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James Wisbey, 54, from Plymouth, and Fay Miles, 38, of no fixed abode, appeared before magistrates in Plymouth on Wednesday. They have been charged with conspiracy to do an act to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person. It comes after a yacht ran aground with eight passengers on board. Police said the yacht was stranded off Horse Cove, near Teignmouth, on Monday. A Home Office spokesperson said the eight Albanian nationals, seven men and one woman, "have been referred to Immigration Enforcement". "Their immigration cases will be dealt with and those with no right to remain in the UK will be removed as soon as possible." A man arrested in Essex as part of the same investigation remains released under investigation. Mr Wisbey and Ms Miles were both remanded in custody and are due to appear at Exeter Crown Court on 14 January 2021.

Two people from Devon have been charged with immigration offences as part of a people smuggling investigation.

The news comes after Lilleth the lynx was "humanely destroyed" on Friday after escaping from Borth Wild Animal Kingdom, Ceredigion. In a statement, the zoo confirmed an investigation was under way after the death of the second lynx, Nilly. The Lynx UK Trust called for the zoo to be closed, saying the deaths were "unacceptable". 'Devastated' Ceredigion council said it was investigating this second death. Owner Tracy Tweedy said staff had given Nilly mouth to mouth after she became twisted in a catch-pole as staff tried to move her into a different enclosure ahead of a council inspection. She said she also rubbed her heart and added staff were horrified by the deaths. "I don't regret buying this place because I know that despite all this we will make it what it should be," she said. "It is a sanctuary for animals and they should be here and be safe and the fact that we have let down two of our precious lynx is just horrific. There is no excuse." Paul O'Donoghue, a scientific adviser at the Lynx UK Trust, which is trying to reintroduce them in the UK, said he had visited the zoo at the weekend. "To have two die, it's unacceptable on every level. Serious questions need to be asked about the husbandry at this zoo," he said. The trust has started a petition calling for the zoo's closure which has been signed by more than 1,400 people. The zoo's owners said they had been "working hard to make vast improvements" over the summer and plans were in place to build a new lynx enclosure. Ceredigion council said the death of Nilly was brought to its attention "the day after the animal had been inadvertently killed". The council spokesman added: "Due to an ongoing investigation, we are unable to provide further comment." Meanwhile, the council has defended its decision to have a marksman shoot Lilleth, prompting a backlash from the owners who had been trying to capture her with bait traps. The council said despite "exhaustive efforts" to recapture her, it was necessary to act because she had strayed into a populated area and "the safety of the public was paramount". Lilleth is believed to have escaped after making a "giant leap" over an electrified fence. Among those to criticise the council's decision to shoot Lilleth was TV presenter Ben Fogle who tweeted that "dogs cause more injury to sheep and people". The Farmers' Union of Wales said the killing "was long overdue" given the danger to people and livestock. Dean and Tracy Tweedy took over Borth Wild Animal Kingdom less than six months ago. They said the zoo would remain closed until further notice.

A second lynx, belonging to a zoo where one escaped and was later shot, has died following a "handling error".

Mr Ashley had been asked to give evidence about the treatment of his workers. It follows a BBC investigation into the Derbyshire company's warehouse working practises. Mr Ashley has until 21 March to respond after a letter from Hartlepool MP Iain Wright. The letter reveals Mr Ashley had invited the Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) select committee - which Mr Wright chairs - to a meeting at the company's base in Shirebrook. "The treatment of low-paid workers and enforcement of the national minimum wage are issues that the committee will be keeping under review over the coming months," Mr Wright's letter states. "In line with select committees' commitment to transparency, it is normal practice for the BIS Committee to meet in public at Westminster and we agreed to adhere to this practice on this occasion. "A number of alternative dates have been offered to you by the Committee Clerk, but... you have not accepted any of them, nor agreed in principle to attend. "Should you fail in your reply to agree to attend on one of the dates offered to you...the committee reserves the right to take the matter further, including seeking the support of the House of Commons in respect of any complaint of contempt." Sports Direct has not responded to the BBC's request for a comment. The company has previously pledged to review worker rights, with oversight by Mr Ashley, who also owns Newcastle United Football Club.

Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley has been threatened with being in contempt of Parliament after failing to appear in front of a committee of MPs.

Ministers want to charge people to use a new maintenance service to encourage them to make their own arrangements. But government analysis suggested 100,000 families were unlikely to do so and could lose child support payments as a result. The government insisted more people will benefit from its changes overall. Single parent charity Gingerbread, which has highlighted the government's own calculations, estimated that knocking those 100,000 families out of the system would result in the loss of £26m in child support. 'More effective' The charity also stressed that of the 185,000 families the government said will enter their own arrangements, it was not clear if they would be worse or better off. Under the shake-up, all parents who used the Child Support Agency would have their cases closed from 2014. If they wanted to remain in the government-backed scheme, then they would have to pay a one-off charge of £20 and 7% of any maintenance paid by the newly named Child Maintenance Agency. However, the same equality impact assessment for the Department for Work and Pensions also said the existing child maintenance system was "failing too many families". It added: "The current Child Support Agency schemes do not deliver value for money with operational and IT difficulties at the heart of the problem." It also said: "Reform is needed to ensure both parents take financial responsibility for their children." 'Serious impact' And it said the government had pledged to deliver "a much more efficient and effective service" for those who continued to need help from the state scheme. Gingerbread chief executive Fiona Weir said: "These are tough times for families and any missed maintenance payments could have a serious impact in single parents' ability to feed, clothe and care for their child. "The government is so focussed on getting parents to come to their own arrangements that it has failed to see the serious financial impact these changes will have on the very children the service should be supporting." A spokesman for the Department for Work and Pensions disputed the figures, saying they did not take account of an extra 50,000 families who were likely to benefit from the new system 'More children benefiting' He said: "Overall, the research suggests the government's reforms will see more children benefiting from maintenance payments and, crucially, more separated families working together to support their kids. "This has to be good for taxpayers, who currently pay over £400m per annum for the Child Support Agency. "The research does not take into account the effect of better expert support services, into which the government has pledged £20m of new investment." He added: "We'll be working closely with all parents whose CSA cases will be closing to make sure they do not lose out."

One in 11 families who currently get child support payments in England will lose out in a major shake-up of the system, government analysis suggests.

Magazine MonitorA collection of cultural artefacts Police helmets have been worn for more than 150 years in much of England and Wales, but West Yorkshire says peaked caps are "more appropriate and more in keeping" with many of the situations officers find themselves in the 21st Century. They are less likely to fall off heads, it is argued, and can be worn in a car. A survey of West Yorkshire Police staff found an "overwhelming majority" wanted the wholesale change to caps, which is set to be rolled out over the course of this year. But they will be kept for ceremonial occasions such as Remembrance Day parades or funerals. First used by the Metropolitan Police in 1863, the "custodian" helmet was based on the spiked Pickelhaube worn by the Prussian army. Stronger and more protective, it replaced the top hats that were formerly in use. Originally made of cork covered by felt or serge-like materials, it is now manufactured in reinforced plastic. It is still worn by male constables and sergeants on most forces in England and Wales, which set their own policy on headgear for use on the beat. It is not used by police in Scotland or Northern Ireland. The Home Office sets standard guidelines for protective head equipment for public order situations, such as riots. But have normal duties such as walking around town centres changed so much over recent years that the old-style helmet is obsolete? "It's far more practical than people think," says one retired English police officer who does not wish to be named. He argues that it gives "presence", thanks to the sturdy metal badge on the front and the extra height it provides. Police helmets are also padded for extra warmth. The custodian helmet has changed shape slightly over the years but maintained its basic shape. It has become a cultural icon, featuring in films and TV series, such as Dixon of Dock Green and The Bill. One was famously used to protect the "modesty" of Michael O'Brien, who streaked at Twickenham in 1974, and Erica Roe, who ran topless on to the rugby stadium's pitch in 1982. From the 1930s to the 1960s, police in Brighton and Hove wore white helmets in the summer, as they kept the head cooler. This discontinued when they became part of Sussex Police. Like West Yorkshire, Thames Valley Police did away with the custodian helmet almost five years ago. It's up to individual forces whether they want to do the same. Subscribe to the BBC News Magazine's email newsletter to get articles sent to your inbox

West Yorkshire Police have decided to end the use of the traditional police helmet for normal duties. Is this symbol of British law enforcement really so old-fashioned, asks Justin Parkinson.

They come as the new UK coalition government prepares to unveil plans to tackle national debt next month. Many public sector organisations have already warned of the impact that is likely to have on services. Listeners can apply to be part of the audience at the debates, which are being held in Dumfries on 11 October and Newtown St Boswells on 13 October. The will offer a chance to hear directly from the people making the decisions about the future of public services. Senior politicians will be on the panel, while the audience will include people with a vested interest in the future of all aspects of life in southern Scotland. The Borders debate will take place on the evening of 13 October at the Tweed Horizons Centre near Newtown St Boswells. To be part of that debate you should email [email protected] or phone 01750 724567. The Dumfries event takes place two nights earlier at the Brigend Theatre in Dumfries. To join the audience that night email [email protected] or phone 01387 268008.

Two BBC Radio Scotland debates are to be held in southern Scotland over the potential impact of public sector cuts.

The plane crash claimed the lives of 23 people, including eight players, after a refuelling stop on 6 February 1958. Fans received a free pack commemorating the anniversary containing a book and a pin at the game on Saturday against Huddersfield Town. Many took to social media to slam eBay sellers listing them at up to £250. On Twitter, one said: "Making money from memorabilia about a tragedy where people lost lives, I would say yes it's is disrespectful." Another wrote "Absolutely disgusting no respect". One fan described it as "beyond contempt". Seven of the players were killed immediately in the crash at Munich airport as they returned from a European Cup tie against Red Star Belgrade. The club's rising star Duncan Edwards died 15 days later in hospital and manager Sir Matt Busby was so badly hurt he was given the last rites by a Roman Catholic priest. Before kick-off at Saturday's match supporters observed a minute's silence to mark the disaster, while players wore black armbands. Supporters paid their respects under the Munich plaque at the south-east corner of Old Trafford. Earlier, there was a service inside the stadium, with a minute's silence at 15:04 GMT - the precise time of the crash.

Manchester United fans have said it is "disrespectful" that memorial packs for the 60-year anniversary of the Munich air crash are being auctioned online.

By Hannah Richardson and Katherine SellgrenBBC News education reporters ASCL general secretary Geoff Barton said experienced head teachers in large schools were saying they would struggle to stay up and running past Friday. It comes after teaching unions spoke of the "intolerable pressure" of staying open as more and more staff get sick. The government's chief scientific adviser has reiterated that schools will remain open for now. But Sir Patrick Vallance, speaking to MPs at a hearing on Tuesday afternoon, said school closures were still "on the table", as one of the measures that could be used to fight the virus. At his press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said school closures were under "continuous review". 'Rising panic' Mr Barton told the BBC: "Some very seasoned head teachers have been calling me to say they will not be able to manage much longer. "One said he had 17 members of staff call in sick. And I think this will be replicated around the country. "Some areas may be worst hit than others, but there's an inevitability about this. The trajectory cannot go anything other than downwards. "People are saying they will do well to get to the end of the week." He thought it was time to work out how schools could best support the community if they did have to close, and said he had discussed this with Education Secretary Gavin Williamson at a meeting on Monday. "If the assumption is we can't run schools as normal, what that may mean is getting ourselves some time to plan for the next phase of this," Mr Barton said. Decisions would have to be made, he said, as to who should be prioritised: "Would it be those with exams coming up or children on free school meals?" Earlier, NASUWT union head Chris Keates said government advice to keep schools open is causing chaos and confusion, amid fears pupils are carrying the virus. She told of a "rising sense of panic" in schools as staff fear for their safety as more and more people get ill. Another teaching union, the National Education Union, has urged ministers to close schools, and said it would be advising members with underlying conditions to stay off work from next Monday. The schools watchdog in England, Ofsted, has been given permission by the government to temporarily suspend all routine inspections of schools, further education, early years and social care providers. Chancellor Rishi Sunak has said funding for early years grants will continue during any periods of nursery, preschool or childminder closures, or where children cannot attend due to coronavirus. Parents' concern The uncertain situation is causing concern among many parents. Hayley Beards from Sutton Coldfield, who has an eight-year-old, says she doesn't feel confident people will "follow the rules". "There are other parents with vulnerable children, or vulnerable people all still sending their children in. "People aren't used to making decisions and it's like they want to be told what to do - they want less guidance and more telling." Jen from the East Riding told the BBC she is frustrated by the lack of information from her son's school. "My son has had a cold since the end of last week, as children do, but last night he told me he feels like someone's punching him in his chest and his throat feels weird. "This morning I was still in two minds but I called the school and the head teacher answered in two rings and said we should definitely self isolate as he's got two pregnant members of staff and children with grandparents to think about." Despite pressure from teaching unions, the government insists sending hundreds of thousands of pupils home would leave NHS and frontline care staff facing childcare crises. It has said closures may be necessary in the future, but only "at the right stage" of the outbreak. 'Bugs breeding ground' This notion was reflected by head teacher of The Chantry School, in rural Worcestershire, Andy Dickenson. He wrote on Twitter: "If I close my school tomorrow to avoid a mass gathering are you coming for me @BorisJohnson?#schoolclosure." He told the BBC he had been moved to question the policy due to the inconsistency between advice about mass gatherings and schools remaining open. "Schools are an absolute breeding ground for bugs - we know that. Equally we have a social responsibility so ensure we are not putting into the care of their grandparents or NHS workers." He suggested setting online learning for pupils at home and schools running on a skeleton staff to support the children of parents who need to go to work. Nicola from Aberdeenshire has children in primary school, where regular hand washing has been implemented, and teaches in a secondary where there are no gels or hand washing. "It seems like they are relying on students to follow guidance themselves, but they are teenagers so they just don't - it feels like we've been forgotten," she said. Tara Telford from Cumbria, who has an eight-year-old and a five-year-old, is vulnerable because because she takes immunosuppressive medication due to a chronic disease. "I have reason to be terrified but my kids are in. People should talk to schools, have the conversation, if more did what my kids' school did we could keep schools open for longer."

Many schools across the UK will not be able to remain open past the end of the week, says a head teachers' leader.

The South Korean carmakers were accused of exaggerating the fuel efficiency of 1.2 million vehicles. The $100m penalty is the largest ever paid for violation of the Clean Air Act, according to regulators. "We are pleased to put this behind us," said Hyundai US chief David Zuchowski, in a statement. In November 2012, the two carmakers admitted to having overstated the fuel economy of their cars by up to six miles per gallon. This, in turn, meant that the companies underreported the cars' greenhouse gas emissions to the US Environmental Protection Agency by around 4.75 million metric tons. As a result, Hyundai and Kia will be forced to forfeit emissions credits for the difference between the original and the overstated data - worth approximately $200m. They have also been made to spend approximately $50m on measures to prevent future violations, making the total settlement worth $350m. "This unprecedented resolution with Hyundai and Kia underscores the Justice Department's firm commitment to safeguarding American consumers, ensuring fairness in every marketplace, protecting the environment, and relentlessly pursuing companies that make misrepresentations and violate the law," said US Attorney General Eric Holder in a statement announcing the settlement. Shares in both Kia and Hyundai declined nearly 6% in trading after markets had closed. The allegations concern the Hyundai Accent, Elantra, Veloster and Santa Fe vehicles and the Kia Rio and Soul models.

US regulators have announced that Hyundai and Kia have agreed to a record settlement for overstating the fuel economy of their cars.

The girl was grabbed in woodland and screamed then hit the man who fled from the scene in Dunmow, Essex, on Friday. It happened after a woman was grabbed and sexually assaulted in an alleyway in the area at about 22:45 BST on Thursday. Police are linking the attacks and said the suspect had his face partly covered, possibly by a face mask. Officers have been carrying out house-to-house and CCTV inquiries and urged people to be vigilant. Det Ch Insp Scott Egerton said: "Specialist detectives are working around the clock to identify this man, who attacked a woman and a teenage girl while they walked alone. "We are continuing forensic examinations of both locations while other inquiries continue." He urged anyone who may have seen a man running off and acting suspiciously or those with any footage to contact police. The girl reported being grabbed from behind as she was talking on her phone at about 18:45 BST near Flitch Green estate. The woman was grabbed off Chelmsford Road before she fought him off after he sexually assaulted her over her clothing. The suspect is said to be white, of slim build and in his 20s, and was wearing a dark hoody top.

A 13-year-old girl and a woman have been attacked by a man thought to be wearing a face mask, police have said.

By Neil SmithEntertainment reporter, BBC News This year's awards season has seen gurning from Jennifer Lawrence, clowning from Emma Thompson and a series of increasingly outlandish acceptance speeches from Matthew McConaughey. Yet it has also seen one of the more unlikely red carpet double-acts of recent years: the powerhouse combo of Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, conjoined in the cause of the strikingly titled August: Osage County. On screen, the seasoned trophy Hoover and resting queen of the chick flick play Violet and Barbara Weston, a mother and daughter who spend the duration of the film locked in a fierce battle of words and wits. Off it, however, they have been as pally as sisters, projecting a united front on behalf of a film whose characters, despite belonging to the same extended family, are definitely anything but. Based on a Tony and Pulitzer-winning stage play by the (male) playwright Tracy Letts, the film - directed by John Wells - is a caustic comedy of manners full of bilious one-liners, dramatic revelations and withering put-downs. Surprisingly, though, the central role of Violet, the domineering, pill-popping matriarch of the film's warring Oklahoma clan, was not one Streep initially found appealing. "I just didn't want to do it," admits the 64-year-old star of Out of Africa, Mamma Mia! and The Iron Lady. "I said, 'I know it's a great part but I just don't want to be her.' "But they sent me the script and it was so funny and so scathing and so grounded in real pain I thought, 'oh, come on'," she told BBC Radio 2's Arts Show. The wisdom of Streep's decision was borne out last week when she was shortlisted for the best actress Oscar - the 18th such nomination of her distinguished career. Roberts was also recognised with her own nomination, in the supporting actress category, for her portrayal of Barbara, Violet's strong-willed, battle-hardened eldest. The 46-year-old is also up for the Bafta equivalent. Accordingly to Wells, though, any one of his star-studded cast - a stellar ensemble that includes six previous Oscar winners or nominees - could have been legitimately garlanded with honours. "I don't want to sound immodest but I don't think there's a weak performance," he told the BBC News website. "There are a lot of very experienced and talented actors in the cast and any number of the performances could be singled out for being wonderful." That will be music to the ears of actress Juliette Lewis, who put her music career on hold to play the role of Violet's youngest daughter Karen. The 40-year-old - Oscar-nominated herself in 1992 for her work in Cape Fear - says shooting the film was "a rich experience" she will "treasure forever". "We all felt like a team together," she says of a cast whose male contingent includes Ewan McGregor and Benedict Cumberbatch. "I'm so proud of the movie and honoured to be a part of it." Her sentiments are echoed by 17-year-old Abigail Breslin, who says the experience was "mind-blowing" and that "the whole package was perfect". "It's really just a movie about how you can't pick your family," the Little Miss Sunshine actress says.. "It's really dark and heavy but it's also very funny which is really true to life. The most ridiculous things come out of tragedy sometimes." For all the enthusiasm of its stars and director, August: Osage County has so far been something of an also-ran in this year's very competitive awards race. The film walked away empty-handed from the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards and has posed little challenge to the more feted likes of Gravity, 12 Years a Slave and American Hustle. The film was unveiled with some fanfare at last year's Toronto Film Festival, a popular launching pad for pictures hopeful of awards consideration. But it was greeted with respectful rather than ecstatic reviews, with one critic calling it "a bit of a mess" and another suggesting it had failed to "shed its inherent theatricality". One of the main bones of contention has been the film's ending, which seeks to temper the play's bleak resolution with a hint of optimism. Wells admits the ending - criticised by some fans of the original stage play - was a thorny sticking point, saying he went "back and forth" on which option to use. "We tried it one way, we tried it another and then we came back to how it was in the beginning," he explained during a promotional visit to London in December. One thing that was never altered was the film's title. At times, though, the director - best known for writing and producing such acclaimed US TV shows as ER and The West Wing - admits he was tempted. "You'd never put out a movie with this title intentionally," he says with a grin. "If it hadn't been a Pulitzer-winning play we would have changed it in a second." How August fares in the ceremonies to come will not trouble Breslin unduly, who says she is more concerned about how the film is received beyond the red carpet. "Obviously that's all very exciting, but what's really cool to me is when I get a tweet from someone saying the movie really helped them or reminded them of their family," she explains. "I like that people are connecting to it. Stuff like that really makes me happy." August: Osage County is out in the UK and Ireland on 24 January. The Bafta Film Awards are on 16 February and the Academy Awards are on 2 March. This article contains quotes from an interview with Meryl Streep that can be heard in full on The Radio 2 Arts Show on Friday at 22:00 GMT.

Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts lead an all-star cast in the darkly comic family drama August: Osage County. Yet will the Academy show it as much love as its stars have been showing each other?

Leading names from the sport including Sir Stirling Moss and Nico Rosberg have welcomed the announcement of the museum for Silverstone. It will display dozens of Formula 1 and other racing cars and bikes along with personal items from famous drivers. The centre is due to open in 2019 after the £9.1m Heritage Lottery Fund grant. Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg, whose father Keke achieved a record-breaking fastest qualifying lap at the Northamptonshire circuit in 1985, said: "The heritage of the sport is massively important - and it has such an incredible heritage. "I hope one day I will be able to go to the centre and see all the stuff there." The Silverstone Heritage Experience will be housed in the only remaining World War Two hangar on the former aerodrome site and is expected to attract about 500,000 visitors a year. A collections and research centre encompassing an archive for the British Racing Drivers' Club and other motorsport collections will also be based there. Sir Stirling Moss, who as an 18-year-old raced at the first British Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1948, said the museum was "important" to the sport's history. He said: "I think for people who go up there, they'll see what it is all about. See how things started - what has been done." The museum will offer circuit tours, while the latest technology will chart the stories of drivers and people who have had ties to the site back to medieval times. Sally Reynolds, chief executive of Silverstone Heritage, said: "It's the very centre of global motorsport but that story isn't told anywhere and it's also important to tell the fantastic history of British motor racing."

A £20m museum dedicated to motorsport is to open at the British home of Formula 1 with nearly half the money coming from a lottery grant.

The tribunal ruled the South Devon Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust hid inquiry findings after chief executive Paula Vasco-Knight was accused of nepotism. The trust's board said its investigation would look at "complex issues". Dr Vasco-Knight would be able to respond to concerns raised, it added. Whistle-blowing Two whistle-blowers - Clare Sardari, 56, a management development lead, and senior manager Penny Gates, 52 - complained Dr Vasco-Knight had not declared a personal interest when her daughter's boyfriend got a diversity post at the trust in 2012. An employment tribunal in Exeter dismissed unfair dismissal allegations last week but found that the women suffered by making whistle-blowing allegations. The tribunal ruled that the trust hid the findings of the subsequent inquiry and misled other parties by contending Dr Vasco-Knight was exonerated. Tribunal panel judge Nick Roper said Dr Vasco-Knight's evidence was "inconsistent" while trust chairman Peter Hildrew's evidence was "simply incredible and plainly wrong". Trust chairman Peter Hildrew resigned immediately. At an extraordinary meeting of the trust's board, non-executive directors decided to launch a "formal process to investigate concerns raised regarding its chief executive". Acting trust chairwoman Topsy Murray said: "We must ensure that we have transparency in situations such as these in future." She added that whistle-blowing policy and processes would also be looked at. "Our staff must feel able to speak up if they think something may be wrong," she said. Non-executive board directors would meet with Dr Vasco-Knight "and ensure she has proper opportunity to respond to those concerns", she added. Dr Vasco-Knight, who was appointed a CBE in the New Years Honours for services to the NHS, has not been available for comment.

An investigation is to be held into a Devon NHS boss after she was criticised by an industrial tribunal.

Somerset's Liberal Democrats, including Jeremy Browne MP, say the Conservative-controlled council should think again about cutting £43m to its services. The council's spending power has been reduced by £7.2m (2%). The money it receives from central government has gone down by £27m (11.5%) however it is to receive £6.7m from the NHS and £2.8m in other grants. Mr Browne said the budget settlement was better than expected. 'Not necessary' "Somerset County Council now needs to think again about its destructively deep cuts," he said. "The cuts they want to make are much bigger than is necessary and they were planned before they even knew its budget allocation." The leader of the opposition, Lib Dem Jill Shortland, said: "The leader of the council was predicting far, far, worse than this and seemed intent on making cuts to services that were not necessary. "I'm not entirely convinced that this administration will look at these figures and say 'oh we don't need to do anymore'... I'm not entirely convinced that they won't just cut services and jobs anyway." The council said it was unable to comment until it had gone through the figures. It has previously said the cuts were necessary to plug a massive gap in its finances and its cabinet unanimously voted in November to recommend £43m of cuts.

Somerset County Council has been warned that the cuts it wants to impose are "too deep".

By Andrew WalkerBBC World Service economics correspondent A first estimate of GDP between January and March showed a contraction of 3.8%, worse than during the financial crisis. Separate figures revealed a steep fall in economic activity in France and Spain over the same period. In Germany, unemployment has increased though it remains relatively low compared with other nations. On Wednesday, the US revealed that its economy had suffered its most severe contraction for more than a decade, after GDP shrank at an annual rate of 4.8% in the first quarter of the year. However, this "annualised" rate implies that the US economy actually contracted by about 1.2% in the three-month period, a less severe contraction than in the eurozone. On Thursday, figures from the US Department of Labor showed that 3.8 million more Americans filed claims for unemployment benefits last week. That is the lowest weekly rise for a month, but still very high, bringing jobs lost during the pandemic to about 30 million. 'Free-fall' Andrew Kenningham of Capital Economics called the European news a blizzard of depressing economic data that "confirms that the eurozone economy was in free-fall". In the case of France, the 5.8% decline in gross domestic product (GDP) was the largest the quarterly series has recorded since it began in 1949. Two other large economies have published first estimates: Spain saw a contraction of 5.1% while Italy's economy shrank by 4.7%. The figure for the eurozone as a whole was more moderate, but is still by any standards severe especially for a contraction over just three months. So far most individual European countries have not published national estimates. That applies to the largest of them, Germany. But new figures for the German labour market are beginning to show the impact of the pandemic, with the number of people out of work rising by 373,000 in April. However, the full impact is damped by the country's system of financial help to people put onto shorter working hours, known as Kurzarbeit. Claus Vistesen of Pantheon Macroeconomics said the news on the Geman labour market was "bad, but it would have been disastrous without Kurzarbeit". Growth warning European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde said that a sharp downturn in eurozone economic activity in April "suggests that the impact [of the pandemic] is likely to be even more severe in the second quarter." She warned that eurozone economic growth could fall between 5% and 12% this year, "depending crucially on the duration of the containment measures and the success of policies to mitigate the economic consequences for businesses and workers". Ms Lagarde added that the ECB was fully prepared to increase emergency support measures to ease the burden of the pandemic, to "as much as necessary and for as long as needed".

