:00:00. > :00:10.Hello. In the programme tonight: The Prime Minister promises better roads
:00:11. > :00:14.and better railways to boost the economy of this region. During a
:00:15. > :00:23.visit to East Anglia, Mr Cameron says improvements are on the way.
:00:24. > :00:25.The Prime Minister is our live studio guest.
:00:26. > :00:28.I shall be reporting from RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk where the base
:00:29. > :00:31.has staged a memorial service to the American air crew killed in the
:00:32. > :00:33.Norfolk helicopter crash. And there's been flooding in Essex,
:00:34. > :00:48.but spring`like sunshine elsewhere. I'm here with your full weekend
:00:49. > :00:52.weather forecast. The Prime Minister said today he
:00:53. > :00:55.wants this region to be at the heart of the economic recovery. He is
:00:56. > :01:04.promising better road and rail links. Spending on the
:01:05. > :01:08.infrastructure of this region. He says it will be the biggest since
:01:09. > :01:12.Victorian times. Mr Cameron is here in the studio to explain his plans.
:01:13. > :01:15.Critics accept the east is doing well as far as roads are concerned,
:01:16. > :01:19.but they say we are being short changed in other areas of government
:01:20. > :01:25.investment. They say we pay in more than we get out.
:01:26. > :01:28.After nearly 40 years of campaigning the All is almost completely
:01:29. > :01:33.dualled, and today the man who gave the go ahead to the final stage came
:01:34. > :01:36.to inspect the work. The Prime Minister spent half an hour at
:01:37. > :01:40.Elvedon. He was told that last year's good weather meant the road
:01:41. > :01:44.should be open by this summer. He said it would be the final piece in
:01:45. > :01:53.the jigsaw linking Norfolk with London. When it came to power in
:01:54. > :01:56.2010 the coalition scrapped dozens of road schemes but since then it
:01:57. > :02:01.has become a believer in infrastructure. The thinking goes if
:02:02. > :02:04.you make it easier to get about that helps the economy. So in Lowestoft
:02:05. > :02:07.he met campaigners calling for improvements to the A12 and A47.
:02:08. > :02:10.There were no big announcements today, but a recognition that these
:02:11. > :02:18.roads need improving and a promise they'll be top of the list for when
:02:19. > :02:23.there's money available. The former the commitment the better. It is
:02:24. > :02:26.important to recognise that infrastructure commitments made now
:02:27. > :02:33.will have to be delivered in three or both `` four years time. The
:02:34. > :02:36.revelation that we're now top of the list when it comes to transport
:02:37. > :02:39.spending is significant because for years under Labour and Conservative
:02:40. > :02:43.governments we lost out. But there is still a lot of scepticism. The
:02:44. > :02:47.A11 is the only big project currently underway, work on the A14
:02:48. > :02:51.is pencilled in for 2016. Improving the bottleneck at the Ely Junction
:02:52. > :03:01.hasn't started yet and the plans to speed up services to London are
:03:02. > :03:06.still some way off. Many of the lists and the ideas ICR purely on
:03:07. > :03:10.pieces of paper and much of the money is not planned to be spent
:03:11. > :03:14.until after the next election and who knows what might happen? We have
:03:15. > :03:17.seen that kind of problem before. The opposition parties said the
:03:18. > :03:20.prime minster was only here today because he was running scared after
:03:21. > :03:25.losing important council seats in last year's elections. It is not
:03:26. > :03:32.good coming to our region telling us nice things might happen. If there
:03:33. > :03:35.is no money to back it up. This is a government which is scared it is
:03:36. > :03:38.losing support in the east coming here and offering nothing. But the
:03:39. > :03:42.prime minster believes that for too long we've lost out and it's time to
:03:43. > :03:51.get things moving. The question is, will he be able to deliver?
