:00:49. > :00:52.Here in the East Midlands: For legal aid over a prison death.
:00:53. > :01:02.The �1 million contract which failed to check out the company
:01:03. > :01:03.
:01:03. > :42:50.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2507 seconds
:42:50. > :42:53.involved. Plus the MP who wants to Hello, I'm Quentin Rayner, and some
:42:53. > :42:59.searching questions in the East Midlands.
:42:59. > :43:02.This young father committed suicide in prison. His family want to know
:43:02. > :43:09.why they had to threaten legal action before they won the right to
:43:09. > :43:12.be represented at his inquest. hands are tied behind your back if
:43:12. > :43:16.you cannot afford legal representation. You basically have
:43:16. > :43:20.to pay for it yourself, but if you cannot afford it, what can you do?
:43:20. > :43:23.Why did a primary care trust make a series of mistakes over a contract
:43:23. > :43:25.to a company that has gone bust? Blunders that could cost them
:43:25. > :43:29.hundreds of thousands of pounds. Will the Government safeguard the
:43:29. > :43:33.future of the children's heart unit in Leicester?
:43:33. > :43:41.And on a lighter note, grousing up one of our MPs and it's all in the
:43:41. > :43:45.First, it was a double tragedy for a Derby family when, like his
:43:45. > :43:49.brother before him, Simon Gregory committed suicide in prison. His
:43:49. > :43:54.family believe he was failed by the prison system. And, as Robin Powell
:43:54. > :43:57.reports, they even had to fight to be represented at his inquest.
:43:57. > :44:03.The Gregorys from Derby appeared to be a typical happy family, these
:44:03. > :44:07.smiling faces giving no hint at all of the tragedies to unfold. But
:44:07. > :44:11.Philip Gregory fell into drugs and, consequently, crime. 12 years ago
:44:11. > :44:15.he hanged himself at Leicester Prison. Younger brother Simon, to
:44:15. > :44:25.whom he'd been close, then went off the rails as well. Eight years
:44:25. > :44:28.later, he took his life, in exactly the same way, at Chelmsford Prison.
:44:28. > :44:33.It was hard to take, to see that one brother had died and then
:44:33. > :44:36.another brother had died in the same way. There was obviously
:44:36. > :44:39.something fundamentally wrong with the prison service for people to
:44:39. > :44:42.die like they are. Though overcome with grief, the family wanted
:44:42. > :44:44.answers. For those they needed a lawyer to represent them at the
:44:44. > :44:50.inquest. But while the Prison Officers' Association had its costs
:44:51. > :44:53.paid for by the taxpayer, the family was denied Legal Aid. Unable
:44:53. > :45:00.to afford anything like the �15 required, the family feared they'd
:45:00. > :45:06.never find out the circumstances surrounding Simon's death. -- a
:45:06. > :45:12.�15,000. No way should beat family have to push for months and risk
:45:12. > :45:15.the fact that you might not be able to give that person the justice
:45:15. > :45:18.they deserve. It was only at the last minute that the Gregorys'
:45:18. > :45:20.appeal succeeded and they were granted Legal Aid. The Legal
:45:20. > :45:23.Services Commission told us that Legal Aid is not routinely
:45:23. > :45:28.available for inquests and in most cases the Coroner is able to ensure
:45:28. > :45:31.an effective investigation. But the Gregorys' solicitor says that's a
:45:31. > :45:33.dangerous assumption to make, and with the Government about to cut
:45:34. > :45:43.almost �300 million from the Legal Aid budget, more families like
:45:44. > :45:46.
