:00:09. > :00:13.A stark warning about the state of the American economy sends global
:00:13. > :00:16.stock markets tumbling. Some European markets hit a two-year low
:00:16. > :00:19.amid new fears of a worldwide recession.
:00:19. > :00:23.Nearly 40 years on - the Government offers compensation to the families
:00:23. > :00:26.of those killed on Bloody Sunday in Londonderry.
:00:26. > :00:28.Paying off the 'NHS mortgage' - ministers claim the cost of
:00:28. > :00:33.privately funded building projects is jeopardising the future of some
:00:33. > :00:39.hospitals. The satellite falling towards earth
:00:39. > :00:42.- NASA says it's the biggest piece of space junk for decades.
:00:42. > :00:51.On the spot - the England rugby star, Mike Tindall, speaks in
:00:51. > :00:59.public for the first time about that controversial bar room CCTV.
:00:59. > :01:02.You are pretty sure he'll gain won't be affected? You are
:01:02. > :01:05.confident about that? I hope it is fine.
:01:05. > :01:15.The North/ South divide for our feathered friends - why birds
:01:15. > :01:35.
:01:35. > :01:38.appear to be thriving better in Good afternoon and welcome to the
:01:38. > :01:41.BBC news at One. Markets across Europe have slumped
:01:41. > :01:45.again this morning after a stark warning about the state of the
:01:45. > :01:47.American economy. In London, the FTSE has fallen by more than 4%
:01:47. > :01:51.after the US Federal Reserve sparked fears of a new global
:01:51. > :02:01.recession. Across Europe shares have dropped to their lowest point
:02:01. > :02:03.
:02:04. > :02:10.for more than two years. Head of the Federal Reserve is
:02:10. > :02:13.doing his bit to hold faltering US growth. We have heard Mervyn King
:02:13. > :02:17.and the Bank of England are ready to put more money into the UK
:02:17. > :02:22.economy. And the ECB is trying to prop up struggling eurozone
:02:22. > :02:26.governments. The world is looking to the central bankers to drive us
:02:26. > :02:29.out of the economic mess. Emotions are running high in Athens after
:02:29. > :02:36.protests overnight. The Greek Government has announced more
:02:36. > :02:39.spending cuts with plans to suspend 30,000 civil servants. It is
:02:39. > :02:44.scrambling to meet conditions required to receive the next chunk
:02:44. > :02:47.of bail-out money. Fears of a Greek debt default and the impact it
:02:47. > :02:52.would have on the banking system sent shares in European markets
:02:52. > :02:57.plunging this morning. We have a political crisis, a financial
:02:57. > :03:01.crisis and a banking crisis. Because of the inability of the
:03:01. > :03:06.European politicians to solve the problems, it will go on. We will
:03:06. > :03:10.see more downgrades. Traders were concerned about statements from the
:03:11. > :03:14.US Federal Reserve as it announced new measures to revive the economy.
:03:14. > :03:18.It said there were significant downside risks but markets felt it
:03:18. > :03:21.wasn't doing enough. There has been a lot of talk about what will
:03:21. > :03:26.happen but markets have felt there has not been enough action on the
:03:26. > :03:30.crisis has always been ahead of a politician's reaction. They may
:03:30. > :03:34.been thinking that it with the US economy, things are bad, but it
:03:34. > :03:38.doesn't seem to be that much action just jet from politicians and the
:03:38. > :03:44.Fed is standing back. The survey suggest eurozone economies could be
:03:44. > :03:48.heading into reverse and that has not helped the mood. Traders around
:03:48. > :03:54.Europe are living on their nerves. Worries about the financial system
:03:54. > :03:58.are back with a vengeance. We have seen markets fluctuating
:03:58. > :04:02.over the recent weeks, how serious is this?
