a murderous

:12:40. > :12:47.free for all. Now it seems no one is in charge and violence is surging.

:12:48. > :12:58.Suddenly, we stumble across the latest bloodshed. They bring out

:12:59. > :13:03.their dead. Fighters attacked a fewer hours ago. A gallon Christian

:13:04. > :13:12.farmer is one of five killed here, religion now fuelling the violence.

:13:13. > :13:17.-- a young Christian farmer. The Muslims are terrorising us, he said.

:13:18. > :13:26.And now the Christians are hitting back. Nearby, we meet members of a

:13:27. > :13:33.self defence militia. The weapons are home-made. The desire for

:13:34. > :13:39.vengeance is growing. These groups have already carried out brutal

:13:40. > :13:49.reprisals against Muslims. In the middle of the mayhem, this boy has

:13:50. > :13:56.found sanctuary in a church compound in a town called Bossangoa. He was

:13:57. > :14:08.left as an orphan. 40,000 people have now joined him here. He fights

:14:09. > :14:15.back the tears. They killed my father, he says, and took his body.

:14:16. > :14:23.I do not know what will happen to me now.

:14:24. > :14:30.It is feared that is trapping thousands of people in this one

:14:31. > :14:35.spot, and that will not change until people are sure it is safe to go

:14:36. > :14:38.home. The French and African forces are poised to arrive here in the

:14:39. > :14:45.next week or so, and things could improve quickly. But can they

:14:46. > :14:52.protect everyone, and for how long? This is a chronically unstable

:14:53. > :14:53.nation. With trust absent, the only currency that counts is fear, and

:14:54. > :15:19.things have never been this bad. The European Commission has imposed

:15:20. > :15:23.record fines on some of the world 's biggest banks for rigging interest

:15:24. > :15:27.rates. Six financial institutions including Royal Bank Of Scotland

:15:28. > :15:31.have confined nearly 1.5 billion pounds for fixing international

:15:32. > :15:35.rates in the run-up to the financial crisis. Barclays and UBS have not

:15:36. > :15:42.been fined, as they had admitted that the cartel existed. Let's get

:15:43. > :15:45.more from our chief economics correspondent. It is worth

:15:46. > :15:51.underlining that this is just the latest episode in this scandal?

:15:52. > :15:56.Yes, the latest twist in a story that goes back to last year, when

:15:57. > :16:01.Barclays was fined by US and UK regulators of allegations of

:16:02. > :16:05.interest rate fixing. There was a public outcry and other banks were

:16:06. > :16:07.fined including RBS. Now the European Commission has looked at

:16:08. > :16:12.suggestions that banks colluded with each other and broke on British law

:16:13. > :16:17.over interest rate rigging . Several banks have been fined including RBS,

:16:18. > :16:23.it to the tune of ?325 million. But the bank says it had set that money

:16:24. > :16:26.aside already. Barclays and UBS are not being looked at because they

:16:27. > :16:30.went to the commission from the outset. But HSBC is still being

:16:31. > :16:36.investigated, although it says it will vigorously counter the

:16:37. > :16:39.allegations. Nigella Lawson, the author and

:16:40. > :16:43.celebrity cook, has admitted in court that she has taken McCain and

:16:44. > :16:46.smoked cannabis, but she insisted that she was not a regular user or

:16:47. > :16:51.an addict. She was giving evidence in the trial of the two former

:16:52. > :16:53.assistants, who deny charges of fraud. She accused her former

:16:54. > :16:58.husband, Charles Saatchi, of subjecting her to act is of intimate

:16:59. > :17:05.terrorism. This report contains flash photography.

:17:06. > :17:10.Nigella Lawson today look confident as she walked into court. In a

:17:11. > :17:14.dramatic day of evidence, she said it was her that was facing trial by

:17:15. > :17:18.the media, following revelations about her marriage to Charles

:17:19. > :17:24.Saatchi and allegations that she was an habitual drug user. Ms Lawson was

:17:25. > :17:31.in fact appearing as they witness in the trial of two of her former

:17:32. > :17:35.personal assistant is, Elisabetta and Francesca Grillo. They are

:17:36. > :17:40.accused of dishonestly spending over half ?1 million on a company credit

:17:41. > :18:05.card. In court, Ms Lawson chose to stand as she gave hours of evidence.

