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Patrick Harvie will say a surging membership could see at least eight Green MSPs voted in next May.
That would be a record high and represent one MSP per regional list.
Mr Harvie will tell the conference at Glasgow's SECC the party offers a clear choice on environmental issues.
In his keynote speech, he is expected to say: "Holyrood needs a bold voice to ensure we close the wealth gap, build strong local economies, restore truly progressive taxation and start meeting our world-leading climate change targets. Scottish Greens are trusted, credible and our time is now."
The Scottish Greens have accused the Scottish government of sitting on the fence with the moratorium on fracking and underground coal gasification.
Mr Harvie said his party was unique in offering a clear "no" on these key environmental concerns.
He will tell the conference, which is expected to attract about 700 members over the weekend, that parties do not have to be in government to be relevant.
Mr Harvie will say: "We will campaign on our track record and our vision of a fairer, greener Scotland. We've been at Holyrood since the start and we've got transformational ideas onto the agenda.
"We've helped cut fuel bills by pushing for energy efficiency programmes, we've empowered local communities with the Climate Challenge Fund, we're giving football fans the prospect of ownership of their club, and we're a step closer to gaining rent controls to protect tenants from spiralling costs.
"And on unconventional gas extraction, we have relentlessly pursued ministers to protect our communities. Scottish Greens should be proud of the role we have played and we can offer voters in May a clear choice of opposing extreme energy industries." | The Scottish Greens have "an unprecedented opportunity" at next year's Holyrood election, the party's co-convener will tell their annual conference later. | 34486314 |
Ian Eardley, from the Royal College of Surgeons, said a shortage of beds was one of the causes.
Such surgery is usually protected under treatment time guidelines, he added.
The NHS said it was "pulling out all the stops" to ensure patients receive surgery "as quickly as possible".
A spokesman for NHS England said there had been a steady increase in the number of operations over the last 15 years and more people were surviving cancer than ever before.
Guidelines for hospitals in England stipulate that cancer patients should be seen within 31 days and receive primary treatment within 62.
In November 2016, the latest period which NHS figures are available for, the 62-day target for treatment to start was missed - with 83.5% of patients being treated in that timeframe instead of 85%.
Mr Eardley, vice president of the RCS, said most hospitals were able to see more than 90% of patients within that time period, but in the past year "it's been more difficult to achieve that".
He said that while cancer operations were cancelled "from time to time", especially during the winter, the RCS had heard from its members in England about an increasing number of cancellations within the last week.
"There are current pressures - since Christmas particularly - and the number of cancelled operations has been going up," he told the BBC.
"The NHS is under tremendous pressure - more and more patients are going to A&E and there is more difficulty in getting patients home, and it's not something we are comfortable with at all.
"If we could get patients home more quickly and effectively, we could carry on with doing surgery more quickly and more effectively."
He added that solving the shortage of beds caused by problems with arranging care in the community would be "the easiest thing to do most quickly, although there are other longer-term problems and there also needs to be a broader review of the NHS."
It's a graphic illustration of what the current extreme pressure on the NHS means for patients.
Routine surgery is often cancelled during the winter to allow hospitals to keep beds free for the expected surge in emergency admissions, but cancer treatment always continues with very few exceptions.
In what looks like a highly unusual move, several hospitals are now having to postpone cancer operations because of a shortage of beds.
This comes after news that more than four in ten hospitals in England were on major alert status because of high patient numbers in the week ending 8 January.
All this is at a time when the weather is mild and there has not been a major flu outbreak.
If that changes, the NHS will come under even greater strain.
Richard Murray, director of policy at The King's Fund think tank, said the cancellations "reflect capacity problems in the NHS".
"There are not enough beds, there are more patients arriving and hospitals are not able to discharge them quickly, particularly for specialisms like orthopaedics," he said.
"You should never cancel operations on the day for non-clinical reasons, but especially for cancer treatment. It causes distress for patients and it's an urgent pathway. Critically, it becomes how quickly you can rebook."
A Freedom of Information request from the BBC's Inside Out programme suggested that across the UK, the number of cancer operations cancelled on the day of surgery rose from 403 in 2011-12 to 810 in 2015-16.
However, only 95 of 205 health boards and trusts in the UK responded to the FOI request, and a figure for the total number of cancer operations performed was not available.
Lynne Roper, from Devon, who died in August 2016, had her surgery to remove her brain tumour at Derriford Hospital cancelled at the last minute earlier in the year.
Her mother Jenny Roper told Inside Out: "It was really traumatic, I cried. We got to the hospital terribly early, when we left she was gowned ready to go and then when we got home she called and said 'they haven't got a bed for me'. She was extremely upset.
"We don't have a 'beef' with the health service or Derriford, but we do with the government cutbacks. We were all pretty devastated, the whole time there was a tumour growing in our daughter's head."
Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust pointed out it was a main centre for cancer treatment in the region and said: "Cancelling a patient's operation is not a decision that is ever taken lightly; it is often the end result of a difficult balancing act we are faced with.
"We understand the distress and inconvenience a cancellation can cause our patients and their families and for this we are extremely sorry."
Philip Rolle, 52, from Redditch, had his bowel cancer surgery cancelled twice at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital last year.
He said: "The hospital was full, they didn't know where the next bed was coming from. It was very frustrating for everyone, all my friends were shocked and appalled.
"When it happened a second time I was alarmed because the cancer will spread."
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust said: "This cancellation was a reflection of an unprecedented 6% rise in attendances to our emergency department which increases the pressure for beds within the hospital - including intensive care beds."
Andrew Claridge has prostate cancer and said he was told his operation had been cancelled one day before it was due to take place.
"You've got cancer inside you, you just really want to get rid of it. It's just devastating to get that type of news," he said.
Mr Claridge said it has been very upsetting for his family, but he has sympathy for his doctors and he received an apologetic phone call from an NHS consultant.
"I feel sorry for them, I really do, because they don't want to give bad news - they want to go in there and say, 'Mr Claridge, you've had your operation, it's all been successful'.
"But to tell somebody that you can't have your operation - that's life threatening, whether I've got 'x' number of days or whether it's longer - it's still scary," he said.
"How long have I got before I'm not going to have the chance to have an operation to get this removed?"
Dr Moira Fraser, director of policy and public affairs at Macmillan Cancer Support said: "Nobody should have to go through the distress of making emotional and practical preparations for an operation only to have it cancelled."
BBC Inside Out - NHS Special will be shown on BBC One on Monday 16 January at 19:30 GMT. | Senior doctors say they are concerned about the number of cancer patients having their operations cancelled amid "tremendous pressure" facing the NHS in England this winter. | 38630640 |
They were Anthony Woodward, 62, and Robert Archer, 57. Police officers dealing with the crash have said no further details will be released.
The alarm was raised after their light aircraft, which took off from Oban Airport at 11:30 on Thursday, failed to arrive at Carlisle Airport.
The crash took place about two miles off the Kintyre coast near Skipness.
The bodies of two men and wreckage from the aircraft were recovered from the sea following an extensive search.
The search operation involved a coastguard search and rescue helicopter from Prestwick, as well as Police Scotland, Arran Lifeboat and the Tarbert and Campbeltown coastguard rescue teams.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch is also conducting an independent safety investigation. | Two men who died in a plane crash off the coast of Kintyre have been identified. | 40086364 |
On Sunday, the ruling AIADMK party announced Sasikala Natarajan would become the next leader, two months after the death of influential politician J Jayalalitha.
O Panneerselvam, who had taken over after her death, resigned on Sunday.
He now says he had to make way for Sasikala, who prefers to be known by her first name.
On Tuesday evening, Mr Panneerselvam visited a "monument" erected in honour of Jayalalitha at Marina beach in the capital, Chennai (Madras).
He meditated there for 40 minutes before announcing that Amma (mother), as Jayalalitha was popularly known, wanted him to be chief minister and that he had been compelled to put in his papers by a group of legislators on Sunday.
Sasikala: The 'new mother' of Tamil Nadu politics
Jayalalitha: The 'goddess' of Tamil Nadu politics
Mr Panneerselvam told reporters that he was not "convinced of the decision" taken by this group, but "by then they had collected the signatures of the legislators" in favour of Sasikala, a close confidante of Jayalalitha.
For close to three decades, Sasikala, known as Chinnamma (younger mother) to her supporters, had been an almost permanent fixture in Jayalalitha's life, and was often seen with the former chief minister on public platforms.
"Finally she [Sasikala] held my hands and asked me to obey the decision, for the party, as she did when she insisted me to take the chief minister's post," he said.
Mr Panneerselvam also said he was willing to withdraw his resignation "if people wanted".
Some leaders of the AIADMK, who owe allegiance to Sasikala, have criticised Mr Panneerselvam's remarks and called him a "betrayer".
Reports say he will need the support of at least 118 of his party's 134 lawmakers if he wants to continue as the leader of the government.
Correspondents say it is unclear whether Mr Panneerselvam will be able to garner the requisite support, although many people in the state have opposed Sasikala's elevation.
Tamil Nadu's main opposition DMK party also criticised the decision saying that "the people of Tamil Nadu did not vote for anyone from Jayalalitha's household to become chief minister".
The governor of Tamil Nadu will now have to take a call on whether to ask Mr Panneerselvam to demonstrate his support in the state assembly, or swear in Sasikala as the next chief minister.
Never given any formal role by Jayalalitha in the party or the state government, Sasikala's role was always that of aide and confidante.
But analysts say her proximity to power allowed her and her extended family to wield huge influence in the party and the government.
Sasikala's influence over Jayalalitha also became the source of intense media speculation and tabloid gossip.
They also faced corruption charges together. A Karnataka high court order in 2015, which cleared them of involvement in a corruption scandal, paved the way for Jayalalitha's return to power after a setback in September 2014 when a trial court found them guilty of corruption.
India's Supreme Court has heard an appeal in the case, and is expected to issue a verdict next week.
If convicted, Sasikala will not be allowed to hold public office for six years. | India's southern state of Tamil Nadu is in crisis after the chief minister revolted against his successor. | 38903568 |
The silver Kia C'eed was followed by police after it was seen on Shawclough Road at about 18:15 GMT on Sunday. It crashed into another vehicle, a wall and then the house on Sandy Lane.
Two women, aged 18 and 46, were rescued from the car by firefighters and taken to hospital with serious but not life threatening injuries.
A 23-year-old man was arrested at the scene.
Fire crews were called in to lift the car and make the area safe. | A stolen car has crashed into a house in Rochdale after a police chase. | 38206065 |
The economy grew 7% from a year ago - matching growth in the first three months of the year, which was the lowest since 2009 when it fell to 6.6%.
A weaker property market and factory production have hampered growth.
But, Beijing has rolled out a series of stimulus measures amid the slowdown.
The central bank cut interest rates for the fourth time since November last month to boost economic activity.
Economists are, however, continuing to call for more easing despite the better-than-expected numbers as volatility in the stock markets has sparked concerns of financial turmoil in the country.
Growth was expected to dip below the 7% mark and come in at 6.9% for the April to June quarter.
Sure, the data may well be massaged, manipulated and to some extent made up.
And critics of the whole concept will argue that attempting to sum up three months' worth of Chinese economic growth in a single number is as futile as trying to sum up the political events of the past three months in a single word.
But if seen as simply the best estimate that China feels comfortable publishing then it is useful, both in terms of the trend and in terms of what it may tell us about government thinking.
The 7% figure is certainly confirmation that growth remains flat at best, unchanged since the first quarter, but coming in slightly above what many had been expecting, could it be a little more rose-tinted than usual?
A point or two added as perhaps another stock-market boosting measure?
Of course, it's too early to tell if those market woes are yet impacting the wider economy. Except, analysts suggest, in one small but surprising way; second quarter growth may actually have been boosted slightly by the huge brokerage fees earned on all that frantic, panicked trading.
China's stockmarket slump - explained in 60 seconds
Frederic Neumann, co-head of Asian economic research at HSBC expects more fiscal and monetary easing in the coming months in order for China to achieve sustainable growth.
"Stimulus measures rolled out over the past nine months are beginning to show some traction. But work remains to be done," he told the BBC. "The sell-off in the stock market will likely necessitate further easing in the coming months."
The mainland's benchmark index, the Shanghai Composite, had lost almost a third of its value in the three weeks from mid-June.
The positive growth figures failed to excite investors with the index closing down 3% at 3,805.70, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index ended 0.3% lower at 25,055.76.
On a quarterly basis, the economy expanded 1.7% from April to June, compared to the 1.4% revised figure in the first quarter.
The government has also had to respond to suggestions that the better data may have been "inflated".
The National Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday that the data reflecting the positive changes in the economy was "hard won", and accurate.
Julian Evans-Pritchard, China economist at Capital Economics said that while actual growth is "almost certainly" a percentage point or two slower than the official figures show, it does point to signs of a stabilising economy.
"More broadly, with the drag from the structural slowdown in property and heavy industry now easing, we think that growth is on track to slow only gradually over the course of the next few years," he said in a note.
Industrial production and retail sales in June were all above forecasts, while fixed-asset investment, a major driver of the economy, also beat expectations in the period. | Growth in the world's second largest economy, China, beat expectations in the second quarter, but it was still the weakest showing since the global financial crisis. | 33517404 |
The Gunners successfully defended the trophy as Arsene Wenger become the first post-war manager to win the cup for a sixth time.
Theo Walcott volleyed Arsenal ahead before half-time against a poor Villa side who offered little in reply.
Alexis Sanchex scored the goal of the game before Per Mertesacker and Olivier Giroud completed the rout.
How did the players on both sides fare?
His record-equalling sixth FA Cup triumph in 19 attempts was also his most straightforward final victory so far. Wenger got the big decision right, by going with in-form Theo Walcott up front rather than Olivier Giroud, who had not scored for eight games, and also got the balance of his side spot on. His team controlled the game from the start, were patient until they made the breakthrough through Walcott's fine finish and then ran away with a one-sided Wembley win.
He did not have a single shot to save, such was Arsenal's dominance, so only had to deal with the occasional cross aimed at Christian Benteke. He was quickly off his line to help his defenders out, and only failed to deal with one delivery because one of them got their first.
Did you know? Szczesny is the first goalkeeper since Joe Hart in 2011 to not have to make a single save in an FA Cup final.
His rapid running caused Villa stacks of problems down the right when Arsenal got forward and he helped keep Jack Grealish quiet too. A performance that enhanced his growing reputation.
Did you know? Bellerín made more interceptions than any other Arsenal player (4).
Encouraged to come forward down the left from the start and touched the ball more times in Villa's half than he did his own. His cross led to Arsenal's opener.
Did you know? Only Santi Cazorla (100) and Héctor Bellerín (82) had more touches of the ball than Nacho Monreal (81).
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Has the "agility of a rhinoceros" according to Szczesny's dad but Villa never looked like exposing the big centre-half's lack of mobility. Benteke was supposed to be the one causing him problems in the air - instead he got the better of the Villa striker from a corner to head home Arsenal's third goal.
Did you know? Three of Arsenal's four scorers today had all previously scored for both club and country at Wembley (Walcott, Sanchez, Mertesacker).
Hardly troubled at the back and should really have joined Mertesacker on the scoresheet, another illustration of Arsenal's dominance. He missed one headed chance when he lost Benteke at a first-half corner and saw Shay Given brilliantly keep out another.
Did you know? Koscielny made seven clearances and two interceptions.
Did not even watch Arsenal on TV in last year's final after spending the season out on loan in Germany but now has a winners' medal.
Quietly did the dirty work to allow others to flourish. Never lost his positional discipline and never gave the likes of Charles N'Zogbia or Grealish a sniff on the counter-attack.
Did you know? Coquelin completed 92.3% of his passes.
One of several stellar performers for the Gunners - the only thing lacking from his game was a goal. The Spaniard played more passes (79) than anyone else on the pitch, with an accuracy of 93.7%. An outstanding display.
Did you know? Cazorla, who provided his 15th assist in all competitions this term, had more touches than any other player in this season's FA Cup final (100).
Kept popping up in pockets of space between Villa's defence and midfield to do damage. Others will grab the headlines but the German deserves praise. His work-ethic is sometimes criticised but not on this occasion.
Did you know? Ozil has never lost an FA Cup game (10 matches).
Last year's match-winner saw plenty of the ball on the right but was off target with both of his two best chances. He was not at his best, but it did not matter.
Did you know? Ramsey attempted more shots (5) and made more tackles (5) than any other Arsenal player.
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What a way to end his superb first season in English football. His scorching strike at the start of the second-half turned the rest of the game into a lap of honour for his team.
The Chilean is the only Arsenal player to have featured in every round of this year's FA Cup, was the Gunners' top scorer (with four goals) in the competition and, after setting up Walcott's opener, also provided the most assists (three).
Did you know? Alexis Sanchez is only the second Chilean to score in the FA Cup final after George Robledo for Newcastle v Arsenal in 1952.
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Took time to find his way into the game after being given his chance up front, but in the end he more than justified his manager's decision.
Was denied a goal by Kieran Richardson's point-blank block but persevered and scored Arsenal's crucial first goal with a superb finish on his left foot - supposedly his weaker side.
Did you know? Walcott has scored seven goals in seven starts for Arsenal this season.
Keen to get forward and helped maintain Arsenal's intensity until the final whistle.
Did you know? Nine of Wilshere's 11 attempted passes were in the opposition half.
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Started with the disappointment of only being on the bench, but ended it with the joy of scoring Arsenal's fourth to end an eight-game goal drought. It was that kind of day for the Gunners' players.
Did you know? Giroud has scored eight and assisted four goals in his 14 FA Cup appearances, and has scored in each of his last four games against Villa.
Only on the pitch for three minutes of injury time but still had time to join the Arsenal party by providing the cross for Giroud's fourth goal.
Did you know? Oxlade-Chamberlain has provided four assists in his last six FA Cup games.
A manager for less than 300 days compared to Wenger's 30 years, and it showed. His side seemed to have few ideas about how they could even dent the Arsenal defence and they eventually collapsed under unrelenting pressure.
One of the few Villa players to emerge with any credit. Made a superb reflex save to deny Koscielny with the score at 0-0 but could do little to halt the onslaught that followed.
Did you know? Appeared in the final 17 years after his previous appearance in 1998, also against Arsenal.
Preferred to Leandro Bacuna at right-back but could not offer the Dutchman's threat going forward and struggled to stop Sanchez and Bellerin. His most telling contribution was a meaty first-half challenge on Sanchez. It was one of the few times the Scot got near him.
Did you know? Picked up his 11th yellow card of the season, two more than any other Villa player.
Laid down an unfortunate marker with a clumsy touch in the first minute that allowed Walcott a run towards goal and more of the same followed. Made several last-ditch challenges but never looked comfortable when Arsenal came forward.
Did you know? His four tackles were the joint highest number for Villa along with Hutton.
His lack of pace means he would probably have preferred to have faced Giroud rather than Walcott and he was not helped by some unconvincing performances from those around him.
Did you know? Did not misplace a pass in the entire game.
Probably Villa's best defender, although that is not saying an awful lot. His superb block to deny Walcott earns him a mark and, at the other end, he was one of the few players to try to find Benteke in the box.
Did you know? Part of the first defence to concede four in the cup final in 11 years.
He has been much-improved since Sherwood took over in February but was unable to make any sort of impact between either penalty area as Arsenal controlled the middle of the pitch.
Did you know? One of only two Villa players to create a goalscoring chance.
Tried to hold things together behind Fabian Delph in midfield when his captain ventured forward but ended up chasing shadows.
Did you know? Made 41 passes, only five fewer than Ozil.
He was Villa's action-man in the first half, sliding into tackle after tackle, including one brilliant challenge to stop Sanchez breaking away. If anyone was going to be Villa's hero it was their skipper but he could not do it on his own. Arsenal out-passed him in the end, and he was also guilty of giving the ball away.
Did you know? No player committed more fouls in the final than Delph (3)
Was meant to be supporting Benteke but was starved of possession and also of support. Only touched the ball 12 times, the fewest of any player to start the game.
Did you know? Made only eight passes in 53 minutes.
Was looking to emulate his great-great-grandfather Billy Garraty, who won the 1905 FA Cup with Aston Villa. His recent displays had promised much but he struggled to get on the ball, let alone run with it. He was denied a late penalty, which kind of summed up his day.
Did you know? His blocked shot in the 86th minute was one of only two efforts Villa had in the entire game.
If this was his last game for Aston Villa, it was a truly forgettable farewell. The big Belgian was starved of service and did not even manage an effort at goal let alone bully the Arsenal defence. The only impact he made came at the other end of the pitch when his poor marking allowed Mertesacker to score.
Did you know? Failed to record a shot of any kind in the game.
Villa's longest-serving player was given a salvage mission when he came on soon after Sanchez's wonder-goal but his pace made little impact.
Did you know? This was his 19th defeat of the season - only Hutton and Benteke featured in as many.
His attacking play from full-back has been a big part of Villa's recent revival and he did at least get forward, but with no end-product.
Did you know? One of only two Villa players to create a chance.
Another to come on with the damage already done. Impossible for him to change the direction of the game.
Did you know? His 16 passes were double the number made by N'Zogbia. | Arsenal romped to a 4-0 win over Aston Villa to lift the FA Cup for a record 12th time in a one-sided Wembley final. | 32944770 |
The Reds also face Bordeaux from France and FC Sion of Switzerland.
As well as Qarabag, Tottenham must play Belgian side Anderlecht and Monaco from the French league.
Celtic, who missed out on a place in the Champions League group stage, meet Dutch giants Ajax, Turkey's Fenerbahce and Norwegian outfit Molde.
Each team will play six games in the group stage, with the first match day taking place on 17 September.
Group A: Ajax, Celtic, Fenerbahce, Molde
Group B: Rubin Kazan, Liverpool, Bordeaux, FC Sion
Group C: Borussia Dortmund, Paok Thessaloniki, Krasnodar, Gabala
Group D; Napoli, Club Brugge, Legia Warsaw, Midtjyllland
Group E: Villarreal, Viktoria Plzen, Rapid Vienna, Dinamo Minsk
Group F: Marseille, Braga, Slovan Liberec, Groningen
Group G: Dnipropetrovsk, Lazio, St-Etienne, Rosenborg
Group H: Sporting Lisbon, Besiktas, Lokomotiv Moscow, Skenderbeu
Group I: Basel, Fiorentina, Lech Poznan, Belenenses
Group J: Tottenham, Anderlecht, Monaco, Qarabag
Group K: Schalke, Apoel Nicosia, Sparta Prague, Asteras Tripolis
Group L: Athletic Bilbao, AZ Alkmaar, Augsburg, Partizan Belgrade
Rubin Kazan: Finished fifth in the Russian Premier League last season. They started this season's competition in the qualifying rounds, defeating Sturm Graz of Austria and FK Rabotnicki of Macedonia. The distance from Liverpool to Kazan is 2,500 miles.
Bordeaux: Uefa Cup runners-up in 1995-96, Bordeaux finished sixth in France's top-flight last season. Manager Willy Sagnol, 38, won the Champions League with Bayern Munich as a defender.
FC Sion: Last season's Swiss Cup winners. Manager Didier Tholot had a loan spell at Walsall as a player in 1998.
Anderlecht: Finished third in the Belgium's top flight last season. The two clubs met in the Uefa Cup final in 1984, when Spurs won on penalties after the two-legged final ended 2-2 on aggregate.
Monaco: Finished third in the French League last season. Their squad includes midfielder Mario Pasalic, on loan from Chelsea, and former Chelsea defender and three-time Premier League winner Ricardo Carvalho.
Qarabag: Winners of the Azerbaijan Premier Division last season, they play their home games in Baku, the country's capital. Most of their squad is home grown, although there are a number of Brazilian players at the club. One of them is forward Reynaldo, whose former sides include Anderlecht. The distance from Tottenham to Baku is 2,900 miles.
