General news

• Child refugees u-turn: Children's Commissioners express 'deep concern' over end to Dubs scheme

  15-02-2017 23:49
  
  The UK’s four children’s commissioners have written to Home Secretary Amber Rudd to express their “deep concern” over the decision to end a scheme to bring lone child refugees to the country.Last year, the Government promised to take 3,000 lone children from European refugee camps after Lord Alfred Dubs forced the Government to accept an amendment on the matter when the Immigration Act passed through Parliament last year.The commissioners of England, Wales, Scotland and N
  
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• Andy Puzder: Donald Trump's nominee for labour secretary withdraws after video emerges of his ex-wife accusing him of abuse

  15-02-2017 23:38
  
  President Donald Trump’s nominee for labour secretary has withdrawn, making him the first of the president's cabinet picks to fall.Andy Puzder, a fast food executive, faced opposition from Democrats over employment practises at CKE foods, the parent company of Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr.It was when Republicans began to express reservations that Mr Puzder’s nomination became untenable.
  
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• Hundreds of firms 'named and shamed' for failing to pay national minimum wage

  15-02-2017 23:30
  
  Around 350 businesses in Britain have been named and shamed by the Government for underpaying thousands of workers a total of nearly £1m.It is the biggest ever list of the national minimum wage and living wage offenders produced by the Business Department since the policy of “naming and shaming” was announced in 2013.Excuses for underpaying workers included using tips to top up pay, docking wages to pay for Christmas parties, and making staff pay for their own uniforms.
  
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• Huge drugs catapult found on Mexico border with US

  15-02-2017 23:18
  
  A huge, medieval-style, catapult designed to launch drugs over the Mexico-US border has been found by officials.The contraption was discovered by US border patrol agents on the Mexican side of the border, southeast of Tucson, Arizona.No arrests were made and the catapult was removed.
  
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• Tory minister suggests he supports bid to axe John Bercow as Speaker

  15-02-2017 23:00
  
  A Conservative minister has become the first member of the Government to publically suggest that he supports a bid by Tory MPs to force John Bercow to stand down as Speaker of the Commons.Greg Hands, a trade minister, highlighted a message on Twitter from a reality television star calling for Mr Bercow to quit and for a new "impartial" speaker to replace him.When approached by The Telegraph he declined to comment on his views but colleagues said they expect him to suppor
  
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• Ministers face backlash after official figures show Treasury will collect extra £1bn in business rates next year

  15-02-2017 23:00
  
  Ministers are facing a backlash from companies after official figures suggested that the Government will raise an extra £1billion in business rates next year.The Treasury has insisted that a controversial revaluation of business rates will be "revenue-neutral" after complaints that high street shops are in line for huge hikes.The Government is expecting to take in £25.5billion from the charges in 2017-18 - up from £24.5billion last year.
  
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• Children born to older mothers 'more likely to ace intelligence tests than those born to younger women'

  15-02-2017 23:00
  
  Children born to older mothers are more likely to do better in intelligence tests than those born to younger women, new research has found.Children born in 1970 to mothers aged 25 to 29 were more likely to perform better in tests of cognitive ability than those born to mothers who were 10-years older.The same was true of children born in 1958, so modern results appear to have reversed the result.
  
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• Benedict Cumberbatch to produce and star in new BBC adaptation of The Child in Time 

  15-02-2017 22:54
  
  Benedict Cumberbatch will star in and produce a new BBC adaptation of Ian McEwan's award-winning 1987 novel The Child In Time.The Sherlock star will play Stephen Lewis, a successful writer of children's books who loses his child, in the exploration of a marriage in the wake of a tragedy which won McEwan the Whitbread Novel Award.The one-off 90-minute programme will be the first drama produced by Cumberbatch's production company SunnyMarch TV and will be adapted by Stephen Butchard and directed b
  
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• Grammy president insists the awards are not racist after Beyonce snubbed in favour of Adele

  15-02-2017 22:33
  
  The president of the Grammys has insisted that his award show is not racist, after critics pointed out the consistent overlooking of black artists.In the last 10 years, only one black musician has won album of the year: Herbie Hancock, whose 2008 album, River, was a collection of covers of songs by the white folk singer, Joni Mitchell.On Sunday night the trend continued, with Adele surprising many by claiming the best album award, defeating Beyonce.
  
