:00:12. > :00:20.Take a pay cut or face losing your job. The dilemma facing more than
:00:20. > :00:25.2,000 local ambulance workers. are committed people who ought
:00:25. > :00:31.already on not great salaries and they do not see that they should
:00:32. > :00:33.take any larger hits. Good evening. In a move branded as
:00:34. > :00:37.unacceptable, South Western Ambulance staff are also being
:00:37. > :00:40.asked to lose some of their leave. Also on tonight, the not so bright
:00:40. > :00:47.future of solar energy. As the government slashes feed in tariffs,
:00:47. > :00:50.business warn it will mean jobs are lost.
:00:50. > :00:52.And from saving lives in Afghanistan to continued support
:00:52. > :00:56.back home, Royal Navy medics prepare to meet casualties of war.
:00:56. > :01:00.There are some of us who seek out people to make sure they are doing
:01:00. > :01:05.all right and it gives you an opportunity to catch up and see how
:01:05. > :01:08.they are doing. I find that very rewarding.
:01:08. > :01:12.2,500 ambulance staff in the South West are being asked if they will
:01:12. > :01:14.take a pay cut or give up some of their holiday to try to save
:01:14. > :01:16.millions of pounds. Unions have reacted angrily, calling the
:01:16. > :01:20.proposals totally unacceptable. The South Western Ambulance Service
:01:20. > :01:23.says jobs may go if they cannot find �4 million of savings a year.
:01:23. > :01:25.They are the latest in a series of public and private sector
:01:25. > :01:35.organisations to look at controversial ways to deal with
:01:35. > :01:36.
:01:36. > :01:38.budget shortfalls. Our correspondent reports from Exeter.
:01:38. > :01:45.The southwestern Ambulance Service is the latest organisation to
:01:45. > :01:50.struggle with the austerity measures. The trust needs to save
:01:50. > :01:57.�4 million a year. This man is a paramedic and union activist and he
:01:57. > :02:01.told me his view on the proposals. I think engaging with the staff is
:02:01. > :02:11.the right thing to do but they should ask staff if they are
:02:11. > :02:16.prepared to sack a -- sacrifice their terms and conditions. As a
:02:16. > :02:21.frontline member of staff, this is a concern to me and my members.
:02:21. > :02:30.They are hard-working people who are already not on great salaries.
:02:30. > :02:34.They do not see they should take any larger hits.
:02:34. > :02:41.The trust has written to staff to see if they would be prepared to
:02:41. > :02:48.work an extra hour a week for no extra pay, take a 1% pay cut, or
:02:48. > :02:55.work one day a year for free. We are constantly reviewing quality
:02:55. > :02:59.in all aspects. In the letter we send out we made a number of
:02:59. > :03:04.suggestions. But this is about listening and engaging with our
:03:04. > :03:08.staff to hear their views, not presenting a foregone conclusion,
:03:08. > :03:18.and I would stress that no decisions have been made at this
:03:18. > :03:23.point. Staff at Princess yacht in Plymouth temporarily agreed to cut
:03:23. > :03:28.their overtime. Cornwall Council agreed a pay freeze and Dorset
:03:28. > :03:32.County Council wanted workers to pay -- take unpaid leave but backed
:03:32. > :03:35.down after unions protested. These measures are being credited
:03:35. > :03:43.by economists with keeping unemployment lower than what might
:03:43. > :03:53.have been the case during this downturn. But they have also
:03:53. > :03:54.
