:00:11. > :00:14.Hello and welcome to Midlands Today with Nick Owen and Mary Rhodes. The
:00:14. > :00:17.headlines tonight: We can cope - doctors in Stoke-on-Trent insist
:00:17. > :00:23.they can handle the extra workload if services are moved there from
:00:23. > :00:27.Stafford Hospital. We will work together with them to
:00:27. > :00:30.provide the best care possible. We'll also be looking at the future
:00:30. > :00:33.for Cannock Chase Hospital. Also tonight: Calls for a radical
:00:33. > :00:35.overhaul of child protection in Coventry after the death of four-
:00:35. > :00:38.year-old Daniel Pelka. Policing the EDL rally and a
:00:38. > :00:41.counter demonstration in Birmingham nearly two weeks ago could cost the
:00:41. > :00:45.West Midlands force �2 million. Pushing the boundaries - how otters
:00:45. > :00:48.are moving into our urban waterways. And, although there's more hot,
:00:48. > :00:58.sunny weather to enjoy this evening before it cools down again, what's
:00:58. > :01:02.
:01:03. > :01:06.the weekend looking like? Find out Good evening. Doctors in Stoke-on-
:01:06. > :01:09.Trent are insisting the city's hospital WILL be able to cope if
:01:09. > :01:13.services have to be moved from Stafford under a radical shake-up
:01:13. > :01:16.of the NHS in the county. Administrators yesterday
:01:16. > :01:19.recommended cuts to maternity services, which would mean the
:01:19. > :01:24.1,800 women who currently give birth in Stafford each year having
:01:24. > :01:29.to travel elsewhere. The level of critical care would be altered and
:01:29. > :01:32.paediatric services would be cut under the plan. Tonight, one Stoke
:01:32. > :01:37.MP said she was concerned about the possible impact of moving services
:01:37. > :01:41.from Stafford to the University Hospital of North Staffordshire.
:01:41. > :01:47.The proposals will now go to a public consultation. Joanne Writtle
:01:47. > :01:57.Two-day-old Leighton is one of 6,000 babies born at the University
:01:57. > :01:58.
:01:58. > :02:01.Hospital of North Staffordshire every year. If plans announced
:02:01. > :02:04.yesterday go ahead, there'll be a whole lot more. No babies would be
:02:05. > :02:11.born at Stafford Hospital, meaning around 1,800 mums to be would
:02:11. > :02:14.travel here to Stoke, or to other hospitals, including Wolverhampton.
:02:14. > :02:18.We have only just seen the proposals but I know this unit has
:02:18. > :02:25.capacity to expand and we will work with the trust special
:02:25. > :02:34.administrators to see what it means for us. There is political
:02:34. > :02:38.scepticism though. There is particular concern about maternity
:02:38. > :02:44.services and we need to make sure there is investment here. There
:02:44. > :02:48.might be Clear so-called solutions to what has happened in North
:02:48. > :02:55.Staffordshire but those need to be carefully thought through though --
:02:55. > :03:01.so that we don't get any unintentional consequences.
:03:01. > :03:05.A&E here at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire deals with
:03:05. > :03:09.the 120,000 patients a year and is home to one of the country's 22
:03:09. > :03:16.major trauma centres taking in patients from as far afield as
:03:16. > :03:21.North Wales and Shropshire. The plan is for A&E to remain open in
:03:21. > :03:25.Stafford for 14 hours a day and would be run by the University
:03:25. > :03:31.Hospital and despite a national lack of A&E consultants, will they
:03:31. > :03:34.need more? We will have a single consultancy run into departments
:03:34. > :03:39.which will require an expansion in consultant numbers so we will have
:03:39. > :03:45.to recruit. Initially, there will be a shortfall. That will have an
:03:45. > :03:51.impact on patient care, presumably? My team are quite happy to work
:03:51. > :03:56.extra to enable us to do it. Like his newborn baby, plans are in
:03:56. > :04:01.their infancy and while talks go on, services there will remain
:04:01. > :04:05.Save Cannock Hospital campaigners today welcomed plans to move more
:04:05. > :04:09.services there as part of the re- organisation of the NHS in
:04:09. > :04:12.Staffordshire. Wards at Cannock had been left empty for years but that
:04:12. > :04:15.could all change. The plan is for the hospital to be
:04:15. > :04:18.run by the trust which operates Wolverhampton's New Cross Hospital.
