27/09/2013 BBC Oxford News

Hello and welcome to South Today from Oxford. In tonight's programme:

A brave solution to a grave problem. Going to extreme lengths to maximise

burial space. Ahead of the Tory party conference,

the Prime Minister puts his reputation on the line over HS2.

And later on: Jujitsu masters from around the globe gather for their

world championships. Good evening.

The graveyard in Bicester will be full within three years — and after

that, grieving relatives will no longer have the option of a burial

in their home town. A BBC survey has found nearly half of all graveyards

across England will run out of space within the next 20 years. There's

growing pressure for older plots to be re—used — and in Oxfordshire

they're going to extreme lengths to maximum what little space remains.

John Maguire reports. It is calm, quiet, but almost at

full capacity here at Bicester's town cemetery. They are rapidly

running out of space, which means they are also running out of time.

What are your options in this part of the cemetery here? This is the

area where we are tight for space now. We have about two years left in

this area, and we need to make some radical decisions. Some of the

options may be like this bench, this is a memorial bench which has been

for some time here. Unfortunately we are going to have to lose some of

the benches and other historical features.

A BBC survey found 44% of councils have just 20 years left before their

cemeteries are full, a quarter of them just ten years. Buying new land

is complex and costly. Acquiring it could be a very significant sum, and

the last estimate we looked at would cost us well over £1 million.

Experts say the issue needs to be tackled at Government level, and

reusing burial sites is the best solution.

Here is another solution they have adopted here. They have moved the

perimeter fence out by a four feet or so, costing tens of thousands of

pounds, giving the cemetery an extra 12 months breathing space. So as you

can see, this issue is very complex, very expensive, and it is also

highly emotive. He's Prime Minister — but he's also

a local MP of course, which means David Cameron's acutely aware of the

strength of feeling in our region about High Speed Two. He's been

speaking to BBC South's Political Editor Peter Henley ahead of the

Conservative Party conference. And a short while ago, Peter told me the

controversial rail line is one of a number of hot topics on Mr Cameron's

mind. At the Labour Party conference Ed

Balls suggested that Labour was looking again particularly at the

cost of HS2. Then there are other questions from within the

Conservative party, opposition not just of the cost but to the possible

benefits for the North and for the South from this scheme, and so that

is the first question I asked David Cameron.

I think this is really important to an audience in the South East, where

people think this is going ahead, how will it help me? Our West Coast

mainline is full, we need to build another one. Do we build an old

Victorian one or a new high—speed one? It must be right to go high

speed. The worry as think people have in other parts of the country

is too much of the transport budget going on this scheme. Between 2015

and 2020, the next Parliament, as a Government we would spend three

times as much on the transport and road schemes as on HS2. That would

be an improvement in the South East, as well as going ahead with the

first stage of HS2. Labour are still ahead in the polls. Ed Miliband were

judged to have made a good speech to conference. UKIP did not go quite so

well, but of course in our part of the world Conservatives definitely

are worried about that argument over Europe and made —— whether Nigel

Farage will gain ground. I asked Mr Cameron about the Nigel Farage

effect. We are turning the corner. We have had to take difficult

decisions, all those cuts, people have asked us, is it worth it? My

message is it is worth it if we can complete the job of delivering

recovery for everybody. That the Prime Minister has two not only keep

control of his own party, but also keep the coalition together as he

goes towards the election. And you can see Peter's full

interview with the Prime Minister on this weekend's Sunday Politics, on

Sunday morning at 11:00. Police investigating the rape of a

15—year—old girl in Carterton have arrested another man. The

22—year—old from Witney was detained last night following the assault in

Shilton Park in the early hours of Saturday. A man in his forties

arrested earlier has now been released without charge. The

detective leading the inquiry has moved to reassure the community —

and says anyone who's worried should talk with their neighbourhood

policing team. How would you feel if your child was

sniffed for drugs on their way into school by a police dog? That's what

happened to hundreds of teenagers in Swindon earlier. Police say the

exercise was a way to improve relations with young people — part

of a very public effort to tackle anti—social behaviour. But, as

Jeremy Stern reports, some in the town feel it's an issue where the

Wiltshire force is falling short. An unusual start to the school day —

a sniffer dog met pupils on their way in. It's part of a police drive

to stop anti—social behaviour by encouraging officers and young

people to get to know each other. They are talking to police officers

on the street, the drug dog is quite friendly, it is quite an experience.

