:00:00. > :00:00.A Royal Marine who killed an injured Taliban fighter in Afghanistan
:00:07. > :00:09.will walk free next month after his murder
:00:10. > :00:22.Cheers outside court as Sergeant Alexander Blackman
:00:23. > :00:25.is given a seven-year prison sentence - but told he will be
:00:26. > :00:28.The 42-year-old was jailed for murder in 2013,
:00:29. > :00:31.but his conviction was reduced to manslaughter earlier this month.
:00:32. > :00:36.This is the moment we have all been fighting hard for.
:00:37. > :00:44.It's hard to believe that this day is finally here.
:00:45. > :00:49.A shake-up of prescriptions - holiday jabs, gluten-free food
:00:50. > :00:52.and fish oils may no longer be available on the NHS to save money.
:00:53. > :00:56.A rape victim says she agrees with the judge in her case
:00:57. > :00:58.who was criticised for warning that drunk women put
:00:59. > :01:03.Tesco's fined ?129 million after a two-year investigation
:01:04. > :01:07.into false accounting by the Serious Fraud Office.
:01:08. > :01:09.And look out for the new 12-sided pound coin -
:01:10. > :01:15.it's thinner and lighter and it's out today.
:01:16. > :01:17.And coming up in the sport on BBC News...
:01:18. > :01:19.A big loss for Great Britain's Davis Cup team.
:01:20. > :01:22.They are going to be without the injured Andy Murray
:01:23. > :01:43.for their quarterfinal tie against France.
:01:44. > :01:46.Good afternoon and welcome to the BBC News At One.
:01:47. > :01:49.A Royal Marine who was sent to prison for killing an injured
:01:50. > :01:51.Taliban fighter in Afghanistan has been told he will be
:01:52. > :01:56.Sergeant Alexander Blackman had his murder conviction reduced
:01:57. > :01:59.to manslaughter earlier this month, on the grounds of
:02:00. > :02:03.He's now been sentenced to seven years - but has
:02:04. > :02:06.already served three years, which means he will
:02:07. > :02:18.Our correspondent Duncan Kennedy is at the Royal Courts of Justice.
:02:19. > :02:25.Extraordinary scenes both inside court and outside court this
:02:26. > :02:31.morning. Dozens and dozens of Marines cheering, in tears, and that
:02:32. > :02:36.included Alexander Blackman's wife Claire, who spoke on the steps of
:02:37. > :02:38.her relief at the decision by the judges debated rock Alexander
:02:39. > :02:44.Blackman was not in court, he was watching proceedings on a video link
:02:45. > :02:48.from his prison. Is a story about the horrors of conflict and the
:02:49. > :02:54.legalities of war is now at an end. -- his story.
:02:55. > :03:02.The jubilation was immediate and unbridled. Marine veterans from a
:03:03. > :03:09.dozen conflicts gave full rein to their relief and delight. It was a
:03:10. > :03:16.euphoria that was then shared by the dignified reaction of Alexander
:03:17. > :03:19.Lachmann's wife. We are overjoyed at the judges' decision to
:03:20. > :03:24.significantly reduce our sentence such that he can be released
:03:25. > :03:29.imminently. This is the moment we have all been fighting hard for. It
:03:30. > :03:35.is hard to believe that this day is finally here. That joy was matched
:03:36. > :03:40.by hundreds of marines who have campaigned for four years to make
:03:41. > :03:46.this day a reality. I'm just overwhelmed, reduced to tears, if
:03:47. > :03:53.I'm honest. It has broken meet it up and just so relieved that justice
:03:54. > :03:56.has been done and now Blackman is free. As a Marine sergeant,
:03:57. > :04:00.Alexander Blackman had been a decisive leader of troops, someone
:04:01. > :04:05.who had killed 30 times for his country. But on this tour of
:04:06. > :04:10.Afghanistan in 2011, he and his men went through what was called a tour
:04:11. > :04:15.from hell. They were provoked and violently targeted incessantly by
:04:16. > :04:18.the Taliban. In this field, they found an injured Taliban insurgents.
:04:19. > :04:28.Sergeant Blackman was recorded saying this... He then pointed his
:04:29. > :04:35.gun at the insurgent. He then added...
:04:36. > :04:40.In 2013, Sergeant Blackman was found guilty of murder, a decision that
:04:41. > :04:45.thousands of military colleagues believed was a moral outrage.
