text
stringlengths 102
11.9k
| query
stringlengths 2
806
| summary
stringlengths 22
3.99k
|
|---|---|---|
by chris greenwood published: 19:24 est, 14 november 2013 criticism: thersea may last month said acpo 'was neither accountable to the public nor able to speak authoritatively on behalf of the whole of policing' a scandal hit ‘boys club’ of chief constables is set to be abolished after it was severely criticised in a report last night the association of chief police officers (acpo) faces bring broken up after an independent review found millions of pounds could be better spent elsewhere retired army general sir nick parker said its ‘complex and unorthodox’ structure and status as a private company is unacceptable he called for its most important responsibilities to be passed to individual forces and its controversial money spinning offshoots to be cut loose sir nick said the organisation is dominated by an ‘inner core’ of chiefs who preside over an often ‘informal’ body that lacks transparency and accountability in its place, he said, should be a slimmed down ‘chief constables’ council’ that better reflects the views of all the most senior police officers in the country the fate of acpo now lies in the hands of elected police and crime commissioners who commissioned the review they wanted to know if the £42m taxpayer funded organisation still has a place in the modern police landscape senior figures said they would announce their decision within weeks after consulting with the government and others staffordshire’s police and crime commissioner matthew ellis, one of the leading figures behind the review, said its recommendations are ‘straight forward and sensible’asked what would happen next, he said: ‘it cannot be rushed, we are dealing with sensitive and important areas of policing ‘but there is no doubt at all that we have to improve the way things work, improve transparency and make sure we have an arrangement which fits the policing and wider environment’ the home office has already withdrawn its funding as responsibility for many areas of police governance were handed to the fledgling college of policing in a speech last month, theresa may said acpo ‘was neither accountable to the public nor able to speak authoritatively on behalf of the whole of policing’ in recent years acpo has been at the centre of a stream of scandals and controversy amid growing questions over its future it has been criticised for spending millions on luxury london flats for its leaders and hiring former colleagues on salaries of up to £1,100 a day as consultants the furore led to accusations from some mps that it is little more than a ‘boys club’ for serving and retired chief officers recommendations: sara thornton, chief constable of thames valley police and vice president of acpo, said the report would be considered carefully in september, the daily mail revealed its chief executive had been arrested on suspicion of theft after items disappeared from acpo’s westminster offices in his review, sir nick said frustrations have been expressed over a lack of transparency on funding, as well as inadequate performance monitoring and auditing at acpo he said acpo’s status as a private company is ‘out of place’ and it should give up its role overseeing the governance and £3m funding of four national police bodies instead the national ballistics intelligence unit, national wildlife crime unit, a central freedom of information team and the criminal records office should each be run by a single ‘lead’ force sir nick said two private companies, involved in crime prevention and combating vehicle crime, as well as other profit making activities, should be merged and run separately he suggested questions remain over whether decisions made by acpo are always in the best interests of the public or the ‘more particular requirements of a commercial organisation’ sir nick said that acpo’s role for giving senior officers a ‘professional voice of the service’ remains, but should be replaced by a ‘chief constables’ council’ the retired army general said the current system does not give ‘sufficient priority’ to finding a consensus among the large and diverse group of chiefs he said: ‘there is a sense that for pragmatic reasons there is an inner core of more experienced chiefs who have greater influence, and this causes some to sit back and let other views prevail’ sir nick said the police organisation is good value for money, but added that further savings could probably be made he said: ‘my recommendations highlight that acpo has carried out some critical and enduring functions, but there is scope for change particularly in the way that these are governed’ thames valley chief constable sara thornton, the vice president of acpo, said: ‘all chief officers will want to consider his report carefully and we will work with police and crime commissioners to take forward the recommendations’ 'boys club' for top police chiefs may be abolished after report finds £42m used to fund it could be better spent elsewhere' | the association of chief police officers acpo last month theresa may | the association of chief police officers (acpo) faces being broken up . critics say responsibilities should be distributed to individual forces . last month, theresa may said the body was not accountable to the public |
by ellie buchdahl published: 04:13 est, 14 august 2013 | updated: 05:00 est, 14 august 2013 four children and their mother and father were killed when the driver of a stolen pickup truck slammed into their suv during a deadly high speed police chase the suspect, identified as hector ramirez, 18, of roma, texas, also smashed into two other vehicles as he tried to escape the police only the three year old son of the family of seven survived when their chevrolet suburban was destroyed at an intersection in a rural area near mission, texas, us scroll down for video wreckage: three vehicles were smashed when the stolen pick up truck careered across the highway in a high speed police chase the other six family members were killed on impact, alton police department chief enrique soleto told abcnewscom three year old jesus ortiz was airlifted by helicopter from the scene his four siblings elias ortiz, 1, fernanda ortiz, 3, ricardo ortiz, 5, and jose ortiz, 6 were killed in the suv, along with their mother, olga lidia morales cardoza, 35, and father, jose luis ortiz, 55 tragedy: six out of seven members of the same family were killed on impact in their suv deadly: police have named 18 year old hector ramirez as a suspect involved in the high speed chase destruction: several other people were injured, including a two year old child in one of the other vehicles passengers in the other vehicles involved in the crash, including a two year old, were taken to area hospitals with minor injuries, according to the texas department of public safety the accident occurred after a texas highway patrol sergeant engaged in a high speed pursuit of stolen truck on monday afternoon, the texas department of public safety said ramirez allegedly fled the scene in the stolen pickup after the crash, but was soon caught by the sergeant and taken to a local hospital, according to the dps soleto said the truck had been reported stolen more than a week ago he did not know how fast the car was driving when it collided with the other cars in the roadway the crash occurred less than ten miles from the us mexico border border patrol agents responded to the accident, they were not involved in the chase, soleto said shocking: bystanders gathered around the scene between western road and mile 7 northwest of mission, texas horrifying: the collision happened ten miles away from the us mexico border nick espinosa, spokesman for the mission regional medical center in mission, told abcnewscom that a mother, 39, and her five year old and eight year old children who were involved in the accident were brought to the hospital as a precaution and released monday evening roxanna rivera, who lives nearby, said: 'i'm just in shock that could have been anybody, you know? 'it's a whole family that just died and just that little survivor his parents dead, his sister dead everyone' a spokeswoman for the south texas health system told abcnewscom that three adults were brought to the mcallen medical center in mcallen, texas they were in stable condition as of 6 pm monday, she said the dps said the accident is under investigation it is unclear why the sergeant was engaged the suspect behind the wheel of the stolen truck in a high speed chase | mawks allelvia barouche | no related information |
by emma innes published: 06:36 est, 7 august 2013 | updated: 08:01 est, 7 august 2013 a mother has vowed that family life will carry on life as normal despite being told that her husband and baby son are both fighting for their lives nahella hard, 32, was told her husband has brain tumour just eight days after she learnt her baby has brain damage but the mother of two is refusing to let the double tragedy affect their daily lives nahella hard, 32, was told her husband, anthony, 33, has brain tumour just eight days after she learnt her baby, 18 month old casey, has severe brain damage she said: ‘we were a happy family before this and we will carry on the same way ‘every moment with my boys is a blessing and we just take each day as it comes’ mrs hard went into labour in november 2011 with her husband anthony, 33, at her side there were complications during the birth but the couple took baby casey home unaware there was anything wrong however, when he didn’t develop normally doctors carried out an mri scan and found that he had extensive brain damage the couple were still reeling from the blow when mr hard had a seizure at his raf base, after suffering from headaches casey was born in november 2011 and despite a traumatic birth, his parents took him home without knowing there was anything wrong with him when he failed to develop normally, tests revealed he had brain damage just eight days after the couple learnt that casey had brain damage, mr hard had a seizure at work and was taken for a scan which revealed he has a brain tumour he was sent to hospital for a brain scan where a grade two tumour was discovered mrs hard said: ‘it was devastating one minute i thought i had a healthy husband and son, the next i was told i could lose them both ‘the doctors said the left side of casey’s brain had dissolved and the remaining right side looked smashed and moth eaten ‘anthony had been struggling with headaches for a while, then he had a seizure in front of one of his senior officers in the raf mr hard (pictured with casey) had surgery to remove the tumour but after a brief period of remission, it returned he will now have further surgery and radiotherapy but the cancer is not curable mrs hard said: 'it was devastating one minute i thought i had a healthy husband and son, the next i was told i could lose them both' ‘they sent to him to a military hospital where they found the tumour it was just dreadful’ but the couple, from newport, south wales, promised each other they would carry on as normal, especially for their daughter teagan, nine mrs hard said: ‘casey is 18 months old now and he has beaten the odds to get here ‘doctors said he’d never smile or laugh or engage with us but he is a survivor mr hard (pictured) had a seizure infront of a senior officer at his raf base he was diagnosed with cancer at a military hospital he had also been suffering from headaches ‘anthony is the backbone of our family he is so calm, so positive he helps me to keep going day to day ‘treatment will buy us more time together but there is no cure now ‘anthony is a fighter, if the doctor’s give him ten years he’ll want twenty’ mr hard underwent brain surgery to remove the tumour but after a brief period of remission the aggressive cancer returned mrs hard says that she will do everything possible to ensure that family life carries on as normal for the sake of the couple's daughter, teagan, nine mr hard said: 'i'm so proud of our family we've been through so much and nahella has been incredible she's the most amazing wife and mum' now doctors can only buy mr hard time with radiotherapy and surgery to ‘chip away’ at the tumour mrs hard spends her days caring for her two ‘boys’ while getting on with the job of being a housewife and mother to teagan whatever the future holds the family say they will stay positive mr hard said: ‘it’s the only way we can be it really makes you appreciate the small things, the smiles, the cuddles ‘i’m so proud of our family we’ve been through so much and nahella has been incredible she’s the most amazing wife and mum’ | nahella hard 18 month old casey eight days later anthony | nahella hard was told her son, 18 month old casey, has brain damage . casey's birth was traumatic but he wasn't diagnosed until later . eight days later her husband, anthony, experienced a seizure at work . was diagnosed with a brain tumour, had surgery and went into remission . but later found out that the cancer had returned and that it was incurable |
by daily mail reporter published: 15:04 est, 5 august 2013 | updated: 01:47 est, 6 august 2013 the prince of wales found himself in a sticky situation as he has tried to make strawberry tarts during a visit to a family bakery charles donned a white coat and hat to tour reid’s in thurso, caithness, where workers watched him fill pastry cases with cream using a piping bag the heir to the throne, known as the duke of rothesay in scotland, topped the cream with a strawberry and laughed as he attempted to pipe over some strawberry glaze – which unfortunately oozed out of the top of the bag prince charles made a good job of piping cream into the strawberry tarts reid's has been producing shortbread, biscuits and oatcakes since 1966, many of them based on 100 year old recipes the prince of wales starts off well, glazing the strawberry tarts properly but he did not hold the top of the bag tight enough and strawberry glaze poured out ‘i have no idea how these things work,’ he told bakery worker lauren mackenzie, who performed a demonstration for him the 19 year old, from thurso, said: ‘he did very well he didn’t grasp the bag tight enough at the top, but i think he did really well’ charlene banks, 18, showed the prince how to make ‘banoffee oaties’ she said: ‘he asked what type of flour i was using and how the scales worked he seemed really interested’ bakery worker lauren mackenzie lends a hand as the prince realises his mistake the prince, known as the duke of rothesay in scotland, hands the bag over to the experts laughing the prince of wales with baker gary reid (centre) laughs at viscount thurso in his beard mask during a visit to reid's bakery charles was also given a meringue piping demonstration, but perhaps wisely did not try the technique himself local worker mr newman, who has been with the bakery for 10 years, said: 'he asked me if it was difficult to do and i told him 'it’s years of practice'' the firm’s biggest selling product is its all butter shortbread, presented to the prince in a hamper along with toffee cake, maple and pecan oat biscuits and other treats reid’s has been producing shortbread, biscuits and oatcakes since 1966, many of them based on 100 year old recipes passed down through generations the prince of wales walks alongside hamish pottinger (left) the owner of greenland meadow and ken butler (right), the author of a book about plant life in caithness prince charles with minister mr lyall rennie (left) greeting members of the congregation at a church service at canisbay church the prince donned full scottish highland dress as he attended the church service in caithness donald reid, 72, began the bakery with the help of his mother mary ann reid and with recipes provided by his grandmother margaret ann reid now his sons graeme and gary help run the company which exports many of its products abroad mr reid senior said: 'when i was a wee boy i would work in the kitchen with my grandmother and turn out things, scones and the like that’s where the beginnings of this were' | charles reid thurso caithness | charles donned a white coat and hat to tour reid’s in thurso, caithness . workers watched him fill pastry cases with cream using a piping bag . the prince didn't grab it tight enough causing the glaze to pour out the top . he was also given a meringue piping demonstration, but perhaps wisely did not try the technique himself |
by martin robinson published: 09:30 est, 14 august 2013 | updated: 11:06 est, 15 august 2013 tv star martin clunes stepped in to stop a 'nonsensical' operation on his wife using medical knowledge gleaned from his nine years playing grumpy gp doc martin the actor, who made his name on men behaving badly, stopped a surgeon taking out philippa braithwaite's appendix 'because it was the wrong thing to do' the 51 year old also admitted medics may have actually thought he was west country doctor thomas 'doc' martin because they handed him his wife's medical notes when he arrived to visit her in hospital scroll down for video life imitating art: martin clunes stepped in to stop a 'nonsensical' operation on his wife philippa using knowledge built up playing curmudgeon gp doc martin on tv 'you have to remember that british medical dramas are obliged to be accurate you can't just make things up as they do on american shows 'so we have a medical expert on the series and i have learned about certain conditions and procedures,' he told reader's digest mr clunes married his second wife phillipa in 1997, who is producer on doc martin, which has been running since 2004 he has said he had to get involved when doctors said they wanted to carry out what he described as a 'nonsensical' operation he said: 'she had an infection in her gall bladder and the surgeon was minded to take out her appendix there was no infection in her appendix and instinct told me that it would be the wrong thing to do so i took her home instead and she was treated there 'as philippa's husband, it was my prerogative to do this but when i was chatting to hospital staff they handed me her medical notes to look at in a way they might not have with an ordinary member of the public 'i do wonder whether there wasn't some confusion between me and doc martin' mistaken identity: 'doc' deals with a collapsed patient on screen, but mr clunes admitted hospital staff may have confused him with the character after they handed him his wife's medical notes when he arrived to see her but it is not the first time he has saved the day in 2011 the actor came to the aid of a baby boy who played his newborn son in the tv series and who needed urgent funds for vital medical equipment alfie cane, who when six months old played the gp’s newborn baby james henry, has a rare condition which means he cannot support his head he also has a misshapen skull, which could cause serious complications if left untreated his parents tilly and adrian needed to raise £2,000 to pay for a helmet which can strengthen alfie’s muscles and reshape his skull as it grows but after hearing of alfie’s plight, clunes donated hundreds of pounds worth of memorabilia to be auctioned off to pay for it footage courtesy of itv daybreak | philippa braithwaite's clunes star | medics wanted philippa braithwaite's appendix out but clunes intervened . mr clunes said it was the wrong thing to do' and took her home instead . star thinks they thought he was 'doc' because they gave him medical notes . 'we've a expert and i have learned about certain procedures,' he said |
by jack doyle published: 17:31 est, 10 october 2012 | updated: 17:31 est, 10 october 2012 former foreign secretary jack straw misled mps over britain’s involvement in the rendition of two libyan terror suspects into the hands of the gaddafi regime, court papers allege abdel hakim belhadj and sami al saadi are suing the british government, its intelligence agencies and mr straw for helping transfer them illegally to libya, where they were tortured mr belhadj and his wife were seized in malaysia in 2004 and flown to tripoli on a cia jet, which it is claimed flew via diego garcia, the british territory in the indian ocean the ‘rendition’ took place just weeks before tony blair, then prime minister, signed the so called ‘deal in the desert’ that reinstated diplomatic and trade links with colonel gaddafi 'misled': former foreign secretary jack straw misled mps over britain's involvement in the rendition of two libyan terror suspects into the hands of the gaddafi regime, court papers allege mr al saadi, also known as abu munthir, claims he was illegally rendered from hong kong to tripoli with the knowledge of the british government in 2005 mr straw told the commons there was ‘simply no truth’ in claims that the uk was involved in rendition, branding them ‘conspiracy theories’ suing: one man was siezed in malaysia and flown to tripoli and tortured weeks before tony blair, then prime minister (left) signed the 'deal in the desert' that reinstated diplomatic and trade links with colonel gaddafi (right) incorrect evidence: the papers claim that sir john scarlett, then head of mi6, gave misleading and incorrect evidence to mps about the agency's involvement but papers submitted to the high court as part of the case suggest the transfer of the men into libyan custody was part of a deal in which the libyans agreed to share intelligence information they also allege that british intelligence officers provided questions and interrogated the men in libyan custody the papers claim that in 2006 sir john scarlett, then head of mi6, gave misleading and incorrect evidence to mps about the agency’s involvement in rendition mr belhadj and mr al saadi were leading members of the libyan islamic fighting group, which helped overthrow gaddafi’s regime the men’s lawyers at leigh day & co and the legal charity reprieve warned last night that ‘secret courts’ laws proposed by the government could lead to a ‘cover up’ in the case | tetrasporangium liberians confectionaries | no related information |
by peter campbell published: 16:38 est, 8 october 2012 | updated: 04:24 est, 9 october 2012 one of britain’s largest energy providers is preparing to raise prices during the depths of winter, it was feared last night german owned eon, which provides power to 5million households across the uk, has pledged not to increase tariffs before december 31 but consumer groups yesterday said they suspected the company was planning to introduce inflation busting increases immediately after the deadline expires on january 1 feeling the chill: gas price rises could hit the most vulnerable, including the elderly and poor this would lock families into paying higher rates to heat their homes just as the coldest months of the year start to bite industry insiders warn that it is inevitable that all of the major providers – british gas, edf, sse, eon, npower and scottish power – will increase prices either before or during winter this would leave almost every family in britain facing higher tariffs at a time when household incomes are being squeezed by soaring food prices and savings are being eaten away by inflation a sharp and sudden rise in bills could push millions more into fuel poverty – where they face the nightmare choice between heating and eating – while more cash pours into the coffers of the energy companies the big six all faced criticism from consumer groups last autumn for raising tariffs and then dropping them again in the spring it now appears the same pattern could be repeated this year – further increasing suspicions that uk energy providers act as a cartel next week southern electric owner sse will increase rates by 9 per cent – the first company to raise tariffs as winter approaches british gas has also warned it may have to increase bills by an average of £130 before winter – which would take the average family’s dual fuel bill to a record high of around £1,400 soaring prices: consumer groups suspect german owned eon is preparing to hike gas bills during the depths of winter only last week a report from energy regulator ofgem laid bare the uk’s desperate energy needs and said the country could face 1970s style blackouts in three years experts said household bills will double by 2015 because of the energy shortages which are being heaped on the uk because of green laws passed by the eu eon is currently the only firm which has promised not to increase rates during 2012 – a pledge it made in may to try and win over new customers but the group, which last year bumped up its prices by 11 per cent for electricity and 18 per cent for gas, has so far refused to extend the guarantee into 2013 consumer champion martin lewis, from money saving expert, said he expected a rise early in january ‘what usually happens, a very short time after the pledge ends, is the prices jump,’ he said he said he was willing to bet that the group would raise bills or announce an increase in january he said that price guarantees, such as the one offered by eon, ‘give customers a false sense of security, even more so if they encourage people to switch to a provider offering one’ mr lewis added: ‘the promise is “no price hikes this year” so technically, it could announce a hike in november to start on 1 january january and february are the coldest months of the year, but the price promise does not extend to then ‘most people who switch stay with that provider for years, so the few months of price holds is of limited impact’ warning: other energy giants, including british gas, could follow any rivals' price increases with its own hike under industry regulations, energy companies need to give 30 days’ notice of price rises this means the earliest another rise could come into force is november mr lewis called for every energy company to promise not to increase prices in the first six months of a customer contract eon boasts on the front page of its website: ‘we stand by our promise not to increase home energy prices in 2012’ but a spokesman for the energy giant yesterday said: ‘our price promise runs until the end of the year ‘while we do everything we can to help our customers, we can’t guarantee that we will extend this ‘we are not ruling anything in or out at the moment’ | german eon winter uk british gas edf sse npower scottish power the spring | german owned eon could be planning an inflation busting hike during winter for its five million uk customers . fears mount other energy providers could follow suit confronting nearly every family with sharp rise . british gas, edf, sse, eon, npower and scottish power have all faced criticism for . raising tariffs and then dropping them again in the spring |
by emily allen published: 08:04 est, 8 october 2012 | updated: 11:14 est, 8 october 2012 a man who stabbed his noisy neighbour in the heart with a fish knife in a row over her eviction has been cleared of her murder paul lyon, who is epileptic and has mental health problems, was found guilty of the manslaughter of 22 year old heather dyer he stabbed her outside the building they both lived in on chapel street, st helens, on september 23 last year court: paul lyon, left, who is epileptic and has mental health problems, was found guilty of the manslaughter of 22 year old heather dyer, right he said he acted in self defence on september 23 last year prosecutors claimed he deliberately plunged the knife into her heart after being driven to distraction by loud music coming from parties in the flat above him but he said he acted in self defence after an argument about him getting ms dyer evicted turned violent eleven jurors deliberated for more than 20 hours before delivering their verdicts they found lyon, 45, not guilty of the attempted murder of william taylor, 25, who was stabbed twice during the same incident, but guilty of wounding lyon, who was flanked throughout the trial by mental health nurses, started to cry and stared at the floor as he was found not guilty of murder he was then taken back to ashworth hospital where he has been held since having a nervous breakdown at the start of his first trial in january tribute: a card left with flowers in memory of victim heather dyer the court heard that miss dyer started shouting at him for complaining about the noise that meant she was due to be evicted on the night in question during his trial he told jurors how he used a sharp fish filleting knife to prune flowers in his garden and had accidentally left it in his electricity meter box on the day of the killing he came home from the pub on september 23 last year to find another party going on and stepped out for fresh air at around 240am it was then that friends of heather dyer started shouting at him for complaining about the noise that meant she was due to be evicted, and one threw beer at him he said: 'i felt a tug on me and went forward i think i landed on my hands and knees i tried getting up, i was scared 'i thought i was going to start getting kicked i started swinging my arms forgetting i had the knife in my hand i realised something had happened i started to say sorry' judge clement goldstone qc thanked jurors for conducting what had been an 'obviously distressing exercise' before adjourning for sentence on october 15 hospital: lyon was taken back to ashworth hospital (pictured) in merseyside where he has been held since having a nervous breakdown at the start of his first trial in january | paul lyon heather dyer ms dyer | paul lyon who is epileptic and has mental health problems was found guilty of the manslaughter of heather dyer . he said he acted in self defence after an argument about him getting ms dyer evicted turned violent, court heard . prosecutors said he stabbed her deliberately after being driven to distraction by loud music |
by sean poulter published: 10:40 est, 11 october 2012 | updated: 19:21 est, 11 october 2012 tourism numbers during the olympics fell to their lowest summer level for almost ten years as travellers were put off by warnings of gridlock and chaos although the government had boasted the games would deliver a boost to retailers, restaurants and attractions, foreign visitors to the uk actually fell 5 per cent compared with 2011 the figures, by the office for national statistics, showed 303million tourists arrived in britain in august – 176,000 less than the same time last year some of london's busiest roads, including regent street above, were deserted during the london olympics it was the lowest august number since 2003, when tony blair’s government joined america in invading iraq – resulting in foreign tourism, particularly from the us, falling sharply taking july and august together, the total number of tourists was 621million – a decrease of 358,000 the figures follow complaints by business leaders during the games that overblown warnings of travel chaos had turned some key tourism sites into ‘ghost towns’ at the time, photos taken outside normally busy attractions such as the tower of london and oxford street showed the normal summer queues were absent a survey of london restaurants also found takings were down by an average of 40 per cent tourism chiefs also pointed to the unusually wet summer as having put some visitors off despite this, then culture minister jeremy hunt denied that businesses were suffering, saying: ‘this is absolute nonsense and we have just got to knock this on the head tourism bosses hope the millions worldwide who watched the games, including the paralympic closing ceremony above, will now consider holidaying in the uk ‘anyone who has a business anywhere in london is frankly quids in some west end businesses have done extremely well because they’ve marketed on the back of the olympics some businesses have taken a hit, others are doing well, but overall there is a big increase in business in the east of london’ but nick varney, chief executive of merlin entertainments, which runs the london eye and madame tussauds, and is the second largest attractions operator in the world behind disney, said yesterday: ‘these figures make clear jeremy hunt had no idea what he was talking about ‘the government’s warnings to stay away from london worked all too well the olympics was a marvellous opportunity to showcase what britain has to offer ‘everyone involved in delivering the games did a wonderful job ‘but the country cannot be quids in and cannot get a return on the £10billion it cost without a radical change in its approach to tourism’ the ons figures also revealed that while the number of foreign tourists fell in august, the amount they spent increased by 9 per cent to £24billion it is hoped the games showcased venues across the country, including east london, weymouth, and eton dorney, where britain's helen glover and heather stanning won gold medal in the women's pair final however, this was mainly due to the cost of olympics tickets rather than a rise in spending in shops, hotels and restaurants sport and tourism minister hugh robertson said: ‘this summer put the uk firmly in the global spotlight, allowing us to shape international perceptions and help deliver long term trade and tourism benefits ‘the olympics generated record tourist spend, up 9 per cent on august last year, helping to boost the country’s economy and giving us enormous confidence as we build on the fantastic showcase of this summer ‘and domestic tourism was also strong, with more than £760million spent on olympics related day trips ‘we also know some tourists may not have wanted to come during the games, which is why we focused on building a long term tourism legacy’ | five per cent uk | in august foreign visitor numbers were five per cent down on last year . but the 3million who did travel to the uk spent more than usual . ministers under pressure to secure tourism legacy, as hotel guide author's warn of a 'deplorable policy of neglect’ towards the industry |
by wills robinson published: 07:04 est, 27 december 2013 | updated: 12:26 est, 27 december 2013 when a father has a hearing aid fitted after years of being deaf, it should be a reason for his son to celebrate but it seems danny hamilton was left frustrated by the fact his old man can hear again so he wrote a song to express his feelings during the 'affectionate' track, which he wrote for his father as a christmas gift, the musician complains he can no longer listen to loud music and is forced to maintain a conversation scroll down for video and lyrics frustrated: danny hamilton wrote the 'affectionate' song for his father as a christmas gift angry: he is annoyed because his father can no longer take his side when he listens to loud music mr hamilton performed the song in front of other members of his family, who laughed all the way through he then posted a video of the song on his youtube page, and has already received more than 700,000 views at one point, the cameraman struggles to hold the camera steady after being overcome by laughter and towards the end of the video, the father says: 'that is going to be an internet classic' underneath the video, mr hamilton wrote: 'my dad, who has been hard of hearing for about as long as i can remember, recently invested in hearing aids so i wrote him a little song for christmas to celebrate his newfound sense, affectionately entitled, 'i liked you better deaf' the song goes: 'there used to be a time, it was rather recently when i’d play something on the stereo and mother would say “danny turn that down” and you’d say, “it’s already very low” 'it seemed that i could always count on you to come and take my side when i’d set the volume up at 62 and someone else wanted it at 35 'but since you found out that your ears are micable i have to say it’s made you just a touch less likeable 'you never used to know the difference ‘tween the bass and treble clef, and it isn’t hard to tell you that i like you better deaf 'it used to be if i’d run out of anything to say, i could just mumble and you’d usually go away 'it used to be what i was bringing to the conversation, was subject to a wider range of your interpretation 'but now i see that i must be living in a nightmare, why it’s every son’s worst fear to have a dad forever clad with supersonic ears and i don’t mean to tell you that i love you any less but there’s no doubt about it that i liked you better deaf 'if i had once forgot to tell you something, say a chord i hadn’t struck like, “the mail’s arrived” “i owe you five” “run away” or “duck!” follow danny online here making peace: when the song finished, the musician closed his laptop and went over to his father laughing:at the end of the video, danny's father said it would be an 'internet classic' 'once i could have played it off without blood sweat or tears “i told you that,” i’d tell you, and you’d blame it on your ears 'it once was undetectable but now it’s ineffectual the odds are insurmountable and i am held accountable 'and you never would’ve noticed if i swore under my breath, now i don’t have to shout to say i liked you better deaf 'see now i’ve reached a point where it’s hard to make a rhyme, but the song needs another verse to reach a fitting time 'and if i had been writing it for old deaf dad i might have left a phrase or two… unfinished 'but only the best for you and your new hearing, you will find that every rhyme is aurally endearing 'and i’m afraid that now you’ve left me lyrically bereft but i only need five words to say i liked you better deaf' | danny hamilton christmas | danny hamilton wrote the 'affectionately titled' lyrics as a christmas gift . complains that his father cannot back him up when he plays music loud . claims it is a 'nightmare' having a 'dad with supersonic ears' |
by martin robinson published: 10:00 est, 8 october 2012 | updated: 10:31 est, 8 october 2012 a rich retired accountant allegedly killed by a russian prostitute at his £1million surrey home was planning to ask her to marry him, a court has heard winston fernandez, 69, wanted to propose to the vice girl now accused of his murder, natalia woolley, 38, as long as she gave up working as an escort, the jury was told the evidence emerged at guildford crown court when transcripts of a police interview after the defendant was arrested were read out in court 'alluring to all men': natalia woolley, 38, who described herself on escort websites as 'incredibly sexy and curvacious', is accused of killing 69 year old winston fernandez who wanted to marry her, a court heard dc adam ramiz said that russian born woolley, who worked for an escort agency using the names of lenka and alice, had performed sexual services for the alcoholic pensioner and fernandez had posted enthusiastic comments about her performance on a website 'he was thinking about asking her to marry him but that she would have to stop being a call girl,' dc ramiz said mr fernandez had booked woolley three times previously via an escort agency and even wrote an online review praising her ‘aesthetic curves’ after ‘eight amazing hours’ he wrote: ‘all good – nay, outstanding it is a pleasure to be with you every time! i have been addicted to you, i will spend [a] lifetime with you!!’ praise: the court heard that mr fernandez had booked woolley three times previously via an escort agency and even wrote an online review the court heard how his impressions of the £600 a night prostitute changed on the day he died moments before violence erupted at his four bedroom detached home, he accused her of taking his money and not doing anything for him, jurors were told mr fernandez is alleged to have told woolley: 'i paid you the money and you didn’t do anything' the crown court was told that when the defendant arrived at mr fernandez’s home, she found him drunk and in a very weird mood and fernandez swung a wine bottle at her 'i tried to grab the wine bottle,' she said, adding 'he didn’t seem to know what he was doing' she said he then grabbed a bottle of beer and tried to smash it over the table 'what are you doing? glass could get into my eyes and i could be blind for the rest of my life,' she said 'i thought if he is doing this and doesn’t know what he is doing i had better leave i was very scared, i said 'open the door otherwise i shall shout and scream'' she said she then went upstairs and he finally agreed to unlock the front door but then she alleged that mr fernandez had grabbed her leg and tried to stop her escaping she said she kicked him in his middle and stepped over the pensioner as he was on the ground but in the skuffle that followed she stumbled and her leg landed on his head the defendant said she then left the house and walked to a nearby garage where she called a cab to take her back home to london 'sexy and curvaceous': the call girl who plied her trade under the aliases lenka and alice is alleged to have broken 17 of the old man's ribs and fractured the bones in his windpipe in the brutal assault before cutting his phone lines as she left scene: woolley was convicted of the manslaughter of 69 year old winston fernandez with her cowboy boots after he invited her to his £1million mansion (above) in epsom, surrey, for sex jurors heard previously she repeatedly kicked, punched and stamped on her client before cutting the telephone lines and leaving him for dead prosecutor william saunders claimed woolley repeatedly beat the pensioner and left him dead or dying with injuries all over his body, including 17 fractured ribs and two broken bones in his larynx mr saunders added: ‘these injuries would have left him unable to move, in obvious pain, and of course he would have had difficulties in breathing as well’ mr fernandez turned to drink and escort girls after the death of his wife joan 12 years ago, guildford crown court was told police found mr fernandez’s decomposing body slumped against his bed a month later – on february 13 – after a neighbour raised the alarm woolley was arrested on april 2 and when police raided her home they seized her cowboy boots among other items she denies murder the trial continues | natalia woolley 38 69 year old winston fernandez january 16 epsom surrey fernandez almost a month wooley guildford crown court | natalia woolley, 38, is accused of murdering 69 year old winston fernandez on january 16 in epsom, surrey . she is alleged to have broken 17 of the . old man's ribs and fractured the bones in his windpipe in the brutal . assault before cutting his phone lines . mr fernandez, an alcoholic with a number of health problems, was not found until almost a month after his death . police say he was about to propose to her as long as she gave up prostitution . wooley describes herself on escort websites as 'alluring to all men and incredibly sexy . and curvacious' and denies murder at guildford crown court |
by daniel martin published: 15:26 est, 15 march 2013 | updated: 15:26 est, 15 march 2013 david cameron and angela merkel were at loggerheads tonight after only one country backed britain and france’s call to arm the syrian rebels at a summit in brussels today, the prime minister and french president francois hollande urged other european leaders to back their call for the lifting of an eu wide arms embargo on the war torn state but they embarrassingly found themselves in a minority of three with only slovenia coming out to support their stance head to head: david cameron and german chancellor angela merkel came to verbal blows after merkel refused to support britain and france in their call to lift the eu wide arms embargo on syria german chancellor angela merkel warned of the danger that lifting the embargo could lead to arms falling into the hands of dangerous islamists and the austrians threatened to pull their un troops out of the golan heights land disputed between israel and syria if britain and france unilaterally lifted their embargo mr cameron and president hollande warned that if they did not get the support they needed, they would effectively veto the extension of the existing eu ban on supplying weapons to either side of the bloody conflict, which has already claimed more than 70,000 lives this would enable countries that wished to do so to supply the rebels mr cameron believes it is becoming increasingly important to arm ‘moderate’ rebels to prevent the uprising being taken over by jidahist fighters who are flooding into the country arming syria: david cameron, pictured at the summit today, said that it was becoming increasingly important to arm the 'moderate' groups of syrian rebels in order to prevent the uprising being turned into a jihad war a downing street source said there was a ‘perversity’ about the existing arms embargo, which meant that the rebels were receiving no outside help when russia and iran are arming syrian dictator bashar al assad moscow has been the main ally of assad, shielding him from un sanctions and supplying him with weapons during the two year conflict but despite britain and france’s forthright arguments at the eu council meeting in brussels yesterday, only one country slovenia came out in support chancellor merkel said she was concerned weapons would end up in the wrong hands ‘it is an extremely difficult situation,’ she said at a press conference ‘we have a whole series of reservations regarding weapons exports to the opposition we have to ask ourselves whether we are not further fuelling the conflict by doing that’ action: french president francois hollande, pictured with his partner valerie trierweiler, has said he wants the weapons embargo lifted with immediate effects ‘we all are deeply concerned about the desperate situation in syria,’ she said ‘europe can only play a strong and effective role if it acts as one if partners want to revisit common decisions we should hear them out and decide jointly’ eu foreign policy chief baroness cathy ashton said that lifting the arms blockade could be seized on by supporters of the regime to channel even more arms to bolster assad’s military campaign and dutch prime minister mark rutte warned the uk and france against unilateral action in a post summit press conference yesterday, mr cameron said he disagreed with chancellor merkel’s position saying arms were going to the wrong people now he said: ‘that is what has happened already and actually it’s important for countries like britain and france, working with the americans, working with other allies, to help the opposition to work with the opposition and shape the opposition and to make sure that it is those parts of the opposition that support a democratic, pluralistic syria where minorities are properly protected, those are the organisations getting our help and getting our assistance’ however, mr cameron’s language was much less bellicose than president hollande, who has said he would like to start arming the syrian rebels now violent conflict: members of the free syrian army inspect the wreckage of a helicopter belonging to syrian president bashar al assad's forces earlier this month, as the death toll for the two year civil war hit 70,000 the prime minister said: ‘as things stand today i’m not saying that britain would actually like to supply arms to rebel groups what we want to do is work with them and try to make sure that they are doing the right thing ‘britain is a sovereign country we have our own foreign, security and defence policies if we want to take individual action, of course we are free to do so’ he went on: ‘you can either keep renewing that common position or you can decide not to renew that common position ‘if we thought our national interest was best met in another way, we would always stand up for british interests ‘it is worth standing back and asking: why are we debating and discussing the approach we take? the answer is two years in, 70,000 people are dead, there is a huge refugee and humanitarian crisis, assad is still in place and being strongly supplied and strengthened by others and we need to put pressure on to bring about the transition necessary for syrian people, necessary for stability in that region and in our national interest’ mr cameron said it would be wrong for austria to pull out of the golan heights, because arming the syrian rebels was a completely different issue speaking at his own press conference, president hollande said france wanted to arm the rebels ‘we are fighting terrorism around the world,’ he said ‘we have been helping the opposition in syria and want to go further we trust the opposition we do not want syria to become another libya’ | kemps oryctologic topping | no related information |
by daily mail reporter published: 12:44 est, 27 december 2013 | updated: 15:44 est, 27 december 2013 aaron collins' dying wish was that his family leave underpaid waitstaff a $500 tip on pizza orders around america now his loyal brother, who is carrying out his dream, has revealed what inspired collins' generous wish 'aaron's at buffalo wild wings and gets a waitress who it's her first night on the job, guys are drinking and yelling, and she's getting orders all wrong,' seth collins, from kentucky, said 'she did everything wrong and told aaron she was gonna quit' scroll down for video last wish: seth collins, right, is traveling around america giving $500 tips to servers in every state to fulfill the dying wish of his brother aaron, pictured left emotional: seth collins hugs vanessa goldschmidt, a waitress at pequod's pizza in chicago, was shocked to receive a $500 tip on a $45 tab 'when aaron got the bill and remember, he didn't make a lot of money he left her a $50 tip, and wrote on the check, 'don't give up' 'immediately, you could see, her attitude changed and aaron thought, 'imagine what a $500 tip could do' seth collins told fox news that act of kindness was typical of his younger brother 'that was aaron 'be good to your friends,' he'd say if you're good to other people, they'll be good to you,' seth collins said aaron collins, a computer technician, passed away last year aged just 30, but in his will told his family: 'leave an awesome tip (and i don't mean 25%, i mean $500 on an f*****g pizza) for a waiter or waitress' his older brother, seth collins, created a website and started raising money to carry out the kind act instead of $500, seth raised over $60,000 from generous donors, and is now on the final leg of an 18 month us road trip he has so far left 88 tips totaling $44,000 tragic: aaron collins died in july 2012, aged just 30 speaking for the first time, seth collins said he has been overwhelmed by the generosity of donors 'from every continent except antarctica' he said every recipient of 'the tip' has been deeply moved by the sweet gesture, which hasn't depended on the quality of the service 'everyone has a bad moment, a bad day i'm sure that person who's waiting on you didn't go to work intending to give you bad service,' he said 'and waiters, waitresses have told me, when they get the tip, it changes them it lets them know someone appreciates how hard they work and how little they make' the family say enough money has been raised through the website and donation page for seth to hand out a $500 surprise weekly for the next two years generous: tracy at baker's pizza in bucyrus, ohio, received the 88th $500 tip excited: annabelle at the pantry in santa fe, new mexico was elated to receive a $500 tip in chicago, vanessa goldschmidt from pequod's pizza in chicago, was taken aback when seth collins tipped her in july this was the 56th donation 'i'm like shaking right now are you kidding? oh, my gosh i'm shaking right now that's amazing,' the waitress said before grabbing seth in a hug 'it was just like another thursday night, coming into work, hoping for the best it's a slow night,' goldschmidt told the chicago tribune 'i'm just taken aback it's such an amazing gesture' seth collins is taping each heartfelt reaction to his generosity he believes he will visit up to 100 restaurants in all 50 states, he told the new york daily news the time consuming but rewarding experience was most moving, he said, when he visited pies & pints pizzeria in charleston, west virginia make a stranger happy: aaron collins, pictured, passed away a year ago aged just 30, but in his will he told his family: 'leave an awesome tip i mean $500 on a f****** pizza' tragic: aaron, pictured, was just 30 when he passed away in july last year seth collins month: lexington mayor jim gray gave seth collins the key to the city for his generosity of spirit the server who happened to be assigned to his table had just lost his mother two weeks before and seth collins was pleased he could, in some small way, make him happy 'the passing of my brother gave him something special and made him happy so soon after the loss of his mother,' collins told the daily news seth collins, who has two younger sisters, said aaron has been on his mind each and every time, and his dying wish had taught him an important lesson he is hoping will rub off 'it's definitely reminded me of how important it is to be generous,' he said while seth collins doesn't know what his next step will be when the money runs out, he says the experience has been rewarding 'but i have to get on with my life, you know?' he said 'what's most important is that long after the money is gone, they'll take that moment and pay it forward to be good and generous to other people aaron would have loved that' | aaron collins last year 500 seth collins us 44,000 seth 50 buffalo wild wings first | aaron collins passed away last year aged just 30 . in his will, he told his family: 'leave an awesome tip i mean $500 on a f****** pizza'. his brother, seth collins, created a website to raise the funds and is touring the us handing out the money . he has already handed out 88 tips totaling $44,000 . seth said his brother was inspired after leaving a $50 tip for a buffalo wild wings waitress who wanted to quit after her first night on the job |
