30/09/2013 Inside Out West Midlands

Tonight, we meet the addict who lost everything to a new type of gambling

machine that allows you to bet £100 every 20 seconds. I don't even

recognise myself when I was doing it now, sort of six to seven weeks into

my treatment, my recovery and I look at it and think, what was I doing?

How the big girls of Birmingham are fighting back. There are some

small—minded people out there, who make going out to normal clubs not a

very pleasant experience for plus—size women like myself. It has

been long overdue coming to Birmingham. I am delighted it is

here. That is all to come on Inside Out, with me Mary Rhodes.

Last year, police issued over 5,000 cautions to offenders of serious

crimes. Well, no more, as from today Chris

Grayling has scrapped them. It is a story we have been working on for a

couple of months, investigating when the police caution a criminal and

for what type of crime. I think you will be pretty surprised about what

we have found. Our story starts in Moseley, in Birmingham, with cyclist

Anthony Perrett. —— Stephen Perrin. I love cycling,

yes. I ride in most days. Mostly for commuting. I don't live far from

work. It is not worth getting in the car to drive for ten minutes. He

spends a lot of time on his bike. He uses it for his Birmingham

commute. He records every journey on a head—mounted camera, just in case.

I use the camera for evidence, in case of a collision or an act of

violence on the roads. One March morning, he needed it.

What are you doing? What's the matter with you? You want to go, do

you? Go away or I'll call the police. He did ring the police,

convinced his video evidence would bring the man before a court. It

actually all starts off pretty normally — an average day. I am just

riding my bike. I see the van ahead pulling out. I decide I want to

filter down this gap here. I have miss read what this driver will do.

I thought he would pull out. He is going back in. I see the traffic

ahead is moving. Then you are aware of the van? He's nearly taking my

head off with his car door. I am aware of him close. I do a U—turn

here to go back the other way to get away from him. Chases me. And now

you are on foot and the camera is all over the shop. What is happening

there? Good heavy forearms across the back. When Stephen got in touch

with West Midlands Police, expecting his day in court, he was told the

best he would get was a caution. Thinking about it now, would you

have liked it to have gone any further? I still believe he should

have been charged with assault. It was quite vicious and it is still

something that bothers me now. I still feel vulnerable. ??FORCEWHITE

Arrested last night for a loss of temper, basically. Until today,

cautions could be used instead of court if people admitted their guilt

for a wide range of offences. West Midlands Police cautioned more

people for assault than anything else, unless you smoke cannabis.

Officers like Jamie had to weigh things up and decide. The offender

themselves — one of the important things we are looking at is their

criminal background. Have they been to court before? Have they been

dealt with in ways we can deal with outside of police disposals? If we

are looking at anything much other than court we need a full and frank

admission. So saying sorry helps, but what about the victim? What they

want, the outcome they want, how much of a part does that play? That

plays a big part. In the final decision is what is in the public

interest. That is most important. We get a wide range of victims. Some

who want the most serious, the most punitive sanction we can do in every

occasion. Others who feel sorry for the offender, sometimes and want to

let them off. We have to take an independent view. We are sort of

stepping in for magistrates in a way, as if they would do if it went

to court. And that made us think. If the police are making that judgment,

how often are they doing it? And for what other offences? We decided to

ask every police force in England to tell us.

And the results are surprising. Like the 1500 cautions for child cruelty

and neglect. And 150 of those were here in the

West Midlands. Lina's story helps explain why the

Government is making changes. She was sexually abused as a child and

her abuser was cautioned. From late into my ninth year he

started to sexually abuse me. It carried on into early in my 13th

year. It took a long time for her to pluck up courage to speak to Surrey

Police. It was the first time I had broken the secrecy he had over me.

The first person I told in person was the police, when I gave the

statement. It was very difficult. It was very cathartic to come out with

everything to somebody I thought would be sympathetic and

understanding. Police told her why they were giving him a caution. One

was he was elderly. He was in his mid—70s and the second was it was

historic abuse, that the crime took place 20 years ago. On the surface,

you seem incredibly composed about the whole ordeal. What is going on

in the inside? The amount of emotional turmoil that I had gone

through to report it to the police and take that stand in doing so, to

then be told he would just get a caution was very surprising.

Lina lodged a formal complain to Surrey Police. It admitted there

were failings in its investigation. Two officers are facing misconduct

proceedings and it has apologised to Lina, but the caution still stands.

