:00:00. > :00:12.Sunday. Make the most of Saturday because Sunday looks pretty
:00:13. > :00:18.Swept out to sea, a man who had been fishing on rocks off North Cornwall.
:00:19. > :00:21.Good evening and welcome to Spotlight.
:00:22. > :00:29.A major search operation has been taking place but tonight coastguards
:00:30. > :00:34.say hopes are fading. I have to say now, a number of hours into the
:00:35. > :00:38.incident, unfortunately, we are looking at not a great outcome. The
:00:39. > :00:45.chances of survival in these conditions are slim. Also tonight:
:00:46. > :00:51.Concern over a big increase in the number of people struggling with
:00:52. > :00:57.debt. And it is official, the South West has some of the best hotels in
:00:58. > :01:00.the country. The search for a missing angler in
:01:01. > :01:04.North Cornwall has been called off. The 22`year`old man, who is believed
:01:05. > :01:09.to be from Plymouth, was washed into the sea from rocks near Polzeath
:01:10. > :01:17.this morning. The incident happened between an
:01:18. > :01:23.area behind me here and Rumps Point, which is further around the corner,
:01:24. > :01:29.to the North East of Polzeath. At ten o'clock this morning, Chris
:01:30. > :01:33.cards received a call `` Coastguards received a call from the man has a
:01:34. > :01:42.friend, saying he had been washed away by a huge wave and that he was
:01:43. > :01:48.swimming. The wave came right up and washed his friend ask off the ledge
:01:49. > :01:55.and into the sea. A major search was started, using a Royal Naval
:01:56. > :02:01.helicopter, lifeboats from surrounding areas on the and the all
:02:02. > :02:09.weather lifeboat from Padstow, but after a round five hours, it was
:02:10. > :02:13.called off, with nothing found. He was wearing jeans and trainers. A
:02:14. > :02:18.number of hours into the incident, unfortunately, we are looking at not
:02:19. > :02:27.a quite `` a good outcome. Conditions in these sea conditions
:02:28. > :02:36.make survival quite slim. It is likely there will be a second search
:02:37. > :02:40.tomorrow at low water. The number of people struggling with
:02:41. > :02:42.debt problems across the region has increased dramatically. One debt
:02:43. > :02:53.charity has seen calls to its helpline rise by nearly 40% in the
:02:54. > :02:56.past year. Stepchange says one of the major factors compounding
:02:57. > :03:01.people's debt problems is the use of pay day loans. Payday loans, more
:03:02. > :03:09.popular than ever. This company is offering an interest rate of 365%,
:03:10. > :03:15.but there are acts of choice on the high street, as the single mother
:03:16. > :03:20.found out, to her cost. They ascertain how much income we had,
:03:21. > :03:26.and they asked me what the purpose of the loan was, and I said,
:03:27. > :03:33.survival, really, and that was it. They printed off a couple of forms
:03:34. > :03:41.and offered me ?80 on the spot, explaining that I would be repaying
:03:42. > :03:46.?104 a week later. My next payday. Her loan was offered by the Cheque
:03:47. > :03:51.Centre in Exeter, and it equates to an annual interest rate of 1000%.
:03:52. > :03:56.You are in a vicious circle now. You have borrowed the money and you have
:03:57. > :04:00.paid back the money, and the X wiki Perl and the X we keep our another
:04:01. > :04:11.?80, then you pay another ?104. `` the next week you borrow another
:04:12. > :04:17.?80. Yes. How do you feel about that? When I look back over the last
:04:18. > :04:26.few weeks since Christmas, and I add up how much I have paid to them
:04:27. > :04:32.interest already, I feel, yeah, well, not very happy about it, but I
:04:33. > :04:38.did not know what else to do at the time, and now I feel a bit trapped.
:04:39. > :04:47.Increasingly desperate measures just compound the problem. We have seen a
:04:48. > :04:51.huge rise in the number of people who have this type of loan, and it
:04:52. > :04:55.is very dangerous, and we highly recommend that people do not take
:04:56. > :05:00.out payday loans, because they can push you into a debt spiral and
:05:01. > :05:08.leave you having to seek help. Alas, advice too late for some.
