:00:08. > :00:10.Welcome to North West Tonight with Beccy Meehan and Roger Johnson.
:00:11. > :00:13.Terror alert on flight QR23, an RAF fighter jet escorts
:00:14. > :00:15.a passenger plane in to land at Manchester Airport.
:00:16. > :00:20.before a passenger was arrested for making a hoax bomb thre`t.
:00:21. > :00:23.Also tonight, as a judge saxs victim statements have no ilpact.
:00:24. > :00:27.The family he referred to say they're dumbfounded.
:00:28. > :00:31.The heartache that we go through to do the statements,
:00:32. > :00:35.to be told they don't make any difference!
:00:36. > :00:39.Northern cities unveil ambitious plans
:00:40. > :00:56.The Battle of Guillemont wotld be the biggest loss of life...
:00:57. > :00:57.And remembering their ultimate sacrifice,
:00:58. > :01:00.actress Sue Johnston joins us live in the studio
:01:01. > :01:09.to talk about her documentary tonight on the Liverpool Pals.
:01:10. > :01:11.Manchester Airport was on terror alert this afternoon
:01:12. > :01:16.to escort in a passenger pl`ne from Qatar.
:01:17. > :01:18.Flights were diverted to Leeds`Bradford
:01:19. > :01:22.after the pilot received reports of a possible device on board.
:01:23. > :01:24.Armed police met the plane on landing
:01:25. > :01:27.and arrested a man on suspicion of making a hoax bomb threat.
:01:28. > :01:32.Our reporter Katie Collins joins us live now from the `irport.
:01:33. > :01:49.Well, it was just before ond o'clock this afternoon when the pilot of the
:01:50. > :01:54.Qatar Airways Airbus with 269 passengers and 13 crew on board
:01:55. > :02:01.first raised the alarm. Way treating it as a full`scale
:02:02. > :02:08.emergency. Claire Fallon reports on thd events
:02:09. > :02:16.as they unfolded this afternoon they come in to land, passengers
:02:17. > :02:20.have no idea they are at thd centre of a terror alert. Some peer out
:02:21. > :02:25.the window and realise something is very wrong as they watched
:02:26. > :02:34.escort them in. What is with the fighter jet? The Escort camd, it was
:02:35. > :02:38.pretty scary. `` escort. I thought there might be something wrong. The
:02:39. > :02:46.alert was raised handed in by a passenger, the pilot
:02:47. > :03:02.told air`traffic response was swift. We saw this jet
:03:03. > :03:16.fighter coming far end, emergency vehicles came
:03:17. > :03:28.out, police. Once on the runway one Normally you just turn up, pick them
:03:29. > :03:38.up, wee bit worried, yeah. It is not an
:03:39. > :03:52.incident that but we have a remotely area, and
:03:53. > :04:09.that is where the aircraft again, but police and the ahrport
:04:10. > :04:26.insisted this afterwards along with a fridnd he
:04:27. > :04:42.made on board the don't. When did you realise
:04:43. > :05:01.something was wrong? thinking what is going on, because
:05:02. > :05:57.we heard nothing from the crew. What could be panicked. At the s`me time
:05:58. > :06:52.it is not is in danger somehow. The fhghter
:06:53. > :07:57.jets go up to have a look What is
:07:58. > :09:01.reaction alert flights took when Helen's killer became dligible
:09:02. > :09:15.for parole. victims, get from it is that we are
:09:16. > :09:26.being listened to. That is the most important thing. Even if
:09:27. > :09:33.Well, I can't see why they can't act on what we are telling
:09:34. > :09:35.They're appointed by the Secretary of State for Justice.
:09:36. > :09:36.The board must assess the rhsk the prisoner might pose if released.
:09:37. > :09:37.They speak to the prisoner, they examine reports,
:09:38. > :09:43.and they can be addressed bx those affected by the prisoner's crime.
:09:44. > :09:47.The victims can describe how they've been affected by thd crime
:09:48. > :09:51.and how they might be affected by the prisoner's release.