:03:54. > :04:00.contributed to relations under duress. The council hopes to find a
:04:01. > :04:09.solution by the end of the year. Are there any chances of this
:04:09. > :04:12.happening here? A new report has raised serious
:04:12. > :04:15.questions over whether the South West will see significant growth in
:04:15. > :04:19.the number of private sector jobs to make up for losses in the public
:04:19. > :04:20.sector. But it may just be a short term problem. From Weymouth here is
:04:20. > :04:23.our Dorset reporter. This woman knows all about
:04:23. > :04:29.rebalancing the economy. She is doing it. She recently left her
:04:29. > :04:34.post as a graphic designer when she joined a printing firm down the
:04:34. > :04:43.road. Tipping the scales in the favour of jobs in the commercial
:04:43. > :04:49.world is a key government aim to drive up grow up. -- drive up
:04:49. > :04:53.growth. Her previous position was not refilled so she is still
:04:53. > :04:58.reducing the weight of the public sector. Did you think you were
:04:59. > :05:05.rebalancing the economy? Yes, I did. I thought I saved someone else's
:05:05. > :05:13.job. The report says that you should not get your hope -- hopes
:05:13. > :05:19.up about the near future. There has been a reduction on people on a
:05:19. > :05:25.payroll in the South West. The prospects for growth and the
:05:25. > :05:30.private sector are modest. There is some expansion in 2010 but many of
:05:30. > :05:35.the jobs were low-paid, temporary or part-time, and the upward trend
:05:35. > :05:39.has now slowed. The gains do not make up for the losses. With the
:05:39. > :05:43.announcement this week that growth in the UK economy at a -- as a
:05:43. > :05:47.whole is still limited, it is hardly surprising that this report
:05:47. > :05:56.does not find a booming manufacturing sector in the South
:05:56. > :05:59.West. What is worrying the writers of the report is that jobs in the
:05:59. > :06:03.South West were being offloaded and not replaced by jobs in the private
:06:03. > :06:08.sector. The private sector is uncertain about what is happening
:06:08. > :06:12.in the eurozone and what is happening to the economy generally
:06:12. > :06:16.and they know that even when the economy grows it does not mean lots
:06:16. > :06:21.of jobs. Where will we find the jobs that we were losing in the
:06:21. > :06:31.public sector? And of every town or village struggles in the same way.
:06:31. > :06:35.
:06:35. > :06:45.Dorset does quite well and there is hope for the long-term future. But
:06:45. > :06:53.this report suggests a rebalancing To talk more about the implications
:06:53. > :06:59.of this, I am joined by our political correspondent.
:06:59. > :07:03.This report says that between 1999 and 2009, nearly three-quarters of
:07:03. > :07:07.all new jobs were in the public sector, and it is because of that
:07:07. > :07:12.that the South West is seeing the biggest decline in public sector
:07:12. > :07:17.employment in the UK. If the Government sticks to this strict
:07:17. > :07:24.austerity package that it is long - - locked into until 2016, there
:07:24. > :07:28.will be more public sector job losses. Labour says that this
:07:28. > :07:32.report is just another reason why the Government should change its
:07:32. > :07:36.mind. The Government should be honest and say that what they are
:07:36. > :07:42.doing is not working and it is adding to the deficit because they
:07:42. > :07:48.have to borrow more to pay unemployment benefit. We are just
:07:48. > :07:57.flat lining. What have the government said in response?
:07:57. > :08:02.It says it is sticking to its economic policy and it would be
:08:02. > :08:06.foolish to abandon that approach. One of our Conservative MPs said
:08:06. > :08:11.today that he was sceptical about some of the findings in the report.
:08:11. > :08:15.I think this report is too pessimistic about the prospects of
:08:15. > :08:20.getting people who have just left the public sector into the private
:08:20. > :08:25.sector. People in the public sector have good organisational --
:08:25. > :08:29.organisational skills and they know how to manage projects. They are
:08:30. > :08:39.well suited into going into the private sector and many of them
:08:40. > :08:51.
:08:51. > :08:54.will. Backing this argument will be Torbay Council is putting on hold
:08:54. > :08:56.its plans for solar panels on 45 public buildings. It is the latest
:08:56. > :09:05.evidence of how sharply the government is turning off the
:09:05. > :09:09.funding tap which the fast growing solar industry has relied on.
:09:09. > :09:11.Right now, householders who put up panels get over 43 pence for each
:09:11. > :09:15.unit of electricity they generate. Ministers now propose that anyone
:09:15. > :09:17.who gets panels up after December 12th would only get 21 pence a unit.
:09:17. > :09:20.Installations in the next bracket up face an even steeper cut.
:09:20. > :09:23.Currently they get almost 38 pence, but new installations of that size
:09:23. > :09:26.would get less than 17 pence. These changes affect not only investors
:09:26. > :09:34.but a recently established army of hardware suppliers and installers,
:09:34. > :09:38.as our business correspondent. The South West does so are better
:09:38. > :09:44.than anyone else. We have the most sunshine and the most potential.
