:00:00. > :00:00.whether that is legal or not. Full coverage for you online and on the
:00:00. > :00:00.Hello and welcome to the Look East late news.
:00:00. > :00:09.who say new government plans to fight bird flu
:00:10. > :00:12.put their flocks and businesses at risk.
:00:13. > :00:25.We're given exclusive access at one of our hospitals.
:00:26. > :00:32.And staying cold with the risk of snow showers over the next couple of
:00:33. > :00:33.days. I will be here later with all the details.
:00:34. > :00:38.First tonight, a warning that free-range egg producers will go out
:00:39. > :00:42.of business because of bird flu despite the lifting of restrictions.
:00:43. > :00:46.Today, the government said hens in the white areas on this map can
:00:47. > :00:49.be moved back outside when the current ban runs out
:00:50. > :00:53.They would then become free-range again.
:00:54. > :00:57.In the red areas they will still be kept under cover to protect them
:00:58. > :01:00.from wild birds carrying the flu virus.
:01:01. > :01:04.But today, farmers told Look East that no area is completely safe
:01:05. > :01:07.and they claim there is no science behind the advice
:01:08. > :01:18.Daniel is a free range egg producer in Suffolk.
:01:19. > :01:23.He is one of the lucky ones because his farm is outside the high
:01:24. > :01:30.On March 1st, his birds will be allowed out again.
:01:31. > :01:33.But Daniel is still worried that those inside the high
:01:34. > :01:39.How have DEFRA come up with these zones?
:01:40. > :01:51.Throwing paint at a map by the looks of it.
:01:52. > :01:55.They say it is a risk response but they haven't said what the risks
:01:56. > :01:57.are. Dave White is another
:01:58. > :01:59.free range producer. His farm is just a few fields away
:02:00. > :02:03.but is within a high risk area. His birds will have to stay
:02:04. > :02:06.in their sheds and he is furious. They have taken a compass,
:02:07. > :02:10.put it on a map and done circles. In those areas where they still have
:02:11. > :02:18.to house, they will not be able The government will not be able to
:02:19. > :02:31.give them help. I am hopeful people will recognise
:02:32. > :02:34.these are free range flocks, they are being housed
:02:35. > :02:36.for a good reason. He is a free range producer
:02:37. > :02:40.and packer supplying three quarters of a million free range eggs
:02:41. > :02:43.to supermarkets across East Anglia. He says the DEFRA plans will put
:02:44. > :02:46.some producers out of business and may even extend the life
:02:47. > :02:55.of the bird flu virus. We saw Alaistaire Brice
:02:56. > :02:57.in that report. You have farms both in and out
:02:58. > :03:19.of the restricted zones. Yes, we do. We have three farms in
:03:20. > :03:25.the high risk areas and I want to clarify there have been no cases of
:03:26. > :03:31.avian flu in East Anglia currently, but we have restrictions imposed on
:03:32. > :03:36.three of our farms. I am a free range egg producer and I am expected
:03:37. > :03:43.to sell and grade barn eggs along with them. If bird flu does pose a
:03:44. > :03:47.threat, the government has to do something about it. Absolutely and
:03:48. > :03:53.they have been very proactive in bringing the housing order in. As
:03:54. > :03:58.poultry farmers we want to protect our flocks and we want to protect
:03:59. > :04:04.the wild bird population and the housing order was the right thing to
:04:05. > :04:09.do, but we have come to the end of February and we will lose other free
:04:10. > :04:13.range status and that has forced DEFRA to make a decision albeit the
:04:14. > :04:21.wrong one. Why should they be doing then? There is no easy answer to
:04:22. > :04:27.this. Bird flu is a worldwide issue and we are fighting it on our shores
:04:28. > :04:32.every autumn and every autumn it is getting worse. We understand the
:04:33. > :04:36.main problem occurs during the autumn and early spring and then
:04:37. > :04:40.they migrate to birds go back and through the summer we don't see it.
:04:41. > :04:45.The current control mechanism that DEFRA will put in place means I fear
:04:46. > :04:51.we could spread the disease and make it almost a 12 month cycle. This is
:04:52. > :04:55.going to affect the price you get for your eggs if you cannot call
:04:56. > :05:01.them free range any more. Do you have fears people will go out of
:05:02. > :05:06.business? These controls are put in place and they are geographic for
:05:07. > :05:11.areas where there are wild foul or open areas of water. They will not
:05:12. > :05:16.change so if you are a producer you are stuck in that zone so in effect
:05:17. > :05:21.you will not market your eggs as free range again. Only when bird flu
:05:22. > :05:31.is not prevalent. Tonight, in the last hour,
:05:32. > :05:34.police have now re-opoend one lane of the A12 southbound
:05:35. > :05:35.following an incident yesterday in which a lorry crashed
:05:36. > :05:38.from a bridge onto the carriageway. The driver died in the
:05:39. > :05:40.accident near Witham. The lorry was carrying 26
:05:41. > :05:51.tonnes of batteries. As new figures reveal that they're
:05:52. > :05:55.blocking is the highest on record, we have been given exclusive access
:05:56. > :05:57.to a hospital in Basildon to see how they are coping there.
:05:58. > :06:00.We have had a very challenging night.
:06:01. > :06:01.We are still on black alert currently.
:06:02. > :06:05.It is the first meeting at Basildon Hospital to work out
:06:06. > :06:08.I've got three potential discharges for today.