Ajax: Four-time champions of Europe and Dutch league runners-up last season. Their squad includes former Everton and Fulham defender John Heitinga. Manager Frank de Boer had a spell at Rangers as a player.
Fenerbahce: Runners-up in Turkey's top-flight last season. Their squad includes a couple of former Manchester United players in the shape of forward Robin van Persie and winger Nani.
Molde: This is the first time the Norwegian club has competed in the group stages of the Europa League since 2012-13. Their squad includes former Manchester United youth midfielder Etzaz Hussain, 22, and United States international winger Josh Gatt. Defender Vegard Forren was on Southampton's books before joining Molde in 2013. | Liverpool will visit Russia after being drawn in the same group as Rubin Kazan, while Tottenham must go to Azerbaijan to face Qarabag in the Europa League. | 34085332 |
In a lecture to the David Hume Institute, Tricia Marwick called for a fundamental look at how the committees operate.
She also wants committee conveners to be elected by their peers.
The Scottish Parliament currently has 17 committees, with 132 places shared among 80 MSPs.
Mrs Marwick wants to reduce the number to 10 or 11.
"I have now come to the view that changing our culture is not enough and we need to consider structural change," she said.
"Does our current committee structure serve us well enough?
"Why has no committee proposed any committee legislation since 2002, apart from procedural legislation. Why have we carried out virtually no post-legislative scrutiny?"
She added: "Larger committees could provide a better overall policy fit, bringing together some subjects that, although separate just now, may work better under one larger committee.
"These larger committees could be focused on what is important to the parliament in terms of policy fit."
She said the Scottish Parliament should be clear in setting out its own policy priorities and shape its own committees according to its own needs.
"Larger committees would be able to break into smaller sub groups ... meeting to discuss in a more flexible way ... it simply doesn't need all the committee members to be working on all the committee business all at the same time," she said.
"We need to be more creative in how we work."
Mrs Marwick also supports the introduction of elected committee conveners as part of a cultural shift within Holyrood.
Parties would still have a proportional share of committee conveners but those conveners would be directly accountable to parliament as a result of a secret ballot of all MSPs.
She added: "I want to see more powerful conveners with a stronger voice, not feeling driven by any government's legislation programme."
Holyrood's committees have previously been criticised for a lack of teeth when it comes to scrutinising the Scottish government, with opposition MSPs accusing the SNP administration of suppressing dissent. | Holyrood's presiding officer has set out reform proposals which would see fewer but larger and more powerful committees in the Scottish Parliament. | 32122077 |
Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson said Better Together agents took "tallies" of postal votes at sample openings held before the count.
Election rules state the results of these openings must be kept secret.
The Crown Office has now instructed police to conduct an investigation into the complaints.
The allegations surround comments made to BBC Scotland by Ms Davidson about 45 minutes after polls closed in the independence referendum on 18 September.
Ms Davidson told the Scotland Decides programme: "We have had people at every sample opening around the country over the last few weeks... and we have been incredibly encouraged by the results from that.
"Going into today, going by the postal votes that were cast, our side would have had a lead and I think that we have a confidence, I hope a quiet confidence, that the quiet majority of Scots have spoken today."
She said postal votes were not counted until after the polls closed, but added: "Different local authorities have had openings around the country. It is illegal to discuss that while any ballot is ongoing, so until 10 o'clock tonight no-one could talk about it.
"But there is people in the room that have been sampling those ballot boxes as they have been opened and they have been taking tallies and the reports have been very positive for us."
Speaking on the BBC's results coverage, Humza Yousaf, the Scottish minister for external affairs, also made reference to indications from "postal ballot sampling".
He told the BBC's Huw Edwards: "The intelligence we're getting is that in those die-hard, traditional Labour areas actually the Yes campaign is starting to break through quite strongly.
"That's initial postal ballot sampling, all the caveats thrown in, etc., etc.."
The SNP said Mr Yousaf was referring to sampling of postal votes after the ballot had closed.
Earlier sample postal vote openings, which were attended by agents from both campaigns ahead of polling day, were held to confirm that personal identifiers - the date of birth and signature - on the postal ballots matched those held on official records.
The ballot papers were supposed to be kept face down when postal voting packs were opened so postal ballot agents and observers were unable to see how people had voted.
A Crown Office spokesperson said: "We can confirm that Crown counsel has instructed Police Scotland to commence an investigation into alleged breaches of Schedule 7, Paragraph 7, of the Scottish Independence Referendum Act 2013."
The act states it is an offence to "attempt to ascertain at the proceedings in connection with the receipt of the ballot papers the outcome for which any vote is given in any particular ballot paper or communicate any information with respect thereto obtained at those proceedings".
Anyone breaching the law could face up to 12 months in prison or a fine of up to £5,000.
The Scottish Conservatives said they were unable to comment but the BBC understands there was a telephone conversation between Ms Davidson and the police on Friday.
Party sources said there was "no suggestion she was accused of doing anything wrong".
Complaints were initially made to the Electoral Commission, which said it had brought them to the attention of police.
A spokesman for Police Scotland said: "We can confirm that we have been instructed to commence an investigation into alleged breaches of Schedule 7, Paragraph 7, of the Scottish Independence Referendum Act 2013.
"Police Scotland will not comment on anyone who may or may not have been spoken to or interviewed as part of any ongoing investigation." | Claims that pro-UK campaigners breached electoral law by counting postal votes ahead of referendum polling day will be formally investigated by police. | 29489288 |
It is the largest and most complex shoot ever to film in historic Old Town and other locations in the capital's city centre.
More than 400 crew have been working on the project, which started in the city on Wednesday.
The production's first schedule with cast in the city will be in mid-April.
Avengers: Infinity War stars Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Mackie, Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olson and Paul Bettany.
The film is directed by Joe and Anthony Russo.
Mr Russo said: "When Edinburgh came up as a location option we jumped at the chance.
"The city is such a unique and iconic location, but one never seen as the backdrop for a big action film, which is incredibly exciting.
"We appreciate the entire city's help and are excited to have such a beautiful and historic city in the film."
Gavin Barrie, City of Edinburgh Council's economy convener, said: "Our cobbled streets, historic properties and stunning green spaces could set the scene for some of cinema's greatest superheroes and it is fantastic to secure such an A-list production.
"We know 40% of visitors to the UK are attracted to places they have seen on screen and the Marvel franchise offers a huge opportunity to promote Edinburgh all over the world.
"This is fantastic news for the city and our film industry.
"The council will do all it can to support Film Edinburgh and the producers and keep the city moving throughout the shoot."
Rosie Ellison, Film Edinburgh film manager, said: "This is the biggest production to ever film in the region.
"But crucially, it also clearly demonstrates Edinburgh has the infrastructure and process in place to accommodate major filming of this scale.
"The reinforcement of the Edinburgh Film Charter, which was ratified again a few years ago, has played a massive role in simplifying procedures and allowing the city to gear up and facilitate productions of all sizes.
"Film Edinburgh and the council have worked closely with the filmmakers for over a year to coordinate the smooth running of the location shoot in the region." | A six week filming schedule for the new Avengers: Infinity War movie is estimated to generate more than £10m for Edinburgh. | 39406412 |
Given the importance placed by the leader on demonstrating new achievements in the country's nuclear pursuits, it should come as no surprise that any external commentary questioning the technical sophistication of the country's nuclear and ballistic missile programmes is swiftly and harshly condemned by North Korean media.
On 8 September, satellite imagery analysis published by Johns Hopkins University examined recent activities at North Korea's Yongbyon nuclear complex and questioned the operational status of some of the facilities at the site.
Pyongyang lashed out. On 15 September it released a statement by the director of its Atomic Energy Institute insisting that all of its Yongbyon facilities had "started normal operations".
The statement appears to be carefully timed - and directed - rhetoric.
In early April 2013, in the midst of a crisis on the Korean Peninsula over US-South Korean joint military exercises, North Korea announced it was "recalibrating" and "restarting" certain nuclear facilities at its Yongbyon complex "without delay".
All available analysis points to North Korea's sincerity in its stated aim, but it remains uncertain as to whether it has managed to restart the facility.
Imagery analysis produced by experts since 2013 notes that characteristic signs of an operational reactor, including steam and hot water discharge, have not always been visible.
They have postulated that maintenance work could explain the intermittent inactivity.
However, these assessments rely upon very limited information - an unavoidable weakness when using open sources to analyse North Korea's nuclear development.
While satellite images may inject doubt about the operational status of the reactor at Yongbyon, they cannot be taken as conclusive proof of the North's dishonesty.
Comparable uncertainties exist as to whether facilities relating to uranium enrichment at Yongbyon are operating normally.
Both a uranium enrichment facility and an experimental light-water reactor were still under construction as of July 2015, though were rapidly nearing completion.
The former has been under development since 2009, and was initially said by North Korea to be designed to produce low-enriched uranium to fuel the planned experimental light water reactor, which would in turn allow for increased electricity generation in the country.
However, if the enrichment facility is recalibrated as implied by the April 2013 announcement, it would also be able to produce weapons-grade uranium.
One or both of these facilities may have been completed since the last satellite photos were made available in July, and it is therefore possible that they are operational as North Korea alleges.
True or not, North Korea's latest statement was not likely intended to reveal new insights into developments at Yongbyon, or settle the ongoing debate about the status of facilities there.
Pyongyang consistently boasts of the advanced stage of its nuclear and missile programmes regardless of the details, and it rarely acknowledges shortcomings in its most prized military programmes, even if such difficulties are actually encountered.
Instead, North Korea is currently eager to remind observers of its intention to forge ahead with its nuclear and missile programmes regardless of the objections of the international community and especially its neighbours, including China.
It may also wish to heighten existing nervousness about the prospect of a forthcoming military provocation in order to convey a position of strength.
Tuesday's statement from the Atomic Energy Institute came within hours of another remarkably similar statement from the director of North Korea's National Aerospace and Defence Administration, outlining the achievements of the country's scientists and its intention to exercise its 'right' to launch satellites at a time of its choosing.
For months, South Korean, Japanese, and Western media have cited unnamed officials as saying that North Korea is readying itself to conduct a satellite launch in October, in time for the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Worker's Party of Korea.
Read together, these two statements will only cement fears that another provocation is on the cards.
Andrea Berger is a senior research fellow in nuclear analysis at the Royal United Services Institute. Follow her on Twitter @AndreaRBerger. | Under Kim Jong-un, nuclear weapons development has been formally adopted as one of North Korea's top policy priorities, along with economic advancement. | 34262300 |
23 August 2016 Last updated at 06:16 BST
Neill Birnie is paralysed from the neck down as a result of secondary progressive multiple sclerosis.
In 2014, he was admitted to Antrim Area Hospital three times with pneumonia.
He told BBC Newsline that he was "furious" about what had happened. | A County Antrim man who was unaware that a "do not resuscitate" (DNR) order had been placed on his medical file has said he feels his human rights have been violated. | 37159606 |
In a report, the UK's branch of the UN children's agency Unicef says most of those deaths occur outside war zones.
It says millions of young people under the age of 20 feel unsafe in their homes, schools and communities.
It also blames rapid urbanisation, youth unemployment and rising inequality for creating greater risks.
Unicef UK says it published its report - Children in Danger: Act to End Violence against Children - to mark the launch of the Children in Danger campaign.
It warns that about 345 children under 20 could die from violence each day in the next year unless governments around the world take action.
The document's findings suggest that children who are victims of violence have brain activity similar to soldiers exposed to combat and more than 30% of them are likely to develop long-lasting symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.
It says those living in poverty are more likely to be the victims of violence. An adolescent boy in Latin America is 70 times more likely to be murdered than one in the UK.
"We want children living in fear to have a chance of feeling safe and secure," Unicef UK's executive director David Bull said.
"A global target would galvanise action to make the world safer for children."
Only 41 countries, Unicef UK says, have an explicit ban on violence against children.
But the report says that there is no room for complacency in richer countries as no nation is currently able to provide children with the full protection they need. | A child is killed by violence every five minutes in the world, a leading charity says, calling for new targets to end all forms of abuse by 2030. | 29699189 |
Pimco, an investment firm, considered acquiring the 850-property portfolio before its eventual sale in April 2014.
In a statement Pimco said it was contacted on "an unsolicited basis by third parties with a proposal relating to the potential purchase".
It did not identify the third parties.
The statement went on: "Pimco assessed the opportunity and followed its usual due diligence process, and as a result decided not to proceed with, or agree to any arrangement with those third parties."
Weeks later, Nama began a formal sale process that led to another US firm, Cerberus Capital Management, buying the portfolio for more than £1bn.
Nama has said it was "fully satisfied" that the process had delivered the "best possible return", with Cerberus being the highest bidder.
In its statement, Pimco said it did not take part in the tender process. | A potential US buyer of the Northern Ireland Nama property portfolio has said it was pitched a sale proposal by way of an "unsolicited approach from third parties". | 33394153 |
The seven Roman Catholic seminarians had gone to The City Arms to toast Father Peter McClaren's ordination when they were asked to move on.
But assistant manager Matt Morgan said they received a free round of drinks when the situation was explained.
"They were all dressed in their black and white clothes," he said.
"The staff thought they were a stag. We do have quite a few issues on the weekends with parties wearing fancy dress so it is our policy to turn them away."
Father Michael Doyle, who knows the group, said the seven went to the pub in Quay Street to celebrate the ordination at Cardiff Metropolitan Cathedral of St David in nearby Charles Street.
He added the pub was a favourite of his colleagues including the Archbishop of Cardiff, George Stack.
"They arrived at The City Arms and they were dressed wearing the clerical collar," he said.
"The doorman basically said something along the lines of, 'sorry gents, we have a policy of no fancy dress and no stag dos'."
The students had started to leave when they were approached by the bar manager.
"He basically said, 'you're real, aren't you?'," said Fr Doyle.
"He invited them back in and when they walked back in the entire pub burst into a round of applause, and they had a free round off The City Arms."
Fr Doyle said the group stayed at the pub most of the afternoon chatting to customers.
Mr Morgan said the priests were "all great sports and saw the funny side of the situation".
A spokesman for the Archdiocese of Cardiff added: "We'd like to thank The City Arms for being good sports through all of this and their kind gesture to our seminarians." | Pub bosses have apologised after asking a group of trainee priests to leave their Cardiff venue, mistaking them for a stag party in fancy dress. | 40792962 |
They were escorted to the reception in the capital Abuja by armed soldiers, after a check-up at a medical centre.
Mr Buhari said he was joyous that they were free. He is now travelling to London for medical reasons as concern grows for his health.
A spokesman said there was "no cause for worry" and that he was travelling for a "follow-up" consultation.
Mr Buhari, 74, returned from the UK in March after seven weeks of sick leave. When he returned home he said he had never been so ill in his life.
What illness he has remains undisclosed but concerns about his condition grew in recent weeks after he missed several cabinet meetings.
The girls were handed over on Saturday in exchange for Boko Haram suspects after negotiations.
They were from a group of 276 abducted in north-eastern Nigeria in 2014. Before the latest release, about 195 of the girls were still missing.
The number of Boko Haram suspects released by authorities remains unknown.
"I cannot express in a few words how happy I am to welcome our dear girls back to freedom," Mr Buhari told the girls in Abuja, according to his office.
"On behalf of all Nigerians, I will like to share my joy with you," he said.
Mr Buhari would have left earlier on Sunday to London but wanted to receive the schoolgirls, his spokesman Femi Adesina said.
Read more:
Arriving in Abuja earlier, some of the girls looked tired and confused by all the attention after spending three years in captivity.
Before being taken to the capital, they were brought by road convoy from a remote area to a military base in Banki near the border with Cameroon.
Our reporter says that many families in Chibok will be rejoicing at this latest news, but more than 100 of the girls taken have yet to be returned.
"This is good news to us. We have been waiting for this day," Christian pastor Enoch Mark, whose two daughters were among those kidnapped, told Agence France-Presse.
"We hope the remaining girls will soon be released." It was unclear whether his daughters had been freed.
A statement from a spokesman for President Buhari earlier said he was deeply grateful to "security agencies, the military, the Government of Switzerland, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and local and international NGOs" for playing a role in the operation.
In a later BBC interview, presidential spokesman Garba Shehu added: "With all of these things together we negotiated over a period of several months, and at the end of it some of their [Boko Haram's] members were exchanged for the 82 girls."
After the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Borno state, was raided in April 2014, more than 50 girls quickly escaped and Boko Haram then freed another 21 last October, after negotiations with the Red Cross.
The campaign for the return of the girls drew the support of then US First Lady Michelle Obama and many Hollywood stars.
Last month, President Buhari said the government remained "in constant touch through negotiations, through local intelligence to secure the release of the remaining girls and other abducted persons unharmed".
Many of the Chibok girls were Christian, but were encouraged to convert to Islam and to marry their kidnappers during their time in captivity.
Boko Haram has kidnapped thousands of other people during its eight-year insurgency aimed at creating an Islamic caliphate in north-eastern Nigeria.
More than 30,000 others have been killed, the government says, and hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee from their homes. | The 82 schoolgirls released by Boko Haram Islamist militants have met Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari. | 39837763 |
The 29-year-old Jamaica international's previous deal was set to expire at the end of the season.
McCleary has been with the Royals since May 2012 after moving from Nottingham Forest on a free transfer.
"I'm very happy Garath has signed a new deal," Reading manager Jaap Stam said. "He's been a very important player for us this season."
McCleary has scored eight goals in 23 Championship appearances this campaign. | Reading midfielder Garath McCleary has signed a new three-and-a-half year contract with the Championship club. | 38650122 |
In the recording the judge can be heard asking for over $2,000 as well as the woman's hand in return for his help.
The judge has strenuously denied the allegations, arguing that he was only "joking" about the marriage proposal.
Correspondents say the case highlights widespread corruption in the Afghan justice system.
The head of Afghanistan's anti-corruption department, Azizullah Ludin, has promised to take action.
"Once we get the evidence, we will investigate this case jointly with the Supreme Court and I will personally involve the chief justice," he told the BBC.
President Karzai, who has repeatedly promised to do more to tackle corruption, has also ordered officials to look into the case.
His spokesman said he had read the BBC story with "great interest" and asked for "a serious investigation".
The woman seeking the divorce, Dewa, told the BBC that when she attended court in the eastern city of Jalalabad the judge, called Zahorudin, offered to visit her family home to help with the case. Once there he demanded money.
As a radio journalist, Dewa had access to recording equipment which she hid under her robe.
"When the talk turned to paying bribes... I got my recorder and started to record his voice."
The BBC Afghan Service has obtained a copy and verified the recording.
In it the 65-year-old judge can be heard asking for 20,000 Afghanis ($390; £240) for himself and another 100,000 Afghanis ($1,960; £1,215) for the judge presiding over the divorce case.
When Dewa refused the proposal and said she was unable and unwilling to pay, Zahorudin made a different offer, she alleges.
On the recording he can be heard promising to resolve Dewa's financial problems if she agrees to marry him.
"I will pay two million [Afghanis] for you and cover you in gold from your toes to your forehead," he is heard saying.
Dewa's mother was present during the conversation and said that she could not hide her astonishment.
"I was very sad," she said, "telling myself that this man has sons, daughters-in-law and a wife. But this dirty man is now trying to take advantage of our desperate situation," she told the BBC.
When the BBC contacted the judge by telephone, he at first claimed that he did not know Dewa. When confronted with the evidence, he claimed the journalist had cut and pasted his voice using her radio editing skills.
He said that the entire story was a "conspiracy by rival judges and provincial elders" to prevent him from getting a higher ranking position.
As for his marriage proposal Zahorudin claimed he had been talking in jest. "She was saying 'no-one will marry me', so I offered to marry her. I told her this jokingly."
But in the 15-minute recording Zahorudin repeated his proposal of marriage 15 times.
He also boasted how his standing could protect Dewa.
"A court cannot end animosity. But when you marry a strong man, he will put an end to animosity," the judge is heard saying.
"He will say to your current husband... From now on I don't want to see your face, if you do show your face, I will shoot you in the head."
Dewa's family took the tape to the Supreme Court in Kabul, but so far no action has been taken against the judge.
The divorce case itself has remained unresolved. | A senior judge in Afghanistan has been secretly recorded demanding money and marriage from a young woman seeking his help in her divorce case. | 20150996 |
The company said that about 700 of its "partners" in the US had been affected by the mistake.
Exposed data included social security numbers, photos of driver licences, tax forms and other details, according to news site Motherboard, which first reported the issue.
The error was discovered by the drivers themselves.
"Whoah - went to upload new insurance docs and the documents page showed me thousands of people private info (social security numbers, home addresses, tax info). I screencapped it and sent to support," wrote one driver on the discussion site Reddit.
It is not clear if anyone unconnected to the company was able to access the information before the problem was addressed.
"We were notified about a bug impacting a fraction of our US drivers earlier this afternoon," Uber said in a statement.
"Within 30 minutes, our security team had fixed the issue.
"We'd like to thank the driver who drew it to our attention and apologise to those drivers whose information may have been affected.
"Their security is incredibly important to Uber, and we will follow up with them directly."
This is not the first time the US company has had to tackle a security issue involving its drivers.
It previously acknowledged that in 2014 a hacker had been able to access a database containing current and former Uber drivers. | Uber has acknowledged that a flaw in its software caused it to leak personal data belonging to its drivers. | 34529821 |
David Craig Ellis, 41, has admitted killing Alec Warburton, 59, at a house in Sketty, Swansea, but denied murder.
The body of Mr Warburton was found in a disused quarry in north Wales over a month after disappearing.
The two-week trial at Swansea Crown Court has heard claims that the accused "lost control" after a request for sexual favours.
The jury was sent out to consider its verdict on Monday afternoon. | A jury has resumed deliberations for a second day about whether a tenant murdered his landlord in Swansea. | 36585808 |
The body of the man, who was in his 20s, was recovered by police divers near Welsh Back on Saturday.
Police said a member of the public reported seeing the man in the water at 12.30 GMT and went into the river to try to rescue him.
They have asked anyone who saw the man go into the river to contact them. The body has not been formally identified.
Insp Shaun Finn said: "The water at this time of year can be icy cold and can be very dangerous to even the young and fit.
"The cold water can really shock the body in a matter of seconds making it extremely difficult to swim or stay afloat.
"While trips and falls might happen, we'd strongly advise anyone against deliberately going in the water as what might seem like a harmless dip can go horribly wrong very quickly." | An inquiry is under way after a man's body was pulled from the River Avon in the centre of Bristol, police said. | 35516008 |
John McCormack drove for a further 30 miles in the articulated lorry after hitting the vehicle on the A9.
Perth Sheriff Court was told there were three children in the car at the time of the incident.
The 46-year-old was ordered to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work and banned from driving for two years.
Prosecutor Rebecca Kynaston said motorists heading north near the House of Bruar shopping complex saw McCormack driving straight towards them.
She said: "To their horror they saw the lorry coming south. He was on the wrong side of the road.
"They managed to get off the road onto the verge.
"The lorry missed them, but unfortunately it continued on and a couple with three children in their car weren't so lucky."
Ms Kynaston said that the lorry hit the offside of the car and scraped along it.
She said: "One might have hoped that would bring this to an end. The impact was forcible and bent the truck onto the wheel.
"Police managed to pull over the lorry further down the A9. This had been going on for quite a few miles."
McCormack, 46, from Kilmarnock, admitted driving dangerously on the wrong side of the road on 11 April last year.
He also admitted failing to stop after an accident, and driving a vehicle which posed a danger due to its condition.
Defence solicitor David Holmes said McCormack had decided to stop driving in the wake of the incident.
He said: "He has no recollection of the accident or how it could have taken place.
"He remembers sneezing and that's as far as it goes."
Sheriff Lindsay Foulis said: "He has no recollection of what happened but was aware of a sneezing episode prior to the crash.
"Five vehicles had to take avoiding action.