:09:44. > :09:47.But a lot of bets are off in this industry. Investing in solar is
:09:47. > :09:53.said to be half as a lucrative unless you can get your panels up
:09:53. > :09:58.within the next six weeks. All of the contracts we had lined up for
:09:58. > :10:01.the next six months have now either got to be done in the next six
:10:01. > :10:06.weeks or they have got to be cancelled due to consumer
:10:06. > :10:11.confidence. It has all disappear. Like every installer of solar
:10:11. > :10:15.electric panels, this man is under pressure to bring work for work. It
:10:15. > :10:19.is a struggle to get his hands on the necessary hardware. He knows
:10:19. > :10:25.that warehouses like this one in Cornwall are running out. These are
:10:25. > :10:30.tough times for workers who thought they had found a niche. A lot of
:10:30. > :10:37.guys are coming out of college and doing the installation courses. A
:10:37. > :10:41.lot of electricians are running out of work. It is all going over into
:10:41. > :10:45.software installations. Many who were planning to put up panels on
:10:45. > :10:51.their homes and businesses have been forced into a rethink at short
:10:51. > :10:59.did us. At least this fish merchant had not begun his scheme yet.
:10:59. > :11:02.are gutted because it ticks all the boxes for us. It would reduce our
:11:02. > :11:09.curbing emissions and it was in line with what government
:11:09. > :11:14.projections were. These attractive subsidies compiled mainly out of
:11:14. > :11:19.bill payer's pockets. A significant subsidy cut was expected at some
:11:19. > :11:22.point because solar panels had become cheaper. They had to be
:11:22. > :11:27.reduced because they were a disgrace and they were cast an ill
:11:27. > :11:32.repute on behalf of an important programme that we have in this
:11:32. > :11:35.country. The new tariffs would still allow investors some profit,
:11:36. > :11:44.but the industry fears that backers will back away altogether, because
:11:44. > :11:47.this is the second short notice a Staff and players at Plymouth
:11:47. > :11:50.Argyle, who have worked without pay for 10 months, are angry after
:11:50. > :11:53.being stung by the taxman. Many employees received a lump sum this
:11:53. > :12:03.week after the club came out of administration, but some say they
:12:03. > :12:03.
:12:04. > :12:09.have been taxed at 40 %, a higher rate than many staff normally pay.
:12:09. > :12:13.Nathan's serves lunch to Argyle manager Carl Fletcher. The chef has
:12:13. > :12:21.been keeping the pilgrims marking since he left school at 16. Before
:12:21. > :12:26.I came here I was a season-ticket holder. Growing up I have always
:12:26. > :12:30.been a fan so when I got the opportunity to come here I took it
:12:30. > :12:34.with both hands because it was a dream. But it turned into a
:12:34. > :12:40.nightmare when the club began to spiral into administration at the
:12:40. > :12:46.end of last year. Nathan was just one of the army of loyal staff who
:12:46. > :12:50.deferred their wages to keep the club in business. It was basically,
:12:51. > :12:56.if he did not sign it, you would be made redundant from the company,
:12:56. > :13:04.which are none of us wanted. He has been left in that and lost the home
:13:05. > :13:09.he shared with his girlfriend. -- debt. There are no means to pay the
:13:09. > :13:17.mortgage. The club has come out of administration and the staff has
:13:17. > :13:26.been paid the wages they are owed but there is a sting in detail.
:13:26. > :13:31.was taxed up to 40 % so it was a kid in the side. Any employees with
:13:31. > :13:37.tax increase should contact their employer. The club has said it is
:13:37. > :13:42.still trying to sort out its tax implications and staff can expect a
:13:43. > :13:45.Coming up next: the medics who carried out amazing work in
:13:45. > :13:49.Afghanistan. Plus - the youngsters in Dorset
:13:49. > :13:56.competing against students in India. How the Olympics are bringing them
:13:56. > :14:01.together. And it's later than usual but it
:14:01. > :14:04.was worth waiting for - autumn reaches its colourful climax.
