09/03/2017 Channel Islands News

Welcome to BBC Channel Islands on Thursday March 9th.

Switching on to a new way of getting around -

will the rise in electric cars be the answer to

Stranded - thousands disrupted as fog smothers the Channel Islands.

And the big question is, when will it clear? More for tonight and

tomorrow morning but the hint of some clearance. I will have all the

details later in the programme. There's concern some

of Jersey's history is being A new report on the island's

heritage criticises some building projects in St Helier for failing

to preserve historic sites. Our reporter Luxmy Gopal

is in St Helier now. Luxmy, you're in the

main shopping area. Alison, this shop here

on King Street is held up by Jersey Heritage as an example

of a successful meeting of history It's a listed late Victorian

building that was a jewellers for 200 years - more than 100

of which as CT Maine, one of Jersey's oldest

family-run businesses. When it became a Jack Wills store

around five years ago, a lot of the original features

were kept such as the interior windows and the safes,

as well as the panelling. But heritage groups say some

developments in St Helier aren't doing enough to preserve

their sites' history. The changing face of St Helier -

the theme of a new report by heritage groups who fear

the town's historic character The report highlights the importance

of protecting the past, saying two thirds of tourists surveyed felt

heritage and history were key Latest figures show over 130,000

visits were made to heritage sites Most Jersey residents surveyed said

historic buildings are an asset So how do you balance promoting

development with preserving history? According to the report,

some projects have done it well, such as this Methodist Chapel

turned community centre, which has kept its

historic character. While others, such as the

Southampton Hotel site development, have just kept the original

building's facade, which heritage The heritage shouldn't be seen as a

barrier to investment and regeneration. It is about working

with the heritage buildings and historic stock we have got to ensure

the island retains its historic character and an attractive place to

live and do business. And the challenge is progressing

with regeneration while preserving Now, the regeneration - the future

development of St Helier - is one of the Council

of Ministers' priority areas. And in reality not all projects can

keep that much of the historic elements of buildings,

as this store here has done. It isn't always practical

with modern developments and as ever we're dealing

with limited space in St Helier So the balance between maintaining

heritage and modernising the town It's been announced the final report

from the Jersey Care Inquiry Originally, the independent inquiry

into historical child abuse was due to publish its report by the end

of last year, which was then put In a statement this evening

the panel said it had received information related

to its recommendations that it But adds it doesn't expect

the delay to be extensive. A helicopter landed on Jersey's dual

carriageway Victoria Avenue this The island's busiest road was closed

for about an hour so a Coastguard helicopter could take a seriously

ill patient to hospital in the UK. It had to use the Avenue

because it was too foggy to land at Jersey Airport and other

sites were too wet. A horse has been stabbed

in the face in Jersey. It was attacked at a private

premises in St Peter This video shows the dressage horse

after the vet had treated it for what were described as serious

but not life-threatening injuries, which are likely to leave it

permanently disfigured. Jersey Police say they are taking

the attack "very seriously". It is a particular type of horse

that is engaged in dressage and is a champion horse so this disfigurement

has a particular impact. It was particularly gruesome. There was

considerable injury through the nostril.

The search for missing Jersey woman Valerie Jehan has been called off.

After finding her handbag and phone halfway down a cliff on Tuesday,

officers believe it's likely the 75-year-old fell into the sea

She was last seen in the area nearly a week ago.

While the police have now stopped their physical search,

they say their investigation is continuing and a file will be

The UK Government says it's committed to keeping

the current travel agreement between the Channel Islands

Guernsey, Jersey and Alderney are part of the Common Travel Area

Today the Under-Secretary of the Department for Exiting

the European Union told MPs the open borders arrangements

The Crown dependencies including the Isle of Man have been part of the

Common travel area for more than 100 years and we are committed to

preserving that arrangement. We have set out in the white paper that we

will work with the Crown dependencies as well as Ireland on

keeping the Common travel area. Guernsey Electricity says it's

having to plan ahead for what it's describing as an expected surge

in popularity in electric cars. It's developing its own

electric transport strategy And it comes as the States aim

for tougher controls on air pollution, so could

electric cars be the answer? This is one of Guernsey

Electricity's new electric vehicles. It says we'll see many more of these

in the coming years. I would see in Guernsey,

particularly with the short journey times and fairly low mileage

compared to the UK and European countries, that even the current

range of electric vehicles are well-suited to Guernsey.

