:00:06. > :00:09.This is East Midlands Today with Anne Davies and me, Dominic Heale.
:00:09. > :00:19.Our top story tonight - hundreds of jobs to go in a shake-up at Royal
:00:19. > :00:21.
:00:21. > :00:24.Mail. Almost 200 jobs are to go at
:00:24. > :00:32.Leicester's world mile centre. Plus, there'll be no Government U-
:00:32. > :00:37.turn to save jobs at Bombardier. The minister stands firm. We do not
:00:37. > :00:47.lawfully have the ability to award the contract to the company that
:00:47. > :00:49.
:00:49. > :00:54.Also tonight, scientists study a new way for new mums to lose weight.
:00:54. > :00:59.In terms of health we do not want a generation of women who are
:00:59. > :01:06.overweight just because they had a baby. And armed with bin bags - 200
:01:06. > :01:16.schoolchildren sweep through a suburb. We are proud to come here
:01:16. > :01:22.
:01:22. > :01:25.and give back to the environment. First, if you thought it couldn't
:01:25. > :01:29.get any worse, it just has. Almost 500 jobs are to go as the Royal
:01:29. > :01:31.Mail shakes up its operations across the East Midlands. That news
:01:31. > :01:33.came just hours after the Government confirmed that the Derby
:01:33. > :01:43.train-maker, Bombardier, would not be given a massive contract which
:01:43. > :01:43.
:01:43. > :01:44.would have saved the jobs of hundreds more. In a moment, an
:01:44. > :01:50.exclusive interview with the Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond,
:01:50. > :01:55.about the controversial Bombardier decision. But first, let's join
:01:55. > :02:01.Mike O'Sullivan in Leicester with more on those Royal Mail job cuts.
:02:01. > :02:05.Good evening. This mail centre is the big loser in these changes
:02:05. > :02:09.being proposed by the Royal Mail. Around 500 people work here and
:02:09. > :02:12.there'll 280 job losses. What will happen is that the Leicester Mail
:02:12. > :02:15.centre here will be closed down. The sorting of the mail will be
:02:15. > :02:18.transferred to Northampton. Then another smaller office will be
:02:18. > :02:20.opened in Leicester to handle the delivery side of things. A union
:02:20. > :02:23.leader here though believes that something like 400 people will
:02:23. > :02:33.leave, because they just don't want to travel the 35 miles for work in
:02:33. > :02:40.
:02:40. > :02:47.Northampton. We have 500 members down there. We have 100 drivers or
:02:47. > :02:56.so, cleaning and catering staff, and most of those jobs will go. So
:02:56. > :03:03.we are probably talking 500 jobs. Why are the Royal Mail having to do
:03:03. > :03:06.this? The Royal Mail says one reason that
:03:06. > :03:09.they have to slim down is because fewer letters are being posted.
:03:09. > :03:15.They say in the Midlands, the number of items posted have fallen
:03:15. > :03:21.by more than 400 million since 2006. And they predict a fall of a
:03:21. > :03:25.further 500 million items by 2015. Well, as if the jobs scene in Derby
:03:25. > :03:29.wasn't bad enough, just over 180 jobs will be lost there. The
:03:29. > :03:33.sorting office side of things will go from Derby to Nottingham. The
:03:33. > :03:36.big office in Derby will remain as a delivery office only. Also the
:03:36. > :03:43.Ilkeston and Heanor delivery offices will be closed. So what's
:03:43. > :03:47.the Royal Mail had to say about it today? Well, the Royal Mail said
:03:47. > :03:55.today another factor is a big investment in new machinery. And
:03:55. > :04:00.they promise no compulsory redundancies.
:04:00. > :04:06.To date we have not had to use compulsory redundancy at all and we
:04:06. > :04:12.do not envisage having to as part of these changes we have proposed.
