21/11/2017 London News

we move into the end of the week.

Thank you.

Be an impact because it would be

more expensive to improve those

terms and conditions. In a

statement, the University of London

said

the University does not employ

any of these workers and does not

accept that the relevant legislation

recognises the concept of joint

employment.

A multi million pound bill

for Councils to improve fire

safety in tower blocks

And we discover how Tube stations

are left un-staffed leading

to fears over security.

A special report on... The return of

the lavish TV drama the Crown.

I

welcome you into the piece of my own

home...

We speak to the stars about

how parts of London were closed down

to shoot some scenes. And meet Teddy

and Doris, playing a big part in

keeping the legacy of a teenage

cancer victim alive.

Hello and a very warm

welcome to the programme.

First tonight - a BBC

London investigation has

revealed the multi million pound

bill that Councils face to improve

fire safety for tenants.

AS A result of the Grenfell

disaster, a total of 383 million

pounds will be spent -

more than half of the local

authorities contacted by this

programme say they can't meet

the costs and need financial help.

The Government has yet to agree

to pay but say they're

flexible and will listen

to concerns over funding.

Susana Mendonca has

this exclusive report.

(P NEXT)

Hello, Mr Rahman. Very good to see

you. How do you feel about your new

front door?

A personal inspection

from the man holding the purse

strings here. This family is among

the first to get a brand-new fire

door in Tower Hamlets, and it has

made them feel safer.

I am very

happy at the moment. The new door

coming. More safety. And I am happy.

His blog is one of six towers on the

estate where fire resistant panels

-- his block. Where fire resistant

panels have been fitted. But Tower

Hamlets doesn't have the budget to

put sprinklers in right now, and it

says it is time for the Government

to stump up some cash to help

councils in tomorrow's budget.

We're

spending £7.5 million this year on

urgent action to these blocks, and

about another 30 over the next two

years to get up-to-date with basic

fire safely. We think sprinklers

would be about another 20 million on

top of that and that money doesn't

grow on a tree. We would have to put

rent or borrow from somewhere.

Safety is not negotiable and we need

to get a move on. We would expect

funding for that.

Following the

Grenfell Tower fire, the Government

said it would do whatever it took to

make high-rise building safe, but

our research shows that most London

Boroughs are facing mounting costs.

Councils across London have told us

they are spending more than £383

million on fire safety measures as a

direct result of the Grenfell fire,

including things like removing

cladding, installing new fire doors

and putting in sprinklers. 15

councils we spoke to said they had

written to the Government asking for

help which has so far not been

forthcoming. In Wandsworth, the

councillors fitting sprinklers to 99

of its tower blocks at a cost of £30

million. Its Conservative leader

says that is what his budget

reserves for, although he too would

like to see the Chancellor offer

some help to cancel tomorrow.

We

have the resources to put money

aside for fire safety requirements,

but we would certainly like help so

that we can ease the burden and

cover unforeseen costs.

The

Government said it would consider

financial flexibility for councils

doing essential safety work. Cash

strapped London boroughs will be

wondering whether that means they

will have anything to cheer about

after the budget.

Our Political Editor

joins us from Westminster -

Tim, an inevitable row over who pays

for these fire safety improvements.

Clearly, there is an argument to be

had about the difference between a

must - have and what would be good

to have but maybe not imperative.

This is the tricky course that the

Government is trying to another the

-- the Government is trying to

navigate. Sajid Javid said they

would do everything necessary but it

would be depended on what experts

told them, and that is the careful

cause they are taking in response to

Susanna's finding. In a statement,

ministers have been clear: We will

consider financial flexibility for

councils. No, not a hand-out of gas

but maybe a suggestion that they can

borrow more. For those councils who

need to undertake essential fire

safety work. And for the reasons we

have gone into. Perhaps you don't

need to retrofit sprinklers if you

have really good fire doors and

exits in place. There will be some

attention paid to the budget

tomorrow. The Chancellor might say

something specifically about

Grenfell, but when it comes to

retrofitting or safety measures in

tower blocks as a whole, I think we

are more like to hear about the

building of more social housing

rather than prepares to it. -- more

likely. Rather than prepares to it.

