:00:00. > :00:00.military activity in the area tonight. That is all from us,
:00:00. > :00:10.Good evening and welcome to BBC Look North. The headlines tonight: The
:00:11. > :00:18.father hoping for changes to immigration laws which could mean
:00:19. > :00:25.he's reunited with his family. It is painful, it is not good. I am sure
:00:26. > :00:28.30,000 other people would totally agree with me.
:00:29. > :00:30.A council becomes the first Conservative`run authority in East
:00:31. > :00:33.Yorkshire and Lincolnshire to increase council tax.
:00:34. > :00:39.Why this man's role in World War I earned him a place in the record
:00:40. > :00:43.books. The '80s pop star who's swopped Top
:00:44. > :00:50.of the Pops for an East Yorkshire classroom.
:00:51. > :00:55.It is the first meteorological data Spring tomorrow. Join later in the
:00:56. > :01:06.programme for the details. A Lincolnshire man who can't bring
:01:07. > :01:10.his wife and children to live in the UK could benefit form a legal
:01:11. > :01:13.challenge to immigration rules. Steven Hodgkin from Stamford met his
:01:14. > :01:18.partner in Thailand and they have two daughters. But the Home Office
:01:19. > :01:23.has turned down his visa request for them saying he can't prove he earns
:01:24. > :01:27.enough money to support them. Now a challenge to those Home Office rules
:01:28. > :01:37.could see his family and thousands of others reunited. Gemma Dawson
:01:38. > :01:46.reports. Photos from his recent trip to China. `` to Thailand. This the
:01:47. > :01:51.first time Steven had seen his family in two and a half years and
:01:52. > :01:53.the first time he'd ever met his youngest daughter. Now back home in
:01:54. > :02:01.Stamford, Steven is missing his girls. It is painful. You have to
:02:02. > :02:04.deal with it. Steven told me his partner Aeerat's visa application
:02:05. > :02:07.was refused because he was told he had insufficient funds to support
:02:08. > :02:10.her. Under the current rules, only British citizens or those with
:02:11. > :02:15.refugee status who earn at least ?18,600 a year can sponsor their
:02:16. > :02:19.non`European spouse's visa. This rises to ?22,400 for families with a
:02:20. > :02:25.child, and a further ?2,400 for each extra child. The government says
:02:26. > :02:30.restriction like this are needed to help them meet their pledge of
:02:31. > :02:39.reducing migration from outside EU. Figures published yesterday suggest
:02:40. > :02:46.it's falling. Where we have direct cleavers on the non`EQ, we are
:02:47. > :02:49.seeing continual force, down by 12%. Next week, the Home Office will
:02:50. > :02:53.appeal a judge's recommendation to reduce the salary requirement to
:02:54. > :03:02.?13,000 a year. For Steven, a lower limit would help. It should be OK.
:03:03. > :03:06.It is early days, I am starting a new business. Hopefully, it'll OK.
:03:07. > :03:09.But it might be quite high for a lot of people on the minimum wage.
