25/08/2011 South East Today


25/08/2011

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Welcome to South East Today, I'm Rob Smith. And I'm Polly Evans.

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Tonight's top stories: Record breakers; the South East has the

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most successful GCSE students in the country.

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A load of old rubbish or a model for other cities; claims removing

:00:15.:00:24.

bins from Canterbury's streets has made it cleaner.

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We took the bins away when the riots happened some weeks ago and

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we were surprised when there were no bins, there was less rubbish.

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Also in tonight's programme: All at sea - distinguished actor Timothy

:00:34.:00:40.

Spall calls out the lifeboat after getting lost on the River Medway.

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Hat-trick hero - Chatham's Ashley Jackson leads from the front in

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England's crushing victory over And how Guy the bandit Thompson

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will be representing the UK at the world air guitar championships in

:00:53.:01:03.
:01:03.:01:10.

Good evening. It's been another record breaking year for teenagers

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who've received their GCSE results across the South East. Students in

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the region got the highest proportion of top grades compared

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to any other part of the country. More than 26% of students achieved

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an A star or A grade - that's up slightly on last year. And nearly

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three-quarters of this year's entries achieve a C grade or above.

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Although some schools have achieved worse results than last year, many

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have improved. Jon Hunt has been to three of them.

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Record results, many schools improving. We have been to three

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state schools to find out what they're doing right. The Howard

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School says it is because pupils are more motivated. Boys, are you

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ready? I'll take you a dozen at the time! It used to have a bad image

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but year-on-year results have been improving. This year is no

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exception. Really impressed with what I have got. Four A*. The three

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A*, five Bs. I got As in English. I am happy. More than 55% of pupils

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achieved grades A* to C. This is the all-important measure and good

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grades are more important than ever. One of the reasons results have

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improved his students are aware it is a tough world in employment. It

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is wretched. They are well aware be needed good clutch of GCSEs.

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cat and effect has been the effects in Tunbridge Wells. Students

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phoning home. I got a very As, a bee and a C. The school was failing

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and was made an academy in 2009. Before, a 17% achieved the key

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grades. Today, it has shot up to 46%. No wonder the principle is

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smiling. It is a fantastic individual results of our students

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and the massive progress they have made. They have worked hard and

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been rewarded. At Patcham High School, they have seen a results

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leap, too. Pupils have the best results ever up 13 percentage

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points on the key performance measure because of better

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collaboration. It is a team effort, staff, students and parents and

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together it has come together. We are delighted today. It's fantastic

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for the students. To the students getting results today have the

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skills to make it in the business world? They are educated but not

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the skills we require. English language is a bit of a

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disappointment. The quality of maths. Something good old fashioned

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at mental arithmetic is not there. A record results but clearly

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concerns that standards are still not good enough.

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Jon Hunt reporting. We're joined now by Spencer Mehlman, managing

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director of the website not-going- to-uni, which advises young people

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on career opportunities. Mr Mehlman, the Federation of Small Businesses

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aren't impressed with the practical qualities of school leavers,

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despite record results here in the south east, is that your

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experience? I think that a good number are ready for work. A lot of

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young people have not yet picked up employability skills. There is a

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need for young people to start working at an earlier age part-time

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work, whether paper rounds, working in a family business and

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understanding the fundamentals of customer service and business. It's

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important the education bodies start to in bed employability

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skills back into the curriculum. It really is missing. Are you seeing

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an increase in the number of students wanting to come through

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websites like yours because of fears of tuition fees? We have been

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inundated. This month we are seeing in excess of 100,000 young people

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coming through, applying for thousands of different

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opportunities. If somebody wants to follow a profession and become a

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lawyer or an accountant, they need A-levels and degrees. No, they

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don't. It's a misconception. There are very good vocational routes

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into those tried and tested professions. You can become a

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solicitor or legal executive through the various programmes or

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become an accountant through vocational learning. Utilising the

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trade bodies. This is on our website and I urge young people to

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have a look. Finally, for some of the people who would not have got

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great grades, is it all over for them? Absolutely not. Do not panic,

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have a look, make an informed decision, lots of young people

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coming out with degrees are struggling to find work. It's

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important you get a foot in the door and a really positive attitude.