by sam webb published: 16:24 est, 19 march 2013 | updated: 16:45 est, 19 march 2013 gary walker, nhs whistleblower and former hospital chief executive for united lincolnshire hospitals nhs trust, says bullying is rampant in the nhs the former boss of a hospital which is being investigated over high death rates today described a culture of 'sheer bullying' in the nhs gary walker, former chief executive of united lincolnshire hospitals nhs trust (ulht), said he was threatened by east midlands strategic health authority (sha) when he flagged up hospital capacity problems the whistleblower, who claimed he was sacked after raising concerns about patient safety, said he felt pressured by officials when he put the hospital on 'red alert' because it was almost full to capacity he said: 'the response from the health authority was, 'this is your problem you need to meet the targets whatever the demand' 'it is a very dangerous thing to be trying to push through targets when hospitals are dangerously over full' mr walker, who was sacked in 2010 for 'gross professional misconduct' over alleged swearing at a meeting, said he was forced to quit after refusing to meet whitehall targets for non emergency patients and was gagged from speaking out as part of a settlement deal he added that in february 2009 he met dame barbara hakin who has been named interim chief operating officer of the nhs commissioning board and 'essentially certain threats were made to me like, 'if you don’t deliver the targets then i won’t be able to protect you' she denies the claims 'in essence there was a lot of pressure to deliver the targets and this was going to reflect on me as an individual if we didn’t meet those targets 'at the same time i am asking for a capacity review, for help, and the situation escalated, when the hospital became more and more full more and more threats were made' he said he prepared a presentation for the department of health about problems with hitting targets but was ordered to remove any reference to him calling for a capacity review he said: 'if you upset the sha, particularly the one i was working for, there would be repercussions for you you work in that environment as best you can target chasing: mr walker flagged up capacity problems but said he was told: 'this is your problem you need to meet the targets whatever the demand' 'i spoke with other (hospital) chief executives and many of them, but not all, concurred with my view of the health authority that they were only ever interested if you’re going to suggest there is a problem anywhere, and they are very heavy handed with how that problem is going to be resolved, so threats are made, people are told, 'you realise the consequences if this doesn’t get done?' 'this isn’t proper management, this is just sheer bullying' the former chairman of the trust, david bowles, added that there is a culture in the health service of 'making things look good rather than being good' mr bowles, who also resigned in 2009, said the sha deliberately hid financial troubles at the trust from senior department of health officials he said: 'for whatever reason, the way the accounting system was running, (some) deficits were effectively doubled for a while because of strange quirks in the accounting system hidden: david bowles, former chairman of the united lincolnshire hospitals nhs trust, says financial problems in the trust were concealed 'the government realised it, decided to put it right, issued a press release saying: 'these are the trusts that are affected, we are going to adjust their accounts by these amounts' 'ulht should have been on that schedule and should have received compensation from the government circa £11 million we were not on that schedule 'when i raised it with my director of finance, i was told we were not on that schedule because this trust is not to receive a cash adjustment because the sha did not wish to identify any trusts in the east midlands as being financially challenged 'the very clear implication of that is that the financial distress in ulht was being deliberately concealed from the centre to make the sha look good 'it is a sign of that culture of not owning up to problems, not being transparent the trust is one of 14 being investigated by health chiefs over high mortality rates in the wake of the public inquiry report into serious failures at mid staffordshire nhs foundation trust mr bowles told the health select committee: 'if you read the mid staffs report it says things like 'bullying, target driven priorities, denial' and it goes on and says this was not only in mid staffordshire they collected evidence that it existed elsewhere and i can assure you it existed in this part of the health economy 'there is this deeply ingrained culture of making things look good rather than things actually being good' he said that the trust was at 'tipping point' but was told once again to 'meet targets regardless of demand' he added: 'i was in our situation rooms where staff were desperate for the next bed for an emergency patient and i’m being told, 'treat your non urgent patients' 'i found that absolutely scandalous' mr bowles told mps that staff were frightened to raise concerns about bullying for fear they might lose their jobs, adding: 'if you look at gary now, he blew the whistle, he has applied for 50 or 60 jobs and not got even one interview 'that is the culture you are dealing with here' nhs boss sir david nicholson has refused to step down following the stafford hospital scandal mr bowles said the culture of bullying and fear in the nhs can only change if there are changes to the leadership he said: 'there is too much evidence emerging that this was not just mid staffordshire and you have to look at who sets the overarching culture and that is set by sir david nicholson and i have to say that it is deeply ingrained 'i do not think you can change the culture of the nhs without changing its leaders' mr walker asked what under fire nhs boss sir david has done in the last six years to promote whistle blowing in the health service mr walker also claimed that dame barbara hakin, the former chief executive of the east midlands strategic health authority, authorised his pay off to protect herself 'as far as i can see, it is much, much worse now than it has ever been,' he said mr walker also claimed that dame barbara hakin, the former chief executive of the east midlands sha who is now the interim deputy chief of nhs commissioning board, authorised his pay off to protect herself, a claim she denies he said: 'if it is the case that barbara hakin is responsible for that payment that is a very serious charge, potentially of misconduct, on the basis that you can’t use public money to silence matters of your own misconduct' he added: 'this use of public money to cover up individual failings is a major problem' a spokesman for the east midlands sha, now part of nhs midlands and east, said: 'nhs midlands and east, as the successor body for nhs east midlands, has today presented evidence to the house of commons health select committee (hsc) on behalf of nhs east midlands, which challenges the claim by gary walker, the former chief executive of united lincolnshire hospitals nhs trust, that he raised patient safety concerns as a whistleblower 'the material makes it clear that it was nhs east midlands, the strategic health authority (now part of nhs midlands and east), which was concerned about patient safety at the trust 'the evidence presented to the hsc makes it clear that there has never been any finding that gary walker had raised genuine concerns that would constitute his designation as a whistleblower 'now that the compromise agreement between mr walker and his employers, which referred to his employment status and his dismissal, has been set aside the sha is in a position to put its view of events into the public domain which it has not been able to do before' | gary walker lincolnshire | gary walker, a former lincolnshire health chief, says bullying is rife . he says those who raise fears over services are threatened to meet targets . the former chairman of the trust also says financial irregularities are hidden |
by nick enoch published: 12:51 est, 27 december 2013 | updated: 12:51 est, 27 december 2013 a video of a naked man riding his motorbike through the streets of germany in broad daylight has become the latest internet sensation the footage starts innocently enough with a close up of a sleek black r6 bike so far, so good but then the camera pans across to the rider as a 'baller boyz' sticker is put on his bare chest baller boyz then proceeds to take off his boxer shorts, leaving him stark naked apart from his boots, gloves and helmet scroll down for video at least he's got a helmet: naked biker baller boyz is seen here roaring through munster city centre in north rhine westphalia, germany baller boyz apparently carried out the stunt as a result of a facebook bet, in which he claimed he'd do it if a picture he posted on the networking site got 1,000 'likes' as if he didn't get enough attention already, baller boyz even stopped to rev the engine very loudly and created smoke by 'burning rubber' he may have no shame but he's clearly a stickler for 'elf and safety and finally he's off streaking through munster, north rhine westphalia, on his trusty steed as shocked christmas shoppers look on birgit weusthoff schulze was one of many people in the upmarket city centre who could not fail to notice the unusual spectacle 'it was not unappetising to watch,' she told the newspaper, westfã¤lische nachrichten and she is not alone since it was uploaded on december 15, the footage has had nearly 200,000 hits as if he didn't get enough attention already, baller boyz even stopped to rev the engine very loudly and created smoke by 'burning rubber' since it was uploaded on december 15, the footage has had nearly 200,000 hits at the start of the video, the mystery rider is seen taking off his boxer shorts after mounting his powerful r6, he prepares to hit the streets the mystery rider's cheeky journey seemed to be the result of a facebook bet he had put a photo on the social networking site, saying he would ride naked through munster's christmas market if the picture got 1,000 'likes' however, not everyone was impressed by his antics, and the police are now investigating the incident 'we think it was a petty offence,' police spokesman andreas bode told thelocalde bode added that although baller boyz's real identity could be difficult to establish, as he kept the helmet visor down throughout, the police 'would be looking into it regardless' how it all began completed relaxed, he patiently waits to make his grand entrance | baller boyz' rode munster germany | 'baller boyz' nude bike ride is internet smash, with nearly 200,000 hits . rode along streets of munster, germany, in broad daylight . he is now under investigation by police for 'petty offence' |
published: 05:59 est, 17 march 2013 | updated: 03:38 est, 18 march 2013 a british father plunged to his death in the alps while desperately searching for his 12 year old son who had been killed in a fall minutes earlier police believe peter saunders, who had been hiking with his son charlie in the snow on mont blanc, was on the phone to emergency services asking for help when he lost his footing the 48 year old managed to tell rescuers his son had fallen out of sight down a couloir – a deep gully – but communication was cut off before he could give the location an attempt to speak to him again is understood to have left rescuers able to hear only his footsteps and laboured breathing as he trudged through the snow in a frantic state on saturday peter (left) and charlie (right) saunders were involved in a tragic accident whilst walking in the french alps exclusive picture: the helicopter rescue of peter and charlie saunders who died whilst walking in chamonix on saturday afternoon the pictures show one of the victims being winched with a rescuer aboard the rescue helicopter with the glacier des bossons as a backdrop the bodies of the father and son were found after a photo taken of them earlier in the day was used to locate them earlier this month no fewer than 10 people including mountaineers and off piste skiers died in the mont blanc area tragedy: they plunged down a mountain at chamonix mont blanc they kept calling back but went straight to answerphone – and it is believed that by then he had plunged into the same gully as charlie interpol were later able to contact mr saunders’s wife sandra in buckingham, buckinghamshire, and, using a photograph her husband and son had sent her from the mountain earlier in the day, pinpoint their whereabouts their bodies were found at 740am yesterday, more than 16 hours after mr saunders’s call, during the fourth aerial search charlie had fallen about 980ft his father was discovered about 150ft above him they were at an altitude of 5,000ft on the 15,781ft mountain the area where the tragedy happened has a number of footpaths which weave in and out of the mountainside richard mansfield, a british mountain guide who has worked in the area for 20 years and lives 1km from the bossons glacier, said trails on the north side of the valley were currently 'covered in snow' he said: 'the footpaths usually don't get that many people out at this time of year because they are much more difficult to navigate, although yesterday was a beautiful sunny day' police said the pair were wearing normal walking boots on a route rarely dared in winter where crampons and proper climbing gear are essential captain patrice ribes of the mountain police said yesterday in the french ski resort of chamonix: ‘we think the man fell while he was on the phone to the police we think he called immediately after his son had fallen and that he fell very shortly after it all happened very quickly’ a foreign office spokesman said it was providing consular assistance to the family ‘at this difficult time’ a statement from the family issued by the foreign office last night said: ‘peter and charlie saunders were involved in a tragic accident whilst walking in the french alps the tragic pair died in the popular skiing destination of chamonix in the french alps ‘they had flown to the french alps for a short weekend of adventure in the chamonix valley they were to have a half day walking followed by a full day skiing their bodies were recovered by the local mountain rescue this morning ‘charlie was always full of life, had a really happy temperament and loved spending time with his father peter was fantastic at making things happen, resourceful, with a positive approach to life they will both be sorely missed by friends and family alike’ the pair had arrived in the chamonix valley on saturday morning and were booked into the two star hotel les melezes in the nearby town of les houches according to police the area they had chosen to hike, called la jonction, at les bossons is a popular summer route rather than suitable for winter or early spring there are steep escarpments and the path is often covered with snow and ice at this time of the year captain ribes said: ‘it is a dangerous, deep, snowy hike it is not a route that is chosen much at this time of the year, especially without snowshoes in the winter you cannot see the path, it is hidden by snow ‘the accident is being investigated and it will determine the circumstances of the accident, as well as the level of preparation of the hiker and his experience the father and son should have had proper mountain equipment – crampons and climbing gear’ it was just before 3pm on saturday when the emergency centre in annecy received the frantic call from mr saunders the father and son are thought to have reached a high altitude by taking the chair lift from bossons village to the approaches of the bossons glacier, at 1400m from there, they are thought to have set off on the well known la jonction (junction) hike, which is hugely popular with tourists, especially in the summer months la jonction is a rocky spur from which hikers can look out towards the bossons and taconnaz glaciers it was is on the route taken by the frenchmen who first ascended mont blanc in 1786 the slopes around mont blanc, the highest peak in western europe, are notoriously dangerous, with scores of mountaineers, skiers and hikers dying on them every year not only is the fabled ‘white mountain’ 15,780 feet high, but the climbs around it are some of the most technically difficult in the world despite this, it is often mistakenly claimed that people can enjoy an easy stroll up the slopeshundreds set off on paths every day without ice axes or crampons, let alone other basic equipment like extra food supplies and tents many of the 20,000 plus people who attempt to reach the summit each year are inexperienced or completely novice climbers earlier this month no fewer than 10 people – including mountaineers and off piste skiers – died in the mont blanc area francis bianchi, the sub prefect of bonneville, said: ‘the man spoke in english and said he was in les bossons in the commune of les houches and that his son had fallen he did not say anything else ‘the call was immediately transferred to the mountain police in chamonix they repeatedly asked him questions they could hear him and he was panicked ‘he did not reply to their questions and then it cut off it was dramatic they kept trying to call him back but it went straight through to the answerphone’ meanwhile police had already alerted the helicopter rescue, but the area is vast three sweeps were carried out, including with infrared cameras after dark on saturday evening mrs saunders was contacted and her help was used to direct a fourth helicopter search yesterday morning, despite high winds it was then the bodies were spotted mr bianchi said: ‘they were found 50metres apart they had fallen down the very steep couloir des pyramides over rocks and on to the glacier below’ eric fournier, the mayor of chamonix, said it was vital to take full precautions when venturing on to the mountain his assistant jean louis verdier, a keen mountaineer, said of the route taken by mr saunders and his son: ‘i have turned back in springtime before it is icy it is not a winter hike’ on average around 100 people a year die in similar tragedies in the mont blanc area last july, three britons were among nine mountaineers swept to their deaths by an avalanche on mont maudit in the mont blanc range | peter charlie saunders chamonix valley spring | peter and charlie saunders died at 'the junction' in chamonix valley . pair had set off on hike without specialist equipment like crampons . spring thaw of snow and ice creates potentially lethal conditions |
by joshua gardner published: 11:50 est, 17 march 2013 | updated: 12:02 est, 17 march 2013 a convicted mob hit man who led a boy scout troop while still a killer says he’s living for god now and volunteers his time driving a church bus in suburban midwest town john veasey was once a feared killer in the philadelphia mob who survived getting shot to the head three times, aligned with sicilian crime boss john stanfa now, veasey says he attends church and has tried to atone for his dirty deeds he worships regularly, he says, and even helps out his church by volunteering to drive their church school bus new leaf: former philly mob hit man john veasey says he's a born again christian and even volunteers to drive his church school bus ironically, this isn’t the first time veasey has volunteered his time believe it or not, while still murdering for the mob, veasey was a boy scout troop leader he was asked in an upcoming 60 minutes interview about his double life ‘those kids didn’t know i was a hit man,’ he smirks, ‘and a lot of parents were mad but their kids had fun when i took them camping’ darker days: veasey was once a feared killer who eventually helped take down philly's biggest crime boss, john stanfa high price: for ratting out his boss, veasey's former crime family gunned down his brother billy veasey pulled off other hits, but his first—made in broad daylight—would be his most famous and perhaps the most sensationalized in philadelphia mob history in the interview, scheduled to air sunday, he describes how it felt as he sat waiting, prepared to kill two men on a tree lined sunny street like ‘i was going to work,’ veasey shrugs, ‘and part of my work that day was to kill somebody’ that somebody ended up being rival mobster mikey ‘chang’ ciancaglini, who died on the sidewalk that day in august 1993 the other man veasey was hired to kill, rival mob boss joey merlino, survived the murder and attempted murder became part of a trial that ultimately took down veasey’s boss—with veasey’s testimony against his old boss as a linchpin in the federal case against the mobster veasey’s decision to turn against stanfa would cost him his former associates attempted to kill him, but he survived three shots to the head then, on the very day veasey was scheduled to rat out stanfa, veasey’s brother billy was gunned down on his way to work in what police called an intimidation tactic performed to keep veasey off the stand betrayed?: philly mob boss john stanfa, at center in 1980 photo, was handed 5 consecutive life sentences thanks in large part to veasey's testimony quiet life?: a philadelphia woman claims veasey has threatened her and her and her husband, who happens to be the man acquitted of veasey's brother's murder veasey testified, anyway, and stanfa was eventually handed five consecutive life sentences after serving 10 years for murders to which he confessed in court, veasey was placed in the witness protection program and began an unlikely life of repentance he became something of an enigma in an unnamed midwestern suburb where he’s made a successful living selling luxury cars but as the 60 minutes interview proves, the former mobster hasn’t lost his signature swagger the report, however, questions veasey’s self described new lease on life kathy ciancaglini of philadelphia, whose husband john was acquitted of billy veasey’s murder, claims veasey has left her and her husband threatening voicemails | john veasey philly veasey boy scout | john veasey says he's seen the light and has no intentions of returning to his philly mob past . even as a hit man, veasey led a boy scout troop and says his kids had no idea he was a killer and loved it when he took them camping |
by lucy crossley published: 19:32 est, 17 march 2013 | updated: 19:33 est, 17 march 2013 frolicking in the sand this baby elephant is clearly giving the sun seeking tourists a run for their money as she plays on the beach of a thai island paradise amused holidaymakers caught the asian elephant calf pulling poses worthy of a swimwear model only without her trunks as she dried off in the sunshine after taking a dip in the indian ocean the young elephant, named lucky, had been enjoying a bath in the warm waters when she was captured on camera by british tourist john lindie, from glasgow sunseeker: this playful baby elephant was snapped frolicking on a thai beach by british holidaymaker john lindie a lucky shot: the asian elephant calf, named lucky, was playing on the beach on the island of phuket after enjoying a bath in the warm waters of the india ocean mr lindie, a marketing manager, had been staying on the island of phuket with his wife clare as the couple celebrated her 30th birthday he said: 'just beyond the hotel grounds was the beach leading into the indian ocean and lucky the name of the elephant in the picture was being taken down by her guardian to have an early morning swim 'she lived in a nearby nature sanctuary with her parents and the guardian told us that lucky's parents had been rescued from a known poachers area on mainland thailand and taken to their new safe location 'the pictures were actually very fortuitous, lucky and her parents lived in a nearby nature sanctuary and i happened to be up early one morning while lucky was being given her bath and i was 'lucky' enough to capture her as she dried off by frolicking in the sand, and she seemed so happy 'i had taken my camera to try and get some pictures of the storm as it came in and was very lucky to end up with some fantastic images of lucky who seemed oblivious to the storm that was brewing in the background' packing light: this young elephant had clearly forgotten to pack her trunks as she rolled around on the golden sand safe haven: lucky is cared for by a thai nature sanctuary after her parents were rescued from poachers | british john lindie lucky's phuket indian ocean calf | british tourist john lindie photographed lucky's poses in phuket . lucky played in the sand to dry off after bath in indian ocean . calf is cared for by nature sanctuary after parents rescued from poachers |
by david mccormack published: 18:51 est, 18 january 2013 | updated: 11:21 est, 22 january 2013 an emotional lance armstrong was close to tears when he spoke about the impact of his drug cheating on his family during the second part of his exclusive interview with oprah winfrey last night speaking about his 13 year old son luke, the oldest of his five children, armstrong said: ‘i saw my son defending me and saying, “that's not true what you're saying about my dad is not true,'' armstrong recalled ‘that's when i knew i had to tell him’ the disgraced cyclist battled to fight back tears as he talked about son luke armstrong told oprah that he believes he deserves to be given the opportunity to compete again critics said armstrong hadn't been contrite enough in the first half of the interview, but on friday night he seemed to lose his composure when winfrey zeroed in on the emotional drama involving his personal life ‘what did you say?’ winfrey asked ‘i said, 'listen, there's been a lot of questions about your dad my career whether i doped or did not dope i've always denied that and i've always been ruthless and defiant about that you guys have seen that that's probably why you trusted me on it' which makes it even sicker,’ armstrong said ‘and uh, i told luke, i said,’ and here armstrong paused for a long time to collect himself, ‘i said, 'don't defend me anymore don't'' 'if anyone says anything to you, do not defend me just say my dad said he was sorry' 'he said 'look, i love you, you're my dad, this won't change that' 'thank god he's more like kristin (armstrong's first wife and luke's mother)' armstrong also confirmed he has been undergoing therapy to deal with his demons armstrong seemed to lose his composure when winfrey zeroed in on the emotional drama involving his personal life four of lance armstrong's children stand next to his team bus in 2010, his two twin daughters isabelle and grace, luke (blue t shirt) and max (black t shirt) winfrey also drew armstrong out on his ex wife, kristin, whom he claimed knew just enough about both the doping and lying to ask him to stop he credited her with making him promise that his comeback in 2009 would be drug free 'she said to me, 'you can do it under one condition: that you never cross that line again,'' armstrong recalled 'the line of drugs?' winfrey asked 'yes and i said, 'you've got a deal,'' he replied 'and i never would have betrayed that with her' armstrong also told oprah that he believes he should be given the opportunity to compete again, saying: 'i deserve to be punished i'm not sure that i deserve a death penalty' armstrong was competing in triathlons, mountain bike events and marathons before he was sanctioned and believes he deserves that opportunity in the future, suggesting a life ban is not right he told oprah winfrey in the second part of their television interview: 'i can't lie to you i'd love the opportunity to be able to compete, but that isn't the reason that i'm doing this 'frankly, this might not be the most popular answer, but i think i deserve it (to be able to compete again)' armstrong said his lowest moment was having to cut ties with his charity which he described as like a 'sixth child' to him lance armstrong, pictured in 2005 with three of his children, was most emotional when he talked about the impact of his actions on them armstrong's infamous tweet photo, he admitted that he thought it had been a good idea at the time in hindsight armstrong says he wishes he had co operated with the united states anti doping agency investigation which proved his downfall co operation could have meant a lesser penalty armstrong's long time sponsors including nike and anheuser busch deserted him in quick succession following the publication of the usada report, something he described as a '$75 million dollar day' the oprah winfrey network insisted armstrong did not receive a fee for the interview and was not offered one yet money is a concern after his sponsors departed his admission has exposed him to numerous lawsuits, too 'i've lost all future income,' he said 'i don't like thinking about it, but that was a $75 million day gone and probably never coming back' however he said his most challenging moment was when his own lance armstrong foundation, the charity known now as livestrong, distanced itself from him 'the foundation is like my sixth child and to make that decision, and to step aside, was big,' said armstrong, who expressed his wish the charity can thrive without being associated with him 'i wouldn't at all say [i was] forced out, told to leave i was aware of the pressure 'it was the best thing for our organization, but it hurt like hell that was the lowest [moment]' asked if he feels disgraced, armstrong said: 'of course, but i also feel humbled i feel ashamed this is ugly stuff' armstrong admitted he felt disgraced, humbled and ashamed by his actions armstrong ended the interview by admitting he had betrayed the people who 'supported me and believed in me' winfrey also quizzed him about the photo he tweeted last november in which he was surrounded by his seven tainted tour de france winning yellow jerseys the infamous photo was tweeted by armstrong, along with the message: 'back in austin and just layin' around' not long after he was stripped off his seven titles by us anti doping agency (usada) for using performance enhancing drugs ‘was it just you being your cocky arrogant self?’ asked oprah armstrong admitted that it had been an act of defiance 'and you know what's scary i actually thought it was a good idea at the time' armstrong also denied claims he attempted to make a payment to usada he said: 'i had no knowledge of that, but i've asked around i think the claim was 250,000 dollars that's a lot of money i would know that is not true' armstrong says he returned to cycling in 2009 and 2010 having agreed not to use performance enhancing drugs again, yet evidence in the usada report points to the contrary he maintains the last time he doped was during his 2005 tour de france win winfrey asked armstrong 'did anyone know the whole truth?' he replied 'yeah,' but there was no follow up to ascertain who so was there a moral to his story? 'i can look at what i did,' he said 'cheating to win bike races, lying about it, bullying people of course, you're not supposed to do those things that's what we teach our children' armstrong paused to compose himself before a final mea culpa 'i just think it was about the ride and losing myself, getting caught up in that, and doing all those things along the way that enabled that,' he said 'the ultimate crime is, uh, is the betrayal of those people that supported me and believed in me 'they got lied to' thursday night's interview had been the first time that armstrong had publicly confessed to doping sheryl knew: the singer was previously silent over former fiance's doping scandal one question that wasn't answered is how much former fiancée sheryl crow knew about armstrong's use of performance enhancing drugs? crow, 50, started dating armstrong in 2003, before getting engaged in 2005 and splitting the following year the american singer was with armstrong, 41, during the time that he won two of his tour de france victories in september last year crow told katie couric how she found it difficult watching her former fiance stripped of his titles she said: 'i felt bad i felt bad for him, i felt bad for his family and i kinda felt like the rest of america he is a hero that we watched and looked up to and admired' crow is yet to pass comment on lance's admissions on national television the new york daily news reported that she was interviewed by federal agents in late 2011, before he was stripped of his titles for using and distributing performance enhancing drugs the following year meanwhile the wall street journal spoke to two separate sources who claimed crow knew a lot about the doping scandal support: armstrong, seen here at the 2005 tour de france with crow and his three children from his first marriage | armstrong oprah $75 million dollar kristin sheryl crow said | with tears welling up in his eyes, armstrong spoke about telling his young son not to defend him anymore at school . he also told oprah that he deserves another opportunity to compete . 'i deserve to be punished i'm not sure that i deserve a death penalty'. described his sponsors dropping him as 'a $75 million dollar day'. lowest moment was being forced to cut ties with his livestrong charity . armstrong indicated that his ex wife kristin knew about his doping, but no mention was made of ex fiancée sheryl crow . said he regretted posting twitter picture of him with his seven yellow jerseys . also confirmed he has been undergoing therapy to deal with his demons |
by suzannah hills anthony dunne, 19, had been having an affair with mother of two anita setz, 43, pictured, who was his counsellor at a young offenders institution a teenage inmate hanged himself after having an affair with a 43 year old mother volunteering as a prison counsellor, an inquest has heard anthony dunne, 19, began sleeping with the mother of two just weeks after he was released on licence from a young offenders institution but the relationship spiralled out of control when dunne returned late to his probation hostel fearing he would be jailed again, dunne who had a psychiatric disorder fled and lived with anita setz but after three weeks, he ran out of his anti psychotic medication and attacked ms setz who was forced to jump out of an upstairs window to escape him ms setz was rushed to hospital where she underwent surgery for more than five hours to treat her injuries while dunne was arrested an inquest heard dunne was taken to rochester young offenders' institution, kent, where he took his own life despite being on hourly suicide watch ms setz told the inquest in maidstone, kent, she met dunne when he was serving a sentence for actual bodily harm and gave him counselling on behalf of a charity called starting point ms setz, who is divorced and has two sons then aged 13 and 15, said dunne begged for her phone number at the end of their counselling sessions she said: 'i think at the time i was actually quite flattered by his advances he was really humorous, he made me cry with laughter' ms setz started visiting dunne near his probation hostel in basildon, essex, every fortnight she said: 'he was attracted to me, he made it clear' the first time she brought dunne to her village home near tunbridge wells, kent, he was friendly and got on well with her children at the end of august 2004, she dropped him back 40 minutes after curfew to the hostel he fled, paranoid he would be sent back to jail she said: 'i said 'i will come back and get you but only if you will agree that you will get in touch with your probation officer tomorrow'' but the next day was a bank holiday and by tuesday he was convinced he would be imprisoned ms setz said: 'i didn't contact anyone because i thought number one, the repercussions for him, and number two, the repercussions for me' hearing: the inquest at archbishops palace, maidstone, comes nine years after dunne's death and is ongoing she said he was happy at first, but dunne gradually became more paranoid she said: 'he was growing really suspicious about what i was doing, where i was and whether i was likely to call the police' the couple had been living together for three weeks when dunne starting drinking heavily on a night out at the cinema to see collateral damage on september 20, 2004 ms setz's friend was looking after her two boys and dunne attacked ms setz when she tried to leave to join them eventually she distracted him and jumped from her bedroom window, still in high heels, to escape nick brown, counsel for dunne's family, told her: 'you knew, didn't you, that you had to maintain professional boundaries?' she admitted she had been in the wrong, but said: 'it isn't uncommon for counsellors or clinicians to develop strong emotional ties and feelings for the clients and vice versa 'that 19 year old was dangerous, he was courageous, forthright, opinionated he was not just a naive innocent 19 year old lad' ms setz tried giving counselling again after the incident but soon gave it up, she told the jury she is now working as a self employed horse box driver and a valeter of mobile homes, with no intention ever to return to counselling colleagues had been raising concerns about her lack of boundaries with clients for about a year, the inquest heard after the affair she was banned from entering rochester young offenders' institution meanwhile, public officials have been criticised for taking nine years to hold the inquest it is believed the delay was due to the complex nature of the case combined with a severe backlog among kent's coroners in 2011 inspectors said it was 'unacceptable' that the inquest into dunne's death had still not been held the inquest continues sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article | misdidived unreiterating freighted | no related information |
by jill reilly police are searching a landfill site for a £22million painting that had just sold at auction in hong kong when cleaners accidentally threw it away the 2012 painting snowy mountain, by chinese artist cui ruzhuo, was reported missing by auctioneers poly auction on tuesday afternoon after the auction on monday ming pao newspaper reported that police had checked cctv footage at the grand hyatt hotel, where the auction took place, which showed cleaners removing the painting police are searching a landfill site for a £22million painting that had just sold at auction after hong kong cleaners accidentally threw it away the 2012 painting snowy mountain, by chinese artist, pictured, cui ruzhuo, was reported missing by chinese auctioneers poly auction on tuesday afternoon after the auction on monday that raised fears that the painting had been sent out with the garbage to the city's landfill police told afp a theft case was reported on tuesday by an auction house staff member regarding a painting, without giving further details a grant hyatt spokeswoman would not confirm if the painting had been dumped as trash but said hotel staff did not handle items sold at the auction because they were too expensive she said in an emailed statement to afp that organisers would hire their own security and contractors for such events involving 'high value' items a grant hyatt (pictured) spokeswoman would not confirm if the painting had been dumped as rubbish but said hotel staff did not handle items sold at the auction because they were too expensive poly culture did not comment immediately when contacted by afp the spring sale was the first major auction organised by poly culture in hong kong following its stock debut in march poly culture group, the world's third largest auction house by revenue behind sotheby's and christie's, is a subsidiary of state run conglomerate poly group on tuesday, a rare ming dynasty 'chicken cup' broke world auction records for chinese porcelain after it sold for hk$2812 million ($363 million/£216 million) at a sotheby's sale in hong kong, exceeding the $324 million paid for a qing double gourd vase in 2010 | snowy mountain chinese cui ruzhuo cctv grand hyatt | the 2012 painting snowy mountain was by chinese artist cui ruzhuo . it was reported missing by chinese auctioneers on tuesday afternoon . police have checked cctv footage at the grand hyatt hotel |
by william turvill published: 07:15 est, 6 december 2013 | updated: 08:02 est, 6 december 2013 saxon axe, 20, used suntan lotion and a lit cigarette to set fire to his friend's right leg as a prank a man has been jailed after setting fire to his friend’s leg using suntan lotion and a lit cigarette saxon axe, 20, was on a beach in weymouth, dorset, with a group of friends when he picked up an aerosol can and sprayed it on his friend he then held a lit cigarette to his friend's leg which was covered in the flammable liquid and immediately went up in flames axe tried to put out the fire by carrying the victim towards the sea and dousing the flames with water however, the victim had to be taken to hospital where he was treated for serious burns and is now awaiting a skin graft operation to avoid permanent disfigurement axe pleaded guilty to a charge of grievous bodily harm and was given a ten month prison sentence heather shimmen, prosecuting at dorchester crown court, said that the incident took place on june 19 on weymouth seafront she said: ‘the defendant held a lit cigarette to the victim’s leg and it engulfed his leg in flames ‘the victim tried to extinguish the flames as did a friend, but to no avail’ john dyer, defending, said the offence was an act of foolishness he said the victim was a friend of axe’s for several years and that his client was ‘full of remorse’ for his behaviour the incident took place on june 19 on weymouth seafront in dorset mr dyer said: ‘there is no malice and no motive, it was just an absolute foolish prank that went wrong ‘it was a completely thoughtless act which has resulted in very serious consequences’ in jailing axe, judge roger jarvis said: ‘you were fooling around and then as part of that you sprayed this victim with suntan lotion and set fire to it ‘it is patently obvious that was a foolish and dangerous thing to do and wickedly thoughtless so far as you are concerned with some very serious consequences for your victim’ | foredestined glassite hypoalkalinity | no related information |
by deni kirkova published: 07:47 est, 15 october 2013 | updated: 06:33 est, 16 october 2013 it is a time for growth and rejuvenation, a state of semi consciousness where we dream, imagine and put demons to rest we spend a third of our lives asleep yet remember very little about it one photographer, fascinated by our nocturnal behaviour, made it his life's work to capture the way we slumber through a time lapse photo series ted spagna from new york passed away in 1989 at the age of 45 he took photographs of children, couples, singletons and groups moving, stretching and cuddling in bed alexis 1981: new york's ted spagna took photographs of children, couples, singletons and groups moving, stretching and cuddling in the night his beautiful work is now released in a new book entitled sleep, featuring all the 70 chronological grids of his various subjects the intriguing coffee table book is a voyeuristic journey through spagna's human sleep portraiture work spagna was an influential teacher, filmmaker, and photographer who discovered and pioneered the art of sleep portraiture from 1975 to 1989 his sleeping subjects included people ranging in age from newborns to 92 year olds and a wide variety of animals in captivity his voyeuristic venture into 'inner space' exposes the secrets of human sleep behaviour using time lapse camera 'i was surprised to see another self that existed in sleep that i didn’t know about,' he told the new york times from the erotic to the domestic, men and women alone to tender intertwined couples, all are psychologically often literally naked presented in brilliantly coloured exposures, these sensual, cinematic images of dressed or undressed sleeping subjects depict the unique nature of our natural behaviour rob and patty circa 1985: spagna is devoted to documenting the sleeping habits of others the significance in his work lies in both its aesthetic and scientific implications until spagna came along, sleep researchers never had this kind of visual information about their subjects taken at fixed intervals throughout the night using a bird's eye view, and displayed in chronological order, the series of images look almost like a silent film the book includes editorial contributions from the renowned photographer mary ellen mark, as well as dr allan hobson, notable psychiatrist and dream researcher billy & anita (detail) 1980: these sensual, cinematic images of dressed or undressed sleeping subjects depict natural behaviour 'it's fabulous that sleep has been published you don't see a lot of great work anymore and spagna's work is fantastic! it deserves to be seen and i'm thrilled that his work has new life many have been inspired by this work and, thanks to these projects, many more will be,' says mary ellen mark 'ted spagna's photographs have done more than any other medium to make sleep science visible, and hence, directly understandable to the general public,' says dr hobson images courtesy of george eastman house and © 2013 the ted spagna project vincent circa 1985: spagna's beautiful work is now released in a new book entitled sleep, featuring all the chronological grids of his various subjects the prokops circa 1977: from the 1970s until his death in 1989, spagna snapped subjects asleep ann circa 1980: from the erotic to the domestic, adults and children are all psychologically and often literally naked chick circa 1980: spagna captures the magical time of sleep through the time lapse photo series dan 1978: the semi conscious time for growth and rejuvination, a state of semi consciousness where we dream, imagine and put demons to rest jane 1977: echoing the work of eadweard muybridge, this unprecedented book is sure to delight art and photography lovers | new york's ted spagna 1989 the age of 45 | new york's ted spagna, who passed away in 1989 at the age of 45, took photographs of people asleep . subjects range from singletons, children, couples and groups, stretching, moving and cuddling in bed . his work is now released in a new book entitled sleep, featuring all the chronological grids of his various subject |
by chris parsons updated: 11:11 est, 9 january 2012 unique: the 100m tall barcelona rock allows brave customers to sleep under the stars on the edge of rock ledges travellers staying in barcelona come from across the world to see the catalan city's stunning architecture, but many will never have seen a hotel as outlandish as this polish architects who dreamt up the barcelona rock a 100m hostel made especially for climbers say guests can get their night's sleep perched perilously on a rock ledge overlooking the spanish city it may be something of a health and safety nightmare and is certainly not what most would consider hotel comfort but thankfully those intrepid enough to sleep under the stars 100m from the ground are harnessed to the rock ledge to prevent them rolling off in their sleep the unusual concept hostel created by ugo was made for the barcelona 2011 bohemian hostel for backpackers international competition competition rules asked designers to create a 100 metre tall tower hostel that includes relaxation areas, stores, cafe and at the same time created a new city landmark polish firm ugo now hope the barcelona rock will become a 'unique place' in the spanish city the proposed building will have fifty rooms, cinema, spa, cafe,pool, gym, bar, shops, and climbing walls for beginners naturally, the architects planned the hostel so that those using the swimming pool can jump from the rock into the water the unique exterior would be made of rocks so advanced rock climbers can spend the night out using special equipment the elevation is made of stone blocks, each four meters high, mounted on stilts of reinforced concrete these blocks are fixed some distance from each other to ensure air penetrates the building the advantage of using stone in this climate is that it radiates heat at night and cools the air during the day ugo boss hugon kowalski said: 'barcelona rock hostel is supposed to be a unique place it is supposed to become a new symbol of barcelona rooms with a view: brave climbers who reach the summit of barcelona rock would be treated to glorious panoramic views across the catalan city 'in search for inspiration we were trying to find something common for the city's architectural marks such as sagrada familia, torre agbar or the nearby museum of modern art 'we found it in montserrat in a mountain range near barcelona, the highest elevation in catalonia, you can see it from barcelona 'the stone from that mountain range was used for the buildings of the old city' he said the idea was to make the building look like part of a mountain 'the stone elevation would also be planted with greenery and provide shelter to birds all mod cons: as well as various hotel luxuries inside, the proposed rock wall harnesses customers to the ledge to prevent them falling off in their sleep stunning: the polish firm behind barcelona rock describe the plans for the their building as a 'unique place' in barcelona it's hoped the structure would become a natural feature of historic importance in the centre of the metropolis he added: 'there's a swimming pool, spa, gym, cinema, pub, shops and climbing walls for beginners 'the outer elevation of the hotel forms climbing walls for more advanced climbers, who can spend the night there using special equipment 'we hope the hostel will become a symbol of the city as ayers rock is for australia' | barcelona rock polish 100m | customers at barcelona rock harnessed to stop them falling in their sleep . polish firm design 'unique' 100m tall rock hostel . building would also include a cinema, bar, gym, and shops |
by daily mail reporter published: 21:11 est, 3 november 2013 | updated: 21:17 est, 3 november 2013 an arizona man was faced with a nightmare of a hospital bill after slipping and hitting his head in his bathroom scott richardson had just stepped out of the shower on valentine’s day, and didn't wake up until almost two weeks later when he was faced with a $150,000 hospital bill the 65 year old lawyer from scottsdale smacked his head on the bathroom floor and was taken to the mayo clinic hospital close to his house nothing to drink to: scott richardson, 65, was faced with a bill for $150,000 after spending two weeks in a hospital that wasn't covered by his health insurance his wife holly, right, had been assured by hospital staff that all bills would be paid for he was diagnosed with a bleeding ulcer that led to anemia, which caused him to pass out 12 days after being admitted he was transferred to another hospital in the area before beginning a program of rehabilitation not giving up: mr richardson tried to negotiate with his insurer, blue cross, but was told he would have to settle his bill with the mayo clinic directly the surprise bill came about because the mayo clinic was not in his insurer’s network from the second he was in the ambulance to the emergency room and the intensive care unit, the clock was ticking and charges were racking up ‘this is not anything anyone would want to go through it might have been easier if you did not have insurance,’ mr richardson said in an interview with azcentral last week ‘i don’t remember mayo i was in the icu for almost two weeks’ his wife, holly, was at his bedside throughout his recover and was told not to worry about the medical costs professionals assured her that even though the hospital was out of network, they were protected under a federal law called the emergency medical treatment and labor act (emtala) the law was passed in 1986 to prevent hospitals from refusing to treat patients without insurance, but it doesn’t force insurers to cover costs, including when patients are admitted to hospitals without their consent or knowledgealthough mr richardson’s insurer, blue cross blue shield of arizona, paid for most of the bills and gave him reimbursement checks for $30,000, he still faced a balance of $120,000 that he was told to settle directly with the mayo clinic the clinic offered to reduce the bill by 20 per cent and organise a payment plan for him it would have left him paying around $94,000 ‘when an individual comes to mayo clinic in a medical emergency, mayo provides all the necessary care to stabilize and treat patients, regardless of their insurance status,’ mayo spokeswoman lynn closway said in a statement ‘a patient’s health benefit plan is determined by their insurance and may provide limited coverage for out of network care mayo works with all patients to provide guidance and options regarding their insurance coverage’ desert surprise: mr richardson was taken the the mayo clinic because it was close to his house he never considered that he would not be covered by his insurance company or the federal emtala law that covers emergency surgery mr richardson said that paying off the bill in full would be financially devastating and it left a bitter taste after paying premiums for years a lawyer by trade, despite not knowing about emtala before going into hospital he looked into the law enough to know that he should have been covered upon calling blue cross to attempt to reason with the insurance company he said that it like talking to a brick wall with associates unable to explain what he was covered for under the plan most of the representatives he spoke with also had no idea about the federal law or whether it even applied in his case ‘seventy five percent of the people i talked to didn’t know what emtala was,’ he said ‘the number of people i talked to who didn’t even know how to spell emtala was scary’ blue cross officials defended their so called ignorance by pointing out the complex nature of health plans and the law surrounding them they maintain that it would be impossible for every customer service operator to know about every possible scenario ‘we understand these are difficult issues,’ said deanna salazar, senior vice president and general counsel of blue cross blue shield of arizona to az central ‘we go above and beyond to make sure our customers get what they expect from their plans’ power of the press: it was only after local media got involved that the mayo clinic decided to drop the charges however the hospital maintain hat such media pressure had nothing to do with it the newspaper and local phoenix television station got in touch after one of mr richardson’s children who works for the local television station put the case on the news suddenly, the charges vanished and his $118,000 bill was erased blue cross officials would not discuss the negotiation process nor reveal how the charges were resolved they would also not share the information with richardson, saying they do not discuss pricing, however they insist that it was nothing to do with the media’s involvement ‘just because patients get bills from a hospital doesn’t mean that’s what they should pay, salazar said ‘we can negotiate we did it on his behalf we negotiated so he would have no residual amount owed to mayo we view this as a very positive result’ mr richardson is overjoyed by the outcome but he is now worried was would happen to other people who would not have the same access to the media as him ‘‘what really troubles me, as someone familiar with this field, is what does the average person do?’ he pondered | scott richardson 20 per cent | after collapsing in his bathroom, scott richardson was stuck with an enormous bill his insurer wouldn't pay . after negotiations, hospital agreed to reduce bill by 20 per cent . reveals frustrations of dealing with federal law that insurers knew little about . case was not fully resolved until local media got involved |
