General news

• Imposters with fake medals get on Olympic float

  17-10-2016 23:05
  
  Two imposters dressed in Team GB tracksuits and wearing fake plastic medals managed to defy heavy security at the Manchester 'Heroes' Parade' and gain access to a float full of Olympic champions. Challenged by Sky News as to why they were on the float, they initially claimed to be part of the fencing team before admitting they had "blagged" their way on. One of the young men said: "We got the medals and we just thought, you know, we'd give it a go.
  
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• BHP boss calls for 'hard-headed Brexit' with little bureaucracy

  17-10-2016 22:45
  The head of major miner BHP Billiton says what Britain needs is a "hard-headed Brexit", which would maintain trade relations with the European Union and place the focus on minimising bureaucracy as much as on keeping tariffs low. In the run-up to the June 23 referendum, when the British public voted to leave the European Union, BHP Chief Executive Andrew Mackenzie was among the company bosses who spoke out in favour of staying in, warning that Brexit could inflict a decade of damaging uncertaint
  
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• UKIP MEP Steven Woolfe resigns from 'infighting' party

  17-10-2016 22:38
  
  UKIP's Steven Woolfe has quit the party after making a police complaint over a row with another of the party's MEPs. Mr Woolfe said the party was "riddled with infighting, proxy wars between rival camps and is run by an NEC that is not fit for purpose". Referring to what happened in the French city, Mr Woolfe said: "With regards to the highly regrettable events in Strasbourg, I will reiterate my position that I received a blow from Mr Hookem that knocked me back into the meeting room a
  
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• Teenagers from the Calais Jungle camp arrive in the UK

  17-10-2016 20:43
  
  Many were waiting for their relatives from the camp in France.
  
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• Steven Woolfe resigns from 'infighting' UKIP

  17-10-2016 19:50
  UKIP's Steven Woolfe has quit the party after making a police complaint over an altercation with another of the party's MEPs. Referring to what happened in the French city, Mr Woolfe said in a statement: "With regards to the highly regrettable events in Strasbourg, I will reiterate my position that I received a blow from Mr Hookem that knocked me back into the meeting room and caused my subsequent injuries.
  
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• British companies told 'no excuse for inaction' against slavery

  17-10-2016 19:32
  By Temesghen Debesai and Tom Esslemont LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Some of Britain's biggest firms are failing to properly check their supply chains for exposure to modern-day slavery despite tougher laws and a government-led crackdown on human trafficking, a monitoring group said on Monday. Just two out of 27 FTSE 100 companies - firms with high market capitalisation - delivered "rigorous" statements that demonstrated "robust action" in line with new anti-slavery legislation, the Busi
  
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• Child abuse inquiry will not forget the past, Alexis Jay says

  17-10-2016 19:31
  The new head of the national inquiry into child sexual abuse has insisted there will be "no reduction or restrictions" in its scope. The investigation has been hit by controversies since it began two years ago, including the resignation of three of its chairwomen. Professor Alexis Jay, who now leads the probe, said the inquiry was "still very interested in the past" amid calls to redraw its approach.
  
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• 'Beautiful day' for 'jungle' camp children as they reach UK

  17-10-2016 18:29
  Fourteen unaccompanied teenagers have been transferred from the "jungle" migrant camp in Calais to the UK. "These vulnerable children ... were transferred to the UK under the care of Home Office staff, with the support of volunteers from specialist NGOs and charities.
  
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• New St Andrews students welcomed with shaving foam fight

  17-10-2016 18:21
  Students dressed in costumes chased each other with shaving cream in a massive foam fight at the University of St Andrews on Monday, as part of a decades old tradition for newcomers. Each year, freshers at the Scottish university, where Prince William met his now wife Kate Middleton when they were both students, join so-called academic families where they are adopted by older students for mentoring. Several weeks into the first term, the university holds its annual "Raisin Weekend", during which
  
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• Sir Cliff Richard fears reputation will never recover after sex claims

  17-10-2016 18:14
  Sir Cliff Richard has said his reputation will never be "fully recovered" following sex abuse allegations that have prompted him to try to change the law. Sir Cliff spoke about a police raid raid at his Berkshire home in August 2014 being broadcast live on television.
  
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• The pound falls below €1.10 for the first time since March 2010

  17-10-2016 17:37
  It marks a continuation of the pressure that sterling has been under, since Britain voted to leave the European Union. The pound has fallen by almost 20% against the against the dollar since the Brexit vote, trading below $1.22 in afternoon trading.
  
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• Eight men convicted of sexually exploiting young girls in Rotherham

  17-10-2016 17:33
  Eight men have been convicted of sexually exploiting three young girls in what police called "vile crimes".
  
