:04:13. > :04:19.Tonight we are at the dustcart manufacturers. Business confidence
:04:19. > :04:24.is growing and exports are up, but economic growth is weak. This
:04:24. > :04:34.company is doing well, but others aren't. We spent the day with
:04:34. > :04:36.
:04:36. > :04:40.several other companies on this industrial estate.
:04:40. > :04:48.This a firm makes high-visibility clothing, but it has not protected
:04:48. > :04:52.them from be up and down -- from the ups and downs of the economy.
:04:52. > :05:02.They are being forced to seek out new markets. It has been
:05:02. > :05:06.challenging, but we were not let it affect us. Staffing levels have
:05:06. > :05:13.remained the same throughout the downturn, but for some it has been
:05:14. > :05:22.a worrying time. I have been made redundant twice before. My husband
:05:22. > :05:27.has just had a massive pay cut, so everyone is concerned. Here, the
:05:27. > :05:32.music is different. This man set up his business at the height of the
:05:32. > :05:37.recession. Despite that, it is one of the most successful businesses
:05:37. > :05:41.on the estate, but the weak economy is having an effect. People are
:05:41. > :05:45.cautious. They are careful and considered that about what they
:05:45. > :05:50.spend their money on. And here is a good illustration of how weak the
:05:50. > :05:55.economy is in some sectors. A wine merchant we featured when we were
:05:56. > :06:01.last here has gone out of business. The decorators are getting the unit
:06:01. > :06:06.ready for another customer. Thankfully here, most firms are
:06:06. > :06:12.still in business. This double glazing firm is doing well, but the
:06:12. > :06:19.managing director admits that drove his flat. Business is OK, but it is
:06:19. > :06:24.flat Crowfoot wise. We haven't seen any sense 2008. The report may say
:06:24. > :06:28.things are getting better, but I cannot see it. Then is no doubt
:06:28. > :06:33.that confidence is improving, but with the economy still weak, there
:06:33. > :06:39.is no covering up the fact that we are not out of the woods yet. Still
:06:39. > :06:46.more pessimism that optimism about the recovery. Earlier, we spoke to
:06:46. > :06:50.the local MP. He said any companies that want to grow need to make sure
:06:50. > :06:56.their plans are sustainable. The is an opportunity to be optimistic. It
:06:56. > :07:00.takes people like myself, the chambers, even some of our media
:07:00. > :07:06.outlets to make sure this message of confidence is regained and
:07:06. > :07:14.improved. It is something we need to work together on. Joining me
:07:15. > :07:20.here is one of the managers of this company. What is the picture here?
:07:20. > :07:24.The order book is growing and production is going up. A lot of
:07:25. > :07:30.people have suffered because the council orders have gone down.
:07:30. > :07:40.is true. They are lagging behind. Most of our new business comes from
:07:40. > :07:42.
:07:42. > :07:52.the private sector. Our export up? The yes. They are encouraging. --
:07:52. > :07:52.
:07:52. > :07:58.yes. What about jobs? We have not laid people offer as much as we
:07:58. > :08:01.could have done when it turned down. When it turned up, we have to
:08:01. > :08:07.achieve the Bonham's by productivity. What DC for the next
:08:07. > :08:12.three months? Increased production and order intake. A mixed picture
:08:12. > :08:15.from here, but we are heading in the right direction.
:08:15. > :08:22.Thank you. Later in the programme we will hear about an engineering
:08:22. > :08:29.firm that has just opened a new factory in Telford. Also, a job be
:08:29. > :08:32.used for the car industry in Shropshire. -- a job be used.
:08:32. > :08:34.A Shropshire man has been found responsible for a murdering an
:08:34. > :08:37.antiques dealer in the county 17 years ago. Jurors at Birmingham
:08:37. > :08:42.Crown Court decided that 59-year- old Robin Ligus killed antiques
:08:42. > :08:47.dealer Trevor Bradley in 1994. Ligus is facing two further counts
:08:47. > :08:52.of murder. This is 59-year-old Robin Ligus, a
:08:52. > :08:55.father of three from Shrewsbury. Today he was found responsible for
:08:55. > :09:02.killing Trevor Bradley, an antiques dealer from Ludlow, who's body was
:09:02. > :09:05.found in a burned out car in 1994. In 2009, Ligus was charged with his
:09:05. > :09:07.murder and also went on trial accused of killing two other men in
:09:07. > :09:17.Shropshire in 1994 - 57-year-old Brian Coles and 36-year-old Bernard
:09:17. > :09:23.
:09:23. > :09:28.Czyzewska. Robin like this was considered unfit to enter a plea.