by james nye published: 14:34 est, 13 august 2013 | updated: 16:49 est, 13 august 2013 apple will never hit the heights it did under steve jobs and is set for a grim and steady decline says the man who knew him best oracle ceo and america's third richest man, larry ellison told cbs news that without the guiding force of the mercurial jobs, apple will 'not be nearly so successful because he's gone' best friends for a quarter of a century with jobs, who passed away in october 2011, ellison, who is worth $43 billion, said that ultimately the apple chief was 'irreplaceable' candid: larry ellison made it plain that apple would struggle without steve jobs and he expected them to decline in an interview with cbs news labeling jobs as an 'incredible inventor' and 'our edison, our picasso', ellison, 68, said that despite the caliber of people still at the cupertino, california firm, the company is still likely to decline without its co founder 'i'm not shorting apple i like tim cook i think there are a lot of talented people therebut steve is irreplaceable,' said ellison to cbs news during the course of the wide ranging interview with charlie rose, ellison described his friends battle with cancer 'we'd always go for walks and the walks just kept getting shorter,' said ellison to cbs news 'until near the end we'd kind of walk around the block or maybe maybe four blocks, something like that 'and you just watched him getting weaker and this is the strongest guy i knew this was absolutely the strongest, most willful person i have ever met' visionary: larry ellison said that without steve jobs this generation's 'edison and picasso' apple would struggle to match the heights they hit under their co founder new relationship: laurene powell is now moving on with her life and is seeing former washington dc mayor adrian fenty struggles ahead: larry ellison said that current ceo tim cook is talented but unfortunately for him steve jobs was 'irreplaceable' an emotional ellison said that in the end 'the cancer wore him out' and after almost a decade battling the disease, jobs made the decision to end his regime of medication 'he was just tired of fighting, tired of the pain,' said ellison 'and he decided, shocked lorraine (his wife), shocked everybody that the medication was gonna stop 'he just pulled off the meds, i think on a saturday or a sunday and by the following wednesday he was gone' during the interview, ellison turned his attention to google ceo larry page, 'specifically' for what the oracle ceo believes was his decision to 'take our stuff' ellison's oracle is currently involved in a bitter legal fight with google over programming language for the android operating system 'we don't compete with google,' said ellison 'we don't do anything google does we just think they took our stuff and that was wrong 'that's a completely separate issuei think what they did was was absolutely evil 'larry makes the decision over there he runs that company and they decided, let me be very clear when you write a program for the android phone, you write it 'you use the oracle tool, oracle java tools, for everything and at the very end, you press a button and said, 'covert this to android format' google ceo larry page and his business practice was attacked by oracle ceo larry ellison in the interview with charlie rose on cbs news in light of his controversial comments, ellison clarified that he did not believe that larry page, known for his 'don't be evil' motto, 'slipped up this one time' and added that it was the actions and not page that were evil 'this really bothers me,' said ellison 'i don't know how he thinks you can just copy someone else's stuff it really bothers me' when asked about whistleblower edward snowden and his online security and government surveillance revelations, ellison said that these nsa programs were 'great' and 'essential' 'by the way, president obama thinks it's essential,' ellison said to cbs news 'it's essential if we want to minimize the kind of strikes that we just had in boston it's absolutely essential' indeed, ellison's comments on apple came just three weeks after the californian firm was overtaken by samsung to become the world's most profitable mobile phone company necessary: larry ellison endorsed the revelations made by nsa whistleblower edward snowden apple’s share of the smartphone market dropped to 14 per cent, its lowest for three years, because of ‘lackluster’ iphone 5 sales and tougher competition from rivals, according to industry analysts driven by demand for cheaper android devices in asia and latin america, samsung’s handset division made an estimated £34billion operating profit in the second quarter of this year the south korea based electronics giant, also the world’s biggest tv company, made 277 per cent of all phones sold during the quarter apple’s iphone was said to be ‘underperforming’ with an estimated operating profit of £3billion according to research firm strategy analytics in the past, while selling fewer phones, the more expensive iphone has kept apple’s profits ahead of competitors’ but with no new products to do battle with samsung’s latest, the galaxy s4, apple finally lost its crown neil shah, of strategy analytics, said: ‘with strong volumes, high wholesale prices and tight cost controls, samsung has finally succeeded in becoming the handset industry’s largest and most profitable vendor’ however, experts say apple could overtake samsung again when it launches its next iphone model | climaciaceae goodheartedness cryptocephala | no related information |
by joshua gardner published: 22:37 est, 4 june 2013 | updated: 23:22 est, 4 june 2013 the daughter of doctor who specializes in past life regression therapy believes she was healed of blinding cataracts by delving into her former existence as a man in the middle ages amy weiss, daughter of ‘miracles happen’ author dr brian weiss, never had any luck with her father’s unusual practice of helping patients learn about themselves by reliving their past existences but at 25, the social worker was diagnosed with an eye cataract condition that doctors said could lead to complete blindness scroll down for video smoldering eyes: amy weiss, daughter of past life regressionist dr brian weiss, says her cataracts were healed after she regressed to when she was a middle ages hermit whose eyes were burned by angry villagers ‘i remember thinking, “why would i lose my sight, why do i have the eyes of an old man?”’ she explained in an episode of ‘super soul sunday’ on oprah winfrey’s own network with the bad news weighing on her, weiss decided to give past life regression another try ‘i'll see if i can figure out the source of my cataracts,’ she recalls thinking as she attended one of her yale medical school educated father’s regression workshops at least, she thought, ‘maybe i'll have a good nap' but as soon as her father instructed her to think back to the source of her cataracts, weiss closed her eyes and says she was transported to another place and time scary diagnosis: amy, a social worker, was 25 when she was diagnosed with potentially blinded cataracts but past life regression had never worked for her retrospection: amy decided to attend one of her father's, right, workshops, hoping it would help her explore the source of her cataracts 'why do i have the eyes of an old man,' she wondered ‘immediately, i saw myself in the body of an old man with long white hair, living in the middle ages,’ she says she was living alone in the hut far from a village ‘basically a hermit,’ she says ‘but these townspeople thought i was a wizard and that i was doing evil’ weiss says she saw the villagers storm her hut and set fire to everything she owned ‘and the fire burned my eyes it blinded me,’ she says ‘i could feel his pain’ as she watched the atrocity play out before her, weiss says her father then initiated the workshop’s next step, telling them to fast forward to the end of their previous body’s life and ask what that life meant weiss’ eerie message was 'sadness clouds the eyes’ angry villagers: the regression worked and amy was transported to a hut like this one, where she lived as an old man hermit until angry villagers burned it, along with her eyes ‘for me,’ she says, ‘that had a double meaning, not just that i had been carrying the cataracts and the literal blindness from the past life, but i had been carrying that man's sadness in the present life too’ then, as if her past life regression weren’t miraculous enough, something truly astounding happened soon after the workshop, doctors told weiss that her cataracts, had healed amy’s father, dr weiss, told an equally amazing tale during his appearance on winfrey’s spirituality show, billed as an ‘eye opening and inspiring block of programming designed to help viewers awaken to their best selves and discover a deeper connection to the world around them’ on the show, dr weiss recalled a day in 1980 he was using hypnotherapy to treat a woman for anxiety and depression miracle: with her father's help, amy believes she was healed when her former self told her 'sadness clouds the eyes' and her cataracts soon disappeared the room became 'icy cold' as the patient began to channel messages from dr weiss’ deceased family members things she would not have known 'and she didn't know anything about me i didn't even have diplomas in my office 'so she's telling me your father's here and your sonit was before the internet, before you could google your doctor' the experience inspired dr weiss to pursue a career path in past life regression he now leads past life regression workshops and seminars and experiential workshops, and training sessions for professionals he is the best selling author of 'many lives, many masters' about past lives he also co authored ‘miracles happen’ with daughter amy, compilation of personal experiences of past life regression as sent to dr weiss by people who’ve attended his seminars two of a kind: amy's father dr brian weiss has written two books on past life regression, the most recent of which 'miracles happen,' he co wrote with amy | rhodeoretin unshortened knighthood | no related information |
by mia de graaf and ashley collman published: 16:06 est, 28 december 2013 | updated: 02:16 est, 29 december 2013 authorities say the man suspected of killing a police officer in a tupelo, mississippi bank robbery last monday has been killed trying to carry out another heist in arizona according to ajccom, the agency made the connection late sunday and announced that the bank robber subject of a nationwide search was shot and killed outside a phoenix bank yesterday his name was not released on exiting the bank the man encountered a police detective and shots were fired, cnn reported, it is not believed the detective was wounded the new and final development in the case came just hours after the fbi announced that the man was a serial bank thief and had attempted a robbery just hours before his fatal heist in mississippi twice in one day: the same man suspected of robbing a bancorp south bank in tupelo, mississippi is being tied to a bank robbery that happened just hours earlier in atlanta, georgia not scared: the man is filmed walking up to the teller to demand money but is ultimately unsuccessful in robbing the bank wanted man: police had a reward of $100,000 on the suspect, who is believed to now be dead surveillance footage showe the same suspect entering a bank of america branch in atlanta, armed with a semi automatic handgun and wearing a black ski mask in a wanted poster, the suspect was described as 5 foot 8 to 6 feet tall with a slender build police first started chasing the suspect on monday when he conducted a robbery at a bankcorpsouth branch two states away in tupelo, several hours after the atlanta incident when the man failed again to get money from the teller, he decided to rob a customer using an atm and that's when police intervened a bancorpsouth surveillance screen shot from monday of a man holding up the bank with a handgun cpl kevin gale stauffer, 38 and fellow officer joseph maher, 27, tried to stop the suspect and an accomplice as they were leaving in a grey sedan both officers were shot by one of the suspects, but cpl stauffer was killed officer maher was injured and taken to north mississippi medical center for treatment but was able to leave by friday killed and injured: cpl kevin gale stauffer (left) and fellow police officer joseph maher (right) were shot by the two suspects as they fled the tupelo bank in a car cpl stauffer died while officer maher was treated for non life threatening injuries cctv footage released to the public, showed one of the suspects in a convenience store wearing khaki trousers, white converse trainers, a long sleeved jacket and a blue ski mask a team of more than 100 law enforcement staff worked over christmas day and boxing day to trace the gang police previously released a surveillance image of another 'person of interest; wearing a hoodie at a convenience store just minutes before the tupelo robbery tupelo police chief bart aguirre spoke at the vigil, praising cpl stauffer, who worked for the department for eight years the fbi set a reward for information from $152,000 to $162,500 authorities have released a photograph of a man in a hoodie at a convenience store shortly before the robbery cpl stauffer, a 38 year old father of two, was laid to rest friday in a ceremony attended by policeman from accross the south on christmas day, a candlelit vigil was held in the town centre for mr stauffer, a combat veteran of the louisiana army national guard with whom he served a tour in iraq tupelo mayor jason shelton praised cpl stauffer, who 'made the ultimate sacrifice for his community' grieving wife beth stauffer told wtva tv: 'i have my moments but, i'm at peace with gale because i know he died doing something he loved 'the way he was at work as a leader is what he was like at home his mother, debbie brangenberg, thanked the dozens that attended the memorial service on wednesday, saying the strength of the community keeps the family strong she added: 'everybody has been so wonderful to us through this week 'and, the overwhelming love and support that this community has given us has helped us make it through' memorial: dozens attended a candlelit vigil in tupelo, mississippi on christmas day for the father of two shaken: members of the community also held a silence for officer joseph maher, 27, who was also shot by the suspects and remains in hospital in a serious but stable condition | fbi arizona tupelo mississippi atlanta kevin gale stauffer iraq joseph maher cpl stauffer maher | fbi believe the wanted man has now been shot dead while trying to carry out another heist in arizona on saturday . authorities announced that the man suspected of killing a police officer in a bank robbery in tupelo, mississippi, on monday tried to rob a bank just hours earlier in atlanta . after failing to rob the bank in atlanta, the man drove two states away to tupelo and still couldn't get a teller to give him money . police intervened when the suspect and one other were driving away from the tupelo branch, and one of them shot both responding officers . cpl kevin gale stauffer, an iraq war veteran, was killed and fellow officer joseph maher was injured . cpl stauffer was laid to rest on friday the same day officer maher was allowed to leave the hospital |
by associated press reporter published: 16:06 est, 12 march 2013 | updated: 16:12 est, 12 march 2013 it wasn't too long ago that america had a love affair with soda now, an old flame has the country's heart as new york city grapples with the legality of a ban on the sale of large cups of soda and other sugary drinks at some businesses, one thing is clear: soda's run as the nation's beverage of choice has fizzled in its place? a favorite for much of history: plain old h2o new favorite: over the years, as soda increasingly came under fire for fueling the nation's rising obesity rates, water quietly rose to knock it off the top spot as americans' favorite drink for more than two decades, soda was the no 1 drink in the us with per capita consumption peaking in 1998 at 54 gallons a year, according industry tracker beverage digest americans drank just 42 gallons a year of water at the time but over the years, as soda increasingly came under fire for fueling the nation's rising obesity rates, water quietly rose to knock it off the top spot americans now drink an average of 44 gallons of soda a year, a 17 percent drop from the peak in 1998 over the same time, the average amount of water people drink has increased 38 percent to about 58 gallons a year bottled water has led that growth, with consumption nearly doubling to 21 gallons a year stephen ngo, a civil defense attorney, quit drinking soda a year ago when he started running triathlons, and wanted a healthier way to quench his thirst ngo, 34, has a brita filter for tap water and also keeps his pantry stocked with cases of bottled water 'it might just be the placebo effect or marketing, but it tastes crisper,' said ngo, who lives in miami the trend reflects americans' ever changing tastes; it wasn't too far back in history that tap water was the top drink but in the 1980s, carbonated soft drinks overtook tap as the most popular drink, with coca cola and pepsico putting their marketing muscle behind their colas with celebrity endorsements from the likes of pop star michael jackson and comedian bill cosby americans kept drinking more of the carbonated, sugary drink for about a decade then, soda's magic started to fade: everyone from doctors to health advocates to government officials were blaming soft drinks for making people fat consumption started declining after hitting a high in the late 1990s sugar high: for more than two decades, soda was the no 1 drink in the us with per capita consumption peaking in 1998 at 54 gallons a year at the same time, people started turning to bottled water as an alternative its popularity was helped by the emergence of single serve bottles that were easy to carry around until then, bottled water had mainly been sold in 'big jugs and coolers' for people who didn't trust their water supply, said john sicher, publisher of beverage digest the new soft drink like packaging helped fast track bottled water's growth past milk and beer in fact, the amount of bottled water americans drink has risen nearly every year for more than two decades, while the estimates of how much tap water people drink has fluctuated up and down during that time when taken together, water finally overtook soda in 2008, according to beverage digest (it's difficult to track how much tap water people drink and how much is used for other things like washing dishes, so experts estimate consumption) analysts expect water to hold onto to its top spot for years to come but whether people will drink from the tap or a bottle is uncertain based on current trajectories, michael bellas, the ceo of the industry tracker beverage marketing corp, predicts that bottled water alone could overtake soda within the next decade that's not counting enhanced and flavored waters, which are growing quickly but remain a small part of the bottled water industry currently, people drink 21 gallons of bottled water a year that compares with 37 gallons of other water, which includes tap, sparkling, flavored and enhanced waters such as coca cola's vitaminwater but there are numerous factors that could tilt the scales in favor of tap water based on current trajectories, michael bellas, the ceo of the industry tracker beverage marketing corp, predicts that bottled water alone could overtake soda within the next decade because of concerns that plastic bottles create too much waste, experts say bottled water could be hit by a public backlash similar to the one that has whipsawed the soda industry with pushes for bans and taxes new york city was preparing for a ban on cups of sugary drinks that are larger than 16 ounces starting on tuesday but on monday — a day before the ban was to begin — a judge invalidated the regulation mayor michael bloomberg, who originally proposed the ban, vowed to appeal the judge's ruling bottled water already is starting to face similar opposition the town of concord, mass earlier this year banned the sale of water bottles that are less than a liter and the university of vermont became the first public university to ban the sale of bottled water meanwhile, other cities are waging campaigns to promote tap water new york city, which touts the high quality of its tap water, offers portable fountains at events around the city 'good old marketing has convinced people that they should spend a lot of money on bottled water,' says salome freud, chief of new york city's distribution water quality operations although companies such as coca cola co and pepsico inc would rather have people buy bottled waters, they're even more invested in getting people to drink more soda again that's because soda and other drinks that the companies make, such as sports drinks and juices, are more profitable than bottled water with bottled water, people tend to buy whatever is cheapest that's a habit that forces companies to keep prices relatively low, which eats into profits it's why companies are investing so heavily in developing nations such as china and india, where the appetite for soda continues to grow in the us, annual soda sales are more than five times as big as bottled water at $757 billion a year, according to beverage digest in terms of volume, soda is only twice as big as bottled water at coca cola, the no 1 soda maker, three quarters of its volume in gallons comes from soft drinks, compared with 8 percent for its bottled waters including dasani pepsico, the no 2 soda maker, gets 64 percent of its volume from soft drinks and only 7 percent from its aquafina bottled water it's why coca cola, which holds 13 percent of the bottled water market compared with pepsico's 10 percent, doesn't seem to think bottled water will ever overtake soda in an emailed statement, the atlanta based company noted that soft drinks remain a far larger category than bottled water and that it sees 'upside' for sodas over the next several years however, the company added that it saw 'great potential' for bottled water like its competitors, coca cola said it's focusing on growing its portfolio of bottled waters profitably by offering brands such as smartwater and its flavored vitaminwater, which fetch higher prices in the meantime, the chairman and former ceo of nestle waters north america, kim jeffery, is waiting for bottled water's moment in the spotlight nestle, the swiss company that makes poland spring, nestle pure life, deer park and other brands, has nearly half of the share of the bottled water market at a beverage industry conference late last year, jeffery noted that bottled water is 'the elephant in the room' and given the growing warnings over drinking too many calories — including from juice, milk and other sugary drinks — jeffery said he's confident that water will continue to grow in popularity 'for thousands of years, water was beverage of choice for human beings,' he said 'now we're reverting back to that' | epitomising bromocresol summerland | no related information |
by martin robinson a new ban on cheap alcohol is already failing because high strength booze is still being sold for less than a bottle of water, experts said today since monday retailers have been unable to sell lager or cider for less than 50p a can after ministers promised a new minimum pricing regime to end the ‘worst examples of harmful drink’ shops in blackpool, britain's worst town for alcohol related illnesses and deaths, are selling cans of 75 per cent strength cider for 89p, while bottled water on their shelves is the same price or more row: omega strong cider is being sold for 89p a can at buy low bargains in blackpool, right, although this 89p price is above the new threshold, shocked health officials have said that david cameron should already re think his policy to save lives an investigation has found that at least three shops in the seaside resort sold high strength cans of cider or lager for less or the same price as a bottle of water buy low bargains, close to the pier, sells omega cider for 89p its manager sam meak defended the policy and said: 'they are alcoholics so they don’t mind if they buy it cheap or whatever, they would buy the cider if it was £20' the seaside resort is britain's poorest and most deprived in terms of income, employment and health problems alcohol is widely blamed and in the past two years 2,914 people were admitted to hospital with alcohol related illnesses and 140 died the highest figures by population in britain the town's victoria hospital says it has seen an increase in the number of people being rushed there in alcohol induced comas or liver failure nhs blackpool's alcohol lead steve morton said: 'minimum prices would have minimal effect on the average person – something like 12p a week – but it would deter young vulnerable people from buying cheap, strong alcohol 'high strength, low cost alcohol tends to be drunk by people with an alcohol problem and younger people who want to get as much alcohol as cheaply as possible because they have limited means 'minimum prices need to come in through legislation, but in the mean time responsible traders should be looking at stopping selling strong alcohol the industry needs to take some responsibility – a dead customer is no customer at all' admissions: by population more people are taken blackpool's victoria hospital with alcohol related illnesses than anywhere else in britain blackpool's public health chief, dr arif rajpura, has called on david cameron to rethink minimum pricing to save lives under his original plans a can of lager would have retailed for £156, wine for £422 and spirits for £1260 but the prime minister faced strong opposition from within the cabinet, as ministers warned it could unfairly hit responsible drinkers on lower incomes so the prime minister’s proposal – which would have fixed the cost of a unit of alcohol at 45p – was dumped last summer instead cans must be at least 50p each, bottles of wine £224 and 750ml bottles of vodka or whisky £1016 the new system works by banning shops and pubs from selling alcohol at less than the total cost of the duty payable to the treasury, plus vat but experts say it will have a minimal effect on average, each adult is expected to drink just 004 per cent less over the course of the year so called ‘hazardous drinkers’ – those who consume more than the recommend safe limits – are predicted to consume just 01 per cent less but dr sarah wollaston, mp for totnes and campaigner on alcohol pricing, said the effect of the new regime would be ‘minuscule’ ‘i just do not think the evidence is there to support it when you are comparing it with the effect of minimum unit pricing,’ she said | freethinking thundercrack waftures | no related information |
by damien gayle a dentist who bought one of john lennon's rotten teeth at auction for nearly £20,000 now wants to use it to create a clone of the assassinated musician dentist michael zuk, 51, from alberta in canada, who bought the beatle’s molar by telephone bid at an auction two years ago, announced his plan on bbc radio this morning he told bbc radio 5 live breakfast: 'many people have thought about cloning famous people and i think john lennon should be at the top of the heap' yellow: john lennon's tooth, which dentist michael zuk from canada wants to use to clone the beatle mr zuk said that the next step would be to extract lennon's genetic sequence from the yellowed wisdom tooth he had in his position 'from there its just a matter of sitting around waiting for the technology to advance just a little bit longer because they are already cloning animals from small amounts of dna,' he added 'so we have some time to think about all the different considerations' assassinated: lennon, who was shot dead in 1980, gave the tooth to his housekeeper after he had it pulled it was put up for auction in 2011 by her son he went on: 'when people are doing genetic clones they actually get an exact replica of the person or animal that they are bringing back 'i believe they are doing it with race horses already and with people's favourite pets, so it's already being done' john lennon gave the tooth to his housekeeper dorothy jarlett, who between 1964 and 1968 lived in weybridge, surrey she later moved to canada where she married and had kept it with her ever since the beatle's former employee is now 90 and her son barry jarlett decided to sell it so that the 'unique' piece of memorabilia is not lost john lennon, who was shot dead in 1980, formed a close bond with miss jarlett he also gave her a pearl necklace and a wallet which the family are planning to keep the pensioner provided an affidavit to confirm that the tooth was genuine mr zuk bought the tooth, which he says is probably a wisdom tooth, after it was sold through omega auctions in stockport, greater manchester, in 2011 at the time he said he was ‘buzzing’ after the purchase, adding that it would join his collection of dinosaur teeth | michael zuk lennon two years ago 20,000 | michael zuk says lennon is 'top of the heap' of people who should be cloned . he now wants to extract the musician's genetic sequence from the tooth . the dentist bought the tooth at auction two years ago for £20,000 |
by john hall accused: anthony mcgraw, 40, allegedly poured a large amount of hot grease over his girlfriend a woman has been left permanently disfigured after her boyfriend allegedly poured boiling fat on her face while she slept anthony mcgraw, 40, fled the couple's home in tuscaloosa, alabama after pouring a large amount of hot grease over his girlfriend, 39, while upset over the state of their relationship, according to police he was later found hiding in a nearby abandoned building, and now faces a charge of first degree domestic violence assault, while the unidentified victim is thought likely to require cosmetic surgery the incident happened at the couple's home in west of the city at around 4am on sunday mcgraw had apparently been cooking before deciding to use the oil as a weapon, according to tuscaloosa county metro homicide unit's lieutenant kip hart 'he was cooking a meal and she was asleep on the couch when he came across some information that made him upset enough to do this based on what we know, we don’t think it was premeditated,' he told tuscaloosa news it is believed the victim had two children at the property at the time of the attack, including a teenager to which mcgraw is the father the victim was transported to uab hospital in birmingham, where she is being treated for severe but non life threatening burns to her face and arms 'my understanding is her injuries are quite severe as far as she'll probably need cosmetic surgery,' lieutenant hart said scene: the incident happened at the couple's home (pictured) in west of the city at around 4am on sunday the victim was transported to uab hospital in birmingham, with severe burns to her face and arms according to a police report, the victim claims she awoke to see mcgraw standing over her pouring the boiling fat onto her face mcgraw had left the scene by the time police arrived, but he was later found cowering in a nearby abandoned building at around 7pm the following evening he has been charged with first degree assault a crime described as an attack 'with intent to disfigure another person seriously and permanently' and is held on a $60,000 bond a judge revoked his probation on a 2009 felony marijuana possession charge and a 2006 drug distribution charge he is being held with no bond set in those cases the couple's relationship problems are thought to date back at least until last august when the victim told police that mcgraw had threatened her a subsequent restraining order against mcgraw was dismissed a month later | anthony mcgraw 40 mcgraw the next day first 39 | anthony mcgraw, 40, allegedly poured boiling fat over sleeping girlfriend . he is understood to have been unhappy about state of their relationship . mcgraw fled scene but was found in an abandoned building the next day . he has now been charged with first degree domestic violence assault . unidentified victim, 39, is being treated for severe burns to face and arms |
by ted thornhill a dog shot and left to die in a crate in the colorado desert in california was saved after emergency surgery in which vets removed part of her lung lab pitbull cross shadow was found abandoned with another dog that had died and frozen solid overnight the animals were surrounded by gun cartridges x ray: vets found a 40 calibre bullet lodged in shadow's chest (left) after the animal had been rehomed with ex convict robbie miller (right) two year old shadow was rescued by zach skow director of marley's mutts dog rescue – who rehabilitated her and rehomed her with robbie miller, who had just been released from 12 years in prison the 34 year old former gang member's life was transformed when he adopted two year old shadow who helped him adapt to life in the real world after a few weeks of blissful bonding between mr miller and shadow, however, she began to cough up blood caring: a visibly downbeat shadow with mr miller after surgery to remove the bullet shocking: the bullet that was found in shadow (left) and the dog after recovering from the operation (right) mr miller sent shadow to the hospital for x rays and blood work which revealed that she had been shot and had a bullet lodged in her chest mr miller was absolutely devastated that shadow was sick and was prepared to do whatever it took to make her well again mr miller said: ‘when i got out of prison, my social skills were terrible i knew that people would judge me for the bad things i'd done in my past, but that a dog wouldn't care ‘she is the love of my life and it would be unbearable to be without her’ expenses paid: shadow's surgery cost $15,000 but the cost was covered by donations that came in from around the world an apparent picture of health: shadow (left) before the bullet was found the dog rescue team located a hospital that was primed to deal with the incredibly expensive kind of emergency surgery shadow would inevitably need just out of prison mr miller didn't have the funds for such an expensive operation but a fund raising page was set up and generous pledges from across the globe started pouring in at an animal hospital in west los angeles, a surgeon removed a 40 caliber bullet from shadow's body, along with a portion of her lung against all odds, including a severe bleed during surgery, shadow survived and mr miller spent all his time by her bed side the imaging, 24/7 care, specialist consultation, medications and surgery cost nearly $15,000, raised through the incredible generosity of strangers captivated by the pair’s heart wrenching story mr miller said: ‘in prison, if you show your feelings, people will prey on you ‘but shadow has taught me that love conquers all, and she has broken my walls down so that i can feel a kind of love i never knew before ‘she is the love of my life, and i know that with her by my side, i can be a good person and do good things in this world’ | the colorado desert robbie miller shadow | two year old lab pitbull shadow was left to die in the colorado desert . she was rescued by a dog charity and rehomed with an ex convict . robbie miller, jailed for 12 years, developed a close bond with the dog . he was shocked when shadow began coughing up blood . vets performed emergency surgery after discovering a bullet in her chest |
by jessica jerreat jailed: nicholas cheese has been sentenced to 17 years in prison after assaulting a 13 year old girl a 27 year old from the uk was jailed for 17 years on monday after filming himself sexually assaulting a 13 year old girl from maine who he befriended in a harry potter chat room nicholas cheese was found guilty of abusing the levant girl over three days in a motel room in bangor, maine, in june last year as the judge jailed cheese, from wolvercote near oxford, he condemned the businessman for subjecting the young girl to 'a range of sexual experiences many adults would refuse to explore' cheese, who worked in the dry cleaning industry, had befriended the victim, who has not been identified, through an online chat room for fans of the harry potter children's books when she was 12 he arranged to meet the girl at his motel room, when he traveled to the us for a business trip, and admitted to police he knew she was only 13 cheese was found guilty of one count of producing pornography after filming his final encounter with the child initial charges from his arrest on july 1, of gross sexual assault and sexual exploitation of a minor, were dismissed in september when his case moved from state to federal court the victim did not appear in court, but her father spoke on her behalf, telling judge john woodcock that his daughter had met cheese when she was recovering from a life threatening illness cheese is said to have helped the girl through the illness, details of which were not revealed, then arranged to meet her while on his way to a conference in texas 'my daughter is more upset about what happened afterward,' he said of cheese’s prosecution 'she feels like she lost her best friend' assault: cheese flew to bangor in maine from his oxford home so he could meet the 13 year old the judge said that although the sex would be considered consensual if it had been between adults, he said the victim was not a '13 year old who looked like she was 18', the bangor daily news reported he added: 'the defendant’s actions against this 13 year old girl were unusually aggressive' fan site: cheese met his victim through an online chat room for harry potter fans as he sentenced cheese to 17 years in prison and five years of supervised release, he said: 'when [cheese] met her, he gave her a crash course in sex 'in a matter of three days, he exposed her to a range of sexual experiences many adults would refuse to explore' cheese wept as his parents, who had flown to the us for his hearing, addressed the court and pleaded for leniency for their son his father lives in britain and his mother has a home in spain the victim's father had contacted police on june 30 last year to say that his daughter had been sexually assaulted by a man from the uk detective andrew whitehouse and detective brent beaulieu interviewed cheese at the motel he was staying in, and later arrested him and confiscated his passport during questioning cheese admitted he had gone to bangor to have sex with the 13 year old, and that he had previously got her to send explicit pictures and videos to him the images and footage, and a sexually explicit photo taken in the motel room, were found on cheese's cellphone, according to court documents child pornography was also found on his home computer by police in the uk it is not clear if he will face charges relating to those images he is expected to be deported at the end of his prison term in the us | nicholas cheese 17 years a year | nicholas cheese has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for assault . judge condemned him for giving teenager 'crash course in sex'. victim's father says cheese helped his daughter through life threatening sickness a year before his perverted attack |
by jonathan block a woman accused of having a sexual relationship with a 17 year old female student while teaching at a utah high school has avoided jail and will have to serve 100 hours of community service, 18 months of probation and pay a $900 fine instead courtney louise jarrell, 23, had faced up to three years in jail, but judge bruce lubeck today decided against any time in prison after both prosecutors, jarrell’s lawyers and even the student asked that she be kept out of jail in february, jarrell pled guilty to three counts of misdemeanor sexual battery and agreed to give up her teaching license she initially faced charges of object rape, a first degree felony, and forcible sexual abuse, a second degree felony courtney jarrell, a former teacher accused of having a lesbian relationship with a 17 year old student, at her sentencing in a utah courtroom today by pleading guilty to misdemeanor charges, she does not have to register as a sex offender ‘i’ve lost my teaching license and that was something that i worked really hard for and i've been punished throughout the year with different things,' jarrell told lubeck, crying, ksl reported ‘i'll never be in a school again like that i don't even know if i can go on field trips with my nieces' or nephews' or kids' schools and that's really hard for me i feel like it was a big deal for me to lose that’ jarrell was accused of touching the female student's breast and genitals she had been initially charged with object rape and forcible sexual abuse, but the charges have been downgraded to a middemeanor under a plea her attorney, ken brown, said that jarrell is still the focus of criticism and has lost her teaching license as a result of her action he added that jarrell told the student to wait until she was 18 before having sex in february, he said the relationship was consensual as well ‘ms jarrell is a good person and, as i indicated throughout this case, she fell in love with a student,' he said ‘i don't think she was abusing anyone's trust’ riverton high school, where jarrell used to teach mathematics and coach the girls basketball team jarrell was arrested in april 2013 on allegations she fondled and raped a 17 year old female student, just eight months after she took a job teaching at riverton high school the school district received a complaint in march of last year that jarrell had had sexual contact with one of her female students jarrell was a high school softball star and the captain of her basketball team at davis high school in kaysville the alleged abuse took place at her home last february or march police said she touched the female student's breasts and genitals jarrell taught math at riverton high and coached the sophomore girls' basketball team the 5 foot 8 young woman was a high school softball star and the captain of her basketball team at davis high school in kaysville, 30 minutes north of salt lake city she also played softball in college at utah valley university and majored in secondary education | today courtney jarrell 23 18 months 100 hours 900 february jarrell utah riverton high school midmeanor 17 year old | during her sentencing today, courtney jarrell, 23, received 18 months of probation, was ordered to serve 100 hours of community service and pay a $900 fine . in february, jarrell, a former teacher at utah's riverton high school, pled guilty to midmeanor charges of sexual battery . the 17 year old student she had relationship wish asked that she not get jail time |
by helen pow settlement: chicago woman dana holmes, pictured, has been awarded a $355,000 settlement after she was stripped naked by four sheriff's deputies a chicago woman has been awarded a $355,000 settlement after she was stripped naked by four sheriff's deputies and then left in a cell following a dui arrest jailhouse video captured the rough handling of coal city woman, dana holmes, in may last year she claims the sheriff's deputies violated her civil rights and caused her emotional harm by stripping her naked without legal justification the deputies argued that holmes was being uncooperative, but lasalle county authorities decided to settle, announcing the move tuesday morning holmes will receive $125,000 and attorney terry ekl will get $100,000 in legal fees, according to court documents, cited by the chicago tribune four people who said they received similar treatment at the jail will each receive $30,000 and a fifth person will get $10,000 holmes, who blew around three times the legal blood alcohol limit when she was stopped, pleaded guilty and received court supervision following that charge in the video, four sheriff's deputies carry the 32 year old into a lasalle county jail cell scroll down for video strip search: jailhouse video, seen here, captured the rough handling of the coal city woman in may last year cell: holmes was thrown in a cell because she was being 'uncooperative,' police said the three men and one woman put her face down on the floor and proceed to strip off her clothes the take them away, leaving her alone and naked in the cell a few minutes later, they throw blankets inside 'i was terrified i felt helpless i was scared and i lay there crying i just prayed,' holmes told abc 7 at the time the county's lawyer said a new strip search policy was in the process of being implemented to prevent this happening again dui: the trouble began when holmes, pictured, was pulled over for being drunk behind the wheel angry: back at he jailhouse, she was being searched against a wall, left, when cops suddenly threw her to the floor, right naked: after stripping her in the cell, she was left alone naked with just a blanket in future, a strip search will require detailed documentation 'the county and department believe it’s in everybody's best interest to focus on policies and protocols moving forward, rather than spending time and money fighting over who was right and wrong,' james sotos told the tribune he added that the case highlighted a gap in jail policies and training protocols in the county and across illinois | coal city illinois dana holmes holmes lasalle county 125,000 terry ekl 100,000 30,000 10,000 | jailhouse video captured the rough handling of coal city, illinois, woman, dana holmes, in may last year . she claims the sheriff's deputies violated her civil rights and caused her emotional harm by stripping her naked without legal justification . the deputies argued that holmes was being uncooperative, but lasalle county authorities decided to settle, announcing the move tuesday . holmes will receive $125,000 and attorney terry ekl will get $100,000 in legal fees, according to court documents . four people who said they received similar treatment at the jail will each receive $30,000 and a fifth person will get $10,000 |
by chris pleasance published: 05:43 est, 8 december 2013 | updated: 11:50 est, 8 december 2013 england fans travelling to the first match of next year's world cup are going to face an army of dangerous creepy crawlies when they arrive cobras, scorpions, and tarantulas are all found in the tropical city of manaus, while the nhs has also warned against the risk of catching rabies from stray dogs roy hodgson has also voiced concerns about how players will cope in the heat, which averages around 32c (90f) with humidity above 80 per cent the brazilian yellow scorpion is among the deadliest in the world and lives in the jungle around manaus it's sting can be fatal to humans (file picture) fans will not want to wander too far off the beaten track in case they encounter deadly coral snakes the amazon rainforest around manaus is home to the brazilian yellow scorpion, one of the planet's deadliest varieties, with a venomous sting that can be fatal in children or elderly adults while tarantulas are scary, they are in fact less venomous than a bee and their bite only causes a small amount of pain fans will also want to stay on the beaten track, as the jungle is also home to a variety of coral snakes, which lurk in the tree canopy and on the forest floor and use their fangs to deliver a deadly, paralysing venom when threatened tarantulas also live in the loose soil, digging burrows where they wait for prey while they cannot kill a human, their bites are painful and the hairs on their bodies can cause itching and sore skin the tropical climate also attracts false water cobras which can grow up to 7ft long and deliver their venom with a grinding, chewing action, rather than a quick strike, which causes bruising and swelling aside from the stings and bites, which local hospitals say they can see five cases of every day, there is also a range of diseases to deal with mosquitoes in the jungle carry both yellow fever and dengue, viral infections which cause headaches, fever and muscle cramps there are around 100million cases of dengue every year and there is no vaccine for it, with symptoms taking around two weeks to clear up supporters are being urged to vaccinate themselves against yellow fever, which can be fatal as it attacks the liver, causing jaundice and yellow skin hence the name the arena amazonia stadium, due to be completed in january, will host england for their opening game against italy the tropical heat, with temperatures reaching 32c (90f), brings mosquitoes which carry yellow fever and dengue which can cause fever, muscle cramps and headaches rabies is another serious risk from stray dogs found in the city's favelas, or slum districts the infection is almost always fatal unless it is caught and treated very early on, before symptoms develop it is contracted through infected animal bites, with bats and dogs posing the highest risk there are 55,000 deaths every year from the illness, though vaccines reduce the risk of dying the nhs is also warning people to be aware of the risk of catching rabies from stray dogs the infection can be treated early on, but is almost always fatal by the time symptoms develop (file picture) manaus is also known for gang violence, muggings and drug trafficking and 975 homicides were reported last year the foreign office has warned fans to be on their guard against robbers and pickpockets the advice is to dress down and avoid wearing jewellery local hotel owners are also raising their prices to capitalise on the event, with a single room now reportedly costing up to £500 per night brazilian yellow scorpion: lives underground in loose soil, administers poison through a sting in its tail, can be fatal to humans tarantula: lives in burrows in jungles, administers poison through fangs, venom is painful but not deadly false water cobra: lives in jungles and marshlands, administers poison through fangs with a grinding motion, can cause bruising and swelling but is not deadly rabies viral infection caused by infected animal bites, leads to fever, muscle pain and aggression, is almost always fatal by the time symptoms develop yellow fever caused by mosquito bites, leads to fever, muscles pain and jaundiced, yellow skin, can be fatal but a vaccine is available dengue caused by mosquito bites, leads to fever, muscle pain and headaches, there is no vaccine and symptoms can take around 2 weeks to clear | backropes youthlike proseman | no related information |
