:00:00. > :00:10.Nigel Evans, the former Deputy Speaker of the Commons, is found not
:00:11. > :00:14.guilty of rape and eight other sex offence charges. Outside court, he
:00:15. > :00:23.said he's been through 11 months of hell, now he wants to rebuild his
:00:24. > :00:30.parliamentary career. There are no winners, so no celebrations. But the
:00:31. > :00:32.fact is, I have got work to do, work that I've done for the last 22
:00:33. > :00:34.years. We'll be asking why so many
:00:35. > :00:37.high-profile sex offence prosecutions have failed.
:00:38. > :00:40.Also tonight, bright, beautiful and innocent, a tribute from the parents
:00:41. > :00:46.of Victoria and Sarah Hicks at the Hillsborough inquests.
:00:47. > :00:54.More tough questions for Oscar Pistorius, the prosecution lawyer
:00:55. > :01:00.accuses him of being self obsessed. I had to go to training, she knew I
:01:01. > :01:03.had to go, it is all about Indigo oh, all about Mr Pistorius.
:01:04. > :01:06.Housing experts say prices will rise every year for five years, bad news
:01:07. > :01:09.for those trying to get on the property ladder. How the suicide of
:01:10. > :01:11.a violinist who testified against her abuser could and should have
:01:12. > :01:15.been prevented. And the calls for City Airport to be
:01:16. > :01:38.closed to make way for homes and shops in east London.
:01:39. > :01:44.Good evening and welcome to the BBC News At Six. Nigel Evans, the former
:01:45. > :01:46.Commons Deputy Speaker, has been cleared of a string of sexual
:01:47. > :01:51.offences including one count of rape. The MP for Ribble Valley broke
:01:52. > :01:55.down in tears when the not-guilty verdicts were read out. Later he
:01:56. > :01:58.described the 11 months since he was charged as hell but said he wanted
:01:59. > :02:08.to get back to his parliamentary work. Ed Thomas reports from Preston
:02:09. > :02:12.Crown Court. And innocent man emerged from court,
:02:13. > :02:17.but there was no sense of triumph. After a five-week trial, he had been
:02:18. > :02:22.accused of rape undersold, cleared of all charges and supported by his
:02:23. > :02:27.friends. Nigel Evans said his life had been made help. So no
:02:28. > :02:32.celebrations. The fact is I have got work to do, work that I have done
:02:33. > :02:38.for the last 22 years. All I can say is that after the last 11 months,
:02:39. > :02:45.nothing will ever be the same again. That is because his life was
:02:46. > :02:50.laid out in court for all to hear. Nigel Evans cried in the dog as the
:02:51. > :02:59.words not guilty were read out. The prosecution claimed he was a drunken
:03:00. > :03:03.lech who used his influence to take advantage of young Westminster
:03:04. > :03:07.workers. But as evidence was heard, a different story emerged. Two
:03:08. > :03:11.alleged victims said they thought what happened to them was not a
:03:12. > :03:15.crime. A third believed he did not believe he should be in court, and a
:03:16. > :03:21.fourth told jurors that he had texted Nigel Evans to wish him good
:03:22. > :03:26.luck after he was arrested. Nigel Evans has served Parliament for 22
:03:27. > :03:30.years. The career was brought to the brink. Today the Prime Minister
:03:31. > :03:34.welcomed his return. It is hard to imagine the relief that Nigel must
:03:35. > :03:38.feel after such a traumatic time. I very much welcome what he said on
:03:39. > :03:47.the steps of the court, and I think everyone should pay heed to that.
:03:48. > :03:54.But should the case have gone to court? Some believe the CPS and
:03:55. > :03:57.police got it wrong. Some of these allegations came after the Jimmy
:03:58. > :04:02.Savile revelations, and I do worry that so many of them coming to court
:04:03. > :04:06.costing a lot of money actually end up with acquittals. Today Lancashire
:04:07. > :04:14.police defended the decision to take Nigel Evans to court. We have been
:04:15. > :04:18.committed throughout to investigating this matter in a
:04:19. > :04:24.professional and a victim focused way as we would all such
:04:25. > :04:29.allegations. Nigel Evans told jurors that his arrest left him ashamed and
:04:30. > :04:34.embarrassed, but today he is a free man, free to resume his life and
:04:35. > :04:40.career in Parliament. Ed Thomas, BBC News, Preston.