:09:28. > :09:33.The jury was asked to consider whether he was responsible for that
:09:33. > :09:37.deaths of those men. The jury said he accepted he had murdered Trevor
:09:38. > :09:47.Bradley. And they did so after hearing this apparent confession
:09:47. > :09:51.played in court. The court heard that Ligus is currently serving a
:09:51. > :09:54.life sentence for murdering pensioner Robert Young in 1994.
:09:54. > :10:03.jury of six men and six women is still considering the cases of
:10:03. > :10:07.Brian Coles and Bernard Czyzewska. They will resume their
:10:07. > :10:10.deliberations tomorrow. There are still more revelations to
:10:10. > :10:13.come. That's the view of the MP who's played a key role in exposing
:10:13. > :10:16.the phone hacking scandal at Rupert Murdoch's News International
:10:16. > :10:19.newspaper empire. In an interview with BBC West Midlands' Hard Talk
:10:19. > :10:23.programme, Tom Watson said the work he was putting in on it was having
:10:23. > :10:33.an impact on his family life and causing him to spend less time on
:10:33. > :10:38.constituency issues. This next report contains flash
:10:38. > :10:42.photography. A local face thrust into the
:10:42. > :10:50.spotlight in what has become an international media storm over
:10:51. > :10:59.phone hacking. We are only halfway through this. We are here because
:10:59. > :11:04.of one or criminal investigator. Many other investigators were hired
:11:04. > :11:08.by News International. A stark warning from the West Midlands MP
:11:08. > :11:13.who has been investigating the News of the World for two years. Can I
:11:13. > :11:23.ask the Prime Minister to make inquiries as to whether the
:11:23. > :11:26.
:11:26. > :11:31.families of the victims of 9/11 were targeted? I felt inadequate
:11:31. > :11:36.because there was nothing I could do. These people would not stop.
:11:36. > :11:45.People went through out what dustbins, they went into our garage,
:11:45. > :11:51.upset our neighbours. He went on to become a villainous voice when
:11:51. > :11:56.hacking first came to light. It won him admirers. Watson has been a
:11:56. > :12:02.terrier with his teeth in the trousers of Mr Murdoch's
:12:02. > :12:12.Organisation for several years. He is not afraid and he keeps going.
:12:12. > :12:14.
:12:14. > :12:18.It is a distressing and hard, but he has hung on. Great accolades for
:12:18. > :12:22.Tom Watson at Westminster where he is the backbencher of the moment,
:12:22. > :12:30.but this is his constituency and people wonder whether their local
:12:30. > :12:34.MP should be focusing on our phone hacking or issues that affect them?
:12:34. > :12:38.There are lots of things that need doing in West Bromwich. It is
:12:38. > :12:46.something to fill of the newspapers. He needs to get things done. I am
:12:46. > :12:51.proud of him. He has done a great job. I wanted to get to the bottom
:12:51. > :12:56.of phone hacking, but I still want to get legislation on that metal
:12:56. > :13:03.theft in West Bromwich. There is a day-job but I still find rewarding
:13:03. > :13:10.and satisfying. His next job - to help quiz Rupert Murdoch, his son
:13:10. > :13:17.James and Rebekah Brooks went all three have faced a -- when all
:13:17. > :13:22.three face a select committee next week.
:13:22. > :13:29.Our political editor is here. Tom Watson says that he has been
:13:29. > :13:34.distracted. Will that change? could. He says we are only halfway
:13:34. > :13:41.through all the revelations. His market value on that lucrative
:13:41. > :13:45.North American lecture circuit will be higher. Also at this whole
:13:45. > :13:51.firestorm could extend to the News International operation over there.
:13:51. > :13:55.You can see times are changing for him. He had been giving interviews
:13:55. > :14:05.to ours and the New York Times. There is also that new hairstyle,
:14:05. > :14:14.which is always a sign that upward mobility! -- a sign of upward
:14:14. > :14:24.mobility! What about his position at
:14:24. > :14:40.
:14:40. > :14:46.Westminster? Well he will be high profile. There is an element of
:14:46. > :14:50.settling old scores. How did he get so involved? He says it landed in
:14:50. > :14:55.his lap. He was on the culture committee when these allegations
:14:55. > :15:01.started to surface and unlike almost everyone else, he felt he
:15:01. > :15:06.could not turn a blind eye. You felt that dossier it may still just
:15:07. > :15:14.be a work in progress. Thank you. You can hear that into view in for
:15:14. > :15:17.by going to a website. -- interview. Walsall council workers began
:15:17. > :15:20.receiving letters today detailing how much they will gain or lose as
:15:20. > :15:23.a result of changes to pay grades. The restructuring is being brought
:15:23. > :15:26.in because of equal pay legislation. Hundreds of employees showed up at
:15:26. > :15:29.union meetings this afternoon after receiving their letters. One in
:15:29. > :15:38.five of them face a pay cut. Among those to lose out is 59-year-old
:15:38. > :15:45.social care worker Margaret Adams from Willenhall.
