15/12/2011 BBC Newsline

Good evening. This is BBC Newsline. The main news this Thursday

evening... The family of this man, shot dead

at a checkpoint, take legal action against the police.

The changing face of the high street as ministers talk about

reducing corporation tax. Could this be the future for our

trawler fleets? EU leaders meet over fishing quotas.

Find out why there is a row over the Frank Sinatra impersonator due

to play Belfast tonight. And not only icy, there is a risk

of further sleet and snow in places tonight. Join me for the forecast.

The family of a man shot dead by a police officer in Ballynahinch in

2006 is to take legal action against the PSNI. A report by the

Police Ombudsman describes the officer's actions as critically

flawed. 23-year-old Stephen Colwell was trying to evade a police

checkpoint in a stolen car. The officer who killed him is still on

duty. Farther off one, Stephen Colwell,

his life ended after he was shot by a police officer. His body is seen

or lying on the ground covered by a white sheet, beside the stolen car

he was striding. The 23-year-old was shot twice when he tried to

evade a checkpoint near the police station in Ballynahinch in 2006.

The police officers said he fired because the car was being drat --

was being dragged directly at him and he could not get out of the way.

He believed his only option was to open fire if he was to save his

life and those of members of the public. A report published today

says investigators spoke to more than 30 witnesses. Many statements

supported the police action. But it says forensic evidence contradicts

his account. Investigators have used a computer-generated model to

examine what happened. The car and officer are highlighted in red to

indicate their positions when the first shot was fired. And then as

yellow to demonstrate their positions when the second shot was

fired. Investigators say expert analysis demonstrates the car was

turning away from officer when he opened fire. The report says there

is no evidence that the lives of pedestrians or other police

officers were at risk. It describes Stephen Colwell's actions as

reckless, but says the officer for the greater responsibility. The

report describes his actions as clip -- as critically flawed.

officer drew his firearm earlier, before he was in front of the car.

Once the firearm was out, once he chose to place himself in front of

the vehicle, chose to stand his ground and even his firearm

directly at the driver, these events escalated the situation to

where there was little likelihood of an alternative outcome if the

car moved forward. At a press conference this morning, Stephen

Colwell's family welcomed the report and called on the Public

Prosecution Service to review a decision not to prosecute the

police officer and revealed they are now taking legal action.

family will initiate civil proceedings against the officer,

arising from the findings of this report. The family have never

sought to limit or justify the actions of Stephen Colwell on that

day in question, but we believe that the PSNI did not have the

right to use lethal force in the circumstances. The Police

Federation, which represents rank- and-file officers, has rejected the

report. The almost none has had five years to investigate, this

Constable had less than five seconds to make a split second

judgment call. The reality is they officer was acting in the best

interests of the public and himself and fellow officers. I believe the

officer should have been commended for the rescue put his own life in.

The report also says the Ombudsman had grave concerns that the officer

was acting in such a role on the day of the shooting, after becoming

aware of his medical history and previous conduct. The PSNI agreed

to hand over medical and personnel files to investigators. But not as

the prevented that happening. Details of those records are not

included in this report. But they were referred to in a judgment

issued in May 2008. The judge recorded that, some years before

Stephen Colwell was called, the officer was arrested and charged

with assault. That resulted in suspension from duty and the

removal of his personal protection weapon for a short time. It was

also noted that, in July 2005, ten months before Stephen Colwell was

shot, the officer had allegedly pointed the gun at his partner

during a domestic incident at his home. Officer was cleared of the

allegations and is still serving in the PSNI. Chief Constable Matt

Baggott was asked about the reported during a visit today.

job has a particular role in relation to this conduct, so I

cannot comment. In a statement, the PSNI said it deeply regretted

Stephen Colwell's debt and will study the report's findings. --

death. The job of picking the next Police

Ombudsman has begun. The post, which pays almost �139,000 per year,

was advertised this morning. In October, Al Hutchinson announced he

was taking early retirement. It followed a BBC Northern Ireland

Spotlight investigation which found serious failings in his office.

The Executive is to introduce its controversial large retail levy.

