FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4069665

LEAD IN:

Virtual and augmented reality, health technology and mobile tech are taking centre stage at the annual TechCrunch Disrupt startup event in London.

According to a recent report, the British capital remains Europe's biggest tech hub despite the recent 'Leave' EU vote.

Experts say how migration is managed once Britain leaves the 28-nation bloc could be pivotal for the city's future tech scene.

STORY-LINE:

During London's 2012 Olympic Games, the Copper Box Arena hosted fencing duels and handball matches.

Four years on, a completely different type of competition is hotting up.

At TechCrunch Disrupt London, an annual tech conference, fledgling companies are competing for venture capitalists' attention in 'Start-Up Alley' and 'Battlefield' areas.

The 'Startup Battlefield' gives entrants the chance to feverishly pitch their company to a panel of judges. The winning team takes away a prize of 50,000 US dollars.

Virtual reality is a hot tech trend currently, but high-cost headsets mean many are yet to sample premium VR content.

Poland-based RiftCat is aiming to change that.

Its developers created PC technology that allows gamers to play high-quality VR games through simple mobile VR viewers like Google Cardboard.

VRidge - as it's called - is intended to act as a bridge between mobile and PC VR content.

"When you have two branches of virtual reality, the PC VR and mobile VR and they both have their advantages and disadvantages - PC VR is the highest quality, but it's expensive and mobile VR is cheap because you can use your phone and put it, you have only the lenses, but it has not that much capability," explains Marek Antoniuk from RiftCat.

"So, basically we are making a bridge in between these two worlds."

Hot on the heels of virtual reality, augmented reality - or AR - is becoming a popular topic following the global success of smartphone game 'Pokemon Go'.

Liverpool-based SwapBots created an augmented reality game which seemingly brings simple cardboard toys to life.

Users can combine boxes to create different characters, there's a variety of single and multiplayer games for players to explore.

"When you're young yourself, you imagine your toys coming to life," explains Phil Charnock from SwapBots.

"And now you can - I won't say replace your imagination - but you can kind of see your imagination living on the screen.

"You can see the toy itself, starting to move around, see them battle with each other and I think that's an incredible thing to be feeding kids' imaginations like that."

Medtech company xRapid is demonstrating its automated diagnostic smartphone app, designed to diagnose diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis.

Using the smartphone's camera and when connected to a microscope, the app deploys digital imaging and artificial intelligence to analyse smear tests.

It's claimed the technology is particularly useful in remote areas, far from trained doctors or a reliable internet connection.

"We take a blood sample, we use any kind of microscope and with the iPhone app that we developed, we can tell you if you are sick or not, give all the important details to the doctor to give the right diagnostic and the right treatment to patients," explains Charles Van Overmeire from xRapid.

Seoul-based Attocube is demonstrating its smartphone-connected wooden blocks, designed to inspire and educate young minds.

Players are challenged to create various letters, numbers and shapes using cubes decorated with different geometric patterns.

The idea is to boost creativity and problem solving while still giving children screen time.

"We created this cube and children learn the alphabet or numbers or images and create different patterns, and they make more and more creative, and (the) brain strengthens, yeah," explains Johnny Moon from Attocube.

London-based Firef.ly is demonstrating its mobile travel app which combines planning, guides and journals all in one place.

Users can browse guidebooks, add locations to Buck Lists, shoot and embed videos and photos onto a map, and tailor digital postcards for friends and family back home.

The idea is to provide all smartphone-enabled travellers require in one app.

"You look at Facebook, it's great for peeling through somebody's wall, but it's a sporadic hit of a bunch of different things, it doesn't join up the story," explains Chad Cribbins from Firef.ly.

"So, ours is uniquely dedicated to a journal of your travels, that you can peel back through time.

"So, all these lines that we capture, over months and months, even just living in London, becomes an interesting narrative for you to hold onto."

Despite Britain's recent 'Leave' EU vote, London appears to be maintaining its place as Europe's tech capital.

According to the recent 'State of European Tech' report by tech investment firm Atomico, London boasts over 300,000 developers.

French capital Paris came in second with over 134,000 - less than half London's total.

"It still remains, whatever you want to say about Brexit or anything else, London and the UK is still the biggest hub of startup ecosystems in the whole of Europe and that's really not going to change anytime soon," says Mike Butcher from tech website TechCrunch.

Despite that, Butcher says how Britain handles migration once it exits the 28-nation bloc could be pivotal for London's startup scene.

"It's going to be about talent because migration and skilled migration are hugely at the core of startups," he says.

"You know, the two things that affect startups are money and talent, and talent is really going to be affected by Brexit, how people get visas, how people access the UK, and how people are able to hire into the UK.

"Brexit is absolutely the core of this conversation about startups today."

TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 runs 5-6 December at the Copper Box Arena in London's Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

London, UK - 5 December 2016

1. High wide shot of TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 show floor

2. Wide of booths and attendees

3. Tilt down from 'Startup Battlefield' sign to show floor

4. Various of Marek Antoniuk, RiftCat, demonstrating RiftCat VRidge virtual reality technology

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Marek Antoniuk, RiftCat:

"When you have two branches of virtual reality, the PC VR and mobile VR and they both have their advantages and disadvantages - PC VR is the highest quality, but it's expensive and mobile VR is cheap because you can use your phone and put it, you have only the lenses, but it has not that much capability. So, basically we are making a bridge in between these two worlds."

6. Low shot of attendee removing virtual reality headset

7. Various of Phil Charnock, SwapBots, demonstrating SwapBots augmented reality toys

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Phil Charnock, SwapBots:

"When you're young yourself, you imagine your toys coming to life. And now you can - I won't say replace your imagination - but you can kind of see your imagination actually living on the screen. You can see the toy itself, starting to move around, see them battle with each other and I think that's an incredible thing to be feeding kids' imaginations like that."

9. Pull out from SwapBots toy to tablet showing augmented reality technology

10. Various of Charles Van Overmeire, xRapid, demonstrating xRapid automated diagnostic app with microscope

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Charles Van Overmeire, xRapid:

"We take a blood sample, we use any kind of microscope and with the iPhone app that we developed, we can tell you if you are sick or not, we give all the important details to the doctor to give the right diagnostic and the right treatment to patients."

12. Various of Johnny Moon, Attocube, demonstrating Attocube smartphone-connected wooden block learning game

13. Tilt up of smartphone showing Attocube app and complete letter 'D'

14. Pull out of blocks showing completed letter 'D'

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Johnny Moon, Attocube:

"We created this cube and children learn the alphabet or numbers or images and create different patterns, and they make more and more creative, and (the) brain strengthens, yeah."

16. Various of Chad Cribbins, Firef.ly, demonstrating Firef.ly travel smartphone app

17. SOUNDBITE (English) Chad Cribbins, Firef.ly:

"You look at Facebook, it's great for peeling through somebody's wall, but it's a sporadic hit of a bunch of different things, it doesn't join up the story. So, ours is uniquely dedicated to a journal of your travels, that you can peel back through time. So, all these lines that we capture, over months and months, even just living in London, becomes an interesting narrative for you to hold onto."

18. Wide tilt down to TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 show floor

19. Wide of sign, reading (English): 'Startup Battlefield'

20. Various of booths and attendees

21. SOUNDBITE (English) Mike Butcher, Editor At Large, TechCrunch:

"It still remains, whatever you want to say about Brexit or anything else, London and the UK is still the biggest hub of startup ecosystems in the whole of Europe and that's really not going to change anytime soon."

22. Various of booths and attendees

23. SOUNDBITE (English) Mike Butcher, Editor At Large, TechCrunch:

"It's going to be about talent because migration and skilled migration are hugely at the core of startups. You know, the two things that affect startups are money and talent, and talent is really going to be affected by Brexit, how people get visas, how people access the UK, and how people are able to hire into the UK. Brexit is absolutely the core of this conversation about startups today."

24. Tilt down to TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 show floor

25. Close of tank robot toy moving

LEAD IN:

Virtual and augmented reality, health technology and mobile tech are taking centre stage at the annual TechCrunch Disrupt startup event in London.

According to a recent report, the British capital remains Europe's biggest tech hub despite the recent 'Leave' EU vote.

Experts say how migration is managed once Britain leaves the 28-nation bloc could be pivotal for the city's future tech scene.

STORY-LINE:

During London's 2012 Olympic Games, the Copper Box Arena hosted fencing duels and handball matches.

Four years on, a completely different type of competition is hotting up.

At TechCrunch Disrupt London, an annual tech conference, fledgling companies are competing for venture capitalists' attention in 'Start-Up Alley' and 'Battlefield' areas.

The 'Startup Battlefield' gives entrants the chance to feverishly pitch their company to a panel of judges. The winning team takes away a prize of 50,000 US dollars.

Virtual reality is a hot tech trend currently, but high-cost headsets mean many are yet to sample premium VR content.

Poland-based RiftCat is aiming to change that.

Its developers created PC technology that allows gamers to play high-quality VR games through simple mobile VR viewers like Google Cardboard.

VRidge - as it's called - is intended to act as a bridge between mobile and PC VR content.

"When you have two branches of virtual reality, the PC VR and mobile VR and they both have their advantages and disadvantages - PC VR is the highest quality, but it's expensive and mobile VR is cheap because you can use your phone and put it, you have only the lenses, but it has not that much capability," explains Marek Antoniuk from RiftCat.

"So, basically we are making a bridge in between these two worlds."

Hot on the heels of virtual reality, augmented reality - or AR - is becoming a popular topic following the global success of smartphone game 'Pokemon Go'.

Liverpool-based SwapBots created an augmented reality game which seemingly brings simple cardboard toys to life.

Users can combine boxes to create different characters, there's a variety of single and multiplayer games for players to explore.

"When you're young yourself, you imagine your toys coming to life," explains Phil Charnock from SwapBots.

"And now you can - I won't say replace your imagination - but you can kind of see your imagination living on the screen.

"You can see the toy itself, starting to move around, see them battle with each other and I think that's an incredible thing to be feeding kids' imaginations like that."

Medtech company xRapid is demonstrating its automated diagnostic smartphone app, designed to diagnose diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis.

Using the smartphone's camera and when connected to a microscope, the app deploys digital imaging and artificial intelligence to analyse smear tests.

It's claimed the technology is particularly useful in remote areas, far from trained doctors or a reliable internet connection.

"We take a blood sample, we use any kind of microscope and with the iPhone app that we developed, we can tell you if you are sick or not, give all the important details to the doctor to give the right diagnostic and the right treatment to patients," explains Charles Van Overmeire from xRapid.

Seoul-based Attocube is demonstrating its smartphone-connected wooden blocks, designed to inspire and educate young minds.

Players are challenged to create various letters, numbers and shapes using cubes decorated with different geometric patterns.

The idea is to boost creativity and problem solving while still giving children screen time.

"We created this cube and children learn the alphabet or numbers or images and create different patterns, and they make more and more creative, and (the) brain strengthens, yeah," explains Johnny Moon from Attocube.

London-based Firef.ly is demonstrating its mobile travel app which combines planning, guides and journals all in one place.

Users can browse guidebooks, add locations to Buck Lists, shoot and embed videos and photos onto a map, and tailor digital postcards for friends and family back home.

The idea is to provide all smartphone-enabled travellers require in one app.

"You look at Facebook, it's great for peeling through somebody's wall, but it's a sporadic hit of a bunch of different things, it doesn't join up the story," explains Chad Cribbins from Firef.ly.

"So, ours is uniquely dedicated to a journal of your travels, that you can peel back through time.

"So, all these lines that we capture, over months and months, even just living in London, becomes an interesting narrative for you to hold onto."

Despite Britain's recent 'Leave' EU vote, London appears to be maintaining its place as Europe's tech capital.

According to the recent 'State of European Tech' report by tech investment firm Atomico, London boasts over 300,000 developers.

French capital Paris came in second with over 134,000 - less than half London's total.

"It still remains, whatever you want to say about Brexit or anything else, London and the UK is still the biggest hub of startup ecosystems in the whole of Europe and that's really not going to change anytime soon," says Mike Butcher from tech website TechCrunch.

Despite that, Butcher says how Britain handles migration once it exits the 28-nation bloc could be pivotal for London's startup scene.

"It's going to be about talent because migration and skilled migration are hugely at the core of startups," he says.

"You know, the two things that affect startups are money and talent, and talent is really going to be affected by Brexit, how people get visas, how people access the UK, and how people are able to hire into the UK.

"Brexit is absolutely the core of this conversation about startups today."

TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 runs 5-6 December at the Copper Box Arena in London's Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

London, UK - 5 December 2016

1. High wide shot of TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 show floor

2. Wide of booths and attendees

3. Tilt down from 'Startup Battlefield' sign to show floor

4. Various of Marek Antoniuk, RiftCat, demonstrating RiftCat VRidge virtual reality technology

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Marek Antoniuk, RiftCat:

"When you have two branches of virtual reality, the PC VR and mobile VR and they both have their advantages and disadvantages - PC VR is the highest quality, but it's expensive and mobile VR is cheap because you can use your phone and put it, you have only the lenses, but it has not that much capability. So, basically we are making a bridge in between these two worlds."

6. Low shot of attendee removing virtual reality headset

7. Various of Phil Charnock, SwapBots, demonstrating SwapBots augmented reality toys

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Phil Charnock, SwapBots:

"When you're young yourself, you imagine your toys coming to life. And now you can - I won't say replace your imagination - but you can kind of see your imagination actually living on the screen. You can see the toy itself, starting to move around, see them battle with each other and I think that's an incredible thing to be feeding kids' imaginations like that."

9. Pull out from SwapBots toy to tablet showing augmented reality technology

10. Various of Charles Van Overmeire, xRapid, demonstrating xRapid automated diagnostic app with microscope

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Charles Van Overmeire, xRapid:

"We take a blood sample, we use any kind of microscope and with the iPhone app that we developed, we can tell you if you are sick or not, we give all the important details to the doctor to give the right diagnostic and the right treatment to patients."

12. Various of Johnny Moon, Attocube, demonstrating Attocube smartphone-connected wooden block learning game

13. Tilt up of smartphone showing Attocube app and complete letter 'D'

14. Pull out of blocks showing completed letter 'D'

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Johnny Moon, Attocube:

"We created this cube and children learn the alphabet or numbers or images and create different patterns, and they make more and more creative, and (the) brain strengthens, yeah."

16. Various of Chad Cribbins, Firef.ly, demonstrating Firef.ly travel smartphone app

17. SOUNDBITE (English) Chad Cribbins, Firef.ly:

"You look at Facebook, it's great for peeling through somebody's wall, but it's a sporadic hit of a bunch of different things, it doesn't join up the story. So, ours is uniquely dedicated to a journal of your travels, that you can peel back through time. So, all these lines that we capture, over months and months, even just living in London, becomes an interesting narrative for you to hold onto."

