:00:00. > :00:07.Good evening, welcome to North West Tonight, with Roger Johnson. And
:00:08. > :00:10.Annabel Tiffin. Our top story: The Rochdale sex abuse scandal which
:00:11. > :00:15.helped highlight the widespread weakness and failings in caring for
:00:16. > :00:19.the town's vulnerable young girls. We'll hear from the local MP as a
:00:20. > :00:28.report says 17 agencies failed girls in the town. Also tonight: it is a
:00:29. > :00:35.controversial subject that simply won't go away, but could fracking
:00:36. > :00:38.now be coming to South Cumbria? This is appreciation for all you
:00:39. > :00:41.have done for the lifeboat. The Southport mum who launched a
:00:42. > :00:45.lifeboat after her son's death gets a Christmas star.
:00:46. > :00:55.Why the season's not so festive if you happen to be a footballer.
:00:56. > :00:59.Normally on Christmas Day, our dad has two types of work. One to fix
:01:00. > :01:02.the presents and then two to go to work.
:01:03. > :01:04.And as work gets under way on Bethlehem's Christmas tree, the
:01:05. > :01:12.decorators from Liverpool show they've got a head for heights.
:01:13. > :01:16.Vulnerable girls in Rochdale were allowed to be sexually abused by a
:01:17. > :01:19.gang of Pakistani and Afghan men after a widespread pattern of
:01:20. > :01:25.weaknesses and failings, it's been revealed. The police, social
:01:26. > :01:36.services and 15 other agencies were all to blame. That's the conclusion
:01:37. > :01:40.of an independent review into the scandal. It found the seven girls
:01:41. > :01:43.were failed by all agencies they had contact with. The gang was jailed
:01:44. > :01:45.last year, as Mark Edwardson reports.
:01:46. > :01:48.The nine men found their victims by trawling takeaways in the Heywood
:01:49. > :01:50.area of Rochdale. Found guilty of rape, sexual assault and
:01:51. > :01:54.trafficking, they were given sentences totalling 77 years. It was
:01:55. > :01:57.that case that sparked the review. Today's report from the Rochdale
:01:58. > :01:59.Safeguarding Children Board points the finger at, amongst others,
:02:00. > :02:03.police, Rochdale Council, the NHS and the Crown Prosecution Service.
:02:04. > :02:07.It says... Policies and procedures were poorly
:02:08. > :02:10.understood on front line. Resource pressures and high workloads in key
:02:11. > :02:13.agencies contributed to sense of helplessness. Culture, policies and
:02:14. > :02:16.attitudes were at times actively unhelpful when working with
:02:17. > :02:19.adolescents. Greater Manchester Police is heavily
:02:20. > :02:27.criticised for the way it viewed victims and how it investigated
:02:28. > :02:31.their accusations. It is pretty shameful, isn't it? Because it is
:02:32. > :02:35.just not that easy. If it were that easy we would do it tonight. Or we
:02:36. > :02:39.are dealing with his young people who constantly go missing from care
:02:40. > :02:42.homes and homes and we find them and take them back. Obviously some
:02:43. > :02:46.people say the common`sense approaches lock them up, but we know
:02:47. > :02:49.that will do more long`term damage. Rochdale Council's social services
:02:50. > :02:53.failed in its role to protect vulnerable girls from child sexual
:02:54. > :02:58.exploitation. Disciplinary 's have taken place and there have been
:02:59. > :03:01.dismissals and other actions. I think it is really important we
:03:02. > :03:08.don't just focus on individuals because what we have heard is this
:03:09. > :03:10.whole system West failures. `` system's failures. Victims were
:03:11. > :03:14.seeking emergency contraception in the middle of the night, sometimes
:03:15. > :03:23.presenting with injuries. Yet no`one in the NHS thought to raise the
:03:24. > :03:28.alarm. This is some of the most extreme abuse I have seen. You are
:03:29. > :03:33.talking about young girls, 13, 4, being raped by men on a daily basis,
:03:34. > :03:37.so it is very extreme because it is over a series of years and it will
:03:38. > :03:40.take years to recover, but they do want to rebuild their lives and make
:03:41. > :03:45.the changes to when sure this doesn't happen in the future. `` to
:03:46. > :03:47.ensure. Teamwork and communication were almost absent between 2003 and
:03:48. > :03:56.2011, but that's changed, according to the board's independent Chair.
