General news

• Bear Grylls tests Gareth Southgate in TV mission

  23-11-2018 23:55 via bbc.co.uk
  The TV adventurer takes the England manager to the wilderness to test his "composure and poise".
  
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• 'Our new-build home has 354 defects'

  23-11-2018 23:11 via bbc.co.uk
  A couple says they still can't live in their new house in Worcester, two years after they bought it.
  
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• How Bet365's Denise Coates hit her own jackpot

  23-11-2018 23:07 via bbc.co.uk
  Denise Coates - Bet365's driving force - was named the UK's best-paid boss this week. What's her system?
  
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• Gabby’s Great Brexit Bake Off cheers Theresa May after ‘tough week’

  23-11-2018 23:05
  Gabby Balaes, 9, made the Prime Minister a cupcake of her face
  
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• Should we still be giving gift cards this Christmas?

  23-11-2018 23:02 via bbc.co.uk
  We spend £6bn a year on gift cards but waste £300m by forgetting to use them before they expire.
  
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• Nearly 1,000 Complaints Lodged About Botched Cosmetic Procedures In The Past Year

  23-11-2018 22:56
  There have been almost 1,000 complaints about botched botox and filler
  
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• May faces Spanish opposition ahead of Brexit summit

  23-11-2018 22:43
  Theresa May heads to Brussels on Saturday for talks ahead of a summit on Sunday expected to back her Brexit deal – but Spain still has concerns.
  
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• Theresa May accused of giving knighthood to buy MP's Brexit silence

  23-11-2018 22:36
  MP John Hayes has been vocal about his discomfort with the Brexit deal.Theresa May has been accused of bringing the honours system into disrepute after handing a knighthood to a former minister known to be wavering on whether or not to support her Brexit deal.Downing Street announced the award had been granted to John Hayes MP, a junior minister to May when she was the home secretary, on Friday afternoon.
  
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• UK regulator investigates Chinese TV in Britain over confession it aired

  23-11-2018 22:30
  A private investigator previously jailed in China has asked Britain to restrict China Central Television's operations on the grounds that it broke UK broadcasting rules by airing confessions he said he was forced to make.Briton Peter Humphrey and his American wife Yu Yingzeng were sentenced in 2014 for illegally obtaining private records of Chinese citizens and selling the information to clients, including drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline.The case was intertwined with an investigation of GSK in China t
  
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• US ambassador greeted by onesie wedding party on Belfast trip

  23-11-2018 21:42
  Revellers dressed as animals, Simpsons characters and dinosaurs mingled with senior diplomats at City Hall.
  
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• Man jailed for pretending to be doctor to land NHS job at Cambridgeshire trust

  23-11-2018 21:41
  A fraudster who lied on his CV to get a job in the NHS and then cheated his employers out of almost £350,000 has been jailed for five years.
  
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• Children among those evacuated from ice rink as fire breaks out

  23-11-2018 21:31
  One woman was taken to hospital after the blaze in Weston-super-Mare on Friday evening.
  
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• Spain: Sunday's EU summit on Brexit could be called off over Gibraltar

  23-11-2018 21:17
  Spain has threatened to call off Sunday's EU summit on Brexit unless an agreement is made with the UK over Gibraltar.It comes as DUP leader Arlene Foster warned that the deal propping up Theresa May's administration would be at risk if the prime minister's Brexit deal is passed.
  
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• Mental health provision to be reviewed after Polmont deaths

  23-11-2018 21:13
  Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf announced an independent review following the deaths of two young people.
  
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• Northern Irish DUP says it could ditch May's government if Brexit deal passes

  23-11-2018 21:11
  The leader of the Northern Irish party propping up Britain's government warned British Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday that it could abandon her if she got her Brexit divorce deal through parliament.With four months left until Britain leaves the EU, the divorce treaty and accompanying political declaration are due to be rubber-stamped in Brussels on Sunday by May and the other 27 EU leaders so they can go to the respective parliaments.The biggest obstacle to the accord is the vehement oppos
  
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• Spready Mercury and Gritty Gritty Bang Bang top gritter poll

  23-11-2018 21:10
  Cumbria County Council have given 11 of their salt-spreaders new names.
  
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• ‘Caged’ Christmas tree tweets again from new home

  23-11-2018 20:30
  The tree in Glasgow was placed in a new location last year after locals complained about its appearance in 2016.
  
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• Bah-d idea? PETA asks Dorset village Wool to change name to 'Vegan Wool'

  23-11-2018 20:26
  Not many people outside Dorset will have heard of Wool.
  
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• Brexit: May faces tough weekend in Brussels before domestic storm

  23-11-2018 20:18
  The task facing Theresa May is so great that questions have arisen about her possible resignation if she fails to get the Brexit deal through parliament.Theresa May will fly to Brussels on Saturday to seal her Brexit deal with EU leaders, but the real hard work will begin on her return, when she must win back dozens of her own MPs to get the agreement through parliament.
  
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• Scottish rugby legend Doddie Weir receives Edinburgh Award

  23-11-2018 20:14
  The honour recognises the contribution he has made to the city, to sport and to motor neurone disease awareness and research.
  