:15:45. > :15:49.I have been dropped about �2,500 a year and the night and at once has
:15:50. > :15:56.dropped. I used to get it for 10 out words and now it is early for
:15:56. > :16:01.eight hours. 29 years with Walsall council. It is not fair. I am
:16:01. > :16:04.really angry. The family of a man murdered in his
:16:04. > :16:07.house as his six-year-old son slept upstairs have made a fresh appeal
:16:07. > :16:10.to the public to help catch his killers. Police say they are
:16:10. > :16:14.reopening the inquiry into David Currier's death. He was found with
:16:14. > :16:17.a stab wound to his leg at his home in Bromsgrove in 2009. Cannabis
:16:17. > :16:20.plants were found growing at the house and police say his death may
:16:20. > :16:29.be drugs related. His sister says his little boy talks about his dad
:16:29. > :16:34.all the time. He says he wishes he could go up
:16:34. > :16:41.into the sky and bring his daddy back. He often blows kisses into
:16:41. > :16:45.the air for him. When he gets his suite, he saves some and puts them
:16:45. > :16:49.on his dad's grave. Soldiers have been describing what
:16:49. > :16:51.it's like to come under fire from the Taliban. The 3rd Battalion, the
:16:51. > :16:54.Mercian Regiment, which recruits from the Midlands, are in
:16:54. > :16:57.Afghanistan helping train the Afghan army and police. So far, 375
:16:58. > :17:01.British soldiers have died in the conflict. 32 of those were from
:17:01. > :17:10.this region. In the second of our series of special reports, Louise
:17:10. > :17:14.Brierley looks at what life is like for them on the frontline.
:17:14. > :17:18.Soldiers from the Mercian Regiment on patrol on the front line in
:17:18. > :17:22.Helmand province. For many this tour has been their first
:17:22. > :17:27.experience of modern warfare and they are never far away from danger.
:17:27. > :17:34.This is Private Josh O'Hare from Solihull. He was caught in an
:17:34. > :17:42.incident involving and improvised explosive device. It was pretty
:17:42. > :17:49.hard to deal with that. Unfortunately, there were at two
:17:49. > :17:55.casualties. One was killed in action. I was about five minutes
:17:55. > :17:59.away. I didn't know how many casualties there were or anything.
:17:59. > :18:08.At base there is not much time before these troops had to leave
:18:08. > :18:18.again to go back out to protect a local town from the Taliban. This
:18:18. > :18:19.
:18:19. > :18:24.soldier has completed several tours of duty. If we were not here, the
:18:24. > :18:29.local communities would be taxed and intimidated. Their children
:18:29. > :18:37.would be stolen from them, especially their daughters. We
:18:37. > :18:40.provide a safe thing Baron -- environment for them. Conditions
:18:40. > :18:47.are tougher with temperatures reaching 15 degrees and they do not
:18:47. > :18:52.have the luxuries of main bases. The soldier has also completed
:18:52. > :18:58.several tours. He it is pretty basic. There is no air-conditioning.
:18:58. > :19:03.We have a well for water and we are on rations. But the guys enjoy it.
:19:03. > :19:09.For many, the front line is what joining the army is all about, but
:19:09. > :19:14.for others, it can be overwhelming. I would not mind coming back, but
:19:14. > :19:20.it is not something I would want to do every day. Is that because of
:19:20. > :19:30.the conditions? Yes. And obviously getting shot at. A risk these men
:19:30. > :19:39.
:19:39. > :19:47.face every day. And still to come: do not get comfortable with the
:19:47. > :19:50.weather because it is going to get changed -- it is going to change.
:19:50. > :19:52.More later. Now, earlier in the programme we
:19:52. > :19:56.heard about that positive business survey. There's some more good news
:19:56. > :19:58.today for car parts firm Stadco, which has opened a new factory in
:19:58. > :20:01.Telford today. The news comes just weeks after its largest customer
:20:01. > :20:11.Jaguar Landrover announced record sales and plans to create 1,000 new
:20:11. > :20:14.
:20:14. > :20:18.jobs in the West Midlands. Manufacturing is well under way at
:20:18. > :20:24.Stadco's new factory in Telford. 50 new jobs have been created with
:20:24. > :20:28.dozens of others in associated injuries. 90 % of the part it makes
:20:28. > :20:35.here and in factories around the Midlands are supplied two car
:20:35. > :20:40.companies in the UK. There is tremendous optimism about car
:20:40. > :20:47.manufacturing in the UK and we hope to take advantage of that. It is
:20:47. > :20:52.good news that parks are being made locally. But it has not always been
:20:52. > :20:58.such good news. In the depths of the recession this company reduced
:20:58. > :21:06.its workforce from 1,000 to 600 at sites across the UK, including
:21:07. > :21:16.Coventry. Now employment is back to levels before the recession. This
:21:17. > :21:21.
