:00:17. > :00:31.The campaign to get a fossil of this dinosaur on display in Oxford.
:00:32. > :00:35.Basingstoke's pride, as the town prepares to commemorate
:00:36. > :00:43.It would be the biggest political shake up of how services
:00:44. > :00:47.Plans have been unveiled to abolish all six councils in Oxfordshire
:00:48. > :00:51.and replace them with a unitary authority, responsible
:00:52. > :00:56.Supporters claim millions of pounds would be saved every year,
:00:57. > :01:01.The proposal is at odds with a rival plan being put forward
:01:02. > :01:11.A plan to abolish six councils and replace them with one.
:01:12. > :01:14.At the launch, councillors from three political parties called
:01:15. > :01:16.themselves the turkeys voting for Christmas, but they said
:01:17. > :01:18.they could save ?20 million a year to provide better services
:01:19. > :01:25.The savings come because we are joining services
:01:26. > :01:29.together, so planning would join with highways.
:01:30. > :01:31.It would be more integrated and we would make sure
:01:32. > :01:37.the back-office costs like HR, finance, collection services,
:01:38. > :01:40.Customer services, all under one roof.
:01:41. > :01:43.Labour county councillors back the plan because it offers
:01:44. > :01:51."That is not our problem, it is the county's".
:01:52. > :01:55.It is difficult for someone vulnerable who is looking for help.
:01:56. > :02:00.They are offering all sorts of guarantees, particularly
:02:01. > :02:05.to Labour-run Oxford City Council, that they won't be taken over
:02:06. > :02:10.But there is a rival plan from the districts,
:02:11. > :02:12.which involves a combined authority with an elected mayor,
:02:13. > :02:15.something the government is looking for, to devolve powers
:02:16. > :02:21.The other five councils say they are more in touch
:02:22. > :02:25.Talking to local people and businesses, they all say we need
:02:26. > :02:31.And if we are able to get a devolution deal, we will be able
:02:32. > :02:34.to get money out of government to put towards infrastructure
:02:35. > :02:38.improvements, such as improving roads and rail and other services
:02:39. > :02:44.Both plans are just draft ideas at the moment.
:02:45. > :02:47.The government will hope agreement can be reached between them
:02:48. > :02:54.Peter Henley, BBC South Today, Oxford.
:02:55. > :02:56.A teenager's appeared in court charged with murdering
:02:57. > :03:00.Police were called to reports of a stabbing at Brompton Close
:03:01. > :03:03.26-year-old Daniel Lavender was taken to Stoke Mandeville Hospital,
:03:04. > :03:10.18-year-old Brandon Lavender is accused of killing him.
:03:11. > :03:12.A family's being supported by specialist officers
:03:13. > :03:13.after an 11-year-old girl was approached
:03:14. > :03:17.by two men in Caversham and possibly abducted.
:03:18. > :03:18.It happened near Caversham Primary School yesterday afternoon.
:03:19. > :03:22.A letter sent to parents at the school today says the girl's
:03:23. > :03:28.Extra patrols are being carried out in the area.
:03:29. > :03:31.The Childcare Minister has visited two nurseries in Oxford to promote
:03:32. > :03:34.a Government scheme enabling parents to get 30 hours free childcare.
:03:35. > :03:37.Caroline Dinenage first stopped at Rose Hill Nursey, where she played
:03:38. > :03:41.with children and discussed the scheme with staff.
:03:42. > :03:45.Later, she officially launched the Old Station Nursery
:03:46. > :03:49.We know that for some hard-pressed families,
:03:50. > :03:52.the cost of childcare is one of their biggest expenses,
:03:53. > :03:55.and it is often one of the biggest barriers to women being able to get
:03:56. > :03:58.back to work, or do more hours, which is why we are investing
:03:59. > :04:02.?6 billion a year by 2020 to roll out this offer of 30 hours childcare
:04:03. > :04:11.for the working parents of all three and four-year-olds by September.
:04:12. > :04:12.Scientists in Oxfordshire hope a new ?50 million
:04:13. > :04:15.project will change the way we produce our energy.
