General news

• Charities demand review after report on 'exorbitant' immigration fees

  05-04-2019 23:41
  Charities have welcomed a report detailing the impact of Home Office visa fees, but say the government should do more to review and reform its immigration charges.A report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI) has raised concerns about the impact immigration fees - which can amount to thousands of pounds - on vulnerable people and children, and called for transparency over how they are calculated.The news came as Citizens UK revealed the Home Office is making &pou
  
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• One of UK's most wanted Shane O'Brien extradited from Romania over killing

  05-04-2019 23:06
  One of Britain's most wanted fugitives has returned to the UK after being extradited from Romania.Shane O'Brien, who is suspected of killing 21-year-old Josh Hanson, who was stabbed to death in a bar in Hillingdon, west London, in 2015, was arrested in Cluj-Napoca last month.
  
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• Three gender pay gap myths debunked – video explainer

  05-04-2019 21:53
  Gender pay gap figures released today reveal widespread inequality across British businesses as every industry continues to pay men more on average than women. In this video Guardian journalist Leah Green busts some of the common myths surrounding the gender pay gap Continue reading...
  
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• Trump attorney pushes back on House panel's request for Trump tax returns

  05-04-2019 21:43
  "The requests for his private tax information are not consistent with governing law, do not advance any proper legislative purpose, and threaten to interfere with the ordinary conduct of audits," attorney William Consovoy of Consovoy McCarthy Park said in a statement."We are confident that this misguided attempt to politicize the administration of the tax laws will not succeed," he said.
  
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• VP Pence: 'Mexico's stepping up' on border issue

  05-04-2019 21:37
  Vice President Mike Pence says the United States is encouraged with the efforts that Mexico is making with the migration issue on the southern border, he said: "Mexico's stepping up." (April 5)
  
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• Man dies after Co Antrim crash

  05-04-2019 21:29
  The incident happened on Tuesday in Ballymoney.
  
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• Mother Of Teagan Appleby Defies Law To Obtain Medical Cannabis For Sick Daughter

  05-04-2019 21:18
  A mother is set to bring medical cannabis into Britain illegally in a bid tohelp her severely epileptic daughter
  
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• Mick Jagger 'doing well' after replacement heart valve treatment

  05-04-2019 21:17
  Sir Mick Jagger has successfully undergone heart valve replacement surgery for a medical condition that led to the Rolling Stones postponed gigs in North America.In a statement, a representative for the 75-year-old rocker said he is "doing very well and is expected to make a full recovery".According to reports in the US, surgeons were able to access the valve through his femoral artery.
  
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• Brexit crisis: Labour 'disappointed' by talks as EU offers 'flextension'

  05-04-2019 21:16
  Labour has accused the government of failing to offer real change or compromise during talks to end the Brexit stalemate - as new exit dates are considered.In a statement following more talks between the opposition and a team appointed by Theresa May to agree a way forward, a Labour spokesperson said: "We are disappointed that the government has not offered real change or compromise.Prisons minister Rory Stewart has said there is "quite a lot of life" left in the talks yet and that despite tensi
  
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• Founder of zoo where 500 animals died drops horse ranch plans

  05-04-2019 21:13
  South Lakes Safari zoo, where almost 500 animals died within three years. It is now under new ownership Photograph: Danny Lawson/PAThe founder of a zoo where nearly 500 animals died in less than three years, many in cruel conditions, has abandoned plans to open a horse-riding ranch, following a flood of complaints.David Gill, the former owner of South Lakes Safari zoo in Cumbria, angered animal welfare groups when he applied to open an American-style ranch in the hills of the Lake District.The S
  
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• Breast Cancer Deaths To Be Investigated After Low Chemo Doses

  05-04-2019 21:06
  The deaths of more than a dozen breast cancer patients are to be reviewedafter health chiefs admitted hundreds were given lower doses of chemotherapy
  
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• Released: Sally Challen granted bail as she awaits new trial for murder of husband

  05-04-2019 21:02
  Sally Challen has been released from prison on conditional bail as she awaits a new trial for the murder of her husband Richard.Sally Challen, from Claygate in Surrey, pleaded guilty to manslaughter but not guilty to murder in a case that centred around the issue of "coercive control".Challen was originally convicted of murder at Guildford Crown Court in 2011 for killing her husband in a hammer attack and was jailed for life.
  
