General news

• England women win Six Nations grand slam after under-20s do the same

  17-03-2017 23:42
  
  • England women romp to 34-7 victory against Ireland
  • England under-20s grind out 14-10 winTwo down, one to go. Emily Scarratt guided England women to a first Six Nations title since 2012 and with it the grand slam – immediately after the under-20s had also completed their clean sweep – meaning Eddie Jones’s side have another slice of history to aim for today. England women cut loose in the second half with tries from Laura Keates, Amy Cokayne, Scarratt and Lydia Tho
  
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• Man died after charging iPhone in the bath

  17-03-2017 23:41
  
  A coroner is to warn Apple that iPhone chargers can be potentially lethal after a man was electrocuted in the bath.Richard Bull, 32, was charging his phone next to the tub when it accidentally fell into the water.Coroner Dr Sean Cummings said: "This was a tragic accident and I have no reason to believe at all that there anything other than it being completely accidental.
  
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• New Monopoly pieces: Who's in, who's out?

  17-03-2017 23:36 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Find out who's in and who's out following a public vote.
  
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• 'Don't blame immigrants for Britain's economic problems,' Jeremy Corbyn says

  17-03-2017 23:18
  
  Immigrants should not to be held to blame for Britain's economic difficulties, Jeremy Corbyn is warning.In an address to the Runnymede Trust on Saturday, the Labour leader will say it is “vitally important” to protect Britain's diverse society following the referendum vote to leave the EU.“In the wake of the Brexit decision, it is vitally important that we value, celebrate and protect our diverse society,” Mr Corbyn will say.
  
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• Theresa May allies accuse George Osborne of plotting to undermine Brexit as Evening Standard Editor 

  17-03-2017 23:00
  
  George Osbornehas been accused by allies of Theresa May of plotting to undermine her plans for a clean Brexit by establishing a "new power base" as Editor of the London Evening Standard.
  
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• Ministry of Defence accused of attempting to cover up claims of abuse at top military boarding school

  17-03-2017 23:00
  
  The Ministry of Defence is accused of colluding with Britain’s most prestigious military boarding school to cover up claims of abuse, The Telegraph can disclose.The boarding school near Dover, which has enjoyed visits from Prince Harry and the British Army’s Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Nicholas Carter, is listed on police records as the location for 38 crime reports over the last two decades.Of these, 12 were sexual offences an
  
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• Easter becoming a 'second Christmas' as families buy crackers for their Sunday lunch 

  17-03-2017 23:00
  
  It was once celebrated with an egg hunt in the garden and a simple Sunday roast.According to home gurus at Good Housekeeping magazine, house proud families' Easter efforts are getting bigger and better than in years gone by.For the first time ever the magazine included Easter crackers on its widely-acclaimed annual Easter dinnertable photo shoot this year.
  
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• Ben Youngs: ‘It won’t feel like we’ve won the Six Nations unless we beat Ireland’

  17-03-2017 23:00
  
  England scrum-half is embracing the challenge of chasing history and aims to avoid the strange feeling of losing but winning in 2011Just occasionally, photographers are right to insist a picture says more than a thousand words. The victory photos taken on the final night of the 2011 Six Nations are a prime example: England in their Dublin hotel, ties at half-mast, trying to look like contented champions but fooling no one. Such is bittersweet life for tournament winners who have just missed out
  
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• Any old Joe

  17-03-2017 23:00 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Joe Gordon, boss of telephone and online bank First Direct has just two years' experience in banking.
  
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• Melania appears not to have received St Patrick's Day memo as Trumps fly to 'Southern White House'

  17-03-2017 22:46
  
  Melania Trump stepped out onto the White House lawn to board Marine One on Friday looking eye-catching in a long red coat and red gloves.U.S. President Donald Trump and U.S. First Lady Melania Trump walk on the South Lawn of the White House to board Marine One in Washington, D.C Credit: Bloomberg
  
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• Security breach fears over 26 million NHS patients 

  17-03-2017 22:30
  
  The medical records of 26 million patients are embroiled in a major security breach amid warnings that the IT system used by thousands of GPs is not secure.The Information Commissioner is investigating concerns that records held by 2,700 practices - one in three of those in England - can be accessed by hundreds of thousands of strangers.GP leaders said the breach had “potentially huge implications” and could see family doctors flooded with complaints.
  
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• Brexit more important than keeping the UK together, public say in poll for the Telegraph

  17-03-2017 22:30
  
  Brexit is more important to voters than keeping the United Kingdom together, an opinion poll for The Telegraph has indicated. 
  
