hello, it's monday, it's 9 o'clock, i'm victoria derbyshire, welcome to the programme. our top story today — highly addictive fixed odds betting terminals should have their maxium stake reduced from £100 to £30 or less — that's the verdict of the gambling commission, who're calling on the government to act now. and ijust went and i just went to the counter and and ijust went to the counter and i debt, 500. i lost that in the space ofa debt, 500. i lost that in the space of a few minutes. 1000, lost that. 1000, lost that, another thousand until i had no more money in my bank account. we'll speak to one man who's lost 250 grand on fixed odds betting terminals. also on the programme — a british woman who went to syria to fight against islamic state has been killed — anna campbell died in the town of afrin, which has been the target of a turkish offensive. isaid, you i said, you could be killed. and she said, i know, dad. there's nothing i

can do to reassure you about that, but i've got to do this. we'll hear more from her dad later in the programme. and ant mcpartlin has been arrested on suspicion of drink driving after his car crashed into two others yesterday. we'll bring you the story. hello. welcome to the programme, we're live until 11. throughout the programme the latest breaking news, and developing stories — a little later we'll speak to residents in derby who've been protesting against a new asylum seeker centre which opened in the last month. there are several up and down the country. if you live near one, work in one or have stayed in one, do get in touch — use the hashtag victoria live and if you text, you will be charged at the standard network rate. our top story today... the gambling commission has recommended that the maximum stake for fixed—odds betting terminals

should be reduced from £100 to £30 pounds or less, or £2 in the case of slot machines. it says cutting the stake alone won't cure problem gambling and has recommended what it calls a "comprehensive package of other measures to protect consumers". the industry had said a blanket reduction to £2 would cost thousands ofjobs. 0ur correspondent sean dilley is here. tell us more about what the commission have said. they are concerned that the most vulnerable in society are being taken for a ride, not necessarily deliberately, but they are clear that the industry hasn't done enough. so whereas at the moment, people can literally lose £100 in 20 seconds, again and again, they are talking about a £30 limit on most fixed odds betting terminals. there are also saying it should be as low as £2 on the fruit

machines, the old pub style fruit machines. when i spoke to the executive director tim miller, he said it's not just executive director tim miller, he said it's notjust the £30 figure, he was concerned that whichever figure you pick will be opposed. it is about a wider raft of measures such as education. because they say even reducing steaks from £130 or less is not enough to help problem gamblers? they said the £30 figure, from their research, would make people less disadvantaged. but their concern is that people working hard on average wage can't afford to lose that. we are clear that a steak cut alone would not go far enough. so in addition to recommending a cut to £2 on slots, we are suggesting that fall roulette — style on slots, we are suggesting that fall roulette—style games, the limit should be reduced to £30 or less. if the government decide to go less than that, that would be consistent

with our advice. we are also proposing that there should be a form of track to play so that players themselves can have access to good quality data on their player behaviour and how much they have lost. and importantly, the gambling companies then have no excuse not to spot problem gambling and act on it. this has been highly anticipated by the industry. the association of british insurers makers were arguing that half of bookmaking shops could close completely, so they urge caution. there is quite a bit of disagreement on figures, with the suggestion that £1.5 billion is the true cost of gambling when you consider economic and employment. but ultimately, the gambling commission tell us that they are not even considering the impact on the economy, it's about protecting vulnerable consumers. thank you. joanna gosling is in the bbc newsroom with a summary of the rest of the day's news. official results from russia show president putin has been

re—elected with more than 76% of the vote. he told a victory rally that russia must maintain unity following his landslide win — but cctv footage from a number of polling stations appears to show election officials stuffing boxes with ballot papers. international chemical weapons experts are due to arrive in the uk later today to test the nerve agent used to poison former russian spy sergei skripal and his daughter yulia. president putin says claims his country was behind the attack are "nonsense" but borisjohnson claims russia has been stockpiling novichok for years. tom burridge reports. more than 80 drivers were stranded overnight on a major road in south western england. the a30 has just re—opened within the last hour. a 64—mile stretch had to be shut for the night after heavy snow fell in the area, making many roads impassable. devon and cornwall police are urging people not to travel until later on this morning. the television presenter ant mcpartlin has been arrested on suspicion of drink driving.

police say they were called to reports of a collision involving three cars in south—west london yesterday afternoon. a child passenger in one of them was taken to hospital as a precaution. in a statement, scotland yard said a 42—year—old man was arrested at the scene after failing a breathalyser test. cardinal keith 0'brien, the former leader of scotland's roman catholics, has died at the age of 80. he was formerly the catholic church's most senior cleric in britain, but resigned as archbishop of st andrews and edinburgh in 2013 after admitting sexual misconduct. he was recently injured in a fall and was being cared for at a hospital in newcastle. a british woman has been killed in northern syria, while fighting alongside kurdish forces. it's understood that anna campbell — who was 26 and from lewes in east sussex — died in the town of afrin, which has been the target of a turkish offensive. she travelled to syria last may. her father has told the bbc she was idealistic and knew she was putting her life at risk. 0ur correspondent

emma vardy reports. anna campbell was a passionate human rights activist who travelled to syria last may to join the kurdish women's armed group, the ypj. she even dyed her hair so as not to stand out among the other fighters. her father, dirk campbell, said he could not have prevented his daughter from travelling to the warzone. she was quite adamant about it. isaid, you know, you could be killed. and she said, i know, dad. there's nothing i can do to reassure you about that. but i've got to do this, because it's the most important thing for me. at first, anna campbell had been involved in fighting with the kurds against so—called islamic state in deir ez—zor, where is still hold some territory. but injanuary, turkey began attacking the kurds along

the northern border around the town of afrin. it is here that kurdish commanders say anna campbell was killed. in a statement, the ypj said they tried to keep her away from the front line, but she had insisted on being part of the operation to defend afrin. since 2015, seven british men have lost their lives. friends of anna campbell in syria told the bbc she was killed by turkish air strikes, the first british woman fighting with the kurds to have died. a new accomodation centre to house newly arrived asylum seekers in the uk has just opened in derby. despite opposition from local residents over a lack of information, the new centre will be able to house up to 200 people seeking asylum for 19 days. this allows the home office time to assess the individuals or families and find them suitable housing elsewhere in the country. scientists have announced a significant breakthrough in the treatment of multiple sclerosis.

results from a decade—long international trial have shown a stem cell transplant can halt the disease and improve symptoms. the disabling condition affects about 100,000 people in the uk. doctors in sheffield, who were part of the study, say the new treatment is a "game changer" for many patients. residents from several cliff top seaside chalets in norfolk have been told to evacuate their homes due to strong winds. police say six properties in the village of hemsby are at risk of coastal erosion because of the high tide. in 2013, tidal storms saw three homes in the village washed away. that's a summary of the latest bbc news — more at 9.30. do get in touch with us throughout the morning — use the hashtag victoria live and if you text, you will be charged at the standard network rate. let's get some sport withjessica. things are hotting up in the sport of golf with the masters not far away... yeah, exciting times for the sport,

particularly when you consider the resurgence of tiger woods in recent weeks. and now for british golf fans, it looks as though rory mcilroy is back to his best. just won the arnold palmer invitational tournament, his first tournament win for 18 months, and all the more exciting because the masters, the first major of the year, starts in just a couple of weeks. because rory mcilroy has won this tournament, he is now the favourite to win that green jacket. after the tournament, he said "i played a perfect round of golf", and you can understand why when you see birdie putts like this. he made five birdies in the last six holes to finish on 18 under par. that was three shots ahead of the rest, and this is mcilroy‘s first win since september 20 16. rest, and this is mcilroy‘s first win since september 2016. all these little barriers that you have to overcome , little barriers that you have to overcome, whether it be physical or mental, is huge for my confidence

going into the next few weeks. i ke pt going into the next few weeks. i kept saying i didn't need a win going into augusta to feel like i had a chance, ijust wanted to see signs of good golf and thankfully, i have been able to get both today. coverage of the masters from augusta will be live across the bbc from the 5th of april. and we now know who is going to wembley to compete for the fa semi finals. for all four teams involved, it will be there any chance for a trophy this season. manchester united will take on totte n ha m manchester united will take on tottenham and when you consider united's limp exit from the champions league recently and them being off the pace in the premier league, this could be the trophy they need for the players and the manager mourinho to answer their critics. chelsea play southampton and could be the ideal swansong for the blues manager conde, who if you listen to reports in the press, could be leaving stamford bridge at the end of the season. this is how chelsea got to the last four. they beat leicester 2—1. the winning goal

came from pedro in extra time. towering header from the smallest player on the pitch. that is a tenth fa cup semifinal now for chelsea in 18 years. let's show you southampton did. it was a first good game for mark hughes, their new manager, winning in his first match in charge. they won 2—0. so that is manchester united against spurs and chelsea against southampton in the semifinals of the fa cup at wembley. the matches get under way on the zist the matches get under way on the 21st 22nd of april thank you. the maximum stake for fixed odds betting terminals should be cut to £30 or less — the gambling commission has recommended this morning. at the moment — gamblers playing games like routlette can lose up to £100 per spin, and can spin three times a minute — which means people can lose thousands of pounds in a relatively short space of time. the gambling commission also want a maximum of £2 forfixed odds betting terminals, which use slot machines. the government now has to decide

whether to accept the commission's advice on the stake limit, or decide to impose a lower figure. we've talked about the problems caused by fobts a number of times on this programme, as jim reed reports. fixed odds betting terminals, on the high street, introduced 15 years ago and controversial ever since. tony franklin has been campaigning against the machine for years now. i was in that hairdresser‘s over the road, and i don't know what happened, i came out of the hairdressers, i thought, "oh, go on, what's the harm? i'll go in and i'll have a go." the addiction‘s always present. ifed in what i had in my wallet, which i think was about £90. then i came out, took some money out of the cashpoint,

