24/01/2014 North West Tonight

Good evening. Welcome to NorthWest Tonight with Annabel Tiffin and

Graham Liver ` our top story. Jailed for attacking their sister's

gay partner, a judge condemns a kidnap attempt by a Muslim family in

Blackburn. The judge said it was a carefully planned ambush about power

and control. Also tonight: Anti`fracking activists allege

police brutality, but the police accuse protestors of intimidating

residents. Stop the police cuts urges Greater Manchester's crime

commission after a rise in thefts. Britain is building again, the news

for the guys at this required, back in business after losing their jobs

four years ago. Sky high ` the skier who learnt the

sport in Kendal is heading for the Olympics in Sochi. I just want to

come home crowd and do my country proud.

Six members of a Muslim family who attacked a gay woman because she was

in a relationship with her sister have been jailed for a total of 29

years. Shocking footage shows the members of the family from black

than trying to kidnap their sister's gay partner. We will be

showing those images. We warn you some of them might find the picture

is distressing. Our chief reporter was at Preston Crown Court. The

judge said that this was a case of power and control, it was about

striking terror into the heart to control not just the body but also

the will. The claim could not accept the fact of a younger sister had

formed a same`sex relationship so they set out to wreck that

relationship using violence. The video images are shocking. Our

family vent their fury on their sister's gay partner. It is

happening in broad daylight in a Blackburn Street and has been caught

on camera. Their victim is told you have messed with the wrong Muslims,

we are going to kill you. It is vicious assault, born out of a

desire to make their sister adhere to their ways. The woman and attack

was Sarah Jane Harrison. She had begun a relationship with a Muslim

woman. But the Muslim woman was concerned about what a family would

think when her family realised she was gay. She moved out of the family

home and moved in with Miss Harrison, but her family were

determined to find her. Six of her siblings hatched a plot to beat and

then kidnap Miss Harrison in the hope of tracing their sister. They

ambushed her on the street in Blackburn as she was leaving work.

This camera caught what happened next. Three of the women are seen

kicking and punching Miss Harrison and trying to bundle her into a car.

Their brother is just off`camera. He is threatening a colleague of Miss

Harrison who were tried to help her. Another of the sisters, seen here

covering her face, encouraged the attack in a text. She told her

siblings: she admitted conspiracy to cause

actual bodily harm as did her sister. The judge said he was

satisfied his group had been motivated by their hostility towards

people of a lesbian sexual orientation. He jailed the brother

for six years, three of the women seen on the CCTV got five years and

four months each and the other two women got three and a half years

each. Well the case is likely to raise

concerns over the attitudes of some muslims towards homosexuality.

Earlier I spoke to Dr Usama Hasan, from the Quilliam Foundation ` a

think tank set up to challenge extremism and asked him his reaction

to the case. It's a hurricane in case, and I'm glad that the judge

has agreed that this is a premeditated hate crime `` a

horrifying case. It simply cannot be defended in UK law. We know that in

some countries, under sharia law ` homosexuality is seen as a crime, as

a sin. In other Muslim countries it isn't, and it is legal. How common

is it that it is thought of as a scene in this country?

Traditionally, taking a literal list view, like other faiths from the

days of Abraham, it would seem that sexuality is a scene. However this

is only one interpretation of the Faith and there is no such thing as

one definitive sharia law. In this country, we have our own rule of

law, it is this law that exists and not a sharia law instead or in

parallel to. Would you say we need to have caution here? This is one

criminal case and it shouldn't be thought that there are similar cases

going on throughout the country and the North West? Absolutely, this is

one case. A very upsetting case but it is certainly not reflective of

all 5 million as limbs in the UK. It is certainly not reflective of the

Muslim majority or minority countries in the world and it

shouldn't be seen as that. However, the debate that is going on between

religious rights and human rights is very important, also in Islam. The

role of sexual orientation has to come into this, to achieve a

solution to tyrants that would tackle some of these issues. ``

tyrants. `` tolerance. The Mental Health tribunal, which

last year refused Ian Brady permission to return to prison from

hospital, has today revealed the reasons for its decision. The

tribunal said the Moors Murderer was still mentally ill, and Ashworth

Hospital on Merseyside was the best place for him to be treated. It also

said his notoriety would put him at significant risk in prison.

