:00:06. > :00:09.Welcome to South East Today. Tonight's top stories: The
:00:09. > :00:13.Speaker's wife, Sally Bercow, angers family of two men who died
:00:13. > :00:20.after taking a legal high, by saying a ban would tempt her to try
:00:20. > :00:30.Opponents say plans for a satellite grammar school in Sevenoaks is a
:00:30. > :00:33.new selective school by the back door.
:00:33. > :00:36.Also in tonight's programme, lessons in life for teenage parents
:00:36. > :00:42.- by teenage parents - and their book of advice that's going across
:00:42. > :00:48.East Sussex. Even when they are in bed, they
:00:49. > :00:51.still and media attention. -- need your attention. Bringing the
:00:51. > :00:55.Brighton Belle up to speed - progress on the restoration project
:00:55. > :00:57.that will make the historic train run faster than it's ever done. You
:00:58. > :01:00.snooze, you lose - after being fired from the Apprentice, we have
:01:00. > :01:10.a chat with Kent restaurateur Maria O'Connor about falling asleep on
:01:10. > :01:13.
:01:13. > :01:16.Good evening. The family and friends of two young men who died
:01:16. > :01:19.after taking a so-called legal high, have reacted angrily tonight to
:01:19. > :01:25.comments from the wife of the Commons Speaker, suggesting she's
:01:25. > :01:28.tempted to try the drug before it's banned. Hugo Wenn and Daniel Lloyd
:01:28. > :01:33.took the substance, known as mexxy, before they drowned in Canterbury
:01:33. > :01:36.two months ago. It's now to be made illegal by the Government. But
:01:36. > :01:44.Sally Bercow suggested on her Twitter account that a ban will
:01:44. > :01:48.only increase its use. Simon Jones reports.
:01:48. > :01:56.Popular local musicians Danielle Lloyd and Hugo Wenn both died after
:01:56. > :02:06.taking mexxy. The Speaker's wife, Sally Bercow, took tea Twitter on
:02:06. > :02:18.
:02:18. > :02:22.Friends of the men who died and not impressed. I lost two friends to it.
:02:22. > :02:28.It is not something that should be advertised on Twitter has something
:02:29. > :02:34.interesting. I would like to see her say that in Canterbury market
:02:34. > :02:41.and see the reception she gets. It is insensitive and ignorant. This
:02:41. > :02:45.is the pond where a Hugo Wenn and Daniel Lloyd's bodies were found.
:02:45. > :02:51.Daniel's mother said today she welcomed the ban and said Sally
:02:51. > :02:55.Bercow's comments were faultless. We have had a two young lives
:02:55. > :02:59.completely wasted in this community as a result of taking these legal
:02:59. > :03:04.highs. We should be discouraging young people from taking these
:03:04. > :03:08.drugs. The Government is dead right to take action. No stranger to
:03:08. > :03:14.controversy, the wife of the speaker raised eyebrows when she
:03:14. > :03:21.went on Celebrity Big Brother. She said today she was making the point
:03:21. > :03:27.that banning legal high is increases their popularity. When I
:03:27. > :03:34.heard about the tweet that Sally Bercow had done yesterday, I was
:03:34. > :03:39.outraged. However, when I read it for myself I realised it was
:03:39. > :03:42.slightly tongue in cheek and I have sympathy, because she is basically
:03:42. > :03:46.saying that banning this substance is really not going to do a great
:03:46. > :03:56.deal. We actually agree that raising awareness is more important.
:03:56. > :04:03.
:04:03. > :04:09.Sally Bercow describes herself as We are joined now by Sally Bercow
:04:09. > :04:13.life from Westminster. I used surprised by the reaction? I am
:04:13. > :04:18.slightly surprised. I am a more disappointed in the sense that I am
:04:18. > :04:24.not condoning drug usage at all. I am on the same side as most parents
:04:24. > :04:29.who want to see drug abuse and the harm that drugs cause stamp out.
:04:29. > :04:33.What I was doing was making a simple point in a provocative way.
