:00:19. > :00:22.Good evening. This is BBC Newsline with Donna Traynor. The headlines:
:00:22. > :00:24.Tomorrow bus drivers and thousands of other public sector workers
:00:24. > :00:29.strike over pensions, but after today's Autumn Statement, should
:00:29. > :00:39.they be worried about pay cuts? I'll have the latest.
:00:39. > :00:44.
:00:44. > :00:48.Also on the programme tonight: Police warn Peter Hain his computer
:00:48. > :00:51.may have been hacked while he was Northern Ireland Secretary.
:00:51. > :00:55.Clerical abuse in County Donegal - are decades of dark secrets about
:00:55. > :01:04.to be revealed? Dead and starving animals are
:01:05. > :01:11.discovered on a farm in County Antrim.
:01:11. > :01:14.I am life at the Oval for the first local Cup final of the season.
:01:14. > :01:19.Tomorrow sees the biggest strike by workers in public services in a
:01:19. > :01:22.generation. Refuse collectors, school principals, tax inspectors,
:01:22. > :01:32.members from various unions will be protesting over changes to their
:01:32. > :01:32.
:01:32. > :01:36.pensions. But they did not expect today's news about their pay. That
:01:36. > :01:43.will be squeezed for at least the next three years. And there could
:01:43. > :01:46.be worse to come. Jim Fitzpatrick is at the Europa Bus Station. There
:01:46. > :01:56.will be no buses running from there tomorrow because of the strike. Jim,
:01:56. > :01:57.
:01:57. > :02:02.first, pensions. Now pay is hit? Yes, and it is not just bus drivers.
:02:02. > :02:08.There are 230,000 public sector workers in Northern Ireland and
:02:08. > :02:14.what they learn today is that after the pay freeze comes the 1% rise in
:02:14. > :02:19.pay until 2015. With inflation of 5%, that is a real terms of pay
:02:19. > :02:29.cuts. The real surprise was a review of public sector pay across
:02:29. > :02:33.the UK which could lead to regional pay rates. That was a surprise.
:02:33. > :02:40.That is a bolt out of the blue. Public sector workers are now faced
:02:40. > :02:43.with a further freeze on their pay up around 1% increase, and then
:02:43. > :02:48.there being local pay bargaining is something that seems to have come
:02:48. > :02:54.out of the blue. So, why would regional pay rates in Northern
:02:54. > :02:58.Ireland mean cuts in pay? The reason perhaps is the difference
:02:58. > :03:04.what people get paid in the public sector and in the private sector.
:03:04. > :03:09.The median wage for a private sector worker in Northern Ireland
:03:09. > :03:14.his �20,000. The median wage for a public sector worker is just over
:03:14. > :03:19.�29,000. That is a difference of more than 40 %. It doesn't mean
:03:19. > :03:23.that people are going to slash people's pay rates, but it does
:03:23. > :03:27.suggest that if they want to ginger kid the pressure will be to bring
:03:27. > :03:31.it downwards. Last night Sammy Wilson said that he feared that
:03:31. > :03:39.they often a statement would signal a cut in money from Westminster to
:03:39. > :03:42.Stormont. It seems his fears were unfounded. Yes, indeed. We thought
:03:42. > :03:46.perhaps from what the finance minister said that we could be
:03:46. > :03:51.seeing a cut in the budgets for Stormont of a hundred and �50
:03:51. > :03:56.million, but it now looks like Stormont could get up to �200
:03:56. > :04:00.million extra for things like roads and infrastructure. It is all in
:04:00. > :04:10.how you do the calculations. But at least is one piece of good news
:04:10. > :04:12.has a comprehensive Question & Answer page about the issues around
:04:12. > :04:15.tomorrow's strike. You can find it at www.bbbc.co.uk/ninews. There has
:04:15. > :04:23.been a lot of discussion about the strike on out BBC Newsline Facebook
:04:23. > :04:26.page. There's the address if you want to join in. Tomorrow, if you
:04:27. > :04:36.want to get in touch with us about the strike, use our Twitter account
:04:37. > :04:39.
