06/06/2014 BBC News at Six

70 years after D-Day, world leaders come to Normandy to pay tribute to

those who changed the course of the Second World War.

The Last Post The Queen joins the commemorations

in France for remembering the thousands of men who lost their

lives. For many of the veterans, it is the

last time they'll gather on the beaches to share their stories of

bravery and sacrifice. Chaps with me, who, my company

commander and all that, they are all dead. They didn't make it. You know.

I am just lucky. I suppose. Among the world leaders, Barack

Obama pays a tribute to the soldiers, sailors and airmen who

defied danger. These men waged war so we might know peace. They

sacrificed so we might be free. They fought in hopes of a day when we'd

no longer need to fight. We are grateful to them. Also on the

programme tonight: Nigel Farage looks glum as the

Conservatives celebrate winning the Newark by-election, albeit with a

reduced majority. The UK economy is brighter than the IMF forecast. It

admits it made a mistake. And there'll be no yellow jersey for

Bradley Wiggins in this year's Tour de France, as he says he is dropped

from the team. The boy who died in the floods. A

most mother up the said he was killed by -- a postmortem says he

was killed by carbon monoxide. Good evening. Welcome to Normandy,

where heads of state and political leaders have joined veterans today

to remember the D-Day landings on June 6th, 1944. The Queen laid a

wreath to honour the falling and President Obama paid tribute to a

generation who had, as he put it, defied every danger. Almost 160,000

Allied troops fought their way up five beaches along the coast behind

me. It is thought at least 4,000 lost their lives. Our correspondent,

Nicholas Nitchell, has our first report today, on D-Day remembered.

Dawn at the D-Day beaches. Old soldiers remembered that morning

when they helped to change the course of history and where some of

those who survived and grew old remembered the many who did not.

At the Commonwealth war cemetery at Bayeux, five miles inland from the

coast are the graves of more than 4,000 young men, mostly British, who

died on D-Day or in the weeks of fighting which followed.

As the Queen arrived to lead the tributes of Britain and the

Commonwealth, aircraft from the Second World War flew overhead.

Wreaths were laid at the stone of remembrance remembrance.

Spoken by Eddie Slater. In 1944 he was a 20-year-old able seaman. We

shall grow old. Age shall not weary them nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.

We will remember them. THE LAST POST

The veterans had been seated close in amongst the headstones, among

which are the inscriptions which lose none of their emotional impact

with the passing of the years. They are the tributes of families,

of mothers for sons, and wives for husbands. The men who gave their

lives so that a continent might be free.

After the service, the Queen joined the set rans. She mingled and --

veterans. She mingled and chatted. A monarch for the same wartime

generation, sharing memories with those who had fought in the name of

her father. At Omaha Beach, to the west lays the

huge military cemetery of the United States.

There are nearly 10,000 graves here, a reminder of the ferocious

resistance the Americans faced at Omaha Beach and at a time when the

new world sk fised so much blood in -- sacrificed so much blood in

support of the old. In his speech President Obama said what the Allied

troops achieved and what he called this tiny slither of sand, had

determined the course of history. Whenever the world makes you cynical

when ever you doubt that courage is possible, stop and think of these

men. Along with all our veterans of D-Day, if you can stand, please

stand, if not please raise your hand. Let us recognise your service

once more. These men waged war so we might know peace.

once more. These men waged war so They sacrificed it so we might be

free. We are grateful to them. On Sword Beach, the heads of state

and heads of Government assembled for the official commemoration.

Germany's Chancellor, Angela Merkel, was greeted with warm applause. Then

a reminder of the difficult diplomatic difficults. Vladimir

Putin and Barack Obama had their first face-to-face discussion about

Ukraine, as they watched the events on Sword Beach, French television

cut them up, side by side on the public screens. The crowd enjoyed

it. President Putin's reaction was harder to read.

Then something else unexpected. A video and dramatic re-enactment of

the Second World War, complete with references to Nazi brutality and the

Holocaust. This is one anniversary where even the most sensitive issues

of the war are being dealt with openly.

But above all, this day has been for the veterans. Many of them are frail

now. It is time to pass the stories of what they did to new generations.

And so, this afternoon, Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge

joined a group of veterans at a tea party.

And then n the centre of the town of Aromanches, right by Gold Beach,

where one of the British divisions had fought its way ashore on D-Day,

old soldiers paraded for a few chush king.