Also known as the Tesco Tax, it means large stores here, like B&Q,

Sainsbury's and Tesco's, will have to pay an extra 15% on their annual

rates. And not 20%, as planned. This money will then be used to

give rate relief to 9000 smaller businesses. Kevin Magee has been

speaking to the Finance Minister Sammy Wilson.

We excepted and need to have a proper shopping mixture in Northern

Ireland. There was no refusal to accept that small businesses are

hardest hit during the recession. You do not except the large

retailers arguing they will invest less? The investment decision one

has been well scuppered. Indeed, all of them have said they would

seek to find the savings by reducing overheads in other ways.

You do not think there is a danger that any large investor could take

flight? Ikea will pay �250,000 extra per year. I listened to them

and the likes of B&Q and others coming along making arguments

because of the nature of their businesses, but that sales per

square foot were larger than others, but Ikea will save some money

because of the amendments I have made to the scheme. I think that

shows I have listened. Why are the banks exempt? There are some that

have Gans. We want people located in Northern Ireland. So it is

attest -- so is the sea Tesco Tax or Robin Hood tax? It is about

balancing businesses in Northern Ireland. We need a vibrant retail

sector, meaning small, medium and large. This reflects economic

conditions and seeks to make judgments to ensue -- to ensure a

level playing field. While the Executive is redirected

money towards small traders, the latest figures today suggest big

retailers are suffering. The only real growth since last year has

been online. The average weekly a on-line spend across the UK in

October was nearly �800 million. That is a massive increase of 44%.

Jim Fitzpatrick has been taking a look at the changing face of high

streets. And what retailers are doing to stay in business.

On the first Saturday of this month, Victoria Square in Belfast did

record business. It is bucking a trend. High-street sales are under

pressure with the consumers are increasingly moving online and

retailers responding differently. The retail mixture is changing.

Just a few steps away from the most exclusive shops, you will find the

bargain basement and business for them is booming. The name says it

all. Everything sells for �1. In tough economic times, business is

up. Business grew 25% last year. 64 stores were opened in the UK with

more than 50 this year. Its boss says it is doing well because,

thanks to the squeeze on incomes, it is attracting a broader range of

customers. We want to take this to more and more people and serving

more than 4 million people a week. At us from all the different

demographic groups. But retail in Northern Ireland is under

particular pressure. The property boom encouraged higher rents and

now traders cannot afford doors and go out of business. On the Lisburn

Road in Belfast, Independent readers are fighting back with a

renewed focus on service and collective action. We know

customers well, have good brands and it is getting behind doors and

working closely with customers, offering a unique proposition for

them as opposed to the high street or in larger out-of-town operations.

Next year, we will integrate businesses for a network of

contacts to, to call people onto the road for those products and

services. In town, out of town, big, small, in-store bought online, it

has never been more competitive. -- in store or online.

Still to come on the programme... The search to find out who owns

this dangerous crumbling wall in Londonderry.

And find out why there is an almighty row over a famous

impersonator, who is due in Belfast tonight.

A former British agent, who says he was under cover in the IRA, has

denied being a pathological liar. Newry man, Kevin Fulton, was giving

his second day of evidence to the Smethwick tribunal in Dublin. It

was his claims of Garda collusion in the IRA murders of senior RUC

officers Harry Breen and Bob Buchanan that led to the tribunal.

Dublin reported Jennifer O'Leary joins me now live. Let us deal with

this allegation of Garda collusion. Kevin Fulton came under pressure to

back up his allegations. He has made to the claims against a former

Garda detective. I will focus on one of those. In a statement to an

earlier inquiry, Kevin Fulton alleged that a man saw the RUC

officers, then telephone IRA. But in a statement to the tribunal, he

left that out. -- then telephoned the IRA. Today, he spoke about his

presumption that the friend was a detective involved. The Council for

the detectives said a lot was speculation. He said, I never said

it was anything else. He also made claims about two RUC officers

setting hit -- setting colleagues up in assisting the IRA. That is

right. He said, I caught, there are cops in the North helping others.

