31/12/2013 BBC London News

further behind. They could be heavy with rain st w

Welcome to BBC London News. Thousands of police civilian staff,

including those who handle 999 calls, are out on strike until

midnight tonight. The 24`hour walk`out is in protest over a

below`inflation pay rise. Scotland Yard says it has plans in place to

cover the service. Marc Ashdown has this report.

They call themselves the engine room of the Met Police. Civilians who

perform vital roles, some on the front line. They should be answering

999 calls, manning cells and helping victims of crime, but today, they

are on strike. It's the lack of appreciation for what we do. It used

to be that we were one team. When we delivered the Olympics last year, we

all got little medals saying, you have helped to deliver the Olympics

for London. All of a sudden, we are negligible. There are members in my

branch who I represent who have to go to food banks, who have to walk

to work because they can't afford to put petrol in their car or pay for

public transport. All of the cost of living in London has gone so high

now. They say a below inflation 1% pay rise is not enough. Around 500

staff have walked out at police stations across London. We still

have people that work in this organisation who don't receive the

London living wage, which the Mayor keeps talking about. And that is sad

times. We haven't struck since 977. The Met says demands of the 6% pay

rise are unaffordable, and maintains the strike won't affect public

safety during the New Year's Eve celebrations. We have well`tested

and well`planned contingency for that event, and there will be no

adverse impact on policing in London on New Year's Eve. There could be

more trouple ahead. It's believed that in the spring, the Met may look

at the possibility of privatising a large amount of its civilian

operation. That, the union says could put around 4000 jobs at risk.

The union says that means further industrial action is inevitable

And in the last few minutes, firefighters across the capital have

gone on strike as part of their long`running dispute with the

Government over pensions. It's the second of three planned walk`outs

over the festive period by the Fire Brigades Union. London Fire Brigade

say contingency crews will respond to 999 calls.

An elderly woman has been airlifted to hospital after suffering burns in

a fire in west London this afternoon. 30 firefighters were

called to reports of an explosion at a block of flats in Edensor Gardens

in Chiswick. Two men were treated at the scene for breathing in smoke.

The parents of teenager Jimmy Mizen, who was murdered five years ago in

south`east London, have been recognised in the New Years Honour's

list. Barry and Margaret Mizen from Lee have both been awarded MBEs for

their youth work. Victoria Graham reports.

They made a promise to honour his name, and today, in return, they

have been honoured. Barry and Margret Mizen, whose son Jimmy was

killed in May 2008, have been appointed MBE for their work

increasing young people's awareness of the consequences of violent

crime. On the night that Jimmy died, in the quiet of my bedroom, I

promised Jimmy two things. That was that I would do everything to keep

his name alive, and I would dedicate my life to working for peace. And as

a family, that is what we want to do. And this MBE, which is

wonderful, will help us do that Jimmy was killed the day after his

16th birthday, in an attack in Lee, south`east London. Since then, his

parents have launched a foundation that aims to help make young people

safer. We don't want to carry on living with these fears of going to

certain parts of streets, or worrying about our children when

they go out. It can change, but it needs all of us to be part of that.

Amongst the many messages of congratulations on social media for

them today, one simply says, "Your courage, forgiveness and tireless

campaigning inspires us all." We are Londoners, and to really be

recognised for the work we are doing within London and around the

country... It's just amazing. Well, there's just a few hours to go

before the chimes of Big Ben usher in the New Year, and tonight around

150,000 people are expected to gather on the banks of the Thames

for the annual fireworks display. Our reporter, Emma North, has been

taking a look at the preparations. Among the usual preparations to keep

London safe tonight, one team is gearing up for its busiest evening.

If there are people in the water, we will be pulling them out, reassuring

them, warming them up and taking them to a place of safety. For us,

it can be a very demanding, exciting and interesting night, but we would

be perfectly happy to do nothing. Alcohol and the water don't mix and

we have a lot of people, not about coal, and some dangerous water. Four

people were fished out of the Thames last week, but a lot of the work

they do is dealing with those who have enjoyed a bit much to drink and

need rescuing from the pleasure boats. Thousands of fireworks will

be set off from these barges. The weather isn't expected to get better

around midnight, but for the 10 ,000 or so people coming down to the

banks of the River Thames, they will get an extra special new sensory

treat. Multisensory fireworks for all of London! They are calling it

the night of 1000 tonnes, which is a neat combination of pyrotechnics and

fruit. We are linking the fireworks and the colours UC in the sky with

flavours, so as you see red you will be able to smell strawberries. As

you see yellow in the sky, you will be able to see and smell bananas in

the air. The science behind banana confetti remains a secret, but it is

weatherproof. This is, of course, a London New Year.

And, as usual on New Year's Eve free travel will be available across

London ` on the Tube, buses, DLR, Tramlink and the Overground `

between 11:45pm and 4:30am. What will the weather holds for

those New Year's Eve celebrations? A dry interlude of whether at the

moment, but we have scattered showers moving towards us as we go

through this evening, and it looks like they will be in the west of

London as we head towards midnight. With us all in the early hours of

2014. They could be quite heavy and will continue into breakfast time

tomorrow, eventually clearing away from mid`morning. Yet more wet and

windy weather sweeping towards us for New Year's Day. The Met Office

has issued some warnings for the rain to the south and west of

London. We are back tomorrow lunchtime. From

all of us on the BBC London News team, have a happy New Year.

Good evening. It looks like mother nature may provide her own

pyrotechnics in the run-up to bid night tonight. We have some heavy

showers in western parts, starting to ease a bit across Scotland and

Northern Ireland. But the showers further south are heavier, with some

flashes of lightning as they move eastwards. They do get a bit more

hit and miss as we head towards midnight, but a greater chance of

getting wet in the south as we move into 2014. Cardiff and London could

see heavy downpours. Further north, you could be greeting the New Year

on a dry note. A touch of frost in northern and eastern areas going

into New Year's Day. A few showers continue into the morning, but on

New Year's Day,