:00:16. > :00:26.Good evening. This is BBC Newsline. The headlines this Thursday
:00:26. > :00:32.
:00:32. > :00:37.evening: as police outlined plans to close 34 police stations, or we
:00:37. > :00:40.are in this rural community to find out how they feel about it.
:00:40. > :00:42.The PSNI policy of re-hiring former police officers is to be
:00:42. > :00:49.investigated. Millions were spent on this land to
:00:49. > :00:59.build houses five years ago, so where are they? What other people
:00:59. > :01:02.
:01:02. > :01:06.in power playing at? An apology from the mayor of Belfast over the
:01:06. > :01:09.Army Cadet row. I'll have the latest from the City
:01:09. > :01:12.Hall in the row involving the Lord Mayor and the army cadet.
:01:12. > :01:14.The local hurler who will rub shoulders with a host of stars at
:01:14. > :01:17.the BBC's Sports Personality of the Year awards.
:01:17. > :01:20.And I hope you're prepared for a chilly night. Temperatures are
:01:20. > :01:23.going to fall to zero and below. I'll have the details shortly. BP
:01:23. > :01:26.SNI has announced plans to close dozens of police stations. It says
:01:26. > :01:31.it has to do it to save millions of pounds. But on the same day BBC
:01:31. > :01:36.Newsline have discovered that former officers who left with big
:01:36. > :01:42.redundancy pay-offs have been at the Hyatt. It has led to calls for
:01:42. > :01:47.an investigation. We will have a report on that in a moment, but
:01:47. > :01:52.first the issue of station closures. The PSNI have spent a decade
:01:52. > :02:02.promoting community policing. It could undermine all that good work.
:02:02. > :02:05.
:02:05. > :02:10.We went to one rural TAM weather station is under threat. -- rural
:02:10. > :02:17.town where the station is under threat. Some people believed
:02:17. > :02:27.station closure plans proposed today it will mail -- will make
:02:27. > :02:36.
:02:36. > :02:46.officers are less available. The closure plan will have 34 stations
:02:46. > :02:55.
:02:55. > :03:05.going out for consideration. understand that people are
:03:05. > :03:06.
:03:06. > :03:09.concerned about the last of local facilities. We have to find
:03:09. > :03:15.efficiencies over the next few years. It is right for the public
:03:15. > :03:20.to hold us to account over how we use those resources. This police
:03:21. > :03:30.station is only open seven hours a week. It has for officers to cover
:03:31. > :03:31.
:03:31. > :03:41.a wide area, and they are known very well in this town. There has
:03:41. > :03:42.
:03:42. > :03:46.been a police station hair since 1840s. People fear the change will
:03:46. > :03:53.mean that they lose be easy interaction with their local
:03:53. > :03:59.policeman. It is not just about buildings, it is about people.
:03:59. > :04:03.need the facility for reassurance, that if anything happens you know
:04:03. > :04:07.the police station is there. This school has 700 children on its
:04:07. > :04:13.books. The principal worries that losing the station means losing the
:04:13. > :04:21.link with the local officers. cannot see the same office has been
:04:21. > :04:25.around. I don't know where I would town will be linked to. It or not
:04:25. > :04:34.at the same community effect it has at the moment. And in the newsagent
:04:34. > :04:41.in the town square, the owner says ultimately it could undermine the
:04:41. > :04:49.new form of policing be PSNI I tried to promote. We know at hour
:04:49. > :04:54.police spent by at first -- we know our policemen by their first names.
:04:55. > :05:00.It will be difficult if things change. The PSNI says it is about
:05:00. > :05:04.the kind of policing been provided and not buildings. They also say
:05:04. > :05:11.that new technology allows them to cut costs and keep more police on
:05:11. > :05:15.the ground. However, it will be it a hard sell to a sceptical public.
