10/04/2017 Points West

Welcome to BBC Points West with Alex Lovell and David Garmston.

The Chancellor dismisses the cost, saying jobs and investment will sail

It's not about what it's going to cost, it's

Is that what you say when people come into your office at 11

Downing St, it doesn't matter about the cost?

I've been asking Philip Hammond what the new Mayor will actually do.

Our other headlines tonight: Seven hundred parking

Twenty years on, traffic wardens return to North

And snakes alive - a warning to look after your dog

as the warmer weather brings out the adders.

And just how quick was Bristol Rovers' record-breaking goal?

The chancellor Philip Hammond threw his weight behind

the Metro Mayor project today - promising the new post

would help to deliver jobs and prosperity.

Almost a million people will get the chance to vote for the new Mayor

for the West of England next month - but the signs are that many voters

Well, Mr Hammond was speaking on board the SS Great Britain -

the Treasury has just made a ?650,000 donation to a new museum

Chancer, welcome to the West Country. Visa, you're the chance.

You are the perfect person to ask. How much resistance to cost?

It's not about what it's going to cost, it's

Having it an integrated authority gives the area if ice, allows the

Mayor to coordinate activity across the different areas in the region

and ensure maximum value for money in the investment that is going into

the area. Is that what you say when people

come into your office at 11 Downing St, it doesn't matter

about the cost? What is it? I am not gone to set out

precise figures in this interview. Over the years, it will be roughly

?900 million, that is a really quite small and art of money compared to

the benefits of having an integrated approach to services and investment

in the area. And making sure that the business boom that is going, you

can only with the college a business boom that is going on in this part

of the country, is properly supported and facilitated. Bristol

has a more Maher. -- a Lord Mayor. Other payers have leaders and in

some cases Mayors. How does this fit in? Why do we need another one? We

need a real economic geography, interlinked markets, for Labour, for

goods, for services. Working together to harness the benefits of

planning across a wider geography. As has been done so successfully

around Manchester, is beginning to happen in the West Midlands, and we

are beginning to make sure that other key economic areas in the

country are able to benefit from this approach. It's strange, when

you're trying to take out layers of management elsewhere, particularly

in the NHS, why put one in here? It is about harnessing the benefit of

planning across a whole economic geography, a city region and its

hinterland. How will we know if this has worked? You will start to see

the benefits coming through, in terms of faster growth, more

sustainable transport systems, and across the whole area. Housing

solutions, planned across the whole area. I just want to point out, we

are on Brunel's ship. On the other side of the bridge, there is North

Somerset, who decided not to be involved in this scheme. You have

some players not involve? As it succeeds and demonstrated success,

others may wish to join at a later stage. They might come on-board? We

have a combined 30 ready to go now, and it will demonstrate by its

success, that it delivers to local people here within the mayoral

authority. If surrounding areas see those benefits, they may wish to

think about that. Thank you. The race is hot heating up. If you

want to find out who is standing, login to our websites.

Forces across the West held a two- minutes silence this afternoon,

as the funeral service got underway for PC Keith Palmer,

who was stabbed to death during last month's attack on Westminster.

Officers from Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Avon and Somerset

police all stopped still, while thousands of their colleagues

from all over the UK lined the route of the funeral cortege

It's an opportunity for us to express probably

The reading we chose was written by an American police officer

I think it summed up for us, the emotions,

all that we are feeling our sorrow and affection

Senior officers from the west also join their colleagues in London,

lining the streets for the funeral cortege.

Bath Spa station will be shut for the whole Easter weekend,

the longest the famous station has ever been closed.

It's all part of the ambitious plan to electrify the Great Western

Railway, which is running years late and two billion pounds over budget.

Today commuters were all crammed onto a single platform as engineers

Our business correspondent Dave Harvey went to find out:

The train now standing at platform two, the Great Western Railway

And on platform one, engineers and heavy machinery.

Their aim, nothing less than the total replacement of the

That line of grey, concrete blocks will form the

edge of the new platform here at Bath.