:04:18. > :04:22.A rival proposal from Walsall's Manor Hospital was rejected, but
:04:22. > :04:30.bosses there said today they would continue to make their case. Here's
:04:30. > :04:33.our Health Correspondent, Michele For 19 years, Debbie Hubbard worked
:04:33. > :04:36.at Cannock Hospital. Her daughter still does. Debbie's 14,000
:04:36. > :04:46.signature petition was to keep the current hospital services and she
:04:46. > :04:50.says staff are relieved. wording of the petition seems to
:04:50. > :04:58.have been fulfilled and I am not naive enough to think the petition
:04:58. > :05:01.did any good, but it was done for a reason. To make people aware that
:05:01. > :05:04.cannot hospital is there and we are a good hospital.
:05:04. > :05:07.The trust administrators have recommended keeping all the current
:05:07. > :05:10.services, that more patients should convalesce nearer to home and
:05:10. > :05:12.Cannock should do more planned surgery like breast, urology and
:05:13. > :05:22.gynaecology. Royal Wolverhampthon Hospitals appears the preferred
:05:22. > :05:26.bidder. Its boss wants to take over as soon as possible. It gives an
:05:26. > :05:30.opportunity for us to transfer elective surgery from Wolverhampton
:05:30. > :05:34.where we struggle because of the nerve of -- numbers of emergencies
:05:34. > :05:40.and medical patients and a lot of elective surgery is getting
:05:40. > :05:44.squeezed out. We can get 100 beds worth of capacity at Cannock.
:05:44. > :05:51.But for Cannock to do surgery with overnight stays there are safety
:05:51. > :05:55.issues to overcome. There is some concern these plans help
:05:55. > :05:58.Wolverhampton Hospitals bring its patients to come back rather than
:05:58. > :06:01.improving services for the people of Cannock.
:06:01. > :06:04.Walsall's chief executive still wants and believes it can take over.
:06:04. > :06:11.Richard Kirby believes that they would provide a more local service
:06:11. > :06:16.and could fill most of the hospital. They haven't yet made a decision on
:06:16. > :06:20.who will be the best person to provide those services and we hope
:06:20. > :06:24.it is us because we made a strong proposal.
:06:24. > :06:31.For campaigners - a dog fight over who can provide more is just what
:06:31. > :06:34.Coming up later in the programme: Overwhelmed by public generosity,
:06:34. > :06:41.the family of murdered teenager Georgia Williams talk movingly of
:06:41. > :06:44.A mother and her partner will be sentenced tomorrow for the murder
:06:45. > :06:48.of four-year-old Daniel Pelka. Daniel was beaten and starved
:06:48. > :06:51.before his death from a head injury in Coventry last year. During a
:06:51. > :06:56.nine-week trial at Birmingham Crown Court his emaciated body was
:06:56. > :07:02.compared to a concentration camp victim. Mother Magdelena Luczak and
:07:02. > :07:04.her partner, Mariusz Krezolek had denied murder.
:07:04. > :07:07.Today, Coventry MP Geoffrey Robinson called for a full
:07:07. > :07:11.investigation into how Daniel was let down by Coventry City Council's
:07:11. > :07:20.Children's Services department. Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg
:07:20. > :07:26.said there are a series of questions which must be answered.
:07:26. > :07:31.We all ask the same question, how did this, -- how did this happen?
:07:32. > :07:37.What happened when teachers saw him scavenge in bins? Apparently they
:07:37. > :07:44.passed on information so why did no one act on it? When he went to
:07:44. > :07:46.hospital and the mother spun a web of lines -- lies, what happened to
:07:46. > :07:50.people's concerns? I'm joined now by Coventry MP
:07:50. > :07:53.Geoffrey Robinson. Presumably you echo the sentiments of Nick Clegg?
