:00:17. > :00:27.waiting Leek East has learned the A 14 upgrade will get the go ahead.
:00:27. > :00:30.
:00:30. > :00:35.That and the rest of the day's news Kettering Hospital and a boost in
:00:35. > :00:45.the area for the science industry and meet the band who will make it
:00:45. > :00:52.
:00:52. > :00:56.big before Tony Blair said he liked of the most congested roads in the
:00:56. > :01:01.area will finally be improved. We have learnt that tomorrow, the
:01:01. > :01:04.Government will announce plans to help fund a new stretch of the A 14
:01:04. > :01:08.between Huntingdon and Cambridge. The work could start within the next
:01:08. > :01:13.two years. We'll get the details from our political correspondent
:01:13. > :01:17.Andrew Sinclair, who is at Westminster. Simon, at 10. 30am
:01:17. > :01:21.Danny Lex, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury will stand up in the
:01:21. > :01:25.building behind me and announce �100 billion worth of infrastructure
:01:25. > :01:29.investment and I'm told from sources within the Department of Transport
:01:29. > :01:32.that the A 14 will be on that list. I'm told it will be a substantial
:01:32. > :01:36.investment and enough to get the project going. What I can't confirm
:01:36. > :01:40.at the moment is whether this new stretch of road between Huntingdon
:01:40. > :01:44.and Cambridge will be a toll road or not. The expectation is that it
:01:44. > :01:49.always would be, but the Liberal Democrats have been opposed to the
:01:49. > :01:56.scheme and so too have some hauliers, who have had concerns on
:01:56. > :02:02.the impact on fleealism stow. It seems that after -- flix stow. It
:02:02. > :02:07.seems that after years of waiting we'll see some action. It's the
:02:07. > :02:12.region's main economic artery, but the A 14 is clogged up and in
:02:12. > :02:22.desperate need of surgery. Tonight, that treatment appears imnerveleT
:02:22. > :02:29.
:02:29. > :02:33.The road runs 127 miles from Felixstope to the Midlands. Delays
:02:33. > :02:40.cost business millions, but last week, local councils and others put
:02:40. > :02:45.up �100 million towards an upgreat of the Cambridge section. Both the
:02:45. > :02:48.districts have been positive, but further afield. Importantly, the
:02:48. > :02:53.Local Enterprise Partnership, who have given half of the money, �50
:02:53. > :02:57.million, to the post of 100 million and other authorities like Suffolk
:02:57. > :03:02.and Norfolk and Northampton. offer of help is conditional on a
:03:02. > :03:08.start of work by 2016. That may well have persuaded Government to take
:03:08. > :03:12.the plunge. Motorists at Cambridge Services were expecting a toll road.
:03:12. > :03:17.An extra lane would be good and if it ended up with a toll road then I
:03:17. > :03:23.think we would have to cope with that. I use it quite a lot to go
:03:23. > :03:28.down to Suffolk, yeah, it would be a good move and if it's a toll, I use
:03:28. > :03:32.the M6, so I wouldn't mind paying for it. I don't think extra lanes
:03:32. > :03:35.would help, because it will fill up with more cars. We need better
:03:35. > :03:44.public transport. Hauliers say a toll road would add to costs, but
:03:44. > :03:48.that may be the deal on the table come tomorrow. Why do you think it
:03:48. > :03:52.has happened now? The Chancellor has always been keen on this project. I
:03:52. > :03:56.understand that he regularly tells colleagues and his staff that this
:03:56. > :03:59.is top of his list of priorities, but two things have come together
:03:59. > :04:02.very nicely first, the Government's Spending Review. The Government
:04:02. > :04:06.wants to spend what little money it's got on infrastructure projects,
:04:06. > :04:09.because it believes if we can all get around more quickly that's good
:04:10. > :04:15.for the economy. However, it could never afford to fund this scheme on
:04:15. > :04:20.its own, that's why it had to junk it in 20 # 10. So, it went -- 2010.