and at this point i was totally devastated and just completely caught up in the gambling, in a red mist is probably the best way to describe it, or a fog, and ijust went to the counter and i said, you know, 500. i lost that in the space of a few minutes. 1000, lost that. another thousand, until i had no more money in my bank account. how did you feel after losing that? devastated. at this point, the plan was still for my wife and child to come and live here in this country with me. i'd got a flat set up and everything ready to go. but because of that relapse, and because my wife realised i was still very much in the gambling, the addiction was there. to critics this is the dark side of gambling. you could lose £100 per

spin and you can spin every 20 seconds. in october the government said it plans to force bookmakers to cut the state. the question now is to watch. a final decision is expected soon. what then are the arguments on both sides. critics of the machines say the case to cut right back to £2 per spin is overwhelming. in a letter to the chancellor seen by this programme three mps say in a single year players lost large amounts, more than £1000, on children 30,000 separate occasions. former players say the cost to society is huge. to allow someone to bed up to £100 every 20 seconds, they are more likely to become addict had to gambling. so which the maximum stake would reduce the harm. then there's the case against, the industry says that a two downstate would kill off the machines completely, jobs could

be last and there would be less money for government, local councils and the racing industry. with online and the racing industry. with online and casinos, both of which have grown over this period, there are similar potentialfor grown over this period, there are similar potential for staking and the human interaction you get in a betting shop means that large losses are monitored and we can stop them. a£2 are monitored and we can stop them. a £2 stake would also mean it is possible to spend more money more quickly on gaming machines in pubs and arcades spent in betting shops. many in the industry said it does not make sense. the share price of the largest gaming companies fell in january on rumours that the government would back the £2 stake. nothing is final yet. but the chancellor and the treasury could be worried that it would also damage tax revenues. so do the recommendations to cap the limit at 30 quid go far enough? we can speak to carolyn harris — labour mp for swansea east, chair of the all party parliamentary group

on fobts, who is one of three mps to back cutting f0 bt stakes, tim miller from the gambling commission, terry white, a gambling addict who estimates he lost £250,000 on fobts — he's in cardiff this morning, and andy margett — he lost tens of thousands of pounds gambling online and in betting shops — he's in derby today. tim, can you explain what the report recommends — how did the commission decide this? it isa it is a big reduction for games like roulette are it is a big reduction for games like roulette a re not it is a big reduction for games like roulette are not as much as campaigners wanted. well to be clear it is £30 or less so people calling for £2 need not be disappointed, we have still left that door open. if the secretary of state considers that appropriate it is still perfectly consistent. we based our

advice on a wide range of evidence. we looked at 20 billion different plays. individual bets. yes, a huge amount of data and we found it did not point to a single individual figure as being the magic bullet. what we've said is we need a conference a package of measures. so if it did not point to an individual figure why have you registered to £30 maximum. because it showed to have significant impact on risk reduction you need to come down to at least £30. 0ther package says that cutting the stake by itself is not enough so we recommended going even further by putting in a range of other measures. caroline, how do you react? initially i was disappointed and quite angry but thenl disappointed and quite angry but then i have had a chat with tim and i probably am less angry. ijust need to know that the government will not be persuaded by the

argument that £30 is sufficient. you're saying £30 now is all right? well initially when i heard it was £30, isaid well initially when i heard it was £30, i said that to advance was preferable. the reality is the evidence we looked at did not point to any single figure. it is now for the secretary of state to make this decision. that is what the legislation says. it has got to be £2. terry white and andy, having lost £250 , 000 £2. terry white and andy, having lost £250,000 on these terminals, just explain how that is even possible? it sounds really difficult to do put up but if you're losing 1000, £2000 a day, it only takes around six months. so how do you

then react to this recommendation from the gambling commission that for games like roulette, the maximum sta ke for games like roulette, the maximum stake should be £30 or less. and obviously it is up to the government to make the final position. they could choose to pounce as the maximum. they could and i hope that they will. i've not had time to look at the full report put out today but i have had dialogue with mr miller andi i have had dialogue with mr miller and i know carolyn is also putting — also keen for that to be £2. but i think there are many other aspects like the speed of the spin and responsibility of the bookmakers to come and have a chat with people when clearly they are out of control on the machines. they say they do that but from personal experience i can tell you they do not. and how would someone in a booking —— in a bookmakers note that you are out of control. something along the lines ofa control. something along the lines of a customer losing £500 or perhaps swearing, picking the machine, they would need to say hang on a minute,

you are affecting other people in the shop and you know, really be a bit more proactive and hands—on to look after people better. tim miller, whatever you said about interaction between people who work ina interaction between people who work in a bookmakers and someone clearly losing money. well that is an important point, a strong duty on gambling companies to act. but they're not. we recommend removing all excuse not to act. that there is all excuse not to act. that there is a strong case to track play. so potentially if someone had an individual login, the player then can have high quality data on their play but importantly gambling company could spot at an early stage the risk of harmful play and act to intervene. actually while they are playing on the machine in the bookmakers. exactly. we want to remove excuses. but will they have

time to log on to check on individuals in their shop? the reality is there needs to be an overwhelming drive to prevent people from harm. how do you react to these recommendations from the gambling commission customer i think it is going after one form of gambling will not work. there are many forms of gambling out there got up and any form has the potentialfor of gambling out there got up and any form has the potential for harm. of gambling out there got up and any form has the potentialfor harm. any form of gambling is bad for a potential problem gambler. i think they need to be more education and treatment services. we are have all been to school and we get taught about the dangers of drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, sti ‘s, but never the danger of a potential gambling problem. you hit a keen and you're just free to have a gamble. play the

lottery. so i believe funding for help and treatment is critical and education as well. let me read out this e—mailfrom education as well. let me read out this e—mail from keith, education as well. let me read out this e—mailfrom keith, betting machines are a blight, the odds of winning can be fixed electronically. these machines are designed to keep you playing with very small wins just to keep you playing. the problem with these machines, the machine itself is addictive to most problem gamblers, you might have money that they lose amin becomes irrelevant, it is the activity itself of the machine. and they are built entirely to be captivating, just like heroin is captivating to some. so you will find difficulty. not infinding some. so you will find difficulty. not in finding people who can use the machines to money launder, because the amount of money they will get cleaned is phenomenal. but you will have problems finding people are personal level who have

won any money. and it becomes irrelevant, the actual money becomes irrelevant. so maybe you think then the recommendations in this report area the recommendations in this report are a missed opportunity? definitely, as long as the government stays fan, and unconvinced that this moment that both the secretary of state and minister are resolute and they believe that £2 the answer because of the body language if you like and the vibes we're getting. it is essential for society, for the individuals, but the high street. it is essential that the social consequences of these machines are a limited by reducing the stakes to £2. they will be a suspicion that you have been got at by the industry customer not at all. there have been many arguments about the economic impact of these cuts. that i think shops would close and people lose theirjobs. in terms of our recommendations we have not taken as

arguments on board. we have one focus and that is taking action to protect consumers. i have one e-mail from someone who works in a bookies. it is anonymous and quite long but really worth reading. i work for one of the big four betting shops. shop staff are trained to spot trouble gamblers and intervene when necessary. i've tried several of these interventions but i've had negative responses from customers being told to mind my own business. i've offered the option of self exclusion to help the customer as well as the industry leaflets but have been left out on several occasions by personal safety jeopardise for busily so much that the shop staff can do and the rest is the personal responsibility of the customer themselves. the reality of those using extolled terminals is not what is being portrayed in the media for the his customers are well aware of their actions and they shun help. limiting the bet would just

mean that the customer would stay at the terminalfor longer mean that the customer would stay at the terminal for longer and lose the same amount of money. gambling addiction is a problem and more powers should be given to front line staff to help but i would suggest greater powers of exclusion. personal responsibility of the customer is critical. what do you say about this that they would just stay at the terminal for longer. that is a risk and one of the reasons why we do not point to any individual number. suggestions that at some levels people could be driven to riskier behaviour and that is why we recommend this broader package to spot the risks earlier on. what do you say, someone saying you're working in a bookies and you could be told to mind your business and secondly reducing the state just

means you stay longer on the terminal. i think they are fair points, i have seen people approached by numbers of staff in certain shops but it is very random and does not happen as often as it should. i think they need to train staff even more now and maybe just have one staff member in the shop each day dealing with fobt issues. but unless they have the power to exclude you from a shop you can just ignore a member of staff, no matter how well trained they are. precisely and at the end of the day it is the individual, it is their responsibility to take control of their gambling. millions of people to gamble responsibly and for fun. i know i have a problem and i cannot do that. my light bulb moment, i smashed up my pc after losing £1000 at poker online, that is not normal behaviour. i would

at poker online, that is not normal behaviour. iwould be at poker online, that is not normal behaviour. i would be in a rage and no one could come over to me and tell me to stop. and reducing the steak on one form of gambling will not help a problem gambler. if it happens, what happens afterwards to the gambling addict if it is reduced to £2. let's get answered to that question. so the steak is reduced and what then happens to the gambling addict customer that is a fair pointand gambling addict customer that is a fair point and we should not focus on one type of gambling. we have been reviewing online gambling as well and we will make proposals on that shortly. because ultimately there is no form of gambling that is totally safe and risk—free. we need totally safe and risk—free. we need to make sure we act on the harms that comes from all forms of gambling. let's say the government ta ke gambling. let's say the government take up your recommendation and reduce the stakes to £2 as campaigners want. the addict is still an addict. that is right and one other thing we will say is that

the industry needs to up their game on the amount of resources they put into research, education and training. because treatment will help for many people but at the moment it is very underfunded. thank you all for coming in. and of course we welcome your views and experiences. martina navratilova says that john mcenroe was paid at least "10 times more" than she was for their commentating roles at wimbledon. the former champion told panorama that she was shocked when the bbc revealed how much its stars earned. john mcenroe was named on the list, appearing in the £150,000 to £199,999 bracket — martina navratilova says she was martina navratilova says that john mcenroe was paid £199,999 bracket — martina navratilova says she was paid around £15,000. it's hard to really compare exactly because some people work