Her case is not unique. We discovered that last year alone,

1500 people were cautioned for sex offences across England. It is one

of the reasons this man says it was failing. He is the chairman of the

Magistrates' Association. He is glad the Government has listened. I think

there are two major issues with the current sis tesmt first —— system.

First, the current system has been abused and misused. One—sixth of all

sexual, indictable crimes is cautioned. One can understand the

odd one or two, but never one—sixth. My second criticism is it is not

transparent. Nobody knows who has been cautioned. If it is brought

into court, the media are entitled to come to court and report the case

on television, on the radio or the paper. Nobody knows what particular

individual has been cautioned in some backroom of a police station.

Surely, , that cannot be right. The man who speaks on behalf of them

told me why, in some cases, discretion was needed.

He is also Nottinghamshire's chibl. One in six sex offence, being

cautioned according to the chair of the Magistrates' Association. We are

talking about sexual offences, sometimes we are talking about

offences which will be between consenting children, one of whom is

16 and one of whom is 15. Sometimes we are not. Sometimes these are far

more serious offences. You say so. The figures back it up. Let's pick

up some of the figures. Where we caution for offences of rape. Since

the 2003 act, consensual sex in a boy over 16 and a girl under 16 —

where there is appropriate engagement with children's service

rs, it may be deemed that a caution is an appropriate outcome. In the

majority of cases they are carefully and the caution applied is both for

the victim and for the defendant. But police will no longer be given a

choice for all sex—related crime, including Lina's case. The

Government is also reviewing all out of court punishments because of

fears the system is letting people down.

It is really good to know that the Government are taking that stand as

well. It is also really good to know there are people in places of

authority that have recognised what a serious crime sex abuse is. And

are taking into account the psychological and emotional effects

on the victims as well. It is really good the police are not going to be

able to deal with it in secret now, that it will be dealt with openly

and properly. She hopes the new rules will give other abuse victims

the confidence to come forward. The Crown Prosecution Service is now

reviewing her case. What do you think? Was it ever

acceptable for police to issue a caution for a sexual offence or a

child neglect case? Let me know your thoughts at my e—mail:

Or perhaps you have a story I should know about. If so, just drop me a

line. You are watching jp inside Out for the Midlands. You may have

noticed there are more betting shops around than there used to be. Pop

inside and the chances are you will not find many glued to the races.

They are more likely to be playing high—steaks roulette on gaming

machines. We spent £2.8 billion a year here on these machines. One man

who has ma millions from gambling has launched a national campaign to

get them scrapped. It is a world of high rollers and high risk. Nowadays

you don't have to dress up like Jame Bond to gamble casino—style. Head

down to your local betting shop. I have been playing roulette on a

fixed—odds betting terminal. There are four over there. Four over

there, four up there and just up the road, another four.

These machines now bring in at least as much money as traditional over

the counter betting. There are an estimated 2, 500 of them in the West

Midlands. We were not allowed to film me playing on one. That may be

because they are very controversial. That is partly down to one man's

campaign. ??FORCEWHITE This is the name of the game... Derek, from

Derby, feels right at home in a casino. He has made millions from

gambling, not by playing casino games, but by inventing one, called

three—card poker. It is dramatic. This was actually

the first proprietary game introduced into British casinos. It

has settled in and become the leading proprietary game. It has

earned Derek tens of millions. It means he can split his time between

his house in Derby and a home in Las Vegas.

If the dealer was not in the game... Now this poacher has turned

gamekeeper. Derek is funding a campaign against fast—play,

high—stakes roulette machines on the high street.

It is called the campaign for fairer capabling. —— gambling. Fairer

because there is a big difference between playing on a machine and

playing at a table. Here everyone would have their own chip everybody

would have their own bets on the table. You would have social

interaction between the players and the dealer would spin the wheel.

Probably take a minute or two minutes to get the resolution of the

hand. That is the difference, compared to a machine, similar to

this one, the properties are different than this. This is

regular, you can only bet up to £2 on this machine. What happens is the

player on the machine can bet up to £100 every 20 seconds. It is a

different experience to the experience of the live casino table.

£100 every 20 seconds cost Roger his marriage and his job. He used to

work in the City as a business development manager. That was before

he got hooked on roulette. This is the walk I took sometimes on a daily

basis. Minute after minute, hour after hour, within 100 yas four

bookmakers. Used to go to one to the other. I haven't been here for a

while, actually. Just a shame, just a shame.