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• Farming couple questioned their future after discovery of cow with BSE

  23-11-2018 20:00
  The case of the animal disease was identified in Aberdeenshire during routine testing in October.
  
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• Northern Irish DUP leader - we cannot support Brexit deal as it stands

  23-11-2018 19:34
  The leader of the small Northern Irish party propping up Prime Minister Theresa May's British government said it cannot support her Brexit divorce deal as it currently stands, and warned that it could cost May their government cooperation agreement.In a separate interview with BBC Radio Ulster, Foster added that if May was successful in getting the current agreement through parliament, the DUP would then "revisit" its 'confidence and supply' agreement with May's Conservative party.
  
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• Mammoth Fraud Trial Ends In Jail Sentences For Fraudsters In £13 Million Immigration Scam

  23-11-2018 19:24
  Five men who ran a multi-million pound tax and immigration scam have been
  
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• Russell Bishop trial: Convicted paedophile claims he was 'bullied' into giving false account to police

  23-11-2018 19:19
  A convicted paedophile has denied murdering two nine-year-old girls, saying he was "bullied" into making a false account by "nasty" police.Russell Bishop, 52, is on trial for the second time over the deaths of Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway.The girls were sexually assaulted and strangled in a den in Wild Park, Brighton, in October 1986.
  
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• Theresa May prepares to face biggest threat to date: the Tory party

  23-11-2018 19:11
  Theresa May. More than 80 Conservative MPs have declared they cannot support her Brexit agreement.Theresa May will go to Brussels this weekend in the sure knowledge that by far the biggest battle she faces is with her own MPs in a little over a fortnight’s time when the deal is put to parliament for approval.Any basic reading shows that the arithmetic against her is formidable: 85 Conservative MPs have declared they cannot support the Brexit agreement as it stands, amounting to roughly one
  
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• Boat discovery near Newgrange dates back 5,000 years

  23-11-2018 19:10
  Four anglers found the vessel in June 2016 and reported it to heritage authorities.
  
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• Daniela Tejada 'Hopeful' That UAE Will Release Husband

  23-11-2018 19:02
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• May says Brexit deal will not be unpicked, as Spain ramps up Gibraltar pressure

  23-11-2018 18:59
  Theresa May is under pressure from MPs at Westminster to seek a different deal while Madrid wants guarantees over Gibraltar.
  
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• Spike in migrants entering UK by boat as eight more 'Iranians' intercepted in Kent

  23-11-2018 18:55
  An "unprecedented" influx of migrants arriving in the UK on dinghies from mainland Europe has raised concerns, with one think tank warning some might die as a result.Eight suspected migrants were intercepted off the Kent coast - the latest in a spate of crossings that has seen at least 86 people picked up in boats over the past two weeks.The coastguard contacted the Border Force after the latest dinghy was sighted at about 7am near Dover, and the boat was intercepted.
  
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• Government and DUP will ‘sort out’ Irish border dispute, Chancellor claims

  23-11-2018 18:55
  Philip Hammond says he would rather extend the Brexit implementation period than use a backstop.
  
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• Businessman crushed to death after dog knocked truck lever, inquest told

  23-11-2018 18:51
  Avon Coroner’s Court heard there was no other reasonable explanation for the tragedy.
  
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• Police service heading 'towards cliff edge', chief constable warns

  23-11-2018 18:44
  Bedfordshire Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said the situation was rapidly "becoming unsustainable", as his force, like many others, struggles to combat a surge in violent crime.Sky News was granted unrestricted access to follow the work of Bedfordshire's officers and staff, as the force grapples with under resourced departments and record demand for its services.More than 20 armed and unarmed officers attended that call, a resource intensive, but common response to violent incidents across Bedfor
  
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• Police appeal for video after health worker stabbed in hospital car park

  23-11-2018 18:37
  Police searching for a woman who stabbed a health worker in a hospital car park are appealing for potential dashcam footage.The 42-year-old health worker suffered serious injuries in an attack at Ailsa Hospital in Ayr, on Scotland's west coast, on Thursday morning.Superintendent Brian Shaw has said he would like to hear from anyone who was driving in the area of Ailsa Hospital between 9.30am and 10.30am on Thursday "and who may have captured the woman on their vehicle's dashcam".
  
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• Four inspirational days in … Nova Scotia

  23-11-2018 18:27 via theguardian.com
  South London artist and muralist Remi Rough finds visual inspiration in the region’s rocky landscapes, colourful villages and journeys on water … and captures it in a muralI’ll be completely honest; the only thing I knew about Nova Scotia before I went was that rapper and hip-hop artist Buck 65 is from there! What I found was a completely charming province, and one that’s very diverse, too, with so many different experiences you can have. You’ve got city life in Ha
  
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• Farage calls for removal of Ukip leader over appointment of EDL founder Robinson

  23-11-2018 18:22
  Former Ukip boss Nigel Farage said Gerard Batten was taking the party in a ‘shameful’ direction.
  
