07/03/2018 London News

to come forward to help with the

investigation.

Coming up on BBC London News:

The NHS doctor who's free

to practice again after being

cleared of gross negligence.

The surgeon gives his reaction.

I think it's been unjust

that we've been put

through all of this,

but, naturally, we are delighted

that we've come through this,

with the help of my family

and our friends.

Also tonight...

After another burst main causes

chaos, the Mayor criticises

Thames Water for a lack

of long term planning.

Plus the women who run London.

Tonight, we hear from the fire

brigade's first female

Commissioner and ask,

does she feel like a role model?

I do absolutely feel like a role

model, and when I see groups

of young girls like these amazing

girls here, it just makes me feel

proud that I can show them

there is a way forward.

They don't have to do traditional

jobs, they can challenge themselves

and they can be firefighters.

His name is Michael Caine.

And next week he celebrates his 85th

birthday with a documentary -

his take on the Swinging 60s.

Good evening, and a very warm

welcome to the programme.

Over a 30 year career,

Dr David Sellu established himself

as one of London's top surgeons.

That was until a patient died

in his care, he was convicted

of manslaughter and sent to jail.

Dr Sellu and his wife then began

a long battle to clear his name.

Eventually they managed

to have his conviction overturned -

but even then, still had to fight

the medical establishment

to allow him to return to practice.

A tribunal has now

FINALLY vindicated him.

He's been telling our political

editor, Tim Donovan, how that feels.

His professional reputation restored

and his name cleared the relief

is,

evident. This has been eight very

difficult year, eight years in which

we have been through many, many

investigations, inquests, a criminal

trial and now a trial in a

regulatory setting, we have been so

traumatised by this case, that I

think it's been unjust we have been

put through all of this.

It has been

horrendous, our life has been put on

hold all those years. And we've all

suffered. Our children, people close

to us.

James Hughes is sorely missed by his

sip six children and five

grandchildren. He ran a building

firm in west London before retiring

to Northern Ireland.

He was 66 and active, but with

problems with his knee. To put that

right he went for a routine op at

the private Clementine Churchill

hospital in harrow, that appeared to

go fine but then he got severe some

Macpains and Dr Sellu was called in.

He operated on Mr Hughes for a

perforated bowel. He died a

day-and-a-half later. Though he had

been is cleared of manslaughter the

general meed council pursued

disciplinary proceedings. He was

accused of failing to perform urgent

surgery but was cleared. The

tribunal heard there was no

anaesthetists and the only one was

delayed. It heard that Jame Hughes

hadn't shown signs of of

deterioration.

We all make mistakes

in all walks of life, unfortunately

us doctor, one difficulty that the

public need to recognise is that our

mistakes o if they are mistakes

sometimes cause harm or loss of

life. That said, I do not think I

made any mistakes in my approach to

the management of this patient and

therefore I do not believe that this

was a case that should have come as

far as it did.

Dr Sellu 's case is

timely because how the General

Medical Council deals with

malpractice cases is the subject of

a government review.

It does make

one question the British justice

system, he really didn't deserve

what they did to him. He went to

prison for it. What does that

achieve? Nothing.

After 30 years of previously

blemishless service he is free to

resume practise but what he does and

where is yet to decide. It won't get

back the lost years of being

ostracised and accused.

Coming up later in the programme....

We look at claims the Royal Wedding

is bringing more homeless people

to windsor as they seek out tourists

who'll give them cash.

After days of no water in south

London, today a burst pipe flooded

the streets in Tooting,

forcing some businesses to close.

It's prompted the local MP to call

for new legislation to give

the water regulator more powers.

Thames Water says the incident had

nothing to do with the recent

problems across London.

But the mayor has accused

the company of "decades

of under-investment",

and has demanded answers.

As Marc Ashdown reports.

Tooting Broadway underwater.

The early hours of this morning,

the road resembles a river.

The latest burst water pipe to bring

chaos to south London.

It left commuters with a precarious

journey to work and many

businesses closed, and trying,

some more successfully than others,

to deal with flooded shops.

Never seen anything like it before,

to actually come into the shops.

Just yards from the burst pipe,

staff at this charity shop said

there was waist high water gushing

past, but miraculously

the doors was held firm.

We thought that everything would be

flooded, but luckily someone

was looking after us,

and, yeah, back to business.

You're going to carry

on, you are open?

Yeah, of course.

We don't let nothing stop us!

