:00:00. > :00:00.In Look East tonight: Freezing rain, snow and wind -
:00:00. > :00:00.councils prepare for travel disruption tomorrow morning
:00:00. > :00:11.They joked about hiding a body - the brother of a woman found dead
:00:12. > :00:15.gives evidence at her partner's murder trial.
:00:16. > :00:18.And the risk of ice tonight as temperatures drop below freezing.
:00:19. > :00:32.Wintry conditions have been sweeping across our region tonight,
:00:33. > :00:38.Councils and highways authorities have spent the day trying to prepare
:00:39. > :00:41.for an ever-changing weather picture, with freezing conditions
:00:42. > :00:44.for tomorrow morning's rush hour the big worry.
:00:45. > :00:48.Stuart Ratcliffe has been out with the gritters.
:00:49. > :00:52.This is the scene at highways depots across the region,
:00:53. > :00:55.as teams prepare for the white stuff, forecast for both tonight
:00:56. > :01:00.Each truck does approximately about 50 miles.
:01:01. > :01:04.We have 36 dedicated gritters for the highway
:01:05. > :01:07.and one that goes down our guided busway network.
:01:08. > :01:10.We've also got some quad bikes that do the cycleways
:01:11. > :01:18.Teams have already been out on one gritting run.
:01:19. > :01:20.They will be out on the road again before dawn.
:01:21. > :01:23.There are around 3,000 tonnes of gritting salt here in this depot,
:01:24. > :01:26.and across Cambridgeshire and there is around 8,000 tonnes in store.
:01:27. > :01:30.They say that is enough to continually grit the county's
:01:31. > :01:35.Now, four years ago, when we had a prolonged cold snap,
:01:36. > :01:38.salt supplies ran critically low, but I'm told this time
:01:39. > :01:42.the county is prepared for pretty much anything.
:01:43. > :01:45.We have learnt our lessons from that, which is why we do this
:01:46. > :01:47.salt stock level management system now,
:01:48. > :01:50.so 8,000 tonnes is what we have in Cambridgeshire, and we keep it
:01:51. > :01:56.And it is not only highways teams who have been on stand-by -
:01:57. > :02:00.at Luton and Stansted Airports, they have well-rehearsed snow plans.
:02:01. > :02:04.We have all the equipment on site that we need in the event of snow.
:02:05. > :02:09.Our firefighters help clear the runway.
:02:10. > :02:12.Our operations team clear the taxiways, and the aprons,
:02:13. > :02:15.and the passenger areas, to keep the operation
:02:16. > :02:20.Back on the roads, and the concern now is ice.
:02:21. > :02:23.If temperatures drop, wet roads will freeze,
:02:24. > :02:26.and with the prospect of another band of snow overnight,
:02:27. > :02:28.drivers on the road tomorrow morning are being warned
:02:29. > :02:36.Meanwhile, Milton Keynes Council has promised emergency accommodation
:02:37. > :02:39.to rough sleepers in the town to keep them out of
:02:40. > :02:44.Around 100 people sleep rough on the streets of Milton Keynes.
:02:45. > :02:51.Council Leader Pete Marland joined me earlier to explain.
:02:52. > :02:56.There are volunteers here that are helping coordinate some
:02:57. > :03:00.People will be, if they're assessed as homeless,
:03:01. > :03:02.taken to hotels or emergency accommodation that we
:03:03. > :03:06.It is about making sure that people are put in contact
:03:07. > :03:11.If they phone or if they come down to the council,
:03:12. > :03:15.This is a legal obligation on councils, isn't it,
:03:16. > :03:17.when the temperature gets to a certain level?
:03:18. > :03:19.It is a legal obligation, absolutely, that we provide
:03:20. > :03:22.that safe place and the roof over someone's head,
:03:23. > :03:26.but it's not our obligation to publicise it as widely as we've
:03:27. > :03:29.done, and I think we need to make sure that every homeless person out
:03:30. > :03:32.there on the streets knows that this service is available to them.
:03:33. > :03:38.We've got three hotels in Milton Keynes.
:03:39. > :03:41.It's temporary accommodation but we will be making sure that
:03:42. > :03:45.we've got enough beds for those people, and it all depends
:03:46. > :03:48.on how many people come to the council or need our help.
:03:49. > :03:51.It's especially cold for the next few days,
:03:52. > :03:53.but Milton Keynes does have a growing problem with
:03:54. > :03:57.What are you doing to tackle and longer term?
