General news

• Budget 2017: Philip Hammond's tax raid on the gig economy labelled 'potentially devastating'

  08-03-2017 23:08
  
  Theresa May faces a major Budget backlash after ripping-up an election manifesto pledge to freeze National Insurance and instead hitting 2.5million self-employed people with an unexpected tax hike.The rise unveiled by Chancellor Philip Hammond was branded a “rip off” for the country’s hardest workers, with critics – including Tories – warning it would hit low paid earners the hardest.Many raised concern that the likes of cabbies or fast-food delivery drivers toiling
  
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• George Osborne set to earn £650K for four days work a month at US firm

  08-03-2017 23:05
  
  George Osborne is set to earn £650,000 a year working just four days a month as an adviser for a US asset management fund.The former Chancellor is expected to be paid £162,500 a quarter for 12 days working as an “adviser on the global economy”, according to the parliamentary register of interests.Mr Osborne said he had consulted the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments which vets new jobs taken by senior former ministers, on the appointment.
  
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• Postman who is 'scared of dogs' stops delivering mail to elderly couple 

  08-03-2017 23:02
  
  Royal Mail has cancelled deliveries to an elderly couple and their neighbours because of a postman who is "scared of dogs".Ten households on a cul-de-sac in Bramcote, Nottingham, have been told they will have to travel to their local post office to collect their mail because a Shetland Sheepdog called Missy poses an "unacceptable risk".Mr Read, 80, said: "How can you have a postman who is scared of dogs?
  
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• FBI and department of justice asked by senators to hand over evidence that Barack Obama wiretapped Donald Trump

  08-03-2017 23:00
  
  The FBI and department of justice have been asked to hand over any evidence that Barack Obama wiretapped President Donald Trump or his campaign, in a bid to get to the bottom of the explosive allegations.Lindsey Graham, a Republican senator for South Carolina, and Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat senator for Rhode Island, jointly signed a letter on Wednesday addressed to both organisations, requesting clarification.“The president has asked congress to look into whether or not his campai
  
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• Airbus shows off futuristic flying car at Geneva Motor Show

  08-03-2017 22:51
  
  Drones may be all the rage in the tech world, but what about your own personal transport aerial vehicle?Pop.Up is a modular, fully-electric, zero emission concept vehicle system designed to relieve traffic congestion in crowded cities.It's multi-module design means passengers can take advantage of both ground and airspace.
  
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• Barack Obama 'rolled his eyes' at Donald Trump tweets accusing him of wiretapping 

  08-03-2017 22:47
  
  Barack Obama reportedly "rolled his eyes" in exasperation when he learned about President Donald Trump's tweets accusing him of wiretapping.Several versions of Mr Obama's response to the unprecedented allegation emerged from different sources, ranging from "irked" to "livid".Mr Trump made the allegation that his successor bugged Trump Tower in New York during the election in a series of tweets early on Saturday morning.
  
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• Police arrest teen on suspicion of murdering design graduate Dean Modeste in Mottingham

  08-03-2017 22:40
  
  Police investigating the murder of a 21-year-old design graduate who was allegedly stabbed to death following a fight in south-east London have arrested a teenager.Dean Modeste, 21, was fatally knifed in Lambscroft Avenue, Mottingham at 3.45pm on February 24.Friends and family paid tribute to Mr Modeste as a “caring and loving” young man.
  
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• Budget 2017: Philip Hammond accused of breaking key election pledge by raising National Insurance for self-employed

  08-03-2017 22:30
  
  Philip Hammond launched a tax raid on the self-employed in his first Budget today and was accused of breaking a key Conservative manifesto pledge.The Chancellor increased National Insurance payments for the self-employed – which the Tories promised repeatedly they would not do – and hit savers with a tax on dividend payments.The announcements prompted an angry response from many Conservative MPs, with one former Cabinet minister suggesting Mr Hammond was taxing “work and e
  
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• Corbyn attacks 'utterly complacent' budget as public services suffer

  08-03-2017 22:12
  
  Jeremy Corbyn was critical of the amount of money given to the NHS.Jeremy Corbyn accused the chancellor of showing “utter complacency” over the state of the economy and ignoring the needs of workers, as he responded to the budget in the House of Commons.In his second response to a budget since becoming leader of the opposition, Corbyn took the opportunity to criticise Hammond for failing to help the neediest in society – from those using food banks to the homeless.
  