:04:12. > :04:17.We are working with the trade unions and the people in Derby and
:04:17. > :04:21.Leicester and Nottingham to make sure that we support them and their
:04:21. > :04:24.families and our customers through this change. The Royal Mail says
:04:24. > :04:28.the final decision on these proposals will be made in the
:04:28. > :04:34.Autumn. Next tonight, the latest chapter in
:04:34. > :04:37.the Bombardier story. Union leaders met the Transport Secretary this
:04:37. > :04:42.morning, to ask him to change his mind about about awarding a �1.4
:04:42. > :04:48.billion order to the German firm, Siemens. Our Political Editor, John
:04:48. > :04:55.Hess, is at Westminster now. John, was this the last throw of the
:04:55. > :04:58.dice? If you listened to the government
:04:58. > :05:03.today, you certainly wouldn't want to put your money on a possible U-
:05:03. > :05:12.turn on this. Just hear what the Transport Secretary Philip Hammond
:05:12. > :05:16.told me a little earlier. We do not have the ability, lawfully, to
:05:16. > :05:21.award the contract to the company that came second in the competition.
:05:21. > :05:23.It is as simple as that. It's the first time the Transport Secretary
:05:23. > :05:28.has spoken to the programme about his controversial decision over
:05:28. > :05:30.Bombardier. You'll be able to more of it shortly. The interview was
:05:30. > :05:34.after he had met a delegation of senior trade union officials first
:05:34. > :05:36.thing this morning, at the Department for Transport.
:05:36. > :05:45.Determined and resolute - union leaders arrived for talks at the
:05:46. > :05:49.Department for Transport. We know that in France, Germany and Italy,
:05:49. > :05:55.no government would conceive of trains for that country been built
:05:55. > :06:00.elsewhere. The government is supposed to be in charge. Either it
:06:00. > :06:02.is in charge or frankly, this is a Shambles. The Transport Secretary,
:06:02. > :06:09.Philip Hammond, had scheduled an hour for the talks. They lasted
:06:09. > :06:14.twice as long. A sign of hope? Not so. He has said at this stage that
:06:14. > :06:18.there is nothing further he can do but he also said the process is not
:06:18. > :06:23.ended and the final contract will not be awarded for another few
:06:23. > :06:26.months. We would use that time to follow up on a number of issues
:06:26. > :06:32.were stop we're not going to disappear until we make sure the
:06:32. > :06:35.government can see the social ramifications of the people of
:06:35. > :06:43.Derby and beyond. Later in the Commons, the Prime Minister praised
:06:43. > :06:47.Bombardier. It is a great company with a great future in this country.
:06:47. > :06:52.But in this case the procurement process was designed and initiated
:06:52. > :06:55.by the previous government. We were bound by the criteria at a set and
:06:55. > :06:59.so we have to continue with the decision that was made according to
:06:59. > :07:01.that criteria. From the outside, the Department for Transport looks
:07:01. > :07:09.solidly immoveable on the reviewing the Thamelink contract. But there's
:07:10. > :07:14.still six months to go until the final contract is signed off.
:07:14. > :07:20.So with the contract still to be finalised, is there any room for
:07:20. > :07:25.manoeuvre? Not if you listen to the Transport Secretary. The Thames
:07:25. > :07:30.link contract has been awarded to Siemens as the perfect picture on
:07:30. > :07:35.the basis of the terms set out in the original tender when it was
:07:35. > :07:39.delivered. And we do not have the ability lawfully to award the
:07:40. > :07:46.contract to the company that came second in the competition. It is as
:07:46. > :07:51.simple as that. How long until you sign it off officially? Siemens has
:07:51. > :07:56.been appointed as preferred bidder. There will now be a process of
:07:56. > :08:00.commercial negotiation around the details of the contract and due
:08:00. > :08:05.diligence which normally takes six months. In that period, is that
:08:05. > :08:08.time for you to change your mind? It is not possible for me to
:08:08. > :08:13.intervene in the way that some of the Derby MPs and some of the
:08:14. > :08:18.unions have been hoping would be possible. It is not possible for me
:08:18. > :08:22.to simply overturn the proper decision that comes out of an
:08:22. > :08:28.evaluation of tenders in accordance with the criteria set out in the
:08:28. > :08:31.original process. We have to stick within the law. What we can do is
