:00:05. > :00:11.Hello and welcome to Look East. In the programme tonight: Former MP
:00:11. > :00:14.facing 21 charges, including forgery and fiddling her expenses.
:00:14. > :00:18.This council chief has had to step down after a damning OFSTED report
:00:18. > :00:23.on children's services. Six years in jail for the truck
:00:23. > :00:33.driver who killed a woman on a busy dual carriageway.
:00:33. > :00:39.
:00:39. > :00:42.And welcome to the wacky world of Good evening. First tonight, the
:00:42. > :00:46.former Labour MP charged with fiddling more than �60,000 in
:00:46. > :00:52.parliamentary expenses. Margaret Moran stepped down as the MP for
:00:52. > :00:57.Luton South in 2010. But these charges date back much further.
:00:57. > :01:02.�2,500 for a carpet in May 2006, for example. Allegedly forging an
:01:02. > :01:07.invoice for building work later that year. And �15,000 for plumbing
:01:07. > :01:09.the following August - 21 charges in all. Our Home Affairs
:01:09. > :01:19.Correspondent Sally Chidzoy is outside Margaret Moran's old
:01:19. > :01:20.
:01:20. > :01:25.constituency office now. Good evening. I am outside Margaret
:01:25. > :01:30.Moran's called House which she advertised for sale and sold last
:01:30. > :01:36.year. It was inspected by detectives investigating her
:01:36. > :01:41.expenses claims after pictures of the kitchen appeared in estate
:01:41. > :01:47.agents' details. The Crown Prosecution Service said today the
:01:47. > :01:52.21 charges faced by Margaret Moran related to claims with a total
:01:52. > :01:56.value of �60,000. The last time Margaret Moran gave an interview
:01:56. > :02:03.was more than two years ago when her expenses were under scrutiny.
:02:03. > :02:07.She spoke to justify the claims she made. I do not want to -- my
:02:07. > :02:16.constituents to think there is something dodgy or Marky. There is
:02:16. > :02:23.not. She has been summoned to face 21 charges. Among her allegedly
:02:23. > :02:32.fraudulent expenses, �22,500 for dry rot, and thousands more for
:02:32. > :02:38.home improvements. I have always said that her expense claims were
:02:38. > :02:45.indefensible. Now it is for a court to decide if they were illegal. As
:02:45. > :02:50.I knew MP I think people have been generally generous to me. The claim
:02:50. > :02:57.for dry rot treatment relates to a former home in Southampton, more
:02:57. > :03:01.than 100 miles from her constituency. Her second home is
:03:01. > :03:11.supposed to have been in Southampton, and she expected the
:03:11. > :03:17.taxpayers to pay �20,000 for dry rot. I knew it was quite a serious
:03:17. > :03:24.but I am surprised it is that number. It sounds dreadful. Do you
:03:24. > :03:31.Hall then he's in respect now? hold MPs in respect. Not as much,
:03:32. > :03:40.NASA. Margaret Moran is one of the last politicians to be investigated
:03:40. > :03:46.over the expenses scandal. It has been a long-running
:03:46. > :03:52.investigation spanning over two years. Margaret Moran has been told
:03:52. > :03:54.to work here in court in London to face magistrates on 19th September.
:03:55. > :04:02.So that's the situation in Luton. What about Westminster. Here's our
:04:02. > :04:09.Political Correspondent, Andrew Sinclair. The reaction here today
:04:09. > :04:13.has been largely one of shock. From Margaret Moran's friends, shock
:04:13. > :04:16.that she has been charged after others time. One friend was quite
:04:16. > :04:21.distressed and thought these allegations had been trumped up by
:04:21. > :04:27.the media. Among the wider political community, the shock at
:04:27. > :04:32.just how many charges she is facing, and the extent of the alleged fraud.
:04:32. > :04:38.Noel other politician has been accused of fiddling so much. Top of
:04:38. > :04:44.the league table is Elliot Morley, �30,000 a bogus mortgage payments.
