:00:15. > :00:19.Young and desperately seeking a job - one story of despair... Nothing,
:00:19. > :00:24.absolutely nothing out there. And one story of success, thanks to
:00:24. > :00:28.an apprenticeship. I definitely didn't think I would be doing this
:00:28. > :00:31.now. I would recommend it to anyone because it is easier than you think
:00:31. > :00:33.it will be. Good evening. Those two very
:00:33. > :00:37.different experiences of the jobs market coming up in a moment.
:00:37. > :00:39.Also tonight: On parade in the centre of Exeter - crowds turn out
:00:39. > :00:43.to welcome home troops from Afghanistan and remember those who
:00:43. > :00:47.didn't return. It makes you cry to think they have had to leave so
:00:47. > :00:50.many behind. And the drugs ending up in our food
:00:50. > :00:56.and water supplies - there's growing concern over the health
:00:56. > :00:59.risks. There are fresh fears tonight for
:00:59. > :01:02.the future of the region's young people, with new figures showing a
:01:02. > :01:05.record number of them now out of work and claiming benefits. It
:01:05. > :01:10.comes as the South West's public sector faces deeper cuts and the
:01:10. > :01:12.private sector struggles to create new jobs.
:01:12. > :01:17.Official figures show that unemployment rose nationally by
:01:18. > :01:22.129,000 to 2.62 million in September. More than a million
:01:23. > :01:27.jobseekers are aged between 16 and 24. It's the biggest figure since
:01:27. > :01:36.records began. We have a series of reports tonight. First there is
:01:36. > :01:41.from our correspondent. These are tough times for young
:01:41. > :01:47.jobseekers. Lisa is 21. She has been out of work for two years.
:01:47. > :01:50.brings you down. You just don't feel good. Any prospect of any
:01:50. > :01:57.jobs? What is the martyr like? Nothing, absolutely nothing out
:01:57. > :02:05.there. Contrast least that's story were fat elf Stevie. What a
:02:05. > :02:10.difference an apprenticeship makes. At 22, she is a manager. If someone
:02:10. > :02:16.had said to me I would be a shop manager I would have not believe
:02:16. > :02:21.them. I am really glad that I did it. I was not sure, I did not know
:02:21. > :02:26.what to do when I was younger. I would recommend it to anyone
:02:26. > :02:29.because it is easier than you think he's going to be. The government
:02:29. > :02:34.today announced their apprenticeship scheme is being
:02:34. > :02:38.expanded to small businesses. They will be offered cash incentives and
:02:38. > :02:45.reduced bureaucracy. That could significantly benefit the South
:02:45. > :02:49.West as more than 90% of the businesses in the region are
:02:49. > :02:55.classed as small. Small business is that the survival. We needed. We
:02:55. > :02:59.have got to drive forward. The government must wake up. Small
:02:59. > :03:04.businesses cannot cope with more bureaucracy and red tape. Make it
:03:04. > :03:10.simple and we will start to employ and take people off their hands.
:03:10. > :03:17.want as many people employed in the South West. It is nearly 10% of 16-
:03:17. > :03:24.24-year-old. We have really got to address that. The apprenticeship
:03:24. > :03:29.scheme was launched by Vince Cable. Today, youth unemployment
:03:29. > :03:33.nationwide topped one million. What is really preventing businesses
:03:34. > :03:38.from taking on new staff is the uncertainty in the economy. With
:03:38. > :03:44.the turmoil in Europe and Britain's growth faltering, that is concern
:03:44. > :03:47.which shows little sign an easing. -- sign of easing.
