06/04/2017 Midlands Today

Hello, and welcome to Midlands Today.

Too often abandoned and humiliated, but can a new law end discrimination

against disabled people needing a taxi?

From today, it's going to become illegal to charge extra for carrying

Bal helped the BBC uncover discrimination two years ago -

what's happened to the promises to make changes?

Facing deportation, the physio being asked to leave the UK

This is the main message I like to give to the Government

working for you, we are the ones who are trained by you, why do you

This little one's survived, but what about his mates?

A stunning tribute to Hereford's elite special forces.

And with more sunshine on the way tomorrow,

Looking very nice indeed by the time we get to the weekend.

From today, taxi drivers face a fine of a thousand pounds

if they overcharge or refuse to pick up passengers using wheelchairs.

The new law comes after years of campaigning by people who say,

because of their disability, they've been humiliated and often

simply abandoned by taxi drivers who don't want to have to deal

In 2015, the BBC in the Midlands went undercover with a Staffordshire

Two years on, she says it's still happening.

Balga Vandeel's used taxis in Stoke on Trent for years

but she realised she was being charged more than her friends

Sure enough, secret filming revealed several clear cut cases of drivers

charging her more than an able bodied person for the same journey.

She presented her film to Stoke on Trent city council

We can do as much training as possible with existing drivers but

we should also work with some of the disabled groups in the city to make

sure that anyone who uses the services of our drivers know what to

expect. new laws have come into force

meaning this kind of discrimination is now illegal, and could mean

a fine for a driver of up I'm really, really excited to say

that from today, it is going to become illegal to charge extra for

carrying a wheelchair. There will be assistance for wheelchair users to

get into taxis and for using wheelchairs.

Stoke on Trent city council is now encouraging disabled users

to report any such offences and say they will take action.

Most taxis have these telescopic ramps which don't help all

wheelchairs, including Bal's. It means drivers will be forced

to upgrade their vechiles costing You can get new ramps, but what

comes into it. I would need to get all these read on. -- don a game.

But John Walley, who's driven for 16 years and just bought a new cab

at over ?31,000, says it's up to drivers to up their game.

