14/07/2014 BBC News at One

The woman appointed by the Prime minister to head

the child abuse inquiry steps down after less than a week.

Baroness Butler-Sloss had been asked to look into allegations of abuse

But she's been under intense pressure to stand down -

The UN says that almost 1000 homes have been destroyed in Gaza

since the Israeli airstrikes began last week.

A vote will decide today whether women can finally become

Celebrations into the early hours as Germany wins the World Cup for

Three months after the abduction of hundreds of Nigerian schoolgirls

we hear from some who escaped and from Malala Yousefzai who's

We're with you and we are standing up with you in your campaign. I am

here, in Gigli, where two and a half years, the Costa Concordia capsized,

killing 32 people. Today they are re-floating it and preparing to take

it away to scrapped. Could there be a summer

of motoring misery, as Putney Bridge shuts to traffic,

as well as the Hammersmith Flyover? And, Scotland Yard bans

non-Londoners from applying for Good afternoon

and welcome to the BBC News at One. In the past hour it's been announced

that Baroness Butler-Sloss is to stand down as chair of

the historical child abuse inquiry. Her appointment by the government

less than a week ago was widely criticised, because the former

judge's family connections suggested Downing Street said it was

'entirely her decision' to go. Our political correspondent

Ben Wright reports. She's a highly regarded former

judge. Picked by the Home Office to lead an enquiry into allegations of

child abuse. At first it looked like an obvious choice, but last week

many asked whether Lady Butler-Sloss was really the right person to

investigate a possible establishment cover-up. Why, because her late

brother, Sir Michael Havers, was the Attorney General in the 1980s when

the abuse was alleged to have taken place, he was the government 's top

lawyer, and some felt it compromised her outlook. After talking to the

Home Secretary over the weekend Lady Butler-Sloss issued a statement in

the last hour saying: Her appointment had put the

government under pressure, and number ten said today it was

entirely Lady Butler-Sloss's decision to stand down. It was

announced, the terms of reference are still not decided. The fact she

has resigned so quickly I think is probably a good thing and we can now

really focus on the terms of reference, the people on the inquiry

team and getting the survivors to have their voices heard for the

first time. The inquiry was set up to investigate allegations of abuse

in 1980s, made by this late Tory MP, Geoffrey Dickens, who said children

were abused by prominent figures at the centre of the British

establishment and he was prepared to name names. But it was never

investigated, Lady Butler-Sloss's connection to a senior government

minister at the time convince MPs and lawyers that she should stand

aside. Their decision is a blow to the government which will now have

to find a new chairman. Our Chief Political Correspondent

Norman Smith joins me now Was this inevitable and what does it

mean for the enquiry? It was inevitable. Although support for

Lady Butler-Sloss was waning among MPs, because of the criticism also

from the victims of the abuse. Lady Butler-Sloss took the view it was

not tenable for her to lead an enquiry in the face of scepticism

and doubt from those victims, who almost from her appointment have

been unhappy. Unhappy she was a figure of the establishment

investigating the establishment, she was a member of the House of Lords

probably investigating those peers alleged over child abuse, questions

over whether her age, whether she had the energy and the drive to

pursue a difficult and potentially lengthy inquiry. Doubts over her

link to the scandal of the 1980s, because her brother was the Attorney

General. And then the steady dribble of damaging stories. Looking at her

resignation statement she is quite clear herself, a victim orientated

inquiry, you have to have the confidence of the victims and

clearly she didn't have that. The United Nations says 17,000

Palestinians in Gaza have taken shelter in schools after being

ordered by Israel to leave their The UN says that almost 1000

homes have been destroyed in Gaza since the Israeli airstrikes began

last week. Palestinian officials now say 172

people have been killed Overnight Palestinian militants

continued firing more rockets Our correspondent Yolande Knell

reports from Gaza. The start of the seventh day of

Israel's military operation in Gaza. Some air strikes caused

massive destruction. But the violence also targets Israeli towns

and cities. EXPLOSIONS These pictures from Hamas militants

are said to show home-made Palestinian rockets being fired at

Tel Aviv. Israel says it is targeting rocket launching sites,

and it is determined to stop the threat to the civilians. For

ordinary Palestinians, the uncertainty continues. Thousands

from northern Gaza are in temporary shelters after they were forced from

their homes. Israel says it is planning to widen the operation

against militants in the border area where they live. But with no sign it