18. Wide tilt down to TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 show floor

19. Wide of sign, reading (English): 'Startup Battlefield'

20. Various of booths and attendees

21. SOUNDBITE (English) Mike Butcher, Editor At Large, TechCrunch:

"It still remains, whatever you want to say about Brexit or anything else, London and the UK is still the biggest hub of startup ecosystems in the whole of Europe and that's really not going to change anytime soon."

22. Various of booths and attendees

23. SOUNDBITE (English) Mike Butcher, Editor At Large, TechCrunch:

"It's going to be about talent because migration and skilled migration are hugely at the core of startups. You know, the two things that affect startups are money and talent, and talent is really going to be affected by Brexit, how people get visas, how people access the UK, and how people are able to hire into the UK. Brexit is absolutely the core of this conversation about startups today."

24. Tilt down to TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 show floor

25. Close of tank robot toy moving

LEAD IN:

Virtual and augmented reality, health technology and mobile tech are taking centre stage at the annual TechCrunch Disrupt startup event in London.

According to a recent report, the British capital remains Europe's biggest tech hub despite the recent 'Leave' EU vote.

Experts say how migration is managed once Britain leaves the 28-nation bloc could be pivotal for the city's future tech scene.

STORY-LINE:

During London's 2012 Olympic Games, the Copper Box Arena hosted fencing duels and handball matches.

Four years on, a completely different type of competition is hotting up.

At TechCrunch Disrupt London, an annual tech conference, fledgling companies are competing for venture capitalists' attention in 'Start-Up Alley' and 'Battlefield' areas.

The 'Startup Battlefield' gives entrants the chance to feverishly pitch their company to a panel of judges. The winning team takes away a prize of 50,000 US dollars.

Virtual reality is a hot tech trend currently, but high-cost headsets mean many are yet to sample premium VR content.

Poland-based RiftCat is aiming to change that.

Its developers created PC technology that allows gamers to play high-quality VR games through simple mobile VR viewers like Google Cardboard.

VRidge - as it's called - is intended to act as a bridge between mobile and PC VR content.

"When you have two branches of virtual reality, the PC VR and mobile VR and they both have their advantages and disadvantages - PC VR is the highest quality, but it's expensive and mobile VR is cheap because you can use your phone and put it, you have only the lenses, but it has not that much capability," explains Marek Antoniuk from RiftCat.

"So, basically we are making a bridge in between these two worlds."

Hot on the heels of virtual reality, augmented reality - or AR - is becoming a popular topic following the global success of smartphone game 'Pokemon Go'.

Liverpool-based SwapBots created an augmented reality game which seemingly brings simple cardboard toys to life.

Users can combine boxes to create different characters, there's a variety of single and multiplayer games for players to explore.

"When you're young yourself, you imagine your toys coming to life," explains Phil Charnock from SwapBots.

"And now you can - I won't say replace your imagination - but you can kind of see your imagination living on the screen.

"You can see the toy itself, starting to move around, see them battle with each other and I think that's an incredible thing to be feeding kids' imaginations like that."

Medtech company xRapid is demonstrating its automated diagnostic smartphone app, designed to diagnose diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis.

Using the smartphone's camera and when connected to a microscope, the app deploys digital imaging and artificial intelligence to analyse smear tests.

It's claimed the technology is particularly useful in remote areas, far from trained doctors or a reliable internet connection.

"We take a blood sample, we use any kind of microscope and with the iPhone app that we developed, we can tell you if you are sick or not, give all the important details to the doctor to give the right diagnostic and the right treatment to patients," explains Charles Van Overmeire from xRapid.

Seoul-based Attocube is demonstrating its smartphone-connected wooden blocks, designed to inspire and educate young minds.

Players are challenged to create various letters, numbers and shapes using cubes decorated with different geometric patterns.

The idea is to boost creativity and problem solving while still giving children screen time.

"We created this cube and children learn the alphabet or numbers or images and create different patterns, and they make more and more creative, and (the) brain strengthens, yeah," explains Johnny Moon from Attocube.

London-based Firef.ly is demonstrating its mobile travel app which combines planning, guides and journals all in one place.

Users can browse guidebooks, add locations to Buck Lists, shoot and embed videos and photos onto a map, and tailor digital postcards for friends and family back home.

The idea is to provide all smartphone-enabled travellers require in one app.

"You look at Facebook, it's great for peeling through somebody's wall, but it's a sporadic hit of a bunch of different things, it doesn't join up the story," explains Chad Cribbins from Firef.ly.

"So, ours is uniquely dedicated to a journal of your travels, that you can peel back through time.

"So, all these lines that we capture, over months and months, even just living in London, becomes an interesting narrative for you to hold onto."

Despite Britain's recent 'Leave' EU vote, London appears to be maintaining its place as Europe's tech capital.

According to the recent 'State of European Tech' report by tech investment firm Atomico, London boasts over 300,000 developers.

French capital Paris came in second with over 134,000 - less than half London's total.

"It still remains, whatever you want to say about Brexit or anything else, London and the UK is still the biggest hub of startup ecosystems in the whole of Europe and that's really not going to change anytime soon," says Mike Butcher from tech website TechCrunch.

Despite that, Butcher says how Britain handles migration once it exits the 28-nation bloc could be pivotal for London's startup scene.

"It's going to be about talent because migration and skilled migration are hugely at the core of startups," he says.

"You know, the two things that affect startups are money and talent, and talent is really going to be affected by Brexit, how people get visas, how people access the UK, and how people are able to hire into the UK.

"Brexit is absolutely the core of this conversation about startups today."

TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 runs 5-6 December at the Copper Box Arena in London's Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

London, UK - 5 December 2016

1. High wide shot of TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 show floor

2. Wide of booths and attendees

3. Tilt down from 'Startup Battlefield' sign to show floor

4. Various of Marek Antoniuk, RiftCat, demonstrating RiftCat VRidge virtual reality technology

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Marek Antoniuk, RiftCat:

"When you have two branches of virtual reality, the PC VR and mobile VR and they both have their advantages and disadvantages - PC VR is the highest quality, but it's expensive and mobile VR is cheap because you can use your phone and put it, you have only the lenses, but it has not that much capability. So, basically we are making a bridge in between these two worlds."

6. Low shot of attendee removing virtual reality headset

7. Various of Phil Charnock, SwapBots, demonstrating SwapBots augmented reality toys

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Phil Charnock, SwapBots:

"When you're young yourself, you imagine your toys coming to life. And now you can - I won't say replace your imagination - but you can kind of see your imagination actually living on the screen. You can see the toy itself, starting to move around, see them battle with each other and I think that's an incredible thing to be feeding kids' imaginations like that."

9. Pull out from SwapBots toy to tablet showing augmented reality technology

10. Various of Charles Van Overmeire, xRapid, demonstrating xRapid automated diagnostic app with microscope

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Charles Van Overmeire, xRapid:

"We take a blood sample, we use any kind of microscope and with the iPhone app that we developed, we can tell you if you are sick or not, we give all the important details to the doctor to give the right diagnostic and the right treatment to patients."

12. Various of Johnny Moon, Attocube, demonstrating Attocube smartphone-connected wooden block learning game

13. Tilt up of smartphone showing Attocube app and complete letter 'D'

14. Pull out of blocks showing completed letter 'D'

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Johnny Moon, Attocube:

"We created this cube and children learn the alphabet or numbers or images and create different patterns, and they make more and more creative, and (the) brain strengthens, yeah."

16. Various of Chad Cribbins, Firef.ly, demonstrating Firef.ly travel smartphone app

17. SOUNDBITE (English) Chad Cribbins, Firef.ly:

"You look at Facebook, it's great for peeling through somebody's wall, but it's a sporadic hit of a bunch of different things, it doesn't join up the story. So, ours is uniquely dedicated to a journal of your travels, that you can peel back through time. So, all these lines that we capture, over months and months, even just living in London, becomes an interesting narrative for you to hold onto."

18. Wide tilt down to TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 show floor

19. Wide of sign, reading (English): 'Startup Battlefield'

20. Various of booths and attendees

21. SOUNDBITE (English) Mike Butcher, Editor At Large, TechCrunch:

"It still remains, whatever you want to say about Brexit or anything else, London and the UK is still the biggest hub of startup ecosystems in the whole of Europe and that's really not going to change anytime soon."

22. Various of booths and attendees

23. SOUNDBITE (English) Mike Butcher, Editor At Large, TechCrunch:

"It's going to be about talent because migration and skilled migration are hugely at the core of startups. You know, the two things that affect startups are money and talent, and talent is really going to be affected by Brexit, how people get visas, how people access the UK, and how people are able to hire into the UK. Brexit is absolutely the core of this conversation about startups today."

24. Tilt down to TechCrunch Disrupt London 2016 show floor

25. Close of tank robot toy moving

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4045006

LEAD IN:

Scientists controlling EU projects worth millions of dollars say the British exit from Europe risks the future of medical research, and may endanger future treatments for cancer and children.

Research projects at Kings and University Colleges in London rely on the collaboration of hundreds of doctors and multidisciplinary scientists across Europe - which could come under threat because of Brexit.

STORY-LINE:

Precision medicine is changing the future for cancer patients.

This lab at University College London has devised a safer and simpler alternative to standard radioactive techniques of imaging tumours.

Professor Xavier Golay's team has discovered a way to make a tumour light up with a simple sugar solution.

Because the solution is not radioactive is doesn't carry the same side effects which make patients sick.

It means radiodlogists can see tumours in more detail and check them more frequently.

That in turn allows doctors to personalise drug treatments for the patient.

They can respond more quickly, seeing what works and what doesn't and that speed could save more lives.

The team here is about to begin a trial on the new imaging technique thanks to a six and a half million Euro grant from the European Union.

The whole university has 103-million Euros to fund medical and science projects over the next few years.

All currently funded projects will be allowed to complete - but it's what happens next that's vexing doctors and scientist who argue breakthroughs don't come to order at the end of one trial.

Golay says for the vast majority of scientists in Britain the result of the recent EU referendum - for the UK to exit - was a shock.

Golay says it's not just the money which will risk future projects like this.

His team - like most university and hospital research groups - comes from all over the European Union.

Collaboration on this imaging project is with other specialist scientists at the Max Planck Institute in Germany as well as other units including France and Italy.

He's already concerned about the future.

"I've heard of at least two, three very senior people who've said okay right, now I'm taking all my grant with me and I'm going back to Germany, Switzerland, France because actually, in that way, they know they'll still have access and it's not only access to funding because the funding is great in this country, it is really good. It's really (about) access to funding and this opportunity to collaborate."

At preschool age Rens Van Velzen's parents realised he was struggling with dyslexia, but when he went to school it became clear he was autistic.

Van Velzen, now a highly intelligent fifteen year old, is part of Europe's largest study into mental health disorder.

Here researchers like Hannah Haywood combine genetics, neuroimaging, cognitive testing and clinical assessments to try to discover what are the causes.

The research project called EU Aims is carried out here at Kings College London in collaboration with scientists in other centres of Europe.

Costing 32 million Euros it's also the biggest grant given to any one project.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a developmental problem which affects the way people interact with the world around them.

People are affected differently and scientists want to understand why those differences occur.

Haywood says: "One can go on to a life where they never speak, they are highly affected and quite disabled. Another person can go on (to be) fully verbal and become a professor at Cambridge (University) and someone else can go on and live a full life with marriage and children, why does that happen? Why does it affect people so differently when it's effectively the same condition. So we're trying to answer those questions, we're trying to understand why it affects different people in different ways and I think the thing that really attracted me to the project is because, we're trying to highlight the great skills and strengths in this group as well as the things that people find difficult."

The goal is to identify biomarkers and develop drug treatments.

It's a long term study, but how long can it continue here and what happens to the research after the current funding ends in 2020?

Rens Van Velzen is already preparing for A-levels in maths, chemistry and physics.

But his autism means life outside the classroom is not always straightforward.

He explains: "Quite often when talking peer to peer, the other person can get frustrated with how I respond because they're (I'm) not responding the way that they're expecting me to respond as the people usually do. So quite often I don't pick up someone's annoyed, or that sort of thing. It's very hard to explain because I haven't had the experience of not having autism."

Haywood, like others on the team, is convinced the project must be protected and fears Britain leaving the EU will end large scale endeavours like this which progress more steadily because of the wide collaboration among doctors and scientists.

She says: "Quite often there can be a lot of negativity around being diagnosed and living with the condition and in my work, I've worked with autism for twelve years, I have met some of the most skilled and highly intelligent people."

Van Velzen has been part of the study since it started.

Now he's hoping for a career in astrophysics.

"I think I'll work on either discovering more about our universe and our place in it, or working on ways to get to other parts of the universe," says Van Velzen.

After completing puzzles in record time he goes on for tests in the eye tracking unit.

Studies have used eye-tracing technology to see how long autistic children spend looking at the social and non-social features in a series of images on pictures and videos like these.

Ren's mother Jose Van Velzen is a cognitive neuroscientist herself although she does not work on this project.

While she is confident about her son's academic success she worries about how he will cope with work and whether he will find happiness in personal relationships.

She says: "It is sometimes challenging for Rens to keep track of what the person he's talking to is feeling and how he's being perceived. He's very much driven by telling things as they are, or how he sees them and of course in normal interaction, in normal relationships you constantly monitor what the other person is thinking. That's definitely very challenging for him and he is aware that this is one of his weaknesses he needs to work on he cannot always deal with it at that particular time and I think that is something in general that will make relationships and work environments quite a challenging place for him."

According to scientists here this project is the first of it kind in the world developing the infrastructure which will underpin new treatments for autism.

There are hundreds of scientists involved in British research projects which are funded by the EU.

The lead scientist on the autism project at Kings is Professor Declan Murphy - and he too is concerned about what Brexit will mean.

He says:"It's virtually impossible for one country alone to recruit the amount of patients that you really need for a large scale, modern day trial, or study that's going to lead to reliable results. We increasingly recognise that big questions need big populations to come up with the right answers and we simply cannot deliver the amount of patients for the amount of science from one centre from one country. For Example my work needs approximately a thousand individuals who are affected by autism. You couldn't recruit that from one centre, or from one country within a time frame that is meaningful, but we can do that by going to mulitple centres across Europe, working together and learning from eachother."

The EU's Horizon 2020 budget is 80-billion Euro which funds medicine and science research across Europe.