:03:10. > :03:12.Earlier, I managed to speak to Steven's partner Areerat from
:03:13. > :03:22.Thailand. She told me she just wants her family reunited. I want him to
:03:23. > :03:26.take care of his family. Steven's now saving for his next trip to
:03:27. > :03:28.Thailand. But it could be another six months before he sees his family
:03:29. > :03:37.again. Earlier, I spoke to the immigration
:03:38. > :03:40.lawyer Vijay Jagadesham. I asked him if families should be separated
:03:41. > :03:52.because a partner doesn't earn enough money. Absolutely not. It is
:03:53. > :03:55.not a question of these individuals not earning enough money. British
:03:56. > :04:02.citizens want to bring over their families, they earn more than the
:04:03. > :04:06.minimum wage income but because it is below ?18,600, they cannot bring
:04:07. > :04:11.them over. The minimum wage income is more than enough. These
:04:12. > :04:15.individuals want to look after their families, their children, it is not
:04:16. > :04:20.a question of them not owning enough. But the government is trying
:04:21. > :04:25.to keep migrant numbers down, isn't that why the figure is set where it
:04:26. > :04:30.is? They are doing it in the wrong way. They are targeting British
:04:31. > :04:34.citizens who want to bring their wife, their children over, and to
:04:35. > :04:39.penalised individuals for what I think is an ill thought out and ill
:04:40. > :04:44.considered page to bring down migration numbers is not the right
:04:45. > :04:49.way to approach this issue. The recent figures have gone down for
:04:50. > :04:55.outside of the EU. They go up again if the salary was brought down to
:04:56. > :04:59.13,000? not necessarily. It seems the figures have gone down because
:05:00. > :05:03.less students are coming here, that is potentially bad for our economy,
:05:04. > :05:07.universities will be receiving less revenue. These families coming over
:05:08. > :05:12.would not be a burden on the state, they would be hamming `` coming over
:05:13. > :05:16.here to working families. They would also not be allowed to access
:05:17. > :05:21.benefits or anything like that, they would just be here with their
:05:22. > :05:24.families. The spouses here would have to provide for them. We're not
:05:25. > :05:31.talking about a burden on the state at all. And for some families,
:05:32. > :05:37.heartbreaking. absolutely. You hear very sad glory is about children,
:05:38. > :05:41.reduces and children who cannot be with their mother, their father,
:05:42. > :05:46.because of these ill thought out and ill considered rules. Thank you.
:05:47. > :05:49.We want to hear from you on this story. Should the amount of money
:05:50. > :05:54.you need to earn before your family can move here be lowered? Maybe you
:05:55. > :06:20.think it doesn't matter how much you earn? Your thoughts on this one.
:06:21. > :06:24.The leader of North Kesteven District Council has defended the
:06:25. > :06:27.decision to raise council tax, becoming the first Conservative`run
:06:28. > :06:31.authority in East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire to go against the
:06:32. > :06:36.government's advice. Bosses say the increase of almost 2% will help keep
:06:37. > :06:50.vital services open. Jake Zuckerman has more. This centre in North
:06:51. > :06:55.Hykeham opened in 1994 and said the council is long overdue face`lift.
:06:56. > :07:02.We are looking to refurbish this leisure centre which will have an
:07:03. > :07:07.improved reception area, cafeteria, new fitness gyms, larger studio
:07:08. > :07:11.space. It is one of the products the Council would like to spend money
:07:12. > :07:14.on. The government has called on councils to freeze their council tax
:07:15. > :07:22.bills but last night, Conservative run Northcutt Stevan chose to ignore
:07:23. > :07:26.the advice and raised next year's bills by 1.3%. we don't always
:07:27. > :07:32.follow the government line simply because they say so. We try to do
:07:33. > :07:37.what is best for this district and for the residents. The council says
:07:38. > :07:44.it has made savings by changing the way it leg`spins but to maintain
:07:45. > :07:48.services, it has raise council tax. The District Council says their
:07:49. > :07:52.planned increase in council tax is modest and that they do have one of
:07:53. > :07:56.the cheapest levels of council tax in the country but here on this
:07:57. > :08:00.streets of North Hykeham, not everyone is convinced by that
:08:01. > :08:07.argument. I'm not very happy with it. Other councils can keep their
:08:08. > :08:14.tax down, why can't they? It is terrible. It doesn't worry me too
