19/08/2014 BBC News at Six

Rail fares on the rise. Millions of commuters will see

prices go up from January. It's a 3.5% hike on average.

Many travellers are not happy. The prices are already produce all

button. If they were to be any more expensive, it would be crippling. If

you are looking at booking last-minute commie you might as well

forget it. With house prices also climbing -

we'll look at what it means for the cost of living.

Also tonight... The UN launches a major aid

operation for refugees in Iraq. The fighting returns to Gaza -

as the ceasefire breaks down. After the death of an Afghan Sikh

in a Tilbury shipping container - police arrest a man in

Northern Ireland. And War Horse goes East to China,

with a little help from the National Theatre.

Tonight on BBC London. Jailed, the smash and grab gang who

dressed in burqas to rob from Selfridge's.

Tonight on BBC London. And guns, drugs and cash are seized

in a series of raids ahead of the Notting Hill Carnival.

Good evening and welcome to the BBC News at Six.

Rail passengers in England are again to face an increase in ticket

prices that's above inflation. That's despite figures out today,

showing that the rate of inflation itself has actually fallen.

Average ticket prices for fares set by the government will

go up by 3.5% from January. In some cases, fares could

even rise by as much as 5.5%. It means that fares will have gone

up by almost a quarter since 2010. That compares to a rise

in average wages of just under 7% over the same period.

Our transport correspondent Richard Westcott is at King's Cross

in central London with more details for us now.

Richard. Something has been happening on the

railways that the last ten years which really explains what has gone

on today. Billions of pounds has been pumped into the network to make

it run better but the government have slowly been cutting the amount

of money they are putting towards the final bill. But the money has

got to come from somewhere which is why ticket prices just keep on going

up. They have been going up for more than a decade, normally above

inflation and they are going up again next year.

It is the one thing you can rely on with the railways, the annual fare

rise. Almost every year for a decade, the government has put up

ticket prices by more than inflation and it is happening again next year,

with no end in sight. I would like to see the long-term aspiration of

affairs going up by no more than inflation every year. But we are at

a time of investing ?40 billion in the railway, the biggest investment

since Victorian times. From January, regulated fares come which include

season tickets, will go up by an average of 3.5%. It brings the

annual neutron was to Birmingham up to ?1500 and from Liverpool to

magister to ?3000 per year. If you want to get from Reading to London,

the total cost is over ?4000. The prices are already pretty

exorbitant. If they were to be more expensive, it would be quite

crippling. I think they are high in. I would not be able to afford it

myself if my company did not pay. If you are looking at not booking in

advance, you might as well forget it. For every ?1 spent, around 26p

goes on things like this, new stations, 25p goes on staff, 22p

goes attaining the trained on track. Take out money for leasing the

trains, fuel and interest payments and it leaves 3p in the pound as the

average profit per train companies. Labour would also put fares up but

they would abolish what is known as the Flex system which allows rail

companies to increase some tickets by a further 2% if they cut prices

elsewhere. At a time when most people 's wages are stagnant or in

some cases falling, we think that is the gap between what people are

earning and what they are paying for their season tickets is too wide. We

want to close the gap. In Scotland, the average rise will be lower,

2.5%, with off-peak fares frozen altogether. The level in Wales has

not been set yet and there is no planned rise in Northern Ireland.

There is one glimmer of hope are struggling commuters. The government

has a track record of cutting the rise at the last minute. With the

election looming, it could happen again.

A glimmer of hope but it is all eyes on the Autumn statement which is due

later this year. I would not get your hopes up, though. We are still

talking about a smaller fare rise. Nobody from any party is talking

about cutting fares in the future. It's not just rail fares that are

putting a strain on people's pockets.

UK house prices hit a record high in the 12 months to June,

rising by 10%, and almost double that in London.

But prices are soaring outside the capital too, as

our personal finance correspondent Simon Gompertz reports.

