08/08/2013 South Today

South Today. In tonight's programme: The desperate need for travellers'

camps as Dorset Council says it needs more sites like this.

The last shift, but what future now for the workers at Remploy as the

factory closes? Hopefully, I will be able to get part-time employment in

a shop. I like serving people. River safety. Another warning to

stay out of waterways in the hot weather.

And 50 years on, how the great train robbers were casing the joint in

Southampton before their plans changed. I can't believe that those

four were actually here, in Southampton, watching us do it!

Dorset's police commissioner and some councillors are calling for a

temporary travellers' site to be opened in the county. A shortage of

transit pitches has been making it more difficult for the police to

move on illegal encampments. A new site would be an interim measure

while a longer term solution was found. The county has been forced to

go back to the drawing board after an earlier large-scale consultation

drew a blank. David Allard reports. "Welcome to Bournemouth" says the

new sign, but not if you're a gypsy or traveller. The council here's got

better at cracking down on illegal camps and says there's nowhere

suitable for a permanent site. In neighbouring Poole, this

unauthorised camp has sprung up at Haskells Rec. Today, the council

applied for an eviction order but where should the travellers go when

they leave? If they are moving them, they should get them somewhere

else. They can't just move them with nowhere to go. They should go near

the new Forrest or somewhere. should be a designated site for them

but it's the responsibilities of the travellers. There's no easy answer.

Long-term, Dorset Police and the county council say there's an urgent

need for more sites so there's somewhere to move people to. It also

helps to improve the quality-of-life because by definition, authorised

sites of all the facilities they need. This site near Wareham is one

of just three in the whole county and they all cater for long-term

residents. There are no transit sites at all but the last attempt to

find a solution got nowhere. All nine councils in Dorset agreed to

work together, spending almost �250,000 on consultants. They

scoured the county, drawing up a short list of 32 sites and 13 other

locations worthy of further investigation. After a year of

consultation, not one site had been accepted by local councils. It's

from looking at all the evidence, all the possible sites and planning

considerations around them. There isn't one that fulfils all that

criteria. With the county council and police desperate for a solution,

there's now a short-term proposal. When it comes to the transit site we

open every year, there's real general consensus that that is the

way forward and our counsellors at the moment are about to consider and

debate whether to open up another temporary transit site. That

decision will come in October but any agreement on more permanent

sites seems a very long way off. Our political editor, Peter Henley,

is with me now. Peter, the thorny issue of traveller sites has been

dealt with at the top of government today? The Prime Minister was asked

a question about it at one of his regular public meetings. There is

frustration that power given to councils are not being used.

same law should apply to everybody and just as you can't suddenly

change your house without permission, you can't set up an

encampment without permission. Didn't the Government change the law

affecting travellers when they first came into office? They scrapped

targets for the number of pitches in 2010. But it doesn't seem to be

creating what is required. The traveller said they would like equal

treatment as well. I don't consider they are addressing our needs. The

council said they viewed 42 sides and said none were suitable. That's

very hard to believe when they are building housing estates all over

the area. Why can't one of those areas be allocated as a gypsy site?

Are there more travellers than there used to be? There were 20,000

travellers' caravans across the country, only 1,400 not on

authorised sites, to reach agreement rather than to incurring costs of

having to take children into care or fight long legal battles. Move the

problem on elsewhere. Uninsured caravan, worth �30,000, was found on

a travellers' site in Hampshire but the couple were told removing it

might breach the new occupants' human rights. Hampshire Police says

the case has been re-opened and officers are renewing their search

for the caravan. It's been an emotional day at the

Remploy factory in Portsmouth as many workers completed their final

shift. The packaging factory, which employed people with disabilities,

is closing as the Government shifts funding to help workers into

mainstream employment. Some have been at the Portsmouth site for more

than a decade and are concerned about their future. The Government

and other employers insist other jobs can be found.

Saying goodbye to their jobs, factory and way of life. Re-employ

in Portsmouth is shutting up shop. This is a machine that makes boxes

and would've taken three people to operate. At its height, rem ploy had

83 factories across the country and employed 5000 members of staff. In

Portsmouth, there were 49 people that worked here. Today that has

dwindled to nine. It is quite humbling at times when you look at

attendance records. Less than 1% absence. They will try anything.

Rosie, it's about the next chapter. It's a sad event. I hope to do a

part-time job in a shop. Government says it is in -- it is

supporting rem ploy workers. Each member of staff has a personal

caseworker for the next 18 months. might get a job and be made

redundant a year later. Will the support still be there for us?

