06/12/2017 London News

Israel's capital. It is a move, he

said, was long overdue.

On the programme this evening:

On the eve of the official report

into the Croydon tram crash,

families tell us they're angry

a similar speeding incident just

days before wasn't investigated.

Had that incident been investigated,

might the one the week later

never have happened?

And how does that make you feel?

Heartbroken.

There are bound to be serious

questions for Transport for London

and the tram operator,

as to why so many speeding incidents

weren't reported.

Also ahead this evening:

A former priest is found guilty

of historic sex abuse

at a Catholic School in Ealing.

Plus, a very personal

journey for the Mayor -

crossing the border during his trade

visit to India and Pakistan...

What does it feel like coming home?

Home's south London,

mate, but, you know,

it's good to be in Pakistan.

And he's big in Hollywood -

we catch up with Hackney's Idris

Elba about his latest film

and his message to young Londoners.

Welcome to BBC London News.

A very good evening to you.

Families of those who died

in the Croydon tram crash say

they're outraged an official report

has found a similar speeding

incident took place on the same

corner just days before.

It wasn't reported by the driver

or acted upon quickly.

They believe if there

hadn't been a 'culture

of fear' among drivers,

the disaster may

have been prevented.

The final report, due out tomorrow,

which they have seen,

suggests the driver had been

confused and could have

momentarily fallen asleep.

Our Transport Correspondent Tom

Edwards has this exclusive report.

Marilyn Logan's husband Philip died

in the Croydon tram crash.

He was on his way to work.

She's read the official

report and she says it

outlines how the driver lost

awareness on the corner

and was confused.

Who do you all of this?

TFL, and the management side of it.

I mean, TFL, in effect,

improve these people.

-- employ these people.

There should be more

stringent testing.

The report, Marilyn

says, also highlights

numerous speeding incidents and one

on the same bend just days before.

As we reported at the time,

Shantell Singh, not the driver,

reported that to the tram operator.

I think the tram tipped on one side

as we went around the bend and

everyone actually went

on the right-hand side of the tram.

Crucially, though, the report says

this incident was not

investigated quickly.

Now, had that incident

being investigated, might the one

the week later never have happened?

And how does that make you feel?

Heartbroken.

And the family says a culture

of fear meant drivers were

not reporting incidents.

Very, very angry.

Because these procedures should be

there to protect the

public, and that is not protecting

the public in the least.

This is the memorial

in New Addington to the seven

who died on the 51 who were injured.

The tram was travelling at over

three times the speed limit.

From the tram operator's point

of view, do you think

they have learnt?

No.

I mean, if drivers are frightened

to report things because

of line managers, how is that

going to make me feel better?

It's not.

It's going to infuriate me.

TFL says it has enhanced

its customer complaints

process and now it, not

the operator, receives complaints.

The official report

into what happened here is published

tomorrow and there are bound to be

serious questions for transport

for London and the tram operator

as to why so many speeding

incidents weren't reported,

in particular one just a few

days before the crash.

Marilyn faces another difficult

Christmas and she still has lots

of questions as to why her husband

died on his way to work.

A former Priest who raped

and abused boys at a Catholic

school in west London,

has been found guilty

of a string of sexual offences

against ten former pupils.

Andrew Soper, known

as Father Laurence Soper,

fled the country following his

arrest, leading to a 5-year

police hunt in Kosovo.

Today, one of his victims

at St Benedict's School in Ealing

welcomed the verdict,

saying he hadn't realised

there were so many other victims.

Marc Ashdown reports.

Respected, trusted, revered. Andrew

Soper now revealed as a sadistic

paedophile.

You can see what it's

capable of...

Filmed in 1980 here,

he was supposed to be caring for

young boys in his charge, instead he

was fondling, cleaning and raping

them. Today found guilty at the

Bailey of assaulting ten former

pupils. Saint Benedict 's in 1976,

schoolboys indulged in one of their

favourite games, the bundle. One of

them, Prosper, was molested by

Soper. He gave testimony in court

and wave at his anonymity. He gave

us his reaction.

It shows that the defence that was

put up simply didn't convince the

jury. I'm very pleased that this man

who is clearly still a danger to

young people and young boys

particularly, is going to be taken

out of circulation.