:05:15. > :05:20.If you want to seek the poorest of police stations earmarked for
:05:20. > :05:23.closure, you can go to a website. On Tuesday we revealed that a
:05:23. > :05:28.former senior police officer is back working for the PSNI just
:05:28. > :05:32.months after recovering with a large redundancy package. We have
:05:32. > :05:39.discovered the Government's spending watchdog is being asked to
:05:39. > :05:44.investigate the PSNI a's policy overt reapplying officers who
:05:44. > :05:51.retire with generous redundancy packages. The packages were offered
:05:51. > :05:56.as an incentive got older officers to leave. It is understood that
:05:56. > :06:06.many officers had been re-employed. We have an exclusive report.
:06:06. > :06:07.
:06:07. > :06:17.Changing the face of Policing here involved a generous redundancy
:06:17. > :06:17.
:06:17. > :06:27.package. Over 4,000 officers retired with enhanced lump-sum
:06:27. > :06:28.
:06:28. > :06:34.payments and redundancy packages. Many who retired were later re
:06:34. > :06:39.employed. They were temporary positions and were not subject to
:06:39. > :06:46.the 50-50 employment role which was introduced to increase the number
:06:46. > :06:54.of Catholic officers. But PSNI says it does not have a record of the
:06:54. > :07:04.number of officers re-employed. They use the services of 399 start
:07:04. > :07:09.provided by a recruitment agency. Nearly 200 of them deal with
:07:09. > :07:19.sensitive crimes and intelligence. The PSNI do not know how many of
:07:19. > :07:20.
:07:20. > :07:24.them are former police officers. Sinn Fein has now asked the
:07:24. > :07:29.Government's spending watchdog to investigate. There is an issue of
:07:29. > :07:37.financial accounting. People need to know what is going on. These are
:07:37. > :07:42.not new questions. We have asked these questions before in committee
:07:42. > :07:47.and directly to the PSNI. We have not had satisfactory answers and we
:07:47. > :07:51.need to get them. DUP members of the board said they can understand
:07:51. > :07:55.why the PSNI might have to recruit former officers. It is fair to say
:07:55. > :08:00.that in dealing with historical cases in particular there are
:08:00. > :08:03.skills required to do than that new recruits may not have. They may
:08:03. > :08:07.have to go to people previously employed by the police force in
:08:07. > :08:12.order to recruit their skills, but I am confident that the police have
:08:12. > :08:21.conducted themselves fairly, as far as employment law is concerned.
:08:21. > :08:25.some critics have described the recruitment policy as it subversion.
:08:25. > :08:31.But PSNI says it recruits all staff in accordance with current
:08:31. > :08:35.legislation. The chief officer was asked a series of questions at a
:08:35. > :08:43.private meeting here this morning. He has promised to come back with
:08:43. > :08:47.the answers as soon as possible. Protesters had gathered at Belfast
:08:47. > :08:54.City Hall to protest over the Sinn Fein Lord Mayor's refusal to
:08:54. > :09:00.present an award to a young army cadet. Earlier today, Niall
:09:00. > :09:03.O'Donnghaile apologised for the incident. We can now join our
:09:03. > :09:07.political editor who is at Belfast City Hall.
:09:07. > :09:12.As you can see behind me, more than 200 protesters had gathered outside
:09:12. > :09:17.Belfast City Hall, angry about Niall O'Donnghaile's decision not
:09:17. > :09:24.to present a certificate to an army cadet. They are not happy to accept
:09:24. > :09:28.his apology. Let's get the details from admire colleague Gareth court
:09:28. > :09:32.and. This is the continental market
:09:32. > :09:41.outside Belfast City Hall, a symbol of a city with a bright future.
:09:41. > :09:45.However, inside the city fathers are at odds. This is the Sinn Fein
:09:45. > :09:51.Lord Mayor, in trouble for refusing to present a Duke of Edinburgh
:09:51. > :09:59.award to an army cadet. The row has even made it as far as the House of
:09:59. > :10:03.Commons. The Sinn Fein Lord Mayor of Belfast refused to give a Duke
:10:03. > :10:07.of Edinburgh award to a young army cadet. His was the response from
:10:07. > :10:13.the leader of the house. I hope we can move forward in a consensual
:10:13. > :10:22.way. At lunchtime with the Duke of Edinburgh looking on, the Khmer
:10:22. > :10:32.apologise. I did not intend to cause any offence. I have no
:10:32. > :10:32.