:04:46. > :04:47.Earlier this month, that conviction was reduced to manslaughter on
:04:48. > :04:53.grounds of diminished responsibility. Rob Driscoll served
:04:54. > :04:58.alongside Alexander Blackman and says the decision to release him now
:04:59. > :05:04.is the right one, given what they all went through. The answer to your
:05:05. > :05:07.question is, was it right what he did? And the answer would be,
:05:08. > :05:14.absolutely. When you are surrounded by absolute lunacy, then a little
:05:15. > :05:19.bit of lunacy doesn't seem so bad. Prosecutors argued that Alexander
:05:20. > :05:24.Blackman broke the rules of war but his supporters saw a man tormented
:05:25. > :05:28.by the horrors of combat. For his wife and for him, he is the last
:05:29. > :05:34.casualty of the Afghanistan conflict.
:05:35. > :05:37.Alexander Blackman is currently at a prison in Wiltshire and is expected
:05:38. > :05:42.to be released sometime over the next two weeks to be reunited with
:05:43. > :05:46.his wife Claire. The judges said that he had been dismissed from the
:05:47. > :05:49.Marines but not dishonourably. They also said that Mr Blackman was
:05:50. > :05:55.responsible for the killing of that Taliban insurgent but that he is now
:05:56. > :06:01.a free man. Duncan Kennedy, thank you.
:06:02. > :06:04.The NHS in England is to consider whether GPs should stop prescribing
:06:05. > :06:06.a range of medicines and treatments - including holiday jabs,
:06:07. > :06:08.gluten-free food, fish oils and painkillers such as paracetamol
:06:09. > :06:10.- that are available over the counter.
:06:11. > :06:12.The proposals, which are intended to save millions of pounds,
:06:13. > :06:15.will form part of a major announcement on the future
:06:16. > :06:18.of the health service later this week by the head of NHS England.
:06:19. > :06:21.Our health editor, Hugh Pym, reports.
:06:22. > :06:24.The NHS is under increasing financial pressure.
:06:25. > :06:26.Now, service leaders are set to closely scrutinise what's
:06:27. > :06:30.Local health commissioners in England have drawn up a list
:06:31. > :06:33.of items which they say are unnecessary and inappropriate
:06:34. > :06:47.Instead, patients should have to pay for them. Decisions are about the
:06:48. > :06:54.total spend and we need to use that effectively. If we are effectively
:06:55. > :06:58.spending money we think on things that are of low or no clinical
:06:59. > :06:59.value, we can redirect that money to things that are more appropriate.
:07:00. > :07:02.The medicines and treatments listed include omega-3 and fish oils,
:07:03. > :07:05.some muscle rubs and ointments, gluten-free food, and travel
:07:06. > :07:10.There could be savings of ?128 million a year.
:07:11. > :07:11.NHS England has agreed to carry out a review
:07:12. > :07:16.Longer term, the future of cold and cough treatments,
:07:17. > :07:19.indigestion and heartburn medication, and paracetamol
:07:20. > :07:31.They are widely available over-the-counter at chemists. But
:07:32. > :07:37.pharmacists won there is a danger of going too far. The NHS is built on a
:07:38. > :07:40.principle of free up a point of use and it is important there was a
:07:41. > :07:43.balance between making sure the medicines are cost-effective, and we
:07:44. > :07:47.support the cost-effective review of those buttons, but at the same time
:07:48. > :07:51.we've got to make sure people are not disadvantaged because of their
:07:52. > :07:54.ability to pay for medicines. And questions are being asked about what
:07:55. > :07:59.this might mean for patients depend on free prescriptions. We've not had
:08:00. > :08:03.any clarity about what this means for elderly people, pregnant women,
:08:04. > :08:07.people are very low incomes, and I'm concerned about the people who are
:08:08. > :08:11.managing long-term conditions, managing their pain throughout those
:08:12. > :08:15.long-term conditions. NHS England says there won't be a ban and GPs
:08:16. > :08:20.will still be free to prescribe the items to those they feel need them.
:08:21. > :08:29.The move is part of an NHS strategy to tackle rising demand.
:08:30. > :08:31.The move will form part of a major strategy announcement
:08:32. > :08:34.by the head of NHS England, Simon Stephens, later this week.