Britain's split from the EU will leave a funding gap as well as a brain drain according to Murphy and he argues it will be the children with autism who will lose out.

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4045006

LEAD IN:

Scientists controlling EU projects worth millions of dollars say the British exit from Europe risks the future of medical research, and may endanger future treatments for cancer and children.

Research projects at Kings and University Colleges in London rely on the collaboration of hundreds of doctors and multidisciplinary scientists across Europe - which could come under threat because of Brexit.

STORY-LINE:

Precision medicine is changing the future for cancer patients.

This lab at University College London has devised a safer and simpler alternative to standard radioactive techniques of imaging tumours.

Professor Xavier Golay's team has discovered a way to make a tumour light up with a simple sugar solution.

Because the solution is not radioactive is doesn't carry the same side effects which make patients sick.

It means radiodlogists can see tumours in more detail and check them more frequently.

That in turn allows doctors to personalise drug treatments for the patient.

They can respond more quickly, seeing what works and what doesn't and that speed could save more lives.

The team here is about to begin a trial on the new imaging technique thanks to a six and a half million Euro grant from the European Union.

The whole university has 103-million Euros to fund medical and science projects over the next few years.

All currently funded projects will be allowed to complete - but it's what happens next that's vexing doctors and scientist who argue breakthroughs don't come to order at the end of one trial.

Golay says for the vast majority of scientists in Britain the result of the recent EU referendum - for the UK to exit - was a shock.

Golay says it's not just the money which will risk future projects like this.

His team - like most university and hospital research groups - comes from all over the European Union.

Collaboration on this imaging project is with other specialist scientists at the Max Planck Institute in Germany as well as other units including France and Italy.

He's already concerned about the future.

"I've heard of at least two, three very senior people who've said okay right, now I'm taking all my grant with me and I'm going back to Germany, Switzerland, France because actually, in that way, they know they'll still have access and it's not only access to funding because the funding is great in this country, it is really good. It's really (about) access to funding and this opportunity to collaborate."

At preschool age Rens Van Velzen's parents realised he was struggling with dyslexia, but when he went to school it became clear he was autistic.

Van Velzen, now a highly intelligent fifteen year old, is part of Europe's largest study into mental health disorder.

Here researchers like Hannah Haywood combine genetics, neuroimaging, cognitive testing and clinical assessments to try to discover what are the causes.

The research project called EU Aims is carried out here at Kings College London in collaboration with scientists in other centres of Europe.

Costing 32 million Euros it's also the biggest grant given to any one project.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a developmental problem which affects the way people interact with the world around them.

People are affected differently and scientists want to understand why those differences occur.

Haywood says: "One can go on to a life where they never speak, they are highly affected and quite disabled. Another person can go on (to be) fully verbal and become a professor at Cambridge (University) and someone else can go on and live a full life with marriage and children, why does that happen? Why does it affect people so differently when it's effectively the same condition. So we're trying to answer those questions, we're trying to understand why it affects different people in different ways and I think the thing that really attracted me to the project is because, we're trying to highlight the great skills and strengths in this group as well as the things that people find difficult."

The goal is to identify biomarkers and develop drug treatments.

It's a long term study, but how long can it continue here and what happens to the research after the current funding ends in 2020?

Rens Van Velzen is already preparing for A-levels in maths, chemistry and physics.

But his autism means life outside the classroom is not always straightforward.

He explains: "Quite often when talking peer to peer, the other person can get frustrated with how I respond because they're (I'm) not responding the way that they're expecting me to respond as the people usually do. So quite often I don't pick up someone's annoyed, or that sort of thing. It's very hard to explain because I haven't had the experience of not having autism."

Haywood, like others on the team, is convinced the project must be protected and fears Britain leaving the EU will end large scale endeavours like this which progress more steadily because of the wide collaboration among doctors and scientists.

She says: "Quite often there can be a lot of negativity around being diagnosed and living with the condition and in my work, I've worked with autism for twelve years, I have met some of the most skilled and highly intelligent people."

Van Velzen has been part of the study since it started.

Now he's hoping for a career in astrophysics.

"I think I'll work on either discovering more about our universe and our place in it, or working on ways to get to other parts of the universe," says Van Velzen.

After completing puzzles in record time he goes on for tests in the eye tracking unit.

Studies have used eye-tracing technology to see how long autistic children spend looking at the social and non-social features in a series of images on pictures and videos like these.

Ren's mother Jose Van Velzen is a cognitive neuroscientist herself although she does not work on this project.

While she is confident about her son's academic success she worries about how he will cope with work and whether he will find happiness in personal relationships.

She says: "It is sometimes challenging for Rens to keep track of what the person he's talking to is feeling and how he's being perceived. He's very much driven by telling things as they are, or how he sees them and of course in normal interaction, in normal relationships you constantly monitor what the other person is thinking. That's definitely very challenging for him and he is aware that this is one of his weaknesses he needs to work on he cannot always deal with it at that particular time and I think that is something in general that will make relationships and work environments quite a challenging place for him."

According to scientists here this project is the first of it kind in the world developing the infrastructure which will underpin new treatments for autism.

There are hundreds of scientists involved in British research projects which are funded by the EU.

The lead scientist on the autism project at Kings is Professor Declan Murphy - and he too is concerned about what Brexit will mean.

He says:"It's virtually impossible for one country alone to recruit the amount of patients that you really need for a large scale, modern day trial, or study that's going to lead to reliable results. We increasingly recognise that big questions need big populations to come up with the right answers and we simply cannot deliver the amount of patients for the amount of science from one centre from one country. For Example my work needs approximately a thousand individuals who are affected by autism. You couldn't recruit that from one centre, or from one country within a time frame that is meaningful, but we can do that by going to mulitple centres across Europe, working together and learning from eachother."

The EU's Horizon 2020 budget is 80-billion Euro which funds medicine and science research across Europe.

Britain's split from the EU will leave a funding gap as well as a brain drain according to Murphy and he argues it will be the children with autism who will lose out.

London, UK - 7 July 2016

1. Various CT scans showing liver cancer pre and post therapy to illustrate the relationship between tumours and glucose

2. Mid of Professor Xavier Golay looking at scans in his MRI lab at the UCL Institute of Neurology

3. Various of Golay and researcher looking at scans

4. Close of tumour in rat highlighted by non radioactive glucose

5. SOUNDBITE: (English) Xavier Golay, professor of neurophysics, UCL Institute of Neurology

"I've heard of at least two, three very senior people who've said okay right, now I'm taking all my grant with me and I'm going back to Germany, Switzerland, France because actually, in that way, they know they'll still have access and it's not only access to funding because the funding is great in this country, it is really good. It's really (about) access to funding and this opportunity to collaborate."

6. Close of autistic teenager Rens Van Velzen answering questions testing his cognitive and executive function at Kings College London

7. Close of psychologist Hannah Hayward asking questions

8. Mid of Velzen ticking off words he understands

9. Various of Velzen watching next task being set up

10. Mid of Velzen touching laptop screen to pick out the emotion displayed on the photo on the monitor

11. Close of Velzen touching the word "Cautious"

12. Close of touch screen

13. Mid of Velzen watching screen observed by Hayward

14. Close of Velzen

15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Hannah Hayward psychologist, EU Aims (autism research project) Kings College London

"One can go on to a life where they never speak, they are highly affected and quite disabled. Another person can go on (to be) fully verbal and become a professor at Cambridge (University) and someone else can go on and live a full life with marriage and children, why does that happen? Why does it affect people so differently when it's effectively the same condition? So we're trying to answer those questions, we're trying to understand why it affects different people in different ways and I think the thing that really attracted me to the project is because, we're trying to highlight the great skills and strengths in this group as well as the things that people find difficult."

16. Close of Hayward starting stopwatch

17. Close of cube pattern Velzen has to recreate

18. Close tilt down of Hayward observing

19. Close of Velzen

20. Close pan from pattern and blocks being constructed by Velzen

21. Mid of Velzen completing puzzle watched by Hayward

22. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rens Van Velzen, teenager in Kings College autisim research group

"Quite often when talking peer to peer, the other person can get frustrated with how I respond because they're (I'm) not responding the way that they're expecting me to respond as the people usually do. So quite often I don't pick up someone's annoyed, or that sort of thing. It's very hard to explain because I haven't had the experience of not having autism."

23. Various of Van Velzen completing other puzzles with black and yellow blocks

24. SOUNDBITE: (English) Hannah Hayward psychologist, EU Aims (autism research project) Kings College London

"Quite often there can be a lot of negativity around being diagnosed and living with the condition and in my work, I've worked with autism for twelve years, I have met some of the most skilled and highly intelligent people."

25. Various of Hayward attaching EEG wires to Van Velzen before eye tracking tests

26. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rens Van Velzen, teenager in Kings College autisim research group

"I think I'll work on either discovering more about our universe and our place in it, or working on ways to get to other parts of the universe."

27. Mid of monitor displaying photographs of facial expressions with options to pick the right description

28. Close of Van Velsen tapping keyboard

29. Mid of test continuing on monitor

30. SOUNDBITE: (English) Jose Van Velzen, Rens' mother (who is also a cognitive neuroscientist)

"It is sometimes challenging for Rens to keep track of what the person he's talking to is feeling and how he's being perceived. He's very much driven by telling things as they are, or how he sees them and of course in normal interaction, in normal relationships, you constantly monitor what the other person is thinking. That's definitely very challenging for him, and he is aware that this is one of his weaknesses he needs to work on he cannot always deal with it at that particular time and I think that is something in general that will make relationships and work environments quite a challenging place for him."

31. Mid rear view of Rens Van Velzen being shown photos in the eye tracking suite

32. Various of monitor

33. Various of Hayward carrying out tracking test

34. Hayward's monitor showing Rens Van Velzen responding to photographs

35. Mid rear view of Van Velzen watching animated patterns appear on screen

36. Various of Professor Declan Murphy lead scientist on the EU Aims study on autism

37. SOUNDBITE: (English) Professor Declan Murphy lead scientist, EU Aims study on autism, Kings College London

"It's virtually impossible for one country alone to recruit the amount of patients that you really need for a large scale, modern day trial, or study that's going to lead to reliable results. We increasingly recognise that big questions need big populations to come up with the right answers, and we simply cannot deliver the amount of patients for the amount of science from one centre from one country. For example, my work needs approximately a thousand individuals who are affected by autism. You couldn't recruit that from one centre, or from one country within a time frame that is meaningful, but we can do that by going to mulitple centres across Europe, working together and learning from eachother."

38. Mid rear view of Rens Van Velzen responding to picture during eyetracking test

39. Close of EEG reading on monitor

Packaging organic soaps ready to be sent to upscale stores, high-end corporate clients and even the Prime Minister's cabinet office.

Clarity-The Soap Co traces its roots back to 1854 as a social enterprise company to employ people with disabilities: Queen Victoria was its first patron and Charles Dickens supported it.

Today it employs 115 employees, 80 per cent with a disability, including 50 per cent who are blind or visually impaired.

The company has survived two World Wars and the Great Depression, but the long process of trying to leave the European Union is causing anxiety and frustration.

Michael O'Brien, who is visually impaired, is a supervisor at the East London social enterprise.

He is concerned that a no-deal Brexit could disrupt supply chains and raise prices.

For O'Brien this job has been a lifeline and he's worried about the future.

Before the referendum in 2016, the company had hatched ambitious plans for a major expansion - to increase production of its luxury eco-ranges, launch new brands and double its workforce.

It came at a time when consumers were becoming more socially conscious and demanding to know the ingredients in their products and whether they were ethically produced.  

What's more, the company had a story to tell, which is important in an ever-crowded market.

Camilla Marcus-Dew, head of commercial, said she needed clarity on a future Brexit deal so she could go ahead with the plans in the pipeline.

Although, the company is not reliant on EU labour as all its employers are from the UK, its suppliers import from all over the world, including Europe, so Marcus-Dew is concerned about these supply chains.

Brexit contingency planning is also taking up valuable time that could be used to develop the business.

With less than two months left until Britain leaves the EU, this company, like hundreds-of-thousands around the country, could suffer unless the government makes a decision on the UK's future in or out of the EU.

London - 17 January 2019

1. Various of soap being put into packages by Dan During, employee who has a hearing impairment and has worked for the company since 2014

2. Top shot of factory

3. Various of employees working with pink soap granules

4. Michael O'Brien, who is visually impaired and is a supervisor at the company, filling in sheets and reading a document on computer screen

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Michael O'Brien, supervisor at company:

"There is talk about obviously the raw materials going up, so that would have an impact on our, sort of, prices for our products because they could go up as well. In turn, sales could reduce from it and also people could lose their jobs, disabled people could lose their jobs and then they would go back on the unemployment scheme and unlikely to get another job again because this place is bespoke for people with various disabilities."

6. Wide of people working in factory

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Michael O'Brien, supervisor at company:

"It means everything to me, I mean, when I came here four and a half years ago I was in a bad way. I got made redundant from my previous job, didn't think I would work again and I came here and its given me a lifeline."

8. Various of Yvonne Uju, who is visually impaired and has worked for the company since 1990, putting bottles onto conveyor belt. Yvonne uses touch to check the bottles for any dents

9. Various of Camilla Marcus-Dew, head of Commercial at Clarity-The Soap Co, talking with Darren a worker at the factory

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Camilla Marcus-Dew, head of Commercial at Clarity-The Soap Co:

"Pre-Brexit we had a plan to really grow. From 2015 we've been on a growth plan and we want to keep that growth going. And to us, that means employing more and more people with disabilities. We don't want to slow down. We absolutely don't want to reverse. And so we need that uncertainty to be minimized so there's confidence in the market. We sell more product and we can create more jobs. The jobs that we create here are invaluable. They are jobs for many people that wouldn't be able to work elsewhere. Help us create more jobs. We need that confidence and for this indecision to be over as quickly as possible."

11. Various of employees adding lids to bottles of soap

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Camilla Marcus-Dew, head of Commercial at Clarity-The Soap Co:

"Supply chains are complicated. The majority of our suppliers are here in the UK but their suppliers are then all over the world, including Europe. There is that link that will always be there. As an example for our BECo bars, the cardboard that we use to wrap those bars in is recycled and recyclable. That's from sustainable forestry. And that forestry, those forests are in Scandinavia, moves through a mill in Holland and then over to us to us to our manufacturer here that makes that carton for us. So we hope there won't be any delay in that, we hope there won't be any price change in that, so we can continue to be competitive in the market getting our products on the shelves, next to everyone else's."