:04:39. > :04:42.A retired senior police officer who urged the Ombudsman not to use the
:04:42. > :04:49.term collusion in a report published last year has been re-
:04:49. > :04:52.employed by the PSNI to help it deal with the past. The former
:04:52. > :04:53.Acting Assistant Chief Constable had retired with a generous Patten
:04:53. > :05:03.redundancy package. Our Home Affairs Correspondent, Vincent
:05:03. > :05:08.
:05:08. > :05:11.Collusion for some is a controversial words, but it has
:05:11. > :05:16.been used in some reports by the Police Ombudsman's Office to
:05:16. > :05:20.describe the actions of some RUC officers. Its use has provoked
:05:20. > :05:24.protests by former police officers and Unionist politicians. At the
:05:24. > :05:28.same time, nationalist politicians have said he should have been used
:05:28. > :05:34.more often. We have learnt that last year a former senior PSNI
:05:34. > :05:38.officer wrote to the ombudsman protesting at the proposed use of
:05:38. > :05:44.the term and a report on a 1972 Claudy bombing in which nine people
:05:44. > :05:48.were killed its when three IRA car bombs exploded without warning. The
:05:48. > :05:52.report said the police had colluded with the Catholic Church to cover
:05:52. > :05:57.up the suspected role of a priest. The letter to the ombudsman was
:05:57. > :06:00.written by Mark McDowell who at that time was an acting assistant
:06:00. > :06:04.chief constable. He told the Ombudsman to grip issue with the
:06:04. > :06:10.use of the term collusion and criticised the way it was used by
:06:10. > :06:14.the previous ombudsman, Nuala O'Lone, something which he said had
:06:14. > :06:17.undermined the credibility of the Special Branch. Pointing out that
:06:17. > :06:22.Al Hutchinson had said there was no single accepted definition of
:06:22. > :06:26.collusion, he asked what was the point in using the term at all? He
:06:26. > :06:29.went on to say, surely the Police Ombudsman has a public
:06:30. > :06:35.responsibility to refrain from using what he called loosely
:06:35. > :06:39.defined language which may be widely misinterpreted. Nuala O'Lone
:06:39. > :06:44.rejected the criticism during an interview for a programme which
:06:44. > :06:49.examined the work of the ombudsman's office. That is clearly
:06:49. > :06:58.untrue. For that reason, I did not get their own definition of
:06:59. > :07:02.collusion. The framework was said very well for examination of police
:07:02. > :07:06.behaviour and there is a duty on the Police Ombudsman to examine
:07:06. > :07:11.that behaviour because collusion is a form of corruption. There was no
:07:11. > :07:19.loose language, I was very careful. The letter angered the former
:07:19. > :07:25.executive with the Police Ombudsman. Speaking in an interview for
:07:25. > :07:29.Spotlight he said. It was a very significant letter. I would have
:07:29. > :07:35.described it as a courageous. It was an attack on the independence
:07:35. > :07:41.of the Office as well as a very inappropriate attack on the
:07:41. > :07:43.previous ombudsman. Mark Michael Holt retired from the police
:07:43. > :07:49.earlier this year with the redundancy package. We have learnt
:07:49. > :07:54.that he has since been we hired to work for the PSNI's legacy Branch
:07:54. > :07:59.that deals with the past, including requests from investigators working
:07:59. > :08:03.for the Police Ombudsman. The PSNI tonight said the suggestion that it
:08:03. > :08:08.had attempted to undermine the independence of the Ombudsman of
:08:08. > :08:13.this was incorrect, as the contents of all public reports is the matter
:08:13. > :08:16.for the ombudsman a loan. It said the PSNI has a responsibility to
:08:16. > :08:19.challenge matters of fact and inaccuracies in any report produced
:08:19. > :08:23.by the ombudsman's office and pointed out that in the vast
:08:23. > :08:30.majority of cases it has agreed with recommendations made by the
:08:30. > :08:32.ombudsman. Regarding the employment of former police officers, the PSNI
:08:32. > :08:35.said hypocrites all staff in accordance with current employment
:08:35. > :08:38.legislation. The Secretary of State, Owen
:08:38. > :08:41.Paterson, is playing down fears of a national security breach after
:08:41. > :08:43.claims a predecessor's laptop computer may have been hacked. The
:08:43. > :08:45.Guardian newspaper says private detectives working for News
:08:45. > :08:47.International were responsible for hacking Peter Hain's computer when
:08:47. > :08:57.he was in Northern Ireland. Here's our political correspondent Gareth
:08:57. > :09:04.