:08:35. > :08:37.The wife of the Westminster attacker Khalid Masood has said
:08:38. > :08:39.she is "saddened and shocked" by the atrocity.
:08:40. > :08:41.In a statement released through the Metropolitan Police,
:08:42. > :08:43.Rohey Hydara said she totally condemns his actions.
:08:44. > :08:45.Masood killed four people in an 82-second rampage last Wednesday.
:08:46. > :08:55.Meanwhile, the MP who tried to save the life of PC
:08:56. > :09:04.I would make it clear that I was one of many that stepped
:09:05. > :09:07.day and our thoughts and prayers remain with those families
:09:08. > :09:10.and friends of the victims, including our own PC Keith Palmer.
:09:11. > :09:13.A rape victim whose case led a judge to warn that women are more likely
:09:14. > :09:16.to be targeted when drunk has defended the comments,
:09:17. > :09:20.Megan Clark was raped by a man during a night out in Manchester.
:09:21. > :09:23.The trial sparked controversy after the judge said the drunken
:09:24. > :09:25.behaviour of some women was putting them at risk.
:09:26. > :09:26.In an exclusive interview, Miss Clark, who's waived
:09:27. > :09:28.her right to anonymity, told the Victoria Derbyshire
:09:29. > :09:33.programme that she didn't believe the judge was "victim blaming".
:09:34. > :09:36.I think she was absolutely right in what she said,
:09:37. > :09:45.She put the blame massively on rapists, not the victims.
:09:46. > :09:47.She just simply said to be careful, basically, which is smart advice.
:09:48. > :09:57.But she wasn't at all victim blaming.
:09:58. > :10:00.She said a woman would be less likely to report a rape
:10:01. > :10:03."because she was drunk or could not remember what happened or feels
:10:04. > :10:06.ashamed to deal with it or, if push comes to shove,
:10:07. > :10:09.a girl who is drunk is less likely to be believed than one
:10:10. > :10:19.You didn't think you would report something like that
:10:20. > :10:25.It is not the way it should be, but that was her point.
:10:26. > :10:30.Rape Crisis did criticise the judge's comments, they said
:10:31. > :10:36.They said, as a judge and a woman, she should know better.
:10:37. > :10:40.The only person who is responsible for rape is the rapist.
:10:41. > :10:43.Women are yet again being blamed for rape.
:10:44. > :10:48.Only the rapist is responsible, but that was the point
:10:49. > :10:54.the judge was making, it was just taken out of context.
:10:55. > :11:07.A few people I told, they kind of put it down to my behaviour.
:11:08. > :11:15.I know it is not my fault, but it is hard not to blame
:11:16. > :11:17.yourself, especially when you are in that situation.
:11:18. > :11:21.What is your message to other women when they're out
:11:22. > :11:23.and about with their mates in the summer, having
:11:24. > :11:30.Don't live in fear of rapists and being in danger.
:11:31. > :11:37.Know that it is not your fault, whatever happens.
:11:38. > :11:43.I guess I'd still encourage people to report it,
:11:44. > :11:57.Megan Clarke talking to Victoria Derbyshire and you can see that
:11:58. > :12:00.interview in full on the BBC website.
:12:01. > :12:03.The Australian state of Queensland is being lashed by torrential rain
:12:04. > :12:06.A cyclone has flooded streets and toppled trees
:12:07. > :12:10.Tens of thousands of people have been told to leave their homes
:12:11. > :12:11.along coastal areas, with warnings of
:12:12. > :12:21.Cyclone Debbie's 30-mile-wide core ripped through everything
:12:22. > :12:27.in its path, tearing into the Queensland coast.
:12:28. > :12:30.Australia's biggest evacuation plan in over 40 years meant people
:12:31. > :12:33.here were prepared but that didn't lessen the impact.
:12:34. > :12:36.We have more than 45,000 homes without power,
:12:37. > :12:40.we have major trees down, we are hearing reports of some quite
:12:41. > :12:57.At Airlie Beach, normally a picture postcard scene,
:12:58. > :13:02.a BBC journalist on holiday found herself at the centre of the story.
:13:03. > :13:05.What I can see is trees bending over.
:13:06. > :13:09.There's debris flying all through the air.