:04:41. > :04:45.With me now is home affairs correspondent June Kelly, Ed raised
:04:46. > :04:48.this in his report, is this damaging for the CPS? They are certainly
:04:49. > :04:53.getting a number of brickbats tonight, George. Ever since the
:04:54. > :04:56.Jimmy Savile scandal, prosecutors have been accused in certain
:04:57. > :05:00.quarters of a witchhunt against famous names, and of course Nigel
:05:01. > :05:03.Evans is the third high-profile acquittal in the north-west,
:05:04. > :05:08.following those of Coronation Street actors Michael Le Vell and William
:05:09. > :05:12.Roache. For prosecutors to get a case to court, they have to decide
:05:13. > :05:16.first of all if the cases in the public interest, and if there is a
:05:17. > :05:21.realistic prospect of conviction. Now, tonight, after the verdict,
:05:22. > :05:26.no-one from the CPS faced the cameras, but they put a statement
:05:27. > :05:29.saying that they were defending the decision, saying that the
:05:30. > :05:33.complainants provided clear accounts of the alleged offending, and that
:05:34. > :05:36.evidence could only be explored at a trial. Of course, at the trial the
:05:37. > :05:41.jury has to decide whether this person is guilty beyond reasonable
:05:42. > :05:45.doubt, so for the jury, the bar is far higher than it is for
:05:46. > :05:49.prosecutors, and recently this approach was stressed by the
:05:50. > :05:51.Director of Public Prosecutions, Alison Saunders. She has also
:05:52. > :05:56.reiterated the need for them to listen to complaints, and she said
:05:57. > :06:02.famous names wouldn't get any special treatment. Well, let's go to
:06:03. > :06:06.Westminster and talk to political correspondent Vicki Young. I wonder,
:06:07. > :06:11.does this raise wider questions about how these things are dealt
:06:12. > :06:14.with in Parliament. I think it does. Interesting, Nigel Evans saying
:06:15. > :06:18.nothing will be the same again, as a public figure he has had his private
:06:19. > :06:22.life pored over in the court for all to hear, and he knows that despite
:06:23. > :06:26.his innocence, his reputation could be tarnished anyway, a point that
:06:27. > :06:33.several MPs have been making. They feel vulnerable to. Allegations, but
:06:34. > :06:37.there are other questions about how this complaint was dealt with.
:06:38. > :06:46.Several of the accusations came from staff working in the House of
:06:47. > :06:48.Commons. Some say there needs to be a professional independent
:06:49. > :06:52.complaints procedure to help both sides. I am also told that the
:06:53. > :06:57.speaker, John Bercow, is keen to set up a helpline. Here, but so far that
:06:58. > :07:02.is being blocked by the political parties. -- for staff here.
:07:03. > :07:06.Bright, beautiful and innocent, that's how the parents of two
:07:07. > :07:08.teenage sisters who both died in the Hillsborough disaster have described
:07:09. > :07:11.them. Trevor Hicks and his former wife Jenni were giving evidence at
:07:12. > :07:18.the inquests into the deaths of 96 Liverpool fans 25 years ago. Our
:07:19. > :07:24.correspondent Judith Moritz reports from Warrington.