"To go into the other carriageway of the main trunk road north, it doesn't take much imagination to work out what could have happened." | A lorry driver who was on the wrong side of the road when he crashed into an oncoming car blamed the incident on a sneezing fit, a court heard. | 36381653 |
Operation Market Garden during World War Two saw Allied forces land behind German lines near Arnhem, where they were defeated after days of fighting.
Germany is also taking part in the commemoration, which will be followed by a short remembrance service.
The battle was the inspiration for the film A Bridge Too Far.
Thousands of lives were lost on both sides in the fighting.
According to the British army, Saturday's events are among the largest multinational parachute jumps to take place in Europe this year.
Arnhem was one of the most controversial Allied operations of the war. The Allies' aim was to inflict a decisive blow on the Germans and therefore end the war by Christmas 1944.
But the Germans put up strong resistance and it was left to the airborne forces to defend themselves in a bloody battle, without ground troops.
After nine days' fighting the airborne forces were withdrawn.
Tom Hicks from Barnsley is one of the battle's veterans attending the event. He told the BBC that when he and his fellow soldiers landed, the Dutch thought they had been freed from Nazi control.
"They brought milk out and flowers and thought the war was over. They thought they were liberated.
"And we knew there was a long way to go before they were liberated. Children [were] holding your hand and skipping... thinking 'oh, back to normal life'." | Paratroops from Europe and the US have completed parachute jumps in the Netherlands to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Arnhem. | 29292319 |
The Royal Institution was founded in 1799 to link science with wider society and is well known for its televised Christmas lectures.
The RI has reportedly instructed a niche property agent to market its building on Albemarle Street for £60m.
The charity has been in financial difficulty for several years.
In a statement, the organisation's chairman Sir Richard Sykes said: "It is well known that the redevelopment of the [Royal Institution's] building during the last decade undermined the financial position of the charity.
"The recently appointed trustees have worked hard to put the charity back on a sound financial footing."
The £22m project to re-fit the 18th Century buildings, and provide an upmarket restaurant and bar, was intended to help attract more people to the site and promote the science body's work.
But the RI was not able to recoup the investment through hiring out its facilities and found itself in a financial crisis.
The Times newspaper reports that the RI has tasked property agent Cyril Leonard with marketing its 21 Albemarle Street home.
Sir Richard explained: "The RI and its advisers are exploring a range of options to ensure it can continue to pursue fully its charitable aims and deploy its resources optimally."
He added: "It is clear that this is likely to involve a restructuring of the charity and, ideally, a substantial partnership. It may also involve the RI sub-letting or disposing of some or all of its Albemarle Street property."
Many notable scientists have worked at the Royal Institution, including Michael Faraday. The organisation provided the setting for much of the research by Faraday that led to the practical exploitation of electricity. | One of the oldest scientific organisations in the world may have to sell off its home in Mayfair, London. | 21069749 |
Davis, 23, suffered the injury during a training camp for the Rio Games and has been replaced by 24-year-old Ruaridh McConnochie in the 12-man squad.
Coach Simon Amor said it has been a "tough year" for Davis and described the setback as "incredibly disappointing".
Team GB make their first appearance on 9 August against Kenya.
Subscribe to the BBC Sport newsletter to get our pick of news, features and video sent to your inbox. | Alex Davis has been ruled out of Great Britain's rugby sevens squad for the Olympics because of an ankle injury. | 36968076 |
It happened when Mr McWilliams was walking along the Rostrevor Road in Warrenpoint at 10:30 BST.
It is understood the victim was hit by a trailer that was being towed by a lorry.
It has been reported that Mr McWilliams was originally from Newry but had moved to Warrenpoint a number of years ago.
The police are appealing for witnesses to call 101. | The man who died in a crash in County Down on Wednesday was 66-year-old Keith McWilliams. | 39803417 |
The nine-day event from 13-21 May offers free or low cost sailing and windsurfing sessions to people of all ages and abilities.
"This is a fantastic opportunity to have a go at a new sport," said Rio 2016 gold medallist Saskia Clark.
You can search for your local session with a special map on the RYA website.
Clark joined visitors at the Fishers Green Sailing Club and Marconi Sailing Club, two of the clubs taking part in her home county of Essex.
"It's been fantastic to see so many people turning up and trying sailing and windsurfing, " she added. "Make sure you find an event near you, jump in a boat and give it a go!"
Sarah was one such person to do just that, having her first sailing experience at Spinnaker Sailing Club in the New Forest.
"It was brilliant!" she said. "My advice to others would be to definitely try sailing.
"It's an amazing opportunity and you don't know where it might lead once you get started - you could be a natural and fall in love with it."
More than 90,000 people have taken part since the programme's initial launch in 2013, with hundreds becoming members of sailing clubs and signing up for further courses of instruction.
To sign up for Push the Boat Out, visit the RYA website and find your nearest participating sailing club or centre.
And to find out more about getting into sailing and other watersports, check out our Get Inspired guide. | Over 200 sailing venues have already opened their gates to welcome thousands of people for the Royal Yachting Association's annual Push the Boat Out. | 39935928 |
Angela Wrightson was subjected to a brutal assault in her Hartlepool home by the girls, then aged 13 and 14.
Speaking to ITV Tyne Tees, her niece Rachel Tresidder said the family wanted to bring in "Angie's Law".
The law would give more power to police and social services to intervene if a vulnerable person was being exploited.
Ms Wrightson, who was an alcoholic, sometimes invited young people into her home to drink and smoke.
Neighbours reported her sometimes becoming distressed if she felt they were trying to take advantage of her.
Angie's Law would work in a similar way to non-molestation orders currently issued in domestic violence cases to prevent contact between abusers and victims, Ms Wrighton's family said.
They have called for police and social services to be able to issue them on the spot when they see a vulnerable adult being harassed in their own home.
Ms Wrightson's two attackers, who cannot be named for legal reasons, subjected her to a brutal and degrading attack over a period of hours.
They were found guilty of murder and sentenced to life with a minimum term of 15 years.
Ms Tresidder described her aunt as "lovely" and "funny" and said the family had difficulty coming to terms with the nature of her death.
In a separate interview, the mother of one of the girls told with ITV Tyne Tees on Thursday that she had "begged for help" with her daughter. | The family of a woman who was tortured to death by two teenage girls has called for a new law to protect vulnerable people. | 36465152 |
Kroenke Sports Enterprises (KSE) bought additional shares last month to acquire a near 63% controlling interest in the Gunners' parent holding company.
As obliged, Kroenke made a formal offer for the remaining stock at £11,750 a share but has had no takers.
Kroenke has now given a formal 14 days' notice for the closure of the unconditional offer.
Uzbek oil magnate Alisher Usmanov, who owns 27% of the club through Red & White Holdings, has indicated he will not sell, while the Arsenal Supporters Trust have urged all minority shareholders not to cash in.
Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood said: "The club is very pleased to announce that the Premier League Board has confirmed that the change of control processes under the rules of the Premier League have been concluded to its satisfaction in relation to Stan Kroenke's control of the club.
"KSE's offer for Arsenal Holdings PLC is wholly unconditional and we now look forward to a new and exciting phase in the life of the club. The plan is to maintain the PLUS listing provided there are a sufficient number of shareholders for that to be permitted."
Kroenke first bought 9.9% of Arsenal's shares in 2007.
Arsenal is not about one shareholder, one player or one fan. It's a special institution and we look forward to celebrating that further during the 125th anniversary year of the club
He accepted an invitation to join the Arsenal board in September 2008 and increased his holding in the club with the acquisition of the stakes of Danny Fiszman (16.1%) and Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith (15.9%) in April.
Arsenal is only one of the sporting teams in his portolio, which also includes American outfits the St Louis Rams of the National Football League, the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association, the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League and the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer.
"As the controlling shareholder of Arsenal football club, it will always be our intention to do what's necessary to assure success on the pitch, provide long-term stability and build on the accomplishments and history of the club," said Mr Kroenke.
"We recognise that overseeing the operations of the club is not only a privilege but a responsibility that will require attention and dedication as the club strives to reach all of our goals on and off the pitch.
"We will continue to grow the club's presence globally while also adhering to the club's self-sustaining economic model.
"The club has funds to invest and will do so wisely. Our constant aim will be to compete for silverware and championships.
"The long-term health of the club is of utmost importance and the board, chief executive, manager and the wider team will be working hard to achieve success for the club and our fans, and to play our part in our communities in north London and beyond.
"Arsenal is not about one shareholder, one player or one fan. It's a special institution and we look forward to celebrating that further during the 125th anniversary year of the club." | Arsenal say the Premier League has given approval to the takeover of the club by American Stan Kroenke. | 13584983 |
The Higher Education Policy Institute says the potential impact of low loan repayments decades ahead is beginning to affect universities' budgets now.
The government says the Treasury will share any extra costs with the business department over a 30-year period.
And this will protect other parts of its budget from unexpected pressures.
The introduction of higher £9,000 tuition fees in 2012 - funded up-front by government-backed loans - led to concern about the sustainability of the funding system in the longer term.
The higher the fees, the bigger the loans and therefore the larger the up-front payment by the government.
And the scale of the sums being loaned out and the length of time graduates have to repay them, along with predictions about the economy and wages, lead to many uncertainties about how much will be recouped.
The government initially predicted, in 2010-11, that it would lose 28% to 30% of the money it lent to students. This rate is known as the resource accounting and budgeting (RAB) charge.
The then Universities Minister, David Willetts, dismissed concerns about potentially huge losses from unpaid loans as too far in the future to have any impact on current university funding.
But by autumn 2013, the RAB charge was predicted to be 35%, and by early 2014 to 45%.
However, author of the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) report Andrew McGettigan said changes imposed by the Treasury in 2014 meant the sustainability of the current undergraduate fee-loan regime was no longer an academic question about what happened after 2045.
"Budgetry pressures arise today," he said.
The Treasury had imposed a new settlement requiring the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to improve repayment rates from 55p per pound loaned to 65p per pound, or see its spending cut year-on-year, he said.
He added: "Uncertainty surrounds the estimations of future graduate repayments, but their estimated value has deteriorated markedly in recent years.
"This decline generated a major challenge for the [Department for Business, Innovation and Skills] budget, which has faced a cumulative shortfall of perhaps £10bn over the last four years.
"Unplanned cuts for 2015-16 were only averted by changing retrospectively the accounting and budgeting conventions for student loans in 2013-14."
Mr McGettigan said it was likely the business department would continue to freeze tuition fees at £9,000 - eroding their value to universities - and tighten up graduate-repayment terms by freezing the repayment threshold at £21,000 from 2017.
This would effectively lower the salary level at which repayments start, because of inflation.
He added: "These are two things within its power that would control levels of loan repayment and bring estimates of non-repayment towards the target."
Universities UK has also been looking at the issue of reducing the cost of student loans, but it is unlikely to welcome the fixing of tuition fees, which would result in a cash freeze to undergraduate income.
A Treasury spokesman said: "The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Bis) and HM Treasury introduced an arrangement to share any additional costs of student loans over a 30-year period.
"This will enable Bis to afford any additional costs that may arise without having a significant impact on other parts of its budget."
National Union of Students president Toni Pearce said: "This report yet again highlights the utter shambles which was the last government's trebling of tuition fees.
"It would be outrageous to now suggest that students should now be forced to pay for this through any change to the student loan terms and conditions, and students and their families simply would not stand for it." | Graduates could face tougher conditions on their student loans because of uncertainty over long-term debt repayments, a report says. | 32785363 |
The airline said the move would benefit both business travellers and tourists wanting to connect with destinations across Europe.
Easyjet currently runs two flights per day between Inverness and Gatwick.
But starting on 27 March it will operate a third flight on Mondays, Fridays and Sundays.
It also plans to increase flights on its Inverness to Luton service.
At the moment there is a daily service but next summer there will be two flights a day on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
Easyjet said this would make an additional 24,000 seats available between 27 March and 26 June next year. | The airline Easyjet plans to increase the number of flights it operates between Inverness and airports serving London from March to June next year. | 34379950 |
The CPS said a caution given to Peter Ball in 1993 was wrong as there was sufficient evidence to prosecute.
However, it said its approach to sexual abuse has changed and such a decision would not be made today.
On Tuesday, Ball, 83, pleaded guilty to 18 charges of sex abuse involving men between the 1970s and 1990s.
He also pleaded guilty to the offence of misconduct in public office between 1977 and 1992.
Ball, now of Langport in Somerset, was Bishop of Lewes between 1977 and 1992 and Bishop of Gloucester from 1992 until his resignation the following year.
He had originally accepted a caution for one act of gross indecency in 1993.
The full allegations only emerged after a review by the Church of England which subsequently prompted police action.
One of Ball's victims, Phil Johnson, who has waived his right to anonymity, said he believed influential people interfered with the inquiry.
He said it looked as though a deal was done between the church, the director of public prosecutions and the CPS.
"I think there was great effort made to avoid bad publicity and to avoid the embarrassment of trying a bishop in public."
Solicitor David Greenwood, who is representing some of the victims, said: "With more power comes the ability to work in a culture where you feel that you can get away with it.
"It seems Peter Ball has been able to do that."
Times reporter Sean O'Neill was in court when details of the original investigation were divulged.
He said: "We heard evidence of communications between the church and the CPS in which the church was suggesting that his resignation may help with the caution decision because the CPS was hinting to the church that they didn't really want to prosecute."
In a statement, the CPS said: "In order to prosecute this offence today, we have had to conclude that the decision to caution was wrong - there was sufficient evidence and it was in the public interest to prosecute at the time.
"Furthermore, in order for a caution to be given, a suspect must first make full and frank admissions to the alleged offence... such admissions were not made in the appropriate way."
However, it said it was now determined to tackle sexual abuse, no matter how long ago it is alleged to have happened.
The Archbishop of Canterbury at the time, George Carey, now Lord Carey, has strongly denied interfering in either the ongoing criminal investigation or the decision by the CPS not to prosecute.
He said: "I have seen a number of reports which appear to give the misleading impression that I interfered with the process of justice by contacting the Crown Prosecution Service.
"I only did so after Peter Ball had been cautioned. I wanted to make sure justice had been done."
After the guilty plea, the CofE issued an apology to victims and survivors and said it always takes allegations of abuse seriously. It said survivors must feel free to come forward knowing they will be listened to in confidence.
It has declined to make any further comment until Ball's sentencing - due to take place on 7 October - has been carried out.
Sussex Police said it had "not received any criticism or complaint from any victims about their relationship with us or the support we offered".
It added: "The decision not to proceed with the two indecent assault charges was taken by the CPS on the advice of prosecution counsel, and is not a matter for Sussex Police." | A retired bishop who has admitted sex offences against young men, should have faced charges 22 years ago, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has admitted. | 34238259 |
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Remie Streete netted the decisive goal with a header in the 38th minute.
The Boro found the net in the 23rd minute when Ben Kennedy tapped home following a goalmouth scramble, but his effort was disallowed for offside.
Vale took the lead 15 minutes later when Streete climbed highest at the back post to meet Jerome Thomas' cross from the left.
In the second half, Charlie Lee came close to finding an equaliser as he fired a low shot narrowly wide of the post and had a header smothered by Jak Alnwick, while Jack King had a goal-bound effort blocked.
Substitute Anthony de Freitas should have doubled the Valiant's lead in the 74th minute but missed the target when he raced onto Thomas' clever backheel.
His miss almost proved costly when Matthew Godden was slipped through in the fifth minute of injury-time, but the forward struck the post.
Report supplied by the Press Association.
Match ends, Port Vale 1, Stevenage 0.
Second Half ends, Port Vale 1, Stevenage 0.
Attempt missed. Matt Godden (Stevenage) right footed shot from the centre of the box is just a bit too high.
Matt Godden (Stevenage) hits the right post with a right footed shot from outside the box.
Attempt saved. Rowan Liburd (Stevenage) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal.
Attempt blocked. Jack King (Stevenage) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.
Foul by Sam Hart (Port Vale).
Tom Pett (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Attempt missed. Anthony de Freitas (Port Vale) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.
Attempt missed. Harry McKirdy (Stevenage) left footed shot from the left side of the box misses to the left.
Attempt missed. Tom Pett (Stevenage) left footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is just a bit too high.
Substitution, Stevenage. Rowan Liburd replaces Ben Kennedy.
Foul by Rigino Cicilia (Port Vale).
Fraser Franks (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Ryan Taylor (Port Vale) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Fraser Franks (Stevenage).
Delay in match Sam Hart (Port Vale) because of an injury.
Attempt missed. Sam Hart (Port Vale) left footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the left.
Foul by Paulo Tavares (Port Vale).
Harry McKirdy (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Attempt blocked. Harry McKirdy (Stevenage) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.
Substitution, Port Vale. Rigino Cicilia replaces Martin Paterson.
Attempt missed. Anthony de Freitas (Port Vale) left footed shot from the left side of the box is close, but misses to the right.
Foul by Ryan Taylor (Port Vale).
Harry McKirdy (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Remie Streete (Port Vale) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Matt Godden (Stevenage).
Delay in match Jak Alnwick (Port Vale) because of an injury.
Martin Paterson (Port Vale) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Ben Kennedy (Stevenage).
Substitution, Port Vale. Anthony de Freitas replaces Kiko.
Attempt missed. Charlie Lee (Stevenage) header from a difficult angle on the right is close, but misses to the right.
Foul by Remie Streete (Port Vale).
Henry Cowans (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution, Stevenage. Matt Godden replaces Luke Wilkinson.
Attempt missed. Sam Hart (Port Vale) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right.
Attempt saved. Charlie Lee (Stevenage) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Substitution, Port Vale. Sam Hart replaces Sam Kelly.
Attempt blocked. Tom Pett (Stevenage) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Attempt blocked. Jack King (Stevenage) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. | Port Vale progressed to the second round of the FA Cup as they dispatched Stevenage at Vale Park. | 37807715 |
Mesut Ozil opened the scoring with Arsenal's first shot on target after Angelo Ogbonna's mistake and Sanchez's cut-back set up a simple finish.
The Hammers threatened to equalise after the break before Sanchez turned, drove into the box and finished brilliantly past Darren Randolph.
The Chilean added a second eight minutes later with a low strike into the corner, before Andy Carroll came on for a first appearance since 18 August and stooped to nod in the rebound from a Dimitri Payet free-kick that hit the bar.
However, any faint hopes of a comeback were extinguished by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's excellent finish from range and Sanchez's masterful dinked chip over the keeper.
The heavy defeat leaves Slaven Bilic's side one point above the relegation zone after Sunderland beat Leicester 2-1 earlier on Saturday.
Arsenal trail leaders Chelsea by three points but will slip to third if Liverpool win at Bournemouth on Sunday.
Arsene Wenger's side are now unbeaten in 13 league games, and their last away defeat was in February.
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There was a 10-minute second-half spell during which many Arsenal fans might have recognised the familiar beginnings of a slump to draw or defeat despite having dominated for much of the game.
But Sanchez provided the match's key moment when he killed Shkodran Mustafi's booming pass from deep, turned past Anthony Masuaku and found the far angle of the net with brilliant ease with just under 20 minutes to play.
Arsenal defender Laurent Koscielny had been forced to clear a Manuel Lanzini cross bound for Ashley Fletcher from right underneath his own crossbar, West Ham's record signing Andre Ayew had just come on, and Carroll - who scored a hat-trick against Arsenal in a 3-3 draw in April - was being readied for action.
However, it was Sanchez's force that proved the most compelling. Each of his three goals were superbly taken but it was the final, hat-trick goal that will live longest in the memory.
Played through by Oxlade-Chamberlain, he feigned a dummy shot to fool already defeated Hammers keeper Randolph before delicately lifting the ball into the net for what must be one of the goals of the season so far.
West Ham were certainly not helped by losing James Collins to injury in the game's early stages, and his replacement Alvaro Arbeloa looked off the pace.
But regardless of ill fortune, the Hammers remain without a win in the league since their home victory over Sunderland on 22 October.
Manager Slaven Bilic said this result, coming after Wednesday's 4-1 defeat by Manchester United in the EFL Cup, was "a big humiliation", and the fact that his players faded after Sanchez increased Arsenal's lead will be another cause for concern.
A win for Hull in their match at Middlesbrough on Monday will send West Ham into the bottom three.
West Ham boss Slaven Bilic on BT Sport: "I am not looking for excuses. Yes, we had injuries and mistakes, but we were not good enough.
"It was a big humiliation. I feel sorry for the fans and the club. We played some good games in this season, and had some good moments today even at 0-0 and 1-0 down.
"But I have to be honest and say we don't have the intensity and from the dedication comes the quality. We don't have it the same as last season, even in training.
"We are in a serious situation before this game which we don't like. The players know that, but it's not only about knowing but sacrificing, and your dedication for the game."
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Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, speaking to BBC Sport: "We had a convincing performance and strong result.
"We created many chances and you could see West Ham are not a confident team at home. On top of that we had a strong performance.
"Alexis Sanchez - it took him a while mentally to get into the game, but he can always give you something special. He's a fighter and a classy player. You don't find many players like him. He can always surprise you. He also has great technique as well.
"I believe we are on a strong run and it's down to us to be mentally ready to maintain that run."
West Ham travel to Liverpool for a 16:30 GMT kick-off in the Premier League on Sunday, 11 December.
Arsenal play away to Swiss club Basel in the Champions League on Tuesday, before welcoming Stoke in the Premier League at 15:00 next Saturday.
Match ends, West Ham United 1, Arsenal 5.
Second Half ends, West Ham United 1, Arsenal 5.
Álvaro Arbeloa (West Ham United) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Attempt saved. Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Alexis Sánchez.
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Delay in match Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal) because of an injury.
Attempt missed. Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal) right footed shot from the left side of the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Attempt saved. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Aaron Ramsey.
Substitution, Arsenal. Alex Iwobi replaces Mesut Özil.
Substitution, Arsenal. Mohamed Elneny replaces Francis Coquelin.
Goal! West Ham United 1, Arsenal 5. Alexis Sánchez (Arsenal) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain with a through ball.
Goal! West Ham United 1, Arsenal 4. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal) right footed shot from outside the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Mesut Özil.
Goal! West Ham United 1, Arsenal 3. Andy Carroll (West Ham United) header from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner following a set piece situation.
Dimitri Payet (West Ham United) hits the bar with a right footed shot from outside the box from a direct free kick.
Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
André Ayew (West Ham United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal).
Goal! West Ham United 0, Arsenal 3. Alexis Sánchez (Arsenal) right footed shot from outside the box to the bottom left corner.
Attempt blocked. André Ayew (West Ham United) left footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Angelo Ogbonna.
Corner, Arsenal. Conceded by Álvaro Arbeloa.
Attempt blocked. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Mesut Özil.
Attempt missed. André Ayew (West Ham United) left footed shot from the centre of the box is just a bit too high. Assisted by Manuel Lanzini.
Substitution, West Ham United. Andy Carroll replaces Mark Noble.
Goal! West Ham United 0, Arsenal 2. Alexis Sánchez (Arsenal) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the right to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Shkodran Mustafi.
André Ayew (West Ham United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Nacho Monreal (Arsenal).
Foul by André Ayew (West Ham United).
Gabriel (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Attempt saved. Mesut Özil (Arsenal) left footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner.
Attempt saved. Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Nacho Monreal.
Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Ashley Fletcher (West Ham United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal).
André Ayew (West Ham United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Granit Xhaka (Arsenal).
Substitution, Arsenal. Aaron Ramsey replaces Theo Walcott.
Winston Reid (West Ham United) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Attempt blocked. Theo Walcott (Arsenal) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Alexis Sánchez.
Substitution, West Ham United. André Ayew replaces Edimilson Fernandes.