:45:46. > :45:49.theirs will go unrepresented. proposed cuts to the legal aid
:45:49. > :45:54.budget are fundamentally misconstrued and will strike at the
:45:54. > :45:58.very heart of justice. Access to justice and equal access to justice
:45:58. > :46:01.regardless of whether or not we have the means to pay it is a
:46:01. > :46:04.fundamental pillar of our welfare state. With the help of the
:46:04. > :46:06.Gregorys' legal team, the inquest did unveil serious failings that
:46:06. > :46:09.contributed to Simon's death. Classic warning signs had gone
:46:09. > :46:14.unheeded. Simon had repeatedly talked about his brother killing
:46:14. > :46:23.himself and wanting to do the same. The day before he died, he'd slit
:46:23. > :46:28.his wrists. Life-saving equipment was not working, they were under
:46:28. > :46:31.staffed, one prison officer was having to look after hundred and 27
:46:31. > :46:39.people. That is shocking, especially on a wink when you have
:46:39. > :46:45.people who are at a high risk of self-harm. One person cannot keep
:46:45. > :46:48.an eye on everyone. -- 127 people. The government is meant to be
:46:48. > :46:52.looking after the people. They are being punished for what they have
:46:52. > :46:57.done wrong, but they have a duty of care to people. To give them a
:46:57. > :47:01.phone number if they have problems is not enough. We asked the
:47:01. > :47:05.Ministry of Justice to respond to the inquest findings and to explain
:47:05. > :47:10.how it intends to act on them. Instead, it simply gave us a brief
:47:10. > :47:14.statement, saying, the national under management service will
:47:14. > :47:16.consider what lessons can be learnt. But the Prison Officers'
:47:16. > :47:22.Association says that far from learning lessons, the Government's
:47:22. > :47:27.putting vulnerable prisoners at even greater risk.
:47:27. > :47:31.You could take any prison in the country and it would have the same
:47:31. > :47:35.problems of resources, the same problems of training, the same
:47:35. > :47:42.problems and pressures because the prison population is spiralling out
:47:42. > :47:47.of control. It is 85,000 compared to before. There are not enough
:47:47. > :47:52.staff, they keep cutting budgets and we just cannot guarantee any
:47:52. > :47:56.one's safety any more. Simon's case demonstrates that
:47:56. > :48:04.where corners are cut, it is a false economy. The impact of a lack
:48:04. > :48:08.of staffing, lack of proper medical equipment and care and support,
:48:08. > :48:13.ultimately caused huge amounts of distress to bereaved families, but
:48:13. > :48:17.also a great cost to the public as a whole as a result of the inquest
:48:17. > :48:20.and the procedures that need to be implemented. Getting to the bottom
:48:20. > :48:23.of how Simon died has given his surviving siblings at least some
:48:23. > :48:26.cause for comfort. But his mother's still too upset to speak to us. Two
:48:26. > :48:31.of her sons have hanged themselves. Had they received the support in
:48:31. > :48:34.prison they needed, the family says they might still be alive today.
:48:34. > :48:44.We asked for an interview with the Prisons Minister, Crispin Blunt,
:48:44. > :48:45.
:48:45. > :48:47.but we were told he was unavailable. Next, when Primary Care Trusts
:48:47. > :48:49.commission building work, you'd think they'd make all the necessary
:48:49. > :48:53.financial checks first. But not apparently in Leicestershire and
:48:53. > :48:58.Rutland. The trust there paid �1.5 million to Modcon UK to build a new
:48:58. > :49:02.Day Case unit in Market Harborough. But the company has since collapsed
:49:02. > :49:04.after a winding up order was brought by Revenue and Customs.
:49:04. > :49:09.Worse, the Trust has admitted it didn't make financial checks before
:49:10. > :49:13.giving Modcon the contract. And it failed at the outset to ask for a
:49:13. > :49:16.bank guarantee. Lots of questions you might think for the Trust to
:49:16. > :49:19.answer. But they've declined to join us. On the line now from
:49:19. > :49:26.Westminster, the MP for Harborough Edward Garnier. And here in the
:49:26. > :49:31.studio, Harborough district councillor, Phil Knowles.
:49:31. > :49:34.Edward, if I can start with you, what do you make of the way the
:49:34. > :49:40.Primary Care trusts have handled the contract? This is just the
:49:40. > :49:45.latest example of what I would describe as shambolic behaviour by
:49:45. > :49:49.PCT. This latest disaster with Modcon applies to this particular
:49:49. > :49:52.Primary Care Trust, but over the last 10 years, previous
:49:52. > :49:58.manifestations of the National Health Service have invested huge
:49:58. > :50:02.sums of money, going into the millions, into hospital projects
:50:02. > :50:08.and we still have not got what the public has a right to expect.
