The Report

The recent uprisings in Libya came after four decades of dictatorship under Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. The regime had pariah status until the Libyan leader's son, Saif al Islam, managed to persuade outsiders that Gaddafi was committed to reform. But in the face of opposition protests, both Saif and his father refused to relinquish their power and wealth.

In recent years, Saif played a crucial role in wooing big business, former dissidents, academics and Western governments. Hugh Miles talks to some of those charmed into assisting the regime and to former members of Saif al Islam's circle who saw much of Libya's wealth squandered on buying influence.

Hugh Miles is an award winning writer and broadcaster. He is the author of Al Jazeera - How Arab TV News Challenged the World.

Midwives have been in short supply in England for years. Why aren't there enough and what effect is this having on hospitals and pregnant women?

Consumer credit is growing ever tighter. Prices are rising, wages are being frozen, jobs being lost. Times are tough and increasingly people who are finding themselves short of cash are heading to the internet to secure quick and easy but very, very expensive short term loans. Cyberspace has proved the perfect breeding ground for smart young loan entrepreneurs who are capitalizing on lax regulation and consumer need to build a multimillion-pound industry. And with interest rates running as high as nearly 3000% APR, a new generation of online borrowers, many from the middle class, are slipping ever deeper into debt. Phil Kemp investigates the growing market for high-cost lending amid growing calls for the industry to face tougher regulation.

The riots at Ford open prison at New Year made front page news, but recently there have been a clutch of riots, disturbances and incidents of indiscipline in young offenders institutes and higher category prisons. The Tornado Squads - brought in to regain control in an establishment - were called out eleven times in 2010, more than twice as often as in the previous year. Lord Woolf, the new Chair of the Prison Reform Trust, and author of the report into Britain's worst rioting at Strangeways over 20 years ago says these outbreaks are a disturbing sign and symptomatic of strain in the system: "a well run prison won't have riots".

Tension in prisons is said to have risen as a result of continued overcrowding and bullying by street gangs who operate inside prisons, all of which put pressure on the transfer system. Prison officers believe that staffing levels are inadequate and that cuts in prison budgets can only make things worse. The Government Green Paper promises radical reform of the prison system, and a rehabilitation revolution to reduce prisoner numbers in the medium term, and the Minister Crispin Blunt is clear that the country can't afford to reduce overcrowding now. In the meantime over 800 prison places are to go by April. Gill Dummigan reports on the pressures on the prison system.

Producer: Rob Cave.

As petrol prices reach record levels at the pumps, the government is coming under increasing pressure to ease the motorists' pain. Amid the growing anger, Michael Buchanan takes to the road to investigate: should anything be done or are the days of cheap fuel long gone?

Britain's bankers are on course to collectively receive an estimated £7 billion in bonuses over the next couple of months. David Cameron has called on banks to show restraint when awarding themselves 'compensation' as it's known, but with no bonus tax this year, the bankers are expected to do well again. City tailors and Mayfair clubs believe the good times are back, and bankers themselves tell Simon Cox, it's time for things to return to normal. The Government's pleas may not have been heeded but European regulation has had an effect how bonuses are paid - with a significant proportion in shares and deferred payments - to encourage a longer term view. That may not be going down with the high flyers, but bankers are hardly suffering - in many cases salaries have risen significantly - up to 50% in some cases. As The Report hears from voices in the City who say that pay and bonuses are too high and too easily earned, Simon Cox asks why it is that the Government seems powerless to curb them.

Producer: Samantha Fenwick.

The revelation that the man responsible for Sweden's first suicide bombing had lived and studied in Luton provided the latest link between the Bedfordshire town and terrorist activity.

The accusation that Luton has become a 'hotbed of extremism' dates back to the late 1990s, when it was claimed that one of the men alleged to be involved with a terrorist plot in Yemen in 1998 had lived in the town. Links with Luton have also been cited in other major planned terrorist atrocities since, including the fertiliser bomb plot of 2003 which aimed to blow up British nightclubs and shopping centres, and the July 7th London bombings. The Report investigates whether Luton has a problem with militant Islam and if it is doing enough to stop its young residents from being radicalised.

The programme also asks why Luton has proved fertile territory for the extreme right. The English Defence League was born in Luton in the spring of 2009 in response to the abuse faced by members of the Royal Anglian Regiment - who had returned from a tour of duty in Iraq - from a small group of extremist Muslim protestors.

Phil Kemp speaks to community leaders who reject the impression painted of their town as a divided place.

Producer: Hannah Barnes.

The tribunal into allegations of fixing by three Pakistan cricketers begins in Qatar today, but whatever the outcome, the ability of the game to tackle the threat of corruption to cricket is also on trial. Betting on sport is hugely popular in Asia, and particularly India where it's banned, but millions of pounds worth of bets are taken by illegal bookmakers on international and County games which are broadcast on television.

Betting syndicates - sometimes involving bookmakers - are believed to be to targetting players in the UK. The ICC tell The Report "A very large number of players and officials have reported.. inappropriate approaches made by potential corruptors". We hear claims that the English and Welsh County game is being targeted by bookmakers from India, on the lookout for vulnerable players, perhaps with a gambling addiction or a debt. The Professional Cricketers Association monitor the facebook pages of members, because of worries that they might reveal information which would be useful to a potential corruptor.

Adrian Goldberg explores this murky world, and asks whether the game is succeeding in preventing players being lured by handsome rewards for not playing by the rules.

Producer: Paul Grant.

Linda Pressly reports on the protests against tax avoidance which caused disruption at stores across Britain in the run-up to Christmas. She finds out how the group behind the protests, UK Uncut, was formed and how it has used social media to connect protestors and to organise more than 50 demonstrations all over the UK. She also investigates UK Uncut's claims that the Government could avoid making deep public spending cuts by targeting rich individuals and big businesses that legally avoid paying billions of pounds a year in tax. Who are the people behind UK Uncut? What is the basis for their claims? And do they really have the answer to the UK's fiscal woes? The programme includes interviews with the founding members of UK Uncut, with Richard Murphy of the Tax Justice Network, John Whiting from the Office of Tax Simplification and Treasury Minister David Gauke.

Simon Cox talks to current and former members of Wikileaks to find out how it operates. He investigates how the organisation was set up, and how it handles its own leaks and internal dissent.

Producer: Jo Mathys.