:00:11. > :00:20.Police here in Berkshire declared a major incident, as the river levels
:00:21. > :00:24.along the Thames Reach record highs. There are 14 severe flood warnings
:00:25. > :00:29.along stretches of the Thames, hundreds of homes are flooded,
:00:30. > :00:32.thousands more are threatened. Misery for many residents, with
:00:33. > :00:38.predictions that river levels could rise even higher over the coming
:00:39. > :00:44.days. Nick Clegg is visiting the south-west of England as the blame
:00:45. > :00:48.game continues over why the flooding is so bad. Everybody is having to
:00:49. > :00:52.respond to something we've never encountered before. No one has
:00:53. > :00:56.encountered this kind of deluge in such a sustained way over such a
:00:57. > :01:04.prolonged period of time. We will be live in the areas worst hit by the
:01:05. > :01:09.flooding with the latest. An BBC News that one. MPs vote on whether
:01:10. > :01:13.to back a ban on smoking in cars when children are present. English
:01:14. > :01:16.language test by age of them are suspended after BBC Panorama
:01:17. > :01:21.uncovers systematic fraud and cheating in the student Visa system.
:01:22. > :01:27.And we speak to Team GB's first medal winner in the Winter Olympics.
:01:28. > :01:32.Later on BBC London, lives are in danger as the water level on the
:01:33. > :01:34.Thames continues to rise. The flooding has also disrupted many
:01:35. > :01:58.roads and some rail services both in and out of the capital.
:01:59. > :02:05.Hello and good afternoon, welcome to the BBC News from here in Datchet, a
:02:06. > :02:09.village in Berkshire that, as you can see behind me, has been almost
:02:10. > :02:14.submerged by the floodwaters that have been rising inexorably, hour by
:02:15. > :02:18.hour through the morning. Along the Thames, hundreds of homes have not
:02:19. > :02:22.been flooded and thousands more are at serious risk of flooding. The
:02:23. > :02:26.latest from the Environment Agency is that they have 14 severe flood
:02:27. > :02:46.warnings in place along the Thames. That means there is a risk to human
:02:47. > :02:47.life and also to property. There are two more severe flood warnings in
:02:48. > :02:50.Somerset. Sandbags have been placed around shops, businesses and other
:02:51. > :02:52.properties here in Datchet and other places along the River Thames, but
:02:53. > :02:54.the worry is that the weather forecast says more heavy rain is
:02:55. > :02:57.coming tonight and tomorrow. Let's get this report from Daniel
:02:58. > :03:01.Boettcher. No rain this morning but water levels on the Thames are still
:03:02. > :03:04.rising, leaving hundreds of homes flooded and thousands more at risk,
:03:05. > :03:09.along stretches of the river in Surrey and Berkshire. In Datchet,
:03:10. > :03:12.the Village Green has disappeared. There have been warnings the
:03:13. > :03:17.flooding could get worse, but there's little residents can do to
:03:18. > :03:21.protect their properties. At 11pm last night it was just a stream. We
:03:22. > :03:25.went up at midnight we saw water coming down off the golf course and
:03:26. > :03:31.over the railway lines. We wake up this morning and we are marooned. I
:03:32. > :03:35.have a young family here. My primary goal right now is to pack up and get
:03:36. > :03:40.everyone out of here safe. We will deal with the compensation under
:03:41. > :03:45.bureaucracy after that. The railway line is flooded, diverging more
:03:46. > :03:49.water into the village. No one knows just how much higher it will get.
