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The PFA Scotland player of the year has experienced spells on the sidelines at previous clubs and was part of the Aston Villa squad relegated from England's top flight last season. "If I can give advice to young players it is to never give up," he said. "People will always pull you down and say you are never good enough." And Sinclair, who has scored 25 goals so far this term, added: "The main thing, on a personal level, is that I never gave up and I'm getting the rewards for it now. "When you've gone through so many tough times in your career, of not playing and getting relegated, I was the one who stayed behind at training and did things at home. Looking back, it was all worth it." Sinclair, now 28, joined Chelsea at 15 from Bristol Rovers and made a handful of appearances for the first team. In his five years contracted to the Stamford Bridge club he was loaned to Plymouth, Queens Park Rangers, Charlton, Crystal Palace, Birmingham and Wigan before signing for Swansea in August 2010. The English winger made more than 90 appearances for the Swans ahead of a switch to Manchester City, but was on the fringes there and was again loaned out, with spells at West Brom and Aston Villa. The pain of relegation with Villa, in his first season there after a transfer from City ahead of season 2015-16, has made the success of his debut season under Brendan Rodgers at Celtic all the more joyful. He said: "The main thing was to come up here and enjoy my football again and get that happiness back into my life of playing week in, week out and having a manager who believes in me. "I could have stayed down in England and enjoyed my life and had it all nice and cosy. But I didn't want that, I wanted much more. I've always wanted to be giving more." Sinclair, who described his player of the year award as "a great honour", came off the bench on Saturday as Celtic swept St Johnstone aside. In the second half he replaced the impressive 18-year-old Michael Johnston, who has since signed a three-year deal with the treble-chasers. "Mikey stepped up," said Sinclair of his young team-mate. "He was fantastic, you could see his confidence. I spoke to him before the game just to say, 'play your own game', because sometimes when you play under-21 level and you come in to the first team you just want to keep it simple. "But any young player coming into the first team wants to go out there and express himself, and that's what the gaffer brings to any young player who steps up." |
The UN says the aid includes food, winter clothing and blankets as well as hygiene kits. The refugees, mostly women and children, live in dire conditions in two makeshift camps in a desert area. Jordan shut the border in June after seven of its soldiers died in a bombing claimed by Islamic State militants. Since then only a single aid delivery was allowed when food rations were sent using cranes in August to the Rukban and Hadalat camps. On Tuesday, the UN said it had reached an agreement with the Jordanian military after protracted negotiations. "The resumption of assistance comes at the start of the coldest period of the year, when temperatures can drop dangerously low," a UN statement said. The refugees on Jordan's border are said to be among the most desperate of the millions displaced by Syria's bloody war, the BBC's Yolande Knell reports. There are now also plans to open a clinic in the area, our correspondent adds. The UN estimates that more than 600,000 Syrian refugees are now in Jordan, but the government in Amman says the number could be as high as nearly 1.5 million. |
Amir, 24, has played 20 Tests for Pakistan, including four against England this summer, having returned from a spot-fixing ban in 2015. The left-armer will join Essex following international commitments and will be available for all formats. Amir was banned from cricket for five years after being convicted of spot-fixing in a Lord's Test in 2010. He was one of three Pakistan players jailed in November 2011 for his part in a conspiracy to bowl deliberate no-balls against England. He served three months in prison. Amir's suspension originally covered all forms of the game, but in January last year he was cleared to play domestic cricket in Pakistan. He has since played for Karachi Kings and Chittagong Vikings in Pakistan and Bangladesh respectively. He returned to international cricket in January this year in a Twenty20 match against New Zealand in Auckland, when he was booed by fans. "We are thrilled that Mohammad has decided to join us for half of the 2017 campaign. He showed a real desire to be a part of the club," said head coach Chris Silverwood. "He is still only young but has proved himself at international level already, so it is a real coup to get this signing completed." Essex will play in Division One of the County Championship in 2017, having won the Division Two title this summer. |
The 64km (40-mile) long construction will reach a depth of 40m (131ft) below and 6m above ground, at a cost of 3bn shekels ($833m). An Israeli army commander said the barrier should be completed in 2019. Israel has sought to neutralise the threat of cross-border tunnels since its war with militants in Gaza in 2014. During 50 days of fighting, militants from Gaza's ruling Hamas faction used tunnels to infiltrate Israeli territory on four occasions, killing 12 soldiers. Israeli troops destroyed more than 30 tunnels and have found two since the end of the war. The conflict left at least 2,251 Palestinians dead - including more than 1,462 civilians, according to the UN - and 11,231 injured. On the Israeli side, 67 soldiers and six civilians were killed, and up to 1,600 injured. At a briefing on Wednesday, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Maj Gen Eyal Zamir said the hi-tech barrier would be completed, even at the risk of renewed conflict with Hamas. "If Hamas chooses to go to war over the barrier, it will be a worthy reason [for Israel] to go to war over. But the barrier will be built," Israeli media quoted him as saying. Last year, Hamas's leader in Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, said the group was still digging tunnels, without specifying whether these extended into Israel. Part of the new barrier will protrude into the Mediterranean Sea, in an apparent effort to thwart attacks by frogmen. Four such Hamas militants tried to swim out to attack an Israeli army base during the 2014 war, but were killed by the IDF. According to local media reports, the machine used to dig the new the barrier will destroy any existing tunnels, while the barrier itself will be equipped with sophisticated technology to detect any new tunnels being built. |
Vehicles were stuck for hours and people were forced to stay at a leisure centre after heavy rain at Gwynedd's Festival No.6. Measures are also being introduced to protect the Portmeirion festival site. Capacity is being reduced to "allow the site to breathe" and cut bottlenecks. The new locations for the park and ride will be announced in early 2017. Portmeirion's managing director Robin Llywelyn previously told BBC Wales "lessons needed to be learned" from the problems at this year's event. He added there were perhaps "too many people" at the festival, which is held near Porthmadog. In a statement on the Festival No.6 website, organisers said: "We have spent the last two months listening to feedback and working on improvements to many areas. "We are absolutely committed to making the best festival experience for every single customer. "We will be reducing capacity slightly to avoid bottlenecks and allow the site space to breathe. "It is hugely important to us that the festival retains its intimate feel." The statement also said there would be more floorings in venues to protect the ground and walkways; and work would be undertaken to "improve the access and flow of audience". Portmeirion's historic buildings, including Castell Deudraeth, will also be better protected by limiting access to those with VIP weekend tickets, it said. Organisers have also said they will encourage lift shares, add more shower facilities, and move some events to other venues. The festival will also feature a new information centre, following complaints from festival-goers. |
They have demanded a broader inquiry into the conflict itself. A coroner in Salisbury recorded a narrative verdict into the deaths of Capt Tom Sawyer and Cpl Danny Winter. The inquest found human error and a series of "interconnected events" caused their deaths in Helmand in 2009. Tom Sawyer, 26, from Hertfordshire, and Cpl Danny Winter, 28, of Stockport died when they were hit by a missile fired by two members of the Gurkha regiment. A Danish officer gave the order to fire believing the men were under threat from Taliban insurgents. Capt Sawyer, of the Royal Artillery was attached to Zulu Company, 45 Commando Royal Marines and Cpl Winter was with the mortar troop of Zulu Company, 45 Commando Royal Marines. Speaking after the inquest, the dead men's families called for changes in the way the military use shoulder launched missiles and for a wider government inquiry into the Afghan conflict. "There have been six similar incidents involving the Javelin weapons system which killed Danny and Tom, resulting in five deaths and one near miss." "We strongly believe that if an inquiry had been set up after the first of these incidents in September 2007 and communication within the army had been better, there is a good chance that Tom and Danny would not have been killed." The families said they believed that some of the written witness statements provided by the Danish personnel were inaccurate and misleading. "We are disappointed that the Danish personnel involved decided to stay in Denmark and not answer questions about their role so as to allow the inquest to build up a true and full account of what happened." The Danish soldiers had declined to attend the inquest and their evidence was given by means of written statements. They insisted that the British troops had "repeatedly" requested a Javelin be fired as they were "convinced they were soon to be attacked". Corporal Danny Winter's parents called on political leaders to commit now to setting up the inquiry after May's General Election. "Danny's family call now for the next government to set up a full inquiry into the Afghan War immediately after the May General Election with the bereaved and injured placed at the heart of it." Coroner David Ridley, recorded a narrative conclusion after rejecting the submission from the servicemen's families that he should consider unlawful killing. He said: "The Javelin was fired with tragic and fatal consequences." "The system failed as such. There was an inadequate assessment of Javelin's role from the perspective of its use in an anti-personnel role," the coroner said. Mr Ridley said bad weather was a contributory factor in the incident and "ineffective communications was a contributory factor" in the deaths of the two men. "There were inconsistencies between the British and Danish witnesses and between Danes and other Danes." "This was, in the main, a series of interconnected events with fatal consequences. Human error was also involved. "I am going to submit a report [to the Ministry |
Alan Peters, of Gravesend, Kent, crashed the coach into the Audi, which had its hazard lights flashing on the hard shoulder in Bedfordshire. Audi driver Allan Evans, 59, Nathan Reeves, 23, and Tom Aldridge, 20, died. At Luton Crown Court Peters was found guilty of causing three deaths and serious injury by dangerous driving. Read more updates on this story Peters, of Ambleside Valley Drive, had admitted the lesser charges of causing three deaths by careless driving, but denied causing the deaths by dangerous driving. He also denied causing serious injury by dangerous driving. Jake Dorling - a friend of Mr Reeves and Mr Aldridge, both from Newport Pagnell - suffered a fractured skull, fractured hips, four fractured ribs and a punctured lung in the crash in February 2015. Judge Richard Foster said it was a "tragic case" and a custodial sentence was "certain". He granted Peters bail ahead of sentencing in December. He is banned from driving. Mr Dorling, 23, of Milton Keynes, told the jury Mr Evans, of Islington, London, agreed to drive them home for £60 after a night out at London club Egg and had stopped the car to top it up with oil. "We were almost ready to set off," said Mr Dorling. "I looked back and I don't really remember anything. "My next memory was waking up in hospital." On Monday, Peters told the victims' families: "I deeply the regret the incident took place and I would do anything to rewrite history." Prosecutor Peter Shaw earlier told the jury motorway signs indicated the hard shoulder should be used in emergencies only. He said the coach hit the Audi at an estimated speed of 61mph (98km/h) and the coach driver had ample opportunity to abide by the signs saying the hard shoulder was for emergency use only. Mr Evans had stopped the car on the M1 northbound between junctions 12 and 13 near Flitwick. The crash happened at about 06:40 GMT when it was still dark. But in the witness box Peters had said: "My belief is that from junction 10 onwards the overhead gantry signs were displaying 'congestion - use hard shoulder' and 60mph signs. That is why I was on the hard shoulder." After the hearing PC Dave Clarke, who attended the crash scene, said it had been an "entirely avoidable incident". Mr Dorling thanked police and other emergency services, adding: "I have been left to live with the consequences of the injuries that I received in the crash, but that's nothing compared to the devastation and loss that Tom, Nathan and Allan's families will have to cope with for the rest of their lives." |
Cameroon's Ekeng, 26, fell to the floor in the 70th minute of the televised Romanian league match against Viitorul and was pronounced dead in hospital two hours later. "He told his best friend he was not able to play," Monique Chantal, Ekeng's elder sister, told BBC Sport. "He said he was very tired." She added: "Patrick was very generous, a gentleman. It is very painful he is leaving behind a family - it is like a dream, a nightmare." Celine Chemi, Ekeng's mother, said: "It is difficult to talk about my son at this moment, but I believe in God and submit to his will. "If this is football and the life of professional players then this calls for reflection." Fifpro, the world footballers' union, and its Romanian member union Afan, are concerned about the level of first-aid treatment available to Ekeng. Afan said that after the death of Nigerian Henry Chinonso Ihelewere in a pre-season match in 2012, it asked the Romanian football federation to make it compulsory for clubs to have fully equipped ambulances at all official and friendly matches. "It would have cost as little as 400 euros per club per match to have state-of-the-art equipment available but the plan was not adopted," said Afan president Emilian Hulubei. "We are continually fighting for more rights for players. Footballers in Romania are a long way from being treated the way normal workers should be." Fifpro general secretary Theo van Seggelen added: "Our thoughts go out to everyone affected. It's simply shocking. "After local authorities complete their investigation, we expect answers as to whether or not this tragedy could have been avoided." Dinamo Bucharest say they contracted three ambulances for the match and that they were "properly equipped for emergency interventions". Team doctor Liviu Batineanu said: "The player collapsed on the ground. We went in immediately, without waiting for the referee's permission, and we began the first resuscitation manoeuvres." Ekeng last spoke to his mother on Thursday before she left for a trip to a nearby village. She says he talked about the house he was building back home in Yaounde, the Cameroonian capital. "We did [normally] speak every day," she said. "But because I was in the village he sent someone to see me and I was to call when I came back." The club is making arrangements for the repatriation of the body. The Romanian Football Federation announced on Saturday that the Romanian Cup final between Dinamo and Cluj would be put back a week to 17 May. It said all games scheduled for this weekend would be postponed. |
Police received a report of the attack on the ground floor flat in Mourne View Park, Lisburn, at around 2.30 BST. Windows were broken and the inside of the property was scorch damaged, but no-one was at home at the time of the incident and there were no reports of any injuries. Three men were seen leaving the area on foot shortly after the incident. One was wearing a light coloured hooded top and two others were wearing dark hooded tops. |
The money will be available for councils and housing associations to improve homes, as well as creating jobs and training opportunities. There is a five year target for bringing 200,000 social homes up to quality and safety standards. But Plaid Cymru said there was no "additional money" in the announcement. Improvement work could include replacing boilers to new kitchens and bathrooms. More than two thirds of social housing in Wales - nearly 150,000 homes - meet the 2020 quality target. Housing minister Lesley Griffiths has already signalled her intention to end right to buy in Wales to prevent the loss of local authority housing stock. Ms Griffiths said: "Investment in people's homes has a far reaching impact - it is vital in improving the nation's health and creating jobs and training opportunities." She added the Welsh government was also investing more than £400m in affordable homes. However, Plaid Cymru housing spokesperson Jocelyn Davies said the £100m cash announced on Tuesday was simply "money that is distributed every year to bring social housing up to standard". |
Most internet service providers offer services through a fixed-line network controlled and maintained by BT. But Ofcom said it had concerns BT Openreach's performance on behalf of those providers had often been poor. BT chief Gavin Patterson told the BBC that he thought splitting the Openreach service off would be a "mistake". Following Ofcom's last strategic review 10 years ago, BT was obliged to create Openreach through which it provided access to its telephone and broadband network to "competing providers on equal terms". Essentially, those providers pay a wholesale price to BT for use of the network and then charge telecoms customers for services. Sky and BT don't like each other very much, particularly since the latter took a healthy portion of Sky's lunch by piling into sports television and winning the rights to broadcast Premier League matches. There are dark mutterings that BT uses the vast profits from Openreach to fund its incursion into television, a claim the company hotly denies. BT insists that Openreach's service has improved, with 2,500 engineers added in the last year and 700 more coming this year. It says it reaches or exceeds all of the 60 service targets set it by Ofcom. And that it is only because of BT's large and healthy balance sheet that so much investment has been made in upgrading the network to super-fast broadband. What won't be superfast is the Ofcom process. This is the latest stage in a far wider review of the UK's digital market which will take months to conclude and years to implement. Read more from Kamal's blog here: BT is responsible for connecting almost all households to the network regardless of their service provider, as well as improvements to and maintenance of the network. However, Ofcom said the network had evolved in recent years, with the growth of fibre optic cable services - particularly in towns and cities - offering television, telephone and superfast broadband internet services. And problems remain, with rural areas regularly complaining about poor internet service provision and BT's chief rival Sky claiming it can take up to 10 days for Openreach to connect new customers. BT chief executive Gavin Patterson told BBC Radio 4's Today programme he believed it would be a "mistake for the country as a whole" for Openreach to be split away from his company. He said 88% of the country now received superfast broadband and that BT had put forward proposals to deliver the next stage in delivery of services - known as ultra-fast broadband. Key to the delivery of that, he said, was the scale that a company the size of BT could offer. He rejected claims that BT enjoyed a monopoly on internet service provision, saying the "BT brands have less than a third of the market so I don't think there is a problem at all." And he pointed out BT's biggest rival Virgin Media served more than three million customers in the UK. But Mai Fyfield, Sky's chief strategy officer, welcomed |
Media playback is not supported on this device The Foxes lifted the trophy, a first top-flight title in their 132-year history, after beating Everton at home. Leicester were 5,000-1 to be champions after avoiding relegation last season. "We know very well next season everything will be different but the fans are dreaming - keep dreaming," said Ranieri. "Why wake up?" As English champions, the Foxes will go straight into the group stages of the Champions League for the 2016-17 campaign. There has been speculation about the future of many of the club's players, including winger - and PFA Player of the Year - Riyad Mahrez and midfielder N'Golo Kante. "If they are intelligent they stay with us another year," said Ranieri. "The Champions League is very difficult. Then after this next experience they can go. "If they ask me something, I say 'stay with me'. But if somebody comes to me and says 'I'd like to go' then go because I want only happy players with me." Media playback is not supported on this device After a 2-1 defeat by Arsenal in February when they were reduced to 10 men following Danny Simpson's dismissal, Leicester's lead at the top of the Premier League was only two points. However, Ranieri said it was that result, along with a 3-1 win at Manchester City, that gave him the belief in his side's ability to see out their improbable title bid. "I had some good feeling when we beat Manchester City and also when we lost 2-1 against Arsenal in 95 minutes," said the Italian. "I said we can do something special because if Arsenal is fighting 11 versus 10 and scores after 95 minutes then we can do something special." Leicester striker Jamie Vardy scored two goals against Everton to take his league tally to 24 for the season, and also missed a penalty. The England international left the field clutching his left hamstring at the final whistle but eased concerns over his Euro 2016 availability when he said it was only cramp. "I think someone put a spell on me to make it happen this season," he told Sky Sports. "Everyone works as hard and if someone is having an off-game then we know we have someone behind us to pick us up and keep us going. "It's been a very, very long and hard process to get where I am today. But I wouldn't have been able to do it without friends, and the team behind me as well." He added: "We're like brothers - as soon as training is finished we're always in touch." Leicester captain Wes Morgan called it "an unbelievable feeling to finally get my hands on the trophy". "I had to hold back the tears, I held them back and lifted it up - it was the best feeling in the world," said the centre-back. "Everyone has been going on about how I was going to lift the trophy and saying don't drop it and putting |
