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Brynhawn Mawrth cafodd Karen Robson ei chadarnhau fel ymgeisydd y Torïaid ym Mhen-y-bont yn yr etholiad cyffredinol.
Mae Alex Williams, aelod o fwrdd y Ceidwadwyr Cymreig, yn dweud fod aelodau lleol "yn teimlo'n ddig" a bod y mater yn chwarae i ddwylo'r blaid Lafur.
Pen-y-bont, ble mae gan Madeline Moon o Lafur fwyafrif o lai na 2,000, yw un o brif seddi targed y Ceidwadwyr yng Nghymru.
Rhys Watkins yw ymgeisydd Plaid Cymru, ac mae disgwyl i'r Democratiaid Rhyddfrydol ac UKIP gyhoeddi eu hymgeiswyr yn hwyrach yn yr wythnos.
Mae BBC Cymru ar ddeall fod pencadlys y blaid wedi rhoi Karen Robson a Dan Boucher ar y rhestr fer, gan arwain at gangen Pen-y-bont yn gofyn am ymgeisydd "lleol" i gael eu hychwanegu.
Ond fe benderfynodd pencadlys y blaid ddewis Karen Robson heb bleidlais leol.
"Rydw i'n siomedig iawn yn bersonol. Mae'n annemocrataidd tu hwnt ac mae wedi achosi problemau mawr," meddai Alex Williams.
"Mae llawer o aelodau yn teimlo'n ddig ac mae llawer yn ystyried gadael y blaid o'r herwydd.
"Mae'n debyg mai'r nod yw sicrhau mwy o ASau Ceidwadol benywaidd yng Nghymru. Ond ddylen ni ddim sicrhau cydbwysedd rhyw yn y blaid seneddol wrth orfodi ymgeiswyr benywaidd ar ganghennau lleol.
"Mae hyn wedi chwarae i ddwylo Llafur sydd nawr yn dweud nad oes gan y Ceidwadwyr ymgeisydd lleol. Gallai'r penderfyniad gostio'r sedd i ni."
Ychwanegodd Ken Watts, yr unig Geidwadwr ar Gyngor Sir Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr, ei fod yn "flin" na chafodd aelodau lleol gyfle i ddewis Mr Williams.
"Byddai'n ei chael hi'n anodd ymgyrchu drosti hi [Karen Robson]. Mater o egwyddor yw e, dim byd personol," meddai.
"Mae wedi bod yn frwydr ers pedair blynedd i gael Pen-y-bont yn sedd darged ac rydyn ni wedi cyflawni hynny o'r diwedd. Fe wnaeth Alex frwydro i sicrhau hynny."
'Rhestr fer o un'
Mae BBC Cymru hefyd yn deall fod ymgeisydd wedi cael ei osod gan y Ceidwadwyr yng Ngorllewin Casnewydd.
Yn ôl ffynonellau yn y ddinas, cafodd Angela Jones-Evans ei dewis o restr fer o un, er bod aelodau lleol eisiau gallu dewis.
Cafodd Mrs Jones-Evans ei dewis mewn cyfarfod o'r gangen, ond dywedodd un ffynhonnell ei fod yn "rhwystredig na chawson ni ddewis".
Mae'n debyg fod Nick Webb, ymgyrchydd lleol ac ymgeisydd y blaid yn yr etholaeth yn 2015, yn un o'r rheiny oedd eisiau sefyll ond chafodd ddim mo'r cyfle.
Yng Ngorllewin Casnewydd mae'r AS Llafur, Paul Flynn yn amddiffyn mwyafrif o 3,500 dros y Ceidwadwyr, ac mae Plaid Cymru wedi dewis Lewis Greenaway fel eu hymgeisydd.
Dywedodd y Democratiaid Rhyddfrydol ac UKIP y byddan nhw'n cyhoeddi eu hymgeiswyr yn nes ymlaen yn yr wythnos. Bydd rhestr lawn o'r ymgeiswyr ar gael o 11 Mai ymlaen. | Mae cadeirydd Ceidwadwyr Gorllewin De Cymru wedi dweud y gallai sedd sydd yn un o brif dargedau'r blaid fod yn y fantol oherwydd bod yr ymgeisydd wedi cael ei "gosod arnyn nhw". |
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Gladman Developments had denied the use of household appliances in Goostrey would affect the observatory's ability to receive radio signals from space.
But Communities and Local Government Secretary Sajid Javid ruled against the proposed development.
It would "impair the efficiency" of this "world-class facility", he said.
The proposed site, off Main Road in Goostrey, is 1.95 miles (3.14km) from the observatory, home to the world famous Lovell Telescope.
Cheshire East councillors rejected the plans last year.
But the developer appealed the decision claiming there was "no evidence" their plan for 119 extra homes would cause a significant increase in radio interference.
A public inquiry disagreed, saying the observatory, "as an established world class facility, should be afforded reasonable protection".
"This proposal could damage the world-class work being carried out by the observatory," the government ruling said.
"The harm to the efficiency of the Radio Telescope carries substantial weight against the proposal."
It also concluded the proposal would "be at odds" with the council's strategy for development in the countryside.
Cheshire East Councillor Ainsley Arnold said he was "delighted" and glad "the long-term protection of vital scientific work has prevailed over the short-term high demand in housing supply."
"Jodrell Bank observatory is a vital asset to this borough, the nation and the international scientific community".
The council is "doing everything possible to meet the housing needs of our area" but "this was simply the wrong development in the wrong place," he said. | Plans to build 120 new homes in Cheshire have been blocked on the grounds they would interfere with the Jodrell Bank radio telescope. |
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The 26-year-old made 38 appearances for the Silkmen last season after joining from Southport in September 2015.
He told the club website: "The gaffer had a huge influence on me signing on for next season.
"He kept faith in me all last season and I think from the work that was done last year my defending has improved a lot." | Macclesfield Town defender David Fitzpatrick has signed a new one-year contract with the National League side. |
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Two men, aged 21 and 22, have been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.
A silver Toyota Avensis ended up on its roof on Usk Way just after 07:00 GMT.
Following the crash, a 15-year-old girl from the Newport area was taken to the city's Royal Gwent Hospital with arm injuries.
Ms Doyle, from Newport, was pronounced dead at the scene. | The 19-year-old woman who died in a car crash in Newport on Friday has been named as Xana Doyle. |
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But dramaturgs are all the rage backstage in theatres, and even more traditional venues like the Royal Opera House.
For my vlog this week, I tracked down Uzma Hameed - a member of this rare but flourishing species - to find out what on earth a dramaturg is and does. | It is a word you might never have heard of, and a job you might never have known existed. |
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The comic came under fire after joking she was dressed like a "bag lady" at February's ceremony.
Following the criticism, he tweeted that she was a "dear friend" who had got the joke.
The Baftas take place on 12 February 2017 at a new venue for the event, the Royal Albert Hall.
It will be the twelfth time Fry has hosted the UK's biggest film ceremony, which has previously been held at London's Royal Opera House.
Fry said he has not "slammed the door" on Twitter after last year's incident, but said the site had become a "stalking ground for the sanctimoniously self-righteous".
Beavan, who won the Bafta for best costume design for Mad Max: Fury Road, came on to the stage in February wearing a black leather jacket, white t-shirt and dark trousers.
Following her acceptance speech and once she had left the stage, Fry said: "Only one of the great cinematic costume designers would come to the awards dressed like a bag lady."
But he posted a picture of the pair at a party later that night to show his comment had not been taken badly.
Next year's ceremony will feature Cirque de Soleil, which will be in residence at the Royal Albert Hall at the time of the awards.
Bafta chief executive Amanda Berry said: "I am thrilled we have the opportunity to work with Cirque du Soleil during its season at the Royal Albert Hall, and have no doubt that next year's ceremony will be all the more magical for this creative collaboration."
Nominations for the Baftas will be announced on 10 January.
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram at bbcnewsents, or if you have a story suggestion email [email protected]. | Stephen Fry is to host the Baftas again, despite quitting Twitter after his quip at this year's event about costume design winner Jenny Beavan. |
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Married Tony and Julie Wadsworth have presented on BBC Radio Leicester and BBC WM in Birmingham.
The couple from Leicestershire are due to appear at Warwickshire Magistrates' Court on Wednesday 11 May.
A BBC spokesman said: "We understand the charges do not relate to their conduct or position at the BBC." He said both presenters remain off air.
Mr and Mrs Wadsworth are accused of offences against boys aged 11 to 15 that are alleged to have taken place in Atherstone, Warwickshire, between 1996 and 1999.
Mr Wadsworth, 68, of Old Mill Road, Broughton Astley, has been charged with five counts of inciting a boy under the age of 16 to commit an act of gross indecency.
His wife, 58, whose on-air name was Julie Mayer, has been charged with seven counts of inciting a boy under the age of 16 to commit an act of gross indecency.
They both also face one count of committing an act outraging public decency. | Two BBC Radio presenters have been charged with sex offences against four children in the 1990s. |
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Sinn Féin, the SDLP, Ulster Unionists, Alliance and Green Party all spoke at the launch of the local campaign for the UK to remain in the EU.
The Stronger In campaign said Northern Ireland is a net beneficiary of EU funds.
It warned there are no guarantees the UK government would replace that money in the event of a Brexit.
The Leave campaign point out that the UK as a whole is a net contributor and claim that leaving would free up extra resources.
The referendum to decide whether the UK should leave or remain in the European Union is being held on Thursday, 23 June. | A cross-party groups of MLAs has warned that leaving the EU would damage the Northern Ireland economy. |
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Stokes missed the early part of the season after surgery on the wrist he fractured punching a locker during England's tour of West Indies in March.
The 23-year-old is added to the 12 players on duty for the dramatic defeat by Sri Lanka at Headingley last month.
Stokes made 120 against Australia in only his second Test last winter.
That innings at Perth was one of the few highlights of England's 5-0 Ashes defeat by Australia and was their only century of the tour.
Stokes, who also took 15 wickets in his four matches during that series, returned to domestic action in May and captured career-best match figures of 10-121 against Sussex last month.
National selector James Whitaker said of his return to the international fold: "It's really good news for Ben and us. We know what he is capable of.
"We always felt he needed a quantity of cricket behind him and he has had that now. It's another seamer we can add to our pool. We are going to need a depth of seamers."
England were unable to claim the final wicket in an enthralling first Test with Sri Lanka at Lord's, and then lost the two-match series after last man James Anderson was dismissed with the penultimate ball at Headingley.
It was their first defeat in a series of more than one match against Sri Lanka, and extended their run of matches without a Test victory to eight.
"It has been frustrating lately," Whitaker added. "We have got ourselves into some good winning positions and what we need now is to seal it and get over the line.
"When we are building a new team we have to build new habits. When we get the first one I think it will spark off a lot of victories and let's hope that starts next week."
Asked about the increasing pressure on skipper Alastair Cook, Whitaker said: "As selectors we back him 100% and we trust he will get England over the line very shortly. He is very resilient, full of resolve and is determined to turn it round.
"He is building an environment that he believes can be strong and positive for English cricket and we trust him to do that."
England squad for first Test against India: Alastair Cook (Essex, capt), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), James Anderson (Lancashire), Gary Ballance (Yorkshire), Ian Bell (Warwickshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Chris Jordan (Sussex), Liam Plunkett (Yorkshire), Matt Prior (Sussex, wk), Sam Robson (Middlesex), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Ben Stokes (Durham), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire) | England have included Durham all-rounder Ben Stokes in a 13-man squad for the first Test against India at Trent Bridge on 9 July. |
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Two specimens unearthed in China reveal details of the animal's skull and how it fed.
Named Atopodentatus, scientists say its hammer-shaped skull helped it to feed on underwater plants.
Only a handful of marine reptiles, living or extinct, are known to be herbivores.
Dr Nick Fraser of National Museums Scotland, who worked on the fossil, said it belongs in the pages of a children's storybook by Dr Seuss, which depicts animals with a strange jumble of features.
The reptile was "a bizarre, bizarre animal", he explained.
"We envisage it scraping algae and the like off rocks underwater.
"Herbivorous marine reptiles are very rare - this is the oldest record that we know of."
The first fossils of the creature were discovered a few years ago.
It was named Atopodentatus unicus, which is Latin for "unique strangely toothed".
New fossils unearthed in China's Yunnan Province by Chun Li of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in Beijing give a detailed picture of the animal's skull.
The discoveries, unveiled in the journal, Science Advances, show that rather than having a zipper-like snout as previously thought, the animal had a wide hammer-headed jaw filled with peg-like front teeth.
Scientists used clay to make a model of the jaw to work out how the animal fed.
"To figure out how the jaw fit together and how the animal actually fed, we bought some children's clay, kind of like Play-Doh, and rebuilt it with toothpicks to represent the teeth," said co-researcher Olivier Rieppel of the Field Museum in Chicago.
"We looked at how the upper and lower jaw locked together, and that's how we proceeded and described it."
He said Atopodentatus also helps tell a bigger story about the world's largest mass extinction 252 million years ago.
It lived at a time when the Earth was recovering from the loss of 90% of all marine animals.
"The existence of specialised animals like Atopodentatus unicus shows us that life recovered and diversified more quickly than previously thought," he said.
"And it's definitely a reptile that no one would have thought to exist - look at it, it's crazy!"
Follow Helen on Twitter | A crocodile-sized creature that lived 242 million years ago was the first known vegetarian marine reptile, according to new fossil evidence. |
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The Canadian star broke the news on his Facebook page. He did not give any details about the type of cancer.
He said he and Lopilato, a model and actress, were giving up work commitments to concentrate on "helping Noah get well".
Buble has appeared on TV and radio in recent days to promote his new album.
His statement said: "We are devastated about the recent cancer diagnosis of our oldest son Noah who is currently undergoing treatment in the US.
"We have always been very vocal about the importance of family and the love we have for our children. Luisana and I have put our careers on hold in order to devote all our time and attention to helping Noah get well.
"At this difficult time, we ask only for your prayers and respect for our privacy.
"We have a long journey in front of us and hope that with the support of family, friends and fans around the world, we will win this battle, God willing."
Buble and Lopilato have another son, nine-month-old Elias.
During a recent appearance on ITV's Loose Women, the 41-year-old crooner said: "I had no idea how much I would love being a dad.
"That's it, that's all I care about... I love them too much probably, if there was such a thing.
"It's made everything else so insignificant, moments that I was afraid of and moments that would overwhelm me have now become a joy because I've realised how not serious they are compared to what is really important, which is Noah and Eli and that's it."
Buble's scheduled appearances in the coming months include a slot at the BBC Music Awards on 12 December.
He is also due to host the Brit Awards in London on 22 February and the Canadian equivalent, the Juno Awards, in Ottawa on 2 April.
His spokesman said he did not know "anything more at this stage" about whether these and other engagements would be called off.
Buble's new album Nobody But Me went into the UK chart at number two last week.
An average of 3.2 million people watched a TV special, titled Buble at the BBC, on BBC One on Thursday, according to overnight ratings.
On Monday, Lopilato, from Argentina, announced that she was working on a new film titled Los Que Aman, Odian (Those Who Love, Hate), adapted from the novel by Adolfo Bioy Casares and Silvina Ocampo.
To mark Noah's third birthday in August, she posted five of her son's "best moments" on her website, including a shot of him just after birth and a video of him on stage singing with his father on New Year's Eve 2015.
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram at bbcnewsents, or if you have a story suggestion email [email protected]. | Singer Michael Buble and his wife Luisana Lopilato have said they are "devastated" after their three-year-old son Noah was diagnosed with cancer. |
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Such figures showed that it was a race against time to control the epidemic in Sierra Leone, medical charity MSF said.
In total there have been 539 deaths in West Africa since the outbreak began in neighbouring Guinea in February.
Regional leaders have now agreed to set up a fund to combat its spread.
At a summit of the regional body Ecowas in Ghana on Thursday, Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan agreed to contribute $3m (£1.8m) to the fund.
Ebola spreads through contact with an infected person's bodily fluids and there is no vaccine or cure.
It kills up to 90% of those infected but if patients receive early treatment, they have a better chance of survival.
The WHO statement said that Sierra Leone had accounted for 32 new cases and 15 deaths, while Liberia reported 11 new cases and four deaths.
There had been two deaths and one new infection recorded between 6-8 July in Guinea, where it said the community transmission rate was low.
"The epidemic trend in Liberia and Sierra Leone remains precarious with high numbers of new cases and deaths being reported," it said.
The cases in Sierra Leone are centred in Kailahun and Kenema districts, and in Liberia's Lofa and Montserrado counties, the WHO said.
Medecins Sans Frontieres said its teams in eastern Sierra Leone were "racing against time to stop the spread of the disease".
"We're under massive time pressure: the longer it takes to find and follow up with people who have come in contact with sick people, the more difficult it will be to control the outbreak," MSF emergency co-ordinator Anja Wolz said in a statement.
"We still have no idea how many villages are affected. I'm afraid we've only seen the tip of the iceberg."
The disease creates fear within communities and sick people are often stigmatised so experts believe the key to stopping the spread of the virus is to make sure affected communities understand it better.
"Families can be driven out of their villages, and sick people can be cast out to die on their own," said Ms Wolz.
The WHO gathers data on confirmed, probable and suspected cases and deaths in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
So far in the West African outbreak there have been 888 cases.
In pictures: Battling Ebola in West Africa
Why Ebola is so dangerous | High numbers of new cases of the Ebola virus are being reported in Sierra Leone and Liberia, with 19 deaths over three days this week, the UN's World Health Organization (WHO) says. |
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Zamalek, coached by former Birmingham City and Aston Villa boss Alex McLeish, grabbed a late equaliser against Mouloudia Bejaia to progress 3-1 on aggregate.
The success eases some of the pressure on McLeish, who's side are trailing their great rivals Al Ahly in the Egyptian league by 11 points.
Setif, African champions in 2014, were held to a goalless draw at home by Sudan's Al Merreikh.
Coupled with a 2-2 draw from the first leg, that takes the Algerians through on away goals.
Earlier Zesco beat Mali's Stade Malien 2-1 on Tuesday to complete a 5-2 victory on aggregate and become the first team to reach the Champions League group stage.
Zesco's Jesse Were scored the opener for the hosts after five minutes.
Samake Issaka equalised after the break for visitors Mali, but an 80th-minute close-range effort from Maybin Mwaba made certain of their progress.
Malien's misery was complete when Issaka was sent off on 89 minutes.
The losers get a second chance as they enter the draw for the play-offs in the second-tier Confederation Cup.
There are five more matches on Wednesday, while the draw for the group phase takes place on 24 May. | Egypt's Zamalek and former champions Entente Setif of Algeria have joined Zambia's Zesco United in the group stages of the African Champions League. |
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Monsignor Charles J Brown is an unusual appointment in that he does not come from the Vatican's diplomatic corps.
Instead, he has worked at the Holy See's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF).
This means he will be deeply familiar with the Catholic Church's response to child sexual abuse which was central to the CDF's work.
The decision to make him papal nuncio is being viewed as an indication of the thought that Rome has invested in the appointment.
In November, the Irish government decided to close its embassy to the Vatican in what was described as a cost-cutting measure.
The decision was greeted with dismay by Cardinal Sean Brady, Ireland's most senior Catholic cleric.
He said he was "profoundly disappointed" by it.
Damning report
Earlier this year, the Vatican recalled its special envoy in Ireland after a damning report on the Irish Catholic Church's handling of child abuse by priests.
Papal Nuncio Giuseppe Leanza was called back to Rome to discuss the impact of the Cloyne Report which showed how allegations of sex abuse by priests in Cork had been covered up.
The report led to angry condemnation of the Vatican by Prime Minister Enda Kenny in the Irish Parliament.
In a blistering attack, Mr Kenny accused the Church of putting its reputation ahead of child rape victims.
Monsignor Brown's nomination has been approved by the Irish government. However, it is standard practice for the Vatican not to confirm or deny the nomination until it is officially published by the government. | An Irish-American priest is to be the new papal nuncio to Ireland. |
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She told the party's conference that some people were "worried" about her appointment because she was a vegan.
But she said much of the food she ate was produced by British farmers and she wanted the public to consume "more British lamb and British apples".
She also pledged to fight any attempt to repeal the hunting ban.
Ms McCarthy was a surprise appointment as shadow environment secretary earlier this month, given her previous criticism of environmental and welfare standards in farming.
She said she was honoured to be given the position, in which she said she would be a champion for the natural environment and rural communities as well as the British food industry.
She joked that although she was a vegan - meaning she consumes no meat, eggs nor dairy - she did "actually eat food".
"Let me make this clear, I support British farming and want it to be economically viable, environmentally sustainable and to have the very best animal welfare standards," she said.
Instead of being the "force for good" that it could be, she suggested the Department for Environment was letting down farmers and other rural industries.
"I know farmers are finding it tough, not being paid enough for what they produce, too much paperwork, late payments, being hit by the exchange rate, and a system of subsidies - the Common Agricultural Policy - that needs fundamental review.
"I would much rather see people buy British lamb and British apples than imports from half way around the world. We need better food labelling so we know where our food is from and what is in it...we can all get behind that whatever we eat."
She accused the government of trying to bring back the hunting of foxes with hounds in England by the "back door" and promised to fight any attempt to legalise what she described as a "cruel sport".
While recognising the damage done to farmers by bovine TB, she said she was opposed to the policy of badger culling which she said "inhumane and unscientific", describing the pilot culls in parts England in recent years as an "epic failure". | Labour's environment spokeswoman Kerry McCarthy has said she wholeheartedly backs British farmers, acknowledging they are facing "tough" times. |
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The Frenchman, 20, started the 5-1 Old Firm derby win because of an injury to Scotland striker Leigh Griffiths.
