17/12/2013 BBC Newsline

Good evening. The headlines on BBC Newsline: Michaella McCollum from

Dungannon finds out how long she'll spend in jail for drugs smuggling -

we'll have the latest from Peru. A dissident republican attack on a

Belfast store injures the man leaving the device. Within seconds,

his jacket went on fire. And flames were coming out of all parts of his

body. The republican Colin Duffy appears in court charged with

conspiracy to murder. Is a deal on parades, the past and flags on the

horizon? I will have the latest shortly. Over 1000 -year-old GP

patients recalled to the Belfast City Hospital after patients receive

a late cancer diagnosis. And no frost tonight but wet and the windy

weather is on the way. First to Peru and the two young women caught

trying to smuggle cocaine out of the country have been sentenced to six

years and eight months in prison. Michaella McCollum from Dungannon

and her Scottish friend Melissa Reid were stopped at Lima airport with

the drug in their suitcases. Worried Davis joins us. He will take us

through what happened. We were in a very dusty courthouse in a very

rundown district of Lima where the young women a couple of months ago

they let guilty. You might remember we had expected them to be sentenced

back then but the prosecutor was not happy with the level of cooperation

and the prosecutor asked for a sentence of about 15 years so the

young women and their families will be quietly pleased with the fact

they have got the minimum sentence, which is eight years, reduced to six

years and eight months on account of their guilty plea. They will be here

until 2020 and they will have to spend all of that sentence in Peru.

But that is better than they could have expected. Is there no such

thing as remission in Peru? And what is the likelihood they might spend

some of that sentence here at home? They would have been given some

remission because of a guilty plea but the authorities are not very

keen to empty their jails of the many foreigners here we have been

convicted of smuggling drugs. There was talk at some point that the

young women might serve three or four years of their sentence in Peru

and the rest in the UK, paid for it by the UK Government. That was not

an up-to-date in court and the women are still in the courthouse, and try

to grab a word with them when come out. But as it stands, they will be

in Peru until 2020. Thank you. Police are trawling through CCTV

pictures to try to find the man who ignited a firebomb and set his

clothes alight in a Belfast shop last night. The bomber fled through

Cornmarket in the city centre, passing shoppers at around 6.30pm.

It's believed he is in his 40s. As well as appealing to the public for

information the police have been in contact with hospitals as they say

the man probably needed medical help. Helen Jones reports. It was

business as usual at this shop this morning but things could have been

so different. Just after 6.30pm last night, the co-owner came

face-to-face with the dissident republican intent on destroying his

business. He stood with his head down and within seconds his jacket

went on fire. And flames were coming out of all parts of his body. And

the package dropped onto the floor. Which we moved onto the street. And

he ran off in the direction of and street. It seems the attempt to

firebomb the shop hasn't put customers off from returning. People

have got the confidence to come back and spend their money. We are

staying in hotels and shopping and we cannot let things like this put

you off. This is all the evidence there is. With so few days left to

Christmas, as Mrs have to get up, dust themselves off and get on with

it. We have come through a lot and we are getting there. Nobody. Us

coming into our time. We have had 30 years of trouble in the past and we

had to shop in town and we cannot that people like that rule our

lives. We just have to do what is right. The PSNI are scrolling

through hours of CCTV images in a bid to identify the would-be

fire-bomber. He is described as being in his 40s, plump and at the

time was wearing a three-quarter length coat and black beanie hat.

This man running away with the flames still around him so clearly

he was very evident running down the street at 6:30pm on a Monday evening

with flames. Anybody who saw that, it is important they contacted

detectives. This afternoon the Enterprise Minister showed her

support for the city. She had this to say about the people behind the

attack. These people are reckless morons with no agenda for Northern

Ireland. Except to destroy it and send out negative messages. Whereas

the greater number of people in Northern Ireland want to send out

positive messages about Belfast. Business leaders are urging the

public to keep stopping but to stay -- shopping to stay vigilant in the

run-up to Christmas. Last night's attempted firebombing comes amid an

upsurge in activity by dissident republican groups, as Chris Buckler

reports. The last few weeks have seen the return of checkpoints and

increased security throughout Belfast. The city has become the

target of attempts to cause terror. The most serious of recent attacks

was the attempted car bombing at Victoria Square. The device only

partially exploded but the incident has greatly concerned police. When

you look at that capability of people who have the knowledge,

technical knowledge, to know how to explode a car bomb, it means we are

concerned about that but we are also concerned about the new generation

of young active republicans who are determined to keep this campaign

going. Let us be clear - this campaign has got no community

support. Despite that worry, last month the head of MI5 indicated that

the threat from dissident groups was decreasing. The people we are

talking about are a very small number of people, a residue of

terrorism from what I call a bygone era. However, in the weeks since

then police have been shot at and there have been attempts to cause

more widespread disruption. We are going through a current surge and

that is undeniable and we need public support and information and

vigilance to help us deal with that. The head of MI5 was badly briefed?

