:00:02. > :00:12.Hello and welcome to Midlands Today, with Nick Owen and Suzanne Virdee.
:00:12. > :00:15.The headlines tonight: police searching in woodland for Kate
:00:15. > :00:19.Prout's body have found human remains.
:00:19. > :00:26.We have found human remains close to the location Adrian Prout said
:00:26. > :00:30.he buried his wife. Slowing sales for shops as the
:00:31. > :00:35.Christmas rush fails to get going. We are not attracting the customers
:00:35. > :00:38.we were before. Protests about the cuts that could
:00:38. > :00:43.threaten 3,000 miles of country walks.
:00:43. > :00:53.And where best to go to hone your skills in Alpine acrobatics. Stoke-
:00:53. > :00:57.
:00:57. > :01:05.Good evening and welcome to Thursday's Midlands Today, from the
:01:05. > :01:07.BBC. It's being predicted that this
:01:07. > :01:12.could be an austerity Christmas, with shops bracing themselves for
:01:12. > :01:18.tough trading. And this at a time of year when stores hope to make
:01:18. > :01:21.the lion's share of profits to tide them over in leaner times. Today,
:01:21. > :01:24.Sir Philip Green said his retail empire, which owns Burton and BHS,
:01:24. > :01:27.has seen a near 40% slide in profits and will close 260 stores
:01:27. > :01:31.across the country, including many here. Across this region, sales
:01:31. > :01:33.have fallen by more than 10%. Even at the country's most popular
:01:33. > :01:37.shopping destination outside London, the Bullring in Birmingham, sales
:01:37. > :01:39.are down, too. And according to the latest Bank of England survey,
:01:39. > :01:43.cash-strapped consumers are tightening their belts more than
:01:43. > :01:52.ever. But as Cath Mackie reports, savvy shoppers can bag a bargain,
:01:52. > :01:57.as stores are forced to make big discounts.
:01:57. > :02:00.90 eggs for 99p and four loaves of bread for �1. No wonder people were
:02:00. > :02:03.queuing for hours this morning to get their hands on the opening
:02:03. > :02:07.offers at A1 Supermarket in Small Heath, Birmingham. It is so cheap.
:02:07. > :02:11.It is an unbelievable offer. That is why we have come. I can't
:02:11. > :02:15.believe it! There were crowds, too, up the road at the Bullring. But
:02:15. > :02:18.how many were spending? The dancing diggers had drawn them in. The
:02:18. > :02:25.unusual display marked the opening of Spiceal Street, a new dining
:02:25. > :02:29.quarter. We cannot ignore that people are finding it tough. I
:02:29. > :02:34.think it has finally caught up with us in Birmingham in this second
:02:34. > :02:39.half. Online, we have done a lot to ensure that customers will look for
:02:39. > :02:41.products online and then come into the shops to make a purchase.
:02:41. > :02:45.Bullring is the top end of retailing, fairing better than many
:02:45. > :02:48.places in the West Midlands. Spending's so slow in some areas
:02:48. > :02:50.that stores are closing. Solihull- based Cooks the Bakery has gone
:02:50. > :02:54.into administration, while Dorothy Perkins and Burtons in Stafford are
:02:54. > :03:02.shutting shop. They're part of the Arcadia Group, which is closing up
:03:02. > :03:06.to 260 stores countrywide after reporting a big fall in profits.
:03:06. > :03:10.am sure there will be fewer people wanting to come into the town
:03:10. > :03:16.centre and you have got to feel for those who work in the shops. It is
:03:16. > :03:18.stripping out the heart of the town as all is little shops disappear.
:03:18. > :03:21.Rising prices, battered confidence and the lure of online bargains
:03:21. > :03:26.have all contributed to the decline in footfall, or the number of
:03:26. > :03:29.people going shopping. And the statistics are quite stark.
:03:29. > :03:34.Footfall fell in the West Midlands by 10.4% between August and October.