:04:33. > :04:37.This time yesterday nobody had heard of mexxy. Now everybody has
:04:37. > :04:42.heard of it. That is because the Government has banned it. Banning
:04:42. > :04:48.drugs does not reduce their popularity. So if that is not the
:04:48. > :04:51.answer, what is the answer? Were the answers is education. It is
:04:51. > :04:57.extraordinary that drugs awareness is not even part of the national
:04:57. > :05:02.curriculum. Decriminalisation is the answer as well. Putting people
:05:02. > :05:08.in prison for taking drugs is not the solution. You would like to see
:05:08. > :05:12.all recreational drugs decriminalised? Yes, absolutely. We
:05:12. > :05:17.should have a sensible debate in this country about our drugs policy.
:05:17. > :05:21.The war on drugs has not worked. My heart goes out to the parents of
:05:22. > :05:28.those boys who died. But I would say, banning is not the only way
:05:28. > :05:38.forward. It has been shown not to have worked. Methadone, up and in
:05:38. > :06:10.
:06:10. > :06:13.2010, its popularity has increased. The first major expansion of a
:06:14. > :06:17.grammar school in 50 years has moved a step closer tonight, after
:06:17. > :06:22.Kent County Council agreed to push ahead with plans to create a new
:06:22. > :06:27.school in Sevenoaks. It follows a debate this afternoon triggered by
:06:27. > :06:30.a petition with over 2,500 signatures from parents in the town.
:06:30. > :06:32.They say more than a thousand students spend up to two hours a
:06:32. > :06:35.day commuting to other Kent grammar schools because there's no
:06:35. > :06:38.provision in Sevenoaks. But there's a law preventing new grammar
:06:38. > :06:48.schools, so any new one in Sevenoaks would have to be an
:06:48. > :06:51.
:06:51. > :06:56.annexe of an existing school in We only started this campaign three
:06:56. > :07:01.months ago. We are amazed that Kent County Council agreed and took the
:07:01. > :07:06.Petition and approved it. We hope we will end up with new grammar
:07:06. > :07:09.school places in Sevenoaks. Louise Stewart is live at County Hall in
:07:09. > :07:15.Maidstone. Louise, why is there such a demand for a new grammar
:07:15. > :07:22.school in Sevenoaks? As you said, there is more than 1100 children
:07:22. > :07:27.travelling every day at 25 mile round trip because there simply is
:07:27. > :07:32.not capacity. Those supporting the project say it will alleviate the
:07:32. > :07:37.problem. I am joined by the leader of Kent County Council, Paul Carter,
:07:37. > :07:41.and Nigel Hopton from the Kent Head Teachers' Association. Why have you
:07:41. > :07:45.given this the go-ahead? Will this be built imminently? Under the
:07:45. > :07:47.previous Government we were restricted. There has been
:07:47. > :07:51.relaxation in the rules and regulations allowing grammar
:07:51. > :07:57.schools to provide satellite provision out of their area. We are
:07:57. > :08:01.going to use that opportunity to build an adjunct to an existing
:08:01. > :08:07.grammar school in Sevenoaks. The parents and young people in
:08:07. > :08:13.Sevenoaks have been marginalised for too long. My job, what do you
:08:13. > :08:17.say to that? There are people who have passed the 11 plus who need a
:08:17. > :08:27.grammar school. They do not need a grammar school. There are very good
:08:27. > :08:33.schools in the area. There is a fantastic Academy. The pupils are
:08:33. > :08:37.very proud of it. It has a grammar stream. I would like the Council to
:08:37. > :08:42.back schools like this rather than take away 25% of their brightest
:08:43. > :08:48.children. How can you justify spending money at a time a budget
:08:48. > :08:54.cuts when there is capacity? There will be no difference to this
:08:54. > :08:58.Academy if we were to build a grammar school in Sevenoaks. We
:08:58. > :09:03.believe in diverse education. As much choice in provision as
:09:03. > :09:08.possible. We have spent millions of pounds on academies and improving
:09:08. > :09:12.our high schools in Kent. It is time that we sorted out. Thank you
:09:12. > :09:22.both. The Government say the reforms will provide better choices
:09:22. > :09:23.
:09:23. > :09:26.for parents. The Football Association is
:09:26. > :09:36.bringing disciplinary charges against Crawley Town and Bradford
:09:36. > :09:36.
