:00:12. > :00:16.A new boss at the BBC - his job to lead it out of the crisis that's
:00:16. > :00:21.followed the Savile scandal. Tony Hall, a former head of news, was
:00:21. > :00:25.hand-picked by the BBC Trust. He has to restore the Corporation's
:00:25. > :00:30.reputation. It's been a really tough few weeks for this
:00:30. > :00:34.organisation. I know we can get through it by listening patiently,
:00:34. > :00:41.by thinking carefully about what to do next.
:00:41. > :00:45.Also tonight: Tough-talking ahead for David Cameron over the EU
:00:45. > :00:48.budget. He's fighting plans for an increase in spending.
:00:48. > :00:53.Clearly at a time when we are making difficult decisions at home
:00:53. > :00:57.over public spending, it is quite wrong for there to be proposals for
:00:57. > :01:02.this increased extra spending in the EU.
:01:02. > :01:06.A man's been cleared of a fatal stabbing in Oxford Street last
:01:06. > :01:09.Boxing Day. We have a Special Report on what the case says about
:01:09. > :01:13.gang culture. The referee accused of using racist
:01:13. > :01:18.language by Chelsea won't be facing charges from the Football
:01:18. > :01:22.Association. Roads cut off, homes evacuated and
:01:22. > :01:32.train services cancelled. Yet another band of severe weather
:01:32. > :01:37.
:01:37. > :01:47.sweeps across the country. Rafael Benitez starts as Chelsea's interim
:01:47. > :01:56.
:01:56. > :02:01.Welcome to the BBC News at Six. Less than two weeks after the BBC
:02:01. > :02:05.lost its Director-General over the Savile scandal, the Corporation has
:02:05. > :02:09.a new boss. Tony Hall currently the Chief Executive of the Royal Opera
:02:09. > :02:14.House was hand-picked by the BBC Trust which represents licence fee
:02:14. > :02:20.payers. Lord Hall, who ran the BBC's News Division for five years
:02:20. > :02:25.after 2001, said he's committed to restoring the BBC's reputation for
:02:25. > :02:29.world-beating journalism. Our correspondent is outside New
:02:29. > :02:32.Broadcasting House. 12 Days, one phone call, four meetings and one
:02:32. > :02:39.candidate. There is a sense of haste and determination about all
:02:39. > :02:43.of this, but for the BBC, these are difficult and unusual times.
:02:43. > :02:47.With a perhaps uncharacteristic swiftness, the BBC has appointed a
:02:47. > :02:52.new leader. Tony Hall, Lord Hall of Birkenhead, has been in charge of
:02:52. > :02:58.the Royal Opera House. Before that, was a long BBC career beginning in
:02:58. > :03:01.1973 in which he worked his way up to becoming head of news. He's also
:03:01. > :03:06.been Deputy Chairman of Channel 4 and the talk today was that after
:03:06. > :03:11.weeks of crisis, the BBC felt they had found a safe pair of hands.
:03:11. > :03:16.It's been a really tough few weeks for this organisation. I know we
:03:16. > :03:23.can get through it by listening patiently, by thinking carefully
:03:23. > :03:27.about what to do next. I am absolutely committed to our news
:03:27. > :03:31.operation as an absolute world beater. His in-tray is bulging.
:03:31. > :03:34.There are the inquiries, one looking into the BBC and Jimmy
:03:34. > :03:38.Savile, another asking why Newsnight didn't broadcast an
:03:38. > :03:44.investigation into Savile. Tonight, this programme apologises. Then,
:03:44. > :03:48.the fallout from the wrongful allegations made against Lord
:03:48. > :03:53.McAlpine. It is about repairing the BBC's reputation. No wonder the BBC
:03:53. > :04:01.Trust has moved fast. REPORTER: No the shortlist, it
:04:01. > :04:03.flies in the face of every BBC policy on appointment? It has to be
:04:03. > :04:08.an open process? I don't think anybody seriously would suggest
:04:08. > :04:14.that we would have been well-served by having to spend another four
:04:14. > :04:18.months looking for a Director- General. There were other questions
:04:18. > :04:22.for the BBC today. At the Public Accounts Committee, MPs were
:04:22. > :04:27.questioning the Trust about the pay-off for the previous Director-
:04:28. > :04:32.General, George Entwistle. �450,000 plus payments for legal fees,
:04:32. > :04:37.private healthcare and �10,000 for dealing with the press.
