:00:00. > :00:08.Tonight at Ten: Theresa May is expected to announce plans -
:00:09. > :00:15.within days - to open new grammar schools in England.
:00:16. > :00:17.It's a highly controversial move - ministers say it's about enhancing
:00:18. > :00:20.social mobility, but critics say it will have the opposite effect.
:00:21. > :00:27.There'll be no return to simplistic binary choices of the past
:00:28. > :00:29.where school separate children into winners or losers,
:00:30. > :00:33.This policy will not help social mobility but will entrench
:00:34. > :00:38.The proposals are expected to be included in a government
:00:39. > :00:45.A special report from a rebel-held part of Damascus -
:00:46. > :00:49.where people have been under siege for five years.
:00:50. > :00:57.Massive disruption in their lives, huge tragedy, but for the government
:00:58. > :01:00.this is a good day because they are strengthening their hold
:01:01. > :01:03.We report from Switzerland on possible lessons for Britain
:01:04. > :01:16.In Rio - it's a record 12th gold medal for Dame Sarah Storey
:01:17. > :01:19.And why scientists say they've rewritten the biology
:01:20. > :01:25.And coming up in Sportsday on BBC News at 10.30pm:
:01:26. > :01:28.Chris Froome is still playing catch up at the Vuelta Espana.
:01:29. > :01:51.Three stages left and three and a half minutes off the lead.
:01:52. > :01:55.The Prime Minister is expected to announce plans within days
:01:56. > :01:57.to open new grammar schools in England.
:01:58. > :02:01.The BBC understands that the proposals will be included
:02:02. > :02:04.in a Government green paper, a consultation document,
:02:05. > :02:07.with an emphasis on enhancing social mobility.
:02:08. > :02:09.The schools would be forced to set aside a number
:02:10. > :02:12.of places for children from poorer backgrounds.
:02:13. > :02:18.Critics of the plans say it would be a return to the days when pupils
:02:19. > :02:22.were divided into winners and losers at the age of 11, as our education
:02:23. > :02:34.The best chance for the brightest kids or a chance for the few at the
:02:35. > :02:40.expense of the many. Grammar schools have never gone away, one of the
:02:41. > :02:44.great battle grounds in education. You can use a calculator. This is
:02:45. > :02:48.where Theresa May's top adviser came to school. Now it could be the model
:02:49. > :02:53.for a new generation of grammar schools. Because you're getting a
:02:54. > :02:58.place is not just about test scores. I think it's hard to find a test
:02:59. > :03:02.which will be immune to practice and tutoring. This group of grammar
:03:03. > :03:14.schools set aside some places, up to a quarter go to children from lower
:03:15. > :03:16.income families. It's about the children, maximising the impact and
:03:17. > :03:19.life chances, the impact they can have on all those children whatever
:03:20. > :03:21.their background. Grammar schools have a history of getting pupils
:03:22. > :03:26.into top universities but some fear this entrenches privilege. Grammar
:03:27. > :03:30.schools are proud of their tradition of academic excellence. The problem
:03:31. > :03:35.is that very few have gone as far as this school in making sure that poor
:03:36. > :03:41.pupils get places. It's why the debate about who gets into grammar
:03:42. > :03:45.schools is now going to be crucial. The Education Secretary went to a
:03:46. > :03:49.Coprah offensive in Rotherham. Now she will have to push through a law
:03:50. > :03:53.to allow new grammar schools. There will be no return to the simplistic
:03:54. > :03:56.binary choice of the past were schools separate children into
:03:57. > :04:03.winners or losers, successes or failures. The government wants to
:04:04. > :04:09.focus on the future, to build on our successes and create a truly
:04:10. > :04:14.21st-century school system. Labour appointed to research that poor
:04:15. > :04:19.children have lost, not gained from selection. This policy will entrench
:04:20. > :04:25.inequality and disadvantage. It will be the lucky few who can afford the
:04:26. > :04:31.tuition who will get ahead and the disadvantaged will be left behind. A
:04:32. > :04:35.policy for the few at the expense of the many. Skegness Grammar school is
:04:36. > :04:40.a part of a group of academy schools. Closer links like this will
:04:41. > :04:44.be expected in future because each grammar school has a knock-on
:04:45. > :04:50.impact. But will that be enough to meet the concerns of senior Tory
:04:51. > :04:53.critics? We don't want to blast back to the past, if we are going to have
:04:54. > :04:57.new selective schools of any type they had to fit in with the system
:04:58. > :05:01.and make sure the blend with multi-academy trusts, the options
:05:02. > :05:04.for university technical colleges and so on. A grammar school
:05:05. > :05:09.education is still what some families want but many believe it's
:05:10. > :05:13.not the best or the only way to give children the chance to excel.
