26/02/2014 North West Tonight

soon. That is all from the BBC News at Six, goodbye from me. On BBC One

Good evening. Welcome to North West Tonight with Roger Johnson and

Annabel Tiffin. Our top story. The family of Lee Rigby give us reaction

to today's sentence for his killers. Also tonight: Fears for thousands of

jobs in the North West after the Manchester`based coop announces

record losses and a restructure I've been looking at the role the

region's women played in World War One. And a golden ticket to the

Oscars this weekend for two film`makers from Manchester. The men

who murdered soldier Lee Rigby were jailed for life today ` but life

will mean life for only one of them. Michael Adebolajo was told he will

serve a whole life tariff ` that means he'll never be released. His

accomplice Michael Adebowale will serve at least 45 years before

there's any chance of him being considered for parole. Shortly after

the sentences were announced, Lee's uncle said he pitied the murderers

adding: "Lee will be remembered as the martyr and not these two

murderers". Meanwhile, in Fusilier Rigby's home town of Middleton,

there are calls for a lasting memorial to the murdered soldier.

Our Chief Reporter, Dave Guest, was there today. A few years back Lee

Rigby was a student in this classroom at Hopwood Hall College in

Middleton. It was here that the teenager fine`tuned his plans to

join the Army. This is Hopwood's Uniformed Public Services Course.

He's remembered here with fondness. He was dedicated and hard`working.

In the aftermath of Lee's brutal murder there were outpourings of

support for Lee's grieving family ` a family thrust into the media

spotlight. Today that family were in the spotlight again as they arrived

at the Old Bailey in London to discover what punishment Lee's

killers would face. The sentencing of Michael Adebowale and Michael

Adebolajo had been delayed amid discussion of whether whole life

sentences were legal. The judges decided they were. And today Michael

Adebalajo was handed one. His accomplice Michael Adebawale will

serve at least 45 years. A police officer spoke outside the court on

behalf of the family. We would like to thank the court for handing down

of what they believe the right prison terms. Back in Middleton a

sense that justice had been done. We will be here to offer help and

support and just to be here. This bench has a plaque attached with a

dedication to temper on. Lee Rigby. It would be nice to name something

after them. There are a number of options the council are looking at.

So it seems Lee Rigby won't ever be forgotten here. Dave Guest, BBC

Northwest Tonight, Middleton. Just before we came on air, I spoke to

Lee Rigby's Uncle Ray Dutton. He's a Councillor at Rochdale Town Hall. I

started by asking him for his reaction to today's sentences. It is

one of relief, actually. The family is looking for closure and we have

waited four months for the sentencing and we are happy with

that now. What feelings do you have towards the two men who killed Lee

Rigby? It is mainly petty and they have time to reflect on what they

have done. Lee will be remembered as the martyr, not those two. What do

you think of calls for the death penalty? I am personally against it

so I am pleased these people will serve the rest of lies jail behind

bars. They took Lee's life and know they have lost the lawn. `` their

own. However you coping? It has been very difficult and it has affected

the whole family as it has affected the whole nation but I believe the

nation has been grieving with us. How open can you be with Lee's young

son? Thankfully he was too young to understand what was going on. TV

clips and newspaper clips will be held for him and hopefully later he

will come to some understanding and have some good memories of his dad.

There are fears tonight over the future of thousands of jobs in the

North West at the Manchester`based Co`op group after it was revealed it

plans to sell off large parts of its business. Annabel has more. The

Co`op is a company which has its roots firmly in the North West,

formed 170 years ago in Rochdale. 3000 people work at the headquarters

in Manchester, and the group employs around ten thousand across the North

West. Today's business is a sprawling operation. It has

supermarkets, farms, pharmacies funeral homes and, of course,

financial services. And it is its losses within the banking arm which

are being blamed for its current situation, as it looks to off`load

parts of its business. The group is expected to announce record losses

of ?2 billion for 2013. It needs to save ?500 million over the next four

years, which means as well as selling it's farms and pharmacies,

many jobs could be under threat at head office where we join Mark

Edwardson now. Behind me is the modern and new Co`op headquarters in

Manchester. A statement of faith in the future. But behind its glass and

steel facade things are not going nearly as well as anyone, especially

its staff and loyal customers, would like. The Co`op's Manchester

headquarters ,lit by the afternoon sunshine... The business was built

on its core values set out during the founding of the Co`operative

movement in 19th`century Rochdale. Values cherished by its customers in

times of peace and war. Its place of the fabric of the region told

explained at the People's History museum in Manchester. It was founded

on democratic membership and women could vote ever got the vote in

parliament. Also the way it did business and the principles of

equality. Despite years of prosperity, Co`operative Group is in

deep financial trouble. The beloved dividend could become a museum piece

under proposals to drop it and replace it with lower prices in

shops. And there are other possible casualties. Many of the pharmacies

that it owns could be sold. These have come under pressure as the

National Health Service tries to save money on prescriptions. Staff

today told us they're still in the dark about their futures. I have not

heard much about it so I cannot comment on it. It is being urged to

stick to its core principles. I think it has a unique proposition

that it can make ear to the public that other retailers do not have.