:04:37. > :04:43.demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of how this is viewed
:04:43. > :04:47.in the public domain given that it is licence fee payers' money.
:04:47. > :04:50.Tony Hall will only take up his post in March, there was a feeling
:04:50. > :04:54.today amongst some that a corner had been turned. To have somebody
:04:54. > :04:59.like him, who looks and sounds human, which is a distinct help,
:04:59. > :05:04.and also who looks and sounds not afraid, which is also a big help
:05:04. > :05:08.and people look at him and think, "Do I trust him to run the most
:05:08. > :05:12.important cultural organisation in the country?" I think they will say,
:05:12. > :05:17."Yes, I do." The phrase that's echoed around the BBC over the last
:05:17. > :05:22.few days was the desire to get a grip. Well, today, the BBC has
:05:22. > :05:25.certainly shown a turn of speed. So the question is if he is so good,
:05:25. > :05:29.why didn't he get the job in the first place? He was asked to apply,
:05:29. > :05:35.but he felt at the time it was the moment for a younger man to take
:05:35. > :05:41.over. But now all the words they are using are wisdom, experience, a
:05:41. > :05:43.safe pair of hands - they hope. Thank you.
:05:43. > :05:48.Lord McAlpine has accepted �125,000 to settle a libel claim against
:05:48. > :05:51.ITV's This Morning programme. It relates to an incident in which the
:05:51. > :05:54.presenter, Philip Schofield, handed David Cameron a list of alleged
:05:54. > :05:57.paedophiles found on the internet which is thought to have included
:05:58. > :06:07.Lord McAlpine's name. Earlier this month, the BBC agreed to pay Lord
:06:08. > :06:09.
:06:09. > :06:13.McAlpine �185,000 in relation to a discredited Newsnight investigation.
:06:13. > :06:19.David Cameron is in Brussels for two days of talks over the EU
:06:19. > :06:23.budget. The EU Commission, backed by several member countries, wants
:06:23. > :06:26.to see the budget increased. Mr Cameron is arguing for a freeze
:06:26. > :06:33.saying it would be wrong to increase spending in Europe when
:06:33. > :06:37.people at home face cuts. As the leaders swept into Brussels,
:06:37. > :06:43.the question was had they come to argue, or had they come to agree on
:06:43. > :06:48.a new seven-year budget for the EU? All eyes were on David Cameron,
:06:48. > :06:53.regarded as the potential spoiler, the leader who insists on a budget
:06:53. > :06:58.freeze, or a cut. We are going to be negotiating very hard for a good
:06:58. > :07:02.deal for Britain's taxpayers, and for Europe's taxpayers, and to keep
:07:02. > :07:08.the British rebate. The Prime Minister was first in to see the
:07:08. > :07:11.key European officials to make his case. A scheduled 15-minute meeting
:07:11. > :07:16.became 35 and the prediction afterwards - there was a long way
:07:16. > :07:22.to go. Outside, other leaders were arriving and their message to
:07:22. > :07:26.Britain? Be ready to compromise. all have some preconditions and we
:07:26. > :07:29.all must be ready for compromises otherwise we don't have a
:07:30. > :07:34.compromise. David Cameron did have allies, like the Swedish leader.