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• Doctors warn Scottish radiology 'on the brink of collapse'

  15-02-2017 22:33
  
  The SNP has been accused of presiding over a “full blown crisis” in the NHS after doctors warned that vital radiology services were on the “brink of collapse” in Scotland’s hospitals.The Royal College of Radiologists said patient safety was at risk because of a combination of chronic vacancies, low trainee numbers and increasing demand.It also said some cancer patients were now waiting more than a month for diagnosis and treatment.
  
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• Theresa May thought Copeland would be Conservative country, but she hasn’t had an easy time

  15-02-2017 22:09
  
  The Copeland constituency is among the largest in the country but the Prime Minister was in and out of it in barely 45 minutes.First, they’re avowed Brexiteers, and second, they don’t exactly see Jeremy Corbyn as a Prime Minister in waiting.In Copeland in 2017 there are two questions that count.
  
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• Ivanka Trump 'gazing' at Justin Trudeau - photo sparks memes

  15-02-2017 22:00
  
  A photo of Ivanka Trump casting what appears to be a meaningful gaze at Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has prompted fevered speculation on social media over what might have been going through Ms Trump's mind.During Mr Trudeau's visit to the White House Canada and the US announced a joint task force to help women in the workplace, looking at issues such as childcare and maternity leave.Relationship goals: find a woman who looks at you the way Ivanka Trump looks at Justin Trudeau.
  
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• Cambridge University's 300-year-old "class list" tradition could be banned under EU law

  15-02-2017 22:00
  
  Cambridge University’s 300-year-old tradition of publishing “class lists” could be banned under EU law, despite students voting to keep them in the face of criticism of the “snowflake generation”.Student campaigners had argued that class lists were “damaging” to welfare, triggered depression and “promoting a culture of shaming”, but a referendum in November saw 55 per cent of students vote to keep the class lists, albeit with a simplified opt
  
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• Church of England General Synod votes to reject controversial same sex marriage report

  15-02-2017 21:45
  
  The Church of England’s General Synod has voted to reject a report which recommended the church’s continued opposition to same-sex marriage.The report by the House of Bishops, which was presented to the Synod meeting in London, called for the Church to adopt a “fresh tone and culture of welcome and support” towards gay people – but retain its opposition to equal marriage.Due to the controversial nature of the proposal the Synod – which is made up of three hous
  
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• Church of England stance on gay marriage in disarray after vote

  15-02-2017 21:27
  The Church of England's legislative body on Wednesday voted against a report from bishops that rejected the idea of blessing same-sex marriages, the latest row over an issue that has divided the Church for years.The wider Anglican communion, which has 85 million members worldwide, has been in crisis since 2003 because of arguments over sexuality and gender between liberal member churches in the West and their conservative counterparts, mostly in Africa.The latest controversy stems from a report
  
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• The moment Russian model Viktoria Odintsova risks her life in daredevil Dubai photoshoot

  15-02-2017 21:10
  
  A Russian model has been criticised for a dramatic photoshoot in which she hangs off a Dubai skyscraper.Viktoria Odintsova was held by a male assistant's hand as she leans out from the 1000ft building backwards.
  
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• Ben Jennings on Donald Trump, intelligence and Russia – cartoon

  15-02-2017 21:10 via theguardian.com
  
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• Nigel Farage blames Germany for air pollution in UK cities

  15-02-2017 21:06
  
  Nigel Farage has blamed Germany for creating the air pollution that is blighting British cities.The accusation comes after the European Commission sent a "final warning" to the UK for repeated breaches of legal limits in parts of the country.The warning was issued for persistent breaches of levels of nitrogen dioxide, which comes from sources including traffic, particularly diesel engines, in 16 areas including London, Birmingham, Leeds, and Glasgow.
  