:05:14. > :05:19.Our political correspondent Vicki Young is at Westminster.
:05:20. > :05:26.We know it's a controversial policy, what is the Prime Minister's
:05:27. > :05:30.thinking in pursuing it like this? For Theresa May it's about social
:05:31. > :05:34.mobility, she said that is what she wanted to do when she became Prime
:05:35. > :05:38.Minister and she feels education can be key to that. The problem is that
:05:39. > :05:42.with grammar schools there is little evidence they have actually been
:05:43. > :05:45.achieving that, helping the most disadvantaged pupils to fill their
:05:46. > :05:50.potential. She is not simply bringing in a new wave of grammar
:05:51. > :06:00.schools, she is going to attach conditions. It's going to be done in
:06:01. > :06:02.a different way, a certain number of places reserved for those poor
:06:03. > :06:06.children but also closer ties with local schools. I think that an
:06:07. > :06:09.attempt to raise standards and try to persuade sceptical MPs and the
:06:10. > :06:12.House of Lords that they should pass this new legislation. We also
:06:13. > :06:17.understand there will be changes to the ways that faith schools select
:06:18. > :06:21.pupils, that was said to encourage new Catholic schools to open which
:06:22. > :06:25.they regard as very popular and successful. There are many here in
:06:26. > :06:28.Westminster who think this talk of a few grammar schools in England is a
:06:29. > :06:33.distraction from a much broader issue about raising standards in
:06:34. > :06:36.senior schools across the state sector, the schools that the
:06:37. > :06:39.majority of pupils go to. Thank you very much.
:06:40. > :06:42.Diplomatic efforts to build a peace settlement in Syria are intensifying
:06:43. > :06:44.as the United States and Russia prepare to hold talks
:06:45. > :06:55.Both sides have agreed that any deal would involve a meaningful ceasefire
:06:56. > :06:57.and humanitarian access to parts of the country worst affected
:06:58. > :07:03.One of those heavily affected areas is Mouadamiya a rebel-held suburb
:07:04. > :07:14.From there, our Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen has sent this report.
:07:15. > :07:21.This road is paved with guns, tears and loss.
:07:22. > :07:23.These families in the UN's words have faced four years
:07:24. > :07:29.Children starve, starving people eat grass, amid fighting
:07:30. > :07:42.Many of the children here are too young to remember peace.
:07:43. > :07:45.The departing families had fled from a neighbouring enclave emptied
:07:46. > :07:47.at the end of August in an evacuation
:07:48. > :08:04.For the regime, both places were nests of terrorists.
:08:05. > :08:14.Local men said they were just defending themselves.
:08:15. > :08:16.These are forced evacuations, siege and starvation
:08:17. > :08:22.Children were dressed in their best clothes for the journey.
:08:23. > :08:34.TRANSLATION: We've left behind tragedy.
:08:35. > :08:46.Two of this woman's sons were killed and so were two grand daughters.
:08:47. > :08:50.TRANSLATION: My heart was broken for my two children.
:08:51. > :08:54.They went looking for food and they never came back.
:08:55. > :08:58.My two grand daughters, ten and 15 years old,
:08:59. > :09:10.Those are my memories of the last four years.
