21/12/2016 South Today

Hello, I'm Sally Taylor, welcome to South Today.

The moment of arrest - a Royal Marine is jailed for 14

years for stealing and selling military weapons and explosives.

In prison for drug-smuggling - the Isle of Wight man fighting

for his innocence whilst his family is forced to pay back

We'd never, ever been told this could happen.

Nobody ever said, "Years down the line, you will then get a bill

Separated at Christmas - how shared reading of books

is bringing military families closer together.

Rugby played at a different pace, making it accessible

He amassed a huge collection of highly dangerous weapons.

Now a Royal Marine reservist has been sentenced to 14 and a half

years in jail after stealing firearms and explosives

Martin Shannon, from Hythe, near Southampton, stole the weapons

over four years and then attempted to make thousands of pounds

He was caught in a covert sting operation by the

Our home affairs correspondent Emma Vardy reports.

This was the moment outside a supermarket near Winchester that

The 43-year-old Royal Marines reservist was known to have stolen

a haul of weapons and explosives and had been attempting to supply

Among the items Martin Shannon had stolen was an automatic assault

rifle and a semiautomatic handgun - both weapons used by

He'd also taken 1,400 rounds of ammunition,

along with hand grenades and plastic explosives.

Upon his arrest, Shannon admitted stealing from the the Royal Marines

In August, Martin Shannon met an undercover officer

from the National Crime Agency who was posing as a potential buyer.

During their meeting in a pub car park near Newbury,

Martin Shannon rented out two of the weapons, as well as selling

the officer explosives and ammunition in exchange

Martin Shannon later told officers that he'd been hoarding the stolen

guns and ammunition in watertight containers buried in the New Forest.

And after a search by specialist officers,

they recovered another gun, this time a sawn-off shotgun,

along with ammunition, from his three hiding places

Officers also recovered more ammunition and explosives

The case has raised questions over how often weapons belonging

to the Armed Forces may end up in the hands of criminals.

Lots of different supply lines for criminals,

and one is abuse of legitimate supply and firearms dealers.

The NCA and forces do a lot of operations to make sure we tackle

all of the different areas of supply.

This is relatively infrequent but it is recognised

as a vulnerability there, so we're working with the MoD

currently to actually look at whether there's more we can do.

Shannon, who pleaded guilty to 15 offences,

described himself as a broken man who was suffering from post

traumatic stress disorder after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

What has the Ministry of Defence said about these thefts?

Back in 2012, the disappearance of two of the guns was noticed.

The Ministry of Defence investigated, but failed to solve

this, despite Shannon being questioned at the time.

The MoD, however, says it takes the security of weaponry very

seriously and has procedures to prevent thefts from its bases,

but hasn't commented on just how Shannon was able to obtain over

several years this huge hoard of extremely dangerous weapons.

The family of an Isle of Wight man battling

to prove his innocence after he was jailed

for drug-smuggling fear they could lose their home

after being handed a huge legal aid bill.

Jon Beere was sentenced to 24 years in prison five and a half years ago.

His case is being considered by the Criminal Cases Review Commission,

but a debt collection agency is now chasing his family over

I was just completely... Shocked, surprised. Sue says the Legal Aid

Bill for over ?71,000 came out of the blue and the timing, just before

Christmas, has been very upsetting. We had never, ever been told this

could happen. Nobody ever said that years down the line, you will then

get a bill with seven days to pay it. John Beere has now been in

prison away from his three children for six Christmases. A scaffolder,

John was jailed for 24 years for his role in smuggling cocaine valued at

?53 million. The prosecution said John organised complex operations

based on the Isle of Wight to smuggle a quarter of a tonne of the

drug into the UK, involving sacks of cocaine being dropped off from a

container ship and being picked up by a fiction boat and then tied to a

buoy to be collected later. Four other men also received long jail

terms. Emily Bolton, a lawyer specialising in miscarriages of

justice, is now arguing their cases. Are you utterly convinced of John's

innocence? Absolutely. All of them. John's case and those of the other

four men are now being considered by the Criminal Cases Review

Commission. But even before a decision is made, the legal bill is

being pursued. This story does being played out for the family, Dickens

couldn't have written it. They've already lost their father and

husband to prison for a crime he didn't commit, and now the bailiffs

are knocking on the door. The lawyer has now written to the debt

collection agency challenging the Legal Aid Bill. Sue says they're

only asset is their home. To the children, I fought like mad to keep

this as their stability, our stability, and John and I worked

really hard for the house before this wrongful conviction. Sue and

her family are now hoping the demand for the legal aid fees will be

lifted and that the Criminal Cases Review Commission makes a decision

about John's case as quickly as possible.