:03:47. > :03:51.Unemployment in rural areas continues to be a big issue in the
:03:51. > :03:54.South West. Those looking for work say they are having to travel ever
:03:54. > :03:57.further to find jobs and they often the cost of fuel makes it
:03:57. > :04:00.uneconomical. We have been to Hatherleigh, to meet one man who's
:04:00. > :04:10.so disheartened with his search for work, he is trying to set up his
:04:10. > :04:15.own business. Marcus is 47. He lives at home with
:04:15. > :04:21.his parents in happily. It is not ideal but he has no choice. He
:04:21. > :04:26.hasn't had a job for two years. is soul destroying. You send out
:04:26. > :04:31.your CV and you're not getting anything back. Living in rural
:04:31. > :04:36.Devon makes job-hunting much harder. You have got to go further to find
:04:36. > :04:42.work. Today, Marcus is waiting for the bus to Exeter and that is just
:04:42. > :04:46.to sign on at the JobCentre. Things could be about to change. I am at
:04:46. > :04:54.the JobCentre and I have come to sign on. That is my money for the
:04:54. > :04:59.next two weeks. It might -- if I get my business started it could be
:04:59. > :05:04.the last time I have to do this. The new Enterprise Allowance is a
:05:04. > :05:08.government scheme launched today. It will help mark is set up his own
:05:08. > :05:14.business. He will claim his weekly allowance as he prepares to be self
:05:14. > :05:18.employed and dense mentoring from experienced entrepreneurs. Backers
:05:18. > :05:23.said the initiative will be important in the countryside.
:05:23. > :05:30.a rural area there will be fewer jobs. If you are unemployed the
:05:30. > :05:36.choices are limited. There may be part-time jobs. 44.5% in west Devon
:05:36. > :05:40.are part-time. That is why people are looking for self-employment.
:05:40. > :05:44.Marcus has had his business plan approved and is under way in
:05:44. > :05:54.designing computer software that will help some businesses save
:05:54. > :05:55.
:05:55. > :06:00.hours of labour. Overall, unemployment a cross the
:06:00. > :06:04.South West fell slightly in October. Did we bucked the national trend?
:06:04. > :06:08.It might look like we did but we did not. The main reason is that at
:06:08. > :06:13.local level we only get the narrow measure, the number of people
:06:13. > :06:22.actually claiming jobseeker's allowance. Nationally, the measure
:06:22. > :06:26.also fell a little bit. There were counties that also had rises. The
:06:26. > :06:31.numbers out you see here are the percentage of the population
:06:31. > :06:37.claiming. The percentage unemployed locally seem to be well below the
:06:37. > :06:47.UK as a hole? But in the two unit Jerry's we have got the picture is
:06:47. > :06:48.
:06:48. > :06:52.different. They are above national level. Why are we seeing a month-
:06:52. > :06:57.on-month fall in figures? cannot assume that because we are
:06:57. > :07:01.doing better. The main reason is that these local figures are not
:07:01. > :07:06.adjusted to strip out routine seasonal factors. It could be
:07:06. > :07:10.people starting college courses in October. We can let at the latest
:07:10. > :07:15.local figures and compare them with exactly one year previously. You
:07:15. > :07:22.can see the change across most of the South West was steeper than the
:07:22. > :07:25.UK as a whole. At the beginning of the programme we saw two people
:07:25. > :07:31.with different experiences of the job market. What about employment
:07:31. > :07:34.in young people? The proportion of those actually in a population
:07:34. > :07:39.generally is better down here but youth unemployment as a proportion
:07:39. > :07:44.of those claiming is worse. What you can say for sure is that it is
:07:44. > :07:47.worse than it has been at any time since the early 1990s.
:07:47. > :07:50.There was applause on the streets of Exeter today as 700 servicemen
:07:50. > :07:52.and women who have just returned from Afghanistan paraded through
:07:52. > :07:55.the city centre. Members of 3 Commando Brigade and other units
:07:55. > :08:00.marched to Exeter Cathedral, where they commemorated the homecoming of
:08:00. > :08:10.Task Force Helmand and remembered those who didn't come home.
:08:10. > :08:13.
:08:13. > :08:19.Spotlight's defence reporter was there.
:08:19. > :08:25.Leading from the front, the band of Her Majesty's were Marines. Today's
:08:25. > :08:29.parade represented 10% of the 6,500 troops deployed on the operation.