:10:32. > :10:38.hesitation in apologising. For people try to turn this into a
:10:38. > :10:44.political situation is ridiculous. Later, he went further and admitted
:10:44. > :10:50.that he had caused genuine annoyance. But has he done enough?
:10:50. > :11:00.A Lord Mayor and prepare to apologise, issues a half apology
:11:00. > :11:06.and now a full apology. It is a good thing. We now need an
:11:06. > :11:10.indication to show that this will not happen again. Indie Lord
:11:10. > :11:20.Mayor's home area, some people were critical of what he had done, but
:11:20. > :11:25.not those a pair took -- prepared to a pair on-camera. I think beat
:11:25. > :11:31.DUP are making a big issue would it. It's all right. It up to him what
:11:31. > :11:36.he does. Another veteran of Belfast City Hall admits it would have been
:11:36. > :11:43.handled better. We always tried to handle sensitive issues ahead of
:11:43. > :11:51.time and do it delicately. We did not do it this time and we should
:11:51. > :11:55.have plans ahead better to avoid the embarrassment. This is another
:11:55. > :12:00.example of how toxic city hall politics can be.
:12:00. > :12:09.The protest has been under way here outside Belfast City Hall since
:12:09. > :12:13.around 6 o'clock. It has been peace for -- peace for. They have heard
:12:13. > :12:23.the apology from the Lord Mayor. I asked a couple of them if they were
:12:23. > :12:28.prepared to accept it? He is supposed to be for all the people.
:12:28. > :12:32.What he did was wrong, she was just a child. He is definitely going out.
:12:32. > :12:39.This afternoon he issued a statement apologising. It is too
:12:39. > :12:47.late. So you don't think the apology is good enough? Know. It
:12:47. > :12:53.never should have happened in the first place. -- No. It is not all
:12:53. > :12:57.about protest tonight. There was the first a Belfast City Council?
:12:57. > :13:07.Yes. Beware cameras are on and you can watch what is happening inside
:13:07. > :13:14.
:13:14. > :13:21.the council chamber. -- v Webb To remind councillors why we are
:13:21. > :13:24.waiting, we are going live online. Mark, thank you very much.
:13:24. > :13:29.Since we reported the story on Tuesday, there has been a lot of
:13:29. > :13:35.debate - some of it quite heated - an-hour Facebook Page. If you would
:13:35. > :13:40.like to express your views, go to a Facebook profile.
:13:40. > :13:45.Our journalists are also tweeting on stories as they happen. If you
:13:45. > :13:50.want to e-mail us, the addresses on screen.
:13:50. > :13:55.This is BBC News line. Still to come: The Far East is full of
:13:55. > :13:59.promise for Rory McIlroy in Hong Kong.
:13:59. > :14:03.And the human side of the BBC's Christmas family appeal.
:14:03. > :14:13.remembers the family appeal toys that arrived. She remembers the joy
:14:13. > :14:14.
:14:14. > :14:18.that it brought her mum and she Now to our latest investigation
:14:18. > :14:22.into how public money is really spend. We have discovered that a
:14:22. > :14:27.major housing project, funded by the taxpayer to the tune of almost
:14:27. > :14:31.�10 million, has failed to deliver a single home. Today, nearly five
:14:31. > :14:35.years on, the site is being used as a car-park, operating without
:14:35. > :14:40.planning consent. Julian has been investigating.
:14:40. > :14:46.These plans for a block of 200 homes never got off the drawing
:14:46. > :14:51.board, yet this project cash to big cheque from the public purse by
:14:51. > :14:55.acquiring aside. -- cashed a big cheque. This the site in question.