But the implication is they are carrying drugs. The implication is

they know it will not be tolerated and is illegal.

No teenagers were caught with drugs at Lydiard Park, but in the nearby

Pinehurst estate anti—social behaviour is a big problem. Last

night a PCSO was attacked by a dog and a man was arrested after a

fight. Residents say they've felt threatened for years.

You've got drug dealing going on outside the schools, the teenagers

are hanging around on the streets, you cannot let your children out of

play. From our perspective, it is not out of control. There are issues

like within any neighbourhood we robustly deal with.

Officers also visited the orbital centre in Swindon as part of

Operation Harness. You might have noticed more police

activity this morning in Swindon, that is because there have been a

series of drugs raids across Wiltshire. 170 police officers were

involved and there have been a number of arrests.

The crime rate in Wiltshire is down by 10% this year. Some may not feel

secure, but statistically Wiltshire is one of the safest counties in

England. There was traffic disruption in

Bicester today after fire broke out on one of the area's busiest roads.

The blaze started when equipment at a nearby telephone exchange caught

light. But it was quickly brought under control, and no—one was hurt

in the incident. An inquiry into a controversial

decision to approve the building of student flats on land adjoining a

renowned beauty spot in Oxford will report back by Christmas. But the

independent review of the development alongside Port Meadow

won't be able to reverse the original approval, and also won't

apportion blame either. Instead its aim is to improve the planning

process for the future. They've been an occasional sight in

our skies for the past decade — but it's in their service overseas where

the RAF's fleet of Merlin helicopters have been clocking—up

the air miles. Today, a special celebration's been held at RAF

Benson in Oxfordshire, marking ten years of the aircraft's service in

some pretty challenging locations. Victoria Cook was there.

It has spent the last decade in conflict zones like Bosnia and

Afghanistan. Its job, to move troops, suppliers, even civilians.

Now their service to the RAF is complete. The Merlin is finished

their last missions in May, and know they are all back in the UK.

In a few months time, all of the helicopters will be transferred to

the —— Royal Navy. At RAF Benson it was not just the

Merlin getting a send off. One of the longest serving pilots flew his

last flight after 34 years. A moment to reflect on some poignant

memories. One of the saddest things I ever did was take some Afghan

children who had been injured by explosive devices, who had then been

treated in British hospitals, and they were being taken back to their

village with their parents or relatives and some of the village

elders, and they were also great for this is what the British forces were

doing for them. Now the helicopters are being

prepared for their move to the Royal Navy where they will replace the

retiring Sea Kings. While air force crews are also training their

colleagues in how to operate the Merlin. In the meantime, the RAF are

receiving new helicopters. The Puma helicopters are beginning to be

delivered right now. During its time if Afghanistan, the Merlin moved

nearly 8,000 tonnes of kit and 130,000 personnel. As yet, no one

knows where they will be deployed next.

It's still a stunning building — but the chapel at Ripon College in

Cuddesdon missed out on top prize at the country's most prestigious

architecture awards ceremony last night. The Bishop Edward King Chapel

was described as an "uplifting, spiritual space". It was among six

finalists chosen for the Royal Institute of British Architects'

Stirling Prize. In the end, that went to a medieval manor in

Warwickshire which had been given a make over.

Sport is coming up in a few minutes of course — with Tom tonight — and

while he's looking ahead to this weekend, there's a chance for you to

think back and celebrate some of the sporting success stories from

Oxfordshire over the past year. That's because nominations are open

for this year's local Sports Awards. Categories include Club of the Year

and Unsung Hero. You can find out more — and cast

YOUR vote — by logging onto the Oxfordshire Sports Partnership

website. That's all from me for the moment.