-- future king. It was a chance for them to remember

so many friends who never made it home.

And it was a chance for us to express our gratitude for so much

sacrifice. Well, the square behind me in

Aromanches is still full of British veterans and their families after

the march-past a short time ago. 70 years ago they were the men who

poured on to the beaches here. Many under heavy gunfire as part of the

biggest amphibious assault in history. Some who survived have been

here many times. For others, it is the first time they have been back

here in 70 years. Our correspondent spent the day with the veterans.

70 years ago the windows of Bayeux rattled to the thunder of gunfire.

This morning, eyewitnesses to history made their way up the

cobbled streets to do their duty once more. Under the vaulteded roof

of the cathedral they paraded their Standards. More than 600 veterans

honouring the young men who still lie here in Normandy.

Every single man that was a veteran, he played an important key part for

the success of the whole operation. Every one of them. I have the utmost

respect to every veteran that landed on D-Day.

So much changed when the ramps dropped on that June morning and men

peered ahead through the smoke, knowing they would need luck to

survive. Once again we were back on the soil of France.

70 years later, they still can't quite believe it.

I feel very lucky that I'm here. Chaps where me, my company commander

and they are all dead. They didn't make it.

I am just lucky, I suppose. Along Bayeux's cobbled streets the

clock turned back to the hours when soldiers and civilians met for the

first time on the roads from the beaches.

How are you? Very well, thank you. The people of Normandy lost

thousands of their own in the fighting. Many remember the dangers

which lie beneath the sand, the scars on their land scar and the

reics of war which were part of daily life. Their gratitudes to

their liberators has never diminished. I have been to Normandy

before - several times. But this day has been right out of the ordinary.

It is absolutely amazing! In fact, except from my wedding the second

best day of my life. ??FORCEWHITE NEWSREEL:

The first graifrs were drug oh -- the first graves were dug in the

days after the landings. Now 4,000 lie here. Give us strength to carry

on our work to bring comradeship to all veterans. I have been here

before. It is very touching. It makes me cry.

There have been moments when emotions overcame them. Moments when

they paraded with pride. Above all, they will leave here knowing that

once again duty has been done. Many of the veterans here today have

said how much they hope the Second World War will never be forgotten by

their children and grandchildren. We have been finding out what pupils in

a school in Staffordshire made of D-Day and the sacrifices of those

who took part. Sophie Hutchinson sent this report

on the Future Generations. In the heart of Staffordshire, among

the trees, 300 miles from the Normandy beaches, a service of

commemoration. Some came to the national mem mor memorial to

remember. Some to learn of the sacrifice of another generation.

That sacrifice is something pupils at this Staffordshire school were

discussing today. What I want to talk about today and think about

today is why it is still important in 2014 - 70 years after the events.

Why it is still important to remember the veterans who fought. It

is extraordinary to think that the youngest known British casualty of

the Second World War was a boy on a Merchant Navy ship, who was 14. The

same age as some in this class. What does it mean for pupils today? I

think, like today's society wouldn't have that sort of courage. Obviously

a lot of people think of teenagers these days, they sit back and are on

their Xbox. They have gone out, OK, unfortunately he's lost his life or

something, he say's tried to make a difference to that country, which

doesn't happen as often in our society. If someone said there is a

war coming on, can you come? I would be like, what has happened? What's

going on? Obviously, they didn't have much

detail and they just went straight off and did what they had to do.

Hats off to them. They did it. Whatever the doubts about their own

generation's courage, these youngsters are proof that the

sacrifice made by so many 70 years ago, will be remembered.

We will have more from Normandy later in the programme. Now back to

the studio. Thank you. And the rest of today's news now.

Last year, the International Monetary Fund warned George Osborne

he could be taking austerity too far. Today, the head of the IMF

arrived in London and admitted she had got it wrong and praised

Britain's good, sustained growth. It was not all good news.

had got it wrong and praised Britain's good, sustained growth. A

warning that rising house price -- prices may damage the economy. There

is some flash photography in this of VT. The sun is out. The economy, if

it is not soaring away, well it is recovering nicely. That is not

exactly what the powerful IMF, monitor and watchdog of the global

economy, thought was likely a year ago, when it warned that the

Chancellor was playing with fire. He was pushing ahead with austerity.

