:00:04. > :00:09.Hello and welcome to Midlands Today, with Nick Owen and Suzanne Virdee.
:00:09. > :00:13.The headlines tonight: Higher death rates than expected at
:00:13. > :00:16.seven hospitals in the region, says a new report. We believe that this
:00:16. > :00:19.is not an unsafe hospital that does not have a worse-than-average
:00:19. > :00:22.mortality ratio. Hundreds line the streets of
:00:22. > :00:25.Lichfield to welcome the Mercians home from Afghanistan. It really
:00:25. > :00:28.does mean a lot to the soldiers to know their efforts are really
:00:28. > :00:32.appreciated. And tributes from former team mates
:00:33. > :00:36.to the Wales football manager Gary Speed, who died at the weekend.
:00:36. > :00:46.It's horrible to think of the lives he's been a big part of and he's
:00:46. > :00:50.
:00:50. > :00:54.not going to be there for them any Good evening and welcome to the
:00:54. > :00:56.start of the week here on Midlands Today, from the BBC. Tonight, seven
:00:56. > :01:00.hospitals across the region have higher death rates than expected,
:01:00. > :01:05.according to a new report. The figures from the health research
:01:05. > :01:09.group Dr Foster compare health care nationwide. No hospitals in the
:01:09. > :01:11.region feature amongst the top performers. Near the bottom is
:01:11. > :01:17.Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust, where there were 112 deaths
:01:17. > :01:22.for every 100 expected. After surgery, that rose to 146 patient
:01:22. > :01:27.deaths. University Hospital North Staffordshire was even worse. There,
:01:27. > :01:33.116 patients died for every 100 expected. And after surgery it, too,
:01:33. > :01:37.had 146 deaths for every 100 expected. Our health correspondent,
:01:37. > :01:40.Michele Paduano, reports. The family of Wellesley Lewis can
:01:40. > :01:43.never forgive New Cross Hospital. The 76-year-old was admitted on
:01:43. > :01:51.Christmas Eve nearly three years ago with a suspected aortic
:01:51. > :01:55.aneurysm but it was dismissed as back pain. When the aneurysm burst,
:01:55. > :02:04.a lack of staff meant he never made it to the operating theatre. His
:02:04. > :02:11.wife never got to share with him her MBE for charity work.
:02:11. > :02:16.received a very poor treatment. No treatment at all. As for myself, I
:02:16. > :02:19.wasn't even taken into consideration as a family, a wife,
:02:19. > :02:23.that something serious like this was happening and I couldn't even
:02:23. > :02:26.say goodbye. New Cross Hospital's ability to operate on abdominal
:02:26. > :02:29.aortic aneurysms is questioned in the latest Dr Foster report. The
:02:29. > :02:36.hospital's high death rate is greatest among the elderly and at
:02:36. > :02:40.weekends, when fewer staff are available. The plans we have got to
:02:40. > :02:44.increase clinical staff across the organisation, to make sure services
:02:44. > :02:48.are delivering a cross seven days as much as the five of the working
:02:48. > :02:51.week, we will be looking to make sure all patients are managed in
:02:51. > :02:54.the way we expect them to be. hospital's chief executive, David
:02:54. > :02:58.Loughton, has described his Accident & Emergency buildings as
:02:58. > :03:00.not fit for purpose. A new one is in the pipeline. But from Thursday,
:03:01. > :03:06.any patients that present in Stafford overnight will either come
:03:06. > :03:08.here or go to Stoke-on-Trent. University Hospital North
:03:08. > :03:10.Staffordshire was highlighted as a poor performer in three categories,
:03:10. > :03:20.with more deaths than expected among low-risk patients and
:03:20. > :03:21.
:03:21. > :03:26.following surgery. We believe this is not an unsafe hospital, that
:03:26. > :03:30.does not have a worse than average mortality ratio. I would stress
:03:30. > :03:35.already, this year the ratio was better than average and we expect
:03:35. > :03:38.it to continue to do so. Stafford Hospital performed well this time.
