11/04/2017 South East Today

than we really are in international than we really are in international

Calls for migrants to be moved far from Calais after fire destroys

And the threat of legal action against a Kent council leader

by the company wanting to re-open Manston Airport.

Onfident we'll get people returned and we're confident Ukip councillors

will go on and serve their communities very well indeed. Either

way, these elections could be crucial in what comes next for Ukip.

It is turning South East politicians have called

tonight for migrants in northern France to be relocated far

from the Port of Calais, after a huge fire destroyed a camp

housing fifteen hundred Wooden huts were reduced to ashes

after fighting between Afghan Riot police were called in and at

least 10 people have been hurt. There had been concern that this

camp was becoming increasingly unstable and ruled by people

traffickers from The authorities had

planned to shut it down. The flames might well have

done that job for them. Big trouble happened

with the Afghan people and Kurdish. Afghan people, first time,

attacked Kurdish with a knife. Well, it is an eerie atmosphere

here in the camp today. The fires are now out,

but you can still smell What people used to call home is now

largely reduced to ashes. The police ushered out any migrants

who turned up today. Hundreds of migrants have been

given temporary shelter But charities are warning many have

already vanished heading to Calais. What they were doing

here which was trying Do you think it's

going to get worse? You know, I mean, it

was bad here anyway. The closure of the Calais Jungle

camp last October caused the numbers In February, we discovered migrants

from Dunkirk were making nightly attempts to smuggle themselves

into Kent using public And last month, five migrants

were injured in clashes at Dunkirk. What this does is it puts more

than 1,000 migrants, all of them desperate,

on the streets, around That means danger

for our lorry drivers. The French authorities

say they are now trying to persuade the migrants to go

to secure shelters. We need to round them

up and take them back I think it is in the interests

of Dover and Calais that we work together to ensure

that the Dover-Calais trade route And charities point out

that the people who lived here have Lawyers for RiverOak,

the company hoping to re-open Manston Airport in East Kent,

are threatening legal action against the leader

of Thanet District Council, It follows an e-mail that he sent

to fellow councillors, claiming that Belize,

where one of RiverOak's key investors is based,

is a "major money-laundering country", whose currency

transactions involve proceeds from international narcotics

traffickingand saying that Belize is a shipment point

for marijuana and cocaine, Campaigners fighting to revive

the airport have reacted angrily. A most extraordinary implication

to make about a perfectly respectable organisation which has

been trying very hard for several Peter Whittlesea joins

me now in the studio. Peter, what more has

RiverOakhad to say today? RiverOak said they gave Chris Wells

a deadline until 5pm this evening to respond to their demands or legal

remedies. They say he hasn't made a substantive response, but asked for

extra time. It is intriguing what will happen next because I

understand this is a personal claim against him, not the council. So the

question is whether he has enough money to defend those claims he

made. But his political opponents are already saying if he doesn't

defend them, he will become a lame duck leader of the council because

he won't be able to vote on issues relating to Man ston which is one of

the biggest infrastructure projects in the area. Peter, thank you.

The long-awaited decision on the location of a new lower

Thames Crossing is set to be announced tomorrow.

Highways England has been recommending a new tunnel east

of Gravesend to relieve pressure on the M25, but ministers have also

been considering another crossing at Dartford.

The decision follows the largest ever public consultation

BBC South East Today will have the latest

on the preferred route and speaking to some of those affected.

There are just over three weeks to go until polling in county

Today the Ukip leader, Paul Nuttall, said he is expecting these elections

to be the "most difficult" the party will face before 2020.

In 2009, there were no Ukip councillors elected

But four years later, the party won a total of 37

county council seats - enough to make it the second largest

party and official opposition to the Conservatives

on Kent County Council and West Sussex County Council.

Our Political Editor Helen Catt is in Cliftonville near Margate.

Helen, Thanet is something of a stronghold for Ukip?

Yes, back in 2013 Ukip won seven of the eight available county council

seats in Thanet. It was also where Nigel Farage chose to make his

failed bid to become an MP. No real surprise then that it was here that

Paul NUTTal, the current leader decide to rally his Kent troops

ahead of the elections. This area, he told them, is the heart of Ukip.

I caught up with him earlier when he was out on the campaign trail.

It was a quieter affair than some former Ukip leaders visits.

Paul Nuttall on his first trip to Thanet chose Broadstairs to sell

the party's campaign policies one on one.

I will represent the community over party all the time and put

We're opposed to any sort of building on green belt

The South East has a huge problem with the number

of people in the South East, but we need to keep Ukip

on the pitch because Ukip is the guard dogs of Brexit.

Ukip gained almost 40 seats across Kent, Sussex

It went on to win the European elections the year after,

two by-elections and take control of Thanet District Council.

But in recent months several high-profile members have quit

raising questions over the party's future relevance.

I'm leaving positively having achieved our joint objective

of winning a vote to get out of the European Union.

On the doorstep this morning, a vote of confidence.

Ukip did help to get us out of the EU, but there

is still lots of other things that Ukip can do to help

So you think there is still a role for them?

I think they have achieved what they were set out

to and I haven't heard of anything else that they're

I don't think they are as relevant as they were two

There are other things happening in the world at the moment.

If people stick to their guns and say we will stick

to them no matter what, they should be all right.

These will be the most difficult local elections

We know exactly where we stand on this, but we're confident we'll

get people returned and we're confident Ukip councillors

will go on and serve their communities very well indeed.

Either way, these elections could be crucial in what comes next for Ukip.

Uttall, the current leader decide to rally

The message from Paul Nuttall to members here was very much hold your

nerve. The challenge for him and Ukip is to communicate those two

things that he has been saying. Firstly he wants to make Theresa May

walk the walk on Brexit, but Ukip is no longer a single issue policy, it

has policies on transport that he wants to convey. It has the main

opposition in west Sussex and has seats elsewhere as well? They have

seats in each of our counties and west Sussex they are the official

opposition and hold ten seats there of the that's an area to watch for

them too. We will, of course, be speaking to Labour and the Liberal

Democrats and the Conservatives over the course of the next three weeks.

You can find a full list of all candidates standing in the county

council elections on the county council websites. Helen, thank you.

Gatwick Airport says its policy on disruptive passengers is working

with fewer incidents reported in 2016, compared

It comes after a Parliamentary report said the sale of alcohol

to holidaymakers jetting off on early-morning flights

should be restricted because of an increase in rowdy

Tomorrow morning on BBC Sussex, Neil Pringle will be hearing

from the mother of a Brighton toddler with facial disfigurement

who has just won a modelling contract with an online

Now let s take a look at what's happening with the weather

for the next few days with Nina Ridge.

Not too bad. Similar to what we had today. We've got clear skies so

turning chilly, but for tomorrow, dry, bright and the best of the

sunshine during the morning. It will turn more overcast later on in the

day. But through the night tonight, we have got the well broken cloud.

Temperatures down to to or three Celsius. A cool feeling morning with

that sunshine. As that weather front approaches from the north, the cloud

will thicken up for the afternoon and it brings with it the very small

chance of a late afternoon shower, but most places will stay dry and

we're looking at highs similar today's values, 15 Celsius to 16

Celsius inland and 12 to 13 Celsius around the coast. Thursday looks

like being dry, bright with sunshine. If we take a look a the

outlook and I will hand you over On Sunday, on the cool side for East

itself. Good evening. Grace of all it -- it

is greatest of all in Scotland. A weather front is on the move. The

rain edging down into south-western