:03:50. > :03:55.That is why Anita Maunsell is moving the stock of wedding dresses in her
:03:56. > :03:59.shop to safety. It takes months to get back on your feet again. The
:04:00. > :04:03.insurance companies, with the best will in the world, aren't very
:04:04. > :04:08.quick, so consequently, it will take us for ever, as it will everyone
:04:09. > :04:11.else. In worrying times and the bad economic climate, this is the last
:04:12. > :04:14.thing we need. Residents have been complaining that they haven't been
:04:15. > :04:19.enough sandbags. At mid-morning, a lorry load provided by the local
:04:20. > :04:24.authority arrived. Well, it's only just turned up, so I've been trying
:04:25. > :04:28.to get them from as many places as I can, mainly the ones holding
:04:29. > :04:31.roadsides down that aren't needed for doing that. This area has
:04:32. > :04:36.suffered from serious flooding in the past. This was the Thames Valley
:04:37. > :04:45.in 1947. There were bad floods in 2003 as well. Some are making
:04:46. > :04:47.comparisons with those events and say they haven't seen anything on
:04:48. > :04:50.this scale before. No, never. I've seen some flooding but the railway
:04:51. > :04:54.has never been flooded like this. As residents here do their best to cope
:04:55. > :04:58.there is a warning of more to come, as water further upstream works its
:04:59. > :05:04.way down the river. And the ground is already so saturated that it
:05:05. > :05:07.simply can't absorb any more. We are anticipating another three or four
:05:08. > :05:11.inches on the Thames over the next 24 hours or so in this area. But
:05:12. > :05:18.with the Thames Valley being so wide, the gravel is underground
:05:19. > :05:21.water is very saturated as well. There has been a brief respite in
:05:22. > :05:25.the weather so far today, but there is more rain on the way, leaving
:05:26. > :05:31.more communities along the river at risk. Daniel Boettcher, BBC News,
:05:32. > :05:34.Datchet. Well, the war of words between the government and the
:05:35. > :05:38.Environment Agency over the handling of this floods crisis has continued
:05:39. > :05:41.to date. The chair of the Environment Agency, Lord Smith, he's
:05:42. > :05:45.been saying that he admits more should have been done to get more
:05:46. > :05:50.money into helping to dredge rivers, but he says that his staff
:05:51. > :05:54.have done all they could with the resources available to them. He has
:05:55. > :05:57.also rejected suggestions from the Communities Secretary, Eric Pickles,
:05:58. > :06:02.that the Environment Agency have been giving the Government bad
:06:03. > :06:06.advice. Now the Deputy Prime Minister has been visiting the
:06:07. > :06:13.Somerset Levels. Let's go to our correspondent, Hubble Griffiths, who
:06:14. > :06:18.is there in Burrowbridge. Yes, Ben, people here care about first and
:06:19. > :06:21.foremost not be political ramblings but the practicalities of still
:06:22. > :06:26.living and coping with the seventh week of flooding. However, they have
:06:27. > :06:29.been a stream of politicians visiting the south-west, each keen
:06:30. > :06:33.to talk up what they've been doing for the community. The community
:06:34. > :06:37.itself feels the best help they've been given is the help they've given
:06:38. > :06:44.themselves. Don't be fooled by the calm waters as the levels continue
:06:45. > :06:49.to rise. The row over Somerset's flooding is becoming turbulence.
:06:50. > :06:53.Yesterday the government minister heading the flood response claimed
:06:54. > :07:00.the Environment Agency had given bad advice over dredging Beas rivers.
:07:01. > :07:04.Today, the agency hit back. He is wrong. Our agency were following
:07:05. > :07:09.Government rules, Government guidelines. We put money on the
:07:10. > :07:14.table for dredging 12 months ago but the maximum that we were allowed by
:07:15. > :07:20.Government rules to put on the table, the maximum was ?400,000.