I'll have the headlines at 8:00 and a full bulletin at 10:25. Now more

of today's stories with Sally Taylor.

the South. The numbers have increased since 2009, following a

shake—up of the system which had been criticised for being slow.

Still to come in this evening's South Today: We're at the World

Jujitsu Championship which is being held in Andover.

It is the art of self defence and it doesn't matter how big or small you

are. Join me later in the programme. It's been confirmed today that 115

agency workers at the BAE shipyard in Portsmouth have been laid off.

Many were employed through the Fareham—based Matchtech employment

company. There has been uncertainty at the future of shipbuilding in the

city since last year when BAE began a review of its warship business

across the UK. Steve Humphrey is with me now. Steve, why are these

jobs going now? This is all to do with the lack of

orders for new warships — both export orders and UK MoD orders. The

agency staff had been involved in building three corvettes for Royal

Oman Navy. It was a quite a decent—sized export contract but the

work is coming to an end. 115 agency workers have been told they are no

longer required. BAE says the contract workers were from a variety

of trades including mechanical fitters, painters and joiners.

And there has already been a question mark hanging over the long

term future of shipbuilding in Portsmouth.

Yes, last year BAE announced a review of its three warship building

bases — the one in Portsmouth and two on the Clyde in Scotland. The

review was launched because of the downturn in warship orders. The

yard's biggest contract at the moment is for sections of the Navy's

second aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales. That work in Portsmouth

will begin to wind down in 2015. BAE currently employs 3,200 of its own

staff at the naval base in Portsmouth of which 1,300 are

involved in shipbuilding. Today, unions repeated their calls for a

decision to be made about the future of the UK's warship building

industry. There does need to be a decision

about how shipbuilding is going to be configured in this country going

forward. Government clearly need to be part of making that decision but

we recognise there is a question over Scottish independence which may

be inhabiting that. But the longer it goes on, the more likely we are

to see people losing their jobs. So, Steve, what is BAE saying today?

Well, today, BAE issued a statement about the decision to lay off the

115 agency workers. It says: Meanwhile, the employment company

Matchtech has said it will be working with the people involved to

try to identify new opportunities. Cycling campaigners say a new bridge

across the River Thames in Berkshire, designed especially for

those walking or cycling, will be hopelessly inadequate to cope with

demand. Reading Borough Council has robustly defended the crossing which

will link Caversham and Reading. Nikki Mitchell reports.

It seems few cyclists are willing to risk cycling on the roads in this

area. The Newbridge will connect with the main roads by Reading

station. People can't walk. It's a good idea. It would be much easier.

It will be built at a cost of £21 million.

They believed the design is hopelessly inadequate. If you're

going to get hundreds of cyclists and pedestrians using the bread at

the same time then it is really important that the cyclists have

their own space and pedestrians have their own space. But the council

says that if cyclists know they are sharing the bread with people on

foot, they will slow down. There are 50 similar bridges that

have been built in the last ten years around England and none have a

sacred segregated facility. It will work extremely well and proved to be

very popular. The plans for this iconic structure and the sensitivity

of its location will be reviewed in detail later this year.

Andover is playing host to around 100 of the globe's top jujitsu

competitors as the World Championships take place. The

martial art involves opponents grappling, throwing and striking

each other. Alexis Green has been watching them in action and is live

at the event. Jujitsu is all about self defence

and it doesn't matter how big or how small you are, it's great for all

ages. The World Championships are taking place and today we learned

all about the technique of grappling.

Jujitsu was originally used by the Samurai soldiers in Japan, fighting

each other on horseback with swords. Once they lost their weapon, they

had to adapt, which is what today's sport is all about. The word jujitsu

can be translated to mean gentle art. There are rules, even so

competitors can kick or even choke each other. You are fighting for

points so you need control when you're doing standing up the rose.

But you're not too draw blood because we are not at war with

anybody. England are favourites to win but

not if the Canadians can help it. Our intention is to leave with the

gold. For me it is interesting to practice in an international

competition so I hope it will help me win.

Five countries, one gold medal. The grapple for gold is on.