Figures obtained under Freedom of Information laws showed 5,992 crashes were recorded between 2012 and 2014. During that period, Birmingham student Xuanwei Zhang died after being hit by an unmarked police car in Birmingham in April 2012. Also in 2012, two men had to dive out the way after a fire engine smashed into a phone shop in Birmingham. Owner, Jamil Mahmood, said: "There was a fire engine doing a three-point turn and it crashed into the shop, narrowly missing one of my customers and a family member. "It missed them by inches, they had to jump out the way." West Midlands police, fire and ambulance services recorded 2,728, 281 and 81 crashes respectively, the figures show. Police figures showed 64 of the force's vehicles were written off in crashes. More than 350 people suffered injuries ranging from broken ribs, whiplash and a ripped spleen, it also confirmed, but the figures did not include the death of Mr Zhang. In one crash in Dudley last year, two police officers were injured when a man drove into the side of a police car. An inquiry is also taking place into the death of Harry James Kirkham. Mr Kirkham was hit by a police car in Birmingham in March this year, although this is outside the timeframe for this data. West Midlands Fire Service said most accidents involved vehicles travelling at "slow speed". "We continue to implement measures and awareness campaigns to reduce these," it said in a statement. The ambulance service said crews are highly trained but rely on the help of other road users. "The majority of collisions are down to drivers either panicking when they hear a siren or see a blue light, or not being aware of blue-light vehicles using the road," a spokesman said. A police spokesman said it was not clear why Mr Zhang's death had not been included in its figures. Staffordshire Police recorded 912 while Staffordshire Fire service recorded 120. Staffordshire Police Supt Mick Boyle said they constantly monitored the driving standards of employees. The county's fire service has declined to comment. In Warwickshire, there were 546 crashes involving police vehicles and 102 involving fire vehicles. West Mercia Police recorded 1,143 crashes while Shropshire Fire and Rescue recorded 68. A spokesman for both police forces said officers are sent for retraining on a regular basis if required, and future driving performance is monitored to ensure no further incidents are recorded. The spokesman added that due to the nature of the role of the police, damage was inevitable. He added that in the future, the fleet would be fitted with a telematics system which will mean accidents and incidents can be monitored in greater depth. |
Damjan Marjanovic, 20, and 21-year-old Zoran Baljak were killed in a road crash, the Slovenian club said. A Maribor statement said the news has "shattered us deeply". "A cruel fate has intervened in its severest form and taken away two young members of our Violet family." Marjanovic and Baljak were both in the B team at Maribor. Aberdeen, who visit Slovenia following a 1-1 draw at Pittodrie, said they were "deeply saddened" by the news. Chief executive Duncan Fraser said: "I spoke with my counterpart Bojan Bon this afternoon and have passed on our condolences from all of the Aberdeen family. "This puts everything into perspective. The clubs have developed an excellent relationship in the build-up to the games and we will co-operate fully with any wishes that NK Maribor may have to mark this tragedy." |
Zebre overtook Treviso in the Italian rivalry for a place in the top-tier European Champions Cup. Federico Ruzza and Derick Minnie's tries helped Zebre to a 15-7 lead at the break with Cory Hill responding. Edoardo Padovani and Johan Meyer added two more for Zebre and Adam Hughes' reply was not enough for Dragons. After fly-half Carlo Canna kicked the first of his nine points with the game's first penalty, visiting Wales lock Hill crossed and Angus O'Brien added the extras. After Zebre made light work of a Dragons scrum, however, number eight Ruzza gathered to dive over and the hosts remained in the lead from that point on. Flanker Minnie claimed scrum-half Marcello Violi's neat chip for a score confirmed by Irish television match official Brian MacNeice. Wing Hughes struck back soon after the break to finish off the visitors' best attacking move. O'Brien's conversion brought Dragons back to within a point, only for Zebre to again seize the initiative. Full-back Padovani underlined his attacking threat by bursting clear to race over untouched after the break. Flanker Meyer completed the comfortable win and send Zebre up to 11th, two points below Dragons with only three rounds left for these teams. Treviso have the chance to go back above Zebre and even Dragons when they face Scarlets in Llanelli on Saturday night. Zebre: Edoardo Padovani; Van Zyl Kayle, Giulio Bisegni, Tommaso Boni, Lloyd Greeff; Charles Reed, Marcello Violi; Andrea Lovotti, Tommaso D'Apice, Dario Chistolini, Gideon Koegelenberg, George Biagi (capt), Johan Meyer, Derick Minnie, Federico Ruzza. Replacements: Oliviero Fabiani, Bruno Postiglioni, Pietro Ceccarelli, Joshua Furno, Maxime Mbanda, Guglielmo Palazzani, Tommaso Castello, Serafin Bordoli. Newport Gwent Dragons: Carl Meyer; Adam Hughes, Tyler Morgan, Sam Beard, Pat Howard; Angus O'Brien, Charlie Davies; Phil Price, Rhys Buckley, Brok Harris, Cory Hill, Rynard Landman, Nick Crosswell, Ollie Griffiths, Lewis Evans (capt). Replacements: Darran Harris, Sam Hobbs, Lloyd Fairbrother, Nic Cudd, Harrison Keddie, Dorian Jones, Adam Warren, Tom Prydie. Referee: Frank Murphy (IRFU). Assistant referees: Eddie Hogan-O'Connell (IRFU), Matteo Liperini (FIR). TMO: Brian MacNeice (IRFU). |
Many people focus solely on the pope as spiritual leader or even policy maker, but several cardinals have suggested that the Catholic Church needs a pope with management expertise. They have also pointed to a pressing need to reform the Vatican Curia, the central offices of the Church. To appreciate the enormous task facing the next pope, secular comparisons fade in contrast with the demands of leading the oldest and largest institution in the history of the universe. The Catholic Church is 2,000 years old, has more than 1.2 billion members, and aims to reach the entire world. Of course, the Church is a religious institution. She organises worship, private and public, and offers spiritual formation. But she is much more. She is a humanitarian relief organisation and a global array of educational and healthcare institutions, serving Catholics and non-Catholics alike. She is also a catalyst for countless research institutes and think tanks. Especially striking, in contrast with other religious communities, the Church's headquarters is based in its own sovereign state, with its own territory, diplomatic corps, judges, tribunals, financial institutions and, of course, sovereign head of state. Thus, the Vatican coins money, prints stamps, recognises citizenship, offers passports and driver's licenses, and has embassies and other diplomatic missions with 179 sovereign states. Following the edifying example of John Paul II and Benedict XVI, the qualified candidate to be the next pope must be a spiritual leader, an internationally recognised moral authority, and a man of prayer. He will also need to be capable of carrying out the executive duties of running the institutions of the Church, governing the Vatican City State, and negotiating bilateral and multilateral international accords. The pope also speaks as a head of state in the UN. He actively participates in international accords regarding climate change, arms-trafficking, human-trafficking, intellectual property, border disputes, peace negotiations and bioethics. A long and rich theological tradition prizes the need for spiritual shepherds who also excel in management skills and the virtues of leadership. Recent developments in theology converge with components of contemporary management theory. Theologians increasingly emphasise that configuration in Christian holiness involves a three-fold office called tria munera that consists in governance, teaching and sanctifying. While all the baptised enjoy this three-fold office, pastors must especially excel in their leadership. To fulfil the demands of his office, the supreme pontiff must enjoy the special expertise in governance and management needed to take charge and direct the flock and therefore manage all ecclesiastical organisations, from the local parish in Papua New Guinea to the Congregation for Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican. The Church can be compared to a publicly traded corporation. She is a body and is incorporated in Christ. Both canon and civil law recognise her as a corporation. The Pope has complete executive, judicial and legislative authority because Jesus gave the first pope, St Peter, the keys to loose and to bind in Heaven and on Earth. In fact, the Pope runs a corporation and enjoys |
Dave Watson, from Worcestershire, was badly hurt when he stepped on a roadside bomb in 2010. He had the surgery to avoid having to wear sockets with his prosthetic legs. Clive Smith, another Afghanistan veteran, said he will remortgage his home to pay for the operation, despite an NHS trial starting in April. Chancellor George Osborne announced in his Autumn Statement the trial - known as Direct Skeletal Fixation or osseo-integration - would be funded by money collected from banking fines, with 20 veterans set to benefit. The operations will be carried out at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, with rehabilitation continuing at the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre at Headley Court. Despite the upcoming trial, Mr Watson, from Romsley, said he had "no doubts" about paying for the procedure because the sockets for his prosthetics were causing him too much pain. "It got to the stage where I couldn't wear them anymore," he said. "They were breaking my scar tissue down, I was stuck in a chair for a year, and I just needed something so I could get out and make myself my own person." Mr Watson said his life had "changed completely" since having the operation, and he is now able to hold his daughter without pain. He is now looking forward to marrying his fiancee on New Year's Eve without being in a wheelchair or suffering pain from his old sockets. Clive Smith, from Pelsall, Walsall, in the West Midlands, also lost his legs after stepping on an explosive in Afghanistan five years ago. He had surgery in June, and has been wheelchair-bound while waiting for new prosthetics. Despite the osseo-integration trial starting next year, he said he is prepared to pay about £85,000 to have his operation earlier, and has booked his flights to Australia for next month. "My standpoint is that I feel vindicated we've managed to get a trial happening, but unfortunately for myself it's too long a timescale to keep my life on hold," Mr Smith, who is originally from Cannock, Staffordshire, said. "I've been confined to a wheelchair for about 12 months, this trial runs for over two-and-a-half years, and there's no guarantee I would be selected, so I didn't want to take a chance." |
Muhammad Ayub had been deployed in plain clothes outside the Jamia Masjid mosque during the Friday prayers, police told BBC Urdu's Riyaz Masroor. Locals allege that the officer had fired his gun into a crowd after getting into a brawl with some youths. Police say they have arrested two people in connection with the incident. Kashmir police chief Sheshpal Ved said another suspect would be arrested soon. "The people involved in this dastardly act will face the law," he told reporters. Prominent separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was speaking at the centuries-old mosque in old Srinagar's Nowhatta area when the incident took place. "The police officer had a brawl with a group of boys and he fired his silencer-fitted pistol, injuring two boys. The crowd pounced on him and lynched him," Muneer, a local resident, told BBC Urdu. The lynching, perhaps the first of its kind in Kashmir, has caused outrage, says our correspondent. Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said, "Our police force is bravest across the country. They exercise maximum restraint as they know they are dealing with their own people." Kashmir's 130,000-strong police force has already been under strain after militants stepped up attacks on its men and officers. There has been an armed revolt in the Muslim-majority region against rule by India since 1989. The disputed region is claimed by both India and Pakistan in its entirety. India blames Pakistan for fuelling the unrest, a claim denied by Islamabad. |
The police chief said they were intended to spread "fear and panic". They have been circulating in Kimusu, home to Prime Minister and presidential contender Raila Odinga, and the coastal city of Mombasa. Following post-election violence five years go, the authorities have been trying to crack down on hate speech. Hate leaflets, as they are called, were widely distributed after the disputed December 2007 elections. More than 1,000 people were killed in the six weeks of unrest which also forced some 300,000 people from their homes. Eight candidates are standing for president on 4 March, but Mr Odinga and Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta are considered the two frontrunners. Mr Kenyatta's candidacy has been controversial as he and his running mate, William Ruto, have been charged with crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court (ICC) over allegations of fuelling violence in the wake of the last election. Police Inspector General David Kimaiyo said the leaflets found in Kisumu, a city in western Kenya, were inciting Luo residents to chase away people from the Kikuyu and Kalenjin communities, who traditionally support Mr Kenyatta and Mr Ruto. Officers were investigating where the leaflets were printed, how they were distributed and who the authors were, he said. "We are therefore passing a strong message to all those who may want to cause unnecessary fear and panic among members of the public that the long arm of the law will soon catch up with them," he said. Correspondents say Mombasa, where a secessionist group operates, is often tense in the run-up to elections because of some accusations that the government is marginalising indigenous communities. The police chief assured the public that special security teams had been sent to areas identified as potential hotspots ahead of the elections when MPs and senators, county governors and members of the newly formed county assembly will also be chosen. A number of politicians and musicians have appeared in court in the past year on charges of propagating hate speech. Mr Uhuru and Mr Ruto - rivals in December 2007 poll - are due to go on trial in April in The Hague. |
Hundreds of people were involved in searches along the river on Saturday to find 23-year-old Jack Glenn. Jack's sister, Katie Glenn, said her family were "extremely grateful" for all the support. Foyle Search and Rescue are leading the search efforts which resumed early on Monday morning. The police have urged those involved "not to put their own safety at risk" and warned of the dangers of fast-flowing water. "We just want to thank everybody so, so much for all the support that they have given us," Katie Glenn told the BBC. "Jack was my only brother and he was just the best brother in the world. "He was so talented at everything, he didn't know how good he was and how much everybody loved him." Jack was wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt, dark tracksuit bottoms and blue trainers when he entered the water at the Foyle Bridge. |
Media playback is not supported on this device Only four other managers have achieved the feat - Pep Guardiola, Guus Hiddink, Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti. "Sometimes you have to pinch yourself in terms of the names being mentioned," Shakespeare, 53, said. "To be mentioned in the same breath as them, it makes me very proud." Saturday's 2-0 win over Stoke lifted the Foxes above West Ham and Burnley and into 13th place. The defending champions are six points clear of the relegation zone, with nine games left. When Shakespeare took charge following Claudio Ranieri's sacking at the end of February, Leicester were only a point above the bottom three, had lost five league games in a row and were yet to score a league goal in 2017. Since then, they have beaten Liverpool, Hull, West Ham and now the Potters, scoring 11 goals and conceding four. Shakespeare, who has also guided the Foxes into the quarter-finals of the Champions League, will make it five league wins in a row if his side beat bottom side Sunderland at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday (19:45 BST). |
National Lottery funding of £3.5m was announced for the Cliffe Castle park restoration in 2013, with work due to start next year. Bradford Council's plans will be on display at Cliffe Castle Museum for at least eight weeks. People will be able to comment on the proposals which include a cafe, glasshouses, fountains and bandstand. Created by mill owner Henry Isaac Butterfield in the 1870s, Cliffe Castle and its grounds were donated to the people of Keighley in the 1940s, with the mansion becoming a museum. The restoration project will see many of the Victorian features in the park, which have been neglected, restored to working condition. Councillor Imran Khan said: "The Cliffe Castle park project will complement the recent restoration of the Cliffe Castle Museum, recreating and rejuvenating a marvellous asset for everyone to enjoy." |
Nasa has announced its electric plane has been given official X-plane status by the US Air Force. It's used for experimental aircraft to test out new ideas. We look back at some of the wonderful and the weird planes of the past and present... The X-57 is the latest experimental plane from Nasa to be given official X plane status - it runs off electricity. Nasa researchers will use the plane to show that electricity can make planes quieter, more efficient and more environmentally friendly. It will be powered only by batteries, it doesn't use any kind of fuel that can cause pollution. On 14 October 1947, the Bell X-1 became the first airplane to fly faster than the speed of sound. The pilot reached a speed of 1,127 kilometres (700 miles) per hour and he named the airplane "Glamorous Glennis" in tribute to his wife. Flown 199 times between 1959 and 1968, the X-15 reached the edge of space at hypersonic speeds. The X-15 helped Nasa to develop the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo piloted space missions, as well as the space shuttle. US astronaut Neil Armstrong flew X-15s long before he became the legend who walked on the Moon for the first time. He flew seven flights in an X-15 and he was involved in both the piloting and engineering of the plane. Although not an official X-plane, this experimental craft paved the way for airplanes as we know them today. Samuel Langley was an astronomer who developed an experimental plane powered by steam, which he named the Langley Aerodrome - it looks pretty weird! The aerodrome was catapulted from a boat in the Potomac river in the US and managed to fly using its steam powered engine. The Langley Aerodrome became the first recognised aircraft to fly using an engine. The first test flights in 1896 were successful, but in 1903 bigger versions of the plane crashed into the Potomac river. Langley abandoned plans to develop his flying machine further. The Wright brothers became the first people to fly uninterrupted with a pilot on board, which means they are often recognised as the first official people to fly. The flyer was certainly experimental - it was made of wood, wire and cloth by two bicycle mechanics! The plane stayed in the sky for 12 seconds and travelled a distance of 120 feet (36 metres). |
18 March 2013 Last updated at 09:43 GMT Fran explains how an invention could simply be watching how people use things and improving them. Find out more about the Newsround Inventions Competition |
Cammell Laird in Birkenhead has said about 200 jobs are at risk because of a shortage of new orders. Unions representing workers at the ship repair firm held a meeting with local politicians to avert job losses. Local MPs urged Westminster to protect British interests when awarding contracts. Labour's Birkenhead MP Frank Field said the government must do more to ensure that work on military ships and other taxpayer-funded projects should "remain in the country" rather than be offered to European firms. And he said care should be taken to make sure contracts go to the companies which are most in need. Mr Field, who attended the meeting alongside fellow Labour MPs Alison McGovern and Margaret Greenwood, said: "If you look at Spain, if you look at Germany, their governments are pretty tough in protecting their shipyards. "We're asking the British government to be as canny as European governments are in protecting the British interests. "We're not resigned to the jobs being on the line. Cammell Laird should have a good chance of bidding for these contracts." Wirral Council leader Phil Davies said: "Clearly there are ways that the government can offer more support. We know these yards elsewhere do get substantial contracts." |
The proposal by Cheshire East, Cheshire West & Chester and Warrington councils aims to improve transport links, build homes and boost business. An official report said there was a strong ambition to "drive forward the Northern Powerhouse". But there is disagreement over whether there should be an elected mayor. Focuses of the plan include Crewe's HS2 hub, Warrington's nuclear sector, and plans to improve transport and infrastructure in Chester, Ellesmere Port and parts of North East Wales. It is hoped the county will be able to retain business rates generated by new companies, so they could be used to fund the development of new housing. A Cheshire West and Chester Council report said the plans would help "enhance productivity and deliver real and lasting public service transformation which will support the economic growth ambitions." Cllr Brian Clarke, member for economic development and infrastucture at Cheshire West, said: "The Cheshire and Warrington sub-region has a long heritage of successfully working together, delivering real economic collaboration and growth. "A devolution deal will build on these unique economic attributes, distinctive local geography and the drive and determination of both private and public sector partners." A further proposal will be put forward to establish an Enterprise Zone in Ellesmere Port, to incentivise businesses to relocate to the area. There is no agreement on whether the bid should include an elected mayor for Cheshire. The Leader of Cheshire East Council, Michael Jones, is in favour, whilst the leader of Warrington Borough Council, Terry O'Neill, described it as "premature". |
Media playback is not supported on this device Balotelli this week dropped tribunal action against City, who had given him a two-week fine for missing 12 games last season because of suspensions. When asked if Balotelli would be given another opportunity, Mancini said: "Sure. I am his manager and, like the other players, if he deserves another chance I'll give him another chance. But Mario now needs to deserve this." The hearing between the player and his representatives and the Premier League champions had been due to take place on Wednesday, but the issue was resolved following "amicable" talks on Tuesday night. And Mancini believes the Italy international, 22, who will miss Saturday's match against Reading through illness, made the correct decision not to pursue his action against the club. "This is an old situation and it is normal when someone does a mistake he should take his responsibilities and Mario did this. It's normal," added the 48-year-old manager. "He [should] respect himself, not me, because it's important for him to respect himself, very important." City began the disciplinary process after Balotelli was sent off against Arsenal in April 2012. In total, he received nine yellow cards and three reds - one of them retrospective - during the season. Last Saturday, Balotelli was left out of the squad that defeated Newcastle 3-1 at St James' Park. After the match, Mancini revealed the striker was "not in good form" and that was the only reason he had been excluded. |