:05:09. > :05:11.The BBC contacted Cheque Centre yesterday who felt they did not have
:05:12. > :05:13.enough time to properly investigate this case, but they did give us the
:05:14. > :05:35.following statement: Earlier I spoke to Peter Shears from
:05:36. > :05:41.Plymouth University and asked him why more people were using pay day
:05:42. > :05:46.loan companies. It may be the only route they have
:05:47. > :05:51.got, and I have got to say that often, not always, but often, a
:05:52. > :05:57.short`term loan to make this is a good thing. What worries me is that
:05:58. > :06:00.people may not realise the implications. The transparency of
:06:01. > :06:06.borrowing a few pounds now and then have to pay back a lot more, it is
:06:07. > :06:10.perfectly clear, the company is not doing anything particularly wrong,
:06:11. > :06:15.but for the borrower, for the consumer, if you like, the question
:06:16. > :06:21.is, if you cannot pay it off when it is you, then you cannot afford it.
:06:22. > :06:26.The key is, when you pay it off. If you do not pay it off when it is
:06:27. > :06:29.due, you will be offered a rollover, which means another fee, and the
:06:30. > :06:35.amount of money you are going to eventually will increase. If it too
:06:36. > :06:42.easy for people to get these types of loans? What is the alternative?
:06:43. > :06:48.Banks are gradually loosening their hold, and in fact, some of the
:06:49. > :06:55.charges are not as high as some of the charges made by ranks on, say,
:06:56. > :06:59.unauthorized overdrafts. If you cannot get out of the mess, I would
:07:00. > :07:05.go forward debt counselling. We have had the recession, is this a knock
:07:06. > :07:10.on effect, and is the situation going to get worse? It is not going
:07:11. > :07:16.to get worse, but we are going to have a new watchdog that is going to
:07:17. > :07:20.take over on the 1st of April. It is going to take over on the 1st of
:07:21. > :07:24.April and it is called the financial conduct authority, and they are
:07:25. > :07:29.immediately going to insist that there is an affordability check on
:07:30. > :07:33.every load like this, that they will not be allowed to roll over these
:07:34. > :07:37.any more than twice, and they will not be able to get into your bank
:07:38. > :07:41.account, no matter what authority you give them, more than twice, but
:07:42. > :07:48.what is more important, they are going to put a cap on the total cost
:07:49. > :07:52.of credit. They have not done it yet. There has been a great outcry
:07:53. > :07:57.about it. They are still working on it but they are not yet in
:07:58. > :08:01.authority. They are the hope for the future. Watch this space. Thank you.
:08:02. > :08:09.The National Farmers' Union says there's despair on the Somerset
:08:10. > :08:12.Levels over flooding. People in some of the worst affected areas have
:08:13. > :08:15.told us they've lost trust in the Environment Agency. The agency says
:08:16. > :08:21.dredging can only do so much and won't solve the problems of
:08:22. > :08:25.continuous heavy rain. People living here say it has been
:08:26. > :08:30.this way for three weeks. They say they are angry and they feel
:08:31. > :08:36.abandoned all stop we are trying to rush micro abandoned. We are trying
:08:37. > :08:40.to exist in what `` we are trying to exist in basically a third world
:08:41. > :08:46.country and we are dealing with consequences of 20 years of neglect.
:08:47. > :08:50.Maybe when other areas that wonder, they will be wondering where they
:08:51. > :08:58.went wrong. Can we ask you where you are going? How long have you been
:08:59. > :09:03.doing this? Three weeks. We have been getting our furniture out. The
:09:04. > :09:10.NFU says that urgent action is needed from the Environment Agency.
:09:11. > :09:13.Until you have established a proper trust and communication, because I
:09:14. > :09:17.tell you now, it has all broken down, because this is happening so
:09:18. > :09:23.often and with such catastrophic if that, you have 11,000 hectares of
:09:24. > :09:28.land covered, and it has become like a South West Lake District. After a
:09:29. > :09:32.told us this was an issue for the Environment Agency. The agency says
:09:33. > :09:37.that dredging could cost ?4 million for a first date, and then more
:09:38. > :09:42.would be needed, and they say that dredging could make the matter
:09:43. > :09:48.worse. There can be benefits. It is trying to work out what the wider
:09:49. > :09:53.benefit is, and then you can justify a creature spend. It always has to
:09:54. > :10:03.do with economics. Julian took us by tractor to his 98`year`old father's
:10:04. > :10:07.house. It starts to be thoroughly miserable. There are people out
:10:08. > :10:17.there getting seemingly angry. The RSPB says that community must now
:10:18. > :10:23.write a micro unite `` unites. People need to use the system anyway
:10:24. > :10:28.it is supposed to be used. Tonight, there are no sound `` signs of it
:10:29. > :10:32.these conditions subsiding. There have been discussions today in
:10:33. > :10:36.Parliament about the flooding in Somerset. Our political editor has
:10:37. > :10:41.been following the debate, and joins us now from Westminster.