:07:21. > :07:25.Others didn't come to the table at the time. Also wading into the row,
:07:26. > :07:31.the Deputy Prime Minister, trying to dampen down anger in what has become
:07:32. > :07:35.a very public blame game. Chris Smith and the Environment Agency
:07:36. > :07:38.have got a very difficult job to do. We can in the future look back and
:07:39. > :07:42.decide what went right and what went wrong. It is very clear now that the
:07:43. > :07:45.calls here locally for the dredging of some of the rivers, while it
:07:46. > :07:50.wouldn't have been a magic wand solution, it clearly should have
:07:51. > :07:54.been dealt with. For the teams of volunteers spending another day
:07:55. > :08:05.shipping supplies, the political storm isn't helping. We are past
:08:06. > :08:08.that. We need to know what they are doing now to solve the current
:08:09. > :08:11.situation. And also, how much effort they are going to give us in tidying
:08:12. > :08:13.the place up. I think it needs something more than just apologies
:08:14. > :08:19.on TV now. I think it needs somebody ought to be held personally and
:08:20. > :08:22.collectively accountable. All the politicians who travelled here from
:08:23. > :08:26.Westminster will have quickly realised the scale of the problem.
:08:27. > :08:31.But they will also have felt an undercurrent of mistrust because
:08:32. > :08:34.whatever promises have been made to put this situation right in the
:08:35. > :08:41.future, it will take much longer to rebuild the people's trust in the
:08:42. > :08:46.authorities. For Margaret Lock it is also about rebuilding her home.
:08:47. > :08:50.After nearly 30 years here it has flooded for the first time. Eight
:08:51. > :08:55.inches of water has washed through the ground floor. A bit devastated.
:08:56. > :08:59.I think it's going to be quite a while before we get back in, to be
:09:00. > :09:06.honest. Because the water has got to go and then we've got to get dry...
:09:07. > :09:10.There's so many things to do. The only response people here feel they
:09:11. > :09:18.can really depend upon is their own, and it's still being tested
:09:19. > :09:23.after day. Day after day, week after week. And while it has been dry here
:09:24. > :09:27.this morning, the river levels are continuing to rise. In fact, new
:09:28. > :09:32.flood defences are having to be put in around a kilometre from the water
:09:33. > :09:36.'s edge in anticipation of further flooding. Many here feel they could
:09:37. > :09:41.be stuck with the situation not for weeks but for months. Many thanks
:09:42. > :09:46.indeed for that. It is not only the River Thames that is causing real
:09:47. > :09:49.concern this lunchtime. It is also the River Severn in Worcestershire
:09:50. > :09:55.that has been flooding will stop Worcester itself particularly badly
:09:56. > :10:00.hit. Let's go to Phil Mackie, our correspondent who is there for us
:10:01. > :10:06.now. The river levels are just going down for the time being. You can see
:10:07. > :10:10.that that rolled over there is still flooded and still closed, but this
:10:11. > :10:14.is the main bridge through the city centre. It's been closed all
:10:15. > :10:17.morning, they are about to reopen it in the next couple of minutes
:10:18. > :10:22.because things are gradually improving. Have a look at the river
:10:23. > :10:26.itself, it is completely swollen still. There is a lot of water still
:10:27. > :10:29.coming down from further north in Shropshire, and we are expecting
:10:30. > :10:43.another peak tomorrow evening at levels that were higher than the
:10:44. > :10:46.spawning. The problem is with all these roads closed around you, it is
:10:47. > :10:48.causing a huge impact on the local economy. Local businesses are saying
:10:49. > :10:50.they are being disrupted. They have to weigh that against health and
:10:51. > :10:53.safety concerns. For the time being, things are looking a bit brighter
:10:54. > :10:55.than they have been at any other stage. I've just literally been
:10:56. > :10:58.speaking to the Environment Agency a few seconds ago and they say another
:10:59. > :11:00.peak tomorrow night with levels perhaps higher than this morning.