Here's a business where a third of the staff have disabilities. It's a

garage in reserve -- and refurbishing business. Other

companies would do well to follow suit and encourage individuals to

work to their strengths. We've got to teach people to look beyond a

person's disability. And see the person. But times are tough for

anyone who has just lost a job. Some fear their challenge may be even

tougher. Up to 380 jobs at the Royal Mail in

Portsmouth are at risk as the company's confirmed it's pressing

ahead with plans to move its sorting operation to Southampton. Royal Mail

says any transfer won't begin until next Autumn, adding that it's too

early to say exactly how many jobs would be affected. The Communication

Workers Union claims it's a further example of cost-cutting which will

damage the service. A Wiltshire company has won the

contract to make all the brakes on the next generation of inter-city

trains, securing hundreds of jobs for years to come. The deal comes as

Network Rail claims that investment in infrastructure has brought

hundreds of millions of pounds to the region this year, much of it to

small businesses. This factory makes brakes. Soon it

will start making them for the new intercity express trains. For

technicians, that means long-term job security. It's a valve that

communicates with the train, tells the train what braking pressure to

apply. This isn't just a �36 million order to fit the brakes on 600

carriages. It's about a contract to maintain the systems. The trains

will make their first appearance on the great Western in three years

time. This is a mainline train replacement which is very rare in

the UK. This has been quite a long time coming. It's a large contract.

Refurbishment of a bridge over the Thames is underway. Grit blasting

and painting the structure, structural stall repairs. Network

rail says �1.3 billion are being spent this year in the south-east to

improve infrastructure. There are 39 schemes in the Thames Valley alone.

But only last week, it was towed by the rail regulator for not doing

enough maintenance. This bridge can see behind me is one of several

projects brought forward. government stimulus money, meaning

when we spend it, it improves the local economy and business. Network

rail's point is this: Spending on infrastructure does more than make

journeys better, it also puts money into the wider economy.

Still to come in this evening's South Today: Down to the wire.

Hampshire keep their fans on the edge of their seats with a semifinal

win on the last ball. The number of people dying in some

of the South's waterways is worrying high, according to the Royal

Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service. In the last few weeks, more than 20

people in the UK have lost their lives in rivers, and several have

been in Berkshire. With the hot weather there are concerns people

are ignoring the normal safety rules. Ben Moore has been out on the

river with one fire crew. Training the best to be ready for

the worst. In the last few weeks, they have pulled by bodies from the

water. It's been hard. They do the job all the time and we experience

these things but it doesn't make it any easier. We have seen quite an

alarming amount of instances we have had to attend with not good

outcomes. Many were enjoying the river today but the need to calm

surfers are unseen dangers. The water rescue team consists of 28

highly trained firefighters they are based here in Redding but they have

to cover a patch that is countywide. If you end up in there, time is of

the essence. Despite the weather, the water is cold and it will call

your body 27 times faster than being in the open air. When the body tries

to protect itself, it becomes hypothermic. The blood in your body

goes to your central organs. You may be the strongest swimmer but if you

can't move your arms and lakes, the current water will take you under.

The unit has state-of-the-art equipment. But in the end, the only

guarantee the river won't claim any more lives is if people stay out of

the water. All police officers will have to

complete annual fitness tests from next year or face disciplinary

action. The proposal follows a recommendation from a review of

police pay and conditions. It found many officers aren't as fit as they

used to be because they spend less time walking the beat. Tom Symonds

has been to see the new test in action at the Surrey force.

From a standing start, any of these police officers may have to chase a

criminal that any time. Dale Jonsson estimates five times a month on

average. Surrey police have already made this compulsory. They have to

get to the line each time the beep sounds. It starts off slowly and

speeds up and it is a test of agility as well as enjoy all rents.

This is the minimum test all officers will have to be able to

pass when these tests start next month. At the end, so no sweat for

these offices. Everyone has the ability to pass this test. It's

quite a low level. But it is the correct level as well. Compulsory

fitness tests were recommended by a policing review because though

sometimes it is physical, an increasing amount of policing is

done from behind a desk or behind the wheel of a car.

It's sunny now but I'm sure you can remember how wet and cold the winter

was. It wasn't very nice for some of our wildlife, either. While you may

cheer to hear that it's meant fewer wasps, it's also caused problems for

some species of moths. The Butterfly Conservation now wants your help to

report sightings of Tiger Moths so it can track changes in their

population. Les Hill from Dorset is one of their experts and earlier, he

told me why Tiger Moths are so important. Tiger moths are very

important because the adults are the food source for bats, the larvae are

food source for cuckoos and not so much the Tiger Moth, but others are

important pollinators. We use the species to act as a warning sign as

to the state of the environment. some are doing well and others I

declined. The garden tiger, for example, we know has had a 92%

decrease in abundance. The other example and we are looking out, the

Jersey Tiger, it is now starting to spread north. The garden tiger has

correlated with climate change itself. Conversely, the Jersey Tiger

is enjoying the climate change. of us think of moths and think of

them eating our clothes! That's far from the truth. 2500 species of

Moth, only five eat natural fibres. It is far from the truth. What can

we do in our gardens to encourage them? You can put nettles and

thistles into a large container. Don't forget about the adults as

well. If you want to report any sightings of the Tiger Moth or want

any more information, go to the website. I haven't seen that many

moths around and I was quite relieved! We were both saying, why

when we both at the cricket last night!

Hampshire's victory means they join Surrey at Finals Day next Saturday.

Two of last night's winning side, Danny Briggs and Michael Carberry,

received England Lions call-ups today to a side captained by

Sussex's Luke Wright, and both made their mark in last night's victory.

