:00:05. > :00:07.Welcome to South East Today, I'm Rob Smith.
:00:07. > :00:10.And I'm Polly Evans. Tonight's top stories:
:00:10. > :00:15.They may have to sell their home - the parents facing a bill of tens
:00:15. > :00:21.of thousands to fly their seriously injured son back from Bali. It's
:00:21. > :00:26.like the most awful nightmare, you know. You know... I just want
:00:26. > :00:29.Richard home. We are live in Westminster asking what the Foreign
:00:29. > :00:32.Office can do to help. The primary school pupils
:00:32. > :00:37.distraught their Canadian teacher is facing deportation in a row over
:00:37. > :00:41.her visa. Also in tonight's programme:
:00:41. > :00:44.engaged to be married - the woman who had her face rebuilt in Sussex
:00:44. > :00:46.after an acid attack left her terribly scarred.
:00:46. > :00:53.The Margate beach boys - celebrating the dudes who pioneered
:00:53. > :00:56.surfing in Kent. And making his public debut at just
:00:56. > :01:06.three months old - Tsito, the rare baby black lemur at a Sussex
:01:06. > :01:09.
:01:09. > :01:12.Good evening. The parents of a man from Kent
:01:12. > :01:16.seriously injured in a motorbike accident in Indonesia say they may
:01:16. > :01:20.have to sell their home in order to get him back home. Richard Plummer
:01:20. > :01:23.is still in a coma in a hospital in Bali. His pregnant girlfriend is
:01:23. > :01:26.with him. But his travel insurance had lapsed
:01:26. > :01:31.- and Richard's parents Eric and June Plummer have already spent
:01:31. > :01:38.more than �20,000 in medical bills. They could end up having to pay
:01:38. > :01:44.another �100,000 to have him flown home. Lynda Hardy reports.
:01:44. > :01:51.The pain of her son's situation is clear. It is like the most awful
:01:51. > :01:53.nightmare, you know. You know... I just want Richard home.
:01:53. > :01:56.After first travelling there two years ago, Richard returned to Bali
:01:56. > :02:00.from a visit home to Maidstone in February, back to his pregnant
:02:00. > :02:03.Indonesian girlfriend. But discovered two weeks ago
:02:03. > :02:06.unconscious by the roadside after a motorbike accident, he's now in a
:02:06. > :02:13.coma, stranded in a local hospital in the country, without travel
:02:13. > :02:16.insurance. It's so far cost his parents over
:02:16. > :02:19.�7,000 in medical bills, �15,000 for a medical air fare to a
:02:19. > :02:22.specialist hospital in Singapore - an option which eventually fell
:02:22. > :02:32.through - and they now face a bill of �96,000 to repatriate their son
:02:32. > :02:41.
:02:41. > :02:46.If there is an option, it is selling the house. To be quite
:02:46. > :02:51.honest, I don't know. I haven't got an option. I am 75, there are not
:02:51. > :02:56.many people going to have blown me much money at the age of 75. It is
:02:56. > :03:00.going to have come to the stage where I can't pay any more -- and
:03:00. > :03:03.loaned me money. What will happen to Richard, I don't know. Whether
:03:03. > :03:06.they will just ceased to treat him, I don't know.
:03:06. > :03:12.Richard had let his travel insurance lapse, after apparently
:03:12. > :03:16.failing to renew it due to a lack of money. As this case highlights,
:03:16. > :03:22.medical bills, if you fall seriously ill while abroad, can be
:03:22. > :03:26.horrendous. As can the cost of getting someone back to the UK in a
:03:26. > :03:29.specially adapted air ambulance. Tens of thousands, even hundreds of
:03:29. > :03:33.thousands of pounds. It is this risk alone that makes travel
:03:33. > :03:36.insurance essential for anyone travelling overseas. His parents'
:03:36. > :03:41.local MP is now trying to help the couple to travel out to Indonesia
:03:41. > :03:45.to see their son in hospital. have been with the family for much
:03:45. > :03:50.of the weekend and it is a dreadfully sad situation, although
:03:50. > :03:54.they are brave, strong people and they want their son home. The
:03:54. > :03:59.response to the local community has been absolutely amazing ended less
:04:00. > :04:04.than 48 hours, we have raised �4,500 to get Mr and Mrs Plummer
:04:04. > :04:08.and their son on a plane to go and see Richard and when they are there,
:04:08. > :04:12.they will assess the situation and determined what we need to either
:04:12. > :04:15.get Richard home or getting to the better facility in another country.