:07:25. > :07:28.Hillsborough destroyed the family for ever. They went to the match as
:07:29. > :07:34.a four, parents with their teenage children, but Trevor and Jenni
:07:35. > :07:39.returned home as a couple. Their daughters both died in the disaster,
:07:40. > :07:44.and within two years their marriage had crumbled too. Today their pain
:07:45. > :07:49.was laid bare for the jury as they spoke about their loss. This is a
:07:50. > :07:53.small part of what they had to say. The loss of a child is one of the
:07:54. > :08:01.worst things that can happen to a loving parent. Loss of all your
:08:02. > :08:06.children is devastating. It is not the two is twice as bad, it is that
:08:07. > :08:16.you lose everything - the present, the future and any purpose. Sarah
:08:17. > :08:21.and Vicky, you were two bright, beautiful, innocent young women. I
:08:22. > :08:29.left you as you went into a football ground, and a few hours later you
:08:30. > :08:32.were dead. The victims of Hillsborough are often described
:08:33. > :08:37.collectively, known together as the 96, but through family tributes like
:08:38. > :08:41.the ones page today to Sarah and Victoria Hicks, every one of those
:08:42. > :08:47.who died is being portrayed individually. Had she lived, today
:08:48. > :08:51.would have been Sarah's 44th birthday. There was a suggestion we
:08:52. > :08:57.change the date, but we said it would be tough enough, as far as we
:08:58. > :09:02.are concerned, it is more poignant today on her birthday. A fitting
:09:03. > :09:05.tribute to Sarah on her birthday, yeah. Trevor Hicks spoke to
:09:06. > :09:11.reporters at the end of the last inquest in 1991. He and Jenni have
:09:12. > :09:16.long campaigned on behalf of those bereaved, but today they spoke of
:09:17. > :09:19.what it did to their family. Judith Moritz, BBC News, Warrington.
:09:20. > :09:21.The Co-operative Bank is expected to report yet more losses when it
:09:22. > :09:27.publishes its full-year results tomorrow morning. And last night the
:09:28. > :09:31.man who was brought in to sort out the the financial mess at the wider
:09:32. > :09:35.Co-operative Group quit. Lord Myners had previously said the group lacked
:09:36. > :09:43.effective leadership. Our business editor Kamal Ahmed reports.
:09:44. > :09:48.The Co-op, one of Britain's's biggest businesses. It employs
:09:49. > :09:51.90,000 people and owns over 4000 shops and pharmacies. There's now a
:09:52. > :09:56.battle for control of the group the modernisers on one side and the
:09:57. > :10:01.traditionalists on the other. Last night, the battle claimed another
:10:02. > :10:04.victim. Lord Myners, the former City minister, is going to resign after
:10:05. > :10:08.meeting opposition to his reform proposals. This is what he had to
:10:09. > :10:15.say just a few weeks ago. At the moment, if you ask the question, are
:10:16. > :10:21.we truly democratic? No. We led by a board that is fit for purpose? No.
:10:22. > :10:26.Do we enjoy the full and undoubted support without any hesitation from
:10:27. > :10:30.our bankers? No. This is a business that has been through the walls and
:10:31. > :10:36.then some. Tomorrow the Co-op bank could announce losses totalling ?1.2
:10:37. > :10:42.billion. Next week the Co-op Group losses could total ?2 billion.
:10:43. > :10:44.Critics say that this is an organisation that must change.
:10:45. > :10:50.Traditionalists argue the Co-op is nothing if it does not retain its
:10:51. > :10:53.heart. We know that there are 6000 Co-operative Group and prize is that
:10:54. > :11:00.our independent, trading successfully across the UK, head of
:11:01. > :11:05.the economy at large. -- Co-operative enterprises. This is a
:11:06. > :11:09.successful model. It may be a successful model for some, but the
:11:10. > :11:13.group is facing major losses. Some argue that better leadership is part
:11:14. > :11:17.of the answer. Although it is a mutual, it is no different from any
:11:18. > :11:21.organisation when it comes down to affected leadership and governance.
:11:22. > :11:24.Those systems have to be in place to make sure it moves on and solves the
:11:25. > :11:30.problems so that it can move on and be successful. The Co-op's home is
:11:31. > :11:34.in Manchester - what do customers there think? I think it can be
:11:35. > :11:40.turned around, a big business like that, why not? This is the time to
:11:41. > :11:44.progress. I am really worried, I have been a customer for a long time
:11:45. > :11:48.because of its ethical policies. There is likely to be more
:11:49. > :11:52.controversy ahead. Tomorrow the Co-op bank, part owned by the
:11:53. > :11:56.overall group, will announce what it is paying its chief executive. It is
:11:57. > :11:59.also likely to say it is holding back payments for former directors
:12:00. > :12:04.who were running the bank when it collapsed. Kamal Ahmed, BBC News.