:04:16. > :04:17.The team, based at Culham Science Centre,
:04:18. > :04:21.on their latest machine called Mast Upgrade.
:04:22. > :04:25.When finished it will explore ways in which we can make
:04:26. > :04:29.Matt Graveling has been to find out more.
:04:30. > :04:32.Whether you are sending an e-mail, charging your phone or just watching
:04:33. > :04:35.the news, electricity powers almost every aspect of our lives.
:04:36. > :04:40.Depleting levels of coal, oil and gas mean we need to find
:04:41. > :04:46.And the answer to this global problem is being addressed right
:04:47. > :04:54.We all know about climate change, about the need to find ways
:04:55. > :04:57.of powering our world which do not produce CO2, carbon.
:04:58. > :04:59.Fusion offers the potential to be that perfect,
:05:00. > :05:06.It is low land use, has effectively limitless resources and is very
:05:07. > :05:12.When you fuse hydrogen atoms together, they give out heat.
:05:13. > :05:14.This heat is then used to turn water to steam,
:05:15. > :05:23.It is a topic that has been researched here for decades.
:05:24. > :05:26.Inside this complex machinery, scientists are trying to make energy
:05:27. > :05:35.They now hope their latest project can help give an answer
:05:36. > :05:42.Regular viewers of BBC South Today may remember in 2013
:05:43. > :05:44.when our reporter went round the fusion experiment.
:05:45. > :05:48.Well, fast forward four years and I am here on top
:05:49. > :05:56.It is a third of the size, and more importantly, it is cheaper,
:05:57. > :06:02.It is hoped this experiment might make fusion technology more
:06:03. > :06:09.As we saw with the recent Hinkley Point power station,
:06:10. > :06:12.at ?20 billion, that takes a lot to get off the ground.
:06:13. > :06:14.If we can reduce the cost of fusion power plants,
:06:15. > :06:18.it gives more chance to get these up and running and sited in cities
:06:19. > :06:24.Testing will begin in autumn, when the inside of this machine
:06:25. > :06:27.will become hotter than the sun, and the team hope the findings
:06:28. > :06:31.will help to shine new light on their search for affordable
:06:32. > :06:39.A new workshop warning young people about the dangers of gambling
:06:40. > :06:42.According to a survey from the Gambling Commission,
:06:43. > :06:44.rates of problem gambling have increased year on year, and are
:06:45. > :06:51.The Young Gamblers Education Trust wants to make sure people
:06:52. > :06:56.More workshops are planned over the coming months.
:06:57. > :06:58.From my experience, having spoken to people with gambling problems,
:06:59. > :07:00.there is definitely a stigma attached to coming out
:07:01. > :07:06.and being openly honest about having a problem with gambling.
:07:07. > :07:09.It is that stigma which prevents people from asking for help,
:07:10. > :07:11.which is a big problem because there is a lot
:07:12. > :07:15.Having come through the process of dealing with my addiction
:07:16. > :07:17.to gambling and treatment, I wanted to turn around
:07:18. > :07:23.A museum in Oxford's secured ?90,000 to help display the fossil
:07:24. > :07:28.The long-necked plesiosaur roamed the oceans 165 million years ago.
:07:29. > :07:31.The Museum of Natural History still needs more money though before
:07:32. > :07:35.visitors will get a chance to see it.
:07:36. > :07:46.This monster of the deep could soon be on show in Oxford.
:07:47. > :07:51.Seen here in this reconstruction, it weighed more than 600lbs and fed
:07:52. > :07:56.on marine animals such as fish and shellfish.
:07:57. > :08:00.Behind closed doors, Juliet has the painstaking task
:08:01. > :08:03.of scraping away clay, millimetre by millimetre, in order
:08:04. > :08:11.For me, to just scrape off the clay matrix and reveal bones
:08:12. > :08:14.after 165 million years is quite extraordinary, like opening
:08:15. > :08:18.Christmas presents, revealing a little bit more and a bit more.
:08:19. > :08:25.Archaeologists discovered the 165 million-year-old
:08:26. > :08:30.reptile bones at a quarry in Cambridgeshire in 2014.