The Government has said there's no truth to newspaper reports that

suggest soldiers may be used to drive rail replacement

coaches during future strikes on Southern Rail.

The idea was raised by Conservative MPs when they met the Prime Minister

to discuss the ongoing industrial action by guards and drivers.

The Ministry of Defence says 4,000 military personnel are trained

to drive buses or coaches but says it's received no request for help.

Isle of Wight Council's appeal against the High Court victory

of a father who refused to pay a fine for a term-time holiday will

Jon Platt won his case in May after taking his daughter out

of school to visit Florida on a family holiday.

A hearing will now take place at the Supreme Court

Mr Platt says the new hearing will create uncertainty and distress

for parents who have taken holidays in term-time.

We all know how difficult it can be to see a GP,

but patients at one doctor's surgery in Reading say it is in complete

The Circuit Lane surgery was taken over by a private

It was meant to be a new start following a tumultuous two years

But now some patients say the system is worse than ever.

Checking his health at home, as just one of 10,000 who are registered

at the Circuit Lane surgery, Chris Giles knows what it's

This week, he waited three hours to be seen by a doctor.

All hell broke loose is the appropriate word.

All hell broke loose. Everybody was waiting to see the emergency doctor.

The problems at Circuit Lane started in September 2014,

when doctors resigned en-masse, citing issues with recruitment

The NHS took over in January 2015, and less than two years later

handed the surgery over to One Medical Group

The surgery would not agree to an interview but told us,

Saying it's trying different ways to meet the health and well-being

needs of its patient population, like a new walk-in clinic

to increase access to urgent, on-the-day care.

But on the NHS website, patients have left their own feedback,

giving the surgery just one star out of five.

Since the takeover, it has become the worst.

Appointments cancelled without telling you,

asking for prescriptions but not getting them.

I would stay a million miles away from this place.

I think in that eruption, it demonstrated there was a cry for

help from those people inside the surgery, and the cry was, enough is

enough, we can't take this any more, it has to stop now and has to be

sorted out now. The surgery says it continues

to work closely with the local But in the meantime,

when they need to see a doctor, patients like Chris hope

they won't have to keep swallowing Dorset Police are urging people

to think twice before The force says a large number

of calls are still being received Last December, over 34,000 calls

to 101 were received in the Dorset Police Force Command

Centre. Later tonight, if you think you're

too old to play rugby, think again. The gentler pace of walking rugby

is attracting older players. The South East MEP Diane James says

she resigned as Ukip's leader after just 18 days

because she was unable to break up The former Waverley councillor has

given her first broadcast interview since resigning the party

leadership in October. She's now sitting

as an an independent. Mrs James says she realised almost

immediately that she couldn't deliver the change that she'd

promised in her campaign. When it became clear that I couldn't

make that breakthrough, I felt it was the right decision,

both for me, for my credibility, but also for the credibility

of the party that somebody else assumed the mantle

of the leadership. A year after they moved in,

people living in a housing development in Berkshire say they've

still got major problems It's claimed some of the new homes

on Loddon Park are prone to flooding, have no insulation,

and some of the beams that make up the structure haven't

been fitted properly. The local MP and residents claim

the builders, Taylor Wimpey, have done very little to put things

right, something strongly In this area by my front door, the

plasterboard has had to be removed because they needed to check the

installation... When Wendy moved into this house

a year ago, it was meant But 12 months on, and that

dream is a nightmare. It's being propped up by the ceramic

tiles. That's what's holding up the RS Jade at suppose the entire

brickwork above my front door! Wendy says the fault

lies with Taylor Wimpey, and she's put that frustration

centre-stage for all to see. If you saw the show house, you would

think, do you know what? If I buy this house, I can have that. It's

been anything but. Yes, I live on a building site, but I didn't expect

to have the builders arguing with me. Biggest mistake of my life. One

I would tell anybody who can listen. Don't buy a house here. Nobody from

the builders wanted to appear on camera but they said they regretted

any inconvenience caused to residents. They said they were

committed to carrying out any remedial works and all inside jobs

should be completed by the end of January, and all problems should be

fixed by the end of April next year. The development is still being

built, but for the Local MP, work should have stopped

while faults were solved. They've fobbed off residents and me

time after time and now we've reached a point where this really

can't go on much longer. Wendy's since been told

that she and her family will have to move out in January

whilst their home is repaired. At a time when she should be

packing Christmas presents, Chris Temple has all the sport

tonight. We are going to be talking rugby? Walking rugby? Absolutely.