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Thank you. And you can find out more about how students in the

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South East have done on our political editor's blog at

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bbc.co.uk/louisestewart. You can also follow her on Twitter

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@BBCLouise. They were removed because of fears

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they'd be set alight and used in the recent riots. Now, Canterbury

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City Council says its decision to take rubbish bins away from the

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City Centre has actually led to the streets being cleaner. And they say,

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in many areas, there is no plan to bring the bins back at all - to the

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surprise of local traders. Simon Jones reports.

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The bustling city centre full of shoppers, tourists and Traders. But

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something is missing. The bins. would be terrible. Absolutely

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devastating. They should put them back. The need the bins. There's no

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way to put rubbish. People are more so about -- civilised. People take

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their rubbish home. To keep it clean, get more bins. It was

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rioting in London and fears it would spread to Kent that led to

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the removal of the bins for safety. Canterbury City Council have

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removed around 50 bins from the city centre. They used to line the

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High Street. They say it's not just about saving money but it admits it

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has been surprised by the results. The most important thing is the

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city stays clean. This experiment shows this is the case. We thought

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we would keep the bins gone, in some areas we have replaced the

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bins but in many areas it is Tokely. Our cameras found a bins make some

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people used the pavement instead. The council insists money saved has

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been used for more regular cleaning patrols. Campaigners say it is up

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to everyone to take the issue seriously. It is personal

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responsibility and businesses responsibility to take action to do

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the right thing. Put it in a bin or take a 10th. 20 of the 50 bins are

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in the process of being put back in hot spots. Canterbury believes it

:08:53.:09:03.
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is about rethinking what we do with are rubbish.

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Did he interview a man dressed as a carrot?

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He did! In a moment: Could a farmer have come up with a novel use for

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the Kent plums left to rot because the supermarkets aren't buying

:09:13.:09:23.
:09:23.:09:28.

He was filming for his latest BBC series but the actor Timothy Spall

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found himself all at sea off the Kent coast and had to be rescued by

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lifeboat. The start of a 1980s CD series was near Coimbra when he and

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his crew realised they were lost. Our reporter is in Sheerness. Where

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were they trying to go? Chatham a marina is where they were

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aiming to go but Timothy Spall and his crew were trying to get a

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Chatton arena when at 9:30pm last night they ran off course. They

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were bought the Princess material - - Matilda. They were filming the

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final episode of a sailing programme. They were trying to get

:10:13.:10:20.

to the Chatton Marina, found themselves disorientated the and

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the lifeboat macro had to escort them back. You had a training

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session last night and you overheard him talking to the

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coastguard. We was finishing a poor training and we heard him on

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Channel 16 calling up the coast guard to say he was confused in the

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Medway. He did not know where he was. So what did you do? The pager

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went off and we went off to escort him to Queen Rye Harbour. I gather

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it's not the first time he has been caught out. Is it particularly

:10:55.:11:02.

difficult to navigate? There are lots of mud flats in a tricky areas

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around the creeks. As well as that, the advice is to look for a green

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light which is difficult amongst houses and the Isle of Sheppey can

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be tricky. He taught himself to navigate, was he prepared?

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probably could have done with a bit more practice in night navigation

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because navigating in the day you can see the land around due. At

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night it is just the lights. Wind to realise it was Timothy Spall?

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When I boarded the boat. It was the Brummie accent! We tried to chat to

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Tim and his team but the last few days have been trying and he is

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shattered. This evening he and his team are still at Chatham Marina

:11:52.:12:01.
:12:02.:12:02.

and Tech 3 they can get going again. A man who said he had memory loss

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has been identified. He is 59 years old and from Derbyshire but the

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police say he can't be named for welfare reasons. His wife and

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stepchildren have confirmed who he is and he's still being treated in

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a Margate hospital. Kent Police are looking to talk to

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anyone who spoke to a 32-year-old woman in the days before her murder.

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Jenny Banner from Chatham was found strangled at her home last Friday.

