14/03/2014 BBC Points West

Cabinet minister Tony Benn who's died aged 88. That's all from the

Welcome to BBC Points West with BBC News at Six so

Welcome to BBC Points West with David Garmston and Imogen Sdllers.

Our main story tonight. The death of Bristol's most controversial MP

Tony Benn represented the chty for 30 years ` we have his final

thoughts from his last interview. When I die, people will say, Tony

Benn encouraged us. As a book of condolence is opened in the city he

loved, we have reaction across the political divide.

Our other headlines tonight. The man robbed of his life by a crudl

disease, but he's won his fhght for other patients to be given `ccess to

untested drugs. A thrilling end to the Cheltenham Festival, but local

trainers trot off without a winner. And after Grommit, meet Hor`ce, the

new poster boy for road safdty. One of the giant figures in west country

politics ` Tony Benn is being mourned tonight. He was an LP for

half a century, 33 of them hn a Bristol constituency.

Tony Benn made an indelible mark on politics ` and on the city. Today

there were tributes from political friends and foes alike.

At the union headquarters that bears his name flowers were laid, while at

City Hall a book of condolence was opened. Here's our political editor

Paul Barltrop. He already has his place carved in

Bristol's history. In City Hall today one of the first to p`y her

respects was MP Dawn Primarolo. You She'd worked for Tony Benn. Tony

imprinted on this city and on politics that actually, it hs about

two people and about taking people with you and understanding their

lives. And I think they still is a better place because of him. He

inspired a generation to believe that it could make a differdnce

Outside the union headquartdrs which bears his name, flowers had been

laid. Tony Benn's links with the unions had remained strong dven as

he distanced himself from hhs party. His compassion and his humanity

deeply touched me. He was a political motivator for me `nd

what's inspired me was his capacity to organise. He was a wonderful

human being and that is what I will remember him for. A passion`te

advocate of street`level politics, Tony Benn was well`known in the

city. Many who disagreed profoundly with his views nevertheless deeply

respected his abilities. As a politician, Jubal never get everyone

to agree with you, but you can aim to have everyone respect yot. On the

doorsteps in Bristol, Conservative supporters still say there `re proud

of Tony Benn's connection whth Bristol. Tony Benn wrote extensively

` and has been much written about. Historians talk of a man who could

stimulate both devotion and division. I think that kind of

politician with such a sensd of direction, such a sense of purpose,

such energy, such charisma, is remarkably unusual. We have moved to

an era of Alyssa Gold readership that focuses on image and use, so is

a sense that we will simply not see this sort of politician agahn. The

political debate over Bristol's longest`serving MP will go on and

on. Tony Benn would have approved. Tony Benn forged his political

career as an MP in Bristol. As a minister in the Labour

governments of the sixties `nd seventies he was famous as `

passionate socialist who ch`mpioned workers' rights. He kept Concorde

flying, and safeguarded thotsands of jobs.

I met Mr Benn last autumn for what turned out to be one his final

interviews before ill health took its toll.

You have changed the constitution of this country by your own power. A

left wing firebrand. Once hhs enemies called him the most

dangerous man in Britain. A smoker and tea drinker on an epic scale `

old age mellowed him ` but Tony Benn was a peace with himself and

socialism. General, I think I have moved to the left. A lot of people

start of left wing and end tp on the right, but I have done it the other

way round. He was probably the most controversial MP the city h`s ever

seen. I represented the citx and came to learn to love it, so that is

my interested in is to them. Public school and deeply privileged `

Anthony Wedgewood Benn was dlected in Bristol in 1950 and dedicated

himself to the working class. And while this country remains riddled

with the class divisions we now have and tied to old`fashioned

conventions, there is reallx no hope for it. But when his father died,

this champion of the poor bdcame a Lord and for a time was disbarred

from the House of Commons while he fought to get rid of his title. This

is the period beginning with the first strike, which we all hope to

see take place in the next few weeks. As a minister he backed

Concorde ` a supersonic toy for the rich. If that was a contradhction,

Mr Benn had no problem with it, because it meant jobs for Fhlton.

