14/02/2018 Victoria Derbyshire

That's a summary of the latest BBC

News - more at 9.30.

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Let's get some sport

now with Hugh Ferris

and we're going to talk

Winter Olympics, where the curling

has started for Team GB -

how excited should we be?

We should be. Many at my age will

remember Rhona Martin and her team

winning the first gold medal for

curling in Salt Lake City. Since

then the teams, both men's and

women's, have been regular

challengers in the Winter Olympics.

The example four years ago it was a

silver and a bronze in Sochi. Here's

how it works. This is a winter sport

that grips Great Britain. The aim is

to get more of your stones near the

middle of the target, getting there

is more like the coldest game of

chess. Always thinking a few moves

ahead. Each team has four members.

They deliver stones. Mattress can

last up to three hours. The stones

weigh 20 kilos. -- the matches can

last up to three hours.

To the action from Pyeongchang. Eve

Muirhead is the skipper. It is her

third games. She's hoping for

another medal after a bronze four

years ago. Russia were beaten 10-3

earlier. They ended it early such

was the dominance of the British

team. The next game will be against

the USA. As far as the men are

concerned, they won silver four

years ago. It's a different team

this time around. Paul Smith is the

skipper. The team are all farmers.

And they include two of Eve

Muirhead's brothers. Next up for

them it is much, much tougher,

Canada, the world and Olympic

champions, beating Team GB four

years ago in Sochi to the gold

medal. An update on that throughout

the morning here on the BBC News

Channel.

And there was a terrible blow for

Elise Christie yesterday in the

speed skating.

Terribly difficult time. Four years

ago she was disqualified in each of

her three events. A very emotional

girl. We saw her cry in Sochi.

Another emotional interview with

tears down her face after crashing

out of the 500 metres yesterday. She

received lots of support. This is

what she put on Twitter after

crashing out yesterday.

This is interesting from Instagram.

One of her rivals, who touched Elise

Christie before she went down and

crashed into the side wall, put a

picture on saying "Genuine

happiness", and Elise Christie

responded with "Actual heartbreak,

but today is a new day". You can put

your own context to this. Next up,

if she is able to gather herself in

time, it's the 1500 metres. Two more

chances for her to make amends.

And Hugh, who on earth is the Flying

Tomato?

Shaun White. He is a snowboarding

Tomato?

Shaun White. He is a snowboarding

legend. He used to have massive long

locks of red hair. He is 31 now. It

is shorter now. That is what happens

when you get into your 30s. This was

him early on winning a third Olympic

gold in the half pipe. He reclaim

the title that he did not win in

Sochi, surprisingly, four years ago.

The American has won the 100th gold

medal at the Winter Olympics for his

country. He hasn't ruled out having

another go in four years' time. But

in the meantime he might try

skateboarding at the next Summer

Olympics because that is being

introduced for the first time in

Tokyo. He is a multitalented guy and

one of the most decorated in Winter

Olympics history.

Good morning.

Good morning.

"How did you catch Down's Syndrome?"

A genuine question

asked by a benefits assessor

who was working out how

much disability benefit

a claimant was entitled to.

As a result of examples like that,

there's a "pervasive lack of trust"

amongst people with disabilities

in the way their claims

for welfare are assessed.

That's what a group

of MPs has found.

Since 2013, 290,000 claims

for Personal Independence Payments

or Employment and Support Allowance

which were initially rejected have

gone on to be approved at appeal -

that's a total of 6%

of all those assessed.

In a moment we'll talk

to a whistleblower

who used to be a benefits assessor

but quit after five weeks.

First, have a look at this.

MPs have been looking at how

PIP and ESA assessments

and payments are being carried out.

PIP stands for personal

independence.

It's for people with disabilities

or long-term health problems.

It's aimed at people

between 16 and 64.

PIP is a non-means tested benefit

which means it doesn't matter how

rich or poor you are,

you're still eligible to claim it.

It's to help with the living costs

that accompany any condition.

ESA is slightly different.

It stands for earning

and support allowance.

It's a benefit you're paid

if your ability to work is limited

by a health or a disability.

To be able to claim for ESA,

you have to go through

a medical assessment.

If you qualify for ESA,

be put into two groups,

either a support group

or a work-related activity group.

The support group is for people

judged unable to work.

The work-related activity

group is to help those

who the government believes

could work if they are given help.

Last year, MPs put out a call

for evidence to see if the payments

and the companies who manage them

had been doing a good job.

Their report has found that

for the majority of people

the system runs smoothly

but for a small minority,

when things go wrong,

they go very wrong.

Many say the outcome

of their assessments bore little

relation to their circumstances,

and that assessors were ignorant.

One woman was allegedly denied

benefits because her report said

she walks her dog,

but she says she can't walk and

does not have a dog.

Another person with Down's syndrome

says they were asked

when they caught it.

After 4,000 submissions,

MPs have now made

recommendations for changes.

They say the claim process

should be made easier.

For example, deaf people

should be allowed to fill

in their assessment by e-mail.

They also say that decisions should

be made more clear and open,

and that claimants should be able

to see what's written about them

so they can understand

how decisions are made.

The Government says the changes need

to be made to ensure every person

feels they are treated fairly,

with respect and dignity.

Let's talk to a whistleblower -

"Grace" - not her real name -

who worked as a benefits assessor

but quit after a few weeks

because of the pressure.

She's also a member

of the Labour Party.

Frank Field is here -

he's the Labour chair of the work

and pensions select committee -

that's the group of Mps who've

released today's repoort.

At her home in Yorkshire

is Cath Scarlett, who was

so distrusting of the process

she secretly filmed it,

When she was being assessed.

Her Twitter bio says

she "fights for disabled

people's rights in every

waking mimnute, trade unionst,

disability officer for the NUT

and Labour", and in Salford

is Martin Corr who's

a probation officer,

he's registered blind and applied

for PIP in order to get

technology on his phone.

Grace.

You worked for one of the companies

that assess claimants.

You trained for two weeks,

you lasted in the job 5 wks.

Why?

I was disgusted with the system I

was working in. It was institutional

abuse to me, so I resigned and

escalated my concerns to my nursing

Council.

