:00:00. > :00:00.chilly. That's all from the BBC News at
:00:00. > :00:13.Our main story tonight: Shock as a Chief Constable is suspended from
:00:14. > :00:16.duty. Nick Gargan, the head of Avon and Somerset Police, is sent home
:00:17. > :00:30.after claims of inappropriate behaviour with women. The ipcc are
:00:31. > :00:34.doing an investigation. We'll be talking about the events leading up
:00:35. > :00:44.to his suspension and its impact on the force. Our other headlines
:00:45. > :00:48.tonight: The builder who charged for work he never did. Now a judge has
:00:49. > :00:52.given him six months to get his act together. All aboard. The Balmoral
:00:53. > :00:57.on course for a new lease of life as she goes into dry dock for rest and
:00:58. > :01:01.repairs. And who's the city leader supporting plans for a pool for
:01:02. > :01:09.disabled children? The trunks may give you a clue.
:01:10. > :01:12.Good evening. The Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset has been suspended
:01:13. > :01:17.from duty after allegations made by a number of female police officers
:01:18. > :01:20.and staff. Nick Gargan was sent home from work this afternoon by Sue
:01:21. > :01:26.Mountstevens, the woman who appointed him a year ago. She said
:01:27. > :01:29.he was devastated. Mr Gargan took up the post following the sudden
:01:30. > :01:32.departure of the previous Chief Constable, who later claimed he had
:01:33. > :01:36.been forced out. Here's our home affairs correspondent Steve Brodie.
:01:37. > :01:40.Nick Gargan has been in the spotlight since his appointment. But
:01:41. > :01:43.today he found himself at the centre of serious allegations about his
:01:44. > :01:48.behaviour towards female police officers and police staff. He was
:01:49. > :01:55.suspended by the woman who appointed him, Crime Commissioner Sue
:01:56. > :01:59.Mountstevens. I was told about them by whistle`blowers last week and I
:02:00. > :02:03.spoke to the ipcc on Friday. On Monday they told me they would start
:02:04. > :02:05.an investigation to date. Both the Chief Constable and the Crime
:02:06. > :02:09.Commissioner have prided themselves on their policy of transparancey and
:02:10. > :02:13.openess. And today it was that policy that was put to the test. The
:02:14. > :02:15.commissioner says she hopes the investigation by the Independant
:02:16. > :02:22.Police Complaints Commission will not be delayed. These are
:02:23. > :02:29.allegations that the ipcc will be investigation. I have asked them to
:02:30. > :02:34.do as quick as possible but honestly being as quick and fair and robust
:02:35. > :02:43.to the police constable and the police officer. How did the Chief
:02:44. > :02:49.Constable react? He is devastated, I am very upset about it as will be
:02:50. > :02:55.the organisation. I want to make it very clear that these are only
:02:56. > :03:00.allegations at this point. The act of suspension is an act of
:03:01. > :03:03.neutrality. It is not making any judgement and I have been clear
:03:04. > :03:06.about that to the Chief Constable and the organisation. Nick Gargan
:03:07. > :03:10.was appointed the new Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset at
:03:11. > :03:14.the start of 2013, taking up the post in March. One of his first
:03:15. > :03:17.campaigns in office was to write to local councils offering help to turn
:03:18. > :03:20.the area's speed cameras back on. A campaign that proved more popular
:03:21. > :03:24.with some authorities than others. In June 2013 Mr Gargan let slip
:03:25. > :03:28.about the possible start date of the West Somerset badger cull. A start
:03:29. > :03:33.date which was still supposed to be a closely guarded secret. And by the
:03:34. > :03:37.autumn he told Points West how his officers had failed murder victim
:03:38. > :03:41.Bijan Ebrahami. The man who was beaten and set on fire following
:03:42. > :03:43.rumours he was a paedophile. The Chief Constable will remain
:03:44. > :03:54.suspended on full pay until the investigation by the IPCC is
:03:55. > :04:05.completed. BBC BBC Points West. Steve's with me. How is it likely to
:04:06. > :04:09.develop? Two officers from the ipcc are already at Portishead. They were
:04:10. > :04:13.there this afternoon when I interviewed the crime commission.
