:00:07. > :00:11.The US election is on a knife edge, with less than 48 hours to go
:00:12. > :00:14.before America votes. Mitt Romney targets swing states in a final bid
:00:14. > :00:20.to attract undecided voters as Barack Obama bids for another term
:00:20. > :00:25.in the White House. We take a journey through one of those states
:00:25. > :00:28.to see what will make the difference in the final phase.
:00:28. > :00:31.Calls for a fresh investigation into child abuse in Welsh care
:00:31. > :00:35.homes in the 1970s and '80s after concerns the original inquiry fell
:00:35. > :00:39.short. In Pakistan, the parents accused of
:00:39. > :00:47.killing their daughter in an acid attack - they tell the BBC they
:00:47. > :00:52.were angry because she "looked at a boy".
:00:52. > :00:55.Sebastien Vettel! A brilliant third place! From the back of the field
:00:55. > :01:05.to the podium for Vettel - although it's Kimi Raikkonen who takes the
:01:05. > :01:16.
:01:16. > :01:20.Good evening. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have been campaigning today
:01:20. > :01:25.in seven of the crucial swing states of the US election as they
:01:25. > :01:28.battle to win over undecided voters. With less than 48 hours to go to
:01:28. > :01:31.the US election, the latest polls suggest the outcome is still too
:01:31. > :01:39.close to call. For the first of tonight's reports, here's our North
:01:39. > :01:43.America Editor Mark Mardell. Onto the stage strolls the best
:01:43. > :01:51.campaigner in America. Despite his fault, Bill Clinton presided over
:01:51. > :01:53.good times. His voice still counts. I strongly recommend that we we
:01:53. > :01:59.elect the next president of the United States, the current
:01:59. > :02:02.President of the United States, our president, Barack Obama! Are to the
:02:02. > :02:08.master of emotional appeals, the President almost pleads for another
:02:08. > :02:12.chance. You may be frustrated with the pace of change, I am frustrated
:02:12. > :02:17.as well some times. But you know where I stand, you know what I
:02:17. > :02:22.believe. You know I tell the truth. You know I will fight for you and
:02:22. > :02:26.your family's every day, as hard as I know how, as long as I have the
:02:26. > :02:32.President -- privilege to be your president. Some have already heard
:02:32. > :02:42.the word. Political passion and praise for the Lord overlap at his
:02:42. > :02:44.
:02:44. > :02:54.Baptist Church. Last week, 20 African-American church is
:02:54. > :02:54.
:02:54. > :02:58.organised at souls to the polls. Mass early voting for one man.
:02:58. > :03:05.thank the Lord for putting Barack Obama one more time again, in the
:03:05. > :03:11.name of Jesus. When she brays, God answers! But Mitt Romney's camp
:03:11. > :03:17.have faith, as he repeats his message of smaller government of.
:03:17. > :03:21.We have a promise to take them some people, to redistribute to you, we
:03:21. > :03:23.have promised to rebuild the economy, attain the growth in
:03:23. > :03:28.government and restore the principles that made America the
:03:28. > :03:34.greatest nation in their history of the world. In the same speech,
:03:34. > :03:39.repeated in every Stead, who can still be undecided? This woman in
:03:39. > :03:43.Florida, for one, cannot make up her mind. I like Mitt Romney, and I
:03:43. > :03:49.agree with some other things he says, but there are other issues
:03:49. > :03:55.that just don't work for me in my life. And then Reg Dean, I didn't
:03:55. > :04:00.vote for him, -- an den Obama, I didn't vote for him, he has changed
:04:00. > :04:06.some things, I want to like him and vote for him, but I am not sure.
:04:06. > :04:09.million Americans have made up their mind and voted early. The
:04:09. > :04:18.Obama campaign say they are ahead where it matters, but the polls
:04:18. > :04:21.suggest a dead heat. Candidates I try to make sure that the party
:04:21. > :04:29.faithful get out and vote, particularly in a crucial stage
:04:29. > :04:32.like Ohio. Our report will has -- reporter has travelled from
:04:32. > :04:37.Cincinnati to Cleveland, speaking to voters along the way.