:07:34. > :07:42.are like-minded in the view we want the overall spending levels to come
:07:43. > :07:47.down. It has been a day of trying to build alliances. But even the
:07:47. > :07:52.Dutch Prime Minister warned against using a veto - keep your loaded gun
:07:52. > :07:58.in your pocket, he said. There is here a fundamental divide. On one
:07:58. > :08:02.side are the big contributors - Germany ends up paying in 11
:08:03. > :08:08.billion euros. The UK is next with over 7 billion euros. Others get
:08:08. > :08:12.more out than they put in. Poland receives nearly 11 billion euros
:08:12. > :08:18.and Greece over 4 billion euros. Those countries which receive being
:08:18. > :08:22.EU grants are lobbying for a budget increase. The original proposal
:08:22. > :08:26.envisaged the budget of over 1 trillion euros. A later plan
:08:26. > :08:29.reduced that by 80 billion euros and does involve a slight cut. The
:08:29. > :08:33.British say that this latest proposal is a step in the right
:08:33. > :08:37.direction, but doesn't go far enough. They are having to resist
:08:37. > :08:42.calls to reduce the British rebate as part of any potential deal. The
:08:42. > :08:48.problem is that the closer EU officials get to the British
:08:48. > :08:53.position, the more it alienates others. Already, farmers are
:08:53. > :08:57.protesting, fearing that a smaller budget will lead to reduced farm
:08:57. > :09:04.subsidies. The key role may be played by the German Chancellor.
:09:04. > :09:09.She is committed to reining in spending. She too has called for
:09:09. > :09:13.compromise. Nick Robinson is in Brussels for us.
:09:13. > :09:18.Tough-talking there as Gavin was suggesting. But even tougher at
:09:18. > :09:21.home if David Cameron gets it wrong? Absolutely which is one of
:09:21. > :09:25.the reasons he was the first leader into this building. The big
:09:25. > :09:29.question in this town, not just today but for weeks, is is he going
:09:29. > :09:34.to be the first to leave it having vetoed a deal? One of the reasons
:09:34. > :09:38.he wanted to be the first man to meet the chair of this summit is to
:09:38. > :09:42.reassure him that he has come looking for a deal and not set on
:09:42. > :09:46.vetoing one. Of course, the other thing he was trying to do is set
:09:46. > :09:51.down his conditions. Now, Britain is a bit closer than people might
:09:51. > :09:54.have expected to getting that promise that the EU budget won't
:09:54. > :09:59.increase in real terms. It is a long way, though, from getting the
:09:59. > :10:03.deal it wants to protect Britain's rebate. Bear in mind, whatever the
:10:03. > :10:07.deal is, Europe's budget will increase, maybe only with inflation,
:10:07. > :10:11.and Britain's contribution will increase, too. So David Cameron's
:10:11. > :10:14.arguing for more cuts, cuts to the administration here, he says people
:10:14. > :10:22.should work longer before they get their pensions. They shouldn't get
:10:22. > :10:25.a bonus simply because they are non-Belgium staff working in
:10:25. > :10:31.another country. The question is whether he has any hope of
:10:31. > :10:36.achieving that. He is negotiate, not just with the leaders here, but
:10:36. > :10:40.in his head with all those Tory backbenchers who he defeated on the
:10:40. > :10:46.budget a couple of weeks ago. For more background, you can go to
:10:46. > :10:49.our website at: The ceasefire between Israel and
:10:49. > :10:53.Hamas which was announced last night after a week of fighting
:10:53. > :10:56.still appears to be holding. Israeli troops began to withdraw
:10:56. > :10:59.from the border area, but schools in southern Israel remained closed
:10:59. > :11:01.as a precautionary measure. More than 160 Palestinians and six
:11:01. > :11:10.Israelis lost their lives during the eight-day Israeli air operation
:11:10. > :11:13.directed against Gaza militants firing rockets into Israel.
