:00:14. > :00:21.I'm Dominic Heale. Good evening. First tonight, a plea for help from
:00:22. > :00:24.a man whose fiancee and unborn child died after being hit by a car at the
:00:25. > :00:28.weekend. Paige Jackson died instantly after being struck on
:00:29. > :00:31.Saturday. Tonight her partner urged witnesses to come forward. Helen
:00:32. > :00:40.Astle reports. Paige Jackson, 22 years old and
:00:41. > :00:45.pregnant with her first child who was due to be born in May. Paige
:00:46. > :00:52.died after being hit by a car in Leicester. There is a gi gigantic
:00:53. > :00:58.hole where my future used to be. Well, it was my entire future, it
:00:59. > :01:08.was my entire future was Paige and Reuben, you know, that was my
:01:09. > :01:13.future. She touched a lot of lives and she was kind and loving and
:01:14. > :01:14.everyone seemed to love her, you know and 0
:01:15. > :01:19.everyone seemed to love her, you know and spoil her. Paige was taken
:01:20. > :01:23.to the Leicester Royal Infirmary and doctors tried to save her life and
:01:24. > :01:29.the life of her baby, Reuben, who was born by emergency Caesarean, but
:01:30. > :01:36.they both died. I'm so glad that I went to see them both so I could say
:01:37. > :01:40.my last goodbyes to Paige and hold my baby boy. He looked like he was
:01:41. > :01:46.sleeping, you know. There are dozens of tributes here as
:01:47. > :01:51.you can see. This waun says heaven gained two beautiful angels. The
:01:52. > :01:53.police as well as Paige and rubben's family are appealing for anyone who
:01:54. > :01:57.might have seen 0 family are appealing for anyone who
:01:58. > :02:00.might have seen anything at 6. 50am Saturday morning to come forward.
:02:01. > :02:05.People that haven't come forward, that have seen it and haven't come
:02:06. > :02:11.forward, that's heartless, you know. She was an innocent girl, you know,
:02:12. > :02:16.an unborn child just going to work and stuff. Have a heart and you
:02:17. > :02:21.know, say what you saw and whatever because if you don't, you are going
:02:22. > :02:26.to have to live with that in all fairness and it is disgusting. A man
:02:27. > :02:34.has been arrested and released on place bail. Kane is trying to focus
:02:35. > :02:34.on a funeral for his fiancee and son who meant the 0
:02:35. > :02:39.on a funeral for his fiancee and son who meant the world to him.
:02:40. > :02:44.Senior church leaders from the East Midlands claim Government's cuts in
:02:45. > :02:48.welfare benefits are forcing thousands of people into poverty and
:02:49. > :02:51.hunger. The Anglican Bishops of Leicester, Derby and Sherwood have
:02:52. > :02:55.sent a protest letter to the Prime Minister urging a change of policy.
:02:56. > :02:59.Meanwhile, a parish priest is going on a 40 day hunger in protest at
:03:00. > :03:04.welfare reforms. Here's our Political Editor, John Hess.
:03:05. > :03:11.The reverend doctor Keith sets off from his parish church on one of his
:03:12. > :03:13.toughest missions yet. He is to fast for 40 days in protest at Government
:03:14. > :03:14.cuts 0 for 40 days in protest at Government
:03:15. > :03:15.cuts to 0 for 40 days in protest at Government
:03:16. > :03:20.cuts to welfare. Today, he was helping out at a nearby community
:03:21. > :03:23.centre that distributes free food to people who have lost their State
:03:24. > :03:28.benefits. We have got children going hungry. We have got parents missing
:03:29. > :03:33.meals to feed children and reports of teachers giving, spending money
:03:34. > :03:37.on children as they come into school because they haven't got food. The
:03:38. > :03:40.foodbanks go to the heart of the political debate over the impact of
:03:41. > :03:40.the Government's welfare reforms. Downing 0
:03:41. > :03:45.the Government's welfare reforms. Downing Street is adamant that its
:03:46. > :03:50.welfare changes is about liberating people from a cycle of welfare
:03:51. > :03:53.dependency. That's not outside the Government's message is seen here.
:03:54. > :03:59.Since the welfare changes came into effect last April, we have seen an
:04:00. > :04:04.increase in people who have got no income. Who have got lack in real
:04:05. > :04:09.basic needs. It has been a reality check for us. Rather than giving
:04:10. > :04:14.people advice, we have had to be giving food. An anxious father waits
:04:15. > :04:19.to collect some food donations for his daughter and her three children.
:04:20. > :04:24.She had her money stopped without warning. She couldn't stock up on
:04:25. > :04:28.food or nothing and it is a God send really because she is able to come
:04:29. > :04:32.here and get food to bring her children up. Many of our church
:04:33. > :04:33.leaders say the benefits cuts are bringing increasing 0
:04:34. > :04:35.leaders say the benefits cuts are bringing increasing hardship. They
:04:36. > :04:39.have to choose whether they are going to spend money on food or pay
:04:40. > :04:44.the rent or pay the gas bills. That's a very difficult choice.
