General news

• Oxfam's taxpayer funding suspended until it meets 'high standards' expected, Penny Mordaunt says - The Independent

  16-02-2018 23:48 via independent.co.uk
  The Independent
  Oxfam's taxpayer funding suspended until it meets 'high standards' expected, Penny Mordaunt says
  The Independent
  Oxfam will receive no funding from the British government until ministers are satisfied it meets the “high standards” expected. The charity has agreed to stop bidding for new taxpayer cash in the wake of the aid worker sex scandal, International ...
  Oxfam boss Mark Goldring: 'Anything we say is being manipulated. We've been savaged'The Guardian
  Oxfam sex s
  
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• Theresa May to warn EU not to put ideology before citizens' safety - The Guardian

  16-02-2018 23:42 via theguardian.com
  The Guardian
  Theresa May to warn EU not to put ideology before citizens' safety
  The Guardian
  Theresa May is due to address world leaders at a conference in Munich on Saturday. Photograph: Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters. The EU could put its citizens at risk if it allows ideology or rigid institutions to blind its leaders to the need to cooperate ...
  Brexit: Theresa May to warn EU leaders not to let 'doctrine and ideology' jeopardise border securityThe Independent
  May in MunichThe Times
  Theresa May w
  
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• UK committed to Europe's security post-Brexit

  16-02-2018 23:40
  The Prime Minister has insisted the UK will remain "unconditionally committed to maintaining Europe's security" after Brexit.
  
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• Theresa May to call for new security treaty with EU to 'retain cooperation'

  16-02-2018 23:33
  Theresa May will tell world leaders and politicians at the annual global security conference in Munich that Britain will continue to contribute to the security of Europe but a new security treaty needs to be reached."Europe's security is our security," she will tell the conference.
  
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• French serial killer confesses to murder of British student

  16-02-2018 23:31 via theguardian.com
  After years of denials, Michel Fourniret admits killing Joanna Parrish, 20, in 1990A French serial killer has confessed to the murder of British language student Joanna Parrish in France nearly three decades ago, the family lawyer told AFP on Friday.Jailed for life in 2008 for killing seven girls and young women, Michel Fourniret was dubbed the Ogre of the Ardennes. Continue reading...
  
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• Theresa May to warn EU not to put ideology before citizens' safety

  16-02-2018 23:30
  Theresa May is due to address world leaders at a conference in Munich on Saturday.The EU could put its citizens at risk if it allows ideology or rigid institutions to blind its leaders to the need to cooperate against terror threats, Theresa May will say on Saturday, proposing a new UK-EU treaty on intelligence and security.The prime minister risks a rift with Europe in a speech in which she will say the UK wants to stay closely aligned with Europe on security policy, but that “rigid insti
  
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• May says she wants a Brexit that works for UK and EU firms

  16-02-2018 23:24
  British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Friday she wanted a Brexit deal that was good for companies in Britain and the rest of the European Union."I want to ensure that UK companies have the maximum freedom to trade and operate within German markets, and for German businesses to do the same in the UK," May said after meeting German leader Angela Merkel in Berlin.
  
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• Brexit deal should strike 'fair balance', says Germany's Merkel

  16-02-2018 23:24
  A Brexit deal should strike a balance to ensure Britain clearly diverges from the European Union's single market but keeps close economic ties with the bloc, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said after meeting British Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday.With little more than a year to go before Britain leaves the EU, Merkel struck an upbeat tone after the talks, which she described as "a very constructive, friendly meeting"."We regret (Brexit), but we want to lead the negotiations such that we h
  
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• Why is Team GB a powerhouse in the skeleton?

  16-02-2018 23:20
  Team GB is one of the powerhouses of the skeleton. But how did temperate Britain, a country with no ice track, end up being one of the big guns in this rather obscure winter sport?
  
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• It appears Wales has been recognised as an independent state in the Marvel universe

  16-02-2018 23:15
  And Welsh viewers are excited.
  
