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Security plans will be reviewed and any necessary lessons learned, the home secretary said in a Commons statement.
Her comments come as the Metropolitan Police revealed there are 600 counter-terror investigations active in the UK.
Armed police will be deployed at the football match between England and France at Wembley Stadium on Tuesday.
Prince William, who is president of the Football Association, has decided to attend the friendly out of "solidarity to the people of France", the BBC's Peter Hunt said.
Multiple attacks on bars, restaurants, a concert hall and the Stade de France on Friday left 129 people dead, including Briton Nick Alexander from Essex. The Islamic State group has said it was behind the killings.
A minute's silence was observed across Europe at 11:00 GMT on Monday, including at Trafalgar Square and the French Embassy in London, as well as in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Among hundreds injured is Callum MacDonald, 24, from Fort William in Scotland, who was in the Bataclan concert hall where gunmen opened fire. He is understood to be in a medically-induced coma.
Could it happen in the UK?
UK reaction to Paris attacks: Live coverage
Paris attacks: Latest updates
'It hurts the same as if I knew them'
Speaking in the Commons, Mrs May confirmed that new funding would be made available for an extra 1,900 security and intelligence officers at MI5, MI6 and GCHQ - an increase of 15%.
She said those who had attacked Paris "represent no-one and they will fail" to divide free countries such as Britain and France.
"France grieves but she does not grieve alone. People of all faiths, all nationalities and all backgrounds around the world are with you and together we will defeat them," she said.
The announcement on Monday that Britain's intelligence and security agencies are to be given a massive boost in resources has taken some there by surprise.
Expecting a modest boost in the coming Strategic Defence and Security Review, they have now been told they are to get a 15% increase in headcount, raising their numbers by 1,900.
For MI5, the Security Service and MI6, the Secret Intelligence Service, this will take some time to absorb, perhaps years. They will need to find, recruit, vet and train new intelligence officers largely from scratch.
But for GCHQ, the government's secret listening station in Cheltenham, it will be relatively easier for them to recruit already-qualified IT analysts and linguists from the commercial marketplace.
Deploying extra aviation security officers should also show results fairly quickly. They will be expected to assess security in overseas airports used by large numbers of Britons where security is suspected of being lax.
Mrs May said police and emergency services had been prepared for the possibility of a "marauding gun attack" in the UK since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, but plans would be reviewed in light of Friday's events.
"As soon as the attacks took place, we took steps to maintain the security of the UK," she said.
"The police have increased their presence on some streets and at some locations, and they will be intensifying their approach at events in big cities."
The UK's Border Force had intensified checks on people, goods and vehicles entering the UK - and was carrying out "targeted" security checks against passengers and vehicles travelling to France, the home secretary added.
She also said she would be lobbying her European counterparts for tighter gun laws across the European Union.
In other developments:
Mrs May said that in recent months, "a number of serious plots" had been disrupted in the UK, adding there could be "little doubt" that the threat posed by IS militants was evolving.
More than 750 people are thought to have travelled from the UK to Syria and Iraq, and approximately half of those have returned, she said.
The terror threat level in the UK has been at "severe" - meaning an attack is highly likely - since last August.
Earlier, UK Prime Minister David Cameron said world leaders had agreed to do more to share intelligence and cut off funding for terrorists, as the Paris attacks "underlined the threat we all face".
Speaking at the G20 summit in Turkey, he said the gap between Russia and the West's position on Syria "has been enormous", but now "everyone recognises the need for compromise".
Meanwhile in the UK, officers from the Met Police's Counter Terrorism Command unit are interviewing people returning from France who may have information.
The Met is also appealing for any potential witnesses to contact its anti-terrorist hotline, on 0800 789 321.
Bataclan concert venue, 50 Boulevard Voltaire, 11th district - 89 dead when stormed by gunmen, three of whom were killed; another gunman died nearby
La Belle Equipe, 92 rue de Charonne, 11th district - 19 dead in gun attacks
Le Carillon bar and Le Petit Cambodge restaurant at rue Alibert, 10th district - 15 dead in gun attacks
La Casa Nostra restaurant, 92 rue de la Fontaine au Roi, 11th district - five dead in gun attacks
Stade de France, St Denis, just north of Paris - explosions heard outside venue, three attackers and a bystander killed | Security will be "intensified" at events in major cities and at UK borders in the wake of Friday's terror attacks in Paris, Theresa May has said. | 34836925 |
The rate of children starting school in danger of becoming obese was 7% in the most affluent areas, but nearly double that at 13% for the least wealthy.
Overall, NHS Health Scotland said that 29% of women and 28% of men aged 18-64 in Scotland were obese.
The level of obesity among Scots has remained largely stable since 2008.
The research, which used the most recent figures from 2015-16, found that adults living in the least-deprived areas of Scotland had the lowest obesity levels.
However, people living in Scotland's most-deprived communities were more likely to be obese, according to the research.
For men, those in all other areas were broadly similar, but for women obesity became progressively more common as the deprivation level increased.
The proportion of overweight women in Scotland almost doubled over 20 years - from 31% in 1995 to 60% in 2015, the report found.
In the same period, the level of overweight men jumped to 66%.
The report concluded that "actions to reduce the 'obesogenic' environment were urgently needed if the long term health, social and inequality consequences of obesity were to be reduced."
Researchers recommend a similar approach to tackling Scotland's alcohol problem by focusing simultaneously on both the most severe cases and population as a whole.
Elaine Tod, who helped author the report, said: "Obesity used to be more common amongst the richer in society as it was only those who could afford to eat well who became obese.
"This trend has reversed and we now see higher rates of obesity in those who are less well-off.
"The reasons for this are complex and multi-factorial, including the affordability and availability of high-fat, high-sugar food in comparison with healthy food and the increasing popularity of more sedentary pastimes.
"What is clear is that action, including structural change at a societal level that does not require individuals to 'opt-in', is needed to achieve both a population-wide decrease in obesity in Scotland and to prevent health inequalities associated with obesity widening further."
Lorraine Tulloch, programme lead at Obesity Action Scotland, said: "This report clearly outlines that the most-deprived in our society are suffering the greatest burden of obesity.
"It also highlights that by focusing on [the] actions [that] individuals can take, only worsens the inequalities gap.
"If we want to ensure we tackle the gap, we need to see bold, ambitious action to change the food environment around us to ensure the healthy choice is the easy choice for everyone."
Heather Peace, head of nutrition science and policy at Food Standards Scotland, added: "This report adds to the mounting body of evidence showing that little progress has been made towards improving the Scottish diet for the last 20 years.
"There is an urgent need for us all to take action - government, industry, the media and individuals all have a part to play."
The research was published in the International Journal for Equity in Health. | Scotland's poorest children are increasingly likely to be obese, while those in affluent areas are not, a new NHS Scotland report has found. | 40731356 |
The swimmer has won 62 medals throughout his career, a haul that includes seven Paralympic golds and 11 top medals at the World Championships.
He made his last appearance at a Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, in September.
Germany-born Kindred, 38, who lives in the county, said he was "very pleased" to receive the honour.
More on this and other stories from Hereford and Worcester
"Everyone has always been supportive of my journey and I would like to thank everyone in Herefordshire," he said.
Brian Wilcox, chairman of Herefordshire Council, said the award acknowledged the "outstanding contribution" Kindred had made in his career. | Paralympic champion Sascha Kindred has become the first individual to be made an honorary freeman of Herefordshire. | 37544070 |
One of the homes attacked belonged to a 27-year-old man arrested last month as part of an investigation into dissident republican activity.
He was later released without charge.
Men smashed windows and damaged the door of a Seahill Road house at about 01:20 BST. A house on Fleet Street was attacked at roughly the same time.
A couple in their 20s and their young son - who were in the Seahill Road house at the time - were not injured.
At the Fleet Street property, damage was caused to the inside of the house as well as to windows and a door.
Again, a couple in their 20s who were in the house at the time were not injured.
The PSNI are working to establish whether there is a link between the two incidents and a car later found burned out in a field at Walnut Avenue in the town.
Sinn Féin MLA Oliver McMullan has condemned those responsible for the attacks, and called on the PSNI to dedicate additional resources to the Larne area.
Mr McMullan said: "Attacks of this nature are becoming all too prevalent in Larne.
"There is a palpable fear within the local community as these attacks continue.
"There is a need to address this violence and intimidation as it cannot be allowed to continue at these levels." | Two houses in Larne, County Antrim, have been damaged in pre-dawn attacks by masked men armed with what are believed to have been hatchets. | 37431152 |
The town hit the headlines last year when local police officers were linked to the disappearance of 43 students.
The government said corrupt officers from Cocula and nearby Iguala abducted the 43 and handed them over to a local drug gang, that then killed them.
The case highlighted high levels of corruption not just in the local police force but also in local government.
Mr Penaloza Santana was arrested on 16 December on suspicion of having links with "a criminal group which operates in northern Guerrero state", the prosecutor's office said.
Officials did not give any further details, but local media reported that a suspect in the students' disappearance had linked Mr Penaloza Santana to the Guerreros Unidos (United Warriors) drug gang,
The 43 students from a teacher training college went missing on 26 September 2014.
The 43 were all students at an all-male teacher training college in the town of Aytozinapa, in south-western Guerrero state. The college has a history of left-wing activism and the students regularly took part in protests.
They disappeared from the town of Iguala on the evening of 26 September 2014 amid a confrontation between municipal police and the students in which six people were killed.
Independent forensic experts have matched charred bone fragments reportedly found at a rubbish dump near Iguala to Alexander Mora, one of the 43 missing students. They also say there is a high probability another set of remains could belong to Jhosivani Guerrero de la Cruz, another of the students. However, experts from the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights say the chain of evidence was broken and they could not be sure the bone fragments had been found at the dump.
According to the official report, the students were seized by corrupt municipal police officers who handed them over to members of a local drugs gang. The gang mistook the students for members of a rival gang, killed them and burned their bodies at the dump before throwing their ashes into a nearby stream.