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• Trump stands by Obama wiretap charge, shrugs off row with Britain

  17-03-2017 22:29
  By Jeff Mason and Mark HosenballWASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump stood by unproven claims on Friday that the Obama administration tapped his phones during the 2016 White House race and shrugged off a dispute with Britain over the notion their spy agency had a hand in it.British Prime Minister Theresa May's spokesman earlier in the day dismissed the charge against Britain's GCHQ spy agency as "ridiculous" and said the White House had promised not to repeat it.
  
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• Model and her mother jailed for £1.2m Kensington property fraud

  17-03-2017 22:21
  
  A model and her mother have been jailed after the mother assumed the identity of a dead Kensington landlady to make more than £1 million in a property fraud.Laylah Scarlett De Cruz, 31, who lives in Dubai, and Dianne Jean Moorcroft, 62, of Warley Road, Blackpool, were both found guilty at Southwark Crown Court of conspiracy to commit fraud.On Friday, De Cruz was jailed for five years and Moorcroft sentenced to three years in prison.
  
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• What goes into a surfboard? Foam, fibreglass and hard times

  17-03-2017 22:20
  
  With a stroke of a rail, shaper Andrew Stump can tell if a board is right. It’s a skill honed in the face of financial risk, personal hardship and cut-throat competition • More from our ‘Pipe dreams’ surfing seriesAndrew Stump spends most of his days making surfboards from his workshop, a cavernous series of rooms beside his home in Rye, a sleepy coastal Victorian town on the Mornington Peninsula. It’s nestled next to his house, at the end of a small cul de sac, from
  
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• Labour must split in two to save the United Kingdom, says man tipped to be next leader

  17-03-2017 22:11
  
  The man seen by many as Jeremy Corbyn’s successor for Labour leader has called for an effective split between the English and Scottish wings of the party, saying the move is needed to “save the union”.Clive Lewis, the MP for Norwich South, told The Independent he supports the division that would end Britain’s centre-left party as it is known today, to better enable Scottish Labour to face down Nicola Sturgeon’s SNP.Alan Johnson’s spokesman said the former Home
  
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• Tony Blair: Labour must back staying in EU to be 'competitive'

  17-03-2017 21:57
  
  Tony Blair has said Labour must support staying in the European Union to "recover its strategic grip on affairs and be competitive".Mr Corbyn has been criticised in some pro-EU quarters for ordering his MPs to back the triggering of Article 50 to begin Brexit, but has insisted the will of the people in the referendum vote must be respected.Opinion polls have shown Labour trailing the Tories by up to 18 or 19 points in recent weeks, following the party's humiliating by-election defeat to Theresa
  
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• 'Beginner's luck'

  17-03-2017 21:54 via bbc.co.uk
  
  One woman made headlines before the race, but it was another who celebrated victory in the 2017 Cheltenham Gold Cup.
  
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• Tatton's got news for George Osborne about that new job in London

  17-03-2017 21:45
  
  George Osborne: some residents in his Tatton constituency wonder if he will be able to commit enough time to them.The editor of the local paper in George Osborne’s constituency has said she thought it was “April Fool’s” when he announced that he was taking over editing the London Evening Standard.
  
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• Trump administration appeals partial block of travel ban by Maryland judge

  17-03-2017 21:26
  
  Ruling by Judge Theodore Chuang relates to visa issuances from the six Muslim-majority countries covered by the banThe Trump administration has appealed against a federal court order issued in the state of Maryland that partially blocks the president’s revised travel ban. The Department of Justice’s acting solicitor general, Jeffrey Wall, informed Maryland’s southern district court in a filing on Friday that the government will challenge the ruling in the fourth circuit appeals
  
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• Call the exorcist: pope tells priests to consult experts in casting out demons

  17-03-2017 21:24
  
  Pope Francis advised confessors to refer to an exorcist to better address parishioners’ who have ‘real spiritual disorders’ with supernatural originsPope Francis has advised priests who hear troubled confessions from parishioners to not hesitate to call on the services of an exorcist.A good confessor has to be very discerning, particularly when he has to deal with “real spiritual disorders”, the 80-year-old pontiff told priests at a Vatican training seminar on the a
  
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• London teenagers accused of plotting to join ISIS in Syria to face trial

  17-03-2017 21:21
  
  Four teenagers accused of planning to travel to Syria to join Islamic State will face trial in the summer.Ahmedeltigani Alsyed, 19, along with two boys aged 17, and a 16-year-old, all from London, appeared before Mr Justice Holroyde at the Old Bailey.The youths were charged last month with preparation of terrorist acts as they were allegedly poised to travel to Syria.
  