London, prices in the capital are sky high, more than double the

average elsewhere. So our London home is the most unaffordable? No,

that distinction goes to places like the Cotswolds, rural rule Stow on

the Wold. Prices are high enough here. You can pay ?500,000 for a

three-bedroom house. But wages are lower than in major cities, so

would-be buyers can find a basic home far out of reach. Buyers like

Becky, who is getting married in the spring but has lost hope of

purchasing a property in the town where she was brought up, even on

two salaries. It makes me feel bad. I don't want to live in my parents

pocket. I want to start out on my own. It makes me feel awful. You are

trying to afford staff and you get put down all the time. Second homes,

dream homes for people retiring, property here is snapped up before

moguls, mostly on less than ?20,000 per year, get a look in. -- before

locals. The typical home in London is worth ten times the average local

wage. But it is 13 times in Hamilton in North Yorkshire, Stratford, and

15 times in Purbeck in Dorset, and amongst the highest, in the

Cotswolds, 19 times the average wage. So build more homes, that is

the need in hotspots across the UK, and it is happening on a disused

airfield outside Stow. We have 386 homes being built. The problem is,

only a minority are designated affordable homes for first-time

buyers. This is on the market for ?390,000. Four bedrooms. You look in

the estate agents' windows and you think you can't afford to live here

but you can afford to rent. It takes most of my pension but never mind. I

sold one quite a long time ago now and should have kept it. Prices can

get too high, and estate agents say in London they are coming off the

boil, but it would take a major chill in the market to make towns

like this one affordable. With me now is

our business editor Kamal Ahmed. Mail fares and house prices have

gone up but the rate of inflation has come down. -- rail fares. What

is going on. As ever, the British economy is sending out mixed

messages. As we heard in the reports, rail prices look like they

are going up and house prices are going up at near record levels. But

there is some good news in this cost of living debate in the figures. The

UK economy is strong. The currency is strong. That means that things we

import are cheaper. That is feeding through to cheaper food, fuel and

clothing. That is good for the cost of living debate. What this all

feeds into is what it means for interest rates. If inflation was

rampant, going through the roof, I am sure interest rate rises would be

ahead, closer than they are at the moment. The message from the

inflation figures mean that the economic consensus is that interest

rate rises are probably pushed out rather further. The better news is

probably beating the bad news in some of the figures. Thank you for

joining us. The Israeli military says it has

carried out air strikes in the Gaza Strip, in response to fresh

Hamas rocket attacks. The violence began despite an

agreement struck in Egypt last night to extend the current cease-fire.

Israel says it has now withdrawn its negotiating team from Cairo.

Our Middle East correspondent Yolande Knell is in Gaza City.

This was the ninth consecutive day of cease-fire. How serious is the

outbreak of violence? It looks very serious. Certainly, the cease-fire

arrangements have looked shaky before but this was a clear breach,

a total of five Palestinian rockets, fired into southern Israel in the

past few hours will stop two of them were intercepted by the Israeli

missile defences to and then a series of Israeli air strikes across

Gaza in response to that, really from north to south. While we have

had no serious injuries reported, large numbers of Palestinians have

again fled their homes, to the east of us in Gaza city. They had only

just returned home from neighbourhoods badly affected by

Israel's military offensive. This all has worrying implications for

those indirect talks on a longer term cease-fire deal that had been

taking place in Cairo. But we already knew there were very big

gaps between the sides, with Israel saying security cannot be, might and

the Palestinians wanting an easing of the border restrictions by both

Israel and Egypt. The Israeli delegation has been told to pull out

of Cairo but we don't know if it has happened, or if this signifies a

complete collapse in the talks. Thank you for joining us.

Yolande Knell is in Gaza City. In northern Iraq, the United Nations

is mounting a major aid operation for more than 500,000 people who

fled for their lives from extremist Islamic State fighters.

The aid effort comes as Iraqi government forces attempt to push

the militants out of Tikrit, which is north of Baghdad.

And Kurdish forces, also fighting the militants, are now fully

in control of the strategically important Mosul Dam, although

hostilities aren't completely over. Many of the refugees have arrived

in Dahuk, and for them, UN help can't come

soon enough, as our correspondent Jeremy Cooke has been finding out.