The eurozone economy shrank at the sharpest pace on record in the first quarter as the Covid-19 pandemic forced countries into lockdown.

A motorcyclist and an 83-year-old driver both died in 2014 after collisions at the A470 junction with the Bala turn off in Dolgellau. A further four serious accidents have occurred at the same spot and roundabouts are now planned. The north west Wales coroner said he will contact highways officials. It followed representations from the families of the two fatal crash victims at their inquests on Tuesday. John David Roach, 83, of Manchester, was killed instantly on 23 May 2014 when he drove out of the Bala Road junction into the path of an oncoming bin lorry. Motorcyclist Kevin John Haddock, 56, of Birmingham, was riding along the A470 on 5 July when a vehicle pulled out of the same junction into his path. He died later at Bronglais Hospital, Aberystwyth, of multiple injuries. Coroner Dewi Pritchard Jones recorded accidental death conclusions in both cases. Sarah Sutherland, for Mr Haddock's family, told the inquest: "The family I represent would like you to draw the attention of the dangers at the junction with the Welsh assembly. I am sure that the Welsh government will not ignore your views." Following the accidents, traffic lights have been placed at the junction and in March it was announced it would be replaced with a roundabout by spring 2017.

A coroner has said he will raise concerns about the safety of a Gwynedd junction on the main north-south Wales road following two fatal crashes.

By Lucy AshThis World, Chechnya In the courtyard women were filling plastic bottles and jerry cans with water blessed by the imam. As I took off my shoes, I noticed a marble plaque on the wall: "There is no illness which Allah cannot cure". Inside, huddles of families were camped out on sofas. There were many tearful faces. Men paced up and down. It might have been an ordinary hospital waiting room until a girl started shrieking and contorting. A man scooped her up and carried her off into a room off the landing. Spine-chilling yells came from behind the frosted glass door but nobody turned a hair. Gradually they were stifled by incantations from the Koran. Most of the patients here are young women and many have suffered breakdowns after being forced into marriage. They are brought to be exorcised and turned into Chechen-style Stepford Wives. The Centre for Islamic Medicine is an imposing red brick mansion near the centre of Grozny. It was once the headquarters of the Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev - Russia's number one enemy and the man who masterminded the school hostage siege in Beslan in 2004. Like many buildings in the Chechen capital, the centre has been expensively renovated. Two wars for independence from Russia reduced Grozny to rubble. Turning a blind eye Since the ceasefire, the Kremlin has bankrolled a reconstruction programme and the main street, renamed Putin Avenue, is now unrecognisable with its pavement cafes, designer shops and sushi bars. But Ramzan Kadyrov, President of this once-rebel republic in southern Russia, has also built an extensive Muslim infrastructure. It includes one of the world's biggest mosques, religious schools and an Islamic university. The medical centre is run by Kadyrov's personal doctor. In its first year, it claimed to have cured more than 60,000 people suffering from "psycho-neurological diseases". After 15 years of fighting, there is no shortage of traumatised people in Chechnya. Mr Kadyrov once fought the Russians but is now their key ally in keeping a lid on the insurgency in the North Caucasus. In return, the Kremlin turns a blind eye to allegations of torture and violence committed by his personal militia. Kadyrov routinely denies these. His officials also deny that the Chechen leader puts Islamic law above Russian law. But in practice Kadyrov has a free hand to impose his own version of what he calls "traditional Chechen Islam". Imams deemed disloyal to the regime are summarily dismissed. Gangs of men dressed in black, from his newly-opened Centre for Spiritual and Moral Education, roam the streets lecturing passers-by about the evils of alcohol and the right kind of Islam. Young men accused of siding with rebel fighters have disappeared from their beds at night never to be seen again. Their relatives have been arrested and their homes burned to the ground. Bride stealings Women too are targeted by Mr Kadyrov's reforms. In 2007, in violation of Russian law, he issued an edict banning women and girls without a headscarf from schools, universities and other public buildings. Since June, unidentified men with paintball guns have driven round the centre of Grozny shooting at girls with uncovered heads. On state television, Mr Kadyrov said he did not know who was responsible for the attacks but added: "When I find them, I will express my gratitude." When I met the Chechen president in the capital's football stadium last summer, he told me: "Women are so much more interesting when they are covered up." Officials nearby smiled awkwardly as Kadyrov boasted that Chechen men can take "second, third and fourth wives" and that polygamy, illegal in Russia, was the best way to revive his war-ravaged republic. According to some estimates, one in five Chechen marriages begins when a girl is snatched off the street and forced into a car by her future groom and his accomplices. The internet is full of videos of these "bride stealings" set to romantic music. More often than not, the girl is pressured into marrying her kidnapper to preserve family honour and avoid triggering a blood feud. Some are resigned to their fate and make a surprising success of their marriages. For others, that is far from the case. Blindfolded and beaten Lipkhan Bazaeva, who runs an organisation called Women's Dignity, says brides are often brought in by mothers-in-law who believe the girl is possessed by evil spirits or "genies". "Just imagine - her son has stolen a girl he liked and married her. What they want is a nice, quiet, hard-working woman in the house, not someone who's feeling down from the moment she wakes up and who's hysterical in the evening. So they take them to the mullah." Mullah Mairbek Yusupov is a small bearded man dressed in a green surgeon-style top and skull-cap. He appeared pleasant enough to me, softly spoken, until I saw him at work. The patient was lying blindfolded on her back, wearing a long, flowery robe. Mairbek began yelling verses from the Koran into her ear and beating her with a short stick. "She feels no pain," he said. "We beat the genie and not the patient." The woman, probably in her early twenties, was writhing on the bed: "Shut up! Leave me alone," she growled. Mairbek claimed this strange voice belonged to the genie possessing her. He shouted back: "Take your claws out of this woman. Aren't you ashamed? Go on! Leave her body like you did last time, through her toe." With a deadpan expression, Mairbek explained that the genie inside the girl was 340 years old. He was not a Muslim - he was a Russian man called Andrei and he had fallen in love with his victim. The genie was so jealous that he made her leave her husband. "It was a tough case," he added. This was already the seventh time he had treated this patient. Later I spoke to the girl's aunt, who had also watched the exorcism. She said her niece was stolen at the age of 16 and had since been through two divorces. "She wants to be alone all the time," she sighed. "She doesn't want to talk or see anyone and nothing makes her happy." The girl's despairing family were hoping doctors at the Centre could turn her into an obedient wife so they could marry her off again. Tragedy A few days later I met Marryat, another patient. She had been stolen for marriage but found her kidnapper was already married to somebody else. Now she is convinced that his first wife put a curse on her in the form of two genies. When she split from her husband, Marryat had to give up her baby son. According to Chechen traditions, after divorce children are raised by the husband and in-laws. Former wives almost never get custody despite their rights under Russian law. It is considered shameful to go to court. I asked Mairbek if he always blamed the genies for marital breakdown. Perhaps, I suggested, some women are traumatised by being abducted and forced into marriage or by losing their children? Mairbek was dismissive. "We have so many young girls with these problems. I had a patient today whose genie tells her she should divorce, that her husband doesn't love her; that she shouldn't stay in an unhappy marriage for the sake of the children." "But that's just the genie trying to get its own way and we have to put a stop to that," he said. Whatever I felt about his methods, Mairbek did not strike me as a sadistic man. I was struck by the readiness of patients and relatives alike to accept the treatment, and even to come back for more. The therapy is a way of making them accept, or at least deal with, what has happened. But, it is most of all, an expression of their powerlessness. The tragedy of these women is that they have nowhere else to go. This World: Stolen Brides will be broadcast on Wednesday, 11 August 2010 at 1900 BST on BBC Two. Or catch up afterwards on BBC iPlayer

Dozens of cars were parked outside. Crowds thronged the pavement, desperate to get through the metal gates.

The Terrorist Offenders (Restriction of Early Release) Bill - which was passed by MPs earlier this month - was drawn up following an attack in south London. The attacker, Sudesh Amman, had recently been freed from prison. The government had wanted to pass the bill before 28 February when the next terror offender is due for release. Sunderland shopkeeper Mohammed Zahir Khan, 42, had been set to be freed after serving half of his sentence for encouraging terrorism. The government's emergency measures, which required backing from Parliament, would postpone his release until the Parole Board has given its approval. How does automatic early release work? Offenders are told they are being sentenced for a fixed period and will be automatically released at the half-way point, to serve the remainder of their sentence on licence in the community. Some offenders will have pleaded guilty on the basis that they would be given a sentence with automatic early release at the half-way point. Their release is an automatic process and does not involve oversight of the Parole Board. Read more from our legal correspondent Clive Coleman. The bill would affect about 50 prisoners who were convicted under existing rules, which allow for release halfway through a sentence. Lawyers for some of the inmates are believed to be preparing a legal challenge, but ministers claim they are not extending sentences, merely changing the way they are administered. The legislation would apply to England, Scotland and Wales but the government said it intended to make provisions for Northern Ireland in a future piece of legislation, arguing that there was no need for "immediate measures" in the region. 'An unusual step' The House of Lords backed the bill unamended in one sitting on Monday evening. During the debate, the government's justice spokesperson Lord Keen of Elie acknowledged that "applying these measures retrospectively is an unusual step" - but argued this was due to the "unprecedented gravity of the situation". Labour's shadow attorney general Baroness Chakrabarti said she accepted the need for emergency legislation, but added that it was "an emergency of the government's own making". She argued the Ministry of Justice had been hit by "the most savage cuts in Whitehall". "That has a direct bearing on the nature of capacity, regime and intervention in the prison and probation systems."

Emergency legislation to block the automatic release of people convicted of terror offences is set to become law after being approved by the Lords.

The company, which is famed mostly for its Firefox browser, has partnered with Chinese low-cost chip maker Spreadtrum. While not as powerful as more expensive models, the device will run apps and make use of mobile internet. It would appeal to the sorts of people who currently buy cheap "feature" phones, analysts said. Feature phones are highly popular in the developing world as a halfway point between "dumb" phones - just voice calls and other basic functions - and fully-fledged smartphones. Mozilla hopes that it will capture an early lead in a market that is now being targeted by mobile device manufacturers who see the developing world as the remaining area for massive growth. It will face stern competition from bigger, more established brands, however - with more announcements of this kind expected over the course of the next couple of days at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. "These solutions expand the global accessibility of open web smartphones to first-time and entry-level smartphone buyers by reducing the time and cost required for handset makers to bring these devices to market," said Spreadtrum in a press statement. Mozilla said the phone "redefines" the entry-level phone market. The concept of a cheap smartphone may seem likely to appeal to consumers in developed countries, particularly those who locked into long contracts in order to subsidise the cost of the likes of the Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy range. But analyst Carolina Milanesi, from Kantar Worldpanel, said it should not be seen as a competitor. "You're not really talking about smartphone experience. "You're talking about a clumsy smartphone that's a little bit better than a feature phone - still primarily for voice and text." The phone runs Mozilla's own mobile operating system - something that could cause problems as competition in the cheap smartphone market steps up, Ms Milanesi added. In addition to the $25 smartphone, Mozilla also launched several high-end models, including devices from Huawei and ZTE.

Mozilla has shown off a prototype for a $25 (£15) smartphone that is aimed at the developing world.

Olympic gymnast Beth Tweddle officially started the race as the runners, all dressed in Santa suits, set off through the city centre. The 5km fun run started in front of the Liver Building at 09:30 GMT and ended at the town hall. Taking part in the event were Walton MP Steve Rotheram, Liz McClarnon and Natasha Hamilton. Among the sea of Santas were many dressed in blue Santa outfits, worn by Everton supporters. One of those was Liz McClarnon, who was running the race with her dog, Coco. She said: "It shows what Liverpool is all about, the fact that we are all here just to raise money. "It's very early on a Sunday morning, it's freezing, but everyone is here to have a laugh and raise money for charity." Mr Rotheram, who was dressed in a more traditional red outfit, said: "It's a fantastic day, it's a really crisp morning and there are thousands turning up to run this Santa dash. "It's got a serious undertone, which is to try and raise as much money as possible. "But it's a bit of fun and while people run around and have a bit of banter about the red and the blues, they can also raise money for a loved one's charity or something they feel endeared towards. "There is a great spirit towards this whole event." Runners were raising money for charities across the UK. Nikki Curzon, from Walton, was running in memory of her daughter Lily, to raise money for the Meningitis Trust. She said: "Lily, our gorgeous baby girl, passed away from pneumococcal meningitis in June after a week long battle, aged just 15 months. "It is our aim now to help the Meningitis Trust raise awareness and funds to help fight this disease and the devastation it causes, and hopefully prevent the heartache that we went through happening to another family."

About 8,000 people have taken part in the annual Liverpool Santa dash to raise money for charity.

Petrochemical company Ineos wants to drill a test well at Common Lane east of Harthill. Its initial application was rejected by Rotherham Council's planning board in January, and referred to the Planning Inspectorate. Protestors claim the drilling will lead to environmental and safety concerns, including increased traffic and pollution. More Yorkshire stories Ineos want to dig a 2.8km (1.7mile) well to extract rock samples for testing to see if it is viable. What is fracking and why is it controversial? They chose Common Road because of "seismic data". Similar applications for test wells have been submitted in Woodsetts, Worksop and Marsh Lane, Derbyshire. Ineos says exploratory digging is not the same as fracking. Rotherham planners rejected the application in January on the grounds of highway safety, and a lack of ecological detail. The two-week public inquiry will hear from Ineos, Rotherham Council and Harthill Against Fracking and the planning inspectorate will ultimately decide whether the test site gets the go-ahead. Les Barlow, of Harthill Against Fracking, said: "Basically we do not want industrialisation of our village. "We don't want HGVs up and down single track lanes used by pedestrians, horses, dogs, cyclists. "It's just not sensible or safe." Lynn Calder, Ineos's Commercial Director, said the firm was "very disappointed" that such a "simple" planning application had gone to public inquiry. "This is one single application for a bore hole to extract core from the subsurface so we can start to gain scientific knowledge about what is present and whether it can be extracted," she said. Days before the inquiry deadline, Ineos submitted a 140-page revised traffic management plan which says the site is of "very limited ecological value". Protestors said they were "disappointed" to have little time to digest the document before amending their arguments.

A public inquiry into fracking exploration near Rotherham has begun.

Carrier Flybe launched the route when the closure of the Severn Tunnel for work disrupted rail travel between the capitals in September 2016. But, because of demand, the temporary service continued when the tunnel fully reopened later that year. Now Flybe's chief revenue officer Vincent Hodder has said passenger levels are not enough to make it "commercially sustainable". He added: "Despite the investment and hard work by all parties involved to build the market, and the passionate support of a small group of regular passengers, the results have not reached the level required." The last flight from Cardiff to London City Airport will be on Friday 27 October. Economy Secretary Ken Skates said the ending of the service was "disappointing", adding the company had said that impact of air passenger duty on shorter flights was one of the reasons for cancelling the route. "I would again call on the UK government to devolve air passenger duty to Wales and to immediately allocate the £700m it saved through its decision not to electrify the mainline to Swansea to the Welsh Government," he said. "This will enable us to progress our plans to provide passengers in Wales with the transport services they deserve."

Flights between Cardiff and London will end in October, it has been announced.

A study shows rocks in the Preseli Hills, the Pembrokeshire source of part of the monument, have a sonic property. Researcher Paul Devereux said: "It hasn't been considered until now that sound might have been a factor." The study, by London's Royal College of Art, was to try and record what "Stone Age eyes and ears" would have heard and seen in a prehistoric landscape. Since the 1920s, it has been known stones quarried in Mynydd Preseli were hauled 199 miles (320 km) to Wiltshire by its makers. But, trying to establish why has been more difficult. 'Like a bell' With this study, thousands of stones along the Carn Menyn ridge were tested and a high proportion of them were found to "ring" when they were struck. "The percentage of the rocks on the Carn Menyn ridge are ringing rocks, they ring just like a bell," said Mr Devereux, the principal investigator on the Landscape and Perception Project. "And there's lots of different tones, you could play a tune. "In fact, we have had percussionists who have played proper percussion pieces off the rocks." According to Mr Devereux, the discovery of the "resonant rocks" could explain why they were selected for Stonehenge. "There had to be something special about these rocks," he said. "Why else would they take them from here all the way to Stonehenge?" 'Pre-historic glockenspiel' Built between 3,000 BC and 1,600 BC, it has remained a mystery why the monument's bluestones were lugged all the way from north Pembrokeshire. But Prof Tim Darvill, who has undertaken hundreds of excavations at Stonehenge, insists "pre-historic attitudes to stone" must have been very different to those of today. "We don't know of course that they moved them because they rang but ringing rocks are a prominent part of many cultures," he said. "You can almost see them as a pre-historic glockenspiel, if you like and you could knock them and hear these tunes. "And soundscapes of pre-history are something we're really just beginning to explore." Inside Out is on BBC1 at 19:30 GMT on Monday.

The giant bluestones of Stonehenge may have been chosen because of their acoustic properties, claim researchers.

By Daniel ThomasBusiness reporter, BBC News In January people are naturally recovering from the over-indulgence of Christmas, he explains, and have less cash to splurge on nice dinners, bottles of wine and going out. But he's faced an extra challenge over the last few years: Dry January. The charity campaign, which encourages people to stop drinking alcohol for the month, began in 2013 when just 5,000 people took part but an estimated 4.2 million Britons said they would participate this year. That may be good news for people's health but less so for pubs and breweries. "Imagine that each of these people would normally spend, say, £25 a week on alcohol," Mr Jackman says. "We don't have to do the maths to show you how much money the hospitality industry is set to miss out on." Certainly the reasons to take part in Dry January sound compelling, even if not everyone agrees that one month on the wagon is the best way to curb your drinking habit. According to a 2018 study by the University of Sussex conducted with over 800 Dry January participants, 88% said that they saved money, 70% had generally improved health and 67% had more energy. Moreover, the benefits lasted long beyond January, with participants saying they were still drinking less in August. But the campaign has hit pubs and breweries hard, says CGA Strategy, a consultancy that tracks the impact of Dry January. It found that the total number of alcoholic drinks served across the UK slumped by 7% in 2015 as the campaign gained momentum and is yet to recover. The trend has particularly hurt smaller operators, says Ash Corbett-Collins, national director of the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra). "Many breweries have chosen to brew less and many small, independent pubs that already have slim profit margins are bearing the brunt. Such a sudden cash-flow problem can spell life or death for these small local businesses." Not surprisingly, bars and pubs have been fighting back, says CGA, with special offers on food and a wider range of non-alcoholic drinks leading to a "positive effect on sales". A spokesman for pub chain JD Wetherspoon tells the BBC it "doesn't worry" about Dry January, noting its best-selling drink is in fact Pepsi and that it offers discounts on alcoholic drinks to offset the slowdown at the start of the year. Mitchells & Butlers says it has "embraced" Dry January, offering a wider selection of non-alcoholic beers, ciders and spirits, while McMullen & Sons says its January sales are growing despite many of its guests abstaining during the month. "Pubs are more than just about alcohol," says Heydon Mizon, joint managing director of McMullens & Sons. "We all need face-to-face interaction for our mental wellbeing and pubs play a vital role in this." Healthy trend Britons are, on the whole, drinking less and embracing healthier lifestyles, suggesting that pubs and brewers may need to adapt their offerings for the long term, not just at certain times of the year. According to research from industry-funded body the Portman Group, around a quarter of British drinkers have switched some of their drinks to low alcohol alternatives or would consider doing so in the next six months. The number of teetotallers is on the rise too. "Being healthy is becoming the new cool," says Jonny Forsyth, an associate director at Mintel. "Ten years ago it was considered cooler to drink than not to drink, but there's a real social pressure now to drink moderately." Brewers have responded with a raft of new low-alcohol products such as Heineken 0.0 beer, Kopparberg Alcohol Free Cider and Diageo's Seedlip, all of which are 0.5% alcohol by volume or less. We're also seeing a much greater range of "mocktails" and non-alcoholic drinks in bars - some of which cost more than their alcohol-based equivalents. "It's not that people are going to stop drinking alcohol but bars are going to need to be more seasonal in their approach, offering more non-alcoholic offerings at the start of the year and focusing on alcohol in the summer," argues Mr Forsyth. Mr Jackman of the Records Bars thinks the January lull is here to stay, however, and will be putting more of his focus on busier periods. "We prefer to maximise our biggest and best months, rather than changing our offer and our experience for the slower months. At the end of the day, there's still a massive amount of people out there who do want to party in January, so we stand our ground for them!"

"As a small independent bar group, we do feel a hit at the start of the year," says Tom Jackman, director of the Northcote, Venn Street and Old Street Records bars in London.

Yat-Sen Chang is accused of groping female students while working in London between December 2009 and March 2016 The 49-year-old told Isleworth Crown Court he was a "kind person" and did not touch any of them inappropriately. He denies two counts of assault by penetration on a female aged 16 or over and 12 counts of sexual assault. Mr Chang, who was born in Cuba but lives in Kiel, Germany, is accused of assaulting four females who were aged between 16 and 18 at the time, while at the English National Ballet and Young Dancers Academy. The prosecution allege Mr Chang was "a man with power and prestige" which he used "to abuse younger women". However, when asked in court whether he had done anything "towards any of these young women that was inappropriate or sexual?", he replied: "No." He told the court he had advised students to get massages or do stretches to help with tight calves but had never offered to massage them. When asked about his teaching methods, Mr Chang said: "I physically touch the dancer and say 'here is where I want the leg, here is where it goes', and that's how it is being taught." The 49-year-old added there was no difference for a teacher in physically correcting a male or female dancer, or someone who was over or under 18. When questioned by his barrister Kathryn Hirst whether he knew "why they [the defendants] would be making these accusations against you?", Mr Chang replied that he had "no idea". During cross-examination, prosecutor Joel Smith asked about one of the complainants, who claimed Mr Chang had pinned her to the floor and rubbed his crotch against her. Mr Chang replied that she was "lying" and "it didn't happen". The trial continues. Related Internet Links HM Courts & Tribunals Service

A former English National Ballet principal dancer has "no idea" why sexual assault allegations have been made against him, a court has heard.

Thousands of people in western Scotland are without power for a sixth day and further snow has caused difficult road conditions. In Northern Ireland, the RAF is delivering emergency food supplies to remote farms for a second day. Isle of Man farmers are searching for livestock buried in the snow. And thousands of animals are thought trapped in snow drifts in Northern Ireland. Current daytime temperatures across the UK are wallowing at around 2-3C. The BBC weather centre said temperatures currently look set to remain below average until about mid-April. Temperatures at the moment are around 5 to 10 degrees Celsius below normal levels for this time of year. The Met Office has warned that temperatures will remain below average until about 20 April. Communities cut off Kenneth Young, who is without power on Arran, told the BBC he was angry at the lack of communication from the energy company SSE. He said the firm had not communicated with islanders when it hoped to restore power. Mr Young, 37, who is caring for his 86-year-old grandmother on the coastal village of Lamlash, said they were still without full power and did not expect it to return until next week. "We are cooking with gas and gran gets confused, she wants toast and keeps trying to put the electric heating on," he said. Though the ferry connecting Arran to the mainland is operational, Mr Young said: "I could get off the island if I needed to but I can't take my gran away - it's a big enough job to get her to the shops and the doctor." Brian and Geraldine Clark, who live in Allerton upon Green, just outside Bradford in West Yorkshire, told the BBC that snow had blocked access to the main road, trapping residents since Saturday. Mrs Clark said: "Our community is blocked off. We have rung the council every day but they've just said there are no resources, no money to clear the snow." She said the only way out of the village was a 20 minute walk through a field. The nearest shop is a further 20 minutes, she added, which some elderly people were not able to do. While bets are being laid on the chances of a White Easter, the Met Office said it did not expect any fresh snowfall except on areas of higher ground. The Easter weekend would be cold but largely dry, forecasters added. As April draws to a close, however, it said temperatures should begin to recover, particularly in the west of the country.

Severe weather continues to cause disruption across parts of the UK, as forecasters warn the cold temperatures will last until mid-April.

The film came top of the US and Canadian box office chart, earning $19m (£12m) between Friday and Sunday, according to studio estimates. The film stars Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton as the lost siblings who have grown up to become bounty hunters. Hansel & Gretel pushed last week's top film Mama into second place. Mama, another horror movie, stars Jessica Chastain and tells the story of two young children who are rescued after being lost in the woods. It took $12.8m (£8.1m) over the weekend. Several Oscar contenders are benefiting from their nominations. Silver Linings Playbook, the romantic drama that is the first film for 31 years to have Oscar nominations in all four acting categories, remained in third place with $10m (£6.4m). That film stars Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence as a couple who get together after each suffering mental health issues. Zero Dark Thirty, another Jessica Chastain movie, which dramatises the hunt for Osama Bin Laden, is at number four with $9.8m (£6.2m). Crime thriller Parker, starring Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez, opened in fifth place with $7m (£4.4m), while Quentin Tarantino's latest film Django Unchanied is in sixth with $5m (£3.2m), according to box office trackers Hollywood.com.

Hansel & Gretel, a horror film in which the fairy-tale characters are reinvented as adult witch-hunters, has bewitched North American cinemagoers.