:04:15. > :04:18.-- get him. Meanwhile, the family have set up a
:04:18. > :04:21.website to appeal for donations to help raise what seems to them like
:04:22. > :04:26.an unachievable amount of money to bring Richard home.
:04:26. > :04:29.Lynda Hardy joins us live now from Westminster. We heard in your
:04:29. > :04:35.report that the family's MP is helping. Is there anything more the
:04:36. > :04:40.Foreign Office can do? Well, Helen Grant, who as you heard
:04:40. > :04:43.in my report, the MP for Maidstone, told me that she and the family are
:04:43. > :04:48.liaising with the foreign office but they will not pay to repatriate
:04:48. > :04:53.Richard. She did say however that they were providing consular
:04:53. > :04:56.assistance out in Bali in the form of an Indonesian interpreter who is
:04:56. > :05:02.contacting the hospital and translating medical report back to
:05:02. > :05:06.the family in Kent. Tomorrow, Eric and June Plummer and their eldest
:05:06. > :05:09.son will fly out to Indonesia to see Richard in hospital. While they
:05:09. > :05:13.are there, efforts will continue back here to try and get Richard
:05:13. > :05:16.home, despite the cost. Parents at a Kent school are
:05:16. > :05:19.fighting to save one of their teachers from being deported. Kylie
:05:19. > :05:22.Wheatley from Canada has been teaching on the Isle of Sheppey for
:05:22. > :05:25.two years. But when she tried to prolong her
:05:25. > :05:32.stay at West Minster Primary School, the Home Office said her visa
:05:32. > :05:35.couldn't be extended and she'd have to go. Simon Jones reports.
:05:36. > :05:41.Protests at the school gates, to try and save a teacher who will
:05:41. > :05:46.leave the country on Sunday. I am devastated, to be honest. I know it
:05:46. > :05:50.is going to be an emotional roller- coaster. I want to stay, it is not
:05:50. > :05:55.ready my choice at all, I would rather continue my life here -- if
:05:55. > :06:00.not really. She has three degrees from Canada, but that, it seems, is
:06:00. > :06:04.not enough. When we found dead, we were really upset and I don't think
:06:04. > :06:12.it is fair that she has to go -- found out. She is one of the top
:06:12. > :06:17.teachers. We feel Robb, considering she has already been here two years.
:06:17. > :06:23.Before she taught me, I didn't believe in myself and I was one
:06:23. > :06:29.year behind. But now she has stepped into my education, I am one
:06:29. > :06:33.year ahead of what I am supposed to be. I really don't want her to go.
:06:33. > :06:39.Kylie Wheatley came here on what is called a youth mobility visa, which
:06:39. > :06:43.allowed her to work for two years. Now that time is up, the UK Border
:06:43. > :06:47.Agency says the only option is for her to return to Canada. She can
:06:47. > :06:51.apply from there to come back to England, but she says she has been
:06:51. > :06:56.told that because it is a different kind of visa, her qualifications
:06:56. > :07:03.she has used for the past two years will not be significantly
:07:03. > :07:07.recognised. Their ideas to give British people a chance rather than
:07:07. > :07:11.relying on people from abroad. have to abide -- make sure that we
:07:11. > :07:17.can make a realistic problems too young school leavers.
:07:17. > :07:27.Department for Education's says the proposals make it easier for
:07:27. > :07:27.
:07:27. > :07:31.schools to it employee Bonn EU Those proposals could take effect
:07:31. > :07:35.next year. But it is too late for this teacher.
:07:35. > :07:45.In a moment: Celebrating a successful open in Sandwich after
:07:45. > :07:51.