:08:15. > :08:23.much. This will add between ?2 ten and ?2 70 a year on bills. The
:08:24. > :08:26.council was offered a government grant of ?48,000 in return for
:08:27. > :08:34.freezing council tax but that is for one year only. The 1.3% tax increase
:08:35. > :08:39.gives the district and extra ?93,000 every year. The council remains
:08:40. > :08:47.unrepentant, saying this decision is the right one for people in North
:08:48. > :08:50.can Steven. `` North Kesteven. Jake is in North Hykeham. Jake, how
:08:51. > :08:57.do the Conservative run council defend going against the
:08:58. > :09:02.government's advice? The defence is that it is simply the right thing to
:09:03. > :09:06.do. They say that if they keep on freezing their council tax, their
:09:07. > :09:11.finances will fall behind inflation. They say they will be forced to
:09:12. > :09:14.raise council tax to catch up and if that happened, it would be a much
:09:15. > :09:19.larger jump which would prove more painful in the long run. All
:09:20. > :09:24.councils are expecting less money from the government at the next
:09:25. > :09:29.couple of years and this is not the only council in Lincolnshire to
:09:30. > :09:37.raise its council tax next year but it is the only Conservative run
:09:38. > :09:41.authority to go down this route. With a talking about council tax on
:09:42. > :09:45.the programme last night after Hull City Council voted to increase the
:09:46. > :10:05.amount of people `` the amount that he will have
:10:06. > :10:22.It is one of the big stories we have been talking about. If you have a
:10:23. > :10:25.few, send us an e`mail. A bridge linking two sides of Boston
:10:26. > :10:30.town centre has been officially opened. Around 30 children were the
:10:31. > :10:34.first to cross the bridge, which cost three quarters of a million
:10:35. > :10:43.pounds. But it will now be closed again temporarily while a handrail
:10:44. > :10:48.and lighting is fitted. This project has been some time in coming. It
:10:49. > :10:51.represents a huge investment of money into Boston and it also
:10:52. > :10:56.delivers something that says a lot more about the town, it is linking
:10:57. > :11:00.the two areas of the town, it is through place in what was here with
:11:01. > :11:03.something very proud of it. The Humber port operator ABP is to
:11:04. > :11:06.continue its objection to an offshore wind manufacturing centre
:11:07. > :11:10.being proposed by a rival company ABLE UK. ABP has now sent a petition
:11:11. > :11:13.to Parliament raising concerns about ABLE UK's Marine Energy Park near to
:11:14. > :11:19.Immingham which was given planning permission last December. It's
:11:20. > :11:26.claimed the Marine Energy Park could create more than 4,500 jobs.
:11:27. > :11:31.A direct rail service between Cleethorpes and Kings Cross could be
:11:32. > :11:34.running by 2017. GNER has announced its applied to operate a new direct
:11:35. > :11:39.express train service on the East Coast main line. It would mean up to
:11:40. > :11:53.four trains a day to Cleethorpes via Scunthorpe and Grimsby, restoring
:11:54. > :11:56.direct links to the captial. Watching.
:11:57. > :12:00.Still ahead tonight: After a dramatic draw last time out Hull KR
:12:01. > :12:05.look for their first Super League win of the season.
:12:06. > :12:09.The '80s pop star who's signed up an East Yorkshire school choir as his
:12:10. > :12:26.backing singers. Lots of people last night spotted
:12:27. > :12:31.the Northern Lights. I was not one of them but we have some fantastic
:12:32. > :12:49.pictures. Three of the best once the night.
:12:50. > :12:54.Thank you very much indeed for those. Let's get the forecast now.
:12:55. > :13:01.Thank you very much indeed for those. Let's get the forecast It
:13:02. > :13:05.could be possible. There will be some cloud spots further north. For
:13:06. > :13:09.the weekend, it will be fairly chilly. We are looking at the risk
:13:10. > :13:13.of overnight frost. Plenty of sunshine tomorrow, the risk of a few
:13:14. > :13:18.showers and it turns wet and windy later as we had through Sunday. The
:13:19. > :13:23.area of low pressure could give us a few showers tomorrow but it relies
:13:24. > :13:26.on this next area of low pressure which sweeps through Sunday evening
:13:27. > :13:33.and that will introduce a spell of wet and windy weather. We had a fair
:13:34. > :13:38.bit of cloud across the `` Lincolnshire. This evening, the odd
:13:39. > :13:42.isolated shower but they will be few and far between. There will be some
:13:43. > :13:47.clearer spells and where we hold onto those spells, we are looking at
:13:48. > :13:52.a touch of frost. There could be a few patches of mist and fog.
