General news

• Ex-CIA Director: Brexit Would Not Harm Security

  24-03-2016 23:43
  A former CIA director has told Sky News he does not think leaving the European Union would damage the UK's national security. General Michael Hayden was agreeing with remarks made earlier by ex-MI6 chief Sir Richard Dearlove. Writing in Prospect magazine, Sir Richard said : "Whether one is an enthusiastic European or not, the truth about Brexit from a national security perspective is that the cost to Britain would be low.
  
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• 2014 World Cup fans 'did not bring Zika to Brazil'

  24-03-2016 23:12
  
  Travelling football fans are unlikely to have sparked the Zika outbreak in South America, according to scientists who claim it was introduced a year before the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
  
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• Microsoft takes chatbot offline after offensive tweets

  24-03-2016 22:10
  
  Artificial-intelligence software designed by Microsoft to tweet like a teenage girl has been suspended after it began spouting offensive remarks.
  
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• London vigil held for victims of Brussels terror attacks

  24-03-2016 22:04
  Crowds gathered in central London for a special vigil to show solidarity with those affected by the Brussels attacks.
  
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• Ringo Starr's old Liverpool home drums up plenty of interest

  24-03-2016 21:08
  Ringo Starr's old Liverpool home beat its asking price to sell for £70,000 at an auction on Thursday night.
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn's approval ratings overtake David Cameron's, poll shows

  24-03-2016 20:59
  Jeremy Corbyn's approval ratings have overtaken David Cameron's in the wake of the political storm over George Osborne's Budget, according to a new opinion poll.
  
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• Man Arrested Over Paige Doherty's Death

  24-03-2016 20:42
  
  John Leathem, 31, owns the delicatessen in Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire, where Paige Doherty was last seen. On Wednesday night, police were searching in and around a delicatessen in Clydebank. "We are absolutely devastated that we have lost our beautiful little girl and would appeal for anyone with information to come forward and bring justice for Paige," said in a statement.
  
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• Man arrested over death of Paige Doherty

  24-03-2016 20:10
  A man has been arrested in connection with the death of 15-year-old Paige Doherty, police have confirmed.
  
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• Sir Paul McCartney said to appear in next Pirates of the Caribbean film

  24-03-2016 20:03
  Sir Paul McCartney has apparently joined the cast of Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, according to reports.
  
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• Mother 'forever grateful' to man who saved baby in pier tragedy, funeral hears

  24-03-2016 20:03
  
  A mother who lost five members of her family when their car plunged off a pier in Ireland has told funeral mourners she will be "forever grateful" to the man who saved her baby.
  
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• Pru To Impose Pay Cap After M&G Jackpot Deal

  24-03-2016 19:42
  
  One of Britain's biggest insurance companies is drawing up secret plans to cap the pay of its star fund managers after awarding one employee more than £32m over a two-year period. Sky News has learnt that Prudential is to impose a ceiling on the amount that employees can earn at M&G Investments, the giant asset management group it owns. The Pru has decided to take the step after handing massive bonuses to Richard Woolnough, a bond fund manager, for 2013 and 2014.
  
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• Boy Wanted To Hug Mum Before Drowning Tragedy

  24-03-2016 19:41
  
  Louise James was not in the family car when it apparently lost grip on algae on a pier slipway in Ireland and slid into the water before sinking. Her mother Ruth Daniels, 57, her sister Jodie Lee Daniels, 14, her partner Sean McGrotty, 46, and sons, eight-year-old Evan and 12-year-old brother Mark, died in Sunday night's tragedy. Ms James was away at the time on a hen weekend in Britain.
  
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• Volkswagen and Porsche recall 800,000 vehicles worldwide over pedals issue

  24-03-2016 19:36
  Volkswagen and Porsche have announced a safety recall of 800,000 vehicles worldwide due to a suspected problem with the pedals.
  
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• Second Brussels metro bomber 'could be on the run'

  24-03-2016 19:17
  
  A second bomber involved in the Brussels metro terror attack may be on the run, according to reports.
  
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• Life needs at least 473 genes to succeed, scientists discover

  24-03-2016 19:00
  Life requires a minimum of 473 genes, scientists experimenting with artificially created genomes have shown.
  