:03:57. > :03:59.I'm not here to apologise but well we have staff sitting in the same
:04:00. > :04:03.room in the same environment with the same priority, that gives me
:04:04. > :04:06.hope, and that single priority being to protect children. Police and
:04:07. > :04:10.Rochdale Social Services believe there are more prosecutions to come.
:04:11. > :04:14.Today's findings will probably come as no surprise to Rochdale's MP
:04:15. > :04:16.Simon Danczuk, who joins me now For several years now, you've
:04:17. > :04:19.accused Greater Manchester Police and Rochdale Social Services of
:04:20. > :04:22.failing these children, and today you've been proved correct, but was
:04:23. > :04:31.there anything in this report that even you weren't expecting? I think
:04:32. > :04:34.the information about Greater Manchester Police has been quite
:04:35. > :04:39.surprising, really. We raised a lot of the arguments with Rochdale
:04:40. > :04:43.councils and social services in how they failed young girls but this
:04:44. > :04:46.review has shone a light more clearly on the performance of
:04:47. > :04:50.Greater Manchester Police, and that gives me concern because it was
:04:51. > :04:55.significant, the failures, with regard to the police. They took a
:04:56. > :04:58.view that these girls were poor white, working`class vulnerable
:04:59. > :05:03.girls and they should be ignored, and that is what exactly happened.
:05:04. > :05:09.That is unforgivable, I think. What is your predominant feeling about
:05:10. > :05:15.what went wrong? We heard about young ghost turning up with injuries
:05:16. > :05:20.looking for contraception at night. These sorts of things should have
:05:21. > :05:24.been picked up. Yes. I've pushed for the case review 18 months ago and it
:05:25. > :05:28.probably wouldn't have taken place if hadn't raised it with the Prime
:05:29. > :05:33.Minister and the Children's Minister. But Greater Manchester
:05:34. > :05:38.Police should have intervened. I'm concerned about the Chief
:05:39. > :05:42.Constable's comments today, where he was very defensive, talking about
:05:43. > :05:46.children's homes. He will know very well that only one of the victims
:05:47. > :05:50.was staying in a children's home and none of the others were, so why he
:05:51. > :05:58.keeps raising that, that puzzles me. They need to come out and tell us
:05:59. > :06:03.that the culture is going to change. Have you any confidence anything
:06:04. > :06:06.will change? There are recommendations that say the police
:06:07. > :06:09.have to train their front`line workers better and that is
:06:10. > :06:13.important. They have to have the skills to deal with victims of this
:06:14. > :06:16.kind. That is what has been missing. Many of the victims would not come
:06:17. > :06:21.forward and speak to the police because they don't have confidence
:06:22. > :06:30.in them and that is something you have raised with the Chief
:06:31. > :06:49.Constable. During the investigation, other
:06:50. > :06:53.victims have come to light. It's taken nearly five years, but
:06:54. > :06:56.tonight, these five men will finally be behind bars, each one guilty of
:06:57. > :06:59.sexual exploiting a profoundly vulnerable under aged girl in
:07:00. > :07:02.Rochdale. This is Freddie Kandakamara, a refugee from the
:07:03. > :07:06.Congo. In 2008, he'd raped a girl when she was 15. Today he received
:07:07. > :07:10.the longest sentence of ight and half years. It is shameless. They
:07:11. > :07:14.have taken an opportunity to accuse a very vulnerable young girl. Not
:07:15. > :07:18.only have they done that, but then they have not been prepared to admit
:07:19. > :07:23.their guilt when faced with the wealth of evidence on offer. `` to
:07:24. > :07:26.abuse. And I have to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the
:07:27. > :07:30.strength of character this young lady, as she is now, has shown. This
:07:31. > :07:33.case, like so many others, has highlighted failings within
:07:34. > :07:35.organisations there to protect. Greater Manchester Police had
:07:36. > :07:39.recorded 23 hours of video interviews with the girl but did not
:07:40. > :07:42.proceed with the case. In 2009, she made further allegations against a
:07:43. > :07:46.Abdul Huq Chola Chancer, Mohammed Abu baker and Roheez Khan ` again,
:07:47. > :07:53.no action was taken. Today, a statement made by the girl was read
:07:54. > :07:57.out in court. "I found the two court cases the hardest thing I've ever
:07:58. > :08:04.had to do. I felt my life and my personality were under the spotlight
:08:05. > :08:08.and that I was being branded a liar. In sentencing, the judge said in
:08:09. > :08:11.this case there was knowledge in the locality that young and therefore
:08:12. > :08:15.vulnerable young girls were susceptible to sexual activity in
:08:16. > :08:20.return for affection, drugs and alcohol. He went on to say, it is
:08:21. > :08:26.just such situations that the law seeks to protect. The men have been
:08:27. > :08:31.sentenced to a total of 26 and a half years in prison.