:03:34. > :03:37.Compare that with the national average of 2.3%. But here's one man
:03:37. > :03:40.who's confident of success in a tough market. Chris Sargeant, of
:03:40. > :03:48.the Handmade Burger Company, who opened a new restaurant today at
:03:48. > :03:54.the Bullring. This is our 13th restaurant we have opened over five
:03:54. > :03:58.years, so we are really excited. You have to not lose what you
:03:58. > :04:02.created from the first restaurant on day one, so we have not lost our
:04:02. > :04:06.values. But with inflation taking a big bite out of incomes, how much
:04:06. > :04:16.will we all have left in our purses and wallets to spend this
:04:16. > :04:18.Christmas? Our business correspondent, Peter
:04:18. > :04:21.Plisner, is in Warwick for us tonight, where there's a Victorian
:04:21. > :04:25.Christmas fair, one of the many events around the region designed
:04:25. > :04:28.to pull in shoppers at this time of year. Peter, after a very tough
:04:28. > :04:32.year, the next 30 days are crucial for everyone in the retail sector,
:04:32. > :04:37.aren't they? Absolutely. Hence the appearance of this Christmas market
:04:38. > :04:41.tonight. Some do up to 50% of their annual trade in the run-up to
:04:41. > :04:47.Christmas, but things have been pretty slow to start this year.
:04:47. > :04:52.Some are blaming the mild weather. Last year, of course, it was snow.
:04:52. > :04:57.So we need a happy medium between the two. This is David, a trader
:04:57. > :05:02.here. How are things for you? Things are picking up. The weather
:05:02. > :05:06.could get a bit colder and that would help. But we are hoping we do
:05:06. > :05:11.not get the snow and stuff from last year and we are happy with the
:05:11. > :05:16.way things are picking up at the moment. How important a Christmas
:05:16. > :05:21.markets like this in getting people in? Very important. It is like the
:05:21. > :05:26.start off Christmas. People suddenly feel the spirit and they
:05:26. > :05:30.love it. We have got independent shops and a fabulous market, as you
:05:30. > :05:36.can see, and it gets people feeling a bit happier with life in this
:05:36. > :05:41.economic gloom. Can you tell us why people like cold weather to do
:05:41. > :05:46.their shopping? I don't know! It is just a psychological thing that
:05:46. > :05:51.snow and frost makes you wrap up warm and you feel hope very good
:05:51. > :05:55.about Christmas. Many thanks. Later on, they will be turning on the
:05:55. > :06:04.Christmas lights, yet another draw to get people out and spending.
:06:04. > :06:07.looks lovely there! Thanks for joining us this evening.
:06:07. > :06:13.Later, Coventry City fans want the club's owners out. Now the council
:06:13. > :06:23.leader joins the campaign, too. needs investment and to me, it is
:06:23. > :06:25.clear that SISU are the ones to put Tonight, human remains are found by
:06:25. > :06:29.police officers searching for the body of Kate Prout, who was
:06:29. > :06:32.murdered by her husband Adrian four years ago. They were discovered on
:06:32. > :06:35.the farm the couple shared in Gloucestershire. Officers have been
:06:35. > :06:38.looking for the body for four days after Adrian Prout confessed to her
:06:38. > :06:41.murder in prison last week. He'd previously maintained that his wife
:06:41. > :06:43.had disappeared but he was convicted of her murder last year
:06:43. > :06:47.and is currently serving a life sentence. Steve Knibbs reports.
:06:47. > :06:51.you are watching this broadcast and you are able to do so, please
:06:51. > :06:56.contact us. You might not be able to talk to your family and
:06:56. > :07:00.friends... From the start, Kate Prout was just a missing person.
:07:00. > :07:07.But then the police realised her disappearance was more sinister.