Attempt saved. Ashley Fletcher (West Ham United) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Álvaro Arbeloa with a cross. | Alexis Sanchez's fine hat-trick secured an emphatic victory over West Ham at London Stadium as Arsenal moved up to second in the Premier League table. | 38113792 |
Calum Gallagher's goal, the climax of a superbly crafted move, gave the hosts a half-time lead but Kenny Miller equalised with a header.
Jason Holt thought he had grabbed a winner for the Scottish Cup finalists.
But, in added time, substitute Lewis Morgan cut in from the left-hand side to fire the Buddies level.
Steven Thompson and Jim Goodwin, on duty as St Mirren players for the last time, had to settle for places on the bench.
The headline team news for Rangers was that Martyn Waghorn made a comeback straight into the starting line-up after two-and-a-half months on the sidelines with a knee injury.
Rangers took fully 18 minutes to threaten the Buddies' goal - and then did it three times in seconds.
Jamie Langfield made a real meal of a low shot from Lee Wallace and spilled it back into play, which led to Waghorn hitting the post.
Waghorn then collected the rebound and curled a shot beyond the far post.
Barrie McKay later added to the list of unsuccessful attempts.
Not that Wes Foderingham was over employed in the Rangers goal. It took 31 minutes for him to be called into serious action, dealing with a well struck Stevie Mallan free-kick down to his left.
And then he was involved in a shambolic mix-up which forced him to deal with a passback with his knee and only knock the ball on to Lawrence Shankland, whose touch deflected the ball just past the post.
Suddenly alarm bells were ringing for Rangers.
St Mirren's opener was a gem - crisp passing involving mostly the inventive Mallan, who held the ball up perfectly before rolling it into the overlapping run of Calum Gallagher. His strike was low and in at the near post.
James Tavernier was the engineer of Rangers' leveller, working his way down the right and hanging it up at the far post. Defenders hesitated but Miller attacked the cross and his downward header beat Langfield.
The tide had turned and Rangers started to pile on the pressure. McKay forced a fine save from Langfield, Miller hit the bar, Holt fired over and an away winner looked odds on.
The home fans in the crowd of 5,933 desperate for a last sighting of Goodwin and Thompson in a black and white striped shirt were granted their wish.
Manager Alex Rae made them wait until the 74th minute when they came on together to a standing ovation.
And just to sign off with a flourish, Goodwin received a yellow card for a tackle on the edge of the box.
Holt grabbed the lead for Rangers, rattling into the left-hand corner but St Mirren were not beaten yet.
Deep into stoppage time Morgan hit the equaliser to snatch a draw and leave Thompson and Goodwin to their lap of honour. | Rangers ended their league campaign with a draw as St Mirren struck late to deny the Championship winners a first victory in four. | 36122854 |
The crash happened at the junction of Evesham Road and Luddington Road at about 15:50 BST.
West Midlands Ambulance Service said crews arrived to find the car upside down and partially submerged in a brook.
It took about 40 minutes to free the woman, in her 70s, who escaped with only minor injuries.
She was taken to Warwick Hospital for further checks. | A motorist has been rescued after her car crashed over a bridge and plunged into a brook in Stratford-upon-Avon. | 32242995 |
What would you see if you travelled to the surface of Mars? Or were able to drift in and out of Saturn's rings?
A new exhibition - Otherworlds - focuses on the creative work of US-based artist Michael Benson. He mixes art with science - to make crisp, colourful and seamless digital images from data sent back to Earth by Nasa and ESA spacecraft.
The museum's Poppy Cooper, who helped put the show together, says the 77 images are meant to represent what humans would see if they went to visit those places.
Scroll down and travel deep into the Solar System yourself.
Moonlight on the Adriatic
As seen from the International Space Station, this first image looks back to Earth.
The boot of Italy is clearly visible. The bright lights in the bottom right hand corner is Milan.
The Adriatic Sea sparkles in the moonlight - although, as Poppy Cooper points out, moonlight is of course reflected sunlight.
Mosaic composite photograph. ISS 023 crew, 29 April 2010
Credit: Nasa JSC/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Picture, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Typhoon over Bay of Bengal
This immense vortex of Tropical Cyclone 03B slammed into India's east coast at the end of 2003, with wind speeds approaching 120 kilometres an hour.
Below, the top of the island of Sri Lanka is relatively cloud free.
Photograph. Terra, 15 December 2003
Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, Lucian Plesea, Modis Land Rapid Response Team/Nasa GSFC/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Eclipse of the Sun by Earth
"Incredibly violent, energetic and quite frightening" is how Poppy Cooper describes the next image, which shows giant solar flares leaping out from the surface of the Sun.
The view - based on an ultraviolet exposure taken in space by the Solar Dynamics Observatory - shows the Sun appearing to be in the Earth's shadow.
The shadow is due to the increased density of the Earth's atmosphere - from left to right in the image - which blocks UV light.
Ultraviolet exposure. Solar Dynamics Observatory, 2 April 2011
Credit: Nasa SDO/Nasa GSFC/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Ground fog in Valles Marineris
It is foggy on Mars.
This next image shows the planet's Valles Marineris canyon system - which is about as wide as Australia, and at almost 4,000km long, is the largest in the Solar System.
A fog hugs the canyon floor, which is more than 6.5km deep in places - more than three times deeper than the Grand Canyon in the United States.
Mosaic composite photograph. Mars Express, 25 May 2004
Credit: ESA/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Global dust storm on Mars
Mars can also bear witness to giant dust storms which can last for months.
This image was put together using data from a Nasa mission in 1977.
"The scale is amazing. It just reminds you how active all these other worlds are," says Poppy Cooper.
"Our planet is not unique in that respect - other planets are constantly changing and moving."
Mosaic composite photograph. Viking Orbiter 2, 19 February 1977
Credit: Nasa/JPL/Dr Paul Geissler/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Late afternoon on Mars
This more peaceful image was taken late afternoon during a Martian day.
In the distance is Husband Hill - named in memory of Columbia Space Shuttle Commander Rick Husband.
He died with six other astronauts in 2003, when Columbia disintegrated as it re-entered the Earth's atmosphere.
Mosaic composite photograph. Spirit Rover, 16 April 2006
Credit: Nasa/JPL/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
A Warming Comet
There are hundreds of comets flying around the Solar System - celestial bodies moving about the Sun in stretched orbits.
This image is of the oddly twin-lobed Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko - which was discovered in 1969.
It starts to vent gas and dust as it heats up - about a month before perihelion, the point at which it is closest to the Sun along its orbit.
Rosetta, 7 July 2015
Credit: ESA/Rosetta/Navcam-CC BY-SA IGO 3.0/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Stormy Jupiter
Jupiter's Great Red Spot can be clearly seen here.
A persistent anti-cyclonic storm, it impedes the progress of the white clouds to its right - funnelling them into streaming tendrils below.
The churning dynamo is three times the size of Earth and has been raging for at least 348 years.
Photograph. Cassini, 1 January 2001
Credit: Nasa/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Europa, an ice-covered ocean moon
This next image shows the jumbled faults and curving ridges that sprawl out across the icy surface of Europa - one of the dozens of moons of Jupiter.
It is slightly smaller than our own Moon.
Mosaic composite photograph, Galileo, 29 March 1998
Credit: Nasa/JPL/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Crescent Jupiter and Ganymede
Jupiter - the Solar System's largest planet - dwarfs its largest moon Ganymede, seen here on the right.
Ganymede is the ninth largest object in the solar system and is bigger than the planet Mercury.
Like Europa, Ganymede's surface is composed of water ice, and is thought to have a sub-surface ocean.
Mosaic composite photograph. Cassini, 10 January 2001
Credit: Nasa/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Dark side of the rings
"It looks a bit like a marble or a hat you might wear to a wedding - the colours are beautiful," says Poppy Cooper of this image which looks down on Saturn's northern regions.
Dust and ice make up the distinctive rings which circle the planet - into which you could fit 763 (and a bit) Earths.
"Their relative dimensions are thinner than a sheet of paper. They are hundreds of kilometres long, but only about 10 metres deep."
Mosaic composite photograph. Cassini, 20 January 2007
Credit: Nasa/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Enceladus vents water into space
"A lot of people have been drawn to this image of Enceladus, one of Saturn's moons, because it looks a bit like the Death Star in Star Wars," says Cooper.
The moon is bathed in direct sunlight on the left, with reflected sunlight from Saturn illuminating it on the right.
At the top of the moon, erupts a vast spray of water into space - which immediately freezes.
"Enceladus is very reminiscent of our own moon but it is much more active," says Cooper.
"It is believed to have a sub-surface ocean - which leaves people wondering if it might have the conditions to host life."
Mosaic composite photograph. Cassini, 25 December 2009
Credit: Nasa/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Uranus and its rings
"I like this because it's so perfect and symmetrical - like a computer graphic - but it is actually real," says Cooper of this image of the planet Uranus.
"The blue comes from the methane in the atmosphere - reacting with the light from the Sun."
The third largest planet in our Solar System, Uranus was discovered in 1781 by the astronomer William Herschel - but its faint rings were only spotted in 1977.
Mosaic composite photograph. Voyager, 24 January 1986
Credit: Nasa/JPL/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
A Plutonian Haze
This final glowing image is of the chilly dwarf planet Pluto - on the edge of our Solar System.
"I love the idea there might be blue skies on Pluto - it's romantic," says Poppy Cooper.
"It's so other-worldly it couldn't be Earth. It looks cold, distant, inhospitable."
But the blue haze - captured last year by Nasa's New Horizons spacecraft - is light from the giant Sun, hidden here behind tiny Pluto.
Mosaic composite photograph. New Horizons, 14 July 2015
Credit: Nasa/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Otherworlds: Visions of our Solar System can be seen at the Natural History Museum, London, from 22 January - 15 May 2016. | Fog on Mars, storms on Jupiter and fiery flares on the Sun - stunning close up images of our nearest planetary neighbours are going on show at London's Natural History Museum. | 35292518 |
The Welshman's third mandatory title defence will be on a bill topped by Carl Frampton's WBA world featherweight title rematch with Leo Santa Cruz.
Selby wants to emulate UK fighters Lennox Lewis, Ricky Hatton, Joe Calzaghe and Amir Khan in Las Vegas.
"I always knew that's where I wanted to fight," said the 29-year-old.
"My mandatory challenger is experienced, dangerous and I will not take him lightly.
"I've had a strong training camp and I am 100 % focused on putting on a show for the American fans and the travelling fans."
Selby, from Barry in south Wales, is being lined-up to fight the winner of Frampton v Santa Cruz in 2017.
Northern Irishman Frampton claimed a points win over Santa Cruz of Mexico in July.
Montenegrin Dejan Zlaticanin defends his WBC lightweight title against Mikey Garcia of the United States in the third world title fight scheduled for the bill in January.
Selby had previously told the BBC he expected his next title defence to be in the USA.
Find out how to get into boxing with our special guide. | Lee Selby's defence of his world IBF featherweight title against Jonathan Barros has been confirmed for 28 January Las Vegas' MGM Grand Hotel. | 38407434 |
The set of six stamps were crafted by Manchester-based paper artist Helen Musselwhite using paper cut-outs which were then photographed.
She said she was "immensely proud" to illustrate the stamps.
A Christmas tree, pudding and stocking complete this year's set, which range from first and second class to £2.25.
Ms Musselwhite said crafting the stamps has been "one of the most important and favourite jobs" of her career.
She said: "I'm immensely proud my work will be winging its way across the world sending season's greetings far and wide from the UK."
Royal Mail said the robin's appearance on Christmas cards was inspired by the red waistcoats worn by postmen in Victorian times.
Christmas stamps were first issued in 1966 when Royal Mail ran a competition on BBC's Blue Peter to select the design.
The last recommended posting dates are 20 December for second class stamps and 21 December for first. | Royal Mail has unveiled this year's Christmas stamps featuring traditional festive images including a snowman, robin and a lantern. | 37900410 |
Cumbria Zoo Company Ltd (CZCL) wants to buy the zoo and end its connection with David Gill, who founded it in 1994.
On Monday, Barrow Council refused Mr Gill a licence to continue running it, amid concerns over animal welfare.
David Shaw said he hopes CZCL, which took over operational control in January, will succeed with its plan.
The zoo remains open but could close within 28 days, unless Mr Gill appeals against the council's decision.
CZCL has been operating the zoo through a six-month leasing agreement with Mr Gill, who remained only as landowner.
It has submitted its own licence application, which is due to be inspected later this month.
In it Mr Gill will have no management, operational or other role.
In a social media posting CZCL said: "Despite the short time in which we have had sole operation of the site, we have developed and mitigated many of the welfare concerns that were inherited when we took over."
Mr Shaw said of CZCL: "They've come a long way, they have the right enclosures, they mix the right animals and they're looked after in the right way.
"Provided they can prove they do it in a safe manner, the enforcement legislation will require them to do it in a way that's suitable for the animals." | The partner of Sarah McClay, who was killed by a tiger at South Lakes Safari Zoo, hopes the attraction can stay open after its owner was refused a licence. | 39190563 |
Speaking to BBC Newsnight, the far-right leader said her party has been given a boost by the result.
Ms Le Pen - one of the contenders for the French presidency in 2017 - said she would call a referendum if elected.
A number of other far-right leaders in Europe say they would like to hold their own referendums on EU membership.
In her first broadcast interview since the UK's Leave vote in the referendum, Ms Le Pen commended "the courage of the British people who didn't allow themselves to be intimidated by the threats, blackmail, and lies of the European elites".
"For four years I've been demanding that a referendum be organised in France, to ask the French people what they think of the EU - if they want to leave. The Brits got the first shot in, so to speak."
"If I win the presidential election, there will be a referendum... The question should be asked in every EU country," she said.
Ms Le Pen specifically cited France, Italy, the Netherlands and Sweden, where leaders of anti-immigration and far-right parties have indicated they would like to follow the UK example.
She said Britain's vote for Brexit would help her party, the National Front, because it has shown that voters are willing to disregard the warnings of their leaders and experts. "They are for Remain but the nation was for Brexit."
She said it improved the chances of France leaving the EU because "Brexit has shown us that it's possible".
Asked whether she believes the UK definitely will leave the EU following the vote, she said: "I hope so, because otherwise we can throw the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the fire, together with European values. If the will of the people is not respected - once again - that would mean we are definitively in a totalitarian system."
Ms Le Pen was also highly critical of US President Barack Obama's pre-referendum comments on the referendum - in which he argued that the EU makes Britain stronger - and his visit to the UK in April.
"I was extremely shocked by the behaviour of Mr Obama... I think going to a country to tell it what to do, otherwise you'll see, we'll impose sanctions on you - I think that's shameful. It's shameful," she said.
"We are old nations. We paid a high price to defend our freedom, our sovereignty. We built our democracies. We made a lot of sacrifices to get where we are today. We didn't do it to obey Mr Obama or Mrs Merkel."
Ms Le Pen said it would be totally incorrect to suggest - as some commentators have - that the Brexit vote has stirred up racism.
"Racism must be fought - there are no two ways about it…. [But] it's not caused by Brexit. Once again, it's time to stop with propaganda."
The European parliament's first debate on the UK's vote to leave took place on Tuesday, and was marked by bitter exchanges.
A central figure in the Leave campaign, UK Independence Party (UKIP) leader Nigel Farage, was booed, called a liar and accused of using "Nazi propaganda".
Mr Farage shot back that the EU itself was "in denial".
UK Prime Minister David Cameron has arrived in Brussels for his first talks with leaders of the other 27 EU states since Thursday's referendum.
Watch Emily Maitlis' full interview with Marine Le Pen on BBC Newsnight at 22:30 BST on BBC Two | France's National Front leader Marine Le Pen has called the UK's Brexit vote "the most important moment since the fall of the Berlin Wall". | 36653381 |
She said the Scottish referendum had to be a lesson that people across the UK wanted more of a say over their future.
Speaking in Glasgow, Ms Williams called for a federal system made up of four equal nations.
She challenged other parties to sign up to the Silk Commission recommendations on further powers for Wales.
The Brecon and Radnorshire AM said: " I challenge them all to do as Nick Clegg has done and sign up to the Silk Commission's recommendations - so that Wales can speak as one voice.
"Wales must have a proper parliament. One that reflects the will of the people. One that has the powers to make a difference. One that shows that devolution really can work.
"Our message to the people of Wales is clear: A vote for the Liberal Democrats will be a vote for Wales to have a real say over its destiny."
She added: "Since the days of Lloyd George, Liberals have been the party of Home Rule. And I believe it's closer than it has ever been for a generation."
Ms Williams said "complacency in Westminster" had allowed nationalists to thrive in Scotland and had "handed them the devolution agenda".
"The separatists wanted to divide our country and carve it up - and we almost let them do it," she told delegates.
"The current approach of relieving the pressure wherever the constitutional shoe rubs most is simply not good enough.
"If that approach continues, then don't be surprised if the Welsh conclude that it is only by voting nationalist that things will change. The Liberal Democrats must never let that happen."
The Wales party leader said Scottish ambitions for home rule, which she stressed they must gain, could not be achieved without meeting those of Wales, Northern Ireland and England.
"We are four nations distinct with our own ambitions, our own needs and our own outlook," said Ms Williams. "All these nations need a place at the table.
"We need a federal solution in which all four nations are equal partners in charge of their own destiny, as part of one united family - and now is the time to do it.
"The referendum must be a lesson that people across the UK want more of a say over their future.
"We must show them that change is coming, independence can't be their only option."
She also told the conference Labour had been in power since "the dawn of devolution" in Wales.
"Our Welsh assembly was supposed to be a symbol of hope, but Labour strangled that optimism," she added. "They have wasted the opportunity the National Assembly gave us." | Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Kirsty Williams has told the national party conference it was time Wales had a "proper parliament". | 29507076 |
Mr Hamilton said the majority of British people are "tolerant and welcoming".
His comments come after the Finsbury Park terror attack in London.
BBC Wales understands that the man suspected to have driven a van into Muslim worshippers on Monday is from Cardiff.
Mr Hamilton also suggested that "firm control" of immigration would "at least" alleviate problems of fundamentalist terrorism.
In February it was reported that all police forces in Wales saw hate crime rise in the first full three months following the EU referendum.
Greater Manchester Police said there was a significant rise in hate crimes after a terror attack in the city in May.
Asked if Britain has a problem with Islamophobia, Mr Hamilton told a press conference: "No I don't, actually.
"The overwhelming majority of the British people are tolerant and welcoming.
"Inevitably there is a minority that is prepared to resort to violence and abuse. That's not acceptable."
He added: "There are no reliable statistics on hate crime for example."
Mr Hamilton added: "There isn't a general problem with Islamophobia in the United Kingdom or Wales".
Mr Hamilton opened the press conference by talking about a Senedd debate on immigration, to be held by the party on Wednesday.
The debate calls for a "controlled and fair immigration system".
"For the last few years we've been adding a city the size of Cardiff to the population of the UK every single year," he said.
"That's undoubtedly had an impact upon the provision of public services in different parts of the UK".
Asked how to ensure rhetoric on immigration does not divide communities, Mr Hamilton said: "We've seen now the results of years of ignoring the problem, deliberately suppressing discussion of the issue."
"There are massive difficulties the country now faces as a result of this uncontrolled inflow," he said.
"The case of Salman Abedi is a case in point," Mr Hamilton said, referring to the perpetrator of the recent attack in Manchester. "They came from Libya in 2008. We now know that family was known to have connections with Islamic fundamentalist groups in Libya.
"No system of immigration control is full-proof," he said.
But he added: "We have to get our border control system fit for purpose and we have to be more alert to the need to scrutinise the background of those who are coming here."
"This is a composite problem, which goes way beyond the immigration problem", he said.
"A firm control of immigration and in particular a proper appraisal of asylum seekers qualifications is an essential part - it will not solve the problem completely no doubt - but at least alleviating the problems of fundamentalist terrorism." | Britain does not have a problem with Islamophobia and there are no reliable statistics on hate crime, UKIP assembly group leader Neil Hamilton has said. | 40340803 |
Lord Howard criticised attempts to change the government's Brexit bill to ensure Parliament gets to approve any deal struck by Theresa May with the EU.
But ex-deputy PM Lord Heseltine said Parliament should be "the ultimate custodian of our national sovereignty".
The government faces defeat when Lords vote later on amending the bill, but any changes could be reversed by MPs.
No 10 has assured Parliament it will get a say on the outcome of the two year Brexit talks, with the implication that the UK would leave the EU without any deal if Parliament voted against whatever had been negotiated.
But opponents want to be able to vote to reject any deal done and ask Mrs May to go back and get a better one - the amendment does this by saying that there would have to be Parliamentary approval before the UK could leave the EU without any deal.
Presenting the amendment, crossbench peer Lord Pannick said Parliament's role should be "written into the bill - no ifs, no buts".
The amendment would require the explicit approval of Parliament before Mrs May could conclude any deal on leaving the EU or establishing a new relationship.
It would also require the approval of both Houses of Parliament if the PM wants to the leave the EU without a deal in place.
Lord Heseltine backed the change, saying he "deeply" regretted the referendum result. People who voted to stay in the EU "have the right to be heard", he said, adding: "The fightback starts here."
The amendment, he said, "secures in law the government's commitment to ensure that Parliament is the ultimate custodian of our national sovereignty".
But Lord Howard said the proposed changes to the bill would give the House of Lords a veto over the prime minister's ability to implement the referendum result.
And another ex-Tory minister, Lord Forsyth, described it as "a clever lawyer's confection in order to reverse the result of the referendum".
Earlier, the Archbishop of Canterbury warned holding a second EU referendum would deepen divisions over Brexit.
The Most Reverend Justin Welby said a "national reconciliation" was needed.
Defending his party's call for a second referendum, Lib Dem Lords leader Lord Newby said his party was not "sidelining Parliament" with its bid to amend the draft legislation.
But he said not offering people the chance to vote on the UK's exit terms would create "widespread and justified anger which would be corrosive to our national life in many years to come".
Without a commitment to a second vote, the Lib Dems say they will oppose the EU (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill at third reading later on Tuesday although Lord Newby conceded that peers as a whole were likely to approve the bill, which will give Theresa May the power to begin official Brexit talks.
The archbishop said he understood the "good intentions" behind the Lib Dem amendment, but said: "Holding another referendum will add to our divisions."
Divisions are not something to be "navigated around" but need to be "healed", he said, adding: "This feels like the most divided country I have lived in in my lifetime."
The Lib Dem amendment calling for a second referendum was comfortably defeated, by 336 votes to 131.
The party has a far stronger presence in the House of Lords - with 102 peers - than in the Commons, where they have just nine MPs.
Leader Tim Farron acknowledged there was a "great irony" in the Lib Dems, who want to abolish the House of Lords, making use of their peers, but said: "You use the system that's in front of you."
But speaking during the Lords debate, UKIP's Lord Pearson said that if the Lib Dems used their numerical advantage "to vote down the will of the British people... they will reveal their contempt for democracy".
Meanwhile, the prime minister has been warned not to use her proposed Great Repeal Bill to avoid full parliamentary scrutiny of the Brexit process.
The Great Repeal Bill will scrap the 1972 European Communities Act, which paved the way for the UK to enter the then-EEC, ending the legal authority of EU law.
It will also transpose EU regulations into domestic law, crucially allowing them to be altered or removed after Brexit.
Senior peers on the House of Lords Constitution Committee said Mrs May must not use the legislation to "pick and choose" which elements of European law she wanted to scrap or alter without Parliament's full involvement. | A former Conservative leader has accused the House of Lords of trying to secure a "veto" over Brexit. | 39188071 |
Vieira, 39, leaves his role as head coach of Manchester City's Under-21s after signing a three-year contract with New York.
New York City are part of the City Football Group founded by Manchester City owner Sheik Mansour,
New York City's squad includes ex-Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard.
Andrea Pirlo, who helped Italy win the 2006 World Cup, also plays for them along with ex-Barcelona forward David Villa.
Vieira, a World Cup winner in 1998 with France, will take up his new role on 1 January 2016.
