20/07/2011 East Midlands Today

This is East Midlands Today with Kylie Pentelow and Dominic Heale.

Our top story tonight, we reveal just how determined the power

station plotters were. The armoury of an Eco protest, how climate

activists equip themselves to pull the plug on our biggest power

station. Also tonight, the man who fought

off an attack by double killer Andrew Dawson. Then his other arm

came round me in a Nelson. I stood up after that and I pulled him off

me, and I said get out of my flat. Plus, bunking off - more parents

are taken to court for letting their children play truant.

And advice for would-be authors from a man who's sold 50 million

Read, read now! Try and read 10,000 Good evening, welcome to

Wednesday's programme. First tonight, an exclusive interview

with Nottinghamshire police about the undercover cop affair.

Yesterday, 20 climate change protesters planning to shut down

Ratcliffe Power Station had their convictions overturned, because

secret tapes weren't produced at their trial. Tonight, police

explain why they pounced on protesters before the demo even

took place and deny holding back crucial evidence in the case. Our

home affairs correspondent Jeremy You only appreciate the scale of

what was being planned at Ratcliffe when you see all this equipment

that was seized by the police. This metal barricade's one of a

staggering 25,000 items of evidence. And there were 80 climbing

harnesses along with locks and power tools. The protesters were

split into colour-coded teams and issued with untraceable mobile

phones. It was planned with military precision. These tubes are

designed for protesters to lock them souls together. And a portable

ledge and look at this, a big supply of nappies, as well as these

menu cards with enough meals to last them for a whole week. With

the extent of what we have seen in terms of disruption, injuries

caused and other demonstrations, to allow it to go ahead with the

consequences for health and safety, I am not sure it would have done.

One of the most experienced climbers was really a Metropolitan

Police spy. But today the Appeal Court heard that Mark Kennedy

supported the plan enthusiastically and was arguably an "agent

provocateur". And the Lord Chief Justice said 20

activists were victims of a miscarriage of justice. Because

they weren't told about secret recordings made by PC Kennedy, that

could have helped their defence. Obviously Mark Kennedy was a

authorised by somebody and people should ask to his bosses were and

what decisions they made for. And questions too about who decided

to withhold Mark Kennedy's recordings. Nottinghamshire Police

have been in the firing line, but tonight they've come out fighting.

I know the prosecution were aware of the undercover officer and very

clearly disclose the information about the undercover officer and

the sensitive material that was a product of that to the prosecution.

Now that's being investigated as part of seven inquiries stemming

from the handling of the power station plot. Inquiries that are

asking fundamental questions about the policing and prosecution of

protests and the whole the system Jeremy Ball is at Ratcliffe Power

Station. This has been an extraordinary saga. Today's

judgement, what's being said about that? A lot of heat on the Crown

Prosecution Service tonight, they are not commenting because of other

issues but the criticism was scathing in this, they said the

prosecution ignored elementary problems and that failure to

disclose Mark Kennedy's tapes was significant because the activists

could have used the claim for entrapment or support their defence

that the action was necessary and justified. And they say something

seriously went wrong. What happens now? The National Review of

undercover policing is due out in a few weeks' time, several inquiries

going on still into both Nottinghamshire Police and the

Crown Prosecution Service. One of those, a disciplinary inquiry by

the Crown Prosecution Service and the activists and deciding what

they will do next. One told me that they might be entitled to

compensation and they are desperate to find out how much taxpayers'

money is being spent on this. But at the end of the day, while they

didn't get the power station shut down, they definitely got their

message across. Next tonight, the man who believes

he narrowly avoided becoming a killer's third victim. Alan Cliff

fought off his neighbour Andrew Dawson just hours after Dawson had

murdered someone. Now he wants a face-to-face meeting with the

killer who was told earlier this week that he'll spend the rest of

his life in prison. From Derby, Ever since hearing that two of his

neighbours had been stabbed to death last July, Alan Cliff has

lived with the chilling memory of a close encounter with their killer.

48-year-old Andrew Dawson had already served a life sentence for

murder. He grabbed me around the shoulders, and then as he came up,

his arm came up over my neck and then I felt his arm there on my

throat. It was pressing on May and then his other arm came round and

got be in a Nelson. I felt that, I got up and pulled him off me, pull

them round and said get out of my flat, mate.

Andrew Dawson, who lived in this flat, had already murdered two of

his neighbours. 66-year-old Dave Matthews who lived here and 58-

year-old Paul Hancock who lived above him. Alan Cliff who lives in

the fourth of the flats wants to know if he was supposed to become

Andrew Dawson's third victim. Knowing what I know now, was he

going to go at me with the knives? Did I stop in in his tracks? That

is what I want to ask him. So today he wrote to Dawson to say

he wants to visit him in prison. want to ask him his intentions face

to face. The same night he killed Paul, and then find out for myself,

did you try to kill make or didn't you?