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• Eight men convicted of child sex offences in northern England

  17-10-2016 17:31
  Eight men were found guilty on Monday of waging what prosecutors called an "utterly abhorrent" campaign of sexual violence and intimidation against young girls in the Rotherham area of northern England 13 years ago. The defendants faced charges including rape, sexual assault and false imprisonment relating to three victims aged as young as 13 at the time. A 2014 inquiry headed by Professor Alexis Jay - currently the head of Britain's wider, national inquiry into historical sex abuse - found at l
  
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• UK September commercial property values fall slightly - MSCI IPD index

  17-10-2016 17:06
  (Reuters) - UK commercial property values slipped in September but at a slower pace than in July and August, a closely-watched index showed, suggesting concerns about the impact of Britain's vote to leave the European Union are easing. Overall property values for UK commercial assets fell 0.21 percent in September, following a 0.65 percent fall in August, and 2.8 percent fall in July, the IPD real estate index, compiled by MSCI, showed on Monday. Britain's 900 billion pound ($1.12 trillion) comm
  
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• London cabbies to be 'eyes and ears' in fight against human trafficking and slavery

  17-10-2016 15:53
  By Lin Taylor LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - With an eye in the rear-view mirror, London cab drivers have been enlisted in the fight against human trafficking and modern slavery, teaming up with police and anti-slavery groups to help identify victims and report any suspicious activity. The Salvation Army, a leading charity supporting trafficking victims, said taxi drivers are in a unique position to spot possible victims or traffickers as they are out in the community day and night and aw
  
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• London insists on English requirement for private hire drivers

  17-10-2016 15:39
  London's transport bosses said on Monday that all drivers of private hire vehicles must speak, listen to, read and write English to a set level, intensifying a battle with taxi app Uber [UBER.UL] which says the expected standard is too high. Earlier this year, the capital's transport authority said it would introduce the measure as part of a series of stricter rules on apps such as Uber and private hire firms like Addison Lee whilst supporting the city's iconic black cabs. The move prompted San
  
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• Missing toddler Ben Needham died in an accident, police conclude

  17-10-2016 15:28
  
  Detectives say this does not mean their investigation is over.
  
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• Britain cannot revoke EU divorce once begun, government's top lawyer says

  17-10-2016 15:28
  By Michael Holden LONDON (Reuters) - Once Britain triggers its formal divorce from the European Union by invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, there is no going back on the decision, the British government's top lawyer told the High Court on Monday. As Britain moves towards exiting the world's biggest trading bloc after a vote that spooked global financial markets, there is considerable debate over how one of the most complex negotiations in recent European history will work. The government
  
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• Ben Needham was killed in accident near Kos farmhouse, police believe

  17-10-2016 15:26
  
  Police investigating the disappearance of Ben Needham believe the toddler died in an accident near a farmhouse in the Greek island of Kos. Police gave their briefing after a three-week dig for clues on the island, where Ben was last seen on 24 July, 1991. "It is my professional belief that Ben Needham died as a result of an accident near to the farmhouse in Iraklis where he was last seen playing," said South Yorkshire Police Detective Inspector Jon Cousins.
  
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• First 'jungle' camp minors arrive in UK from Calais

  17-10-2016 15:20
  
  Fourteen unaccompanied minors have been transferred from the 'jungle' migrant camp in Calais to the UK. The French authorities were due to begin dismantling the settlement this week but have now delayed the process, in part to allow for the UK to extract eligible minors.
  
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• Pound fall will do little for exports, says new research

  17-10-2016 15:13
  
  New research has poured cold water on the suggestion that the fall in the value of the pound will help the UK return to a golden age of manufacturing. Sterling has slumped to record lows since the Brexit vote in June as investors become increasingly anxious about the nature of the UK's divorce from the European Union. The collapse in the pound will lead to higher prices for imported goods - a development that looks likely to put pressure on UK consumers.
  
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• First 14 unaccompanied children from Calais 'Jungle' reach Britain

  17-10-2016 14:48
  A first busload of children arrived in Britain on Monday from the "Jungle" camp near the French port of Calais as the British government started to act on its commitment to take in unaccompanied migrant children before the camp is destroyed. The fate of children staying in the Jungle, a squalid camp where up to 10,000 people fleeing war or poverty in the Middle East and Africa have converged seeking ways to cross to Britain, has been a political problem for the British government. Religious lead
  
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• Liverpool's landmark Royal Liver Building up for sale

  17-10-2016 14:30
  LONDON (Reuters) - Liverpool's 105-year old Royal Liver Building, part of a trio of protected waterfront landmarks in the northern port city, is to be sold for the first time, for an expected 40 million pounds. Opened in 1911 as the headquarters of the Royal Liver Assurance Group with a statue of a mythical Liver bird - the city's symbol - perched on top of its tall tower, the building on the River Mersey is one of the 'Three Graces' which form a UNESCO World Heritage site. Once the tallest buil
  