:07:07. > :07:12.They spend weeks combing the acres on her farm, but inner avail. Then
:07:12. > :07:18.her husband, Adrian, was charged with her murder. In court he
:07:18. > :07:23.claimed he was innocent. The police uncovered his violent past in his
:07:23. > :07:27.wife's diaries and that he had threatened to take her away. Then a
:07:27. > :07:33.dramatic twist. After failing a lie-detector test, Adrian Prout
:07:33. > :07:37.finally confessed and was brought to the farm in handcuffs to show
:07:37. > :07:45.the police way he had buried his wife. This is the spot believed to
:07:45. > :07:49.be Kate Prout's final resting place. You can probably see how tough it
:07:49. > :07:55.has been. Adrian Prout has not been able to give us a precise location
:07:55. > :08:00.and that is why it has taken so long. But it is in the area he
:08:00. > :08:05.loped - but he indicated. It has been a slow process by necessity.
:08:05. > :08:11.This is a crime scene and the body itself will be a crime scene in its
:08:11. > :08:16.own right, so they need the area to be as uncontaminated as possible,
:08:16. > :08:21.and there maybe forensic evidence from four years ago, when they
:08:21. > :08:24.first looked for her body, and there could be some soil evidence
:08:24. > :08:29.or pollen evidence that they want to match, and they really don't
:08:29. > :08:34.want to be disturbing too much of that. A pathologist spend the
:08:34. > :08:39.afternoon examining the remains pending formal identification. A
:08:39. > :08:46.short while ago an ambulance carrying a coffee left -- a coffin
:08:46. > :08:49.it left the woodland. Students at Birmingham University
:08:49. > :08:52.claim one of their protestors has been injured in a scuffle while
:08:52. > :08:54.taking part in a demonstration. Around 20 students barricaded
:08:54. > :08:57.themselves in a building at the university early yesterday to
:08:57. > :09:02.protest against tuition fees. The university is taking legal advice
:09:02. > :09:06.on removing them. It is a group of autonomous activists based at the
:09:06. > :09:15.University of Birmingham who are protesting the rise in tuition fees,
:09:15. > :09:18.which, by 2012 at this university in particular, will be �9,000. It
:09:18. > :09:25.is also about staff and departmental cuts taking place at
:09:25. > :09:28.the University. The food company Nestle is creating
:09:28. > :09:30.300 jobs at its factory between Uttoxeter and Burton-upon-Trent.
:09:30. > :09:34.The company is investing �110 million to increase production of
:09:34. > :09:39.one of its coffee brands at its Tutbury site. The move will see the
:09:39. > :09:43.plant's production capacity treble. We are now exporting from this site
:09:43. > :09:49.to 30 countries around the world, and quite frankly, we're running
:09:49. > :09:54.out of capacity. We are nearly at the end of that capacity so we are
:09:54. > :10:02.spending another �110 million, and that is another 300 high-quality
:10:02. > :10:04.jobs. Technicians and engineers that we will need.
:10:04. > :10:07.With its beautiful countryside, Shropshire is a magnet for walkers,
:10:07. > :10:15.who generate �40 million annually for the local economy. The county
:10:15. > :10:18.has 3,500 miles of footpaths. But ramblers say all this is under
:10:18. > :10:21.threat because of budget cuts, and today they marched, what else would
:10:21. > :10:31.you expect, to Shire Hall to voice their concerns. Bob Hockenhull
:10:31. > :10:38.
:10:38. > :10:46.reports. This is Lyth Hill Country Park. It attracts many ramblers.
:10:46. > :10:50.But some say their rights are not being protected. We have complained
:10:50. > :10:55.about problems with the foot paths but nothing has happened. 3,000
:10:55. > :11:01.people have voiced their concerns. Many who have signed a petition are
:11:01. > :11:05.from outside the county and some have come from abroad to sample the
:11:05. > :11:10.delights here. They want to get across how important walking is to
:11:10. > :11:18.the local economy. Many have marched to Shire Hall for a valid.
:11:18. > :11:22.That means about 500 will be unwalkable. We would not want a
:11:23. > :11:27.visitor to frock Show coming across those. But the council says the
:11:27. > :11:32.accessibility to footpaths has been improved over the past few years.
