Wake up, the house is on fire. The house is on fire. A new sound for smoke alarms Safety Experts say a voice, rather than a beep, is much more likely to wake children up. And the Speeding Driver who clocked up 62 points on his licence whos legally allowed to drive. And coming up in sport on bbc news, Wayne Rooneys agent Paul Stretford is in china, to see if he can negotiate a Big Money Move for the Manchester United and england captain. Good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at 1pm. Storm doris has hit the uk, with gusts of wind of up to 100 miles an hour. Planes have been grounded, roads closed, and rail travel disrupted. In Northern Ireland, thousands of homes are without power. And in scotland, heavy snow and high winds led to the closure of the m80 near stirling. The storm is predicted to continue for much of the day. And in the last few minutes weve had reports that a woman has been killed in Wolverhampton City Centre ina killed in Wolverhampton City Centre in a weather related incident. Lets get the latest from our correspondent, daniel boettcher. Throughout the morning winds have been picking up as storm doris swept across the country. This is the seafront at blackpool, there are Severe Weather warnings for north england, the midlands and north wales. Forecasters described the storm is weather bomb, an area of intense low pressure, and this is some of the damage it has already caused. A car crushed by a fallen tree in west london, and more damage, this time in county fermanagh. Trees have also brought down power lines, 3500 homes in Northern Ireland have been lex left without electricity. These images from the International Space station S Showbiz Storm Building up earlier today. Storm doris is an example of what i weather bomb, an area of low pressure that sports severe gales across parts of the uk. Weve had wind gusts over 90 miles an hour and disruption to Power Supplies and also disruption to transport. Those kind of Strength Winds can easily winds trees down. Problem is that air travel as well. This is Leeds Bradford airport and he throws that its schedule has been reduced by 10 because of the weather, with some delays and cancellations. And on the rails the storm has also cause some disruption. 50 mile an hour speed limits have been imposed on several lines, including the West Coast Main Lines, including the West Coast Main Line and earlier departures from Euston Station were suspended but have now started running again. The centre of the storm is due to track towards the north sea, but the strong winds are expected to last throughout the afternoon. And in scotla nd throughout the afternoon. And in scotland crews have been out clearing roads, with poor Driving Conditions caused by a combination of snow, sleet and high winds. The biggest problems have been on the higher routes mainly in central and southern areas, and in places up to 30 centimetres of snow is expected during the day. Daniel birch, bbc news. In a moment, well be talking to lorna gordon whos near dunblane, but first lets cross to Alison Freeman whos on the golden mile in blackpool. We saw you a little earlier almost unable to stand up, it doesnt look much better now. It isnt, and actually we just watched this storm u nfold actually we just watched this storm unfold throughout the morning as the wind has become more and more powerful. It is so strong at the moment i cant look into it and this phone thats being blown from the sea is a bit more like being in a blizzard. If you look behind us, the thermometerfor how blizzard. If you look behind us, the thermometer for how strong the wind has been, those are meant to bend in front of blackpool trower, they have become parallel with the Ground Up Points today. If you look out to sea, those waves really are far back now, the tide has gone out but that foa m now, the tide has gone out but that foam keeps flowing in against us. These routes really are strong and powerful. They are pushing us around, making us feel battered, very much like the coastline. We know they are expected to stay like this until about six oclock this evening. Back to you. Lawn near dunblane, the area has been hit by a very icy some roads and schools closed here in scotland. Storm doris dumping snow across large swathes of the country. The timing couldnt have been worse. Lots of it here as many people are going to work. This road is running clearly but the a9 has had problems and the m80 further south, appalling conditions, one of the main road in scotland than ground to a halt completely earlier today. The road had been treated but it was the sheer weight of traffic on heavy snow and some cars and lorries having problems with traction. The road is now clear. Theres been power cuts, some schools closed on this Weather Warnings in place until 6pm this morning. Lorna gordon there, thanks. Ministers are calling it the biggest reform of prisons in england and wales for a generation. For the first time, the government will state In Black And White that a key purpose of prison is to reform offenders, as well as to punish them. At the heart of the changes will be dealing with drugs and violence in prisons, and also cutting re offending rates. Heres our Home Affairs Correspondent daniel sandford. The last year has been one of the worst for prisons since the 1990s. As the staff cuts of five years ago started to bite and drones and drugs we re started to bite and drones and drugs were flown in violent sword. Some jails have been close to crisis