"I am delighted to take up the role of head coach of New York City FC," said Vieira.
"It is an exciting prospect for any coach."
New York City have just completed their inaugural season which ended in elimination from the play-offs.
They averaged gates of around 29,000 at the Yankee Stadium which including 20,000 season ticket holders.
Earlier this year, the New York Times reported that the club was considering a move to Columbia University's Baker Athletics Complex, at the northern tip of Manhattan.
Vieira won seven major honours in nine years at Arsenal between 1996-2005.
He won the Serie A title with Juventus in 2006 before helping Inter Milan to three domestic titles.
Vieira joined Manchester City in January 2010 and helped the club win the FA Cup in 2011 before announcing his retirement from playing. | Former Arsenal and Manchester City midfielder Patrick Vieira has been appointed as head coach of Major League Soccer club New York City. | 34768961 |
Kevin Nicks, from Great Rollright, Oxfordshire, got bored with his Volkswagen Passat and converted it into a shed on wheels.
Earlier, his unusual vehicle was clocked at an average of 70.8mph over two 100m runs during a day of record attempts near York.
Mr Nicks, 50, said he was happy to have achieved his goal.
He will now submit his results to Guinness World Records, which will decide if he has officially broken the previous record of 58.4mph.
Mr Nicks, who is hoping to use the vehicle as advertising space, said: "It's good to be getting the word out there, which will help as an advertising tool.
"I can say 'advertise on the side of the world's fastest shed'."
It took Mr Nicks seven months to transform his car, using steel beams and timber, and create his shed on wheels.
It is legal to drive on the road and can reach speeds of almost 80mph, he said.
Mr Nicks added: "I had the car sitting around and it was going to be scrap, but it was too good for scrap.
"It's fun, it makes everybody smile."
The record attempt was held at the 10th World Wheelie Championship at Elvington Airfield near York. | A gardener has completed an attempt to break the world record for the fastest shed. | 33951868 |
The drab homes and dimly lit streets that hugged the steep hillside were rife with drug addiction, theft and domestic violence.
Now proudly bathed in kaleidoscopic colours, the area stands as an example of how to transform marginalised neighbourhoods across Latin America.
Government-funded muralists have turned the hillside into a giant work of art, while helping locals to find employment opportunities and develop a sense of community.
"The neighbourhood changed completely. The colours gave it life," says Doña Chela, a local pastry chef.
"There used to be a lot of robberies and people drinking on the streets all the time. That happens much less now."
Located 88km (55 miles) north east of Mexico City in Hidalgo state, Pachuca is best known as a former hub for Cornish miners who introduced football and pasties to Mexico in the 19th Century.
The city has been spared the worst of the cartel violence that has plagued Mexico in the last decade but petty crime has been a consistent problem, particularly in hillside slums like Palmitas.
Read: A guide to Mexico's drug cartels
This has begun to change since a team of graffiti artists known as the Germen Crew painted 200 houses here in 2015.
Viewed from afar, the homes fit together to form swirling patterns inspired by Pachuca's nickname, "La Bella Airosa" (The Windy Beauty).
Closer inspection reveals finer details among the labyrinth of stairways and alleyways, including several iconic portraits of local residents.
The muralists are now painting another 300 homes in the adjacent Cubitos neighbourhood.
Known as the Macro Mural, the project is due for completion in November.
Organisers say it will cover 40,000 square metres, making it the world's largest mural of its kind.
The project is led by Enrique Gómez, a 36-year-old former gang member from an impoverished area in nearby Mexico state.
"I've had an intense life. I left home at age 16 and got involved in gangs and loads of illegal stuff," Mr Gómez says.
"Fortunately through graffiti I found a pathway out of all that. There was more money in graffiti and less risk of being arrested or killed."
Mr Gómez says his background has helped him win the trust of local youths.
By persuading members of feuding clans to paint together he aims to reduce tensions and engender a sense of brotherhood and community spirit.
Aside from brightening the area with his brushstrokes, Mr Gómez has given talks, held art workshops and employed locals to help out.
He also hopes to open a community centre where children can engage in healthy activities and learn to use computers.
"Before, people didn't like to admit they were from here. Now they boast of it," Mr Gómez says with a smile.
"We've shown them they can find work and move forward in life, no matter where they're from."
The Mexican government has invested almost 10 million pesos ($565,000; £435,000) in the project, including funding for new street lights, counselling for local families, and cookery, hairdressing and jewellery-making workshops.
Critics have accused the government of trying to "paint over poverty", but Juan Pontigo, the head of Hidalgo's public security council, insists that Mexico must back more initiatives like this to provide vulnerable youths with alternatives to a life of crime.
"If you ask children today if they'd like to be police officers, many say no, they want to be narcos," Mr Pontigo says.
"We have a culture of being reactive to crime and focusing on its effects. We must also do all we can to address the causes through prevention."
The project's potential has not gone unnoticed.
The Germen Crew were recently hired to produce another Macro Mural in the northern city of Monterrey, while their work has also inspired a similar programme in Puerto Rico.
"We've had visitors from other states and countries who are interested in replicating this model," says Pachuca mayor Yolanda Tellería.
"It's a success story for transforming favelas and neighbourhoods with high levels of crime and social problems."
The murals have also boosted Pachuca's international profile. A music video that British pop stars Sigala and Ella Eyre filmed in Palmitas has over 13 million views since its release in June.
Mayor Tellería hopes the exposure will draw foreign tourists. Her government intends to run guided tours of the murals, creating opportunities for locals to sell snacks and souvenirs to visitors.
"We want people to visit this place," Ms Tellería says.
"We need to bring tourism and generate revenue within these neighbourhoods for the benefit of our youth." | For many years the rundown Palmitas neighbourhood that overlooks the Mexican city of Pachuca was a hive of delinquency. | 40959839 |
Back-rower Kalamafoni, 29, and flanker Ryan, 27, will be joined by Joe Ford, 26, and Jonah Holmes, 24, who have been signed from Yorkshire Carnegie.
Fly-half Ford is the brother of Leicester's England star George.
The versatile Holmes began his career at Wasps, while Ryan has made one appearance for Ireland, in 2014.
Kalamafoni has played in two World Cups for Tonga and made more than 100 appearances during his five-year stay at Gloucester.
"It is now time for a new challenge in my career and I'm delighted to be able to sign for Leicester Tigers," said Kalamafoni.
"It is obviously a big club with a lot of history and I'm looking forward to playing my part there." | Leicester Tigers have agreed the signings of Tonga international Sione Kalamafoni from Gloucester and Ireland's Dominic Ryan from Leinster. | 40123819 |
Terry hurt himself on landing after an aerial challenge in the first half.
Chelsea say the 35-year-old may have a small muscular injury to his hamstring and will undergo a scan on Sunday.
Blues boss Guss Hiddink said: "We have just two days to recover and it is something to think about in the future as two days of recovery is not enough."
Fellow central defender Kurt Zouma was ruled out for six months after injuring his anterior cruciate ligament against Manchester United last Sunday. | Chelsea skipper John Terry is a doubt for Tuesday's Champions League last-16 trip to Paris St-Germain after limping off in the 5-1 win over Newcastle. | 35570870 |
Damage caused by the blaze at Cromwell High School in, Dukinfield, Greater Manchester, was "much more extensive" than first thought, staff said.
Classes at the school, which caters for pupils with special needs, are being held at another venue while repairs are carried out.
About 50 firefighters tackled the blaze on Yew Tree Lane on Friday.
A statement on the school's website said the whole school building would be "out of operation for the rest of the summer term" after surveys revealed the extent of the damage.
"This will mean that school will have to operate from another site and all the equipment that the pupils require will need to be moved," it said.
Three boys, two aged 14 and one aged 15, have been charged with arson with intent to endanger life.
They will appear at Tameside Youth Court later. | A fire-hit high school is going to be closed for the summer term, parents have been told. | 36070246 |
Turing Pharmaceuticals acquired the rights to Daraprim in August.
CEO Martin Shkreli has said that the company will use the money it makes from sales to research new treatments.
The drug treats toxoplasmosis, a parasitic affliction that affects people with compromised immune systems.
After Turing's acquisition, a dose of Daraprim in the US increased from $13.50 (£8.70) to $750.
The pill costs about $1 to produce, but Mr Shkreli, a former hedge fund manager, said that does not include other costs like marketing and distribution, which have increased dramatically in recent years.
Agreeing a price for any drug is a tricky business.
In the UK, the National Health Service is the main buyer and prices are set through a voluntary scheme between manufacturers and the government, trying to strike the right balance of serving patients and generating money to keep the drug pipeline going. Profits are capped to stop prices creeping too high.
In the US, the buyers are private insurance companies as well as the government through the Medicare and Medicaid system. It's a market and prices can go up and down, depending on what people are willing to pay.
In recent years, pharmaceutical research and development has slowed and companies have to think carefully about what they invest in. Blockbusters such as Viagra pull in money, but orphan drugs for rare diseases can be less attractive. Not many patients use them, and so turning a profit may be difficult.
What's a fair price for a drug? Read more
"We needed to turn a profit on this drug," Mr Shkreli told Bloomberg TV. "The companies before us were actually giving it away almost."
He says the practice is not out of line with the rest of the industry.
"These days, modern pharmaceuticals, cancer drugs can cost $100,000 or more, whereas these drugs can cost half a million dollars. Daraprim is still underpriced relative to its peers," he told Bloomberg TV.
On Twitter, Mr Shkreli mocked several users who questioned the company's decision, calling one reporter "a moron".
The Infectious Diseases Society of America, the HIV Medicine Association and other health care providers wrote an open letter to Turing, urging the company to reconsider.
"This cost is unjustifiable for the medically vulnerable patient population in need of this medication and unsustainable for the health care system," the groups wrote.
Dr Wendy Armstrong of HIV Medicine Association also disputed the need to develop new treatments for toxoplasmosis.
"This is not an infection where we have been looking for more effective drugs," she told Infectious Disease News.
On Wall Street, biotech shares fell sharply on Monday after Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton pledged to take action against firms hiking prices for specialty drugs.
"Price gouging like this in the specialty drug market is outrageous," Mrs Clinton said, citing Daraprim. | The head of a US pharmaceutical company has defended his company's decision to raise the price of a 62-year-old medication used by Aids patients by over 5,000%. | 34320413 |
8 January 2016 Last updated at 00:16 GMT
The engine, which was retired from service in 1963, has been restored for York's National Railway Museum (NRM) in a shed in Bury, Greater Manchester.
Low-speed test runs begin later along the East Lancashire Railway.
It marks the end of a £4.2m complex restoration project, which began in 2006 by specialist engineers at Riley and Son Ltd, based in Bury.
Tom Ingall reports on the history of the famous engine. | One of the world's most iconic railway locomotives, the Flying Scotsman, is to take its first public test run under steam after a decade off the tracks. | 35251312 |
Nicola Sturgeon spoke out as she confirmed that a full independent review group had been established to examine the care system.
It will be chaired by Fiona Duncan, chief executive of Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland.
And it includes five people who have experience of being in care.
Ms Sturgeon said "swift progress" had been made in setting up the new body.
She said the review group would look at the legislation, practices, culture and ethos of the care system and listen to young people who had experienced it and their families, with the aim being to improve their quality of life and future outcomes.
Speaking at a reception for young people who have been in care, she said: "Every young person should have an equal opportunity to succeed in life, no matter their circumstances.
"However, we know that there are still many challenges facing young people in care and that their opportunities are all too often not the same as other young people in Scotland.
"The care system must and can do better by our most vulnerable children and young people.
"They need to know they are loved and feel cared for - this review is not about determining if this can be achieved, but how we create a system that puts love for the children it cares for at its heart."
She added: "Swift progress has been made setting up the review, culminating with the establishment of the review group, with people with care experience at its heart.
"I very much welcome all of the members who will be dedicating their time to sit on the review group during this crucial first stage.
"The wide breadth of experience, expertise and contribution of each panel member is vital in carrying out this review."
Ms Duncan, from the Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland, which gives grants to help disadvantaged people and communities, said: "We really can, will and must deliver a review that changes lives and is transformational.
"Without the voice of care experience, this review would not be happening - and without that voice, it will not deliver.
"Many young people, their families, and professionals involved in the care system have an important contribution to make, and I look forward to learning from them in the coming weeks and months." | Five people who grew up in care have been placed at the heart of a new review of the system, the first minister has said. | 40100493 |
Alan Jenkins, 59, of Penlan, was found guilty of one charge of not meeting the duty of care to an animal.
Jenkins, who left the animals near Clwyd Road, Penlan, was ordered to pay £750 costs and an £85 victim surcharge.
RSPCA inspector Neill Manley said it was "not acceptable" to leave horses tethered like this.
The issue of horses being tethered in the city led to the proposal of banning it on Swansea council land, but the move was blocked due to the cost involved. | A Swansea man who left a horse and foal tethered without adequate shelter, food and water has been given a 12-month community order. | 36463587 |
The White House has cast a memo written by him on Tuesday as the impetus for the move.
But critics say the 52-year-old Harvard graduate, with a reputation as straight-shooting and non-partisan, has been sucked into providing cover for Mr Trump to push out a man he desperately wanted rid of.
Mr Comey was leading the FBI investigation into alleged Russian interference in the November presidential election, including whether there was co-ordination between the Trump campaign and Russia.
And Mr Rosenstein is overseeing that probe, because his own boss, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, has recused himself from it after a row over contacts with the Russian ambassador to the US.
Indeed, senior Democrats say they believe Mr Comey had approached the deputy attorney general to request more resources for the investigation just days before the memo was written - although the department of justice has dismissed this as "false".
Mr Rosenstein received overwhelming bi-partisan support when the Senate voted 94-6 in favour at his confirmation hearing in April.
Before that, he had served as Maryland's chief federal prosecutor under President George W Bush.
Unusually, he was kept on under President Barack Obama and became the longest-serving US attorney with a 27-year-long career spanning five administrations.
The former Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler described him in a recommendation letter in February as "totally by-the-book and completely apolitical".
And in that vein, Mr Rosenstein's memo comprises a litany of criticism over Mr Comey's failure to follow rules and procedures.
He said it was "wrong" of him to "usurp the attorney general's authority" in announcing his conclusion that the investigation into Hillary Clinton's emails should be closed without prosecution.
And he said Mr Comey's decision to hold a press conference, where he "laid out his version of the facts for the news media as if it were a closing argument, but without a trial" was a "textbook example of what federal prosecutors and agents are taught not to do".
But Democrats - and others - say the Trump administration, which had previously praised Mr Comey's actions, is using the memo as a smokescreen.
Former Deputy Attorney General Donald Ayer, who was quoted in the memo, described the "firing based it seems entirely on Comey's mishandling of the Clinton investigation" as "a sham".
Comey: Four theories for the axe
Russia: The scandal Trump can't shake
Trump's high-profile sackings
"The deputy [attorney general] should realise that his correct assessment of those mistakes is now being used to justify firing for a very different reason," he said in a statement.
So did President Trump ask Mr Rosenstein specifically to investigate Mr Comey's conduct?
When White House press secretary Sean Spicer was asked, he initially said "it was all him" - of Rosenstein - but then corrected himself.
"I guess I shouldn't say that.... no-one from the White House. That was a DOJ [Department of Justice] decision," he said.
However, the Washington Post, citing unnamed White House officials, says Mr Trump called Mr Sessions - an ally of his - and Mr Rosenstein to a meeting on Monday and told them to explain in writing the case against Mr Comey.
Former justice department official Eric Columbus is among those noting that Mr Rosenstein stopped short of specifically recommending that Mr Comey be fired.
He suggested on Twitter that Mr Rosenstein "thought Comey screwed up but didn't want him fired with Russia investigation pending... yet Sessions wanted a memo on Comey's sins, and Rosenstein felt he had to oblige his boss."
The deputy attorney general must now decide what to do about growing demands from Democrats - and an unusually direct approach from the New York Times editorial board - to appoint an independent special prosecutor to investigate the Russia allegations.
Whatever the inside story, it all renders somewhat ironic another line in Mr Gansler's recommendation letter for Mr Rosenstein.
"Rod understands the importance of staying out of the political limelight." | After just two weeks in office, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein finds himself suddenly at the centre of the storm over President Donald Trump's sudden sacking of FBI Director James Comey. | 39882016 |
A selection of your pictures of Scotland sent in between 11 and 18 August. Send your photos to [email protected] or via Instagram at #bbcscotlandpics | All images are copyrighted. | 40973739 |
A controlled explosion was carried out on the object after it was found in Market Place.
It was made safe and removed for examination during a security alert which lasted several hours.
Police say a vehicle was seized during a follow-up operation in the Lagmore area of west Belfast on Saturday night.
Supt Brian Kee said: "Our investigation into the circumstances surrounding this security alert is at a very early stage.
"We are following a number of lines of enquiry, one of these is that the device may have fallen from a vehicle.
"As part of a follow up operation in the Lagmore area of Belfast last night, a vehicle was seized for examination.
"We are keen to hear from witnesses or anyone who was in the Market Place area of Lisburn yesterday and who may have information that could assist the investigation." | Police have said they are investigating if a bomb found in Lisburn on Saturday had fallen from a vehicle. | 36933357 |
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The 32-year-old opening batsman led England a record 59 times in Tests.
"I hope I can help the next captain with whatever he needs and drive England forward," Cook told BBC Sport.
"I can't see, for me, it being an issue being led by someone else. I hope I can be part of it and I'm really looking forward to the next stage."
Cook took over the England captaincy in 2012 and oversaw series victories in India and South Africa, as well as Ashes victories in 2013 and 2015.
However his tenure also saw a 5-0 Ashes whitewash in Australia in 2013-14, as well as a 4-0 series defeat in India last year.
He is England's top run scorer in Test cricket with 11,057 runs and 30 centuries.
"It's a job you need to do at 100% and be committed to everything and I had to be really honest with myself," Cook added.
"I couldn't do that anymore. It's not a job you can do at 95%. I'm sad to walk away but it's the right time to do it."
Cook's last game in charge saw England slip to an innings-and-75-run defeat against India, the culmination of a run of six defeats in their past eight Tests.
The Essex batsman, who was left visibly upset by the final day's collapse, said after the game that he would consider his future as captain.
"That was kind of maybe the final nail in the coffin. When I left India, I was pretty sure I wouldn't captain England again," Cook said.
"Admitting that isn't the easiest thing to do, certainly not with my character, but it's the right decision for me and the right decision for the team.
"It's such an honour to be England captain and all the bits that go with it. Everything I have been involved with, 59 games as captain, I've absolutely loved. Giving that away was very hard."
Vice-captain Joe Root is the favourite to take over the Test captaincy, having led Yorkshire several times in the County Championship.
The 26-year-old, who represents England across all three formats, has scored 4,594 runs at an average of 52.80 since making his debut in 2012.
England face Test series in the summer against South Africa and the West Indies, before travelling to Australia in November for the Ashes.
"The one thing I learnt throughout my career as captain is that you need those people outside, looking in, to help you," Cook said.
"My first couple of years I was pretty stubborn that this is the way I should do it, and I didn't take that much advice outside of England.
"Actually there's a lot of very good people who watch a lot of cricket, probably more than all of the guys who are playing, who can offer advice. Finding people you trust that way is vitally important and they can help you."
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Cook has a win percentage of 40.67 as captain, the fourth best of the six captains to have led England in more than 40 Tests.
As captain he managed the return - and subsequent ending - of batsman Kevin Pietersen's international career in 2014, a year which saw England lose a Test series against Sri Lanka from the penultimate delivery in Headingley and collapse to a 95-run defeat by India at Lord's.
Cook described himself as being "pretty much at rock bottom" following the Lord's defeat, but he received a warm ovation from the crowd in Southampton during England's next Test, where he made 95.
"When you're really doubting yourself, to walk out there on that first day was really special for me. It was almost spine-tingling," he said.
"It surprised me, to have that warmth of reception. A lot of people walked up to me in the street, saying I was the right man to drive it forward."
Cook added that he felt the decision to end Pietersen's England career should have been handled better, and that he did not want the saga to define his captaincy.
"I was part of the decision-making process but I don't have the power, or didn't have the power, to decide who played for England. I was just asked my opinion about it," he said.
"However I felt at one time I was a bit of a lightning rod for it. That was a hard six months.
"I wouldn't want my captaincy to be talked about just because of that. I don't think it's fair on myself or on the teams."
Former England spinner Monty Panesar on BBC Radio 5 live
Cook has plenty of years left in him and plenty of scoring to do, so I would like to say keep going, keep scoring the runs because he is a run machine.
He is definitely one of the best captains England has ever produced. When the pressure is on, he has the ability to stay calm.
He is probably the toughest cricketer England have ever produced and probably the most mentally tough.
Former England seamer Matthew Hoggard
I don't think there will be any issues with Cook playing under a new captain. [Cook and Root] are good friends and they get on well.
Without the burden of having to do all the press, the meetings, the thinking on the pitch, you might find Cook goes on and breaks many records with the bat.
Listen to The Tuffers and Vaughan Show on BBC Radio 5 live, Tuesday, 19:30 GMT. | Alastair Cook says playing under another England captain will "not be an issue" following his resignation as skipper on Monday. | 38897347 |
Echoing the famous phrase used by Mario Draghi to shore up the eurozone, the investor and philanthropist says that rather than fretting about Greece, European leaders should be focusing on the crisis unfolding in a country that shares the same values as the rest of Europe.
"Here is a country that wants to be European, is sacrificing lives for that principle, and yet Europe is ignoring it. Europe needs to wake up before it's too late," he told the BBC's In the Balance programme.
Russia's annexation of Crimea a year ago, and its continued support for armed rebels in eastern Ukraine, has devastated Ukraine's economy.
Its GDP [gross domestic product] shrank by 7% in 2014 and is expected to fall by another 5% this year.
Ukraine's currency has collapsed - losing more than half its value against the dollar. That has boosted the cost of imports and seen inflation soar to more than 20%.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has already provided $17bn (£11bn) in financial aid, but much more is needed says Mr Soros.
His scheme involves delivering $50bn in financial aid.
He says the EU's balance of payments assistance facility, offered in the past to Hungary and Romania, had $47bn in unused funds. A financial stability mechanism, used in Portugal and Ireland, has $16bn.
However, he acknowledged existing regulations would need to be modified to make these funds available for a non-EU country like Ukraine.
George Soros says he will add $1bn of his own money through his Open Society Foundations, which was formed in 1979 and has focused on promoting democracy in former Communist countries in central and eastern Europe.
His critics say his plan requires more generosity to be shown to a country outside the EU than is being shown to a eurozone country like Greece.
He describes the situation in Greece as "a long-festering wound that was mishandled from the beginning. Now there is a lot of bad blood and the best you can hope for is to muddle through".
He believes Greece's economy is on a downward spiral and that the chance of it staying in the eurozone is now no more than 50/50.
But he warns against making the same mistake with Ukraine.
"We must not drip-feed Ukraine, but allow it to flourish," he says. "That is what is needed to turn the tables on Putin who is the aggressor".
He argues that the appetite for radical reform in Ukraine is much greater than in Greece.
His conclusions amount to a dire warning.
"If Europe doesn't help, Ukrainian blood currently being spilt will become European blood.
"If Russia tries to divide the Baltics, who have large Russian-speaking populations but are also members of Nato, then Nato will be obliged to defend them.
"It is much more serious than people realise."
Speaking in his London home, George Soros also had a word of caution for the UK. He, of course, was partly responsible for ensuring the UK did not join the eurozone.
His hedge fund's attacks on the value of the pound in 1992 saw the UK crash out of the Exchange Rate Mechanism - a precursor to the euro.
However, he clearly thinks he did the UK a favour and has this warning: "The UK has the best of both worlds - access to the single market and its own currency.