:10:42. > :10:46.It is unusual to have the same debate simultaneously in the Lords
:10:47. > :10:49.and in the Commons, but that is what has happened with the Somerset
:10:50. > :11:00.floods today. A lot of MPs turned out. One and he was pressing for the
:11:01. > :11:06.dredging of the rivers. He said the Environment Agency had to take a lot
:11:07. > :11:12.of the blame for the problems because it has not dredged those
:11:13. > :11:15.rivers. One person from the Environment Agency said they were
:11:16. > :11:21.working to improve the situation, which could include dredging,
:11:22. > :11:26.meanwhile, a Chief Executive of the Environment Agency was giving
:11:27. > :11:30.evidence alongside the flooding minister. The Chief Executive
:11:31. > :11:36.repeated that it would cost initially ?4 million to dredge the
:11:37. > :11:40.rivers, but he said that if you look at the total amount of money
:11:41. > :11:42.gathered together, including the cost from all of the local
:11:43. > :11:50.authorities involved in Somerset, it is just when million pounds at the
:11:51. > :11:56.moment, which is not enough. `` ?1 million. That kicks the ball back
:11:57. > :11:59.into the government's court. Three people have been rescued after
:12:00. > :12:02.a boat caught fire just outside Plymouth Sound this afternoon. The
:12:03. > :12:08.lifeboat, MoD Police launch and a fire boat were sent to the scene.
:12:09. > :12:17.The 20 foot launch has been severely damaged and was towed to shore.
:12:18. > :12:20.The China clay company Imerys has announced plans to cut 70 jobs in
:12:21. > :12:24.Cornwall. The restructure follows the merger of the Kaolin operations
:12:25. > :12:26.of Imerys and Goonvean. The company says it hopes to achieve the
:12:27. > :12:28.reductions through voluntary redundancy, but says compulsory
:12:29. > :12:31.redundancies may also be necessary. Meanwhile, unemployment figures out
:12:32. > :12:37.today paint a picture of continuing economic recovery in the region.
:12:38. > :12:40.They show that most areas here have just had their lowest December
:12:41. > :12:46.claimant count figure for five years or more.
:12:47. > :12:51.The latest figures here are not bad compared to the rest of the country,
:12:52. > :12:55.but at local level, we have to go by the number of people actually
:12:56. > :13:01.getting benefit. On this measure, the overall UK rate is 2.9%. In
:13:02. > :13:08.Cornwall, it was 2.2%. The rise of their looks purely routine for this
:13:09. > :13:18.time of year. In Devon, it was 1.5%, and endorse it is was 1.3%. In
:13:19. > :13:21.Somerset, it was 1.7%. In the urban unitary areas, the rates are more
:13:22. > :13:34.like the national one. The men seized 2.6%, which quite a fallout
:13:35. > :13:38.from November two December. Comparing the latest figures with
:13:39. > :13:44.how they have been for the last few years, you can see just how far they
:13:45. > :13:54.have fallen. Cornwall Palma `` Cornwall's leads to figure is 2.2%.
:13:55. > :14:00.You have to go right back to 2007 to see a lower figure. You can see the
:14:01. > :14:06.level for Torbay is the lowest it has been since 2007. Clear signs of
:14:07. > :14:10.recovery. These days, we have lots of part`time working and so on, but
:14:11. > :14:16.it looks like a welcome development nonetheless.
:14:17. > :14:20.Residents and businesses in a Devon town are furious after part of a
:14:21. > :14:23.building collapsed on the high street. They say the council should
:14:24. > :14:26.have done more to sort out the derelict shop in Cullompton, and
:14:27. > :14:31.that it's lucky no`one's been injured.
