30/01/2013 BBC News at One

No problem at the pumps - an investigation says prices are not

being kept artificially high. The Office of Fair Trading says

competition on the forecourt is working well, but critics have

called the report a whitewash. We will meet the OFT to find out

exactly why the information we submitted didn't constitute

evidence that they felt that they could take forward.

David Cameron prepares to fly to Algeria to discuss the threat from

Islamist insurgents in North Africa. Tesco says it will carry out DNA

tests on all its meat products, as it drops a supplier over the horse

meat scandal. The London Marathon charity runner

whose death prompted a surge of donations - an inquest hears she'd

taken a stimulant that's now been banned.

The British stiff upper lip - experts say that may be why the UK

lags behind in the fight against cancer. On BBC London: The A&E in

east London giving unacceptably poor care. Could giving more social

services to the capital's homeless Good afternoon and welcome to the

BBC news at One. The Office of Fair Trading says it's found no evidence

that fuel is unfairly priced or that the high cost is caused by

mark-ups within the industry. In fact, it says the cost of petrol

and diesel here - before tax - is among the cheapest in Europe. The

investigation into fuel prices was launched following complaints about

prices from motoring and consumer groups. The AA says the report is a

whitewash. Our business correspondent Emma Simpson has the

details. Filling up at the pumps, prices are

on the rise once again. These motorists certainly don't think

they're getting a fair deal. They go up quick enough but they never

come down. If they do, yeah, a month later. It's more expensive

now than it ever was. It's getting ridiculous. But today the OFT has

concluded that when it comes to the UK fuel market, competition is

working well. They also found little to support

claims of rocket and feather pricing where falls in the

wholesale cost of fuel aren't passed on quickly enough to

motorists. And when it comes to the impact of

competition from supermarkets and major oil companies, it hadn't

received any evidence of anti- competitive practices.

We have found that generally the market isworking competitively. We

haven't seen evidence to suggest that drivers are being ripped off

when they purchase fuel. That doesn't mean mean there are not

differences in different areas and that drivers couldn't be doing more

to possibly pay lower prices themselves by taking advantage of

that. Drivers have long been concerned

that they pay over the odds for their fuel. With accusations of

profiteering by retailers and oil companies. Today's verdict here at

the OFT has frustrated motoring organisations and campaigners who

remain convinced that this market isn't working as it should. This

isn't a shock to us. This is the sort of thing the OFT, the

establishment have done many times before where they failed to take on

the big players in the market, the oil companies, the supermarkets,

and have left the smaller independent businesses to their

fate. The OFT did raise concerns about prices at motorway service

stations where fuel is often much more expensive. It's calling for

new road signs so drivers can see the prices before they pull in.

Fuel costs have soared in the last decade, but the OFT says if you

take out the tax and duty, we have some of the cheapest petrol and

diesel in Europe. But for the tens of millions of drivers who have no

choice but to fill up, that's of little comfort. The scrutiny of

this hugely important market is far from over.

Let's speak to our business correspondent, Adam Parsons. A

whitewash say the AA. A lot of surprise certainly from other

quarters that -- at the findings. Nobody is saying what a terrific

report and this is what we were expecting. I think one of the

problems is the disconnect between what Emma was saying, the cheapest

prices in Europe, that might be true until you add in the tax and

the VAT and suddenly you have by some estimatation is either the

most expensive, second, third most expensive prices in Europe. So the

reaction today was disappointment and then anger on behalf of drivers,

in particular, and retailers. The cost of fuel is something that gets

passed down through the entire economy. If you buy something in a

supermarket you factor in how much it's cost to transport it around

the country. The disappointment about this OFT report will start

manifesting it self in two ways. One is to look at the OFT and say

you should look again at these things you were supposed to

investigate and secondly, it will be to say to the Government, you

are charging us too much tax. If you want growth, you should reduce

this. In a time of austerity, will they do that? I am not sure.

