07/12/2015 Reporting Scotland

Thank you. That is all from us. Now we join the BBC news teams where you

are. The Glasgow bin lorry inquiry finds

the tragedy could have been prevented if driver Harry Clarke

hadn't lied Actually the accident could have

been avoided. We were told all the way down the line that it could not

have been avoided. That is quite shocking really.

The family of three of those who died say they'll go

Also on the programme, as work continues to fix the crack

that closed the Forth Road Bridge, businesses begin to count the cost.

Parts of Scotland remain on flood alert tonight as the clean-up from

And after the bad weather put paid to the weekend's football fixtures,

the boss of Scottish game says a mid-season

As Glasgow prepares to host the art world's big night, we hear from the

local students who have staged their own Turner Prize.

The family of three people who died in the Glasgow bin lorry crash have

tonight said they're beginning a private prosecution

It comes on the day the findings of an inquiry

It found the crash could have been avoided

if Mr Clarke had told the truth about his history of blackouts.

Six people died and 15 others were injured when the council vehicle ran

out of control in the city centre just before Christmas last year.

It was three days before Christmas am the pavements were busy with

pedestrians. The bin lorries smashed into a hotel. Six people died. Erin

McQuaid, her grandparents, Stefanie Tait, Gillian Ewing and Jacqueline

Morton. 15 people were also injured. The driver, Harry Clarke, had a

history of blackouts. He collapsed unconscious at the wheel. When he

was led from the vehicle he said he could not remember what had

happened. Sheriff John Beckett QC, who conducted the fatal accident

inquiry, said Harry Clarke had deliberately misled doctors about

his medical history and repeatedly lied to the DVLA, GPs and as

employers to get his driving licence and keep it. Gillian Ewing was

Christmas shopping with her daughter when she was killed. She and her

sister came to court to hear the evidence. It was just absolutely

unbelievable that this guy was still able to be driving anything, never

mind a 26 tonne bin lorry. The inquiry uncovered a paper trail of

Harry Clarke's dishonesty about his fitness to drive. It was the entire

medical history that came out. I remember they were talking about

episodes of stress and dizziness dating back from the late 1970s. If

you have had that many episodes of fainting or dizziness, it beggars

belief, to be honest, that someone is able to still drive. The sheriff

said there were reasonable precautions that could have been

taken to avoid the accident. Marie Wetherall was seriously injured and

spent weeks in hospital. It appears from the report that actually the

accident could have been avoided, whereas we had been told all the way

down the line that it could not have been avoided. That is quite

shocking, really. Harry Clarke did not answer many of the questions

during evidence as this could prejudice any future prosecution.

Tonight the family of Erin McQuaid and Jack and Lorraine Sweeney have

instructed their solicitor to begin a private prosecution against him.

The Secretary of State for Transport should look into changing the law

for people applying for driving licences and increase penalties for

those who failed to disclose information. And doctors should have

greater freedom to report concerns to the DVLA. The lawyer representing

the family of Stefanie Tait said today's determination is a missed

opportunity. The family feel that the public are not being

sufficiently protected against the likes of Harry Clarke. And they ask

the question again, how was it that somebody like Harry Clarke was able

to slip through every net with complete impunity? We are not

entirely sure that what is being recommended here will prevent that.

At the time of the crash Harry Clarke was working for Glasgow City

Council. The sheriff made recommendations about their

recruitment and training. We will make the changes necessary to avoid

this happening in the future. The report highlighted a lot of these

problems were caused by the driver not telling the truth. We will make

changes to our recruitment processes. As the first anniversary

of the tragedy approaches, this is a difficult time for the families,

many of whom are still left wanting answers.

Catriona Renton is in George Square in Glasgow for us

tonight. Catriona, what are the prospects, then, of Harry Clarke

being prosecuted for what happened there?

In just over two weeks, it will be exactly a US since the tragedy. The

fatal accident inquiry has reported back quickly. Often it can take

years for these sort of enquiries to happen. There has been an ongoing

controversy about whether the Crown should have taken this action or

whether they should have looked to criminally prosecute Harry Clarke.

The Crown has repeatedly said and reiterated today in a statement that

there was insufficient evidence in criminal law to prosecute the driver

for the tragic deaths. They say there are no findings in the

determination that undermine their decision not to prosecute Harry

Clarke. However, the families of Erin McQuaid and Jack and Lorraine

Sweeney believes the Crown is wrong. And they believe the sheriff appears

to agree with them, that there was a wilful failure on the part of Harry

Clarke to disclose information about himself to the DVLA, and they say

they have now instructed their solicitor to commence a private

prosecution against him. Today he has written to the Lord Advocate,

Frank Mulholland, and the Justice Secretary, Michael Matheson, family

hope they will get a response soon. The operators of the

Forth Road Bridge say engineers are working around the clock on repairs,

as travellers cope with The Transport Minister,

Derek Mackay, says he believes the repairs will be completed

by the beginning of January. Thousands of extra seats have been

made available on trains from Fife to Edinburgh, but there were still

long tailbacks on roads. Rush hour at Inverkeithing station.