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• Poppies pour from Caernarfon Castle in WWI remembrance display

  17-10-2016 14:11
  (Reuters) - Thousands of handmade ceramic poppies pour from a tower top onto the grass below at Caernarfon Castle, the first place in Wales to host the display that was shown in London two years ago to mark the centenary of the beginning of World War One. "Poppies: Weeping Window", by Paul Cummins and Tom Piper, has toured Britain - including Lincoln Castle and Perth, Scotland - after its debut as part of the "Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red" installation at the Tower of London. At Caernarfon,
  
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• Police believe British toddler missing for 25 years died in accident on Greek island

  17-10-2016 13:58
  A British toddler who disappeared on a Greek island 25 years ago may have died as the result of an accident on the day he went missing, British investigators said on Monday. "It is my professional belief that Ben Needham died as a result of an accident near to the farmhouse here ... where he was last seen playing," Detective Inspector Jon Cousins of South Yorkshire police told journalists on the island of Kos. It is the first time British police have been so explicit on what they think may have
  
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• Ben Needham was killed in accident near farmhouse - Police

  17-10-2016 13:51
  
  Police investigating the disappearance of Ben Needham believe the toddler was killed in an accident near a farmhouse in the Greek island of Kos. Police gave their briefing after a three-week dig for clues on the island, where Ben was last seen on 24 July 1991. "It is my professional belief that Ben Needham died as a result of an accident near to the farmhouse in Iraklis where he was last seen playing," said South Yorkshire Police Detective Inspector Jon Cousins.
  
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• May keen to hear 'differing views' on Brexit to get best deal - PM's spokeswoman

  17-10-2016 13:22
  Prime Minister Theresa May is keen to listen to "differing views" among her team of top ministers to make sure Britain is fully prepared for its negotiation to leave the European Union, her spokeswoman said on Monday. May, appointed prime minister shortly after Britain voted to leave the bloc, has called on her cabinet, which is split between those who campaigned to remain in the EU and those who wanted to leave, to get ready for the negotiations before she triggers the formal divorce procedure
  
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• UK cannot revoke EU divorce process once triggered - Attorney General

  17-10-2016 13:17
  Britain cannot reverse the decision to leave the European Union once the formal divorce process has begun with the triggering of Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty, Attorney General Jeremy Wright told the High Court on Monday. "We do not argue that an Article 50 notice can be revoked and we would like the court to proceed on the basis a notification is irrevocable," said Wright, the government's top lawyer. Asked from the bench if that meant there was no such thing as giving conditional notice
  
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• Backing UK membership of EU should be treason, says Tory councillor

  17-10-2016 12:57
  
  Christian Holliday launches a controversial petition on the House of Commons website.
  
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• Sales of double-digit million pound UK homes fall 86 percent

  17-10-2016 12:41
  The number of British homes worth 10 million pounds or more sold over the summer fell by an annual 86 percent, hit by property tax hikes and the Brexit vote, according to official data analysed by a residential fund. Just five double-digit million pound homes were bought in the three months to the end of August, according to the London Central Portfolio (LCP), compared to the same period last year when 35 transactions were completed. A 25.5 million pound property in Belgravia, one of the capital
  
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• There's a new NHS Twitter account curated by a different person each week

  17-10-2016 11:34
  
  The account offers an insight into the lives of patients and staff – such as this week’s curator Richard, who has cancer.
  
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• Migrant children on their way to BRITAIN from Calais 'Jungle' camp

  17-10-2016 11:14 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  BRITAIN has begun an operation to take in migrant children as the French prepare for the demolition of the Jungle camp.
  
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• ‘Scaremongering’ Clegg warns UK could see 'triple whammy’ tariffs on food after Brexit

  17-10-2016 11:05 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  NICK Clegg has warned Britain could see a sharp rise in the price of food if the UK goes ahead with plans for a hard Brexit - with Marmite-gate just being the "tip of the iceberg".
  
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• 'The Committee was BIAS' Ranting campaigner denies anti-Semitism is flourishing in Labour

  17-10-2016 11:03 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  AN EXASPERATED Labour campaigner has blasted claims the turmoil party has a problem with anti-Semitism and argued the issue has "been blown out of all proportion”.
  
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• Brits most worried about immigration but optimistic over country's future, report reveals

  17-10-2016 10:56 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  IMMIGRATION is Britain’s top concern a new report reveals, but the majority of Britons are growing more optimistic for the future in the wake of Brexit.
  
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• Four in 10 Britons live in ‘below standard homes’ claims a housing charity

  17-10-2016 10:51 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  FOUR in 10 people in Britain live in homes which fail to meet an acceptable living standard, Shelter has said.
  