We also spoke to

another man who gave evidence. These

are his words, spoken by an actor.

It's fantastic, I'm feeling really

emotional. I thought I was the only

one. It was such a shocking thing to

happen to me. As a kid, you put it

away to a dark place. Some kids made

jokes about it at school but I had

no idea there were others until

recently stopped by the abuse

started when he was a teacher at

Saint Benedict 's in 1972. The monks

nominated him headmaster. In 2002,

moved to Rome. In 2010 he was

arrested and charged with nine

counts of sexual abuse against five

boys.

But he skipped bail and went

on the run across Europe with

Interpol on his trail. It's claimed

he stayed at the Vatican for a time

and withdrew £200,000 from his bank

and vanished. Four years later, he

was finally tracked in Kosovo pacing

posing as a widowed author. More

victims came forward and finally he

was put on trial for 19 offences

against ten boys.

It's a which

involves him using, usually using

the opportunities that disciplining

students gave him, to use that

seclusion to abuse. The key to the

case is victims coming forward.

Without men coming forward in this

case, we wouldn't have had a case to

present to a jury.

Jonathan West's

son attended the school. Concerned,

he started digging into its history.

He believes this conviction is

another step towards uncovering the

full extent of the abuse.

For the

victims that have come forward I

hope it gives them closure and

comfort, seeing justice done. I have

never met Soper himself. His name

came up in comments on the blog from

time to time. I would be astonished

if that is the sum total of those he

harmed.

For decades, all this has cast a

shadow over the school and the

Abbey. They have tried to move on,

for example at the sports field the

Soper pavilion was recently renamed

but it has been difficult and an

independent inquiry commissioned by

senior figures in 2011 highlighted

complaints against eight teachers

and monks. To date five men have now

been convicted, including Soper, a

child related sexual offences. In a

statement, Ealing Abbey apologised

and said their thoughts and prayers

are with Soper's victims was that

they admire their courage in coming

forward. The school apologised

unreservedly and said Saint Benedict

is now a completely different

institution. Safeguarding, they say,

is their top priority. The

independent inquiry into child abuse

is to hear evidence about Saint

Benedict 's in 2019. Some believe

more allegations could surface.

There were blasts in the dock today

as Soper, the former Ealing Abbott,

faces spending the rest of his life

in prison for hideous crimes against

defenceless young boys.

Coming up later in the programme...

Preventing acid attacks:

How shop owners in Tower Hamlets

are being asked to help stop

corrosive substances falling

into the wrong hands.

The family of a man who died

in custody at Brixton police station

nearly a decade ago say it's

"shameful" that no police

officers will be charged

in connection with his death.

Sean Rigg died after

being restrained.

Today, the Crown Prosecution Service

said it was standing by its original

decision not to prosecute

five officers involved.

Katharine Carpenter has been

following the story,

which has been the long journey

for the family.

Yes, nearly a decade. Shaun rate was

40 and had mental health problems.

There has long been criticism of how

his arrest has dealt with in 2008.

He was put in a van and restrained

in what is called a prone position

for a Bennetts. He suffered a

cardiac arrest and then he died.

Ever since then, his family have

been campaigning for someone to be

held accountable. In particular they

wanted to see charges brought

against five officers who Sean came

into contact with that day. This has

always been controversial. At the

initial inquest into Sean Rigg's

death, the Met was criticised. The

IPCC has come to under fire over

this also. One of the officers

involved has stood trial for

perjury, although he was acquitted.

The CPS then said about a year ago

they were going to charge any of

these officers. The family appealed

again. The CPS review to that and

today have come back once more and

that there will not be criminal

charges. The family says it is

absolutely crushed. It says, we

spoke a short while ago to Sean's

sister, Marcia Rigg.

After vigorous

campaigning, damaging inquest jury

verdict, a coroner's report, CCTV

evidence, audio evidence, various

reports, including recent role by

Andrew Delaney and even Theresa May

has made comments about the

treatment Sean received from the

police office, and yet still there

is no accountability whatsoever.

Where do families go from here?

On

that note, where does this go from

here?