They think officials have failed to investigate the role soldiers from a nearby barracks may have played in the students' disappearance. The government has refused to let the soldiers, who were in the area at the time of the disappearance, be questioned by anyone but government prosecutors. The families also point to the report by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights which said that there was no evidence the bodies of the 43 were burned at the dump.
A government investigation concluded that they were seized by corrupt municipal police officers, who handed them to members of the Guerreros Unidos.
According to the investigation, the students were killed by the gang, who mistook them for members of a rival group.
Their bodies were then burned at a rubbish dump outside of Cocula, the report said.
DNA tests revealed that bone fragments police said they had found at the rubbish dump were those of one of the missing students, Alexander Mora.
However, an independent investigation into the students' disappearance has since rejected the government's account of events.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights said in September that it had found no evidence that the bodies were incinerated.
The commission urged the government to continue looking for the missing students but did not offer any further clues as to what might have happened to them. | A court in Mexico has charged the former mayor of Cocula, Cesar Penaloza Santana, with links to organised crime. | 35204835 |
The highest court ruled that current laws preventing members of the same sex from marrying violated their right to equality and were unconstitutional.
It gave parliament two years to amend existing laws or pass new ones.
Wednesday's landmark decision came as the LGBT community faces increasing persecution in the region.
In a press release following the ruling, the court said that "disallowing two persons of the same sex to marry, for the sake of safeguarding basic ethical orders" constituted a "different treatment" with "no rational basis."
The court concluded that "such different treatment is incompatible with the spirit and meaning of the right to equality" as protected by Taiwan's constitution.
Taiwanese couple: 'We're just like any other parents'
The court's ruling means Taiwan's parliament will have to amend existing laws or pass new legislation.
But it's still unclear how far parliament will go.
The LGBT community hopes legislators will simply amend the existing marriage laws to include same-sex couples, which would grant them the same rights enjoyed by opposite-sex couples, including in cases of adoption, parenting and inheritance - and making decisions for each other in medical emergencies.
However, they fear parliament won't do that and will instead pass a new law that recognises same-sex marriages but gives them only some rights, not equal treatment in all matters.
Religious and parents groups opposed to gay marriage say they will lobby parliament not to pass any laws on legalisation. They argue such an important matter that affects the whole of society shouldn't be decided by just a few grand justices, but by the people in a referendum.
Both sides will now focus their attention on persuading the legislators.
Self-ruled Taiwan, over which China claims sovereignty, is known for its liberal values and holds the biggest annual gay pride event in the region.
Momentum for marriage equality has been building since last year, when President Tsai Ing-wen, who is openly supportive of the move, came to power.
But the debate has prompted a backlash, with mass protests by conservatives in recent months.
Now that the 14-judge panel has ruled in favour of the legal challenge, the parliament, known as the Legislative Yuan, will begin the process of amending the laws.
It can either legalise same-sex marriage or introduce new separate civil partnership legislation.
If legislators fail to meet the court's two-year deadline, it said same-sex couples could register to marry based on its ruling.
A bill to legalise same-sex marriages is already making its way through parliament, but that process has slowed because of opposition from traditionalists, who do not want Taiwan to become the first place in Asia to allow such weddings. | Taiwan's top judges have ruled in favour of gay marriage, paving the way for it to become the first place in Asia to legalise same-sex unions. | 40012047 |
A statement from Celtic on Friday confirmed speculation that McGuinness would be joining the club to help with the development of young players.
McGuinness also revealed that he would be combining his Celtic role with his existing GAA job.
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This was later confirmed by Donegal county board officials.
Donegal also expressed congratulations to McGuinness on his appointment to the Celtic role.
"It is a great opportunity for me in terms of my own development," said McGuinness.
"But it will also benefit Donegal because I will be learning new skills in a professional environment."
Celtic manager Neil Lennon said that McGuinness' appointment would have no effect on his role at Donegal.
"He will probably initially come in two days per week and we will take it from there," added Lennon.
Lennon also revealed that Celtic's majority shareholder Dermot Desmond was behind the recruitment of the Donegal GAA manager.
"We had a long conversation about both sports and sport in general and there is stuff I can learn from him (Jim) and there is stuff he can learn from us so it is a win-win situation.
"Jim has a skill set that we don't have here, in terms of the psychological side of the game.
"He will player profile the younger players, look at their strengths and weaknesses, study their background and their state of mind.
"He will not be able to coach, he is not a qualified football coach but he does know sport and has excelled in his own sport.
"So the cross to football will not be a problem.
"He will predominantly work with younger players but if I feel there is a first-team player that would benefit from Jim's skill I would have no hesitation in using him."
McGuinness was quoted as describing his new job as a "fantastic opportunity".
"My role will be based on developing the younger players in the club, development and Academy players that are U20 and that level," McGuinness told Celtic's website.
McGuinness, who has a masters degree in sports psychology, was a guest of the Glasgow giants at Wednesday's Champions League win over Barcelona, having viewed the club's facilities in a previous visit.
The Glenties man will combine his Celtic role and the Donegal job with his assistant Rory Gallagher taking on increased responsibility.
McGuinness led Donegal to the All-Ireland title with a victory over Mayo in the final at Croke Park in September.
His achievement is leading a previously underachieving team to an All-Ireland title in two years has to be regarded as one of the most remarkable coaching feats in GAA history.
The manager's attention to detail led to a defensive playing system which led to widespread criticism in his first season in charge but the Donegal team employed a more attacking method this season as they clinched the county's second All-Ireland triumph.
McGuinness is only two years into a four-year contract with the county. | Donegal's All-Ireland winning Gaelic Football manager Jim McGuinness is to take up a role with Celtic as a performance consultant. | 20254492 |
June and Barry Steenkamp told NBC News of their "disbelief" that the court had believed Pistorius's version of events.
Judge Thokozile Masipa found him guilty of the lesser charge of culpable homicide, saying the state had failed to prove he intended to kill.
Pistorius has been allowed bail ahead of sentencing on 13 October.
Judge Masipa said the athlete had acted "negligently" when he shot his girlfriend through a toilet door, but in the "belief that there was an intruder".
The Paralympic sprinter had strenuously denied murdering Ms Steenkamp after a row on Valentine's Day last year, saying he shot her by mistake.
But in the interview with NBC, June Steenkamp said: "This verdict is not justice for Reeva.
"I just want the truth. He shot through the door and I can't believe that they believe it was an accident."
At the scene: Pumza Fihlani, BBC News
There is a perception here that most crime is committed by poor black people targeting the white middle classes or the wealthy elite.
Cue "white fear" - a phrase used to refer to the rich white "haves" in society who live behind high walls, afraid of the intruder who may come in the night. It was the threat of this intruder that apparently gripped Pistorius with fear on that tragic morning.
In a country where domestic violence is a serious problem, it is not surprising that many hoped this case would be an impetus for change in the laws protecting women.
It was never proven that this was a case of domestic abuse but this did not stop political parties and women's organisations from using Ms Steenkamp as the face of the vulnerable woman - failed by her country and the system.
Outside court, one protester told me: "Women always lose."
Did Reeva Steenkamp get justice?
Earlier, Arnold Pistorius, the athlete's uncle, said the family was "deeply grateful" to the judge for finding him not guilty of murder and that a "big burden" had been lifted.
"There are no victors in this," he added. "We as a family remain deeply affected by the devastating, tragic event... It won't bring Reeva back but our hearts still go out for her family and friends."
South Africa's prosecuting authority said it was "disappointed" that Pistorius was not convicted of murder but said it would wait until after sentencing to decide whether to appeal.
Pistorius faces up to 15 years in jail, although the judge could suspend the sentence or only impose a fine.
The athlete was also found guilty on a charge of negligently handling a firearm that went off in a restaurant.
He was acquitted of another charge of firing a gun in public, through the sunroof of a car, and of a charge of illegal possession of ammunition in the home where he killed Ms Steenkamp.
Despite the conviction, the International Paralympic Committee said Pistorius would be allowed to compete in future events.
Director of media and communications Craig Spence told BBC Radio 5 Live: "Oscar's done a great deal for the Paralympic movement. He's been an inspiration to millions, but obviously his priority now is to see what the judge decides.
"If he wishes to resume his athletics career then we wouldn't step in his way. We would allow him to compete again in the future." | The parents of Reeva Steenkamp say "justice was not served" after South African athlete Oscar Pistorius was acquitted of murdering their daughter. | 29184590 |
Sir John Leslie was presented with the Legion d'Honneur at the French embassy in Dublin on Monday. The 98-year-old is a cousin of Winston Churchill.
During WW2, he commanded a section of the British Army in a battle to defend Boulogne Sur Mer from the Germans.
He was captured and spent five years in a German Prisoner of War (POW) camp.
Better known as Sir Jack, the veteran said he was accepting the award "on behalf of all soldiers from the island of Ireland who fought and died between the two great wars".
He is a member of an aristocratic family that owns Castle Leslie in the Republic of Ireland, the County Monaghan stately home that hosted the wedding of Beatles singer Paul McCartney and Heather Mills in 2002.
His grandmother was a sister of Churchill's mother, making him a first cousin once removed of the former British prime minister.
Sir Jack joined the British Army when he was 21, enlisting with the Irish Guards in 1937, two years before WW2 began.
During his time in POW camp, he risked his life to send a postcard to Churchill, asking his cousin to agree to a prisoner exchange in a bid to free some of his comrades who had become ill in captivity.
After travelling the world on his release at the end of the war, Sir Jack returned to live at Castle Leslie in his 70s, when he became a regular visitor to County Monaghan nightclubs.
The pensioner is famed for his love of dancing to rave music, and celebrated his 85th birthday in the world's biggest nightclub in Ibiza.
Now just weeks away from his 99th birthday, he was presented with the Legion d'Honneur by the French Minister for Veterans and Remembrance, Jean-Marc Todeschini.