:11:32. > :11:38.They told the petition organisers the cuts will not compromise the
:11:38. > :11:45.roots. We are prioritising the parts we need to keep open. We
:11:45. > :11:51.cannot prioritise all of them because it -- because they are not
:11:51. > :11:55.being used. If the people at the centre employed by the council are
:11:55. > :11:59.not there to do the enforcement work, writing letters to the
:11:59. > :12:03.landowners, that path will deteriorate. It is something the
:12:03. > :12:11.ramblers say they are keen to avoid in Shropshire is to remain a top
:12:11. > :12:15.walking destination in the UK. Absolutely stunning, isn't it?
:12:15. > :12:21.Looking at scenes like that, it is hard to believe it is a year to the
:12:21. > :12:26.day since the last snowfall of winter. Any sign of the first snow
:12:26. > :12:31.of this winter? Not unless you are heading to Scotland. Thankfully, we
:12:31. > :12:35.have been spared any premature wintry weather, but wind is often a
:12:35. > :12:39.worry and we could have that in the days ahead. More later.
:12:39. > :12:49.And later, how the Potteries have become a centre for freestyle
:12:49. > :12:53.
:12:53. > :12:55.skiing. Who needs real snow? Campaigning starts in earnest
:12:55. > :13:00.tonight for the race to become Birmingham's first directly-elected
:13:00. > :13:04.mayor, with the power to run the city. The second city and Coventry,
:13:04. > :13:06.too, are in line to go down the route already followed by London.
:13:06. > :13:10.The timetable looks like this. The initial consultation period closes
:13:10. > :13:13.on 3rd January. Then there's expected to be a local referendum
:13:13. > :13:16.next November. If that produces a Yes vote, then elections for mayor
:13:16. > :13:19.in both Birmingham and Coventry would take place in May 2013. Both
:13:19. > :13:28.the Yes and No camps have supporters in all the political
:13:28. > :13:32.parties. I think in principle, the evidence we have from around the
:13:32. > :13:36.world and in London is that where you have a strong civic leadership,
:13:36. > :13:40.you tend to get better outcomes of the city. And it is important that
:13:40. > :13:44.the city mayor for Birmingham is also given powers to implement
:13:44. > :13:48.transport and investment, and have real say of what is happening in
:13:48. > :13:52.the city. I do not think Birmingham should have an elected mayor
:13:52. > :14:00.because it will not improve the governance of Birmingham or the
:14:00. > :14:02.democracy, or the services that people of Birmingham rely on.
:14:03. > :14:06.Well, if that mayoral election takes place, there'll be no
:14:06. > :14:09.shortage of candidates. MPs past and present, as well as leading
:14:09. > :14:12.figures in local politics, the media and from industry are among
:14:12. > :14:16.those whose names have been put forward. And more are expected to
:14:16. > :14:19.emerge. Some of those candidates will be at election debates in
:14:19. > :14:21.Birmingham, the first of which is being held tonight at the city's
:14:22. > :14:28.Hyatt Hotel. Our political reporter, Susana Mendonca, is there. A chance
:14:28. > :14:32.for someone to make the early running? Certainly. In about half-
:14:32. > :14:41.an-hour, this room will be filled with people wanting to hear why
:14:41. > :14:48.they should or should not vote for a -- an elected mayor. Many have
:14:48. > :14:52.suggested they will stand, including Sean sand, a Labour MP.
:14:52. > :14:55.And the Lib Dem MP for Birmingham Yardley, who is opposed to the idea
:14:55. > :15:01.of a mare that has suggested he might stand of the position becomes
:15:01. > :15:05.available. I am joined by the organiser of this debate. There has
:15:05. > :15:09.been criticism that most of those who are interested are Labour Party
:15:09. > :15:13.members. Is there an argument that you need to broaden the debate and
:15:13. > :15:18.get more of the other parties interested? I think the way we have
:15:18. > :15:25.operated as a campaign means we have offered people coming in from
:15:25. > :15:29.every angle and politics, from Conservative to Labour. Principally,
:15:29. > :15:34.we have offered an independent debate to those who want to stand
:15:34. > :15:40.up on the podium. The key challenge, though, is getting people
:15:40. > :15:44.interested. The turnout was low. How do you get them fired up?