There's more on this story on our website, include ago calculate tore

work out how much you are paying in your area compared with the

national average. David Cameron is to due to travel

to Algeria this afternoon - the first visit to the country by a

British Prime Minister since the country gained independence more

than 50 years ago. He's expected to discuss security in the country,

following the seizure of a gas plant by an Islamist group, which

led to the deaths of a number of Britons. Here's our world affairs

correspondent, Allan Little. The French-led advance through Mali has

been swift. This is a town captured from Islamist rebels at the weekend

and now being secured house by house. Rebels fled so quickly they

left arms, ammunition and explosives behind. In the city of

Timbuktu the rebels left a power vacuum. People ransacked and looted

shops and businesses, claiming these had belonged to what they

called Arabs and terrorists. 330 British troops have been sent to

the region, not for now to fight, tpwou train and advise Malian and

other forces. The Prime Minister has said the world faced a long

struggle against terrorism in Africa. We need, he said, to close

down the ungoverned spaces in which terrorists thrive. But some warned

against action and terminology that would play into the hands of

extremists. I think you have to be very careful about language because

the terrorists, al-Qaeda, they want you to believe that they're engaged

in a war. If you start to use the language of war, then you give them

a moral justification. 37 foreign workers, six of them British, and

ten Algerians died this month when terrorists seized control of a gas

plant in the Algerian desert. There were no long drawn out negotiations

to free the hostages, instead, controversially, Algerian forces

stormed the compound. David Cameron will meet his Algerian counterpart

to discuss a co-ordinated response to the emerging security threat. He

will be accompanied by the head of MI6. But critics warned today of

the dangers of being drawn into another long and costly war.

course there should be intelligence-sharing, of course

there should be security co- operation. But on the other hand, a

few days ago the Prime Minister told the House of Commons the

British force commitment would number in the tens. As you made

clear, we now understand the numbers are in the hundreds.

Prime Minister said there was a need for a tough, patient and

intelligent response to extremism in the region.

Our political correspondent is at Westminster. It's understood the

head of MI6 will be accompanying the Prime Minister, explain the

significance of that. It's deeply significant, because whereas

yesterday with the announcement of our military contribution to west

Africa with the deployment of more than 300 troops, today we will get

the intelligence element of our contribution which is why Sir John

Sawers is going with the Prime Minister to discuss with the

Algerians how we can better patrol the borders of Algeria, how we can

try and limit the flow of arms from Libya and how better security can

be provided at BP and other gas plants where British nationals work.

Perhaps most important is the symbolism of today's visit. It is

the first by a British Prime Minister in 50 years and that

underscores how seriously Mr Cameron views the emerging

generational terrorist threat we face from West Africa and his

readiness to intervene. Indeed, it's expected he will tell the

Algerians that the UK is ready to stand side by side with them in

taking on this terrorist threat. Thank you. Two people have been

shot dead in the Egyptian capital, Cairo. It comes as Egypt's

opposition leader has called for a national dialogue with the Islamist

government and the military to try to stop the violence which has left

dozens dead in the past week. The violence erupted on the eve of the

second anniversary of the uprising that toppled the former president,

Hosni Mubarak. The Scottish Government's preferred

question for next year's historic referendum on independence has been

rejected by the elections watchdog. Instead, voters will be asked -

Should Scotland be an independent country? Yes//No. Our Scotland

correspondent Lorna Gordon is at Holyrood for us. The Electoral

Commission talked to people across Scotland, to political parties here

at the Scottish parliament. They talked to campaigners, they even

talked to plain language experts and whilst they concluded that the

proposed question was clear, simple and easy to understand, they

recommended it be changed to something more neutral.

What's in a question? Well, quite a lot according to the Electoral

Commission. They recommended that the Scottish Government's preferred

question, do you agree that Scotland should be an independent

country, yes or no, be reworded, shortened to - should Scotland be

an independent country? When we spoke to people we asked them to

fill out the ballot paper. And across the board those who said

they were in favour of yes, those in favour of no and those who

hadn't made up their mind, across the board, they said they felt that

do you agree might incline people to say yes. The Electoral

Commission advises that it will be up to the parliament here at

Holyrood where the SNP has a majority to decide. Today, the

Scottish Government agreed that will be the question asked. I will

be accepting on behalf of the Scottish Government all of the

recommendations in the report and particularly pleased with the

conclusion they've reached on the question. It's clear, simple,

straightforward, easy to understand and I will be happy to recommend it

to parliament. Last year's Edinburgh agreement started the

process of passing the power to hold a referendum from Westminster

to Holyrood. Both pro-unionist and pro-independence groups today also

welcomed the recommendations for near parity on funding for the two

sides. But the Commission did call for the two campaigns to clarify

their policies so voters will know what follows if they vote yes or

vote no. This allows to us get on with the fair referendum that beall

need. This is a huge decision so having a fair question, fair rules

is important to ensuring that we concentrate on the big issues,

rather than worrying about process. Now voters in Scotland know the

timing of this referendum. The question they'll be asked, even the

amount both sides can spend, the arguments can now move on to what

independence for Scotland or continuing in the United Kingdom

actually means. We don't know the precise date as yet, but we do know

it will be in autumn of next year, 2014 when people in Scotland,

including some 16 and 17-year-olds, will get to decide on the country's

future. Thank you. There's more detail and analysis on

this story on our website. Tesco says it will now DNA-test all

its meat products after it emerged that horse meat was found in some

of its burgers. Britain's biggest retailer says its dropped the Irish

supplier of the frozen burgers that sparked the scandal which had been

made with meat from unapproved suppliers. Pallab Ghosh reports.