The Isle of Man Steam Railway and the Manx Electric Railway were due to close for the season on 13 September but will now run until 4 October. Government figures showed more than 27,000 journeys had been made since services resumed in July. Tim Baker said the number of passengers had been in "excess of the forecast". Both railways have been running on a four-day timetable, but that will be reduced to weekend only, while a dining service on the steam train will run from Thursday to Sunday. The Snaefell Mountain Railway will remain closed after the Department of Infrastructure chose not to operate it in 2020 and rejected an offer of £9,000 to run a special 125th anniversary service. The Manx Electric Railway Society, which made the financial offer, said not running it would cause "incalculable harm" to the service. Mr Baker said it had been a "very considered decision" that had been made following a "detailed review of the finances" within the department. Why not follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and Twitter? You can also send story ideas to [email protected]

Isle of Man heritage railway services have been extended by three weeks due to unexpected demand, the infrastructure minister has said.

The staff are employed at the Wrexham HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) office, and will have to relocate or face losing their jobs. The office has been threatened with closure since 2015, when HMRC announced plans to centralise operations into 13 hubs across the UK. HMRC said it was creating a tax authority "fit for the future". 'Body blow' Staff at the Wrexham Technology Park office have been offered the chance to move to Liverpool, Cardiff or a smaller specialist site in Telford. An HMRC spokesman said: "We continue to support our people in relocating to the Liverpool regional centre and we appreciate some staff in Wrexham will be unable to move and we will work with them to try to find them alternative solutions. "We want to keep as many staff as possible and expect the vast majority of the current workforce will either work in a regional centre or see out their career in an HMRC office." Wrexham MP Ian Lucas described the decision as one of the worst he had seen in 18 years as an MP. He said: "HMRC's shifting of tax offices away from local towns into larger city centres flies in the face of balanced, sensible government and is a body blow to towns suffering from empty high streets, reduced bus services and evidence of young people moving away to city centres to seek work."

The tax office in Wrexham will shut at the end of September 2020, threatening 270 jobs.

He will overtake Williams's record when the first episode of the new series is broadcast on Monday. The episode will mark Merton's 347th appearance on the BBC Radio 4 panel game show. He's now second only to Clement Freud, who appeared regularly on the programme from the first episode in 1967. Freud, who died in 2009, appeared 544 times. Given the number of episodes per series, it will take Merton around 10 years to beat Freud's record. Speaking about overtaking Kenneth Williams, Merton said: "I would like to say without hesitation, deviation or repetition that I am amazed, astonished, thrilled, seasick and severely gobsmacked." The 58-year-old, who is also a panellist on the BBC One show Have I Got News For You, has been appearing on Just a Minute for 27 years. However, no contestant has featured in as many episodes as the programme's host - Nicholas Parsons. Parsons, aged 92, has presented the show since its first episode. Speaking about Merton's ascent up the show's rankings, Parsons described him as "one of the outstanding players of Just a Minute". "Since his first appearance in 1989, he has been consistently amusing, clever and witty at playing this amazingly difficult game. He is also a very generous player. "He is more concerned with contributing and making sure we have a good show than striving to win and impose his personality on the programme - though he does frequently finish up with the most points." The 74th series of Just a Minute begins on Monday, with the programme's 865th episode. Contestants are challenged to speak for one minute without hesitation, deviation or repetition on any given subject. Regular panellists in recent years have included Susan Calman, Julian Clary, Jenny Eclair, Stephen Fry, Graham Norton and Sue Perkins.

Paul Merton has clocked up more appearances on Just a Minute than veteran player Kenneth Williams.

By Gemma RyallBBC News Most boys aged 13 are more concerned about playing with their friends than profit margins. But not Callum Griffiths - when he became a teenager, he also became a businessman, selling eggs and chickens whenever he could from his home in Ynysybwl, Rhondda Cynon Taff. While studying for his GCSEs, he was growing his venture, pretending to go to the toilet to duck out of lessons and make business calls. His friends would be recruited at break times to help with paperwork and he would hold meetings after school, while weekends were spent selling his produce. Now 18, he is managing director of his own poultry and nutritional pet food company, Clydach Farm Group, employing 12 people, including his mother and father, and exporting to countries including France, Romania and Spain. "It was a struggle when I started my business as there was no real support or funding available for people under 18 back then," he said. "But I think you just have a drive and an ambition and you find a way. "So the business had to be something available to me. At that time I had a cockerel and a hen in my garden. With the money I made from selling their eggs, I bought more chickens. And I was able to sell more eggs. "Then I worked my way up to my biggest investment at that time - an incubator, which cost me about £200. But that allowed me to keep on producing eggs and chickens at a greater rate." At the same time, Mr Griffiths created his own website: "I'm not particularly technological so I had to teach myself coding as I couldn't afford to pay anyone to do it for me." He said he was always driven to start his own business as he was not particularly academic. "I think people who set up their own business also have a unique attitude to life and we may look at life differently. I'm not one to sit down and wait for things to happen," he said. "I've had to sacrifice everything and I'm proud I've never had a loan. Start-ups take everything out of people. You have to be a bit crazy to do it. But that's the way you succeed." Mr Griffiths said he found it hard to command respect from people when he started the business but that had changed, adding: "I look older now." His mother works in sales for the business, while his father works in operations. "Being the boss of mum and dad is a challenge," he said. "They do listen to me but I have to treat work like work. It is difficult." But he said with the business continuing to grow, he believes he made the right decision all those years ago. "Having financial freedom is nice but it's about more than that for me," he added. "Seeing your business and brand grow and making a difference is what I love." Jessica Blackler loves the fact her business gives confidence to transgender women to finally express who they really are. The 21-year-old from Cardiff started out by giving make-overs to men - one was 75 - at a studio in her home but is now launching a make-up range aimed specifically at the transgender community. She said her training in theatrical make-up has helped her understand their needs, such as being able to conceal beard shadow. "Customers have said 'you have changed what it's like for us' and that makes all the challenges of setting up a business worthwhile," she said. "About 80% of my clients are not openly transgender. They present as male on a day-to-day basis and they dress up in private." Ms Blackler said she did not want to go to university as she was "more arty" at school. Instead, she studied at the prestigious Delamar Academy of Make-up and Hair, based at Ealing Studios in London, and did work experience in the film and fashion industries. 'It's massive' But she said long hours and the fact she was not getting paid made her realise that she wanted to work for herself. "I started getting requests from the transgender community - I had been doing prosthetics and character make-up which helped. "I did a lot of research and volunteered with charities to build trust and respect with transgender people. I noticed it's a very untapped community. People don't think it's that big but it's huge, it's massive and they felt this service was not there for them." She opened her make-over business at her home in 2015, seeing more than 200 clients discreetly in her first 18 months. She soon realised that the make-up ranges available were not adequate for the specific needs of the transgender community and in January 2017 started to develop her Jecca make-up range. "I haven't had any loans or grants but the best support I've had has been with a programme run by Natwest called Entrepreneurial Spark - I'm able to use office space at their building in Cardiff's Central Square. You are based there with other like-minded entrepreneurs and you get mentors and advisors," she said. "I've also gone to Big Ideas Wales and they have business advisors funded by the Welsh Government. You go along and you have an advisor and you can call them if you need advice with things like imports. They have been great." She said she had needed a lot of patience to set up her own business - "not everything happens at the pace you want it to" - and she said there have been challenges to overcome. "But I have a passion for what I'm doing," she added. "My clients have so many hurdles they have to deal with on a daily basis but I hope my make-up will help them feel as feminine as possible."

As a professor warns teenagers that setting up their own businesses is not an easy alternative to going to university, two young entrepreneurs insist they have no regrets about being their own boss.

Money Talk by Martin EdwardsMace & Jones It has also suggested employees should more often be forced to pay a financial deposit before making a claim. This will please employers who say too many time-wasting claims are made by sacked staff who have nothing to lose. But the new proposals have a sting in the tail for employers. Tribunals are likely to be given power to impose an additional fine if a case is lost, payable to the government, on top of the employee's compensation. The government also plans to seek a contribution from users of the tribunal service to the cost of running it. Successive governments have legislated to try to reduce frivolous employment claims, and to encourage managers and their staff to resolve their disputes without recourse to the tribunal system. For instance, in 2004 Labour introduced statutory procedures for the handling of grievances and dismissals. They were supposed to be simple, but the element of compulsion, coupled with fines for non-compliance, had the effect of increasing the number of claims, not reducing them. An embarrassed government repealed the rules in 2009. Prompt action If the proposals come into force, both employers and employees will have even greater incentives to deal sensibly with claims. So what, in practical terms, should they do? First and foremost, they should deal with issues promptly. This means no unnecessary delay in holding meetings, reaching decisions or confirming outcomes of meetings. They should also behave consistently. So an employer who sacks a person for an offence which, in a previous case, had only merited a warning will find the inconsistency hard to justify. Employees who change their stories during the course of a disciplinary investigation are also likely to run into trouble. Employers should comply with the Acas guidelines on good employment practice. They need to have clear written procedures that their managers follow and their staff understand. I once met an employer who said he made staff redundant "as a punishment" - needless to say, his defence against claims of unfair redundancy was bound to fail. 'Costly mistake' A manager dealing with apparent misconduct, poor performance or unacceptable absence needs to investigate the facts thoroughly, but speedily. The type of investigation required varies, depending on the situation. Where there has been misconduct, witnesses need to be interviewed, and where an employee is off sick for an unacceptably long time, the medical explanation ought to be carefully examined. Employers should beware of jumping to conclusions or taking things for granted. Natural justice demands that employees should have a chance to put their side of the story before any adverse decision is taken. This is true in a case of redundancy just as much as where there is an allegation of gross misconduct. Failure to consult redundancy candidates adequately, before dismissal notices are given, is a common and costly mistake. A classic example of how not to do it occurred in 2003 when the UK's largest personal injury claims firm, Accident Group, sacked more than 2,000 staff, mainly by text message. If the company had not collapsed, the exposure to compensation claims would have been massive. Rubber stamp? From an employee's perspective, it is vital to take advantage of the opportunity to put your case while still employed. This means preparing carefully before important meetings and mentioning anything relevant that might persuade the employer not to dismiss you or give you a warning. Employees have a legal right to be accompanied by a colleague or trade union representative at disciplinary and grievance hearings and it makes sense to take advantage of this right. In some serious cases, for instance where your whole livelihood is threatened, or you are at risk of deportation, you may have a right to be accompanied by a solicitor, even if your employer's procedures do not normally allow it. An employer should offer an employee a right of appeal against dismissal, and an employee who is aggrieved by the decision should appeal, rather than assuming that it is a waste of time. Good employers will not treat an appeal as a mere rubber-stamping exercise. Keeping notes Often, managers and employees involved in a tribunal case fail to document accurately all the relevant facts. This can prove disastrous, as memory is fallible. When interviewing witnesses, I find that each person, however honest, has a slightly different recollection of events. Just as employers need clear minutes of grievance, dismissal, and appeal hearings, so employees need to keep a record of unpleasant behaviour (such as bullying) which drive them to leave the job and claim constructive unfair dismissal. Process is very important in employment tribunal cases, and employers who do not get their procedures right will incur even higher costs under the new proposals than they do at the moment. Equally, employees who fail to comply with disciplinary warnings will find that their jobs are seriously at risk. More complications Unfortunately, the law of unintended consequences is as powerful as anything on the statute book. The government's proposed changes may only keep a minority of claimants out of the tribunal, and those people may find other ways to make a claim. So it may be that unfairly dismissed employees with less than two years' service may become tempted to claim that they are whistleblowers, or victims of discrimination. These sorts of claims do not require any qualifying service at all, and can be time-consuming and complicated to resolve. The opinions expressed are those of the author and are not held by the BBC unless specifically stated. The material is for general information only and does not constitute investment, tax, legal or other form of advice. You should not rely on this information to make (or refrain from making) any decisions. Links to external sites are for information only and do not constitute endorsement. Always obtain independent, professional advice for your own particular situation.

At present, an employee usually needs to have worked for a year to qualify for protection from unfair dismissal, but the government proposes to double the qualifying period.

Adul Sam-on, 14, the only member of the group who speaks English, told reporters he could only say "hello" when the British divers surfaced. The boys were trapped in the Tham Luang caves for more than two weeks. They left hospital earlier on Wednesday and are on their way home. The 12, who are members of a junior football team, the Wild Boars, appeared in their club's kit at a news conference in Chiang Rai. They were greeted by a banner that read "Bringing the Wild Boars Home" on a stage designed to look like a football pitch. The boys sat alongside members of the Thai Navy Seals who helped rescue them. One boy described how they had lived on water from the stones of the cave. "Water is clean," he said. "Only water, no food." Chanin "Titan" Wibrunrungrueang, 11, said: "I tried not to think about food because it would make me hungry." Unbeatable team spirit By Howard Johnson, BBC News, Chiang Rai This was a joyous news conference. The first joke was cracked by a Thai Navy Seal diver as he introduced himself: "My name is Baitoey and I'm the most beautiful in the cave." The room erupted with laughter. First to speak was Adul, the boy who communicated with the British divers. He said the coach asked him to translate. His reply: "Chill, I can't understand that quickly!" Cue more fits of giggles. The boys' friends, family and nurses from Chiang Rai Hospital were smiling and willing them on from the sidelines. A compere kept up a lively patter, making sure no-one was left out. As attention turned to how they became trapped, the mood in the room became more sober. The boys listened attentively as their coach described finding the shelf that kept them safe. When Titan, the youngest of the 12, said he tried not to think of food because it only made him hungry, the others laughed out loud - proof again that even in the worst conditions, these boys have an unbeatable team spirit. The boys went missing on 23 June and were found by divers on 2 July. Navy Seals then brought them food and other supplies. The group described how they bonded with their rescuers over more than a week, until their final rescue. "We played draughts (checkers)," Titan said. "(Navy Seal) Baitoey always won and he was the king of cave." The team's coach, Ekapol Chantawong, who was rescued with them, paid tribute to Saman Kunan, a former Navy Seal who died during the operation. "We are impressed that Saman sacrificed his life to save us so that we could go and live our lives. Once we heard the news, we were shocked," he said. "We were very sad. We felt like... we caused sadness to his family." Some boys said they would learn from their ordeal. One promised to be "more careful and live my life the fullest". Another said: "This experience taught me to be more patient and strong." The boys are due to be ordained as Buddhist monks for a short period of time, a tradition for males in Thailand who have experienced a misfortune. How did the rescue unfold? The boys and the coach got trapped when sudden rain blocked their exit from Tham Luang cave, where they had planned to spend only an hour. Nine days passed before the boys were found by two British rescue divers. It was unclear at first how they would be brought out of the flooded cave. But with more rain expected, a risky rescue was attempted. Expert divers guided the boys and their coach through darkness and submerged passageways towards the exit. Each boy was accompanied by a diver who also carried his air supply. The boys were heavily sedated ahead of the rescue to prevent them panicking. The boys and their coach were rescued in three stages over three days. All 13 were transferred to the hospital in Chiang Rai where they received medical and psychological assistance.

The 12 boys rescued from a flooded cave in northern Thailand last week have spoken publicly of their ordeal for the first time, describing the "moment of miracle" when divers found them.

The Belfast Health Trust announced on Friday that children under 14 would be directed to the Royal Belfast hospital for sick children. The Belfast Trust said the Mater emergency department sees few children - about six a day. They also announced ambulances would be diverted away from the Mater overnight. The trust has said it is because of staffing pressures. It said this was particularly in regards to middle grade staff and consultants and the trust said it would be reviewing the situation. It only applies to ambulance admissions and the emergency department has remained open to those arriving on foot. The announcement that all children attending the department would be directed to the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children about two miles away applies to all children, including those going on foot. The trust believes the fact that there is no specialist paediatric nurses or doctors at the Mater means it is safer to advise the public to go straight to the Royal. 'Duty to act' Health Minister Simon Hamilton was asked about the Mater in the assembly on Monday. "The overnight diverts of ambulances from the Mater are expected to remain in place as a temporary measure and children will be redirected to the nearby Royal Hospital for Sick Children which has a dedicated paediatric emergency department," he said. "The Belfast Trust seeks to address the concerns identified and recruit senior medical staff. "If clinicians are coming to me and coming to my department and they are saying that a service as it's being in the short or longer-term is unsafe, then I have a duty to listen to them and I've a duty to act." However, Unison representative Eoin Stewart, who works at the hospital, said: "The union will fight this tooth and nail, but I'm asking the community to fight this tooth and nail, because what the Belfast Trust has to remember is that it was the local community that built this hospital."

A decision to no longer treat children at the Mater Hospital's emergency department in Belfast may become permanent.

But now, thanks to Twitter, the inner workings of Handforth Parish Council have been seen by millions of people. It's after a few clips from a very chaotic planning and environment meeting, which took place on Zoom in December, were uploaded on the site. And the source of those clips? 17-year-old Shaan Ali from East London. "I had like 200 new Twitter followers - it was crazy," he tells Radio 1 Newsbeat. "Piers Morgan, Richard Osman and some great drag queens sub-tweeted it." "I then woke up today to Greg James mentioning it on the Radio 1 Breakfast Show and I was like 'ahh this is amazing'". Shaan, who is studying politics as part of his A-Levels, says he's got quite into watching local council meetings in his spare time, but they're normally quite dull. "I guess I'm just fascinated by what local authorities do and the role they play up and down the country," he says. "You have big borough councils and county councils, but it's the parish councils who directly work with communities and it's so fascinating because [they argue] over the smallest issues." Shaan says there's always "hilarious stuff" as councillors get to grips with holding meetings online. "You know, old men struggling to use Zoom, fun arguments - there's always something fascinating going on." But this one really had it all. "It is a relatable interaction that people are having on Zoom - kicking someone off or having to shout like Aled does." He says he can see why, with the world currently as it is, that it struck a chord. "You could see the determination in Jackie's face, trying to get people to listen, but all in all it's just such a great laugh," he says. With such a penchant for local politics - does Shaan see himself as a future councillor? "Probably not - I don't think I have the skills nor the responsibility because I'm incredibly chaotic and I'd end up losing case files and stuff. "You have to have a lot of determination - as you see in that video, Jackie had to deal with everyone and it's not an easy job - I don't think I could handle it!" Follow Newsbeat on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.

Just 24 hours ago, if someone had said 'Jackie Weaver' or 'Aled's iPad', you'd probably have been left a bit confused.

By Daniel De SimoneBBC News Warning: This piece contains accounts of sexual assaults Princess Street, in the heart of Manchester's city centre, is rarely quiet. If you follow it down from the impressive Victorian town hall on Albert Square, past bars, shops, restaurants, and converted textile warehouses, you reach the borders of two of the city's most popular destinations - Chinatown and the Gay Village. Beyond that, you come to a stretch of road bordered by nightclubs - Factory, Fifth, Joshua Brooks - a big part of the city's vibrant nightlife. With its close proximity to two of the city's universities, the road is also a popular area for student accommodation. Reynhard Sinaga, a 36-year-old postgraduate student, had made this his home for more than seven years, living in a rented flat just a few moments' walk from Factory Nightclub. Sinaga, originally from Indonesia, was a perpetual student. He already had four degrees and was studying for a doctorate. By night he was a serial sex offender. He has been found guilty of drugging, raping and sexually assaulting 48 men, but police believe they are among at least 190 victims. They are able to be so precise about these numbers because Sinaga filmed his attacks and collected what detectives call "trophies" - items or information stolen from his victims. Sinaga typically approached his victims in the street. The rapist operated in a small area surrounding his flat. His targets were men mostly in their late teens or early 20s who had been out drinking, often in the nearby nightclubs. Some were on their way home, others had become separated from friends. Many were too drunk to remember their conversation with Sinaga, but for those who did there was no indication of a sexual motive. Sinaga used various pretexts to entice each to his flat. Some victims could recall being provided with a drink and then blacking out. Are you affected by this? BBC Action Line has support and more information on emotional distress Greater Manchester Police said anyone who believes they might have been attacked by Sinaga can report information online or call its police line on 0800 092 0410 from inside the UK or 0207 158 0124 from abroad. The force said anyone in need of support from specialist agencies could call 0800 056 0154 from within the UK or 0207 158 0011 from abroad. Sinaga presented himself as a flamboyant, churchgoing academic who used the nickname "posh spice". A thin man of slight build and short stature, physically he appeared unthreatening. Several victims recall him smiling a lot. It was this apparent harmlessness that enabled Sinaga to pose as a "good Samaritan", coaxing men he approached back to the flat. We know about the benign impression Sinaga created because dozens of victims gave testimony to police, with 48 of them appearing in court over the course of four trials. Of the victims who went to court, the vast majority were heterosexual. Ian Rushton, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said he thought Sinaga took "a particular pleasure in preying on heterosexual men". Most of his victims were living in Manchester at the time and, in all, 26 were students when they were attacked. Their accounts explain how Sinaga operated. One was waiting for his girlfriend outside Fifth Avenue nightclub - since renamed Fifth Manchester - when he was approached by a "small Asian guy" who seemed harmless. The man was invited back to Sinaga's flat to wait for his girlfriend, but recalled nothing further after being given a shot of clear liquid to drink. Another man described being "approached by a young Asian gentleman". He said he had a "vague recollection of explaining that my phone was dead and that I was trying to get a taxi but the taxis were passing me". He added: "I think I can recall a conversation along the lines of, 'Would you like to come inside and charge your phone and have a quick chat,'" he told the court. To him, Sinaga "didn't seem like an imposing character" and during their conversations in the apartment, he appeared to be "an honest, motivated person" with an interest in academic research. The man told the court that soon after being offered a drink, he couldn't remember "a single thing until the next morning". After waking, confused and disoriented, he left within five minutes. Like almost every victim, he had no idea he had been raped until being approached by police. Another victim remembered his friends putting him in a cab outside a club. His next recollection was waking up in a strange apartment. When he asked Sinaga what had happened, he described providing care and shelter after finding him lying in the street. Another victim believed Sinaga had been "really nice and had looked after him". One victim, a teenage university student, managed to get Sinaga's mobile number as a precaution after waking up in the flat, and then having concerns that something might have been stolen from him. When he rang to ask for more information about what happened, Sinaga described himself as a "good Samaritan" who had found him unconscious on the pavement. Another man remembered waking up on the floor, covered in a blanket, before thanking the flat's occupier for letting him stay over. He suspected nothing, even though the person "refused to give me personal details" in order to assist with an insurance claim for a lost mobile phone. The phone, like many others stolen from their owners, was later recovered from Sinaga's home by police. Some victims felt incredibly unwell after regaining consciousness, sometimes naked and covered in vomit. Unknown to them at the time, Sinaga had given his victims a drug - almost certainly GHB - which rendered them unconscious before he assaulted them. What is GHB? One victim, who woke up naked on Sinaga's floor feeling nauseous and panic-stricken, came to the conclusion he had been drugged, telling his fiancé about that suspicion but not about the condition in which he awoke. Another man, who was told he could sleep on the floor, recalled waking twice during the night, on one occasion to be sick. He remembered that on one of the occasions he was unable to move his arms and could feel himself being penetrated, before passing out again. In the morning, he briefly spoke with Sinaga before leaving. He did not report what happened to police, until being approached by them. It was the largest rape investigation in UK history. Police found more than 100 of the men from clues in Sinaga's flat. But the identities of 70 men have not been established and police are now appealing for anyone who believes they may been abused by Sinaga to come forward. The CPS's Ian Rushton says that Sinaga is probably the most prolific known rapist "anywhere in the world". One of four children, Sinaga comes from a wealthy Indonesian family who live in Depok, a city within the Jakarta metropolitan area. His father is a banker and also a prominent businessman in the palm oil sector. After obtaining a degree in architecture at the University of Indonesia in Depok, he moved to the UK in 2007 to study urban planning at the University of Manchester. He went on to gain three degrees there before embarking on a doctorate in human geography at the University of Leeds - travelling there from Manchester when required. His family wealth meant that he rarely worked, although he claims to have had stints in employment in hospitality at both Manchester football clubs and in a clothes shop. Manchester United have since said they have no record of him working at the club. He worked for a period at a bar in the city's Gay Village, the area where he spent much of his time socialising. He was also a regular at a local church. After originally living in student accommodation, Sinaga moved to a rented flat in Montana House on Princess Street in 2011. While his convictions cover a period of two and a half years, police believe his offences predate 2015. But they say they may never know the true extent of his crimes. It came to an end in the summer of 2017. Sinaga was offending with abandon, sometimes night after night. In footage recovered from CCTV cameras covering his block of flats, he is seen leaving one evening only to return with a man 60 seconds later. It was just after midnight on 2 June 2017, when he approached his final victim. A teenager, who left The Factory nightclub to get some fresh air after becoming separated from friends, agreed to go to Sinaga's flat after it was suggested he could try to contact them from there. The man recalled nothing further until waking several hours later being sexually attacked by Sinaga. He immediately pushed Sinaga away, who responded by screaming "intruder" and "help", before repeatedly biting the teenager. The man hit Sinaga several times, escaped from the flat, and then called police, who arrived to a chaotic scene. Sinaga, who was discovered semi-conscious with serious injuries, was at first viewed sympathetically, and the teenager was arrested for assault. But Sinaga's behaviour in hospital began to arouse suspicion. He kept asking officers to have a mobile phone brought to him from his flat. Police asked him to confirm the pin number before they would hand it over. However Sinaga gave a series of false numbers, then tried to grab the phone after providing the correct one. The officer became so suspicious that he seized the phone as potential evidence and, when it was checked, a video recording was found of Sinaga raping the arrested teenager. It was the start of what the officer overseeing the investigation, Assistant Chief Constable Mabs Hussain, calls "an absolutely unprecedented case". He says the inquiry has been like "piecing a jigsaw together without the picture". Another of Sinaga's mobiles had somehow ended up in the pocket of the final victim. Between them, the two phones had been used to capture about 800 videos of Sinaga raping or sexually assaulting unconscious men. The victims, usually snoring loudly, were often repeatedly raped over several hours. In some of the films, Sinaga is seen to forcibly hold men down who, though unconscious, were visibly distressed or made attempts to push him away. In others, victims are seen to vomit while being attacked. To find the men, detectives used both the films and "trophies" collected by Sinaga - phones, watches, ID cards from their wallets, images that Sinaga had downloaded from their social media profiles, searches about them he conducted online. When they lacked identifying information, investigators tried facial recognition technology, approached local universities, and asked other police forces around the UK if they knew any of the men. Officers also considered whether Sinaga might have killed any of his victims with fatal drug overdoses, examining potential links to unsolved deaths or missing people, but there was no evidence to suggest this was the case. When officers made a positive identification, that person would be approached and told he had been a victim of sexual offences. Lisa Waters, of the St Mary's Sexual Assault Referral Centre, says their crisis workers accompanied detectives on these visits in order to "offer immediate emotional and practical support". She says that being told what happened "can be quite overwhelming, very confusing". "What we didn't want to do was to drop the bombshell and then just disappear and leave these men with no support," she says. A large programme was put in place to provide ongoing support. Waters says many of the men have chosen not to tell anybody else about what happened to them. "That might be because they might want to protect their own psychological health; it might be because they're ashamed to tell other people; it might be because they're fearful of other people's responses," she says. Dozens of those approached did not want to go through the court process. Sinaga was found to have told unsuspecting friends about some of the rapes, passing them off as consensual sexual conquests. In messages about the first victim who went to court, Sinaga boasted about the attack on New Year's Eve in 2014. "I didn't get my new year kiss, but I've had my first sex in 2015 already," he wrote, adding that the man was "straight in 2014. 2015 is his breakthrough to the gay world hahaha". During another boast about what he presented as his prowess with "straight" men, Sinaga wrote: "Take a sip of my secret poison, I'll make you fall in love." Police officers have spoken to other men, tracked down as a result of still images discovered in the flat that date from before 2015. These men recall being there, but not what happened. There is no other evidence available to show that they were sexually assaulted. Only one previous report to police was linked to Sinaga after his arrest, dating from April 2017, when the victim had woken disorientated and unwell in a strange room with an Asian male. He quickly left, but later that day had flashbacks of being sexually assaulted and - two days afterwards - he called the police. However, the man was unsure of the property in which he had been assaulted, meaning inquiries focused on two nearby hotels, neither of which had had any guests who matched the suspect's description. Despite the overwhelming evidence, Sinaga pleaded not guilty to all 159 charges, forcing a series of four trials in which his victims had to give evidence and jurors had to watch hours of distressing videos. Court rules meant that nothing could be reported in the media and each jury was unaware of the wider case against him. Sinaga gave evidence in the first and last of the trials, running what the judge called a "ludicrous defence" which involved him claiming that each victim had agreed to fulfil his "sexual fantasy" by being penetrated while being filmed and pretending to be asleep. When this scenario was suggested to one victim in court, he responded by saying it was "absolutely farcical". Sinaga changed his story during the trials. In the first trial, he denied that the loud snoring heard in some films was snoring at all, insisting it was just "breathing sounds". But, by the time of the final trial, he claimed the snoring was actually just "role-play". It was only halfway through the first trial that he admitted penetrating most of the victims on that indictment. In the witness box he came across as vain and self-absorbed, telling jurors: "I make myself available all the time… I may look like a 'lady boy' and it seems very popular amongst curious men who are looking for a gay experience." When entering and exiting court he often appeared cheerful, as if he was enjoying the process. In the absence of the jury, the judge repeatedly asked defence counsel whether any of the evidence could be agreed, to spare jurors watching every video. But Sinaga would not agree and, because he insisted each victim was conscious and consenting, the videos had to be played to demonstrate this was a lie. The prosecution case was that Sinaga used the drug GHB to incapacitate his victims. No trace of the drug was found in his apartment and - due to the circumstances of Sinaga's arrest - the final victim was not tested quickly enough for its presence to be established. However, the symptoms shown by the hundreds of videos were all consistent with GHB intoxication, as were the descriptions of him providing clear liquid shots, and each trial heard expert evidence about its effects. GHB was used by Stephen Port, who murdered four men between June 2014 and September 2015. The men were given fatal overdoses of the drug. Port was also convicted of raping or assaulting several living victims using GHB. The impact on Sinaga's victims is vast. Waters says that "some of the men have found it very difficult to function in everyday life". This has resulted in substance misuse, people unable to go to work, students unable to finish university, and others having to leave home after feeling unable to function any longer within their families. She adds that "some men have been suicidal and we've had to try to help them come to terms with that and how we can make them safe". Dr Sam Warner, author of a report about the psychological impact on Sinaga's victims, says a loss of power coupled with an absence of memory can be "extremely frightening, disturbing, upsetting because that goes to the heart of how you make sense of yourself, how you understand your experiences". "In a situation where people have been incapacitated through drugs they may have no flashback to that particular event," she says. "What they will have is the flashback to being told, however sensitively done, because suddenly they become a rape victim at that point." She says the stress and trauma "may continue throughout people's lives". In a series of statements read in court, the men themselves described the impact. "I felt numb. I was totally shocked, embarrassed, betrayed and very angry," one said. "His actions were disgusting, unforgiveable. He has massively abused my trust in humanity." Another man said: "I want Sinaga to spend the rest of his life in prison. Not only for what he has done to me but for what he has done to the other lads and the misery and stress he has caused them." A further victim said: "I remember the day the police contacted me, it is a day I will never forget because it changed my life forever." Another: "I wish the worse for him, I want him to feel the pain and sufferance I have felt. He has destroyed a part of my life." Throughout all four trials, Sinaga displayed not a glimmer of empathy or contrition. His persistent smile, so often used to comfort and disarm, was instead revealed to be a mark of his cruelty. In a message to Sinaga, one victim said: "I'm not going to let you ruin my life."