:04:02. > :04:06.It is pretty serious, right back on the agenda are fears about the
:04:06. > :04:10.global economy, heightened by warnings from the IMF a couple of
:04:10. > :04:15.days ago about a slowdown. Last night the US Federal Reserve coming
:04:15. > :04:18.out with a downbeat assessment of the American economy. Let's look at
:04:18. > :04:21.major markets this morning and it major markets this morning and it
:04:21. > :04:31.makes for pretty depressing viewing. If you are a shareholder, the FTSE
:04:31. > :04:34.
:04:34. > :04:38.100 down by more than 4%. We will be waiting to see what American
:04:38. > :04:41.shares do in an hour or so. I can tell you that leaders of seven
:04:41. > :04:46.group of 20 nations have written a letter calling for decisive action
:04:46. > :04:50.from both the eurozone and from the US are to deal with the world's
:04:50. > :04:52.problems. That letter has been problems. That letter has been
:04:52. > :04:55.signed by Britain as well as countries like Australia and Canada.
:04:55. > :04:59.It is another sign above real concern about what is going on out
:04:59. > :05:01.there. It's not just the warning from America that's caused the
:05:01. > :05:08.slump, those fears over the Greek debt continue. Our correspondent,
:05:08. > :05:11.Mark Lowen, is in Athens. Strikes and protests, but as the
:05:11. > :05:16.Greek Government have any choice but to press on with austerity
:05:16. > :05:20.measures? The finance minister in Greece says
:05:20. > :05:24.more austerity is needed. He says the Government is committed to
:05:24. > :05:29.implementing its austerity measures and meeting fiscal targets to
:05:29. > :05:34.receive a vital 8 billion euros, about �7 billion next month.
:05:34. > :05:38.Without which, this Government could declare bankruptcy. It is
:05:38. > :05:43.planning an increasing wave of her social unrest. And there has been
:05:43. > :05:48.protests outside the Parliament behind me. More this afternoon, 24
:05:48. > :05:51.hour public transport strike and by taxi drivers. People here are
:05:51. > :05:56.saying it is exacerbating the situation, pushing unemployment
:05:56. > :06:00.higher and deepening the recession. And they say all these agreements
:06:00. > :06:07.with the IMF and the EU are kicking the can down the road. The great
:06:07. > :06:10.debt of 40% is still unsustainable. The families of those killed or
:06:10. > :06:13.wounded on Bloody Sunday are to be offered compensation by the
:06:13. > :06:17.government. 13 people died when members of the Parachute Regiment
:06:17. > :06:26.opened fire on civil rights marchers in Londonderry in 1972.
:06:26. > :06:36.Our Ireland correspondent, Mark Simpson is there now.
:06:36. > :06:36.
:06:36. > :06:39.This is Derry's area were almost 40 years ago Bloody Sunday occurred.
:06:39. > :06:42.Almost four decades on the consequences are still being felt
:06:42. > :06:47.whether they are legal, political or financial.
:06:47. > :06:52.The families of those who died on Bloody Sunday always said their
:06:52. > :06:58.priority was justice. Now they will be entitled to compensation. The
:06:58. > :07:03.army shot dead 13 men in Londonderry in 1972. A civil rights
:07:03. > :07:07.march ended in death and destruction. The victims were
:07:07. > :07:11.mostly young men, seven of them were teenagers. The families
:07:12. > :07:18.insisted they were all innocent victims of an army over-reaction to.
:07:18. > :07:22.And last year, a public inquiry agreed. On the day the inquiry
:07:22. > :07:26.report was published, the Prime Minister publicly apologised for
:07:26. > :07:30.what happened. The Government is ultimately responsible for the
:07:30. > :07:36.conduct of the armed forces. And for that, on behalf of the
:07:36. > :07:40.Government, indeed on behalf of the country, I am deeply sorry.
:07:40. > :07:46.With the Government taking the blame, lawyers later issued a
:07:46. > :07:56.compensation claim on behalf of some of the families. In response,
:07:56. > :07:59.