:03:58. > :03:59.I don't think Milton Keynes is unique in our growing
:04:00. > :04:01.homelessness and rough sleeping problem, but we are unique
:04:02. > :04:07.We're investing ?200,000 of council money in
:04:08. > :04:09.the Milton Keynes Homelessness Partnership.
:04:10. > :04:11.We've just won around about ?600,000 with some
:04:12. > :04:14.other local authorities, like Luton, for an outreach service,
:04:15. > :04:17.and we've got brilliant charities that will go out and help
:04:18. > :04:20.homeless people out on the streets of Milton Keynes.
:04:21. > :04:23.Councillor Pete Marland speaking a short time ago.
:04:24. > :04:26.Well, if you, or someone you know, needs help with accommodation
:04:27. > :04:32.in Milton Keynes, the emergency number to call is on the screen now.
:04:33. > :04:35.Next tonight, the brother of the murdered children's author
:04:36. > :04:39.Helen Bailey has told a court how he heard Helen and her partner
:04:40. > :04:43.Ian Stewart joke about an old well in their garage being a good place
:04:44. > :04:47.He was giving evidence at the trial of Mr Stewart,
:04:48. > :04:54.Helen Bailey's brother John, seen here on the left,
:04:55. > :04:57.told the court his sister was an intelligent,
:04:58. > :05:03.He said that while looking around Helen's Royston home in August 2013,
:05:04. > :05:08.He said both she and the accused, Ian Stewart, were present,
:05:09. > :05:11.and that there was some banter, instigated by Helen,
:05:12. > :05:14.that it would be a good place to hide a body.
:05:15. > :05:18.Three years later, her own body was discovered there.
:05:19. > :05:22.The prosecution claimed Helen Bailey was sedated with sleeping pills
:05:23. > :05:27.before being killed by partner Ian Stewart for her money.
:05:28. > :05:29.John Bailey said that, after Helen went missing,
:05:30. > :05:33.Ian Stewart told him Helen had left a note, saying she'd gone
:05:34. > :05:37.to her house in Broadstairs and not to contact her.
:05:38. > :05:40.John Bailey said Ian Stewart later told him he thought the note had
:05:41. > :05:45.We heard Helen was not in Broadstairs, and when Ian Stewart
:05:46. > :05:50.went to look he sent text messages to both John Bailey and Helen's
:05:51. > :05:55.friend to say, maybe, just maybe, some of her clothes were missing.
:05:56. > :05:57.John Bailey said that during that time, Ian Stewart
:05:58. > :06:03.The jury also heard that Helen's close friend, Tracey Stratton,
:06:04. > :06:07.said they often exchanged e-mails, most recently about wedding plans.
:06:08. > :06:12.She said Helen and Ian had decided to get married in September 2016.
:06:13. > :06:16.Ian Stewart denies murder, preventing a lawful burial,
:06:17. > :06:19.fraud and perverting the course of justice.
:06:20. > :06:22.The case will continue tomorrow, when the jury will be taken
:06:23. > :06:29.Kate Bradbrook, BBC Look East at St Albans Crown Court.
:06:30. > :06:31.Hospital Accident Emergency departments in our region
:06:32. > :06:35.performed worse in November, on average, than those
:06:36. > :06:38.The latest NHS figures, published today, show one in six
:06:39. > :06:41.patients waited longer than the Government
:06:42. > :06:47.Here's our political reporter Tom Barton.
:06:48. > :06:49.We've heard a lot about winter pressures on Accident Emergency
:06:50. > :06:52.in the last few years, and heading into this winter,
:06:53. > :06:55.the situation isn't looking any better.
:06:56. > :07:00.The Government wants 95% of patients who show up at A to be treated,
:07:01. > :07:04.admitted or discharged within four hours.
:07:05. > :07:07.In November, nationally, only 88% of patients were
:07:08. > :07:14.And in our region, it was worse still, at just 83%.
:07:15. > :07:16.And the picture has changed over time -
:07:17. > :07:20.this graph looks at the figures for November in each
:07:21. > :07:27.and from 2010 to 2013, the target was more or less being met,
:07:28. > :07:30.but in 2014 and 2015, there was a significant
:07:31. > :07:37.And last November it got worse again, with one in six emergency
:07:38. > :07:48.The first is an increasing number of people going to A,
:07:49. > :07:50.and there are a number of reasons for this,
:07:51. > :07:53.including that they don't always know how to access primary care
:07:54. > :07:56.services, particularly out of hours, and there are things that could be
:07:57. > :07:59.But the greater problem is probably the increasing number of
:08:00. > :08:02.older people who are sick and need to be admitted to hospital,
:08:03. > :08:05.and the hospitals are having real difficulty getting people from A
:08:06. > :08:08.into beds because the beds are just full.