:13:53. > :14:00.Temperatures down to freezing. Tomorrow morning, the sun will rise
:14:01. > :14:06.at 651 `` 6:51am. These are the high water times. The chilly start of the
:14:07. > :14:11.day tomorrow morning. Any mist and fog patches will quickly clear. For
:14:12. > :14:17.most, barely dry, variable cloud, every is the risk of an occasional
:14:18. > :14:22.isolated shower, especially as we had through the afternoon. A little
:14:23. > :14:27.bit of a chilly field to the day despite it being the first major
:14:28. > :14:33.article day of spring. `` first meteorological. Generally the chilly
:14:34. > :14:38.field the day. As we had through Sunday, cloudy start. The winds. To
:14:39. > :14:44.pick up later through the afternoon into the evening, a spell of wet
:14:45. > :14:48.weather. It's hoped the centenary of World
:14:49. > :14:51.War I will help get recognition for a man from Lincolnshire whose role
:14:52. > :14:55.in the conflict earned him a place in the record books. William
:14:56. > :15:00.Robertson from Welbourn was the only man to rise through every rank in
:15:01. > :15:13.the army. And as Caroline Bilton reports, he came from humble
:15:14. > :15:19.beginnings. In 1887, young man set forth from this glitch. We are
:15:20. > :15:23.taking you to Lincoln. Today, that city honours this great soldier.
:15:24. > :15:27.This is the man they're honouring ` Sir William Robertson ` the only man
:15:28. > :15:34.to rise through all the ranks in the army from Private to Field Marshall.
:15:35. > :15:36.He came from here ` the tiny village of Welbourn in Lincolnshire, son to
:15:37. > :15:43.the local postmaster. Over 3,000 people attended his
:15:44. > :15:49.memorial held at Lincoln cathedral in 1934 ` a mark of how highly he
:15:50. > :16:02.was regarded. Today, though, few know of the man who became the
:16:03. > :16:07.brains behind the army. This is an album put together by my grandmother
:16:08. > :16:11.about him. His full of clippings from throughout the war and before
:16:12. > :16:15.the war. This is one of him with the king. In the village where he grew
:16:16. > :16:18.up is the school which bears his name and today William Robertson's
:16:19. > :16:27.great grandson has come to visit to learn more about his grandfather's
:16:28. > :16:30.humble beginnings. How does it feel to be his great`grandson? Is amazing
:16:31. > :16:35.to have someone like that in your family, to achieve someone ``
:16:36. > :16:40.something that no one else has done before, going from private to Field
:16:41. > :16:49.Marshal. But those achievements aren't shouted about in the village
:16:50. > :16:52.where he was born. Here it is, the house of your great grandfather.
:16:53. > :16:59.What do you know of his life here? There were nine siblings, only three
:17:00. > :17:03.bedrooms, and apparently, they would have kept a peak in the back and
:17:04. > :17:08.growing their own vegetables. Doesn't bring your family history to
:17:09. > :17:20.life Richard Mark yellow physically see this, it is bringing it to life.
:17:21. > :17:23.After World War I, William spent much of his time unveiling memorials
:17:24. > :17:34.like this one in Southampton. This rare footage gives us the chance to
:17:35. > :17:40.hear his voice. In memory of 1855 men, women and boys who, for the
:17:41. > :17:48.sake of their country and their homes, gave all they had to give,
:17:49. > :17:57.their lives. But one memorial had particular resonance. After the war,
:17:58. > :18:03.he returned to his home village to unveil this memorial. He had
:18:04. > :18:06.unveiled many before but this has significance because he knew the men
:18:07. > :18:10.whose names were carved on this stone, he had grown up with them, he
:18:11. > :18:15.had gone to school with them, and here he was meeting the mothers of
:18:16. > :18:21.those men who had died under his leadership. He was a man who had
:18:22. > :18:27.sensitivities as well as having this resolution to climb the Army ladder.