:08:31. > :08:36.make sure that in future restructure contracts in a way that
:08:36. > :08:42.looks at the wider interests of the UK supply chain, it takes a more
:08:42. > :08:47.strategic view of the industry in the UK and beyond and managers the
:08:47. > :08:52.best interests of the taxpayer in the longer term. But what is the
:08:52. > :08:57.short-term future formed Bombardier? I think there mediant
:08:57. > :09:00.challenge is they need design and development work to keep their
:09:00. > :09:06.engineering department busy. They have production operations carrying
:09:06. > :09:11.on with the London Underground. But we will look to see if there's
:09:11. > :09:17.anything we can do to help the UK supply chain, whether bringing
:09:17. > :09:21.forward the dates of future contracts. And Bombardier is a pre-
:09:21. > :09:25.qualified bidder for the CrossRail project and we will look at if
:09:25. > :09:29.there's anything we can do to accelerate that process in a way
:09:29. > :09:34.that may help the UK supply industry. Will the political
:09:34. > :09:42.pressure is not going to go away. I understand that the mid- Derbyshire
:09:42. > :09:46.Conservative MP who secured a lot of support from Derbyshire and
:09:46. > :09:51.Nottinghamshire MPs yesterday will lead a delegation to see David
:09:51. > :09:56.Cameron on Monday. And the TUC has now given national backing of to a
:09:56. > :10:00.rally in Derby a week on Saturday in support of Bombardier and their
:10:00. > :10:04.workers. Still to come on the programme - a
:10:04. > :10:08.double blow for a special school in Derbyshire. First plans for a re-
:10:08. > :10:18.build are scrapped to save money. Now they've found asbestos in the
:10:18. > :10:19.
:10:19. > :10:21.roof of the main hall. An inquest has been told that an
:10:21. > :10:26.army dog handler died almost instantly when he was shot while on
:10:26. > :10:28.foot patrol in Afghanistan. Lance Corporal Liam Tasker and his dog
:10:28. > :10:36.Theo were based in Rutland before their deployment to Helmand
:10:36. > :10:40.Province. The pair had made 14 finds of explosives and ammunition
:10:40. > :10:45.in five months on the front line. Theo died of a seizure shortly
:10:45. > :10:49.after Corporal Tasker was killed. A jury will come back to Leicester
:10:49. > :10:51.Crown Court tomorrow to consider the case of Jodie Pick. The 23-
:10:51. > :11:00.year-old is accused of killing her seven week old baby daughter at
:11:00. > :11:04.their home in Broughton Astley. She said she was trying to revive her
:11:04. > :11:08.daughter by shaking her. The prosecution claimed she grabbed the
:11:08. > :11:10.baby in a fit of anger. A special school's been forced to
:11:10. > :11:13.shut its main hall after asbestos was found in the ceiling. It was
:11:13. > :11:15.discovered when internal roof tiles began to fall to the floor. The
:11:15. > :11:18.closure has led to the cancellation of school meals and PE lessons. The
:11:18. > :11:27.building had been due to be replaced, but the plan was scrapped
:11:27. > :11:32.under Government cut-backs. From Derby, Simon Hare reports.
:11:32. > :11:36.Today was always due to be a picnic for the pupils at a Fratton Park
:11:36. > :11:41.community a special school. But they can now expect to have a lot
:11:41. > :11:48.more sandwiches after asbestos was disturbed in the roof of their main
:11:48. > :11:52.hall. We go through the hall to get to all the classrooms. And we would
:11:52. > :12:02.normally have are at lunch there but the school kitchen and the hall
:12:02. > :12:12.are closed. So it is now sandwiches until everything is repaired.
:12:12. > :12:15.
:12:15. > :12:21.has fallen down. Can we do games in the hall? No, it is broken. We need
:12:21. > :12:24.a new roof. They had been plans to rebuild the school on a new site
:12:24. > :12:30.but that was scrapped with the loss of the building schools for the
:12:30. > :12:37.future programme. We had the final design and the children had met
:12:37. > :12:42.with the architects and everything was ready to roll. So it is very
:12:42. > :12:49.disappointing. But we have to make the most of the building we have
:12:49. > :12:54.got. There are also trying to raise money to replace the roof of the
:12:54. > :12:59.schools' room -- swimming-pool which staff say is a vital part of
:12:59. > :13:07.the education they provide. But the eldest pupils were still hoping to
:13:07. > :13:09.raise the roof when they hold their pram before the end of term.