:08:31. > :08:33.Now, museum bosses want to display the bones next to another plesiosaur
:08:34. > :08:43.It had a neck of 2.5 metres and a body of five metres,
:08:44. > :08:46.with large wing shaped flippers and a stubby tail.
:08:47. > :08:49.We don't have anything like that today so it would make a striking
:08:50. > :08:51.display and something that would catch people's eyes
:08:52. > :08:55.and get them engaged with our amazing fossil heritage.
:08:56. > :09:00.They have already received ?90,000 to help them complete the project.
:09:01. > :09:03.But they still need another 20,000 to buy new cases,
:09:04. > :09:05.artwork and digital screens, in order to bring
:09:06. > :09:14.For now, this Jurassic giant lies in waiting before the time
:09:15. > :09:26.An 80-year-old man from Harwell could be the oldest
:09:27. > :09:28.paperboy in Oxfordshire, and possibly in Britain.
:09:29. > :09:31.John Hunt delivers papers around the village five days a week.
:09:32. > :09:40.Lucy Bickerton joined him on his round this morning.
:09:41. > :09:46.An early start, and John doesn't look like your average paperboy
:09:47. > :09:50.arriving to work. Unlike most, he is not doing the round before a day at
:09:51. > :09:55.school. So how did a retired engineer get onto this unlikely
:09:56. > :09:58.career path? I used to walk around the village to pick up my paper in
:09:59. > :10:04.the morning anyway, and one morning I came into the paper shop and I
:10:05. > :10:08.think it was the lady in the shop who was saying that one of the boys
:10:09. > :10:14.wasn't available to take the papers out. So I said, I will take them
:10:15. > :10:19.around, I know where to go. And the next day it was, you wouldn't mind
:10:20. > :10:25.doing it again, would you? So it started and I've done it ever since.
:10:26. > :10:29.For the past five years, John has delivered the papers five mornings a
:10:30. > :10:33.week. And by doing the job in a tight-knit community, he has become
:10:34. > :10:39.well-known at almost a celebrity in the village. I meet people walking
:10:40. > :10:43.their dogs, jogging, driving off to school in their cars. One particular
:10:44. > :10:48.lady who comes to that almost mornings to say hello, and we chat.
:10:49. > :10:53.She gives me a pot of marmalade every now and then, which is rather
:10:54. > :11:02.nice. Hello. Good morning. Here we are again. Are you OK? He is lovely.
:11:03. > :11:07.He comes every day. He never lets us down. If anybody takes a day off, he
:11:08. > :11:11.does an extra round at short notice. John says that the hour and a half
:11:12. > :11:16.walk around the village keeps him fit and helps him wake up in the
:11:17. > :11:18.morning. His boss will be pleased to hear that for now, he has no plans
:11:19. > :11:21.to stop. I'll have the headlines at 8pm
:11:22. > :13:49.and a full bulletin at 10.30pm. Council says it carried out a survey
:13:50. > :13:55.to ask residents how much extra council tax they could afford to
:13:56. > :14:00.pay. Two thirds of residents survey said they would accept a 3.75
:14:01. > :14:05.increase because they understood the challenges that are before us, and I
:14:06. > :14:10.am grateful for that. We are just 2.5 over that. We know costs are
:14:11. > :14:14.increasing and petrol prices are going up, food prices are going up,
:14:15. > :14:23.but also the demands on this council and the lack of central funding is
:14:24. > :14:26.also putting huge pressures on us. Some opposition councils are warning
:14:27. > :14:32.that some of the social care reductions could cause problems in
:14:33. > :14:35.future years. Despite all this, tens of millions more savings will be
:14:36. > :14:38.needed in the next couple of years. The budget proposal will be
:14:39. > :14:52.discussed at a council meeting next month. Thames Valley Police is
:14:53. > :14:56.considering redeveloping its traffic base. The proposal appeared on
:14:57. > :15:00.Slough Borough Council's website. The document was written by the
:15:01. > :15:04.Berkshire property partnership, a consortium consisting of local NHS
:15:05. > :15:11.Trust 's, Thames Valley Police, and all of the world county's councils.