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• Church takes step towards gay marriage after vote rejects controversial report 

  15-02-2017 20:48
  
  Church of England clergy have appeared to signal support for gay marriage after they rejected a bishops’ report which said that only a man and woman could marry in church.Sources said they believed the recommendation had been rejected by the more liberal members of the clergy who thought the Church should ultimately drop its opposition to gay marriage.Campaigners for gay marriage welcomed the decision as a “victory for love and equality”.
  
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• Church of England votes to reject controversial gay marriage report which said union should be between a man and a woman 

  15-02-2017 20:48
  
  The Church of England's General Synod has voted to reject a controversial report on homosexuality and same-sex marriage.The report by the House of Bishops, which was presented to the Synod on Wednesday, called for the Church to adopt a "fresh tone and culture of welcome and support" for gay people - but not to change its opposition to same-sex marriage.The recommendations were the subject of a "take note" debate on Wednesday afternoon as more than 400 Church leaders gathered for the third day of
  
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• Anglicans come a step closer to gay marriages in church after vote rejects controversial report 

  15-02-2017 20:48
  
  Church of England clergy have appeared to signal support for gay marriage after they rejected a bishops’ report which said that only a man and woman could marry in church.Sources said they believed the recommendation had been rejected by the more liberal members of the clergy who thought the Church should ultimately drop its opposition to gay marriage.Campaigners for gay marriage welcomed the decision as a “victory for love and equality”.
  
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• Donald Trump declares war on his intelligence agencies over 'illegal' and 'un-American' leaks

  15-02-2017 20:19
  
  President Donald Trump has declared war on his own intelligence agencies over "un-American" and scandalous leaks, that his aides had been in "constant communication" with Russian intelligence officials during the presidential campaign.Mr Trump claims the "real scandal" is not the alleged ties to Russia, but politically-motivated leaks from within the US government.
  
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• Met presses undercover police inquiry to examine fewer officers

  15-02-2017 20:18
  
  Last week a police watchdog disclosed allegations about a Scotland Yard intelligence unit shredding a number of files after May ordered the inquiry.Scotland Yard is pressing to change the scope of a judge-led public inquiry which is examining the controversial activities of undercover officers who infiltrated hundreds of political groups.Lord Justice Pitchford, the senior judge heading the inquiry, wants to ask for evidence from all the undercover officers who are still alive, as he is not confi
  
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• BBC slaps down new Today programme editor over pledge to open Thought for the Day to humanists

  15-02-2017 20:10
  
  The new editor of the Today programme has been rebuked by the BBC before taking up her post over a pledge to open up Thought for the Day to humanists.Sarah Sands, who will join the show later this year, said that the religious slot, which airs at around 7.45am, should surely “also include humanists”, because religion was “robust enough to have challengers”.The broadcaster has long resisted appeals to open Thought for the Day to atheists.
  
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• Donald Trump says he 'can live' with one-state solution to Israel-Palestine conflict 

  15-02-2017 20:09
  
  Donald Trump said today that he was open to a “one-state solution” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, appearing to casually back away from a decades-long US commitment to supporting a separate Palestinian state alongside Israel. 
  
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• Liverpool mayor calls on Paul Nuttall to resign as MEP over Hillsborough claims

  15-02-2017 20:00
  
  The Labour mayor of Liverpool has called on Paul Nuttall to resign as MEP for North West England after the Ukip leader admitted claims that a number of “close personal friends” had died in the Hillsborough disaster were untrue.Joe Anderson said Nuttall needed to stand down as a Euro-MP and “explain himself to the people of Liverpool” rather than seek a new political office by contesting next week’s Stoke-on-Trent byelection for Ukip.
  
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• How did Benjamin Netanyahu fare against the infamous Donald Trump handshake?