:04:14. > :04:17.They will interview the whistle`blowers, the women who have
:04:18. > :04:22.made the allegations. They will carry out thorough investigations
:04:23. > :04:28.and also investigate and indeed talk to the Chief Constable. It is ironic
:04:29. > :04:33.that the Chief Constable and the crime commission have both asked
:04:34. > :04:38.that ipcc to hurry up in the Bijan Ebrahami murder. Now she is wanting
:04:39. > :04:43.this investigation to hurry up as well. These are in some way
:04:44. > :04:49.historic, they are alleged to have happened last year. It has taken
:04:50. > :04:53.some time for them to come to light. It has been very quick indeed.
:04:54. > :05:00.Friday she was told and here we are on shoes date with the ipcc already
:05:01. > :05:04.in. The ipcc themselves have confirmed they are carrying out the
:05:05. > :05:10.investigation and are loath to give out any details. It is unlikely they
:05:11. > :05:13.will. There are going to because this investigation to be put through
:05:14. > :05:18.and we will not have a long delays like we have seen recently with the
:05:19. > :05:21.Bijan Ebrahami case. A kitchen fitter and carpenter from
:05:22. > :05:24.Midsomer Norton told "extreme" lies to customers and caused them stress
:05:25. > :05:29.and "trauma" after taking tens of thousands of pounds for work he knew
:05:30. > :05:32.he couldn't deliver. Christopher Hope`Shannon will be sentenced in
:05:33. > :05:37.six months' time after a judge told him he wanted to get something back
:05:38. > :05:41.for his victims. Dickon Hooper reports.
:05:42. > :05:46.Christopher Hope`Shannon in a blue hoodie this morning facing jail. He
:05:47. > :05:53.took more than ?31,000 from 11 customers. But knew there was little
:05:54. > :06:04.or no chance he could do the work or repay the money. The actual unit I
:06:05. > :06:07.wanted him to build for me was the unit supporting this Belfast Sink.
:06:08. > :06:11.He never did and Martyn is ?1,000 out of pocket. I think he's a
:06:12. > :06:15.despicable fraud because he has put so many people through a lot of pain
:06:16. > :06:20.and suffering. It's just the lies. Lies described by the judge as
:06:21. > :06:24.extreme and distasteful. They included telling people that he had
:06:25. > :06:29.cancer and that his wife had a miscarriage. All of this plus the
:06:30. > :06:37.financial loss meant it inflicted stress and trauma to customer. `` on
:06:38. > :06:40.his customers. Like the pregnant woman whose windows had to be
:06:41. > :06:47.boarded up after Hope`Shannon failed to deliver. And Gary Nelson, who
:06:48. > :06:52.paid ?4,000 and got nothing back. It has caused untold disruption. It has
:06:53. > :06:57.caused two years disruption. Two years? It is difficult to put a
:06:58. > :07:01.price on it. Half the problem, having been robbed of the money, we
:07:02. > :07:07.cannot afford to put one in. My wife has postponed retirement. Your wife
:07:08. > :07:10.has postponed retirement? We can't afford, even if we wanted to
:07:11. > :07:22.downsize to a smaller place we can't have a house not a kitchen. Anything
:07:23. > :07:26.to say? This case has been one of the worst ones I have ever
:07:27. > :07:30.investigated. I have been involved and investigating but just the
:07:31. > :07:34.series of lies, the numbers of lives and the types of lies. The influence
:07:35. > :07:36.it has had on the people and the trauma it has given them.
:07:37. > :07:39.Hope`Shannon's barrister said he was depressed, remorseful and his
:07:40. > :07:43.business had got into trouble after a run of bad luck. The judge has
:07:44. > :07:46.pushed sentencing back for six months giving Hope`Shannon time to
:07:47. > :07:56.salvage something for his customers who still want their money back. BBC
:07:57. > :07:58.Points West. One of Britain's best`known
:07:59. > :08:02.politicians hit the campaign trail in Gloucestershire today with
:08:03. > :08:05.entertaining results. London mayor Boris Johnson had a close encounter
:08:06. > :08:10.with a sheep and got in a muddle over the Conservatives he'd come to
:08:11. > :08:12.meet. His supporters loved it but opponents dismissed his performance.