Hampshire 's progress to a third consecutive finals day was thanks in

part to the continuing form of Michael. A perfect platform. Today,

he was named in the Lions squad. Everyone that comes down and watches

him knows how powerful here's an oddly fantastic player he is. He

can't be doing any more. He hit three sixes. Hampshire posted a

total of 202 for three. The game would prove closer than expected.

Danny Briggs, another England line, slowed them down with two wickets in

two balls, including this one. But it was a close finish. You have to

go as favourites. It's unusual. Normally, we are favourites.

players are confident playing well. Hampshire 's pedigree is in

evidence. They are hoping for more moments like this later this month.

They will be big favourites. Britain's rowers have named a squad

of 55 for the World Championships in South Korea. The team leave their

training base in Berkshire next Thursday. In this first year of the

Olympic cycle, GB rowing has experimented with different

combinations and team members. The likes of Helen Glover and Polly

Swann have paired up to dominate the World Cup regatta season with three

golds while the men's eight have also tried out different rowers with

mixed results. The result was awesome. The other result was

terrible! But putting into context, and how we are turning that around,

there is a lot to look forward to. All the crews were out there with

more intense and readiness. That's a taste of what's to come. It was good

to get a tight race. It was a big bow to challenge involving some of

the worlds best offshore sailors. Cowes week concludes tomorrow and we

will be there. Southampton striker Rickie Lambert

has been included in the England football squad for next week's

friendly against Scotland at Wembley. The 31-year-old has played

in all four divisions and has earned his call-up to Roy Hodgson's squad

after scoring 15 times in the Premier League for Saints last

season. England play Scotland at Wembley next Tuesday night. Well

deserved. Finally, come good! Today is the 50th anniversary of one

of the most daring criminal acts in British history, the Great Train

Robbery. 17 thieves hijacked the Glasgow to London mail train and

stole over 100 bags of used bank notes. But as Alex Dyke has been

finding out, they were considering a more audacious plan elsewhere in the

South. Stopping a mail train, stealing

banknotes, getting caught, then escaping prison! On the 8th of

August, 1963, 17 thieves did exactly that. But another heist had been

planned. Come to the docks and make its way up the road to the city.

was harder to get money out of banks because they were not secure after

the war so they were looking for money or valuable things in

transit. A port like Southampton or Portsmouth, a lot of stuff moving

around. So they started looking and concentrating on what might be able

to be stolen from down here in the south. Several members came down to

Southampton to watch how the gold was transported. They were very

professional. The van would drive straight to those doors there.

Brown was one of the guards. These would open, we drove straight in,

the door shut straight behind us, padlocked. And were talking about

millions of pounds worth of gold and cash? She was carrying �8 million

worth of gold bullion. Why did the gold train never get robbed? It was

too well guarded and the guards were armed. Today, you've just found out

that whilst you were here, guarding the gold bullion, four of the

robbers were sticking out this branch of the Bank of England in

Southampton for a potential robbery! I was gobsmacked when I was

told that. I can't believe those four were actually here in

Southampton, watching us do it. It worries me, to be honest excavation

mark that must be incredible, to think that they were, doing your job

and not knowing what is going on you can see from our weather

pictures. A splash of colour at Compton Acres

in Poole. Thank you to Jo Grierson for that beautiful photo. Roger

Bishop captured the glorious weather over the fields of Emmington near

Thame in Oxfordshire. And a bumble bee hard at work at Wakehurst Place.

Alison Macknay sent that one in. Thank you.

We've had some lovely sunshine today. More evening sunshine to

come. One or two showers in the mix but they are fading away through the

course of the evening periods and as we go to tonight, we will see the

cloud building in from the West. That brings patchy outbreaks of rain

with it in low cloud, missed and Merck in the picture, hill fog and

coastal fog. Our overnight temperatures down to 15 or 16

degrees. That wet weather is with us to start to the day tomorrow

morning. But that band of rain tracks its way eastwards and behind

it, drier, brighter skies, one or two showers, perhaps. Highs of 22 or

23 degrees. Light winds. Tomorrow night, another fairly quiet night.

Slightly cooler than the one to come so I suspect temperatures may be

into double digits for much of the region. As we look ahead to the

weekend, it looks like we will start to see a decent start on Saturday.

There will be bright intervals. 12 showers in the mix but we will have

good holes for the sunshine to come through. Overnight Saturday into

Sunday, we have this front working its way through bringing rain for a

time. We do have some events to look forward to this weekend.

The Lambourn Festival starts on Saturday with a flower festival and

fete and conditions are looking mostly dry and bright. On Sunday,

the Winchester CycleFest Family day takes place. At this stage, it looks

like any wet weather will clear through during the morning, so drier

and brighter in time for the races! And it's the Worthing Birdman

competition this weekend. Flying starts at lunchtime both days and

we're expecting largely dry conditions each afternoon. Not doing

too badly for the coming days. A damp start tomorrow, cheering up

later in the day. One or two showers possible on Saturday but bright

intervals as well and Sunday, brightening up yet again. On