What do you mean by

institutional abuse?

The system

wasn't adequate. It didn't give

claimants long enough to explain and

express the type of discomfort, the

type of pain that they were going

through. The nurses were under a lot

of stress, and I think it led to a

lot of mistakes. I know copying and

pasting goes on.

What you mean?

Nurses copying from Word documents

onto assessment reports.

So not

genuinely filling in an assessment

report having had an interview with

the claimant?

No.

Why? To save time?

Yes. Nurses are expected to assess

for five client today. Over that,

they get a £50 bonus.

So if you see

six or more clients today, you get

an extra 50 quid?

There is a lot of

sickness, and I think retention is

very difficult in this profession.

They entice you with high wages, but

management put you under so much

stress that I think a lot of people

leave, a lot of nurses leave.

Is

there a particular claim that sticks

in your mind that you saw?

I had a

lady come to my service, dropped off

by a landlord, incapable of making

her own way there. In my mind, in my

experience of over 20 years working

with people with disabilities, and

this lady had learning disabilities,

in fact she said she went a special

school, she gave me the name of the

school that she went to. She

couldn't read the letters that she

brought with her, the evidence. She

had over 50 pieces of evidence on a

computer, which I was expected to

read within half an hour. And

clearly she had cognitive

difficulties. When I made my report

on my observations with my

experience, it was sent back, and

the auditor made me change and said

there was no evidence that she had

learning disabilities at all.

So an

auditor who I'd never met this

person completely overruled you?

Yes.

Even though you have 20 years

in this field, and you had spent

time with this woman?

It was

disgraceful.

Frank Field, what you

think of that?

What I was talking to

grace earlier, what struck me was

not only the humility that she has

brought to this task, but she said

which was stunning and terrifying,

she had been 20 years a nurse, and

she still felt that with all us

experience, she was being asked to

do a job with all the professional

expertise that she was not really

suited to do, and then you hear that

when she does make a judgment to the

very best of her ability, the

auditor comes along and tells her to

change it. And it is this period of

growing uncertainty and lack of

trust that the committee looked at,

and we believe the only way of

tackling that in the short run is

for all these interviews to be

recorded. Every organisation

concerned with this says we should

actually have these interviews, key

interviews, recorded. The Government

when it came to give evidence said

we must consult on this, and we

pointed out to the Government,

everybody's agreed but you, so if

you are going to do a consultation,

it is you talking to yourself. Why

don't you make this one bold move

and say that people who are disabled

don't have to struggle around with a

recording machinery to be able to

present that things were not as

reported, but that it would just be

an automatic right for applicants to

ask for their interviews to be

recorded.

What you think of that

idea, grace?

Absolutely. And for the

assessor to use that recording as

well to write the report, sometimes

reports are left open until the

following day. It is totally against

policy, but you can't get all the

reports written at times.

Is it

possible you couldn't cope with the

pressure? Because you know when you

start a new job, it is hard, you

were trying to get your head round

things, it does feel a bit chaotic.

Could that not be part of the reason

why you felt stressed?

No, I think

it was bad management. Some of my

colleagues were coming in at half

past seven to finish reports and

leaving at eight o'clock, and then

management were asking them to take

laptops home on their days off to

complete report is.

Let me read some

messages here. An e-mail, I'm about

claim benefits for the first time in

about 25 years due to sickness, and

I'm terrified about it. I know that

I give them any excuse whatsoever to

turn my claim down, they will, which

mix my illness far worse. Frank

says,

PIP assessment awful, they sent a to

physiotherapist assess my mental

health. This person says, my level

was dropped, and they said I refused

an exam, but I wasn't offered one to

refuse. Frank Field, you know what

the Government say, you quote it in

your report, which is, 83% of ESA

claimants and 73% of PIP claimants

so they're happy with overall

experience.

The report makes clear

that most people don't object, and

we hope that figure does reflect how

people feel. But for example in

Birkenhead on Friday, a constituent

had been turned down. One of the

questions was, could you go to your

local shop? Being very honest, she

said yes. What she didn't say, and

nor was the question posed in a

waiting courage to say, when I have

been to the local shop, I am two

days in bed trying to recover. The

question was answered honestly but

it didn't get anything like how

disabled that person was.

Let me

bring in Katha and Martin. -- Cath

and Martin. Cath, you filmed your

assessment, but there was one thing

that was odd. Tell the audience what

that was.

When I got the decision,

they had downgraded my care

component of it, saying that I could

cook meals and I could get myself

washed and dressed perfectly OK

because I used a crutch in my right

hand. It took me a long time to be

able to get a copy of the report, I

had to get my MP involved to be able

to get a copy, and when I got it, it

was full of inaccuracies, from

beginning to end.

And how did you

react when you read it, then?

I was

completely taken aback. Within the

first two minutes of the assessment,

there were two... They can only be

called liars. I was using crutches,

and I walked very slowly, but they

said I walked with a normal posture,

I held the arms of my chair and

lowered myself down slowly, and on

the video it actually shows me

walking sideways and very stooped on

the crutches, so I was leaning on

the very heavily, and I don't even

touch the arms of the chair to sit

down. I was trying to balance myself

on the crutches, and I actually fell

into the chair.

So not accurate

description, you say, of what

actually happened?

Absolutely not.

There were a huge amount of similar

things within the report.

Let me

bring in Martin. I can't hear you

down here for some reason, I'm not

sure why. Perfect!

Hello?

You have

been registered blind since 1979 and

you work as a probation officer. Why

we are applying for PIP at all cause

yellow prior to PIP, I had been in

receipt of the Disability Living

Allowance, its predecessor, and I

was invited to apply for PIP. I use

quite a lot of technology to allow

me to function, primarily a la

tonics to read text and magnify

stuff, that sort of thing. And how

was the assessment process for you

as someone who is blind and never

going to regain their site?

It

starts off that they send you a 16

page form, in no other format but

paper. If you are visually impaired,

you accept that as the norm in life.

