:00:00. > :00:00.Welcome to South East Today. So
:00:07. > :00:11.Not standing down ` Ann Barnes vows to continue as police and crime
:00:12. > :00:15.commissioner as she faces a public grilling over a series of PR gaffes.
:00:16. > :00:27.The couple left traumatised by a night of terror on the
:00:28. > :00:33.Costa Concordia seek a million euros compensation.
:00:34. > :00:51.You feel on your own. You feel cut off from the rest of society.
:00:52. > :00:54.How a migraine left a Kent woman with a foreign accent.
:00:55. > :00:59.A soldier, a sailor and an airman recount their experiences of D`Day
:01:00. > :01:01.as commemorations mark the 70th anniversary.
:01:02. > :01:05.And a warm welcome in Kent for the Queen's Baton relay as it heads for
:01:06. > :01:18.Kent Police Crime Commissioner Ann Barnes has
:01:19. > :01:20.insisted she will not resign despite being accused of presiding
:01:21. > :01:27.Facing a grilling by the Kent Crime Panel she apologised for taking part
:01:28. > :01:30.in a fly on the wall documentary that critics said made the force
:01:31. > :01:34.But she's insisted today she isn't a 'Lame Duck'
:01:35. > :01:39.and remains the best person for the job, Simon Jones has this report.
:01:40. > :01:43.Accused of PR disasters, misjudgements, fiascoes.
:01:44. > :01:46.I would like to offer an apology, especially to
:01:47. > :01:51.the hard`working men and women of Kent police, who I know some of them
:01:52. > :02:07.This was the infamous documentary that today prompted a barrage
:02:08. > :02:10.of criticism from the panel that holds the Commissioner to account.
:02:11. > :02:18.I think some people have said that you have treated senior members
:02:19. > :02:23.We have had three train crashes coming through.
:02:24. > :02:29.Yesterday, it was revealed that her youth Commissioner, Carrie Boyd,
:02:30. > :02:32.had been removed from public duties as her relationship with a former
:02:33. > :02:38.That after the first youth Commissioner, Paris Brown,
:02:39. > :02:43.Today, and Barnes told me she is delivering.
:02:44. > :02:49.I certainly don't hold people treating me with contempt.
:02:50. > :02:51.So I certainly would not do that either.
:02:52. > :02:53.Doesn't that make your position untenable?
:02:54. > :02:57.I have thought about what people have said to me today.
:02:58. > :03:00.I will think about what people say to me today.
:03:01. > :03:07.But some on the crime panel remain concerned.
:03:08. > :03:11.I felt as if I was back in college being lectured at.
:03:12. > :03:17.I think that is a matter for her, but I don't think I heard anything
:03:18. > :03:21.this morning which convinces me that we will won't face further problems
:03:22. > :03:28.But the chair of the panel says that it is time to move forward.
:03:29. > :03:30.I was impressed at the way she apologised.
:03:31. > :03:43.And all sides say that bridges must now be built.
:03:44. > :03:57.Simon, Ann Barnes is not going to quit but what is going to change?
:03:58. > :04:05.The panel concluded that she should not have got involved in this
:04:06. > :04:11.documentary. Haddad damaged her? Yes. Had hit damaged Kent police,
:04:12. > :04:14.maybe by association. One member of the panel wanted a vote of no
:04:15. > :04:19.confidence, but he was told that they did not have the power to do
:04:20. > :04:23.that. In the future, we may seek and Barnes withdrawing from the media
:04:24. > :04:27.spotlight, and getting on with the job away from the cameras.
:04:28. > :04:33.Interestingly tonight, the police Federation, who had been hugely
:04:34. > :04:41.critical of the documentary, took a more conciliatory tone. She welcomed
:04:42. > :04:45.the fact that she was trying to improve relations.
:04:46. > :04:48.A Kent survivor of the Costa Concordia cruise ship disaster
:04:49. > :04:51.says he's angry that he and has wife have received little support
:04:52. > :04:54.from the ship's operator, and just an insulting compensation offer.
:04:55. > :04:55.The vessel, carrying more than 4,000 passengers,
:04:56. > :04:58.capsized after hitting a reef in January 2012, killing 32 people.
