:00:00. > :00:00.pretty soggy. Thank you. That is all from the BBC. We
:00:00. > :00:11.Hello, and welcome to Midlands Today. The headlines tonight: We
:00:12. > :00:15.must all save, even on the lowest incomes, to fight off the spiralling
:00:16. > :00:22.problem of debt, according to a new report.
:00:23. > :00:27.I wasn't sleeping or eating, I was worried the bailiffs would come to
:00:28. > :00:30.the door. I wasn't making payments. A University of Birmingham finance
:00:31. > :00:33.expert who helped write the report explains what can be done to make it
:00:34. > :00:35.happen. Also tonight: As supporters protest
:00:36. > :00:39.over troubled Coventry City, the MP Bob Ainsworth has accused the club
:00:40. > :00:45.owners of an attempted land grab of the Ricoh Arena.
:00:46. > :00:49.Does the club need to own its stadium? It needs to pay for it.
:00:50. > :00:51.Business leaders travel to Westminster for Birmingham Day, to
:00:52. > :00:55.show politicians what the second city has to offer.
:00:56. > :00:57.Big break for the local band chosen by jazz artist Jamie Cullum to
:00:58. > :01:00.support him at the Birmingham Symphony Hall.
:01:01. > :01:04.And, with almost back`to`back rain or showers this week, it's a wonder
:01:05. > :01:06.we've got any dry weather at all, but we have. Get all the details in
:01:07. > :01:21.the forecast later. Good evening.
:01:22. > :01:24."The debt problem in this country is spiralling out of control," that's
:01:25. > :01:27.the view of the Bishop of Birmingham. He's part of a
:01:28. > :01:31.University of Birmingham policy commission who're launching a report
:01:32. > :01:37.tonight looking at savings and debt. They're recommending: Anyone
:01:38. > :01:40.starting a new job is automatically enrolled into a savings account.
:01:41. > :01:43.Increased funding for credit unions. Tougher regulation of payday
:01:44. > :01:47.lending. Ben Godfrey has been finding out why
:01:48. > :01:50.the commission feel radical changes are needed.
:01:51. > :01:53.Michaela Hamer lost control of her debts, after signing up to four
:01:54. > :01:59.payday loan firms, some charging over 1,000% interest. The single
:02:00. > :02:06.mother from Birmingham, who has a full`time job with the NHS, faced
:02:07. > :02:10.eviction. I was worried the bailiffs were
:02:11. > :02:16.coming to the door. I wasn't making payments. I woke up thinking my home
:02:17. > :02:19.was at risk. Payday lenders "prey on the most
:02:20. > :02:21.vulnerable", so says the Bishop of Birmingham. He's chaired a
:02:22. > :02:25.commission to address wealth inequality. They want ministers to
:02:26. > :02:33.create a new organisation helping low`income families to save,
:02:34. > :02:40.reducing a reliance on credit. It is a change of mind set. People
:02:41. > :02:44.enjoy shopping, the wonderful things in our society. But not at the cost
:02:45. > :02:48.of going into unmanageable debt. It's not the first time senior
:02:49. > :02:51.clergy have entered this debate. The Archbishop of Canterbury told the
:02:52. > :02:54.online lender Wonga that the Church of England would try to force them
:02:55. > :02:57.out of business, by helping credit unions compete with it, only to be
:02:58. > :03:03.left "embarrassed", after it emerged the Church was indirectly investing
:03:04. > :03:08.in the firm. The church wants to get involved in
:03:09. > :03:12.solving the dysfunction of the global economy because it affects
:03:13. > :03:15.the lives of ordinary people. Credit unions are uniting in
:03:16. > :03:18.Birmingham. A not`for`profit loan shop has appeared in the city
:03:19. > :03:27.centre. Paid for by cash recovered from illegal money lenders.
:03:28. > :03:32.The cabin has been placed here because within a 100 metres radius
:03:33. > :03:38.there are no less than 14 high cost lenders. What interest do you
:03:39. > :03:42.charge? A maximum interest rate is 26% set by regulation.
:03:43. > :03:45.We have 100 people a week coming in, gaining a loan or taking some
:03:46. > :03:50.good advice. Michaela Hamer's now back in the
:03:51. > :03:56.black, after joining a credit union. I managed to save so much money out
:03:57. > :04:00.of my wages. It is a fee I can afford and I will not miss.