If they're right, one of the major benefits for Guernsey would be

a significant reduction in emissions, something measured

here in this little green box on one of the island's busiest roads.

This piece of kit is used to measure particulates. Up to...

But in simple terms, this monitoring station sucks in air

This tells you the particularly busy times such as the school and

commuter runs. We are looking at solutions that are not as reliant on

burning fossil fuels and that will have a beneficial impact on local

carbon dioxide levels. He says small steps can

result in big results - something demonstrated

here at St Martin's Primary School where changes to traffic

arrangements have halved I was surprised when I heard it had

reduced pollution in the area. We are busy school and there is a lot

of traffic in the morning. So it has made a pleasing difference.

Air pollution levels in the island aren't actually that bad.

But if things are to improve it's going to be right here on Guernsey's

Hundreds of students attended Jersey's

Some of the exhibitors chartered boats to make it over

Our reporter Jessica Banham went down to Hotel de France

There are nearly 80 exhibitors from across the University here today.

They get information on what causes they have to offer and what it is

like to study at the University. They are expecting 1000 students to

attend and I have been talking to some of them about what they thought

of it. It is nice to talk to people that

are dear sir you can get their view of it rather than just the website.

You can't just go over and visit the University 's as English students

can. Just to see what University could be

like and what I could study is informative.

The education minister joins me know. They opened the event. Why are

events like this important? They are deeply important. This is

the chance to get face-to-face with the people who live and breathe in

the universities across the UK so they get direct input.

There is an ongoing issue with student finance. I speak to students

who say they cannot afford to go to university overseas. What is the

point in holding events like this of some families can't afford it?

Student finance is one of those issues we are trying to tackle. We

still produce a large pot of money to help students access university.

This is an opportunity for students to understand and connect with

universities. This afternoon may give students a

better idea about their options but there is still the question mark

over how many families will be able to send their children overseas to

study. Our panel will be looking into it.

Fog has continued to cause misery for people hoping to fly

to and from the Channel Islands today.

You can just about make out Guernsey airport here.

Thousands of passengers faced a second day of disruption,

with nearly every flight in Guernsey and Jersey cancelled.

Well, will the problems continue for a third day?

You can just imagine how frustrating it is for people. Will it linger?

I think there is the chance of a little more but it should ease off.

There may be the chance for some of those flights to get airborne. It is

misty and 41st thing tomorrow morning. Still quite mild but

perhaps brighter with better visibility before the mist and fog

returns in the evening. This is the pivotal area of high pressure. The

lights are and still winds means things just sit there. The breeze

coming in from the south-east may bring less humid air tomorrow. Misty

first thing on Saturday morning. A more definite change on Sunday. Some

other fronts will push through on Sunday bringing some fresh rain and

brighter and clearer conditions on Sunday afternoon. There is that week

when a front trapping moisture and keeping things down through this

evening it moves away from us, travelling northwards. BBC local

radio will keep you updated on the travel issues. That is the picture

for the overnight period. Some drizzle and very foggy first thing

in the morning. Through the morning and into the afternoon we start to

see some change. A bit more of a breeze develops and a few calls

develop in the mist and fog -- a few holes.