:21:21. > :21:29.man is back in employment after a rough time. He is a supervisor here
:21:29. > :21:35.in a similar role for a similar salary. I did not see it coming. I
:21:35. > :21:43.have never been out of work in my life before, but now I have a job.
:21:43. > :21:46.There is empty space here, but this company says it is expecting growth.
:21:46. > :21:50.Sport now, and the day that golf fans wait all year for. Today is
:21:50. > :21:54.day one of the world's oldest and most famous major - The Open. Fans
:21:54. > :21:57.from across the world have flocked to Sandwich in Kent to see who will
:21:57. > :22:07.win the famous claret jug. But they could have gone to Rednal, near
:22:07. > :22:24.
:22:24. > :22:34.I morning, ladies and gentlemen. From a Northfield, Isobel Godfrey.
:22:34. > :22:44.
:22:44. > :22:49.She was opening up for a different generation. This school has its own
:22:49. > :22:55.golf course. They are learning how to play fair and support each other.
:22:55. > :23:05.Today was not just about competition. Support from the Golf
:23:05. > :23:07.
:23:07. > :23:12.Foundation meant there was tutoring from professional players. Best to
:23:12. > :23:15.leave it to the experts - the children. It is calm and quiet and
:23:15. > :23:20.you can just have a game with your friends and have a nice
:23:20. > :23:24.conversation. We have won at nationals once and we had been
:23:24. > :23:31.pretty the finals twice. That is why we think we can win today.
:23:31. > :23:37.it turns out she was right. The tournament was won by the home team,
:23:37. > :23:44.but perhaps the biggest achievement is that 120 children from inner-
:23:44. > :23:54.city Birmingham were playing golf. They had better aware that there
:23:54. > :24:06.
:24:06. > :24:13.than they did at Sandwich. Wool is on the comeback and it is making
:24:13. > :24:18.our sheep farmers money. We feel better because we have to
:24:18. > :24:28.share our shoot anyway. It is better to do it when you are making
:24:28. > :24:30.
:24:30. > :24:40.money. -- away sheep. Three years ago, Simon was getting only 66p for
:24:40. > :24:45.this fleece and it was costing apparent. Now the price is �2.80.
:24:45. > :24:54.It is not enough to make wool farming a viable on its own, but it
:24:54. > :24:58.is a bonus. It is good news. gives us more incentive to go out
:24:58. > :25:05.and asked for more money. At this shop they are turning back the
:25:05. > :25:09.clock when it wool meant wealth. It specialises in all kinds of Gollum
:25:09. > :25:18.products and the market is warming up. I think it is starting to have
:25:18. > :25:24.such a big comeback in this country. People are realising what an
:25:24. > :25:30.underrated production wool is. It is versatile. People are loving it
:25:30. > :25:35.and they realise what a super product it is. A sentiment welcomed
:25:35. > :25:45.by Simon Edwards and all the other sheep farmers in the region. Some
:25:45. > :25:52.good news in a sector of Agriculture at that really need it.
:25:52. > :26:00.And now for the weather. Today was a pleasure, but tomorrow
:26:00. > :26:08.and the weekend might not be. If you are hoping for rain, then you
:26:09. > :26:12.will get it. It will be windy with lower temperatures. We see this
:26:12. > :26:21.area of rain swirling around on beat South eastern corner of the
:26:21. > :26:26.country. But that is not what is going to affect us. There are
:26:26. > :26:31.weather fronts coming in from the West. However, tonight will be
:26:32. > :26:39.clear. Temperatures will drop to a minimum of eight Celsius, but
:26:39. > :26:42.double figures in built up areas. Tomorrow, it will start sunny and
:26:42. > :26:47.dry. Through the day the clouds will thicken from the West. That
:26:47. > :26:57.rain will arrive towards the end of the day, into the evening. It will
:26:57. > :27:00.
:27:00. > :27:10.not last very long and it is also fairly light rain. Temperatures are
:27:10. > :27:10.
:27:10. > :27:20.still warm. 21-22 Celsius. Tomorrow night we will see the rain come
:27:20. > :27:25.through and it will be fairly heavy later on. A look at the main
:27:25. > :27:30.headlines: Rupert Murdoch and his sons James agreed to appear before
:27:30. > :27:37.MPs to answer questions about the hacking scandal. And police are