General news

• David Blanchflower: Claims made by the Chancellor three weeks ago are already in tatters

  28-12-2014 23:58
  
  Three weeks is a long time in economics. In his Autumn Statement on 3 December, the Chancellor presented “a forecast that shows the UK is the fastest-growing of any major advanced economy in the world”. He boasted: “A year ago, we expected GDP to grow by 2.4 per cent. In March we expected 2.7 per cent. Today, the British economy is forecast to grow by 3 per cent… And the growth we are now seeing is more balanced. Manufacturing is growing faster than any other sector; and investment is s
  
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• Premier League mid-season verdict

  28-12-2014 23:54 via bbc.co.uk
  
  As the Premier League reaches its halfway point, Phil McNulty assesses every club’s successes and failures so far.
  
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• VIDEO: Doctor urges A&E drunks crackdown

  28-12-2014 23:29 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Police should crack down on binge drinking to stop hospital staff being distracted by disorderly drunks, a leading doctor says.
  
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• Top Gear: Patagonia Special, TV review: Controversial petrolheads come to a buddy end

  28-12-2014 23:15
  
  The final mocked-up scene of the much-anticipated Top Gear Christmas Special ended with presenters Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond replicating the cinematic end of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid by running to face a hail of gunfire.
  
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• Briton rescued from blaze ferry

  28-12-2014 23:09
  
  A young British show-jumper and his fiancee are among scores of people rescued from a stricken Italy-bound ferry tonight.
  
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• Darts legend Taylor reaches last 16

  28-12-2014 23:09 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Sixteen-time champion Phil Taylor convincingly beats Welshman Mark Webster 4-0 in PDC Championship second round.
  
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• 'Britons saved' from stricken ferry

  28-12-2014 21:48
  
  The Foreign Office believes some British nationals are among scores of people rescued already from a burning Italy-bound ferry , but others face an anxious wait in the darkness.
  
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• Missing AirAsia flight QZ8501: Fears for 162 people on board as jet disappears from radar

  28-12-2014 21:32
  
  A third passenger aircraft belonging to a Malaysian-based airline has gone missing, presumed to have crashed in the Java Sea, killing all 162 people on board.
  
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• Cold weather warnings follow freeze

  28-12-2014 21:28 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Forecasters warn of the dangers to vulnerable patients ahead of one of the coldest nights of 2014.
  
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• Train to nowhere: The misery that railway travellers endured this Christmas is a scandal that should not be shrugged off

  28-12-2014 20:59
  Christmas has long been a difficult time for Britons who do not drive, because of the near-complete shutdown of rail services over Christmas Day and Boxing Day. This year has been one of the worst after thousands were left stranded in the cold at King’s Cross station in London at the weekend following Network Rail’s abrupt cancellation of all trains. In an extraordinary display of mindless incompetence, this vast crowd was sent to the relatively small suburban station at Finsbury Park, which
  
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• Bedtime story: Tracey Emin faces questions about her notorious sheets

  28-12-2014 20:58
  
  An Oxford academic’s claim that Tracey Emin never slept in her famous and extremely valuable bed has revived the debate about what is “real” in art – whether a work of art is anything other than what the artist wants it to be.
  
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• Tracey Emin might have made her bed, but did she ever sleep in it? One expert claims she did not

  28-12-2014 20:57
  
  She might have made her bed, but did Tracey Emin ever sleep in it? That is the question raised by new research which claims that the artist’s most famous and controversial work, My Bed, may have been a clever fabrication.
  
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• Minister 'chuffed' with success of Britain's railways, despite delays

  28-12-2014 20:50
  
  Tory transport minister Claire Perry has drawn ridicule for “toasting the success” of the railways when thousands of passengers faced hours of delay in the bitter cold.
  
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• Downfall of Dustin 'Screech' Diamond, the 'Saved By The Bell' star charged with bar stabbing

  28-12-2014 20:45
  
  It is not what you would expect from Bayside High’s resident lovable nerd. On Christmas Day, Dustin Diamond, best known for playing Samuel “Screech” Powers in the 1990s teen sitcom Saved By The Bell, was arrested in his hometown of Port Washington, Wisconsin, for allegedly stabbing another man with a flick knife during a bar fight.
  
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• Ukraine turns off reactor at nuclear plant after 'accident'

  28-12-2014 20:31
  
  Ukraine shut down one of the six reactors in its most powerful nuclear power plant today – for the second time in a month – because of an apparent electrical malfunction.
  
