:00:10. > :00:15.He was the man accused of "a sweetheart deal"
:00:16. > :00:18.with the Government to scrap plans to raise council tax by 15%
:00:19. > :00:19.which would have triggered a local referendum.
:00:20. > :00:22.Today, an attempt to oust David Hodge, the leader
:00:23. > :00:29.of Surrey County Council, failed. Helen Catt has the story.
:00:30. > :00:32.It was the backroom row that became embarrassingly public
:00:33. > :00:38.Could the Prime Minister explain the difference between a sweetheart
:00:39. > :00:46.The substance of what he is asking is, has there been a particular deal
:00:47. > :00:49.with Surrey County Council that is not available
:00:50. > :01:25.Today, the man who caused his leader to squirm was unrepentant.
:01:26. > :01:28.In Surrey, he faced down a vote of no confidence
:01:29. > :01:32.Liberal Democrat opponents pointed to miss-sent text messages
:01:33. > :01:35.which sparked rumours of a sweetheart deal,
:01:36. > :01:57.and to a secret recording leaked to this programme.
:01:58. > :02:00.I think talk of secret deals and gentlemen's agreements doesn't
:02:01. > :02:06.In the end, his fellow councillors backed David Hodge 47-8,
:02:07. > :02:10.his future, it seems, secure, although he didn't
:02:11. > :02:13.want to speak to us this evening after the meeting.
:02:14. > :02:19.This was the last full meeting of Surrey council before
:02:20. > :02:21.elections on May 4th, and as several councillors
:02:22. > :02:24.observed this morning, that is when we will get the final
:02:25. > :02:28.verdict on this episode from the voters.
:02:29. > :02:33.Scotland Yard is facing two separate investigations tonight.
:02:34. > :02:39.Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary has been asked
:02:40. > :02:41.to look into how the Met handled allegations of electoral fraud
:02:42. > :02:44.and malpractice in Tower Hamlets, while a whistleblower is claiming
:02:45. > :02:46.the force used hackers in India to spy on campaigners.
:02:47. > :03:03.Remind us what this relates to? Remember these chaotic scenes in
:03:04. > :03:11.Tower Hamlets, when Lutfur Rahman was re-elected as mayor? There has
:03:12. > :03:14.been criticism since then that the Met failed to get involved in
:03:15. > :03:19.investigations of fraud in the run-up to polling day for this
:03:20. > :03:22.election. In 2015, Lutfur Rahman was removed from office. He was found
:03:23. > :03:26.guilty of electoral fraud at a special High Court hearing, but no
:03:27. > :03:30.one has faced any woman or prosecution. Just last month, the
:03:31. > :03:34.London Assembly accused the Met of major failings and today, the deputy
:03:35. > :03:38.mayor for policing has written to HMI sea and asked them to look into
:03:39. > :03:39.the Met's own investigation. That has been welcomed by some in Tower
:03:40. > :03:40.Hamlets. Up to 2014 and the immediate
:03:41. > :03:42.aftermath, the police We saw, far too often,
:03:43. > :03:47.letters ignored, letters unopened, requests for action,
:03:48. > :03:50.nothing being done. We need justice to be seen to be
:03:51. > :03:58.done and we need justice delivered and we need
:03:59. > :04:08.closure on this matter. We mentioned another investigation,
:04:09. > :04:10.allegations that the Met hacked e-mails of environmental
:04:11. > :04:15.campaigners? That's right, the IPCC is looking into claims that the Met
:04:16. > :04:19.used hackers in India to target campaigners including some from
:04:20. > :04:22.Greenpeace. This came to light rather mysteriously in an e-mail
:04:23. > :04:25.sent to Baroness Jenny Jones. She explained what was said.
:04:26. > :04:27.The letter alleged that the Metropolitan Police had been
:04:28. > :04:30.hacking illegally into e-mails of people who were not criminals,
:04:31. > :04:32.were not serious criminals by any stretch of the imagination,
:04:33. > :04:40.It struck me that it was something we really don't expect
:04:41. > :04:48.our police force to do, and that we have to stop.
:04:49. > :04:55.So very serious stuff, and if true, this hacking would be unlawful.
:04:56. > :04:58.Azman communications can only be hacked to combat major crime or
:04:59. > :05:02.terrorism and then you'd express permission from the Home Secretary.
:05:03. > :05:06.Scotland Yard tonight told us these allegations are deeply troubling.
:05:07. > :05:07.The Met says it will provide the IPCC with its fullest possible
:05:08. > :05:09.support. It's a move welcomed by motorists,
:05:10. > :05:12.but one that's angered They're facing a ban on overtaking
:05:13. > :05:17.along stretches of the M11 in Essex. The restrictions, being introduced
:05:18. > :05:19.next week, are to improve the flow of traffic,
:05:20. > :05:21.especially around Stansted Airport. Our transport correspondent
:05:22. > :05:24.Tom Edwards has the story. As we found out today on the M11,
:05:25. > :05:28.it does not take long to get stuck It can be frustrating
:05:29. > :05:34.for others and cause Now, on a section of the M11
:05:35. > :05:39.just outside London, overtaking by lorries
:05:40. > :05:43.will be banned. The lorry ban will take place
:05:44. > :05:50.on this section of the M11 between 7am and 7pm
:05:51. > :05:54.on the uphill sections. What is really interesting
:05:55. > :06:00.is the wider picture and what it Congestion is a huge issue.