  15-02-2017 19:59
  
  Donald Trump's handshakes have become something of an online phenomenon.At every meeting between Trump and one of his fellow world leaders, a large proportion of the internet is less interested in the substance of their talks thank it is in the handshake between the two."The handshake is the ultimate focus of anxiety for a certain sort of self-conscious man, " the Telegraph's Rupert Myers wrote earlier this week.
  
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• Orthodox Jewish men cause “bedlam” on flight from Israel to Luton

  15-02-2017 19:51
  
  Police were forced to board a flight arriving at Luton airport on Monday, after a group of strictly-Orthodox Jewish men refused to sit next to women for religious reasons and plugged a phone into the plane’s control panel.The party of ten men were accused of antagonising staff by obstructing the main aisle and constantly ringing the service button, whilst one man also attempted to charge his phone in a control panel - which led to the plane’s exit light being switched on.Unable to co
  
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• Orthodox Jewish men cause 'bedlam' on flight from Israel to Luton

  15-02-2017 19:51
  
  Police were forced to board a flight arriving at Luton airport on Monday, after a group of strictly-Orthodox Jewish men refused to sit next to women for religious reasons and plugged a phone into the plane’s control panel.The party of ten men were accused of antagonising staff by obstructing the main aisle and constantly ringing the service button, whilst one man also attempted to charge his phone in a control panel - which led to the plane’s exit light being switched on.Unable to co
  
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• German police raids target Muslim clerics accused of spying for Turkey

  15-02-2017 19:40
  
  Police in Germany on Wednesday raided the homes of four Muslim clerics suspected of spying for Turkey.Heiko Maas, the German justice minister, accused Turkey of using religion as cover for intelligence operations.Police suspect the four imams used their position to spy on supporters of Fethullah Gülen, the religious leader President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accuses of being behind last year’s failed coup.
  
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• Baby boomers bash back with facts of life in work and retirement | Letters

  15-02-2017 19:28 via theguardian.com
  
  Philip Inman’s article (Baby boomers, pay your dues, 14 February) ignores some important facts. First, the baby boomer generation inherited one of the highest levels of public debt in British history: 240% of GDP, following the war. They got that down to under 32% by the 1990s. The fact that they paid higher taxes than today during most of their working lives probably had something to do with it, as well as economic growth and the full-employment policy of successive governments before 197
  
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• 'We shall fight on the landing grounds': Sir Winston Churchill believed in aliens, essay reveals

  15-02-2017 19:06
  
  The essay was discovered in the US National Churchill Museum in Fulton, Missouri, by American astrophysicist and author Dr Mario Livio."At a time when a number of today's politicians shun science, I found it moving to recall a leader who engaged in it so profoundly," said Dr Livio.
  
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• UK doctors call for diesel cars to be taken off the road for causing 'irreversible lung damage'

  15-02-2017 19:04
  
  Hundreds of doctors have demanded the Government remove diesel vehicles from the road because they are creating a "health emergency".The Doctors Against Diesel campaign group told the Prime Minister children were facing "irreversible lung damage" from diesel fumes and that cars and lorries using the fuel should be taken off Britain's streets as soon as possible, focusing on towns and cities first.The nearly 300 medical professionals and health experts reminded Theresa May that the Government's o
  
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• Oliver Dearlove murder trial: 'Man who killed banker with single punch felt threatened before attack'

  15-02-2017 18:59
  
  Trevor Timon, 31, delivered a knock-out left hook to 30-year-old Oliver Dearlove after objecting to him talking to four of his female friends, it is said.Mr Dearlove’s friends described him as “unconfrontational” and said they wanted to avoid a fight, but Timon allegedly told him: “I will knock you out” before he attacked.“Oliver and his friends kept coming closer to Trevor, I was literally in the middle, my hand touching both their chests.
  
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• Wife 'locked in' loveless marriage after judge refuses divorce petition

  15-02-2017 18:58
  
  Tini Owens, 65, said her 39-year-old marriage to her husband Hugh, 78, had broken down following an affair she had several years ago.In a highly unusual move the family court judge, Robin Tolson, refused to grant the divorce petition.Only one per cent of all divorce petitions in England and Wales are contested and it is highly unusual for a judge to deny a petition from a spouse who wishes to dissolve a marriage.
  