Reynhard Sinaga is thought to be the UK's "most prolific rapist" ever. For several years, until he was caught in 2017, he preyed on young men enjoying a night out.

Temperatures soared to 30.6C (87.08F) in Porthmadog, Gwynedd, on Tuesday, the hottest temperature recorded in the UK. Meanwhile, Hawarden, Flintshire, was basking in heat of just under 30C (86F). The Met Office said it was the hottest day of the year so far and the highest temperatures in Wales since June 2017. And it is predicted the hot spell could continue all week, with people being warned to stay safe in the sun. Met Office spokesman Grahame Madge said: "We are likely to see these temperatures continue until Saturday. "There may be thundery conditions on Sunday with a possible return to hot weather at the beginning of next week." But with high or very high UV levels during the warm spell, the Met Office is warning people to "take care" while enjoying the sunshine. It has warned people to take extra care to protect babies, children and the elderly from the rays and to protect their skin against burning. In North Wales, police have closed the A543 between Pentrefoelas and the Sportsman's Arms due to the tarmac melting in the heat - just months after it was closed due to heavy snow. In Penarth on Monday evening, coastguards and police responded to reports of 35 young people seen jumping into the water at Mount Stuart Graving Docks in Cardiff Bay. The group were advised of the dangers and asked to move on. Network Rail said it was keeping an eye on tracks across the Wales and Borders franchise, which can expand and buckle as they heat up, causing travel disruption. A spokesman said: "If a section of track is judged to be at risk, we introduce speed restrictions - slower trains exert lower forces on the track and reduce the chance of buckling." Welsh Water has urged people to think about their water usage, urging people not to waste water, despite there being no current concerns about availability. Meanwhile, the RSPCA urged pet owners and farmers to keep their animals cool. RSPCA Cymru Supt Martyn Hubbard said: "There is a very serious side to keeping pets cool over summer as animals can suffer from heatstroke which could be fatal, especially if left in a hot car, conservatory or caravan. "Pets may struggle to realise when they are too hot, so make sure they have constant access to shade and don't over exercise them in the heat. Remember if the pavement is too hot for your hand then it will be too hot for their paws."

Wales is officially the hottest part of the UK, with a road even having to be closed due to tarmac melting - four months after it was shut due to snow.

By Chi Chi IzunduNewsbeat entertainment reporter The 239 stores in the UK and the Republic of Ireland will be kept open for the time being while they look for a buyer. Newsbeat has been talking to music stars about their memories of the store and whether it will be missed from the high street. At last week's Brit Award nominations, Emeli Sande said that despite her success she still goes into HMV to buy CDs. "The most recent CD I bought was the Rihanna CD because I wanted the deluxe copy with the song I wrote on it," she said. "So I went out to HMV to buy it. I kind of just checked out my CD, and got a little photo next to the rack." HMV's past: A history in pictures Emeli said she would miss the store if it disappeared from the high street. She said: "I used to work at Virgin Megastores and I love a CD shop. You can see everything, you can feel it. I would definitely miss it. I hope we can keep it alive." DJ Fresh agreed but admitted he didn't buy CDs any more. "You sort of associate British high streets with an HMV, it's a focal point," he said. "And even when they sell computer games and all kinds of other things apart from music, it's just like a sort of culture. A British culture story HMV." Professor Green was among the celebrities who tweeted his disappointment of the news that HMV was going into administration. "HMV bankrupt. We may as well just give up on any medium that involves hard copy and get on with it. #sadtimes." he tweeted. TV personality Mary Portas also tweeted: "HMV was a brilliant business that was a great part of our high streets. So sad to see this one go." Chemical Brothers' Ed Simons also added his opinion on Twitter. "When telling us our mid-week chart position are (sic) manager always said "but the HMV figures aren't in yet" #hmvmemories." Ellie Goulding tweeted: "I'm really sad about HMV. Say what you want about it, but I'm genuinely sad." Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter

Last night (14 January), music and DVD chain HMV announced it had called in the administrators putting about 4,350 jobs at risk.

Welsh language use and housing quality would also feed into an annual report, to help achieve the goals of the Well-being of Future Generations Act. First Minister Carwyn Jones said the aim was to achieve a "more rounded picture" of how Wales was advancing. He invited people to give their views on 40 planned "national indicators". 'Work together' Mr Jones called the consultation a "fantastic opportunity for public bodies, individuals and organisations to have their say on how we continue to develop and build the Wales we want". "The Well-being of Future Generations Act places a duty on us all to work together to ensure that decisions taken today are made with future generations at their heart," he added. During its passage through the assembly, some opposition members had criticised the proposed law to improve the nation's social and economic prospects as a "bureaucratic monster" with no "clear purpose".

Life expectancy, employment, school leaver skill levels and air quality are among the measures ministers plan to use to judge Wales' national progress.

Justice Secretary Ken Clarke said last year he would end the filming ban to boost public understanding of justice. Cameras are only expected to be able to film the judge's summing up and sentencing in serious criminal trials. The Ministry of Justice would say only that it planned to introduce the change "as soon as parliamentary time allows". Filming is currently banned in all courts in England Wales - except the Supreme Court - by two Acts of Parliament, meaning new legislation is required to allow cameras in. There is no similar ban in Scotland - but all parties must agree before cases can be broadcast. The most important case to be televised to date was the appeal by Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, who was tried under Scottish law in a special court in The Netherlands. 'Held to account' Announcing his plans in a written statement to Parliament in September, Mr Clarke said that as a starting point judgements at the Court of Appeal would be broadcast - and in time he hoped to expand that to the Crown Court. "But I will work closely with the Lord Chief Justice and judiciary on how this could be achieved," he said. "I am clear that this must not give offenders opportunities for theatrical public display. "We will work to ensure this does not hinder the administration of justice and that it protects victims, witnesses, offenders and jurors. Collectively, these plans will open the justice system in an unprecedented manner, allowing the public to judge for themselves how we are performing and to hold us to account." The UK Supreme Court can be broadcast - but it hears arguments about important points of law, rather than live evidence and cross-examination of witnesses. If the change is implemented as reports suggest, the public would be able to hear a judge's summing up - his outline of the prosecution and defence cases, and the legal points the jury must consider. 'Right of veto' They would also hear the sentence passed and the judge's explanation for why that punishment had been chosen. The Ministry of Justice refused to comment on suggestions the new legislation would be set out in the forthcoming Queen's Speech. But a spokesman said in a statement the government and the judiciary were "determined to improve transparency and public understanding of courts". "That is why we announced in September that we are planning to remove the ban... as soon as parliamentary time allows," he said. Last year, Master of the Rolls Lord Neuberger - the top civil judge in England and Wales -said broadcasting trials could increase public confidencein the justice system, but warned that judges must have "full rights of veto" over what could be shown. Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer has also backed a change, on the grounds that it would allow the public to "see justice".

Plans to allow television cameras into courts in England and Wales are to be announced in the Queen's Speech in May, according to reports.

William Christmas, 19, died at the scene of the crash in Derby Road on 19 March 2020. Manish Shah, 38, of Barsby Drive, Loughborough, admitted dangerous driving and causing death by dangerous driving at Nottingham Crown Court. He was given an interim driving disqualification and bailed until sentencing on 13 May. Mr Christmas, from Dorset, was a first-year student at the University of Nottingham and was studying politics and international relations. Follow BBC East Midlands on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]. Related Internet Links HM Courts & Tribunals Service

A driver has admitted causing the death of a university student who was hit by a car in Nottingham city centre.

Newmarket Holidays, which had operated from the now-closed Manston Airport, has moved its business to Lydd. Two flights will leave Lydd for Italy on Sunday with 93 people on board. Lydd Airport has recently been given permission to expand its terminal and runway, which it said would allow it to serve Europe and North Africa. Half a century ago, Lydd was a busy airport and regularly used by royalty and Hollywood celebrities. Royal recognition came when Prince Philip flew his personal DH Heron aircraft into Lydd in 1956 and regular customers in the 1960s included Gregory Peck, Diana Dors and Humphrey Bogart. The airport, run by Silver City Airways, had grown from a grass airfield to a purpose-built airport in the 1950s. With daily flights operating to Le Touquet in France and Ostend in Belgium, Lydd handled a total of 222,828 passengers in 1958. By the 1960s, Lydd was one of Europe's busiest airports. But the Silver City service declined during the 1970s as the cross-Channel ferry market grew. Other passenger and freight services kept the airport in operation. Airport chiefs have said Lydd was now growing again with a mix of private and training general aviation, corporate jets, air taxis, cargo and maintenance, and scheduled services to Le Touquet. Finance manager Hani Mutlaq said the runway extension, due to be completed by summer next year, would bring a further 140 jobs directly at the airport, plus other restaurants, hotels and companies nearby. Work on the £25m development, which will provide capability for aircraft the size of Boeing 737s or Airbus 319s, is expected to start this autumn.

Holiday flights are taking off from a Kent airport for the first time in decades after a tour operator moved its operation there.

Ex-soldier Nordahl Lelandais, 34, admitted killing Maëlys de Araujo "involuntarily", without giving details. Both were guests at a wedding. He agreed to co-operate with the police after tiny traces of her blood were found in the boot of his Audi car. The girl went missing in Pont-de-Beauvoisin, north of Grenoble. Her remains were found near the village. Nordahl Lelandais said he "got rid of the body" and offered his apologies to the girl's parents, said Grenoble prosecutor Jean-Yves Coquillat. He had previously admitted that Maëlys was in his car on the night she disappeared. The girl's mother, Jennifer Cleyet Marrel, addressed a bitter Facebook message to Mr Lelandais. "We had to wait five and a half months for this monster to finally speak... Maëlys will haunt you nights and days in your prison," she wrote in French. "My little angel, I couldn't protect you from this predator, and this guilt will continue for a long time." A wedding guest Maëlys was last seen in the early hours of 27 August in the children's area at the wedding venue. On Wednesday Mr Lelandais led investigators to an area near his parents' home at Domessin, not far from Pont-de-Beauvoisin. The search for her remains took police an entire day, involving sniffer dogs working in the mountain snow. After her disappearance, police questioned all 180 guests, and identified inconsistencies in Mr Lelandais' statements. He was charged a week later, after police discovered DNA belonging to Maëlys on the dashboard of his car. Since then, Mr Lelandais has maintained his innocence, claiming that although the girl may have been in his car, that did not prove his guilt. He was also reported to have spent hours cleaning his car the next day with powerful detergents - something he said he was doing to prepare it for sale. According to French media reports, Mr Lelandais made a confession in prison on Tuesday, after traces of Maëlys' blood were found in his car. Still reticent France's Le Parisien newspaper reports that Mr Lelandais refused to provide details about the girl's death, beyond his insistence it was accidental. A prosecutor, quoted in the French press, said that after Maëlys' death, her body was taken to a location near Mr Lelandais' home. He apparently returned to the wedding for some time, before later recovering the remains and burying them in the Chartreuse mountains. The police investigation included mining his computer and phone for information. Those trawls revealed that, after the disappearance of 23-year-old soldier Arthur Noyer in April 2017, Mr Lelandais searched the internet for "human body decomposition". Mr Noyer's skull was found by a walker on 7 September in Montmelian, 16km (10 miles) from Chambéry. Mr Lelandais lived with his parents, 30km from Chambéry. He admitted being in the area where Mr Noyer disappeared but denied any involvement in the killing. He was charged in that case in December. Mr Lelandais has been questioned about a number of other missing persons in the region.

The remains of a nine-year-old girl who disappeared in the French Alps last August have been found, officials say.

On Friday the Vatican will livestream Pope Francis's celebration of the Passion in St Peter's Basilica and prayer of the Stations of the Cross. Portugal has not been hit as badly as Spain and Italy by coronavirus, but has now ordered people to stay at home, with police roadblocks to cut travel. Poland has also imposed strict curbs. The Pope's Palm Sunday mass took place behind closed doors at St. Peter's on 5 April, with just a few people attending. Poland, where Easter is usually marked by a huge outpouring of Catholic faith, has closed its borders, as well as schools, shops, restaurants and entertainment venues. Deputy Health Minister Waldemar Kraska said some restrictions would be eased after Easter to "turn on the economy a little", but he did not elaborate. 'Nature never forgives' In an interview with The Tablet, the Pope said humanity must draw lessons from the Covid-19 crisis, calling it a time to reconnect with nature. "Let us not file it away and go back to where we were. This is the time to take the decisive step, to move from using and misusing nature to contemplating it," he said. He cited a Spanish expression: "God always forgives, we forgive sometimes, but nature never forgives", and lamented the devastating wildfires in Australia and melting of polar ice attributed to global warming. He also condemned the "hypocrisy" of certain politicians - not named - who spoke about tackling the pandemic and hunger in the world, "but who in the meantime manufacture weapons". On a more positive note, he praised "the saints who live next door" - people like medics, volunteers and priests who were serving the community, to keep society functioning. Describing the impact on him personally, the Pope said he was praying more and Vatican staff were working in shifts, to practise social distancing. They were relying on technology to reduce meetings, he added. Milan, the city at the epicentre of the crisis in Italy, will reach out to Christians on Easter Sunday with a performance by tenor Andrea Bocelli in its empty cathedral, the Duomo. The broadcast of sacred music will be streamed on YouTube. Bocelli, quoted by AFP news agency, said it would be "a prayer then, for Milan and for the world, in front of an absolutely painful, tragic and unsettling event". More than 9,000 of the 17,669 deaths in Italy have been in Lombardy, the northern region with Milan as its capital.

Europe's Christians are facing an extraordinary Easter under lockdown, with traditionally large congregations replaced by livestreamed services.

But Maj Nidal Hasan told the jury at Fort Hood, Texas, that the evidence told only one side of the story. The 42-year-old says he was protecting Muslims and the Taliban in Afghanistan. If convicted on 13 counts of murder and 32 counts of attempted murder, the US-born Muslim could face execution. "The evidence will clearly show that I am the shooter," Maj Hasan, who is acting as his own lawyer, told the jury of 13 military officers as the trial began on Tuesday. "We are imperfect Muslims trying to establish the perfect religion," added the accused, who uses a wheelchair after being paralysed when he was shot during the attack. He declined to cross-examine any of the witnesses wounded in the assault. 'Careful preparations' The killings on 5 November 2009 are the deadliest ever non-combat attack on an American military base. During the prosecution's opening statements, Col Steve Henricks said Maj Hasan had deliberately targeted "unarmed, unsuspecting and defenceless soldiers" when he opened fire, and planned to "kill as many soldiers as he could". He said the accused had prepared carefully for the attack, visiting a target practice range, buying a gun, and stuffing paper towels into his trouser pockets to muffle noise from the weapons before he opened fire. "All those fully loaded magazines do not clink, do not move, do not give him away," Col Henricks told the jury. "He sits among the soldiers he's about to kill with his head down." The court heard that Maj Hasan had first tried to clear the area of civilians, even walking over to a clerk to tell her a supervisor needed her elsewhere in the building. He then climbed on to a desk, shouted an Islamic benediction, and opened fire with two handguns, witnesses said. 'Dead men don't sweat' According to the prosecution, he fired 146 bullets. The attack took place in a crowded medical building where deploying soldiers were awaiting check-ups and vaccines. Staff Sgt Alonzo Lunsford, who was shot seven times during the attack, testified how he had played dead. Then he worried that the gunman might notice he was perspiring, as "dead men don't sweat". Sgt Lunsford said he decided to flee and found an exit crammed with other soldiers trying to make their escape, too. Maj Hasan was himself about to be deployed to Afghanistan at the time of the assault. But the court heard that he had told a base doctor: "They've got another thing coming if they think they are going to deploy me." The government has said Maj Hasan sent more than a dozen emails starting in December 2008 to Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical US-born Islamic cleric killed by a drone strike in Yemen in 2011. Maj Hasan wanted to plead guilty to murder and attempted murder, but military rules forbid guilty pleas in death-penalty cases. There is outrage in the US that he is still receiving his salary. He has reportedly received wages totalling nearly $300,000 (£200,000) while awaiting trial.

A former US Army psychiatrist who killed 13 soldiers at a base in Texas in 2009 has admitted in court he was the gunman and apologised for "any mistakes", as his court martial opened.

Senior paramedic Joanne Hedges was one of the triage officers overseeing patients who were being treated on the concourse of Victoria station nearby. She arrived at the arena 40 minutes after the blast which killed 22 people. Ms Hedges told the inquiry she had been informed the foyer, where the bomb exploded, was a restricted "hot zone". "We were told not to go upstairs [to the Arena foyer] and wait for patients to be brought down," she said. Ms Hedges said she had been informed the bomb scene would not be safe for most paramedics to work in. In addition to the 22 people who were killed, hundreds more were injured when suicide bomber Salman Abedi detonated his device at the end of an Ariana Grande concert on 22 May 2017. Ms Hedges was asked why she thought some 'priority-one' casualties were waiting so long to be taken to hospital. "I presume at that point it's waiting for the hospitals to be cleared," she told the inquiry. "It'll be the only reason why any patient would have to wait... it would take a period of time for hospitals to get extra staff in, to cancel the non-urgent patients." Shortly after she arrived at the foyer, Ms Hedges was told by fellow paramedic Paddy Ennis that there were 30 or more critically injured patients. When questioned how she felt at that moment, she replied: "Terrified, absolutely terrified." The inquiry was told 26 people were brought down from the foyer on makeshift stretchers while some had no tourniquets to stem their bleeding wounds. Ms Hedges said police officers were putting pressure on wounds before ambulance crews started treating them. 'Heated discussions' When asked if there were sufficient paramedics and crews, she responded: "Yes - the patients had the clinical interventions they immediately needed from the paramedic crews. They had ongoing treatment to a high standard." Ms Hedges said there were a few "heated discussions" with police officers about moving patients. She added that some police officers didn't seem to understand a major incident plan. When asked if anything could have been done better on the night, she said there was a "lack of communication" between the fire service and the ambulance service. Ms Hedges said when she arrived she presumed the fire service was already in the foyer because she had not seen them anywhere else. . The inquiry continues. Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to [email protected] Related Internet Links Manchester Arena Inquiry

Critically ill casualties were "waiting for hours" to be taken to hospital in the aftermath of the Manchester Arena attack, an inquiry has heard.

By John CampbellBBC News NI Economics & Business Editor Stormont's advice remains that people should continue to work from home when they can. PwC, which has one of the largest offices in Belfast with space for over 1,000, now has just under 100 staff back in. Kevin MacAllister, the consultancy's regional lead, says they are being guided by staff demand. "We have a number of people who actually find it quite challenging to work from home and have requested we provide them with a safe office environment. "There's absolutely no compulsion on anyone to be present in the office, but we have the facility with safeguards in place." Mr MacAllister is back in his office after three months working from home. 'Bookending the day' "I do like having the idea of the office putting a bookend on the day, between home life and work life," he says. The firm is also pressing ahead with a major new office building at the Merchant Square development in the city centre. Novosco, an IT-firm based in Belfast's Titanic Quarter, also has some people back on site. Its offices were completely off limits to staff during the lockdown. It quickly adapted to remote working, even hiring and training new staff. But a survey conducted in June suggested that about a third of employees wanted the option to come into the office. The firm now expects to be using a hybrid arrangement of home and office working for the foreseeable future. "I think the office will always have a place,' says Susan Hill, the firm's head of talent management, "but that hybrid approach will be the most effective." She points to collaboration and creativity as activities which are much more effective in person rather than through video calls. 'More of a trickle than a surge' This return to the office is more of a trickle than a surge. Ulster Bank, which has a large office in central Belfast, has told back office staff they can continue to work from home until the new year. Carson McDowell, one of Belfast's largest legal firms, says that when it reopens the office it initially expects no more than 20% of staff to be back on site at any one time. That sort of number is likely to be repeated across many firms as long as social distancing remains. This is not necessarily a problem for the workers and businesses which have adapted to much less office-based work. But for the cafes, delis, pubs and newsagents of the city centre which rely on trade from office workers these are increasingly worrying times.

Some major employers in Northern Ireland are beginning to get office-based staff back into the workplace.