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• Gulf in class telling as Hull City thumped at Chelsea - The 30-second verdict - Hull Daily Mail

  16-02-2018 23:01 via hulldailymail.co.uk
  Hull Daily Mail
  Gulf in class telling as Hull City thumped at Chelsea - The 30-second verdict
  Hull Daily Mail
  Hull City crashed out of the FA Cup with a 4-0 loss to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Will Jackson presents his 30-second verdict. Analysis. As if Hull City needed telling how difficult a trip to Stamford Bridge would be. With three defenders ineligible ...
  I have a selection headache for Barcelona clash, admits ConteBelfast Telegraph
  Chelsea boss Antonio Conte sends message to side after
  
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• Watch: ‘Angelic’ school choir pays tribute to victims of Florida shooting

  16-02-2018 22:46
  ‘We need more compassion like this and I think we’ll be A-okay.’
  
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• What the US papers are saying about the most recent mass shooting

  16-02-2018 22:39
  This is how prominent US papers are covering the shooting in Florida, two days after the attack.
  
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• 4 West Brom players accused of stealing taxi in Spain - Daily Mail

  16-02-2018 22:28 via dailymail.co.uk
  Daily Mail
  4 West Brom players accused of stealing taxi in Spain
  Daily Mail
  BARCELONA, Spain (AP) - Four West Bromwich Albion players were being investigated by Spanish police on Friday for the alleged theft of a taxi while the English Premier League team was training in Barcelona. The players - Jonny Evans, Gareth Barry, Jake ...
  West Brom's Jonny Evans, Gareth Barry, Jake Livermore, Boaz Myhill apologise as police probe taxi theftSkySports
  Alan Pardew job under threat after four West Brom pla
  
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• Four West Brom players say they're 'sorry' for 'stealing taxi'

  16-02-2018 22:12
  Gareth Barry, Jonny Evans, Jake Livermore and Boaz Myhill - have apologised after a taxi was allegedly stolen in Barcelona.The football club has confirmed it is investigating an alleged stolen taxi incident that may have involved four senior players in Spain.In a statement, the Premier League club said it has "instigated its own investigation into the incident and the players will be subject to the full rigours of our internal disciplinary procedures".
  
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• Oxfam scandal: Charity to stop bidding for Government funding

  16-02-2018 20:54
  Oxfam has agreed to stop bidding for Government funding until ministers are satisfied it can meet the "high standards" expected.International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said the charity had agreed not to bid for taxpayers' money amid allegations some of Oxfam's aid workers used prostitutes in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake.The minister's statement follows the charity's response to demands outlined by Ms Mordaunt on Monday.
  
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• Ex-soldier Karel Frybl who stabbed Scottish girlfriend 40 times in 'ferocious' killing is jailed for life

  16-02-2018 20:52
  A former soldier has been found guilty of murdering his Scottish girlfriend in a knife attack in Lapland.Czech national Karel Frybl was sentenced to life in prison for stabbing Rebecca Johnson to death at a husky farm.Frybl, 36, attacked her at a cottage in Kultimantie, Finland, leaving her with 40 wounds, including 10 in her chest.
  
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• Tea sets and Ascot inspire Mulberry's instant-fashion launch

  16-02-2018 20:17
  Britain's Mulberry looked to the garden parties of old to inspire its most modern fashion collection to date, as the brand on Friday launched a new format allowing shoppers to buy its wares straight off the catwalk instead of months later.The label unveiled its latest designs - including dresses in floral prints recalling those adorning English tea sets - on the first full day of London Fashion Week, which runs until Feb. 20.Mulberry, best known for its handcrafted leather bags manufactured in s
  
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• Oxfam agrees not to bid for new funding from UK government

  16-02-2018 20:07
  Oxfam has agreed not to bid for any new funding from Britain's government until London is satisfied the charity meets sufficient ethical standards, development minister Penny Mordaunt said on Friday.The Times newspaper reported last week that some Oxfam staff had paid for sex with prostitutes in Haiti after the country's 2010 earthquake.Oxfam, one of the world's biggest disaster relief charities, said an internal investigation in 2011 confirmed sexual misconduct occurred, and has apologised.
  
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• Center Parcs pulls Daily Mail ads after column against same-sex parents

  16-02-2018 19:55 via theguardian.com
  Richard Littlejohn piece arguing that two dads are not ‘the new normal’ prompts moveThe family holiday village operator Center Parcs has pulled its advertising from the Daily Mail after a columnist told readers not to consider same-sex parents as “the new normal”.The column by Richard Littlejohn, headlined “Please don’t pretend two dads is the new normal”, followed the news that Olympic diver Tom Daley and his husband, the film-maker and screenwriter Dus
  
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• London Fashion Week: What people are really wearing

  16-02-2018 19:51 via bbc.co.uk
  Women and men show off their street style as London Fashion Week 2018 gets under way.
  
