:00:09. > :00:17.Hello and welcome to Thursday's Look North. In the headlines
:00:17. > :00:26.tonight: Another jobs blow for the North
:00:26. > :00:28.East. 350 jobs at risk as a Durham food factory faces closure.
:00:28. > :00:37.Meanwhile, production ends at the Alcan smelter in Northumberland.
:00:37. > :00:39.515 workers will lose their jobs. Fuelling the panic. Mixed messages
:00:39. > :00:42.from the government drive motorists to the pumps.
:00:42. > :00:52.What's in a name? This mother is battling to have the dead father's
:00:52. > :00:53.
:00:53. > :00:58.name on her baby's birth certificate. All he ever wanted was
:00:58. > :01:03.to be a dad. Not having that is denying his existence.
:01:03. > :01:06.And, where eagles dare. The magnificent Sea Eagle could be
:01:06. > :01:09.reintroduced to Lake District skies. In sport - scientists will measure
:01:09. > :01:12.the passion of Falcons fans tomorrow night, but can the players
:01:12. > :01:15.pull off a vital win on the rugby pitch?
:01:15. > :01:25.And sizzling in the spring sunshine - but will Yorkshire's cricketers
:01:25. > :01:30.
:01:30. > :01:34.be shivering when the new season Another week, another factory
:01:34. > :01:37.closure. Today it was 350 workers at a food processing plant in
:01:37. > :01:42.Durham who received the shock news that their factory is earmarked for
:01:42. > :01:47.closure. Kerry Foods processes sliced meat at the site in Durham
:01:47. > :01:50.City. The company has started a 90- day consultation with staff but has
:01:50. > :01:53.made it clear that closure and transfer of the work to other Kerry
:01:53. > :02:03.sites is the likely outcome. Our Political Editor, Richard Moss, is
:02:03. > :02:07.at the site now. Bleak and unexpected news. They
:02:07. > :02:11.were called in today's thinking it was some redundancies to be told of
:02:11. > :02:18.the whole factory was likely to close. This was the reaction from
:02:18. > :02:28.the trade unions. There are mothers, fathers and children in their all
:02:28. > :02:29.
:02:29. > :02:32.working on the same site. You can imagine the impact on them. This is
:02:32. > :02:39.the third largest private sector employer in the area. How big a
:02:39. > :02:43.blow is it? It is a huge blow to the area. My primary concern is for
:02:43. > :02:46.the workers. It is a really distressing time for them and their
:02:46. > :02:51.families and it will be difficult for them to get alternative
:02:51. > :02:58.employment in this situation of economic downturn. What
:02:58. > :03:01.realistically can be done? I am going to going and talk to the
:03:01. > :03:06.union, the workers and the management next week and took to
:03:06. > :03:10.the local JobCentre to see if it is possible to get some support in
:03:10. > :03:15.place for the workers. It is much more difficult in the absence of a
:03:15. > :03:20.development agency to see what can be done in a situation like this.
:03:20. > :03:26.It is bad news for the workforce and here at Kerry Foods. We have
:03:26. > :03:30.had good job news with the jobs at Nissan and the reopening of the
:03:30. > :03:35.steelworks. But it does look like more and more of those new
:03:35. > :03:37.employers will have to soak up more of the old ones.
:03:37. > :03:43.And hundreds of job losses in Northumberland became a reality
:03:43. > :03:46.today. Forty years of aluminium production came to an end when the
:03:46. > :03:48.Alcan smelter at Lynemouth in Northumberland was shut down. The
:03:48. > :03:53.owners, Rio Tinto, took the decision after failing to find a
:03:53. > :03:58.buyer for the plant. 515 jobs will go, with most workers leaving by
:03:58. > :04:02.the end of May. A further 111 jobs will be saved if the power station
:04:02. > :04:06.is sold. The company blames new green taxes that would cost the
:04:06. > :04:08.plant �100 million a year by 2015. Yesterday, we saw the generous
:04:08. > :04:13.Alcan employees donate their �30,000 social fund to three local
:04:13. > :04:20.charities. But today those workers have to look ahead to a future
:04:20. > :04:24.after Alcan. This afternoon they switched off
:04:24. > :04:30.the smelter. The most important building now is this humble cabin -
:04:30. > :04:40.it's the careers centre. Hazel has worked for Alcan for 13 years. Now
:04:40. > :04:41.
