08/01/2017 South East Today

Hello.

Good evening.

A woman from Sussex has accused Brighton and Hove City Council

of an "act of vandalism" over plans to cut down trees planted

to remember loved ones.

Jo Sweeting paid ?200 to plant a horse chestnut tree 17 years ago

in memory of her late mother but now the council have earmarked a number

of trees at Stanmer Park to be felled as part

of a regeneration project.

Chrissie Reidy reports.

Joy Tanner was just 58 when she died.

A teacher who loved nature.

Her daughter planted a tree in her memory, but now

the council could cut it down.

I just felt sick.

Not only had I lost her and I've lost other people,

too, most of us have at...

I'm 51, most of us have lost people.

But it felt like it was quite a violent act, the idea of felling.

It's such an emotional words to use.

Many of the trees under threat at Stanmer Park bear white ribbons.

Jilly planted a tree 25 years ago in memory of her first-born.

It's brought back the losses and made me think about that again.

It made me think that, if the tree goes,

then how will I remember them?

What would I have to do?

It's brought it right back to the beginning.

The council plan to restore the parkland

to its 18th-century roots, depending on whether their bid

for Heritage lottery funding is successful.

They are proposing planting 250 new trees and creating

a car park for 200 cars.

I certainly don't think anyone's memorial tree should be taken down.

It's the only thing that some people have.

It would be a real shame to regenerate and remove those parts

if there's other ways they can regenerate and other things

they can do instead.

Brighton and Hove City Council told us:

We're continuing to refine the landscaping plans and...

No trees will be cut down until the autumn, they say,

and the council's expected to make a decision tomorrow.

The M2 London bound in Kent has been closed for much of today causing

miles of tailbacks after a lorry left the carriageway

and careered into a ditch.

Police were called just before five o'clock this morning to junction

five near Sittingbourne.

The lorry is believed to have collided with the crash barrier

before leaving the carriageway and coming to a stop on its side.

Nobody was injured.

Police are appealing for witnesses after reports that two men

forced their way inside a house in Minster-on-Sea with a knife.

Officers were called to Baldwin Road just before half

past ten last night.

The suspects, described as between 20 and 40 years

old and of Asian appearance, demanded money before stealing

two sets of car keys.

The victim, in his fifties, suffered cuts to his head and hand.

A look at the weather now, here's Elizabeth Rizzini.

Hello, good evening.

It was grey and mild again today but some of us

just lucky enough to see some brightness and even some sunshine.

That mist and murk will reform overnight tonight.

We see some hillfog over the downs.

A lot of that of drizzle from the thickness of the

cloud but we will start the day off on a mild note again at 6-7 C.

So, it will be a dry morning, or a mostly dry morning.

A bit of drizzle here or there, poor visibility for

many through the morning rush-hour, lots of low cloud again, but we

will start to see outbreaks of rain spread down from the

north-west as we head into the afternoon.

So, turning wet and windy for the second half of the day, but

still mild.

Top temperatures peaking in double figures.

It'll turn colder behind that weather front on Monday night,

so a chillier day on Tuesday.

With some strong gusts of wind around, at

times, through the middle of the week and it

will turn very cold with

the possibility of someone wintry showers.

Finally, as Southern rail commuters face another week of disruption

ahead due to three days of strike action - a reminder that BBC

South East is hosting a special Question Time style debate

on the on-going crisis on our railways.

WHISTLE BLOWS

This is not a dispute with the public,

this is a dispute with the Government and with this company.

A bit of a disgrace, really, isn't it?

That it has gone on as long as it has.

I try to empathise with why they are striking.

You pay too much for delays, cancellations and disruption.

You deserve a better service.

I don't think the Prime Minister has any idea of the level of suffering

and pain that rail passengers and businesses are suffering.

There is only one body responsible for the current strike, this