He was talking at a time when there was a dip in activity but against

the definition of the threat, it has been five years and we have a

current surge that might dip again in the future if we are successful.

The police believe that several different dissident organisations

have been involved in recent attacks and they say they need the public's

help to keep the city safe this Christmas. Three republicans,

including Lurgan man Colin Duffy, have appeared in court charged with

conspiracy to murder members of the security forces. They also face

firearms offences and are charged with IRA membership. Martin Cassidy

reports. In court were three men. The prominent republican,

46-year-old Colin Duffy, pictured here in his home town of Lurgan.

Appearing alongside him were Henry Fitzsimons, aged 45, of no fixed

abode and 52-year-old Alex McCrory of Sliabh Dubh in Belfast. All three

were charged with conspiracy to possess firearms and explosives with

intent to endanger life. They were also charged with conspiracy to

murder and of belonging to a proscribed organisation, namely the

IRA. Alex McCrory and Henry Fitzsimons are charged with trying

to murder members of the PSNI on Belfast's Crumlin Road on the 5th of

December when two police vehicles were hit by gunfire from assault

rifles. There was no application for bail and all three men were remanded

in custody until the 14th of January. Colin Duffy gave a thumbs

up sign to supporters who cheered from the public gallery as the three

men were led away. The talks chairman Richard Haass says he's

still hopeful of reaching agreement with the five main Stormont parties

this week on flags, parades and the past. Sinn Fein have reacted to the

draft document produced by the Haass team yesterday. The party says it

poses a series of difficulties for it but has predicted a deal can be

done in 48 hours if there is the political will. Stephen Walker is at

the talks venue in East Belfast. What was going on? All of the

parties have been meeting Doctor house today in a round of intensive

than decisions and we got a sense of this first draft from Richard Haass,

very much a work in progress. There was a sense of something about the

past and about parading and when it comes to the past, the DUP have been

talking about the past and they made it clear they will not accept any

amnesty. Here are the thoughts of the DUP MP, Jeffrey Donaldson. We

want to make very clear that we have seen nothing in the document that is

before us that is an amnesty, looks like an amnesty, sounds like one or

is an amnesty. There is no question of the final agreement or even this

draft agreement containing anything that represents an amnesty. It is

off the table, it was never on, it will not be in the final document.

We are clear about that. And the other parties? Well, the SDLP, the

Alliance Party and the UUP to varying degrees say a deal is

possible but it is clear that work needs to be done. These are the

thoughts of the Sinn Fein MLA Gerry Kelly. If the political will is

there we can do this in 48 hours and if not, we cannot. People have

thought before that these things were in tractable and we have dealt

with them and we can deal with the issues here. They are not new. All

of the arguments involved have been gone through before and we are in a

different place than the word two years ago or ten years ago and I

think we need to use this opportunity that Richard Haass has

produced. In fact, that the First and Deputy First Ministers have

produced with the Americans. The thoughts of Gerry Kelly. Tomorrow,

we understand there will be some rewriting going on that Richard

Haass insists a deal is possible this week. Stephen Walker at the

talks venue. A survey on the talks issues of flags, parades and the

past has been carried out for BBC Newsline. It has found significant

levels of support for retaining the Parades Commission and building a

Peace and Reconciliation Centre at the site of the former Maze jail.

The poll also indicates people don't want a line drawn under the

investigation of offences during the Troubles. On the flying of flags

over public buildings, the designated days option

controversially adopted by Belfast City Council emerges as the practice

with the most cross-community support. Mark Devenport has been

looking at the findings. If they were easy questions, politicians

would not spend so much time trying to come up with answers. It is no

surprise that this poll does not provide many crushing majorities.

Instead, there was plenty of evidence of communities pulling in

different directions. On the past, the Attorney General sparked a

Ferrari when he adjusted the prosecution of troubles era offences

should end. We asked people if police should stop investigating

those wooded offences dating back to before the Good Friday Agreement.

30% said yes. But 45% said no, believing investigations should

continue. But if I % had no opinion. More than half of those describing

themselves as from a Protestant background said investigations

should not stop, whereas those from a Catholic background and more

evenly split overall. Just over one third agree that police should

continue to investigate offences. It does break down into the committee

and political back down and -- background and parties will look at

this and decide they are right to take the position they have taken.