He says he won't rest until he gets an answer.

Conservative MPs have tackled David Cameron about the failed bid by

Derby train-maker Bombardier to win a big Government contract. The

decision to award the contract to a German firm instead will cost 1,400

jobs in the city, many of them highly skilled. Let's get the

latest from Westminster and our political editor, John Hess.

After five hours of debate on phone hacking, the Prime Minister managed

to find time to see a group of Derbyshire MPs, worried about the

future of Bombardier, Britain's last train-maker. The Mid-

Derbyshire MP Pauline Latham was Could David Cameron actually focus

on Bombardier given all the attention of that marathon phone

hacking debate? Yes, he did and I was surprised how well briefed he

was considering he had been in the House of Commons for so long. He

was very clear that he was a sting to everything we had to say. We had

a very vigorous debate and discussion about exactly what we

needed. We need orders for Bombardier. He was listening that

only one week ago, he told MPs here that there was no other option, he

could not visit that contract that went to Siemens. We put to him

various things given to us by other people so he could look at those

and not saying that he could turn it round but he is certainly going

to look at it, as is Theresa Villiers so we are hoping there

will be a small amount of comfort even if it is only bringing

forward... You mentioned Theresa Villiers, the Transport Secretary.

That was earlier and that was a cross-party delegation included the

Derby Labour MPs. Was she able to give you a further bit of comfort?

Yes, she was looking at all the contracts in the pipeline over the

next few years. To see what can be brought forward, but Bombardier can

actually have without it going to tender. And it is thought that it

might be able to go back to an existing order. Something positive?

Yes, and we have got to look to the future. We are disappointed and we

would like it to chase but we have got to look to the Ford. -- look

forward. Parliament begins recess tonight but Bombardier will not go

away. You're watching East Midlands Today,

still to come. All the sport including a report from Natalie

who's in Stockholm with Sven. more commercial wind farms are

being given approval, but is it with generating your own energy at

home? I will be finding out later. And on a week that is a mixture of

sunny spells and showers, hopefully some good news for the weekend, it

is getting better! More towards the end of the programme.

The number of Nottinghamshire police stations with enquiry

counters open to the public could be cut by more than half. Senior

officers say at the moment some smaller stations only get one

visitor a day. Angelina Socci The public enquiry desk at this

police station in Kirkby in Ashfield hasn't been used since

last July. Now proposals have been put forward to close more than 20

others. 12 police stations could also shut. The force needs to make

big savings over the next four years and selling off some of its

buildings would save more than �1.5 million. A police estate does not

just happen over two years, it grows over decades. And our

requirements are different and they were in the 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s.

Some forces have started to rationalise their estate. We have

been doing things like improving our service, crime reduction but it

is time now for us to rationalise our estate to meet the demands

working now. Stapleford is one area that could lose its police station

and see its officers relocated. don't know who uses it but it is a

good thing to have in the town. don't use it now. It is not used

enough. The police will start consulting with members of the

public. A final decision is expected to be made later this year.

Six horses and their troughs have been stolen from a paddock in

Nottinghamshire. The animals are thought to have been taken sometime

overnight on Friday 8th July from a field in Whinbush Lane in Calverton.

Police are trying to find the owner of a red 4x4 that was seen towing a

white horsebox around the time of the theft.

The former leader of Derby City Council has appeared in court

charged with assaulting his ex-wife. Conservative councillor Harvey

Jennings, seen here in the dark suit, today had his case

transferred from Derby to Nottingham Magistrates Court. He's

alleged to have assaulted his ex- wife just days before this year's

local elections when he retained his seat.

Workers have been lobbying outside the offices of a company which

finds work for people with disabilities. A recent report has

recommended that Remploy factories be closed, with the loss of almost

3,000 jobs across the country. Workers staged a protest outside

the Remploy offices in Leicester this morning.

Next tonight, the number of parents being prosecuted in part of the

East Midlands because their children aren't going to school has

nearly doubled in the last year. Some parents were fined �30, others

were fined �1,000. Leicestershire County Council says it's a last

Children enjoying the start of the summer holidays in Loughborough

today. But for some pupils, even in term time, there are not in school.

And in over 200 cases, poor attendant has led to parents being

taken to court. We had a small number of families who do not take

their children to school every day. They are missing school every day.