The Ribble Valley MP Nigel Evans has denied allegations of sexual

offences against seven men. During a hearing at Preston Crown Court, he

pleaded not guilty to two counts of indecent assault, six of sexual

assault, and one of rape. Mr Evans is due to stand trial in March. It

has been two months since the anti`fracking camp was set up. But

in the last few days tensions appear to be growing between police and

protesters. One demonstrator is making claims as police brutality,

an allegation police deny. They accuse activists of deliberately

seeking confrontation. The protesters say that is untrue.

Another day, another protest at the Barton Moss camp. This is a

demonstration against fracking, but tensions are rising between

protestors and police. One demonstrator, known as Kris, posted

this video online. The pictures eventually go black but he goes on

to allege he was assaulted by officers. Police deny the claims but

have referred the matter to its professional standards branch as a

matter of course, despite the fact Kris hasn't lodged a complaint. I

checked with our professional standards Branch, no complaint had

been registered by the gentleman. We will look into the matter and we

will thoroughly investigated but honestly get that complaint in the

detail of the allegation, it is difficult to get to the bottom of

the facts. The protester posted this photo of himself online. He has been

charged with wilful obstruction and resisting arrest. But the claims and

counter claims on both sides go on. This week police said there had ben

a change in mood at the camp and a growing number of protestors were

arriving to antagonise officers and intimidate the local community. Some

residents have said they feel intimidated when they drive past the

tents. One agreed to speak to us, but said she didn't want to be

identified fear of reprisals. We can't get out of our access road.

Stopping us, blocking us, delaying us, and hurling abuse at us, dirty

looks. The protestors strongly deny claims. In a statement the Barton

Moss camp said: The daily stand`off between police

and the anti`fracking protestors has now becoming a war of words on both

sides. The Conservatives have selected a 26`year`old vicar to be

there candidate in the wood assure by`election, which will be held in

just under three weeks. Mr Critchlow says the Tories will do the most to

support the local economy. I am a vicar, I have a tight budget, a junk

family, money matters are important to me. The things the Conservatives

are strong on is the strong economy. They are building a strong

foundation. Cumbria's only Children's Hospice is

hoping it'll be able to support more families with the help of BBC Radio

Cumbria. Over the next year, the radio station's hoping to raise up

to ?80,000. Among other things, it'll pay for equipment which can be

taken to homes or community centres to create temporary sensory units.

We have a lovely sensory room here but we would like to be able to take

sensory equipment out, and hold sessions out in the community as

well, or in children's homes. The government is being urged to

reconsider police budget cuts which would lead to the loss of 300

officers in greater Manchester. The commissioner says he is worried

because although crimes overall going down, specific offences like

burglary and theft are on the increase. Tony Lloyd believes he

thinks it is because of cuts in welfare benefit.

The figures cover the year between September 2012 and September 20 3.

Overall, crime in Greater Manchester was down year on year by 6.7%. But

domestic burglaries are up 2.1% Theft from the person's risen by

almost 19%. And sexual offences up by over 16% ` but it's thought that

might be the effect of the Jimmy Savile scandal. Worried that he s

losing 300 police this year, Greater Manchester's Police and Crime

Commissioner says more recent crime figures suggest the trend is

reversing. These suggest that there are people who feel themselves

abandoned in our society, with those benefits cuts, whether it is around

things like the bedroom tax, it is not a justification but it is a

recognition, if you put people down and down, sometimes they will find

ways of making their own decisions that we don't like. The government

has repeatedly said that crime has been consistently falling despite

the reduction in police numbers But on the day the figures show a slight

rise in burglaries in Greater Manchester, we hear the Chorlton

district has a higher rate of insurance claims for break`ins than

anywhere else. It has more than 42 claims per thousand people. Some

residents weren't surprised by the figures. We were burgled a couple of

months ago, they broke into the garden shed at the back, we lost two

bikes. We were burgled through the front window. I think they were

opportunists, they saw two laptops, and then they opened the window and

then out again. After recent allegations crime figures have been

massaged by the Metropolitan Police in London, Greater Manchester's are

going to be independently audited. I have got to make sure that I have

got confidence, the public got confidence, that police and other

agencies are accurate in recording. That's the beginning and end of the

conversation, giving people confidence that we're not try to

people the figures. Do you trust the figures? I trust figures. Tony Lloyd

says the audit should be completed by the end of next month. Still to

come on North West Tonight. Flying the Olympic flag for the North West.

Meet the skier who learned to spin and jump right here in Kendal. And

the end of an era for this historic lab where.

Bricks were first made in Claffton in 1898. But at the height of the

last recession the historic site was mothballed, 28 men made redundant.