Thames Water said this incident

is unrelated to the recent

disruption caused by pipes cracking

in the severe weather.

This 30 inch pipe is one

of the oldest in London,

dating back to the 1830s.

Thames say they had a team on site

here within 15 minutes to shut off

this pipe and reduce the flow,

and as you can see, pretty much now

it has receded altogether.

Their team has been here all day,

assisting businesses and residents

who they admit will have suffered

some disruption to their water

supply, and for that

they've apologised, which,

as people round here know,

they've got used to doing recently.

The local MP says "sorry"

isn't good enough.

She's calling for tough action.

I think fundamentally the time has

come to legislate for this.

We need to make sure that

Ofwat have the powers

that they need in order

to make sure that things

up regulated properly.

Look, they said they

couldn't see this coming.

It's a 200-year-old pipe.

It was always going to be coming.

This is happening all across London

and enough is enough.

Local residents have been

without water for four

days, some of them.

Schools have been closed

and now local businesses

are going to be suffering,

due to a loss of local revenue.

It has been a difficult

few days the Thames.

Thousands of people cut off

and accusations of a slow,

poorly communicated response plan.

And today, a huge stockpile

of water has sprung up to hand out

with just a slow trickle

of residents still in need.

How long have you been without?

Erm, five days.

Five days?!

How many kids have you got,

have you got kids?

Four.

The Mayor of London has

written to Thames blaming

decades of underinvestment

for the recent problems.

Sadiq Khan wants pipe upgrade work

intensified and said Londoners need

assurances things will be

markedly different when -

not if - this happens again.

Marc Ashdown, BBC London News.

A Parliamentary inquiry has begun

hearing evidence today

into the sale of fur,

after a BBC London investigation

revealed how market stalls and shops

across the capital were found

selling fake fur that

was actually real.

Well Alex Bushill who covered

that story, was one

of those giving evidence.

So what did the inquiry hear?

This inquiry was launched and we

were invited to give evidence after

our investigation which secretly

recorded 17 shops and stalls across

London. The vendors told us that the

fur trim on the coat or hat was

synthetic fur, not real. Latest

tests revealed the reverse was true,

it was animal fur, have a look.

Now the vendors that used their

right to reply told us that the faux

fur was provided by their suppliers

and they were reassured it was faux

fur, so they acted in good faith.

Others are simply assumed that the

price they sourced it at it had to

be fake fur, they were wrong, the

Select Committee has been alarmed,

that I have launched this inquiry,

they want to know how bad the

problem is, here is is a sample of

some of the Ed they heard this

morning, including the evidence of

an animal rights group.

It was true

across the board is retailers and

traders are shocked that real fur

can be available so cheaply.

Yes, I

can see the logic that you would

sort of, you decide well it is so

cheap it can't possibly be real.

Real. I think my it has slipped

through the net I think.

You need to

be able to make informed choices, it

is the conner rights issue and it is

about whether people are being able

to make informed choices.

Separately

Camden's market said it will ban the

sale of fur.

A they have said no

more fur will be sold. On that

point, they have reassured us there

will be daily inspections to ensure

any fake fur will be that, will be

fake f it seems our investigation

has had something of an effect.

Thank you for that.

One area in London is appealing

for more private landlords to offer

homes to Syrian refugees.

Under a government scheme -

more than 500 Syrians

have been resettled

across the capital since 2015.

But councils say they're struggling

with the housing crisis

while at the same time campaigners

are demanding even more

refugees be taken in.

Chris Rogers reports from Islington.

These two women have formed the most

unlikely of close friendships.

Yvette is a London landlady

and Layla is her tenant.

A refugee from war-torn Syria.

She was a miracle for me, angel.

Comes to help us.

The home changed our life

for 100%, to better.

Leila, her husband and three

children are among ten

Syrian refugee families

to settle in Islington.

Under a government scheme London

councils are funded to pay the rent,

and support parents into work,

and children into school.

Although there is obviously a small

hit because you don't get market

rent, we get secure rent,

it's regular, there's no

gaps between tenancies,

and it's an amazing way

of being able to offer

help to families that are just

like ours, and have found themselves

in a difficult time in their lives.

Islington Council says it is mindful

of the housing crisis,

but there's the issue.

They now need to appeal for more

compassionate private

landlords to help refugees.

We aren't able to give any council

housing to our Syrian

resettlement scheme,

because frankly there isn't enough.