13. Various of Rhommel Casaclang, who has an immune disease, printing codes onto the cardboard soap packets that original come from cardboard made from sustainable forests in Scandinavia

14. SOUNDBITE (English) Camilla Marcus-Dew, head of Commercial at Clarity-The Soap Co:

"We're having to spend a lot of time at the moment contingency planning, thinking about a lot of uncertainty and working through those models and that's actually time that we could spend going out there, telling our story, encouraging people to buy from us. And for them to be looking at sustainable supply chains, looking at social impact, looking at diversity, for the government to be thinking through disability and unemployment and health care and mental health and. There's so many worthwhile things for us all to be focusing on and I hope we can move past the uncertainty and go forward with confidence about what we are going to do with the Brexit, as it currently is."

15. Various of Mohamed Hussein, who has a hearing impairment, packaging bottles of soap

UK MEDICAL BREXIT

SOURCE: AP HORIZONS, LIFESTYLE, HEALTH AND TECHNOLOGY

RESTRICTIONS: HORIZONS CLIENTS AND AP LIFESTYLE, HEALTH AND TECHNOLOGY CLIENTS ONLY

LENGTH: 6.33

SHOTLIST:

London, UK - 7 July 2016

1. Various CT scans showing liver cancer pre and post therapy to illustrate the relationship between tumours and glucose

2. Mid of Professor Xavier Golay looking at scans in his MRI lab at the UCL Institute of Neurology

3. Various of Golay and researcher looking at scans

4. Close of tumour in rat highlighted by non radioactive glucose

5. SOUNDBITE: (English) Xavier Golay, professor of neurophysics, UCL Institute of Neurology

"I've heard of at least two, three very senior people who've said okay right, now I'm taking all my grant with me and I'm going back to Germany, Switzerland, France because actually, in that way, they know they'll still have access and it's not only access to funding because the funding is great in this country, it is really good. It's really (about) access to funding and this opportunity to collaborate."

6. Close of autistic teenager Rens Van Velzen answering questions testing his cognitive and executive function at Kings College London

7. Close of psychologist Hannah Hayward asking questions

8. Mid of Velzen ticking off words he understands

9. Various of Velzen watching next task being set up

10. Mid of Velzen touching laptop screen to pick out the emotion displayed on the photo on the monitor

11. Close of Velzen touching the word "Cautious"

12. Close of touch screen

13. Mid of Velzen watching screen observed by Hayward

14. Close of Velzen

15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Hannah Hayward psychologist, EU Aims (autism research project) Kings College London

"One can go on to a life where they never speak, they are highly affected and quite disabled. Another person can go on (to be) fully verbal and become a professor at Cambridge (University) and someone else can go on and live a full life with marriage and children, why does that happen? Why does it affect people so differently when it's effectively the same condition? So we're trying to answer those questions, we're trying to understand why it affects different people in different ways and I think the thing that really attracted me to the project is because, we're trying to highlight the great skills and strengths in this group as well as the things that people find difficult."

16. Close of Hayward starting stopwatch

17. Close of cube pattern Velzen has to recreate

18. Close tilt down of Hayward observing

19. Close of Velzen

20. Close pan from pattern and blocks being constructed by Velzen

21. Mid of Velzen completing puzzle watched by Hayward

22. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rens Van Velzen, teenager in Kings College autisim research group

"Quite often when talking peer to peer, the other person can get frustrated with how I respond because they're (I'm) not responding the way that they're expecting me to respond as the people usually do. So quite often I don't pick up someone's annoyed, or that sort of thing. It's very hard to explain because I haven't had the experience of not having autism."

23. Various of Van Velzen completing other puzzles with black and yellow blocks

24. SOUNDBITE: (English) Hannah Hayward psychologist, EU Aims (autism research project) Kings College London

"Quite often there can be a lot of negativity around being diagnosed and living with the condition and in my work, I've worked with autism for twelve years, I have met some of the most skilled and highly intelligent people."

25. Various of Hayward attaching EEG wires to Van Velzen before eye tracking tests

26. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rens Van Velzen, teenager in Kings College autisim research group

"I think I'll work on either discovering more about our universe and our place in it, or working on ways to get to other parts of the universe."

27. Mid of monitor displaying photographs of facial expressions with options to pick the right description

28. Close of Van Velsen tapping keyboard

29. Mid of test continuing on monitor

30. SOUNDBITE: (English) Jose Van Velzen, Rens' mother (who is also a cognitive neuroscientist)

"It is sometimes challenging for Rens to keep track of what the person he's talking to is feeling and how he's being perceived. He's very much driven by telling things as they are, or how he sees them and of course in normal interaction, in normal relationships, you constantly monitor what the other person is thinking. That's definitely very challenging for him, and he is aware that this is one of his weaknesses he needs to work on he cannot always deal with it at that particular time and I think that is something in general that will make relationships and work environments quite a challenging place for him."

31. Mid rear view of Rens Van Velzen being shown photos in the eye tracking suite

32. Various of monitor

33. Various of Hayward carrying out tracking test

34. Hayward's monitor showing Rens Van Velzen responding to photographs

35. Mid rear view of Van Velzen watching animated patterns appear on screen

36. Various of Professor Declan Murphy lead scientist on the EU Aims study on autism

37. SOUNDBITE: (English) Professor Declan Murphy lead scientist, EU Aims study on autism, Kings College London

"It's virtually impossible for one country alone to recruit the amount of patients that you really need for a large scale, modern day trial, or study that's going to lead to reliable results. We increasingly recognise that big questions need big populations to come up with the right answers, and we simply cannot deliver the amount of patients for the amount of science from one centre from one country. For example, my work needs approximately a thousand individuals who are affected by autism. You couldn't recruit that from one centre, or from one country within a time frame that is meaningful, but we can do that by going to mulitple centres across Europe, working together and learning from eachother."

38. Mid rear view of Rens Van Velzen responding to picture during eyetracking test

39. Close of EEG reading on monitor

LEADIN:

Scientists controlling EU projects worth millions of dollars say the British exit from Europe risks the future of medical research, and may endanger future treatments for cancer and children.

Research projects at Kings and University Colleges in London rely on the collaboration of hundreds of doctors and multidisciplinary scientists across Europe - which could come under threat because of Brexit.

STORYLINE:

Precision medicine is changing the future for cancer patients.

This lab at University College London has devised a safer and simpler alternative to standard radioactive techniques of imaging tumours.

Professor Xavier Golay's team has discovered a way to make a tumour light up with a simple sugar solution.

Because the solution is not radioactive is doesn't carry the same side effects which make patients sick.

It means radiodlogists can see tumours in more detail and check them more frequently.

That in turn allows doctors to personalise drug treatments for the patient.

They can respond more quickly, seeing what works and what doesn't and that speed could save more lives.

The team here is about to begin a trial on the new imaging technique thanks to a six and a half million Euro grant from the European Union.

The whole university has 103-million Euros to fund medical and science projects over the next few years.

All currently funded projects will be allowed to complete - but it's what happens next that's vexing doctors and scientist who argue breakthroughs don't come to order at the end of one trial.

Golay says for the vast majority of scientists in Britain the result of the recent EU referendum - for the UK to exit - was a shock.

Golay says it's not just the money which will risk future projects like this.

His team - like most university and hospital research groups - comes from all over the European Union.

Collaboration on this imaging project is with other specialist scientists at the Max Planck Institute in Germany as well as other units including France and Italy.

He's already concerned about the future.

"I've heard of at least two, three very senior people who've said okay right, now I'm taking all my grant with me and I'm going back to Germany, Switzerland, France because actually, in that way, they know they'll still have access and it's not only access to funding because the funding is great in this country, it is really good. It's really (about) access to funding and this opportunity to collaborate."

At preschool age Rens Van Velzen's parents realised he was struggling with dyslexia, but when he went to school it became clear he was autistic.

Van Velzen, now a highly intelligent fifteen year old, is part of Europe's largest study into mental health disorder.

Here researchers like Hannah Haywood combine genetics, neuroimaging, cognitive testing and clinical assessments to try to discover what are the causes.

The research project called EU Aims is carried out here at Kings College London in collaboration with scientists in other centres of Europe.

Costing 32 million Euros it's also the biggest grant given to any one project.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a developmental problem which affects the way people interact with the world around them.

People are affected differently and scientists want to understand why those differences occur.

Haywood says: "One can go on to a life where they never speak, they are highly affected and quite disabled. Another person can go on (to be) fully verbal and become a professor at Cambridge (University) and someone else can go on and live a full life with marriage and children, why does that happen? Why does it affect people so differently when it's effectively the same condition. So we're trying to answer those questions, we're trying to understand why it affects different people in different ways and I think the thing that really attracted me to the project is because, we're trying to highlight the great skills and strengths in this group as well as the things that people find difficult."

The goal is to identify biomarkers and develop drug treatments.

It's a long term study, but how long can it continue here and what happens to the research after the current funding ends in 2020?

Rens Van Velzen is already preparing for A-levels in maths, chemistry and physics.

But his autism means life outside the classroom is not always straightforward.

He explains: "Quite often when talking peer to peer, the other person can get frustrated with how I respond because they're (I'm) not responding the way that they're expecting me to respond as the people usually do. So quite often I don't pick up someone's annoyed, or that sort of thing. It's very hard to explain because I haven't had the experience of not having autism."

Haywood, like others on the team, is convinced the project must be protected and fears Britain leaving the EU will end large scale endeavours like this which progress more steadily because of the wide collaboration among doctors and scientists.

She says: "Quite often there can be a lot of negativity around being diagnosed and living with the condition and in my work, I've worked with autism for twelve years, I have met some of the most skilled and highly intelligent people."

Van Velzen has been part of the study since it started.

Now he's hoping for a career in astrophysics.

"I think I'll work on either discovering more about our universe and our place in it, or working on ways to get to other parts of the universe," says Van Velzen.

After completing puzzles in record time he goes on for tests in the eye tracking unit.

Studies have used eye-tracing technology to see how long autistic children spend looking at the social and non-social features in a series of images on pictures and videos like these.

Ren's mother Jose Van Velzen is a cognitive neuroscientist herself although she does not work on this project.

While she is confident about her son's academic success she worries about how he will cope with work and whether he will find happiness in personal relationships.

She says: "It is sometimes challenging for Rens to keep track of what the person he's talking to is feeling and how he's being perceived. He's very much driven by telling things as they are, or how he sees them and of course in normal interaction, in normal relationships you constantly monitor what the other person is thinking. That's definitely very challenging for him and he is aware that this is one of his weaknesses he needs to work on he cannot always deal with it at that particular time and I think that is something in general that will make relationships and work environments quite a challenging place for him."

According to scientists here this project is the first of it kind in the world developing the infrastructure which will underpin new treatments for autism.

There are hundreds of scientists involved in British research projects which are funded by the EU.

The lead scientist on the autism project at Kings is Professor Declan Murphy - and he too is concerned about what Brexit will mean.

He says:"It's virtually impossible for one country alone to recruit the amount of patients that you really need for a large scale, modern day trial, or study that's going to lead to reliable results. We increasingly recognise that big questions need big populations to come up with the right answers and we simply cannot deliver the amount of patients for the amount of science from one centre from one country. For Example my work needs approximately a thousand individuals who are affected by autism. You couldn't recruit that from one centre, or from one country within a time frame that is meaningful, but we can do that by going to mulitple centres across Europe, working together and learning from each other."

The EU's Horizon 2020 budget is 80-billion Euro which funds medicine and science research across Europe.

Britain's split from the EU will leave a funding gap as well as a brain drain according to Murphy and he argues it will be the children with autism who will lose out.

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UK MEDICAL BREXIT

SOURCE: AP TECHNOLOGY

RESTRICTIONS: TECHNOLOGY CLIENTS ONLY

LENGTH: 6.33

SHOTLIST:

London, UK - 7 July 2016

1. Various CT scans showing liver cancer pre and post therapy to illustrate the relationship between tumours and glucose

2. Mid of Professor Xavier Golay looking at scans in his MRI lab at the UCL Institute of Neurology

3. Various of Golay and researcher looking at scans

4. Close of tumour in rat highlighted by non radioactive glucose

5. SOUNDBITE: (English) Xavier Golay, professor of neurophysics, UCL Institute of Neurology

"I've heard of at least two, three very senior people who've said okay right, now I'm taking all my grant with me and I'm going back to Germany, Switzerland, France because actually, in that way, they know they'll still have access and it's not only access to funding because the funding is great in this country, it is really good. It's really (about) access to funding and this opportunity to collaborate."

6. Close of autistic teenager Rens Van Velzen answering questions testing his cognitive and executive function at Kings College London

7. Close of psychologist Hannah Hayward asking questions

8. Mid of Velzen ticking off words he understands

9. Various of Velzen watching next task being set up

10. Mid of Velzen touching laptop screen to pick out the emotion displayed on the photo on the monitor

11. Close of Velzen touching the word "Cautious"

12. Close of touch screen

13. Mid of Velzen watching screen observed by Hayward

14. Close of Velzen

15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Hannah Hayward psychologist, EU Aims (autism research project) Kings College London

"One can go on to a life where they never speak, they are highly affected and quite disabled. Another person can go on (to be) fully verbal and become a professor at Cambridge (University) and someone else can go on and live a full life with marriage and children, why does that happen? Why does it affect people so differently when it's effectively the same condition? So we're trying to answer those questions, we're trying to understand why it affects different people in different ways and I think the thing that really attracted me to the project is because, we're trying to highlight the great skills and strengths in this group as well as the things that people find difficult."

16. Close of Hayward starting stopwatch

17. Close of cube pattern Velzen has to recreate

18. Close tilt down of Hayward observing

19. Close of Velzen

20. Close pan from pattern and blocks being constructed by Velzen

21. Mid of Velzen completing puzzle watched by Hayward

22. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rens Van Velzen, teenager in Kings College autisim research group

"Quite often when talking peer to peer, the other person can get frustrated with how I respond because they're (I'm) not responding the way that they're expecting me to respond as the people usually do. So quite often I don't pick up someone's annoyed, or that sort of thing. It's very hard to explain because I haven't had the experience of not having autism."

23. Various of Van Velzen completing other puzzles with black and yellow blocks

24. SOUNDBITE: (English) Hannah Hayward psychologist, EU Aims (autism research project) Kings College London

"Quite often there can be a lot of negativity around being diagnosed and living with the condition and in my work, I've worked with autism for twelve years, I have met some of the most skilled and highly intelligent people."

25. Various of Hayward attaching EEG wires to Van Velzen before eye tracking tests

26. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rens Van Velzen, teenager in Kings College autisim research group

"I think I'll work on either discovering more about our universe and our place in it, or working on ways to get to other parts of the universe."

