11/09/2013 BBC News at Six

The latest figures on the UK's recovering economy - the number of

people out of work falls again. The jobless total is down to less than

two and a half million - but Labour says too many are missing out.

Unemployment is rising in half of the country. In the East of England,

the north-east, the Northwest, Yorkshire and Humber, the West

Midlands and Scotland. The party opposite told us there would be no

growth without plan B, and we have growth. They told us unemployment

would go up and not down. We'll be asking if these latest

figures make Labour's task more difficult. Also tonight: The

argument over HS2 - the Government fights back and says it will give a

multi-billion pound boost to the economy.

A UN report says says both sides in the Syrian conflict are guilty of

war crimes. It comes as President Obama calls off military strikes.

war crimes. It comes as President For now.

Telling the full story of the Hillsborough disaster -

investigators recover dozens more police notebooks.

But families say the process is too slow.

What did for the mighty mammoth - new research says it wasn't the

hunters but climate change that was to blame. And in Sportsday, a comedy

run out at Edgbaston, but will it be a wash-out?

Good evening. Welcome to the BBC News at Six.

There's been another drop in UK unemployment, adding to a series of

indicators that the economy is recovering. The number of people out

of work fell by 24,000 in the three months to July, down to 2.49 million

across the UK. In the Commons, David months to July, down to 2.49 million

Cameron said the latest figures showed how wrong Labour had been

about economic policy. But Ed Miliband said that in half the

country unemployment was actually rising. Here's our chief economics

correspondent, Hugh Pym. The building blocks of recovery.

Factories like this one in Doncaster which makes cast stone products are

helping drive economic growth. The workforce has nearly doubled over

the last three years. Some of that Danny is -- some of that is down to

competitors going bust, but new work is pouring in. We are expanding,

getting new customers, and we are doing it efficiently. When you

produce products efficiently, you create jobs for people, and that is

what we are doing. But while some employers are expanding, you don't

have to go far in South Yorkshire defined communities where they

believe they haven't yet felt the benefits of economic recovery.

This former pit village is only ten miles from Doncaster, but that is a

gulf for job-seekers with family commitments and transport to think

about. Maxine is trying to join the workforce after raising four

children. She is being helped to workforce after raising four

learn IT skills. She does some casual work, but she is finding it

difficult to land the right full-time job. I just feel like we

have been left behind and forgotten. There are no jobs. You have to

travel for them, and a lot of people haven't got cars or can't afford

childcare. Bosses don't run to where they need to go. There is a mixed

picture for the unemployment rate around the country. In the three

months to July, the south-east saw a fall of 0.7%, and in the East

Midlands, it was down 0.5. But in some parts of the UK, the jobless

rate increased. Today's figures fuelled exchanges

about the economy at Prime Minister's Questions, with Labour

mocking the Chancellor's speaks. The Chancellor said he had saved the

economy. Total complacency and hubris, at a time when even today,

unemployment is rising in half of the country. But the Prime Minister

claimed Labour had been wrong on the key economic arguments. They told us

unemployment would go up and not down. They told us that growth of

private sector jobs would never make up for the loss of public sector

jobs. They have been wrong on every single one of those issues. The

jobless numbers and now watched single one of those issues. The

especially closely by financial markets. The Bank of England says it

won't consider raising interest rates until unemployment falls to 7%

of the workforce. Today's figures show it moved closer to that

benchmark. And our political correspondent

Norman Smith is in Westminster for us. Is this an I told you so moment

for the government? The better numbers follow a string of better

for the government? The better figures on growth and retail sales.

The better numbers are making it harder for Ed Miliband to make

labour's court case on the economy, which is why he has sought to shift

the argument towards whether ordinary families are benefiting,

flagging up that in 38 out of the past 39 months, people's wages had

been overtaken by inflation. But you do wonder whether the wind is

beginning to come out of labour's sales on the economy. We have a poll

which suggests that Mr Miller band's -- Ed Miliband's ratings are

at their lowest ever. After months of criticism, the

Government has begun its fightback over HS2, the proposed high speed

rail link between London and the North of England. The Transport

Secretary, Patrick McLoughlin, says the nearly £43 billion scheme would

pay for itself, eventually giving a £15 billion a year boost to the

economy. Our transport correspondent Richard Westcott reports.

