:00:00. > :00:00.Good evening and welcome to the BBC News at Six.
:00:07. > :00:09.The former England footballer, Adam Johnson, has been found guilty
:00:10. > :00:16.The jury at Bradford Crown Court found him not guilty of one count
:00:17. > :00:19.but the judge said he almost certainly faces a prison sentence.
:00:20. > :00:23.The case relates to a meeting between 28-year-old Johnson
:00:24. > :00:29.Our correspondent Ed Thomas has been following the trial for us and he's
:00:30. > :00:42.As the word guilty was read out in court there was no reaction from
:00:43. > :00:47.Adam Johnson. He just stared straight forward. Earlier he told
:00:48. > :00:51.jurors his life was a boyhood dream and said he had more money than he
:00:52. > :00:59.knew what to do with. He left this place is a convicted child sex
:01:00. > :01:06.attacker. He was a ?10 million England for the dollar. In his own
:01:07. > :01:11.words, Adam Johnson said that he was a rich, arrogant man. Things can
:01:12. > :01:18.easily he said, but one might driven by boredom he was alone with a
:01:19. > :01:23.15-year-old girl. He met the child here in a car park. Sunderland
:01:24. > :01:26.fanatic, she idolised Adam Johnson. Inside his Range Rover to prove she
:01:27. > :01:38.had met a hero, she recorded their meeting. Innocent football talk but
:01:39. > :01:43.what came next was a sexual offence against a child. What happened in
:01:44. > :01:47.his car has turned my life upside down. The statement read by police
:01:48. > :01:52.was written by the 15-year-old victim. I lost all my confidence and
:01:53. > :01:57.my schoolwork has suffered. There are people who have made assumptions
:01:58. > :02:02.about me and this alone has been hard to deal with. I have been
:02:03. > :02:05.unable to defend myself publicly. Adam Johnson knew the schoolgirl
:02:06. > :02:11.adored him, he sent hundreds of messages. In one message she asked,
:02:12. > :02:15.would you go out. She answered I'm not old enough to go out. Adam
:02:16. > :02:19.Johnson replied yes but you look old enough. After the secret meeting he
:02:20. > :02:25.message, that was class, just wanted to get good genes of. It was
:02:26. > :02:29.described in court as classic grooming. When Johnson was arrested
:02:30. > :02:37.detective said that he shook with fear. And consider his employers,
:02:38. > :02:40.Sunderland football club. On May the force of 2016 Adam Johnson was
:02:41. > :02:43.called in for a meeting. In that the court heard he admitted kissing and
:02:44. > :02:52.grooming the child. But his suspension was lifted and he was
:02:53. > :02:58.allowed to play. Again and again the footballer walked out to represent
:02:59. > :03:04.Sunderland. Despite those private confessions, in public, to the fans,
:03:05. > :03:07.Johnson denied he'd grunt and kissed the girl. The court was told every
:03:08. > :03:12.time Adam Johnson went onto the pitch the 15-year-old girl suffered
:03:13. > :03:17.excruciating pain. A year she was called a liar. And at one stage she
:03:18. > :03:26.broke down and told her father she wanted to die. Some supporters feel
:03:27. > :03:30.cheated. At first he did nothing wrong and then just lied to his
:03:31. > :03:36.fans, to everyone. Would you have supported him if you had known what
:03:37. > :03:39.he did. No. Would you wanted them on the pitch was no. You've never
:03:40. > :03:44.apologised to the 15-year-old girl, will you do it now to mark no
:03:45. > :03:48.apologies from Adam Johnson. Outside court or insight. The millionaire
:03:49. > :03:56.footballer who thought that he could do what he wanted.