27. Mid of monitor displaying photographs of facial expressions with options to pick the right description

28. Close of Van Velsen tapping keyboard

29. Mid of test continuing on monitor

30. SOUNDBITE: (English) Jose Van Velzen, Rens' mother (who is also a cognitive neuroscientist)

"It is sometimes challenging for Rens to keep track of what the person he's talking to is feeling and how he's being perceived. He's very much driven by telling things as they are, or how he sees them and of course in normal interaction, in normal relationships, you constantly monitor what the other person is thinking. That's definitely very challenging for him, and he is aware that this is one of his weaknesses he needs to work on he cannot always deal with it at that particular time and I think that is something in general that will make relationships and work environments quite a challenging place for him."

31. Mid rear view of Rens Van Velzen being shown photos in the eye tracking suite

32. Various of monitor

33. Various of Hayward carrying out tracking test

34. Hayward's monitor showing Rens Van Velzen responding to photographs

35. Mid rear view of Van Velzen watching animated patterns appear on screen

36. Various of Professor Declan Murphy lead scientist on the EU Aims study on autism

37. SOUNDBITE: (English) Professor Declan Murphy lead scientist, EU Aims study on autism, Kings College London

"It's virtually impossible for one country alone to recruit the amount of patients that you really need for a large scale, modern day trial, or study that's going to lead to reliable results. We increasingly recognise that big questions need big populations to come up with the right answers, and we simply cannot deliver the amount of patients for the amount of science from one centre from one country. For example, my work needs approximately a thousand individuals who are affected by autism. You couldn't recruit that from one centre, or from one country within a time frame that is meaningful, but we can do that by going to mulitple centres across Europe, working together and learning from eachother."

38. Mid rear view of Rens Van Velzen responding to picture during eyetracking test

39. Close of EEG reading on monitor

LEADIN:

Scientists controlling EU projects worth millions of dollars say the British exit from Europe risks the future of medical research, and may endanger future treatments for cancer and children.

Research projects at Kings and University Colleges in London rely on the collaboration of hundreds of doctors and multidisciplinary scientists across Europe - which could come under threat because of Brexit.

STORYLINE:

Precision medicine is changing the future for cancer patients.

This lab at University College London has devised a safer and simpler alternative to standard radioactive techniques of imaging tumours.

Professor Xavier Golay's team has discovered a way to make a tumour light up with a simple sugar solution.

Because the solution is not radioactive is doesn't carry the same side effects which make patients sick.

It means radiodlogists can see tumours in more detail and check them more frequently.

That in turn allows doctors to personalise drug treatments for the patient.

They can respond more quickly, seeing what works and what doesn't and that speed could save more lives.

The team here is about to begin a trial on the new imaging technique thanks to a six and a half million Euro grant from the European Union.

The whole university has 103-million Euros to fund medical and science projects over the next few years.

All currently funded projects will be allowed to complete - but it's what happens next that's vexing doctors and scientist who argue breakthroughs don't come to order at the end of one trial.

Golay says for the vast majority of scientists in Britain the result of the recent EU referendum - for the UK to exit - was a shock.

Golay says it's not just the money which will risk future projects like this.

His team - like most university and hospital research groups - comes from all over the European Union.

Collaboration on this imaging project is with other specialist scientists at the Max Planck Institute in Germany as well as other units including France and Italy.

He's already concerned about the future.

"I've heard of at least two, three very senior people who've said okay right, now I'm taking all my grant with me and I'm going back to Germany, Switzerland, France because actually, in that way, they know they'll still have access and it's not only access to funding because the funding is great in this country, it is really good. It's really (about) access to funding and this opportunity to collaborate."

At preschool age Rens Van Velzen's parents realised he was struggling with dyslexia, but when he went to school it became clear he was autistic.

Van Velzen, now a highly intelligent fifteen year old, is part of Europe's largest study into mental health disorder.

Here researchers like Hannah Haywood combine genetics, neuroimaging, cognitive testing and clinical assessments to try to discover what are the causes.

The research project called EU Aims is carried out here at Kings College London in collaboration with scientists in other centres of Europe.

Costing 32 million Euros it's also the biggest grant given to any one project.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a developmental problem which affects the way people interact with the world around them.

People are affected differently and scientists want to understand why those differences occur.

Haywood says: "One can go on to a life where they never speak, they are highly affected and quite disabled. Another person can go on (to be) fully verbal and become a professor at Cambridge (University) and someone else can go on and live a full life with marriage and children, why does that happen? Why does it affect people so differently when it's effectively the same condition. So we're trying to answer those questions, we're trying to understand why it affects different people in different ways and I think the thing that really attracted me to the project is because, we're trying to highlight the great skills and strengths in this group as well as the things that people find difficult."

The goal is to identify biomarkers and develop drug treatments.

It's a long term study, but how long can it continue here and what happens to the research after the current funding ends in 2020?

Rens Van Velzen is already preparing for A-levels in maths, chemistry and physics.

But his autism means life outside the classroom is not always straightforward.

He explains: "Quite often when talking peer to peer, the other person can get frustrated with how I respond because they're (I'm) not responding the way that they're expecting me to respond as the people usually do. So quite often I don't pick up someone's annoyed, or that sort of thing. It's very hard to explain because I haven't had the experience of not having autism."

Haywood, like others on the team, is convinced the project must be protected and fears Britain leaving the EU will end large scale endeavours like this which progress more steadily because of the wide collaboration among doctors and scientists.

She says: "Quite often there can be a lot of negativity around being diagnosed and living with the condition and in my work, I've worked with autism for twelve years, I have met some of the most skilled and highly intelligent people."

Van Velzen has been part of the study since it started.

Now he's hoping for a career in astrophysics.

"I think I'll work on either discovering more about our universe and our place in it, or working on ways to get to other parts of the universe," says Van Velzen.

After completing puzzles in record time he goes on for tests in the eye tracking unit.

Studies have used eye-tracing technology to see how long autistic children spend looking at the social and non-social features in a series of images on pictures and videos like these.

Ren's mother Jose Van Velzen is a cognitive neuroscientist herself although she does not work on this project.

While she is confident about her son's academic success she worries about how he will cope with work and whether he will find happiness in personal relationships.

She says: "It is sometimes challenging for Rens to keep track of what the person he's talking to is feeling and how he's being perceived. He's very much driven by telling things as they are, or how he sees them and of course in normal interaction, in normal relationships you constantly monitor what the other person is thinking. That's definitely very challenging for him and he is aware that this is one of his weaknesses he needs to work on he cannot always deal with it at that particular time and I think that is something in general that will make relationships and work environments quite a challenging place for him."

According to scientists here this project is the first of it kind in the world developing the infrastructure which will underpin new treatments for autism.

There are hundreds of scientists involved in British research projects which are funded by the EU.

The lead scientist on the autism project at Kings is Professor Declan Murphy - and he too is concerned about what Brexit will mean.

He says:"It's virtually impossible for one country alone to recruit the amount of patients that you really need for a large scale, modern day trial, or study that's going to lead to reliable results. We increasingly recognise that big questions need big populations to come up with the right answers and we simply cannot deliver the amount of patients for the amount of science from one centre from one country. For Example my work needs approximately a thousand individuals who are affected by autism. You couldn't recruit that from one centre, or from one country within a time frame that is meaningful, but we can do that by going to mulitple centres across Europe, working together and learning from each other."

The EU's Horizon 2020 budget is 80-billion Euro which funds medicine and science research across Europe.

Britain's split from the EU will leave a funding gap as well as a brain drain according to Murphy and he argues it will be the children with autism who will lose out.

====

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British Prime Minister Boris Johnson dismissed claims that he was being undemocratic by proroguing Parliament during a visit to a London school on Tuesday.

"Donnez-moi un break, what a load of nonsense," Johnson said, adding that a "democratic moment" in the form of an early election had been offered and declined.

He contended that delaying Britain's exit from the EU would achieve nothing and told children who asked him if there would be a no-deal Brexit that he was prepared to work "very hard" to get one but "we must be prepared to come out without a deal."

Johnson says Britain must leave the European Union at the end of October, with or without a divorce deal smoothing out post-Brexit trade.

But many lawmakers fear a no-deal Brexit would be economically devastating, and are determined to stop him.

Johnson has acknowledged  that a no-deal Brexit "would be a failure of statecraft" for which he would be partially to blame.

He said he believed a deal could be struck by October 18, when leaders of all 28 EU countries hold a summit in Brussels.

UK POOL

London - 10 September 2019

1. Various of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson attending class during visit to school in Pimlico

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister:

++INCLUDES QUESTIONS++

"What we're doing is getting on with delivering the priorities of the people and that includes getting rid of, obviously to come out of the EU on October the 31st but investing in our police, 20,000 more police officers, investing in hospital upgrades and of course investing in education. What we are trying to do is level up across the country. I think that talent, genius, skills are uniformly distributed across the UK but opportunity is not, so we want to see more great schools across the country. Up to 30 new free schools is at the heart of this programme, but that's on top of the 14 billion that we're spending on primary, secondary schools and further education."

(Reporter: "I heard you assure the kid that we would be out by October 31st and that you're hopeful for a deal. How are you hopeful for a deal? What do you expect to happen and what are you going to do if not?")

"I think there are loads of people around the place who really want this thing done and that includes the British people but also in Brussels and our friends and partners across the EU. They want us to to get on with this. It's been dragging on for three years and you know, I can see that the policy of the opposition and some opposition bodies, Labour included is delay, dither beyond October the 31st but nobody can see what that achieves. It's just another billion pounds a month to stay in the EU. That's why we're working very hard to get a deal. I think we will get a deal. But if absolutely necessary we will come out with no deal. But in the meantime we're going to get on with the priorities I think, of the British people and that's education, it's new free schools, getting our streets safer, 20,000 more police on the streets, improving our hospitals, putting money into the NHS and championing the wealth creating sector of the UK, the businesses on which we all depend. So there's a massive massive agenda, we need a Queen's Speech, that's why Parliament is in recess now because you always have a recess before a Queen's Speech and anybody who says it's all, all this stuff about it being anti-democratic I mean donnez-moi un break (give me a break). What a load of nonsense. We were very, very clear that if people wanted a democratic moment, if they wanted an election we offered it to the Labour opposition and mysteriously they decided not to go for it. So we're going to get on, more free schools, more police, more hospitals, better hospitals, upgrading our hospitals and coming out on October the 31st."

3. Johnson with children at roundtable UPSOUND (English) Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister:

"I did almost nothing except Latin and Greek for about 20 years, and now I am running the country. It's a perfect education."

4. Close-up of Johnson UPSOUND (English) Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister:

"Do you remember, have you seen in your textbook there's a picture of Athens and Sparta, do you remember that picture?"

5. Johnson speaking to children UPSOUND (English) Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister:

"They didn't like immigrants coming into Sparta, they used to kick them all out. But Athens was very welcoming and those people came from all around the ancient world to Athens, and you look at them today, Athens has left behind incredible glories and Sparta is just ruins. It tells you an important thing, that cultures and civilisations have got to be open and welcoming if it's going to be successful. That is my view."

6. Zoom out from Johnson

7. Child asking question (English) "Are we going to leave Brexit..."

Johnson: "Yes, October the 31st."

Child: "Are we leaving Brexit with a deal or no-deal?"

Johnson: "We're going to get a deal, we're going to get a deal. We're going to work very hard to get a deal and I was in Ireland yesterday talking to our Irish friends about how to do that but we're going to, I'm going to go to Brussels and back to some other European capitals fairly soon to talk to them. I think there's a way of getting a deal but it will take a lot of hard work. We must be prepared to come out without a deal."

8. Zoom out from history book to Johnson with children

UK TOYS

SOURCE: AP HORIZONS, LIFESTYLE, HEALTH AND TECHNOLOGY

RESTRICTIONS: HORIZONS CLIENTS AND AP LIFESTYLE, HEALTH AND TECHNOLOGY CLIENTS ONLY

LENGTH: 6.02

SHOTLIST:

London, UK - 9 November 2016

1. Close tilt up of Hatchimals egg box the most popular toy

2. Mid of Tiana Wilson with Santa who is holding a Hatchimal waiting for the toy to hatch

3. Various of Tiana Wilson and Santa Claus listening to toy hatch

4. Close of egg showing beak poking through eggshell

5. Close of Santa Claus watching

6. Various of Santa and Wilson releasing the hatching toy

7. Close of Wilson listening to the Hatchimal sing Happy Birthday

8. SOUNDBITE: (English) Tiana Wilson:

"So it can walk and then it sings Happy Birthday sometimes as well and then the eyes light up in different moods and stuff."

9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Gary Grant, retailer, Chairman, Dream Toys selection committee:

"In all the years I've been selling toys, you know we've chased around Tracy Island, we've chased around Care Bears and Cabbage Patch Kids, but this seems to be just gone to another level and the thing is about Hatchimal, it comes as an egg, by nurturing it and keeping it warm the chick inside the egg starts to become warm, starts to become alive, starts to make noises and after a while it starts to spin around inside the egg and it starts pecking and it starts to break the egg open and then literally you hatch the egg."

10. Mid of Hatchimal on the floor being stroked

11. Various of packaged Hatchimals

12. SOUNDBITE: (English) Gary Grant, retailer, Chairman, Dream Toys selection committee:

"Something that's really disappointing for me as a parent and as a grandparent is that you've got the speculators involved. You've got people that are buying them when they can and putting back onto a number of the internet channels at nearly double the price, so parents who are desperate to get the toy they want for their own children are buying them from people who never wanted them, they only bought them because they wanted to make money on them, it's really disappointing, but this is going on throughout the world, it's happening in Canada, it's happening in the (United) States, it's happening in the UK, just everybody's chasing around for Hatchimals this Christmas."

13. Mid of boy playing with toy gun

14. Close tilt down of girl playing with the new Bluetooth connected Furby which responds to what she does with her smartphone, or tablet computer

15. Wide of woman showing girl how the new Furby works

16. Low wide angle of the girl tickling the Furby toy

17. Pan from Christmas tree to wide of girl walking her toy dog on a lead

18. Close of toy dog on a lead walking

19. Mid zoom out of a girl seated cuddling an interactive puppy

20. Mid zoom in to boys playing with Bluetooth Furbys

21. Low mid view of caterpillar going past boys and Furbys

22. Zoom out from wrapped Christmas presents in giant sack to reveal Santa Claus walking with analyst Frederique Tutt

23. SOUNDBITE: (English) Frederique Tutt, toy industry analyst, NPD:

"Just like Brexit in June we've seen the election hasn't actually traumatised the UK market at all, so since the Brexit vote the toy market has been faring really well with an increase of three percent."

