Tonight an BBC London News.

Move away from the door; stphrrks

Met's total war on crime as 900 officers target money laundering
and online fraud in the capital. Five months - the woman who
racially abused fellow passengers on the Tube. I just hope she can
learn from this and change her ways. Whether it will change her views, I
don't know. Keeping the Jubilee safe ahead of the four-day royal
celebration in the capital. We see how the police are preparing for
their security and ceremonial roles alongside the Queen.
And performing for more than 40 years, we are with Des O'Connor as
he returns to the London Palladium. Good evening and welcome to the
programme. "A total war on crime" - that's what the Commissioner, Bernard
Hogan-Howe,
promised when he took charge of the Met Police eight months ago.
Today saw the latest in a series of high-profile operations, with
nearly 1,000 officers ordered
to tackle online fraud and money laundering across the capital. But
some criminalologists claim that it is better for public relations than
fighting crime. Move away from the door! Keep going.
Well, that's what the Met are doing. Not just this morning against
suspected fraudsters but on a regular basis. Big operations
targeting specific crimes. It is part of this man's strategy,
Bernard Hogan-Howe, who has been Commissioner since September. He's
brand it a "total war on crime". Today more than 900 officers across
the capital were ordered to tackle financial offences. By this
afternoon, the Met had made more than 100 arrest, seized over ï¿?.5
million in cash, plus two cars, imitation firearms and even this
motor cruiser. "Total war on crime" is our Commissioner's strap line
and that's what we are doing today. We are saying the Met means
business about crimes against business. We were really serious in
Tackling this criminal In the long term that's what really matters for
businesses and the public when shopping for example online.
Retailers are severely impacted by retail crime. We estimated the cost
last year was in the order of ï¿?.4 billion that. Can have a real
impact on the individual businesses, the people that work in them, and
the customers that use those services. But does this kind of
policing work? In nine months there've been 13 operations, with
one using 4 hour officers. The main criminals targeted have been
uninsured drivers, thought to be involved in other more serious
offences. Ben, a criminalologist for more than 20 years, wonders if
it could be style over substance. Clearly there's a public relations
element to this. The Police Service has taken a battering in recent
months, with allegation of corruption, racism scandals, too
close to the media. And so I think that part of this is to make the
police look good again. And, of course, part of it is to respond to
serious crime. The current Commissioner wants to copy his
previous success in Merseyside. Total crime down there by a third
in four years. Coming up: the small businesss who
are banking on a big supermarket chain to save their high street.
A woman who was filmed racially abusing fellow passengers on the
Tube has been sent to prison for 21 weeks. Jacqueline Woodhouse from
Romford had been drinking champagne at a retirement party in January
when she boarded a Central Line train. Sonja Jessup reports.
(BLEEP)... It was a foul mouthed racist rant that's been watched by
thousands on YouTube. Jacqueline Woodhouse said she was so drunk
when she boarded this Central Line train she couldn't remember the
journey. Those who shared the carriage certainly remember. One
traveller so shocked he said he felt he could no longer interact
with white people on the Tube. This businessman who filmed the abuse
thinks her jail sentence doesn't go far enough. I think Jacqueline
Woodhouse got off pretty lightly, but I just hope she can learn from
this and hopefully change her ways. Whether lit change her views, I
don't know. Sentencing Jacqueline Woodhouse to 21 weeks in jail
District Judge Michael Snow said anyone viewing the video would feel
a deep sense of shame. And they may secretly believe it represents the
views of white people and it wasn't the first time Jacqueline Woodhouse
had been caught racially abusing passenger. She was find four years
ago for a similar offence on the DLR. Today she was banned from
using the service and from the London Underground. British
Look, he is even filming... Jacqueline Woodhouse has since lost
her Josh and is claiming benefits, but the judge rejected suggestions
she felt ashameded of her behaviour, saying he found that hard to
believe. -- ashamed of her behaviour. The chief executive of Great Ormond
Street
Hospital has announced she's to stand down. She's leaving to head a
health
charity. She was at the centre of the controversy surrounding
the hospital's failures in the Baby Peter case. Last year she survived
calls for her resignation from a Government Minister after
this programme revealed she withheld information critical
of the hospital from the official inquiry into the tragedy. Our political
editor, Tim Donovan, reports. Gormstreed Hospital and its successful
charity have been -- Great Ormond Street Hospital and its successful
charity have been led by Jane Collins for a decade. She is leaving
to take charge
of
Last year Ms Collins survived calls for her resignation after BBC
London revealed she withheld details critical of the hospital's
involvement in the Baby Peter case from the official inquiry the
tragedy. I cannot believe that anyone, let alone people in these
