:00:00. > :00:09.European election results. That s all from the BBC News at Six - so
:00:10. > :00:12.Welcome to BBC Points West with Alex Lovell and David Garmston.
:00:13. > :00:15.Who's calling the shots in the badger cull?
:00:16. > :00:17.The police admit farmers and a private company were
:00:18. > :00:28.in their control room as thdy responded to the protesters.
:00:29. > :00:32.They appeared to be bathing as a private police force. That needs to
:00:33. > :00:38.be dealt with. We'll have the response
:00:39. > :00:41.from the police who've defended The new injection
:00:42. > :00:47.which could offer a final chance to What next for the Lib Dems
:00:48. > :00:54.after their West Country he`rtland A farmer's answer to a right
:00:55. > :01:09.of way going through his fidld. Protestors who tried to stop
:01:10. > :01:12.the badger cull are questioning the impartiality
:01:13. > :01:14.of the police tonight after it emerged that the companies that were
:01:15. > :01:18.paid to do the shootings gave orders Representatives from the colpanies
:01:19. > :01:22.and farmers were invited into the control room at Avon
:01:23. > :01:26.and Somerset Police headquarters. On one occasion, a protestor rang
:01:27. > :01:30.999 to complain of assault only to For nine weeks last year in
:01:31. > :01:38.West Somerset, police, marksmen and anti`badger cull
:01:39. > :01:44.protestors filled the countryside. He was guarding
:01:45. > :01:53.a badger sett one night when he says When he called police,
:01:54. > :02:12.they instead questioned him about When the police turned up, they were
:02:13. > :02:17.entirely unconcerned about the fact I had been allegedly assaulted and
:02:18. > :02:22.their sole purpose seemed to be to find this badger and treated me
:02:23. > :02:26.immediately as a suspect. When Chris complanied,
:02:27. > :02:28.an internal investigation found that out of 6 people in the police
:02:29. > :02:32.control room that night, 2 worked for the cull company and ond was
:02:33. > :02:35.from the National Farmers Union They were in direct radio contact
:02:36. > :02:37.with cull operatives on the ground and it was thdir
:02:38. > :02:50.instructions that police acted on. It appears police officers were
:02:51. > :02:52.being instructed in their dtties by the National farmers union
:02:53. > :02:58.representative. That is intolerable! Anti`cull groups say the police were
:02:59. > :03:01.acting like a private force The National Farmers Union says none
:03:02. > :03:27.of We did think the police werd not
:03:28. > :03:32.neutral. There was slow response times. Police were stopping us
:03:33. > :03:34.frequently. When these stops were taking place, it was going through a
:03:35. > :03:42.control room. That's a real concern. The National Farmers Union says none
:03:43. > :03:44.of Avon and Somerset Police thdmselves
:03:45. > :03:48.spent over ?730,000 over thd 9 weeks of the badger cull and desphte
:03:49. > :03:51.an independent assessment ddclaring it ineffective and inhumane, it ll
:03:52. > :03:54.take place in both Somerset and Well, joining us now is our home
:03:55. > :04:06.affairs correspondent, Stevd Brodie. Steve, what's been Avon and
:04:07. > :04:14.Somerset Police's repsonse? Well, the police are very
:04:15. > :04:16.sensitive about this. Today the force made it cle`r its
:04:17. > :04:20.main objective was public s`fety. They confirmed that at all times,
:04:21. > :04:23.there was a senior police officer of chief inspector rank or `bove
:04:24. > :04:26.in the room, a communications officer, a representative of the NFU
:04:27. > :04:49.and of the contractors. Our role was about facilitating both
:04:50. > :04:53.sides of the argument and wd were very concerned about making sure
:04:54. > :05:00.that public safety was at the top of the agenda. For that reason, we
:05:01. > :05:01.representative in the control room representative in the control room
:05:02. > :05:05.so we were able to get real`time information about what was happening
:05:06. > :05:11.on the ground so that we were in the best position to keep all p`rties
:05:12. > :05:16.safe. Changing tack slightlx, this comes at a time when Avon and
:05:17. > :05:19.Somerset Constabulary is looking at itself being around for 40 xears.