The minster said Sir Jack epitomised "the friendship and the memory of the Irish soldier".
"You said you were only doing your duty," said Mr Todeschini.
"But it was far more than your duty that you accomplished because you committed your life for the survival of your country, of France, of Europe and of your comrades.
"For me it is an honour to convey to you today, such a special day for Ireland, the eternal recognition of France." | An Irish veteran of World War Two, famed for his aristocratic connections and love of disco dancing, has been awarded France's top military honour. | 34764993 |
Shelter Scotland's Perth Road shop was given about 60 designer dresses, along with knitwear, jackets and trousers.
The shop is selling the brand new dresses for £30 each, almost a tenth of their actual cost.
Shop manager Karen Kelbie said: "In my 20 years of managing the shop, I've never seen anything like it.
"We're all still in shock.
"What could be better than dancing the night away in a beautiful dress, knowing you've just helped a vulnerable homeless person or a family living in poor quality housing?"
The donation was made by Prego Boutique in Broughty Ferry.
Owner Liza Sinclair said: "Many of our staff and customers live very fortunate lives where we don't have to think about where we're going to sleep each night or if we're going to lose the roof over our heads altogether.
"If by doing our little bit we can make a difference to even one person, then it'll all be worth it." | Staff at a charity shop in Dundee have said they are "in shock" after receiving a donation of ball gowns and prom dresses worth more than £21,000. | 36255917 |
A judicial review application, seen by the BBC, claims she is not impartial, has no relevant expertise and may not have time to discharge her duties.
Labour wants Mrs Woolf to meet abuse victims amid concerns over her links to former Home Secretary Lord Brittan.
Downing Street said it had "full confidence" in her doing the job.
BBC assistant political editor Norman Smith said he believed the government would do everything it could to "cling onto" Mrs Woolf given that her predecessor in the role had already stood down and the inquiry was being asked to produce an interim report by the end of March.
Questions have been asked about Mrs Woolf's suitability for the role given that she has no experience in child protection or family law and on Tuesday revealed that she had dined with Lord Brittan - home secretary in 1984 when ministers were handed a dossier on alleged high-profile paedophiles - five times since 2008.
The legal challenge to her appointment could be heard before the end of the year.
Judicial review is used to challenge the decisions of government and other organisations based on the law. Most applications do not get past the initial stage and are rejected by a judge.
The application comes amid calls from a number of MPs from different parties for her to consider her position.
Lib Dem MP John Hemming said Mrs Woolf's personal contacts "would give no confidence to the victims that have been ignored for many years", while Conservative Nadine Dorries tweeted that Mrs Woolf "no longer" had full public and victim confidence.
For Labour, shadow energy secretary Caroline Flint told the BBC's Daily Politics that it was "really difficult for her (Mrs Woolf) to stay" if survivors of child abuse did not support her.
The opposition is urging Mrs Woolf and Home Secretary Theresa May to meet survivors of abuse immediately to address their concerns.
But Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude appealed for critics of Mrs Woolf to "step back here", telling BBC Radio 4's World at One: "This is really important and really matters. It has to be done right.
"Fiona Woolf seems to be a really admirable person in many ways... She's not doing this on her own. She's tried to be completely meticulous about disclosing all these matters. I hope we can deal with things in a grown-up way."
But Andi Lavery, who describes himself as a "survivor of abuse" at a school in the 1980s, said he had "zero confidence" in the inquiry, suggesting it had "no investigatory powers" and Mrs Woolf appeared "weak as water" when questioned by MPs on Tuesday.
Peter McKelvie, a former child protection manager whose allegations about child abuse led to a 2012 police inquiry, told the BBC's Newsnight it was "quite an insult" that someone with links to establishment figures had been appointed to lead the inquiry.
He said trust in the process was a "major element" for abuse victims, but survivors he had spoken to had "no trust in the whole process".
"It's a process that survivors I'm talking to say they really don't want to be part of. I really don't think they will cooperate with this particular process at all," he said.
Alison Millar, whose law firm Leigh Day is representing victims of abuse, said: "This is not really about Fiona Woolf's ability or her integrity, this is about her independence and her ability to lead this inquiry in a way that is credible to the survivors of abuse.
"Somebody who seems to be on dinner party terms with a senior political figure whose knowledge this inquiry will be scrutinising is somebody who, from the perspective of my clients, does not have the necessary independence."
But Sharon Evans, a member of the inquiry panel, said it had "got off to a difficult start" but she was confident it was representative, with a QC and investigator from Her Majesty's Inspectors of Constabulary as well as people, like herself, with personal experience of abuse.
"There are nine people on the panel with an enormous background and expertise in this job," Ms Evans, chief of the Dotcom Children's Foundation, told Today.
"There are victims on this panel and we are determined to get to the bottom of this. The fact that we are part of this will give people confidence and we will listen."
And Downing Street restated its support, saying it was sure that the panel "would look at all the ways" they could reassure victims of abuse that the inquiry was independent.
Mrs Woolf, who is currently Lord Mayor of London, confirmed on Tuesday she lived in the same London street as Lord Brittan and had invited him and his wife to dinner on three occasions, and had two dinners at their house between 2008 and 2012.
But appearing before the home affairs committee of MPs on Tuesday, she said the Conservative peer was "one of thousands of people" she knew and not a "close associate".
Mrs Woolf was appointed after the government's original choice, Baroness Butler-Sloss, stepped down after victims' families expressed concerns about her independence.
Her late brother Lord Havers was attorney general at the time allegations about high-profile paedophiles were passed to ministers by the late Conservative MP Geoffrey Dickens.
The dossier was considered by Home Office officials in 1984 and handed to police but no action was taken and the information has since disappeared.
Lord Brittan has insisted that proper procedures were followed.
The inquiry, triggered by allegations of child sex abuse by public figures working in the media, politics and other walks of life, will examine the conduct of almost all major UK institutions. | A victim of historical child sexual abuse has launched a legal challenge to the choice of Fiona Woolf as the chair of the inquiry investigating the issue. | 29719090 |
Lawro's opponent for this week's Premier League fixtures is Radio 1Xtra DJ Charlie Sloth.
Sloth is a Liverpool fan, and told BBC Sport: "I am a massive Red, and there is only one Red that matters.
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"When I was growing up, my sporting hero was Stevie G - Steven Gerrard. I still idolise him to this day.
"I have met him a few times and I always get a little bit funny. I get to meet some of the biggest rappers in the world, some of the biggest superstars but, when I see Stevie, he has that effect on me."
You can make your own predictions now, compare them with those of Lawro and other fans, and try to take your team to the top of the leaderboard by playing the new BBC Sport Predictor game.
A correct result (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.
In the last round of fixtures before the international break, Lawro got three correct results, with no perfect scores, from 10 Premier League matches. That gave him a total of 30 points.
He suffered his first defeat of the season at the hands of actor Dave Bautista, who got four correct results, with one perfect score, for a total of 70 points.
All kick-offs 15:00 BST unless otherwise stated.
Lawro's prediction: 0-2
Sloth's prediction: If the Liverpool team who beat Leicester turn up at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea are in trouble. They don't have much pace at the back and look a bit shaky - if they let us counter-attack them, they are in trouble. 1-3
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 0-2
Sloth's prediction: This is going to be a good game. On paper I'd go for Arsenal to win 2-1 but something is telling me there is going to be a turn up for the books here so what I'm going to do is go for a 2-2.
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 2-0
Sloth's prediction: 2-1
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 3-0
Sloth's prediction: The way City are playing at the moment, I can only go with them. 4-1
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 1-1
Sloth's prediction: West Ham got turned over last week and they have got a lot to prove. 0-2
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 2-0
Sloth's prediction: Even though I think Everton are going to win, I don't want them to, so I won't predict that they will. 1-3
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 1-2
Sloth's prediction: I've got a funny feeling Watford are going to turn United over - I'm going for a late winner, 84th minute. 1-0
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 1-1
Sloth's prediction: Stoke got absolutely hammered last weekend and Mark Hughes is not going to be happy. He is going to be like: "Lads, you get out there and you play for that shirt." 0-2
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 2-0
Sloth's prediction: 0-0
Match report
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Lawro's prediction: 2-0
Sloth's prediction: 3-0
Match report
Lawro was speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan.
Lawro's best score: 140 points (week three v Laura Trott)
Lawro's worst score: 30 points (week four v Dave Bautista) | BBC Sport's football expert Mark Lawrenson will be making a prediction for all 380 Premier League games this season against a variety of different guests. | 37327977 |
The Gift sold 3.7 million copies abroad compared with the six million shifted by her debut I Dreamed A Dream.
Boyle's record was followed by Sade's Soldier of Love, with 2.3 million, and Mumford and Sons' Brits-winning album Sigh No More, which sold 1.3 million.
Muse's The Resistance, released in 2009, was fourth with a million copies.
Phil Collins' Motown covers album Going Back, Plastic Beach by Gorillaz, and James Blunt's Some Kind of Trouble all sold 900,000 copies overseas.
Take That's Progress - the top-selling album in the UK last year with sales of 1.8 million - clocked up a further 800,000 copies abroad.
Lungs, by Florence and the Machine, also sold 800,000 copies, while Rod Stewart's latest Great American songbook collection shifted 700,000 copies.
The top four albums in the Music Week list scored top three placings in the US Billboard 200 album chart.
Fifth-placed Going Back, by Phil Collins, reached 34 in the US chart but was a huge hit across Europe. | Susan Boyle scored the most successful album overseas by a UK artist for a second year running, research by Music Week magazine suggests. | 12521487 |
Prof Kenneth Norrie was the first witness to give evidence in public at the hearing in Edinburgh.
He told how lawmakers had sought to "insulate" youngsters from poor backgrounds from negative influences.
He said "there was a very judgmental attitude towards children, even children in poverty" at the time.
More than 60 institutions, including several top private schools and church bodies, are being investigated.
The inquiry, which is being chaired by Lady Smith, is looking in detail at historical abuse of children in residential care.