:03:57. > :03:59.This trial has exposed a darker side to football and there was this
:04:00. > :04:03.intense focus. What Sunderland football club new or did not know
:04:04. > :04:07.the top we had a detailed statement from the club and in it are
:04:08. > :04:11.preferred to be main meeting and say in the meeting Adam Johnson did not
:04:12. > :04:15.indicate that he was going to plead guilty to any of the charges. The
:04:16. > :04:20.statement goes on to say if they had known they would have sacked Adam
:04:21. > :04:23.Johnson on the spot. As for this former footballer, he will be back
:04:24. > :04:24.in court to be sentenced. He has been warned by the judge to expect
:04:25. > :04:29.jail. The busiest day in America's
:04:30. > :04:31.long election trail - so called Super Tuesday -
:04:32. > :04:33.has left Donald Trump for the Republicans and Hilary
:04:34. > :04:36.Clinton for the Democratic Party as the clear front runners to go
:04:37. > :04:39.head to head for the White House Our North American Editor Jon Sopel
:04:40. > :04:43.has been following both candidates The next president
:04:44. > :04:55.of the United States! Campaigning in Ohio,
:04:56. > :05:10.he had the air of a man the elements might throw at him,
:05:11. > :05:12.was going to prevail. So at his victory party
:05:13. > :05:14.last night in Florida, I know people are going to find that
:05:15. > :05:20.a little bit hard to believe, I think we're going
:05:21. > :05:29.to be more unified. I think we're going to be
:05:30. > :05:31.able to unify the party. I hope to be able to get
:05:32. > :05:34.along with everybody. And on some key policies
:05:35. > :05:36.like immigration, he seemed to be But it was the Republican Party
:05:37. > :05:40.leadership he was most notably And yes, his new
:05:41. > :05:43.favourite word again. I would love to see
:05:44. > :05:46.the Republican Party and everybody And when we unify there's nobody,
:05:47. > :05:50.nobody, that is going to beat us. This has been toned down,
:05:51. > :05:58.much more conciliatory Donald Trump at his news conference,
:05:59. > :06:00.stressing that he is a unifier Gone were the sharp
:06:01. > :06:05.attacks on his rivals. It is almost as though
:06:06. > :06:08.he is looking beyond this process to when he is the
:06:09. > :06:10.Republican nominee. This man is arithmetically best
:06:11. > :06:27.place. Senator Ted Cruz won 3 states last
:06:28. > :06:30.night and to the other anti-Trump So long as the field remains
:06:31. > :06:35.divided, Donald Trump's past to the nomination
:06:36. > :06:41.remains more likely. And that would be
:06:42. > :06:43.a disaster for Republicans. For conservatives
:06:44. > :06:44.and for the nation. But after super Tuesday
:06:45. > :06:47.it is washed up Wednesday. And there are no signs whatsoever
:06:48. > :06:50.that any of the other Republicans Which all but guarantees
:06:51. > :06:58.Donald Trump's path. On the Democratic side,
:06:59. > :07:11.Hillary Clinton swept the south and halted the advance
:07:12. > :07:18.of Bernie Sanders. He was an afterthought
:07:19. > :07:21.in her speech. Instead this was about getting
:07:22. > :07:23.Donald Trump and ridiculing his
:07:24. > :07:25.slogan, make America great again. Nothing is settled yet
:07:26. > :07:31.but increasingly it is looking like it will be Clinton versus Trump
:07:32. > :07:33.for the White House. And who would have guessed that
:07:34. > :07:48.scenario a year ago? We can talk to John supple now. What
:07:49. > :07:53.does the success of Donald Trump say about American politics? If you read
:07:54. > :07:56.the financial pages and nothing else you would see the growth rate is up
:07:57. > :08:02.in America, unemployment is down. You talk to Americans and you sense
:08:03. > :08:05.this seething anger that somehow life has got really tough for them.
:08:06. > :08:09.Since the financial crisis things have got harder and the cornerstone
:08:10. > :08:13.of the American dream, social mobility, the idea that anyone can
:08:14. > :08:17.go from humble beginnings to the White House, has come to a halt.
:08:18. > :08:22.Playing into that, brilliantly, has been Donald Trump, the
:08:23. > :08:25.anti-politician politician. Just look at the turnout figures were
:08:26. > :08:30.yesterday, on the Republican side way up, driven by Donald Trump and
:08:31. > :08:35.his candidacy. On the Democratic side labour way down. So what you
:08:36. > :08:40.have is blue-collar America turning in the most unlikely circumstances
:08:41. > :08:44.to billionaire who was born into a wealthy family and the American
:08:45. > :08:46.people putting their hope with him. Because they're so disgusted with
:08:47. > :08:50.Washington politics as a whole. The government has rejected calls
:08:51. > :08:53.for the Meningitis B vaccine to be given to children of all ages -
:08:54. > :08:56.saying it would not More than 800,000 people have
:08:57. > :08:59.now signed a petition calling for the jab -
:09:00. > :09:02.currently given to babies - to be extended to children at least
:09:03. > :09:15.up to the age of 11. David Cameron says the government
:09:16. > :09:15.will continue to look at all the evidence.