:09:11. > :09:17.Look at the faces of some of the civilians, you can see
:09:18. > :09:22.the strain they have been living under for such a long time.
:09:23. > :09:27.Now, massive disruption in their lives, huge tragedy.
:09:28. > :09:30.But for the government, this is a good day because they are
:09:31. > :09:35.strengthening their hold on the area around the capital.
:09:36. > :09:41.For President Assad, that counts as an important step forward.
:09:42. > :09:46.For the rebels, all this adds up to a defeat.
:09:47. > :09:51.Syrian Army soldiers searched everyone leaving.
:09:52. > :09:53.They seemed to respect the opposition fighters who emerged
:09:54. > :09:59.After a few minutes, the two groups warmed up enough
:10:00. > :10:05.He's there, he has a picture of Assad on his uniform?
:10:06. > :10:13.He's a person, he's a Syrian man, I don't hate him.
:10:14. > :10:21.For me, I want all people who killed us, who killed our children,
:10:22. > :10:23.who attack us, to be judged and put in jail.
:10:24. > :10:37.Some rebel fighters could follow the civilians out if they're
:10:38. > :10:42.This war might have years left in it, but in this part
:10:43. > :10:44.of the the capital suburbs for now, it looks to be over.
:10:45. > :10:54.Four men from Birmingham and Stoke on Trent have been charged
:10:55. > :10:58.They were all arrested on 26th August.
:10:59. > :11:01.On that day an army bomb disposal van was called a business
:11:02. > :11:05.All four men will be now be brought to London and will appear
:11:06. > :11:13.at Westminster Magistrates Court tomorrow morning.
:11:14. > :11:16.In Paris, a woman has been shot and wounded as she was arrested
:11:17. > :11:21.along with two others by police investigating the discovery of a car
:11:22. > :11:23.containing gas canisters near Notre Dame Cathedral
:11:24. > :11:26.France's interior minister has described the three women
:11:27. > :11:29.aged between 19 and 39 as 'radicalised fanatics'.
:11:30. > :11:32.A policeman was stabbed during the arrests.
:11:33. > :11:36.The Prime Minister has held her first formal face-to-face
:11:37. > :11:38.meeting with Donald Tusk, president of the European Council,
:11:39. > :11:42.on the preparations for the UK's exit from the European Union.
:11:43. > :11:46.Mrs May said the aim was to make the process as smooth as possible.
:11:47. > :11:49.And she said the UK would take time to prepare for the negotiations,
:11:50. > :11:52.repeating that Article 50, the mechanism for Brexit,
:11:53. > :11:59.would not be triggered before the end of the year.
:12:00. > :12:02.The former president of Switzerland has added her voice to the debate
:12:03. > :12:05.on Brexit; she told the BBC that Britain should work with the Swiss
:12:06. > :12:09.to try to secure a new deal with the EU maintaining access
:12:10. > :12:11.to the single market while changing the rules
:12:12. > :12:16.Switzerland, which is not a member of the European Union,
:12:17. > :12:19.is currently trying to renegotiate its relationship with the EU
:12:20. > :12:22.after the country rejected free movement of people in 2014.
:12:23. > :12:25.Our economics editor Kamal Ahmed has been to see if Switzerland has any
:12:26. > :12:33.It's a country viewed as quiet, serene.
:12:34. > :12:36.But beneath the picturesque exterior Switzerland has been split
:12:37. > :12:43.Concerns so strong, in 2014 it voted against freedom
:12:44. > :12:51.This small country, wholly surrounded by EU member states,
:12:52. > :12:57.has suddenly discovered it could be a player in Britain's Brexit debate.
:12:58. > :13:00.This is the beautiful town of Bremgarton.
:13:01. > :13:03.It's in the heart of an area of Switzerland which voted most
:13:04. > :13:09.It might not look much like Britain, but the concerns here are very
:13:10. > :13:20.Worries about who exactly controls the border with the European Union.
:13:21. > :13:24.Micheline Calmy-Rey is the former president of Switzerland and well
:13:25. > :13:27.knows how hard it is trying to negotiate with the EU.
