011225 BBC London, Evening News

Thank you, Sophie. Tonight on BBC London, 10 years after the undercover policing inquiry started, the original whistleblower gives evidence.

Former police officer Peter Francis claims he witnessed [music] a shocking culture on the force.

>> It's a lot of very, very derogatory, nasty, um, racist language being used to to express his views.

Also coming up on the program, analysts say the graduate job market is the worst for 30 years. [music] We talk to the young people looking for work.

>> You've applied. Just tell me about the ratio of >> over 1,500. Like I'm applying every day.

You know, >> we go bird spotting on the Essex Island made [music] with the London soil excavated from the Elizabeth line.

and find out why scientists think this dog from Barkshshire could be [music] one of the cleverest in the world.

Good evening to you. While it's one of the longest and [music] most expensive public inquiries ever, today, 10 years after the undercover policing inquiry

started, the original whistleblower gave evidence. Former Mets police officer

evidence. Former Mets police officer Peter Francis said racist and sexist language was commonplace. He also

claimed managers gave advice on safe sex with female activists that they themselves were operating surveillance on. He says he has been left with mental

on. He says he has been left with mental health issues including PTSD as a result of his work. Oshabok has been following the story.

He's the spy cop turned whistleblower and 10 years on from when it first began. Former undercover police officer

began. Former undercover police officer Peter Francis has finally appeared before the public inquiry.

>> That the evidence I shall give >> shall be the truth.

>> shall be the truth.

>> The whole truth.

>> The whole truth >> and nothing but >> and nothing but the truth. He belonged

to a covert team at Scotland Yard called the Special Demonstration Squad. Their

job was to gather information on potential public disorder. But among

their targets were the justice campaigns of black and Asian families protesting about their treatment by the police.

>> And he wasn't afraid of telling the inquiry about the behavior of his fellow colleagues.

>> So, can you explain what he said? There there was a lot of very very derogatory, nasty um racist language being used.

>> Peter Francis was tasked with monitoring the family of Steven Lawrence shortly after his racist murder in 1993.

Well, Peter Francis told the inquiry that he's been suffering with PTSD as a result of his work as an undercover police officer. He also told the inquiry

police officer. He also told the inquiry and painted a picture of what life was like in the SDS squad. There were field trips, for example, to Amsterdam, where

he and others consumed cannabis cakes.

There was also widespread stereotyping and racist and sexist banter. And there

was even advice given from a senior officer on how to manage sexual relations with female activists.

>> It was very early in my deployment. He

made a point of asking me some other things. Uh little helpful things. Do I,

things. Uh little helpful things. Do I,

you know, how to make a spliff? Uh

little things like this type helpful things. But uh he said something very

things. But uh he said something very specific to me with regards to condoms. >> The undercover policing inquiry is being held here in the city of London, and it's one of the longest, the most

expensive inquiries the country has ever known. Other former undercover officers

known. Other former undercover officers have and will appear before it, but some won't. Even Luba supports victims who've

won't. Even Luba supports victims who've learned they've been spied on and has been monitoring proceedings for years.

frustrating because this inquiry is supposed to go is supposed to find the truth and to go into the depth of it.

But by allowing so many officers and managers not to appear, it's it's a joke. Basically, there's so in so many ways they they are making

this not a public uh inquiry. In a

statement, the Met Police apologized to the families and campaigners, saying the actions of some undercover officers within the SDS were totally unacceptable and have left the legacy of hurt to

those affected. They do not accurately

those affected. They do not accurately reflect the professionalism we expect today within the Met Police. Peter

Francis will continue to give evidence for the rest of the week. The inquiry

continues.

Well, Aisha joins us now. Aisha, what

more came out of today's hearing?

>> We also heard Peter Francis's SDS manager, uh, in his words, make incredibly racist and derogatory remarks about the Lawrence campaign. Um, and

that's because he said they were concerned about how big the campaign was getting and how it had the potential to spill over into disorder. They were also concerned about the lawyers involved in

the Lawrence campaign. Now, Dorene

Lawrence has said previously that she is angry that while they were demanding justice for their son, they were being spied on uh by the police. The Met in response to our inquiries today have

told us that they in their words said that these deployments were not justified. The information on these

justified. The information on these families and campaigns should never have been collected or retained. and they

said they would like to apologize for the reporting that happened especially at a time when they say the Met police should have been focusing on their efforts to solve associated investigations. Now this inquiry will go

investigations. Now this inquiry will go on for some time. Campaigners will be waiting to see what recommendations will be made about the tactics, the behavior and of course the impact on victims.

>> Aisha, thank you very much.