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43-year-old Marcus Coates, also from the town, has been charged

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with her murder. The Cross-Channel ferry operator SeaFrance is running

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16 extra crossings over the bank holiday weekend to meet extra

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demand after Eurotunnel announced it faced strike disruption.

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Yesterday the company announced it's facing the threat of

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'indefinite' strike action from French workers demanding an 8 per

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cent pay rise. The go-ahead had finally been given

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for a London Eye style Ferris wheel on Brighton seafront. Permission

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has been given to developers Paramount Attractions to build on

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part of the pavement on Madeira Drive opposite the Sea Life Centre.

:13:00.:13:10.
:13:10.:13:10.

The company behind the Brighton O A man left with long-term health

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problems after contracting salmonella while on holiday, is

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fighting for compensation in court. Stewart Green from Dartford

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couldn't work for a month after catching the potentially fatal

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bacteria while in the Dominican Republic. He says Moss after

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contracting the disease, he is still suffering. -- months.

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Two years ago, Stewart Green want to the Dominican Republic. It

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turned to disaster when he contracted salmonella. While

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vacation memories may have disappeared, the symptoms have not.

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He still suffers from diarrhoea and vomiting. Around someone's house,

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you know you are going to make a smell, it is a worrying thing.

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Green's lawyers have no doubts about their clients' claims that a

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hygiene in the resort was inadequate. The food was

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undercooked, there was flies in the food, there was a lot of problems

:14:04.:14:10.

with the hotel. But the tour operator First Choice said nine out

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of ten customers are happy with the hotel. In a state bent, it said,

:14:15.:14:25.
:14:25.:14:28.

first choice closely audits all the Within two weeks, he lost nearly

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two and a half stone, and if that was any of the children, it could

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be devastating and a different story. In the meantime Mr Green and

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his solicitor waiting for a response to the latter they have

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sent to first choice. It is coming up to 6:45pm.

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Tonight's top story - GCSE students in the South East have got a

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highest proportion of top grades compared to any other part of the

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country. Even at its schools failing in the recent past, results

:14:58.:15:03.

have been strong. Also tonight, taking an axe to the

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competition, the Brighton man hoping to become the champion of

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the world at air guitar. We have heavy and persistent

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guerrilla -- rain, will its tidy up for Festival Friday? Join me later

:15:17.:15:21.

to find out. If you have a story to tell us, you

:15:22.:15:31.
:15:32.:15:42.

You may remember that yesterday we told you about the Kent plum

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farmers who say they are facing ruin because they cannot sell their

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produce, all of their produce, to that supermarkets. Tons of good

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food could be left to rot. After seeing our story, another Kent

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farmer may have a solution. A deal that could secure the future

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of his business. That is criminal, isn't it?

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After seeing our coverage yesterday, another farmer has stepped in

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offering to buy tons of plums that would otherwise be left to rot.

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It is good news not only for this year, but for next year, because

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now we have areas we can sell our plums, so it will pay for the cost

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of the picking and maybe a little bit more, instead of putting them

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on the dump. But what does another farmer want

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with tons of ripening fruit? I saw the news yesterday, the problem

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with plums, and consequently we currently import plum puree for

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mixed fruit jam that we manufacture. Ten miles up the road, Bill has

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just opened the country's first a septic processing plant where they

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make purees with a long shelf life without any preservatives. Will

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these plums pass the grade? taste of this, it is absolutely

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excellent. It is a fresh, unique, kind of plum taste. It is far

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superior to what we are buying from the Continent, and we are happy to

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take it on. Now the plums have passed the test,

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they will be next in line for this. They will be cut and turned to a

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pulp, then the process can begin. The puree is rapidly heated to

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around 95 degrees which kills off any mould spores and bacteria. It

:17:37.:17:42.

is then called before being packed into sterile bags. It could then

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last for up to a year. Sometimes it is just misshapen fruit which does

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not make it to the shop. For farmers struggling to make a living

:17:53.:17:56.

through supermarkets alone, this could provide a much-needed

:17:56.:18:06.
:18:06.:18:12.

De after nine months out of action Chatham's Ashley Jackson marked his

:18:12.:18:15.

return to the England hockey team with a hat-trick as the side

:18:15.:18:20.

crushed France 8 - 1 in the European Championships.