There are as he referred to being IRA. He was asked if he suggested

that colleagues in the RUC were helping the IRA. We could not see

him, but the tone of his voice changed and he said, of course. He

said the police knew about associations with a known

republican. The tribunal continues tomorrow. Jennifer O'Leary in

Big decisions will be taken in Brussels over the next few days

which will once again affect the livelihoods of our fishermen. The

European Commission wants to reduce the numbers of white fish like cod

and haddock being caught. Our district journalist Frances Gorman

has been talking to one Kilkeel fisherman who's been catching cod

in local waters for 30 years. In weather like this, fishermen stay

at home. A quarter as are reduced, they might end up staying at home.

This man says there are plenty of cod in the Irish Sea but Brussels

says there are not. This man says the way the bureaucrats count the

fish is wrong. If you are talking about snapshots taken by the

fisheries vessel that is unable to catch the fish or does not have the

experience to know where the fisheries are at certain times of

year, how can you rely on that? Why not take the advice of people who

years? You would not ask a heart surgeon how to plough a field.

says the influence that Brussels has over the E U countries has been

dominating headlines. He believes our politicians should be further.

Someone has to say no to Brussels. Our politicians should stand up to

them. They should tell them we have other plans and we can provide

ourselves with a sustainable industry in a different way from

how they are trying to. There we is not working. We should know by the

weekend what the fish quota will be for the next year. Families in the

Rosemount area of Londonderry say a high protection wall which

partially collapsed during yesterday's bad weather is now

posing a serious threat. It caused a landslide at the back of terraced

housing and now it seems no one knows who's responsible for the

wall. Kevin Sharkey has more. No matter how many times or how many

ways these residents look, the damage is extensive. Protections

are now in place but there is no sign yet of clear up. After the

damage, new questions. Who is going to clear up and how safe is the

rest of this wall? That is the real concern. Much of this long wall, a

hidden behind Shrubbery, it holds back a huge amount of Earth. It has

given way already leaving residents fearing that it could happen again.

The landslide happened about 30 metres behind me. The cordon runs

down here and even further beyond. That suggests there are concerns

about the remainder of the wall which so far remains intact. There

is a big problem. No one or no organisation has so far come

forward to claim responsibility for this wall. Who will carry out a

risk assessment and any essential works which are necessary? While

uncertainty continues, concerns are growing of further risk to property

and people. It will fall. It starts down at the end of the lane. If it

falls any further, you can see yourself what it is going to do.

Somebody is going to get hurt. The need to act very very quickly to

get it sorted. It is dangerous and unsafe. An oil spill from the

landslide has created new problems today. Ministers at Stormont and

Westminster say they've had constructive discussions

surrounding plans to cut corporation tax year. A working

group will examine the benefits and costs of a tax cut. The Treasury

Minister, David Gauke, who chaired the meeting in Belfast, also said a

government consultation document will be published before Christmas.

The First and Deputy First Minister welcomed the talks. We have had a

good first meeting. We have set the course and direction for further

meetings. We are going to contend that things are moving in the

direction we would wish. It is the more on. Hopefully we can all move

forward to what would be a successful conclusion for us. We

have made the point that we believe we have a special case. It is clear

we believe that case is being listened to very seriously.

Hopefully there will be a successful outcome for all of us.

While this is supposed to be a time of good cheer it's time for us to

start spreading some bad news tonight about old blue eyes, that

of course is Frank Sinatra. There's a rocking of the boat in Belfast

where a row has broken out over a Frank Sinatra impersonator. 1200

people have tickets for the Waterfront Hall to see the Rat Pack,

Frank, Dean and Sammy's Christmas Special. But the Frank they were

expecting is on stage in the States. Julian O'Neill investigates. This

is the UK's best known francs and add to impersonator. He sang at

Simon Cowell's birthday. He was supposed to play at the Waterfront

Hall. Ticket prices were up to �27. Instead of appearing in Belfast he

will be preparing to go on stage in the US. He said the first he knew

about it was Tuesday but another Frank Sinatra impersonator says he

was approached to provide an Alternate show back in October.

They were advertising for this man to be on stage in the full

knowledge that he would not be. He was contracted to America. He did

not pull out at the last minute. The PSNI have been made aware of

what happened. We were told he would not be appealing because of

contractual difficulties. We asked when he made the -- promoter aware

of the double booking but he did not respond. Concert-goers will be

made of the change before the curtain goes up. Anyone who wants a

fool refined needs to leave before the show starts, not the final

curtain. -- have bull the fund. -- a full refund. To this week's

Family Focus and the annual Family Appeal has drawn to a close and now

the charity staff and volunteers are working around the clock to

make sure families receive their presence in time for Christmas.

