Wednesday, May 13, 2009

In tonight's programme

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WEDNESDAY 13 MAY - 22.30 GMT - BBC TWO



From Liz Mackean:

Tonight, two years after Newsnight began investigating the toxic waste scandal in Ivory Coast, we can finally tell you just what it was that tipped on the streets and in the waterways of Abidjan, its biggest city. Tens of thousands of people fell sick and 16 died in the aftermath of the dumping.
The company which owned the waste, a giant oil trading operation called Trafigura, has always denied any wrongdoing, assuring this programme that its waste was "smelly...not dangerous."
But we have seen an official analysis into the waste carried out by the authorities in Amsterdam where Trafigura had first tried to offload the waste. The analysis lists a chemical cocktail that is most certainly dangerous. We consulted an independent toxicologist who told us if the stuff had been tipped in London, millions would be sick and the smell would be detectable as far as the M25 ring.
Trafigura is being prosecuted in Amsterdam. Court action is also starting in London, where 30,000 Abidjanis are suing the company for damages. We will bring you the latest on this story, from Abidjan and Amsterdam. We can also reveal allegations of witness nobbling, some of the key claimants say attempts were made to get them to change their statements. Read more about this story here.

Also on the programme, we will have the latest on MPs' expenses and will ask three prospective MPs whether they still want the job!

And it's round three of our Immigrant Song Contest. A Somali rapper and a Polish heavy metal band tell us their stories about coming to Britain and they will each perform a cover version of a famous Eurovision hit ahead of tomorrow night's glittering final.

You can read more about the competition in this feature by host Tim Samuels and watch round one and round two if you missed them earlier in the week.

Join Jeremy Paxman for all that at 10.30pm on BBC Two

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