:15:44. > :15:46.need you so sure media, more than anything else. We have also been
:15:47. > :15:54.out on the streets and got people involved, asking them what they
:15:54. > :15:58.think. Sadly, we must leave it there. The referendum takes place
:15:58. > :16:04.in May, and then if people say yes, there will be an election the
:16:04. > :16:07.following May. Figures out today show a record
:16:08. > :16:12.number of NEETs. That's young people not in employment, education
:16:12. > :16:14.or training. The number stands at 1,163,000. One of the country's
:16:14. > :16:17.biggest manufacturing firms is trying to do something about that
:16:17. > :16:20.by encouraging more schoolchildren to consider engineering as a career,
:16:20. > :16:24.as Joanne Writtle reports. Enthusing a new generation of
:16:24. > :16:29.potential engineers. School pupils joined in an event at RAF Museum
:16:29. > :16:32.Cosford to get them thinking about a career where there's a skills gap.
:16:32. > :16:41.One of the organisers was BAE Systems, one of the country's
:16:41. > :16:47.largest employers of engineers. Do you think some of these children
:16:47. > :16:52.are too young to be encouraged into engineering? Some of them are only
:16:52. > :16:56.11. What we find is that when children go to secondary school,
:16:56. > :17:00.they lose their interest in science and maths, so if we can engage and
:17:00. > :17:04.inspired young kids, they will go on to develop their skills and
:17:04. > :17:07.hopefully become the engineers of the future. Once, millions of
:17:07. > :17:12.people worked in engineering in this country. Latest figures show
:17:12. > :17:18.there are now 421,000 engineers. As students got to grips with science,
:17:18. > :17:22.organisers spoke of how they were addressing the drop in interest.
:17:22. > :17:28.When I go back to school and think back to engineering and science, it
:17:28. > :17:36.was through a book, but what better place to come than a museum to
:17:36. > :17:38.throw chocolate eggs off a wall of, spend time in a hangar and learned.
:17:38. > :17:43.The children themselves had mixed views about engineering and why it
:17:43. > :17:48.might not be an attractive option for some. Now the music is coming
:17:48. > :17:55.out, everybody wants to be pop stars and famous instead of doing
:17:55. > :18:00.work like maths and science. looks like a brilliant job. I will
:18:00. > :18:10.considerate when I am older, definitely. I would like to be an
:18:10. > :18:14.
:18:14. > :18:16.engineer because I like to make technical gadgets. Much of the
:18:16. > :18:19.event has focused on biomimicry. That's how science takes
:18:19. > :18:22.inspiration from nature and how nature can inspire inventions. So
:18:22. > :18:25.how flight of a mechanical kind links to flight in nature. The
:18:25. > :18:35.whole event is aimed at giving young people ideas for a possible
:18:35. > :18:37.
:18:37. > :18:47.future in engineering. Onto football, and Walsall have
:18:47. > :18:54.made it through to the FA Cup. They came from 1-0 down to lead 2-1 with
:18:54. > :18:59.goals from Alex Nichols. Exeter equalised but a goal in
:18:59. > :19:05.extra time took Walsall through to a second round tie. Well done to
:19:05. > :19:08.them. The leader of Coventry City Council
:19:08. > :19:12.is calling on the owners of Coventry City Football Club to sell
:19:12. > :19:15.up and let someone else run it. John Mutton says SISU aren't
:19:15. > :19:18.prepared to invest in the club and that the council would never
:19:18. > :19:21.consider selling their share of the ground to the current board, as Dan
:19:21. > :19:24.Pallett reports. They're under fire like never
:19:24. > :19:27.before. This is the board of Coventry City's owners, filmed in
:19:27. > :19:31.March last year. Since then, two have left, many star players have
:19:31. > :19:34.left and the Sky Blues are in the relegation mire in the Championship.