:03:38. > :03:41.It has already transferred some of its high-risk patients, and is
:03:41. > :03:44.about to close Accident & Emergency overnight for safety reasons.
:03:44. > :03:54.Hospital pressure group Cure the NHS believe in co-operation with
:03:54. > :03:55.
:03:55. > :03:58.other centres but is now concerned. We want reassurances from them,
:03:58. > :04:04.from the NHS and Wolverhampton, that they will be able to take
:04:04. > :04:08.those cases from Stafford and look after them safely and appropriately.
:04:08. > :04:10.There is a question over that at the moment. Although West Midlands
:04:10. > :04:15.hospitals perform badly nationally, the hospital death rate has fallen
:04:15. > :04:18.20% over the past ten years. Let's talk now to Roger Taylor,
:04:18. > :04:26.who's the Director of Research for the organisation which wrote this
:04:26. > :04:31.report. A good evening to you. Thank you for talking to us. Some
:04:31. > :04:35.shocking statistics coming out, such as one hospital having higher
:04:35. > :04:40.death at the weekends because there are not enough staff. Were you
:04:40. > :04:44.shocked? In a way, they didn't, because people have suspected for a
:04:44. > :04:48.long time this is the case and it has been discussed in previous
:04:48. > :04:52.reports and policy documents, which suggested that lack of doctors'
:04:52. > :04:58.out-of-hours may be a problem and a cause of higher than necessary
:04:58. > :05:01.death-rate. What is surprising is that it has taken us so long to
:05:01. > :05:06.establish this. We collected the data from hospitals about the
:05:06. > :05:10.number of doctors present in a hospital at night and at weekends,
:05:10. > :05:15.and what we found his exactly what people have suspected for a long
:05:15. > :05:20.time but not known. It makes a difference. If you have more senior
:05:20. > :05:27.doctors in the hospital at weekends, it makes a difference. Why are
:05:27. > :05:32.there not enough, then? No hospital is going to be able to provide
:05:32. > :05:37.every possible service 24 hours a day, seven days a week with the
:05:37. > :05:41.most experienced consultants. that down to money? Yes. But what
:05:42. > :05:46.we have to do is be honest about what hospitals can do really well
:05:46. > :05:53.and where they might need help or to work with other hospitals to
:05:53. > :05:56.make sure they are covering patients all day, every day. So
:05:56. > :06:00.there his work to do in terms of how we organise care services.
:06:00. > :06:05.There is a lot that parts of the country, particularly the Midlands,
:06:05. > :06:08.might be able to learn from other parts of the country. We have seen
:06:08. > :06:13.in London a very successful reorganisation of stroke services,
:06:13. > :06:17.where, instead of having 24 hospitals all trying to treat
:06:17. > :06:22.strokes and some doing it well and others poorly, now we have just
:06:22. > :06:26.eight hospitals which are the specialist stroke hospitals, and
:06:26. > :06:31.the other hospitals make sure the patients get to the places where
:06:31. > :06:34.the kit is available and doctors can diagnose them. Thank you for
:06:34. > :06:38.making those points. Coming up later tonight, promising
:06:38. > :06:43.a better start in life for the poorest children. A new scheme on
:06:43. > :06:46.trial in Birmingham. Hundreds of well-wishers lined the
:06:46. > :06:50.streets of Lichfield to welcome back soldiers from the Mercian
:06:50. > :06:53.Regiment from a tour of duty in Afghanistan. The 3rd Battalion, The
:06:53. > :06:55.Staffords returned to their base last month. Their homecoming has
:06:55. > :06:57.been tinged with sadness following the loss of Private Gareth
:06:58. > :07:02.Bellingham, from Stoke-on-Trent, the only member of the battalion
:07:02. > :07:07.killed on this tour of duty. Here's our Staffordshire reporter, Liz
:07:07. > :07:16.Copper. A salute for The Staffords. These
:07:16. > :07:20.parades are proud occasions. I've got a little daughter here to see
:07:20. > :07:24.me today. I have been away for much of her life so it will be good to
:07:24. > :07:28.see her and my family who have supported me through the tour.