:13:28. > :13:34.She says it's time for her country and Britain to join forces.
:13:35. > :13:37.The European Union is very rigid on the question of freedom
:13:38. > :13:41.of movement and I think if the European Union doesn't
:13:42. > :13:45.integrate diversity inside its institution it
:13:46. > :13:57.Ladies and gentlemen we are now arriving at Zurich main station.
:13:58. > :14:00.From Geneva to Zurich to talk to the man who negotiated
:14:01. > :14:02.Switzerland's major trade deals with the EU.
:14:03. > :14:06.Could there be movement on the freedom of movement?
:14:07. > :14:09.I think the basic problem is what I call the binary problem.
:14:10. > :14:13.You are either fully in or you are fully out.
:14:14. > :14:16.And this does not serve the interest I think neither
:14:17. > :14:20.of the European Union nor of the outsiders.
:14:21. > :14:24.I am sure that Brexit is sort of a catalyser
:14:25. > :14:27.for contributing to the debate, whether the European Union has
:14:28. > :14:34.Theresa May knows she's going to need allies
:14:35. > :14:37.if she is going to get the best Brexit deal possible
:14:38. > :14:41.and here in Switzerland she has a willing partner.
:14:42. > :14:45.I have been told that Swiss diplomats have already been
:14:46. > :14:48.dispatched to London to look at opening lines of communication.
:14:49. > :14:53.There is a willingness ro cooperate on limiting the freedom of movement,
:14:54. > :14:55.on retaining legal sovereignty and working on those
:14:56. > :15:02.When it comes to tackling the European Union, it does
:15:03. > :15:05.appear that two voices may well be louder than one.
:15:06. > :15:08.There will be difficult issues to bridge.
:15:09. > :15:10.Yes, demands for flexibility, but the EU knows that
:15:11. > :15:18.If the EU is too soft with the UK other countries might
:15:19. > :15:23.This might be the end of EU integration as we know it now.
:15:24. > :15:25.So it's a very important political problem, not only economic.
:15:26. > :15:30.It's been a long time, two years since Switzerland voted
:15:31. > :15:37.for immigration quotas, and the EU has yet refused to budge.
:15:38. > :15:40.But that was before a possible new ally decided it had had enough
:15:41. > :15:54.The opening day of the Paralympic games have been getting under way,
:15:55. > :15:57.and tonight there has been success for Team GB on the cycling track
:15:58. > :15:59.as Dame Sarah Storey has won her 12th gold medal.
:16:00. > :16:02.She's has now become Team GB's most successful female paralympian.
:16:03. > :16:10.Our sports correspondent Andy Swiss reports.
:16:11. > :16:16.So would the fans come? Well, this was the answer.
:16:17. > :16:20.After all the worries over ticket sales, thousands flocked to the
:16:21. > :16:24.Paralympic Park hoping for a dramatic day. After a dramatic
:16:25. > :16:29.night. Among the opening ceremony's
:16:30. > :16:32.highlights, American winter paralympian Amy Purdy dancing the
:16:33. > :16:37.Samba with a robot. It wasn't a total celebration. The booing of the
:16:38. > :16:42.Brazilian President a reminder of the country's problems. But this was
:16:43. > :16:47.the true Paralympic spirit, torch bearer and former athlete Marcia
:16:48. > :16:54.Malsar slipped on a rain-soaked floor, but the stadium rose in
:16:55. > :16:59.support as she picked herself up and carrying on, her determination to
:17:00. > :17:03.succeed which Rio will hope the Games can emulate. With the first
:17:04. > :17:10.day of action bring a moment of history? The fastest Dame on two
:17:11. > :17:15.wheels, Sarah Storey chasing a place in the record books. She was up
:17:16. > :17:21.against Lane. The 3,000 metre pursuit was over in a flash. So what
:17:22. > :17:26.no British woman's ever achieved, a 12th Paralympic title for Stoerye
:17:27. > :17:31.and a new pinnacle in an extraordinary career. Born without a