But his attempts to lead Labour tore the party apart. In 1983, hd helped

draft a radical election manifesto nicknamed the longest suicide note

in history. And that combindd with boundary changes, ended the Bristol

stage of his long political career. I met him last autumn in a sheltered

flat in west London. He had just finlished his final diaries and he

read me a moving passage. I do think I am coming to the end of mx life. I

am not ill, I am just winding down. I have not lost my interest in life,

but I just think my body is wearing itself out. He confided that he

loved life and would rather like to live 100, but we both knew that he

wouldn't. Dismissed as naivd by his critics, he ended his days confident

of his views and hopeful th`t his values will live on. I would like to

be remembered for what I have done. The important thing is to encourage

people, and if when I die, people say, Tony Benn, he encouragdd us,

then that is the greatest possible tribute I could have. Tony Benn

thank you very much. And yot can see my full interview with Tony Benn on

our Facebook page. It was the final day of the

Cheltenham Festival, in a wdek which will have brought ?50 million into

the local community. No loc`l winners though in the Gold Cup. Ali

Durden has been there for us all week and joins us now.

It was one of the greatest finishes and for a long time, it looks as

though the Somerset trainer Paul Nicholls would get his fourth

success in this famous race, but it was Lord Windermere who had the

strongest legs, coming from last place to first with a heart stopping

finish. He was almost there, heading up the famous hill to the whnning

post. At Paul Nicholls' stables they were shouting him home. But

with the line in sight, he ran out of steam, having to settle for

fourth. For the third Gold cup in a row, the giant bolster on the left

here finished in the top fotr, an impressive achievement for David

Bridgwater's small stables. I thought we were going to win and

then in the end Lord Winderlere was stronger. It is just unforttnate

that the two Irish horses fhnished in front of us. It proved to be a

tricky deed for the Paul Nicholls camp. Earlier his top jockex was

injured in a freak accident. I just spoke to him, he has broken his leg,

his knee and his elbow, so he's being operated on tomorrow. I don't

know how severe his injuries were, he was in good spirits. Unbdlievable

luck. Just half an hour earlier his only success of the festival. But

the day belonged to the unddrdog and Lord Windermere. After years of

favourites dominating the bhg race, this results brought a little of the

romance back to the Old Cup. That was one of five winners for the

Irish trained horses, but it was Great Britain who won that

particular contest, 15 reasons to 12. As far as the battle of the book

is against the punters, I'll let you know who is on top of that one when

you join me later. And we'll be back with Ali later for

an expert assessment of this year's festival.

Typical, the one year I draw the haven from the opposite swedpstake

and the outsider wins. Ian will also have all your weekend weathdr.

I will have all the details later in the programme.

Patients with serious and tdrminal illnesses could have access to

ground`breaking drugs beford they're fully licensed, thanks in p`rt to a

campaign by a Gloucestershire man. Les Halpin died from motor neurone

disease last year. But he'd fought for the right for patients to have

early access to new medicathon in the hope it could offer a l`st

chance of life. Today the Government agreed to

change the rules. Here's our Gloucestershire reporter, Steve

Knibbs. After contracting motor neurone

disease in 2011, Les Halpin dedicated his life to campahgning

for patients to try new, untested drugs earlier in clinical trials. He

told me last year that for people with a terminal illness there was a

chance the drugs just might work. "This is obviously one wherd it s

very clear you've got a lot of risk but it's makes you more cle`r headed

realising that if one outcole is "do nothing and die" then why not take

some action which may very luckily save me or slow things down.

Les sadly died in September but his campaign carried on ` and today s

news is very close to what he wanted to achieve. The Early Access to

Medicines scheme ` which st`rts next month in England ` will allow some

innovative drugs to be used before they are fully licensed. Wh`t's

patients want is sometimes to be able to try medicines which may not

be clinically proven to be effective, but are clinically safe.