In the Haass talks there has been discussion around creating an office

which could offer some sort of limited immunity to those providing

information about troubles murders. We ask of Northern Ireland should

have a truth commission offering immunity to those who admit what

they did during the Troubles. Slightly more people, 38%, were in

favour, compared to 36% against. Around a quarter, 26%, had no

opinion. A lotta people on both sides want some method of finding

out what happened other than just enquiries which are hugely expensive

and very long and drawn out. Over the summer in response to tensions

over marching, the First Minister put the proposed Maze prison peace

and reconciliation Centre on hold. 39% interviewed for the poll agreed

that the centre should be built asked on the 26% said it should not

be. Richard Haass was called in after trouble erupted in Belfast

over the council decision to fly the union flag on designated days only.

Although that option might tested tension, our poll suggests it is the

only one significant committee support. 33% giver flying the union

flag only on 18 designated days. 25% say the Union flag should flatter

all year round and 15% say it should never be flown. Those who favour

flying the flag owned on designated days include roughly a third of

those from both Protestant backroads. Nearly half of the

Protestant background told the pollsters they wanted the flag flown

306 five days a year, and only 4% of Catholics favoured that. Similarly,

only to of Protestants opted for never flying the flag whereas 28%

others from a Catholic background selected that option. There are a

lot of people who do not care. I would be willing to bet the majority

of people do not care that much but for some people, it is a very

emotive issue. In a way, the few thousand that my protest are not

representative of the population of Northern Ireland by any means. But

they are an important group. It is understood that the Richard Haass

talks team is suggesting that all councils and public buildings should

fly flags only on 18 designated days as a default option. What is under

discussion is whether individual councils should have the power to

vary the number of days -- vary the number of days, and should national

councils be able to update from the designated scheme, and if they do,

should unionist majority councils be able to increase the number of days

on which the flag flutters over buildings? Wheels asked people about

flags flying from lamp posts. Said it should be against the law. And an

objective for the Haass talks is to come up with a replacement for the

much criticised Parades Commission. One of the more striking findings of

our poll is up 39% of those interviewed believed the commission

should be retained. Whilst only 24% want to see it abolished. 37% have

no opinion. In the context of a process looking to replace the

commission, in the context of some very sensitive and ethical issues

around at the moment, these are very encouraging results. There are quite

high percentages registering no opinion. Does this reflect weariness

when it comes to these intractable disputes? Our pollsters tell us that

when asked questions about education, the economy or health,

far fewer people choose to take the no opinion box. Our BBC Newsline

poll was carried out over the last three weeks by pollsters Ipsos Mori.

They interviewed 1,021 people face-to-face at locations across

Northern Ireland. When it came to community background, 9% said they

belonged to neither or other categories or refused to answer the

question. If you want to take a look at more of the poll's findings,

details can be found online. Still to come: Was 2013 the year the local

economy turned? We've a special report.

1,100 people have been recalled by the Belfast Health Trust following a

review of patient notes. The problem emerged after three urology patients

received a late cancer diagnosis. This is the fourth recall of

patients by the trust in almost three years. Marie-Louise Connolly

reports. According to the trust, the letters were despatched yesterday so

anyone affected will have received a letter either today or perhaps

tomorrow. To explain more, I am joined by the medical director, Tony

Stevens. Who is affected? We are talking about patients who have

attended our urology service with problems affecting their bladder.

People who have had a camera test into their bladder in the last two

years who we are asking to come back to have a repeat. How did the

problem emerge? I was notified three weeks ago by my senior medical staff

in the service that there might be a small cluster, very small, three

patients, whose diagnosis of growth might have been delayed. Just how

serious is this? We are talking about people who have been diagnosed

with cancer who could have received that diagnosis perhaps sooner? The

first thing to say is we are talking about people who are often on repeat

investigations, who might have been diagnosed earlier, so it has a

potential to be serious but that is why we are reacting the way we are.