:14:55. > :15:00.Nearly five years ago, the government gave a housing
:15:00. > :15:07.association most of the �9.7 million purchase price. But today,
:15:07. > :15:11.all matters here is a car park. Last year, there has it Association
:15:11. > :15:15.least the land to a car-park operator which does not have
:15:15. > :15:20.planning permission. It has been served a notice to shut but is
:15:20. > :15:29.appealing. Documents at the Land Registry's show there were three
:15:29. > :15:37.parties to the original land seal. It was sold to a Vendor -- purred
:15:37. > :15:40.to say in the Isle of Man. We were told that the money was backed up
:15:40. > :15:44.by an independent valuation report. We understand that the government
:15:44. > :15:48.has not yet asked for a return of the public money spent, but
:15:48. > :15:56.discussions about the future of this side are taking place. In
:15:56. > :16:04.almost five years, the housing association never added -- admitted
:16:04. > :16:07.rape planning application. -- admitted a planning application.
:16:07. > :16:11.There is land over north Belfast that could have been bought and
:16:11. > :16:15.developed with that money. It begs the question - the people that are
:16:15. > :16:20.empower here, what are they playing at to allow this type of thing to
:16:20. > :16:24.happen? Earlier this year, the housing association had its
:16:25. > :16:29.government money suspended. This was just one problem of many, but
:16:29. > :16:35.perhaps the most expensive. Julian is with me now. Almost �10
:16:35. > :16:38.million and no houses - is this a write-off? One source I spoke to
:16:38. > :16:42.questioned the decision to buy in the first place. Was the location
:16:42. > :16:46.of the site ever suitable for a housing project on this scale? But
:16:46. > :16:51.a savage job is under way. The housing association could be asked
:16:51. > :16:55.to repay the public purse with inquest -- interest, but I
:16:55. > :16:59.understand that some kind of land swap is being log tab. This site
:16:59. > :17:03.could be given over to roadworks in exchange for another publicly owned
:17:03. > :17:06.site elsewhere for social housing. I attempted to establish more on
:17:06. > :17:10.the story from the Department of Social Development. They did not
:17:11. > :17:14.want to say much and turn down a Freedom of Information request,
:17:14. > :17:18.saying it would be inappropriate to release information at this time
:17:18. > :17:20.because it could potentially damage the rare position of the Housing
:17:20. > :17:25.Association and the wider social housing sector.
:17:25. > :17:28.The judge in the trial of the men accused of murdering two soldiers
:17:28. > :17:32.at Massereene Barracks in antrum has allowed the evidence of an
:17:32. > :17:36.American DNA expert, which is central to the prosecution case.
:17:36. > :17:41.Colin Duffy and Brian shivers denied the murders of Mark Quinsey
:17:41. > :17:45.and Patrick Azimkar outside the base in March 2009. The DNA had
:17:45. > :17:50.been assessed by a new American system, not previously used in the
:17:50. > :17:53.UK or Ireland. Yesterday, the Catholic Church
:17:53. > :17:58.published reports into town abuse by priests in six diocese across
:17:58. > :18:04.Ireland. Today, we have discovered that the second biggest diocese,
:18:04. > :18:14.Down and Connor, has held its own inquiry, Nikkei up cases from 1961.
:18:14. > :18:19.-- child abuse by priests. Victors' campaigners met MLAs at
:18:19. > :18:23.Stormont today to discussion -- discuss an inquiry into abuse in
:18:23. > :18:29.state-run institutions. Their meeting today was on the back of
:18:29. > :18:32.the last 18 months of work up, and I think we are down to the terms of
:18:32. > :18:36.reference of the inquiry, which will take place at the start of
:18:36. > :18:41.next year, hopefully. We have just 24 shopping days until
:18:41. > :18:45.Christmas, people are being reminded to make sure the press as
:18:46. > :18:50.they are buying are the real thing. Police seized about �50,000 worth
:18:50. > :18:57.of fake goods from a market in County Fermanagh. They also made 12
:18:57. > :19:03.arrests and took �10,000 in cash. Over 60 police raided a total of
:19:03. > :19:09.eight stalls. They removed 900 items of clothing, mostly fakes of
:19:09. > :19:13.expensive sportswear. All this material will be seized, including
:19:13. > :19:17.the vans and cars it came in, and money that they have taken today
:19:17. > :19:24.will be seized under the proceeds of crime Act. It can be hard to
:19:24. > :19:28.spot a good fake, say police brought in an industry expert.