The Spanish side had originally been barred from signing players for two windows by world governing body Fifa. They remain banned from registering new players this January but will now be able to make signings next summer. The club have also had their fine reduced from 360,000 Swiss francs (£282,000) to Sfr 240,000 (£188,000). Both Real and fellow Spanish side Atletico Madrid were banned after breaching rules over the transfer of foreign players under the age of 18. In a statement on their official website, Real said: "The decision highlights the injustice of the original ban imposed by Fifa, although the club regrets that the Cas lacked the courage to revoke the ruling entirely." No information has been given regarding Atletico's appeal against their ban and fine. Fifa initially ruled on the case in January, but the appeals meant both Real and Atletico could sign players last summer. The world governing body's investigation concerned players aged under 18 who played in competitions for Atletico between 2007 and 2014, and Real from 2005-2014. Fifa bans the transfer of under-18s to different countries unless they meet strict criteria. It brought in the rules to help protect children from exploitation and trafficking. Now, under-18s can only be transferred abroad if: Last year Fifa dealt with more than 2,700 applications for the transfer of a child to a club in another country. Almost 400 of those applications were rejected. |
Sir James Munby said the system was "ill-prepared" and facing a "crisis". Official figures show care cases have more than doubled in the last decade to an estimated 14,713 in 2016. Sir James said it was "generally agreed" that the Baby P case in 2007 was behind an initial rise. Peter Connelly, referred to at one stage in court as Baby P, was 17 months old when he died at home in Haringey, after suffering months of abuse. The toddler had suffered more than 50 injuries, and had been visited 60 times by the authorities in the eight months before his death. The serious case review put Peter's "horrifying death" down to the incompetence of most of the staff members of official agencies who came into contact with him. In comments made public on Tuesday, Sir James made what BBC correspondent Clive Coleman called a "blistering assessment" of the care system. Calling for urgent research, he said: "We are facing a crisis and, truth be told, we have no very clear strategy for meeting the crisis". Charting the rise in cases, he said there was a "dramatic increase" of some 35% in cases in 2009-10. He noted: "It is generally agreed that this unprecedented increase was the consequence of the Baby Peter case". Yet the number of care cases continued to "increase significantly" even after the initial reaction to Baby P. Sir James said that research into the reasons for the increase was needed "as a matter of urgency". Care cases, with their potential for life-long separation of children and their parents, are of unique gravity and importance, he said. Fairness and justice demand a process in which both the parents and the child could fully participate with the assistance of representation by skilled and experienced lawyers, he added. Sir James stressed: "I do not believe that child abuse/neglect is rising by 14%, let alone 20% a year. "So this cannot be the sole explanation. It follows that local authority behaviour must be playing a significant role." |
The Swans have valued Wales midfielder Allen at £20m as they seek to replace Everton target Gylfi Sigurdsson. Clement would not address the Allen interest, but did say he hopes to conclude the sale of Sigurdsson. "I'm not going to speak about incoming players. The only situation that's important is the Gylfi Sigurdsson transfer," he said. "If that goes through then we can speak about other players. "Nothing's going to be certain until Sigurdsson's future is certain." Speaking after the Swans' 0-0 draw at Southampton on the opening weekend of the Premier League season, Clement conceded the sale of last term's player of the season is close to completion. Media playback is not supported on this device "There's a difference on opinion in the valuation of the player, but I don't think it's far off," he said. "I get the sense it is closer though." Sigurdsson did not play against Southampton, a situation Clement feels is unfair on supporters. For their part Southampton were without Virgil van Dijk, who has made a transfer request. The former Chelsea coach believes the transfer window, which runs until the end of August, should close sooner. "With no Sigurdsson for us and no Virgil Van Dijk, you can make the case that fans, team-mates, coaches, viewers around the world, are being short-changed," Clement said. "What would be a better situation is if the window closed before the start of the season. "Then clubs would know their group for the first game, and who is and who isn't available. "I don't really understand why it isn't the case and, in my opinion, it should be changed." Clement says Swansea have decided to leave out Sigurdsson, due to the potential for him to suffer injury before his switch to Goodison Park. "You're potentially playing a player who might be physically well and might say that he'll play, but what's the motivation like? "The other thing is in this period, if the player gets injured in a full-on, full throttle Premier League game, any potential deal is gone," he said. "The decision (not to play him) was made between me, the player and the club that it was the wisest thing to do." Meanwhile, Swansea have signed 21-year-old striker Courtney Baker-Richardson on a two-year deal from National League North side Leamington FC. The former Coventry City youth player will link up with the Swansea Under-23 squad. |
And 410 educational establishments had their licences to sponsor international students revoked in the same period. The Home Office said it was cracking down on immigration abuse. But the National Union of Students said international students were being "scapegoated" in order to meet targets on net migration. The Home Office count incoming and departing international students when setting its targets on net migration, despite fears from some leading politicians that this risks harming UK universities. The figures, released by the Home Office under Freedom of Information rules, show 99,635 students had their visas curtailed in the three years to the end of December 2015: Of the educational establishments that lost their licences, there were Some later had their licences reinstated - but, overall, the number of establishments holding them fell from 1,706 in 2013 to 1,405 by the end of last year. In its response to the BBC's Freedom of Information request, the Home Office said it was unable to provide specific details of the types of institutions that had lost their licences. But, in a statement, it said the revocations had been focused on "poor quality institutions". During the period, no universities had their licences revoked - though a few had them temporarily suspended. A Home Office spokesman said, since 2010, it had "cracked down on immigration abuse from poor quality institutions which were damaging the UK's reputation as a provider of world-class education, whilst maintaining a highly competitive offer for international students who wish to study at our world-leading institutions". He said the strategy was working. "Visa applications from international students to study at British universities are up by 17% since 2010, whilst visa applications to our elite Russell Group universities up by 39%," he said. "We will continue to reform the student visa system to tackle abuse and deliver an effective immigration system that works in the national interest." Where leave to remain is curtailed, individuals are given 60 working days' notice and "are encouraged to depart voluntarily", according to the spokesman. "It they fail to do so enforcement action can be taken," he added. But Dominic Scott, chief executive of the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA), said: "If these figures are correct, then they show that the Home Office's action against students has been even more draconian than previously understood. "And many fear of course that it may have been more in pursuit of meeting a net migration target than addressing real abuse." NUS international students' officer Mostafa Rajaai said the "shocking" figures were "clear evidence the Home Office is following a political agenda, rather than trying to remove real cheats". "It has a clear disregard for the right to a fair trial and the past six years have seen the steady erosion of international students' rights within the UK," he said. Mr Rajaai quoted NUS research suggesting most non-EU students thought the government was unwelcoming towards international students. "If the government continues to scapegoat overseas students in order to hit its immigration targets, |
Mohamed Fahmy, Baher Mohamed and Peter Greste were each jailed for three years on Saturday for "spreading false news". Ambassador John Casson said he was "shocked and concerned" by the ruling. Egyptian authorities objected to his remarks and Mr Casson has attended a meeting with officials. In comments made outside the court and on Facebook, Mr Casson said the court's decision would "undermine confidence in Egypt's stability". Egypt's foreign ministry called his words "unacceptable interference" in the country's judiciary. Twitter users in Egypt have also called for Mr Casson to be expelled over his comments, with more than 800 users tweeting the "expel_the_British_ambassador" hashtag. In a statement issued after the meeting, the British Embassy in Cairo said the ambassador "explained the UK's position on the court ruling, especially in light of the fact that two British nationals were involved in the case". Two British journalists working for al-Jazeera were sentenced in absentia in the original trial last year. Canadian-Egyptian Mr Fahmy and Egyptian Mr Mohamed were led away to begin their sentences after Saturday's verdict. Mr Greste was deported back to his home country of Australia earlier this year and was on trial in absentia. Giving the verdict, judge Hassan Farid said the three men were not registered journalists and had been operating from a Cairo hotel without a licence. Their lawyers are expected to appeal. |
Thanet Council has advised people not to enter the sea between Walpole Bay and Dumpton Gap. Hotel owner Jane Bishop said she was worried visitors would leave the area. Southern Water said it had done nothing wrong by releasing storm water from its stations at Foreness Point and Broadstairs. Signs have been erected on beaches telling swimmers not to enter parts of the beach which are below the high water mark. Labour councillor for Thanet, Richard Nicholson, called the closures "a real kick in the teeth" for tourists, residents and local businesses. Jane Bishop, who runs the Walpole Bay Hotel, said she was concerned the numbers of visitors would now fall in the area as "our whole industry down here depends mainly on tourism at the moment." She said her guests would "probably be really upset and they'll probably check out and go somewhere else". "Southern water has to get their act together and design a system where this doesn't happen", Ms Bishop said. Geoff Loader, director of communications at Southern Water, said: "The plant has done what it should. We have operated within the environmental guidelines. "The plant has successfully stopped flooding in the area." He said screened storm water had been "heavily diluted" and released "a long way off the shoreline". "If we want to improve on the system in years to come then there's an engineering cost and we have to consider if that's appropriate," Mr Loader said. The Met Office had warned of heavy rain in the Thanet area on Monday afternoon and evening. An Environment Agency spokesman said: "In response to the overnight reports of discharges of sewage from Southern Water Services pumping stations we are supporting Thanet District Council with ongoing environmental assessments. "Our staff have also been providing updates to members of public and businesses whilst conducting water quality monitoring at a number of Thanet's bathing waters." The council previously warned swimmers about entering the sea in the area in May following a discharge of raw sewage. Thanet District Council said officers were working with the Environment Agency to reduce the impact of the discharges while Southern Water contractors were working to clear the waterline. It added that beach areas above the waterline were still open to the public. |
But he says blocking out the emotion and drawing on how close they came to beating the Wallabies will help them launch their autumn series in style. Laidlaw previously said he would take the pain of that controversial last-minute defeat "to the grave". "When we take the emotion out of it, it is a game we could have won," he said. "If we can use that as a positive again, that can help us because we were in the game for 80 minutes. "But we understand that defensively we need to be stronger this time around. We gave away five tries so Australia will probably be thinking they can cause us problems. "So we need to be real tight in our defence, real tight in our driving maul and our forward play so we are not giving away cheap points. "If we get our stuff right, we feel as though we've got a strong game plan. We just need to stay in the moment and stick to our game plan. If we do that, we think we can be in the game." While Laidlaw believes the way Scotland competed in that quarter-final "gives the team real confidence", he acknowledged the challenge of matching the Wallabies' Test-match intensity by Saturday. Australia played six Rugby Championship games- winning three, losing three - between August and early October, and looked far more match-sharp than Wales in opening their November series against all four home nations with a crushing 32-8 victory in Cardiff last Saturday. But Laidlaw thinks extra preparation time - Scotland have been in camp since early last week - and a change of focus to more rugby-specific training, rather than fitness, will help the hosts. "We are in a better place now than we have been before going into first games in championships," added the Gloucester scrum-half, citing their "poor performance" in the first game of this year's Six Nations against England as evidence. "We have had a pretty good hit-out to mirror a game. We are excited and we will be ready to go. "It's an important game for us at home in front of our people, and when our studs hit the ground at the weekend we are going out there to meet fire with fire." Australia full-back Israel Folau, who is set to win his 50th cap at Murrayfield on Saturday, insists the Wallabies have forgotten about the controversy that overshadowed their last meeting with Scotland. "Obviously it was a decision made by the referee, it had nothing to do with the players," said the 27-year-old, who missed the World Cup quarter-final through injury before returning for the semi and final. "I can understand from a Scottish supporters' point of view that it was very disappointing, but for us as players, we have looked past that. "This week is a new game for us. We are going into it starting from zero. The guys have forgotten about what happened last time. "It was no surprise to us how |
The Foxes dominated for much of the game at the King Power Stadium, creating numerous chances throughout, but were left with too much to do after Saul Niguez's 26th-minute header added to Atletico's one-goal advantage from the first leg in Madrid. Needing three second half goals, Leicester responded with splendid defiance and equalised on the night when Jamie Vardy scored at the far post just after the hour. They kept battling until the end as Atletico survived several scrambles, but the La Liga superpower held on and the Premier League's interest in the tournament ended. Leicester City have gained huge credit and credibility in making their way to the last eight of the Champions League as England's last surviving representatives. And even in defeat over two legs to this battle-hardened Atletico Madrid side - twice losing finalists in recent seasons - the Foxes can be proud of another monumental effort that just came up short. Craig Shakespeare's side were second best as Atletico looked a cut above for the first 45 minutes to lead through Niguez's header, which left Leicester needing those three goals against a miserly defence. The hosts could have been forgiven for throwing in the towel but instead came out fighting, invigorated by Shakespeare's positive half-time changes. He sent on Ben Chilwell and Leonardo Ulloa for Shinji Okazaki and defender Yohan Benalouane, flooding Vardy with greater support. Vardy's goal was no more than they deserved and for a time they had Atletico rocking, giving the King Power Stadium belief that another miracle was on the cards. They almost added a second in goalmouth scrambles, especially when Stefan Savic blocked Vardy's goal-bound shot. In the final reckoning, the lack of an away goal and a controversial first-leg penalty scored by Antoine Griezmann left them with a hurdle that was just too tough to surmount. There was disappointment inside the King Power Stadium at the final whistle but it was masked by a fully deserved standing ovation for Leicester's players. When last season's Premier League champions started their Champions League journey, many believed reaching the knockout phase would represent success - so once again they defied the odds. Atletico Madrid are a side built in the image and likeness of their manager Diego Simeone - talented, uncompromising and streetwise. And in the end it was that combination of qualities that made it just too tough for Leicester City to take their journey a step further into the last four. Atletico showed their quality in the first half to score that crucial away goal, then demonstrated the resilience that has taken them to two Champions League finals in 2014 and 2016 [both lost to arch-rivals Real Madrid]. It needed a mixture of defiance and desperation but in the end it was enough to send them into another Champions League semi-final. This may be the last Champions League night at the King Power for some time - and if it is, Leicester City made sure it left plenty to remember them |
What I See, which will be released in May 2017, will consist of 300 photographs taken by the 17-year-old alongside new images of him. Penguin said the photos "offer his followers a rare glimpse at the world through his eyes". The images will be accompanied by a written foreword and captions written by the model and social media star. The son of David and Victoria Beckham has 8.8 million followers on his Instagram account, where he currently posts many of his own photographs. He has also fronted a number of promotional campaigns for brands such as Burberry and Pull & Bear. Francesca Dow, managing director of Penguin Random House Children's, said: "Brooklyn Beckham's images inspire a generation across the globe, and this book will give his fans a broader insight into the world seen through his unique and creative perspective." Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk. |
Lions coach Warren Gatland names his squad on 19 April and Pivac believes a number of players are in with a chance. "I think we are in a position at the Scarlets where I am hoping we get a record number, I wouldn't be surprised if we get four," said Pivac. Scarlets, formed in 2003, have never had more than two players on a tour. Pivac added: "Certainly there are a group who put their hands up during the Six Nations." A party of four players would equal the number who toured from the Llanelli club from which the Scarlets region was formed. Those four on the 1974 tour of South Africa were Phil Bennett, JJ Williams, Roy Bergiers and Tommy David. New Zealander Pivac would not specify which of his players he thought was in the running this time, but centre Jonathan Davies played in all three Tests against Australia in 2013. Full-back Liam Williams, centre Scott Williams, hooker Ken Owens and prop Rob Evans all played for Wales in the Six Nations while flanker John Barclay captained Scotland during their campaign. Pivac believes the Pro12 Judgement Day derbies at Cardiff on Saturday, when Scarlets face Newport Gwent Dragons, is a perfect opportunity to push Lions selection hopes. "We have got one more game this weekend where players can show they are worthy of representing the Lions if not Wales, it's an exciting weekend," he said. Centre Davies is likely to return after being rested for the 51-5 victory over Treviso but flanker Aaron Shingler (knee) and outside-half Rhys Patchell (calf) will miss the game through injury. Pivac believes the Lions have a good chance of adding to the only test series win against the All Blacks back in 1971. "It's all going to come down to selection and not only the squad but once the squad is together in New Zealand," he said. Pivac, who coached provincial side Auckland before moving to Wales, says the home side's preparation will also have a bearing on the series. "The All Blacks are vulnerable traditionally in June in the that first Test, so it will be interesting to see what they are doing," he added. "I believe they are trying to get a [warm-up] game because they will be worried by the fact that the Lions do have some lead-in games. "The Lions could have a bit of an advantage depending on the All Blacks preparation, certainly it's going to be a great series and everyone is looking forward to it." |
Gary McLaughlin, from Rosskeen Park in Derry, is charged with possessing and possessing with intent to supply cocaine and meth. He is further charged with being concerned in offering to supply drugs. Mr McLaughlin, 25, plays for DuPont Football Club in a local football league every Saturday. A defence solicitor told the judge that his client has been electronically tagged since he was first charged in court with the offences three months ago. The solicitor said Mr McLaughlin been told by a security company that any physical contact during matches could set off his tag. The judge granted the application but ordered the defendant, who has no previous convictions, to report to police twice a week. |
"We are incredibly grateful that our family will be growing by two," the pair wrote, and "we thank you for your well wishes". The post, signed "The Carters", has a photo of Beyonce with a baby bump, wearing lingerie and a veil. The couple already have a daughter, Blue Ivy, who has just turned five. Pregnant Beyonce photo mesmerises America Beyonce has been nominated in nine categories for the 2017 Grammy Awards, extending her lead as the most-nominated woman in Grammys history. The star, 35, is due to headline the Coachella music festival in southern California in April. The announcement gave no indication of the babies' due date. In 2011, Beyonce revealed her pregnancy to fans during the MTV Awards. She opened her performance of Love On Top by announcing: "I want you to feel the love that's growing inside of me." During the closing bars of the song, she opened her jacket to reveal her baby bump. The camera then cut to Jay Z, who was being congratulated by Kanye West. Blue Ivy went on to inspire a song on Beyonce's self-titled album, and appeared several times in last year's Lemonade. Jay Z revealed in the lyrics to his track Glory that Beyonce suffered a miscarriage before the birth of Blue Ivy. |