:09:36. > :09:39.City after a mass brawl on Tuesday night. The jury in the murder trial
:09:39. > :09:41.of a mother and daughter from Canterbury have been sent out to
:09:41. > :09:45.consider their verdicts. Retired bookmaker Don Banfield disappeared
:09:45. > :09:47.in 2001. His body has never been found, but his wife Shirley and
:09:47. > :09:51.daughter Lynette are accused of his murder. Ellie Price has been
:09:51. > :09:53.following the trial, and joins us live from the Old Bailey. The women
:09:53. > :10:01.admit charges of perverting the course of justice and fraud, Ellie,
:10:01. > :10:06.but they deny murder? Yes,. Don Banfield went missing 11 years ago
:10:06. > :10:12.after signing the contract for the sale of the family home in Wales
:10:12. > :10:19.than in London. The prosecution allege that Shirley and Lynette
:10:20. > :10:24.Banfield profited from the sale of that has. They also claimed �36,000
:10:24. > :10:28.worth of pension payments. Don Banfield's body has never been
:10:28. > :10:38.found. They say he may have returned to his native Trinidad.
:10:38. > :10:43.
:10:43. > :10:46.The jury will consider its verdict tomorrow. They've struggled to cope
:10:46. > :10:50.with the pressures of bringing up a child as teenage parents. Now a
:10:50. > :10:52.group of young mums and dads in East Sussex have produced a book
:10:52. > :10:55.advising other young people how to cope with parenthood. The book,
:10:55. > :10:58.designed to deter school age children from becoming pregnant, is
:10:58. > :11:00.now going to be distributed across the county. And Natalie Graham has
:11:00. > :11:03.been to meet some of its contributors in Newhaven.
:11:03. > :11:06.This course in Newhaven is the only one in East Sussex which offers
:11:06. > :11:09.students the chance to bring their children into the classroom. Most
:11:09. > :11:17.of these children at school when they became parents. They're here
:11:17. > :11:21.to try to get back into education and to find much-needed friends.
:11:21. > :11:25.You have a lot of friends before you get pregnant. Then you get
:11:25. > :11:30.pregnant and you realise that your friends are doing other things. It
:11:30. > :11:34.can be hard to accept. girlfriend told me she was pregnant
:11:34. > :11:42.by sending me a text... The group has produced a booklet describing
:11:42. > :11:48.their experiences of becoming a parent. I was 17 and my sister and
:11:48. > :11:56.sister-in-law both pregnant. I went to the doctor and found that I was
:11:56. > :12:00.pregnant. I told Sam by text. I told my mum and dad. They were
:12:00. > :12:08.upset. But because my sister was pregnant, it took the pressure off
:12:08. > :12:11.me a bit. What is lovely for me is to see young people coming in. Once
:12:11. > :12:15.they are here, they realise we're not here to tell them how to bring
:12:15. > :12:20.up their children. It is about supporting them and guiding them.
:12:20. > :12:24.And giving them a future. Some of these students have gained a place
:12:24. > :12:28.at university as a result of the course. They all agreed they would
:12:28. > :12:33.not be without their children. But they would not necessarily
:12:33. > :12:38.recommend their situation. you're thinking about getting
:12:38. > :12:44.pregnant, think twice. People think you just have a baby and you put it
:12:44. > :12:49.in a pram and push it around. It is not like that. You lose your
:12:49. > :12:53.friends and you're lonely. It is hard. And that is the message these
:12:53. > :12:56.young parents now want to spread to other teenagers. Natalie Graham
:12:56. > :12:59.reporting, and she joins us live from Hastings. How big a problem is
:12:59. > :13:04.teenage pregnancy across the South East, Natalie?
:13:04. > :13:12.It is a problem. Particularly in coastal towns like this one.
:13:12. > :13:21.Nationally, in 2010, around 11 at of every 1000 women was under 18 --
:13:21. > :13:27.giving birth was under 18. 17 out of every 1000 women giving birth
:13:27. > :13:32.was a teenager in the Dover. In fact, it was 23.4. The group in
:13:32. > :13:36.Newhaven want to visit schools in East Sussex and take their powerful
:13:36. > :13:39.testimony into the classrooms. They would also like funding to turn
:13:39. > :13:46.that booklet international publication.