:09:16. > :09:18.The European Union has announced an emergency aid programme to help
:09:19. > :09:20.countries in Europe cope with the migrant crisis.
:09:21. > :09:22.The plan will see 700 million euros, normally used for overseas
:09:23. > :09:24.emergencies, spent in countries with a growing number
:09:25. > :09:28.Thousands of asylum seekers remain trapped on the country's
:09:29. > :09:37.The government has set out a new assessment of the dangers it
:09:38. > :09:39.says the UK will face if it leaves the EU.
:09:40. > :09:42.The report gives a range of alternatives to EU membership,
:09:43. > :09:44.and concludes they would all be damaging.
:09:45. > :09:46.The Conservative Cabinet minister, Iain Duncan Smith -
:09:47. > :09:50.who wants Britain to leave the EU - has dismissed it as a "dodgy
:09:51. > :09:53.Our deputy political editor James Landale looks at both sides
:09:54. > :10:10.Just imagine. It is eight o'clock. The headlines. United Kingdom has
:10:11. > :10:15.voted to leave the European Union. What if we wait to headlines like
:10:16. > :10:20.that after the referendum in June, what would it mean for the UK
:10:21. > :10:23.economy? Today the Foreign Secretary set out a series of possible
:10:24. > :10:29.answers. Options that he claimed would cost jobs and push up prices.
:10:30. > :10:33.None of the options that are remotely likely to be deliverable
:10:34. > :10:37.comes close to matching the deal that we already have on the table.
:10:38. > :10:43.While would-be take a leap in the dark? Why would we risk the effect
:10:44. > :10:48.of years of uncertainty on the British economy as a mark in this
:10:49. > :10:52.dossier the government sets out several possible alternatives. If
:10:53. > :10:56.the UK copied Norway it would get significant access to the EU single
:10:57. > :11:02.market had no say over the rules and it would have Depay the EU budget.
:11:03. > :11:06.If it copied Switzerland, the UK would get access to some EU markets
:11:07. > :11:09.through hundreds of complex deals but it too would have to pay for the
:11:10. > :11:15.privilege and accept EU citizens across its borders. If the UK copied
:11:16. > :11:20.Canada it would get a free trade agreement with the EU, avoiding red
:11:21. > :11:23.tape and demands for cash. But there will be less access to EU markets
:11:24. > :11:27.and it could take years before the deal is agreed. Or the UK could just
:11:28. > :11:33.fall back on basic rules laid down by the World Trade Organisation with
:11:34. > :11:36.no obligations to the EU, but potentially excepting trade tariffs
:11:37. > :11:41.that could force prices at home. Downing Street published a document
:11:42. > :11:44.to focus attention on what it sees as the uncertainty involved in
:11:45. > :11:48.leaving the EU and to try to force its opponents to talk about
:11:49. > :11:51.something they would rather avoid. But ministers campaigning to leave
:11:52. > :11:58.the EU say this is just another dodgy dossier of scaremongering and
:11:59. > :12:00.would fool no one. Back in the 1990s David Cameron worked for Norman
:12:01. > :12:06.Lamont during another European crisis. Today the former Chancellor
:12:07. > :12:11.said his one-time protege had got it wrong. And the UK should leave the
:12:12. > :12:16.EU. Why will the leave campaign not spell out the what wrecks it would
:12:17. > :12:20.mean to the British economy and its trading relations with the EU? That
:12:21. > :12:27.you cannot spell out every single detail of which sectors will be
:12:28. > :12:32.affected in each way. But the UK will get and needs in the event of
:12:33. > :12:37.Brexit, a special trade arrangement, giving full tariff free access to
:12:38. > :12:42.the single market. That is easily negotiable. For this reason. The EU
:12:43. > :12:47.needs access to us every bit as much as we need access to them. But the
:12:48. > :12:52.Prime Minister of Norway told the BBC there would be a price to pay.
