File on 4 Investigates

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Criminal Records? May 29, 2018

Show notes

Knife crime in England and Wales rose by a fifth last year, with stabbings in London at their highest level for a decade. So far this year, there have been more than 30 fatal stabbings in the capital - with knife injuries amongst young people also on the rise.

What lies behind the rise in violence is complex with cuts in police numbers, use of stop and search, rise in mental health issues and a lack of youth services being cited as contributing factors.

But Britain's most senior police officer, Cressida Dick, also says that social media is also partly to blame, with sites like You Tube, Snapchat and Instagram "allowing young people to go from 'slightly angry with each other' to 'fight' very quickly"

Relatives of victims - and judges in murder trials - also claim a form of hip hop, where rappers make threats to other gangs - and keep scores of killings - is helping fuel the bloodshed. It's called Drill.

When announcing a new strategy to tackle serious violence, the former Home Secretary Amber Rudd asked musicians to have a "positive influence" on young people, and to move away from lyrics which glamorise violence.

File on Four investigates this world of violence playing out online - and on our streets.

Reporter: Paul Connolly Producers: Emma Forde and Mick Tucker Development Producer: Oliver Newlan Editor: Gail Champion.

The Lost Children of Marianvale May 23, 2018

Show notes

During much of the 20th century unmarried women who became pregnant faced being condemned, stigmatised and shunned by their communities.

Across the Republic and Northern Ireland thousands of women and girls were sent to mother and baby homes to give birth in secret and then gave their babies over for adoption.

For some women, the homes which were mostly run by the Catholic Church, provided sanctuary and a chance for them to rebuild their lives.

But others have claimed they were subjected to human rights abuses which culminated in seeing their babies taken from them and adopted out without their consent.

File on 4 investigates one such former institution in Northern Ireland - Marianvale in Newry - and hears concerns over the conditions and practices at the home which closed in 1984.

Now some of the children adopted from the home are in a race against time to find their birth mothers before they pass away. Some claim they face a trail of secrecy and obfuscation and there are growing calls for a public inquiry to provide answers about the extent of alleged forced adoption practices within Northern Ireland.

File on 4 asks whether enough is being done to provide answers for some women who went into Northern Ireland's mother and baby homes and for the babies they never saw again.

Reporter: Michael Buchanan Producer: Ben Robinson Editor: Gail Champion.

The Invisible Man of Britain’s Far Right May 04, 2018

Show notes

Simon Cox investigates the anti-immigration, anti-Muslim organisation Knights Templar International - not to be confused with the medieval Knights Templar organisation. In a recent interview its front man Jim Dowson described KTI as a "militant Christian organisation". KTI posts regular ads on social media to recruit new members and seek donations to fight what Dowson calls the "war between militant Islam and Christianity". In a recent interview he warned "we are going towards a war in the West. We want to make sure when people hit the streets, militias will form. The Templar way is to train men up in everything - we have training course in video journalism, military stuff". With the money raised KTI buys paramilitary equipment which is sent to places like Northern Kosovo where British troops are still stationed to keep the peace between the Muslim Kosovo Albanian community and Orthodox Christian Serbians. Last year Dowson was banned from Hungary for being a threat to national security. The British anti-racism NGO Hope not Hate warns "he (Dowson) and his organisation tread a very fine line between antagonising people's fears, stirring up and stoking people's fears. He is the 'Mr Slippery' of the far-right world in Europe". Within the far right community Dowson is a familiar figure but more generally he has kept a fairly low profile and has been dubbed in media reports "the invisible man of Britain's far right". Concern about the activities of Dowson and Knights Templar International is growing across Europe as the organisation recruits more members to its cause and threatens the peace in some of the most volatile regions.

A Place of Safety? Mar 20, 2018

Show notes

Simon Cox investigates a series of failures in a mental health trust. Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust was formed last year from two former trusts.

It provides mental health and community services to patients. Some of whom say there are serious problems at the trust. Some say they don't feel safe on wards, there have been a series of suicides and now there are serious new allegations emerging.

The trust says safety is its top priority and its making progress and improving.

But the programme hears from patients and their families who feel they are being let down.

Reporter: Simon Cox Producer: Anna Meisel Editor: Gail Champion

Assistance for Patients: The Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust has set up a helpline for any patients or concerned families. The number is is 01268-739182. It will be available from 8pm on Tuesday 20 March 2018.

There are also other organisations which can assist via the BBC Actionline:

Addiction: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1kS7QTDB16PWkywhsXJLzxz/information-and-support-addiction-alcohol-drugs-and-gambling

Emotional distress / suicide: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4WLs5NlwrySXJR2n8Snszdg/emotional-distress-information-and-support

Mental health: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1NGvFrTqWChr03LrYlw2Hkk/information-and-support-mental-health

Sexual abuse: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/22VVM5LPrf3pjYdKqctmMXn/information-and-support.

Squalid Prisons - Who's to Blame? Mar 13, 2018

Show notes

The collapse of the construction giant Carillion has focused attention on the contracts it had with the Government, one of which involved cleaning, landscaping and maintenance at 50 prisons in the south of England.