:13:46. > :13:50.This is our top story tonight: Sally Bercow, the wife of the
:13:50. > :13:55.Commons Speaker, has sparked anger by jogging on Twitter that she is
:13:55. > :14:00.tempted to try and legal high drug linked to the deaths of two young
:14:00. > :14:04.men in Canterbury, because it is about to be banned. My heart goes
:14:04. > :14:10.out to the parents of those boys who died from drug abuse. But I
:14:10. > :14:15.would say, banning is not the only way forward. It has not worked.
:14:15. > :14:18.Mephedrone, which has banned in 2010, a recent survey showed its
:14:18. > :14:21.popularity has increased. Also in tonight's programme, how you can
:14:22. > :14:29.become part of a unique work of art to celebrate the Queen's Diamond
:14:29. > :14:39.Jubilee. And we have had the high temperatures again. 20 aplenty
:14:39. > :14:40.
:14:40. > :14:43.today. It will turn cooler for the World War Two veterans from Sussex
:14:43. > :14:48.will attend a special ceremony this summer to honour comrades who
:14:48. > :14:53.fought and lost their lives on bombing raids during the conflict.
:14:53. > :14:56.Over 55,000 men of Bomber Command died. The average age of those who
:14:56. > :15:01.perished was just 22 - in fact, one in 10 of all British serviceman
:15:01. > :15:04.lost in the war died in service with Bomber Command. Now a new
:15:04. > :15:09.appeal's been launched to ensure that a memorial will stand for
:15:09. > :15:18.future generations to salute the unsung heroes. Steve Gaisford has
:15:18. > :15:24.tonight's Special Report. The crews of Bomber Command went
:15:24. > :15:31.out night after night. Nearly half were killed and 10,000 became
:15:31. > :15:37.prisoners-of-war. Was a rear gunner on a Lancaster. Our job was the
:15:37. > :15:42.defence of the aeroplane. That was a lonely and cold place to be. It
:15:42. > :15:47.was not too bad. We survived. than half of his colleagues would
:15:47. > :15:54.not survive. For decades, there remained unsung heroes. This summer,
:15:54. > :16:02.they will be honoured. The finishing touches are been made to
:16:02. > :16:07.a permanent memorial in Green Park. At its heart will be a 10 ft bronze
:16:07. > :16:12.sculpture of accrue looking skywards. All of the money has been
:16:12. > :16:19.raised. Now we need extra funds to make sure that it is maintained in
:16:19. > :16:24.perpetuity. So that these tens of thousands of young men will be
:16:24. > :16:29.respected and remembered. On 20th June, a Lancaster bomber will drop
:16:29. > :16:34.1 million poppies onto the site. It is hoped people will sponsor a
:16:34. > :16:43.handful of copies so they can raise the �1.5 million needed to maintain
:16:43. > :16:48.this memorial. This ceremony is long overdue. It is a dedication to
:16:48. > :16:52.all our comrades who won fortunately did not make it.
:16:52. > :17:02.money raised should ensure that those who give their lives for
:17:02. > :17:09.
:17:09. > :17:12.their country will be forever It's usually business acumen - or a
:17:12. > :17:15.lack of it - that sees the downfall of candidates fighting to be Lord
:17:15. > :17:18.Sugar's next Apprentice. But Kent restaurateur Maria O'Connor has
:17:18. > :17:21.been fired, basically, for falling asleep on the job. Even though
:17:21. > :17:27.she's used to long hours at her restaurant in Sandwich, a series of
:17:27. > :17:37.early wake-up calls on the BBC show took their toll. But, as Lynda
:17:37. > :17:44.Hardy reports, she's managing to see the funny side.
:17:44. > :17:54.It needs a picture. The moment the Kent restaurant owner admits she
:17:54. > :18:00.
:18:00. > :18:10.became a target to be fired. are you OK? The you have ideas?
:18:10. > :18:11.
:18:11. > :18:21.do not know, I am thinking. I have to start with it... What can you
:18:21. > :18:22.
:18:22. > :18:27.do? I am Greek, I need an afternoon siesta now and then! What about
:18:27. > :18:35.this sleeping nonsense? That was my fault. I fell asleep for two
:18:35. > :18:40.seconds. I was tired. As soon as I fell asleep, the target was done.