:13:10. > :13:12.Trees are starting to be ripped up now and there's a huge amount
:13:13. > :13:20.It's not just falling as rain now, it's a big mass of mist and sea,
:13:21. > :13:27.Even when these winds have died down, there will be another,
:13:28. > :13:31.longer lasting, problem to deal with - flooding.
:13:32. > :13:35.With two feet worth of rain expected to fall in 24 hours in some places,
:13:36. > :13:39.it means some communities could be cut off for days.
:13:40. > :13:42.The emergency services have been in lockdown,
:13:43. > :13:48.unable to respond to calls until the cyclone passes.
:13:49. > :13:50.They know the hardest days are ahead.
:13:51. > :13:54.This is a very destructive storm and storm system and I think
:13:55. > :13:57.the public and the community of Queensland need to understand
:13:58. > :14:01.that we are going to get lots of reports of damage and,
:14:02. > :14:04.sadly, I think that we will also receive more reports of injuries,
:14:05. > :14:09.if not deaths, and we need to be prepared for that.
:14:10. > :14:11.For those who have sought shelter, there will be
:14:12. > :14:20.Sarah Bromley from Essex has managed to let her family know she's safe.
:14:21. > :14:22.Having to wait out the weather hasn't been much fun.
:14:23. > :14:26.We've been here for almost 24 hours now, so we're a bit bored of it
:14:27. > :14:29.and hoping it passes soon, so we can go back, get some food
:14:30. > :14:33.The cyclone is still moving slowly inland, downgraded
:14:34. > :14:37.but still destructive on a vast scale.
:14:38. > :14:44.Hywel Griffith, BBC News, Queensland.
:14:45. > :14:53.A Royal Marine who killed an injured Taliban fighter in Afghanistan
:14:54. > :14:55.will walk free next month after his murder
:14:56. > :15:04.Plagued by potholes, the roads in such a bad condition they could soon
:15:05. > :15:05.be closed. Coming up in the sport in the next
:15:06. > :15:08.15 minutes on BBC News... The summer
:15:09. > :15:10.of cricket is set for a big change taking part in a city-based
:15:11. > :15:19.Twenty20 tournament. after coming to a settlement
:15:20. > :15:24.with the Serious Fraud Office The supermarket admitted
:15:25. > :15:28.overstating its profits in 2014, The agreement means Tesco
:15:29. > :15:33.will avoid prosecution - it will also have to pay
:15:34. > :15:35.its shareholders ?85 million. Our business correspondent
:15:36. > :15:42.Emma Simpson reports. An accounting scandal,
:15:43. > :15:50.multiple investigations and billions of pounds wiped off
:15:51. > :15:53.the value of the company. The reason, it had
:15:54. > :15:55.massively overstated its Today the UK arm of Tesco agreed
:15:56. > :16:03.to pay a penalty of ?129 million from the
:16:04. > :16:07.Serious Fraud Office. Yes, it's a big fine for Tesco
:16:08. > :16:13.and that represents the seriousness of the effect
:16:14. > :16:16.and the effect it had on the share By doing this deal Tesco
:16:17. > :16:19.has at least avoided prosecution and the board will be
:16:20. > :16:22.hoping they can now draw a line Tesco is coughing up another
:16:23. > :16:25.?85 million to compensate shareholders who bought shares
:16:26. > :16:28.in the company in the weeks following its August update
:16:29. > :16:32.to the city, unaware that Tesco had It's the first time
:16:33. > :16:44.the financial regulator the FCA has used its powers to require
:16:45. > :16:44.a listed company to pay compensation Tesco said it had fully
:16:45. > :16:54.cooperatedwith the Tesco said it had fully
:16:55. > :16:55.cooperated with the The incident was hugely
:16:56. > :16:58.regrettable, the issues were historic and that the business had
:16:59. > :17:01.undergone a comprehensive programme This deal still to be approved
:17:02. > :17:05.by a Court, covers Tesco stores and doesn't
:17:06. > :17:06.address whether liability of any sort applies
:17:07. > :17:08.to the larger parent group,
:17:09. > :17:12.Tesco plc or any of its employees. Tesco hopes it can now put
:17:13. > :17:16.the sorry chapter behind it, although three former executives
:17:17. > :17:23.are still due to stand trial. Tomorrow the Prime Minister
:17:24. > :17:30.will trigger Article 50 - and formally start the process
:17:31. > :17:32.for the United Kingdom It'll pave the way for two
:17:33. > :17:37.years of negotiations. But the way forward is uncharted -