It is expected to report in late 2019 - four years after it was set up.
Prof Norrie, of the University of Strathclyde's Law School, guided the hearing through developments in legislation surrounding children, juvenile offenders and child protection from the early to mid-20th Century.
He also spoke of the creation of institutions such as "voluntary homes", remand homes - for children awaiting trial or on short sentences - and borstals, designed to retrain and rehabilitate young offenders.
Giving an overview of the first four decades of the 20th Century, he said there was a "developing idea" among authorities that the law needed to "insulate" certain children from "bad influences".
His narrative came during questioning by Colin MacAulay QC, counsel to the inquiry.
Prof Norrie said: "It's perceived that children are products of their environment, so the way to protect children is to protect them from their environment and that means removing them from their family.
"Actually in the early years of the 20th Century, this hardens.
"One of the really noticeable features of the regulation we've been looking at is what isn't there. What isn't there is any contact with parents. That's virtually absent.
"And indeed, as the years go by before the Second World War, it becomes almost official policy to discourage parental visits."
The witness said authorities also sought to restrict the influence not just of parents, but the wider family, on certain children.
"You see with the boarding-out provisions that what the state was trying to do was create a new family for the children, a better family, putting it bluntly," he said.
"The whole idea was that a child would be insulated from the bad influences, they would have better, new role models to become productive members of society away from their original family."
He added that "there was a very judgmental attitude towards children, even children in poverty" at the time - a feeling that youngsters brought up in poverty would go on to become idle, just like their parents.
The opening session of the inquiry on Wednesday heard apologies from groups who said they "deplored that physical sexual abuses could occur".
They included Quarrier's, Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul, Sisters of Nazareth, Good Shepherd Sisters, De La Salle Brothers and Christian Brothers.
The hearing continues. | Scotland's child abuse inquiry has heard the state had a "very judgmental" attitude towards children in poverty in the first half of the 20th Century. | 40124139 |
Currently, parents do not need to tell their local authority when a child is being taught at home, unless they have been removed from school.
Portsmouth and Reading are among the councils who want a register after the number of home-taught children in the UK rose by 65%, between 2009-15.
Parents say the state should not dictate what is best for children.
Portsmouth City Council's education cabinet member, Councillor Neill Young, said: "I think it's important that we get a registration scheme so that we can monitor these young people being home educated.
"But also we have to think about the safeguarding of these young people.
"People who don't want the local authorities to know what they are doing would be a cause for concern on a number of different levels."
Reading Borough Council agreed there should be a "mandatory requirement to register children".
Kathryn Smutek, who educates her five children at home in Portland, Dorset, admitted they are "not monitored", but "we wouldn't be hard to find if they wanted to find us".
"They are learning all of the time... I don't want to prove it and, legally, I don't have to, but they are sociable children, they're happy children," she said.
"People need to be free to educate and to live the way that they see fit, within the bounds of the law."
Sam Martell, from Wheatley near Oxford, said that home-educating her four children was simply "an extension of parenting" and no register was needed.
She said: "It's insulting to think that people who have chosen this way of life may be harming their children."
A Local Government Association spokesman said the majority of home educators worked with councils to provide a good education.
"[But] in the small number of cases where there are concerns for children being home-educated, gaining access to properties is extremely difficult, and councils need more powers to ensure children's safety," he added.
The Department for Education said home education needed to be "of suitable quality".
A spokesman said: "We are taking steps to ensure the system is as robust as it can be when it comes to protecting young people, while at the same time safeguarding the rights of parents to determine how and where to educate their children." | A change in the law is needed to force parents to declare when their children are being home-educated, councils say. | 36528968 |
A survey found that 42% of the public think there is no point in keeping up contact at this stage.
But the Alzheimer's Society said family visits stimulated feelings of happiness, comfort and security.
Even as the condition progresses, it said people with dementia can still hold an "emotional memory".
This means they continue to feel happy long after a visit or experience that they may have forgotten.
The charity is calling on people to visit friends and relatives with dementia regularly and help them take part in activities they enjoy.
In a separate survey by the charity of 300 people affected by dementia, more than half said they were no longer taking part in any, or hardly any, social activities.
And 64% said they felt isolated following their diagnosis.
Jeremy Hughes, chief executive of Alzheimer's Society, said: "After spending time with friends and family over the festive period, New Year can be a bleak and lonely time for people with dementia and their carers. It's so important for people with dementia to feel connected throughout the year.
"Spending time with loved ones and taking part in meaningful activities can have a powerful and positive impact, even if they don't remember the event itself. We're urging people to get in touch with us and find out how we can help you stay connected."
A survey of more than 4,000 members of the public indicated that 68% would still visit someone with dementia who no longer recognised them.
However the charity says that people's busy lives often mean they don't manage to follow up on these good intentions, leaving many living with dementia feeling isolated.
There are around 850,000 people with dementia in the UK. | Spending time with loved ones with dementia is important even after they fail to recognise the faces of friends and family, a dementia charity says. | 35199882 |
The 36-year-old made a half century to help beat Hamsphire by six wickets in his last scheduled county game of 2016.
The West Indies batsman scored 177 runs in five outings, after making 328 runs in three Somerset appearances in 2015.
"The mind is willing but the body says 'you've got to take a break'. There is too much stiffness on this body at this time," Gayle told BBC Radio Bristol.
"But we'll see how well I can actually manage that, how long I can actually last and go on to entertain the fans around the world.
"I'm looking forward to heading back home now. It's been a wonderful hospitality and atmosphere.
"Apart from the first game which was very, very cold - that was the only game I didn't really get a score. The weather played its part but we have no control over that."
After scoring just five runs in his first T20 Blast appearance of this summer, Gayle had said he "needed to get acclimatised" as quickly as possible.
He did not rule out a return later this season if Somerset - who now lie fifth in the South Group, two points behind leaders Glamorgan - reach the final.
"It's a possibility, we're looking forward to it and we'll see what happens, so you never know," he added.
"Hopefully the guys make it to the final and we can actually get a change to get a trophy.
"Somerset (will) always have a place in my heart.
"I like all the fans interacting, even when the ball just trickles to me and I pick it up, they cheer for that. It's fantastic when you have that sort of impact on people." | Chris Gayle has said his body "needs a break" after his second T20 Blast spell with Somerset came to an end on Sunday. | 36586164 |
The action is over plans for drivers, rather than conductors, to operate carriage doors at certain times.
It is due to last until Friday morning, with a further three blocks of strikes planned before Christmas.
The RMT has said the rail company's plans put passenger safety at risk. Southern has urged the union to "move forward".
Southern said it plans to run 61% of its normal timetable, which equates to 1,373 trains.
But the rail company said fans should make alternative plans where possible for getting to and from the Brighton and Hove Albion v Wolverhampton Wanderers match at Falmer, which kicks off at 19:45 BST.
On Monday, Southern told union members a lump sum of £2,000 was back on the table if they end the dispute over conductors.
The £2,000 lump sum was originally offered if conductors accepted new contracts by 6 October.
However, the RMT said the renewed offer was a bribe and did not move the dispute on "a single inch". | A fresh three-day strike by staff on Southern rail is under way, with hundreds of trains cancelled. | 37679532 |
Sehwag, who won the World Cup with India in 2011, played 104 Tests, 251 one-day and 19 Twenty20 internationals.
He scored 8,586 Test runs at an average of 49.34 and is the only Indian to score an international triple century.
"Cricket has been my life," Sehwag, who scored 8,273 ODI runs at 35.05, said in a statement. "I did it my way."
He will continue to play first-class cricket, saying he "still has the hunger inside", and will try to help young players coming through.
Sehwag, who had a spell with Leicestershire in 2003, has not played for India since 2013.
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Test cricket's record runscorer Sachin Tendulkar, who retired in 2013, said Sehwag had been a joy to watch and play with.
Tendulkar, who made 15,921 Test runs, told the BBC World Service programme Stumped: "I would say I was in the best seat when he was batting. The non-striker's end was the best view.
"I liked his mindset, extremely positive, he always backed himself to play big shots and never changed his game. The form varies but I liked his approach. He was fantastic, a true champion and I thoroughly enjoyed having him in the team."
Tendulkar played 93 of his 200 Test matches alongside Sehwag and added: "He was always full of humour, occasionally singing songs.
"He didn't like getting tense or stressed, but he would occupy himself singing songs. Playing with him was a rollercoaster ride. You didn't know what to expect and what was round the corner."
MS Dhoni, who captained India to their World Cup victory in 2011, compared Sehwag to West Indies batting legend Sir Viv Richards.
"Didn't see Viv Richards bat in person but I can proudly say I have witnessed Virender Sehwag tearing apart the best bowling attacks," Dhoni wrote on Twitter. | Former India opener Virender Sehwag has announced his retirement from international cricket and the Indian Premier League on his 37th birthday. | 34579839 |
The man, who has not been named, was taken to the Royal Lancaster Infirmary after the crash at Great Knoutberry Hill, near Dent, on Saturday afternoon.
A passenger in the aircraft was also treated for injuries said not to be life threatening.
Cumbria Police said the crash had been referred to the Air Accidents Investigation Branch.
At 2,205ft (672m), Great Knoutberry Hill, also known as Widdale Fell, straddles the border between Cumbria and Yorkshire. | A gyrocopter pilot was airlifted to hospital after his aircraft crashed on the summit of a Lake District mountain. | 39761887 |
The substitute struck after a Danny Collins own goal levelled things up following Calum Dyson's first-half penalty, but the hosts felt aggrieved when the goal came with one of their players down with a head injury.
Grimsby took the lead when Tom Bolarinwa was brought down by Sam Wood in the penalty area and Dyson sent goalkeeper Jamal Blackman the wrong way from the spot to put the hosts in front.
Wycombe found themselves level in freak circumstances in the second half as Blackman sent a free-kick deep into Grimsby's penalty area and Collins inadvertently flicked the ball over keeper James McKeown's head and into the back of the net.