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• Footballer Adam Johnson Jailed For Six Years

  24-03-2016 19:00
  
  Footballer Adam Johnson has been sentenced to six years in prison for engaging in sexual activity with a 15-year-old fan. The former England international showed no emotion as he was sentenced at Bradford Crown Court, and sat with his head bowed after the judge finished speaking.
  
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• Engineered HIV protein could bring vaccine a step closer

  24-03-2016 19:00
  An HIV vaccine has come a step closer with the identification of immune system cells that can be targeted to provide protection against the most common form of the virus.
  
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• Simon Cowell admits mystery over whether One Direction face split

  24-03-2016 18:09
  Simon Cowell has said he is unsure whether One Direction's status is "a hiatus or a break-up".
  
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• Junior doctors row: GMC raises concerns over 'distress and alienation' levels

  24-03-2016 18:09
  The doctors' regulator has raised concerns about the levels of " distress and alienation" among junior doctors as it called for an end to the bitter dispute between medics and the Government.
  
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• Easter weekend set to be wet and windy in much of UK

  24-03-2016 18:09
  Gales and heavy rain will lash much of the UK over a "changeable" Easter long weekend, according to forecasters.
  
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• U.S. blacklists firms, individuals over Iran missile programme

  24-03-2016 17:10
  
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department blacklisted two Iranian companies on Thursday for supporting Iran's ballistic missile programme and also sanctioned two British businessmen it said were helping an airline used by the country's Revolutionary Guards.
  
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• Adam Johnson jailed for six years as arrest over 'extreme porn' revealed

  24-03-2016 17:09
  
  Former England footballer Adam Johnson has been jailed for six years for engaging in sexual activity with a besotted 15-year-old fan after a judge was told he was also arrested for possessing extreme pornography.
  
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• Government asks for review of Julian Assange arbitrary detention finding

  24-03-2016 16:29
  The Government has formally asked a UN Working Group to review its finding that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is being subject to arbitrary detention, saying the opinion was "deeply flawed".
  
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• Mother who 'lived for her kids' killed in one of two attacks minutes apart

  24-03-2016 16:06
  
  A mother of three who "lived for her kids" was one of the women killed in two separate attacks just minutes apart.
  
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• Paige Doherty Murder: Forensics Search Shop

  24-03-2016 15:50
  
  Forensic teams have been searching a shop where murdered teenager Paige Doherty was last seen. She was seen stopping off at the shop, owned by a man called Johnny Leathem, soon after leaving a friend's house on Saturday morning at 8.15am where she had been staying overnight.
  
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• Ex-England football player Johnson jailed for six years for child sex crime

  24-03-2016 15:14
  
  LONDON (Reuters) - Former England international football player Adam Johnson was jailed for six years on Thursday after being found guilty of sex offences involving an under-age, 15-year-old girl.
  
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• Medical experts call for global drug decriminalisation

  24-03-2016 15:00
  
  International commission urges complete reversal of repressive drug policies imposed by most governmentsAn international commission of medical experts is calling for global drug decriminalisation, arguing that current policies lead to violence, deaths and the spread of disease, harming health and human rights.The commission, set up by the Lancet medical journal and Johns Hopkins University in the United States, finds that tough drugs laws have caused misery, failed to curb drug use, fuelled viol
  
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• We must mourn the dead of Brussels – and those of Ankara, Baghdad and Raqqa | Allan Hennessy

  24-03-2016 14:49
  
  Why do western media treat the murders of innocent white people as being more tragic than those of brown ones?Another day, another bombing. This time, Brussels, the European administrative capital. Within minutes of the attack, the scaremongers came flying out of the blocks. This time they did not come straight for the “Muslamic infidel”. From Ukip to Katie Hopkins to columnists at The Telegraph, they were out to promote their Brexit agenda. But of course, they settled on Islamophobi
  
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• Overseas nurses 'a get out of jail free card for health and care sector'

  24-03-2016 14:46
  Overseas nurses are being used as a "get out of jail free card" to fill staff shortages in the health sector, the Government's immigration advisers have warned.
  