:14:32. > :14:36.It has been an eyesore for years, but this derelict building finally
:14:37. > :14:41.collapsed on Sunday night, with another tonne or so of rubble
:14:42. > :14:44.following last night. It has been for years that we have been
:14:45. > :14:50.campaigning to get something done about it. Unfortunately, it has come
:14:51. > :14:55.to this. Very fortunately, there was nobody waiting there when it
:14:56. > :15:01.happened. On one side, a pub, it has just reopened today after closing
:15:02. > :15:04.over safety fears. I feel very angry, because I have been trying to
:15:05. > :15:09.get this along for such a long time, and I have not had the support I
:15:10. > :15:14.feel I should have had. On the other side, a church that cannot use its
:15:15. > :15:20.front door. We were counting on the Council acting and we have been
:15:21. > :15:24.doing that for four years. It is just not good enough. There is a lot
:15:25. > :15:27.of anger here with the Council. In a statement today, it said it was
:15:28. > :15:32.actively negotiating with the owner to get the demolition work done,
:15:33. > :15:35.with the threat of possible enforcement action. Something now
:15:36. > :15:40.will have to be done, and the expense, I am afraid, is something
:15:41. > :15:43.that we might have to meet as local taxpayers. We left messages for the
:15:44. > :15:51.owner of the building today, but were not able to make contact.
:15:52. > :15:56.Volunteer Chaplains are about to start pounding the streets of Exeter
:15:57. > :16:01.to provide help and support to shopkeepers who might find it hard
:16:02. > :16:06.in the current economy. The aim to provide a listening ear to anyone
:16:07. > :16:10.who needs help, regardless of their faith. Spotlight's John Ayres has
:16:11. > :16:16.more. This man has to work hard to get
:16:17. > :16:21.by. And this lady is an independent trader who is coping with the tough
:16:22. > :16:26.economic climate and looks forward to the idea of having people to
:16:27. > :16:32.listen when times are hard. We are often running businesses and working
:16:33. > :16:36.completely on our Ronan so we are dealing with customers but not to
:16:37. > :16:40.dealing with people we can talk to. Traders support each other with
:16:41. > :16:44.business but when it is about other things and we are really struggling,
:16:45. > :16:53.it is really important there is someone people can turn to.
:16:54. > :16:59.It has taken the taken several years to get together that no the
:17:00. > :17:02.chaplains can offer pastoral care to people who might need some extra
:17:03. > :17:10.support. We can make people have their
:17:11. > :17:17.problems listen to and people can call a number of times to listen and
:17:18. > :17:21.see what the help can be. There are many financial pressures on business
:17:22. > :17:27.and always have been and always will be so any help we can give to limit
:17:28. > :17:30.the concern of people in dealing with stress levels is very
:17:31. > :17:36.important. These are stressful time for many people and if we can help
:17:37. > :17:42.to alleviate those stress levels that must be good.
:17:43. > :17:46.The church is reaching out but this is not about faith and will be no
:17:47. > :17:49.attempt to draw people in the Christianity of those people want to
:17:50. > :17:57.talk about this the church will be happy provide guidance.
:17:58. > :18:04.Soon we will find out what some of the best places to stay are here in
:18:05. > :18:11.the south`west and could Dartmouth be in line for a new royal honour?
:18:12. > :18:17.Think of a luxury hotel and you probably think of travelling to
:18:18. > :18:20.Paris or even the more please. But according to awards run by online
:18:21. > :18:25.review site TripAdvisor, some of the best hotels are closer to stop Chloe
:18:26. > :18:31.Axford has found out why Devon is the biggest winner in the UK after
:18:32. > :18:37.London. Today I have been set to the
:18:38. > :18:42.Gidleigh Park Hotel in Chagford to find out why this is the third most
:18:43. > :18:49.luxurious hotel in Europe. Everything here from the quality of
:18:50. > :18:56.the food to the service and every aspect of the hotel is superb. The
:18:57. > :19:07.Gidleigh Park Hotel in Chagford is one of the 11 Devon hotels which won
:19:08. > :19:16.an award on the trip advisor `` TripAdvisor website. Everyone is an
:19:17. > :19:20.inspector these days. It is very rewarding to know the people
:19:21. > :19:26.appreciate it when they come here. This couple run a guest post which
:19:27. > :19:32.has been ranked the third best small hotel in Britain.
:19:33. > :19:37.The public have given us the acknowledgement and that is
:19:38. > :19:41.fantastic. We do our best to try to make their stay here as comfortable
:19:42. > :19:47.as possible. Tourism bosses are delighted that
:19:48. > :19:52.Devon has come out so well. These awards have not been granted
:19:53. > :19:58.by any particular body but they are consumer reviews and to think the
:19:59. > :20:04.Devon visitor has voted for this is what makes it so exciting.