:07:53. > :08:02.What could and should have been done to prevent this tragedy from
:08:02. > :08:06.happening? There is something wrong in the
:08:06. > :08:12.accountability of individuals throughout the children's services
:08:12. > :08:16.department, in particular, and schools to. The danger is we will
:08:16. > :08:22.apportion responsibility through so many areas that we will lose sight
:08:22. > :08:31.of what we really need to do. This is the third case of a baby death
:08:31. > :08:35.of this kind. Perhaps the most horrific. But we had two others
:08:35. > :08:43.also. And Khyra Ishaque in Birmingham.
:08:43. > :08:51.In deed. Is it down to individuals or the system and bureaucracy and
:08:51. > :08:55.red tape? You cannot divorce there too. Individuals create red tape
:08:55. > :09:04.and it is implemented by individuals. For each of the last
:09:04. > :09:08.three cases we have mentioned, we have had very high level and
:09:08. > :09:14.sometimes judge level investigations. I believe that was
:09:14. > :09:21.necessary. What clearly has come from that has not been a system
:09:21. > :09:27.whereby we can be sure, or reasonably sure even, that the
:09:27. > :09:31.lines of responsibility it and the level of responsibility within the
:09:31. > :09:36.departments of state are clearly defined and the individuals who
:09:36. > :09:41.hold them are held accountable. There is a Serious Case Review that
:09:41. > :09:50.will be carried out by Coventry's Children's save barding board but
:09:50. > :09:58.that is not enough for you? -- safeguarding board. There is a
:09:58. > :10:02.great shame and anger in Coventry and that cannot be dealt with by a
:10:02. > :10:12.Serious Case Review. That is essentially held in private. A who
:10:12. > :10:13.
:10:13. > :10:18.should deal with it? -- who should deal with it? I don't think the
:10:18. > :10:24.people in Coventry will be satisfied by that. What do they
:10:24. > :10:29.want, do you believe? I believe they want a public and open inquiry.
:10:29. > :10:34.Openness is the key so that we know what has happened and why it
:10:34. > :10:40.happened and who is responsible. This isn't in any sense to try and
:10:40. > :10:44.pin blame on people. It is to find out why the system goes wrong.
:10:44. > :10:53.Despite three previous inquiries, we don't seem to have got anywhere
:10:53. > :10:59.near that. I am saying let us have a clear-cut investigation,
:10:59. > :11:02.preferably really buy a good group of business oriented people who
:11:02. > :11:10.understand organisations and responsibilities, lines of
:11:10. > :11:16.accountability. We must leave it there. Thank you very much.
:11:16. > :11:21.Air India resumed direct flights between Birmingham and India today.
:11:21. > :11:26.Similar flights were cancelled recently and since then thousands
:11:26. > :11:31.have can -- campaign for them to be reinstated.
:11:31. > :11:38.Dr Richard Taylor has announced he will stand for re-election in 2015.
:11:38. > :11:42.He says he intends to stand again after serving between 2001 and 2010.
:11:42. > :11:49.Last year he co-founded the National Health Action Party to
:11:49. > :11:54.oppose changes to the NHS. A man who named a cat by shooting
:11:54. > :12:00.it at close range with a capital -- at a board has been jailed for
:12:01. > :12:06.eight weeks. The cat lost an eye. Nunn was traced by police because
:12:06. > :12:12.the attack was captured on a surveillance camera.
:12:12. > :12:18.A family cat maimed for life. Eleven-year-old Missed the was shot
:12:18. > :12:24.in the I do with a marble. -- misty. The camera caught the attack on
:12:24. > :12:30.film and she needed an operation to remove her I the next day. It was
:12:30. > :12:37.an unprovoked act of cruelty to deliberately target a poor cat for
:12:37. > :12:42.sitting on a wall with a well-aimed shot. Craig Nunn fired the weapon
:12:42. > :12:47.as he was cycling by last month. Today, at Kidderminster magistrates
:12:47. > :12:53.court he was jailed for eight weeks after admitting cruelty but a
:12:53. > :13:01.request for compensation was turned down. We have a bill to pay, which
:13:01. > :13:04.I don't think is right. I'm quite annoyed about it really.