:11:13. > :11:16.Ten Tottenham fans have been injured - one of them seriously -
:11:16. > :11:20.during violence at a bar in Rome, ahead of tonight's match against
:11:20. > :11:23.Lazio. Italian police say around 30 men armed with iron bars went on
:11:23. > :11:31.the rampage in a pub where the Spurs supporters were drinking.
:11:31. > :11:33.Five Italian men have been arrested. A man accused of fatally stabbing a
:11:33. > :11:38.teenager in Oxford Street last Boxing Day has been found not
:11:38. > :11:41.guilty of murder and manslaughter. The Old Bailey heard that Jermaine
:11:41. > :11:46.Joseph, who's 23, was acting in self-defence after being chased
:11:46. > :11:49.into a shop by 18-year-old Seydou Diarrassouba. Both men were gang
:11:49. > :11:59.rivals and the case highlights the violence that still poses a real
:11:59. > :12:01.
:12:01. > :12:05.threat on Britain's streets. When two former gang rivals met by
:12:05. > :12:10.chance on Oxford Street last Boxing Day this was the bloody result, a
:12:10. > :12:14.teenager dying in front of shoppers with a fatal knife wound. He is
:12:14. > :12:20.Seydou Diarrassouba, a big name in a South London street gang and no
:12:20. > :12:22.stranger to knife and gun crime. The man who stabbed him inside this
:12:22. > :12:27.shoe store, Jermaine Joseph, was cleared today because he had been
:12:27. > :12:31.trying to get away from his gang past, but had been forced to defend
:12:31. > :12:35.himself. Young people in London have been telling us how the gang
:12:35. > :12:39.culture takes over their lives before they have even grown up.
:12:39. > :12:44.I had been walking through here at night, what would have happened?
:12:44. > :12:49.Probably would have got mugged. This young man is 16, so we are
:12:49. > :12:54.hiding his identity and his voice. He was convicted after another boy
:12:54. > :12:58.was stabbed. Went up to him, punched him, kicked his face.
:12:58. > :13:03.life got him young and crucially his friends became as important as
:13:03. > :13:08.his parents. I felt protected. If I wanted something, I would ask them
:13:08. > :13:13.and I would get it. Rather than asking my Mum, I knew I wouldn't
:13:13. > :13:16.get it. They are like your parents, they are like your family, aren't
:13:16. > :13:21.they? When you start doing stuff, everyone is on your case, everyone
:13:21. > :13:25.has respect for you. By "stuff" he means crime. And in gangs, respect
:13:25. > :13:30.is where the real trouble starts as members get older and try to
:13:30. > :13:34.maintain their position by hitting back when attacked. That is what
:13:34. > :13:40.Razaull Ahmed's friends wanted him to do when he was attacked with a
:13:40. > :13:45.machete. They were saying they would sort it out for me. When
:13:45. > :13:51.something as big as that happens to you, you don't think about
:13:51. > :13:56.retaliating. It is like the saying, "an eye for an eye". If someone
:13:56. > :14:01.takes out your eye, you take out theirs! I have a fake eye. That is
:14:01. > :14:06.a glass eye? Yes. An eye for an eye. It is the cause of much of the
:14:06. > :14:16.violence. Though Razaull Ahmed never did retaliate. So what can be
:14:16. > :14:20.done? Does arresting the gangs work? The Metropolitan Police has
:14:20. > :14:24.one key strategy. They don't go after the whole gang, they go after
:14:24. > :14:29.individuals, the most dangerous ones within the gang. In Croydon,
:14:29. > :14:34.we joined a raid on an alleged drugs gang. Come on, man. 2,000
:14:34. > :14:38.senior gang members have been arrested since the Met's gun
:14:38. > :14:42.command Trident took on the problem. Because they join people together,
:14:42. > :14:45.they create tensions, that generate further offending, we have not paid
:14:45. > :14:48.enough attention to that in the past. So since February, we have
:14:48. > :14:54.given much more attention to the concept of the gang and the crime
:14:54. > :14:58.that emanates from it. It might be a positive thing. You also need to
:14:58. > :15:00.get in, change the lives and deal with the root causes of gang
:15:00. > :15:05.involvement and gang crime that. Is about belonging, about the fact
:15:05. > :15:09.they can earn thousands of pounds in gangs in a way they could never
:15:09. > :15:13.earn at the local supermarket. Everyone we spoke to said this sort
:15:13. > :15:16.of thing was also needed, places for potential gang members to go,
:15:16. > :15:21.people able to speak the language of the streets offering themselves
:15:21. > :15:30.as role models, mediators to step in when the bad blood rises. It is
:15:30. > :15:33.happening, they said, but it should Our top story tonight: A new boss
:15:34. > :15:39.at the BBC. Tony Hall says he is determined to restore the BBC's
:15:39. > :15:43.reputation. And coming up, there may be 32
:15:43. > :15:49.shopping days left until Christmas, but we'll be reporting on why two
:15:49. > :15:52.of our supermarkets want to stay open for longer.