Two weeks ago Tesco took beef products off their shelves. Today,

it dropped one of its major suppliers. The supermarket chain

found that meat used by Ireland- based Silvercrest originated from

outside the UK and Ireland, in violation of Tesco's policy. Tesco

says it has evidence that its supplier of frozen burgers used

meat in its products that were not on the official list of suppliers.

It also says it will introduce a comprehensive system of DNA testing

across its meat products to ensure that horse meat never again enters

the food chain. On its website, This is one of the few labs in the

country able to carry out DNA testing on meat products. BBC News

understands that such labs are inundated with samples for testing,

so much so that they've had to hire additional storage. Ministers and

two of the supermarkets involved, Tesco and Iceland, are to be cross-

examined by MPs this afternoon to explain how their meat products

became contaminated. The number of UK students applying

to university has risen by almost 3% compared with last year, but is

still down compared with numbers before the tuition fee increase.

Official figures show an increase of 2.8% on last year for applicants

from the UK for undergraduate courses. But the figures also show

that applicant numbers have yet to recover to the levels seen in 2011,

the year before tuition fees rose. An inquest is being held into the

death of a young woman at last year's London Marathon. 30-year-old

Claire Squires collapsed a mile from the finish line last April.

She had aimed to raise �500 for the Samaritans, but following news of

her death that figure jumped to more than �1 million. Richard

Lister is at Southwark Coroners' Court for us. The corn has been

hearing -- coroner has been hearing how she had taken a banned

stimulant. It wasn't banned at the time she took it. The inquest heard

first from her boyfriend of several years who said that Claire had been

determined to beat the time she had set in a previous London marathon

and the couple had been told about this particular stimulant. At the

time it was on sale and available legally. Tpwu contained a product

DMAA and this is an amphetamine- like stimulant and the court heard

she put spoonfuls of this in her water bottle before setting off for

the race and as we know, she collapsed and died almost instantly

just a mile or so away from the finish line. The medical team

treating her at the time described symptoms of her having taken

something that resembled anam fete minute --am fete minute and the man

who carried out the postmortem concluded her death was due to

extreme physical exertion complicated by the presence of DMAA.

Now as you said, it has actually been banned in the UK as of last

August, but Claire Skaoeurs was not aware of the problems at the time

and the coroner is due to deliver An investigation by the Office of

Fair Trading says petrol prices are not being kept artificially high.

It finds competition is working well. Critics have called the

report a whitewash. Coming up: Cumbria awaits a nuclear decision.

Should an underground radio active waste dump be built somewhere

beneath this county's soil? On BBC London: Never forget, why

this British First World War general is a hero to people down

under. And leading lights, an exhibition

opens in the capital showing off some of the art world's most

The way police are recruited in England and Wales is to under go a

shake up with schemes to fast track new recruits to inspector level and

plans to allow those outside the force to become superintendents

after 15 months of training. For the first time foreign police

chiefs will be able to run British forces. Our Home Affairs

Correspondent Tom Symonds has the details. Of the big public services

the police are unusual, they all start here, training and passing

out at new police constables. They work their way up here on the beat.

And some may end up here as senior officers, even running an entire

force. Usually, it's a 30-year career. But today's proposals would

speed up the process and attract a new type of recruit. People who are

interested in policing, people who might have wantsed to join before

but have been prevented from doing so by the system we operate, bill

now be able to do it. This will lead to an even better force in the

future. Those people might be successful mid-career candidates

from perhaps the military or business. They'll either go

straight in as superintendents with special training or offered a fast

track from constable to inspector, the Government is considering

options. Good police work requires specialist training like this, but

also experience in the ways of the policing world. So this is the

concern. You can have the training. Can you read the books. Can you

observe other people. When you come to critical decisions, at some

stage, have you to rely on your experience and instinct. Can you

not get that in a 15-month classroom environment. Ministers

say yes, senior officers have to be able to command a major operation,

like this one. But good day-to-day management skills are also needed

and outsiders might provide them. The door's being opened to senior

police from abroad, such as former LA chief Bill Bratton, to run

British forces. Some with the power to hire and fire Chief Constables

welcome the idea. I'm lucky if have four or five applicants for a top

job paying over �100,000. That's not because they're not good people.

