29/01/2013 BBC News at Six

Britain commits hundreds of troops to help in the fight against

Islamist militants in Mali. UK forces are already supporting the

French intervention, but ministers say they will not be involved in

combat missions. Joy in Mali as French-led troops enter the city of

Timbuktu. Fear that is Britain could be sucked into a war that

lasts for years. The jihadists may well revert to guerrilla warfare

fair from the desert which is less simple and could be more protracted.

Also on tonight's programme: Ministers are accused of

compromising safety after they unveil plans to revamp childcare in

England. The landmark verdict that could change the rules on criminal

checks. Should one offence stain your record forever? This kind of...

This shadow that follows me which I don't really think is justified

really. 60 organisations back a 20p a litre tax on fizzy drinks, they

say it will improve childrens' health. Milan claim the signature

of Balotelli, two-and-a-half turbulent years at Manchester City

will end tomorrow with a Good evening welcome to the BBC

News' at 6.00pm. The number of British troops being sent to west

Africa is to rise to 350. Most will train a regional force to tackle

Al-Qaeda linked Islamist militants in Mali, but 40 will be stationed

in the country itself as military advisers. It comes after a French-

led force pushed the insurgents out of several cities in the North of

the country including the desert city of Timbuktu. Our correspondent

is at the Ministry of Defence. Planning here at the Ministry of

Defence is well advanced as British officials have been meeting in

Brussels to discuss the make-up and scope of that British EU-led

training mission to Mali. Amid fears in Parliament and elsewhere

that there could be mission creep for British forces latest

operations as they try to help French and African forces end the

Islamist threat in Mali. Rejoicing on the streets of Timbuktu. The

relief clear as French and local troops took back the desert town,

unopposed. Already, there has been looting and retributions as angry

crowds gathered to threaten those who supported the militants.

Islamists fighters could regroup and wage a deadly insurgency.

Preventing that will be up to African troops from Mali and its

neighbours. Donor nations met to raise money for the African-led

mission which will include British military trainers. As Philip

Hammond spelt out to the House of Commons, while insisting there was

also an exit strategy. France has made it clear it inadvicages a

short intervention to stabilise the situation on the ground, while the

African forces from neighbouring countries and the Mallan Army

deploy to sustain the situation in the longer term. The public are

weary of conflict as a consequence of recent history. There will be

worries about mission creep and the safety of UK trainers. It's

essential that the Secretary of State allays those fears today.

Government has made clear that no British combat troops will be sent

to Mali. Number Ten is keen for the UK to help France and African

nations to succeed in their mission there. The MoD has been drawing up

plans to send British trainers, both to help with the EU-led

training mission in Mali and with the African-led mission. UK forces

for Mali will include 200 personnel to train troops in west Africa. 40

for the EU training mission and 70 support personnel with the RAF

Sentinel spy plane and 20 with the C-17 aircraft. It will make a total

of 350 military personnel. Senior military figures here say the UK's

support for French troops in Mali is in the national interest. Failed

states bring with them instability. The Prime Minister has already

touched on this, that Mali may sound in the middle of nowhere,

Timbuktu used to be known, what happens in a global world in Mali,

if the jihadists were to take over the country as a whole, it would

not end there. In Timbuktu there is gratitude for western help as

evidence of the attempt of destruction as valuable manuscripts

emerged along with stories of beatings and repression. Today, the

reminders of jihadist rules are being obliterated but the wider

battle is not yet won. The importance of that wider battle

against Islamic extremism in west and North Africa was underlined

today with the Prime Minister saying he would visit Algeria

tomorrow. Parents struggling to pay for childcare are being promised

higher standards and lower costs. The Government wants to revamp the

system in England by having better qualified staff looking after more

children than is currently allowed. Critics fear the quality of care is

bound to suffer if nursery staff end up being overstretched.

Building a better childcare system for parents in the UK is anything

but childs play. The Government unveiled some of its plans to

improve provision and cut costs for families. From September, nursery

staff in England will be able to look after more children than now,

but only if they are more highly qualified. Their salaries will go

up, but fewer staff could mean a saving for families. It will make

it higher quality, more available and more affordable. This will take

time. It will take time to recruit new people and take time to expand

nurseries. What do parents at this south London nursery make of

relaxing the ratios? It will be a welcome change. Nursery costs are

high. You can't afford to have two parents going to work, the costs of

having a full-time nursery is too high. I'm not particularly in

favour of it. Even if they are more qualified on paper I think the more

people you have to look after, the less attention you can give.