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• Angela Merkel 'curious' about UK's Brexit plan, but not 'frustrated'

  16-02-2018 19:34
  Angela Merkel told Theresa May on Friday that she was “curious” about, but “not frustrated” with the British government’s slow progress in outlining its vision of the future relationship with the European Union.Speaking in conciliatory terms as Britain’s prime minister prepares to present her ideas on security cooperation in Munich on Saturday, the German chancellor said that the two sides were seeking common ground.
  
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• South Africa: Ramaphosa invokes Mandela in first major speech

  16-02-2018 19:24 via theguardian.com
  New president vows to bolster economy and combat inequality, one day after replacing ZumaCyril Ramaphosa invoked the memory and message of Nelson Mandela as he pledged to restore economic growth, fight corruption and tackle entrenched inequality in South Africa in the first major speech of his presidency on Friday.“Guided by [Mandela’s] example, we will use this year to reinforce our commitment to ethical behaviour as well as ethical leadership. We are not merely honouring the past b
  
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• Teenage rapist who struck victim with slab in birthday attack jailed for life

  16-02-2018 19:13
  A violent teenage rapist who "hunted" his victim in a park and hit her over the head with a paving slab on his 17th birthday has been jailed for life.Charlie Pearce researched rape online before carrying out his attack "of animalistic savagery", in July last year, in Leicester's Victoria Park.Pearce, of Clarendon Park, Leicester, was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 11 years at the Old Bailey in London.
  
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• 13 Russians Indicted In Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Trump/Russia Probe

  16-02-2018 19:11
  A Russian Internet agency and more than a dozen Russians interfered in the US election campaign from 2014 through 2016 in a multi-pronged effort with the aim of supporting then-businessman Donald Trump and disparaging his rival Hillary Clinton, the US Special Counsel said in an indictment on Friday.
  
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• The military will now have control of security in Rio state, President Temer said - Daily Mail

  16-02-2018 19:01 via dailymail.co.uk
  Daily Mail
  The military will now have control of security in Rio state, President Temer said
  Daily Mail
  Brazil's federal government issued a decree to put the military in charge of Rio de Janeiro's local police amid a marked rise in levels of gang violence. A decree signed on Friday by President Michel Temer empowers the military with full control of ...
  Brazil's military to take over security in violence-scarred Rio de JaneiroWashington Post
  Brazil's military takes over security in Rio de Jane
  
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• The great Walt Disney World Resort quiz

  16-02-2018 18:30 via theguardian.com
  How well do you know one of the world’s most magical tourist destinations? You may know your Space Mountain from your Splash Mountain, but this quiz will challenge even the biggest Disney fan’s knowledge of some of Walt Disney World Resort in Florida’s most weird and wonderful aspectsThe Magic Kingdom was the first of Walt Disney World Resort’s six parks to be opened, but which came next?Disney’s Hollywood StudiosEpcotDisney’s Animal KingdomDisney’s Bliz
  
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• Treasured island: a family adventure on the Isle of Man

  16-02-2018 18:23 via theguardian.com
  With everything from goat walking and gorge scrambling to sunsets, scallops and Viking kings, the Isle of Man is an outdoor playground, as Rhonda Carrier and family discoveredThe boys are buzzing, grinning from ear to ear; I haven’t seen them so excited in ages. I must confess, the grownup half of our family has been dreading the idea of donning wetsuits and clambering through a chilly freshwater gorge. But as we progress upstream through the Isle of Man’s Ballaglass Glen, climbing u
  
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• West Brom football players investigated over 'stolen taxi' in Spain

  16-02-2018 18:18
  West Bromwich Albion football club has confirmed it is investigating an alleged stolen taxi incident that may have involved four senior players in Spain.In a statement, the Premier League club said it has "instigated its own investigation into the incident and the players will be subject to the full rigours of our internal disciplinary procedures".
  