I was then assessed by a very nice

lady. I didn't have to get out of my

chair at all. But from that

assessment she was able to establish

that I could cook meals and I could

wash, dress and could travel around

safely. This was in spite of a

letter from my consultant which

basically said that this man has

little or no vision and would be

severely impacted to move around

safely, that I needed a white stick

to safely navigate even unfamiliar

-- on familiar routes. The dossier

that came back said that whilst they

knew I had a white stick, they did

not deem it to be an aid.

I'm sorry?

They did not deem it to be an aid.

This is a parallel universe.

There

was lots of suggestions from my

colleagues at work about what it

actually was for!

I bet you can't

mention those on daytime television,

as well!

Yes, none of them can be

broadcast!

Let me read some more from the

statement.

Our aim is that every person feels

they have been treated fairly and

with dignity. We have commissioned

five independent reviews of the work

capability assessment, accepting

more than over 100 recommendations,

and two independent reviews of PIP

assessments. We are exploring

options around recordings to promote

greater transparency and trust.

It

is good to hear about. But they

could have announced today they are

doing, as Grace was saying, the

importance of recording these key

interviews. But they would also need

to accept there is a long-term

problem. If you have somebody like

Grace, who has 20 years of being a

nurse, a highly skilled person,

feels this is such a difficult task

then you have problems, haven't you?

Also, when they began this

assessment procedure they appointed

three private companies to do it.

They believed that would attract

many more private companies wanting

to undertake the work. They haven't

done that. None of the companies the

Silva targets. And the Government

has this key question, what do we do

now when the market is setting us

towel? -- none of the companies to

-- none of the companies fulfill

their targets.

Unlikely to happen?

It depends on the new Secretary of

State, but it's sad the fits a

pattern now. What were the high

hopes, like with farming links out

to the private sector, they don't

always work.

Most people are happy

with their experience of being

assessed. This is from the Weezer,

my assessment was very thorough, I'm

a wheelchair user, it lasted over an

hour and it would have weeded out

any scammers. -- this is from

Louisa.

That's great. I hope they

are satisfied because otherwise even

more drastic, isn't it? But the

Government hasn't done a survey on

those. We have just had this

enquiry. We had more people write

in, thousands, we've never had that

before, of people who come as Grace

as described, feeling they got a

rough deal.

Thank you. -- of people

who, as Grace has described.

Thank you all.

Thank you for your time. I have many

messages from you. I will read some

more throughout the programme. Keep

sending them in. Also coming up:

Running your own business from home

can be really tempting, but are some

of the marketing schemes advertised

too good to be true? We will find

out how some are leaving some people

in thousands of pounds of debt.

The prescription drug Xanax is being

sold illegally to children over

social media. We are keen to hear

from you if you have used the drug

or you are worried your child is

getting access to it somehow.

Time for the latest news.

Here's Carole Walker.

The BBC News headlines this morning.

The Foreign Secretary,

Boris Johnson, will say in a speech

later today that leaving

the European Union is a cause

for "hope, not fear".

He'll attempt to offer reassurance

to Remain voters who feel

angry and alienated ,

but he'll also say that those

who want to stay in the EU cannot

and will not win the argument.

The Labour MP Chuka Umunna,

who supports the Open Britain

campaign against a hard Brexit said

Mr Johnson was "unqualified

to preach about the perils

of fear and betrayal".

The jury at the trial

of the former football

coach Barry Bennell,

who's been found guilty of dozens

of sexual offences against boys,

will continue deliberations

on other charges today.

Yesterday, the jury

at Liverpool Crown Court returned

guilty verdicts on 36 counts

and asked for more time

to consider seven more.

Bennell, who appeared in court

via videolink due to illness,

declined to give evidence

in his defence.

Film star Minnie Driver has

quit as an Oxfam ambassador

following claims that staff working

for the charity in disaster

zones paid vulnerable

local people for sex.

The actress resigned after 20 years

with the aid agency,

saying in a statement

that she was "horrified"

by the allegations.

Oxfam said it was "grateful"

for Ms Driver's commitment,

and that it was more determined

than ever to learn

from its mistakes.

A committee of MPs has said

there is a "pervasive lack of trust"

among disabled people when it comes

to how their welfare

claims are assessed.

The Commons' Work and Pensions

committee said reports

by private contractors

were "riddled with errors."

It recommends ministers

take the service back

"in house" when contracts end

with private firms.

The government says the majority

of claimants are happy

with their overall experience.

Police in South Africa have

arrested three people in raids

targeting the wealthy Gupta family,

who are close to the

president, Jacob Zuma.

Mr Zuma is under increasing pressure

to resign over corruption claims.

Both Mr Zuma and the Guptas

deny the allegations.

Mr Zuma is expected to respond later

today to a formal request

from the African National Congress

to step down.

That's a summary of

the latest BBC News.

Some more messages from you about

the assessment of claiming certain

welfare benefits. Derek says there

are too many errors to excuse this

system. No doubt the assessments are

regulated. Disabled people are

becoming numbers and are not treated

as individuals and I find this

disturbing.

Robert says my wife has recently

gone through her PIP assessment. She

suffers from agoraphobia, severe

social anxiety and borderline

personality disorder. The lady was

nice enough but an occupational

therapist can hardly know about

mental health issues my wife suffers

with. The problem is not only the

level of misinformation, deliberate

or Paul Butler knowledge of a

claimant's illness, but the very

real and large amount of suffering

put on the already extremely

vulnerable patient. -- deliberate or

poor background knowledge of a

claimant. I don't see the point of

putting a vulnerable person

throughout this level of stress,

without a doubt increasing suicidal

behaviour, and to find out that the

exact information is put on the form

sent in.

Here's some sport now.

Success for the women's British

curling team. Led by the skip Eve

Muirhead, they had encumbrance of

win over the Olympic athletes from

Russia earlier this morning. The men

also won their opening round-robin

game against Switzerland. A third

Olympic gold for Shaun White, known

as the flying tomato. He reclaim the

title he surprisingly did not win in

Sochi in the snowboard half pipe. It

was the 100th gold medal in history

for the USA at the Winter Olympics.

The Champions League returned. Spurs

came from 2-0 down against Juventus

interim to draw 2-2. -- in Turin.