The visitors took the lead with around 20 minutes of the game remaining, but it was not without controversy.
After McKeown punched the ball clear from a free-kick, Gavin Gunning went down with a head injury as Cowan-Hall superbly curled the ball into the top corner.
Gunning was taken off the field on a stretcher, but the goal stood and Wycombe claimed a long-awaited victory.
Match report supplied by the Press Association.
Match ends, Grimsby Town 1, Wycombe Wanderers 2.
Second Half ends, Grimsby Town 1, Wycombe Wanderers 2.
Luke Maxwell (Grimsby Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Matt Bloomfield (Wycombe Wanderers).
Corner, Grimsby Town. Conceded by Jamal Blackman.
Attempt saved. Callum Dyson (Grimsby Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom right corner.
Corner, Grimsby Town. Conceded by Michael Harriman.
Dayle Southwell (Wycombe Wanderers) is shown the yellow card.
Substitution, Wycombe Wanderers. Myles Weston replaces Dayle Southwell.
Sam Jones (Grimsby Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Marcus Bean (Wycombe Wanderers).
Corner, Grimsby Town. Conceded by Paris Cowan-Hall.
Attempt saved. Dominic Vose (Grimsby Town) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Foul by Tom Bolarinwa (Grimsby Town).
Joe Jacobson (Wycombe Wanderers) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Attempt missed. Paris Cowan-Hall (Wycombe Wanderers) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right.
Substitution, Grimsby Town. Adi Yussuf replaces Danny Collins.
Luke Maxwell (Grimsby Town) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Matt Bloomfield (Wycombe Wanderers).
Danny Collins (Grimsby Town) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Matt Bloomfield (Wycombe Wanderers).
Sam Jones (Grimsby Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Marcus Bean (Wycombe Wanderers).
Attempt missed. Callum Dyson (Grimsby Town) right footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the left.
Substitution, Grimsby Town. Luke Maxwell replaces Gavin Gunning because of an injury.
Goal! Grimsby Town 1, Wycombe Wanderers 2. Paris Cowan-Hall (Wycombe Wanderers) right footed shot from outside the box to the top right corner following a set piece situation.
Chris Clements (Grimsby Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Chris Clements (Grimsby Town).
Luke O'Nien (Wycombe Wanderers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution, Grimsby Town. Dominic Vose replaces Jamey Osborne.
Attempt missed. Paris Cowan-Hall (Wycombe Wanderers) right footed shot from the right side of the box is just a bit too high.
Attempt saved. Paris Cowan-Hall (Wycombe Wanderers) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner.
Own Goal by Danny Collins, Grimsby Town. Grimsby Town 1, Wycombe Wanderers 1.
Marcus Bean (Wycombe Wanderers) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Sam Jones (Grimsby Town).
Joe Jacobson (Wycombe Wanderers) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Tom Bolarinwa (Grimsby Town).
Attempt missed. Michael Harriman (Wycombe Wanderers) right footed shot from outside the box is too high.
Foul by Tom Bolarinwa (Grimsby Town).
Joe Jacobson (Wycombe Wanderers) wins a free kick on the right wing. | A controversial Paris Cowan-Hall goal secures Wycombe a first win in seven games as they beat Grimsby. | 39086525 |
Amari'i Bell, playing at left wing-back as Uwe Rosler fielded a back three, swept the hosts in front in the 27th minute following a smart turn and cross from David Ball.
Town had a number of chances to put the game to bed in the first half with centre-halves Cian Bolger and Ashley Eastham wasting free headers.
But substitute right wing-back Victor Nirennold diverted home Ash Hunter's strike at the back post in the 62nd minute to give Rosler's men a two goal cushion.
It should have been plain sailing for Town but Chesterfield got back into it four minutes later as striker Ball tripped Kristian Dennis in the box with Jay O'Shea firing the subsequent spot-kick past ex-Spireites goalkeeper Alex Cairns on the stopper's first league start.
That 66th minute goal paved the way for an end-to-end finish with Fleetwood substitute Devante Cole and Chesterfield's O'Shea wasting the best chances as Fleetwood held on to move up to 10th in the table and send the visitors to an eighth league loss on the bounce.
Report supplied by Press Association.
Match ends, Fleetwood Town 2, Chesterfield 1.
Second Half ends, Fleetwood Town 2, Chesterfield 1.
Corner, Fleetwood Town. Conceded by Tom Anderson.
Attempt blocked. George Glendon (Fleetwood Town) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Ian Evatt (Chesterfield) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Aaron Holloway (Fleetwood Town).
Liam O'Neil (Chesterfield) hits the bar with a right footed shot from the left side of the box.
Corner, Chesterfield. Conceded by Nathan Pond.
Bobby Grant (Fleetwood Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Reece Mitchell (Chesterfield) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Bobby Grant (Fleetwood Town).
Nathan Pond (Fleetwood Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Ian Evatt (Chesterfield).
Corner, Chesterfield. Conceded by Ashley Eastham.
Attempt saved. Devante Cole (Fleetwood Town) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner.
Substitution, Fleetwood Town. Aaron Holloway replaces Ashley Hunter.
Foul by George Glendon (Fleetwood Town).
Reece Mitchell (Chesterfield) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Corner, Chesterfield. Conceded by Amari'i Bell.
Substitution, Chesterfield. Laurence Maguire replaces Connor Dimaio.
Foul by Conor McLaughlin (Fleetwood Town).
Liam O'Neil (Chesterfield) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner, Fleetwood Town. Conceded by Gary Liddle.
Attempt blocked. Ashley Hunter (Fleetwood Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Attempt missed. Kyle Dempsey (Fleetwood Town) right footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high from a direct free kick.
Amari'i Bell (Fleetwood Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Tom Anderson (Chesterfield).
Substitution, Chesterfield. Jake Beesley replaces Kristian Dennis.
Substitution, Fleetwood Town. Devante Cole replaces David Ball.
Foul by Amari'i Bell (Fleetwood Town).
Reece Mitchell (Chesterfield) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Corner, Fleetwood Town. Conceded by Liam O'Neil.
Goal! Fleetwood Town 2, Chesterfield 1. Jay O'Shea (Chesterfield) converts the penalty with a right footed shot to the high centre of the goal.
Penalty conceded by David Ball (Fleetwood Town) after a foul in the penalty area.
Penalty Chesterfield. Reece Mitchell draws a foul in the penalty area.
Corner, Chesterfield. Conceded by Alex Cairns.
Attempt saved. Kristian Dennis (Chesterfield) header from the right side of the six yard box is saved in the bottom left corner.
Foul by Conor McLaughlin (Fleetwood Town).
Gboly Ariyibi (Chesterfield) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Goal! Fleetwood Town 2, Chesterfield 0. Victor Nirennold (Fleetwood Town) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the right to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Ashley Hunter. | Chesterfield remain bottom of the League One table after Fleetwood's full-backs fired the Cod Army to victory at Highbury. | 37958875 |
And yet. As they prepare to get their title defence under way against France this Saturday, Jones has been in typically restless mood - decrying his players' global standing, downplaying the team's decorated past year, and being as likely to appear satisfied as he is to tarmac Twickenham.
These are the six key questions the old schemer knows he has to answer:
England haven't lost at home to France in the Six Nations for 12 years. They have won four of their past five meetings with Wales. Scotland last won at Twickenham when Margaret Thatcher was in her first term as prime minister; Italy, even buoyed by the charisma and drive of Conor O'Shea, have a record against the men in white of played 22, lost 22.
All of which might lead England supporters to think this championship will all come down to the final match in Dublin, and all of which means Jones - 13 matches in charge, 13 wins - is making sure his players do not fall into the same trap.
"Nothing in our team is permanent," he has said of his 100% men.
"No-one owns the jersey; no-one owns their position in the team. It's something you borrow, and something you've got to cherish."
It is why he has claimed that his squad doesn't yet contain a single player good enough to make a world XV, no matter how many caps, Premiership trophies, European Cups or French scalps there might be among the 34 names. It is why he has quoted Sir Alex Ferguson, who said that he only managed two world-class players in his 27 years at Manchester United.
No matter that Ferguson actually said there were four (Eric Cantona, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Cristiano Ronaldo). It is the headline rather than the small print that matters in Jones' message. No-one is safe. Everyone can do better.
Everyone can do better, including a captain who, less than a year ago, became only the second man in 19 years to lead England to a Grand Slam.
Dylan Hartley's successes in the role have bought him only the slightest insurance. With his six-week ban for an illegal tackle on Leinster's Sean O'Brien having only expired last week, he is seriously short of match time but has retained the armband for the Six Nations.
Beyond the championship, there are no guarantees. There is the pressure at hooker from the consistently excellent Jamie George, Tommy Taylor and Luke Cowan-Dickie, and there are Jones' repeated hints that his captain for the games leading up to the next World Cup may not be a 33-year-old.
Jones has talked of "leadership density" - of having eight or nine generals throughout the ranks, as the World Cup-winning side of 2003 could boast, and he may already have earmarked the man most likely to lead them all, Owen Farrell.
One of Jones' first acts as head coach was to promote Farrell from the ranks to vice-captain, a move in keeping with his decision, when in charge at Saracens, to give him a debut against Llanelli just 11 days after his 17th birthday. A greater promotion yet may come early again.
In other words: stick or twist? You might think only the bravest or most cocksure of coaches would change a winning team. The Six Nations does not tend to reward the experimental or the untested.
But what if those wins were not enough? What if the stated long-term aim of winning the World Cup in Japan in 2019 outranks this oldest of tournaments?
And so suddenly there are dilemmas everywhere. Does Jones move Farrell inside to 10, breaking up his partnership with George Ford to create fresh options at centre, or does he look at the continued injury problems of Manu Tuilagi and the international inexperience of Ben Teo'o and keep old friends together?