by emily davies published: 20:25 est, 28 october 2013 | updated: 04:11 est, 29 october 2013 tasteless: gary lineker posted a picture of a leaf on his car and made a joke about the storm given the widely reported deaths and chaos, it was clearly not the right time for attempts at humour that, however, did not stop some of the lucky ones who escaped the storm from trying inevitably, their chosen method of sharing their tasteless thoughts was twitter football pundit gary lineker, 52, posted a picture of a leaf sitting on his car and wrote: ‘part of a tree has hit the car roof not too much damage, i think’ sports journalist jake humphrey posted a picture of himself pointing in mock horror at a branch on the pavement, and wrote: ‘stormaggedon on streets of london stay safe out there peeps’ musician lily allen said on twitter she was pleased with the effect of the high winds she wrote: ‘thank you storm st jude for finally getting rid of the neighbours [sic] tree that has been blocking out the light’ joey barton, footballer for queens park rangers, was criticised by fans for saying the storm was an anti climax the 31 year old midfielder tweeted: ‘tad disappointing, this mega death to all before it storm’ his comments prompted anger from fans who asked whether he wished the death toll were higher controversial comment: lineker (pictured with his wife danielle in june) shared his thoughts on twitter 'thank you storm st jude': musician lily allen said on twitter she was pleased with the effect of the high winds some police staff also thought the moment right for ‘humorous’ tweeting 'stormaggedon': sports journalist jake humphrey posted a picture of himself pointing in mock horror at a branch on the pavement the safer neighbourhood team in malvern, worcestershire, wrote: ‘pcso steve freeman has patrolled the pickersleigh patch and reports all bins and trampolines in correct gardens what storm?’ ann barnes, police and crime commissioner for kent, wrote on her personal twitter account: ‘lyminge is quiet and sunny – what storm? i seem to have slept through it’ minutes later, however, a tweet was issued from her official account urging people to ‘stay safe’ a spokesman from her office explained the discrepancy by saying the official account is sometimes updated by other people on hearing later that 17 year old bethany freeman had died in the storm, mrs barnes tweeted: ‘really sad to hear of young woman’s death in west kent seems like lyminge had the best of the weather today’ under fire: joey barton, footballer for queens park rangers, was criticised by fans for saying the storm was an anti climax the 31 year old midfielder tweeted: 'tad disappointing, this mega death to all before it storm' | jake humphrey lily allen | former footballer posts picture of leaf sitting on his car and makes joke . sports journalist jake humphrey makes fun of 'stormaggedon on streets'. lily allen says she is thankful for storm 'getting rid of neighbour's tree' |
by martin robinson published: 02:21 est, 14 august 2013 | updated: 04:44 est, 14 august 2013 boost: investor carl icahn tweeted he had bought apple shares and withing three hours the value rocked by $17bn apple's shares rocketed by $17billion in less than two hours after a legendary us investor tweeted he had bought a large stake in the company carl icahn told his 40,000 followers he was backing the business and said its price was 'undervalued', kick starting a chain reaction that sent the markets wild at around 1pm yesterday apple shares were valued at around $472billion, but by 4pm they hit $489billion, a rise of 475 per cent he sent the message at 221pm, causing a rise of $171million every minute until the market closed the activist investor also said her had a 'nice conversation' with ceo tim cook about a larger stock buyback, sending the company's shares to a near seven month high he had told cook that he should return a large amount of the company's cash reserves to shareholders icahn did not say how many shares he has amassed rules require investors to disclose stakes of five per cent or larger within 10 days of hitting that threshold 'had a nice conversation with tim cook today discussed my opinion that a larger buyback should be done now,' icahn tweeted 'we plan to speak again shortly' 'we currently have a large position in apple we believe the company to be extremely undervalued' the billionaire with a reputation for pushing aggressive corporate change said on twitter he planned to talk more with cook, who has presided over a sharp fall in the share price over the past year catalyst: the legend of wall street sent this message to his 40,000 followers, which saw the market surge upwards conversation: icahn also revealed he had a meeting with apple's ceo tim cook, where he told him to give back cash to shareholders fragile: apple's shares were $700 last year but were at $400 in june after a loss of market support apple has for a long time been the darling of the technology market, with the phenomenal success of its products last september shares were priced at $700 each but this was at $400 in june after the markets were spooked because it appeared they lacked a new dynamite product the boost yesterday is in stark contrast with the fortunes of rival blackberry it has put itself up for sale as the struggling smartphone maker seeks to revive the fortunes of its ailing brand the handset revolutionised mobile phone technology when it was introduced in 1999 but its popularity was badly dented by the launch of apple's iphone in 2007 and has since lost out to android phones as well as microsoft's windows device the canadian handset maker has failed to lure consumers to buy its blackberry 10 devices, which were meant to reverse the fortune of the company | adjustmental abscessroot sarges | no related information |
by liz hull and suzannah hills published: 03:52 est, 10 august 2013 | updated: 05:02 est, 10 august 2013 wanted criminal sam greenwood taunted police by writing 'catch me if you can' on rochdale police's facebook page only to be caught hours later a criminal who taunted police on facebook after going on the run has been jailed sam greenwood, 19, was sentenced to 10 months in prison for a string of burglary and car crimes it comes after police put an appeal for information on the wanted teenager on facebook, and greenwood replied, saying: ‘catch me if you can’ but the officers had the last laugh when they arrested sam greenwood just 12 hours laterand added their own riposte: ‘caught you do not pass go, do not collect £200, go straight to jail’ greenwood, from rochdale, was sentenced to four months in a young offenders’ institute in january after his driving conviction he was freed on licence, but failed to attend mandatory appointments at rochdale probation service and a man hunt for his arrest was launched officers from greater manchester police put out an appeal on the official gmp rochdale north facebook page, alongside greenwood’s photograph the next day greenwood wrote underneath: ‘catch me if you can’ police urged him to hand himself in, posting: ‘you are a talented young man don’t waste your life away so many people are willing to help you – but you’ve got to start helping yourself’ greenwood failed to heed their advice, but was spotted by officers out on patrol and placed back behind bars on june 26 they then returned to facebook to respond a second time: ‘caught you do not pass go, do not collect £200, go straight to jail’ on wednesday, he was sentenced at bury magistrates court after previously pleading guilty to failing to comply with the conditions of his licence, two counts of vehicle interference, taking a vehicle without consent, attempted burglary and car theft greenwood was matched to the crimes after leaving a trail of blood and fingerprints while in custody he also admitted to 32 other offences, including theft from a motor vehicle and vehicle interference, which were taken into consideration defending, asim ali said: 'what's happened in the immediate past is that when he's gone to probation, police have gone and arrested him and taken him into custody for a number of days 'there is a pattern of this and because of that he's stopped going' caught you: the gmp rochdale north page showed 59 people 'liked' greenwood's 'catch me if u can' comment the court heard greenwood has 20 previous convictions for 45 offences the majority relating to motor vehicles in 2011, greenwood was jailed for a series of crimes including taking vehicles without the consent of the owner, driving whilst disqualified, burglary and theft he also admitted theft of a jcb worth £25,000 and his part in the attack of a taxi driver chairman of the bench, maxine hamer, said: 'we find these offences so serious that only a custodial sentence can be justified they are aggravated by your record of dishonesty' speaking after his arrest, inspector umer khan of rochdale north said: ‘unfortunately this man was always going to be a hostage to fortune once he decided to goad us on facebook i tried my best to coax him into handing himself in, but he seemed determined to remain at large ‘thankfully, we managed to track him down in no time at all and he is now back where he belongs for the time being – behind bars’ he is not the first criminal to regret his facebook use in march, thief anthony swinburn, 28, was caught days after he mocked up his own wanted poster and posted it on the social networking site he was subsequently jailed for 16 months last year michael ruse, 21, was forced to change his plea to guilty after he posted a comment telling a friend he was ‘going to get away with it’ during his trial for assault judge ian pearson, sitting at portsmouth crown court, told him: ‘you were stupid enough to put on facebook what amounted to a full confession your stupidity really is not much mitigation’ paramedic mark small boasted on the site that he groped a patient’s breasts whilst resuscitating her, writing: ‘saved someone’s life and managed to cop a feel of some cracking jubblies’ a complaint was made and he was found guilty of misconduct by the health professions council | sam greenwood 19 four months greenwood facebook gmp rochdale north 10 months | sam greenwood, 19, was freed after serving four months in a young offenders' institute for driving while disqualified and without insurance . police launched appeal for teenager when he breached his licence conditions . greenwood wrote taunts on facebook page of gmp rochdale north . but he has now been jailed for 10 months after police caught up with him |
by sara malm published: 17:10 est, 27 december 2013 | updated: 01:54 est, 28 december 2013 the royal family is the hardest working in europe, with prince charles and queen elizabeth topping a list of british and scandinavian monarchs an investigation into the number of working days in european royal houses found that the 65 year old prince of wales is the hardest grafter with 189 working days, followed by the queen with 181 days and the king of sweden coming in third despite turning 92 this year, prince philip did more work this year than a majority of the younger royals, clocking up an impressive 120 working days like mother, like son: prince charles was the hardest worker among the royals families investigated with 189 days completed in 2013, followed by the queen, who worked 181 days the 92 year old worked more days than both crown prince haakon of norway, aged 40, who worked 114 days and crown prince frederik of denmark, 45, who managed a mere three months the list has been compiled by danish tabloid ekstrabladet, based on the official calendars of members of the scandinavian and british royal families between january 1 and december 16 this year the british royal family came out looking the best, with its older members all in the top ten including charles wife camilla sharing the fifth spot with the king of norway and the queen of denmark at with 124 working days in terms of heir apparents, prince charles is way ahead of both haakon of norway and frederik of denmark as well as sweden's crown princess victoria, aged 36, who only worked 89 days this year the low number of 'working days' by prince william and kate, duchess of cambridge, is a natural result of the prince's job in the miliraty service, kate's pregnancy and their time off to care for prince george dedicated: the prince of wales visit meets pupils from minchinhampton primary school, gloucestershire earlier this month age is just a number: prince philip, 92, clocked up more working days than a majority of younger members of royal houses in scandinavia and britain busy mum and dad: prince william, duke of cambridge and catherine, duchess of cambridge became parents to prince george in july others with less of an excuse are the danish royals who were subjected to heavy criticism by ekstrabladet as its heir apparent, crown prince frederik, only managed 90 days of work compared to prince charles 189 'i don’t know of any other professions which is measured purely in visits and where you completely disregard days in the office being royal cannot be compared to a 9 5 job,' said lene balleby, chief of communication at the danish court, told ekstrabladet 'the swedish royal family work in the office where both internal meetings and audiences both with individuals and organisations,' ulrika nã¤sholm, royal secretary of information at the swedish court, told âaftonbladet 'the official calendar is a selection of their tasks' representatives for both the swedish and danish royal houses reject the survey their royal lazinesses: king harald of norway and queen margrethe of denmark only worked 124 days each swedish pride: king carl xvi gustaf of sweden and his wife queen silvia came third and fourth, working more than 300 days in total | prequote arachnoid disconsolately | no related information |
by leon watson published: 10:47 est, 9 december 2013 | updated: 12:46 est, 9 december 2013 a creepy man has been caught on camera lying under the seats of a metro train while he touched women's legs the terrifying snaps of a man wearing a blue mask and coat were taken on the underground system in beijing, china another passenger spotted him lying beneath the moulded plastic seats before reaching out to the legs of women who sat down scroll down for video the man lying beneath the seats touching legs of women sitting down on a metro train in beijing, china the picture taker, called mr zhou, said the man hid even deeper under the seats after noticing him taking pictures but 'after a short while, he started to touch the legs again' amazingly, none of the woman in question appeared to react to what was happening the man, who was wearing a mask and in a blue coat, was spotted lying beneath the moulded plastic seats before reaching out to touch the legs of women who sat down the picture taker, mr zhou, said the man hid even deeper under the seats after noticing him taking pictures but 'after a short while, he started to touch the legs again' | beijing china | terrifying snaps were taken on underground system in beijing, china . another passenger spotted him lying beneath moulded plastic seats . amazingly, none of the woman in question appeared to react |
by daily mail reporter published: 21:06 est, 27 december 2013 | updated: 21:29 est, 27 december 2013 a 20 year old allegedly went to the indianapolis home of his former boss during the middle of the day and murdered the man's wife and daughter after getting fired from his job, court documents claim christian rene haley was identified on thursday as the suspect in the gruesome murder of marylyn erb, 52, and kelley erb, 23, on friday december 20 at their house in westfield the two women were found dead in the basement near a pool of blood, according to a probable cause affidavit, with the time of death said to be between noon and 1pm, reported mydesertcom in custody: christian haley, 20, stands accused of beating to death the wife and daughter of his former boss after being fired from his job at sundown gardens in indianapolis after three months victims: marylyn erb, 52 (left) and daughter kelley erb, 23 (right) were found dead in the basement of their home near 161st street and oak park court in westfield, indianapolis, after suffering blunt trauma to the head scene: police close off entry to the erb family home in westfield, indianapolis, on december 20 following the double murder haley had worked for todd erb at the family business sundown gardens, a nursery and gardening facility, for about three months however he had been fired in june for 'attendance problems' the court documents claim haley bragged to a friend that he 'bashed (the victims') heads in with some cement or something' and that he was angry for getting fired todd erb told police he was at work on the day of the murder and returned home about 430pm to find the bodies of his wife and daughter haley is now facing charges of murder, felony murder, robbery, burglary and theft authorities said haley stole white pearl earrings, an iphone 5, a gold colored chain and two chase bank cards belonging to the erbs suspect christian haley worked at sundown gardens, a nursey owned by todd erb, for three months before getting fired in june due to 'attendance problems' haley gave the cards to a friend, who then used them at crown liquors and a cvs, the affidavit said police received an anonymous crimestoppers call from a person saying the friend was upset about haley killing the two women police used cctv footage from the stores to track down the individual, who confessed haley had told him about the murders haley was then arrested haley had been to the erb home before, the affidavit said, and several months ago had talked about robbing the erbs with a gun | christian rene haley 20 marylyn erb 52 kelley erb 23 westfield indianapolis december 20 haley todd erb three months court | christian rene haley, 20, stands accused of murdering marylyn erb, 52, and kelley erb, 23, at their home in westfield, indianapolis, on december 20 . haley had worked for the husband and father of the victims, todd erb, for three months, but was fired for 'attendence problems'. court documents say haley bragged to a friend about 'bashing their heads in with some cement' before stealing jewellry, an iphone and two debit cards |
by lizzie edmonds published: 11:27 est, 29 december 2013 | updated: 12:13 est, 29 december 2013 the bodies of a woman and a young boy have been found in a house a 29 year old woman and a two year old boy were discovered in bonnyrigg, midlothian, at about 830pm yesterday it has been reported today the boy is the woman's son find: police outside a house bonnyrigg where a 29 year old mother boy, 2, were found last night scene: investigators work outside the home today the bodies were discovered after a friend voiced concerns hospital: a man, 29, was taken to edinburgh infirmary with a police presence following the discovery officers went to the house in a new development in the town after a 'family acquaintance' voiced concern police scotland said a man, 32, was taken to hospital in edinburgh it added officers were not looking for any other person in connection to the deaths chief inspector colin brown said: 'a 32 year old man is currently receiving treatment in edinburgh royal infirmary and police are not looking for any other person in connection with this incident 'the man is being treated as a patient, however there are police officers with him in hospital 'this is a tragic set of circumstances and our thoughts are with the families who have been affected 'we are keeping an open mind as to what occured within this property but i want to reassure members of the local community and neighbours that such incidents are relatively rare and a comprehensive investigation is under way 'we are grateful to the support we are receiving from the neighbours while we carry out our inquiries' | 29 bonnyrigg midlothian 32 | woman, 29, and boy, 2, discovered in bonnyrigg, midlothian . man, 32, taken to hospital with a police presence . police say they are not looking for anyone else in connection to deaths |
by daily mail reporter published: 11:31 est, 11 june 2013 | updated: 19:32 est, 11 june 2013 armed with pea shooters and slingshots, they’re the naughtiest children around but thanks to a visit from prince charles and the duchess of cornwall, the beano’s terrors have been tamed for now in a special edition of the comic, the pupils of bash street school are encouraged to grow organic vegetables by charles to improve their inedible school meals – which goes down very well scroll down for video prince charles finds the lunch in the bash street school canteen inedible and encourages them to grow their own organic vegetables in the strip for the beano the duchess of cornwall was also immortalised in the comic when she opens the school library in the scene, the prince appears alongside beano stalwart plug – whose enormous ears would put most caricatures of charles’s in the shade meanwhile camilla manages to convert dennis the menace into a book worm as she opens the school’s new library – with a little help from gnasher who is also on his best behaviour the storylines in the issue, which goes on sale today, were created to reflect the prince and duchess’s interests it marks yesterday’s visit by the couple to the publisher of the 75 year old comic, dc thomson in dundee, where they started the firm’s new printing press beano editor craig graham said: ‘often we’re a little bit nervous because we do, by the nature of things, have to caricature people but they were both absolutely delighted with their likenesses’ charles and camilla are not the first royals to have been featured in the beano the duke and duchess of cambridge have already made cameo appearances in the publication the royal couple met dennis the menace during the trip to the dc thomson & co in dundee a young beano fan presented prince charles with his framed comic strip that the publishers hoped would sit on the royal mantelpiece the new edition, billed as a 'top secret guest issue', urges readers to turn the pages to find out who the special visitors to beanotown are in the first cartoon strip, dennis the menace and gnasher, the duchess of cornwall goes to bash street school to open its new library dennis and roger the dodger are initially in typically mischievous mood, with roger in particular carrying out a number of tricks to avoid having to read books but the duchess’s visit convinces them that reading is worthwhile and has dennis declaring: 'reading is fun for everyone, menaces' in the bash street kids strip, charles is pictured dropping into the canteen at lunchtime, where he finds the school meals to be inedible as a solution, he proposes that they make their own sandwiches and grow their own organic vegetables in an allotment putting the kids’ pea shooters to good use as seed planters the prince of wales wore rothesay tartan for the visit and camilla wore a skirt in lord of the isles tartan david thomson presents the royal couple with a framed front cover of the evening telegraph it is understood that the themes were chosen to reflect causes close to the duke and duchess’s hearts mr graham explained how the idea of including charles and camilla in the comic came about 'when we learned that they were coming to open the plant, we were obviously thrilled, it was a great opportunity for us,' he said 'we know that kids do love the royals i think after last year, with the jubilee, it’s really still at the forefront of their minds and we know that they really enjoy reading about them, seeing them and finding out what they’re doing 'so we put our minds to thinking up a storyline which might fit with their (the royals’) interests and how they may relate to today’s kids the prince of wales and the duchess of cornwall started the firm's new printing press the prince of wales and the duchess of cornwall looks through the archive of the courier during their visit 'we know of the duchess’s interest in literacy and most people know about the duke’s interests in organic farming, healthy eating and generally living a very healthy lifestyle 'we put our minds to it and came up with two storylines related to those' he also joked that he hoped the couple, who were presented with their prints by three young beano readers, would put them 'on the mantelpiece' during the visit to dc thomson’s base at kingsway east, the royals met a number of employees, as well as members of the thomson family the royals met staff at dc thomson's base and viewed an exhibition of the 100 year history of the publisher the prince of wales also visited ninewells hospital during his trip to dundee charles wore a kilt in rothesay tartan for the visit, while camilla donned a kilted skirt in lord of the isles tartan, with a matching mint green jacket the couiple viewed an exhibition of the 100 year history of the publisher behind such titles as the press and journal, the courier and the sunday post, and some of the most popular children’s publications of all time, such as bunty, judy, the skipper and the hotspur charles and camilla also started the company’s new printing press, which is said to be one of the most efficient of its kind one of the first copies off the press, a special edition of the evening telegraph marking the royal visit, was presented to the couple at the end of their tour following the visit, david thomson, chief operating officer at dc thomson, said: 'it’s been a fantastic day for the staff we’re obviously delighted that the duke and duchess of rothesay agreed to come and open our new press 'we’re very committed to newspapers and the future of newspapers, which is why we’ve made such a huge investment, a £30 million investment, in the new plant, so that we’re able to produce the quality of newspapers for all our readers for years to come' | wales duchess cornwall dundee dc thomson & co prince wales bash street kids camilla roger the dodger | prince of wales and duchess of cornwall were immortalised in the comic . presented with framed versions during visit to dundee's dc thomson & co . prince wales encourages bash street kids to grow their own vegetables . camilla features alongside roger the dodger as she opens school library |
by daily mail reporter published: 05:04 est, 29 december 2013 | updated: 06:47 est, 29 december 2013 the number of british families who spend more than half their disposable income on debt repayments could treble by 2018 if interest rates rise faster than predicted, a leading think tank has warned fearing that politicians are ignoring a looming crisis in household debt, think tank the resolution foundation has urged banks to start checking on debtors now, in case they are caught off guard when the cost of borrowing goes up some two million households could be driven to 'the edge of their means,' the think tank said household debt crisis: if interest rates rise faster than predicted, some two million british households who spend more than half their income on repayments could treble by 2018 chief executive gavin kelly said: ‘there is huge uncertainty about income growth and interest rates but under almost any plausible scenario there is going to be a big spike in the next parliament ‘we could well be talking about this issue as much as we are currently discussing wages or energy bills as yet there is little sign of the political or financial establishment giving this the priority it deserves’ the projections, based on figures from the office of budget responsibility (obr) which show household debt rising faster than income, lay out several ways in which the number of people facing 'debt peril' might rise from 2011's total of 600,000 in a 'good growth scenario,’ where interest rates stay low and income grows evenly across rich and poor something resolution calls ‘a marked departure from recent experience’ the number of people facing 'debt peril' would still almost double to 11 million but if interest rates go up and growth is slow or unequal, that figure would hit two million, rising from 5 per cent to 9 per cent in the bottom fifth of the income curve matthew whittaker, senior economist at the resolution foundation, said: ‘even if we take a somewhat rosy view of how the economy will develop over the next few years the number of households severely exposed to debt looks as though it will double ‘this is an alarming prospect, where a large number of families find themselves struggling with heavy debt commitments ‘even small increases in the cost of borrowing could push a significant number of families over the edge and it's most likely to happen to those with the lowest incomes, who are already spending the biggest share of their budget on repayments’ mr whittaker called the worst case scenario speculative but plausible, if the government's help to buy scheme created a new housing bubble or spending increased among the affluent only, interest rates would be driven up without any accompanying recovery in practice, the number would not actually hit two million, he said instead, ‘a high number of people’ would simply default on their debts after a few months, possibly losing their homes and ‘drop out of the statistics’ big spenders: most of the uk's household debt is composed of mortgages, with the rest taken up with credit cards, personal lending and payday loans most of the uk's household debt is composed of mortgages, with the rest taken up by credit cards, personal lending and payday loans since household consumption accounts for about 65 per cent of gdp, any drop in disposable income could have a huge effect on recovery mr whittaker said: ‘in the worst case scenario you've got two million households in a position where they are struggling to make ends meet, which means you've got two million households that aren't contributing to any consumption ‘worse, many of the people who are most over exposed from pre crisis debt are concentrated in the hands of particular banks and building societies, who could find themselves in a precarious situation’ last year rent and mortgage arrears drove 5,000 people out of their homes, according to the centre for social justice the right leaning think tank, founded by iain duncan smith in 2004, said there was £14 trillion of personal debt in the uk with average household debt having doubled in a decade to £54,000 | british 11m uk | think tank resolution foundation is urging banks to check debtors now . some two million british families are driven to 'the edge of their means'. a 'good growth scenario': people facing 'debt peril' could double to 11m . most uk household debt is composed of mortgages |
by daily mail reporter published: 03:27 est, 8 june 2013 | updated: 03:31 est, 8 june 2013 three passenger jets sighted ufos above britain's scientology headquarters on their approach to gatwick airport, a report has revealed their pilots each saw 'two flat, silver discs', with some flying within 100ft air traffic control then spotted six ufos on their radars before they suddenly disappeared spooky: two ufos, similar to the one pictured here, were spotted by jets on their approach to gatwick, right eerie coincidence: the encounter happened very close to the british scientology headquarters in east grinstead, werst sussex the encounter, which was probed by the uk airprox board, happened on december 30 just before 9am a boeing 777 was flying over the scientology headquarters in east grinstead minutes from touchdown when all three pilots on the flightdeck spotted the objects about 100ft below them moving slowly or stationary, according to the report a following boeing 767 also spotted the two white or silver discs, which were at approximately 1,000ft above ground an airbus a319 then landed before the objects disappeared from atc screens believer: tom cruise follows the controversial church, which says aliens inhabit human bodies the crew of the first aircraft described seeing 'some some sort of toy' the information was passed on to air traffic control and then to police investigators offered the possibility the objects could have been balloons or kites but, with the ufos remaining untraced, the incidents was deemed unassessable the encounter came the day before scientologists, followed by actor tom cruise, carved a message to aliens in hills in new mexico, america the cult believes aliens inhabit human bodies the airprox board primarily investigates near misses between aircraft | just 100ft below one boeing 777 scientology hq east grinstead west sussex | three aircraft reports seeing 'two flat silver discs' on final approach . objects showed up on air traffic control radar then vanished . ufos were just 100ft below one of the jets, a boeing 777 . they were above scientology hq in east grinstead, west sussex |
by lucy osborne published: 12:39 est, 29 december 2013 | updated: 13:05 est, 29 december 2013 when isobel wyatt didn't get a coin in exchange for the tooth she left under her pillow, her parents told her it was because the tooth fairy was on strike the nine year old's parents, wendy wyatt and kevin golding, from coventry, told her the government had threatened to take away the fairy's pension, so in protest she refused to go to work but rather than accept that she would not be visiting, the schoolgirl became so incensed with the government that she decided to write a heartfelt letter to the prime minister isobel wyatt, aged nine, is pictured at her home in coventry, with the letter she received back from david cameron incensed: the youngster sent a hand written note to 10 downing street pleading with mr cameron to rethink his stance on the pension issue so the tooth fairy could get back to work and take this tooth in it she pleaded with him to rethink his stance so that the tooth fairy would be happier and could get back to her job isobel and her parents didn't think they would hear back from david cameron but to their amazement, she received a reply this month an aide thanked her for her query but confessed the government was in the dark when it came to plans for a tooth fairy strike they wrote: 'i was pleased to read your well written letter and your concerns about the tooth fairy 'unfortunately, i am unable to answer your question about possible industrial action' primary school pupil isobel – who lives with her parents, two brothers and sister said she had been showing off the prized letter to her friends she said: 'when i got the letter i was stunned i wrote in because i thought david cameron would take away the tooth fairy's pension in the post: isobel did not think she would hear back from the pm after sending this letter surprised: isobel with her mother wendy wyatt, aged 39, at her home in coventry downing street's reply: the letter which isobel taylor, nine, received from prime minister david cameron's office 'i wasn't expecting anything back because he is very busy i've taken the letter into school to show my friends – they think it's really good' her mother, miss wyatt a university of warwick nursery worker, said the 'little white lie' had spiralled she said: 'her dad said 'maybe they've gone on strike'' 'after that she came and spoke to me and i said i thought i'd heard something about david cameron cutting their pensions that was when she decided to write the letter' isobel had been told that the government had threatened to take away the fairy's pension, so in protest she refused to go to work the mother of four said isobel became determined to write after her father, assistant accommodations manager at warwick university, told her of the tooth fairy strike in october 'i left her to it and she asked me to get the address, which i did 'i gave her a stamp and she posted the letter herself back in october and when we didn't hear anything for a while we assumed she'd hear nothing back 'it wasn't until earlier this month we received a reply and isobel got very excited when she saw the downing street postmark on the back of the envelope 'she knew what it was straight away she'd been very upset about the missed visit so she was really pleased to get a response' isobel finally received her £2 from her mother after she decided to donate her baby teeth to an art project she saw at a local gallery called palaces, the installation aims to build a 'magical sculpture' out of donated baby teeth from children across the world miss wyatt added: 'isobel decided she wanted to donate her teeth to the project instead she's saved a few up 'we have an arrangement where she donates them and we give her the money instead 'so she doesn't have to worry about the tooth fairy going on strike anymore' in 2010, a six year old girl sent david cameron £1 she had received from the tooth fairy because she wanted to 'make the country better and create jobs' after listening to a speech he had made | isobel wyatt's david cameron isobel | isobel wyatt's parents told her the fairy had refused to go to work . schoolgirl became so incensed that she decided to write to the pm . in it she pleaded with david cameron to rethink his stance . isobel and her parents didn't think they . would hear back |
by john clarke published: 00:41 est, 19 january 2013 | updated: 21:44 est, 19 january 2013 breaking his silence for the first time, notre dame linebacker manti te'o finally answered whether or not he was part of the lennay kekua online girlfriend hoax 'no never,' te'o said in an interview friday night with espn's jeremy schaap 'i wasn't faking it,' he said 'i wasn't part of this' scroll down for video breaking his silence for the first time, notre dame linebacker manti te'o finally answered whether or not he was part of the lennay kekua online girlfriend hoax notre dame linebacker manti te'o listens during an interview with espn's jeremy schaap, right he insists he was never part of the elaborate online girlfriend hoax notre dame linebacker manti te'o pauses during an interview with espn te'o also said that he did not make up anything to help his heisman trophy chances 'when (people) hear the facts, they'll know,' he said 'they'll know that there is no way that i could be part of this' te'o spoke to espn at the img training academy in bradenton, fla, where he is preparing for the nfl draft espn also reoprts that te'o lied to his father about having met kekua, which explains why his father told reporters that the two had met te'o told schaap that tried to speak with kekua via skype and facetime several times, 'but the person at the other end of the line was in what he called a 'black box' and wasn't seen' te'o even lied to his own father about meeting kekau in the late night interview friday, te'o told schaap he 'catered' his stories so people would think he 'met her before she passed away 'i knew that i even knew that it was crazy that i was with somebody that i didn't meet,' he said 'and that alone people find out that this girl who died i was so invested in, and i didn't meet her as well te'o clarified some things about the relationship with lennay 'my relationship with lennay wasn't a four year relationship,' te'o said 'there were blocks and times and periods in which we would talk and then it would end' manti te'o's 'dead girlfriend' lennay kekau was yesterday exposed as an elaborate hoax te'o told espn their relationship intensified after kekua told him her father had died, with the two forming a 'spiritual connection 'she told me her dad passed away, and i was there i was that shoulder to cry on and i kind of just naturally cared for the person,' te'o said 'and so our relationship kind of took another level but not the kind of exclusive level yet' deadspin first reported on wednesday that lennay kekua's existence was a hoax, allegedly played by ronaiah tuiasosopo, a family friend and what should happen to tuiasosopo? 'i hope he learns,' te'o said 'i hope he understands what he's done i don't wish an ill thing to somebody i just hope he learns i think embarrassment is big enough' deadspin first reported on wednesday that lennay kekua's existence was a hoax, allegedly played by ronaiah tuiasosopo, a family friend te’o’s online relationship with kekua had been a major storyline throughout the college football season as notre dame went undefeated all the way to the bsc championships before losing to alabama te'o speaks to reporters before the bcs championship game in which the fighting irish fell to the alabama crimson tide the star linebacker had learned that kekua, who was allegedly battling leukemia after a devastating car accident, died just hours after his beloved grandmother annette santiago passed away on september 12 notre dame's coach even dedicated the game ball to kekua after they beat michigan, the game that sent them to the finals in florida watch video here | fluorimetry uvarovite verdureless | no related information |
by sean poulter, consumer affairs editor published: 17:32 est, 17 march 2013 | updated: 05:23 est, 18 march 2013 new fears have emerged over 'death trap' beko appliances after a fire caused by a faulty tumble dryer destroyed a family's home the devastating blaze left lorraine and brent ward and their two children homeless and they were forced to live in a single hotel room for four weeks the couple bought the tumble dryer to cope with extra laundry after their second daughter lacey was born in november last year, a sister to seven year old molly faulty: lorraine and brent ward, with daughter lacey, lost everything when their tumble dryer burst into flames devastating: the damage left by the flames at the ward's rented bungalow in tamworth, staffordshire overheated: beko had issued a product recall but the couple had not idea about potentially lethal problem but the appliance overheated and burst into flames at their rented home, a two bedroom bungalow, in tamworth, staffordshire, on january 13 'brent was screaming to get the kids out because the house was on fire,' said mrs ward, 34 'it was just terrible we got out, but lost everything we owned 'our insurance had run out while i was in hospital, but with so much going on i didn't remember to sort it out product recall: turkish company beko makes a fifth of all white goods sold in britain 'we lived in a hotel for four weeks, which was not easy with us all being in one room molly was going to school shattered because the baby kept waking for her feeds 'we have found a new home but we are having to start from scratch' the couple received some help, including new toys for the children, but mrs ward said: 'a lot of the things we lost can't be replaced such as keepsakes, cards and photos' she added: 'it was the first time i have ever seen my husband cry – it was total devastation 'i'm not sure how i have managed to hold it together' beko, a turkish brand that makes a fifth of all new white goods sold in britain, knew about the tumble dryer fault and issued a product recall in november last year, but the couple had no idea about the potentially lethal problem the firm accepted responsibility for the fire but it is accused of putting thousands of consumers at risk by supplying products which may be faulty there are also concerns that it has been too slow to issue safety warnings and ensure that customers who own unsafe products are offered repairs the firm is at the centre of a £15million legal action by jennifer benjamin, whose husband died in a fire at their home in wealdstone, north london beko has accepted responsibility for the fire it has passed the case to its insurers which has made the family a cash offer to cover the value of items lost in the fire to date, there has been no promise of any compensation for the stress and disruption to their lives a beko spokesman said: ‘this specific case is presently being handled by our insurance company who have been in regular contact with mrs ward homeless: the family's insurance ran out when mrs ward was in hospital to give birth to daughter lacey ‘it is important to note that beko stepped in after mrs ward’s landlord was about to make them homeless and covered hotel expenses near their child’s school for a period of time until they could be re housed’ he said the company issued a safety recall on the dryer which caused the fire in november last year and, so far, has modified 77per cent of the machines in homes ‘we want to reassure our customers that most beko models are not affected however, any concerned customers can visit our website where there are clear instructions on how to check if their model is affected,’ he said ‘the safety of all our products is beko’s highest priority and we deeply regret any incident linked to one of our products’ | lorraine brent ward family ward brand beko £15m turkish britain | lorraine and brent ward and their two children lost everything they owned . tumble dryer overheated and burst into flames at their rented bungalow . family's insurance ran out while mrs ward was in hospital to give birth . brand beko knew about the dryer fault and had issued a product recall . it faces £15m legal action amid concerns it was too slow with warning . turkish company makes a fifth of all new white goods sold in britain |
by leon watson published: 04:35 est, 19 november 2012 | updated: 08:47 est, 19 november 2012 the parents of a teenager responsible for the high speed car crash that killed four of his friends are facing jail for letting him drive their car aaditia and patricia beer, of queens, new york, allowed their son joseph to drive their 2012 subaru on october 8 even though he only had a learner's permit, prosecutors say joseph beer, 17, who was in court on friday, was high on marijuana and going more than 110mph on the southern state parkway, long island, when he lost control and crashed into the woods around 4am charged: joseph beer was high on marijuana and going more than 110mph when he lost control and crashed into woods victim darian ramnarine is pictured right and neal rajapa, left the richmond hills high school student was the only survivor while his passengers chris khan, peter kanhai and darian ramnarine, all 18, and neal rajapa, 17 were killed in the crash all of the passengers were flung from the car joseph was taken to a hospital for minor injuries aaditia and patricia beer were charged with unlicensed operation of a vehicle and face up to 15 days in jail and a $300 fine, myfoxnycom reported joseph beer faces 25 years in prison for aggravated vehicular homicide, vehicular manslaughter, four counts of manslaughter, driving under the influence, and unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle supreme court justice david ayres kept beer handcuffed during his appearance and doubled the bail requested by prosecutors to $1million cash or $2million bond tragic: chris khan, peter kanhai and darian ramnarine, all 18, and neal rajapa, 17, were killed in the crash nassau county district attorney kathleen rice said on friday: 'the sheer magnitude of this tragedy is unthinkable, and it could have easily been avoided if this defendant had simply made the right choice to drive sober and drive safely 'instead, we have four promising young lives cut short, another young man facing years in prison, and families that will forever be torn apart by this horrific crash' | patricia beer queens new york subaru joseph beer long island | aaditia and patricia beer, of queens, new york, let son drive their subaru . joseph beer, 17, lost control and crashed into woods in long island |
by michael zennie and associated press published: 18:03 est, 17 march 2013 | updated: 07:27 est, 18 march 2013 a young boy miraculously escaped serious injury when a private jet crashed through his house this evening, killing two people and sending three to the hospital neighbors say the child received only a scratch on his head as the beechcraft premier i twin jet slammed through a neighborhood in south bend, indiana plowing through two houses before coming to a rest upside down in the middle of a third the jet was landing at south bend regional airport after a flight from tulsa, oklahoma four people were aboard the plane at the time two were killed two were injured, federal aviation administration spokesman roland herwig told mailonline scroll down for video crash landed: a private jet came to rest inside a house after crashing into a neighborhood in south bend, indiana, on sunday evening miraculous: two people aboard the plane were killed and two more on the ground died but a little boy survived with only a scratch when the jet smashed through his home crashed: this hawker beachcraft premier jet that crashed into three houses on sunday, killing four and injuring at least two additionally, one person on the ground was injured and taken the hospital the plane is registered to 7700 enterprises of montana llc in helena, montana the company is owned by wes caves and does business as digicut systems in tulsa it makes window film and paint overlay for automobiles caves' wife answered the phone at their home on sunday and said, 'i think he's dead,' before hanging up stan klaybor, who lives across the street from the crash scene, said the jet clipped the top of one house, heavily damaged a second, and finally came to rest against a third neighbors did not know if a woman living in the most heavily damaged house was home at the time, and a young boy in the third house did not appear to be seriously injured, klaybor said 'her little boy was in the kitchen and he got nicked here,' klaybor said, pointing to his forehead feared dead: the wife of wes caves, the tulsa, oklahoma, businessman who owns the jet, says she believes her husband is dead tragedy: two people on the ground were killed when the plane plowed into three houses luxury: the beechcraft premier i sells for $2million to $6million it seats six and has a top speed of 530mph the jet weighs four tons unloaded herwig, the faa spokesman, says there was 'an indication of a mechanical problem' the neighborhood has been evacuated because of a gas leak neighborhood resident stan klaybor says the aircraft clipped the top of one house, heavily damaged a second, and came to rest upside down against a third neighbors tell wsbt tv that at least one of the homes had children in it when the jet crashed the six seat private jet took off from richard lloyd jones jr airport in tulsa, oklahoma, earlier this afternoon the beechcraft premier i sells for between $2million and $6million and has a top speed of 530mph | beechcraft south bend indiana aircraft wes caves tulsa oklahoma jet sunday evening | four people aboard beechcraft premier i private jet when it crashed into three houses while trying to land in south bend, indiana . aircraft is owned by wes caves, a tulsa, oklahoma, businessman . caves' wife said she believes her husband is dead . jet was experiencing mechanical problems as it came in for a landing sunday evening |
by daily mail reporter accused: christopher sefton allegedly starved and beat his six year old son for months a six year old boy was starved, beaten and only fed gruesome hot dog, carrot and oil 'shakes' by his abusive parents, prosecutors have claimed the boy's father, christopher sefton, and his wife lori lloyd allegedly abused the boy for months at their auburn, washington home even keeping the child out of school to hide his bruises the couple, who allegedly began abusing the boy in october as punishment for imagined misbehavior, now face felony charges, the seattle post intelligencer reported they were arrested after a child protective services worker at the boy's school reported that he showed signs of abuse, including quick weight loss and bruising to his face the boy, who has not been named, told detectives that he was bruised after sefton punched him for putting food on a car seat as he tied his shoe, according to court papers he also told child welfare workers that he had no been fed for several nights, while school staff also reported that he had been stealing food from other children or digging through the trash for food the child 'constantly states that he is hungry', a detective wrote in charging papers medical care: staff at seattle children's hospital noted signs of alleged abuse on the boy's body, including multiple bruises and possible burns the child said he often went without food the boy also claimed he was only fed a blended 'shake' of 'bread, carrots, water, hot dog and vegetable oil' for breakfast and dinner he said he didn’t like the shakes, but drank them so he didn't go hungry, according to charging papers sefton allegedly told authorities that he had fed the shakes to the boy, but insisted that the child would choke on solid foods but this claim was refuted by investigators after the couple were arrested on march 20, the boy was taken to seattle children's hospital, and medical staff noted signs of alleged abuse, including multiple bruises and possible burns 'over the course of several months, sefton and lloyd have shown a pattern (and) practice of withholding the basic necessities of life' from the boy, the detective said the couple have both been charged with second degree criminal mistreatment, while sefton has also been charged with second degree assault neither has posted bond | astigmism moggio nonaphasiac | no related information |