I don't even recognise myself when I was doing it now. Sort of six—seven

weeks into my treatment. I look now and I think, what was I doing? What

was I doing? Look at the opening hours — 9am—9.30pm. I walked around

all four, I spent 9am until 9.30pm. Now he is in theory and —— therapy

and trying to help others about what happened to him. It is the crack

cocaine of the gambling industry. You can get your high every 15

seconds and you are losing huge sums of money. At my worst I probably

lost a month's salary within a couple of hours. That is hor

denrous. The University —— horrendous.

This man says these terminals should never have been allowed on the high

street. They are different. Gambling machines are, in a sense, almost

like addiction machines. They really do encourage you to keep on playing.

And many of the people in the gambling industry, if you talk to

them and get them off the record, they will admit that essentially

what they want to do is get people in front of the machines and keep

them there as long as possible. Games machines have been here ten

years. In ten years no evidence has ever been produced to show that

machines cause problem gambling. Today, Derek is taking his campaign

to London. We are going to Thames Magistrates'

Court and there's a magistrates hearing there between Newham Council

and Paddy Power. New ham have refused a license to Paddy Power.

They say there are too many betting shops and the machines mean these

are no longer traditional bookmakers. If you want to place a

bet on the horses, the football, that is all right. If most of your

in S from other means, which it does in betting offices in the borough,

mainly from gambling machines, it shouldn't be allowed. Paddy Power

has appealed. In court, they win the argument and their license. It is

seen as a test case and puts the campaign in the media spotlight.

The campaign is continuing. We need to stop the most harmful and

addictive form of gambling in Britain from growing in the high

streets. Councils worry the machines are

responsible for an increase in antisocial behaviour. When Panorama

investigated last year, they filmed frustrated customers turning

violent. Staff felt threatened. People just go s by Serbing, angry.

They are tipping up stalls, trying to tip it over, simply because they

have lost their money. We had somebody come up with a pickaxe to

smash the machine, because they said they robbed him money. Adrian used

to work for the Tote as a manager and remembers the machines being

introduced. He works with Derek's campaign. When I was there managing

these machines, I used to get calls day in, day out, about customers

smashing machines up. They realised it would have an impact, not just on

his back pocket, but his wife. The department for culture, media and

sport have asked the responsible gambling trust for more research

into whether the machines are addictive. That is due next year.

The industry says they are acting to concerns about customers playing too

long and losing too much. Well, the industry is going to

introduce in the autumn a new code for responsible gambling which will

set out a wide range of measures which betting shop managers will do

to help people with problem gambling. The important thing is

that betting shops in a place like Nottingham, which ce employs ——

which employs 170 people. Derek says until steaks are reduced and play ——

stakes are reduced and play slowed down, the campaign will continue. I

am not antigambling but this is, it is clear. The evidence is in. This

is the most addictive form of gambling in Britain. We need to get

the Government to act. And we will keep you posted on what

decision the Government make. In the mean time, maybe you need some help

with a gambling problem. If so, you can find details of where to go to

advice on our website. The address is:

This weekend, a club night called Big Girls Paradise opened in

Birmingham that is specifically aimed at larger women. The idea is

that it creates a size—friendly environment. Something the

organisers say you don't always find on a night out and that can leave

some women reluctant to join in the fun. Is something like this

pandering to discrimination or tackling it head—on? Laura Bates

from the Everyday Sexism Project has been to find out.

Verity is getting ready for a big night out. I am extremely excited. A

little anxious. Hoping all our customers who come along tonight

enjoy the evening and they like the venue. Most of all, that everybody

has a good time. Hitting the town has been a bruising experience for

Verity in the past. Unfortunately there are some small—minded people

out there, who make going out to normal clubs not a very pleasant

experience for plus—size women like myself. So, it has been long overdue

coming to Birmingham. I am really delighted it is finally here. Verity

has met lots of larger women who have had similar nightclub

nightmares. She is delighted that big girl's paradise have asked her

to host the first event. Tonight we are on the guest list with

journalist Laura Bates. In the last 18 months she has heard thousands of

nasty stories from women of all sizes. It started out simply as a

website where I asked men and women to record their experiences, to show

how bad sexism and sexual assault still are. It has grown. Eight

Mondays in and we have 50,000 stories now. We have recently

expanded to 18 countries around the world. Her Everyday Sexism Project

is about encouraging women to speak out. Does she think it is

encouraging them to hide away? Well, obviously, one of the most common

things I hear about running the Everyday Sexism Project is women

being judged on their looks, being held very harshly to account I is

very frus —— account. It is very frustrating to hear the women had

such horrible things. It sounded incredible and what a brilliant

positive response to set up their own event. I am really excited. Hi,

so good to meet you! Thank you very much for inviting me.