Mike Brown will be 34 by the time of that World Cup. Isn't Anthony Watson his natural successor at full-back, particularly bearing in mind the surfeit of options on the wing? Yet Brown is rock-solid under the high ball, beats a man every time he attacks with ball in hand and brings the grunt and aggression that Jones so appreciates in his charges.
Is this the time to let the outstanding Maro Itoje run free in the back row, leaving the second row in the combative and athletic hands of Courtney Lawes, George Kruis and Joe Launchbury? Or does the sensible coach let his superman fly where he has excelled so far in his brief international career?
James Haskell, like Brown, will be 34 by 2019 - so there is the question as to should he return to the flanks whenever fit. Jones must also consider if it realistic to expect another 30-something, Chris Robshaw, to remain a first choice when his spell out with a shoulder problem ends this spring.
England's head coach knows that to win the World Cup, he needs more than one world-class side. He may need more than two; unless injury rates dramatically and unexpectedly drop, he requires both cover and a fitting replacement for that cover, as his current problems at loosehead prop illustrate.
England expects, as another successful captain of the ship once remarked. Jones' team have set high standards over the past 12 months, beating every major rugby nation bar the one they did not meet, New Zealand.
So will supporters giddy on that long unbeaten stretch feel disappointed if England fail to win a second successive Grand Slam? If they lose to Ireland yet win the Six Nations title, is that no longer enough, despite the fact it would have been very welcome during the run of four successive second-place finishes for which they had to settle from 2012 to 2015?
And what if that remarkable run goes on? If England win every one of their matches in this Six Nations, they will break New Zealand's all-time record for most consecutive Test victories. English teams and those who cheer them have not generally reacted well to sustained success; England's cricket team won only one of their next four Test series having attained the world number one ranking in 2011, while the rugby team's World Cup and Grand Slam triumph of 2003 was followed by a third place in the 2004 Six Nations, a fourth in 2005 and another fourth in 2006.
It may be a happy problem for Jones to have, when so little was expected for so long, when the past two World Cups have seen the team fall apart and the head coach sacked. But a problem it may be, now the bar has been raised.
Jones made no secret his first Six Nations campaign was about tightening the defence. England had, after all, shipped 33 points in Australia's last match at Twickenham, 28 in their last home game against Wales, and 35 on France's previous Six Nations visit. Jones also wanted to buttress a set-piece that had gone from traditional strength to Achilles heel during that World Cup disaster of 2015.
That England scored five fewer tries in the tournament last year than they had in coming second in 2015 mattered less than the bigger Slam scenario. Now, in his second, Jones wants to revitalise the offensive element of his team's make-up in the same way.
There has been the appointment of Rory Teague as full-time skills coach, but Jones understands that more developments must follow - perhaps a different balance of personnel in the backs, maybe a more expansive gameplan, almost certainly a ruthlessness when chances do appear.
The theory is unarguable. The reality - in what are likely to be cold, wet conditions, in the most ferociously competitive tournament in world rugby, when every other nation and all their support are looking forward to knocking England off their throne - may be several degrees harder.
It will come at some stage, perhaps in Cardiff, where England have won only twice in the Six Nations in a decade, or Dublin, where they have been victorious in the tournament just once in 14 years. It may come on tour in Argentina, while Jones' best players will be absent as they join up with the British and Irish Lions in New Zealand. It may happen beyond that still, should the Jones magic continue to cast its spell.
When it does, how will his side react? Will it feel worse to players and supporters because of the long unbeaten run that preceded it, and will its manner deflate some of the good feeling which Jones has created since his appointment?
Because the end is not the end. Maybe a truly world-class team never countenances defeat, but a truly world-class team also develops from one - from the lessons that reverse has taught, from the weaknesses it exposes, from the players who fall short.
As Jones said last month: "If we lose a few battles on the way, it will help us win the war."
Jones and England have been like a married couple who have enjoyed the most extraordinary start to their relationship. When the first fight happens, when the first door slams, will it strengthen the bond between them, or will they forever be looking back to when it all seemed so special, so untarnished? | Eddie Jones' England appear to have minimal problems: reigning Six Nations champions, 14 wins on the spin, a summer spent whitewashing Wallabies, an autumn of being tested and pulling through every time. | 38748058 |
Burrell referred to "the perverted homosexual spirit" during a sermon at a church in Houston, Texas.
She had been due to sing with Pharrell Williams on The Ellen DeGeneres Show later this week.
But the talk show host, who is a well-known advocate of gay rights, tweeted: "For those asking, Kim Burrell will not be appearing on my show."
DeGeneres had been asked by fans to cancel Burrell's planned appearance and an online petition was launched.
In a video published after the sermon, Burrell said she made "no excuses or apologies" for her comments.
"I love you and God loves you but God hates the sin in you and me," she added.
"I never said all gays were going to hell. I never said 'LGBT'... I said 'SIN'," the singer said.
"To every person who is dealing with the homosexual spirit, that has it, I love you and God loves you but God hates the sin in you and me. Anything that is against the nature of God."
She added "enemies" had posted only a portion of her original speech.
Williams and Burrell had been due to sing their track I See Victory from the soundtrack of the film Hidden Figures on the chat show on Thursday.
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk. | Ellen DeGeneres has said Kim Burrell will not appear on her show after the gospel singer made homophobic comments. | 38505964 |
The £82m Hitachi factory in Newton Aycliffe will employ 750 people, with the first trains coming off the production line in 2017.
A new 1km (0.6 mile) electrified test track has also been built at the site.
More than 100 high-speed trains will be built at the plant and will run on the East Coast and Great Western lines.
The first prototype train, which will be tested by engineers at the factory, arrived in Newton Aycliffe earlier this month. | The construction of a train factory in County Durham has reached a significant milestone with the plant being connected to the main line network. | 32052907 |
Pte Gavin Williams, 22, of Hengoed, Caerphilly, was made to do intensive exercise as an informal punishment.
Former sergeant Russell Price, one of three cleared of his manslaughter, said physical punishments were "common knowledge" at the time.
He was visibly upset giving video link evidence at Salisbury Coroners' Court.
The inquest was told on Wednesday an "extra system" of punishment operating outside official rules was in place when Pte Williams died in 2006.
He was ordered to carry out intensive exercise for drunken behaviour before collapsing at Lucknow Barrack in Wiltshire.
He suffered heart failure after the "beasting" and ecstasy was found in his blood when he died.
Mr Price, who had been tasked with addressing disciplinary problems within the battalion at the time, said the punishment was used to embarrass and senior officers would overlook it.
He said he did not recall being told to abide by disciplinary rules which stated physical training should not be used as a punishment.
Describing Pte Williams' treatment in the medical centre, Mr Price said: "It was horrible in there sir - I wasn't trained for it.
"One minute he'd be alright, and the next minute he'd be shouting 'get off me'."
But he denied witnessing any ill-treatment of Gavin.
"It was proper restraint, there was nothing clever going on," he said.
He added: "I am truly and deeply sorry for what's happened… it breaks my heart and I am so sorry for the loss of Gavin." | A former sergeant who was cleared of the manslaughter of a soldier who died after a so-called "beasting" has said he is "truly sorry" for what happened. | 34989616 |
Omar al-Bashir was allowed to attend an African Union summit in South Africa despite being wanted by the ICC on charges of genocide and war crimes.
After a cabinet meeting, the government said it would review membership "for a number of reasons".
But it stressed it took its international obligations "seriously".
A South African court had ordered Mr Bashir to stay in the country while it ruled whether he could be arrested. The government said he enjoyed diplomatic immunity.
Mr Bashir denies allegations committed atrocities in Sudan's troubled western Darfur region.
A senior South African minister, Jeff Radebe, said his government had done nothing wrong, and always obeyed the law.
He was speaking a day after a judge had angrily accused the government of ignoring the constitution and pushing South African democracy towards collapse.
At issue: a government decision to allow Sudan's President, Omar al-Bashir, to leave South Africa last week, in direct defiance of a court order.
Mr Radebe said the International Criminal Court's rules about arresting a head of state were contradictory, and he accused ICC officials of failing to consult, and of not acting in good faith.
This issue is unlikely to fade away, with a number of senior South African officials facing possible criminal charges, for their role in allowing Sudan's president to fly home.
What is the International Criminal Court?
South Africa had "to balance its obligations to the ICC with its obligations to the AU and individual states", the South African government tweeted.
The country may consider withdrawing from the ICC as a "last resort", it added.
Previously, the AU has urged member states not to cooperate with the ICC, accusing it of bias against Africa.
The South African government is due to explain its decision later on Thursday, although its statement may not be made public. | South Africa has said it might leave the International Criminal Court (ICC) after a row over the court's attempt to have Sudan's president arrested there. | 33269126 |
Neil Danns broke the deadlock with a 71st-minute penalty before substitute Kelvin Etuhu struck on 87 minutes to seal Bury's first opening-day win in eight years.
Charlton are second favourites for the title after being relegated from the Championship but the hosts were on top for most of the contest, with Jacob Mellis and Tom Soares going close early on.
The Addicks replied with Nicky Ajose, one of seven Charlton debutants, seeing a low strike parried by Ben Williams, one of five making their Bury bow.
Mellis and Tom Pope then tried their luck from long range before Charlton started the second half brightly, Ricky Holmes firing against the near post from a tight angle.
Bury regrouped and substitute Danny Mayor saw a header tipped over by Declan Rudd. From the resulting corner, Jason Pearce pulled back centre-half Nathan Cameron, with Danns drilling his spot-kick into the bottom corner.
Pope then flicked on Zeli Ismail's corner for Etuhu to bundle in Bury's second.
Report supplied by the Press Association.
Match ends, Bury 2, Charlton Athletic 0.
Second Half ends, Bury 2, Charlton Athletic 0.
Corner, Charlton Athletic. Conceded by Tom Soares.
Attempt blocked. Ademola Lookman (Charlton Athletic) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Corner, Charlton Athletic. Conceded by Antony Kay.
Corner, Bury. Conceded by Jason Pearce.