The attacks have been coming along like rush-hour trains. Months of bad

headlines for the Government's flagship project. But now the

fightback. You can't just keep patching up old railways. Even if we

spend all that money trying to upgrade the lines, we would not get

the extra capacity that we will get with HS2. This report, which was

paid for by the company delivering the line, says that once it is up

and running, HS2 will generate £15 billion a year for Britain. It

claims the regions, not London, will be the biggest winners. West

Yorkshire could make £1 billion per year. The West million -- West

Midlands could make more than £3 billion. Two beneficiaries will be

Nottingham and Derby. They have to share one between the two cities,

share one station. In 20 years, this could be a bustling HS2 hub. She

says she would love to see the high Street train come to Nottingham. The

boss of this translation company is regularly frustrated when he tries

to get around. It would make it much easier for us to get to London and

provincial centres, and also for people to come and see cars. It

would give the image of Nottingham as a modern city with modern

infrastructure. But for every winner... At the beginning of this

year, we received the news. Richard's land will be carved into

by this new line. A lot of our customers will not want to be by a

high-speed railway line across the valley. It will not help in anyway

most small businesses in this area, and a lot of small businesses will

both be very severely damaged. The economic case up until now has been

based on travellers saving time. This report takes a different

approach, focusing less on time and This report takes a different

more on the extra capacity, the extra train seats this will deliver.

It says better train links increased competition between companies and

open up the jobs market. Critics are not convinced. This report is a

measure of desperation, that they have had to change the method of

appraisal for schemes. Maximilian here will be 20 years old

when the first high-speed trains arrive near Nottingham. There will

be plenty more discussion about the project before then.

It's been another day of intense diplomatic activity as international

diplomats try to reach an agreement over how to deal with Syria's

chemical weapons. Russia, which is Syria's staunch ally, has handed

over its plan to America. As the negotiating continues, there's been

new evidence of the horrors of the conflict. A UN report says all sides

in Syria have committed war crimes. Our diplomatic respondent James

in Syria have committed war crimes. Robbins reports.

An address to prepare Americans for strikes on Syria suddenly became

something completely different. President Obama told them that

military action was on hold, and there was a new focus on Russia's

plan for UN supervised disarmament. It is too early to tell whether this

offer will succeed, and any agreement must benefit I do the --

must verify that the sad regime keeps its commitments. But we back

the removal of chemical weapons without the use of force. But

President Obama says it is vital without the use of force. But

that the Assad regime still sees the threat of strikes as real and

serious. The United States military doesn't do pinpricks. Even a limited

strike will send the message to Assad that no other nation can

deliver. But for now, as fighting across much of Syria rages, is there

really a chance Russia's plan could work? Could United Nations team is

really going and secure all the weapons? John Kerry and Sergei

Lavrov are still miles apart on turning Russia's plan into reality.

At the United Nations, two and a half years of deadlock between an

eight -- major powers could be getting worse. On one side, the US

and its allies, France and the United Kingdom, and on the other,

Russia and China. The one side has drawn up a demand that all chemical

weapons be destroyed, and the big five broadly agree, but a strict

timetable has been set, Syria having to declare everything it has in 15

days. Any failure to comply could trigger military action. But Russia

and China are equally adamant that there can be no threat of strikes,

as that would undermine the entire plan. So unless that's deadlock is

resolved, the plan could be doomed. A new UN report on Syria says

civilians fleeing in growing numbers as the conflict deepened and

widens. Staying in Syria, government forces are fighting to re-take the

ancient Christian town of Maaloula. Tens of thousands of lives have been

lost. Over 6 million Syrians have fled their homes. Germany has

started taking in Syrian refugees. Over 100 landed in Hanover today.

Germany says it will give shelter to 5000. Other European countries will

now be under pressure to do more. Staying in Syria, government forces

are fighting to retake the injured Christian town of Maaloula. --

ancient Christian town. It's a recapture would be symbolic. Jeremy

Bowen is with Syrian government forces. He has just sent this

report. They planted a Syrian flag on the

roundabout, but the fight is still going on for the rest of the

village. It is getting on for 5pm, and it has been going since 7am. A

lot of the men here are locals, a sort of territorial army that has

been drafted in to help out the regulars. They say that the fighting

former Lula, for what it stands for, a place that is half Christian, half

Moslem, and also fighting against the jihadist of the Moslem front.

They have been very disparaging about them, saying they are running

away, but clearly they are putting up a hard fight, because they are

still in there. I have seen a fair number of wounded being brought back

into cups, further back down. It is going on here in quite a big way,

and they are fighting hard. The Syrian army and the National do seem

well armed and well organised. They are facing formidable adverse Ariz,

who after ten hours of fighting, are still in Melilla.