:04:01. > :04:02.Clearly, not all can save for that rainy day. And a new savings body
:04:03. > :04:05.could face considerable opposition, as charitable trusts, UK trade
:04:06. > :04:09.investment, and even savers, may be asked to fund it.
:04:10. > :04:14.Joining us now from Westminster is one of the report's authors, Dr Paul
:04:15. > :04:21.Cox, Senior Lecturer of Finance at University of Birmingham.
:04:22. > :04:27.Good evening, Dr Cox. These ideas sound excellent in principle. What
:04:28. > :04:32.chance any of them will be adopted? I sincerely hope so. There was no
:04:33. > :04:37.certainty about these things but with energy and enthusiasm, we can
:04:38. > :04:42.make good progress. I have had fantastic responses from trade
:04:43. > :04:47.groups, such as the TUC, which is right behind the idea.
:04:48. > :04:50.We have lost the ability to save these days, it will take a culture
:04:51. > :04:58.change. It will. The automatic enrolment of
:04:59. > :05:04.pensions has already got as saving. We are in a savings mindset. One
:05:05. > :05:07.problem is we have been left alone so the industry can charge what it
:05:08. > :05:11.likes. Our case study is of a single mum
:05:12. > :05:16.who as a decent salary but things are so tight she can't even think of
:05:17. > :05:20.saving, she had to borrow. That is one of the great problems.
:05:21. > :05:26.We're not suggesting you should save every month of your life. There are
:05:27. > :05:32.points in your lifestyle where savings come into its own. When it
:05:33. > :05:34.is right, it is the right thing to do.
:05:35. > :05:38.Talking about companies matching the savings. Well that appeal to
:05:39. > :05:43.companies when they are already beleaguered?
:05:44. > :05:49.The idea of matched savings can go a long way. It helps with pensions.
:05:50. > :05:54.One of the inspirations of the report is we should automatically
:05:55. > :05:57.enrolled individuals into bank accounts and have government or
:05:58. > :06:01.companies making a small contribution as we saved to help us
:06:02. > :06:03.build small pots. Dr Cox from the University of
:06:04. > :06:08.Birmingham, thank you. We asked for your comments on this.
:06:09. > :06:11.Julie wrote on our Facebook page: "I have just got out of debt after six
:06:12. > :06:14.years. I have started to save a bit. But,
:06:15. > :06:18.with the price of electricity and gas going up, and food, I don't
:06:19. > :06:20.think my little bit of savings will last very long."
:06:21. > :06:23.Paul suggests: "Teach money management and basic skills on
:06:24. > :06:25.borrowing and its true cost in school."
:06:26. > :06:28.Paulette: "Be wise and pay off debts that are growing due to interest
:06:29. > :06:32.charges, before saving money that will not grow."
:06:33. > :06:35.Steve says: " A good start would be to ban payday loan companies from
:06:36. > :06:39.high streets, and to limit the amount of interest charged."
:06:40. > :06:42.Eve posted a comment. She says: "Can't think of any initiative that
:06:43. > :06:45.will help poor people save, without also helping the super`rich to hoard
:06:46. > :06:49.even more unnecessary wealth. More and more money being tied up in
:06:50. > :06:54.savings won't be great for the economy."
:06:55. > :06:59.Coming up later in the programme: Still no decision on extending the
:07:00. > :07:05.badger cull in Gloucestershire, as opponents threaten legal action.
:07:06. > :07:10.The future of Coventry City Football Club was back on the agenda at the
:07:11. > :07:14.city council, and also in Parliament today. The Labour MP Bob Ainsworth
:07:15. > :07:16.is urging the government to bring in an independent liquidator, to
:07:17. > :07:20.investigate the financial crisis at the club. He told the Commons that
:07:21. > :07:20.what was happening was "outrageous and unforgivable." Ian Winter
:07:21. > :07:32.reports. Two months ago, the pitch was
:07:33. > :07:36.perfect but the sky blues had flown the nest. The Ricoh Arena is no
:07:37. > :07:41.longer the home of Coventry City Football Club and the fans are
:07:42. > :07:44.furious. Today, yet another protest group of angry supporters gathered
:07:45. > :07:50.outside the Council house to voice their desire to get the club back.