:14:04. > :14:07.Royal Navy medics who've returned from Afghanistan are preparing to
:14:07. > :14:09.meet some of the casualties they treated there - many of whom
:14:09. > :14:11.weren't expected to survive. Doctors and nurses based at
:14:12. > :14:15.Derriford Hospital have been providing medical support at Camp
:14:15. > :14:19.Bastion in Helmand Province. Spotlight filmed them out there
:14:19. > :14:21.earlier this year. They're now getting ready for a special rugby
:14:21. > :14:27.challenge at home in Plymouth, raising money to support the
:14:27. > :14:33.injured. Clare Casson has this report.
:14:33. > :14:36.Another day, another casualty, helicoptered in. The hospital at
:14:36. > :14:42.Camp Bastion is the biggest trauma unit anywhere in the world. It sees
:14:43. > :14:48.some of the most extreme injuries. South West unable medics have been
:14:48. > :14:52.working in Helmand all year, some of them have now returned have an
:14:52. > :14:55.opportunity to reflect on a very different working environment.
:14:55. > :14:59.Nothing can quite prepare you for when you get out there, you see
:14:59. > :15:03.that level of trauma for the first time. On the whole it is a
:15:03. > :15:08.rewarding experience, but along the way, there is a lot of ups and
:15:08. > :15:13.downs for people, and everybody feels it, when you get British,
:15:13. > :15:18.American guys coming in as patients, again, dealing with the challenges
:15:19. > :15:22.of looking after children out there as well. In terms of Injury
:15:22. > :15:28.severity, we are dealing with trouble and beauties fairly
:15:28. > :15:32.regularly. There is no denying it was difficult, and at the start of
:15:32. > :15:39.the tour, getting exposure to that level of injury was a steep Irving
:15:40. > :15:43.-- learning curve. You do acclimatise to that working
:15:43. > :15:47.environment, and it is a very close-knit team, so we all support
:15:47. > :15:51.each other. In fact, many casualties now come home who
:15:51. > :15:56.wouldn't have made it just a few years ago. They are known by the
:15:56. > :16:03.unfortunate term open quite unexpected survivors ". We are
:16:03. > :16:07.constantly using technology that has come in, which gives us new
:16:07. > :16:13.challenges, because patients who would have done it -- died before,
:16:13. > :16:17.I now surviving, and with that come the challenges of how to live the
:16:17. > :16:21.rest of their lives. It is something that the NHS as well as
:16:21. > :16:24.the military are going to have tackled in the future. Dealing with
:16:24. > :16:28.these survivors first hand brings a unique perspective, which is why
:16:28. > :16:31.many of the naval medics are getting involved with a special
:16:31. > :16:36.event to raise money for the injured. Doctors and nurses have
:16:36. > :16:40.been selling tickets for rugby challenge, a chance for the medics
:16:40. > :16:44.to be reunited with some of the people they treated. Some of the
:16:44. > :16:47.people seek out the people were treated to see if they're doing all
:16:47. > :16:51.right, and it gives you the opportunity to catch up and see how
:16:51. > :16:56.they are doing, I find it very rewarding. They often have a lot of
:16:56. > :17:01.questions to ask that they don't clean from going through the system.
:17:01. > :17:06.It reminds people that it may be happening far away, but there is a
:17:06. > :17:13.real home presents to it as well. A lot of the guys who have been
:17:13. > :17:18.injured can come and talk about their experiences. There is an
:17:18. > :17:23.appetite and a hunger Within at Derriford hospital to learn about
:17:23. > :17:26.this, as well, and to bring the experience back to where they work.
:17:26. > :17:29.The Rugby Challenge takes place on Tuesday.