-- repairs.

Plenty more ahead

on the programme including...

The east London Primary

which has become the first

state school to top

the Sunday Times league table.

How safe would you feel

if you knew a tube station

you were travelling

through was unstaffed?

Well, we've SEEN documents showing

that underground stations HAVE

are being left unattended --

in one case 10 times

in just a month.

This - despite a promise

from Transport bosses that

ALL stations would be staffed whilst

services are running.

Here's our Transport Correspondent,

Tom Edwards, with the story.

Pummelled Park Tube station, lots of

passengers untrained but not a staff

member in sight. It is just --

Wimbledon Park tube station. We

can't find any station staff on

duty. The barriers are all open and

there is no one here. To help if you

have a problem.

You can't get in.

The cards and the Freedom pass don't

work on the machinery.

They are thin

on the ground, I would say. It is

always staffed during commuting

hours.

These are incident reporting

forms shoving that the station was

left unattended on ten occasions in

October. In some cases, for long

periods. The documents also show

that in May, a ten-year-old boy was

separated from his mother and got

off a train and ended up on this

platform. There was no one here to

help as the station was unattended.

He was found later by a train driver

who had to stop his train to search

for the boy. One document says there

is an endemic staff shortage. Using

the Freedom of Information Act, we

asked Transport For London just how

big the problem of unattended

stations is. They said over a

three-month period ten stations were

left unattended including

Hornchurch, Aitken, North Harrow,

Harlesden and Wimbledon Park.

Insiders say that the real problem

is much worse.

Old tube stations

will be controlled and staff while

services are operating. -- all tube

stations.

It was promised that every

station that was operational would

have staff.

The idea that stations

are being left with no staff means

that passengers are being put at

risk, Gates are being left open, so

they are losing ticket revenue, and

this looks like the tube studies the

service is short-staffed.

Stations

are only left unattended as a last

resort, Transport For London says.

Wimbledon Park was left unattended

on ten occasions - that's not rare,

is it?

We operate the service 364

days a year. We have 270 stations

and nearly 5000 staff, so in the

context of the system, it is a small

amount. It is something we want to

avoid.

The unions say this is an

unsafe legacy and London Underground

now needs to get a grip.

A woman has died in a fire

at a block of flats in north London.

Sixty firefighters were called

to the blaze at a four-storey

building in Hampstead,

early this morning.

20 people managed to escape from

the building before crews arrived.

The cause of the fire,

which took about three hours

to get under control,

is being investigated.

The woman who died

has not been named.

As well as being the monk in charge

of the Abbey in Ealing, Laurence

Soper had also been a teacher of

Saint Benedict School, and today, he

categorically denied ever sexually

abusing a pupil there or indeed

beating a pupil for his own sexual

gratification. He admitted he did

give McCain to some pupils and said

it was needed for discipline. He

said these days his views had

changed on corporal punishment. We

can see what he was asked this

afternoon. His own barrister said:

Never, was his reply. He was also

asked about the alleged abuse of one

specific pupil back in the 1970s

just after Mr Soper had arrived at

the school. It was put to him: Did

you become a teacher to abuse him?

He replied, certainly not. What he

said horrifies me. I was not the one

who did it, if it did happen, simple

as that.

Did Mr Soper say why he went on the

run?

We know that after he left Ealing in

2000, he went to Italy. The

Metropolitan Police began

investigating him after allegations

were made. Today, he admitted

fleeing to Kosovo while he was still

on police bail and under

investigation. Why did he do that?

He replied, my stupidity and

cowardice, and wishing to bury my

head in the sand played a big part.

If you want to destroy a catholic

priest, Vicar, anybody, all you have

to do is make an accusation up

against them. Their future is

ruined, their character is ruined.

Mr Soper also said that he was

unaware that another headteacher at

the school, Father David Pearce, had

been abusing boys at the school.