:07:51. > :07:53.The purpose of today is to let Coventry City Council note the
:07:54. > :07:59.people of Coventry want their club back in the city and this stadium.
:08:00. > :08:05.There is a lot of taxpayers money tied up in the Ricoh Arena. A ?14
:08:06. > :08:14.million bailout. Someone has to pay it back. If nobody is in the
:08:15. > :08:18.stadium, who will pay? Beneath this watchful gaze of historical
:08:19. > :08:22.leaders, councillors found no mention of the football club on
:08:23. > :08:26.today's agenda. Speculation was rife that the council leader had
:08:27. > :08:30.something important to stay on a subject close to the hearts of many
:08:31. > :08:34.taxpayers. But the burning question remains. Would the city council
:08:35. > :08:41.sanctioned the sale of the Ricoh Arena while Sisu remain owners of
:08:42. > :08:48.the football club? When the time came, and Lucas was crystal clear.
:08:49. > :09:00.`` Ann Lucas. A future being discussed at
:09:01. > :09:05.Westminster this afternoon in a debate led by Bob Ainsworth, the
:09:06. > :09:15.Labour MP for Coventry North East. Figures like ?7 million floated by
:09:16. > :09:22.Sisu's fans, for a stadium that cost over ?100 million. But to float
:09:23. > :09:27.derisory figures like that is an indication there is an attempt at a
:09:28. > :09:32.killing at the taxpayers's expense. Since I'm here if you'd like to see
:09:33. > :09:34.an end to this crisis. But fans, do not hold your breath.
:09:35. > :09:41.Ian's outside the Ricoh Arena for us now. Ian, is the future of Coventry
:09:42. > :09:47.City any clearer tonight? I'm afraid not really. I have heard
:09:48. > :09:53.a lot of words spoken, angry and frustrated, from supporters. Hopeful
:09:54. > :09:58.words from councillors, cautious words from that Coventry MP. None of
:09:59. > :10:01.these words have been directed in any meaningful dialogue with the
:10:02. > :10:06.owners of the football club. That is at the heart of the matter. Until
:10:07. > :10:11.all the interested parties get together to discuss and thrash out a
:10:12. > :10:16.deal, there is no hope of Coventry City returning to play their home
:10:17. > :10:21.games at the Ricoh Arena in the foreseeable future. Tonight, the
:10:22. > :10:26.football club are playing at home at Northampton against Leyton Orient.
:10:27. > :10:29.But whether the sky blues will ever return to play here remains a
:10:30. > :10:31.question we are nowhere near answering again tonight.
:10:32. > :10:35.BBC Coventry and Warwickshire will be discussing the future of the
:10:36. > :10:36.Ricoh Arena on the Shane O'Connor at Breakfast show, tomorrow morning
:10:37. > :10:42.from seven o'clock. On the eve of a Home Affairs Select
:10:43. > :10:45.Committee called to investigate the so called Plebgate affair, the
:10:46. > :10:47.Police and Crime Commissioner for Warwickshire has accused Andrew
:10:48. > :10:51.Mitchell's friends of 'baying for blood'. Ron Ball says the Sutton
:10:52. > :10:56.Coldfield MP and his friends should accept an apology by three fficers
:10:57. > :11:01.caught up in the row. Ron Ball is with me now. You say Andrew
:11:02. > :11:08.Mitchell's "baying for blood". Hardly surprising after the year
:11:09. > :11:11.he's had? It is a really difficult situation
:11:12. > :11:17.we need to get out of. My trade union background has shown me
:11:18. > :11:22.situations but this before. They get resolved when people make some sort
:11:23. > :11:28.of move, there is an element of goodwill. What the officers did was
:11:29. > :11:34.to actually offer an apology to the people, but not apologised to Andrew
:11:35. > :11:40.Mitchell. It seemed a grudging apology, talking about poor
:11:41. > :11:46.judgement. This situation is a really major pressure situation.
:11:47. > :11:51.They could have easily hunkered down and said nothing. What they have
:11:52. > :11:55.done is quite courageous. It is a helpful step. You must understand
:11:56. > :12:01.the distress his family have been through, he has lost a key job in
:12:02. > :12:06.government, it has ruined his career at this moment. His career is in the
:12:07. > :12:11.hands of the Prime Minister. It has been a year and a half. I am not...