:04:20. > :04:25.It went to local authorities and said, "You'll have to help." Last
:04:25. > :04:28.week, they came up with the money, so we have that and Spending Review
:04:28. > :04:34.money and suddenly a scheme is just about possible that seemed
:04:34. > :04:40.expensive. The future of Kettering Hospital has been debated in
:04:40. > :04:45.Westminster tomorrow. Andy Sawford raised concerns about the A&E and
:04:45. > :04:49.demanded it gets more funding. In the last 25 years, the number of
:04:49. > :04:54.patients has doubled and it's struggled to cope. Last year, it was
:04:54. > :04:58.heavily criticised by the watchdog Monitor and faced enforcement
:04:58. > :05:02.action. A report said they were failing to meet waiting times and
:05:02. > :05:07.were criticised for financial management. Andy Sawford joins us
:05:07. > :05:11.now. Thank you very much for joining us. What were you hoping this
:05:11. > :05:16.afternoon would achieve? I wanted to highlight to Government the
:05:16. > :05:20.particular issues we face in Kettering. A&E all around the
:05:20. > :05:23.country has real problems at the moment with waiting times. At
:05:23. > :05:27.Kettering General, the Trust has been unfortunately missing waiting
:05:27. > :05:31.times for a long time. We had that Monitor report you referred to, but
:05:31. > :05:35.also a recent report by the Care Quality Commission, that highlights
:05:36. > :05:42.a real serious problem there. It's a problem of demand. I want ministers
:05:42. > :05:45.to meet with us and they've pledged a date, to talk about proper funding
:05:45. > :05:48.for improvements. You talk about meeting ministers. I think you are
:05:48. > :05:52.hoping with a meeting with Dan Poulter. Is there any more money
:05:52. > :05:57.available? What I've said to ministers is that there is an
:05:57. > :06:03.exceptional case here. Ce constituency has the highest birth
:06:03. > :06:07.rate in the country. It is the fastest-growing town. The rise in
:06:07. > :06:10.demand highlighted has been huge and once there are issues that are in
:06:10. > :06:14.common with lots of others, for example having an ageing population
:06:14. > :06:18.and the population with the 111 service, there are particular
:06:18. > :06:22.challenges that face us in Kettering and in the north of norm han
:06:22. > :06:25.tonneshire and I want ministers to recognise that, because it's not fit
:06:25. > :06:30.for purpose. There is a huge underspend in the budget and there
:06:30. > :06:34.are funds for capital projects and I want them to commit to spending that
:06:34. > :06:37.money. Can I just ask you, when you were elected you suggested this
:06:37. > :06:42.hospital would close. Is this becoming such of a political
:06:42. > :06:46.football? I never said the hospital would close. There has been a major
:06:46. > :06:52.review that Andrew Sinclair and others have followed very closely
:06:52. > :06:58.that looked at reducing the number of A&Es in our area and Kettering
:06:58. > :07:02.was planned to have theirs taken away. We fought that off, but we
:07:02. > :07:10.still have a big issue about rising demand. It needs improvement and I
:07:11. > :07:16.need to get that funding committed by the Government. Thank you.
:07:16. > :07:20.A former stone Mason has been fined �10,000 after a mantlepiece he
:07:21. > :07:25.installed collapsed can killing a four-year-old. The mantle crushed
:07:25. > :07:29.Matthew Green in October 2005. The Crown Court heard Kristian Childs
:07:29. > :07:34.failed to train his staff properly and the mantle had been held on with
:07:34. > :07:40.just a blob of mortar. The prosecution against the house
:07:40. > :07:43.builder Persimmon Homes had previously failed. Described as a
:07:43. > :07:47.lovely boy, four-year-old Matthew Green's life ended when the stone
:07:47. > :07:53.mantle in his parent's house fell on top of him. Today, his family were
:07:54. > :07:58.in court. The man responsible was fined �10,000. It's obviously been a
:07:58. > :08:05.very long eight years, and it's been a very difficult time for the whole
:08:05. > :08:10.family. We are relieved it's over. Obviously, the result is not what we
:08:10. > :08:13.wanted it to be. Kristian Childs ran a stone-works company and he was
:08:13. > :08:16.employed by Persimmon Homes to install fire places in the houses.