:04:44. > :04:52.If these allegations are true, this is double that amount. Very serious
:04:52. > :04:56.charges. And do we know what Margaret Moran makes of it all?
:04:56. > :05:00.do not. In the past she has stressed she does not think she has
:05:00. > :05:06.done anything wrong. She believes her claims were in accordance with
:05:06. > :05:11.the House of Commons rule book. She said the House of Commons had
:05:11. > :05:16.approved most of the claims. If she proves not guilty, that is likely
:05:16. > :05:18.to be the main plank of her defence. The director of Children's Services
:05:18. > :05:21.at Peterborough City Council has resigned following a damning report
:05:21. > :05:25.by OFSTED. John Richards left his post with immediate effect after
:05:25. > :05:27.the report ruled that children were being put at risk. OFSTED said Mr
:05:27. > :05:31.Richards's department was "inadequate" in seven out of nine
:05:31. > :05:40.categories. In a moment we'll hear from the councillor in charge, but
:05:40. > :05:45.first this report from Fatima Manji. They are meant to be protecting the
:05:45. > :05:49.most vulnerable in society. But now the Council is being accused of
:05:49. > :05:55.failing young people in Peterborough. An Ofsted inspection
:05:55. > :06:00.found 230 children were put at risk. The latest report finds things are
:06:00. > :06:04.far from improving. It says serious deficiencies are leaving children
:06:04. > :06:09.and young people at the risk of potential harm. It highlights one
:06:09. > :06:12.case where a young person was being physically abused by an adult, but
:06:12. > :06:22.this was over locked in an assessment. Several problem areas
:06:22. > :06:29.
:06:29. > :06:35.Those working on the ground believe the City is struggling to cope.
:06:35. > :06:39.They say cuts in funding and making the problem worse. There will be a
:06:39. > :06:45.tipping point. I know a lot of these social workers are doing the
:06:45. > :06:49.best they can. But the demand is huge. It is not just a problem
:06:49. > :06:54.limited to Peterborough. Experts say many authorities are under
:06:54. > :06:59.immense pressure. Social workers feel under attack. It has been a
:06:59. > :07:04.problem to recruit social workers. They feel their professional esteem
:07:04. > :07:09.is not very high. He is a problem to keep them. Their job
:07:09. > :07:14.satisfaction has been eroded. coming months, Peterborough City
:07:14. > :07:18.Council will need to make serious changes. The fear is with an
:07:18. > :07:21.inadequate system, children at risk could be left unprotected. Earlier
:07:21. > :07:25.today I spoke to Sheila Scott, the cabinet member for Children's
:07:25. > :07:28.Services at Peterborough City Council. I put it to her that the
:07:28. > :07:38.council was failing some of the most vulnerable people in our
:07:38. > :07:38.
:07:38. > :07:42.society. It most certainly is a very serious day for Peterborough.
:07:42. > :07:48.He is that they when I hope we will look back and say that was the day
:07:48. > :07:53.when we started to reconstruct children's services. Why is today
:07:53. > :07:58.that they, rather than when we spoke you in May 2010, when you had
:07:58. > :08:03.a similarly shocking Ofsted report? Eusebio responsibility was to work
:08:03. > :08:08.with the director to make sure it did not happen again. -- you said.
:08:08. > :08:13.What has happened in the last year? We knew we were making slow
:08:13. > :08:19.progress. What we did not realise was that from about six months ago,
:08:19. > :08:23.we started to slip backwards. This report reflects that. Why didn't
:08:23. > :08:30.you realise? You at the person with ultimate political responsibility
:08:30. > :08:35.for this? -- you are. The director has gone. Should and you pass on
:08:35. > :08:39.responsibility to somebody who does realise what is going on?
:08:39. > :08:46.reports given to me and other members of the board were overly
:08:46. > :08:55.optimistic. Not that we were misled but they were overly optimistic.