by snejana farberov and helen pow an obese 12 year old with diabetes has lost 6lbs and is off insulin thanks to drastic weight loss surgery paid for in part through an online crowd funding campaign alexis shapiro was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor in 2011 and the treatment left her with a conditon called hypothalamic obesity basically she gained 151lbs in less than two years after their insurance initially rejected bariatric surgery for the girl, her mother, jenny shapiro, reached out to donors on gofundmecom, and managed to rise more than $86,000 to cover medical expenses the cibolo, texas tween went under the knife march 21, and her mom says she's recovering well from the gastric sleeve surgery 'her diabetes is pretty much gone,' mrs shapiro told people 'she is off insulin' lost weight: the cibolo, texas tween alexis shapiro, pictured this week, went under the knife march 21, and her mom says she's recovering well from the gastric sleeve surgery the thrilled parent said her daughter's mood has also improved 'she looks healthier and has more energy,' she said 'the other day she pushed herself to climb three flights of stairs' doctors hope the 4'7' school girl will lose as much as 50lbs thanks to the surgery, which reduced the size of her stomach to a quarter of its original size according to people, alexis was booked in for a gastric bypass at cincinnati children's hospital medical center but due to complications they changed tack and proceeded with sleeve gastrectomy surgery the 12 year old still can't have solid foods and gets full very easily, but she is on the road to recovery 'of course she wants to be healed and done with everything,' mrs shapiro said, 'but each day gets better' the mom is posting updates on alexis' shrinking size on facebook alexis' long awaited gastric bypass last month had to be scrapped because of her enlarged liver staff at the cincinnati hospital shared on twitter that the surgeons could not proceed with the gastric bypass because the 203lbs 12 year old's liver turned out to be bigger than they had anticipated, and the operation was no longer the safest option for the girl felling better: 'she looks healthier and has more energy,' her mom said 'the other day she pushed herself to climb three flights of stairs' sealed with a kiss: jenny shapiro is seen giving her daughter, alexis, a kiss as the 12 year old is being wheeled into the operating room at cincinnati children's hospital medical center for her gastric bypass surgery last month getting ready: these photos posted on twitter show surgical instruments being laid out and drs inge and helmrath scrubbing in as an alternative, the medical team decided to proceed with what they called a staged approach, opting for a sleeve gastrecomy: a weigh loss procedure where the stomach is permanently reduced to 25 per cent of its original size dr thomas inge, who headed the team of surgeons in the operating room, explained that they were unable to proceed as planned because alexis' liver was too stiff and immovable for them to clearly see inside the stomach inge said a senior surgeon went out to the waiting area and broke the news to jenny and ian shapiro, alexis' parents, telling them that they will have to go ahead with a back up plan 'they were not disappointed,' the doctor recalled 'i think they were surprised that we had to go with plan b' the surgeons were able to nudge alexis' oversize liver just enough to expose the left side of the stomach and cut away about 80 per cent of it, leaving a narrow 'sleeve' roughly the shape and size of a banana before: alexis, pictured in happier times, was a normal little girl until she had surgery to treat a brain tumor common: the weight gain is a common side effect of the brain surgery she underwent young and fit: if alexis gets the surgery she may be able to lead a normal life again and keep off the weight 'we were very pleased with the outcome of the operation,' inge said 'so it was not disappointing at all' while the hospital had announced on social media earlier in the day that the gastric bypass will take place at a later time, this afternoon dr inge said that the jury is still out on whether or not the surgery will go forward it will all depend on alexis' progress he explained that while sleeve gastrectomy is considered to be an effective and increasingly popular weight loss option, alexis may not be able to lose as much weight as with a bypass if the 12 year old does manage to shed enough pounds in the first year to 18 months to significantly reduce the size of her fatty liver, her doctors will evaluate her again and weigh all the pros and cons of a second surgery the operation would entail converting the gastrectomy into a bypass by connecting alexis' small intestine to her stomach 'sleeve' 'i think she will have a new normal,' the surgeon said, responding to a question about alexis' future obese: alexis is pictured before her weight loss surgery health problems: alexis required medical attention on her way to ohio (left), and she landed in the er in february (right) after complaining of chest pains step by step: alexis, pictured here with her parents prior to surgery, remains hospitalized second chance: alexis' mother said she hopes her daughter finally would be able to ride a bike and go swimming in the summer like other kids her age the 12 year old's father, ian shapiro, described the experience as a roller coaster ride for their family according to her doctors, without the surgery alexis would have continued putting on 2lbs a week and eventually become immobile despite a strict daily regimen comprised of diet and exercise if her condition was left untreated, alexis soon would have tipped the scales at whopping 400lbs the weight loss surgery, which diminishes the size of the stomach and shortens the vagus nerve that control appetite, will help the girl feel more sated with less food but the procedure performed on such young a patient is not without its risks, chief among them is the fragility of the metabolic system in children suffering from hypothalamic obesity dr inge estimates that his young patient will be able to lose 20 per cent of her weight about 40lbs in the first year after the surgery alexis' parents, who also have two younger daughters, say they do not consider the surgery a magic bullet that will solve all of their daughter's health problems at once miracle worker: doctor thomas inge, from children's hospital medical center, led the team of surgeons who operated on alexis mrs shapiro says she simply wants her 12 year old to be able to ride a bike like other kids, go swimming with her siblings and walk around without drawing stares from strangers the family said they have been overwhelmed with support from well wishers from around the world, who have donated more than $86,000 toward alexis' medical care, travel costs and living expenses through the shapiros' online fundraising campaign whatever remains of the fund will go towards helping other sick children, jenny shapiro said earlier this year alexis' life threatening condition was triggered by surgery she had two years ago to remove a benign brain tumor called craniopharnygioma during the operation, her hypothalamus and pituitary gland, which help govern appetite and weight, were damaged she now feels constantly hungry and her weight has caused other medical conditions after her brain surgery, alexis' parents had to take extreme measures to keep their daughter from eating herself to death 'she's always hungry,' her father ian shapiro said 'in the past, we've had to padlock the cupboard' in just the past four months, alexis was hospitalized for a kidney infection and developed type 2 diabetes that requires nightly insulin injections more than half of children with the specific form of tumor alexis had experience similar post operative symptoms alexis may be a child, but she wears a women's size 2xl and she goes up a size every month when asked by psychologists about how she is coping with her condition, she has told them she 'wants to die' after tricare, a military health insurance, rejected the family's initial request for coverage, citing a lack of detail in the application about alexis' condition, the young girl's family was afraid the appeal process would take longer than she had 'these kids will literally eat themselves to death,' jenny shapiro said 'that's what i'm scared of' the outpouring of love and funds on the 'hope for alexis' gofundme page gave hope to alexis, whose condition has caused her to withdraw into her shell she is now home schooled and has no friends 'i hope this will be the beginning of the end of all of her pain and insecurities,' jenny shapiro wrote in a blog post 'i hope she won't have to endure another day feeling like she is starving i hope she will be able to think about fun things, not just when she will get to eat next' | alexis shapiro cibolo texas 2011 less than two years march 21 jenny shapiro 4'7 | alexis shapiro, from cibolo, texas, was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor in 2011 . the treatment left her with a condition called hypothalamic obesity, which caused her to gain 151lbs in less than two years . she went under the knife march 21, and her mom says she's recovering well from the gastric sleeve surgery . 'her diabetes is pretty much gone,' jenny shapiro told people 'she is off insulin'. doctors hope the 4'7' tween will lose up to 50lbs thanks to the surgery, which reduced the size of her stomach to a quarter of its original size |
by matt chorley, mailonline political editor and alex brummer in washington britain is storming ahead of all other major economies, with a new prediction for faster growth leading to claims the uk is now the 'mo farah of the global race' the international monetary fund said it now expects a 29 per cent rate of growth in 2014, a major u turn after previously warning george osborne his austerity programme was 'playing with fire' it means britain is now on course to grow faster than any of the g7 richest countries, including the us, germany and france, leading to the comparison with olympic gold medalist farah the international monetary fund said the uk economy was on course to grow by 29 per cent this year, faster than any other g7 country chancellor george osborne, on a visit to brazil this week, is delighted to see britain punching above its weight only a year ago, the imf heavily criticised the chancellor’s economic plans and said he was ‘playing with fire’ by pressing ahead with austerity policies it cut its uk forecasts to 07 per cent for 2013 and 15 per cent for 2014 but in a highly unusual mea culpa yesterday, its chief economist, olivier blanchard, admitted that the imf’s earlier prediction was ‘too pessimistic’ he conceded that the uk economy grew by 18 per cent in 2013 and raised growth forecasts to 29 per cent for 2014 the latest world economic outlook gives its backing to policies pursued by the chancellor and bank of england governor mark carney it puts britain ahead of the us on 28 per cent, germany on 17 per cent and canada at 23 per cent the new figures also upgrade uk growth for next year though they still predict it will be slower than this year ‘consumption and residential investment looked like a rather unbalanced way of growing but i think forward looking investment seems to be coming back and growth is going to be more balanced, so indeed that is very good news,’ mr blanchard said charts in the imf’s report suggest that us interest rates will start to rise in 2015 and that those in britain will not be far behind the bright forecast came as britain’s office for national statistics produced data showing manufacturing rose strongly in february by 1 per cent, after losing some momentum in january because of the effect of heavy rain and flooding in a further boost, the national institute of economic and social research said total economic output grew by 09 per cent in the first three months of this year – the strongest performance since the second quarter of 2010 the imf forecast is a major vindication for mr osborne after being warned he was 'playing with fire' mr osborne, who is on an export drive in brazil, was clearly elated by the imf projections 'it is good news that the imf forecasts that britain is to grow faster and has been upgraded by them by more than any other western economy this year, and that record numbers of jobs are being created,' he said ‘it is proof that the economic plan is working but we need to do more to get exports and investment going that is what the budget was all about and that is what i am doing in brazil this week 'and it is clear today that the growth deniers in the labour party are intent on talking down the british economy and that is the greatest risk to recovery' remarkably, the imf believes that the main risk to its new forecast is that the uk will do even better than expected it expects the uk’s economic renaissance to continue into 2015, with gross domestic product – the total output of the economy – expected to power ahead by a further 25 per cent james sproule, chief economist at the institute of directors, said: 'the imf’s previous economic forecasts have been too pessimistic because they were convinced that cuts to state spending would have a serious negative effect on gdp growth fortunately for britain, this fear has proved to be misplaced' and ruth porter, head of economic and social policy at policy exchange, said: 'britain is now the mo farah of the global race 'we are leading the rest of the developed world in terms of economic recovery but the race is a marathon not a sprint 'the flexibility of our labour market has enabled us to weather the economic downturn better than most other countries but the challenge now is to raise our ambition still further' but labour's shadow chancellor ed balls said: 'these forecasts are welcome news after three damaging years when the economy flatlined and growth forecasts were repeatedly downgraded 'yet millions of working people, who are on average £1,600 a year worse off since 2010, are still not feeling any recovery at all' official figures showed the economy grew by 07 per cent in the last three months of 2013, the fourth quarter of growth in a row another estimate of uk gdp released today by the respected think tank the national institute for economic and social research suggested economic output grew by 09 per cent in the three months ending in march the niesr said the robust growth was relatively broad based it forecast economic growth for this year of 25 per cent and 21 per cent for 2015 but it added that even though the level of economic output had almost regained its pre recession peak, a sizeable negative output gap remains the pound surged again on the news, having already seen a boost today from strong official manufacturing figures sterling ticked higher versus the dollar to $1675 close to a 51 month high of $1680 set in february having opening london trading at just $1661 remarkably, the imf believes that the main risk to its forecast is that the uk will do even better than expected the fund expects the uk’s economic renaissance to continue into 2015, the election year, with gross domestic product – the total output of the economy – expected to power ahead by a further 25 per cent the upbeat imf assessment of britain’s prospects will provide a boost to the chancellor, who is due to arrive in washington on thursday the world economic outlook reports says: ‘downside risks continue to dominate global growth outlook, notwithstanding some upside risks in the united states, the united kingdom and germany,’ the fund says the main risks are from ‘low inflation and the possibility of protracted low growth especially in the euro area and japan’ nevertheless, the imf forecasts that the recovery from the great recession will continue across the globe this year with output strengthening from 3 per cent last year to 35 per cent in 2014 and 39 per cent in 2015 | world economic outlook uk g7 germany only 17% japan 14% france 1% imf | world economic outlook predicts uk will grow faster than g7 countries . now expects germany to grow by only 17%, japan 14% and france 1% . comes just a year after imf warned austerity was 'playing with fire' |
by associated press a six month old female giraffe with a terminal heart defect has died during a surgery that had never been attempted on its species kyah, a giraffe at oklahoma city zoo, had an extra blood vessel wrapped around her esophagus — a symptom of a congenital heart defect — that prevented her from holding down solid food kyah, a giraffe at the oklahoma city zoo, sits on the ground as she grazes at the zoo she died on the operating table when surgeons were unable to save her from complications the surgery took place at oklahoma state university's veterinary medical hospital the zoo’s vet, dr gretchen cole said before the surgery that, at best, kyah had a 50 per cent chance of survival candice rennels, a spokesman for the zoo, said kyah was euthanized during surgery when surgeons realized she would not overcome complications six month old kyah, a giraffe at the oklahoma city zoo, stands next to her mother, ellie, at the zoo in oklahoma city, on april 4 kyah, pictured with her mother, needed to undergo the surgery as she was struggling to keep down any solid food despite the problem, she appeared normal to zoo visitors ‘the zoo family is grateful to our colleagues at osu's veterinary medical hospital for their expertise and hard work,’ said dr jennifer d'agostino, zoo director of veterinary services ‘we knew going into this procedure that kyah's chances were extremely low and we felt we gave her every chance possible to thrive collaborations such as these also allow us to learn more about the species in our care’ the four hour surgery was performed to treat what zoo veterinarians believed was a persistent right aortic arch, a problem often found in dogs and cats osu veterinary surgeon mark rochat performed the surgery and has previously performed about a dozen similar surgeries on smaller animals such as dogs, cats and a cougar he was assisted by other veterinary surgeons as well as the zoo's five person veterinary team this was the first attempt of this procedure on a giraffe, and without it kyah would have had no chance of survival, dr cole said at six months old and eight feet tall, kyah (right) weight 525 pounds and played with the other giraffes in her enclosure kyah, described by zookeepers as feisty and mischievous, did not appear sick to visitors at six months old she was nearly eight feet tall and weighed 525 pounds she played with the other giraffes in her enclosure and picked the occasional fight with the geese that sometimes settle there keepers first noticed a problem when kyah began regurgitating her mother's milk after nursing at was six weeks old the problem got worse as she transitioned to solid food a routine necropsy will be performed, as is standard protocol when animals at accredited zoos in the us die after, the giraffe's tissue will be used for research purpose | kyah zoo 50 per cent | kyah had extra blood vessel wrapped round esophagus . zoo said kyah had at best a 50 per cent chance of survival . she would have had no chance at all had surgery not been performed |
by matt chorley, mailonline political editor published: 02:59 est, 17 october 2013 | updated: 07:13 est, 17 october 2013 a milk rota in a whitehall office was marked ‘restricted’ by mandarins obsessed with security and playing james bond an official also landed in hot water for leaving a document marked ‘restricted’ on a printer, even though it was the only thing written on the sheet of paper cabinet office minister francis maude said the farce had to end because whitehall had failed to move with the times sensitive: a document on what days different milk was bought for civil servants to make tea and coffee was marked 'restricted' by over zealous security officials now the government's security classifications are to be dramatically streamlined in a bid to improve communication and save millions of pounds in future all documents will be either top secret, secret or official after ministers condemned the old six tier system as a cold war relic mr maude ordered the shake up after learning that a document detailing on what days full fat, semi skimmed and skimmed milk was bought for civil servants to make tea and coffee was marked 'restricted' by over zealous security officials he also found emails could not be sent between the foreign office and the ministry of defence because their servers worked on different security levels instead, staff had to run between the buildings with printouts the old markings of unclassified, protected, restricted and confidential are being merged into a new ‘official’ band secret and top secret will remain in place spooks: ministers said the view of spies like james bond, pictured, passing top secret documents around whitehall had not moved with the times mr maude said: ‘most people’s image of government security classifications is of m sliding bond a buff coloured folder stamped top secret ‘but where bond’s cutting edge gadgets and cars have moved with the times, our security processes are beginning to show their age ‘the existing system is confusing and often misapplied ‘when i heard that a milk rota had been marked as “restricted” i knew things had to change,’ he wrote in the independent ‘one of my team even got in trouble for leaving a document marked “restricted” on the printer – even though it was otherwise entirely blank’ farce: cabinet office francis maude said he was dismayed at the way blank or innocuous documents were treated as secret most staff will now be issued with ‘off the shelf’ computers and mobile devices such as those used by hospitals rather than more specialist kit a laptop with government encryption costs around £7,000 a year to run, whereas in future one to deal with ‘official’ documents could cost £1,000 a cabinet office source said the reforms were expected to save ‘many millions of pounds’ more than 700,000 civil servants and military personnel will begin using the new markings from april, with the rest of the public sector following later mr maude is understood to have handed back his top security government computer and mobile equipment, and now uses devices with lower encryption for documents that require a higher level of protection, he apparently only has paper copies mr maude added: ‘whitehall uses a security classification system designed decades ago ‘we are changing that and introducing a new system fit for the digital age it will speed up decisions, make it easier to share information and save hard working taxpayers' money ‘there has been a tendency to over mark documents rather than to manage risk properly ‘this can devalue the basic security principles ‘we think the most important and sensitive materials should be protected as 'top secret' or 'secret' but for other information the new 'official' category, with its renewed emphasis upon personal responsibility and accountability, will be appropriate for most of what government does’ | snecket bassinet monoscope | no related information |
by matt chorley, mailonline political editor published: 07:46 est, 30 october 2013 | updated: 07:46 est, 30 october 2013 a government scheme forcing the jobless to work in poundland for free was legally flawed, the uk’s highest court ruled today work and pensions secretary iain duncan smith failed in a supreme court bid to overturn an earlier ruling that regulations underpinning the schemes were invalid but he hailed the ruling which agreed it was ‘ridiculous to say that our schemes amounted to forced labour’ ruling: the supreme court said jobseekers were not given enough information about the sanctions for not taking a placement at poundland university graduate cait reilly, 24, from birmingham, challenged having to work for free at a local poundland discount store at the court of appeal today lord justice pill, lady justice black and sir stanley burnton unanimously agreed that the 2011 ‘work for your benefits’ regulations failed to give the unemployed enough information, especially about the sanctions for refusing jobs under the schemes it was also a victory for 40 year old unemployed hgv driver jamieson wilson, from nottingham, who objected to doing unpaid work cleaning furniture and as a result was stripped of his jobseeker’s allowance for six months criticism: work and pensions secretary iain duncan smith said it was 'ridiculous' to suggest the scheme was forced labour lawyers for the pair said the immediate effect of the ruling was that all applicants who had their jobseeker’s allowance withdrawn for non compliance with the schemes were entitled to reclaim their allowance but the supreme court ruled that regulations did not constitute forced or compulsory labour while the government took the case to the supreme court it fast tracking retrospective legislation through parliament today mr duncan smith said: ‘we are very pleased that the supreme court today unanimously upheld our right to require those claiming jobseeker’s allowance to take part in programmes which will help get them into work ‘we have always said that it was ridiculous to say that our schemes amounted to forced labour, and yet again we have won this argument ‘ultimately this judgment confirms that it is right that we expect people to take getting into work seriously if they want to claim benefits’ supreme court president lord neuberger, lord mance, lord clarke, lord sumption and lord toulson ruled that the regulations were ‘invalid’ as they did not contain a sufficiently detailed ‘prescribed description’ of the work schemes it also agreed that mr duncan smith had failed to provide sufficient information about the schemes to ms reilly and mr wilson but on the issue of ‘forced labour’ the justices dismissed an appeal by ms reilly and mr wilson, ruling that the regulations do not constitute forced or compulsory labour victory: cait reilly, pictured at an earlier hearing, took the government to court over its flagship back to work scheme ms reilly said: ‘i am really pleased with today's judgment, which i hope will serve to improve the current system and assist jobseekers who have been unfairly stripped of their benefits ‘i brought these proceedings because i knew that there was something wrong when i was stopped from doing voluntary work in a local museum and instead forced to work for poundland for free ‘i have been fortunate enough to find work in a supermarket but i know how difficult it can be it must be time for the government to rethink its strategy and actually do something constructive to help lift people out of unemployment and poverty’ phil shiner, head of public interest lawyers, said: ‘once again the department for work and pensions flagship back to work schemes have been found wanting ‘today's ruling from the supreme court is of huge constitutional and practical significance my firm will now get on with challenging, by judicial review, the retrospective legislation which was shamefully rushed through parliament by iain duncan smith in march of this year’ | supreme court cait reilly | supreme court upheld earlier ruling that scheme was invalid . regulations of work for welfare project did not give jobless enough details . but judges throw out claims that the scheme amounted to forced labour . cait reilly took government to court after being told to work for free |
by sean poulter, consumer affairs editor published: 19:44 est, 17 october 2013 | updated: 11:34 est, 18 october 2013 british gas bosses were subjected to a twitter tirade yesterday as they battled to justify a punishing 92 per cent price rise that will add £123 a year to the average dual fuel energy bill customer services director bert pijls was on the wrong end of an hour of non stop abuse during a question and answer session that some described as a ‘car crash’ he went on the social networking site in an attempt to counter negative reaction to the price rise mr pijls insisted the company had no choice but to put up bills in the face of the rising cost of wholesale energy and green taxes but one twitter user posted a picture of an old woman wrapped in blankets and huddled next to a heater, writing: ‘do images like this help you sleep at night, bertie?’ lee vincent wrote: ‘hi bert, which items of furniture do you, in your humble opinion, think people should burn first this winter? felicity morse asked: ‘have you found a way to channel angry customer feedback into electricity?’ british gas, which supplies 78million homes, announced a 104 per cent rise in electricity prices and 84 per cent for gas, to take effect on november 23 its dual fuel customers will see their average annual bill rise by £123 to £1,444 after the increases, according to figures from regulator ofgem but regional variations in prices mean some customers will see their bills top £1,500 a year twitter storm: british gas customer services director bert pijls was subjected to a torrent of abuse on the social media website twitter during an online q&a enraged: while twitter uses were angry about what they saw as rip off charges they were also able to see the funny side of the social media gaffe britain’s biggest energy supplier said at least £50 of the price rise can be blamed on green taxes and other measures imposed by the government but this was denied by ministers, and david cameron hit back by urging customers to switch away from the company over the ‘very disappointing’ increase critics condemned the increase as a ‘disgrace’ and said it was a betrayal of pensioners and families who face a nightmare choice between heating and eating this winter the price rise follows an 82 per cent increase by sse last week, while the other big energy suppliers are expected to follow suit british gas saw profits rise by 11 per cent last year to £606million more significantly, profits at its parent company, centrica, which makes money from north sea gas and power generation, surged 14 per cent to £27billion ian peters, managing director of residential supplies for the company, insisted he had no choice but to raise prices ‘what’s pushing up energy prices at the moment are costs that are not all directly under our control, such as the global price of energy, charges that we have to pay for using the national grid that delivers energy to the home, and the cost of the government’s social and environmental programmes,’ he said british gas put much of the blame for the price rise on green subsidies for wind farms and new nuclear power stations and the eco – energy company obligation – scheme this involves raising money through bills to provide free insulation to the homes of the poor it wants the cost shifted to general taxation, saying this ‘would lower the average annual dual fuel bill significantly’ but energy secretary ed davey said british gas should carry the can for higher bills, not the government he suggested the company’s figures about the cost of running the eco scheme were bogus saying, they ‘just don’t add up’ last night energy minister greg barker admitted the energy price rises were tantamount to ‘robbery’ asked on channel 4 news if customers were being robbed he said: ‘absolutely, which is why we are doing something about it ‘we’ve made it easier to switch, we’ve made bills easier to read and encouraged people to penalise the big six by voting with their feet and going to another supplier online gaffe: twitter users responded by bombarding british gas customer services director bert pijls with lots of questions relating to directors pays and bonuses ‘by freezing the bills you kill the independents [firms] who bring choice and competition to the market’ caroline flint, labour’s energy spokesman, said: ‘even the government minister can see this price rise today is unfair to customers, but would not refer the rise to the competition commission we don’t have to, we’ve promised to freeze the bills’ high energy bills have risen to the top of the political agenda following a promise by the labour leader ed miliband to freeze prices if the party wins power at the 2015 general election the prime minister said: ‘i think it is a very disappointing announcement by british gas ‘there is something everyone can do, which is look to switch their electricity or gas bill from one supplier to another ‘on average, this can help people save sometimes as much as £200 on their bill so i would encourage customers who are not happy to go to the switching sites online and see whether they can get a better deal’ a downing street spokesman suggested the government would investigate ways to make it easier to switch, john allan, national chairman of the federation of small businesses, said: ‘today’s british gas increase at three times the rate of inflation is a disgrace ill advised: some twitter users pointed out it might have been a bad idea to hold an online q&a the same day the company hiked prices ‘it is going to hit many households hard at a time when they simply cannot afford it more than 40 per cent of small businesses are with british gas and energy price rises are going to make the cost of doing business even higher’ gillian guy, chief executive at citizens advice, called on other suppliers to hold prices ‘now is the time for energy firms to show an understanding of the day to day lives of their customers and put a freeze on further price rises this winter,’ she said richard lloyd, executive director of consumer group which?, said more action is needed ‘we want the government to intervene to make sure everything possible is done to keep prices in check,’ he said consumers can protect themselves against price rises by switching to fixed rate deals, some of which guarantee not to raise tariffs until 2017 for example, first utility has a tariff fixed until january 2016 with an average annual bill of £1,27406, while edf energy has a fixed deal charging an average of £1,33970 until march 2017 | 123 bert pijls an hour | price rise that will add £123 a year to the average dual fuel energy bill . customer services director bert pijls holds twitter question and answer . he endures an hour of non stop abuse from furious customers . twitter question and . answer session that some described as a 'car crash' |
by nick pisa in rome published: 08:18 est, 1 november 2013 | updated: 07:54 est, 2 november 2013 new dna tests on a knife allegedly used to murder british student meredith kercher show traces of amanda knox but crucially none of the victim, a leaked copy of the report has revealed the court ordered findings will be revealed in full next week, when the retrial resumes against 26 year old knox and her ex boyfriend raffaele sollecito, 29 it is already being seen by both defense teams as a boost to their cases as has been typical of the high profile case, details have been leaked and they reveal that traces of knox's dna are on the 30cm kitchen knife, believed to be the murder weapon, but significantly there is no trace of miss kercher the dna of amanda knox (left) has been found on a knife allegedly used to murder meredith kercher six years ago but none of the victim's dna a retrial against knox and ex boyfriend raffaele sollecito (right) resumes next week british student meredith kercher was brutally murdered six years ago on friday while she was studying in perugia, italy questions still remain over her death at the original hearing against knox and sollecito, the court was told how knox's dna was found on the handle and miss kercher's dna on the blade however a subsequent hearing ruled dna traces of the victim were so small they were inconclusive the knife had originally been seized from sollecito's home in perugia, italy, where 20 year old miss kercher was found brutally murdered six years ago this friday knox and sollecito were originally found guilty of the murder at an initial trial in 2009 but dramatically cleared two years later earlier this year, italy's supreme court ordered a fresh trial which began last month forensic experts from the paramilitary carabinieri carried out new tests at their headquarters in rome and deposited their 'secret' report at the court in florence the report says that dna traces from knox have been found on the knife in the area where the 'blade joins the handle' but no trace of miss kercher or sollecito amanda knox and raffaele sollecito pictured outside the rented house in perugia, italy on november 2, 2007, the day after british student meredith kercher was murdered knox's lawyer, luciano ghirga, said: 'these results once again underline the distance between my client and the murder of meredith kercher this shows that the court was right to dismiss this evidence when the pair were cleared of murder in 2011 'it once again underlines that this knife is not the murder weapon and the investigators have worked well in difficult circumstances as the amount of dna on the knife is very, very small' sollecito's lawyer, luca maori, said: 'this proves that all amanda knox did with that knife is pull it from a drawer in my client's kitchen and simply use it for cooking there is no trace of meredith on that knife as we clearly proved at the second hearing' francesco maresca, who represents the kercher family from coulsdon, surrey, said: 'this shows that knox used the knife and put together with the other elements, enables us to pursue the responsibility of those accused' he added: 'the earlier hearings were told how dna from meredith was found on the tip and we will be arguing this point when the trial resumes' italian police surround the rented home in perugia, italy where miss kercher was discovered in november 2007 with her throat cut meanwhile prison guard raffaele argiro, who knox accused of sexually harassing her, has been ordered to stand trial for abusing another female inmate at perugia's capanne prison where she was held knox said that argiro would call her to his office and question her about sexual experiences and that he would always attend her prison medical examinations his trial for abusing an unidentified milanese traffic warden who was briefly held in the jail is due to start later this month and he denies any wrongdoing in both cases | perugia italy meredith 20 six years ago today next week 26 year old knox raffaele sollecito 29 2009 two years later earlier this year supreme court last month | knife originally seized from home in perugia, italy, where meredith, 20, was found . brutally murdered six years ago today . retrial resumes next week against 26 year old knox and her ex boyfriend raffaele sollecito, 29 . both originally found guilty of murder in 2009 but two years later were dramatically cleared . earlier this year, italy's supreme court ordered a fresh trial which began last month |
by katy winter published: 10:08 est, 18 october 2013 | updated: 12:54 est, 18 october 2013 many comedians and tv personalities such as alan partridge and johnathon ross have their own bands to add a bit of interest to their shows and now for the first time a fashion brand has introduced an in house musical offering as asos launched it's own band over the next two months visitors to the fashion site will be able to hear new asos house band duo 'man like me' and one of their muses the made in chelsea star millie manderson (nee mackintosh) will even be staring in one of the videos scroll down for video millie attended the launch party for the asos house band on thursday night, pictured right with her model friend charlotte de carle the new asos house band 'man like me' posed at the launch party last night with tv presenter and host for the night arielle free hundreds of artists were auditioned for the band slot until asos found the perfect duo, johnny langer and peter duffy (pictured here with their backing singer) the first release from the house band will be 'lolroflomfglmfao', which asks 'who needs words when you've got letters?' last night asos launched its new house band, which saw millie mackintosh attend the exclusive vip party at asos hq millie attended with her friend charlotte de carle the pair chatted together, dressed to impressed in printed suits and matching bangs tweeting throughout the evening in the asos fashion house, the pair #twins at each other, with millie overheard telling pals that with mic back on air she is missing the show and hoped for a comeback also in attendance was trendy tv presenter arielle free and big brother presenter aj odudu over the coming weeks the house band will be debuting a series of ditties that take a sideways look at things like the joys of a fashion face off (‘frock off’), celebrity worship (‘me, my girl and ryan (gosling)’) and finding loose change down the back of the couch (‘found a pound’) one of the music videos, ‘supersonic’, features millie and her transition from 'west london it girl to edgy east london' (their words, not ours) that song, which celebrates her sense of style and london’s love of partying, will be released on the asos website 22nd november featuring a guest appearance from the lady herself the house band is the latest clever online marketing strategy used by the fashion brand who were one of the first to introduce a digital magazine other house band inspirations include the perils of buying suitable christmas presents (‘wrap it up’) and the nation’s growing obsession with posting photos of their pets across social networks (‘heavy petting’) hundreds of artists were auditioned for the band until asos found their perfect fit, johnny langer and peter duffy (also known as man like me) one of the music videos, 'supersonic', features former made in chelsea star millie manderson the fashion website hope that the charming pair will win the hearts, ears, and pursestrings of asos shoppers the pair will often be joined by talia, a female backing singer, in their videos the first release from the house band is be ‘lolroflomfglmfao’, which asks who needs words when you’ve got letters seven more songs and videos will be released over the next two months, each premiered on the asos website weekly on friday mornings asos might be the first brand to sign its own band but more and more fashion companies are using the power of music in their advertising and social media campaigns last month h&m announced that super model gisele bündchen is the face and voice of their autumn campaign her hitherto unheard singing voice will accompany the tv and online commercials, in which she sings along to the tune of all day and all of the night by the kinks british brand burberry have also ultilised popular music in their brand development they have run a series of gigs, often held in their flagship store in london, for burberry acoustic, as part of a project that brings together british fashion and music the artists are selected by the brand's chief creative officer christopher bailey, who often uses live music, particularly from budding artists, as the soundtrack for his catwalk shows burberry's new men’s fragrance is inspired by the ‘exhilaration and adrenaline of live music' and the campaign is fronted by musician george barnett, 25 and brit rhythm, the first fragrance burberry have launched since taking its beauty business in house in april 2013, celebrated its launch with a live gig from white lies in shoreditch on wednesday | asos house band' johnny langer peter duffy 'man like me' lolroflomfglmfao mic millie mackintosh | fashion brand asos launch own 'house band' after hundreds auditioned . johnny langer and peter duffy, also known as 'man like me', were chosen . sing witty songs about modern life, first release is ‘lolroflomfglmfao’. also have song about mic star millie mackintosh, featuring her in the video . band were unveiled in launch party last night |
by jill reilly published: 04:20 est, 13 august 2013 | updated: 05:39 est, 13 august 2013 callous: thieves stole the wheelchair of a limbless french adventurer philippe croizon guilt ridden thieves who stole a £20,000 custom made wheelchair from quadruple amputee french swimmer philippe croizon have returned it mr croizon was staying with family at a house in northern france when a trailer containing his wheelchair was stolen but the frenchman who was the first quadruple amputee to swim across the english channel was reunited with his wheelchair today it was left by the thieves in a car park on friday and found by the driver of a bus for handicapped people 'he only called me on monday evening to tell me about it, after watching a report on this case' on french television, mr croizon told afp the 44 year old, whose limbs were amputated after he suffered a freak 20,000 volt accident in 1994, had previously appealed for its return 'they haven't just stolen my wheelchair, they've stolen my autonomy,' mr croizon said after the theft of the wheelchair and its trailer 'i feel sad and angry,' he said 'let them keep the trailer if they want, but at least give back the wheelchair' last year mr croizon made history by swimming across four intercontinental channels he is only the second person to swim the bering strait american long distance swimmer lynne cox was the first to swim the route in 1987 croizon became a quadruple amputee when he was severely electrocuted by a 20,000 volt charge while he attempted to install a television antenna on his roof in 1994 bereft: 'they haven't just stolen my wheelchair, they've stolen my autonomy,' said mr croizon it is believed the first shock stopped his heart beating, while the second actually jolted it back into action and saved his life over a period of several months surgeons attempted to save his limbs but were eventually forced to amputate his arms and legs a keen sportsman prior to his accident croizon spent months in hospital followed by years of physical re education he has battled depression and despondency to return to the world of sporting achievement amputee makes history: philippe croizon, right, has swum all four intercontinental channels with swimming partner arnaud chausserie, left, after all four limbs were amputated when he was electrocuted la victoire: quadruple amputee philippe croizon (right) celebrated alongside his swimming partner arnaud chassery, their successful swim from alaska to russia not long after his accident, croizon was inspired after watching an american woman swim the english channel using specially adapted artificial legs fitted with giant flippers, croizon became the first quadruple amputee to cross the 21 mile english channel in 135 hours in 2010 after he crossed the channel he put his elaborate plan to swim all four intercontinental channels into action, dubbed ‘swimming beyond borders’ wetsuit mishap: croizon swum from papua new guinea to indonesia in a customised wetsuit, pictured, but on the final journey, his specifically designed wetsuit for the arctic water did not fit and he was forced to wear a thin wetsuit in the icy water preparing: philippe croizon (left), and his swimming partner arnaud chassery (right) survey the waters from the diomede island, in alaska on august 15 2012, before their journey croizon risked getting hypothermia because he had to wear a thin wetsuit after his customised one did not fit properly he said after the event: ‘the final stage of the challenge in alaska was the hardest thing i've ever had to do because the weather conditions were so bad so i was very exhausted when we finished ‘water is soothing for me and a much better environment for my body compared to being in a wheelchair ‘i've got no plans for any big challenges in the near future but “never say never” but now i'm going to get some sleep’ | arboriculture exclusion acrylics | no related information |
by amanda williams and chris brooke published: 04:59 est, 17 october 2013 | updated: 17:41 est, 17 october 2013 staff at a school for problem pupils have been giving out cigarettes to children as young as 11 and allowing them to smoke in the playground the cigarettes are taken off the youngsters at the start of the day but given back to them during their morning break and at lunchtime the controversial policy, approved by a headteacher, was put in place to stop pupils from leaving the site to have a cigarette – as staff are obliged to do staff at the elmete central school in roundhay, leeds, have given children between 11 and 16 permission to smoke their cigarettes during break and lunchtimes on school grounds but the education authority has launched an investigation and a newly appointed head at the elmete central school in leeds has agreed to end the practice and ban all smoking on the premises the school for 75 pupils aged 11 to 16, who have behavioural and emotional problems, is attended by some of the city’s ‘most challenging young people’ they had been allowed to smoke between 1110 and 1120am and from 1220 to 110pm until the policy was changed on wednesday 'pupils handed in their cigarettes and possessions each morning and were handed back their cigarettes, at the allocated times each day 'considering the youngest are only 11, it does not seem right staff have to go some way off the school grounds if they wish to smoke' it is understood the policy was put in place by the previous head teacher as a compromise as some of the children were not attending school and were occasionally leaving the premises when they did attend it is thought pupils were allowed to smoke in a controlled environment and to keep them on site the current head teacher has only been in charge for a few days and has agreed to ensure the policy does not continue anti smoking health campaigners have labeled the decision 'inappropriate, wrong and unethical' and leeds city council education chiefs have launched an investigation at the school for 75 pupils with behavioural and emotional difficulties deborah arnott, chief executive of uk anti smoking health charity ash, said: 'allowing children to smoke at school is wrong in so many ways 'it is illegal to sell tobacco to young people under the age of 18 precisely because tobacco is so hazardous to health and wellbeing 'it is totally inappropriate and unethical to allow children to smoke in a school environment 'the school wouldn’t allow children to drink so why are they allowing them to smoke? we urge the school to urgently review this policy' it is believed cigarettes were confiscated at the beginning of the day but then handed back to pupils by staff later in the day scott crosby, regional tobacco control policy manager for yorkshire and the humber, added: 'by the age of 15, around one in eight school children have become regular smokers just one cigarette can make children more likely to start smoking several years later 'children who smoke often become regular adult smokers of which half will die as a result of their habit 'children will also suffer immediate health consequences from smoking, coughs, increased phlegm, wheeziness and shortness of breath, and take more time off school’ anti smoking health campaigners have labelled the decision 'inappropriate, wrong and unethical' paul brennan, deputy director for children’s services, at leeds city council said: 'we take this issue very seriously and as soon as it was brought to our attention we spoke to the school and issued an instruction that it must stop immediately 'we are confident that this practice has now ceased 'the recently appointed headteacher has agreed to review any such practices and to make sure this does not happen in the future we will conduct unannounced visits by local authority staff 'we have a strict no smoking policy in all of our schools and encourage them to promote healthy lifestyles to all pupils' the school regularly invites health professionals into school to talk about the dangers of smoking and offers help and advice to stop the schools website states: 'all staff, including support staff work to remove barriers to learning, and support the pastoral needs of learners' it also states they work to provide positive role models a recent ofsted report noted that the confidence young people have in staff was high | the elmete central school leeds | the elmete central school in roundhay, leeds, is being investigated . staff gave children between 11 and 16 permission to smoke at break . cigarettes were confiscated at the beginning of the day then handed back . the school educates 'some of the city’s most . challenging young people' |