The officers could still face

police misconduct proceedings. That

is being discussed by the Met and

IPCC at the moment. They promise to

try and reach a decision on that as

quickly as possible.

Thank you very

much.

The police watchdog - the IPCC -

is investigating after an on-duty

officer and an elderly woman died

in a crash in Berkshire yesterday.

The officer was on a training

exercise at the time.

Today the Prime Minister paid

tribute to both victims.

Frankie McCamley reports.

The star police officer,

not only on the beat

but on the television too.

Nicknamed Dixie, PC James Dixon

appearing on the series Road Wars

following the work of Thames Valley

Police.

He's been filming you

and we've got here.

-- got you.

But in the early hours of Tuesday

morning, the officer was killed

when his police motorbike collided

with a car.

The driver of the car was taken

to hospital, but the 91-year-old

female passenger died.

Today, the Independent Police

Complaints Commission said PC Dixon

was on a training exercise

and was not responding

to an emergency or pursuing

the vehicle he collided with.

The crash happened on the A4

in Berkshire in the Prime Minister

Theresa May's constituency.

Mr Speaker, I'm sure the whole House

will wish to join me in offering

condolences to the family,

friends and colleagues of Police

Constable James Dixon

from Thames Valley Police,

who was killed while on motorcycle

duty yesterday, and also

to the family and friends

of the passenger in the car

involved in the collision.

Thames Valley Police Chief

Constable Francis Hapgood

in a statement said...

And online, dozens of tributes have

been paid to the officer

by colleagues and fans of the show.

The IPCC is now carrying

out its investigation

into what happened to the officer

due to become a father

for the first time.

Frankie McCamley, BBC London News.

Do stay with us.

Still to come before 7pm...

Join me in Leicester Square for the

premiere of this film who stars in

the East End Cockney boy playing an

American lawyer. Join and your for

wintry weather forecast, a very

wintry feeling at Somerset house.

As the Mayor continues his week-long

trade visit to India and Pakistan,

he made a very personal journey

crossing the border, accompanied

by a huge security convoy.

This on the 70th year

anniversary of Partition.

But the day started with a visit

to the Golden Temple in Amritsar,

where he surprised a few Londoners.

Our Political Correspondent,

Karl Mercer, sent this report.

It is Sikhism's holiest place -

the Golden Temple in Amritsar.

A place of worship, of pilgrimage.

A place of devotion.

A place for visiting politicians

to pay their respects.

The Mayor getting plenty of

attention as he did so this morning.

My family are from this

part of the world,

from the Indian subcontinent.

My grandparents, great-grandparents

and my forefathers and foremothers

are from this part of the world.

Literally, my grandparents probably

came to the Golden Temple

in previews years.

But for me, personally,

it's important to me.

It's quite emotional for me as well

to be back to the country

of my forefathers and foremothers.

Thousands of London Sikhs

come here every year.

This family from West

London surprised to see

their mayor in town.

I think it's really good

for building bridges

between the two countries,

and just showing his awareness

and his interest in India.

Yeah, same.

I mean, I know it's partition,

but still it's the same.

I think it's brilliant.

When I saw him, I was

excited more than her.

I said, we will go

and say hello to him.

Sadiq Khan's last stop in India

was Jallianwala Bagh,

the site of a massacre by British

troops in 1919.

I mean, you can see still how

raw it is to the people

who are describing it.

In relation to what British

soldiers did in 1919.

As he lay flowers, the Mayor said

that the British Government should

apologise for the massacre.

He was then off to Pakistan.

A decision made to walk

across the border.

When we were organising this trip,

we were told that it's not the done

thing to go to India and Pakistan

on the same trip.

But when I said that I wanted

to actually cross from India

to Pakistan directly by foot,

it was frowned upon.

It's not the sort of

thing that is done.

I think it is important, though.

The symbolism, but also

there are many people like me, whose

family come from India and Pakistan.

The hospitality with which I've been

received in India is phenominal.

It will stay with me forever.

Now I'm going to go to Pakistan,

and hopefully that sort of warmth

will carry over to Pakistan as well.

Then a crossing like the one his

grandparents and parents

made during partition.

TRUMPETS PLAY.

Indian Muslims fleeing to Pakistan.