:18:06. > :18:10.The first time she took cocaine was with her late husband, the writer

:18:11. > :18:14.John Diamond, after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. The next time

:18:15. > :18:19.was in 2010, when she was married to Charles Saatchi, who gave evidence

:18:20. > :18:23.last week. Ms Lawson alleged that following their divorce Cumbria Mr

:18:24. > :18:28.Saatchi had threatened her eyes saying, if you don't clear my name,

:18:29. > :18:33.I will destroy you by spreading false allegations of drug use.

:18:34. > :18:36.Nigella Lawson and her ex-husband, the multimillionaire art collector

:18:37. > :18:42.Charles Saatchi, were often photographed in public together.

:18:43. > :18:45.Then in the summer, these paparazzi photos were published in which Mr

:18:46. > :18:52.Saatchi has his hand around Ms Lawson's neck. Later, he is seen

:18:53. > :18:57.pinching her nose. The couple separated soon after. She told the

:18:58. > :19:03.jury, I felt subjected to intimate terror risen by Mr Saatchi. Nigella

:19:04. > :19:08.Lawson is one of Britain's most elevated TV cooks, and her shows are

:19:09. > :19:12.a pillar of broad. In the glare of the world's media, Nigella today

:19:13. > :19:20.faced tough questions about her personal life. She will return

:19:21. > :19:24.tomorrow to complete her evidence. The the Grillos denied the charges

:19:25. > :19:27.against them. Police in Leeds are questioning a

:19:28. > :19:31.37-year-old man in connection with the shooting of a policewoman early

:19:32. > :19:35.this morning. The officer is being treated in hospital for serious

:19:36. > :19:38.injuries to her face, neck and right hand. She was injured in the

:19:39. > :19:43.Headingley area of the city as she responded to a routine call with a

:19:44. > :19:47.colleague. The jury in the trial of two men

:19:48. > :19:50.accused of murdering the soldier Lee Rigby in south London has been

:19:51. > :19:55.played recorded police interviews with one of the suspect. Michael

:19:56. > :19:58.Adebolajo describes himself as a "soldier of Allah" and said it gave

:19:59. > :20:07.him little joy to approach anybody and slay them.

:20:08. > :20:09.This was Michael Adebolajo, being interviewed at a police station in

:20:10. > :20:16.south London. He covered himself with a blanket throughout, and said

:20:17. > :20:20.he wanted to be known by his Muslim name. He described his co-defendant

:20:21. > :20:26.as his brother. He said he knew him as Ishmael, not Michael Adebowale.

:20:27. > :20:30.Together from the dock, they watched Michael Adebolajo in police

:20:31. > :20:35.interviews, saying Britain was at war with Muslims. He told detect

:20:36. > :20:50.gives, the leaders of Britain are wicked.

:20:51. > :20:55.He and Michael Adebowale butchered Lee Rigby with a meat cleaver and a

:20:56. > :21:00.knife as he made his way back to his barracks. The soldier's family were

:21:01. > :21:14.in court as Michael Adebolajo spoke in his interviews about the killing.

:21:15. > :21:19.Among evidence shown today was user Lee Rigby's military rucksack, which

:21:20. > :21:23.he was carrying when the men targeted him. And there were

:21:24. > :21:26.pictures of their car that they drove at him. After being shot and

:21:27. > :21:31.arrested, the men were initially under police guard in hospital,

:21:32. > :21:35.before being transferred to this high security police station.

:21:36. > :21:39.Tomorrow, the jury is due to learn more about what Michael Adebolajo

:21:40. > :21:43.told detectives here, as the prosecution case moves into its

:21:44. > :21:47.final phase. The defendants are pleading not guilty to murder. They

:21:48. > :21:55.also deny conspiring to kill and attempting to kill a police officer.

:21:56. > :21:58.As the British economy enjoys some welcome growth, the picture across

:21:59. > :22:01.the English Channel is different. There are fears that France could be

:22:02. > :22:05.heading back into recession after the latest figures showed that the

:22:06. > :22:09.service sector is shrinking at an even faster rate than experts

:22:10. > :22:13.predicted. It follows poor manufacturing data published earlier

:22:14. > :22:16.this week. Thousands of people have in protesting against the tax

:22:17. > :22:22.reforms put forward by President Hollande.