:17:38. > :17:40.this is the first time that article 50 will be triggered and it's not
:17:41. > :17:45.clear exactly how talks will proceed as our political correspondent
:17:46. > :17:57.Carole Walker reports. It will be an historic day for the
:17:58. > :18:03.European Union and the United Kingdom. The formal start of exit
:18:04. > :18:08.negotiations. Already the government is forging new partnerships beyond
:18:09. > :18:13.the EU, announcing a five game pound deal with Qatar. Tomorrow we begin
:18:14. > :18:18.the negotiations to secure a new deep and special partnership with
:18:19. > :18:23.the European Union. As we do so I am determined that we should also sees
:18:24. > :18:26.this historic opportunity to get out into the world and to shape even
:18:27. > :18:32.bigger roles for eight double Britain. Tomorrow the Prime Minister
:18:33. > :18:37.will give EU leaders a clear outline of her approach. Her officials will
:18:38. > :18:41.deliver a letter to the European Council, several pages long,
:18:42. > :18:45.detailing the governance principles and priorities. She will get the
:18:46. > :18:49.EU's initial response within days, the Foreign Secretary said her
:18:50. > :18:53.approach would be optimistic and positive. I've absolutely no doubt
:18:54. > :18:57.there will be a great deal but this country because a great deal for
:18:58. > :19:01.this country is is what is finally in the interests of our friends and
:19:02. > :19:05.partners on the other side of the channel who have a huge amount to
:19:06. > :19:09.gain. The Prime Minister was said at her approach to the negotiation in a
:19:10. > :19:13.statement to MPs tomorrow. The government says it wants to discuss
:19:14. > :19:17.the terms of our departure from the EU and the future trading
:19:18. > :19:20.relationship at the same time. Senior EU figures said the terms of
:19:21. > :19:25.withdrawal must agree before they'll even start to talk about trade. And
:19:26. > :19:29.that's just one of many differences to be resolved. Campaigners who
:19:30. > :19:34.wanted Britain to remain in the EU say ministers are raising expect
:19:35. > :19:39.patience that cannot be fulfilled. That everything is going to be
:19:40. > :19:43.signed and sealed and on and two years, it ain't, that we will have
:19:44. > :19:46.new, sparkling trade agreements worth twice the value of the
:19:47. > :19:49.European Union before we've even left, we want and now apparently
:19:50. > :19:53.we're not going to pay very much money at all. And they are urging
:19:54. > :19:58.ministers to resist pressure from hard-line Brexiteers for the UK to
:19:59. > :20:03.walk away without a deal. There will be agitation for early departure,
:20:04. > :20:06.for realisation that the Europeans are not serious, we should walk away
:20:07. > :20:10.and I Bardy everything in my power on my bench is to make sure that
:20:11. > :20:13.does not become reality. The Prime Minister has met the timetable she
:20:14. > :20:17.said the triggering article 50 by the end of March, getting the deal
:20:18. > :20:21.she wants within two years will be a much harder task. Carole Walker, BBC
:20:22. > :20:22.News, Westminster. Our Assistant Political Editor
:20:23. > :20:30.Norman Smith is in Westminster. We know what will happen tomorrow,
:20:31. > :20:34.beyond that we are in an charted waters. I think we are getting a
:20:35. > :20:39.sense of choreography, then be in the sense of departure and we learn
:20:40. > :20:41.the process will not be triggered by Theresa May making a statement in
:20:42. > :20:46.Downing Street, there won't be a debate in the House of Commons, it
:20:47. > :20:52.will be triggered by a single, simple letter, written and signed by
:20:53. > :20:55.Theresa May saying we want to leave the European Union. That letter has
:20:56. > :20:58.been a closely guarded secret in Downing Street, we are told it's
:20:59. > :21:02.commercially sensitive, many ministers happens seen it, the first
:21:03. > :21:05.Babel gets cider bidders when she breached the Cabinet tomorrow
:21:06. > :21:10.morning, she will make a statement to MPs telling them about it but
:21:11. > :21:14.even then we won't have a gun the departure, that doesn't begin until
:21:15. > :21:18.our man in Brussels marches down the coroner and hands over the letter in