:17:32. > :17:35.functioning left hand, Storey started out as an outstanding
:17:36. > :17:39.swimmer before becoming an even better cyclist, a world beater
:17:40. > :17:45.across two sports and the woman whose record she's surpassed told me
:17:46. > :17:50.it was richly deserved. For Sarah and Sport Cycling to win 12 golds is
:17:51. > :17:54.amazing and well deserved. She did incredibly well as a swimmer,
:17:55. > :17:58.transferred to cycling. There's a bit of me that wished she started
:17:59. > :18:01.cycling earlier because that's her sport. She is looked up to and
:18:02. > :18:07.respected because she's an incredible person. Earlier,
:18:08. > :18:12.Britain's first gold of the Games went to Megan three years after
:18:13. > :18:15.taking up cycling after a stroke. She proved untop jab, catching her
:18:16. > :18:21.opponent with ease. Britain's medal tally off the mark in emphatic
:18:22. > :18:28.style. The day's biggest cheers came for the hosts in the visually
:18:29. > :18:33.impaired long jump, Ricciardo Costa leaping for glory. Brazil's first
:18:34. > :18:37.gold of the Games after a difficult build-up, already plenty to
:18:38. > :18:41.celebrate. A great moment for Brazil and it's
:18:42. > :18:46.turning into a great night for Britain. In the last 20 minutes or
:18:47. > :18:52.so, there's been more British success, another gold in the
:18:53. > :18:58.velodrome for Steve Bait and Adam Doubleby in the tandem, gold in the
:18:59. > :19:02.pool, Olly Hind winning the 400 metres in a new world record time
:19:03. > :19:07.and more chances in the swimming somewhere John Fox and Bethany Firth
:19:08. > :19:11.both with real prospects. So four golds already, it seems another
:19:12. > :19:13.British gold rush is under way here in Rio, Huw. Thank you very much.
:19:14. > :19:17.We'll talk again tomorrow. The Labour leadership contender
:19:18. > :19:20.Owen Smith has confirmed that he would favour
:19:21. > :19:24.a new referendum on the terms of Brexit
:19:25. > :19:27.negotiated by the government. He was facing questions -
:19:28. > :19:30.alongside the leader Jeremy Corbyn - from voters in Oldham this evening
:19:31. > :19:37.in a special edition Our political correspondent
:19:38. > :19:48.Alex Forsyth is there. I mentioned the debate, but who came
:19:49. > :19:51.out on top, if either did? We are approaching the final stages of this
:19:52. > :19:55.leadership contest and, despite weeks of such debates, it doesn't
:19:56. > :19:59.really seem to have moved much. Jeremy Corbyn's still deemed to be
:20:00. > :20:02.the front-runner among party members, Owen Smith is still
:20:03. > :20:06.commanding the majority of support from MPs and tonight, there was
:20:07. > :20:10.familiar territory on domestic policy issues, the two candidates
:20:11. > :20:14.largely agree on the need for investment in Public Services, on
:20:15. > :20:18.opposing austerity. Their differences on the EU once again
:20:19. > :20:22.clear, Owen Smith saying he thinks we should fight against Brexit.
:20:23. > :20:25.Jeremy Corbyn saying that democratic referendum result should be
:20:26. > :20:30.respected. What this really boils down to is, who is the best man to
:20:31. > :20:35.lead Labour. That is where some of the more heated exchanges came
:20:36. > :20:37.tonight, Owen Smith questioning Jeremy Corbyn's leadership
:20:38. > :20:41.credentials, Jeremy Corbyn saying he's the man who can unite the
:20:42. > :20:45.Labour Party. Owen, I don't fully understand what the problem is. You
:20:46. > :20:48.obviously have enormous talents. Why can't we work together?
:20:49. > :20:53.APPLAUSE. Well, I've said it several times,
:20:54. > :20:58.Jeremy. And I'll say it again to you. If I felt that you were going
:20:59. > :21:02.to lead Labour back to power, then I would work with you in the Shadow
:21:03. > :21:08.Cabinet. But I feel that you are satisfied to lead us in opposition.