Also down to ten men and 2-1 behind,

Kilmarnock beat Dundee in the

Scottish premiership last night. Ian

Wilson scoring at dramatic and

impressive late winner. It was their

seventh straight home win for

Kilmarnock.

Setting up a business from home can

seem very tempting -

but a BBC investigation has found

that some of those involved

in what's known as multi level

marketing schemes are being left

in thousands of pounds of debt.

Multi-level marketing companies,

or MLMs, have been compared

by their critics to pyramid schemes

- though the key difference

is they're absolutely legal-

essentially a company employs

a network of independent salespeople

who sell products directly

to their friends and relatives.

These salespeople earn income based

on their personal sales,

as well as the sales of those

they've recruited to

work for the company.

But many people who dreamt of making

thousands of pounds a month

are instead ending up in debt.

Women across the UK are speaking out

against a £1 billion industry called

multilevel marketing.

I came across on Facebook this

friend who had quit her job,

and I knew she was earning about 6-7

grand a month and I just

thought if she can do it,

then I can do it as well.

90% of it is full of greedy,

vultureish behaviour.

I've lost over £1000.

I think it's very much like a cult.

So, are some multilevel marketing

companies selling a dream

and letting some women down?

This may be your opportunity to make

a difference in your life.

Not only does Valentus offered

the best way to lost coffee

on the market but we also give

you an opportunity

to earn income on it.

-- Not only does Valentus offered

the best weight loss coffee.

You get the opportunity to build

a strong, stable income at home.

This is multilevel marketing,

better known as the abbreviation MLM

or network marketing.

It has passionate supporters

and outspoken critics.

Up to 500,000 people

in the UK are signed up.

Firstly, let's explain

what multilevel marketing is,

using our fictional MLM company

Fantabulousness, and a made

up group of people.

Fantabulousness make their own

perfume called Live Your Best life

and Positive Dreams.

Fictional Amy is recruited

by her old school friend

Karen to join her team.

So, Amy joins up by paying £100

for a starter kit and Karen makes

money for recruiting Amy.

Amy makes money by selling perfume

to her own customers,

like her sister Jane,

and her best friend, Lily.

And Karen gets a cut

of those sales, too.

Amy also builds a team.

She makes money for recruiting her

sister Jane and every time

Jane sells some perfume,

Amy gets a cut of that sale.

And then Karen also gets money

from the recruitment

of Jane and her sales.

The more people below

you, the more selling,

the more recruiting,

the more money is

going up the chain.

Plus, people also get bonuses

and make money through coaching.

And there are some

real-life success stories.

I'm currently the number

one position and female

-- I'm currently the number

one position female

in the UK and I have a team

of over 1800 people.

Now, what that means for me is I've

been able to enjoy an incredible

income over the last 4.5 years,

of 3.5 of those years,

my company has had an intake of over

£100,000 of business income.

Network marketing to me

is absolutely about

more than just money.

So, when I'd just started,

I simply started so that I could be

at home with my little boy.

Natasha was successful in a company

called Forever Living but she quit

and she is now an outspoken critic

of the whole industry.

I had the best time.

The best time.

And I can't ever say any different.

I've met some incredible friends,

some amazing people.

And we grew to a team of over 300.

However, 3.5 years later, I've now

decided to leave that industry.

I started to notice

negativity going on.

There was little stories

of this person being...

Experiencing bullying or this person

experiencing cheating.

90% of it is full of greedy,

vultureish behaviour.

Unlike Natasha, Ellie is too nervous

to speak out in public and so,

she's played by an actor.

They sell it to you that

you will only work about 5-10 hours

a week, and be able to earn

a full-time income.

So, I quit my job and

committed to Forever.

Think big, believe big, act big,

and the results will be big.

The idea of being able

to control your success

through positive thinking or mindset

training is encouraged in some MLMs.

No just means not right now.

I think when you go into MLMs,

it's very much like a cult.

Everyone is buzzing each other up,

and getting quite excited.

I have got loads of business

coming my way today.

Ellie says she got into

£10,000 worth of credit

card debt in two years.

The most I ever made

in a month was £400.

They are offering women a dream,

they are offering them the chance,

they say, to earn a lot of money

for very little work while staying

at home with their children.

It's a lie.

So, it seems to us again the way

these companies are set up,

the fact that for most sellers

the only way really to make money

is to recruit other sellers,

that just seems to contain

within itself too much

exploitative potential.

Mumsnet say there's been at least

20,000 posts and threads worried

about multilevel marketing.

We have also decided really

as a result of looking into this

issue recently that we're not

going to accept any sort of kosher

recruitment or other product

advertising from MLM on mumsnet

for the future, going forward.

The people that you see paraded

before you at rallies,

on social media, in the Lifestyle

videos, they are a tiny,

tiny percentage.

MLM companies do say

on their website or in the terms

and conditions something like income

isn't guaranteed or not

everyone is successful.

The direct sales association,

which is the trade body that

represents some MLM companies told

us that direct selling

should never be viewed

as a way to get rich quick,

and, as with any form of work, it

requires hard work and commitment.

Forever Living told us all business

owners are contractually required

to comply fully with the DSA

code of ethics.

That includes not making misleading

claims about possible income.

Valentus say they are very

transparent with all information

to anyone who's interested

in signing up.

You've just got to get

the right work ethic,

the right goals set,

and get the right skills and you are

on a fast track to success.

You know, they've got someone up

on stage who's telling you that

for years and years they struggled

with their business, and,

then, all of a sudden,

they focused really hard,

and suddenly they're earning 5,000,

10,000, 15,000 grand a month.

And you're just sitting

there thinking, yeah,

that's going to be me!

About 75% of people in multilevel

marketing companies

in the UK are women.

I didn't want to pay out

extortionate childcare fees,

because it's gone up.

It's hard because there's not much

work around here, as it is.

What are these companies appear

to provide is genuine

flexibility, working from home,

choose your own hours.

That can feel like a really

attractive proposition

to an awful lot of women.

And, so, it feels really unfair

if what you are actually offering

is really about recruiting other

people and stockpiling goods,

and coming home and worrying

about what's happening.

