:00:00. > :00:09.Talks in the long-running dispute between Southern and the RMT have
:00:10. > :00:13.collapsed without resolving the matter.
:00:14. > :00:16.And, she was raped as a child - the Sussex woman campaigning
:00:17. > :00:24.for a change in the law after her attacker is discharged.
:00:25. > :00:36.It was a mild and dry today, but rain is on the way for tomorrow.
:00:37. > :00:39.Talks between Southern Rail and the RMT have broken up
:00:40. > :00:44.The two sides met at the conciliation service
:00:45. > :00:47.ACAS in London today, hoping to resolve the long running
:00:48. > :00:51.dispute over the role of guards Leaders of the RMT say they're
:00:52. > :00:55."furious" with the way the talks went, claiming Southern "are only
:00:56. > :01:00.interested in bulldozing through driver only
:01:01. > :01:04.But Southern have criticised what they say is the union's
:01:05. > :01:07."obstinate refusal to engage" with meaningful talks.
:01:08. > :01:10.Our reporter John Young is live for us at Brighton station tonight.
:01:11. > :01:20.So, a dramatic end to the talks this evening?
:01:21. > :01:30.Yes, the talks barely lasted three hours and then do some descended
:01:31. > :01:37.into the wall of words. These were official word from both sides. RMT
:01:38. > :01:38.accused Southern of a pig-headed attitude. Southern said that the
:01:39. > :01:42.unions refused to engage and was unions refused to engage and was
:01:43. > :01:50.disappointing, disheartening and destruct. No surprise then that no
:01:51. > :01:53.more talks are scheduled. I broke that news to passengers earlier this
:01:54. > :02:00.evening. I don't what to say, they need to come to some kind of
:02:01. > :02:05.conclusion. It is astounding. How one thing can affect so many people.
:02:06. > :02:09.Have you heard the latest news that the talks have collapsed again?
:02:10. > :02:15.Again, and this is another thing that we are hit with. I am
:02:16. > :02:20.flabbergasted. People are not happy, and they will be looking forward to
:02:21. > :02:26.the result of Aslef's vote on Thursday. Yes, the other union,
:02:27. > :02:31.Aslef, is the drivers union and their leaders agreed a deal
:02:32. > :02:36.recently. The members approved it. There is no such expectation this
:02:37. > :02:41.time, one member we spoke to earlier thought it may not go through. That
:02:42. > :02:42.would be a nightmare scenario for Southern and four passengers who
:02:43. > :02:44.just want this resolved. Cheryl Islip from Eastbourne
:02:45. > :02:47.was raped when she was Last October, a jury found that
:02:48. > :02:50.88-year-old Norman Askew had sexually abused her and another girl
:02:51. > :02:53.but, because he was too frail to stand trial,
:02:54. > :02:57.he was given an absolute discharge. Now Cheryl has written
:02:58. > :03:00.to the Prime minister, calling for a change in the law
:03:01. > :03:03.to make sure someone who commits such serious crimes can't escape
:03:04. > :03:06.having their name added Our Special Correspondent Colin
:03:07. > :03:13.Campbell has the exclusive story. Cheryl Islip battled for justice
:03:14. > :03:17.for more than a decade. Last year, she gave
:03:18. > :03:19.evidence against the man Although a jury believed her,
:03:20. > :03:26.her abuser walked free. His name not even placed on a sex
:03:27. > :03:30.offenders' register. He has been allowed to go home
:03:31. > :03:33.with just a slapped wrist, though he was found guilty
:03:34. > :03:37.of all four counts. What sort of strain
:03:38. > :03:39.has this had on you? There have been some days
:03:40. > :03:51.where I think I can't go on. 88-year-old Norman Askew appeared
:03:52. > :03:54.in court in October, accused of raping Cheryl
:03:55. > :03:58.when she was ten, indecently But, partway through the trial
:03:59. > :04:04.at Lewes Crown Court, his defence team produced evidence