:04:38. > :04:42.The last - to election day has begun, and we are on a trip through
:04:42. > :04:48.the one state that could decide the outcome. We left Cincinnati,
:04:48. > :04:52.heading north through Ohio, the state that likes to pick winners.
:04:52. > :04:57.In every election in almost 50 years, it has backed the candidate
:04:57. > :05:02.who ended up being the next president. In many ways, Ohio is
:05:02. > :05:07.America. If the country were to be reduced to a single state, it would
:05:07. > :05:11.look a bit like this. We stopped to join apparent braving the weather
:05:11. > :05:18.in another hard-fought contest. The angry Orange is against the purple
:05:18. > :05:25.comets. This woman is a working mum with three kids, a swing voter in a
:05:25. > :05:30.swing state. I cannot see myself going for another four years, so I
:05:30. > :05:37.see myself voting for Mitt Romney this year. Did you vote for Obama
:05:37. > :05:43.last time? I did. What is it specifically did you feel he hasn't
:05:43. > :05:47.done? Everything he said he was going to do. In a polarised country,
:05:48. > :05:52.most made up their minds long ago. The fight is to persuade the
:05:52. > :05:55.faithful to bother to turn out. Further north, we stopped in Green
:05:55. > :06:02.County. It leans Republican, but the Democrats are fighting hard
:06:02. > :06:06.here. Doris, lives, breathes and dresses Democrat, but even she
:06:06. > :06:12.concedes that selling Barack Obama is harder this time round. Does it
:06:12. > :06:16.feel different and four years ago? It does feel different, the reality
:06:16. > :06:22.is that people now know that this man can do the job, but there are
:06:22. > :06:27.people out there who seem to think we have given him a magic wand, and
:06:27. > :06:31.he should automatically have turned things back. Our last stop his
:06:31. > :06:36.Cleveland, and the industrial north. This is a country struggling to
:06:36. > :06:41.emerge from the worst recession in generations. Elections are always
:06:41. > :06:46.about the future, but there is something almost urgent about this
:06:46. > :06:52.one. After billions of dollars spent and countless hours campaign,
:06:52. > :06:57.this contest has now come down to a few 1000 votes in at a handful of
:06:57. > :07:03.key states. While it is possible for either man to win without
:07:03. > :07:07.taking place back, that looks unlikely. -- without taking Ohio.
:07:07. > :07:17.This is the last chance to rally the faithful and get out the bird
:07:17. > :07:21.macro. A we have got to win it for Back now to our North America
:07:21. > :07:26.Editor Mark Mardell in Wisconsin. What did that makes a difference in
:07:26. > :07:30.these last couple of days of campaigning? President Obama will
:07:30. > :07:34.be here tomorrow for a big rally, setting out his vision. One of the
:07:34. > :07:38.things the men agree on is this is about different visions for America.
:07:38. > :07:42.In many ways that boils down to the traditional differences between
:07:42. > :07:45.left and right, who would put up taxes and he would put them down,
:07:45. > :07:49.but I think it is now about people's gut instinct about who
:07:49. > :07:53.they want to be the leader of this huge country. But more than that
:07:53. > :07:59.and perhaps duller than the rhetoric is who is going to turn
:07:59. > :08:03.out to vote. Mitt Romney's camp say his supporters are more
:08:03. > :08:10.enthusiastic, President Obama's have a better, more sophisticated
:08:10. > :08:13.game to get people to turn out. Thank you.