point. But there are prisons, like hmp 0nley in warwickshire that despite their own problems of drugs and violence still managed to prepare inmates for life on the outside. Abdi is coming to the end ofa outside. Abdi is coming to the end of a two year sentence for violence and is training for a job as a Brick Technician at halfords. He told me his experience ofjail has been mixed. When i was pentonville before icame mixed. When i was pentonville before i came here we mixed. When i was pentonville before i came here we were mixed. When i was pentonville before i came here we were locked up 23 hours a day. Literally treated like animals. We had to ask for toilet paper, ask for basic common decency is, so coming here, now, it looks like a completely different prison. At the heart of the governments new proposals is the division to define for the first time in law what the purpose of prison is and that is not only to punish but also to rehabilitate, to prevent criminals offending again. And as well as todays prisons and court spill the justice secretary liz truss is reversing many of the cuts made by one of her tory predecessors, Chris Grayling. Those cuts in the Chris Grayling. Those cuts in the Chris Grayling iraq were a mistake, wont they . I think it was always right to look at how we can be more efficient. But what im saying now is we do need the right number of prison officers, to be able to turn those lives around. In 0nley prisons training cafe, a reminder of why rehabilitation is important. A drug dealer serving seven years whod been to prison before. It hadnt stopped him reoffending. Once i got released, i tried to search for a job but i wasnt qualified for anything, i had no know how, therefore i got back into old ways and back in jail. Todays bill also includes measures to tackle Mobile Phones in prison. New laws to help the Prison Service detect and intercept devices often used to deal drugs and organised crime from behind bars. Labour said the proposals were an inadequate response to a prisons crisis that developed on the governments watch. Lets talk to daniel whos outside Pentonville Prison in north london. Daniel, how big a change is being proposed here . It certainly an end entered a period when Chris Grayling was in charge of prison and that focuses on cutting costs almost all costs. I think that is over now and there isa i think that is over now and there is a realisation in the government that actually if you reduce costs too far then prisons to become less safe places and places that are more difficult to control. This was a process that was started by Michael Gove Last Year and has at continued with the new recruitment of prison officers, with a different approach to prisons and now this prisons bill which says that rehabilitation is at the core of what they do. But this is, of course, not an easy thing to do. What happened over the last decade or so is drugs and Mobile Phones have become such a central pa rt phones have become such a central part of life in prisons, to try and squeeze that out will be very difficult. Violence has come alongside the drugs, which causes violence and alongside the Mobile Phones which provides opportunities for blackmail and so on and so forth. So it is a massive task. There is still a problem that many people have been held in old and squalid prisons and rehabilitating under those conditions wont be easy. Daniel, thank you. Net migration to the uk has fallen to its lowest level in two years. Figures from the office for National Statistics show that the difference between the number of people arriving and leaving the uk dipped below 300,000 in the year to the end of september. Figures also show that a Record Number of eu nationals were granted uk Residence Cards Last year. Our Home Affairs Correspondent, danny shaw, is with me. Danny, The Net Migration figures down for the first time in two yea rs. Down for the first time in two years. The government will be pleased with that . Yes, i think this is good news for the government. Politically very significant. In statistical terms, perhaps not quite there. What these figures show is net migration, the difference between the number of people coming to live in britain for 12 months and people emigrating from the uk. They showed in the 12 months to september the figure was 270 3000. That is the lowest for two years, and it represents a fall of 119,000 on the year before, though there is some caution with that, in terms of the statistical significance. So it is edging closer to the governments target of under 100000 may, it might just be a sign that some people dont want to live in the uk after the eu referendum. But its very, very early days to draw firm conclusions about that. Briefly, how do you interpret the residents figures . These figures about the number of people from the eu and other European Countries who have been issued with cards proving that they have the right to stay in the uk. They have that right after five yea rs. Uk. They have that right after five years. They dont have to get those cards, but they are clearly worried, some of them, about their status after brexit and they are applying for the cards and been granted them in very big numbers. 