:03:52. > :03:56.The Prime Minister is here. Will you be able to deliver? We are
:03:57. > :04:02.delivering. The A11 being dualled all the way down is evidence of
:04:03. > :04:07.that. I promised this road would be built and it is being built and I
:04:08. > :04:11.have the mud on my shoes to prove it. We do not want to leave it
:04:12. > :04:15.there. We will be spending ?1.9 billion on transport
:04:16. > :04:26.infrastructure, the second`highest the country. That includes what we
:04:27. > :04:31.are doing to improve the A47 and the A14, which will go ahead. One of the
:04:32. > :04:38.first things you did when you came into power was to stop the A14 going
:04:39. > :04:42.ahead. We faced a financial mess. We are sorting out those problems. The
:04:43. > :04:46.deficit is down by a third and we had only able to make these
:04:47. > :04:52.decisions because we are clearing up the mess that Labour left. That is
:04:53. > :04:56.part of our long`term economic plan. Infrastructure has a key part. You
:04:57. > :05:01.can on the deliver if you win the election. We are starting at the
:05:02. > :05:07.moment. The A11 will be opened later this year. The announcement I made
:05:08. > :05:14.today is that the A47 review will include the A12 which is an
:05:15. > :05:17.important announcement. The A14 scoping work is underway and I hope
:05:18. > :05:21.the shovels will be going into the ground soon. There is a lot more to
:05:22. > :05:28.do but this is a big set of investments, prioritising the
:05:29. > :05:37.region. Why does one of your MPs say we are facing a crisis? I do not
:05:38. > :05:41.accept that. The last government did not give priority to this region.
:05:42. > :05:46.The figures are clear. Outside London and the south`east, which are
:05:47. > :05:51.affected by things like the biggest infrastructure programme anywhere in
:05:52. > :05:54.Europe, the east of England is getting more investment in roads,
:05:55. > :06:04.railways, transport infrastructure, than any other region. Liam says, we
:06:05. > :06:09.should not ring fence anything. I do not agree with that. I think the NHS
:06:10. > :06:12.is special to me and millions of families in this country and while
:06:13. > :06:17.we have to make difficult decisions and we have had to make cuts, we
:06:18. > :06:22.have protected the NHS, its budget is going to go up every year because
:06:23. > :06:27.it is a vital service. Your Chancellor was here a few weeks ago
:06:28. > :06:31.talking about the railways and he said we definitely need improvement
:06:32. > :06:37.on the railways. Year is going to hold a feasibility study. That's
:06:38. > :06:41.never built anything. We have a programme which is getting an expert
:06:42. > :06:49.group drawing up everything that is going to give us a 90 minute train
:06:50. > :06:52.service between Norwich and London. It will need improvements in track
:06:53. > :06:56.and signalling and going to have to be part of network real's
:06:57. > :07:03.investment. That is way down the line. We have to start planning now
:07:04. > :07:11.to deliver it. As you can see from the dualling of the A11, the promise
:07:12. > :07:14.will be delivered. The Ipswich MP says we have suffered some of the
:07:15. > :07:19.worst levels of investment in railways, hand`me`down carriages and
:07:20. > :07:23.services other parts of the country have long forgotten about. He is
:07:24. > :07:29.right and that is why it is important to give the east the
:07:30. > :07:34.priority it deserves. When I look at the industries, pharmaceuticals,
:07:35. > :07:43.agriculture, biotechnology and the Port of Felixstowe, what they need
:07:44. > :07:46.is clear plans from the government and strong investment in
:07:47. > :07:51.infrastructure so I believe the growth potential of the eastern
:07:52. > :07:54.region is extremely strong but it needs that transport
:07:55. > :07:59.infrastructure. Why do you not put more money into the railways? Make
:08:00. > :08:04.difficult choices and put money into the railways. I would argue that we
:08:05. > :08:12.are, ?1.9 billion over the next spending period. That is a major