:12:05. > :12:07.The South African athlete Oscar Pistorius, who is standing trial for
:12:08. > :12:10.the murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, has denied accusations by
:12:11. > :12:15.the prosecution that he bullied her and was self obsessed. Mr Pistorius
:12:16. > :12:18.denies intentionally killing the 29-year-old model. Our correspondent
:12:19. > :12:25.Andrew Harding is live in Pretoria now.
:12:26. > :12:31.Yes, George, Oscar Pistorius did not have an easy time of its today, he
:12:32. > :12:36.blamed his lawyers for inconsistencies, he accused two
:12:37. > :12:39.friends of lying about him, how was of relentless and detailed
:12:40. > :12:45.cross-examination are clearly taking their toll.
:12:46. > :12:49.-- hours. This was not a good day in court for
:12:50. > :12:51.Oscar Pistorius, his character and credibility coming under withering
:12:52. > :12:56.attack. First target, his selfish behaviour towards Reeva Steenkamp,
:12:57. > :13:01.as shown in text messages. I had to go to training, I had to go to
:13:02. > :13:04.lunch. Prosecutor Gerrie Nel suggesting that Pistorius, as usual
:13:05. > :13:10.not shown on camera in court, cared only about one person. Your life is
:13:11. > :13:14.just about you, what is important to Oscar. Oscar shouldn't get into
:13:15. > :13:18.trouble... Then to the athlete's reckless attitude to guns and an
:13:19. > :13:24.incident at this restaurant, when he fired a friend 's pistol by mistake.
:13:25. > :13:32.The prosecutor said Pistorius must be lying when he suggested he hadn't
:13:33. > :13:36.actually pulled the trigger. I must then accept that in your version the
:13:37. > :13:43.gun went off by itself. He gave you a gun, it went off by itself. I
:13:44. > :13:45.don't recall how the firearm went off, my lady, I know that my finger
:13:46. > :13:48.was not on the trigger. No tears in the witness box today.
:13:49. > :13:51.In fact, Pistorius became increasingly assertive, refusing to
:13:52. > :13:54.even look at the prosecutor and directing all his answers to the
:13:55. > :14:02.judge. But Nel was making headway, suggesting a pattern of ducking
:14:03. > :14:05.responsibility for his actions. You see, again, Mr Pistorius, it's the
:14:06. > :14:11.strangest day today, you just don't take responsibility for anything.
:14:12. > :14:16.You just don't do anything wrong. You are lying. The same, he said,
:14:17. > :14:22.applied to the night Reeva Steenkamp died, Nel quizzing Pistorius on his
:14:23. > :14:25.exact movements in the bedroom. I would have run out onto the
:14:26. > :14:30.balcony, my lady, where I shouted for help, the fan would have been in
:14:31. > :14:34.the way. Never happened. It must have been moved. It never happened.
:14:35. > :14:40.You see, because, Mr Pistorius, your version is a lie.
:14:41. > :14:44.Pistorius strongly denied that, and alone on the stand, it has been a
:14:45. > :14:51.bruising day for him. Andrew Harding, BBC News, Pretoria.
:14:52. > :14:53.Tamiflu, the anti viral drug, may be no better than Paracetamol in
:14:54. > :14:57.reducing flu symptons. That's according to new medical research.
:14:58. > :14:59.The study raises questions about the Government's decision to spend
:15:00. > :15:02.hundreds of millions of pounds stockpiling the drug in case there
:15:03. > :15:07.is a flu pandemic. Tamiflu's manufacturer, Roche, say the
:15:08. > :15:13.analysis is flawed. Our medical correspondent, Fergus Walsh, has
:15:14. > :15:23.more. Huge stocks of Tamiflu were distributed during the swine flu
:15:24. > :15:28.pandemic of 2009. It's an anti-viral and should ease symptoms. But
:15:29. > :15:31.researchers, who spent five years fighting to get access to all the
:15:32. > :15:34.data from clinical trials, say the drugs don't work. Or at least not
:15:35. > :15:36.very well. The Cochrane Collaboration, a global health care
:15:37. > :15:51.research network, say the drugs shorten symptoms by half a day, it
:15:52. > :15:54.may be no better than paracetamol. They say there's no good evidence it
:15:55. > :15:57.reduces hospital admissions or complications, and it increases the
:15:58. > :16:00.risk of nausea, vomiting and other side-effects. What is more worrying,
:16:01. > :16:02.we don't have the clear benefits, which compensation reduction, any
:16:03. > :16:05.harms have been accentuated, and this is in otherwise healthy people.
