19/05/2017 Points West

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

Gloucestershire police plan to put some prisoners in hoods to stop them

If you are out doing your job to protect the public and somebody spat

on you, how would you feel, then you have many months going through tests

to see whether or not there is a potential for disease.

Critics say the hoods are degrading and over the top.

Our other headlines tonight:

The conmen who took people's rubbish and then dumped it in a field.

Friday night is take-away night but now there's a campaign

People come from far afield to admire the Georgian architecture of

Bath. And the jewel in the Crown -

it's the 250th anniversary Police in Gloucestershire

are expected to start using controversial hoods on some

offenders - to stop them It would be the first time a force

in our region has tried Those in favour believe it protects

staff and stops them But critics say it's

cruel and degrading. I led him down to the cell

and as I was closing the door he hopped and spat right in my eye

from, oh, three feet away. Caught on CCTV, a known

drug user spitting at The sergeant, who doesn't

want his face shown on camera, then had to go through almost a year

of blood tests to check no When I did arrive in

hospital the advice was: "Yes, I've got a three-month-old

and a two-year-old." You need to avoid unprotected

sex with your wife." It wasn't the best time between us,

purely because of this. Then the gravity of what had

happened and the possible Last year, this Ukrainian police

woman died after being spat at by a suspect

who had tuberculosis. A third of police forces in the UK

already use spit hoods, But now the Gloucestershire Police

Federation has voted to try them out It's likely the spit hood would be

wrapped up and placed somewhere on the custody officer's uniform,

then, if someone spits at them or threatens to split,

it can be quickly unwrapped and then Our region's other police forces

say they have no plans Dorset Police and Crime

Commissioner, who was spat at himself whilst serving

as a police officer, has written to the Home Secretary,

to ask for an urgent review into the use of spit hoods

by police in Britain. Europe and Northern Ireland

don't use spit guards. As soon as you start restraining

people around the head, accidents happen and people can get

seriously injured Gloucestershire police say spit

hoods will only be placed A spit guard can only be used

if an officer has already been spat at or if the person is actually

spitting, so there is an imminent danger that that officer or member

of staff or member of the public is going to be

assaulted by that spit. Even so, human right groups have

criticised the use of spit hoods with Liberty describing them

as "Cruel and degrading items that A big clear-up operation

is underway in Bristol - after a group of travellers

collected people's rubbish, Fridges, sofas and mattresses

were all left behind in Stockwood. The council's now looking at ways

to protect the site in future. Yesterday the council came

and started the clear-up operation. There were all sorts

of household furniture items - chairs, tables, several

baths, a couple of sofas. And not just sofas but

chairs, tables, cookers, mattresses, garden waste,

just some of the rubbish left behind in Bristol after a group

of travellers departed this green in Stockwood, leaving mess behind

on an industrial scale. They can just pitch up

wherever they like, do what they like for a short period

of time and disappear off and then they leave the council and the local

residents trying to put things It's thought they'd been charging

local people to clear rubbish and then dumping it, out of sight,

behind their caravan, the damage only becoming

clear when they moved Bristol Council has

called in contractors. This the second skip

with more still to go. This video was filmed

by another local resident. A place popular with children

and dog walkers, now turned into a dumping ground,

covered in broken glass. The woods here used

as a toilet, too. A lorry arrived as we filmed this

afternoon, picking up the pieces and the cost,

of course, of the rubbish people had Now the council have the option now

of going through that rubbish and trying to work out

where it came from. Because people having their rubbish

taken away, have the responsibility of making sure whoever is taking it

has the right licence. Meanwhile, the council are looking

at ways of making this site What a mess. Now we have dramatic

pictures of you. There have been flash flooding in parts of Somerset

this afternoon. This is Yeovil, and they were taken by a firefighter

from Devon and Somerset fire and rescue. They were called in to move

a vehicle caught in the floodwater. Alongside the downpours. You can

hear T there was also thunder and lightning. Hopefully we won't have

more of that. Ian will be clear soon.

An independent investigation has been launched into how

Gloucestershire Police dealt with a series of 999 calls

34-year-old Ashley Simmons called the police on a number

His body was discovered in Gloucester Docks two days later.

The IPCC will look into the actions of staff at the time

and whether improvements could be made to prevent a similar

A Somerset artist who created nearly 20,000 shrouded figures to mark

the Battle of the Somme has started an even bigger challenge.

Rob Heard from Washford made the pieces last year to represent

the British soldiers who died on the first day of battle.