:07:59. > :08:04.the Ministry of Defence announced William Nash was one of the
:08:04. > :08:09.teenager shot dead on Bloody Sunday. His family is entitled to
:08:09. > :08:14.compensation but his sister says she won't accept a penny.
:08:14. > :08:18.brother was too precious and who can put a price on his life? No
:08:18. > :08:24.money could compensate for that and I wouldn't accept any money under
:08:24. > :08:29.any circumstances for his loss. some of the families are seeking
:08:29. > :08:35.compensation. The 12 year inquiry into what happened on Bloody Sunday
:08:35. > :08:40.was the most expensive in British legal history. It cost more than
:08:40. > :08:45.�200 million, but it seems an even higher price will have to be paid.
:08:45. > :08:52.As it stands, we don't know exactly how much more money is going to
:08:52. > :08:55.have to be paid. And exactly who will get it, our brothers, sisters,
:08:55. > :08:58.children or grandchildren. This could be another long and
:08:58. > :09:00.complicated process. Ministers say more than 20 English hospital
:09:01. > :09:03.trusts are facing financial problems because of the cost of
:09:03. > :09:05.building projects initially paid for by private money. The
:09:05. > :09:09.Government estimates that for some trusts repayments make up nearly
:09:09. > :09:12.20% of their budget. The scheme, known as PFI, involved private
:09:12. > :09:22.companies building hospitals and the NHS paying an annual fee to
:09:22. > :09:24.
:09:24. > :09:29.cover the cost. They were meant to be the shiny new
:09:29. > :09:35.buildings that would transform the NHS. The value of hospitals built
:09:35. > :09:40.under PFI projects is �11.4 billion. By 2049, more than �70 billion will
:09:40. > :09:44.have been paid out. But the annual repayments are made by the NHS,
:09:45. > :09:49.around �1.5 billion each year represents only about 1% of the
:09:49. > :09:54.total NHS budget. These schemes work like this - instead of the
:09:54. > :09:56.Government paying upfront for a new hospital, private companies take on
:09:56. > :10:02.the year construction and management of buildings for an
:10:02. > :10:04.annual fee. Ministers are worried those payments are threatening the
:10:04. > :10:10.clinical and financial sustainability of at least 22
:10:11. > :10:14.trusts. The truth is, we have inherited, not only as a country an
:10:14. > :10:19.enormous legacy of debt from the Labour Government, but in the NHS
:10:19. > :10:23.we have an enormous legacy of debt likewise, not just PFI debt but
:10:23. > :10:28.hospitals that are carrying substantial debts. It was under the
:10:28. > :10:33.Labour Party that PFI took off, the first PFI thundered Hospital,
:10:33. > :10:38.Cumberland Infirmary was opened by Tony Blair in 2000. The trust that
:10:38. > :10:42.runs it, North Cumbria is one the 22 ministers are worried about.
:10:42. > :10:48.They said it was needed to replace crumbling and unsafe buildings and
:10:48. > :10:54.a lot of the problems are being formed by health reforms.
:10:54. > :10:58.doesn't make sense. But a series of administrations have continued with
:10:58. > :11:04.it. With the latest NHS reforms we are getting we will be seeing more
:11:04. > :11:07.than this. While some trusts are facing problems, not all PFI
:11:07. > :11:14.problems have caused the same difficulties, and then maybe
:11:14. > :11:16.alternatives. Some will argue new hostels like this one, at the
:11:16. > :11:21.Whiston Hospital in the North of England would never have -- never
:11:21. > :11:25.have been built. But many of those agreements were reached in economic
:11:25. > :11:28.plenty and the situation now is different. It seems some hospitals
:11:28. > :11:34.are struggling to pay the bills. Let's get more from our political
:11:34. > :11:38.correspondent, Ben Wright. How much can the PFI be blamed for
:11:38. > :11:43.these problems? That is what the Department of Health and Treasury
:11:43. > :11:47.are trying to figure out. The Health Secretary is adamant that in
:11:47. > :11:52.his view PFI was the cause of the difficulties facing these 22 trusts.