Laurence Soper denies all of the

against him, and the case will

continue tomorrow morning. Many

thanks.

It's a legal challenge

which could change the employment

rights of millions of workers.

A group of employees

at the University of London

are going to a tribunal

to win more rights.

They're contracted to

an out-sourcing company and don't

receive the same benefits as those

employed directly by the university.

As Clive Coleman explains.

Henry Chango Lopez's day starts

early, with the first of his two

jobs.

I woke up at four o'clock this

morning, travelled one hour to

Southwark, and here I am

to do my two hours of cleaning.

Henry is one of many

workers who are outsourced,

in other words, he's employed

by a facilities company that then

provides his services to another

company or organisation.

7:30am, I'm at the

University of London.

I'm here to do my job as a porter.

Many big organisations

outsource, which

means that instead of employing

cleaners, security guards, and other

often low-paid staff,

they pay a facilities company

to provide these workers.

So, while maintaining control over

the way people work,

and often setting their

pay and conditions,

they can avoid some

of

the legal responsibilities

of being an employer.

Now, a group including Henry,

employed by the facilities

company Cordent, and supplied

to London University are seeking a

tribunal ruling that the university

is recognised along with Cordent as

their joint employer.

UK law has never recognised

the concept that

workers could have joint employers

for the purpose of negotiating their

terms and conditions.

If it did, the consequences

could be huge.

It would be enormous.

There would be about 3.5 million

employees outsourced

employees whose terms

and conditions would

improve because now

they would

be on the same terms and conditions

as the people they work alongside

every day but who are

directly employed.

And for the employers,

of course, there

Be an impact because it would be

more expensive to improve those

terms and conditions.

In a statement, the

University of London

said: the University does not employ

any of these workers and does not

accept that the relevant legislation

recognises the concept of joint

employment.

For Henry, for now at least, the

early mornings and the long days

continue. Clive Coleman, BBC London

News.

All eyes will be on number

11 Downing street

tomorrow when the Chancellor

reveals his Government

spending plans.

Watching closely will be

London businesses -

some of whom are growing

increasingly anxious over

uncertainty surrounding Brexit.

So what do they want

from Philip Hammond?

Katharine Carpenter

has been finding out.

For London's small businesses, the

pre-Christmas spending spree should

bring plenty of cheer, but at this

festive fare at Olympia, it is the

traders themselves looking for gifts

from the Chancellor, particularly

ones which will help them meet the

challenges thrown up by Brexit.

I

think it would be really great if

they could just reduce the VAT rate

back to 17.5%. Everything is costing

more asked by, but then we're

passing the cost onto the consumer.

From going to Spain on Bier's trip,

Brexit got brought up, and I think

they are worried about trading with

not so much the big businesses that

are already established but the

small businesses like us who are

up-and-coming.

When Brexit happens,

I think there were so many promises

with regard to small businesses, and

that probably swung a lot of the

voters. At the moment, we import

from Asia but we want to switch to a

European manufacturer, but we're

worried that after Brexit we won't

be able to do that because there

will be larger import costs bringing

it in from Europe.

It is not just

smaller companies hoping for what is

unwrapped tomorrow. There is a hope

timetable for a transition period

after we leave the EU. A simple

unstable tax regime so the city can

stay competitive, and to keep up the

momentum on infrastructure projects.

He should probably focus on things

like better rail infrastructure,

reducing congestion on the roads, as

well as better internet and more

housing, especially affordable

housing for workers in London.

Back

at the fair, those dependent on

markets beyond Europe were more

bullish.

I'm looking forward to the

continuation of it.

Is there

anything you are looking for from

the Chancellor?

Not really. No, no!

Cut the tax rate for us. That is for

small individual businesses. No,

good luck. Good luck, really.

Whether businesses are excited by

the opportunities of Brexit or

concerned by it, there does seem to

be agreement this is a period of

great uncertainty and what they

don't want from the Chancellor when

he unwraps his Budget is any big

surprises.

Still to come this Tuesday evening:

As the TV Series The Crown returns,

the stars who play the Royals tell

us how they saw a different side

to the capital.