:11:01. > :11:03.They are looking for those record levels of 2007. The flood defences
:11:04. > :11:06.that have been built along this river since then have been built to
:11:07. > :11:11.withstand those. If they got higher than that then there would be
:11:12. > :11:16.concerned. There is real concern in Datchet in
:11:17. > :11:20.Berkshire. And at other places like as along the Thames. The water just
:11:21. > :11:24.keeps rising and rising. Although the weather is pretty dry and it's
:11:25. > :11:28.been quite bright today, the water just keeps going up. People have
:11:29. > :11:32.been putting sandbags around their homes, shops and businesses, and
:11:33. > :11:35.hoping against hope that that will be enough, because they know the
:11:36. > :11:38.weather forecast is really bad tonight. And tomorrow, there's more
:11:39. > :11:45.heavy rain forecast. So things here may get much worse. Dyfed-Powys
:11:46. > :11:49.Police a body has been found during the search for A34 -year-old kayaker
:11:50. > :11:54.who went missing on the River Usk yesterday afternoon. The body was
:11:55. > :11:57.found about an hour and a half ago. The family of the missing kayaker
:11:58. > :12:01.has been informed. As we've been hearing, a political row seems to be
:12:02. > :12:05.escalating at Westminster with the blame game in full swing. Let's go
:12:06. > :12:12.to our political correspondent, Norman Smith. All of this while
:12:13. > :12:16.people's homes are under water. I imagine many people, whose houses
:12:17. > :12:21.are under water and livelihoods have been appalled, they will be appalled
:12:22. > :12:25.by the name calling. It started yesterday by Eric Pickles launching
:12:26. > :12:28.into the Environment Agency and its boss, Chris Smith, questioning his
:12:29. > :12:32.judgment, whether he should continue in the job. Then Chris Smith
:12:33. > :12:36.retaliating today, saying his staff know 100 times more about flood
:12:37. > :12:41.defences and Eric Pickles or any other politician, he blamed
:12:42. > :12:44.government cuts. The environment Secretary, still recovering from
:12:45. > :12:49.that eye operation, complaining to the Prime Minister about Eric
:12:50. > :12:52.Pickles' intervention. And the former floods minister rounding on a
:12:53. > :12:56.Conservative colleague who described Lord Smith as, quote, a dit, who
:12:57. > :13:01.needed his head flushed down the toilet. Downing Street is aghast at
:13:02. > :13:06.all of this, with the Prime Minister's spokesman saying that the
:13:07. > :13:10.Government needed to and was coming together, going out of his way to
:13:11. > :13:13.praise the good response of the Environment Agency. What does it
:13:14. > :13:16.tell us? It tells us of the nervousness in political circles
:13:17. > :13:19.about the potential political backlash from the flooding crisis
:13:20. > :13:26.and the desire of some politicians to get their retaliation in early.
:13:27. > :13:29.That's the politics. We are joined now by our environment analyst. Talk
:13:30. > :13:33.us through the extent of the flooding we are seeing in the
:13:34. > :13:37.Thames. There has been relentless rain right across the South of
:13:38. > :13:43.England. It is having widespread and increasing effect. Let's take a look
:13:44. > :13:45.of this Environment Agency map. The areas in red show the areas where
:13:46. > :13:47.there is severe flood risk. areas in red show the areas where
:13:48. > :13:51.there is You can see the extent right from Swindon in the West
:13:52. > :13:56.through to Slough. It's a very long stretch. He pulled downstream of
:13:57. > :13:59.Maidenhead and Windsor are complaining that a channel created
:14:00. > :14:04.to take waters away from those towns, called the Jubilee River, is
:14:05. > :14:08.dumping excess water on them. So water taken from one place in the
:14:09. > :14:16.Thames is being shifted to another, nobody wants it. Are there any other
:14:17. > :14:20.causes? Yes, let's take a look at this map of a catchment of the
:14:21. > :14:25.Thames. It shows both sides of the river. The higher ground with the
:14:26. > :14:29.Thames running down the middle. The North Downs on one side, the
:14:30. > :14:33.Chilterns on the other. There are big questions being raised about the
:14:34. > :14:38.land management on those hills. Have we denuded the hills, should we be
:14:39. > :14:39.reforesting them? The idea now from professionals is to catch the water
:14:40. > :14:45.where it falls. reforesting them? The idea now from
:14:46. > :14:50.professionals is to catch the By holding the water up nearer where it
:14:51. > :14:54.lands, it's easier to slow it down. So wary builds up... In the Thames
:14:55. > :14:59.basin it takes several days to build up before it gets downstream towards
:15:00. > :15:04.the outskirts of London. If you can hold the water up and slow it down,
:15:05. > :15:09.then the peaks are much lower, the water levels are much lower and the
:15:10. > :15:12.water can pass through the Thames through London at a lower level.