:50:08. > :50:12.Focusing on this unit, the think it is incredible that they failed to
:50:12. > :50:19.get a banker's guarantee and carry out financial checks? I wish it
:50:19. > :50:22.were incredible, but it is all too believable. When this PCT
:50:22. > :50:27.administers its contract, if it were not lamentable, it would be
:50:27. > :50:32.laughable. This is just the latest example in his long and farcical
:50:32. > :50:38.saga. They ought to be ashamed of themselves. Have a broken
:50:38. > :50:43.government rules? They have broken their own rules. They did not use a
:50:43. > :50:48.contractor on the official National Health Service, government contract
:50:48. > :50:52.as list. They did not get a bank guarantee all rate bond. They
:50:52. > :50:57.contracted with a company which has now been wound up, allowing huge
:50:57. > :51:03.sums of money to the Revenue and Customs. You could not make this up.
:51:03. > :51:08.But they did put out a tender to an outside group of quantity surveyors.
:51:08. > :51:13.That was very nice. Phil, let's bring you in. You worry local
:51:13. > :51:17.councillor. What are people telling you about this? I am very much with
:51:17. > :51:25.Edward on this one. The people in Harborough are annoyed beyond
:51:25. > :51:30.belief. You have a situation where this company formed an embryonic
:51:30. > :51:33.outfit in October 2009. By Jenny 2010, it was being awarded a
:51:34. > :51:38.contract. Within nine days of the contract being cancelled in June
:51:38. > :51:45.2011, this company was wound up in the Crown Court. The whole thing is
:51:45. > :51:47.a shambles. PCT has put its hand up -- hands up and apologised. They
:51:47. > :51:52.have identified what went wrong and appropriate measures have been put
:51:52. > :51:57.in place to stop this happening again. I do not accept that. This
:51:57. > :52:02.is about public accountability. The PCT have been on the cusp of
:52:02. > :52:07.disaster time and time again with these things. The PCT, in their own
:52:07. > :52:09.documents, have highlighted the fact that for 15 years prior to
:52:09. > :52:15.that meeting, they were trying to put schemes together in Harborough
:52:15. > :52:18.and they failed to do so. The whole thing is a shambles. The PCT has
:52:18. > :52:22.admitted it was three months after signing the contract that these
:52:22. > :52:28.issues came to light about the bank guarantee. What the make of that
:52:28. > :52:31.admission? It is a disgrace. The PCT confirmed that they did not
:52:31. > :52:36.even get anyone with a legal background to overlook the contract.
:52:36. > :52:39.They took literally and off the shelf contract pack, adapted it to
:52:40. > :52:43.what they need, for some reason they omitted to have the clause in
:52:43. > :52:48.it which requires a financial guarantee. They only found out
:52:48. > :52:52.about that by some stroke of luck. When everything went wrong, they
:52:52. > :52:56.involved people with a legal background. It is a disaster.
:52:56. > :53:00.Edward, despite the delay, the trust maintains that the autumn of
:53:01. > :53:05.costs will come in on budget. Are you convinced? Will it be around
:53:05. > :53:12.�2.3 million? Be admitted when I took the matter to the minister
:53:12. > :53:16.earlier this week, the chief executive of the PCT said they
:53:16. > :53:20.would go over budget by a few tens of thousands of pounds. This is
:53:20. > :53:24.public money. We cannot have large public infrastructure projects
:53:24. > :53:29.being dealt with in this way. We need financial accountability. This
:53:29. > :53:33.is taxpayers' money, the National Health Service, we should be
:53:33. > :53:38.serving the patience of my constituency. It is worse than
:53:38. > :53:41.incompetence. For the chief executive suit -- to sit there and
:53:41. > :53:45.the sake either she did not know the answer to the questions that I
:53:45. > :53:52.was put into her, which reflect the questions you have been asking me,
:53:52. > :53:57.all she had inadequate answers, is in my view disgraceful. I hope that
:53:57. > :53:59.the minister, who I sat with during that discussion, we look into this
:53:59. > :54:07.matter, will come back with some answers either from his own
:54:07. > :54:12.officials or extracted from the PCT. In the light of your meeting and
:54:12. > :54:15.you severe criticisms, do you think that there should be a Department
:54:15. > :54:18.of Health investigation into this was much I have asked the minister
:54:18. > :54:24.to do precisely that. He has assured me that unless this project
:54:24. > :54:29.is completed by the now delight timetable of 20th January 12, I
:54:29. > :54:32.will be permitted to go into that ministerial room with the PCT and
:54:32. > :54:38.the atmosphere will be rather different. There will not be any
:54:38. > :54:42.coffee on order. The thing is, Edward, this has gone on for so
:54:42. > :54:45.long. It has reached the point that when I contacted you in May and
:54:45. > :54:49.said take this to the minister, I applaud what you have done and
:54:49. > :54:53.support it, it really has reached the point where enough is enough.