:13:05. > :13:07.The magistrates disqualified Nunn from keeping a cat for 10 years and
:13:07. > :13:12.told him there Catt would suffer from her injuries for the rest of
:13:12. > :13:17.her life. They told him that if he had thought for one moment about
:13:17. > :13:21.his actions he would have realised it could have maimed or killed the
:13:21. > :13:27.Cat. If it had not been for the camera, he would probably not have
:13:27. > :13:31.been caught. The family have owned Missed the since she was a kitten
:13:31. > :13:40.but says she won't be the same again. She will learn to live with
:13:40. > :13:46.it now I suppose. Nunn admitted that he had been stupid.
:13:46. > :13:51.The cost of policing last month's English Defence League March could
:13:51. > :13:54.reach almost �2 million. The prediction came during a debrief
:13:54. > :14:00.session at Birmingham's council house today. The initial cost on
:14:00. > :14:03.the day was put at �1 million with more than 1000 officers deployed
:14:03. > :14:11.from a total of 12 forces across the UK.
:14:11. > :14:17.The meeting was organised by a bit share of the Council scrutiny
:14:17. > :14:22.committee who joins us. How do you justify the expense? It is not
:14:22. > :14:27.justified whatsoever in the current climate. Are policing budget is
:14:27. > :14:33.depleted and we have had some huge cuts implemented by the government.
:14:33. > :14:39.To pay up to �2 million for a date to allow individuals and groups to
:14:39. > :14:44.come into the city to spread hatred in our city and try and divide our
:14:44. > :14:52.city is unacceptable. What is the answer? I suggested to date to
:14:52. > :15:00.senior police officers and the head of the English Defence League that
:15:00. > :15:05.when there is a cost either for football matches etc, costs have to
:15:05. > :15:12.be reimbursed. Surely then the only people who could protest are those
:15:12. > :15:17.who can afford it? I am not against peaceful protest. But standing on
:15:17. > :15:23.top of bus shelters and throwing missiles on to police officers is
:15:23. > :15:27.not peaceful and it is not democracy. How did it cost so much?
:15:27. > :15:35.It was the biggest operation in the history of West Midlands Police, I
:15:35. > :15:39.know. We had hundreds of police officers on duty and a lot of
:15:39. > :15:43.reassurance work with the community before hand. There has been
:15:43. > :15:53.investigations and individuals have been arrested and I can assure the
:15:53. > :15:55.
:15:55. > :15:59.police that further arrests will be Are top story: We can cope -
:15:59. > :16:03.doctors in Stoke-on-Trent can handle the extra workload, they
:16:03. > :16:09.insist, if services are moved there from Stafford hospital.
:16:09. > :16:12.Also: The Football League season starts on Saturday and we will look
:16:12. > :16:22.at the chances of our five sides in League 1.
:16:22. > :16:38.
:16:38. > :16:44.And how to be an potter spotter on A man is in custody charged with
:16:44. > :16:48.the murder of Georgia Williams. Her family have talked about the
:16:48. > :16:52.support they have received since setting up a charity.
:16:52. > :16:57.The last few weeks have been those a profound grief but her
:16:57. > :17:03.grandfather says they have been overwhelmed by they support set-up
:17:03. > :17:10.in the 17-year-old's name. She will never be forgotten or anything like
:17:10. > :17:14.that. If something good comes out of it... It money has been raised
:17:14. > :17:19.for at bench in her memory and her family have chosen the design and
:17:19. > :17:23.location - here where she played as a child. It will be a place for
:17:23. > :17:33.quiet reflection. At Wellington police station, they have taken
:17:33. > :17:37.delivery of 5,000 wristbands. was an incredible demand for them
:17:37. > :17:40.early on. People have really embrace the charity as a way of
:17:40. > :17:45.showing support for a particular cause and we couldn't get hold of
:17:45. > :17:50.them quickly enough. It has been extraordinary - the speed at which
:17:50. > :17:54.we have been able to distribute them. The charity has a Web page
:17:54. > :18:00.and events are planned. The family hope the trust fund will help keep
:18:00. > :18:08.her memory alive. She won't be forgotten by people around here.