The prison contract came into effect in 2015, but within months major problems started to emerge, as prisoners, staff and inspectors reported long delays in getting cells, windows and toilets repaired.

The Ministry of Justice acknowledged that Carillion was under-performing and ordered the company to pay back millions of pounds - but its contract was allowed to continue until the work was taken in-house after the firm folded last month.

There've also been growing concerns about another contractor, Amey, which has a maintenance contract at 61 prisons in the north of England, the Midlands and Wales.

Amey's work came under the spotlight at Liverpool Jail which was described in a recent report as "squalid", with prisoners living in damp, dirty and cockroach-infested conditions.

The contracts, which are worth £200 million over five years, were intended to deliver savings of £115 million.

But Ministers have admitted that the Government won't achieve the economies it wanted to because it under-estimated how much it costs to maintain jails.

They say the new government-owned facilities management company which has taken on Carillion's work will secure "significant improvements" and have pledged to strengthen the management and oversight of its contract with Amey to deliver a better service.

But the Prison Officers Association says the failure to maintain prisons properly has fuelled frustration behind bars, contributed to increasing levels of violence and endangered the health and welfare of inmates.

File on 4 explores the background to the prisons maintenance contracts, the impact out-sourcing has had on prisoners, staff and the public and whether the solution lies in greater state control, an end to private sector involvement or more investment.

Reporter: Danny Shaw Producer: Sally Chesworth Editor: Gail Champion.

The Missing Bitcoin Billions Mar 07, 2018

Show notes

As controversy rages around whether the Bitcoin bubble is about to burst, File on 4 investigates the mystery of the missing Bitcoin billions.

In 2014 one of the world's biggest Bitcoin exchanges - Mt Gox - suddenly stopped trading and filed for bankruptcy. It then announced that thousands of Bitcoins with a value of almost half a billion pounds had gone missing, leaving customers out of pocket and wondering what had gone on. For a while that remained a mystery, but recently US investigators have revealed that another exchange was involved - and there had been a huge Bitcoin theft...

What transpires is a murky transnational tale spanning Russia, Europe, Japan and the United States.

In a case which shines a light on the darkest corners of online trading Geoff White tells the story of the real-life digital crime drama which shocked the cryptocurrency world.

Reporter: Geoff White Producer: Nicola Dowling Editor: Gail Champion.

Disclosing the Truth Feb 27, 2018

Show notes

The Police and the Crown Prosecution Service have been accused of failing to disclose important information in several recent high profile sexual assault cases.

But Allan Urry asks if the current disquiet about disclosure should also extend to the Magistrates' Courts where almost all criminal cases start off. Some defence lawyers say evidence that could be helpful to their clients' cases is being with-held and are they're concerned that justice isn't always being served.

Reporter: Allan Urry Producer: Alys Harte Editor: Gail Champion.

On the Critical List? Britain's Ageing Hospitals Feb 20, 2018

Show notes

Can the NHS afford to run and replace its ageing hospitals?

Many hospitals are crumbling and have huge backlogs of required maintenance work. It affects patients - sometimes life-saving operations are being cancelled due to lack of capacity - or practical problems such as leaks or faulty air conditioning.

Money from capital budgets has been used to plug gaps in day to day spending - meaning an ever growing black hole of building work is backing up. So where to get the money?

The Government is adopting plans which would encourage NHS trusts to sell off spare land and try to get money for new buildings from the commercial sector.

But private finance initiatives are no longer an option. Trust deficits make borrowing difficult and hospital leaders say its difficult to get access to the money they need - like wading through treacle, one says - because of perverse rules and regulations.

So how should we pay for much needed life support for our hospitals?

Reporter: Lesley Curwen Producer: Rob Cave Editor: Gail Champion.

Dying on the Streets Feb 13, 2018

Show notes

The homeless being denied end of life care.

File on 4 hears the stories of the terminally ill left to die in hostels and on the street.

An estimated 4751 people will sleep rough tonight in England. Many are seriously, even terminally ill.

If you're living on the streets, who will care for you when the end comes?

File on 4 hears from homeless people living with life threatening illness, who can't find a regular bed for the night, let alone a place where their medical needs can be met.

A bed in a nursing home or hospice is usually not available to them. Hostels are left to do their best for the dying. But they say they aren't trained or equipped to give people a dignified death.

We speak to those battling to get homeless people basic medical care. And hear how when services fail, people are left to die on the street.

Reporter: Jane Deith Producer: Emma Forde Editor: Gail Champion.

Potters Bar, Ukraine's stolen billions and the Eurovision connection Feb 06, 2018

Show notes

UK companies are being used to launder dirty money as new transparency rules are flouted. One, registered in a Hertfordshire commuter town, helped the circle of Ukraine's disgraced ex-president profit from last year's Eurovision Song Contest, a File on 4 investigation has found.

Billions of pounds of dirty money is alleged to have passed through opaque UK companies in recent years, over 100 of them registered at the same Potters Bar address. Tim Whewell follows the trail of one company linked to the regime of former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych, who fled the country for Russia four years ago after anti-corruption protests in Kiev's Maidan square.

Can new transparency requirements for British firms help find the people really behind the company?

Presenter: Tim Whewell Producer: Simon Maybin Editor: Gail Champion.

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