Attempt blocked. Kelvin Etuhu (Bury) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Goal! Bury 2, Charlton Athletic 0. Kelvin Etuhu (Bury) right footed shot from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Nathan Cameron.
Corner, Bury. Conceded by Lee Novak.
Jason Pearce (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Tom Pope (Bury).
Attempt missed. Ricky Holmes (Charlton Athletic) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right.
Craig Jones (Bury) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Brandon Hanlan (Charlton Athletic).
Substitution, Charlton Athletic. Brandon Hanlan replaces Kevin Foley.
Tom Soares (Bury) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Lee Novak (Charlton Athletic).
Corner, Charlton Athletic. Conceded by Greg Leigh.
Hand ball by Kelvin Etuhu (Bury).
Substitution, Bury. Kelvin Etuhu replaces Jacob Mellis.
Attempt missed. Johnnie Jackson (Charlton Athletic) left footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the left.
Attempt blocked. Lee Novak (Charlton Athletic) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Attempt blocked. Johnnie Jackson (Charlton Athletic) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Goal! Bury 1, Charlton Athletic 0. Neil Danns (Bury) converts the penalty with a right footed shot to the bottom left corner.
Penalty Bury. Nathan Cameron draws a foul in the penalty area.
Penalty conceded by Roger Johnson (Charlton Athletic) after a foul in the penalty area.
Corner, Bury. Conceded by Declan Rudd.
Attempt saved. Danny Mayor (Bury) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top right corner.
Danny Mayor (Bury) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Johnnie Jackson (Charlton Athletic).
Foul by Zeli Ismail (Bury).
Jason Pearce (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Substitution, Charlton Athletic. Ademola Lookman replaces Nicky Ajose.
Tom Pope (Bury) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Jason Pearce (Charlton Athletic).
Foul by Zeli Ismail (Bury).
Morgan Fox (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Jacob Mellis (Bury).
Ricky Holmes (Charlton Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Neil Danns (Bury). | Charlton's return to League One got off to a poor start as they suffered a 2-0 defeat at Bury. | 36929925 |
The Obel complex was effectively repossessed in November 2012.
The former Bank of Scotland Ireland (BoSI), which is owed almost £48m, appointed administrators to Donegall Quay Ltd.
A statement of affairs submitted by the directors suggests that the bank will only get back £25m.
BoSI has been effectively shut down by its parent company, Lloyds Banking Group, and its loan book is being aggressively wound down.
The bank was one of the largest property lenders across Ireland during the bubble years.
Its lending practices have lead to enormous losses.
In November 2012, Lloyds sold £1.47bn of BoSI loans to an investment company for just £149m, equating to a 90% loss.
The Obel consists of a 28-storey residential tower and an adjoining six-storey office block.
It was launched onto the market in 2005 and dozens of apartments were sold off plan, mainly to buy-to-let investors.
However as the property market crashed sales slowed and many of the apartments are still empty.
Most of the office block is let to the international law firm Allen & Overy.
The Obel project was originally backed by a consortium of developers, but in 2008 the Blackbourne family took full control, buying out their partners with the backing of BoSI. | The failure of the property company that developed the Obel building in Belfast is set to cost a bank at least £22m. | 21177179 |
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) will receive 75% of the gold, copper and other resources mined from the southern island.
It follows lengthy negotiations aimed at ending a 40-year conflict that has cost an estimated 120,000 lives.
But a rebel group not at the talks has continued attacks on the national army.
Two soldiers and five guerrillas died in an ambush by the violent break-away faction Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) on Saturday.
Sunday's agreement was reached after six days of talks in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur.
It adds details to an outline agreement - the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB) - signed last October in which the Philippine government agreed to give Muslims on Mindanao more autonomy in the southern region where Muslims represent a majority in the mainly Catholic nation.
"The Parties believe that the Annex, which forms part of the FAB, will provide sufficient guidance for the crafting of the Bangsamoro Basic Law's provisions on wealth sharing and revenue generation for the Bangsamoro as envisioned by the FAB," said the government and MILF representatives in a joint statement.
Under the terms of the FAB:
The deal makes it more likely the two sides will reach a final peace agreement to end a decades-old conflict, says BBC Asia analyst Michael Bristow.
But other aspects of a final peace agreement still need to be worked out, such as how to disarm the rebels and exactly how much autonomy the will get, he adds.
As well as the 75%-25% agreement on sharing the wealth from natural resources, the two sides agreed to split earnings from energy resources equally.
The government in Manila says a failure to bring about a binding agreement could give other groups a reason to continue fighting.
The government's chief negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer told AFP a final peace deal could be signed after the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which ends later this month.
The MILF, created after a split with another rebel group in 1977, originally wanted an independent Muslim state, but dropped this demand.
The Philippines has faced separatist movements for decades in Mindanao, where the MILF is based, and in Jolo, home to the radical Islamist Abu Sayyaf group, which is reputedly linked to al-Qaeda.
Communist rebels have also waged a guerrilla conflict over parts of the country from 1969. | The Philippines has reached a deal with the country's largest Muslim rebel group to share wealth generated from Mindanao's natural resources. | 23305339 |
The move comes as the company invests £5m in facilities to fill bottles quicker at its Cumbernauld plant, while it decommissions washing equipment.
AG Barr said it would no longer be able to handle returns after 31 December.
The firm explained that recycling at home had contributed to a drop in bottles being returned from 90% in the early 1990s to only about 50% now.
Dubbed "Scotland's other national drink", Irn Bru was created to an original recipe in 1901 when it was initially called Iron Brew.
The company introduced bottle returns in 1905 and changed its famous product's name to Irn Bru in 1946, amid concern over new food labelling regulations.
By Nick Eardley, BBC News
The man who used to run the newsagent's down the road from my parents' house in Edinburgh must have hated me.
As a child, my friends and I would turn up at the weekend with however many Irn Bru bottles we had managed to get our hands on to claim our 20p coins.
The bottles would come from a variety of sources - my dad, neighbours, the park where teenagers used to drink on a Friday and Saturday night.
I'll always remember the day we found dozens of bottles in a bag - for Edinburgh's answer to the Famous Five, it was like winning the lottery. There were so many we had to stagger our trips to the newsagent to claim our cash.
Many a weekend's sweet supply was bankrolled by our bottle finding adventures. Future generations will never know such joy.
Jonathan Kemp, commercial director, said: "This significant investment allows us to continue to offer our consumers their favourite products in glass, well into the future.
"With improved kerbside recycling, only one in two of our bottles are now being returned, meaning that the process of handling returned bottles has become uneconomic."
This investment will replace Barr's current glass line, which is almost 20 years old, with more efficient glass filling capability, and will see "energy-hungry" returnable glass bottle washing equipment decommissioned.
Mr Kemp added: "From the beginning of October information on the change will be carried on the bottle label and we will work with retailers to display materials in their premises to ensure our consumers understand what is planned."
By Douglas Fraser, BBC Scotland business editor
Returnable glass bottles are an unlikely national icon but their demise has unleashed a lot of nostalgia for the soft drinks that fuelled many Scottish childhoods.
"It's a sad decision to take," admits AG Barr's commercial director, Jonathan Kemp. "It's the end of an era.
Read more | Irn Bru maker AG Barr is to scrap its 30p buyback scheme for customers who return glass bottles. | 33985022 |
The cause of death was announced by the office of the medical examiner after Scott's body was discovered in her flat by her assistant on Monday.
Police earlier said there was no sign of foul play and no note was found.
Scott's long-term boyfriend, Sir Mick Jagger, postponed forthcoming Rolling Stones tour dates in Australia and New Zealand after her death was announced.
Sir Mick earlier said he failed "to understand how my lover and best friend could end her life in this tragic way".
He said they had spent "many wonderful years together".
On Wednesday, Jagger's bandmates also expressed their shock at the news of Scott's death.
Drummer Charlie Watts said supporting Jagger was the band's priority.
"Needless to say we are all completely shocked but our first thought is to support Mick at this awful time," he said.
"We intend to come back to Australia and New Zealand as soon as it proves possible."
Keith Richards said "no-one saw this coming" and that Jagger had "always been my soul brother and we love him".
"We're thick as thieves and we're all feeling for the man," he added.
Ronnie Wood said: "This is such terrible news and right now the important thing is that we are all pulling together to offer Mick our support and help him through this sad time.
"Without a doubt we intend to be back out on that stage as soon as we can."
Tributes have poured in for Scott, 49, with fans including supermodel Naomi Campbell, Vogue editor Anna Wintour and singer Madonna eulogising the fashion designer.
Wintour described Scott as "a total perfectionist... always unbelievably generous, gracious, kind and so much fun."
Scott was found in her Manhattan apartment by her assistant at 10:00 local time (14:00 GMT) on Monday.
She had sent her assistant a text message 90 minutes earlier asking her to come to the apartment, without specifying the reason why, the Associated Press news agency reported.
It has since emerged that the fashion label founded by Scott had been heavily in debt. | The death of fashion designer L'Wren Scott has been ruled suicide by hanging, New York City authorities say. | 26657641 |
21 September 2015 Last updated at 10:58 BST
Figures from the body show Coventry City Council is among the authorities falling behind.
A total of 7,230 homes were built in Coventry between 2011 and 2014 - a 60% shortfall on the calculated need.
Councillor Kevin Maton, cabinet member for business, said the authority needed 40,000 new homes over the next 15 years.
Reece Palmer and his girlfriend Ayesha Kalyan are among those affected.
"If the prices are at a certain point now, who knows what they're going to be like in a year or so?" said Mr Palmer.
Inside Out is on BBC One West Midlands on Monday, 21 September at 19:30 BST and nationwide on the iPlayer for 30 days thereafter. | Young people in the West Midlands are struggling to get on the property ladder because councils are failing to meet house building targets, according to the National Housing Federation. | 34281238 |
Lamb Bella and her "beloved" companion Blake disappeared on 8 May from a home near Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire.