:11:52. > :11:57.He said it was evidence of the legacy of debt left by the Labour
:11:57. > :12:02.Party. But I think the truth is more complicated. The Department of
:12:02. > :12:05.Health are investigating these 22 trusts and I think they can see PFI
:12:05. > :12:10.repayments are components of the difficulties they face, but not the
:12:10. > :12:16.whole story. They won't know how big a component for a little while.
:12:16. > :12:21.The King's Fund, the think-tank said across the NHS, PFI repayments
:12:21. > :12:26.to not pose a problem to the health service. The thought his Andrew
:12:26. > :12:30.Lansley is making political mischief. The real pressure at the
:12:30. > :12:36.moment and over the next few years probably isn't PFI repayments in
:12:36. > :12:39.the health service, but over the next four years, the NHS has got to
:12:39. > :12:43.find �20 billion of savings. energy business, E.On, is cutting
:12:43. > :12:46.up to 500 jobs at its head office in Coventry and at its centre near
:12:46. > :12:49.Nottingham. The company said it was looking to reduce numbers to
:12:49. > :12:51.reflect the changed nature of the business after the sale of its
:12:51. > :12:53.distribution arm. E.on, which employs 12,000 people said it hoped
:12:53. > :12:56.to make the cuts through voluntary redundancies.
:12:56. > :13:05.A double-decker bus carrying teenagers to sixth form college has
:13:05. > :13:12.crashed into the underside of a Two women in France have been fine
:13:12. > :13:17.for wearing a niqab. These are the first fines to be handed out in
:13:17. > :13:22.court. The women say they will pursue the case to the European
:13:22. > :13:26.Court of Human Rights. It has taken six months and a
:13:26. > :13:35.provocative stand by two Muslim women bother first fines to be
:13:35. > :13:41.imposed. Today, Hind Ahmas and up another lady have been fined for
:13:41. > :13:50.refusing to remove it in public. Begins a long up process that were
:13:50. > :13:54.likely end in Strasbourg. Hind Ahmas is 32, a divorced single
:13:54. > :13:58.mother and the decision to whether niqab was her own. Since the Bill
:13:58. > :14:02.was introduced in April she has been banned from public spaces such
:14:02. > :14:07.as banks, shops and buses. She is breaking the law simply appearing
:14:07. > :14:11.for this interview. TRANSLATION: I was shocked, a week
:14:11. > :14:15.after the law was introduced I was insulted and a man hit me in front
:14:15. > :14:24.of my child. The niqab is not required by Islam
:14:24. > :14:27.and this debate has proved divisive even within Muslim communities. But
:14:27. > :14:30.despite the furore surrounding the banned they have been fewer than 10
:14:30. > :14:34.court appearances. It is only the police allowed to confront these
:14:34. > :14:41.women, they don't have the authority to remove the niqab but
:14:41. > :14:47.they can refer each case to a judge who has the power to impose a 150
:14:47. > :14:51.Euro fine. Since the fine was introduced, only 91 women have been
:14:51. > :14:55.stopped in the street. The police say they are in an impossible
:14:55. > :15:01.situation, often without the right training.
:15:01. > :15:04.TRANSLATION: We have better things to do than chase women in a niqab.
:15:04. > :15:10.Not least the risk of a relationship with certain
:15:10. > :15:14.communities. The law is being introduced in
:15:14. > :15:18.other countries. But this ruling has implications for all of these
:15:18. > :15:22.countries. It could take years for the appeal process to exhaust the
:15:22. > :15:29.French system, but eventually these women will get their opportunity to
:15:29. > :15:32.test this ban in the highest court In America, a man has been put to
:15:32. > :15:35.death for killing an off-duty policeman 22 years ago, despite a
:15:35. > :15:38.last-minute attempt at a stay of execution. Troy Davies was killed
:15:38. > :15:41.by lethal injection at a prison in Georgia but only after a four-hour
:15:41. > :15:44.delay, during which a final appeal was heard and rejected by the US
:15:44. > :15:52.Supreme Court. Here's our world affairs correspondent, Caroline
:15:52. > :15:55.Hawley. Troy Davis was pronounced dead quarter of an hour after the
:15:55. > :15:58.lethal injection was given, declining a a last meal he
:15:58. > :16:06.protested his innocence until the end. For those about to take my
:16:06. > :16:10.life, he said, may God have mercy on your souls. Outside the jail in
:16:10. > :16:17.Jackson Georgia, there was a heavy police presence. It's bun one of
:16:17. > :16:24.the most -- it's been one of the pho controversial in years.