:08:55. > :09:00.The report says that I am part of the coalition and I am determined
:09:00. > :09:06.to see this through. We have taken decisive action immediately. We
:09:06. > :09:10.have had a new director starting today. Two social workers will
:09:10. > :09:19.review the cases of the past six months to make sure that no child
:09:19. > :09:24.has been left on safely in the city. Can you guarantee that the next
:09:24. > :09:30.time Ofsted come in a year, you will not be saying the same thing
:09:30. > :09:36.to us that you said last year and are saying today? That is a very
:09:36. > :09:43.legitimate question. I cannot guarantee it. I and the officers at
:09:43. > :09:48.the Council will do everything in our power to make sure that we are
:09:48. > :09:56.not saying this again in 18 months. Can you guarantee that every child
:09:56. > :10:05.in Peterborough will be kept safe? My answer must be the same. We will
:10:05. > :10:10.do everything in our power to make Still to come, how travellers at
:10:10. > :10:20.Dale Farm offered Basildon Council a deal to leave the site. And what
:10:20. > :10:22.
:10:22. > :10:25.a great day for a spinnaker on a A truck driver has been sentenced
:10:25. > :10:29.to six years in jail after his lorry ploughed into slow moving
:10:29. > :10:32.traffic on a dual carriageway in Norfolk. Liz Bird from Leighton
:10:32. > :10:42.Buzzard was killed instantly. Today her family said that Simon
:10:42. > :10:43.
:10:43. > :10:46.Bothamley had got the sentence he deserved.
:10:46. > :10:52.It was supposed to be the start of a weekend summer break for Liz Bird
:10:52. > :10:56.and her husband Michael. Instead it turned into a day of carnage and
:10:56. > :11:01.loss. This footage shows the aftermath of the collision in which
:11:01. > :11:08.five people were injured, two seriously, and in which Liz Bird
:11:08. > :11:12.died. In my 20 year career and the police. --, this is one of the
:11:12. > :11:16.worst collisions I have seen. It was complete and utter carnage,
:11:16. > :11:22.devastation everywhere, people everywhere, and carrot pieces
:11:22. > :11:28.everywhere. Liz Bird and her husband were caught in traffic
:11:28. > :11:34.which had slowed down on the outskirts of Norwich. On be known
:11:34. > :11:39.to her, Simon Bothamley from Cambridgeshire was speeding up 56
:11:39. > :11:43.mph in his 13 ton heavy goods lorry. He was apparently oblivious to the
:11:43. > :11:48.obstruction. Police had already established the had been texting
:11:48. > :11:52.and driving less than an hour before the collision. He had been
:11:52. > :11:57.convicted for parking on his mobile phone while driving the same truck
:11:57. > :12:00.two months previously. In mitigation, Simon Bothamley's
:12:00. > :12:07.defence lawyer described him as a broken man who suffered from
:12:07. > :12:10.flashbacks. Sentencing him, the judge said that he had deprived
:12:10. > :12:16.Michael bird lovers loving life and the sentence must reflect the
:12:16. > :12:20.serious nature of the offence. He sentenced him to six years in
:12:20. > :12:26.prison and gave him a five-year driving ban. He deserved what he
:12:26. > :12:32.got. I am pleased that justice is seen to be done. For me, it is the
:12:32. > :12:38.length of it this qualification that I am most satisfied about. --
:12:39. > :12:42.the disqualification. The family say the sentence may act as a
:12:42. > :12:44.deterrent to other would-be offenders. Last minute talks have
:12:45. > :12:47.been taking place about possible strike action by civilian staff who
:12:47. > :12:50.work on the Apache attack helicopters at Wattisham Airfield
:12:50. > :12:54.in Suffolk. The engineers work for Morson Wynnwith, and have voted to
:12:54. > :12:59.walk out in a dispute over pay. They claim they are paid thousands
:12:59. > :13:03.of pounds less than people who do a similar job elsewhere.
:13:03. > :13:08.A company which planned to employ up to 400 people on an old RAF base
:13:08. > :13:17.in Norfolk has pulled out. TAG Aviation decomission old airliners.
:13:17. > :13:22.The company said its financial situation had changed.