Now he's making more than 72,000 of them -

one for each British soldier whose body was never recovered

This was an incredible image. You will never forget that.

You're watching Friday's Points West with David and Alex.

Stay with us as there's plenty more to come before seven,

including: Tip-top in time for the Chelsea Flower Show.

We ask a six times gold medal winner how does his garden grow.

And tomorrow brings another day of dodging or not. The risk of heavy

showers, but it is not looking to be the case on Sunday. Details towards

the end of the programme. If you are planning a takeaway

tonight, we have news for you about that as well. But first:

The Ukip candidate for North Wiltshire has been suspended

from the party over a series of tweets he sent about race.

Our political editor Paul Barltrop has the details.

Well the gentlemen's name is Mack 1. He is the Ukip candidate in the

constituency of North Wiltshire. He is a former Army officer. He

currently runs a company offering trekking holidays in the Himalayas

but he is fairly active on twitter. An anti-racist website has uncovered

some of the things he has put on there in the past few years. I have

to warn people some of what we are about to talk about is fairly

offensive. One reads. "Africa is where humans are animals

and animals are human." One refers to Chinese people in a similar way

and one is derogatory about him. So what's happened to him? ? We've

tracked him down, he is out of the country. He says he regrets what he

posted. He didn't mean to cause offence. He claims he is not racist

and says he was angry at the actions of the Israeli state. How important

is social media, Paul, in general election campaigns like the one we

are going through now? Well, we hear a lot of talk about things like

twitter. We know Facebook influential in the modern era. I

have been out finding out that traditional ways of campaigning is

still important. This is what elections are about.

Volunteers here getting the message out to voters. At the Greens in

Bristol, plenty of young faces, including students fitting it in

with exams I come to the library every day making sure I know enough.

When I have a free afternoon or free morning, I help out. It is good to

have a break from revision, and get out and do something, feel you are

making a difference. Leaflets aren't the only way they reach out to

voters. You know conventional ways, I would say still make up the most

of campaigning but the social media can help. This was a graph, which

was seen by 70,000 people people in the constituency. Half a century ago

this is what electioneering looked like, candidates meeting people

face-to-face on Bristol's streets. It is the traditional way to go

campaigning but in 2017, canvassing is still considered important. In a

hard-fought seat like this wurnings the parties will have teams of

volunteers going out door-to-door every day and in Bristol West, the

Green's top target they are pulling out all the stops. It is an

old-fashioned message but it works. We are aiming to canvass every

single house in the constituency. 70,000. It is similar in the Stroud

constituency where Labour activists aim it get their message out on the

doorstep If you go on the TV and media you would think it is a

presidential campaign, you would think it is president May verses

Jeremy Corbyn and the others. We should judge people on the policies.

On the doorstep it is one way we can get across what we want to do. Their

leaflets are all about their candidates, rather than their

leader. Many helped here in the local elections but were happy to

work on We were looking forward to having a sit, do you you get

knockers knuckle I call t knuckle frenzy. You clearly enjoy it? I love

T absolutely love it. The fun has another 20 days to run. We are

nearly there and we'll be talking live to four

of our westcountry candidates Don't miss it - we'll

be talking austerity, the winter fuel allowance

and embarrassing political gaffes. Now if you're thinking

of getting a takeaway tonight, you might want to watch our

next report first. That's because coffee shops and fast

food outlets in Bristol are being challenged

to offer healthier food. Almost two-thirds of adults

in the city are overweight or obese and the council hopes a new awards

scheme will lead to more Scott Ellis is in

Southmead for us tonight. Scott, what is on the menu there?

Well, it does smell great here. But you know the number of takeaways in

Bristol has doubled in ten years. This is the central shopping area.

We have a kebab shop here, we have pizzas on the go and look at the

queue for the fish and chip shop. That's what you like to see. They

are being challenged to offer healthier food but you may say it is

their job to sell White House bewant it eat, regardless whether it is

deep fried or otherwise. But there is evidence to say that it might be

good for business because a citizens zones' survey say three-quarters of

us want healthier food when we buy at takeaways.

Bristol loves its takeaways and cafes - there are 494 in total.

That's one for every 896 people, beating Gloucester where it's one

And far more than Bath, Taunton and Swindon,

where takeaways are much more spread out.

But convenience food, or coffee and cake, brings

Take aways and food outlets tend to be higher in fat, sugar, salt,

This cafe at a community centre in Southmead has already made

the changes the counil wants to see more of.