They say that help is coming. It is desperately needed. In this

windswept dust bowl, in the searing heat, the camps keep growing. In

each tent, a family. Each family with time, now, to reflect on horror

and loss. They did not do their job well. This father calls himself

Henry. That is what the US troops in Iraq named him when he translated

for them to six years. Now he wants actuary for his whole family,

especially his kids. Where do you want to go? Anywhere, any country,

Europe, Australia, Canada, America, anywhere. Children, they're asked so

many here. They have escaped and they are alive but they are still

traumatised and vulnerable after days without food and water. The

clinic is overwhelmed, from 50 patients a day, it is now 500, with

a single doctor. Can you imagine a child is sick as this, children aged

12, no, water or milk for one week or two, they are all vomiting. Now

you can see in this bed, three children on a single bed. This is

just one part of one camp. You really get the feeling that an

entire people have been displaced. Most of them are telling us they

believe they can never go home. But how can they stay here? Look at this

family. Every child was ill. Hard to believe but yes, it can get even

worse. The camps are so full that many are forced to fend for

themselves, out here, with temperatures nudging 50 Celsius. We

want a UN safe house, for the children, our girls, our religion.

You understand? The camps are being improved, and finally, there is the

promise of a major UN aid effort. They would welcome shelter and food,

but how can it begin to replace all that they have lost?

A man's been arrested in Northern Ireland over the death

of an immigrant, who was found in a container at Tilbury Docks

on Saturday. The man will be questioned

on suspicion of manslaughter. 34 people,

who were discovered alive in the container, are claiming asylum.

Our correspondent Jo Black sent this report from Tilbury.

It was supposed to be the journey to a new life, but it turned out to be

an horrific ordeal. 34 stairways survived and are led away. But a

40-year-old father, Meet Singh Kapoor, has already died inside the

container. Days later, they are in a much happier place. Today, they

spoke to members of the local community. They are in a state of

shock, but still, they know that they are going to be processed

through the UK BAe. -- border agency. But they are happy with the

help they received from hospitals, the temple, the local food bank, who

provided them with clothes, the other people that come from

Afghanistan, the minority committee, and the majority committee, when

they claim asylum in the West, they come because of the fear of

insecurity and instability in their country, that is the main reason.

The Home Office has said it won't comment on individual cases or

confirm that the immigrants are staying here but those who have been

speaking to the group today say they are keen to stay in the UK and

cooperate with the authorities. This morning in Northern Ireland, a man

has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter and facilitating

illegal entry into the UK. Our top story this evening.

Ticket prices for millions of commuters are due to go up

by an average of 3.5%. Still to come:

Jonnie Peacock adds European Gold. Laser eye surgery.

Jonnie Peacock adds European Gold. Laser Arsenal boss, Arsene Wenger on

why Champions League qualification is a must for the Gunners.

Prisons in England and Wales face problems with

violence, suicides and staff shortages the Justice Secretary,

Chris Grayling, admitted today. But he insisted there was no crisis.

According to official figures, there were over 15,000 prison

assaults in the year to March 2014, up 6% on the previous year.

The number of assaults on prison staff in the same period was

over 3,300, an increase of 12%. A report today into the

ISIS Young Offenders' Institution in London has again put

the focus on rising levels of prison violence, as Sima Kotecha reports.

Justin is spraying graffiti here legally, but his teenage experience

with crime began in a gang doing this outside the law.

It soon escalated into violence and ended with him behind bars, and the

environment there was brutalising. I realised straightaway,

if you don't fight. If you don't show you're tough.

If you don't act out with some sort of extreme violence, then you're

going to get basically terrorised. It's not a nice place for a kid to

be when you're away from your family and stuff for the first time.

Today's report into ISIS Prison in London paints a similar picture

of jail life for young inmates. It says, "the number of fights

and assaults have been high. Many were serious and more than

we usually see involved weapons. Often groups were attacking single

inmates and nearly a third of prisoners felt unsafe."