:12:12. > :12:17.There are two incidences, the one in London which is nothing to do with
:12:18. > :12:22.me. It appears it was made up to discredit him. I cannot comment on
:12:23. > :12:27.that, there are cases possibly before the court coming up. As far
:12:28. > :12:33.as this instance is concerned which is why I am involved, and I
:12:34. > :12:36.shouldn't be involved at all, in that the IPCC were called in to
:12:37. > :12:41.investigate. I should be able as a commissioner to trust them to do a
:12:42. > :12:47.professional investigation. And I should have a clean outcome at this
:12:48. > :12:53.point. Will this go any further with a resolution? I do not know, I
:12:54. > :12:59.sincerely hope so. I am involved in the secondary bit, Sutton Coldfield
:13:00. > :13:04.bit. My hope is that we do make some progress tomorrow, and we can start
:13:05. > :13:10.moving on from here. The officers, in my view, took a useful first step
:13:11. > :13:15.on that and I am rather disappointed that it was rubbished. It was brave
:13:16. > :13:16.of them and it should be acknowledged.
:13:17. > :13:21.Police in Rugby investigating the unexplained death of a woman in the
:13:22. > :13:24.town last week are trying to find her handbag and mobile phone.
:13:25. > :13:27.39`year`old Patricia Dornan was found near the junction of James
:13:28. > :13:31.Street and Albert Street on Thursday morning. Detectives want to speak to
:13:32. > :13:34.anyone who may have seen her on Wednesday.
:13:35. > :13:36.The Home Secretary Teresa May has praised communities in the West
:13:37. > :13:40.Midlands for their courage, following the conviction of a man
:13:41. > :13:43.for murder and terrorism offences at mosques. Teresa May, who visited the
:13:44. > :13:46.affected mosque in Tipton last month, described the case as highly
:13:47. > :13:49.distressing, and paid tribute to the work of West Midlands Police. Pavlo
:13:50. > :13:51.Lapshyn's due to be sentenced on Friday, after he admitted killing
:13:52. > :13:53.Mohammed Saleem, and planting home`made bombs outside mosques in
:13:54. > :14:02.Walsall, Wolverhampton and Tipton. The owners of Birmingham City
:14:03. > :14:06.Football Club have denied speculation that a takeover of the
:14:07. > :14:08.club is close to being finalised. In a statement, the directors of
:14:09. > :14:11.Birmingham International Holdings Limited say no written agreement has
:14:12. > :14:14.been made or signed. Recent reports in the media have suggested the
:14:15. > :14:16.Birmingham`based businessman Giani Paladini is closing in on a deal to
:14:17. > :14:27.take over at Blues. Business leaders, students and
:14:28. > :14:29.artists have travelled to Westminster for Birmingham Day, to
:14:30. > :14:32.show politicians what the second city has to offer. It's been
:14:33. > :14:36.organised by Edgbaston MP Gisela Stuart who says she wants to show
:14:37. > :14:40.Parliament a side of Birmingham they may not know. BBC WM's political
:14:41. > :14:50.reporter Susana Mendonca has spent the day there.
:14:51. > :14:54.Susana, what's been happening? It was about raising Birmingham's
:14:55. > :14:58.profile at Westminster, showing politicians that Birmingham is the
:14:59. > :15:05.second city and why it deserves that title.
:15:06. > :15:13.It's not the kind of music you might expect to hear in parliament, but
:15:14. > :15:17.look around, a little bit of Birmingham has taken over. The
:15:18. > :15:22.jewellery Quarter. The home of chocolate. A fuel of the things
:15:23. > :15:27.Brummies pride themselves on. All in one room at Westminster. Giving
:15:28. > :15:31.politicians a taste of Birmingham is what this event is about. The real
:15:32. > :15:37.question is whether this will make a difference. A number of people have
:15:38. > :15:44.said, I had no idea about the jewellery, about the amazing Asian
:15:45. > :15:49.dress. People will be more aware of what Birmingham has too far.