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• Ukraine turns off reactor at its most powerful nuclear plant after 'accident'

  28-12-2014 20:31
  
  Ukraine shut down one of the six reactors in its most powerful nuclear power plant today – for the second time in a month – because of an apparent electrical malfunction.
  
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• Briton on missing AirAsia flight named

  28-12-2014 20:14 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The British national on AirAsia flight QZ8501, which has gone missing with 162 passengers on board, is Chi-Man Choi, the BBC understands.
  
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• A timely reminder of the bloody anniversary we all forgot

  28-12-2014 20:08
  
  Every month, my London mail package thumps on to my Beirut doorstep with An Cosantóir inside. It’s the magazine of the Irish Defence Forces – surely the glossiest-paged journal of any army, let alone one of the smallest military forces in the world. But among its accounts of Ireland’s UN missions abroad – think Golan, for example, with Syria’s civil war crashing around Irish soldiers – almost inevitably each month, there’s a piece of history we’ve forgotten. For while the start
  
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• Three men convicted of murder under joint enterprise law gain right to appeal after fourth man's confession

  28-12-2014 20:07
  
  Three murderers convicted under the controversial law of joint enterprise have won the right to appeal – after a fellow gang member confessed he was the one who actually stabbed the victim to death.
  
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• Facebook attacked over dead relative photos in 'Year in Review' slides

  28-12-2014 20:03
  
  Facebook has apologised after a new feature inviting users to review a collection of their 2014 highlights caused some to be confronted with pictures of their recently deceased family members and friends.
  
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• We struggled for life - Van Gaal

  28-12-2014 20:01 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Man Utd manager Louis van Gaal on his team's draw at Tottenham, title chances and the busy Christmas schedule.
  
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• Ronson single reclaims number one

  28-12-2014 20:00 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Mark Ronson reclaims the number one spot in the chart with his single Uptown Funk, knocking X Factor winner Ben Haenow off the top spot.
  
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• Ian Herbert: My 10 hopes for sport in 2015. Might just one of them happen?

  28-12-2014 20:00
  
  1 Cricket will be restored to terrestrial television
  
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• Ronson's Uptown Funk reclaims No 1

  28-12-2014 20:00
  
  British producer Mark Ronson got his revenge on The X Factor by reclaiming the number one spot in the singles charts, dethroning talent show champion Ben Haenow.
  
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• Why 2014 was a year of technological let-downs

  28-12-2014 19:59
  
  If there’s one thing we learned about technology in 2014, it’s that other people (not us, oh no, it’s never us) can suffer alarming consequences as a result of security breaches. Scarcely a week elapsed without a new round of security-related embarrassment hitting the headlines; from actresses whose private snaps ended up plastered across the web to people unwittingly starring in YouTube videos of footage taken from hacked security cameras. Our reliance on systems we assume to be watertig
  
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• Homeless Veterans appeal: Former soldiers pay their respects to a friend who also served

  28-12-2014 19:52
  
  A black hearse is making its slow progress down the paved central aisle of The East London Cemetery. Inside is a coffin draped in the Union Jack, surrounded by sprays of flowers. As it passes the line of 50 mourners, a familiar military command rings out across the graveyard: “A-ten-shun!”
  
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• Ed Richards: Parting view of Ofcom chief. . . we hate jokes on the disabled

  28-12-2014 19:36
  
  Swearing, once a primary concern for television regulators and campaigners such as Mary Whitehouse, is of little concern to the modern viewer, the retiring head of Ofcom believes.
  
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• The war in Afghanistan is over, but the battle against the Taliban - and their IEDs - goes on

  28-12-2014 19:32
  
  The war is over, victory secured. And Afghanistan, once again, has been rebuilt. But for many, life in the restive provinces is much as it ever was. The Taliban are a rampant force. The government’s authority is limited, at best.
  
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• Missing AirAsia flight QZ8501: Don't rush to conclusions about this latest tragedy

  28-12-2014 19:24
  
  Hundreds of families will end 2014 deep in grief. Even before flight QZ8501 disappeared from the radar screens while over the Java Sea, this year had been the worst of this decade so far in terms of airline passenger deaths. More than 500 people perished in the two Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 losses. Now the relatives of the passengers and crew on board the AirAsia A320 face the tragedy of a new year that begins without their loved ones.
  