:09:52. > :09:57.They can't say whether they feel the prisoner should be rele`sed
:09:58. > :10:09.All victims making statements should be given guidance as to what their
:10:10. > :10:14.statement may and may not as to whether anything
:10:15. > :10:17.they say will hold any weight and asked him what he thought
:10:18. > :10:23.of the judge's comments. I'm struggling to understand
:10:24. > :10:24.the validity It's not what our members
:10:25. > :10:29.are telling us, practitioners who help families through the system
:10:30. > :10:33.and work with offenders and other agencies to ensurd the
:10:34. > :10:36.parole system is robust and fair. I think it's an unfortunate
:10:37. > :10:42.statement, and I'm struggling to understand
:10:43. > :10:44.the context, I really am. But he is a judge who sits
:10:45. > :10:47.on these things day in, day out It's what he thinks,
:10:48. > :10:52.but it's at odds with what my practitioner members are
:10:53. > :10:55.telling me who work in the system, who believe that what the vhctims'
:10:56. > :10:58.families have to say is important. and indeed it is enshrined hn law
:10:59. > :11:04.that they should. So my message, really,
:11:05. > :11:07.is for families... I understand the trauma caused
:11:08. > :11:10.to this family, but my advice to all familids in the
:11:11. > :11:13.system who want to give evidence, People will understand,
:11:14. > :11:18.in the case of sentencing, when these are also read out,
:11:19. > :11:21.where it might make a difference. In parole hearings, where they are
:11:22. > :11:25.assessing the risk of an offender, if they are released
:11:26. > :11:29.back into the public do the statements make
:11:30. > :11:34.any difference in a parole hearing? Firstly, our aim is always
:11:35. > :11:39.to facilitate where we can, means by which families
:11:40. > :11:47.can move towards closure. This case is a serious case
:11:48. > :11:49.that we are talking about today There are other crimes, not that
:11:50. > :11:52.I'm suggesting crime isn't serious! But crimes
:11:53. > :11:54.of different complexities, and victims' families want
:11:55. > :12:04.that opportunity to have a say. In other news, a former oil company
:12:05. > :12:08.executive from South Wirral has been jailed for two years
:12:09. > :12:10.for his role in bribing state officials
:12:11. > :12:12.in Indonesia and Iraq. It follows a Serious Fraud Office
:12:13. > :12:15.investigation into Associatdd Octel, 57`year`old Paul Jennings
:12:16. > :12:21.from Neston, who worked at the company's plant
:12:22. > :12:24.in Ellesmere Port, admitted three charges
:12:25. > :12:33.of conspiracy to commit corruption. Jamie Moore, the former European
:12:34. > :12:35.light`middleweight boxing champion from Salford who was shot
:12:36. > :12:37.in the legs in Marbella, has posted messages on Twitter
:12:38. > :12:39.thanking people for their stpport. The 35`year`old was training
:12:40. > :12:42.another fighter in the Spanish city at the weekend
:12:43. > :12:42.when he was attacked. 4,500 homes in Tameside are
:12:43. > :12:48.to be fitted with solar pandls. It's estimated the scheme whll
:12:49. > :12:51.save tenants of New Charter Homes ?40 million over 25`years
:12:52. > :12:59.and cut carbon emissions. Isle of Man police are lookhng for
:13:00. > :13:02.thieves who stole four Manx flags from a war memorial
:13:03. > :13:05.in the south of the island. It happened sometime
:13:06. > :13:09.over the weekend at the Mona's Queen III Anchor Memorial
:13:10. > :13:11.at Kallow Point in Port St Lary The memorial commemorates
:13:12. > :13:13.Manx men and women who served in the Merchant Navy
:13:14. > :13:17.during the evacuation of Dunkirk. since the Chancellor and Tatton MP
:13:18. > :13:21.George Osborne challenged northern cities
:13:22. > :13:23.to pool their resources and create an economic powerhouse
:13:24. > :13:26.of the north. Today, they responded
:13:27. > :13:29.with an ambitious plan to improve road and rail links
:13:30. > :13:31.across the Pennines. It would cost ?15 billion,
:13:32. > :13:34.and after a briefing in Manchester this morning,
:13:35. > :13:38.Mr Osborne backed the schemd. But will he fund it?
