Today - 08/10/2009

Presented by Evan Davis and James Naughtie. The result is to be announced of a ballot of 120,000 Royal Mail workers that could pave the way for a second national strike in two years. Billy Hayes, general secretary of the Communications Workers Union, outlines the strike ballot. Investigations will continue into the cause of a cyanide leak that killed thousands of fish in the River Trent in Staffordshire. Correspondent Bob Walker reports from the site of the river, and Dave Lowe of the Environment Agency discusses what may have caused the leak. Talks begin today to try and resolve a five-week-long strike by refuse collectors in Leeds. The dispute is over a proposed new pay and grading structure, which the unions claim will cut collectors' salaries by up to 6,000 pounds. Rubbish has been piling up in parts of the city and many residents have been complaining about rats. Correspondent Danny Savage reports from Leeds on the latest developments in the strike. If the Conservatives win the next election with a working majority, most of their MPs will be new to the House of Commons, because they have so few MPs at the moment. Evan Davis reports from the Tory Party conference, where he speaks to some of the new candidates, and co-editor of the Conservative Home website, Jonathan Isaby, comments on their views. Over the next few months, Today will be following the journey of Major Streatfeild, who leaves for Afghanistan for a six-month tour of duty today. He will command 'A-Company' of the 3rd Battalion, the Rifles, from a base in the Upper Sangin Valley, where the heaviest of the fighting has been so far. The first part of the series follows Major Streatfeild as he prepares to leave with the 3 Rifles, the third battalion of the Rifles regiment. Thought for the Day with Rev Angela Tilby, Vicar of St Bene't's Church in Cambridge. A report out today shows that the number of people offering organs for transplants is rising. It follows a series of recommendations to try to improve the chances for those who need life saving surgery. Dr Tony Calland, Chair of the BMA ethics committee, and the national clinical director for transplantation, Dr Chris Rudge, debate whether a system of 'presumed consent' is now off the table. The postal workers' union is expected to announce that Royal Mail staff have voted for a national strike. A series of regional postal strikes is already taking place in England and Scotland. Reporter Andrew Hosken speaks to a postman about his feelings on the postal service, and Paul Tolhurst, operations director of Royal Mail, describes the ongoing differences between the company and the CWU. The former head of the army, General Sir Richard Dannatt, will be joining the Conservatives' defence team. Political editor Nick Robinson examines the party's decision to recruit a former member of the military. It is National Poetry Day. To mark the occasion, Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy reads her new poem, Atlas, and the director of the Poetry Society, Judith Palmer, comments on the results of a BBC online vote to find the country's favourite poet. The latest annual drug treatment figures are to be released by the National Treatment Agency (NTA). The agency has told the BBC that the new figures have 'given cause for concern', as they show residential rehab is not growing at the rate they expected. Home editor Mark Easton spoke to drug users and rehab workers about why rehabilitation is low, and Paul Hayes of the National Treatment Agency outlines what could be done to improve treatment. Irving Penn, the renowned American portrait photographer sometimes described as the grandfather of fashion photography, has died, aged 92. Mr Penn's studio portraits include famous images of Miles Davis, Spencer Tracy and Pablo Picasso. David Bailey, an admirer of Penn's work, remembers his career. Stalin's grandson is to go to court to defend his grandfather's reputation. In the last few years, the Russian government has attempted to highlight the former Soviet leader's 'managerial skills' rather than his record in terrorising millions of his people. Orlando Figes, Professor of History at Birkbeck College, London examines the case. The campaign by people who have suffered from the effects of Thalidomide still continues. Some compensation has been agreed with Diageo - the successor company to Distillers, who marketed the drug nearly half a century ago - but the 460 people who still live with the effects want government help. Now Sir Harold Evans, editor of the Sunday Times 40 years ago when the paper revealed the scandal, is joining the campaign. Political commentators Daniel Finkelstein and Michael White analyse the Conservative Party's performance during their conference in Manchester.