Transcripts For BBCNEWS Breakfast 20240911 : comparemela.com

Relax, dont Do It. And relax well be joined by Frankie Goes To Hollywood frontman hollyjohnson, as an exhibition about his life opens in liverpool. And it is turning colderfor All Of Us in the next 24 hour is, but to get there we will get some rain across the country today, and some strong winds as well. Ill have the details here on breakfast. Good morning. Its tuesday the 10th september. Our main story the release of more than 1,700 prisoners has begun across england and wales, as part of an Emergency Bid to Ease Overcrowding in jails. Over the coming hours, some offenders whove served at least 40 of their sentences will be released. The government says, over the coming months, it will free up 5,500 more Prison Spaces. 0ur Reporter Adina Campbell has more. One of the most dangerous and crowded jails in the uk. This was Pentonville Prison in North London last week. The bbc was given rare access, and within minutes, disorder was rife. In an attempt to fix a criminal Justice System at breaking point, from today, thousands of prisoners in england and wales will be released after serving 40 of their sentence rather than 50 . It was the only option on the table, and that is because the alternative to not making this change would have been to allow the Prison System to collapse, and therefore to allow Law And Order in this country to collapse. But these Emergency Measures are controversial, with big Concerns from some Prison Staff and campaigners about Public Safety and an increase in reoffending. Theyve got nowhere to live, the fall back into drug taking, theyve got Mental Health difficulties already. If they are not getting the support, the treatment, the stable housing, the danger is either they fall back into reoffending or they simply breach their Licence Conditions and end up back inside anyway. The Prison Population in england and wales is at a record high, with more than 88,000 people injail according to the latest Ministry Ofjustice data. Its estimated 4,000 extra male prisoners and around 1,000 female inmates will be released over the next 18 months under these under these new measures, with the government hoping to free up 5,500 beds to hold nearly sentenced criminals. Those convicted of the most serious crimes such as murder, terrorism, and domestic abuse are excluded from this programme. But for rebecca, a victim of domestic abuse, she is fearing the worst again. She recently received a letter saying her ex partner, who served time for domestic abuse, would now be released early for a connected offence. Feels like hes just had a bit of a slap on the wrist and told not to be a naughty boy. Wheras i have to deal with the damage that hes done to me. The conservatives say the government should focus on building more prisons to help Ease Overcrowding, and for those charged or convicted of offences related to the recent riots, more Prison Places are expected to be quickly filled in the coming weeks. Adina campbell, Bbc News. 0ur Reporter Meghan 0wen is outside wormwood Scrubs Prison for us now. Meghan, have the releases started there this morning . I think it is probably likely to be a little later this morning, but we are expecting some others early Release Prisoners who spend their Night Injail Release prisoners who spend their night in jail walking Release Prisoners who spend their Night Injail walking out behind the gate of the prison behind me, a Category B male prison in West London. And a reminder that these are former prisoners who have sentences of less than five years and they are being released at 40 of their time instead of 50 . Now, in terms of the process, they will be meeting with a Probation Officer in Prison Today to make sure they have understood the restrictions of their release, including any curfews or bans on entertaining areas associated with their crimes, and are not to approach any victims. There is a real Concern, though, according to the Chief Inspector of prisons, that many of them will be released At Home with us. In fact, figures show that in the year up to march this year, 12 of prisoners were released without a home to go to, and this comes on a day when a Report Highlightsjust to, and this comes on a day when a report highlights just how overcrowded and understaffed prisons are in england and wales. The Ministry Ofjustice says that this Emergency Measure will help to save £200 million a year, and they will be recruiting 1000 more Probation Officers by next spring to help manage these x offenders. Qm. Manage these x offenders. 0k, mechan, manage these x offenders. 0k, meghan. We manage these x offenders. 0k, meghan, we will manage these x offenders. 0k, meghan, we will return to you later in the programme. Thank you for now. Megan mentions the Chief Inspector of prisons, we will be speaking to Charlie Taylor Life here on the programme in the next half hour. Now some more of this mornings stories. Plans to end Winter Fuel payments for all but the poorest pensioners will be voted on in Parliament Today. The chancellors plans would see the Winter Allowance of up to £300 become means tested, meaning millions of people would no longer be eligible. The treasury says this will save around £1. 11 billion. 0ur Political Correspondent Hannah Miller has this report. Those not in receipt of Pension Credit or certain other means tested benefits will no longer receive the Winter Fuel payment from this year onwards. Its the most controversial move the Labour Government has made so far a cut for pensioners thats fuelled discontent among mps. These are the necessary and urgent decisions that i must make. Dozens of Labour Mps are known to be unhappy about the decision to limit the Winter Fuel payments to only the poorest pensioners, and 17 are calling for it to be postponed. One of them is diane abbott. I certainly wont support it. We are all discussing whether to vote against or abstain. But you cant possibly support it. It wasnt in the manifesto. Ministers say they have no plans to offer any further support, arguing that the State Pension has gone up by £900 compared to a year ago and will go up again in the spring. Supporters insist that savings have to be found somewhere. Nobody in the Labour Party would like to see the sort of problems that will be caused for elderly people who are just above that threshold of £12,160. When you inherit a £21. 