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• Britain's campaign to stay in EU has 11 percent lead - Survation poll

  24-03-2016 14:43
  The campaign for Britain to remain in the European Union has maintained its lead over those wanting to leave the bloc although the gap has narrowed, according to a telephone poll for Survation published on Thursday. The survey of 1,006 people, taken before this week's deadly attacks in Brussels, put the "In" campaign on 46 percent, down two percentage points from the last Survation poll in February, and the "Out" campaign up two points on 35 percent with 19 percent undecided.
  
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• Bank Of England Set For New Buy-To-Let Powers

  24-03-2016 14:42
  The Bank of England seems set to be given greater powers over the buy-to-let market, after the Chancellor expressed concern about the housing "bubble".
  
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• UK seeks review of UN Julian Assange 'arbitrary detention' finding

  24-03-2016 14:37
  
  Foreign Office says panel’s conclusions are inaccurate and WikiLeaks founder is voluntarily avoiding arrest in embassyThe British government has formally asked a United Nations panel to review its finding that Julian Assange is “arbitrarily detained” in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, calling the opinion “deeply flawed”.In its first formal response to the finding of the UN working group on arbitrary detention, which published its opinion in February, the Foreign O
  
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• Chancellor Warns Drinks Firms Over Sugar Tax

  24-03-2016 14:29
  
  George Osborne has warned drinks firms planning to mount a legal challenge against his sugar tax to "bring it on". The Chancellor said the firms would be better placed spending the next two years focusing on how to reduce sugar in their products and should not "waste time" on mounting a legal challenge. Giving evidence to the Treasury Select Committee, Mr Osborne said he was happy the tax was legally sound and would robustly defend any action.
  
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• Belgian ministers 'offered to resign' over Brussels attacks – live

  24-03-2016 14:29
  
  Lawyer says Abdeslam seeks extradition to France‘Second suspect’ sought in metro bombing Bakraoui brothers had known links to Paris attacksFirst victims are namedShare your eyewitness accounts 1.28pm GMTAngelique Chrisafis has more on Salah Abdeslam’s desire to be transferred to France “as soon as possible” to face charges there.Abdeslam has been been held in a high security jail since his dramatic arrest at a Brussels flat on Friday, four days before suicide bomber
  
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• Adam Johnson Sentenced To Six Years In Prison

  24-03-2016 14:29
  
  Footballer Adam Johnson has been sentenced to six years in prison for engaging in sexual activity with a 15-year-old fan.
  
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• Former England footballer Adam Johnson jailed for six years

  24-03-2016 14:27
  
  Former England footballer Adam Johnson has been jailed for six years for engaging in sexual activity with a besotted 15-year-old fan.
  
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• Rupert Goold: American Psycho 'is absolutely as pertinent now'

  24-03-2016 14:24
  
  The director, who has brought Bret Easton Ellis’s novel to Broadway, explains why he’s drawn to the dark stories of Patrick Bateman, Faustus and Macbeth“I am drawn to theatre as an art form of surprise and of provocation,” says the Almeida’s artistic director Rupert Goold, while backstage at rehearsals for American Psycho, the stage adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’s novel about late 80s excess and violence in New York. “Every show we’ve done at the
  
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• Adam Johnson jailed for six years for sexual activity with schoolgirl

  24-03-2016 14:24
  
  Ex-England footballer is sentenced for engaging in sexual activity with 15-year-old in January last yearThe former England footballer Adam Johnson has been jailed for six years for sexual activity with a child. Johnson, 28, was convicted of carrying out a sex act on the 15-year-old schoolgirl in January last year. Continue reading...
  
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• MPs seek assurances on plan B for Hinkley C nuclear plant

  24-03-2016 14:14
  A British parliamentary committee has asked the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change to outline any contingency plans and potential costs if the Hinkley Point C nuclear project collapses. The 18 billion pound project was announced in October 2013 and the plant is seen as vital to securing British electricity supply, but a final investment decision has been delayed while developer EDF seeks partners and financing. "Given the uncertain timetable I would like to know what contingency pl
  
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• MPs quiz Osborne on budget as poll says his approval rating never been lower - Politics live