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• George Osborne to make £650,000 working four days a month at Black Rock

  08-03-2017 22:08
  
  Former Chancellor George Osborne is set to earn £650,000 a year working just four days a month at global investment group Black Rock – more than ten times the amount he makes as an MP once share awards are included.The MP has seen his personal fortunes soar since he was unceremoniously sacked from Theresa May's cabinet on the back of last year's Brexit vote.
  
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• Meghan Markle writes about stigmatisation of girls for having their periods in article to mark International Womens' Day

  08-03-2017 22:06
  
  Meghan Markle has marked International Womens’ Day by posting a poem urging women to know their worth, and writing an online article about Indian girls being stigmatised for having their period.
  
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• Meghan Markle writes about stigmatisation of girls for having their periods in article to mark International Women's Day

  08-03-2017 22:06
  
  Meghan Markle has marked International Women’s Day by posting a poem urging women to know their worth, and writing an online article about Indian girls being stigmatised for having their period.
  
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• Watch: RAF Chinook airlifts Sea Harrier to new home in Bristol

  08-03-2017 22:05
  
  An RAF Chinook was called upon to airlift a Sea Harrier to its new home in Bristol Aerospace Museum. Video block text
  
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• Croydon fight: Three arrests after mass brawl breaks out 'involving up to 30 youths' in south-east London street

  08-03-2017 21:58
  
  Three people have been arrested after a mass brawl broke out allegedly involving up to 30 youths in a south-east London street.Scotland Yard said officers were called to reports of a fight involving a large number of people shortly before 4pm in South Norwood Hill.An unnamed witness told the Croydon Advertiser that when officers arrived at the scene, the group began “rocking and shaking” a police vehicle on the kerb.
  
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• Hammond was a picture of relaxed swagger – because he was in the ring alone

  08-03-2017 21:40
  
  In his most striking announcement, a Tory chancellor hit a core Tory constituency where it hurts, by raising the taxes of the self-employed.In normal times, Philip Hammond could have expected a bucket of tabloid ordure to be poured over his head, punishment for declaring war on white-van man and the millions of others who work for themselves.True, Hammond was being hounded within minutes for breaking a pledge not to raise national insurance contributions that had featured in the Conservative man
  
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• Video: Calais charities continue delivering aid despite mayoral ban

  08-03-2017 21:17
  
  Calais charities continue delivering aid despite mayoral ban as the number of migrants in the city rises. Video block text
  
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• Budget: National Insurance rise for self-employed breaks manifesto pledge

  08-03-2017 21:09
  
  The Chancellor is facing an immediate Budget backlash after hiking National Insurance contributions for the self-employed.Class 4 contributions, which are paid by high-earning self-employed people over a threshold, will rise by 1% to 10% in 2018, with a further 1% rise in 2019.The change raises £2bn over the Parliament and was the second biggest tax raiser in the Phillip Hammond's first Budget, after a reduction in dividend allowances.
  
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• Fresh lease of life for one of Britain's oldest slate mines as roof for Cambridge college

  08-03-2017 21:00
  
  For centuries it was the material which protected buildings across Britain - both humble and magnificent - from the elements, before the slate workings which produced it were abandoned in the late 1960s.As reclaimed slate from derelict farm buildings became cheaper to find, Collyweston slate from mines in Northamptonshire and Lincolnshire was no longer required.The 600-year-old mine, on the outskirts of the Northamptonshire village of Collyweston, had been turned into a builder’s yard foll
  
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• French sixth form pupils set fire to school and run 'unprecented' rampage in Paris suburb 

  08-03-2017 20:58
  
  Hooded youths armed with iron bars have gone on the rampage in secondary schools in the tinderbox suburbs north of Paris, sparking more than 50 arrests.The violence prompted the far-Right Front National to claim that the government had lost control in suburbs around France, prey to lawlessness, drug dealing and ethnic and religious tensions.The teenagers threw stones at police cars, started fires and lobbed smoke bombs in three sixth form colleges in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis.
  
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• Kensington crash: Man arrested after elderly pedestrian killed in 'BMW hit-and-run' in west London

  08-03-2017 20:57
  
  A man has been arrested after an elderly pedestrian was killed in a suspected hit and run crash in west London.The 81-year-old man was struck down on Hammersmith Road in Kensington at around 9.30pm on Saturday night.
  