:08:13. > :08:17.transport programme. In terms of the real ways we are seeing upgrades and
:08:18. > :08:20.improvements, the money is going in but in order to deliver what we want
:08:21. > :08:25.which is a better service between Norwich and London, which has an
:08:26. > :08:29.impact on Ipswich as well, all the things that need to change to make
:08:30. > :08:35.that happen have to go into a plan. Can you give me a figure on the
:08:36. > :08:43.railways? How much would you like to see a invested? We are going to draw
:08:44. > :08:47.up what needs to be done. We know it is bad. We know the target is a 90
:08:48. > :08:54.minute train service that we have to drop what has to happen. It is
:08:55. > :08:58.better train services. I accept we cannot make it happen tomorrow but
:08:59. > :09:01.you have to plan and then look at the money and then make the
:09:02. > :09:06.decision. Important to you is this region? We think it is important
:09:07. > :09:12.because of the investment in knowledge`based industries and the
:09:13. > :09:17.portability store. `` port of Felixstowe. I do not want another
:09:18. > :09:21.cycle all the money being made in the London and the south`east area
:09:22. > :09:27.and the rest of the country falling behind which we have had in the
:09:28. > :09:31.past. One of the reasons to be here today is to focus on this region and
:09:32. > :09:34.the potential and make sure we realise it because we have great
:09:35. > :09:38.universities in the east of our country, great businesses and
:09:39. > :09:46.industries, an enormous amount of potential. There is not a single
:09:47. > :09:51.motorway. There will be, by the end of this year, a job carriageway
:09:52. > :09:55.between London and Norwich. That has taken far too long but I am proud of
:09:56. > :09:59.that fact we are delivering it. To take money out of the region and
:10:00. > :10:02.give it to other parts of the country, do you not have to put the
:10:03. > :10:06.money into those areas which are making the country rich? We are one
:10:07. > :10:12.country and we have to look after the poorest and most deprived
:10:13. > :10:16.regions but what I am signalling as those areas with potential like the
:10:17. > :10:20.east of England should have the infrastructure to make that
:10:21. > :10:28.potential deliver. That is what today is about. When the A11 is
:10:29. > :10:35.finished, you will drive along it and see us again. Absolutely. It
:10:36. > :10:39.will be `` it was great to see it today and see the people working on
:10:40. > :10:41.it. Thousands of American service
:10:42. > :10:45.personnel have been at a memorial service this afternoon to honour the
:10:46. > :10:49.four crew members of a helicopter which crashed during a training
:10:50. > :10:53.mission in Norfolk. The service was held at the United States Air Force
:10:54. > :11:03.base at Lakenheath. Our reporter was at the service and is at Lakenheath
:11:04. > :11:09.now. You can still see the floral tributes behind me at RAF Lakenheath
:11:10. > :11:13.and the memorial today was an extraordinarily moving event held in
:11:14. > :11:20.a giant hangar which was filled with emotion. The word I kept on hearing
:11:21. > :11:26.was family, the squadron are a family and they are grieving for all
:11:27. > :11:32.their own. `` four of their own. Today we learned who they were. Four
:11:33. > :11:35.extraordinary young people at the top of their game whose job was to
:11:36. > :11:49.rescue people from the most dangerous of situations. One captain
:11:50. > :11:54.had saved more than 130 lives. For 20 minutes or more, this hangar
:11:55. > :12:00.was island, 2000 people waiting for the service to start with hardly a
:12:01. > :12:04.word said. Then the families arrived, fathers, mothers, brothers
:12:05. > :12:12.and sisters. Directly in front of them, four helmets and battle dress
:12:13. > :12:16.and four photographs. The helicopter crashed on a training mission in
:12:17. > :12:27.north Norfolk. All four crew members died. Sean was one of the pilots,