:08:13. > :08:18.Our political editor Paul Barltrop reports. Hi there, good afternoon,
:08:19. > :08:23.morning, morning. Boris Johnson wasn't too sure what time it was as
:08:24. > :08:30.he reached Cheltenham. The first hand he shook: Conservative
:08:31. > :08:34.parliamentary candidate Alex Clarke. With so many to meet it's easy to
:08:35. > :08:38.get muddled. `` chalk. I'm just here to support Alex Clarke and the
:08:39. > :08:41.council. Sorry. Let's get the names right. He was on surer ground posing
:08:42. > :08:46.with council candidates and putting the boot into the Lib Dems who run
:08:47. > :08:50.the council. You have a spineless liberal Democrats administration
:08:51. > :08:54.here at the moment, is that right? I have absolutely no inhibitions by
:08:55. > :09:00.bashing the Lib Dems. It seems to me, what is the point of them? All
:09:01. > :09:05.they do is hold up conservatives when we want to get our serious
:09:06. > :09:11.projects done. They enable you to govern the country. Well, they do
:09:12. > :09:16.because they are supporting us. And off he went to get better acquainted
:09:17. > :09:20.with the Tory candidate. Cheltenham Borough councils elections really
:09:21. > :09:24.are a two horse race. Labour have not got a single seat here and the
:09:25. > :09:27.UKIP are yet to make a significant impact. Apart from a few independent
:09:28. > :09:30.counsels the contest is a coalition dogfight. The local Lib Dem office
:09:31. > :09:34.is busy running their campaign. Keeping control of the council this
:09:35. > :09:38.year will help Martin Horwood keep his parliamentary seat next year.
:09:39. > :09:42.Well I think we work hard, we believe in local politics. It is
:09:43. > :09:47.part of our view of democracy that local politics matters. I think it
:09:48. > :09:50.pays off. We don't regard local politics as a stepping stone to
:09:51. > :09:56.something else as perhaps Boris does. We actually commit to it.
:09:57. > :09:59.Cheltenham's politics can be very local: the People Against
:10:00. > :10:05.Bureaucracy have had council seats for decade. It is not really
:10:06. > :10:13.daunting. The fact we are a small party, does not appear to impede our
:10:14. > :10:17.progress at all. Back with the Boris bandwagon, and in Stonehouse he
:10:18. > :10:21.tried his hand at sheep shearing. Whether today boosted his party's
:10:22. > :10:23.chances in the West isn't certain. But it's certainly increased
:10:24. > :10:38.interest in the election. Boris' verdict: Sheer madness. BBC Points
:10:39. > :10:43.West we were told no sheep were hurt in the filming of that report.
:10:44. > :10:47.Coming a bit later in the programme. Owl babies! We take another peak at
:10:48. > :10:53.the Barn Owl webcam as Boris and Brenda welcome baby number seven.
:10:54. > :11:01.And look at this: It's had us in stitches. The detail on these models
:11:02. > :11:05.is incredible we have all the rigging on the Matthew there. There
:11:06. > :11:12.is a grommet on the ferry boats and here is the Bristol crocodile of
:11:13. > :11:15.course. It's lovely. Some of the first patients have
:11:16. > :11:20.begun moving into the new super hospital at Southmead in Bristol.
:11:21. > :11:24.Today it was the turn of hip and knee patients. The site has cost
:11:25. > :11:29.?430 million to build and will offer more than 800 beds.
