:00:00. > :00:00.it's time for the news where you are.
:00:00. > :00:14.Good evening and welcome to BBC London News.
:00:15. > :00:16.More than 200 police officers have carried out the first major
:00:17. > :00:19.counter-terrorism exercise on the River Thames.
:00:20. > :00:24.Emergency services were tested on their ability to tackle a lethal
:00:25. > :00:27.attack on the water, in which dozens of people
:00:28. > :00:33.Our Home Affairs correspondent Nick Beake, was watching.
:00:34. > :00:37.A chilling sight on the River Thames.
:00:38. > :00:39.Terrorists have hijacked a tourist boat and taken dozens
:00:40. > :00:49.But someone manages to raise the alarm and help is on its way.
:00:50. > :00:54.More than a dozen armed officers hurtle along the river
:00:55. > :00:59.It's a race to reach the hijackers, who are heading for the City
:01:00. > :01:12.A few moments later, the elite marksmen catch up and open fire.
:01:13. > :01:17.One terrorist is down, now they must take out the others.
:01:18. > :01:20.So they board the boat, neutralise the threat and secure
:01:21. > :01:27.This is the first major exercise the Met and its partners have
:01:28. > :01:32.London is prepared, we train and work and firearms officers
:01:33. > :01:34.are trained to the highest levels to go forward and confront
:01:35. > :01:39.You know, there is no intelligence that this is going to take place
:01:40. > :01:42.but we want to make surewe are prepared, we are ready for it
:01:43. > :01:45.and we can keep Londoners safe if that's what's required.
:01:46. > :01:47.Scotland Yard says there is no intelligence to suggest anyone
:01:48. > :01:50.is planning this sort of specific attack for real.
:01:51. > :01:53.But last year an independent report commissioned by the Mayor of London
:01:54. > :01:58.said security on the River Thames should be improved.
:01:59. > :02:00.By inviting the cameras to watch this exercise this morning
:02:01. > :02:03.the police are trying to achieve two things.
:02:04. > :02:06.First, show they're prepared for a terrorist attack, and second,
:02:07. > :02:09.remind the public that the threat level remains severe,
:02:10. > :02:16.The 200 police officers and other staff involved in this exercise
:02:17. > :02:20.will have seen the shooting of a terror suspect
:02:21. > :02:27.Yet another reminder of why the Met and others prepare for the worst.
:02:28. > :02:33.Nick Beake, BBC London News, on the banks of the River Thames.
:02:34. > :02:36.Now this might come as a surprise, but London is one of the least
:02:37. > :02:40.densely populated metropolises in the world.
:02:41. > :02:43.But the desperate need for more housing may soon change that.
:02:44. > :02:48.With more, here's our Political Editor, Tim Donovan.
:02:49. > :02:51.Mill Harbour, just south of Canary Wharf, is the most densely
:02:52. > :02:55.populated part of the UK, and it reflects a trend.
:02:56. > :02:59.In six out of the last seven years, the homes built in the capital have
:03:00. > :03:04.exceeded the recommended City Hall guidelines on density.
:03:05. > :03:06.This, I think, is the pattern of the future.
:03:07. > :03:08.And not only in inner and central London now.
:03:09. > :03:12.If you look in places like Wembley and Harrow,
:03:13. > :03:15.even, you begin to see, not things quite as dense as this,
:03:16. > :03:19.but things that are beginning to look more like this.
:03:20. > :03:22.Small is beautiful, believes the developer behind hundreds
:03:23. > :03:26.of flats like this one, which are 400 square feet,
:03:27. > :03:35.That is not the view of people in their 20s, 30s, 40s,
:03:36. > :03:38.who are absolutely critical to the London economy.
:03:39. > :03:40.They want a different kind of housing.
:03:41. > :03:44.They want to get into the centre of town faster.
:03:45. > :03:47.They want to have buildings that meet their particular needs.
:03:48. > :03:51.So I think actually, the garden may be for a slightly outdated view.
:03:52. > :03:54.It's led to renewed calls for pressure on London to be relieved.
:03:55. > :03:57.GLA, the Conservatives have been arguing for a long time
:03:58. > :04:02.that the government needs to ramp up the idea of garden cities
:04:03. > :04:05.in the south-east to solve the problems in the south-east.
:04:06. > :04:08.It's not just London's housing problems.
:04:09. > :04:10.But there seems no sign soon of space becoming
:04:11. > :04:22.Peckham has been revealed as the most desirable location
:04:23. > :04:26.in London in a list published today in the Sunday Times.
:04:27. > :04:28.Up and coming areas include Walthamstow,
:04:29. > :04:36.That's according to the newspaper's Best Places to Live Guide.
:04:37. > :04:40.A mild, damp start to the day tomorrow.
:04:41. > :04:42.Still windy though, with some outbreaks of rain at times.
:04:43. > :05:06.Enjoy what's left of your Sunday. Bye for now.
:05:07. > :05:12.Good evening. There is some rain coming into the southern half of the
:05:13. > :05:16.UK as we speak. I think by the end of the night it will have got into
:05:17. > :05:22.the Midlands and much of East Anglia as well. A bit of a breeze here as
:05:23. > :05:24.well. Some gusty winds and snow on the hills of Scotland. With all