:17:29. > :17:33.It's a sporting challenge which is continents apart - two schools on
:17:33. > :17:36.opposite sides of the globe, competing for Olympic honours. A
:17:36. > :17:39.Dorset school has been twinned with one in the foothills of the
:17:40. > :17:43.Himalayas in India. The idea is to learn about
:17:43. > :17:47.different cultures and explore the Olympic ideals. But things have
:17:47. > :17:54.started to get a little competitive. Ed Sherry has been to meet the
:17:55. > :17:59.pupils. The latest student at the Thomas
:17:59. > :18:02.Hardy scored in Dorchester are to give their all in five a Olympics
:18:02. > :18:06.challenges. They are already excited about the Olympics next
:18:06. > :18:12.year. It is going to be amazing for schools to take part, hopefully it
:18:12. > :18:17.will bring sport to be more of a subject. But for now, this is who
:18:17. > :18:21.they are competing against. Some friendly rivalry against the school
:18:21. > :18:28.in India. It is an all-boys independent school where the focus
:18:28. > :18:31.is largely on its board. Each school films the pupils in action.
:18:31. > :18:34.That competition is engaging the pupils, and they are excited to be
:18:34. > :18:37.picked if they are going to represent the school in the
:18:38. > :18:44.challengers, or just watch them and show the video to the other school.
:18:45. > :18:50.It is all part of world class, a BBC campaign that is twinning
:18:50. > :18:56.schools around the world. We have asked them about their first famous
:18:56. > :19:00.gold medallist for the ten-metre rifle shooting in 2008. About what
:19:00. > :19:04.he has done, and how they are linking that to their school life
:19:04. > :19:09.at the moment. While it is not all about the competition, they are
:19:09. > :19:17.keeping score, he did the challenges so far, it is Dorset two,
:19:18. > :19:21.India 0. Now, what did you do with your
:19:21. > :19:23.pumpkin after Hallowe'en? A giant pumpkin grown at Powderham
:19:23. > :19:26.Castle is proving problematic for its growers!
:19:26. > :19:30.As Emma Ruminski has been finding out, there are grand plans for the
:19:30. > :19:36.50-stone beast, but first the gardeners need to get it out of the
:19:36. > :19:41.greenhouse. Priscilla Queen a pumpkins will not
:19:41. > :19:44.be going to the ball. Christened by her Twitter of dollars, the
:19:44. > :19:49.professional gardener who grew her admitted he has made a schoolboy
:19:49. > :19:54.error. It was going so well, the pumpkin was getting large, I was
:19:54. > :19:59.determined to take her to a pumpkin show. The prize is cash, rosettes,
:19:59. > :20:03.glory. Unfortunately, it is just too big to get out of the
:20:03. > :20:08.greenhouse doors! And this is a Grade 1 listed greenhouse, so I can
:20:08. > :20:14.hardly get it out of the window! So this is as far as it is ever going
:20:14. > :20:20.to go. Many people will recognise Toby from his time presenting
:20:20. > :20:29.Gardeners' World. He is now based at a castle, and is setting up a
:20:29. > :20:35.nursery there. This isn't even a third of it. I have had to hack it
:20:35. > :20:38.back, it is like a jungle in here in summer, with the leaves up over
:20:38. > :20:44.the green has come up the sides of the walled. I wouldn't have been
:20:44. > :20:49.able to get in if I didn't prune regularly. Priscilla could make up
:20:49. > :20:56.to 1000 bowls of soup, but pumpkins this size are really tasty.
:20:57. > :21:06.Paignton Zoo it is interested in the flesh for one of its an offence.
:21:06. > :21:09.-- one of its elephants. Wouldn't like to have carved that
:21:09. > :21:12.one! This year's confusing weather, with
:21:12. > :21:18.a late burst of summer in October, has delayed the spectacular colours
:21:19. > :21:22.of autumn. In fact, the stunning reds and golds are so late in one
:21:22. > :21:24.garden that it was closed before the public had a chance to see them.
:21:24. > :21:27.But as Johnny Rutherford reports from Buckland Monachorum near
:21:27. > :21:33.Yelverton, there's a special opening this weekend to show off
:21:33. > :21:38.nature's very own firework display. This was the weather for October. A
:21:38. > :21:42.bit of this, and that, and a fair amount of this. It was almost four
:21:42. > :21:46.seasons in one month. There wasn't the usual frost, and temperatures
:21:46. > :21:52.stayed mild until last week. That can make gardens interesting,
:21:52. > :21:56.especially here. When the weather stays constant, nothing much seems
:21:56. > :21:59.to happen in the autumn, but recently, we have had this real
:21:59. > :22:03.drop in temperatures, you can almost come out and see overnight
:22:04. > :22:10.that things have started to become vibrant. It is almost like nature
:22:10. > :22:15.has given them an Nige. And they have certainly responded. About
:22:15. > :22:23.free books ago, we had this heat wave, which lasted about two days.