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• Coroner warning after man electrocuted in bath charging iPhone

  17-03-2017 21:14
  
  Dr Sean Cummings, the coroner, said he would send a report to Apple to warn of the dangers of charging a device and using it in the bath.A man died after being electrocuted while charging his phone in the bath, an inquest has heard.The death of Richard Bull, 32, which occurred when the iPhone fell into the water, was accidental, the coroner ruled.
  
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• Maria Sharapova expects suspicious welcome back into tennis fold

  17-03-2017 21:02
  
  • Five-times grand slam winner back in April after 15-month doping ban
  • Sharapova given wild card to play in Porsche Grand Prix in StuttgartMaria Sharapova accepts she will have a cloud of suspicion hanging over her when she returns to the game next month.The five-times grand slam champion is serving a 15-month doping ban after testing positive for the cardiac drug meldonium at the Australian Open in 2016. Continue reading...
  
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• 'Tortured geniuses' more likely to commit suicide, study finds 

  17-03-2017 20:56
  
  The risk is even more pronounced among individual professions.While the numbers are low, Louis Appleby, Professor of Psychiatry at Manchester University, said that they were statistically significant.I urge all employers, large or small, public or private sector to treat mental health as seriously as physical health.
  
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• Caribbean crime thriller wins inaugural prize for only BAME writers

  17-03-2017 20:45
  
  The Jhalak prize, set up to address UK publishing’s long lack of diversity, goes to Jacob Ross’s crime novel The Bone Readers The inaugural Jhalak prize for black, Asian and minority ethnic writers (BAME) has been won by Jacob Ross with his “thrilling, visceral and meditative, and always cinematic” crime novel The Bone Readers.Ross’s winning book shadows Digger, a plainclothes officer working in a rogue police force on the small Caribbean island of Camaho, who can r
  
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• Jailed: Man who headbutted police officer before stealing his car

  17-03-2017 20:43
  
  A man who attacked a police officer and stole his car in east London has been jailed.Tony Turner, 36, was approached by the officer after he was spotted near the scene of a BMW which had crashed into a hedge in Chigwell.Turner then jumped into his car, which had a police dog inside, and drove off.
  
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• Sturgeon hints at 'other ways' to hold new Scottish independence referendum

  17-03-2017 20:40
  
  First minister refuses to rule out staging an unofficial referendum as she makes overtures to May for an alternative timetableNicola Sturgeon has hinted she had other ways to force Theresa May into agreeing a compromise over a second referendum on Scottish independence.Speaking a day after May rejected her call for the power to hold a referendum in 18 months, the first minister said there were other options open to her if May continued to refuse to pass on the powers needed to stage a legally co
  
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• Sturgeon hints at 'other ways' to hold new Scottish independence referendum

  17-03-2017 20:40
  
  Nicola Sturgeon has hinted she had other ways to force Theresa May into agreeing a compromise over a second referendum on Scottish independence.The most dramatic option open would be to trigger a snap Scottish parliament election by resigning as first minister, forcing Holyrood to dissolve at a crucial time during the UK’s Brexit talks with the EU.
  
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• Royal fashion: what the Duchess of Cambridge wore in Paris

  17-03-2017 20:34
  
  Keep up to date with every outfit that the Duchess of Cambridge wears as she carries out royal engagements in Paris. Video block text
  
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• Obama White House comedy heading to big screen

  17-03-2017 20:28
  
  A former stenographer’s book proposal about the life of political staffers, titled From the Corner of the Oval, will be adapted by Universal PicturesThe life of staffers in Obama’s White House will be the focus of a new big-screen workplace comedy. Related: Tom Hanks to produce HBO dramatic miniseries on 2016 electionContinue reading...
  