Former Sussex Cricket captain Ed Joyce will be available

to the county in 2017, despite being awarded a full-time

professional contract by the Ireland national team.

The 38-year-old's deal with Ireland will allow him

to be selected by Sussex when his Irish commitments allow.

Joyce has moved his family to Ireland, as his country continues

to build towards achieving full Test status.

Southampton's and Reading's Under 21 teams do battle on the road

to Wembley this evening, in the Checkatrade EFL Trophy.

The two sides were paired together at St Mary's in the knockout

round of 32 after both came through their groups in the newly

Kick-off tonight is very shortly, at 7pm.

There are many forms of rugby - the normal 15-a-side, touch, tag,

minis, and versions for juniors and veterans, but nothing

Reading Rugby Club has pioneered walking rugby,

making the game accessible to older players or those who can't

play the full contact game because of injury.

James Ingham has been to meet some of the men and women taking part.

This is rugby at a slightly different pace.

The name of the sport says it all - walking rugby - no running allowed.

Neither is physical contact or tackling.

It means the game is suiting injured or more senior players.

I'm Mike, I'm 70 years old and I play walking rugby because I enjoy

the activity and the social. Very few guys of our seniority can any

longer run with any speed, so we wanted a game that was accessible to

people who could only progress at a modest rate! I'm Paul, I'm 60, I

thought my rugby days were over but thanks to walking rugby I've been

able to come up and play another form of the game in later life.

The full 15 game at my age is too much and I would never be able to

take the knocks and recover from them, so this being noncontact is

ideal. That's one reason why men

and women can play together. I'm Yasmin, I started playing

walking rugby having retired from full-time rugby at the age of 44.

It's great to still be involved in the game while being gentler on

injuries. The main thing you notice is that there is no contact. I was a

forward, always involved in scrums and rocks. But the similarities are

the ball-handling skills. I'm 71 and never played rugby before. I started

playing recently. Thoroughly enjoy it! I still feel quite fit and

healthy and just felt that this would give me something else to keep

me out of mischief! Reading is one of the pioneers

of the walking game. It's helping the Rugby Football

Union develop official rules, so there's no better place

to join in. First and foremost, great idea! How

you police the walking, though? I think there was some running! And a

bit of a skip! I like the fact men and women can play together. The

body hurts after full contact so a great idea for the game.

Life as a family in the Armed Forces can be a challenge.

Lots of moving around or a parent sent on deployment

So here's a scheme that's helping strengthen family ties

Reading Force gets children and adults to read the same book

so there's something to talk about during calls home.

It started out in Aldershot but has now spread to UK military

Briony Leyland has been to meet one family that's benefited.

For the Donohoe family, Christmas will be in Aldershot this year,

where Royal Engineer Tom is currently based.

Over the last 16 years, they've moved nine times around the world,

meaning they're often a very long way from relatives

Weak your auntie Betty has copped it. Where?

Books like this one have helped to bridge the gap with loved ones.

As part of the Reading Force scheme, Fiona, ten-year-old Georgia,

and her granny in Ireland have been reading the same stories at the same

time and then comparing notes over the phone and in a shared scrapbook.

This book is about a hedgehog called Max who has a problem. How can he

and his family cross the road without getting squished? It's a

funny, interesting book and it's about animals. I'm normally a bit

blank if I'm speaking to her on the phone because I don't have any news

to tell her. It's only school. At least now I'll have something to

tell her about. When you on the phone, it's funny. You can have

yourself running out of things to say. But this is an excellent

collection of books and we never run out.

The talk about books is flowing, as it is for many forces families

It keeps the connection going. There's nothing like the written

word that means you have something to have and to hold, whether it's a

book or a letter, and with books, you get better appeal to children

and those usually appeal to adults as well.

For the book lovers in this household, there are lots

of promising parcels under the tree and plenty to talk

A little earlier I was joined on the sofa by Dr Alison Baverstock.