:13:39. > :13:41.Stuart Flinders reports. was late for this morning's meeting
:13:42. > :13:45.with the Chancellor, The leader of Leeds council was
:13:46. > :13:51.delayed by problems on the trains. They were sure to let the Chancellor
:13:52. > :13:54.know as they lobbied for money for their
:13:55. > :13:57.ambitious new transport schdme. It would increase road capacity
:13:58. > :14:05.to 150% of current levels and create a new trans`Pennine rail link
:14:06. > :14:12.with trains travelling at 125 mph. You can't help feeling
:14:13. > :14:16.that our Victorian forebears, the people who built this town hall,
:14:17. > :14:18.would have approved. And if you've any Northern blood
:14:19. > :14:20.in your veins, it's hard not to feel
:14:21. > :14:23.a tingle of pride, but also perhaps
:14:24. > :14:26.a certain amount of sceptichsm. Many people will say it was
:14:27. > :14:29.your party under Margaret Thatcher that hammered the economies
:14:30. > :14:32.in these areas in the 1980s. What you saw today
:14:33. > :14:35.was a Conservative Chancellor working with the Labour leaders
:14:36. > :14:37.of Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds to deliver a real improvement
:14:38. > :14:40.in the economic... Do the Tories owe this part
:14:41. > :14:42.of the world? I think people know that
:14:43. > :14:45.over decades under governments of all political persuasions,
:14:46. > :14:48.Labour and Conservative, we have not been able to rahse
:14:49. > :14:50.the economic performance of the North of England
:14:51. > :14:53.sufficiently, but as a country we have
:14:54. > :14:56.a more balanced economy. The idea is to build on plans
:14:57. > :14:59.for the high`speed train to London and, rather than blanching
:15:00. > :15:02.at the figure of ?15 billion, Well, I'm positive and upbe`t
:15:03. > :15:09.about the things that he sahd. It shows a commitment
:15:10. > :15:13.that he will deliver on that. Of course, that's exactly
:15:14. > :15:16.what we want to hear. You'll be hoping the Conservatives
:15:17. > :15:18.get in at the next election that is recognised
:15:19. > :15:25.by the Labour Party as well. Joe Anderson is Liverpool's
:15:26. > :15:28.elected mayor. George Osborne wants Manchester
:15:29. > :15:31.and its surrounding towns The leader of Manchester cotncil
:15:32. > :15:36.isn't ruling it out. That's something for us to decide
:15:37. > :15:39.on Greater Manchester, That's something for us to decide
:15:40. > :15:42.in Greater Manchester, not something to be decided
:15:43. > :15:44.in Whitehall, and certainly not something
:15:45. > :15:47.to be imposed from outside. All eyes now on the Chancellor's
:15:48. > :15:49.Autumn Statement. That's when we'll find out
:15:50. > :15:51.if he'll back his enthusiasl for new roads and railways
:15:52. > :15:54.with hard cash. Stuart Flinders,
:15:55. > :16:01.BBC North West Tonight, Manchester. Still to come on North West Tonight:
:16:02. > :16:08.new kits and new haircuts, we look ahead to the start
:16:09. > :16:11.of the Football League season. And we are all going to the zoo
:16:12. > :16:14.today, Chester Zoo, in fact, which readers of a travel wdbsite
:16:15. > :16:16.have voted the best in Brit`in I'm sure you remember the ghants who
:16:17. > :16:26.brought Liverpool to a standstill a couple of weeks ago to colmemorate
:16:27. > :16:30.the start of the First World War. They feature again tonight
:16:31. > :16:32.in a special programme which tells the story
:16:33. > :16:35.of the Liverpool Pals. They were ordinary men who,
:16:36. > :16:37.in a patriotic moment, who were working in offices
:16:38. > :16:44.and factories in the city enlisted to fight
:16:45. > :16:47.for the credit of Liverpool. Tonight's programme,
:16:48. > :16:49.Liverpool's Giant War, is presented by Merseyside `ctress
:16:50. > :16:51.Sue Johnston. First, let's have a quick look
:16:52. > :16:58.at part of the programme. The Battle of Guillemont wotld be
:16:59. > :17:02.the Pals' biggest loss of lhfe, The Germans used the fog by
:17:03. > :17:09.stepping out of their own trenches. They took cover
:17:10. > :17:11.in the shell holes in front, And when the Pals left their
:17:12. > :17:17.trenches at 4:45 that morning, and they were out in the opdn
:17:18. > :17:41.without any cover. 463 men lost their lives th`t day. I
:17:42. > :17:46.think the patriotic fervour is million miles away from the reality
:17:47. > :17:52.of this here. you can see. Thank you for coming
:17:53. > :17:59.in. I because you are sitting there, but
:18:00. > :18:06.it is a battlefields? It is extraordinary,
:18:07. > :18:13.even though you've seen pictures and the atmosphere is extraordinary and
:18:14. > :18:18.so impressive. One, how beattifully they are kept, they are stunning.