a little longer days, maybe a few more programmes or whatever, but overall it was a shock becausejohn mcenroe makes at least £150,000. i get about £15,000 for wimbledon. and, unlessjohn mcenroe's doing a whole bunch of stuff outside of wimbledon, he's getting at least ten times as much money... ten times?! ..than i am for very comparable work. so, yeah, at the moment that's what i know. so you're seriously telling me that you earn about 10% of whatjohn mcenroe earns? that's pretty much what it looks like right now, to the best of my knowledge, yeah, that's how it shakes out. how do you feel about that? not happy, let's just say. it's shocking. if this happens to me, then... you know, for me, it's a part—time job, its two weeks of my life, but for the women that are there full—time, maybe the discrepancy is not that large but it adds up over a lifetime to an amazing amount of money, so it's extremely unfair, and it makes me angry for the other women that i think go through this. the bbc might say, well,

john mcenroe does more hours or he's on air longer? ten times as much? i don't think so. do you ever say to the bbc, "am i earning a comparable amount to a man doing a similarjob?" absolutely, and we were told, yes, i was getting comparable amounts, so we were not told the truth, that's for sure. because it's 50 years now since the equal pay act in britain. wow. yeah, 50 years since equal pay. so it's the law! and the bbc is a public corporation. i don't want to really rag on the bbc, because i know it goes on, i'm sure, in all the other networks, but this one being public, you know, they've got to do better. the bbc says the two commentators are on different types of contracts and that martina navratilova appears on air less thanjohn mcenroe. and you can see more of that interview in a panorama special

tonight at 7.30 on bbc one. that's panorama: britain's equal pay scandal. still to come: we'll be looking into how asylum seekers are housed around the country by private companies on multi—million pound government contracts. and we will look at what vladimir putin's election win means. time for the latest news — here'sjoanna. the bbc news headlines this morning... the gambling commission has recommended that the maximum stake the fixed odds betting terminals should be reduced from £100 to £30, or £2 in the case of slot machines. it says cutting the stake alone will not cure problem gambling and has recommended what it calls a comprehensive package of other measures to protect consumers. the industry has the blanket reduction to £2 would cost ofjobs. official results from russia show

president putin has been re—elected with more than 76% of the vote. he told a victory rally that russia must maintain unity following his landslide win — but cctv footage from a number of polling stations appears to show election officials stuffing boxes with ballot papers. international chemical weapons experts are due to arrive in the uk later today to test the nerve agent used to poison former russian spy sergei skripal and his daughter yulia. president putin says claims his country was behind the attack are "nonsense", but borisjohnson claims russia has been stockpiling novichok for years. test results could be seen in around two weeks' time. the tv presenter ant mcpartlin has been arrested on charges of driving. police were called to the scene yesterday afternoon. a car passenger was taken to hospital as a

precaution. scotland yard said a 42—year—old man was arrested at the scene after failing a breathalyser test. that's a summary of the latest bbc news. a viewer is not sympathetic to anyone addicted to gambling. if you don't realise you're wasting your money on gambling, drugs or drink, you need to grow up. there are too many excuses. people are responsible for themselves. you have the choice. it is not responsible to give the government or the taxpayer. and ariadne says you just have to look at the areas of betting shops to know that they are taking advantage of vulnerable people. do keep those coming in. here's so coming in. here is some sport. mcilroy wins his first tournament for months at the arnold palmer international. he sank five birdies in the last six holes, including that glorious but to finish on 18 under par three shots ahead of the field. chelsea confirm

their place in the fa cup semifinals after a 2— win over leicester after extra time. they will play southampton in the last four. manchester united will take on spurs in the other fixture. world number one roger federer‘s winning run has come to an end after losing the final at the indian wells tojuan martin del potro. the argentine is the first player to beat federer in 18 matches. and england bowler stuart broad tells the bbc that he has no plans to retire from international cricket any time soon. england get their test match against new zealand under way in the early hours of thursday morning. those are your sports headlines. i will be back just after your sports headlines. i will be backjust after ten. every year, thousands of asylum seekers enter the uk — on planes, on the back of lorries, illegally smuggled in... when they arrive, most are initially housed in an asylum reception centre while the home office decides whether their case to stay as a refugee in the uk is genuine.

one such initial accomodation centre which houses over 200 asylum seekers hasjust opened in derby — despite opposition from local residents. 0ur reporter sean clare has this report. just over 26,000 people arrived in the uk seeking asylum last year, many needing somewhere to live. most people accept they have to be housed somewhere, but who wants them arriving at the end of their street? by the way, you're having 240 asylum seekers on your doorstep and, guess what, you can't do anything about it. three companies are responsible for housing them, contracts worth millions. in recent years, security firm gas have housed more than anyone else. and with a national housing crisis, the companies seek out the cheapest homes in the most deprived parts of the country. the idea was to relieve pressure on the south—east of england, but is the system working as it should for those already here? we haven't got enough for ourselves, let alone having

other people coming in. ..orfor those hoping to make the uk their home? they give the accommodation where no—one else wants to live, and life is very difficult. crime is very high. prostitution, addiction. here in derby, the student halls of residence has just been turned into accommodation for more than 200 asylum seekers. they're supposed to spend just three weeks here before being moved to a longer—term home. derby is a multicultural city and is already home to asylum seekers and refugees, but local residents have been questioning whether this is an appropriate location for such a transient, vulnerable community. fantastic area, very close—knit community. one of those areas where everybody looks out for everybody. ajit atwal, who used to represent the area on the local council, opposed the plan to convert the student halls from the start. we don't know what's in there at the moment. gas are very quiet and very...

take a back—seat when it comes to answering any questions. people round here need to know, they should be answerable to the people of this area because, at the end of the day, they were here a lot longer than what these people were. the centre holds 225 people, and gas expect it to fill up this month. it's almost full now, and there have been no reported problems. but residents are still worried. is there a way that, if gas had communicated differently, you could see the system working in this area? it could have done, yeah. they should have come out and spoke to residents properly instead ofjust inviting people to a council meeting and saying, "this is what we've put in place." they could have sent leaflets, they could've knocked on people's doors. they're a big organisation, it's not like they're short of a few quid. they should consult people and give them that reassurance that, you know what, we're here to work with you, any concerns you've got, come to us directly so we can iron those concerns out and you can get on with life and the residents, the refugees here can get on with life. while hundreds of people signed a petition against the centre, gas say they consulted with local residents, communicated through local press, and will continue their engagement

every three months. but in this cafe just across the road, the anger at gas is obvious. when you go to the shop, you don't feel in fear at the minute. the owner moved house before the centre even opened because of his fears about what it would mean for the area. mark harris says he's worried about his property and his family. i don't want this. i haven't signed up for this, i don't want this. you're lucky, you moved. if i could have moved, i would have been out of here straight away. i wouldn't have batted an eyelid about it, i'd have been gone, because it's not my cup of tea. i wish they'd given us more information before everyone panicked. the information should have been put out there so people like me, people like yourself, everyone on drury lane would have had a better educated response. i picked this area for what reason i wanted. your future. it's close to town, my future, it's everything it provides to me. then one day i get told, out of the blue, nowt to do with me, "oh, by the way, you're having 240 asylum seekers on your doorstep and,

guess what, you can't do anything about it." it's like the next—door neighbour, she owns her house. let's say she's going to sell her property in two months' time, somebody comes round and views the area, there's asylum seekers, a block on the corner, that house has got loads more chances of not selling. if i walk down the road and there were ten asylum seekers/refugees stood out there, i'm crossing that road. i ain't walking past them for anybody. i spoke to gas and said, "who's in charge? if something goes wrong, my house gets broken into, my property gets stolen, i get beaten up or anything goes wrong, who...?" he were like, "well, we're not in charge, we're just looking after it." the only question i haven't had a realistic answer to is, can you prove to us that these aren't soldiers? that these people aren't killers or rapists? can you just tell us that they've come from a blown—up town or city

where their houses have gone and they have nowhere to live? i feel sorry for them, it's not their fault... so work with them. yeah, i am working with them and my point of working with them is, i didn't want them living on my doorstep. we have an hour's english class on a tuesday, one on a thursday. a few minutes down the road is janet fuller who, for years, has been managing an advice centre for derby's refugees and asylum seekers. we've been hearing this morning from somebody who was adamant that he doesn't know who the asylum seekers are, doesn't know where they've come from, he doesn't know what they might be doing, and as soon as he can move out of that area, he's going to go. i can absolutely understand why residents would be concerned, because if you suddenly get accommodation housing more than 200 people right on your doorstep, whoever those 200 or more people are, it's a difficult situation. there are always going to be fears about terrorism in this situation. the vast majority of people we see here have stood up to terrorism, or have been fleeing from terrorism and want to do something to counteract that.

they want to have a positive influence on this society and they want to contribute. if the home office decides those seeking asylum are destitute and need housing, after three weeks they are supposed to be rehoused in parts of the country with a supply of cheap longer—term accommodation. so how does it feel to be sent somewhere where nothing and no—one is familiar? somewhere with social problems and already—stretched services, and somewhere where you can find yourself at the sharp end of resentment and fear? it looks like you're not welcome. they're not friendly. no—one will come to help you because they don't know who's that person. even though there is a community around you, you are still alone. we've protected the identity of this asylum seeker, because she fears reprisals from gas for speaking out. how appropriate is your accommodation, and what are some of the problems with the facilities in there? usually the gas people, they give the accommodation

where no—one else wants to live, and life is very difficult. crime is very high, prostitution, addiction. they don't contact us, they don't reply to our problems, they don't solve our problems, they don't return our phone calls. they think we're just like slaves. that, you know, whatever they give us, we will accept. what would you say, then, to those who say that the more comfortable the system is, the better the system is, it might encourage more people to come to britain? some people, they come by boat, some people, they come in a truck, some people are living a happy life with all their luxuries, but because of bad luck or somehow they are involved with the system they go through all this stress, it makes them like, you know, worse than animals.

