:00:18. > :00:21.Good afternoon. It's emerged that three British banks are among 17
:00:21. > :00:26.financial institutions being sued by the US government, as it seeks
:00:26. > :00:28.to recover billions of dollars lost in the sub-prime mortgage scandal.
:00:29. > :00:32.Barclays, HSBC and the Royal Bank of Scotland are accused of
:00:32. > :00:34.misrepresenting the quality of their mortgage products.
:00:35. > :00:43.Greater Manchester police say they still have hundreds of witnesses to
:00:43. > :00:46.interview about the deaths of seven There are some of the seminal
:00:46. > :00:50.images of the financial crisis, when almost 5 million American
:00:50. > :00:54.households lost their homes in 2008-9. Many have long believed
:00:54. > :00:58.that banks have offered mortgages to people they knew could ill
:00:58. > :01:01.afford to repay. So now the Government backed watchdog for the
:01:01. > :01:06.American property agencies Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are suing 17 of
:01:06. > :01:10.the world's largest banks. The American government believes these
:01:10. > :01:13.banks missold specialised products worth billions of dollars, and
:01:13. > :01:23.contributed to the financial crisis and the ensuing recession. Of the
:01:23. > :01:26.
:01:26. > :01:30.three British banks being sued, This is quite a significant lawsuit,
:01:30. > :01:34.because regardless of the validity or otherwise of these allegations,
:01:34. > :01:37.a lot of these banks are likely to pay billions of dollars in
:01:37. > :01:42.compensation to the US government. It will be a costly settlement at
:01:42. > :01:46.best for these firms, and it comes at a difficult time for the banking
:01:46. > :01:49.industry, which has seen its profits declining and is being
:01:49. > :01:53.buffeted by global economic problems. The banks are also rich -
:01:53. > :01:55.- bracing themselves for the imminent publication of the
:01:55. > :02:00.Independent Commission on Banking report, which may force them to
:02:00. > :02:04.make dramatic changes to how they are run in Britain. On top of that,
:02:04. > :02:08.many chavs are now forming over a very weak economy, pointing to a
:02:08. > :02:11.possible double dip recession. Greater Manchester police say they
:02:11. > :02:14.still have hundreds of witnesses to interview about the deaths of seven
:02:15. > :02:17.patients at a hospital in Stockport. Last night, they revealed that up
:02:18. > :02:20.to 40 people may have had their saline drips tampered with while
:02:20. > :02:23.they were being treated at Stepping Hill hospital. Rebecca Leighton, a
:02:23. > :02:25.nurse who spent six weeks in custody, charged with contaminating
:02:25. > :02:34.the saline, was released yesterday after proceedings against her were
:02:34. > :02:39.dropped. Rebecca Leighton has spent more
:02:39. > :02:42.than six weeks in jail, accused of contaminating supplies of Saleem
:02:43. > :02:46.solution and endangering the lives of patients. Her parents looked on
:02:46. > :02:50.as she expressed her relief at being freed from jail in a
:02:50. > :02:53.statement read by her solicitor. It's so frustrating for me, knowing
:02:53. > :02:57.that the person who carried out these terrible acts is out there.
:02:58. > :03:01.My life has been turned upside down. All I wanted to do was to pursue a
:03:01. > :03:04.profession in nursing and care for my patients. It is unbelievable
:03:04. > :03:09.that anyone in the medical profession would ever put their
:03:09. > :03:13.patients' lives at risk. Police believe that seven patients died at
:03:13. > :03:18.Stepping Hill and up to 40 in total were affected after Saleem drips
:03:18. > :03:23.were contaminated. So far, they have spoken to 200 people and have
:03:23. > :03:27.500 more to interview in what they say is one of the most complex
:03:27. > :03:31.investigations ever carried out by the force. Like any investigation,
:03:31. > :03:34.this is a search for the truth. While we wish to prosecute those
:03:34. > :03:38.responsible and bring them to justice, we have to discount and
:03:38. > :03:42.eliminate from the inquiry those who are not responsible and are
:03:42. > :03:47.dedicated medical professionals. though freed from jail, Rebecca
:03:47. > :03:48.Leighton is still suspended from working as a nurse and an interim
:03:48. > :03:51.order from the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
:03:51. > :03:54.In Libya, opposition fighters are continuing their advance on Colonel
:03:54. > :03:57.Gaddafi's birthplace, the city of Sirte. Negotiations are continuing
:03:57. > :04:00.to try to persuade regime loyalists to surrender. Meanwhile, Libya's
:04:00. > :04:04.acting leaders say they will move their headquarters to the capital,
:04:04. > :04:13.Tripoli, next week. Ben Brown is there for us now. How big a
:04:13. > :04:17.challenge will the new administration face in Tripoli?
:04:17. > :04:22.some ways, this seems to be a city returning to normal. Traffic is
:04:22. > :04:25.flowing. They are clearing the streets of rubbish and have taken
:04:25. > :04:30.down barricades. They are still celebrating. We have seen people
:04:30. > :04:35.out on the streets, a lot of women out in what used to be Queens
:04:35. > :04:40.Square in the Gaddafi days, now Martyr Square, chanting their
:04:40. > :04:44.delight at the demise of Colonel Gaddafi and looking to the National
:04:44. > :04:48.Transitional Council to bring democracy to this country. People
:04:48. > :04:53.here have huge hopes. When the transitional council arrive next
:04:53. > :04:57.week, they will have enormous tasks. There are severe shortages of
:04:57. > :05:02.things like water and fuel. There is still a war going on. Sirte is
:05:02. > :05:08.still in the hands of Gaddafi loyalists. Colonel Gaddafi himself
:05:08. > :05:12.is still in hiding. Nobody is sure exactly where, maybe the town Bani
:05:12. > :05:16.Walid, south east of here. But he is still able to put out messages,
:05:16. > :05:20.calling on loyalists to resist the National Transitional Council and
:05:20. > :05:23.fight a long guerrilla war of resistance. So there are plenty of
:05:24. > :05:26.problems for the transitional council. But it will be hugely
:05:26. > :05:30.symbolic when they arrive. The Government is putting pressure
:05:30. > :05:32.on all MPs to reject a proposal to change the way that abortion
:05:32. > :05:34.providers deal with women seeking to end their pregnancies. A
:05:34. > :05:40.backbench Conservative MP wants to stop such organisations giving
:05:40. > :05:43.counselling, saying independent advice should be given.
:05:43. > :05:45.The Government has offered to hold talks with opponents of their
:05:45. > :05:50.planning reforms following widespread criticism from the
:05:50. > :05:53.National Trust and the Campaign to Protect Rural England. The planning
:05:53. > :05:56.minister Greg Clark has denied that he is considering a U-turn, though,
:05:56. > :06:04.over controversial proposals to change the law to encourage more
:06:04. > :06:06.housebuilding. Two of Britain's favourite takeaway
:06:06. > :06:09.dishes can contain illegally high levels of colourings, a snapshot
:06:09. > :06:11.study has found. The Local Government Group analysed food from
:06:12. > :06:15.more than 200 Indian and Chinese takeaway restaurants across England
:06:15. > :06:24.and Wales, and also found very high levels of saturated fat, salt and