:08:16. > :08:22.Aftermath ewe's death inspections were carried out in other properties
:08:22. > :08:27.on the estate. Out of 1600 fire places over 100 gave cause for
:08:27. > :08:33.concern. 21 were faulty. The court heard about other incidents between
:08:33. > :08:36.1996 and 2008, when mantles in other properties had also collapsed. The
:08:36. > :08:40.prosecution said Kristian Childs had no formal training in construction
:08:40. > :08:44.and his staff were poorly trained in the installation. It's all to do
:08:44. > :08:51.with a lack of mechanical fixings and that was the problem. The
:08:51. > :08:55.guidance that is published now, that is widely available, makes it very
:08:56. > :09:03.clear that mechanical fixings must be used. Since the death, lth Health
:09:03. > :09:07.and Safety Executive has issued new guidance for stone Masons. The
:09:07. > :09:10.directors of a troubled ambulance trust are refusing to resign,
:09:11. > :09:14.despite pressure from many of the region's MPs. Two weeks ago a report
:09:14. > :09:20.was published on the way the east of England ambulance trust was being
:09:20. > :09:25.run. Today, the trust met for their first board meeting since then. Only
:09:25. > :09:31.one non-Executive Director stood down. Arriving for today's meeting,
:09:31. > :09:36.two of the Board's non-executive directors. Margaret Stockham and
:09:36. > :09:39.Phil Barlow. He's been on the board for siple years. Neither in a mood
:09:39. > :09:43.to quit. Both played an active part in the discussions in the public
:09:43. > :09:47.session. The interim Chief Executive reporting improved performance,
:09:47. > :09:52.better response times, fewer delays from hospital handovers and sickness
:09:52. > :09:55.levels continuing to go down. The meeting was told that Caroline Bails
:09:55. > :10:00.was stepping down with immediate effect due to other work
:10:00. > :10:04.commitments, a period of office was due to end next month. The chairman
:10:04. > :10:07.Dr Jeff Harris told me the position of these part-time directors was not
:10:07. > :10:11.the key issue. It's my top priority to review the leadership of the
:10:11. > :10:16.Trust. I think discussions about individuals should be had with
:10:16. > :10:20.individuals and that's what I inend to do, but my focus will continue to
:10:20. > :10:23.be on ensuring we have got the best high-quality leadership for the
:10:23. > :10:28.organisation and indeed that we stay focussed on delivery. The message
:10:28. > :10:34.from the MPs tonight is that one resignation isn't enough. I do not
:10:34. > :10:38.see how the Trust can continue, even through the period of reform and
:10:39. > :10:42.looking ahead, with the particular individuals in place. They were all
:10:42. > :10:46.culpable for much of the damage that took place in the Trust over the
:10:46. > :10:53.previous years when the Trust was failing and they added no value then
:10:53. > :10:58.and I don't see how they can add it going forward. Tonight, the Trust's
:10:58. > :11:04.turn around plan is perceived to be making head way, although everyone
:11:04. > :11:08.believes there is a long way to go. Firefighters are at a blaze in a nut
:11:08. > :11:12.we're house. Fire crews were called to the Cavalry Hill Industrial Park
:11:12. > :11:16.in Weedon this morning. People living near by have been Khanned to
:11:16. > :11:22.keep doors waned owes closed. 90 firefighters were involving in
:11:22. > :11:28.tackling the blaze. The Government is facing a Commons
:11:28. > :11:32.revolt over the HS2. Ministers say the new route would allow more
:11:32. > :11:41.trains to travel on existing lines into London. The issue has divided
:11:41. > :11:44.MPs in our area, who claim it's a waste of money. High-speed trains
:11:44. > :11:49.linking lon and Birmingham in under an hour. The Government's vision of
:11:49. > :11:53.2026. The new line would run through south Northamptonshire, but some
:11:53. > :11:56.feel it would ruin the countryside and others say it is just too
:11:56. > :12:05.expensive. Money is tight and we are spending thousands of millions of
:12:05. > :12:10.pounds on a railway, which actually I don't think we need. Why not spend
:12:10. > :12:16.it on something else? Supporters say it would create thousands of new
:12:16. > :12:20.jobs in areas like Milton Keynes. taking off the express InterCity
:12:20. > :12:23.trains that don't currently stop here, that will create more space
:12:23. > :12:28.for extra communitier trains, or regional trains that will connect
:12:28. > :12:36.Milton Keynes to other towns and cities. MPs get their first official
:12:36. > :12:41.vote on HS2 this evening. Rebels opposing it is Nadine doRaries. The
:12:41. > :12:44.Government is backing it. A massive programme that has the capacity to
:12:44. > :12:49.transform the regional and economic geography of this country. Today's
:12:49. > :12:56.challenge is unlikely to throw HS2 off course, but underlines how
:12:56. > :13:02.controversial a project this is. Detectives investigating the murder
:13:02. > :13:06.of a 65-year-old man have released new CCTV images of a man. Sharif
:13:06. > :13:12.Demir was stabbed to death at his house in Kempston in May. New
:13:12. > :13:17.footage shows the man walking close to the murder scene in Vineyard Way.
:13:17. > :13:22.This is an awful case. We have to look at what happened in the house.
:13:22. > :13:28.He was murdered in his own home in front of his 68-year-old partner and
:13:28. > :13:32.all I would say is that we have a dedicated team who continue to work
:13:32. > :13:36.tirelessly on this investigation, but it's key the public get in touch
:13:36. > :13:40.so we can apprehend the offenders and bring them to justice.
:13:40. > :13:45.Silverstone is offering tickets on the gate this weekend, because of
:13:45. > :13:48.slow sales. Last year's event was hit by heavy rain and people
:13:49. > :13:52.suffered lengthy delays trying to get into the track. The venue is
:13:52. > :13:55.normally sold out at this stage and organisers are still predicting a