That report just in from our Middle East Editor Jeremy Bowen, the only

Western journalist in the Syrian town of Maaloula. And you can see

more from Jeremy on tonight's BBC town of Maaloula. And you can see

News at Ten. The police watchdog, which is

investigating the behaviour of police officers during the

Hillsborough disaster, says it is working through new evidence. The

IPCC has recovered more than 90 police notebooks which could contain

crucial new information. But some of the families of the 96 fans who died

say new investigations into the disaster are moving too slowly.

Judith Morris reports. Nearly quarter of a century after

Hillsborough happened, the inquiry is being re-examined with fresh

eyes. There have been inquiries before. But the publication of

Hillsborough Independent report was a watershed moment. It stated that

the 96 fans that died were not to blame and that the police had

covered up the truth. The bereaved families were encouraged at the

prospect of new legal proceedings. One year on, some are now

frustrated. Nobody will tell us exactly the progress they have made,

if they have made any progress at all. How can it be, for a number of

years, that these people are in office and have actually achieved

nothing? It is a downright insult. office and have actually achieved

Three new investigations have been launched since the report was

published. Former Chief Constable John Studdard is investigating if

any crimes such as manslaughter were committed on the day of the

disaster. He estimates he will take up to three years. The Independent

Police Complaints Commission is looking at whether police officers

committed crimes in the aftermath by covering up what happened. They say

that will take two years. A coroner will examine how the 96 died when

the new Hillsborough inquest is begin next March. John Studdard says

the new Hillsborough inquest is his investigation is the biggest

inquiry in English and Welsh police history. He knows he is yet to earn

the family was not trust. This is a vast inquiry. But with so much at

stake I cannot afford to rush this. My message to them is that we are

diligently pursuing every opportunity to uncover what

happened. The IPCC announced it had found 74 amended police statements

and uncovered 90 police notebooks for the first time. Date, and many

other articles, are being gathered in Warrington. The bags and boxes

have come from sources including the football Association, the Law

Society and Mrs Thatcher. They are still waiting to be assessed by

investigators. Already, they say they know they have new material

here that was not previously seen by the Hillsborough Independent Panel.

There will now be a challenge panel to oversee the separate

investigations. Some families feel the remit is too narrow. We proposed

the challenge panel as a solution to the families' concerns about

requests for oversight. I said right from the start but we welcome

challenge, we welcome scrutiny. Not all of the Hillsborough families are

equally frustrated, but they do have a common cause. They are still

fighting for justice, as the disaster's 25th anniversary

approaches. Our top story this evening: More

signs of an economic recovery as the jobless total falls. It is now just

under 2.5 million. Still to come: Trading places. The Duke of

Cambridge and Prince Harry make light work of billion pound

exchanges in the city. On BBC news, I will be here with

Sportsday, ink through doing the latest on the Republic of Ireland's

search for a new manager. The demise of the woolly mammoth is

sometimes blamed on the humans who hunted them down around 4000 years

ago. But a new study suggest is that our ancient ancestors may be off the

hook. Research published by the Royal Society suggest that climate

change may have been the main factor in their extinction.

There is plenty of evidence that humans hunted the woolly mammoth.

Many believe it is this that led to the extinction of these gigantic

creatures around 4000 years ago. But scientists studying their remains

are seeing a different picture. By drilling into their tasks, they have

extracted DNA. From it, they are able to tell how many mammoths there

were at any given time. If the DNA from each animal is very different,

there were lots of them. If there are signs of inbreeding, there were

few. The frozen remains of mammoths have been discovered all across the

world. DNA from their bones, teeth and even hair shows that their

demise was mostly due to a changing climate. It began 20,000 years ago,

when the ice age was at its height. Effectively, it was too cold, even

for mammoths. The extreme cold would have depressed the plant growth that

mammoths depended on. That was the first hit of a long process that

led, finally, to extinction. But then it became too warm for them.

They were gigantic. The woolly then it became too warm for them.

mammoth was about the size of a then it became too warm for them.

modern day 11. It is thought they ate huge amounts of grass, around

200 kilos per day. 42,000 years ago there was lots of grass for them to

eat, shown in green. As the ice age ended, the grass disappeared and so

did the mammoth. These great beasts were forced north as grassland was

replaced by forests. One clear message is that mammoths do not like

the warm. When it gets warm, they get going. Once when they went up

north, they went extinct. All that is left of these once magnificent

creatures is their frozen remains. People that have been charged with

sexual offences should not be granted anonymity according to the

Director of Public Prosecutions, Keir Starmer. That is despite cases

like that of Coronation Street star Michael Le Vell. The actor was

cleared yesterday of all charges at his trial in Manchester. He denied

12 sexual offences against one bill, including five counts of rape.