:08:30. > :08:36.The mission was led by 3 Commando Brigade with more than 3,000
:08:36. > :08:39.service personnel from across the South West. It is a day of
:08:39. > :08:43.thanksgiving. It is a welcome home for those who have returned and a
:08:43. > :08:47.day of sober reflection on the face of those who did not and sympathy
:08:47. > :08:53.with their families and friends. It is a job well done and everyone
:08:53. > :08:57.turning out to market. It has been a terrifically successful tour and
:08:57. > :09:07.there has been terrific progress in stabilising Afghanistan and
:09:07. > :09:11.
:09:11. > :09:15.training the Afghan forces. Applause Mac. -- APPLAUSE.
:09:15. > :09:23.Hundreds lined streets to show their support. The sense of pride
:09:23. > :09:28.and was plain to see. We have got to support the soldiers. We believe
:09:28. > :09:33.in supporting them. It is a pity they did not do away with national
:09:33. > :09:42.service because some of our young lads need fit. It makes you cry to
:09:42. > :09:48.think they had to leave so many of them behind. The pride we feel was
:09:48. > :09:53.immense. Everybody was cheering. It was a very fast pace. It is
:09:53. > :09:57.unbelievable. You cannot describe it unless you are doing it. To come
:09:57. > :10:02.here and see the crowds and have our service in the cathedral is
:10:02. > :10:08.important and it marks the end of our deployment but also the fact
:10:08. > :10:12.that not all of us came home. We will always remember that. A roll
:10:12. > :10:19.of honour of the 23 men who did not return from Mr was ready during the
:10:19. > :10:26.service. At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will
:10:26. > :10:32.remember them. For now, the ceremonial duties are almost done.
:10:32. > :10:35.One rifles will receive their medals tomorrow. There is a period
:10:36. > :10:38.of leave and Christmas with their families to look forward to.
:10:38. > :10:41.Troops based in North Devon will be marching through Barnstaple
:10:41. > :10:50.tomorrow in a special homecoming celebration. Spotlight will be
:10:50. > :10:53.there to cover the event and to bring you the pictures.
:10:53. > :10:56.A fisherman has been jailed for nine-and-a-half years at Truro
:10:56. > :11:01.Crown Court for seriously sexually abusing two boys, one over a period
:11:01. > :11:05.of four years. Jeremy Freethy, who is 45 and from Orchard Court in
:11:05. > :11:09.Penzance, groomed the boys and gave them money to keep quiet. He
:11:09. > :11:13.admitted 29 offences. The judge told Freethy he was guilty of an
:11:13. > :11:15.appalling exploitation of two vulnerable young men.
:11:15. > :11:20.Police are still questioning three people on suspicion of murder in
:11:20. > :11:24.Newton Abbot. The body of 32 year- old Paul Drury was discovered at a
:11:24. > :11:28.property on Valley Path on Sunday. Two women and a man, all in their
:11:28. > :11:30.forties and of no fixed address, were arrested on Monday.
:11:30. > :11:33.Police say they are becoming increasingly concerned for the
:11:33. > :11:36.welfare of a 56 year-old Plymouth man, who's been missing since
:11:36. > :11:41.Saturday night. Keith Thompson from St Budeaux was last seen leaving
:11:41. > :11:45.the Parkway Social Club. Blind people have been protesting
:11:45. > :11:48.in Taunton over fears of cuts to a group for the visually impaired.
:11:48. > :11:58.They're angry a possible �90,000 reduction in council funding to the
:11:58. > :12:01.
:12:01. > :12:04.SIGHT charity, which provides home support.
:12:04. > :12:07.South West scientists say they are worried about the health risks
:12:07. > :12:09.posed by increasing quantities of prescription medicines that end up
:12:09. > :12:12.in the region's food and drinking water. Research by the Peninsula
:12:12. > :12:15.Medical School suggests that levels of contamination are likely to rise
:12:15. > :12:17.dramatically because the use of medication is growing to meet the
:12:17. > :12:23.demands of an ageing population. Our health correspondent has the
:12:23. > :12:27.story. Advances in modern medicine have
:12:27. > :12:31.transformed our lives but one side- effect of this revelation is that
:12:31. > :12:36.large quantities of prescription drugs are being passed through the
:12:36. > :12:41.people they take them and end up in the environment. These materials
:12:41. > :12:45.can spread into the water course. We take water for drinking from
:12:45. > :12:53.rivers and so on. We may be getting small doses of these chemicals back.