by olivia williams published: 05:59 est, 13 june 2013 | updated: 10:17 est, 13 june 2013 the author of a cry for help tucked into a box of halloween decorations from china has come forward to tell the story behind his desperate letter the letter about horrendous working conditions at a chinese labour camp was found by julie keith, a mother of two in portland, oregon, stuffed between the styrofoam headstones of the totally ghoul decoration box sold at kmart the unsigned note began: 'sir: if you occasionally buy this product, please kindly resend this letter to the world human right organization' plea for help: the letter, pictured, came in a box of halloween decorations purchased at kmart inside masanjia: one of the 're education' lessons, which takes up the rest of inmates time when they are not working producing goods for virtually no pay 'thousands people here who are under the persicution [sic] of the chinese communist party government will thank and remember you forever' there was some doubt as to the letter's authenticity when it was uncovered in october, but now a former inmate at the masanjia camp in shenyang, has come forward as the author mr zhang, a 47 year old from beijing who can only be identified by his surname for safety, said he secretly wrote 20 letters over two years at the camp barred from having pens and paper, mr zhang said he stole a set from a desk while cleaning a prison office one day he stashed his notes inside products with english packaging, hoping they would make it to someone who could come to the workers' rescue 'over time i just gave up hope and forgot about them,' mr zhang said in an interview with the new york times mr zhang wrote that labourers are forced to work for 15 hours a day without time off on the weekends and holidays hidden: the letter was folded into eighths and hidden amongst the the styrofoam headstones in the totally ghoul product, pictured investigation: despite the letter, kmart said in a statement that none of the company's forced labour rules had been broken in broken english he continued: 'otherwise, they will suffer torturement, beat and rude remark [sic] nearly no payment' his plea said workers at the labour camp make only 10 yuan per month the equivalent to $161 labour camps house petty criminals, religious offenders and government critics, who can receive four year sentences without trial china's re education through labour system of punishment allows for detention without trial other workers from the masanjia labor camp and various camps from around the country have been joined mr zhang in revealing the conditions there 'sometimes the guards would drag me around by my hair or apply electric batons to my skin for so long, the smell of burning flesh would fill the room,' chen shenchun, 55, told the new york times she was given a two year sentence for pursuing unpaid wages she was owed from her job at a state owned factory many of the inmates, like ms shenchun, are sent there for lodging persistent complaints against the government 'i still can’t forget the pleas and howling that place is a living hell,' said liu hua, 51, who was imprisoned at masanjia on three separate occasions it is believed mr zhang was imprisoned as a follower of the falun gong religious movement, which the chinese government banned in 1999 roughly half of masanjia’s population is made up of falun gong practitioners or other religious groups masanjia labor camp is located in the industrialised capital of the liaoning province in northeast china sir:if you occasionally buy this product, please kindly resend this letter to the world human right organization thousands people here who are under the persicution [sic] of the chinese communist party government will thank and remember you foreverthis product produced by unit 8, department 2, mashanjla labour camp, shen young, liaoning, chinapeople who work here have to work 15 hours a day without saturday (or) sunday break and any holidays, otherwise they will suffer torturement [sic], beat and rude remark, nearly no payment (10 yuan/one month)people who work here suffer punishment 1 3 years averagelly [sic], but without court sentence many of them are falun gong practitioners who are totally innocent people only because they have different believe [sic] to the ccpg, they often suffer more punishment than others other prisoners agreed that the worst abuse was directed at falun gong members who refused to renounce their faith alongside the production work there are hours of 're education classes' involving endless repetition of camp rules or singing of patriotic songs while standing in the sun people like mr zhang who speak out about the cruelty of the camps can often find themselves severely punished journalist and former new york times photographer du bin, who released a documentary on the masanjia camp featuring interviews with former inmates has been detained by security officials since may 31, according to his sister most of the products are made for use in china, but inmates say they also made coat linings labelled 'made in italy' and christmas wreaths for south korea, among other items for export amnesty international believes there are more than 300 of these camps julie keith said that when she first opened the box with her daughters and found the note, she was sceptical it was only when she looked the labour camp up online that she began to worry about the its author the camp drew press attention again in april when beijing based lens magazine published accounts by former detainees, in which they described being shocked with electric batons, starved, and beaten the magazine quoted the diary of masanjia inmate wang guilan as saying the camp accepted pregnant women and disabled individuals, forcing them to work for up to 14 hours a day, or risk being beaten in an interview with radio free asia's mandarin service in january, ms guilan said that guards at the masanjia women's camp chained detainees up and tortured them in hideous ways, including sexually a kmart spokesman, said in a statement that an internal investigation uncovered no violations of company rules that bar the use of forced labour the chinese communist party announced this year that it would end the practice by the end of 2013, but said there has been no further public detail | huddle ichthyornithidae awrong | no related information |
by kirsten johnson published: 17:01 est, 28 december 2013 | updated: 08:41 est, 29 december 2013 when lottery winner gillian bayford decided to spend some of her £148 million windfall on a fleet of luxury audis, she wound up taking more than the high end cars away from the dealership for the mother of two has split from her husband and started a new relationship with the man who sold her the vehicles alan warnock has quit his job with the dealership and set up home with the multi millionairess, telling friends he is ‘very happy’ with his new circumstances gillian bayford, 41 (left), who split from her husband adrian last month after suffering stress from their lottery win, is now dating alan warnock (right) who sold her a collection of audi cars after her win last month, mrs bayford, 41, announced her separation from husband adrian – who actually bought the winning euromillions ticket last summer – with the couple blaming the stresses that their massive jackpot brought for the collapse of their nine year marriage at the time, there was speculation about a relationship between mrs bayford and married gardener chris tovey, 40, who worked on the 200 acre east anglia estate the couple bought with their winnings – although she strenuously denied rumours of an affair in a further twist, mr tovey claims that mr bayford injured him in a golf buggy collision, and is suing the couple gillian bayford won £148million on the euromillions jackpot with her husband adrian in summer last year after announcing their split, mrs bayford, who was a healthcare worker at addenbrooke’s hospital in cambridge, left their £6 million georgian mansion and has now bought a new house in an exclusive estate on the outskirts of her original home town of dundee mr warnock is helping mrs bayford settle in the pair were spotted christmas shopping together and he has been seen helping with her eight year old daughter and six year old son mr bayford is aware of his estranged wife’s new relationship and it is understood they have reached an agreement to split the lottery fortune, one of the biggest ever won in britain when they went public with their win, they insisted they would not let their fortune change them but last month mr bayford, 43, confirmed: ‘gillian and i have split when you win the lottery it’s so stressful’ at the time he insisted there was no one else involved, saying: ‘there’s never been anything like that at all’ last night a friend of mr warnock said: ‘alan and gillian are an item and are serious about each other he sold her the cars she wanted after the big win and romance has blossomed since then’ the couple met in october last year, soon after the £148 million win, when the bayfords visited gillian’s parents in scotland they went to the john clark audi dealership in dundee, where mr warnock was sales manager, and ordered five luxury cars mr bayford does not drive and the vehicles – three q7 suvs worth about £60,000 each and two q5s worth around £40,000 each – were bought for gillian, her parents, her brother and his girlfriend at the time mr warnock was quoted as saying: ‘they’re a very down to earth couple – they’re very grounded and easy to deal with ‘it was good fun to do business with them and the buzz around the place was fantastic’ speaking outside her new house with mr warnock by her side, mrs bayford told the mail on sunday she had ‘moved home’ after scooping one of the biggest lottery prizes ever to be won in england the bayford's vowed the money wouldn't change them she did not deny she was in a relationship with mr warnock but declined to comment on the matter her spokesman simon garrett said: ‘she will not be discussing her private life now or in the future’ mr bayford’s best friend richard hudspith, 40, confirmed that adrian was aware that his estranged wife was in a relationship with mr warnock and had a new home in scotland he added: ‘adrian is not going to comment about that he is away at the moment anyway’ mr bayford and mr hudspith used to run a shop together in haverhill, suffolk, selling musical instruments and second hand cds and dvds, but they closed the business soon after the bayfords’ win after their marriage fell apart, mr bayford moved out of the £6 million family mansion and into a more modest £500,000, four bedroom house back in haverhill, ten minutes away the bayfords are not the only euromillions winners to suffer marriage difficulties in recent weeks days after the couple made their announcement, dave dawes, 49, and wife angela, 46, revealed their split two years after bagging £101 million earlier this month it was revealed that les scadding, 63, and wife samantha, 42, who won £455 million in 2009, have divorced | gillian adrian bayford 148million last year last month bayford audi | gillian and adrian bayford won £148million on euromillions last year . they split last month after finding life with the money 'stressful'. mrs bayford is now dating the audi dealer who sold her cars after the win |
by chris pleasance published: 21:16 est, 28 december 2013 | updated: 06:41 est, 29 december 2013 england football captain steven gerrard will face a court battle in london just weeks before the 2014 world cup finals, it has been revealed the liverpool player, his girlfriend alex, and their mutual friend lee mcpartland are all listed as defendants in a civil case at the high court a man named as paul alan lloyd is bringing the action, which is thought to relate to a fight in the street near the midfielder's home in august steven gerrard has been named as a defendant in a case at london's high court along with his wife alex (right) and close friend lee mcpartland while reports at the time said gerrard had been assaulted and verbally abused before the attacker ran away, lloyd is thought to be claiming damages because his version of events differs an unnamed source told the sunday mirror: 'steven and alex are both huge icons in liverpool – but there have always been people jealous of their success 'the pair of them have had no option but to call in lawyers over this matter it’s a case of conflicting explanations as to what happened that night 'mr lloyd believes he has a good case steven and the other two might see things one way but it is certainly not how mr lloyd is explaining away events' the case will be an unwelcome distraction for manager roy hodgson as the team fly out to brazil for the tournament which starts in june gerrard was left 'badly shaken' after the attack which happened as the star got out of his range rover in an upmarket village near to his luxury home at the time the 32 year old sportsman was said to have been alone, but now it appears that his wife and close friend were also in the area attack: the claim is thought to be for damages relating to a street fight in august close to gerrard's home where he lives with his wife and their three daughters aged nine, seven and two mcpartland runs a runs a corporate hospitality company whose clients include liverpool fc soon after the incident, a female police officer was arrested in an investigation into whether an attempt was made to obtain cctv footage of the attack taken from a nearby shop pc helen jones has now been charged with misconduct in a public office and is due to face a hearing on january 6 gerrard, who has been a target in other incidents, was raised in the city's notorious huyton area last september a fan scaled a perimeter wall at liverpool’s training ground and yelled threats against his family the man sped away on a bike shouting: 'i’ll kill you and your f****** kids' in december 2007, masked raiders burst in and confronted 31 year old alex as the couple’s children slept in 2001, both steven and alex faced death threats from members of liverpool’s underworld after gerrard was said to have been chased by a local criminal through the streets of liverpool in his car, steel gates 10ft high and state of the art security cameras were put up at the footballer's £3million home liverpool football club and the player's agent refused to comment on the allegations | london high court gerrard england alex lee partland range rover paul alan lloyd | papers at london's high court list gerrard as a defendant . england captain's wife alex and friend lee partland also listed . claim thought to be for damages relating to 'street fight' in august . gerrard was allegedly assaulted as he got out of his range rover . claimant, paul alan lloyd, is thought to disagree with version of events |
by anthony bond published: 03:34 est, 18 march 2013 | updated: 05:25 est, 18 march 2013 a county council has been accused of 'wasting' £250,000 of taxpayers' money restoring a world war one gunboat while cutting public services at the same time conservative run hampshire county council has approved the money for a major revamp of the boat officially known as hms m33 in this year's budget but it has provoked controversy after the council made £100m savings over the last two years and axed 1,700 jobs controversial: hampshire county council has approved money for revamp of hms m33, pictured, despite making £100m savings over the last two years and axed 1,700 jobs the cuts included closing two libraries which are now run by volunteers hampshire council acquired the veteran monitor gunboat in 1990 when disgraced former tory leader freddie emery wallis was in charge it is one of only two british first world war ships still surviving and is now berthed in dry dock at portsmouth historic dockyard, near nelson's flagship hms victory culture secretary maria miller praised the project on a recent visit but councillor peter chegwyn, liberal democrat opposition spokesman for recreation and heritage, said 'i am surprised that the council, which is cutting libraries, museums and galleries, can yet find such a large amount to spend on a ship which is certainly of historical interest but surely there are more worthwhile projects 'i would much rather see the money spent on restoring the book fund and keeping open small libraries and galleries which are under threat of closure' not happy: councillor peter chegwyn, pictured, said he is surprised that the council is funding the restoration project the council has refused to say how much it has already spent restoring the former rusting hulk to her original external 1915 1919 condition built in 1915, hms m33 saw active service in the mediterranean throughout the first world war and provided support for the landing of allied forces during the gallipoli campaign of 1915 16 after the war, she served a variety of purposes, including fuelling hulk, floating workshop and office in 1997, the county museum service placed her in dry docks for extensive works to stabilise hull corrosion other repairs have included new masts, internal structural works and making her hull watertight nearly all the fittings, anchors and gun shields were made from scratch the latest refit is a joint project with the national museum of the royal navy to mark the 100th anniversary of the gallipoli campaign in 1915 it will mean visitors can step on board the historic vessel and see inside currently the gunboat can only be viewed from the dockside culture and recreation chief councillor keith chapman defended the expenditure he said 'the county council saved and restored the m33 warship, which is one of only two surviving first world war ships, and it will now become an even more popular public attraction as the nation remembers the 1914 18 war when it celebrates the centenary of that war' councillor chapman said the county council was in discussion with national museum of the royal navy to secure funding from the heritage lottery fund for future works the ship refit comes after the council closed stanmore library in waverley way in 2012 to save £36,000 per year the library moved to the carroll centre where it is now run by volunteers north baddesley library was also shut last year but reopened the following day as a community library run by the parish council and friends of north baddesley library money saving: hampshire county council has provoked controversy after making £100m in savings over the last two years and axing 1,700 jobs its buildings are pictured | trustier siphonaceous hypobole | no related information |
by leon watson a holidaymaker who left his motor in a near empty car park has been fined after he veered into a marked bay by the width of a tyre peter barr, from west lothian, scotland, broke the strict terms and conditions after marginally overshooting his space at a privately run car park in cornwall the 61 year old was visiting the county for a few days with his wife when he decided to see port isaac, where the hit tv show doc martin is filmed this photo was taken by peter barr to show the position of his car when he got a £100 parking ticket in port issac, cornwall mr barr bought a £3 ticket, went into the village and enjoyed walking around the tv set but when he returned he was shocked to find he'd been fined he said: 'when i returned to the car park i found a parking notice charge which said i was not wholly within the parking bay i agree i was about eight inches outside the bay on the passenger side i hadn't noticed 'but the car park was less than five per cent full so i wasn't inconveniencing anyone and as this was late afternoon the car park wasn't going to get any fuller 'now i have been stung with a £100 fine for my being the two hand widths out of line this is absurd 'i'm quite prepared to pay them £3 for parking in the '2nd bay' but they don't allow any right of appeal for anything other than exceptional circumstances they basically write their own rules and laws!' the car park is privately run and enforcement is carried out by newquay based firm as parking peter barr also took this picture showing how empty the car park in port issac was terms and conditions: the sign at a car park in port isaac where peter barr got a £100 parking ticket for parking outside a marked bay martin clunes (centre) stars in the itv show doc martin, set in port issac enforcement of port isaac's car parking rules is carried out by a newquay based firm as parking company manager kevin mcmanus said: 'i have now reviewed this and can see that the notice was issued correctly as the vehicle was not parked within a single allocated bay 'terms & conditions of use apply at all times and are non negotiable, therefore the issuing officer was correct in issuing the notice 'we have to issue notices for all contraventions, however minor they may appear to onlookers, in order to remain fair and consistent 'had we not issued a ticket in this instance and issued a ticket to a neighbouring vehicle for having no ticket (for example), the motorist could rightly complain that they were alienated as the neighbouring vehicle also failed to adhere to the t&c's 'having said the above, if a motorist appeals in cases such as this (ie minor contraventions) we always offer a concession as a gesture of good will; instructing them to ensure that they adhere to the rules in future' | aptnesses farewelling fibrils | no related information |
by ben spencer published: 19:50 est, 17 march 2013 | updated: 03:24 est, 18 march 2013 determined: hilary devey says she cannot find enough women to work in senior positions, because they put their families first one of britain’s leading female business executives says she cannot find enough women to work in senior positions, because they put their families first dragons’ den panellist hilary devey said many of the women she encounters in the workplace are better than their male counterparts – but they will not commit to serving at the highest levels the 56 year old haulage tycoon, whose third marriage ended in divorce last month, said: ‘the glass ceiling does not exist you find a good woman in business and she’ll often be better than a man – the problem is finding them’ she continued: ‘i can’t get any women on my board because women generally put their partner and children first’ miss devey launched her freight distribution company pall ex in 1996 to fund her son mevlit’s education she made her first million within three years and is now worth an estimated £50million the entrepreneur has previously said the ‘myth’ of a glass ceiling is a poor excuse for women not rising to the top ‘there are lots of myths about why women are under represented in the boardroom, but the excuse about a “glass ceiling” is the worst i am living proof there’s no such thing,’ she said last august ‘the sooner we stop complaining about our biological differences and get down to work, the sooner more women will rise to the top’ the bolton born daughter of a pub landlord yesterday said her earliest memory was the bailiffs ‘taking every stick of furniture’ when her father was declared bankrupt ‘it felt like an injustice,’ she said, adding: ‘i’m in business to make money the road to success was always crystal clear, i knew what i wanted and i made it happen did i envisage my business to be the monster it is today? of course i did out of the dragons' lair: miss devey will leave bbc2's dragons' den this year to star in her own channel 4 show, the intern ‘my company turns over £100million a year and i’m not at all surprised’ miss devey will leave bbc2’s dragons’ den this year and her own channel 4 show, the intern, starts on march 28 she confessed to struggling with building lasting relationships in the wake of the end of her marriage to third husband philip childs, a property developer ‘i’ve been divorced three times now and i’m not bothered about ever having a fourth husband ‘it doesn’t work – particularly in circumstances where one partner has all the wealth,’ she told the observer magazine ‘i find it hard to trust people, particularly men they either end up gay, trying to fleece me, or… running off’ | philip childs dragon | business guru, 56, cannot find enough women for top jobs . haulage tycoon's marriage to third husband philip childs ended last month . dragon says glass ceiling 'is a myth' |
by jill reilly the discovery of two human fingers, a butcher's knife and a bloody chopping board in a children's playground led police to uncover an insurance scam the grim find was made by an off duty policeman in the catalan city of girona and he called police thinking he had unearthed evidence of an attack but mossos d'esquadra police later made the connection between a man who had been admitted to a nearby hospital only the day before for reportedly chopping two of his fingers off in a cooking accident and the gruesome discovery in the playground the discovery of two human fingers, a butcher's knife and a bloody chopping board in a children's playground led police to uncover an insurance scam they discovered that the pakistani man had taken out six accident policies with different insurance companies, granting him more than €122,000 ($168,000) in total in case he did suffer an injury doctors had attempted to stitch the missing digits back on to the man’s hand but too much time had passed for the procedure to be successful, reports french english language website the local the man had in fact already carried out a very similar scam successfully the year before, after he swindled two insurers out of €24,000 for injuries to his other hand the man, who has no prior criminal record, was released on charges on 4 april police made the connection between a man who had been admitted to a nearby hospital only the day before for reportedly chopping two of his fingers off in a cooking accident and the gruesome discovery in the playground (file photo) | girona the year before | the grim discovery was made by an off duty policeman in city of girona . he called police thinking he had unearthed evidence of an attack . man had gone to hospital after cutting off his fingers in kitchen 'accident'. he had in fact already carried outs similar scam successfully the year before |
by daily mail reporter published: 21:03 est, 28 december 2013 | updated: 05:57 est, 29 december 2013 immigration officials at one airport stopped more than 300 such health tourists over two years hundreds of pregnant foreigners are flying to britain just days before they give birth so that they can receive free healthcare courtesy of the nhs, a report has found the women are duping airlines who normally forbid expectant mothers more than 36 weeks pregnant to fly so they can receive the free service expectant mothers trick airlines in their home countries into letting them fly by showing staff forged doctors notes which conceal the length of their pregnancies most of the women who arrive at nhs hospitals then have to be admitted and allowed to give birth, the report found, because their pregnancies were too advanced for them to fly home the average cost of a birth with no complications and one night's stay in an nhs hospital is £1,092 immigration officials at one airport stopped more than 300 such health tourists over two years, the sunday telegraph reported the revelations follow a worrying report in october, that warned that foreign visitors and short term migrants cost the nhs £2billion a year it concluded the health service has ‘some of the most generous rules in the world’ and it even found evidence of relatives of migrants taking advantage of visits to britain to have free treatment the bill was put at between £19billion and £2billion – with only around 16 per cent of the money clawed back the government said it would be ‘impractical or inappropriate’ to charge in full some patients, such as students or those with infectious diseases the study estimated that £388million goes on foreign patients who should pay for their care but are never charged the statistics emerged from an old document on government plans to deny foreigners with unpaid nhs bills entry to the uk though the majority of nhs treatments will incur a cost for foreign visitors or short term migrants, there are a handful of circumstances whereby they receive care for free according to the nhs website, these include: though, officially, pregnancy or maternity treatments are not free of charge, patients who arrive in a&e who are ready to give birth must be treated health tourists – those who specifically travel to the uk for treatment – cost up to £300million more the addition of foreigners to hospitals whose resources already struggle to cope with an increasing number british patients is bad news to over stretched staff a spokesman for the royal college of nursing and midwifery said: 'there is no doubt about the pressures on midwives and maternity services due to the increasing birthrate, the increasing complexity of births and the shortage of midwives in england though the college insists midwives are there to treat any pregnant woman who presents themselves in need of care, there are concerns surrounding the added strain on staff 'the rcm wants to ensure that england's maternity services have the right number of staff and right resources to offer all women the safest and highest quality care' the statistics emerged from a 2010 document on government plans to deny foreigners with unpaid nhs bills entry to the uk the first comprehensive assessment of ‘health tourism’ says the true cost to taxpayers is up to 100 times bigger than some estimates | bungle forcipiform contrepartie | no related information |
by lucy crossley published: 06:16 est, 29 december 2013 | updated: 07:53 est, 29 december 2013 a shameless hitler fantatic banned from asda after he went shopping in full nazi uniform has donned the offensive outfit again to take his dog for a walk in a coat emblazoned with swastikas paul dutton, 48, spent weeks creating the sheepskin outfit for dog albert, decorating it with a black swastika on the back, and an ss logo on the buckle the father of six even combed the chinese crested dog's fur into a curtain style like adolf hitler's as he walked the pet in cambridge hitler hound: a nazi fanatic, who was banned from asda after shopping in full nazi uniform, has created a coat for his dog sporting a swastika and ss logo on the buckle unemployed mr dutton told the sun that albert was a 'woof waffe kind of dog, and that the pair could 'march as hitler's men' in their matching clothing after finishing the coat last month he tweeted: 'ive just made me dog his own sa coat so he don't feel left out when he goes for a walk lol' 'woof waffe': paul dutton spent weeks creating the sheepskin outfit for dog albert and said that he and his dog could 'march as hitler's men' in their matching clothing outraged jewish groups have labelled his latest stunt 'offensive' in october mr dutton was thrown out of his local branch of asda in cambridge after horrified shoppers took offence at his nazi ss uniform hitler obsessed mr dutton, who has swastika tattoos on his neck, chest and hands, was seen pushing his baby grandson in a trolley, while dressed in the black uniform, including cap and red nazi armband 'hitler's men': hitler obsessed mr dutton, who has swastika tattoos on his neck, chest and hands (left), tweeted that he had made his dog an sa coat so he didn't 'feel left out when he goes for a walk' sa stroll: mr dutton walks with his dog, a chinese crested hairless, in matching outfits in cambridge while a few shoppers in the asda store treated it as a sick stunt, others immediately complained to staff, who told mr dutton to leave outraged: mr dutton has already outraged many, with jewish groups labelling his latest stunt 'offensive' an unrepentant mr dutton went on twitter later to say he had been using the asda branch in the beehive centre in cambridge since it opened three years ago and often wore his uniform he said he had intended to hand out cards promoting his website, where he writes about his fascination with adolf hitler referring to prince harry, who had to apologise in 2005 for wearing a nazi uniform to a fancy dress party as a joke, he added: ‘i got ejected from asda for wearing something that is good enough for a prince 2 wear’ shopper rosina rusin, 60, said: ‘my grandmother’s family died in the gas chambers and i thought “here is this bloke parading about” people’s mouths were falling open ‘you are not going to come out like that unless you want to draw attention to yourself one lady was very upset – she was close to crying’ marisa baker, 38, said: ‘i saw the tattoo on his neck and a swastika on his hand it’s not what you want to see, especially as there’s children around asda said: ‘we had a number of customer complaints so we asked him to leave the store’ on his website, mr dutton says his partner left him after he became fascinated with nazism and claims that hitler and eva braun faked their deaths and went on to have children in argentina he also uses a quote saying that the holocaust was a ‘necessary evil’ mr dutton, who boasts on his twitter profile 'i was the nazi in asda on halloween' outrage: in october mr dutton was thrown out of his local branch of asda in cambridge after horrified shoppers took offence at his nazi ss uniform | paul dutton albert adolf hitler's asda ss dutton cambridge woof waffe' | paul dutton, 48, spent weeks making the outfit for dog albert . father of six combed pet's fur so it resembled adolf hitler's hair style . in october he was thrown out of asda branch for dressing in ss uniform . unemployed dutton, from cambridge, says pet is 'woof waffe' kind of dog |
by alexandra klausner published: 17:10 est, 28 december 2013 | updated: 17:12 est, 28 december 2013 a 14 year old girl noticed something fishy when opening a christmas present she thought was the beats by dre headphones she had on her 'wish list' wrapped inside the packaging was not headphones, rather it was cans of chicken of the sea chunk light tuna carmen lopez, 14, of bothell, washington tried returning her disappointing gift to walmart in exchange for actual headphones but walmart only offered to give her a refund the refund wouldn't even be equal to the retail price of the headphones since they were purchased on black friday on sale, reported yahoo news scroll down for video out of tuna: these cans of tuna most certainly don't play any music carmen lopez tried to get walmart to exchange the tuna for headphones but they only gave her a refund not equal to the retail price of the headphones 'walmart had said they would only give us a refund, at least the store did which didn’t sound right, because i just really want my headphones at this point because i was really looking forward to them, ' carmen told kcpq q13 fox news carmen's father steve told fox that he ordered the headphones online during a mega black friday sale at walmart 'this is what i picked up here and it was wrapped in plastic so i thought they were legit,' her father told fox to add to the irony of the situation, carmen's little sister is allergic to tuna fish, reported the examiner even though walmart didn't give carmen her headphones, the gobal account manager of sales for beats by dre did 'last night my father and i were watching the news and saw the unfortunate gift fiasco,' lindsay merkle said her father steve bought the headphones online for walmart's black friday sale 'so we said, ‘ok, let’s solve this problem today’ lindsay decided to make it up to carmen by giving her a pair of headphones for free 'i can only imagine what was going through [carmen's] head,' merkle said 'so hopefully this will help her be a little bit happier and get something that she was actually looking forward to on christmas' the mail online tried contacting walmart who was not available for comment the examiner speculates that a walmart employee may have stolen the headphones and replaced them with something of equal weight definitely not value there is nowhere on the headphone's packaging that would suggest a relationship to tuna fish lindsay merkle who works for dre headphones made sure that carmen got a pair for free | carmen lopez 14 christmas chicken of the sea chunk light tuna carmen walmart steve lopez black friday dre lindsay merkle | carmen lopez, 14, was shocked to find that inside the packing of her christmas gift was chicken of the sea chunk light tuna . when carmen tried returning the gift to the store, walmart didn't give her headphones they only gave her a refund . her father steve lopez bought the headphones during a black friday sale, so the refund didn't even come out to the amount of the headphones at retail price . carmen's little sister is allergic to tuna . even though walmart didn't give carmen her headphones, the gobal account manager of sales for beats by dre, lindsay merkle, gave her a pair for free |
by gerard couzens in madrid and tara brady published: 03:27 est, 12 august 2013 | updated: 10:08 est, 12 august 2013 two british girls locked up in peruvian jail have not eaten for seven days and are said to be terrified and hysterical after they were arrested on suspicion of trying to smuggle £15million of cocaine out of the country michaella mccollum connolly, 20, and melissa reid, 19, are being held in maximum security cells following claims the pair may have been working for a south american cartel twelve guards armed with automatic assault rifles and handguns patrol the perimeter of the building michaella mccollum connolly was arrested last tuesday along with melissa reid on suspicion of smuggling £15million of cocaine both are being held in a prison in peru which they have described as hell held: british girls melissa reid, left, and michaella mccollum connolly, right, have been arrested in peru on suspicion of trying to smuggle £1million worth of cocaine out of the country one guard told the daily mirror: 'ever since they arrived both have refused to eat or drink they have starved themselves while saying they are innocent if they are found guilty they will see what hell is really like 'one has gone to pieces she is hysterical she keeps crying saying there has been a huge mistake they are both starting to realise just how serious this is' as far as their parents knew, miss reid and miss mccollum connolly were spending the summer working in bars and clubs around the mediterranean but now they are facing up to 25 years in jail if convicted the girls' families are today preparing to fly to the country hell: the notorious santa monica women's prison in lima where the girls could end up if convicted santa monica women's prison on the outskirts of lima, peru, where it is believed british teen melissa reid, 19, and irish hostess michaela mccollum connolly could spend as long as one year awaiting trial santa monica prison is overcrowded and known to some of south america's most dangerous female criminals former counsel general in lima, michael russell, said peruvian jails are 'pretty dour and horrible' 'it's all a matter of money, quite frankly you have to buy your space, you have to buy your food if you don't have money you suffer quite a lot' miss reid and miss mccollum connolly were arrested last tuesday after officers say they found more than 11kg of the class a drug in their suitcases as they checked in for a 6,000 mile flight back to spain the foreign office is said to be providing assistance to the girls but according to the guard they have had no visitors shock: the parents of melissa reid have yet to come to terms with their daughter's arrest saying they had no idea she had even left the island of ibiza unsure future: melissa and michaella are currently held in prison in lima, peru shocked: melissa reid's parents william and debra said they are struggling to come to terms with the news they thought their daughter was still in ibiza miss reid left her job as a sales assistant at next and travelled to ibiza in june her mother debra, 53, said she had been stunned to discover her daughter was no longer there she said: ‘as far as we knew, melissa was in ibiza that is where she has been she met the other girl out in ibiza i don’t know anything else about her’ speaking from the family’s £400,000 detached home in lenzie, near glasgow, her 53 year old father william added: ‘we are just trying to come to terms with it and we don’t really know anything’ the family were unsure what to do ‘if it was in spain, it would be easier to jump on a plane out there to be close to her, but peru is a lot further away,’ he said the family of photography student miss mccollum connolly, who was studying at belfast metropolitan college, launched a missing person appeal after she failed to answer her phone or update her facebook page for almost a fortnight they say they did not know the aspiring model from belfast had left the popular ibizan party town of san antonio, where she had been working occasionally as a nightclub hostess since june but spanish police say miss mccollum connolly had not been formally reported missing her mother nora said: ‘we have been speaking to michaella it’s a very difficult time we hadn’t heard from her in 12 days, and now this’ while her sister samantha told the irish independent: 'we're trying not to think of the media right now because some stuff is quite upsetting and there's been some pictures in the paper which are very distressing' melissa reid, 19, (right) pictured with her mother debra reid and left debra with melissa's dad william melissa reid, 19, (right) with her mother debra who said she had no idea her daughter had left ibiza the pair had posted dozens of photographs on their facebook pages showing them enjoying the nightlife in ibiza it is feared they may have been targeted by one of the drug gangs operating in ibiza that offer thousands of pounds to ‘mules’ who carry cocaine from south america to europe in their suitcases a total of 248 suspected mules were arrested at lima’s airport last year and nearly 1,600kg of drugs, mainly cocaine, confiscated michaella's journey: the 20 year old left belfast in june and travelled to ibiza she was arrested in lima along with melissa reid on suspicion of smuggling £15million of cocaine serious: if the girls are convicted, they could be moved to santa monica jail a women's prison with filthy conditions where hiv and tuberculosis are rife the majority of those arrested are spanish, with most mules heading for spain, but there is a growing trend for vulnerable britons to be targeted as mules it is understood the british women took an internal flight in peru to cuzco, where they were allegedly given the cocaine before flying back to lima police said the pair, who flew to the country on august 1, were found with 11kg of cocaine hidden in food packets in their luggage at jorge chávez international airport they had been trying to check in for an air europa flight to madrid on tuesday, with palma, majorca, as their final destination a spokesman said: ‘police searched the women’s luggage they found 18 packets of food products with cocaine, which weighed 578 kilos, in melissa reid’s suitcase ‘sixteen packets with cocaine weighing 5810 kilos were found in michaella mccollum’s suitcases’ the pair are being held in a local women’s prison, but if convicted they are likely to be sent to a notorious women’s jail called santa monica in chorrillos the prison was built for just 250 women but now houses more than 1,000 in filthy conditions in which hiv and tuberculosis are rife cuzco, a world heritage site where tourists can begin visits to machu picchu, is a favourite cocaine pick up point for drug mules, known locally as burriers anti drugs police chief anderson reyes ugarte said: ‘before, gangs would target poor people, but recently the burriers we’re arresting come from europe, mainly from spain ‘i suppose this situation is the result of the economic crisis and unemployment’ the pair were arrested in lima (pictured) on tuesday while trying to board a flight to madrid ms mccollum connolly was at the centre of a facebook and online social media appeal after she went missing from ibiza (file picture) | manches deboise hypocrisis | no related information |
by matt chorley, mailonline political editor published: 05:49 est, 16 may 2013 | updated: 09:14 est, 16 may 2013 workers in the private sector have seen no increase in pay in the last year, new figures show a headline 04 per cent rise in total has been entirely fuelled by increases for public sector staff, the office for national statistics said even these modest rises in pay have been hugely outstripped by increases in the cost of living, leaving millions worse off in real terms pay gap: in january to march this year wages in the public sector were 14 per cent higher than the same time in 2013, but private sector wages were flat overall wages for all workers increased by just 04 per cent in the first three months of 2013, including a fall in march but this was accounted for entirely by a 14 per cent rise in pay for taxpayer funded jobs it comes despite the coalition imposing a public sector pay freeze and then capping rises at one per cent for most staff new figures showed the number of people out of work rose by 15,000 to 252 million the rate of unemployment rose to 78 per cent ages increased by just 04 per cent in the first three months of 2013, including a fall in marchnew figures showed the number of people out of work rose by 15,000 to 252 million the rate of unemployment rose to 78 per cent total pay including bonuses from january to march was up just 04 per cent on the same period in 2012, the office for national statistics the rise was entirely fuelled by increase state funded jobs, with employees in the private sector seeing no year on year increase in pay at all the gap between wage rises and increases in the cost of living has widened markedly since last summer, with pay going up by just 04 per cent compared to a 28 per cent increase in inflation the figure for march alone showed a fall in pay of 04 per cent, the first negative since march 2009the consumer prices index, which tracks the annual rise in the cost of living, stands at 28 per cent it means wage rises are failing to cover rises in bills for food, housing and shopping leaving people worse off every month labour mp catherine mckinnell said in the commons yesterday: 'average earnings are rising at the lowest rate since the end of 2009' she pointed to a study by the resolution foundation, that warned the squeeze on average incomes is set to continue for many years 'the foundation estimates that the gap between what people earn and what they would have been earning had their wages risen in line with inflation will have risen to £3,200 by 2017' average earnings excluding bonuses rose by 08 per cent, the lowest rise since records began in 2001 tuc general secretary frances o'grady said: ‘those in work are taking a hammering in their pay packets with wage growth down to just 04 per cent, while prices rise far more quickly‘it's no wonder the economy is struggling when people in work are getting poorer every month’ after rising for previous quarters, the fissures showed a surprise fall in the overall rate of unemployment to 08 per cent the figures also revealed that the number of people in work fell by 43,000 in the latest quarter to march, to 297 million, the biggest fall since autumn 2011 some 902,000 people had been out of work for more than a year, a 23,000 increase on the three months to december the number of unemployed 16 to 24 year olds fell by 17,000 to 958,000 the government claimed there were now more than half a million job vacancies in the uk, the highest number since 2008 the number of people claiming out of work benefit jobseekers allowance in april fell to its lowest level since may 2011, but still stands at 152million the drop in employment by 43,000 was blamed on a fall in part time workers and government training schemes the number of people in full time jobs rose by 10,000 on the quarter employment minister mark hoban said: 'there are record numbers of women in work, fewer young people unemployed and more vacancies available for those looking for work labour's liam byrne accused tories of bickering over europe while families were struggling 'we are also seeing continuing falls in the number of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance which is positive whilst there has been a disappointing increase in the headline rate of unemployment, we shouldn't forget the progress we are making 'we are not complacent to win the global race we need to do all that we can to help people achieve their aspiration to look after themselves and their families' the number of people classed as economically inactive, including students, people on long term sick leave and those who have given up looking for work, rose by 47,000 to nine million despite yesterday's increase in unemployment, the total is 92,000 lower than a year ago the unemployment rate from january to march was 78 per cent, down from 79 per cent in december to february liam byrne, labour's shadow work and pensions secretary, said: ‘we now have definitive proof the government has simply failed to get britain back to work’ he said the government had done nothing in the queen's speech to help solve the ‘jobs crisis’ and instead tory mps were bickering over europe ‘families struggling for work will be asking quite simply, what planet are these people on?’ however, neil carberry, director of employment and skills for the cbi, said: ‘given the challenging economic conditions at the end of last year, it's unsurprising that we're now seeing fewer people in work ‘what's encouraging, however, is that economic conditions seem to be improving and that full time jobs are still being created’ martin beck, uk economist at capital economics, said: ‘following recent positive news on the economy, the uk labour market data provides something of a reality check ‘there was a triple whammy of bad news, with employment in the three months to march down by 43,000 and unemployment up by 15,000 meanwhile, the squeeze on real earnings has intensified’ | dravidic onychoschizia unfickle | no related information |
by john stevens published: 11:49 est, 4 november 2013 | updated: 12:00 est, 5 november 2013 jimmy savile harassed the wife of a record label boss at a dinner party hosted by tony blair at chequers, it has been revealed alan mcgee said he had wanted to punch savile after he persistently chatted up and tried to kiss his wife kate the new labour donor, who discovered rock band oasis, said he resisted only because he did not want to embarrass mr blair harassed: alan mcgee and his wife kate, who he says was pestered by disgraced former dj jimmy savile at a private dinner hosted by tony blair at chequers mr mcgee, 53, said: ‘at dinner, kate was between jimmy savile and judi dench savile started to hit on kate, kissing his way up her arms, kissing her fingers ‘i was thinking, “what a dirty old man” but at chequers it’s not done to break jimmy savile’s nose ‘kate came over and said, “he’s a pervert” he left her alone once she was next to me’ last night mrs mcgee told the daily mail: ‘i was shown to my seat next to savile suddenly i felt his hand go down my neck and i thought, “i can’t believe that just happened” 'it was so inappropriate i couldn’t believe someone could be so confident to do that knowing they could get a glass of wine thrown in their face while they were a guest at chequers ‘he knew i was married and my husband was at the table but i was too polite and the etiquette of the occasion meant that i put up with it powerful friends: jimmy saville with then prime minister tony blair in 1998 the event at chequers took place a year later friends: labour leader tony blair receives a platinum disc album of oasis album 'what's the story morning glory' from alan mcgee ‘i used to love jim’ll fix it when i was a child thank god my request was never accepted’ mr mcgee, who donated around £100,000 to labour, added: ‘i couldn’t tell [savile] was paedophile, but there was an edge to him, a quiet menace, the threat of violence 'i come from glasgow, i can tell when someone is dangerous i could tell he was connected he was over 70 but i’m convinced he was a gangster’ influential: (left to right) alan mcgee, meg matthews, kate mcgee and noel gallagher at 10 downing street he added: ‘it was as if he was the host rather than tony he was speaking to the whole table, except when he was trying to suck kate’s fingers 'it really shows the connection he had to the establishment i don’t think we’ve heard the half of what he got up to’ the dinner party, which mr mcgee has written about in his book creation stories: riots, raves and running a label, took place at the buckinghamshire retreat in 1999 seat of power: the dinner attended by mr mcgee and savile was at the pm's country residence chequers mr mcgee introduced mr blair to oasis founder noel gallagher at no 10 following the 1997 election, before their relationship soured savile once boasted he spent ‘11 consecutive christmases at chequers’, which is four miles from stoke mandeville hospital, where he abused many of his victims he is thought to visited chequers only once while mr blair was in office | alan mcgee kate chequers jimmy savile's mcgee savile | music boss alan mcgee said disgraced dj 'pestered' his wife kate . oasis boss was furious at 'dirty old man' but suppressed his rage . he said: 'at chequers it's not done to break jimmy savile's nose'. mcgee also spoke of the air of menace that surrounded savile |
by leon watson can't make a loved one's funeral? don't worry, a cemetery is now offering the chance to watch services live on a 4g mobile phone kemnal park cemetery and memorial gardens, in chislehurst, south east london, claims it is the first in the country to offer the high speed video feed of funeral services directly from the graveside grieving families can request a cameraman records the proceedings, which are streamed live over the network used by new smartphones kemnal park cemetery and memorial gardens, in chislehurst, south east london has become the first in the country to offer a live 4g video feed of funeral services directly from the graveside the package is aimed at friends and family who live abroad and are unable to travel, or those who are infirm and unable to leave their home users can watch and listen to the broadcast by logging on to a password protected website on a computer, mobile phone, or tablet the £450 charge includes a professional cameraman, equipment, and wireless 4g data charges families can also request a hard copy recording of proceedings for to watch later some cemeteries and crematoria already offer live streaming from within the chapel using fixed cameras and a wired broadband connection but bosses at kemnal park say this is the first time families have been able to request a wireless, graveside recording with a roaming camera it is available for burials and cremation services michael burke, operations director at kemnal park, said: 'our new 4g service is as close as you can get a funeral service without actually being there a cameraman records the proceedings, which are streamed live over the high speed 4g network used by new smartphones bosses at kemnal park say this is the first time families have been able to request a wireless, graveside recording with a roaming camera 'we are taking advantage of the latest technology to beam high quality video and audio around the world in real time 'it is ideal for friends and family who are unable to travel to kemnal park but still wish to pay their respects' he added: 'people use their mobile phones to record everything they see these days, but they draw a line at funeral services, because they see it as morbid kemnal park covers an area of 55 acres, has 30,000 grave spaces, and a chapel that houses up to 500 mourners 'however, they do realise it may be nice to relive memorable moments at a later date, perhaps if a young relative sings, or somebody delivers a particularly poignant eulogy 'we are now able to film that for them, and have had a lot of demand from people who do want a recording but do not want to do it themselves our new 4g streaming service takes things a little bit further 'we now foresee the time when celebrities will welcome their fans watching their service remotely, away from immediate family and friends' funeral director michael killick, from j and r killick, in west wickham, south east london, described the service as an 'excellent extra' mr killick, who conducted the first streamed service, said: 'there are times when it can be impractical for some family members to attend a funeral at short notice that may be because of distance or their own health 'but just about everywhere now has access to the internet, so we see this 'virtual service' as an excellent extra option to be able to offer a family' he added: 'i found it very moving that the grandson and his wife who reside in new zealand were able to watch this service at 3am their time and still be part of the service at kemnal park' kemnal park covers an area of 55 acres, has 30,000 grave spaces, and a chapel that houses up to 500 mourners it is used primarily by london residents and is expected to host around 800 services this year | vandemonian caparisons bluecoated | no related information |