:04:41. > :04:45.she plans to set up a cake business instead. I thought about going back
:04:45. > :04:50.on the job market but it is so flat at the moment. I thought I would
:04:50. > :04:54.take the opportunity to try and set up my own business. What have I got
:04:54. > :05:04.to lose? And for Peter Davidson, redundancy means he hopes his
:05:04. > :05:09.
:05:09. > :05:19.passion will make him a living as well. I have always loved art and
:05:19. > :05:20.
:05:20. > :05:28.been inspired by it. It is an iconic day. It is a death knell for
:05:28. > :05:32.the area really. This is one of the last trains that came in last week
:05:32. > :05:38.bringing in deliveries and then it is the switching off of the Sonata
:05:38. > :05:42.itself out. By May, around 300 of the workers will be gone with the
:05:42. > :05:52.rest leaving after that. We need to complete the decommissioning
:05:52. > :05:56.
:05:56. > :05:59.process. We need it at a standard that will attract investment.
:05:59. > :06:02.No strike has yet been called by tanker drivers and we'll get a
:06:02. > :06:06.week's warning if there is one, but motorists have been rushing to
:06:06. > :06:08.petrol stations in our region to fill up. However, while many of the
:06:09. > :06:12.supermarket service stations have seen long queues, smaller garages
:06:12. > :06:16.have reported no problems. Sharon Barbour reports.
:06:16. > :06:26.Driven by fears of a fuel shortage, they drove here to stock-up. But,
:06:26. > :06:30.
:06:30. > :06:37.for some, it was too late. We have run out of diesel I am afraid.
:06:37. > :06:45.Worrying, particularly when I need a car for work. Very frustrated.
:06:45. > :06:51.did not know there was anything wrong until I came for fuel. I have
:06:51. > :07:01.tried to other petrol stations and they will fall as well. Do you
:07:01. > :07:04.think this is all a necessary? not sure. I hope they can get new
:07:04. > :07:13.suppliers. And as it ran out of petrol, this garage in North
:07:13. > :07:17.Shields was forced to close. But there is no queue at this small a
:07:17. > :07:20.garage. This afternoon new fuel supplies were arriving in the North
:07:20. > :07:25.East and efforts to try and avert any strike action were being
:07:25. > :07:27.stepped up with talks planned for next week. If a strike does go
:07:27. > :07:30.ahead, they'll have to give seven days notice so it's looking
:07:30. > :07:37.increasingly unlikely any strike would take place over the Easter
:07:37. > :07:41.weekend. He was an undercover detective
:07:41. > :07:43.accused of being the "eyes and ears" of a gang of drug dealers.
:07:43. > :07:49.Today, former Northumbria Police Detective Sergeant Paul Thompson
:07:49. > :07:53.was found not guilty. He and his wife Susan from Dipton in County
:07:53. > :07:56.Durham were also cleared of supplying cocaine to their friends.
:07:56. > :07:59.But he was found guilty of possessing the drug. Keith Akehurst
:07:59. > :08:03.reports. Detective Sgt Paul Thompson had
:08:03. > :08:05.been an undercover officer with Northumbria Police Drugs Squad. His
:08:05. > :08:10.wife, Susan, a high-flying housing executive based in Middlebrough,
:08:10. > :08:13.earned �6,000 a month. After a trial lasting six weeks at
:08:13. > :08:18.Newcastle Crown Court they were found not guilty of conspiring to
:08:18. > :08:20.supply cocaine. He, too, was cleared, with three other men, of
:08:20. > :08:26.conspiring to commit misconduct in a public office - in effect
:08:26. > :08:28.searching the police computer for information to help a drugs cartel.
:08:28. > :08:38.He also faced charges of possessing cocaine and illegally using the
:08:38. > :08:40.
:08:40. > :08:45.police computer for what the judge called "non-sinister" reasons. When
:08:45. > :08:50.the verdicts were given, Susan Thompson cried in the dock. She was
:08:50. > :08:55.allowed to leave and as she did so, she kissed her husband. He was
:08:55. > :09:01.found guilty of the for lesser charges and fined a total of �1,000.