You need to go to the bank. You want to do the job ads you properly. I

love my job. But John Walley, the council

is giving a period of grace for drivers to comply and is drawing

up a future list of wheelchair friendly vehicles which any

new drivers must buy Following our report, the council

promised action to day, saying they did carry out the training they

promised. We have worked with a lot of groups and individuals to make

sure the training we get is appropriate. We have set that out to

all taxi drivers and operators. We put information out to the general

public about overcharging as well because it is quite a complex area

and there are some nuances which mean it is difficult for us to take

action. And we have to be a -- ask anyone who faces discrimination to

get in tops. -- in touch. An NHS physiotherapist from Solihull

is facing deportation back to India Anand Kumar, who's been working

in Britain for the last eight years, has been told he can't stay any

longer because of a change He's now started an online petition

to highlight the issue. Anand Kumar says he was encouraged

to come to the UK to train He's now settled in

the Midlands with his wife, but faces deportation back to India

in 2019 when his work visa expires. We are the trained workforce,

trained by the NHS. Non EU workers must

have a basic salary of ?35,000. Even though he earns more

through overtime and private work, ?35,000 salary is unachievable,

especially outside of London, especially

working in the NHS and I personally feel

that it is disrespectful of the service

we provide to the NHS. Anand has started an online petition

asking for the salary Anand says many of his colleagues

here at the Good Hope But the Government's

said it brought in the ?35,000 threshold because it had

become too easy to recruit workers from overseas rather

than training up UK citizens. Yet physiotherapy is an occupation

struggling to attract enough staff. The UK needs 500 new recruits a year

just to stand still. The Chartered Society

of Physiotherapy says to lose We have a shortage of

physios in this country, a If you speak to most of the local

managers in the West Midlands, they will say,

to fill band five and Anand says he could move

to London to boost his salary but his life and heart

is now in the Midlands. A brother and sister from Birmingham

have appeared in court in London It's alleged that 21-year-old

Ummariyat Mirza bought a knife and other items,

while planning an attack in the UK. His sister Zainub is accused

of sending him links Both were remanded in custody

until the end of the month. Social services and hospital staff

in Wolverhampton have been criticised for making weak

safeguarding assessments before a baby boy was shaken

to death by his father. Joshua Millinson was

shaken so violently A Childrens' Board has made 12

recommendations around But it says they couldn't have

prevented Daniel Sanzone The 23 year old was jailed

for life last November. Wildlife experts are warning that

a new form of animal trap, designed to kill pest species

like rats, stoats and weasels, could Hedgehog numbers have been

declining for a long time now and there are fears this new trap

will make life for the endangered Our environment correspondent

David Gregory-Kumar This trap was invented

in New Zealand where believe it or not hedgehogs

are just another pest. Unfortunately here well this trap

is just the latest in a long list of problems for one

of our most endangered species. For Mark Ecclestone,

this is his office. He makes a living copicing this

ancient wood on the edge of Telford and he's looking forward

to providing a home I haven't seen any in here in six

years I have been here are ideal and this

is just to see if This is the end of a

long journey for two Staffordshire hedgehogs,

brother and sister. Rescued, kept safe over the winter

and now ready to be released into the wood and under

Mark's watchful eye. We're not quite sure

which one is the brother and which is sister, because it is quite

difficult to tell when they are Overall hedgehog numbers

continue to decline and now conservationists warn

they face a new danger. This animal trap from New Zealand,

now licensed for use here. In New Zealand, this trap

is used to kill stoats, All of which are pest

species in there. Here, the government

insist this trap can't be the British hedgehog preservation

Society is still really worried Obviously, because

they were developed specifically to kill

hedgehogs, we think, unaltered in this country,

they will do exactly the same thing. Hedgehogs have enough to deal with,

they are in decline and the another thing we have

to worry about in terms And numbers are declining,

at a startling rate. We're just getting

around about 70% less records and they got

this time last year. These two are starting

a new life in a perfect But for the rest of our hedgehogs

life remains as difficult as ever. So, is this a trap? It is a good

French tunnel. It is a way for us to figure out if they are in a

particular area. -- food tunnel. We put food on this, we leave a bit of

NGO so that they can trail a footprint behind. That means we can

see that hedgehogs are there. How can you tell that is a hedgehog?

What do you look for? It looks like a child's hand. Quite back digits

and some of the feet point inwards and some outlets. -- fat digits. How

can you help hedgehogs in your garden? Look on our website,

hedgehogs are very simple things. One of the things you can do is busy

hole your friends, 13 by 13 centimetres, hedgehogs can get

through. We can do that and make a hedgehog superhighway. You can leave

piles of leaves falling to build nests, insects, make your garden

safe with ramps and Bones so they -- ramps in ponds so they can get out

if they fall in. Thank you very much. It is a sad picture for

hedgehogs but every get out on the Easter weekend and do some DIY any

garden, we can give them a helping hand. -- in the garden. A hedgehog

superhighway. I like that. Now, that goes into some travel news

for you, there are some delays due to trespassers on the line between

burning and commentary. -- Birmingham and Coventry.

A binman has been sacked for mixing up a West Bromwich businessman's

rubbish outside his home - knowing it would go uncollected.

Brij Dhande found his recycling was sometimes

being collected and other times labelled as contaminated.

After installing CCTV outside his home, he caught the man

The contractor Serco has apologised. from his household waste bin

A fundraising campaign to re-open an old Worcestershire railway

station has reached its target of ?1.25 million -

Volunteers at the Gloucestershire/Warwickshire

Steam Railway started a share scheme to reopen Broadway station.

It opened in 1904 and closed in 1960.

Campaigners hope to restore it over the next two years.

Thanks for joining us on Midlands Today, this is our top

Hopes that a new law will stop taxi drivers

discriminating against people in wheelchairs.

Your detailed weather forecast to come shortly,

The Cotswold village divided over runners in this

The million pound memorial to Hereford's

elite fighting force - the SAS.

If you have a story you think we should beat Coleraine, we would love

to hear from you. Send us an e-mail. We are on Facebook you can also to

beat us. It's been the home of Gaelic Sport

in the West Midlands But Pairc na hEireann

is now under threat from a planned relief road

for the M42 near Birmingham airport. The Warwickshire Gaelic Athletic

Association say having to move would damage the future

of their sport and have vowed I come here three or four times a

week. Martin Grogan has been a familiar

face at Pairc na hEireann for nearly than 30 years,

first as a player, now as treasurer and steward but he's facing

the prospect of losing it forever. It is the home of gale explored for

Britain. There is no other part outside of Ireland as big as this.

