25/01/2017 Look East (West)

Hundreds of jobs at risk and high

street branches to go as the Norwich and Peterborough

Building Society announces plans to close.

the warning from Badminton bosses as they campaign against cuts

We are smashing so many things in the sport, doing so many things, and

this decision could absolutely pull the rug from under us.

as major structural problems are found in a main

And I am here at Anglesey Abbey in the stunning but chilly winter

garden. First tonight - more than three

hundred jobs across this region are at risk tonight,

as the owners of the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society

announced it will be scaling back its branches and losing posts

at its headquarters. In all, 28 branches will close

across East Anglia and up The Norwich Peterborough Building

Society brand will also disappear from our high streets

later this year. This from our business

correspondent Richard Bond. It has been a trusted name on the

high street for decades, with 45 branches across the region. But soon

the Norwich and Peterborough name will completely disappear, it all

the Yorkshire building society to close 28 N and P branches including

this one of the outskirts of Peterborough. It does have an effect

on people in the area which is particularly felt with the older

community year but also for the young people, so my younger brother

uses it because it is near to where he works. It is a bit of an upset

because people have to travel further, for those who love appeared

especially because it is the neither place. Be changes put at risk 340

jobs, in branches and at the headquarters in Peterborough. After

the closures, only 17 branches will remain under the Yorkshire brand. It

was formed in 1986 to the merger of the Norwich and Peterborough

building society is, for 20 years the organisation thrived but had

suffered a major setback about ten years ago when it started selling

the investment products of a company called Key data which went bust.

Customers were compensated by the scandal cost them ?57 million, and

led to the Yorkshire takeover. The Yorkshire CV banking market is

changing, more customers are conducting business online and use

of high-street branches like this is declining by 7% per year. Further

investment in that network can't be justified. But the argument will

disappoint thousands of members who inspect -- expect a building society

to provide a good branch network in places where the big banks aren't

represented. These are some of the place is set to close, the changes

due to take effect from September this year. Members are being

encouraged to embrace online banking but some elderly customers may find

that difficult to do. I asked Chief Executive

of the Yorkshire Building Society, Mike Regnier, what the

changes would mean. The thing that makes building

society is different from banks is the overall objectives are

completely different, the building society objectives are to act in the

interests of our members, we don't have shareholders, we look at the

members. And provide the best service and best value. Lots of your

members value having a local branch to visit and a person to talk to.

