21/03/2014 BBC Oxford News

That's all from us. Don't forget a first look at the papers over on the

That's all from us. Don't forget a Good evening. It's been agrded that

a new multi`million pound flood defence system should be buhlt

around west Oxford. Representatives from groups like the Environment

Agency, Network Rail, and Thames Water have met today to discuss the

idea. But there are concerns about how the project will be paid for.

Adina Campbell reports. It's been a problem for years, and

up until a few weeks ago, flooding was affecting many homes and

businesses across Oxfordshire. But could there soon be a long`term

solution? According to todax's flooding summit, there is, with

backing for a new flood relhef channel, also known as the Western

Conveyance. The four`mile channel would carry water around thd west of

Oxford. The idea is to relidve pressure from the River Thales,

making better use of flood plains south of the city. It is hoped this

would improve the flow of w`ter protecting more homes and btsinesses

as well as transport links. We want to control the water and get it away

from the road, and control ht going past Abingdon Road and the railway

line, and then release it. H think there is a desire to ensure that

what we build we build as qtickly as we possibly can. Not to linger on

this, but to move forward as quickly as possible. But the project would

be expensive, costing about ?12 million. It's not yet clear who

would pay for that, and there are also concerns about areas lhke

Abingdon being more at risk of flooding if the flow of watdr

changes. More details about the Western Conveyance channel `re

expected in the next few wedks. A man arrested in the Netherlands

has been charged with the mtrder of two teenagers in Milton Keynes.

19`year`old Mohamed Farah and 18`year`old Amin Ismail werd shot in

an alleyway on the Fisherme`d estate in May 2011. Brahim Hajji appeared

in court this morning and w`s remanded in custody. Two men have

already been jailed for the murders. An Oxfordshire village could double

in size in the next five ye`rs if new housing plans go ahead. 600

homes could be added to Shrhvenham, which is just outside Swindon.

People living there are worried the expansion will be too great for the

existing facilities. Charlotte Stacey has more.

Eddie has been a landlord hdre at the Prince of Wales pub in

Shrivenham for three years. Even though more homes might mean more

customers for him, he is ag`inst a big expansion. I think it whll spoil

what we have, and that's thd thing. Everybody knows everybody. Xou can

walk up this high street and everyone will stop and say hello to

you, and if you want to stop and chat, you can do that. But to double

in size will lose that uniqte feeling. Many locals are concerned

about the effects more housds could have on services and amenithes,

which they say are already struggling. There is not thd

infrastructure in place to support that amount of growth. At the

moment, you struggle to park on the high street in the mornings, and

that is a good thing for business, but it will reach a breaking point.

It's a great community spirht here, and I feel if the village w`s

expanded too much, we would lose all that. Two large areas of land are

earmarked for development. Here on the south edge of the village, they

are proposing building 200 new homes, and here to the north, they

are planning 400. Shrivenhal accepts that it will need to expand. Our

concern is the level of exp`nsion that is planned for Shrivenham. If

the vale would look at thesd other villages and redistribute the growth

a little more evenly, it wotld be much fairer. The South Oxfordshire

and Vale of White Horse district councils say they recognise the

concerns of people living hdre in Shrivenham, but say there is an

urgent need to get new houshng plans in place, and difficult dechsions

will have to be made. Howevdr, they say they are looking forward to a

public meeting here next wedk, and will continue to assess othdr

options. A mathematical error has sp`rked a

new row over rent rises in Oxford's Covered Market. Traders say it's

unfair of the City Council to try to raise their rents by 20%. The

increase is nearly three tiles higher than that recently sdt by an

independent arbitrator. Heldn Catt takes up the story.

Butchers, bakers and...well, candle sellers, are among the shops filling

Oxford's Covered Market. For the last two years, they have bden at

odds with the City Council over how much more they should be paxing to

be there. Last year, it was hoped an independent arbitrator would settle

the question for good. Five shops here went to arbitration. The

results were rent rises of between 3% and 12%. But the council has now

written to other shops saying it wants much more than that. The

traders' view is very clear. If we've got to have an increase, at

least give us the same incrdase that the others have been given by going

to arbitration. Let's stop this now, and let us get on with tradhng

without this cloud hanging over us. The council says it's not that

black`and`white. We went to the arbitrator on these five unhts in

expectation we would be abld to use that as a model for the othdr

offers. As it happened, the arbitration award that was lade

contained an error, so it is not a good basis for making offers to our

other tenants in the market. The BBC has not been able to contact the

arbitrator or see his report. The City Council says if the lower rate

was applied across the markdt, it would lose out on ?500,000 over five

years. But traders say they can t afford a bigger increase. If the two

sides can't agree, the only choice will be for them too to go to

arbitration. Oxford United's chairman saxs he's

completed the search for thd club's next manager ` and he'll reveal who

it is once contracts have bden signed this weekend. Oxford won the

game, beating Hartlepool 1`nil at the Kassam Stadium.

Before we go, Kate Bush is to return to the stage ` 35 years aftdr the

only tour she's ever done. # You had a ten part, like ly

jealousy #. The singer`songwriter, who has a

home near Abingdon, gave up touring after just six weeks back in 19 9.

She'd topped the charts with Wuthering Heights the previous year.

Now, at 55, she'll play 15 dates at the Hammersmith Apollo in London in

August and September. There's more about Kate's London shows online,

and find out why she decided to stop touring aged just 20. You c`n also

see a video from 1979 as shd was preparing for her tour that year.

Alexis is coming up with thd weekend weather foreacast. That's it from us

for tonight. Goodnight. Good evening. It will certahnly be a

chilly night to come. Colder than recent nights. Temperatures falling

to two or three Celsius. Thd risk of a few showers as well. That may give

the risk of ice on untreated surfaces when temperatures hover

just above freezing. We could have a few clear spells with a touch of

frost first thing. There max be wintry showers in the mix. @ bit of

sleet over higher ground. H`il as well. Showers rolling in from the

south`west. They could be on the heavy side tomorrow. Even h`il and

thunder. Also wintry. Hail `nd sleet over hilltop areas. Some sunny

spells, and a high of eight Celsius. The wind is fairly brisk tolorrow.

Showers stay with us on Sunday, but an improving picture. By Monday it

should stay mainly dry. Next up is the national weather.

you with our summary, but now, the National forecast.

Good evening. If you can cast your mind back to this time last week, we

were looking forward to sunshine and warmth, we got temperatures of 0

Celsius. This