:07:51. > :07:54.Darren Clarke's win at his 20th Sundeep was just 22 when she was
:07:54. > :07:58.terribly scarred, after acid was thrown in her face in an apparently
:07:58. > :08:01.random attack. It was feared she would lose her right eye after the
:08:01. > :08:04.incident near her home in Kenya. But her uncle, who lives in Britain,
:08:04. > :08:07.put her in touch with the pioneering McIndoe Surgical Centre
:08:07. > :08:10.at East Grinstead, in Sussex, and over the last six years they have
:08:10. > :08:17.rebuilt her face - and helped rebuild her life. Sara Smith has
:08:17. > :08:21.been to meet her. Sundeep had been in the car with
:08:21. > :08:26.her father when somebody threw acid over have. That person has never
:08:26. > :08:31.been identified and she has never found out why she was attacked. Her
:08:31. > :08:35.eyelids, her top lip and part of her nose burnt away. The rest of
:08:35. > :08:42.her face and her shoulders and chest were terribly scarred.
:08:42. > :08:48.first time I saw it, it was a shock. It was really upsetting. It felt
:08:48. > :08:54.like the world was coming to an end. There was no hope that I would get
:08:54. > :08:58.better. Everything felt like it has gone in a second. For had she
:08:58. > :09:03.stayed in Kenya, she would almost certainly have lost her sight
:09:03. > :09:09.plummeted. But her case was taken on by surgeons at McIndoe Surgical
:09:09. > :09:15.Centre in East Grinstead. More than 30 operations later, the results
:09:15. > :09:22.were clear. She needed operations on her upper eyelids, surgery to
:09:22. > :09:29.her neck, and subsequently to her upper lip and to her hair, to try
:09:29. > :09:32.and expanded, because she had a large bald patch. The -- expand it.
:09:32. > :09:40.They have done an amazing job and I feel really lucky that I got them
:09:40. > :09:46.to treat me and help me to reach this far. It makes me feel like I
:09:46. > :09:51.still can live like a normal person. Just that, going back to work and
:09:51. > :09:58.marrying her fiance. She admits while in hospital, he was good --
:09:58. > :10:02.he was going to tell her it was over. Good times and bad times, why
:10:02. > :10:07.can't we be together? It never came across my mind that I would say
:10:07. > :10:14.that. Because she is the same person? Yes. While the medical
:10:14. > :10:17.staff gave their time for free, the rest was pay for by a a McIndoe
:10:17. > :10:27.Surgical Centre support group and Sundeep's family. Now they are
:10:27. > :10:28.
:10:28. > :10:31.trying to raise more to continue the surgery.
:10:31. > :10:34.A friend of a woman accused of murdering her two young children
:10:34. > :10:37.told Lewes Crown Court today that she had seemed "nervous" when she
:10:37. > :10:40.saw her a day earlier, but that nothing she did made her concerned
:10:40. > :10:43.for the youngsters' welfare. The bodies of three-year-old Harry and
:10:43. > :10:45.two-year-old Elise Donnison were found in the boot of a car near
:10:45. > :10:47.their former family home in Heathfield in January last year.
:10:47. > :10:49.Fiona Donnison denies two counts of murder.
:10:49. > :10:52.A conman nicknamed "Champagne Charlie", who is believed to have
:10:52. > :10:55.tricked people out of more than �11,000, may be in Brighton,
:10:55. > :10:58.according to Sussex police. The man offers people bottles of Bollinger
:10:58. > :11:04.at a bargain price, but when they hand over cash, he never returns.
:11:04. > :11:08.The man has the name "Sharon" tattooed on his forearm.
:11:08. > :11:11.It is claimed that cuts to Border Agency staff are allowing some
:11:11. > :11:16.lorries to pass through Calais without undergoing sufficient
:11:16. > :11:19.checks for illegal immigrants. The Immigration Services Union says the
:11:19. > :11:29.number of UK Border Agency staff dedicated to freight checks in the
:11:29. > :11:29.
:11:29. > :11:34.French port has been halved from 160 down to 80 Bishop. -- this year.
:11:34. > :11:37.The evidence shows up, the statistics show, there has been a
:11:37. > :11:42.70% reduction in the number of their legal getting through in the
:11:42. > :11:47.last two years. -- illegals. So we have seen a sharp reduction.
