18/10/2012 BBC Points West

Good evening from BBC Points West. Our headlines tonight: Starved to

death - the magistrate who stopped eating because she could not bear

to live with illness. As crime figures fall, we ask if we

really need elections for police commissioners.

Also tonight - a parade of champions. The great and good of

National Hunt racing celebrate the new season.

And what a catch. But who will scoop the big one at tonight's

A retired magistrate from Somerset suffering from MS has starved

herself to death. Monica Cooke from Cheddar was 74, she had had the

disease for 20 years. Today a court heard how she decided to stop

eating after the Wiltshire man Tony Nicklinson lost his High Court case

to change the law on assisted dying. Cheerful, courageous and determined.

Monica Cooke was a magistrate in Somerset, an active tennis player

and a member of several choirs. But after 20 years of multiple

sclerosis, she had been robbed of all pleasure. She could not move,

she could not taste, she could not smell. So when the alarm clock rang

on August 30th this year, she announced her decision to her

husband David. From that time on, she would not be eating any more.

Eight days later, she died. Monica had been following the case of Tony

Nicklinson, the Wiltshire man who had gone to the High Court to try

to get the law on assisted dying changed. It was when his case

failed that she took her momentous decision. The time and manner of

his last two days gave her the courage to put her long declared

intention into action. She wished to intervene and end her life when

she chose. Two years ago, Emma Boultwood couldn't do this. Her MS

is now in remission, but she too thinks there has to be a change in

the law. It is so people can have help when they have reached their

end of wanting to live, they should be given a dignified death and they

shouldn't be put in this situation. Today at the coroner's court in

Taunton, the coroner Michael Rose made an interesting decision.

Instead of returning a verdict of suicide, he returned a narrative

verdict. He described how Monica Cooke died because she would not

eat. He added while he did not support organ tone her decision,

and it was a matter for Parliament, he said no-one who heard her story

could fail to be moved. -- and did not condone it.

But for the law to change it has to be MPs who are moved. As more and

more tragic cases come to light, some campaigners believe it is now

a question of when, not if. A businessman from Somerset has

appeared at the Old Bailey charged with fraudulently making and trying

to sell bomb detectors. Jim McCormick's company was based at

Sparkford near Wincanton. Today the 56-year-old from Langport pleaded

not guilty to three charges of making and supplying three

different devices. A trial is due to start in March next year.

Crime is falling across the West according to new figures out today.

It is a trend mirrored across England and Wales. It comes as we

all gear up for the first ever elections for police and crime

commissioners. So will it be an easy and well-paid job, for the

winning candidates next month? With crime falling do we even need them?

Our political editor Paul Barltrop is in Bristol where a hustings

event takes place this evening. I am down at the Council house

where a hustings is going to start in 25 minutes for the Avon and

Somerset Police Commissioner elections. Whoever wins, they will

instantly become the highest-paid politician, a salary of �85,000. It

might not be too difficult. Let us look at the figures. It has fallen

by 5% in Avon and Somerset, endorser by 6%. There has been no

change in Wiltshire. There may be little appetite for radical changes

to policing. This used to be one of the West's

crime hotspots but Bristol's Southmead Estate is much safer than

it used to be. At the local community centre, mums want their

toddlers to grow up in safety and are pretty positive.

I do not live in an area where there is much crime. I know they

are really overstretched so I think they are doing as good a job as

they can. Having police on the street regularly to see crime

reducing in an area and see people have a positive image, that is

important. We live in a place where we are reassured when we have

police around and they are looking into things. We do not live with a

daily worry about what is happening. Welcoming a Miliband brother to his

campaign today was Labour's candidate for Avon and Somerset. He

agrees if it ain't broke, don't fix it. His party do not think you need

commissioners to tackle crime. they are down, it is good. The

police have done a very good job. The decision to fix it was not one

from our party. The idea came from the

Conservatives. Their candidate insist there is still much more to

be done. They need a police commissioner in order to cut crime.

Crime has been coming down in this city in recent years and that is

very welcome but it needs to come down a lot further and faster.

Also pacing the city's streets today, the Liberal Democrat

candidate. His party, though in government, are not keen on

commissioners. Detection rates are positive that that is prior to the

spending review kicking in. Already we know there is more to be done.

What he means is cutting spending - whoever wins, police forces will

get less money, and that's expected to mean fewer officers in future.