:22:23. > :22:27.-- three weeks ago. It seemed that the autumn colour would be amazing,
:22:27. > :22:32.and then the leaves started to dry up. But a couple of weeks later, it
:22:33. > :22:36.is here again! So is this unusual? You simply do not know from one
:22:36. > :22:42.year to the next whether you are going to have an amazing display it
:22:42. > :22:50.in October, or whether it is going to be not so great, or whether come
:22:50. > :22:53.November it is going to be a real or wash. It is one of the great
:22:53. > :23:02.joys of autumn. This weekend has a special opening to show off the
:23:02. > :23:07.garden's colour before it fades. Let's hope the weather is dry!
:23:07. > :23:17.Beautiful. I had one of those in my garden, I was waiting for it to go
:23:17. > :23:17.
:23:17. > :23:22.bright red, and last night, all the Let slip back at the October, it
:23:22. > :23:30.was quite an interesting month. It was an unusually warm, on the
:23:30. > :23:35.eastern side of the country, we had 29 degrees in Gravesend, in Kent.
:23:35. > :23:42.We haven't been nearly as warm as that, but it it is surprising we
:23:42. > :23:48.have had such adopted tour -- topsy-turvy month. This is a bit
:23:48. > :23:54.higher up, we will start with the rainfall. The first half of the
:23:54. > :23:57.month has been very wet. On the right, what we actually saw. Many
:23:57. > :24:03.other locations across parts of Somerset and Dorset, the rainfall
:24:03. > :24:10.has been much less than that. On to the sunshine amounts, we don't get
:24:10. > :24:16.a great deal, it is darker in the evenings, and onto the temperatures.
:24:16. > :24:21.They don't show quite as high a win you look at the averages. One thing
:24:21. > :24:28.has been very apparent, the lack of the overnight frost. Only one night
:24:28. > :24:37.of frost on the 20th, some parts went down to zero degrees.
:24:37. > :24:41.Reservoir levels, this time last year were up around 69% fall. The
:24:41. > :24:45.rainfall we have seen for the last few days, hopefully they will begin
:24:45. > :24:49.to pick those up. Let's have a look at the forecast for the next few
:24:49. > :24:56.days. A lot more in the way of cloud coming in later on tonight,
:24:56. > :25:01.which will give us a few showers. The main rain bearing cloud has
:25:02. > :25:09.gone away for tonight, but it will return later on, some showers will
:25:09. > :25:17.prove to be quite heavy. By the time we get to lunchtime tomorrow,
:25:17. > :25:21.we have one line at showers creeping through. Fewer isobars,
:25:21. > :25:28.less wind, meaning the showers will be rather slow moving, so we could
:25:28. > :25:33.get some hefty downpours. A change in the wind direction, with north-
:25:33. > :25:38.east winds into the weekend, or for the bonfire displays. Fingers
:25:38. > :25:44.crossed, there should be a lot of dry weather. This evening, the
:25:44. > :25:48.showers will die away, but they will returned later on. In a few
:25:48. > :25:55.places, the skies begin to clear for a time. Later on tonight, we
:25:55. > :26:00.start to see some more showers coming from the south. Some of the
:26:00. > :26:04.showers could be quite heavy. Before it gets light, some of them
:26:04. > :26:09.will also give lightning and thunder. Tomorrow, temperatures
:26:09. > :26:17.starting at nine or 10 degrees, rising to 14 or 15, but it will
:26:17. > :26:23.might feel that way because of the intensity of some of these showers.
:26:23. > :26:28.Slow-moving, potentially very heavy. We could see as much as 30 or 40 mm.
:26:28. > :26:37.We do have an early warning from the Met Office of the potential for
:26:37. > :26:45.some heavier bursts of rain. Went back row, lighter than today,
:26:45. > :26:55.eventually they will become north- westerly -- winds. A mainly dry day
:26:55. > :26:58.