jen, not her real name, used to work at a gas call centre. i worked for the gas contract providing accommodation to asylum seekers in the midlands and east of england and yorkshire and humberside. what effect did working for gas have on you and your attitude to asylum and immigration? the longer i worked there, and the attitude of management and the way that people were just sort of treated more like a commodity, you know, i wanted to help people when i was there because obviously i started working there, and you get to know people's situations and people's stories, and obviously most people would want to do good in that situation. but you can't. i'm not saying that all the staff are bad and that a member of staff has never done a nice thing for somebody, but it's not encouraged. what kind of things did you hear or see gas staff doing when you worked there? i've heard a senior person on that contract say that if an asylum seeker has that got credit to call,

then don't call them back. seeker hasn't got credit to call, then don't call them back. that's their problem. why are we paying for an interpreter? why are we doing this? that's the kind of attitude that we've got. there was a woman i used to work with, she'd pretend that she couldn't understand somebody or that she couldn't hear somebody and put the phone down on them. that colleagues said to me, when she used to talk to people like absolute dirt and i heard, and i sort of looked at her one day and she just said, "don't look at me like i've just stamped on a baby." they were her actual words. theyjust don't care. in a statement, gas told us their staff are expected to behave with integrity, care and respect, and that action is taken against those who fall short. two employees, they say, have been dismissed in the last four years. they said asylum seekers are either asked to use a freephone helpline number or that gas staff would call them back if they don't have credit. the company said there is no instruction to not call

asylum seekers back. asylum seekers like this one are sent to parts of the country where the local council has said they will take them. but in places like loftus, a small, isolated town on the north—east coast of england, the council's decision is not always backed up by the local people. it's one of the least diverse parts of the country, and the lack of local services here is a common complaint. this is my shop here. i've been here forjust over, well, i've been in loftus business for 27 years. when we heard the asylum seekers were coming to loftus, we were told that this was the building that they were going to be housed in. it only has one entrance to the building. it is above a pizza shop. i think the children would have just hounded them. the children, at this time of night, now, would have been gathering outside the pizza shop and it would have just escalated after they'd been drinking. what do you say to those people that say, they'd probably come from civil

war in syria where they've seen a bit worse than a pizza shop and a few kids? but they shouldn't be victimised when they come to another country. we don't want them to come here and think that this is what england is like. it's not like that. but the way gas and the council did it, it wasjust, it just wasn't right, it wasn't fair to make us look as though we're horrible, and we're not. so you're not racists? not at all. one year on, ask people at this meeting of community leaders, and they're clear they made the right choice in blocking the plan. my friend and myself saw a gentleman going into a house along west road and asked them what they were doing and they said, oh, they're gas, they were going to, they were doing safety checks because immigrants were coming in. nobody knew what anybody was doing. gas arrived, the population here didn't know anything about it. we all found little snippets about what was going on.

i think it was widely accepted that we just do not have the infrastructure for our own people, let alone, let alone... exactly. they would have been targeted. the residents are so deprived at this present time that anybody getting a hand—out they think should come to them rather than somebody from... it must be awful for somebody who can't afford a fridge to see a new fridge going to one of these multiple occupancy things, you know. and i think we just touched on something else there, that we have no police, we have no police presence at all. in the past, loftus has welcomed immigrants from the likes of bosnia, we feel as though we are that far down the pecking order when it comes to anything, volunteers are running that much services now in this town, in this area, it would be wrong to put more things on their shoulders so that they were doing all the things that the councils and the government should be doing. the multi—billion pound government contract to provide accommodation

to asylum seekers for the next ten years is currently out to tender, and gas, the company which houses more new arrivals that any other, is hopeful of getting the green light. but here in sheffield, campaigners like john grayson, an expert on asylum housing and long—time critic of gas, say complaints about the company make them unfit to do the job. a good minority of the housing, 30% at least, is appalling. atrocious conditions, and it's been like that since 2012 when they took over the contract. hasn't got any better, i'm still coming across houses with rats, with terrible kind of damp, bedbugs is very common in their housing. they dumped this disabled asylum seeker in a house with an asbestos notice on it, where a ceiling had collapsed. you know, their carers wouldn't go in because of that, quite right, too. only in november a child with cancer, lung cancer,

was put in a house where there were rats, and they knew there were rats when they put her in there. there is a new ten—year £a billion contract out to tender at the moment to house asylum seekers. should gas get that contract? no, definitely not, and i think the record shows that. four parliamentary committees have said that they shouldn't actually be housing asylum seekers because of their atrocious conditions, etc. we think there could be legal action to stop them. is this a political point you're making? someone's got to house these people, someone's got to get the contract. we're only talking about a7,000 people across the uk in asylum housing. it's not an amazing number. you'd have thought the housing association sector, for instance, would be an appropriate kind of landlord, and i'm sure the housing association sector would be quite interested in getting that kind of public money to house asylum seekers. gas said the rats at the house in sheffield were coming from next

door, not one of theirs. they said the family were moved when they were told about the state of the child's health, and they say no asbestos was found in the other property. with companies currently vying for these accommodation contracts, mps have said the voices of those living in these houses should be heard. many existing local residents said they want their voices heard, too. phil says people talking about asylu m phil says people talking about asylum seekers like that, i do not understand them. their lives are ha rd understand them. their lives are hard enough without that attitude. and roxy says this section of the programme is so depressing. can you prove that these asylum seekers are not rapists, can you prove that locals are not. gas did not want to be interviewed about the claims in sean's film. but in a statement they told us: "all gas properties are subject

to inspections to ensure they meet the standards set by the home office. there are over a,000 inspections conducted every month by gas and the home office and local authorities also conduct random, no—notice inspections. we always take complaints about the accommodation we provide very seriously. asylum seekers access our free 2a/7 service centre by telephone in large numbers to report problems, in some months we receive over a,000 calls. this demonstrates a service which is working well and asylum seekers are comfortable and willing to engage, reporting issues." well it has been indicated that the eu will support the uk in response to the nerve agent being used in salisbury. russia's president, vladimir putin, says it's ‘nonsense' to suggest that russia poisoned the former double agent, sergei skripal, and his daughter in salisbury. speaking after winning a fourth term in office last night, mr putin said it was ‘unimaginable' that russia would do such a thing ahead of the election and the football world cup this summer.

vladimir putin was re—elected as russian president with an increased — 76% — share of the vote and will remain in office for another six years. translation: in relation to the tragedy you mention i learnt about it from the media and the first thing that came into my mind is that if it was a military operation people would have died straightaway. this is the number one. secondly russia does not have those weapons. russia has demolished all of its chemical weapons under the supervision, international supervision. weapons under the supervision, internationalsupervision. some weapons under the supervision, international supervision. some of our partners have not yet done that. well he remains in office for another six years. that means the 65—year—old has been either russian president or prime ministerfor 2a years. despite his time in office — very little is actually known about him. here's the bbc‘s russian translator pavel koklachev with details. vladimir putin. here are some facts you didn't know about russia's president. first, he's a former spy.

who worked in east germany for the kgb. so he can reportedly speak german and english. but in public he only speaks russian. being a former spy, his life is shrouded in a lot of mystery. so we cannot be absolutely sure about what is fact and what is not. but it seems sure that he is a father to two daughters although nothing is known about them. no photographs of them exist and it is not known whether they even live in russia. it is reported he is divorced from his wife in 201a. we know her name, but not much else is known about her. for the president of a country that helped invent vodka, putin is reportedly nearly teetotal. it is not known if this is fact. but the only time he has ever been seen holding a drink is on official occasions.

speaking of drinking and eating, everything that putin eats has to have been cleared by the kremlin. according to a report in 201a, the security around putin is so tight that when he travels to foreign countries all the food and drink, even the bed sheets, are flown in from russia. for security reasons it is reported he does not use much technology. according to a newsweek magazine profile he rarely uses the internet. putin likes to portray himself as a tough guy. as such he has only ever once shown emotion in public. he cried at the funeral of the man who gave him his political break. his tough guy image is enhanced with his black belt injudo. and playing ice hockey and riding bareback on horseback. this is when putin is reported to be most happy although again, it is not known whether this is a fact. 0rjust information supplied by the kremlin. let's speak to dmitry linnik,

a former russian journalist, who worked for the voice of russia radio station, and now works at media brand sputnik, professor margot light, an expert on russian foreign policy. and mp stephen kinnock, a labour backbencher, who has said britain should push to strip russia of the world cup and have it held next year in another country. he was forced to leave st petersburg when he worked for the british council a decade ago... russian people will support putin no matter what he does but you might i guess qualified support is quite significant, yes. it would be fair to say there is a lot of dissatisfaction a lot of fatigue perhaps. a lot of anger and opposition. but when the chips are down yes, the 76% is an increase on