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• London-based fraud gang jailed over £1m online ads scam

  16-02-2018 18:14
  The gang opened more than 100 bank accounts to receive payments from fraudulent online ads.The organised crime network was led by Dragoz Dragomir, who ran a counterfeit ID factory, which helped facilitate the crimes.When Dragomir was arrested last June, he was living under the false name of Andrei Bernath.
  
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• The great seascape: castles, kippers and coastal walks on the Isle of Man

  16-02-2018 18:11 via theguardian.com
  From history and hiking to hairpin bends, Mark Hillsdon and his partner take a tour of the Isle of Man’s cultural attractions, with time to spare for some classic Manx cuisineSetting off from Liverpool, we leave the calm morning waters of the Mersey estuary behind and head out across the Irish Sea. Having taken in the views from the deck of the iconic Isle of Man Steam Packet Company ferry, it’s time to settle down to breakfast and in less than three hours we’re moored up in Do
  
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• Scammed designs: when crafty home owners take on planning regulations

  16-02-2018 18:04
  Last week in Leicestershire, a couple was discovered to have built an entire house inside their garage without planning permission, hiding it behind a fake garage door.Dr Reeta Herzallah and Hamdi Almasri will now have to convert the structure back and pay a fine.Blaby District Council has won this time, but in the ongoing regulatory war between crafty home owners and local authorities, the record is mixed.
  
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• Max Mosley threatens to sue papers over orgy story under data laws

  16-02-2018 17:56
  Max Mosley said the newspapers were engaged in ‘a commercial campaign’ against him.Max Mosley is threatening to sue Britain’s three largest newspaper groups, claiming they are in breach of the Data Protection Act because they continue to refer to an infamous sadomasochistic orgy involving the former Formula One boss a decade ago.The 77-year-old claims that data protection and privacy laws require the press to stop disseminating information about him that is not in the public in
  
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• DUP negotiator: 'We haven't found a way forward'

  16-02-2018 17:55
  Talks between the leaders of Northern Ireland's two biggest political parties to re-establish a government in Stormont have broken down.
  
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• City watchdog hands full report on RBS turnaround unit to MPs

  16-02-2018 17:51
  The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has handed MPs the full version of its report into the treatment of customers placed in RBS' controversial Global Restructuring Group (GRG).The City watchdog had been given a deadline of Friday by the Treasury Select Committee to either publish the document or hand it over - having previously refused to place it in the public domain on legal grounds.Only a summary has been officially released so far as the FCA argued it had not obtained necessary consents to
  
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• Government to consider 'all options' on Northern Ireland after power-sharing talks collapse

  16-02-2018 17:48
  The Government will continue to consider "all options" this weekend after latest power-sharing talks in Northern Ireland broke down.The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) have insisted it is now "incumbent" on Westminster to begin direct rule over Northern Ireland.Speaking on a visit to Belfast on Friday, Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley admitted it had been "a difficult week" but expressed her view an agreement between the parties could yet be reached.
  
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• Lord Sutherland of Houndwood obituary

  16-02-2018 17:47
  Stewart Sutherland became the first head of Ofsted, the schools regulator established in 1992.During a glittering academic career, in which he became vice-chancellor of two universities, London and then Edinburgh, Stewart Sutherland, Lord Sutherland of Houndwood, who has died aged 76, acquired two further distinctions.Ofsted was set up as the guardian of quality in the Conservative government’s quasi-market for schools, involving more parental choice, wider school autonomy and league table
  
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• Barry Bennell victim fears paedophile abused hundreds more

  16-02-2018 17:45
  David White still shudders even now when he recalls the day he bumped into Barry Bennell at Manchester City's training ground.White was 23, in the City first team and on the brink of earning full England honours, but what he had told nobody at the time was that Bennell had sexually abused him 11 years earlier."I just froze, he had two young boys with him and he gave me this cheery 'hello' and in a split second I said hello back and that was that," Mr White tells me as we chat in Eccles, not far
  
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• Bennell victims: 'You are nothing to us'

  16-02-2018 17:40
  Three victims of convicted paedophile football coach Barry Bennell give statements outside court.
  
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• Gang who made a fake David Cameron driving licence are jailed

  16-02-2018 17:25
  Members of a gang who faked a driving licence with the details of former prime minister David Cameron have been jailed for more than 22 years.Dragoz Dragomir and Mihai Cirstoiu would advertise non-existent goods and services on legitimate websites, including eBay, and collect money from the sales via bank accounts set up with fake IDs.One of the ID cards they faked showed Mr Cameron, complete with 10 Downing Street as an address.
  