Lots more to come, including >> Join me later at the chapel, which offers support and solace to people throughout the HIV and AIDS crisis.

Tonight, it hosts an event to commemorate World AIDS Day.

As the tree goes up in Trafalga Square, we take a look at the cost of Christmas.

Labour MP Chulip Sadi has condemned a trial in Bangladesh as farle after she was sentenced to two years in prison in her absence. She was found guilty of

her absence. She was found guilty of corruption over a government land project involving her aunt ousted prime minister of Bangladesh Shik Hassina. The

Labour Party said it does not recognize the corruption judgment against Miss Sadi who is MP for Hampstead and Highgate because they said she was denied the opportunity to a fair legal

process in the case.

>> There's been absolutely no summon sent to me. There's no charge sheet. I've had

to me. There's no charge sheet. I've had

no correspondence from them. I'm not

difficult to find. I'm a

parliamentarian. All they had to do is send some papers to the House of Commons to Parliament and I would have responded. So I feel like I'm in some

responded. So I feel like I'm in some sort of cafka nightmare where I'm carrying on doing my day job but on the other hand I'm apparently being convicted in Bangladesh and the only

reason I know I'm being convicted is because I read it in the newspapers. So

this is now it's the toughest graduate market for jobs in 30 years. That's the

view of industry experts who look at patterns of recruitment. The problem is that there are a huge number of applicants applying for jobs, but the number of jobs are falling and that's

leading to a very tough time for some.

It's particularly the case in accountancy and professional service industries. Well, Nikki Ford visited a

industries. Well, Nikki Ford visited a job fair for graduates and school levers to get a sense of what's happening.

Graduates at Gradfest. A job fair in East London. Soaking up every word for

East London. Soaking up every word for the job hunt is hardgoing for some, including Nanice, who's applied for lots of jobs, >> over 1,500. Like I'm applying every day.

You kind of just have to sit down and it does take quite a while cuz some jobs are like scams and some of them like once you put your details there, they call you and say, "Oh, like we've got a job." But then it's a dead end.

job." But then it's a dead end.

>> If it feels hard, that's because it is.

One organization which monitors the Times top 100 companies says it's the toughest market they've seen.

>> The country's top employees are currently attracting somewhere between 50 and 200 applicants uh for each of their places on their graduate programs. So, it's hugely competitive.

>> That's something familiar to Elliot who graduated in the summer in economics and is looking for a job in finance. It's

really hard to try and find a graduate job because all other jobs need like at least a year of experience and all the graduate jobs it's quite a market where there's loads of people trying to get into it as well. So trying to find one

where I stand out is really quite tough.

>> The number of vacancies have been dropping as business confidence has fallen away and the outlook for the next 12 months um is a further reduction. So

employers still feeling really cautious about the number of graduates they're taking on.

>> But what about school levers across town in West London? They're attending their own recruitment fair at what university and what career live companies there doing what they can to entice them into

student apprenticeships.

>> I think there is a worry about the economy and whether or not if they do go to university will there be a job for them when they come out of it. So we

heavily push apprenticeships because we know that that earn learn but more importantly build that work skill and that work viability is so so important.

It's a sector that's still relatively buoyant, say at Zuna, an online job site. They say they've seen 2,000 fewer

site. They say they've seen 2,000 fewer graduate jobs advertised this October compared to last. A drop from over 5,000 to 3,000, but not the case with entry- level jobs. They say

level jobs. They say >> the year-on-year drops we see there are more like 1 to 10% across all industries. So, we haven't seen the

industries. So, we haven't seen the precipitous fall that we've seen at a graduate level. But one area holding up

graduate level. But one area holding up for both they say is public services.

Their advice to graduates >> open up the aperture a bit and think about the public sector. We are seeing teaching roles, we are seeing civil service roles remain fairly buoyant through this period. So I think um

public sector options are worth considering.

>> So some optimism there perhaps if not for jobs across the board. Nikki Ford,

BBC London.

>> Let's take a look at some other news for you. A decision to run a rail service

you. A decision to run a rail service between Manchester Piccadilly and London Houston without passengers has been reversed. [music]

reversed. [music] From the middle of this month, the 7:00 morning service had been due to set off only carrying train staff. [music]

The Office of Road and Rail said it has changed course, having recognized the importance and popularity [music] of the train.

Researchers are studying why breast cancer screening uptake is low in Tower Hamlets, the city of London and Waltham Forest. Last year, breast screening

Forest. Last year, breast screening units found that these areas of London had a lower uptake rate across the capital. The [music] experiences of

capital. The [music] experiences of women from Somali, African, and South Asian backgrounds will inform the research.