This means we are streamlinhng the process so those medicines can be

used earlier, particularly hf they have earlier promise, so thdy can

bring hope to patients. Les Halpin's campaign was taken up in Parliament

by his local MP who believes his determination was key today's

annoucement. It is a victorx for the patients, a victory for the

clinicians and a bitterly for the drugs companies, because it will be

able to get the drugs onto the market quicker. In a statemdnt Les

Halpin's widow Claire said today that he would have welcomed what she

described as a significant step forward to ensure those pathents in

desperate need have the opportunity to access treatments they could not

in the past. Some good news for drivers hn

Somerset tonight. The main road linking Taunton and Glastonbury `

which has been closed because of flooding since the end of Ddcember `

has finally re`opened. Therd is still a small amount of watdr on the

carriageway so for the time being temporary traffic lights will

control the traffic. A haul`ge company in Burrowbridge says the

ten`week closure has cost them around ?2,000 a week in extra fuel

for their lorries. The minor injuries unit at Linehead

Hospital is to be closed ovdrnight ` possibly until the end of Atgust.

Hospital managers say it's because of a shortage of trained st`ff. But

it will mean that patients needing treatment after 11 at night will

have to make a 40 minute jotrney to Musgrove Park Hospital in T`unton.

One local doctor has critichsed the decision, saying the communhty was

not consulted. Train operator First Great Western

has secured agreement to increase the number of standard seats, by

removing some in first class. The deal will create almost 3,000 more

standard class seats a day for customers on high speed trahns. The

work, funded by the Departmdnt for Transport, shoud be completdd by

next summer. Bristol City host Swindon Town in

League One tomorrow, and it's a special fixture for one of the men

in charge. Swindon boss Mark Cooper will be making his return to Ashton

Gate after starting his carder with City. His side were 3`2 winners when

the local rivals last met at the County Ground, but the teams have

seen a reversal of form in recent weeks. Here's Zoe Gough.

It was as much a case of spot your team mate as the ball...at Bristol

City's training ground. But after three wins in a row... City's

players are certainly enjoyhng themselves. Everyone is buzzing

after the last three games picked up nine points, so it is a gre`t

feeling. While conditions wdre similar for Swindon ` on thd pitch

they've hit a rocky patch. No victory since early Februarx, and a

heavy 4`1 midweek defeat to Wolves. Making Mark Cooper's return to

Ashton Gate all the more important for the former City apprenthce. I am

looking forward to going back, it will bring back a lot of melories

for me, because I can watch the event I have a lot of friends

there, so I am looking forw`rd to going back and going back as manager

of Swindon and hopefully getting a result. In 98 meetings of the teams,

Bristol City have recorded the most wins. But the last game saw Swindon

beat City 3`2 in September. Swindon were also 1`nil victors in the

Carling Cup back in 2011. Btt City's recent form has given them

confidence. I have experienced quite a few derbies, I know about that. It

is OK, it doesn't faze me, H am looking forward to it. With just six

points separating the teams in League One. Neither side want to

lose sight of the right end of the table. Zoe Gough, BBC Points West.

There are some important gales for our other football teams thhs

weekend. In the Championship Yeovil Town can climb out of the rdlegation

zone with a win at Harry Redknapp's Queens Park Rangers. And in League

Two, mid`table Cheltenham are at home to Torquay who are bottom of

the football league, while Bristol Rovers are away to Hartlepool.

Live firing has resumed on the MoD's training site on Salisbury Plain. It

was halted last week after `n explosive shell landed in a field

near Devizes, several miles from its intended target. An investigation

has found the wrong charge was used in the gun. An MoD spokesman said

this was probably human error, and may result in disciplinary `ction.

No`one was injured, but a l`rge crater was left in a field.

A reward's been offered for the return of a bronze war memorial

which was stolen from a Wiltshire village. The three`foot statue was

created in 1917 for Wingfield near Trowbridge to honour the war dead,

but was taken last month. Now ? ,000 has been offered as an incentive for

its return. Efforts are being stepped up to

protect one of the region's most historic sites. Tarr Steps on

Exmoor, which are reputed to date back around 3,000 years, were washed

away by the swollen river following torrential rain 15 months ago. Now

riverside trees which could be washed downstream into the stones

are being removed. They'll start the big clear`up at

Prestbury Park now, at the dnd of another festival week. Among the

last to leave is Ali Durden ` let's go back to him now for his final

thoughts. How has the festival been for you?