  24-03-2016 14:10
  
  Rolling coverage of all the day’s political developments as they happen, including George Osborne being questioned by the Treasury committee about the budgetOsborne’s satisfaction rating as chancellor never been lower, says poll 12.56pm GMTTyrie is just winding up the session now. He thanks Osborne for coming, says he looks forward to seeing him in April and says that, although Osborne faced some tough questions, he did come into office having to deal with a record deficit.This is fr
  
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• British consumers defy weaker outlook for economy

  24-03-2016 14:05
  By David Milliken and Ana Nicolaci da Costa LONDON (Reuters) - British consumers are still driving the country's recovery despite a gloomier outlook for the economy and the approach of the European Union membership referendum, figures released on Thursday showed. Official data showed retail sales fell more gently than expected in February after a bumper January. A separate survey by the Confederation of British Industry showed sales volumes fell slightly in March but retailers were optimistic ab
  
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• Photo highlights of the day: Penitents and gauchos

  24-03-2016 14:03
  
  The Guardian’s picture editors pick a selection of the best photographs from around the world, including Obama tangoing in Argentina and the Purim festival Continue reading...
  
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• Queen moves congregation to tears at Maundy service

  24-03-2016 14:02
  The Queen has marked Maundy Thursday with a moving ceremony, reducing members of the congregation to tears as she handed out commemorative coins.
  
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• Forensic teams search deli in Paige Doherty murder probe

  24-03-2016 14:02
  Forensic teams have erected a tent over the entrance to a shop where murdered teenager Paige Doherty was last seen.
  
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• The Women Who Wrote Rock review: a short and magical period in the history of pop

  24-03-2016 14:01
  
  A gem of a popumentary telling the swinging stories of women who interviewed the big stars of the early 6osA job where John Lennon feeds you grapes as Paul McCartney plays the piano sounds like a sensible career choice. In The Women Who Wrote Rock (Radio 4), Kate Mossman tells the stories of “young women who happened to be in the right place at the right time”. That time was the early 60s, when pop exploded and intrepid reporters were smuggled out of hotels in laundry baskets in
  
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• The Royal Court at 60: look back in wonder

  24-03-2016 14:00
  
  London’s powerhouse of new writing is celebrating its 60th birthday. Explore some of the Sloane Square theatre’s key productions through extracts from the Guardian and Observer archive, alongside new recollections from Wole Soyinka, Ann Jellicoe, Amanda Redman, Sally Hawkins and othersFrom the Observer review by Kenneth Tynan (12 February 1956): It has taken a long time to establish a bridgehead in London for the works of Bertolt Brecht … A Brechtian, let me explain, is one wh
  
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• Nuclear fusion needs a 'Wright brothers' moment, says firm closing on the target

  24-03-2016 14:00
  
  Tokomak Energy aims to build mini-nuclear reactors and announces target of producing electricity by 2025 and feeding power into the grid by 2030Nuclear fusion needs a “Wright brothers” moment, to convince the world of its promise of unlimited clean and safe energy and so unlock significant private investment, according to a physicist whose says his company is closing in on that goal.
  David Kingham, the chief executive of Tokamak Energy, has announced his company’s target of pro
  
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• UK's economic analysis of EU membership due in April - Osborne

  24-03-2016 13:57
  The Treasury is likely to publish a widely-anticipated analysis of the costs and benefits of membership of the European Union in mid-April, Chancellor George Osborne said on Thursday. Osborne said the document would be published before his next appearance in front of parliament's Treasury Select Committee, currently scheduled for April 19. "I think you will have had time to digest what's been published," Osborne told the committee, although he said no specific date for publication had been fixed
  
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• Man questioned after two women killed in separate attacks minutes apart

  24-03-2016 13:57
  
  A 34-year-old man is being questioned on suspicion of murdering two women in separate attacks minutes apart.
  
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• Topshop owner worth £4.3bn; store cleaners say wages don’t cover rent and food

  24-03-2016 13:45
  
  As contracted cleaners demand fairer pay, fashion chain removes document supporting living wage from website after Guardian inquiryFor the past six and a half years, Susana has cleaned Topshop’s flagship store for a living. For the past hour, the Ecuadorian single mother of three has been pouring out stories of low pay, bullying and excessive workloads in breathless Spanish. The words flow effortlessly until she starts to talk about the seven months she had to take off work for stress and
  
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