:16:24. > :16:28.Troy Davis was convicted in 1991 of killing offduty policeman in a
:16:29. > :16:33.parking lot. Prosecuters had relied heavily on eyewitnesses, several of
:16:33. > :16:37.whom later recanted their testimony. Troy Davis appealed his conviction
:16:37. > :16:41.many times but had to prove he was innocent and failed to convince the
:16:41. > :16:46.courts. A small handful of journalists witnessed the last
:16:46. > :16:52.moments of his life. He said to the family that he was sorry for their
:16:52. > :16:57.loss, but also said that he did not take their son, father, brother. He
:16:57. > :17:02.said to them to dig deeper into this case, to find out the truth.
:17:02. > :17:06.The dead policeman's family say justice has now been done but Troy
:17:06. > :17:12.Davis execution has put America's use of the death penalty in the
:17:12. > :17:17.spotlight again. I do think that his execution in a real sense will
:17:17. > :17:23.only add momentum to the movement of those of us who understand that
:17:23. > :17:26.the state really cannot be trusted with the ultimate punishment.
:17:26. > :17:30.Around the world almost a million people had signed a petition
:17:30. > :17:38.calling for Troy Davis' life to be spared. His supporters mourned last
:17:39. > :17:43.night for a man killed, despite serious doubts over his guilt.
:17:43. > :17:46.Our top story: European stock markets drop sharply
:17:46. > :17:49.after a stark warning about the state of the American economy
:17:49. > :17:58.sparks fears of a new global recession.
:17:58. > :18:02.Coming up: England's north slash south divide, why birds in the
:18:02. > :18:09.north are faring better. South Africa claim their biggest
:18:09. > :18:19.World Cup win, they beat Namibia, scoring 12 tries on their way to an
:18:19. > :18:22.
:18:22. > :18:25.It's a six-ton satellite and it's heading for Earth. According to
:18:25. > :18:29.NASA, it'll be the biggest piece of space junk to fall out of orbit in
:18:29. > :18:32.more than three decades. And even though most of it is expected to
:18:32. > :18:35.burn up as it races through the Earth's atmosphere, some bits are
:18:35. > :18:38.expected to hit the ground. At the moment, though, it's too early to
:18:38. > :18:44.predict where and when that will be. Here's our science correspondent,
:18:44. > :18:49.Pallab Ghosh. From space earth's orbit seems
:18:49. > :18:55.pristine and desolate. But this is what you are not seeing, tens of
:18:55. > :18:59.thousands of bits of junk that we have accumulated since we first
:18:59. > :19:04.began sending satellites into space more than 50 years ago and this one
:19:04. > :19:09.is tumbling towards earth, the six- ton research satellite will mostly
:19:09. > :19:12.break up as it enters the atmosphere but 26 chunks will land
:19:12. > :19:18.somewhere on earth. Here are the latest pictures taken from the
:19:18. > :19:21.ground by an amateur astronomer. These 26 components which we do
:19:21. > :19:26.anticipate will survive all the way down to the surface, will be going
:19:26. > :19:29.at a moderate velocity, on the order of tens of hundreds of miles
:19:30. > :19:34.per hour. The pieces will crash to earth sometime tomorrow, no one
:19:34. > :19:38.knows where, but NASA says it's more likely to land in the sea than
:19:38. > :19:46.the ground. And the chances of it hitting someone are more than one
:19:46. > :19:52.in 3,000. Ever since the Soviet Union launched the first satellite
:19:52. > :19:56.in 1957, pieces have been falling from the sky on a regular basis.