trusted positions works hold back, - cover up information to a serious
case review. Great Ormond Street was responsible for the NHS's child
protection services in Haringey when Peter died. She appointed the
underqualified lo come who examined the toddler two days before. An
expert report later found serious failings at this clinic where he
was seen. But a number of the criticisms weren't passed on to the
official review into what happened. We did share it... Ms Collins told
the BBC she withheld material for legal reasons. We believe in being
open. Always telling the truth and sharing everything we can. One of
our problems we do have responsibilities to our employees
as well. Last month the BBC London documentary reported concerns by
former radiologists at the hospital that had downgraded child
protection services, putting children at risk. That was followed
by claims that the hospital failed to diagnose rickets in a four-
month-old child. His parents were accused of abuse but later cleared
of murder. Today the hospital insisted that past problems had
play nod part in Jane Collins's decision was lead and she was
taking up a wonderful new opportunity. London is gearing up for four days
of celebrations
to mark the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. For the Metropolitan Police
it's a huge logistical exercise, as they have both a security
and ceremonial role in the whole event. It begins on Saturday,
when the Queen will attend the Epsom Derby. There'll also be a
huge family festival at Hyde Park. The River Pageant of 1,000 boats
takes place on Sunday. Also the day of the big Jubilee lunch across
the country. On Monday, Buckingham Palace hosts a special BBC concert.
It concludes on Tuesday with a service at St Paul's Cathedral
and a Royal Procession. Katharine Carpenter, clearly a big operation
for the Met? This is going to be a huge weekend for the police.
On the busiest days they are going to have around 6,000 officers involved
in the operation. They've thaet one of the biggest challenges
is -- they've admitted that one of the biggest challenges is tailoring
their officers to what's going on. There'll be 21 marine police
units in operation and there'll be two from Essex. On Monday
and Tuesday it will will have a huge presence on London's streets for
the concert and the carriage procession. In order to meet the
challenges of the actual days themselves, the Met's been doing a great
deal of preparation. I've been told they've been preparing for
this for 18 months. We've seen specialist search teams using sniffer
dogs to search passenger vessels on the River Thames. They
are also going be using rope-climbing teams to search bridges
like this one, and underwater diving teams to check the shoreline
and the piers. Lots going on ahead. But earlier I spoke to Steven
Kavanagh. He told me the river pageant was a new and unique challenge
for the Met. A big event over the weekend in terms of police willing
be the pageant. That's pretty unique to us and it is an event in
its own right. We've drawn together all the lessons from VIP protection
issues and the visiting dignitaries and this will be a part of our
learning. We need make sure that the pageant organisers and Transport
for London, that everyone gets home safely. And the police have a
ceremonial
role? Yes, the Met's famous grey escort, its grey horses,
will be leading the carriage procession from the Palace of Westminster
to Buckingham Palace on Tuesday. Officers in ceremonial uniform
will be lining the route. A visible presence for the Met this weekend.
They'll have to combine that with their undercover operations. It
is all another chance to hone the Met's tactics ahead of
the Olympic Games this summer. Katharine, thank you.
A deal has been agreed for London Underground staff to receive extra
pay for working during the Olympics, so avoiding the threat of strikes
during the Games. The RMT says the agreement was worth up to ï¿?,000
for drivers and up to �the 850 for other staff in recognition of the
massive additional pressures that they will face.
During the Olympics Transport for London has told businesses across
the capital to be flexible and to allow homeworking to ease
congestion, but hate told some of its own staff they'll have to work
as normal and turn up to the office. TfL says it is only a small number
of workers. This publicity stunt is to get us
to change our travel habits. Transport for London wants us to
work from home or avoid the rush hour, to ease the pressure during
the Games on the transport system. It could be an Olympic legacy.
the longer term, with both the population in London increasing and
the number of jobs increasing, that might produce extra capacity on the
transport network far more cheaply than building new links. But that
flexibility isn't being given to all of its office workers. This
newsletter tells the information management department that business
will carry on as usual. It says it is considered that there is
sufficient flexibility within the working day to enable all staff to
travel to work throughout the period. In other words, workers
will have to get into the office. Some have told BBC London they
think that that is hypocrisy, especially as ITC systems can be
used from home. Politicians agreement It is absolutely
staggering at a time when everyone in London is being told they need
to encourage staff to work at home and to free up public transport for
all the visitors of the Games, to then say your staff will have to be
in the office, these are back room staff. It stinks of hypocrisy.