Crisps are squirrelled away at the back.

Well, they're getting rid of them all together.

You will be surprised how people will change.

They will have a portion of chips one day, then

The jacket potatoes are popular, they can have whatever feeling

The jacket potatoes are popular, they can have whatever filling

So how's healthy living going down with the customers?

I do try healthy things, but I'm not very good at it.

I'd quit the cakes and have toast and coffee, and that is it.

I will quite happily eat at a healthy cafe.

Takeaways like chippies can do theire bit -

change from palm to vegetable oil, and offer thicker chips -

Would you consider healthy options here?

If they were on offer, I might be tempted.

Stroud-based TV doctor Dawn Harper of Embarrassing Bodies' fame is

backing the scheme. I think we need to take this so seriously. Obesity

is an epidemic in this country and it'll bankrupt the NHS in my

lifetime if we don't turn the tide. Bristol launches this scheme next

week and the council hopes 250 takeaways and cafe also sign up in

the first year. Well, the look of this food is making me feel peckic.

So let's see what is on the menu this evening.

8338 calories in the fish supper is quite a lot and incidentally a

ten-inch pizza with meat, more calorific, but you can be healthy by

having a much inthiser, Neopolitan-style pizza. The choice

is yours, remembering, you are what you eat. People are eating right

now. Thank you, Scott. A little bit of what you fancy does you good. But

moderation in all things. Although some of those pictures put me off a

bit. I was feeling hungry until those. No, I could eat that. But I'm

in the going to. -- I'm not going to.

The National Police Dog Trials have been held in Portishead today.

Teams from across the UK were tested on how they tackle armed offenders

and there were points for agility and obedience.

Local schools were invited to watch, and meet the newest recruits,

The event continues over the next two days.

One of the country's best known and most loved

locomotives is stopping off in the West this evening.

The Flying Scotsman will arrive in Gloucester just after 8.00pm.

She'll stay there for half an hour before steaming on past Cam

and Dursley arriving at Bristol Parkway

If you can't catch a glimpse, there will be another chance

to see her when she passes by again on Tuesday.

You can have the Flying Scotsman I'll have the puppy. I'll have the

takeaway! One of the country's

most iconic buildings It's exactly 250 years

since the first foundation stone was laid in the Royal

Crescent in Bath. Imogen Sellers is in

Bath for us tonight - Imogen it hasn't changed

much has it? No, you are right, Alex but I think

you also have to agree that in this early evening sunshine the Royal

Crescent couldn't look any more splendid. When John Wood the Younger

first started to build it it was considered a radical piece of

architecture. It took more than seven years to finish the terrace of

30 houses but while the inside of these buildings has obviously

changed quite a will the over the years, the George an facade has

barely changed at all in more than two-and-a-half centuries. So much

history. So many memories. And I've picked out just a few.

Newsreel: People come from far afield toed a mire the Georgian

Surely this Crescent of houses, the Royal Crescent stands supreme.

This BBC archive may be 60 years' old but very little has changed,

except perhaps news reports like this one from 1964.

Gosh, they're jolly heavy things, I wouldn't have liked to have been

a bearer or a flunky or whatever they were in those days.

I don't know we always sort of wanted a sudan chair and it

There is a staircase suitable for Sudan chairs,

What do you mean, specially-made for them?

Yes, this staircase is specially constructed for it.

I have to get back to Bristol in a hurry and it takes so long by car.

Well, there we are, two-abled body gentlemen have miraculously appeared

to take me off for Bristol but provided we're back in time

From the banning of tour buses to the colour of the front doors,

this World Heritage Site has always been a talking point.

I think the Royal Crescent is certainly one of the most

I thits an iconic building for this city, for Bath.

But it's also one of the key buildings of the 18th century.

The museum at number 1 shows what life would've been

like for the very first residents but even for visitor,

the Crescent was the place to be seen.

Something like the Royal Crescent as well as being this

extraordinary building, you had to find of think of it,

almost as a stage set with this huge pavement that all of these

On some days in the summer there could be up to 1,000 members

of high society just walking round and about and on the

privileged grass over there in front of us.

It's still as prestigious an address as it ever was,

with the Royal Crescent hotel in numbers 15 and 16.

This room would set you back more than ?1,000 a night.

So many events have been staged here, from music festival opening

nights to the performance of the Three Tenors when the front lawn

became the setting for a spectacular open-air concert.

It's history is as rich as those who can afford to live here. And for the

rest of us, well, we can continue to admire the view.

