0:00:00 > 0:00:12And on BBC One, we now join the BBC's news teams where you are.
0:00:12 > 0:00:15Good afternoon and welcome to BBC London News.
0:00:15 > 0:00:19I'm Sonja Jessup.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22There's been a huge rise in the number of victims of sexual
0:00:22 > 0:00:25assault coming forward to the Met Police.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28Figures obtained by BBC London show it's gone up by more than seven
0:00:28 > 0:00:29thousand in the last four years.
0:00:29 > 0:00:32The Met says it suggests victims are increasingly confident that such
0:00:32 > 0:00:34crimes will be taken seriously.
0:00:34 > 0:00:38But support groups say many cases are still not reaching the courts.
0:00:38 > 0:00:46Here's our Home Affairs Correspondent Nick Beake.
0:00:46 > 0:00:50Jen wants to speak out about what happened to her. She says she was
0:00:50 > 0:00:54raped by a man she knew well.It was a really difficult decision for me
0:00:54 > 0:00:57to come forward about it because it involved a lot of people that I knew
0:00:57 > 0:01:02and a lot of friends and took me quite a few days to decide to go to
0:01:02 > 0:01:08the police. I was in a lot of shock. I did that and I ended up being on
0:01:08 > 0:01:12this absolute emotional roller coaster of a court system.It took
0:01:12 > 0:01:16police a year to charge the man and the court case was delayed twice
0:01:16 > 0:01:23before being dropped, just three days before the trial.The first
0:01:23 > 0:01:26time was absolutely devastating because, as a diligent worker that I
0:01:26 > 0:01:30am, I'd organised my time off and cover and I was determined to come
0:01:30 > 0:01:35back, get on with my job and get on with life and I was so mentally
0:01:35 > 0:01:38transfixed on this date as being the time it would be over. Then it moved
0:01:38 > 0:01:41and I couldn't imagine going through another six months of waiting and
0:01:41 > 0:01:45waiting.There's been a big rise in the reporting of sexual assaults.
0:01:45 > 0:01:52Ten thousand in all back in 2012, last year more than 17,000. The
0:01:52 > 0:01:58number of reports of women being raped went from 3,000 to more than
0:01:58 > 0:02:035,400 and reports of male rape have tripled in the last four years. Mary
0:02:03 > 0:02:08Mason's charity is supporting more and more victims of sexual crimes.
0:02:08 > 0:02:12She says the increased reporting had not been matched by a similar rise
0:02:12 > 0:02:16in prosecutions.They'll say the woman won't make a credible witness
0:02:16 > 0:02:25in court which I find deeply, deeply troubling, so because somebody's
0:02:25 > 0:02:30vulnerable, that is not acceptable. Police officer Richard Unwin has
0:02:30 > 0:02:34supported victims of sexual offences for over a decade. His force says
0:02:34 > 0:02:40it's now better at investigating and attitudes have changed.There are
0:02:40 > 0:02:45things that have been in place for a long time. The attack down a dark
0:02:45 > 0:02:48alley because of what someone was wearing or by a stranger, that can
0:02:48 > 0:02:53happen but it's not something that we deal with all the time. What we
0:02:53 > 0:02:58tend to deal with are assaults, sexual violence involving partners
0:02:58 > 0:03:03or friends.The Crown Prosecution Service says more defendants have
0:03:03 > 0:03:08been convicted for sexual offences than ever before. It insists it
0:03:08 > 0:03:13wasn't its fault Jenn's case was delayed then dropped but campaigners
0:03:13 > 0:03:16say more offenders need to be brought to justice.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27A police officer is still critically ill in hospital
0:03:27 > 0:03:29after he and a colleague were seriously injured.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32When they were hit by a car on the North Circular in Neasden.
0:03:32 > 0:03:33The driver's been arrested.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36The Met Commissioner Cressida Dick says it's a stark reminder
0:03:36 > 0:03:39of the dangers officers face.
0:03:39 > 0:03:43A little earlier, police told us what they believe happened.
0:03:43 > 0:03:49Officers were dealing with another incident, a vehicle ended up coming
0:03:49 > 0:03:52off the North Circular, colliding with walls and ultimately hitting
0:03:52 > 0:03:58both constables, one of which was trapped under the vehicle. Both
0:03:58 > 0:04:02suffered significant injury. I would just like to pay tribute to the
0:04:02 > 0:04:07emergency services and their colleagues.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09Fail to pay the congestion charge from the New Year
0:04:09 > 0:04:11and you'll face a bigger fine- that's the warning to
0:04:12 > 0:04:13drivers in central London.
0:04:13 > 0:04:15The penalty is going up from £65 to £85.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19Emma North has this report.
