21/11/2011 South East Today

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

Tonight's top stories: Was a Kent man's murder on an island in the

Indian ocean covered up? His family demand answers after they were told

his death was an accident. Boris Johnson warns of "economic

stagnation" in the South East unless his grand plan, a new

international airport, is built in Kent. Also in tonight's programme:

500 more bobbies on the beat, say Kent police bosses. The Police

Federation says they're misleading the public. We meet the team that

will sail an Olympic boat made of wooden spoons and tennis racquets

around Kent and Sussex. And butterflies on the wing, flowers in

bloom, ducklings on the water - how the unseasonably warm weather is

Good evening. The family of a former marine from Kent who was

murdered on an Island in the Indian Ocean say they believe the truth

about his death was covered up. Carl Davies' family were initially

told he had died in an accident after falling from a cliff. They

have since learnt he was beaten and stabbed before being dumped in a

30-foot ravine. He had travelled from his home in Maidstone earlier

this month to the French governed island of Reunion to work in

security. Simon Jones reports. His parents were initially told he died

after falling down a cliff, but it was not until one week later they

found that he had been stabbed and beaten. At the Isle of Sheppey

Academy where he had worked as a teacher until August, there is a

huge sense of loss. We just remember the first piece of news

and we hardly come to terms with this last piece of news which is

pretty devastating for us all. will you remember him? Personally,

all of my colleagues would say he was a fine young man with a good

future ahead of them. What has happened is a tragedy. It is

believed that Carl Davies arrived on the Aegean island, the night

before he died. His death initially was not been treated as suspicious.

The British consulate in Paris was only informed last Thursday that

this had become a murder investigation. Carl Davis's former

colleagues have been sending their sympathy to his family. His father

and his wife are furious at what they see as the lack of co-

operation and information from the French authorities and a fighting

to have his body sent home. The family believe the authorities were

reluctant to admit what had happened, for fear that it could

damage tourism. Police on the island declined to comment.

Elland community has been hurt by this. In Kent, Chinese lanterns

were released at the weekend to mark the life of Carl Davies.

was such a happy, funny man. All his lessons were packed with fun

and laughter. Everybody looked forward to going to them. He let

everyone achieve their full potential, all the time.

Foreign Office is doing everything it can, to seek clarification for

the family. Britain faces "economic stagnation" unless a major airport

is built in the south-east, according to a new report. The

London Mayor Boris Johnson has already proposed an island airport

in the estuary - and is now also backing to other proposals,

including the Isle of Grain plan from Lord Foster. He says a new hub

airport in the Thames Estuary must be central to plans for economic

growth. But as our political editor Louise Stewart reports, there's

strong local opposition, with Medway Council calling on the

public to email their objections to Mr Johnson. Even now that the

weather has cleared, he froze his serving fewer destinations than 10

years ago. Boris Johnson's argument is that Heathrow airport is at

capacity and cannot cope with Robert De man. His latest report

calling for a hub airport in the Thames estuary comes three weeks

after the world-renowned architect Norman Foster underline plans to

build a new airport there. The London mayor, who initially laid

out the plans, says that a new hub airport is essential for economic

growth and would be a boost for the Saudis. Of course there will be

hostility and anxiety, but when you look at the difficulties that that

part of Britain has been going through, and the historic under-

employment in parts of north Kent, I think it would be a good deal. It

can be done in a way that minimises noise and disruption. Economists

backing the scheme say Britain must wake up to the challenge is a 21st

century business. The world is changing, and wealth and sources of

tourism are shifting to Asia, and Britain, because of constraints on

hub airport capacity, cannot effectively plied these trade

routes that are rapidly developing. There has been fierce opposition to

the plans from local MPs, councillors and residents. Medway

council are calling for the public to e-mail Boris Johnson to show him

the strength of feeling. He needs to know what the views of local

people are. We can tell him, we have carried out opinion polls

which say that people do not want the airport. We have to keep

telling them because they are not listening at the moment.

previous Transport Minister did not support the plans, but his

successor has said that nothing should be ruled out before a white

paper considering the future of aviation in 2013. We are joined by

Louise Stuart, our political editor. There is lots of opposition in the

Medway towns, but Boris Johnson's plans have lots of support, too.