:15:12. > :15:13.Crews from Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service have taken part in training
:15:14. > :15:18.for how they would respond to a terror attack or a chemical spill.
:15:19. > :15:21.Actors were used in exercises at Gibraltar barracks along with
:15:22. > :15:25.emergency services. Scenarios included a chlorine gas attack at a
:15:26. > :15:30.leisure centre and an unidentified white powder being spilt. The
:15:31. > :15:34.training looked at how the crew would cope in vital minutes before
:15:35. > :15:39.specialist teams arrive. It is 200 years since the death of
:15:40. > :15:43.one of Britain's's most celebrated authors. Jane Austen was a Hampshire
:15:44. > :15:47.girl, born and bred. Her anniversary will be marked with a number of
:15:48. > :15:52.events near where she lived for many years, and in Winchester, where she
:15:53. > :15:56.died. She is also getting a permanent memorial in Basingstoke,
:15:57. > :16:07.just a few miles from where she was born.
:16:08. > :16:11.I am in the library, the octagonal room, at Farley house. Quite a crowd
:16:12. > :16:17.has gathered and they are here to see this, the model of what we
:16:18. > :16:23.believe will be the first public statue of Jane Austin in the world.
:16:24. > :16:29.As you mentioned, plenty of places lay claim to the author. Alton,
:16:30. > :16:40.Bath, Winchester, but it is Basingstoke where she was born.
:16:41. > :16:46.How quick come the reasons for approving what we like, wrote Jane
:16:47. > :16:49.Austen in her novel Persuasion. It is hoped that Basingstoke will echo
:16:50. > :16:55.that sentiment over a bronze of the world renowned Hampshire author. My
:16:56. > :16:58.vision is that she is walking in the square and it is as though someone
:16:59. > :17:04.has said good morning and she has said it back. She was a real person.
:17:05. > :17:07.She was a headstrong woman of her time, living in her time, but she is
:17:08. > :17:13.relevant for us today walking past her, because her novels are still
:17:14. > :17:17.there. The statue has certainly taken shape from early sketches but
:17:18. > :17:22.finding a real likeness of Jane Austin has been a problem as only
:17:23. > :17:26.two portraits were ever done. I have to study from life, so I have to
:17:27. > :17:30.read between the lines of what was written about her and pulled
:17:31. > :17:35.together a real face. Jane Austen was born a few miles outside
:17:36. > :17:41.Basingstoke. The house is long gone, but 200 years later, Basingstoke is
:17:42. > :17:44.staking its claim. Jane Austen new Basingstoke well, attending social
:17:45. > :17:49.gatherings at the assembly halls that stood here in Market Square,
:17:50. > :17:53.where her statue will be. It was all such a great influence on her that
:17:54. > :17:58.while she was here, she wrote the first draft to Pride And Prejudice.
:17:59. > :18:03.Many other places have been better at trying to claim Jane Austen, so
:18:04. > :18:07.on the 200th anniversary of her death, we want to have a permanent
:18:08. > :18:13.memorial to the fact that she is our most famous of residence. The final,
:18:14. > :18:18.rather in delicate, work on the main statue has begun and it will be cast
:18:19. > :18:22.in April. It will leave the town with a sense of pride, not
:18:23. > :18:28.prejudice. Well, the real statue will be
:18:29. > :18:31.unveiled quite quickly, in July 2017, in the marketplace in
:18:32. > :18:35.Basingstoke Centre. Basingstoke say it is re-claiming its favourite
:18:36. > :18:43.daughter, and as Jane Austin wrote in, there is nothing like staying at
:18:44. > :18:48.home for real comfort. He was one of the country's greatest
:18:49. > :18:51.pilots. Eric Winkle Brown holds the world record for the most aircraft
:18:52. > :18:57.carrier take-offs, as well as being the first pilot to and land a jet
:18:58. > :19:01.aircraft on a seat carrier. He died last year aged 97 and now his log
:19:02. > :19:04.and medals have been saved for posterity, thanks in part to the
:19:05. > :19:08.efforts of an 11-year-old from Dorchester who launched a letter
:19:09. > :19:13.writing campaign after striking up a friendship with the pilot. I thought
:19:14. > :19:17.he would never write back but luckily he did, so I thought I could
:19:18. > :19:24.exchange letters with him, I could write to him and he would write
:19:25. > :19:33.back. And then I would write to him. And he would write back. What was he
:19:34. > :19:39.saying? ICU want to be a test pilot. On to sport.