65,000 last year, thats a massive increase, trebled the number of the Previous Year and also figures on citizenship are up significantly. Citizenship for eu nationals being allowed to stay in the uk permanently. Many thanks. The murderer of the childrens author helen bailey has been sentenced to life in prison, after being convicted of her murder. The judge said that ian stewart would have to spend at least 3a years behind bars, saying it was difficult to imagine a more heinous crime. Stewart drugged and suffocated helen bailey before throwing her body in a cesspit, hidden under the garage of their hertfordshire home. Its taken four years to get through parliament, but today the go ahead will finally be given for work to begin on the first phase of the High Speed Rail Link between london and birmingham. Critics say the project is a waste of money, and will damage the environment. But supporters say it will boost the economy and the number of people be able to travel by rail. Phase one is due to open in 2026, at a cost of more than £55 billion. Ben thompson reports. More of us are using the railways than ever before. It means busier stations and busier trains, and so the government says hs2 is the answer. But is it . Im taking a journey on the first stage of the route from london to birmingham, to see what impact it could have. The biggest challenge is tackling overcrowding. Our current tracks and stations cant handle many more passengers, but as well as running more frequently, the trains will be faster, too, and thats good news for passengers. Sometimes you dont get enough carriages, which can be a problem, and then its really crowded on the trains as a lot of people are standing up. I regard being on the train at work time, so dont get to sit down and then youll feel really frustrated by that last hour. But its notjust commuters who stand to gain from the new railway. We are going to average about 10,000 jobs over the course of the first phase of construction, peaking at 25,000 jobs a month, and thatsjust during the construction phase. When we go into operation again well have Tens Of Thousands Ofjobs that are maintaining and running the railway. But there could be an even greater economic benefit too. Take this journey, for example. Its about an hour and 20 minutes. With 50 minutes into the journey, but if this was an hs2 trains wed already be in birmingham, and that means spending less time travelling and more time working, and one estimate suggests that could add about £15 billion to the economy. But at what cost . The current price tag is close to £60 billion, but many say it could be much higher. 60 ancient woodlands would have to be bulldozed, 350 homes will have to be demolished and thousands of businesses will be affected, like this farm in buckinghamshire. The land will be split in two when work begins. Its going to completely alter the way i farm. Ill lose half the grazing that my cows can go out to. Im not seriously convinced that the hs2 is a valid necessity to this country at all. The first section to the West Midlands is due to open by 2026. An extension to leeds and manchester will open by 2032. Hs2 should make journeys faster and more comfortable. Were just on the approach into our final destination for todays journey, which is birmingham new street. But keeping the project on time and on track could prove more difficult. Ben thompson, bbc news in birmingham. The iraqi army has captured Mosul Airport from so called Islamic State. The battle for the western half of the city began earlier this month and the capture of the airport would be seen as a strategic victory. Quentin somerville is the only western correspondent travelling with Iraqi Government forces and sent this report. You can hear gunfire and one of the last remaining villages between iraqi forces and Mosul Airport. These are moving forward from multiple directions. Up above, the Coalition Aircraft have been hammering this area all right long in preparation for this attack. At the same time, the Iraqi Government have been dropping leaflets, warning people to stay in their homes. When we we re people to stay in their homes. When we were here yesterday, we were able to see areas to the north others with the Islamic State flags are flying. These guys are trying to change that because the attack on Mosul Airport is underway. The iraqi forces have made it to the perimeter of mosuls airport. Just over there, you can see the airport stretching out about four kilometres wide apparently. The Sugar Factory to the left of the picture, yesterday, the is flag was hanging from there. It is no longer hanging there now. All around this area there have been heavy air strikes, we can see massive craters. The village was effectively taken last night. The men have been moving slowly forward through the village. If you have a little look, you can see it there. We are now on the airport of Mosul Airport. That is the iraqi flag, those federal police units. In the distance, you can see burning and smoke from some of the terminal buildings. In the last few minutes, the so called Islamic State have been more touring this position, Just A Little Bit further ahead, in fa ct. Just a little bit further ahead, in fact. Iraqi Security Forces were going down towards the airport when one of them hit a roadside bomb. Palu one of them hit a roadside bomb. Pa lu te na nt one of them hit a roadside bomb. Palu tenant was killed, and we believe there were other casualties. You might be able to hear helicopters still ahead. They will press on with the attack on the airport to try to make it to the terminal buildings. That is the target iraqi forces are now inside Mosul Airport. Quentin somerville reporting there from outside mosul. The time is 13. 