:15:50. > :15:54.Politically, tomorrow, I have a ten minute rule Bill to talk about the
:15:55. > :15:59.funding of our cities. They are the engine of economic recovery of the
:16:00. > :16:03.nation. Birmingham has challenges, the local authority faces huge
:16:04. > :16:07.spending cuts and has come under intense criticism the failures on
:16:08. > :16:14.child protection. With 40% of the population under the age of 25, this
:16:15. > :16:18.MP was keen to put young people at the centre. These children took the
:16:19. > :16:24.day off to tell MPs by learning how to make curry is preparing them for
:16:25. > :16:30.life. We have been telling them about preparing students with
:16:31. > :16:38.academic skills, skills for the workplace. Outside, some listeners
:16:39. > :16:44.heard a broadcast from College Green and felt the day should have been
:16:45. > :16:47.about the Black Country. Over the next 12 months, I will be
:16:48. > :16:51.negotiating with all of the authorities in the West Midlands to
:16:52. > :16:58.make this happen so more resources and power is available locally. It
:16:59. > :17:06.is the right kind of mood music, but how will it play out?
:17:07. > :17:08.If nothing else, today got them talking about Birmingham again and
:17:09. > :17:18.about the wider West Midlands. This is our top story tonight: We
:17:19. > :17:22.must all save, even on the lowest incomes, to fight off the spiralling
:17:23. > :17:23.problem of debt, according to a new report from the University of
:17:24. > :17:25.Birmingham. Your detailed weather forecast to
:17:26. > :17:30.come shortly from Shefali. Also in tonight's programme: Tourism
:17:31. > :17:32.may be worth more than half a billion pounds in south
:17:33. > :17:35.Warwickshire, but they still want more visitors, as Shakespeare's
:17:36. > :17:38.birth place drops out of the tourism top 20.
:17:39. > :17:40.And, a night to remember for the local band who supported
:17:41. > :17:46.international jazz star Jamie Cullum at the Symphony Hall in Birmingham.
:17:47. > :17:52.There's still no agreement tonight on whether or not to carry on the
:17:53. > :17:55.badger cull in Gloucestershire. The six`week cull fell well short of
:17:56. > :17:59.killing the target number of badgers it was set. Now, those who oppose
:18:00. > :18:03.the cull are threatening legal action if the cull's extended. But
:18:04. > :18:05.would extending the cull help? Or should culling be abandoned for this
:18:06. > :18:10.year? Our rural affairs correspondent David Gregory`Kumar is
:18:11. > :18:16.here. David, will new research help?
:18:17. > :18:19.New research goes some way to explaining why the effects of
:18:20. > :18:23.culling badgers can be so unpredictable. This is family life
:18:24. > :18:29.for 50 Gloucestershire badgers. Radio`tagged and tracked as part of
:18:30. > :18:33.a new study. Red splodges are TB`infected badgers, the blues
:18:34. > :18:36.uninfected. This research shows the infected badgers occupy a unique
:18:37. > :18:41.position. They are isolated from the other family groups. So they don't
:18:42. > :18:44.spread TB inside these groups, but they can spread the disease between
:18:45. > :18:48.them. Culling shatters these links, and means infected badgers wander
:18:49. > :18:51.off and spread disease. This might explain the big problem facing the
:18:52. > :18:54.Gloucestershire cull zone. We know they've culled around 30% of
:18:55. > :18:58.badgers. But that's not enough, and it could make the problem of TB in
:18:59. > :19:01.cattle worse. Especially on the edges of the cull zone. Because
:19:02. > :19:04.you've shattered that network of badgers, and infected animals are
:19:05. > :19:08.wandering about spreading TB. So the company running the cull wants more
:19:09. > :19:12.time to try and get that total up to 70%, the point where you start to
:19:13. > :19:14.have a positive impact on the disease.
:19:15. > :19:18.But we also know that increasing the length of a cull can also increase
:19:19. > :19:22.the risk of spreading TB. It's a catch`22. And this may well explain
:19:23. > :19:26.why it's taking so long to reach a decision on what to do. And if there
:19:27. > :19:32.is an extension, opponents say that is a decision ripe for a new legal
:19:33. > :19:38.challenge. It is against the advice that Defra
:19:39. > :19:43.gave to itself, that it should be a maximum of six weeks. If they go
:19:44. > :19:47.against that, clearly they are not following their own prescription and
:19:48. > :19:51.terms of reference. That is something that is very actionable.