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• Trial of man accused of terror-related offences delayed so he can fast for Ramadan

  08-03-2017 20:48
  
  A terror suspect’s trial has been delayed so he can fast for Ramadan as a judge says he would not be “fit to be here”.Taha Hussain, 21, is accused of downloading material glorifying the Paris terror atrocities and has had his trial moved so he can fast for Ramadan.Another file entitled 'Charlie Hebdo to Jagrity' was sent on the encrypted Telegram messaging service.
  
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• From ticket touts to traffic jams: plans buried in the budget document

  08-03-2017 20:46
  
  Viagogo was found to be reselling tickets for a cancer charity gig by Ed Sheeran.Companies that breach consumer laws could be fined under proposals welcomed by campaigners against controversial secondary ticketing websites such as Viagogo and StubHub.In plans buried in the budget document, the government said it would publish a green paper to “examine markets that are not working efficiently or fairly”.
  
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• An education system rigged against the poor | Letters

  08-03-2017 20:46
  
  ‘We may fast be returning to a world which resembles the 1950s,’ writes John Somers.The first is that the government is not fully funding the extra costs that schools now face.For the government to claim that it is “protecting the core schools budget in real terms” is factually incorrect, assuming that, in these “post-truth days” we can agree on the meaning of the word “real”.
  
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• Pros and cons of an elected upper house | Letters

  08-03-2017 20:45
  
  There is a democratic solution that squares most circles, which is a 500-strong senate elected on a national party list system.Each party’s list would be elected according to the proportion of the electorate voting for it – eg a party gaining 20% would have its top 100 nominees elected.It is important that the proportions elected are those of the electorate, not those voting.
  
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• Brownlee brothers' moment of brotherly love inspires youngsters across the country

  08-03-2017 20:40
  
  This is the moment two schoolboys had a 'Brownlee brothers' moment - when one carried the other across the finish line at a cross country event.Riley Watson, 10, was just 60ft from the end of a gruelling run when he collapsed with a stitch.The touching moment happened at the end of an inter-schools cross country event at Weelsby Woods in Grimsby in a Year 5 race.
  
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• Operation Midland: Police officers cleared over handling of VIP paedophile ring claims

  08-03-2017 20:34
  
  Three senior Scotland Yard officers have been cleared over their handling of allegations at the centre of an investigation into claims of a VIP paedophile ring, the police watchdog said.The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) found that Operation Midland, which looked into claims by complainant "Nick", was "extensive and carried out diligently" by a deputy assistant commissioner, a detective superintendent and a detective chief inspector.There was no evidence to indicate "bad faith,
  
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• International Women's Day: Protest highlights how victims of abuse are scared to report violence in fear of losing children

  08-03-2017 20:34
  
  Protestors have gathered in London to call on family courts to curb the numbers of children taken into care against the wishes of mothers.“We’re protesting against the separation of children from their mothers,” Anne Neale, one of the organisers behind the event, told The Independent.The number of children in care in the UK is at an all-time high, with numbers last year surpassing 70,000.
  
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• Philip Hammond's budget is a long way from tackling future challenges | Larry Elliot

  08-03-2017 20:31
  
  Philip Hammond’s budget marks the end of the Brexit phoney war.The chancellor knows that the eerily calm conditions of late 2016 are quite likely to end, which was why the unspoken thrust of his package was to make the UK economy ready for life outside the European Union.Not that it was possible to detect any concern from Hammond’s speech, in which he managed to channel his inner Basil Fawlty by making only a glancing reference to the result of the referendum.
  
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• Police to visit UK zoos to protect rhinos after poachers killed one to steal his horns

  08-03-2017 20:30
  
  Police are visiting zoos and wildlife centres across the country yo heighten security after poachers killed a rhino in France and hacked off its horns.Poachers shot dead Vince, a four-year-old white rhino, after breaking into a zoo near Paris hacking off its ivory horn with a chainsaw in the first such case in Europe.Now the head of Britain’s National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) said every place housing rhinos in the UK would be visited to assess and improve security measures in the wa
  
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• At least 19 girls dead after fire rips through overcrowded Guatemala child shelter

  08-03-2017 20:28
  
  Fire swept through a crowded children's shelter near Guatemala City early Wednesday and officials said at least 19 people died and dozens were injured.The spokesman for Guatemala's volunteer fire departments, Mario Cruz, told the Emisoras Unidas radio station that firefighters were still extinguishing parts of the morning blaze.The national police department said 38 people had been injured and the country's Health Ministry said that 14 were in serious condition with severe burns.
  