I came out of it £2000 in debt.

It's been an absolute struggle.

I've had fallouts with my

partner over it because I

used his credit cards.

To them, £1000 is nothing.

But to me, it's everything.

These women told us last August

they'd lost significant amounts

of money in a slimming coffee,

multilevel marketing

company called Valentus.

They stopped selling when they heard

that Trading Standards had started

investigating another seller.

We contacted Valentus and they admit

that, at that point,

the formulas and packaging did not

comply with UK approved regulations.

But say that, in fact,

the products were for personal use

only and not for resale.

They say the products

were being sold by women like these

without Valentus' consent.

I was on antidepressants.

And I had to increase my dosage

because I got distressed so much.

I was losing so much money,

I actually went behind my partner's

back so me and him hadn't been

getting on for a while because...

Well, obviously, he's

going to blame me.

It was me that lost the money.

Valentus also said they had in 90

days returns policy and that they've

changed the formula ingredients

and wording on packaging on two

products and they are now compliant

and selling in the UK.

Now we've heard from women who say

they've made lots of money,

and some who say they've lost money.

But what is the average

amount people end up with?

Well, the trade body,

the Direct Sales Association,

believes their own data.

It works out at £412 per distributor

in the UK each month.

That's retail sales

which doesn't mean their profit.

We can't verify this.

There are ways to give

all the information that people need

to make a really informed decision

and then, if you read

all that information,

understand it, take it on board

and you still want to work for that

company, then I think that's a much

more legitimate thing.

But it feels at the moment as though

people are essentially signing up

on a bit of a false premise.

Ellie told us she felt pressured

to fulfil a minimum spend each

month, which could be

products or recruitment.

The more they spend,

the deeper they get into...

Into the belief that success

is just around the corner.

So, I went to my upline and told

them I was struggling and putting

everything on the credit card.

And they just told me

it would pay off.

And, at the time, I thought

they were helping me out

by encouraging me to continue.

And that's not good

for a relationship when you're

constantly having to scrape by.

I mean, if my parents knew

how much debt I was in,

I think they'd be mortified.

Forever Living told us that business

owners must only buy

in quantities required to fulfil

immediate sales needs.

And are prohibited from placing

orders until 75% of previous

stock has been sold.

Breaches may lead to termination

of their agreement.

One criticism of the MLM industry

is whether there's too much

of a focus on recruitment

rather than sales.

That is because pyramid schemes,

which are illegal businesses,

reward people for an ruling others

into a business that offers

a nonexistent or worthless product.

There is no suggestion that any MLM

companies featured in this film

or otherwise are pyramid schemes.

However, some people continue

to believe that some MLM companies

are structured similarly

to pyramid schemes.

These are pyramid schemes

with a very, very superficial veneer

of product to bring it just

inside the law.

I think the law can be tightened up.

Joanna says she's

heard it all before.

And when you try and ask people

what that even means,

they just can't explain it.

They always say the person

at the top makes all the money.

And it just makes no sense

because if you look at a normal job,

and a normal working environment,

the person at the top gets

all the money while the people

at the bottom are doing

all of the hard work.

To me, that doesn't make sense.

Because in network marketing

it's the flip side.

The people doing all the work

and working hard can overtake

the people that brought them

in and earn more money than them.

And it's not a pyramid scheme.

The direct selling association told

us they strongly oppose

all forms of pyramid selling,

which is illegal in the UK.

In legitimate direct

selling opportunities,

earnings come from commission

on sales of products.

Valentus say there is no pressure

to recruit and it's people's choice

whether they choose to recruit

or to sell.

Natasha thinks a focus

on recruitment can lead

to people getting hurt.

They recruit a lot of people.

They fish through those people

for ruthless people that

are going to be like them that

are going to mass recruit.

And they throw the rest to one side.

There needs to be accountability.

Who's going to fix that lady's

confidence that you've battered?

It can be really emotionally

damaging to somebody when they've

had this amazing team around them

and, suddenly,

everyone's cut them off.

You will immediately be

shut out of all of that,

all of those friends,

all of those people that

you loved and trusted,

and who you really thought valued

you for who you are.

Valentus told us they provide

support to every member

through online training and upline

support from company leaders.

Forever Living say they provide

mediation for any disagreements.

We do not condone bullying of any

description and we have clearly

defined whistle-blowing

and escalation procedures to deal

with any such allegations.

Any business owner found to have

breached our policies will have

their agreement terminated.

Yes, there's probably going to be

a backlash and negative opinion

about what I've said but,

do you know what, I think

the majority of people

will hear what I've said and,

whether they speak out

and agree with me not,

they will agree with what I've said.

More on this after half ten.

If you've been involved

in an MLM, do get in touch.

We are looking for the couple that

have been together the longest in

Britain. I have a really nice to eat

here from Alison. She says, they're

with me. It had better be worth

waiting for! Alison says trot-macro

it is just loading. Happy

Valentine's Day. We are in 57 years

relationship, a mixed race

relationship, marriage 52 years.

Maybe the Queen is watching. Please

get in touch, ma'am. Right.

For many South Koreans,

it was the first time they'd

ever come face-to-face

with their neighbours

from the north.

If you've watched any

of the Winter Olympics, you'll know

that the North Korean cheerleading

team have been prominent

every time the unified

Korean team has performed.

And they've made quite the impact.

Some are suggesting that the Games

might lead to an improvement

in relations between North Korea

and South Korea.

The two bitterly divided countries

are competing under a neutral flag

at the Winter Games,

which is in South Korea.

The North Korean propoganda machine

is huge but it's normally used

within the country to big up

the personal reputation of this guy,

the country's leader, Kim Jong Un.

But over the last few days,

the machine's most colourful part

has hit the big time.

The North Koreans have sent 22

athletes to the Winter

Games in South Korea.

But they've sent a whopping

230-member cheer team.

It's their first global appearance.

They are making quite

a show, and one that's

pretty different from that

of their country's

militaristic leader.

The cheerleaders are all

in their 20s and 30s and have been

trained from a young age.

The women are sometimes referred

to as Kim's Army Of Beauties.