Five London councils are calling on the London mayor to get rid of adverts promoting casinos and gambling websites on the underground. Barnett, Brent,

Enfield, Hackne, and Lewisham councils have joined the coalition to end gambling ads. The group campaigns

gambling ads. The group campaigns against harmful gambling promotion.

Now, today is World AIDS Day and tonight an event is taking place in central London to remember the lives lost to the virus, especially those during the

height of the crisis in the 1980s and '90s. Our reporter Paul Murphy is there

'90s. Our reporter Paul Murphy is there for us tonight. Over to you, Paul.

>> Thanks, Halpa. Good evening to you from this very beautiful and ornate chapel here in the heart of London. Now, you

might recognize it. It was actually where King Charles recorded last year's Christmas message. And as you can see,

Christmas message. And as you can see, it's filling up nicely this evening ahead of the World AIDS Day service.

Now, in the 80s and '90s, this chapel played a very important role in the LGBTQ plus community. It was where many people came to find solace and support during the height of the AIDS crisis.

Uh, in fact, nearby was the former Middle Sex Hospital, which held the UK's first bespoke AIDS ward. Now the

hospital was demolished some years ago but the chapel remains and as I said tonight it plays host to a very important event the world a day commemoration service. Now I'm joined by

commemoration service. Now I'm joined by a couple of people tonight. Firstly I'm

going to turn to Lucas Ketchka from the Mosaic Trust who organized this evening's festivities. Um so packed

evening's festivities. Um so packed program on tonight um but a very important message behind it. Yes, we

thought that it's very important for young persons to be at the very heart of this event and this is why we partnered with AIDS memory UK because we feel it's so critical for young persons to start understanding their own history and heritage of this community specifically

because AIDS have taken so many lives of our community and I feel like it's so critical for them to learn from it because essentially they had to live for their own pandemic. We have to remember that CO is still very much playing havoc

on a lot of communities and that's something that they can now relate to because they have had that experience and imagine how much more painful this was in isolation and against the government policy and not getting

support from anywhere at the very beginning until this very first word as you have mentioned >> and awareness and medication has helped in the diagnosis of HIV. Um but what

about people's perception of it? I think

we're kind of entering the world where we have a lot of shift in perceptions. I

think there's a lot of stigma out there, don't get me wrong, but I think to some extent with young persons, they start understanding it better specifically because a lot of education work that we do with young persons. So, we want to make sure that young persons start

understanding the risks that are coming with their sexual activities and we want to make sure that they are know they know how to prevent it and they know how to behave and how to consent works and

how all those things work. uh but I think what is really critical is for them to realize there is medication available now and to reduce the level of stigma. So on one hand side we want to

stigma. So on one hand side we want to make sure that they are managing and not being uh afraid of it and there's no stigma on other hand side they are actually taking proactive steps in order to make sure they are healthy.

>> Lucas thank you very much for joining us while I'm also joined by Ash Kotak who's the founder of AIDS Memory UK. Now Ash,

[snorts] we've spoken before about a memorial to London AIDS uh the people died from AIDS in London. Um, and when we spoke last, we didn't have a design, a location, or even funding. Where are

we at now?

>> We've got a location which is on Store Street, not far away from here. And it

was very important that the location that we found was of historical importance. We've got a artist uh Ana

importance. We've got a artist uh Ana Galatio who is a really well-known international artist and a fantastic design. She won it in a competition

design. She won it in a competition about 100 artists applied. We took it down to 30 and she was the winner overall.

>> Thank you very much both of you for joining us and that memorial we expect to be open in around two years time.

Alpa >> Paul, thank you very much.

>> Now let's take a moment to look at some local stories which you may have missed but are now on our BBC [music] News app in Surrey. Find out if a park or

in Surrey. Find out if a park or playground near you could benefit from £4 million from the council to improve facilities. [music]

facilities. [music] Or you might be interested in this.

Across Barkshire, a miniature horse was successfully rescued [music] by these firefighters from a pool. And in

Hartford, find out why this friend star donated her handbag to a fundraising campaign in Harpendon.

Now, Christmas is coming and the famous Trafalga Square tree has been put in place today. It's set to be decorated

place today. It's set to be decorated tomorrow ahead of the lighting ceremony on Thursday. As preparations for the

on Thursday. As preparations for the festive season ramp up, some people will be worried about the cost of Christmas.

New research from jet debt charity Step Change reveals that almost a third of parents will struggle to afford Christmas this year. And while Londoners

will spend on average uh just over £600, almost one in five intend to spend more than £1,000. Well, Lux me go pal went to

than £1,000. Well, Lux me go pal went to meet a Brmley man who is still paying off debts from previous Christmases.