:11:30. > :11:32.100 jobs are at risk in Somerset after a printing firm's gone into
:11:33. > :11:37.administration. Butler Tanner and Dennis in Frome prints and binds
:11:38. > :11:44.colour books and magazines. Managers say it's too soon to know how many
:11:45. > :11:48.jobs will go. Some may transfer to a sister company which makes maps. The
:11:49. > :11:56.company was rescued from liquidation once before in 2008. The Mayor of
:11:57. > :11:59.Bristol backed plans for a new pool for disabled children today and
:12:00. > :12:03.revealed that he suffered from polio when he was a child. George Ferguson
:12:04. > :12:07.said that a hydrotherapy pool helped him to get better which is why he's
:12:08. > :12:09.keen to help raise thousands of pounds for a new facility. Here's
:12:10. > :12:16.Jules Hyam. It's more than just fine for these
:12:17. > :12:19.youngsters. This pool at Claremont School in Bristol is a vital part of
:12:20. > :12:23.their therapy. 17`year`old Harvey has a rare genetic condition. It
:12:24. > :12:27.means he is nonverbal and is normally in a wheelchair. Because
:12:28. > :12:32.they are in real chairs most of the time, to see them just relaxing in
:12:33. > :12:37.the water is great. Harvey has had experience. He does walk in the
:12:38. > :12:40.water, my sister`in`law got married three years ago and due to sessions
:12:41. > :12:48.in the hydrotherapy pool he walked down the aisle at the wedding. It
:12:49. > :12:51.made the day. I think it is the weightlessness and the warmth. These
:12:52. > :12:55.children are landlocked, they are in supportive seating, they are unable
:12:56. > :12:59.to move when they are on dry land but he put them on water and they
:13:00. > :13:05.are the same as everybody else. There is much more movement in their
:13:06. > :13:08.lives and bodies. `` limbs. It is that freedom to move in the water
:13:09. > :13:11.that has struck a chord with Bristol's Mayor George Ferguson. As
:13:12. > :13:15.a child he contracted polio and himself benefited from hydrotherapy.
:13:16. > :13:19.I was very fortunate as a child, I was taken to the hydrotherapy pool
:13:20. > :13:23.in Bath. I remember being held up by the nurses to help me to kick after
:13:24. > :13:26.I had polio. Without my mum's foresight in doing that, I would not
:13:27. > :13:30.have recovered so quickly. I am incredibly lucky, these kids are
:13:31. > :13:35.less lucky that it is just brilliant to see what it does for them. The
:13:36. > :13:39.appeal still needs to raise ?250,000 for a larger pool with deeper water
:13:40. > :13:49.that will allow many more young adults to benefit from the warm
:13:50. > :13:53.relaxation. BBC Points West. One of the West's best known pleasure
:13:54. > :13:57.cruisers is on her way to a dry dock this evening, for tests and repairs.
:13:58. > :14:02.The Balmoral hasn't carried passengers for 18 months. However,
:14:03. > :14:05.enthusiasts hope that, if she's declared fit, she could be back
:14:06. > :14:10.cruising the Bristol Channel again next summer. Laura Jones has been on
:14:11. > :14:16.board for us. First light and for the first time in a long time she's
:14:17. > :14:21.off. Off up upriver to a dry dock for a crucial MOT. Cruising under
:14:22. > :14:25.the Suspension Bridge this morning she cut a beautiful figure. But
:14:26. > :14:39.depending on how much repair work she needs, this may have been her
:14:40. > :14:42.last voyage. How times have changed. In her heyday the Balmoral, along
:14:43. > :14:50.with her sister ship, the Waverley, ruled the waves of the Bristol
:14:51. > :14:56.Channel. It ferried day`trippers from Cardiff to Weston and even down
:14:57. > :15:01.the coast to Ilfracombe. We love it. It is a form of relaxation, you can
:15:02. > :15:04.get on the ship and everything else is forgotten. How many of these
:15:05. > :15:17.trips do you make? Almost every day this season. Every day?. Yes. The
:15:18. > :15:21.last two years have not been half as jolly though. The lack of passengers
:15:22. > :15:26.and money have meant she has been stuck in dock with no days out in
:15:27. > :15:30.sight. There are two reversible gearboxes which control the shafts.
:15:31. > :15:34.Trevor Masset loves the ship. Along with many other volunteers, he has
:15:35. > :15:38.been looking after her for 19 years. They have done everything to get her
:15:39. > :15:45.into tiptop condition for this MOT, even down to shining the metalwork.