:13:09. > :13:13.A Derby charity which helps children and young people at risk
:13:13. > :13:18.of sexual exploitation will continue to get Government funding.
:13:18. > :13:22.Funding for Safe and Sound Derby had been in doubt. Last year the
:13:22. > :13:24.charity worked with more than 100 vulnerable young people. 18 had
:13:24. > :13:29.been victims of a gang which was jailed for grooming young women for
:13:29. > :13:33.sex. The charity will receive a grant of �200,000 over the next
:13:33. > :13:37.three years. A house at Ilkeston in Derbyshire
:13:37. > :13:40.has been badly damaged in a fire. More than 20 firefighters spent
:13:40. > :13:43.around three hours putting out the blaze. They were called to the
:13:43. > :13:46.house at Eyre's Garden at four o'clock this morning. When they
:13:46. > :13:56.arrived the first floor was well alight. It's understood that the
:13:56. > :13:59.
:13:59. > :14:06.occupants of the house had managed to get themselves out.
:14:06. > :14:08.Apparently you can forget finding time to go to the gym. Scientists
:14:08. > :14:11.in Nottingham have come up with a programme to help new mums get fit
:14:11. > :14:13.and lose weight without leaving the house. They're encouraging them to
:14:13. > :14:16.play interactive computer games at least three times a week. Angelina
:14:16. > :14:19.Socci reports. It's a full time job looking after
:14:19. > :14:28.six-month-old Max. And for his mum, Jan, having the time or inclination
:14:29. > :14:33.to exercise isn't always top of her priorities. Everyone tends to put
:14:33. > :14:38.on weight when they have had a child and sometimes to not lose it
:14:38. > :14:41.as quickly as they would like. I think people are quite conscious of
:14:41. > :14:44.how they look. A recent survey found that 67 percent of women were
:14:44. > :14:47.anxious about their weight after giving birth and many didn't want
:14:47. > :14:51.to exercise in public. But now scientists here at Nottingham Trent
:14:51. > :14:59.University think they may have found a solution. And it involves
:14:59. > :15:02.playing computer games. But with a difference. A study, which will be
:15:02. > :15:04.carried out on 20 to 30 new mums, will monitor their weight and body
:15:04. > :15:13.composition before, during and after a twelve week training period
:15:14. > :15:20.on a Wii Fit Board. At the end of the 12 weeks we get
:15:20. > :15:26.them back and do all there scans again. And hopefully we will have
:15:26. > :15:34.some results to show that this type of intervention is really useful
:15:34. > :15:40.and beneficial to mothers. A lot of people probably have them at home
:15:40. > :15:43.and do not use them as much as they thought. I suppose it is just
:15:43. > :15:46.another thing to try. So while a new baby may bring plenty of joy,
:15:46. > :15:52.scientists are hoping that this research will also provide a happy
:15:52. > :16:01.outcome for all the mums taking part.
:16:02. > :16:05.Still to come on the programme - a taste of Autumn in Mid-July.
:16:05. > :16:15.If you thought to date was disappointing, wait until the
:16:15. > :16:22.
:16:22. > :16:26.weekend when it will be cool, wet and windy.
:16:26. > :16:29.Time for sport, and another day and another signing at Leicester.
:16:29. > :16:32.Yes, this time Paul Konchesky. He's completed his move from Liverpool
:16:32. > :16:37.and has already flown out to meet his new Leicester team mates on
:16:37. > :16:44.their tour of Sweden. The 30-year- old has cost a reported �1.5
:16:45. > :16:47.million. You might remember he was on loan at Nottingham Forest last
:16:47. > :16:56.season, but he's now signed a three year deal with their East Midlands
:16:56. > :17:01.rivals. They have added to the squad recently and they have added
:17:01. > :17:04.well. The owners look like they are going to give it a good go this
:17:04. > :17:06.year. Well, Konchesky is Leicester's seventh summer signing.
:17:06. > :17:09.Derby have added eight, but Nottingham Forest have only brought
:17:09. > :17:13.in one player so far and there is just four weeks to go until the
:17:13. > :17:18.start of the season. So with the clock ticking until kick off, how
:17:18. > :17:20.are things shaping up for our three big teams? Take a look at this.
