02/05/2014 Midlands Today

In Yardley is an equally exercised politician who is considering legal

action against the council. He says more than 100 piles of rubbish have

been dumped in his constituency. They should scrap the charge,

because it is clear that some people can't afford it and it is causing a

major mess across the city. And if the city looks bad, there is clear

evidence that it encourages crime. Birmingham City Council is dealing

with some huge political issues at the moment, not least the allegation

of extremists infiltrating some of the city's schools, and what to do

about children's services. But the issue for many people on their

doorstep is this stuff, the collection of garden waste. I think

it is diabolical that we have to pay extra for a service we are already

paying for. I paid ?35 to have my wheelie bin, which is fantastic. On

principle, I would not pay for it. Later, we found more than 50 bags

dumped on the Bristol Road, some with stickers explaining that the

green waste disposal service is no longer free. The council say about

1000 residents a week are signing up to the annual collection fee, with

around 40,000 households so far on board. This is what cuts look like

in Birmingham, yes. And we still have a further ?300 million to cut

out of the city council's budget over the next couple of years. It is

going to get even more difficult, I'm afraid. I don't welcome that,

but I don't deny it and it is our job as a council to be honest with

people and do what we can with the money available. People who continue

to dump waste in the city are being warned that they could face fines of

several thousand pounds. Well, Cath Mackie is back in a part

of Birmingham that we saw in that report, Rubery, in the south west of

the city. What's the latest this evening, Cath? That big pile of

garden rubbish we saw earlier is still here. We have had a lot of

people contact our newsroom about this story. Let me give you a

flavour of some of the things people are saying. Roz Ratcliffe says:

I guess we will find out what impact this issue will have on voters, come

local election day on May the 22nd. Coming up later in the programme:

The first to graduate from a new training facility in Staffordshire `

the latest wave of medics for our armed forces.

Two care workers have appeared in court charged with manslaughter

following the death of a 91`year`old woman. Iris Teale was found with a

broken leg at the Aston Court Nursing Home in Little Aston, Sutton

Coldfield in October 2011. She died at Good Hope Hospital just over two

weeks later. Our Health Correspondent Michele Paduano has

the story. 91`year`old Iris Teale was frail and

elderly. She had been unable to walk for some time when she was involved

in a fall on October eighth, 2011 and broke her hip. Her son visited

her in Good Hope Hospital in Sutton Coldfield after the incident, but

she died just over two weeks later. I have not put mother to rest. I

don't know exactly what happened. I don't know what may have caused the

problem. Who is responsible, if anyone is responsible or what.

40`year`old Marsha Tulloch seen here in black appeared at

Burton`Magistrates Court charged with unlawful killing. She and a co

accused, 38`year`old Santosh Rajan, worked at this care home, which

houses 55 residents near Sutton Coldfield Ptc Aston Court Nursing

and Residential Care Home is a red brick building at the end of this

leafy lane specialises in residential, nursing and palliative

care patients. At the time Mrs Teale was here, the fees were ?1000 a week

Two and a half years on, they are still looking for answers: you can't

imagine life without them. You have to face up to it, but in these

circumstances, it is very hard to accept. It is incredibly rare for

somebody to be charged with an slaughter in a case like this.

Without knowing the details, it is difficult to know why that

conclusion has been reached, but it is something we do not see every

day. The case has been remanded to Stafford Crown Court next Friday.

The defendants are yet to enter a plea.

Stephen Sutton, the Staffordshire teenager with incurable cancer, has

been discharged from hospital. The 19`year`old from Burntwood, who's

raised more than ?3 million for the Teenage Cancer Trust, announced on

social media that he'd now left hospital and described his recovery

as "quite remarkable". Earlier he'd been visited by the prime minister

David Cameron, who praised the teenager for his "incredible" zest

for life. The National Association of Head

Teachers says 30 heads in Birmingham have raised concerns about an

alleged hard`line Muslim takeover of schools. Four investigations are

going on into Birmingham schools, following the so`called "Trojan

Horse" letter. Ofsted has confirmed today that the findings of its own

inquiry will be published at the beginning of June.