2012. and that is partly because a spokesman for the campaign said because of what happened as they put it, thanks largely to the uk gaza what happened two weeks ago in salisbury. i do not think it could have played a major role but maybe you know a few percentage points, yes. stephen kinnock, what is your reaction to the election and claims of vote rigging? i think democracy is not just about what happens of vote rigging? i think democracy is notjust about what happens at the ballot box, it is the whole environment in which the election takes place, some of the political debate takes place. the fact is the russian state controls debate takes place. the fact is the russian state - controls the russian state basically controls the television media and newspaper reading in russia is relatively low levels. so the television plays a massive role. and it is in essence a propaganda vehicle for mr putin. so not surprising he has tremendous support, i think also worth recognising there are still a lot of support frames of the russian people

feel he has delivered security and stability and a certain amount of economic growth compared to the total chaos of the yeltsin years. so i think broadly is the russian people certainly outside of moscow and st petersburg support putin. but i also think there is not proper there. one of the strongest candidate in opposition has been co nsta ntly candidate in opposition has been constantly repressed and suppressed. of course we have the assassination as well of a political rival soap not really what we would describe as a free and fair situation for the is that fair? russia is a tough place, a rough place, much more so than the uk orany a rough place, much more so than the uk or any other established democracy. but it is a much more normal country then people often tend to believe in the west, and in the uk. and perhaps primarily in the

uk because the uk has been at the forefront of this massive sustained could probably call it media war on putin and russia. and media war on hughton and russia, stephen kinnock? i spent three years living and working in russia and it has a special place in my heart, i think it isa special place in my heart, i think it is a wonderful country and i agree it is also a tough country for that amazing people, culture, literature, history. a truly fascinating place. but i'm afraid the russian people for centuries have been let down by their leaders. there is a tendency to authoritarianism, to despotic tendencies, to the state using fear to suppress its people. and those arejust to suppress its people. and those are just the facts of the matter. clearly russia has changed enormously since the collapse of the soviet union. i do not think that we are ina soviet union. i do not think that we are in a new cold war, i think what we have far more is a very dangerous

coalition of the security state and the mafia that are running the show. and are not always sure whether mr putin is truly in control of what is happening in the kremlin or whether he's just a front man for all kinds of, the deep state around him. nobody really knows what is going on and that is part of the difficulty with this because of course that lack of transparency is what reads this constant sense that there is a hostile posture in russia towards the west. dmitri? i agree with a lot of the. there is a tradition that is difficult. but again, there is such a vast gap between the oppression of stalin and zara 's and russia today. these are two completely different countries that we need to speak

about and be aware of that. so i give qualified support what mp kinnock hasjust said. professor, when you hear president putin saying russia has destroyed all its chemical weapons, it's nonsense to implicate his government in the attack on salisbury on the ath of march, how do you respond? it's true the organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons certified that russia no longer had any chemical weapons. we will have to wait to see what the organisation now says about the samples it is taking from salisbury before we come to any firm conclusions. you must admit that when you think of the reputational damage to russia in the last two weeks, it would really be an extraordinarily poor sense of politics that would explain any kind of motivation for this poisoning

being accomplished by the president ordered by the president. sorry, explain what you mean? well, what has happened in the last two weeks has hardly done russia's reputation any good. it is extraordinary to think that the president would order poisoning by a chemical weapons that can easily be identified as being produced by russia. it is so hard to see the motivation. i am going to leave it there. thank you, all of you. use of sport are on the way in a moment. before that, the weather. heavy snow over the weekend did cause some disruption and with cold nights and snow on the ground, we are looking at problems with ice over the next few days. temperatures are still struggling. we are looking

at another cold day. if chrissy sunshine across northern ireland, england and wales. edit more cloud in eastern outbreaks of friends of the northern isles, with highs of seven celsius. it will be breezy in the south. staying breezy overnight, with increasing amount of cloud and a few wintry showers moving in from the east. they will be drier in the north—west, with clearer skies which allow temperatures to fall away. we are looking at a cold start to the day tomorrow and a frosty one. a few patches of i again. a few showers in the east. hello, it's 10 o'clock, i'm victoria derbyshire. highly addictive fixed odds betting terminals should have their maximum stake reduced from £100 to £30 or less — according to the gambling commission. but gambling addicts have told this programme even more needs to be done.

reducing the stake on one form of gambling is not going to help a problem gambler. i mean, if it does happen, what happens after to the gambling addict if it gets reduced to £2? are they still gambling? do get in touch with your experience of using this terminals. also on the programme — she went to syria to fight against islamic state. british woman anna campbell has died, fighting alongside kurdish forces. isaid, you know, you could be killed. and she said, i know, dad. there's nothing i can do to reassure you about that, but i've got to do this. we'll hear more from anna's dad and from one of her friends later in the programme. and ant mcpartlin has been arrested on suspicion of drink driving after his car crashed into two others yesterday. we'll bring you the story. let's bring you the latest news so

far today. the gambling commission has recommended that the maximum stake for fixed—odds betting terminals should be reduced from £100 to £30, or £2 in the case of slot machines. it says cutting the stake alone won't cure problem gambling and has recommended what it calls a "comprehensive package of other measures to protect consumers". the industry had said a blanket reduction to two pounds would cost thousands ofjobs. we are also proposing that there should be a form of tracked play so that players themselves can have access to good quality data on their play behaviour, how much they've lost and importantly, that gambling companies then have no excuse not to spot problem gambling and act on it. official results from russia show president putin has been re—elected with more than 76% of the vote. he told a victory rally that russia

must maintain unity following his landslide win, but cctv footage from a number of polling stations appears to show election officials stuffing boxes with ballot papers. international chemical weapons experts are due to arrive in the uk later today to test the nerve agent used to poison former russian spy sergei skripal and his daughter yulia. president putin says claims his country was behind the attack are "nonsense", but borisjohnson claims russia has been stockpiling novichok for years. test results could be seen in around two weeks' time. the television presenter ant mcpartlin has been arrested on suspicion of drink driving. police say they were called to reports of a collision involving three cars in south—west london yesterday afternoon. a child passenger in one of them was taken to hospital as a precaution. in a statement, scotland yard said a a2—year—old man was arrested at the scene after failing a breathalyser test. a british woman has been killed in northern syria fighting alongside kurdish forces. it is understood

that and i campbell, who was 26 and from lewisham east sussex, died in the town of afrin, which had been the town of afrin, which had been the target of a turkish offensive. herfather the target of a turkish offensive. her father has told the bbc she was idealistic and knew she was putting her life at risk. that's a summary of the latest bbc news — more at 10.30. here's some sport now. rory mcilroy is the new favourite for the masters after picking up his first tournament win since september 2016. he's up to seven in the world as well after winning the arnold palmer invitational in florida by three shots. a final round included five birdies in the first six holes. i gave myself chances with every hole and executed shots the way i wanted to when i need to. 6a in those conditions out there, with it being firm and fast, to get into the winner's circle again feels good.

the blues bounced back from their champions league exit earlier in the week and with them being way off the pace in the premier league, the fa cup is their only real chance for a trophy this season. but they had to work for it against leicester, pedro getting the winner after extra time. 2-1 getting the winner after extra time. 2—1 was the final score and this is chelsea's tenth fa cup semifinal in 18 years. chelsea will play southampton, while tottenham will face manchester united at their home ground at wembley, although spurs will be in the away dressing room. the draw for the women's fa cup was also made an radio 5 live this morning. holders manchester city will play chelsea if they can ove rco m e will play chelsea if they can overcome sunderland. the other semi sees durham or everton face arsenal or charlton. both semis will be shown live on the bbc. roger federer heaped praise onjuan

martin del potro after he was beaten to the first time in 18 matches. del potro saved three match points as he prevailed in the final of the indian wells masters. world number one federer said del potro deserved the win and congratulated him on a fantastic tournament. now, have a look at this. this is andy murray getting his hotel room broken into by the comedian michael mcintyre. it's not as sinister as it sounds. this is all in aid of sport relief. and the! —— and the! this is all in aid of sport relief. and the! -- and the! bleep. to the sport relief midnight game show, with sir andy murray. morning, andy! there was andy murray thinking he was away from the limelight for a

little bit. not according to michael mcintyre. not only has he been woken up mcintyre. not only has he been woken up in the middle of the night, he then has to answer quiz questions. i think he handles it pretty well. there are a few seconds at the beginning where you think, he is in the foulest mood! but he soon realises and put the smile on because he is a pro. exactly, he handled it very well. let's bring you more on the news that one half of ant‘n'dec — ant mcpartlin — has been arrested on suspicion of drink—driving after a collision involving three vehicles in south—west london. this was him with declan the night before, hosting saturday night ta keaway before, hosting saturday night takeaway on itv. you are a good crowd tonight! us with us is our guest, emma bunton! hiya, emma! it's great to have you here. guest, emma bunton! hiya, emma! it's great to have you herelj

guest, emma bunton! hiya, emma! it's great to have you here. i was so excited to be here! i love the show. but from our point of view, to have a real—life spice girl... we're joined now by entertainment journalist caroline frost. that clip was saturday evening. by sunday afternoon yesterday, about four o'clock, ant was reportedly stopped. witnesses heard a huge crash occur on the lower richmond road, just south of the thames, west london. by all reports, on the way back from the park after walking his dogs with his mother, he lost control with his mini, went on to the wrong side of the road, crashed into an oncoming mini and another carand into an oncoming mini and another car and the into an oncoming mini and another carand the car into an oncoming mini and another car and the car eventually spun to a halt. it could have been much worse. mercifully, one small child was taken to hospital, which is obviously serious, but no one else was hurt. there were huge amounts of witnesses crowding around the scene who saw a shocked ant mcpartlin, who was taken away by police and returns to his home this morning at around