:15:13. > :15:16.More safely. But you have to do flood some of the Upland areas. But
:15:17. > :15:26.you have to compensate people when you do that. We are seeing the start
:15:27. > :15:30.of a proper national debate, where we are asking ourselves, where are
:15:31. > :15:34.we going to catch the rainfall, who is going to be compensated, and move
:15:35. > :15:41.away from some of the name-calling that has been going on.
:15:42. > :15:46.You can find out more about the flooding on our website. There are
:15:47. > :15:51.updates on BBC local radio and television stations.
:15:52. > :15:53.Our top story this lunchtime. Police have declared a major
:15:54. > :15:57.incident in Berkshire, as river levels along the Thames hit record
:15:58. > :15:59.highs. And still to come: Snowboarder Jenny
:16:00. > :16:10.Jones reflects on her record-breaking medal win on the
:16:11. > :16:13.slopes of Sochi. I celebrated with some champagne, and a bit of
:16:14. > :16:18.dancing! Later on BBC London. Caught
:16:19. > :16:21.red-handed - we expose the pay TV fraudsters.
:16:22. > :16:24.And from tower blocks to Tower Bridge. We meet the photographer
:16:25. > :16:25.who's spent a decade getting a birds-eye-view to capture London's
:16:26. > :16:36.skyline. The Home Office has suspended
:16:37. > :16:38.English exams run by ETS, one of the world's largest language testing
:16:39. > :16:44.companies, after the BBC's Panorama programme uncovered systematic fraud
:16:45. > :16:45.in the UK's student visa system. Secret filming of
:16:46. > :16:48.government-approved English exams needed for a visa showed entire
:16:49. > :16:54.rooms of candidates being helped to cheat. Before the suspension, ETS
:16:55. > :16:58.told the BBC it did everything it could to detect and prevent rare
:16:59. > :17:07.instances of fraud. Richard Watson reports.
:17:08. > :17:21.It's the sort of multiple-choice chess -- test students dream of.
:17:22. > :17:34.Unbelievably, the invigilator is simply reading out the 200 answers.
:17:35. > :17:39.Alpha is a common beta is be, and so on. A two-hour test takes just seven
:17:40. > :17:44.minutes to fake. Panorama has been filming undercover following a
:17:45. > :17:48.network of crooked immigration agents, who help bogus students
:17:49. > :17:54.extend their visas through fraud. The Home Office rules are clear.
:17:55. > :18:02.Non-EU students have to pass an English exam, or they don't get a
:18:03. > :18:05.visa. Early last year, we had and immigration agency in London, called
:18:06. > :18:10.Studentway Education, which could guarantee a pass for a price. We
:18:11. > :18:19.were told how they fall the exam board. Studentway, the agency which
:18:20. > :18:26.arranged our exam, denies any wrongdoing. After paying the agency
:18:27. > :18:30.?500, our undercover was sent to this government approved test centre
:18:31. > :18:36.in East London for an exam. In the hall, and invigilator locks her into
:18:37. > :18:40.a secure computer terminal, but neither she or the other candidates
:18:41. > :18:44.will have to do the tests themselves. Moments before the exam
:18:45. > :18:52.starts, new people arrive to take their places. While the fake sitters
:18:53. > :18:59.start to answer questions in perfect English, the visa applicants stand
:19:00. > :19:05.in the aisle, waiting to have their photo taken to prove they sat the
:19:06. > :19:10.exam at Eden College International. A few days later, our undercover got
:19:11. > :19:15.the certificate. Eden College International strongly deny any
:19:16. > :19:17.knowledge of the frauds. They say after uncovering their own
:19:18. > :19:22.investigation last year, they have not renewed the contracts of three
:19:23. > :19:28.freelancers, and have improved their systems. The company which sets the
:19:29. > :19:35.exams, ETS, told us it does everything it can to detect and
:19:36. > :19:40.prevent rare instances of cheating. We showed our evidence to the Home
:19:41. > :19:45.Secretary. We have done a lot over the past three years. We have rooted
:19:46. > :19:50.out abuse. The amount of abuse has gone down, but it's clear people are
:19:51. > :19:54.finding ways around the system. Our investigation shows the student visa
:19:55. > :19:57.system is still an easy target. And you can see that Panorama
:19:58. > :20:00.programme tonight at 8:30 on BBC One.
