16/11/2017 London News

That's all from the BBC News at Six

so it's goodbye from me

Coming up on tonight's programme:

Reaction from the people

who live near Grenfell

to today's final death toll.

A lot of people feel that the figure

of 71 isn't true.

We ask how trust can be

rebuilt after the fire

and we examine the facts

from the police investigation.

Also tonight: A glimpse

into the future of healthcare

in the capital - a quiet revolution

has taken place, but will we see

the difference?

I'm in the West End and as you can

see, the lights are on, but is

Christmas coming a bit too early?

And how London's ancient

Guild of Goldsmiths

is encouraging a whole

new generation of jewellery makers.

Good evening and welcome

to the programme.

More tonight on the investigation

into the Grenfell Tower fire

and the final death toll,

which the Metropolitan

Police has put at 71.

That includes a stillborn baby,

but a local charity says

there remains a long way to go

before trust between locals

and the authorities is restored.

More on that in a moment,

but first let's hear

from our Home Affairs Correspondent,

Nick Beake, who can

tell us more about what

the police has said today.

Nick.

Yes, the Metropolitan Police say

they have carried out a mammoth and

meticulous operation over the past

five months, one of the biggest in

their history. When you look at the

scale of it, it's easy to see why.

The police said today that they now

believe 293 people were in Grenfell

Tower when the fire started. From

looking at CCTV and other video,

they believe 223 people escaped.

That means that 70 people perished,

including a baby was stillborn. So

in all, 71 people are said to have

died. But we know there is great

controversy surrounding that figure.

Some people thought it was much

higher, and there was anger in the

days and weeks after the tragedy.

Today the police tried to give an

insight into the task they faced.

They let it be known that more than

400 people were reported missing in

the hours and days after the fire.

One person, for example, was

reported missing 46 different times.

The police also said they were

hampered by false reporting, eight

cases of people claiming that loved

ones had perished when they hadn't.

We know that the people who did die

were from lots of different

backgrounds. They were

representative of our great city,

from different nationalities. In the

70s, Grenfell Tower was known as

Morocco power to some people, and

one of my colleagues has been

talking to Moroccan communities

affected by this tragedy.

This is a family that lived on the

21st floor of Grenfell Tower. All

five died in the fire in June.

Malika was best friends with one of

them who was a mother and wife.

She

was a happy lady and everybody

misses her. As soon as I saw the

fire, I said, there is Fauzia's

building. I was crying and praying

for her. And when we asked the boys,

we know they died.

Many who died in

the Grenfell fire, like that family,

were of Moroccan descent. Around

8000 Moroccans live here in north

Kensington. Grenfell Tower, commonly

known as the Morocco tower in the

1970s, was home to at least 40

Moroccan families. It's a community

that was hit incredibly hard by the

tragedy. A charity has been helping

vulnerable Moroccan and Arabic

speaking women in north Kensington

for three decades. It's also been

helping those affected by the

Grenfell fire. Bella has worked

closely with the families and says

the Moroccan community felt ignored

in the aftermath.

A lot of the

Moroccan community did feel

marginalised. Some of our Moroccan

friends and families went into that

tower and didn't come out in order

to save their neighbours, and these

people have been here for

generations. So they are not

undocumented migrants. It beggars

belief that a lot of people think

that.

She says the authorities'

response to the tragedy has led to a

mistrust of the figures on the death

toll.

A lot of people feel that the

figure of 71 isn't true. They don't

believe it's a real figure.

Grassroot charities like Al

Hasaniya, who feel they have stepped

in where the authorities failed, say

five months on, there needs to be

more action to help rebuild trust.

The people that went through this

horrible tragedy who are still being

pushed from pillar to post need

whoever is in charge to pull their

finger out and get on with it, just

sort them out. They don't deserve

it. No one deserves it. How would

you feel if it was you?

The council

says it is doing all it can to

affect those affected by the

tragedy, but many still need

convincing.

Nick, we heard there that some

people have doubts about today's

final death toll figure, questioning

the number. Is that typical of

people there?