Does it feel like coming home?

Home is south London!

But you know, it's good

to be in Pakistan.

It's good to come from India,

like my parents and grandparents.

Obviously, it's an emotional

connection for me, bearing

in mind my connections to this great

part of the world.

In Soutbh London, though,

he doesn't get security like this.

A convoy of heavily armed soldiers.

30 vehicles, including a fire

engine and an ambulance.

Even at the historic

Badshahi Mosque in Lahore,

where the Mayor went

to pay his respects and to pray,

security was all too evident.

This level of security is likely

to last throughout his time

in Pakistan, despite senior

politicians here saying

they see his visit as a homecoming.

People are obviously nice,

they like to meet him,

chat with him and know who he is.

-- people are obviously galvanised.

He's a good mayor.

You thought it was symbolic too that

he walked across the border today?

Yes.

It's symbolic in the sense that

Britain can always play an important

role to build bidges

between Pakistan and India.

That's part of the Mayor's ambition.

He will also hope that

bridges will be built

between London and both countries.

Karl Mercer, BBC

London News, Lahore.

Shop owners in an east London

borough are being urged not to sell

corrosive substances like powerful

drain cleaner to teenagers,

or to anyone they suspect might

use it to harm others.

Businesses are asked to join

a voluntary scheme which would see

them carrying out ID

checks on customers.

It comes as acid attacks

in the capital are on the rise.

Tarah Welsh reports

from Tower Hamlets.

Just a warning, it does begin with

pictures of injuries some of you

might find upsetting.

Can't hear from this ear.

This arm is a mess.

This part of my wrist, my front

chest, my belly, my back, my legs.

I touched my neck, and skin was just

coming off in my hands.

I was just screaming like crazy.

I never cried like that in my life.

You know, I was sitting

on the pavement, hopeless,

crying and screaming.

We need to try and get water in your

eyes.

This is Javid, straight

after a substance was thrown

in his face in July.

He has no physical scars,

but is still traumatised.

I don't go anywhere without my

brother or my friends

or anyone who I trust.

I feel like something

could happen again.

In Tower Hamlets alone,

there have been more than 100

acid attacks since 2012,

and there were several

in East London over the summer.

Now, that's made the council

here introduce a new scheme

where shopkeepers opt in to question

anyone that they think

is underage or not using

the substances legitimately.

Could it be putting

shopkeepers at risk,

asking them to challenge people

who could be criminals, ultimately?

Well, I think it's unlikely

that that's the case.

Because it's on a similar spectrum

to a newsagent not selling

cigarettes to a minor.

It's about people acting responsibly

and making sure they are not placing

in the hands of people things

that they shouldn't have.

Along with about 20 other

businesses, Paul's signed up.

But he'd already started to take

precautions after recent attacks.

You do get people

get confrontational.

I haven't got a driving licence,

I haven't got a passport.

It is awkward, again.

Some people might feel

intimidated and just turn

a blind eye and let it go.

But we've used numerous things,

to say that we're out of stock.

The Goverment's also proposed

strengthening sentencing around

selling and carrying corrosive

substances - which are increasingly

being used as weapons,

with life-changing effects.

Tarah Welsh, BBC London news.

He always looks pretty cool, doesn't

he?

He's the East-End Londoner who's

made it big in Hollywood

as well as the music business.

Idris Elba is back in London tonight

for the premiere of his new film.

Molly's Game is based on a true

story, with the actor playing a top

American lawyer with a tough case

on his hands.

Asad Ahmad caught up with him

and his co-star in Leicester Square.

Let me tell you a bit about the

film, it's about a woman who runs

the highest state gambling tables in

the world before she is targeted by

the FBI. The lawyer who represents

her is played by Cockney London Eye

Idris Elba.

That's an introduction!

You are playing an American lawyer.

Are we losing a bit of you, or are

you still very much one of us?

Of

course I am! It's my country, my

heritage and where I come from. It's

great playing different characters

from all over the world, it's what

an actor is supposed to do. A large

part of my career is rebooted in

America. I feel like I've got

licensed to have a passport in both,

a little bit.