:22:23. > :22:28.They may well stand for the president, but Francois Hollande is

:22:29. > :22:32.the plea unpopular, with an night, me seen as the weak link in Europe

:22:33. > :22:38.and a leader facing a growing revolt against high taxes. Almost daily,

:22:39. > :22:44.there are protests. Here in Brittany, truckers and farmers have

:22:45. > :22:49.in demonstrating against a new environmental tax, an eco-tax on

:22:50. > :22:55.heavy goods vehicles. We want either that they stop the eco-tax or change

:22:56. > :23:01.it. You cannot always ask the same ones to pay more taxes. It is not

:23:02. > :23:05.possible. The protesters have taken to wearing red hats, a symbol of an

:23:06. > :23:12.earlier tax protest. There was further evidence today of a drop in

:23:13. > :23:19.new orders, with the fear that France could be falling back into

:23:20. > :23:26.recession. TRANSLATION: The mood is -- the mood in France is very down.

:23:27. > :23:31.The anti-tax protests in Brittany are part of a wider discontent.

:23:32. > :23:35.President Hollande is getting the worst ratings of any president in

:23:36. > :23:41.the history of the French republic. This week, highways have been

:23:42. > :23:45.blocked. Polls suggest that 94% of the French want reforms, and much of

:23:46. > :23:50.their frustration is directed at the president. People think Francois

:23:51. > :23:58.Hollande has not enough courage in terms of reforms. He does not do

:23:59. > :24:01.enough, according to people, so they want someone stronger. The president

:24:02. > :24:05.points to a minor improvement with unemployment, and his ministers

:24:06. > :24:14.insist that some taxes are being cut. We have decided to make tax

:24:15. > :24:21.cuts on companies. We have said to people, you have to pay more taxes.

:24:22. > :24:25.Today, President Hollande was meeting African leaders. On foreign

:24:26. > :24:32.policy, he has been decisive, but at home, he has been cautious, backing

:24:33. > :24:36.down in the face of opposition. In a few hours time, the second

:24:37. > :24:40.Ashes test gets underway in Adelaide, one with Australia 1-0 up

:24:41. > :24:44.in the series. The England captain Alastair Cook has urged both teams

:24:45. > :24:47.to improve their conduct on the field and criticised some players

:24:48. > :24:54.for going over the top in the first test, as he put it. Let's join our

:24:55. > :24:58.correspondent in Adelaide. This is always known as Australia's

:24:59. > :25:05.most picturesque cricket venue. We have had a bit of drizzle here this

:25:06. > :25:08.morning and it is breezy. The teams are going to play in this stadium

:25:09. > :25:15.while it is still under reconstruction. We are not sure how

:25:16. > :25:19.the England team will be built up. Above all, we are wondering if both

:25:20. > :25:25.teams will obey instructions to cool down.

:25:26. > :25:29.The Adelaide Oval is being rebuilt. There is an air of friction, angry

:25:30. > :25:33.noise, but that is not just the builders. The first test finished

:25:34. > :25:38.with a verbal threats between England and Australia. Cricket's

:25:39. > :25:43.world governing body has warned the sides about their behaviour for this

:25:44. > :25:48.match. Do you think anything has changed in the dynamic between the

:25:49. > :25:56.teams? No matter the still just as aggressive? It will not change. In

:25:57. > :26:01.this part of the country, there is one family and one name that stands

:26:02. > :26:10.out as a symbol of Australian cricket attitude - chap L. Three

:26:11. > :26:16.Chappell brothers have represented their country. Greg is stylish,

:26:17. > :26:23.stubborn and inspirationally Australian. These days, his job is

:26:24. > :26:29.to spot new talent. He has seen all the confrontation before. There has

:26:30. > :26:34.always been that passion. If there wasn't, the game would not be worth

:26:35. > :26:40.watching. Every now and then, things bubble over and go yonder where you

:26:41. > :26:50.would like them to go. Alastair Cook knows his team cannot take a

:26:51. > :26:55.backward step. He also told me that the captains must protect the image

:26:56. > :27:01.of cricket. People want to see real cricket, that is what they enjoy.

:27:02. > :27:07.There have to be boundaries. Last week, we let our emotions get ahead

:27:08. > :27:12.of us and it became a bit sponsored... As the captains. The

:27:13. > :27:17.new Adelaide Oval will not be complete in time for this test.

:27:18. > :27:23.England no that for this theory is, if they lose again here, they will

:27:24. > :27:27.also be almost finished. That is all from us. The BBC News

:27:28. > :27:31.Channel has details of the winter storm which will hit Scotland and

:27:32. > :27:33.northern England tonight, bringing possible travel problems and

:27:34. > :27:34.flooding. Now we