:15:52. > :15:56.Later in the business news the Bank of England Governor says there are
:15:56. > :15:59.signs of a cultural change in investment banking. And how
:15:59. > :16:09.shopping around for a cheap solicitor is only a mouse click
:16:09. > :16:12.
:16:12. > :16:15.Once again heavy rain and wind are battering much of the UK. North
:16:15. > :16:20.Wales and south-west England are bearing the brunt of the severe
:16:20. > :16:23.weather, with roads blocked and homes evacwait. The train company
:16:23. > :16:26.First Great Western says it is dealing with some of the worst
:16:26. > :16:32.conditions in a decade. The Environment Agency is urging people
:16:32. > :16:42.to remain vigilant and to stay away from swollen rivers. Jeremy Cooke
:16:42. > :16:43.
:16:43. > :16:47.is in Congresbury in Somerset. George, there's growing
:16:47. > :16:53.PROBLEM WITH SOUND Even before tonight's predicted
:16:53. > :16:57.downpour the misery has begun. The rain which has already fallen means
:16:57. > :17:01.a,000 people being evacuated from their caravans in Northamptonshire,
:17:01. > :17:05.cold and uncomfortable but a job better done in daylight. It was
:17:05. > :17:12.scary, because I'm a business disabled with osteoarthritis, and
:17:12. > :17:17.having to climb in and out is a bit awkward. I can't manoeuvre my legs
:17:17. > :17:20.easily. Purely a safety precaution so I'm told. At north Curie in
:17:20. > :17:25.Somerset they are preparing once again for the worst. But painfully
:17:26. > :17:30.aware that it is not always possible to hold back the floods.
:17:30. > :17:34.I'm just sandbaging the door. I'm a bit worried because we've seen the
:17:34. > :17:37.forecast for tonight and the weekend. The stock room was flooded
:17:37. > :17:43.yesterday quite badly. Across south-west England the wind's been
:17:43. > :17:46.a striking fief of today's weather. Many bridges have been closed. But
:17:46. > :17:50.far more significant perhaps is the heavy rain in the forecast. The
:17:50. > :17:54.problem is not just all the rain that's fallen in the past 24 hours.
:17:54. > :17:59.The more rain that's predicted over the coming day. It's a fact the
:17:59. > :18:04.water is falling on the countryside which is already sodsen. All this
:18:04. > :18:08.water just has nowhere to go. In Wales the weather has already
:18:08. > :18:12.brought traffic chaos, with hundreds of motorists struck on the
:18:12. > :18:16.flooded A55 near Bangor. And on Anglesey they are dealing with the
:18:16. > :18:22.aftermath of this morning's torrential rain. Scotland too
:18:22. > :18:25.stands in the path of the coming storm. The village in Perth and
:18:26. > :18:31.Kinross putting up last mint defences Dumfries a landslide
:18:31. > :18:36.blocked rail lines on a day when there was trouble across much of
:18:36. > :18:41.the network. Tonight's storm threatens the ratchet up anxiety
:18:41. > :18:46.levels in hol verton in Devon, where part of the grand western
:18:46. > :18:52.canal has collapsed. Urgent work is needed to stop a problem becoming a
:18:52. > :18:55.disaster. The problem is there's a lot of surface water coming off the
:18:55. > :18:58.farmland and highways into the canal. We are bringing in
:18:58. > :19:03.additional punts to regulate the level where is we can.
