:00:09. > :00:13.Nine months ago, it was Sunderland which sent the first real signal
:00:14. > :00:16.that Britain was about to vote to leave the European Union.
:00:17. > :00:18.Today, the two-year countdown to Brexit began.
:00:19. > :00:22.A region that voted for Brexit, but with strong
:00:23. > :00:29.Our political editor, Richard Moss, has been speaking to two of our MPs
:00:30. > :00:33.who were on different sides of the debate in the EU Referendum.
:00:34. > :00:36.Employers see huge opportunities in this, but there's a huge threat,
:00:37. > :00:38.isn't there, to the north-east economy in particular.
:00:39. > :00:43.Big dangers in the process that started today.
:00:44. > :00:46.First of all, I recognise it as an opportunity, as you mentioned.
:00:47. > :00:49.We've set in train now a process, we are giving expression
:00:50. > :00:52.to the will of the people - 60% of the people in the North
:00:53. > :01:00.Today, we are making good that promise that that will happen,
:01:01. > :01:03.and in time, we will have control over our laws, our court system,
:01:04. > :01:07.It will mean nothing if people are losing their jobs,
:01:08. > :01:09.I think, actually, you mentioned trade.
:01:10. > :01:12.That's something which is a huge opportunity, and it's one
:01:13. > :01:14.of the main reasons I was supporting the Leave campaign.
:01:15. > :01:18.Of course the EU is important, but it's diminishing
:01:19. > :01:22.The rest of the world is fast growing, and Europe historically has
:01:23. > :01:24.been not very good at tapping us into the global economy,
:01:25. > :01:28.and that's something that I hope we can capitalise on for the North
:01:29. > :01:31.Helen Goodman - nothing to fear, plenty to capitalise on.
:01:32. > :01:34.Well, a lot of people will obviously be pleased if they can control
:01:35. > :01:37.immigration from this country, but we are the biggest exporting
:01:38. > :01:39.region outside London, and we export ten times as much
:01:40. > :01:42.to Europe as to the old Commonwealth, so it's really vital
:01:43. > :01:46.that the Prime Minister prioritises tariff-free,
:01:47. > :01:54.This was a vote that people in your constituency supported,
:01:55. > :01:56.and the north-east could benefit from Brexit, if trade
:01:57. > :02:02.Well, seeing is believing on the trade front.
:02:03. > :02:04.I think people voted Brexit because they wanted
:02:05. > :02:14.A Teesdale charity that helps farmers with EU paperwork says
:02:15. > :02:19.the industry is facing massive uncertainty thanks to Brexit.
:02:20. > :02:22.Farmers have been promised by the government that
:02:23. > :02:24.their system of subsidies - currently paid by the EU -
:02:25. > :02:30.But, after that, farming faces massive, but unknown, reform.
:02:31. > :02:38.John and his family farm sheep and cows in Teesdale,
:02:39. > :02:41.a life that alternates between idyllic
:02:42. > :02:45.It is, though, helped by cash support from the EU,
:02:46. > :02:51.On average, 60% of farm incomes come in the form of EU subsidies.
:02:52. > :02:56.Little wonder, then, that John worries about the impact of Brexit.
:02:57. > :02:59.We get quite a lot of support, because it's obviously
:03:00. > :03:02.in the various schemes, with it being so high
:03:03. > :03:08.up, and it contributes to our income as a farm.
:03:09. > :03:14.The government has promised to match subsidies up
:03:15. > :03:17.until 2020, but after that, it's promised nothing.
:03:18. > :03:19.If we get the support from the government,
:03:20. > :03:23.then we'll still be farming here, but if we don't get the support
:03:24. > :03:27.from the government, we won't be able to be a farm.
:03:28. > :03:31.Our business won't stack up, and John will have to go
:03:32. > :03:36.This Teesdale charity helps farmers like John navigate their way around
:03:37. > :03:39.the paperwork that needs to be filled in before subsidies are paid,
:03:40. > :03:48.We are all heading towards leaving Europe with absolutely no certainty
:03:49. > :03:50.of what's going to happen, what's going to replace
:03:51. > :03:54.the relationship that we've had with Europe in the past,
:03:55. > :03:58.and for farmers who rely on payments from the Common Agricultural Policy,
:03:59. > :04:03.it's going to be very difficult to get through that,
:04:04. > :04:07.and the disruption that such an alteration in our relationship
:04:08. > :04:11.with Europe is going to cause to a community like this.