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers said he was "outstanding", but added: "I have to make the team work and sometimes he will play with Leigh Griffiths.
"Sometimes he won't, but I think you've seen today the spirit in the team."
Northern Irishman Rodgers pointed out that four of Celtic's goals were scored by players who have not been regular starters since he succeeded Ronny Deila as boss - midfielder Stuart Armstrong and Dembele.
Media playback is not supported on this device
The striker, a signing from Fulham this summer, is likely to start against Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday (19:45 BST kick-off) in Griffiths' continued absence.
"He was up against Philippe Senderos, who's an experienced player - but you see his physicality in the game, his heading ability, his running ability and a wonderful touch and finish," Rodgers added.
Rodgers thought that bringing Armstrong on for Australia midfielder Tom Rogic early in the second half had thwarted a Rangers' comeback after Joe Garner had reduced the arrears to 2-1.
"I was disappointed that we conceded a goal before half-time," the manager told BBC Scotland.
"You expect them to come out and try to force the game in the first 10 minutes of the second half and there was too much area opening up, especially in the central areas - so we made the change.
"Tom's had a lot of travel in the international break. We said to Stu that this was a game he could come into and look to press and work and he's done that very well and got his goal. He contributed to a great team performance."
It was Rodgers' first taste of an Old Firm derby as manager and he described it as "incredible" and ideal preparation for the Champions League trip to Spain to face La Liga giants Barca.
"That is a game that we can go and enjoy now," he said. "It was important to win today and keep the momentum going.
"We have got to be relentless in our quest to win the title again and that was a good marker for us.
"The atmosphere today was truly special. When the noise is like that, it really is a team that has a 12th man."
Rangers, who were then a Championship side, had beaten Celtic on penalties in last season's Scottish Cup semi-finals.
"They had a real disappointment at Hampden only a few months back, so hopefully they have shown the improvements they have made," said Rodgers.
"It is great for the supporters. It is always about bragging rights for the supporters and I think they will be proud of their team today."
Striker Dembele said his treble is a moment he will remember "for my whole life".
"It feels great," he said. "To score a hat-trick, my first in professional football, is something unbelievable.
"Everyone has welcomed me since I came to the club and the fans were unbelievable today.
"The atmosphere is something I have never seen. I don't think I will see something like this in my career."
The match had been preceded by verbals between Scott Brown and Rangers midfielder Joey Barton, who had said the Celtic captain was "nowhere near the level of player I am".
Asked by Sky Sports about the much-anticipated midfield battle, Brown said it was "easy".
"There was no battling whatsoever," he added. "It was pretty much men versus boys at the end of the day." | Celtic striker Moussa Dembele's hat-trick against Rangers - his first as a professional - might not be enough to ensure a regular starting place. |
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The Office for National Statistics said 21,000 more Scots were in work, compared with the previous quarter, bringing the total to 2,631,000.
Scotland now has the highest employment rate out of the four UK nations, and is outperforming the UK as a whole.
For the first time, employment in Scotland is now higher than it was before the recession.
The rate north of the border reached 74.9% over the quarter - above the level of 74.6% recorded prior to the economic crisis.
Meanwhile, Scottish unemployment fell by 11,000 and now stands at 152,000.
The unemployment rate was down by 0.7% to 5.4% - the largest quarterly fall since the summer of 2014.
The UK jobless rate fell to 5.1% in the three months to November - its lowest rate since the three-month period to October 2005,
The number of people claiming Job Seeker's Allowance also fell by 2,300 from November to 64,300 in December. The figure is 20,400 lower than the same month last year.
Scotland's Fair Work Secretary Roseanna Cunningham said: "I am very pleased to note this month's figures, which reinforce the positive longer-term trends in Scotland's labour market, notwithstanding recent and ongoing volatility with Labour Market Statistics."
The SNP minister said: "Employment has continued to rise and unemployment to fall - with more Scots in work than ever before. Youth employment figures continue to be strong, outperforming the UK statistics.
"However, we are not complacent and we recognise that a number of significant challenges remain beneath these encouraging headline figures."
The UK government's Scottish Secretary David Mundell said: "These positive figures mean more people in Scotland are in work, better able to support their families and contributing to our economic growth and security.
"The UK government is delivering the foundations for a stronger and more resilient economy and Scotland is benefiting from that.
"But we know that there is more to do, especially with the serious challenge posed by the fall in the oil price and the effect that will have on the north east of Scotland and the wider Scottish economy."
Scottish Trades Union Congress general secretary Grahame Smith said: "There is no doubt that today's figures are very positive with a significant increase in employment and a similar fall in unemployment.
"It is noteworthy that the employment rate has now achieved its pre-recession peak.
"However, once again, men account for all the growth in jobs and most of the fall in unemployment.
"Given that there's no plausible explanation for the rapidly deteriorating relative position of women in the Scottish labour market, the STUC is concerned at the quality of the gender disaggregated statistics and would encourage ONS to reassess its processes in this respect."
Conor D'Arcy, policy analyst at the Resolution Foundation think tank, said: "Scotland has reached an important milestone this morning, finally returning to the employment rate it experienced before the recession.
"However, with this landmark event coming some 15 months after England closed its 'jobs gap', there is still work to be done.
"The challenge now is to convert today's encouraging signs on employment into a sustained long-term trend. This will be essential if Scotland is to maintain its newly-acquired pay lead over England in the coming years." | Employment in Scotland reached a record level between September and November, according to official figures. |
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West Midlands Fire Service (WMFS) has announced two trials to see how services could be protected with fewer staff.
WMFS said the public would see "no change to the service they receive" throughout the trials.
The Fire Brigades Union (FBU), warned it would mean fewer firefighters working more hours.
Steve Price-Hunt, acting brigade secretary of the FBU in the West Midlands, said the changes were ultimately expected to lead to 150 frontline cuts, taking the overall number of posts closed to some 400 over five years.
John Edwards, chair of the West Midlands Fire and Rescue Authority, said the trials would "produce the evidence we need to consider any permanent changes in staffing to deal with another deficit in our budget of £3.5 million that we face in 2016-17".
He said any long-term job cuts would be made through retirement and there would be no compulsory redundancies.
The two trials approved by the fire service mean watches will be merged at some stations, while others will see the number of staff reduced on each watch.
In the first trial, firefighters are expected to "self-rota", rather than being confined to specific shifts.
The FBU said the shift changes could force the service to call in firefighters at late notice to ensure engines were staffed.
Chief Fire Officer Phil Loach said WMFS faced "extremely challenging cuts".
A report to the fire authority said £21m in grants had been lost since 2011.
WMFS currently employs 1,322 full-time firefighters, who work from 38 fire stations serving a population of 2.7 million people.
Community fire stations in trials | The number of firefighters could be cut in the West Midlands in a bid to save up to £3.8m. |
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The 23-year-old made only one appearance for City since joining them in 2008 and had been a free agent after his contract expired last month.
The Swede previously had loan spells at Burnley, Feyenoord, Stoke and Celtic, where he won the Scottish Premiership and League Cup double last season.
He helped Sweden win the European Under-21 Championship in June.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page. | Former Manchester City striker John Guidetti has joined Spanish side Celta Vigo on a five-year deal. |
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The working group will comprise key bodies associated with preparing a bid.
The Irish government and the Northern Ireland Executive hope the move will lay the groundwork for a potential combined pitch to stage the tournament.
Ministers from Belfast and Dublin met in Armagh on Wednesday to discuss hosting the sport's showpiece event.
Stormont sports minister Caral Ni Chuilin and tourism minister Arlene Foster held talks with counterparts in the Republic's tourism and sports departments Leo Varadkar and Michael Ring.
The agreed working group will report back to both governments in a few months and Ministers will then consider how to move forward to submit a formal application to host the competition.
"The island of Ireland has a lot to offer the global rugby family and there would be a lot of benefits to be gained by hosting such a prestigious event," said Minister Ni Chilin.
"The (Stormont) Executive is investing £110m in upgrading stadiums in Belfast which includes the redevelopment of Ravenhill (the home of Ulster Rugby).
"While we would have world class venues to host the Rugby World Cup, there is a lot of work required to get us into a position to make a successful bid."
Mr Ring said the Rugby World Cup was potentially the biggest sporting event Ireland could stage.
"An event of this scale would not only have a great benefit for rugby but would also raise the profile of what sport can do for the country," he said.
"We all witnessed the massive boost to the national mood that was provided by the London Olympics.
"The Rugby World Cup is probably the largest event we could ever host on our own on the island and I would hope it would have a similar impact here.
"Sport is a great unifier, it brings people together and large events like this can also bring about a great sense of pride."
The ambitious bid would see matches played on both sides of the Irish border, taking in both rugby union and gaelic games venues.
Ireland has been mulling over the idea for over a year, with the backing of the Irish Rugby Football Union, in the hope of replicating the successful 2011 New Zealand event. | The prospect of a bid by Ireland to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup has moved a step closer with the setting up of a cross-border working group. |
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One victim was a four-year-old Bosnian migrant, snatched in October from a refugee registration centre in Berlin. The other boy disappeared last July.
The judge said the guard, identified only as 33-year-old Silvio S, kidnapped and sexually abused the boys, then killed them to cover up the abuse.
Silvio S was arrested after his mother recognised him in CCTV footage.
In the court in Potsdam he admitted both murders and expressed remorse.
The life term means he will have to serve at least 15 years before seeking early release.
Elias, aged six, was abducted from a Potsdam playground, near Berlin, last July. Later the boy was murdered and buried in a rented garden plot. His body was found after the defendant led police to it.
Mohamed Januzi, aged four, came to Germany with his family from Bosnia-Hercegovina. He was murdered in October.
As the murder was being described in court, Mohamed's mother stood up and screamed at the defendant: "What have you done with my child?"
The German news website RBB said court officials restrained her and led her away at that point. | A German court has sentenced a former security guard to life imprisonment for molesting and murdering two young boys. |
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Manager O'Neill's selection included dropping star striker Kyle Lafferty but Northern Ireland won 2-0 to revive their hopes of reaching the last 16.
"It was a massive decision, and it paid off," said 25-year-old Magennis.
"If it had been Jose Mourinho or Roy Hodgson, he would be hailed as a magician."
Following a deserved day off, O'Neill and his Northern Ireland team returned to training on Saturday to prepare for the final Group C game against Germany.
After his team selection for Thursday's historic victory, few would put money on what O'Neill's line-up will be for Tuesday's crucial match at Parc des Princes.
Magennis said all the changes made by O'Neill after the opening 1-0 defeat by Poland had been entirely justified.
"There were not many who could say they deserved to stay in the team," he added.
"We went back to the format which worked for us in qualifying and the boys who stepped in were magnificent.
"We nullified their wide men who were their big threat."
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Magennis said Northern Ireland would not be going out to try to hold the Germans to a draw.
"They are a dominant force who can hurt you from all angles - we know it is going to be tough," said Magennis.
"But as a group, from the manager to the kitman, everybody who wears the badge on their chest believes we can progress in this tournament.
"Our attitude is we are going to try to win this game. Every team has weaknesses and it is just a matter of us finding Germany's.
"There is no team we fear in this tournament." | Northern Ireland striker Josh Magennis says Michael O'Neill's decision to make five changes for Thursday's Euro 2016 win over Ukraine was a masterstroke. |
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Michael Salmon, 80, was convicted of nine indecent assaults carried out against girls at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Buckinghamshire and two counts of rape.
Reading Crown Court heard the attacks took place between 1973 and 1988.
Judge Joanna Cutts described him as a "cold and manipulative" man.
Jailing him for a minimum of nine years, she said his conduct was a gross breach of trust, all the more horrific because they were carried out against "vulnerable children".
This was a "rare case of cold-blooded sexual exploitation against children", the judge said.
The judge also told the court what he did was with "conceited arrogance" for his own "sexual gratification".
The convictions relate to six victims, but police said more women had contacted them with allegations against Salmon since the start of the trial.
Salmon, of Salisbury, in Wiltshire, was struck off the medical register in 1991.
The consultant paediatrician thought he was "bomb-proof" because no-one would believe a child over him, the court was told.
He abused children behind a screen while their parents waited believing he was carrying out a medical examination.
On some occasions he groped the girls' breasts under the pretence of listening to their heart, the court was told.
The court also heard that in one case, Salmon took a 16-year-old girl to his home and raped her.
He then dropped her off at a bus stop to make her own way home.
Allegations about Salmon were first made to the Metropolitan Police in 2012 during investigations of historical abuse carried out by Savile and others.
Thames Valley Police, which took over the investigation into Salmon, said he claimed the allegations were "sexual fantasies".
Adrian Foster, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: "His crimes were extremely traumatic for his victims who should have expected his support rather than this gross betrayal of their trust.
"Michael Salmon used his status to molest these vulnerable young girls and women who felt unable to complain as he was a doctor, and many of whom only bravely came forward after seeing other cases in the media."
After Salmon was found guilty, Det Sgt Malcolm Wheeler said the former doctor was a "prolific sexual offender" who "preyed on young girls".
Salmon worked at Stoke Mandeville Hospital at the same time as Savile was abusing vulnerable girls but their crimes were not said to be linked.
Savile, a volunteer porter, was said to have committed 22 offences at the hospital.
An independent inquiry was set up to look into Savile's activities and this led other women to come forward to accuse Salmon. | An ex-doctor has been jailed for 18 years for indecently assaulting girls at a hospital where Jimmy Savile abused patients, as well as two rapes. |
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Christopher Hampton, of Staple Hill, Bristol, appeared before magistrates in Bath earlier to face the murder charge.
Student Melanie Road was 17 when she was attacked after a night out in June 1984. Her body was found in front of garages near St Stephens Road.
The 63 year-old was remanded to appear at Bristol Crown Court on Tuesday. | A man has appeared in court charged with murdering a girl who was sexually assaulted and stabbed to death in Bath more than 30 years ago. |
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Waldouck, 28, left London Irish in April to move to the Pro League having made just five appearances for the Exiles after a move from Northampton.
He spent six years at Wasps, playing 77 top flight games before the move to Saints, where he played 30 matches.
The three-quarter will arrive at Falcons in late July.
Director of rugby Dean Richards said: "He has now played two or three seasons without significant injury and seems to be back into the groove." | Ex-England Saxons centre Dom Waldouck is to spend a month on trial at Premiership side Newcastle Falcons following a US rugby stint with Ohio. |
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European football's governing body said in January that the Turkish champions had broken regulations on the level of financial losses allowed.
A ban has now been imposed after Galatasaray failed to comply with financial fair play settlement terms.
The Istanbul club is currently fifth in Turkey's Super League.
Finishing in that position would leave Galatasaray outside the qualifying places for next season's Champions League and Europa League.
The 2000 Uefa Cup winners have played in the Champions League for the past four seasons, going out at the group stage of this season's competition.
They dropped into the Europa League but lost to Lazio at the last-32 stage.
Galatasaray official Iskender Baydar said that club directors are "examining the text of the decision" and will issue a statement later. | Galatasaray have been suspended from European competition for two years for breaching financial fair play rules, Uefa has confirmed. |
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After winning the first Test by 169 runs, England were bowled out for 103 on Sunday to lose within four days.
"It was pants down and backsides smacked," Australian Bayliss said. "We were outplayed in this game.
"It's never a great start when they're 300-1 and we were always chasing the game from there."
England lost a critical toss at Lord's on Thursday morning and Australia amassed 566-8 declared in their first innings before dismissing England for 312.
On day four the tourists extended their second innings to 254-2 before declaring again to set England 509, and then routed the home side in just 37 overs as fast bowler Mitchell Johnson returned to form with 3-27.
"I think results around the world, not just in England and Australia Test matches, there aren't too many close ones any more - one team wins pretty well," said Bayliss, who replaced the sacked Peter Moores in May to become England's first Australian coach.
"I was very happy in our first batting innings - 4-30 is not a great start, but I thought we played well to finish up with over 300. I don't think we used the new ball terribly well on the first morning and we just let them get away.
"We knew the Australians would come back hard in this match, and they will be full of confidence now they've got their A-game back. What we've got to do is go into the third game and worry about what we're doing, not what they're doing.
"If you look at the two matches, our bowling down in Cardiff was very consistent. I don't think in this game we were quite as consistent with our lines and lengths, and that just allowed the Australian batters to get on top."
The next Test in the five-match series starts at Edgbaston on 29 July and Bayliss would not be drawn on possible changes, despite his number three and four batsmen - Gary Ballance and Ian Bell - averaging 16 and 14 respectively in Tests this summer.
"We've got a meeting on Tuesday, and I'm sure there's some things to be spoken about. I'm not going to say anything just yet. I'll wait until I get together with the other selectors on Tuesday to discuss that."
Bayliss defended all-rounder Ben Stokes, who was run out by a direct hit in farcical fashion when evading a throw from the outfield and failing to ground any part of his equipment.
"Ben Stokes is a good player now, and as time goes by I think he's going to have a great career for England. He's a guy that's got plenty of energy and he brings a lot to this team, not just with bat and ball but in the field as well." | Coach Trevor Bayliss said his England team had their "backsides smacked" as Australia levelled the Ashes with a crushing 405-run win at Lord's. |
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Liverpool City Council says government funding cuts mean it will not be able to fund adult social care or children's services without raising more money.
The authority can not raise council tax by more than 3.99% without holding a local referendum.
The city's Mayor Joe Anderson said "the only solution" is to "cut services or ask for more money".
Mayor Anderson told a full council meeting on Wednesday night that it was not a question he wanted to ask.
He said: "We can ask for more money from the government, but they are not listening, or I can ask for more money from the people from the city which will help protect those services.
"We'd be saying for instance, would they support an additional 5% - so making it just under 9% council tax increase. Then we'd also be asking them would they go even further - 10%."
Between 2010 and 2017, central government funding will have been cut by £340m and a further £90m saving is required by 2020, meaning the council will have slashed its budget by about 67%, a spokesperson said.
Mayor Anderson added that any referendum would take place in May alongside the Metro Mayor election and would cost around £300,000.
In 2016, council tax in Liverpool rose by 3.99%, half of which was ring-fenced for social services, while the two previous years saw a 1.99% rise.
And this is not the largest increase the council has ever proposed - in 1994 it raised council tax by 19.5%.
A budget consultation will be launched on 17 November asking people if they would accept the proposed increase. | A city's council tax could rise by up to 10% in 2018 but residents would need to agree. |
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Damien McLaughlin appeared at the High Court in Dublin, and has been remanded in custody until 20 March.
He was arrested and charged following the shooting dead of David Black in November 2012.
Mr McLaughlin was granted bail in May 2014 but had not been seen by police since last November.
Wearing a grey jumper and blue jeans, Mr McLaughlin, of Glenties Road in Belfast, said nothing during his Dublin High Court appearance.
He was arrested under a European Arrest Warrant by gardai as part of a joint intelligence-led operation with the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).
A Detective Sergeant from the Garda Special Branch told the court Mr McLaughlin was a "terrorist on the run" who was a flight risk and possibly armed, which justified the use of force as he was detained by police.
Another man, aged 59, and a woman, 47, were also arrested during the operation.
Det Ch Supt Raymond Murray, from PSNI's Serious Crime Branch, said: "The PSNI has been liaising closely with An Garda Siochana and today's arrests demonstrate the benefits of joint working between police forces and other national partner agencies.
"As part of the operation a 59-year old man was also arrested in Donegal and a 47-year-old woman was arrested in Belfast."
The PSNI said senior detectives had contacted the Black family today to update them on developments. | A man charged in connection with the 2012 murder of a Northern Ireland prison officer has appeared in court after his arrest on Thursday. |
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All of the managerial movements for January will appear below, followed by the full list of each club, league-by-league.
To read the list for December, visit the ins and outs page. | BBC Sport tracks all the manager ins and outs as well as listing all the current bosses in the Premier League, Scottish Premiership, English Football League and National League. |
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Bristol were relegated to WSL 2 last season and have asked for the Football Association's permission to be renamed.
The Vixens will still play at Stoke Gifford Stadium but will be independent from Championship side Bristol City.
"This is a very positive development for the club which will secure top-flight women's football in Bristol," said Academy chairman Simon Arnold.
"The women's game in England has developed significantly over the last five years and to compete we have to become professional on and off the pitch.
"It was becoming increasingly difficult to do this as a club without the help of a professional club's marketing, commercial and supporter base.
"We have been working with our partners at Bristol City FC and Bristol Sport Limited for a number of years and it was the right time for them to embrace the women's game and put their resources behind the club."
Bristol City's executive director Doug Harman added: "It is a significant milestone in the history of both clubs.
"We have seen many Premier League teams welcome the women's development of the game and embrace the top-flight women's team in their respective cities - Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea to name but a few." | Women's Super League side Bristol Academy are to be rebranded as Bristol City Women's FC for next season. |
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Of the top 30 constituencies - areas where 90% or more of premises have speeds of 30Mbps (megabits per second) or higher - 16 are Labour-controlled.
But 17 of the bottom 30 constituencies - those with only half or fewer premises having superfast broadband - are run by Conservative councils.
The map was drawn up by broadband news website ThinkBroadband.
Liberal Democrat- controlled constituencies had a similar number at both the top and bottom of the league - five in the top 30 and eight in the bottom 30.
"It is interesting that so many Labour seats are towards the top end of the chart," said founder of ThinkBroadband Andrew Ferguson.
"A lot of this is because Labour seats tend to be in urban areas while Conservative ones tend to control more rural seats."