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• Spanish PM threatens to snub Brexit summit over future of Gibraltar

  23-11-2018 18:15
  Spain insists it does not have necessary reassurances from UK on Gibraltar.The Spanish prime minister is threatening to snub the weekend Brexit summit unless he receives a public and written guarantee from Theresa May within 36 hours over the future of the disputed territory of Gibraltar.With Theresa May on the brink of formal agreement on her deal with the EU’s leaders, Spain is still insisting it does not have the necessary reassurances that Gibraltar will only be covered by any future t
  
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• Charles unveils horse head statue birthday gift at Ascot racecourse

  23-11-2018 18:09
  The royal was joined by his wife Camilla for the Prince’s Countryside Fund Raceday.
  
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• Detention for man who joined ‘vicious group attack’ on traffic warden

  23-11-2018 18:05
  The victim’s head was repeatedly stamped on during the assault.
  
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• Health chief appeals for return of stolen CBE medal

  23-11-2018 18:02
  Professor John Ashton’s home in Cumbria was raided by thieves on November 6.
  
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• Judge finishes hearing evidence in Stobart Group High Court battle

  23-11-2018 17:50
  Lawyers are due to make final legal arguments on Thursday.
  
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• Met police driving cars into thieves on mopeds in crime crackdown

  23-11-2018 17:48
  Police in London say tough tactics used against suspected violent thieves on mopeds, including chasing them and knocking them off their bikes, have helped reduce crime.The Metropolitan police said there had been a 36% reduction in thefts that involved mopeds or scooters since the tactics were adopted last year.Officers had been reluctant to chase mopeds, some driven at high speed by suspects as young as 14, amid fears of injury or death.
  
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• HSBC customers locked out of mobile services as MPs launch inquiry

  23-11-2018 17:40 via theguardian.com
  HSBC outage comes on day select committee launches formal inquiry into string of banking IT failures HSBC customers were locked out of their mobile banking services on Friday, as MPs launched a formal inquiry into banking IT failures following a string of service disruptions this year.A spokeswoman for the bank said customers were intermittently blocked from signing on to the mobile app, but that online banking via browsers had been operating as normal. Continue reading...
  
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• Total says batteries investment depends on level playing field with Asia

  23-11-2018 17:37
  Oil and gas major Totalwill invest heavily in car battery production only if it can compete on a level playing field with Chinese and Asian manufacturers, its chief executive said on Friday.Battery maker Saft, a unit of Total, said in May that it planned to invest more than 200 million euros (£182 million) in a next-generation European battery alliance project to research, develop and build a new generation solid-state battery to compete with Asian and U.S. rivals.Saft's four-way alliance
  
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• Director 'overwhelmed' by response to emotional Christmas film made for just £50

  23-11-2018 17:37
  Forget the big budget festive adverts from the high street stores - one advert made with £50 has proved that it does not take money to move people at Christmas.Phil Beastall has made a short film called Love Is A Gift in 2014 and less than a week ago he posted it on social media.
  
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• Sapphic sensation: the rise of the lesbian story on and off screen

  23-11-2018 17:31 via theguardian.com
  Creation and authentic depiction of same-sex relationships on film and TV goes mainstream
  The latest TV show to make waves online and ripples around office water coolers, Julia Davis’s Sally4Ever, features an explicit lesbian sex scene in its opening episode. In Killing Eve, Jodie Comer, playing a contract killer, tells Sandra Oh, a UK intelligence officer: “I masturbate about you a lot.”And there is more more same-sex screen time around the corner. Disobedience, in cinemas at
  
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• The case for keeping juries in rape trials | Letters

  23-11-2018 17:27 via theguardian.com
  Mark George QC says much has changed since Julie Bindel observed cases in court. Plus Robin Davies says the scrapping of juries would be undemocraticThere are so many points in Julie Bindel’s article (Juries have no place in rape trials. They simply can’t be trusted, 21 November) that cry out for a response but space requires me to limit my focus.Much has changed since Bindel observed cases in court in 2003. A complainant invariably gives evidence by video, including cross-examinatio
  
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• Suspicious about conspiracy theories

  23-11-2018 17:24
  News about the proportion of Britons who believe in conspiracy theories got Fr Alec Mitchell thinking.Photograph: Piotr Powietrzynski/Getty
  
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• Grenfell Tower resident asked if helicopter could be sent

  23-11-2018 17:23
  A call handler said her reply may have given the impression it was possible.
  
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• Increase in financial support for patients given infected blood

  23-11-2018 17:20
  Thousands of people were infected with Hepatitis C and HIV through blood transfusions and blood products in the 1970s and 1980s.
  
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• Get ready for Brexit advent, where a new political hellscape opens every day | Marina Hyde

  23-11-2018 17:18 via theguardian.com
  If we don’t get a war with Spain to unite us, I’m excited for an economic war with 27 countriesI do love all the decorations going up now for the Christmas season. My favourite this year is the life-size Downing Street cuckoo clock, where – seemingly on the hour – the door pops open and the mechanical lady comes out.She whirrs jerkily toward the lectern, says “taking back control” as many times as the hour demands, then rotates back inside the apparatus. Conti
  
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