How do we break the cycle? Unfortunately, we have to take them

to court. Last year, Leicestershire County Council fined 226 parents

whose children had persistently missed school. Year on year, that

is a rise of 60%. The finals range from �30 up to �1,000. There are

certain circumstances where it is unavoidable where they have to take

the children out of school. I have taken my children out of school but

I have always got permission. a bit strong, being fined. That is

a lot of money. The a bit steep, that. Especially when schools can

take days off when they want to. The council has particularly

focused on reducing lack of attendance among 15 and 16-year-

olds in the run-up to exams. have to take attendance seriously

and this is a very serious message that we want to send to parents

that we are there to work with them but when necessary, we will take a

firm line in terms of taking cases to court. The message is clear - do

the maths, go to school and get to lessons or your parents could be

In childhood falling and hurting yourself can usually be fixed with

a hug and a sticking plaster. But for the elderly it can be a lot

more serious, and in the case of a broken hip, very painful. So here's

some good news. The Leicester Royal Infirmary used to have some of the

longest delays in the country for repairing fractured hips. Now it's

been praised after more than two thirds of patients were operated on

within 36 hours of a fall. Our health correspondent Rob Sissons

On the mend - Joyce is putting her fall behind her but she'll never

forget it. Her fractured hip was repaired within 24 hours of her

going into Leicester's A&E unit. It's a dramatic turnaround for the

hospital which used to have some of the longest waits. I heard a noise

and I knew something nasty had happened.

In Leicester only a quarter of hip fractures were operated on within

48 hours in 2009/2010. Now it's 71% When you have a frail, all the

person lying immobile in bed, the longer they are immobile, the

higher the risk of other complications. Things like chest

infections, blood clots, pressure sores, all these increase.

This surgeon admits incentive payments from the Government had

accelerated change. We have implemented hip fracture lists over

weekends on Saturdays and Sundays to make sure that these patients

get to theatre within 36 hours. These screws and wires should do

the trick for Joyce. Right now, she just wants to get home. They are

all lovely in here. But you want to go home? You always want to go home.

The hospital says its progress is a start. They hope to get more

patients seen quicker in the coming years for what is a costly serious

This week we've been looking at wind turbines in the East Midlands.

Today it's the turn of smaller windmills. Simon Ward has been to

South Derbyshire to investigate if domestic turbines are worth the

People have mixed feelings about large-scale wind turbines that can

be up to 125 metres to the top of the blade but this wind turbine

here in South Derbyshire is only 18 metres high. How much power can

these generate? Kevin Field lives here with his

family. Their wind turbine has been operating for more than five years.

It cost them �13,000, plus they were given a �5,000 Government

grant at the time it was installed. It is greatly important. Because if

people can generate their own electricity, it is less of a burden

on the environment from a production point of view,

greenhouse gases and so forth. It is certainly a wise investment. If

you are going to be in your house for so many years.

Kevin estimates the turbine can generate about 60% of their

electricity use. It varies during the year, but through the Feed-In

Tariff, they get back around �200 per quarter by sending power back

to the grid. Planning permission was granted with no problems here.

Even smaller turbines may still need to be approved. Here in our

under stairs covered, are the controllers for the wind turbine,

we have got the power output which tells us what we are generating as

it is coming in. It goes to a couple of inverter is whereby it

gets fed back into the grid or used by ass. -- by us.

Overall, Kevin Field says it's been worthwhile and they considering

going a stage further and installing solar panels as well. We

have got some breaking news before we continue. Police are trying to

trace a man falling and assault in wood in Nottinghamshire. It took

place in woodland near Third Avenue in Rainworth at about 4:20pm. The

man who may have been acting suspiciously is described as white,

aged 40 and between five foot seven inches and 5 ft 10. He was wearing

sportswear and have a light ginger or blonde hair. People should phone

Nottinghamshire see - which C I D. Will give you the number at the end

of the show and more in the late bulletin.

Still to come on tonight's programme, you may not know his

face but his name is familiar to millions. Find out who this is

getting an honorary degree in And now the sport.

First, back to Sweden with Leicester City. The Foxes manager

Sven-Goran Eriksson could have a whole new team's worth of players

available by the end of the summer. That's according to the club's

football director, Andew Neville. Leicester have already signed seven

and they want more. Well, Neville, Eriksson and the club's new Thai

owners have all been speaking to Natalie on the club's Scandinavian

Tonight, Leicester City are in Austria as there pre-season tour

continues but Sven-Goran Eriksson says Stockholm has been the perfect

place to prepare for a memorable I have been in Sweden with teams

before. The weather is usually good. If you do not enjoy a Stockholm in

summertime, something is wrong because it is a bit of a city.