This is the fourth recall within the Belfast trust in three years. That

does not sound good? We would rather not do recall is and we treat over 1

million people in the trust and the vast majority very successfully. We

have a very high level of vigilance, we are an open organisation and we

all at what we do and when we have concerns we shall make sure we get

everything completely right. Thank you. The screening will start this

week and according to the trust, it will be completed by the end of

February. And a helpline is also operating. A shot has been fired

through the window of a house in West Belfast. Two men, one with a

shotgun, also poured flammable liquid through a window of the

property at Mill Race last night. No-one was injured. We'll find out

tomorrow if the number of people claiming Jobseekers' Allowance is

continuing to fall. The declining rate of joblessness is just one sign

that the local economy has begun to slowly recover this year. Here's

John Campbell. Here we are at the end of the year and Belfast at the

centre is bustling. It should be, it is almost Christmas. What has been

happening in the wider economy? Providers, the finances of

households and businesses have been battered. But is 2013 the year we

finally bounced off the bottom? I will look at the numbers with the

help of graphics. We are going to drill into this figure is that

really count. Let's start with the defining economic event. The

property crash. Remember how dramatic that room was. Between 2005

and 2007, prices balloon. When the crash came, it was among the worst

world has ever known. By the end of last year, prices collapsed to

?92,000 but at the start of this year, they stopped falling. They

came up a little bit. Rising to an average of ?99,000. The first signs

of recovery. It is similar in the jobs market. Official figures show

the drummer of people claiming jobseeker's allowance has come down

slowly this year. In January it stood at nearly 65,000. By November,

it was down to 61,000. That is a very gradual but sustained

improvement. Even if you have a job, what about your disposable income?

The money left over after paying for essentials. Inflation touched 2.8%

this year and it has come down to 2.1% but prices are still rising.

The problem is uppermost triple, wages are not going up I even that

amount. That means finances are still really squeezed. Research

produced by one of the super markets suggests that when a typical UK

household has paid all their bills and taxes, they have just ?137 a

week to play with but in Northern Ireland the figure is lower. Just

?60 a week in disposable income. What is the big picture? Official

figures suggest things are getting worse at the start of this year

before levelling out and then some growth kicking in for the summer.

All told, experts think we are only getting 1% growth this year and

next, things are brighter. Growth might reach 2%, still unspectacular

but better than anything we have had for ages. John Campbell reporting.

One of Ulster and Ireland's best rugby players has signed a new

contract. Stephen Watson has that news. It is most certainly good

news. Ulster rugby and the IRFU confirmed today that Rory Best has

signed a new two-year deal that will run until June 2016. In just under a

decade, Best has represented Ulster 143 times and has also made 70

appearances for Ireland, scoring eight tries - the most recent in

that narrow defeat against New Zealand in Dublin. A game in which

he also suffered a broken arm. Best also was in the Lions squad in

Australia this year, captaining the side in one match on the tour.

Tonight sees the semifinal stage of the Irish League Cup with holders

Cliftonville away to Ards. And last year's runners-up Ballymena face a

tough trip to Seaview, up against a Crusaders side that has now gone 24

games unbeaten in all competitions. They have strength all over the

parks we must contain them as much as possible and create chapters of

your own. When we create them, there will not be many, but we must be

clinical and take them. Another semifinal and the boys are getting

to these and the enjoyed the final last year so hopefully we can go one

step further. There's live coverage tonight on BBC Radio Ulster Medium

Wave from 7.30pm and we'll have the results on our late bulletin at

10.25pm here on BBC One. Short and sweet tonight! The weather forecast

is next with Barra. It will be difficult? Today was the

calm before the storm. It was not a bad day for getting out. Scented

Christmas shoppers enjoying the dry, right and sunny weather. Through the

rest of the seasoning, we will have a few showers coming and going but

last night was exciting. We had this thunder cloud coming across

Donegal. They give are sending that in. Keep those photos coming in.

This evening and overnight, it becomes unsettled with outbreaks of

rain and it will become much windier but on the upside, no frost to worry

about tomorrow that average is falling to around six degrees.

Through tomorrow, it will stay windier with further outbreaks of

rain and it will not be raining all the time. Plenty of dry spells out

there but not much in the way of sunshine, like today. The odd

glimmer coming and going but it will be rather cloudy. On the upside,

higher temperatures of 11 degrees but when we get rain and wind, it

will feel colder. The bulk of the rain will come in later tomorrow

afternoon and through the evening, especially for rush hour. You will

get heavy bursts heading this way. It could lead to treacherous driving

conditions, especially with that strong wind. The winds will pick up

and we have an early weather warning for strong wind and gusts of up to

80 mph and maybe more towards the north coast. Enough to cause some

disruption. We will keep an eye on that and we shall keep you updated.

Strong wind coming tomorrow evening and overnight, blowing in the

showers and some of those could be quite wintry. A centimetre of snow

over the Sperrins for example. Most areas will avoid those but there

could be sleet and snow for low-level areas. Thursday is feeling

quite nippy and raw. Three or four degrees but with that strong wind it

will feel closer to freezing. And again, the chance of seeing showers.

The strong wind stays with us for Friday and into the weekend. Our

late summary is at 10.25pm. You can keep in contact with us via Facebook

and Twitter. Goodnight.