The Co`op's future could be sealed as early as next month. Mark

Edwardson, BBC North West Tonight. The crunch meeting that will decide

the future will take place on the 26th of next month. But it will be

years before we know if the expected restructuring of Co`op will pay

dividends. More than 1000 jobs are set to be created in Liverpool,

through a ?16`million project to help businesses expand. The City

Council has successfully bid for almost ?8 million of European

funding, which will be matched by private sector money and public

funding. Nearly 1200 small businesses will be supported by the

new scheme, which will run until October 2015. Hillsborough

campaigners have described as "disgraceful", claims that tickets

for the 25th Anniversary Memorial Service were sold for profit by

touts outside Anfield. The tickets for next month's event are free `

but it's believed a handful were disguised as match day tickets ` and

sold for as much as ?100 each. Children were given a lesson in how

not to spell when council contractors painted this road sign

outside a school in Chester. The markings outside Highfield Community

Primary School in Blacon was meant to read "clear" but instead read

"claer". The sign was corrected this morning for free. A survivor of an

arson attack in Altrincham that killed her mother and teenage

brother has been giving a dramatic account of what happened to an

inquest. David Potts broke into his former girlfriend's house in the

middle of the night and began pouring petrol over the floor and

himself. The inquest in Stockport heard of the violent struggle to

prevent him igniting the fuel before they were engulfed

Cailin Van Straaten and a brother who was four at the time were the

only survivors of the fire. Today, she gave a vivid account of what

happened the night her mother's former boyfriend, David Potts, took

a taxi to her home carrying canisters of petrol. It was

September 2011. She woke early to the sound of a loud bang. David

Potts had broken into the house He calmly poured petrol on the floor

below. Her brother went to reach a hammer to stop them. As they

wrestled with them, he took his lighter and engulf them all in

flames. Tracy Jones and her 15`year`old son, Shaun, died along

with David Potts. A month before the fire, social workers came to the

house to warn Tracy Jones that Potts was a danger to her children. 3 `

years`old, he was a heavy drinker and drug abuser. He had a history of

mental illness and had had a child by an underage girl in Lancashire.

Tracy Jones ended their relationship, but he couldn't accept

it. Her daughter told the inquest today he was "creepy" and aggressive

and had already hurt the four`year`old. Her mother, she said,

was "submissive." She was frightened of Potts. The inquest is expected to

continue its investigation into what happened here for some weeks yet.

Stuart Flinders, BBC North West Tonight, Altrincham.

Still to come on North West Tonight. We take a look at what this year

holds for Sale Sharks star Mark Cueto. What would you do if you were

a God? The short film which has propelled two Manchester film`makers

to the Oscars. All this week we re marking the 100th anniversary of

World War One with a look at how the war affected life here in the North

West. Tonight, we're looking at the Cunard Shell Works, one of the many

munitions factories that sprung up around the region. It was built by

the great Liverpool`based shipping line, and as I've been finding out,

it was the first heavy munitions factory to employ women. Is the

magnificent Cunard Building in Liverpool. In 1918, there was a

magnificent party here. But they were not celebrating the glamour of

transatlantic liners. They were celebrating the success of a much

more grim and legal business that take place a few miles away on the

Dock Road. The war that was going to be all over by Christmas had, by

1915 settled in to an appalling war of attrition. Expect a like Cunard

`` expertee companies like Cunard were drafted in. This is all that is

left of the munitions works. With men away, all the workers were

women. The solution was female labour. They decided that they were

capable of doing the whole operation with women. It was the first

munitions factory in the country to employ entirely female labour. This

radical move was replicated across the country and noted in a letter to

Galbraith from his staff. It goes on to say that he demonstrated to the

Hall engineering community of Great Britain what could be done. Life in

the factory was caught in a remarkable series of pictures caught

by Cunard. The serenity of the scenes is a strange contrast to the

devastation that the shells would produce. They had their on magazine

and there on musicians. `` their own musicians. It might not have led to

a sense of the title meant `` entitlement but no women could see

that their work was appreciated `` now women could see that their work

was appreciated. And don't forget your BBC local radio station has a

different World War One at Home story every morning at this week at

8.15. It's a series made in partnership with Imperial War

Museums. Sport now, and Richard A performance by Manchester United in

the Champions League that David Moyes described as the worst his

team has played in Europe? Yes, someone said it was the worst

performance in Greece since Shane Ritchie played Danny Zuko in the

musical. No laughing matter for United fans of course. Two`zero

against Olympiakos who the Greek champions, but let's face it aren't

at the level of Bayern Munich or Barcelona. United would have

expected at least a draw and now progressing into the quarter finals

becomes very tricky in the return at Old Trafford in three weeks' time.