I spoke to some mums

today who were picking up their kids

from school and they said that their

trust in the authorities all but

evaporated in the days after the

fire, when they were not getting the

information they desperately needed.

Consequently, now, when an official

figure is given, they are extremely

sceptical. I also spoke to a Labour

councillor, an opposition councillor

here in Kensington, and he said

people need to accept the final

figure. He says he believes the

police have done a good job and that

no one could have foreseen how

complex this investigation would be.

And as far as the investigation is

concerned, what next?

Today the

Metropolitan Police said that

Grenfell Tower will continue to be a

crime scene until next spring. Why

is that? Well, they say they will

continue evidence gathering.

Scotland Yard say they are

considering charges against

individuals and also charges of

corporate manslaughter. The Met also

said that once it is no longer a

crime scene, there will not stand in

the way of possible demolition of

Grenfell Tower. And of course, after

all we have been through in the last

five months, when the decision is

made by councils and others to

demolish Grenfell Tower, that would

be a hugely symbolic moment.

Today, you could probably say -

there was a "quiet revolution"

in how London's healthcare is run.

From now on, hospitals

and healthcare trusts can

use the land they own

to earn money to help

pay for your care.

On top of that, Mayor Sadiq Khan has

been given a say in how

the money gets spent,

the idea being that cash raised

in London stays in London.

But will you notice any difference?

Here's our Political

Correspondent, Karl Mercer.

It was built to last, but they

probably didn't expect it to last

this long. 118 years after it was

open, patients and staff are still

coming to this site. The service may

be world leading at Moorfields. But

the facilities need updating. They

do have plans, but the pace of

change in the NHS can be pretty

slow. That may start to change from

today. A new deal signed between

central government, City Hall and

the capital's NHS. It will see more

decisions about spending on health

kept in the capital, and help places

like Moorfields develop.

To do that,

we need to be in a purpose-built

facility. So we have a real ambition

to do that. This framework will

hopefully allow some of those

decisions to be taken at pace and

allow us to make those plans a

reality.

It is hoped that the plan

could lead to more of this sort of

thing, minor operation is being done

in new and improved GP surgeries.

London will be able to keep the

money raised from selling any

unneeded NHS land and decide where

to spend it.

First of all, the money

is kept within London. Secondly, the

wider London NHS family, the mayor

and the boroughs, can decide how it

is spent. So crumbling GP

infrastructure and GP buildings can

now be refurbished with the money

which previously went back to the

Treasury.

But the new deal does not

bring any more money. At a time when

NHS bosses say they are more

stretched than ever. Even without

extra cash, though, it is a big step

in handing more power to the

capital.

In a city the size of

London, with over 100 different

organisations, there are some

decisions where it will be better if

we can take those once for London

rather than taking them 100 times in

100 different organisations.

That is

what this deal offers us. A glimpse

of the future. London has some of

the power it wanted. It will now

have to deliver results.

You're with BBC London News this

Thursday, 16th November.

This is what's still to come:

With concerns over how London is

going to fare plus Brexit, I am at a

tech conference in east London,

speaking to innovators and

entrepreneurs about how they are

trying to future proof.

Uber's appeal to renew its London

licence could take years.

The Mayor of London said the appeal

process against Transport

for London's decision to strip

the taxi app of its licence

was a lengthy one.

TfL deemed Uber "unfit

to run a taxi service".

Uber has previously

said it was "determined

to make things right".

If you think about it,

there are four tiers,

going all the way up

to the Supreme Court potentially.

So before all the appeals

are exhausted, because obviously

there's a delay to get a case heard

before a court, the best guesstimate

I've been given is that it

could take a number of years.

But I would be surprised

if we didn't have the first hearing

in the early part of next year.

You often hear it said

that Christmas comes

earlier every year -

and this year is no exception.

You might have noticed Christmas

products on the shelves

for weeks already,

and the Oxford Street

lights are already on.

Well, tonight, Regent Street has

had its lights switched on too -

which is why it's closed

to traffic tonight.