Independent candidate Sue Mounstevens thinks having a

commissioner tied to a big political party won't help. It is a

very big job and I really think it is very important that someone

stands the that is not a party politician because it is important

we protect the residents from party politics.

Voters, or at least those who bother, will have their say on

November the 15th. The hustings will start at 7pm. They have got

seating for 200 people. A number have turned up at the moment but

they are expecting a fairly decent turnout. There will be events

taking place like this across the country. If you want to know more

about it, look on our website. A we will tell you all the candidates.

Why not tune in to Sunday politics this weekend? We are having a

special. Still to come: Why this policeman

could be celebrating at a national bravery awards ceremony later

tonight. And we catch up with the British

bobsleigher practising for the first time since breaking her back.

The West is a vital habitat for thousands of wild salmon that run

in our rivers every year to breed. So today the Environment Agency

have been cleaning the waters of the River Wylee in the hope they

will give the fish a bit of a romantic boost.

Hoovering in Langford Lakes. The nature reserve, between Warminster

and Salisbury, is made up of three lakes and is part of the river

Wylye. Volunteers have today been cleaning the silt off the gravel on

the river bed. Silt can smother eggs and prevent them from hatching

so clean gravel is needed for them to survive. The cleaner the gravel,

the better survive if you get from the eggs and the more fish that

come back in future years. Salmon particularly are in a vulnerable

state on the River Avon and the more fish that combat, the better

the stocks. Once two salmon have paired up, the

female digs a hole, called a redd, which is where she fertilises her

eggs with the male. She then covers the hole up and slowly the eggs

incubate throughout the winter and hatch in early spring. Chalk

streams provide excellent breeding areas for salmon. When they hatch,

they are that size. They can be this size, 12 centimetres, after

one year. They have one the at sea and when they return they can be

this size and weighing �10. It is not the only work being

carried out in the river. Source to Sea is a project aimed at ridding

the rivers of plants that have invaded the waters and are

theatening natural habitats. problems we have is they have been

introduced to the river by people's Gardens a we have not got the

natural controls. They grow out of control and smother the wildlife.

By making the waters as welcoming as possible the wildlife Trust

hopes the salmon born in our rivers will return in subsequent years to

spawn again. A police officer from Bristol has

been nominated for a National Bravery Award tonight. PC Grant

Goulden risked his own life to rescue a man drowning in the

freezing waters of Bristol's harbour. He is up against officers

from five other forces in the South West being honoured for their

dedication to the job. December 2010 and the country is

hit by freezing temperatures. Bristol is covered in a layer of

snow and PC Grant Goulden is called to help a man who is threatening to

jump into the harbour. It was Friday night, in the city centre,

it is always busy. I pulled up at the bottom of the waterfront. As I

got out and walked up here, I saw him jump in the water from a more

or less where I am standing. He grabbed a life buoy from the

side and threw it across to the man struggling in the water. But the

man could not grab it. He was sinking. The crowd were getting

restless and hostile, which is understandable because they were

seeing someone nearly dying. Grant took off his jacket and dived

into the freezing water. I was kicking with my legs, one arm

around him and one arm around the boy. I brought into the side.

Colleagues were waiting to lift us out. Fighting against the shock and

weight of the drowning man he struggled to pull him to safety. He

had been in the water almost ten from hypothermia. I had to be

lifted out. It was a couple of minutes out of being out of the

water the pain the really started hitting. Taking the risk that night,

PC Goulden went beyond the call of duty but he insists it what anyone

would do. I don't think any human being can stand by and watch

someone died. I could not. My colleagues - that my colleagues

would not be able to. Tonight Grant will find out at the

Bravery Awards what the Police Federation thinks of his actions

that night. A new sports recovery centre has

opened today in Wiltshire. The servicemen and has been set up by

Help for Heroes. The charity is working with the British Paralympic

Association in the hope more ex- servicemen will make it to the Rio

Olympics in 2016. The battle over plans for a new

football stadium in Bristol has cost the tax payer nearly a quarter

of a million pounds so far. Bristol City FC wants to build a new ground

at Ashton Vale, but some people living close by are against the

scheme. A Freedom of Information request from the BBC has revealed

that �234,000 has already been spent on the project.