:09:01. > :09:03.They came down the steps soon after hand in hand, allowed to walk free.
:09:03. > :09:06.Text messages on Susan Thompson's mobile phone referred to "placing
:09:06. > :09:10.orders" and "party bags", which prosecutors alleged were references
:09:10. > :09:13.to cocaine. But the jury accepted these were about the viagra
:09:14. > :09:22.substitute Kamagra, alcohol or other items. Paul Thompson had been
:09:22. > :09:28.under surveillance for weeks after fellow detectives became suspicious.
:09:28. > :09:34.The public have an expectation that our police officers have a very
:09:34. > :09:38.high standards. That did concern us. We did have intelligence to suggest
:09:38. > :09:44.he was involved in the use of cocaine and reinvestigated it.
:09:44. > :09:46.Certainly, the decision of the jury today has confirmed that. Three men
:09:46. > :09:50.who admitted conspiracy to supplying cocaine will be sentenced
:09:50. > :09:54.tomorrow. An elderly man has died after being
:09:54. > :09:59.hit by a bus this morning in Gateshead. It happened just off the
:09:59. > :10:08.High Street in Wrekenton. The pedestrian was in his seventies. No
:10:08. > :10:17.bus passengers were hurt but the A Scarborough woman whose fiance
:10:17. > :10:20.daughter's birth certificate. Tammy Scott and Peter Wilson had been
:10:21. > :10:23.together for three and half years and were engaged to be married. But
:10:23. > :10:33.last year, when Tammy was two months pregnant, Peter died
:10:33. > :10:35.
:10:35. > :10:39.suddenly. Carla Fowler reports. The baby is just two years old but
:10:39. > :10:45.tragically she will never meet her farmer -- father. He died suddenly
:10:45. > :10:49.last year within weeks of a finding out he was to be a dad. When Tammy
:10:49. > :10:56.Scott was told she would not be able to name him on the birth
:10:56. > :11:00.certificate, she was devastated. She is never going to see her dad.
:11:00. > :11:05.He is never going to see her smile, he is never going to see her get
:11:05. > :11:10.married, he is never going to see her friends. It is wrong. All he
:11:10. > :11:18.ever wanted was to be a dad. Not having his name on it is denying
:11:18. > :11:28.his existence. The 1953 per it's and Deaths Registration Act states
:11:28. > :11:29.
:11:30. > :11:34.that if married... In tragic cases of a father's death during
:11:34. > :11:38.pregnancy, it is a bureaucratic blow to an already grief-stricken
:11:38. > :11:42.woman. Her solicitors presented her case to the Home Office but were
:11:42. > :11:47.told her only option was to go to court a. She has now applied for
:11:47. > :11:51.legal aid. The government has no right to dictate who can be put on
:11:51. > :11:56.the birth certificate when it comes down to something like this. I
:11:56. > :12:05.intend to fight all the way. I will stick up for anybody who feels the
:12:05. > :12:09.same. I will do whatever I can to help. At a time when she should be
:12:09. > :12:13.enjoying the first months of motherhood, Tammy Scott faces an
:12:13. > :12:19.agonising wait to find out if she can take her fight to court before
:12:19. > :12:22.she can even hope of having Peter officially named as the father.
:12:22. > :12:26.Around one in three crimes committed in North Yorkshire is
:12:26. > :12:29.carried out by someone from outside the area. It's such a problem that
:12:29. > :12:32.for the next three months, the county's police force is putting
:12:32. > :12:36.extra effort into patrolling its borders. One of the criminal
:12:36. > :12:43.gateways is where North Yorkshire meets Teesside. Richard Thomas
:12:43. > :12:46.joined Operation Vanguard on the A19.
:12:46. > :12:49.Patrolling their borders. Today, North Yorkshire Police put on a
:12:49. > :12:54.visible show of force to show travelling criminals the county is
:12:54. > :13:02.not an easy target. Officers say 30% of people arrested in North
:13:02. > :13:06.Yorkshire enter the patch from a neighbouring force area. Some
:13:06. > :13:09.criminal groups will see the scale of a North Yorkshire and feel North
:13:09. > :13:14.Yorkshire police will struggle to cover the whole of the county all
:13:14. > :13:20.the time. This next three months is about as proving that is not the
:13:20. > :13:23.case. We have got significant resources. Metal theft and burglary
:13:23. > :13:26.are big problems for the force at the moment, with criminals from
:13:26. > :13:28.Cleveland and South and West Yorkshire seeing the rural county
:13:28. > :13:35.as rich pickings. So, today, using number plate recognition, any
:13:35. > :13:45.suspicious vehicles entering North Yorkshire were stopped and checked.