:11:47. > :11:50.The Bishop of Tonbridge has entered the assisted dying debate. The
:11:50. > :11:58.Right Reverend Dr Brian Castle says "society has forgotten the art of
:11:58. > :12:01.dying". He also says many people are no longer willing to submit to
:12:01. > :12:04.the mystery of death. The comments are in response to a
:12:04. > :12:07.BBC documentary which showed a man taking his own life at the so-
:12:07. > :12:10.called Swiss suicide clinic, Dignitas. Ian Palmer reports.
:12:10. > :12:18.He believes in an afterlife, but the Bishop of Tonbridge feels some
:12:18. > :12:24.of us are not treating this life with enough respect. So often, we
:12:24. > :12:29.have forgotten that death is a mystery. We often treated a bit
:12:29. > :12:33.like an ordinary everyday event, and it is something so much more
:12:33. > :12:37.mysterious and significant. I and 62 and I was diagnosed with
:12:37. > :12:40.Alzheimer's three years ago -- I am. Terry Pratchett wants assisted
:12:40. > :12:42.dying to be legalised in this country. The author followed a man
:12:42. > :12:46.with motor neurone disease to Swizterland. The last moments of
:12:46. > :12:48.Peter Smedley's life were shown on British television. Although he
:12:48. > :12:56.didn't watch the programme, the documentary prompted the Bishop of
:12:56. > :13:00.Tonbridge to write a letter to the Church Times. I think that we live
:13:00. > :13:03.in a society which tries to encourage us to try and control
:13:03. > :13:08.everything we do from the moment we get up until the moment we go to
:13:08. > :13:12.bed. And it is encouraging us to think we can control everything.
:13:12. > :13:16.Ultimately, death is something we cannot control, and I think that
:13:16. > :13:21.what the assisted suicide debate tries to do and what clinics like
:13:21. > :13:24.Dignitas try to do is show us that we can control death. We may be
:13:24. > :13:27.able to control the moment of death, but we cannot control the process
:13:27. > :13:32.of dying. But Jon Bray disagrees. His son
:13:32. > :13:35.Simon died last month. The father of two endured months of pain. Mr
:13:35. > :13:41.Bray says Simon wanted to end his life in Swizterland but wasn't
:13:41. > :13:47.strong enough to make the trip. had the necessary drugs to put him
:13:47. > :13:52.down, and I was too frightened to use them. Subsequently, I learned
:13:52. > :13:57.from my GP that in fact, they would not have worked, because if he was
:13:57. > :14:03.so full of morphia. But I felt very guilty that I couldn't help him in
:14:04. > :14:07.his hour of need, because he was a lucky boy. -- lovely.
:14:07. > :14:16.Two men - two arguments,disunited over death. Both had the courage to
:14:16. > :14:21.speak out. Will the nation follow A Maidstone couples so they may
:14:21. > :14:27.have to sell the house in order to get their son home from Indonesia.
:14:27. > :14:37.He was left unconscious after a motorcycle crash two weeks ago.
:14:37. > :14:42.Also in tonight's programme. Celebrating 50 years of going on a
:14:43. > :14:52.surfing safari in Thanet. And he is at baby black lemur. He
:14:53. > :14:53.
:14:53. > :14:59.Families in an East Sussex town struggling with their shopping
:14:59. > :15:04.bills are being offered free food. The food bank in Eastburn is the
:15:04. > :15:10.first in the South East but is one of 117 in the country. Between them
:15:10. > :15:15.last year they fed 61,500 people. That is a rise up of 50% on the
:15:16. > :15:22.previous year. In tonight's special report, we met the people who say
:15:22. > :15:26.the food bank is an invaluable service.
:15:26. > :15:30.Daniel is 16 and living in a hostel for young homeless people. Without
:15:30. > :15:35.the food bank, he would have gone hungry. His benefit payments have
:15:35. > :15:40.been delayed so he does not have enough money for food. It is so
:15:40. > :15:48.simple. You just get referred there. They are so nice there. They give
:15:48. > :15:52.up their own time to give you the whole -- to give you the food.
:15:52. > :15:57.donated food is collected from schools, churches and supermarkets.