:04:59. > :05:01.John and Mandy Rodford from Wainscott
:05:02. > :05:04.near Rochester have just returned from Italy where they testified
:05:05. > :05:07.in the trial against the ship's captain ` they're also seeking
:05:08. > :05:21.In an extremely emotional interview, he told me that only now,
:05:22. > :05:24.two years since the tragedy, he is beginning to realise how close
:05:25. > :05:34.At the time, I didn't ever think of not getting
:05:35. > :05:43.I suppose now, when you come back, years on, using look at what could
:05:44. > :05:50.The Costa Concordia hit rocks less than three hours after the couple
:05:51. > :05:55.Having not received a safety briefing,
:05:56. > :05:59.The first lifeboat they audit failed to launch.
:06:00. > :06:04.They found another one by sliding on their backsides down through
:06:05. > :06:08.32 people died in the tragedy, with many more suffering ongoing
:06:09. > :06:14.The passengers who we represent thought that they were going to do
:06:15. > :06:17.die. Too many were in some cases not able to get onto the lifeboats.
:06:18. > :06:20.It was the middle of winter in Italy.
:06:21. > :06:24.They had to swim to shore in cold and dark water.
:06:25. > :06:29.It was a very traumatic experience, as I am sure you can appreciate.
:06:30. > :06:35.The Costa Concordia's captain, who gave the order to abandon ship
:06:36. > :06:38.after steering the vessel to wards shallower waters, is
:06:39. > :06:47.Mr and Mrs Rodford testified against him in Italy last week.
:06:48. > :06:50.They are upset that they are only being offered 11,000 euros
:06:51. > :06:53.People lost lives, people were not sleeping.
:06:54. > :06:56.And the company have still been trading
:06:57. > :07:08.So, yes, it does make you angry that it is still going on.
:07:09. > :07:15.Mr Rochford is now writing a book about his experiences, and claiming
:07:16. > :07:29.Princess Anne gives royal approval to the South Of England show,
:07:30. > :07:37.as farmers look forward to a better year.
:07:38. > :07:40.Three babies suffering from blood poisoning in a Brighton
:07:41. > :07:42.hospital are said to be responding well to treatment.
:07:43. > :07:47.18 infants in nine different hospitals
:07:48. > :07:51.around the country have fallen ill from a suspected contaminated drip
:07:52. > :07:57.The three infants in Brighton are being treated at the
:07:58. > :08:00.Royal Alexandra Children's Hospital from where our reporter Mark Sanders
:08:01. > :08:05.joins us now ` Mark, what's the latest on the babies' condition?
:08:06. > :08:13.The the good news is that it is expected all three babies will make
:08:14. > :08:20.a full recovery. They are receiving specialist care at the Trevor Mann
:08:21. > :08:26.baby unit. All three babies are responding well to the treatment.
:08:27. > :08:30.The three infants contracted a form of blood poisoning. The trust did
:08:31. > :08:35.not want to appear on camera, but in a statement, they said that the
:08:36. > :08:42.cause was feeding product that was contaminated during its
:08:43. > :08:46.manufacturing process the hospital. Across the country, some 18 babies
:08:47. > :08:52.have been affected in this way. Sadly, of course one baby died at a
:08:53. > :08:53.hospital in London. An investigation by the health authorities into this
:08:54. > :09:00.case is well underway. The Independent Police Complaints
:09:01. > :09:02.Commission are investigating Kent Police after
:09:03. > :09:05.a Medway man was left in a coma. Officers were called to a house
:09:06. > :09:07.in Gillingham last December and arrested 38`year`old Denby
:09:08. > :09:10.Collins as a suspected burglar. He was then taken to hospital for
:09:11. > :09:13.treatment and remains in a coma. The IPCC say they've decided to
:09:14. > :09:15.investigate A Brighton man's been rescued
:09:16. > :09:22.from a fire in his flat after being The blaze broke out at Robert Lodge
:09:23. > :09:27.in Whitehawk in the early hours Several residents had to be
:09:28. > :09:29.evacuated after the fire spread to flats
:09:30. > :09:36.on both the ground and first floor. Plans that will see the loss
:09:37. > :09:39.of around 50 jobs at East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service
:09:40. > :09:42.have been approved today. A fire engine is to be removed
:09:43. > :09:45.from Hove while Roedean station in Brighton and the Ridge
:09:46. > :09:48.in Hastings will now only be The service needs to save ?7
:09:49. > :09:55.million over the next four years. A woman from Gillingham says her