A survey for BBC Scotland suggested 72% of people think the economy is going to "get worse" over the next 12 months. And a majority of people who took part said they would avoid large crowds and going to bars and restaurants after lockdown is lifted, with 48% saying they were unlikely to go back to life as it was before. What do people think about the economy? The survey suggested Scots are pessimistic about the future of the economy, with 72% saying they thought it would "get worse" over the next 12 months. Only 16% said they thought it would improve, while 10% said it would stay the same. Asked about their personal finances, 59% of people said they were either "very" or "fairly" concerned about the impact of the pandemic, to 39% who were unconcerned. This feeling was highest among those aged 35 to 54, of whom 66% voiced fears. Economic confidence 'lowest ever' Analysis by Emily Gray, managing director of Ipsos Mori Scotland This is the lowest level of economic confidence that Ipsos Mori has ever recorded in Scotland. We first started asking this question of the Scottish public in 2009, in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. This level of economic pessimism among Scots is comparable to the levels recorded among the UK public at the worst of the 2008 financial crash. With Scotland and the wider UK set to face a severe recession, the public's economic pessimism is understandable. There is widespread awareness that more hardship is imminent, and a majority in Scotland are worried about the financial impacts to come. Concern about the financial impact of the pandemic is highest among the middle-aged, part-time workers and those employed in the private sector. These differences in levels of concern make sense, as some groups in Scotland will be more exposed to the financial impacts of the pandemic than others. There is a very real risk that the coronavirus outbreak will lead to a worsening of inequalities, the scale of which will depend in part on what support is in place for those who are hardest hit. Young people are less concerned about the financial impacts of the coronavirus outbreak than their older counterparts are. This may well change in the coming months as young people are also disproportionately likely to work in those sectors that are being impacted most by the pandemic, such as retail, hospitality and tourism. It is all too apparent to Scots that Covid-19 has become an economic crisis. Public health remains the top priority - as Ipsos Mori's wider polling has shown. But that does not alter the fact that most people in Scotland are worried about the economic prospects for Scotland and the financial outlook for themselves and their families. There is much discussion among policymakers about the route out of the crisis; can Scotland use this opportunity to create a fairer, greener and more inclusive economy in the wake of the pandemic by "building back better"? In the short term, though, minimising the economic damage and supporting those who are hardest hit as far as possible will be key to rebuilding public confidence. How will people change their behaviour in future? The survey suggested Scots may be slow to return to life as it was before, with 48% saying they were likely to "go back to doing all the things you did before lockdown" after restrictions are eased - the same number as said they unlikely to. A total of 78% of respondents said they were likely to avoid large crowds in future, while 62% said they were unlikely to go to bars and restaurants. Compared to how they behaved at the beginning of March, 41% of respondents said they were more likely to get around by walking in future, while 43% said they would look to "take holidays within Scotland". However, a majority of those polled said their spending and shopping habits and use of car travel would remain "about the same". People were also split on whether they would use a contact tracing app as part of the coronavirus containment strategy, with 54% saying they were likely to do this and 42% saying they were unlikely to. The poll also asked some constitutional questions, with 66% of people saying the Brexit transition period should be extended to allow more time for trade negotiations. Meanwhile 34% of people said there should be a Scottish independence referendum within the next two years, with the same percentage saying there should "never" be one.

Scotland's coronavirus restrictions are set to be eased - but Scots have voiced fears about going back to life as it was before lockdown and the economic impact of the crisis.

By Daniel De Simone and Daniel SandfordBBC News James Furlong, David Wails, and Joseph Ritchie-Bennett were stabbed in a carefully planned knife attack on a warm June evening as the first lockdown was easing. The attacker was known to MI5, had told the government about his earlier involvement with a banned Libyan militia and had made threats to kill in the very year he carried out the attack in Forbury Gardens. Khairi Saadallah, 26, originally from Tripoli, came to the UK in 2012, having fought in the Libyan revolution as a teenager. When applying for asylum, he told Home Office officials he had been in the Islamist militant group Ansar al-Sharia - which would later be banned in the UK as a terrorist organisation - but lied by claiming he had not fought himself, saying: "I did not shoot or use any weapons. "I just helped them, plus guarded some hospitals." He described refusing to torture people and said a fatwa had subsequently been issued against him. In 2019, police recovered a mobile phone from Saadallah that he had used to view social-media images of himself in Libya as a boy, holding firearms, wearing military fatigues, and showing off bullets arranged into a letter "K" for "Khairi". By then, he had spent years in and out of prison for a range of violent offences, including: On one occasion, while being arrested, he called a female officer a "slave" and spat in her face, with the victim saying it was the "vilest thing" she had been subjected to in the police. Saadallah, who spent time in Manchester and Reading, lived a chaotic lifestyle involving periods of homelessness, as well as drug and alcohol misuse. While in jail in 2017, he was noted by the prison authorities to be spending significant time with the notorious Islamist radicaliser Omar Brooks, also known as Abu Izzadeen, a long-time member of the now outlawed group al-Muhajiroun. In 2019, MI5 was told Saadallah might wish to travel to Syria - but, after an assessment, he was discounted as a threat and therefore not investigated. Early last year, he successfully applied to the court of appeal to reduce a prison sentence, meaning he was eventually released eight months earlier than expected. He had been twice refused asylum but, following a judicial review in 2018, was granted leave to remain for five years. He had previously volunteered to leave the UK, but changed his mind. 'Rape Britain' The day before his release in June, two weeks before the attack, he was told in a letter that the home secretary had "decided that your deportation is conducive to the public good" but it was not legally possible given conditions in Libya. A fellow inmate, Anthony Bloomfield, says that, in the months before he was released, Saadallah: Speaking to BBC News, Bloomfield recalls Saadallah telling others: "People used to laugh at it as a joke," Bloomfield says. But maybe it was a "bit more serious than we took him for". Mental state On release, Saadallah returned to a flat in Reading and soon began preparing an attack, visiting Forbury Gardens, researching it online, and eventually buying a large knife in a local supermarket. The night before the attack, local officers visited Saadallah after his brother Aiman rang police to raise concerns about his mental state. Body-worn video from the two-minute encounter shows Saadallah reassuring the officers, who asked how he was feeling and whether he had enough food. "You're not in trouble," one officer told him. "We're just here to check you're all right." All the while, the carrier-bag containing the knife was visible on the floor behind Saadallah. 'Harming himself' His brother, Aiman, who raised the alarm, says his warning was "very serious". "I said that my brother was at risk of harming himself or others," he tells BBC News. "I asked for the police to detain him under the Mental Health Act because he was in no state to be left by himself. "I do believe that a lot could have been done. "And, if it had, lives would have been saved that day. "And I'm saying this not to defend my brother. "But I think victims and victims' families deserve to know the truth." Running swiftly The attack itself, on the evening of 20 June, was described by prosecutors as "ruthless and lethal", amounting to "highly effective executions" conducted so quickly that those who died had no idea what was happening. In 30 seconds, Saadallah murdered three men with single stab wounds and attempted to murder three others, running swiftly at different groups of friends sitting in the park. Prosecutors said the similarity of the three lethal wounds revealed training on Saadallah's part, whether "because of his military background in Libya or from his own research". He shouted: "Allahu Akbar [God is greatest]," as he attacked and again as he ran away into Reading town centre, where he was chased and arrested by unarmed police. 'Feign madness' Examined by psychiatrists, he was found to have no mental illness. Earlier symptoms suggesting otherwise had been short-lived and attributable to drug misuse at the relevant times, they said. The most recent report concluded: Saadallah pleaded guilty to his crimes but denied a terrorist motive. The judge rejected this and handed him a whole life order, meaning he will never be released from prison. The judge found Saadallah had committed a terrorist attack motivated by his Islamist extremist ideology. He said that Saadallah was not mentally ill. Previously, only one of those who killed Lee Rigby and the man who murdered Jo Cox have received whole life orders from judges for murders motivated by ideology. Inquests are expected to take place and will examine various issues, including how Saadallah was handled by the authorities. The judge said the victims "were doing no more" than enjoying one another's company on a summer's evening. Following sentencing, James Furlong's father Gary said there are "now serious questions that need answering" about how his son's attacker was free to kill.

The killer who murdered three friends in a Reading park last summer had a long history of violence.

Suffolk Police was paid £511,869 for keeping order on the streets around Portman Road, the club's owners said. They claim the force should not have demanded payment for policing the public areas surrounding the ground between 2008 and 2013. The case comes after Leeds United successfully sued West Yorkshire Police for match-day policing costs. A judge ruled charges could not be levied for policing public land on match days, but only for providing services on land under the club's control. A High Court writ issued by Ipswich Football Club Company Ltd said it had been the victim of "illegal charging" in relation to league, cup and friendly games since July 2008. Barrister Hugh Southey QC said the club signed two agreements with police to pay charges for "supply of special police services" on match days, ranging from £5,926 to £25,242 per match. Mr Southey said because the charges were levied for "public order policing on public land", Suffolk Constabulary had no legal power to collect them. He said the club had written to police to request reimbursement but "no substantive response" had been received. An Ipswich Town spokesman said: "The matter is with both respective legal advisors and the club has no further comment at this time." A Suffolk Police spokeswoman said the force was aware of action being taken but could not comment further "due to ongoing legal proceedings".

Ipswich Town is suing police for more than £500,000 of "illegal charging" for match-day policing costs.

The former Soviet republic was occupied by the Nazis between 1941 and 1944, when it lost 2.2 million people, including almost all of its large Jewish population. Belarus has been ruled with an iron fist since 1994 by President Alexander Lukashenko. Opposition figures are subjected to harsh penalties for organising protests. In 2005, Belarus was listed by the US as Europe's only remaining "outpost of tyranny". In the Soviet post-war years, Belarus became one of the most prosperous parts of the USSR, but with independence came economic decline. President Lukashenko has steadfastly opposed the privatisation of state enterprises, and the country is heavily dependent on Russia for its energy supplies. FACTS Republic of Belarus Capital: Minsk Population 9.5 million Area 207,595 sq km (80,153 sq miles) Major languages Russian, Belarussian (both official) Major religion Christianity Life expectancy 69 years (men), 79 years (women) Currency Belarussian rouble LEADERS President: Alexander Lukashenko Alexander Lukashenko, often referred to as Europe's last dictator, won a fifth term as president in October 2015, with no significant opposition candidate allowed to stand.But his next attempt at prolonging his rule was met with mass street protests in August 2020, demanding that he step down after an election that the opposition said was rigged. A former state farm director, Mr Lukashenko was first elected president in 1994, following his energetic performance as chairman of the parliamentary anti-corruption committee. He has managed a balancing act between Russia, his closest economic and political partner, and overtures to the West, while maintaining authoritarian rule at home. MEDIA Belarus has been heavily criticised by rights bodies for suppressing free speech, muzzling the press and denying the opposition access to state media. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) ranked Belarus 155th out of 180 countries in its 2018 World Press Freedom Index. TV is the main news source. The nine national channels are state-controlled. Their main competitors are Russian networks. Newspapers owned by the state vastly outnumber those in private hands. The internet is used by the opposition to make its voice heard. The government has sought to increase its online controls. Russia's VKontakte is the most popular social network. TIMELINE Some key dates in the history of Belarus: 1918 - Towards the end of the First World War, Belarus proclaims its independence as the Belarusian National Republic. 1919 - The Russian Red Army establishes communist rule in Belarus. 1921 - The Treaty of Riga divides Belarus between Poland and Soviet Russia. 1941-45 - Nazi Germany invades during the course of the Second World War. More than one million people are killed during the occupation, including almost all of the country's large Jewish population. 1986 - Belarus is heavily affected by the fall-out from the nuclear explosion at Chernobyl in neighbouring Ukraine. 1991 - Belarus declares independence as the Soviet Union breaks up. 1994 - Alexander Lukashenko elected president on a platform of fighting corruption and re-establishing close ties with Russia. 2020 - President Lukashenko faces mass protests after the opposition says the presidential election was rigged in his favour.

The present borders of Belarus were established during the turmoil of the Second World War.

By Jonathan AmosScience correspondent, BBC News Telescopes and satellites have reported seeing small but significant volumes of the gas, but the six-wheeled robot can pick up no such trace. On Earth, 95% of atmospheric methane is produced by microbial organisms. Researchers have hung on to the hope that the molecule's signature at Mars might also indicate a life presence. The inability of Curiosity's sophisticated instrumentation to make this detection is likely now to dent this optimism. "Based on previous measurements, we were expecting to go there and find 10 parts per billion (ppbv) or more, and we were excited about finding it. So when you go to search for something and you don't find it, there's a sense of disappointment," said Dr Chris Webster, the principal investigator on Curiosity's Tuneable Laser Spectrometer (TLS). The Nasa rover's search is reported online in a paper published by Science Magazine. Curiosity has been sucking in Martian air and scanning its components since shortly after landing in August 2012. From these tests, it has not been possible to discern any methane to within the present limits of the TLS's sensitivity. This means that if the gas is there, it can constitute no more than 1.3ppbv of the atmosphere - equivalent to just over 10,000 tonnes of the gas. This upper limit is about six times lower than the previous estimates of what should be present, based on the satellite and telescope observations. Deep down The number of 1.3ppbv is very low, and will put a question mark against the robustness of those earlier measurements. The fact that Curiosity is working at ground level and in one location should not matter, as the Martian atmosphere is known to mix well over the course of half a year. Methane at Mars could have a number of possible sources, of course - not just microbial activity. It could be delivered by comets or asteroids, or produced internally by geological processes. But it is the link to life that has most intrigued planetary scientists. Earth's atmosphere contains billions of tonnes of methane, the vast majority of it coming from microbes, such as the organisms found in the digestive tracts of animals. The speculation has been that some methane-producing bugs, or methanogens, could perhaps exist on Mars if they lived underground, away from the planet's harsh surface conditions. This theory was bolstered by the previous observations making their detections in spring-time. It was suggested that the seasonal rise in temperatures was melting surface ices and allowing trapped methane to rise into the atmosphere in plumes. But in Dr Webster's view, Curiosity's inability to detect appreciable amounts of methane now makes this scenario much less likely. "This observation doesn't rule out the possibility of current microbial activity, [but] it lowers the probability certainly that methanogens are the source of that activity," he told the BBC's Science In Action Programme. Or as team-member Prof Sushil Atreya, from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, put it: "There could still be other types of microbes on Mars. This just makes it harder for there to be microbes that kick out methane." 'Evolving story' Dr Geronimo Villanueva is affiliated to the Catholic University of America and is based at Nasa's Goddard Space Flight Center. He studies the Martian atmosphere using telescopes here on Earth. He cautioned that additional, much more precise measurements were needed from the rover before firm conclusions could be drawn. "This is an evolving story as we get more numbers," he told BBC News. "If Curiosity's statistics hold, it's important because it sets a new bound. Methane should last a long time in the atmosphere and the fact that the rover doesn't see it puts a big constraint on possible releases. But I would like to see more and better Curiosity results, and more orbiter results as well." Dr Olivier Witasse is the project scientist on the European Space Agency's (Esa) Mars Express satellite, which made the very first claimed methane detection back in 2003. He also said much more data was required. "There is some indication from the Mars Express data - and it has not been published yet because it's a very complicated measurement - that the methane might peak at a certain altitude, at 25-40km. The Curiosity results are interesting but they have not yet settled the issue." Esa has its ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter launching in 2016, which will be able to make further methane searches. And the Indian space agency (Isro) is due to despatch its Mangalyaan probe to the Red Planet later this year. This, too, has methane detection high on its list of objectives. Curiosity itself will work to improve its readings, and will shortly deploy an "enrichment" process that will amplify any methane signal that might be present. "We can lower that upper limit down to tens of parts per trillion, maybe 50 parts per trillion," said Dr Webster. [email protected] and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos

The Curiosity rover's failure to detect methane on Mars is a blow to theories that the planet may still host some types of life, say mission scientists.

Andrew Deluen, 33, of Blyth, was hit by a white Vauxhall Insignia just before 06:00 GMT on Monday while crossing Foremans Row in Seaton Delaval. Northumbria Police said he was then struck by another vehicle, a red Mazda 2. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Officers would like to hear from anyone who may have been on the A192 near to the Keel Row Pub at the time. Jake Dimmick, 26, of Elm Trees in Blyth, pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicle taking, dangerous driving, failing to provide a specimen and other document offences. He will sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court on 11 February. Related Internet Links Northumbria Police

A pedestrian who was killed in a crash in which he was struck by two cars in Northumberland has been named.

Andrew HardingAfrica correspondent@BBCAndrewHon Twitter In one sense Anglo American is simply reinforcing the tough line it has taken across the board against illegal, unsanctioned, and often violent strike action here. It is a move that will enrage some. The African National Congress's Youth League has already called it "irrational and illogical" and accused Amplats of spitting "on the graves of those who have lost their lives in the current mining climate". But for others, the move may be seen as a bold - and strategically wise - attempt to defend the carefully constructed and heavily politicised system of collective bargaining, which has been at the heart of South African labour policy since the end of apartheid and which has, over the past few weeks, seemed on the brink of collapse. The immediate priority for South Africa is to find a way to prevent the labour unrest becoming a contagion that could even spread to the country's vital public services sectors. In the longer term, many analysts believe that mine owners will give in to higher wage demands, but only by laying off tens, or possibly even hundreds of thousands of workers in a country already struggling with dangerously high levels of unemployment. As for the dismissals at Amplats - labour analyst Loane Sharp suspects there may be less to the move than meets the eye. "It's a hollow threat… a not uncommon tactic in South Africa," he said. "There's no way they could recruit and train another 12,000 workers. "Anglo will try to rehire those it wants to keep. It won't reappoint everyone."

The mass dismissals by Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) appear to be the most assertive move yet by management in a wider industrial crisis that has sent shock waves through South Africa's vital mining sector.

By Laurence CawleyBBC News The number of accidents reported to the Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) has also risen - up from 654 accidents in 2013 to 708 in 2017. Pilots who spoke to the BBC blamed the rise on increasingly busy skies. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said the UK safety record was "one of the best" in the world. The number of air proximity reports (airproxes), often referred to as "near-misses", rose by 58% from 172 in 2013 to 272 last year. The most serious incidents, classed as "category A airproxes", rose by more than 100% - from 22 in 2013 to 45 in 2017. The increase comes amid both a rise in air traffic generally and an uptake in the use of drones. In 2017 there were 93 near-misses involving drones. In 2013, the number was zero. Half of all category A near-misses in 2017 involved drones. The CAA said incident clusters around greater London and the home counties were a symptom of crowded skies. However, other clusters - such as those over East Anglia, Yorkshire and Lincolnshire - were caused by largely empty skies. "Pilots in this more open air space tend to relax and think they are in a much freer, more open, sky," said CAA spokesman Jonathan Nicholson. And that, he says, "can lead to an accident or an airprox". Hundreds of the more than 2,000 incidents investigated by the UK Airprox Board in the past decade involved military aircraft, including planes, helicopters, gliders, drones and even parachutists. Fighters at Suffolk's RAF Lakenheath have been involved in nearly 30 airproxes. Recent examples include two F15s coming within 500ft of a civilian B350 aircraft over Marham in Norfolk and an F15 passing close to a police drone at about 500mph (800km/h) on the edge of Dartmoor. But Colonel Donn Yates, who until July this year was responsible two squadrons of combat ready F-15s at Lakenheath, said he felt some airproxes were not as close as thought. He said even well-trained civilian pilots tended to underestimate the full size of an F15 fighter jet. "So when we see in reports people saying this person was 300ft or 500ft away in actuality we find the person was actually a mile or a mile-and-a-half away," he said. Not all accidents or near-misses looked at by the BBC happened over land. Many took place at sea. In 2013, a Super Puma helicopter ditched into the North Sea off Shetland with 18 workers from the Borgsten Dolphin platform aboard. Four people died. In the past three years the AAIB investigated six commercial helicopter accidents out on North Sea platforms - three of them in 2017 alone. Flying a helicopter in foul weather, says pilot Phil Breeze Lamb, is like "trying to balance a marble on top of an upturned bowl". "Off-shore is an obstacle rich environment," he said. "On a good day it can be a piece of cake. In bad weather, it is completely different." Flying instructor Paul Bazire, based at North Weald in Essex, has been involved in two airprox incidents and seen first-hand the result of a fatal accident that killed two men in 2014. He said the relatively high number of accidents and near-misses in the South East reflected the high level of activity there. "The skies in the South East are much more compressed than elsewhere," he said. Some of his customers come from as far away as Poland to fly in the South East precisely because the skies there are so busy. "It is said that if you can fly here, you can fly anywhere," Mr Bazire said. "Aviation in the UK is really safe," said Mr Nicholson of the CAA. "It is 20 times safer to fly in a light aircraft than to ride a horse." A decade ago, the CAA tried to get private pilots to fit their aircraft with transponders - devices that identify a craft to air traffic control. But the proposals met with strong resistance, he said, because of the costs pilots would have incurred fitting the devices. "When commercial airliners started fitting transponders (in the early 1990s) the numbers of near-misses completely dropped - in fact they almost disappeared - overnight," says Mr Nicholson. The CAA is poised to re-attempt getting pilots to fit much smaller safety devices, called transceivers, to their aircraft. The CAA has been working with technology firms to build the devices, which are far cheaper than they were 10 years ago. Trials of the devices are continuing. "I think we will see much more take up with the latest technology," said Mr Nicholson. See the full story on BBC Inside Out on Monday, 11 September, on BBC One in the east of England at 19:30 BST.

Private pilots are to be urged to fit new safety devices as BBC research reveals the number of near-misses in UK skies has risen by 60% in five years.

The preview for Pokemon Detective Pikachu shows the character covered in thick yellow fur, which some fans have called "grotesque" and "disgusting". While Pikachu has always been described as furry, it is the first time the character has been rendered in "life-like" 3D in an official capacity. Many fans liked the realistic fur. Pikachu appeared in the first Pokemon game, which was released in Japan in 1996. It quickly became a global phenomenon and has become one of the best-selling entertainment franchises of all time. Pikachu is an electric mouse and the animation series has previously showed the character with hair, albeit in a stylised and undefined way. The new Warner Bros film is the first official movie to integrate Pokemon characters in real-world settings with actors. Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds provides the voice for Pikachu, which has historically been voiced by Japanese actress Ikue Otani. While many fans questioned the hyper-realistic art style of the film, others pointed out that it reflected what Pokemon might look like in real life.

Pikachu has been the approachable face of the Pokemon franchise for more than 20 years, but a new film trailer has left some fans unsettled.

By Kevin PeacheyPersonal finance reporter The opportunity, perhaps, to delve into a work bag to pull out a lovingly crafted risotto or the leftovers of last night's curry. More likely is the dash to the nearest takeaway to grab something quick - probably a chicken sandwich - to bring back to the desk. The result, according to research, is an annual lunch bill of £667 a year, or £830 for those working in London. This simple choice may actually be a fairly decent indicator of how well off people are feeling and of consumers' changing tastes, experts say. Capital spending Millions of lunches were served from 260,000 outlets, with the food sector generating £44.9bn of sales in the UK in 2013, according to analysts Horizons. Emma Read, director of marketing and business development, says that as people feel they have more money in their pockets, they will start to eat out more for lunch - although their spending will be far from extravagant. "Outlets are riding the wave of coming out of recession, but consumers are also becoming more demanding," she says. If this is a sign of economic recovery, then research by analysts, the NPD Group, highlights that this is not being felt across the country. In the five years from the end of the recession in 2009, lunch visits to quick-service restaurants in London - including fast food outlets, bakeries and coffee shops - rose 17.1%. In the rest of Britain, it was up by only 4.4% over the same period. "Lunch purchased through the fast food channel in London has increased far faster than in the rest of Britain," the research says. Typically, customers each spend £3.53 on these lunches in London, and £2.84 in the rest of Britain, NPD research suggests. Making your own Such spending on pre-prepared lunches is "bonkers", according to Matthew Wood, director of Vouchercloud.com. Home-made packed lunches make far more financial sense, he believes. "With increasingly busy lifestyles, it is understandable to see why people are choosing convenience over economy," he says. "It is very easy to slip into a routine of popping to the shop to grab a sandwich rather than planning your weekly or monthly shops to incorporate the components of a homemade lunch, then taking the time to prepare it." In a further indication of how frantic some working lives have become, NPD research suggests that more than half of Londoners (52%) took their takeaway lunch to their desks, compared with just over a third (38%) in the rest of Britain. Top five London lunch-to-go items: Chicken sandwich: bought during 10.9% of visits to quick-service restaurants Bacon or BLT sandwich: 7.7% of visits Beefburger: 7% of visits Cheese/Veg sandwich: 6.6% Chips/French fries: 6.1% Source: NPD Group, year ending Aug 2014 New trends The sector seeing the sharpest sign of growth, says Mrs Read, is "fast casual" dining. This is a lunch typically priced at between £5 and £10 and slightly more "sophisticated" than a limited menu of choices under £5. Served quickly over the counter, it is often health-focused and includes Mexican or international cuisine. This was not hit as hard by the recession as the "casual dining" sector of sit-down lunches priced at between £10 and £20, she says. The adaptable nature of these restaurants also makes them attractive for growth in shopping centres, transport hubs, and even hospitals. While the simple chicken sandwich may be the most common lunch choice today, tomorrow's diners are more likely to choose from a range of ingredients to create their own personalised lunch. Technology has made the idea a much simpler proposition, says Mrs Read, with online options allowing people to specify want they want in their salads and sauces. Diners expect to be able to access wi-fi in the restaurant and they expect to order their lunch on a computer or smartphone while on the way from the office. They may also use discount schemes and online vouchers. The more demanding customer, she says, will want information about the ethical source of the food, whether it will be suitable for those with allergies, that it will encompass new flavours and that it can even be delivered to their desk at any time of day. And if they get all of that, they will not bother with a packed lunch when heading out to work or even a bland, takeaway chicken sandwich.

The morning's work is done. The stomach rumble cannot be ignored. It is time for lunch.