:18:40. > :18:44.The youngest candidate at 20, she featured on the girls' team whose
:18:44. > :18:48.creation lost out to the boys in the battle to unbend the best
:18:48. > :18:53.household gadget. All we need to do is get them to make orders and
:18:53. > :18:58.impress them with the product and the pitch. It is a far cry from her
:18:58. > :19:05.usual business, the Greek restaurant in Kent she founded at
:19:05. > :19:10.the age of 18. We were talking and the area said, let's go for
:19:10. > :19:15.something. I helped her and guided her. And she has done this. What we
:19:15. > :19:20.your customers make of this? Tale of it. I hope they will want to
:19:20. > :19:25.come and see me more. Unfazed by her a quick exit, she says she is
:19:25. > :19:32.glad she was not the first to be fired. She plans to open many more
:19:32. > :19:38.restaurants in Kent. I hope to open another five by the time I am 25.
:19:38. > :19:43.Which means no more sleeping on the job.
:19:43. > :19:45.A It is a good job she has got a sense of humour. It's Britain's
:19:46. > :19:49.biggest train restoration project - bringing the famous Brighton Belle
:19:49. > :19:52.back to its former glory. The aim is to have the 80 year old
:19:52. > :19:55.carriages back in service to Sussex next year. But they'll have to run
:19:55. > :19:58.faster than they've ever gone before to fit in alongside modern
:19:58. > :20:06.trains. Paul Clifton's been given exclusive access to the Derbyshire
:20:06. > :20:11.workshop where the repairs are taking place.
:20:11. > :20:19.The Brighton Belle was the first InterCity electric train. An Art
:20:19. > :20:24.Deco icon stripped back to bare metal. At �2 million, Britain's
:20:24. > :20:30.biggest train restoration project. We are doing a full strip out to
:20:30. > :20:40.eliminate corrosion, all elements of damage, elements of the scars of
:20:40. > :20:42.
:20:42. > :20:47.life the train has been through. The Brighton Belle ran for 40 years.
:20:47. > :20:52.Retired 40 years ago. When British Rail decided to drop kippers from
:20:52. > :20:59.the breakfast menu, the actor, Laurence Olivier, had a campaign to
:20:59. > :21:05.have them restored. His as important in its way as the Flying
:21:05. > :21:12.Scotsman is, the Orient Express. Two years later the train itself
:21:12. > :21:17.was retired. Now five of the carriages are being restored.
:21:17. > :21:22.was originally designed to run at 75 mph. It is no longer fast enough
:21:22. > :21:27.for today's heavily congested network. It has to be able to run
:21:27. > :21:32.faster. That means quite a lot of intricate engineering to do that.
:21:32. > :21:40.If the work goes according to plan, the aim is for this train to run on
:21:40. > :21:43.the Brighton main line by the end Fingers crossed she does.
:21:43. > :21:46.Congratulations are in order to BBC Radio Kent breakfast presenter John
:21:46. > :21:49.Warnett. He's been given a Kent Invicta Award today at County Hall
:21:49. > :21:51.in Maidstone, along with a �5,000 cheque for the Demelza House
:21:51. > :22:01.Children's Hospice, in recognition of all the community work he's
:22:01. > :22:04.involved with across the county. The Queen's Diamond Jubilee
:22:04. > :22:08.celebrations take place in June, and we'd like you to take part in
:22:08. > :22:13.an extraordinary and unique commemoration of the event. All we
:22:13. > :22:16.need is for you to send in a photo - and we'll do the rest. It's a
:22:17. > :22:26.very simple - but brilliant - idea. We're going to create an amazing
:22:27. > :22:27.
:22:27. > :22:32.photo mosaic of the Queen, using 10,000 pictures of you lot.
:22:32. > :22:37.I am in Brighton, I have got to get 10,000 thought for the -- photos by
:22:37. > :22:47.the beginning of May. I'd better crack on. Can I take your
:22:47. > :23:10.