Busy platforms, busy trains as the roadways helped to take the strain

of the bridge closure. Extra carriages and staff were drafted

in, making a difference, according to passengers. I got a seat. It was

fine. It was on time. Things were a bit busier. Difficult to get a seat.

Getting up earlier. A priority lane was designed to keep people moving

while encouraging people onto public transport. Ulcers, we are told, were

quicker than expected. -- bosses. Car driving was a snail-like

procession to eventually cross the river. Already that is bad for this

man's business. A farmer with a sideline in delivering firewood. The

state agriculture is in in a minute, we have been encouraged to

diversify. That is what we have done. We have spent a lot of money

on equipment. Our business is curtailed through no fault of our

own. John is considering night-time deliveries, a small part of a much

larger economic headache. If we had not taken the decision to close the

bridge, the further structural damage could have led to a much

longer closure and would have been much more damaging to the economy.

Therefore, closing the bridge is the right decision, so we can carry out

the repairs and open it as quickly as possible. Which hinders on the

work of the engineers dangling above the River Forth, whose weekend

inspections were hampered by the weather. The timetable has been

questioned, but the Scottish government insist things are

progressing well. Until the New Year at least, the road network in the

East of Scotland is effectively cut in half. The travelling public

facing the day-to-day reality of having to find the long way around.

Hundreds of homes and businesses are counting the cost of the weekend's

Rivers remain high across Scotland, and although flood warnings have

been downgraded, more rain is forecast tonight.

Cameron Buttle has spent the day in the town of Hawick.

More than five inches of rain fell in a few hours across the southern

borders. The river burst its banks. Hundreds were evacuated and roads

were closed. Local volunteers joined emergency services to try to limit

the damage. At the height of the flooding, the water was so high it

was just touching the bottom of the footbridge. It is only since the

water has started to recede today, that the scale of the damage is

becoming apparent. This was an entire chunk of Glebe Millstreet,

which has fallen into the river. And businesses and homes across this

area were affected again. All of this came out of the Baille family

home allowance? Yards from the river bank. How bad was it? Saturday night

was extremely bad. I have never seen it as fast flowing as that. I was

working in Morrisons and every now and again I was looking out of the

bag. It must have been going about 50 mph, if not faster. Next door a

photography business was also hit just before their busiest time of

the year. We had floodgates but as you can see the water has come up

through the floor. Just gone throughout the building. We have had

maybe an inch or macro so of water through the whole of the building.

All of this area has been hit before in 2005. There are plans for another

flood prevention scheme but it will not be here for another six years.

This weekend was absolutely horrendous. We need a flood

protection scheme here. We cannot wait six years. It is the same

businesses and premises that have been affected. House of us have had

enough. Aviemore was the worst hit in the Highlands. 25 people were

rescued from this caravan park. And Sands area in Dumfries saw more

businesses flooded. Rail services have been cancelled because of

flooding through the Carlisle area. Police in the Borders have warned

motorists not to ignore warning signs. One woman has been charged

with culpable and reckless conduct after driving on a closed road. Her

car was swept away and she had to be rescued.

You're watching Reporting Scotland from the BBC.

Still to come on tonight's programme:

Children at a Glasgow primary school stage their own arts awards ceremony

as the city prepares to host the Turner Prize.

And coming up in sport, after a wild weekend of weather,

Scottish football bosses propose a winter break.

And the strange tale of how Dundee's two football clubs almost became

The First Minister is attending the UN Global Climate Change Summit

She says Scotland will invest an extra ?12 million over four years

to tackle the effects of climate change in poorer countries.

Our Environment Correspondent, David Miller, is in the French

Good evening from Paris. It was the need to protect the world's poorest

people from the effects of climate change which was right at the top of

the First Minister's agenda during her time here. But Nicola

Sturgeon's baby again in a sombre and contemplative fashion as she

played -- paid and contemplative fashion as she

died in the Paris attacks. Paris before dawn and the First

Minister visits the Bataclan Theatre to witness the candles still burning

in memory of the dead. This was a private visit with non-journalists

are camera crews present. An hour later and very different symbolism

here at Paris City Hall, were Nicola Sturgeon joined other leaders

attending the UN climate conference. But can a country with just 0.1% of

the world population hope to make a difference? The event I was at this

morning brings together 44 subnational governments from 18

countries across six continents. It represents more than 300 million

people across the world, and a third of the world economy. What that says

is that yes, Scotland is a relatively small country, but when

we come together with others the cumulative impact we have is

enormous. Scotland is making progress but must go much further,

say experts. We have made progress progress but must go much further,

on renewables. But in terms of other areas, there is a lot to be done.