The map looks at coverage across the UK's 650 constituencies - which, on average, have about 50,000 premises - homes and businesses.
The map throws up huge contrasts between areas that are close to each other.
For example, in Wales the constituency of Carmarthen West has 33% of premises with super-fast broadband, compared with just 9.5% in neighbouring Carmarthen East.
Many of the constituencies in Hull show fairly low levels of superfast broadband, even though much of the broadband rollout is controlled by Kingston Communications which is offering homes extremely fast fibre-to-the-home technology.
"Kingston Communications has done a lot of fibre-to-the-home broadband but that technology is slower to roll out and so the total coverage is less," said Mr Ferguson.
It is important to note that the data does not allow anyone to draw conclusions about whether one political party is better than another when it comes to broadband policies, he said.
"The UK telecoms market is amazingly diverse and it is impossible to credit any one single political party for the success or otherwise with respect to what services are available as the current situation is the result of some 30 years of regulation," he told the BBC.
But local MPs can exert influence, he added.
"What individual politicians can do and should ensure is that those in their constituency are not placed at a significant disadvantage, this could be through ensuring a local authority project covers an area through to ensuring that alternate operators have minimal hurdles to overcome to provide a much-needed service."
All the main parties have included broadband pledges in their manifestos.
Labour have promised affordable, high-speed broadband across the country by 2020 while the Conservatives pledged to continue with their plans to provide 95% of the UK with superfast broadband by 2017.
The Liberal Democrat approach reflects the broadband delivery programme currently in motion and which it helped to create.
It can be difficult to extrapolate what will happen based on election pledges, said Mr Ferguson.
"They all make promises but there is little detail on how they will do it.
"Whoever gets into power, nothing much will change in the plans up to 2017. And after that, broadly they all want the same thing - to get to almost universal access eventually," he said. | Labour-controlled constituencies are more likely to have faster broadband, new data suggests. |
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Brian Reader, 76, was jailed over the £26m Brinks Mat armed robbery in 1983.
Terry Perkins, 67, was jailed for 22 years for robbing the vaults of Securicor, also known as Security Express, in the same year.
Reader and Perkins have already admitted conspiracy to burgle the Hatton Garden safe deposit.
Reader, of Dartford Road, Dartford, was jailed for eight years for conspiracy to handle stolen goods after the gold bullion robbery in Hounslow, west London, in 1983.
Jurors at Woolwich Crown Court were told he was also sentenced to a further year in prison for dishonestly handling £66,000 in cash.
Perkins, of Heene Road, was part of a gang which broke into the Security Express depot in Shoreditch, east London, and escaped with £6m on Easter Monday, 1983.
The jury also heard details of the previous convictions of the other men who have already admitted their role in the Hatton Garden raid.
John "Kenny" Collins, 75, of Bletsoe Walk, Islington, has convictions for offences including breaking in, theft and handling stolen goods.
Daniel Jones, 60, of Park Avenue, Enfield, has been sentenced for offences of robbery, burglary and handling stolen goods.
Four other men are on trial accused of being involved in the Hatton Garden raid:
Collins, Jones, Perkins and Reader are due to be sentenced at a later date.
The trial continues. | Two of the men involved in the Hatton Gardon raid were previously jailed for their roles in two of the UK's biggest-ever robberies, a court has heard. |
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But this is not the only court case the 77-year-old has been embroiled in.
Berlusconi, a billionaire businessman, is still fighting several other criminal convictions arising from trials held since he left office in November 2011.
He has rejected all charges and is awaiting decisions on his appeals.
Berlusconi was found guilty in October 2012 of tax fraud in connection with the purchase of TV rights by his firm, Mediaset, in the 1990s.
The court heard that he and other executives had bought TV rights at inflated prices via two offshore companies, to avoid paying taxes in Italy.
Berlusconi was sentenced to four years in prison last year, automatically reduced to one under a 2006 pardon act.
He is doing community service instead of prison because the Italian legal system is lenient to the over-70s.
He was also banned from holding public office for five years. That ban is now under review.
In June 2013, Berlusconi was convicted of paying for sex with an under-age prostitute and abusing his power. He was sentenced to seven years in jail and banned from ever again holding public office.
However, he was allowed to remain free pending the outcome of the appeals process.
Journalists dubbed the trial "Rubygate" after the nickname of the Moroccan dancer at the centre of the trial, Karima El-Mahroug, also known as Ruby Rubacuori (Ruby The Heartstealer).
Judges found Berlusconi guilty of paying for sex with Ms Mahroug in 2010, when she was 17. The court heard that he had slept with her on 13 occasions at a time when he was still Italy's prime minister.
He was also found to have abused the powers of his office by arranging to have her released from police custody when she was detained in a petty theft case.
Both she and the former prime minister denied having sex, and Ms Mahroug denied having ever been a prostitute.
In January 2014, Milan judicial authorities announced that Berlusconi, two senior lawyers and Ms Mahroug would be among more than 40 people investigated on new allegations of witness tampering in the case.
Berlusconi was convicted of breaching confidentiality in March 2013 and sentenced to one year in jail.
He was found to have arranged for a police wiretap concerning a political rival to be leaked and published in a newspaper.
Prosecutors brought the case after a transcript of a phone conversation intercepted by the authorities was published in the newspaper Il Giornale, owned by Mr Berlusconi's brother Paolo.
The conversation took place between the head of insurer Unipol and Piero Fassino, who was the leader of the biggest centre-left party and Berlusconi's biggest political rival at the time.
Unipol was trying to take over BNL bank in 2005. Magistrates had ordered the wiretap as they suspected inappropriate interference in the takeover.
Berlusconi remains free pending an appeal, as does Paolo, 64, who was convicted of the same charge and jailed for two years and three months.
In February 2014, a new trial opened against Berlusconi in Naples, in which he is accused of paying a bribe of 3m euros (£2.5m; $4m) to a senator in 2006 to switch to his party, thereby undermining the government of the time.
Two other corruption cases involving tax evasion and the bribing of a British lawyer expired under the statute of limitations.
The first case, Mediatrade, also concerned alleged fraud over inflated prices for TV rights. One of the defendants was Mr Berlusconi's son, Pier Silvio Berlusconi, Mediaset's deputy chairman. The case was dropped in 2012.
In February 2012, a case involving British tax lawyer David Mills was dropped. Berlusconi was alleged to have paid him 434,000 euros to lie under oath in two corruption trials in the 1990s.
All the defendants rejected the accusations.
He says he is being targeted by left-wing Milan prosecutors pursuing a vendetta against him.
He has complained of being "the most persecuted man in the entire history of the world".
After the original Mediaset sentence, he condemned the decision as a "political verdict" and complained of "judicial harassment".
In January 2011, Italy's Constitutional Court swept away part of a law passed in 2010 granting 18 months of immunity to Berlusconi and some of his senior ministers.
The ruling meant that it would be up to individual trial judges to decide whether he should be allowed to argue that his job was a "legitimate impediment" to a court case.
A legitimate impediment could include a state visit, an EU summit or perhaps a cabinet meeting while he was still prime minister.
Berlusconi is not short of money: Forbes magazine reckons his fortune to be about $9bn. However, he estimated back in 2009 that he had spent more than $200m in legal fees over two decades, with more than 2,500 court appearances in 106 trials. | Italy's former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has started a year of community service at a care home near Milan following a tax fraud conviction. |
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Tennis player Maria Sharapova failed a doping test after the World Anti-Doping Agency banned the drug on 1 January.
Four Russian athletes, who have not been named, tested positive for the substance this week.
"Twenty-seven have tested positive for meldonium and there are some 127 cases in the world," said Vitaly Mutko.
Russia's athletics federation is suspended from international competition for its alleged involvement in widespread doping, with a decision on potential reinstatement due in May.
Dmitry Shlyakhtin, head of the All-Russia Athletic Federation, said the latest positive tests will not "aggravate" that "complex" decision.
Russia's international ban - which includes this summer's Rio Olympic Games - applies only to its athletics federation and followed an independent World Anti-Doping Agency report last year that alleged "state-sponsored doping".
Last week, Russia's four-time breaststroke world champion Yuliya Efimova failed an out-of-competition test.
World number seven Sharapova, meanwhile, failed a drugs test at the Australian Open.
The 28-year-old said she had been taking meldonium since 2006 for health reasons.
According to Wada, a substance may be "considered" for the prohibited list if it meets two of the following three criteria:
A substance can be added to the prohibited list without first featuring on the watch list.
Grindeks, the Latvian company that produces the drug, says meldonium can take "several months" to leave the body.
It said the "terminal elimination" of the drug depends on a variety of factors such as dose, duration of treatment and sensitivity of testing methods. | Twenty-seven Russian sportspeople have tested positive for meldonium this year, according to the Russian sports minister. |
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Five candidates from Crawley, Horsham and Reigate clashed over the future of aviation during a BBC Surrey debate.
They argued over whether to expand Heathrow, Gatwick or neither airport.
The Airports Commission, headed by Sir Howard Davies, has said a new runway is needed by 2030 and will make recommendations after the election.
It is considering three options - a second Gatwick runway, a third Heathrow runway, or an extension to an existing Heathrow runway.
Crawley Labour candidate, Chris Oxlade, said planned investment in infrastructure currently did not benefit the town and negotiations were needed to get the best deal - which would include a Crawley bypass.
Reigate Conservative candidate, Crispin Blunt, said the economic value of expanding Heathrow was £100bn more than Gatwick.
He added: "It is absolutely plain the transport infrastructure that goes into Gatwick is completely incapable of supporting the expansion of Gatwick on the scale they're proposing."
Horsham UKIP candidate, Roger Arthur, preferred Heathrow expansion. He claimed infrastructure costs of several billion would be covered by neither Gatwick nor the government and lives would be "blighted by noise, overcrowding and pollution".
Horsham Liberal Democrat, Morwen Millson, said infrastructure had to be dealt with, or expansion could not happen. But she added local jobs were needed, not just low-paid luggage-handlers and caterers but also jobs in science and technology.
And Reigate Green candidate Jonathan Essex opposed any expansion. He said: "Around Gatwick, we've got congestion, noise, air pollution. We'll have building on the green belt and countryside because of the housing required to support the increase in the economy locally. But Heathrow has exactly the same issues."
A Gatwick spokesman said the Airports Commission, Network Rail and the Highways Agency had all agreed road and rail improvements would be more than adequate, with rail capacity doubling in five years and nearly trebling by 2035.
The airport had pledged £46.5m to deliver essential community infrastructure such as housing and schools and development would be over a wide area, not just near the airport, he added.
Other measures would include a local road improvement fund, better traffic management and better journey times.
He said the airport would fund a new runway and necessary infrastructure improvements.
Gatwick's plans were the most environmentally-friendly solution, he added. | Infrastructure would have to be a top priority if Gatwick Airport expanded, according to candidates standing in the forthcoming election. |
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An announcement is expected in the next few weeks following a two-year Scotland Yard review of the stalled Portuguese inquiry, says the Daily Mail.
Madeleine was almost four when she went missing on holiday in Praia da Luz in 2007.
The Met says her parents are being kept fully updated on its work.
Home Secretary Theresa May has agreed to provide funding for a full investigation by UK detectives, according to the Mail.
The Home Office has not confirmed the report, but said in a statement: "The Home Office remains committed to supporting the search for Madeleine McCann and we have always said we would provide the Metropolitan Police with the resources they need to investigate her disappearance."
In an earlier statement a spokesman had said: "We have agreed to provide the Metropolitan Police with the resources they need to investigate her disappearance."
A review into the case by police in the UK discovered new potential leads but the police in Portugal have not reopened the case.
The BBC understands any investigation by Scotland Yard would need the co-operation of the Portuguese authorities.
Scotland Yard would not comment on the latest development but released a statement saying they are encouraged by the progress they are making.
It said: "Detectives remain in regular contact with Kate and Gerry McCann and are working closely with the Portuguese police in an attempt to make further progress."
The UK review into Madeleine's case began in May 2011, after Prime Minister David Cameron responded to a plea from her parents.
Its objective was for a team of officers to work with the Portuguese authorities with a view to reopening the case, which has been closed since 2008.
As part of the review, a computer-generated image of how Madeleine might look at the age of nine was created with the help of her family. They marked her 10th birthday on May 12th.
The team has been compiling and reviewing material from three separate strands - the Portuguese investigation, inquiries by the UK law enforcement agencies and the work of private investigators or agencies.
There are believed to be around 40,000 pieces of information equating to about 100,000 pages.
In May, detectives from Scotland Yard said they had identified "a number of persons of interest" but they denied asking Portuguese police to make any arrests in connection with the inquiry. | The investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is to be taken on by the Metropolitan Police, according to reports. |
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Dr Fuentes, accused of running one of the world's largest sport doping rings, received a one-year suspended sentence.
On 29 April a Madrid court ruled the blood bags would not be released to the UCI and anti-doping organisations.
They want the bags tested to see whether they implicate other athletes.
Anti-doping authorities and international sports bodies have condemned Judge Julia Patricia Santamaria's decision to deny them access to the bags.
The World Anti-Doping Agency said the decision was "disappointing".
Fuentes was revealed by the Operation Puerto investigation to have been providing blood-doping services to cyclists.
When police raided his offices in 2006, they found 211 bags of frozen blood and plasma.
Fuentes has previously worked with tennis players, runners, footballers and boxers, although he has not said whether he helped them dope. | The International Cycling Union (UCI) is to appeal against a Spanish court's decision to destroy 200 blood bags presented as evidence in the trial of Eufemiano Fuentes. |
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The education select committee has cast doubt on claims that they can help social mobility.
There is also scepticism about whether an entrance test for grammars can be made "tutor proof".
Neil Carmichael, the committee's chair, says the focus on expanding grammars has become an "unnecessary distraction" from improving the school system.
The Department for Education has argued that removing the ban on opening new grammars will be a way of making "more good school places available, to more parents, in more parts of the country".
The cross-party committee of MPs, responding to the evidence gathered about plans to increase selective education, said ministers still needed to demonstrate how this would improve social mobility and close the gap between rich and poor pupils.
MPs said there had been no convincing evidence that a test could be devised which would not favour those who could afford private coaching.
As such they argued that such tests should not be the only criteria for entry.
The MPs also raised concerns about how an expansion of grammars would affect other non-selective schools, in terms of funding and the supply of teachers.
The committee called on the government to carry out an assessment of the potential impact on the wider school system.
Head teachers wrote to MPs last week to express their "incredulity" that grammar schools were being offered extra funds to expand places, while they were facing job cuts because of deepening pressures on their budgets.
The cross-party committee also highlighted the vagueness of the plans so far - with no clear outline of how many grammar schools would be created or how local demand for such grammars would be measured.
There were also questions about whether this push for academic selection should be a priority when there had been so many concerns about vocational skills shortages.
"The focus on opening new grammar schools is, in my view, an unnecessary distraction from the need to ensure all our young people are equipped with the skills to compete in the modern workplace," said Mr Carmichael.
Since the prime minister last year announced the ambition to create new grammars, there have been few details of how this might be put into practice.
But last week the Grammar School Heads' Association published details of a private meeting with education ministers, where they discussed options for expanding selection.
This suggested that new grammar schools could open from 2020 - but in the meantime there would be £150m funding to expand existing grammars or to introduce grammar streams through academy trusts.
There was also a suggestion that these new grammars would be much more selective than traditional grammars, with places for the top 10% of the ability range.
Another idea was that there would be a single national entry test for grammars, rather than a range of local tests, with the aim of designing an exam that would be more resistant to coaching by private tutors.
A Department for Education spokeswoman said that grammar schools have a "track record of closing the attainment gap to almost zero between children on free school meals and their better off classmates".
The spokeswoman said that "99% of grammar schools are rated good or outstanding; and even when you take higher ability intakes into account pupils still perform better in selective schools than in non-selective schools".
Labour's shadow education secretary, Angela Rayner, said: "When even the Conservative-dominated education select committee calls Theresa May's new grammar schools an 'unnecessary distraction', it's time that ministers finally sat up and took notice.
"There is a crisis in teacher recruitment, schools budgets are being cut for the first time in decades and hundreds of thousands of pupils are in super-sized classes. The Tories should be keeping their pledge to protect school funding rather than pressing ahead with this policy," she said.
John Pugh, the Liberal Democrats' education spokesman, said: "Instead of ploughing ahead with these divisive plans, Theresa May should address the £3bn funding black hole facing our schools over the next five years."
Sir Peter Lampl, founder of the Sutton Trust, backed the calls for the government to show evidence that new grammars could close the attainment gap - when less than 3% of grammar school entrants are eligible for free school meals.
"Until existing grammar schools demonstrate they can be vehicles for social mobility, the number of grammar schools should not be increased," said Sir Peter. | The government has failed to make a convincing case for opening a new wave of grammar schools in England, say MPs. |
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The influential Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said it was promised in 2014 an annual report on the impact of these policies on energy bills.
But it has not seen once since.
The PAC also repeated previous concerns about over-optimistic forecasting in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
The government's Levy Control Framework is supposed to control the cost of three low-carbon generation schemes, funded by levies on energy companies, which consumers pay for through their energy bills.
The PAC concluded that the framework had "suffered from a lack of transparency, rigour and accountability" and the forecasting of its costs had been poor.
The three schemes are:
The PAC said the department "significantly underestimated" the costs of the three framework schemes
It also said the BEIS "continues to expect to overspend the Framework budget".
Because of this, the cost of the three schemes will be £110 per household per year from 2020, £17 more than planned, according to the committee.
Committee chairman Meg Hillier said: "Bill-payers deserve to know whether or not the energy schemes they fund represent good value for money."
"The government has failed to meet its commitment to report annually on the impact these policies are having on bills. Current arrangements just aren't good enough.
"Government must take action to address this and also ensure customers can see clearly what they are paying towards existing and future schemes through their bills," she added.
The BEIS said the government would respond to the PAC's recommendations "in due course".
However, it said it took action last year to "revise renewable energy subsidies to ensure customers are protected from higher energy bills".
"The strong, decisive action we took reduced projected costs by over £500m to protect people's household budgets and ensure value for money while delivering more environmentally friendly energy," added a BEIS spokesperson. | MPs have said the government must do more to demonstrate the value for money of green energy schemes which are ultimately paid for by bill payers. |
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Ms Thomson has been linked with property deals involving a solicitor who has since been struck off.
She denies acting unlawfully. Police are investigating the claims.
Ms Thomson was elected as the SNP MP for Edinburgh West in May. She has withdrawn herself from the party whip.
Her membership of the party was also suspended after details of the investigation emerged.
She says she had "always acted within the law" and is focusing on clearing her name in order to "return as quickly as possible to frontline politics".
But speaking at First Minister's Questions, Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale said the issue was also a "moral matter" which she said had resulted in "vulnerable people being taken advantage of, as their homes are snapped up at knockdown prices".
Ms Sturgeon again insisted that she knew nothing of the allegations until they were reported by the Sunday Times.
She said: "I am in no doubt whatsoever in my mind that if the allegations - and again I stress the word allegations - are proven to be correct, they will represent behaviour that I find completely unacceptable."
The first minister said it would be "unfair and inappropriate" to judge someone who maintains their innocence while an investigation was still ongoing.
She added: "But when we have all of the facts, when the investigation is concluded, I will take whatever decisions and whatever actions I deem necessary, but those decisions will be driven by facts and not by insinuation and the attempts of opposition parties to stir up political trouble and difficulty."
Ms Sturgeon also said it was "ridiculous" to suggest the SNP would allow a candidate to be put forward for election knowing there were "serious problems" over their integrity.
She added: "Our vetting procedures as a party are robust but we keep them under review, as I would hope every political party does.
"While we make all reasonable checks and ask all reasonable questions, by definition it is not reasonable to expect that matters of which we have no knowledge can be investigated."
But Ms Dugdale accused the SNP leader of "running away" from Ms Thomson, who was the SNP's Westminster spokeswoman for business, innovation and skills and was heavily involved with the pro-independence Business for Scotland group ahead of last year's referendum.
She also said Ms Thomson had for the past two years "been right at the heart of everything the SNP stands for".
Ms Dugdale added: "I am not asking the first minister to comment on the specifics of a live investigation because I accept that criminal matters are for the police.
"But this is also a moral matter, and I would expect her to comment on that. What we have here is vulnerable families losing out for the financial gain of others.
"Vulnerable people being taken advantage of, as their homes are snapped up at knockdown prices. Can I ask the first minister, does she agree with me that profiteering from vulnerable families is just plain wrong?"
Ms Sturgeon responded: "Kezia Dugdale, although she disagrees with me, as she is entitled to do on a whole range of issues, I hope would accept that my commitment to social justice, and helping vulnerable people, like her's, is beyond any question."
Conservative leader Ruth Davidson questioned whether it was "believable" that no one in the SNP knew about the allegations.
She said: "We already know that the Crown Office and Police Scotland were asked whether they would investigate this case in July of last year.
"We know that the Law Society raised with the Crown Office in December.
"We know that journalists have been investigating it all summer and we know that the police were called in nearly three months ago.
"Yet the first minister is asking us to believe that nobody in the SNP, the party of government, from the constituency in Edinburgh West right up to the chief executive to the leader herself, knew anything about this until they read it in the paper almost two weeks ago."
Ms Thomson has been linked with property deals involving Christopher Hales, a solicitor who was struck off for professional misconduct by the Scottish Solicitors' Disciplinary Tribunal (SSDT) in May of last year in connection with 13 transactions in 2010 and 2011.
Prosecutors have instructed police to carry out an investigation into "alleged irregularities" relating to property deals in the year 2010/11 after the case was referred to the Crown Office by the Law Society of Scotland.