They are. But there aren't enough of them. A concern echoed by the

Government but rejected by many police officers who say the

expertise can be found from within their ranks.

West Midlands Police are searching for a gang of armed robbers who

threatened a nine-year-old boy with an axe at his home in Birmingham.

The gang burst into the house demanding cash and keys for a high

performance car. The boy's family say he has been severely

traumatised. Our correspondent Louise Hubball has more on this

story from Birmingham. Sophie, this happened in an unremarkable

suburban street in the Great Barr area. The family had just finished

dinner and their nine-year-old son had gone into the front room to

watch TV. There was a commotion at the front door and four intruders

burst in carrying axes and sledgehammers. They demanded cash

and car keys. They then grabbed the nine-year-old boy threatening him

and holding an axe to his throat in front of his mother and elder

brother. His father told me that the young boy remains terrified.

He hasn't been in the house. He doesn't want to be in the house. He

thinks they're going to come back and kill him. He thinks that

they're going to come and kill me, his mum and brother. My eldest kid

obviously, frightened, disturbed. My wife definitely doesn't want to

be in the house. Police are appealing for anyone who may have

any information to contact them. They're also appealing for anyone

who may have seen a group of men with the stolen black Nissan Pulsar

GTR car. They're carrying out house-to-house inquiries in the

local area to reassure residents. Anyone with any information advised

to call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

The famous stiff upper list could explain why the UK has lower cancer

survival rates than many other countries. A study in the British

Journal of Cancer suggests people in Britain are more likely to be

feel embarrassed or not want to waste a doctor's time leading to

late diagnosis. Our Medical Correspondent Fergus Walsh reports.

Nice and strong please. You may stop noticing your cough, but if

you've had it for three weeks or more it could be a sign of lung

cancer. Early diagnosis saves lives yet many Britons put off going to

the doctor with symptoms that might signal cancer. George Long died

from cancer in the 1970s, 30 years later his widow beat the disease.

She discovered blood spots while brushing her teeth, was tested

promptly and had successful surgery. People are so frightened that they

may have something wrong with them. It is so important to go.

Researchers questioned 20,000 adults in six countries. While

there was equal awareness of cancer symptoms people in the UK were more

reluctant to seek help. Whereas one in ten respondants in Sweden

worried about wasting a doctor's time, it rose to one in three in

the UK. In Denmark only around one in 20 said embarrassment would put

them off reporting symptoms. Whereas it was one in seven in the

UK. The researchers think the British stiff upper lip or natural

reserve may help explain why cancer survival rates here are well below

the best in the world. Doctors want patients to seek advice sooner.

There is always some reluctance for people actually to go and see their

doctor about symptoms which are very unclear, very neb lus. But I

think people should be reassured that we do want to see people if

they're concerned. What we're here for is to help people stay well.

More people than ever are beaten cancer, but it's reckoned 5,000

lives a year could be saved in England alone if survival rates

here matched the best in Europe. The Pakistani teenagor Malala

Yousafzai, who was shot in the head by the Taliban for promoting girls'

education is due to undergo surgery to reconstruct his skull. Surgons

in Birmingham plan to fit Malala with a specially moulded titanium

plate in the next ten days. Her injury was life threatening. Her

recovery, so far, described as remarkable. But weeks after Malala

walked out of hospital, they're preparing for her next major

challenge. The gunman's bullet ripped a large chunk out of the 15-

year-old's skull. Now, surgeons here, experienced in treating so

many soldiers injured on the battlefield, are preparing a

titanium place to fit exactly the hole left in the attack. Whether it

be a large defect area or small area, the beauty of this

fabrication of titanium plate is that it's vaedaptable. It's an easy

metal to work with. Malala Yousafzai was shot for defying a

Taliban edict banning the education of girls. Her story has become

worldwide news, a schoolgirl turned international human rights

campaigner. In terms of being a high-profile person and potentially

a high-profile target, she's not naive to any of that. But she

remains incredibly cheerful, determined and determined to

continue to speak for her cause. Malala is facing not one but two

operations, the second to place an implant to restore some hearing to

her damaged left ear. Both are complex procedures, but doctors

here remain confident that she will make a good, long-term recovery.

People living in Cumbria are finding out whether they are one

step closer to having an enormous nuclear waste storage facility in

their area. Three local authorities are holding separate votes on the

building of the new cavern. Chris Buckler is in Ambleside. Sophie,

there's no shortage of scenic beauty here. But councils are

meeting today to decide what happens below the ground here.