You are not providing value for them. What is important to say is

that for most of those people the nearest branch will still be two or

three or four miles away from the one closing because in the main we

are proposing two ) is where we have another branch in the close

vicinity. We will still have 260 branches and agencies on the high

Street. It will be branded. And from our perspective that is still going

to be a significant investment in face-to-face service. This will

involve a certain amount of job losses, where all those come? Branch

level or at the headquarters? In East Anglia we are consulting with

our colleagues at the moment and these changes will take effect on to

the next 18 months so our priority really is to see how many of those

colleagues that we have spoken to today we can find them out of

employment for because we do have a number of months for us to find them

alternative rules were that is possible and where their skills

match and very find something they are interested in doing. A lot of

people might be sad and losing the name, Yorkshire does not mean a lot

to them. Any understand that and how can you reassure them? While the

name might change them while the pink and purple blobs might change

to green, the service customers get day-to-day will be just as good if

not better than I was. And for those branches it will remain, it will be

the same people there that customers can turn to to help them with their

needs. Badminton England,

based in Milton Keynes, says success at the next Olympics

is in jeopardy - unless funding Public money for badminton was cut

after the Rio Games, despite two MK players winning

bronze in the men's Our sports editor Jonathan

Park has this report. They want to turn bronze into gold,

in Tokyo. But right now and medallists Marcus Ellis and Chris

language can think too far ahead. They like the other players training

at the National Badminton Centre face an uncertain future after the

sport's funding was cut by UK sport. Healing the news was obviously a

real kick in the teeth for us and everyone, I don't think anyone could

believe what had happened. It was not just the case of funding reduced

it was to nothing. 18th of August 2016 the day Marcus and Chris won

Brent's first-ever men's doubles awarded medal but before the year

was out the UK sport decision not to -- made the decision not to spend a

penny of the budget on Badminton. This was leading up to the Tokyo

games in 2020. Badminton has launched an appeal but still must

prepare for the worst if the appeal fails. We have to prepare for what

life without UK funding could be like, it has been a challenging 56

weeks, we have a number of staff at risk of redundancy and the courtesan

at risk of redundancy, we informed the players about what they -- the

programme could look like should we not be successful here. UK sport's

Badminton snub means that Marcus and Chris may have to fight between 60

and ?70,000 each in the run-up to Tokyo just to be competitive. A

court is ?10 per hour and retrain sex hours a day and we need six

courts so that is a lot of money in itself. These are not luxuries,

these are the basics we need and then turn its wise if we are not

travelling a pointer internment our opponents in competitions are and

they go up in the ranks on the go down. Badminton players and coaches

and management are confident in the sport's ability to win Olympic and

paralytic medals in Tokyo and beyond. The head to London in two

weeks' time for the appeal to be heard by UK sport in what will prove

to be a pivotal moment for the sport.

As you probably know by now, it's the 50th

birthday of Milton Keynes, and, as we reported on Monday,

the event is being well celebrated across the town.

Today the celebrations extended to Westminster with MPs

from the Prime Minister downwards lining up to offer

Let's join Andrew Sinclair who's down there tonight.

It was the 23rd of January 1967 that the orders creating the new town of

Milton Keynes were drawn up in the building and me. Parliament doesn't

normally celebrate anniversaries of towns, but Milton Keynes's two MPs

were determined that this anniversary should not go unnoticed.

This week Milton Keynes celebrates its 50th birthday. It started at

Prime Minister's Questions with the MP for NK cell is saying the praises

of his hometown and inviting the Prime Minister to join in. Think

Milton Keynes is a great example of what you can achieve with a clear

plan and with strong local leadership. Then the unusual step of

the whole parliamentary debate devoted to the subject. At

politicians in Milton Keynes share a passion for the place. Mr Stewart

said there had been a sense of excitement and optimism among the

early settlers particularly those who moved out of the slums of

London. Milton Keynes had lived up to expectations he said but could

not rest on its laurels. Projects like the Northern powerhouse and

Midlands engine meant that the town still needs investment to grow.

Milton Keynes future is as exciting as it passed. The other MP Mark

Lancaster is a government minister, he said Milton Keynes was becoming a

centre of high-tech innovation. More homes would be built but he made

this promise. I before E or infrastructure before expansion and

economic growth should be the drivers for local growth in Milton

Keynes. An MP from Oxford said he would forward to the expressway

being built, the Bedfordshire MP praised the large number of trees in

Milton Keynes. No one said anything nasty today. But then you don't own

birthdays do you? Which makes you wonder what the

point was today. It keeps Milton Keynes on everyone's radar and as

Ian Stewart said any publicity is good publicity.

Drivers are complaining of traffic chaos,

and villagers are complaining of drivers using their small roads

It's all over the continued closure of the A6 in Northamptonshire.

The Highways Agency says structural problems with the road are far worse

Stuart Ratcliffe has been to find out more.

It is this small section of road which is causing big problems. A

routine inspection last week raised serious safety concerns and the road

was immediately closed. The foundations are dropping away from

the road surface and we found a void, essentially we found a gap and

what we have been doing is serving the entire area and over the weekend

we were doing GPS surveying and realising that is more significant

than we first thought. And that we need to carry on doing what

investigations and work. That means the ASICS is now closed between

junction three on a 14 and there's brass. The diversion is to take

people through Corby and Kettering and vice versa but some are ignoring

that advice and this is the result. It causes bedlam on the old ASICS

between Rothwell and Desborough, the amount of vehicles that come into

Rothwell is awful. The lorries, they have put a sign up this banal HGVs

but big articular cant see them and the other evening there was an

articulated lorry at the end of a road trying to turn. Causing even

more chaos. Cars along each end of the road could not move. It is not

just the road through Desborough and Rothwell which is taking a hit. At

rush hour these tiny country lanes also become rat runs. It has

increased 24 to what normally does. It would be a real challenge to get

anywhere on these little roads at the moment. The full extent of the

work needed here is not yet known, nor is the exact reopening date.