:09:04. > :09:08.I don't want to muck up the party meetings. I want them all in today.
:09:08. > :09:15.Peter Hain's time in Northern Ireland sot the IRA ended its
:09:15. > :09:18.campaign and decommission its weapons. He left after devolution
:09:18. > :09:22.was restored in 2007. The Levison inquiry is currently hearing
:09:22. > :09:28.allegations that elements of the tabloid press hacked the phones of
:09:28. > :09:32.well-known people, but claims that Peter Hain's laptop was hacked may
:09:32. > :09:38.raise the stakes even higher. these allegations are true, they
:09:39. > :09:43.are the most serious revelations so far in the hacking scandal. They go
:09:43. > :09:51.to the very heart of the intelligence security. - - National
:09:51. > :10:01.Security. The claims came out the day after this man appeared before
:10:01. > :10:05.
:10:05. > :10:11.the hacking inquiry. Getting information on informers is
:10:11. > :10:17.believed to have been the time - - behind the attempt to hack into
:10:17. > :10:21.Peter Hain's laptop. They believe this is part of a wider attempt to
:10:21. > :10:25.have computers at the Northern Ireland Office, one of the game's
:10:25. > :10:29.been they wanted to try to amass one of the informers. So, has
:10:29. > :10:33.anyone else in Northern Ireland been hacked? I think the inquiry
:10:33. > :10:39.must not finish its work until it comes to Northern Ireland and looks
:10:39. > :10:44.into what has happened there, who house has been hacked. Until that
:10:44. > :10:48.work is done, then they will not have completed their work.
:10:48. > :10:51.current Secretary of State was anxious to allay fears about any
:10:51. > :10:54.breach of national security. We are confident the Northern Ireland
:10:54. > :10:57.Office were not involved in this and that no confidential
:10:58. > :11:02.information could have been divulged, but the police inquiry
:11:03. > :11:07.will establish what happened. Hain is saying that only as there
:11:07. > :11:10.is a police investigation on going, could be inappropriate to comment.
:11:10. > :11:13.Still to come on the programme: As the weather starts to turn colder,
:11:13. > :11:17.tips on how to keep your house warm this winter.
:11:17. > :11:25.A freak accident puts one of the Belfast Giants' star players out of
:11:25. > :11:29.Six major reports into the Catholic Church's handling of clerical abuse
:11:29. > :11:32.allegations are due out tomorrow. The National Board for Safeguarding
:11:32. > :11:34.Children, an independent body, is looking at every diocese in Ireland.
:11:34. > :11:37.Tomorrow, the spotlight falls on the northern dioceses of Raphoe,
:11:37. > :11:40.Derry, Dromore and Kilmore. The reports are not expected to give
:11:40. > :11:43.details of individual cases, but will be an audit of how the claims
:11:43. > :11:45.and priests were handled by the church authorities. Tonight, Mervyn
:11:45. > :11:55.Jess focuses on Raphoe and the convicted paedophile Father Eugene
:11:55. > :12:10.
:12:10. > :12:15.Donnie Gaulle in all its glory, but for decades the natural beauty of
:12:15. > :12:18.this region of Ireland has a mass of dark secret that has been
:12:18. > :12:27.lurking under the surface, the sexual abuse of children by
:12:27. > :12:33.Catholic priests. This is the priest he proved a catalyst for the
:12:33. > :12:36.investigations into child sex fest - - a child sex abuse, Father
:12:36. > :12:42.Eugene Greene ministered in several parishes in Donegal from 1970
:12:42. > :12:47.onwards. He abused at least 26 boys, crimes for which he was later
:12:47. > :12:53.convicted and jailed. He has since been released from prison, but for
:12:53. > :12:59.victims of his, the abuse they suffered at his hands feels that a
:12:59. > :13:03.life sentence. One of his victims was a 12-year-old altar boy. Martin
:13:03. > :13:09.Gallagher has agreed to talk about it for the first time on television.