:19:03. > :19:10.predicted rain is now falling across much of the country. River
:19:10. > :19:14.levels rising once again. Apologies but the weather seems to be
:19:14. > :19:20.impacting on our own audia equipment here. If you can hear me,
:19:20. > :19:23.shy tell you this ongoing problems means that the Bath and Somerset
:19:23. > :19:27.Council is urging Parish Councils across the area to stand by in
:19:27. > :19:31.their village halls, to prepare those village halls for any
:19:31. > :19:34.evacuations that may be necessary in the coming hours. That is the
:19:34. > :19:37.feeling across much of the country as the United Kingdom essentially
:19:37. > :19:41.braces itself for this torrential rain which is forecast for the
:19:41. > :19:46.coming hours. Jeremy, thank you.
:19:46. > :19:50.It is the issue that David Cameron said made him feel physically sick
:19:50. > :19:53.- the controversial question of whether prisons should get the vote.
:19:53. > :19:58.European judges say the Government should scrap the current ban, but
:19:58. > :20:04.the Justice Secretary, Chris Grayling, said Parliament should
:20:04. > :20:07.decide. Here's James land Dale. When you are thrown in here for
:20:07. > :20:12.your crimes, should you automatically lose your vote as
:20:12. > :20:16.well as your freedom? The European Court of Human Rights has said now
:20:16. > :20:22.and ordered Britain to change its law. Today Britain said Parliament
:20:22. > :20:27.should decide. It remains the case that Parliament is sovereign.
:20:27. > :20:31.Hear, hear. The currents law passed by Parliament remains in force
:20:31. > :20:34.unless and until Parliament decides to change it. But the keep the
:20:34. > :20:38.Strasbourg court happy he published a draft Bill with three options.
:20:38. > :20:45.Give the vote to prisoners serving less than six months, less than
:20:45. > :20:52.four years or keep the current ban. MPs knew which option they liked.
:20:52. > :20:56.It is an affront to the British people that countries from such A-
:20:56. > :21:00.list countries as Andorra, Liechtenstein and Luxembourg should
:21:01. > :21:03.seek to usurp this Parliament. Won't the whole of the British
:21:03. > :21:08.people welcome the Secretary of State for Justice coming to this
:21:08. > :21:13.dispatch box and putting their views first, making this Parliament
:21:13. > :21:19.sovereign and ignoring the Mickey Mouse court in Europe? Aren't we in
:21:19. > :21:22.great danger in insisting on the British way in a relatively
:21:22. > :21:27.insignificant matter and giving an open invitation to other oppressive
:21:27. > :21:29.countries in Europe to mistreat their prisoners? Not only is it
:21:29. > :21:33.fundamentally wrong for prisoners to be given the vote, but British
:21:33. > :21:37.courts that see all the evidence and take away the freedom of these
:21:37. > :21:41.people, so why on earth should it be European courts that overrule
:21:41. > :21:46.us? Nothing though is going to happen quickly. The and committee
:21:46. > :21:49.will be set up, another Bill will be introduced. It could be months
:21:49. > :21:52.or years before MPs vote on this, and almost certainly vote to keep
:21:52. > :21:56.the ban. The question is what the European Court of Human Rights does
:21:56. > :21:58.then. The judges here in Strasbourg could still rule that the UK was
:21:59. > :22:02.breaking the European convention and some lawyers fear that could
:22:02. > :22:07.damage Britain's human rights record and cost the taxpayer
:22:07. > :22:12.millions in compensation. Each of those prisoners may be awarded a
:22:12. > :22:17.few thousand pounds in compensation and costs. Those sums build up.