:19:28. > :19:33.is a tracksuit, the type that we normally sell, but in colours that
:19:33. > :19:40.we would not normally produce it in. The main giveaway on this is, if
:19:40. > :19:46.you actually look at the logo on the sales tag, and the logo on the
:19:46. > :19:53.product itself, we never, ever, it makes a logo is on a product.
:19:53. > :20:02.total, police made 12 arrests, seized �50,000 worth of goods,
:20:02. > :20:06.�10,000 in cash and seven vehicles. To Family Focus now and the annual
:20:06. > :20:13.family appeal got under way this week, and charities x bet they need
:20:13. > :20:18.to be greater than ever. -- expect they need. Applications are already
:20:18. > :20:22.flooding in. This family centre in north Belfast is run by the
:20:22. > :20:27.Salvation Army to help families in crisis or trouble. It is a
:20:27. > :20:33.temporary home for Stephen, he is rife -- wife and two children.
:20:33. > :20:41.Stephen spoke to me but did not want his family's faces to appear
:20:41. > :20:45.on camera. I worked in construction but there is no work about. I had
:20:45. > :20:49.financial problems, trying to get stuff sorted out for the kids on
:20:49. > :20:55.the house. Asking for help has not been easy for Stephen but when it
:20:55. > :21:03.comes to Christmas, he feels he has no option. You see people going
:21:03. > :21:12.into the shops and buying stuff for the kids. The kids say, "daddy, can
:21:12. > :21:15.we have this?". You say, maybe next week. The error creme B38 families
:21:15. > :21:25.like this at the centre and they all hope to receive gifts from a
:21:25. > :21:31.family appeal. -- there are 38 families. I recently met a young
:21:31. > :21:34.lady who lived at the centre as a young child of five or six. She
:21:34. > :21:39.remembers the family appeal toys that arrived, she remembers the joy
:21:39. > :21:45.that they brought her mum and she remembers feeling happy with a
:21:45. > :21:48.simple Dolf. It really made her Christmas. She said that she now
:21:48. > :21:52.contributes to the appeal because she remembered what a difference it
:21:52. > :21:56.made to her. If you would like to benefit from
:21:56. > :21:59.the appeal, applications need to be in by 9th December. If he would
:21:59. > :22:09.like to donate to get copies leave it unwrapped a one of the
:22:09. > :22:10.
:22:10. > :22:13.collection points by Wednesday 14th. -- donate a gift.
:22:13. > :22:17.It is hard to keep Rorie McIlroy add to the sporting headlines. He
:22:17. > :22:21.made a blistering start to the first round of the Hong Kong Open.
:22:21. > :22:26.He shot a six-under-par browned to share the lead and if he wins, he
:22:26. > :22:31.is still in with a chance of being Europe's top golfer this year.
:22:31. > :22:35.It was a day when just about everything went right. Rory McIlroy
:22:35. > :22:39.has finished runner up Abbey Hong Kong Open on two occasions in
:22:39. > :22:44.recent years, but if he continues to play like this between now and
:22:44. > :22:49.Sunday, he could make it third time lucky. McIlroy has a clear agenda
:22:49. > :22:55.over the next year - to become the world's No. 1 golfer. His
:22:55. > :22:57.commitment to next summer's Irish open keeps you up tabby, while his
:22:57. > :23:02.decision to live in Florida for a greater portion of the year is
:23:02. > :23:07.helping his game further afield. makes it easier to play here. That
:23:07. > :23:12.is the reason I want to play in America. I feel as if I play well
:23:12. > :23:19.there, the golf courses will suit me. That does not mean I am going
:23:20. > :23:24.to neglect my European Tour status. McIlroy is not the only Ulstermen
:23:24. > :23:29.contending in Hong Kong. This offer is just two shots behind the
:23:29. > :23:32.leaders after a two under park opening round.