Dave used to dread opening his post.

It's horrendous. You you either wake up in the morning, see letters on the the doormat, you probably walk over them, think, "I can't deal with that. I'm

going to work." Come home know you got to open them up. Then sometimes you don't because you're scared.

>> His debts eventually totaled £20,000. As

an insurance broker working in the city, he felt a stigma around discussing the problem with his peers.

>> How did you feel when you were facing that mountain of debt?

>> Just couldn't cope. just really couldn't cope. Just didn't know where to turn.

cope. Just didn't know where to turn.

And if it wasn't for my children, then I'm not sure I would be here.

>> Paying for two lots of housing due to a divorce added to an already precarious position.

>> Is mainly family debt over a 10 15 year period and it was just going on holidays. I I'd kind of in my mind put

holidays. I I'd kind of in my mind put it on a credit card and then it was going to pay it off. I kept putting it back to my mind think, "Oh, I'll pay it because I get a bonus next this year or next year and I'll just pay it off." And

invariably, I didn't.

>> Many are in a similar situation to Dave, especially at this time of year, with one in 12 relying on credit to fund their festive spending, according to research by the debt charity Step Change, who have this advice for

Christmas. setting budgets, maybe trying

Christmas. setting budgets, maybe trying to suggest a secret Santa amongst family and loved ones to to try to spread that cost and to and to reduce those outgoings can can be really important.

But ultimately for people who are coming to us at any time of year, the message is the same. Don't wait to reach out for help. If you're struggling, the best

help. If you're struggling, the best time to get help is now.

>> With the help of Step Change, Dave has now cleared half his debt. They took

away from me having to ring four creditors every week explaining the situation and they did a report to the creditors and and invariably I think once they've stamped it then the creditors accept it.

>> The charity is urging everyone not to let Christmas spending cause a financially stressful new year. Lux

Migopal BBC London.

Now tonight are the fashion awards hosted here in the capitol by our very own RZ Latif.

Well, this is the scene live. There you

go. Lots of people gathering there and celebrities and fashion icons too are starting to arrive. And of course, you can follow all the action including what

the stars will be wearing. You can watch live on Catchup on BBC i Player.

Now, take a look at this. It's uh

Europe's largest man-made nature reserve, Wallacey Wetlands in Essex, and it's now 10 years old. The island was

built using millions of tons of soil excavated as part of the Cross Rail project, now of course called the Elizabeth line, and was designed to stop

the decline in rare. Jodie Halford has been finding out more.

So the old land height of Wallace is there and then everything that we're standing on and over to our left is crossrail material from London. So

obviously some of it came to make this new sea embankment and the rest of it went to make this salt marsh mud flats that are over there. This land has undergone quite a transformation over

the last decade from many years as arable farmland to a wetland haven for thousands of birds and other wildlife.

The RSPB were looking to do a wetland creation project to bring back some of the coastal habitats that had been lost across Essex and the East Coast. And

then the partnership with Cross Rail arose um and we were able to make the managed realignment where we're standing now. The Cross Rail project to create

now. The Cross Rail project to create the Elizabeth line across London saw the excavation of millions of tons of soil to make way for the tunnels and station

expansions and the start of a partnership with the RSPB. It was an absolutely massive building project and a massive construction site and all that material came by ship um along the

tempames and up around the coast to Wallacey Island and where they made these new habitats. Um so they raised the land to different levels. So we got the full range of habitats from mud flats all the way through the different

salt marsh and all the way up to grassland.

After all the chaos and noise of construction, the birds did take a while to flock to Wallace. They're now seeing record numbers of avisetses, bartailed

godwits, curlu and knots.

>> So the first winter it was very bare.

There wasn't um any seeds or any invertebrates for the birds to feed on.

Um but by the next winter, you know, the numbers were starting to um increase and ever since then the numbers have increased each year um with the peak last winter of 39,000 birds.

>> On the horizon now is an expansion plan.

Extra land's been acquired by the RSPB to grow the site and continue to build on the record numbers of birds visiting this ever evolving place. Jodie Halford,

BBC London, Wallacey Island.

A bird having fun there. Well, before we go, a border collie has been labeled a dog genius. Why? Because he can

dog genius. Why? Because he can recognize and retrieve do toys from hundreds of commands. Harvey, who is

seven and lives in Reading, knows the names of about 220 toys in English and in Dutch. Researchers have so far found

in Dutch. Researchers have so far found only a few other dogs in the world with similar abilities. Alan Sinclair

similar abilities. Alan Sinclair reports.