:07:28. > :07:32.are happy but you want to shed a tear because you see the crowds and
:07:32. > :07:38.they have turned out, not because they know who you are but because
:07:38. > :07:41.they are proud of what you have done. It is great to be home in one
:07:41. > :07:46.plays. This is one of seven home- coming marches across Staffordshire
:07:46. > :07:50.and the Black Country this week. These soldiers are now based in
:07:50. > :07:55.Germany, so these parades are a chance to maintain the strong links
:07:55. > :07:58.with the towns and cities where the regiments still recruits. Following
:07:58. > :08:01.the parade, there was reflection on the battalion's achievements during
:08:01. > :08:10.its tour of duty in Afghanistan. Inside Lichfield Cathedral, a
:08:10. > :08:18.service of thanksgiving and remembrance. Let us remember before
:08:18. > :08:24.God those who have died for their country in conflict. Private Gareth
:08:24. > :08:27.Bellingham, Mercian Regiment, and Private Matthew Hazel Gowland.
:08:27. > :08:33.is the highest accolade I could ever give him. To be proud of what
:08:33. > :08:43.he did. And have pride for all the rest of the regiment that went out
:08:43. > :08:43.
:08:43. > :08:52.there as well. They are doing a And with the laying of a wreath,
:08:52. > :08:58.tributes to the Mercians' valour. As you all go, first to Tamworth,
:08:58. > :09:04.Burton and Walsall, and then back to a cold north German winter, you
:09:05. > :09:11.go with our thanks and you take back with you our enormous pride in
:09:11. > :09:14.what you have done. This was a service of very public recognition
:09:14. > :09:24.for the servicemen and women who've risked their lives for their
:09:24. > :09:28.
:09:28. > :09:30.Businesses in Birmingham and the Black Country which were targeted
:09:30. > :09:34.during the summer riots have welcomed calls to overhaul the
:09:34. > :09:37.compensation process. An independent panel is recommending
:09:37. > :09:42.that century-old laws are reformed to speed up payouts from a Home
:09:42. > :09:51.Office fund. The Wolverhampton Jeweller EV Beckett was trashed in
:09:51. > :09:58.August and the owners are still waiting for �8,000 in damages.
:09:58. > :10:03.need to get on with our business. So far, it is not too bad. But
:10:03. > :10:07.after Christmas we do not know what will happen. We have had three a
:10:07. > :10:17.month before we started working again so we could do with some
:10:17. > :10:18.
:10:18. > :10:20.compensation to help us along. Unions are accusing Birmingham City
:10:20. > :10:23.Council of trying to sabotage a march through the city during
:10:23. > :10:26.Wednesday's Day of Action. They claim they're suddenly being told
:10:26. > :10:29.they'll be billed for thousands of pounds if the march goes ahead. We
:10:29. > :10:32.can go live to our political reporter, Susana Mendonca. What's
:10:32. > :10:34.this all about? Birmingham City Council has told the TUC that if it
:10:34. > :10:40.wants to march through the city centre, it will have to pay �8,000.
:10:40. > :10:44.They did say they could have taken a cheaper option and reed at �5,000,
:10:44. > :10:49.but the TUC is incensed at this. They say it is significantly more
:10:49. > :10:56.than they have paid in the past. Previously, it was in the region of
:10:56. > :11:06.�200. The council says that if it lets the TUC off, other groups
:11:06. > :11:09.
:11:10. > :11:13.would want to march off Reeve. There will be thousands of people
:11:13. > :11:17.in these marches taking place was that the councils will be making
:11:17. > :11:21.hundreds of thousands of pounds from the wages we do not claim on
:11:21. > :11:29.the day, so it is a bit rich for them to make us pay twice for
:11:29. > :11:34.democracy in Britain. What happens if they turn up anyway?