We have 19,000 people

on the waiting list,

so we just don't have any council

properties to offer,

and that's why this partnership

with the private landlords

is so important to us.

But could the demand to house

Syrian refugees increase?

10,000 have been given refuge

by the UK from a devastating war,

with strong support

from London local authorities.

The UN Refugee Agency UNHCR warn

the Government's quota of 20,000

is simply not enough.

The success of the scheme has

fuelled calls from campaigners

and politicians for the Government

to do more, and take in perhaps

another 10,000 refugees,

particularly children -

and not just from Syria,

but other war-torn countries.

The Home Office tell us it has no

planned to increase its quota.

For now, Layla's family are among

the minority to escape war

for a new start in London.

Chris Rogers, BBC London News.

Now to mark International

Women's Day on Thursday,

this week we're getting an insight

into the some of women

who run London.

First up - Fire Commissioner Dany

Cotton, who talks macho image,

Grenfell, and what she needs

to survive the long hours.

I caught up with her

at Lee Green Fire Station

in south east London,

where she was meeting teenage girls

taking part in a week long

course with the brigade.

Get yourself rigged

and ready for roll call.

Dany, does it remind

you of your teenage self?

Oh, definitely, just

looking at them doing this,

the first time you put your fire

gear on, it's so exciting,

but a bit scary too.

That's it, well done.

The beginning was tough, you know.

I was one of about 30 women out

of 6000 firefighters.

I think we were probably tested

more than the guys were,

because there was some questions

around can women really do it?

Are women still being put off

a career in the Fire Service

because it's still seen

as a job for men?

I think they are, and I think it's

really important that we role model

women and that we talk

about the fact women

can be firefighters.

Most importantly,

we explain the role.

I think people do still think it's

just about heroic macho stuff

and you have to be six foot

tall and strong.

Were there ever times in your career

that you either turned

up at a fire station,

and perhaps they were

expecting a man?

Oh yeah, and continuously,

across a whole range of things,

you know, because Dany is a sort

of a gender neutral name,

any even now I get stuff written

to me that says Mr Danny Cotton,

even as London Fire Commissioner.

Two women running London's

major services, it's not

that long ago that that

would have been unthinkable.

Completely, and even now

sometimes people are quite

surprised that it's happened,

and in the same year, which has just

been a great coincidence,

but a really fantastic one,

because it has just given us

the sort of support and shown,

for me, young girls and young women

that there are fantastic career

opportunities out there in non sort

of traditional roles.

Your first year, of course,

the tragic events of Grenfell.

Do you remember the moment

you got the call?

Vividly, because I was at home.

It was in the middle of the night.

I remember thinking at the very

start, this is going to be something

very different and it's going to be

something we've never

experienced before.

You've said you never get rid

of the guilt and responsibility.

What did you mean?

I was responsible for every single

firefighter on the fire ground that

day, and it felt like the biggest

weight of responsibility

I have ever had.

I have never honestly experienced

that feeling of anxiety,

responsibility and care.

If you were looking at that

building, you couldn't help

but look at that and just

have an overwhelming

feeling of concern.

How do you cope with the images

that you saw that night?

I think a lot of it for me has been

about having counselling,

and I've been really

honest about that.

I don't think I could have

processed it on my own.

I think it's a very difficult...

For me, walking round the fire

ground, talking to my firefighters,

having them physically break down

in front of me is something that

I've never experienced before.

Do you think admitting that

vulnerability is a touch

from your leadership,

because you are a woman?

Do you think that would have

happened under a male Commissioner?

I'm not so sure it would have done.

I can't judge what people

would have thought,

because it was such a different

night, but I felt it's OK for me

to be really honest about that.

Do you expect to be

criticised in the inquiry?

I think that if we are not

questioned about our actions

and questioned about everything

we do, then the inquiry

isn't doing its job.

I think, inevitably,

there will be people who maybe don't

understand what happened that night,

or the role of a firefighter,

who might ask some

challenging questions.

But, as I said, I think it's really

important we are just

there to provide those answers,

to give honest information,

so that people can decide

what really happened and,

more importantly, to prevent

something like this

ever happening again.

Do you feel like a role model?

I do absolutely feel

like a role model.

And when I see groups of young girls

like these amazing girls here,

it just makes me feel proud that

I can show them there

is a way forward.

They don't have to do

traditional jobs.

They can challenge themselves.