:08:32. > :08:33.The head of the Christie Hospital in Manchester has been temporarily
:08:34. > :08:36.suspended as part of a disciplinary investigation. Caroline Shaw has
:08:37. > :08:41.been Chief Executive of the Christie Trust since 2005. The Trust says the
:08:42. > :08:44.situation won't affect patient care. Direct flights between the Isle of
:08:45. > :08:50.Man and Glasgow are to resume next year. Isle of Man Chief Minister
:08:51. > :08:54.Allan Bell met Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond in July and
:08:55. > :08:57.pledged to restore the link ahead of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow
:08:58. > :08:59.next year. There will be nine flights a week from the end of
:09:00. > :09:03.March. Sir Tom Jones has confirmed he will
:09:04. > :09:06.perform at next year's Lytham Proms Weekend. The singing legend, who's
:09:07. > :09:09.also a judge on BBC One's The Voice, will appear at the music festival in
:09:10. > :09:12.August. A Cumbrian MP is tonight expressing
:09:13. > :09:15.concern that fracking could spoil the area's landscape and damage
:09:16. > :09:18.tourism. It follows a report suggesting that land not far from
:09:19. > :09:22.the Lake District National Park could be opened up to shale gas
:09:23. > :09:25.exploration. The Liberal Democrat MP Tim Farron says instead of fracking,
:09:26. > :09:28.money should be invested in renewable energy. Here's our
:09:29. > :09:36.environment correspondent, Judy Hobson.
:09:37. > :09:41.The countryside just a few miles from the late district and an area
:09:42. > :09:46.of stunning natural beauty. The British geological Society things
:09:47. > :09:51.deep underground, there could also be shale oil. The local MP hopes it
:09:52. > :09:57.won't allow the energy companies to extract it by drilling fracking The
:09:58. > :10:02.reality is, if you think of a place be desecrated by fracking or burying
:10:03. > :10:06.nuclear waste, dare I say it, then that damages the ground and makes it
:10:07. > :10:11.far less likely people will come and visit, especially from overseas The
:10:12. > :10:17.main concern is climate change, the biggest threat that we face as a
:10:18. > :10:21.species. If we are signing up to another fossil fuel, that just seems
:10:22. > :10:25.daft. But some ministers believe producing more energy at home would
:10:26. > :10:29.benefit the country and create thousands of jobs. It is proving
:10:30. > :10:34.controversial, though, in places like nearby Lancashire, which has
:10:35. > :10:37.several potential fracking sites. Now the Government is looking at
:10:38. > :10:43.whether to open up other parts of the UK. The latest report showed new
:10:44. > :10:49.areas under consideration, including, for the first time, areas
:10:50. > :10:53.in Cumbria, like Mill thought. We all want fuel and we don't want to
:10:54. > :10:57.pay too much for it, so it is a case of where they get it. There has been
:10:58. > :11:02.a lot of investment and it seems to be working for the Americans, so I
:11:03. > :11:07.don't know. South Lakeland is one area that should be considered for
:11:08. > :11:13.shale gas or drilling, according to the report. But they still do not
:11:14. > :11:17.know how much is under the ground. Ministers still have till the spring
:11:18. > :11:21.to decide whether to go ahead with a new round of licensing.