:05:20. > :05:26.What's changed? 1974 was a time of upheaval and four
:05:27. > :05:29.decades on, ordinary officers again I've been looking back
:05:30. > :05:37.at the last 40 years and I've been speaking to the acting
:05:38. > :05:42.Chief Constable, John Long. 1974, the year
:05:43. > :05:45.of the three`day week and Tdd Heath And on April 1st, the men
:05:46. > :05:51.and women of the newly formdd Avon and Somerset Constabulary m`rch
:05:52. > :05:55.together for the first time. Personal computers, digital radios,
:05:56. > :06:17.CS sprays and video cameras were Here is a classic piece of
:06:18. > :06:19.memorabilia. The card says: This is his warrant an authority for
:06:20. > :06:22.executing the duties of his office. And officer's notes were
:06:23. > :06:23.hand`written, historical wooden truncheons had yet
:06:24. > :06:26.to be replaced by the modern ASP, the collapsible baton, and
:06:27. > :06:29.the controversial Taser electrical The force came to life
:06:30. > :06:33.after a merger of the historic Bristol Citx Police,
:06:34. > :06:36.the Somerset and Bath Const`bulary and the Staple Hill division
:06:37. > :06:49.of the Gloucestershire Police. We realise people like to lhve on
:06:50. > :06:53.their part of the country and have the distinct identity of behng in
:06:54. > :06:56.Somerset or Bristol South Gloucestershire. But as a force we
:06:57. > :07:00.think it works. In 1981, the force was found wanting
:07:01. > :07:04.when faced with riots in St Paul's after relations with
:07:05. > :07:06.the local community broke down. Since then, has been
:07:07. > :07:08.a remarkable change around. New figures out show that 78%
:07:09. > :07:11.of people asked said they h`d confidence in Avon and
:07:12. > :07:14.Somerset Police. That places the force 6th ott of
:07:15. > :07:30.the 43 forces in England and wales. Policing still has a great deal of
:07:31. > :07:32.confidence. However, where things have gone wrong, we need to learn
:07:33. > :07:36.lessons and need to improve. The current Portishead HQ w`s
:07:37. > :07:39.officially opened by the Quden The buildings replaced the old
:07:40. > :07:42.Bristol Constabulary Bridewdll But just
:07:43. > :07:45.as the force decides to open its doors to the public on 05 June,
:07:46. > :07:49.it's been hit by the suspension His deputy doesn't know how
:07:50. > :08:03.long he will be in charge. An investigation is in motion. We
:08:04. > :08:08.hope it will be concluded as soon as possible. That will be done to the
:08:09. > :08:13.IPCC to conduct. We are hophng we will return to a state of sted 0 ``
:08:14. > :08:16.certainty. What has changed for the good and
:08:17. > :08:20.very much so is the amount of crime. For the last two decades,
:08:21. > :08:23.it's fallen and continues to fall. That is certainly cause
:08:24. > :08:39.for celebration. More to come, including the story of
:08:40. > :08:46.how a farmer is keeping people off his land. The fence that is dividing
:08:47. > :08:48.opinion. And a Somerset Bowls club that has produced three of the best
:08:49. > :08:54.players in the world. A former soldier from Bristol,
:08:55. > :08:56.who battered his wife to death with a dulbell,
:08:57. > :09:00.has been convicted of murder. Nirmal Gill killed his wife Rosemary
:09:01. > :09:02.at their home Bristol Crown Court was told
:09:03. > :09:07.he'd killed her after finding out He's due to be sentenced
:09:08. > :09:13.tomorrow morning. A new vaccine
:09:14. > :09:15.for an aggressive childhood brain tumour is being tried out at
:09:16. > :09:19.Bristol Children's Hospital. The disease neurblastoma affects
:09:20. > :09:21.around two children a week Symptoms are vague so it's often
:09:22. > :09:27.not diagnosed until it has spread. Many
:09:28. > :09:29.of the most promising treatlents abroad and outside the NHS can cost
:09:30. > :09:34.over ?1 million per child. Here, two small cancer charhties
:09:35. > :09:37.have pulled together to pay Off the normal beat and
:09:38. > :09:45.in pursuit of new life`saving 85 off`duty police officers
:09:46. > :09:49.from the UK gather for a half marathon in New Xork
:09:50. > :10:06.fundraising after Sergeant Dick It reminds me of lots of experiences
:10:07. > :10:13.with my son and the tragedy of the disease. Parents shouldn't have too
:10:14. > :10:16.pay for their children's trdatment. We tried to stop that.
:10:17. > :10:18.Lilly MacGlashan from Dunstable has the condhtion.
:10:19. > :10:21.NHS doctors said they could do no more when Lilly's cancer relapsed.
:10:22. > :10:25.So she came to New York's Mdmorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre for
:10:26. > :10:34.The results have been very encouraging.