It has been a wonderful week, terrific racing. I think evdryone

will have gone home having had fabulous afternoons. I bet the

result today was a good restlt for the bookies. Yes, it was sole time

ago that we got such a good result. What a fantastic race it was. This

is how we attract new blood, new punters for the sport. The worst

moment was single bed. Close shave for you. Ian, the chief

executive, has joined us. Changing times, work is about to start on

your new grandstand. Yes, what is there today will start disappearing

tomorrow. Next year, it will have the main structure of the ndw

grandstand in place and the ground`floor bar will also be able

to be used by the public. Whll we see an increase in attendance? I

think it can creep up, we'd like to see Wednesday and Thursday build`up

by a few thousand, but Gold Cup Wilmots Co`op by much. It w`s an

unbelievably memorable Gold Cup What was the biggest bet yot had?

Did anyone go really big? No, not anything really big. Interestingly,

a million bets were placed online with us. It was a wreck it hs

entered for us. A captivating weekend. A lot of money won and

lost. Remember this chap? Tufty ` a

friendly face to help teach children about road safety. Then there was

the Green Cross Code man ` `nd the Hedgehog family` but for a few years

now ` there hasn't been an equivalent modern character.

But now ` Aardman have teamdd up with the RAC to create one ` Horace

is his name ` and youngsters are being asked to use him and their own

characters to make animated films about being safe on the roads `

here's Jules Hyam. He is funny. His eyes, you cannot blink. He hs quite

sweet, he was quite amusing. And he is lovely.

This class are making a fill of the hoping to win the competition. You

can see it at the moment, bdcause of all the characters, but it says be

safe, look, listen, which is a very important message. So let's see what

they've come up with ` it's their first ever animated film ` `nd

they've only had two hours to make and film the characters. So here

goes ` with a big Hollywood build`up.

You can see they have taken the safety theme to heart ` the film has

its surreal moments, but thd message is clear to see. Fairfield's film is

the first of what could well be thousands of Horace inspired

animations ` each one themed around road safety. The bar, ladies and

gentlemen, has been set rather high ` well done to the film teal `

cheerio from them ` and frol Horace ` and from me.

Now the weather forecast. One thing that has certainlx

happened of late is the bredze has picked up, so that has been keeping

the fog at bay. Saturday will be the better day in terms of sunshine

because there will be more cloud on Sunday, but both days will remain

dry and they will be compar`tively mild. I am not going to run through

all the trouble to write in terms of detail, other than to say there will

be reviewable amounts of cloud. Some of you will benefit from a good deal

of sunshine from time to tile and as we had through towards Sund`y,

although there will still bd brighter spells and it good deal of

cloud, the cloud will tend to increase as we head towards the

afternoon, but it will remahn dry. Tonight, we would bother with the

details. There is no fog to worry about or any frost. It would be as

Chile as it has been. There will be variable amounts of cloud, sometimes

it will be fairly extensive, but not on the scale but some of yot have

been saying. It will be a breezy day, but I don't think that will

take the shine off things in terms of temperatures, which should reach

up to ten, 11, 12, 13, 14 Cdlsius. It should feel warm in thosd

conditions out of the breezd. Sunday, brighter spells in the

morning, but gradually the cloud will increase. Temperatures should

stay up to around 12 degrees Celsius. Some changes later in the

week, but not profoundly for us The weather was lovely in Strasbourg

this week, we were there filming for a special going out on Sund`y.

We'll leave you with some moments from the life of Tony Benn, who s

died at the age of 88. Whether you agreed with him or not ` it really

is the end of a political era. From all of us here, good night. With his

hands out and his eyes open, socialism, they said. Not a shred of

democracy in these reforms. You do not cross a picket line. Thd whole

of Whitehall things Concordd should be cancelled. Then I did another

meeting in Bristol and took the shop stewards to Downing Street. Very,

very important, because it was one of the first campaigns of this kind

in Britain. You realised how immensely radical beware and I think

socialism has a great deal to offer. I think the future belongs to

socialism. I was in the House of Commons that introduced the National

Health Service bill. I am jtst winding down now. I