That is right, he said there were some murmuring that there have been

more support for his idea. Some senior government figures including

Chancellor George Osborne back the scheme, others rule it out. There

is lots of opposition in the Medway towns. Some people call it pie-in-

the-sky. But nothing has been ruled out at this stage, and the Thames

estuary Airport is one of the plans being considered, ahead of the

Aviation Report in 2013. In a moment, parts of the South East see

some of the biggest increases in youth unemployment in the country.

Kent Police says it's put more than 500 extra officers on front-line

duties this year, despite having to make millions of pounds worth of

savings. It says the increase is through a massive re-organisation.

The force is committed to saving �50 million by 2015. As part of

this, they plan to cut 500 officer posts and 1,000 support staff. And

those cuts are already happening. Compared to this time last year,

there are 200 fewer officer posts and 330 fewer support staff. But

the Kent Police Federation, which represents officers, claims the

figures are misleading and most were already front line staff. Jon

Hunt reports. There may be fewer police officers in Kent last year

but the number working in the Brit teams is going up. The county's

force says that it is doing more, with less, after restructuring is

pleasing model and streamlining back office functions. The Police

Federation says that the force is trying to pull the wool over the

eyes of the public. We have to remember that the force have not

suddenly found 650 officers in the back of us and put them on to what

is euphemistically called the front line. These are now frontline

officers who have been moved to a different frontline post. This is

about moving the front line around, not finding new, extra resources

for it. Kent Police is that it is using few double crew response cars

and has put in some detectives back on the beat. In spite of this, the

force says that important work, such as dealing with fraud

investigations, domestic abuse and monitoring sex offenders, will not

be compromised. It is the fickle, but we have a priority from the

Chief Constable for front line policing, which means delivering

quality services to the people of Kent and Medway will be our

priority. We're taking the sources from training, from back office

jobs, and putting them back on the front line. The force has done away

with divisional patrols were police was born to incidence in a

designated area. This has upset residents of Aylsham, who fear they

will no longer be served by the policeman who has helped them for

20 years. The local police have respect. They know the area, they

no the hot spots where they are likely to be. So, to lose a man

with that knowledge, is a disaster for the area. There are 200 fewer

police officers in Kent now than there were last year, and there are

more cuts to come. Jon Hunt reporting and he joins us live now

from Tunbridge Wells. So how many of these "new neighbourhood police

officers" are actually former backroom staff? Kent police could

not give me a full breakdown. But they admitted the majority of new

officers are coming from those former double crew patrols that are

now single cruise. They are going back into their neighbourhood with

a new job title and a new brief, but they might give me some

examples of back office staff on back onto the front line. Some of

the training staff are going back onto the front line. The fact is,

Kent Police has to lose another 300 officers over the next three-four

years, so they are trying to do everything they can, with the

resources they to have. An airline based at Gatwick that once employed

Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson as a pilot has gone into

administration. Icelandic-owned Astraeus Airlines, which leases

aircraft to other companies, flew British troops out to Afghanistan

last year. It blamed technical problems and a lack of contracts

this winter for its problems. The Attorney General has been granted

permission to begin contempt of court proceedings against the

broadcaster, Sky News over its reporting of the release of

Tunbridge Wells couple Paul and Rachel Chandler. The couple had

been held hostage by Somali kidnappers for 13 months. Reporting

restrictions had been put in place while they were being released last

November, to protect their safety. Sky News denies breaking the terms

of the injunction. Two football fans who allegedly chanted

homophobic abuse at Brighton and Hove supporters have been charged

under the public order act. The Southampton supporters were said to

have taken part in the chanting at the St Mary's Ground. Rikesh

Sakaria and Joseph Adam Webb were arrested at the ground. The South

East has seen some of the largest increases in the numbers of young

people out of work in the country. Last week we heard that, nationwide,

their numbers had reached just over a million. Today, figures have been

released for individual parliamentary constituencies. They

show that Tonbridge and Malling's seen a 250% increase in the number

of 18 to 24 years olds out of work for more than six months between

January and October. In Gillingham and Rainham, there are now 260

youngsters looking for work - an increase of 205%. In Eastbourne the

numbers are up 172%. What we have to do his work with the youth, who

are fantastic, who want opportunities if you create

opportunities for them, in the Medway towns. We have looked a

pumping 300,000 extra people into work. We have created 4100 extra or

pork joint -- extra employment opportunities in the Medway towns

and the last year. In East Surrey, there was just a 5% rise. For many

18-24 year-olds, including these that we spoke to in Chatham, the

prospects for finding work in the immediate future looked bleak.