:09:56. > :09:58.life has been ruined after a severe migraine attack left
:09:59. > :10:01.her with a strange accent. Julie Matthias says she suffered
:10:02. > :10:03.the attack three years ago. It?s left her with
:10:04. > :10:07.the very rare Foreign Accent Syndrome, and is now often mistaken
:10:08. > :10:12.for being South African, French or Italian ` and has even
:10:13. > :10:16.suffered racist abuse as a result. It has just turned
:10:17. > :10:23.my life upside down. You feel cut off from the rest
:10:24. > :10:29.of society. I have had
:10:30. > :10:33.a lady who was racist to me. It was Julie's dream to run
:10:34. > :10:43.a busy hair salon. She used to work seven days
:10:44. > :10:49.a week and relish it. Here, she is comparing
:10:50. > :10:51.a hair show four years ago. If I was to do this,
:10:52. > :10:57.I would end up in tears. Now, on her worst days,
:10:58. > :11:00.Julie sounds like this. She's
:11:01. > :11:11.depending on her family The accent, for me, and only me,
:11:12. > :11:20.is the least of my problems. A regular migraine sufferer,
:11:21. > :11:22.Julie had an unusually severe one three years
:11:23. > :11:25.ago. And her symptoms developed
:11:26. > :11:27.after this. And yet, the condition is so rare,
:11:28. > :11:30.she has been accused of making it all up, and was even
:11:31. > :11:34.sent for psychiatric help. Foreign accent syndrome has
:11:35. > :11:37.not been reported very often. There are a handful of cases
:11:38. > :11:41.over the last 50 or 60 years. It is being reported more commonly
:11:42. > :11:45.now, but I think that is because we simply know more
:11:46. > :11:48.about it, and people recognise what it is when people come
:11:49. > :11:51.into their clinic and they have On Julie's bad days,
:11:52. > :11:55.her daughters get her out of bed, I have shopped like symptoms
:11:56. > :12:07.at least once a week. Julie is now being referred
:12:08. > :12:18.to new specialist. She wants to see if she has
:12:19. > :12:45.a mutant gene which might have led You can see more of that interview
:12:46. > :12:51.on our website. The time is now 18 minutes to seven. And Barnes says
:12:52. > :12:56.that she will not resign, despite a series of PR disasters. Facing a
:12:57. > :13:03.grilling by Kent crime panel, she faced a grilling...
:13:04. > :13:15.Also into night's programme, thousands turn out in Kent as the
:13:16. > :13:19.Queen's Batson travel to the county. After yesterday's rain, we have had
:13:20. > :13:28.clear blue skies today. It is going to last?
:13:29. > :13:31.Commemorations have been taking place today to mark the seventieth
:13:32. > :13:34.anniversary of the invasion of Normandy on D`Day in 1944.
:13:35. > :13:37.The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall were at Pegasus Bridge
:13:38. > :13:41.in Northern France, the scene of the first fighting on June 6th 1944.
:13:42. > :13:43.And in Portsmouth both British and Dutch marines re`enacted
:13:44. > :13:45.the biggest amphibious assault in military history.
:13:46. > :13:49.Even the youngest surviving veterans are in their late eighties now ` a
:13:50. > :13:53.living link with one of the largest military operations in history.
:13:54. > :13:56.So what was it like to be in the thick of it?
:13:57. > :13:59.Robin Gibson has been across Kent and Sussex talking to a soldier,
:14:00. > :14:02.a sailor and an airman who were there about their experiences
:14:03. > :14:19.What do we have left to help future generations understanding
:14:20. > :14:25.Pictures, stories, ruins and relics, but most importantly,
:14:26. > :14:31.in our community, there are still living voices.
:14:32. > :14:42.At 18, Stan Hodge from Ashford had never been in combat.
:14:43. > :14:46.But in minutes of arriving on the beaches, he had shown bravery
:14:47. > :14:55.We got halfway up the beach, and that is all where it started.
:14:56. > :15:04.We got pinned down on the beach, nobody could move, and the sergeant
:15:05. > :15:10.said we are going to lay here, and we are going to get killed, and
:15:11. > :15:32.He went one way, and distracted the machine gun people.
:15:33. > :15:52.Had we not got off the beach, I am sure we would have all been killed.
:15:53. > :16:00.This is a curious relic of D`Day, marooned off the coast here
:16:01. > :16:04.It is a piece of that floating mulberry harbour,
:16:05. > :16:07.but this piece is one that never actually made it to Normandy,
:16:08. > :16:10.never actually made it to the invasion or the longest Day, which
:16:11. > :16:19.is forever etched on the memories of the people who were involved.