We do not want to move from here. The route for the new M42 relief

road could go straight through the site which is used

by Gaelic sports teams from all over I was flabbergasted, to be honest

with you. It has taken RCA is, 50 yes from the tiny but this land to

where we are to day and, in one fell swoop, highways England where

suggesting that they would take it from us. If we can play hair any

more, we would be sad. It would not be good, because we would not have

anywhere else to play. The ?282 million road

scheme is meant to take the pressure off the NEC junction

of the motorway. There are other options that those

of those involved taking a road much closer to the nearby village of

Biggin Hill, disrupting the lives of its residents. That is something

they gaily athletic satiation believed the planners will be keen

to avoid. -- Warwickshire Gaelic Athletic Association.

Highways England say, "We haven't made any decisions yet.

We are in touch with the club and will keep them fully informed.

It would be detrimental to gaily football hair. I have been coming

here for 20 years. We have got people who don't normally play here

playing here. It would be a shame. We're knackered is the sentimental

things that people will move lose out on. It will affect further

generations. I have great memories there, brilliant memories. I have

seen my club into senior championships here, which meant and

of all what you need. -- meant a lot to me.

to get planning permission for Pairc na Heireann.

Now they fear losing what they worked so hard to build.

Audrey Dias, BBC Midlands Today, Solihull.

Staying with sport and it's beautiful day Dan, so that must mean

Yes, there's just a few hours left to wait now for cricket fans

before their favourite moment of the year, the opening ball

And there's plenty of optimism in the air at Warwickshire,

For more than a century, it's been the sound which signals that summer

Mind you, in Worcester this morning, it felt like it was already here.

Some things never change, like the perfect backdrop hair, but there is

change and food for the counties. -- here. -- change afoot.

First up is the new look to the county championship.

Warwickshire are one of just 8 teams in the top division this season

and two of them will be relegated at the end of it.

It will be tough this year. We won last year and he wants to compete

again. All of which means Division Two has

a lopsided feel with ten counties in it but still only 14

fixtures so they won't all I'm not a fan and I wasn't a fan

when there was a split. I disagree with reducing 16-14 games in the

championship and certainly making it asymmetrical in division two. To me,

it is not a real fair system. And then there's the looming

prospect of a city-based twenty twenty competition due to start

in 2020 and designed to boost They know what they're doing, they

have the heart of cricket at what they are doing and sometimes you

have to go back, rebuild and excite the younger generation to keep the

game surviving 50 years. It is not about ten years from now, it is

about 50 years. That is in arguing for another day. -- an argument for

another day. Worcestershire still have to wait

another week for their first game but Warwickshire start

at Surrey tomorrow while There's still plenty of life

in the football season though and there was certainly

lots of drama last night. Burton Albion thought they had

gone behind at Newcastle when Matt Ritchie scored this

penalty but it was disallowed The referee later admitted he'd been

wrong not to let Newcastle retake it and Ritchie did finally score

a winner for them. Sunday's trophy joy has quickly

disappeared for Coventry City. They will be relegated

from League One if they fail to win on Saturday after losing 2-0

at the leaders Sheffield Aston Villa will play a pre-season

friendly against Watford to pay tribute to their former manager

Graham Taylor. Taylor, who died in January,

spent three seasons at Villa in the late '80s before

taking the England job. Watford are another of his former

clubs and the two will meet at Vicarage Road

on Saturday July 29th. All profits from the game will be

shared between charities The nation's favourite horse race

takes place on Saturday - And it could be a big day

for the tiny village Two trainers are based there and

both have a runner in the big race. The village boast a population

of fewer than 500. But there are two racing stables

existing side by side. This small village has two racing

stables. Nigel Twiston-Davies has been

based here for decades. He's won two grand

nationals and a Gold Cup. Fergal O'Brien used

to work for Nigel. Two years ago, he returned

to Naunton and rents It has been great for me because it

is like coming home. It's a great place to train. It is very relaxed.

There are chickens and all sorts. You can enjoy it. It's a very easy

place to be. But can either win

Saturday's big race? Twiston-Davies trains

Blaklion and he's a former Cheltenham Festival winner

and is among the favourites. He just seems nicely weighted. He's

in really good form. This has been his programme for a very long time.