In late March, a parliamentary committee found the Harper government to be in contempt of parliament because of its failure to disclose the full costs of anti-crime programmes, corporate tax cuts and plans to purchase stealth fighter jets from the US. This was the first time in Canadian history that a government had been found to be in contempt of parliament. Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff then offered a no confidence motion, which passed by 156 votes to 145. That forced parliament to adjourn and compelled Prime Minister Stephen Harper to ask the Governor General, David Johnston, to dissolve the parliament. Mr Johnston issued the writs of election on 26 March, and the election will be held on 2 May. Why has Canada held four elections in seven years? Since the 2004 Canadian election, no party has won a majority of seats in the House of Commons. The two major parties, the Conservatives and the Liberals, have been forced to form minority governments, negotiating with opposition parties for their support on legislation. But minority governments are by their nature unstable, and both parties have had difficulties finding workable compromises. Mr Harper's entire tenure as prime minister - he won election in 2006 - has been at the helm of a minority government. His is the longest-serving minority government in Canadian history. One result of the large number of recent elections is concern among commentators about voter apathy. Turnout is expected to be low on 2 May. Who is Prime Minister Harper's main rival? Mr Harper is the leader of the Conservative Party, one of Canada's two main political parties. His opponent this year is Michael Ignatieff, head of the Liberal Party. Mr Ignatieff is a relative newcomer to Canadian politics having been first elected in 2006. He rose quickly, becoming Liberal leader in 2008. Prior to politics, Mr Ignatieff, a well known author, taught human rights at Harvard University in the US. He has also worked as a columnist and as a journalist on several BBC programmes. Mr Harper began the election with a significant lead over Mr Ignatieff in the polls. Mr Ignatieff has challenged Mr Harper to a one-on-one debate, in addition to the traditional multi-party debates. What are the major political parties? The two major political parties are the Conservatives, a centre-right party, and the Liberals, a centre-left party. There are also several smaller parties that in recent years have won enough seats to work with the dominant parties on an informal basis. The Bloc Quebecois, led by Gilles Duceppe, is currently the third largest party in the Canadian parliament. It is devoted to promoting the interests of the province of Quebec, and believes that Quebec should ultimately secede from Canada. The Bloc Quebecois is primarily supported by Quebec residents and campaigns actively there. The New Democratic Party (NDP), led by Jack Layton, is a social democratic party which has progressive policies on issues such as gay rights and health care. The Green Party, led by Elizabeth May, is a centre-left party which promotes environmental sustainability and non-violence. Ms May and the Greens have not been invited to participate in the candidate debates, prompting a lawsuit which experts say is unlikely to succeed. What are the major issues? Conservatives are seeking to make the economy the dominant issue in the election. Canada fared much better than the US during the recession, but unemployment is still high at 7.8%. Mr Harper has promised to provide tax breaks for corporations and manufacturers and tax credits to encourage small businesses to hire new workers. Mr Ignatieff opposes corporate tax reductions offered by Mr Harper, but Conservatives retort that eliminating the planned reduction in the corporate tax rate amounts to a tax increase, which would be harmful to the recovering economy. Liberals want to establish a cap-and-trade system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and are also seeking increased funding for social services including for poor seniors, carers and early childhood education. Mr Ignatieff has unveiled a plan to promote affordable housing and reduce homelessness. But the proposed funding comes from a public-private partnership fund for infrastructure investment which Liberals say is unproductive, but which city governments around the country argue is an important funding stream. The Liberals are also attempting to cast the debate as being over the honesty and integrity of government, highlighting the contempt of parliament ruling. The NDP is focused on health care, particularly access to doctors. It has criticised Mr Harper's perceived lack of action on the issue. In terms of foreign relations, Canada's ongoing commitment to the war in Afghanistan and its recent military engagement in Libya may become issues. What are the main battlegrounds? The key to a majority in any Canadian election is to win big in the populous provinces of Ontario and Quebec, which between them account for 181 of the 308 seats in the House of Commons.

Canadians will go to the polls in May to elect their fourth national government in seven years. BBC News looks at the candidates, parties and issues in play. What triggered the election?

Two high-tech cameras have been set up in farmers' fields in Conwy county and Ceredigion to show sheep and lambs roaming in the countryside. It is part of a campaign in Denmark to highlight the traditional methods of producing Welsh Lamb. It means Danes can now enjoy Wales at its best via "Lamb Cam". Hybu Cig Cymru - Meat Promotion Wales (HCC) also hope the cameras will show the high level of animal welfare at farms producing Welsh Lamb as they promote the meat in Denmark. One camera has been set up on sheep farmer Llyr Jones' land at Derwydd, near Corwen in Conwy county, with the other located at Mynydd Gorddu near Aberystwyth, Ceredigion. The video links are being promoted in Denmark as part of a marketing campaign and in supermarkets, where the live-stream will be broadcast. Mr Jones said the camera had been placed at the highest point on his farm's mountain, which gave views of Snowdonia. "I'm very excited to be able to share my untouched, special corner of the world with the people of Denmark," he added. "It would be impossible to fly the good people of Denmark to see my lambs here at Derwydd so this is an effective way of sharing our product with them." Annual sales of Welsh Lamb in Denmark have risen by as much as 25% year-on-year with an import of over 120 tonnes, according to HCC. Alex James, market development export executive for HCC, said that made the country a target market for the product. "Wales is perfect for producing quality Welsh Lamb with its unspoilt, luscious landscape, clean air, a temperate climate and mineral rich soils, all fed by a myriad of streams and rivers," he added. "The aim of the Lamb Cam is to share the excellence of this environment with the Danes so that they can also understand and appreciate what makes Welsh Lamb so special."

Counting sheep is being taken to a new level in Denmark where people will be able to watch the animals grazing in Wales via a 24-hour live stream.

Residents will be able to get parcels sent to a robot depot, which will notify them when they arrive and then deliver the item to their door. The scheme is being pioneered by Starship Technologies. The firm has already partnered with the Co-op in Milton Keynes to deliver groceries there. The new service is available through a mobile phone app, with residents living in the neighbourhoods covered in Milton Keynes able to have packages delivered to an address of their choice. Customers will pay a monthly subscription of £7.99 for an unlimited number of deliveries. Robot facts The robots: Once signed-up on the app, people will receive a "personal address" at the depot where parcels can be sent, to then be delivered by the robots. Lex Bayer, Starship's chief executive officer, said: "We're excited that thanks to our technology, local communities across Milton Keynes will never miss a home delivery again." Starship Technologies formed in July 2014 by two Skype co-founders, Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis, with Lex Bayer joining in June 2018 from Airbnb.

Hundreds of robots are to start to delivering packages to addresses across Milton Keynes, in one of the first full-scale uses of such technology.

The Hangover star will portray the physically deformed Joseph Merrick, whose true-life story inspired David Lynch's Bafta-winning 1980 film. Patricia Clarkson and Alessandro Nivola also appear in the play, which runs in New York until 21 February. It will then transfer to London for a limited season, beginning on 19 May. Cooper, 40, has been lauded by US critics for his performance in Bernard Pomerance's play, which was first staged in London in 1977. The actor, who was Oscar-nominated this month for his role in American Sniper, told the Daily Mail he was "bringing [Merrick] home". Rather than using prosthetics, as Sir John Hurt did in Lynch's film, Cooper contorts his body on stage in order to evoke Merrick's multiple physical deformities. "Every night I say goodbye to myself and I let him in," the actor told the Mail's Baz Bamigboye. Cooper was previously Oscar-nominated for his roles in Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle before receiving a third nomination this year, for playing a US military sharp-shooter in American Sniper. Directed by Scott Ellis, The Elephant Man will play at the Theatre Royal Haymarket until 8 August. Another American actor making his West End debut this spring is former Roseanne star John Goodman, who will be appearing alongside Damien Lewis in American Buffalo. Britain's Tom Sturridge completes the cast in David Mamet's tale of three small-time criminals planning a heist, which runs at the Wyndham's Theatre from 16 April to 27 June.

Three-time Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper is to play the Elephant Man in London following the critical acclaim he has received for the role on Broadway.

The authority had initially said it was looking at cuts of £70m in 2013-14, but said that figure was now £110m. Leader Sir Albert Bore said the situation was "much worse than we feared" after the Autumn Statement. Local Government Minister Brandon Lewis said "while Birmingham pleads poverty" it was hoarding £112m in reserves. Taxpayers are now being asked if they would pay more council tax to save services. Labour took over the running of the council, the UK's largest local authority, in May from a Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition. In October, the council said it was looking at a total of £600m of savings by 2017. Sir Albert warned at the time the authority could be facing an additional amount of tens of millions of pounds for next year, depending on reductions in direct government grants. He said he thought the council could see its grant money fall by £310m by 2016-17. The council has previously said it would have to look at decommissioning entire services to help meet the budget shortfall. Sir Albert said work had already started on the budget for 2014-15 and there would be a consultation on decommissioning services next year. He said: "It's going to get harder and harder and this is now a very different ball-game - no more salami-slicing - we are talking about removing services that the people of this city value. "When we are taking out, over six years, around 50% of the budget the council has control over then this will be reflected in the number and size of service cuts that we have to make. "It's not just that I regret having to bring a budget of this sort forward but I despair there is a lack of concern in government as to what the impact of their budget cuts are." 'More than double' Ravi Subramanian, West Midlands regional secretary for the union Unison, said: "These are cuts that have been imposed on Birmingham by this Tory-led government as part of their failed austerity measures." He said the average reduction in government funding for the country amounted to £74 per person, but Birmingham's reduction was "more than double" at £149. Last month the council revealed it would have to pay at least £757m to settle equal pay claims brought by mainly women who missed out on bonuses. However, it said that amount had been included in the budgets for the next few years. Last week, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council became the first in the West Midlands to say it was considering holding a referendum over higher council tax rates. Ministers have said that any authorities wanting to increase council tax by more than 2% must ask their electorates if they are willing to pay it. Birmingham City Council said it would now be looking at a similar consultation. Mr Lewis said next year's funding for councils would be announced shortly. He added: "Councils still account for a quarter of all public spending - £114bn of taxpayers money - so they must help act to reduce the inherited deficit. "This year, while Birmingham pleads poverty, it is hoarding £112m in reserves, getting almost £400 more per household than the national average to protect frontline services, been given a £1.5bn city deal, £22m Growing Places Funding, an Enterprise Zone and £7.5m in New Homes Bonuses." Mr Lewis said Chancellor George Osborne had exempted councils from the reductions government must make in 2013-14. He added: "This will give councils like Birmingham time to find sensible savings by transforming frontline service delivery as well as reducing fraud, procuring better and sharing back offices."

An extra £40m will have to be cut from Birmingham City Council's budget because of further government funding cuts and increased costs, leaders say.

The MoJ had said sex offenders would go to HMP Thorn Cross, near Appleton Thorn Primary School in Warrington, by 2019. However, following criticism from the local council and police and crime commissioner (PCC), a spokesman said the plan would not progress. Cheshire PCC David Keane said he hoped local residents "will be satisfied". An MoJ spokeswoman said the department had recognised the "concerns of the community" and "having reflected on these, and the specific concern about the immediate proximity of... a primary school, we have reviewed the decision and will not progress with this change". Warrington Borough Council's chief executive Prof Steve Broomhead said legal advice had been sought "to challenge the decision". He said there had been "no consultation" with residents, the authority or "anyone within the wider community" about the decision. Mr Keane said he was "pleased that the government has listened to the concerns of the local community... in regards to the impact this decision would have had on the local area". "Over the past week, I have spoken to many local residents who expressed deep concern over this decision and I hope they will be satisfied with this outcome and will continue to feel safe in their community," he added.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has decided not to go ahead with plans to house sex offenders in an open prison near a primary school.

The Socialist government also says it will present a draft law obliging MPs to declare their assets and introducing tougher penalties for financial fraud. Currently ministers only have to declare any conflict of interest. France's ex-Budget Minister Jerome Cahuzac has been charged with fraud over a secret Swiss bank account. He admitted last week that he had hidden about 600,000 euros (£509,000; $770,000) in a Swiss bank account, causing shock in France. The former conservative Prime Minister, Francois Fillon, declared his property on Monday evening. He said he had bought his home in Sarthe for 440,000 euros 20 years ago, and now valued it at about 650,000 euros. He said he had less than 100,000 euros in savings, in several bank accounts. He also said he had two cars, each more than 10 years old. President Francois Hollande was also embarrassed last week when it emerged that his former Socialist Party treasurer, Jean-Jacques Augier, had personal investments in two Cayman Islands offshore companies. Mr Augier, who managed Mr Hollande's campaign funds, insisted there was "nothing illegal" in his tax haven affairs. The conservative opposition says it is dissatisfied with the transparency measures announced so far and is demanding a thorough reshuffle of Mr Hollande's government. Mr Hollande had promised voters morality and integrity in public life after what were nicknamed the "bling-bling" years of his conservative predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy. But this year Mr Hollande's opinion poll ratings have slumped, as the country remains mired in recession with unemployment at 10.6%.

The French government says the value of ministers' assets will be published by 15 April in a new transparency drive, amid a scandal over tax evasion.

Nick RobinsonPolitical editor These are all words used by Westminster's party leaders to describe the idea of MPs receiving a pay rise much higher than those who elect them. However, under a law passed after the MPs expenses crisis they no longer vote on their own pay or allowances and there is no proposal to reverse that. Today the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has proposed that MPs salary should be £74,000 in 2015 - an increase of 11% compared with today. They're also proposing ending final salary pensions, significant cut backs to payments for those MPs who retire or lose their seats and a squeeze on expenses, including scrapping the dinner allowance, taxis home (other than for travel after 11pm) and money to pay for tea and biscuits for visitors. The overall package will still cost more than it does now although Ipsa says it's made huge savings already in their short life I've just interviewed the chairman of Ipsa Ian Kennedy about how he justifies his proposals: Ian Kennedy: "Why do it now? There is never a good time, that's the reason it has never been done and that's the reason that we are in the mess that we're in." Me: "You must know that millions of people will say that our pay is frozen or shrinking in real terms, you simply can't think of doing it now they say?" IK: "Well, they will and MPs' pay is currently frozen also - what we are charged by parliament to do is to look at this whole system of remuneration and say 'how we can get it right for the future' not just to deal with immediate political hiccups - there will always be those. It is getting it right for a generation, solving it, grasping the nettle and we say pay, pension, remuneration, resettlement and so on, taken together need to be addressed and addressed now." Me: "If the public say no to you in the consultation, if political leaders say no to you, will you listen?" IK: "Well, of course we will listen. What we will do having listened is for us." Me: "If party leaders say this is impossible or unthinkable, some say it is obscene, do you think that they are misjudging the public?" IK: "No, I say here we go again because we have heard it so many times as the reason why we shouldn't do anything, and that became a running sore in British political life - MPs deciding, politicians deciding their own pay?" Me: "What would the downside of saying not now, not the right time?" IK: "We're going to leave the generous pensions in place, we're going to leave the golden goodbyes in place, we're not going to change some of the expenses, we're not going to recommend an annual report that MPs should render to their electorate, those are all part of the package, they are important, they should be implemented and they go along with the recommendation of our pay."

"Impossible." "Unthinkable." "You can't have one rule for other people and another rule for MPs."

The men were part of a group of 58 suspects captured during a recent major army operation against the Islamist group around Lake Chad. An investigation has been launched after four autopsies showed a lethal substance had led to their deaths. The justice minister told AFP the prisoners had not been ill treated. Djimet Arabi was responding to allegations that the prisoners were placed in a single cell and given no food or water after their transfer to the capital, N'Djamena, on Tuesday. The military offensive was launched after jihadists killed nearly 100 Chadian troops on 23 March during a seven-hour attack on an island base in Lake Chad. It was the deadliest attack on the Chad's army by Boko Haram since their insurgency spread across the border from Nigeria several years ago. The prisoners, who were being held as part of an anti-terrorism investigation, had been found dead on Thursday morning, public prosecutor Youssouf Tom said. "Forty of them were buried and the other four were taken to a pathologist, whose report revealed that a lethal substance was consumed, leading to heart problems in some and severe asphyxiation amongst others," he announced on state television on Saturday. Mr Arabi confirmed to the AFP news agency that investigations were ongoing: "Was it collective suicide or something else? We're still looking for answers." One detainee, who was taken to hospital on Thursday, had recovered and rejoined the other 13 prisoners who were "still alive and doing very well", the justice minister added. The army has said its eight-day operation to flush out militants from hideouts on the islands of Lake Chad was successful. An army spokesman was quoted as saying that more than 1,000 jihadists were killed in the vast marshy area, which is surrounded by Chad, Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon. The Boko Haram insurgency began in north-eastern Nigeria more than a decade ago - and the violence has spread to neighbouring countries, killing more than 30,000 people and forcing two million from their homes, according to the UN. Despite regional efforts to end Boko Haram's campaign of violence, the group has stepped up its attacks in recent months.

Forty-four suspected Boko Haram militants in Chad have died in detention from apparent poisoning, the country's public prosecutor says.

By Paul O'HareBBC Scotland news website Two factory tragedies in the 1960s led to it being dubbed the "Tinderbox City". This century the roll call of major incidents include fires which destroyed three nightclubs. Remarkably, they all occurred within a mile of the blaze in the art school's Mackintosh building. That caught fire at about 23:20 on Friday - for the second time in four years. The flames quickly spread to nearby buildings, including the Campus nightclub and O2 ABC music venue, which suffered "extensive damage". Cheapside Street in 1960 - 19 firemen killed Half a century ago, a blaze at a whisky bond on Cheapside Street in Glasgow resulted in the deaths of more than a dozen firemen - making it Britain's worst peacetime fire services disaster. It broke out the evening of 28 March, 1960 and was fuelled by almost 4.5 million litres of whisky and more than 140,000 litres of rum. Fourteen firemen and five members of the Salvage Corps were killed instantly as it raged out of control. The men died after an explosion caused the bond's 20m high (60ft) walls to crash onto the street below. The flames spread to consume a tobacco warehouse, an ice cream factory and the Harland and Wolff engine factory. Crews fought the resulting fire for 11 hours until it was finally brought under control the following morning. In 2010 James Dunlop, one of the firefighters who survived, paid his respects at a memorial to mark the 50th anniversary. He was awarded the George Medal for bravery for rescuing a colleague who had been blown off a turntable platform above the fire. He said: "It was a very sudden and unexpected explosion that took us by surprise. "It took us a few moments to realise that it had occurred. "To me it wasn't scary after that. "There was a determination to beat this fire. "Now I'm older I feel it even more deeply, the sad loss of colleagues and people I was fond of - our team." James Watt Street in 1968 - 22 lost their lives Later this year, the 50th anniversary of the worst fire in Glasgow's history will be remembered. On 18 November, 1968, a blaze devastated a factory on James Watt Street. The building, which housed an upholstery business and a glass company, was a former whisky bond and had bars on its windows which prevented many workers from escaping. As a result 22 people lost their lives and only three people who were in the factory escaped alive. Both fires earned Glasgow a reputation as the "Tinderbox City", a term coined by newspapers. Sadly, it still applies more than half a century on. More devastation in 2004, 2014 and 2018 In 2004 two popular Glasgow nightclubs Trash and The Shack were destroyed in a fire, less than 200 yards from the Art School. The popular student haunts were housed in the A-listed former Elgin Place Congregational Church building. The fire broke out on 26 November, the morning after The Shack celebrated its fourth birthday. It left behind a charred shell which had to be demolished. Mother nature has also left its mark on the area. In 1998 the steeple of Renfield St Stephen's Church in Bath Street collapsed and smashed into the roof below after the city was battered by 93mph winds. Glasgow School of Art in 2014 - first major fire In a cruel coincidence Friday's fire is the second to hit the Art School in four years. At about 12:30 on Friday 23 May, 2014 fire crews were scrambled to the A-listed Mackintosh building. Eyewitnesses said the fire appeared to have started when a projector exploded in the basement. Final year students had been preparing for their end-of-year degree show in the building when the blaze broke out. The main fire was extinguished by about 17:00 but there were still pockets of flames within the building. The iconic library, recognised as being one of the finest examples of art nouveau in the world, was lost in the fire. An investigation later concluded the fire was caused by flammable gases from a canister of expanding foam. Sauchiehall Street in 2018 - Victoria's Nightclub goes up in flames Just three months ago a major blaze swept through a block on Sauchiehall Street, less than half a mile from the Art School. It housed businesses including Victoria's nightclub. The flames took hold in the roof of the building at about 08:20 on Thursday 22 March. One of the first priorities was stopping the fire spreading to the 114-year-old Pavilion Theatre. At the height of the blaze, more than 120 firefighters and 20 fire engines were mobilised to the city centre. Glasgow City Council later confirmed the buildings at 92-96 and 98-106 Sauchiehall Street will have to be demolished. Glasgow has proved its resilience in overcoming many disasters over the years. But the latest Art School blaze, which looks to have have destroyed all the painstaking restoration work since 2014, presents a daunting new challenge.

The devastating Art School fire is the latest to occur in a small part of Glasgow which has witnessed some of Scotland's most dramatic blazes.

Both UK and EU undergraduates starting their studies at the university from 2012 will be charged. Dr Paul Hartley, the university's vice-chancellor, said the fee was agreed following market research and was "both sustainable and affordable". Cassie Agbehenu, from the university's Students' Union said the fees would "massively put people off" going there. The university will be supporting bursaries for students from low-income households. 'Changing needs' Universities across England are introducing tuition fees of between £6,000 and £9,000 to cope with cuts in government funding. Dr Hartley said: "The proposed fees structure will allow Gloucestershire to continue its significant investment in widening participation and we are equally committed to investing in our student experience, teaching and learning and employability. "We have an established tradition of providing education, training and support to generations of students from a wide variety of backgrounds and we have developed this in line with the changing needs of our local community and economy. "We agreed this fee following extensive market research and we consider this to be both sustainable and affordable." The proposals are subject to approval by the Office for Fair Access. 'Severely dashed' Ms Agbehenu, education and welfare officer at the Students' Union, said she understood why the level of fees was so high but it could affect where people choose to study. "I completely understand [the university's] position in terms of the majority of their funding being completely slashed away, but I definitely think it will play a role in the way students choose their university," she said. "I think it will massively put people off. I know it would have put me off. My hopes of going to university would have been severely dashed. "It's the students' right to demand a high level of academic provision, a high level of student experience and a high level of care from the university. The fees they will be paying mean they have the right to demand such things."

The University of Gloucestershire has announced plans to charge students £8,250 per year in tuition fees.

Police say tens of thousands of people in paedophile networks viewed the pictures that Jörg L, 43, posted on the Swiss secure messaging service Threema. A raid on his home last October in Bergisch Gladbach, near Cologne, led police to investigate dozens more alleged paedophiles. His wife will testify against him. Eighty-seven suspected paedophiles have been identified in all 16 German states as a result of this case, and 50 children, aged from three months to 15 years, have been removed from abusive parents. Three investigators traumatised by the images have taken sick leave. Court spokesperson Michaela Brunssen said Jörg L "is alleged to have committed sexual violence, sometimes severe violence, against his daughter in 61 cases". German media say 130 investigators are still combing through terabytes of video and image files in this case. For legal reasons Jörg L's full name has not been given and, in order to protect his young daughter, his testimony and that of his wife will be given behind closed doors. The trial is expected to last 11 days and Jörg L could face 15 years in jail. As many as 30,000 people are believed to be linked to the paedophile chat groups under investigation. Some of the online chats had up to 1,800 participants at a time. The indictment says Jörg L met up with one chat partner several times and they sexually abused each other's children. In May that man, a 27-year-old former Bundeswehr soldier, was sentenced to 10 years in jail for severe sexual abuse. Germany, and specifically North Rhine-Westphalia, has been rocked by several recent child abuse scandals:

A cook has gone on trial in Cologne accused of sexually abusing his baby daughter, in Germany's biggest post-war paedophile investigation.

The bank - which is still 62% government-owned - has paid a 2p dividend to investors, which include about 190,000 private shareholders. RBS chief executive Ross McEwan said the payment was an "important milestone" in the bank's turnaround. The bank received an emergency £45bn bailout from the taxpayer in 2008. Earlier this year, the government sold a tranche of RBS shares at 271p each, almost half the 502p a share it paid for them 10 years ago. 'Smaller, safer bank' RBS had said in August that it intended to pay a dividend, as soon as it had completed its $4.9bn (£3.8bn) settlement with the US Department of Justice over mortgage-backed securities. Announcing the payment of the dividend, Mr McEwan said it was "a small return" to shareholders "after their many years of patience". "This is another important milestone in our turnaround, almost 10 years to the day that RBS was rescued by the British taxpayer," he said. "We have created a smaller, safer bank that is generating more sustainable profits. Our capital position is above our target and we are also looking to return any excess capital as soon as possible to shareholders." Earlier this week, Mr McEwan told the BBC that while RBS's finances may now be fixed, there remained a long way to go in terms of rebuilding levels of trust in the bank. "I think it will take five - maybe even 10 - years to rebuild trust to where we'd want it to be," he said.

Royal Bank of Scotland has paid its first dividend to shareholders since the bank was brought to the brink of collapse in the 2008 financial crisis.

The Office for National Statistics said the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) was 1.8% last month, from 2.1% in December. January's fall, partly offset by higher air and ferry fares, was bigger than economists' forecasts and comes as latest data shows wages rising by 3.3%. Inflation peaked at a five-year high of 3.1% in November 2017, and was last at 1.8% was in January 2017. Economists had forecast that CPI would fall in January to 2%, the Bank of England's inflation target. Why is inflation falling? Mike Hardie, ONS head of inflation, said: "The fall in inflation is due mainly to cheaper gas, electricity and petrol, partly offset by rising ferry ticket prices and air fares falling more slowly than this time last year." Ofgem's energy price cap, which came into effect from 1 January 2019, helped drive down inflation, the ONS said. However, that cap is being raised and this is likely to feed into future CPI figures. The ONS said that petrol prices were also down by 2.1% per litre between December 2018 and January 2019 due to falling crude oil prices. Hotel and restaurant prices were also lower while prices of women's and children's clothing saw larger price drops than a year earlier. What does it mean for the cost of living? As wages are rising at 3.3%, Tej Parikh, senior economist at the Institute of Directors, said the lower inflation was a "boon" for the economy as it attempts to weather the effects of uncertainty. "For the past two years, households have been squeezed between high prices and weak wage growth. With inflation now at a two-year low and growing upward momentum in pay packets, consumers are likely to feel less of a pinch on their wallets. "This easing in the cost of living should provide some uplift for the High Street just as consumer confidence appears to be waning," Mr Parikh said. Ian Stewart, chief economist at Deloitte, also highlighted the potential relief for retailers. He said falling inflation alongside rising earnings was "delivering a powerful uplift to spending power". "Brexit dominates at the moment but were Brexit risks to ease, consumers would be well placed to hit the High Street," he added. Will inflation keep falling? Some economists think it is unlikely that inflation will fall much more. For instance, Ofgem's energy price cap may not suppress inflation for long, as the cap is due to rise in April. Andrew Wishart, UK economist at Capital Economics, said: "The fall in CPI inflation below the Bank of England's 2% target for the first time in two years in January provides a further boost to households' real spending power, but we doubt inflation will fall any further." Much could depend on the course of the Brexit negotiations, according to Howard Archer, chief economic advisor to the EY Item Club. "Domestic inflationary pressures are expected to pick-up only modestly over the coming months amid likely limited UK growth," said Mr Archer. Assuming there is a Brexit deal, he said inflation could stay below 2% this year - and even dip to 1.6%. If there is not a deal, Mr Archer said the picture would be different and the Bank of England could cut interest rates as "economic activity would likely take a significant hit". Analysis: Andy Verity, economics correspondent: We are used to hearing that our living standards have been hit by a nasty combination of above-target inflation, driven by rising energy prices, and weak pay rises. So it's refreshing to hear that has gone into reverse. The biggest driver of lower inflation, now below the Bank of England's 2% target for the first time in two years, was energy. Gas and electricity prices fell, between December 2018 and January 2019, by 8.5% and 4.9%. The price cap had an effect (although prices may soon rise as the cap rises). But there's also little inflationary pressure coming down the pipeline - for example, from higher raw material costs for producers. With pay, at the last count, rising by 3.3% living standards are now rising faster than they have since November 2016. Just because, collectively, we are now in an economic slowdown, doesn't mean we each, individually, are getting worse off. How does it compare with wage rises? Economists would usually expect higher wages and a lower unemployment rate - data last month showed job vacancies are at a record high of 853,000 - to push up the rate of price increases. Ben Brettell, senior economist at Hargreaves Lansdown, said the data showed the "continued breakdown of the relationship between the labour market and inflation". "Theory dictates that a tight labour market, low unemployment and higher wage growth, should lead to higher inflation. This means policymakers face a straight trade-off between inflation and unemployment. "But at present the inflation genie is still firmly in the bottle, despite unemployment at multi-decade lows. This has made the Bank of England's job much easier over the past few years," Mr Brettell said.