:11:34. > :11:41.understand that thousands of people will turn up and it all the unions
:11:41. > :11:46.are saying their members are going to Lionel st 4 11:30am. We could be
:11:46. > :11:51.up -- we could end up with a situation where, without or with
:11:51. > :11:53.permission, members do March. At the inquiry into the Stafford
:11:53. > :11:56.Hospital scandal, there's been fierce criticism of the Care
:11:56. > :11:58.Quality Commission, the watchdog body set up to spot failing
:11:58. > :12:01.hospitals. A board member-turned- whistleblower said the commission
:12:01. > :12:05.lacked a coherent strategy and that robust debate and discussion was
:12:05. > :12:08.discouraged. The people at the top, she claimed, were overly concerned
:12:08. > :12:18.with their reputations and their jobs. Giles Latcham was at the
:12:18. > :12:19.
:12:19. > :12:23.hearing. Strong stuff today, Giles? It was. The inquiry was all but
:12:23. > :12:28.over. They were into their closing statements when they were contacted
:12:28. > :12:31.by two extra witnesses. So this session was organised today to hear
:12:31. > :12:33.from two people at the Care Quality Commission, both under degrees of
:12:33. > :12:36.pressure but both determined to share their concerns about the
:12:36. > :12:39.commission and to become, in effect, whistleblowers.
:12:39. > :12:42.Amanda Pollard on the left and Kay Sheldon on the right, ready to go
:12:42. > :12:45.public with their concerns about the Care Quality Commission. Ready
:12:45. > :12:48.to testify at the inquiry into the scandal of Stafford Hospital, where
:12:48. > :12:53.hundreds died needless deaths over a four-year period because of
:12:53. > :12:56.appalling standards of care. Kay Sheldon is a non-executive board
:12:56. > :13:00.member of the commission but she said board members were never asked
:13:00. > :13:03.to vote on issues before them. She said members were not really able
:13:03. > :13:05.to challenge anything that's fundamental. She also criticised
:13:05. > :13:08.the commission's chief executive, Cynthia Bower, and its chairman,
:13:08. > :13:16.for devising a strategy led by reputation management and personal
:13:16. > :13:25.survival. Kay Sheldon said to challenge decisions was to be seen
:13:25. > :13:31.as disloyal. People were afraid to put their heads above the parapet,
:13:31. > :13:34.she said. The evidence is important because it goes to the heart of the
:13:34. > :13:41.culture of the organisation charged with preventing another scandal
:13:41. > :13:45.like Stafford. A little chink is starting to knock it into the NHS,
:13:45. > :13:49.so we can start to repair the culture, where we stopped to put
:13:49. > :13:59.the front I'm back in control, and those at the very top who need to
:13:59. > :14:01.
:14:02. > :14:04.be down at the bottom are starting In her evidence, Amanda Pollard, an
:14:04. > :14:06.Inspector for the Commission spoke of an organisation with "no clear
:14:06. > :14:16.inspirational leadership" where decisions were taken "shooting from
:14:16. > :14:16.
:14:16. > :14:22.the hip" and staff "weren't listened to". A year after this
:14:22. > :14:29.inquiry began, it is finally nearing its conclusion.
:14:29. > :14:33.So a day of sudden drama, some emotion, at one point, K Sheldon
:14:33. > :14:38.recalled how her own mental health have been called into question by a
:14:38. > :14:43.senior figure at the care quality commission. I should say that that
:14:43. > :14:46.statement put out tonight includes comments from three of her fellow
:14:46. > :14:53.directors, who say they do not support her evidence, and they
:14:53. > :15:02.think the commission's leadership has been positive. The report
:15:02. > :15:05.should be part -- published next March.
:15:05. > :15:08.Cuts to rural bus services are being directly blamed for job
:15:08. > :15:11.losses. One woman who lives in a Warwickshire village says she's
:15:11. > :15:14.been forced to quit her job. Tina Mitten used to catch the bus from
:15:14. > :15:17.Baddesley Ensor near Nuneaton to take her to work at Birmingham
:15:17. > :15:20.Airport. But that route's been scrapped and she says other public
:15:20. > :15:25.transport is too expensive. Tina gave up her job in July and she's
:15:25. > :15:32.still unemployed. I want to work. I loved the job I was doing at the
:15:32. > :15:36.airport, and that has all gone. The practicality of it is, I have a
:15:36. > :15:46.mortgage to pay. And how do I pay the mortgage?