As this video shows the Department for Transport is allowing most of
its civil servants to work from home. A survey today shows that
half of all businesses are allowing Our research has shown that
offering flexible working practices can reap dividends in terms of
employee engagement and increased job satisfaction. TfL says is as
critical departments will be needed to work from the office but they
will be working shifts, as well most of its workers. It also says
it will be testing remote IT systems next month. None the less,
some of its employees still believe it is not practising what it
preaches. He is a 22 year-old Londoner from Tottenham whose parents
settled here years
ago from Syria. Ahmed al-Khalaf is only too aware of the escalating
violence in the country. He has even risked his own life by travelling
to Syria to document events there and he is one of a number of
Syrians in the capital
actively supporting the anti- Ahmed al-Khalaf wanted to be a
rapper. Now he is a revolutionary. 11 people in pieces. As the
violence spread in his parents' homeland of Syria, he left his life
in north London to join the protest movement, aiming to overthrow the
government of Bashar al-Assad. He decided to pick up a camera to show
the world the human rights abuses being committed in the country. The
area of Serie it that he is in is very dangerous but we managed to
make contact with him and he sent This
is the man Ahmed and his protesters want to overthrow. Bashar al-Assad
also has links to London. He studied at a hospital here and
his wife was born and raised in Acton. You have been here for a
long time? Molik is a prominent activist and activist. He grew up
in the same street as Asma al-Assad, with their parents, Bashar al-Assad's
in-laws. house is over there and there's is over there.
It is ironic that we live on opposite sides of the road, especially
so close. But that just reflect the polarisation of Syrian Society
and the Syrian community in London in particular, between those who
continue
to support President Bashar al-Assad and those opposed to him.
Molik runs his TV channel from central London, which has played a key
role in garnering opposition to the regime. This is where 350
innocent people were killed in two days. But in Syria, the violence
shows little sign of abating. The government and even some Syrians
in London who support the regime blamed the rebels. But that is
not what human rights groups say. Ahmed knows that he is risking
his life, but he hopes that one day Syrians will enjoy the peace and political
freedom that he grew up with here. Still to come before 7
o'clock: We are at the Palladium because I am appearing
in the Wizard of Oz as the Wizard. We will be talking about it in
a few minutes. Shall we sing meantime? We shall. We are off to see
the Wizard, the wonderful
You often see reports of protests when a supermarket wants to open a
store in a High Street. The fear of locals is often that it will drive
out small businesses, but in Sidcup in south-east London, there is a
twist to the tale. A petition is being gathered against Waitrose
refusing to build one of their stores. Across Greater London it is
one in nine. In Sidcup, south-east London, it is one in six. So when
Waitrose promised to build a new high street store to break the
gloom of empty shops, they were welcomed. Not so much as a
supermarket than a super hero. Until, that is, they changed their
minds. What is the big deal about Waitrose? Well, it was Waitrose
that wanted to come to Sidcup. they are just a shop. Why would you
get upset about Tesco, Sainsbury's? I am sure if it was Tesco or
Sainsbury's. Waitrose have a name for quality. Residents appreciate
quality. Barbara in the jeweller's, Pauline in the travel agents, even
the traffic warden No. 365, they cannot give out their names, want
Waitrose to open here, bringing with them 40 new jobs. And a sense
of status, picked up on by house- hunters. We heard that Waitrose was
on its way here and people were very enthusiastic about it. It made
a lot of difference. It really did? People wanted a house near
Waitrose? It really made a difference. Waitrose say that their
current convenience store model, the business model, is simply not
viable here, and it would not be fair to local people and staff
employed in this branch if it were to be built, to open it only to
close it long term. The problem is that they have signed the lease. No
other store has taken their place, so they are funding Sidcup's newest
and to shop. High Street analyst Matthew Hopkins and. Every dot is a
Waitrose. He says that supermarkets are growing twice as fast as demand,
which is a bubble waiting to burst. People see it as progress in an
area so I can see them being disappointed. But ultimately, in
their own right, as well as the stores in the surrounding area, I
can totally understand the decision they have taken. The petition has
hit 3000 names in two weeks. Even Boris Johnson, who gave Sidcup ï¿?.8
million from his outer London Fund, once Waitrose to think again.