:13:45. > :13:47.
:13:47. > :13:51.This is one of the intercept cars. The police dogs section, the armed
:13:51. > :13:56.response unit and a financial investigator or are also patrolling
:13:56. > :14:00.across the county. On this occasion, PC Chris Doyle gives the driver and
:14:01. > :14:10.vehicle a clean bill of health. But others were not so lucky and
:14:11. > :14:11.
:14:11. > :14:14.several vehicles were taken off the road. We have had a couple of a
:14:14. > :14:16.vehicles seized already. Operation Vanguard is continuing for three
:14:16. > :14:26.months with checkpoints being set up across North Yorkshire's borders,
:14:26. > :14:31.
:14:32. > :14:37.preventing travelling criminals Up still to come, an Olympic horse
:14:37. > :14:42.bolts - Mycock all tells her story. Can the magnificent sea eagle make
:14:42. > :14:52.a return? But his cricketing weather, are the
:14:52. > :14:55.
:14:55. > :14:59.Sunshine's days numbered? Four months to Gaughan to London
:15:00. > :15:05.2012 under her Olympic Waples are entering the final straight. One
:15:05. > :15:12.has had to take a part-time job to fund her training. Alyson Dixon is
:15:12. > :15:22.one of seven British women aiming for a place in 18 GB. She has been
:15:22. > :15:35.
:15:35. > :15:40.training in Kenya. This is a woman whose feet have
:15:40. > :15:48.taken her to the international stage, Alyson Dixon is copping to
:15:48. > :15:58.call some -- further as a marathon runner. Just to think of standing
:15:58. > :16:03.
:16:03. > :16:13.on the start-line. It would be amazing. It all hinges on the
:16:13. > :16:13.
:16:13. > :16:18.London Marathon with only one spot left. She needs to run it in at
:16:19. > :16:26.least two Tower is 27 minutes and 30 seconds. There are seven goals
:16:26. > :16:36.chasing the same spot. My best time is two hours 34. I can do better
:16:36. > :16:44.than that. Hopefully, with another stint at altitude, I can knock 90
:16:44. > :16:54.seconds off that. To maximise her chances, Alison has spent a month
:16:54. > :16:55.
:16:55. > :17:05.in Kenya. Your body must work harder to key to the piste that far
:17:05. > :17:06.
:17:06. > :17:12.above sea level. The first few days, your lungs burn. You must keep an
:17:12. > :17:19.eye on your heart rate. Why are resting heart rate was more than
:17:19. > :17:26.double. Unlike many other athletes, she is completely self funded. She
:17:26. > :17:35.has had to take a part-time job at the MetroCentre. I will have a look
:17:35. > :17:41.at how you fit his landing. The camp I have been on cost 1,500
:17:41. > :17:49.pounds for the month. When you have not got up regular income, it is
:17:49. > :17:57.only a couple of hours a week. won the Brighton marathon and
:17:57. > :18:04.qualified for championships last year. I have had good experiences
:18:04. > :18:11.and bad experiences. My last marathon was pretty bad. I had two
:18:11. > :18:18.broken bones in my suit. That was a disappointment. I don't want
:18:18. > :18:28.another repeat performance. Another hurdle, her next Stent in Kenya
:18:28. > :18:29.
:18:29. > :18:39.will be funded. Her commitment is firmly set. Getty's something I
:18:39. > :18:45.have dreamed about since I was little. The Olympics is the
:18:45. > :18:55.pinnacle of sport. Every athlete dreams of that. With only a few
:18:55. > :18:57.
:18:57. > :19:05.weeks left, her Olympic dream is getting closer.
:19:05. > :19:15.The best of luck. Middlebrook -- Middlesbrough's bed
:19:15. > :19:16.
:19:16. > :19:23.to reach the play-offs. While Middlesbrough captain Matthew Bates
:19:23. > :19:33.play again this season after suffering another knee injury?