:08:13. > :08:21.And you can follow every twist and turn of the race for the US
:08:21. > :08:24.Presidency - including more on key The Children's Commissioner for
:08:24. > :08:27.Wales has backed calls for a new inquiry into allegations of child
:08:27. > :08:30.abuse at care homes in North Wales during the 1970s and '80s. Keith
:08:30. > :08:33.Towler is writing to Wales' First Minister after a victim said the
:08:33. > :08:42.original public inquiry had uncovered just a fraction of the
:08:42. > :08:46.abuse that took place. Rhun Ap Iorwerth reports.
:08:46. > :08:50.Widespread abuse in North Wales care homes centred on the Bryn
:08:50. > :08:55.Estyn home in Wrexham, catalogued in the Waterhouse inquiry report
:08:55. > :08:58.published in the year 2000. But one victim from the 1970s said that
:08:58. > :09:03.because the inquiry was only looking into alleged abuse at the
:09:03. > :09:08.homes, he was unable to make other serious allegations. Claims are now
:09:08. > :09:11.being made of children being led to paedophiles across the UK, and one
:09:11. > :09:15.allegation in particular involves of former senior Conservative
:09:15. > :09:19.politician. Do Children's Commissioner for Wales City suspect
:09:19. > :09:23.a group of people were protected by each other's power, enabling the
:09:23. > :09:28.abuse to continue. People have to be held accountable, however long
:09:28. > :09:33.ago, people are still alive who were implicated, so the police
:09:33. > :09:37.should investigate. At the Welsh government says it is concerned
:09:37. > :09:47.about the allegations and want transparency. A Downing Street
:09:47. > :09:53.
:09:53. > :09:57.One lawyer who represented Waterhouse inquiry witnesses says
:09:58. > :10:01.their voices should be heard. important thing for the victims is
:10:01. > :10:05.that their version of events is herd and investigated, because they
:10:05. > :10:08.were silenced many years ago when they tried to complain. Speaking
:10:08. > :10:13.the truth is very important. Children's Commissioner for Wales
:10:13. > :10:18.says it is easy to be suspicious about why constraints were put on
:10:18. > :10:22.the inquiry in the late 1990s. For us now in 2012, he says, such
:10:22. > :10:26.constraints are absolutely unacceptable and that is why he
:10:26. > :10:29.wants the matter looked at again. The prominent Republican Colin
:10:29. > :10:33.Duffy has been released from police custody after being arrested in
:10:33. > :10:36.relation to the murder of the prison officer David Black. Colin
:10:36. > :10:40.Duffy, who's 44, was detained along with a 31-year-old man in Lurgan
:10:40. > :10:46.County Armagh on Friday morning. Both men have been released
:10:47. > :10:49.unconditionally. In Pakistan, a couple arrested on
:10:49. > :10:53.suspicion of killing their 15-year old daughter with acid have told
:10:53. > :10:56.the BBC they feared she would bring dishonour on their family. The
:10:56. > :10:58.couple were arrested in Pakistan- administered Kashmir this week,
:10:58. > :11:06.following the death of their daughter Anusha, who had burns on
:11:07. > :11:13.60% of her body. This report from Orla Guerin. You may find some of
:11:13. > :11:20.the detail distressing. A mother and father in adjoining
:11:20. > :11:28.cells. Accused of dousing their teenage daughter, Anusha, in acid.
:11:28. > :11:34.Her crime, looking at a boy. TRANSLATION: He approached our
:11:34. > :11:41.house. She turned to look at him. I told her before not to do that. I
:11:41. > :11:46.started beating her, then her mother brought the acid. It left
:11:46. > :11:52.its mark on her mother, who gives a chilling account of Anusha's
:11:52. > :11:58.desperate pleas. And Fortune she said, I didn't do it on purpose, I
:11:58. > :12:03.will not look again. By then, I have three in the acid. It was her
:12:03. > :12:08.destiny to die this way. The couple say an older daughter had already
:12:08. > :12:12.disgraced the family. They didn't want to lose face again. Police
:12:13. > :12:18.showed us the remote village in Pakistan administered Kashmir,
:12:18. > :12:23.where the attack happened. They say the couple kept their daughter here
:12:23. > :12:31.for hours, in agony, denying her medical help. Later they told
:12:31. > :12:36.neighbours that she had attempted suicide. At home, this man pointed
:12:37. > :12:44.at the Place Mwera Annetta Siddique was committed in the name of on it.