:19:56. > :20:00.Space is more crowded than you think. Currently there are around
:20:00. > :20:07.1,000 operational satellites in earth's orbit. There are also
:20:07. > :20:13.22,000 bits of space junk from old satellites. And since Sputnik more
:20:13. > :20:18.than 20,000 bits of space hardware have fallen back to earth. None
:20:18. > :20:22.have caused any injury. It was a close run thing in 2003, when a
:20:22. > :20:26.shuttle tragically exploded as it reentered the earth's atmosphere.
:20:26. > :20:31.NASA says no one should touch any fragments if they do land in a
:20:31. > :20:35.populated area. It could be sharp, it could be still hot from reentry
:20:35. > :20:39.perhaps and you could injure yourself. It's also the property of
:20:39. > :20:43.the US Government so you are not allowed to take it and sell it on
:20:43. > :20:53.ebay. The pieces are due to hit late tomorrow evening and they'll
:20:53. > :20:56.only know two hours before where they're likely to land.
:20:56. > :20:59.David Cameron makes his first speech to the United Nations later
:20:59. > :21:01.today. He's expected to say that the Arab Spring uprisings across
:21:01. > :21:04.North Africa are a massive opportunity to spread peace,
:21:04. > :21:07.security and democracy. And he'll say the UN should be ready to
:21:07. > :21:11.intervene in countries where action is necessary. From New York, here's
:21:11. > :21:14.our deputy political editor, James Landale.
:21:14. > :21:19.The Prime Minister and the President in New York, together for
:21:19. > :21:22.the first time since regime change in Libya and a chance to take stock.
:21:22. > :21:26.In his first speech to the United Nations General Assembly David
:21:26. > :21:30.Cameron will tell world leaders that the lesson of Libya is simple,
:21:30. > :21:33.the UN should be more ready to intervene to prevent repressive
:21:33. > :21:37.regimes slaughtering their civilians. It should be united, not
:21:37. > :21:41.just in condemnation, but in action he will say, urging the
:21:41. > :21:46.international community not to lose its nerve after finding its voice
:21:46. > :21:49.in Libya. My message to the United Nations is to say this is a great
:21:49. > :21:54.opportunity, the spread of democracy is not just a good thing
:21:54. > :21:57.in itself, it can actually help make us safe by providing a
:21:57. > :22:00.realistic alternative to the poisonous rhetoric of al-Qaeda and
:22:00. > :22:05.the terrorists. So the world institutions have to grab this
:22:05. > :22:09.moment and take advantage of it. David Cameron's not setting out a
:22:09. > :22:16.new doctrine that the international community should always intervene
:22:16. > :22:21.but he is saying when the United Nations can act it should act. Amid
:22:21. > :22:24.growing economic uncertainty across the world Mr Calmer rob also -- Mr
:22:24. > :22:29.Cameron also urged businessmen to do what they can to boost the
:22:29. > :22:34.economy, telling them of the opportunities next year's Olympics
:22:34. > :22:38.and Diamond Jubilee could provide. As he visited the memorial to the
:22:38. > :22:41.Briton who is died in the 9/11 attacks the theme was of how the
:22:41. > :22:45.international community could act to prevent such terrorism terrorism
:22:45. > :22:52.again by intervening to support the democratic uprisings of the Arab
:22:52. > :22:56.Spring and stand up to regimes that persecute their people.
:22:56. > :23:00.A double decker bus carrying teenagers to college has clashed --
:23:00. > :23:03.crashed into a bridge at Darlington in Durham. 14 people have been
:23:03. > :23:10.taken to hospital but no one is thought to have been seriously
:23:10. > :23:13.injured. It's been an uncomfortable morning
:23:13. > :23:15.for the England rugby player Mike Tindall. He's been at a press
:23:16. > :23:18.conference to answer questions about the team's next World Cup
:23:18. > :23:21.match against Romania. But, not surprisingly, there seemed to be
:23:21. > :23:24.more interest in that now infamous CCTV footage of him in a bar.