:15:46. > :15:49.
:15:49. > :15:53.And there's more on that in Inside Lots more ahead, including the
:15:53. > :15:59.teenage talent making big inroads into the highly traditional world
:15:59. > :16:09.of folk music. And a timely reminder this week,
:16:09. > :16:13.
:16:13. > :16:16.with December around the corner, A revolutionary way of giving the
:16:16. > :16:19.poorest children a better start in life is being tested out in
:16:19. > :16:23.Birmingham and could be rolled out across 400 schools in the UK.
:16:23. > :16:25.Families and Schools Together - or FAST for short - aims to forge
:16:25. > :16:33.closer bonds between parents, teachers and children. Sarah
:16:33. > :16:37.Falkland's been finding out. It sounds like the kind of fun you
:16:37. > :16:41.get at summer camp in America. But this is Saltley, one of
:16:41. > :16:44.Birmingham's most deprived areas. And families here at Adderly's
:16:44. > :16:53.children's centre are taking part in a very British programme that's
:16:53. > :16:59.enjoying remarkable success. One of the biggest factors in how well a
:16:59. > :17:02.child does at school is how engaged their parents are. So we know that
:17:02. > :17:05.relationships within families are important and it really helps when
:17:05. > :17:08.parents are confident and comfortable coming into the school
:17:09. > :17:11.and talking to teachers. It works by forging close bonds - every week
:17:11. > :17:17.starts with one family bringing in a home-cooked meal for everyone,
:17:17. > :17:21.then there's a series of planned activities. Every week, that
:17:21. > :17:25.parents and children to do around and do a scrabble session, they get
:17:25. > :17:29.an identical piece of white paper, and they have to create something,
:17:29. > :17:35.it is all very psychological. At the end, the parents ask the
:17:35. > :17:38.children what they have done, and why. Yours is looking beautiful. 84
:17:38. > :17:40.cent of teachers in America who took part in the FAST programme
:17:40. > :17:44.with 10,000 children, reported improvements in their academic
:17:44. > :17:53.performance. Save The Children are now funding programmes at 400 UK
:17:54. > :17:58.schools. Parents start connecting with each other, they start
:17:58. > :18:02.recognising, speaking to us in a more social occasion, and it starts
:18:02. > :18:07.to deepen as the weeks go by. It becomes easier to talk about the
:18:07. > :18:12.issues, if you need any support. this day and age, because everyone
:18:12. > :18:18.is busy, not many people have the chance to take five minutes out and
:18:18. > :18:22.talk. These programme that really helps gel parents together. It is
:18:22. > :18:26.good, I spend more time to spend with my daughter, get to know the
:18:26. > :18:30.teachers better. And also to meet other parents, it is really good.
:18:30. > :18:33.The eight-week programme here is nearly at an end. Families are
:18:34. > :18:36.encouraged to do follows ups for another two years. All in hope that
:18:37. > :18:46.ultimately their children will get a better grades and a better start
:18:47. > :18:47.
:18:47. > :18:49.in life. Time for the sport now.
:18:50. > :18:52.Footballers right across the region have been paying tribute to Gary
:18:53. > :18:57.Speed, the manager of Wales who was found dead at home yesterday
:18:57. > :19:02.morning. The Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish said his blood ran
:19:02. > :19:07.cold when he heard the devastating news. And Dave Edwards of Wolves
:19:07. > :19:09.told me he was deeply shocked to lose his role model.