:21:19. > :21:22.person to the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk. The
:21:23. > :21:27.moment he takes hold of that letter, that is the moment we begin to leave
:21:28. > :21:33.the EU and that letter is crucial. It's likely to be around 6-7 pages
:21:34. > :21:37.long but it will set out the Prime Minister's ambitions for Brexit,
:21:38. > :21:40.what she wants from the deal, it's likely to reiterate we want to leave
:21:41. > :21:44.the single market, get back control of immigration, leave the European
:21:45. > :21:49.Court of Justice, it is, in short, likely to be one of the most closely
:21:50. > :21:51.scrutinised letters in modern political history. It certainly will
:21:52. > :21:53.be. Norman, thank you. The Scottish Parliament is expected
:21:54. > :21:56.to back Nicola Sturgeon's call for a second independence
:21:57. > :21:58.referendum, in a vote The vote had been due to take
:21:59. > :22:01.place at Holyrood last Wednesday, but was postponed
:22:02. > :22:03.because of the attack The First Minister wants
:22:04. > :22:07.a referendum by the spring of 2019, but Theresa May has
:22:08. > :22:09.rejected that timetable. A piece of constitutional theatre -
:22:10. > :22:15.short on suspense but full of significance in the debate
:22:16. > :22:19.over Scotland's future. For Nicola Sturgeon,
:22:20. > :22:23.placing Holyrood at the centre of the push for another referendum
:22:24. > :22:26.is key, securing the backing of the Scottish Parliament
:22:27. > :22:29.to negotiate the terms of another An independence referendum should,
:22:30. > :22:36.in their words, "be made in Scotland That is a principle that
:22:37. > :22:43.should be respected today. The detailed arrangements
:22:44. > :22:44.for a referendum, including its timing,
:22:45. > :22:46.must be for the Scottish And so, after the suspension
:22:47. > :22:54.of last week's debate, following the Westminster terror
:22:55. > :22:56.attack, MSPs will pick up Once again Nicola Sturgeon
:22:57. > :23:02.will open the debate, arguing the Scottish Government's
:23:03. > :23:04.case - that Scots have effectively been shut out of the Brexit process,
:23:05. > :23:08.something it didn't vote for, and as such, they should have the
:23:09. > :23:14.chance to choose a different path. Well, the reality is
:23:15. > :23:18.the Scottish Parliament will decide this afternoon whether it wishes
:23:19. > :23:20.to move forward and to give the people of Scotland
:23:21. > :23:22.a democratic choice, in vastly different circumstances
:23:23. > :23:24.from anything that could have been That's the choice for
:23:25. > :23:29.the Scottish Parliament to make and if the Scottish Parliament makes
:23:30. > :23:33.that choice later today, then we'll indicate to the UK Government how
:23:34. > :23:35.that should move ahead. But on a visit to Scotland
:23:36. > :23:38.yesterday, Theresa May's With Brexit to negotiate,
:23:39. > :23:42.now is not the time, to discuss another
:23:43. > :23:47.referendum on independence. Look, the Prime Minister has made
:23:48. > :23:51.clear that she is not ruling out a second referendum but she has laid
:23:52. > :23:53.down the conditions on which she thinks it
:23:54. > :23:56.would be appropriate. The first would be that we'd have
:23:57. > :23:58.left the European Union, the second is that we are absolutely
:23:59. > :24:01.clear about the arrangements And they may not be clear at that
:24:02. > :24:05.point, there could be transitional arrangements thereafter and thirdly
:24:06. > :24:08.and crucially the people of Scotland will have
:24:09. > :24:10.to want a second referendum. The support of the Greens means
:24:11. > :24:13.the Scottish Government will almost on the subject of what happens
:24:14. > :24:20.next will be drafted, but as yesterday's meeting
:24:21. > :24:22.between the two leaders illustrated, Our Scotland correspondent
:24:23. > :24:39.Lorna Gordon is in Holyrood. Tell us more about what we can
:24:40. > :24:45.expect this afternoon and what will happen next. There is a small
:24:46. > :24:49.pro-independence and Station outside this parliament in support of Nicola
:24:50. > :24:52.Sturgeon's all for the right to hold another referendum, the debate
:24:53. > :24:58.itself interrupted last week gets under way shortly after 2pm and the