There's talk of an underground radio active waste bunker in which

all of that waste from Sellafield could be stored. Of course, that's

extremely controversial. Today, it's all about moving to the next

staipbl of that discussion but already this has brought two parts

of Cumbria's economy in direct conflict -- the nuclear industry

and tourism industry. councillors met to vote campaigners

gathered outside determined to make their voices heard about a proposal

that would have implications for countless generations. Currently

radio active waste is kept in over- ground stores at Sellafield and a

number of other sites. But it's not a long-term solution, particularly

as high-level waste can remain dangerous for tens of thousands of

years. That's why the Government has been examining the option of an

underground nuclear waste facility. We have also been, sadly, subjected

to some vilification. The strong feelings aabout the idea were on

show at a meeting today. In this area, where the Sellafield

processing plant and the nuclear industry more generally, is a major

employer, there are many who have been focal supporters ftd plan,

including trade unions. We've had nuclear here for as long as I can

remember. We are the best people to deal with the waste. We've had it

for a long time. For the future of west Cumbria and the young people

here, regarding jobs, and the benefits to west Cumbria will be

tremendous. If it was to be built, on the surface, the facility would

be less than half a Square Mile. But underground it would be much

bigger, somewhere between the size of a town tai small city, perhaps

as large nine square miles. And in an area that relies heavily on

tourism, there were people concerned that a waste dump could

put off visitors. Campaigners point out that some studies have

suggested the geology here might not be suitable for such storage

any way. If the geology isn't safe and there's a risk that radio

active material will leak in the future, that will damage the

tourism industry and damage the reputation of the nuclear industry.

Today's votes were never about a final conclusion, but the

Government knows that at some stage it will need a nuclear decision.

How does it deal with waste in the future?

This is all about going to the next stage of discussions, effectively

going to the next part of debate and tests being carried out. Within

the last few minutes, one of those councils, Copeland Council, has

voted six to one in favour of moving to that next stage. Now they

wait for Cumbria County Council and Allerdale Borough Council.

The yachtsman Alex Thomson has made history becoming the fastest Briton

to sail around the world in a monohull world. He came third in

what's considered to be the toughest race in sailing, the

Vendee Globe. His finishing time beat the previous record for a

British sailor by more than a week. Now the latest weather with Susan

Powell. Some sunshine on the way for most

of us sthaf. It is a windy afternoon right the way across the

UK. That wind will blow further showers across northern England and

we will keep a band of more persistent rain to the far north of

Scotland. But for many, you probably can't pick that out

clearly behind the wind arrows. There's a lot of sunshine to come.

Still some rain to the north of Scotland. For much of the central

low lands and the southern Uplands, yes quite a windy afternoon, but

sunshine on its way. Pretty potent showers into Cumbria, down into

Lancashire through the afternoon. Some getting blown across to the

east of the Pennines on the wind. Some with hail and thunder. Perhaps

a few into the north of the Midlands late in the afternoon as

well. Further south, a dry story, on the whole. Still windy, do

remember that. We could just pick up the odd light shower, for

example, around the Bristol Channel area. Generally a lot of fine

weather in South Wales. To the north, heavier showers spreading in

later in the afternoon. Skies clearing across Northern Ireland,

so the worst of the showers out of way here. And a fine end to the day

way here. And a fine end to the day in prospect. Into the evening, the

winds will ease back a little, just around the time of the rush hour

and into the early evening. It's fine for the majority, but only

briefly before the next weather front comes in from the west. That

kicks the winds up again. Also bringing heavy rain. Quite a short

lived rain of -- spell of rain for most. But notice how it lingers

across Scotland, throughout Thursday. All the while the

rainfall totals adding up and we may see some snow as well,

particularly across higher ground, but not necessarily exclusively.

Elsewhere, Thursday another windy day, but a dry day, again, for many

with pleasant spells of sunshine. Temperatures in double figures to

the south of the UK. Here's the forecasting headache for the end of

the week. An area low pressure, which is going to approach from the

Atlantic. Just how far north it heads though and how much it

engages with colder air to the north leave us with question marks.

It looks like there'll be heavy rain for England and Wales. Some

strong winds as well. It's a risk of snow that's probable lit hardest

for us to quantify at moment. Friday is looking a lot like this,

heavy rain to the south of the UK, risk of flooding for South Wales

and the south-west of England. A chance of that weather system

turning to snow across North Wales and parts of the Midlands before it

clears away as we go later into Friday. Still some question marks

around that. Stay tuned to the forecast, more details online.

forecast, more details online. We're always here for you and on

the News Channel. A reminder of our top story - an

investigation by the Office of Fair Trading says petrol prices are not