:04:05. > :04:06.saying Mr Askew was With more and more cases of child
:04:07. > :04:13.sex abuse coming forward, and identifying now elderly
:04:14. > :04:15.perpetrators, what happened here last autumn is
:04:16. > :04:18.likely to happen again. After assessing the medical
:04:19. > :04:20.evidence in the case, the judge, Charles Kemp,
:04:21. > :04:22.deemed Norman Askew What happened next is what is known
:04:23. > :04:27.as a "trial of the facts". In a trial of the facts,
:04:28. > :04:31.it is the truth of the allegations against the defendant,
:04:32. > :04:34.opposed to their guilt or innocence The jury found Mr Askew to have
:04:35. > :04:39.sexually abused the girls, He received an absolute discharge
:04:40. > :04:46.with no conviction or sentence, his name wasn't placed
:04:47. > :04:51.on the sex offenders' register. I would like the law to be
:04:52. > :04:54.changed where at least if someone has got dementia,
:04:55. > :04:59.or, you know, they are unwell and they are not going to get
:05:00. > :05:03.punished, they should at least be The Law Commission believes changes
:05:04. > :05:11.to how people are considered unfit The law determines whether or not
:05:12. > :05:16.someone is unfit to plead, based on a test about how much
:05:17. > :05:18.they understand about That doesn't really address
:05:19. > :05:22.the correct question, which is how much they can
:05:23. > :05:30.participate in the proceedings. What we suggest in our
:05:31. > :05:32.recommendations is that we refocus that test so that we try to keep
:05:33. > :05:36.as many people as possible Cheryl says her torment has been
:05:37. > :05:40.compounded by delays and mistakes. She first went to the police
:05:41. > :05:42.in 2004, but claims detectives In 2011, she made a secret
:05:43. > :05:49.recording with her attacker, but claims police initially
:05:50. > :05:52.overlooked its significance, A trial was set for 2014, but was
:05:53. > :05:58.delayed for more than two years. The Crown Prosecution Service
:05:59. > :06:01.say it was because of But some feel victims of non-recent
:06:02. > :06:09.sex abuse are being let down. It is not entirely, you know,
:06:10. > :06:13.unusual for these kind of really quite perverse outcomes,
:06:14. > :06:16.and again I have every sympathy with that poor woman,
:06:17. > :06:23.who just hasn't seen justice done. When they did their abuse, 30 or 40
:06:24. > :06:26.years ago, they wasn't unwell. So they need some
:06:27. > :06:36.sort of punishment. Cheryl wants the government to act
:06:37. > :06:41.to ensure others are not The ambulance service
:06:42. > :06:55.for the South East is being accused of a cover-up after reports
:06:56. > :06:58.were never made public into claims of bullying so severe that two staff
:06:59. > :07:00.members attempted suicide. The GMB Union says managers
:07:01. > :07:03.who were responsible for "horrific, cowardly and devastating" acts
:07:04. > :07:05.of bullying on staff have been The independent report,
:07:06. > :07:12.from May last year, is said to describe a 'climate
:07:13. > :07:14.of fear' within SECAMB. Behind these walls was a workforce
:07:15. > :07:21.subjected to a culture of fear, according to reports carried out
:07:22. > :07:23.after four staff members 999 operators suffered bullying,
:07:24. > :07:29.coercion and intimidation, it was said, with two
:07:30. > :07:33.even attempting suicide. Looking at some of the findings
:07:34. > :07:36.in this report, as you would If these allegations do come
:07:37. > :07:46.through, then very serious The allegations include
:07:47. > :07:51.staff receiving abusive, A culture of favouritism
:07:52. > :08:07.and nepotism meant victims were threatened with the sack, and
:08:08. > :08:09.those responsible were protected. The trust declined to make anyone
:08:10. > :08:12.available for us to interview. In a statement, they described these