They believe the end of the school year has seen families struggle without the free dinners provided. Usually about 10 people a day use the Eastside food bank at Mount Zion Baptist Church on Mansel Road, Bonymaen, but that number has risen. Charity the Trussell Trust said school holidays in 2016 saw a 10% increase in people using its food banks. Eastside has seen basics such as dried pasta and toiletries run out for the first time since it opened in 2013. Swansea East MP Carolyn Harris called the situation "desperate", adding: "It is definitely because of families struggling with children on holiday." The Reverend Chris Lewis said more homeless people have also sought help and it is worrying they are struggling as referrals increase. During July and August last year, 5,185 three-day emergency food supplies were given out by the Trussell Trust in Wales, compared to 4,733 in May and June. Its director of devolved nations Tony Graham praised work to provide school meals. "The next step must be to help families during the holidays," he added. |
Australian Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said both countries had yet to reach a mutually beneficial agreement. A similar deal with Cambodia has been criticised as an expensive failure. Asylum seekers who try to reach Australia by boat are currently being held at offshore detention centres in Nauru and Papua New Guinea. Australia says its measures - supported by both the main political parties - have deterred human traffickers and saved lives. However, activists have reported harsh conditions and abuses at the offshore camps, and are urging Australia to soften its stance. Under current immigration policy, even those eventually found to be genuine refugees are denied the chance to settle in Australia. Australia's previous prime minister, Tony Abbott, struck a deal for settling refugees in Cambodia, promising the country an additional A$40m (£19m; $29m) in aid - regardless of the number of refugees transferred. Since then, however, only four refugees have agreed to be moved to Cambodia, prompting criticism of the deal - and a search for other possible partners. "We have a bilateral arrangement with Cambodia," Mr Dutton told reporters on Friday. "If we can strike other arrangements with other countries, we will do that." "If we can strike an agreement that is in the best interests of our country and from the Philippines' perspective, their country, we will arrive at that point," he said. Australia's top court is meanwhile reviewing the legality of the offshore camps housing Australia-bound asylum seekers. At a High Court hearing this week, activists argued that the government had violated the constitution by funding the offshore centres. The court has yet to announce its decision, in what is being seen as a test of the government's immigration policy. The case was brought on behalf of detainees from the offshore camps who were moved to Australia for medical treatment, including a pregnant Bangladeshi woman who now has a 10-month-old child. Activists say the government does not have the right to send the detainees back to the camps. Australia's new Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has defended the offshore migrant detention centres - a central policy of his predecessor Tony Abbott - by saying they save lives. Is Australia's Cambodia solution 'an expensive joke'? Australia's controversial asylum policy |
Liam Lyburd, 19, also wrote that it was "beautiful" to think people were oblivious to the fact they were going to die that day at Newcastle College. He has admitted possessing weapons, including pipe bombs, but denies intent to endanger life. Newcastle Crown Court heard the note was recovered from his laptop. Lyburd was arrested at home in November following a tip-off from a concerned member of the public. A jury was told the embittered former Newcastle College student had built up a collection of weapons and explosives at his home near the city's St James's Park stadium. The court heard analysis of his laptop found a file called "Newcastle College" which he attempted to delete. But experts recovered the contents, including a note that said: "I'll see you in Newcastle College today. It's my first day back since 2012 the year in which my life became miserable after being kicked out for nothing. "I'll get my power back today haha. I'm just looking forward to getting out of the house after spending three years in my bedroom alone." He said he held the college "personally responsible for my miserable life, kicking me out for nothing and making me look a fool by not answering my message on Twitter and Facebook. "You ruined my whole life, don't expect me to show any mercy today. No-one disrespects me and gets away with it. I will teach you a little lesson on respect with my 9mm hollow points ;). "It's time for extreme civil disobedience. Fantasy will become reality for sure. Where the mind goes the body will follow and yes people will die there's no question about that. "It's funny to think as I'm writing this the people that will die are walking around as if everything is normal, not knowing they're going to die today. It's a beautiful thought." It was signed Felix Theodore Burns, a name he also used. The laptop contained a clip from the film Tower Block, which showed a sniper shooting residents, police computer expert Paul Wells said. The two-minute extract of blood-spattered victims falling as they were shot was played to the jury. Mr Wells found Lyburd's Toshiba computer was used to access a Dark Web marketplace site called Evolution. The username Donald Trump was used, the court heard. Payment for items, apparently Glock gun parts and ammunition, was made in the online currency Bitcoin. The jury was also told Lyburd paid tribute on Facebook to Jaylen Fryberg, the American teenager who shot dead four classmates in Washington state before turning the gun on himself in October. The entry read: "No-one listens to you when you say you are going to kill people, they only listen to you after you killed the people. No-one takes it seriously anymore. "RIP Jaylen Fryberg." The trial continues. |
The pair appeared to remove the explosive device from the luggage before taking the bag with them. Authorities are looking to question the two men and recover the suitcase. The device was allegedly planted by Ahmad Rahami, an Afghan-born, New Jersey resident who is facing charges in connection to twin blasts. An FBI "seeking information" poster says the two men "allegedly located a piece of luggage on the sidewalk, removed an improvised explosive device from the luggage, and then left the vicinity leaving the device behind but taking the luggage". Investigators have said the suitcase was left at West 27th Street in Manhattan by 28-year-old Mr Rahami. The 27th Street bomb never exploded. But at around the same time another explosive device detonated on West 23rd Street in the Chelsea neighbourhood, injuring 31 people. Police had earlier said they believed the two men did not appear to be related to the plot. But in Wednesday's poster it said agents are "interested in speaking to these individuals and recovering the luggage". Mr Rahami has been charged in relation to the New York explosion and another device that exploded harmlessly hours earlier near a race in Seaside Park, New Jersey. A 'very friendly guy' Will blasts affect race for White House? He was arrested on Monday after being found sleeping in a pub doorway in Linden, New Jersey. Mr Rahami was subsequently arrested after a shootout with police. He remains in hospital. A handwritten journal found on Mr Rahami at the time of his arrest revealed that he had planned a suicide attack and hoped to be martyred rather than caught, according to a federal court complaint filed on Tuesday. Journal entries from the bloodied book showed his disdain for the US government and included references to Anwar al-Awlaki, the American-born Muslim cleric who was killed in a 2011 drone strike, the Boston Marathon bombings, the 2009 Fort Hood shootings in Texas and Osama bin Laden. Mr Rahami wrote: "The sounds of the bombs will be heard in the streets." "Death to your oppression," a final message read. The entries did not appear to make any reference to the so-called Islamic State. Authorities also said Mr Rahami ordered citric acid, ball bearings and electronic igniters on eBay and had them delivered to a business where he worked in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, on 12 September. A recording on a relative's mobile phone showed Mr Rahami testing out the material in a backyard just two days before the attacks. After his arrest, federal authorities admitted that they had looked into Mr Rahami in 2014, when his father expressed concern after a domestic dispute involving his son. "The FBI conducted internal database reviews, interagency checks and multiple interviews, none of which revealed ties to terrorism," the FBI said in a statement. Investigators are looking into whether Mr Rahami was radicalised during previous trips to Pakistan and Afghanistan. |
The 30-year-old American, who won 5,000m relay silver at Sochi 2014, will miss the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang. He has accepted the US Anti-Doping Agency's sanction, which is effective from 18 November 2016, the date of his provisional suspension. Traces of clomiphene were found in an out-of-competition test in October. Clomiphene was initially developed as a fertility drug but has performance-enhancing qualities as it boosts levels of testosterone. |
Airbnb confirmed it was quietly cancelling accounts of those travelling to Charlottesville to attend the "Unite the Right" rally on Saturday. The company cited its discrimination policy, but users decried the move as a violation of free speech. The row marks the latest flashpoint in a debate over rights to free speech. Members of the so-called alt-right movement, which includes groups accused of racism and anti-Semitism, are expected to descend on Charlottesville on Saturday for the "Unite the Right" rally, to protest against the city's removal of a Confederate General Robert E Lee statue. The event was scheduled to take place at a park that was also the locale of a raucous Ku Klux Klan rally in May. The park, formerly Lee Park, was renamed as Emancipation Park in June. Speakers at the event include Richard Spencer, a leader of the alt-right movement, while members of the National Socialist Movement, the Traditionalist Workers Party and the neo-Nazi Daily Stormer website have said they will attend. The Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors hate groups, said the event could be "the largest hate-gathering of its kind in decades in the United States". However, it is unclear how many people the event is expected to attract. NBC29 reported that the event permit to host the event was for 400 people, but the Washington Post reports police are preparing for as many as 4,000 attendees. Airbnb said it began removing accounts affiliated with the event after a user reported a thread of comments suggesting company properties would be used for after-parties for the neo-Nazi website, Daily Stormer. The company issued a statement noting that it had established an Airbnb "Community Commitment" policy in 2016, which asked members to sign a pledge to "accept people regardless of their race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation or age". The policy was created after the online accommodation site faced criticism over anecdotal evidence that black users routinely found it more difficult to book a room than white individuals. The anti-discrimination agreement was directed at Airbnb hosts, but the latest move appeared to be the first time the company targeted guests. The move caused a social media uproar, in which Twitter and 4chan users began posting Airbnb messages to banned users, noting the decision was "irreversible and will affect any duplicated or future accounts". "People shouldn't just #boycottairbnb they should sue @airbnb", one user wrote. In a statement to the BBC, rally organiser Jason Kessler called the move "outrageous" and said it "should be grounds for a lawsuit". "It is the racial targeting of white people for their ethnic advocacy. The Unite the Right rally is opposed to the historical and demographic displacement of white people. Would Airbnb cancel the service of black nationalists or Black Lives Matter activists for their social media activity? Of course not!" Airbnb argues that while it respects the right to freedom of expression, people have a moral responsibility to take action when facing extreme hatred. The company |
The slump in expectations came as Bank of Scotland's latest business monitor indicated improved export activity seen in the first three quarters of 2014 had ground to a halt. The bank said exporting was "proving a challenge" in the face of stagnant eurozone economies. Overall, it expects economic recovery to continue through 2015. But it also expects the rate of growth to ease. The bank's summer business monitor saw firms' expectations about exports reach their second highest level in more than 16 years. But its latest survey, covering the three months to the end of November, showed a big fall in the percentage of firms which were positive about overseas sales over the next six months. There was a net balance of +5% - down on the +32% of the previous quarter. The overall net balance for export activity was -4%, which was well down on the +13% of the previous quarter, but an improvement on the same quarter in 2013. The net balance is calculated by subtracting those that report a decrease from those that report an increase. In the latest survey, 41% of firms said they had increased turnover, while 34% experienced static turnover and 25% reported a decrease. This gave a net balance of +16% - down from the +30% of the previous quarter but marginally up on the +15% noted a year ago. The Bank of Scotland said it was the fifth best result in seven years and provided further evidence of the embedding of the recovery. Expectations for turnover in the next six months showed an overall net balance of +19%. This was marginally down on the previous quarter but up on the +16% recorded in the same quarter a year ago. Volumes of repeat business remained at high levels in the latest quarter, with a net balance of +15%. Bank of Scotland chief economist Donald MacRae said: "The surge in economic activity identified in summer 2013 has been maintained throughout 2014. "Expectations have fallen slightly but are close to pre-recession levels, suggesting the recovery will continue into 2015 but the rate of growth will ease. "Further increases in investment by firms would enhance and embed the recovery." |
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said 562,337 new cars were registered in March, up 8.4% on the same month last year. Those figures were boosted by a change in the number plate in March and planned changes to the Vehicle Excise Duty (VED), it said. Many customers would have benefited by buying their car before 1 April. Changes in the way cars are taxed came into effect on that date. In particular, anyone planning to buy a low-emission car would have had an incentive to buy before 1 April. "These record figures are undoubtedly boosted by consumers reacting to new VED changes, pulling forward purchases into March, especially those ultra-low emission vehicles that will no longer benefit from a zero-rate fee," said Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive. However, dealers and manufacturers will also have pre-registered some vehicles, which are not actually sold to buyers until a later date, sometimes at a discount. Diesel car registrations rose 1.6% in March to 244,463. However, diesel's share of the overall car market fell to 43%, from 46% in March 2016. Diesel cars were once touted as environmentally-friendly, but have fallen out of favour as studies have found they emit higher levels of polluting nitrogen oxides than petrol cars. That negative image was bolstered in 2015, when Volkswagen admitted to fitting cars with devices which allowed them to cheat emissions tests. As a result, diesel cars might be targeted when the UK government publishes its plan to meet EU air quality standards. That plan is due by the end of the month. The prospect of higher taxes has upset many car owners who were encouraged to buy diesel cars in the early 2000s by tax changes made by the Labour government. In March, registration of of low-emission cars jumped by almost a third, as customers raced to avoid higher taxes. From 1 April onwards, only newly registered vehicles with zero emissions - electric and hydrogen cars - will escape VED. For other low-emission cars, such as hybrids, there is a sliding scale of charges related to CO2 output for the first year of ownership. After that time, petrol or diesel vehicles are subject to a "standard" rate of £140 a year. Buyers of cars worth more than £40,000 attract a "premium" levy. After their first year of ownership they pay an extra £310 a year, for five years, on top of the £140 standard rate. Previously most low-emission cars would not have paid any VED. But Mr Hawes warned that the March rise could be followed by slowdown in April, particularly as there are fewer selling days in April because of the timing of Easter. But he expects the market to remain strong this year. "Looking ahead to the rest of the year, we still expect the market to cool only slightly, given broader political uncertainties, as there are still attractive deals on offer," Mr Hawes said. However, some economists are less optimistic. Howard Archer, chief economist at IHS Markit, says |
Announcing charges after 20 months of Operation Delego, senior US officials said some 600 users of a site known as "Dreamboard" had been investigated. Attorney General Eric Holder said some images on the site showed the abuse of infants and young children. The US has 43 of those charged in custody, with nine held overseas. The 20 others charged as part of the US probe remain at large, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said, and are known only by their internet pseudonyms. Ms Napolitano described the amount of pornographic material seized as equivalent to 16,000 DVDs. Authorities have arrested people in 13 other countries: Canada, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Germany, Hungary, Kenya, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Qatar, Serbia, Sweden and Switzerland. Members of Dreamboard traded graphic images and videos of adults molesting children aged 12 and under, often violently, the US Department of Justice said. Collectively the members of the site created a massive private library of images of child sexual abuse. "The members of this criminal network shared a demented dream to create the pre-eminent online community for the promotion of child sexual exploitation," Mr Holder said. "But for the children they victimised, this was nothing short of a nightmare." Of the 52 individuals arrested under the US investigation, 13 have pleaded guilty, a justice department statement said, including two bulletin-board administrators in Canada and France. Operation Delego represents the largest prosecution to date in the US of those who have participated in an "online bulletin board conceived and operated for the sole purpose of promoting child sexual abuse, disseminating child pornography and evading law enforcement", the statement said. Dreamboard was created in 2008 and shut down in early 2011 when it became evident the US government had launched a probe into the online network. The charges being handed to members of the website carry sentences ranging from 20 years to life in prison. |
Media playback is not supported on this device The South African won 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-0) in four hours and 18 minutes to reach a first major quarter-final, where he faces Stan Wawrinka. It is the first time since the 2010 US Open that Murray has lost before the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam. Briton Jo Konta lost 7-5 6-3 to Petra Kvitova in the women's singles. A gripping evening at Flushing Meadows saw Britain's two remaining singles hopes exit within 12 minutes of each other. While Konta's 16-match winning run ended in straight sets in the cavernous Arthur Ashe Stadium, Murray's hopes disappeared in a fever-pitch atmosphere on Louis Armstrong Stadium. An emotional Murray smashed his racquet - handing it over to a spectator - and argued with the umpire before launching a fightback in the third set, but Anderson dominated the decisive tie-break. It is 38 years since Britain had male and female quarter-finalists at the same Grand Slam, but Murray's defeat means it is the first time in five years there have been neither. "That's obviously something that is disappointing to lose," Murray said after a run of 18 Grand Slams in which he made at least the quarter-finals. "Obviously that's many years' work that's gone into building that sort of consistency. To lose that is tough." At 6ft 8in tall and with a chart-topping 69 aces heading into the match, there was no mystery to the South African's greatest strength - his serve. In five of their past six encounters, including the Queen's Club final in June, Murray's returning had proved more than its equal. However it took until he was a set and 5-1 down for the Scot to break serve this time, and Anderson saw off another break point to clinch the set at the second opportunity. The South African then left the court for six minutes, prompting an angry outburst from Murray towards umpire Jake Garner as he asked "what's reasonable?" for such an interruption. Murray's mood did not lighten when Anderson moved a break up at the start of the third, but it galvanised the Scot to play his best tennis of the match in a burst of three games in a row. However Murray then put a forehand wide to give the break straight back and duly took out his frustration on his racquet. It came down to another tie-break and this time Murray made the running, moving 6-2 clear and sealing it with an ace before pumping his fist in the direction of his team and the spectators. He had already recovered from two sets down against Adrian Mannarino in round two, but Anderson proved much tougher. The world number 14 had let a similar lead slip against Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon but remained rock solid this time, pushing for the break before completely dominating the third tie-break of the match. He raced into a 6-0 lead and converted his first match point for the biggest win |
The BNP's only UK district councillor Brian Parker holds the balance of power on the hung authority in Pendle. Its Conservative MP Andrew Stephenson told the Commons the parties' deal had turned "a blind eye to racism". Labour and the Lib Dems have denied striking any such arrangement. The current political makeup of the council is 24 Conservatives, 15 Labour, nine Lib Dems and one BNP. Mr Stephenson told ministers: "That means the Labour/Lib Dem coalition that run the council currently have to rely on the support of that BNP councillor to get things through. "Can we have a debate on racism and how the Pendle Labour Party and Liberal Democrats are happy to turn a blind eye to it in order to cling on to their positions and their expenses?" Mr Parker said Labour, the Lib Dems and the BNP were "co-operating" and would look at working together in the future. He told BBC Radio Lancashire an agreement had been made with the coalition over local traffic issues in return for his support on their budget. "We could come to an arrangement on other things. I won't work with the Conservatives because they're starving Pendle Council of millions," he said. Pendle council leader, Labour's Mohammed Iqbal, said no deal has been done and added he had "never met with the BNP" and did not intend to. He said the accusation "showed the Conservatives were getting desperate". The authority's deputy leader Lib Dem Tony Greaves, also denied an agreement had been made with Mr Parker, saying "he is his own free agent and he will no doubt vote according to his views". Leader of Pendle Conservatives Joe Cooney has written to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and Lib Dem leader Tim Farron condemning the situation. |