The society said concerns over potential criminal matters relating to the tribunal's findings were first raised "informally" with the Crown Office in December 2014, and then "formally" in July this year.
Ms Thomson's solicitor, Aamer Anwar, said in a statement released ahead of FMQs: "Michelle Thomson maintains that she has always acted within the law.
"In the interests of her constituents and her party she thought it best if she voluntarily withdrew from the party whip.
"There was no requirement for her to do so, even though she knew it would automatically lead to her suspension from the party. She did so in order to clear her name and return as quickly as possible to frontline politics.
"To that purpose we have contacted Police Scotland at Mrs Thomson's request advising them of her wish to assist with their investigation if, or when, they wish to speak to her." | The allegations against MP Michelle Thomson would represent "completely unacceptable" behaviour if they are proven to be correct, Nicola Sturgeon has told the Scottish Parliament. |
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Members of the National Security Force fired tear gas and rubber bullets to try to disperse some 300 protesters.
Several protesters have been injured.
President Dilma Rousseff had ordered tight security after violent demonstrations in Rio last week.
By Wyre DaviesRio de Janeiro correspondent
Local media said a small number of protesters tried to set a car alight while others tried to block cars carrying officials from Brazil's Mining and Energy Ministry from getting to the hotel where the auction is taking place.
"There were bizarre scenes. Riot police firing tear gas and stun grenades, not just against protesters, but also on to the beach, with hundreds of tourists and sun worshippers looking on incredulously," the BBC's Wyre Davies reported from Rio de Janeiro.
Among the protesters are members of various unions representing oil workers, who have been on strike since Thursday at more than 40 oil platforms and refineries.
The unions accuse the government of "selling off" Brazil's riches.
Eleven international oil companies are said to be interested in the Libra oilfield, and nine of them have so far reportedly paid the required registration fee.
The Libra offshore oilfield is located at a depth of some 5,000m (16,500ft), below a thick layer of salt sediments, which makes its exploration extremely challenging.
The Brazilian government hopes that by bringing foreign expertise on board it will be able to exploit Libra's estimated 8-12 billion barrels of recoverable oil reserves.
"We're taking over this immense wealth that lies under the sea and on land. It is not available to us if it stays where it is," Mines and Energy Minister Edison Lobao told AFP news agency.
But critics say Brazil should protect the monopoly of exploration of its oil reserves.
Others argue that the rules set by the government for the auction have scared off big players such as BP and Exxon for allegedly allowing too much state intervention.
The Libra field belongs to the Brazilian government's National Petroleum Agency (ANP) and is part of huge oil reserves discovered in 2010 under a layer of rock, sand and salt beneath the seabed.
The discovery potentially doubles Brazil's known oil reserves. | Brazilian security forces and protesters have clashed in Barra da Tijuca, near Rio de Janeiro, where the Brazilian government is auctioning off exploration rights for a huge oilfield on Monday. |
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And earlier this week, talks between US tech firms and privacy campaigners broke down over fears about how the industry is planning to use the tech.
So why is there so much concern over facial recognition tech, and is it justified? We unpick some of the issues.
Not really. The concept of using cameras to recognise people has been around for decades - CCTV has become all but ubiquitous in our cities. And the public has, by and large, accepted the trade-off between privacy and protection. CCTV images are routinely used as evidence in court and have helped identify and prosecute many criminals.
Cameras have been good at recording people doing things but not so good at identifying them as individuals - unless your face was already on a database. And even then, CCTV images were often so blurry that facial recognition software was unable to make a match. If you weren't on a database, law enforcement authorities had nothing to compare your captured image with - they just had to hope someone recognised you.
But with the latest high-definition - and even ultra-high-definition - cameras giving images far more detail and sharpness, the curse of the blurry picture could disappear. And as the software and computing power improves too, programs could more easily make matches against existing databases and accurately measure the minute differences in our physiognomies that make us unique.
Because, theoretically, we can now be individually identified wherever we go. As our lives have become increasingly digital and online, we've been leaving data trails everywhere we go, particularly via social media and our smartphones. These separate bits of data can be amalgamated to build up a detailed picture of who we are - our tastes, opinions, friendships, habits, movements. If cameras can also identify us individually - by matching the image they capture with a Facebook photo they've gleaned, say - then the picture becomes almost complete.
Law enforcement agencies and companies who want to sell us stuff, mainly. Say you walk into a shop - the in-store cameras could identify you using software that analyses your unique facial characteristics. This could then be cross-checked against your smartphone location data. The retailer could then ping special offers and discounts to your phone tailored to you personally, even responding to the outfit you happen to be wearing that day. Recognition software, coupled with machine learning, is now sophisticated enough to distinguish between objects within images, as well between faces. And some software companies reckon they can even monitor customers' changing emotions as they interact with products in the store.
Nothing necessarily - consumers could benefit greatly, in fact. For example, facial recognition systems in airports - when they work - can help speed up passport checks. The issue is whether we have a choice. Civil rights groups argue that we have a fundamental right to privacy and that wanting to be anonymous does not mean we have "something to hide". We shouldn't be able to be identified if we don't want to be.
But how will we know whether we're being remotely identified or not? This is the issue that provoked a group of privacy campaigners to walk out of talks brokered by the US National Telecommunication and Information Administration, a division of the Department of Commerce. They were all trying to come up with a voluntary code of practice governing how facial recognition technology should be used. In the campaigners' view, government agencies and private companies are unwilling to accept that they should always seek permission first before using this type of data.
Very possibly. The Electronic Freedom Foundation believes the FBI already has 14 million face images on its database and plans to increase this to more than 50 million. In the UK, the police have about 18 million mugshots on file. And once you've been identified, you stay identified, because your facial characteristics and the proportions of your head, just like your fingerprints, don't change.
In Europe, companies have to seek your permission first before using facial recognition technology for commercial purposes. This is why Facebook has decided not to offer its photo-sharing app Moments in the region - it does not offer an opt-in facility. Just two states in the US - Illinois and Texas - have adopted Europe's approach. In the UK, the Data Protection Act stipulates that we have to be informed when we are under camera surveillance and by whom. We also have the right to request any recorded images we feature in.
People don't always play by the rules. It's very difficult to know how our images are being used and whether our right to privacy is being respected. The digital surveillance genie is out of the bottle, and many privacy campaigners have little faith that regulators will ever be able to stuff it back in. | Facebook has decided not to offer its photo-sharing app Moments in Europe because of regulator concerns over its facial recognition technology. |
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An improved second-half performance was not enough as the champions' bid for back-to-back titles ended in Galway.
"We are disappointed we didn't play our best game when it was required," Townsend told BBC Scotland.
"When it comes to a semi-final or final you have to play very well to win and we didn't do that today."
Fly-half Finn Russell was taken to hospital after suffering a "facial and head injury" in the opening minute, receiving oxygen during lengthy on-field treatment.
The 23-year-old stayed there on Saturday night and will remain in hospital on Sunday night for observation.
"It's a nasty looking injury," Townsend told BBC Scotland. "Our thoughts are with Finn and we hope he makes a quick recovery."
Connacht maintained the 100% record of home teams in Pro12 semi-finals as a converted try from wing Niyi Adeolokun and three penalties from AJ MacGinty sealed their passage to an all-Irish final against Leinster next Saturday at Murrayfield.
"In attack we just didn't have the control or the patience to hold onto the ball, to go through that extra phase in the first half," Townsend noted.
"We rushed things a little and weren't as fluent as we can be but in the second half we showed what we can do and came right back into the game but it's a pity we couldn't sustain that."
Veteran winger Sean Lamont said it was "a season's work gone down the drain."
"Credit to the boys, they dug in to the end, but I just think we were on the wrong side of the penalty count and weren't quite clinical enough," said the 35-year-old.
"For the boys that are leaving us it would have been nice to finish on a high but unfortunately we were just a little bit short.
"To lose a couple of guys [Russell and Fagerson] so early it does shift things but I think the guys that came on did a great job. These things happen, it's rugby unfortunately, it's the nature of the sport."
"Glasgow will be disappointed with how they played this game for the full 80 minutes. We only really saw what they can do for 10 minutes at the start of the second half.
"Leone Nakarawa was probably their best player and that is what they are losing. He has been outstanding, and a joy to watch.
"If Glasgow had defended their title after the season they have had, losing so many players to the World Cup and the Six Nations, it would have been an incredible achievement.
"Ultimately it was the game two weeks ago which cost Glasgow a home semi-final. You saw the influence the crowd had again, and in a tight game, home advantage makes a big difference.
"Glasgow did remarkably well to get into this position but they just couldn't get over the line.
"Connacht have only lost once at The Sportsground all season and have played some great rugby. You saw the character and resilience and team spirit they showed at the end.
"Leinster will be favourites in the final because of their tradition and history but I would love it if Connacht won it. Their attacking play has been fantastic and it would be great for them to win it for the first time." | Glasgow head coach Gregor Townsend was frustrated his team failed to hit their best form as they lost 16-11 to Connacht in their Pro 12 semi-final. |
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Josh Buscombe, aged 24, Daniel Atlass, aged 22, and Jordan Bishop, 21, have been charged with the killing.
All three men are from Truro Road, St Austell. They are due to appear before Bodmin Magistrates' Court on Friday.
The body of 31-year-old Stephen Bull was discovered in a park off Bridge Road, St Austell, just after 05:00 GMT on Wednesday. | Three men have been charged with murder after a man's body was found in a park in Cornwall. |
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Club owner Francesco Becchetti made the decision following a 3-1 defeat at Hartlepool on Sunday, which left Orient in seventh place.
The players have been allowed to visit their families in their spare time but have been eating and sleeping at a hotel in Waltham Abbey.
Orient play York at home on Saturday.
Manager Ian Hendon told the Daily Mail: "If we win 4-0 or 5-0 on Saturday, the owner might ask us to move here permanently.
"We're not trying to hide anything. There are plenty of army camps I know about in deep, dark woods if we wanted to do that."
Orient - who started the season with five straight wins - were also made to train full-time for three weeks after they were relegated from League One last May.
Meanwhile the O's have signed Queens Park Rangers defender Cole Kpekawa on an initial one-month youth loan deal.
The 19-year-old, who had spells at Colchester and Portsmouth last season, has made three appearances for the R's this season. | Leyton Orient players and coaching staff have been made to stay in a hotel this week after winning only two of their past 12 matches in League Two. |
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Police said she was driving a Daewoo Matiz which was in collision with a black Volkswagen Tiguan at the junction of Cadishead Way and Fairhills Road in Irlam on Tuesday.
The woman and her 15-year-old female passenger were both trapped in the car.
They were freed by the emergency services and the woman was taken to Wythenshawe hospital by air ambulance, where she later died.
The teenage passenger was taken to Manchester Royal Children's Hospital.
The 52-year-old driver of the Volkswagen is at Salford Royal Hospital with neck and chest injuries.
Greater Manchester Police appealed for witnesses to contact the force. | A 64-year-old woman has died following a car crash in Salford. |
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Sporting Club Albion striker Leigh Dugmore does not mince her words when discussing the prospect of facing the Manchester City and England defender in the Women's FA Cup quarter-finals on Sunday.
Dugmore, Albion's leading goalscorer with 18 in 19 games this season, has gone so far as to tweet Bronze exactly those words.
That message from the distribution warehouse worker from Birmingham, and the determination behind it, sums up just how the lowest-ranked side left in this season's Women's FA Cup are treating their tie against one of Britain's richest and most glamorous sides.
"The best thing we can do is be confident," said 25-year-old Dugmore, who was playing for Leafield Athletic in the fourth tier of English football last season, while Bronze was starring for England at the Women's World Cup in Canada.
"If we pull out all the stops, stick together and play at our best, then we have a chance. If they underestimate us, and they will, we can surprise them.
"I tweeted Lucy Bronze that I'm coming for her. She is a great player and this is a great chance for all of us to see if we can step up.
"It's the biggest game of most our lives - it will definitely be mine."
But has Bronze replied? "No," laughs Dugmore, sounding slightly disappointed.
Albion, an amateur side from the third tier who train three hours a week and whose management team are volunteers, are associated to men's Premier League side West Bromwich Albion through its foundation.
The FA Cup is famed for pitting the unheralded against the game's giants - the poor from the lower reaches of the football pyramid against the rich with an international tapestry of talent at their disposal.
But rarely will the divide be as stark as at the Academy Stadium on Sunday when Sporting Club Albion, whose players pay to play, face one of the few fully professional women's football teams in the country.
To say they are in a different league is an understatement. Their respective league competitions do not even start in the same year - Albion's campaign is already seven months old, while City's Women's Super League season started a week ago.
"It's an astronomical mountain in front of us," says Albion manager Graham Abercrombie. "We all watched the World Cup last year - the players will be rubbing shoulders with their heroes."
Five City players helped England claim bronze at the 2015 Women's World Cup - a third-placed finish that saw a spike in interest in the domestic game.
There was a major increase in WSL 1 attendances, with City boasting average home crowds of 1,500. Albion have also enjoyed a rise in interest, as Abercrombie estimates average attendances went from 20 to about 100 this season.
"We are all fighting the same cause, no matter the level," said Abercrombie.
"The game is fantastically growing, but at our level we are still paying to play, that is the bottom line. We have players in Sheffield who are doing 160-mile round trips to get to training.
"The commitment level of the group is second to none in the country when you talk about the financial and physical commitment of the players."
Abercrombie says both the staff and players at City are "heroes" in the English game as the club is playing a leading role in taking women's football into a new era.
Players now earning as much as £65,000 a year have been in a similar position as Albion's players, forking out subs and paying for fuel to get to training and games.
Albion are the only side from outside the WSL to beat a team from the top two divisions in this season's competition, ousting newly promoted WSL 2 side Sheffield FC in the fourth round.
Dugmore admits few could have expected them to reach the quarter-finals and that it has already been an "unbelievable" run.
"We have proven people wrong by beating Coventry, Sheffield and Brighton to get here," she said.
Abercrombie, who works as a school games organiser for the Youth Sports Trust - while also moonlighting as a graffiti artist, among other things - insists his side will not be overcome by the occasion.
"We appreciate who we are up against, absolutely," he said. "But we are not daunted, we are not going to get there and freeze. We are going there to try our absolute best.
"We are all excited, but the challenge has also really focused the players. There is an ambitious bunch here and they are hungry."
Six other sides are also trying to reach the semi-finals this weekend, with a place in a Wembley final now just two wins away.
Arsenal host Notts County in a repeat of last year's WSL League Cup final, while Sunderland host Reading in another all-WSL 1 tie.
But holders Chelsea, like City, face lower-league opposition in WSL 2 outfit Aston Villa.
Villa edged past Everton 1-0 in round five to earn a trip to face the 2015 double winners at Wheatsheaf Park.
"We know we can't underestimate Aston Villa. Obviously we've got to defend our title," Chelsea defender Hannah Blundell told BBC Sport.
"Anything can happen in the cup and we have got to concentrate and stick to our strengths.
"Our behind-the-scenes staff have been doing their research and tipping us off about certain things.
"Last year's final was an amazing experience and Wembley is a massive occasion. We want to experience it again this year."
Villa have started 2016 with one win and one defeat from their first two league games. | "Lucy Bronze, I'm coming for you." |
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He replaces Wirral Council leader Phil Davies who stepped down from the post.
The authority includes council leaders from Liverpool, Wirral, Sefton, St Helens, Knowsley and Halton in Cheshire.
A new metro cabinet has been unveiled to oversee the devolution of powers from Whitehall.
Merseyside became the sixth region to agree a settlement giving its political leaders wide-ranging powers under a devolution deal signed last month.
Councillor Phil Davies held the role of chair since the combined authority was formed in April 2014, with the leader of St Helens council Barrie Grunewald elected as Deputy Chair in June. | Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson has been elected as the new chair of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. |
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The private chartered aircraft was travelling from Istanbul in Turkey when it was diverted to Budapest, Hungary.
A second plane was sent from Istanbul to pick the team up from Budapest and take them to Manchester.
The Turkish side play United at Old Trafford at 20:05 BST.
The club said on Twitter there was "nothing alarming" after the incident.
United tweeted in reply: "Wishing you a safe trip for the rest of your journey to Manchester. See you soon!"
Fenerbahce, who are ninth in Turkey's Super Lig, are top of Group A of the Europa League, a point ahead of third-placed United.
Fenerbahce's team includes former United striker Robin van Persie and ex-Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel. | Fenerbahce's team plane was forced to make an emergency landing after it was hit by a bird on its way to the UK for Thursday's Europa League game against Manchester United. |
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The artwork, named The Bristol Whales, was installed in the city centre last summer to mark Bristol's status as European Green Capital.
A head of a humpback whale and tail of a blue whale are depicted by the six-tonne pieces which are made from willow harvested in Somerset.
They will remain at Bennett's Patch and White's Paddock Nature Reserve.
According to the Avon Wildlife Trust, which manages the site, the area has a whaling history dating back to the 18th Century.
"The River Avon would have been full of the tall-masted ships that made Bristol wealthy, one of which moored at nearby Sea Mills," said the trust.
"In 1750, Bristol merchants entered the whaling trade, and the ship Adventure brought back two whales, which were rendered to blubber at Sea Mills.
"The venture continued there for almost 50 years."
The willow pieces spent two months in Millennium Square surrounded by an ocean of "upcycled" bottles to represent the threat of plastic pollution in the world's oceans.
Bristol became the first UK city to be named European Green Capital when it took over from Copenhagen at the start of 2015. | Two life-size whale sculptures made out of willow have re-surfaced at a nature reserve. |
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Carwyn Jones was part of the emergency Cobra meeting convened by David Cameron on Saturday morning after nearly 130 people were killed in the French city.
To show solidarity, the Senedd will be lit up in the colours of the tricolour on Saturday and Sunday nights.
It comes as Welsh people in Paris have described their panic and fear.
France's President Francois Hollande said the near-simultaneous attacks in Paris, which also left at least 180 people wounded, were an "act of war" organised by the Islamic State (IS) militant group.
Eight gunmen and suicide bombers struck at bars, restaurants and a concert hall on Friday evening.
Mr Jones said he urged members of the public to be "vigilant" and to report anything suspicious to the police.
"I was part of the emergency Cobra meeting," he told BBC Wales.
"The first thing is that we are not clear if there are casualties from Britain and we should prepare ourselves for the possibility that there may be casualties from Britain and indeed from Wales.
"It's too early to tell yet if that is the case, but perhaps we should be ready for that."
He added that flags would be flying at half mast at all Welsh government buildings, while a planned reception for the Wales football team, due to be hosted by the first minister, was cancelled as a mark of respect for the victims.
The Muslim Council of Wales condemned the attacks, saying it rejected IS's attempt to" justify their violence through religion".
"Muslims globally, and here in Wales, reject the so called Islamic States' political aspirations in Syria and Iraq," secretary general Saleem Kidwai said.
"We mourn the deaths and offer our thoughts and prayers to the families who have lost their loved ones."
The worst bloodshed was at the Bataclan hall in the east of the city, where gunmen took hostages at a sold-out rock concert featuring band the Eagles of Death Metal.
It was part of the Les Inrocks musical festival, which Merthyr Tydfil band Pretty Vicious were also performing in.
Their gig was at a nearby venue, with members later tweeting to say they were "safe and sound" despite events in other parts of the city.
Anthony Pickles, from Penarth, who was at a restaurant near the concert hall, said: "There was a sense of panic on the streets... I think today will be a very, very sombre day in Paris."
Jonathan Hill from Cardiff, who was also close to the concert hall, described seeing a "Good Samaritan" standing in the street and shouting to people to get indoors.
"I heard three distinct firing shots," he said. "I saw someone collapse to the floor."
Seiriol Hughes from Caernarfon was at the Stade de France watching the France versus Germany match when fans heard explosions near the ground.
English teacher Mr Hughes described hearing a "loud bang, the noise of an explosion which silenced the crowd" in the stadium which people thought to be a firework.
He said only after the game, as the crowds left the stadium, did people begin to get a sense of what had happened.
"Something must have triggered and people just started running away, picking up their kids and running and with a look of panic and fear in their eyes and we couldn't work out why," he said.
"Eventually, when we were getting a train away from the stadium we began to get phone signal and then messages started to come through that something had obviously been going on and those explosions were not fireworks."
Teacher Ceri Davies from Penarth was in a pub nearby which pulled down its shutters to keep customers safe.
"We are in a state of shock," he said. "We were advised to stay in the pub so they closed the metal barriers."
Welsh rugby referee Nigel Owens was in the south of France, where he had been due to take charge of the European Rugby Champions Cup match between Toulon and Bath.
But that has been cancelled in the wake of the attacks.
He tweeted: "My thoughts are with all the French people who have lost loved ones yesterday. The world is becoming a very sad and dangerous place."
Welsh secretary Stephen Crabb, whose wife is French, tweeted: "Wales stands as one with the people of France today." | The first minister has warned people to be prepared for the possibility that there might be Welsh victims of the "horrific" Paris attacks. |
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Many were angry and frustrated at the prospect of having to choose between Republican nominee Donald Trump and presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. Many said they would vote for Green Party candidate Jill Stein to avoid having to vote for Mrs Clinton.
Amid chants of "Hell no Hillary" and "Feel the Bern", the Sanders faithful told us they were still fighting for Mr Sanders because politics in the US has to change, and it will not change without their efforts.
For his own part, Mr Sanders has urged his supporters to vote for Clinton, but was booed for saying so during the first day of the convention.
Sue Kirby from Massachusetts, who made a paper-mache Bernie doll herself, said Mrs Clinton is "just part of the establishment".