And tell us something that perhaps

people wouldn't expect

about the Fire Commissioner,

or something that

might surprise people.

So, I have to eat regularly,

and that's not always good

in this job, but I try

and have snacks everywhere.

Do you get hangry?

I'm a proper hangry person.

People learn that quite

quickly with me, if I don't

get my food regularly,

on time, and I drink way too

much tea, and I really

like Earl Grey tea with milk,

which people think

is weird, big yeah.

So food and drinking regularly

are very important for me.

She is not the only one! Formidable

and a sense of humour.

And tomorrow we hear from

the Met Commissioner Cressida Dick -

the first woman to lead Britain's

largest police force.

Stay with us, still

to come before 7...

A new exhibition celebrates the

cultural Revolution of the 1960s, by

bringing together some of its most

famous faces. And, temperatures are

set to climb as we head towards the

weekend, but that doesn't

necessarily mean it will always be

sunny. All the details, later in the

programme.

Next...

Few would have given Tottenham

a chance of getting this far

in the Champions League.

So it's a big night for fans,

as they're now on the brink

of a place in the quarter-finals.

But standing in their way

are Italian giants Juventus.

For Tottenham to have either made it

this far is pretty special. They

beat Real Madrid in their group and

Borussia Dortmund twice to top that

group and then drew Juventus in the

last 16. They found themselves 2-0

down after just nine minutes of that

first leg three weeks ago but

battled back for an impressive 2-2

draw. Mauricio Pochettino's side

have a marginal advantage tonight.

Because those two away goals they

don't necessarily have to win, a

goalless draw 1-1 draw will be

enough. Pochettino says his now feel

truly at home among your's elites.

Of course, in Europe the people

start to respect more Tottenham,

but of course we respect our

football, our philosophy.

We try to develop good

football, the football

that we love and that we feel.

And, of course, yes,

we feel that we have the respect.

It is not just those who have the

respect of your's finest, it's the

ever improving form of Harry Kane.

He has scored nine goals in his

first nine Champions League

appearances, the first player ever

to do that. Tottenham fans are

hoping he can make it at least ten

in ten tonight. But, of course,

spares will have to be wary against

the truly talented Juventus team.

They've reached two the last three

Champions League finals. If Spurs

managed to get through, it will

truly count among their finest ever

results in European competition.

It's been claimed more homeless

people have moved to Windsor ahead

of the Royal Wedding,

despite a row over proposals

to fine rough sleepers.

The council were due to debate

the issue this evening -

but it has now put those

plans on hold.

Sarah Harris has the story.

Sometimes when you have

nowhere to stay, this

is what you have to do.

Homelessness - it's hard to explain,

especially in one of the wealthiest

parts of the country.

But some residents in Windsor

believe the publicity around

the forthcoming Royal wedding has

attracted more rough

sleepers to the Royal town,

keen to make the most generous

donations from tourists.

If you give a man four walls

and a roof, he'll survive.

Kenny Morris used to work

for the homeless charity Shelter

and believes they should be moved

on for their own good.

What they used to turn up with,

a sleeping bag and maybe a dog

and then they'd move on.

They're certainly not now.

Now they've got, like as you can

see, little houses.

Whether they're taking

advantage of it or not

is not down for me to say,

but there is definitely

a difference, certainly now

the wedding's coming.

Last month in Edinburgh, the Royal

couple showed their support

for a charity getting rough

sleepers back into work.

Sunny is originally from Slough

but denies setting up

by the cashpoint next to the castle

to benefit from tourists.

It's not just Windsor,

it's all up and down the country

people are homeless.

It is only highlighted

here because of the wedding,

but this is like a normal

problem in this country.

It shouldn't be, we're one of

the richest countries in the world.

Those working to support rough

sleepers say they can make more

than £200 a day begging,

but Murphy, a former

rough sleeper himself,

denies the publicity around

the wedding is attracting

more people to the town.

The only difference is,

where they've bedded down.

Because people use to bed down

in parks, now people are bedding

down on the high street

and the perception is that

homelessness is on the increase.

The local council got into hot water

when its leader made

so-called insensitive tweets

about homeless people.

Now his deputy says plans to issue

fines have been put on hold.

These people who are living

on the streets will die prematurely.

And I'm not prepared,

as all the time I'm a counsellor,

to allow that to happen

and I want to make sure

that the help is in place.