:13:09. > :13:16.He told me how he feels towards their imminent report into alleged
:13:16. > :13:20.sex abuse by other priests. I don't believe it will be the truth,
:13:20. > :13:26.because they have covered up for years, so why should they tell the
:13:26. > :13:31.truth now? They were forced into this. If they weren't, would they
:13:31. > :13:38.do it? Retired detective Martin Ridge was involved in the child sex
:13:38. > :13:45.abuse inquiries by police in Donegal. It was dealing with a mire
:13:45. > :13:51.of horror and of course I believe that some people couldn't live with
:13:51. > :14:00.the pain and they took their own lives and it left a lot of profound
:14:00. > :14:04.broken this, families broken-up and collateral damage was catastrophic.
:14:04. > :14:08.Raphoe is a largely rural community with a deep-seated Catholic faith
:14:08. > :14:12.and there is no doubt that some people look the other way when
:14:12. > :14:16.others are making allegations and every new case opened up old wounds
:14:16. > :14:20.for those victims who have already reached adulthood. There were so
:14:20. > :14:25.many paedophiles out care that are only coming to light at the moment
:14:25. > :14:32.- - out there. That is hard for me to understand, the people did not
:14:32. > :14:35.realise this before. If abuse it it it - - is accepted, validated, then
:14:35. > :14:40.people might be able to deal with that, but hiding it is not an
:14:40. > :14:44.option any more. There have already been reports that this or that have
:14:44. > :14:49.discovered at the start the 20 priests were involved in the sexual
:14:50. > :14:55.assault of hundreds of people in the Raphoe diocese. These reports
:14:55. > :15:05.have been called inaccurate by the Bishop of Raphoe, who says he has
:15:05. > :15:06.
:15:06. > :15:09.Tomorrow we will have more on those reports into the church's handling
:15:09. > :15:11.of abuse claims. The watchdog that investigates
:15:11. > :15:13.government spending says �2.2 million of taxpayers money was
:15:14. > :15:16.wasted setting up a failed Bioscience and Technology Institute.
:15:16. > :15:24.One of its former directors singled out for criticism has been
:15:24. > :15:31.defending her actions. The institute failed, but only
:15:31. > :15:39.after it had shelled out millions. It spent �357,000 on equipment it
:15:39. > :15:45.did not use. It bought this build their that was unsuitable. It later
:15:45. > :15:49.emerged that a �100,000 fine does the had been paid to locate the
:15:49. > :15:57.building. In should not have happened. There are a lot of estate
:15:57. > :16:02.agent out there. This is not New York, it is Belfast. People know
:16:02. > :16:09.where buildings are available, but someone paid �100,000. It is
:16:09. > :16:14.scandalous. This building was called Harbour Gate at the time and
:16:14. > :16:17.according to the Audit Office report, a member of the border
:16:17. > :16:24.received �25,000, but did not tell the other board members. The money
:16:24. > :16:29.was then paid directly into an overseas bank account. The former
:16:30. > :16:39.board member in question is this business woman. She also once sat
:16:39. > :16:49.on the board of invest an eye. She said today: -- invest Northern
:16:49. > :16:51.
:16:51. > :16:58.The report concluded there had been widespread shortcomings, especially
:16:58. > :17:04.in terms of conflicts of interest. The mayor of Belfast has been
:17:04. > :17:09.criticised by refusing to present a Duke of Edinburgh award to a 14-
:17:09. > :17:14.year-old army cadet. The mayor denied he snubbed the girl last
:17:14. > :17:23.night and said he wanted to avoid raising sensitivities around the
:17:23. > :17:33.issue of the army. In it was not personal and not intended against
:17:33. > :17:36.
:17:36. > :17:42.the young girl. -- it was not. It is a sensitive issue, but in terms
:17:42. > :17:52.of the young cadets. More than 50 starving horses and
:17:52. > :17:54.donkeys have been rescued from a farm in County Antrim. The police
:17:54. > :17:57.say they were met with a heartbreaking scene. The carcases
:17:57. > :17:59.of nine dead animals were discovered in squalid conditions.