-- a beautiful city. And if anybody thinks pre-seasons

are like a holiday, think again. They have been working very hard,

it is more-or-less every day, two sessions per day. This morning it

is raining and then in the afternoon so it is not a holiday

for the players. What was interesting is all key

figures from the club are here, even for a low-key game. The

management, players and owners, and they hope they're prepared to spend

millions and want two players for every position. We need the squad

really strong. Even if somebody is injured, we have somebody to

replace them immediately. We tried to make the team ready for the

season coming. Andrew Neville has been at the club

for 13 years. Never has he known transfer activity like this. Names

like Hargreaves, Heskey, Yakubu and Maynard linked with Leicester every

day. I don't want individuals, I would rather finalise the deal and

then announce it. But names mentioned include a lot of names we

are looking at. The owners have now come in and they want to get to the

Premier League as we do as players do as well. So Sven says goodbye to

his home country and says it is likely that another player will be

signing for the club by the end of In other news, Nottingham Forest

have used their official website to insist that some reports of new

signings are premature. Today, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink was

reported to be the new first team coach and George Boateng to have

signed a deal to play for Forest. The club says neither arrival is

confirmed. Cricket now, and only two games to

tell you about because Nottinghamshire's trip to Hampshire

was rained out today. Derbyshire had a terrible start at

Northampton but Ross Whiteley and Jonathan Clare have injected

respectability into the total. Meanwhile James Taylor has been

signalling to the England selectors again with a handsome century in

the tour match with Sri Lanka. Solanki at a, not long before his

call up. His face may not be familiar to

many of us, but his words certainly are, to millions of readers

worldwide. Lee Child writes thrillers about his hero, Jack

Reacher. He's sold 50 million books so far. Today, Lee was at De

Montfort University in Leicester to receive an honorary degree. He told

James Roberson what it's like to know your books are selling at the

Getting kitted out - it's all in a day's work for a rough, tough

thriller writer. In fact, the robes were for the honorary Doctor of

Letters that Lee Child was about to receive from De Montfort University.

He's published 15 novels since 1997. The 16th is on its way, 50 million

sold in all - apparently one every second. I sell one book a year, and

that goes to the publisher and any publisher sells them around the

world so I have to maintain that distance otherwise it would get too

freaky. And today De Montfort University celebrated that. A real

thrill, they are not going down the traditional academic route because

I am far from that traditional, academic person but my books are

widely read and I am engaged in the real world and that is what they

are trying to connect with. Authors of the standing have to sign their

works in industrial numbers. He once wore out a jacket elbow

signing 14,000 books over 12 hours in a Chicago warehouse. I was

sitting there and five people were sliding books under my arms, you

think it is all created but there is a lot of stuff behind the scenes

which nobody sees. Now the first Jack Reacher film's

coming out. Reacher, who like Lee is six-foot-five, will be played by

Tom Cruise... Famously not that tall. I am fine with it, Tom Cruise

is a global movie star and my attitude is that if you're going to

have a movie, have a big star and Tom Cruise is certainly that.

As he received his degree, he reminded the students not to worry

if they're uncertain what they want to do. I would say, don't right now,

read, read now. Read 10,000 books You are looking at a man who was 40

years old before he decided what he wanted to do. Thank you very much.

The Nottingham actress, Samantha Morton, also honoured today by

Nottingham Trent University so congratulations to her too. Must be

I am sure you are in the running! We have had some widespread showers

that there will be a few more heading down from the north during

this evening. Their key to Michael Murray who sent in this picture of

a lovely sunflower, hopefully trying to remind us of what some

are used to be like! We have got quite a bit of cloud around at the

moment and some nasty showers in the northern part of the county. We

will see some of them working their weight south and then gradually

become diminished. A minimum temperature tonight of 13 Celsius.

Tomorrow morning, starting early on with dry at weather but showers

forming throughout tomorrow and they will be quite slow moving. A

bit more sunshine it in between the showers and daytime temperatures

should reach a maximum of 19 Celsius. We have got a ridge of

high pressure building as we get closer to the weekend, so at the

moment it looks like Friday will be many dry, a few showers towards the

south-east of the country so giving us a bit of a shower but mainly dry.

Also Saturday as well, the ridge of high pressure holding on over this

weekend said giving us a much better outlook for Saturday and by

the time we get to Sunday, this temperatures also starting to

increase as well. A decent day for A quick reminder of the breaking

story, police are trying to trace a man in Nottinghamshire, it took

place in Third Avenue, the man they are looking for his white, aged

around 40 and wearing sportswear. Anyone with information should

telephone the number at the bottom of the screen. Extension 805, 3133.

We will have more details on our late bulletin. Also a special