It's about two metres wider than Brunel's original and,

That's because the new electric trains are

too long to cope with this famously curved Victorian railway station.

And also, by bringing the trains further out into the middle, it

means the overhead of epic pylons that feed them won't foul up these

rather magnificent Grade II listed canopies.

Then, from Good Friday throught to Easter Monday, the whole station

It's going to affect the local economy quite a bit, I

Because we get a lot of people visiting at Easter.

In the short term it is a bit of a disruption

But what I would say is, we have done this before.

We have laid on real replacement coaches, as

We are confident that we can keep people moving in and out of Bath.

When will electric trains actually reach Bath?

Electrification will begin this year.

Then getting as far as Chippenham, but Bath and Bristol

For now, it is trains on one side, engineers on the other. It's a

pleasant Monday evening, you're watching BBC points west.

Stay with us tonight. We have lots more in store.

Getting a new museum ready is hard work. This one is opening today and

it is something a little bit different. I, for one, and bristling

with excitement. Temperatures are closer to average

for the weekend, for the most part, a lot of dry weather as well.

More than 700 parking tickets have been handed out

by a council in its first week, since starting a crackdown

More than eight decade, there have been no traffic wardens in North

Somerset. But now control has been handed back from the police to the

local authority. Out on patrol with Allan Taylor,

the man in charge of Just so you know, there

is an information sheet, That's a week of warning that

parking enforcement is back So far, over 700 fines have

been issued by the 11 So there's a van with

a yellow ticket over there. Half of that if it is

paid within 13 days. Since we've been giving

warning notices out, Last week, people were actually

stopping us, shaking our hands, thanking us, giving us tips,

"Can you come and visit our road?" Also sorts of things

we're not quite used to. That's a claim I had

to put to the test. It's easier for us to park outside

a shop, but not for, Where do you park if you live

here if you work shifts, as I do? And obviously, I work

in the Sainsbury's, so I have All the money raised

goes into the system Even fines collected

from errant council employees. We can't bring the council

into disrepute, council officers I sent an internal e-mail round our

system before we started saying, If you don't, you're just

as liable for a ticket. He's in a display area without

displaying a ticket, which is ?50. But, yeah, unless he comes back

in the next couple of minutes... The advice, then,

from Allan and his team? It's a painful sight. That row of

all because them on. Dog owners are being warned

to beware the dangers of adders if they take their pets

for a walk in woodland. It follows a case in Somerset

where a dog nearly died after being bitten by one

of the snakes. With the warmer weather

coming, adders are very Today's walk for Molly

is on the lead. Small wonder - the last time

she was running free in these woods, Twenty minutes later

when they found her, she was obviously very ill -

they didn't know then she'd She just lay down and she was

obviously not going to go any further.

It was to this vet's practice in Midsomer Norton

that Molly was taken, and they diagnosed the adder bite.

The dog was then sent to a specialist veterinary hospital

It was two days before she was well enough to go home.

This is the start of the adder season -

they're just coming out of hibernation.

Their bite is venomous and in rare cases fatal.