:10:35. > :10:37.Today we know that with CNS relapse on the brain, we can go through
:10:38. > :10:40.treatment and about 75% of our children seem to grow up
:10:41. > :10:51.As much as we would like to say we could send all abroad, it's just
:10:52. > :10:54.too expensive so we are tryhng to bring treatments to the UK.
:10:55. > :11:04.Now two charities have pledged over ?250,000 pounds to bring
:11:05. > :11:07.the American vaccine to Bristol Children's Hospital to run
:11:08. > :11:18.Potentially, this is very ilportant indeed. We have seen in the last 20
:11:19. > :11:21.years is the last 20 years hs that M3 intervention we have dond has
:11:22. > :11:24.increased the chance of being killed.
:11:25. > :11:26.So the fundraising continues in earnest.
:11:27. > :11:28.The treatment remains experhmental but the research and results is
:11:29. > :11:41.Bit of sport news now and Bristol Rovers football club have
:11:42. > :11:44.issued a statement this aftdrnoon, saying they are looking into
:11:45. > :11:46.allegations that another cltb broke "third party ownership" rulds.
:11:47. > :11:52.This is a bit of a complicated one but firstly let's go back to the
:11:53. > :11:56.League Two table at the end of the season and you'll see why this is
:11:57. > :12:02.They were relegated out of the football league for
:12:03. > :12:05.the first time in their history and Wycombe Wanderers stayed up, just.
:12:06. > :12:08.Last week, Wycombe were found guilty of breaking Football Associ`tion
:12:09. > :12:12.rules over the sale of a pl`yer and were fined.
:12:13. > :12:49.Bristol Rovers have instructed specialist sports lawyer
:12:50. > :12:52.and a leading sports barrister to draft and send a complaint to both
:12:53. > :12:54.The Football League and The Football Association.
:12:55. > :12:57.Wycombe have said they will let the matter be dealt with through
:12:58. > :13:07.official channels and will make no further colment.
:13:08. > :13:14.Amy Williams has been inducted to the University of Bath's Hall of
:13:15. > :13:24.Fame for sport. She became Britain's first woman gold ledallist
:13:25. > :13:29.at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Jason Gardner and Ben Ross group became
:13:30. > :13:33.the first two inductees. A small corner of a field is
:13:34. > :13:39.continuing to generate headlines and divide opinion around the country. A
:13:40. > :13:46.large fence has been put up around a footpath across a meadow so what is
:13:47. > :13:54.causing the controversy? This is what all the fuss is about.
:13:55. > :14:03.These two fences. They enclose this public footpath. It has not been up
:14:04. > :14:16.for long but it has already become pretty well`known. Is it thd fence
:14:17. > :14:22.that has been put alongside right`of`way and therefore people
:14:23. > :14:27.are completely channelled in? But not in my constituency. It was put
:14:28. > :14:32.up by the landowner who says he wants to protect its fields from dog
:14:33. > :14:38.mess, scooter riders and trdspasses. The plan is to put capital `nd
:14:39. > :14:43.machinery in the land and I don t want people being knocked over,
:14:44. > :14:50.killed or whatever and me bding locked up for manslaughter. I want
:14:51. > :14:55.to put up a full proof fencd. The foot path stretches from thd top of
:14:56. > :15:00.this field to the bottom. Pdople have a right to walk along ht were
:15:01. > :15:11.not veer off it. It feels lhke a prison. This footpath isn't a useful
:15:12. > :15:16.one. It takes you to the rahlway and not a lot of us `` and what a lot of
:15:17. > :15:22.us used to do is come in at the beginning and use the rest of the
:15:23. > :15:26.field. We can't do that any more. Mendip council say the fencds are
:15:27. > :15:34.not a planning issue becausd they are less than two metres high. Legal
:15:35. > :15:39.or not, many local people are furious and say it is roaming the
:15:40. > :15:45.countryside. But one man who lives next to the entrance says hd is in
:15:46. > :15:53.favour. I had the job and mx neighbour had the job of cldaning up
:15:54. > :16:02.dog mess, even though we... We thank him. People here are still
:16:03. > :16:06.relatively hopeful that somd kind of compromise can be reached btt the
:16:07. > :16:17.time being at least, the landowner says these fences are here to stay.
:16:18. > :16:25.The clean`up following a Solerset floods is continuing. Small
:16:26. > :16:28.businesses are also trying to get back on their feet and that has
:16:29. > :16:43.meant working day and night for many.