:18:20.:18:26.

It was a bus for Jackson, who was sidelined through injury. He is

:18:26.:18:29.

surprisingly critical about his own performance.

:18:29.:18:34.

It was to be the start of a great day for an England side defending

:18:34.:18:39.

their Ural hockey Nations title in the quarter-finals. To say they had

:18:39.:18:45.

the French on the back foot turned out to be an understatement.

:18:45.:18:50.

And prominent in the scoring spree was Chatham's Ashley Jackson, he is

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still nursing his way back to full form after months on the bench

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through injury. His blazing hat trick was reasons to celebrate, you

:19:00.:19:09.

might think. Today are thought my performance

:19:09.:19:14.

was way down, so it depends on how you look at it. There were a number

:19:14.:19:21.

of chances we had, but the team is winning, and we are building every

:19:21.:19:24.

stage we are going through. Hopefully we can take it up to the

:19:24.:19:27.

next step for Germany and the semi- finals.

:19:27.:19:31.

It is the sort of scorecard he will remember on his way back to form.

:19:31.:19:35.

The team's bid to retain their title in the tournament played in

:19:35.:19:43.

Germany looks on course. The first corner that went in in the first 20

:19:43.:19:47.

minutes meant that we were in the right frame of mind. It was always

:19:47.:19:52.

going to be comfortable from them. His home club, East Grinstead, will

:19:52.:19:57.

be avidly looking out for the young staff. Especially when he says that

:19:57.:20:00.

three sq -- three goals in a quarter-final just is not good

:20:01.:20:05.

enough. Cricket - Sussex have lost to India

:20:05.:20:11.

by six wickets at a halt today. Sussex bowled out for 236, and

:20:11.:20:15.

India then reached the target with a loss of just four wickets. Virat

:20:15.:20:23.

Kohli was the top scorer. This is the more that we have all

:20:23.:20:28.

been waiting for. Depending on your view, it is either a highly skilled

:20:28.:20:33.

use copper formers or something kids grow out of. A musician from

:20:33.:20:35.

Brighton forever takes it very seriously.

:20:35.:20:39.

His name is Guy "The Bandit" Thompson, and he has been crowned

:20:39.:20:44.

air guitar champion of the UK at the weekend. Now, he is going to be

:20:44.:20:50.

going to the international finals in Finland tomorrow.

:20:50.:21:00.
:21:00.:21:03.

Take it away, Guy. AIR GUITAR GUITAR -- plays.

:21:03.:21:08.

If you are into a air guitar, you will be admiring the power chords,

:21:08.:21:12.

but if like me you are wondering, where is the guitar, there is not

:21:12.:21:17.

one. Air guitar is all about pretending you have a guitar, and

:21:17.:21:25.

it is not easy. The high notes you move into your body, the loan notes

:21:25.:21:31.

you are down. It is no good to do just this, it looks like you do not

:21:31.:21:37.

have a guitar. You may have missed it, but the air guitar

:21:37.:21:40.

championships have been around since the late 90s. The

:21:40.:21:44.

international final in Finland will include competitors from at least

:21:44.:21:49.

20 countries - a bit like your revision, for hard people. Moving

:21:49.:21:54.

your arms about, and looking like you have a bendy guitar, or not

:21:54.:22:01.

just hitting the notes but having your hands in the same position.

:22:01.:22:08.

Not convinced? Neither was this Radio 1 disc jockey, track down by

:22:08.:22:18.

an air guitar expert. I just shout at the TV. Each to their own!

:22:18.:22:23.

is not going to hold are marked down -- back, but there is one

:22:23.:22:28.

obstacle. I pulled a muscle in my back, but I'm sure I get out there

:22:28.:22:33.

and it will be different. We will all be cheering you on. The prize

:22:33.:22:40.

for the winner - a real guitar, but I am not sure guide needs it.

:22:40.:22:47.