:17:59. > :18:02.Our rural affairs correspondent Martin Cassidy has been finding out
:18:02. > :18:06.about the survivors. These are some of the lucky ones. They are
:18:06. > :18:10.survivors of neglect and cruelty. As well as the nine carcasses found
:18:10. > :18:15.on the farm, another for animals were in such poor condition they
:18:15. > :18:18.had to be put down. Weak and emaciated, the lives of some of the
:18:18. > :18:23.other survivors remain in the balance. You can tell by looking at
:18:23. > :18:27.these animals they are in pretty poor condition. They probably have
:18:28. > :18:34.some medical conditions that need to be addressed. We are here to
:18:34. > :18:40.provide that a very treatment and nursing them back to health. Animal
:18:40. > :18:45.welfare organisations are assisting with the rescue. The donkey
:18:45. > :18:50.sanctuary has taken 10 animals and the vet has been sent across to
:18:50. > :18:57.treat the horses and ponies. I lot of the horses were very sick,
:18:57. > :19:03.infectious, dirty noses, dirty eyes. Really miserable and someone near
:19:03. > :19:07.death's door. In fact, we lost a horse yesterday. We have to have
:19:07. > :19:12.him put to sleep, despite a were attempts to keep him alive.
:19:12. > :19:17.Thankfully, this little miniature pony has started to eat again. He
:19:17. > :19:26.is totally emaciated. I can feel his spine. There is no muscled
:19:26. > :19:36.their whatsoever. In fact, this little fellow was less than --
:19:36. > :19:38.
:19:38. > :19:42.weighs less than a collie dog. The people who are responsible for this
:19:42. > :19:44.will be prosecuted. This day last year about a hundred
:19:44. > :19:47.schools were closed and we were experiencing record low
:19:47. > :19:50.temperatures. This week we are looking at how to be prepared if
:19:50. > :19:52.temperatures tumble again. Tonight, in his series of reports, Barra
:19:52. > :19:58.Best has practical advice on safe- guarding your property against the
:19:58. > :20:02.elements. The big freeze last winter took its
:20:02. > :20:07.toll on thousands of homes here. Many suffered water damage because
:20:08. > :20:11.of pipes bursting as before began. It is the last thing at any of us
:20:11. > :20:18.want to face this winter if there is a bitterly cold spell, but there
:20:18. > :20:21.are things we can do to help protect our homes. We had a really
:20:21. > :20:27.busy night. We have never encountered anything like that
:20:27. > :20:35.before. The major thing is not turning yacht heat off if you can
:20:35. > :20:45.avoid it. You need to make sure that any vulnerable pipe works are
:20:45. > :20:49.
:20:49. > :20:52.Installation is important and if you do not have enough, a lot of
:20:52. > :20:57.heat what escape through the roof and in the long term, you will
:20:57. > :21:07.spend more money trying to keep warm. There are a lot of grants
:21:07. > :21:08.
:21:08. > :21:18.available. Some of the installations can be done for free.
:21:18. > :21:23.Installing insulation in the loft is critical. Beyond that, if you an
:21:23. > :21:29.old boiler, it is worth investing in a new one. It is also worth
:21:29. > :21:39.checking out side of your house. Have a look at your roof and check
:21:39. > :21:39.
:21:39. > :21:45.whether your gutters are clear. they are blocked, a lot of water
:21:45. > :21:49.will be held there and it will turn to ice. It will put a lot of weight
:21:49. > :21:53.on the gutters and they could fall down. It could become more
:21:53. > :21:58.expensive to repair it rather than just getting then cleaned now,
:21:58. > :22:01.maintaining them and keeping on top of it. You cannot be prepared for
:22:01. > :22:07.everything, but planning ahead could mean the difference between
:22:07. > :22:10.freezing this festive season and enjoying a winter Wonderland.
:22:10. > :22:13.Tomorrow, Barra will be looking at ways we can help protect ourselves
:22:14. > :22:17.from the elements if we are plunged into a big freeze this year.
:22:17. > :22:27.The first piece of silverware of the local football season is up for
:22:27. > :22:38.