:19:09. > :19:12.Dave Edwards still can't quite take it in. On Saturday lunchtime,
:19:12. > :19:17.before Wolves' game at Chelsea, he'd watched Gary Speed on Football
:19:17. > :19:20.Focus. Then 24 hours later, his brother rang to ask if he'd heard
:19:20. > :19:29.the tragic news. His role model, mentor, and manager of Wales had
:19:29. > :19:33.been found dead at the age of 42. It is much more than football, this
:19:33. > :19:38.issue, and I think as a person, a husband and father, it is horrible
:19:38. > :19:41.to think of the lives he has been a big part of, and he is not going to
:19:41. > :19:44.be there anymore. Dave Edwards loves playing for Wales. The
:19:44. > :19:52.Shropshire lad has already won 23 caps. And was hoping to play a key
:19:52. > :19:56.role in helping Gary Speed reach the next World Cup finals. He had
:19:56. > :19:59.such a great passion for the World Cup in Brazil, it is all he talked
:19:59. > :20:03.about in our team meetings, that was the place we were going to be
:20:03. > :20:06.heading. Yesterday, Edwards was in shock as he watched the moving
:20:06. > :20:09.tribute to Gary Speed at Swansea. Everyone in the ground was visibly
:20:09. > :20:12.moved, and none more so than Shay Given, the Aston Villa goalkeeper,
:20:12. > :20:22.who'd been one of Speed's best mates from their days at Newcastle
:20:22. > :20:23.
:20:23. > :20:26.United. He was extremely upset, he had some problem with the tears in
:20:26. > :20:30.his eyes at the beginning of the game, with the minutes' silence
:20:30. > :20:37.that turned into applause. James Collins and Germaine Jenas were
:20:37. > :20:44.affected. These guys were very upset. It was devastating news for
:20:44. > :20:47.the whole of football, and certainly for Gary Speed's family.
:20:47. > :20:55.Everyone who has played him or, Cross Inn knows how good a guy he
:20:55. > :20:58.is, and you have to play the match, but everyone thinks of his family
:20:58. > :21:05.and children. This evening, Dave Edwards is one of many who'll need
:21:05. > :21:08.time to reflect on their own personal memories of Gary Speed. He
:21:08. > :21:15.seemed the perfect role model of a footballer, it is just sheer
:21:15. > :21:20.disbelief in the game. Very subdued mood at the Wolds training ground,
:21:20. > :21:24.sadness in the face of Dave Jones. We have done a full interview with
:21:24. > :21:31.him on how Facebook page. It has also been a sad day for some of his
:21:31. > :21:36.team-mates. Two key members of the Wales squad under Gary Speed, and
:21:36. > :21:44.also, James Collins. Perhaps this reaction from a Jenas, summing up
:21:44. > :21:47.the mood. On Twitter, he said, hard to play football today. He was the
:21:48. > :21:52.best professional I have ever played with. I'm devastated, my
:21:52. > :21:55.thoughts are with his family. Scans have revealed that Zoltan
:21:55. > :22:05.Gera suffered a serious knee injury during Saturday's home game with
:22:05. > :22:08.
:22:09. > :22:12.Tottenham. He'll have further tests this week. Stoke City warned --
:22:12. > :22:19.warmed up for the Europa League match against Dynamo Kiev by
:22:19. > :22:22.beating Blackburn 3-1. Coventry City's miserable run in the
:22:22. > :22:25.Championship continued on Saturday. Their 2-1 defeat was their eighth
:22:25. > :22:28.without a win. But the one plus point was a goal for midfielder
:22:28. > :22:32.Gary Gardner on his debut. He was signed on a month's loan from Aston
:22:32. > :22:34.Villa on Thursday and headed his first goal after just nine minutes.
:22:34. > :22:37.Nikola Zigic scored a late equaliser for Birmingham City who
:22:37. > :22:40.drew 2-2 at Blackpool to edge closer to the play-offs. And
:22:40. > :22:44.Cheltenham Town remain third in League Two. They beat Oxford 3-1,
:22:44. > :22:51.their seventh straight away win. And you can see all the goals from
:22:52. > :22:56.your team in the football league on the BBC Sport website. If you fancy
:22:56. > :23:01.watching some of the Olympic football tournament next summer,
:23:01. > :23:04.the tickets go on sale from 11am tomorrow. Thank you.