:13:22. > :13:28.TAG Aviation's plan to store and the construct large aircraft was
:13:28. > :13:33.withdrawn after it failed to secure the necessary funding. The Swiss
:13:33. > :13:39.firm is disappointed, especially since the plans for the former air
:13:39. > :13:43.base at Coltishall had offered the opportunity to create 400 jobs. All
:13:43. > :13:47.four airplane hangars would have been used to store about 50
:13:47. > :13:52.aircraft, which would then be stripped down for recycling. Today
:13:52. > :13:57.the local MP described the decision as a bad day for Norfolk, but hope
:13:57. > :14:02.other opportunities would be forthcoming. It is disappointing
:14:02. > :14:09.news. My heart goes out to one of those people who had their names on
:14:09. > :14:17.lists, hoping for a possible employment. It was really exciting.
:14:17. > :14:20.It seemed to fit the side incredibly well. -- site. I am
:14:20. > :14:27.trying to get information from the ministry of justice about their
:14:27. > :14:37.talks with another possible bidder. RAF Coltishall was closed in 2006.
:14:37. > :14:41.
:14:41. > :14:48.Three years later, a category C Work has started to protect homes
:14:48. > :14:53.at risk of flooding in Ipswich. An embankment is to be built which
:14:53. > :14:56.backs on to Docs at the River Orwell. There's been a 25% rise in
:14:56. > :15:01.the number of televisions dumped at council tips in Suffolk. More than
:15:01. > :15:05.73,000 sets have been left at centres between January and July.
:15:05. > :15:07.The council says it's due to the digital switchover. The last
:15:07. > :15:17.analogue signal for Norfolk and parts of North Suffolk will be
:15:17. > :15:18.
:15:18. > :15:21.switched off in November. Anybody who owns a boat will probably know
:15:21. > :15:24.all about the zebra mussel. It can cause a lot of damage. It's also a
:15:24. > :15:27.huge problem for Anglian Water. In fact, the company spends half a
:15:27. > :15:33.million pounds every year keeping the mussel out of their pipes. Now
:15:33. > :15:39.there could be an answer. Zebra mussels thrive in fresh water. They
:15:39. > :15:47.are a growing problem For boat owners. They grow on the bottom of
:15:47. > :15:53.the boat. If they are spawning, they will go through the events in
:15:53. > :15:57.the bottom of the boat and grow inside the leg of the engine.
:15:57. > :16:02.repair bill can run into hundreds of pounds. That is nothing compared
:16:02. > :16:10.to the cost incurred by Anglian Water. At their water treatment
:16:10. > :16:15.plants, mussels Klug up the pipes. They get sucked into the pipes.
:16:15. > :16:19.They coat the inside of the pipes, sometimes ending up many
:16:19. > :16:22.centimetres thick. That means we have to pump harder to get the
:16:23. > :16:29.water through the pipes in the first place. That costs a lot of
:16:29. > :16:34.money. One way to kill the muscles is with chlorine. But they can
:16:34. > :16:42.sense the poison in the water and clamp shut. We take an active
:16:42. > :16:47.ingredient, which is poisonous to the muscles, and coated in a tasty
:16:47. > :16:52.coating. They take the poison and die immediately. Annie think they
:16:52. > :16:58.do not eat, dissolves within hours of going into the water. --
:16:58. > :17:08.anything. It is environmentally safe and friendly. Zebra mussels
:17:08. > :17:10.
:17:10. > :17:13.and not native to the UK. They're It's emerged that travellers facing
:17:13. > :17:18.eviction from Dale Farm in Essex offered to clear the site and move
:17:18. > :17:23.on, if the council bought the land for millions of pounds. The offer
:17:23. > :17:27.was made at secret talks with Basildon Council earlier this year.
:17:27. > :17:37.The council rejected the idea, describing it as "a step too far".
:17:37. > :17:39.