:08:09. > :08:12.And that problem, bed-blocking, doesn't just affect older people.
:08:13. > :08:14.Last August, Andrew Jameson from Northamptonshire
:08:15. > :08:16.was diagnosed with throat cancer, and had an operation
:08:17. > :08:23.But he ended up in hospital for longer than he needed,
:08:24. > :08:26.in a bed that could have been used by someone else,
:08:27. > :08:30.because the care wasn't in place for him to go home.
:08:31. > :08:33.Andrew was in hospital for two and a half weeks extra
:08:34. > :08:36.because he was waiting for funding, and then when they got
:08:37. > :08:42.the funding they then were waiting to get carers to come in.
:08:43. > :08:44.It was frustrating for Andrew, because he obviously
:08:45. > :08:49.needed to get home to, you know, try to recover.
:08:50. > :08:53.So, how do the different hospitals in our region compare?
:08:54. > :08:56.Well, right at the top of the list is the Luton Dunstable,
:08:57. > :09:00.where 99% of patients are dealt with in four hours.
:09:01. > :09:03.A few of our hospitals are just below the Government target,
:09:04. > :09:05.while Hinchingbrooke, Addenbrooke's and Kettering
:09:06. > :09:10.The worst-performing hospital is Peterborough,
:09:11. > :09:16.where one in four patients waited longer than four hours.
:09:17. > :09:20.Across our part of the region, 12,000 patients waited for longer
:09:21. > :09:25.As ever, the NHS is asking people to ensure they only go
:09:26. > :09:31.to hospital if their condition is a genuine emergency.
:09:32. > :09:33.That's the late news from the team here at Look East,
:09:34. > :09:36.but there'll be weather and travel updates on your local
:09:37. > :09:39.BBC radio station from 6am, and details of any school closures
:09:40. > :09:50.You also update you on any flood warnings. Now the weather.
:09:51. > :09:53.Sleet and snow showers have now cleared eastwards and we're left
:09:54. > :09:55.with a largely dry night, but under clear skies,
:09:56. > :09:58.temperatures dropping and the risk of ice right across the region
:09:59. > :09:59.tonight, so it could make roads quite treacherous.
:10:00. > :10:02.As we go into the early hours of tomorrow morning,
:10:03. > :10:05.there could be a few snow showers moving down from the north,
:10:06. > :10:08.so there is still the possibility that you might wake up to a covering
:10:09. > :10:12.But temperatures, well, they're going to be a degree or two
:10:13. > :10:14.below freezing as we start the day tomorrow.
:10:15. > :10:16.We've got another area of low pressure moving down
:10:17. > :10:18.from the north tomorrow, and this is going to bring some
:10:19. > :10:21.snow showers first thing, but it's also going to bring
:10:22. > :10:24.So, strong to near gale force with a possibility
:10:25. > :10:26.of gusts of around 50 mph, particularly into the afternoon.
:10:27. > :10:30.So we start the day with one or two sleet or snow showers,
:10:31. > :10:32.and then it'll look largely dry across the region,
:10:33. > :10:34.with some sunshine, but feeling bitterly cold in that wind.
:10:35. > :10:36.Temperatures three or four Celsius at best -
:10:37. > :10:38.factor in the wind chill, it will feel much colder.
:10:39. > :10:40.And into the afternoon, it looks largely dry,
:10:41. > :10:46.but certainly still very windy and cold.
:10:47. > :10:49.The national weather's coming up, but here's the outlook.
:10:50. > :10:51.And another cold day expected on Saturday, mainly dry,
:10:52. > :11:06.A sharp frost follows before rain spreads in on Sunday.
:11:07. > :11:14.Good evening. It was such a mild December, wasn't it, but winter has
:11:15. > :11:19.arrived. Tomorrow morning, again, could be prising the wipers off the
:11:20. > :11:23.frozen windscreen. Yes, it's going to be cold tonight, whether it is
:11:24. > :11:25.liquid,/ or snow, it will freeze solid late at night with
:11:26. > :11:26.temperatures close to