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• Nato ends combat operations in Afghanistan - The Guardian

  28-12-2014 19:11 via theguardian.com
  
  The Guardian
  Nato ends combat operations in Afghanistan
  The Guardian
  The Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, came to power in September and faces the challenge of tackling insurgents without Nato military assistance. Photograph: Aref Karimi/AFP/Getty Images. Sune Engel Rasmussen in Kabul. Sunday 28 December 2014 12.55 ...
  US, NATO hold quiet ceremony to mark end of 13-year Afghanistan missionCTV News
  Nato ends its war in Afghanistan as insurgency rumbles onTelegraph.co.uk
  Afghanistan: US-led c
  
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• Ian Burrell: The publisher of 'bookazines' hopes his reliable, unstuffy medium will appeal to parents everywhere

  28-12-2014 19:10
  
  It’s the aftermath of Christmas, when many family homes are strewn with toys and most children’s thoughts are a long way from the new school term. But for one smart media company in Bournemouth, the education cycle never stops. And the desire of parents to pay for learning tools that their offspring will regard as a gift – not a homework assignment – provides a winning business model.
  
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• UPDATE 6-Airlift under way for hundreds trapped on burning ferry off Greece - Reuters

  28-12-2014 19:05 via reuters.com
  Telegraph.co.uk
  UPDATE 6-Airlift under way for hundreds trapped on burning ferry off Greece
  Reuters
  ... * One man reported dead as helicopters continue airlift. * Norman Atlantic carrying close to 500 passengers and crew. * Ship sent distress signal after fire started on lower deck. * "One of most complicated rescues we have done" - minister (Updates with ...
  At Least 1 Dead in Greek Ferry Fire; Hundreds More Remain TrappedVoice of America
  One dead, hundreds trapped after fire br
  
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• AirAsia QZ8501: Boss 'devastated' by missing Indonesia jet - BBC News

  28-12-2014 19:04 via bbc.co.uk
  
  BBC News
  AirAsia QZ8501: Boss 'devastated' by missing Indonesia jet
  BBC News
  AirAsia boss Tony Fernandes says he is "devastated" that a plane carrying 162 people from Indonesia to Singapore has gone missing. AirAsia Indonesia flight QZ8501, an Airbus A320-200, disappeared over the Java Sea an hour into its flight at 06:24 local ...
  Search to Resume Monday for Missing AirAsia JetVoice of America
  AirAsia flight loses contact with air traffic control between Indonesia and ..
  
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• Former footballer George Weah wins seat in Liberian Senate to set up presidential run in 2017

  28-12-2014 18:59
  
  Once the world’s best footballer, George Weah has won a seat in Liberia’s Senate to represent the capital, defeating the son of the President and boosting his flagging political fortunes ahead of presidential elections in 2017.
  
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• Liverpool news and transfers: Reds to launch £15m double bid for Ron Vlaar ... - Mirror.co.uk

  28-12-2014 18:57 via mirror.co.uk
  
  Mirror.co.uk
  Liverpool news and transfers: Reds to launch £15m double bid for Ron Vlaar ...
  Mirror.co.uk
  Brendan Rodgers has set Raheem Sterling a target of 15 goals - even though the England star has just ended a run of 21 games without hitting the net. The 20-year-old winger snatched an impressive Boxing Day winner at Burnley, making it three goals in as ...
  Aston Villa 0-0 Sunderland: Black Cats fail to pounce after Fabian Delph is sent ...Daily Mail
  Aston Villa 0 Sunderland 0, match r
  
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• Manchester City 2-2 Burnley: Visitors come from behind down to stun sleepy ... - Mirror.co.uk

  28-12-2014 18:56 via mirror.co.uk
  
  Mirror.co.uk
  Manchester City 2-2 Burnley: Visitors come from behind down to stun sleepy ...
  Mirror.co.uk
  Manchester City contrived to throw away a two-goal lead – and with it, a chance to gain ground on Chelsea – in a thrilling game against Burnley on Sunday afternoon. The Premier League champions looked to be well on the way to their tenth win in a row ...
  Man City blow golden chance to close on ChelseaReuters UK
  Burnley's Ashley Barnes stuns Manchester City with late equaliserThe
  
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• Syrian teenager Usaid Barho reveals how he escaped from Isis using a suicide vest

  28-12-2014 18:55
  
  A 14-year-old Syrian boy has described how he used a suicide vest to escape certain death at the hands of Isis.
  