:12:53. > :12:58.Also, some of them get trapped in its image which is spread on fields.
:12:58. > :13:08.-- sewage. Some pharmaceuticals can end up back in in vegetables and we
:13:08. > :13:12.consume them. It has been known from years that -- known for years
:13:12. > :13:18.that hormones are in reverse affecting fish. There are now
:13:18. > :13:23.concerns about the effect on humans. There is evidence that there has
:13:23. > :13:27.been pollution by a range of prescription drugs including
:13:27. > :13:32.antibiotics, anti-depressants and chemotherapy drugs. At the moment
:13:32. > :13:34.are concentrations are extremely low. With an ageing population, we
:13:34. > :13:39.are using more and more pharmaceuticals and more and more
:13:39. > :13:45.of it is ending up in the environment. This could pose a
:13:45. > :13:48.major problem for human health and well-being. There are calls for a
:13:48. > :13:51.new process is to treat Pharmaceuticals in waste water and
:13:51. > :13:55.for companies to make their products more biodegradable.
:13:55. > :14:01.Meanwhile, their health service is trying to reduce our reliance on
:14:01. > :14:04.medication. For example, NHS funded walking groups. Building activity
:14:04. > :14:08.into your life in whatever way suits you, whether it is going to
:14:08. > :14:12.the gym, going walking, fit something in every day to be more
:14:12. > :14:18.active. That will help with physical and mental health. The
:14:18. > :14:23.other thing is not to always expect that the answer to their health
:14:23. > :14:30.problem is in a prescription. modern menace and brings huge
:14:30. > :14:33.benefits researchers warn that society must act. -- medicine.
:14:33. > :14:34.Coming up... How your support is helping the
:14:34. > :14:37.region's children in need. Plus...
:14:37. > :14:40.The seven-day commando challenge in just 24 hours - we reveal how they
:14:40. > :14:42.got on. And getting ready to light up a
:14:42. > :14:52.city - an illuminating insight into preparations for an annual
:14:52. > :14:55.spectacular. With Children In Need fast
:14:55. > :14:59.approaching, all this week we are hearing stories from children whose
:14:59. > :15:02.lives are changed by the money you have to raise. One of the groups
:15:02. > :15:05.given a grant last year was The Wave Project in Cornwall, which
:15:05. > :15:08.helps children who are referred by mental health services. Tonight we
:15:08. > :15:18.meet Joy, James, Louis and Katie, as they have a surfing session.
:15:18. > :15:30.
:15:30. > :15:34.These are their stories. When I am surfing I feel very free
:15:34. > :15:42.and that I can just come here and forget everything else. It is
:15:42. > :15:52.really good. I have ADHD. Me and my parents do not get on that well
:15:52. > :15:58.
:15:58. > :16:06.because of my problems. It makes me feel a bit different. Sometimes
:16:06. > :16:13.people get me down and don't say at least you tried, so sometimes I
:16:13. > :16:20.feel, what is the point. I started losing confidence. At school I got
:16:20. > :16:28.bullied because I am smaller than the other kids. At home, it was
:16:28. > :16:33.hard. It made me feel all. It made me feel like I didn't fit in
:16:33. > :16:40.anywhere. Getting into trouble at school constantly and just problems
:16:40. > :16:46.at home with my family, it is just quite hard to carry on. I kind of
:16:47. > :16:54.give up. Children In Need fund The Wave Project because they want to
:16:54. > :17:01.help kids like me need people where they understand them and where they
:17:01. > :17:11.can support them and make friends in the same situation. It has made
:17:11. > :17:21.me feel like I can fit in anywhere. I feel happy. They are like me, I
:17:21. > :17:23.