:15:46. > :15:52.She is a one off now, there is nothing like her any more. You have
:15:53. > :15:56.to look around at the ship. There are a lot of people who get
:15:57. > :15:59.enjoyment from sailing on her and there are virtually no ships left
:16:00. > :16:03.other than the Waverley doing a similar job, whereby you can cruise
:16:04. > :16:07.down the coast of the UK and see it by the sea. The charity behind the
:16:08. > :16:10.Balmoral still needs to raise tens of thousands of pounds to save her
:16:11. > :16:14.from the scrapheap. If they manage that and she passes her MOT, they
:16:15. > :16:22.hope she'll be back on sea as early as next summer. Laura Jones, BBC
:16:23. > :16:27.Points West. Doesn't she look beautiful in those
:16:28. > :16:30.shots? And you can get more of a tour around the Balmoral if you log
:16:31. > :16:35.on to our Facebook page. We've put lots more footage up there for you
:16:36. > :16:38.to enjoy. A celebrity couple in Somerset have just welcomed their
:16:39. > :16:41.seventh child into the world. The happy event was eagerly anticipated
:16:42. > :16:45.by thousands of people from as far afield as Japan and Fiji. The couple
:16:46. > :16:49.are, of course, Boris and Brenda, a pair of Barn Owls whose webcam in
:16:50. > :16:51.their nesting box has become an internet sensation. The latest
:16:52. > :17:05.addition to the family is a tiny owlet called Burrowbridge. Clinton
:17:06. > :17:12.Rogers explains. Call it the owl equivalent of the Big Brother house.
:17:13. > :17:16.More than a third a million people are watching the antics of Boris and
:17:17. > :17:26.Brenda and their extended family. Today, I was taken to the secret
:17:27. > :17:34.location of that barn owl box. It is part of a project to boost a
:17:35. > :17:41.declining barn owl population. We do not want to get too close to the
:17:42. > :17:45.barn owls and disturb them but by the wonders of technology, we can
:17:46. > :17:51.actually see them. There they are. You can see the live footage. We
:17:52. > :17:58.have two adults, and we have our first view of Burrowbridge. That is
:17:59. > :18:15.the first baby. It has become an Internet sensation globally, as
:18:16. > :18:19.these website comments show... Locally, schools like this one in
:18:20. > :18:26.Long Ashton have an owl watch in class time. We try and check in
:18:27. > :18:31.every day but if we leave it a few days, we see a difference in the
:18:32. > :18:35.barn owls, so they find that exciting. Recent studies have shown
:18:36. > :18:44.that the owl population of written has halved, with birds struggling to
:18:45. > :18:49.find food in areas like the Somerset Levels which was under water for so
:18:50. > :18:53.long. Putting up nesting boxes was a campaign started two years ago to
:18:54. > :18:59.try and reverse that decline. While it is impossible to draw conclusions
:19:00. > :19:04.from seven chicks in one box, people behind this project are encouraged.
:19:05. > :19:09.The big question that everybody following this webcam is asking,
:19:10. > :19:14.will they all survive? I do not know the answer to that. It is like
:19:15. > :19:19.England winning the World Cup. It is not impossible, they have a chance.
:19:20. > :19:31.They have a lot of people around the world rooting for them. Fascinating.
:19:32. > :19:34.Let's have a look at them right now. And if you want to check the
:19:35. > :19:44.progress of Boris and Brenda and family you can visit the Somerset
:19:45. > :19:51.Wildlife Trust website. Apparently, they were named by the web loggers
:19:52. > :19:56.as well. In case you were wondering. I wasn't. And those little owlets
:19:57. > :19:59.aren't the only birds we've heard about today ` we've also been in
:20:00. > :20:03.touch with Westonbirt Arboretum. And they've been telling us how they've
:20:04. > :20:06.had to take the mirrors in their toilets down to stop swallows
:20:07. > :20:09.attacking their own reflections. The male birds believe they're fending
:20:10. > :20:14.off rivals! Sounds like a vain attempt to me! A brother and sister
:20:15. > :20:17.who train at the University of Bath have both been selected for England
:20:18. > :20:20.Commonwealth Games judo team. 22`year`old Ben Fletcher and his
:20:21. > :20:23.older sister Megan who is 24 will compete in Glasgow. Both won medals
:20:24. > :20:26.at last weekend's European Cup competition in London, and are