Contrition from the IMF's boss? I completely acknowledge that we

underestimated growth. Do I have to go on my knees? We underestimated.

Look, we got it wrong. We acknowledged it. We were not the

only one to get it wrong. This man is not exactly weeping at the IMF's

embarrassment. Today's IMF report shows our long-term economic plan is

the right one. The British economy is firing on

allsy len dirs -- - on all cylinders. The IMF says we should

tackle the deficit, fix the banking system and back businesses to create

jobs. We are firmly on the sunny side of the street, are we?

Rich, London, prices going through the roof. The IMF says it is not a

serious bubble yet. If the overheating in the housing market

were to intensify, if it were to spread to the rest of the country,

that could be dangerous. So the IMF is urging the Bank of

England to move early and gradually to cool down the housing market by

curbing mortgages, at a high multiple of what people earn. To

strengthen banks so they can absorb mortgageds if they go back.

Britain will remain vulnerable to boom and bust in housing, warning

the IMF unless there is more of this - the building of new homes.

Our top story this evening: Commemorations have been taking

place in Normandy to mark the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

We follow one veteran who made the journey back to remember the day

that changed the Second World War. Later on BBC London: Bringing back

memories of the Olympics as the Queen's baton returns to London on

its way to the Commonwealth Games. Andy Murray's best friend on beating

cancer and winning a major tennis tournament.

The Conservatives have won the Newark by-election,

retaining the seat with a majority of more than 7,000.

But UKIP came second and massively reduced the Tory's majority

The winner, Robert Jenrick, polled 17,431 votes,

beating UKIP's Roger Helmer, who halved the Conservative vote.

And it was a disastrous result for the Lib Dems,

Our deputy political editor James Landale sent this report

My first duty as your member of parliament.

From the excitement of the campaign, to the reality of the job.

here, even now, he wouldn't drink to celebrate his party's first

by-election victory in Government for 25 years. At least the boss was

happy. It's a good result because we worked

hard. We had an excellent candidate and we had a very clear message

It's a good result because we worked hard.

We had an excellent candidate and we had a very clear message

about our long-term economic plan, how it's working

As the ballot papers were counted early

Robert Edward Jenrick is duly elected for the Newark constituency.

take on UKIP and beat them. Well, they've certainly done that.

in holding a safe seat meant Nigel Farage was looking, for once,

You promised an earthquake, it hasn't really happened, has it?

This by-election mattered because for the first time it pitted

Well, we won the European elections two weeks ago with 28%

In this by-election, this fiercely contested by-election tonight,

The Lib Dems did beat the Loonies, but not many others.

They came 6th and once again lost their deposit.

Clearly this is a very disappointing result for the Liberal Democrats,

but it's also clear that an awful lot of our supporters in

People absolutely didn't want to be represented by UKIP.

So the people of Newark have stalled UKIP's momentum.

The Tories are shouting it from the roof-tops and life here,

The father of a baby who died of blood poisoning linked to

suspected contaminated hospital feed has been describing what happened to

Nine-day-old Yousef Al-Kharboush died on Sunday.

Three more cases were confirmed today meaning 20

Our correspondent Fergus Walsh is at Southwark Coroners court.

The father made some dignified and restrained comments today. He

praised the hospital for the care it gave his son and said it was just

unlucky that they had received some contaminated feed. Outside court he

explained how the family was coping. Anybody who has a child and think

about him being dead, you would understand what a father would feel

in that case and seeing him suffering in front of you before he

dies, but this is what life is all about and we accept it the way it

is. He also revealed that Yousuf who was born eight weeks premature is a

twin. He didn't want details of the surviving baby to be revealed but I

can tell you is that all 20 other babies from ten hospitals who

developed blood poisoning from this suspected contaminated feed are

responding well to antibiotic treatment.

Bradley Wiggins says he's gutted no to be taking part

The 2012 winner has been told other riders are better suited to form the

Sky team that will try to win the race for Britain's Chris Froome.

Our sports correspondent Joe Wilson reports.

Bradley Wiggins is British cycling's outstanding individual.

Tour de France winner in 2012, four-time Olympic champion,

There are two stars in Team Sky, Wiggins and alongside him,

The team ain't big enough for the both of them and it seems

I've worked extremely hard for this all winter

The team is focussed around Chris Froome, the defending

champion, who's got a great chance of winning his second Tour.

