General news

• It’s time for Theresa May to ditch damaging grammar school plans | David Laws

  15-04-2017 23:00
  
  Despite aspiring to ‘a country that works for everyone’ prime minister Theresa May’s grammar schools policy will leave the poorest children behind.It is one of the worst kept secrets in Westminster that education secretary Justine Greening is not the biggest supporter of the policy that is now the social mobility “flagship” of Theresa May’s government – expanding the number of grammar schools.Greening must be aware of the clear UK and international evide
  
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• Emma Morano, world's oldest person, dies aged 117 - The Guardian

  15-04-2017 21:44 via theguardian.com
  
  The Guardian
  Emma Morano, world's oldest person, dies aged 117
  The Guardian
  At the age of 117 her life spanned three centuries, having been born in the 1800s. Morano was also one of the five oldest people in recorded history. Her doctor, Carlo Bava, said he had called her caretaker, only to be told that she had passed away on ...
  World's oldest person Emma Morano dies aged 117Daily Mail
  Italian Emma Morano, last known survivor of 19th century, dies at 117The Japan Times
  World's oldest pers
  
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• Sun under pressure to sack Kelvin MacKenzie

  15-04-2017 21:12
  
  A Ross Barkley banner is unveiled during Everton’s Premier League match against Burnley at Goodison Park on 15 April.Pressure is growing on the Sun to sack its columnist and former editor Kelvin MacKenzie, as the chair of the equalities watchdog called on newspapers to think carefully before publishing comments that could promote social division.David Isaac, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, made the warning on Saturday after Everton football club banned the tabloid’
  
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• Slate quarry strike: Art bid to heal divisions

  15-04-2017 20:37 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Can a community project help end more than a century of animosity sparked by a strike?
  
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• Lib Dems say they have real chance of winning Manchester byelection

  15-04-2017 20:28
  
  The Liberal Democrats are fast closing the gap on Labour in polling ahead of next month’s Manchester Gorton byelection and believe they could steal a victory to match their stunning success over the Conservatives in Richmond last December, according to an internal campaign briefing.Tim Farron’s party secured just 4.2% of the vote in the Manchester seat at the 2015 general election, coming fifth behind the Greens, the Conservatives and Ukip, as Labour cruised home with a majority of m
  
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• Ruddocks of Lincoln closes after 150 years in family

  15-04-2017 20:07 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The family-owned shop has sold stationery and gifts from its current site in Lincoln since 1904.
  
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• Navy to escort Russian warships in English Channel amid Syria tensions

  15-04-2017 19:56
  A Royal Navy ship is escorting two Russian warships which are due to pass through the English Channel.HMS Sutherland will keep a "vigilant watch" on Steregushchiy-class corvettes Soobrazitelny and Boiky as they sail close to UK waters.A Russian support tanker and ocean-going tug is also travelling with them.
  
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• Mauricio Pochettino says 'the world tried to kill Tottenham last season' - The Guardian

  15-04-2017 19:27 via theguardian.com
  
  The Guardian
  Mauricio Pochettino says 'the world tried to kill Tottenham last season'
  The Guardian
  Mauricio Pochettino feels his Tottenham Hotspur players have a sharper focus on their Premier League title challenge, in marked contrast to last season when “all the world tried to kill” them and will Leicester City to their fairytale triumph. The ...and more »
  
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• Russian warships are escorted through English Channel - Daily Mail

  15-04-2017 19:12 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Daily Mail
  Russian warships are escorted through English Channel
  Daily Mail
  The Royal Navy will escort two Russian warships through the English Channel tonight after they were spotted sailing through the North Sea towards Dover today. Royal Navy frigate HMS Sutherland located the two ships in the early hours of this morning.and more »
  
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• A major shake-up of driving tests is on the way - here's what will change

  15-04-2017 18:58
  
  Learner drivers will have to show off their sat nav abilities.
  
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• Pupils wear coats in classroom due to cuts as teachers vote to back strike

  15-04-2017 18:53
  Pupils had to wear coats and hats during lessons in January at one secondary school because the heating was turned off to save money, it has been claimed.Tight budgets and funding concerns were highlighted at the National Union of Teachers (NUT) annual conference, which voted to back a one-day strike in England.Any industrial action would take place before 31 August and union members would be consulted beforehand.
  