:16:20. > :16:21.You did not really expect to survive.
:16:22. > :16:30.Maurice Macy from Pevensey, at 21`year`old Spitfire pilot,
:16:31. > :16:33.who flew three sorties, bombing and strafing ahead of the troops.
:16:34. > :16:38.And not with the poor devils down there on the beach.
:16:39. > :16:41.Because they did not stand a lot of chance.
:16:42. > :16:47.Whereas my own security was up to me as much as anything.
:16:48. > :17:05.Here is a fraction of the great Armada or 4000 ships which carried
:17:06. > :17:10.I don't want to face those ever again!
:17:11. > :17:13.Donald Hunter from Ashford was eight signaller in the merchant Navy.
:17:14. > :17:16.He made 35 trips down the channel exporting troops and equipment.
:17:17. > :17:20.You saw the flash of the gun and the wine of the shell as it was
:17:21. > :17:27.When you see them in the water, they stand very little chance
:17:28. > :17:34.The orders were in an engagement, you didn't stop.
:17:35. > :17:40.Donald Hunter was to survive when his own ship was eventually hit.
:17:41. > :17:44.He regards himself as one of the lucky ones, one of those
:17:45. > :18:00.And you can hear and see more of Stan Hodge's D`Day experiences
:18:01. > :18:18.It?s less than two months until the opening of the Commonwealth
:18:19. > :18:21.Games ` and today the Queen's Baton Relay arrived in Kent.
:18:22. > :18:25.It?s part of a global tour building up to the games in Glasgow in July.
:18:26. > :18:27.The baton started the day in Tonbridge with Kent's double
:18:28. > :18:30.Olympic gold medallist Dame Kelly Holmes ` it then moved
:18:31. > :18:35.This afternoon the baton visited Folkestone, before ending the day
:18:36. > :18:40.at County Hall in Maidstone ` from where Neil Bell joins us now.
:18:41. > :18:49.It's been generating a good deal of excitement.
:18:50. > :19:03.Absolutely. Clearly the organiser is trying to tap into the spirit that
:19:04. > :19:14.was felt by the Olympic torch relay. It was our Olympic heroes got
:19:15. > :19:18.carried a bat on. A thousand children were up early to see the
:19:19. > :19:26.arrival of the Batson in Kent. Helen Grant and local Olympic heroes
:19:27. > :19:32.Lizzie Yarn old and Kelly Holmes. Her first gold medal was in 1994 in
:19:33. > :19:38.Canada. There is a friendly atmosphere. They are very
:19:39. > :19:40.competitive. It is a wonderful time. I am very proud of the welcome that
:19:41. > :20:02.Kent has given to the Batson. Next up was Dartford ascetic 's
:20:03. > :20:08.club. I am going to be out there as much as I can. I train up at the
:20:09. > :20:16.university there. I will be cheering them of the sideline. I cannot wait
:20:17. > :20:22.for it. Of the, wealth gains have worked hard to get as many people
:20:23. > :20:27.involved as possible. It involves everybody. Everyone can have a
:20:28. > :20:35.chance to get a chance at different scales. The reception at Herne Bay
:20:36. > :20:49.high school could not have been more passionate. This woman is now real
:20:50. > :21:00.hero. I hope that people are able to take up a sport that they really
:21:01. > :21:05.care about. The bat baton received a Scottish welcome in Folkestone.
:21:06. > :21:16.Millions will be watching when the sporting action gets underway. The
:21:17. > :21:22.momentum built up at London 2012 should guarantee the success of the
:21:23. > :21:31.games in class goat. It will be a showcase for a lot of Southeast
:21:32. > :21:35.athletes. It was a bit of hot to be dressed as shark!
:21:36. > :21:38.Remember February, when we were still in the grip of the wettest
:21:39. > :21:41.winter on record, and swathes of the countryside were underwater.
:21:42. > :21:44.Many farmers at the time were fearful that they might lose
:21:45. > :21:49.Well, what a difference a few months makes ` now the record warm spring
:21:50. > :21:54.Some farmers are saying it could turn out to be a bumper season.
:21:55. > :21:57.Our Environment Correspondent Yvette Austin reports from Ardingly
:21:58. > :22:16.on the first day of the South of England Show.