The winds are for the South East. The outlook for the weekend is a

little bit brighter. Finally, a look ahead to

a special anniversary tomorrow. Many a loved up Amen would have

arrived here. Jersey airport may have changed but those memories stay

the same. And getting ready for a morning of nostalgia and stories

with passengers, pilots and sweethearts as we celebrate the

anniversary of the airport. they go into the military because

there is no other job available. When in they are inducted into the

Army and there is strong discipline and in many cases over time, through

no fault of their own, they become institutionalised. The army looks

after them, provides them with accommodation, food, etc, and when

they eventually come out of the military they find that they can't

look after their own lives. Often they have to much time on their

hands, in some cases suffer from depression and in other cases turned

to alcohol and drug abuse, with the that many of them break up from

their families, start living rough and living in charitable hostels,

and we help them to relocate, we probably interview three times the

number we actually take on board. What we have done has been highly

successful and has worked well, with big financial returns, and it is

also fun. I am guessing it is a snowball effect, they are helping

them -- you are helping them to help themselves. Very much so, the

strapline of the charity is Helping People To Help Themselves, and it

works. We will talk more in a moment but first let's see how one person

has banned it from the screen -- from the scheme. Jon manual has been

living on the streets on and off for 30 years. Here is his story.

I was in a pub and apparently the IRA had bombed the pub. We were very

young and it was confusing as to why it happened. It made me wonder why

we were out there, why we were fighting the people who are like

your next-door neighbours. Turning to alcohol is not the answer. But at

the time it would ease the pain. But it wouldn't go away. And I would

have nothing better to do but drink because I had no future, no job, no

money. I used to beg. It was quite horrendous at times, in this kind of

weather. I would pitch my tent in a far corner, all the way. I was kept

waking up constantly through the night, and I couldn't understand

what was going on. With all the worry I had, I ended up packing up

my tent, in the condition I was, and I went to Derriford. They told me I

was having a heart attack. It cost me everything. Cost me my family,

the people I was close to. I am hurting badly emotionally, so

regrettable for me that I have to live with that everyday.

In the Nelson Project I get the opportunity to help with the finish,

insulation, any other duties required. When this project is

finished I will have a flat, somewhere stable to live and I can

be built my life again. I am turning my life around and I hope my family

realise that. It has not been easy but I am hoping that I get to see

the people that I love and start again.

Our heartbreaking story, but he really turned his life around due to

the project. It strikes me this could help so many others, not just

military veterans. Without doubt. A recent report from the University of

East England demonstrated that for every pound spent on the two Bristol

projects we have saved between ?4 70 and ?7 20. We would like to roll out

the project nationally. Each project of course has to be resourced and

funded. The report produced has gone to the Cabinet ministers and I am

told it has gone to the Prime Minister's offers but we will see.