UK inflation fell to a two-year low in January, dragged lower by falling energy bills and fuel.

The image of one man standing in the way of a column of tanks, a day after hundreds possibly thousands of people died, has become a defining image of the 1989 pro-democracy protests. Cole won the 1990 World Press Photo award for his picture. He had been living in Bali, Indonesia, where he died last week, aged 64. Cole was one of four photographers that captured the scene on 5 June 1989. He took his picture for Newsweek with a telephoto lens from the balcony of a hotel, framing it so the man was only just in the bottom left corner. Cole later described how he had expected the man would be killed, and felt it was his responsibility to record what was happening. But the unidentified protester was eventually pulled away from the scene by two men. What happened to him remains unknown. A symbol of peaceful resistance Cole knew he would be searched later by Chinese security so hid the undeveloped film roll in the bathroom. Shortly after he took it, officials broke through the door and searched the hotel room, but they did not discover the film. The scene as shot by him and the other three photographers went on to become an iconic symbol of peaceful resistance across the world. Thirty years ago, Beijing's Tiananmen Square became the focus for large-scale protests, calling for reform and democracy. Demonstrators had been camped for weeks in the square, but late on 3 June, the military moved in and troops opened fire. China has only ever said that 200 civilians and security personnel died, but there has been no publicly released record of deaths. Witnesses and foreign journalists have said the figure could be up to 3,000. Tiananmen is still a heavily censored topic in modern China, and the Tank Man pictures are banned.

Charlie Cole, one of the photographers who captured the famous Tank Man on film during the Tiananmen Square protests, has died.

President Castro said the US should drop its demand for regime change on the communist-run island. That would allow both sides to continue work on improving relations, he said. Mr Castro's comments follow a public handshake with President Obama at the memorial ceremony for Nelson Mandela in South Africa earlier this month. In a rare public speech, Mr Castro said Cuban and American officials had met several times over the last year to discuss practical matters, such as immigration and the re-establishment of a postal service. That shows that relations can be civilised, Mr Castro explained. But he warned: "If we really want to make progress in bilateral relations, we have to learn to respect each other's differences and get used to living peacefully with them. Otherwise, no. We are ready for another 55 years like the last." The US broke off relations in 1961, two years after the revolution, and maintains an economic embargo against the island. Raul's reforms "We do not ask the United States to change its political and social system, nor do we agree to negotiate over ours," Mr Castro told legislators at the closing session of the parliament in the capital, Havana. Relations between the two neighbours have shown signs of improvement of late, although some stumbling blocks to reconciliation remain, said the BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Havana. Raul Castro, 82, took over from his brother, Fidel, in 2006. Fidel had serious health problems and was never able to come back to power. Two years later, he resigned and transferred control permanently to Raul Castro. He has since carried out a programme of economic reforms, which has helped efforts for relations with the US to be improved. But critics say the pace of change has been too slow. "The reform process in Cuba cannot be rushed or it will lead to failure," Mr Castro warned. Among the most recent changes announced by Raul Castro is the end of restrictions on private individuals to buy new and second hand cars. Anyone with enough money will be allowed to order the vehicles from a government dealer. Until now, only those who were given a previous government authorisation were allowed to buy cars in Cuba.

Cuban President Raul Castro has called for "civilised relations" with the United States, saying the two countries should respect their differences.

By Jim TaylorNewsbeat reporter The New Jersey group formed in 2001 and have released four albums together. They posted a message on their website which said: "Being in this band for the past 12 years has been a true blessing. "We've gotten to go places we never knew we would. "We've been able to see and experience things we never imagined possible." The message continued: "We've shared the stage with people we admire, people we look up to, and best of all, our friends. "And now, like all great things, it has come time for it to end. "Thanks for all of your support, and for being part of the adventure." Frontman Gerard Way also tweeted: "Beyond any sadness, what I feel the most is pride." The band's 2005 record The Black Parade reached number two in the UK album chart and the accompanying track Welcome to the Black Parade made it to number one in the singles chart. In 2011 the group played Radio 1's Big Weekend in Carlisle, and headlined Reading and Leeds festivals where they were joined on stage by Queen guitarist Brian May. Later in the year, they sacked their drummer Michael Pedicone, after accusing him of stealing from them. He later admitted to making a "tremendous mistake".

US rockers My Chemical Romance have announced they are splitting up.

The council said the move was part of a package to save £3.6m over the next three years. It also proposes cutting 80 jobs and raising council tax by 2%. Martyn Rawlinson, cabinet member for resources, said the authority could not continue paying the subsidy but it would be difficult to find a new owner. A public consultation is taking place ahead of a meeting on 27 February. Mr Rawlinson said the Guild Hall was very costly to run and the council faced a dilemma. He said: "There are very few people out there, if any, who would want to take it on without a subsidy and that doesn't really meet our budget needs. "We've got a real problem on our hands, we have to reduce the budget thanks to government cuts but we don't want to lose Preston's arts and culture hub." Demolition option He said closing the hall was a possibility when the subsidy ends on the 31 March 2015 but the council would look at all other options. He said mothballing the hall would still cost the council £500,000 a year and would be a disaster for Preston. Mr Rawlinson said demolition was also an option. The Guild Hall opened in 1972 and, during the 1970s and 1980s, some of the biggest names in rock, including Led Zeppelin, David Bowie and Queen, played its Grand Hall, which was once the regular host of the UK Snooker Championships. But a 2,000 capacity is now considered too small for many major bands and too big for smaller acts. Council leader Peter Rankin said the council had done everything possible to protect services but the scale of the cuts it was facing meant all council services were going to be affected. He added: "All I can say to the public and to the people losing their jobs is, if the money isn't there, the money isn't there." Street cleaning, parks, pest control, and community support officers will be cut back during the next year, with cuts made across every service over the following two years. Mr Rankin also said job cuts in 2017/18 could see compulsory redundancies.

Preston City Council could end its annual £1m subsidy to Preston Guild Hall, throwing its future into doubt.

Bob Bayford, Tory leader of Thanet District Council, had accused Labour councillor Mike Harrison of a gross breach of conduct. The remarks are said to have contained offensive comments about the prospective chairman of a committee. Mr Harrison has been suspended from the Thanet Labour group for one month. Councillor Clive Heart, leader of the Labour group on the council, said: "Following a thorough internal investigation of recent events leading to him receiving a letter of advice from the police, councillor Mike Harrison has been suspended from Thanet Labour group for one calendar month." The remarks that sparked the complaint were made in a public forum on Facebook. Mr Harrison said his Facebook account had been hacked into in an attempt to discredit him. A subsequent post from Mr Harrison said he thought he might have been "fraped" - a term for when someone edits Facebook without permission. The post said: "I have seen a copy of what purports to be part of a conversation between me and a friend on here. "We are talking about fishing (what else) bar-b-q's and my upcoming holiday, why on earth would I suddenly insert into that conversation some pretty unpleasant remarks?"

A Kent councillor accused of using offensive and homophobic language on the social networking site Facebook, has been suspended.

Police have yet to identify the man who was struck on the westbound carriageway between J7A and J8 Baillieston at about 20:45 on Thursday. He is described as white and aged between 35 and 60. He was wearing a black Karrimor jacket, black jogging bottoms and black and grey Nike trainers. Officers have appealed for anyone who saw the incident or may have dash-cam footage to contact them. Sgt Scott Sutherland, of Motherwell Road Policing Unit, said: "We have yet to find out who the man is and also why he was walking on the carriageway."

A man has died after being hit by "several" cars as he walked on the M8 motorway near Glasgow.

The company intends to increase the number of drive-through coffee outlets, typically found at motorway service stations, from nine to 200. It also plans to open another 100 High Street coffee shops. This week thousands of jobs have been announced by service sector companies, including pubs chain Marston's, and Hilton hotels. The announcement comes two weeks after official figures revealed youth unemployment had exceeded one million, and was welcomed by Prime Minister David Cameron, who said it was a "great boost to the British economy". Kris Engskov, managing director of Starbucks UK & Ireland, said the expansion plans would particularly benefit the young unemployed as half the chain's coffee shop staff are under 24 years old.

US coffee giant Starbucks plans to expand further in the UK, creating 5,000 UK jobs over the next five years.

Konstantin Dimitrov told Channel 5 News Bulgarians could not legally be denied access to labour markets once controls were lifted in January. The UK government has not revealed how many migrants it expects to come. Pressure group MigrationWatch UK expects 50,000 people to come from the two countries each year for five years. Restrictions on migration from Bulgaria and Romania are set to end in 2014. Asked about how many Bulgarian migrants the UK could expect, Mr Dimitrov said: "Maybe 8,000 immigrants a year judging on tendency for this year." The ambassador denied his government was encouraging people to seek work abroad, saying his country was hurt by the "brain drain" of qualified doctors and nurses, financiers and entrepreneurs. 'Within the law' He also rejected the idea they were "stealing" the jobs of people in the countries which they migrated to. "If you are member of the EU there is a competition of all job offers at stake. It's a matter of skills, motivation of people and everyone should compete for jobs offers on an equal basis if every applicant is a citizen of a member of the EU," he said. Earlier, Downing Street confirmed it was considering extending the time that EU migrants needed to have spent in the UK before they could qualify to receive benefits. It came after reports Prime Minister David Cameron wanted to quadruple the period from three months to a year. Mr Cameron's official spokesman said the government was looking at whether "more could be done" but he said he could not "speculate about possible timings or measures". He also dismissed reports the prime minister was ready to defy EU rules - which prevent member states from discriminating between their own citizens and those from other EU members - in order to impose tougher conditions. "The government acts within the law," he said. On Sunday, Education Secretary Michael Gove said Mr Cameron had "struck exactly the right note on migration". Lib Dem MP and Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael warned any change in the UK's approach should be discussed in Europe. A recent European Commission study found that jobless EU migrants made up a very small share of those claiming social benefits in EU member states. In most of the EU countries studied the portion of EU migrants among welfare beneficiaries was below 5%.

Around 8,000 migrants a year from Bulgaria could come to the UK when EU restrictions on their movement end, the country's ambassador has said.

The government plans to ask most visitors to isolate for 14-days. Initially, the quarantine - which is expected to come into effect in early June - will be "a blanket solution", Grant Shapps said. However, countries with a low infection rate could be exempted from the rules in the future, he said. Mr Shapps promised the final details of the quarantine plans would be "released soon" and said there were "active discussions" on the policy. Ministers have indicated that Ireland will be exempt. However, the proposed rules have already attracted the anger of some senior figures in the aviation industry. 'Idiotic' Airlines worry that people would be put off flying if they are required to self-isolate at a private residence for two weeks once they arrive in the UK. Earlier on Monday, the boss of Ryanair, Michael O'Leary, described the quarantine plans as "idiotic". He said the policy had "no credibility" and predicted that it would be gone by June. "It's idiotic and it's un-implementable. You don't have enough police in the UK," he told BBC's Today programme. Speaking in the Commons, Mr Shapps said: "We should indeed consider further improvements, for example things like air bridges enabling people from other countries who have themselves achieved lower levels of coronavirus infection to come to the country." "So those are active discussions but will go beyond what will initially be a blanket situation." Greece has called for an exemption from the proposed quarantine rule. Speaking to the BBC's Coronavirus Newscast, the country's tourism minister, Harry Theoharis, urged the UK not to require Greeks to isolate when they arrive. In return, he said, Brits could enter Greece. Last week, the government was forced to deny that travellers from France would be exempted from the planned coronavirus quarantine measures. Initially, a joint statement from the British and French governments said no quarantine measures would apply. "No quarantine measures would apply to travellers coming from France at this stage; any measures on either side would be taken in a concerted and reciprocal manner," says the statement, which was published on the government's website on 10 May. "A working group between the two governments will be set up to ensure this consultation throughout the coming weeks." The policy attracted a warning from the EU not to single out one nation, while some experts suggested it would prove unworkable. But on Friday, the prime minister's spokesman insisted there was no French exemption, and that the original statement referred to the need for cooperation to manage the common border between the two countries.

The transport secretary has said people arriving in the UK from countries with low coronavirus infection rates could be exempt from new quarantine rules.

Mark DevenportPolitical editor, Northern Ireland@markdevenporton Twitter Failure to reach a compromise would have meant the executive's so called "fantasy budget" would have run out at some point before the start of the next financial year. Before we had reached that point, the key players would probably have walked away and Westminster would have had to reinstate direct rule. Fans of this deal may point out that, for all Stormont's drawbacks, a recent BBC RTÉ survey showed continued devolution to be the most favoured option in the short to medium term - backed by 42% of those interviewed in Northern Ireland. It also claimed the agreement has secured an extra £500m for the Stormont budget. However, critics insist the "Fresh Start" is - in the words of the Alliance party - a false dawn. The most obvious weakness is the failure to agree how to deal with the legacy of the Troubles. There is no sign of any end to the deadlock between the government and republicans about whether "national security" is a valid reason to withhold the disclosure of sensitive information to victims' families. Welfare changes On paramilitarism, the DUP has settled for less than the old Independent Monitoring Commission. After the murder of former IRA member Kevin McGuigan, DUP politicians demanded Sinn Féin's exclusion from the executive. But the new four strong international body won't - unlike the old IMC - have the power to recommend any similar sanction. That's why the TUV says the deal has "swept murder under the carpet". On welfare reform, Sinn Féin may have hoped the UK's voters would elect a Labour led government back in May, which might have offered them a better deal. Instead, they got the Conservatives and George Osborne's determination to lower the benefit cap and cut tax credits. The new mitigation package of £585m will be funded from the Stormont budget. On the face of it, the package looks £20m more generous than the one agreed last Christmas. But it is being divided between those impacted by tax credits, who will get £240m in payments and those hit by the welfare changes, who will have to make do with £345m - less than was on the table for the same group last year. This two party two government deal is bound to face criticism from those who did not negotiate it. But the DUP and Sinn Féin have the votes necessary to push it through. When voters cast their verdicts next May, will they be most struck by the image of the First and Deputy First Ministers now pledging to work together? Or will the chaos and deadlock of the last ten weeks be foremost in their minds?

After 10 weeks of negotiations the "Fresh Start" deal means that once again Stormont's politicians have pulled back from the edge of the precipice.

By Mark SavageBBC Music reporter Nasir Bockarie's father died in the Royal Berkshire Hospital on 8 December, the day Nasir graduated. He sent Stormzy a message saying he and his father had both loved the song Blinded By Your Grace, and invited him to sing at the funeral. "Don't worry if you can't," he added. "I just thought I'd try my luck". To his surprise, Stormzy replied. After they exchanged private messages, Nasir posted a message saying: "All done bro! I'm actually speechless, praise god for humanity." His cousin, Mariama Kallon, later tweeted that she was "in shock" after finding out about the star's generosity. "I don't want to hear any slander about this man ever because I don't know many people who have a soul to match his," she wrote. The funeral took place in Reading on 21 December and, sure enough, Stormzy kept his promise. After the service, one of the mourners tweeted a photograph of the star, whose real name is Michael Omari, standing at a pulpit in front of a picture of Mr Bockarie. "Massive respect for @Stormzy1 for honouring this," he added. "God Bless You." Ms Kallon told the BBC that Stormzy had arrived with "a few members of his team" and performed Blinded By Your Grace, "a family favourite". "Family events for us are very special, whether it be a funeral or wedding," she added. "We try to find the positive out of everything and that can be hard at funerals, especially with younger family members. "We did the best to give my uncle a memorable send-off and of course Stormzy really made that happen. "We're so grateful and our family will be praying for him always." A publicist for Stormzy confirmed to the BBC that he had attended the service. Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected].

Stormzy has turned up to perform at the funeral of a fan's father after spotting a message on Twitter.

The report, revealed by the BBC, into deaths at Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust blamed a "failure of leadership". The chief executive, Katrina Percy, has said sorry. She also criticised the report and refused to resign. On Thursday, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said he was "profoundly shocked" by the report. It was ordered in 2013, after 18-year-old Connor Sparrowhawk drowned in a bath following an epileptic seizure while a patient at Southern Health hospital in Oxford. An independent investigation said his death had been preventable and an inquest jury found neglect by the trust had contributed to his death. His mother, Sara Ryan, had earlier told BBC News that behaviour of the trust was "barbaric". Mental health The trust is one of the country's largest mental health trusts, covering Hampshire, Dorset, Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire and providing services to around 45,000 people. Ms Percy has been in charge since it was established. Responding to the report, she told the BBC: "I'm really sorry that we haven't got some of our investigations right in the past, clearly that's the case. "I'm really sorry to anybody who has to lose a loved one in our care." The leaked report, which was passed to BBC News, looked at all deaths at the trust between April 2011 and March 2015. During that period, it found 10,306 people had died. Most of these deaths were expected but 1,454 were not. Of those, 272 were treated as critical incidents, of which just 195 - 13% - were treated by the trust as a serious incident requiring investigation (SIRI). Ms Percy also refuted some of the reports findings, saying: "Unfortunately the people writing the report haven't looked at our numbers appropriately and I can absolutely guarantee members of the public that any death that happens in our hospitals, or in one of our inpatient units, that's unexpected - is fully investigated and has been fully investigated. "I want to reassure people that our organisation is not an outlier in terms of the number of deaths." And she insisted she would not resign: "My job is to lead an organisation and make sure we have the right environment for our doctors and nurses, that's my job and I'm continuing to do that at the moment." Key findings from the report The report also found that the likelihood of an unexpected death being investigated depended hugely on the type of patient. The most likely group to be looked into were adults with mental health problems, where 30% were investigated. 'Unfinished business' For those with learning disabilities the figure was 1% and among over-65s with mental health problems it was only 0.3%. Mr Hunt told the Commons that the culture change required in the NHS remained "unfinished business" from the Mid Staffs scandal. "The fundamental question that we all need to reflect on is why is it that we don't currently have the right reporting culture in the NHS when it comes to unexpected deaths," he said.

The head of an NHS body that failed to investigate the unexpected deaths of more than 1,000 people has apologised.

By Malcolm SeniorBBC News The London talks, organised by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), settled on a plan to align the industry with the Paris climate treaty. Scientists say ships are a key source of pollution, producing a billion tonnes in CO2 emissions each year. Shipping was left out of the original Paris negotiations in 2015. But three years later, the IMO agreed it had to act to make the sector comply with the landmark climate deal, which aims to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases in order to limit global temperature rise. Emissions of carbon dioxide from shipping represent about 3% of the global total. The new rules set guidelines to make ships more efficient in how they operate and in so doing reduce their emissions, in line with Paris targets. Tuesday's proposals were overwhelmingly backed by the majority of the delegates to the meeting. But with little enthusiasm. Delegate after delegate complained about the lack of ambition of the plans and that, at best, today's outcome was "a small step". Britain's representative at the talks, Katy Ware, summed up the mood of many who supported the new rules. She said: "The UK must join others in stressing its disappointment in the lack of ambition in the draft regulations. Going forward, we call on all member states to work in unison to tackle the climate crisis." Only three countries rejected the new guidelines: the Marshall Islands, the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu. The climate envoy for the Marshall Islands, Kathy Jetnil-Kijiner said: "This proposal is not faithful to the promises we made two years ago in the initial strategy. It fails to reduce emissions before 2023, it will not peak emissions as soon as possible, and it will not set ship emissions on a pathway consistent with the Paris Agreement goals. Colleagues, we must be doing more." Many environmental activists expressed their disappointment too. They pointed to research which shows today's decision will not have much impact on predicted global carbon emissions. Madeline Rose, from campaign group Pacific Environment, said: "The policy advanced today is a dereliction of duty in the face of climate emergency. As written, it would curb maybe 1% of shipping's annual carbon emissions by 2030. "This means that emissions from the current global fleet would still rise by an estimated 14% this decade. We remind countries today that nature does not negotiate; that climate delay is now climate denial; and that catastrophic climate change is already here."

Delegates at a high-level meeting have agreed new guidelines intended to make shipping compatible with UN climate change goals.

Hilal Al-Jedda, 54, a British national, was detained without trial for three years by British forces in Iraq after being detained in Baghdad in 2004. He was suspected of being involved in weapons smuggling and bomb attacks. Three appeal judges "reluctantly" decided the decision to strip him of British nationality was fatally flawed. The court said the quashing order would be delayed to allow Home Secretary Theresa May to consider challenging the ruling in the UK Supreme Court. After being released from detention in Iraq Mr Al-Hedda he went to live with relatives in Turkey in 2007. Fled Saddam Hussein The court heard Mr Al-Jedda first came to the UK in 1992 when he fled Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq. He was granted asylum and in 2000 was granted British nationality. But he returned to Iraq in 2004 and fell under suspicion from US soldiers, who then handed him over to British forces in Basra. In December 2007, shortly after he was released and went to Turkey, he was stripped of his British nationality by the then Home Secretary Jacqui Smith. That order was later upheld by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC). But appeal judges Lord Justice Richards, Lord Justice Stanley Burnton and Lord Justice Gross ruled on Thursday they had "no choice" but to allow his appeal against the stripping of his British nationality. Lord Justice Richards said: "In one way that result is deeply unsatisfactory, in that the Secretary of State is satisfied, for reasons upheld by SIAC, that to deprive the appellant of his British nationality is conducive to the public good." But he said it was clearly laid down by Parliament that no person could be deprived of British nationality if it would leave them stateless. The judge said:"It appears that at the time of making the order the Secretary of State was unaware that the grant of British nationality to the appellant had caused him to lose his Iraqi nationality, and that the issue of statelessness was therefore not given the consideration it would otherwise have been given."

A man once held in Iraq as a suspected terrorist may come back to Britain after the Court of Appeal cleared the way for his return from Turkey.

Mr Lew said that unless both sides made sacrifices, "there is no path out of insolvency and back to growth." Puerto Rico is in its tenth year of rescission and struggling to cope with $70bn (£49bn) in debt. Several attempts at negotiations between the Puerto Rican government and creditors have failed. "The people of Puerto Rico are sacrificing, but unless that sacrifice is shared by creditors in an orderly restructuring, there is no path out of insolvency and back to growth," he said during a visit to the US territory. Mr Lew said the Treasury Department had dedicated a team to working with Puerto Rico on a "daily basis". He has in the past ruled out the possibility of a federal bailout for the territory. Puerto Rico defaulted on part of its debt at the beginning of January and is on track to miss larger payments in the coming months. Puerto Rico does not have access to Chapter 9 of the US bankruptcy code, the provision that allowed cities such as Detroit to restructure their debts. Puerto Rico, with support from President Obama, is pushing Congress to change that law and grant them permission to use the Chapter 9 provision. In 2015 a US judge struck down a law passed by the Puerto Rican government that would have allowed it to restructure its debt. The judge ruled the new law was unconstitutional.

US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew urged Puerto Rico's creditors to make sacrifices that would allow the territory to restructure its debt.

By Leo KelionTechnology reporter It means users of the Universal Serial Bus cables will no longer have to worry which way round the part is facing when plugging it into a device. The specification is due to be completed by mid-2014, and the first product on the market by 2016. It will neuter one of the advantages Apple's proprietary lightning cable currently has over the USB system. The first USB cable were released in the mid-1990s and, until now, could only be plugged into a computer or other device one way round to ensure a data connection. The Promoter Group, which agrees the design of the standard, is currently made up of representatives from Intel, HP, Microsoft, Renesas Electronics, ST-Ericsson and Texas Instruments. "Consumers are now demanding thinner and sleeker product designs and the USB 3.0 Promoter Group recognises this need," said the group's president Jeff Ravencraft. He added that the development was unrelated to Apple's move to a reversible system. Other changes to the current version - USB 3.0 - include: "This allows USB to increase performance and continue to deliver ease of use to several evolving product categories for years to come," said Roland Sperlich, from Texas Instruments. One industry watcher welcomed news of the update. "I don't think consumers buy devices based on the type of plug, so in terms of driving adoption of a certain type of smartphone, tablet or PC it doesn't make a great deal of difference," said Ian Fogg, from consultants IHS. "Where I think it is important is the convenience of using the devices, and increasingly USB is used not just to connect and share data, but as a way of charging our machines. "Anything that makes it easier and more convenient to charge is a good thing as it's something we all have to do very frequently."

USB cable developers have announced that a forthcoming version of the connector's plug is to be reversible.