"It would be foolish to throw that away." | European leaders should do "whatever it takes" to save Ukraine, says billionaire investor George Soros. | 32133736 |
-6%
Overall use since 2006
-12% Bus passengers
-7% Ferry passengers
+29% ScotRail passengers
The National Transport Strategy also said that in the same period, traffic on the country's roads went up by 2%.
Transport Minister Derek Mackay said the Scottish government had "invested heavily" in transport since the first strategy was published in 2006.
He added that progress in key areas had been made, "despite the recession".
The updated strategy looked at trends and statistics over the last nine years and said;
The report also detailed the "significant" fall in road deaths.
It said the number of people killed was down from 314 in 2006 to 200 in 2014, a reduction of 36%.
Director of lobby group Transform Scotland, Colin Howden, said it was "tragic" that there had been "absolutely no progress" in moving people from cars to public transport.
He added: "As the new strategy sets out, the past decade has seen a 2% increase in traffic levels, while public transport use has declined by 6%.
"Whether one wants to tackle congestion, improve connectivity, or cut emissions, the evidence in this new strategy highlights a wasted decade in improving Scotland's transport."
However, Mr Mackay believed the review had produced "good news" on a range of issues including;
He said: "Rail has performed particularly strongly with more passengers than ever before now choosing to travel on Scotland's railways, with the newly opened Borders Railway leading the line in this success.
"The Scottish government has committed £5bn to transforming Scotland's rail network, including £475mn for the largest-ever train improvement programme seen in Scotland.
"This will see 10% more trains for the ScotRail fleet, providing 23% extra seats for passengers, and mean that 90% of all Scotland's trains will either be new or fully refurbished by 2019."
And Transport Scotland said that despite the economic squeeze investment in the infrastructure had continued since 2006.
A spokesman pointed to the growth in rail passengers which had recorded a 30% increase in the last decade.
He added: "Of course we recognise that there is more to be done, particularly in improving the patronage figures for buses, and the refresh has confirmed that a review is necessary in the next parliament to explore the issues in more depth." | The number of people using public transport in Scotland over the last nine years has fallen by 6%, a new report has revealed. | 35370525 |
Wimbledon's pressure finally paid off with almost the last kick of the game when Elliott finished superbly - only to be shown a second yellow card for over-celebrating the goal.
Ricky Holmes' excellent free-kick looked to have been the difference between the two sides as he curled home expertly after Joe Aribo had been fouled.
Aribo almost doubled the Addicks' lead five minutes later but his effort curled just the wrong side of the post.
The hosts finished the half better and goalscorer Holmes was lucky not to see red after a horror tackle on Lyle Taylor was deemed only a caution by referee Carl Boyeson.
Lee Novak spurned a glorious chance to double Charlton's lead just after the break, a miss he was made to pay for as Elliott popped up for his 12th goal of the season in dramatic circumstances, only to be sent off before the final whistle.
Report supplied by the Press Association.
Match ends, AFC Wimbledon 1, Charlton Athletic 1.
Second Half ends, AFC Wimbledon 1, Charlton Athletic 1.
Second yellow card to Tom Elliott (AFC Wimbledon) for excessive celebration.
Goal! AFC Wimbledon 1, Charlton Athletic 1. Tom Elliott (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from the right side of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Tyrone Barnett.
Foul by Ezri Konsa Ngoyo (Charlton Athletic).
Jake Reeves (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Josh Magennis (Charlton Athletic) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.
Lyle Taylor (AFC Wimbledon) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Jordan Botaka (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Lyle Taylor (AFC Wimbledon).
Substitution, AFC Wimbledon. Tyrone Barnett replaces Dominic Poleon.
Corner, AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Chris Solly.
Substitution, Charlton Athletic. Stephy Mavididi replaces Ricky Holmes.
Attempt missed. Jake Reeves (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from the centre of the box is too high.
Andrew Crofts (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Lyle Taylor (AFC Wimbledon).
Jorge Teixeira (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Lyle Taylor (AFC Wimbledon).
Corner, AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Jorge Teixeira.
Attempt blocked. Lyle Taylor (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Substitution, Charlton Athletic. Jordan Botaka replaces Tony Watt.
Corner, Charlton Athletic. Conceded by Jake Reeves.
Attempt missed. Dominic Poleon (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from the right side of the box is too high.
Tom Elliott (AFC Wimbledon) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Tom Elliott (AFC Wimbledon).
Chris Solly (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Andy Barcham (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Chris Solly (Charlton Athletic).
Sean Kelly (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Joe Aribo (Charlton Athletic).
Attempt missed. Lyle Taylor (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left.
Attempt missed. Ricky Holmes (Charlton Athletic) left footed shot from the centre of the box is just a bit too high.
Attempt saved. Tony Watt (Charlton Athletic) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top right corner.
Substitution, Charlton Athletic. Josh Magennis replaces Lee Novak.
Foul by Jake Reeves (AFC Wimbledon).
Tony Watt (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Lee Novak (Charlton Athletic) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right.
Foul by Lyle Taylor (AFC Wimbledon).
Jorge Teixeira (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Paul Robinson (AFC Wimbledon) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left. | Tom Elliott scored a dramatic late equaliser before being sent off as AFC Wimbledon held Charlton Athletic to a draw in an ill-tempered derby at Kingsmeadow. | 38864387 |
The United States forward moved to the Pro12 side from Leicester Tigers in the summer of 2015.
The 25-year-old is currently recovering from shoulder surgery and is expected to return early in the New Year.
"Greg has worked really hard and has fitted in well in our environment," said head coach Gregor Townsend.
"It's great news that he's staying for another couple of years to compete with the other second rows at the club."
Peterson, who has 13 international caps, has made 19 appearances for the Warriors, including 10 starts and two tries.
"I've enjoyed my 18 months in Glasgow," he told the club website. "The club, the supporters and the community have been great to me and I'm really happy to be staying." | Greg Peterson has signed a new two-year contract with Glasgow Warriors that will keep the second row at Scotstoun until at least May 2019. | 38383176 |
Véronique Robert was wounded in the blast, which killed two colleagues, on Monday, and was returned to France for treatment, France Télévisions reports.
She later died of her injuries, the broadcaster said in a statement.
The mine blast occurred in the Ras al-Jadah district, west of the Old City. Iraq is one of the world's deadliest countries for journalists.
Stephan Villeneuve, a French video journalist, and Bakhtiyar Haddad, his Iraqi fixer, were also killed in the explosion while on assignment for France 2 TV, reporting on an advance by Iraqi forces against Islamic State militants.
Haddad was killed immediately by the blast, while Villeneuve and Robert were seriously wounded and were taken to a US military hospital in Qayyara, south of Mosul.
Villeneuve subsequently succumbed to his wounds, France Télévisions said in a statement posted on Twitter early on Tuesday.
A total of 28 journalists have now been killed in Iraq since the start of 2014, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
Iraqi pro-government forces launched an offensive to recapture Mosul - the last major IS urban stronghold in the country - last October. | A French journalist injured when a mine exploded in the Iraqi city of Mosul has died, her employer has confirmed. | 40391096 |
Traveller Sally Bowers said the site in Coverack, Cornwall, had become "our home" and she had "nowhere else to go".
Leaseholders St Keverne Parish Council declined to comment but confirmed it had served an eviction notice.
It said last year up to 25 parking spaces would be freed if the travellers were relocated.
It also "strongly supports" a plan to build a travellers' site on Goonhilly Downs.
Ms Bowers said she had applied to Cornwall Council, which owns the land, for a certificate of lawfulness to prove she does not need permission to station several caravans at the site.
The authority said it had not yet reached a decision on whether to grant the certificate and confirmed it "does not currently have an alternative site" to offer the family.
It added its previous position had been "to temporarily tolerate the use of the site" until an alternative could be provided.
The parish council said the proposed Goonhilly Downs site would "accommodate this particular family" and solve "this ongoing blight".
Ms Bowers' 18-year-old son, Elwood, said it was one of the "better" places he had lived, having previously resided at a gravel pit and a dump.
"I think I am resourceful because of it, I'm happy to work and have worked in the village since I was 15," he said.
Ms Bowers said she had not intended to stay at the site so long.
"This has been our home for over ten years and we have tried to make the best of it we could," she added,
Planning permission has not yet been granted for the new travellers' site. | A woman who raised three children in a public car park for more than a decade says she is being evicted by the council. | 36077822 |
There are no sprinklers in flats in more than 300 high-rise buildings in towns and cities across the country, including Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Every high-rise built in Scotland since 2005 must have sprinklers, by law.
But there is no obligation on councils or social landlords to fit the systems in older tower blocks.
There were no sprinkler systems in Grenfell Tower in Kensington, west London, when it was engulfed by a devastating fire last month that killed at least 80 people.
It has led to renewed calls from firefighters and politicians to retrofit the devices in high-rise buildings.
And the Scottish government has pledged to review the evidence about the effectiveness of the systems.
An independent report published earlier this year found that sprinklers were 99% effective at controlling or extinguishing fires.
BBC Scotland contacted local authorities and housing associations across Scotland in a bid to determine how many high-rise homes were fitted with sprinklers.
Of those which replied to our request, only South Ayrshire Council said it had fitted the system into flats in its tower blocks.
They were fitted in 234 homes in three tower blocks in Ayr during a refurbishment of the flats in 2003.
Fife Council, the City of Edinburgh Council and Glasgow Housing Association have sprinklers in their bin stores - a move being considered by Aberdeen City Council.
But there are no sprinklers in high-rise homes operated by the following social landlords:
(South Lanarkshire Council has not yet supplied the information to BBC Scotland)
There is no suggestion that any of the councils or housing associations are breaching fire regulations and they have reassured tenants about fire safety in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy.
In response to the BBC Scotland inquiry, a number of landlords said they would act on any of the findings or recommendations made following the London fire.
Sprinkler systems can be a "cost effective and potentially lifesaving intervention in the early stages of a fire," according to Assistant Chief Officer David McGown, of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS).
Indeed, an independent report published shortly before the Grenfell tragedy found that sprinklers - or fire suppression systems - were 99% effective at controlling or extinguishing fires when they operate.
The study, which was commissioned by the National Fire Chiefs Council and the National Sprinkler Network found that they reduce damage in residential properties by 75%.
Lead author Peter Wood, of Edinburgh-based Optimal Economics, told BBC Scotland he was confident of the effectiveness of sprinklers but he had "no idea" whether they would have prevented the Grenfell Tower fire.
He said they "very, very occasionally" do not work when they are overwhelmed by a fire but he dismissed concerns that sprinklers could be easily triggered, causing flooding, as a "myth".
"Sprinklers don't go off on a whim," he said. "They need heat to go off."
According to the SFRS, many sprinklers are only triggered by heats of around 68C - 11C higher than the highest temperature ever recorded in Death Valley in California.
They said firefighters often use 15 times more water from hoses to do the same job as a single sprinkler.
Earlier this month Strathclyde's former chief fire officer, Brian Sweeney, said the installation of sprinklers in all high-rise buildings should be a "government priority".
Writing in the Sunday Post, he said: "As a rough estimate, there is currently up to 1,000 high rise blocks across Scotland, and more could be done to improve their safety."
His comments follow a 2015 report commissioned by the Scottish government which examined the "cost benefit analysis" of fitting sprinkler systems in homes across Scotland.
It found that the cost of fitting sprinklers in individual flats would range from around £1,000 to £3,000.
And it concluded that it was not cost-effective to fit sprinklers in individual houses, but a "targeted installation" would benefit at-risk groups.
People who live in deprived areas, those with drug and alcohol problems, or mental health problems, and elderly people are at greater risk from fire.
MSP David Stewart pressed the Cabinet Secretary for Communities, Angela Constance, on the issue in the Scottish Parliament earlier this week.
"The cabinet secretary will be well aware from the Scottish government's own 2015 report that almost a third of accidental dwelling fires and deaths occur in the 15% most-deprived areas, yet there have been no multiple fire deaths in Scotland where a working sprinkler system has been installed," he said.
He told BBC Scotland he would like to see sprinklers installed in the homes of vulnerable people, which included tower blocks.
Ms Constance has agreed to meet Mr Stewart - a member of the cross-party working group on accident prevention - to discuss the issue.
The Scottish government has confirmed that the provision of sprinklers will be considered in a review of fire legislation and building regulations - to which the fire service will contribute.
Assistant Chief Officer David McGown said: "The SFRS recognises the value these installations can add whilst acknowledging that they may not be appropriate in all cases when applied on a risk basis."
He added: "The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service works closely with local authorities and housing associations to help ensure the safety of occupants in high-rise buildings. The SFRS is here to support communities, most notably through our free home fire safety visits."
A spokesman for the Scottish government said: "While we continue to be confident that we have stringent building and fire safety regulations which contribute to keeping people safe, following the tragic events at Grenfell Tower it is imperative that we undertake a thorough and critical review of our regulations.
"The Ministerial Working Group overseeing this process will consider all relevant measures to ensure the safety of residents in high-rise domestic buildings, including a review of evidence on fire suppression systems." | Thousands of homes in tower blocks across Scotland do not have potentially life-saving sprinkler systems, a BBC Scotland investigation has found. | 40442398 |
At about 04:35 BST, the 35-year-old woman was woken up by a loud bang at her home at Ballydonaghy Meadows.
When she went downstairs, she saw smoke and flames and broken glass at the door.
The woman fled from the house with her children aged 15, 11 and six. The door of the house was badly damaged.
"While no-one was injured during this incident, there could have been serious consequences," Det Ch Insp Dunny McCubbin said.
He appealed for anyone with information to contact police. | A woman and three children have escaped injury after an arson attack at their home in Crumlin, County Antrim. | 39976547 |
The 21-year Calder, who had a spell on loan to Dundee in 2015, has signed a two-year contract.
Elsdon, a fellow cap at under-17 level for England, will stay at Caledonian Stadium for an initial six months.
The 20-year-old Boro defender has yet to break into the first team with the English Championship club.
But he played three times last season for Middlesbrough Under-23s in the Football League Trophy.
Calder came through the youth ranks at Riverside Stadium but also failed to make a first-team breakthrough.
He played 11 times for Dundee in the Scottish top flight, starting three games, during his six-month spell at Dens Park.
Calder subsequently had two loan spells with Doncaster Rovers, starting 16 times and coming off the bench 16 times for the League Two outfit.
He finished last season being farmed out to Lincoln City but played only once for the National League side.
Caley Thistle manager John Robertson has now made six signings as he reshapes the squad following relegation from the Scottish Premiership under Richie Foran last season.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page. | Riccardo Calder has joined Inverness Caledonian Thistle after the midfielder left Aston Villa as Matthew Elsdon arrived on loan from Middlesbrough. | 40522386 |
The 31-year-old, most recently on loan at Middlesbrough, was released by Swansea in September 2015.
Tiendalli worked with new Oxford manager Pep Clotet while the Spaniard was assistant manager manager at Swansea.
"He was a free agent and is desperate to get back playing again after a spell out of the game," said Clotet.
The defender is Clotet's third signing since being appointed manager, following the arrivals of Jon Obika and James Henry.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page. | Oxford United have completed the signing of former Swansea City defender Dwight Tiendalli on a one-year deal. | 40599848 |
Simon Brentford and Darren Strafford jumped off the 900ft cliffs at Nebbifield in Foula, Shetland, with parachutes.
Base stands for 'building, antenna, span, earth' - the four fixed structures base jumpers can jump from.
Mr Brentford, of Leeds, told BBC Scotland: "I discovered it had never been jumped. The weather had to be spot on, with no wind."
He added: "It's a pretty special and unique experience. All you can see in front of you is the sea. It's that sense of exploration. That's very exciting." | Two men have completed what is believed to be the remotest Base jump in the UK. | 32723918 |
The Harry Potter author will be presented with the Pen/Allen Foundation Literary Service Award on 16 May at the group's annual spring gala in New York.
Pen (Poets, Essayists and Novelists) said it was honouring the author in recognition of her support for free expression and charitable causes.
Previous winners have included Sir Salman Rushdie and Sir Tom Stoppard.
Pen America states it aims "to ensure that people everywhere have the freedom to create literature, to convey information and ideas, to express their views, and to make it possible for everyone to access the views, ideas, and literatures of others".
Its Literary Service Award award is given annually to authors whose work fights repression and censorship around the globe.
Rowling is the founder of the charitable trust Volant, which supports multiple sclerosis research.
She is also the founder of the non-profit-making organisation Lumos, which works to reconnect children who have been in institutional care with life within a family.
A statement from the organisation said: "Since her rise from single mother to literary superstar, JK Rowling has used her talents and stature as a writer to fight inequality on both a local and global level.
"Her charitable trust, Volant, supports causes in the United Kingdom and abroad that alleviate social exclusion, with particular emphasis on women and children."
Rowling expressed her pride at having been chosen to receive the award.
"I'm deeply honoured to receive this award and humbled that my work has been recognised as having moral value by an organisation I so admire," she said.
"I've long been a supporter of Pen, which does invaluable work on behalf of imprisoned writers and in defence of freedom of speech."
Prize-winning author Andrew Solomon, president of Pen America added that Rowling's writing provided a wealth of "imagination, empathy, humour, and a love of reading, along the way revealing moral choices that help us understand ourselves".
He added: "Through their experiences with Rowling both on and off the page, countless children have learned not only the power of speaking their own minds, but the critical importance of hearing others."
At the May ceremony, Pen will also honour Hachette Books chief executive Michael Pietsch for his anti-censorship work. In 2015, he encouraged American publishers to resist censorship in China.
And in the coming weeks, Pen will announce its selection for its Freedom to Write Award and the Pen/James and Toni C Goodale Freedom of Expression and Courage Award. | JK Rowling is to receive a prestigious award from literary and human rights group Pen America. | 35408331 |
Sterling, 20, has made 18 appearances so far and has been backed by England boss Roy Hodgson to reach a century - a feat only nine men have achieved.
"I want to do my best for my country and hopefully be up there with some of the players who have played, and try to achieve 100 caps," said Sterling.
Sterling is in England's squad for a friendly in Spain on Friday and another against France at Wembley on Tuesday.
With several injured players missing from Roy Hodgson's 22-man squad, only five of those included have more caps than Sterling, who won his first at the age of 17.
During his time at Liverpool before his £49m move to City, Sterling was criticised for telling Hodgson he was "tired" before England's qualifying win in Estonia, but he believes the issue was blown out of proportion.
"Roy asked me a genuine question, I answered, told him exactly how I felt and it was his choice to take me out of the squad, or the team. I didn't say at any point that I didn't want to play," added Sterling.
Sterling - who began his career at Queens Park Rangers - feels he has now settled at City after "negativity" surrounding a "difficult" summer move from Anfield which made him the most expensive English player of all time.
"I've realised that I'm doing well but can be doing better," Sterling told BBC Radio 5 live. "Since I've been at City I've been working hard and not focusing on the price tag.
"I want to be scoring goals, goals, and more goals. My ultimate goal is to be a regular scorer, not just for Manchester City but for my country."
Hodgson's side are training in Alicante, where they will seek to extend their 15-game unbeaten run - including 10 wins from 10 in qualifying for Euro 2016 - when they face Vicente del Bosque's European champions.
"This is the real challenge," said Sterling. "We are going to be playing some of Europe's best teams and this is where we get to see where we are in terms of the tournament in the summer."
After meeting France at Wembley on Tuesday, England will next face Germany and Netherlands in March. | Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling is aiming to win 100 England caps. | 34788664 |
The Producers Guild has predicted the winner of best picture at the Oscars for the past seven years.
In Birdman, Keaton plays a washed-up star who tries to revive his career.
Richard Linklater's epic Boyhood has until now been seen as the frontrunner for best picture at the Oscars, which take place in Hollywood on 22 February.
But the Producers Guild of America (PGA) decision means the Academy Awards race is still wide open.
Many of the PGA's 6,700 members are also Oscar voters, and the winner of the top PGA prize has gone on to win best picture at the Oscars every year since 2007, and 18 times in the past 25 years.
Last year, the PGA did hedge its bets, however, by announcing a tie between 12 Years a Slave - which went on to win the Academy Award - and space drama Gravity.
Birdman, in which ex-Batman actor Keaton stars as a former Hollywood superhero who tries to make a comeback on Broadway, has nine Oscar nominations.
Ralph Fiennes' offbeat comedy The Grand Budapest Hotel also has nine nominations.
Boyhood, which was filmed over 12 years to show one boy's coming of age, has six Oscar nominations and is odds-on favourite to win best picture.
However, the PGA panel has definitely disagreed with Oscar voters in one category this year.
At the PGA ceremony on Saturday, The Lego Movie was named best animated feature - but it has not even been nominated in that category at the Academy Awards.
Life Itself was named best documentary by the PGA, while Fargo, Breaking Bad and Orange Is The New Black were among the victors in the television categories. | Michael Keaton's film Birdman has been given a boost in the run-up to the Oscars after winning the Producers Guild of America's top award. | 30972286 |
Almost every one of Canvey Island's 13,000 inhabitants had to leave their homes during the North Sea tidal surge.
The floods have been depicted on panels along a mural on Concord Beach, painted by professional artists and Canvey inhabitants.
The project was made possible with a £10,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The idea to paint the mural was put forward by the charity Friends of Concord Beach.
Its chairman, Colin Letchford, said the mural was intended to "involve and educate the community".
He said school groups and others had already been to visit the wall and learn about the history of the island and its relationship with the sea.
"People have wept at the pictures because of the memories they've brought back. They've also wept with joy," he said. | Floods which devastated an island in 1953, killing 59 people, have been remembered on a 262ft (80m) sea wall. | 28123802 |
There are special effects and stunt doubles all right. But the ageing hero fishes a gun quicker than you can say Kabali; smashes furniture and sends villains flying across the air with lethal kicks, gives chase and hunts down the baddies with characteristic flair.
The thalaivar (the boss, as his fans call him) shows no signs of slowing down. The 150-film veteran even gives chase to the villain, played by Taiwanese actor Winston Chao, against the Petronas Towers, one of the world's tallest buildings, in Malaysia.
Kabali has all the ingredients of a Rajinikanth entertainer: heroics, smoking guns, bloody fight sequences, Malay and Tamil hip hop and rap music, lots of Tamil regional pride and romance. It also has the angry superstar delivering truisms in his trademark mocking style.
How Rajinikanth and Kabali mania swept India
Sporting a grey beard, Rajinikanth plays Kabali, a rubber plantation worker who walks out of prison in Malaysia after a 25-year term. He then turns against a group of gangsters who framed him to put him in prison in the first place.
Kabali battles the group, led by Chao, who plays a drug lord, and Tamil gangsters who run drug and prostitution rackets in the country.
He speaks for the rights of the Tamil migrants in Malaysia. He sets up a foundation to offer education and livelihood for the Tamil youth. His love interest is his strong and independent wife, played by the talented Bollywood actress Radhika Apte.
Director Pa Ranjith gets Rajinikanth to address issues of caste, class and race: the superstar is shown reading an English book written by a Dalit (formerly known as untouchables) writer; and he is attired in tuxedos and suits, a nod to the western sartorial style of Dalit icon BR Ambedkar.
"Black is power", states Kabali with characteristic swag in the film. "The dark-skinned Tamil is equal to all races; he is no longer a slave in the plantations of Malaysia but one who asks for equal opportunities with education and hard work."
But all critics are not impressed. There is very little in Kabali, says one, which sets it apart in tone and tenor from the star's recent outings. And the pace does slacken a little, and sometimes the actor actually looks tired.
"Rajinikanth's achievement, as always, is that he manages to hold the audience in thrall even when the film threatens to flag - this despite the fact that he is only peddling time-worn tricks," writes Saibal Chatterjee.
But fans are flocking to the film, and Kabali appears to be on its way to becoming another box office hit for the superstar. Even before its release - the film has been dubbed in Telugu, Hindi, Malay and Mandarin - it had mopped up $30m (£20m) in rights sales.