:19:34. > :19:39.The council leader says it's casting a shadow over the whole
:19:39. > :19:46.city and it's time for a change. Obviously, it needs investment. To
:19:46. > :19:49.me it is clear that SISU and those people will put investment -- will
:19:50. > :19:54.not put investment into the club. They have no real interest in
:19:54. > :19:57.football. They just want to get their hands on the Ricoh Arena.
:19:58. > :20:05.Coventry City don't own their ground. The City Council owns half
:20:05. > :20:09.but won't sell. SISU have run a football club into the ground.
:20:09. > :20:19.There is no way I will let them run the Ricoh Arena down into the
:20:19. > :20:19.
:20:20. > :20:22.ground as well. Attacks have already come from the fans. There
:20:23. > :20:28.have been protests at several games this season. Many agree it's time
:20:28. > :20:33.for new ownership. As a Coventry fan, they have promised a lot and
:20:33. > :20:38.delivered little. They are clearly ruining it. We should keep hold of
:20:38. > :20:41.what we have got because there is no interest from anybody else.
:20:41. > :20:48.only in September, SISU launched a charm offensive to win over the
:20:48. > :20:51.fans. People should recognise that we are supporters as well. We have
:20:51. > :20:56.become very attached to the football club and we know the
:20:56. > :21:02.feelings they have. We want a successful club. It's a tricky
:21:02. > :21:06.subject for manager Andy Thorn. His priority is avoiding relegation.
:21:06. > :21:11.don't want to get caught up in the politics because I would take my
:21:11. > :21:15.eye off the ball. We need to keep working hard with the players to
:21:15. > :21:18.achieve what we want to achieve. There has been some good news today.
:21:18. > :21:25.The Sky Blues today signed promising Aston Villa midfielder
:21:25. > :21:30.Gary Gardner on loan. But Coventry need a lot more good news days if
:21:30. > :21:34.they're to escape relegation next May.
:21:34. > :21:40.We have just had a statement from the club as saying that they need
:21:40. > :21:47.to do much to rebuild the trust between the club and the fans and
:21:47. > :21:51.SISU. We now have an expert on this. Pretty abysmal attendances. What do
:21:51. > :21:56.you think the future holds for the club? I think it is a transitional
:21:56. > :22:01.season. They released a lot of players at the end of the season on
:22:01. > :22:06.free transfers, players that would have had a market value. They are
:22:06. > :22:10.cut adrift at the bottom of the table at the moment. Who knows what
:22:10. > :22:16.the future holds? There are talks of potential administration. It is
:22:16. > :22:22.a case of witch and see at this time. The fans are pretty fed up.
:22:22. > :22:25.How on earth do you win them back? For a Football League club like
:22:25. > :22:28.Coventry, the fans are the lifeblood of the club. It is
:22:28. > :22:35.different to the Premier League where they can take television
:22:35. > :22:39.money. They cannot do that here. Just over 11,000 core supporters at
:22:39. > :22:45.the game on Tuesday. It is a worrying sign. But it is not enough
:22:45. > :22:48.to have a great stadium and club. The fans want results? Yes. There
:22:48. > :22:52.is talk of the club investing in a share of the stadium but many fans
:22:52. > :22:57.would like to see investment back in the team, because that is what
:22:57. > :23:01.will improve their league performance. This has a negative
:23:01. > :23:06.effect on the club's revenue, where they could then look to sell some
:23:06. > :23:12.of their better players to recoup. Thank you for coming in. Troubled
:23:12. > :23:15.times indeed. Freestyle skiing is a sort of
:23:15. > :23:18.alpine acrobatics that's grown so much in popularity, it's now an
:23:18. > :23:22.Olympic event. And a club in Stoke- on-Trent is emerging as one of the
:23:22. > :23:25.leading UK centres for the sport. And despite the lack of real snow,
:23:25. > :23:29.the club is now vying to bring a Winter Olympics medal back to the
:23:29. > :23:31.Potteries, as Liz Copper has been finding out.