:24:59. > :25:03.keyboard will take place around 5pm. It's a simple, straightforward
:25:04. > :25:07.process, the MSPs press a button and the result is known shortly
:25:08. > :25:12.thereafter but in truth, we know the result already, in all likelihood it
:25:13. > :25:16.will pass the SNP with the support of the Green Party have a majority
:25:17. > :25:21.here. While the result is not really in doubt what happens next is bar
:25:22. > :25:27.less clear. We know the Scottish Government will send a letter to the
:25:28. > :25:31.UK Government formally requesting, to call a referendum under section
:25:32. > :25:35.30 of the Scotland Act, we don't know the timing but we know the
:25:36. > :25:41.letter will set out how they intend to fulfil the mandate that they will
:25:42. > :25:43.have been given by the Scottish Parliament here and with the mood
:25:44. > :25:48.music coming from Westminster, the Prime Minister saying now is not the
:25:49. > :25:49.time for another referendum, it's not clear how this constitutional
:25:50. > :25:55.stand-off will be resolved. Potholes - they enfuriate
:25:56. > :25:57.motorists and cyclists alike. Now a new survey of local councils
:25:58. > :26:00.in England and Wales has revealed that potholes mean that 1 in 6
:26:01. > :26:03.smaller roads are at risk of becoming damaged beyond repair -
:26:04. > :26:06.and some have less than five years before they have to be
:26:07. > :26:08.replaced or closed. Our transport correspondent,
:26:09. > :26:12.Richard Westcott, reports. It's impossible to dodge
:26:13. > :26:15.them all these days. The surface crumbling away faster
:26:16. > :26:20.than it can be repaired, It blames decades of underfunding,
:26:21. > :26:28.coupled with wetter winters and more It hit two of my tyres
:26:29. > :26:36.and also dented the actual The doors on the car were disengaged
:26:37. > :26:44.and I had ?500 worth I had an accident on my bike,
:26:45. > :26:51.where I hit a pothole and fell The research found that one in six
:26:52. > :26:58.roads is so bad it may need to be Councils filled 1.7 million potholes
:26:59. > :27:03.in England and Wales last year, Well, this survey is hardly going to
:27:04. > :27:12.come as a surprise to most drivers. We've been looking for just two
:27:13. > :27:18.minutes just outside Bristol. Look, a whole row of potholes
:27:19. > :27:20.on an ordinary road. According to this report,
:27:21. > :27:23.if you really wanted to fix up all the local roads across England
:27:24. > :27:28.and Wales, it would cost ?12 billion
:27:29. > :27:29.and take more than a decade. Bus companies say their customers
:27:30. > :27:33.and drivers face being jolted Steve's been driving a bus around
:27:34. > :27:41.Bristol for nearly four decades. I'm just upset because when
:27:42. > :27:43.they do repair them, We talk about it all the time
:27:44. > :27:49.in the canteen, amongst drivers, our concerns about the safety
:27:50. > :27:51.for our customers and obviously actually how we have
:27:52. > :27:53.to behave on the road. We actually position the bus
:27:54. > :27:58.to avoid the potholes because some The Government says it's chipped
:27:59. > :28:05.in an extra ?1 billion recently to help fill the holes
:28:06. > :28:09.but campaigners aren't impressed. Every so often the Government
:28:10. > :28:13.gives out a pothole fund. It is kind of reacting to a crisis
:28:14. > :28:16.but I think we need to actually plan longer term funding
:28:17. > :28:20.and have a greater proportion of what drivers actually pay
:28:21. > :28:24.in motoring taxes ringfenced Because if you ask drivers,
:28:25. > :28:31.it is their number one concern. As councils feel the financial
:28:32. > :28:34.squeeze, many fear our local The new 12-sided pound coin has
:28:35. > :28:46.entered circulation this morning. It's the first change
:28:47. > :28:48.to the shape of the coin The new coins are
:28:49. > :28:51.thinner and lighter. But watch out - some vending
:28:52. > :28:54.and ticket machines may not accept Here is the new pound coin and it
:28:55. > :29:06.does have some special security features apart from being 12
:29:07. > :29:09.sided and two coloured, writing on it and it
:29:10. > :29:15.has a sort of hologram with a ? sign at the bottom
:29:16. > :29:18.and a special feature inside which means
:29:19. > :29:22.coin machines can recognise whether it's genuine or not and that's