has started, some are heading back. It is risky here, and there, and

nobody is taking care of us, this woman says. But others are staying

at this school, they fear an Israeli ground invasion. These people have

turned classrooms into their bedrooms. They came rushing to the

school the shelter, after the Israeli military told them to leave

their homes. And now there's a lot of frustration here because they do

not know how long they will stay. The United Nations says that too

many of the more than 170 Palestinians killed this week were

civilians. And one quarter were children. Behind every loss of life,

every child killed, and woman killed thereat individual histories. I

cannot access it -- accent we reduced to this -- this to something

anonymous, they are not statistics. Is the humanitarian situation

worsens, the international calls for a cease-fire in creased -- is it

worsens. Our Middle East Correspondent Kevin

Connolly is in Jerusalem. So, Israel showing no let up

in the military offensive? As things stand, the second week of

the operation began very much as the first week did. We are told there

was 50 Israeli air strike since midnight, dozens of rockets have

gone the other way and alarms have sounded in Israeli cities. In a

strange new test we are told a Hamas operated drone was shot down by a

patria anti-aircraft missile. -- patriot missile. That over Ashdod,

the Israelis are looking for the wreckage of the drone to see whether

it was capable of carrying explosives. There are calls

internationally for a cease-fire. Where you hear public calls, I think

you can always assume in the background diplomats are working on

a truce, trying to find out what Israel would want on the one hand

and what Hamas would want on the other hand. To stop the exchanges of

missiles and rockets. But it's also possible that Israel is planning to

expand the operation by launching a ground invasion of Gaza, too. I

think it sums up the situation at the start of the second week. That

nobody can really tell you for sure which of those options is the more

likely. Some sort of move towards a cease-fire on the one hand or an

Israeli ground operation on the other.

And you can find out more about the crisis in the Middle East

by going to our website and going to special reports, Middle East Crisis.

After years of debate and argument, women will find out today

if they can become bishops in the Church of England.

A vote is taking place at the General Synod.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, says he's hopeful the radical

reform - which was previously rejected - will finally be agreed.

Our Religious Affairs Correspondent Robert Piggott reports from York.

Anglicans have come to the General Synod to witness a moment of

history. Rarely has the future of the church turned so profoundly on a

single vote. Women clergy have campaigned for decades for access to

the church top jobs. A clear majority of the General Synod

support the creation of women bishops but once again in the final

debate today the issue has been partly about preserving a wide range

of beliefs in the church. It will soon become normal and routine.

Women in the ministry unremarkable normality.

Traditionalist evangelicals say they will vote against the legislation

insisting only men should lead the church. We believe the Bible teaches

while men and women are equal in the eyes of God in every respect,

nevertheless they have different roles within the church and they are

supposed to keep to those roles to model things which are true about

God. Women now make up one third of Anglican clergy and they have become

indispensable to the church. They say that the church needs women as

bishops, too. Women have gifts and talents to offer. I think the church

that harness those gifts and talents. It is bad for the mission

and the Ministry of the church if we are only able to use half of the

people, half of the clergy who potentially could be bishops in the

future. The congregation at Saint Mary 's, say that creating women

bishops is long overdue. We pray and hope so, that the holy spirit will

guide them to a positive answer. It is about time.

guide them to a positive answer. It without Lady Vickers, some of the

churches would be entered. This morning, the Prime Minister added

his support for women bishops. I think the archbishop showed

leadership and I hope he will be successful. The General Synod knows

that voting yes would break a tradition of male only bishops

stretching back to the time of Jesus himself will

Germany is celebrating after their World cup win.

A quarter of a million people packed into the centre of Berlin last night

partying into the early hours after their team beat Argentina.

It's the fourth time Germany has lifted the World Cup and

Tomorrow even more people are expected on the streets

of Berlin to greet the team when they return home.

yes, German fans partying through the night in Rio. And well they

might because it was a wonderful World Cup final that they won, with

a wonderful goal. The consensus is that Germany were the best side in

the tournament. They scored more goals than any other team. They are

the first European side to win the World Cup on South American soil.