:18:19. > :18:22.Also how peaceful they are, but the shock of the sheer volume of names
:18:23. > :18:32.on those memorials... I remdmber you saying, 73,000 do not have ` grave.
:18:33. > :18:39.I think that is at Thiepval, they are all still in the ground,
:18:40. > :18:48.were never buried because they were just blown to bits.
:18:49. > :18:56.British, they have their melorial, they are side by side, which I
:18:57. > :19:09.by side with the French, thdy should live side by
:19:10. > :19:21.family history and your connections to these places? Well, the day I
:19:22. > :19:32.my memories of my dad's sister, she was a midwife at a hospital,
:19:33. > :19:43.but she wore his engagement ring all her life.
:19:44. > :19:53.of that, what that meant to her to have lost him. And for my f`mily to
:19:54. > :20:04.has, everybody was in that war some way or another. We
:20:05. > :20:20.to them, that they responded so quickly, within three days 3000
:20:21. > :20:29.led the appeal, not the present one, of course!
:20:30. > :20:41.programme. Yes, they train them they
:20:42. > :20:55.Liverpool, they really bring it back up
:20:56. > :21:06.her lying in state and I was blown away by
:21:07. > :21:20.think I fell in love mostly with the dog, who seemed to have a
:21:21. > :21:33.much to World War I, and th`t is your new project. Yes,
:21:34. > :21:39.October, I think I am later, towards the end. Look forward to
:21:40. > :21:55.Are you a Liverpool fan, by the way? I am! You might want to look away
:21:56. > :21:57.now! They have been attracthng huge crowds on their European totr with
:21:58. > :21:58.Manchester United. Manchester United beat Liverpool 3`1
:21:59. > :21:59.in Miami Wayne Rooney cancelled out
:22:00. > :22:02.Steven Gerrard's penalty after latching onto
:22:03. > :22:04.a Javier Hernandez cross. before Jesse Lingard wrapped up
:22:05. > :22:17.the win with this strike I think we gave a lot of pldasure to
:22:18. > :22:22.the fans, and that is very important, and of course it is is
:22:23. > :22:32.better to win in the time than to lose. But the lost
:22:33. > :22:39.important game is the the football season might fdel
:22:40. > :22:42.like it's never been away. we're taking a look
:22:43. > :22:44.at all the three divisions. and Ian Haslam has been to see one
:22:45. > :22:46.of the clubs aiming for prolotion. The preseason photo call,
:22:47. > :22:48.pristine new kits and in some cases
:22:49. > :22:59.pristine new haircuts. None more so than John Dreydr, I
:23:00. > :23:11.think, the first`team coach He likes to put his Grecian 2000 in his
:23:12. > :23:15.bonnet. The lads like to do this, when you have had about 30
:23:16. > :23:17.This weekend, though, it all gets serious.
:23:18. > :23:18.Preston are among this season's promotion favourites.
:23:19. > :23:28.There is no standout candid`te, Wolves were everybody's favourite
:23:29. > :23:31.last season, but a lot of tdams will think they have a good opportunity.
:23:32. > :23:35.We have strengthened as a spuad Preston might be
:23:36. > :23:36.the most fancied of our teals to do well in League One
:23:37. > :23:37.this season, but let's not forget
:23:38. > :23:39.there are four other North West teams in the divhsion,
:23:40. > :23:41.all looking to make big progress. who'll play League One football
:23:42. > :23:45.for the very first time. who last season needed a last`day
:23:46. > :23:50.win to guarantee survival. Since then,
:23:51. > :23:52.new players have arrived, but more have left, including
:23:53. > :23:56.home`grown striker Max Clayton. and then sold star striker
:23:57. > :23:59.Scott Hogan was to safeguard
:24:00. > :24:00.the club's financial future. While at Oldham,
:24:01. > :24:03.a major sponsorship deal has seen Boundary Park renaled
:24:04. > :24:05.Sports Direct.com Park. With a new stand being built,
:24:06. > :24:07.manager Lee Johnson will now be looking for
:24:08. > :24:10.big developments on the pitch. I think it is good for the `rea as
:24:11. > :24:44.well, some fantastic local Rotherham proved last year that a
:24:45. > :24:59.team can at least the first one
:25:00. > :25:14.I can remember. as the best in Britain
:25:15. > :25:18.and sixth best in the world. Blackpool Zoo
:25:19. > :25:20.and the South Lakes Safari Park The results are based on millions of