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• Samuel L Jackson condemns casting black British actors in US roles they can't understand

  08-03-2017 20:25
  
  Hollywood should stop constantly casting black British actors in American roles they cannot fully understand, Samuel L Jackson has said, as he claims UK stars get work because they are simply cheaper.Jackson said US filmmakers believe British actors were "better" because of their classical training, but warned they could not fully understand the roles they are playing.In particular, he singled out new comedy horror film Get Out, a satire on interracial dating in America starring British actor Da
  
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• Lauren Phillips missing: Major search underway for junior doctor last seen two weeks ago

  08-03-2017 20:24
  
  Dr Lauren Phillips, 26, who works in the A&E department at Southmead Hospital in Bristol, has not been seen since February 23.Avon and Somerset Police said Dr Phillips, who is also a talented violinist with the Bristol Symphony Orchestra, failed to turn up for her shift on February 26.Searches of the area have been carried out by Devon and Cornwall Police assisted by HM Coastguard, the RNLI and the National Police Air Service but no trace of her has been found.
  
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• Lauren Phillips missing: Major search under way for junior doctor last seen two weeks ago

  08-03-2017 20:24
  
  Dr Lauren Phillips, 26, who works in the A&E department at Southmead Hospital in Bristol, has not been seen since February 23.Avon and Somerset Police said Dr Phillips, who is also a talented violinist with the Bristol Symphony Orchestra, failed to turn up for her shift on February 26.Searches of the area have been carried out by Devon and Cornwall Police assisted by HM Coastguard, the RNLI and the National Police Air Service but no trace of her has been found.
  
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• £100m for GPs in A&E to weed out those not seriously ill announced in Budget

  08-03-2017 20:23
  
  GPs will be placed in A&E departments to turn away people who are not sufficiently ill as part of a £100 million effort to crack down on hospital overcrowding.A significant cause of the problem is the increasing proportion of patients turning up in emergency departments who do not need to be there.
  
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• Watchdog accused of whitewash after clearing senior police of wrongdoing over VIP paedophile inquiry

  08-03-2017 20:10
  
  Two senior Metropolitan police officers have been cleared of all wrongdoing over the catastrophic investigation into political and military figures falsely accused of child sex abuse and murder.The findings of a previous report by Sir Richard Henriques, a retired High Court judge, that found ‘significant failings’ and more than 40 areas of concern was made public by the Metropolitan Police on the day of the US presidential elections.Field Marshall Lord Bramall, 93, a D-Day veteran an
  
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• SNP urged to use £350 million Budget boost on economy after 250,000 Scots hit with tax rise

  08-03-2017 20:09
  
  SNP ministers have been urged to use an extra £350 million from Philip Hammond’s Budget to help Scotland’s sluggish economy after the Chancellor hit more than 250,000 self-employed Scots with a tax increase.Business leaders said the Scottish Government should try and lift growth rates north of the Border, which are only around a third of the level as the UK as a whole, by investing the additional money in education and infrastructure.Among the other groups they said would be hi
  
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• Hormone replacement therapy reduces risk of early death, new research suggests

  08-03-2017 20:00
  
  Hormone replacement therapy reduces the risk of early death in postmenopausal women by as much as 30 per cent, a major new study indicates.
  
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• Dog grooming world tied in knots by Crufts ban on bows

  08-03-2017 20:00
  
  The intensely passionate world of dog grooming has been riven by bitter divisions over one particularly delicate issue - decorative bows.Angry words have been exchanged after a judge warned exhibitors at Crufts, which opens in Birmingham on Thursday, that she would not judge shih tzus  wearing bows or “adornments” of any sort.Pat Maule said such fripperies would not simply be permitted in the ring.
  