The moment Germany had waited almost a quarter of a century for, lifting

the World Cup, and the burden of expectation

the World Cup, and the burden of of footballing talent finally came

of age. Earlier, Argentina started strongly, Higuain with the costly

miss. Chances continued to come and go, Germany hitting the post, evenly

in all messy could not break the deadlock, the match destined for

extra time. -- deadlock, the match destined for

the game on a knife edge, Mario Gotze did this. The substitute with

a wonderful finish, the kind of goal which

Cup final. The shattered Argentinians had no time to recover

and minutes later Germany had one. Having demolished Brazil in the

semifinal, Germany had delivered again and when it mattered the most.

Ella it was crazy, I wanted to feel this

moment. To celebrate. In the dressing room after, even Angela

Merkel joined the party. This is what it meant to the euphoric fans

in Berlin. Unrestrained joy at a fourth World Cup triumph, but the

first they have enjoyed since 1990. It is unbelievable, fourth World

Championship. Unbelievable. Germany were worthy winners of the

tournament, rewarded for a system designed to produce world champions

and their rivals will look to learn from them. They confounded critics

delivering one of the greatest World Cups they have ever seen. Much of

the credit will go to a German team whose flair has lit up a tournament

which will live long in the memory. Not all Argentinians took the defeat

with good grace, in Buenos Ira is there was rioting, 50 people were

arrested, 15 please officers were injured dashed when

for Brazil, it ended with humiliation in the 7-1 thrashing in

the semifinal, rumours today that there coach has been sacked.

Brazil, as host of this tournament have won plenty of friends and

admirers, it has been a magical and magnificent World Cup tournament.

Thank you for joining us. Baroness Butler-Sloss steps down,

after less than a week as Chair of the inquiry

into historical child abuse. Not fit for purpose,

the verdict on UK broadband services latest Japanese craze sweeping

across Ron don. All you need is a costume, a wig and some imagination.

If you want to play it safe instead, we'll have the weather for you at 1.

30pm. Three months ago more than 200

schoolgirls were abducted by Islamic militants in Nigeria and they are

still missing. Today Malala Yousafzai has been meeting some of

their parents and pledging support for the campaign to free the girls.

17-year-old Malala was shot in the head by the table two years ago. The

-- by the Taliban two years ago. Today has been made Malala Day.

Into the conference room of a hotel room strides the small figure of a

girl the Taliban couldn't kill and who by coming to Nigeria is defying

another who by coming to Nigeria is defying

extreme Islamic group, Boko Haram. The parents of several of the girls

kidnapped by Boko Haram are here to see her. For Malala, fighting

terrorism and encouraging education are part of the same battle.

We express our solidarity with you. We are with you. We are standing up

with you in your campaign of Bring Back Our Girls. I consider those

girls as my sisters. They are my sisters. I am going to speak out for

them until they are released. In the emotionally-charged atmosphere, her

father, Ziauddin, starts to tell the parents her story. Sh ewas attacked

-- she was attacked... Soon, they are crying too.

The parents believe the Government simply doesn't care about them.

Suppose our daughters were the children of someone important, this

man asks, would they still be prisoners after 90 days? Boko Haram

seems to have kidnapped the girls so they could be exchanged for its

fighters, held in Nigerian jails. For Malala's visit, it put out a

video which mockingly demanded not Bring Back Our Girls, but "bring

back our army." I hope that our friends, your sisters... Malala was

able to meet some girls who had been kidnapped with the others, but

managed to escape. When I talked to able to meet some girls who had been

kidnapped with the others, but these girls, I asked them if the Nigerian

army had interviewed them to find out about their experiences.

TRANSLATION: They have not had any debriefing by the military. Still,

the Government insists it is doing what it can to get the girls back.

Though there's no sign whatever of any progress.

More than ?1 billion is to be invested in the capabilities of the

Armed Forces, including ?800 million being earmarked for intelligence and

surveillance T announcement was made this morning be I the Prime Minister

at the Farnborough Air Show. Mr Cameron said it was his aim to

sustain the thriving defence industry.