>> Harvey, go find Starfish.

>> These are just a few of the toys Harvey knows by name [laughter] in the >> Yes. So there's 220 of them at the

>> Yes. So there's 220 of them at the moment that he recognizes about. We have

a number of toys waiting to be introduced. I tend to introduce them

introduced. I tend to introduce them maybe once a week or once every two weeks, something like that, just to keep keep it interesting and to keep it, you know, that he keeps being excited about

new toys as well. Go find Triceratops.

It's getting quite difficult at this point now to find relevant new ones. Y

>> about half of the toys are Dutch names cuz I'm from the Netherlands and half the toys are from are British names. Go

find Froggy. We have Froggy, which is the British frog, but then we have Kicker, which is frog in Dutch, which is also a frog, but looks completely different.

>> Yes, >> he loves this game.

>> Go find cheeseburger.

>> I find sometimes I have to wade through the toys when I'm in my house um because there's so many on the floor. Good boy.

>> She knew he was smart, but when I heard the University of Portsmouth were looking for clever dogs and got in touch, she had no idea how rare his extraordinary abilities are.

>> Harvey, for example, he's able to inhibit picking up any of the other objects because he knows that's not the one he's looking for. So, he's able to

control his behavior to an extent. This

is not something that sort of is very common. Go fine, Shira.

common. Go fine, Shira.

>> At the moment, we have 11 across Europe.

We have some dogs that are in America.

We really literally have to go around the world to find these dogs.

>> The research could ultimately help develop a simple cognitive test to indicate if a puppy is likely to pick up the skills needed by working dogs. For

Harvey, though, it's all about fun.

>> Harvey, go find Lana. I think I'm just really lucky that I got this super smart dog that wanted to do this game with me.

Yay. Good boy.

>> Alan Sinclair, BBC London Reading.

>> Cracky. That is one clever dog, isn't it? Right, let's take a look at the

it? Right, let's take a look at the weather now. And Kate is with us in the

weather now. And Kate is with us in the studio. Kate, what's the weather doing?

studio. Kate, what's the weather doing?

>> Well, it doesn't know what it's doing, I don't think, this week, if I'm honest.

It's taken us this today. It's gone back up in temperature. Yesterday, we had the sunshine lulled us into that. Oh, it's

okay. We've got some sun, but no, this came back today. Lots of moisture and that milder air. And with the milder air, of course, is a little bit warmer.

Now, this was the gray sky we had this morning, and this was the gray sky we had as sunset. So, quite murky as well.

We were caught between two fronts basically, which bought us the rain, it bought us the mild air, and it bought the mist and murk as well. Now, you can see the isabars, few of those as well.

So, it's been really quite blustery. But

actually, as this cold front moves in this evening, the wind is going to strengthen even further. You'll see in the discs here, the stronger the winds.

As that moves through, we could get 45 mph gusts. But it clears and the wind

mph gusts. But it clears and the wind will fall lighter. So, second half of the night, early hours of the morning into Tuesday. Minimum temperature 6 to

into Tuesday. Minimum temperature 6 to 8, but we have clear skies. So, a

brighter start tomorrow. We should lose the clouds. So, we'll get a bit of

the clouds. So, we'll get a bit of sunshine again first thing. It's dry

through the morning, but you'll notice these showers coming up from the south.

Once again, we're going to get some of those. So, another unsettled day. Still

those. So, another unsettled day. Still

fairly breezy, but not as windy as today. 10 11 Celsius the maximum

today. 10 11 Celsius the maximum temperature. Today, we got up to 12. So,

temperature. Today, we got up to 12. So,

it's a little bit cooler. Now, as we head overnight Tuesday into Wednesday, those showers will clear and the sky clears. So, on the whole, it's a drier

clears. So, on the whole, it's a drier night or eventually it will be. could

just see once these showers clear out of the way one or two mist and fog patches won't be widespread but some nonetheless minimum temperature a bit cooler the

temperature is dropping around 3 or 4 Celsius so a chilly start to Wednesday morning but again a brighter start we should get some sunshine showers coming up again from the south but on the whole

Wednesday should be dry until the evening the temperature again very similar at around 10 or 11 Celsius Kate, thank you very much.

Now, the main headline tonight, the chairman of the [music] economic forecasting organization, the Office for Budget Responsibility, Richard Hughes,

has resigned. [music] It comes after

has resigned. [music] It comes after details were accidentally released by the OBR before the [music] budget last week.

That's about it from me and the team.

will be here later with our 10:30 program. But for now, from all of us

program. But for now, from all of us here, have a good [music] evening.