:17:23. > :17:26.guess. We're the same. I don't have much confidence, and I came here. I
:17:26. > :17:30.think there are other people idea that Children In Need could help. I
:17:30. > :17:34.know a couple of people who have problems at Hove like me but they
:17:34. > :17:41.deal do anything about it. They just muck around in school.
:17:41. > :17:45.Children In Need could help them. would say to people giving money to
:17:45. > :17:51.Children In Need that it's really worthwhile because there are loads
:17:51. > :18:00.of children out there that would Bailey benefit from this. -- really
:18:00. > :18:03.benefit. And every pound you gave to
:18:03. > :18:06.Children In Need really does help change the lives of young people
:18:06. > :18:09.right across the South West. The thank you party for all the many
:18:09. > :18:13.fundraisers this year is that the Eden Project, where you can get in
:18:13. > :18:22.free from 6 o'clock. There will be live music, ice-skating, a lantern
:18:22. > :18:27.parade and of course, the big fella himself. That is Pudsey, not just
:18:27. > :18:29.in! It's going to be a fun night so I hope not so you are going to come
:18:29. > :18:31.along. Children in Need is one of the
:18:31. > :18:35.charities to benefit from an extraordinary physical challenge
:18:35. > :18:38.which began yesterday and finished this afternoon. Six commandos set
:18:38. > :18:43.themselves the task of competing four commando tests in just 24
:18:43. > :18:46.hours. They're normally carried out over a week. The final test today
:18:46. > :18:56.was a 30 mile hike on Dartmoor and with less than perfect conditions,
:18:56. > :19:00.
:19:00. > :19:04.not everyone made it to the end. Yesterday they completed the
:19:04. > :19:09.partisan assault course and the endurance course on Woodbury Common.
:19:09. > :19:17.While many of us sat down in front of the television they were doing a
:19:17. > :19:21.nine-mile speed march, although while, carrying loads of equipment.
:19:21. > :19:26.The day would be the toughest. The five royal Marines and one Army
:19:26. > :19:30.Commander set off at 6 o'clock this morning. They had a 30 mile trek
:19:30. > :19:36.over some of the region's toughest terrain. They had just one day to
:19:36. > :19:42.reach the finish. As they reach the checkpoint it looked like one had
:19:42. > :19:47.dropped out. We have some problems on the way. We had a casualty. The
:19:47. > :19:55.cost of almost 20 minutes. We are trying to catch up. We have to make
:19:55. > :20:01.it back. My guys are really getting together. How are you treat? I am
:20:02. > :20:06.not going to lie, it is harder than it looks on paper. After a short
:20:06. > :20:11.stop it is time it to hit the road. For the last leg of the track they
:20:11. > :20:15.are joined by a senior officer. They are hoping to raise more than
:20:15. > :20:18.�10,000 with the money going to the Royal Marines Children's Fund and
:20:18. > :20:27.Children In Need. They needed to cross the finish line by 2 o'clock
:20:27. > :20:33.and as the our approach, the men appeared from MS... -- as the hour
:20:33. > :20:39.approached, the men appeared from the nest... The guys pulled
:20:39. > :20:44.together. It was a great effort by all. Where any idea was hatched, a
:20:44. > :20:50.lot of the physical training instructor has said it could not be
:20:50. > :20:55.done. They did it. I am really proud of them. As feats of physical
:20:55. > :20:58.endurance go, this will take some beating.
:20:58. > :21:00.Artists have spent the day putting finishing touches to the huge paper
:21:00. > :21:04.lantern sculptures that will be paraded through the city of Truro
:21:05. > :21:08.tonight. The annual City of Light spectacle attracts thousands of
:21:08. > :21:18.people from all over the region. This year, you might be forgiven
:21:18. > :21:25.for thinking that the zoo had come to town.