:08:13. > :08:14.as historical allegations, which had either been dealt with,
:08:15. > :08:17.or had no evidence to back them up. But they did say they take bullying
:08:18. > :08:20.and harassment very seriously, and were working hard to address
:08:21. > :08:23.this area of concern. The union which represents
:08:24. > :08:29.call handlers, though, says that with senior staff
:08:30. > :08:31.responsible still in place, Clearly, as these members
:08:32. > :08:36.of staff are still there, and still in high positions
:08:37. > :08:39.within the trust, it has That is an outright
:08:40. > :08:43.lie by the trust. If they have been dealt with,
:08:44. > :08:45.it has been too lenient It is far from the first
:08:46. > :08:51.scandal to hit the trust. In 2015, an investigation began
:08:52. > :08:55.after it was revealed ambulances had been deliberately
:08:56. > :08:57.delayed under a secret Last autumn it was placed in special
:08:58. > :09:03.measures after inspectors found it A new chief executive
:09:04. > :09:06.has now been appointed, When he does arrive,
:09:07. > :09:11.he will have a lot Our reporter Briohny Williams has
:09:12. > :09:22.been following the story. The Trust says it's dealt
:09:23. > :09:24.with the allegations, but others are taking action
:09:25. > :09:36.after seeing what this report says? Exactly. The MP who we heard from in
:09:37. > :09:38.that report has invited the new chief executive into Parliament so
:09:39. > :09:43.he can explain what he is going to he can explain what he is going to
:09:44. > :09:47.do to try to sort out the situation to restore trust for patients, and
:09:48. > :09:53.to ensure the welfare of staff. Meanwhile, the GMB union has written
:09:54. > :09:57.to 46 MPs and all the constituencies that the trust covers, including
:09:58. > :09:58.that of Jeremy Hunt. They are calling on him as the Health
:09:59. > :10:01.Secretary to take action. Thank you. Now, let's take a look
:10:02. > :10:14.at the weather for the South East It is wet tomorrow, but it will also
:10:15. > :10:18.be mild. We could see highs of 12 degrees. Lots of cloud around
:10:19. > :10:23.earlier with temperatures reaching nine or ten. Over the next couple of
:10:24. > :10:28.days, things will turn milder. There will be some rain around on
:10:29. > :10:34.Wednesday, but high pressure builds through Thursday and Friday.
:10:35. > :10:39.Tonight, a good deal of cloud and a very mild picture. Overnight
:10:40. > :10:43.temperatures only dropping 27 or 8 degrees. Some rain first thing,
:10:44. > :10:47.which will clear through. It will be dry for a time through the morning,
:10:48. > :10:51.another band rain trekking East through the afternoon. Cloudy and
:10:52. > :10:55.miles and a bit damp first thing. Dry for a time in the morning, and
:10:56. > :11:01.during the afternoon a second band of rain will move in, heavy at
:11:02. > :11:03.times. Temperatures ten or 11 degrees, thanks to the southerly
:11:04. > :11:07.weather into the weekend. A bit of fog around to watch out for. Jon
:11:08. > :11:10.Hammond with the national forecast now.
:11:11. > :11:16.Good evening. There is some rain in the forecast but not a lot. Plenty
:11:17. > :11:21.of dry weather to look forward to as we head to the weekend. Cloud
:11:22. > :11:27.delivering some rain but plenty of spaces in between, hence my
:11:28. > :11:31.optimism. One of these blobs of cloud is producing dampness right
:11:32. > :11:35.now. We could see a glancing blow across the far south-east through
:11:36. > :11:39.the early hours and later some rain arriving across the far south-west.
:11:40. > :11:43.In between some hill fog overnight, not desperately cold, for most a
:11:44. > :11:48.touch of frost across the northern Glens of Scotland. At the other end
:11:49. > :11:51.of the UK some wet weather first thing for breakfast, pushing through
:11:52. > :11:52.Devon and Cornwall into South Wales. It won't hang