So this vet says it would be wise for dog walkers

The gavel having them off the lead where there is a lot of undergrowth,

bushes, where they could be prone to snakebites. Just those places, avoid

those places. Molly is fully recovered now,

but her owners say countryside walks will be more tightly

controlled in future. A number of groups have come forward

to take over the famous Faced with a budget

deficit of ?2 million, district council can no longer

afford to run the venue. Campaigners hope it can be

saved for the future, as selling the venue is one

option being considered. Our Gloucestershire reporter,

Steve Knibbs, is outside the Sub

Rooms for us now. They have been there for years and

years, haven't they? Absolutely. Back in 1833 this place was built by

public subscription but in 2013 that is not an option. Like many council

arts venues it is no longer financially viable. What is key to

this is the community going through this front door, because if they

don't do that then great enough numbers, then that front door could

close for good. or an expensive commodity

for a cash strapped authority? With a roster of classic acts

going back for decades, even the Beatles in its heyday,

the Stroud Subscription Rooms It's been part of Adam Horovitz's

life since he was a child, from going to events to ending up

on the stage himself. He's now worried about its future,

and says it doesn't just need money I think it is at risk,

given the amount of cuts that are being bandied

around at the moment, it would be a terrible

loss if it were closed. I don't think it's

absolutely definite. But that does entail a lot

of people saying no, sure it isn't closed, because it is,

as I say, so essential to the So the council has three options -

to restructure and carry on running it itself,

to give the Subrooms to a community interest company or charitable trust

to run, or to sell it off on a commercial basis -

with the potential risk Nobody wants the Sub Rooms to close.

It is the heart of Stroud. Nobody wants that option. But we can't

continue as a District Council to where we are, now, and what we want

to have is a better outcome than we have got at the moment. No decision

has been made. Three years ago, Cheltenham

Borough Council handed control of its venues,

museum and sports facilities to a charitable trust that

focuses on working more The public put more into the venues

in terms of how they use them, the more they will get out of them in

the future, because any surplus that we make as a charity is cloud right

back into the local business, into the charity. -- cloud into.

Paintings were being hung in the Subrooms today

for its new exhibition - there's no doubting the demand

But making it pay, that's another matter.

If you're interested in running this wonderful landmark venue, you have

until Wednesday to express interest. After that the council will be

looking at formal bids before making a final decision in the autumn. The

Cheltenham trust you had from in my report confirmed that they are one

of those half a dozen groups that have expressed an interest so far

but no decision has been made, and it is still early days.

A technology company in Dorset is the latest to attract

multi-million pound investment from the Chinese.

Gilo Industries describes itself as the Disneyland of engineering.

They've now created a flying car and want to use the investment

to create the first practical vehicle that commuters can use

This is one of the first generation cards that can also fly.

We are looking at the best ways, the simplest wats and the safest

ways to get man into the air in a machine that you can

In a factory in Dorset, they now want to take

Our core aim is to produce a next generation engine for powering

a whole range of vertical take-off aircraft and recreational machines

that allow us to transport ourselves in ways we have never been able

Revolutionising personal transportation. But funding such

ambitions means getting money upon. They have secured ?26 million thanks

to the backing of a Chinese company. Attracting investment from China

opens new markets and we will see this workforce doubling in size. In

the context of Brexit, attracting money from outside the EU is more

important now than ever. For the Chinese market they are interested

in the engine technology in these applications. They are really

forward-thinking and try to think about the aircraft, and having the

small, lightweight, high counter weight ratio engines is what they

are looking for. There is nobody else in the market space competing

with us, so by opening up that market space, that allows us to

actually lease sales. They say that this is no flight of fancy. For

commuters tired of sitting in traffic, the dream of six -- of

taking to the skies might not be far-fetched. Designers think the

first models could be available within ten years. I'd like to see

those parking offices in North Somerset putting a ticket on those

bad boys! Before it then takes off! Bristol Rovers player Byron Moore

made club history this weekend, scoring the fastest league goal

in the club's history. It's also kept Rovers'

play-off hopes alive. Alistair Durden is here.

How fast was it? 11 seconds. It beat the record that

had stood for 50 years. Alfie Biggs in 1968. It was also the fastest

anywhere in a professional club in this country this year. Shall we

take a look? Rovers in their yellow away strip kicking off, Chris lines

with a first touch of the afternoon. We are under way on BBC radio

Bristol. And an early ball for Harrison, there is a shot from

Moore, was that 11 seconds on the stopwatch? The earliest goal I think

I've ever seen by Bristol Rovers. They lead 1-0.

11.45 seconds is our official timing.

I tell you what - you don't want to be late for Rovers games.

This was the third time in the last month

they've scored in the opening minute!

Billy Bodin, against Southend, scored in 57 seconds.

Then, a week later, Ollie Clarke beat that,

scoring at home to Chesterfield in 34 seconds.

And now Byron Moore quickest of the lot on Saturday.

Those pre-match team-talks are certainly working.