3am. he has been in the media because he has had much documented issues with prescription painkiller addiction. the cliche is a roller—coaster year, but for once it is adequate to the description, because last year it was all going well for them. it has been going well for them. it has been going well for them for years, and though he had this leg injury and became addicted to painkillers. he himself asked for help. he texted dec, saying he needed help. he came back and there was a huge reception for him, with awards. they are today's finalist, and now this. so we have again seen a huge dip in his fortunes. and he has separated from his wife. yes. the pair of them live almost next to each other. they both have lovely wives and families. you will see them around in west london by the river on a sunday, and in the

space of a few months, it feels like so many things have changed. the stability of his marriage is no longer in his life. he has had this terrible injury that he is still trying to adjust to, and now this. soa trying to adjust to, and now this. so a huge amount of change. although as you saw on saturday night, it is still very glossy and popular. thank you. a british woman has been killed in northern syria fighting alongside kurdish forces. it's understood that anna campbell — who was 26 and from lewes in east sussex — died in the town of afrin, which has been the target of a turkish offensive. her father dirk campbell said his daughter was "very idealistic" and "determined". she came to see me in may last year, and she told me she was going to go to syria. she was quite adamant about it. i said "you could be killed. and she said "i know, dad. "there's nothing i can do to reassure you about that

but i've got do this". i didn't foresee that it would work out very well. i knew that she was intentionally risking her life, as a lot of families in this country have also undergone this awful worry, trauma, shock of the final knew to be told that their child has been trauma, shock of the final news to be told that their child has been killed fighting for freedom, for equality, for representation, for a better world. we can speak now to macer gifford, which is not his real name. he was a close friend of anna campbell, and last saw her in may 2017. macer gave up a career in finance and flew to syria three years ago to fight with kurdish forces against the is group. he came back from raqqa last year. and he has been on our programme to

tell you about that. how do you react to news that your friend has lost her life question mark with shock and sadness. and you are very well, i came in with her in may. she was full of life, full of enthusiasm. she was so desperate to join the y pj. she had heard all about them, their resistance against the islamic state, the things they were doing for the communities they we re were doing for the communities they were liberating. so she was inspired and she had come a long way to be in syria in support of local people. so i'm just shocked as someone who met her and saw were so full of life to hear that she has passed away. but of course that is the risk if you go out to syria to fight. absolutely. we are all aware of the risks, hundreds of international is from the uk and america and all across

the uk and america and all across the world have gone to fight and seven british men have fought and died in syria alongside the kurdish people. in defence of their rights and their liberty against islamic state for that she's the first female fighter to die on the front line. so i hope this draws attention to what is going on on the ground that there are people fighting for democracy, equality and freedom that belief in secular, democratic values and international is across the world a re and international is across the world are at their supporting them. so there are good people in syria, we just need to find out who they are. the home office warns that anyonejoining the are. the home office warns that anyone joining the syrian conflict on whatever side can be prosecuted for crimes committed abroad but although it did not happen to you so i wonder how you take the morning. that is right, anyone who goes to syria and joins whatever group, they are responsible for their actions. and i, myself and hundreds of other

brits who have gone out to fight against isis went because we believe in democracy and believe in representative democracy and equality and freedom. we went there knowing that if we did anything inappropriate or wrong in the country that we were liable for prosecution in return. so i'm very supportive of that. sorry to interrupt, it is not about whether you do something wrong in the country but just the fact of you do something wrong in the country butjust the fact of going tojoin the conflict, country butjust the fact of going to join the conflict, that means that you are liable to potential prosecution. potentially, there is no law saying that fighting abroad is illegal, it really is what you get up to what you fight for when you're are there. and at the end of the day and fought for the local people, for democracy. and they're not listed as a terrorist group by the way by any party. they are also supported in fact by the uk and america. britain was fighting in support of the group in iraq. and

what is different of course is that she went out to fight against islamic state. in the past few months turkey has invaded and that is the big problem. turkey considers the group that she joined as an arm of the pkk, a terrorist organisation and hence the bombardment in this pa rt and hence the bombardment in this part of syria. and that is what's so wrong, they're not listed as a terrorist group, not linked with the pkk. the uk and america has said that clearly. turkey at the end of the day is confusing what is going on in syria with its own internal problems. turkey is falling to bits politically, it is arresting journalists and academics. they've long campaign to get rid of assad, long campaign to get rid of assad, long supported jihadists groups in syria. many of the units they had taken from the kurdish people, has already talks of beheading, looting, hundreds of civilians have died. and what we have done is to stop the

fight against islamic state and opened up a whole new front and that is making the civil war even more bloody and brutal and a lot more complex to solve. thank you very much for talking to us. the authorities here have advised that becoming involved with any armed group could lead to arrest and prosecution. some e—mails from you about fixed odds betting terminals. it has been suggested that the maximum stake should be reduced from £100 to £30 left. this person says they've worked in betting shops were 20 yea rs worked in betting shops were 20 years and have seen the change in the industry. all the betting firms wa nt the industry. all the betting firms want to remote f0 bts. the industry. all the betting firms want to remote fobts. the training that the staff had is pathetic, we're told that we have no duty of ca re we're told that we have no duty of care and should not interact with customers if they show signs aggression. i have worked in busy

betting shops that are understaffed and we are too busy with over—the—counter business to monitor what is going on with fobts. another says my son has lost thousands of pounds playing in bookies and believe me no staff member intervenes. they even let people who are drunk gamble thousands of pounds away. the government to decide whether they want to be responsible rather than using this as an indirect form of taxing the vulnerable poor. and another serving less officer who wants to remain anonymous, in the borough i work in police are called to betting shops everyday more than twice a day to drunk customers refusing to leave or damaging the premises. because they've money. these shops are licensed premises and should be regulated more by the government to stop people who are drunk gambling. they also make thousands of pounds per day social should be made to provide security on the door to stop drunk people going in and also remove people causing disturbance

and stop people who are banned from entering. thank you very much for those comments. a number of new victims of child sexual exploitation in telford have come forward over the last week. conservative mp lucy allan said she had been "inundated" with reports since speaking about the issue in parliament. on this programme last week we heard how abuse in the town could be of a greater scale than any other seen in the uk. one victim — holly — told us she'd been abused from the age of 1a. i was in cars that were stopped and searched by the police. with older men. and it was never questioned why i was in there or who i was, my name was never asked. and ijust think if they had been more proactive at points like that, things could have changed earlier. i was also going to the doctor and the youth sexual health clinic a couple of times a week for about three years,

getting the morning after pill. how many times do you think you took the morning after pill? i could not even estimate how many times. dozens, hundreds? you were going twice a week for it? yes, twice a week. over three years? yes. and no one there raised the alarm? no. nothing. did they ask you why you kept coming back? no, nobody asked any questions. and i had two abortions. and also again no questions were asked as to what was going on in my life. i feel if someone had shown that interest, asked me just a few questions, it may have made me speak out. at least just say there is something not quite right going on and i'm not comfortable. but no, nothing was ever said. assistant chief constable martin evans said was pleased that a "small number of victims" have had the confidence to come forward and they were now being given appropriate support.

he confirmed that since 2016 the dedicated cse team in telford has arrested 56 people, resulting in 29 charges, with a number of these investigations still ongoing. tackling child sexual exploitation is the number one priority for police in telford. we have specialist officers and resources in place tackling this type of offending and we are committed to using our resources and technology to pursue anyone who sexual offence against children. whether that offending took place today, last week, or years ago. well telford council are calling on the government to launch a statutory enquiry. we can speak to councillor nicola lowery, conservative councillor for telford and wrekin, who along with four other

councillors has requested an extraordinary general meeting calling on the labour—run council to commission an independent inquiry into child sexual exploitation in telford. and siobhan crawford, associate solicitor at bolt burdon kemp, which specialises in child sexual exploitation claims and who has been speaking to some of the telford victims. you would expect more victims to come forward customer that has been happening, many survivors have been contacting their mp and i hope many contacting their mp and i hope many contact the police. so that they think about the fact that they do not think this is any different from any other town in the country for top as simply because of the media coverage and then the conservative mp speaking in parliament? i think thatis mp speaking in parliament? i think that is a big reason why people are coming forward now. i think what has come out from the expose in the media is that is it's clear they were trying to disclose to people. holly last week going to get the morning after pill twice a week. now one believe them but now they feel the strength to speak out because they will be believed and not thought of as liars. the conservative councillor for telford is here. and you have requested an

extraordinary general meeting calling on the labour run council to commission an independent enquiry into child sexual exploitation in telford. i do think it has not happened so far. thus far we have proposed and we would like the council to commission an independent enquiry to be led and commissioned by the council. but the council has set at the moment, they're called for a statutory enquiry for the government has made it clear if the council feels an enquiry is necessary that they commission and proceed and commit to that themselves. what is the difference if it is commissioned by the local council or a statutory enquiry? main difference would be that the council would not have the statutory powers to compel witnesses to come forward to compel witnesses to come forward to give evidence but we feel from all the agencies that have come forward they are willing to cooperate certainly as part of a wider enquiry. so we feel it is necessary at the moment that the council commit to the enquiry. we've

been calling for this since 2016. so we just feel it is necessary that we get that commitment from the council andi get that commitment from the council and i think all councils are united helpfully on making sure this public enquiry can proceed at the earliest opportunity. and which would better serve the survivors? we just feel and certainly i feel the council commissioned enquiry will enable the council to set the terms of reference and then they would independently appoint a chair or judge and lead the enquiry further the government has been clear from the government has been clear from the beginning that is council feel there still suspicion of abuse taking place that they should lead on this and make sure that victims have their voices heard at this meeting. and as we've heard from the sports coming through from national media, we do not feel at this moment that we fully understand the extent

of sexual abuse in telford. and that is why we have called for this. it has been now over a week since this recent information has come forward on the reporting and we would like to think that all councillors now would agree to proceed with this at the earliest opportunity. you think it is still going on in telford? we do. based on what? mainly from victims that we have heard coming forward in recent weeks. we have heard as well whilst there was recognition from the police that it is still going on in telford and from the council, we just feel those uncovered evidence till coming forward and we would like to make sure as part of a wider havoc and worried that some of the evidence initially presented for scrutiny right at the start but potentially it was not given that scrutiny if needed. that it comes forward as pa rt needed. that it comes forward as part of a much wider public enquiry to make sure those victims are heard as part of this wider enquiry. what did you think of the response of your police force last week when it

was initially suggested that figure is up to 1000 big where sensationalised? i think it is bringing about a wider discussion and also i think the daily mirror have investigated this quite thoroughly and they certainly feel there is a validity behind some of there is a validity behind some of the reporting they have produced. in telford i believe in 2015 there was 250 incidents of sexual offences. and in the recent information they uncovered, over 700 contacts. do you think that the shropshire force are in denial about the scale?|j think that the shropshire force are in denial about the scale? i would not say denial but certainly what we found as part of the rostrum enquiry, police did not understand the scale of what was taking place. and we have felt it was necessary to make sure this enquiry proceeds of the earliest possible opportunity to make sure that those victims are heard. the voices of these victims,