:04:12. > :04:14.You wouldn't know it in the peace of Teesdale,
:04:15. > :04:19.but a process that could change farming forever started today -
:04:20. > :04:22.the momentous journey of leaving the EU, and where farming finds
:04:23. > :04:27.itself in that post-Brexit world could dictate whether John
:04:28. > :04:31.and his family will still have a place in it.
:04:32. > :04:39.Well, one thing that's become clear since we voted to leave is that
:04:40. > :04:41.Brexit means different things to different people.
:04:42. > :04:44.So, now the process is under way for real, we've been gauging
:04:45. > :04:53.These pro-EU protesters in the region today are clear
:04:54. > :04:56.where they stand, but what Brexit should actually mean is still
:04:57. > :05:01.On the streets, Brexit, it seems, is as contentious as ever.
:05:02. > :05:04.I think we should have left it the way things were.
:05:05. > :05:06.It's much simpler the way things have been.
:05:07. > :05:10.I don't agree with paying ?50 billion to exit,
:05:11. > :05:13.so that needs negotiating out of that.
:05:14. > :05:20.Get out, get a good deal, and finish with it.
:05:21. > :05:27.Here in Sunderland, they hope that by the time Brexit is confirmed,
:05:28. > :05:33.they will be the UK's City of Culture.
:05:34. > :05:36.It's a city that overwhelmingly voted for Leave, but those behind
:05:37. > :05:40.the bid think it's time now to talk about something else.
:05:41. > :05:42.The debate around Sunderland nationally has been very
:05:43. > :05:48.monopolised by Brexit, and I think that's been very
:05:49. > :05:52.It's told one story, and I think there are lots of other
:05:53. > :05:54.stories about the city that we want to tell,
:05:55. > :05:56.stories about investment, stories about culture.
:05:57. > :05:59.There are some big challenges we are facing, there are some big
:06:00. > :06:02.opportunities we are facing, and we want to get on and tell that
:06:03. > :06:04.story, and not be monopolised by the Brexit debate.
:06:05. > :06:06.As the Brexit negotiations begin, our random and unscientific survey
:06:07. > :06:10.found it's the young fearing they have the most to lose.
:06:11. > :06:14.I think the EU has offered a lot of benefits to us over the years,
:06:15. > :06:16.particularly in the north, which I think a lot
:06:17. > :06:20.I think it's going to be a mistake to leave.
:06:21. > :06:25.I don't think it was fair that 16 and 17-year-olds weren't allowed
:06:26. > :06:30.It's going to affect us the longest, and we haven't had
:06:31. > :06:41.A hospital trust in Cumbria has been taken out of special measures
:06:42. > :06:45.after the Care Quality Commission said it had made
:06:46. > :06:52.North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust serves 320,000 patients,
:06:53. > :06:57.and was put into special measures four years ago.
:06:58. > :07:01.Damian O'Neil reports from the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle.
:07:02. > :07:03.11 trusts around the country were put into special measures
:07:04. > :07:07.in 2013, as part of a review into high mortality rates,
:07:08. > :07:10.and North Cumbria is the last of them to be returned
:07:11. > :07:15.There's still work to be done - the Trust now has an overall rating
:07:16. > :07:20.But, for the staff, today is a very good day.
:07:21. > :07:23.Well, I think we have a huge amount of pride in the staff,
:07:24. > :07:26.and the staff are very pleased today, and feel that,
:07:27. > :07:29.after a lot of hard work, their efforts have been recognised.
:07:30. > :07:31.It's important to say that throughout this period of time
:07:32. > :07:34.when the trust has been challenged, the ratings have always been good
:07:35. > :07:38.for our staff, caring staff, and staff showing compassion.