:19:40. > :19:45.The battle on the water in the vendee Globe is now over. Alex
:19:46. > :19:49.Thompson put up such a fight. As we speak, down in France, the man who
:19:50. > :19:54.has one is addressing the media. We can see live pictures from France
:19:55. > :20:00.right now. That is the man has delivered the victory. He was the
:20:01. > :20:03.favourite and he is speaking to the media now, on dry land. But if we
:20:04. > :20:06.look at the pictures of him finishing this afternoon, this
:20:07. > :20:12.happened after he completed the voyage into western France. What
:20:13. > :20:19.pictures, as he approached the finish line. This was just after
:20:20. > :20:27.3:35pm. After 74 days, 35mm and 43 seconds at sea, he won, and admitted
:20:28. > :20:35.he had faced a formidable rival in Alex Thompson. He did a very good
:20:36. > :20:45.race. He has a good boat. It was very, very difficult with him. He
:20:46. > :20:55.was very near to me. I am very happy to win, and it is a very good
:20:56. > :21:01.second. A good second. Let's talk to Natalie Pirks. A remarkable welcome
:21:02. > :21:07.for the French winner, first of all. We have had fireworks, music and
:21:08. > :21:11.tears earlier. It is a very, very popular win here, because he is a
:21:12. > :21:17.Frenchman. And no one other than a Frenchman has ever won this race in
:21:18. > :21:22.27 years. Not only were their 100,000 people estimated to be
:21:23. > :21:25.around port waiting for him, but people were piled onto boats and
:21:26. > :21:29.they went out to see him cross the finish line. A very popular winner,
:21:30. > :21:35.but wouldn't Alex Thompson do well and didn't he give him a run for his
:21:36. > :21:44.money? As for Alex, when are we expecting to see him finish? We are
:21:45. > :21:50.expecting him at 6am UK time. At times, the gap was a lot closer. At
:21:51. > :21:54.one point yesterday it was 34 nautical miles separating them. To
:21:55. > :21:57.put it into context, Alex is only the second British sailor to come
:21:58. > :22:04.second in this race, after Dame Ellen MacArthur in 2001. Three
:22:05. > :22:09.people have died trying to do this race in its 27 years. It is both
:22:10. > :22:12.physically and mentally draining. His wife, Kate, told me earlier that
:22:13. > :22:17.she had to put that to the back of her mind, to not think about how
:22:18. > :22:22.dangerous it is, in the three months he has not been around. He has
:22:23. > :22:25.missed his six-year-old son's birthday. He missed Christmas as
:22:26. > :22:30.well. She is very much looking forward to getting him back on dry
:22:31. > :22:34.land, giving him a hug. And he is looking forward to having a burger
:22:35. > :22:42.and a much deserved cold beer. I bet! Thank you for joining us live
:22:43. > :22:45.from France, Natalie Pirks. Southampton are through to the
:22:46. > :22:49.fourth round of the FA Cup after what many described as a diary play
:22:50. > :22:53.against Norwich last night, setting up a home tie with Arsenal, in what
:22:54. > :22:58.has become one of the busiest seasons in the club's history.