This here it looks like, as predicted, the demand is up again.

This is the headquarters for the family Appeal in Belfast. Gifts are

still coming in. There was a delivery this morning of a number

of bikes from a local company. They have struggled this year to meet

the growing demand. Last year saw presents distributed to over 11,000

children, the highest number ever. In Belfast this year there has been

a rise in the number of families applying. The number of requests

has increased significantly this year. The number of families coming

to this appeal have increased as well which we would have expected

but we have been able to help 1436 families to date. It is co-

ordinated by St Vincent de Paul and the Salvation Army. They say the

public have pulled out all the stops in helping others. They have

been wonderful. The continue year on year to give an this year has

been exceptional. The quantity has not been as great as previous years

but the quality is excellent. and volunteers work behind the

scenes, this woman is from Downpatrick. A group of us have

been coming down here for the past seven years. We really enjoy

working at the appeal. We feel we are making a bit of a difference.

It will be January before it is known just how many families your

gifts have helped. However small the present, you can be sure you

have meet someone's Christmas a little bit brighter. Thank you to

everyone who has donated. Football managers are in the news this

evening. Here's Austin O'Callaghan. After the recent spate of sacked

managers in the Carling Premiership, today we had a new appointment.

Gary Hamilton is now the boss at Glenavon, after signing at two-and-

a-half year deal as player-manager. He has been a winner on the pitch

for them but now he is calling the shots on deep cut line. He is

determined to rise to the challenge. All I want to do is play football

and score goals. Now I am manager as well I want to make decisions

and make this club better, bring it to where it should be. When I am

playing on the pitch hopefully I can do the business there and also

do things off the pitch. They currently lie 10th in the

Premiership and are now aiming for the top half of the table but that

will not happen overnight. You are not too big a club if you do not

get the results on the pitch. With the fan base and the good people

around the club the do not deserve to be the year. If I have my way it

will never happen and I will do my part to stop it. He says he will

keep faith with the team who won on Saturday. The man tipped as

favourite to land the vacant Northern Ireland manager's job is

in charge of Shamrock Rovers for the last time tonight. Michael

O'Neill's side are playing Tottenham in their final Europa

League game. At half-time in Dublin Shamrock Rovers are trailing Spurs

3-0. Jermaine Defoe all scored the third just before the break. Not a

happy ending for Michael O'Neill. am sure it is very cold for those

footballers out there at the moment and for everybody. Let us get the

weather. I think it is going to be called whatever you are up to over

the next few days. There are icy conditions tonight and over the

next few days. The Met Office have issued a warning. There will be

sleet and snow at times as well. The sleet and snow tonight into

tomorrow morning will particularly affect parts of the east and north.

There is a potential for some moderate falls of snow, this is

particularly over the hills. There is a risk of disruption as we head

into tomorrow morning. The showers that have been mostly in the West

today are now attracting northwards. This evening the cold air digs in

and starts to turn wintry. We can see sleet and snow moving down to

low levels later in the night. Further south it is mostly dry with

clear skies but coldest here too. Very frosty indeed with slippery

conditions. If we are looking at a worst case scenario for tomorrow

morning we will be seeing a few centimetres of snow over health. It

will be pretty slippery and could be slushy in places as well. If we

do get there was sleet and snow showers they will start to turn

back to rain during tomorrow morning. That rain will start to

slide away to the south-east to. Tomorrow afternoon it should be

turning brighter and drier towards the north coast. It could take

until late in the afternoon before the clouds finally move away from

the south-east. Even if you have wintry sunshine it will be another

called the. Tomorrow night we do it all again. Icy patches, may be some

mist and fog and wintry showers moving in. It will be quite

blustery with bright spells and wintry showers on Saturday, more of

the same expected on Sunday. The headlines: The family of a man shot

dead by a police officer in 2006 is to take legal action against the P

S NI. More than 13,000 troops will be drafted in to provide extra

security during the Olympics in London next year. America has ended