:17:39. > :17:45.Richard Daniel is at Dale Farm now. The cost to clear Dale Farm could
:17:45. > :17:52.cost anything up to �18 million. Let's put that in context. That
:17:52. > :17:56.would equate to about �45,000 per traveller evicted. Today we found
:17:57. > :18:02.out that behind the scenes a few months ago, talks were held to try
:18:02. > :18:06.to reduce the cost of the evictions. Today at Dale Farm they were laying
:18:06. > :18:13.down barbed wire. Elsewhere, several caravans were removed from
:18:13. > :18:18.the site. Basildon Council held secret talks with the travellers in
:18:18. > :18:24.London five months ago. The Council said of travellers offered to leave
:18:24. > :18:28.quietly for �6 million. But today that figure was disputed by
:18:28. > :18:33.travellers at Dale Farm. Richard Sheridan, President of the Gypsy
:18:33. > :18:38.Council, said they would have been prepared to sell the site for �3
:18:38. > :18:43.million. He said they were trying to save the taxpayer millions.
:18:44. > :18:49.the end of the day gentle men, Basildon Council is spending �80
:18:49. > :18:53.million of taxpayers' money. It is a waste of money. -- 18 million. I
:18:53. > :18:59.was trying to sell them this site so the travellers could move out
:18:59. > :19:07.and buy another site. That is the adult approach. Basildon Council
:19:07. > :19:11.has a duty to provide 62 pitches in the Essex area. In Basildon today
:19:11. > :19:14.there was surprise that secret talks had taken place. The bottom
:19:14. > :19:20.line is the Council should not have let it get to that state in the
:19:20. > :19:25.first place. It is going to cost 18 million, 6 million sounds a good
:19:26. > :19:31.deal. But it is illegal. We're saying they can profit from this
:19:31. > :19:38.illegal thing. Wouldn't it have made financial sense to accept this
:19:38. > :19:42.offer? It could have if we had got into negotiations. But then what
:19:42. > :19:48.would happen in the future somebody else did exactly the same? I am
:19:48. > :19:55.worried about precedent. With 13 days to the addiction, the time for
:19:55. > :19:59.talking, it seems, is rapidly running out. -- eviction. Today the
:19:59. > :20:05.travellers told me they expect the bailiffs to start setting up a head
:20:05. > :20:08.of the eviction, next week. Basildon Council said to have
:20:08. > :20:12.allowed travellers to profit from breaking the law would have been a
:20:12. > :20:20.step too far. Now some of the families at Dale Farm also own
:20:20. > :20:23.plots at another traveller site at Cottenham in Cambridgeshire. In
:20:23. > :20:28.recent years nearly 20 illegal traveller sites have been cleared
:20:28. > :20:38.at Smithy Fen. The local Council has dealt with things in a
:20:38. > :20:43.different way. Clearing Cottenham's illegal site.
:20:43. > :20:52.For many travellers, the time of anger and fear. Among residents,
:20:52. > :20:54.relief. The result of a lengthy legal argument. We went through at
:20:55. > :20:59.fairly expensive and time-consuming eviction process a couple of years
:20:59. > :21:06.ago. Al macro determination was to make sure we would not have to do
:21:06. > :21:12.the same thing again. -- our. We have gone through securing
:21:12. > :21:18.injunctions in and around Smith the Fen. At that time there were about
:21:18. > :21:22.100 sites here. Under half for a legal. Hearing Cambridgeshire
:21:22. > :21:32.liking Essex, the district councils that use the Town and Country
:21:32. > :21:32.
:21:32. > :21:36.Planning Act -- use. In Essex, they have gone for enforcement notices,
:21:36. > :21:43.which it a certain amount of time for planning breaches to be put
:21:43. > :21:50.right. -- which give. Leaders Salinger's can close - might slow
:21:51. > :21:55.the process down. In Cambridgeshire, they chose High Court injunctions.
:21:55. > :22:00.If not put right, offenders can be held in contempt of court and can
:22:00. > :22:07.face prison. Injunctions are expensive and can take time. Six
:22:07. > :22:12.plots here are owned by Dale Farm travellers. They have got no place
:22:12. > :22:22.to go. There are some vulnerable people, old people, very sick.
:22:22. > :22:27.