:12:28. > :12:35.married to Rachel with a son Liam. Chris was the other pilot, a married
:12:36. > :12:38.man, 18 runner. His parents only found out what he had been through
:12:39. > :12:51.in Afghanistan and Iraq when he spoke to school children. Their crew
:12:52. > :12:55.had 100 rescues and all the kids were impressed, I was thinking, that
:12:56. > :13:02.is one a day, going into fire and situations. Dale was the flight
:13:03. > :13:08.engineer, an Afghanistan veteran, who saved numerous lives on the
:13:09. > :13:13.battlefield. After an was the Arial gunner. Married to an error man, she
:13:14. > :13:22.leaves two small boys. Her close friend paid tribute. She was wife to
:13:23. > :13:26.a man who she adored. A mother to two boys she loved more than
:13:27. > :13:34.anything in the world. She was my best friend. She will be missed but
:13:35. > :13:58.never forgotten. Four lives lost, four families bereaved. I am with
:13:59. > :14:02.someone who is married to a US airman. You have set up a fund to
:14:03. > :14:07.raise money. We have raised just over $42,000. That is
:14:08. > :14:14.extraordinary, probably more than you were expecting. Yes, it is very
:14:15. > :14:17.overwhelming to see the amount of donations and more importantly the
:14:18. > :14:23.amount of support that has rolled them since they are restarted. I
:14:24. > :14:30.mentioned a reference to family and you are one of that family. That was
:14:31. > :14:35.so palpable in the hangar today. It was amazing. It was breathtaking. It
:14:36. > :14:40.was very moving but it was a very beautiful celebration of their
:14:41. > :14:49.lives. How do people feel about what happened last week? Personally I
:14:50. > :14:52.know that we are still grieving but we know that we are going to give
:14:53. > :14:57.all the support and love and help that we possibly can but we know
:14:58. > :15:03.that work has to go on, missions have to keep going, we have to carry
:15:04. > :15:08.on. Do you know what is going to happen to the money you have raised?
:15:09. > :15:12.At the moment, not at the moment. I am working with public affairs and I
:15:13. > :15:17.am turning the money over to them and they will decide how the money
:15:18. > :15:21.will get used, whether it will be distributed with the families or
:15:22. > :15:25.whether the families are going to decide to donate it somewhere else
:15:26. > :15:31.or something like that. Thank you for joining us. Perhaps the most
:15:32. > :15:35.moving part of the ceremony was when the squadron leader presented the
:15:36. > :15:46.families with the military decorations of those who died. As he
:15:47. > :15:52.did, please did in front of each airman's body armour and saluted
:15:53. > :15:57.them. The traditional missing man
:15:58. > :16:12.formation. Once symbolically heads towards heaven. Fellow airmen paid
:16:13. > :16:21.tribute. He was dedicated, fun loving and energetic. We miss you,
:16:22. > :16:29.we love you you will be in our hearts forever. Few, perhaps too
:16:30. > :16:42.few, appreciate the role that they played. Today we were reminded of
:16:43. > :16:51.their mortal. That others may live. Words which explain why our heroes
:16:52. > :16:54.were flying on that day. One by one the families were presented with
:16:55. > :17:05.military citations to those they had loved and lost. They were carrying
:17:06. > :17:13.out and it `` a rescue mission. They will continue. The tone was sombre
:17:14. > :17:17.with moments of levity as some recounted happier days with those
:17:18. > :17:32.friends. As the service due to a close, a lone bagpipers struck up
:17:33. > :17:44.Amazing Grace. How hard for the families left behind. For some, the
:17:45. > :17:52.agony too intends. The callsign will not be resurrected. Along with
:17:53. > :17:54.Captains Christopher Stover and Sean Ruane, Technical Sergeant Dale
:17:55. > :17:58.Mathews and Staff Sergeant Afton Ponce, it will be laid to rest. The
:17:59. > :18:04.final words left to the men and women of 56 squadron, the rousing
:18:05. > :18:18.call of their unofficial model, to rescue all left behind. `` motto.