:12:53. > :12:56.One that her country had paid. To believe that you will get everything
:12:57. > :13:05.you want and not give anything back at that does not happen. Basically
:13:06. > :13:08.we have left part of our democracy to Europe. Few here at Westminster
:13:09. > :13:12.think Norway is a plausible model for the UK outside the EU but the
:13:13. > :13:16.debate about what might be has only just begun.
:13:17. > :13:21.The former England footballer Adam Johnson is found guilty
:13:22. > :13:24.of sexual activity with a 15-year-old girl.
:13:25. > :13:33.Coronation Street actors pay tribute to its creator,
:13:34. > :13:52.Coming up on Sportsday. Allan Gibb -- Olympic cycling champion Victoria
:13:53. > :13:54.Pendleton has won her first race just a year after her first riding
:13:55. > :14:00.lesson. What's a game of school rugby
:14:01. > :14:03.without the all-important tackle. A lot safer according to a group
:14:04. > :14:06.of doctors and health experts. They've written an open letter
:14:07. > :14:09.to ministers saying the tackle should be banned because it can
:14:10. > :14:12.lead to serious injury. The Department for Education says
:14:13. > :14:15.schools should provide a safe environment for pupils
:14:16. > :14:18.to play sports. We've asked one of the health
:14:19. > :14:21.experts, Professor Allyson Pollock, and the former England
:14:22. > :14:23.international, Matt Perry, They include fractures,
:14:24. > :14:46.dislocated shoulders, ligamentous tears, concussion,
:14:47. > :14:48.head trauma and also So we are talking about serious
:14:49. > :14:54.injuries which also require quite a lot of time off school
:14:55. > :14:57.and away from sport. Tackling is a fundamental part
:14:58. > :15:01.of what makes rugby. No one goes into a game of rugby,
:15:02. > :15:08.or shouldn't if they are living the values of respect,
:15:09. > :15:12.to go and hurt anyone else, but rugby
:15:13. > :15:14.is competitive and physical. The contact part has
:15:15. > :15:23.been going for years. We can wake up in the morning,
:15:24. > :15:28.and with the knowledge and data we have now,
:15:29. > :15:35.with Google, we can ask, how can I get out of bed and
:15:36. > :15:38.manage risk today? And we will properly get
:15:39. > :15:40.an answer, and we can think, I agree there is a correlation
:15:41. > :15:48.between the data and some long-term effects, but the risk is owned
:15:49. > :15:51.by the parents and If they take the responsibility,
:15:52. > :15:54.they should crack on. There is very good evidence to show
:15:55. > :15:57.that a child who has been concussed is much more likely to be concussed
:15:58. > :16:00.again, and that children take longer to recover from concussion or head
:16:01. > :16:26.trauma than adults do. We are advocating that tag rugby
:16:27. > :16:28.replaces contact rugby, because most of the injuries
:16:29. > :16:30.occurred during contact, more than 90% occur
:16:31. > :16:34.during the collision or contact phase, we are saying that you have
:16:35. > :16:37.to take that out and make it tag rugby
:16:38. > :16:39.if we are going to keep our children safe and protect them
:16:40. > :16:41.from avoidable injuries. We need quality coaches,
:16:42. > :16:44.and a great opportunity from the RFU from the World Cup,
:16:45. > :16:47.and there is a great number of kids coming into the game,
:16:48. > :16:49.loving the game. To take away that contact element
:16:50. > :16:51.for competitive kids, I think we'll lose a great cultural
:16:52. > :16:59.game in this country. Two opposing views there -
:17:00. > :17:04.on rugby in schools. Scotland's first minister,
:17:05. > :17:07.Nicola Sturgeon, has announced plans to reform the council tax if the SNP
:17:08. > :17:10.wins the next Holyrood People living in more expensive
:17:11. > :17:15.homes would face higher charges, and a nine-year council
:17:16. > :17:19.tax freeze would end. Critics say the package fell well
:17:20. > :17:21.short of expectations. Our Scotland Editor
:17:22. > :17:38.Sarah Smith reports. A lesson today in home economics for
:17:39. > :17:41.First Minister Nicola Sturgeon at a school near Edinburgh. She announced
:17:42. > :17:45.a council tax revamp that will see some bills go up by hundreds of
:17:46. > :17:49.pounds. The money raised, ?100 million, she says will go to
:17:50. > :17:53.education. It is part of what is a balanced approach, asking people at
:17:54. > :17:56.the top to pay a bit more, helping reduce the burden on those at the
:17:57. > :18:02.bottom. Also making sure that we generate additional revenue and
:18:03. > :18:05.ensuring that additional revenue is investigated -- invested in school.