:23:31. > :23:35.At Festival Park in Stoke-on-Trent, this is the biggest dry slope
:23:35. > :23:39.freestyle jump in the UK. And this club is training skiiers who're
:23:39. > :23:44.competing with the best in the world. We are actually looking at
:23:44. > :23:48.helping them out with their gym training and in terms of their
:23:48. > :23:52.mentality and the way they approach this. It is a big psychological
:23:52. > :23:56.game when you are throwing yourself quite high in the air, and you have
:23:56. > :24:01.to be prepared for what could happen. Looking at all the elements
:24:01. > :24:04.that make a good freestyler. ski slope's been here since the
:24:04. > :24:09.'80s, but the freestyle club was only established earlier this year.
:24:09. > :24:13.It's attracting large numbers of young enthusiasts. I started off
:24:13. > :24:17.not even being able to go down the slope, but gradually you get used
:24:17. > :24:24.wit and the effort you have to put in and the training you do. It is a
:24:24. > :24:27.piece of cake! These young skiers have their sights set on a Olympic
:24:27. > :24:30.glory. Sissy Herant, from Chesterton in North Staffordshire,
:24:30. > :24:37.is already in the British team and is training for the Winter Olympics
:24:37. > :24:47.in Russia in 2014. Just the rush you get when you go over that jump
:24:47. > :24:51.and land a trick. Or going skiing with friends. It is all worth --
:24:51. > :24:53.always worth it. The club has ambitious development plans. With
:24:53. > :24:59.increasing numbers of talented competitors drawn here, it's aiming
:24:59. > :25:06.to become the country's leading dry-slope centre.
:25:06. > :25:15.I can't imagine getting used to doing that! Anyway, how is the
:25:15. > :25:23.It will be turning breezier and we have had some comments on how much
:25:23. > :25:27.so. Hold on to your hats! It is to the north of the country and it is
:25:27. > :25:31.spearheaded by a fairly measures- looking area of low pressure. That
:25:31. > :25:37.spread to the north of Wales and to the east of the border we could get
:25:37. > :25:41.some of that, too. Towards the end of the week, it is looking windy
:25:41. > :25:49.but dry. Having said that, under his blanket of cloud, we have rain
:25:49. > :25:53.working in from the West, and as that comes in, it will turn gusty.
:25:53. > :25:59.The rain will start to split up and fragment as it goes eastwards. If
:25:59. > :26:04.we could have some heavy bursts to the north. We have got clearing
:26:04. > :26:09.skies to the West and temperatures could fall as far as five degrees,
:26:09. > :26:14.but not enough for frost. As the cloud close tomorrow, we are waking
:26:14. > :26:20.up to a good deal of sunshine. But introducing the odd shower. It will
:26:20. > :26:28.feel a lot fresher tomorrow. From tomorrow night, the Sky's clear
:26:28. > :26:33.once again, so temperatures could fall as low as three degrees. Gusty
:26:33. > :26:43.on Saturday, said temperatures could be up to 10 degrees, feeling
:26:43. > :26:45.
:26:45. > :26:48.A look at tonight's main headlines: A war of words about next week's
:26:48. > :26:53.strike over public sector pension reform. The Ggovernment claims it
:26:53. > :26:56.will lead to job losses. Let's go back now to our business
:26:56. > :26:59.correspondent, Peter Plisner, who's at that Victorian market in Warwick.
:26:59. > :27:03.Money is tight for just about everyone at the moment, so will
:27:03. > :27:06.there be bargains to be had on the high street this Christmas, Peter?
:27:06. > :27:10.Certainly no need for any discounting in Warwick, judging by
:27:10. > :27:16.the number of people who have turned up. But we are already
:27:16. > :27:20.seeing discounting in shops like Debenhams. Also expect bargains
:27:20. > :27:26.online. Tomorrow is traditionally known as Black Friday, when you get
:27:26. > :27:29.some of the biggest bargains ahead of Christmas. Amazon and Apple are