:17:20. > :17:25.Well, here we are at Quorn FC in Leicestershire ahead of a big
:17:25. > :17:34.charity game this weekend. It involves former players from our
:17:34. > :17:39.local teams, Leicester, Forest and Derby. Today we've got some of the
:17:39. > :17:44.experts together to debate who will come out on top this season.
:17:44. > :17:54.I'm Walshy - Leicester City legend. Hi, I'm Phil Gee - former Derby
:17:54. > :17:59.
:17:59. > :18:02.County. Hi, David Johnson - Nottingham Forest.
:18:02. > :18:06.Well, they are all strikers, all fighting for their corner of the
:18:06. > :18:16.East Midlands. So we are putting them to the test in a very special
:18:16. > :18:24.
:18:24. > :18:30.soccer shoot out. Who will is going to come out on
:18:30. > :18:34.top this here? I think it will be very interesting. There are new
:18:34. > :18:37.signings and with the money available I think we will end up
:18:37. > :18:43.top of the league this year. Walshy thinks Leicester are going
:18:43. > :18:45.up. Phil wants Cloughie to hit the target of top six this season.
:18:45. > :18:55.Meanwhile, Forest, like Johnson, are looking a shambles when it
:18:55. > :18:57.
:18:57. > :19:05.comes to signings. To be fair, he is not wearing his builds! --
:19:05. > :19:15.builds. Give Forest another week and it will be desperate signings,
:19:15. > :19:21.
:19:21. > :19:28.and that is what they don't want. It is Nigel Clough's buried season
:19:28. > :19:36.now. This is the season to judge him. Any fighting between you three
:19:36. > :19:38.at the weekend to? You cannot get near him at any weight! Derby
:19:38. > :19:41.winning the shoot out there. And if you want to see the legends in
:19:41. > :19:47.action, there is game on Sunday in Quorn in Leicestershire and next
:19:47. > :19:48.weekend at Dunkirk in Nottingham. Golf now, and the biggest
:19:49. > :19:51.tournament this year starts tomorrow with the strongest British
:19:51. > :19:58.field ever. Among them, Nottinghamshire's world number two,
:19:58. > :20:00.Lee Westwood. It's the Open Championship at Royal St George's
:20:00. > :20:08.in Kent and despite Westwood's great ranking, he's still looking
:20:08. > :20:13.for his first major title win. Colin Hazelden reports.
:20:13. > :20:18.It's certainly feels like a long time since the dark days of two
:20:18. > :20:26.dozen and two. Nine years ago West would was plummeting out of the top
:20:26. > :20:33.100. But now the number two in the world is in the form of his life.
:20:33. > :20:40.It is going well, I played well in the US Open, finished third. I had
:20:40. > :20:47.a decent week. And I will try to feed off that confidence going into
:20:47. > :20:54.this. A long time since Tiger Woods and his American compatriot is
:20:54. > :21:00.bestrode the golfing world. The top three now all British. There is
:21:00. > :21:07.competition but it is nice that an Englishman is number one and Rory
:21:07. > :21:16.McIlroy is right behind us at number three. The game in Britain
:21:16. > :21:22.and Europe is incredibly strong at the moment. The journey to top
:21:22. > :21:30.golfer has been a long one. The leap to major winner can seem like
:21:30. > :21:35.a chasm but Westwood is not sweating. I would like to win a
:21:36. > :21:40.major Championship, obviously. But I must be doing something right.
:21:40. > :21:48.Aren't there or thereabouts and people are expecting a win. It all
:21:48. > :21:52.starts tomorrow morning and you can't see it on the BBC.
:21:52. > :21:54.-- you can see it. One of our Olympic greats was in Leicester
:21:54. > :21:56.today to give school sports a boost. Five times gold medallist, Sir
:21:56. > :21:58.Steve Redgrave, mucked in with the children at Badgerbrook Primary
:21:58. > :22:05.School. He's trying to get more young people involved in sport. And
:22:05. > :22:11.there's nothing like a home Olympics to help inspire them.