:21:09. > :21:12.The audience tonight was made up of two thirds of Labour supporters and
:21:13. > :21:17.perhaps one of the most striking things was the tangible frustration
:21:18. > :21:21.from some audience members at both candidates, one saying they had
:21:22. > :21:26.rendered Labour unelectable, another saying it was a sad situation, a
:21:27. > :21:30.third saying quite simply, it was disgraceful. Perhaps that is a sign
:21:31. > :21:33.that no matter who wins this leadership contest, and we'll find
:21:34. > :21:38.out in just over two weeks, they have a mountain to climb, not just
:21:39. > :21:40.in terms of uniting Labour, but more importantly, getting into power.
:21:41. > :21:44.Alex, thank you very much. Millions of pounds will be invested
:21:45. > :21:48.in new flood barriers in England and more accurate forecasts will be
:21:49. > :21:51.developed following the floods of last Christmas when thousands
:21:52. > :21:55.of people were forced from their homes in
:21:56. > :21:58.Cumbria and Yorkshire. Critics say the Government's
:21:59. > :22:00.approach is not Our science editor David
:22:01. > :22:04.Shukman has more details. It was a winter that saw storms
:22:05. > :22:07.bringing terrible destruction. The bridge at Tadcaster
:22:08. > :22:10.just crumbling. The record rainfall
:22:11. > :22:13.swamped 16,000 homes. The sight of families being rescued
:22:14. > :22:17.was repeated week after week. So questions were raised
:22:18. > :22:20.about our flood defences and the government
:22:21. > :22:23.promised a review. Today it unveiled a new weapon
:22:24. > :22:26.against flooding. Temporary barriers which can be
:22:27. > :22:29.assembled where they are most The Army has units ready for the job
:22:30. > :22:36.and ministers say this should help. At the end of the day we don't know
:22:37. > :22:39.exactly where the rain is going to fall, I can't promise
:22:40. > :22:42.that no home will ever be not flooded again but I can say
:22:43. > :22:45.we are in a better place than we were last winter
:22:46. > :22:47.in being able to All these barriers are ready to be
:22:48. > :22:52.deployed to hold back the next big flood and there are six other sites
:22:53. > :22:55.like this across the country. It looks a lot until you read
:22:56. > :22:59.the detail of this report into last winter's flooding and see just how
:23:00. > :23:02.many vitally important pieces of infrastructure -
:23:03. > :23:05.water supplies, electricity networks, telecommunications -
:23:06. > :23:08.are still vulnerable to flooding. The report investigated exactly how
:23:09. > :23:13.many sites are at risk. It found that across England 820
:23:14. > :23:17.are vulnerable to flooding. Of those 290 are kept
:23:18. > :23:21.safe with good defences. And the potential impact
:23:22. > :23:27.of that is all too obvious. Even now the bridge at Tadcaster
:23:28. > :23:30.is still being repaired. Local people have long said
:23:31. > :23:33.the government is not doing enough for them and this was
:23:34. > :23:37.the reaction to that investment ?12.5 million, thank you for that,
:23:38. > :23:44.that's great but let's really get We need to be spending a lot
:23:45. > :23:53.more on the defences. Emergency repairs by
:23:54. > :23:56.helicopter last winter. The government has committed
:23:57. > :24:01.to ?2.5 billion to flood defence over six years but that
:24:02. > :24:15.won't protect everyone. Matthew Brown runs two pubs in
:24:16. > :24:19.Hebden Bridge. Both flooded on Christmas Day. He's worried they are
:24:20. > :24:22.still vulnerable. I don't believe to my knowledge there's anything
:24:23. > :24:23.stopping it. I'm still concerned it could happen.
:24:24. > :24:25.The floods tore through Northern England, Wales,
:24:26. > :24:31.And Met Office analysis has come up with a worrying conclusion;
:24:32. > :24:35.that there could easily be bigger storms to come.