:11:22. > :11:24.Defence analysts say a decision by the United Arab Emirates not to buy
:11:25. > :11:27.60 Eurofighter Typhoon jets isn t a reflection on the quality of the
:11:28. > :11:32.aircraft built by BAE Systems in Lancashire. It's thought the deal
:11:33. > :11:35.could have been rejected due to an improvement in relations between the
:11:36. > :11:46.Gulf state and Iran, its regional rival. In the circumstances,
:11:47. > :11:50.military modernisation in the context of some economic difficulty
:11:51. > :11:53.might be less of a priority and I think these are the factors we must
:11:54. > :11:57.think about. It is not that they don't like the Typhoon jet, they
:11:58. > :12:00.like it very much. But it is a question of, do they need it and can
:12:01. > :12:03.they afford it? The issue of planning and where to
:12:04. > :12:06.build new homes has been particularly contentious in parts of
:12:07. > :12:09.Cheshire. Councils have described themselves as being under siege from
:12:10. > :12:12.developers. Well, last night, Cheshire West and Chester passed its
:12:13. > :12:16.pocal plan, which should give it much greater control over where new
:12:17. > :12:19.properties are built. But campaigners say it's allowing too
:12:20. > :12:23.many, as our political editor, Arif Ansari, reports.
:12:24. > :12:28.It's a local plan which will redraw West Cheshire's map over the next
:12:29. > :12:32.two decades. How many homes should be built, and where? It's also an
:12:33. > :12:41.attempt to regain control of the planning system from developers
:12:42. > :12:45.This development just outside Chester seems to be popular. Who
:12:46. > :12:49.knows whether the council was in favour or not? But with the local
:12:50. > :12:57.plan in place, they would have much greater power to say yes or no. This
:12:58. > :13:00.is probably one of the most important decisions the council will
:13:01. > :13:05.make. It has cost us millions this year because of appeals lost, so
:13:06. > :13:11.having a plan in place means we have control over planning and keen keep
:13:12. > :13:19.it in line with what our local communities want. . But there was
:13:20. > :13:23.serious disagreement over the detail. Campaigners wanted no more
:13:24. > :13:31.than 14,500 new homes. Labour wanted about 18,000. The ruling
:13:32. > :13:36.Conservative group got 22,000. The green belt here is at risk. If we
:13:37. > :13:40.were looking at 14,000, 15,000 houses, a realistic number, it
:13:41. > :13:47.wouldn't be under threat but the moment you get to 22,000 we start to
:13:48. > :13:50.lose green belt land. But the local plan still needs government
:13:51. > :13:53.approval, and that means arguments over the future of Cheshire will
:13:54. > :13:58.stretch well into next year. And Arif's here now. So an important
:13:59. > :14:06.decision, but the process goes on. What should we expect and what about
:14:07. > :14:10.the rest of Cheshire? The other major council is Cheshire East and
:14:11. > :14:14.that is quite instructive as to what happens next. They got quite a way
:14:15. > :14:18.to improving their local plan and that got up to the government
:14:19. > :14:21.inspectors and it was challenged by property developers who said these
:14:22. > :14:26.fantasy figures. The inspectors agreed and it was rejected, and that
:14:27. > :14:30.has left Cheshire East in a far worse position than it was before
:14:31. > :14:33.because they have no local plan in place, so Cheshire West and Chester
:14:34. > :14:37.have passed theirs but it still needs to be cleared by the
:14:38. > :14:41.Government. But they are very confident now this will give them
:14:42. > :14:45.the authority to carry it out. Could be some to go and possibly a twist
:14:46. > :14:50.in the tail macro. We will see. Still to come on North West Tonight:
:14:51. > :14:54.And why the season's not so festive if your daddy's a famous footballer.
:14:55. > :14:55.And finding their head for heights ` the Liverpool tree`decorators get a
:14:56. > :15:04.bird's eye view of Bethlehem. When Kath Wilson lost her son Geoff
:15:05. > :15:08.in a fishing accident, she raised money for a new lifeboat for
:15:09. > :15:12.Southport. That was back in the 1980s. But Kath has never stopped
:15:13. > :15:16.finding new ways of supporting its important work. Now the crew has
:15:17. > :15:20.said thank you to Kath for all her hard work by nominating her for a
:15:21. > :15:30.North West Tonight Christmas star. Here's Stuart Flinders.