You are anti-crime

ambassador for the Prince's Trust, a

really important role in a year that

has seen so much knife crime and

acid attacks in London. What is your

message to young people out there

who look to you as a role model and

say, he's done a fantastic job,

those opportunities and open me, I

can only turn to crime.

I can

understand that turning to crime is

an easy option. But crime in

whatever capacity is a stopgap,

because eventually if you've got

good health you are going to move

forward and live for a long time and

regret crime. I'd rather spend that

time just building myself into a

better place, to get opportunities

that aren't available to now, rather

than turning to crime. It's so easy

to turn to crime, it's the easiest

thing in the world. Stepping the

other way is harder, getting an

education, is betting up with other

friends, other people. Perhaps you

could alleviate their whole life of

misery for you and your family by

just not doing crime. I was 16, 17,

18 once. I could have got into

fights and use knives and all about,

but I chose a different direction,

and I sit here in my hometown

celebrating something that I love

doing. Young people could take a bit

out of my book and says, crime, no,

I'll go the other way.

That's a

really powerful message to similar

young people. A pleasure to meet

you. The link you for speaking to

us. All the best. What a role model!

Time now for a check on the weather.

Let's join Elizabeth, who's

at the Somerset House ice rink.

A safe distance, I believe,

Elizabeth!

A safe distance, I believe,

Elizabeth! Yes, it's feeling very

Christmassy indeed here at Somerset

house tonight. Lots of people out on

the ice rink, skating away. I was

throwing a few shapes around NB-IoT

earlier on myself, I have come off

because of the pressures of life TV

and all that! You can smell the

mould wine, there's lots of children

here fishing around the plastic

polymers, and we have got a live DJ

as well. -- plastic polar bears. It

looks, feels and sounds like

Christmas as well. But will the

weather be feeling Christmassy?

Certainly it is going to be feeling

a lot colder as we head through the

rest of this week. We could even be

talking about winter showers at the

end of the week, too. You wouldn't

know it at the moment. It has been a

mild and dull day of weather with

cloud around. Tomorrow we will start

to see the changes. Tomorrow it is

going to be very windy indeed

through the morning, wet and windy

start, but while start, turning

bright and cool as we head into the

afternoon. Overnight tonight it is

still rather cloudy, of course the

wind is dotting to pick up and there

will be outbreaks of rain through

the small hours of tomorrow morning.

Still remaining mild. We start of

the day tomorrow at around 8 degrees

or 9 degrees. Tomorrow morning, wet

and windy commute into work. Very

windy, gusts of wind is as high as

40 mph, not enough to cause alarm.

Not unusual for this time of year,

but a very windy day. Gradually

turning cooler as we head into the

afternoon. Look at the temperatures

dropping away. We will end the

afternoon tomorrow perhaps as high

as 9 degrees of years. There will be

a lot of sunshine around to enjoy.

We get into the really cold as we

head into Thursday night, that is

when the cold stuff starts to dig

in. It should be a dry night, but if

we do get showers they could turn

out to be wintry. We more likely to

see wintry showers on Friday. There

could be something white falling out

of the sky. Don't get too excited,

it's not enough to build a snowman

with. Perhaps a little sleet and

snow. Probably rain or maybe snow on

Sunday. Until then, keep skating.

STUDIO: From a very festive Somerset

House, Elizabeth, thank you.

STUDIO: From a very festive Somerset

House, Elizabeth, thank you.

A reminder of the headlines...

President Trump has reversed decades

of foreign policy and recognised

Jerusalem as the capital of Israel,

despite warnings that it could

disrupt the Middle East peace

process.

Brexit Secretary David Davis has

told MPs that the Government has

made no impact assessments

of the economic impact

of leaving the EU.

A man has appeared in court accused

of plotting to assassinate

the Prime Minister.

The 20-year-old is alleged to have

planned to bomb the security gates

before attacking Number Ten

with a knife and suicide vest.

A former priest has been found

guilty of historic sex abuse

at a Catholic school in Ealing.

74-year-old Andrew Soper targeted

young boys in the 1970s and 80s.

That's it for now.

Thanks for joining us.

Plenty more on our website

and Facebook page.

And Asad will be back

with our late news.

So from me and the team here,

do have a lovely evening.

Bye bye.