:18:19. > :18:23.With me now is the base commander. The things we do that others may
:18:24. > :18:29.live is the motto. A lot was said about that during the ceremony. That
:18:30. > :18:34.is definitely true. That is what we live by. They will do anything they
:18:35. > :18:40.can to rescue anybody when they need to. We heard how difficult their
:18:41. > :18:46.jobs were. They were on a training mission when they died but can you
:18:47. > :18:50.explain what we actually did when they were in places like
:18:51. > :18:53.Afghanistan? They get a call and they would go in the helicopter and
:18:54. > :19:03.take off after a couple of minutes and go anywhere, it usually in poor
:19:04. > :19:11.weather, they will be shot at, the gunners will try to suppress the
:19:12. > :19:16.fire, they will drop down, take care of people, sometimes they will be
:19:17. > :19:22.being shot at, and issuing first aid and then they will hoist them back
:19:23. > :19:26.into the aircraft. We heard that these four when at the top of their
:19:27. > :19:33.game. Outstanding crew. A terrible loss. That is definitely right. They
:19:34. > :19:41.were at the top of their game. They were special. They bore a special
:19:42. > :19:44.place in our hearts because they are the people who would come after us
:19:45. > :19:51.if we were in trouble. How is the mood? There is definitely going to
:19:52. > :19:54.be a sense of loss which will be with us for a while but we have
:19:55. > :20:00.already is hearted flying this week for basic training missions and
:20:01. > :20:05.focusing on things we have to do. We will still be grieving but we have
:20:06. > :20:09.to continue to train. Has this changed anything? Or does everyone
:20:10. > :20:14.know that everything has to carry on? It changes a little bit, it
:20:15. > :20:25.makes you think about things you perhaps did not think about before.
:20:26. > :20:30.We have to move on. We learnt a lot today about those who died. One was
:20:31. > :20:34.an outstanding leader, one was a prankster, one was brilliantly
:20:35. > :20:40.clever and another would help anyone in need. They were all loved,
:20:41. > :20:45.admired and respected, but most of all will be terribly missed.
:20:46. > :20:48.Earlier in the programme the Prime Minister told us he was going to
:20:49. > :20:52.deliver better transport links in this region. We will return to that
:20:53. > :20:55.in a moment, but first the day's other news in brief.
:20:56. > :20:59.Heavy rain has been causing problems in Essex. This was the scene at
:21:00. > :21:02.Mountnessing near Chelmsford. The A127 at Rayleigh was also
:21:03. > :21:05.underwater, causing long delays. The Environment Agency has issued a
:21:06. > :21:09.flood warning for riverside properties in Chelmsford including
:21:10. > :21:12.the cricket ground. Network Rail has had an appeal
:21:13. > :21:22.against a fine of ?500,000 thrown out. It follows an accident on a
:21:23. > :21:25.level crossing in Suffolk. In 2012, 10`year`old James Howe was in a car
:21:26. > :21:29.driven by his grandfather at Barnby near Lowestoft when it was hit by a
:21:30. > :21:31.train. He had devastating head injuries. Last year Network Rail
:21:32. > :21:41.admitted safety failings but appealed against the fine.
:21:42. > :21:45.Prince Harry has been moved from his job as an Apache helicopter pilot at
:21:46. > :21:49.Wattisham in Suffolk to take up a desk job. He has been based at
:21:50. > :21:52.Wattisham since 2011 and qualified as an Apache commander last summer.
:21:53. > :21:55.He flew in combat in Afghanistan for four months. He will now be involved
:21:56. > :22:04.with the organisation of big commemorative events.
:22:05. > :22:07.The Prime Minister has now left the studio after spending the day in
:22:08. > :22:10.Norfolk and Suffolk. He promised to boost the economy of this region by
:22:11. > :22:14.investing in better transport links. This is what he has to say. It is
:22:15. > :22:18.important to give the Eastern region the priority it deserves. When I
:22:19. > :22:26.look at the industries, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and
:22:27. > :22:33.the Port of Felixstowe, and those energy industries, what they need is
:22:34. > :22:36.clear plans from the government and strong investment in infrastructure.