Proposals to cut Air Passenger Duty seems to me to be a retrograde step.

But the First Minister's insistence that the climate fund is to be

doubled has been welcomed by international aid agencies.

Scotland's announcement of ?12 million over four years for the

climate Justice fund is really significant. It is something we are

calling on other countries to match because it is poor people who

least to cause climate change, yet they are the most affected. Intense

negotiations lie ahead but there is cautious optimism here that a global

deal on climate change can be struck before the week is out.

Tonight, the First Minister is homeward bound. I'm told she is

being kept upto date with developments throughout the day. She

is returning to oversee the response to the weekend flooding and to the

closure of the Forth Road Bridge. A look now at other stories

from across the country. The UK Government says ?8 billion

will be spent building warships It follows criticism from the SNP

who say only eight of an original There is another ?8 billion up for

grabs after that in building the new type 26 frigates, building more

Offshore Patrol Vessels and building a new lighter frigate that we hope

to add to the fleet as well and there is no reason why the vast bulk

of that work shouldn't be done in Scotland.

Former nurses who left the profession are being tempted

back to the wards by a Scottish Government programme.

Nearly 200 former nurses and midwives are expected to return

We've increased the number of student intake by 3% this year, that

is over and above the 6% in previous years, so we are recruiting more and

of course, the NHS workforce is at a record high and that is people at

the front line of the workforce. The earliest gun flints found

in Britain were among finds made during 15 years of archaeological

excavations in the Hebrides. The flints were manufactured

on the northern tip of Lewis. Experts say the flints are proof

of gun fights in medieval times. The Royal Bank

of Scotland is asking the public whose face they want to see on its

first plastic ten pound banknotes. Nominees must be Scottish historical

figures who've made a major contribution to science

and innovation. An endangered loggerhead sea turtle

has been washed up on Irvine Beach, in Ayrshire after being caught

in Storm Desmond. It's being cared for at the

Scottish Sea Life Sanctuary in Oban and will be flown to Gran Canaria

when it has fully recovered. The winner of the Turner Prize will

be announced in Glasgow tonight. The ?25,000 prize is awarded each

year to the best contemporary art made by a

British artist under the age of 50. It's the first time the awards

have been staged in Scotland. They'll be announced at Tramway

arts centre in just over an hour. And our arts correspondent Pauline

McLean is there for us tonight. David, this former tram depot shows

just how much has changed in Glasgow over the last 25 years. It is now

art which has become the new industry of this city, it has a

buzzing art scene to rival any in the UK, including London. Seven of

the previous winners of the Turner Prize came from Scotland. 30% of the

previous nominees are from Glasgow, most of them through the Glasgow

School of Art and many of them still working here. And yet this year,

when prize comes to Glasgow, not a single Scot on the short list, but

it doesn't seem to bother the art lovers, they have come along in

plenty, six times the number of visitors they normally have here at

the Tramway and they have inspired lots of schoolchildren, including

one school who decided to stage a prize of their own.

This is one of the nominations for the Turner Prize. Part of a song

cycle by Janice Kerbel, performed live in the exhibition at Tramway.

And this is primary to from Saint Alberts, with their piece Breathing,

which is about pollution and directly inspired by what they saw

at the Turner experts -- exhibition. Tramway is a neighbour of ours, so

it is easy to access the art there and the exhibition and the project.

So we just decided to go over it and it has got bigger and bigger and

bigger. Indeed, every single classes

involved. This is primarily one's responds to Nicole Wermers peace.

There is such a diverse range of practices and the children are

really responding to those different concepts and scenarios, perhaps in a

less cynical way than an adult audience might. Some created

original works like this sculpture, which was inspired and made by

Syrian refugees. Five people can open the door and one family can go

through the door. He is pushing the door and the hand goes out the door.

It even spills into the playground, where a former Turner Prize nominee

inspires where a former Turner Prize nominee

thought bubble is a chance to share their excitement about the Turner

Prize being on home turf. And there is a real buzz here of

excitement at Tramway, as people arrived for that announcement, which

will happen within just over an hour. We can guarantee it won't be a

Scot this year, but it feels as if Glasgow is already a winner, just

from having staged it. It has cast light on the wider art scene and the

extraordinary amount of artists that work here all year round. This

exhibition will run until the middle of January, lots of events alongside

it and then they start preparing for the next big contemporary art event,

the Glasgow International. Pauline, thank you.