:16:44. > :16:49.This is what it should be lhke. But this is the crop that was affected
:16:50. > :16:56.by the flooding. The residud that was left over from the flood water
:16:57. > :17:00.was to this step, so that c`n't be dried off and made into baskets
:17:01. > :17:05.because customers don't want the baskets with this mess on it. The
:17:06. > :17:12.willow behind will now have to go into engineering maps as opposed to
:17:13. > :17:19.the use it was originally grown for. Not quite a right but it will cost
:17:20. > :17:26.you more money to produce. Overall, what was the winter like? Ndrve
:17:27. > :17:32.wracking. We didn't really know whether we would be able to harvest
:17:33. > :17:35.that. The water was in the fields for so long and it was so ddep, we
:17:36. > :17:43.didn't think we would get the cropping. It was a very worrying
:17:44. > :17:54.time. Once the water did go, it went very quickly unfortunately, the
:17:55. > :18:01.ground began to dry up. We will do the opposite of a rain dancd.
:18:02. > :18:07.Because once the water levels had gone, there was such a rush to
:18:08. > :18:12.harvest the Willow, they had to do three months working just a couple
:18:13. > :18:13.of weeks. It gives you an idea of the pressures that people h`ve been
:18:14. > :18:19.under so far this year. The fallout from the
:18:20. > :18:21.Liberal Democrats' drubbing Today a former leader of thdir party
:18:22. > :18:26.on Bristol City Council joined calls for Nick Clegg to go but other
:18:27. > :18:29.senior figures insist a leadership We'll be talking to an MP whth one
:18:30. > :18:34.of the party's smallest majorities after this report from our
:18:35. > :18:38.political editor, Paul Barltrop The West's Lib Dems have tasted
:18:39. > :18:41.defeat in recent years but not Graham Watson's departure especially
:18:42. > :18:45.has sent shockwaves throughout Joining calls for a change hs
:18:46. > :19:06.a senior Bristol Lib Dem, hhmself Pretty sad. I joined this p`rty in
:19:07. > :19:12.my teens, 40 years ago this year, and we have had ups and downs but I
:19:13. > :19:16.just feel that the first tile in a long time, the leadership of the
:19:17. > :19:21.party isn't listening to wh`t those at the grassroots are telling us. Is
:19:22. > :19:24.worse, they are not listening to the voters either.
:19:25. > :19:28.Look in detail at last Thursday s votes and you see the scale
:19:29. > :19:32.The party regards the West country as a stronghold but European
:19:33. > :19:37.Their best area was Somerset but they still only got 15% of votes.
:19:38. > :19:40.In Bristol and Wiltshire it was 10%, while in parts of Gloucestershire,
:19:41. > :19:49.6.5% in Stroud, just 5% in the Forest of De`n.
:19:50. > :19:54.In the Euro election of 1988, the Lib Dems did slightly worse
:19:55. > :20:02.Their leader then has today appealed for calm.
:20:03. > :20:11.I think it's an extremely shlly idea to go into a divisive leadership
:20:12. > :20:15.election campaign at the very moment when the things we have been doing
:20:16. > :20:19.in government are beginning to be proved to be right.
:20:20. > :20:22.The placards have been put `way but they'll be needed again soon,
:20:23. > :20:24.the general election is just 11 months away.
:20:25. > :20:27.So what is the future for the Liberal Democrats?
:20:28. > :20:35.Joining us now is the David Heath who is the Member of Parlialent
:20:36. > :20:45.You are finished, aren't yot, if you can't do well in your heartland
:20:46. > :20:49.What we have just had is thd European elections. Traditionally,
:20:50. > :20:55.we do badly in European elections. Only one in three of the voters in
:20:56. > :20:59.the South West actually votdd. We don't know what the position is I
:21:00. > :21:05.will not disguise the fact ht was an extremely bad day for us. Btt why
:21:06. > :21:09.don't think you can do is extrapolate from that what will
:21:10. > :21:14.happen in the general electhon when people are considering how their
:21:15. > :21:20.local MP or a successor is likely to do over the next electoral period.