:15:57. > :16:01.In the last few weeks, they have stockpiled almost a one-ton. Some
:16:01. > :16:06.people have brought carrier bags full of stuff. It has been quite
:16:06. > :16:10.amazing. The people who had been receiving the food, they have been
:16:10. > :16:15.so grateful. It has been amazing. In a lot of instances they have
:16:15. > :16:20.nowhere else to time. This is the first food bag in the South East
:16:20. > :16:24.outside London. Another is planned for the Medway towns. The food is
:16:25. > :16:32.stored here and sorted into boxes like these. Each box contains three
:16:32. > :16:35.days' worth of food. It is designed to be quick and helpful. If the
:16:35. > :16:41.adventurers are distributed by health visitors and parents'
:16:41. > :16:45.support -- parent support advisers. The EC demand here is huge.
:16:45. > :16:50.significant number of the family is that we are working with our
:16:50. > :16:53.suffering real financial hardship. It is really good to know that
:16:53. > :16:58.there is an organisation that is devoted to getting some real
:16:58. > :17:03.practical help for these families. Daniel is returning to college in
:17:03. > :17:13.September and eventually is hoping to join the Army. Until then, the
:17:13. > :17:13.
:17:13. > :17:19.feedback is helping him through a difficult time. -- through to bank.
:17:19. > :17:25.Malibu, Bondi, Broadstairs, at the names of the world's great surfing
:17:25. > :17:29.beaches just chip off the tongue, do they not? Perhaps this that
:17:29. > :17:32.coast does not have quite the same international cachet but people
:17:32. > :17:38.have been surfing here for a long time.
:17:38. > :17:48.They were first inspired by the sound of the Californian beach boys
:17:48. > :17:59.
:17:59. > :18:05.and an exhibition celebrating this Meet the Beach Boys. Bronzed, up
:18:05. > :18:13.bare-breasted, this is the 1960s and the surf is up along the east
:18:13. > :18:23.coast. East coast of Kent, that is. Et it was the music of the Beach
:18:23. > :18:26.
:18:26. > :18:32.Boys. It is the magic of the waves and meeting your friends and all
:18:32. > :18:37.the things that go with it. That whole complex of lifestyle.
:18:37. > :18:42.Interaction of surfboards, music, the beach, fashion and going into
:18:43. > :18:49.sour. This is the story of the pioneering at surfers of Thanet,
:18:49. > :18:57.told in pictures, music and of course through their surfboards.
:18:57. > :19:01.This is the first surfboard that came to Kent. Yes. In 1966. Being
:19:01. > :19:06.seen driving around with this on the roof was so cool! People could
:19:06. > :19:11.not understand, they thought we were just showing off. But we had
:19:11. > :19:21.discovered some awesome serve nearby and suddenly everyone around
:19:21. > :19:27.
:19:27. > :19:32.Some people who make their way here will be surprised to find that
:19:32. > :19:38.there is a surfing theme here. They are calling it the Bechtel and that
:19:38. > :19:44.will be the way that many people remember it out there. -- the Big
:19:44. > :19:49.Chill. We all share the same experiences. Freezing water cold
:19:50. > :19:54.wind, chilblains! There is something about the surface. They
:19:54. > :20:01.were all smiling then and gathering round today, they still seem to
:20:01. > :20:05.have the last laugh. Brave or crazy?
:20:05. > :20:09.Freezing rains, it sounds like the Open!
:20:09. > :20:18.Speaking of which, it may have read a lot but it was most certainly not
:20:18. > :20:22.at damp squid -- squib. Darren Clarke one of the title at his 20th
:20:22. > :20:25.attempt. Our correspondent has been there
:20:25. > :20:31.all way through and is still there. He is with two people who have
:20:31. > :20:34.their own reasons were smiling. It is hard to believe that just 24
:20:34. > :20:44.hours ago this stand was jam-packed with people waiting to celebrate
:20:44. > :20:47.with Darren Clarke. That is where he picked up the Claret Jug. Many
:20:47. > :20:50.people watched some wonderful golf and endured some terrible weather,
:20:50. > :21:00.but by common consent this was one of the most wonderful open
:21:00. > :21:17.
:21:17. > :21:26.I have never done anything anywhere near as good as this. It is just
:21:26. > :21:36.incredible. I have loved it. I have been to every Open since 1981 that
:21:36. > :21:41.