She's an academic now but was a military wife

Well, I'm a publisher by background, so obviously very into books, and

also married to a soldier, and I'm very interested in the potential

books have the linking people, so when you find out that somebody

likes the same books as you, it gives you something in common. And

when my husband was away on posting or being deployed, we would send

books to each other. There's always that lovely thing that if you've

read something, then sending it to somebody for them to read as well,

it gives you common ground. It was building on that, really, but this

time with scrapbooks, so places for people to hold memories. And it's

very much focused on children, isn't it? Because separation is difficult

for them. It can be anxiety before removal or disturbance, not just

separation. Because there's a lot of moving houses. But it provides

common ground for people to sort of talk and relate over, and it's

particularly good for linking grandparents or uncles and aunts

that you don't see very often, and children, when grandparents come on

the phone, can be quite monosyllabic, and sometimes a bit

resentful if a parent is way, so instead of just the usual questions

of, how is school? How is hockey? This gives them something to talk

about that can really extend them. How do they choose the book? That's

part of the scheme, because it is all about discussing what you want

to read. People shouldn't feel they have to read a massive book! One of

the most commonly chosen books is something like Horrid Henry, and

that can be good for the kids to recommend the book to their parents.

And you could love or loathe it? Well, that's not a problem because

sometimes you have more interesting discussions when people disagree.

The last time we did this as a family it was our 17-year-old son

who chose the book and everybody hated it but we had lots of good

discussions about why he chose it and it prompted communication, which

is the real objective. And you've almost gone a step further, because

we have lots of scrapbooks here, so it's not just a reading but, if the

scrapbook that goes with it? Gas, the scrapbook holds the memories and

gives you a reason to do it. -- yes. You can then put the ideas you are

exchanging somewhere, and then that becomes incredibly precious, because

if you are recording your children's and writing or drawing at a

particular stage, it becomes something to celebrate your

experiences rather than just counting down the days to when you

are together again. And this could go beyond the service families,

surely? It already has. Lots of schools have taken the material to

use with others and encourage people to read. It could be used with

children who are separated from their parents for other reasons,

like children in care or parents who are way. Thank you so much for

coming to explain it. And if you want to find out more

then the website is on the screen. It's a free service and open

to anyone in the forces, They've already handed out 70,000

scrapbooks and have plenty more! A great idea and it may well spread

further afield. As was said in the interview.

Hundreds of people gathered at Stonehenge this morning to mark

The sun came up over South Wiltshire at around 8.15am

It's thought the stone circle was the focus of midwinter

That sounds right up my street! Plenty of wine and beer for

drinking! You're happy, then? I'm just looking forward to, you know,

these lovely longer days. Bring on summer, that's all I can say! These

short days are really quite depressing! And bring on Christmas!

Exactly! Quite a cloudy day today. Many of

you have been taking pictures. We saw some brightness but the rain is

slowly moving in, and that will start to clear. It could be on the

heavy side this evening but once it clears around midnight, we could see

fog patches and mist. The wind will be liked and temperatures will fall

away to around freezing or even down to -1 in the countryside. Milder

conditions along the south coast and for the Isle of Wight. A dry day for

most. The outside chance of a shower more likely for western areas. The

fog could linger up to lunchtime in places but lots of sunshine and

feeling pleasant in the sunshine, with highs of 7 degrees and up to 10

degrees. A lovely end to the day tomorrow but the wind will start to

increase tomorrow night. Possibly the odd shower, and that will keep

the frost at bay, potential to spots, we could see one or two mist

fog patches. A few showers also dotted along the south coast, with

temperatures falling down to freezing or just above. So the risk

of frost in the countryside on Friday. Friday starts on a dry and

bright note but the wind increases through the course of the day. This

is Storm Barbara affecting the north of the country, and we will see a

period of rain into the afternoon and evening. Heavy rain in places

but patchy, with gusty winds as well. 40-50 miles an hour,

especially along the south coast. The rain will move through Friday

night into Christmas eve, so Christmas Eve, we are expecting

seems like this. As we move into Christmas day, things start to

change. The chance of some outbreaks of light rain and drizzle and

feeling mild on Christmas Day with highs of 13 and even 15 Celsius. The

good news is, we have a dry, sunny day on Boxing Day. For the rest of

the week, tomorrow, sunny spells and a pretty decent day with the outside

chance of showers. The winds will increase in strength tomorrow night

into Friday. We are expecting the chance of gales for the south coast

with gusts of 40-50 miles an hour, then rain later on Friday, dry on

Christmas Eve, and quite a lot of cloud and the chance of light rain

and drizzle on Christmas Day. I thought that was wintry showers

coming down there! My eyesight, obviously! More from us later at 8pm

and 10:25 night. -- good night. The roads we walk have demons

beneath them... ..and yours have been waiting

for a very long time. What is this? We can't do this.

Is this supposed to be a game? I thought this was some

kind of... What? ..trick. Of course it's not a trick.

It's a plan. What's the very worst thing

you can do... Celebrating 20 years of one of

Britain's best-loved comedians,