24. Tracking shot past model wearing costume of Silly Sausage to boy and girl playing Silly Sausage

25. Various of Silly Sausage toys being played

26. Wide of new range of Barbie dolls

27. Close tilt up of one of the new 'curvy' Barbie

28. Close tilt down from new afro Caribbean Barbie

29. Various of Barbies

30. SOUNDBITE: (English) Frederique Tutt, toy industry analyst, NPD:

"Probably ten percent. If we had to put a figure I would say there is a risk toys can increase by ten percent (in 2017)."

31. Close of bendy and stretchy muscle man toy

32. UPSOUND: (English) voice of Darth Vader from Star Wars over tilt up shot of Vader model

"Release your anger. If you only knew the power of the dark side."

33. Wide of Darth Vader model

34. Various of children playing with dog in a bath toy

35. SOUNDBITE: (English) Gary Grant, retailer, Chairman, Dream Toys selection committee:

"Many decisions that people are considering are on pause until we know the outcome of some of the discussions that are taking place about free passage of goods, movement of people and so on."

36. Zoom in of boy stroking interactive puppy

LEADIN:

Retailers in the UK have just revealed their top twelve 'must have' toys for boys and girls this Christmas.

The toy industry is predicting bumper sales, although it admits the US election of Donald Trump and Britain's EU exit vote earlier this year could lead to higher prices in 2017.

STORYLINE:

This is the toy everyone is raving about in the run up to Christmas.

Hatchimals respond to nurturing and warmth until eventually the egg cracks open and you have a new chick to take care of.

It's one of twelve toys which have made it to the list of Dream Toys which are selected each year by the industry.

Santa Claus and school girl Tiana Wilson are clearly fascinated and the excitement builds up as the chick starts hatching.

Wilson happily lists the toys attractions: "So it can walk and then it sings Happy Birthday sometimes as well and then the eyes light up in different moods and stuff."

A lot of interactive, or responsive toys like Hatchimals are most popular this winter, although the old favourites like Thomas the Tank Engine and Lego have secured places on the top toy list.

Toys like Furby have been updated with new technology so they are connected to computers via bluetooth.

Gary Grant the chairman of Dream Toys' selection committee says: "In all the years I've been selling toys, you know we've chased around Tracy Island, we've chased around Care Bears and Cabbage Patch Kids, but this seems to be just gone to another level and the thing is about Hatchimal, it comes as an egg, by nurturing it and keeping it warm the chick inside the egg starts to become warm, starts to become alive, starts to make noises and after a while it starts to spin around inside the egg and it starts pecking and it starts to break the egg open and then literally you hatch the egg."

Securing a Hatchimal this year might be tricky. According to Grant, there is already a worldwide shortage of the toy because the factory can't make enough of them.

Globally the demand for the Hatchimal is over a quarter of a million units, and the company expects to sell over 100,000 toys at around £60 each.

Grant says the shortage has meant some people are buying them to resell at a profit.

He says: "Something that's really disappointing for me as a parent and as a grandparent is that you've got the speculators involved. You've got people that are buying them when they can and putting back onto a number of the internet channels at nearly double the price, so parents who are desperate to get the toy they want for their own children are buying them from people who never wanted them, they only bought them because they wanted to make money on them, it's really disappointing, but this is going on throughout the world, it's happening in Canada, it's happening in the (United) States, it's happening in the UK, just everybody's chasing around for Hatchimals this Christmas."

One of the less expensive toys making the list this year is the Silly Sausage which tests your dexterity.

This is the new Barbie range developed to reflect the diversity in our societies.

The shape of the dolls is less extreme and more in keeping with natural proportions of young women.

There is even a 'curvy' Barbie, but you have to look closely to tell the difference between them.

There is a great deal of trepidation in the industry.

Analysts say 2015 was a record year with the global market valued at 86 billion dollars with an average growth of 7% across all the major markets.

But the US election and Britain's withdrawal from the EU is creating a great deal of uncertainty, over currency values and more importantly the security of existing trade deals.

Frederique Tutt, a global analyst who's a specialist on the toy industry says we shouldn't assume that it's going to be a gloomy future.

Tutt says: "Just like Brexit in June we've seen the election hasn't actually traumatised the UK market at all, so since the Brexit vote the toy market has been faring really well with an increase of three percent."

Toy retailers operate many months ahead so Tutt says there won't be price rises this year.

This is because trading is done in US dollars and most companies will have already stocked up on the currency to hedge against any drastic changes.

Tutt however admits price increases are likely next year and she says: "Probably ten percent. If we had to put a figure I would say there is a risk toys can rise by ten percent (in 2017)."

This Darth Vader is more of an adult toy.

Hidden sensors mean he can call out when you least expect him to.

Although there's the same old excitement about the approach of the winter holidays and the biggest gift buying time of the year, the industry is concerned about what lies ahead.

Grant says: "Many decisions that people are considering are on pause until we know the outcome of some of the discussions that are taking place about free passage of goods, movement of people and so on."

They say a puppy isn't just for Christmas, but sometimes they are.

====

Clients are reminded:

(i) to check the terms of their licence agreements for use of content outside news programming and that further advice and assistance can be obtained from the AP Archive on: Tel +44 (0) 20 7482 7482 Email: info@aparchive.com.

(ii) they should check with the applicable collecting society in their Territory regarding the clearance of any sound recording or performance included within the AP Television News service

(iii) they have editorial responsibility for the use of all and any content included within the AP Television News service and for libel, privacy, compliance and third party rights applicable to their Territory.

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4043378

LEAD IN:

Science research and development in the UK may face an uncertain future following last week's Brexit decision, but that isn't stopping the UK's top robotics companies.

They've been showing off their latest flying, shape-shifting – and in some cases potentially life changing – inventions at Britain's first Robotics Week.

STORY-LINE:

From shape-changing robots to dexterous mechanical arms, the latest in robotics was on show at the UK's first ever Robotics Week.

The event, from the 25 June to the 1 July, aims to get the British public engaged with developments and debates around robotics.

This shape-shifting robot is designed to manoeuvre over a variety of terrains to access hard to reach places, making it useful in the aftermath of a natural disaster.

But, taking place just days after the seismic political shift caused by the Brexit referendum, the impact of leaving the European Union was also at the forefront of people's minds.

Around 18.3 per cent of the funds the UK receives from the EU goes towards funding scientific research and development, a House of Lords committee said recently.

But Paul Newman, BP Professor of Information Engineering at the University of Oxford, says the UK's scientific community will continue to cooperate with others around the world whatever happens.

"Science doesn't respect national borders, we're part of a global community" he says.

While fans of the Terminator films may fear the rise of the robots, exhibitors at the event were keen to show how robotics can protect people.

The Shadow Dextrous Hand, made by the Shadow Robot Company, can be used for situations such as bomb disposal.

Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at Shadow Robot Company, says: "If you think of in bomb disposal and nuclear commissioning, this is often where you need human dexterity but you don't want a human nearby. This can be attached to a robot arm, to a little rover, and send it on its way and you have the operator somewhere else, at a safe distance, being able to remotely operate the hand to do whatever needs doing and if something goes wrong the operator is at no risk."

De La Rosa thinks that robotics are not just science fiction, but increasingly part of daily life.

"Robots are just going everywhere, in our homes, into space, into industry so the dream is not just in space but just robots everywhere making everybody's life better," he says.

While the Shadow Dextrous Hand is currently too heavy to be used as a prosthetic, other artificial limbs were on show.

Basingstoke-based company Blatchford demonstrated its Linx Limb, which it claims is the most advanced prosthetic limb in the world.

It was the recent winner of the UK's leading prize for innovation in engineering, the MacRobert Award from the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Dr Saeed Zahedi, technical director at Blatchford, explains: "This is the first integrated limb where the ankle and knee, they talk to each other, and behave in a coordinated manner."

"So for example if the amputee is going down the slope it would provide a break at the ankle as well as a break at the knee. An array of sensors at the knee and the ankle, they provide the information to each other so it can coordinate and synchronise and predict what the person is going to do in the same manner as you and I will go down the slope or go up the slope or go down the stairs or stand. Therefore the effort an amputee has to put into walking a leg will reduce," he says.

This exhibit shows how drones, dexterous digits and smart prosthetics are changing our future and bringing hi tech into our every day lives.

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4043378

LEAD IN:

Science research and development in the UK may face an uncertain future following last week's Brexit decision, but that isn't stopping the UK's top robotics companies.

They've been showing off their latest flying, shape-shifting – and in some cases potentially life changing – inventions at Britain's first Robotics Week.

STORY-LINE:

From shape-changing robots to dexterous mechanical arms, the latest in robotics was on show at the UK's first ever Robotics Week.

The event, from the 25 June to the 1 July, aims to get the British public engaged with developments and debates around robotics.

This shape-shifting robot is designed to manoeuvre over a variety of terrains to access hard to reach places, making it useful in the aftermath of a natural disaster.

But, taking place just days after the seismic political shift caused by the Brexit referendum, the impact of leaving the European Union was also at the forefront of people's minds.

Around 18.3 per cent of the funds the UK receives from the EU goes towards funding scientific research and development, a House of Lords committee said recently.

But Paul Newman, BP Professor of Information Engineering at the University of Oxford, says the UK's scientific community will continue to cooperate with others around the world whatever happens.

"Science doesn't respect national borders, we're part of a global community" he says.

While fans of the Terminator films may fear the rise of the robots, exhibitors at the event were keen to show how robotics can protect people.

The Shadow Dextrous Hand, made by the Shadow Robot Company, can be used for situations such as bomb disposal.

Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at Shadow Robot Company, says: "If you think of in bomb disposal and nuclear commissioning, this is often where you need human dexterity but you don't want a human nearby. This can be attached to a robot arm, to a little rover, and send it on its way and you have the operator somewhere else, at a safe distance, being able to remotely operate the hand to do whatever needs doing and if something goes wrong the operator is at no risk."

De La Rosa thinks that robotics are not just science fiction, but increasingly part of daily life.

"Robots are just going everywhere, in our homes, into space, into industry so the dream is not just in space but just robots everywhere making everybody's life better," he says.

While the Shadow Dextrous Hand is currently too heavy to be used as a prosthetic, other artificial limbs were on show.

Basingstoke-based company Blatchford demonstrated its Linx Limb, which it claims is the most advanced prosthetic limb in the world.

It was the recent winner of the UK's leading prize for innovation in engineering, the MacRobert Award from the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Dr Saeed Zahedi, technical director at Blatchford, explains: "This is the first integrated limb where the ankle and knee, they talk to each other, and behave in a coordinated manner."

"So for example if the amputee is going down the slope it would provide a break at the ankle as well as a break at the knee. An array of sensors at the knee and the ankle, they provide the information to each other so it can coordinate and synchronise and predict what the person is going to do in the same manner as you and I will go down the slope or go up the slope or go down the stairs or stand. Therefore the effort an amputee has to put into walking a leg will reduce," he says.

This exhibit shows how drones, dexterous digits and smart prosthetics are changing our future and bringing hi tech into our every day lives.

London - 1 July 2016

1. Various of shape changing robot walking and waving.

2. Various of Paul Newman, BP Professor of Information Engineering at the University of Oxford, looking at a display in the IET.

3. SOUNDBITE (English): Paul Newman, BP Professor of Information Engineering at the University of Oxford:

"Science doesn't respect national borders. So, we're part of a global community"

4. Various of Shadow Dextrous Hand being operated by Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at the Shadow Robot Company.

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at the Shadow Robot Company:

"Especially for dangerous environments where often you need - if you think of in bomb disposal and nuclear commissioning, this is often where you need human dexterity but you don't want a human nearby. This can be attached to a robot arm, to a little rover, and send it on its way and you have the operator somewhere else, at a safe distance, being able to remotely operate the hand to do whatever needs doing and if something goes wrong the operator is at no risk."

6. Various of Shadow Dextrous Hand being operated by Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at the Shadow Robot Company.

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at the Shadow Robot Company:

"Robots are just going everywhere, in our homes, into space, into industry so the dream is not just in space but just robots everywhere making everybody's life better."

8. Various of visitors looking at exhibits at the UK Robotics Week event

9. Various of Dr Saeed Zahedi, technical director at Blatchford, with the Linx Limb.

10. SOUNDBITE (English): Dr Saeed Zahedi, technical director at Blatchford.

"This is the first integrated limb where the ankle and knee, they talk to each other, and behave in a coordinated manner. So for example if the amputee is going down the slope it would provide a break at the ankle as well as a break at the knee. An array of sensors at the knee and the ankle, they provide the information to each other so it can coordinate and synchronise and predict what the person is going to do in the same manner as you and I will go down the slope or go up the slope or go down the stairs or stand. Therefore the effort an amputee has to put into walking a leg will reduce."

11. Various of robotics on display at the UK Robotics Week event.

LEAD IN:

Science research and development in the UK may face an uncertain future following last week's Brexit decision, but that isn't stopping the UK's top robotics companies.

They've been showing off their latest flying, shape-shifting – and in some cases potentially life changing – inventions at Britain's first Robotics Week.

STORY-LINE:

From shape-changing robots to dexterous mechanical arms, the latest in robotics was on show at the UK's first ever Robotics Week.

The event, from the 25 June to the 1 July, aims to get the British public engaged with developments and debates around robotics.

This shape-shifting robot is designed to manoeuvre over a variety of terrains to access hard to reach places, making it useful in the aftermath of a natural disaster.

But, taking place just days after the seismic political shift caused by the Brexit referendum, the impact of leaving the European Union was also at the forefront of people's minds.

Around 18.3 per cent of the funds the UK receives from the EU goes towards funding scientific research and development, a House of Lords committee said recently.

But Paul Newman, BP Professor of Information Engineering at the University of Oxford, says the UK's scientific community will continue to cooperate with others around the world whatever happens.

"Science doesn't respect national borders, we're part of a global community" he says.

While fans of the Terminator films may fear the rise of the robots, exhibitors at the event were keen to show how robotics can protect people.

The Shadow Dextrous Hand, made by the Shadow Robot Company, can be used for situations such as bomb disposal.

Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at Shadow Robot Company, says: "If you think of in bomb disposal and nuclear commissioning, this is often where you need human dexterity but you don't want a human nearby. This can be attached to a robot arm, to a little rover, and send it on its way and you have the operator somewhere else, at a safe distance, being able to remotely operate the hand to do whatever needs doing and if something goes wrong the operator is at no risk."

De La Rosa thinks that robotics are not just science fiction, but increasingly part of daily life.

"Robots are just going everywhere, in our homes, into space, into industry so the dream is not just in space but just robots everywhere making everybody's life better," he says.