:12:44. > :12:49.-- the place where an atrocity was committed. I tried to wipe it off.
:12:49. > :12:54.His other children look for comfort. Too young to understand what
:12:54. > :13:03.happened to their sister. A girl who was good at school and help
:13:03. > :13:07.with the housework. She was killed by looking the wrong way. -- for
:13:07. > :13:10.looking the wrong way. The Labour leader, Ed Miliband, is
:13:10. > :13:15.backing a campaign to ensure workers are paid a "living wage" of
:13:15. > :13:17.at least �7.20 an hour. He's urging employers to adopt the scheme. Our
:13:17. > :13:23.political correspondent Gary O'Donoghue is at Westminster for us
:13:23. > :13:27.tonight. How important is this idea to Ed Miliband? It is an important
:13:27. > :13:33.idea, part of his central pitch to the voters at the next general
:13:33. > :13:39.election. We already have a minimum wage in this country, �6.19 an hour
:13:39. > :13:44.if you are over 21. The living wage is �7.20 outside London, and �8.30
:13:44. > :13:49.Inside London. We are going to hear what they will become now, around
:13:49. > :13:52.20 local authorities around the country have signed up to it along
:13:52. > :13:58.with a 100 businesses also. Ed Miliband things and Labour should
:13:58. > :14:01.think about sanctions and naming and shaming to have the -- some of
:14:01. > :14:07.the companies who don't pay it. He stopped short of saying he should
:14:07. > :14:10.be compulsory. David Cameron has promised to look at the living wage
:14:10. > :14:13.before the last election, campaigners say there are many
:14:13. > :14:18.people in Whitehall, low-paid cleaners, who were still not
:14:18. > :14:21.getting paid it. Syrian opposition groups have
:14:21. > :14:24.gathered in Qatar for talks aimed at unifying them against President
:14:24. > :14:26.Assad. Until now, the opposition has been widely regarded as
:14:26. > :14:29.fragmented, ineffective and out of touch. Despite this new effort,
:14:29. > :14:39.serious doubts remain as to whether it can transform itself into a
:14:39. > :14:40.
:14:40. > :14:44.credible force. Jim Muir reports from Doha.
:14:44. > :14:51.As the conflict deepens, the regime has been shamelessly bombing the
:14:51. > :14:55.suburbs of its own capital and many other places. The rebels are making
:14:55. > :15:04.slow advances on the ground, but they lack the shoulder fired
:15:04. > :15:07.missiles that could bring the regime's planes down. That is one
:15:07. > :15:10.of the main reasons for this drive to unify the opposition. Because
:15:10. > :15:15.they are seen as divided and ineffective, the West has been
:15:15. > :15:19.denying them the kind of practical support that could help the rebels
:15:19. > :15:24.win. The Syrian National Council has so far been the main umbrella
:15:24. > :15:28.group for the fragmented opposition. But rebel forces and activists
:15:28. > :15:31.inside the country have criticised it for being out of touch. Today's
:15:31. > :15:36.effort to build a new opposition leadership comes after Western
:15:36. > :15:41.powers cut funding and withheld arms. The hope is that the talks
:15:41. > :15:45.will eventually lead to a government in exile. We hope, if
:15:45. > :15:51.the Syrians will find a way to choose their leadership, in this
:15:51. > :15:55.case the whole world will be behind them to help them. If all this
:15:55. > :15:59.activity here does succeed in producing a new, credible and
:15:59. > :16:04.unified Syrian opposition leadership, that could prove a
:16:04. > :16:08.turning point, the point at which the West and others decide to give
:16:08. > :16:13.the rebels the help we desperately need to turn the tide on the ground,
:16:13. > :16:17.where the carnage continues. Every day, around 150 Syrians are being
:16:17. > :16:21.killed as much of the country is reduced to rubble around them. Even
:16:21. > :16:30.so, there is not much optimism that the opposition will be able to
:16:30. > :16:34.overcome its differences. Sport now, and for a full round up
:16:34. > :16:37.of all the day's action, here's Olly Foster at the BBC Sport Centre.