:19:52. > :19:53.We should be going either for a judicial review, or for an
:19:54. > :19:59.injunction. In the meantime, Gloucestershire
:20:00. > :20:03.Police have confirmed to us today that, since the cull licence has
:20:04. > :20:06.finished, and an extension has not been granted, killing badgers in the
:20:07. > :20:08.cull zone is currently just as illegal as killing them outside it.
:20:09. > :20:13.Gloucestershire remains in limbo. Stonehenge, Chester Zoo and the
:20:14. > :20:17.Tower of London, all places in the top 20 UK visitor attractions. But
:20:18. > :20:20.conspicuous by its absence in the top flight is anything from here in
:20:21. > :20:24.the Heart of England, and it's been like that for a few years. But the
:20:25. > :20:27.leaders of a new tourism promotion group launched today in Stratford
:20:28. > :20:29.hope to turn that around. Sarah Falkland reports.
:20:30. > :20:36.You may recognise this as a popular tourist destination. But do you know
:20:37. > :20:39.where this is? Less than half a mile away from Warwick Castle, they're
:20:40. > :20:42.Hill Close Gardens, one of only four surviving examples of Victorian
:20:43. > :20:44.hedgerow gardens, places where tradespeople like porkpie maker
:20:45. > :20:56.Benjamin Chadband would escape the hustle and bustle of the town.
:20:57. > :21:02.Each gate of each plot tells you about the history of the family that
:21:03. > :21:06.had this site originally. They came down here, they might picnic, they
:21:07. > :21:10.might garden, they might play with their children. That's what we want
:21:11. > :21:14.to replicate. The gardens may have been something
:21:15. > :21:17.of a secret. Not for much longer. They've just joined Shakespeare's
:21:18. > :21:20.England. It's a new tourism body hoping to sell the region with
:21:21. > :21:25.themed breaks for families, country lovers, history lovers and, well,
:21:26. > :21:30.just lovers. What the website does wonderfully is
:21:31. > :21:35.to help a couple in London who want to come away for a weekend, find a
:21:36. > :21:38.B in Warwick, go to Leamington spa, or come to these gardens.
:21:39. > :21:41.It's a private`public sector partnership, and the first tourism
:21:42. > :21:43.body for this area in over three years.
:21:44. > :21:47.Tourism brings some ?550 million to this area every year. But, if that's
:21:48. > :21:50.to increase, they've got to think of ways of making people stay for
:21:51. > :22:01.longer. No mean feat when hear how tight their schedules are.
:22:02. > :22:06.If we went to London two days ago, we are here until tomorrow. An hour
:22:07. > :22:07.and a half in Stratford, then we get back on the bus to London this
:22:08. > :22:10.afternoon. Even more well`known attractions
:22:11. > :22:16.acknowledge that there's a lot to play for. We attract about 800,000
:22:17. > :22:23.people every year but that's only 20% of the people who come to the
:22:24. > :22:28.city. Even with an established and successful organisation, there's
:22:29. > :22:31.more work to be done. And if the tourism sector here in South
:22:32. > :22:32.Warwickshire can stay buoyant, it's good news for the 13,000 people who
:22:33. > :22:41.are employed in it. The Symphony Hall in Birmingham is
:22:42. > :22:44.acknowledged as one of the best live venues in the world. So imagine
:22:45. > :22:47.being a member of an unsigned band, getting an email from the
:22:48. > :22:50.multi`million selling artist Jamie Cullum asking you to play there and
:22:51. > :22:53.support him. That's just what happened to one wide`eyed group from
:22:54. > :22:58.the Midlands, and Ben Sidwell was there to see how it all went.
:22:59. > :23:04.MUSIC. There's no tour bus and no group of
:23:05. > :23:05.roadies. Unsigned Birmingham band Midnight Bonfires have to do
:23:06. > :23:14.everything themselves. The group are used to playing to
:23:15. > :23:17.just a handful of people, but tonight is very different. In just a
:23:18. > :23:21.few hours, they'll be walking onto the stage of the city's Symphony
:23:22. > :23:29.Hall, in front of a sell`out crowd of 2,000 people.
:23:30. > :23:31.It means everything, really. It is a big chance to impress and lots of
:23:32. > :23:34.people. At the venue, backstage, and with
:23:35. > :23:38.the gear unloaded, the enormity of what's ahead is beginning to sink
:23:39. > :23:42.in. We can't compare it to anything else
:23:43. > :23:45.we have ever done. It is difficult to know how to feel.