by laura clark, education correspondent schools are resorting to having kitchen ‘pods’ dropped in by crane as the fiasco surrounding nick clegg’s free meals pledge deepens more than 1,700 primaries have no cooking facilities, it emerged – as research revealed just how ill equipped they are to meet the promise to four to seven year olds from september some plan to hire or buy self contained mini kitchenettes which can be lowered into the playground, as they have no permanent kitchen kitchenpods, fully self contained kitchens that can be delivered to schools and can be up and running within a matter of hours others will be forced to provide cold packed lunches to be eaten at classroom desks figures compiled by the bbc found that 1,749 schools have no kitchen at all many more need improvements to their kitchens before they can deliver the promise the research emerged as a former adviser to education secretary michael gove said that the liberal democrats gave his department ‘just a few hours’ notice of the £1billion policy henry de zoete said the sudden announcement at last year’s lib dem conference meant the ‘hard graft’ needed to develop the details of the policy could not be done this had led to problems with implementation and ‘changes in position’, he said the developments came as headteachers questioned the ‘ethics’ of handing free meals to well off children rather than targeting those who are judged most in need leading children's food expert and no1 parenting author, annabel karmel mbe, has given traditional school food a radical overhaul, with new child approved menus for schools that will be launched this coming september ministers have launched a range of initiatives aimed at helping schools meet the september deadline to deliver the policy these include setting up a ‘small schools taskforce’ – a coalition of caterers, kitchen designers and others – to assist those with less than 150 pupils it is preparing to launch a pilot next term, which will involve providing up to 30 schools with kitchen pods – small kitchenettes that can handle up to 80 meals they cost between £26,000 and £38,000 to buy or about £10,000 a year to hire schools can order bespoke pods based on their pupil numbers and existing equipment annabel karmel, the chef and author, has designed a range of menus that can be easily prepared in the pods, including familiar dishes such as spaghetti bolognese under deputy prime minister mr clegg’s policy, schools will be required by law to provide a nutritious meal – whether it is hot or cold one headteacher yesterday told how he could not afford the staff needed to supervise pupils at lunchtime despite a call, and subsequent promise for free school meals, more than 1,700 primary schools have no cooking facilities and are too ill equipped to meet the pledge duncan churchill, of mudeford infants in dorset, told the bbc’s daily politics show: ‘we are talking about children as young as four walking round with trays of food they need supervision and that costs money’ mr churchill said the free packed lunches already delivered to eligible pupils by outside caterers were ‘the sort of stuff you get on a train, where it’s been left to sweat’ he questioned whether spending tens of thousands on giving free meals to pupils in ‘leafy dorset’ was the best use of the funds pete mountstephen, chairman of the national primary heads group, raised ‘ethical issues’ with the policy mr mountstephen, who is also head of st stephen’s cofe primary in bath, said some families could easily afford to spend £400 a year on packed lunches, cash that could be better spent on those in real need a spokesman for the department for education said: ‘schools are receiving a huge amount of support to provide free school meals ‘we are providing £150million to improve kitchens and dining facilities, as well as £225million specifically to help smaller schools to provide these meals’ | september michael gove 'few hours around £1 billion | despite free meals by september pledge, 1,749 schools have no kitchen . reports emerged michael gove gave his department 'few hours notice'. the scheme is reported to have cost around £1 billion to implement |
by leon watson it's seen as the holy grail of comedy, but michael palin has admitted most of monty python was 'c***' the comedian, broadcaster and travel writer claimed fans only remember the best bits of the legendary python troupe's much loved show and ignore the 'dross' palin, while announcing his first solo tour of britain, said his career had been sprinkled with 'lowlights and cock ups' scroll down for video back together: (left to right) actors michael palin, john cleese, terry jones, terry gilliam and eric idle but he did say he had been lucky to have a selection of 'gleaming' sketches that people remember fondly, such as the dead parrot and the spanish inquisition the pythons john cleese, terry gilliam, terry jones, eric idle and michael palin revealed in november they will launch a comeback this year despite all being in their seventies with a combined age of 357 years, the group are getting back on stage together for the first time in 30 years at the o2 in july the pythons had originally announced a one off show at the o2 arena but tickets to that sold out in 435 seconds a further nine dates were then added, all of which have sold out palin said at the london book fair he will follow it up with a one man tour in the autumn, based on the soon to be published third volume of his diary, covering the years 1988 to 1998 the 21 venue tour, entitled travelling to work, will see palin speak about his career, with anecdotes, photographs and footage 'looking back at 25 years of exploring the world and nearly 50 years in radio, television, books and films' cult comedy: the group's surreal tv series monty python's flying circus was first broadcast in 1969 getting back together: the five remaining stars of monty python (from left: eric idle, terry jones, john cleese, michael palin, terry gilliam, and graham chapman who died in 1989) are to reunite for a show he told the daily telegraph: 'people forgive you the things that don’t work a lot of python was c***, it really was we put stuff in there that was not really that good, but fortunately there were a couple of gleaming things that everyone remembers while they’ve forgotten the dross 'i'm very proud of the things i've done,' he said 'there are a lot of things looking back which you would say were brilliant, but it’s also about what's behind it and feeling of how you recover from things that didn't work so well' palin said he will share anecdotes about the lesser known parts of his career he will include his work on the 1994 west end play that 'got a right panning from critics' and the 1992 series palin’s column, in which he 'pottered around' the isle of wight before writing up his exploits for the local paper the pythons' hugely successful, zany bbc tv series, monty python's flying circus, effectively threw away the rulebook of traditional sketch writing, dispensing with punchlines and allowing sketches to blend into each other or simply stop abruptly the first episode of monty python's flying circus was broadcast on 5 october, 1969 it ran for four series and spawned spin off records, books and even german language specials gilliam's unique animation style became a key element of the show, segueing seamlessly between any two completely unrelated ideas the comedy group made their successful film monty python and the holy grail on a small budget in between filming the third and fourth series of their tv show their next film was the highly controversial monty python's life of brian, released in 1979 telling the story of a man mistaken for jesus, the film was attacked by christian groups and banned in some areas monty python's the meaning of life was released in 1983 and was another financial and critical success, winning the jury prize at cannes film festival palin's tour will begin on september 7 and run until october 22, with tickets on sale now john cleese from the classic monty python sketch the ministry of funny/silly walks' 1 the dead parrot inspired by michael palin's trip to a mechanic who refused to accept there was a problem with his car, this is arguably the most famous monty python sketch praline: it's not pining, it's passed on this parrot is no more it has ceased to be it's expired and gone to meet its maker this is a late parrot it's a stiff bereft of life, it rests in peace if you hadn't nailed it to the perch, it would be pushing up daisies it's rung down the curtain and joined the choir invisible this is an ex parrot 2 the killer joke the sketch about a joke so funny, the man who wrote it laughs himself to death inspector: i shall enter the house and attempt to remove the joke i shall be aided by the sound of sombre music, played on gramophone records, and also by the chanting of laments by the men of q division the atmosphere thus created should protect me in the eventuality of me reading the joke 3 the lumberjack song the catchy song by a cross dressing woodcutter barber: ‘i cut down trees, i skip and jump/ i like to press wild flowers/i put on women’s clothing/ and hang around in bars’ 4 hell's grannies a town is terrorised by gangs of marauding old ladies policeman: we have a lot of trouble with these oldies pension day's the worst – they go mad as soon as they get their hands on their money they blow it all on milk, bread, tea, tin of meat for the cat 5 the piranha brothers current affairs programme 'ethel the frog' presents the story of ‘the notorious piranha brothers, who were clearly based on the kray twins interviewer: i've been told dinsdale piranha nailed your head to the floor stig: no never he was a smashing bloke he used to buy his mother flowers and that he was like a brother to me interviewer: but the police have film of dinsdale actually nailing your head to the floor stig:(pause) oh yeah, he did that interviewer: why? stig: well he had to, didn't he? i mean there was nothing else he could do, to be fair i had transgressed the unwritten law | palin monty python's britain | palin admits most of monty python's sketches were 'c***'. it came as comedian announced his first solo tour of britain . material based on soon to be published third volume of his diary |
by daniel martin published: 19:30 est, 17 march 2013 | updated: 05:00 est, 18 march 2013 a veteran tory mp has become the first to offer to vacate his seat for boris johnson opening the way for a leadership battle with david cameron the move by sir peter tapsell comes as ukip soars again in the polls reaching 17 per cent, ahead of the lib dems, while the conservatives trail nine points behind labour according to tory mps, sir peter, mp for louth and horncastle in lincolnshire, was asked by the prime minister if he would stay on in the commons until the next election growing support: ambitious mayor of london boris johnson, left, is gathering greater popularity as mps such as sir peter tapsell, right, look to alternative leaders for the conservative party mr cameron is said to have told him that the party could do without another by election the 83 year old mp replied that he was ‘keeping his seat warm for boris’ the offer is the clearest of its kind made by a conservative mp so far the mp denied he was part of a boris ‘camp’ yesterday, but the story will add to the prime minister’s concerns that more and more tory backbenchers believe the london mayor would be a better conservative leader than him mr johnson would only be able to stand in a tory leadership contest if he returned to the commons meaning an mp would have to offer to give up their seat to him another complication is that he has pledged to stay on as mayor until 2016 blond ambition: sir peter tapsell said that boris johnson would make an excellent leader of the conservative party sir peter, who as ‘father of the house’ is the longest serving mp, told the sunday telegraph he thought mr johnson would be an ‘excellent’ leader of the opposition and ‘perhaps’ even a good prime minister but he added that his seat could be too far from london to be suitable for mr johnson ‘the problem is my seat is a long way from the tv studios,’ said sir peter, who has a majority of nearly 14,000 ‘boris would want to be closer to them’ the offer comes as a comres poll showed that ukip has surged to 17 per cent in the polls, taking support from the tories lurking danger: the uk independence party, led by nigel farage is proving an electoral threat for conservatives the conservatives polled just 28 per cent, behind labour on 37 per cent but ahead of the lib dems on just 9 per cent a separate poll by icm found that ukip’s policies are favoured over the tories’ among key right of centre voters particularly on immigration, government spending and same sex marriage among those who say they have yet to decide which of the two parties to vote for around one in ten of all voters more favour ukip leader nigel farage and mr johnson over the prime minister in the running: britain's first black conservative mp adam afriyie has also been hotly tipped as a future party leader nadine dorries, the mp for mid bedfordshire who had the tory whip suspended last year for appearing on a reality tv show, said the tories needed a ‘change of direction’ in order to stop the flight to ukip ‘it seems ukip’s march in the polls is hardening,’ she told sky news ‘i think there is a very stark lesson for conservatives to be taken from this and of course it all follows on from the eastleigh by election’ yesterday tory backbencher adam afriyie, who has been accused of plotting a leadership bid despite only having been elected in 2005, declined to state that he believes mr cameron will still be leader by the election asked repeatedly on the bbc’s sunday politics show, he said: ‘i’m not prepared to speculate, because i think what people want to see from their politicians is they want to see leadership and a commitment to getting britain back on top’ asked about his leadership ambitions, mr afriyie said: ‘i’m not ambitious for any position in government or any position at all in the party what i’m ambitious for is for the british people to get jobs, and you know, to feel proud of their country again’ | heckle cookroom departmentally | no related information |
by daily mail published: 20:36 est, 17 march 2013 | updated: 20:36 est, 17 march 2013 gerard depardieu has delivered a withering verdict on his homeland 'france is sad and i think the french are fed up,' the star declared he said the problem is 'especially the lack of energy' the government, he added, 'doesn’t know how to do its job' as president francois hollande has 'never held a ministerial post' withering attack: gerard depardieu said 'france is sad' and the french are fed up under president hollande the 63 year old actor's broadside came during a tv interview in belgium, where he resides many of france’s wealthiest figures have decamped across the border to avoid the threat of a 75 per cent tax rate but depardieu, who last year accepted russian citizenship from vladimir putin, said it was 'not quite true' he moved to belgium for tax reasons referring to the central in the sticks region, where president hollande made his early political career, the film star told notele: 'he just had the correze, which is in deficit' exile: the 63 year old is welcomed by russian president vladimir putin in the black sea resort, sochi depardieu sparked bemused annoyance from the french and anger from politicians when he accepted president putin's offer late last year in a move that was widely perceived to be a refusal to pay taxes sporting a two headed eagle brooch a symbol of russia and framed by a large ham drying in the background, a relaxed depardieu spoke from the belgian village of nechin, near the french border, where he has set up home 'it was not quite true,' he said of the claim he left france over a tax row, adding that he already paid '50 percent' tax in belgium he was not in belgium 'to make money', he said not only is nechin only 125 miles from paris’s charles de gaulle airport, he explained, but having friends in the village and the high quality of the local meat were also factors that tempted him away from france, he said coffers: the actor claims to have paid 145 million euros in taxes in 45 years of working in france but he nonetheless judged hollande’s fiscal policy to be 'a bit over the top' french prime minister jean marc ayrault and culture minister aurelie filippetti, both of whom were highly critical of depardieu’s flight abroad, also received a verbal swipe from the actor 'you can’t criticise someone who pays 87 percent tax,' said the star of cyrano de bergerac and green card depardieu has said that he paid 85 percent tax on his revenues in 2012 and that over 45 years of working and running businesses in france he had paid 145 million euros to state coffers in the interview he also revealed his plans to buy a restaurant near nechin and, on the film side of things, said he had projects in both the united states and, of course, russia | belgium 75 per cent 145m euros france | film star denied that he moved to belgium to avoid 75 per cent tax . he said the local meat and proximity to the airport were also factors . 63 year old claims he paid 145m euros in 45 years working in france |
by anthony bond published: 07:55 est, 18 march 2013 | updated: 11:12 est, 18 march 2013 he has spent his life collecting every number one record released over the past 61 years but, following huge changes in technology, record fanatic simon wratten has had to give up his obsession the company director had wanted to own every number one in the singles chart however, that became impossible after macklemore's recent hit thrift shop was only made available as a download super fan: simon wratten from the isle of wight and his dog woody surrounded by his collection of every uk number one single since the charts came into existence in 1952 disappointed mr wratten, 47, who had collected more than 1,200 records, said: 'i have been beaten by technology, i am afraid that is the way records are sold these days and my obsession is over' while many download singles have previously reached number one, starting with crazy by gnarls barkley in 2006, they have either been released in physical form subsequently or been available as promotional or import cds mr wratten, from ryde, isle of wight, added: 'it has been getting harder and harder to get hold of physical copies of number one hits 'luckily i had friends who were djs or who worked in radio stations and gave me promo copies but i could see this day approaching some way off dedicated: here in my heart, by al martino, the earliest single held by mr wratten and right the wonderful land by the shadows mr wratten's favorite single in his collection diverse: mr wratten's collection includes the beatles, rolling stones, mr blobby and the teletubbies 'i started in 1998, the year my son was born and i thought it would be interesting to collect every number one of that year as a memento thwarted: macklemore's recent hit thrift shop was only made available as a download 'when that was over i thought i would try to get every chart topper ever made and it was great fun filling the gaps 'hunting them all down was an obsession of sorts 'i have to decide now if i should carry on with that missing record as a gap i am finding it hard to let my addiction go' mr wratten's collection includes the beatles, rolling stones, mr blobby and the teletubbies his favourite is the shadows' 1962 hit 'wonderful land' and the one he hates most is westlife's 'the rose' produced in 2006 'i feel sorry for kids today because they will have no physical records, no chance to create a collection like mine 'i think people like hard copies to remind them of key moments in their life, something to look back on in the years ahead 'all those vinyl albums and their wonderful sleeves will be a thing of the past this is all very sad for us record collectors' david bowie's comeback single, where are we now?, was released as a download earlier this year and quickly topped the itunes chart however, it was not an official number one because it was given away for free, meaning that it does not count for the purposes of mr wratten's collection | wratten blobby teletubbies macklemore thrift shop | mr wratten's collection includes the beatles, mr blobby and the teletubbies . macklemore's recent hit thrift shop only made available as a download |
by james nye published: 01:57 est, 18 march 2013 | updated: 10:28 est, 18 march 2013 cnn's coverage of the steubenville rape story has been roundly criticized after the cable news network focused on the devastating effect on the 'promising' lives of the rapists and not the 16 year old victim as the breaking news of the guilty verdict against steubenville high school football players trent mays, 17, and ma'lik richmond, 16, was relayed from the ohio court room on sunday, anchor candy crowley turned to correspondent poppy harlow, who seemed more affected by the tearful reactions of the two teens harlow described the scene in the court as, 'incredibly difficult, even for me, to watch what happened as these two young men that had such promising futures, star football players, very good students, literally watched as they believed their lives fell apart' scroll down for video candy crowley broke the news to cnn viewers that trent mays, 17, and ma'lik richmond, 16, had been found guilty of rape on sunday in steubenville, ohi 'one of the young men, ma'lik richmond, as that sentence came down, he collapsed,' added harlow, saying that the rapist turned to his attorney and said, 'my life is over, no one is going to want me now' during the segment, cnn aired court room video of richmond in floods of tears over the verdict while he hugged his lawyer 'i was sitting about three feet from ma’lik when he gave that statement,' said harlow 'it was very difficult to watch' social media immediately lit up with incredulous reaction to the tone of cnn's coverage about two young men who raped a severely intoxicated 16 year old fellow student and who then swapped pictures and stories of the teen online in the days afterwards viewers of the cable news network expressed their dismay over the tone of coverage as crowley handed over to reporter poppy harlow in ohio journalist hadley freeman of the guardian was stunned, tweeting, 'honestly, save for openly blaming the victim, it's hard to imagine how cnn could have covered the steubenville verdict more ineptly' members of the public were shocked too, with college student jon wainwright taking to twitter to post, 'crack job reporting the steubenville rape @cnn we should always worry about how a conviction will ruin the lives of rapists, not the raped' outrage at the beleagured news networks coverage peaked when crowley asked the resident cnn legal contributor paul callan for his opinion on the verdict for, 'a 16 year old, sobbing in court, regardless of what big football players they are, they still sound like 16 year olds' 'there’s always that moment of just — lives are destroyed,' callan remarked 'but in terms of what happens now, the most severe thing with these young men is being labeled as registered sex offenders that label is now placed on them by ohio law' 'that will haunt them for the rest of their lives' 'employers, when looking up their background, will see that they're registered sex offenders when they move into a new neighborhood and somebody goes on the internet, where these things are posted, neighbors will know that they are registered sex offenders' twitter users were forthright in their opinions regarding the coverage cnn gave to the guilty verdict in the steubenville, ohio rape trial guardian journalist hadley freeman was appalled with how cnn lamented lamented that the 'promising' lives of the teenage rapists had been ruined other members of the public took the view that cnn had got their news angle for the trial wrong jamil smith, a digital producer for msnbc's melissa harris perry show was scathing about what he saw as terrible reporting, 'i hope cnn is embarrassed by the way in which they covered the #steubenville verdict no guarantees, though,' indeed, as both steubenville high school students faced the reality of the consequences of what happened that august night last year, their remorse appeared overwhelming both have been sentence to a minimum of one year in a juvenile detention institution with the maximum stay of until they are 21 emotion: left, richmond, 16, pictured after hearing the guilty verdict and right, as he is helped by fred abdalla jr, chief probation officer for the jefferson county juvenile court while apologizing to the victim and her family defense attorney walter madiso, (right), holds his client, 16 year old ma'lik richmond, (second from right), while defense attorney adam nemann, (left), sits with his client trent mays, foreground, 17, as judge thomas lipps pronounces them both delinquent on rape and other charges today mays faced an additional charge of the use and dissemination of nude images of a minor he received the same sentence for that to run consecutively his minimum detention is two years his actions were, according to presiding judge lipps, ‘more egregious’ making it inappropriate that he should face the same sentence as richmond richmond’s father, nathaniel, who has been present in court every day made his way over to his son, fell to his knees and told him that he loved him ‘my life is ruined,’ richmond told attorney his walter madison, who was clearly shocked at the verdict mays father, bryan, held his head in his hands as the defendant’s sister rhiannan and mother wept both defendants took the opportunity to address the victim and her family – present for the verdict and visible to the defendants but out of view of the main court in a screened off section of seating trent mays, 17, (left), stands and apologizes to the victim and her family after he and co defendant ma'lik richmond, 16, were found delinquent on rape and other charges after their trial in juvenile court in steubenville, ohio today together: trent mays, 17, left, gets a hug from his father after trent and co defendant ma'lik richmond, 16, were found delinquent on rape and other chargesk mays was composed as he said: ‘i would like to apologize to [the victim] and her family, my family and the community no pictures should have been sent let alone ever taken’ but though mays apologized quite specifically for taking pictures of the victim and sending them nowhere did he mention or offer an apology for the rape in every communication with the victim following the night of 11 12 august he repeatedly denied raping her in fact in an incriminating detail it is an allegation he denies before it is ever made again and again his texts show him turning the blame on the victim, hectoring her, pressurizing her not to go to the police and telling her that the rape ‘didn’t happen’ crime: mays and richmond were today found guilty of digitally penetrating a 16 year old west virginia girl at a party last august on the map: the working class town of steubenville, located in eastern ohio, has a population of around 18,000 standing in court, convicted of that crime and filled with apparent regret, the rape remained a crime for which he does not apologize when it came to richmond’s turn, he walked towards the victim and her family, across the courtroom, weeping; ‘i would like to apologize i had no intention to put you guys through this i’m sorry i don’t know what to say ‘i ruined her life’ across days of often appalling testimony the court has heard texts, tweets and emails between the defendants and their friends they have heard about pictures, been reminded of vile video rants and seen the reality of what these boys did and how they behaved, who they were, when nobody else was looking the case has scandalized america and scarred the small town of steubenville, ohio mays and richmond will begin their sentence today they will be taken to an institute just northwest of columbus, ohio where they will be assessed and a decision made as to where they should spend their time in custody | cnn steubenville ohio trent mays 17 ma'lik richmond 16 | cnn's coverage of the guilty verdict in the steubenville rape trial in ohio has been heavily criticized . the cable news network appeared to lament the guilty verdict for rapists trent mays, 17, and ma'lik richmond, 16 . said their 'promising' lives had now fallen apart |
by martin beckford published: 17:42 est, 28 december 2013 | updated: 17:42 est, 28 december 2013 two border officials sacked over their alleged links to islamist terrorists are suing the government at the european court of human rights kashif tariq was suspended by the home office because of his cousin’s involvement in a transatlantic bomb plot bilal gulamhussein was taken off duty because he was accused of being a ‘close associate’ of alleged insurgents fighting british troops in iraq during the british occupation kashif tariq was suspended from the home office after his cousin was involved in a bomb plot bilal gulamhussein was accused of being a 'close associate' of alleged insurgents fighting british troops the pair had their security clearances revoked but government lawyers used controversial ‘secret courts’ rules to stop them seeing the key evidence against them now they are claiming their rights to fair hearings were breached and have launched proceedings against the uk last night tory mp dominic raab, a former foreign office lawyer, told the mail on sunday: ‘these individuals have enjoyed a series of appeals under the british justice system 'it is a perverse waste of uk taxpayers’ money for these cases now to join the strasbourg merry go round’ mr tariq, 34, worked in ports mouth removing illegal immigrants he was suspended from his post on basic pay in 2006 when his brother and cousin were arrested ‘during a major counter terrorism investigation into a suspected plot to mount a terrorist attack on transatlantic flights’ his brother was never charged but his cousin, tanvir hussain, was jailed for at least 32 years in 2009 for his role in the liquid bomb plot there is no suggestion that mr tariq was involved in the terror cell later that year he had his security clearance withdrawn due to fears that terrorists would try to use him to help their plans this prevented him continuing in his post it is unclear when he stopped receiving pay mr tariq sought damages, challenging the decision to suspend him jailed: tanvir hussain, the cousin of mr tariq, was involved in a plot to blow up aircraft however, the home office refused to let him see all the evidence against him on the grounds of national security, and the employment tribunal agreed to hear his case in private, with mr tariq shut out when the secret material was being discussed he challenged this ruling, but in july 2011 the uk’s most senior judge ruled that the secret sessions were lawful mr gulamhussein, 46, worked as an admin assistant in the home office’s immigration service from 1999 in 2005 he was suspended, accused of ‘association with individuals suspected of involvement and support for terrorism overseas, in particular the insurgency in iraq’ he appealed but his hearing relied on evidence heard in secret his appeal was rejected in early 2011 and the home office later terminated his employment the strasbourg court is considering their case their solicitor fraser whitehead said they want to make secret courts fairer by giving more support to security vetted lawyers acting for claimants a home office spokesman declined to comment | succinctly rumormonger pluckily | no related information |
by anthony bond published: 04:37 est, 15 august 2013 | updated: 06:35 est, 15 august 2013 neighbours have spoken of their terror after a runaway horse and cart bolted down a quiet street leaving a trail of destruction and causing thousands of pounds worth of damage the horse smashed the cart into five cars, severed a broadband cable and phone line and narrowly missed a woman putting her bins out as it charged through cheadle hulme near stockport residents heard the commotion at around 830pm on tuesday with the bizarre incident being caught on cctv scroll down for video mess: a runaway horse and cart bolted down a quiet residential street leaving a trail of destruction and causing thousands of pounds worth of damage this image captured on cctv shows the horse and cart the footage shows the horse and cart racing down the street before smashing into a car a man can be seen chasing the horse before it goes out of view a fiat, nissan and vw polo were all damaged with broken wing mirrors, smashed headlights, dents and scratches a toyota aygo owned by steven allan's partner was also badly damaged, suffering a smashed rear window the 35 year old it specialist said: ''i heard a commotion, a massive bang and jumped up and looked out of the window and saw the horse go past the car and the cart bounce on the roof 'i wasn’t best pleased we only bought the car last week and now it might be a write off wrecked: this shows steven allan's partner's car which could be written off after the horse and cart went on the rampage 'there was a girl putting her bins out a few doors down and she just stepped back as the horse came clattering past she could have been killed 'it was close to cutting through the gas pipe 'it damaged five cars, a lamp post, the pavement and cut through a internet and phone line' he added: 'i have contacted the insurance company but at the moment we have no one to claim against noisy: steven allan said he heard a massive bang when the horse and cart raced down the street 'i am a bit overwhelmed i can’t believe it has happened and hope it is a one off horse and carts should not be allowed on the public highway unless they have full insurance' neighbour jim collinson, 66, said pony and carts were often seen travelling on the road and horses were kept on fields behind the houses it is believed the driver had stopped his cart further down the road when the horse was spooked by a noise and galloped off police are hunting for the owner of the horse and cart | goodwives shrift turtler | no related information |
by emma lowe published: 19:50 est, 14 august 2013 | updated: 03:28 est, 15 august 2013 radio 4 listeners could be forgiven for thinking they had tuned in to the wrong station this week instead of the usual round up of the day’s politics, they were confronted by a graphic discussion of pornography and sex to replace today in parliament, which is off air during the summer recess, the bbc aired the first instalment of a ten part series called summer nights, featuring explicit discussions of swinging, orgasms, and sex toys to replace today in parliament, which is off air during the summer recess, the bbc aired the first instalment of a ten part series called summer nights, featuring explicit discussions of swinging, orgasms, and sex toys and the broadcaster caused further outrage with a 15 minute drama, aired at 1045am, which focused on a married man who discovers he is gay by using pornographic websites listeners complained the scheduling was ‘completely inappropriate’ yesterday, branding summer nights a ‘porno you and yours’ after the station’s regular consumer affairs programme opening the show, at 11pm on monday, woman’s hour presenter jane garvey told listeners it would be different to their usual fare, saying it would contain a ‘frank discussion of sex and sexual behaviour’ she added: ‘if that isn’t what you want to hear now then you can switch off and re join radio 4 at midnight for the news’ an ‘expert’ panel – including a ‘sex activist’ and a psychotherapist – then began discussing masturbation and sexual positions, while drinking red wine one panellist claimed people experience pleasure during rape while another described violent sexual fantasies listeners were also given a detailed account of what to expect in a ‘vanilla’ porn film – with susie orbach, 66, explaining how the women would be ‘waxed’ before sex the psychotherapist then described a sex craze among young people called ‘mag and bag’ in which a woman’s face is covered during sex while her partner looks at a woman in a magazine instead benedict garrett, a self described ‘sex activist’ branded pornography ‘democratic’ the 33 year old, who also works as a male escort and stripper, said: ‘porn democratises the human body way more than any mainstream media does the bbc received four official complaints about the programme and listeners took to twitter in outrage, calling it 'awful' ‘in the sense that if you type into a google search engine disabled porn, porn with fat people, porn with midgets, porn with people who are missing a limb, you can find it’ he went on to discuss his work as a prostitute, saying he had once slept with a 40 year old virgin and giving details of what sexual positions they had tried the bbc received four official complaints about the programme and listeners took to twitter in outrage, calling it ‘awful’ one wrote: ‘driving home at 11pm listening to radio 4 as usual … but it’s all about sex! shocking – don’t they know we’re british!’ another added: ‘i don’t want them to discuss sex on radio 4 any more than i want to discuss it with my mum’ the bbc was also criticised for airing the drama how to have a perfect marriage at 1045am on radio 4 despite its adult content the short play featured a wife who discovers her husband uses the internet to procure gay sex the character also finds out her mother has bought viagra for her father one listener, jean howell, said: ‘this content is totally inappropriate for this time of the morning and i had to turn the radio off so the little ones in my house did not get upset … do the producers of these programmes not have children? there should be a watershed on radio for adult content’ the drama received five official complaints a bbc spokesman said programmes were ‘commissioned and scheduled with audience expectations in mind’ he added: ‘the woman’s hour drama often tackles challenging issues and summer nights is a late night discussion programme covering numerous topics – and in both instances the nature of the content was clearly flagged to listeners before broadcast so that they could decide whether to continue listening’ | summer nights 1045am | summer nights featured explicit talk of swinging, orgasms, and sex toys . then at 1045am, followed drama featuring gay pornographic websites . listeners complained the scheduling was ‘completely inappropriate’ |
by sarah griffiths published: 13:37 est, 4 november 2013 | updated: 04:42 est, 5 november 2013 scientists have created a new type of material that can be used to create curved smartphone screens that allows pictures and words to be displayed round corners the lightweight and durable c axis aligned crystal (caac) material means there is no longer any need for wasted space on phone screens the prototypes, created by a japanese company, even allow rolling information to run down the sides of a smartphone the lightweight and durable c axis aligned crystal (caac) material was used to create this prototype smartphone, which has icons down its sides and allows images to 'spill' round its corners it also allows for rolling text down its sides (pictured right) semiconductor energy laboratory (sel) showed off its new technology at the fpd 2013 electronics trade show in japan many people have predicted that phones of the future will have curved screens and the crystal based material means that it is possible to make side roll and top roll oled displays that allow pictures and words to 'spill over' the phone's edges the caac material is less than 100 microns thick and is currently the 'only technology that can display a picture on bent edges,' according to sel the caac material is less than 100 microns thick and is currently the 'only technology that can display a picture on bent edges,' according to sel a message alert is displayed on the top curve of the phone (pictured left) while the home button is conveniently located on the side of the handset (pictured right) amazingly, the company says that bending the material has no effect on the picture quality of the prototype and it believes it will be used to create the next generation of wearable devices, diginfocom reported the company has developed bendable lithium ion batteries to go with its bendable new material, allowing for a sleek watch like prototype device in a test where the battery was repeatedly bent with the wear and tear expected in a wrist device, it could be put on and taken off over 10,000 times sel believes caac will be used to create the next generation of wearable devices the company has developed bendable lithium ion batteries to go with its bendable new material, allowing for a sleek watch like prototype device to be developed (pictured) sel has also created the largest plastic substrate oled display, which measures 135 inches and a resolution of 326 ppi yoshitake yamamoto, from sel, said the caac material is very reliable and allows for high resolution to be achieved in large displays 'one feature of caac is, it doesn't break easily, because the crystals are continuously aligned so, it isn't damaged much even if it's bentthis is the only technology that can display a picture on bent edges,' he said | pseudovarian dolour extraparliamentary | no related information |
by taylor auerbach the superbug which has forced australian swimming legend ian thorpe into 'around the clock' hospital care was picked up in a sydney hospital, mailonline can confirm contrary to initial reports that thorpe, 31, was infected following a shoulder operation in switzerland, his manager will erskine confirmed the bug was picked up in february following surgery in sydney he described as 'incorrect' reports that thorpe picked up the debilitating infection after surgery near his home in ronco sopra ascona rocky water: ian thorpe (pictured at the january wedding of tristan macmanus and tahyna tozzi) in 24 hour medical care after picking up a superbug in sydney 'he was operated on in sydney at the end of january and it was no good the first time,' mr erskine said 'he had to have a couple of repeatsthe surgery was done in sydney subsequently in late february, that's when he picked it up' mr erskine said the five time olympic gold medalist hasn't been to switzerland since 'mid to late last year' there are rumours circulating that thorpe's initial shoulder surgery was carried out by a prominent sports physician based in the western sydney suburb of bankstown, something his manager would not confirm or deny 'i can confirm (the infection) is not golden staph, which raises alarm bells for everyone,' said mr erskine 'they're bugs you can pick up when you go into hospitalhe's receiving around the clock care 'is there a possibility that he'll lose mobility in his arm or that they will potentially have to amputate? it's a minuscule possibility' happier times: ian thorpe (winning gold in the 200m freestyle at the athens 2004 olympic games) will never swim competitively again super athlete: there is a 'miniscule' chance thorpe's arm will be amputated mr erskine estimated the chances that doctors would have to perform such a drastic operation to be less than one per cent he would not reveal the specific bug that thorpe is battling, aided by 'continuous' antibiotic drips he also said his client was not in intensive care 'he's in good spirits,' he said earlier, will's father james erskine who also manages ian thorpe told channel 9's today the olympic legend looked like the 'bionic man' but rubbished suggestions he could lose movement in his left arm 'if you saw him he’s in good spirits, he’s got drips and antibiotics, drains all that kind of thing so he’s not exactly going to swim in the commonwealth games tomorrow,' erskine told today 'i saw him yesterday he’s not in intensive care, he’s a sick boy, he’s not going to get out, roam around and have cups of coffee or meet prince william in the next day battling demons: it was around this time (the 2002 manchester commonwealth games) that thorpe started experiencing depression 'he’s fighting it, he’s got an infection he’s battling, he’s unlucky and how long it’s going to take to clear up i don’t know 'there have been some very serious consequences of these infections and he’s aware of that and that’s why he’s getting the best treatment' thorpe revealed in his 2013 autobiography this is me he has been battling 'crippling' depression since just after the 2000 sydney olympics in early february, shortly after thorpe's first ill fated shoulder operation, he was found in a 'dazed and disoriented state' by police in panania another western sydney suburb he was admitted into rehab days later frustrated: ian thorpe's management say he has virtually been in a hospital bed since january | galleriidae nol allonyms | no related information |
by becky barrow, business correspondent experts have branded plans to give the taxman the power to raid individuals’ bank accounts without their permission ‘extremely worrying’, ‘excessive’ and potentially illegal the ‘unprecedented’ access – revealed in the budget statement – could result in money being taken from innocent families, mps were told yesterday the powers were outlined as part of measures to clamp down on tax avoidance they would allow hm revenue & customs to seize unlimited amounts of money directly from the bank accounts of anyone they believe owes more than £1,000 in tax hmrc claims the new rules would be used to target ruthless tax dodgers plans to give the taxman the power to raid individuals' bank accounts without their permission are potentially illegal according to experts the 'unprecedented access' revealed in the budget statement could result in money being taken from innocent families, mps have been warned but frank haskew, head of the tax faculty at the institute of chartered accountants in england and wales, told mps it is ‘a fundamental tenet of our english law and our democratic society’ that money ‘cannot be grabbed from somebody’s account without a judge agreeing to the move’ he said the change, which could come into force in just 12 months’ time, would be ‘unprecedented in the uk’ he added: ‘at the end of the day, we can’t have hmrc as judge and jury on this’ mr haskew said the tax authority had a long track record of making mistakes and harassing innocent taxpayers – and that it could end up targeting the wrong people in his written evidence to mps, mr haskew said the current proposal is ‘of considerable concern to many taxpayers and accountants’ ‘these powers are extremely worrying and excessive,’ he added patrick stevens, tax policy director at the chartered institute of taxation, said he feared vulnerable people could be wrongly charged he told mps: ‘the concern that we certainly have is that however many safeguards there are on the ability to simply take money from somebody’s bank account, it does rely on the authority having worked out how much money should correctly be taken from it in the first place ‘it may mean over a period of time particularly more vulnerable people – people who are not wealthy, high earners – may become subject to this’ the experts’ comments have added to a growing chorus of concern over the controversial move britain is being robbed of around £35billion a year by cheats who fail to pay their taxes and others who find ways of avoiding them, according to hmrc the powers were outlined as part of measures to clamp down on tax avoidance and would allow hm revenue & customs (pictured) to seize unlimited amounts of money directly from the bank accounts of anyone they believes owes more than £1,000 in tax under the proposals, which will be subject to a consultation, hmrc will be able to take all the money that a person owes in tax out of their bank account, subject to two key rules it cannot take the full amount unless the person would have at least £5,000 left across all bank accounts after the tax debt has been paid and the money can only be taken if hmrc has contacted the person at least three times about the unpaid tax bill hmrc estimates around 17,000 people a year will be hit by the new rules and each of them will typically owe around £5,800 but andrew tyrie mp, who chairs the commons treasury committee, has previously said members of the committee were ‘concerned’ about the move liberal democrat mp john thurso, who sits on the committee, has said: ‘the victims will be people with just enough money to go after but not enough to hire lawyers to fend it off’ he said any such ‘advance of powers by the state’ should be ‘resisted unless they can justify it’ mr stevens has previously said: ‘there are lots of very unsophisticated people out there with more than £5,000 in a bank account we are truly worried about the vulnerable’ mr haskew said the new law could trigger ‘perverse effects’, such as people keeping their money in cash, rather than in a bank account, so hmrc cannot get its hands on the money in the budget documents, the treasury insists hmrc’s new debt collection powers ‘bring the uk in line with many other tax authorities which already have the power to recover debts directly from an individual’s account, such as france and america’ an hmrc spokesman said: ‘most people pay their taxes on time, but a minority do not, and some refuse to engage with us at all ‘it is wrong that this should hand an advantage to those who simply dodge their obligations and is unfair on the vast majority who pay their taxes in full and on time ‘we will shortly be consulting on a new measure with appropriate safeguards to help level the playing field, and tackle those who have the means to pay but are choosing not to ‘this will only affect a tiny number of debtors’ overall, hmrc estimates around half of the people who it will be targeting have more than £20,000 in their bank accounts, but are still refusing to pay their tax bill | budget hmrc more than £1,000 britain more than £35billion | plans could result in money being taken from innocent families say experts . proposal outlined in the budget statement in a bid to tackle tax avoidance . powers would allow hmrc to seize money from accounts of anyone they believe owes more than £1,000 in tax . britain is robbed of more than £35billion a year by tax cheats |
by anna edwards published: 05:08 est, 18 march 2013 | updated: 05:59 est, 18 march 2013 a horror film fan twisted a knife into a man's chest while growling like the devil, a court heard gary george is accused of murdering supermarket worker andrew nall, who was found in his home with 49 stab, slash and cut wounds and carvings on his face and body george, 42, allegedly twisted a knife into the 53 year old's body and said: 'it's too late, i have killed him', his co defendant christine holleran said holleran, 50, told a jury at chester crown court that there had been a 'ding dong' at mr nall's home on in chester the night he was killed but she left the flat when somebody shouted at her to leave christine holleran (right) accused gary george (left) of behaving 'like the devil' and plunging a knife into andrew nall's chest holleran told the court that she returned to see george sitting astride mr nall 'like he was riding a horse', stabbing him on the lounge floor she claims she fled in shock and came back later to find mr nall lying on his back near the bedroom and george kneeling over him twisting a knife into his body 'i will never forget it for as long as i live,' she said 'gary was kneeling next to andy and he was twisting the knife in him' holleran, who told the jury george was growling as he stabbed mr nall, said: 'he was like the devil' george, who is allegedly obsessed with australian horror film 'the loved ones' and holleran are jointly charged with murdering mr nall in chester last august the pair deny murder although george, of no fixed abode, admits killing mr nall but claims it was an act of manslaughter george has also denied causing grievous bodily harm with intent to homeless man brian james riley mr nall was found with 49 stab, slash and cut wounds to his body including a number of unusual carvings on his face and body the former supermarket worker was found with 49 stab wounds and carvings on his face and body in his chester home holleran had been living with mr nall at the time of his killing and has previously told the court the couple were going to get married she said she had been drinking with mr nall and george on the night of august 30 and mr nall had put on music and was dancing and showing off a tattoo on his bottom holleran said she could not remember going to bargain booze with george to buy more alcohol at about 930pm that night and denied telling george she had been raped by mr nall she was unable to recall where she had slept on the night mr nall was killed or where she had been in the hours after his death, although cctv footage showed her hugging george in the street on august 31 holleran said she was too scared to call the police after seeing mr nall had been killed she said: 'he (george) might have stabbed me he had already put bleach in my eyeballs 'he was a hard nut, people referred to him as the gangster of chester 'well, he thought he was the gangster of chester anyway' ian unsworth qc, prosecuting, said to holleran: 'i put it to you that you are a liar and that you have selective memory when it comes to the killing and injury of mr nall 'you took part in that didn't you?' holleran replied: 'no i loved andy, he meant the world to me i would never do that' mr unsworth said holleran had previous convictions for attacking men and she agreed she had a propensity to attack men while drunk he said: 'you are a cold hearted woman 'you say you were upset by what had happened to mr nall 'when you were embracing the man you described as the devil were you shedding a tear for andy then? 'when you saw him twisting the knife in a demonic manner did you shed a tear for andy then?' holleran replied: 'i can't remember' the trial before the recorder of chester judge elgan edwards continues sorry we are unable to accept comments for legal reasons | recognized pregratification monochromes | no related information |