need more job fairs for employers to show that they are interested,

because sometimes I think that people just do not care about us,

that we're just forgotten about. is hard times. How does it make you

feel? It makes you feel bad, you have no confidence because you

The actual numbers of young people in each area does not sound that

high, does it? That is true, but it is the rate of increase that is so

significant. We have one of the fastest rises in the country which

is comparable to towns like black full and part of Sheffield. Youth

unemployment is so high and no-one seems to be able to find a

meaningful way of bringing it down. That is frustrating. One young man

came up to me this evening and said he is being judged by a piece of

paper. He has not been given the opportunity to get into a

meaningful job. The young people I spoke to say they are applying for

these jobs, but often they are not even getting an answer from

employers. Many are worried they will be employed for years to come.

The Department for work and pensions told us today that these

figures represent a significant increase in the numbers of young

people unemployed in parts of the South East. The next set of

unemployment statistics will include those who have left

education this summer, so they are expected to go up.

A Kent family are demanding to know the truth about their son's death

on an island in the Indian Ocean after claims he has been murdered.

Carl Davies's family were told he had died in an accident, but they

have now learnt he was stabbed before his body was dumped in a

ravine. The Hastings teenager dreaming of a

career on the stage after winning a place in the prestigious Central

School of Ballet. And why our butterflies, flowers

and even ducks have been confused It is the flagship for the Cultural

Olympiad, I sailing work of art made up of thousands of wooden

objects. The crew that will seal this boat of memories around Kent

and Sussex as part of our Olympic celebrations have come together for

the first time. We report on the six men and women who were

Together for the first time, the crew of one of the most unusual

yachts ever built. It is an Aladdin's cave of things. Rees's

cross sections have been taken through them. We have a boomerang

hear that a couple Brotton from a trip to Australia. I think this was

a shoe mauled. It is hard to see how all these bits and pieces of

people's memorabilia at will glued together to make a craft that will

sail our coast for next year's Cultural Olympiad. These subjects

get cut into the sides here. From a distance, the boat will look like a

regular sailing yacht. As you get closer, you see all the details.

When you find yourself chosen to crew a performance yacht, you have

to start somewhere. The would-be sailors find themselves making

their own racing models. I got nominated by Mike commanding

officer in Hastings. He said it would be part of history. No-one

will ever be able to do it again, a great experience. It is such an

inclusive project, it is all about people contributing to something

that is going to last, hopefully, indefinitely. Every object cocooned

in a whole has been given a number. Every number will point to a story

for memory that lies behind it. In every aspect Andy till, the boat

can truly claim to be state of the A Sussex teenager has won a place

at one of the world's most prestigious ballet schools. He has

been accepted by the Central School of Ballet in London.

It is the only degree course of its kind in the country, and the

professional training includes a punishing schedule.

They are the best of the best. 16- year-old Jonathan from St Leonards

is one of them. He wants to become a professional dancer. He has got a

realistic chance of fulfilling his dream. I have learnt so much,

especially in that ballet. I have learnt a whole new way to dance, I

am really enjoying it. He began dancing alongside his sister in

Sussex. She gave up, but the young man still has much to learn. Really

push into me. Softer elbows. That is what we need to get. Courses at

the Central School of Ballet in London have never been more popular.

There are almost as many men as women. We are seeing so much more

dancing in the media. Dance is out there. The perception of dance has

changed. The students here have to work incredibly hard. They dance

six days a week, 42 weeks of the year. Jonathan will do 3,000 hours

of training before he gets his degree. Final-year students take

part in a tour of the country. It is a spotlight baptism, but

according to Jonathan Day there is nowhere else he would rather be.

They work incredibly hard. The and the piano was quite loud as well.

It was a pretty good weekend for at the South East's football teams. It

was a pretty good weekend for the South East's football teams with

victories for Charlton, Gillingham and Crawley.