:18:06. > :18:10.At present people in the most expensive homes in Scotland paid
:18:11. > :18:13.three times what was charged and the least valuable properties but
:18:14. > :18:17.they're worth 15 times more. Under the SNP plans household in the top
:18:18. > :18:23.for council tax band will pay more from next April. Increases of
:18:24. > :18:27.between ?105 a year up to over ?500. Councils will also be able to raise
:18:28. > :18:34.taxes across the board by 3% every year.
:18:35. > :18:36.Councils have complained they cannot pay for local services as the
:18:37. > :18:39.Scottish Government has prevented them putting up the council tax for
:18:40. > :18:44.the past eight years. From next year though around a
:18:45. > :18:46.quarter of Scottish households will find that they are paying more for
:18:47. > :18:53.council tax. Unbelievable. ?10 a week is ?500 a
:18:54. > :18:57.year and that is from your net income. It is a lot of money to
:18:58. > :19:02.find. It will put a lot of people over the edge. I work part time so
:19:03. > :19:06.it is quite a big ask. Quite a bit of extra money for that. It depends
:19:07. > :19:10.what we get from many. It might be difficult to find the money for
:19:11. > :19:16.that. At the end of the day everyone has got to pay their way and do
:19:17. > :19:19.their share. This is a clear signal from the SNP that if they win the
:19:20. > :19:22.Scottish elections in May, better off Scots are going to have to start
:19:23. > :19:26.paying more. And not just the council tax increase, there are also
:19:27. > :19:32.likely to say they put up the top rate of income tax as well.
:19:33. > :19:35.Council workers have clashed with the Scottish Government over their
:19:36. > :19:39.funding for this year. They will now get more money next year but do not
:19:40. > :19:44.think the plans are radical enough. I'm surprised that so little has
:19:45. > :19:47.been announced from the point of view of just adjusting the bands. It
:19:48. > :19:51.looks to be tinkering around the edges. The SNP had promised a more
:19:52. > :19:56.radical rethink of local taxes but those plans have been shelved now.
:19:57. > :19:58.The tax landscape in Scotland is changing gradually.
:19:59. > :20:01.A brief look at some of the day's other other news stories.
:20:02. > :20:04.The Ministry of Defence is to be censured over the deaths of three
:20:05. > :20:07.soldiers on an SAS training exercise in the Brecon Beacons,
:20:08. > :20:14.The Health and Safety Executive said that had it not been for Crown
:20:15. > :20:18.immunity, the MoD would have faced prosecution.
:20:19. > :20:21.50-year-old Jason Lawrence from Hampshire has been found guilty
:20:22. > :20:24.of raping five women and attacking two more after meeting them
:20:25. > :20:27.on the internet dating site Match.com.
:20:28. > :20:32.Police described Lawrence as a "sexual predator".
:20:33. > :20:35.A friend of a teenager accused of murdering a pupil at a school
:20:36. > :20:38.in Aberdeen has told the city's High Court that his friend had
:20:39. > :20:42.knives and knuckle-dusters because he thought they were cool.
:20:43. > :20:45.16-year-old Bailey Gwynne was killed after a fight broke out
:20:46. > :20:54.They call him the father of Coronation Street -
:20:55. > :20:57.Tony Warren - the man who created the UK's longest running soap -
:20:58. > :21:02.He came up with the idea at the age of 24 and remained a consultant
:21:03. > :21:04.on the soap for the rest of his life.
:21:05. > :21:06.Colleagues and friends have described him as a pioneer
:21:07. > :21:18.Our correspondent Judith Moritz looks back at his life.