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• Barnier to visit Dublin for Brexit talks on Monday

  05-04-2019 20:59
  The EU chief Brexit negotiator's visit is seen as a sign of solidarity for Ireland ahead of next week's EU summit in Brussels.
  
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• May's Brexit talks with Labour stall, delay request fails to convince EU

  05-04-2019 20:51
  LONDON/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Britain's opposition Labour Party said on Friday that talks with the government on a last-ditch Brexit deal had made no progress, as EU leaders said Prime Minister Theresa May had not convinced them that they should let Britain delay its departure next week.May wrote to Brussels asking European Union leaders to postpone Britain's exit from next Friday until June 30.
  
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• May seeks delay to Brexit as Labour-Tory talks stall

  05-04-2019 20:33
  Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said talks between the Opposition and Government had been 'disappointing'.
  
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• Hopes of Brexit progress fade as Labour says May has failed to compromise

  05-04-2019 20:21
  Jeremy Corbyn, centre, with Keir Starmer, left, and Rebecca Long-Bailey in the Houses of Parliament. Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PATheresa May’s prospects of cobbling together a cross-party majority to convince EU leaders to grant a short Brexit delay next week appear to be slipping away after Labour claimed she had failed to offer “real change or compromise” in talks.The prime minister made a dramatic pledge to open the door to talks with Labour on Tuesday after a marathon cab
  
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• Mother accused of hammer attack murder freed on bail ahead of retrial

  05-04-2019 20:15
  Sally Challen, who is accused of murdering her husband Richard in 2010, has been released on bail from HMP Bronzefield in Surrey a day early.
  
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• UK government ready to hold more Brexit talks with opposition Labour this weekend

  05-04-2019 20:01
  Prime Minister Theresa May's government is ready to hold more discussions with the opposition Labour party this weekend over Brexit, a spokesman for May's office said on Friday."We have made serious proposals in talks this week and are prepared to pursue changes to the Political Declaration in order to deliver a deal that is acceptable to both sides," he added in a statement."We are ready to hold further detailed discussions this weekend in order to seek any such changes in the run-up to Europea
  
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• Mother risks prosecution to obtain medical cannabis for daughter

  05-04-2019 19:30
  Teagan Appleby, nine, suffers up to 300 seizures a day.
  
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• Labour party urges PM May to change her EU deal

  05-04-2019 19:29
  Britain's opposition Labour Party, which is holding talks with Prime Minister Theresa May in an effort to find a way out of the Brexit impasse, urged her on Friday to offer a real change to her EU withdrawal deal."We are disappointed that the government has not offered real change or compromise," a party spokesperson said in a statement.On Wednesday, after the first round of talks, both Labour and the government said they had been constructive although Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said May had no
  
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• Labour Brexit spokesman says he wants talks with PM May to continue

  05-04-2019 19:28
  LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's opposition Labour party wants talks with Prime Minister Theresa May to continue, its Brexit spokesman Keir Starmer said on Friday after Labour urged May to offer genuine changes to her EU withdrawal deal.
  
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• Muslim Woman Laments Lack Of Action Over Islamophobic Abuse By Neighbours

  05-04-2019 19:12
  A Muslim woman who says she has been subjected to serious Islamophobic abuseby some of her neighbours has slammed her housing association for failing totake her complaints seriously
  
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• Muslim Woman Accuses Housing Bosses Of 'Inaction' Over Local Islamophobic Abuse

  05-04-2019 19:12
  A Muslim woman who says she has been subjected to serious Islamophobic abuseby some of her neighbours has slammed her housing association for failing totake her complaints seriously
  
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• Theresa May Is Refusing To Change Her Brexit Deal, Keir Starmer Warns

  05-04-2019 19:00
  The government is refusing to consider changes to Theresa May's Brexit deal,Labour's Keir Starmer has warned
  