The Greeks scored once in either half. This second goal was the

killer. David De Gea unable to keep it out and at the other end United

didn't create enough and when they did couldn't make it count. This

chance fell to the right man Robin Van Persie, but the Dutchman smashed

it the wrong side of the bar. Some of the back pages will have made for

very unpleasant reading for David Moyes, and Robin Van Persie's quotes

after the game might not have pleased him either? No, the Dutchman

said various things ` that his team`mates are often in the area he

wants to play in, that as a result he has to change the way he plays,

that the build`up was too slow. All sorts of problems for David Moyes to

address before the next match against West Brom a week on

Saturday. In last night's Football League action Preston North End

dropped two points at home to Rotherham who scored an 89 minute

equalizer. It finished three`three in a thrilling game at Deepdale Joe

Garner thought his 18th goal of the season had won it for North End who

were left frustrated by just a point and are six points from the

automatic promotion places. After narrowly avoiding relegation last

season it's been a completely different campaign so far for Sale

Sharks. The Sharks are looking up at the top six this time rather than

worrying about the battle of the bottom. Some things don't change,

though. Mark Cueto remains a key part of the team and he's still

breaking records. He has proved himself time and again for club and

country. He is a great team man and the enthusiasm is all was there ``

the enthusiasm is always there. His career has seen him break on record

after the other. `` one record after another. People talk about my

loyalty to the club but they have been loyal to me as well. They have

always stood by me. He has changed his mind about calling time on his

playing days so good though still be time to make it 100 tries in the top

division? If I can get to ten this year, 100 is in sight but we will

wait and see. If he stays free from injury, a magic century of scores

might not be the surprise. Thousands of people are expected to line the

streets of Preston for the civic funeral of Sir Tom Finney tomorrow.

A legend for England and Preston North End, Sir Tom died at the age

of 91, 12 days ago. Many famous faces from the world of football

will be among the 600 invited guests at Preston Minster. But the only way

for the general public to watch Sir Tom's funeral service is on a big

screen at Preston North End. It s ticket only, and tickets can be

obtained from the club. The roads around Deepdale will be closed

tomorrow morning and the funeral cortege will leave Deepdale at

12.15. It will then move along Sir Tom Finney Way, Deepdale Road, and

Ringway, before arriving at Tithebarn Street at around 12.4 ,

where it will be joined by a mounted police escort. A few minutes later

it will arrive at Preston Guildhall, where it will be met by the Preston

and District Veterans Association. It should arrive at Preston Minster

on Church Street at around 12.5 . Church Street will be closed to both

traffic and pedestrians throughout the service. The service itself is

due to start at one o'clock, and will be followed by a private

burial. If you'd like to sign the Books of Condolences which have been

opened for Sir Tom, you can do that at Preston Town Hall or the Harris

Museum until 6.30 tomorrow evening. It will be an emotional occasion.

Tomorrow night we will be live from Preston at 6:30pm. It was shot over

three days in Manchester and its stars acted for free, but now the

British film The Voorman Problem, could win an Oscar. It was made by

Baldwin Li and Mark Gill who got in touch with Kevin Spacey to see if he

could lend them a hand. Colin Paterson's been finding out. We shot

the opening scenes at Strangeways prison. On Sunday, they will join

Hollywood stars at the Academy Awards. The film stars Tom Hollander

and Martin Freeman.. I did some work as a cameraman. I worked on classic

Dr Who DVDs. What will they say if they win? Not a bad problem for the

boys from the The Voorman Problem. And now the weather.

We had a perfect day. But last night lines of showers worked their way

across Lancashire and some of them were fairly heavy. You will have

noticed the wind biting through the day. The sun made a massive

difference but if you were exposed to that when it has felt very raw.

`` exposed to that wind. You can see some of the rain will be fairly

heavy and there could be sleet and snow. It is a narrow band so it does

not last too long. By four o'clock five o'clock in the morning it will

have gone from the Isle of Man. By about seven o'clock it may be over

the Pennines. If you get a couple of hours of clear weather temperatures

will not fall too far and will be about five degrees of six degrees

from many places. Tomorrow it will be scattered showers and patchy

cloud. The showers will be more evenly distributed tomorrow and

hopefully that will not be too many of them. That Breeze continues to be

fairly brisk and the more southern parts may see showers as they head

towards the time. `` as they head towards tea`time. A yellow alert has

been issued by the Met Office. We have added a new viewer as we

have been on a. A grand daughter for Dave Guest. Goodbye.