The party won six seats in each of the first three elections and avoided the electoral collapse some opinion polls suggested to retain five in 2011. Its assembly group has had only two leaders in that time, with Mike (now Lord) German at the helm from 1999 until Kirsty Williams became the first woman to be elected as Welsh leader of a party in 2008. The Lib Dems had their time in the sun during a coalition government with Labour from 2000 to 2003. They published a breakdown of their achievements listing, among others, £200m for school buildings repair, the freezing of prescription charges, and a farming and rural support package of £60m. Mr German's time as deputy first minister was blighted by an 18-month police investigation into alleged expenses irregularities over his use of a corporate credit card while running the Welsh Joint Education Committee's European Unit - his last job before entering full-time politics. The Crown Prosecution Service took no action. A Liberal Democrat special conference in May 2007 voted against forming a "rainbow" coalition with Plaid Cymru and the Conservatives, a personal setback for Mr German, paving the way for the Labour-Plaid Cymru "One Wales" coalition government. The Liberal Democrats have certainly added colour to the assembly, if only because of Peter Black's vast array of ties. Eleanor Burnham, AM for the north Wales region for a decade, was a somewhat boisterous presence in the chamber, but had to apologise for referring to the Japanese as "Japs" in a debate. A row broke out in Cardiff Bay in 2002 after Montgomeryshire AM Mick Bates appeared at a plenary session dressed as Father Christmas to raise cash for charity. The presiding officer said he would not call members to address the chamber if they were "abnormally dressed". A curious incident in 2006 has become known as "Mick's finger". While voting on the day's motions, Mr Bates raised his middle finger to the laughter of other AMs. He denied that his gesture was aimed at the Presiding Officer Lord Elis-Thomas, adding "I was showing Rhodri Glyn Thomas which finger he should use to operate the assembly's modern push button voting system." And there was a high-profile incident in 2010 when Mr Bates was convicted of punching a paramedic during a drunken night out in Cardiff following a sitting in the Senedd. The Liberal Democrats have often secured deals to get government budgets passed. In 2011 they agreed a deal with Labour to include an extra £20m to spend on the education of the poorest pupils, a theme they repeated in 2013 when they secured £35m to expand the party's flagship policy, the pupil deprivation grant. In 2014, they reached a deal which they said was worth £223m over two years, again including extra spending on education and also the completion of a link road in east Cardiff and a pledge not to build the new M4 relief road before the assembly election. The Liberal Democrats have always been the |
Dom Heaume put the hosts ahead inside three minutes before Ross Allen brilliantly smashed in the second to double the advantage. Ben Gallichan twice hit the post for Jersey but despite having the bulk of possession they were not clinical enough in attack. Karl Hinds pulled one back from close range but Guernsey held on for the win. The result means the Greens have now won the title 46 times, Jersey 53, with one shared in 1937 and Alderney lifting the Vase once, in 1920. Guernsey were quickest out of the blocks and went in front when Dave Rihoy's shot was palmed away by Jersey goalkeeper Euan van der Vliet, but Heaume was there to calmly volley in the rebound and give his side the best possible start. At the other end Gallichan's angled header came back off the far post, before Allen's superb strike across van der Vliet from a tight angle flew in and put Guernsey firmly in control midway through the half. Allen had latched onto a quickly taken Rihoy throw, catching the Jersey defence off guard, and has now netted in six different Muratti finals stretching back to 2010. Gallichan fired against the post again after half an hour, when he should have hit the target but instead dragged his close-range shot onto the upright. As the game wore on it was Jersey who dominated possession, with the Sarnians seemingly happy to drop deep and let their opponents have the ball in the middle third. Striker Craig Russell, a surprise absentee from Martin Cassidy's starting line-up, was introduced from the bench on the hour mark as the visitors continued to have more of the possession. It was fellow substitute Hinds who finally found a way past Leroi Riley, when the ball dropped to him in the box and his prodded effort found the corner of the net with quarter of an hour still to go. The Reds went close through Jack Cannon's free-kick before the last golden chance for an equaliser fell to captain Cav Miley, but his strike from just inside the box went over the bar and Guernsey could celebrate only their second home Muratti triumph since 2001. |
Malik - caught off a no-ball on 40 - hit an unbeaten 124 and Mohammad Hafeez 98 to help Pakistan to 286-4 at the close of play in Abu Dhabi. Younus Khan scored 38 to pass Javed Miandad's mark of 8,832 runs and become Pakistan's leading Test run scorer. James Anderson claimed two wickets but Ian Bell dropped two simple catches. While Pakistan will be content with their position, England's bowlers deserve credit for the perseverance they showed on a surface offering minimal assistance. Stuart Broad and Mark Wood claimed a wicket apiece, but Test debutant Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali went wicketless in a combined 36 overs after the tourists lost the toss in unfavourable conditions at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium. Playing his first Test since 2010 and his first first-class match for almost a year, 33-year-old Malik justified the selectors' faith with his third Test century. The all-rounder, who has credited his wife - Indian tennis star Sania Mirza - with the revival of his international career, came to the crease with Pakistan 5-1 after Shan Masood was bowled via his helmet ducking into a James Anderson bouncer. He showed occasional signs of impatience, most noticeably when he was caught by Joe Root at gully off a Broad no-ball. However, he was largely untroubled as he added 168 for the second wicket with Hafeez, who was lbw playing across the line to Ben Stokes on the stroke of tea. Younus Khan was far from at his best in making 38, but he did enough to become Pakistan's leading run scorer. The 37-year-old overtook Inzamam-ul-Haq and Miandad, who had held the record for 30 years, when he clubbed Moeen Ali over mid-wicket for six to pass 19. The third-wicket partnership was worth 74 when Younus drove Broad to Alastair Cook at the straighter of two short mid-ons. Misbah-ul-Haq perished shortly after courtesy of a faint outside edge and a successful England review, but Asad Shafiq accompanied Malik until the close as Pakistan saw off the first three overs of the new ball. On a day when England managed only four wickets in 90 overs, they were left to rue the mistakes which cost them three more. Bell dropped two straightforward chances at second slip, both off Anderson. Hafeez was put down when he had made only seven - a wicket which would have left Pakistan 12-2 - and Shafiq was reprieved on 10 in the penultimate over of the day. But arguably of greater importance was the no-ball which aided Malik, who hit 13 fours on the way to a 182-ball century, his third in Tests. Media playback is not supported on this device England's Stuart Broad, speaking to BBC Sport: "I blame myself for the no-ball. We pride ourselves on our catching and not bowling no-balls. I can't think of many times I've had one chalked off, if at all. It's a feeling of distraught. "I'm not a regular no-ball bowler so it took me a bit by |
Mobile network Verizon told Fortune magazine that it planned to divert calls made via the phones so that they reached its staff instead. It follows dozens of reports of the devices overheating and in some cases bursting into flames. Samsung is expected to reveal the cause of the problem on Monday. It pulled the product from the market and cancelled further production in October after an earlier botched recall and re-release. US operators had already released a software update intended to prevent Note 7s from being able to recharge and connect to their networks. But Verizon said that thousands of its customers had still not returned the devices, possibly because they had managed to prevent the firmware from being installed. "The recalled Note 7s pose a safety risk to our customers and those around them," it told Fortune. It said it would still allow 911 calls to connect to the emergency service, but all other calls would be redirected to its employees, who would demand the return of the handsets. Customers who refused might be billed the full retail cost of the device, it added. "This is all about liability," commented Ben Wood from the CCS Insight tech consultancy. "People may be willing to accept the risk now, but that could change if they experience a catastrophic incident like it burns down their house or seriously injures someone. "Samsung and the operators have no option but to put whatever measures in place they can to try and retrieve all the remaining devices." |
The warning comes in an interview with John Beattie for BBC Scotland's new current affairs programme, Timeline. She expressed frustration at what she says are years of missed opportunities to capitalise on the grand slam success of her sons, Andy and Jamie Murray. The Lawn Tennis Association announced a £15m investment in the sport last year. The funding - half of which will come from SportScotland - would have a "transformational" effect on Scottish tennis, it was claimed. Ms Murray said she wanted to see the investment doubled so that indoor facilities could be built across the country. She is backing controversial plans for a major new development on green belt land between Dunblane and Bridge of Allan, which would include 12 tennis courts. "Andy and Jamie may only play for another two or three years, and when they stop playing, that's too late to start creating a legacy," she said. "If you wait two or three years, when they've gone, tennis could go back to being largely irrelevant in this country again. It absolutely has to be done now. "I think the key with this £15m for indoor facilities is to turn it into at least £30m so that we can really, really spread the courts across the country. "But facilities is one thing, the activity within those facilities has got to be good. A bigger and better quality tennis delivery workforce is crucial as well." Both of her sons ended a hugely successful 2016 as world number one, after clocking up a series of tournament wins. Her youngest, now Sir Andy Murray, won Wimbledon for a second time and knocked Novak Djokovic from the top of the world standings. The brothers, who grew up in Dunblane, even managed to return to Scotland, competing in the Davis Cup in Glasgow in front of a huge crowd. The success of such high profile events prove that there is a huge appetite for tennis in Scotland, said Ms Murray. "For us to actually have some bigger events up here has just put fuel to the fire," she said. "There is a demand and the time is now." The tennis coach added: "In the last nine years we have missed a massive window of opportunity to really grow the game, because there have been no new indoor courts built - not courts that are available to the general public - in the nine years that Andy's been in the top five. "So it's been an enormous source of frustration to me because I've seen the opportunity that the success of the boys has presented to our sport, and yet nobody has really grasped it and seen what we could do." Tennis club membership has increased by 42% in Scotland, according to the Lawn Tennis Association. Its chief executive, Michael Downey, said it aims to double the number of covered courts in Scotland within 10 years, and to increase participation across the board. He said the £15m investment announced last month was the |
The Scot, from Livingston but based in Nottingham, made her way through a scrappy A final in Seoul. She avoided being taken out by other skaters that fell and held on to finish third to continue an impressive year. Having won four European gold medals in Sochi in January, Christie, 25, races in the 1,000m on Sunday as she targets a first world title. |
The new name for the 74,500-seat capacity stadium, the home of Welsh rugby, will be used from January 2016. It was built at a cost of £121m to replace the National Stadium, Cardiff Arms Park, for the 1999 World Cup. The structure, owned by the Welsh Rugby Union, is famous for having the only fully-retractable roof on a UK stadium. Its construction was funded to the tune of £46m by the Millennium Commission, which resulted in its original name. As well as hosting the FA Cup finals from 2001-06, the stadium has staged rugby and football internationals, major concerts by artists like U2 and the Rolling Stones and has been selected to host the 2017 Uefa Champions League final. The first match to be played under the new name at the stadium will be Wales' Six Nations game with Scotland on Saturday, 13 February. WRU chairman Gareth Davies said: "Both parties are comfortable with the arrangement. I think a 10-year deal is significant in terms of naming rights for a stadium." In its last financial accounts in 2014, the WRU's debt stood at £15m. That figure was once £75m as a result of the stadium's construction costs. |
Play was suspended for two hours because of lightning at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey and then eventually stopped for bad light. That left 39 players having to complete their first round on Friday morning. Korea's Amy Yang is five under, a shot ahead of Lydia Ko, with Jodi Ewart Shadoff and Georgia Hall at one under. Former champion Michelle Wie has withdrawn from the event with a neck injury. The American withdrew on the 11th hole, her second hole of the day, in a rainy start to the second round. "Based on the short turnaround from last night's round to this morning, I haven't been able to recover enough to play to my full potential today, " Wie tweeted on Friday. "I am confident with continued treatment, I will be at 100% by the Scottish and British Open." Scotland's Catriona Matthew and England's Charley Hull are at level par, while Bronte Law is three over and Carly Booth six over. Further storms are forecast for Friday. |
Here is a selection of his memorable quotes on a variety of topics: Be nice to the whites, they need you to rediscover their humanity - October 1984 I am not interested in picking up crumbs of compassion thrown from the table of someone who considers himself my master. I want the full menu of human rights - January 1985 Your president is the pits as far as blacks are concerned. I think the West, for my part, can go to hell - July 1986, when US President Ronald Reagan opposed sanctions proposals He [South Africa President FW De Klerk] has taken my breath away - February 1990 At home in South Africa I have sometimes said in big meetings where you have black and white together: "Raise your hands!" Then I have said: "Move your hands," and I've said, "Look at your hands - different colours representing different people. "You are the Rainbow People of God." - December 1991 Resentment and anger are bad for your blood pressure and your digestion - January 2000 Perpetrators don't have horns, don't have tails, they are as ordinary looking as you and I. The people who supported Hitler were not demons, they were often very respectable people - February 2006 Who in their right mind could have believed South Africa could be an example of anything but the most awful ghastliness? We are such an unlikely lot - January 2000 He's almost a caricature of all the things people think black African leaders do. He seems to be wanting to make a cartoon of himself - April 2000 People are scared in this country [the US] to say wrong is wrong because the Jewish lobby is powerful - very powerful. The apartheid government was very powerful, but today it no longer exists. Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Pinochet, Milosovic, and Idi Amin were all powerful, but in the end they bit the dust - April 2002 One time I was in San Francisco when a lady rushed up, very warmly greeted me, and said, "Hello Archbishop Mandela." Sort of getting two for the price of one - March 2004 At the moment many, too many, of our people live in gruelling, demeaning and dehumanising poverty. We are sitting on a powder keg - November 2004 Thank you Mr President for telling me what you think of me. That I am a liar with scant regard for the truth and a charlatan posing with his concern for the poor, the hungry, the oppressed and the voiceless - November 2004 His [Nelson Mandela's] sartorial taste is the pits! He's such a lovely guy, but he was nasty to me when I publicly commented on it. He said the critique was pretty amusing coming from a man who wears a dress - October 2006 This is something that can unite us. We have 11 different official languages but only one word for the wonderful institution of braai (barbecue): in Xhosa, English, Afrikaans, whatever - September 2007 If |
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said two cars packed with explosives were detonated at a military camp, killing and wounding "dozens". Syrian state media said the two car bombs resulted in "victims and material damage", but did not give details. Meanwhile, Syrian opposition groups are continuing negotiations in Doha about a possible merger. One of the biggest groups, the Syrian National Council (SNC), has yet to decide whether it will join a proposed unified group, provisionally called the Syrian National Initiative. On Friday the SNC elected its new leader, a Christian and former communist, George Sabra. The initiative idea is supported by the US and other international backers. No group has claimed responsibility for the bombings in Deraa, but car bombs targeting the military have been a regular tactic of the various rebel groups fighting President Bashar al-Assad's army. In the past, Islamist groups have claimed responsibility for similar attacks, as fighting across the country has continued. An activist in Deraa who gave his name as Mazn told the BBC the explosions appeared to have been targeted attacks, aimed at army and secret police in an area away from civilian homes. "Two places in particular were targeted. One was a club for army and secret police," he said. "There have been clashes since the explosions and there are a lot of secret police on the streets and snipers on buildings." Following his appointment as SNC head, Mr Sabra called on the international community to provide the rebel fighters with weapons. But he also cast doubt on whether the SNC would agree to join the proposed new initiative. He told the BBC he believed the current talks with other opposition groups in Doha were merely the beginning of a process. The BBC's Jim Muir, in Doha, says the SNC wants to propose significant amendments and is clearly reluctant to sign up to a new body that might spell its own demise. Talks are expected to continue for some time, he says. That will disappoint backers of the new initiative, including the UK and the US, who would like to see a unified Syrian opposition emerging as a credible alternative to President Assad's government. |
A group of tiny girls strum their acoustic guitars, belting out a self-made Persian translation of the hit Don't Panic in a flat in Kabul. Playing along is a man very much in the mould of the Western rock musician, complete with wrist bands and bandana. These are "The Miraculous Love Kids", a music school for street children set up by American guitarist Lanny Cordola. On the day I visit I'm greeted by 20 or so dusty shoes and slippers in the hallway, a sign that the kids had a busy day on the streets of Kabul. A pair of large photographs on the wall caught my attention. They show two beautiful, smiley girls, Parwana and Khorshid, two sisters who were killed four years ago in a suicide attack near what was then the Nato head quarters in Kabul. It's their story that has inspired this small school. Among the girls rehearsing their instruments is 12-year old Mursal, Parwana and Khorshid's younger sister. Mursal was just seven when she went with her siblings to sell handkerchiefs, shawls and crafts near the compound of international troops in Kabul. The movements of foreign soldiers were restricted, so many children sold their goods near Nato headquarters. On 8 September 2012, the sisters arrived at their usual spot in the morning. Because there were a lot of children that day, they split up. Mursal was sent to a quieter side street, while the older girls stayed near the main gate. Shortly after that a 14-year old suicide bomber blew himself up killing at least six children, the sisters among them. Their death was widely reported, not least because Parwana and Khorshid were part of Skateistan, Kabul's first skateboarding school and a charity which combines skating with education for street children. Skateistan mourns its bright sparks after Kabul attack "They were the most beautiful little girls," Courtney Body, a freelance reporter who knew them well says. "I'll never forget the day I took them shopping for girly things in Wazir Akbar Khan bazaar, and they held my hands as we walked to the store," she recalls. "I was so angry that they were allowed so close to the Isaf gates. I felt they had to be there to make money selling things to the foreigners, but they should have been protected." The story came to the attention of Lanny Cordola, a US rock musician from Los Angeles who read about it in the New York Times. The story stuck with him. "I never ever thought of coming to Afghanistan, but two years ago I came here to meet the family of Parwana and Khorshid," Cordola told me. He says he was travelling in Asia at the time. Four months later he was back with a radical idea: To open a guitar school for street children in the capital. "The plan is to make this an entity where they can travel the world, play music, tell the story about their lives and the people of Afghanistan," |
NHS Protect, which gathered the data, says the stress and confusion of a hospital stay may explain the findings. They looked at thousands of incidents, ranging from bites and pinches to the most serious attacks on medical staff. Over-75s accounted for 57% of violent incidents on wards between 2010 and 2015. Yet, according to figures from the Health and Social Care information Centre, in the same five-year period, people over 75 made up about 24% of patients being treated by hospital consultants at any one time. This suggests a disproportionate number of incidents on wards involved older people. About 4% of the assaults involved male and female patients who were over 100 years old. NHS Protect, which leads on work to identify and tackle crime across the health service, says theirs is the most detailed ever review of violence directed at NHS workers. They say the high proportion of reported physical assaults by elderly patients probably reflects the challenges of dealing with older people coping with the confusion of a hospital stay, compounded by conditions such as dementia. More than half of the 6,762 assaults between 2010 and 2015 resulted in injuries, yet only about 7% of the acute sector staff reported the incidents to police. NHS Protect is now calling for staff to come forward and report every incident so that procedures can be changed to keep staff and patients as safe as possible. David Dixon, from NHS Protect, told BBC Radio 5 live: "The next step is for individual trusts to study our findings and identify what lessons they can learn for their own particular contexts, about where best to place their resources. "And we continue to ask staff never to accept assault as 'just part of the job'. Every physical assault should be reported, in the established way." NHS Protect has developed guidance and other resources to help NHS staff prevent and manage challenging behaviour by focusing on minimising a patient's distress. David Hope, an NHS nurse for the past 14 years said: "If you include all the scratches, nips and pinches, I've been assaulted 20 or 30 times. "We're supposed to report every incident, but you'd spend all your time on a computer if that happened." Mr Hope said the reaction of relatives who had witnessed an assault was also upsetting. "The assumption from relatives is that we are doing something wrong - that's why the patients attacked us," he said. "We've often been trying our best, and it isn't recognised." |