Because, in the end, Rajinikanth remains a larger-than-life superstar and a one-man cult.
"A lot of fans refer to him as God, or as someone who is beyond human desires. So many fans treat the star in ways that are not unlike how people in India treat gurus or spiritual leaders," says Rinku Kalsy, who made a documentary on his fans. | At 65, Tamil cinema superstar and a grandfather in real life, Rajinikanth, packs a mean punch in his new film Kabali, an action-packed gangster drama, which opened on Friday. | 36852789 |
Sydney man Zaky Mallah's appearance on the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC) show Q&A last month ignited fierce debate about free speech.
Citing national security, the government launched a review of the ABC's editorial decision.
The ABC has said it will review Q&A's audience and panel selection.
"Given his criminal background and past public statements, the live broadcast meant that the ABC was not in a position to manage unpredictable or inappropriate actions or responses," the ABC Board said on Wednesday.
"There was inadequate consideration given to important issues around his presence in the studio, considering his previous actions, his desire for the media spotlight and some of his public comments," it said.
Last week, Prime Minister Tony Abbott ordered an "urgent" government inquiry into the ABC's decision and said "heads should roll" over the issue.
Speaking from the audience, 31-year-old Mallah confronted Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs Steven Ciobo about the government's plans to tighten citizenship laws.
Under proposed legislation, dual citizens would be stripped of their Australian nationality if they engaged in or supported terrorism.
Mr Ciobo, who was a panel guest, told Mallah he was pleased to be part of a government "that would say that you were out of the country".
Mallah angrily replied the government had "just justified to many Australian Muslims in the community tonight to leave and go to Syria and join [Islamic State] because of ministers like him".
Mallah came to the public's attention in 2005 when he was acquitted of charges of planning a terrorist act.
But at the same time, the supermarket shelf stacker was jailed for two and a half years after pleading guilty to threatening to kill a government officer.
A self-proclaimed media critic and Muslim activist, Mallah had previously been interviewed by several major Australian media outlets and international broadcasters, including the BBC.
More recently, his regular social media posts have attracted criticism, in part, because of crude and sexist references to several female journalists. | Australia's public broadcaster has conceded it was wrong to let a man acquitted of terror offences appear on live television. | 33341005 |
Scott Dawson, 37, from Southampton, entered the water off Seaview shortly before 07:30 BST on Tuesday.
The non-stop swim saw him navigate the island anti-clockwise. He completed the 60-mile (96.6km) route in just over 26 hours.
Money raised will go to support the work of the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) and Meningitis Now.
During the swim Mr Dawson was passed boiled eggs, beetroot brownies and chocolate from a fishing net.
The father-of-two said he kept his mind occupied by doing sums in his head.
"Numbers go round and round, and before I know it, someone is stopping me to eat and drink", he said.
Record-breaking round-the-world yachtsman Brian Thompson navigated the route, describing it as an "epic challenge".
Only four people have completed the feat - the last successful attempt was by Anna Wardley in September 2013. | A man has completed his bid to swim solo round the Isle of Wight to raise money for charity. | 37218416 |
The party's leader, Ruth Davidson, said it would introduce a member's bill to Holyrood making the case for the introduction of whole-life sentences.
It comes after the shop owner who murdered schoolgirl Paige Doherty had his sentence reduced by four years.
John Leathem will now serve at least 23 years in prison rather than 27.
Leathem stabbed 15-year-old Paige 61 times after she went to his delicatessen in Clydebank in March.
But appeal court judge Lord Turnbull ruled last week that the original sentence had been "excessive" and "inconsistent with current sentencing practice".
He said that Leathem had been a "family man of previous good character who had not offended before and who had expressed remorse", and ruled that the fact Paige's murder was not premeditated should also have been taken into account.
The Justice for Paige campaign group later described the ruling as "heartbreaking", adding: "She had her whole life ahead of her and it's been ripped apart. In 23 years her killer will walk the streets."
By BBC Scotland political editor Brian Taylor
John Leathem stabbed his schoolgirl victim Paige Doherty 61 times but, according to his lawyers, had shown genuine remorse. His minimum term in prison was reduced from 27 years to 23. Paige's family said there were no words to describe their feelings.
Ruth Davidson found words on their behalf today. She roundly criticised the decision and argued, further, that it merited examination as part of a review of sentencing guidelines and practice.
The First Minister's response was instructive. She could, of course, have opted to duck the question, falling back on the argument that the independence of the judiciary must be defended and protected.
That, she implied, would be the mode Ministerial when dealing with such matters. To be clear, the FM did indeed stress the vital importance of independent courts.
But there was more. Ms Sturgeon added that she was a human being in addition to heading the Scottish government.
In that human role, she contrived to leave the chamber in no doubt that she disagreed profoundly with the judicial verdict. Ms Davidson nodded supportively.
Read more from Brian
Speaking at First Minister's Questions on Thursday, Ms Davidson argued that it was "entirely unacceptable" that Paige's family had seen her killer's sentence being reduced "simply because he was not as bad of a killer as others".
And she said the law needed to be changed "so that families like Paige Doherty's feel that the law is tipping back in their favour and that the worst criminals are kept off our streets forever".
She added: "As it stands our judges do not have the tool of a whole-life tariff at their disposal, and we say that they should.
"We can sit in this parliament and we can wring our hands and we can express outrage every time something like this happens, or we can do something about it.
"I want to do something about it. If the Scottish government won't act, then I can say today that the Scottish Conservatives will do so by pushing ahead with a member's bill making the case for the introduction of whole-life sentencing in Scotland."
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who met Paige's mother last year, said that there were "literally no words to express the pain and grief she and the rest of the family have gone through."
But she added: "This was a decision of an independent judge in a court of law - we have an independent justiciary in this country.
"As well as being first minister I am a human being and there are many occasions where I look at decisions of courts and wish that different decisions had been reached.
"It may well be that this is one such case, but I respect the independence of the justiciary and I don't think anybody in this chamber would expect me to interfere with those decisions."
Ms Sturgeon went on to say that it was "right and proper" that the Sentencing Council should look at the issue in depth, and said the government would seriously consider any proposals for change.
But she said it was not fair to say that families were routinely let down by Scotland's "strong and well-performing" justice system.
And she said there were "no guarantees" that Leathem would have been given a whole-life sentence if the option had been available to the trial judge.
The first minister added: "No matter what framework and context parliament sets on any of these issues, we will still have instances where decisions by courts are decisions that many people feel are the wrong decisions.
"That's in the very nature of an independent judiciary.
"But I am very clear that where there is evidence the law has to be changed or action has to be taken, then that is something this government and this parliament should reflect on very seriously."
Whole-life orders have been given to about 80 killers - including Moors murderers Ian Brady and Myra Hindley - since they were introduced in English courts in 1983.
But in Scotland, judges handing down a life sentence must set a minimum term after which the prisoner will be eligible for parole. | The Conservatives are to push for a change in the law that would allow judges to keep Scotland's worst criminals in prison until they die. | 39065472 |
He had already been in office for six years - no mean feat in a country that went through seven presidents in the 10 years before Mr Correa was elected.
Mr Correa, 49, came to power making much of the fact that he was not a traditional politician, and while in office he has sought to overhaul Ecuador's political structure and boost social spending.
He has also defaulted on foreign loans and clashed with Washington on several issues.
Mr Correa is regarded as the strongest leader in decades to be at Ecuador's helm, and his approval ratings have remained consistently above 50%.
Much of his popularity can be attributed to the government's public spending, including on roads, bridges, schools and hospitals.
Cash transfers have boosted the incomes of the poorest Ecuadoreans, and poverty levels have dropped from some 38% in 2006 to 29% today, according to the World Bank.
Mr Correa, a US-trained economist, announced in December 2008 that Ecuador was officially defaulting on billions of dollars of foreign debt that it considered "illegitimate".
Ecuador, an Opec member, is heavily dependent on oil exports. Mr Correa has pushed for new contracts with foreign oil companies operating in the country, increasing the share of income that goes to the state. Critics warned that such moves could deter foreign investors.
Other high-profile decisions Mr Correa has taken include his refusal to renew the lease on airbases used by US forces to mount anti-narcotics missions.
In February 2009, Ecuador expelled two US diplomats, accusing them of meddling in the country's internal affairs - charges Washington rejected.
Mr Correa came to office promising constitutional reform and in September 2008 some 65% of Ecuadoreans voted in a referendum to approve a new constitution that brought sweeping changes.
Mr Correa's opponents accused him of seeking to override Ecuador's democratic institutions and amass too much power for himself.
President Correa has described the private media as his "greatest enemy" and a major obstacle to implementing reforms.
He often uses his weekly radio and TV shows as a platform to attack them. He also uses a law that requires the media to carry government messages as a way of directly confronting his critics.
In 2011, three executives and a former columnist from an opposition newspaper, El Universo were sentenced to jail terms and a massive fine for libelling President Correa. He subsequently pardoned them, saying his aim had been to fight the "dictatorship of the media".
In 2012, Reporters Without Borders highlighted the closure of some dozen broadcasting outlets that were critical of the government.
President Correa came to wider international notice after offering asylum to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who remains at the Ecuadorean embassy in London.
Mr Correa was born in 1963 in the city of Guayaquil.
He studied economics in that city's Catholic University and then went on to get two masters degrees - one in the US and the other in Belgium - and, in 2001, a PhD.
The father of three speaks fluent English and French and can also speak the indigenous Quechua language, which he learnt while doing voluntary work.
Mr Correa describes himself as "left-wing - not from the Marxist left, but rather a Christian left". | Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa won an unprecedented third term in elections in February 2013. | 11449110 |
TV5Monde said its TV station, website and social media accounts were all hit.
The hackers also posted documents purporting to be ID cards of relatives of French soldiers involved in anti-IS operations.
TV5Monde regained control over most of its sites about two hours after the attack began.
Its digital director, Helene Zemmour, called the hack "unprecedented and large-scale".
A message posted by the hackers on TV5Monde's Facebook site read: "The CyberCaliphate continues its cyberjihad against the enemies of Islamic State."
They replaced TV5Monde's social media profile pictures with a masked Islamist fighter.
France is part of the US-led coalition carrying out air strikes against IS in Iraq and Syria.
In January, the Twitter and YouTube accounts of the US military command were hit by pro-IS hackers. But Centcom said it was "cyber-vandalism" and not a serious data breach. | The French television network TV5Monde says it has suffered an "unprecedented" attack from hackers claiming to belong to Islamic State (IS). | 32229152 |
Like-for-like sales in its shops at railway stations and airports rose by 5% in the 21 weeks to 21 January.
Chief executive Stephen Clarke said: "This was driven by ongoing investment in the business and continued growth in passenger numbers."
The figures offset a fall of 3% in comparable sales in High Street shops to leave overall group sales up by 2%.
Takeaway food in the company's travel shops has been a big seller, while the fall in High Street sales has been explained by good promotional activity and comparisons with last year, when its colour therapy titles sold well.
However, Mr Clarke said the high street figures were "a good performance" and said strong sales of spoof humour books, such as Five on Brexit Island, The Grandparents and The Cat, had made a difference.
"While there is some uncertainty in the broader economic environment, we remain confident that the group is well positioned for the year ahead as we continue to focus on profitable growth, cash generation and investing in new opportunities," he added.
Total sales at travel shops, which also include those at motorway service stations, hospitals and workplaces, went up by 10% over the period, with High Street sales falling by 4%.
Analyst Sarah Johns, from Verdict Retail, said: "WH Smith's travel stores are highly accessible to shoppers as well as being seen as a trusted destination for books and souvenirs.
"The retailer should continue to offer promotions on snacks, as well as offering newspaper and drink combinations to convert browsing visitors to paying shoppers.
"Its High Street business fared much worse. WH Smith must listen to customer feedback, carefully manage its store estate and ensure it maintains a good standard of customer service, store layout and store decor." | WH Smith has upgraded its full-year profit forecast after its travel stores performed well over the holiday period. | 38742510 |
Beneath what appears to be an unbending and endless landscape, the winds and currents are constantly at work reshaping it.
During the long dark months of the past winter, Norway's research vessel, the Lance, has been stationed amid the floes and drifting with them at the amazing speed of half a mile an hour.
In the few days I spent on board, when the vessel seemed to be locked in a vice-like grip, we actually travelled about a dozen miles.
The view was essentially unchanging but the satellite navigation system revealed the extent of the drift and the Lance's journey can be seen here.
Although deploying the latest technology, the expedition's use of ice drift is not an original idea but instead draws on the proud legacy of one of the greatest ventures in polar discovery more than a century ago - the voyage of a vessel known as the Fram under its leader, Fridtjof Nansen.
Nansen wanted to test what was then an unthinkable notion - jamming a ship into the ice and letting the flow of the ice do the rest.
He and others had noticed that old timbers from northern Russia were washing up several thousand miles away on the shores of Greenland - and the only possible explanation was that winds and currents had carried them there. Scientists now call this feature as the Transpolar Drift.
And when an American vessel, the Jeannette, was crushed in the ice off Siberia in 1881, there was huge surprise when identifiable parts of the wreckage also turned up in Greenland.
That led Nansen to dream up the idea of using the natural mobility of the ice to achieve something that was impossible at the time - to penetrate what he called the "ramparts of ice" and reach the North Pole.
The movement of the ice, he judged, was sometimes "so strong and rapid as to equal that of a ship running before the wind".
Nansen concluded that a vessel of the right shape - with a tough rounded hull - would be squeezed upwards as the ice closed around it, and be lifted above the surface to avoid destruction.
"I believe that if we pay attention to the actually existent forces of nature, and seek to work with and not against them, we shall thus find the safest and easiest method of reaching the Pole," he wrote.
"The ship will simply be hoisted up and will ride safely and firmly…the current will be our motive power, while our ship, no longer a means of transport, will become a barrack."
Initially, his concept was met with derision. In 1892, when he outlined his plan to the Royal Geographical Society in London, the big names of polar exploration lined up to dismiss it.
The legendary figure of Admiral Sir Leopold M'Clintock, who had led the first expedition through the fabled North West Passage in the Canadian Arctic, warned Nansen that "the danger of being crushed in the ice was too great."
Sir Allen Young, another giant of Arctic discovery, highlighted the fact that no one knew whether land or islands lay in the unknown reaches of the Far North and that the idea of drifting would be "extremely dangerous".
The American explorer General Greely went even further, warning that the expedition would fail with the risk of "suffering and death among its members".
In 1893, when Nansen and his team set off, the growth of winter ice quickly surrounded the Fram and the moment of truth arrived. The ice floes jostled around the ship and a loud creaking began.
"Now both pressure and noise gets worse and worse; the ship shakes, and I feel as if I myself were being gently lifted with the stern-rail, where I stand gazing out at the welter of ice-masses that resemble giant snakes writhing and twisting their great bodies out there under the quiet starry sky."
The theory worked. The Fram rose, and its well-built frame and multi-layered hull withstood what no one other vessel had managed before.
The result was that for three years the ship inched generally northwards and westwards, sometimes driven back, sometimes stationary, but proving that the Arctic is an active, restless region.
The ship did not make it to the Pole so Nansen and a crewmate ventured towards it on foot and attained the previously-unheard of latitude of 86 degrees North, where massive ridges of ice blocked their path.
The two of them, and the Fram, returned safely, and Nansen became an instant hero. Norway witnessed the largest gathering of people ever seen at that moment in its history, a significant moment for a country then yearning for its independence from Sweden.
And in the years that followed, Nansen emerged as the essential expert for others to consult before any major expedition. His fellow Norwegian, Roald Amundsen, the first man to reach the South Pole, and the British explorers Scott and Shackleton, all went to see him.
So how have things changed since Nansen's day?
The Lance is built of steel rather than the wood used for the Fram but it has the same rounded shape which serves the same purpose.
On one occasion last February, the Lance's bow rose nearly a metre into the air as the ship was lifted by an underwater ice-floe. And during our stay I felt a slight tilt as that process was at work again.
The scientists on the Lance are measuring everything from the weather to the ice to the creatures beneath it. Nansen, with cruder instruments, did the same, establishing some guiding principles for methodical observation. One of his major revelations was that the Arctic Ocean is extremely deep.
For any researchers working on the Lance, there's a rotation off the ship every six weeks by helicopter. By contrast, for the men on the Fram, there was no escape for three long years from 1893-6.
The clothing has improved immeasurably. Everyone venturing onto the ice now has to wear a floatation suit and during our worst weather, when the wind chill was minus 47C, it was just about possible to work outside. Nansen and his men, in a mix of wolf-skin and wool, must have felt the cold terribly and, if they slipped into the icy water, they just got soaked.
And there's also been a huge cultural shift in how the polar wildlife is regarded.
These days, the scientists go to great lengths to avoid harming any creature that comes their way. So polar bears, which can be a dangerous threat, are scared away with snowmobiles or flare guns; rifles are a last resort.
Instead, in Nansen's time, the animals of the Arctic were seen as a source of food, as a means of survival. Seals, walruses and even polar bears were not just fair game but essential stock for the larder.
It may be shocking to read this now but Nansen was quite open in his account of the voyage: "We have eaten bear-meat morning, noon, and night, and so far from being tired of it, have made the discovery that the breast of the cubs is quite a delicacy."
At the end of his journey, Nansen wrote that he had "gone far to lift the veil of mystery" over the Arctic.
He also suggested that future expeditions should repeat his technique of using ships because the explorers would be more comfortable and could also bring their laboratories with them.
That is exactly what the Norwegian Polar Institute has done with the Lance, as if following his script.
But one can only guess at what Nansen would make of the helicopters and computers and other new technology, and of how the Arctic itself is being transformed. | At first sight the great slabs of grey-blue ice covering the Arctic Ocean appear to be rock-solid and immobile but the extraordinary fact is that they are restless and shifting. | 32580595 |
It is the second year that the prize is open to all authors writing in English, regardless of nationality.
This year's shortlist features two authors from the UK, two from the US and one each from Jamaica and Nigeria.
Here is a brief guide to the six books.
By Marlon James (Jamaica)
Published by Oneworld
About the book: Exploring the attempted assassination of Bob Marley in the late 1970s, events unfold over three decades through the lives of drug barons, MPs, gunmen, beauty queens, journalists and even the CIA.
About the author: Born in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1970, James's debut novel was John Crow's Devil. His second, The Book of Night Women, won the 2010 Dayton Literary Peace Prize and was a finalist for the 2010 National Book Critics Circle Award.
The judges said: "The title misrepresents its heft and its body count. This vast fictional history which spirals out from the politics and gang violence of 1970s Jamaica is exhilarating in its range of voices and registers: swaggering, brutal, elegiac, sardonic, humorous, tender and profane. And what a story - it knocks your socks off."
The reviews said: "Seven Killings resembles James Ellroy's LA Quartet in its blistering violence, multiple voices and its determination to redo history 'from the gutter to the star', to borrow a phrase used by Ellroy." The Telegraph
By Tom McCarthy (UK)
Published by Jonathan Cape
About the book: Set in contemporary London, Satin Island tells the story of U - a "corporate anthropologist" working for an elite consultancy who embarks on a data-gathering project to help "decode and manipulate the world around them".
About the author: McCarthy was born in 1969 and grew up in London. His books include Remainder (2006), Men in Space (2007), and C (2010) - which was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. In 1999, he created the International Necronautical Society (INS), a "semi-fictitious organisation" that combines literature, art and philosophy.
The judges said: "Satin Island offers an elegant, desperate and funny account of what might well be the world of tomorrow if it weren't already the world of today."
The reviews said: "It provokes and beguiles and, at the point of revelation, it withholds. On finishing it, you will have the powerful urge to throw it across the room, then the powerful urge to pick it up to read again." The Telegraph
By Chigozie Obioma (Nigeria)
Published by One
About the book: Four young brothers in a small Nigerian town take advantage of their father's absence to go fishing at a forbidden river. But there they encounter a madman, who makes a prophecy that the eldest will be killed by one of his brothers.
About the author: The Fishermen is Chigozie Obioma's first novel. Born in 1986 in Akure, Nigeria, Obioma's short stories have appeared in Virginia Quarterly Review and New Madrid. He has lived in Nigeria, Cyprus and Turkey, and now in the US.
The judges said: "Obioma's The Fishermen is the captivating tale of the tragic unravelling of a family in modern day Nigeria. He imbues the story with a compelling sense of deep-rooted and unstoppable inevitability, writing with striking maturity for a young first-time writer."
The reviews said: "The Fishermen is an elegy to lost promise, to a golden age squandered, and yet it remains hopeful about the redemptive possibilities of a new generation - what I like to call the 'post-nationalist generation', described as 'egrets' in the book: harbingers of a bright future." The Guardian
By Sunjeev Sahota (UK)
Published by Picador
About the book: A group of immigrant Indian labourers share a dilapidated house in Sheffield in search of a new life.
About the author: Sahota was one of is a Granta's Best of British Novelist 2013. Born in 1981 in Derbyshire, his debut novel was Ours are the Streets, published in 2011.
The judges said: "As much sorrow and damage as there is in these lives, no-one here is asking for pity. These characters are genuine seekers on the lookout for second chances in a world which seems at times to offer not even one chance."
The reviews said: "This novel captures the growing realisation for new arrivals in Britain that life here can be just as hard - if not harder - than the one they left behind." The Independent
By Anne Tyler (US)
Published by Chatto & Windus
About the book: A saga that unfolds through three generations of middle-class Baltimore family the Whitshanks.
About the author: This is Tyler's 20th novel. Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1941, her first book, If Morning Ever Comes, was published in 1964. She won the Pulitzer prize for Breathing Lessons (1988). Her novel The Accidental Tourist (1985) was adapted into a film starring William Hurt, Kathleen Turner, and Geena Davis. A Spool of Blue Thread was also nominated for this year's Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction.
The judges said: "She demonstrates once again her supreme powers of observation, and the stylistic brilliance that have marked her work through 50 extraordinary years."
The reviews said: "Tyler never mocks her characters. Even when she's having fun with their weird peculiarities and transparent short-sightedness, she's usually a benevolent goddess. And yet it's her surprising brutality that kills off any germs of sentimentality in her work." Washington Post
By Hanya Yanagihara (US)
Published by Picador
About the book: The story of four college friends who have moved to New York seeking fame and fortune. At the centre of the tale is the enigmatic Jude, an orphan with a painful past.
About the author: Born in Los Angeles in 1975, Yanagihara is the author of The People in the Trees, which was shortlisted for the PEN/Robert W Bingham Prize for debut fiction. She is an editor-at-large at Conde Nast Traveller and lives in New York.
The judges said: "A Little Life is a work of lasting emotional impact, often larger than life itself, as [Yanagihara] delicately balances the horrors of a traumatic childhood with the story of selfless enduring tenderness and devotion."
The reviews said: "Somehow, against all the odds, just like its protagonist, this book survives everything its author throws at it - and if it doesn't quite triumph, it has far outplayed the odds." The Guardian | Marlon James, Tom McCarthy, Chigozie Obioma, Sunjeev Sahota, Anne Tyler and Hanya Yanagihara are the shortlisted authors for the 2015 Man Booker Prize for Fiction. | 34244110 |
Mick Creedon, now Derbyshire chief constable, said there was enough evidence to prosecute the MP in 1991.
He spoke following publication of an independent inquiry into allegations against Lord Janner.
The late peer's family deny the allegations.
Mr Creedon said: "It remains a simple and regrettable fact that Lord Janner should have been prosecuted 25 years ago.
"This report confirms that the reason he was not [prosecuted] was a direct decision made by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and not by Leicestershire Constabulary."
Mr Creedon was a detective sergeant with the Leicestershire force when he became aware of allegations against Lord Janner, who was then MP for Leicester West.
At the time, he was investigating a convicted sex offender called Frank Beck for abuse at children's homes in Leicestershire.
Mr Creedon and his colleague, Det Insp Kelvyn Ashby, interviewed the victim who is referred to in the inquiry report as Complainant 1.