:18:08. > :18:18.She will always be remembered for what she was and is and always will
:18:18. > :18:20.
:18:20. > :18:24.be, I suppose. She... She was a fantastic hit. Her death was and
:18:25. > :18:34.timely, but it is hoped that through the work of her charity,
:18:35. > :18:36.
:18:36. > :18:40.We are fortunate to have a rich variety of wildlife here, but you
:18:40. > :18:44.would not think of looking for it in the middle of our towns and
:18:44. > :18:51.cities. A special programme this evening will reveal some of the
:18:51. > :18:55.stories of otters and the sea gulls who never see the sea. One of the
:18:55. > :19:00.presenters of Urban Jungle joins us now have from the centre of
:19:00. > :19:09.Birmingham. How important our towns and cities to wildlife? Really
:19:10. > :19:13.important. This is a hot spot for seagulls. Here in Birmingham, was -
:19:13. > :19:20.and Gloucester seagull populations are increasing but at the coast
:19:20. > :19:30.they are in decline. The urban jungle is important for sea gulls
:19:30. > :19:35.This busy spot is full of people driving backwards and forwards, but
:19:35. > :19:41.it is not just a few months doing this, because underneath our feet
:19:41. > :19:45.there is a secretive but growing population of otters. How do we
:19:45. > :19:53.know the elusive object is getting brave and heading into towns and
:19:53. > :19:59.cities? My hunt begins here with Peter Sanders from Warwickshire --
:19:59. > :20:06.Warwickshire Wildlife Trust. What evidence do you have? If you follow
:20:06. > :20:11.me here and look down there you can seek some Otter boom. Its proper
:20:11. > :20:17.name is spraint. This is right beneath the traffic thundering
:20:17. > :20:23.overhead. Yes, people wonder around day and night and they will not
:20:23. > :20:29.have a clue as to what is going on down here. Down there, we can see a
:20:29. > :20:33.whole series of otter footprints. That is fantastic. It is the
:20:33. > :20:36.clearest one I have ever seen. The Pooh and prints are here so it
:20:36. > :20:43.seems a good place to put a camera and that exactly what they have
:20:44. > :20:48.done. The footage captured it -- surpassed our expectations. You can
:20:48. > :20:57.see three pairs of eyes in the water. Could this be a mother and
:20:57. > :21:02.her two cubs? We also got another Otter, I think the mother, spraying
:21:02. > :21:06.on the stone we had a camera on and we were so chuffed to get that.
:21:06. > :21:11.have been following their story of otters coming back to towns and
:21:11. > :21:16.cities for a few years and I have seen tracks and Pooh, but this is
:21:16. > :21:21.the first time we have caught three otters on camera in rugby. It is
:21:21. > :21:27.proof that urban otters are real and back and right under our noses.
:21:27. > :21:33.David, I'm sure a lot of people are watching and would love to see an
:21:33. > :21:38.urban Otter. What are the chances? If you are on that retail park in
:21:38. > :21:46.rugby you would be hard pressed to see the river as it is well hidden.
:21:46. > :21:51.But urban otters are back and the great thing is they are going
:21:51. > :21:55.further afield and linking two other waterways. So you have a big
:21:55. > :22:00.and diverse population which is better for their long-term survival.
:22:00. > :22:06.What else will we see tonight? went out with a proper wildlife
:22:06. > :22:11.cameraman and you can see there are eight different species of Dahl in
:22:11. > :22:18.a city centre. Some will fly from Birmingham and North Africa and
:22:18. > :22:24.back and they could have up to 66 - - seagull. The population in
:22:25. > :22:30.Birmingham it is growing. It is good news as the population on the
:22:30. > :22:34.coast is in decline. Not so good if you want to hold onto your chips!
:22:34. > :22:39.Urban Jungle is coming up straight after us.