:19:33. > :19:43.has had a scan. He is getting an assessment today. It is wise we
:19:43. > :19:45.
:19:45. > :19:51.don't say anything about it. Let's hope there is a positive outlook.
:19:51. > :20:00.It is a pity the amazing spring weather is due to us -- cool down
:20:00. > :20:10.by the weekend. The revamped management team including Jason
:20:10. > :20:19.Gillespie, that Tikes are the favourites. It is about looking for
:20:19. > :20:27.it. The players has been preparing very well. We have worked very hard
:20:27. > :20:33.on our skills. The guys have got a lot of big time in the middle.
:20:33. > :20:41.Cumbrian is now in charge of the England team and till after the
:20:41. > :20:46.2015 World Cup. Stuart Lancaster from Penrice guided them at end
:20:46. > :20:56.that six nations. The Newcastle Falcons have only got
:20:56. > :20:58.
:20:58. > :21:04.four games left. Pensions will be running high a.
:21:05. > :21:14.Passion has never been in short supply but time is running out. It
:21:15. > :21:17.
:21:18. > :21:27.we have four games to go off. cannot hide from it. We are still
:21:27. > :21:33.confident. As long as we have the belief in the squad, we can do it.
:21:33. > :21:40.Dean Richards will take over next season. I think the appointment has
:21:40. > :21:48.been on the cards for a long time. Isn't -- it is not an issue. Their
:21:48. > :21:56.only concern is avoiding relegation. It is about keeping the Premiership
:21:56. > :22:03.alive and well in the North East. I believe it can change the belief
:22:03. > :22:11.systems for the rest of their lives. It has become that important.
:22:11. > :22:21.the battle it out, there will be no shortage of passion and the stands.
:22:21. > :22:23.
:22:23. > :22:31.We will be taking saliva tests, checking her heart rates. We will
:22:31. > :22:41.go through and see how excited we do get. Newcastle fans are known
:22:41. > :22:44.
:22:44. > :22:50.for the noise they can create. Falcons two eagles. Hundreds of
:22:50. > :22:55.years at all, the where a common sight. Persecution lent to the
:22:55. > :23:05.demise of the majestic sea eagle. Plans are afoot to bring this bird
:23:05. > :23:06.
:23:06. > :23:13.of prey to its stronghold. Will we prove that popular?
:23:13. > :23:23.Admirers describe them as bar and orders. The birds have become a
:23:23. > :23:27.
:23:27. > :23:37.tourist draw in the Western Isles. I saw one here and I never looked
:23:37. > :23:43.
:23:43. > :23:53.at the same battles water again. -- et al. The problem of Canada geese
:23:53. > :23:59.and plans of a cull have been declared. Putting something in an
:23:59. > :24:04.ecosystem means that it can take out another animal. Students from
:24:04. > :24:11.the University of Cumbria are drawing up the first stages of
:24:11. > :24:20.consultation. If economics stack up, there are likely to be concerns
:24:20. > :24:29.about the impact of the reintroduction on life stocks. Alan
:24:29. > :24:38.Dickinson thinks it will not be welcomed. They will be a threat.
:24:38. > :24:45.Maybe the where here. The systems of farming have changed. The
:24:45. > :24:55.problems would be vast. Advocates of this -- the Eagles, return will
:24:55. > :25:28.
:25:28. > :25:38.And you can see them or alive. You will see that all sorts of people
:25:38. > :25:46.
:25:46. > :25:53.have been enjoying the sunshine. It was a fantastic day appear.
:25:53. > :26:03.Tomorrow, it marks the last of the summer sunshine. We will see the
:26:03. > :26:13.weather break down. Why? We have had a high pressure system all week.
:26:13. > :26:16.
:26:16. > :26:23.By Saturday, the cold front will come in. Things do rally on Sunday.
:26:23. > :26:30.There is no return to the real summer highs of this week. Tonight,
:26:30. > :26:40.we expect a bit more cloud. In the North East, the skies will state
:26:40. > :26:55.
:26:55. > :27:05.clear. Some grass frost. Even Cumbria will brighten up nicely.
:27:05. > :27:13.
:27:13. > :27:23.Temperatures will pick up nicely. A north-westerly wind on the coast.
:27:23. > :27:23.