18. Our top story this lunchtime storm doris has brought widespread disruption across large swathes of the uk, with wind gusts of up to 100 miles an hour. A woman has died in a weather related incident. I can tell you, as you see the foam hitting me from the sea that it definitely has materialised. The gusts here are so powerful, i cant even face in the direction the wind is coming from. Coming up in sport at half past boxing legend Manny Pacquiao and Britains Amir Khan have announced on social media that they are now in talks to fight later this summer. Were all told to fit fire alarms in our homes, but new Research Suggests that when they go off like this. Loud beeping most children arent woken up by the noise. The study was carried out after a fire in derby in 2013, which killed six children. It had been deliberately started by the parents, but investigators think the children died because they didnt hear the Smoke Detectors going off. So now theyre developing new alarms, specially designed to wake children, as our medical correspondent fergus walsh now reports. Smoke alarms save lives, but last year 300 people died in fires in england alone, too often where there was no working alarm in the home. Derbyshire Fire Service Use this old Shipping Container to train fire investigators. Lets see how quickly a blaze would spread in a bedroom. The smoke alarm in this demonstration activated within seconds of the fire starting, giving minutes to escape. But research by derbyshire fire and Dundee University found children are often not roused by the sound of a standard smoke detector. Melanie wilkins from mansfield has tested her smoke alarm many times at night and only once has any of her four boys woken up. Alarm wake up, the house is on fire. Now, shes trying something different, and alarm with a low pitched tone. Alarm wake up, the house is on fire. And a human voice. It wakes all four boys immediately. Its like a voice of a parent that theyre used to listening to day in, day out. Maybe subconsciously, thats what theyre hearing when the alarm is going off. The new alarm was designed with the help of her uncle dave kos, a fire investigator. Good boy, ready. Prompted by a notorious case in derby when these six children died in a house fire, deliberately set by their father mick philpott. Dave kos says more often than not, smoke alarms simply dont wake children. Unfortunately that was the first one that brought it to my attention, but since that day i can probably recount at least half a dozen fires where children failed to respond from sleep and have then become trapped the wrong side of a fire and have unfortunately died. Derbyshire fire service and Dundee University want 500 families to test the prototype alarm. Researchers predict alarms with the human voice will eventually be commonplace. Alarm wake up, the house is on fire. Quite often we hear alarms going off, we dont quite know whether they are just a warning or if its for real. So putting the human voice into that, i think is going to be one of the key important additional things that well bring to alarms in the future. Fire investigators stress that standard smoke alarms are still vital in every home. They do wake adults. But parents need to know, it could be up to them to wake their children in the event of a fire. Fergus walsh, bbc news. British gas saw its profits fall by 11 to £553 million. But the profits of its parent company, centrica, rose to £1. 5 billion, Prompting Calls for them to hold prices in the face of Higher Energy costs and a weaker pound. Heres our industry correspondentjohn moylan. At british gas weve got some great news for our at british gas weve got some great news for oui customers. At british gas weve got some great news for our customers. There has been good news from british gas recently, they are freezing its standard tariffs until august, it has even launched a loyalty scheme. It hopes that will stop customers leaving, one of the reasons why its profits have been hit. In 2016, british gas made £553 million. That was down 11 on the Previous Year. It says that is because it lost 4009000 Customer Accounts as households switched to other suppliers. The reason its down is because of competitive intensity. We lost customers in the first half of last year. The Pricing Pressure has resulted in a reduction in margins in general and there have been other cost pressures coming into the system. A price cap to protect customers on Prepayment Meters will cost the firm £53 million this year. But that did not prevent the criticism of the level of costs. We have vulnerable consumers paying too much. Older people and lower income people. It underlines it again, the Energy Market isnt working for consumers. Price rises by rise of firms have put Energy Prices back on the agenda. The boss of centrica, which owns british gas, insists there is no case for wide ranging price controls. This market is incredibly competitive. We have 50 suppliers and margins are down year on year. I dont believe it is healthy for governments to find themselves in the position of setting prices. If you do it once, when do you stop . There was no word today on whether british gas will hike prices later this year. As for government intervention, a consumer green paper is due in the spring. In a weeks time, the people of Northern Ireland go to the polls to vote in elections for a new assembly. It was triggered because of a row over a Green Energy Scheme that went hundreds of millions of pounds over budget. But if the dup and sinn fein are as expected