:18:28. > :18:32.I think there is more to the man than simply being this soldier and
:18:33. > :18:36.strategist, I think he sold `` saw the human side of the story equally
:18:37. > :18:39.well. Sadly, through time, Sir William Robertson has become a
:18:40. > :18:42.forgotten figure of World War I. It's hoped this centenary his
:18:43. > :18:51.achievements will be remembered once more. It is pleasing to me to know
:18:52. > :18:56.that people will be talking about him, showing an interest and today,
:18:57. > :19:07.I met people and saw a school named after him. His memory is still
:19:08. > :19:14.alive. Fascinating. If you want to hear more stories from the home
:19:15. > :19:17.front, go to the BBC website. Hull Kingston Rovers play the Super
:19:18. > :19:20.League leaders Castleford seeking their first winds of the season
:19:21. > :19:23.tonight. In what's been a troubled week for the game, with Bradford
:19:24. > :19:27.Bulls losing points for going into administration, Rovers played their
:19:28. > :19:29.part in the game of last week by securing a dramatic point at
:19:30. > :19:37.Huddersfield. With news of the Robins and Hull FC's prospects at
:19:38. > :19:41.Warrington, here's Simon Clark. The British game needed a boost and in
:19:42. > :19:48.some ways, whole Kingston Rovers provided it. Rovers showed that grit
:19:49. > :19:55.and determination to come from 24`6 down to tie a game with
:19:56. > :19:59.Huddersfield. With Bradford Bulls facing an uncertain future, the
:20:00. > :20:03.sport is under the microscope. One of Rovers new recruits is impressed
:20:04. > :20:08.by the competition. and thought they were pretty good. The competition is
:20:09. > :20:15.strong. There are some big players over here. It has been pretty
:20:16. > :20:20.tough, actually. There is a belief from the boys that they can compete
:20:21. > :20:27.against quality sides and is it is up to us to carry that on. Hull FC
:20:28. > :20:39.played well in parts. Overall, there were no complaints from their 34`22
:20:40. > :20:45.feet by St Helens. `` defeat. we have concentrated a lot on the
:20:46. > :20:50.attack in pre`season and I am sure once we see some of that desperation
:20:51. > :20:55.that we defended with last year, everybody buying into what we are
:20:56. > :21:01.doing, will be better for that. Little things we need to work on. We
:21:02. > :21:06.know we need to put things right and we are doing that this week,
:21:07. > :21:12.hopefully. This is a week additional `` rugby league would rather forget.
:21:13. > :21:18.Wigan were beaten in the World Cup challenge and then, the former
:21:19. > :21:21.champions Bradford City web. Points for going into Administration and
:21:22. > :21:26.the new owners threatened to point `` pull`out. Everybody in the
:21:27. > :21:29.condition was to put the last seven days behind them and get back to
:21:30. > :21:32.play. You can hear commentary of Hull KR's
:21:33. > :21:39.match on BBC Radio Humberside tonight. Kick`off is at 8pm. On
:21:40. > :21:42.Sunday, they will also have full commentary of Hull FC's visit to
:21:43. > :21:50.Warrington. They are on air from 2.30.
:21:51. > :21:54.Hull City boss Steve Bruce says they still need to win at least two more
:21:55. > :21:56.matches to ensure they avoid relegation from the Premier League.
:21:57. > :22:02.After beating Cardiff four`nil at the weekend, City are now six points
:22:03. > :22:05.clear of the drop zone. They go into tomorrow's game with an excellent
:22:06. > :22:19.record against north east clubs, and are hoping for a double against
:22:20. > :22:25.Newcastle. If we can beat them, we have now got 33 points with ten
:22:26. > :22:28.games to spare. That is a huge achievement and it puts us in a
:22:29. > :22:34.really strong position because I have always said that you need ten
:22:35. > :22:37.wins and if you get those, and newly promoted club, you are very
:22:38. > :22:43.unfortunate if you get relegated from that situation. You can hear
:22:44. > :22:53.commentary of that match on BBC Radio Humberside tomorrow.
:22:54. > :23:19.Scunthorpe United's trip to Newport will be also featured.