:29:23. > :29:25.important because there are so many But there is a problem for some
:29:26. > :29:32.businesses actually getting ready for this and here's one of them,
:29:33. > :29:35.amusement arcade in Southend. John, what's your
:29:36. > :29:36.problem with converting For us, the biggest issue
:29:37. > :29:47.is obviously all of our coin mix in all of the machines needs
:29:48. > :29:49.to take the pound coin. Well, at the minute we got 800
:29:50. > :29:54.coin mix so upwards of Doesn't take into account machines
:29:55. > :30:00.that we can't do, obviously some machines are too old to
:30:01. > :30:04.have the new coin mix in, we have to get rid of them,
:30:05. > :30:07.not only that but the man But at the moment you are
:30:08. > :30:11.putting it off, are you? Well, we don't really
:30:12. > :30:13.have a choice, we have to try and get it
:30:14. > :30:16.done as soon as we can, Easter coming up for us
:30:17. > :30:19.is a seasonal business, a big But for everyone else,
:30:20. > :30:25.although this is coming in today, you can still use the old pound
:30:26. > :30:27.coins until October the 15th, then they stop
:30:28. > :30:34.becoming legal tender in the shops but you'll be able to
:30:35. > :30:54.hand them into a bank. If you were with me at this time
:30:55. > :30:59.yesterday I started in pretty similar vein. Dry enough at
:31:00. > :31:03.Edgbaston for the ground staff to be honoured at the moment, for others,
:31:04. > :31:08.glorious, down on the River Thames this morning, in places it was a
:31:09. > :31:12.superb start to the day. But I was advertising today as a bed of a
:31:13. > :31:15.transition date something unsettled later in the week and the mechanisms
:31:16. > :31:20.are still in place for that to happen, out in the midst of the
:31:21. > :31:25.Atlantic, we have a big area of low pressure and we are beginning to see
:31:26. > :31:28.the first signs of a significant change in the weather come third to
:31:29. > :31:33.the weekend. Already across parts of the south-west, the odd showery
:31:34. > :31:38.burst of rain, prospects on the way towards Wales and Edgbaston, further
:31:39. > :31:43.north, something a bit more organised by way of rainfall.
:31:44. > :31:48.Further north, the odd drop of rain, on the northern side, still cooler,
:31:49. > :31:53.elsewhere and not a particularly cold afternoon although if you are
:31:54. > :31:56.underneath the Merc, it is into single figures and on the East
:31:57. > :32:04.Coast, 17 in Norwich, but on the coast, 5 degrees. That change
:32:05. > :32:08.already in hand. The possibility that through the afternoon into the
:32:09. > :32:13.evening, some pretty sharp showers replaced by a mishmash of more cloud
:32:14. > :32:18.and we are at risk of a little bit of rain of some description, save
:32:19. > :32:21.perhaps the Northern Isles. Throughout Wednesday, frontal
:32:22. > :32:25.systems piling in cloud and rain, at the same time, across the East
:32:26. > :32:30.Midlands, East Anglia and the south-east we may hang on to drier
:32:31. > :32:33.conditions. Thursday, similar sort of weather pattern, weather fronts
:32:34. > :32:38.bringing the threat of rain, some quite heavy on the western hills,
:32:39. > :32:44.Cumbria, western Wales, that's half the story. The flow I headed but
:32:45. > :32:48.from the south, that will push a lot of mild are up and across the
:32:49. > :32:52.British Isles, even if you get cloud and rain across the North and west
:32:53. > :32:59.the temperature is well above average for the time of year as is
:33:00. > :33:03.this. 20 or 21... Yes indeed, Sophie, across the south-east, it
:33:04. > :33:08.will stay dry, that sort of temperature with brightness. The low
:33:09. > :33:14.out in the Atlantic, by Friday, much closer to home, we are all under
:33:15. > :33:17.threat of seeing more substantial amounts of rain and bad sexuality
:33:18. > :33:20.for the start of the weekend, those temperatures still above normal. And
:33:21. > :33:23.it's only March. Thank you. A reminder of our main
:33:24. > :33:32.story this lunchtime... A Royal Marine who killed and
:33:33. > :33:34.injured Taliban fighter in Afghanistan will walk free after his
:33:35. > :33:34.conviction has been quashed. That's all from the BBC News at One
:33:35. > :33:35.so it's goodbye from me