:22:11. > :22:16.Olympics coming to our shores is just fantastic. 26 different sports.
:22:16. > :22:21.That gives the opportunity of seeing the world's best in their
:22:21. > :22:28.own capital city and around the surrounding areas. That will
:22:28. > :22:34.inspire people. And in cricket Andre Adams will stay with his
:22:34. > :22:39.county until 20 get team after signing a new contract. And not
:22:39. > :22:49.County's match against Somerset looks finely balanced going into
:22:49. > :22:57.
:22:57. > :23:05.That is all the sport. Tomorrow is the opener for Lee Westwood.
:23:05. > :23:10.Fingers crossed. Streets in one part of Leicester
:23:10. > :23:12.were cleaned up today thanks to 200 local youngsters. Students from
:23:12. > :23:14.Longslade Community College in Birstall spent the day collecting
:23:14. > :23:20.litter in the parks and village centre as part of their good
:23:20. > :23:26.citizenship course. Paul Bradshaw was there.
:23:26. > :23:28.What a load of rubbish! But then, that's the whole idea. These young
:23:29. > :23:36.people from the local college descended on the village of
:23:36. > :23:41.Birstall to tackle litter. It is good to get out of the classroom
:23:41. > :23:49.and help the community. It makes us realise how much littered there is
:23:49. > :23:55.a round. It keeps your mind off exam results. It is important that
:23:55. > :23:59.people see us as responsible. feel proud to come here and give
:23:59. > :24:04.back to the local environment. Education it is about ensuring
:24:04. > :24:07.young people grow up to be part of the world a party that is them
:24:07. > :24:10.taking their rightful place as citizens. It's a scheme the local
:24:10. > :24:12.council approves of. As part of their GCSE studies, it's hoped the
:24:12. > :24:20.event will promote understanding of the problem of littering and of
:24:20. > :24:25.community awareness. Litter is not good for the environment and it is
:24:25. > :24:31.an eyesore. So anything we can do with colleges is absolutely vital.
:24:31. > :24:36.And local people were happy to see the clean-up team in action. We are
:24:36. > :24:41.from New Zealand which is a very clean country so it is great to see
:24:41. > :24:48.that the young people are taking an interest. It is a great idea.
:24:48. > :24:58.impressed, never have seen it before. Very impressed. The young
:24:58. > :25:04.
:25:04. > :25:14.people themselves say the people themselves say the
:25:14. > :25:16.
:25:16. > :25:25.experience has been a good one. Normally at this time of night week
:25:25. > :25:30.show some of your pictures. But tonight we have some of the flowers
:25:30. > :25:32.at Woollaton Hall. Nottingham is entering the East Midlands in Bloom
:25:32. > :25:34.competition this summer for the first time since winning the
:25:34. > :25:36.national 'Champion of Champions' title in 2008. Today judges
:25:36. > :25:39.inspected many sites across the City. They met students at Wollaton
:25:39. > :25:47.Park and also spoke to those people who've helped to create the flower
:25:47. > :25:53.beds and exhibits. Tonight we have a lot of cloud
:25:53. > :25:57.across the region it. There has been the odd light shower around
:25:57. > :26:05.today. But it will become drier through the evening and the cloud
:26:05. > :26:11.will start to break up. Temperatures could go down to a
:26:11. > :26:18.minimum of around seven degrees Celsius in some parts of the region.
:26:18. > :26:23.There is some rain around as well coming in from the North Sea. And
:26:23. > :26:31.that is how it tomorrow morning is likely to start. Cloud across the
:26:31. > :26:41.East but breaking up quite well across the West. It should be a
:26:41. > :26:43.
:26:43. > :26:48.mainly dry afternoon and warm as well. Friday also starts off
:26:48. > :26:53.probably slightly better with some sunshine. But then we start to see
:26:53. > :27:02.the cloud increasing. And also we have low pressure starting to
:27:02. > :27:12.develop. That gives us quite a wet day on Saturday. The wind also
:27:12. > :27:18.starting to increase making it feel quite cool over the weekend.
:27:18. > :27:24.Stronger wind likely on Sunday and the opportunity for a few
:27:25. > :27:32.thunderstorms as well. Feeling a little more like autumn this