the main winners in the vote, what are the chances of them being able to form a new Power Sharing government . Lets cross to belfast, and to our ireland correspondent chris buckler. Iam in i am in the Titanic Quarter weather has been new developments, but the old divisions are clear at stormont. With the dup and sinn fein exchanging harsh words over lots of issues. It is a very divisive election. Are people as divided as the politicians . I have been speaking to a group queens in belfast. Elections are a time when people come together, united in the task of making a choice but divided in their views. Sometimes it can be because of their age, background or beliefs. I will ask you a number of questions. We need you to be honest. Who has been to the gym in the last week . There are the athletic, or at least the enthusiastic. The romantics who send valentines cards this year. And those prepared to admit, orforced this year. And those prepared to admit, or forced to this year. And those prepared to admit, orforced to admit this year. And those prepared to admit, or forced to admit that they have been drunk in the last week. But it is shared experiences who could influence how individuals vote. Who has waited for hours or more in accident and emergency to get treatment for themselves or someone get treatment for themselves or someone else . Waiting lists in Northern Ireland are one of the longest in the uk and politicians here have described the Health Service as a breaking point. Here have described the Health Service as a breaking pointlj here have described the Health Service as a breaking point. I am an Emergency Nurse and there isnt enough investment and in the community. We have to move the politicians out of health, appoint someone politicians out of health, appoint someone in charge of it he will be responsible for the operational matters. This isnt scientific, but the response suggests this connects businesses, farmers, students and senior citizens. Who has a close friend or relative who is gay or lesbian . Northern ireland is the only part of the uk where Same Sex Marriage is still illegal. It is a disgrace, everybody has the right to decide who to marry and who to love. Lam not decide who to marry and who to love. I am not sure, i decide who to marry and who to love. Lam not sure, i have decide who to marry and who to love. I am not sure, i have always believed there should be a male and female to bring up a child. While many here feel they dont fit into the traditional boxes of national or unionist, it is how the majority vote. Who is proud of Northern Ireland . Interesting the split is right across the generation who never knew the conflict, yet they are not proud of their country. The reason it sucks is because there is so reason it sucks is because there is so much we could be proud of but we have an Executive Mark by scandal, crisis and falling apart consistently. Different views will influence that Election Result when voters mark their preferences next week. So far this Election Campaign has reflected the weather, it has been pretty stormy. For the Opposition Parties hope to make gains could be down to the dup and sinn fein to make a deal if Power Sharing is to return and that could be difficult. For more information including the candidates standing just go to our website bbc. Co. Uk news. The bbc has learned that around 10,000 motorists were still driving last month, despite having too many Penalty Points on their licence. Usually drivers are banned when they exceed 12 points. But magistrates are allowed to waive the rule in cases of exceptional hardship. Supporters say it gives drivers another chance, but critics say Bending The Rules puts other people at risk. 0ur correspondent david rhodes has more. From speeding to drink driving, failing to have insurance or causing a collision on the road, Penalty Points are given to motorists when they break the law. 12 active points on a licence usually means a driver will be banned for a minimum of six months. But figures obtained by the bbc, itjust under 10,000 drivers showjust under 10,000 drivers are still on the roads despite having 12 or more points. Most are found in england, with the largest number of being in greater london. Although one driver in West Yorkshire is still on the road despite having more than 60 points on their licence. The law doesnt seem to be working at the moment. Weve got people obviously being caught and going through the Justice System but actually this whole points system seems to be making a mockery of that. Drivers are getting away with repeatedly breaking the law. Motorists with 12 points can appeal to a magistrates courtjust as this one and claim that a driving ban would bring exceptional hardship upon their lives, meaning theyd lose a job or be unable to care for a family member. There is no definition in law though, as to what exceptional hardship means. So one magistrate may decide if a driving ban would cause someone to lose theirjob, that is exceptional hardship. Another magistrate may decide it isnt. Every ban is considered on a case by case basis. The government says the vast majority of drivers with 12 points are automatically disqualified and only in exceptional circumstances can judges decide not to issue a ban. The fact remains though, that there are drivers who have continually broken the law, who are still on our roads. David rhodes, bbc news, bradford. Time for a look at the weather
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