"She's a symbol of the people who have been running this country for the last 30 to 40 years," she said.
Asked what she would do if the ballot came down to Clinton vs Trump, she said she was "getting upset" that she keeps being asked that. In the coming days leading up to the election, she said she is going to focus on making sure her local representative in Massachusetts votes against the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
"No matter who the president is, that's going to make a difference," she said. "We've got to stick together and keep building our network."
Corey Smith from Colorado said he is dissatisfied with both Mrs Clinton and the Democratic Party.
"From the beginning we thought it was unfair… I don't want to vote for a candidate that doesn't listen to the people's interests," he said, and that the recent Wikileaks hack of Democratic National Committee emails showing favouritism to Mrs Clinton proved his suspicions that the nomination was rigged.
He still holds out hope for a contested convention, but faced with a Clinton vs Trump ballot, he said he will not vote for either of them.
"A vote for Hillary is a vote for Trump and a vote for Trump is a vote for Trump," he said.
"I'm not going to pick between the lesser of two evils… With Trump, there are a lot of bad things that can happen with his presidency, but her record shows that she's already done bad things, so it's kind of picking between somebody who has done them and somebody who might do them."
More on Bernie Sanders and his supporters
Ten-year-old Max Inoue from New York, who's following a political campaign for the first time, said he's in Philadelphia to support Bernie Sanders "because he needs us".
"I support him because he knows what's right and wrong, and Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump don't," he said. The two of them are "just as bad" as one another, he added.
"She supports [the Trans-Pacific partnership] and the Iraq War, and she also lies all the time," he said.
Max's mother Mari said she would vote for Green party candidate Jill Stein, but she is still hoping there is a way Mr Sanders can run.
Of Mrs Clinton, Mrs Inoue said: "She supports war and we should not continue to support perpetual war.
"We should be investing in education and infrastructure, and healthcare."
"We're here to support Bernie Sanders and show the DNC we know what they have been up to," said Taylor Baker of West Virginia.
She said it is "absolutely not fair" that Mrs Clinton was able to "rig herself in as the nominee" and it makes her feel like her vote does not matter.
"As long as she has the election rigged, there's no democracy in that, no America in that."
Ms Baker said she does not like Mrs Clinton because she's a "fake feminist" and a "liar".
Mr Camacho (pictured left) said Sanders supporters would not be to blame if Mr Trump wins the presidency.
"Hillary became the nominee with the DNC helping her the whole time, so I don't think she needs our help," he said.
"It's just a matter of finally feeling like we're being heard, and I don't think anybody here feels like anybody is listening to us."
Ms Baker agreed: "We shouldn't be fear-mongered into voting for somebody that's equally as horrible." | Protesting outside of Philadelphia's City Hall on the first day of the Democratic National Convention, Bernie Sanders supporters were clear - they're not giving up on their candidate or his ideas. |
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The 2009 report analyses "high value targeting" in a number of conflicts - the assassination of senior insurgents.
It said the Taliban's ability to replace lost leaders has hampered the effectiveness of coalition operations against its leadership.
The CIA would not comment on the leaked documents.
The report, which Wikileaks describes as "pro-assassination", looks at the pros and cons of "high value targeting" (HVT) programmes.
As well as examining recent actions in Iraq and Afghanistan, the report assesses British action in Northern Ireland, Sri Lankan operations against Tamil Tigers and French efforts during the Algerian civil war, among others.
Benefits of HVT operations, according to the report, include "eroding insurgent effectiveness, weakening insurgent will and reducing the level of insurgent support".
Potential negatives include "strengthening an armed group's bond with the population" and "radicalising an insurgent group's remaining leaders".
On Afghanistan, the report said that targeting senior Taliban figures has been constrained by problems connecting it to broader Afghan and Nato efforts against the organisation.
It also says the Taliban has "good succession planning and bench strength, especially at the middle levels".
Since the report was written, President Obama has increased drone strikes in north-west Pakistan, targeting Taliban and al-Qaeda leaders.
There have also been several strikes in Yemen. | The removal of senior Taliban leaders has had little impact on the organisation, a CIA report released by Wikileaks has said. |
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Police Scotland said 33 flats in Gourlay Yard had been cleared and pedestrian access to the area in City Quay was restricted.
The fire service has temporarily secured some sections of the roof but permanent repairs are needed.
Dundee City Council was arranging accommodation for the residents.
A police spokesman said: "Barriers are in place at Gourlay Yard to prevent pedestrian access to the area and in the interests of safety, police would ask that members of the public do not approach the building." | Residents have been evacuated from a building in the harbour area of Dundee due to fears over the safety of the roof following wind damage. |
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The rodent, Charlotte, fell from the 6ft 6in (2m) mayor's arms in February.
Zoo officials said she died of internal injuries but do not believe her escape from the mayor's gloved hands caused her death, speculating she later suffered additional, fatal injuries.
Charlotte did not see her shadow, thus predicting six more weeks of winter.
First reported by the New York Post, Charlotte's untimely demise has become a popular topic on social media.
The New York event, held in the borough of Staten Island, is a spin-off of a Pennsylvania tradition in which ceremonial officials drag a groundhog known as Punxsutawney Phil out of hibernation every 2 February.
If Phil sees his shadow, according to the tradition, the northern US will suffer six more weeks of winter. If not, spring is imminent.
Zookeepers at the Staten Island Zoo chose Charlotte, a 10-month-old groundhog, from among four potential "Staten Island Chucks" that morning.
This year Mr de Blasio held the groundhog with heavy work gloves, a precaution taken after a previous incarnation of Staten Island Chuck bit Mr de Blasio's predecessor Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2009.
He briefly held it before it squirmed from his hands and fell several feet.
Zoo spokesman Brian Morris said Charlotte's handler "may not have been forceful enough" in placing the animal in Mr de Blasio's grip.
"It was a complete bungle," Mr Morris told the Associated Press news agency.
A medical examination in the hours after the 2 February mishap "revealed no evidence of trauma or pain", Mr Morris said, adding the groundhog had attended other events after the fall without incident.
Zoo officials believe Charlotte suffered other injuries in the hours before her death.
Mr Morris added the zoo did not immediately inform Mr de Blasio, who took office in January, of the death.
"There was no reason to do it," he said. "It's not like we were trying to spare the mayor's feelings."
In a statement, the mayor's spokesman Phil Walzak said the mayor's office was "unaware that Staten Island Chuck had passed but are sorry to hear of the loss". | A groundhog that leapt from the arms of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio at a Groundhog Day celebration died about a week after the fall, zoo officials say. |
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The airline cancelled 248 flights on Wednesday and 340 flights on Thursday, making it one of the operators worst hit by the two-day strike.
No cancellations were expected on Friday, but Easyjet said some affected passengers still needed flights.
Two more stoppages are expected in the coming weeks.
French air traffic controllers have scheduled the first from 16 April to 18 April and the second from 29 April to 2 May.
Some passengers have been stranded in European cities after Easter breaks following the latest strike, prompting Easyjet to operate five "rescue" flights on Friday.
The flights will bring three parties of schoolchildren back to the UK.
The additional flights will run from Luton to Paris, Paris to Barcelona, Barcelona to Luton, Gatwick to Madrid, and Marrakech to Gatwick.
"EasyJet recognises that there are a number of passengers across the network who have been affected by these cancellations and still require flights as soon as possible," a spokesman said.
The airline said it was extending opening hours of its call centres to help those who still needed to rearrange travel. It said it took 13,000 calls on Wednesday and 12,820 calls on Thursday.
Some other airlines were affected by the strike action on Wednesday and Thursday, which affected flights to and from France, as well as flights over French airspace.
Ryanair said it had been forced to cancel more than 500 flights over the past two days.
A spokeswoman for the airline said: "All operations are running as normal. All customers affected by the two-day ATC strike have been contacted and advised of their options."
Among those affected were Nathan Thorne, 23, from Goole on Humberside, and his sister Olivia, 14, who had their Ryanair flight from Limoges to Leeds Bradford cancelled on Thursday.
Mr Thorne, who is with the army's Royal Logistics Corps, is anxious to get back as he begins a six-month tour of duty in the Falkland Islands on 22 April. His sister needs to get back for school on Monday.
"All the flights before next Thursday are booked up and the Eurostar train is extremely expensive," he said.
Short-haul and medium-haul flights operated by Air France were also affected by the strike. | Easyjet will run "rescue" flights and may put bigger planes on busy routes to deal with the after-effects of strikes by French air traffic controllers. |
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One of the organisers, Kholofelo Masha, said men had to take collective responsibility for the increase in beatings, sex attacks and killings.
South Africa has one of the highest rates of sexual violence in the world.
Police figures showed that 64,000 cases were reported last year.
A series of grisly murders of women and children has hit the headlines this year and President Jacob Zuma has described the situation as a crisis.
The protesters on Saturday marched behind a woman symbolically dressed from head to toe in white. Some carried placards bearing the names of women killed by their partners.
"The time to take collective responsibility for our shameful action is now," said Mr Masha, who described himself as "a loving dad, brother and uncle."
He said South African men had been quiet on the issue for too long.
"You hear a lady screaming next door, you decide to sleep when you know there is a problem. No man should beat a woman or rape a woman while you're watching".
On Thursday, President Zuma visited the parents of a three-year-old girl who was raped and killed.
Courtney Pieters went missing from her home in Cape Town on 4 May and her body was found more than a week later in a shallow grave.
"We, as the citizens of this country, must say enough is enough," Mr Zuma said at the time. "This is one of the saddest incidents I've come across. It's a crisis in the country, the manner in which women and children are being killed."
The governing African National Congress party has branded the wave of violence "senseless and barbaric", while the opposition Democratic Alliance has called for a nationwide debate on the issue. | Hundreds of protesters, most of them men, have marched in the South African capital, Pretoria, over rising levels of violence against women and children. |
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In a one-season trial, 16 Premier League and Championship under-21 sides were added to this term's competition, which was traditionally for teams from the bottom two divisions.
The decision was met with fan boycotts of matches.
Clubs will vote on keeping the academy teams, reverting to the previous format or ending the competition entirely.
Some clubs have been fined this season for fielding "weakened teams", while Bradford changed their goalkeeper after three minutes to comply with the selection rules and Wycombe manager Gareth Ainsworth selected himself to play in a group match against Northampton.
At a meeting between League One and League Two clubs on Tuesday, English Football League chief executive Shaun Harvey discussed concerns around the "full-strength" policy.
Current competition rules state EFL teams have to field five players who started the previous game, or go on to start the following game, or five who had made the most appearances during the current season.
Sides that did not put out "full-strength" teams were liable to a fine of £5,000 for each group match by the EFL, with Luton and Portsmouth both breaching the rule in their opening three games of the competition and 10 other sides fined.
The rules are different for the academy sides, with six of the starting XI having to be aged under 21.
On Tuesday, Harvey proposed a relaxation of the rules to four first-team players per match, with goalkeepers not included, and a change regarding those players who qualify as a "first-team player".
Under the proposals, these would be any player who met the same full-strength criteria as are currently in place, was on loan from a Premier League club or one with a Category One academy, or had made 40 first-team appearances.
Other proposals include a "significant" increase in prize money, regionalisation until the quarter-final stage, and flexibility of fixture dates to allow teams to schedule games outside of international weeks.
Harvey said following the meeting: "We committed at the outset of this season's competition to conduct a full and comprehensive review of the competition and, importantly, give our clubs the ability to ensure they make the key decisions regarding where we take the competition in 2017-18 and beyond.
"After asking clubs in advance for some initial thoughts on the competition, Tuesday was the next stage of the process and I'm delighted we were able to have such a full and frank exchange of views that will now assist the executive in refining a final proposal that our clubs will now vote on." | League One and League Two clubs will be given the option of scrapping the EFL Trophy when they meet in May. |
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It had been rumoured the Australian band would split after a career spanning more than 40 years.
However, a statement on AC/DC's website confirmed: "The band will continue to make music."
The band are one of the highest-grossing rock acts of all time, selling more than 200 million albums.
AC/DC formed in Australia in 1973 and their biggest-selling record has been 1980's Back In Black - the first with singer Brian Johnson after the death of former lead singer Bon Scott from alcohol poisoning.
They are noted for creating some of the best-known guitar riffs in the rock catalogue, accompanied by lyrics full of sexual innuendo.
A message on the band's website confirmed that Young would be taking a break after "forty years of life dedicated to AC/DC", but did not reveal details of his illness.
"Malcolm would like to thank the group's diehard legions of fans worldwide for their never-ending love and support," said the band.
"In light of this news, AC/DC asks that Malcolm and his family's privacy be respected during this time."
Flamboyant frontman Brian Johnson elaborated on their plans in an interview with The Telegraph.
"We are definitely getting together in May in Vancouver. We're going to pick up some guitars, have a plonk, and see if anybody has got any tunes or ideas. If anything happens, we'll record it," revealed Johnson.
On the subject of touring he added: "I wouldn't like to say anything either way about the future. I'm not ruling anything out."
The Australian media had been awash with rumour and counter-rumour ahead of AC/DC's announcement.
Entertainment journalist Peter Ford had suggested on radio station 3AW earlier this week that the band's next tour "will never happen".
He added: "The boys have a pact that they will not get anyone else in the group. Nobody will be replaced and when somebody leaves, the group ends."
Glasgow-born brothers Malcolm and Angus Young formed the band after moving to Australia with their family in the 1960s - Angus became famous for wearing a school uniform on stage.
AC/DC's 15th international studio album, Black Ice, was an international hit following its release in 2008.
The band's Black Ice tour, which ran from 2008 to 2010, took in 29 countries and was seen by five million people. | Rock band AC/DC have said they will not retire following news that guitarist and founding member Malcolm Young is taking a break "due to ill health". |
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"They've got to understand that they've become the winner and then the real work starts," says Louis Walsh.
Ben Haenow, Fleur East and Andrea Faustini are all hoping to be crowned the X Factor winner.
They'll sing their favourite song of the series on Saturday's show and perform their celebrity duets.
"The competition's one thing. You have themes, you have all the different obstacles and they grow during that process," Cheryl Fernandez-Versini told Newsbeat.
"But, afterwards it's about being who you are as an artist in this current market which is extremely hard right now," she added.
Ed Sheeran and Meghan Trainor will also perform on the show tonight and will no doubt reveal some more pearl's of wisdom for the contestants.
After the excitement of releasing their debut single and possibly making the Christmas number one spot what happens to the winner's career is not by any means for certain.
Whether they fade into pop oblivion or become a star with long-term staying power is all down to hard work and a little bit of luck says Dermot O'Leary.
"The stars have got to align. I always tell the contestants 'When you leave here the hard work starts and that's the rest of your career,'" he says.
Past winners have gone on to varying degrees of success.
Remember series two winner, Shayne Ward? Or series four winner, Leon Jackson? What about series seven's Matt Cardle?
Arguably the winner who has had the most success is Leona Lewis. She made it big both sides of the Atlantic.
Is their success or lack of it down to hard work or hard luck? Who knows, but Dermot's biggest bit of advice for the winner is: "Enjoy it. Enjoy the next nine months."
"Get your head down, work hard and make sure that the album you want to make is the album you make and work with the people you want to make it with," he says.
Louis also believes a great record deal and great songs help. Naturally.
But he also agrees: "You need a lot of hard work and a little bit of luck."
Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube | The X Factor judges have told Newsbeat the secret of career success for the winner is simple: "Work hard." |
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The 21-year-old spent last season with Scarborough Athletic, who are managed by ex-Guiseley boss Steve Kittrick.
Having spent time with Sheffield United as youngster, he joined Newport in 2015-16 and played an an FA Cup tie against Blackburn as a late substitute.
He will provide competition for Jonny Maxted at Guiseley, who were 20th in the National League last season.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page. | Guiseley have signed former Newport County goalkeeper Joe Green on an undisclosed-length contract. |
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Stars from Strictly Come Dancing, the Royal Ballet and Sir Matthew Bourne's New Adventures company will take part in Gala for Grenfell on 30 July.
Phillips said the disaster had made her "wonder if there was a way I could help [and] maybe make a small difference".
Tickets for the event at the Adelphi Theatre in London go on sale on 7 July.
Akram Khan, Adam Garcia and The Mariinsky Ballet are among other members of the dance community who have been lined up to appear.
Proceeds will go to The Kensington & Chelsea Foundation, the independent charity running the Grenfell Tower Fund.
In a statement, Phillips said the news coverage of the fire had been "so powerful you can't move".
"I thought dance is my world, my life, so how could I galvanise and bring the dance community together to raise funds for those who need it most, now and into the future?"
Police believe at least 80 people died when fire engulfed Grenfell Tower in North Kensington in the early hours of 14 June.
Other fundraising initiatives have included an all-star version of Bridge Over Troubled Water that topped the singles chart on its release last month.
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected]. | Former Strictly judge Arlene Phillips is arranging a special dance gala to raise funds for those affected by the Grenfell Tower fire. |
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The companies owe workers £162,000 and face fines of £67,000.
They span sectors including fashion, publishing and hospitality, and include a Champneys spa and a branch of hairdressing chain Toni and Guy.
The accused companies have 28 days to respond to the allegations.
Toni and Guy said: "As a company with over 400 salons globally under its brand umbrella, we do not condone any kind of mishandling of staff wages. Once made aware, the franchisee resolved the issue swiftly."
G1 Venues, trading as Arta Restaurant in Glasgow, was the worst offender, having failed to pay £45,124 to 2,895 workers, according to HM Revenue and Customs.
Fashion retailer French Connection UK, London, failed to pay almost £16,500 to 367 workers, while Freedom Sportsline - trading as Foot Locker - owes more than £16,700 to 601 employees.
A spokesman for French Connection said the underpayments were regrettable but the amounts were small in most cases.
"French Connection co-operated fully with HMRC in assessing the amounts involved and paid the arrears at the earliest possible opportunity. French Connection fully supports the UK Government's minimum wage legislation and we are apologising to our staff for the inconvenience," he added.
In October 2013 the Government revised rules allowing it to publicly name companies that have been found to breach wage laws.
Since that time, a total of 210 companies have been accused of wage theft, after investigations by HMRC.
In total, those firms owe some £635,000 to workers, as well as fines of nearly £248,000.
Business minister Jo Swinson said: "There's no excuse for companies that don't pay staff the wages they're entitled to."
Last week, the Government announced that the minimum wage will increase by 20p an hour to £6.70 from October.
It stands at £6.50 per hour for adults, £5.13 per hour for 18 to 20-year-olds and £3.79 per hour for 16 to 17-year-olds. Apprentices must be paid at least £2.73 an hour.
Employers who fail to pay the appropriate wages can face fines of up to £20,000, as well as criminal prosecution. | Ministers have publicly named 48 employers including French Connection and Foot Locker that have paid their workers less than the minimum wage. |
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Lush donated the money to homeless charities in Oxford due to "current uncertainty" over the burglary.
Lottie Pauling-Chamberlain said she challenged a thief on 10 February outside Lush in Oxford.
A £9,000-fund from public donations was suspended after Thames Valley Police arrested the 29-year-old.
Ms Pauling-Chamberlain denies any wrongdoing.
Updates on this story and more from Oxfordshire
Staff at the shop in Cornmarket Street said a laptop and large box of cosmetics had disappeared when they opened the shop earlier this month.
The next day Ms Pauling-Chamberlain, who sleeps rough in the area, returned the stolen items, saying she had thwarted a thief.
A donation fund set up by the store to thank her has raised £9,245, donated by 537 people, this was later suspended and the money has now been returned.
In a statement on the fund website, Lush said: "Due to the current uncertainty surrounding the recent burglary in our Lush Oxford shop, Lush have decided to return all of the money that has been kindly donated by the public and replace it with £20,000 of our own money."
The money is to be shared among Oxford Homeless Pathways, the Icolyn Smith Foundation and Oxford Community Soup Kitchen, Oxford Homeless Project and Aspire Oxford.
Lush said Ms Pauling-Chamberlain could access the fund through the charities.
Thames Valley Police said at the time of the arrest the 29-year-old woman was also being questioned on suspicion of possessing Class A drugs.
A man, 42, also of no fixed abode, has been arrested on suspicion of burglary. Both suspects have been released on police bail until 14 May. | A cosmetics company has given £20,000 to charities after money raised for a homeless woman who claimed to have foiled a burglary was returned. |
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A total of eight people were injured in a fight involving "50 or 60" people which took in the Faces bar and NU Bar on Bridge Street, at about 04:00 GMT.
Three people are being treated at University Hospital Coventry and the remaining five at Northampton Hospital.
Northampton Borough Council has suspended the licences of the two bars for seven days following the incident.
The trouble involved a number of people who had come to Northampton from London for a pre-arranged evening out, police said.
Det Insp Ally White said police were called at 04:00 GMT to a "serious public disorder" involving "around 50 or 60 people".
"The stabbings happened inside Faces nightclub and continued on afterwards outside in Bridge Street," he said.
"A lot of people came from London and as a result a disagreement occurred."
Manager of Faces, Robert Snajdr, said a small fight had taken place in the garden resulting in the participants being removed from the premises.
Shortly afterwards, he said a "major street fight" involving 40 or 50 people from a number of bars in Bridge Street took place.
"Drink-fuelled violence does happen. Last night was an example when it was not controlled," Mr Snajder said.
The council's licensing sub-committee later held an urgent licence review of both Faces and NU Bar.
Leader David Mackintosh said: "Having heard a summary of both cases the sub-committee agreed that the licences for both bars would be suspended for seven days.
"The next step will be to hold a full review.