:24:36. > :24:41.A mentally ill man stabbed a university lecturer to death
:24:42. > :24:43.in North London just days after prosecutors dropped charges
:24:44. > :24:46.against him for possessing knives and assaulting a policeman.
:24:47. > :24:50.Dr Yuroon Ensink was killed as he left home to post cards
:24:51. > :24:52.announcing the birth of his daughter.
:24:53. > :24:56.23-year-old Femi Nandap admitted his manslaughter by reason
:24:57. > :25:02.Bristol Crown Court has been hearing evidence in the case
:25:03. > :25:06.of Christopher Halliwell, a former taxi driver accused
:25:07. > :25:10.The court was told that Halliwell, who's defending himself,
:25:11. > :25:13.is already serving a life sentence for murdering another woman.
:25:14. > :25:17.Today he cross-examined Steve Fulcher, a former police
:25:18. > :25:19.office who arrested him for that murder.
:25:20. > :25:23.On the day of his arrest five years ago it is claimed that Halliwell led
:25:24. > :25:26.police to a field where the body of Becky Godden was discovered.
:25:27. > :25:30.He denies murdering Becky Godden; the trial continues.
:25:31. > :25:34.Public Health England has been asked to investigate high numbers
:25:35. > :25:37.of deaths among drug and alcohol users on the Wirral in Merseyside.
:25:38. > :25:40.BBC News has learned that investigators were called
:25:41. > :25:43.in by the local authority after 74 deaths were reported
:25:44. > :25:48.Official figures on deaths related solely to drugs in England and Wales
:25:49. > :25:53.Last year they were at record levels, as our social affairs
:25:54. > :25:59.correspondent Michael Buchanan reports.
:26:00. > :26:05.Plaid was ravaged by heroin in the '80s, Liverpool the first city in
:26:06. > :26:09.Britain to suffer a mass epidemic -- Merseyside. At one time, the highest
:26:10. > :26:14.rate of heroin abuse among teenagers was to be found here on the Wirral.
:26:15. > :26:19.Some of those who managed to survive are now dying off rapidly. Thinking
:26:20. > :26:24.back to the last funeral, you are thinking, I have to live... Frances
:26:25. > :26:30.has lost several friends in recent months. Like him, they were former
:26:31. > :26:33.heroin addicts reliant on rehabilitation report. He feels
:26:34. > :26:38.short comings in care contributed to the deaths. If they'd come in and
:26:39. > :26:48.worked in the spirit of openness and sharing and listening to what the
:26:49. > :26:52.users wanted, needed, then things could have been so different. Drug
:26:53. > :26:58.and alcohol services on the Wirral are provided by this organisation.
:26:59. > :27:02.Over the past 18 months, we've learnt 73 of their clients have died
:27:03. > :27:05.-- 74. The local council's asked public health England to
:27:06. > :27:09.investigate. Most die of long-term health problems, rather than drug
:27:10. > :27:13.overdoses, says the charity running the service. They say they are
:27:14. > :27:16.collaborating with inquiries and are not under investigation. They say
:27:17. > :27:21.they provide good support to service users. It's an opportunity to see
:27:22. > :27:24.can we prevent and intervene earlier to help people access the right
:27:25. > :27:28.treatment. We are not physical health treatment provider. It's not
:27:29. > :27:30.necessarily in our gift to make sure people get the respiratory care they
:27:31. > :27:34.need, for example. You could pass them on? Entirely. And it's not been
:27:35. > :27:40.happening? Not as much as it should do. On this street in Birmingham, we
:27:41. > :27:44.found plenty evidence of the city's enduring heroin problem. A number of
:27:45. > :27:49.users declining across the country, many still need support. The rehab
:27:50. > :27:53.budgets are being cut here, as elsewhere, this former GP spent deck
:27:54. > :27:57.aids working with drug users has significant concerns. Anything
:27:58. > :28:05.people can do to put more resources in in terms of people and trained
:28:06. > :28:08.helpers and time, we'll move towards getting a safe drug treatment
:28:09. > :28:12.service again. At the moment, it doesn't feel safe. Many former
:28:13. > :28:18.heroin users rely on methadone to survive. But in recent years,
:28:19. > :28:23.Government policy's been encouraging abstinence. Some pay extra to get
:28:24. > :28:27.users drug free. That approach works for some people but can have
:28:28. > :28:33.unintended consequences. Getting people to stop using drugs increases
:28:34. > :28:35.the risk of relapse into heroin use and illegal drug use and
:28:36. > :28:39.consequently increases the risk of sudden death. Heroin addiction in
:28:40. > :28:44.the housing estates of Edinburgh was the inspiration for a seminal novel.