:16:06. > :16:08.Start to use that in elderly people, children, this is deeply worrying.
:16:09. > :16:10.But this detailed review is at odds with a recent study from Nottingham
:16:11. > :16:12.University, funded by the manufacturers, Roche, which looked
:16:13. > :16:16.at 30,000 hospital admissions worldwide, and found that early use
:16:17. > :16:29.of the drug halved the risk of death. Roche says no wonder the WHO,
:16:30. > :16:35.US and health bodies all recommend Tamiflu. There's a clear consensus
:16:36. > :16:39.across all of those people, and that is a significant body of expertise
:16:40. > :16:42.that have looked at our data and share the same position that we do,
:16:43. > :16:44.that Tamiflu is a very useful medicine for what is a serious
:16:45. > :16:47.respiratory infection that can lead to death in some instances. This
:16:48. > :16:50.drug has been a blockbuster which has made billions, but for critics
:16:51. > :16:56.it symbolises a culture of secrecy within the pharmaceutical industry.
:16:57. > :16:59.With some companies cherry picking the data they release from clinical
:17:00. > :17:05.trials that shows their products in the best light. The Health Secretary
:17:06. > :17:09.said suggestions that drug companies withheld data is worrying. The
:17:10. > :17:17.Government has to decide by the end of the year whether to renew its
:17:18. > :17:22.stockpile of Tamiflu. Our top story... The former Deputy Speaker
:17:23. > :17:27.of the Commons, Nigel Evans, has been cleared of rape and eight other
:17:28. > :17:35.sex abuse charges.. And still to come... The Duke and Duchess of
:17:36. > :17:43.Cambridge on a New Zealand Watergate. Later on BBC London...
:17:44. > :17:46.How more needs to be done to prepare school leavers. Employers claim many
:17:47. > :17:50.are not ready for the world of work. The gallery which allows
:17:51. > :17:59.customers to purchase shares in paintings.
:18:00. > :18:03.The number of houses being sold across the UK has reached a six year
:18:04. > :18:06.high, that's according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
:18:07. > :18:09.And prices are going up too, as demand outstrips the supply of
:18:10. > :18:12.properties. Prices are expected to rise everywhere in the UK over the
:18:13. > :18:16.next five years but at different rates in different parts of the
:18:17. > :18:18.country. Scotland is expected to see an annual average rise of around 4%,
:18:19. > :18:28.Wales nearly 5%, Northern Ireland also 5%, the North of England 2%
:18:29. > :18:34.annually. And prices in London are expected to increase by over 9% each
:18:35. > :18:43.year. Our correspondent, Duncan Kennedy, has been to Salisbury to
:18:44. > :18:47.see what's happening there. This report affects just about everybody
:18:48. > :18:56.involved in the property market. The builder, the buyer, the seller and
:18:57. > :19:01.the state putter. Come along in. John is one of those who wants to
:19:02. > :19:06.buy but cannot. I could many places in Britain, there are not the houses
:19:07. > :19:10.around. I was hoping there would be more to look at and be thought
:19:11. > :19:15.about. Normally, in spring, stuff comes onto the market and things
:19:16. > :19:21.look better. This year, it does not seem to be. Estate agents seem to
:19:22. > :19:27.be. They have an increase in buyers do not have property numbers to
:19:28. > :19:32.match. All agents in the area are short of stock. There is pressure on
:19:33. > :19:39.prices which are starting to move and lending is still difficult. The
:19:40. > :19:45.new report also highlights the state putter is, people like Chris who
:19:46. > :19:53.cannot afford to move but are extending instead. We looked at
:19:54. > :19:58.moving. When we looked at the cost, relocation, the wife may be finding
:19:59. > :20:10.another job or transport to a job, the logical conclusion we came to
:20:11. > :20:14.was not to move. More houses are being constructive but not enough.