"This will give our officers, Northamptonshire Police and other agencies enough time to investigate the events and determine what, if any, action is appropriate.
"We want people to be reassured that Northampton is a safe and welcoming town."
A spokesman for East Midlands Ambulance Service said the first of a series of 999 calls came in at at 03:57.
Bridge Street has re-opened to traffic after closing while officers searched the area and the club itself. | Six people were stabbed during a mass brawl which spilled across two Northampton bars on Thursday night. |
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The Pool 1 fixture, due to be played on 16 October, was postponed because of the sudden death of Munster head coach Anthony Foley in a Parisian hotel.
It will now take place at the Stade Yves-du-Manoir at 15:45 GMT.
The rearranged match means a new date will be agreed for Munster's Pro12 meeting with Edinburgh, which had been scheduled for 7 January.
The fixture would have been the Scottish club's first match at Myreside, where Edinburgh will play their home matches between January and May, rather than Murrayfield. | Munster's postponed European Champions Cup fixture against Racing 92 has been rescheduled for 7 January. |
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Mr Ruto denies murder, deportation and persecution charges during violence that followed the 2007 elections in which about 1,200 people were killed.
His lawyers want the case to be terminated due to a lack of evidence.
Mr Ruto is one of the most senior politicians to be tried by the ICC.
The prosecution case against him has been dogged by repeated setbacks.
In February judges at the ICC barred the use of recanted testimony, meaning that prior recorded witness statements could not be used by prosecutors.
Several key witnesses in the case have changed their statements, which prosecutors said was due to intimidation and bribery.
Mr Ruto's lawyers say he should be acquitted because so many key prosecution witnesses have either dropped or changed their original statements.
ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda has acknowledged that the loss of witnesses has weakened the case against the deputy president - but she has argued there still remains enough evidence to proceed with the trial.
A spokesman for the ICC has told the BBC's Anna Holligan in The Hague there are a number of possible scenarios.
The judges could clear Mr Ruto of all the charges, they may ask the prosecution to consider changing the charges or they could reject the defence team's arguments and allow the trial to continue.
In 2014, the prosecutor dropped similar charges against Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, alleging that witnesses had been intimidated to make them change their testimony.
The future of the case now appears to depend on whether the prosecution has proved that it has sufficient evidence to offset a no-case-to-answer move from Mr Ruto's lawyers.
The use of prior testimony falls under Rule 68 of the Rome Statute, which set up the ICC.
But William Ruto's defence team argued this was unfair because changes to the rule were brought in after the case against him and his fellow defendant, the journalist Joshua arap Sang, had started.
Presiding Judge Piotr Hofmanski ruled that prior-recorded testimony was delivered without an opportunity for the accused to cross-examine the witnesses.
Mr Sang, who is accused of using his radio show to organise attacks in the election aftermath, said at the time that the decision was "one step to our freedom".
Mr Ruto and Mr Kenyatta were on opposite sides of the 2007 election, but formed an alliance that won the 2013 election. | Kenyan Deputy President William Ruto is due to find out whether a crimes against humanity case against him will be thrown out by judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC). |
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The 55-year-old businesswoman runs a food manufacturing company in nearby Newton Abbot.
"It's a real honour to be asked to become chairman of Plymouth Albion," said Hannaford.
"I'm very excited to be joining the board who have a great vision for the future development of the club."
Albion were taken over by former players Bruce Priday and Dave Venables in April and appointed Dan Parkes as their new head coach earlier this month, having sacked long-serving boss Graham Dawe.
"Ali is a very experienced business woman who has had a lot of success with a number of enterprises," said Priday.
"Ali has huge experience chairing of a number of organisations and her input into Plymouth Albion will be invaluable.
"Ali is a massive rugby fan but she will be concentrating on the governance and commercial aspects of the club.
"She is the best person I know to lead those of us involved in creating a big future for our great club."
Meanwhile Albion have agreed a new contract with lock Dan Collier and signed former London Scottish prop Sam Nixon.
Thirty-one year-old Collier played 26 times for Albion last season, scoring three tries, having returned to the club last summer after being released in 2012 following a series of injuries.
Nixon, 19, came up through London Scottish's academy and trained with the club's first team last season, but did not feature in any matches for the Championship club. | Plymouth Albion have appointed its first female chairman in the club's 140-year history after Ali Hannaford took on the role. |
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Saints had already secured fourth for a second straight season as they remained unbeaten in their last five games.
But Rangers' return to the top flight will increase competition next season.
"To improve will be difficult with Rangers coming in, with the size of budget and type of players they can bring in," Wright told BBC Scotland.
"My chairman (Steve Brown) is realistic and we will look at my budget and increase that within the parameters we can.
"We will try to maintain top-six and maintain fourth place. To finish fourth place two years in a row is all down to the players and I'm pleased for them.
"To come here and remain unbeaten since the split is a great achievement."
Hearts head coach Robbie Neilson praised his players after they fought back from two goals down to secure a draw, having played the final half-hour with 10 men after Abiola Dauda's red card.
"It was a similar end to last season, when we were 2-0 down to Rangers and fought back, and it's that fighting spirit that has got us where we are," said Neilson.
"It got us the Championship title last year and gets us into Europe this year."
Neilson was unhappy with some of referee Greg Aitken's decisions, in particular the penalty awarded to Saints early on which Craig converted to make it 1-0.
"I don't think it was the right decision," he said. "The referee has made it, but we have to accept that."
Neilson was also critical of the decision to show Dauda a red card in the second half with the scores at 2-2.
"I have seen it again," added the Hearts team boss. "They get tangled and I think it the reaction of the St Johnstone players that gets our player sent off.
"I need to be careful what I say, but I wasn't happy with a lot of his decisions today." | St Johnstone will find it difficult to improve on their fourth place this season, admitted manager Tommy Wright after his side's 2-2 draw at Hearts. |
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Fleetwood had the better of the first-half chances, with Oldham keeper Joel Coleman forced into saves from Wes Burns and Antoni Sarcevic.
The Cod Army were rewarded for their pressure after the break when Stefan Scougall turned in Burns' cross.
Kelly had a header ruled out for offside, but he bundled in from close range shortly after to secure a point.
The result leaves the Latics three points clear of the relegation zone in 18th place, with Fleetwood one point behind in 19th.
Oldham Athletic manager John Sheridan told BBC Radio Manchester:
Media playback is not supported on this device
"We deserved something out of the game. I thought we started sloppy in the first 10 minutes with some silly errors and that enables them to get a hold in the game.
"We finished the first half strongly and had a stonewall penalty. I can't believe how he's not given it, it's embarrassing. In the second half we were the better team.
"I get frustrated with people doing the wrong things. If we do the simple things, we wouldn't have conceded the first goal. We're 30 yards from goal and end making the wrong pass which leads to a goal.
"We've done well to come from behind and we were the team at the end trying to win the game." | Liam Kelly's goal rescued Oldham Athletic a draw at fellow League One strugglers Fleetwood Town. |
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Turn and Face the Strange is a live show written by Rupert Creed and Garry Burnett, both of whom are from Hull.
The performance will incorporate film, audio, storytelling and live music.
Ronson grew up in Hull, where he formed the band that went on to become the Spiders From Mars. He died in 1993 aged 46 after developing liver cancer.
A spokesman for the project said Turn and Face the Strange would go "beneath the known narratives of Mick Ronson's partnership with David Bowie and the Spiders from Mars".
He added: "It will tell the story of how a working class boy from Greatfield Estate came to challenge the norms and expectations of his time and place of origin, to play a pivotal role in creating a new music and social culture."
As well as working with Bowie, Ronson recorded several solo albums, the most successful of which was Slaughter on 10th Avenue, which reached number nine on the UK album chart.
He also played on, produced or arranged songs for artists including Lou Reed, Bob Dylan and Morrissey.
The performance will be accompanied by an exhibition of photographs and memorabilia at the Freedom Centre.
Creed said: "The project will engage and connect Hull residents from Greatfield Estate and across the city, recording and sharing audio stories and memories, personal photographs and memorabilia.
"We will gather memories of gigs, record his impact as role model and icon on the lives of Hull residents and beyond."
The material gathered from archives as well as contributions from the public will then make up the content of the show, which will be performed in August 2017.
Turn and Face the Strange will be one of 60 projects to take place in neighbourhoods across the city as part of the the Hull 2017 Creative Communities Programme. The 60 projects will share £750,000 funding.
The full City of Culture line-up will be announced on Thursday.
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram, or if you have a story suggestion email [email protected]. | The life of Spiders From Mars guitarist Mick Ronson is to be celebrated in his home town as part of Hull's City of Culture celebrations next year. |
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Did the cash raised through benefit fraud in the UK fund the two atrocities - and what does this case tell us about the self-styled Islamic State's operations?
The meeting was straight out of a Le Carre novel. Multiple calls using different Sim cards. Counter-surveillance manoeuvres to confirm nobody was following. And finally a green light from a powerful and shadowy figure overseas for the exchange to occur.
On 11 July 2015, on a leafy path close to one of Birmingham's largest surburban parks, Zakaria Boufassil emerged to greet fellow Belgian-Moroccan Mohamed Abrini.
There was a brief exchange between the men and Boufassil handed over a bag of cash. The men parted company and Abrini, a courier for IS fighters, was gone.
Nobody other than Boufassil's accomplice, Mohammed Ahmed Ali, saw it happen. Now both men face substantial jail sentences for preparing acts of terrorism.
It was months before West Midlands Counter-Terrorism Unit discovered what had happened - and how the event, four months before the Paris attacks, fitted into a bigger picture.
The first the world publicly knew of Mohamed Abrini was when he was named in an international arrest warrant as one of the perpetrators of the November 2015 attacks in which IS gunmen killed 130 people.
Then, last March, he resurfaced on CCTV footage in Brussels Airport, moments before bombs were detonated in a co-ordinated attack there and on the city's metro.
Thirty-two people died, but Abrini, dubbed "the man in the hat" because of his attire on the footage, briefly escaped.
Described at Kingston Crown Court as a former baker turned "cat burglar", Abrini grew up in the Molenbeek area of Brussels.
In early summer 2015, Abrini - then on the run from his alleged role in the Paris attacks - made it to Syria to visit the grave of his brother who had died in battle.
According to his own statement to Belgian prosecutors, Abrini was smuggled into IS territory with the help of his friend Abdelhamid Abaaoud - the organiser of the November Paris attack.
Abaaoud asked Abrini to go to the UK and pick up some cash. The mission was so important that Abaaoud provided the courier $2,000 to fund every element of the operation.
Abrini flew from Istanbul to Heathrow and, after landing, used a new British Sim card - just one of many different numbers at his disposal - to contact the men he was supposed to be meeting. They told him to take a coach to Birmingham and await further instructions.
According to evidence of mobile phone movements, during his first day in the city Abrini took a meandering route around the 40-acre landscape of Small Heath Park.
He wasn't admiring the bandstand and lake. He was following instructions by mobile phone from Boufassil and Ahmed who were checking from a distance if their contact was under surveillance.
On the second day, he was given a specific instruction to wait near a pizzeria on the Coventry Road side.
"I waited for about 10 minutes and the person arrived," Abrini told investigators.
"[He] told me to follow him while keeping a distance of between 10 and 15 metres.
"We then crossed the large park, we crossed a bridge that passes the motorway. After the bridge there was a little forest and we went into there.
"There was actually a second person who waited in the forest and it was him who had the money. Despite the nice weather I think he was hiding his head."
Underneath the hood was Zakaria Boufassil. The man who led the way to the meeting was Mohammed Ali Ahmed.
Boufassil and Abrini spoke in their native French, and Abrini confirmed in person he had been sent by Abdelhamid Abaaoud. The Birmingham pair had also confirmed with Syria that he was their man.
"On those words, he took his bag out and gave me the money," said Abrini.
"The people - Zakaria and his companion - were well aware that I had come on behalf of Abdelhamid Abaaoud."
The £3,000 in cash had come from a bank account belonging to two other Belgian citizens who had been living in Birmingham: Anouar Haddouchi and Julie Maes.
According to legal papers, the 32-year-old and his wife went to join IS in September 2014, and their former landlord told Birmingham City Council the couple had left his property.
But nobody at the local authority or at the Department for Work and Pensions stopped the benefits being paid into their account.
Between Haddouchi's and Maes' disappearance and the Abrini meeting, the couple were paid almost £10,000 in benefits. Prosecutors believe it all went to fund IS supporters.
Ahmed had unwittingly already told an undercover officer about his desire to go to Syria.
That officer's evidence was instrumental in securing convictions against two other would-be Syria travellers - but also helped establish that Ahmed was in contact with both Haddouchi and another Birmingham fighter, Abdelatif Gaini.
This final man had been under suspicion since at least February 2013 after attempting to fly to Turkey and he was closely associated to Zakaria Boufassil.
Did Boufassil himself want to fight? In December 2014 he left the UK for a few months at the same time as a number of other suspects. What he did those two years ago remains unclear.
And the same can be said for the rest of IS courier Mohamed Abrini's time in the UK after he had got the cash.
After a night in a Birmingham casino, Abrini went to Manchester for two nights. He toured the Old Trafford stadium and took 30 photographs to add to a growing collection on his phone that already included Birmingham's Bullring shopping centre, a church and a mosque.
What was he doing? Was the future Paris and Brussels suspect looking for targets? Was he in Manchester to pick up more cash?
Abrini has told Belgian prosecutors that there was "no plan to target England" because it was "more difficult to attack".
But on the face of things, Abrini's superiors risked an awful lot just to pick up £3,000 in a Birmingham park and indulge his gambling habits.
Abrini returned to Europe on 16 July and, according to his account, handed the cash to his handler's brother, Yassine Abaaoud.
He has claimed that Yassine then blew the cash on "going out, cars and clothes".
This may be possible - but a month before the Paris attacks, he was arrested as he entered Morocco, and has subsequently been jailed for terrorist offences.
Belgian and French authorities have already been criticised in their own countries for alleged intelligence failures in relation to the attacks - so when did they know about Abrini's visit and when did the UK find out?
Three months before the Paris attacks, Abrini gave a voluntary statement to Brussels police after hearing that he was potentially wanted. He admitted travelling from Turkey to Birmingham and Manchester but denied supporting IS.
When he was arrested and detained after the Brussels bombings, West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit asked their Belgian counterparts to find out what Abrini had been doing in Birmingham - leading to the statement at the heart of Boufassil's trial.
Separately, in late 2015, MI5 had learned that an unnamed foreign national closely linked to IS had visited the UK "for a period of time".
There was a rapid assessment of his activity and connections and whether he was involved in attack planning. According to an official published report, teams were refocused and prioritised.
"The individual in question is now awaiting trial in another country for terrorist offences," it says. Is that individual Abrini? We don't know because the report doesn't say.
The key unanswered question remains: Was the cash given to Abrini used for the Paris or Brussels attacks? The Crown Prosecution Service didn't have to say so in this trial. All they had to prove was that Boufassil had known who he was dealing with.
Belgian authorities haven't commented on the UK link to Abrini out of fear of compromising his future prosecution. But they have ordered banks to freeze assets belonging to the benefit fraudster Haddouchi.
As for Abrini, while he gave a statement, he then refused to co-operate any further.
Kingston Crown Court heard he fears that he will be seen as an IS supergrass - and that will endanger his family. | A man has been found guilty of giving £3,000 in Birmingham to an alleged member of the terror cell that later carried out the Paris and Brussels attacks. |
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Problems with the basalt cladding were first noticed at the end of 2014, and consultants are set to be appointed to address the problem.
Netting has been put on the building to prevent any risk to users and pedestrians in St Anne's Square.
The building opened in 2012, and cost more than £17m.
Earlier this week, MLAs on the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) Committee heard that the MAC may have to close if repair work is not carried out.
Joe O'Neill, the chair of the MAC board, says he is confident that the arts centre will be able to stay open during any work.
He confirmed that they would be looking for help to meet the repair bill.
"Based on the original bill costs and, maybe, allowing a little bit extra for inflation and the removal of the existing cladding, a provisional figure of £1m has been speculated," he said.
"Obviously, that's a level of funding we have asked the Executive for some support on.
"The MAC is a publicly-funded organisation, and we don't have the resources to fund that.
"We'd need some co-operation and partnership with our funders.
"This is more significant than we would like to have dealt with, but nothing that can't be resolved and a permanent solution put in place."
The MAC's main funders are DCAL and the Arts Council.
The architects who designed the MAC were not available for interview, but a number of architects say that problems with a relatively new building are not unusual.
Some described it as like moving into a new home, where you may not find some faults until you have been living in it.
"Buildings have all kinds of different issues, during construction and at the post-construction phase," said Michael Corr, the director of PLACE Built Environment Centre.
"Anyone who has built their own house can tell you that.
"Buildings are living, breathing things and with most new buildings there are teething problems, and so it shouldn't close the building.
"That really would be the worst case scenario."
The problems with the exterior come at a time when the MAC is otherwise celebrating success.
It has been shortlisted for the prestigious Arts Fund Prize for Museum of the Year 2015.
The judges for that competition arrive in Belfast on Friday, and the winner will be announced on 1 July. | The Metropolitan Arts Centre (MAC) in Belfast may need up to £1m of public money to carry out repairs to the external stonework on the building. |
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The 31-year-old was held by officers and taken to police cells before being given a £90 fine and released.
The actor, who plays builder Jason Grimshaw in the ITV soap, had earlier posted a photo of himself climbing to his 94,000 followers on Instagram.
He is due to leave the soap next summer after more than a decade.
The Greater Manchester-based actor was arrested at the Wheelhouse Club and Lounge in Bowness-on-Windermere early on Sunday morning.
He was taken to Kendal police station..
Thomas had been in the Lakes with a group of friends.
A Cumbria Police statement said: "Police arrested a 31-year-old man from Stockport on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly outside the Wheelhouse Club in Bowness on Windermere in the early hours of Sunday 25th October 2015.
"The man was issued with a fixed penalty notice and no further action will be taken at this time."
An ITV spokeswoman said: "Ryan is currently on leave so we have not been in a position to discuss this with him so we have nothing to add for the time being." | Coronation Street actor Ryan Thomas has been fined for being drunk and disorderly after an alleged row at a nightclub in the Lake District. |
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But other campaigns have been taking place to encourage people to register to vote before the deadline of 20 April.
The election projections show the outcome on 7 May is difficult to predict.
So the difference could be made by minority groups if they use the opportunity to register and vote.
The campaigning group that fights for racial equality, Operation Black Vote (OBV), has been travelling around the country in an orange bus promoting voter registration especially to ethnic minorities.
The bus with its images of US civil rights activist Rosa Parks and black and Asian World War Two army personnel, has facilities to allow people to register on board.
OBV's director Simon Woolley says there is a disproportionate number of black and Asian people that have registered to vote.
According to OBV figures, in the 2010 election 18% of black and minority ethnic (BME) groups did not register to vote compared with 7% of white people. Of the BME groups - 50% of Africans, 20% of Caribbeans, and 15% of Asians were not registered.
"It's clear the people we have talked to are not apathetic to politics," says Simon.
"They are interested in education, health, politics and unemployment.
"But they are frustrated and angry because of the lack of representation in politics, so they consciously opt out."
OBV says they have reached a million people in the last eight weeks of campaigning, and that tens of thousands of people have registered on their bus.
OBV has used black British celebrities to illustrate the cause.
The Homeland actor David Harewood, musician Tinie Tempah, and the former footballer Sol Campbell are featuring on posters.
Their faces have been whitened by make-up to show that without the black vote, the colour is taken out of British politics.
"We have great role models in these individuals and they wanted to give back to the community," says Simon.
He adds: "I'm impatient for fundamental change and I won't rest until people are judged by their ability and not by the colour of their skin."
Inspired by Operation Black Vote, Operation Disabled Vote (ODV) was launched in November 2014 with the aim of aiding deaf and disabled people to register and vote.
The London-based group has been part of a national voter registration drive No Vote No Voice.
ODV is touring the capital on a bus with deaf interpreters to provide help and information.
ODV's co-founder, Ellen Clifford, says there are many issues surrounding voter registration.
"Primarily, a lot of the information is online but some people have no access," she explains.
"Statistically disabled people, particularly with learning difficulties, have less online access than any other group."
ODV has found that people are interested in registering but they may not have their national insurance number to hand or they need to rely on family members for help.
In a Mencap survey, 64% of people with learning disabilities who were questioned said they did not vote in the last election.
Reasons included finding the process of registering too difficult and being turned away from polling stations.
Ellen says: "There is no legal duty for polling stations to be made wheelchair accessible. Polling officers can come out on the street with a ballot paper. But we don't think that's acceptable."
She adds that the biggest barrier is people thinking there is no point in voting because politicians have failed in representing the interests of deaf and disabled people.
Young people, particularly women, are not big on voting.
Only 39% of women between 18-24 voted in the 2010 general election, making them the demographic least likely to vote.
After a consultation, the Youth Media Agency recognised it was more of an issue than previously thought.
The agency's Hannah Vincent says: "We found there was a massive level of apathy and young women were overwhelmed by politics."
To help redress this, the agency used the #XXVote hashtag in social media and with the help of crowdspeaking platform Thunderclap their message reached 1.6 million people.
The team also turned to the big screen to spread the word.
Hannah Vincent directed a film that was made by young women for young women, which shows the relevance of politics in young women's everyday lives and also emphasises the importance of voter participation.
The National Union of Students (NUS) has used various methods to inform students about registering.
"Some didn't realise they had to register," says the NUS President Toni Pearce.
"They thought because they pay their taxes and that the people know who they are, they would automatically be able to vote."