This month's European and Council elections will inevitably be

examined for pointers to the General Election in a year's time. With both

the Conservatives and Labour short of a Commons majority, each needs

seats from the other. So all the parties will be fighting hard in

nearly 30 Midlands marginals, as our BBC Hereford and Worcester political

reporter Matthew Bone explains. Across the West Midlands, the

election campaign is coming to the boil, nowhere more so than here in

the Winyates area of Redditch. When it comes to swing voters, this place

has pretty much got the market wrapped up. There has been Liberal,

Labour, Conservative, BNP. It's very diverse. We have got people from

everywhere. Everybody contributes to the local community in a positive

way. Redditch's MP was Labour's Jacqui Smith until 2010, but with

the expenses scandal at its height, she lost her seat to the

Conservatives' Karen Lumley, who took it with a larger than average

swing of 9%. But Labour retook the council a couple of years ago here,

and this time round, they have wheeled out the Shadow Cabinet big

guns as they try to take more seats off the Conservatives and build

momentum ahead of next year's general election. But there are

plenty of other candidates in the field, including UKIP, who had their

own county councillor here until recently. Could they have more

impact this time around? Around the corner, Mad Malk has been sitting

down with customers for the last few years. He is not surprised that

people round here are so quick to change their vote. I think a lot of

people have come to the conclusion that they voted for this person,

this person has not done what they said they were going to do, they try

the next person. Looking on the boards, there are a couple of roses

that could be used for Labour or a bird for the Liberal Democrats. Have

you ever had anybody come in and ask for a political tattoo? No. I think

a lot of them would probably regret it at a later stage. Redditch is one

of around 30 key marginal seats in the West Midlands, and whoever makes

their mark this time round stands a good chance of doing well in the

next general election. That is the real needle contest. Which one is it

going to be? The smallest one for me please!

And our Political Editor Patrick Burns is here now. We always stress

the importance of local marginals such as Redditch, but how much of a

difference will they really make? A bigger difference this time than

ever, actually, because in the era of coalition politics, Conservatives

and Labour, with Josef brought `` with those separate rival targets,

many of those places happen to have council elections going on this

month. Newcastle`under`Lyme is one of them. David Cameron was there

today and he took a bit of a swipe at UKIP. He said he does not need to

discredit them when they are doing such a good job of that themselves.

Whatever it takes, I will deliver that in out referendum. Labour

won't, UKIP can't, I will. Earlier this week, I made clear that I will

not lead a government that either could not or did not deliver an

in`out referendum. Let me be clear. The British people need to have

their say on our membership of the EU. Isn't it something of a

departure that he's going after UKIP? An acknowledgement that

they're not just going to go away of their own accord? That is right.

They may see this as something of a compliment, but they will certainly

not take any lectures, UKIP. They say the Conservatives and Labour are

not to be trusted. But it is a very crowded marketplace for

anti`European parties in these elections. There are no fewer than

five of the ten who are contesting it who are anti`European. Yesterday,

we heard from Nicky Sinclair, one of two former UKIP MEPs who have

started new parties. It is Eurosceptic, it wants to get out of

the EU. I have been an MEP for the past ten years, and there is nothing

happening there that should concern us. We should leave, because

domination from Europe is not something we need. Westminster

should make our laws. One size does not fit all. Go to the BBC politics

website for a full list of candidates, and my blog will explain

more as well. And Patrick will be back with more

on this in Sunday Politics from 11 o'clock here on BBC One. He'll be

joined live in the studio by three new candidates hoping to enter

Parliament in a year's time. The next generation of medics for

the armed forces graduated today ` the first to be trained at

Whittington Barracks near Lichfield. The Defence Medical Services Centre

cost more than a hundred million pounds and opened last month. It's

training doctors, nurses and dentists for the army, navy and air

force. Giles Latcham reports. Led out by the band of the Royal

Engineers, the first batch of medics to earn their spurs at the Armed

forces new centre for medical services at Whittington. A proud day

for parents and partners and for all involved. I am so proud. It is a big

day. It is fantastic bringing all the defence medical services

together to make sure we can deliver quality care to the patient. Among

those on parade, a Shrewsbury lad who used to be an infantryman. It

was his combat experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan that persuaded him

to lay down his rifle and pick up a medical kit.. When I am on tour and

my friends have been hurt, I wanted to be able to do that little bit

extra. I want to give that life`saving treatment to my friends

and colleagues, and be that important person. This is an old and

historic barracks, but it is a new refurbishment. It has cost 138

million. The finishing touches are still being applied. It brings

together under the same roof the training for the medics of all the

armed forces, the Navy and the army and the air force. It's here on

courses lasting six to eight months that trainees are taught skills that

might one day save lives in a theatre of war. Another graduate

passing out today has her sights set on the front line. I hope to

progress on to work for the medical and emergency response team, who

work with the helicopters evacuating casualties out of difficult war

zones. The centre's created jobs and brought business into the South

Staffordshire economy. The ambition, though, is simple ` to provide those

protecting us on land sea and air with the best care possible.