England, the present ratio in nurseries for one-year-olds and

older is one adult to three children. What is proposed is one

adult to four children. Two-year- olds at present a one adult to four

children. The proposed change is one to six. As for costs, as a

proportion of family income, Switzerland is the most expensive

with the UK in second place followed by Ireland and the United

States. Kids Unlimited is one of the largest nursery change. Will

loosening the ratios mean savings? Not necessarily. I think we would

have to look at all of the issues involved. I can't speak for other

providers, but certainly at Kids Unlimited we have no plans in the

short-term, at least, to be reducing our ratios. Finding good

quality childcare is hugely important for parents, but it's

expensive. Many women are put off going back to work because of the

costs. Some fear that government proposals for fewer staff could

mean lower standards. We would worky if you had six two-year-olds

for each worker rather than four at the moment there is the practical

consideration of how many children anybody can look after, care for

and help develop at any one time. David Cameron and Nick Clegg

earlier this months pledged to make childcare a key issue. There are no

details today of suggestion that is working parents could get a tax

break to help with costs. Watching closely are mothers like Emma who

can't afford childcare for her twins. I would love to go back to

work, but whilst it is so expensive and, sort of, uncertain to have

childcare, then it's just something we can't entertain. Better

childcare, but at reduced cost to parents. That is the circle that

ministers today are trying to square. Lawyers representing nearly

200 Iraqis want a public inquiry into what they call systematic

abuse by British troops after the invasion in 2003. Today, at the

High Court, they alleged UK military personnel were guilty of

"terrifying acts of brutality.". Caroline Hawley's report contains

graphic details of the allegations. Under interrogation, one of the

Iraqis being represented in court today. He is being subjected to

what is called harshing. He is heard to say he hasn't been given

food or water for two-days. There are allegations of detainees being

forced to strip naked and urinated on. This man says threats were made

to kill and rape his family. His nose was broken and he was mocked

for being made to undress. Trance trns they took me to the airport

where they beat me up in the interrogation room. I want justice

for all Iraqis who have been mistreated. This hearing relates to

abuse alleged to have occurred to 192 Iraqis between 2003 and 200. An

inquiry has been held into the death of Baha Mousa. It reported

that there was violence against detainees. A team was set up to

investigate allegations of abuse. It has paid out �15 million to

settle more than 200 claims of mistreatment and unlawful detention.

There is no doubt that a significant number of abuses did

occur. What the court here must decide is how they should best be

investigated so that Britain complies with its international

human rights obligations. The Ministry of Defence say that is the

establishment of a wide-ranging public inquiry to consider alleged

systematic issues would be premature and disproportionate.

It's important that we allow the team to get on with this important

work and not be distracted by challenges to its competence and

independence. The Army's chief Legal Officer in 2003 say as public

inquiry is needed. The allegations are extremely serious. The

allegation is that the British state was complicit in the torture

and inhuman and degrading treatment of prisoners. Therefore, this is a

matter of great public interest as to how we conduct ourselves as a

nation and how the British Army conducts itself. Almost a decade

since British troops fought their way into Iraq, the military is now

having to confront a dark side to its legacy. Opposition activists in

Syria say more than 50 bodies have been found in a river in the

northern city of Aleppo. Video posted on the internet, which can't

be independently verified, suggests most of the dead were men. They

were shot in the head and some appear to have had their hands

bound. The Conservative plan to redraw the boundaries of

parliamentary constituencies before the next general election has been

defeated. The Liberal Democrats, who are part of the coalition,

joined forces with Labour to reject the proposal. Our deputy political

editor, James Landale, is in Westminster for us. You would

imagine this sort of thing is going to add to strains within the

coalition? Yes, it probably will. It has serious consequences. The

Government wanted to go into the next election on up-to-date

parliamentary boundaries so that all the constituencies are the same

side and -- size and everyone's vote counts the same. Last year the

Conservatives gave up support for House of Lords reform. The Lib Dems

said these reforms, all-or-nothing. They withdrew their support for

boundaries that is why they voted the way they did today. There are

serious consequences. Not just because in the short-term there

will be coalition tensions, both sides at the moment are saying,

there might be irritation but the machine rolls on. This is another

drop of poison in the coalition well. The first time that Lib

Dem/Conservative ministers have voted against each other in the

House of Commons. The more significant consequence the

Conservatives lose 20 seats they would have got as a result of these

changes. That could be the margin of victory and defeat at the next

election. Huge consequences. A vote on a wet Tuesday could decide, help

decide, who forms the next election in two-and-a-half years time.