Engineers say they are hopeful that it will be before the end of

February. The former Prime Minister David

Cameron has become the new president of the charity Alzheimer's Research

UK based in Cambridge. Mr Cameron, who resigned

from parliament in September visited the Cambridge Drug Discovery

Institute at Addenbrooke's He made dementia a priority

during his time as PM. He kick-started a drive

to deliver major improvements The charity said he will act

as its highest level ambassador. That's all for now. It's join Stuart

and Susie. Saying goodbye to the gardener

at Anglesey Abbey after 40 years. And after all that bad

news about the tidal surge earlier this month,

the silver lining on The latest phase of work is now

underway to protect the iconic lighthouse Orfordness from the

scene. Avril once the ways that been taken away, had been giving

something back. The East of England Ambulance

Service has seen a huge increase in the numbers of calls over recent

years, and it reached record levels The service says it's

been its busiest winter ever. Today, the board of directors

met in Cambridgeshire. Among the items up for discussion,

growing demand, a shortage of paramedics and handover

delays at hospitals. But the trust says it is making

progress on response times. In a moment, the chief

executive Robert Morton, after this from our chief reporter,

Kim Riley. Pressure on the Ambulance Service

has been steadily building over the winter, with demand leaping

by almost a third last month. Between Christmas Eve

and Boxing Day, control room staff handled just under 7000 calls,

800 more than last year. The Department of Health national

standard requires paramedics treat 75% of the most serious

life-threatening calls In December, the East

of England Ambulance Service While not hitting the national

targets, the trust claims, week-by-week, it's consistenyl now

one of the best-performing Our hospitals are under

intense pressure too. The report, at today's meeting,

highlighted that delays handing In December, delays of over 15

minutes reached over 7800 hours. The equivalent of some 682

12-hour ambulance shifts. Southend, Colchester,

the Norfolk and Norwich and Peterborough among

the top contributing hospitals. A national shortage of paramedics

has led the trust to back up its recruitment drive at home

by looking overseas. Nine candidates have

been offered employment It's now considering furtehr

recruitment in Australia The trust says it's treating more

of its sickest patients within the eight-minutes target

than ever before, and is moving towards meeting national

performance standards. But the recruitment problem,

an ongoing dispute with the main union,

Unison, and a significant financial deficit are among problems that

still have to be faced. After that board meeting, I asked

the Chief Executive Robert Morton about the financial measures at the

trust. He said the need to to spend more than they had in order to keep

patients safe. If we did not spend this money now,

effectively, we would not have sufficient capacity to respond to

the huge rise in demand we're experiencing across the east of an.

Secondly, there would be tremendous pressure on our workforce. Us, as a

trust board, the pressure wave had to maintain this deficit to ensure

we have sufficient capacity to respond to patients, maintain the

safety of service and the well being of our workforce.

You talk about your workforce, the trade dispute relating to late

finishes are still ongoing. I spoke to you about that when you first

joined, 18 months ago? We have worked in partnership with

Unison and developed a number of measures to address the issue of

late finishes and disturbed meal breaks. The feedback we've had from

our workforce generally is that those changes have been positively

received. But Unison has reiterated the threat

to ballot for strike action if its demands aren't met?

One would expect a trade union to continue to maintain that option.

The reality is, we do continue to work together in partnership, we do

continue to talk between our organisation and Unison. So whilst

the statement is there, the reality is the risk of industrial action is

low at this stage. You're still, as a service, failing

to hit your targets. How much of that is down to the problems you

have with handovers at hospitals? Is good percentage is due to hand

over delays at hospitals, particularly across the festive

season, we've seen continued correlation between weight for

ambulance in areas where there are a long hand over delays.

So you haven't got enough money, you have difficult relations with the

union and you're dealing with a creaking NHS. What would your

message to beat the Health Secretary this evening about those pressures

you're facing? Clearly, we would want or money and

want it now. I think the Secretary of State with gift us that money if

he had available to him. But thing, accordingly, what we also need is

continuing recognition of the pressure we're all under and that's

where a micro doing our best underdog but circumstances. I've

heard is a recognition that is it case from the Secretary of State.

Thank you. Two weeks ago, our coastline was

bracing itself for the devastating effects of strong winds

and spring tides. Thousands of homes were

evacuated, and the sea But while many places

were left counting the cost, at Orfordness in Suffolk,

they were counting their blessings. There, the waves dumped thousands

of tonnes of shingle on the shoreline, and that

could prove vital in a battle Once again, the volunteers are

stepping into the breach on the beach. This, the latest phase of

work costing more than ?6,000 to try to delay the now redundant

structure's collapse, using these shingle-filled sausages. While it

has weathered the recent swell, for once, the waves proved friend, not

phone. We felt that the old girl was

putting up a good fight, so we decided we would help her. Given

some fair winds and a kind tail end to the winter, we should be able to

get visitors over here again this year.