Well, the big attraction here was to be the F 35-B, which was to make its

first appearance in the UK in the skies here. Thanks to an engine fire

back in June, the planes have not arrived here yet. The hope is they

may be here by the weekend. The other announcement awaited by the

160,000 people across the UK is what the brm will say today and what --

what the Prime Minister will say today about what signals he will

send about defence jobs and for the industry here.

For the the brm will say today and what --

Armed Forces having the right high tech kit is more vital than ever,

over e over land and sea. Today was crucial as the right people to

operate it. At the Farnborough international air

show, the Prime Minister said that spending on intelligence and

surveillance equipment, such as unmanned aerial systems was a

national priority. Especially if you are a trading nation like the United

Kingdom and if you are living in such a dangerous and uncertain

world. To put it like this, you cannot have a long-term economic

plan unless you also have a long-term defence plan. That is what

was set in place. Amongst other things, the more than ?1 billion

announced today will boost Special Forces' ability to deal with threats

such as hostage taking and protect the UK from unconventional attack.

?300 million of that cash will be used for existing programmes,

including the next generation radars for typhoon jets. It should help

extend the lives of the spy plane to at least 2018. That cash will help

pay for HMS Protector, bought by the Royal Navy in September last year.

There are concerns that the defence budget could suffer cuts after the

election next year, when the next review will be held. Critics point

out that the money announced today is not new, but part of the MoD's

underspend from its 2012-2013 budget. For visitors here, the air

show has opened without a star attraction, the fient strike

fighter. It is the aircraft which is due to fly from the decks of HMS

Queen Elizabeth. It suffered an engine fire last month in the USA

and was grounded. Many hope it will arrive in the UK in time to fly here

this weekend. So, a warm welcome for the Prime

Minister's announcement from a sector that did something like ?10

billion worth of defence exports to the rest of the world last year and

is keen to continue those highly-skilled jobs. Still, some

fears about what could happen after the next election under a new

Government and whether another Defence Review could come back to

make more cuts to the programme. Thank you.

More exercise and less smoking and drinking could help prevent

one-third of Alzheimer's cases. That is according to a study in the

Lancet. The findings suggest 200,000 of the cases of the disease could be

prevented by 2050 if people live healthier lives. With me is our

health correspondent. So healthier living - that is what it is all

about? What this research does is sets the scale of the problem we

face with Alzheimer's. It is projected to rise above 100 million

cases by the middle of the century. There are some risk factors we

cannot do anything about. Our age, for example and our genes. What this

paper focuses on is what we can address, things like smoking,

inactivity and obesity. It really assesses what would happen if we

address these effectively and if that were to happen then one in

three cases of Alzheimer's could be prevented. That is obviously a

massive premium in terms of human suffering and costs saved for the

NHS. If there is one important message, one of those key risk

factors - inactivity. The findings are based on high levels of

activity. Five sessions of 30 minutes of moderate activity a week.

That is quite a high bar for a lot of people. What researchers are keen

to emphasis is with more modest levels, perhaps a brisk walk, ten

minutes, regularly, that too could make a real difference. Broad bapd

in the UK is not fit for purpose, according to a leading business

group, the Federation of Small Businesses said the target is not

ambitious enough and a major re-think is needed. Although the

problem is worse in rural areas, businesses in towns and cities can

struggle with low broadband speeds, according to their report.

Fast, reliable broadband. It is now deemed essential. Today's report

says too many businesses are still in the slow lane. For this small PR

and marketing firm, a fast Internet connection is vital. They are based

down the road from tech City, London's answer to Silicon Valley.

Their broadband speed was still holding them back. I was trying to

get some information to one of our technicians who was working at home

and it said it would take nine hours to get the file to him. In the end I

had to put it on a USB and send it by bike. That is the straw that

broke the camel's back. Broadband is faster now thanks to a new fibre

optic cable, which they organised themselves and it was not cheap.