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• France, Spain and Belgium 'ready for no-deal Brexit next week'

  05-04-2019 18:45
  Emmanuel Macron’s ambassador said there was no justification, and only danger, in extending UK membership of the EU. Photograph: Lewis Joly/Sipa/Rex/ShutterstockFrance has won the support of Spain and Belgium after signalling its readiness for a no-deal Brexit on 12 April if there are no significant new British proposals, according to a note of an EU27 meeting seen by the Guardian. The diplomatic cable reveals that the French ambassador secured the support of Spanish and Belgian colleagues
  
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• Mother speaks out on knife crime after two convicted over son’s death

  05-04-2019 18:37
  Eddie O'Rourke was stabbed to death in his home town of Runcorn, Cheshire.
  
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• Amal Clooney made UK special envoy on media freedom

  05-04-2019 18:33
  Amal Clooney has been tasked with protecting journalists and media freedom after being made a UK special envoy.The international human rights lawyer - who is married to actor George - said she was "honoured" to receive the role.Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who made the appointment, said her legal work meant she was "ideally placed to ensure this campaign has real impact".
  
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• Contraception: From fish bladders to home-delivered morning after pills

  05-04-2019 18:31 via bbc.co.uk
  Today's contraceptives are a far cry from the condoms made of animal intestines and Coca-Cola "douche".
  
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• Family of murdered Seamus Ludlow begin new campaign for inquiry

  05-04-2019 18:29
  The 47-year-old was shot dead on his way home from a pub in Dundalk, Co Louth, in 1976.
  
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• Hunt labels Assange ‘free man’ amid embassy expulsion rumours

  05-04-2019 18:18
  WikiLeaks said its sources in Ecuador had revealed he could be removed from the building 'within hours to days'.
  
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• Flip-flops and tartan rugs: royal family reveals 2018 gift list

  05-04-2019 18:11
  Not amused: Queen Elizabeth with Donald and Melania Trump at Windsor Castle last year. Photograph: POOL/ReutersDonald Trump played it safe when choosing his official gifts for the Queen after he was invited to afternoon tea atWindsor Castle during his visit to the UK last year. The new royal family gifts list for 2018 records the US president and first lady, Melania Trump, as having presented the monarch with a pewter thoroughbred horse statuette, as well as a wood-engraved print of opening day
  
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• Botched IRA warning call led to Birmingham pub bombs deaths, inquest jury finds

  05-04-2019 18:04
  The jury delivered its conclusions on the double bombing in 1974 which killed 21 people.
  
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• European Parliament elections: A quarter of public would boycott poll

  05-04-2019 18:00
  A quarter of the public say they would boycott European Parliament elections if they happen in the UK in May, a Sky Data poll reveals.A higher proportion say they would vote than turned out in the 2014 EU elections in the UK - 36% of potential voters turned out five years ago, though usually more claim they will get to the ballot box than actually do so.Four in ten (43%) say they will be angry if European Parliament elections go ahead (30% saying they would be 'very angry'), while 28% would be p
  
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• Constitutional Relations Secretary vows to protect Scots law after Brexit

  05-04-2019 17:59
  Mike Russell intends to bring forward new legislation to ensure there is 'no regression in standards or protections' after the UK leaves the EU.
  
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• EU may insist on long potential delay to Brexit as May calls for extension

  05-04-2019 17:50
  The Prime Minister has called for Brexit to be delayed until June 30 but Brussels may seek a later deadline.
  
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• Crown rejects presumption against prosecution of parents in smacking ban laws

  05-04-2019 17:45
  MSPs are currently considering The Children (Equal Protection from Assault) Bill.
  
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• Belfast coffee roaster represents Ireland on world stage

  05-04-2019 17:45
  Stephen Houston will take on more than 100 competitors from across the globe in the Boston competition.
  