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• Hammond urged to announce £18.6bn stimulus in Autumn Statement

  17-10-2016 10:50
  
  Chancellor Philip Hammond has been urged to adopt an £18.6bn package of measures to support business in the wake of the Brexit vote when he delivers his Autumn Statement next month. The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) wants Mr Hammond's first major fiscal announcement to boost investment and infrastructure, and demonstrate continued support for firms. The BCC is also calling for measures to widen tax breaks for investment and improvements in its apprenticeship levy scheme.
  
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• Iraqi forces launch military push to drive IS out of Mosul

  17-10-2016 10:49
  
  Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced the operation to retrieve Mosul from IS control.
  
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• Boaty McBoatface boat finally begins construction

  17-10-2016 09:28
  
  So it didn’t get the name we voted for… but a little submersible will do. Satisfied?
  
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• Police to reveal Ben Needham search findings in Kos

  17-10-2016 09:22
  Police investigating the disappearance of Ben Needham are set reveal whether anything significant was found during their three-week dig for clues on the Greek island of Kos. The search operation, at two sites near the spot where the toddler was last seen, was brought to a formal end over the weekend. Detective Inspector Jon Cousins is scheduled to hold a news briefing on Monday afternoon to detail what, if anything, has been found after 21 days of digging.
  
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• UK faces prolonged slowdown as inflation rises: report

  17-10-2016 09:04
  
  Britain is facing a prolonged period of weaker economic growth as the plunge in the value of the pound pushes up prices for consumers, an influential think-tank has warned. The EY ITEM Club said the economy had been more resilient than expected following the vote to leave the European Union but this picture was deceptive. It predicts inflation - which has been below 1% for nearly two years - climbing to 2.6% in 2017.
  
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• Britain looks at paying into EU budget after Brexit to get market access - FT

  17-10-2016 08:55
  Britain might continue to pay billions of pounds into the European Union's budget after Brexit to maintain single-market access for the City of London and other sectors under plans being discussed by government, the Financial Times reported. Prime Minister Theresa May's recent rhetoric has perturbed some investors who fear Britain could give up trying to remain in the EU's single market in order to impose controls on immigration from the other 27 EU member states. Continued payments into the EU
  
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• Bowel cancer sufferers without emotional support 'at greater depression risk'

  17-10-2016 08:54
  
  Sufferers without support are also more likely to experience anxiety.
  
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• Nick Clegg: 'Chocolate, cheese and wine' to be hit by hard Brexit

  17-10-2016 07:19
  The price of chocolate, cheese and wine will increase sharply if Britain heads towards a so-called hard Brexit, according to Nick Clegg. The former deputy prime minister and Remain campaigner warns that fears over the price of Marmite were just the beginning of what he believes will be a "triple whammy of punishing tariffs" if the UK leaves the single market. Speaking ahead of a Liberal Democrats food and drink Brexit impact report, he warned that Britain could only avoid tariffs
  
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• Theresa May 'to pump BILLIONS into European Union AFTER Brexit to stay in single market'

  17-10-2016 07:03 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  POST-BREXIT Britain looks set to pay billions of pounds to the faltering European Union in order to retain access to the single market, according to reports.
  
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• Birth injuries compensation plan 'will save NHS millions'

  17-10-2016 06:32
  A new scheme to fast track compensation claims for children damaged at birth could end the "litigation culture" the Government believes is blighting the NHS. It is hoped the "rapid resolution and redress" programme for parents who believe medical errors caused damage such as cerebral palsy or brain damage, will give parents an alternative to litigation as the first step. The NHS Litigation Authority says the compensation bill to the NHS for errors that occurred during bi
  
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• Newspaper headlines: Brexit fall-out and 'millions in inadequate homes'

  17-10-2016 06:02 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The papers carry a range of stories about the EU, including claims that Chancellor Philip Hammond is "undermining Brexit", and about millions reportedly living in inadequate housing".
  
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• Philip Hammond: Chancellor Brexit delay claims denied

  17-10-2016 05:34 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Newspaper reports that the chancellor is attempting to slow down progress towards Brexit are "rubbish", Treasury sources tell the BBC.
  
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• Tragic girl linked to 'Ninja' ecstasy tablet named as Shellie Callaghan

  17-10-2016 05:21
  A girl whose death sparked a warning about potentially deadly ecstasy-type tablets has been named as Shellie Callaghan.   
  
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• 'Killer clown' with machete hunted by armed police and dogs in woods

  17-10-2016 05:20
  The incident is the latest in the "killer clown" craze, which began in the US but has now spread to the UK. There have been hundreds of reports of clowns chasing children armed with weapons such as knives or baseball bats.
  
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