And, in fact, his wife was once part

of the so-called cheer squad.

They are chosen because

of their looks, height,

and family background.

Loyalty to the cause is paramount,

according to one defector,

who said their job was to conquer

with a smile.

North and South Korea

are bitterly divided.

But the two nations are performing

together at the games.

The cheerleaders aren't having

quite the desired effect

on the medal table yet, though.

The Korean women's hockey

team lost 8-0 to Sweden.

But the real question

is whether these displays of unity

could have a lasting impact outside

the sporting arena.

We can speak now to Dr Youngmi Kim,

lecturer in Asian Studies

at Edinburgh University

and Patrick Winn, investigative

journalist in South East Asia

and has interviewed a North Korean

defector who's a former cheerleader.

Patrick, how do the cheerleaders

fit into North Korea's

propaganda machine?

From a very young age, the machine

will identify girls as young as

eight or nine and indoctrinate them

into the propaganda machine.

Throughout their teenage years they

will spend hours training to play

instruments, to exult the regime

through song, and some are steered

into a cheerleading wing, and that

is what you're seeing in South

Korea.

And Dr Youngmi Kim, in terms

of the key diplomatic moves being

made by the North Koreans at the

games, they are all being made by

women. Why?

Can you hear me?

I can

now. Sorry, we keep forgetting to

turn up your microphone, but we have

done it now, thank you.

I think this

way, they mitigate the tension. It

has increased so far in the past few

months between the US and North

Korea. They have been discussing who

has the bigger button on their desk.

But by sending this cheerleading

team, it shows that there is a human

being living in North Korea, have a

similar lifestyle. In the west we

know mostly about nuclear weapons

programmes or famine, civil

oppressions, but this is a kind of

surprising, lots of people thing,

they look similar to us, and they

look very kind, and they are

smiling, so this actually read

humanised the image of North Korea.

Do you think it works, then? The

West seeing the cheerleaders?

I

think, yes.

Patrick, you have

written a piece recently about the

way the North Korean government also

sends women abroad to work in

restaurants. How does that fit in

with the cheerleading thing?

So the same propaganda machine, they

mostly stay in North Korea, but they

don't have much commercial value

there. Some of them are pulled away

and sent off to restaurant, many in

China but many here in Southeast

Asia, the second-largest market. All

of these restaurants have twirling,

singing waitresses who perform in

perfect synchronicity, a lot like

the cheerleaders you are seeing at

the Olympics. And it's a way for

anyone, even Brits, Americans,

so-called tormentors of the North

Korean state, to go and have

proximity to these women. And the

money all goes back to Pyongyang.

And Dr Youngmi comedy think these

good relations between North and

South will continue afterwards?

Yes, I think that Kim Jo-yong has

also been considered to help develop

further peace on the peninsular.

And

do you think that by talking about

them and avoiding talking about the

other issues like the nuclear issue,

we Erdei what Kim Jong Un would

want?

I think the North will not

give up the nuclear programme,

because they learned a lesson from

Libya or Iraq, why would they give

up? So they are playing the game,

they will continue to have this

programme at the same time as they

want to open the window to have

communication. That is why the South

Korean government has a huge

criticism from the opposition,

because South Korea can be used by

the North Korean Limerick as

tactics, strategies, right? -- by

the North Koreans as tactics of

strategies. But at this stage there

is no other way than talking about

who has more Army capacity.

It

always comes down to talking it

would seem in the end. Thank you

very much for coming on our

programme, Dr Youngmi Kim, lecturer

in Asian studies at Edinburgh

University, and Patrick Winn,

journalist in Southeast Asia. News

at ten o'clock, but before that the

weather.

Good morning. We had some Valentines

love for the skies, but perhaps not

as much towards the south-west. This

was the view a short while ago in

Cornwall, and it will be a familiar

view for many by the time we finish

today. Strong to gale force winds,

outbreaks of rain across many areas,

turning to snow across the higher

ground of Wales, covering of the

Peak District, perhaps ten

centimetres or more across the

Grampians and Highlands. Then

temperatures rise later in the day.

We will see some sunshine return

towards Western Scotland and

Northern Ireland, and temperatures

may be into double figures. In

eastern areas it will stay cold.

Heavy bursts of rain working across

any and Wales through this evening

and overnight, that will clear, but

tonight with starry skies for some

and only a few showers in the north

and west, temperatures will drop

away, but after severe gales for

some

today, the wind will ease down a

little but still keep those

temperatures in the frost. A

blustery but brighter day, a few

showers around, sleet and snow in

the West, mainly sleet and snow for

Scotland and Northern Ireland, but

temperatures not dropping away too

much.

Good morning. It is Valentine's Day,

ten o'clock, I'm Victoria

Derbyshire.

Our top story today -

Boris Johnson will try

to reassure Remain voters

that the UK's split from the EU

is a cause for "hope not fear".

But as a die-hard Brexiteer,

is he the right messenger?

I think he'll be all right.

I think so.

I think he'll do it.

He's not the man to

do that job, is he?

He doesn't care about Remainers.

It's like setting your house on fire

and then trying to put

the fire out yourself.

We will get reaction from two MPs,

one Labour, one Conservative on

either side of the divide, let's see

how they get on on Valentine's Day.

A BBC Investigation has found

that the prescription drug Xanax

is being sold illegally to children

on social media sites in the UK.

Certain dealers are online. On

social media, sometimes, it is

possible now to go on Instagram and

find a drug dealer.

Really keen to hear from you this

morning if you've uses

Xanax or you're worried

that your child is using it.

And happy Valentines Day - we're

looking for the couple who've been

together the longest

amongst our viewers.

57 years together is our current

winner, but let me know

if you can beat that.

Good morning.

Here's Carole Walker

in the BBC Newsroom

with a summary of today's news.

The Foreign Secretary,

Boris Johnson, will say in a speech

later today that leaving

the European Union is a cause

for "hope, not fear".

He'll attempt to offer

reassurance to Remain

voters who feel alienated.

But the government's efforts

at reconciliation have angered

the Labour MP Chuka Umunna,

who supports the Open Britain

campaign against a hard Brexit.