Jim Wheble is there.

JIm.

That's right, you can see them in

the background, the Regent Street

lights, just switched on minutes

ago. There are thousands of people

here. It's what organisers are

calling a festive shopping

experience. There is an economic

reality which underpins this. A

quarter of annual sales happen over

the Christmas period. Start the

festivities off early, and maybe

Christmas will last a little longer.

Christmas lights - festive fun, or a

constant reminder hanging over our

heads to spend some money? That was

Kylie Minogue and Pudsey, doing the

honours in Covent Garden on Tuesday.

The week before, it was Oxford

Street. Today, it's the turn of

Regent Street. Although a cold blast

of economic reality blew through the

West End today, it came in the shape

of the latest ONS retail figures.

Retail sales in the UK recorded

their first fall since 2013, a drop

of 0.3% compared to last October.

But the figure that will make

retailers around here sit up is this

one, a 10% increase in online sales.

It's why a lot of Christmas

razzmatazz is so important for the

shops around here.

We are working

hard to create reasons to visit. The

Christmas lights are a fantastic

reason for Londoners and customers

to come down. So we are competing

with online ways to spend money. The

lights and entertainment are

critical for our businesses.

So that

is some of the economics behind our

early Christmas, but does it feel

right?

I love Christmas. I was born

on Christmas Day, so it's my

favourite time of year.

It's getting

too early. In the shops, there are

Christmas cards in August.

Definitely don't think is too early.

People need to plan in advance and

it's a nice experience, so why not

enjoy it?

Good or bad, Christmas has

begun.

I mentioned that there were events

happening up and down Regent Street.

Here is one behind me, a giant

Advent calendar. If you look up the

road, you can see the queue is going

50 metres, so it is obviously

popular. I am with Beatrice from

Malton Brown, who have put this on.

Call me old-fashioned, but I seem to

remember advent calendar starting on

the 1st of December, not the middle

of November. Is it a cynical and it

going on here?

You are very

old-fashioned, Jamie! Christmas is

coming early now. We are here in

Regent Street. It is iconic to

switch on the lights. We at Molton

Brown want to be part of the

celebration. That is why we have our

gigantic advent calendar.

Thank you.

I will just leave you with this

final thought. The shopping frenzy

will kick off in earnest next week,

when it is Black Friday.

I am sure

we will cover that as well.

Peter Mandelson says Brexit will

seriously threaten London's global

status. He was speaking at a

conference today about the

challenges London faces. Here is

what he said.

People come to London

so that they can access the whole of

the European 500 million strong

single market. Once we remove

ourselves from that, we become less

relevant to those international

businesses and investors who will

find other places to locate within

Europe.

But not everyone feels the

picture is so bleak.

Today a group of London's Tech

and Digital businesses,

got together to think of ways -

of linking-up with new markets

around the world and making the most

of post-Brexit opportunities.

Katharine Carpenter

went to meet them.

We have come to this tech conference

to get a sense of how this industry

is feeling about Brexit. It can be a

hard thing to measure but luckily

these two developers from London

have invented an artificial

intelligence sensor which can gauge

the mood of this room.

I think the

room is feeling positive. Updates in

real time and currently on the rise.

Perhaps that's because today was

partly about networking and seizing

opportunity beyond Europe. As long

as we try to engage with other

nations in the way that is different

as it has been in the past and the

more competitive and open way and a

collaborative way, I think things

will change and it will work out for

the best.

As an entrepreneur you

have got to innovate in these times.

Companies like Twitter started in

their perceived downturn so we have

to get on with it.

But there were

universal worries here too. None of

them lost on the Mayor's chief

digital officer.

The first is access

to talent, the second is access to

markets, and also data laws don't

diverged too far from what the

European union is proposing so we

can have access to these markets.

A bit better than mine... One of

those targeting the tech skills gap,

a star that helped inspire a

generation of innovators.

There is a

real need for a concerted effort to

look at our education system and

decide how we are preparing young

people for the world of tomorrow.