:21:41. > :21:45.they have had down here. It is We have time that today and my
:21:45. > :21:52.friend who is with me has gone back to the Bar because he has had
:21:52. > :22:02.enough. I will plonk myself tenure for an hour to and see our goal. --
:22:02. > :22:06.
:22:06. > :22:16.down here. I was hoping that if I was hit by anyone's ball, it should
:22:16. > :22:23.
:22:23. > :22:30.Fish it -- the support that you have shown me has helped me to
:22:30. > :22:36.stand here, so to you all, thank you so, so, much from all my heart,
:22:36. > :22:41.thank you. For Darren Clarke it was a fairy-tale but there were plenty
:22:41. > :22:47.of other wonderful stories as well. This man qualified from one of the
:22:47. > :22:51.local clubs. It was incredible. You cannot put into words how it felt
:22:51. > :22:56.out there. They cried watching you and applauding your moves and
:22:56. > :23:01.family and friends what you, it was just incredible. And it has
:23:01. > :23:05.revitalised a golfing career? Massively. I have got sponsorship
:23:05. > :23:10.and I'm going out to the States later in the year to try and
:23:10. > :23:15.qualified for the PGA tour. I hope to have a good year next year.
:23:15. > :23:20.you have impressed some American golfers. Yes. I have played a
:23:20. > :23:28.couple of practice rounds with them. One let me stay at his house. He is
:23:28. > :23:33.also going to pay for me to go out to the States. David, at great
:23:33. > :23:36.golfing success. Commercially? We know that the last Open produced an
:23:36. > :23:43.economic impact of around 100 million times. I do not think we
:23:43. > :23:47.will be far from that this weekend. The shops were beamed all over the
:23:47. > :23:52.world. This is the close as part of the country to northern Europe so
:23:52. > :23:58.we expect holidaymakers and tourists to come here. Thank you
:23:58. > :24:04.very much. It could be 10 years before it returns but in the
:24:04. > :24:10.meantime we have some terrific memories.
:24:10. > :24:15.He is only three months old and has been born at a zoo in East Sussex.
:24:15. > :24:20.He is a Madagascar and black lemur, they are very rare. He has just
:24:20. > :24:28.started to come down off his mother's back to explore.
:24:28. > :24:34.Claiming to mum. The orderly of faith, but then back to claim to
:24:34. > :24:41.mum. Here are some vital stats. He was born in April and his favoured
:24:41. > :24:46.foot, despite what you see here, is peer. It is plain. That is all he
:24:46. > :24:56.is interested in. He goes around the other lemurs to try end Errity
:24:56. > :25:20.
:25:20. > :25:25.them and have a good time. -- Black lemurs usually carry their
:25:25. > :25:31.children for up to six months. He is now a two-month old and he is
:25:32. > :25:36.getting increasingly confident. His dad came to this to -- to this do
:25:36. > :25:42.from Tunis the app and his mum from Portugal, as part of the European
:25:42. > :25:50.endangered species programme. Here though, life is good. Dad is at
:25:50. > :25:56.hand to fend off the masses Welsh he puts up his own fight for food.
:25:56. > :26:06.-- whilst he puts up his own fight. He is almost as cute as Michael
:26:06. > :26:11.I have found our summer. The trouble is that is 1000 miles away
:26:11. > :26:17.and it is not coming away. Today, we had a giant swirling Catherine
:26:17. > :26:22.wheel across the country. Loads of cloud and showers sweeping around.
:26:22. > :26:27.That is an area of low pressure. That will drift away northwards in
:26:27. > :26:33.the next few hours, at the weather will hardly change it will be cool
:26:33. > :26:40.and sherry. Hardly anything is going to change for the last at --
:26:40. > :26:49.rest of the week. -- cool and showery. Moore low-pressure will
:26:49. > :26:55.come in from the south-west. That will trigger some heavy rain. We
:26:55. > :27:02.have had a fair number of showers. They will keep going into the
:27:02. > :27:07.evening. Those showers will continue through the evening, they
:27:07. > :27:12.will fade away in the early hours so that most places will have a try
:27:12. > :27:20.end to the night. Actually might also, temperatures down to 11
:27:20. > :27:25.degrees in some places. A chilly night. There could be the odd heavy