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• Fighting for 'precious union', May rebuffs Scottish independence ambitions

  17-03-2017 20:21
  By Elizabeth PiperLONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May pledged on Friday to fight for the "precious, precious union" of the United Kingdom, unveiling what she called her Plan for Britain with a warning to Scotland not to pursue its independence plans.May, appointed prime minister soon after Britain voted to leave the European Union in a referendum last June, said she would negotiate a Brexit deal for the whole country but needed everyone to pull together to get the best outcome.Facing t
  
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• Prince William tells French that Brexit won't hurt friendship

  17-03-2017 20:19
  Britain's Prince William and his wife Kate were greeted by French President Francois Hollande as they began a two-day tripto Paris aimed at highlighting strong Franco-British ties despite Britain's looming exit from the European Union.It is William's first official visit to Paris since his mother, Princess Diana, was killed when the limousine carrying her and her lover Dodi al-Fayed crashed in a Paris tunnel in August 1997.
  
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• Pep Guardiola: Manchester City challenge is bigger than Barcelona or Bayern

  17-03-2017 20:10
  
  • Chairman Khaldoon al-Mubarak offers backing despite Champions League exit
  • Yaya Touré agent begins negotiations with other clubs over possible movePep Guardiola feels he is having to be a manager in the true sense for the first time because achieving success is a far greater challenge with Manchester City than it was at Barcelona and Bayern Munich.City’s Champions League exit at Monaco in the last-16 ended Guardiola’s run of having reached at least the semi-final
  
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• Angela Merkel knows she must defuse Donald Trump’s threat to Europe | Natalie Nougayrède

  17-03-2017 20:03
  
  Today’s White House meeting could prove to be the most crucial for transatlantic relations since the end of the Soviet blocAs close encounters go, this was bound to be a defining one. Angela Merkel, Europe’s most powerful, values-oriented, refugee-welcoming and Putin-resisting leader, finally met Donald Trump, potential wrecker of the west and liberal democracy. Related: Merkel's goal for Trump meeting: selling German cars, not saving global orderContinue reading...
  
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• 'No one is talking about it': has Sturgeon misjudged mood for independence?

  17-03-2017 20:02
  
  Clackmannanshire was a bellwether for the first Scottish indyref and for Brexit – and within the county a second vote doesn’t seem to be the top issue for localsIn the land of the never-endum, they were counting votes again on Thursday morning. In an upstairs room at Alloa town hall, council workers were going through their election night counting rituals with a coffee-fuelled concentration. “It’s becoming a full-time job,” said one official.Scotland’s council
  
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• 'No one is talking about it': has Sturgeon misjudged mood for independence?

  17-03-2017 20:02
  
  In an upstairs room at Alloa town hall, council workers were going through their election night counting rituals with a coffee-fuelled concentration.Scotland’s council elections are still six weeks away – and the next referendum on independence is only a twinkle in Nicola Sturgeon’s eyes, and what may be a look of terror in Theresa May’s.This vote is to return two members from the county of Clackmannanshire to the Scottish youth parliament, set up in 1999 along with the a
  
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• The leave fanatics will have their hard Brexit – even if the price is the union | Jonathan Freedland

  17-03-2017 20:01
  
  Though hardliners are pursuing the most destructive version of Britain’s divorce from the EU, there may be a way to avoid the breakup of the UKWhat a paradoxical story we shall tell our grandchildren about Brexit. The little ones will climb on our knee and we will recall how we bravely seized our independence from hated Brussels – only to destroy our country. Their infant brows will furrow in confusion when we tell them that in order to make Britain great again, we smashed it to piec
  
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• The Guardian view on Brexit and publishing: a hardcore problem | Editorial

  17-03-2017 20:01
  
  London book fair has shown how upbeat the literary world can be – and how worried our cultural businesses have become at the thought of losing old certaintiesThe mood at this week’s London book fair appeared upbeat, with hotly contested auctions leading to the return of the six-figure publishing deal. Musicians did particularly well, with Pulp’s Jarvis Cocker, Suede’s Brett Anderson and drum’n’bass pioneer Goldie leading the way. Rumours of the death of litera
  
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• The Guardian view of George Osborne’s new job: something’s got to give | Editorial

  17-03-2017 20:01
  
  The former chancellor is a celebrity catch for daily journalism. He will find it is a full-time jobThe border between journalism and politics has always been porous. High-profile journalist-politicians have ranged from Marat and Wilkes to Mussolini, and Trotsky to Kossuth. More recently, Alastair Campbell has led a long line of journalists into prominent positions in ministerial press offices. Some of the crossings are as well-trodden as a car park at the end of this week’s Cheltenham fest
  
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• Numbers still stack up for fidgety Australia captain Shakin’ Steven | Barney Ronay