Extraordinary. John is in Brighton now. There is some rivalry in the

:22:47.:22:53.

titles. Yes, there is quite an air guitar underworld here. There is an

:22:53.:22:58.

event coming up in two weeks' time here at Brighton which calls itself

:22:58.:23:02.

the national final of the UK air guitar championships. Hang on,

:23:02.:23:09.

isn't that what guy has just one? I got him on the phone, and asked him

:23:09.:23:13.

if there had been a mix up. He said, no, there are various events like

:23:14.:23:19.

this, but he is the real thing - the air guitar UK champion. That is

:23:19.:23:23.

what he will be taking part in, flying the flag for the UK,

:23:23.:23:28.

tomorrow. We are all very proud! I hope he

:23:28.:23:38.

does not try to fly in an imaginary This morning we had a great start

:23:38.:23:43.

to the day - rain particularly in the West. It dried up into the

:23:43.:23:48.

afternoon, and it stays dry tonight, but we will see heavy and

:23:48.:23:52.

persistent rain pushing up from the south, or wait and unsettled end to

:23:52.:23:58.

the night. It should surely -- slowly clear by the afternoon.

:23:58.:24:03.

Earlier today we had a weather front spreading eastwards. Some

:24:03.:24:10.

lively downpours during rush hour, and then it cleared up. It was

:24:10.:24:15.

still an unsettled day for many. Top temperatures getting up to

:24:15.:24:20.

highs of 19 degrees, fairly disappointing for August. As we

:24:20.:24:24.

move through this evening, it was be staying dry macro for a while.

:24:24.:24:29.

But we have got a Met Office weather warning, but we could see

:24:29.:24:35.

up to 15 mm of rain. Some flash flooding likely. We're seeing this

:24:35.:24:41.

rain pushing up from the south, so all white and unsettled end tonight.

:24:41.:24:47.

25-35 mm of rain, and possibly up to 50 mm. Temperatures not dropping

:24:47.:24:53.

much below 13 of 14 degrees. Fairly tricky rush hour tomorrow morning,

:24:53.:24:58.

but that rain will slowly pull away, and it will be increasingly dry.

:24:58.:25:04.

Fingers crossed for Festival Friday. Still plenty of cloud, temperatures

:25:04.:25:10.

fairly depressed. Top temperatures of 20 degrees, that is 68 in

:25:10.:25:15.

Fahrenheit with moderate south- westerly breeze is. It stays mostly

:25:15.:25:20.

dry as we move overnight, eventually those showers will clear,

:25:20.:25:24.

more in the way of clearer skies. Temperatures a little bit cooler

:25:25.:25:30.

than recently - knows there of around 11 degrees. Towards the

:25:30.:25:34.

weekend some showers around for Saturday, Clearing as we move into

:25:34.:25:43.

Sunday. Improving as well by Monday, even some sunshine!

:25:43.:25:47.

Not too bad for Festival Friday, because we have been enjoying the

:25:47.:25:52.

fun in Broadstairs, Eastbourne and Bexhill. Tomorrow, we will be at

:25:52.:25:57.

Herne Bay. When the sun shining and summer is

:25:57.:26:00.

in full swing, there is nothing better than getting out of the

:26:00.:26:03.

office for a trip to the seaside, and that is what we have got

:26:04.:26:08.

planned every Friday in August. We are entering the first force

:26:08.:26:12.

buried by taking South East Today on the road to join you at some of

:26:12.:26:15.

the biggest summer celebrations across Kent and Sussex.

:26:15.:26:19.

We will be on location each Festival Friday, and would love as

:26:19.:26:24.

many of you as possible to come along and join in the fund.

:26:24.:26:29.

Do join us tomorrow at lunchtime and at 6:30pm for that Herne Bay

:26:29.:26:34.

Festival. Let us run through the headlines -

:26:34.:26:38.

Libya's colonel Gaddafi is on the run, but has issued another call to

:26:38.:26:42.

arms. He has told supporters to resist what he called the enemy

:26:42.:26:46.

rats in the capital Tripoli. Medical staff are working at full

:26:46.:26:51.

stretch to deal with the casualties. It has been another record-breaking

:26:51.:26:55.

year for GCSE results across the South East - students in the region

:26:55.:26:58.

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