But today 20 of those men were back in work, back making bricks as the

yard officially re`opened. Here s Jayne McCubbin with a good news

story not just about them, but about the shape of the UK economy. Back

making bricks. It's good to be back! For most of the last century, these

buckets could be seen carrying clay from the Moorside. Rogue police

bringing them into Claffton brickworks, and then the recession

hit. The house`building sector tumbled from our high in 2005 to a

in 2009. That is when the plant was mothballed. A harsh reminder of

recession, worse still, the loss of livelihood. This has been going on a

long time. Glad to be back? I am, yet. We need to introduce some

younger employment, get more people trained up, the next generation of

workers. 100 plus! These are some of 32 million bricks they expect to

make this year. We made 28 people redundant four years ago and now we

are in a position where we can take 20 people back, ex employees have

come back to their job. The Dennis, who fires the kiln, it is a huge

deal. He, his son and brothers, all back in their old jobs. It feels

really good, it is about the next generation. Claffton bricks will

help build 20,000 new homes in the next year. In 2013 the North West

won the third biggest share of new construction projects. The Northwest

is getting back in business. And our political editor Arif Ansari

will be debating the state of the North West economy with local MPs

Alison McGovern and David Rutley on this week's Sunday Politics. That's

at 11 o'clock, Sunday on BBC One. Well Richard is here now ahead of

the weekend's sport and we're still waiting for Manchester United's big

move into the transfer market. What is the matter with this deal? ! I

see what you did there! Yes, it s all a bit frustrating for United

fans now. They know that Chelsea midfielder Juan Mata is the target,

that a fee of ?37 million has been agreed and even that the Londoners

would allow him to travel for a medical, but there's still no deal

done. Should United fans be concerned? They'll be jittery but I

don't think they should be too worried. My understanding is that

the deal is being held up by Chelsea's efforts to sign Mata's

replacement Mohamed Salah from Basel, a target for Liverpool. With

you expect the move to be completed in the next couple of days. Taking

centre stage tomorrow is the FA Cup. At Rochdale where Sheffield

Wednesday are the visitors. And after Dale's win over Leeds United

in the last round the whole town is talking about it. With Dale second

in League Two, manager Keith Hill insists the priority is promotion,

but has a simple message for his players when it comes to the Cup.

Enjoy it. We have got level`headed characters, we have honesty in our

side. I think it has been reflected in the Games we have played since

the FA Cup. The players realise that this is a break from our priority,

our priority is the league but it's a great break to have.

There's also a big game in the Championship tomorrow where Barry

Ferguson makes his managerial debut in temporary charge of Blackpool.

The Scotland midfielder replaces the sacked Paul Ince and has drafted in

reinforcements for the visit of Doncaster, signing Blackburn striker

David Goodwille and Middlesbrough winger Andy Halliday on loan. But

what is the stand`in manager's message for The Seasiders' fans

Just get behind us, simple as that. We know it has been a difficult

period this last eight or nine Games, I think they will get behind

us, no problem. Forget about me it's the boys in the dressing room,

wants to go on the pitch, I'm sure the fans will get behind them.

We know in the men's game that Manchester City's riches have turned

the club into one of the Premier Leagues powerhouses. And now women's

football might be taking a similar shape. Today City launched their new

Women's Football Club as they prepare for the new season in the

Superleague. Yunus Mulla was at the launch for us. The word ladies was

dropped and it is Manchester City women's football club from now on.