He hasn't had a heavy season at all. We have there is improvement to come

from his last run. Perfect Candidate is

described as the perfect They are simply enjoying

having a National runner. There is absolutely no pressure. We

have great owners and we just look forward to it. It is a great bars

because everyone comes up to see him and as a great bars about the horse.

-- great buzz. The village of Naunton already

boasts a thriving racing community. Nigel trained a winner at Aintree to

day. That bodes very well for Saturday, look out for Blaklion.

The SAS has been honoured with a million pound memorial

in Hereford cathedral marking its long

The work is made from marble, granite and 3000

Bearing the elite regiment's motto, Who Dares Wins, it's being hailed

as one of the most important pieces of new cathedral art in the world.

In a magnificent building, a spectacular memorial to a special

regiment. Two years in the making, Ascension, as it's called, is a

monumental mixture of sculpture and stained glass. Counting this

particular block in China. The stone was sourced from high and wide. From

Brazil, the blue of the sky and sea, the colours of the SAS. I have

worked closely the regimental Association. I also went into the

capital to battle it out... Not the right term, discuss the progress

with the Sergeant Major. Seeing it finished, I feel quite overwhelmed

and aware of the fact it'll be here for many, many years. It will

outlive all of us and it is a proud moment. The 3000 pieces of European

glass were assembled at studios in Germany. Stonemasons from Ludlow

were responsible for the installation. The base is from the

Sterling, a nod to Colonel Stirling. Paid for by pilot subscription. Be

wanted something to fit any cathedral and it is very special

that they are an the premier location, Hereford Cathedral, for

us. The demo and sculpture waste three times and they had to remove

much of this wall to build new foundations. -- stone work. The

beauty of the location is it is south facing. When it is out, the

sunshine through this window all day. It has been described as a

wayside shrine, a place the servicemen and their families to

pause and reflect. You'll marketed reflection for me. Also uplifting.

-- it is reflection for me. Magnificent of course. It doesn't

reveal itself all at once, it gave several visits. Come in, see what

you think, go away, come back, see how it speaks to you the next time

you come in. It will grow in you. The SAS have been linked to the city

from those that their history. It is a link analysis instead. And glass.

-- it is now set in stone. Beautiful afternoon

and rumours of a nice weekend. That is right. We will come onto

that in a minute but today was not a bad day. This is how we started in

sums what's to day, and quite cloudy. That cloud has been a

nagging headache. Across Staffordshire and Shropshire,

keeping the ground for much of the day, some brightness out there but

it affects our temperatures, particularly across Staffordshire.

At Keele,- just 10 Celsius. In Harold Ford, when he saw that lovely

sunshine, we saw colder temperatures. -- highs of ten.

Trapped under that high pressure. For tonight, keeping that cloud

cover. That cloud cover will help temperatures. In some spots, where

they get clears deltoid wonder, particularly across Herefordshire,

temperatures dipping down to 2-3 C. Lower than the board. That means we

will get some graphs frost in some spots. Where we keep the crowd,

staying colder overnight. -- milder. Some proud incomes board, training

and breaking at times during the day. When we see that. Keeping the

sunshine for longer, the average will stay nicely as it is. When we

get the sunshine for longer, doing better than the values shown there.

Size of around 15 Celsius. Morally same with high pressure staying in

charges be had through Friday night into Saturday. A little more holes

in the crowd and temperatures will fall away. We could get a touch of

graphs frost in some sheltered spots. All change in a good way as

we head into Saturday. -- grass frost. Spain dry, fine and mild.

Much warmer air drying up. As a result of that, temperatures coming

up to around 20 Celsius for some spots. Lots of lovely weather to

come through the weekend. Spain settled into next week but

temperatures will tumble a bit, we won't stick on that, Sarah. Thank

you. Only programmed to moral come alive

at Vale Park as England women take on Italy. -- only programmed to

moral. Stacey and Chris are preparing for

marriage by spending a few days living alone with

their in-laws to be, and asking them all kinds of

questions. Did you get a kiss on

the first date? No. What does their in-laws' marriage

tell them about each other's I expect you'll want to become

a schoolmaster, sir. That's what most of the gentlemen

does that get sent down for indecent behaviour.

Evelyn Waugh's classic novel. Have you ever been in love,

Mr Pennyfeather? No, not yet. The fire escape is very dangerous

and never to be used. I've got spit on them now,

haven't I?