:06:01. > :06:07.This is the M25, where they are using the hard shoulder
:06:08. > :06:10.to try and reduce delays. With more vehicles on our roads,
:06:11. > :06:12.the authorities are now looking at cheaper solutions
:06:13. > :06:16.to free up capacity. The overtaking ban on the M11
:06:17. > :06:19.will be between junctions eight at Stansted Airport
:06:20. > :06:25.and junction nine. If you get stuck behind a massive
:06:26. > :06:30.queue of trucks all going at 40 mph, it makes quite an impact and there's
:06:31. > :06:44.going to be a long queue of traffic. All lorries do 56 miles an hour, and
:06:45. > :06:46.some are slower. You are going to have a long queue of traffic which
:06:47. > :06:49.will make it worse. You have different weights
:06:50. > :07:02.and loads, and if there's a slight incline, it can slow you down
:07:03. > :07:06.and you can probably get stuck Motoring groups have
:07:07. > :07:09.welcomed this ban. It should start by the end
:07:10. > :07:14.of the month, and it probably A whirl of cream with unusual
:07:15. > :07:18.toppings - and a recreation That's what we can expect
:07:19. > :07:23.to see in one of London's Today, the latest commissions that
:07:24. > :07:26.will grace the fourth plinth were announced -
:07:27. > :07:28.and Alice Bhandhukravi has been It's quite literally one
:07:29. > :07:34.of the biggest platforms an artist can get in one of London's
:07:35. > :07:39.most famous sites. The fourth plinth in
:07:40. > :07:42.Trafalgar Square has been home to many exciting projects over
:07:43. > :07:45.the years, from the ship in the Today, it was revealed the current
:07:46. > :07:49.thumbs up will be replaced by two A reproduction of an ancient Iraqi
:07:50. > :07:53.treasure destroyed by Isis, and a dollop of cream
:07:54. > :08:01.with a cherry on top. Trafalgar Square is a special place,
:08:02. > :08:14.a place of heritage, a place where democracy,
:08:15. > :08:18.happens and it is a bold move for the city to place
:08:19. > :08:20.in that space a piece People have responded
:08:21. > :08:27.to the idea of it. The winning entries are both
:08:28. > :08:30.in their own way political statements on the era
:08:31. > :08:32.we are living in. I've been reconstructing the
:08:33. > :08:39.artefacts looted from the museum. Unfortunately, that project has
:08:40. > :08:45.grown to include the archaeological sites destroyed in the
:08:46. > :08:50.aftermath of the Iraq war. Thinking of cream as this
:08:51. > :08:53.celebratory but unstable substance, and then adding the cherry,
:08:54. > :08:57.you know, it has this very jubilant thrust into the air that maybe harks
:08:58. > :09:00.back to Nelson's Column somewhere There are also elements creeping
:09:01. > :09:04.in that perhaps suggest something more malevolent,
:09:05. > :09:07.something more sinister. Both artists have plenty of time
:09:08. > :09:10.to complete their full scale works. The ancient Iraqi treasure
:09:11. > :09:11.will replace the huge thumbs up next March,
:09:12. > :09:14.followed by the giant dollop Finally, how George Clooney
:09:15. > :09:25.surprised an 87-year-old fan He unexpectedly turned
:09:26. > :09:30.up at her care home in Sonning with flowers
:09:31. > :09:32.for her birthday. Staff had written to the actor,
:09:33. > :09:36.who lives nearby, saying it would make her dreams come true
:09:37. > :09:43.if he popped in. They wrote a letter,
:09:44. > :09:46.I believe, and sat and waited, I know the flowers won't last
:09:47. > :09:58.for ever, but the card will. That's it for now from me,
:09:59. > :10:11.but let's find out what We had probably the best day of the
:10:12. > :10:18.week today in terms of sunshine. For the rest of this week, it is staying
:10:19. > :10:22.chilly and I will be when times. The low pressure is spending a few days
:10:23. > :10:26.with us. It will lead in later tonight. For the time being, we have
:10:27. > :10:31.dry and clear conditions, with a bit of a breeze blowing again. You might
:10:32. > :10:35.just get to work without the use of the Bromley, but keep one with you
:10:36. > :10:39.because this rain pushes up from the south-west of the north as we go
:10:40. > :10:47.through the day -- keep a brolly with you. Feeling chilly tomorrow,
:10:48. > :10:51.temperatures resolutely in single figures. When you factor in the rain
:10:52. > :10:57.and wind, it will feel quite chilly. A murky start to Thursday. But on
:10:58. > :11:01.the outlook, you can see things gradually improve through Friday and
:11:02. > :11:14.Heavy rain, snow and ice are all in the forecast once again. It was
:11:15. > :11:18.quite a wintry scene today, especially in Scotland. Some very
:11:19. > :11:22.cold looking winter skies here, and we had some snow falling at times in
:11:23. > :11:25.West Lothian. For a while earlier today, there were quite a few
:11:26. > :11:30.showers running through central Scotland, all in that cold air.
:11:31. > :11:36.Right now, we have two areas of cloud, one in northern Scotland and
:11:37. > :11:39.this deepening area bringing heavy rain into south-west England and
:11:40. > :11:45.Wales overnight, with snow over the hills. That wetter weather will move
:11:46. > :11:50.into the cold, icy weather in Scotland, so we could see snow over
:11:51. > :11:55.the hills in Scotland. Eastern parts of England will be dry, clear and
:11:56. > :11:59.chilly. The lowest temperatures will become Scotland, especially where we
:12:00. > :12:06.have that covering of snow. Quite icy conditions overnight and into
:12:07. > :12:07.the morning. Further south, if we get some snow moving