:15:31. > :15:37.This is only a drill but the Southport lifeboat could be called
:15:38. > :15:42.out at any moment. We have had aeroplane crashes, shrimping rigs,
:15:43. > :15:46.boats in distress. With the cockerel is a couple of years ago, for
:15:47. > :15:56.example. Keeping the lifeboat service afloat isn't easy. We are
:15:57. > :16:01.looking at 40,000 to ?45,000. Kath, without her, the lifeboat wouldn't
:16:02. > :16:06.have been here from the start. Kath has been raising money since 19 7.
:16:07. > :16:12.In that year, her son Geoff died in a fishing accident out at sea. There
:16:13. > :16:18.was no Southport lifeboat in those days and Kath was determined no of
:16:19. > :16:22.the mother should suffer as she had. Southport's first lifeboat since the
:16:23. > :16:29.1920s was named in Geoff's memory but a quarter of a century on, Kath
:16:30. > :16:32.continues her vital work for the lifeboat in its charity shop. She
:16:33. > :16:35.manages all the people running it and it goes from strength to
:16:36. > :16:41.strength. I think you would be the best man, then, to give her this
:16:42. > :16:47.north`west Christmas star. This week, the crew paid Kath a surprise
:16:48. > :16:54.visit. For our appreciation for all you have done for the lifeboat!
:16:55. > :16:58.Thank you very much! Kath is now concentrating on her next big
:16:59. > :17:03.project, somewhere to keep the boat. It is to make sure it is up
:17:04. > :17:09.and going, that is my ambition. It is an expensive business, isn't it?
:17:10. > :17:20.But nice to be recognised? Yes. They obviously think a lot of you. So,
:17:21. > :17:25.Kath, now a Christmas star. Another cracking story!
:17:26. > :17:27.Well done, Kath. More of those next week.
:17:28. > :17:31.Richard's here with the sport now. And some welcome news for Liverpool
:17:32. > :17:34.fans first of all? Yes, ahead of their match against
:17:35. > :17:40.Cardiff tomorrow, Luis Suarez has signed a new four`and`a`half`year
:17:41. > :17:43.contract. No wonder he is smiling! Even by his standards, Suraez has
:17:44. > :17:47.been in sensational form this season, with 17 goals in just 1
:17:48. > :17:51.starts in the Premier League. The club dug their heels in over the
:17:52. > :17:55.summer when he tried to move away from Anfield and now they've tied
:17:56. > :17:58.him to this new deal, which will see the Uruguayan earn around ?160, 00 a
:17:59. > :18:02.week until the end of the season, and then ?200,000 a week for the
:18:03. > :18:13.final four years of his contract. It's an astonishing amount of money!
:18:14. > :18:17.But don't worry, he has been putting a bit away each week so his kids
:18:18. > :18:21.will have some presents! You were about to ask us to suspend disbelief
:18:22. > :18:27.with your next story because nobody has any sympathy with the all is!
:18:28. > :18:31.Possibly a bit. Maybe not Luis Suarez. Great for Liverpool. But
:18:32. > :18:35.footballers at this time of year have a different life from us.
:18:36. > :18:39.Across the region, some face five games in a fortnight. And while
:18:40. > :18:43.we're stuffing our faces and settling in to watch the telly, for
:18:44. > :18:46.them, it's business as usual. Here's Stuart Pollitt.
:18:47. > :18:50.You've heard of the 12 days of Christmas. Well, what about the 15
:18:51. > :19:00.days of festive football? For some, 15 days with five games. They will
:19:01. > :19:05.be the options for the weekend, I think... Not ideal when you've got
:19:06. > :19:09.fewer than 20 players to pick from. It seems at our level, we usually
:19:10. > :19:14.have smaller squads and we put a lot of pressure on the lads so far. With
:19:15. > :19:19.the number of matches they have played. You are at least giving them
:19:20. > :19:22.Christmas Day off? We are! It is a bit different this year. Burnley
:19:23. > :19:29.have made it to the top of the Championship tree, despite their
:19:30. > :19:34.small squad. Would it be helpful to have a deeper squad? Of course. Is
:19:35. > :19:38.it a necessity? We will see. But we have made the best of the system so
:19:39. > :19:42.far so we are looking forward to the games coming our way. With plenty of
:19:43. > :19:45.games coming up, it's a busy time for players and managers. But what
:19:46. > :19:52.about footballers' families at this time of year?