He said Mr Johnson was "unqualified

to preach about the perils

of fear and betrayal".

The jury at the trial

of the former football

coach Barry Bennell,

who's been found guilty of dozens

of sexual offences against boys,

will continue deliberations

on other charges today.

Yesterday, the jury

at Liverpool Crown Court returned

guilty verdicts on 36 counts

and asked for more time

to consider seven more.

Bennell, who appeared in court

via videolink due to illness,

declined to give evidence

in his defence.

Film star Minnie Driver has quit

as an Oxfam ambassador

following claims that staff working

for the charity in disaster

zones paid vulnerable

local people for sex.

The actress resigned after 20 years

with the aid agency,

saying in a statement

that she was "horrified"

by the allegations.

Oxfam said it was "grateful"

for Ms Driver's commitment,

and that it was determined to learn

from its mistakes.

The International Development

Secretary, Penny Mordaunt says

that the culture that allowed this

to happens needs

to change quickly.

I am writing to every single charity

that receives aid to set out

assurances about their safeguarding

procedures. If our standards are not

met then the British taxpayer will

not continue to fund them. Unless

you safeguard everyone in your

organisation that comes into contact

with you, including beneficiaries,

staff and volunteers, we will not

fund you.

A committee of MPs has said

there is a "pervasive lack

of trust" among disabled people

when it comes to how their welfare

claims are assessed.

The Commons' Work and Pensions

committee said reports

by private contractors

were "riddled with errors."

It recommends ministers

take the service back

"in house" when contracts end

with private firms.

The government says the majority

of claimants are happy

with their overall experience.

Police in South Africa

have raided properties belonging

to allies of the president,

Jacob Zuma - as pressure mounts

on him to step down.

The wealthy Gupta

family have been accused

of using their friendship

with the President to promote

their business interests.

Both the President and the Guptas

deny the allegations.

Mr Zuma is expected to respond later

today to a formal request

from the African National Congress

to step down.

That's a summary of the latest BBC

News - more at 10.30.

Thank you for your many messages

about assessments before you are

awarded personal independent

payments, which has taken over from

the disability living allowance.

Billy says they are to reduce the

benefits pay-outs, they have nothing

to do with disability, they are not

a wish to help. The Government want

to just save money to pay for other

stupid projects like the DUP

pay-out.

Another text, I have just had my

employment and support allowance

reinstated after ten months, thanks

to the help of my MP. They claimed

to have no record of my many letters

which included letters from the pain

clinic. If it wasn't for my family

and friends I would have struggled

to eat. Finally I can pay the huge

debt I have incurred over this time.

But why is this happening?

Jean has e-mailed, I have a

disability, but before that I work

for the NHS as an occupational

therapist. I can see what the

problem lies. The assessments have

problems because the professionals

doing them are not trained or

qualified to do them. They do

unacceptable things like look at

tripping people up or extrapolate a

reason not to give an award. They

cannot -- that's not true, Jean, a

whistle-blower had over 20 years in

nursing and was also an assessor.

Her specialism was mental health.

Had she just been asked to assess

people with mental health abilities

she would have been fine. But when

somebody walked in with arthritis it

was difficult for her. But there are

people there with specialisms in

arthritis and so forth. But you

don't necessarily see the claimant

relevant to your experience. That

seems to be one of the issues. Thank

you for your messages.

Do get in touch with us

throughout the morning -

use the hashtag #VictoriaLIVE

and If you text, you will be charged

at the standard network rate.

Here's some sport now.

Hopes are high that the women's

curling teams. The men's and women's

teams have won medals. Eve Muirhead

and her team won a medal in Saatchi

four years ago. They entered the

game early such was their dominance,

beating Democrat opponents 10-3. --

in Sochi four years ago. The men's

match against Switzerland had to go

to another end. They will be going

up against the defending champions,

Canada.

One of the superstars of winter

sports claimed another gold medal.

Snowboarder Shaun White. He was

second going into the final run, but

he nailed his display to come out on

top. He is known as the flying

tomato because of his famous red

hair. His gold medal was the 100th

won by the USA in Winter Olympic

history.

The beginning, in the

sport, it wasn't cool to want to

win. But you see it now, the guys

are hungry, motivated, they want it.

Even the qualifying was a final. I'm

proud to come out on top today. I'm

thankful for those guys because they

pushed me to get to this point, to

be able to do these kinds of runs.

One more gold medal. After a

thrilling final lap Erick Rowan

and the weather has been causing

more problems in Pyeongchang. The

biathlon and women's slalom had to

be cancelled. The Olympic Park was

closed. Spectators were advised to

stay away because of more strong

winds.

Premier League clubs are improving

in Europe. Both Spurs and Manchester

City had excellent results in their

last 16 ties in the Champions

League. Spurs were 2-0 down early in

their match against Juventus. But

Harry Kane, and a free kick from

Christian Eriksen, and then a draw

to take them to the second leg at

Wembley next month. Those are the

first goal is Juventus have conceded

since November.

Manchester City got the biggest away

win for any English team in the

knockout stages of the Champions

League. Looking good for those two.

More later.

Thanks very much.

Former football coach

Barry Bennell is facing a fourth

jail sentence after a jury

convicted him of 36 counts

of historical child sex abuse.

The trial, though, is not over.

Jury members are back today

to consider verdicts on seven

outstanding charges.

Our reporter Jim Reed is here.

This is a partial verdict. The jury

will return today to consider their

deliberations. We are still

restricted on what we can and cannot

report. We can tell you that Barry

Bennell was found guilty on 36

counts of child sexual abuse

yesterday, that included indecent

assault and a -- and rape charges.

The judge had previously instructed

the jury to return a not guilty

verdicts on another three charges,

which leaves seven outstanding. They

will go back and think about and

consider those today.

Remind us of

some of the things the jury has

heard in this trial.

The jury have

been deliberating since last

Thursday. In the trial the

prosecution case was that Barry

Bennell was a child molester, as

they put it, on an industrial scale.