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• Number of NHS managers still growing as GP posts fall again

  15-04-2017 17:42
  
  Latest figures show 92 GP practices closed in 2016 as GP numbers fell by 400 between October and December last year.The number of NHS managers has grown by almost 18% in the four years since the government introduced a “bureaucracy-busting” shakeup of the health service, according to the latest official data.The rise of about 4,650 in total management posts since April 2013, when the controversial Health and Social Care Act came into force, contrasts with an alarming fall in the numb
  
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• Syria war: Huge bomb kills dozens of evacuees in Syria - BBC News

  15-04-2017 16:55 via bbc.co.uk
  
  BBC News
  Syria war: Huge bomb kills dozens of evacuees in Syria
  BBC News
  A huge car bomb has blasted a convoy of coaches carrying evacuees from besieged government-held towns in Syria, killing at least 45 people. It shattered coaches and set cars on fire, leaving a trail of bodies including children, as the convoy waited in ...
  Syria: Over 100 killed in car bomb attack during evacuation near AleppoFirstpost
  Syria: 100 killed as bomb hits buses with evacueesWLS-TV
  Heartbreaking pictures of Syria
  
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• NUT backs strike action in English schools over funding crisis

  15-04-2017 15:47
  
  The NUT’s annual conference was told of one school in north London where pupils had to wear hats and coats in class this winter.Schools in England could be closed by strikes before the end of the summer term, after the National Union of Teachers backed industrial action over the education funding crisis at its annual conference.The motion passed means the union will consider industrial action in the parts of the country hardest hit by funding cuts.
  
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• Investigation into 'suspicious' fire at Grade l stately home in Dorset

  15-04-2017 15:23
  A massive fire at an "exceptionally important" 16th century stately home in Dorset is being treated as suspicious by police.A spokeswoman said Dorset Police were called to Grade l listed Parnham House in Beaminster at 4.10am.Craig Baker, area manager for Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service, tweeted: "At the scene of a major fire in Beaminster, West Dorset.
  
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• Everton ban The Sun after Kelvin MacKenzie's Ross Barkley article

  15-04-2017 15:19
  Everton have banned The Sun journalists from their stadium and training ground in the wake of a column about player Ross Barkley.It comes after a controversial column by Kelvin MacKenzie in the newspaper, in which he compared the midfielder to a gorilla.A statement on the club's website said they had told The Sun on Friday that it was banned from their Goodison Park stadium, the USM Finch Farm training ground and all areas of the team's operation.
  
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• Jessica is overcoming severe ME to walk down the aisle

  15-04-2017 14:32 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Jessica Taylor-Bearman is learning to walk again after being bedridden for more than a decade.
  
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• Everton bans The Sun after Kelvin MacKenzie's Ross Barkley article

  15-04-2017 13:48
  Everton has banned The Sun journalists from its stadium and training ground in the wake of a column about player Ross Barkley.The newspaper has suspended Kelvin MacKenzie after he expressed "wrong" and "unfunny" views about the people of Liverpool.Police are also investigating claims the article by Mr Mackenzie amounts to a "racial hate crime".
  
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• UK man Christopher Laidler dies after falling from building in Thailand

  15-04-2017 13:39
  A British man who reportedly fell from the third floor of a guesthouse in Thailand has died, the Foreign Office has confirmed.The man, believed to be Christopher Laidler, 31, was naked when he fell from the Sweet Heart guesthouse in Pattaya, according to the Bangkok Post.
  
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• Rare photos of post-war London published

  15-04-2017 13:39 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The images of Bethnal Green are by photographer Nigel Henderson, taken between 1949-1953.
  
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• Stuck with a stag do

  15-04-2017 13:09 via bbc.co.uk
  
  What happens when you are stuck on a flight with noisy stag and hen parties? Here are your stories.
  
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• British student Hannah Bladon's family 'devastated' by her killing in Jerusalem

  15-04-2017 12:56
  The family of Hannah Bladon, the British student stabbed and killed in Jerusalem, say they are "devastated" by the "senseless and tragic attack".In a statement released by the Foreign Office, Hannah's family said: "Hannah was the most caring, sensitive and compassionate daughter you could ever wish for.
  
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• Charlie Gard: Our parental rights were 'stripped away', terminally ill baby's mum says

  15-04-2017 11:55
  The mother of a terminally ill baby says a decision to remove life-support means that her parental rights have been "stripped away" by "strangers".Connie Yates says that despite this week's "heartbreaking" High Court ruling, she cannot bear to let her eight-month-old son Charlie Gard go until every medical avenue has been explored.Charlie, who is being cared for at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital, has a form of mitochondrial disease (RRM2B), which causes brain damage and progressive muscle
  
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• The new driving test explained: The changes learners need to know about

  15-04-2017 11:31
  The driving test is modernising, so what do you have to do to pass?:: You will have to show that you can follow instructions from a sat nav supplied by the examiner.:: One in five tests will still not use a sat nav, so you will still have to be able to follow road signs as well.
  
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• Mission to build all 92 English League grounds out of Lego

  15-04-2017 11:18 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Chris Smith has made Lego versions of stadiums including Manchester Utd’s Old Trafford and QPR’s Loftus Road.
  
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• Netflix nudges 100m subscribers but what next for the streaming giant?