:21:21. > :21:26.You went into those elections all gone is blazing in favour of the EU
:21:27. > :21:31.just at the time when countries across the European Union wdre
:21:32. > :21:38.voting against that institution You got that spectacularly wrong, didn't
:21:39. > :21:42.you? The parties have a traditional view of Europe. I don't alw`ys share
:21:43. > :21:48.their view. Nevertheless, it has been a long`standing position of the
:21:49. > :21:55.party. Are you saying the p`rties should be dishonest? We havd always
:21:56. > :22:00.been in favour of remaining in Europe but also of reforming the
:22:01. > :22:04.European Union. Mick very bravely took the fight to UKIP in a way
:22:05. > :22:12.which the other two parties failed to do. Do you think this will cost
:22:13. > :22:16.Mr Clegg his job? It shouldn't do because we have had four ye`rs a
:22:17. > :22:20.very tough times in governmdnt, getting this country back from the
:22:21. > :22:25.brink of economic disaster, and I think we now have to see th`t
:22:26. > :22:34.through till the end and show the coalition can work. The
:22:35. > :22:38.Conservatives have also had to do Liberal Democrat policies which they
:22:39. > :22:42.don't particularly like but we have provided the stability which this
:22:43. > :22:46.country needs and it will t`ke time for people to recognise that is the
:22:47. > :22:50.case but the economic signs are good and I think my next year, pdople
:22:51. > :23:01.will take that into account as well as the quality.
:23:02. > :23:08.A trio of Somerset bowlers `re preparing for a vintage year of
:23:09. > :23:12.competition. They have been selected to represent England in February's
:23:13. > :23:19.World Championships. All three are visually impaired.
:23:20. > :23:23.There is something rather special about the bowls club. It is not that
:23:24. > :23:30.they boast a national champhon. It is more that they have thred, three
:23:31. > :23:37.visually impaired bowlers who, between them, have 17 national UK
:23:38. > :24:01.and world singles titles. I think it is all the help we get. You are
:24:02. > :24:21.going to hit your own! It's the same as normal sighted except we use a
:24:22. > :24:31.string. We normally have a helper. When you can't see, you havd got to
:24:32. > :24:37.go by their word. If you ard to few short, how do you judge it? That's
:24:38. > :24:46.the secret! You either get ht right or completely wrong! You get to know
:24:47. > :24:55.how much weight to give each distance because they cited bowler
:24:56. > :25:02.looks at the Green, where as you just go by 31 yards, whatevdr it is.
:25:03. > :25:09.Hopefully, you have got it right in the conditions. These guys
:25:10. > :25:13.absolutely do get it right. Ron is reigning English champion in his
:25:14. > :25:18.class, Terry reigning world champion in his and Nancy? Well, she says she
:25:19. > :25:23.took a year off after winning last year but with five national titles
:25:24. > :25:33.and the UK title to her namd, that's probably just as well for everyone
:25:34. > :25:34.else. Good shot! Shot or bowls? If there was the secret, they
:25:35. > :25:48.definitely got it. In typical half term fashion, best
:25:49. > :25:52.of the sunshine will come on Saturday. But that's the wax our
:25:53. > :25:58.weather goes. It has been a mixed picture today. Plenty of cloud
:25:59. > :26:02.coverage. Where we have had sunshine, it has lifted temperatures
:26:03. > :26:09.significantly but with that cloud, we have had showers. They h`ve
:26:10. > :26:16.become steadily more persistent In a few places, I would wager a rumble
:26:17. > :26:22.or two of thunder. Temperattre wise, it hasn't been too bad. In
:26:23. > :26:28.some parts, we edged towards 17 Celsius. Under the showers, though,
:26:29. > :26:33.cooler and fresher. The next few days, we remain this picturd. A
:26:34. > :26:38.cloudy story and more showers on the way. Some bright spells and when we
:26:39. > :26:42.get those spells, temperatures respond in kind. The rest of this
:26:43. > :26:48.evening and tonight, a showdry story. Mainly confined to bd
:26:49. > :26:58.northern areas of our region. Plenty of insulation due to be clotd cover.
:26:59. > :27:03.9`11 Celsius. Rural spots a little cooler but not much. Tomorrow
:27:04. > :27:08.morning, a grey and cloudy story. Damp underfoot after rain overnight.
:27:09. > :27:12.Some bright spells in betwedn. Where we get the sunshine, though,
:27:13. > :27:17.temperatures will lift signhficantly so enjoy that sunshine wherd you get
:27:18. > :27:22.it. 16 or 17 Celsius as possible. Again, though, under the showers
:27:23. > :27:27.cooler and fresher. Tomorrow evening and night time, a very similar story
:27:28. > :27:32.to tonight. Cloudy grey with the odd shower or two and the outlook for
:27:33. > :27:37.the end of the week, the showers dissipate, the cloud breaks and by
:27:38. > :27:42.Friday, the best of the sunshine. Saturday, better still.