That was about grappling but to tell us all about the other techniques is

the director of the sport in England. You are six levels higher

than a black belt, that's amazing. They are showing kicks and punches.

Carla and Neal, I mean Chris, are doing some throws. It is the place

to be. Can people come and watch? Yes, it is £10 for the day and

tomorrow is the big team event. England can win! Are you ready? How

was that? Very impressive. Tom this year with

the sport. Do you fancy a go at that?

I'm not sure. I think I heard the crunch of bones when he went down!

A crowd of more than 6000 saw England's women thrash Turkey 8—0 in

their World Cup qualifier at Fratton Park. Toni Duggan opened the scoring

in the first minute and went on to score a first—half hat—trick. It

follows England's 6—0 win against Belarus at Bournemouth. Let's have a

look at the goals. That's a tour of Bengal and England

have six. She scores and England have eight

goals. You have to go back to 2007 since we

saw more than eight goals in a game at Fratton Park, when Pompey beat

Reading 7—4 in the Premier League. Now, Southampton will look to build

on their victory at Liverpool last week. Saints host Crystal Palace at

St Mary's and will be hoping for their first Premier League win at

home since the end of March. Rickie Lambert scored twice the last time

the clubs met. And one Saints legend is tipping him to be on the plane to

Brazil should England qualify for the 2014 World Cup.

What he has done has been phenomenal. There's not too many

players who made their England debut after the age of 30, especially

taking that career path. He has a hero in Southampton and rightly so.

He has enough quality to make a difference at international level.

In the Championship, on—loan Saints striker Billy Sharp goes straight

into the Reading squad for their game against Birmingham. Bournemouth

host Blackburn and Brighton travel to Ipswich.

MK Dons host Stevenage and Swindon travel to Preston in League One. In

League Two, Portsmouth travel to York and Oxford head north as well

to Hartlepool. Commentary, as you'd expect, on your BBC Local radio

station and we'll have highlights here on Monday.

The basketball season gets underway this weekend in the BBL and Surrey

United begin this season's campaign under new ownership. Earlier this

month, the Surrey Sports Park and London United took over the

franchise based in Guildford. It's meant a third name change in as many

years but also access to a supply of talented young players.

Alan Hansen once said that she cannot win anything with kids.

Manchester United proved him wrong and Surrey United wants to do the

same. They have their pick of local young players. We want to get

players on scholarships. That should eradicate the issue of salaries. I

wouldn't say we will go for cheap players, we will go for young up and

coming players. We can act this 19—year—old hopes exposure in the

top flight will boost his international career and knows what

the motivation playing at this level can be for youngsters.

Everybody is hungry. They all wanted. 12 of the students

live together into student houses in Whickham. The manager is just hoping

they do not come down with the flu. They are considering entering a side

in one of the French regional leagues. But can they improve on

last year's fourth—place? You can win things with young players. Alan

Hansen was wrong. We can win with the kids. They start at home

tomorrow. Couple more brief lines for you:

Hampshire Cricket have signed all—rounder Matt Coles on a

permanent deal from Kent and Portsmouth boxer Ebonie Jones lost

her semi final on a split decision in the Women's Junior World Amateur

Boxing Championships in Bulgaria. The 15—year—old has claimed the

bronze medal though. Such a beautiful start to

from one contact sports to another because Alexis is at the world

jujitsu Championships. I want to see how you're getting on.

I just bet that one move because my back is hurting a little!

Let us look at the satellite picture from early on. The clouds broke up

nicely to give highs of 19 Celsius. Tonight, the cloud will gather in

places and there may be some showers. It will be cooler in the

north of the region. There is still the chance of a shower tomorrow but

most places will be dry during the morning. That risk of showers

increases in the afternoon. They could be heavy in places, maybe even

thundery, but there will be sunshine. Through the course of

tomorrow night, patchy cloud once again. The majority of places

staying dry. For the next few days, it is looking pretty good for most

areas but if you are unlucky to catch a shower, they could be on the

heavy side possibly with even some thunder. There are as lots of

uncertainty about these showers so stay chained to the forecast. ——

there is lots of uncertainty. That's it from us. Goodbye.