#RegAFriend is the latest NUS online campaign targeting students to encourage their friends to register.
Students are taking selfies with friends crossing fingers and adding their photos with the #RegAFriend hashtag online.
"It's an opportunity to talk about politics as well as people taking responsibility for others to register rather than focus individually," says Toni.
"They care and are interested in many issues. They are concerned about the cost of living for students which is really high, and they are worried about getting a job and if it pays enough to pay back their student fees."
No matter how seemingly wacky the idea, many students have heeded the campaign's message.
The University of East Anglia ran a Goats for Votes registration drive.
"The idea was that if students registered to vote, they can get a play with some goats," explained Toni, who added that the idea led to 2,000 students signing up.
"Students are a force to be reckoned with and it is not just the NUS talking about issues, so are they."
Shout Out UK, a news network for young people has won a commission for a youth leaders debate that will be shown on Channel 4 on 28 April. | Political figures are on the campaign trail trying to win votes for the general election. |
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The News Corp co-chairman is leading a consortium to buy the struggling broadcaster.
Australia's media laws would need to be changed for the takeover to proceed.
The government has moved to relax the rules which put limits on media ownership.
In a statement on Thursday, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said the proposed buyout of Channel Ten would not harm competition.
"While this transaction will result in some reduction in diversity across the Australian media landscape, we have concluded it would not substantially lessen competition," it said.
Proposed changes to media law in Australia would remove the so-called "two out of three" rule, which prevents a single party owning print, radio and television assets in the same market.
The laws, which have passed the lower house of parliament but face opposition in the senate, must be changed for the Ten deal to go through.
Mr Murdoch owns a radio station and News Corp publishes about two-thirds of the country's newspapers. His buyout partner Bruce Gordon owns regional television licences across Australia.
Mr Murdoch is already a shareholder of Ten, which was placed into administration earlier this year.
Media owners in the country argue current laws are outdated and hurt their ability to compete for advertising revenues from newer, online players like Facebook and Google. | Lachlan Murdoch has moved one step closer to buying television network Channel Ten after Australia's competition regulator gave the green light to the potential acquisition. |
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Almost 2,000 homes and more than 1,000 businesses in the area were affected by flooding over Christmas last year.
The new scheme is in addition to almost £10m awarded from central government to support flood recovery in the area.
The council funding will also be used to improve flood incident management systems.
Read more about this and other stories from across West Yorkshire
More than £60m has already been made available by the government for major flood defence schemes in the Calder Valley, which are currently being examined by the Environment Agency.
The council's scheme will look at how it can deliver other low cost flood prevention work and develop projects for natural flood management.
It will also offer support for businesses with hardship grants and in helping companies in making their properties more flood resilient.
The council also plans to hire additional staff to speed up grant processing for homeowners and to increase the size of the council's flood team. | A £3m fund to invest in flood prevention and resilience schemes in Calderdale has been approved by councillors. |
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For 15 years the Ceredigion community campaigned to save the site which has been restored into a heritage attraction and events venue, with holiday accommodation and a restaurant.
Restoration work included roof repairs, landscaping and reconstruction of the castle's walls.
The site will open to the general public on Wednesday.
The Cadwgan Building Preservation Trust, made up of 250 local people, secured investment for the restoration, including more than £6m from the Heritage Lottery Fund and £4.3m from the European Regional Development Fund.
Hundreds of local volunteers took part in fundraising, raising more than £200,000 to save the 900-year-old site.
A remake of Wales' original Eisteddfod chair has been returned to the castle following the restoration as it believed to have been home to the first ever recorded Eisteddfod in 1176.
The site also has a dedicated Eisteddfod exhibition along with exhibitions telling the story of the castle and the people who lived there.
Cardigan Castle spokeswoman Sue Lewis said: "The castle's commercial streams are absolutely vital in generating income for the upkeep of the site.
"Our target is to attract more than 30,000 visitors to the castle in its first year of trading."
But a row has broken out over plans to invite an English folk group to headline the opening concert in July. | Cardigan Castle will reopen to the local community on Tuesday following a four-year, £12m restoration. |
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The Japanese company has apologised and withdrawn the virtual stickers which it said were "culturally sensitive".
Thailand's strict lese majeste law bans criticism of the king, queen and his successor, but has been broadly applied to references to the monarchy. It carries a maximum 15-year jail term.
Critics say the law has been used to silence discussion about the royals.
Line is one of the most popular messaging apps in Asia.
Suppaset Chokechai, commander of the police technology crime suppression division, confirmed the investigation with the BBC but declined to give any more information on the case.
The stickers depicted various members of the family, including the revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej and his children, and appeared to reference rumours about them.
But some stickers also feature known facts about them, such as the king's fondness for the saxophone and Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn's deceased pet dog.
The set appeared to have been submitted to a section of Line's online shop where users can sell stickers to others. Line reviews submissions before they are put on sale.
Line issued a statement on Thursday saying it had withdrawn the stickers, saying they "may have caused discomfort among our users in Thailand".
It added that it would continue to improve its processes and "consider cultural aspects of each country".
Thailand has seen an increased spate of arrests under lese majeste in recent years, some under broad interpretations of the law.
Since its coup in 2014, the military government has used the law to arrest a string of suspects accused of claiming or using connections to the monarchy for personal benefit. | Thai police are investigating the release of a set of icons on messaging app Line depicting the royal family. |
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The tournament for teams outside the top flight will also include an under-20s side from each Scottish Premiership club in the first round.
Four teams from the Highland League and four from the Lowland League will also enter at that stage in August.
Two Welsh sides and two from Northern Ireland enter the last 16 in October.
It is expected these will be the top two from the Welsh Premier League and Northern Ireland Football League, meaning places for The New Saints and Bala Town and Crusaders and Linfield.
One Welsh side and one from Northern Ireland will be guaranteed a home tie.
Draws will be regionalised throughout the competition and seeded for the first three rounds, with the final to be played in March.
"We are very pleased to be supported by Uefa in delivering an element of cross-border competition through the invitation to our colleagues in Northern Ireland and Wales," said Scottish Professional Football League chief executive Neil Doncaster.
The SPFL say the majority of fixtures will take place during international weekends, while BBC ALBA, S4C and Premier Sports will all show live matches.
Championship winners Rangers lifted the trophy last season, beating Peterhead in the final at Hampden. | The Scottish Challenge Cup is being expanded to include teams from Wales and Northern Ireland from season 2016-17, following approval from Uefa. |
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But how did the Portugal winger fare over 120 minutes in the San Siro? Which substitute made a big impact for Atletico? And who was "embarrassing" for Real?
Ex-England and Tottenham midfielder Jermaine Jenas rates the players.
Did not put a foot wrong. Antoine Griezmann has missed two of his four penalty kicks this season, both against Navas.
He was not bad in the first-half, but did not do anything special.
Absolutely immense, did not give the Atletico attacking line an inch. Ramos is the first defender to score in two different Champions League finals.
A solid display but his antics were embarrassing. Ramos was the only defender to make more clearances - with eight - than Pepe's six.
A good threat throughout the game. Marcelo made 35 passes in the opposition half; only Luka Modric made more with 44.
He was the big reason Real won the final. Casemiro made the most tackles in the final, with eight.
Cool and calm as always and grew in influence as the game went on. Modric played seven key passes, more than any other player.
Not in his favourite position where he likes to control the game, but did not put a foot wrong.
Immense, he always looked a threat and was unlucky not to get on the scoresheet.
Did not have an impact on the game, some nice touches but was lacking sharpness.
Did not do much throughout the game but ended up scoring the winning penalty for his third Champions League title.
Provided a lot of energy, especially in extra time, but was erratic at times. No Real player made more interceptions than Danilo with five.
At fault for Atletico's goal - when he fell asleep while marking - and had a good opportunity to score the winner but took a touch when he should have hit it first time. He stepped up and took the first penalty and put it away.
A massive threat when he came on and was full of energy
He made some massive saves in the game and kept Atletico in it, especially with his two stops to deny Ronaldo. But you might question his penalty shootout technique. Oblak made six saves during the match, but failed to save any of Real's five penalties.
He was fantastic through the whole game and provided the assist, so it was unfortunate that he missed his penalty. Juanfran became the first defender to assist in two different Champions League finals.
Strong as ever. Godin made six clearances, the most for Atletico.
He had quite a good game and was not caught out. Savic made five blocks during the game; three more than any other player.
He struggled with Bale in the first half but was much better in the second half and more of an attacking influence.
He was very good, even though he was not as attacking as usual. Koke was one of two players to attempt more than 100 passes (107).
Brilliant in midfield, tried to make things happen. Gabi played 114 passes; seven more than any other player.
Did not do much in the first half and was hauled off at the break.
Did some nice stuff but struggled a little at times.
He tried to make things happen in the first half and was a lot better in the second half but was always trying to get back into the game after his penalty miss.
Worked hard, but that is not enough for a striker. Feel if Atletico had somebody of real quality, a real powerful centre-forward, then they would have won the game.
Not much time to make an impact.
Not much time to make an impact.
He was phenomenal, the most influential player from an attacking aspect. The first Belgian player to score in a European Cup final. | Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid on penalties to win their 11th European Cup, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring the decisive spot-kick. |
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Shares around the world have been boosted by hopes that the US Federal Reserve will push back rate rises following weak US jobs data last week.
The benchmark FTSE 100 index closed up 128.31 points, or 1.88%, at 6,961.77.
Oil-related shares saw big gains following a sharp rise in the price of crude on Monday. BG Group rose 6.7% while Premier Oil jumped 13%.
But the rise in oil costs hit shares in airlines, with British Airways owner IAG down 1.2%.
Shares in Royal Mail rose 1.3% to 448p following news that Dutch parcels delivery firm TNT Express had agreed to be bought by US firm FedEx.
The takeover has raised speculation that there could be more deals in the sector.
On the currency markets, the pound was boosted by a strong survey of the UK's services sector.
The latest Markit/CIPS services purchasing managers' index (PMI) recorded an eight-month high of 58.9 last month.
The pound rose 0.13% against the dollar to $1.4849, while against the euro it climbed 0.48% to €1.3693. | (Close): The benchmark FTSE 100 rose nearly 2% as trading resumed after the Easter weekend. |
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Taken to task by Brand about public disillusionment with politics, the Labour leader replied: "You implied... no change happened. That's just wrong."
Prime Minister David Cameron called Mr Miliband's meeting with Brand a "joke".
But Mr Miliband said the interview was a way to engage with millions of people not usually interested in politics.
His appearance received a mixed reaction on social media, with some complaining it was little more than an ego trip for the comedian and others mocking the Labour leader's accent and choice of language.
In the 15-minute interview posted on his YouTube Channel, The Trews, Brand challenged Mr Miliband over the ability of politicians to address inequality and tax avoidance.
"The reason I have never voted in my life is that I think it does not matter," Brand, who has encouraged people not to vote and advocated a political revolution through action, told the Labour leader.
"We all got excited by Tony Blair, we all got excited by Barack Obama and what happened."
In response, Mr Miliband said he was the man to tackle powerful interests but downplayed expectations about how quickly this would happen.
"This is important. I am not looking for euphoria. I know that might sound a bit weird... You don't want politicians saying 'vote for me and on day one the world is transformed'. It ain't going to be like that. Change is hard. Change takes time."
"Much of the immediate reaction was about how Brand - perhaps unsurprisingly - was dominating the debate... those that could concentrate on the content found Ed Miliband's accent and choice of words intriguing." Read more.
The Labour leader said voting was an essential part of the political process. People's votes had been responsible for major social and economic transformations, including the birth of the NHS, equal-pay legislation and gay marriage, he said.
"Without politics and without government, that change does not happen. That is what happens in a democratic society," Mr Miliband said.
The two men were filmed discussing a range of issues in the comedian's east London home, with Brand pressing the Labour leader about why no bankers had gone to prison for market-rigging.
"Of course, if there's fraud committed by bankers that should happen. But there's a bigger issue than that, which is how you have a banking system that works for ordinary small businesses... for customers who need the help," said the Labour leader.
Policy guide: Where the parties stand
Challenged by Brand over the difference between the proportion of an average person's income taken in tax, and the percentage of profits handed over by companies like internet giant Amazon, Mr Miliband said "of course" politicians had the power to act.
"It doesn't mean it's easy in a world where capital and companies are mobile. You have to have a government which is willing to say 'there's something wrong with this and we're going to deal with it'."
There was little of Brand's comedic touch about the video.
However, when discussing a perceived inability on the part of the public to distinguish between politicians, Brand referred to UKIP leader Nigel Farage's campaigning style in saying: "When someone with a pint on their head turns up it seems like a valid and interesting alternative."
"I'm not sure I'd look so good with a pint on my head," Mr Miliband replied.
Brand ends the video by addressing the camera to say he "learned a lot about Labour, a lot about Ed Miliband" and that he found it an "interesting experience".
He added that it "said a lot" that the Labour leader was prepared to be interviewed by him.
Political parties are often keen for well-known faces to sprinkle stardust on their campaigns, while some celebrities go a step further and run their own - with mixed results.
Watch video from the vaults on BBC Timeliner | Ed Miliband has challenged Russell Brand over his view that voting is "pointless" in a video interview conducted by the campaigning comedian. |
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Her confidence stemmed from the fact that women have traditionally enjoyed a very low status in India's most populous state, which has a population of more than 200 million people.
The state has consistently performed badly on UN human development indexes, and women here - especially in rural areas - still have little say in important life decisions, including when and whom to marry.
Millions of girls are married off even before they turn 18 - the legal age of marriage.
But the winds of change seem to be finally blowing in the state - in recent months, young women have turned away grooms they've found to be unfit for a variety of reasons.
We list a few unorthodox ones below:
Last month, a woman in the state's Firozabad district refused to marry her groom when he arrived at the wedding venue too drunk.
The Times of India reported that the young man was so inebriated, he couldn't even stand straight for the pre-wedding "jaimaal" ceremony when the couple exchange floral garlands.
The wedding was called off after the upset bride told her family that she would kill herself if anyone forced her to marry the drunk man.
There have been similar instances in the past too - last year, a bride in a village in Mahoba district called off her wedding when the groom turned up inebriated.
When Mohar Singh arranged for his daughter, Lovely, to get married to a young man named Ram Baran, he didn't know that the groom was illiterate.
It's not clear why, but just before the ceremony, Lovely asked the groom-to-be to solve a simple maths problem.
She asked him to add 15 and six. He said 17. She called off the wedding.
The groom's family had "kept us in the dark about his poor education", Mr Singh said and added that "even a first grader" could answer the simple question.
Just as he was reaching out to garland his bride-to-be, one excited groom had a seizure and collapsed in front of the wedding guests.
As he was rushed to a hospital, the bride's family alleged that his family had not disclosed the fact that he was epileptic.
The angry bride decided to switch husbands - she asked a member of her brother-in-law's family, who was a guest, to step in and marry her instead. He agreed.
On his return from the hospital, the original groom-to-be pleaded with the young lady to change her mind, telling her that he would be ridiculed if he went home without a bride, but she was unmoved.
A "spoon war" broke out and a police complaint was lodged, only to be withdrawn later since, as a police official said, "the bride is already married now, what can anyone do"?
This couple met on a social networking site and after a brief courtship, decided to get married.
But things didn't go according to plan at the glitzy wedding in the city of Aligarh, attended by 500 guests, including the city Mayor Shakuntala Bharati.
And it could all be blamed on a kiss - the groom's sister-in-law was so excited "that she leapt up and kissed him even as the bride and her family looked on in deep disapproval", reports said.
To make matters worse, she "pulled him on to the dance floor and shook a leg".
A brawl ensued.
Reports said the bride's family assaulted the wedding party and held the groom captive - he was freed only after the mayor intervened.
Last year north-east of the city of Kanpur, the family of one groom demanded better lights at the wedding. The bride's family said no.
More sharp words were exchanged and the bride's family accused the groom's family of being "uncultured and ill-mannered".
Police said they'd never heard of a wedding being cancelled "just over lighting arrangements".
Consumption of tobacco can be injurious to health.
And this groom in Deoria district ignored the health warning at his peril.
He arrived at the wedding chewing tobacco and half-way through the ceremony, he stepped out to spit.
The bride was furious and called off the wedding, saying she didn't want a husband who was an addict. | Years ago, during a visit to my village in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, I heard a female relative boast that as a high-caste Brahmin, she would have no trouble getting a bride for her dog, let alone for her unemployed son. |
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The third-seeded Croatian and Brazilian beat the second-seeded Scot and Brazilian in straight sets 6-4 6-4.
Rain had forced a lengthy delay with Murray and Soares a break of serve down at 4-3 in the first set.
Murray will team up with his brother, two-time Wimbledon champion Andy, 29, at the Rio Olympics.
Meanwhile, the victorious Melo will play in his home Olympics alongside Soares.
You can now add tennis alerts in the BBC Sport app - simply head to the menu and My Alerts section | Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo beat Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares to win the men's doubles final of the Rogers Cup in Toronto. |
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The flag of an Armenian unit marching behind Azeri troops is not visible in the image on the ministry's website.
But a live broadcast of the event showed both units walking one after the other with their flags.
They were in the Russian capital to commemorate the Soviet victory against Nazi Germany in World War Two.
Arranged in order of the Russian alphabet, troops from the two countries of the former USSR joined other foreign troops marching through Red Square to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the war in Europe.
Azerbaijani military expert Uzeyir Jafarov told BBC Azeri that he had no doubt the image had been Photoshopped.
"According to sources in the ministry, they did not expect the military units of Armenia and Azerbaijan to march one after another. During rehearsals they were in different parts of the area," he explained.
Meanwhile, the Armenpress news agency website observed that "as a result of this fraudulent act, the artistically unique facade of the building of the Russian Museum of History looks different".
The museum in the background had lost one of its windows in the Defence Ministry's version of the photo, another keen observer told Russia's Regnum news agency (in Russian).
Azerbaijan's Defence Ministry has declined to comment on the reports.
The question over whether the photo was doctored has also been actively discussed on social media sites in both countries.
Relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan have been strained since the 1990s conflict and continuing dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh - a landlocked region in Azerbaijan with an ethnic Armenian majority. | Azerbaijan's Defence Ministry has digitally removed an Armenian flag from a photo of Russia's military parade on Saturday, Armenian reports say. |
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Fourteen months since predominately Shia protests erupted against the rule of the Sunni monarchy, questions are being raised over whether one of the biggest events in Bahrain's calendar should go ahead.
The Formula 1 Grand Prix is due to be held on 22 April and for the tiny island Gulf state this is huge.
It indirectly employs thousands of Bahrainis, both Shia and Sunni, and, according to the government, brings in hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of business, putting Bahrain firmly on the world sporting map.
The problem is, those protests are far from over, the country is perhaps more divided than ever along sectarian lines, and one of the most prominent pro-democracy campaigners, Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, is two months into a hunger strike in protest at his life sentence on charges of trying to overthrow the monarchy.
If he dies in custody, as his lawyer warns he might, then the simmering daily clashes between police and protesters in the Shia villages will likely explode.
Little wonder that some of the international F1 participants are voicing doubts about whether they want to take part. Last year's F1 Grand Prix in Bahrain was postponed, then cancelled.
So should Bahrain's F1 go ahead this year or not?
Formula 1 Group CEO Bernie Ecclestone said on Tuesday this is "up to the people of Bahrain" and at the moment it is going ahead.
Essentially it boils down to two factors for teams to consider: safety and morality.
On safety, the Bahraini authorities are likely to take every possible precaution to shield participants from any unpleasantness. They will be chaperoned, escorted and protected, from airport to hotel to race track.
The venue itself is out in the desert, halfway down the island at Sakhir - and far from the troubled villages where Molotov cocktails are traded nightly with the riot police.
A long-term Bahrain resident said: "They may experience traffic jams but hopefully nothing worse".
But the issue of moral conscience is rather more complex.
Bahrain is where the Arab Spring visibly failed last year, smothered by draconian security measures that saw several unarmed protesters die in custody. Al-Khawaja himself was arrested in his house at night and beaten unconscious in front of his screaming family.
Since then, an independent commission of inquiry, the BICI commission, has investigated thousands of claims of abuses, found the government guilty of systematic abuse of prisoners, and made numerous recommendations to improve human rights which the ruler, King Hamad, has promised to act on.
Reforms include two senior police officers being drafted in from the UK and US to advise Bahrain on how to improve community policing, while several junior Bahraini officers are being investigated for alleged abuses.
But the opposition says the reforms are mainly cosmetic, innocent people are still in jail and there is no meaningful dialogue under way on how to share power more equitably, despite the efforts of the more reform-minded members of the ruling al-Khalifa family and moderate voices in the opposition.
If this month's Grand Prix is cancelled it would effectively be an international vote of no confidence in Bahrain.
This is exactly what many of the government's opponents want, sending a message that as long as the country's Shia community feels disenfranchised then why should it be business as usual?
But a senior official in Bahrain, who asked not to be named, told the BBC "cancelling the Grand Prix would be a real backward step and is not going to benefit anyone, either politically or economically.
"It will send the Sunni community apoplectic and make it harder than ever for moderates to reach common ground." | Bahrain is once again at a crossroads. |
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"This is the price sometimes, but at the end, the people are liberated from the terrorists," he told French media.
The UN says air strikes by the government and its allies on a civilian-packed area in the battle's final stages were probably a war crime.
Russia joined Syria's strikes on anti-government rebels in 2015.
Alongside Turkey, Moscow helped to negotiate a fragile ceasefire in Syria that is largely holding, despite claims of violations from both sides of the conflict.
Both countries and Iran are now pushing for peace talks to be held later this month in the capital of Kazakhstan, Astana.