Should people applying for jobs be forced to disclose every previous

criminal conviction when they apply for a job? Today, in a landmark

legal ruling, the Court of Appeal said that demanding total

disclosure is a breach of human rights. The case centred on a man

who was warned about stealing bikes when he was 11 years old. Criminal

record checks are there to protect children and vulnerable groups.

Should a crime committed in your youth remain on your record

forever? Music teacher Dan Greenwood was cautioused for

stealing a record when he was 15. Every time the CRB comes through I

have to see the Head teacher and account for this kind of offence

which, as far as I'm concerned, is history, buried in a time when I

was an unruly teenager. At the Court of Appeal today judges ruled

in the case of a man given two cautions for stealing two bikes

when he was 11. His lawyer thinks today make as welcome change.

found the current provisions breach the right to privacy. It's a

wholehearted approach that everything has to be disclosed.

There needs to be consideration of what is relevant and what isn't.

a result of today's judgment, nothing will change immediately.

The Government has 28 days to seek permission to appeal to the Supreme

Court. If it fails in that, the judges here have made it absolutely

clear the Government must legislate to change the current system of

blanket disclosure. That system also covers adults who commit minor

offences which have to be disclosed. Some favour the way things are now.

Children have rights too. So employers, when making a decision

about who they should employ into a job that gives access to children,

should have access to all of the relevant information so that they

can make the right decisions about who to employ. This is a delicate

balance between civil liberties and protecting the vulnerable. If the

Government loses its appeal, a system will have to be found which

filters out minor law breaking from criminal records for people like

Dan while ensuring the safety of Minister stay soldiers in Mali will

not be involved in combat missions. The Who hit the road again with the

rock epic Quadrophenia. Ford makes record profits in 2012p

to strong US sales, but demand for vehicles in Europe remains weak.

France denies it is bankrupt even though the Labour Minister says

More than 60 organisations including some of Britain's leading

medical bodies are calling for attacks on the two drinks in the

coming budget. -- a tax. They say 20p per litre will raise �1 billion

which could be used to provide free fruit in schools. Companies say

they are already doing their bit in the fight against obesity.

Bottles of fizzy drinks, another drink we buy, or is it one of the

things making a spatter as a nation? It is a row that has been

fizzing up between businesses and health campaigners. Campaigners who

want sugary drinks to face an extra tax.

The only benefit of most sugary drinks to children or adults is the

excess calories they provide and that is not a benefit because we

have an obesity crisis. And they say this is where the

money should go, Islington is one of the few councils in England to

offer free school meals, but it is expensive and there is no national

funding. This report argues that a tax on sugar based drugs could pay

for it. Campaigners and doctors say she agreed drugs are full of empty

calories, -- fizzy drinks. Added an extra tax would send a powerful

message. That is likely to be strongly resisted by industry.

is completely unfair to tackle one set of products like this. Obesity

is a complex problem with many contributing factors. Part of it is

the absence in some people of a balanced diet, part of it is the

absence of an active lifestyle. would like people to come together

on something that concerned all of us, obesity. Coca-Cola Eustace had

voted to join the obesity debate. Tackling head-on the argument is

product are part of the problem, highlighting the low-calorie drinks

it sells to stop sugary drinks have been targeted by health campaigners

around the world. Do shoppers here think that a tax is needed? I think

it would make people buy the alternative, a fresh orange juice

or natural juices. They are trying to get money from somewhere. I did

think it will work. It probably will not make any difference but it

is a good idea. The government says it is getting results by working

with industry. Some companies have promised to reduce calories in the

product but that is not likely to be enough to satisfy doctors and

health charities. Last week we reported on the

radical changes planned for secondary school exams in England.

Today the Welsh government formally rejected his ideas and said it is

sticking to the existing system. Northern Ireland is carrying out

its own review of GCSEs and A- levels.

The classrooms may look the same, the lessons may sound the same, but

today's announcement means pupils in Wales and England will in future

be taught and tested in fundamentally different ways. Greg

and Paula Dickson a head teachers in schools either side of the

border. The Welsh government has chosen to build on current

qualifications rather than go for wholesale changes.

There needs to be a strategy of communicating to employers,

universities, just what the Welsh qualification system is all about

and what their skills and attributes will bring.

Paula's school is on the Wirral in England where pupils will face

different tests. For national governments to make two different

choices is very difficult for the young people today to know what is

right, and for employers and parents and carers.