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• Former Cabinet minister blames Chancellor Merkel for Germany's immigration blacklash

  28-12-2014 18:55
  
  A former German Cabinet minister and member of Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc has blamed the Chancellor for steering a course that has strengthened the Eurosceptic Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and a new anti-immigrant grass-roots movement.
  
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• Campaign against Chelsea - Mourinho

  28-12-2014 18:53 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho says after a 1-1 draw against Southampton that there is a "campaign" against his side.
  
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• Jose Mourinho slams 'campaign' to deny Chelsea penalties and blasts Cesc ... - Daily Mail

  28-12-2014 18:51 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Daily Mail
  Jose Mourinho slams 'campaign' to deny Chelsea penalties and blasts Cesc ...
  Daily Mail
  Jose Mourinho vented his anger following Cesc Fabregas' yellow card during Chelsea's 1-1 draw at St Mary's on Sunday. Fabregas was on the receiving end of a harsh booking when the Spaniard was thought to have dived in the Southampton box after a ...
  Mourinho rages over anti-Chelsea 'campaign'Goal.com
  Southampton vs Chelsea, Premier League: as it happenedTelegraph.c
  
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• Cuba's golf revolution: But will the revolutionary nation take 'bourgeois' game to its heart?

  28-12-2014 18:49
  
  Barely days after the fall of the Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959, two of the world’s most famous revolutionaries, Fidel Castro and Che Guevara, walked into Havana Golf Club and, still dressed in military fatigues, proceeded to mock a bourgeois pursuit of the rich: they played golf.
  
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• Spree killer Street dies in hospital

  28-12-2014 18:43 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A man who killed five people in a shooting spree in West Bromwich has died at a high-security psychiatric hospital, the BBC understands.
  
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• The Locked Room Mysteries: As a new collection of the genre’s best is published, its editor Otto Penzler explains the rules of engagement

  28-12-2014 18:37
  Among aficionados of detective fiction, the term "locked-room mystery" has become an inaccurate but useful catch-all phrase, meaning the telling of a crime that appears to be impossible. The story does not actually require a hermetically sealed chamber so much as a location with an utterly inaccessible murder victim. A bludgeoned, stabbed or strangled body in the centre of pristine snow or sand is just as baffling as a lone figure on a boat at sea or aboard a one-man plane or in the classic loc
  
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• Man and woman found dead at house

  28-12-2014 18:36 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Police are investigating the sudden deaths of a man and a woman whose bodies were found at a house in County Cork in the Republic of Ireland.
  
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• Temperatures to plunge overnight

  28-12-2014 18:36
  
  Britons will endure more plunging temperatures over the next three days as 2014 promises to end on a cold note.
  
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• Ade Edmondson takes War and Peace role

  28-12-2014 18:36 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Comedy actor Ade Edmondson is to star alongside Lily James, best known as Downton Abbey's Lady Rose, in a BBC television adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace.
  
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• West Ham vs Arsenal match report: Santi Cazorla and Danny Welbeck on target ... - The Independent

  28-12-2014 18:34 via independent.co.uk
  
  The Independent
  West Ham vs Arsenal match report: Santi Cazorla and Danny Welbeck on target ...
  The Independent
  If this was a battle for the Champions League it was a worthy contest, but one side took their chances and the other didn't. One now has six points from the festive period thus far, the other has none.
  Allardyce eyeing Gunners scalpBelfast Telegraph
  West Ham 1-2 Arsenal player ratings: Who was YOUR Man of the Match at ...Mirror.co.uk
  West Ham 1-2 Arsenal: Santi Cazorla and Danny W
  
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• Police officer shot dead by domestic violence suspect in Arizona

  28-12-2014 18:24
  
  A police officer has been shot dead by a domestic violence suspect he had been sent to apprehend in Flagstaff, Arizona, who then killed himself.
  
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• Boys aged 17 and 12 held over murder

  28-12-2014 18:13 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Police investigating the murder of a man in east Belfast have arrested two boys aged 17 and 12 following searches on Sunday.
  
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• Manchester City vs Burnley match report: Ashley Barnes stuns champions who let two goals AND two points slip at the Etihad

  28-12-2014 18:12
  A monumental miss. Manchester City were cruising towards victory in a contest which looked like a Premier League vs Championship clash by any other name - reaching for a position one point beneath Chelsea and a record tenth consecutive win - until they threw away the guilt-edged chance to apply pressure and dropped two points. Manuel Pellegrini was as sanguine as ever. No titles are given away in December etc etc. But he should have been furious. That his players should have thrown away two poi
  
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