Thank you very much for coming in today. My pleasure, thank you for

the opportunity. Now, if you're interested

in the history which is all around us and beneath us here

in the South West, you may be the sort of person needed

for an archaelogical expedition The search is on for volunteers

to help unearth some of the secrets which could be hidden underneath

Castle Green in Barnstaple. Our reporter Johnny Rutherford has

been to see the modern technology Barnstaple Castle and Green,

an ancient monument. Before the Normans built a grand

moat and a bailey castle here, In the 1970s they discovered

105 Saxon graves. Today they're surveying the green,

with more advanced equipment. It's a great opportunity to find out

more about the castle and about Norman and Saxon

Barnstaple. We're hoping this is the beginning

of a much bigger project that will really help us find out a lot

more and get people excited Money from Historic England has

funded this five-day survey. We're using two different techniques

to look from the surface around a metre to a metre and a half

down beneath the ground. The idea is to map any

archaeology that still remains Local people have been

given the chance to be part of the project,

which allows them to be hands-on. I've always been fascinated

in this castle mound site. To think that there was once

a castle, king and community here is just fascinating,

and so as soon as I saw the opportunity to take part

in the survey I jumped So I've decided to do

a bit of volunteering. Apparently I've got to walk

in a straight line... You've got to be a bit

quicker than that, Johnny. To be honest, they had

to redo that bit. Luckily, the experts put

the equipment to its best use. Well, it's quite interesting

what we've come across so far, We seem to have a rectangle of lines

which could represent a former structure or building on the site

which we had no idea Also we've got some speckling,

which may represent graves, and these could be part

of the Anglo-Saxon graveyard which Next week the team will be

using ground-penetrating radar in the Castle Market car

park for the first time. You never know, they

might find a king. Now, remember the Regal, the Empire,

or what about the ABC? By the end of the 1930s some big

cinema chains dominated the UK And it's this sort of time

in people's lives they're trying It's in an effort

to combat loneliness. Jane Chandler picked

up her ticket and went along to the Red Velvet Cinema,

which has been set up It's not just about

watching a classic film. Afterwards they get the chance

to reminisce over a cake It's nice sometimes to sort of look

back, everything rushes forward, and it's just nice to see

something like that. It brings back a lot because I'm

afraid that my memory is not so good now, there's problems with that,

but it's a film you Must have been 40 years

ago, I should think. I didn't really remember

it from then so it The project is the idea

of Caroline Blackler. It's got ?2000 of funding

from the community arts It's to encourage elderly people

who live on their own And if you get them watching

a film then they actually don't have to talk to anyone

while that film's on, but after the film you encourage

them to talk, give them a cup of tea and a slice

of cake, and that's when the And if you can get people

to connect then maybe There's still plenty

of time to catch a classic, as the Red Velvet Cinema runs

at the cafe in George Street There's nothing quite like watching

old movies, particularly when it is wet outside. But hopefully it won't

be raining. A few spots of drizzle down in

Cornwall but most of the south-west has had glorious sunshine.

We saw the pictures from South Devon, the archaeological story and

the whale as well. A bit of a change coming. Our

weather watchers have done us proud. Glorious sunshine, even in the

higher ground up to wards Exmoor and Somerset. Then down into Cornwall,

where the mist and fog has been draped across the far south-west,

and that will continue this evening, visibility problems not just for the

islands but along the coastline today. Let's head to Saint Germans

now, were briefly there was some brightness in the sky. Our cameraman

noted how still the air was. Most of us have had hardly a breeze, so the

mist and low cloud has hung around for most of the day. Those who have

not had it have had some lovely weather, feeling quite warm as well.

In the sunshine and bridges up to 15, 16 degrees, certainly the

warmest it has felt so far this year. As we head through tomorrow

and into the weekend, I think I tonight it will be pretty misty at

first and then the low cloud, mist and fog returns. Tomorrow morning

that will be around first thing in the morning, and some drizzle as

well. Later in the day it starts to brighten up wet and -- and when the

sunshine comes out it will feel quite pleasant. We are in the

boundary between the high pressure over France and the weather fans

trying to come in from the West. They will eventually wind but they

will take their time. A lot of moisture ahead of that. The first

weather system is fairly weak, not getting to us until the end of the

day on Saturday. The second one will give us some more persistent rain

for a time on Sunday morning and once that is through we are back to

north-west winds, better visibility, improved visibility for local

flights, but the humid, moist air is across us tonight, you can see the

cloud draped across the south-west. That is having -- heading north

overnight. Had she conditions through the night and it will be

unusually mild. -- patchy conditions. Last week these would be

a good day time temperature, so mild but also misty. Tomorrow morning,

not much in the way of drizzle and gradually a few holes will appear in

the cloud. The winds slightly more than we have seen to date and with

the breeze from the South there will be some holes in the cloud allowing

the sunshine to come through. Northern Devon, parts of Somerset,

perhaps Dorset again, 13 to 14 degrees. The Isles of Scilly, misty

and damp, brighter for a time but a fair amount of low cloud around for

much of the day. These are the times of high water.

For the surface, clean surf, good waves tomorrow, not quite so big up

to four, possibly five feet, and clean waves the north coast. The

coastal waters forecast, four or five, fair with mist patches. As we

move into the weekend this is the forecaster Saturday, a lot of cloud,

still quite misty first thing. Sunday, some showery outbreaks but

brighter in the afternoon and at last the sunshine comes out on

Monday. Have a good evening. That is all from us. Janine Jansen

will join David for the late news and weather at 10:30pm. From all of

us here, good evening. Oh, the dragon.

Dylan Thomas. Richard Burton.

Barry Island. The River Shannon.

We invented the submarine. with a spectacular

Friday night encounter... Let's Sing And Dance exploded onto

our screens,