Almost a year ago, Serita Shone was training for the Bobsleigh World

Championships in Germany, but the bob she was in crashed and she

broke her back. Her doctors told her she probably would not walk

again, let alone compete. But she has astounded everyone and the

BBC's Nick Hope went along to catch up with her on her first training

I remember crashing and I was upside down and my back really hurt.

I thought I had sprained myself or winded myself. Once I realised I

couldn't move, I started to try and wiggle my toes and fingers. I could

just about move my toes, but could not feel anything in between. When

I got into hospital and they did this Gans, they said this is a

situation and I realised I had broken my back.

What she did was undergo intense rest and rehabilitation. Over the

last few months she has recovered at an incredible rate. For me, for

many months, although this was a dream, some of it became a distant

dream. Being able to be here and say, I am doing it, is great. It is

one of the final hurdles in this In terms of the past year, having

come from not even knowing if I could touch my toes all run again

properly, to be able to sprint of the top on a sled and pushed my

boundaries every single run was amazing. National Hunt racing is

that this week after the summer break. For successful courses like

Wincanton in Somerset, it is an ongoing challenge to pull in

punters. Local train has brought along their

best horses today for a parade of champions including the legendary

Big Bucks. The surest sign of autumn as acorns

and leaves. The faithful gather today to renew their battle with

the bookies and enjoy the social scene at this most friendly of

courses. It is just a really lovely course for the fantastic atmosphere.

It is like a cross between a little point to point and one of the big

courses. I would far prefer to come here than Newbury. The atmosphere

is great. The I live in summer term and I am an annual member here. It

is a nice course, not too big to get around in and is always

comfortable. I have been here 10 years, enjoyed it, always have good

fun. Except it can be very, very cold. The chill wind of the

struggling economy is also blowing through the industry. The cause

provide 17 days' racing per year and has the work to keep punters

happy and returning. I think every racecourse needs to work harder to

give people the experience they should have because we are

competing with other places. National Hunt racing needs big name

stars and Big Bucks certainly fits the bill. Him being here today

certainly gives added value to a day's racing at Wincanton.

So what next for Big Bucks and Paul Nicholls who has been champion

trainer for the past seven seasons? It was a phenomenal season. When it

looked like we were dead and buried, Champion hurdles, the comeback was

brilliant. National Hunt racing is a vital industry for the region.

There are more than 30 licensed trainers in Gloucestershire alone.

More than 100,000 employed in industry across the country.

Wincanton is determined to maintain and expand its role in that this

season and beyond. Now, he may be the fastest man in

the world, but to our next guest Usain Bolt may also be the most

generous. The Olympics superstar has recently

sent a pair of his running shoes to a nine-year-old boy from Bristol

after hearing how he lost his legs. The spikes are being auctioned on

the internet to raise money for the family. Matthew Smith and his

parents join us now. Before we do anything else, we have got to see

these gorgeous shoes. Look at these! Show the bottoms. On a

gorgeous? Did he actually run in these?

think, yes, he did. They are like works of art and they are

incredibly light. They are a bit small for me, only size 13, but I

think I could run in that. How did this all come about?

manager of Matthew's football team used to work with Usain Bolt's mums

concern. That is a mouthful. He said to her, is there any chance of

getting a vest signed by Usain Bolt? When she contacted him, he

said I can do better and give him some spikes. The couple of months

ago, during the Olympics, his mum was here and presented the spikes

to Matthew. So we actually got it from the family? Some of his family

live in Bristol, don't they? You are a keen footballer and a

sportsman, aren't you? Yes. What happened when you started feeling

ill? Well, we started going to hospital and then we thought it was

just leg pain and we found out that it was something much worse.

have obviously been incredibly brave and it is fantastic to get

the shoes, but are you going to auction them on the internet?

that is being done on our behalf by somebody from the football club. We

have them in our possession for a couple of days and are enjoying

them as much as we can. They are gorgeous, aren't they? What will

you do with the many? What would you like Matthew? Hopefully, some

time and maybe when I am 18, maybe get something that can help me with

my prosthetic leg. You are a great fan, aren't you? He is pretty fast.

Yes. I can't remember the time, but it is amazing how fast that man is.

And they are on eBay? Is that right?

Now give them back. He is trying to keep them.

I hope you raise a lot of money. They are in amazing condition.

Thank you ever so much for coming in. All the very best for the

future. Thank you all of you. Wildlife film-makers across the

world are gathering in Bristol this evening for some of the most

prestigious awards in the industry. They are called the Pandas and

celebrate the best in natural history.