Complainant 1 described being groomed by the MP and having sexual activity with him between the summer of 1974 and December 1975, when he was under 16 years of age and living in a children's home.
Mr Creedon and Det Insp Ashby interviewed the MP under caution on 13 March 1991.
The MP's answer to every question was: "As advised by my solicitor, I do not wish to answer."
But despite this lack of cooperation, police obtained evidence that supported Complainant 1's account, including personal letters sent by Lord Janner.
Mick Creedon's intervention is significant because he's now one of the country's most experienced police chiefs. It matters after all these years, because reputations are at stake.
He's already given preliminary evidence to Justice Lowell Goddard's new Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. That inquiry's looking for "institutional failings".
Mr Creedon says he wanted to arrest Greville Janner in 1991, but he was ordered to interview the MP by appointment instead.
That meant Greville Janner's home wasn't searched. But Mick Creedon says he "believed the victim's account of abuse".
Sir Richard Henriques, the retired High Court judge who carried out the inquiry, wrote in his report that the "primary cause of failing to prosecute Janner in 1991 was, in my judgment, an inefficient investigation by police".
However, Sir Richard said there was still enough evidence against Lord Janner in December 1991 to provide "a realistic prospect of conviction", and concluded the decision not to charge him was wrong.
Mr Creedon accused the inquiry of unfairly blaming the police.
"I do not recall us receiving any requests for further investigative work from either counsel or the CPS," he said. | A senior police officer who interviewed Lord Janner 25 years ago about sex abuse allegations has blamed the Crown Prosecution Service for allowing him to escape justice. | 35361376 |
The Citizens trailed from the 13th minute when Bror Blume shot across Connor Roberts into the top-right corner of the net.
The Bangor goalkeeper was kept busy all evening as Lyngby.
The Danes finished with 10 men after defender Hallgrimur Jonasson was shown a second yellow card late on, and he will miss the second leg on 6 July.
Slovan Bratislava of Slovakia or Armenian side Pyunik await the winners in the second qualifying round. | Bangor City's Europa League hopes remain alive after a narrow first-leg defeat away to Lyngby BK in Denmark. | 40410696 |
The fire in Basford caused plumes of smoke to blow across the area, leading to hazardous driving conditions.
It broke out at a clothing and textile factory in High Church Street at about 07:10 BST.
Two teenagers, aged 16 and 17, have been arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life.
Updates on this story and more from Nottinghamshire
Police said 55 people were evacuated from nearby properties.
Jo Wooler-Ward, a group manager at Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service, said fire crews have been unable to get inside the building because it is structurally unsafe, so they have been fighting the fire from the outside.
"Firefighting operations will continue for some time," she said.
"We anticipate being here for the day and well into the evening as well until we are sure that the fire has been fully extinguished."
She said asbestos had been found inside the building.
"The direction of the wind has also presented some challenges to the fire-fighting operation," she added.
Several roads have been closed and the fire service advised people to avoid the area, which is close to the city centre.
Western Power Distribution said 25 properties in the area were left without power, but this has now been restored.
Jules Anderson, who lives three doors away from the factory, said she heard a sound like fireworks then went outside and saw flames.
"I immediately dashed back inside, called 999 and then I started banging on my neighbours' doors checking they were all right," she said.
She thinks her home is undamaged, but does not know how soon she and her husband will be able to return there.
Graham Wass, a nearby garage owner, said he panicked when he heard about the fire as he thought it might be at his business.
"Now the concern is for if there's anybody in there," he said.
"As far as we do know they do screen printing on T-shirts and clothing, so I guess there's quite a lot of chemicals in there that's probably making things much worse for the fire guys." | A huge blaze sent a ball of orange flames into the sky over Nottingham, eyewitnesses have said. | 36744255 |
The male swan, known as George, was injured when he was shot in Pittville Park, Cheltenham, last month.
More than £6,000 was raised to help pay for his treatment and for a reward to catch the person responsible.
Some of the cash will be used to build the purpose-built pools at the wildlife rescue centre where he was treated.
Last week George was released back on to the lake where he has lived for several years and is now doing "very well".
Caroline Gould, from Vale Wildlife Hospital and Rehabilitation Centre at Beckford near Tewkesbury, said: "He is eating well and in the water a lot, splashing about and loving being back, by the looks of it."
"Altogether, with gift aid, we've raised well over £7,000. It's absolutely amazing. It's unbelievable the support George got."
She said the money would be used to build "proper" rehabilitation pools.
"We can't just dig ponds because we're on a flood plain and we've got no drainage.
"They've got to be specialist pools with pumps and drains. It won't be a cheap job.
"We thought it would be nice to use the rest of the money, George's legacy, to give better facilities to patients like George."
A 15-year-old boy and a 48-year-old man, both from Cheltenham, were released on bail after being arrested last week under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. | Rehabilitation pools for injured water birds are to be built with money raised to help treat a swan that was shot through the head with a crossbow bolt. | 38884703 |
The accident took place on Kilmarnock Road in the Shawlands area of the city at about 16:15.
The woman was taken to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital. No information has been released on her condition.
The road was closed while police carried out investigations. | A woman has been struck by a bus in Glasgow. | 40905708 |
There are some crumbs of comfort for him in his sole regional ally, Qatar, and the Turkish media loyal to his AK Justice and Development Party.
Turkish opposition media are jubilant at the AK losing its majority, and the pro-Kurdish leftwing People's Democratic Party (HDP) crossing the 10-percent barrier to enter parliament.
Turkey's firmly pro-opposition entertainment channel Fox TV called it an "historic event".
"Barriers destroyed!" declare the headlines in Hurriyet and Bugun, while the pro-Kurdish Ozgur Gundem see a new era for the country after this "victory of the people".
Some papers go personal, with Sozcu headlining the "downfall" of President Erdogan, and Zaman dubbing it a rejection of "authoritarianism, the palace, and corruption".
Hasan Cemal on the T24 news portal sees the "beginning of the end for Erdogan", and Cumhuriyet mocks the AK election slogan in its headline "Here you go, here's your new Turkey!"
Pro-government media in contrast warn of a return to the economic and political instability of the pre-AK era.
"The nightmare is back," Gunes laments, recalling earlier coalition governments, and Star newspaper says business leaders are anxious at the result.
Pro-government television channels like ATV and Kanal 24 largely ignored live statements by the main opposition parties, allowing AK supporters to dominate discussion of the results.
State-run Haber TV tried to put a brave face on it by repeating Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's declaration that AK are "the winners", while Yeni Safak suggests an early election is possible.
Rasim Ozan Kutahyali in Sabah agrees that the election is the "start of a new battle", and urges supporters of the president to protect him from any further attacks on his authority.
Arab, Iranian and Israeli commentators in the main see the result as a setback for the president, although pro-Erdogan Qatar's media, in particular influential Al-Jazeera TV, lead on the AK's "victory" as the largest party.
The Saudi paper Al-Riyadh is fairly representative in saying Mr Erdogan made the election a "referendum on his personal rule", and so must realise this "major setback undermines his hopes of boosting his own power".
Several papers report "Kurds dancing in the street" at what the Syrian opposition site Zaman al-Wasl describes as a "touchstone" result likely to bring them more concessions.
London's Al-Quds al Arabi expects the ramifications of the vote to "define the future of the whole region for years to come".
Across the border in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region, Hemin Abdallah of the Rudaw News Network says the strong HDP showing will deprive the militant PKK group of the "last word" on Kurdish issues in Turkey.
European media comment generally echoes the view that Mr Erdogan's "star is fading", as France's Le Monde puts it.
Alberto Negri in Italy's Il Sole 24 Ore says Mr Erdogan is the "latest victim of those Middle Eastern Springs that he planned would follow his model".
He wonders how this "sultan will react to losing the sceptre of absolute command" in a region that, far from emulating him, has left Turkey with Islamic State extremists on its borders.
BBC Monitoring reports and analyses news from TV, radio, web and print media around the world. You can follow BBC Monitoring on Twitter and Facebook. | The consensus in Turkey and abroad is that yesterday's parliamentary election saw a defeat for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his plans to strengthen his personal rule. | 33048547 |
It is the girls' first return home since they were kidnapped from their school in Chibok in April 2014.
The young women were freed in October after Switzerland and the International Red Cross made a deal with Boko Haram.
Since then, the 21 girls have been held in a secret location for debriefing by the Nigerian government.
One of the girls, Asabe Goni, 22, told Reuters news agency it was a "miracle" that she was home again.
Helping her mother prepare for Christmas, she said she was excited to go to church on Christmas Day.
"I never knew that I would return (home)," she said simply. "I had given up hope of ever going home."
Of the 276 students kidnapped, 197 are still reportedly missing, and negotiations for their release are under way.
Many of the Chibok girls were Christian, but were encouraged to convert to Islam and to marry their kidnappers during their time in captivity.
Ms Goni said some were whipped for refusing to marry, but otherwise they were well treated and fed, until food supplies recently ran short.
After the deal in October, the girls' captors announced that any girl who wanted to be released should line up.
Ms Goni was ill and too exhausted to move as the others scrambled into formation - but she soon learned she would be among the lucky few to leave.
Who are Boko Haram?
Boko Haram 'ousted from forest bastion'
"I was surprised when they announced that my name was on the list," she said.
Her joy was lessened, however, when she was forced to leave behind her cousin Margaret, with whom she had lived since childhood.
The young woman was interviewed at her family's home in the northern city of Yola, surrounded by her father, stepmother, five siblings, and several neighbours.
"Some of the other girls left behind started crying," Ms Goni said. "But the Boko Haram men consoled them, telling them that their turn to go home would come one day."
Before the girls' release, there had only been one confirmed release of a student kidnapped from Chibok.
On 24 December, Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari said the army had driven Boko Haram's militants from the last camp in their Sambisa forest stronghold.
"The terrorists are on the run and no longer have a place to hide," Mr Buhari said in a statement.
The army has been engaged for the last few weeks in a major offensive in the forest, a huge former colonial game reserve in north-eastern Borno state.
There has been speculation that some of the Chibok girls are being held in the forest, after it was named by a small number of those who escaped.
Mr Buhari said that efforts to find the remaining girls were being intensified.
The town that lost its girls
Torment of a freed Boko Haram 'bride' | More than 20 Nigerian "Chibok girls" who were released by the Islamist group Boko Haram in October have rejoined their families for Christmas. | 38427938 |
William Burns, 56, and Alexander Porter, 48, both from Paisley, denied attempting to murder 35-year-old Ross Sherlock.
The shooting took place at about 15:00 on 24 September 2015 outside St Helen's Primary in Bishopbriggs.
Judge Lord Matthews formally acquitted Mr Burns and Mr Porter of the attempted murder due to "insufficient evidence".
Mr Sherlock, who was at the school to collect his daughter, was shot at three times with a handgun by a man wearing a yellow fluorescent jacket.
One of the bullets hit his right arm and fractured it.
He ran off and the gunman was seen getting into a silver Volkswagen Golf. The car was discovered on fire at about 15:30 in Wood Lane, Bishopbriggs.
A number of parents who were picking up their children at the time, including Mr Sherlock, gave evidence at the High Court in Glasgow.
None of them could identify the gunman or the getaway driver.
Mr Burns and Mr Porter are still on trial at the High Court in Glasgow accused of an acid attack on journalist Russell Findlay in Glasgow's west end on 23 December 2015.
They deny the charge.
The trial continues. | Two men have been cleared of shooting a man outside a primary school as pupils left for the day. | 40351973 |
The Willie Mullins-trained eight-year-old endorsed his claims to be a leading contenders at the Cheltenham Festival in March.
Ridden by Ruby Walsh, the 1-2 chance was never headed and remains unbeaten in the 14 races he has completed.
Sire De Grugy (11-2) held on for second from stablemate Traffic Fluide (33-1).
Five out it looked like 2014 winner Sire De Grugy might have the answer, but Un De Sceaux hit top gear between the last two fences and jumped immaculately to power away from the field.
Gary Moore, Sire De Grugy's trainer, said: "Obviously he's not good enough to beat Un De Sceaux. The winner had run the finish out of him and just took the edge out of what he normally finds. The winner is obviously a very good horse."
BBC racing correspondent Cornelius Lysaght
Hopes Un De Sceaux might meet his match in Sire De Grugy, and provide a welcome boost for the British contingent at March's Cheltenham Festival, which Willie Mullins is set to dominate again, were swept aside here.
Having fallen last time out, UDS jumped brilliantly, putting himself right when needed. I'm afraid Sire De Grugy, an outstanding performer, was simply humbled.
Such is Mullins' strength ahead of Cheltenham, he's being backed to become the first Irish trainer to be champion in Britain since Vincent O'Brien in the 1953-54 season. | Favourite Un De Sceaux romped to a five-lengths victory over former champion chaser Sire De Grugy in the Clarence House Chase at Ascot. | 35391886 |
Its Gogerddan campus outside of the town is to become the Aberystwyth Innovation and Diffusion Campus (Aidc).
A £14.5m grant from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) includes £2.5m for research into improving upland farming.
The money is part of UK government science plans to boost food security.
The Gogerddan campus is home to the internationally renowned plant research centre the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (Ibers).
Ibers, which became part of the university in 2008 and is one of the university's seven institutes, employs around 360 people.
It is home to the £6.8m National Plant Phenomics Centre, backed by BBSRC and Welsh government, which opened last year boasting the UK's most advanced research greenhouse.
The new BBSRC money gives Aberystwyth the largest share of £30m research funding from the UK's Agricultural Technology Strategy to be announced later by Minister for Universities and Science, David Willetts.
Work on Aidc is expected to start in 2014 and be completed by March 2015.
The proposals include:
Ibers director Prof Wayne Powell said BBSRC's investment - in projects such as high sugar content grass feed for livestock - would safeguard current jobs and offered the prospect of more later.
He said: "This is really groundbreaking. To win this funding in the current tough economic climate is a vote of confidence for the research Ibers, Aberystwyth and in agricultural science.
"Food is big business and and promoting food products is important but it doesn't stop there, it's what happens to the food subsequently and it's engaging the consumer.
"What we want to do is work with small and medium-sized firms in food and the farming industry and the supply chain.
"With this investment comes an expectation the money will be used to unlock the economic potential of the UK as a science base."
Aberystwyth University is to invest its own cash in the project and is in negotiations with the Welsh government and the private sector for the rest of the money.
Other sites receiving BBSRC cash are: Rothamsted Centre for Research and Enterprise, up to £8.2m, the Easter Bush Campus (Edinburgh) receives up to £5m, and the Norwich Research Park received up to £2.5m | Aberystwyth University has unveiled ambitious plans to redevelop its agriculture research facilities into a £35m innovation centre. | 23395730 |
Italian President Sergio Mattarella commuted Robert Seldon Lady's sentence from nine years to seven. He also cancelled a three-year sentence handed to another American, Betnie Medero.
The two, neither of whom are in Italy, were convicted over the kidnap from Milan of a Muslim cleric, Abu Omar.
They were among 26 people convicted in their absence of the 2003 crime.
Omar, whose real name is Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, was taken from a Milan street by members of the CIA and Italian security forces.
He was allegedly then transferred between US military bases in Italy and Germany before being flown to Egypt and tortured.
He was held there for four years without a trial.
Italian prosecutors requested that those indicted over the rendition be extradited from the US to Italy to face charges, but the Italian justice ministry refused to issue the request to the US.
Seldon Lady was detained in Panama in July 2013 but was later released and travelled immediately to the US.
Italy convicted Omar in 2013 in his absence of "criminal association for the purposes of international terrorism" and sentenced him to six years in prison.
A statement from Mr Mattarella's office said that in reducing the sentences, the president took into consideration US President Barack Obama's decision to end the practice of extraordinary renditions.
The statement said that Italy and the EU consider the practice of rendition - taking suspects from foreign soil without permission - "incompatible with the fundamental principles of a state of law".
Commenting on the decision, Gauri van Gulik of Amnesty International said "the right thing to do would be to insist on extraditing them to Italy".
In 2013, President Mattarella's predecessor also cited Mr Obama's decision to end extraordinary rendition when he pardoned a US Air Force colonel, Giorgio Napolitano, the only military defendant among the Americans in the case.
Niccolo Pollari, Italy's former intelligence chief, who resigned over the affair, was convicted at a retrial in February 2013 and sentenced to 10 years in prison. He insisted he knew nothing about the kidnapping. | Italy has reduced the sentence of a former CIA station chief convicted in his absence of extraordinary rendition. | 35174783 |
The benchmark FTSE 100 finished down 0.12%, or 8.52 points, at 7358.56.
On Monday the UK parliament backed the government's Brexit bill, paving the way for formal negotiations to be triggered.
However, shares in Prudential rose 2.8% as strong growth in its Asian business helped its group operating profits to rise 7% to £4.3bn.
But the rise in Prudential shares did not stop the wider market from edging down.
Markets were jittery about the imminent triggering of Brexit negotiations and Scotland's call for a second independence referendum.
Bank shares were under pressure, with Royal Bank of Scotland down 2.5% and Lloyds more than 2% lower.
Big retail and banking stocks have been particularly sensitive to political developments, as has the pound.
On the currency markets, the pound fell to an eight-week low against the dollar, dropping 0.5% to $1.2157.
Against the euro, the pound was down 0.4% at 1.1430 euros. | The London stock market has closed lower after jitters over Brexit hit banking and retail shares. | 39265485 |
The 22-year-old is the latest defender to get a long-term injury after Jordan Tillson and Troy Archibald-Henville.
Sweeney is awaiting the results of a scan to discover if he needs surgery.
He has played more games than any Exeter player this season after moving to the League Two club from Reading in the summer. | Exeter City right-back Pierce Sweeney has been ruled out until January after injuring his ankle in the 0-0 draw with Luton Town. | 38155311 |
"It's been a massive showcase for so much that's positive, strong and good about Wales," he said.
Mr Crabb said the relationship with the Welsh government and First Minister Carwyn Jones worked "remarkably well".
He said they had been determined that day-to-day politics would not interfere with showing Wales working together.
More than 60 world leaders, 4,000 delegates and 1,500 journalists have spent two days at the Celtic Manor Resort for the one of the biggest ever international gatherings ever to be held in the UK.
Mr Crabb said: "We wanted it to be an opportunity to show the world the very best of Wales in terms of hospitality, quality of infrastructure and facilities. I believe this week has shown exactly that.
"We've been clear that this Nato summit needs to have a lasting economic impact for Wales. I believe the global profile of Wales this week will help that.
"And with the investment summit we're organising on the back of the Nato summit, we're determined it will bring more inward investment.
"Bringing world leaders, prime ministers and ambassadors here this week has all been part of that plan."
The UK Investment Summit, on 20 and 21 November, will also be held at the Celtic Manor.
US President Barack Obama voiced his approval for the warm Welsh welcome on Thursday, praising the country for its "extraordinary beauty, wonderful people, and great hospitality."
Despite hopes of long-term benefits to Wales, traders in the centre of Cardiff have complained that security barriers and road closures hit their businesses hard by deterring customers in the run-up to the summit and during the event.
First Minister Carwyn Jones paid tribute to residents and businesses for their support for the summit and "tolerance of some inevitable disruption".
"What a fantastic week this has been for Wales," he said.
"President Obama himself gave us the biggest endorsement, praising the extraordinary beauty, wonderful people and great hospitality of our country and saying he would encourage people from the United States to visit here.
"The next step is to ensure we keep this momentum going."
Cardiff council promised that security barriers in the centre of the city would be taken down by Sunday afternoon.
As part of the promotional push at the summit, world leaders were presented with willow baskets filled with gifts from Wales.
A note from Prime Minister David Cameron said: "I hope you will enjoy each of these gifts and be inspired by them to find out about all that Wales has to offer."
The basket included: | Welsh Secretary Stephen Crabb has said the Nato summit in Newport has raised the profile of Wales abroad and would attract investment. | 29084691 |
The service saw a total increase in funding of £11.4m in the 2016-17 draft budget announced earlier this month.
Some of the funds will go towards additional clinical advisers and control room staff.
SAS chief executive Pauline Howie said ambulance crews were "busier than ever".
The draft budget announced by Finance Secretary John Swinney included an increase of 1.7% in funding for the ambulance service, equating to £3.6m.
The service will also receive £5m on a recurring basis to support its "Towards 2020" strategy, and £2.8m towards its baseline.
Ms Howie said the "Towards 2020" strategy was aimed at "ensuring that every patient receives the most appropriate care, whether at home or in the hospital".
Scottish government health secretary Shona Robison added: "We value the dedication of our ambulance workers extremely highly.
"They provide a first class service, often under challenging and physically demanding circumstances, and it is important we ensure they are equipped with the appropriate skills, training and clinical support to be able to deliver even more care in the community."
Meanwhile, Scottish Labour has criticised the amount of time taken to hand over patients from ambulances to accident and emergency departments at some Scottish hospitals.
The party said the average waiting time at the new Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow was 35 minutes, compared with a Scottish average of 21 minutes. In one week in September, it was more than 42 minutes.
The time for transfer from ambulance to A&E is not factored into government targets for waiting times.
Labour's public services spokesman Richard Simpson said that because the figures were taken as averages, some patients would be waiting "much longer".
He said: "The SNP government has managed to extend what used to be a winter A&E crisis all year round.
"These figures show another hidden waiting list, as some patients wait on average nearly three-quarters of an hour before they are handed over from ambulance to A&E.
"If patients are waiting to even get in the front door of A&E it should set alarm bells ringing. Our NHS today is suffering the consequences of the SNP government cutting the health budget." | The Scottish Ambulance Service has said it will recruit about 300 paramedics over the next five years with new funds allocated from the budget. | 35182889 |
Derek Forsyth and David Hunter, from accountancy firm, Campbell Dallas, said the venue would close immediately.
They will now "see whether elements of the business may be resurrected".
Glasgow Licensing Board cut the venue's opening times following police concerns about drug and alcohol incidents. The nightclub was its main source of funds.
Founded in 1991, the Arches employed 133 staff in full and part time posts.
Mr Forsyth said the closure and redundancies were unavoidable.
"The Arches was facing unsustainable cash flow problems and despite an immense effort by the board and funding partners it was clear that administration was the only option for the companies," he said.
"As a result of an uncertain future income profile the venue will immediately close.
"The prospect of job losses has been well documented, and it is with great regret that we have had no option but to make 129 members of staff redundant with immediate effect."
Mr Forsyth said a small number of people would be "retained to assist with the administration" and his team would work with "relevant agencies" to support those losing their jobs,
He added: "We have already contacted various funding partners and stakeholders to consider all options going forward and to see whether elements of the business may be resurrected.
"The Arches is an internationally recognised brand and we would encourage interested parties to make contact as soon as possible." | Administrators for the Arches venue in Glasgow have made 129 staff redundant after the business collapsed following the loss of its nightclub licence. | 33198545 |
The artwork, by graffiti artist Buber Nebz, shows the superhero and his Batmobile behind the Old Cooperative Day Nursery in Gotham, Nottinghamshire.
Manager Charlotte Harris said the children's parents have been taking selfies next to the caped crusader.
The village has a historical connection to the fictional Gotham City.
Mrs Harris said she contacted Buber Nebz - real name Dan Smith - after seeing his "fantastic" street art around the East Midlands.
The mural was completed last week, after the graffiti artist spent about 30 hours hard at work.
Mrs Harris, who also runs an after-school club called the Bat Cave, said: "I knew we'd got a Superheroes Week coming up so I contacted him to see if he'd come and do some artwork for us.
"The children and parents have been absolutely wowed by it."
Buber Nez, 27, from Loughborough, Leicestershire, said he "really enjoyed" completing the mural, but said similar artwork is "still in the making" of being socially accepted. | A Batman mural has been painted on the side of a nursery in a village that shares its name with the comic book hero's home city. | 36112192 |
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