:20:01. > :20:03.The opposing sides in Syria's civil war are back around the table today
:20:04. > :20:07.for a second round of peace talks in Geneva. The first talks broke up
:20:08. > :20:09.just over a week ago without any substantial progress on how to end
:20:10. > :20:18.the fighting. Our diplomatic correspondent, Bridget Kendall, is
:20:19. > :20:25.in Geneva. Bridget, is there any cause for optimism this time round?
:20:26. > :20:31.There is some cause for optimism on the ground. That cease-fire in Homs
:20:32. > :20:36.this weekend, which allowed 600 people to be evacuated, and there
:20:37. > :20:43.are now talks going on to extend the truce. Here in Geneva, progress has
:20:44. > :20:47.been going at a snail's pace. The two delegations haven't even met
:20:48. > :20:51.face-to-face today. The UN investigator in charge has decided
:20:52. > :20:56.to hold meetings to keep them apart, while he tries to get them to agree
:20:57. > :21:01.on an agenda. He wants them to discuss the core issues of stopping
:21:02. > :21:05.violence in Syria, and transferring to a transitional government. But
:21:06. > :21:09.even if the two sides agree separately to this agenda, they mean
:21:10. > :21:13.completely different things by the violence. The opposition says it is
:21:14. > :21:18.all violence by the government. They made a public complaint today about
:21:19. > :21:22.the way they say the Syrian government is dropping even more
:21:23. > :21:26.barrel bombs on the City of Aleppo. The Syrian government say the
:21:27. > :21:31.violence is all by the terrorists, and they say they are -- there are a
:21:32. > :21:38.la white villages that are under siege, and they need looking well as
:21:39. > :21:41.Homs. So it is a big task ahead. MPs are to vote in a few hours' time
:21:42. > :21:43.on proposals that would allow smoking to be banned in cars
:21:44. > :21:46.carrying children in England. Smokers' groups say this would be an
:21:47. > :21:49.intrusion, but health professionals have voiced their support. The
:21:50. > :21:51.measure was approved by the Lords last month. Our health
:21:52. > :22:00.correspondent, Dominic Hughes, reports.
:22:01. > :22:05.The family car is somewhere many would regard as a private space, but
:22:06. > :22:11.nearly seven years after smoking was banned in most enclosed public
:22:12. > :22:16.places in England, MPs could be about to go one step further, and
:22:17. > :22:21.ban smoking here too. It is a measure health care campaigners have
:22:22. > :22:27.been battling for. You have young children is developing lungs being
:22:28. > :22:31.exposed to passive smoking, and the possibility of making asthma worse,
:22:32. > :22:36.and a predisposition to other problems later in life. The number
:22:37. > :22:42.of smokers has fallen dramatically since the 70s. Just over a fifth of
:22:43. > :22:45.adults smoke, and one in seven of them admitted to smoking in a car
:22:46. > :22:50.with children. Smoker can stay in the air for two and a half hours,
:22:51. > :23:00.even with the windows open. A campaign has been trying to draw
:23:01. > :23:03.home the message, and say that everything is being done to protect
:23:04. > :23:09.children who are the victims of second-hand smoke. If there's
:23:10. > :23:13.children involved, they shouldn't be allowed to smoke. It is too
:23:14. > :23:18.confined. I don't think it should necessarily be brought into law. The
:23:19. > :23:24.evidence is quite strong that it isn't healthy for children to be
:23:25. > :23:29.exposed to those fumes in the car. But some smokers say this is a step
:23:30. > :23:34.too far, and infringement of their basic rights. In terms of civil
:23:35. > :23:40.liberties and how far the government" is on people's lives,
:23:41. > :23:43.there is a line. And the car ban goes over the line. If the
:23:44. > :23:50.government does that, I think people will ignore it. A few weeks ago, a
:23:51. > :23:56.ban on smoking in cars looked some way off. This evening, MPs are
:23:57. > :23:59.expected to -- Conservative MPs are expected to back the measure.