:19:53. > :19:56.The crackers are nice, aren't they? What do you think they have in them?
:19:57. > :19:59.The Davies family have got used to doing the decorations and plenty
:20:00. > :20:07.else around Christmas without Dad. Normally on Christmas Day, our dad
:20:08. > :20:13.has two types of work. One is to fix all the presents and then the other
:20:14. > :20:16.is to go to work! It is dominated by football at Christmas. My kids know
:20:17. > :20:20.they will open their presents and then daddy goes training. We are
:20:21. > :20:24.just used to it, really. He has lots of time with the kids at other
:20:25. > :20:27.times. And so while the football calendar takes precedence over the
:20:28. > :20:33.Advent calendars, at least they have those long summer holidays to look
:20:34. > :20:36.forward to. Enough compensation, I think!
:20:37. > :20:40.Tranmere Rovers will be hoping to give themselves a bit of breathing
:20:41. > :20:43.space from the League One relegation zone tonight. Rovers, just a couple
:20:44. > :20:46.of points from the bottom four, take on Gillingham. There'll be full
:20:47. > :20:49.match commentary on BBC Radio Merseyside, with kick`off at Prenton
:20:50. > :20:53.Park at 7.45pm. And in Rugby Union, Sale Sharks take
:20:54. > :20:57.on London Irish at the AJ Bell Stadium tonight, with commentary on
:20:58. > :21:02.BBC Radio Manchester. Thank you very much indeed.
:21:03. > :21:06.Excellent! They get the odd day off as well as that salary!
:21:07. > :21:09.If you've been watching all week, you know we've been following five
:21:10. > :21:12.Christmas tree`decorators from Liverpool who've landed the best job
:21:13. > :21:18.in the business ` decorating the tree in the town where it all began.
:21:19. > :21:22.Bethlehem. A holy town but also a town which has been at the heart of
:21:23. > :21:29.struggle in the Middle East. Here's Jayne McCubbin.
:21:30. > :21:31.Bethlehem is bustling. Thousands of pilgrims are arriving for the big
:21:32. > :21:44.switch`on just days away. We're being taken to the tree by
:21:45. > :21:47.Sari, a christian taxi driver. So are you looking forward to
:21:48. > :21:52.Christmas? Of course! Of course Sari points out where he'll be
:21:53. > :21:57.having Christmas dinner. This is the restaurant was telling you about.
:21:58. > :22:04.The Israeli security wall surrounds the town. Israel says it has reduced
:22:05. > :22:13.attacks on their people. Palestinians say it is squeezing the
:22:14. > :22:18.life out of the town. I wish you and all the crew a Merry Christmas and a
:22:19. > :22:22.happy New Year. Thank you. The same to your family.
:22:23. > :22:27.I leave Sari to find our decorators hard at it. The security issues they
:22:28. > :22:39.struggle to understand. Ged has some minor security issues of his own.
:22:40. > :22:45.Whoa! With this get past health and safety at home? Not at all, no! You
:22:46. > :23:00.are dangerous, I'd tell you! They are mad! BLEEP! Where is my cup of
:23:01. > :23:07.tea? Have you seen him hanging out of that tree?! Word is starting to
:23:08. > :23:10.spread of the men with strange accents who've come baring gifts.
:23:11. > :23:14.But to some, the accent isn't so strange at all. Ahmed has dropped by
:23:15. > :23:23.to see the Scousers, as he's married to one himself. Yeah, Karen. That is
:23:24. > :23:27.amazing! I know! For now, they live apart. They think Merseyside is a
:23:28. > :23:32.more stable place to bring up their son. But hopefully one day, you
:23:33. > :23:35.know, there will be peace in this country. Because to us as
:23:36. > :23:40.Palestinians, we really, really want peace. We promise to take his love
:23:41. > :23:48.back to St Helens. Definitely she will divorce me now! It is a message
:23:49. > :23:54.this man hopes is spreading. The man who brought the team to Bethlehem.