:07:39. > :07:42.A longstanding recruitment problem at the Trust is often linked with it
:07:43. > :07:46.being in special measures, although not everyone was put off
:07:47. > :07:51.So I worked as a registrar here about five years ago,
:07:52. > :07:54.and then joined as a consultant as the hospital went
:07:55. > :07:57.into special measures, and that was a challenging time,
:07:58. > :08:00.but I think we've seen huge improvement over the three years
:08:01. > :08:03.that I've been here, and I'm very proud and satisfied
:08:04. > :08:05.that we've managed to get out of special measures.
:08:06. > :08:08.But a former surgeon at the West Cumberland Hospital,
:08:09. > :08:10.who's led a campaign to protect hospital services, says there
:08:11. > :08:19.The most important aspect of this coming out of special
:08:20. > :08:21.measures is recruitment, but there are other things,
:08:22. > :08:26.like cancelled operations, the cancelled outpatient clinic,
:08:27. > :08:34.the heart patients still need to travel to Carlisle, which is
:08:35. > :08:41.The Trust has rarely been out of the news for very
:08:42. > :08:45.long in recent times, but for the wrong reasons.
:08:46. > :08:49.Now, although there are still things to be done, the decision to take
:08:50. > :08:52.the Trust out of special measures is a big one, and it hopefully gives
:08:53. > :08:55.a platform from which they can move forward to a better future,
:08:56. > :08:58.where the negative headlines are very much a thing of the past.
:08:59. > :09:01.This is Damien O'Neill for BBC Look North at the
:09:02. > :09:05.The owner of a York care home - where an elderly resident died
:09:06. > :09:08.after jumping from an upstairs window - has been found guilty
:09:09. > :09:09.of failing to assess the risks that she faced.
:09:10. > :09:12.Dora Strickland, who was 90, committed suicide at Red Lodge
:09:13. > :09:18.The Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust was found not guilty of failing
:09:19. > :09:23.The Trust is due to be sentenced tomorrow.
:09:24. > :09:43.Now it's time for the weather with Paul Mooney.
:09:44. > :09:53.Outbreaks of rain. That rain will tend to fizzle out during the night.
:09:54. > :09:58.Very mild, with temperatures in double figures, thanks to that cloud
:09:59. > :10:02.and a brisk south-westerly breeze. There will be more rain around
:10:03. > :10:08.tomorrow. Cumbria and the Scottish orders will bear the brunt of the
:10:09. > :10:12.more persistent rain. The rain that makes it further east will be
:10:13. > :10:19.lighter and more intermittent. If you hang on some sunshine, could see
:10:20. > :10:24.some reasonable temperatures. Always a bit cooler further north and west
:10:25. > :10:27.with the thicker cloud. A brisk south-westerly wind again, and that
:10:28. > :10:34.continues for a time as we head towards the end of the week. That
:10:35. > :10:37.cold weather front finally clears on Friday, introducing some fresh
:10:38. > :10:44.weather in from the West. And improving picture as we head towards
:10:45. > :10:50.the weekend. Friday, any early rain will clear and things will dry up
:10:51. > :10:54.and brighten up. Quite a windy day, with a gusty south-westerly breeze.
:10:55. > :10:59.As we head into the weekend, Saturday is a day of sunshine and
:11:00. > :11:03.showers. Some shells could be thundery, but some
:11:04. > :11:06.far. The outlook for the next few days, temperatures coming down a bit
:11:07. > :11:08.but staying decent for this time of year. Here is Darren Bett with the
:11:09. > :11:18.national weather. The warm air coming up on a
:11:19. > :11:20.southerly breeze all the way from Iberia and across France into
:11:21. > :11:24.England and Wales. To achieve the high temperatures we need to get
:11:25. > :11:29.into some of this dryer air and sunshine. Even with the cloud today,
:11:30. > :11:33.17 degrees. Not just about the temperatures, let's not forget there
:11:34. > :11:36.is some rain around as well. Quite wet in Pembrokeshire for much of the
:11:37. > :11:40.day. More rain overnight tonight, some rain and drizzle in northern
:11:41. > :11:44.and western areas. Wetter weather moving northwards across Scotland.
:11:45. > :11:49.Some rain in the south-west, shuffling towards the Midlands.
:11:50. > :11:50.Overnight, a lot of cloud around. It is going to be very mild