:22:38. > :22:48.grabs tonight. Stephen Watson is We seem to have a problem with the
:22:48. > :22:53.sound there. My apologies. The Republic of Ireland coach
:22:53. > :22:57.Giovanni Trapattoni has signed a new contract. The Italian has
:22:57. > :23:00.guided the Irish to the finals of Euro 2012 next summer. And the new
:23:00. > :23:03.deal means he will be in charge for the Republic's Brazil 2014 World
:23:03. > :23:06.Cup campaign, with Marco Tardelli also staying on as his assistant.
:23:06. > :23:11.The Belfast Giants have compared it to Manchester United losing Wayne
:23:11. > :23:14.Rooney. Benoit Doucet, their star forward, is out for the rest of the
:23:14. > :23:17.season after a freak accident when a referee fell on the Canadian's
:23:17. > :23:27.knee during the game against Braehead on Saturday night. Mark
:23:27. > :23:29.
:23:29. > :23:38.Sidebottom reports. Doucet has been the star turn at
:23:38. > :23:48.the Odyssey arena. He is the leading goalscorer, but he is now
:23:48. > :23:53.reduced to the position of spectator. The pain was really bad.
:23:53. > :23:59.I heard a pop. I told the referee to get off of me, my knee was
:23:59. > :24:04.broken. I was mad and then sad. Now I am just dealing with it. I just
:24:04. > :24:10.want to come back and play next year. That is my main goal.
:24:10. > :24:20.Needless to say, the Belfast Giants bus is less sanguine. For the
:24:20. > :24:21.
:24:21. > :24:28.referee to become involved is unprofessional. It was a mistake
:24:28. > :24:38.that was on preventable. The giants need to maintain their title surge
:24:38. > :24:38.
:24:39. > :24:48.without their leading light. -- Giants. Let us go back to the Oval.
:24:49. > :24:50.
:24:50. > :24:55.Who do you fancy for the game tonight? I think it is going to be
:24:55. > :25:00.difficult. Clift and could just take it. Brendan Rogers might be
:25:00. > :25:03.here tonight to watch the hot shock of the Irish League glory Donnelly.
:25:03. > :25:09.What do you make of him? He has come up through the ranks and
:25:09. > :25:13.progress very well. He has been getting great opportunities. Some
:25:13. > :25:20.of his goals have been absolutely top-class. He scored against
:25:20. > :25:26.Ballymena last weekend and that was not easy. We have not lost due to
:25:26. > :25:35.local football, have we? I hope not. We will see what happens after the
:25:35. > :25:45.Christmas period. Enjoy the game tonight. Light coverage on Radio
:25:45. > :25:53.
:25:53. > :25:57.Ulster. -- coverage on Radio Ulster. Lots of problems with flooding last
:25:57. > :26:02.night. Let's get a forecast. We do not have the weather warning
:26:02. > :26:07.for any heavy downpours, that has cleared the way. But many areas did
:26:07. > :26:13.get a deluge overnight and in the 24 hour period leading up to
:26:13. > :26:18.lunchtime today, parts of Northern Ireland got 33.2 mm of rain. That
:26:18. > :26:26.is more than an inch in a 24 hour period and that is why we saw some
:26:26. > :26:31.of the flooding. As we go into the evening, not much rain, but we will
:26:31. > :26:40.have further showers feeding in, particularly in the West. It will
:26:40. > :26:50.be a how do it -- it will be a Calder night and there will be some
:26:50. > :26:55.
:26:55. > :27:01.icy patches. -- colder. It will be fairly dry and bright first thing
:27:01. > :27:05.with a cloud breaking up by lunchtime. Eventually things will
:27:05. > :27:12.change again. More in the way of rain pushing its way up and the
:27:12. > :27:17.winds will gather strength. It will feel more blustery. A wet end to
:27:17. > :27:22.the day and some rain around for rush-hour tomorrow. In the evening
:27:22. > :27:32.the winds will pick up, especially along the east coast. Eventually
:27:32. > :27:33.
:27:33. > :27:37.they will ease overnight into Thursday. For Thursday itself, some
:27:37. > :27:47.showers pushing in, but it will be a brighter day and there will be
:27:47. > :27:48.