He groomed not just his victims but

the jury heard their families, as

well. They were told about his links

with two football clubs, Manchester

City, where one of his victims

described Barry Bennell as being

treated like a god. And another

team, Crewe Alexandra football club.

Barry Bennell did not attend the

trial in person but via video link

from jail because of ill health. As

these verdicts came in yesterday, it

was a busy court room in Liverpool.

Lots of the victims and alleged

victim sitting in the courtroom were

in tears as these camps and were

read out. Barry Bennell himself

could be seen on a video link

shaking his head as these verdicts

came through, muttering, but it

could not really be heard by people

in the court room.

What happens

today questioning of the jury will

continue their deliberations. In

about five minutes time. They will

be looking at seven more charges,

four involving one single alleged

victim, three involving three other

complainants. Barry Bennell denies

those charges. His defence barrister

made the case that he was a sitting

target, she said, because of

previous child six abuse charges and

convictions, which he had against

him in the 90s. And the latest one

in 2015. This trial isn't over. It

continues today. Thanks very much.

The Foreign Secretary, Boris

Johnson, will say that supporters

Brexit must reach out to people who

are angry and despairing about the

UK leaving the European Union.

In a speech in London,

which is the first in a series

of Brexit speeches being made

by Cabinet ministers,

he'll set out what he sees

as the benefits of leaving the EU.

He'll also insist that those

who want to stop Brexit cannot

and will not win the argument.

So how will his attempt at unity go

down with the general public?

Our reporter Anna Collinson

has been to find out.

Could you sum up Boris Johnson in

one word?

Orangutan.

Ridiculous.

He

is a neighbour of mine. I get on

with him. I talked to him in the

mornings.

He seems a little bit

crazy. Out of control.

This morning

he will be doing a speech about

Brexit and trying to unite Remainers

and levers. That is his plan. What

do you think?

I would really see him

in that position, or things going as

planned for him, because he doesn't

have that sort of reputation.

I

think he will be all right. I think

he will do it.

He's not the man to

do that job, is he? I don't think he

cares about the Remainers.

He is

trying to reunite the two asides, is

that not a positive thing?

Totally,

it's like sitting in the house on

fire and then putting it out

yourself, doing everything.

Boris Johnson's attempt

at a consensual speech looks set

to be very different to his previous

public utterings on Brexit.

Today we are going to have a

positive unpatriotic case. Back to

project they are. If we don't leave

and take back control, I believe

that this Thursday could be our

country's Independence Day.

CHEERING

The UK is going to be at the back of

the queue.

The crucial thing that

America stands for is representative

democracy, and the problem with the

EU is that nobody knows in charge,

nobody knows who is making these

decisions, and as I say, I think it

is very weird that the United States

should be telling us to do something

they wouldn't dream of doing in a

million years themselves.

There have been all salts of

attempts in Europe to recreate the

dream of the Roman Empire, and very

often that has been done by force.

The EU is different, it is trying to

do it in a more bureaucratic way.

Let's talk to two people

who couldn't have

more opposing views -

Labour peer Lord Adonis,

Andrew Adonis - who has

turned his full attention

to stopping Brexit,

and Conservative MP John Redwood

who voted to leave the EU,

and thinks life outside

the EU will be bright.

Welcome to both of you. John

Redwood, it is Valentine's Day.

Boris Johnson, who was on the same

side as you, would like you to reach

out to remain a like Lauda Done

this, so be nice to him.

-- like Lord Adonis. We are not in

this to have a poorer country. We

want a freer country with Democratic

self-government, and the message to

Andrew Adonis is that our viewers

should be expressed in Parliament

and then resolved in decisions which

are made resolved following

decisions of all our viewpoints, but

they shouldn't be made in Brussels

by people who don't elect.

It turns

out that John and I profoundly

agree. Before we started into this

Brexit business John was in favour

of what he called it a double

referendum, one on the principle on

the other on the terms of Brexit.

What is abundantly clear now is that

this...

Is this true?

Of course not,

but I don't want to waste time

debating this. We all agreed on the

Conservative manifesto would we

would have a single referendum about

leaving all remaining.

But were you

in favour of a double referendum?

We

originally proposed allowing people

to decide whether they wanted a

referendum or not, but we made that

decision by general election.

You

said there should be a double

referendum, two referenda, that was

your position.

We had a referendum

about the idea of asking the

question, then a referendum to

settle the question. But we did the

former by a general election, by

offering people a referendum, the

Conservative Party was elected on

that basis, parliament voted

strongly in favour.

The big problem,

Victoria, is that we can't get

straight answers to stray questions,

including from Boris. You heard the

guy on your clip who said that how

Boris can be the person who set fire

to this house can be the person who

put it out can be an implausible

proposition. I asked John a direct

question, was he in favour of two

referenda?

He was.

But not in the

way that you are now proposing. That

is fine by me. We will have a second

referendum on the terms of Brexit...

This is a waste of an interview.

We

have plenty of time. This is what

you wrote. November 20, 2012.

Yesterday, David Davis made a public

case for the double referenda which

some of us are urging the government

to launch. The first question would

be, do you want the UK Government to

negotiate a new relationship with

the EU based on trade and political

corporation? Venney went on, the

second referendum would follow once

the negotiations were complete. That

would ask, do you want to accept the

new negotiate relationship with the

EU?

Are you still in favour of that,

John, have you changed your view?

Of

course we have changed our view, we

did it the other way around saying

to the public through a general

election, would you like to have a

government party that will give you

a single referendum, do you want to

stay or leave, and they voted for

that. I strongly support that, and I

don't see why we are going over this

ancient history. What I want to talk

about is how we can spend all that

money that we can get back when we

cease to be in, and how we can

change our tax laws in a way to help

people where we are not light at the

moment because of the EU.

What some

people don't understand is why

people like yourself who want to

stop Brexit do not want for example

Britain to be independent when it

comes to its own trade policy, a

trade policy shaped by Britain for

Britain.

Because we have a fantastic

trade deal at the moment through the

European Union. We have free trade

with 27 members of the European

Union and preferential trade

agreements with another 75 other

countries as a result of our

membership of the European Union.

When John was a Government in the

1980s, we were negotiating trade