:20:15. > :20:20.There is a lack of building plots. Funding is difficult and the
:20:21. > :20:25.planning process. Today's report concludes a property boom is ripping
:20:26. > :20:29.far beyond London. It is going to will check, the Midlands and the
:20:30. > :20:33.north-west. The average prices are rising by 6% in year for five years.
:20:34. > :20:42.Property buying is being put beyond the reach of ordinary people. Until
:20:43. > :20:43.that market is unclogged, it will remain uneven for many people
:20:44. > :20:49.longing to see this. The Government has decided there's
:20:50. > :20:54.no economic case for keeping two of the last three deep-pit coal mines
:20:55. > :20:57.in the country open. UK Coal will be given a ?10 million loan to carry
:20:58. > :21:00.out what ministers have described as a managed closure of Kellingley
:21:01. > :21:05.Colliery in North Yorkshire and Thoresby Colliery in
:21:06. > :21:17.Nottinghamshire. A total of 1,300 jobs will be lost. Australian search
:21:18. > :21:20.teams have discovered more signals in the area where they think the
:21:21. > :21:25.Malaysian airline may have been lost. Officials say they could be
:21:26. > :21:29.from what they call a man-made source. An Australian vessel picked
:21:30. > :21:35.up for acoustic signals in the area, twice over the weekend and twice on
:21:36. > :21:38.Tuesday. The flight vanished 33 days ago with 239 people on board. A
:21:39. > :21:41.major review of the Welsh education system says the Government lacks a
:21:42. > :21:43.long term vision. The Organisation for Cooperation and Economic
:21:44. > :21:45.Development, which produces an international league table on
:21:46. > :21:51.educational standards, recently ranked Wales at the bottom of the
:21:52. > :21:58.UK. Our correspondent, Hywel Griffith, has more. Right, Year 10,
:21:59. > :22:02.if you could all face me for a second. How to get results? It is a
:22:03. > :22:06.question facing these GCSE pupils in Port Talbot and a dilemma the whole
:22:07. > :22:10.education system in Wales has been struggling with. Several years of
:22:11. > :22:18.poor results have led to a new push on numeracy and literacy. But, in
:22:19. > :22:23.some classrooms, there is confusion. I feel for some pupils who are in
:22:24. > :22:25.schools currently. They must be asking, what do you want from us in
:22:26. > :22:37.terms of success? The challenges facing Welsh schools
:22:38. > :22:40.have been clear now. Results lagging behind, not just the rest of
:22:41. > :22:43.Britain, but much of Europe. What today's report makes clear is that
:22:44. > :22:48.the problems are not just within the classroom, but begin at the very
:22:49. > :22:54.top. The OECD says the education system in Wales lacks a long-term
:22:55. > :23:01.vision. Its schools have a high proportion of low performers. The
:23:02. > :23:04.tests pupils face lack coherence. The Labour government in Wales says
:23:05. > :23:12.its education plan is clear and coherent. What is it? What is your
:23:13. > :23:18.long-term vision? Excellent. What does that mean? Excellent in an
:23:19. > :23:22.international context. What does it mean for a pupil or a parent? What
:23:23. > :23:29.it means in simple terms, is that Welsh... Young people in Wales can
:23:30. > :23:37.expect the very best in terms of their educational experience. They
:23:38. > :23:40.will have a passport to success. Are parents convinced improvements are
:23:41. > :23:45.coming? I'm confident in the sense that teaching is excellent. But, how
:23:46. > :23:53.the majority of children will respond to the pressure of tests and
:23:54. > :23:56.stuff, I do not know. There is no-one in the system in Wales
:23:57. > :24:00.looking to make it better or drive standards up. Teachers in Wales have
:24:01. > :24:04.been told to aim for the top 20 in international rankings by 2015. An
:24:05. > :24:16.ambition that will test the path set by politicians.