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• Trump 'had affair with former Playboy model', report says

  16-02-2018 17:12 via theguardian.com
  According to the New Yorker, Karen McDougal claims the affair took place in 2006 and that her story was silenced in the months before Trump was elected presidentDonald Trump had an extramarital affair with a woman named Karen McDougal, a Playboy model at the time, according to a report in the New Yorker, which also claims her story was silenced in the months before the businessman was elected president.The story was first reported by the Wall Street Journal in November 2016, though McDougal decl
  
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• BP plans no Azeri platform shutdowns in 2018, eyes more investment

  16-02-2018 17:07
  British oil major BP , which operates a number of oil and gas fields in Azerbaijan, plans no maintenance shutdowns of platforms there this year and intends to advance with new projects, BP's regional president told Reuters.BP operates the giant Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG) oilfields in Azerbaijan as well as the Shah Deniz gas fields.Natural gas production from the Shah Deniz offshore fields was 10.2 billion cubic metres (bcm) and condensate output came to 2.4 million tonnes, down from 10.7 bcm of
  
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• Trump suggests he will visit with Parkland community while in Florida - Los Angeles Times

  16-02-2018 16:45 via latimes.com
  Los Angeles Times
  Trump suggests he will visit with Parkland community while in Florida
  Los Angeles Times
  I will be leaving for Florida today to meet with some of the bravest people on earth - but people whose lives have been totally shattered. Am also working with Congress on many fronts. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 16, 2018. (Carolyn ...
  Florida Shooting: Trump Visits Hospital That Treated VictimsNew York Times
  To Prevent Shootings, Donald Trump Says the US Needs a &ld
  
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• Tui's male employees paid more than double female staff – report

  16-02-2018 16:43
  Nearly 80% of Tui Airways cabin crew are women, who are paid and average of £26,272.The travel group Tui has the largest gender pay gap reported to date by a major UK company, with its male employees paid more than double the female staff.Women at the group’s Tui Airways UK unit earn on average 56.9% less in hourly pay than men, according to data filed under a new government scheme intended to highlight the gender pay gap and encourage employers to address the disparity.
  
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• MPs confirm receipt of confidential RBS report from regulator

  16-02-2018 16:32
  MPs confirmed on Friday that they had received a confidential report into Royal Bank of Scotland's alleged mistreatment of small businesses during the financial crisis.The Financial Conduct Authority has urged parliament's Treasury Committee not to publish the report, excerpts of which have already leaked but which the regulator says it is legally unable to make public due to its confidential nature.Committee chair Nicky Morgan said she would ask her parliamentary colleagues to agree to publish
  
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• FCA refuses to publish report on RBS

  16-02-2018 16:32
  Britain's financial watchdog said it would not publish the full report into Royal Bank of Scotland Group'streatment of small businesses, but instead sent a copy of the report to lawmakers on Friday.The cross-party Treasury Select Committee had given the Financial Conduct Authority a deadline of Friday to either publish the report, which details RBS's much-criticised treatment of small business customers, or provide a copy to the committee of politicians.The report details how RBS, which is still
  
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• Oxfam chief accuses critics of 'gunning' for charity over Haiti sex scandal claims

  16-02-2018 16:10 via theguardian.com
  Mark Goldring admits organisation’s failings but says ‘scale and intensity’ of criticism is disproportionate•Oxfam CEO: ‘Anything we say is manipulated. We’ve been savaged’The chief executive of Oxfam has hit back at the storm of criticism surrounding the charity’s sex exploitation scandal in Haiti, claiming attacks on the organisation are “out of proportion to the level of culpability”.In an interview with the Guardian, Mark Goldring re
  
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• We Put Three Billboards Outside Grenfell To Show We'll Not Stop Fighting For Justice

  16-02-2018 16:07
  In the early hours of June 14th 2017, I received a phone call from a friend that changed my life.
  
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• What to look out for at London Fashion Week

  16-02-2018 16:06 via bbc.co.uk
  Including plus-sized protests and Christopher Bailey's last Burberry collection.
  
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• Adults are sharing tales from school which still make them mad years later

  16-02-2018 16:04
  Where’s the justice?
  
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