This is our top story tonight: fly`tipping a major problem as

householders dump their garden waste rather than pay to have it

collected. Rebecca's standing by with the Bank

Holiday weather. Also ahead: Tales of treachery, stealth and espionage

` all being filmed in Coventry for a big screen version of Spooks.

He's best known for films such as Four Weddings And A Funeral and

Notting Hill, but today screen star Hugh Grant was playing a very

different role ` promoting a life`saving medical service. The

Hollywood actor was in Staffordshire to unveil a rapid response vehicle

which is used to tend to patients while an ambulance is on its way.

When the 7/7 bombings shattered London seven years ago, first

responders were not really around, at the now chairman of the district

community of first responders was there. He was photographed helping

this woman and became a bit of a celebrity. It was not long after

that his phone was hacked by the now defunct News Of The World, which saw

him join forces with bona fide celebrity Hugh Grant, also a victim

of phone hacking. Together, they have campaigned against press

intrusion. Their friendship group, and he finally persuaded the

A`lister to come to Burntwood for today's unveiling. He has been on

and on for years about asking me to help try and find someone who would

donate an ambulance, and I have consistently said yes and

consistently done nothing about it. So I feel now, the least I could do

was to come and undress this car for him. I now declare this community

first responder vehicle responsive! The actor was first to admit that he

did not really know anything about the service. It has been an

eye`opener. It is very impressive. I did not realise it was all

voluntary, and I did not realise all the funding had to be raised mostly

on a non`governmental level. There are a number of first responders

throughout the West Midlands, but Burntwood has never had its own. We

had a response car until December, and that went off the road. So now

we have got this vehicle locally, it will be seen attending emergency

calls. While the car was supposed to be the star of the show, it was

perhaps inevitable that this man was always going to steal the limelight.

It was one of the most popular TV series of recent years and now the

long`running spy drama Spooks is coming to the big screen. Four years

after its final series, Spooks is being made into a movie with a cast

of Hollywood stars. And much of the action is being filmed this weekend

right here in the Midlands, as Joanne Writtle reports.

The moment a terrorist escapes from custody in the centre of Coventry.

But this wasn't real. The city's being used for filming dramatic

opening scenes of a big screen version of Spooks ` and perhaps

never before has someone enthused so much about a parking area. It is

fantastic, perfect. It is really visual, very striking. It is

normally a lorry park or a coach park. So the great thing is, we have

been able to access it. We need access for three days so that we can

shoot every moment without having to move out of the way for real

traffic. This is an episode of the long running BBC TV drama which

centres on MI5 intrigue and dark twists.

You are famous for killing people off, so do they all make it to the

end of the film? There will be the requisite number of deaths and major

plot twists that Spooks fans expect. None of the show's big stars like

Peter Firth were on set today. But for this traffic jam on scene, they

needed lots of extras, all willing to sit in a gridlock all day. Many

of them are local. They selected some of us to bring our cars and

just sit in them all day! This will be a multi million pound production,

complete even with special effects rain. And it's putting Coventry on

the map. It is a travelling circus, making a movie. You have to bring

the same people with you to control the props and the lights. But there

is a certain amount of local hire and a great deal of local spend, and

we hope, if you like, is treated investment show other film`makers

that they can bring stuff here. The film will be released worldwide next

year. Sport now, and Dan, this is a

weekend when relegation is on everyone's minds. Yes, these are

nervous times for many Midlands sports fans. In a minute, we'll look

at the plight of Birmingham City, but if anything, Worcester rugby

club face an even more daunting task. The Warriors need to win both

their remaining matches to stay up. Some say relegation would affect the

city's profile. This man did his bit to promote the

name of Worcester. Today I met someone trying to do the same.

Adrian Field's job is a bit different to composer Edward Elgar.

He promotes business in Worcester. But if the city's rugby club is

relegated ` his job gets that little bit harder. If the worst does

happen, it does affect the city centre in terms of the profile and

the number of people who come to the city. The club will have smaller

support, so it will have an impact. It is an impressive stadium, but if

it is to host top`flight rugby next is on, was to have to win both of

their games. Worcester's last defeat was at third`placed Bath. Tomorrow

they're away to league leaders Saracens who last week won their

european cup semifinal by a record margin. Everyone watched Saracens

this week. We understand the size of the task. We will just have to do

the best we can and make sure we represent this club. We understand

the prerequisite. Despite Worcester's miserable season, this

week full`back Chris Pennell was named on a six man short list for

Premiership player of the season. It is great. I am really pleased to

even be considered. It is something for the CV. The wife was very happy.