:23:20. > :23:24.He made his name with the band, the Christians in the eighties with hits
:23:25. > :23:27.including 'Ideal World' and 'Born Again.' More recently East Yorkshire
:23:28. > :23:30.musician Henry Priestman has enjoyed success with his debut solo folk
:23:31. > :23:37.album. On his latest record, he's worked with the gospel choir at
:23:38. > :23:40.Longcroft School in Beverley. They'll perform with him at a
:23:41. > :23:45.concert tomorrow night as Tolu Adeoye reports.
:23:46. > :23:47.Top of the Pops, 1987, the Christians perform on stage with
:23:48. > :23:54.Hull`born Henry Priestman on the keyboard. At a special concert this
:23:55. > :24:08.weekend ` he'll be sharing the stage with a few more people than usual.
:24:09. > :24:11.# I believe that life goes on. #. Pupils from Longcroft School in
:24:12. > :24:18.Beverley will perform a song they've recorded with him for his latest
:24:19. > :24:23.album. I did a workshop last year and accidentally got the choir to
:24:24. > :24:28.sing on a song of mine and it sounded so good, I thought I have
:24:29. > :24:33.got to have them on my album. They are print. The hairs on the back of
:24:34. > :24:41.your neck stand up. When they come in on the Corvus, it is brilliant.
:24:42. > :24:47.It has been an amazing X hearings, especially working with someone like
:24:48. > :24:51.Henry Chu is actually famous. It is great to spend time with a real
:24:52. > :24:56.musician. Green`macro it is it really interesting to be able to
:24:57. > :25:01.perform. And we got time off school so that was fun. Since the start of
:25:02. > :25:04.his career Henry's worked with the Sex Pistols and The Who, sold
:25:05. > :25:07.millions of albums with The Christians and enjoyed critical
:25:08. > :25:14.acclaim for his debut solo record. He now lives in Liverpool but says
:25:15. > :25:19.East Yorkshire will always be home. It feels great to come back to
:25:20. > :25:23.somewhere near where my mum lives and be with local kids, it is
:25:24. > :25:27.fantastic. They are giving me a leg up and I hope I am giving them a leg
:25:28. > :25:31.up. Tomorrow night's gig in Cherry Burton is a sell out ` and from the
:25:32. > :25:34.sound of the things those whov've managed to get a ticket are in for a
:25:35. > :25:46.top performance. Good luck to Henry and everyone
:25:47. > :25:51.involved. I am sure the pupils of Longcroft School will be tuned into
:25:52. > :25:54.night to see themselves on the television. So, good luck for
:25:55. > :25:58.tomorrow night. Let's get a recap of the national
:25:59. > :26:01.and regional headlines. Tension rise in Ukraine as men with guns and
:26:02. > :26:08.russian naval flags patrolling two airports. Russia is accused of an
:26:09. > :26:11.armed invasion. The Lincolnshire dad who hopes
:26:12. > :26:16.changes to immigration laws will mean he's reunited with his family.
:26:17. > :26:19.Tomorrow's weather ` any early mist will clear to leave a mostly dry and
:26:20. > :26:21.bright day with sunny spells. There could be a few scattered wintry
:26:22. > :26:38.showers. Highs of 7C (45F). So first day of spring. We have that
:26:39. > :26:44.story of Steven Hodgkin, separated from his partner. Very emotive
:26:45. > :26:49.messages here. People have asked why he doesn't move to Thailand. Another
:26:50. > :26:56.woman says myself and my daughter had not seen my husband in 15 months
:26:57. > :27:05.Chu to these new rules. 18,600 is too high. Where our our rights to
:27:06. > :27:11.family life? More families could be together if the figure was put down
:27:12. > :27:16.to 13,000. Someone else says if you enter a relationship with an non`EU
:27:17. > :27:22.national, you know how things can turn out. Someone else says I am
:27:23. > :27:30.incensed at how Steven Hodgkin are being treated. People from the EU
:27:31. > :27:35.can come over with no job, and with the house to live in. Someone else
:27:36. > :27:42.has ever young man isn't earning enough to allow his family to be
:27:43. > :27:46.with him, it says a lot about our government and their supposedly
:27:47. > :27:47.minimum wage. Thank you. Good