:23:55. > :23:59.Do you believe they think it is safe to stay here? You have to ask
:24:00. > :24:03.tourists after they visit here. They change their mind completely. If God
:24:04. > :24:11.wishes, as they say. Despite the language barrier, the team and the
:24:12. > :24:12.volunteers have become firm friends. On the Bethlehem sleigh! There's no
:24:13. > :24:27.sense of risk or threat here. You see that the people have nothing
:24:28. > :24:34.and they would give you anything. They would give you absolutely
:24:35. > :24:39.anything. And it gets me quite emotional, to be honest. I'd do feel
:24:40. > :24:46.honoured and privileged. We are only doing what we do. You are going to
:24:47. > :24:53.be a wreck when those lights switch on. I will be a wreck if they don't!
:24:54. > :24:58.What could possibly go wrong! Well, the night sky is shining but
:24:59. > :25:01.we still haven't seen the tree! The suspense is killing me! When are we
:25:02. > :25:06.going to see the tree in all of its quarry? On Monday we will see the
:25:07. > :25:09.tree lit up in Bethlehem in all of its glory. Speaking of which... Here
:25:10. > :25:21.is the weather! This is a proper compliment. Thank
:25:22. > :25:24.you! Thank you very much! Hello good evening, you will see the tree
:25:25. > :25:29.on Monday and you will see some rain on Monday and you will also see some
:25:30. > :25:33.rain tonight, I'm afraid. Through this afternoon, we have had the
:25:34. > :25:35.cloud building with the rain slowly making its way through Ireland and
:25:36. > :25:41.it will cross the Irish Sea tonight. It is breaking up as it
:25:42. > :25:45.crosses over what we do have a yellow weather warning for rain from
:25:46. > :25:49.the Met Office because it will build up again as it crosses the Irish
:25:50. > :25:52.Sea, so some heavy pulses for a time through this evening. They should be
:25:53. > :25:57.gone the other side of the night and it will leave behind some showers.
:25:58. > :26:01.Still very windy and maybe galeforce again across the Irish Sea, said the
:26:02. > :26:05.Isle of Man, over parts of Cumbria as well. By dawn it looks to be
:26:06. > :26:09.mostly dry with temperatures definitely much milder than we saw
:26:10. > :26:13.yesterday. So, for tomorrow, we start with some sunshine and we will
:26:14. > :26:18.see rain and some showers through the afternoon. We hang on to the
:26:19. > :26:23.strong winds, possibly gales around tomorrow at definitely some very
:26:24. > :26:26.strong winds. We start off mostly dry and with some sunshine and the
:26:27. > :26:31.band of rain slowly eases over quite quickly. Through the afternoon it
:26:32. > :26:35.comes over and leaves some sunshine and then another band of rain at the
:26:36. > :26:39.end of the day. All the while, keeping the strong winds with
:26:40. > :26:44.temperatures of ten or 11. Tomorrow night, the rain finally eases away.
:26:45. > :26:48.Mostly dry tomorrow night with clear skies and then a chilly night. A
:26:49. > :26:53.windy night with temperatures, as you can see, well above freezing.
:26:54. > :26:57.Possibly some wintry showers, particularly on higher ground. As we
:26:58. > :27:05.head into the weekend and Sunday, it will be cooler but still wintry
:27:06. > :27:07.showers. And I'm afraid, more rain on Monday. In fact, a yellow weather
:27:08. > :27:11.warning for the rain on Monday. So Christmas week won't start off too
:27:12. > :27:14.dry. But for tonight, if you are worried about the rain and strong
:27:15. > :27:20.winds, as usual, your local BBC radio stations will keep you
:27:21. > :27:24.updated. So, when are you getting changed for
:27:25. > :27:29.the Christmas party? Or are you going like that?!
:27:30. > :27:42.Thank you. You up for me! She always dresses immaculately. When you two
:27:43. > :27:44.getting changed? Annabel is doing karaoke, apparently! Get your inner
:27:45. > :27:47.plugs in! Have a lovely weekend