The blues manager Manuel Pellegrini and head coach of development were

among the assembled guests. The club are trying to integrate both sides

of the game. This club has a shared vision and methodology, from the

Academy and younger teams at nine and ten to the men's first team and

women's first thing. We want one identity, whoever you come and watch

here. Although there has been a women's size since 1988, the new

look club will compete in the expanded women's super league in

2014. With added New Zealand international on`board as well as

for England players, they include step out from Arsenal. For us as

footballers, to help us improve it is something I cannot turn it down,

I'm excited about the new season. This follows the investment earlier

this week in a football club at Melbourne and the creation of a New

York side last year. Manchester City is hoping to make its presence felt

in every part of the game. They will move to the city Academy, they will

be a new builds community coaching programme. People were saying, you

don't look like a footballer, you read Barbie doll! Other people have

a perception of women's football, and with people coming on board we

can change that. The Masters in Abu Dhabi seem intent on making the club

of force in the super league in the same way their male counterparts

have become in the yearly. A freestyle skier from the North

West is preparing to take on the best in the world at the Winter

Olympics in Sochi. Emma Lonsdale is what's known as a a half`pipe

skiier. That's the event where they do the jumps and tricks. But as I

found out she didn't start out on the slopes of the Alps but on a

piste in Cumbria. Meet Emma Londsdale. On skis since

she was two and now off to the Winter Olympics.In the thrilling

freestyle event of halfpipe skiing. Very, very proud. It's a new event

in the Olympics. So it's quite a privilege to be one of the first

athletes to ever compete in half pipe skiing in the Olympics. As one

of the world's best, Emma has of course skied and won events around

the world. But she learnt the tricks of her trade much closer to home. On

this dry slope in Kendal. And her local club couldn't be prouder. Emma

is just the most bubbly, laid`back person you could ever imagine. A

real character, but totally dedicated to what she is doing.

Don't know who is more excited, the club or! , really proud of her.

My ambitions are to ski the best I can ski. I want to make the finals,

which is top 12, but I just want to come home proud, do my country proud

and ski the best I can. I'm sure your family are very proud of you.

Yeah, I'm sure people are getting sick of hearing about it, my mum and

dad are very proud parents! Emma will fly out to Russia at the start

of next month. Finally from me, a reminder that you

can get all the best coverage and commentary from this weekend's

Football League and FA Cup ties on your BBC local radio station. And it

all starts at eight o'clock tonight with commentary of Preston's tie at

Nottingham Forest on BBC Radio Lancashire. Didn't realise you were

such a Winter Olympics expert! You know I am not! Half pipe is because

of the shape? It's like the skateboard thing, where they do the

tricks. You didn't watch it, did you? You see! They weren't paying

attention. We were! Moving on quickly. Sir John Charnley was a

surgeon whose work has transformed the lives of hundreds of people

around the world, from the early 1960s he pioneered hip replacement

surgery. The lab and workshop where he developed his metal and plastic

joints are now a museum and still standing, but building work at the

hospital means a machine will soon have defined a new home. `` to find

a new home. John Charnley was born in Bury in 1911. He pioneered the

use of artificial hips using metal and plastic, not just metal on

metal. He did it all in a small laboratory at this hospital.

Children from a nearby primary school have been finding out about

it for a project. He was a very important man who invented hip

replacements, and I think he was very clever. As a doctor, he was

superb, it's like working with a human dynamo. He is one of those

people who never sat still, if you did a walk around, I have longer

legs than he had and I have forgot in keeping up because he ran

everywhere. He had machines to test how well his artificial joints

moved, to see how well different sorts of plastic wore out when

rubbed by metal. He says people 's lives. But the hospital is expanding

and needs the space where John Charnley's laboratories stand. We

are hoping to relocate the whole site to new premises but that will

be subject to a successful lottery application. John Charnley made his

hip replacement in this workshop and made his trainee surgeons do metal

work too. Very big for what they do. He also invented this, some of the

exhibits will go on display in the hospital. If he hadn't invented hip

replacement, people who needed it would still be in pain. We talked

about a bit of snow over Cumbria last night. As I left the office, I

could have sworn there was snow along the sides of the road. We had

a lot of hail last night, but we also had some slushy snow as well.

It just didn't last, luckily for us! We had everything yesterday, a lot

of rain, sunshine, I can assure you, plenty in the forecast for

Saturday. For the weekend, Saturday we are going to see Buster and

showers and some sunshine. On Sunday we will see some very heavy rain,

maybe gales in places. Tonight, you can see it will leave lots of

showers, maybe some fog patches A bit of a westerly breeze bringing

showers in by dawn. Five or six Celsius, maybe some frost patches in

places. Tomorrow morning, we start off cloudy but we are going to see

some sunshine for a time. Showers continue to feed in from the west,

by afternoon, more showers continuing to feed in, some of them

quite heavy'. We will see hail tomorrow, some slushy snow once

again, the chance of thunder as well through the afternoon, another day

of everything but the kitchen sink. Quite breezy as well. Despite highs

of eight or nine Celsius, once you factor in the brisk westerly breeze,

not going to feel very warm. If you think Saturday is bad, the main

event is on its way for Sunday. The huge band of rain works in from the

Atlantic, that will stick with us for a time. We could see an inch or

two of rain on Sunday, maybe some localised flooding, that rain is

falling on saturated ground, and you will notice it could be falling as

snow on high ground. A bit of a miserable weekend.

Really glad I'm going on a walking weekend in Derbyshire! Perfect! Get

your waterproofs and wellies! It's going to rain! Have a lovely

weekend.