:22:39. > :22:43.The new football season starts on Saturday and fans here will have
:22:43. > :22:50.more than a passing interest in League 1 as no fewer than five of
:22:50. > :22:55.our clubs will be playing. The bookies at tipping all the
:22:55. > :23:00.Hampton to win the division and Shrewsbury to finish bottom. --
:23:00. > :23:06.Wolverhampton. Port Vale are the Midlands new boys
:23:06. > :23:11.in League 1. They know they face a huge challenge this season, but
:23:11. > :23:15.they believe they have what it takes to thrive. We have nothing to
:23:15. > :23:21.fear in this league. There is no reason we cannot go into games
:23:21. > :23:25.making sure we pick up points home or away. Eight games unbeaten last
:23:25. > :23:30.season which helped them win promotion from League Two. The
:23:31. > :23:35.manager says they have to keep the momentum going. We know what we are
:23:35. > :23:41.up against. Teams with far greater finances than as so we know we have
:23:41. > :23:44.to step up to the mark to do well. Shrewsbury Town were promoted to
:23:44. > :23:49.League 1 last season and they had best doubles. The manager says they
:23:49. > :23:54.have learnt a lot and they are now better equipped. We would like to
:23:54. > :24:00.think we can be a top-order side. We learned from last season and
:24:00. > :24:06.have got more and better players in. If we can push up to the top half
:24:06. > :24:11.of the table that will be a decent season. If the League was not tough
:24:11. > :24:16.enough, Coventry City are apparently dealing with huge of
:24:16. > :24:20.sealed problems and they will play home games 35 miles away at
:24:20. > :24:27.Northampton Town. The manager says the squad just has to focus on the
:24:27. > :24:30.football. Unfortunately over the last few months it has been about
:24:30. > :24:35.off-field activities but really it is about the supporters and
:24:35. > :24:41.football. It will be great to get back to that. What do the bookies
:24:41. > :24:46.make of the chances of our five West Midlands clubs? Wolverhampton
:24:46. > :24:50.Art the favourites to win the division. Coventry, Port Vale and
:24:50. > :24:55.Walsall are long shots with Shrewsbury been tipped to finish
:24:55. > :25:05.bottom. Also, the bookie's favourite to be relegated. The
:25:05. > :25:09.
:25:09. > :25:16.first of 20 Derby's is later this The best place to keep up to date
:25:16. > :25:20.with our teams is on your BBC local radio stations.
:25:20. > :25:24.The new football season always starts in sweltering sunshine and
:25:24. > :25:29.what a scorcher today. Will it continue?
:25:29. > :25:39.It would be nice, wouldn't it? But we established it was a one-day
:25:39. > :25:39.
:25:39. > :25:45.As short as it was, it was also a very sweet because today's
:25:45. > :25:55.temperatures surpassed all others. He threw reached 34 degrees Celsius
:25:55. > :25:56.
:25:56. > :26:02.so it was the hottest day of the Now that today is almost over, the
:26:02. > :26:07.France will be stacking up to the West. These will be cold fronts so
:26:07. > :26:14.cooler and fresher conditions into the weekend. But we have a few
:26:14. > :26:19.hours left of sunshine to enjoy and it is quite warm. We enter the
:26:19. > :26:24.night with clear skies. As the first front heads in, the cloud
:26:24. > :26:34.will thicken up and it will set off some light and patchy rain. A
:26:34. > :26:35.
:26:35. > :26:40.Starting tomorrow on a cloudy know it and some of the rain will
:26:40. > :26:43.increase along eastern parts of the region before clearing away.
:26:43. > :26:53.Another feature heading in from the West which will trigger some
:26:53. > :26:56.
:26:56. > :27:02.showers, some could be quite punchy. A fresh breeze from a southerly
:27:02. > :27:12.direction. Showers could be on the heavy side tomorrow night but it
:27:12. > :27:12.
:27:12. > :27:22.will end up dry and temperatures will not be as a press if. --
:27:22. > :27:26.
:27:26. > :27:31.Are top stories: Lloyds Bank is back in profit, it has already made
:27:31. > :27:34.�2 billion this year. Doctors in Stoke on Trent say they
:27:34. > :27:38.can handle the extra workload if services are moved there from