must be heard. they still feel vulnerable locally in telford and it is that essential that they are given a voice as part of this enquiry. as a solicitor specialising in this area, what needs to happen customer they're absolutely needs to be an enquiry but not to piggyback on the national enquiry because i think that will mean survivors will be waiting years for answers as to why they have been down. be waiting years for answers as to why they have been downlj be waiting years for answers as to why they have been down. i think the enquiry needs to be put in place quickly but with proper terms of reference to make sure that they do obtain the answers they need as survivors. thank you both. still to come: we will be looking at how asylum seekers are housed to the country back private companies on government contracts. in 72 english football clu bs a re contracts. in 72 english football clubs are getting together to show you some of the work they do in the community. we hear from you some of the work they do in the community. we hearfrom some of those who have benefited. time for the latest

news — here'sjoanna. the gambling commission has recommended that the maximum stake for fixed—odds betting terminals should be reduced from £100 to £30, or £2 in the case of slot machines. the gambling industry had feared a blanket reduction to £2 and warned such a move would cost thousands of jobs. the gambling commission has also recommended what it calls a "comprehensive package of other measures to protect consumers". official results from russia show president putin has been re—elected with more than 76% of the vote. he told a victory rally that russia must maintain unity following his landslide win, but cctv footage from a number of polling stations appears to show election officials stuffing boxes with ballot papers. international chemical weapons experts have arrived in the uk to test the nerve agent used to poison the former spy sergei skripal and his daughter. president putin says

claims that russia was behind the attacks are nonsense, but boris johnson says russia has been stockpiling novichok for years. the television presenter ant mcpartlin has been arrested on suspicion of drink driving. police say they were called to reports of a collision involving three cars in south—west london yesterday afternoon. a child passenger in one of them was taken to hospital as a precaution. in a statement, scotland yard said a a2 year—old man was arrested at the scene after failing a breathalyser test. a british woman has been killed in northern syria, fighting alongside kurdish forces. it's understood that anna campbell — who was 26 and from lewes in east sussex — died in the town of afrin , which has been the target of a turkish offensive. her father has told the bbc she was idealistic, and knew she was putting her life at risk. that's a summary of the latest bbc news. here's some sport now. rory is back. mcilroy wins his first tournament for 18 months at the arnold palmer invitational. the northern irishman sunk five

birdies in the final six holes to finish on 18 under par, three shots ahead of the field. world number one roger federer‘s winning run has come to an end, after losing the final of indian wells to juan martin del potro. the argentine is the first player to beat federer in 18 matches. former england wingerjosh charnley is returning to rugby league with immediate effect. he spent less than two years with sale sharks in union and has signed for warrington wolves. and england bowler stuart broad tells the bbc that he has no plans to retire from international cricket any time soon. england get their test match against new zealand under way in the early hours of thursday morning. on this programme last year, 21—year—old james casling shared his story with you of how playing football had given him a reason to live after attempting to take his own life several times. my story started three weeks after my 18th birthday,

when i was admitted to the park royal centre for mental health. i had become so ill that for me, life wasn't worth living. at 18, i was ready to die and had made many attempts on my own life. if i had carried on that path, i would not be here today. something had to change. i had to stop destroying myself and actually build myself up again. and that's when football and qpr and the community trust came and saved my life. one morning on the ward, tom, the occupational therapist, woke me up and asked if i wanted to play football. and of course, i said yes. i did not really expect much at first, but i realised i had no boots. so i rang my mum and asked if she could get me some. within hours, she had gone out and bought me a pair. at the time, i did not realise that if my mum did not buy me those boots, things might never have changed and i might have lost my life to my mental illness. all right, take your time.

you've got all the time in the world. so every week i attended training and it gave me hope for the future, so i could be someone my family and friends could be proud of. to me it was notjust football, it was my life. it had given me stuff to build on instead of destroying. i have become stronger and have been beating my demons. every week i put in so much effort that i could not walk for a few days afterwards. it changed me into a better man and it made me want to stay alive so my mum and brothers would not have to bury me. instead, they could say to everyone my son and brother plays for qpr. i have done some amazing things with qpr. my biggest achievement would be that

in my first three seasons at the club, i was top goal—scorer. every time i put a kit on, i was not this little boy any more, i was james, i was free from my demons. unfortunately, others are not so lucky. on may 20th 2010, i lost my father to suicide on my 15th birthday. but i have taken the good from the bad and met amazing people, travelled to places to play football. i get to meet people from other places. for a young boy like me, losing my dad left me confused in this big world. i did not have any sense of direction. my coaches helped me find my way. they stood in my corner. the support i had from them was amazing. i'm just so thankful they became my role models. they showed me i'm worth something. i'm lucky enough to know them. we can never stop people

getting mentally unwell, but we can help them recover with the use of football. it worked for me and many others that i have played for and against and play with. football saved my life. well done. that was james kaz ling last year. he played for qpr's community mental health team. he is doing well. 72 english football league clubs will come together tomorrow for a day of action to highlight the work they do to help change the lives of young people for the better. clubs across the country are holding special events to showcase the work they do to tackle mental health, disabilities and obesity among the young people in their communities through education, health and participation. let's speak now to some of them now: mike evans who is the chief exec let's speak now to some of them now:

paul davies, who takes part in the blackburn rovers social inclusion football programme. he suffered a serious electric shock in his teens which led to him trying to take his own life. marek hyde is part of derby county's active choices programme. he has in the past had substance addiction, been homeless and served time in prison. mike evans is the chief exec of the efl trust, and mel wilkinson from bristol city's youth council, paul, what impact did your accident have on you? did change my life. i really struggled. it changed your life to your detriment. yeah, i tried to take my own life. and then getting in with the football has helped me. in what way? it has given

me structure. it has helped me socialise. i was socially isolated, socialise. i was socially isolated, so it has helped me meet people. the seven yea rs, so it has helped me meet people. the seven years, i didn't play football. i had seven years, i didn't play football. ihada seven years, i didn't play football. i had a void in my life and getting back into football has really helped. what would you say to blackburn rovers for what they provide? they are fantastic. anyone that wants to play, i recommend it. we have around 20 teams now in the league with people from derby county that come down each month. marek, addiction to heroin at one point, time in prison. you went to rehab and then got involved in derby cou nty‘s and then got involved in derby county's active choices programme. what is that about? it is basically an opportunity to play sports, meet

other people, often who have had similar issues to myself, and it has given me loads of opportunities to practise my sports, meet new people. they even put me forward to do the homeless world cup, which is a street football tournament. i went all the way to oslo. so these are amazing opportunities i had never dreams of. and what is the link between playing football, or any sport, but it happens to be football, and you staying away from being attracted to class a drugs or whatever? for me, when i was involved in drugs, i became immersed ina involved in drugs, i became immersed in a lifestyle. i was stuck in a certain group of people and when i came out of that, i felt quite isolated. football has given me the chance to meet other people and build new bridges in the community. and it is good for the soul. that is what we are saying. mel, tell us

about the bristol youth council. so in bristol, we have a youth council which was formed two years ago. there are eight members and we have worked on four elements: women and girls, disability... i have got to think now! social inclusion and holiday camps. and what does that mean for women and girls in the area? it gives women and girls the opportunity to play football. we have a girls' session. we also have a mums group cap mumble. it gives mums the opportunity to play football. i have never heard about that! mumble is a session for munster, london play football. badly? no, we have some brilliant mums playing football. and all of thatis mums playing football. and all of that is about welcoming people in and saying, whoever you are,

whatever your background, join us. exactly. mumble! i love hearing about something new. probably everybody has heard of it except me, so apologies. mike, there is a lot of good stuff going on and it is stuff that you would not necessarily associate with football, because everybody has a preconceived idea, although not necessarily the divisions below the premier league, of money, people who don't care, prima donnas etc. football is a real engagement tool. that is the key to all the projects these guys have talked about. football get people through the door. sometimes people may have been turned down by more traditional services, but football isa traditional services, but football is a more welcoming environment. and once we have got young people engaged, we can do all kinds of different things with them. we work around obesity, health and fitness. we do around obesity, health and fitness. wedoa around obesity, health and fitness. we do a lot of education programmes. and this is each of the 72 clubs?

pretty much. there is variety, so mumble is not happening in 72 places, that is particular to bristol city. but things like the women's and girls football and education programmes are pretty standard among the 72 clubs. these are things that are happening 360 round days a year. and why do you do it? i think football is something back to the communities in which it is based, and they are interested in making them better economically and socially and putting something back. for two hours a week, the football clu b for two hours a week, the football club is perhaps a distraction for local people who are not engaged —— people who are not into football might be annoyed with the trouble on the dust, but for the week, there is amazing work going on in the community. so tomorrow's day of

action is about shining a light on that work. it is going on all the time, but for one day, we want each clu b to time, but for one day, we want each club to focus on a project that they deliver and bring some media attention to it. i have a lot of m essa g es attention to it. i have a lot of messages here. mostly aboutjames, the clip we played. lizzie says, wishing this young man love and strength to keep going. i found wishing this young man love and strength to keep going. ifound his speech moving. donna says, i am in bits and my heart breaks for these young people. iam so bits and my heart breaks for these young people. i am so grateful for the work people like you are doing to help. stewart says, heartbreaking to help. stewart says, heartbreaking to watch this young man's talk about saving his life. if you want to watch the full interview with james, it is on twitter and facebook. so if it is on twitter and facebook. so if it wasn't for the programmes you are involved in, what do you think you would be doing, marek?|j involved in, what do you think you would be doing, marek? i could be in a totally different situation. i have made a lot of friends through football. i have found myself in a community that cares, and i can give