He was a 14-year-old farm labourer at the start of World War II when his boss delayed paying him and eight others. Taking matters into his own young hands he led a protest on the Sussex farm and successfully demanded the money. More than 70 years later, he faces a more fearsome challenge in the High Court as he tries to force police to destroy secret records held on him. The 86-year-old used the Data Protection Act to discover the National Public Order Intelligence Unit (NPOIU) had kept records of his peaceful attendance at 55 demonstrations between 2005 and 2009. He claims they recorded masses of "trivial" data about him, including that he carried a sketch pad and whether he had shaved or not. He has now been granted permission to take his case to the High Court. NPOIU said it would be inappropriate to comment in light of the ongoing legal process. The demonstrations, mainly outside an arms factory in Brighton with his daughter Linda, were the latest in a long line of protests which began with defiance on a Sussex farm. Recalling the incident, Mr Catt said: "The owner was a terrible man, a tyrant who used to rant and rave. "It was raining hard and we were soaked. I demanded he paid the men, who were a lot older than myself. "There was so much electricity running through me at the time the owner eventually paid the eight of us." His taste for standing up to authority continued when he was enlisted into the RAF during the war. After landing what he described as a "plum job" working in the briefing room of RAF Tangmere, near Chichester, he protested to his superiors over the "dirty and filthy" conditions of the sick bay. His outburst saw him confined to barracks for a month as punishment for insubordination. "That's what first got me into the bad books of the authorities," he said. Mr Catt's life after the war reads like a potted history of modern political protest. He took part in demonstrations over nuclear weapons, the Vietnam war, perceived racism by the Metropolitan Police in the 1980s and poll tax. More recently he protested over the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the increase in tuition fees. As an accomplished artist he was recorded several times by police for sketching the protests, a hobby he has pursued since he was a young child. "Protesting makes me feel twice as young," he said. "There's very few of my age group - the protesters are young people and it's their future not ours. "I never feel that I'm too old for it - on the contrary I try to embody the rights of humanity and combine it with my art. "You put uniforms on people and they carry out orders without question." Linda Catt, who is also a peace activist, said her father was a "great source of inspiration" and his High Court challenge was the first of its kind. "He |
Sushma Swaraj tweeted that the number of Indians who had died now stood at 101. Thirty two others are missing. The Saudi authorities put the total death toll at 769 but foreign media reports and officials put the figure at well over 1,000. It is the deadliest incident to occur during the pilgrimage in 25 years. Ms Swaraj had earlier tweeted that Indian authorities were "doing everything to locate our people". At least 76 Pakistani have also died in the stampede, reports say. The crush happened as two large groups of pilgrims converged as they were taking part in one of the Hajj's major rites. The Saudis have been criticised over their handling of security and the slow publication of casualty figures. The nationality with the highest toll, with at least 464 dead, is Iran, and Iranian officials allege that the overall number of deaths is now more than 1,000. Pakistan, India, and Indonesia have also suggested that the death toll may be higher than the 769 reported by Saudi Arabia. BBC Monitoring puts the death toll at 1,216, based on official statements and media reports from 34 countries who lost citizens in the stampede. 2006: 364 pilgrims die in a crush at foot of Jamarat Bridge in Mina 1997: 340 pilgrims are killed when fire fuelled by high winds sweeps through Mina's tent city 1994: 270 pilgrims die in a stampede during the stoning ritual 1990: 1,426 pilgrims, mainly Asian, die in a stampede in an overcrowded tunnel leading to holy sites 1987: 402 people die when security forces break up an anti-US demonstration by Iranian pilgrims Timeline: Deadliest stampedes |
A great way to learn more about nature and enjoy the birds in your garden while providing plenty of information on how our wildlife is doing. This year, it stretches over three days, from Saturday, 27 January to Monday, 29, giving people a chance to count at home and at work. Because the location of your count can make a huge difference to the birds. I went to chat with Kate MacRae in her garden near Lichfield for some top tips on attracting plenty of birds for this weekend's big event. Kate's a familiar face to Springwatch fans and she's seen over 50 bird species in her garden with many of them making an appearance on her numerous webcameras broadcasting online. Kate says the secret to plenty of birds is not just to offer them lots of food but also to offer a variety of nibbles and to serve it up in plenty of different ways. So in Kate's garden you'll find traditional tables, hanging fat balls and even pieces of fruit stuck on a skewer. Where you put your food is important too, so don't forget plenty of birds like a nearby branch or similar to perch where they can check the coast is clear before moving on to eating. As I said location makes a huge difference to the birds you see so in Kate's rural garden you're less likely to see sparrows in contrast to my central Birmingham green patch where they're pretty common. Thanks to a nearby canal I'm also more likely to see wagtails. Kate on the other hand gets a lot more finches of all descriptions than I do. In central Brum I also have the edge when it comes to gull species. Last year the Midlands top five were: The long-tailed tit was a new entry at number ten. While talking to Kate a small flock of long-tailed tits descended on her feeders. They are one of my favourite garden birds so hopefully this year we might see them clamber further up the rankings. Their numbers boosted in some part by the growing numbers of people who enjoy putting food out for them. That said bird food can quickly become fairly expensive if you start to buy a lot of it and it is really tempting to go for the cheapest option. Kate's advice though is to always try and spend a little bit more. She's found the cheaper bird food mixes contain a lot of wheat to bulk things out and it's really only the pigeons that care for that. And as anyone who feeds the birds will tell you when the pigeons turn up they tend to scoff all the food before any other birds get a look in. If you want to take part in this year's garden birdwatch you can find the details on the RSPB website. |
A court hearing with Apple scheduled for Tuesday has been postponed at the request of the US Justice Department (DOJ), Apple has confirmed. The DOJ had ordered Apple to help unlock the phone used by San Bernardino gunman Rizwan Farook. But Apple has continued to fight the order, saying it would set a "dangerous precedent". Rizwan Farook and his wife killed 14 people in San Bernardino, California, last December before police fatally shot them. UN human rights chief backs Apple Apple boss hits back at FBI conduct McAfee offers to unlock iPhone for FBI Ever since this issue arose, security experts have been saying "surely the FBI can do this themselves?" Well, maybe now they can. An "outside party" - you'd assume a security company, but we don't know for sure - has approached the FBI and said it could unlock the phone. If they can do it, the court case is irrelevant. The FBI gets what they need. But if it doesn't work, we'll find ourselves back here to resume the trial. Apple's legal team told reporters it wasn't treating it as a legal victory. The issue still looms large over the company. If the FBI has found a way, who's to say it'll always work? Apple will, as any software maker would, frantically try to fix the flaw. After all - if the FBI can do it, so can any other hacker privy to the same information. If this method works, then what? With each new iteration of iOS, Apple could find itself back in court. The technology industry, led by Apple, has called for the matter to be debated in Congress. This case may be on the brink of going away, but the debate is just starting. Read more from Dave Prosecutors said "an outside party" had demonstrated a possible way of unlocking the iPhone without the need to seek Apple's help. "Testing is required to determine whether it is a viable method that will not compromise data on Farook's iPhone," a court filing said. "If the method is viable, it should eliminate the need for the assistance from Apple." DOJ spokeswoman Melanie Newman said in a statement that the government was "cautiously optimistic" that the possible method to unlock the phone would work. The government said it would update the court on 5 April. Attorneys for Apple told reporters that the firm had no idea what method the FBI was exploring to try to unlock the phone. They said they hoped that the government would share with Apple any vulnerabilities of the iPhone that might come to light. The FBI says Farook and his wife Tashfeen Malik were inspired by so-called Islamic State and that the encrypted iPhone may contain crucial evidence. It wants to access the data but the device can only be unlocked by entering the correct passcode. Guessing the code incorrectly too many times could permanently delete all data on the phone, so the FBI had asked Apple to develop a new version |
People are waiting too long to be assessed over the phone and to be seen by medical staff, according to the local community health council. It said the result was more people turning up at A&E "inappropriately". Cardiff and Vale University Health Board (UHB) said it was improving the service in response to growing demand. Patients who do not need urgent care but cannot wait until their GP surgery opens are advised to use the out-of-hours care service. After ringing a central number, a clinician calls back and advises whether the patient needs a home visit by a doctor or should go to one of three centres - at the University Hospital of Wales (UHW), Cardiff Royal Infirmary or Barry Hospital in the Vale of Glamorgan - following an assessment, or triage, over the phone. But the community health council's chief officer Stephen Allen said even the basics were not happening. "We have concerns about the time people are taking to have calls triaged and the time it is taking for patients who are being triaged to be seen by a healthcare professional," he said. "We have raised it with the health board on numerous occasions and unfortunately they are consistently missing those all important targets for the last eighteen months." The Cardiff and Vale board serves a population of 472,000 and receives around 9,000 to 11,000 calls to the out-of-hours service each month. Its telephone triage targets say all urgent cases should be assessed within 30 minutes and all routine calls within two hours. In October 2013 one routine call took more than 16 hours to assess, while there were examples of urgent calls taking five hours to assess in October 2013 and February 2014. However, the service did meet its target of identifying all immediate life-threatening conditions within five minutes every month since May 2013. Mr Allen said his watchdog believed the cover provided to be inadequate, particularly after 01:00 when only one doctor is available for all calls with a nurse in support. "If you have one doctor covering the centre - which is the Heath hospital [UHW] at that time of night - and on the road, well he can't do both." He added: "It's diabolical. There's no other word for it and really I feel sorry for the patients who are picking up the phone tonight who may need to access the out-of-hours service. "That is why we strongly believe that people are pitching up at the A&E department inappropriately." Sue Morgan, head of operations and delivery for Cardiff and Vale UHB's primary, community and intermediate care clinical board, said a full service review and improvements were under way. She said there had been "a significant increase in demand" for the GP out-of-hours service over the last 18 months, with a 31% year-on-year increase over the winter. She added that the board a looking at ways of improving the service to meet the increased demand. Ms Morgan said: "The GP out-of-hours service like many frontline |
PC Christopher Guest, of West Midlands Police, inadvertently left expletives on Alex Faragher's phone after she was not at home to give a statement, a misconduct hearing heard. He was given a final written warning, while his colleague PC Cavan O'Connell was given a written warning. Ms Faragher said she was disappointed with the result. The hearing heard PC Guest, 36, could be heard on an answer message referring to Ms Faragher as a "bitch" and "slag". Along with PC O'Connell he arranged to meet her in January 2014 to take a statement over a reported incident of alleged domestic violence, only to discover she was not at home when they arrived. PC Guest told the panel his remarks, in a private conversation to PC O'Connell, were borne of "frustration". Both men, who worked in the Birmingham North police patch, are alleged to have breached the force's professional standards - PC Guest for making the comments and PC O'Connell for failing to pull him up for doing so. The panel ruled PC Guest's actions amounted to misconduct but fell short of the higher level of gross misconduct. He was handed a final written warning which will remain on his file for 18 months. PC O'Connell, 51, was given a written warning to stay on file for 12 months. West Midlands Police said the conduct of the two officers had been "dreadful". "We apologise to Alex Faragher for her distress and reassure her that they take this matter extremely seriously," they said. "We apologise for the poor service from the officers." Ms Faragher's solicitor said she is disappointed by the outcome and is reviewing what other legal options may be open to her. The domestic abuse allegation has since been discontinued. |
Alondra Diaz was in the court in the western Michoacan state to confirm her identity and consider DNA tests. This comes after a video emerged showing another girl, Alondra Luna Nunez, being taken against her will by police to the US. DNA tests later revealed the mistake and the girl was returned home. Alondra Diaz appeared in the court in Los Reyes on Tuesday. Mexican officials are now expected to conduct DNA test to confirm whether the girl is indeed the daughter of Dorotea Garcia - a Houston resident who filed the case. The case dates back to 2007, when Mexico received Ms Garcia's request to help return her daughter who was allegedly taken by her father to Mexico. Last month's video of Alondra Luna Nunez resisting police after she was seized in her school on court orders spread widely on social media, prompting protests. She was reportedly mistakenly identified by a scar on her nose. "The other girl had a scar, but on the eyebrow, and I have one on my nose," Alondra Luna Nunez told the Associated Press. "I mean, all this was stirred up over that." |
After resuming on 357-5, Notts reached 430-9 before declaring ahead of lunch. Amid some rain delays, they dismissed Gloucestershire for 149 - with Phil Mustard's 53 the visitors' only bright note - and enforced the follow-on. Gloucestershire lost opener Chris Dent (2) to Luke Fletcher (1-7) and closed on 37-1 when bad light stopped play. |
Dons goalkeeper Joe Lewis denied Graham Cummins from close range in the first half, and beat away a stinging Danny Swanson volley in the second. Aberdeen controlled possession for long periods with captain Ryan Jack forcing saves with a volley and a header. But despite a late rally, they rarely troubled Saints keeper Alan Mannus. After returning from a disappointing midweek Europa League exit in Slovenia, the Dons were keen to bounce back in a fixture that was not short of goals last season. However, both sides cancelled each other out in a dour encounter with chances at a premium. Media playback is not supported on this device St Johnstone had found the net with ease against the Dons last season; scoring 12 goals in their four clashes. They nearly continued that trend with their first attack of the game - Cummins almost diverting Brian Easton's shot past goalkeeper Lewis, who managed to block. Aberdeen were dominating possession without really testing Saints goalkeeper Mannus, a Jack volley the only shot on target in the first half. And it was the hosts again who went closest to breaking the deadlock when Anthony O'Connor's clearance landed kindly for Swanson who thumped a shot towards the corner, only to be denied by the quick reactions of Lewis. Poor defending again handed a gilt-edged chance to Cummins inside the six yard box, but he miss-kicked with the goal gaping and Lewis was able to smother the ball. Manager Derek McInnes' three-man attack of summer signings Miles Storey, Jayden Stockley and Wes Burns had proved ineffective, with a long Kenny McLean shot the Dons' only attempt in the opening stages of the second half. With ambitions of claiming their first league title since 1985, the visitors began to inject more pace into the game, and with the introduction of Adam Rooney and Niall McGinn became more of a threat. Andrew Considine and Jack forced saves with shots in quick succession as Aberdeen launched an aerial bombardment to unsettle the Saints backline. Jack's close-range header was tipped wide before McGinn should have done better with a weak shot. Stockley could have won it at the end but he could not connect with Graeme Shinnie's diagonal ball at the back post. St Johnstone manager Tommy Wright: "I think any point against Aberdeen is always a good point. They've proved they're a top side. They put us under a lot of pressure and we dealt with that well; quite a few teams in this league may have crumbled. "We're pleased with the defensive performance but maybe we could have done more in an attacking sense." Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes: "We came to win but I think there was a lot of the performance we were really pleased with. "I thought we kept St Johnstone's threat at arm's length, we were the better team, passed it well, but maybe the effects of playing on Thursday in 30C heat took some of the sharpness out of our play. "It's always |
Several people died and around 1,000 others were wounded when police and miners attacked demonstrators in Bucharest in June 1990. Ion Iliescu, 85, was president from 1990 until 1996 and then returned for a second term from 2000 to 2004. He was accused of murder in 2005. However, those charges were dropped two years later and he has always rejected the allegations against him as absurd. In September 2014, the European Court of Human Rights criticised Romania's failure to put on trial people responsible for "crimes against humanity committed against Romanian civilians in the tortuous transitional period to democracy". The Romanian Supreme Court then re-opened the case in March 2015. Mr Iliescu made no comment in court as he appeared with other former government officials, including ex-intelligence director Virgil Magureanu and ex-Defence Minister Victor Atanasie Stanculescu. Months before he became president, Mr Iliescu helped bring down the Communist regime of Nicolae Ceausescu. However, when opposition protesters took to the streets to voice their anger against the new ex-Communist leadership, their demonstration was broken up by thousands of miners sent to Bucharest by Mr Iliescu to stage a counter-protest. Romanian TV broadcast archive footage of Mr Iliescu on Wednesday, showing him thanking the miners for coming to the new government's help. Former miners' leader Miron Cozma led the miners when they broke up the opposition protest in 1990 but led a miners' march on Bucharest the following year which helped bring down the government. He was later jailed for his role in the 1991 miners' actions. |
An announcement is due in the coming week to reveal whether Blackpool, Bradford, Sheffield or Newcastle and Gateshead will stage the exhibition. Former Chancellor George Osborne came up with the idea as part of his Northern Powerhouse package. As well as the £5m for the exhibition, he pledged £15m for a legacy fund. The seaside resort's Great Exhibition will be in the ornate Winter Gardens, which houses venues including the Opera House (said to have the biggest stage in Europe), Empress Ballroom and Olympia exhibition area. The exhibition will be along the theme of Pleasure Palaces, offering the "latest and greatest in UK popular culture for the last 130 years". There will be a Digital Palace, a Palace of Invention, a Palace of Earthly Wonders, a Palais De Dance, a Palace of New Realities, a Palace of Industry and a Palace of Dreams. And a Palace of Popular Art will celebrate creations including northern TV crime dramas, music and light art, to tie in with the Blackpool Illuminations. They hope to attract at least 400,000 visitors and the exhibition will be used to continue the restoration of the Winter Gardens. If Bradford is chosen, a 10-week exhibition titled Futurescope, will be "the biggest and most connected exploration of our imagined futures that has ever taken place", its bid promises. It will, organisers say, use "great art, design and business innovation, food and drink, culture, and digital technology to bring people together". The exhibition could give the National Media Museum - the main venue - a much-needed boost, while other locations will include the City Park, Impressions Gallery and Kala Sangam South Asian Arts centre. It will include a crowd-sourced exhibition of the 100 most influential objects from the north, a futuristic virtual reality experience and six giant connected sculptures that will be placed in northern cities. Local heroes will also be celebrated - artist David Hockney has been invited to create a new work and the Bronte sisters will be commemorated on the 200th anniversary of Emily's birth. These twin cities will take visitors onto the streets with three themed walking routes guiding people to venues and attractions. The Arts Circuit, Design Circuit and Innovation Circuit will all start at an exhibition about northern pioneers and trailblazers at the Great North Museum: Hancock. Visitors will then traverse Newcastle before crossing the River Tyne and converging on the Baltic art gallery, which will invite five northern and five international artists to create work on the exhibition's themes. The 77-day exhibition, with the overarching theme of The Blazing World - The Fires of Invention, will begin with an opening ceremony featuring a bridge of illuminated drones. During the event, 50 writers will be tasked with "rewriting the narratives of the north", while the organisers promise to "connect artists with scientists and inventors to work closely". Sheffield's exhibition will "confound stereotypes about the north" with a "dynamic and diverse" account encompassing heritage, art, science, manufacturing and city living. Large neon signs will be |