:21:25. > :21:29.The City of Light plays a big part in Cornwall's seasonal calendar. In
:21:29. > :21:34.2009 that theme was the history of Truro. This year, animals take the
:21:34. > :21:38.stage. Val Andrews are always made in a secret location. Hours before
:21:38. > :21:44.the event our cameras were allowed in. The man in charge was getting
:21:44. > :21:51.to grips with a huge giraffe. have spanned the globe with the
:21:51. > :21:56.right life we have got. We have creatures from the Arctic, it to
:21:56. > :22:01.the equator, to the South Pole. We have got some Cornish while life.
:22:01. > :22:07.We have got a squid coming which is the size of my thumb nail and it
:22:07. > :22:11.lives off the coast of Cornwall but we have made it much bigger. Many
:22:11. > :22:16.of these giant lanterns can move and this takes some engineering.
:22:16. > :22:23.This peacock can fan out its tail. It is quite an exotic creature and
:22:23. > :22:29.it will be nice to have something like that in fro on the night. --
:22:29. > :22:33.Truro. This is one of the biggest creatures on display. A rhinoceros
:22:33. > :22:37.can't weigh up to several times but this one is made from paper so it
:22:37. > :22:41.is a lot lighter but it will still take six people to carry it. Every
:22:41. > :22:49.year, hundreds of people take part in the procession, many of them
:22:49. > :22:52.schoolchildren. Thousands turned off to watch. -- turned up.
:22:52. > :23:00.We will have all the pictures from the procession in tomorrow's
:23:00. > :23:09.programme. The creations get better every year.
:23:09. > :23:15.I am afraid to ask what the weather And receiving is the only night we
:23:15. > :23:20.could see rain. It may be that we see perhaps some showers coming in
:23:20. > :23:30.to bid for Row area but gradually, they will tend to fade away. There
:23:30. > :23:33.is a lot of dry weather, even with sunshine coming through. There is a
:23:33. > :23:41.big area of low pressure in the Atlantic. This cloud is giving us
:23:41. > :23:44.the rain. It is moving steadily and pushes to the north overnight.
:23:44. > :23:49.There is another weather front approaching giving us a lively wins
:23:50. > :23:54.the to end the day tomorrow, possibly gale-force in west
:23:54. > :24:00.Cornwall. Most of the rain will just flirt with the far west of the
:24:00. > :24:04.region. On Friday, there is the possibility of bright spells. Most
:24:05. > :24:10.of the heavy rain is out to the West. We are looking forward to
:24:10. > :24:14.reasonably dry weather. There is some rain now. The heaviest bursts
:24:14. > :24:23.of have moved away from us and it be his -- has been replaced by
:24:23. > :24:29.showers. Later this evening, some showers to come and eventually, the
:24:29. > :24:35.skies will clear. Towards dawn it will turn Clear and there will be
:24:35. > :24:44.the risk of fog patches forming. There is a risk of mist and fog
:24:44. > :24:52.tomorrow morning. Quite a cold morning bat a fine chance -- bright
:24:52. > :25:00.start. It will cloud over later in the day, particularly across west
:25:00. > :25:04.Cornwall, with thick cloud producing light showers. That is
:25:04. > :25:08.about as far as the rain will get before it goes northwards into the
:25:08. > :25:13.Irish Sea to affect more Western parts of Wales. The wind will
:25:13. > :25:21.increase tomorrow, becoming strong and possibly gale-force along the
:25:21. > :25:24.south coast, particularly from the Lizard towards St Mary's.
:25:24. > :25:29.Temperatures above average for the time of year. We have not seen any
:25:29. > :25:39.frost during the like -- like time and that is unlikely over the next
:25:39. > :25:39.
:25:39. > :26:30.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 51 seconds
:26:30. > :26:34.We are at risk of seeing some showers on Friday. Some will be
:26:34. > :26:38.ahead of the band of rain. A lot of dry weather. Persistent rain for
:26:38. > :26:47.the far west of Cornwall later in the day. Saturday cloudy, Sunday
:26:47. > :26:50.brighter and staying mild. The top stories: Despite a fall in
:26:50. > :26:56.unemployment over all their record number of young people are out of
:26:56. > :26:59.work. And service people back from