back now that i have the opportunity. i have learned from others. it could be a lot worse. without things to fill my time, i could slip back into addiction. if you feel alone, that is something that can impact on you. and what about you, paul? i don't think i would be here. i have two young boys as well, but i was that bad last year, or housebound. at least now i have a bit of structure. thank you all. thank you for introducing me to mumble! i will investigate further. i recommend it! thank you for your comments about fixed odds betting terminals. david says i have worked

in the betting industry is shop manager and i have had gambling problems myself. i had to leave the job after losing my family because of gambling problems. staff in bookmakers have no interest if customers lose on the fobts, no interest in helping and do what they need to do. they think that the employer thinks they should be doing. i've also seen people making false logs to say they've spoken to people so it appears they are doing what they meant to do. some staff encourage people to play happy to get tips when they swim. personally i hate machines and think they are fixed to make his profits. i think there's no way that you can win on them. i feel there them. ifeel there should be banned from chris says my son has tried self exclusion from betting shops and it does not work. he has filled in forms, provided his photo but not one member of staff is ever

approached him. he wants to be stopped, he says if someone just came over to him he would come out of what he calls his red fog. and what about only being able to use cash in the shops, so easy to people using your card but cash could be a visible deterrent. he is now positive about the effect that hypnotherapy has had on him. landlords are able to prevent people drinking more and what is the difference. thank you for those comments. every year, thousands of asylum seekers enter the uk — both legally and sometimes illegally. when they arrive, most are initially housed in an asylum reception centre while the home office decides whether their case to stay as a refugee in the uk is genuine. one such initial accomodation centre which houses over 200 asylum seekers hasjust opened in derby — despite opposition from local residents. our reporter sean clare bought you his full film earlier in the programme — here's a short extract:

oh, by the way, you're having 2a0 asylum seekers on your doorstep and guess what, you can't do anything about it. they should have come out and spoken to residents properly instead ofjust inviting people to a council meeting and saying this is what we've put in place. they could have sent out leaflets, they could have knocked on doors. they are a big organisation, it is not that they are short of a few quid. they should have consulted people and given that reassurance that, you know what, we're here to work with you. and any concerns you've got, come to us directly so we can answer those concerns and you can get on with life and the refugees here can get on with life. because of the fear of this place i wanted to get out

before it all started. i wish i could turn the clock back. i wish they'd given us more information before everyone panicked. that is my main concern. the information should have been put out there so people like me, people like myself, would have had a better educated response. i don't want this. i haven't signed up for this. i don't want this. you were lucky, you moved. if i could have moved i would have been out of here straightaway. i would not have batted an eyelid about it. i would have been gone. because it's not my cup of tea. at the moment it's all nice, it's all clouds with silver linings. until something drastic happens. if your shop gets broken into, and i came and talked to you tomorrow, what do you think of down here? you'd be like, you know, i don't want to talk about it. we were told this was the building

they would be housed in. it only has one entrance, it is above a pizza shop. we have a lot of children that hang around this area. i think the children would have just handed them. notjust the general public, just the children. at this time of night, now, they would have been gathering outside the pizza shop and it just would have gathering outside the pizza shop and itjust would have escalated. it was not fair, it would not have been there for them let alone the general public here to make us look as though we're horrible and were not. we can speak now to ajit atwal, a local businessman who you saw in that film, the labour mp for the area, chris williamson, and jalloh ibrahima, who has been an asylum seeker — originally from west africa. we invited gas and the home office, but both declined to take part. before being housed asylum seekers,

the place of their houston should be fit for purpose. what you say that. i appreciate concerns but it is the right idea and just in the wrong area. you need to take on board the concerns of the residence and they have been there and they're not happy. nothing wrong with asylum seekers but just in happy. nothing wrong with asylum seekers butjust in the wrong area. chris williamson, what do you say to that? i think we need to remember that? i think we need to remember that asylum seekers are often fleeing horrendous circumstances, war—torn countries, incredible abuse and fearfor their lives. war—torn countries, incredible abuse and fear for their lives. so we're talking about human beings. i think my concern is the lack of consultation of gas with the local community. butjust to address the point of it being the wrong area? he

is one of the residents. well i have spoken to residents and there was some anxiety but —— beforehand partly because of lack of information. but now they are saying they do not quite know what the fuss has all been about. i think there is an issue about the asylum system in this country, that it is not fit for purpose and is being used as a cash cow for private sector organisations like gas. that is part of the problem, these initial accommodation centres a re problem, these initial accommodation centres are only meant to accommodate people for up to 19 days but often people get stuck in these inadequate centres for far longer. in this case, normally they are meant to be provided with three meals a day. because this centre does not lend itself to that, people

arejust given £35 does not lend itself to that, people are just given £35 to pay for all of their needs and then have to rely on their needs and then have to rely on the third sector or other support that people need. what would you say to that? i would say through experience, i would say the problem with asylum housing is the private companies, i do not think the issue is with the home office because i believe the home office do pay big money for asylum seekers to be housed. part of the issue is in this, in some parts of the country asylu m this, in some parts of the country asylum seekers are not welcome. how do you feel about that?|j asylum seekers are not welcome. how do you feel about that? i think people should start to think about asylu m people should start to think about asylum seekers as human beings as well. we are human beings as well.

the people should not cs asjust asylu m the people should not cs asjust asylum seekers but as human beings. that is what i would say. going back to the point, it is not the issue with the asylum seekers but it is gas, they are the biggest concern in our area, lack of consultation. and we have seen their track record down the country for that everything they put their hands on they've messed up so can residents in the area have any faith so can residents in the area have anyfaith in any faith in gas running the operation. we have just any faith in gas running the operation. we havejust two any faith in gas running the operation. we have just two security guards but you have more than that ofa guards but you have more than that of a nightclub. but there have been no reported problems with the centre. but it is early days and if there is the situation, will gas ta ke there is the situation, will gas take responsibility because at the moment they do not seem to be consulting with anyone. they say they held up public consultation event and they give regular state m e nts event and they give regular statements to local newspapers, yet

held a public meeting to update local residents on the progress of the centre. what else should they have done? they should have come on this programme. they said they have done all the things that you require. let's get back to their track record up and down the country. are you satisfied with the way they operate. we're just talking about the centre in your area. and you're saying there could be problems in the future. so far all has gone well. i hope it stays that way. and there are no problems. but i'm just brilliant the concerns raised by the resident and they are scared of the page are not want to be in this situation. we do know who has come from where, that is cause for concern. i think gas could be more proactive in their consultation, i think that they were pushed into it. they had an event, public meetings. i think they do

more “— public meetings. i think they do more —— they need to do more to reassure people notjust have one event. they say they consulted but residents but it was discovered they had not. it was only when the local council and community made representations that they accepted they had not done what they claim to have done. i think we have one consultation but they need to do far more to reassure people. we have breaking news, i'm sorry. thank you everyone. the gambling commission this morning published its proposal for reform of the rules for what critics say are highly addictive and machine. the watchdog is calling on government to reduce the maximum sta ke government to reduce the maximum stake on fixed odds betting terminals from £100 to £30 less. gary got in touch this morning and he lost £1500 on these terminals in one hour on saturday. in total he says he spent around £70,000 on

them. good morning. do you think that reducing the maximum stake from £100 to £30 or less would make a difference to someone like you?m would and it has to be a lot less than £30, it has to be £2. the government have it in their power to reduce it to £2. the £30 or less is just the recommendation from the gambling commission. why would you say to government a need to bring it down to £2? because many people who spend £30 will still get a buzz on one spin put up whether it is a win ora one spin put up whether it is a win or a loss. on £2 you would not get out, you just lose interest. it is the only form of gambling that i have been addicted to that i like. if that was curbed i would be happy. just explain how it is possible to lose £1500 in 60 minutes on one of these things. how did you manage

that on saturday? i was given £50 per spin which lasts about 20 seconds. if you just go through a series of not hitting your selected numbers it is gone very quickly. and you paid with cash or a card question and withdrew £300 in cash, i put the cash in the machine and then loaded the betting terminal with £200 a time on my bank card. well we will see what happens, thank you very much. just to mention one more thing, a lot of the times i've used my partner bank card to load the machines as well, £200 a time for that i have never been challenged. my name is gary, her name is helen, it is pretty obvious but i was never challenged. and does a member of staff actually look at the card? they have looked at it but

never challenged it. that isjust bizarre. the regulations arejust never challenged it. that isjust bizarre. the regulations are just so poon bizarre. the regulations are just so poor. thank you very much. appreciate you coming on. on a programme tomorrow, losing your hair when you're young and the impact it can avenue. thank you for watching today. back tomorrow at nine o'clock. have a good day. — the impact it can have on you. a lot of lying snow around this morning but it will be a brighter day and we had some problems with ice over the next couple of days. but we are starting to see some sunshine coming through, a bit more ina way sunshine coming through, a bit more in a way of cloud in the south of england. still a little bit of snow before that queers towards the south. a lot of dry and bright weather across the uk as we move through the afternoon. some showers

over the northern isles. it is quite breezy in the south with the wind. as the guthrie tonight it stays breezy in the south, the cloud increasing from the north with one to wintry showers moving in from the east. clearer skies for the north west, northern ireland and parts of scotla nd west, northern ireland and parts of scotland to have a very cold night to come and cold frosty start again tomorrow. mostly dry day with a few showers in the east, eyes of nine celsius. — highs. this is bbc news — and these are the top stories developing at 11am:

chemical weapons experts arrive in salisbury to test the nerve agent used to poison sergei skripal and his daughter in salisbury. president putin — newly re—elected — says the idea of russian involvement in the attack was "unimaginable". borisjohnson says the denials are growing "increasingly absurd." i think what people can see is that this is a classic russian strategy of trying to conceal the needle of truth in a haystack of lies and obfuscation. hopes rise for an agreement between the eu and the uk over the brexit transition period. the brexit secretary david davis and the eu's chief negotiator michel