But Brighton lost an acrimonious game against Championship leaders

A highly debatable penalty decision led to the defender being sent off.

And the Seagulls going to-0 down. That was a penalty, you know when

you say in England, and had seen them given, the first one I had

never seen given. Charlton notched up another win against Brentford.

In League Two, at Gillingham began in top gear against Aldershot. A

long-range effort which somehow a Lydd to the keeper made it 2-0.

was a tough game. In the second half we knew they would come out at

us. Crawley cruised to another comfortable win. The first goal a

long-range shot, the second day There was some more encouraging

news for Brighton supporters today, winger Kazenga Lua Lua has finally

signed for the club. The twenty year old former Newcastle player

who has spent two loan spells with the Albion agreed a three year

contract with the club. However goalkeeper Steve Harpers loan deal

hasn't been extended and he has It is fair to say this has been a

year of extremes on the weather front. The driest year since 1976,

the warmest October ever, warnings of drought next spring unless we

get some serious rain soon. Flowers, insects and animals have

been left deeply confused by temperatures they would normally

expect in May. Plants in the gardens are behaving

most unseasonably. Spring-flowering rhododendrons putting out blooms.

Orchids making their way above ground months too early. And roses

hanging on to their colour and still attracting the insects. It

might be baffling some visitors here, but whatever the weather

throws at it, the plant life will cope. The plans will always balance

themselves out. They will maybe not flower next spring, there may be a

delay, but it will happen over a period of time. We tend to want to

be doing it instantly, we are instant gardens, we wanted the same

day after day. Nature does not do it that way. It is not just plants

reacting to the mild weather. It means insects which would usually

be long gone by now, or at least have their numbers diminished, are

still flourishing. I had been filming butterflies for many years,

and I have never seen so many in November. I can only put it down to

these warm temperatures. When the insects thrive, so do those who

prey on them. Migrant birds have put off their long flight south,

and some of the breeds which stay here are having second broods

meaning they will need support from us when the winter does finally

bite. The migrant birds, they are still here at the moment, but when

the time is right for them that they will head off back to their

usual wintering grounds. The birds we would expect to find all year

round, we will just have to help them as much as we can with pitting

the seeds, nuts and energy food out for them in our gardens. However

peculiar behaviour of the wildlife, you can always rely on us humans to

top it. Almost 80, this woman For one am not complaining about

this weather. My herbs are very happy, the flowers are still out.

It is showing no signs of slowing down.

I cannot see anything that would suggest things getting colder, and

certainly not even any heavy rain expected either. Things are very

much above average in terms of the But we are going to be noticing

things getting darker day by day. In fact, in one month's time,

December 22nd, that is the astronomical start of a winter. By

then we will be having its 45 minutes shorter by day. 45 minutes

longer by night. The start of the Meteorological winter is December

1st. It will be getting much darker by night and that will be harder to

fight and fend off the those fingers of us frost. Tonight we are

not worried about frost, it is that fog. Fog will be treacherous

overnight tonight with visibility 100 metres. There is lots of cloud

out there, but it is that fog that is the real issue. It will last

overnight tonight and into tomorrow. It could be pretty tricky and nasty

out there. Temperatures will not be lower than eight-nine degrees. Into

tomorrow, that fog is going to linger, and for some places it will

stay quite a murky. There will not be as much sunshine as today.

Little bits of brightness in the afternoon. With those light winds

it will be a lot colder. Into tomorrow evening, we will see some

on weather, some rain even pushing him from the West. I only think it

will give us one or two mm of rain, so just dampening the ground before

there is a ridge of high pressure starts building giving us more mild

temperatures and plenty more sunshine for the rest of the week.

This high pressure is likely to be with us for the rest of the week.

The rest of the week remains dry Let's get a recap of tonight's top

stories. The effects of the phone hacking scandal on her family and

the false hope they were given that their daughter was still alive.

The family of former Marine Carl Davies say they believe the truth

about his murder was covered up. The family was initially told he

died in an accident falling from a cliff, they have since learned he

was beaten and stabbed. Most just take her surroundings in

the South East for granted, but as Inside Out had been finding out,

our landscape has been changing for millions of years.

When dinosaurs roamed the South East, they lived on muddy flood

plains. You can find out more on that and