:20:27. > :20:35.looking forward to competing in the same team at the Games. It is going
:20:36. > :20:43.to be great that we are going together, in the same family. We are
:20:44. > :20:48.excited. We have done judo from a young age. We started at five years
:20:49. > :20:59.of age, and then we used to fight each other quite a bit. Then he got
:21:00. > :21:03.too big and I couldn't fight him any more! There is no point in trying
:21:04. > :21:05.any more! Three other University of Bath students also made the
:21:06. > :21:15.14`strong Judo team heading to Glasgow later this year. Ever
:21:16. > :21:19.wondered how long it would take to KNIT a whole city? Well, we can tell
:21:20. > :21:23.you it's about 4,000 hours, and counting! A group of knitters in
:21:24. > :21:26.South Bristol have recreated some of the buildings, bridges and rivers
:21:27. > :21:35.that make up the city, in wool. It all goes on display this coming
:21:36. > :21:41.weekend. Here's Sally Challoner. It is restored but as you have never
:21:42. > :21:52.seen it before. A city made entirely of wool. City Hall to Cabot Tower,
:21:53. > :21:58.colourful streets to Brunel's famous ship. There's 92 people who have
:21:59. > :22:04.made this model. 15 have designed and made buildings. The rest have
:22:05. > :22:09.made small squares. I run several workshops and we make things like
:22:10. > :22:15.the trees or the balloons, or Little cards. I designed all sorts of
:22:16. > :22:28.things. The detail on these models is incredible. We have all the
:22:29. > :22:32.rigging on this . And here's the city's most iconic structure `
:22:33. > :22:37.designed and knitted by Joy Roddy. I have made quite a few items,
:22:38. > :22:45.including Bristol suspension bridge, buses, ferries, and anything else. I
:22:46. > :22:52.shall miss it when it stops. In fact it is still growing. It is going to
:22:53. > :22:59.be the Planetarium in Millennium Square. It is threaded onto a
:23:00. > :23:04.fishing line and done with needles. From this weekend, the models will
:23:05. > :23:10.be on display in Bedminster when you concede Bristol come to life... In
:23:11. > :23:18.wool. `` where you can see Bristol come to life. I adore it! Yes, very
:23:19. > :23:25.clever. Shall we catch up with the weather and see whether it unravels?
:23:26. > :23:27.Hello. The good news is that high pressure is building so it will
:23:28. > :23:33.become more settled over the next few days. We will lose the showers
:23:34. > :23:39.and high pressure builds in. The winds will feel lighter. Once we
:23:40. > :23:42.lose the showers, there is a risk under the clearing skies of a touch
:23:43. > :23:47.of frost. Temperatures will fall to around three or four Celsius. A
:23:48. > :23:53.chilly night to come, in particular in the countryside. The showers will
:23:54. > :23:57.disappear down to the South East. Following that, clearing skies, and
:23:58. > :24:03.in the countryside, lows of three or four Celsius. In towns and cities,
:24:04. > :24:07.lows of six or seven. A chilly start tomorrow, but blue skies from the
:24:08. > :24:12.word go. A little bit of Fairweather cloud in the afternoon, but with
:24:13. > :24:19.light winds, pleasantly warm in the sunshine. Higher than today with
:24:20. > :24:24.temperatures of 16 or 17 Celsius. In sheltered spots, up to 18 or 19
:24:25. > :24:28.degrees. Those temperatures will continue to climb as we had through
:24:29. > :24:31.the rest of the week. Tomorrow night, clearing skies, and high
:24:32. > :24:39.pressure builds. Through Thursday and Friday it also builds, and
:24:40. > :24:43.including the weekend. The bulk of the weekend should stay dry. As we
:24:44. > :24:48.look towards the rest of the week, it should be quite chilly but it
:24:49. > :24:53.will be settled and dry. Turning warm towards the weekends with
:24:54. > :24:58.temperatures perhaps up to 20 Celsius on Thursday, Friday and that
:24:59. > :25:01.today. Yes, very settled, high pressure is building an temperatures
:25:02. > :25:09.continue to climb through the week. Chilly nights at the weekend. A lot
:25:10. > :25:14.of cloud tomorrow night and there will possibly be a brief bit of
:25:15. > :25:21.frost tomorrow morning. Saturday and Sunday, temperatures climb. 19,
:25:22. > :25:28.possibly 20 or 21 Celsius. That is nice to hear. Thank you, Alexis.
:25:29. > :25:51.That is it for us from now. Bye`bye. Goodbye.
:25:52. > :25:58.Can I make something clear to you? UKIP is not against immigration.