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• The abject failure of marketisation in higher education

  05-04-2019 17:43
  ‘Short of a wholesale reversal of such policies, the only solution is for the universities to agree, and the Office for Students to police, what share of their income to spend on activities that do not directly support student education.’Photograph: David Cheskin/PAThe enormous sums spent by many universities on marketing should come as no surprise (Report, 3 April). Nor should the fact that it is mostly the less prestigious institutions that are doing most of the spending. Like grad
  
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• Concerns over rising antidepressant use

  05-04-2019 17:43
  ‘What level of prescribing will persuade the representatives of GPs and psychiatrists that this epidemic of overprescribing is inappropriate?’ ask the signatories of the first letter below. Photograph: Anthony Devlin/PASo, antidepressant prescribing passed 70 million in England last year (Report, 29 March). We also know that 16% of adults receive one or more prescriptions annually – one in six of us. It’s even higher for women and in deprived areas. The president of the R
  
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• Veggie discs and an unpalatable truth

  05-04-2019 17:42
  Keith Penn is more concerned by what’s permitted to go in meat pies than the notion of ‘veggie discs’. Photograph: Getty/iStockphotoMuch more than careers advice and role-play are needed to raise the aspirations of young children (Careers advice for two-year-olds, 2 April). As a white, middle-class nursery teacher, I once commented to a three-year-old who was playing at being a teacher: “Perhaps you could be a teacher when you grow up?” “No,” replied the
  
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• Controversial psychiatric charity to be investigated after teenager’s death

  05-04-2019 17:42
  The Richmond Psychosocial Foundation International is being investigated by the Charity Commission after the death of 19-year-old Sophie Bennett.
  
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• London stabbings: Woman paralysed after spinal cord severed

  05-04-2019 17:24
  One of five people recently stabbed in north London has been paralysed after her spinal cord was severed, a court has heard.Jason Kakaire, 29, from Cameron Close in Edmonton, has been charged with five counts of attempted murder and five counts of possession of an offensive weapon."The severity of the injuries inflicted varied, with the most seriously injured victim suffering a severed spinal cord causing paralysis," prosecutor Harika Yuksel told Highbury Corner Magistrates' Court.
  
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• U.S. wants Romania to find vandals who destroyed Jewish tombstones

  05-04-2019 17:21
  The United States on Friday condemned the vandalizing of a Jewish cemetery in Romania's eastern town of Husi, where 73 tombstones were found destroyed by unidentified perpetrators, and urged authorities to bring those responsible to justice.The case follows an attack last year on Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel's memorial home in north Romania's Sighet - painted with anti-Semitic fluorescent pink graffiti which led to the rapid arrest of the perpetrator, a 37-year-old man.
  
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• Russian court finds Twitter failed to provide information on data: TASS

  05-04-2019 17:21
  MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Russian court fined Twitter 3,000 roubles ($46) on Friday for failing to supply information to Russia's authorities on where it stores its Russian users' personal data, TASS news agency reported.
  
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• The Latest: UK's Hunt: Assange can leave embassy whenever

  05-04-2019 17:19
  The Latest on WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange (all times local): 4:20 p.m. Britain's foreign secretary says Julian Assange is a "free man" and can leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London whenever ...
  
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• Foster: PM bid to extend Brexit ‘unsurprising but unsatisfactory’

  05-04-2019 17:14
  The Democratic Unionist leader blamed the 'chaotic' EU exit on intransigence from Brussels and ineffectiveness in London.
  
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• Long extension might make more sense than rolling cliff-edges, says Varadkar

  05-04-2019 17:11
  The Taoiseach said European leaders would be analysing all the options on the table at an EU summit in Brussels next week.
  
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• Charles sips pint of famous Cornish ale during brewery tour

  05-04-2019 17:01
  The Prince of Wales pulled a pint of Tribute Pale Ale during a visit to St Austell Brewery to mark the 20th anniversary of the beer.
  
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• Harry and Meghan inundated with baby gifts

  05-04-2019 17:00
  The Queen, Duke of Edinburgh, Prince of Wales and Duke and Duchess of Cambridge also receive a whole host of presents.
  
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• Man, 20, stabbed outside Glasgow nightclub

  05-04-2019 16:59
  The attack happened at Kokomo in the city centre in the early hours of Friday.
  
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