:23:32. > :23:35.Martin O'Neill is emerging as the strong favourite to replace Steve
:23:35. > :23:40.Bruce as Sunderland manager. Discussions with candidates are
:23:40. > :23:44.taking place for the job at the Stadium of Light. He held talks at
:23:44. > :23:48.the club earlier today, but no deal has been finalised.
:23:48. > :23:52.Later this month, this man will be rubbing shoulders with the likes of
:23:52. > :23:56.Rory McIlroy and Darren Clarke at the BBC Sports Personality Of The
:23:56. > :24:02.Year event in Manchester. Sean McGoldrick, a player, mentor and
:24:02. > :24:11.manager with the Coleraine Owen Roe GAA club, has been chosen as BBC
:24:11. > :24:18.Northern Ireland's unsung hero 2011. This moment has been 25 years in
:24:18. > :24:22.the making. A father of eight - six boys and two goals - this is Sean
:24:22. > :24:26.McGoldrick's other family. When he moved to Coleraine a generation ago,
:24:26. > :24:35.he sowed the seed which would yield a dupe -- new generation of sports
:24:35. > :24:40.stars. He is always giving. He is there everywhere from fundamentals
:24:40. > :24:50.up to seniors. I think he is really a reluctant hero but he should get
:24:50. > :24:50.
:24:50. > :24:54.every credit for everything he has done to build up this community.
:24:54. > :24:59.There are number of us who started in the mid- 1980s trying to develop
:24:59. > :25:02.youngsters and pass the skills on. When you are starting out at that
:25:02. > :25:07.stage, you know it is a long-term project but you do not know what
:25:07. > :25:11.the final result will be. The final result was unprecedented success.
:25:11. > :25:15.Having managed the senior team in the late 1990s, he took over the
:25:15. > :25:22.role again in 2003, steering the team at all the way to the All-
:25:22. > :25:26.Ireland intermediate final. For a great years later, he was still at
:25:26. > :25:34.the helm when Coleraine Owen Roe GAA club won the biggest prize in
:25:34. > :25:39.senior football. His daughter and may have recently captained the
:25:39. > :25:49.club. The greatest thing you can say about him is the legacy that he
:25:49. > :25:50.
:25:50. > :25:56.has left behind. It is a club with serious they strong foundations.
:25:56. > :26:06.In from the same place as strong, I think he is an incredible guy. --
:26:06. > :26:08.
:26:08. > :26:12.At a moment, temperatures are around about four or five degrees.
:26:12. > :26:19.That sets the scene for tonight. Temperatures are going to tumble to
:26:19. > :26:27.zero and below. Into parts of County Down, we could see
:26:27. > :26:32.temperatures of minus two. The mist and fog should not linger too long
:26:32. > :26:38.tomorrow. It will be a cloudy day tomorrow and damper, too, but there
:26:38. > :26:42.will be some brightness to begin with. It will not be until the
:26:42. > :26:52.afternoon there we begin to see some outbreaks of grey. Further
:26:52. > :26:54.
:26:54. > :27:01.west, spells of rain in parts of Fermanagh. It may feel a bit cooler
:27:01. > :27:06.because of the winds. Into the second part of the day, further
:27:06. > :27:11.outbreaks of rain but drier in parts of the North and the East.
:27:11. > :27:15.Overnight into Saturday, most of the rain will clear away. About
:27:15. > :27:22.five or six degrees as we go into Saturday but are barely on Saturday
:27:22. > :27:27.morning, temperatures will fall to around two degrees. Saturday does
:27:27. > :27:34.not look too bad. The thing we will be looking out for is the wind.
:27:34. > :27:39.That will gather strength during the day with some gale-force gusts.
:27:39. > :27:48.A chilly day. Aid to Greece for Belfast, but with the winds, it