:24:17. > :24:21.The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been paying their respects to
:24:22. > :24:27.the war dead in New Zealand. They were visiting the town of Blenheim
:24:28. > :24:31.on the South Island and later toured the Museum of World War I
:24:32. > :24:36.memorabilia. Here is our royal correspondent. Just to warn you, the
:24:37. > :24:42.start of this report does contain some flash photography. They are
:24:43. > :24:45.taking on a greater share of the workload of William 's grandmother,
:24:46. > :24:50.particularly the long haul journeys like this one to New Zealand. For
:24:51. > :24:54.William and Catherine, there are state receptions in their honour,
:24:55. > :24:59.speeches to be made and jokes about George. He is a bonny lad. He is
:25:00. > :25:06.currently preparing for life as a prop forward.
:25:07. > :25:12.The couple 's first public engagement had been to pay tribute
:25:13. > :25:15.to the war dead in New Zealand. In Blenheim, on the South Island,
:25:16. > :25:19.William and Catherine stepped forward together to place a wreath
:25:20. > :25:21.at the town 's first public engagement had been to pay tribute
:25:22. > :25:23.to the war dead in New Zealand. In Blenheim, on the South Island,
:25:24. > :25:26.William and Catherine stepped forward together to place a wreath
:25:27. > :25:34.at the town is warm and and Catherine another. -- place a
:25:35. > :25:43.wreath. William took one group and Catherine another. A chance for
:25:44. > :25:47.Catherine to show off sharp and communication skills and to be
:25:48. > :25:50.reminded that babies do not necessarily regard meeting it
:25:51. > :25:58.Duchess as a moment not to be sneezed at. There is a serious
:25:59. > :26:03.point, of course, amid all the royal visit frivolity. Does New Zealand
:26:04. > :26:08.want to keep Britain 's kings or queens as their head of state? New
:26:09. > :26:13.Zealand has certainly flirted with the idea of moving on from the
:26:14. > :26:16.monarchy in the past. When you come into small, rural communities like
:26:17. > :26:23.this, support for the monarchy is still strong. He and his son
:26:24. > :26:27.represent the long-term future of the monarchy and, at the moment,
:26:28. > :26:35.there is no real evidence that New Zealand is pressing for a change.
:26:36. > :26:46.That brings us to the weather. More spells of spring sunshine today
:26:47. > :26:50.and more over the next few days. That includes the weekend. Dry and
:26:51. > :26:55.bright the main themes. It be mild by day but, at night, it is still
:26:56. > :27:03.early April so it can be a bit chilly. There has been a of cloudy
:27:04. > :27:07.weather. Still one or two short sharp showers in the South of
:27:08. > :27:10.England. A few showers in the north-west but elsewhere a dry
:27:11. > :27:18.night. It would be colder. Temperatures will be down to two or
:27:19. > :27:23.three. It is a chilly start to Friday. A zone of cloudy weather
:27:24. > :27:27.across East Anglia and the Midlands which should tend to break up. Bar
:27:28. > :27:34.the odd shower, it is mostly a fine day. Sunny spells across parts of
:27:35. > :27:40.Wales and the south-west of England. We should be 16, 17 Celsius. Inland,
:27:41. > :27:46.it could be cooler. A small chance of seeing a show across Cumbria or
:27:47. > :27:50.north-west Scotland. Cloudy know that in the north-west and Northern
:27:51. > :27:54.Ireland. There will be rain in the Western Isles. That will change
:27:55. > :27:59.things a bit on Saturday. There will be damp weather into Northern
:28:00. > :28:02.Ireland could trickling its way into northern England and Wales.
:28:03. > :28:06.Generally dry and bright with a few showers in the north and west.
:28:07. > :28:15.Temperatures getting to ten, 11 and 16, 17 in the South. A few showers
:28:16. > :28:19.and the breeze picking up on Sunday. Dry and bright with temperatures
:28:20. > :28:31.tend to 13. Maybe in the mid to high teens by the end of the afternoon
:28:32. > :28:41.for the London Marathon. A reminder of our main story... The former
:28:42. > :28:44.deputy Speaker of the House of Commons has been cleared of rape and
:28:45. > :28:47.other sex charges. Goodbye.