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• Donald Trump says he would accept 'one state solution' for Middle East peace in press conference with Benjamin Netanyahu

  15-02-2017 18:57
  
  President Donald Trump said he will make Middle East peace a priority, but does not care what a peace deal ultimately looks like.At a press conference with Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, Mr Trump said he will accept a one or two state solution, depending on what the two parties can agree on.
  
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• Trump's ultimatum to Nato: Spend more or we will 'moderate commitment'

  15-02-2017 18:43
  
  Donald Trump’s government has issued an ultimatum to Nato members, demanding they start increasing defence spending or Washington will "moderate its commitment" to them.Gen James Mattis, the Pentagon chief, said the new “political reality” in America meant it was unacceptable for America to continue carrying the burden of defending European states.Low-spending countries were in denial and had turned their back on the threat posed by Russia and Islamic State, the newly
  
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• One in four 'extremists' reported to government's deradicalisation programme are far-right sympathisers, figures show

  15-02-2017 18:41
  
  One in four extremists reported to the government’s anti-terror programme Prevent are now far-right radicals, an independent watchdog has revealed.David Anderson QC, a reviewer of the government’s counter-extremism system, warned yesterday that far-right extremism is now “as murderous as its Islamist equivalent”, with the murder of MP Jo Cox highlighting that extremists were planning “violence of their own”.Mr Anderson said the figures had been provided to him
  
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• 'Greedy' estate agents cost sellers £20,000 by overvaluing their home 

  15-02-2017 18:40
  
  Home sellers are losing an average of £20,000 because "greedy" estate agents are overvaluing their properties, according to a new Which?The consumer watchdog analysed more than 370,000 property sales in England and Wales and found that one in five (19pc) had been heavily reduced from the initial asking price.
  
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• Tara Palmer-Tomkinson did 'NOT have brain tumour' as sister reveals how she died - Daily Star

  15-02-2017 18:31 via dailystar.co.uk
  Daily Star
  Tara Palmer-Tomkinson did 'NOT have brain tumour' as sister reveals how she died
  Daily Star
  TARA Palmer-Tomkinson's sister has revealed the "true" cause of the socialite's death after claiming she didn't have a brain tumour. By Rachel O'Donoghue / Published 15th February 2017. Play Video. Play. Mute. Current Time 0:00. /. Duration Time 0:00.
  Tara Palmer-Tomkinson death 'due to ulcer'BBC News
  Tara Palmer-Tomkinson died peacefully of natural causes and had plans to travel the world, sa
  
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• EU workers in Britain drop in late 2016 after Brexit vote

  15-02-2017 18:31
  By William Schomberg and Alistair SmoutLONDON (Reuters) - A steady rise in the number of European Union migrants working in Britain stalled at the end of 2016, suggesting the Brexit vote, and the subsequent fall in the value of the pound, might have made the country less attractive as a place to work.The number of non-UK EU nationals employed in Britain fell by 19,000 in the final three months of 2016 from the previous quarter, to stand at 2.24 million.After a surge in immigration over the past
  
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• Theresa May grimaces her way through photo opportunity in school

  15-02-2017 18:28
  
  While Theresa May managed to successfully steer clear of awkward questions surrounding the nuclear industry and healthcare in a flying visit to Copeland on Wednesday, a photo opportunity didn’t quite go to plan.As part of the Conservatives’ charm offensive in the region ahead of the crucial by-election next week, aides to the Prime Minister found space in Ms May’s diary for leisure time with year six pupils at Captain Shaw’s Primary School in Bootle.The result: a series o
  
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• British Museum takes on Duke of Cambridge over ban on ivory trading

  15-02-2017 18:28
  
  The British Museum is opposing the Duke of Cambridge's call for a total ban on ivory trading, arguing that it would harm its collection of “indispensable” treasures.The government is considering a UK ban on the sale or movement of all carved ivory objects, regardless of their age.As patron of Tusk, a charity that campaigns to end the ivory trade, the Duke of Cambridge has been a vocal supporter of a ban.
  