:22:17. > :22:21.There are an awful lot of prisoners who can't vote. One man who may
:22:21. > :22:25.claim is John Hirst. He was convicted of killing a woman with
:22:25. > :22:30.an axe but persuaded the human rights court he should have been
:22:30. > :22:35.able to vote when behind bars. Justice delayed is justice barred.
:22:35. > :22:39.The bottom line is who should make policy in this country? A
:22:39. > :22:44.Parliament in Westminster or a court in France? The Government has
:22:44. > :22:50.made its choice and bought some before facing any consequences.
:22:50. > :22:54.The referee accused of using racist language by Chelsea last month,
:22:54. > :22:58.Mark Clattenburg, will not face charges by the Football Association.
:22:58. > :23:03.But it has decided to charge the player he was accused of abusing,
:23:03. > :23:08.John Obi Mikel. Our sports editor is at Stamford
:23:08. > :23:16.Bridge for us now. David, how damaging is it for Chelsea to have
:23:16. > :23:19.the case rejected like this? George, it is hugely damaging. This was an
:23:19. > :23:23.extremely serious allegation involving the most sensitive
:23:23. > :23:28.subject in football at the moment. The FA announced today that there
:23:28. > :23:33.was absolutely no evidence to back up the claim made by Chelsea that
:23:33. > :23:37.one of their players, John Obi Mikel, was racially abused by the
:23:37. > :23:41.referee, Mark Clattenburg, during a Premier League match here at
:23:41. > :23:46.Stamford Bridge on October 28th. In fact the evidence was the second-
:23:46. > :23:50.hand evidence of a player who heard it and reported it to John Obi
:23:50. > :23:54.Mikel, so the player who was actually supposedly racially abused
:23:54. > :23:59.by Clattenburg didn't even hear it mim. Mark Clattenburg in a
:23:59. > :24:03.statement via the Prospect Union, the referees' union, said this was
:24:03. > :24:07.a case based on the flimsyest evidence. He is demanding a full
:24:07. > :24:13.apology and compensation. But it really gets to the heart of what's
:24:13. > :24:18.going on at this club. In fact Rafa Benitez is being unveiled as the
:24:18. > :24:22.new Chelsea manager. He's just been appointed, having just replaced
:24:22. > :24:25.Roberto Di Matteo, who was only in post for seven months. Serious
:24:25. > :24:31.questions about the way Chelsea is run by Roman Abramovich I think.
:24:31. > :24:35.David, thank you. With just over a monthing to before
:24:35. > :24:38.Christmas, supermarkets are calling for the relaxation of Sunday
:24:38. > :24:43.trading rules. December 23rd usually one of the busiest shopping
:24:43. > :24:48.days falls on a Sunday this year and the bosses at two of the
:24:48. > :24:54.country's biggest retailers want an extension of trading hours that day.
:24:54. > :24:57.Danny Savage is in Harrogate for us. George, here in Harrogate they've
:24:57. > :25:01.switched on the Christmas lights this evening. There are 32 shopping
:25:01. > :25:07.days left until Christmas but two of our biggest supermarkets are
:25:07. > :25:11.asking to stay open for longer. It may not even be December yet, but
:25:11. > :25:14.in the shops it is already Christmas. It is weeks to the big
:25:14. > :25:20.day, but two of the biggest snuments the UK - Asda and
:25:20. > :25:24.Morrisons - are asking for longer opening hours on the last Sunday
:25:24. > :25:27.before Christmas. 23Rd December is always the busiest day of the year.