And it's been decided that as things stand they're going to

The whole point about the Tour de France this year

In a month's time the Mall here in central London will be filled

That, of course, being Bradley Wiggins.

The first stage is in Yorkshire where there's been a huge marketing

Great scenery, but without Wiggins some of

I am very disappointed that Bradley won't be at the start in Yorkshire,

Because him winning the race in 2012 was one of the reasons

the Tour de France is coming back to the UK as quickly as it had,

Meanwhile, Chris Froome, the reigning champ,

has already seen off his main rival - sorry team-mate, Wiggins.

He may already feel like he's won the Tour once more.

Let's get more on the commemorations marking the anniversary of D-Day.

Welcome back. Veterans and world leaders been remembering the events

70 years ago. For many who were here in 1944 there's been pride, sorrow

and some tears as they remembered the fallen. Among them was Tony

Colgan of the Durham Light Infantry. Our correspondent joined him and his

grandson on a veteran's journey. Together the veterans sailed once

more across the English Channel. Tony Colgan was just 20 when he made

this journey for the first time. 70 years and a lifetime ago. He has

come back with his grandson, Anthony, who wants to know more

about his grandfather's war before it's too late to ask. Just over

there we landed and we came up the beach and turned left. Hard to

imagine on this peaceful Normandy morning the noise, the chaos and the

fear as Tony and his comrades landed, uncertain what awaited them

knowing only that it could be death. There was all hell breaking loose

when we were about a mile off shore. I thought this is your last day. You

are just not going to get out of this. It's weird to imagine that he

was a 20-year-old kid running on to this beach or driving on to this

beach and experiencing what he has, it's important to remember as much

as we can so that I can pass that information on to his

great-grandchildren. You are so lucky... As tony's unit pushed

further inland the toll of the wounded and the dead rose quickly.

We lost 200 men over in one day. It can be emotional. It is, isn't it.

Yes. Oh, man, you made me cry now. Yeah. As D-Day passes from living

memory, Tony's grandson promises he will remember what his grandfather

and his comrades achieved at such a cost.

Just to give you an idea of how much it means for so many of these

veterans to be here in Normandy today, let me tell you a story of

Bernard Jordan, he is 89 years old and he lefs in a nursing home --

lives in a nursing home in Hove, he was here during the landings and he

was so determined to get here he left the nursing home yesterday,

wearing his medals, hidden under a coat, and he boarded a coach in

Brighton, came over on his own to Normandy to make sure that he could

take part in these commemorations. The police were called by the

nurgsing home but thankfully -- by the nursing home but thankfully they

found him safe and well here. That's how much it means to so many of

these men. Time to look at the weather now.

It's been glorious here. Sunshine across the UK at the

moment, we are swapping shows skies for stormy ones. Some of you will

miss the storms altogether. Humid air across western parts of Europe.

Fresher air trying to push in. Storms breaking out now and heading

towards us through tonight. The cloud at the moment mostly thin,

hazy sunshine out there. One or two spots of rain possible. The odd

lightning storm. Later in the night some spectacular lightning storms

are expected and torrential rain. Most of you go through the night

dry, a humid and sticky night and misty in the north of Scotland as it

will be tomorrow. For tomorrow, the main storm risk initially parts of

the Midlands, southern England South Wales and Northern Ireland will be

during the morning. Even here some will miss. That transfers

northwards, prolonged rain Midlands into northern England through the

afternoon and into south-west Scotland and another batch in

Northern Ireland. Are to some of you will avoid it. North of Scotland

staying fine. Later Northern Ireland and through southern parts, it

should be a fine end to the day. Once the sun comes out it will feel

warm. The storms rumble on during Saturday. Into Sunday it's going to

be a fresher day. A lot of dry and sunny weather around initially. A

few showers, many of you avoiding them and staying dry, especially in

the south. Even though the air is fresher it will still feel warm once

the sun is with you. For now, back to Sophie in France.

Thank you very much. That's all from the team here in Normandy. In a

moment the news where you are. Let's leave you with some images of D-Day,

then and now. From Normandy, goodbye. D-Day has come, early this

morning the allies began the assault on the north-western face... When

the shells were coming over I said, if I can survive this, I will work

the rest of my life for nothing, just to be alive.

They shall grow not old as we that are left grow old, age shall not

weary them, nor the years. At the going down of the sun and in the

morning, we will remember them.