Summary

  • Businessman and ex-Royal Navy officer Charles Howeson to face trial

  • Police precept increase supported by panel

  • Hooded gang 'hate attack' on man in 60s

  • Man dies in Penzance tree crash

  • Swimmer dies after getting into difficulty

  • Truro stabbing: Boy, 16, guilty of wounding GBH

  • Transgender people 'face two-year consultation wait'

  • Instow could be first British beach to lose bathing water status

  • Updates from Monday 29 January 2018 until Friday 2 February 2018

  1. Bottleneck 'could be eased with £290m dualling'published at 07:20 Greenwich Mean Time 29 January 2018

    BBC Radio Cornwall

    A public consultation into plans for eradicating a notorious bottleneck on the A30 in Cornwall begins later., external

    Car

    Highways England plans to dual the eight-mile (13km) stretch between the roundabouts at Carland Cross and Chiverton Cross.

    If the plans are agreed, it will cost £290m and will open by late 2022.

    Business leaders believe better roads and a reduction in queuing traffic could help to boost the economy.

    Hauliers have welcomed the plans saying it should cut costs.

  2. Rural areas 'left out on legal aid'published at 07:14 Greenwich Mean Time 29 January 2018

    BBC Spotlight

    Cornwall MP Derek Thomas is calling on the government to review legal aid provision - amid concerns vulnerable people in rural areas are struggling to access it.

    Legal

    There were protests four years ago over cost-cutting reforms that included reducing the types of civil cases that could be publicly funded.

    In Cornwall, figures show the number of legal aid lawyers and the number of cases started has since dropped dramatically.

  3. 'I was addicted to pulling my hair out'published at 07:11 Greenwich Mean Time 29 January 2018

    Megan Malone says it stopped her doing things she loved.

    Read More
  4. 'Focus on quality' tourism firms toldpublished at 07:05 Greenwich Mean Time 29 January 2018

    BBC Radio Devon

    Businesses relying on tourism in the South West are being encouraged to invest in what they offer.

    Hotel

    Andy Banner-Price, owner of a luxury boutique B&B in Torquay, warns simply competing on price leads to a "downward spiral".

    He is urging businesses to focus on quality, in order to lift the feel of resorts and entice people to return to holiday destinations.

  5. Baby burrowing owls join birds of prey at falconry centrepublished at 07:03 Greenwich Mean Time 29 January 2018

    BBC Radio Devon

    Two tiny burrowing owls have hatched at a falconry centre in Devon.

    Owls

    The species is usually found in North and South America in grasslands and deserts, but these chicks hatched at Woodlands Family Theme Park near Dartmouth.

    The pair hatched two days apart earlier this month and have been named Ernie and Els.

    When they grow up they'll join the falconry display team.