:22:37. > :22:41.I believe the growth potential is immensely strong but it needs that
:22:42. > :22:45.transport infrastructure to make it work. You said you want to improve
:22:46. > :22:50.the balance between not have to put the money into the area is making
:22:51. > :22:55.the country rich? We are one country and have to look after the poorest,
:22:56. > :22:58.the most deprived, but what I am signalling as those areas with
:22:59. > :23:04.attentional, like the east of England, should have the
:23:05. > :23:09.infrastructure to make that potential deliver. Our political
:23:10. > :23:16.correspondent is here. What did you make of that? This visit has been in
:23:17. > :23:20.the diary for some time and his advisers wanted him to talk about
:23:21. > :23:24.the economy or perhaps education but instead he chose to talk about
:23:25. > :23:26.infrastructure and that is fascinating because for many years
:23:27. > :23:31.the feeling has been that we have been ignored by Whitehall, that
:23:32. > :23:35.London has not understood the importance for proper transport
:23:36. > :23:39.links in this region. We were both of the league table ten years ago,
:23:40. > :23:43.the Prime Minister says we are now top outside London. That is really
:23:44. > :23:47.significant that the message has got through and the Prime Minister was
:23:48. > :23:52.keen to say that. He wants us to have better rail and road links and
:23:53. > :24:00.he wants to deliver them. You say, can he deliver? Do you think he can?
:24:01. > :24:04.The problem is we have a general election in 16 months than the
:24:05. > :24:09.problem is that he might not be Prime Minister after that. He can
:24:10. > :24:15.make promises, they can say, I believe what to see the A47 become a
:24:16. > :24:20.dual carriageway, but he might not have the power to do it and if we
:24:21. > :24:26.have another government they may have other priorities. The counter
:24:27. > :24:33.argument is setting up a feasibility study does move things forward a
:24:34. > :24:38.little bit and many people believe that when it gets to bend the year
:24:39. > :24:43.of the Prime Minister it gets noted in London so even if we change
:24:44. > :24:48.government some people might listen. A lot of promises about roads, not
:24:49. > :24:53.too many about rail. The problem is the rail budget has been allocated
:24:54. > :24:57.until 2019 and the Prime Minister has said we have to carry out
:24:58. > :25:01.further studies. Nothing has happened on infrastructure for so
:25:02. > :25:04.many years, you have to do the preliminary work before you can
:25:05. > :25:11.actually drop proper plans and start spending money so we are playing
:25:12. > :25:18.catch up actually drop `` actually draw up proper plans.
:25:19. > :25:25.We have had heavy showers and also springlike sunshine. The heaviest of
:25:26. > :25:32.the showers affecting parts of ethics where we have seen problems
:25:33. > :25:38.with flooding. `` ethics. The bulk of the night is looking largely dry
:25:39. > :25:41.with some clear spells. We start to develop some cloud later on with a
:25:42. > :25:46.narrow band of rain pushing through which is looking light and patchy.
:25:47. > :25:50.Temperatures will stay on the mild side with a breeze from the
:25:51. > :25:55.south`east. Around five or six Celsius. Into the weekend low
:25:56. > :26:01.pressure on the scene which means unsettled weather with some rain,
:26:02. > :26:06.but it will not clean all the time. Saturday looks cloudier with a
:26:07. > :26:10.greater risk of rain but there should be some brighter spells,
:26:11. > :26:13.particularly for Sunday. We start Saturday with this band of rain
:26:14. > :26:20.clearing away and then it looks largely dry and it will be cloudy
:26:21. > :26:29.with some brighter spells but that will be quite hopeful. For most of
:26:30. > :26:32.us this guy is remaining cloudy. Factor in the modern at
:26:33. > :26:44.southeasterly breeze which means it will feel a little bit chilly. `` a
:26:45. > :26:48.moderate. Looking ahead, low pressure is starting to the north, a
:26:49. > :26:53.red of high pressure building in from the south`west which will mean
:26:54. > :27:00.lighter winds so fine conditions as we start next week but also much
:27:01. > :27:04.colder nights. Sunday is looking quite cloudy, with the chance of a
:27:05. > :27:08.shower and lighter winds. Some brighter spells developing. The
:27:09. > :27:13.weather front pushing through on Sunday night will bring us some rain
:27:14. > :27:21.but also temperatures dropping under clear skies. There could be a patchy
:27:22. > :27:26.frost and icy patches. Next week is looking colder, mainly dry and
:27:27. > :27:30.bright for Monday. Perhaps the odd isolated shower. A much colder night
:27:31. > :27:40.which will bring a widespread frost and me linger into Tuesday. `` might
:27:41. > :27:46.linger into Tuesday. We will be back on Monday morning.