This year there were a record number of entries and Bristol based

companies, including the BBC, are among the finalists. Sarah is at

the event now. A glittering affair? Ates, David. I

have my ballgown on under my jacket. Pandas I usually try at -- shy and

retiring, but this evening I have found a few friends to help me out.

This event is the culmination of celebration of wildlife and

environmental film-making, which has been going on in Bristol during

the week. Several hundred delegates from across the world have been

taking part in talks, events, lectures and many of them are

hoping to win an award tonight. Three of the finalists are films

made by the Bristol based production companies. Here is a

taster of what is to come tonight. Verities! Look at that! In the

Congo low at third ferocious Congo fish. It is Africa's equivalent of

a piranha, only much bigger. This attempt to capture it has owned a

nomination, but it did require the director to resort to unusual

measures. Struggling with this one was catching the fish. We went to a

higher level, visited a witch doctor after the advice of the

local villagers and the day after, we caught one. For those emperor

penguins to survive, the worst is over for this year. The already

critically acclaimed frozen planet is on the shortlist in four

categories. Charting life in both the Arctic and Antarctic, it is one

of the finalists for his use of music. He have to try and convey

the experience of seeing these vast wealth and this is that the war few.

The music is really helpful in conveying their grandeur in that

barren Majesty that you see when you are out there. Music helped us

do that. For innovation in film- making comes hippo, a comprehensive

illustration of nature's three chain in action. We filled one of

nature's great events in unrivalled detail. Minute-by-minute, hour by

hour. It shows the events of a fortnight as an entire ecological

system consumed the carcass of a hippo. It was really wonderful to

see the reaction from our experts. They were often in the studio tent,

night and day, we would have to drag them out and get them to rest

because they were so thrilled to have this opportunity to see the

animals. You feel an incredible sense of isolation. The Pandas et

knowledge wildlife and environmental film-making at its

most fearless. Stretching boundaries and letting us into an

often undiscovered world. Some great pictures there. Joining

the now is Brian Leith, the chair of wild scream. Brian, tell me

about the entries you have had this year. I gather we have had nearly

500 films entered this year, which is the greatest number ever. From

46 countries which is also the greatest number ever. It is pretty

amazing. I was told by one of the jurors earlier in the week that

this was the best array of wildlife film she had ever seen. If the

industry buoyant at the moment? it is. We are not sure whether

money comes from. We sense there is a lot in production. Thank you very

much. There is certainly above us inside. If you want to know he wins

the awards, chin in at 10:25pm. Keep those panders under control!

Excellent stuff. Let's see what is happening with the weather.

I want a panda, I want a panda! I want a panda, I want a panda!

That looks like great fun. The weather is calming down after the

unsettled feel we are up for much better conditions. We had a fair

few showers today, more than we wanted and a little shop at times.

They pushed north eastwards and are beginning to clear nicely. We will

see more settled conditions through the evening. It was also windy

today, but the speeds were a good 10 miles per hour down then

yesterday. Come tomorrow morning it is far improving. We have decent

sunny spells tomorrow and pleasantly warm by the afternoon.

The rest of the evening has a few showers, but as the lower Miss

northwards, it means much small settled conditions. That also leads

into a settled first half of the weekend. We have a few showers

building here and there through the first part of the evening. They

went amount to a great deal. As they push through, they take the

wind with them and everything is a good deal,. The cloud breaks and

thins in rural spots so we will have chilly temperatures. If we are

looking at a fair bit of mist and fog tomorrow morning which will

burn off eventually, but it takes time. Once it does burn off, we are

looking at good amounts of sunshine. Without any wind tomorrow, --

pleasantly warm. Feeling quite nice actually. Into tomorrow night,

settled conditions continue. Again we will have breaks in the cloud

and mist and fog to take us into Saturday. Saturday does bode very

well indeed. We are looking at a good amount of sunshine. Whether

funds either side, though. By Sunday it is a very different

picture. If that will spread in from the south-east bringing wet

and windy conditions and also mild air. As we go into next week, the

wet and windy conditions will have pushed through, we will have mild

air behind that and next week's temperatures will rise. Not an

Indian summer, but decent temperatures to enjoy.

temperatures to enjoy. Thank you. We will get you a panda

next time. In the meantime, we want to keep the pits.