Are we really doing it as well as we

can do? Do we need to focus on quite

so much formal measuring perhaps at

the expense of talent which becomes

disengaged?

The tech sector is not

alone in trying to answer these big

questions, still feeling its way to

building a brighter future.

From modern technology to a trade of

the past.

The Goldsmiths' Company has

been part of London life

for nearly 700 years.

It was formed as a guild

of craftsmen working with gold,

and it continues to promote

jewellery design.

But now, it's trying to attract new,

young talent with the help

of a competition

and Wendy Hurrell can

tell us about it.

These are the Leopards,

an elite cluster of jewellery makers

and part of a 700-year-old

history in London.

The jewellery workshop

is an incredible place.

It's quite grubby and there's a lot

of noise and hammering

and flames and smells.

Everyone looks a bit grubby,

and out of the end is this treasure.

And though they sparkle,

London doesn't show off about it.

Everyone wants to come here to sell,

everyone wants to come

here to learn, everyone wants

to come here to use our

creative brilliance.

We have the best colleges,

we have the best places of learning,

we have the best workshops,

and I think we probably have

the best designers in the world.

But we never really make

a song and dance about it.

So they have decided

to roar about their trade.

Last night they put

on a glittering awards ceremony.

The inaugural event

was here in Goldsmith Hall -

for seven centuries,

the centre of London's

jewellery industry.

2.5 million pieces a year

are brought here to be stamped

with the leopard's head.

That's the mark of quality and it

shows it's been tested in London.

The Leopards want to preserve

their craft and promote talent

so they've launched a mentoring

programme

with the Prince's Trust.

Young people submitted

their designs.

Hannah is one winner.

She will soon be starting

an apprenticeship in

a professional workshop.

She usually works in her bedroom.

I was making a ring once and I had

a clamp attached to it.

I was soldering and it

pinged, this hot thing,

it was like 1000 degrees.

It pinged all the way

across and landed on my bed

and I have a burnt hole in my bed

where it landed!

Have you told your new mentor?

No, I have not!

Cubs will be cubs but the Leopards

hope they will carry on one

of London's most ancient crafts.

The amazing talent right here under

our noses in London.

After spending three

years at Crystal Palace,

Premier League footballer

Yannick Bolasie

headed up to Everton

in a multi-million pound transfer.

But it was actually

at non-League Hillingdon Borough

that he learnt his skills.

Well, he's been back for a visit

and Chris Slegg can also tell us why

he earned the nickname

"Burger King Boy" while there.

This is YB3 football,

a three-a-side game named after its

founder, Yannick Bolasie.

The Premier League star has

been back to the club

where he played as a boy -

Hillingdon Borough - to encourage

youngsters to give it a go.

A lot of people like playing

football so not everyone can be

a pro, this is a different way

to express their self.

I used to do a lot of three-a-side

tournaments when I was younger

in the estate that I was brought up

in and those are the kind

of things I used to see.

You know, people would get nutmegs,

and sweep skills, press ups,

all going on at the same time.

The skills nurtured

by Hillingdon Borough have carried

Yannick Bolasie a long way.

Towards the far post, and it's in!

Yannick Bolasie!

After helping Crystal Palace reach

the FA Cup final last year,

Everton signed him for £25 million.

To make it to the top,

he's had to work hard and it

would seem change his diet.

Every time he used to score,

I used to give him a burger.

There was a time once he had eight

burgers in one match and he had

to share them with the rest

of his team.

He hasn't played since suffering

a knee injury last December,

but visiting old friends in west

London has helped him cope

with those frustrations.

From the rehab, to come back here,

refresh my mind and go again

when I'm almost coming back has

been really great.

This brings back a lot of memories.

This pitch here that we are standing

on, I used to play on a Sunday

and our team was unbeaten, you know.

At Hillingdon Borough they always

knew he had the talent

and the temperament to take him

all the way.

When he was in our youth section,

I used to always see him smile.

He was always very cheerful.

It didn't matter what happened,

he always had a smile on his face

and enjoyed his burgers!