And did the red sky this morning

equal Shepherd's warning?

Actually, there is a

weather warning in the

forecast for London tomorrow.

I've got those details

later in the programme.

That's still to come.

Before that, though.

Top of the table,

and for the first time

it's a state school.

St Stephen's Primary,

in East Ham, has taken the top

spot in the prestigious

Sunday Times league table.

Practically all its pupils,

96%, speak English

as a second language.

So what's the secret

of their success?

Ayshea Buksh went to find out.

Whoo the secret of their success is.

These children may live in one of

the most deprived boroughs in the

country but they are official some

of the brightest. Stats results from

St Stephen's Primary in Newham are

better than independent fee paying

schools and they've topped the

league tables. The head teacher, who

has worked here for 17 years, says

she has a strong philosophy for

success.

We wouldn't be doing our

jobs if we didn't aim high. That is

part of our ethos here at St

Stephen's. We believe our children

can do well and can aspire. Things

like reading, spelling, timetable

and number fluency are things we are

monitored on heavily here. We make

sure our children are pro fishent in

those areas.

Those aspirations are

coming through already?

When I grow

up I would like to be a doctor

because I would like to help people

if they get hurt and I would get a

lot of money. So I'd like to help my

family.

When I grow up I would like

to be a scientists because I get to

investigate stuff from the past and

learn more.

When I grow up I would

like to be an astronaut because not

many people go to space and it's a

once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to

go.

When I grow up I want to be a

doctor because I want to help people

around the world and see what their

problem is and recover them quickly.

Teachers I spoke to said morale is

also high among staff and many of

them stay in their jobs for ten

years or more.

Our celebration here,

we had a specific meeting to come

together. It was announced to all

our staff from our office staff,

dinner ladies, our leadership, we

all found out at the same time. It's

a real sense of fairness here.

The

head also says success is not just

about exam results, she hopes pupils

enjoy that all the school has to

offer.

# I will lay me down... #

Ayshea Buksh, BBC London News.

It couldn't be more topical

at the moment with the Queen

and Prince Philip celebrating

their 70th wedding anniversary.

The lavish TV series

charting the inner

life of the Royals -

The Crown - returns next month.

Wendy Hurrell has been chatting

to the cast and hearing

how parts of London,

including the Mall, were shut off

to film some of the scenes.

The first season of The Crown has

become an obsession for some.

Including one of its actors, who

grew up in Wimbledon. I heard you

have a picture of Princess Margaret

in your loo?

I do have one. I don't

noi if I should take it down. I feel

I should. It's embarrassing. It's

the front cover of Tatler with the

Queen and Margaret on horse back

when they are 13. They 8 look quite

weird. It's not a great toe foe owe.

It's in my loo. I was so panicked

about taking on the challenge of

playing her and getting it wrong, I

wanted to...

For the lead actors

that play the Queen and Prince

Phillip it's their last series. With

all that fine ril around... Did you

take a souvenir away from the set at

all? I know you were very fond of

the suits?

I was, can you imagine if

I was to turn up in my naval whites

somewhere?

Yes, I can.

It would be a

great fancy dress costume.

I mazing

I'd look like a wally. I've come

dressed as my own character.

Yeah.

As with the first, the second series

will chronicle real global events

and the Queen's role in them. If

they had that power, just for a

day...

I'd put Tower Bridge up. Is

it Tower Bridge. Put it up-and-down.

People would watch Up-and-down.

And

go - what.

I would close the Thames

and get a jet ski and burn

up-and-down it.

Dressed in your

naval uniform?

Why not. Or ban all

cars for a day. I would get a moped

and burn around the city.

Sounds

like something fashionable Margaret

would do.

I walked into the makeup

trailer and Claire was like - no,

that is so fair. She would be in a

moss green carden pencil skirt combo

I would have so much fun.

I'm the

naughty sister I get to wear the

school dress.

I'm not Queen, I get

to wear what I want.

Binge watching

can resume but then it's farewell to

these two. Best of luck in your

civilian lives no. More royalty.