While the Shadow Dextrous Hand is currently too heavy to be used as a prosthetic, other artificial limbs were on show.

Basingstoke-based company Blatchford demonstrated its Linx Limb, which it claims is the most advanced prosthetic limb in the world.

It was the recent winner of the UK's leading prize for innovation in engineering, the MacRobert Award from the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Dr Saeed Zahedi, technical director at Blatchford, explains: "This is the first integrated limb where the ankle and knee, they talk to each other, and behave in a coordinated manner."

"So for example if the amputee is going down the slope it would provide a break at the ankle as well as a break at the knee. An array of sensors at the knee and the ankle, they provide the information to each other so it can coordinate and synchronise and predict what the person is going to do in the same manner as you and I will go down the slope or go up the slope or go down the stairs or stand. Therefore the effort an amputee has to put into walking a leg will reduce," he says.

This exhibit shows how drones, dexterous digits and smart prosthetics are changing our future and bringing hi tech into our every day lives.

LEAD IN:

Science research and development in the UK may face an uncertain future following last week's Brexit decision, but that isn't stopping the UK's top robotics companies.

They've been showing off their latest flying, shape-shifting – and in some cases potentially life changing – inventions at Britain's first Robotics Week.

STORY-LINE:

From shape-changing robots to dexterous mechanical arms, the latest in robotics was on show at the UK's first ever Robotics Week.

The event, from the 25 June to the 1 July, aims to get the British public engaged with developments and debates around robotics.

This shape-shifting robot is designed to manoeuvre over a variety of terrains to access hard to reach places, making it useful in the aftermath of a natural disaster.

But, taking place just days after the seismic political shift caused by the Brexit referendum, the impact of leaving the European Union was also at the forefront of people's minds.

Around 18.3 per cent of the funds the UK receives from the EU goes towards funding scientific research and development, a House of Lords committee said recently.

But Paul Newman, BP Professor of Information Engineering at the University of Oxford, says the UK's scientific community will continue to cooperate with others around the world whatever happens.

"Science doesn't respect national borders, we're part of a global community" he says.

While fans of the Terminator films may fear the rise of the robots, exhibitors at the event were keen to show how robotics can protect people.

The Shadow Dextrous Hand, made by the Shadow Robot Company, can be used for situations such as bomb disposal.

Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at Shadow Robot Company, says: "If you think of in bomb disposal and nuclear commissioning, this is often where you need human dexterity but you don't want a human nearby. This can be attached to a robot arm, to a little rover, and send it on its way and you have the operator somewhere else, at a safe distance, being able to remotely operate the hand to do whatever needs doing and if something goes wrong the operator is at no risk."

De La Rosa thinks that robotics are not just science fiction, but increasingly part of daily life.

"Robots are just going everywhere, in our homes, into space, into industry so the dream is not just in space but just robots everywhere making everybody's life better," he says.

While the Shadow Dextrous Hand is currently too heavy to be used as a prosthetic, other artificial limbs were on show.

Basingstoke-based company Blatchford demonstrated its Linx Limb, which it claims is the most advanced prosthetic limb in the world.

It was the recent winner of the UK's leading prize for innovation in engineering, the MacRobert Award from the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Dr Saeed Zahedi, technical director at Blatchford, explains: "This is the first integrated limb where the ankle and knee, they talk to each other, and behave in a coordinated manner."

"So for example if the amputee is going down the slope it would provide a break at the ankle as well as a break at the knee. An array of sensors at the knee and the ankle, they provide the information to each other so it can coordinate and synchronise and predict what the person is going to do in the same manner as you and I will go down the slope or go up the slope or go down the stairs or stand. Therefore the effort an amputee has to put into walking a leg will reduce," he says.

This exhibit shows how drones, dexterous digits and smart prosthetics are changing our future and bringing hi tech into our every day lives.

London - 1 July 2016

1. Various of shape changing robot walking and waving.

2. Various of Paul Newman, BP Professor of Information Engineering at the University of Oxford, looking at a display in the IET.

3. SOUNDBITE (English): Paul Newman, BP Professor of Information Engineering at the University of Oxford:

"Science doesn't respect national borders. So, we're part of a global community"

4. Various of Shadow Dextrous Hand being operated by Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at the Shadow Robot Company.

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at the Shadow Robot Company:

"Especially for dangerous environments where often you need - if you think of in bomb disposal and nuclear commissioning, this is often where you need human dexterity but you don't want a human nearby. This can be attached to a robot arm, to a little rover, and send it on its way and you have the operator somewhere else, at a safe distance, being able to remotely operate the hand to do whatever needs doing and if something goes wrong the operator is at no risk."

6. Various of Shadow Dextrous Hand being operated by Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at the Shadow Robot Company.

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Armando De La Rosa, head of dexterous manipulation at the Shadow Robot Company:

"Robots are just going everywhere, in our homes, into space, into industry so the dream is not just in space but just robots everywhere making everybody's life better."

8. Various of visitors looking at exhibits at the UK Robotics Week event

9. Various of Dr Saeed Zahedi, technical director at Blatchford, with the Linx Limb.

10. SOUNDBITE (English): Dr Saeed Zahedi, technical director at Blatchford.

"This is the first integrated limb where the ankle and knee, they talk to each other, and behave in a coordinated manner. So for example if the amputee is going down the slope it would provide a break at the ankle as well as a break at the knee. An array of sensors at the knee and the ankle, they provide the information to each other so it can coordinate and synchronise and predict what the person is going to do in the same manner as you and I will go down the slope or go up the slope or go down the stairs or stand. Therefore the effort an amputee has to put into walking a leg will reduce."

11. Various of robotics on display at the UK Robotics Week event.

LEADIN:

Qatar's finance minister has announced an additional 5 billion pounds (6.3 billion US dollars) in investment in the UK.

Ali Shareef Al Emadi is in London attending a forum to promote business between the two countries.

STORYLINE:

The conference room at the Grosvenor House Hotel is packed for the Qatar-UK Business and Investment Forum.

More than 400 British and Qatari business leaders and senior politicians are attending the event.

The Qatari delegation is led by Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister of Qatar.

It's a sign of just how important business is between these two nations - bilateral trade is valued at 5 billion pounds (6.3 billion US dollars) a year.

Qatar already has 35 billion pounds (44 billion US dollars) of existing investment in the UK.

And the country's finance minister has announced that will increase by an extra 5 billion (6.3 billion US dollars) over the next three to five years.

"We're looking at the UK as one of our top 10 trading partners," says Ali Shareef Al Emadi.

"I think the track record for both countries is extremely positive and well received. If you look at what we've done 10, 15 years in the UK it's been an absolutely great story for us."

And British companies have huge investments in Qatar too.

In 2015, UK exports to the Gulf country totalled 2.6 billion pounds (3.3 billion US dollars).

El Amadi says British companies have done "extremely well" in Qatar's hydrocarbon sector, but believes there are also opportunities in infrastructure, technology, health and sport sectors.

UK trade is likely to undergo massive change as it negotiates its exit from the European Union.

Exports of goods and services currently account for about 27 percent of the British economy, with almost half of exports going to the EU.

While some warn Brexit could harm British business, Secretary of State for International Trade Liam Fox believes it's a chance to look "beyond the boundaries" of Europe.

"This of course means forging new ties and building new relationships with other nations. But perhaps more importantly, to strengthening our commitment to our oldest friends and allies. Qatar is one of the most valued of these," he tells the forum.

Big brands like Qatar Airways are represented at the forum.

And Qatar is heavily invested in British companies too - high end retailer Harrods, Barclays Bank and the iconic London skyscraper The Shard have all received backing.

Private company Al Sawari Holdings has long had a presence in the UK. It has business in a range of industries including real estate, hospitality, construction and manufacturing.

Its chairman Sheikh Turki Bin Faisal Al Thani explains why Britain is such an attractive place to invest.

"It's a very stable market, it's resistant to change. At the same time, it's a diversified market and for us it's also an international hub," he says.

"Our presence here exposes us to more international companies, allows us to develop a stronger network, to even get opportunities to be a part of business outside the UK, through the UK."

And he's cautiously optimistic about post-Brexit Britain.

"Every country has a period of up and down. But we've been with the UK for many years now and I don't think this will change," he says.

"Our investments are always long term so even though we can expect a bit of a dip in the coming years, that's not our vision, our vision is to look in the next 30 years."

ASSOCIATED PRESS

London - 27 March 2017

1. Tilt down from chandelier to stage at the Qatar UK Business and Investment Forum, held at the Grosvenor House Hotel

2. Close of audience

3. Various of Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister of Qatar, addressing audience

4. Close of audience member filming on her phone

5. Wide of forum

6. Wide of Ali Shareef Al Emadi, Minister of Finance, State of Qatar, on stage shaking hands with Xavier Rolet, CEO of London Stock Exchange

7. Close of Al Emadi addressing audience

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Ali Shareef Al Emadi, Minister of Finance, State of Qatar:

"We're looking at the UK as one of our top 10 trading partners. We think these platforms will bring business for both countries. I think the track record for both countries is extremely positive and well received. If you look at what we've done 10, 15 years in the UK it's been an absolutely great story for us."

9. Mid of Al Emadi in audience

10. Close of sign reading (English/Arabic) "Qatar - UK Business and Investment Forum"

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Ali Shareef Al Emadi, Minister of Finance, State of Qatar:

"Lots of opportunities for the British companies to look at things and others, especially on infrastructures, technologies, health sectors, sport sectors. So we really welcome them, they have really already done extremely well in our hydrocarbon sectors and we think that the opportunities is there for them in other sectors."

12. Wide of Liam Fox, British Secretary of State for International Trade, walking onto stage

13. Close of Fox addressing audience

14. Mid of audience

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Liam Fox, Secretary of State for International Trade, United Kingdom:++AUDIO AS INCOMING++

"We are looking beyond the boundaries of our own continent, ready to embrace all the opportunities of this new era. This of course means forging new ties and building new relationships with other nations. But perhaps more importantly, to strengthening our commitment to our oldest friends and allies. Qatar is one of the most valued of these."

16. Various of Qatar Airways stand

17. Various of Shell stand

18. SOUNDBITE (English) H.E Sheikh Turki Bin Faisal Al Thani, Chairman of Al Sawari Holding:

"For us, the UK, it's a very attractive market because it's a very stable market, it's resistant to change. At the same time, it's a diversified market and for us it's also an international hub. So when our company invests in the UK, for us it's, our presence here exposes us to more international companies, allows us to develop a stronger network, to even get opportunities to be a part of business outside the UK, through the UK."

19. Various of woman painting at stand

20. SOUNDBITE (English) H.E Sheikh Turki Bin Faisal Al Thani, Chairman of Al Sawari Holding:

"Every country has a period of up and down. But we've been with the UK for many years now and I don't think this will change, I think we will continue to have a presence in the UK. As I mentioned, our investments are always long term so even though we can expect a bit of a dip in the coming years, that's not our vision, our vision is to look in the next 30 years."

21. Wide of seating area with falcon in foreground

22. Close of falcon

LEADIN:

Vapers in the UK are hitting back at claims that inhaling e-liquid can lead to inflammation and chronic lung disease.

And with the number of vapers booming in the country, industry insiders and enthusiasts are keen to promote different ways of smoking e-cigarettes.

STORYLINE:

All sorts of smells fill the air in London's Olympia venue.

Strawberry, lemon, cherry bakewell, French toast, coffee and even cannabis.

An array of the UK's top vaping brands, from independent start-ups to tobacco-owned ones, have set up shop at the London Vape Show trying to lure in vapers with a never ending selection of hardware and vaping juice.

In this corner a group of reviewers, many of them Youtube celebrity vapers, is tasked with voting for the best e-liquids and vaping accessories.

Nick Bessette is a Youtube reviewer who flew in for the show from the US.

"So when we test we are looking for quality, value for your money. When it comes to hardware we are looking for ease of use. You know, things like that. We are looking out for the consumers. We want people to be able to pick up a device and be able to use it straightaway without messing about with settings and stuff like that."

Emerging after the introduction of a smoking ban in the UK in the late 2000s, the e-cigarette industry has boomed in recent years.

Public Health England (PHE) estimates that vaping helps at least 20-thousand people to successfully quit smoking every year, according to a report the agency published February 2017.

PHE went so far as to suggest that e-cigarettes should be prescribed by the British National Health Service, stating that vaping is at least 95 percent less harmful than smoking.

When the European Union's Tobacco Products Directive (TBD) came into force in 2016, limits were placed on the production of vaping products.

The burgeoning industry, mainly driven by independent entrepreneurs, had to adapt accordingly.

Brett Heaps is a director of the online store Eco Vape.

"When we started doing the new flavour creations for the legislation which is Tobacco Products Directive we invented some new flavours to the industry, like out number one selling flavour 'Prism' which you actually get different flavours every time you vape it cause it's such a complex mix. So you might get blackcurrant and then you start getting a bit of raspberry and then you get some, some other notes in there like vanilla."

Eco Vape sells between 20-thousand to 40-thousand e-liquid bottles a day, Heaps says, to customers across the world.

Their latest venture is cannabis flavoured e-juice, mixed with desert flavours such as cherry bakewell.

Director of UK Vaping Industry Association John Dunne says the UK has emerged as a market leader in the vaping industry, largely due to the government's favourable attitude towards e-cigarettes.

"The UK is a little different than almost all of the other markets in the world. We have a regulatory environment and a government that is really pro-vaping. So we are seen as being the innovators I think of the vaping industry around the world. From a consumers' perspective, the industry is worth just under one (b) billion pounds (GBP) and growing. We have just under three (m) million vapers here in the UK and about 1.5 (m) million of those are full time vapers. So they don't use anything else except vaping products."

Free market proponents such as the right-wing non-profit think tank, Institute of Economic Affairs, and the neo liberal think tank Adam Smith Institute hope that Brexit will allow for lighter regulation that will help the vaping scene grow.  

Head of Lifestyle Economics for the Institute of Economic Affairs, Christopher Snowden says: "There are various kind of petty regulations, some of which are fairly obscure. But they all damage the market in different ways. For example a limit of the amount of nicotine that can go into the fluid. That means that a product called Juul, which has proven very popular in America and got lots of people off smoking, isn't available over here because it exceeds that nicotine limit. There are silly regulations on bottle sizes, for example you can't buy vape juice in any bottle larger than 10 millilitres."

In the event of a no-deal Brexit, the UK will have the opportunity to review its legislation on tobacco and e-cigarette products.

Despite its success in helping vapours quit, several studies have warned that although better than smoking, vaping is not as safe as the e-cigarette industry presents it to be.