I said to the players before the game that we sort

really bright in games over the last five or six, but we haven't

started quite as well in games away from home.

It was a delightful start, and then we dug in and defended

Really pleased with four points off the play-offs.

I'm really proud of the players who have left us still in with a chance.

I'll just pick out a couple of stories -

Head coach Lee Johnson again got the back of owner Steve Lansdown

before the game, confirming Johnson will be in charge

They're now four points clear of the relegation zone.

Easter Monday's game away to Blackburn,

the team just below them, will be absolutely vital.

where over 60,000 fans saw Bath Rugby

turn over their play-off rivals Leicester.

Remember, they'd given up home advantage for this game.

Well, Anthony Watson scored two tries in the last 12 minutes

There's a brilliant offload coming up from Matt Banahan.

That win means they are now level on points with Leicester.

The two clubs are vying for that last play-off place.

It is going to be tense, it is going to be close.

We have many museums across the West Country.

There's the Fashion Museum in Bath,

the Steam Museum of the Great Western Railway in Swindon

and the Fleet Air Arm Museum in Ilchester in Somerset

But now there's a brand new attraction in Wiltshire hoping

The Coward family makes brushes. They have done since the 1920s. And

this is their Wiltshire Empire. Back in those days, we were just selling

street sweeping brooms to local authorities. My great uncle had them

on the back of his motorbike, took them round to Yeovil district to

have somewhere to sell them and that is what the business was, and it

grew from there. Nowadays these machines make 10,000 brushes each

day. And they are exported to 90 countries worldwide. People think it

is a bit odd, when you say that you make brushes. It is a bit of a funny

thing to do. But we love it. And people should be in love with

brushes. Are they really that important, brushes? In the average

home, apparently we have between 30 - 50. Not just ones like this,

toothbrushes, Neil brushes, toilet brushes and make-up brushes. They

are well. I think I will stick with this one. And so here you have it,

the first museum of its kind in the UK, celebrating the brilliance of

the bristles. We have go there from China, horsehair from Paraguay,

bamboo from India, all of which children can, and look at and touch

and feel for educational purposes. They can see the types of materials

that we are sourcing to manufacture our brushes. This family business

has swept across the world and even achieved royal appointment. Now, it

is putting a bit of a world on show back in Wiltshire. You'd be as daft

as a brush, not to go and see it! And now the weather with Ian. It was

a glorious weekend. Temperatures have dropped down by two Celsius to

around 10 Celsius below the values we saw through the course of the

weekend. Average conditions and terms of temperatures will dominate

through the course of this week. Just slipping a little bit below.

But we have seen some sunshine around today and it will continue to

feel pleasantly warm. Another fine and dry day tomorrow with varying

amounts of cloud and sunshine. We still have high-pressure out of the

West. It will continue to be locked in that sort of position through

this week. With the jet stream running to the north of the British

Isles with a more disturbed by them of whether they're at times. It

gives us on the more benign side of the British Isles and it will remain

that way through the Easter period, although there is some uncertainty

in terms of cloud amounts versus sunshine. It is looking like being

dry weather prevailing. The rest of this evening, through the course of

the night, lots of clear skies around. It's likely will end up with

a night that is just a little bit chillier than the last one, with

temperatures dropping to three Celsius in some places. In most

places closer to 5-7 C by daybreak tomorrow with a good deal of

sunshine around to get Tuesday underway. We will follow a similar

pattern to today. We'll start to import some of these areas of

sunshine with more way a broken cloud, but it will remain dry and

fine and pleasantly warm in the sunshine. Temperatures probably up

on today, 12-14 C. Tomorrow more widely about 13, 14. Some sports

getting higher than that. Heading into Wednesday, another fine and dry

start. Then we have a weak weather front running in from the north. It

will introduce more cloud through the afternoon. Possibly some light

rain by detailing the Wednesday. But, that aside, very little rain in

any one spot as we continued through the course of this week. And rain is

not always bad. My garden could do with it.

We'll have an update at 8pm and our late bulletin is at 10:25pm.