:22:27. > :22:30.They're not giving them any tries. Something like this could be seen
:22:30. > :22:34.in Essex very soon. Next, the story of a teenager from Suffolk helping
:22:34. > :22:37.to design a very green machine with three wheels. It's called a whike,
:22:37. > :22:47.a cross between a bike and a windsurfer. And on a day like today,
:22:47. > :22:49.
:22:50. > :22:54.it goes like the clappers! This is Ned Aufenast, sailor and
:22:54. > :22:59.engineering ways. It was during his A-level studies that a brain wave
:22:59. > :23:07.struck. I was cycling one day and I thought, the wind is hindering me.
:23:07. > :23:12.I have always wanted to be able to sail on the road. I thought, I
:23:12. > :23:19.could get someone with this. made a prototype from scrap that
:23:19. > :23:23.cost �50. He discovered a Dutch man also inventing as sailing bite.
:23:24. > :23:29.They are working together designing machines like this. It is amazing
:23:29. > :23:36.to be able to paddle along. You can start pedalling, all in the sale
:23:36. > :23:40.and roll along. It is brilliant. You have to try it. That sounded
:23:40. > :23:47.like an invitation. Now it was keen for me to wonder stand the basics
:23:47. > :23:53.and I was keen to impress. A quick run through the controls, breaks
:23:53. > :23:59.etc, and as the wind gathered speed, some final words of caution. When
:23:59. > :24:05.you feel anything getting out of control, just let that right.
:24:05. > :24:12.machine costs �3,000. It is legal on the road as long as it is not a
:24:13. > :24:17.mile away. It was an exhilarating ride. It would be borderline road
:24:17. > :24:22.use today. If you put the big sale up, you could really get going.
:24:22. > :24:29.That is a thrill ride. Dozens of the machines have been sold in
:24:29. > :24:33.Holland but it is the United States where net expects to be their key
:24:33. > :24:43.market place. He will soon be off to university to study engineering,
:24:43. > :24:51.
:24:51. > :24:56.hoping that what began as a school We have had some very lively
:24:56. > :25:01.weather across the region with strong winds and heavy rain. We
:25:01. > :25:05.have had particular the strong winds around the coast. The peer
:25:05. > :25:10.was closed today because a barge was pushed into it causing
:25:10. > :25:18.structural damage. On the Essex coast we have 40 to 50 mph gusts of
:25:18. > :25:28.wind. It is down to this area of low pressure. That produced some
:25:28. > :25:29.
:25:29. > :25:34.fairly patchy rain to start with. It had a sting in its tail. Most of
:25:34. > :25:40.the rain cleared by this morning. And look at this. Heavy rain
:25:40. > :25:46.falling into a long line. It was slow to clear. It is starting to
:25:46. > :25:51.clear now. It will stay fairly windy tonight. The winds easing a
:25:52. > :26:01.little bit. Still quite blustery. Most places dry. The odd isolated
:26:02. > :26:03.
:26:03. > :26:06.shower. Lows are expected at ten Celsius, 50 Fahrenheit. The winds
:26:06. > :26:11.will be moderates too fresh in land. Fresh and strong along the Norfolk
:26:11. > :26:17.and Suffolk coast lines. Tomorrow will be a finer day. It will still
:26:17. > :26:23.be windy but the wind will not be quite as strong. Some Sunny spells
:26:23. > :26:30.but the sunshine turning hazy. Temperatures expected to get up to
:26:30. > :26:40.18 Celsius. The chance of an isolated shower not out of the
:26:40. > :26:44.question. The wins still fairly brisk. -- winds. Moderate to fresh
:26:44. > :26:51.in land. Through the afternoon still the chance of an isolated
:26:51. > :26:56.shower. Most places staying dry with sunny spells. This is the
:26:56. > :27:03.pressure Chard for Thursday. You'll notice the isobars slightly further
:27:03. > :27:09.apart. Affront draped across Los promises cloudy conditions and
:27:09. > :27:12.potentially some wet weather. -- a weather front draped across us. The
:27:12. > :27:18.other interesting thing for Friday is the temperature. It will start