One study published this month found that vaping can cause inflammation and chronic lung disease by disabling key immune cells. The research was led by the University of Birmingham and funded by the British Lung Foundation.

The research showed that inhaled vape liquid can impair cell activity which is vital for immune responses in the airways that work to remove dust, bacteria, and allergens.

The chair of the New Nicotine Alliance, a consumer-led organisation advocating for 'tobacco harm reduction' without reducing the use of nicotine, calls such reports "irresponsible".

"I think probably one of the major problems in this country and in the world is a misconception about the relative risks of vaping. And even the absolute risk of vaping. People tend to think that it's the same as smoking and so there is a kind of a knee jerk reaction to want to regulate it in the same way. And public support is lacking because the public read the papers, they see these very damaging media reports, most of which are totally irresponsible and blown out of any sort of proportion at all, and they tend to think 'Well we don't want that around us'," says Sarah Jakes, chair of the New Nicotine Alliance.

Asked if he was concerned by the recent media reports on the harms of vaping, computer engineer and vaping enthusiast Eugene Baffour-Kyei says he chooses vaping over smoking as the lesser of two evils.  

"The way I think about it is that we know what smoking does for you. We know that this one is, shall we say that If we just randomise of generalise the research that has come out, at least 95 percent less bad than smoking. So if it's a choice between the two I think it's rather obvious. So yea, I'm not really too worried. I mean if there comes out more research saying this is tonnes worse, then I'll have to obviously think that over. But essentially is not as bad for you as smoking."

The London Vape Show ran August 25-26 2018.

London – 25 August 2018

1. Close of man exhaling vapour, vaping and blowing rings of vapour

2. Mid of men vaping and standing in front of stand with vaping products

3. Wide of people at display stand with vaping products

4. Mid of hand lining up e-liquid bottles

5. Focus pull of e-liquid bottles

6. Mid of man sucking on metal pipe and exhaling

7. Mid of man picking up pipe

8. Close of man sucking on pipe and exhaling

9. Various of vaping reviewers at table

10. Mid of Youtube Vape reviewer Nick Bessette – looking at vaping device and vaping

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Nick Bessette, Youtube Vape reviewer:

"So when we test we are looking for quality, value for your money. When it comes to hardware we are looking for ease of use. You know, things like that. We are looking out for the consumers. We want people to be able to pick up a device and be able to use it straightaway without messing about with settings and stuff like that."

12. Close of hands adding cotton to vape device and trimming it with scissors

13. Mid of man tucking cotton into device

14. Close of man applying e-liquid on cotton

15. Close of vapour rising from burning cotton

16. Close of vapour coming out of pipe

17. Close of man vaping from vape display

18. Close of man exhaling vapour

19. SOUNDBITE (English) Brett Heaps, Director of Eco Vape:

"When we started doing the new flavour creations for the legislation which is Tobacco Products Directive we invented some new flavours to the industry, like out number one selling flavour 'Prism' which you actually get different flavours every time you vape it cause it's such a complex mix. So you might get blackcurrant and then you start getting a bit of raspberry and then you get some, some other notes in there like vanilla."

20. Various of panel during debate (left) New Nicotine Alliance Chair Sarah Jakes, (second from left) Director of UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) John Dunne and (right) Head of Lifestyle Economics at Institute of Economic Affairs Christopher Snowden

21. Mid of Dunne talking to audience

22. SOUNDBITE (English) John Dunne, Director of UK Vaping Industry Association:

"The UK is a little different than almost all of the other markets in the world. We have a regulatory environment and a government that is really pro-vaping. So we are seen as being the innovators I think of the vaping industry around the world. From a consumers' perspective, the industry is worth just under one (b) billion pounds (GBP) and growing. We have just under three (m) million vapers here in the UK and about 1.5 (m) million of those are full time vapers. So they don't use anything else except vaping products."

23. Wide of audience at debate

24. Various of Snowden talking on panel

25. SOUNDBITE (English) Christopher Snowden, Head of Lifestyle Economics at Institute of Economic Affairs:

"There are various kind of petty regulations, some of which are fairly obscure. But they all damage the market in different ways. For example a limit of the amount of nicotine that can go into the fluid. That means that a product called Juul, which has proven very popular in America and got lots of people off smoking, isn't available over here because it exceeds that nicotine limit. There are silly regulations on bottle sizes, for example you can't buy vape juice in any bottle larger than 10 millilitres."

26. Mid of audience

27. Mid of Jakes talking at panel

28. SOUNDBITE (English) Sarah Jakes, New Nicotine Alliance Chair:

"I think probably one of the major problems in this country and in the world is a misconception about the relative risks of vaping. And even the absolute risk of vaping. People tend to think that it's the same as smoking and so there is a kind of a knee jerk reaction to want to regulate it in the same way. And public support is lacking because the public read the papers, they see these very damaging media reports, most of which are totally irresponsible and blown out of any sort of proportion at all, and they tend to think 'Well we don't want that around us'."

29. Close of display with coils for vaping devices

30. Pan of exhibition

31. Various of computer engineer Eugene Baffour-Kyei trying different vape flavours at display stand

32. SOUNDBITE (English) Eugene Baffour-Kyei, computer engineer:

"The way I think about it is that we know what smoking does for you. We know that this one is, shall we say that if we just randomise of generalise the research that has come out, at least 95 percent less bad than smoking. So if it's a choice between the two I think it's rather obvious. So yeah, I'm not really too worried. I mean if there comes out more research saying this is tonnes worse, then I'll have to obviously think that over. But essentially is not as bad for you as smoking."

33. Wide of people at exhibition

34. Various of men vaping and blowing rings

LEADIN:

Vapers in the UK are hitting back at claims that inhaling e-liquid can lead to inflammation and chronic lung disease.

And with the number of vapers booming in the country, industry insiders and enthusiasts are keen to promote different ways of smoking e-cigarettes.

STORYLINE:

All sorts of smells fill the air in London's Olympia venue.

Strawberry, lemon, cherry bakewell, French toast, coffee and even cannabis.

An array of the UK's top vaping brands, from independent start-ups to tobacco-owned ones, have set up shop at the London Vape Show trying to lure in vapers with a never ending selection of hardware and vaping juice.

In this corner a group of reviewers, many of them Youtube celebrity vapers, is tasked with voting for the best e-liquids and vaping accessories.

Nick Bessette is a Youtube reviewer who flew in for the show from the US.

"So when we test we are looking for quality, value for your money. When it comes to hardware we are looking for ease of use. You know, things like that. We are looking out for the consumers. We want people to be able to pick up a device and be able to use it straightaway without messing about with settings and stuff like that."

Emerging after the introduction of a smoking ban in the UK in the late 2000s, the e-cigarette industry has boomed in recent years.

Public Health England (PHE) estimates that vaping helps at least 20-thousand people to successfully quit smoking every year, according to a report the agency published February 2017.

PHE went so far as to suggest that e-cigarettes should be prescribed by the British National Health Service, stating that vaping is at least 95 percent less harmful than smoking.

When the European Union's Tobacco Products Directive (TBD) came into force in 2016, limits were placed on the production of vaping products.

The burgeoning industry, mainly driven by independent entrepreneurs, had to adapt accordingly.

Brett Heaps is a director of the online store Eco Vape.

"When we started doing the new flavour creations for the legislation which is Tobacco Products Directive we invented some new flavours to the industry, like out number one selling flavour 'Prism' which you actually get different flavours every time you vape it cause it's such a complex mix. So you might get blackcurrant and then you start getting a bit of raspberry and then you get some, some other notes in there like vanilla."

Eco Vape sells between 20-thousand to 40-thousand e-liquid bottles a day, Heaps says, to customers across the world.

Their latest venture is cannabis flavoured e-juice, mixed with desert flavours such as cherry bakewell.

Director of UK Vaping Industry Association John Dunne says the UK has emerged as a market leader in the vaping industry, largely due to the government's favourable attitude towards e-cigarettes.

"The UK is a little different than almost all of the other markets in the world. We have a regulatory environment and a government that is really pro-vaping. So we are seen as being the innovators I think of the vaping industry around the world. From a consumers' perspective, the industry is worth just under one (b) billion pounds (GBP) and growing. We have just under three (m) million vapers here in the UK and about 1.5 (m) million of those are full time vapers. So they don't use anything else except vaping products."

Free market proponents such as the right-wing non-profit think tank, Institute of Economic Affairs, and the neo liberal think tank Adam Smith Institute hope that Brexit will allow for lighter regulation that will help the vaping scene grow.  

Head of Lifestyle Economics for the Institute of Economic Affairs, Christopher Snowden says: "There are various kind of petty regulations, some of which are fairly obscure. But they all damage the market in different ways. For example a limit of the amount of nicotine that can go into the fluid. That means that a product called Juul, which has proven very popular in America and got lots of people off smoking, isn't available over here because it exceeds that nicotine limit. There are silly regulations on bottle sizes, for example you can't buy vape juice in any bottle larger than 10 millilitres."

In the event of a no-deal Brexit, the UK will have the opportunity to review its legislation on tobacco and e-cigarette products.

Despite its success in helping vapours quit, several studies have warned that although better than smoking, vaping is not as safe as the e-cigarette industry presents it to be.

One study published this month found that vaping can cause inflammation and chronic lung disease by disabling key immune cells. The research was led by the University of Birmingham and funded by the British Lung Foundation.

The research showed that inhaled vape liquid can impair cell activity which is vital for immune responses in the airways that work to remove dust, bacteria, and allergens.

The chair of the New Nicotine Alliance, a consumer-led organisation advocating for 'tobacco harm reduction' without reducing the use of nicotine, calls such reports "irresponsible".

"I think probably one of the major problems in this country and in the world is a misconception about the relative risks of vaping. And even the absolute risk of vaping. People tend to think that it's the same as smoking and so there is a kind of a knee jerk reaction to want to regulate it in the same way. And public support is lacking because the public read the papers, they see these very damaging media reports, most of which are totally irresponsible and blown out of any sort of proportion at all, and they tend to think 'Well we don't want that around us'," says Sarah Jakes, chair of the New Nicotine Alliance.

Asked if he was concerned by the recent media reports on the harms of vaping, computer engineer and vaping enthusiast Eugene Baffour-Kyei says he chooses vaping over smoking as the lesser of two evils.  

"The way I think about it is that we know what smoking does for you. We know that this one is, shall we say that If we just randomise of generalise the research that has come out, at least 95 percent less bad than smoking. So if it's a choice between the two I think it's rather obvious. So yea, I'm not really too worried. I mean if there comes out more research saying this is tonnes worse, then I'll have to obviously think that over. But essentially is not as bad for you as smoking."

The London Vape Show ran August 25-26 2018.

London – 25 August 2018

1. Close of man exhaling vapour, vaping and blowing rings of vapour

2. Mid of men vaping and standing in front of stand with vaping products

3. Wide of people at display stand with vaping products

4. Mid of hand lining up e-liquid bottles

5. Focus pull of e-liquid bottles

6. Mid of man sucking on metal pipe and exhaling

7. Mid of man picking up pipe

8. Close of man sucking on pipe and exhaling

9. Various of vaping reviewers at table

10. Mid of Youtube Vape reviewer Nick Bessette – looking at vaping device and vaping

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Nick Bessette, Youtube Vape reviewer:

"So when we test we are looking for quality, value for your money. When it comes to hardware we are looking for ease of use. You know, things like that. We are looking out for the consumers. We want people to be able to pick up a device and be able to use it straightaway without messing about with settings and stuff like that."

12. Close of hands adding cotton to vape device and trimming it with scissors

13. Mid of man tucking cotton into device

14. Close of man applying e-liquid on cotton

15. Close of vapour rising from burning cotton

16. Close of vapour coming out of pipe

17. Close of man vaping from vape display

18. Close of man exhaling vapour

19. SOUNDBITE (English) Brett Heaps, Director of Eco Vape:

"When we started doing the new flavour creations for the legislation which is Tobacco Products Directive we invented some new flavours to the industry, like out number one selling flavour 'Prism' which you actually get different flavours every time you vape it cause it's such a complex mix. So you might get blackcurrant and then you start getting a bit of raspberry and then you get some, some other notes in there like vanilla."

20. Various of panel during debate (left) New Nicotine Alliance Chair Sarah Jakes, (second from left) Director of UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) John Dunne and (right) Head of Lifestyle Economics at Institute of Economic Affairs Christopher Snowden

21. Mid of Dunne talking to audience

22. SOUNDBITE (English) John Dunne, Director of UK Vaping Industry Association:

"The UK is a little different than almost all of the other markets in the world. We have a regulatory environment and a government that is really pro-vaping. So we are seen as being the innovators I think of the vaping industry around the world. From a consumers' perspective, the industry is worth just under one (b) billion pounds (GBP) and growing. We have just under three (m) million vapers here in the UK and about 1.5 (m) million of those are full time vapers. So they don't use anything else except vaping products."

23. Wide of audience at debate

24. Various of Snowden talking on panel

25. SOUNDBITE (English) Christopher Snowden, Head of Lifestyle Economics at Institute of Economic Affairs:

"There are various kind of petty regulations, some of which are fairly obscure. But they all damage the market in different ways. For example a limit of the amount of nicotine that can go into the fluid. That means that a product called Juul, which has proven very popular in America and got lots of people off smoking, isn't available over here because it exceeds that nicotine limit. There are silly regulations on bottle sizes, for example you can't buy vape juice in any bottle larger than 10 millilitres."

26. Mid of audience

27. Mid of Jakes talking at panel

28. SOUNDBITE (English) Sarah Jakes, New Nicotine Alliance Chair:

"I think probably one of the major problems in this country and in the world is a misconception about the relative risks of vaping. And even the absolute risk of vaping. People tend to think that it's the same as smoking and so there is a kind of a knee jerk reaction to want to regulate it in the same way. And public support is lacking because the public read the papers, they see these very damaging media reports, most of which are totally irresponsible and blown out of any sort of proportion at all, and they tend to think 'Well we don't want that around us'."

29. Close of display with coils for vaping devices

30. Pan of exhibition

31. Various of computer engineer Eugene Baffour-Kyei trying different vape flavours at display stand

32. SOUNDBITE (English) Eugene Baffour-Kyei, computer engineer:

"The way I think about it is that we know what smoking does for you. We know that this one is, shall we say that if we just randomise of generalise the research that has come out, at least 95 percent less bad than smoking. So if it's a choice between the two I think it's rather obvious. So yeah, I'm not really too worried. I mean if there comes out more research saying this is tonnes worse, then I'll have to obviously think that over. But essentially is not as bad for you as smoking."

33. Wide of people at exhibition

34. Various of men vaping and blowing rings