Built in 1792 using three quarters of millennium breaks, it's over 750

feet tall, with another 20 feet underground. It was decommissioned

in 2013, now owned by a trust driven by passion and pride.

It's landmark that everybody loves. Went you drive in, the first thing

you see out to sea as the lighthouse. It would matter be --

Orfordness without a lighthouse would be disastrous.

We will take it year by year and at the end of each winter we will be

able to assess how she's got through the winter. Will have time from when

we can't get visitors here any more, but the lighthouse still saved, if

that makes sense. That's when we will start dismantling and moving to

the next phase of the plan. These are voice pipes, Wessels would go

all the way down to the kitchen. The keeper good summer his mate come up

here and give him a hand. They will hope to salvage an exhibit

in the museum this and other artefacts from the inside. The very

top of the building will be taken away preserve too. They know that

they will sue calm, but for now it is all about digging in and battling

on. Surrender, never. I always loved those moments when

you say, I never knew that. Powered by whale oil, well I never.

If you say Anglesey Abbey to most people, especially

at this time of year, most people will say snowdrops.

Over the years, the Abbey - which is run by the National Trust -

has built a reputation for its winter garden.

For the last 40 years, the man in charge has been Richard Todd,

but now he's stepping down as head gardener.

The nationally acclaimed winter garden, here at Anglesey Abbey -

From red dogwood to whitewash bramble.

That's the beauty of a winter garden.

You can't be unhappy about what you're seeing,

because they're fantastically bright.

Richard Todd has worked here since he was 22.

He planted much of this garden and designed a lot of it.

Now he's retiring, his successor will need to constantly maintain it

It's not a job for the faint-hearted.

Not only are you running the garden, making sure

maintaining all of those things - big team to look after,

Obviously, there's lots of emotions around that, because it's

But think it's the right time for me to hang up my boots, as it were.

The real jewel in the crown here are the snowdrops,

What are the challenges facing the new head gardener?

We've got one right here, this is the first of our named

We've got 350 in the collection, you've got to get your head

round that, to tell the stories, tell the differences

Richard is now going on to become the garden consultant

for the National Trust in our region.

If you'd like to fill his shoes here, applications close

Does look lovely. Beautiful, very cold, but don't get

colder? Yes, it today wasn't called enough.

Promoter us across the region, it was misty and foggy, temperatures

just above freezing. Beautiful photographs, a misty scene and

Norfolk this morning. Another one here in Northamptonshire. That's how

we start the evening, a lot of messed around and low cloud. Spots

of drizzle possible, even the odd snow through the night. That throws

up a problem of ice on untreated surfaces through the night.

Temperatures will drop below freezing quite rightly, down to

around minus two Celsius. In those frost-prime spots, it could go a

degree or two lower than that. As we get drier, colder, continental air

bossing the region overnight. That is going to be a feature of the

weather tomorrow. High-pressure starting to head eastwards, we get

this south easterly wind. A lump of cold air across the continent,

across us tomorrow. We start tomorrow on a cold note anyway, a

widespread frost. Potential for icy conditions as well. Cloud around,

and once more at the of drizzle, a snow flurry as well. Essentially, a

dry day. Is this dry air comes in, we'll studies ease and brightness,

perhaps even sunshine in parts of the region, across that southeastern

corner. Temperatures were some of us, not above freezing all day.

Factor in the wind-chill, as easterly breeze, it will bitterly

cold. It will feel subzero for Match Of The Day. The good news is it

won't last, but it's going to be a widespread frost. A shift in

pressure pattern, Friday a transitional day. High-pressure

starting to rake down, Atlantic weather systems pushing and from the

west. We'll study get more of a southerly wind. Celeste Coles, not

warmer, but less cold. The potential for more cloud, and patchy rain on

Friday. Not raining on Friday, but cloud around, dry interludes and

spells of patchy rain. Temperatures recovering, up to 7 degrees on

Friday. The weekend a similar pattern, dry, cloudy at times,

chilly at night, but not as cold as it will be tomorrow.

Thank you. 80 degrees on Saturday? Hardly

swimsuits! -- 8 degrees on Saturday. See you tomorrow, bye-bye.