Many would argue that thousands of young people

in Britain's jails deserve to be there as part of their punishment.

But if rehabilitation is important also, the fear is

the current environment could turn them into more serious criminals.

One former prison officer, who worked with young offenders for more

than 30 years, said the situation is getting out of control.

Going into work was sometimes harrowing.

I didn't know what I was going in to.

I didn't know if I was going in to a fight.

I didn't know if I was going in to somebody being killed.

I was getting anxious about it. To be honest, it affected my work.

In recent weeks, several prison reports have been damning with

allegations of high rates of drug use and extreme violence.

The Justice Secretary insists jails are not deteriorating.

We've got 40% more violent offenders in our jails today

than there were 10 years ago. Of course that is a challenge.

Of course I can't say there will never be violence in our prisons.

By definition, our prisons are full of violent people.

We have to work hard to minimise the violence where ever we can.

It has got worse. You admit it's got worse?

In the last 12 months, the number of assaults has gone up.

It's lower than it was two years ago.

It's lower than it was five years ago.

But critics argue a bursting prison population

and fewer staff means the challenge of rehabilitating young, vulnerable

and often violent offenders is arguably tougher than ever.

Sima Kotecha, BBC News. Four people have gone

on trial accused of conning a number of women out of tens

of thousands of pounds through an internet dating agency, Match.com.

The alledged victims were duped into handing over money

after they responded online to men they thought might be a match.

From Winchester Crown Court, Duncan Kennedy reports.

It's the website where millions of people go to find love. But the

prosecution say Match.com is where the gang went to exploit the

emotions and finances of innocent women. Women like Suzanne Hardman,

on the left. A divorcee who used the online sight looking for

relationship. -- site. She told the court the gang played with her

emotions and she was persuaded to hand over ?174,000. The gang up fake

profiles on Match.com. Even producing bogus passports, like this

unwith, to prove who they were. In a private email, the non-existent

James Richards wrote to Susanne Hardman saying:

The prosecution say all that talk of love was a con. Once in a

relationship the women would be asked for money to pay legal bills

in India. In all, 14 women were involved handing over ?250,000. The

prosecution say this alleged online scam depended on the trust of the

victims who were targeted with the language of love. Duncan Kennedy,

BBC News in Winchester. A Malaysian man has been charged

with the murder of two British students earlier this month

in Borneo. Neil Dalton

and Aidan Brunger were stabbed to death after an argument broke out

in a cafe on the island of Kuching. The two medical students were

working in a local hospital. Their alleged attacker will go

on trial next month. If found guilty, he faces

a mandatory death sentence. The IPC European Championships

for para-athletes opened today in Swansea.

More than 500 disabled sportsmen and women from all over Europe will

be competing over the next five days for gold.

And, for Team GB, these Championships are essential

preparations for the Rio Paralympics in two years' time.

One star is Jonnie Peacock, who raced today in the 100 metres.

Andy Swiss watched the race. Former World record holder

and the favourite to take the Gold here today.

Two years ago, he lit up London. Now, could Jonnie Peacock sparkle

in Swansea? The European title had been the only

gap on his CV and Peacock has struggled with injury this season

but, with a home crowd behind him, you'd scarcely have guessed it.

Britain's biggest para sport event since London 2012 had

the most popular of winners. Peacock, now the Paralympic, World

and European Champion - 100m domination, complete.

It's sounds good, you know. Obviously, I'm going to have to

go home and let it sink in. It's a great relief.

You know, three out of three is not bad, you know.

I'd like to say I'm a Championship performer, you know.

I come here, it's all about getting medals. Earlier,

Britain's first Gold had come from wheelchair racer,

Sammi Kinghorn in the 400m, a European Champion at just 18.

With just two years to go until the next Paralympics in Rio,

this week is a chance for Britain's athletes to prove themselves.