:20:05. > :20:12.Devon has also been named as having the three most romantic tells in the
:20:13. > :20:21.whole of Britain. So you need to look no further than your own
:20:22. > :20:28.backyard. She looks very much at home there.
:20:29. > :20:34.Dartmouth has set its sights on being given a royal charter. If it
:20:35. > :20:38.succeeds, it will become only the fourth town in England to receive
:20:39. > :20:43.the state is. Wootton Bassett was given a royal charter in 2011 for
:20:44. > :20:49.the win military funeral repatriations were marked as they
:20:50. > :20:57.passed through town. Being given a royal charter is like
:20:58. > :21:01.seeing by Royal Appointment. Dartmouth has links with the
:21:02. > :21:04.Britannia Royal level college and it is here that significant moments
:21:05. > :21:11.have been made in the lives of royal people.
:21:12. > :21:19.You have Prince Philip here and Princess Elizabeth as she was. There
:21:20. > :21:25.is an intimate moment. Just the two of them and the this is where they
:21:26. > :21:32.met for the first time. When they visited, both of them made reference
:21:33. > :21:45.to how special Dartmouth is to them. I think it is a wonderful idea
:21:46. > :21:54.and we have a Hotel where Queen Victoria state. I think it is
:21:55. > :22:04.important here. We would all be very proud to make this a royal place. In
:22:05. > :22:10.1341, the town was given the right to elect mayors and the Queen comes
:22:11. > :22:19.here every four years throughout the rain. There is a connection between
:22:20. > :22:25.the people of Dartmouth and the Royal family.
:22:26. > :22:27.It is hoped a royal charter would help to raise both the business and
:22:28. > :22:40.tourism profile of the town. There will be blue sky tomorrow but
:22:41. > :22:45.we will not get a dry spell for long. There is still the risk of
:22:46. > :22:50.further rain and more rain on Friday and again on Sunday. Thank you for
:22:51. > :22:55.the e`mails were the fantastic photographs that have been sent in.
:22:56. > :23:05.We have a great pictures of whether both good and bad. Tomorrow is a dry
:23:06. > :23:11.day but it will feel somewhat colder through the day. The main problem is
:23:12. > :23:15.rain and there is more rain in the forecast. This is an early warning
:23:16. > :23:22.for rainfall on Friday and there is also an early warning for rainfall
:23:23. > :23:29.on Sunday. We will keep a close eye on these events. We have ploughed
:23:30. > :23:32.around this evening but it is mainly dry overnight. Most of the activity
:23:33. > :23:39.is on the other side of the Atlantic. Some showers will come
:23:40. > :23:47.through the night and tomorrow morning but this front from Canada
:23:48. > :23:55.will bring weather systems to us on Friday which could bring rain. The
:23:56. > :24:00.showers we have this evening I fairly light and most of those are
:24:01. > :24:07.disappearing so it becomes largely dry. Top temperatures will be close
:24:08. > :24:13.to freezing and there will be missed in Falkirk. By the morning, showers
:24:14. > :24:18.will move in and it will be somewhat of a great start. It will not be
:24:19. > :24:25.much more than six degrees are seven degrees. Those showers will clear
:24:26. > :24:29.and it will be dry for most of the day but with a cold wind so please
:24:30. > :24:35.wrap up warmly. We should stay dry till the end of the day but some
:24:36. > :24:39.cloud will come in well ahead of the low pressure system coming in across
:24:40. > :24:43.the Atlantic. Temperatures will be between eight degrees and nine
:24:44. > :24:48.degrees and with the wind chill it will feel colder. There will be
:24:49. > :25:02.bright weather around but a breezy and cold day. Plymouth will have
:25:03. > :25:10.high water at 941. The winds will be north`westerly tomorrow with showers
:25:11. > :25:14.with moderate or good visibility. Because we have two rainy days
:25:15. > :25:26.coming up, you can dial this number. There are still quite a few
:25:27. > :25:31.flood warnings in force in the Environment Agency website has
:25:32. > :25:35.details. Friday is a wet day but a much milder day with temperatures up
:25:36. > :25:42.to 12 degrees and quite a windy day as well. Saturday will be dry but we
:25:43. > :25:47.will need more than one day to dry out because Sunday will be a windy
:25:48. > :25:54.day. Stage and to the forecast for further
:25:55. > :26:21.what ever you do tonight, have a lovely evening. Good night.
:26:22. > :26:25.We all have hopes and fears for the future