People making champion cheese in their cellar and cocktails in a
bedroom. Some of the emerging talents nominated for a series of
new food awards being held in the capital tonight. We have been
speaking to some of the London hopefuls chosen for their passion
for food and quality of produce. Meet the salmon smoker of take
Newington. -- Stoke Newington. He has brought Norway to London, using
his grandfather's special technique in what used to be an old boiler
room. It is individual production, it is about caring for every salmon,
it is about washing them individually and sorting by hand.
It is about taking them to a customer in a dignified way. It is
about integrity. Integrity and taste. Londoners have got a taste
for this fish. He supplies everyone from local customers to celebrity
chefs and his attention to detail has earned him a nomination for
young British foodie award. It is great to be recognised for
something. I think it will really motivate young people to get more
into food production. Young people like this trainee butcher. Her
weblog and black pudding recipe caught the attention of judges in
what is traditionally a male dominated quarter. We are
passionate about the food industry, especially meat, and the raw
product, rather than just cooking necessarily. I think it is
important that we track our foot from farm to table. We have to be
aware of the surroundings that the animals grow up in and we take an
active interest in the farmers. founders of the awards say it is
time to celebrate the individuals who are quietly pioneering new
culinary techniques in innovative and exciting ways. People have
gained a new confidence, where they are actually happy to give things a
go, whether it is artisan, looking at old fashioned British traditions
like bakery and cheese-making, smoking fish, and they are using
those traditions and modernising them. This is for you. Thank you.
love to see people eating it. delicious, delicious! There are
some perks to this job! Indeed there are. Not many people
can say they have performed alongside Buddy Holly, Frank
Sinatra, the Beatles and of course Morecambe and Wise. After half a
century in show business, Des O'Connor is back in the West End at
the London Palladium, where he has performed more than 1200 times. We
went to meet him. A programme cover from 1969. Des O'Connor has had
more solo performances at the Palladium than anyone else. Now he
is back at this mecca of entertainment, starring in the
Since its opening, Michael Crawford and Russell Grant have played the
Wizard in this production. But the ever popular Des O'Connor has just
stepped into the role. I find it really hard to believe it is just
your second musical. It is wonderful. The cast a wonderful and
it is just such a production. When I came to see it, I had seen the
movie and I saw the opening night. If I am honest, it was just being
here, as part of an opening night. Suddenly looking at the show in a
constructive way. It is brilliant. Excuse me, that is very pretty, but
when do I get to sing my song? Singer, comedian, talk show host.
The veteran has worked with the great and the good of the showbiz
world. What would you say was the secret of your success? Don't think
about it too much, other than being yourself. You and I have just met,
but I feel like we are friends. I like people. There is nothing more
thrilling than hearing that roar of laughter and the applause for the
songs. The stars are presented. Des O'Connor... Pour in the East End,
he is proud of his roots. 50 years in the business has brought him
legions of fans and a CBE for services to entertainment. I am
just happy to entertain the crowd, and if it is in a wonderful
production like this, even more so. Now Des O'Connor is the wonderful
Now it is time for the weather. Peter is by the river. How is it
looking? Rather threatening, behind the London Eye. There will be some
thunderstorms, but he will not be whisked away by a tornado, given
that we will be looking at the Wizard Of Oz later! You could be
wet this evening. Some isolated, slow moving thunderstorms are
possible. Not as many as we had yesterday evening. Even so, the met
Office does have a weather warning in force for heavy rain. Until
about 3 o'clock in the morning. If we do catch any of these
thunderstorms, they will rumble on into the early hours. They will
tend to fade away as we head towards dawn. Eventually the cloud
will clear away as well. Still quite muddy in London, with
temperatures overnight in the centre of town at 15. Fresher in
the countryside at 10 or 11. Auntie tomorrow morning, it will be sunny.
-- on the two tomorrow morning. The cloud will increase and there will
be some showery rain. The rains are more widespread tomorrow. They will
be lighter, but this evening you are likely to get local, intense
downpours. It will feel similar today, with the same temperatures.
Cooler on Thursday. At the moment the Jubilee weekend could be sunny
to start off with, and then gradually getting cloudier. We will
keep you updated as that long weekend approaches. As it gets
closer we should have more detail. The outlook short term, showery
rain tomorrow, then cooler, cloudier weather at the end of the
week. Thank you. The headlines: The parents of six children who died in
a house fire have been arrested on suspicion of murder. 55 year-old
Mick Philpott and his wife were detained in Derby this morning.
Police believe the fire was started deliberately. Three Syrian diplomats
have been expelled
from Britain amid mounting international criticism of the violence in
Syria. All 1100 people were killed in Houla last week. -- more than
100 people.