:04:45. > :04:50.These are people who can't afford to buy the normal necessities of life,
:04:51. > :04:53.who can't afford to get a haircut or repair shoes and they can't afford
:04:54. > :04:58.to eat either and not just a few people, but hundreds of thousands
:04:59. > :05:00.that is a national crisis. Keith starts his fast on 0
:05:01. > :05:04.that is a national crisis. Keith starts his fast on Ash Wednesday
:05:05. > :05:07.after 40 days, he hopes his protest may have had some impact on
:05:08. > :05:13.Government policy. Mark Spencer, the Conservative MP
:05:14. > :05:13.for Sherwood, told me the rise in foodbanks 0
:05:14. > :05:19.for Sherwood, told me the rise in foodbanks is a symptom of a much
:05:20. > :05:22.wider problem that must be tackled. What they should be talking about,
:05:23. > :05:25.what Government is trying to address is people who are trapped within the
:05:26. > :05:30.welfare system. We need to find a way to help people move from that
:05:31. > :05:35.welfare trap into employment and be better off because the old system,
:05:36. > :05:38.people found they couldn't get out of benefits because if they tried to
:05:39. > :05:44.get a job and they were successful they ended up worse off financially.
:05:45. > :05:46.Police say two men linked to a Leicestershire theatre are being
:05:47. > :05:49.questioned on suspicion of possessing indecent images of
:05:50. > :05:53.children. The Concordia in Hinckley is at the centre of an investigation
:05:54. > :05:57.into alleged abuse. Two other men have been banned from the premises
:05:58. > :06:00.after it was found they had previous convictions for child sex offences.
:06:01. > :06:03.A fifth man linked to the theatre was convicted of serious sex
:06:04. > :06:05.offences against youngsters last year. The county council says it
:06:06. > :06:09.won't now issue licences for children to take part in productions
:06:10. > :06:16.there. The Concordia itself hasn't commented.
:06:17. > :06:18.Before I go, some pleasing news for us!
:06:19. > :06:19.Last night BBC East Midlands Today was voted the 0
:06:20. > :06:21.Last night BBC East Midlands Today was voted the best regional news
:06:22. > :06:25.programme in the country. The Royal Television Society presented us with
:06:26. > :06:31.the Nations and Regions Award at a ceremony in London last night.
:06:32. > :06:32.That's your news. So, it's goodbye from me, but with your 0
:06:33. > :06:33.That's your news. So, it's goodbye from me, but with your weather now,
:06:34. > :06:41.here's Anna Church. We have had a fairly pleasant day.
:06:42. > :06:44.If you got caught in one of the showers, you really did know about
:06:45. > :06:48.it! It will be dry overnight with clear skies and feeling colder than
:06:49. > :06:52.last night. So the showers have started to ease. The skies are
:06:53. > :06:57.clearing and the temperatures will really drop quickly tonight. Really
:06:58. > :06:58.cold with a low of two Celsius. It should stay frost`free 0
:06:59. > :07:02.cold with a low of two Celsius. It should stay frost`free for most of
:07:03. > :07:08.us. It is the risk of frost into rural sheltered spots. Cold, but
:07:09. > :07:11.beautiful start to Friday. Lots of winter sunshine. We will see more in
:07:12. > :07:11.the way of cloud as we go through the day 0
:07:12. > :07:15.the way of cloud as we go through the day and one or two sharp
:07:16. > :07:23.showers. The winds will be strengthening. We have got a strong
:07:24. > :07:27.south`westerly wind. The it is not looking too bad on Saturday. Now a
:07:28. > :07:31.look at your outlook which will be followed by the national forecast.
:07:32. > :07:39.the outlook. On Sunday, we have grey skies and a bit of drizzle, too.
:07:40. > :07:45.Good evening. You may have had the latest from the Met Office about the
:07:46. > :07:50.rainfall we have had this winter, the wettest winter on record. It is
:07:51. > :07:54.sometimes difficult to visualise the numbers. Let me explain how much
:07:55. > :07:59.rain we had. If you think about a stretch of land across the UK, we
:08:00. > :08:03.had about half a metre of rainfall falling so far this winter. That is,
:08:04. > :08:08.if the water didn't sleep into the ground. We have a huge amount of
:08:09. > :08:13.water brought in by areas of low pressure. 15 of them have been big
:08:14. > :08:17.storms, causing lots of damage. As far as the shorts is concerned, it
:08:18. > :08:21.is just a breeze. We have a few shells on the horizon and that is
:08:22. > :08:24.pretty much it. You can see where the weather is coming from the
:08:25. > :08:27.moment. It has come in from the Atlantic. Just a few scatter shower
:08:28. > :08:29.words here and there. It is going to