Aleppo: Before and after images
Why is there a war in Syria?
Turkish policy sets new path for Syria
An estimated 21,500 civilians have been killed in Aleppo since the battle there began about five years ago, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
In comments to French media that were published by Syrian state news agency Sana, President Assad described the devastation of eastern Aleppo and killing of civilians as "painful for us as Syrians to see", adding: "Every war is bad."
But, he added, "is it better to leave [civilians] under their [rebels'] supervision, under their oppression, by beheading, by killing?"
Thousands of civilians trapped in just a handful of rebel-held districts faced intense bombardment as government troops advanced through the city.
The rebels eventually surrendered it three weeks ago as part of a deal to allow civilians and rebels to travel to other rebel-held areas in northern Syria.
According to the UN, 36,000 people were evacuated from east Aleppo to opposition areas in Idlib and western Aleppo countryside, while 38,750 crossed into west Aleppo.
The loss of eastern Aleppo is considered the biggest blow to the rebels in nearly six years of civil war.
"It's a tipping point in the course of the war and it is on the way to victory," President Assad said.
Touching on the proposed talks in Astana, for which no date has been set, President Assad said his government was ready to negotiate on "everything".
"Who will be there from the other side? We do not yet know. Will it be a real Syrian opposition?" President Assad said, dismissing rebel groups backed by Saudi Arabia, France and the UK.
It is not yet clear who will represent the opposition.
Syrian says the ceasefire currently in place excludes so-called Islamic State (IS) and rival jihadist group Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, as well as the Syrian Kurdish Popular Protection Units (YPG) militia - though rebels dispute this.
President Assad also claimed the rebels were breaching the ceasefire in and around Damascus, accusing them of depriving civilians of water by "occupying the main water source" from the Wadi Barada, a valley in the hills north-west of the capital that is the location of several springs.
Rebels deny contaminating the water source and say the government has damaged the infrastructure. | Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said the bombing of eastern Aleppo, which his forces recaptured from rebels last month, was justified. |
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A2Dominion proposes to build on 509 acres (205 hectares).
A spokesman said all the feedback from the public about the scheme had been "received and considered".
The housing developer wants to build the properties north of Lords Lane and Howes Lane in the Oxfordshire town. Of the new homes, 30% will be affordable housing.
About 200 people attended two public exhibitions of the plans in Pioneer Square over the summer, but only 28 responses were received. The developer said more than half supported the proposals.
Louise Caves, strategic partnership manager, said: "Respondents prioritised the delivery of a health centre followed by a primary school as the most important facilities to be delivered first in a new community.
"A2Dominion is taking these responses into consideration when developing its detailed planning applications."
The firm is also working with Cherwell District Council and Oxfordshire County Council on a separate planning application for Howes Lane to create a north-west Bicester link road.
The district council is expected to make a decision on the applications in January. | Planning applications for a 3,500-home development in Bicester have been submitted. |
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The report was prompted by the debate over controversial bans on Islamic swimsuits in many French Riviera towns.
Mr Valls said such bans were part of a "fight for the freedom of women".
The paper said it stood by the article. Some Muslims say they are being targeted unfairly over burkinis.
An increasing number of court rulings have rejected bans on the full-body swimsuit, including in Nice, where an attack on 14 July killed 84 people during Bastille Day celebrations.
Some of the women quoted by the NYT said the clothing was a chance for them to take part in activities, such as going to the beach, in line with their religious beliefs.
Many also complained of an alleged discrimination by non-Muslims exacerbated by the recent attacks in France and Belgium, and of restrictions in wearing the headscarf, banned in French public buildings.
One said: "French Muslim women would be justified to request asylum in the United States... given how many persecutions we are subjected to."
Another talked of being "afraid of having to wear a yellow crescent on my clothes one day, like the Star of David for Jews not so long ago".
Muslim women respond to burkini ban
In his response, originally posted on the Huffington Post's French website, Mr Valls said the report painted "an unacceptable picture, because it is false, of France".
"What I argue here vigorously is that the New York Times article, giving the floor to women of Muslim faith, claims that their voice would be smothered in France, so as to portray a France that oppresses them," he said.
"We are fighting for the freedom of women who should not have to live under the yoke of a chauvinist order. The female body is neither pure nor impure; it is the female body. It does not need to be hidden to protect against some kind of temptation.
"See the unbelievable reversal: in the cited accounts, the burkini is presented as a tool of women's liberation!"
The New York Times said the story was based on accounts by more than 1,200 readers who had responded to an online call-out asking for the opinions of Muslim women in Europe following the ban.
The French rules say beachwear must be respectful of good public manners and the principle of secularism.
The controversy intensified after pictures and video of police appearing to enforce the ban by making a woman take off an item of clothing prompted anger. However opinion polls suggested a majority of French people supported the bans. | The French Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, has accused the New York Times of painting an "unacceptable" picture of his country with an article about discrimination against Muslim women. |
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Aravindan Balakrishnan, 75, denies charges including rape, indecent assault, false imprisonment and child cruelty.
He told Southwark Crown Court "Jackie" was invisible, but had been built by the Communist Party of China.
He blamed the machine for prompting his daughter to run away in May 2005.
"May Day is Jackie's birthday," he said.
"He did something to her obviously. He put some idea in her head."
Giving evidence at his trial for the first time, Mr Balakrishnan told Southwark Crown Court Jackie was an acronym for Jehova, Allah, Christ, Krishna, Immortal, Easwaran.
"It can pull your head out from your body," he said.
Mr Balakrishnan denied ever beating his daughter. The prosecution alleges he kept her hidden for 30 years.
"Most of what she says is made up fantasy," he said. "For her to say these things is really very brave. Well, it's not brave. It's very stupid."
He told the court he did not initially tell his daughter who her parents were as he thought she would "understand better" at a later age.
Mr Balakrishnan earlier told the court he was the "focus of competition" between his female followers, saying a woman he is alleged to have sexually assaulted competed for his attention with the mother of his daughter.
He insisted that two women in the commune had "pushed" him to have sex, and strenuously objected to claims he had raped and beaten women living in his collective in Brixton.
He said they would compete for his attentions and that when one of the women performed oral sex on him "there was no force involved".
Mr Balakrishnan said he would occasionally "tap" her or shake her to keep her awake for political discussions, which would continue late into the night.
He said his views were grounded in the teachings of the Chinese revolutionary leader Chairman Mao which "meant almost everything to him".
Mr Balakrishnan, of Enfield, north London, denies seven counts of indecent assault and four counts of rape against two women during the 1970s and 1980s.
He also denies three counts of actual bodily harm, cruelty to a child under 16 and false imprisonment.
The trial continues. | A communist accused of presiding over a cult in London has told a court he can "initiate" an "electronic satellite warfare machine" called Jackie. |
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The study says some species, which people eat a lot of are doing even worse, with a 74% drop reported in the populations of tuna and mackerel fish.
The report says human activity, such as overfishing, and climate change is having a big impact on marine life.
The document was put together by the World Wildlife Fund and the Zoological Society of London.
"Human activity has severely damaged the ocean by catching fish faster than they can reproduce while also destroying their nurseries," said Marco Lambertini, head of WWF International.
The report says that sea cucumbers - seen as a luxury food throughout Asia - have seen a significant fall in numbers, with a 98% in the Galapagos and 94% drop in the Red Sea over the past few years.
The study highlights the decline of habitats - such as seagrass areas and mangrove cover - which are important for food and act as a nursery for many species.
Climate change has also played a role in the overall decline of marine populations.
The report says carbon dioxide is being absorbed into the oceans, making them more acidic, damaging a number of species. | Populations of marine mammals, birds, fish and reptiles have dropped by 49% since 1970, a report says. |
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Penni Hall's daughter, Alycia Mckee, died last year aged 18.
Ms Hall had wanted to place the "princess" gravestone at St Margaret and St Andrews Church in Exmouth.
But a spokesman for the Diocese of Exeter said it "fell outside the standard headstone" regulations.
Ms Hall accused church officials of being set in their ways and "not very Christian" in their approach to the memorial.
She also accused the diocese of "making money out of people's grief" after she was told she could appeal the decision at a cost of £249.
"I have this doubt in my mind that they won't sway, they will be stubborn," she said.
"Just because it is the rules set centuries ago, it is time things moved on and I hope they will see their decision is wrong and be more lenient."
Ms Hall has launched a petition calling on the diocese to change their mind.
The diocese spokesman said regulations were in place to keep churchyards as places of peace and beauty for everyone to enjoy.
He said: "A memorial that might be suitable for an urban, civic cemetery may look out place near an historic church building.
"The diocese has a responsibility to make sure that the churchyard remains an appropriate setting for a parish church for the next several hundred years."
Alycia, who had Down's syndrome and suffered from heart problems, died from multiple organ failure. | A mother has been refused permission to place a fairytale castle headstone on her daughter's grave because it wasn't in keeping with a parish church's "historic" appearance. |
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Media playback is not supported on this device
McKenzie grabbed his fifth goal of the season in the 12th minute as he fired home from 35 yards after a poor clearance from goalkeeper Zander Clark.
Sean Longstaff almost doubled Killie's lead on the half hour mark, but his shot was well saved by Clark.
Conor Sammon doubled Killie's lead midway through the second half as he headed home Greg Taylor's cross.
Despite their third win in a row at McDiarmid Park, Kilmarnock remain in eighth place in the Premiership as Dundee and Partick Thistle also won.
With Hearts losing at Firhill, St Johnstone missed an opportunity to move into fourth place.
Kilmarnock fully deserved the win in a game in which they always looked the more threatening team.
The side under caretaker Lee McCulloch dominated the first half and created the better of the chances throughout.
Quick thinking and superb execution from McKenzie fired the visitors in front, with the midfielder's spectacular looping shot sailing over Clark.
Killie had gone close just eight minutes earlier when Kris Boyd's free kick from 25 yards was palmed away by the Saints goalkeeper.
David Wotherspoon tested Killie goalkeeper Freddie Woodman with a free kick, but it was easily held.
Conor Sammon then clipped a neat shot goalward from the edge of the area, but Clark stretched full length to beat it away.
Longstaff forced a save from the goalkeeper as the pressure on the home team intensified, but Saints rallied and MacLean's looping header landed on the roof of the net.
St Johnstone had plenty of possession in the second half, but they lacked punch and struggled to test the visitors' goalkeeper.
Sammon added a second for Killie in the 71st minute after finding space at the far post to nod in Greg Taylor's delivery.
Saints continued to work hard but struggled to find a way past the visitors' defence and Killie always looked like they carried the threat of adding to their lead.
They settled for what they had though and that gave them a comfortable and precious away win in Perth.
Tommy Wright St Johnstone Manager
"The first 45 without doubt is the worst I've seen since I've been at the club its was brutal, we didn't do any of the basics well, kept giving the ball away and couldn't get out of our own half, the pitch was bumpy so why did we continue to pass it around our own half and give them opportunities?
We got a reaction in the second half, we were much better, without working the keeper we had opportunities, but we should stop the cross, defend the cross and the keeper should save the header.
We gifted them a goal, Kilmarnock were better but if you look at it we could have got away with a 0-0 if we had defended better, That was poor and we got what we deserved."
Lee McCulloch Kilmarnock Manager
"I'm delighted with the result, delighted with the performance, I thought we stopped St Johnstone playing in the middle of the pitch.
They didn't have any clear cut chances, they are a top team and have a top manager but we're delighted to come here today, score two great goals and have a couple more chances as well.
I thought we looked organised I thought our desire and energy all over the pitch was brilliant today."
Match ends, St. Johnstone 0, Kilmarnock 2.
Second Half ends, St. Johnstone 0, Kilmarnock 2.
Substitution, Kilmarnock. Martin Smith replaces Sean Longstaff.
Foul by Steven MacLean (St. Johnstone).
(Kilmarnock) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Corner, St. Johnstone. Conceded by Kristoffer Ajer.
Corner, St. Johnstone. Conceded by Kristoffer Ajer.
Craig Thomson (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Scott Boyd (Kilmarnock).
Corner, St. Johnstone. Conceded by Conor Sammon.
Joe Shaughnessy (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Kris Boyd (Kilmarnock).
Attempt blocked. Paul Paton (St. Johnstone) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Substitution, St. Johnstone. Craig Thomson replaces Blair Alston.
Steven Anderson (St. Johnstone) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Steven Anderson (St. Johnstone).
Jordan Jones (Kilmarnock) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from the centre of the box is high and wide to the left.
Attempt missed. Joe Shaughnessy (St. Johnstone) header from the left side of the six yard box misses to the left following a corner.
Corner, St. Johnstone. Conceded by Kristoffer Ajer.
Substitution, St. Johnstone. Michael Coulson replaces Tam Scobbie.
Goal! St. Johnstone 0, Kilmarnock 2. Conor Sammon (Kilmarnock) header from the right side of the six yard box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Greg Taylor.
Steven Anderson (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Kris Boyd (Kilmarnock).
Corner, St. Johnstone. Conceded by Kristoffer Ajer.
Attempt missed. Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses the top left corner.
Foul by Conor Sammon (Kilmarnock).
Steven MacLean (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Substitution, St. Johnstone. Paul Paton replaces Chris Millar.
Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Greg Taylor (Kilmarnock) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone).
Jordan Jones (Kilmarnock) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Brian Easton (St. Johnstone).
Attempt missed. Blair Alston (St. Johnstone) header from the centre of the box is too high.
Foul by Gary Dicker (Kilmarnock).
Blair Alston (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Scott Boyd (Kilmarnock).
Steven Anderson (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner, Kilmarnock. Conceded by Joe Shaughnessy. | Rory McKenzie's wonderful first-half goal helped Kilmarnock earn three points against St Johnstone. |
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The fishermen claimed treated discharge from a water treatment works had degraded the quality of Llyn Padarn at Llanberis.
They said the annual catch of Arctic charr there had dropped and the regulator had not protected them.
But Mr Justice Hickinbottom said there was no evidence of this.
He said since 2011, to overcome the problem of a lack of spawning grounds, the lake had been restocked with young fish.
"There is no evidence of a decline in the charr population in Llyn Padarn since 2007 and there is evidence the population of adult charr are now at a level higher than 2005 and increasing, which is at least suggestive that the water is not hostile to charr," the judge added.
The judicial review proceedings in Caernarfon had been brought by the Seiont, Gwyrfai, and Llyfni Anglers Society, represented by a body called Fish Legal - an umbrella organisation for fishing groups.
Lawyers challenged Natural Resources Wales's claim that no environmental damage, except an algal bloom six years ago, was caused from raw sewage and treated effluent discharged by Welsh Water.
Speaking after the case, Welsh Water said it had invested £3.6m at the works since 2010 to meet tighter standards set by NRW which helped make it Wales' first designated freshwater bathing lake.
Sian Williams, head of operations for NRW, added: "We have always tried hard to work in partnership with the angling club to address their concerns and will continue to do so."
Huw Hughes, secretary of the Seiont Gwyrfai and Llyfni Angling Society, said they were disappointed by the decision. | Anglers who argued not enough was being done to protect an endangered fish in a Snowdonia lake have lost a judicial review against Natural Resources Wales. |
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Christie, 21, has joined until the end of the season having made just 13 appearances for Celtic since his transfer from Inverness CT in 2015.
"I look at Aberdeen as the second biggest team in Scotland right now," said attacking midfielder Christie.
"In terms of all the other clubs in Scotland, Aberdeen were probably the only other one I would have joined."
Christie could make his debut for his new side at Pittodrie in Friday's Scottish Premiership meeting with Dundee, where a win would move the Dons above Rangers into second place.
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers also helped sell Christie on a move to the north-east.
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The Scotland Under-21 international said: "He [Rodgers] told me about Aberdeen and he didn't so much as say that he was forcing me out the door, but he gave me his opinion and said he thought it was a good idea, and to be fair I agreed with him completely.
"It was good to get his thoughts on it and he heard my thoughts, and after speaking to the manager [McInnes] as well, all of a sudden I was really excited and desperate to be here.
"It's been almost a full year without a proper run of game time, so it will be a nice feeling to have that back.
"Also I want to prove to myself as well that I can still fit in and show people I'm a good player.
"I can't say anything bad about it because I have had such an enjoyable year at Celtic in every aspect of it. Training is brilliant. Every player wants to play as much as they can so I was always going to get frustrated.
"But at the same time I knew I was going to have to stay patient when I first signed for Celtic. It's been about a year now and I think it was just about time to not go too long without game time and that's one of the reasons why I had to come here."
Celtic manager Rodgers revealed he had rejected an approach from McInnes in summer to take Christie to Pittodrie.
"I said Ryan was a player I wanted to see at close hand, I didn't want to see him go out," he told BBC Scotland. "He's contributed well in the first part of the season, but I felt in the second part of the season, with a few less games to play in, he might not be used so much and I don't want to hold back a young players' development.
"He can go to another big club with expectancy and under a good manager. I'm confident he'll come back as a better player."
McInnes is still hopeful of having Norwich midfielder James Maddison back for the second half of the season, while he wants "at least one more" signing before the end of the transfer window on Tuesday.
"There were other clubs asking about a potential loan move and he [Christie] has chosen us, and I think that says a lot about us and how he views Aberdeen.
"We haven't heard from Norwich, it was indicated we would hear from them at the start of the week.
"James did very well and I made no secret of the fact I wanted to keep him but I can't sit back and hope." | New Aberdeen loan signing Ryan Christie says manager Derek McInnes made him "desperate" to move to the club. |
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Rosalin Baker, 25, and Jeffrey Wiltshire, 52, had denied murdering 16-week-old Imani in September 2016.
The child was found to have multiple injuries including 40 rib fractures, a broken wrist and fractured skull.
The pair were acquitted of murder but were told by Judge Nicholas Hilliard to expect a "substantial sentence".
The Old Bailey heard other passengers on the number 25 bus in Stratford tried to help resuscitate Imani after Baker claimed her baby had suddenly become ill during the journey.
A witness told the jury Baker "seemed very relaxed" as the drama unfolded and "she was was not crying, she was not shouting" in spite of the child being "cold".
Wiltshire, of Newham, east London, was filmed by on-board CCTV kissing Baker and giving her a thumbs up as she boarded the bus with Imani's lifeless body strapped to her chest.
She described her partner as a violent drug addict who had forced her to carry the corpse in a sling in order to "frame" her.
But Wiltshire, who claimed to have fathered 25 children, denied hurting his "tiny and beautiful" daughter or being abusive towards Baker.
When asked why he gave Baker a thumbs up when when she boarded the bus, he told jurors it was to tell her to "stay safe".
Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson QC said Imani, who was on the child protection register, had been attacked three times in the week of her death.
He said the infant, who was born prematurely and spent the first six weeks of her life in an incubator, would have been in "very significant pain and distress" from injuries caused by her arm being twisted or pulled, her chest being squeezed and being thrown against a hard surface.
In the week before her child's death Baker had moved from her mother's home in Colchester, Essex, to Wiltshire's bedsit where the family shared the same bed.
Giving evidence, she said when she found Imani dead at the bottom of their bed, Wiltshire had told her "it's all your fault, I told you to give her up for adoption".
"The first thing I thought was he's done something to her," she told the jury.
CPS reviewing lawyer Devi Kharran said despite Imani's "very serious and painful injuries" neither parent had sought medical help.
"Instead, her lifeless body was carried onto a crowded London bus to disguise the true circumstances of her death," he said.
Det Insp John Marriott said it was a "heart breaking" case particularly because Imani was a premature baby.
The pair will be sentenced on 28 May. The maximum sentence for causing or allowing the death of a child is 14 years. | The parents who disguised the death of their baby by pretending she had died on a London bus have been convicted of causing or allowing her death. |
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It comes after a two-year-old girl was left for dead after being run over by a van - and then ignored by 18 passers-by.
She is currently in hospital fighting for her life.
The law might never be enacted - but even discussing such a measure shows the level of anger generated in China by this case.
The fallout from this incident, which happened in the city of Foshan in southern Guangdong Province, continues.
Provincial groups from the ruling Communist Party, government departments and associations are talking about a new law.
This could make it illegal for people to ignore those in need of help.
"Many laws, including forbidding drunken driving, in China have been passed after high-profile individual cases," said lawyer Zhu Yongping, according to a report in the English-language China Daily.
Other media outlets report that the introduction of a law will be debated at a meeting of lawyers next month.
Initial online polls, though, suggest most people are against it.
"Talk about being civilised first. Is anyone paying attention to that?" read one posting.
Organisations in Guangdong are also looking at other ways to encourage people to act with compassion when faced with an emergency.
The provincial government's political and legal affairs committee is using its micro-blog site to gather opinions about how to "guide brave acts for just causes" and promote "socialist morals".
This debate has been sparked by an accident last week involving the toddler Wang Yue.
She was knocked down by a van while wandering through a market, where her parents run a shop. The driver sped off without checking on the girl's condition.
Over the following minutes, 18 people went past the bleeding toddler - and another van ran over her legs - but no one stopped to help.
It was all recorded by a surveillance camera, with the distressing footage shown on television.
There have been millions of internet comments about how to encourage good Samaritans - and many more expressing outrage that so many people refused to help. | A Chinese province is debating the introduction of a law to force people to help others in obvious distress. |
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Robert Ferrin was driving a grey Ford Focus which crashed on the north bound carriageway of the A1 Hillsborough Road at about 17:40 BST.
The 61-year-old man was from Belfast, according to police.
Officers have appealed for anyone who witnessed the crash to get in contact with them. | A man who was injured in a single-vehicle crash in County Down on Thursday evening has died in hospital. |