This week, ahead of tomorrow's

Children in Need fundraiser,

we're showing you where your

generously donated money is spent.

And when you see where it goes,

it's no wonder so many

of you dig even

deeper when possible.

One of the charities you help

is The Horse Rangers Association

in south west London.

Groups there are arranged

into squadrons,

and Number 7 is the Riding

for the Disabled Group.

OK, as it is a bit rainy tonight,

do you think we can reach up

to the stars and get some

of the clouds out?

My name is Jo and I am

one of the instructors

here and I piloted the programme

about seven years ago.

Wonderful.

There are children with additional

needs that don't get to be involved.

I just knew that there has to be

a room for this Squadron 7 RDA

to take place and that is why we do

it in the evening,

so that the children can come

from school and they are older.

Once they start senior school

with additional needs,

some schools find the curriculum...

They find that horse riding

is not part of education,

when it is everything.

They have learnt skills

that they can take home

to their parents and their friends

and say, "Guess what,

I learnt to tack up a horse today."

Pretty awesome.

Or, "I picked a horse's foot out."

And some of these children don't

have the strength to do that.

As they come riding regularly,

the core strength builds

and the confidence builds.

I am, basically,

mucking out the horses.

You always have to pick up...

I am Anna and I am here because I am

helping look after the horses.

She has had some quite tough times,

particularly recently,

haven't you, sweetheart?

Yeah.

And actually, this is the bit

of the week that, no matter

what else has been happening,

she has always come home

from smiling and happy.

I like doing everything.

I like riding, mucking out,

just making sure the horses

are happy and healthy.

Horse riding is a really

expensive sport.

It's all done by voluntary work.

All my volunteers, they come every

single week, unpaid.

It is all one big family.

I get a massive kind of escape

from my week in that I am

taking four A-levels,

there is a lot of stress,

but when I come here,

it's all about the kids

and the horses.

I buzz every week.

I look forward to this.

This is my therapy too.

So that's just one example

of how your Children

In Need money is spent.

And you can join us tomorrow,

when we'll be at the Harry Potter

studios in Hertfordshire, where

Pudsey will be joined by some

very special guests.

A baby has been born at Waterloo

station after his mother,

travelling from Woking,

went into labour on a train.

It happened last month,

when Evelyn Brandao,

approached a train guard to say

she was about to give birth.

When the train arrived at Waterloo,

she was rushed into the first aid

room, where a baby boy was born.

Reign is believed

to be the first baby

born at the station.

And that's in about 180 years or

something, amazing.

Now the weather with Nick.

Now the weather with Nick.

It will be a lot colder tomorrow but

then again there will be even more

sunshine. We had some sunshine

today, this weather watcher picture

just as we were beginning to lose it

today from Hampton Court but it will

be a different scene tomorrow

morning when there will be a frost.

Temperatures dipping away quickly

overnight, a much colder night to

come, but then again there will be a

lot of sunshine to come tomorrow.

It's a little bit damp out there at

the moment. We have seen thick cloud

works out across the afternoon

producing light rain here and there,

not amounting to too much. Once we

clear the cloud away southwards

quickly this evening, with clear

skies and light winds the

temperatures dip. Town Centre is

holding something above freezing but

you don't have to venture too far

out into the countryside to find

something at or a few degrees below

freezing. Tomorrow look at this, the

ground lit up golden by the not just

at the start of the day but

throughout. A light wind and cold

start, but in the first few hours of

the afternoon it will feel pleasant

in the sunshine before temperatures

drop away quickly as we go through

into the evening. Be aware, if you

are heading outside for any Children

in Need activities it will be

turning cold. Pudsey is all right,

he has that bear thing going on but

the rest of us need to stay warm.

With more cloud around, I think

Saturday will feel colder. Not so

much of that blue sky. Another frost

to start the day on Sunday but we

will see sunny spells. Into next

week it will be turning milder but

by then we will

week it will be turning milder but

by then we will have lost the

sunshine.

A bright day for Children in Need

which is good.

I will be back at 10:30pm. Do have a

very good evening, goodbye.