  15-04-2017 11:00
  
  Netflix is on the cusp of reaching the 100m subscriber mark as productions such as The Crown and Stranger Things lure viewers away from cinemas and TV schedules in binge-watching droves.Not only is the California-based firm eating into box office queues and mass TV audiences, it is producing content that established media empires are struggling to better.“Shows like [teen suicide drama] 13 Reasons Why are very honest and raw and I’m not sure you’d find that on terrestrial TV an
  
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• More than 20 stag party revellers kicked off UK flight to Prague

  15-04-2017 10:48
  
  Twenty-three people from two different stag parties have been removed from a flight at Manchester airport after complaints of drunken and rowdy behaviour before the plane had taken off.One man was issued with a public order fixed penalty notice after the pilot returned to the gate, where police boarded the plane to help cabin crew remove the passengers.One passenger posted pictures showing three police vehicles on the tarmac by the plane and armed officers boarding the flight, which was delayed
  
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• Stag parties thrown off plane at Manchester Airport for 'disruptive behaviour'

  15-04-2017 10:37
  Twenty-three passengers, from at least two different stag parties, have been thrown off a flight from Manchester for "disruptive behaviour".The Jet2.com aircraft was due to travel to Prague on Friday afternoon but, before take-off, was forced to return to the stand.Passenger Dave Illingworth, tweeted: "Stuck on the tarmac at manchester airport as some idiot stags and their luggage are removed.
  
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• Councils set to be banned from charging for park fun runs under Government plans

  15-04-2017 09:54
  Councils in England will be prevented from charging people to take part in weekend fun runs under new rules.It comes after a parish council near Bristol considered a £1 charge for participants last year.The Olympic gold medal-winner Dame Kelly Holmes was among those expressing concern after Stoke Gifford parish council said it was worried about "increased wear" at Little Stoke Park.
  
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• 'It's worse than heroin': how spice is ravaging homeless communities

  15-04-2017 09:00
  
  An estimated 90-95% of homeless people in Manchester smoke spice. Photograph: Spencer Platt/Getty Images
  
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• Stabbed ex-police dog makes a splash

  15-04-2017 08:29 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Life's a beach for retired police dog Finn who nearly died after he was stabbed in the line of duty.
  
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• Norfolk beach trip for Finn the retired police dog

  15-04-2017 08:29 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Life's a beach for retired police dog Finn who nearly died after he was stabbed in the line of duty.
  
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• Sun columnist Kelvin MacKenzie suspended over article about Everton's Ross Barkley

  15-04-2017 08:23
  
  The Sun columnist Kelvin MacKenzie has been suspended from the newspaper after he expressed "wrong" and "unfunny" views about the people of Liverpool, News UK has said.Earlier, Merseyside Police said it was probing claims that a newspaper column about Everton star Ross Barkley amounts to a "racial hate crime".The England international was punched twice in an "unprovoked" nightclub attack last weekend.
  
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• Chewing gum makers 'should help clean up'

  15-04-2017 03:04
  Chewing gum makers should help pay for the growing cost of removing their product from the country's streets, councils have said.Almost all main shopping streets and 64% of all roads and pavements are stained by chewing gum, according to Keep Britain Tidy.The Local Government Association has said it is time the chewing gum industry paid its share of the £60m-a-year cost of cleaning up the streets of England and Wales.
  
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• Heroin linked to four deaths in 24 hours

  15-04-2017 02:59
  The unexplained deaths of four people in less than 24 hours may be related to heroin, police believe.Three of the deaths were reported on Friday morning and a fourth was reported on Friday evening, all in South Yorkshire.
  
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• Care home fees

  15-04-2017 02:03 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The BBC investigates claims that care home fees can be avoided with the use of legal trusts.
  
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• Driving test shake-up introduces sat nav into exam

  15-04-2017 01:27
  New drivers will have to prove they can operate modern technology in what could be the last changes to the driving test before the arrival of semi-autonomous cars.From December examiners will test students to see if they can follow instructions from satellite navigation systems for up to 20 minutes.Junior transport minister Andrew Jones said the changes are designed to improve safety now that half of motorists use satellite navigation.
  
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• Changes to driving test announced

  15-04-2017 01:05 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Changes to the driving test come into force on 4 December 2017.
  
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• US: China, Germany must do more to cut trade surpluses

  15-04-2017 00:49
  
  Donald Trump repeatedly pledged in his campaign to name China as a currency manipulator on his first day in office, but has retreated from that position after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping ...
  
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• Driverless car rated... by Sky man's mum

  15-04-2017 00:10
  
  Members of the public are being given the opportunity to test a driverless vehicle for the first time.
  
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• US: China, Germany must do more to reduce trade surpluses

  15-04-2017 00:02
  
  Donald Trump repeatedly pledged in his campaign to name China as a currency manipulator on his first day in office, but has retreated from that position after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping ...
  
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