Yes.

Meet Teddy and Doris,

Shetland ponies who are two

of the stars at the upcoming

International Horse Show

here in the capital.

They are the legacy of

an 18-year-old who died after being

diagnosed with a rare type

of bone cancer.

She set up a charity so that others

could share her passion for horses.

Chris Slegg has the story.

Little and large -

Metropolitan Police horses Merlin

and Quixote, joined on patrol

by Shetland ponies

Teddy and and Doris.

Next month they'll all be

appearing at Olympia

for the London International Horse

Show.

I haven't performed at Olympia

before, so this is my first time.

So, as you can imagine,

extremely pleased to be doing it,

but extremely nervous.

You get that bond, you can't

help but get that bond

between rider and horse.

The horse can take

the feeling from you.

It knows if you are nervous,

it knows if you are brave.

Teddy and Doris will be

at Olympia as mascots

for the Willberry Foundation

a charity set up for vital

research into osteosarcoma.

It was founded by Hannah Francis,

who died aged 18 after being

diagnosed with the rare bone cancer.

Hannah lived to ride.

That's what she did,

she didn't do anything else.

From a very early age

she just loved every aspect.

It was her passion, really.

She just loves them.

It means so much to here.

I mean Doris meant the absolute

world to her and helped her

through a lot of really hard times.

And Doris and Teddy love

each other and she loved

seeing they will together.

So, she would be smiling

right now, for sure.

It seems the Met Police

horses were rather taken

by their new companions.

That's the first time that

Quixote has seen a horse,

if you like, that small.

I think that was interest,

and as we were walking down

I could definitely feel

there was a bit of mothering

and looking after the horse.

But, yeah, there was

definitely a little bond.

Visitors to owe Olympia will be able

to see The Met Police Activity Ride

and meet Teddy and Doris

when the International Horse Show

begins on December 12th.

Chris Legg, BBC London News.

So cute.

Let's get a check on

the weather, shall we?

Sara Thornton is here

with all we need to know.

Sara Thornton is here

with all we need to know.

We have a weather warning, I can't

go from something so cute into

something so nice. Let us look at

this beautiful red sky. From

Chiswick this evening, the Light

Festival. We have a weather warning

in force because it's becoming windy

as we go through the next 24-hour to

36-hours. I will show you that in a

second. Today it's been 15 degrees,

above average for the time of year.

That rain up towards the north and

west is due to low pressure which is

going to bring us a real increase in

wind speeds as it continues to pump

its way towards us overnight tonight

and into tomorrow. The more white

lines you see, the windier it's

likely to be. Those winds coming in

from the south-west, that is why

it's been so mild and continues to

be overnight, maybe patchy drizzle

towards the north temporarily,

nothing more than that in the

forecast. Temperatures 12 or 13

degrees. We have a weather warning

from the Met Office. It runs until

the early hours of Thursday morning.

We have the wind gusts. They will

pick up as the day wears on,

particularly towards the end of the

afternoon into the evening. We will

see wind gusts in excess of 40mph.

Before that it will be dry with

brightness. The rain will pile in by

the end of the day. Another mild

one, yes, although by the end of the

afternoon the winds will take the

edge off those temperatures. They

continue to pick up overnight into

Thursday. Potentially wind gusts of

55mph. Enough to rattle the windows.

As it sweeps away on Thursday there

will be brightness behind. A nice

day for us on Thursday. It will feel

cooler, but the real story is into

the weekend, it will be quite a bit

colder with heavy rain on Friday.

OK. We have been warned. Thank you.

colder with heavy rain on Friday.

OK. We have been warned. Thank you.

A reminder of the headlines...

Robert Mugabe has resigned

as Zimbabwe's president,

after 37 years in power.

Thousands of people poured

onto the streets of the capital

Harare to celebrate

after his resignation

letter was read out

in the country's parliament.

That's all for now.

I'll be back with more

from the London newsroom

during the Ten O'Clock News.

Thanks for watching,

and have a lovely evening.

Goodbye.