Today's report says too many businesses are being held back

because they don't have super fast broadband and the Government should

do more. This should be the fourth utility and the Government doesn't

seem to treat it in that way. There isn't enough aspiration to make sure

we're in line with other European countries and other countries across

the globe or competitive market. Ministers insist Britain is getting

up to speed. When we came into power, the last Government's targets

was two megabits for everybody. We have upped that to 24, superfast,

for 90% by 2017. Some of places are hard to reach, especially rural

areas. The Government says they are connecting tens of thousands of

homes and businesses every week. It seems in towns and cities, there is

still some way to go. The biggest salvage operation in

maritime history is into its final stage, two-and-a-half years after it

sank, killing 32 people, the wreck of the Costa Concordia is being

refloated off Giglio. The cruise line ler be then towed to Genoa,

where it will be broken up and scrapped. Our correspondent is

watching the operation for us. The news is the Costa Concordia,

two-and-a-half years on, as you say, is now floating. You may not be able

to make that out behind me but we are told it is about a

metre-and-a-half now off the platform on which it has been

resting for the last few months. Then, over the coming day, they will

float it gently, inch by inch, stage by stage higher and higher until it

is ready to be towed away from here. At first light, the Costa Concordia

was ready for her final voyage. This twisted, rusting of ship, where 32

people died, finally heading for the scrap yard.

The salvage master n the cafe that is his local, had one last coffee.

Today, we find out if the calculations are fine or how

accurate they were, based on assumptions. The weather is good.

Everybody is offshore. Now we have to take advantage of the good

weather and lift her off the platforms and the mattress.

For two-and-a-half years, this cruise ship has laid forlorn. Its

bars saturated, lifeless. With much of the ship only accessible to

divers. The operation to move it is a

delicate one. Last September, engineers slowly pulled it upright.

Massive tanks have been welded to the side of the wreck. This week,

the water in them will be pumped out and the ship, inch by inch,

refloated, before being towed away. It was January, 2012 when the ship

went down. On board, passengers scrambled for

safety as the whole vessel tilted to one side.

The crew sailed too close to the island, hit a rock and ripped a hole

in the hull. Most of the 4,000 on board made it

to safety. The captain is still on trial for manslaughter and

abandoning his ship. By midday, the Costa Concordia was

floating. Raised one metre out of the water and crucially staying

horizontal. They are confident here, but there is still a long way to go.

And that long way to go could take several more days yet. By the

weekend, they think they may be in a position to finally take the Costa

Concordia away from Giglio. Time now for a look at the weather.

position to finally take the Costa Concordia away

We have some sunshine today, but more cloud and rain in the

north-west. That front will move southwards. Around the middle part

of the week, temperatures will climb, along with the humidity

before it triggers some thunderstorms to finish off the end

of the week. To today's weather, clearest skies over central and

eastern areas. More cloud in the north-west: Much of the rain across

north-west Scotland. That will move south. Ahead of it, some thicker

cloud giving patchy rain across northern England. By 4pm in the

afternoon we have cloud, outbreaks of rain across Scotland. Perhaps

some brighter spells for Northern Ireland, with some scattered

showers. Despite it being overcast over northern England, temperatures

20-21 Celsius. The cloud increasing for Wales. Always keeping the best

of that sunshine for central and eastern areas, where we are looking

at a top temperature of 24 Celsius, maybe 25 Celsius by the end of the

afternoon. Through the night, the winds will pick up for a time across

northern Scotland, as our band of rain moves south. It is weakening.

The rain will be patchy and light. Leaving a blanket of cloud over

England and Wales. Leaving it at 15-16 Celsius. There might be a few

showers tomorrow in the north-west and one or two for parts of Kent.

They should clear away. For most tomorrow, a bright day. Not feeling

too bad in the sunshine. 19-20 Celsius. We could see When we

get to Wednesday we will have low pressure around the UK bringing

cloud and rain, keeping the best of the sunshine further south and east.

Tied into this system we draw up the warm area, temperatures will climb

along with the humidity, we could see 27 degrees on Wednesday. Widely

temperatures around the low 20s. Temperatures could climb further on

Thursday, we could get 30 degrees somewhere. As the week goes on a

greater risk of seeing heavy showers and thunderstorms, the chance it

could last into the weekend. It is a fairly mixed picture, some rain to

come in the North West today. We will notice the increased heat and

humidity by the end of the week. The main story, Baroness Butler-Sloss,

appointed by the Prime Minister to lead the inquiry into historical