Thank you. It is fantastic. With a glass of fiss to get the —— fizz to

get the party started, Verity is on a mission to make sure the women

have a good nigh It is an opportunity where they feel safe,

where they can be themselves. Speaking from personal experience, I

have been to club nights and I have been ridiculed. The general public

can be nasty sometimes. Saying, oh, you have such a lovely

face, it is a shame you have so fat. Laughing at you on the dance floor.

It is very important for me that we bring an event like this to

Birmingham. It sound amazing. Do you think it is quite a common

experience? Do you think a lot of the other women who have come to a

night like this have had similar experience? S? I would guarantee.

How is it different from oh the ther club —— from other club nights?

There is a positive vibe here. There's no standing around the dance

floor and sort of jeering or laughing. It is a really nice, fun

atmosphere. It is quite different to a normal club night. Let's go and

have a look! The fact this is a size—friendly

event suggests it is not so friendly out there in mainstream club land.

We wanted to test that out with two of the women. I have experienced

some bad things, really. There is a big sizism thing, to be honest. I

have been called everything from lard to fat cow. I don't go out that

often. I wait for that time of the month where I can go to a nightclub

where I have like—minded people. I have people that will respect me

from being me. Yes, it has. It has kept me in a

lot. And even though I have got this confidence in a nightclub

environment, I don't. I do not enjoy myself because I know

that I am going to be ridiculed. I cannot stand that at all.

Going in here, I am preparing myself for looks, ridicule, whatever. I am

not going to let it bother me. It will not ruin my night out.

It will be a shock for people to realise that on your way to a bar

you have to brace yourself for that. It is unbelievable! At the same time

they do the whole sizism thing. It is not a prosecutable offence. Where

you ha racial and sexual discrimination, there's no illegal

discrimination for sizism. It is not long before the girls are feeling

uncomfortable. Are people really that shallow?

Laura takes a straw poll from the bar? . I think there is someone for

everyone. Everyone has their own taste in different people. Should go

out, have a good time. Don't care what other people think. You would

not ever, kind of get involved in anything like that. Do you think it

is bad they have been treated that way? Definitely. Me, personally, I

would have thought where I want to go for, other people go that way. It

is not the majority of lads who think that way. They judge people in

a way. Not everyone is the same. Don't think we are all like that. It

is not the case. First of all, really shocked to hear from these

women what they have been through and how severe it has been. The fact

that they said that they have to brace themselves just to go on a

night out before going into a bar, I just think is so upsetting to think

that they are still facing that in 2013, for goodness sake. Quite

heartened to talk to some of the guys we have talked to tonight and

hear them saying, please don't think we are all like that and it is

really, they have been quite shocked address well, I think, which ——

shocked as well, I think, which is heartening to hear.

The dance floor at Big Girls Paradise is calling and they are

ready to let their hair down. There's no hiding in the corner

here. Laura soon sees a different side to the girls. Amazing from, the

time we walked through the door, well, it is like being on a

different planet. Everybody is pleased to see you. They want you to

take your coat off and get on the dance floor. Immediately, different.

Everybody is happy. Everybody is happy.

At last Verity can relax. The dance floor is packed. Tell me

how it is going? I am delighted with t turnout. I have been going around

chatting with people. The dance floor is packed. Everyone is having

an amazing time. I am over the moon. What can you do here that you don't

feel able to do in a normal club? Be ourselves. Be yourselves without

being ridiculed — in a nutshell. It is the early hours and the party is

coming to a close. So, has the Big Girls Paradise been a success with

Laura? That is one of the most inspirational nights I have been to

in a long time. It is devastating and made me angry to hear what these

women go through on a night out. So incredibly powerful that they are in

there and they are doing this for themselves. They have created this

incredibly powerful response to such a negative issue they have to put

up. That sends an incredibly strong message to the world about their

strength and how they should actually be treated. So, I just hope

the world listens. Maybe you felt the same as Verity.

If so, drop me an e—mail: But that is it from me for this

week. See you next time.