:25:21. > :25:23.reviews by visitors over 12 months. Nearly 1.5 million people
:25:24. > :25:41.visit Chester Zoo every year, and thousands of them took the time
:25:42. > :25:43.to vote for and rate the zoo Coming top in the UK is a wdlcome
:25:44. > :25:47.boost as work continues on the zoo's new attraction
:25:48. > :25:49.based on Indonesian islands. Oh, it's absolutely fantasthc
:25:50. > :25:50.for the zoo. have done an award like this
:25:51. > :25:57.for zoos in the UK. Massive morale boost for thd staff
:25:58. > :25:59.this morning to find out we are number one in the UK, second
:26:00. > :26:01.in Europe, sixth in the world. Chester is not the only
:26:02. > :26:04.North West zoo to make the top ten. Blackpool came fifth,
:26:05. > :26:07.Knowsley Safari Park eighth, and the South Lakes
:26:08. > :26:09.Wild Animal Park ninth. The Trip Advisor rankings
:26:10. > :26:11.are based on the quantity and quality
:26:12. > :26:13.of the reviews which a zoo has got. The more four and five`star reviews
:26:14. > :26:16.you get, It's important for the zoo
:26:17. > :26:22.to be known as somewhere
:26:23. > :26:26.where tourists want to come, but staff also hope that visitors
:26:27. > :26:28.appreciate their conservation work, For the eastern black rhino,
:26:29. > :26:34.like these guys, for exampld, there is now only about 800
:26:35. > :26:43.left in the wild. Of black rhino totally,
:26:44. > :26:47.there's only 5000. That's less rhinos on this planet
:26:48. > :26:49.than people in the zoo todax, Some here were taking
:26:50. > :26:53.a relaxed approach to success, but not Karen, who is hand rearing
:26:54. > :26:56.a rare hyacinth macaw. it makes me feel like we've done all
:26:57. > :26:59.we can and we are doing a good job. A lot of people
:27:00. > :27:01.come to see the animals, The new islands attraction
:27:02. > :27:07.is due to open next summer. Andy Gill, BBC North West Tonight,
:27:08. > :27:24.Chester. Well done to Chester and all the
:27:25. > :27:29.others! A nice day to be at the zoo today, is it going to last?
:27:30. > :27:33.No, all change, distinctly `verage through the next 12 hours, then
:27:34. > :27:40.things will improve. I don't think Wednesday is going to be drdadful,
:27:41. > :27:46.but a fairly wet that. A big band of rain is going to affect us through
:27:47. > :27:50.the night, the morning was great, cloud rolled in through the
:27:51. > :27:55.afternoon, and it does support one or two showers. This is the latest
:27:56. > :27:58.picture, not too much troubling us right now, but the computer wants to
:27:59. > :28:03.bring one or next couple of hours and make them
:28:04. > :28:08.fairly significant rain is just to the
:28:09. > :28:12.south, starting to push in midnight, spreading absolutdly
:28:13. > :28:16.everywhere. Look that means some this range will be
:28:17. > :28:20.heavy as we head through early hours of the morning, so
:28:21. > :28:26.cloudy, very wet. Places, continues to be mild, quite
:28:27. > :28:33.meaningless in the overnight period. `` very wet for somd places.
:28:34. > :28:36.When you set out tomorrow, not a cold start, but it will
:28:37. > :28:42.Watch how quickly it pulls out of the
:28:43. > :28:47.o'clock, a thing of the past for most
:28:48. > :28:51.this weather system, it starts to kill background, one or two
:28:52. > :28:54.could break out here and thdre. After lunch, and improving
:28:55. > :29:00.not wonderful, an average d`y, but brighter skies towards tea`time The
:29:01. > :29:04.improvement will hit the Isle of Man first, you will see the
:29:05. > :29:08.weather, but not wonderful. The breeze from
:29:09. > :29:10.be cooler, looking at these temperatures. After that, Thursday,
:29:11. > :29:15.not a bad day. We were talking to Sue Johnston
:29:16. > :29:17.a few minutes ago. Don't forget, her special programme
:29:18. > :29:19.on the Liverpool Pals Last night,
:29:20. > :29:24.the Lights Out commemoration to mark the centenary
:29:25. > :29:26.of the declaration of war was marked by thousands of xou
:29:27. > :29:28.across the North West. We'll leave you with some
:29:29. > :29:31.of the images you've sent us as homes, businesses and landmarks
:29:32. > :29:34.across the region were plunged into darkness just
:29:35. > :29:39.as they were a hundred years ago.