:16:37. > :16:41.Sebastien Vettel still leads the Formula One Championship after one
:16:41. > :16:43.of the best races of his career. He had to start the Abu Dhabi Grand
:16:43. > :16:46.Prix from the pitlane but, steering clear of numerous accidents, he
:16:46. > :16:49.made it onto the podium. Lewis Hamilton started on pole but broke
:16:49. > :16:52.down and that handed victory to Kimi Raikkonen. Here's Nick Parrott.
:16:52. > :16:55.If Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone wants to make the sport
:16:55. > :16:59.more exciting, he should make Sebastien Vettel start every race
:16:59. > :17:03.from the pit lane. The German was there after being disqualified from
:17:03. > :17:07.qualifying. Fernando Alonso took advantage of the chaos at the start
:17:07. > :17:13.to move up to 4th on the first lap, and threatening to overtake Vettel
:17:13. > :17:21.in the drivers' championship. Vettel's cause was helped by Nico
:17:21. > :17:29.Rosberg crashing. With the safety car out, it his gap between it
:17:29. > :17:32.Lewis Hamilton closed down. What is he doing?! After stopping for a new
:17:32. > :17:36.front wing, and set about proving wrong those who say he cannot
:17:36. > :17:41.overtake. The world champion cut through the field, passing car
:17:41. > :17:44.after car. The odd bit of luck swung back in his way, with
:17:44. > :17:48.Hamilton retiring. And others deciding to take part in a
:17:48. > :17:53.demolition derby. The safety car bunched up the field again,
:17:53. > :17:58.allowing Vettel to catch Jenson Button to secure third place. Kimi
:17:58. > :18:03.Raikkonen claimed his first win since 2009, and letters's first
:18:03. > :18:08.since 2007, but Vettel was the real winner. You have to keep fighting,
:18:08. > :18:12.that is why we are here. As long as you make sure you do that, it is
:18:12. > :18:19.impossible to fail. This third place in Abu Dhabi could turn out
:18:19. > :18:22.to be priceless in his quest for a hat-trick of world titles to stop
:18:22. > :18:25.There were Premier League matches in England and Scotland today,
:18:25. > :18:28.Match of the Day 2 and Sportscene are straight after the news, But if
:18:28. > :18:32.you want to know what happened, then I've got the results coming up
:18:32. > :18:34.right now. Queens Park Rangers and Reading are still waiting for their
:18:34. > :18:37.first wins of the season after drawing 1-1 at Loftus Road.
:18:37. > :18:39.Reading's Kaspars Gorkss scored against his former club, but
:18:39. > :18:45.Rangers equalised through Djibril Cisse. Both sides remain in the
:18:45. > :18:53.relegation zone. It was also one-1 at Anfield. Yohan
:18:53. > :18:57.Cabaye gave Newcastle the lead, but Luis Suarez levelled for Liverpool.
:18:57. > :19:01.Celtic are top of the Scottish Premier League on goal difference.
:19:01. > :19:03.The draw has been made for the second round of the FA Cup.still
:19:03. > :19:06.plenty of non-League sides in there including Dorchester from the
:19:06. > :19:09.Conference South. They beat League Two Plymouth today. Jake Gosling
:19:09. > :19:19.scored the only goal at the Avenue Stadium. Full details of the draw
:19:19. > :19:25.
:19:25. > :19:28.are on the BBC Sport Website. Thank you.
:19:28. > :19:32.Before we go - Britain's oldest man has been celebrating his 110th