9 billion Black Hole, not in the future, but in the current year, you have to take tough choices. The government will win todays vote, such is the size of its majority, but ministers have still been trying to convince Wavering Mps to vote with them in order to show a united front. They say this isnt the only tough choice they will be making in the coming months, making today a test of party discipline. The Prime Minister is going to brighton this morning to give a speech to unions despite some leaders calling for him to change course. Labour mps fear they are about to face a significant wave of criticism. They hope its one they can withstand. Hannah miller, Bbc News. 0ur Chief Political Correspondent Henry Zeffman joins us now. Henry, what can we expect later today . It is not a big spoiler to tell you that the government is going to win this Vote Today and that the Winter Fuel payments will be means tested this winter. That is just the mathematical reality of the situation. But that doesnt mean thatis situation. But that doesnt mean that is not tension here, because how the government wins this vote is going to be really significant for how the coming months and even years for this government play out. Last night, Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, made a big pitch Behind Closed Doors to wavering Labour Mps. Closed doors to wavering labour mp5. I am told she told them, we stand, we lead, the government together. She was trying to make a pitch forged around unity. She also made various points about particular pension benefits, about how some pensioners wouldnt necessarily be as badly affected as some mps fear. She said that as it stands, because this government is still committed to the Triple Lock for pensions, where they go up by at least 2. 5 every year, but within five years the average pensioner will be around £1700 better off. She said that applications for Pension Credit have gone up a lot since this policy was announced, but most importantly, she said there are more difficult decisions to come, that is why the government is so determined to win and win big today. Government is so determined to win and win big today. The Public Inquiry into the case of serial Killer Lucy Letby, who murdered seven babies and tried to kill seven more, will begin today. It will look at how she was able to carry out her crimes whilst working as a neonatal nurse at the countess of Chester Hospital in 2015 and 2016. 0ur North of England Correspondent Judith Moritz reports. Lucy letby was found guilty of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder another seven in Chester Betweenjune 2015 and june 2016. She stands convicted as britains most prolific baby killer. Her trial raised questions about the way the hospital handled consultants Concerns about the nurse. It will be for the Public Inquiry, chaired by ladyjustice thirwall, to examine that, and whether there are questions for the wider nhs. The inquiry will hear from the parents of the babies Who Letby was convicted of attacking. Fundamentally, the families i represent want two things from this inquiry. They want to understand how it was possible for these crimes to be committed, and secondly, they want to understand why they were kept in the dark about it for so long. The Public Inquiry was set up very shortly after Lucy Letby was convicted in august 2023. Now its getting under way at a time when a number of critics are arguing that she may in fact be innocent. But the Inquiry Wont get into the detail of exploring that issue. What do the families make of the growing number of sceptics voicing their Concerns . I think its important to remember that there can be a noisy Drum Beat in the media, but that doesnt actually have any legal significance. Some of the speculation that has been in the media is obviously distressing for the parents, and it is particularly distressing for them because they actually sat through the criminal trial, so they know what evidence was heard, and they can see that some of the people who are questioning the convictions are people who didnt actually sit through the criminal trial, who didnt actually see and hear all of the evidence. The inquiry, which starts today at liverpool town hall, has not been delayed, despite calls for it to be by a group of experts critical of the trial evidence. Its expected to last until at least The End of the year. Judith moritz, Bbc News. Officials in gaza say more than A0 people in a designated humanitarian zone have been killed in israeli Air Strikes. Israels military says it was targeting a hamas command centre. We can speak now our Middle East bureau chief, jo floto, who is in jerusalem. Good morning. What more can you tell us about what happened . Goad us about what happened . Good morninu. Us about what happened . Good morning. Lets us about what happened . Good morning. Lets start us about what happened . Good morning. Lets start with us about what happened . Good morning. Lets start with the i morning. Lets start with the description we have been getting from local residents. They said that shortly after midnight, huge fireballs rising into the night sky, and one of those witnesses also ran it to the scene of the explosion and told us that he was shocked by the destruction. We describe craters some seven metres across where a group of about 20 tents, he thought, once stood. We also saw other tents buried in rubble and sand. So you can see why the casualties it has gone so high. Now, the Israeli Military, as you say, say they were targeting what they call significant hamas terrorists, accusing the group of sheltering in that humanitarian zone. They also say they took extraordinary care to mitigate civilian casualties. But as you will see, there are at least A0 dead, some 60 wounded. That is a lot of casualties. Jo. Some 60 wounded. That is a lot of casualties some 60 wounded. That is a lot of casualties. ,. ,. ~ ,. ,. Casualties. Jo, thank you very much indeed. The american actorJames Earljones, who was best known for being The Voice of darth vader in star wars, has died aged 93. During his long career, he won a Host Of Awards, including emmys, tony awards, a grammy, and an honorary 0scar. 0ur Correspondent Lizo mzimba looks back at his life. From his first film role, he clearly had something special. The fire is out. The power is on. Everything seemed to check out alL Right. That voice. Before dr strangeLove, James Earljones had served in the military, but he really wanted to act. Ive been waiting for you, 0bi wan. We meet again at last. Then came something that made his Voice World famous. When i left you, i was but the learner. Now i am the master. You are part of the Rebel Alliance and a traitor. Take her away his Voices Gravity and depth made him a natural choice for the lion king. Look, simba. Everything the light touches is our kingdom. And its remake a quarter of a century later. One day, simba, The Sun will set on my time here, and will rise with you as the new king. While he again played a king opposite Eddie Murphy in coming to america. I want a woman to Love me for who i am, not because of what i am. He also had the chance to show his gift for comedy. And who are you . I am a man who has never tied his own shoes before. Wrong. You are a prince who has never tied his shoes. Believe me, i tied my own shoes once. It is an overrated experience. On tv, who played the author alex haley, whose search for his african ancestors le