:22:59. > :23:00.This was not an FA Cup tie to capture the imagination,
:23:01. > :23:06.particularly with Southampton so close to the EFL Cup final. Less
:23:07. > :23:11.than 14,000 were in the stadium as the Saints boss rotated his squad
:23:12. > :23:15.again. Southampton had six Academy graduates in the starting line-up
:23:16. > :23:19.and enjoy the bulk of the -- possession, but chances were at a
:23:20. > :23:23.premium. Championship opposition Norwich, whose season is sinking
:23:24. > :23:28.fast, failed to land a blow on goal, not managing a shot on target all
:23:29. > :23:31.evening. On a freezing night, no one fancied extra time with another 30
:23:32. > :23:36.minutes looming, Shane Long bundled home the winner. It was an ugly goal
:23:37. > :23:42.to settle an ugly game, but something to celebrate on his 100th
:23:43. > :23:49.appearance. I just headed it down. I think I was in a headlock, but it
:23:50. > :23:53.was still in. We are in with a shout. They face Leicester on Sunday
:23:54. > :24:03.and then go to Liverpool for the EFL Cup second leg. It is a season being
:24:04. > :24:07.fought on multiple fronts. A Hampshire goal for Scott Gregory,
:24:08. > :24:11.who remains on course for another major victory in a year which will
:24:12. > :24:16.see him take part in the US Masters and Open Championship softer winning
:24:17. > :24:19.the British amateur title. He reached the last 32 of the matchplay
:24:20. > :24:26.part of the tournament in Australia and will now play a local player
:24:27. > :24:29.overnight. Meanwhile, the Hampshire player also plays at the same stage
:24:30. > :24:33.of the competition. It has all been about the end of the
:24:34. > :24:37.sailing and tomorrow we hope to speak to Alex Thompson. You can see
:24:38. > :24:42.the scenes in France. You know what a popular winner he is. He is hugely
:24:43. > :24:48.popular in France and they were delighted. There are more French
:24:49. > :24:51.sailors in this race than any other nationality and they absolutely love
:24:52. > :24:58.it in France, because it begins and ends in France. And there is a
:24:59. > :25:00.hugely popular winner. Record-breaker, first-time winner
:25:01. > :25:05.and keeping the French domination going in the race.
:25:06. > :25:07.Shall we get onto the weather, because it is looking a little cold.
:25:08. > :25:29.I like this weather. Blue skies for many places across
:25:30. > :25:34.the South. Cast your mind back to the early hours of the morning when
:25:35. > :25:43.it was minus six Celsius. Tonight, it could be colder. Through tonight,
:25:44. > :25:47.we expect a widespread hard frost to develop. Freezing fog as well during
:25:48. > :25:51.the early hours of the morning. Slightly more cloud further north
:25:52. > :25:57.but generally clear skies for most with freezing fog more likely for
:25:58. > :26:01.areas north of Berkshire. In towns and cities, down to -2-macro, but in
:26:02. > :26:08.the countryside, possibly minus seven. Tomorrow will be cold, very
:26:09. > :26:13.like today. Temperatures will struggle to rise to a high of six
:26:14. > :26:17.Celsius. With light wind, we are looking at lots of sunshine. Iggy
:26:18. > :26:21.cloud for some, Fairweather cloud building during the afternoon. All
:26:22. > :26:25.in all, a much better day than originally thought earlier this
:26:26. > :26:34.week. More sunshine on offer. Clear skies tomorrow and another
:26:35. > :26:39.widespread frost. To start the weekend, each day over the weekend
:26:40. > :26:44.will be frosty at first perhaps with freezing fog as well. The difference
:26:45. > :26:48.on Saturday, slightly more cloud for south-western parts. Further east
:26:49. > :26:53.and further north, more in the way of sunshine. Cloud syncing south and
:26:54. > :26:57.east across the region. Low pressure starting to swing in from the
:26:58. > :27:01.Atlantic. It will stay settled over the Atlantic. The high pressure will
:27:02. > :27:06.hold on through Saturday and into Sunday. Bitterly cold to start the
:27:07. > :27:11.day tomorrow. Widespread sharp frost with some freezing fog patches, and
:27:12. > :27:14.that might linger through the morning until lunchtime. Saturday
:27:15. > :27:21.and Sunday, it will feel bitterly cold. The wind will be variable and
:27:22. > :27:25.light over the weekend. More cloud on Sunday but some bright spells and
:27:26. > :27:26.we expect some freezing fog first thing on Monday.
:27:27. > :27:38.Gosh, it is getting cold. That's it from us. Thanks for
:27:39. > :27:43.watching tonight. Goodbye.