:54:53. > :54:58.The only way we will get public accountability is to get this thing
:54:58. > :55:02.plus doubt with a formal inquiry. The sooner the minister calls a
:55:02. > :55:07.public inquiry, the sooner we have this public accountability. Briefly,
:55:07. > :55:10.both of you, what action the one to see taken? We have to get the
:55:10. > :55:14.minister to call the public inquiry. I have offered to go down to
:55:14. > :55:17.support Edward and give as much information as we can to the
:55:17. > :55:21.minister. People have to be accountable, this is public money
:55:21. > :55:26.and the whole thing is a shambles. This needs opening and opening soon.
:55:26. > :55:36.If this is not done quickly, the whole thing will go off the rails.
:55:36. > :55:37.
:55:37. > :55:39.-- the rails. We have run at a time. And staying on the health theme,
:55:39. > :55:42.patients and medical staff across the East Midlands are anxiously
:55:42. > :55:45.awaiting the final decision on a review of services for children
:55:45. > :55:47.with heart problems. It's likely to mean fewer specialist centres
:55:47. > :55:51.across the country. Most of the options under consideration
:55:51. > :55:55.recommend keeping the unit at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester.
:55:55. > :56:02.But the uncertainty continues. And our MPs have been making their
:56:02. > :56:07.views felt in a special debate at Westminster.
:56:07. > :56:11.It serves my constituents extremely well and I am in for all and
:56:11. > :56:17.admiration of those who work there, from the surgeons, those who run
:56:17. > :56:20.the intensive care unit, the nurses and the staff who packed the
:56:20. > :56:24.walkers stadium for the consultation meeting last Thursday.
:56:24. > :56:33.I want to focus my remarks on something that is unique and
:56:33. > :56:40.specific to Glenfield Hospital and that is our a e-commerce service.
:56:40. > :56:43.This service is world class. As I understand it, it is a heart and
:56:43. > :56:47.lung machine that rest of the lungs and heart of a patient waiting for
:56:47. > :56:52.recovery. I have been told by many at Glenfield Hospital that this
:56:53. > :57:00.pitch -- procedure was pioneered it to Enfield 20 years ago. They have
:57:00. > :57:06.over 10 machines now. Glenfield Hospital is the only centre in the
:57:06. > :57:13.country that provides this machine for patients of all ages. We should
:57:14. > :57:17.of course recognise that the whole subject of child heart surgery has
:57:17. > :57:24.form in the history of the National Health Service. It is now over a
:57:24. > :57:30.decade ago that the review was published into circumstances that
:57:30. > :57:35.illustrate what can go tragically wrong when things are allowed to
:57:35. > :57:40.drift on and real issues are not addressed. So while I am here of
:57:40. > :57:44.course as a member representing my constituents interest, I think the
:57:44. > :57:49.key priority for the House this afternoon is to support the
:57:49. > :57:55.principle that this is an issue which must be brought to a decision
:57:55. > :57:59.in the interests of the children who are the patients and to become
:57:59. > :58:04.the adult patients. The provision of children's heart surgery has
:58:04. > :58:09.been a cause for concern since the Bristol Royal Infirmary inquiry in
:58:09. > :58:12.the late 1990s. Understandably, there has been considerable
:58:12. > :58:16.pressure from national parents' groups and professionals to ensure
:58:16. > :58:20.that children receive the best treatment. That is the sole purpose
:58:20. > :58:25.of the is safe and sustainable review. It is to make certain that
:58:25. > :58:29.children with congenital heart problems recede the very best
:58:29. > :58:35.levels of care now and into the future. Do this, we must be certain
:58:35. > :58:39.that the sentence in which surgery takes place are as good as they
:58:39. > :58:44.possibly can be. -- the centres. I'm sure we will all agree that the
:58:44. > :58:49.final decision must be made by clinicians on the basis of evidence
:58:49. > :58:53.and not on political considerations. I hope the joint committee of PCTs
:58:53. > :59:02.will look at the points raised during these debates and then make
:59:02. > :59:05.their final recommendations in the very best interests of patients.