:23:04. > :23:14.Now, folk music to me brings to mind Arran sweaters, beards and
:23:14. > :23:18.sandals and perhaps a hand cupped around one ear. I am not
:23:18. > :23:22.stereotyping at all! But a teenager from the Black Country is hoping to
:23:22. > :23:24.change all that. 18-year-old Sunjay Brayne is one of
:23:24. > :23:34.four artists nominated for the highly-regarded BBC Radio 2 Young
:23:34. > :23:43.
:23:43. > :23:48.Folk Award. Ben Sidwell's been to He may only be 18, but Sunjay
:23:48. > :23:53.Brayne is already causing quite a stir in the book world. The
:23:53. > :23:58.teenager is the only English artist at to make the final of BBC Radio
:23:58. > :24:06.2's young folk award. It is fantastic, I cannot really describe
:24:06. > :24:10.in words. But it is... It is great to get the recognition, you know.
:24:10. > :24:16.Blues and folk roots may not be the sort of music most teenagers are
:24:16. > :24:22.into. But Sunjay's in gritters have all come from listening to his dad.
:24:22. > :24:26.When I was younger, I wanted to emulate him, he played guitar every
:24:26. > :24:30.night, and I wanted to be like dad, I want a guitar. So he got me a
:24:30. > :24:38.guitar for Christmas and I started playing. He toured the what he knew,
:24:38. > :24:44.which was rock'n'roll, and I moved on to blues and folk. A Sunjay is
:24:44. > :24:50.just a two monster in a AIT course at -- it into a course about the
:24:50. > :24:54.music business. The course has been set up for people like Sunjay, who
:24:54. > :24:59.are ready to go out into the industry. He has a good following
:24:59. > :25:03.already. Among the prizes for the winner is a session on BBC Radio 2
:25:03. > :25:07.as well as a chance to perform at three of the major folk festivals
:25:07. > :25:13.in the country next year. But possibly more important for Sunjay,
:25:13. > :25:22.it is a chance to increase his profile and kick-start his career.
:25:22. > :25:32.Sunjay will find that if he has won in February. -- will find out.
:25:32. > :25:32.
:25:32. > :25:37.No sandals, knows what! I was role. A pattern unfolding involving winds
:25:37. > :25:40.and rain, and a drop in temperatures. It has all been
:25:40. > :25:46.driven on by a series of low pressures, you will notice
:25:47. > :25:52.initially, the winds are being sucked in from the south-west. It
:25:52. > :25:55.will get cold as the week goes on. We will see the initial stages of
:25:55. > :26:05.this change taking place tonight, where things turn a bit wet and
:26:05. > :26:06.
:26:06. > :26:11.windy up. -- windier. As the rain moves across to the east later on,
:26:11. > :26:16.it will become patchier. A dry end to the night, mostly, but we have a
:26:16. > :26:22.lot of cloud. If anything, the temperatures are not dropping at
:26:22. > :26:26.all, they are the same as today's values. Through the night, they may
:26:26. > :26:30.gradually start to lift. By the morning tomorrow, a fairly mild
:26:30. > :26:35.start the day, but windy, and then we get the next band of rain coming
:26:35. > :26:40.through from the West. This one will be a bit heavy and last much
:26:40. > :26:46.of the day. Quite a windy day tomorrow, with gusts of around 45
:26:47. > :26:50.mph. The Met Office has issued a yellow alert for speeds around 55
:26:51. > :26:55.miles per hour for the north-west of the region. It will be much
:26:55. > :27:01.clearer the evening, with some showers to follow, a bit colder,
:27:01. > :27:04.but enough of a breeze to prevent a A look at tonight's main headlines:
:27:04. > :27:07.A multi-billion pound plan to get Britain's economy moving - but
:27:07. > :27:10.there are questions over where the money is going to come from.
:27:10. > :27:14.And seven hospitals across the region are found to have higher
:27:14. > :27:18.than expected death rates and poorer emergency care at weekends.
:27:18. > :27:21.Finally, just time to tell you about a report coming up here in
:27:21. > :27:23.half an hour on Inside Out. Our Environment Correspondent David
:27:23. > :27:26.Gregory has spent the past year filming native red kites and
:27:26. > :27:29.following the battle of a Shropshire man trying to encourage