:23:24. > :23:28.Here's our sports correspondent, Matt Slater.
:23:28. > :23:32.He didn't say very much but his body language said more. It was an
:23:32. > :23:36.interesting and as you said at times awkward watch, but now lots
:23:36. > :23:41.of people have seen the images of members of the England team in a
:23:41. > :23:45.bar after they beat Argentina, you would have to say unconvincingly.
:23:45. > :23:49.This is the first time we have seen Mike Tindall speak in public. It
:23:49. > :23:53.was a regular press conference with Martin Johnson, there was one rule
:23:53. > :23:56.and one rule only, they were only allowed to ask questions about the
:23:56. > :24:00.rugby but you can bet what happened next.
:24:00. > :24:06.You are sure your game won't be affected by what's happened in the
:24:06. > :24:15.press since then? No. Your own game, confident about that? I hope it's
:24:15. > :24:19.fine. Phil, we have put it to bed. It's not an issue. Anything you
:24:19. > :24:24.would like to say to them about that... Phil, we are looking
:24:24. > :24:28.forward to a big game this weekend. We are playing Romania. A bit of
:24:29. > :24:34.contrition is all people are asking for, explanation about what... On
:24:34. > :24:40.the drinking side. I said to you last week what happened.
:24:41. > :24:44.Mike Tindall is particularly under the spotlight because he married
:24:44. > :24:54.Zara Phillips. You can see him getting the full backing of Martin
:24:54. > :24:55.
:24:55. > :24:57.Johnson and that's from the very top too.
:24:57. > :25:00.We often hear about the north//south divide, and it seems
:25:00. > :25:04.there's also something of a split when it comes to birds. The RSPB
:25:04. > :25:07.says it's noticed a sharp drop in the number of species, but it seems
:25:07. > :25:11.the situation is worse in the south of England than in the north. Jenny
:25:11. > :25:18.Hill is in Purfleet in Essex. Good afternoon from the Rainham
:25:18. > :25:22.marshes. It's an industrialised landscape and it's home to some 200
:25:23. > :25:26.different birds species. They'll tell you it's vital to create
:25:26. > :25:33.habitats like this because in the south-east in years they've seen
:25:33. > :25:36.some of the sharpest declines in bird numbers.
:25:36. > :25:41.They are the soundtrack to the British countryside, but take a
:25:41. > :25:46.good look because it's getting harder to spot birds like skylarks,
:25:46. > :25:51.yellowhammers and nightingales in the wild. The British bird
:25:51. > :25:58.population is shrinking. But on this farm in the Cotswolds they're
:25:58. > :26:01.trying to reverse that decline. This is a conservation headland
:26:01. > :26:05.which we specifically plant to encourage the amount of insects on
:26:05. > :26:10.the farm... Like scores of other farmers here, Ian has given up some
:26:10. > :26:16.of his land to create bird-friendly habitats. These plants will provide
:26:16. > :26:19.food and shelter for many species. They've counted 90 so far. When we
:26:19. > :26:23.started we had no corn buntings here, but after a couple of years
:26:23. > :26:27.of doing it we suddenly had two breeding pairs and the next year
:26:27. > :26:32.five breeding pairs and it's been so so encouraging to watch the
:26:32. > :26:36.numbers increase. For many years experts have been seriously worried
:26:36. > :26:41.about the decline in the UK's bird population. What this latest
:26:42. > :26:46.research shows is that in England, at least, a north-south divide is
:26:46. > :26:51.starting to emerge. No one knows exactly why, but in south-east
:26:51. > :26:57.England farmland birds have declined by 28% over a 15-year
:26:57. > :27:01.period. Yet in the northeast, they've risen slightly by 3%. Wood
:27:01. > :27:06.Woodland bird numbers have fallen by 19% in the south-east, yet
:27:06. > :27:10.they're going strong in the North West. There are a number of factors,
:27:10. > :27:16.obviously land use patterns in the north of England are different to
:27:16. > :27:21.those in the south. And there may be issues around water scarcity or
:27:21. > :27:26.even climatic effects, whatever it is, we need to find out and learn
:27:26. > :27:29.from it. Back in the Cotswolds Ian plans to reintroduce grey
:27:29. > :27:36.partridges to his farm. He is determined to keep his land and the
:27:36. > :27:39.skies above it well populated. The RSPB say that projects like the
:27:39. > :27:43.one on the farm you saw there do make a significant difference but
:27:43. > :27:47.they also say more research is needed, particularly when it comes
:27:47. > :27:51.to those regional variations and that's because determining the
:27:51. > :27:57.cause of this so-called divide could well provide the key they say
:27:57. > :28:07.to reversing the decline in bird numbers for good.