TV show, Hollywood movies have all been filmed here. So many celebs

have stayed here, troo, Barry man low, Dame Joan kolly, even the

former US President, Ronald Reagan is supposed to have said here.

Anniversary celebrations kick off tonight. You can see so. Musicians

rehearsing, number one will be commissioned with a specially poem.

Parties are going on all over Bath tonight because the anniversary

coincides with the launch of Bath festival. Celebration for the

anniversary going on all over the weekend and throughout the summer.

For me all that remains to be said - happy birthday.

That was so lovely, thank you. They always say timing is everything

and it's definitely true for the West Ccountry gardeners

getting ready for the Chelsea After months of hard

work and planning - they need everything,

including the weather, to come Andy Howard has been to see one man

from Miserden near Stroud who knows a thing or two about getting it

right - after all he has At this Cotswold nursery,

the plants are grown to be They've come from all sides of it

too, South Africa, North America, It's 3,000 pots of

science and timing. Put in the sun, taken out,

given more water, or less, to be ready for the greatest show

of them all. So you really are coming in,

inspecting every morning, every plant of every batch to think

- OK, how can I adjust where you are now because you want

everything to look as good as it possibly can for the

time the show opens. And even when they leave

Gloucestershire, the job isn't done. It's surprising how much a garden

will change, especially in the middle of London,

during the week. So you design it for when the Queen

araves on the Monday. But you equally need to design it

for the last person who comes It is every bit as important

as the Royal Family. Not that you would say that

to the Queen, obviously. These plants are

like Chris's family. Some of them do you proud

every single day. And some of them

are a complete pain. You think - how difficult

can that be to grow? You know they all have their own

personalities and characters. Some of them you fall in love

with and some of them, quite frankly, you just can't wait

to get rid of. Well, considering Chris started

gardening at 11-years-old and is a Chelsea gold medallist,

he gets it right Maybe it's something to do

with talking to his plants. I don't know whether they have

feelings but sound is about vibration and vibration

causes the plant to shake. It is a bit like plants

being moved by the wind. You will find that it is a much

stockier plant and you get a better So it is true, you should

talk to your plants. There's the occasional cuss

word actually, with some of them and you know,

if you ever want to get a plant

into flower, the thing to do - this is your last

warning or you're out. Keep going, you're

doing really well. You do at times, you know

when the rain is running down your back and there's no-one

else around and you can't remember the last time you had

a coffee and your socks are soggy you do wonder -

what am I doing this for? But then you see the plants

and think - that's why. Oh, we agree. Thank you so much for

that. There was all the rain in Yeovil today.

But thanks to the charity Penny Brohn who invited me

to host their lunch today - they raised ?55,000

Hi, Alex, well, hello everybody, as we have been showing, some dramatic

downpours in southern parts of Somerset in particular, Yeovil and

around there taking the brunt of torrential thunderstorms. The

forecast tomorrow - for a number of you it will be more of the same.

There will be a peak period from lunchtime in to about the

mid-afternoon where we will see a growing risk of potentially some

heavy downpours but either side of that, of a as we have seen today

across many districts, dry, sunny, if rather breezy weather. Sunday by

contrast, and any one particular point is looking decidedly low. I

suspect most if not all areas will have a dry, fine day and feeling

warm under the conditions. Here is a wider look at how things are shaping

up. Low pressure dominating the pattern for the time being. The

focus for the showers into tomorrow will be the remnants of a week

occlusion. They should quickly fade away later through the afternoon on

Saturday and by Sunday effectively not a shower in sight T doesn't mean

there is not a small risk of one but a lot lower risk compared to

Saturday. The showers we have I've been watching them from here here at

Clifton, they are fading away now, ditto those over Gloucestershire and

elsewhere and ultimately a dray night barring one or two showers in

the far west of our viewing area. Temperatures tonight could get

chilly under largely clear skies, 2-4 not impossible in some parts of

Somerset, for example, but tomorrow we should get under way on a largely

dry and sunny note again, barring the risk of one or two showers out

towards the west but as we head through lunch time, you can see the

threat of showers starting to grow. Rumbles of thunder and possibly

hail. Much like today, either side of those in sunnier spots, decent

enough. 15 likely. We'll get those temperatures higher as we head noop

Sunday. It is looking like ultimately next week drying out and

warping up. There we go. A lovely treat. Thank you for joining us

tonight. Have a lovely weekend. I will see you on Sunday for the

Sunday Politics. Bye for now. Bye.