It's also a chance for the British fans to show that their appetite

for para sport hasn't faded. It certainly hadn't

at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where Paralympic stars,

like Aled Davis, performed alongside their Olympic counterparts.

But exclusively disability sport events, like this,

remain a harder sell. For all the progress,

there's still not parity. We're still a long way

from being the same as able-bodied. At least we're heading

in the right direction. This is just another steppingstone

and it's up to Rio now to try and fuel the fire of Paralympic

sport and hoping it will grow. People want to see Paralympic sport

these days, that is the main thing. They do have a tough act to follow.

COMMENTATOR: It's Gold for Great Britain.

Last week, Britain's able-bodied team enjoyed their best

European Championships ever. Now it's up to

the para-athletes to round off a golden summer in glittering style.

Andy Swiss, BBC News, Swansea. The First World War play War Horse

has been seen by nearly six million people in theatres around the world.

But now it's about to take one of its biggest steps yet, into China.

The National Theatre has begun a collaboration to translate

the play into Chinese and to produce the show with

an entirely Chinese cast and crew. Our China editor, Carrie Gracie,

reports. China has had puppets for hundreds

of years, but nothing like this. Getting under the skin of the

War Horse. The National Theatre's big star,

Joey, is taking his first steps in China.

He won't be ready to meet his Chinese public for a year.

But these are the actors who'll bring him to life.

Small steps, but loads of effort. Training them presents new

challenges for a British puppeteer. I think sometimes there's a fear

of getting it wrong. And, I think, there's a desire,

strong desire, to get it right from the very beginning,

which is impossible with puppetry. My approach is to get in the room

and play, make mistakes, discover things through trial and error.

For the National Theatre of China, this is a rehearsal unlike any

they've done before. TRANSLATION:

Every morning I get up early feeling like a newborn.

I know I'm going to learn new things.

It's exciting. TRANSLATION:

The British trainers make us learn from our own experience

and feelings, not like Chinese teachers who say - do it like this,

and do it like that. China has thousands

of new theatres and the old communist culture of bussing

in an obedient audience is over. So it needs lots of shows that are

compelling enough to sell these seats, but not so challenging as

to upset the government's senses. Cue the story of a Devon farm boy

and his horse, fighting impossible odds in the First World War.

For everyone involved, there's a lot riding on this production.

So everywhere it's the Year of the Horse, but here it's

the year of the War Horse. Carrie Gracie, BBC News, Beijing.

Time for a look at the weather, here's Alex Deakin.

Today looked warmer than it felt. I suspect it was chilly on top of the

Peak District where this beautiful photograph was taken. The cold theme

continues, chilly over night tonight for the time of year. Why so cold?

The air is coming down from the north. These brisk breezes bringing

a few showers around at the moment. The showers fade, as do the winds.

Under the clear skies, those temperatures are going to drop.

Towns and cities just about staying in double digits. Spin the values

around to show the temperatures in rural areas and widely down to

single digits. A few places down to two or three degrees. A cold start

tomorrow morning. A few will start off with sunshine. Showers to Wales

and south-west England. More will be scattered about during the afternoon

across Northern Ireland, one or two developing further south as well.

The showers will be scattered and there will be a fair bit of

sunshine. The winds will be a touch lighter tomorrow. Temperatures are

still only going to reach about 17-18 or 19 degrees Celsius. Lower

than that if you catch one or two of these showers. There will be some

across the Midlands and Wales. Not too many across northern England.

Scattering of showers for Northern Ireland. Largely dry for the central

belt of Scotland. Maybe later in the day persistent rain to the far

north-west. A weather system which moves south on Thursday. O cloudier

day to southern Scotland, Northern Ireland, the far north of England.

That is where most of the showers will be. In the south a chance of

seeing sunshine, temperatures in the teens. Feeling cooler where it's

cloudier further north. Friday, low pressure will pull away. Chilly with

a sprinkling of showers. Behind me, this little bump is high pressure

which promises many of us a fine start to the weekend.

That's all from the BBC News at Six, so it's goodbye from me,

and