0:04:19 > 0:04:23A tougher deterrent to rule breakers or a way of punishing honest
0:04:23 > 0:04:27motorist who is make a mistake? Whichever way you see it, if you
0:04:27 > 0:04:31fail to pay your congestion charge, the fine is going up. The amount you
0:04:31 > 0:04:37will pay will rise from £65 to £85. If you don't pay quickly enough,
0:04:37 > 0:04:41that rises from £130 to £160. In the last five years, the number of
0:04:41 > 0:04:46people paying the fine has gone up and it's a sign, says TfL, that the
0:04:46 > 0:04:50penalties no longer put people off. It's led to accusations that the
0:04:50 > 0:04:53system's just too tough on those who already can't afford it.It's not
0:04:53 > 0:04:57just the hike in the fine that is the concern, it's everything else
0:04:57 > 0:05:00toppled on small businesses, the cost of doing businesses going up,
0:05:00 > 0:05:04so this is now going from £130 to £160. When you consider that small
0:05:04 > 0:05:09businesses, the cost of rent and rates is 30% of their turnover, you
0:05:09 > 0:05:14have got employment costs, there are now charges coming in on emissions
0:05:14 > 0:05:17zone, it's another way of doing business in the capital.How can I
0:05:17 > 0:05:22help you...Maybe it's not just the system that's changing. This small
0:05:22 > 0:05:25business in Elstree has to deliver computer equipment into Central
0:05:25 > 0:05:29London. But the way it works now means travelling is less and less
0:05:29 > 0:05:34important.I've got a phone that will ring either on my mobile phone,
0:05:34 > 0:05:38on the computer, a phone like this, I can work from anywhere.TfL says
0:05:38 > 0:05:41it wants to make London safer and healthier and less dominated by the
0:05:41 > 0:05:46car. The congestion charge fine rises on the 2nd January.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50Did you know that next year marks 100 years since women in the UK
0:05:51 > 0:05:53were first allowed to vote?
0:05:53 > 0:05:56Various events are planned to mark the centenary and today
0:05:56 > 0:05:59London's Mayor has been visiting schoolchildren in Stockwell.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02They've been learning about the history of the campaign
0:06:02 > 0:06:04for gender equality and sharing their hopes for more
0:06:04 > 0:06:05change in the future.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07Sadiq Khan has been speaking to our reporter Ayshea Buksh.
0:06:07 > 0:06:09London is the greatest city in the world.
0:06:09 > 0:06:13But it is still the case in 2017 that if you are born a girl
0:06:13 > 0:06:15your life chances are less if you were born a boy.
0:06:15 > 0:06:19If you are a woman you are more likely to be a victim
0:06:19 > 0:06:20of crime than a man.
0:06:20 > 0:06:21That is not acceptable.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24That is why we have this campaign.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27We are announcing today, all the art on the Underground
0:06:27 > 0:06:30will be women artists who are commissioned.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32A whole year of events is taking place.
0:06:32 > 0:06:36We will use 2018 to renew our efforts to make London the greatest
0:06:36 > 0:06:41city in the world to be a girl or a woman.
0:06:41 > 0:06:49We should be encouraged to follow our dreams
0:06:49 > 0:06:51regardless of gender.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53I don't feel just because I am a female I can't
0:06:53 > 0:06:56pursue this or that.
0:06:56 > 0:06:58It doesn't matter if you are biologically different.
0:06:58 > 0:07:00Some people are better than us, some aren't,
0:07:00 > 0:07:03something you have to accept.
0:07:03 > 0:07:05If you want to be better than someone, you can work hard.
0:07:05 > 0:07:09It doesn't matter what gender you are.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13I feel at school everyone treats you the same, it is equal.
0:07:13 > 0:07:17But when you get to the real world it is different.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19The Fawcett Society is running their own campaign around
0:07:19 > 0:07:25educating young people.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27They say they wholeheartedly support the Mayor, but point out
0:07:27 > 0:07:30there is still a long way to go, particularly with regards
0:07:30 > 0:07:31to equality the workplace.
0:07:31 > 0:07:32Ayshea Buksh reporting there.
0:07:32 > 0:07:34Time to take a look at the weather and Kate Kinsella
0:07:34 > 0:07:40is here, how's it looking?
0:07:40 > 0:07:41is here, how's it looking?
0:07:41 > 0:07:45Sunny but chilly. This is earlier this morning, bits of frost here and
0:07:45 > 0:07:51there. Clear skies absolutely beautiful sunshine and sun rises as
0:07:51 > 0:07:56you can see from one of our weather-watchers earlier on this
0:07:56 > 0:08:00morning. Not much cloud today and the blue sky will stay with us
0:08:00 > 0:08:03throughout the afternoon. It's feeling chilly. That is about to
0:08:03 > 0:08:07change as well. For the afternoon, we have got a gentle north-westerly,
0:08:07 > 0:08:12we are not going to really feel it. Lots of sunshine. Temperatures
0:08:12 > 0:08:15managing to get up to four or five, possibly six by the end of the
0:08:15 > 0:08:19afternoon. You will notice patches of fog starting to form as it gets
0:08:19 > 0:08:24dark. Once it gets dark, dense fog patches and the Met Office has
0:08:24 > 0:08:28issued this yellow weather warning for the fog. Overnight, it's going
0:08:28 > 0:08:32to be very dense. Visibility considerably reduced and also the
0:08:32 > 0:08:35temperature is going to drop significantly as well. We are
0:08:35 > 0:08:39looking at a minimum of 0, maybe even below, meaning we could get
0:08:39 > 0:08:43some freezing fog by taunt tomorrow. It could cause all sorts of problems
0:08:43 > 0:08:48out on the road so extra care needed. A very murky start tomorrow
0:08:48 > 0:08:52morning, mist and fog being stubborn as well. It will take its time to
0:08:52 > 0:08:57lift. It should lift into the afternoon, so brighter spells there,
0:08:57 > 0:09:03then we run the risk of the fog reforming as it gets towards dusk.
0:09:03 > 0:09:09Feeling hilly again tomorrow at around six Celsius. Tuesday night
0:09:09 > 0:09:13into Wednesday, milder air moves in from the south-west. Notice the
0:09:13 > 0:09:17temperatures are going to get milder for Wednesday but with it a lot of
0:09:17 > 0:09:18cloud.
0:09:22 > 0:09:24That's it from us this lunchtime, you can join
0:09:24 > 0:09:25Riz Lateef though at 6.30.
0:09:25 > 0:09:33She'll be here with our evening programme.