:24:00. > :24:06.Well, let's speak to our correspondent at Westminster, Gary
:24:07. > :24:13.O'Donoghue. There are two sides. It is health against intrusion. That is
:24:14. > :24:16.the characterisation of the debate at the moment. Those in favour of
:24:17. > :24:22.the ban, including the Prime Minister, because a spokesperson
:24:23. > :24:28.says that he doesn't support the idea, as do a couple of his Cabinet
:24:29. > :24:32.colleagues, like the Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt. There is a
:24:33. > :24:37.split in this one. The Justice Secretary is against it, as is the
:24:38. > :24:40.Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg. It is clear that this will go
:24:41. > :24:46.through. There will be a bunch of people voting against it, but it
:24:47. > :24:50.will go through our numbers. Just seven years after the ban on smoking
:24:51. > :24:54.came in, we will get the ban on smoking in cars were children are
:24:55. > :24:58.present. We don't know at this stage what the proposed penalties will
:24:59. > :25:01.be. It is going through enabling legislation, which means that
:25:02. > :25:06.government can make secondary rules on how it is going to work. We don't
:25:07. > :25:11.know if it will be a crime or a civil offence, and how big a fine
:25:12. > :25:15.might be. We are going through the motions, in some ways, in the House
:25:16. > :25:20.of Commons tonight, because this will happen. Those who are against
:25:21. > :25:22.it say it is another step towards an nanny state. Thank you.
:25:23. > :25:25.After yesterday's success on the slopes in Sochi, when snowboarder
:25:26. > :25:28.Jenny Jones won Great Britain's first Olympic medal on the snow,
:25:29. > :25:34.this morning the men's curling team have won the first of their matches,
:25:35. > :25:37.beating the host team. But it's not all plain sailing for Team GB's
:25:38. > :25:43.women, who are in a battle against Sweden. Our sports correspondent
:25:44. > :25:49.Andy Swiss is in Sochi. Day three of the action here in
:25:50. > :25:53.Sochi, but still plenty of talk about day two, and that remarkable
:25:54. > :25:58.performance by Jenny Jones. The Winter Olympics were first held way
:25:59. > :26:04.back in 1924. In the 90 years since then, Britain had never won a medal
:26:05. > :26:09.on snow, until a former chalet maid from Bristol wrote her name in
:26:10. > :26:14.sporting history. She is the woman everyone wants to talk to. Jenny
:26:15. > :26:20.Jones in the Sochi spotlight, the morning after the incredible day
:26:21. > :26:26.before. Jones' journey from a dry ski slope in Britain -- in Bristol
:26:27. > :26:30.to an Olympic bronze is and -- is as unlikely as it is unforgettable.
:26:31. > :26:37.Watched by her parents, she won Britain's first ever medal on snow.