That would rule out a rise to 67, to be implemented by 2028, as well as further rises to 68 and possibly 69 or 70. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn believes people in physically demanding jobs, such as the emergency services, construction and prisons, should not have to work into their late 60s. But scrapping the changes could cost £30bn by 2050. The state pension age is already due to rise to 66 for both men and women from 2020, affecting people now in their early 60s and younger. The leaked manifesto says: "Labour rejects the Conservatives' proposal to increase the state pension age even further." If the party were in government, it would commission a new review of pension ages, hot on the heels of the official review just completed by the former business leader, John Cridland. The new review would be "specifically tasked with developing a flexible retirement policy to reflect both the contributions made by people, the wide variations in life expectancy, and the different nature of working lives". The implication is that people would be permitted to retire at different times and still be able to pick up the state pension in some form. Mr Corbyn has said before that he would like a system which allows people to work on, but which recognises "that for many people the nature of their work, their health, or their disability may not allow that". Mr Cridland did examine the problem that in some parts of the country and in some jobs, particularly manual work, life expectancy was lower, so pension claimants were in danger of getting the money for a shorter time, if at all. But he recommended keeping the same pension age for everyone, saying there was "no effective mechanism that has been tested that would be able to target those with lower life expectancy". Mr Cridland told ministers that the move to a pension age of 68 should be brought forward to 2037-39, with the possibility that 69 could be pencilled in for 10 years later. A separate set of calculations from the Government Actuary looked at the possibility of an eventual switch to 70, which would affect young people now in their 20s. The other question over the Labour Party's thinking would be cost, because the point of the changes to pension ages was to save the taxpayer billions of pounds. "We already know the planned increases were due to save £30bn, so unwinding these will be very expensive," said Nathan Long from the investment firm, Hargreaves Lansdown. However, the point of Labour's plan would be to prevent the creation of what it calls a two-tier system, with the better-off able to retire early on private pensions while those with the least savings have to toil for longer. |
Straddling the continents of Europe and Asia, Turkey's strategically important location has given it major influence in the region - and control over the entrance to the Black Sea. Turkey's progress towards democracy and a market economy was halting in the decades following the death of President Ataturk in 1938. The army saw itself as the guarantor of the constitution, and ousted governments on a number of occasions when it thought they were challenging secular values. Efforts to reduce state control over the economy also faced many obstacles. After years of mounting difficulties which brought the country close to economic collapse, a tough recovery programme was agreed with the IMF in 2002. The austerity measures imposed then meant that by the time the global financial crisis came round in 2008, Turkey was in a better position to weather the storm than many other countries. Special Report: Turkey Direct The level of public debt was already relatively low, and, although the effects of the recession were still felt, by 2010 the Turkish economy had started to bounce back and resumed growth. Concerns over the potential for conflict between a secular establishment backed by the military and a traditional society deeply rooted in Islam resurfaced with the landslide election victory of the Islamist-based Justice and Development Party (AKP) in 2002. Since 2008, hundreds of senior military officers and others received hefty jail sentences in connection with two alleged plots to overthrow the AKP government. In 2015, all suspects in one of the two plot cases were acquitted after some evidence was found to be invalid. Critics accused the government of staging show trials to neutralise the anti-Islamist influence of the armed forces in politics. In 2013, concerns at creeping Islamisation and the growing authoritarianism of the prime minister since 2003, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, spilled over into mass protests in a number of cities. Later that year, the government was implicated in a major corruption scandal. But the AKP's electoral support remained steady, and Mr Erdogan became the country's first directly-elected president in 2014. Joining the European Union has been a longstanding ambition. Since becoming an EU candidate country in 1999, Turkey has introduced substantial human rights and economic reforms in an effort to bring itself into line with EU practices - including easing restrictions on the minority Kurdish language Formal membership talks were launched in October 2005, but progress has been glacially slow. Turkey has long been at odds with close neighbour and EU member Greece over the divided island of Cyprus, although a breakthrough came when Turkey agreed to recognise Cyprus as an EU member, albeit without full diplomatic recognition. The expedition of Turkey's EU accession talks was proposed in some quarters as a sweetener to persuade the Turkish government to agree to a plan to ease the European migrant crisis triggered mainly by the Syrian civil war that began in 2011. However, many European countries continue to have serious misgivings over Turkish EU membership. Several European leaders insist that there |
Media playback is not supported on this device McLaren's Lewis Hamilton is to replace the seven-time world champion at Mercedes from next year. 1969: Born 3 January 1991: Makes F1 debut in Belgium for Jordan team 1992: Third in championship for Benetton 1994: Wins first title for Benetton 1995: Second title 1996: Joins Ferrari 2000: First title for Ferrari 2001-04: Makes it five titles in a row 2006: Last win in China. Retires at end of the season 2010: Returns to F1 with Mercedes 2012: Announces retirement at end of the season for 2013 but has decided to end an F1 career that began in 1991. "Although I am still able to compete with the best drivers, at some point it is good to say goodbye," said the 43-year-old German. "During the past month, I was not sure if I still had the motivation and energy which is necessary to go on. It is not my style to do something that I'm not 100% for. "With today's decision, I feel released from those doubts. In the end, my ambition to fight for victories and the pleasure of driving is nourished by competitiveness." Schumacher won 91 races in 19 seasons, helping to revive Ferrari's fortunes after he joined them in 1996. He won his first title with Benetton in 1994 and repeated the feat the following year, before leaving for Ferrari. He claimed five straight titles between 2000 and 2004, before retiring for a first time in 2006. "Schumacher in his pomp was undoubtedly one of the very greatest racing drivers there has ever been, a man who was routinely, on every lap, able to dance on a limit accessible to almost no-one else. Sure, the competition in his heyday was not as deep as it is now, but Schumacher performed miracles with a racing car that stand comparison with the greatest drives of any era. Victories such as his wet-weather domination of Spain in 1996, his incredible fightback in Hungary in 1998, his on-the-limit battle with Mika Hakkinen at Suzuka that clinched his first title in 2000 were tours de force. " Read Andrew Benson's blog After three years away from the sport, he made a comeback with Mercedes in 2010. However, he has managed just one podium finish in three seasons, in June. "We did not achieve our goals to develop a world championship-fighting car, but it is also very clear that I can still be very happy about my overall achievements in the whole time of my career," added Schumacher. "In the past six years, I have learned a lot about myself. For example, that you can open yourself without losing focus, that losing can be both more difficult and more instructive than winning. "Sometimes I lost this in the earlier years, though you appreciate what you are able to do and that you are able to live your convictions and I was able to do so." Speculation that Schumacher would retire at the end of the season |
Hales, 27, has opened the batting on the tour to South Africa, but averages just 20 from six Test innings. He scored 60 in the drawn second Test but has only managed more than 20 on one other occasion. "He obviously hasn't scored as many runs as he wanted," Taylor said. "But I think he is actually in a really good place. I know him well and I know when he is down and when he is on a high." Hales only scored 18 in his last innings, but it was his battling knock that helped set the platform for a comprehensive win and secured a series victory with one Test still to play. Media playback is not supported on this device Taylor, whose only half-century in the series came in the opening Test, but took two brilliant catches in the third Test, added: "He is desperate to score runs and keep contributing. "He spent some time at the crease at the Wanderers in the last innings; it was a tricky time to bat and he got us in to a position to win the game. All that time at the crease will add up and hopefully he can go big in Centurion." England's second opening place has become a headache for the selectors, with captain Cook having eight different partners since Andrew Strauss retired in 2012. The fourth Test gets under way on Friday. |
The 24-year-old has been missing since August with a foot problem but played 90 minutes on Saturday as Rovers drew 0-0 at Wolves in the Championship. Lowe, a former England Under-21 international, is a product of Blackburn's academy system. "It's been that long, it felt like a debut, even though I've played enough games for the club," said Lowe. He told BBC Radio Lancashire: "Once the game settles down and you've made your first pass, the adrenaline kind of settles down and you focus on what your job is." It was the first time Lowe had played with January signings Jordi Gomez and Danny Graham. "Obviously there are a lot of people that have come in and changes have been made," he added. "They've settled in very well around the training ground and I've trained with them for quite a while now, so there is nothing new from that respect." |
Slovenia-born Bedene defeated the world number 248 in two hours and 18 minutes. He will face Croatia's Borna Coric in the last four of the £290,000 tournament. The 26-year-old, ranked a career-high 45th in the world, lost to Switzerland's Stan Wawrinka in the final last year. |
The extra day off - Japan now has 16 public holidays a year - became law in 2014 but is just taking effect. The campaign to have a Mountain Day was a longstanding cause for hiking and mountain-related groups, who wanted to celebrate Japan's terrain and its connection to the nation's geography and culture. Japan also likes to have something specific to celebrate on each public holiday, such as Greenery Day in May, Marine Day in July and Respect for the Aged Day in September, though most people treat them as just another day off. Because the kanji (Chinese characters used in written Japanese) for "eight", 八, looks a bit like the sides of a mountain. Also "11" looks a bit like two trees, say some. Many municipalities had also already designated the date as one to celebrate mountains and, unusually, there were no other public holidays in August. Japan's dramatic landscapes is scattered with volcanoes, earthquakes and hot springs, caused by the smashing of tectonic plates. The country's many peaks are more than just geographical features. They also explain Japan's densely packed cities - squeezed into the flat land near the sea, and, observers say, the culture that has arisen there. Despite this extreme urbanisation, many Japanese people see themselves as more in touch with nature than people in many other developed nations. Not exactly. While hill-walking is popular, especially with senior citizens, an admittedly small survey by the Japan Weather Association found that nearly a third of those they asked had not even heard of the new holiday. Nearly 10% were thinking about a trip to the mountains though - not such a bad idea in the notorious heat of the cities in August. Those that do have been advised to go properly equipped and keep an eye on weather forecasts. Japan now has more official days off than any other member of the Group of Eight (G8) world powers. It also has a problem with people working excessive hours and not claiming all the leave they are owed, which has been blamed for weak consumer demand - and even for Japan's low birth rate. It is hoped public holidays encourage people to take longer vacations - you only need to take a few days off to join them with weekends to get a proper break - and spend money in the process. The Japan Times suggests the new holiday will be responsible for a possible extra 820bn yen ($8bn; £6bn) in spending, including a jump in sales of camping gear. Any effect on the birth rate is less clear, though families are probably grateful for more time together. |
Diners given this extra information ordered and ate less calorific food than other customers, a team at Texas Christian University found. Knowing it takes two hours of brisk walking to burn off a cheeseburger may be more of a warning than being told how many calories it contains, the researchers say. They now plan larger trials. Researchers Dr Meena Shah and Ashlei James divided 300 volunteers aged 18 to 30 randomly into three groups. One received a menu without any calorie information, another menus with the calories displayed, and the third menus that showed both calories and the amount of exercise needed to burn them off. All of the menus offered the same choice of food and drink, which included burgers, sandwiches, salad, chips, soft drinks and water. None of the volunteers was aware of the reason for the study and the researchers took into account hunger levels when interpreting their findings. The group given the menus with the extra information about how much brisk walking would be needed to burn off the food ordered and ate much less than the group who had menus with no calorie information. They consumed 100 fewer calories, on average, as a result. Dr Shah said: "This is the first study to look at the effects of displaying minutes of brisk walking needed to burn food calories on the calories ordered and consumed. "This study suggests there are benefits." The researchers say brisk walking is something nearly everyone can relate to. "We can't generalise to a population over age 30, so we will further investigate this in an older and more diverse group," Dr Shah added. They will present their findings at the Experimental Biology 2013 meeting in Boston. Victoria Taylor, senior dietician at the British Heart Foundation, said clearly signposting healthy options and nutritional content helped people make informed choices when ordering food. But she added: "While displaying the amount of exercise needed to burn calories is an interesting idea, there's more to a heart-healthy diet than calorie counting. "Restaurants can also take steps to make meals healthier by serving appropriate portion sizes and reducing the amount of salt, saturated fat and sugar in their dishes. "Whether eating at home or dining out, a balanced diet with plenty of fruit and veg is the best way to protect your heart." |
He came a distant fourth in Saturday's South Carolina vote, which was won by billionaire estate mogul Donald Trump. "Today I am suspending my campaign," an emotional Mr Bush told his supporters. Once a favourite mainstream candidate for the Republicans - and brother and son to two US presidents - Mr Bush saw his campaign flag in recent months. The Bush who failed In South Carolina, where he was pinning his hopes on a resurgence in his campaign, he came joint fourth with Ohio governor John Kasich. "The people from Iowa, South Carolina and New Hampshire have spoken, and I really respect their decision," the former governor said, in reference to his poor performance in the three states that have already held their presidential primaries and caucuses. "I've got an incredible life and for me, public service has been the highlight of this life," he added. Jeb Bush, the son of former President George HW Bush and brother to former President George W Bush, failed to translate huge funds and Republican donations into votes. He was overtaken in the polls by Mr Trump and Texas Senator Ted Cruz, who sold themselves as anti-establishment alternatives to his mainstream candidacy. The Republican pack will now look to back Florida Senator Marco Rubio, once Jeb Bush's protégé, who tied in second place with Mr Cruz in South Carolina. "After tonight, this has become a three-person race and we will win the nomination," Mr Rubio told his supporters as the results emerged. |
The album, Cantate Domino, includes music written for the Sistine Chapel Choir by Palestrina, Lassus and Victoria during the Renaissance. It also features two Gregorian chants and a world-premiere recording of the original version of Allegri's Miserere. The pieces are sung in Latin, as the composers intended. The chapel is in the Apostolic Palace, the official residence of the Pope, in Vatican City, Rome. The recording took place using a specially-built studio constructed by Deutsche Grammophon, with the mixing desk in an ante-chamber. Musical dignitaries including Italian opera singer Cecilia Bartoli and Italian choirmaster Roberto Gabbiani attended the recordings. The chapel is also home to the Papal conclaves, the meetings of the College of Cardinals held when they elect a new Pope. Grammy-nominated producer Anna Barry described it as an "overwhelming privilege" to record there, among the frescoes of Michelangelo. The choir has 20 adult singers and 30 boy choristers. One of the male singers, Mark Spyropoulos, is the first British full-time member of the choir, which is directed by Massimo Palombella. Palombella said: "After an intensive period of study and scholarship of the sacred music in the Renaissance and its aesthetic pertinence, we have arrived at the point of making the first commercial recording, in this remarkable building. The Pope will receive the very first copy of the album, which is released on 25 September. |
Ward, 23, joined the Terriers on loan after signing a new five year deal with the Reds in the summer. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp gave Ward a senior debut in April and Ward wants to establish himself at Anfield. "You have to strive and aim to be at the top and hopefully I can get there," he told BBC Radio Wales Sport. "You don't sign for a club to settle for what you've got. You've always got to try and push yourself to be the best." Ward is available for selection selection for Sunday's against Sheffield Wednesday after withdrawing Wales' squad for the matches against Austria and Georgia for personal reasons. Belgium goalkeeper Simon Mignolet is Liverpool's first choice goalkeeper with German Under-21 Loris Karius signed in the summer to provide competition. Ward, who missed Wales' World Cup qualifiers against Austria and Georgia, is happy to wait his turn as he looks to establish himself at Anfield. Since joining Liverpool from Wrexham in 2012, he has spent loan spells at Morecambe and Aberdeen and signed a season-long loan with Huddersfield in July. "There's no frustration for me," said Ward, who has won three caps for Wales. "If Liverpool want to have the best players that suit their style then I hope he [Karius] does well." It was Klopp who influenced Ward's move to Huddersfield who have now won eight of their opening 11 games and sit on top of the Championship table. The Terriers are managed by David Wagner, who worked alongside Klopp at Dortmund and Ward says it is no coincidence both teams are performing under the former Borussia Dortmund management team. "At Liverpool, they all look hungry as if they've got a real desire and that's quite similar to here," added Ward, who has made two Premier League appearances for Liverpool. "The manager has implemented his style and brought players in he feels would work and it seems to be paying off. " Ward admits getting recalled from a loan spell at Aberdeen midway through last season hampered his development and is grateful he is now playing week in, week out. '"It was my first taste of playing a chunk of games together," he said of the spell at Pittodrie. "Once I got the taste for it I wanted to go somewhere and be the number one. "Aberdeen gave me the platform, the next step was to get another club at a higher level. It's something I need, a full season of playing games on a regular basis." |
A selection of your pictures of Scotland sent in between 23 and 30 December. Send your photos to scotlandpictures@bbc.co.uk or our Instagram at #bbcscotlandpics. |
The SRC-KPMG Scottish Retail Sales Monitor found total Scottish sales fell in March by 0.1%, compared with a year ago. However, when adjusted for deflation, sales increased by 1.9% in real terms. Total food sales were up 0.5% over the year, which was the category's best performance for 11 months, while non-food sales were 0.7% lower. Retail experts said sales were boosted by Easter, which was included in March's figures this year as opposed to April last year. The Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) said many people used the bank holiday break to spruce up their homes and gardens, benefiting furniture sales. Health and beauty ranges were also popular in March as gifts for Mother's Day. David Martin, SRC head of policy, said: "Following a strong increase in footfall, retail sales returned the best performance for almost a year in March and provided a welcome boost to what has been an otherwise sluggish first quarter in 2015. "Whilst consumer confidence continues to rebound and the underlying economic conditions improve, much of the bounce was thanks to Easter falling two weeks earlier than last year. "This allowed retailers to capitalise on the key trading days of Good Friday and Easter Saturday. "Retailers have now enjoyed the Easter bounce so, looking ahead, April's figures may prove more challenging." |