It is a positive I can take from what has been a poor season overall

for us as a team. And if Worcester's rugby club is relegated, they'll

have to rely a little more heavily on one of their former greats to

keep the visitors coming. But on the plus side for Worcester,

the basketball side, the Wolves are going well. Really well. And they

play the Sheffield Sharks in the BBL play`off semi`finals this weekend.

And two rugby teams enjoying better days are Rugby Lions and Leek, both

involved in Twickenham finals this weekend. But back to that word,

relegation. That could happen to Birmingham City in the Championship

tomorrow. And it will happen if they lose at Bolton tomorrow. A point

could be enough to save them depending on results elsewhere. But

manager Lee Clark says they're not going to Bolton just to defend. We

don't purposely set out to go for a point anywhere, because if you play

that game, we certainly can't afford it. Our defensive record will tell

you that we can't just take a point. We have got to go for the jugular

and try and win. And Villa aren't safe yet in the

Premier League. They're not. Tomorrow's home game against Hull is

their best chance left of a win ` but they may be effectively safe

anyway after this weekend, depending on other results.

This weekend sees the second semifinal of the Songs of Praise

School Choir of the Year competition. Last Sunday it was

junior schools, now it's the turn for senior schools and Hereford's

Cathedral School choir's already doing rather well.

The Cantabile girls choir have been rehearsing ahead of their semifinal

appearance in the Songs of Praise school choir of the year. They'll be

performing two songs to a panel of judges at Birmingham's International

Convention centre, and at this late stage, are quietly confident. They

picked up on a few points that we need to improve on, but one we are

in there and we have got the energy of a room and everyone is excited,

we will pull it out of the bag. It was a chance to see how big the

stage was. It was constructive and we got some feedback to improve. If

they win on Sunday, they'll go through to the finals the following

week. It'll be just reward for all their hard work back in Hereford,

where they've been refining their performances under the expertise of

choir master Jo Williamson. I make big demands on them. I make them

memorise things, I make them watch me constantly, so this phase is

imprinted in their nightmares. But they get results at the end. One of

those deciding their fate, is Gareth Malone of The Choir fame ` last week

they were judging the junior section and so far he's impressed with the

quality of this year's entrants. The standard is incredible. I have been

really surprised. Considering that these choirs are from single

schools, that is a small group to choose from. There are some very

good musicianship. Cantabile also reached the semi`finals in 2012.

They were very disappointed a few years ago, when they did not get

through to the finals. But this year, we are really going for it.

So, Hereford will be tuning in to see whether these young vocalists

can go one better. Now, the Bank Holiday weekend hoves

into view. Three days of rain as usual, Rebecca? No. You expect when,

but it is looking better than that. Fine and dry is the theme for the

next few days. Don't get too excited, we are not talking

wall`to`wall sunshine. We have got some chilly nights to come.

Gardeners, be aware, we could get a touch of frost. We have looked

sunshine to come over the next few days, but it will be cloudy at times

as well. Had Russia dominates for the next few days. It starts to push

in tonight `` high`pressure. For the next few hours, we start to see that

cloud clearing. Under those clear skies, our temperatures will

plummet. Further west, where we keep the cloud for longer, that will help

temperatures a bit. But in the east, we are dipping into single figures,

possibly even minus figures in the countryside. We start rather cold

tomorrow, but it will not be a bad day. Some good sunshine in the

morning. We will see cloud filling in from the West, giving some hazy

sunshine. Temperatures will do a little better than today. Not a bad

day, but we consider `` continue to see the cloud piling in. Overnight,

we could see some rain. But all that cloud will help keep temperatures up

a bit, so a mild night than tonight. Sunday is not looking too bad. We

have got plenty of cloud about. There will be rain, particularly

across the north Midlands, but good sunshine in the afternoon. And it is

similar for the Bank Holiday Monday. Another settled day. Temperatures

are climbing a bit. Plenty of cloud about, so I will see if I can do

better for the bank holiday at the end of the month.

The main headline tonight: And two care workers are charged with

manslaughter following the death of a 91`year`old woman. That was the

Midlands Today. I'll be back at ten o'clock with your latest update.

Have a good evening and a terrific Bank

Men are even less tolerant of women than they were before.

It's shocking it'd happen in a public place.

I don't find it funny, but I don't find it offensive.

It really is vile. Shock value sells.

Men are even less tolerant of women than they were before.

The hatred of women. Some people are offended.

Others think women should just man up.

and even misogyny socially acceptable?

Join me, Kirsty Wark, as I investigate...