-- girl. MP Nigel Evans has made a statement to the House of Commons

following his resignation as Deputy Speaker.

The MP for Ribble Valley has been charged with offences including

sexual assault, indecent assault and rape against seven men. He thanked

colleagues for his support and said he would robustly defend his

innocence. The government's housing benefit policy came under fire when

John Swinney set out his spending plans for the next two years.

He promised the SNP would boost the economy and protect Scotland from

welfare reforms. James Cook is that the Scottish parliament in

Edinburgh. So, what exactly is the Scottish Government proposing? They

are proposing to ameliorate the effects of the cuts. Really, this is

billed in advance as a budget for independence. Perhaps for that

reason, it lacked any kind of sense of drama. More money for affordable

housing, more money for sport and more money for popular policies such

as maintaining a council tax freeze and other things such as free

prescriptions. In outlining his budget in a 20 minute speech, the

Scottish Finance Secretary John budget in a 20 minute speech, the

Swinney said Scotland was doing well, but he insisted it could do so

much better. With the full decision-making powers of

Independence, I should today be able to present a budget that puts all of

that economic strength to use in building a more prosperous and more

just Scotland. Instead, as a result of Westminster decisions, I must

today present a budget constrained by significant cuts. John Swinney

has technically no power over welfare. But he has found £20

million to offset the effects of what he called the bedroom tax. His

opponents said that was not good enough. Labour said he should have

gone further. Essentially they said he had put Scotland on pause until

the referendum. There was also complaints about a rise in business

rates. That referendum is coming pretty quickly. It is one year and

one week away now. That is the moment when the people of Scotland

one week away now. That is the will get to have their say on the

Scottish Government and also the UK Government. That is what both sides

are pointing out. That it is about the Scottish Government plans. They

would say it is also about what the future of this country would look

like within the United Kingdom as well. All to play for, as we head

into the referendum campaign proper. Prince William and Prince Harry have

been trying their hands at stop rocking today, to raise money for

charity. Prince Harry complained that rather than focusing on a

multi-billion pound trade, the Duke of Cambridge was preoccupied with

baby chat. It was one of those occasions when,

even for royals that are not short of a few bob, the sums being traded

were eye watering. 25 million? Billion? That's right, he had just

completed a trade with 25 billion euros. All set up, of course, but

the purpose was a serious one. To raise money for those that died on

this Day 12 years ago, on the attacks on the World Trade Center in

New York. More than 600 people in this company were amongst those that

perished on that day. Traders around the world found themselves being

perished on that day. Traders around pressed by the second in line to the

throne to part with any spare cash for charity. Harry was buying or

selling a billion or two of something or other. Might the city

have found two new recruits? William, after all, has left his RAF

search and rescue Squadron in Anglesey, after all. But, no, they

were trading places for one day only.

Time for a look at the weather. Grey is the colour this week, right

through to the weekend. Either from clouds overhead producing rain,

which will ease through the evening, or through patchy mist and

fog. That is something we are going to see as well. White wet through

parts of the Midlands and southern England. That rain will clear away,

leaving behind patchy drizzle almost anywhere. A misty night, patches of

dense fog here and there. Generally quite mild under that cloud. In the

dense fog here and there. Generally north-west of Scotland we could see

a touch of frost in one or two of the glands. A great start for most

of us tomorrow. The mist should clear away. Across eastern Scotland

through the morning and in the afternoon, the brighter weather is

pushing further eastwards. By then it is looking pretty wet for

Northern Ireland, Scotland and western parts of a and Wales. To the

East of the Pennines could be the warmest spot. -- England and Wales.

A pleasant afternoon. Bits and pieces of rain, probably struggling

at the mid-to-high teens at best. The brighter skies extending across

the Midlands, trying to get down to the south-east before the sun comes

down through the evening. That rain is going to march southwards. We

will see a spell of rain through Thursday evening. It will struggle

to push southwards. Brighter skies following for Friday. That rain in

the south is struggling to get out of the way. Washing back and forth

for England and Wales. White cool, despite a few bits of sunshine. You

might be thinking about the weekend. I have to talk about rain from time

to time. Strong wind particularly on Sunday. As a result, it will feel

quite cool. Slightly autumnal, really, George.

Our main stories: There are more signs of recovery in the economy as

the jobless total falls. It is just under 2.5 million. And the

government fights back in the argument over HS2 and says it will

government fights back in the give a multi-billion pounds boost to

the economy. That is all from the BBC News at six. On BBC One we join

the news teams where you are.