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• SNP's economic case 'in tatters' after oil forecasts cut by a third

  08-03-2017 19:54
  
  Nicola Sturgeon’s economic case for independence is “in tatters”, it has been claimed after official forecasts for North Sea tax revenues were cut again by more than a third.The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) downgraded its forecast for offshore receipts by 37 per cent since last November’s Autumn Statement, from £7.3 billion over the next five years to £4.6 billion.The most that oil and gas is projected to contribute to the public purse in any si
  
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• NHS to be hit harder than expected by compensation shake-up, Budget reveals

  08-03-2017 19:52
  
  The NHS will be hit harder than expected by a controversial shake-up of personal injury compensation – forcing the Chancellor to borrow an extra £1.2bn a year.A little-noticed decision to dramatically cut the ‘discount rate’ for compensation awards, to reflect lower yields from investment bonds, first sparked controversy last month.The lower rate – 0.75 per cent, instead of 2.5 per cent - will benefit the thousands of people who suffer from medical negligence, car a
  
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• Pound to dollar exchange rate: Sterling slumps remaining at seven-week low after Budget speech

  08-03-2017 19:41
  
  The pound slumped remaining at a seven-week low today after Chancellor Philip Hammond delivered his Budget speech.Sterling had fallen 0.41 per cent against the US dollar to $1.2150 after his Spring Budget statement concluded.
  
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• Budget 2017: Government considering tax relief to encourage people to save for social care in old age

  08-03-2017 19:32
  
  People could be given tax relief to encourage them to put money aside for their care in old age under a plan to be considered by the Government.Philip Hammond announced that a green paper on the long-term funding of social care would be published later this year.The Treasury could allow tax-free withdrawals from pension funds if the money were spent on care.
  
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• Homeless charities 'flagging rough sleepers to Government immigration enforcers'

  08-03-2017 19:25
  
  Homeless charities are sharing information with the Home Office about vulnerable rough sleepers, leading to their detention or forced deportation, a damning report has claimed.Corporate Watch revealed Government immigration patrols targeting London’s homeless population are being facilitated by a group of leading charities.The Round Up report described a “creeping process of changes” leading to those whose mission is to protect rough sleepers becoming “informers”.
  
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• Bonds, Isas and pensions: budget measures that affect consumers

  08-03-2017 19:23
  
  A “market-leading” government-backed savings bond paying 2.2% will be available for 12 months from April, the chancellor confirmed.The bond, which will be offered by National Savings & Investments, was first announced by Hammond in his November 2016 autumn statement.It will be open to everyone aged 16 and over and have a minimum investment limit of £100 and a maximum of £3,000.
  
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• China warns of 'head on collision' between North Korea and US 

  08-03-2017 19:22
  
  The United States and North Korea are like two speeding trains that are set for a “head-on collision”, China’s foreign minister warned on Wednesday.Wang Yi urged both sides to avert a “looming crisis” on the Korean peninsula, where missile tests by Pyongyang and joint military exercises by South Korea and the United States were raising tensions.“The two sides are like two accelerating trains coming towards each other," Wang told reporters in Beijing.
  
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• BBC focus too middle aged and middle class, says Ofcom chief

  08-03-2017 19:18
  
  Sharon White said younger groups felt the BBC was not offering enough ‘edgy content’.The BBC is failing older women and minorities by focusing on the “middle aged and middle class”, according to the boss of regulator Ofcom.Sharon White said there should be “tougher, stronger” regulation to ensure the BBC and other broadcasters reflect the diversity of the UK, and did not rule out imposing quotas to achieve that goal.
  
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• Live: White House briefing with spokesman Sean Spicer

  08-03-2017 19:08
  
  Watch live from the White House as Sean Spicer gives today's briefing.  Video block text
  
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• George Osborne to be paid £650,000 for working one day a week

  08-03-2017 19:06
  
  George Osborne said: ‘I expect to be paid £162,500 a quarter in return for a quarterly commitment.’ Photograph: PA
  
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• Staff made redundant at Exeter Cathedral after row over spending

  08-03-2017 19:02
  
  Three employees of Exeter Cathedral are set to be made redundant after a row between the Dean and the Bishop of Exeter about the cathedral's overspending. 
  
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• Budget 2017 reactions: From a single mother to a pensioner and a self-employed solicitor

  08-03-2017 18:54
  
  The Chancellor Philip Hammond set out to deliver an “upbeat” Budget.Domestic violence organisations are set to receive around £20 million while a new £5 million fund will be created to aid mothers return to work after a long career break.Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said it was “a Budget of utter complacency about the state of our economy” while others described his more positive measures as potentially unsustainable or a “drop in the ocean”.
  
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