Pedigree of artistry in the Sport Tonight, not much, though.

The head of the Scottish Football Association is calling for a rethink

after a weekend washout led to a deluge of postponed matches.

Stewart Regan has told BBC Scotland that summer football,

artificial pitches and a mid-season break should all be

It comes as a relaunch of the League Cup is on the cards.

Here's our senior football reporter Chris McLaughlin.

Yes, three Scottish premiership fixtures and a host of lower league

games fell foul to storm Desmond at the weekend and that led to calls

once again for summer football. BBC Scotland spoke to the country's

elite clubs a few months ago and the vast majority said they would be up

for discussing the prospect. Some of the games that did go ahead at the

weekend went ahead on synthetic surfaces, albeit on awful surfaces.

-- awful conditions. Stewart Regan has said he is up for more clubs

installing plastic pitches. What else is he suggesting? What we might

need to look at this perhaps some sort of mid-season break, where we

can start the season a bit earlier, take advantage of the good weather,

the light nights, get kids out on the park being coached by parents or

by Scottish FA coaches, and maybe finish the season around the same

time or a little bit later but have a break in the middle. But for now,

we are expecting news imminently of a change to the League Cup. It has

been widely reported that we should be seeing an end to the straight

knockout and perhaps a move towards a new league format. That could be

one avenue to explore. Don't expect a huge number of clubs to install

plastic pitches, don't expect a huge march on hand here for summer

football, but there are noises perhaps that those here are starting

to listen. -- is perhaps. Dundee's two professional

football clubs were almost brought That's according to

the former chief executive Roger Mitchell has revealed it would

essentially have been a Dundee United takeover of Dundee back

in 1999, with the new club called Although the deal eventually

unravelled, Mitchell says the new club would have played in Tangerine

at United's Tannadice Stadium. Mitchell made the revelations

in an interview with People don't remember, or certainly

some people don't want to remember, that that deal was done, those two

teams on a Friday night had merged, they had come up with a new name, a

strip they would play in. We had been told about that, we were ready

to deal with it. And what that meant for promotion and relegation. It was

a crucial moment, it was two clubs, to historic clubs merging.

World darts champion Gary Anderson has issued

a statement saying that he would never intentionally lose a match.

It's after an earlier admission that he had lost deliberately to

Last month, Anderson told BBC Scotland's Tom English he lost

the match because he was "cheesed off" with the level of abuse Lewis

Did you lose deliberately? Yes. I didn't want to win a game that

happened in, simple as that. Out of support for Adrian Lewis? Yes, I

thought it was a disgrace, to be quite honest. That is the sport for

tonight. Thank you very

happening on the weather front, let's get the latest.

Good evening, it has been a fairly cloudy and damp day across much of

the country. There were one or two exceptions, as we can see from this

picture in Sutherland. Some brightness just peeking through the

clouds. As far as the here and now is concerned, we are watching this

cold front tracking from west to east. And the rain on that cold

front has prompted the Met office to issue only yellow be aware warning

for parts of central and southern Scotland. More rain falling, which

is most unwelcome after the flooding we have just had. A pretty

fast-moving feature, though, pulling away into the North Sea overnight

although a few heavy showers following on. A fairly mild night to

come, temperatures no lower than six Celsius. Fresh to strong winds from

the South or pleased for coastal areas, Gale force at times across

the Western and Northern Isles. Tomorrow, we start the day with a

fair amount of dry weather, some showers in the East pulling away to

leave dry and brighter conditions with sunshine. Quickly, though, a

clump of showers pushing into Western areas and indeed, by

tomorrow afternoon, some of those showers will filter into southern

and central Scotland, a few heavy showers, although the heaviest and

most prolonged of the showers will be across North Argyll and into

Wester Ross. Some glimpses of brightness but the best of the

sunshine tomorrow afternoon reserved for the north-east. After a fairly

mild morning, temperatures falling away to around six or seven Celsius,

the wind peering into the West and easing somewhat. Into Tuesday

evening, we will continue to see this band of showery rain pulling

away into the North Sea, falling as smoke on the Hillsborough time and

behind it, clearer conditions allowing a touch of frost to develop

-- falling snow on the hills. The isobars fairly tightly packed

together, so more rain in the forecast and an early warning in

force again from the Met office for central and southern Scotland,

strong to Gale force winds and severe gales across western exposed

parts, but feeling mild once again. That is the forecast.

Now, a reminder of tonight's main news.

The family of three of the six people who died in the

Glasgow bin lorry crash say they're beginning a private prosecution

The operators of the Forth Road Bridge say engineers are

working around the clock on repairs, as travellers cope with

I'll be back with the headlines at 8pm and the late bulletin just

Until then, from everyone on the team - right across the