:59:05. > :59:09.Next, Members of Parliament are used to people giving them a hard
:59:09. > :59:12.time. But here in the East Midlands we have an MP who'd be delighted if
:59:12. > :59:16.we gave him the bird. No, really! Charles Hunter can tell you why.
:59:16. > :59:19.The United States of America has the Eagle - the bald eagle to be
:59:19. > :59:22.precise - a symbol of that nation's alleged might and power. India's
:59:22. > :59:25.national bird, the peacock, is equally majestic. And now a
:59:25. > :59:30.campaign has started here in the East Midlands for a UK national
:59:30. > :59:33.bird. In fact it's a bird you'd more
:59:33. > :59:43.readily associate with tweed, with shotguns and with the odd glass of
:59:43. > :59:48.
:59:48. > :59:53.alcohol. Ladies and gentlemen, I When you see it in flight, they
:59:53. > :59:59.will follow the control of the ground at great speed. This is why
:59:59. > :00:04.it is a sporting challenge. It is a very beautiful bird, very noble.
:00:04. > :00:08.The colours are extraordinary. With it being a native bird, not to be
:00:09. > :00:11.found anywhere else, that fulfils all of the ideal criteria for being
:00:11. > :00:14.nominated as a national bird. Barry Atkinson started this
:00:14. > :00:17.campaign as an extension of his charity fundraising activities
:00:17. > :00:24.beating for shoots all over the country. And he's persuaded his
:00:24. > :00:27.local MP to table an Early Day Motion. Barry came to me and said
:00:27. > :00:31.look we don't have a national bird. And rather than going for something
:00:31. > :00:34.that was very obvious he made the case for the red grouse I thought
:00:34. > :00:39.extremely capably. So, yeah, I decided to take the cause up and
:00:39. > :00:43.bring it forward to Parliament. It's good-looking, it's photogenic
:00:43. > :00:47.- I think it's a great symbol of this country. The Peak District is
:00:47. > :00:51.as far south as you'll find any red grouse in England. But some of the
:00:51. > :00:56.stallholders in Bakewell Market had other ideas for a national bird.
:00:56. > :00:59.go for either a blackbird or robin. He's there in the winter, he's
:00:59. > :01:03.there in the summer. We always cheer up when we see the robin.
:01:03. > :01:06.think the robin would be a good idea, or maybe the wren. It's a
:01:07. > :01:10.nuthatch, it's such a nice bird and they run up and down the trees.
:01:10. > :01:14.They are lovely birds. I like the robin. I think is such a friendly
:01:14. > :01:18.happy-looking bird and it sticks out in your garden. Kingfisher, I
:01:18. > :01:24.think. It's bonny to see flying down the river it shimmers in the
:01:24. > :01:28.light. Well the red grouse isn't introduced it's been here since
:01:28. > :01:34.Well, it goes back to the year, the year dot. OK, so we prompted him a
:01:34. > :01:38.bit - he does represent the field sports tendency after all.
:01:38. > :01:40.speed of it mainly. By the time they've put the gun up, it's gone.
:01:41. > :01:44.Not everyone's so keen on a national bird that's often seen as
:01:44. > :01:47.something for rich people to shoot at. I've never seen a red grouse.
:01:48. > :01:52.And I suppose if you asked half the people that buy birdseed they're
:01:52. > :01:58.not feeding grouses. Let them who've got lots of money go and
:01:58. > :02:03.play with the red grouse and shoot it or whatever. We have the robin.
:02:03. > :02:06.I don't like shooting birds at all. It's not for me. Why have a
:02:06. > :02:16.national bird that you want to kill? The thing about that is that
:02:16. > :02:19.
:02:19. > :02:22.supports the red grouse. I've never actually spoken to a grouse that's
:02:22. > :02:25.been educated at a major public school or one of the big
:02:25. > :02:28.universities. I don't think it give a good goddam who shoots at it
:02:28. > :02:30.frankly or any sort of class consciousnesses. This is a splendid,
:02:30. > :02:36.strong, resilient, determined bird which lives inside all the
:02:36. > :02:39.countries inside Great Britain. How could we fail to have this as out