By Edd GentBangalore City-dwellers tend to take electricity for granted, says Ashok Das, but for the roughly 200 million Indians living off-grid, access to power is a privilege, not a right. Mr Das says that makes them a fertile ground for experimenting with smarter ways of using energy that could help the rural poor leapfrog traditional power networks to a greener, community-led approach. "Changing consumer behaviour in a big city is a major problem," he says. "It will take decades to build smart cities, but I can get thousands of smart villages done in that time." After a decade in the US semiconductor industry, Mr Das returned to India in 2005 where he transitioned into a green tech consultant. But despite the huge sums directed into renewables, he saw very little focus on energy access for rural communities who could benefit most. Gift of light Visiting a family in a non-electrified village near his hometown in the northern state of Bihar in 2010 hardened his resolve to do something. "I remember asking my niece, 'what can I bring you?' and she said, 'Uncle, I have everything, just bring me light,'" he says. India's green energy sector has a tendency to "sell and run" - high-end equipment is installed, but a lack of maintenance support for remote villages means systems often fall into disrepair, he adds. So Mr Das decided to create a smart grid technology that allows a village's entire electrical infrastructure to be monitored remotely. In January, Chhotkei in Orissa became India's first smart village powered by the Smart NanoGrid technology developed by his company SunMoksha. Power is provided by a 30KW solar plant and meters and sensors collect data on energy usage and system health. Remote access This information is fed into SunMoksha's cloud-based monitoring system, which can be accessed by the company's staff anywhere. This makes it possible to remotely manage supply and demand and schedule power-hungry activities like irrigation pumping for agriculture and new microenterprises that have sprung up, like a food packaging business and a store that sells cold drinks. Wi-Fi hotspots let villagers access local intranet via a language-independent mobile app to view their consumption, pay bills and register complaints. If users exceed their allowance, they can be shut off to avoid overloading the grid and faults can be spotted remotely before villagers trained in basic repairs are sent to fix them. Set-up costs for the project were met by the Finnish power company Wartsila's corporate social responsibility programme, but on-going expenses are covered by usage-based subscriptions paid to a village committee that maintains the grid. SunMoksha's local partner is the Odisha (Orissa) Renewable Energy Development Agency (OREDA). Last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged to electrify every Indian village in 1,000 days, and in Orissa, OREDA is responsible for installing renewable power solutions in remote villages. But deputy director Ashok Choudhury says most projects are simple solar home lighting systems. "When you ask villagers what's their priority for getting electricity they always prioritise livelihood. Number two is entertainment and number three is illumination," he says. "We always do the third priority first, so we don't make much headway because our programme can't support livelihoods." Even with larger installations, the difficulty of monitoring and maintaining systems means they often break down. But for a 15 to 20% mark-up on the cost of a solar plant and microgrid, Mr Choudhury says the Smart NanoGrid makes projects sustainable. "You get a lot more control," he says. "It brings a real solution to a village; otherwise we install a system and don't know what happens to it when we leave." Mr Choudhury is keen to incorporate the technology in all the agency's future microgrid developments. Following a demonstration day at the village in April, secretary in the ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE) Upendra Tripathy agreed to support 10 pilot projects by providing 30% of the funds. "I've seen plenty of microgrids, but the combination of technology in this village is a first," he says. "It's the integration and the remote monitoring. That's where they've done wonders." Last month, SunMoksha won in the 'Smart Village' category at the 2016 Smart Cities India Awards and it is now in the process of submitting proposals for the first MNRE pilot - a smart village cluster in Orissa. The railway board also wants them to look at using train stations as local power hubs for nearby houses and businesses, and several mining firms want to use the technology to provide power for settlements relocated due to mining activities. Power management is the main focus, but the system is sensor-agnostic and Mr Das says it could also make villages truly smart by monitoring things like water consumption or environmental factors for agriculture. The pilot village is so remote it currently relies on a satellite data connection, which is too expensive for general internet use. But the communications network the system puts in place provides a backbone for future e-governance, telemedicine and tele-education applications, he says. "The smart grid acts as a catalyst in the village and then all these other things become possible," says Mr Das. "The potential is huge."

The Indian government has committed 980bn rupees ($14.5bn; £10.9bn) to a flagship smart cities' programme, but the social entrepreneur behind the country's first smart village thinks they've missed some low-hanging fruit.

The International Space Station (ISS) was launched in 1998 by the Russian and US space agencies and has been hailed for its exemplary co-operation involving numerous countries. But Russian officials have indicated they could pull out of the ISS in 2025. The station's structure is ageing. Russia's Roscosmos space agency says its agreement with international partners runs out in 2024. A decision on the ISS' future will then be made on the condition of its technical modules, which have "reached the end of their service life", and on Russia's plans for its own orbital service station. 'Fair warning of departure' "We can't risk the lives [of our cosmonauts]. The situation that today is connected to the structure and the metal getting old, it can lead to irreversible consequences - to catastrophe. We mustn't let that happen," Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov was quoting as telling state TV. Moscow would give its international partners "fair warning of our departure from the ISS in 2025", he added. Appearing to pre-empt that decision, the head of Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin posted a video on the Telegram messaging app, adding that "the first core module of the new Russian orbital station is in the works", with the aim of having it ready for launch in 2025. Russia recently celebrated its proud history in space, marking the 60th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin becoming the first human to go into orbit. For years, Russia had a monopoly on manned space flight but last year Nasa astronauts were taken to the ISS via a capsule belong to Elon Musk's SpaceX. Relations between Russia and the US and several European countries have frayed recently too. US ambassador John Sullivan is to return home for consultations this week, after Moscow "recommended" he leave temporarily. Russia's troop build-up near Ukraine's eastern border and its treatment of President Vladimir Putin's foremost critic, Alexei Navalny, have heightened tensions. The Russian space module, being assembled by the Energia corporation, is set to cost at least $5bn (£3.5bn), Interfax news agency reports. Mr Borisov told state TV that the planned Russian space station would orbit at a higher latitude and thus be better able to view the polar regions, which would be useful for the opening up of the Northern Sea Route. Russia hopes to develop the route as Arctic sea ice melts. Russia would construct the new space station by itself, he said, while appearing to hold out the possibility of other countries taking part. "We'll definitely [take partners], but we'll manage by ourselves," he told Rossiya 1 TV. Last month said it had signed an agreement with China's National Space Administration to develop a lunar research station on the surface of the Moon, in orbit or both.

As tensions simmer between Russia and a number of Western countries on the ground, the head of the Russian space agency has announced work has begun on a space station of its own.

The club recently put plans for the £50m stadium and training facilities at Kingsford, near Westhill, on hold. BBC Scotland then revealed Aberdeen City Council chief executive Angela Scott met Aberdeen FC chairman Stewart Milne as officials were finalising the application. No Kingsford Stadium said its request for a meeting had been accepted. The campaign group said transparency was needed. A No Kingsford Stadium spokeswoman said: "The chief executive's office has been in touch with us to say that our request for a meeting with Mrs Scott has been accepted, and that a suitable time is to be arranged." Aberdeen City Council said: "We have responded to the No Kingsford Stadium group about its meeting request." The authority's interim head of planning was also at the earlier meeting between the club and council. The council said the meeting was "in line with expectations" around a proposed development of such scale and significance, and legal advice was taken to ensure the discussions were appropriate to the planning process. The club has said a new facility is vital to its future. However, objectors want the club to look elsewhere.

A group opposing Aberdeen FC's plans for a new stadium is set to meet the council chief executive.

Nasim Khan, 23, and Mohammed Humzah Wasim, 19, both from Aylesbury, Bucks, are accused of killing a man in his 20s, one of two men allegedly assaulted near to Edinburgh Playing Fields in Lembrook Walk in the town on Wednesday. He died later in hospital. Mr Khan and Mr Wasim will appear before magistrates in High Wycombe later. The victim has not yet been formally identified and the results of a post-mortem examination are "pending further medical opinion", police said. The second victim was injured but has since been released from hospital. The force said nine men from Buckinghamshire had been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder. Four have been released on police bail and three remain in custody. Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected]

Two people have been charged with murdering a man who died after a "large fight".

More than 100 cases of the sexually-transmitted infection were recorded last year, prompting Stockton Council to stress the need for safer sex. However, the council's health and wellbeing board has heard deprivation is preventing some people accessing condoms. Councillor Luke Frost said he was "approached by a resident who had no money but still wanted protection". "If we see an increase, it could be down to poverty," he said. "We live in a borough which does, unfortunately, have quite a lot of deprivation and it's not easy for them to just nip to the supermarket for a pack of condoms." 'Get tested' Syphilis can have few symptoms but typically appears as red sores on the genitals, hands or feet. The bacterial infection can cause serious health problems for pregnant women and unborn babies, leading to miscarriages, stillbirths or infections. Stockton Council's public health consultant Dr Tanja Braun told the board advice campaigns had been launched in response to the spike in cases, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said. "We want to remind people to have safer sex, tell them about the risks in pregnancy and urge them to get tested," she said. The board was told a "C-Card scheme" was available for 13 to 24-year-olds which allowed them to get free condoms, information and advice. Dr Braun said the situation was being monitored "very closely" and she was hoping it would be contained quickly. Follow BBC North East & Cumbria on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]. ________________________________________

Cases of syphilis have reached their highest level in ten years on Teesside.

The reef, which was built to enhance waves off Boscombe in Dorset, has been criticised for not working properly. Bournemouth Borough Council said it agreed a "refinement plan" with ASR Ltd to extend the ride length of the waves. The council will pay £55,000 when the work is finished and a further £95,000 if the improvements are successful. The council had been withholding £150,000 from ASR after a specialist report found the reef, which cost £3m, had not achieved all of its objectives. 'Pragmatic approach' Council leader Peter Charon said: "Everyone is agreed that ASR's technical refinements are the best solution. "Although these are innovative and complex works, working with ASR, the likelihood of both performance improvements and a greater return on the council's £3m investment in the reef are a significant step closer. "After detailed and lengthy negotiations, I am satisfied that the financial agreement reached represents a pragmatic approach." The reef, which ran over budget and suffered a series of delays, was created to improve surfing conditions using 55 giant sand-filled bags which are 225m (740ft) out at sea. The bags are sausage-shaped and range in length from 50ft (15m) to 230ft (70m). The New Zealand-based creator denied the reef failed and said it was only one of the criteria, the wave lengths, which it had not met.

Improvements to Europe's first artificial surf reef could be complete by spring 2011 after an agreement was struck with the company that built it.

It comes after University of Leeds researchers demonstrated a drone that sprays asphalt via a 3D printer. Roads chief Steve Jones said the council already uses lasers to detect defects and would look at using drones. Cabinet member Carolyn Thomas said staff were "doing their best" to keep up with the demand for road repairs. Leeds City Council is already working closely with the university, looking to pioneer the use of drones in a concept described as "self-repairing cities". In Flintshire, Labour member Paul Shotton raised the idea when councillors discussed repair delays during an environment scrutiny committee meeting on Tuesday, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said. He asked: "With technology moving forward, should we be considering the use of drones to aid our area co-ordinators?" Mr Jones said: "I've never heard of that before, but we do have quite detailed electronic equipment that drives the roads and picks up the defects using lasers. "We also have another set of tests that picks up the skid resistance of the roads. "I've made a note of it though and will look into that." Conservative councillor Owen Thomas from Cilcain was among those who complained that many potholes had not been fixed months after being reported. Carolyn Thomas, the cabinet member responsible for roads, admitted the council did not have enough staff to keep up with demand. "They are doing the best that they can," she said. The committee backed proposals to relax the target for repairing potholes of more than 40mm deep from three days to five, although those posing a serious danger will still need to be fixed immediately. Flintshire's ruling cabinet will make the final decision on that change of policy.

Drones that could prevent potholes by spotting and fixing cracks in roads have been proposed as a solution to a £40m repair backlog in Flintshire.

More than than six per minute are expected, exceeding the previous record of 8,854 set on 25 May 2018. A bank holiday, school half-term, the Monaco Grand Prix, and Cannes Film Festival have added to the spike, air traffic controller Nats said. The record may soon be broken again, with flights to the Champions League final in Madrid on 1 June contributing. Prices for flights from the UK to the Spanish capital have soared to more than £1,300 return since Liverpool and Tottenham both qualified for the final. The UK's busiest airspace is over south-east England, where four of the country's five main airports are. Nats' head of service performance, Wendy Howard-Allen, said demand for air travel was "increasing all the time". "We've been planning for this busy summer period for a number of months - preparing for the worst and hoping for the best," she said. "With many events coinciding at the end of May and in early June, it's important to realise the impact this will have on air traffic."

The number of flights using British skies on one day is set to reach an all-time high of 9,000 on Friday.

Gen Kenneth McKenzie told reporters the troop presence would be reduced from about 5,200 to 3,000 during September. Those remaining will continue to advise and assist Iraqi security forces in "rooting out the final remnants" of the jihadist group Islamic State (IS). Last month, US President Donald Trump reaffirmed that he planned to pull all troops out of Iraq as soon as possible. He is expected to hail the reduction of forces as progress towards his 2016 election campaign promise to disentangle the US from "endless wars". The presence of US troops has also become a major issue in Iraq since the US killed top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in a drone strike in Baghdad in January. What is the reason for the move? During a visit to Baghdad, Gen McKenzie said the US military had confidence in the Iraqi Security Forces' increased ability to operate independently and to deal with the continuing threat of IS, which once controlled huge swathes of Iraq. "In recognition of the great progress the Iraqi forces have made and in consultation and co-ordination with the government of Iraq and our coalition partners, the United States has decided to reduce our troop presence in Iraq from about 5,200 to 3,000 troops during the month of September," he told reporters. "This reduced footprint allows us to continue advising and assisting our Iraqi partners in rooting out the final remnants of [IS] in Iraq and ensuring its enduring defeat," he added. Gen McKenzie said the US would continue expanding "partner capacity programmes", and that its ultimate goal was having local forces who were capable of preventing a resurgence of IS and securing Iraq's sovereignty without help. The decision also follows a backlash over alleged comments Mr Trump made calling American soldiers killed in action "losers" and "suckers". The president has denied the claims. On Monday, Mr Trump also suggested there was a rift with top military leaders, telling reporters: "I'm not saying the military's in love with me." He added that while the soldiers are, Pentagon officials "probably aren't because they want to do nothing but fight wars so that all of those wonderful companies that make the bombs and make the planes and make everything else stay happy". The US is also to withdraw troops from Afghanistan and Germany. All American soldiers could be out of Afghanistan by next April per an agreement signed with the Taliban earlier this year. In Germany, close to 12,000 troops will be relocated in a move that has seen pushback from lawmakers who believe it will embolden Russia. Why are US troops in Iraq? In 2003, US-led forces invaded Iraq to overthrow President Saddam Hussein and eliminate weapons of mass destruction that turned out not to exist. President George W Bush promised a "free and peaceful Iraq" but the country was engulfed by a sectarian insurgency that cost tens of thousands of lives. US combat troops withdrew from Iraq in 2011 after President Barack Obama's administration failed to negotiate a new agreement governing their status. In 2014, when IS seized control of large parts of Iraq, US forces returned at the invitation of the Iraqi government as part of an international coalition tasked with training and advising the Iraqi security forces. The Baghdad government declared the military defeat of IS at the end of 2017 but about 5,000 US personnel remained to help Iraq prevent a jihadist resurgence. Despite continuing attacks by IS sleeper cells, some Iraqi political groups - many of them linked to Iran - began demanding that US and other foreign troops leave. Those calls attracted widespread support following the drone strike that killed Soleimani, an Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander who Mr Trump alleged was the "number-one terrorist anywhere in the world". The attack was condemned by then caretaker Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi as a "clear breach of the terms of the American forces' presence". The Iraqi parliament subsequently approved a non-binding bill urging the government to "cancel the request for help it presented to the international coalition". However, it was never implemented. Iran meanwhile responded by launching ballistic missiles at two Iraqi military bases hosting US forces. More than 100 US troops suffered traumatic brain injuries. US officials have also accused Iran-aligned Iraqi militias of carrying out a series of rocket attacks targeting foreign military and civilian personnel, including one in March that killed two Americans and one British soldier.

The US will withdraw more than a third of its troops from Iraq within weeks, its top Middle East commander has said.

Rory Cellan-JonesTechnology correspondent@BBCRoryCJon Twitter But over the weekend the truth about the extent of the attack became rather less clear. Both customers and security analysts are seeking answers to a series of questions. How did it happen? The company first indicated that the "sustained" attack was a DDoS, a distributed denial of service attack where a website is bombarded with waves of traffic. That did not seem to explain the loss of data, and later TalkTalk indicated that there had also been what is known as an SQL injection. This is a technique where hackers gain access to a database by entering instructions in a web form. It is a well known type of attack and there are relatively simple ways of defending against it. Many security analysts were stunned by the idea that any major company could still be vulnerable to SQL injection. How much data was lost? On Saturday TalkTalk said the attack had been less serious than it had initially feared. It had been directed at its website and not its core systems, and only partial credit card numbers were available to the hackers. The company told customers that the financial information leaked "would on its own not enable a criminal to take money from your account". But what we still don't know is exactly how much data was encrypted - Dido Harding admitted on Friday she could not be sure - and how many people are at risk. What dangers do customers face? We are already receiving a number of reports of people having had their bank accounts cleared out, even though TalkTalk says the criminals could not do that with the hacked data alone. It does appear that in most cases the victims received phone calls from scammers armed with other details about their TalkTalk accounts and were then tricked into handing over their banking details. On Thursday evening TalkTalk said all 4 million customers could be at risk. I've been told by one security source that the database which was accessed contained details of people who had recently undergone credit checks for new services, and that is about 400,000 people. But anyone who has ever done business with TalkTalk or the companies it bought still needs to be wary. Who is in charge of TalkTalk security? The only person speaking on the record about the attack is the chief executive Dido Harding, and obviously the buck stops with her. But she should be receiving information and advice from her security team, and the confused messages about encryption and the nature of the attack seem to indicate that something has gone wrong there. We know that the company's Chief Information Officer left to join the Police ICT company in the summer, and I am told that a number of other quite senior IT staff have left in the last year. In an unfortunate piece of timing, the company advertised for an Information Security Officer earlier this month, but it is not clear who is responsible at a high level for the security of its network. According to people in the security community, more companies handling vast amounts of sensitive consumer data are now appointing a Chief Security Officer. The role of CSO may become a vital one for public companies in the future. Could it have happened to any firm? The idea that TalkTalk is just one victim of a cyber crime wave affecting every industry is one that has been heavily promoted by the company. It is obviously the case that the threat is on the rise, and some very big names have been hit, from Sony to Target to JP Morgan Chase. But what we've learned so far indicates that the TalkTalk attack is not a sophisticated assault by a nation state or organised crime, but a crude stick-up from crooks demanding a ransom to go away. What's more, it is the third such attack TalkTalk has suffered this year. Rebuilding its reputation with customers and security analysts is going to be a lengthy job.

When the news broke on Thursday evening of a major cyber attack it came from the company itself and TalkTalk appeared eager to be as open as possible. Its chief executive Dido Harding toured the radio and TV studios and was frank enough to admit what she did not know, as well as what she did.

By Zoe KleinmanTechnology reporter, BBC News A message on its website says that "any photos, videos and audio files" uploaded more than three years ago may no longer be available. There had been complaints going back several months that links to music were no longer working. The platform has waned in popularity since it was founded in 2003 but in its prime it attracted millions of users. In 2006 it was the most visited site in the US - beating Google. It was a popular platform for sharing new music, and has been credited with helping to launch the careers of artists including the Arctic Monkeys and Kate Nash. "As a result of a server migration project, any photos, videos, and audio files you uploaded more than three years ago may no longer be available on or from MySpace," the firm said in a statement. "We apologize for the inconvenience." It also included the email address of its data protection officer Dr Jana Jentzsch. The BBC has contacted Dr Jentzsch for comment. Andy Baio, who helped build the Kickstarter crowd-funding site, tweeted that the loss could amount to some 50 million tracks by 14 million artists over that period. He also questioned whether the loss was accidental. "Flagrant incompetence may be bad PR, but it still sounds better than 'we can't be bothered with the effort and cost of migrating and hosting 50 million old MP3s'." he wrote. MySpace was bought by NewsCorp in 2005 for $580m (£437m). It was sold in 2011 for $35m to ad targeting firm Specific Media. While it is no longer a major player in the social media field, some people who used it in its prime still used it as an archive.

MySpace, one of the first online social networks, has apologised after a server migration caused a huge loss of data.

The government has passed a new law so senior ministers do not have to resign if they have a baby. The move was prompted by Attorney General Suella Braverman, who is due to give birth next month. Ms Creasy, who is also pregnant, welcomed the change, but said it should not just apply to those at the top. Backbench MPs are allowed take informal maternity leave, but not all their duties are covered during their absence. The situation is different for ministers, who are not able to take time off from their positions. Under the old system, they had to resign from their ministerial jobs if they want maternity leave, although they continued to receive their MPs' salary. But with the government's changes, Ms Braverman and other cabinet ministers are now able to take six months' leave on full ministerial pay, and the salary costs for a temporary replacement will be covered. 'Company car' In 2019, Stella Creasy became the first MP to be given locum maternity leave cover, after a battle with the parliamentary authorities, who, she says, had told her it was not possible under Commons rules. The government's decision to push the Ministerial and Other Maternity Allowances Bill through Parliament in a single day shows that it is possible, the Walthamstow MP said. She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I think every woman should be able to have paid maternity cover, proper cover - it's not just about being paid, it's that somebody else will be doing that job - so Suella Braverman will be able to take proper leave with her child." Ms Creasy, who is expecting her second child, said lawyers had advised her the changes were discriminatory as they only benefitted senior ministers, and not other members of Parliament. "I am very prepared to go to court over this, because it is a form of direct discrimination... as a backbencher, none of these provisions will apply to myself, it's still very unclear what I can tell my constituents they can get in terms of cover," she told Today. "Thousands of pregnant women are facing risks in the workplace, including the risk of the loss of their job. The message that we're sending is that we treat maternity leave like a benefit, like a company car." 'Wholly unacceptable' Cabinet Office Minister Penny Mordaunt told MPs the bill to change maternity rights for senior ministers was an "important and well overdue change". She said alterations in the Ministerial Code in 2019 allowed for other members of the government to take over roles from a junior minister on maternity leave. The bill puts to an end the "wholly unacceptable" situation of senior ministers resigning to allow other government members to take over their departments while on maternity leave, she said in the Commons. Ms Braverman said she was grateful to Boris Johnson and the Conservatives for "leading this historic change to support women in the workplace". Labour did not oppose the changes in the Commons. Former Work and Pensions Secretary Yvette Cooper told MPs it had been 20 years since she was the first junior minister - then in the Department of Health - to take maternity leave. She warned the changes were "limited" as they did not have any provisions for male ministers to take longer paternity leave. Ms Cooper said that when she needed to take maternity leave two decades ago: "I asked the health secretary what I should do, he didn't know, he said ask the prime minister, he didn't know, he said ask the cabinet secretary he said he had no idea. "As ministers are Crown appointments, he said it was really a matter for the Queen, but nobody thought we should be asking Her Majesty." The MP said they "then tried to work something out" that was similar to the arrangements for civil servants, but "no one had thought about it before - that was bad enough 20 years ago". She added: "At the heart of government [these issues] still aren't being taken seriously enough." Maternity and paternity rights for MPs All MPs are paid in full while on maternity, paternity or adoption leave. But not all their duties in Parliament are covered during their absence: Liberal Democrat MP Wendy Chamberlain said for female MPs, there were now provisions for locums to step in, but pointed out that was not yet available for male MPs on paternity leave. Some MPs had complaints about the language in the bill - which used the word "persons" instead of "women" - saying it was "adopting extreme gender ideology". But Ms Mordaunt said it had merely been a "drafting issue" and the term "women" would be used in all its documents going forward. Parental rights in the UK

Labour's Stella Creasy is threatening legal action against the government after they did not include all MPs in maternity cover plans.

The strike targeted a camp at Kafr Jina in the northern Syrian region, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said. The pro-government troops entered Afrin two weeks ago to back Kurdish forces. They are fighting a Turkish military offensive that was launched to clear Kurdish groups from Afrin. Turkey considers the Kurdish militiamen there terrorists. The Syrian government has denounced the offensive as a "blatant attack" on its sovereignty and, according to state media, forces were sent in to support the Kurds. The air strike followed one of the bloodiest days for Turkish troops since they began the offensive in January. Eight Turkish soldiers were killed and another 13 were injured on Thursday in fighting in Afrin. Five "heroic comrades fell as martyrs and seven were wounded", an initial statement from Turkey's military said. A second statement announced three more soldiers had been killed and six more wounded. No official details of the clashes were given but the private Dogan news agency said Kurdish fighters used tunnels to ambush Turkish special forces in the Keltepe district. A Turkish helicopter sent in to rescue the wounded was hit and had to turn back, the report added. Thousands of civilians in Afrin have fled their homes since Turkey's offensive began. The Turkish government says the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia is an extension of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has fought for Kurdish autonomy in south-eastern Turkey for three decades. The YPG denies any direct organisational links to the PKK. Neither side has released much information about fatalities, making the death toll in Afrin difficult to gauge. The UK-based SOHR says more than 141 civilians have died but Turkey denies this, saying only combatants are targeted. Last month, Amnesty International said indiscriminate shelling had killed scores of civilians in Afrin. Yet another new flashpoint? Analysis by Sebastian Usher, BBC Arab Affairs Editor When pro-government militia forces edged into Afrin last month, it wasn't clear what their strategic purpose would be. Videos showed a small group of militiamen being welcomed to Afrin city by Kurds there as their saviours. But it didn't seem likely that they would play much more than a symbolic role, allowing the Syrian government to vaunt a new territorial initiative but at no major risk. In fact, it seemed that it might be a way of de-escalating the latest conflict in Syria after Turkey launched its operation against Kurdish fighters there. A deal to allow the Syrian government to take over much of the control of the area might suit many of the parties involved. It might even be a less bad option for Turkey, allowing it to turn down the intensity of its offensive. But if the reports are true that pro-government forces have been badly hit by Turkish airstrikes, that would appear to undercut this interpretation, raising the prospect of yet another new flashpoint in Syria.

At least 36 pro-Syrian government troops have been killed by a Turkish air strike in the region of Afrin, a monitoring group says.