  17-03-2017 20:00
  
  If Steve Smith has a wider claim on some kind of ultimacy right now it is perhaps a minor role as the greatest Testbatsman to be nobody’s favourite Test batsmanShakin’ Stevens was the biggest-selling British singles artist of the 1980s. It is probably worth remembering this fact the next time a man with a greying beard tells you the 80s were the last real golden age of popular music, a starburst of youthful creativity, artistic collectivism and sad, pale people standing behind s
  
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• Police release helicopter footage of 'idiotic' driver in car pursuit

  17-03-2017 19:56
  
  Clive Hill jailed for 14 months over chase in which he crashed into three carsPolice have released helicopter footage of an “idiotic” driver during a dangerous pursuit which landed him in prison.Clive Hill, 41, of Butchers Close, Radstock, Somerset, admitted several driving offences relating to the incident on 18 November 2016. Continue reading...
  
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• Primary school teachers' suicide rate nearly double national average, figures reveal

  17-03-2017 19:55
  
  The suicide rate among primary school teachers in England is nearly two times higher than the national average, figures have revealed.Risk of suicide among primary and nursery school teachers was 42 per cent higher than patterns in the broader population of England during the period 2011 to 2015, according to data released by the Office of National Statistics (ONS).There were 139 suicides among teaching and educational professionals during the period, and almost three quarters (73 per cent) of t
  
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• Jailed fell runner thought UK Athletics was 'trying to kill her'

  17-03-2017 19:54
  
  Lauren Jeska, convicted of attempted murder, felt ‘at war’ with athletics’ national governing body, says family It was three months before Lauren Jeska walked into the reception of UK Athletics armed with two knives that her parents realised something might be wrong.The 42-year-old champion fell runner had gone home to Lancaster for Christmas in 2015 when she began talking about being “at war” with the national governing body of athletics. UK Athletics (UKA) wanted
  
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• Donald Trump refuses to shake Angela Merkel's hand as key meeting gets off to frosty start

  17-03-2017 19:49
  
  The German chancellor and US president posed for the press in the Oval Office, and photographers could be heard calling for the two to shake hands.Mrs Merkel grimaced slightly but soon brushed off the awkward incident and began the task of attempting to build a new transatlantic partnership, quipping in their later press conference that the two leaders "will work together hand in hand"."I reiterated to Chancellor Merkel my strong support for Nato as well as the need for our Nato allies to pay th
  
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• 'At least we have something in common' - Donald Trump says both he and Merkel have been wiretapped by Obama in press conference

  17-03-2017 19:49
  
  Donald Trump has welcomed German chancellor Angela Merkel to the White House ahead of a meeting where he is expected to urge her to increase Nato spending. 
  
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• Nick Kyrgios pulls out of Roger Federer clash with food poisoning

  17-03-2017 19:42
  
  Australian says he ‘had a restless night of being sick’ and withdrawsFederer, who will play Kei Nishikori or Jack Sock, admits: ‘It’s a pity’Roger Federer got an unexpected day off Friday at the BNP Paribas Open after Nick Kyrgios withdrew from their quarter-final because of what he suspected was food poisoning.Less than two hours before they were to take the court, Kyrgios tweeted that he “had a restless night of being sick.” He said: “To play a g
  
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• Everton v Hull City: match preview

  17-03-2017 19:40
  
  Amid Romelu Lukaku’s contract stand-off Everton will still be confident of earning a win that would temporarily move Ronald Koeman’s side above Manchester United in sixth place. Hull overcame Merseyside opponents with a 2-0 win over Liverpool in February and Marco Silva’s side will need a similarly robust display to take anything away from Goodison Park, where the hosts have lost just once all season in the league. Joel RabinowitzKick-off Saturday 3pmContinue reading...
  
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• Man who pleaded guilty of raping 12-year-old freed by Glasgow high court

  17-03-2017 19:37
  
  Daniel Cieslak, of Leith in Edinburgh, was granted an absolute discharge in what the judge described as “wholly exceptional” circumstances at Glasgow high court.Cieslak, who was 19 at the time, met the victim and her friend, aged 13, in a taxi queue in Edinburgh after a night out in the summer of 2015, the court heard.Cieslak and the 12-year-old then had sex, the court was told.
  
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• Erdogan calls on Turkish families in Europe to have five children to protect against 'injustices' 

  17-03-2017 19:34
  
  Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has called on Turkey’s citizens in Europe to step up their rates of procreation and have five children each, saying a booming Turkish population would be the best answer to the EU’s “vulgarism, antagonism, and injustice”.
  
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