:26:38. > :26:41.Even that emotion was trumped by the most tearful of Family Reunion. This
:26:42. > :26:47.morning she told me her mum and dad had been a key to her success. To
:26:48. > :26:52.see them come forward at the end, I was holding it together, but I lost
:26:53. > :26:58.it when I saw my mum. I hope I made them proud. How did you celebrate
:26:59. > :27:07.last night? With sums Champagne! And a bit of dancing! And here is the
:27:08. > :27:11.proof of that fancy footwork. Jones and her team-mates caught on camera
:27:12. > :27:16.after the medal ceremony. Britain is hoping they will have more to dance
:27:17. > :27:20.about. The men's curling team began their campaign in impressive style
:27:21. > :27:24.this morning. They were up against Russia in their opening match, but
:27:25. > :27:31.silenced the crowd with a comfortable 7-4 win. It was a huge
:27:32. > :27:38.crowd, and they were cheering. It was quite hard to hear at times, but
:27:39. > :27:42.that is part and parcel of it. There was also an impressive display from
:27:43. > :27:50.Britain's jack well-born in the short track speed dating. He became
:27:51. > :27:55.the first Briton ever to make it to the final, but sadly, he crashed
:27:56. > :28:01.out. In the last hour, we have also seen Britain's women curlers finish
:28:02. > :28:07.their first-round match. A really tough match against Sweden, which
:28:08. > :28:12.they ended up losing six - four. Disappointment for Eve Muirhead and
:28:13. > :28:18.her team, but this is a round robin contest, so plenty of opportunity to
:28:19. > :28:25.get their medal hopes back onto. Time for a look at the weather.
:28:26. > :28:34.Unfortunately, there is more rain to come. We have some rain and gale is
:28:35. > :28:39.on the way, and also the potential to see snow and ice. Throughout this
:28:40. > :28:44.week, a number of systems could bring some heavy rain. Mixed in with
:28:45. > :28:48.some snow, so it should not cause too much concern. The potential by
:28:49. > :28:53.the end of Friday for South Wales and south-west England to see
:28:54. > :28:58.another 40 to 70 millimetres of rain. Something of a respite today.
:28:59. > :29:03.There are some showers around, some thicker cloud around parts of
:29:04. > :29:06.south-east England. Equally, some drier weather around with some
:29:07. > :29:12.sunshine. Showers are clearing from Northern Ireland and western
:29:13. > :29:17.Scotland this afternoon. Sunshine across parts of northern England,
:29:18. > :29:22.but equally, a couple of showers here possible. Scattered showers in
:29:23. > :29:26.the afternoon for England and Wales. Always keeping a little bit more
:29:27. > :29:33.cloud through Kent and East Anglia, and here, some patchy rain possible.
:29:34. > :29:37.For most of us this evening, the sky is clear. Temperatures will drop
:29:38. > :29:41.away as the cloud breaks up. Here comes another band of rain, moving
:29:42. > :29:47.through Northern Ireland, which could give some snow on higher
:29:48. > :29:50.ground, moving in through Wales and parts of the South West in the early
:29:51. > :29:57.hours. Tuesday's weather system eight quite short lived, in 10th
:29:58. > :30:03.spell of rain, combined with some strong winds that time. Lingering to
:30:04. > :30:08.the north-east, but it will clear away elsewhere, giving brighter
:30:09. > :30:14.skies in the afternoon. In northern areas, showers could continue to be
:30:15. > :30:19.wintry. Some snow showers on higher ground could move on to low ground,
:30:20. > :30:25.and could continue through Wednesday night. Wednesday's storm is fast
:30:26. > :30:29.approaching our shores. Quite a lot of uncertainty about it, but it has
:30:30. > :30:36.the potential to be an intense system, bringing severe gales, gusts
:30:37. > :30:40.in excess of 70 mph, possibly. Some rain and hill snow possible in the
:30:41. > :30:46.north as well. The ground does not need any more water, with those
:30:47. > :30:50.severe flood warnings in force. We will continue to monitor the
:30:51. > :30:54.situation. You can get more details on our website.
:30:55. > :30:56.Now a reminder of our top story this lunchtime.
:30:57. > :30:58.Police have declared a major incident in Berkshire, as river
:30:59. > :31:10.levels along the Thames hit record highs. Visiting the south-west of
:31:11. > :31:14.England, the Prime Minister has defended the work of the Environment
:31:15. > :31:20.Agency, and given his backing to its chairman, Lord Smith. There will be
:31:21. > :31:21.continuing coverage of the flood situation on