by daily mail reporter published: 09:44 est, 19 january 2013 | updated: 13:49 est, 19 january 2013 the dean of a florida business school has died after he was run over by his own car while trying to stop it being towed away elias konwufine, 39, climbed onto the truck that was making off with his vehicle on wednesday but lost his balance and fell off, under the wheels of his own car the tragic accident happened at around 6:25 pm outside the married father of three's home in lauderhill, west of fort lauderdale, where he was parked illegally on the grass he was pronounced dead at broward health medical center three hours after the fatal fall scroll down for video tragic: elias konwufine, 39, pictured, was trying to stop his vehicle from being towed on wednesday when he fell under the wheels of his car no charges have been filed and cause of death has not been determined, according to lauderhill police captain rick rocco 'we're going back to the scene to see if there were any video recordings,' he said 'the car was picked up from the rear end so the front wheels were slightly turned (it was) not following true behind the truck, it's kind of like on an opposite angle, so this guy gets run over by his own car as the tow truck driver's going forward' dr konwufine's family and friends are devastated after the accident and are planning to sue the tow truck company, capitol towing devastated: the business school dean left behind a wife and three children, pictured accident: the accident happened outside the family's lauderhill, florida, home, pictured 'there was no reason for this there is no justification,' a relative told wsvn tv 'we don't know what we are going to do without him' konwufine's friend, shoghi ndobe, told nbc miami that he 'really wants justice, especially with the tow company' he said the dean, who had two doctorates by the time he was 37, was 'a wonderful person,' and added that he was 'in disbelief about what happened' the capitol towing employee who was driving the vehicle at the time told nbc he too was in shock 'i've been doing this 15 years and it hurt,' the man, who only wanted to be identified as ken, told nbc 'i'm upset about it' he said: 'when i turned around, i saw him get back off the truck' sad: elias konwufine, pictured left, was run over by capitol towing driver ken, right, on wednesday then he said he later felt 'a bump, not knowing he fell off the truck his car ran him over' konwufine's school, keiser university, described his death as a 'tremendous loss' 'keiser university is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of dr elias konwufine,' it said in a statement 'dr konwufine touched and positively shaped the lives of his students, alumni and colleagues in special ways, every day, and collectively our hearts remain heavy as we cope with this tremendous loss' wsvn tv view more videos at: http://nbcmiamicom | elias konwufine keiser university fort lauderdale florida ken capitol towing | elias konwufine, 39, climbed onto a tow truck that was making off with his vehicle but lost his . balance and fell under the wheels of his own car . the married father of three was dean at keiser university in fort lauderdale, florida . the driver, ken, from company capitol towing said he felt a 'bump' as the man went under the wheels |
by matt chorley, mailonline political editor published: 09:15 est, 18 march 2013 | updated: 20:52 est, 18 march 2013 chancellor george osborne is under pressure to act to cut the cost of living, as new figures show the economic downturn left middle income households £3,000 a year worse off the disposable income of an average family is twice what it was in the late 1970s, official figures showed yesterday but the report reveals that the rise is not down to significant tax cuts, as the taxman’s share of middle class incomes has hardly changed over the past 35 years the disposable income after taxes and benefits of a middle earning and working age household is currently £29,900, according to the analysis from the office for national statistics this is a fall from a peak of £31,100 in 2007, before the recession eroded the earnings of middle britain but back in 1977, the era of union barons and near national bankruptcy, the average disposable income was half this level when calculated at today’s prices – £15,500 the proportion the treasury takes from the average income in tax has hardly changed instead the state has continued to demand virtually the same share of middle incomes – around a third this means that, in real cash terms, governments have taken increasing amounts from families the ons report says that, at current prices, the taxman was grabbing a little over £8,000 a year from an average income family in 1977, but £14,464 out of their income in 2007, and £12,654 now it comes as chancellor george osborne faces growing calls to act to tackle the rising cost of living in wednesday's budget he is expected to scrap planned rises in fuel duty, offer more help to homebuyers and tax breaks to help working families with the cost of childcare there will also be the promise of a flat rate £155 a week pension and a cap of £73,000 on the costs of social care which an individual will have to find before the state will help the statistics watchdog examined the effects of the downturn on the crucial ‘middle fifth’ of the income distribution range to see how the middle classes were hit average incomes for all families rose steadily since the 1970s, until the financial crash in 2007 before tax and cash benefits are taken into account, the average income for non retired households in the middle fifth stood at £36,400 in 2007 08 but by 2010 11 it had fallen by 88 per cent to £33,200 the ons said: ‘this was largely due to income from wages and salaries falling for this group since the start of the economic downturn ‘however, the effect of falling earnings was partly offset by an increase in the average amount these households received in cash benefits and a fall in the proportion of gross income paid in direct taxes’ after tax, disposable incomes also fell during the double dip recession but not as steeply between 2007 08 and 2010 11, after adjusting for inflation, the average disposable income the ‘middle fifth’ fell by 38 per cent, from £31,100 a year to £29,900 should this budget be george osborne's last chance to turn around britain's economy? however, researchers found that over the longer term, britons are still much better off than in the 1970s when, allowing for inflation, the average middle income household had a disposable income of £15,500 in 1977 for all households from the richest to the poorest, the median disposable income in 2010 11 was £22,590, wiping out rises since 2005 06 incomes have also been hit by the coalition's decision to increase vat from 175 per cent to 20 per cent in 2010 but at 2010 11 prices, disposable incomes are still much higher than the £10,708 enjoyed by a family in 1977 the revelation that 'squeezed middle' families were left £3,200 a year worse off by the recession coincides with a survey by consumer watchdog which? suggested families have curbed their spending by more than £3,000 a year since the economic downturn as brits feel the squeeze they are scaling back on buying non essential items in an attempt to save money, according to consumer watchdog which? this frugal attitude has created a £136billion hole in the economy, which is already limping under the strain of austerity measures the research found that even despite the 2007 financial crash, the middle classes had seen their incomes double in real terms since the 1970s, when economic turmoil and industrial strife saw rubbish piled up in the streets, including in an official rubbish dump in london's leicester square in 1977, the middle fifth of non retired households paid 163 per cent of their gross income in indirect taxes by 2010/11, this had fallen to 15 per cent, the ons said the ons said there was a close link between average family incomes and the state of the wider economy incomes rose during periods of economic growth and fell after the recessions of the early 1980s, early 1990s and late 2000s for 30 years form 1977, the proportion of income paid in direct taxes remained relatively stable at around 21 to 23 per cent but since the downturn, the level has fallen to 192 per cent, largely as a result of the relative decrease in the amount of income tax paid tuc general secretary frances o’grady said: 'these figures show the real cost of the uk’s living standards crisis for middle britain, with households thousands of pounds poorer today than five years ago 'but rather than helping families, the government’s real terms cut in welfare support next month will make them ever poorer 'the chancellor can start putting right this damage in his budget on wednesday by cutting vat, which will save households hundreds of pounds a year tuc research shows this is the most effective way to help low and middle income households 'cutting vat and reversing welfare cuts, rather than reducing corporation tax or raising the personal allowance again, would show that the chancellor is prioritising the living standards of middle britain over big business and rich households' the figures show non retired households have seen sharper rises and bigger falls in their incomes increases in the personal tax allowance has contributed to a reduction in the amount the middle fifth now pay in tax, which for direct taxes (income tax, council tax) stood at 192 per cent of gross income in 2010/11, compared to 235 per cent in 1977 indirect taxes, such as vat and fuel duty, have also fallen from 163 per cent to 15 per cent, reflecting the reduction in consumer spending during the financial crisis, but has started to rise again since the vat rate rose to 20 per cent in january 2011 but the figures do show the toll that the credit crunch has taken on households that were previously financially comfortable the average disposable income of those in the middle who have not yet retired stood at £29,900 in 2010/11, but this has fallen by around 38 per cent from the £31,000 it was before the financial crisis hit the number of non retired households relying more on the state has also increased, with cash benefits in the middle fifth increasing by 26 per cent since the downturn began thanks in the main to more retired people receiving the state pension | 2007 to 2011 fifth 3,200 20,300 1977 37,000 2010 11 george osborne wednesday budget | from 2007 to 2011, the 'middle fifth' of households saw incomes fall by £3,200 a year . but gross incomes for middle fifth of non retired households has soared from £20,300 in 1977 to £37,000 in 2010 11 . chancellor george osborne is under pressure to offer help with the cost of living in wednesday's budget |
by alex ward published: 05:24 est, 18 march 2013 | updated: 11:44 est, 18 march 2013 an amazonian man has moved from an isolated village in the rainforest to the concrete jungle of new york city nilson tuwe huni kui left his tribe in brazil, with a population of only 600 people, to move to the big apple to tell the world about his people and the hardships they face the 29 year old is the son of traditional chief of the huni kiu kaxinawa in the western amazon, who he says is ‘equivalent to obama’ scroll down for video long way from home: nilson tuwe huni kui has moved to new york city from his village in the western amazon in brazil to learn english and to become a filmmaker mr kui spoke to bbc about his trip to new york where he will spend a total of nine months studying filmmaking and being a spokesperson and ‘messenger’ for his people he said: ‘i came to new york city directly from the rainforest ‘my dream is to learn english and to meet people and show them my culture and get support for my people’ 'directly from the rainforest': mr kui moved from his village with a population of only 600 people to be a spokesperson for his people and the problems they face the indigenous filmmaker was given the opportunity to study in new york because of the tribal link’s indigenous fellowship program and the nataasha van kampen foundation after a summit last year in rio de janeiro he is learning english, filmmaking and editing, and is making a documentary film about his tribe called ‘us and them’ about voluntary isolation and the problems his people face such as illegal loggers and drug cartels culture shock: arriving in new york in september last year, mr kui has grappled with culture shock, learning how to use the subway and taking in the vast array of people from all over the world, the american food and the 'very, very cold weather' riding the subway: while in new york, mr kui catches the train, it takes five days travel by boat to reach his village from the nearest town 'show them my culture': mr kui is making a film about his tribe and some of the hardships they face including illegal logging and drug cartels mr kui said: ‘through technology you can learn about the world and the world can learn about you ‘i’m working on a movie about the people who live in voluntary isolation i’d like to become a professional filmmaker to help my people’ arriving in new york in september last year, mr kui has grappled with culture shock, learning how to use the subway and take in the vast array of different people from all over the world, the american food and the ‘very, very cold weather’ young leader: the 29 year old is the son of the traditional chief of the huni kiu kaxinawa who he says is 'equivalent to obama' tribal culture: mr kiu said his people are 'rich in biodiversity, in culture and in spirituality' he said: ‘people may think that richness is about money but for us in the rainforest being rich is something else we are rich in biodiversity, in culture and in spirituality’ it takes five days travel by boat to reach his village from the nearest town the people prefer an isolated existence and avoid contact with the outside world the indigenous fellowship program aims to help indigenous peoples from all over the world get education and training in a field of their interest to ultimately improve life for their native community amazonians: the huni kiu kaxinawa tribe live in the western amazon of brazil in the state of acre and they prefer an isolated existence and avoid contact with the outside world international opportunity: the tribe spokesperson was given the chance to study in new york because of the tribal link's indigenous fellowship program and the nataasha van kampen foundation | nilson tuwe huni kui new york brazil the western amazon nine months | nilson tuwe huni kui has moved to new york to study filmmaking . he comes from a tribe in brazil in the western amazon but will spend a total of nine months in new york . he hopes to be a spokesperson for his tribe and tell of their hardship |
by glen owen, mail on sunday political correspondent published: 17:17 est, 28 december 2013 | updated: 08:12 est, 29 december 2013 big ben has been counted out of a new year’s fireworks display this week – because the pyrotechnics mysteriously flopped 12 months ago showers of sparks exploding above the world famous clock face were arranged by london mayor boris johnson to welcome in the ‘olympics year’ in 2012 – and were considered so impressive that they were reinstalled last december but in what has until now been a closely guarded secret, the £17,000 battery embarrassingly failed to detonate the event was such a damp squib that mps watching from the commons terrace did not even realise that fireworks had been reinstalled spectacular: sparks fly form the world famous london landmark in 2011/12 (left) but when the clock strikes midnight a year later nothing happens a commons insider said: ‘last year they were due to be detonated on the stroke of midnight, but when the moment came and the button was pressed, nothing happened ‘the bbc panned its cameras over to the london eye instead and on january 2, in some secrecy, the fireworks equivalent of the bomb disposal squad was sent in to disarm them and cart them off ‘as a result, a quiet pledge was taken among senior commons officials not to repeat the idea’ a spokesman for mr johnson claimed last night the fault was spotted two hours before the display was due to happen but could not be fixed in time one labour mp quipped: ‘this has to be the first time in history that something explosive associated with boris johnson has failed to go off’ faulty: a commons insider said that when the bbc panned its cameras over to the london eye instead | nonefficaciously allantiasis ophthalmious | no related information |
by harriet arkell published: 07:40 est, 18 march 2013 | updated: 08:12 est, 18 march 2013 hazel martinez, 7, died when fire tore through her bronx apartment in the early hours of yesterday a seven year old girl died and her younger sister was seriously injured after fire swept through their bronx apartment while the family slept firefighters arrived three minutes after the emergency call in the early hours of yesterday morning and pulled hazel martinez from the fourth floor apartment, but they were too late to save her her half sister hailey, aged three, was rushed to hospital where she remains in a critical condition following the fire that is believed to have been caused by faulty wiring neighbours said a woman was heard screaming 'my kids, my kids are inside' as the fire tore through the top floor fleetwood apartment, home to the girls' father, shaun martinez, their mothers, and three other siblings hazel's paternal grandfather german martinez said his heart was broken at the death of the little girl he played football with every sunday he said: 'she was the smartest in the whole family, she was the best he told the new york daily news: 'she meant the world to me she used to tell me ' grandpa, you are the best of the best'' mr martinez sr said his son was devastated over the loss of his elder daughter he told the new york post: 'my son's torn up over this he's in deep shock' neighbour anita harris, 50, said she watched as firefighters tried to get everyone out of the building, while one emergency services worker performed cpr on one of the girls she told wsjcom: 'they were screaming 'fire, get out, get out' you couldn't see anything, just black' another neighbour, john matos, told how he kicked the apartment door down but was beaten back by the black smoke, which was too thick for neighbours to get in any further hazel's grandfather described her as 'the smartest one in the whole family' and said she had a passion for knowledge a grab from a television report shows the soot charred apartment building after fire tore through it yesterday it took firefighters half an hour to bring the blaze under control, and some were left with minor injuries after battling the fire another adult from the apartment was taken to hospital following the blaze and is still receiving treatment one neighbour said hazel's mother was in shock following the accident, which is believed to have been caused by wiring on a new stove overheating neighbour johnnie capeles told abc news: 'every which way you looked, there was somebody screaming' this abc news map shows grant avenue in the bronx, where hazel martinez lived with her extended family it is believed that a small fire started as a result, and the flames may have travelled to a five tank can of gasoline which had been stored in a nearby cupboard since hurricane sandy hazel was pronounced dead on arrival at lincoln hospital, while her sister is being treated at new york presbyterian hospital/weill cornell medical centre hazel attended public school 35 over the road from her brick apartment block, and neighbours said she would often play outside in the street with her little sister | hazel martinez hailey fire bronx | hazel martinez was pronounced dead on arrival at hospital after 3am blaze . her younger sister hailey in critical condition after being dragged to safety . fire tore through their fourth floor bronx apartment after wire overheated |
by associated press published: 10:37 est, 18 march 2013 | updated: 10:43 est, 18 march 2013 diversity: a historic decline in the number of us whites and the fast growth of latinos are blurring traditional black white color lines a historic decline in the number of us whites and the fast growth of latinos are blurring traditional black white color lines, testing the limits of civil rights laws and reshaping political alliances as 'whiteness' begins to lose its numerical dominance long in coming, the demographic shift was most vividly illustrated in last november's re election of president obama, the first black president, despite a historically low percentage of white supporters it's now a potent backdrop to the immigration issue being debated in congress that could offer a path to citizenship for 11 million mostly hispanic illegal immigrants also, the supreme court is deciding cases this term on affirmative action and voting rights that could redefine race and equality in the us the latest census data and polling from the associated press highlight the historic change in a nation in which non hispanic whites will lose their majority in the next generation, somewhere around the year 2043 despite being a nation of immigrants, america's tip to a white minority has never occurred in its 237 year history and will be a first among the world's major post industrial societies brazil, a developing nation, has crossed the threshold to 'majority minority' status; a few cities in france and england are near, if not past that point the international experience and recent us events point to an uncertain future for american race relations in brazil, where multiracialism is celebrated, social mobility remains among the world's lowest for blacks while wealth is concentrated among whites at the top in france, race is not recorded on government census forms and people share a unified gallic identity, yet high levels of racial discrimination persist melting pot: despite being a nation of immigrants, america's tip to a white minority has never occurred in its 237 year history and will be a first among the world's major post industrial societies 'the american experience has always been a story of color in the 20th century it was a story of the black white line in the 21st century we are moving into a new off white moment,' says marcelo suarez orozco, a global expert on immigration and dean of ucla's graduate school of education & information studies 'numerically, the us is being transformed the question now is whether our institutions are being transformed,' he said the shift is being driven by the modern wave of us newcomers from latin america and asia their annual inflow of 650,000 people since 1965, at a rate that's grown in recent years, surpasses the pace of the last great immigration wave a century ago that influx, from 1820 to 1920, brought in irish, germans, italians and jews from europe and made the gateway of ellis island, new york, an immigrant landmark, symbolizing freedom, liberty and the american dream an equal factor is today's aging white population, mostly baby boomers, whose coming wave of retirements will create a need for first and second generation immigrants to help take their place in the workforce currently 63 per cent of the us population, the white share is expected to drop below 50 per cent by 2043, when racial and ethnic minorities will collectively become a us majority hispanics will drive most of the minority growth, due mostly to high birth rates, jumping in share from 17 per cent to 26 per cent the pace of assimilation for today's latinos and asian americans is often compared with that of the poles, irish, italians and jews who arrived around the turn of the 20th century and eventually merged into an american white mainstream there was a backlash by the 1930s, an immigrant weary america had imposed strict quotas and closed its borders those newly arrived were pushed to conform and blend in with a white mainstream, benefiting from new deal economic programs that generally excluded blacks the immigration quotas also cut off the supply of new workers to ethnic enclaves and reduced social and economic contacts between immigrants and their countries of origin 'america of the melting pot comes to end,' read a 1924 opinion headline in the new york times the author, a us senator, pledged that strict new immigration quotas would 'preserve racial type as it exists here today' today, data show that latinos are embracing us life but also maintaining strong ties to their heritage, aided by a new stream of foreign born immigrants who arrive each year hispanics, officially an ethnic group, strive to learn english and 1 in 4 intermarry, taking a white spouse nowadays, immigrants face less pressure to conform than did their counterparts from a century ago latinos are protected as a minority, benefiting from the 1950s civil rights movement pioneered by blacks nearly 40 per cent of latinos now resist a white identity on census forms, checking a box indicating 'some other race' to establish a hispanic race identity data: the white share of the us population has been steadily declining since 1980, and is currently at 63 per cent while growing diversity is often a step toward a post racial us, sociologists caution that the politics of racial diversity could just as easily become more magnified a first of its kind ap poll conducted in 2011 found that a slight majority of whites expressed racial bias against hispanics and that their attitudes were similar to or even greater than the bias they held toward blacks hispanics also remained somewhat residentially segregated from whites in lower income neighborhoods, hurt in part by the disappearance of good paying, midskill manufacturing jobs that helped white ethnics rise into the middle class during most of the 20th century it long has been assumed by sociologists that latinos eventually would be redefined as 'white' as they joined the mainstream, but the census bureau now wants to classify latinos as their own distinct group in the next census, in 2020 the proposal is based on census research that finds many latinos do not identify with the current race categories one possible revision, urged by kenneth prewitt, a former bureau director, would drop the word 'race' from the census form altogether, simply offering a set of check boxes for categories such as black, white and hispanic that is preceded by the question, 'are you ?' 'whether we're tabulating by income or poverty, hispanic is treated as a de facto race,' said roberto ramirez, chief of the census bureau's ethnicity and ancestry branch, in an interview as it stands now, he says, many latinos are checking 'some other race' the ap survey was conducted with researchers from stanford university, the university of michigan and norc at the university of chicago harvard economist george borjas projects that by 2030, the children of today's immigrants will earn on average 10 per cent to 15 per cent less than nonimmigrant americans, based on past trends, and that latinos will particularly struggle because of high rates of poverty, lack of citizenship and lower rates of education in 1940, the children of early 20th century white ethnics fared much better on average, earning 214 per cent more than nonimmigrants about 35 per cent of hispanic babies are currently born into poverty, compared with 41 per cent of blacks and 20 per cent for whites 'how america responds now to the new challenges of racial and ethnic diversity will determine whether it becomes a more open and inclusive society in the future one that provides equal opportunities and justice for all,' said daniel lichter, a cornell sociologist and past president of the population association of america the demographic shift has spurred debate as to whether some civil rights era programs, such as affirmative action in college admissions, should begin to focus on income level rather than race or ethnicity the supreme court will rule on the issue by late june following a racially lopsided re election, obama has spoken broadly about promoting social and economic opportunity in his state of the union speech, he said that rebuilding the middle class is 'our generation's task' sen marco rubio, r florida, a rising star of a mostly white republican party now eager to attract latino voters, is courting supporters in both english and spanish in part by pledging programs that would boost 'social mobility' rising star: sen marco rubio, a key player in the mostly white republican party, is now eager to attract latino voters, courting supporters in both english and spanish left unclear is how much of a role government can or should play in lifting the disadvantaged, in an era of strapped federal budgets and rising debt the latino immigrants include irma guereque, 60, of las vegas, who says enjoying a middle class life is what's most important to her things turned bad for the mexico native in the recent recession after her work hours as a food server were cut at the texas station casino off the strip as a result, she couldn't make the mortgage payments on a spacious house she purchased and was forced to move into an apartment with her grandchildren while she's getting almost full time hours now, money is often on her mind her finances mean retirement is hardly an option, even though she's got diabetes and is getting older many politicians are 'only thinking of the rich, and not the poor, and that's not right,' guereque said in spanish 'we need opportunities for everyone' | non hispanic us latin america asia | census data shows that non hispanic whites will lose their majority by about 2043 . shift is driven by modern wave of us newcomers from latin america and asia . more than 45 per cent of students in kindergarten 12th grade are minorities, statistics show |
by chris greenwood published: 08:37 est, 18 march 2013 | updated: 20:51 est, 18 march 2013 as a member of scotland yard’s elite diplomatic protection unit he was charged with protecting some of the uk’s most powerful people but married father of two pc ricci giff abandoned his front line duties for trysts with his secret lover their relationship was only uncovered when colleagues found pictures of her posing naked wearing his gun belt on his mobile phone relationship: photographs and text messages revealed the relationship between married father of two giff, left, and ms ramsden, right, who committed suicide in december 2011 yesterday giff, 38, wept openly as he was sentenced to nine months in prison for his brazen dereliction of duty southwark crown court heard how the officer was responsible for protecting vulnerable buildings including downing street, embassies and the homes of vips he worked 12 hour shifts, touring central london on his motorbike, checking on properties and ready to respond to any emergency, including terrorist attack but he left his post three times after striking up an affair with melissa ramsden, an attractive pr officer for the israeli tourist board the pair exchanged sordid text messages, many about his uniform, as they plotted illicit rendezvous’ at her flat and the met’s hendon training base trysts: melissa ramsden, 37, was public relations manager for israel's tourism office in london their affair only came to light after miss ramsden, 37, who had a history of depression, killed herself over unrelated work issues investigators discovered their text exchanges on her phone and a photograph of her posing naked with his glock 9mm pistol and taser stun gun jailing the shocked officer yesterday, judge anthony pitts said his crimes could have spelt ‘disaster’ for those he was meant to be protecting he said it was ‘quite difficult’ for the officer to respond quickly to an emergency if he was ‘in the middle of making love’ but he added: ‘this is not a court of morals, i am not here to sentence you for having an affair with a young woman when you were married and your wife had just had a baby ‘that is potentially tragic for you but nothing to do with the criminal courts’ ‘you made it quite difficult for you to respond quickly if you were in the middle of making love to her during these periods ‘that is the criminality here, here is your misconduct in a public office, taking yourself out of the line of duty in a way that is potentially serious’ ‘the text messages show the nature of the sexual attraction between you and her, perhaps you found it irresistible’ the court heard giff joined the met in 1998 and eventually joined the respected diplomatic protection group as an armed motorcycle patrol officer israeli embassy: ms ramsden worked for the israeli government tourism office in london, which was part of giff's patrol route but in october 2011 he began an affair with miss ramsden after they met at the israeli embassy in kensington, one of the locations he guarded over the next two months they undertook at least five sexual liaisons, including three when he was meant to be on duty the first took place on october 28 when he told a fellow patrolman he going to meet a ‘friend’ in paddington during a rest break instead he travelled to miss ramsden’s kilburn flat where mobile phone records later showed he spent an hour and a half during the tryst, another police team spotted his motorcycle outside and alerted the control room, but no action was taken when he re appeared and rode off jailed: ricci giff, seen outside court today, was sentenced to nine months after admitting willful misconduct over the next few days, the couple swapped text messages about their encounter and planned to meet up again their second illicit meeting took place at the met’s landmark training complex in hendon, north west london, on november 5 after starting work at 7pm giff met her at the sprawling complex, with miss ramsden passing through security using a false name, and they spent two hours together the final encounter took place on december 1, after giff spent the day guarding downing street and travelled to her flat during the liaison giff gave ramsden his utility belt, complete with glock 9mm pistol and taser, to wear she later sent him a picture of herself naked, except for the belt four days before christmas miss ramsden sent her lover a text message which thanked him for ‘making her feel loved’ hours later she was found slumped beside her bed after taking an overdose an inquest later heard she faced redundancy and had accused a colleague of bullying her prosecutor claire howellsaid it was simply down to ‘luck’ that giff was not suddenly required at an emergency during the encounters she said: ‘he was fully armed and supposed to be part of a high profile unit guarding very high profile targets ‘he, more than anyone else, would have appreciated the potentially catastrophic results if anything did occur and his response was delayed’ the court heard the affair took place during a ‘baby blues’ period following the birth of giff’s second child with his wife of six years defence barrister richard atchley said his client, who had an ‘impeccable record’, has been suspended from duty for over a year and will be now be sacked he said: ‘mr goff would to apologise to all those concerned, particularly his wife and the colleagues he has let down at the metropolitan police ‘he has, as a result of his foolhardy involvement with miss ramsden, lost the career he sought after he has paid a high price for his foolish and unprofessional behaviour’ speaking after the hearing, commander allan gibson, of the met, said giff ‘let himself and his colleagues down’ and it was right he was dealt with by the courts giff, of sandy, bedfordshire, admitted three counts of misconduct in a public office | ricci giff melissa ramsden london nine months southwark crown court | ricci giff admitted abandoning post to meet mistress melissa ramsden . officer was tasked with patrolling some of london's most sensitive sites . sentenced to nine months in prison at southwark crown court |
by james rush published: 03:32 est, 10 august 2013 | updated: 11:19 est, 10 august 2013 the injuries of one of the teenage girls attacked with acid were made worse when desperate helpers threw dirty water over her, it has emerged details of the horrifying attack have also revealed the two british teenagers, who suffered horrific burns when the acid was thrown at them, saw their attackers smile and nod to each other moments before throwing the liquid voluntary workers katie gee and kirstie trup, both 18, arrived back in the country yesterday and were transferred to chelsea and westminster hospital in london, where their conditions have been described as 'stable' scroll down for video scarred: kirstie trup, left, and katie gee, both 18, of hampstead, north london, have begun treatment for their burns in the chelsea and westminster hospital torment: katie gee, pictured under a blanket, and her friend kirstie trup arrive at chelsea and westminster hospital yesterday for treatment on their wounds covered up: acid attack victims kirstie trup and katie gee arrive at chelsea and westminster hospital under blankets sam jones, who was on the holiday island of zanzibar with his girlfriend nadine at the time, has told the sun how he heard their screams following the attack and found one of them crouching by a toilet block in pain he told the newspaper the girls said they had been walking along a street when a moped carrying two men drew up alongside them and stopped he said: 'the men looked at each other, nodded and smiled then one of them threw the acid on to them from a container, like a petrol can' mr jones said he, nadine and a group of local people found katie by a toilet block screaming in pain treatment: consultant burns and plastic surgeon andy williams said the girls are 'well' and are recovering with their families the plane carrying british girls katie gee and kirstie trup arrives at raf northolt yesterday afternoon appreciation: katie gee tweeted her gratitude for the support she has been given since the attack he said: 'her clothing disintegrated in minutes there was a putrid, pungent smell' he said the acid was so powerful that it burnt his hands as he tried to help the teenager the couple said they supported the injured women by joining them on a private plane to tanzania's capital dar es salaam for treatment five men have been questioned by officers in connection with the acid attack on the holiday island of zanzibar police have said the men had not been arrested and were co operating with the investigation mkadam khamis, regional police commissioner on zanzibar, told the daily telegraph: 'there are five people we have, all men, who we are interrogating over this matter this morning 'they have not yet been arrested they are co operating and answering our questions 'later today maybe there will be a development legally' yusuf ilembo, deputy director of criminal investigations, said his detectives were exploring ‘many avenues of investigation, including political and religious’ he added: ‘it is too soon to accuse anyone directly, but yes we are looking at those people and their supporters’ police are also hunting sheikh issa ponda issa, an inflammatory muslim cleric who arrived on the island a week ago to build support for protests against the government meanwhile, the times has reported how one of the girl's injuries are much worse than the other's, because helpers used dirty water on her burns kirstie however is understood to have been taken to the sea in the aftermath of the attack at stone town, a beach resort, which reportedly saved her from the more serious injuries suffered by her friend katie yesterday thanked supporters for their good wishes as the pair continued to recover in hospital the student took to twitter to say: 'thank you for all your support x' she sent the message from the capital's regional burns centre where her and kirstie were receiving treatment after arriving back in the country yesterday their medic, andy williams, consultant burns and plastic surgeon, said: 'we can confirm that katie and kirstie have been transferred to our care at chelsea and westminster hospital's burns unit where we're still assessing their injuries 'both girls are well and their families are with them they will be staying at chelsea and westminster hospital 'both families would like to thank everyone that's helped to bring the girls back 'the families now wish to have time with the girls and that the media would respect their privacy at this difficult time' five men are being questioned by police on the indian ocean island after the women were attacked as they walked along a road on wednesday night mkadam khamis, regional police commissioner on zanzibar, told the daily telegraph: 'there are five people we have, all men, who we are interrogating over this matter this morning 'they have not yet been arrested they are co operating and answering our questions nicky gee, the mother of katie (left) demanded that her daughter and friend kirstie (pictured before leaving for zanzibar) were flown home immediately returning home: kirstie trup, pictured left before the attack and wrapped in blankets, right, following the acid attack in zanzibar, tanzania, 'later today maybe there will be a development legally' yusuf ilembo, deputy director of criminal investigations, said his detectives were exploring ‘many avenues of investigation, including political and religious’ he added: ‘it is too soon to accuse anyone directly, but yes we are looking at those people and their supporters’ police are also hunting sheikh issa ponda issa, an inflammatory muslim cleric who arrived on the island a week ago to build support for protests against the government the young women, from north london, were enjoying the last week of a trip as volunteer teachers to the predominantly muslim island when the corrosive substance was thrown at them in an apparently unprovoked attack kirstie's father marc had earlier described the girls as 'inconsolable' when he spoke to them after the attack katie gee was comforted by a fellow traveller as she was driven to hospital in tanzania the teenage volunteer appears to be in pain as she is taken to hospital alongside a male friend they were flown to the tanzanian capital dar es salaam for treatment before being released speaking about the terrifying moments after learning they had been attacked, he told the times: 'we couldn't get anything out of them because they had been burnedboth girls are very shocked and very frightened' speaking about his daughter, he added: 'she can still see and she is not dead whatever it is we will cope with it' mr trup said the girls were dressed appropriately and had been warned not to wear anything which gave away their jewish background, including the star of david he told the newspaper: 'we know it's a muslim country, they were western girls unfortunately they went out during the month of ramadan 'there has been a huge alert in african countries with potential threats maybe it's connected, maybe not' recovery: kirstie trup is due to return to her family home in north london to start her recovery from the acid attack home: kirstie trup, 18, lives on this road in affluent hampstead, north london the girls had originally planned to return in time to collect their a level results next week, with kirstie hoping to study history at the university of bristol while miss gee is considering the university of leeds, it was reported zanzibar is an archipelago of islands in the indian ocean about 22 miles off the mainland the semi autonomous region of tanzania is predominantly muslim and has been the scene of some religious violence in recent years 'she can still see and she is not dead whatever it is we will cope with it' kirstie trup's father marc earlier this year two christian leaders were killed and in november a cleric was treated in hospital after an acid attack the attack happened in the stone town area of zanzibar's eponymous capital city i to i travel, the company the girls used to volunteer abroad, said today: 'we welcome the proactive investigations being carried out by local authorities in zanzibar and continue to liaise with them 'we have been in contact with all of our customers who remain in zanzibar and provided them all with a copy of our recommended safety measures from their pre tour safety guide and advised them to remain vigilant during the remainder of their stay 'we also recommend they refer to the fco advice 'customers due to arrive into zanzibar this weekend have been given the option to volunteer at an alternative project and all have chosen to continue to travel to tanzania' | pu propitiation goatishness | no related information |
by bianca london published: 06:06 est, 16 july 2013 | updated: 07:31 est, 16 july 2013 the taiwanese government is encouraging pregnant woman to hand out unused sanitary towels and tampons to those trying to conceive in attempt to boost births they see it as a 'lucky charm' celtic druids believed mistletoe had the power to bestow life and fertility, whilst the lotus flower is the highest symbol of fertility in the hindu culture in taiwan, the symbol of luck is a little less glamorous the taipei city’s department of civil affairs is calling on pregnant women to donate unused maxi pads or tampons to give out as a good luck charm to people hoping to get pregnant according to the taipei times, taiwanese tradition says that pregnant women can share their fertility luck with others by passing on their unused sanitary goods speaking about the bizarre tradition, department commissioner huang lu ching ju said: 'we hope that taipei residents who want to get pregnant will be blessed by the lucky pads and that their wishes will come true' and it seems that some city residents have had some experience with the good luck charm civil servant at the shilin district office, hsu chia ying who is expecting her second child next month told the paper that many of her friends had asked for her unused pads or tampons to try and share her fertility luck she also said that some people had been looking to buy them online datong district office director yang yen ying added: 'i hope that female residents who want to get pregnant will be blessed through this activity' the number of newborns is on the rise in taiwan and increased 59 per cent to 29,498 in 2012 after launching the birthrate promotion program three years ago in 2011, taiwan's government acknowledged that its birth rate declined, even as it introduced a series of campaigns to encourage people to have more babies the plummeting rate was one of the lowest in the world and in january 2012 president ma ying jeou proclaimed it 'a serious national security threat' while most women aspire to have two or more children, they marry later – or not at all – and are more likely to divorce many women have their first child in their thirties and then don't want another baby or are unable to have one the latest campaign follows others including stipends for giving birth as well as offering childcare subsidies however, according to the department, the number of newborns is on the rise and increased 59 per cent to 29,498 in 2012 after launching the birthrate promotion program three years ago hazelnutsin ancient ireland, celtics believed that the hazel tree was extremely fertile so the nuts were carried around or hung in the home as good luck charms pomegranatein feng shui, the pomegranate is a symbol of fertility because of the numerous red seeds it holds it is advised that people trying to conceive place a painting of a pomegranate with lots of seeds in their bedroom lotus flowerthe lotus flower is the highest symbol of fertility in the hindu culture frogsin south and central america, images of squatting frogs are used to represent giving birth elephantsin india, elephants’ long trunks are associated with rain, which brings fertility to the fields and they are lucky symbols in china too where a pair of elephants are kept on each side of the bed to promote luck fishin china, fish are a fertility symbol because they produce so many eggs some people place statues in their room | siccation inconsistencies disciplinarily | no related information |
by luke salkeld published: 18:11 est, 14 august 2013 | updated: 01:49 est, 15 august 2013 joan edwards’s solicitors yesterday tried to clear themselves of any blame over the spinster’s bequest to the nation finding its way into party coffers west country solicitors davis wood initially refused to comment on the case for reasons of ‘client confidentiality’ but then produced an ambiguous statement it said: ‘at the time of the instructions received from the late miss edwards, the solicitor specifically checked with miss edwards about the unusual nature of her proposed bequest and it was confirmed by miss edwards at the time of her instructions that her estate was to be left to whichever political party formed the government at the date of her death’ peter wood, partner at davis wood solicitors, the firm which drew up joan edwards's will in 2001 this statement again failed to provide any evidence that miss edwards intended to make a generous gift to the tories and lib dems richard roberts, who chairs the law society’s wills and equity committee, said: ‘wills are construed extremely tightly and i have now seen a copy of miss edwards’s will it does say quite specifically “for whichever government” it does not say “for which political party shall form the government” ‘if that’s what miss edwards intended, the solicitors writing the will should have said that they didn’t’ asked if the verbal clarification secured by the executors trumped what was written down, mr roberts said: ‘no the will is crystal clear on the face of it ‘solicitors who prepare wills know perfectly well they have to avoid ambiguity it is regrettable but it appears they did not actually interpret her instructions clearly’ miss edwards died last year and had no husband or children her will was drawn up by the bristol based firm run by experienced partners james davis and peter wood on tuesday afternoon, after obtaining a copy of the will, the mail rang davis wood and was put through to mr wood he declined to comment, on the basis of ‘confidentiality’, so the mail emailed a series of questions asking who was responsible for interpreting the will as meaning she wanted her money to go to ‘political parties’ miss edwards died last year and had no husband or children mr wood again declined to comment, citing the same professional reason the political parties, on the other hand, had no such qualms by late afternoon, as the buck was being passed frantically around whitehall, a consensus was emerging that it must surely be all the fault of the executors former midwife joan edwards dedicated her life to public service and then left £520,000 as a gift to the nation when she died here is how the government could put her money to use within her beloved nhs: sources at the lib dems and the tories were actively briefing against the small west country firm both parties maintained the first they had heard of joan edwards was when the solicitors phoned up with the welcome news she had left them some money the lib dems insisted: ‘the decision to give the money to political parties was taken solely by the executors of the will’ a tory spokesman added: ‘the solicitors for the deceased informed the conservative party that it was a beneficiary of the will’ by yesterday morning, heavyweights on all sides of the political spectrum were urging that the money be repaid, and by 11am, the lib dems and tories had announced they were giving up their windfalls the will was drafted on september 17, 2001, without mentioning political parties at all instead, it stated she wanted her money to go to ‘whichever government is in office at the date of my death for the government in their absolute discretion to use as they may think fit’ edward fraser, a wills specialist at london solicitors colemans ctts, added: ‘it seems to be very ambiguous and unusual how it was drafted by the solicitor it is very woolly ‘i would not have approached it like this if she gave these instructions, they should have been crystalised in a “letter of wishes”, so her executors had proper guidance’ the mail asked davis wood solicitors whether anything had been put in writing at the time, among a series of further questions yesterday, but has yet to receive a reply | davis wood solicitors joan edwards's lib dem tory | davis wood solicitors drew up joan edwards's will in 2001 . lib dem and tory sources were actively briefing against the firm today . the firm initially refused to comment then issued ambiguous statement |
Subsets and Splits