31/01/2018 London News

levels. Still some uncertainty in

the detail.

That's all from the BBC News at One

- so it's goodbye from me -

Welcome to BBC London News.

I'm Katharine Carpenter.

BBC London has learnt that eight

councils in and around London have

entered unfair contracts with water

companies to directly

charge their tenants.

Up to 170,000 council tenants may

now be due a pay out.

Last year we revealed how Southwark

was ordered to pay out millions

of pounds in refunds

by the High Court for

illegally reselling water.

Alex Bushill has this

exclusive report.

Getting rinsed for your water bills.

Lorraine is a council

tenant on a low income,

but now high on the list of those

due a pay-out, running

perhaps to hundreds of pounds.

It would benefit me in a lot

of ways, food, pay the bills.

I would not have been struggling

so much to actually live day-to-day.

So what has gone wrong

for Lorraine and thousands

of other tenants like her?

This is what you would expect

to see, Thames Water selling

direct to its customers.

Instead some councils got

involved as middlemen,

reselling the water to its tenants.

In one Southwark case it did not

pass on the discount it was given

by Thames Water for buying in bulk.

It is also worth stressing

that if now tenants fell

into arrears with the council,

effectively their landlord,

they could now face eviction.

And that could never have happened

if the debt was simply

with the water company.

Lorraine says that is exactly

what happened to her.

If I was paying my water bill

directly to the water company,

they would not be

allowed to cut my water.

They would have to take me

to court themselves

and I wouldn't face eviction.

I think it is really disgraceful

because they are taking money out

of people's pockets that a lot

of them are on low

incomes and basically

they are benefiting from it.

Lorraine's council, Enfield have

confirmed they have a similar deal

with Thames Water and have now

changed its policies to be

compliant with the ruling.

They have also banked £2 million

for future pay-outs.

The lawyer investigating the claims

say even where payments

are being made by councils a closer

look may be needed.

Some of them are saying they are

waiting for a legal challenge.

Others are trying to make small

payments below the radar.

Some tenants are having small

payments, £50, that kind of amount

made into their bank account or

credited against arrears. Some

councils are clearly hoping they can

dispose of this problem and a few

people against the massive discount

and a true compensation should be

paid.

Enfield have said they have

had no complaint from Lorraine yet

but are happy to discuss one. What

is so unusual about this case is

that it is local authorities who

stand accused of exploiting their

more vulnerable residents.

more vulnerable residents.

Homes in West London have been

flooded by a second large

scale leak in the area.

Thames Water has sent tankers

and supplies of bottled water

to Goldhawk Road this morning

after the water main

burst overnight.

Some residents say they were trapped

in their homes as levels rose.

Thames Water has apologised and says

it's working to return things

to normal as quickly as possible.

It follows a large flood

in King Street over the weekend.

Today the Mayor launched his

unlimited hopper fare on the buses

which means you can take as many

journeys as you want

within one hour.

It comes as figures show a drop

in the number of bus trips taken

in the capital and today Transport

for London confirmed some

services have been cut.

Here's our Transport

Correspondent Tom Edwards.

If you have noticed it can take a

little longer to get a buzz, you are

not wrong. Services in London are

being cut. There are still 6 million

journeys a day on the capital's

buses.

The bus service I use is

pretty regular, but other services

are not so good.

The only thing I

can complain about actually is the

drivers.

Are they regular?

Yes, they

are. In 2016, buses travelled 495

million kilometres. In 2017 it fell

to 490 million, a drop of 1%. And

bus passengers have fallen by 6%

over the last three years. This

morning the Mayor launched his

hopper affair, meaning unlimited bus

trips within an hour. Is the bus

service in London in decline?

No,

not at all. I am committed to bus

services in London. In Outer London

you will see more buses. In central

London there will be fewer buses

because of the Elizabeth line coming

in and the Oxford Street

pedestrianisation. But I want to

make sure buses are where they are

needed most. No one wants to see

empty double-decker buses driving

around London. We want to see buses

in pies of London where people need

more buses and with the unlimited

hopper in makes it far more

attractive.

The unlimited hopper

will also cost £35 million a year in

lost revenue. TfL's finances are

already under strain so it will mean

more efficiencies.

It will increase

the number of bus journeys, but it

will reduce our income a little bit.

It means more journeys for free. But

as the Mayor has said, TfL has been

on the path of reducing costs

aggressively in the past few years

and that will pay for the hopper.

Opponents say much deeper cuts are

planned for bus services and the

Mayor says his unlimited hopper will

benefit 13,000 travellers every day.

travellers every day.

A principal dancer at

the Royal Ballet is marking 20 years

with the company in a special

ceremony tomorrow evening.

Marianela Nunez came to London

when she was just 15 and made

the capital her home.

Traditionally ballerinas

are honoured in this way

only when they retire

as Wendy Hurrell reports.

PIANO MUSIC.

In five-star reviews

for her performance in Gisele

at the Royal Opera house,

Marianela Nunez is being described

as the best ballerina in Britain.

I was three years old

when I started, my mum

was desperate after three boys

to go pink everywhere.

Literally that is why

I love pink so much.

And she sent me to ballet lessons

and it was literally what I wanted.

A long way away from that

large and loving family,

speaking no English and at the age

of just 15, she arrived in London.

Suddenly I was here,

I joined the company and then

I became a principal

and there were other principals,

like Darcey Bussell,

Sylvie Guillem Vivian Adurante,

Leanne Benjamin, and these

were all my idols, you know.

And that 20-year career

at the Royal Ballet will be

celebrated tomorrow evening.

Following the performance

there will be speeches

and a shower of flowers,

a tradition reserved

for retiring dancers.

I will definitely get

emotional, I know it.

Actually thinking about it

now it does make me...

Yes, it really is going

to be very special.

This is a principal dancer who has

to remind herself she is no more

that little three-year-old dreaming

of becoming a ballerina.

I love this place,

it is a very special place.

I say the Opera House is my home

and the Royal Ballet

is my family and I just love it

with all my heart.

I really do.

Many congratulations to her.

Many congratulations to her.

Now the Weather with Kate Kinsella.

Now the Weather with Kate Kinsella.

It was not especially pleasant this

morning, but gradually it is

starting to clear away. We have seen

breaks in the cloud and sunny

spells. It will still be quite

breezy and the showers will blow

through on that chilly winter.

Despite the arrival of some sunshine

it will still feel cold. The Met

Office has issued a yellow weather

warning for overnight tonight for

ice. Any moisture from the rain

today could freeze on any untreated

roads and services. There is a clear

spell at the beginning of the

evening, great for viewing the super

moon. And then there will be some

showers and they could be a little

bit wintry as temperatures fall down

to two or three. Tomorrow, plenty of

sunny spells, but it will feel cold

in the north-westerly breeze.

Showers could fall on high ground.

They will be a little wintry. Join

us at 6:30pm this evening and until

then you can keep upto date with

everything online and at the BBC.

Goodbye.