:23:46. > :23:48.The opportunity to play here came thanks to BBC Introducing which
:23:49. > :23:53.supports unsigned bands across the country, giving them a chance to be
:23:54. > :23:58.heard on radio. We have music that we think everyone
:23:59. > :24:05.wants to hear. We want to get out there. We will do our best.
:24:06. > :24:10.Of course, most of the crowd are here to see headliner Jamie Cullum.
:24:11. > :24:13.He listened to hundreds of unsigned bands on the BBC Introducing
:24:14. > :24:22.website, before hand`picking the artists he wanted to support him on
:24:23. > :24:26.tour. I got to log onto the site and
:24:27. > :24:30.listen to these amazing bands. And I wanted more people to hear them,
:24:31. > :24:33.it's as simple as that. While the band's nerves grow in
:24:34. > :24:36.their dressing room, outside, the crowd are arriving and the hall is
:24:37. > :24:38.filling fast. And, before they know it, the moment
:24:39. > :24:50.has arrived. The crowd were lovely, really nice,
:24:51. > :24:54.really lovely. 30 minutes later, and it's all over,
:24:55. > :25:03.but it's given the band a taste of what could be. Oh, yes. What will
:25:04. > :25:06.be. Hopefully, hopefully. Maybe. Come and see us.
:25:07. > :25:10.When, and if, Midnight Bonfires ever get the chance to play the Symphony
:25:11. > :25:12.Hall again remains to be seen. But one thing's for sure, they'll never
:25:13. > :25:22.forget tonight. Another rain`sodden day. I got
:25:23. > :25:28.drenched again this morning. More of the same, Shefali?
:25:29. > :25:32.There is much more of the same to come. For those of you who do not
:25:33. > :25:36.want to be caught out by the rain, I thought it would be worth pointing
:25:37. > :25:42.out the drier periods which will be tomorrow night and most of Thursday.
:25:43. > :25:46.Otherwise, a pretty wet and windy picture. As much rain as we have
:25:47. > :25:57.seen over the past 48 hours which has been over one inch of rain.
:25:58. > :26:02.At the moment, it is relatively quiet but we are looking at a batch
:26:03. > :26:06.of showers brewing to the south. A band of heavy and disorderly showers
:26:07. > :26:11.feeding into night and to the north. A wet and windy night, some
:26:12. > :26:18.showers could produce 20 millimetres of rain in a short period of time,
:26:19. > :26:23.within an hour, containing hail and under. Temperatures are still mild,
:26:24. > :26:28.down to 12 Celsius. More showers battling through the region
:26:29. > :26:33.tomorrow. There will be a switch in wind direction which will kill most
:26:34. > :26:39.of those showers. By the afternoon, it is looking much drier and quite
:26:40. > :26:44.sunny as well. In the morning, those showers could be heavy in a short
:26:45. > :26:54.space of time. Temperatures will reach 15 Celsius. Not as mild as
:26:55. > :26:58.today. A breeze to content with. Then, a ridge of high pressure
:26:59. > :27:04.building tomorrow evening, which will kill all of the activity
:27:05. > :27:09.completely and clear the skies. Some mist and fog patches. Cold enough in
:27:10. > :27:14.rural areas for a touch of grass frost. In urban areas, a minimum of
:27:15. > :27:20.six Celsius. This ridge of high pressure will keep things dry on
:27:21. > :27:22.Thursday, but we have this area of low pressure and heavy rain on
:27:23. > :27:27.Thursday evening. Tonight's headlines from the BBC:
:27:28. > :27:30.Former Prime Minister John Major adds his voice to the row over
:27:31. > :27:33.energy prices, branding the latest price hikes unjustifiable.
:27:34. > :27:37.We must all save, even on the lowest incomes, to fight off the spiralling
:27:38. > :27:39.problem of debt, according to a new report.
:27:40. > :27:42.That was the Midlands Today. I'll be back at ten o'clock, and speaking
:27:43. > :27:45.live to the Birmingham MP Gisela Stuart to find out whether her
:27:46. > :27:47.Birmingham Day at Westminster really will raise the city's profile.
:27:48. > :27:48.Have a great