:22:17. > :22:25.It is a chance to exchange stories from the past year. The wet winter
:22:26. > :22:31.giving away to a good spring. The grass is growing back. It is going
:22:32. > :22:37.to take a couple of years to get over the flooding last winter, but
:22:38. > :22:42.it is greening up a blast. For the sheep, it has also been a long, wet
:22:43. > :22:48.winter. Especially when you have hairdo like this. This is a
:22:49. > :22:57.Wensleydale longwall. The problems with this breed is the mud in the
:22:58. > :23:06.wall, because it is so wet. They have a very thick fleece. They do
:23:07. > :23:12.not like the wet terribly much, and they do get that problems. As
:23:13. > :23:18.always, the birds and animals are proving popular at the show. But
:23:19. > :23:24.this evening, the main thing is horticulture. It is good for the
:23:25. > :23:29.insects. So far, it is a bumper year for the bees. This year, because the
:23:30. > :23:33.weather has been much kinder, all the flowers have come out early. So
:23:34. > :23:42.the bees have done very well this year. Plenty of insects will achieve
:23:43. > :24:01.a good harvest. Right now, it is all about the Jolly good show.
:24:02. > :24:10.A paratrooper who landed in 1944 relived the moment again today.
:24:11. > :24:14.Jock Hutton was 19 year old when he and his comrades lead the Allied
:24:15. > :24:19.Today, a few years older but still on every much the soldier, he joined
:24:20. > :24:22.hundreds of other paratroopers as he descended into the fields
:24:23. > :24:26.Back home in Larkfield in Kent, his wife proudly watched
:24:27. > :24:32.It is 70 years since his D`Day landing. Now, aged 89, and as part
:24:33. > :24:37.of a re`enactment of that fateful day, he is taking to the skies of
:24:38. > :24:46.Normandy again. One site stepped out, I got heave and I was away!
:24:47. > :25:00.Professional. That is all he lived for. It is mad! Jock was 19, and a
:25:01. > :25:07.member of the 13th Battalion the Parachute Regiment. Yellow mac you
:25:08. > :25:13.train for months and months, and you trained for one purpose in mind. He
:25:14. > :25:16.descended into the same feel that he did all those years ago, only this
:25:17. > :25:21.time, there was an admiring audience. Jock is one of the
:25:22. > :25:29.youngest D`Day veterans. He is approaching 90, but he is not
:25:30. > :25:34.putting his feet up just yet. What a moment! I would not do that right
:25:35. > :25:41.now! Let alone at the age of 89! Brilliant, brilliant. The weather
:25:42. > :25:47.has been lovely today. It is feeling pretty one today. It is going to be
:25:48. > :25:51.warming up. Not always dry. Tempters on the rise. Mostly, clear blue
:25:52. > :25:55.skies. We are going to hold onto the clear skies. Temperature is a little
:25:56. > :25:59.bit cooler than they have been of late. Tempters of eight or 9
:26:00. > :26:07.degrees. Tomorrow, quite a humid field to day. Sunshine and we should
:26:08. > :26:14.be staying dry. A gentle south easterly flow, and the temperatures
:26:15. > :26:19.are climbing up. Just a little bit cooler along the coast. Through
:26:20. > :26:27.tomorrow night, we are going to be holding onto the humid feeling air.
:26:28. > :26:32.A low tempter of 16 or 17 Celsius. And muggy night. For Saturday, there
:26:33. > :26:35.will be some sunshine around, but also some heavy and thundery
:26:36. > :26:41.showers. As you go into Sunday, it is going to be a calmer story. Still
:26:42. > :26:48.a chance that you could catch the odd sharp shower. We have humid air.
:26:49. > :26:54.We have an area of low pressure, and we are expected to seek some high
:26:55. > :26:59.downpours. Plenty of sunshine around. I'm sure you have noticed
:27:00. > :27:05.the temperature is higher. 25 degrees. We have actually got some
:27:06. > :27:09.warnings out from the Met office. The rain is likely to be pretty
:27:10. > :27:15.heavy. As you go through Sunday, it is going to be a settled story. He
:27:16. > :27:20.could catch one or two sharp showers, but the temperature is
:27:21. > :27:26.could be in the top teams, or low 20s. It is going to be increasingly
:27:27. > :27:33.unsettled. Heavy rain at times. But in the meantime, lots of sunshine of
:27:34. > :27:43.offer. It will feel warm. That is not bad! Take a brolly, you will be
:27:44. > :27:57.fine. We will be back later, but from us, goodbye.
:27:58. > :28:02.It's a weekly selection of hand-picked stuff from Radio 2,