:06:09. > :06:13.We are in a position where we have no more beds in the hospital,
:06:14. > :06:16.so we have 28 patients placed in A, so at the moment, if we have
:06:17. > :06:19.any more ambulances arrive, we only have one trolley
:06:20. > :06:27.If you have more than one patient, what are you going to do?
:06:28. > :06:28.Then we will have ambulances queueing.
:06:29. > :06:31.We admitted more people than we were able to discharge yesterday.
:06:32. > :06:34.Basildon's managing director takes me through the latest situation.
:06:35. > :06:39.What we're hoping to do is move patients into our elective
:06:40. > :06:42.orthopaedic ward, which means we are not able to do joint surgery,
:06:43. > :06:49.Just coming round to see if there are any patients for hospital home?
:06:50. > :06:51.After the morning meeting, nurse Natalie Cook goes ward to ward
:06:52. > :06:54.to find patients who could be discharged from hospital
:06:55. > :06:58.and get their treatment from Basildon hospital nurses
:06:59. > :07:08.But the real problem is being dealt with here.
:07:09. > :07:10.Sick elderly people who get stuck in hospital.
:07:11. > :07:12.This ward aims to treat the frail quickly and get
:07:13. > :07:17.Some patients have been here for ten days though.
:07:18. > :07:20.But after two days on this ward, Eileen is looking
:07:21. > :07:30.Some patients here are waiting for social care to kick in.
:07:31. > :07:35.The majority of the patients who come over here we treat
:07:36. > :07:41.The longer they stay, more complex problems arise,
:07:42. > :07:46.Every bed in Basildon Hospital is taken and it has pretty much been
:07:47. > :07:48.that way since the beginning of the year.
:07:49. > :07:51.So much so that if you needed something like a hip replacement,
:07:52. > :07:53.they would pay to send you private, none have taken place
:07:54. > :07:57.Basildon Hospital is trying but getting slack in the health
:07:58. > :08:05.Earlier, I asked our health reporter Nikki Fox for her
:08:06. > :08:19.The figures are quite bad in some hospitals in this region. The
:08:20. > :08:26.Princess Alexandria Hospital in Harlow has dropped to 69%. 95% of
:08:27. > :08:30.people are supposed to be seen within four hours, that's the target
:08:31. > :08:37.and many hospitals are falling below that level. One of the solutions is
:08:38. > :08:42.to send patients to be treated privately, but how much money is
:08:43. > :08:45.being spent on that? There is a national survey that suggests around
:08:46. > :08:51.a third of hip and knee operations are being done by private companies
:08:52. > :08:56.and that is quite worrying, because that is their bread and butter, that
:08:57. > :09:01.is where they get the majority of their money, they don't get a lot
:09:02. > :09:05.from emergency operations. For that type of work to be placed with
:09:06. > :09:09.private companies, that is having a big impact on their finances.
:09:10. > :09:12.The Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn says the Norwich South MP Clive Lewis
:09:13. > :09:15.will be able to return the shadow cabinet at some stage in the future.
:09:16. > :09:18.Mr Lewis resigned as Shadow Business Secretary last night after deciding
:09:19. > :09:21.to defy Mr Corbyn and vote against Article 50.
:09:22. > :09:25.Today, the Labour leader said it was right that Mr Lewis
:09:26. > :09:27.had stepped down now, but he hoped he could come back
:09:28. > :09:32.Clive voted the way he did last night because he believed
:09:33. > :09:35.that he must represent the views of his constituency.
:09:36. > :09:38.I understand that, but it was a national decision,
:09:39. > :09:40.it was a national ballot, it was a national referendum.
:09:41. > :09:44.I have a very good relationship with Clive, we had a chat
:09:45. > :09:46.on the phone yesterday as well as in my office and,
:09:47. > :09:49.of course, there will be a place for him in the future.
:09:50. > :09:52.Clive Lewis has not made any comment on camera today,
:09:53. > :09:55.but there will be more discussion surrounding this week's vote in
:09:56. > :10:00.That's on BBC One at 11 o'clock this Sunday.
:10:01. > :10:17.Good evening. The wintry weather has set in and it will be bitterly cold
:10:18. > :10:22.for the next 48 hours. The risk of some snow flurries as we go through
:10:23. > :10:29.the night, so you might wake up to a light dusting also the risk of icy
:10:30. > :10:34.patches. Not a lot of change on the pressure pattern. This weather
:10:35. > :10:39.feature may mean showers becoming widespread as the day goes on. They
:10:40. > :10:43.will be blowing in from the North Sea and they may get further England
:10:44. > :10:49.as that north-easterly wind freshens. More snow expected
:10:50. > :10:54.tomorrow night and into Saturday morning. Two or three Celsius
:10:55. > :10:59.beehive. The National weather is coming up and here is the outlook:
:11:00. > :11:01.You could wake up to a covering of snow on Saturday, it
:11:02. > :11:04.sleet and snow. The outlook, Sunday will turn a bit less cold again. All
:11:05. > :11:15.the way up seven Celsius. At this time of year we can often
:11:16. > :11:18.get the weather stories that reflect the battle between winter and
:11:19. > :11:23.spring, and that's what's been happening in New York in the USA.
:11:24. > :11:29.Yesterday, 17 Celsius, but today, it's been bitterly cold, just a
:11:30. > :11:33.daytime maximum of -2, a significant wind-chill and some significant snow
:11:34. > :11:37.falling as we speak. This was Times Square earlier today. For others,
:11:38. > :11:41.it's been a pretty cold day. Not quite as cold, but nevertheless a
:11:42. > :11:42.lot of low cloud lifting in off the North Sea