:25:27. > :25:32.They believe it will be just too busy if they are only allowed to
:25:32. > :25:37.open for six hours on 23rd. We are not look for a whole change in the
:25:37. > :25:40.Sunday trading laws. We do think for this one day, which is quite
:25:41. > :25:44.exceptional, when most people are going to be looking to buy their
:25:44. > :25:50.food shopping, it will be sensible to take the stress out of it to
:25:50. > :25:54.give us an extra few hours of trading. But with hundreds of hours
:25:54. > :25:58.of shopping time left between now and Christmas, do peel wants more
:25:58. > :26:03.time to buy? I don't agree with it, sorry. Do you think there are
:26:03. > :26:08.enough hours already? Yes, I do. It's a good idea, because if you
:26:08. > :26:12.work 9 to 5 or whatever you don't have time normally during the week.
:26:12. > :26:15.Perhaps it is a good thing. raises the question over
:26:15. > :26:18.consumerism versus what many people see as the real meaning of
:26:18. > :26:22.Christmas. The advantages is it provides a service for people who
:26:22. > :26:27.are doing a last-minute shop and that might be a good thing. The
:26:27. > :26:31.disadvantage is that they might spend more time in the supermarket
:26:31. > :26:36.aisles than aisles of the church and that would be a pity. So don't
:26:36. > :26:39.panic buy yet. There's still plenty of time. But don't bank on getting
:26:40. > :26:43.those extra hours on December 23rd. The Government says new legislation
:26:43. > :26:48.would be needed. And that legislation is unlikely to come in
:26:48. > :26:52.before cross-examine. What they are looking for is reassurance perhaps
:26:52. > :26:56.from Trading Standards that they won't get into trouble if there are
:26:56. > :27:04.big queues at closing time that Sunday. They say they want to make
:27:04. > :27:06.the businessiest day of the year a the businessiest day of the year a
:27:06. > :27:10.more pleasant experience. It really has been atrocious out and about.
:27:10. > :27:12.For some areas it could get worse. There is an amber warning from the
:27:12. > :27:16.Met Office, particularly for parts of Wales and the south-west of
:27:16. > :27:21.England for that rain. But there are rain warnings out widely,
:27:21. > :27:26.compounded by the winds. You can see a broad band of rain. Really
:27:26. > :27:32.intense rain for a time of the it has given 40mm of rain widely,
:27:32. > :27:35.hence the problems that we've seen. And today we've also got the added
:27:35. > :27:39.problem of widespread gales downing trees and damaging buildings. We
:27:39. > :27:42.are not out of the woods yet. More intense rainfall and strong winds
:27:42. > :27:46.for the next few hours. As we approach midnight the worst should
:27:46. > :27:51.be over in western areas, but the rain still has to make its way into
:27:51. > :27:56.the river systems. Weather-wise a quieter to the night. A touch of
:27:56. > :28:00.frost in the north, even the odd icy patch. It looks drier for
:28:00. > :28:04.Scotland. The showers will be quite heavy. Lively ones into the
:28:04. > :28:07.afternoon, with hail and thunder, even snow on the Highlands. For
:28:07. > :28:11.Minister it looks a lot drier. A good drying day for parts of
:28:11. > :28:14.northern England, the Midlands, Wales and the South West. Slightly
:28:14. > :28:17.different complexion further south and east, where we've seen
:28:17. > :28:22.brightness today. The rain does drag its heels through the morning
:28:22. > :28:27.rush. Quite soggy. The cloud will be strong to clear. On the whole
:28:27. > :28:32.the dry weather lasts for many. Tomorrow night it will be colder
:28:32. > :28:37.still. A chilly day for most of us tomorrow. Unfortunately the dry
:28:37. > :28:42.weather doesn't last. As we look towards the weekend, the South West,
:28:43. > :28:48.the Bay of Biscay, another storm to develop. There is some uncertainty
:28:48. > :28:51.how quickly lit come, but it is set to bring more wet and very windy
:28:51. > :28:57.weather, which could compound the problems seen today. The flood