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• Tree surgeon killed by his own chainsaw in south London

  15-02-2017 18:20
  
  A tree surgeon has died after he is thought to have injured himself with his own chainsaw.Gregery Bulbuc, 31, suffered a neck injury during the incident in Bermondsey, south-east London, near a school.Another man, Charlie Brenland said he saw police cordon off the road, adding: "Witnesses and the police said there had been an accident with a worker on one of the trees.
  
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• Who was Kim Jong Nam? - Washington Post

  15-02-2017 18:19 via washingtonpost.com
  
  TIME
  Who was Kim Jong Nam?
  Washington Post
  KUALA LUMPUR — Kim Jong Nam, the 45-year-old half-brother of Kim Jong Un, was the closest thing North Korea had to a reformer. That could also have made him a threat to his brother and the family business, which has defied the odds to keep a tight ...
  From drinking tea to being jabbed with umbrella: The sinister ways assassins have poisoned their victimsMirror.co.uk
  Kim Jong Un's Half-Brother Killed: Why Would He Be Assassinated?NBCNews.com
  Intri
  
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• Pentagon chief says NATO members must boost defense spending - Daily Mail

  15-02-2017 18:16 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Washington Post
  Pentagon chief says NATO members must boost defense spending
  Daily Mail
  BRUSSELS (AP) - U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Wednesday issued a sharp ultimatum to NATO Wednesday, telling allies they must start increasing defense spending by year's end or the Trump administration will "moderate its commitment" to them.
  Mattis threatens Nato with reduced US support over defence spendingThe Guardian
  US defence chief threatens to reduce NATO commitmentChannel NewsAsia
  Jim Mattis Lin
  
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• Tata Steel UK workers accept cuts to pension benefits

  15-02-2017 18:15
  By Maytaal AngelLONDON (Reuters) - Tata Steel'sBritish workers voted on Wednesday to accept pension benefit cuts in return for safeguards on jobs and investment, although the Indian company's plan to spin off its entire UK pension scheme still faces regulatory hurdles.Wednesday's vote allows Britain's largest steelmaker to close its 15 billion pound British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS) to future accrual and replace the final salary scheme with a less generous defined contribution scheme."Steelwor
  
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• Arizona invites death row inmates to bring their own execution drugs to sidestep EU ban

  15-02-2017 18:15
  
  Arizona has devised a new way of sidestepping an EU ban on the supply of lethal injection drugs to US jails - inviting lawyers to procure them on their clients' behalf.The new protocol is the latest attempt by authorities to tackle the problem of carrying out executions without two key drugs pentobarbital, a sedative and sodium thiopental, an anaesthetic.States where the death penalty is still in force have had to adopt an array of measures to carry out executions without the drugs whi
  
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• Former Trump adviser Roger Stone calls for investigation of alleged Russia links - The Guardian

  15-02-2017 18:14 via theguardian.com
  
  Newsweek
  Former Trump adviser Roger Stone calls for investigation of alleged Russia links
  The Guardian
  Roger Stone speaks to the media at Trump Tower on 6 December 2016 in New York City. Photograph: Spencer Platt/Getty Images. Share on Facebook · Share on Twitter · Share via Email; View more sharing options; Share on LinkedIn · Share on Pinterest ...
  Russians remain patient for thaw with US under TrumpDaily Mail
  Trump accuses intelligence community of dirty tricks camp
  
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• French Vogue to become the country’s first magazine to feature a transgender model on its cover

  15-02-2017 18:11
  
  The French edition of the fashion monthly Vogue is to become the country’s first magazine to feature a transgender model on its cover.Valentina Sampaio, a Brazilian, will appear in the April issue of Vogue Paris.Emmanuelle Alt, editor-in-chief, writes in the magazine: "Beyond her evident physical qualities and her sparkling personality, (Sampaio) embodies... a long and painful fight against being perceived as a 'gender exile’.
  
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