:28:07. > :28:08.
:28:08. > :28:12.Let's look at the latest weather The weather continues to improve
:28:12. > :28:16.this week. Plenty of dry weather around, it's not clear blue sky,
:28:16. > :28:20.and looking at the satellite picture the cloud view so far, it's
:28:20. > :28:24.this cloud into Wales that's edging into the Midlands and pushing into
:28:24. > :28:27.south-east England that will obscure the sun and deliver the odd
:28:28. > :28:30.shower to western parts of Wales. We still have showers across the
:28:30. > :28:35.North West of Scotland. As the afternoon goes on these are going
:28:35. > :28:42.to ease and it's not as wet or as windy as it's been. Elsewhere in
:28:42. > :28:46.Scotland that cloud is broken, as it is across northern England. It
:28:46. > :28:49.stays bright across the East Midlands. After the sunshine we
:28:49. > :28:53.have seen today, more cloud begins to push in across south-east
:28:53. > :28:57.England into the Midlands. But it's a brightening up story in south-
:28:57. > :29:01.west England, that process is already under way in the far south-
:29:01. > :29:05.west but these brighter skies are nudging further in and reaching
:29:05. > :29:08.southern parts of Wales. The showers in the west edge further
:29:08. > :29:13.north into the north-west of Wales during the afternoon. For Northern
:29:13. > :29:17.Ireland there's decent sunshine here and slowly temperatures are
:29:17. > :29:24.heading up. Overnight the cloud thickens again in Northern Ireland
:29:24. > :29:32.after midnight, and rain returns, clearer skies into England and
:29:32. > :29:36.Wales. A chilly night, even across southern areas.
:29:36. > :29:38.It will be a bright start in the morning. Any mist and fog will
:29:38. > :29:42.clear and for England and Wales it's a fine day. It will feel
:29:42. > :29:52.warmer as well. Slowly brightening in Northern Ireland. Rain in
:29:52. > :29:53.
:29:53. > :30:02.Scotland, clears for most, but it continues across the north-west.
:30:02. > :30:08.Going into the weekend, it's a south-westerly flow across the UK.
:30:08. > :30:12.On Saturday, a weather front to the west and some uncertainty. In the
:30:13. > :30:19.isn't shine further east that temperature heads up a few degrees.
:30:19. > :30:23.A similar split on Sunday, in the west the chance of rain. But across
:30:23. > :30:27.eastern areas not clear blue sky but a bit of sunshine. The warmer
:30:27. > :30:32.colours return here. To the west you are close to normal, but in the
:30:32. > :30:38.sunshine further east 22C could be yours. For the final weekend of
:30:38. > :30:42.September that's not too bad. Our top story:
:30:42. > :30:46.Stock markets across the world have tumbled this morning after a stark
:30:46. > :30:49.warning about the state of the American economy fuelled fears of a
:30:49. > :30:53.new global recession. Still to come on the news channel