What is changing? In England GCSEs in core subjects are being scrapped

and been placed by the English Baccalaureate and it will mean

sitting one set of exams. A sable be true of A-levels. Wales is

sticking with GCSEs and will still allow people to pick up knocks

during the year that affect their final grades. Top GCSE grades will

count towards a national Welsh Baccalaureate.

A I do believe the Welsh education system is broken, we have got

excellent schools, they are achieving excellent results, we can

do better and we will. But with Wales slipping fast in

international league tables are falling even further behind England,

Scotland and Northern Ireland the Labour government stands accused of

failing pupils. Welsh Labour, when running education here in Wales,

have proven not to deliver. There will not be good for Welsh students,

employees and we will hold them to account to make sure qualification

to stack up. Sharon is a mother of two and is

glad the continuance assessment survives in Wales but her worry is

simple, while sixteen-year-old Matthew will compete on a level

playing field 14-year-old Jordan will lose out to people's from

England if Welsh qualifications are seen a second rate. -- two peoples.

I did what my children to be disadvantaged. They should have no

problem with their choice at the end.

That is the challenge for Welsh ministers. To make sure that if

English qualifications are seen as the gold standard, exams sat by

pupils in Wales will in future be equally valued.

Football now and with just two days left until the end of the transfer

window the controversial striker Mario Balotelli looks to be on his

way out of Manchester City. The Italian club AC Milan have

confirmed they have reached an agreement with Manchester City and

he is due to arrive in Milan for Medical tomorrow. Manchester City

are refusing to comment. -- for a medical.

He is a controversial character. Absolutely right. I think a tabloid

editors up and down the country will be mourning his impending

departure because it will go down as one of the more remarkable

playing careers. It looks all but there, barring the formality of a

medical tomorrow. Milan are already selling his shirt on the website.

His manager here Roberto Mancini will no doubt address the issue

tonight after their match against Queens Park Rangers but it appears

it was these photographs that may have sealed his fate. That well

publicised Jocelyne, grappling with his manager during a training

session. On his day he is one of the most feared strikers but this

is one of the latest examples in a string of controversy is how off

the field as long as an atrocious disciplinary record. If the right

price came along, Manchester City would sell and it appears that is

what has happened. He will be missed, but perhaps not for

footballing reasons. They are British rock royalty with

the track record stretching back 50 years. Now The Who are hitting the

road again with one of their musical epics. Quadrophenia is

coming to British venues next summer and the surviving members of

the band have been talking about their plans.

It is 40 years since Quadrophenia got to number two on the UK charts,

a lavish -- lavished double album of songs describe as their seminal

work. Two of the original line-up have since died rock-star deaths,

but the other two are still keen to keep rocking.

You were the band has said I did want to die before I get old.

think that was taken out of context. The song was more about refusing to

grow old rather than I did want to grow old, he was about refusing to

grow old inside. For all their success Quadrophenia marked a

period of growing tension. What is the relationship between the two of

you now? We are waiting for me to be to die. We would like to think

there is still some angst. I cannot imagine being looker -- lucky, I

the best, to get to this place in our lives when we are pushing 70.

Guitars which were once routinely sacrificed on stage last a little

longer and the backstage demand a more pedestrian. But the band seems

to be attracting a whole new generation to their songs.

Reviews here have been favourable and having toured America they say

they are ready to bring a little slice of British life back home

where it belongs. We don't argue with our television sets edible.

Those screens, I couldn't get them Even though they now qualify for a

bus pass it is clear they could still be rocking well into their

It has been a very mild day today. Temperatures widely into double

figures, up to 14 degrees. The warmest day since November last

year. With the mild air comes rain. That will turn more extensive

across England and Wales. The amber rain warning in the south-west. It

will be very windy. The strongest wind is further north. It may

become drier for a time, storm the wind in the far north-west of

Scotland. Some very big waves. That rain band is never too far away

from the north of Scotland. We will find some further wetter weather

sliding into central southern Scotland. Showers in Northern

Ireland. Hot on the heels of the overnight rain which is just about

their over East Anglia and the south-east. After that, a

scattering of showers coming into South Wales and the south-west of

England. The rain clears the south- west quickly and it is a day of

sunshine and some showers. The heavy showers will run across

Northern Ireland, central Scotland. A much brighter day on the whole.

More in the way of sunshine, very gusty wind. It will feel colder

than today. Temperatures in Iraq normal for the time of year and