:28:45. > :28:49.So-called Train Spotting generation are now dying as long-term drug
:28:50. > :28:54.dependence wrecks their bodies. It's led to record levels of drug related
:28:55. > :28:57.deaths in Scotland and England, a heroin epidemic decades ago still
:28:58. > :29:00.killing people. Michael Buchanan, BBC News.
:29:01. > :29:03.One of the most influential names in the arts world,
:29:04. > :29:06.Sir Nicholas Serota, is to step down as the director
:29:07. > :29:08.of the Tate Galleries to take up a new role as chair
:29:09. > :29:13.He was a leading light in the creation of the Tate Modern
:29:14. > :29:17.and over nearly three decades under his stewardship the gallery
:29:18. > :29:30.has expanded and the Tate has opened its first regional galleries.
:29:31. > :29:40.Prince Buster has died at his home in Florida, he was 78.
:29:41. > :29:45.His recordings in the 1906s, including One Step Beyond and
:29:46. > :29:52.madness provided a revival of scar music. Bands including Madness, who
:29:53. > :29:57.took their name from a Prince Buster song, covered a number of classics.
:29:58. > :30:00.Scientists working in Namibia say they've rewritten the biology
:30:01. > :30:02.of the tallest mammal on Earth, the giraffe.
:30:03. > :30:05.The Giraffe Conservation Foundation asked a team of scientists to carry
:30:06. > :30:07.out genetic analysis of giraffes in Namibia and found
:30:08. > :30:10.that the mammals have evolved into four distinct species.
:30:11. > :30:12.The previous assumption was that there was just
:30:13. > :30:16.Our correspondent Victoria Gill reports from Chester Zoo.
:30:17. > :30:22.But these animals are in decline, as their natural
:30:23. > :30:31.That threat was the trigger for scientists to sample giraffe DNA
:30:32. > :30:34.to find out more about these increasingly fragmented populations.
:30:35. > :30:42.What these new results show is that there are actually four
:30:43. > :30:46.different species of giraffe, all very tall and they look very
:30:47. > :30:49.similar, but they're actually genetically as distinct from each
:30:50. > :30:52.other as a polar bear is from a brown bear.
:30:53. > :30:56.So these animals have now been newly categorised.
:30:57. > :31:00.There are articulated giraffes, northern giraffes, southern giraffes
:31:01. > :31:07.It may look like a very tricky game of spot the difference,
:31:08. > :31:10.but to conservationists, it's crucial information.
:31:11. > :31:16.Now understanding there's real genetic differences helps us
:31:17. > :31:20.understand there may well be differences in mating behaviour
:31:21. > :31:30.Those are critical to conserving the species.
:31:31. > :31:35.The wild population of giraffes has declined by 40%
:31:36. > :31:44.So looking deep into their DNA could help conservationists
:31:45. > :31:48.to understand and protect the world's tallest mammals.
:31:49. > :31:57.Victoria Gill, BBC News, Chester Zoo.
:31:58. > :32:08.Tonight, we reveal the contents of the Government green paper which
:32:09. > :32:11.confirms Theresa May wants to make further selection in English
:32:12. > :32:14.education a key feature of her Government. Join me on BBC Two, 11
:32:15. > :32:15.o'clock in