:23:10. > :23:16.Do you mind if I take your picture? To find out how it is going to work,
:23:16. > :23:20.I have come here in Brighton. How was it going to work? If you have a
:23:20. > :23:24.look at what we have here, sue macro range of iconic images of
:23:24. > :23:29.Brighton. We put them all together and we come across up with another
:23:29. > :23:39.image. We're going to do exactly the same as that with an image of
:23:39. > :23:50.
:23:50. > :23:57.And when it is all put together at this is where it is going to be
:23:57. > :24:05.Hong, at this Gallery in Eastbourne. It is going to be massive.
:24:06. > :24:10.Authority ft wide, 15 ft high. -- 30 ft wide. The size of a double-
:24:10. > :24:18.decker bus. We want you to e-mail your pictures, with family, with
:24:18. > :24:22.friends, Collor, black or white -- black and white... You could be
:24:22. > :24:25.part of the bigger picture. So to take part, all you have to do is
:24:25. > :24:35.log onto our website and you'll find the instructions there telling
:24:35. > :24:37.
:24:37. > :24:47.We have had loads already, including a Beefeater. We have been
:24:47. > :24:50.trying to make the most of the The weather is turning
:24:50. > :24:57.significantly cooler and the next few days. The thermostat is going
:24:57. > :25:03.down. It is turning cooler. This is no way April Fool, this is an April
:25:04. > :25:07.cool! We have high pressure at the moment keeping us drive. No rain in
:25:07. > :25:12.the forecast. The high pressure will introduce more cloud in the
:25:12. > :25:17.next few days. That will impact the temperatures. By next week we will
:25:17. > :25:25.have a couple of cold fronts coming down. By Tuesday, daytime
:25:25. > :25:32.temperatures could be a measly 9- ten degrees. Not be 22 degrees we
:25:32. > :25:40.have been enjoying this week. -- not the 22 Grays. Into this evening,
:25:40. > :25:44.Belgrade change. Clear skies. Another chilly night. In some
:25:44. > :25:49.places last night the temperature was dropping by one degree every 10
:25:49. > :25:56.minutes. If you had a frost over the last couple of nights, you
:25:56. > :25:59.probably will again tonight. For tomorrow, it is the last of days
:25:59. > :26:07.like this. The beautiful sunshine once again. Not quite as warm as it
:26:07. > :26:15.has been all week. Some cumulus clouds. Temperatures up to 19
:26:15. > :26:20.degrees. Not bad if you were celebrating anniversary. -- if you
:26:20. > :26:24.are celebrating an anniversary. And whatever you're doing this weekend,
:26:24. > :26:28.we will see more cloud, particularly coming in first
:26:28. > :26:33.Saturday. That is due to a cold front. There could be a few spots
:26:33. > :26:39.of drizzle. Nothing more than that. First Sunday, there will be some
:26:39. > :26:48.cloud. Cooler temperatures. The main thing is it is not going to be
:26:48. > :26:51.Now back to our top story tonight. The family and friends of two young
:26:51. > :26:54.men from Canterbury who drowned after taking a so-called legal high
:26:54. > :26:56.have reacted angrily tonight to comments from the wife of the
:26:57. > :26:59.Commons Speaker, saying she's tempted to try the drug before it's
:26:59. > :27:02.banned. Sally Bercow used her Twitter account to suggest a ban
:27:02. > :27:05.will only increase use of the substance, known as mexxy. Earlier
:27:05. > :27:07.we asked if you thought banning legal highs was the right approach.
:27:08. > :27:11.Peter on Facebook says there will always be new legal highs, they
:27:11. > :27:21.will always be dangerous if left on regulated. Unless you stamp them
:27:21. > :27:22.
:27:22. > :27:28.out... Mike says it is the same old story. As soon as you draw
:27:28. > :27:33.attention to drugs, they become more alluring. Educate young people.
:27:33. > :27:37.It is just not working. Lisa says if it is dangerous it would make it
:27:37. > :27:47.less accessible to Kidd's if you bandit. It also makes it easier to
:27:47. > :27:49.
:27:49. > :27:57.deal with. -- deal. Sean, 17, from Eastbourne disagrees with what
:27:57. > :28:02.Sally Bercow is sane. -- St. Police need to target those shipping it
:28:02. > :28:08.into the country. Phillips says that alcohol is an illegal