The finance secretary said it would be wrong to strike a bargain which cut Scotland's budget. Mr Swinney said a "fiscal framework" needed to link Scotland's budget to economic performance. But the prime minister has insisted "unprecedented devolution on taxes" was being sent to Holyrood. David Cameron made his comment during clashes with the SNP's Westminster leader Angus Robertson at PMQs in the House of Commons. In the Scottish Parliament, Mr Swinney said the Scottish government should be given "flexibility and choice to pursue its own distinct policies". Scotland's deputy first minister was speaking as he led a debate on Westminster's Scotland Bill. The bill is the legislation drawn up to deliver the recommendations of the Smith Commission, which was set up after the "No" vote in the independence referendum last September. The commission was intended to deliver the pledges made in the Vow, a last minute pledge by the three main Unionist parties exactly a year ago to give Scotland widespread new powers over tax and welfare. Mr Swinney told MSPs that the Smith Commission did not meet the promises of the Vow and the Scotland Bill did not at present fully implement the recommendations of the commission. He called for the UK government to "move significantly" when the Scotland Bill returns to Westminster for its Report Stage and outlined areas where the bill "fell short" such as social security, employment programmes and the Crown estate. The MSP also complained that the bill allowed UK ministers to veto proposed changes to Universal Credit and energy schemes. Mr Swinney said there must be a "fiscal framework" to ensure further devolution provides the right incentives, linking the Scottish government's budget to Scottish economic performance. He told the chamber: "We should retain the rewards of our success, as we will bear the risks. "When the Scottish economy outperforms that of the rest of the UK, our spending power should increase." Mr Swinney added: "I want to make very clear again that the Scottish government will not recommend that this parliament gives consent to the bill without an agreed fiscal framework that is fair to Scotland. "I would have no hesitation to refuse to recommend a proposal that did not provide us with the ability to use our powers properly and flexibly to support the people of Scotland, to address our own priorities and to improve our economy." Scottish Labour's democracy spokeswoman Claire Baker said her party wanted the devolution of the work programme, which seeks to get the long-term unemployed into work. She said the Scotland Bill needed to be stronger and did not meet her expectations. Ms Baker said her party would put forward amendments to the bill at Westminster and was committed to making sure the Scottish Parliament became one of the strongest devolved parliaments in the world. The debate followed clashes at prime minister's questions when Mr Robertson said the "Vow", made in the closing days of the independence referendum campaign last year, had not been delivered by the |
They have achieved it despite not winning the Premier League since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013. In the interim, United have twice failed to qualify for the Champions League and have sacked managers David Moyes and Louis van Gaal. Deloitte says the Red Devils' financial status is due to "phenomenal commercial growth". But how have they done it? United midfielder Paul Pogba's new emoji attracted much attention during last week's Premier League game against Liverpool. But had fans kept watching the LED advertising displays around Old Trafford, they would have seen something else. Among the global sponsors being rotated - including Nissin, United's official global noodle partner - was one for Logan, a feature film due to be released in February in Europe and March in the United States. It meant the film was advertised to a global audience which, for a game as big as Sunday's, could have been about 800 million - in the USA alone it was watched by a peak of 1.82 million. It helps explain the attraction of United to 20th Century Fox - one of the club's 26 'global partners'. Such exposure is why Mlily, a company based in Shanghai, agreed a five-year deal to be United's official mattress and pillow partner in October 2016. Three years earlier, Japanese company Kansai become the club's official paint partner. In the summer of 2015, United began a 10-year, £750m partnership with sportswear giant Adidas to supply their playing and training kits, and also distribute other dual-branded merchandise. Adidas replaced Nike, who had paid United £305m over 13 years. But the deals were not the same. Crucially, United have taken back responsibility for the Old Trafford megastore and given themselves the freedom to negotiate other clothing deals for items bearing the club badge alone. Because of that, they have been able to do deals with New Era for caps, Heroes for shoes and Columbia for outdoor wear. In 2015, United generated £31.6m in retail income, £25.4m of which was a guaranteed sum from Nike, the remainder a profit-share deal with the American sportswear giant. In the club's 2016 accounts, which covered the first 11 months of the Adidas contract, the retail figure rose to £97.3m, £72.4m of which came direct from Adidas. United do not make public the amount paid by smaller global partners, and it is possible there could be additional profit-share payments from Adidas included, but of the remaining £24.9m, a substantial percentage has been achieved through the additional commercial opportunities the new deal has presented. Were United's commercial department a football club, it would be ninth in the Deloitte list, having generated £272.1m in 2016, more than Juventus, Borussia Dortmund and Atletico Madrid. Commercially, their closest challengers are Bayern Munich, who made £256.2m, while Paris St-Germain (£228.3m) and Barcelona (£221.4m) were the only other clubs to generate in excess of £200m. Manchester City (£178.7m) are the next best English team, with Premier League leaders Chelsea bringing in £122m. Much of the credit for |
Work on the improved East Stand at Sixfields started in March 2013 but ceased in November. The club says a new contract has been signed with developers Buckingham Group Contracting, which will return to work "immediately". Club chairman David Cardoza said: "I am delighted we can draw a line under this matter." The scheme, part-funded with a £12m loan from Northampton Borough Council, includes a directors' box and 10 corporate boxes. It will increase the ground's capacity from 7,653 to 10,000. The club previously said "legal matters" prevented it from expanding on the cause of the dispute. Mr Cardoza said: "We have been in active, constructive dialogue with Buckingham Group for a while, and we are really looking forward to working with them again to help give this club facilities it has never had before. "We are looking forward to having the new stand open during the early weeks of next season." Paul Wheeler, chairman of Buckingham Group Contracting, said he was "delighted" the issues had been resolved. "It is excellent news for the club, the supporters and the local area," he said. |
Steven Welsby, 40, attacked Aneirin Hughes during the incident in the town in July. Mr Hughes, who plays Ch Supt Brian Prosser in the bilingual drama, sustained injuries to his mouth, ear and eye. Welsby, who pleading guilty to common assault, was also ordered to pay £50 compensation. He had originally denied a charge of causing actual bodily harm, but the charge was changed to common assault on Monday. Two other men, Robert Edwards, 52, and Dewi Edwards, 24, were fined at an earlier hearing after pleading guilty to their part in the assault. The three men were on a stag do when the assault - over a long-standing dispute about agriculture land - took place, Aberystwyth Magistrates Court heard. |
The reduction came despite the levy for single-use bags only being in place for the final 11 weeks of the year. But in England - where large shops will have to charge for plastic bags from October - 200 million more bags were used in 2014, Defra research suggested. Northern Ireland saw usage fall by 42.6%, while Wales had a rise of 5.2%. The fall in Scotland follows statistics released three months ago, which suggested the number of carrier bags being used by shoppers had fallen by 90%. However, in England, the number of single-use bags from supermarkets rose from 7.4 billion in 2013 to just over 7.6 billion last year, statistics from waste reduction body Wrap suggested. The figures covered the 2014 calendar year in the UK from seven major grocery retailers. From October, all retailers in England with 250 or more full-time equivalent employees will have to charge a minimum of 5p for bags they give out in stores and for deliveries. The move will bring England in line with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, in the final quarter of the year following the introduction of the 5p charge was introduced, bag usage dropped by 129 million compared with the previous year. Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said the figures were "astounding" and showed the country was serious about tackling litter and reducing waste. "I hope the public will continue to embrace re-using their bags and that even more retailers will sign up to donate money to good causes when it has been necessary for people to take a bag," he said. He said the figures demonstrate how "small changes can make a big difference". The Scottish government has said it aims to reduce the use of single-use bags in Scotland by 80% in the first full year of the charge. Wales and Northern Ireland achieved similar figures in the first full year of their campaigns. Previous statistics showed that people in Scotland used more than 800 million new single-use carrier bags every year - more per head of population than anywhere else in the UK. Last year, Northern Ireland saw the number of bags handed out fall by 42.6%, following a previous drop of 71% after a carrier bag charge was introduced in April 2013. Wales saw a 5.2% increase last year, but the number of bags handed out in Wales has fallen by 78.2% since 2010, the figures showed. |
But the TV and film-streaming service has stressed it remains committed to providing an ad-free service. There had been questions about the firm's plans after news site Motherboard reported that the firm was "experimenting with advertisements". However, Netflix later made clear that the tests were limited to trails for its own original programming and would not be seen by all users. "We are not planning to test or implement third-party advertising on the Netflix service," it said in a statement. "For some time, we've teased Netflix originals with short trailers after a member finishes watching a show. "Some members in a limited test now are seeing teases before a show begins. We test hundreds of potential improvements to the service every year. Many never extend beyond that." The firm's chief executive Reed Hastings reinforced the point in a personal Facebook post, in which he wrote: "No advertising coming on to Netflix. Period." This has helped to address a brief backlash on Twitter and other social media. There has long been speculation that Netflix might eventually seek to introduce third-party ads. Despite having increased its audience to more than 40 million paying subscribers, the firm reported a net profit of only $23.7m (£15.6) for the first three months of the year, which was less than half the amount for the same period in 2014. Last month, Sir Martin Sorrell, chief executive of the marketing group WPP, suggested Netflix might eventually feel forced to run ads to help cover the cost of payments to rights-holders. "Netflix will have to raise subscription prices - and we know what happened last time - or have alternative revenue generation opportunities, one of which will be advertising," the Guardian newspaper quoted him as saying. One of the firm's internet-based British rivals, Now TV, already regularly runs trails for its own exclusives both at the start of selected shows as well as in breaks that interrupt programmes, where it also runs idents that promote its parent company Sky's brand. However, it has also opted not to run ads for third-party products even though they appear on Sky's satellite channels. Other pay-to-watch on-demand services also tend not to interrupt their content with ads, with the notable exception of Hulu Plus in the US. "One of the effects of the shift to on-demand and over-the-top services is that audiences no longer move from one programme to another the same way," commented Ian Maude from the research firm Enders Analysis. "In the on-demand world you can't promote shows and build audiences through the schedule. "You are not tied in with Netflix in the same way you would be with a year's subscription to a pay TV package, so the company already uses algorithms to show you a selection of titles you might like at the end of a programme, and it will keep experimenting with other ways to keep you hooked." |
Oor Wullie's Bucket Trail features new versions of the cartoon character from local and international designers. The sculptures include a Tim Peake-inspired "Astro Wullie" and a design commemorating David Bowie. The statues will be displayed for the next ten weeks before being auctioned to raise funds for the Tayside Children's Hospital Appeal. Suzanne Scott, the trail's artist coordinator, said: "It's been a huge job, but so rewarding. "Once people see one, they're going to want to see more. People are all over social media with it. "It's going to be so exciting, ten weeks of people trooping to Dundee to see what's happening." An app has been launched for the project to allow visitors to follow the trail and pose for photographs beside the sculptures, which have been sponsored by local businesses and organisations. A further group of sculptures will take part in a national tour later this year. Cassie Thompson, head of fundraising for charity organisers, the ARCHIE Foundation, said: "The support from the businesses and community organisations who have sponsored sculptures, to the local schools who have embraced the project decorating their own miniature Oor Wullie sculptures has been amazing." |
The 45-year-old will take up the job in June when he replaces Craig Hogan who is returning home to Australia. Adams played five Tests between 1999 and 2000, and captained Sussex to three County Championship titles. After his retirement in 2008, Derbyshire-born Adams coached Sussex and Surrey, and he has also worked with Sri Lanka and the Netherlands. A Cricket Ireland statement said that Adams' appointment was "another important step for Irish cricket towards its long-stated objective of joining the Test match playing nations". Adams described the role as a "fantastic opportunity to work with Ireland's emerging talent". "I hope my experience and knowledge will help all the players and academy coaching staff achieve their potential," added Adams, who also appeared in five one-day internationals for his country. "The goal will most definitely be to ensure that Ireland head coach John Bracewell has the very best talent supply over the next few years." Cricket Ireland performance director Richard Holdsworth said that Adams' experience would prove invaluable to Irish cricket. "With Chris' experience of coaching internationally, not to mention as a player in the Test arena with England, he will bring great understanding of what it takes to perform at the highest level," he said. Holdsworth also paid tribute to Hogan for his "terrific work" in helping turning the Irish academy into a "world-class programme" since it was set up three years ago. |
The Real Madrid forward, 27, scored three goals as Wales made the semi-finals, their first appearance at a major tournament in 58 years. Wales' bid to reach the 2018 World Cup in Russia begins against Moldova in Cardiff on Monday 5 September. "It's great to be back together again," Bale said. "It doesn't feel too long ago we were finishing the Euros but we've got that out of our system and we're fully focused on the campaign ahead." Media playback is not supported on this device The Wales squad are together for the first time since Euro 2016 ahead of the qualifier at Cardiff City Stadium. Bale says there is a feel-good factor in Welsh football because of the team's exploits in France as well as the fact Cardiff's Principality Stadium is hosting the 2017 Champions League final next June. Cardiff-born Bale is a two-time European winner and is aiming to help Real defend a title they won against Atletico Madrid in May. "Welsh football is growing on every level, whether it's us as a team or as a country hosting big events," Bale said. "It's exciting times for us all and we all look forward to it. "I played the [2014 European] Super Cup in Cardiff before and it was an amazing experience to have my friends and family close by. "I suppose there's a little more motivation if there needs to be any more and we'll be trying to make history in Cardiff." |
Emergency services were called to River View Maltings, Grantham, at about 11:30 GMT, on Thursday. The 42-year-old man was airlifted to the Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham. Details of his condition are yet to be released. The scene has been cordoned off while officers carry out a forensic investigation. |
Rory Doyle, 41, went on a 24-minute wrecking spree at the site at Chivenor Cross, near Braunton, north Devon. He ripped up the road surface, demolished lampposts and dug up drains. Doyle, who admitted criminal damage, has been given an 18-month suspended jail sentence and ordered to pay £2,500 in compensation. More on this story, and other Devon news Exeter Crown Court heard he was angry about the manner of his sacking, following a dispute with his foreman, in April 2016. Doyle, of Waterloo Road, Torquay, said his foreman was bullying him and paying him less because he was a contract worker. He told a workmate: "I swear blind I will come back and tear the place up. They don't realise things swing both ways." Doyle has also been handed a five-month curfew and ordered to do 120 hours of unpaid community work and to attend anger management sessions. Judge Mrs Justice May said: "It would appear he was trying to undo all the work he had done in the previous week." The total cost of the wrecking spree was estimated at just over £100,000. This included a £22,000 penalty payment the contractors incurred for overrunning. Greg Richardson, defending, said Doyle was a hard-working man and the only breadwinner for his family, who would suffer if he went to jail. He said: "He would like to express his regret for letting his anger get out of control and get the better of him in a serious way. "He felt that as an agency worker he was bullied in the workplace and particularly put upon by the foreman." |
According to a stock exchange filing, Google will take 618.3 million Lenovo shares at $1.21 each. Last month, Lenovo spent a combined $5bn on buying Motorola Mobility and IBM's low-end server business - the two biggest deals in the company's history. However, investors have criticised the Beijing-based firm's acquisition spree. Lenovo has lost 24% of its market value since the $2.91bn Motorola Mobility deal was announced on 29 January. At least five major brokerages have also downgraded their outlook on the firm, which has publicly spoken about its desire to become a global player. However, analysts are pessimistic about its most recent purchase, saying Lenovo may have overpaid and will face a tough time turning Motorola's unprofitable handset business around. Lenovo, which was founded in 1984 as a PC distributor, has grown largely due to high-profile global acquisitions. Its 2005 purchase of IBM's Thinkpad business, for example, helped the company overtake Hewlett-Packard as the world's top PC maker in 2012. But as more users shunned traditional PCs for more portable devices, Lenovo has been looking to expand its offering under the so-called PC Plus plan. As a result, the firm has unveiled a line of lower-end tablets and smartphone that have sold well in China and other emerging markets. It has also launched global marketing campaigns using Hollywood celebrities such as Ashton Kutcher, aimed at making the brand more globally recognised. The company now hopes to produce more sophisticated offerings through its Motorola purchase, and crack the lucrative US and European markets. The Motorola acquisition has already helped it leapfrog competitors in the global smartphone rankings. From being the fifth largest smartphone seller in the world last year, it is now set to be the third. Lenovo is scheduled to release its latest earnings on February 13. |
The award is presented for excellence in poetry, with previous recipients including WH Auden, John Betjeman and Philip Larkin. Agard, who writes for both adults and children, moved to the UK from Guyana in 1977. He said he was "touched" to be the winner of an award which had been won by such illustrious names in the past. He has been recognised for his most recent work Alternative Anthem: Selected Poems, as well as his book of children's poems, Goldilocks on CCTV. "When told the news out of the blue by the poet laureate, Carol Ann Duffy, I couldn't believe my ears and it took a little time to sink in," he said. "I am delighted, as well as touched, to be in the company of such names as Charles Causley, Norman MacCaig, Gillian Clark, Stevie Smith, Derek Walcott." The Medal was first presented in 1933 by King George V. Recommendations are put forward by the poet laureate and chosen by a committee. Duffy said: "John Agard has always made people sit up and listen. He has done this with intelligence, humour and generosity. "He has the ability to temper anger with wit, and difficult truths with kindness." She added: "In performance he is electrifying - compelling, funny, moving and thought-provoking. His work in education over the years has changed the way that readers, writers and teachers think about poetry," Agard was born in Georgetown, Guyana, moving to the UK in the '70s where he worked in London as a touring speaker for the Commonwealth Institute, and for the National Maritime Museum. He now lives in Lewes, East Sussex. |
Media playback is not supported on this device Faissal El Bakhtaoui met a Haber cross at the front post to prod the home side ahead after 15 minutes. Haber was the creator again as he chested the ball into the path of Kostadin Gadzhalov to extend the lead three minutes before the break. It was Haber pressuring Steven Anderson for the third after 57 minutes, with the Saints man with the final touch. The Perth side had arrived at Dens Park hoping for a win that would draw them level with fourth-placed Hearts. But they came up against a Dundee side that showed why they are now unbeaten at home in five games. The only thing that has been consistent this season about Paul Hartley's Dundee has been their inconsistency. With four wins, four losses and one draw in their last nine games, it is easy to see why they have struggled to force their way up the table. But a change of formation, enforced through a combination of injury and illness, certainly paid dividends on a blustery afternoon at Dens Park. The opening goal came when El Bhaktaoui made a darting run towards the near post, where he connected with Haber's cross. The home side doubled their advantage before the break when Gadzhalov volleyed home after Haber chested down a free kick into his path. St Johnstone had the perceived benefit of a strong wind behind them in the opening 45 minutes, but they failed to cash in whenever they had sight of goal. Blair Alston came closest with a free-kick from 25 yards out that beat goalkeeper Scott Bain but crashed off the crossbar and Murray Davidson sent a diving header over the upright after a persistent spell of pressure from the Perth side. Tommy Wright introduced Chris Kane at the break and the striker was denied by a last-gasp block by the excellent Julen Extebeguren at the heart of the Dundee defence. Dundee were playing with a confidence rarely witnessed so far this season and Mark O'Hara showed great tenacity and strength to set up a third for the home side. Stealing the ball from Davidson around 25 yards from goal, he slipped the ball through to Tom Hateley and his cross into the box was met by Steven Anderson. The Saints captain could do no more than deflect the ball beyond goalkeeper Zander Clark and into the back of his own goal. On this evidence, Dundee will head into 2017 with optimism and can look forward to the new year. Despite their defeat, Saints will no doubt continue to drive forward in the coming months with much to be positive about. Dundee manager Paul Hartley: "Faissal El Bhaktaoui was terrific. He has had to adjust from two leagues down, where he scored a lot of goals. "It was never going to be easy for him, but we have been patient and give him a little bit of confidence. "We had to adjust our shaper today, but |
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