:21:19. > :21:25.Coronation Street is all right. There are some you have to watch. It
:21:26. > :21:28.was an exposed to every six weeks but Coronation Street has become the
:21:29. > :21:36.world's longest-running TV soap. It was all the idea of one man. Local
:21:37. > :21:40.lad Tony Warren was just 24 when he wrote the first episodes. He is
:21:41. > :21:44.credited with bringing the so-called kitchen-sink drama to our TV
:21:45. > :21:50.screens. Get out of here before I get my rag
:21:51. > :21:54.out! I grew up in a matriarchal world. The man will always work on
:21:55. > :21:59.war so I was surrounded by strong women. When the men came back the
:22:00. > :22:02.women carried on being strong. Those characters just keep repeating
:22:03. > :22:07.themselves, they are iconic. Helen Worth has played Gayle on the street
:22:08. > :22:12.for 42 years and she feels that she owes a debt of thanks to Tony
:22:13. > :22:15.Warren. There would not be soap is not for Tony Warren. The lives of
:22:16. > :22:19.actors would not have had employment. If it was not for Tony
:22:20. > :22:25.Warren. They cut their teeth on this programme. Viewers at home would not
:22:26. > :22:29.have been watching, laughing and crying with us if not for Tony
:22:30. > :22:36.Warren. What a mega legacy he has left behind. Although Tony Warren
:22:37. > :22:43.also wrote novels and film scripts, he never strayed far from TV's most
:22:44. > :22:46.famous street. Year on the set they stop work today as a mark of respect
:22:47. > :22:51.for Tony Warren who was still closely involved in the soap nifty
:22:52. > :22:54.six years after he created it. He often spent time here in the studio
:22:55. > :22:58.is advising on storylines and spending time with the cast and crew
:22:59. > :23:05.that he considered to be his TV family.
:23:06. > :23:10.The stars Tony Warren helped create have paid tribute to him today. He
:23:11. > :23:15.has been called a pioneer, a revolutionary, and a giant of
:23:16. > :23:19.British television. Tony Warren who died today aged 79.
:23:20. > :23:31.I have better news for tomorrow. Today many of us will be glad to see
:23:32. > :23:35.the back of today because it has been so cold, really strong wind,
:23:36. > :23:42.blown to bits by those gusty showers. Pretty dramatic scenes of
:23:43. > :23:47.clouds sent in to us. That is where the air sinks at the top of the
:23:48. > :23:52.cloud. Tomorrow pure showers and the wind lighter. Today we had gale
:23:53. > :23:57.force winds of up to 70 miles an hour in the south-west of the UK
:23:58. > :24:02.briefly. Tonight, icy patches in the north of the country, we had so many
:24:03. > :24:06.showers, there is a lot of damp out there so take it steady first thing
:24:07. > :24:11.if you're travelling. Not so cold in the South first thing in the morning
:24:12. > :24:15.and then tomorrow, fewer of these white arrows, so a larger wind, a
:24:16. > :24:19.bit more sunshine and a completely dry day. Some wintry showers almost
:24:20. > :24:24.anywhere but more often than not the weather will be dry and just that
:24:25. > :24:27.bit more is on. There to Friday, we see a bit of a change once again.
:24:28. > :24:34.This weather system is going to bring some sleet and snow for a
:24:35. > :24:37.time. We're talking about murder in England, the Midlands, into Wales as
:24:38. > :24:44.well. Thursday night into Friday. This is where the areas of white
:24:45. > :24:47.will be. It could be a bit further north or south but the broad
:24:48. > :24:51.messages through this part of the country, just be prepared on Friday
:24:52. > :24:57.morning rush hour for some tricky conditions. Still staying cold later
:24:58. > :25:03.on Friday afternoon, 4 degrees in Yorkshire. If you're travelling,
:25:04. > :25:07.Friday evening, the band of wet weather with the sleet and snow
:25:08. > :25:10.still with us across the south of the country. Here is the forecast
:25:11. > :25:16.for the weekend, blue arrows coming from the north. Have a guess!
:25:17. > :25:21.- so it's goodbye from me - and on BBC One we now join the BBC's