It's understood for security reasons

the police will move on rough

sleepers on the wedding day itself,

but that won't solve

the long-term issue -

the most basic of cardboard homes

next to a Royal fortress.

Sarah Harris, BBC London News.

Sir Michael Caine will be

celebrating his 85th

Birthday next week.

To mark the occasion

the London actor will release

a new documentary -

his take on the swinging sixties.

There's also a pop-up

exhibition which will open

tomorrow in Carnaby Street.

Emma North has been to take a look.

Growing up in London in the 1950s

was predictable and dull. My

generation demanded new beginnings.

It said every generation pushes back

against the one that has just gone

before, but Michael Caine thinks

there was something pretty special

about London in the 1960s.

It was the first time the future was

shaped by young people.

The film my generation is a

full-blown joyride through Michael

Caine's youth growing up in London,

and to go with it, there's an

exhibition showing a time of huge

style and quite a lot of making it

up as he went along.

I didn't have a

clue what was going on, everything

was for the first time. Everything

was exciting. Practically every day

was a new experience. I didn't know

what the others were doing. Look at

this wonderful picture up here.

Sandra worked for the likes of

Vogue. Her best pictures came when

she got her models to dance.

They'd

bring their music and sometimes I

would bring them -- played in

Strauss and sometimes chubby

checker, if I wanted them to twist.

The show includes work by the likes

of Terry O'Neill, whose first job on

a newspaper was photographing the

Beatles. The exhibition's to rate

had to go through 40,000 pictures to

bring this collection together.

Everything began to change. You

could be working class and you could

be a hero, you could be a film star,

you could be anything. That, the way

that revolution happened in the 60s

is still continuing now.

Some of the

places which made their mark back

then are still big attractions, but

half a century on, what can London

learn from the 1960s?

Give young

kids a chance. They don't really

trust kids, do they? They give them

a job but they don't really trust

them but they should trust them,

because out of that comes

creativity.

It was our time... The best time of

our lives.

My generation is out next

week and the exhibition starts in

Carnaby Street tomorrow.

He really is a legend! Time for the

weather and Ben Rich is here. I was

going to say the weatherman but I'm

not sure unless you are in Michael

Caine found.

Maybe a big Michael Caine found. As

far as the weather goes, the story

of Art where the movie in the next

few days is

of Art where the movie in the next

few days is a pretty mixed one. Ups

and downs. The temperature is going

up but at times, the rain will be

coming down. Not the best of starts

to the day for many. If you are out

and about in central London this

morning it looked a bit like that

over Tower Bridge. By this

afternoon, the day ended on a bright

note for many. You can see on our

radar picture, the rain we had first

thing took a while to clear away

from Essex and Kent but then things

were largely dry. One or two showers

passing from West to east. You would

have been fairly lucky to catch too

many of those. One or two showers

continuing tonight, some Chris Bell

is as well. After midnight, more

cloud spreading from the West,

strengthening breeze and some

outbreaks of rain if you're out and

about early tomorrow. It will not be

a cold start to the day. 2-5d.

Tomorrow, very wet weather first

thing but it should clear away in

time for a shower I suspect an skies

brightened. Some sunshine, hints of

one or two showers passing in the

breeze but nothing too significant.

Many places will stay dry through

the afternoon. The breeze will be a

feature, you will notice it but

temperatures 8-10d. Compare it with

a weaker goats, a completely

different feel. Another mile day on

Friday. A bright start and then a

bit more cloud spreading from the

south. I suspect we will stay dry

right until the end of the day.

9-11d, the temperature is continuing

to lift. That is the theme that

takes it and we can but not before

we have seen a bit of rain during

Friday night. This frontal system

pushes North Woods but as we get

into the weekend, the weather driven

by this area of low pressure and

circulating around that, we will get

into a southerly wind. That will

bring some really mild air in our

direction. Remember what things were

like last week, and think of it in a

very, very different way as we head

towards weekend. Look at that, 13,

maybe 14 degrees. With that some

rain at times. Apps the mist and

fog. If you didn't like the cold

last week you'll probably like

what's coming up. Thank you.

Tonight's main news headline:

The Metropolitan Police say

that they believe a nerve agent

was used to poison Sergei Skripal

and his daughter Yulia in Sailsbury.

A police officer who helped them

at the scene is now also

in a serious condition in hospital.

in a serious condition in hospital.

That was the latest update on that

story. I will be back with the

latest at 10:30pm. From all of us

here, good