Owner Natalie Haywood says trackers have found scents and droppings in the area.
Cameras have been installed, and food including garlic chicken dropped to try to find the pair.
Mrs Haywood said trackers were considering "different trapping methods" if they were spotted.
Bella, seven weeks old, and Blake, one, went missing from a yard outside Mrs Haywood's home.
It was originally believed they may have been stolen, but recent clues found by searchers mean the pair are probably in the area, she said.
She said roast chicken cooked in garlic water had been left for Blake. About three days later some droppings were found that smelled of garlic.
Eight cameras have been set up in four locations.
Paula Strudley of FindUKDogs, co-ordinating a Facebook search page, said she was convinced they would eventually be found.
"We have found footprints and fur and droppings. We know Blake is about - we know that," she said.
One of the tracking dogs, Wispa, also reacted strongly to some scents.
Mrs Haywood added: "I trust the dogs. The dogs say they've got fresh scent, saying they're still out there."
A £1,000 reward for their recovery has been offered by ITV presenter Philip Schofield. Thousands of people have joined a Facebook group set up to find the pets, and many have joined the searches. | Hopes have been raised for the well-being of an orphaned lamb and collie dog who went missing together, after clues were picked up by search parties. | 39991057 |
The door opened as the train approached Terminal 4 Heathrow, where passengers were taken off the service.
The Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union said it was the fifth time it had happened in recent weeks.
Transport for London (TfL) said it had carried out checks which showed it was an "isolated incident".
The RMT said some drivers were refusing to work on Sunday due to safety fears.
The ASLEF union also said some drivers were refusing to operate the Tube trains.
TfL said it had met with trade unions to give them full assurance there were no wider safety issues.
The Piccadilly line is operating with delays and some suspensions.
Pat Hansberry, London Underground operations director, said: "Following an isolated problem with one train door we carried out a full inspection to confirm there wasn't a wider problem, which resulted in some cancellations."
The RMT has previously raised questions about the reliability of the Piccadilly Line trains, which it describes as an "ageing fleet".
A spokesman for the union said: "There are serious questions over the safety of the ageing fleet on the Piccadilly Line in terms of braking systems, wheel flats and brake operation that RMT has been raising for well over a year now.
"There are clearly major safety issues which must not be ignored any longer". | A train door opened on a moving Piccadilly Line train on Saturday morning, prompting an inspection of all the trains on the Piccadilly Line. | 35337580 |
Currently, the aim from referral to treatment is to administer cochlear implant surgery within 52 weeks.
The medical device can replace the function of the inner ear and allow profoundly deaf people to hear again.
There are 13,480 people registered in Wales as having a hearing impairment and in 2015-16, 65 people had cochlear implant surgery.
The new 26 week target, announced by the Welsh Government on Friday, includes a 36-week aim for the most complex cases.
Over the next three years, the Welsh health specialist services committee will work with health boards to achieve this.
Specialist cochlear implant service providers are based at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff and Ysbyty Glan Clwyd in Denbighshire.
Health secretary Vaughan Gething said quicker surgery for those who are deaf or hard of hearing will allow them to "lead more-normal lives again".
"For many people, deafness can have a significant impact on their quality of life, affecting employment, recreation and relationships," he added.
The numbers of people suffering from hearing loss are captured on local authority registers of people with disabilities.
As of March 2016, 13,480 had registered with a hearing impairment - with 83% stating they were hard of hearing.
For 2016-17, the forecast is for 55 people to be given cochlear surgery, a mixture of new and replacement implants. | Waiting time targets for operating on people with hearing loss have been cut in half to 26 weeks. | 39588405 |
The study suggested only 12% feel their work-life balance is "just right".
Less than a quarter (22%) think they have "the right balance of time and money for their family to thrive".
The poll was carried out by Family Friendly Working Scotland group, which works with the Scottish government.
The organisation said inflexible work arrangements were often to blame, with many parents saying they missed out on special family moments.
These included attending school plays or putting their children to bed.
The poll suggested:
Family Friendly Working Scotland said its findings showed 27% of working parents in Scotland worked more than two extra unpaid hours each week - the equivalent of an extra 2.5 weeks a year.
Of those, 15% worked more than four extra unpaid hours a week, equating to 25 extra days a year.
The findings were published as Family Friendly Working Scotland launched Nation Work Life week.
Nikki Slowey, the organisation's programme director, said it was "disheartening that so few Scottish parents have the right work-life balance".
She said: "Families need both time and money to thrive, yet less than a quarter of parents we surveyed said they have this.
"As parents we want to support our children through the many milestones in their lives, whether that's starting school, starring in their school play or preparing for important exams.
"But balancing this support alongside the demands of work can be very challenging, especially if your employer gives you little or no flexibility, or shows no understanding."
Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland programme, Ms Slowey added: "I don't think there are enough employers recognising the link between good family-friendly policies or good flexible working and how this is good for business.
"Not enough organisations are making the link that actually when they have a family-friendly workplace their employees are more productive, more engaged, more motivated and that the absenteeism rates reduce, and that they are much more successful at recruiting and retaining staff."
The Scottish government's Minister for Childcare and Early Years, Mark McDonald, said: "This poll shows how difficult it can be for parents in Scotland to achieve the right balance between the time they spend at work and with their family.
"The Scottish government is determined to do all we can to ensure Scotland's workplaces offer flexible working arrangements so parents can achieve a balance that suits their family life, and employers can benefit from improved rates of loyalty and productivity." | Most working parents in Scotland are unhappy with the balance between their home and work life, according to a poll by a group of voluntary organisations. | 37535670 |
Sir Benjamin Slade, owner of 17th Century Woodlands Castle in Somerset, thinks the animals migrated from the River Otter in Devon.
Sir Benjamin said: "I can't cope. I won't have any trees left."
However, a beaver expert who has visited the estate said the marks on the trees were not typical of them.
More on the beavers story, plus more Devon and Cornwall news
Sir Benjamin said there were at least two beavers on his property and he fears they could start breeding.
"Every time I go out there's another one [tree] gone down, it's terrible," he said.
The posters on the 12-acre Woodlands estate read: "Beaver sightings! At Woodlands Castle. Wanted dead or alive. £1,000 reward! For crimes against trees. Beavers have been cutting down our trees!"
Natural England, which licensed a pilot beaver release on the Otter, said trapping and possessing beavers would require a licence but shooting them humanely did not. However, the group added it was "not encouraging people".
The Woodlands estate has requested people ask permission to kill the beavers, which are not a protected species, before going onto its land.
However, Derek Gow, who breeds beavers in Devon, said after visiting the site he was convinced the trees had not been damaged by the animals.
"Beavers produce distinctive scalloped chips when they gnaw trees and there weren't any," he said.
"It looks as if it has been done by humans with an axe." | A landowner has put a £1,000 bounty on the heads of beavers he claims are felling trees on his estate. | 37616970 |
Martin Barkley, 61, said the decision to leave the Tees Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust (TEWV) after eight years had been a "difficult one".
He has worked for the NHS for more than 40 years.
The trust said a recruitment process to select a new chief executive would begin in February.
Mr Barkley said: "After so many years with the trust and other mental health and learning disability organisations the time has arrived for a change."
The trust runs mental health services in County Durham, the Tees Valley and much of North Yorkshire.
In October, it took over services in York just days after the Care Quality Commission (CQC) ordered the city's psychiatric hospital, Bootham Park, to close after an inspection found it to be "unfit".
Mr Barkley said his decision to leave the trust had nothing to do with the problems surrounding mental health provision in York.
He said the trust remained committed to working with the Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group to provide a new hospital for the treatment of people with mental health problems in the city. | The chief executive of a mental health trust which serves parts of the North East and Yorkshire, is to stand down in April. | 35385222 |
Daniel Bartlam had denied murder but admitted the manslaughter of his mother, Jacqueline Bartlam, following a row at their Nottinghamshire home.
Nottingham Crown Court was told she had been beaten seven times with a claw hammer, fracturing her face and skull.
A soap opera murder plot and violent TV clips were found on Daniel's computer.
Reporting restrictions preventing identification of the teenager were lifted by the court following his sentencing.
Mrs Bartlam, 47, was discovered by fire crews at her home in Georgia Drive, Redhill, Nottinghamshire, in the early hours of 25 April 2011.
After being beaten, her body was then padded with paper, covered in petrol and set on fire, the court heard.
Daniel, who was 14 at the time of the killing, told police an intruder had killed his mother but detectives found a written "soap opera plot" on his computer in which he fantasised about his character carrying out a killing.
The court heard he had been particularly interested in a Coronation Street storyline involving the character John Stape.
In the soap, Stape had murdered a woman with a hammer and then left her body in the wreckage of a tram crash.
It was also revealed Daniel had been watching violent horror films since he was eight and had viewed the film Saw hours before killing his mother.
The teenager claimed he had been provoked into violence when his mother called him "a freak" during their argument.
He was found guilty of murder at Nottingham Crown Court on 9 February.
The jury heard authorities raised concerns about the boy's behaviour in the months before the attack.
He told a counsellor voices were telling him to hurt people and that he had had visions of killing people, the court was told.
However, several experts had concluded Daniel was not mentally ill and did not pose a risk.
Judge Julian Flaux described the killing as "grotesque" and "senseless" and said it seemed like the teenager wanted to "get away with the perfect murder".
Det Ch Insp Kate Meynell, who led the murder inquiry, said after sentencing: "The level of violence, degree of planning and extent of his lies is not only shocking, but it is also chilling that a boy of 14 could do this.
"You can only imagine the impact that this has had on Jacqueline's family, and having spent time with them throughout the investigation and subsequent legal proceedings, I know this is going to be very difficult, if not impossible, for them to come to terms with.
"This murder has devastated everyone involved. There is only one person who knows why it happened, and Daniel has lied consistently throughout, making attempts to besmirch Jacqueline's character.
"Everyone who knew her knew she lived for her children and was a warm, loving mother.
"Maybe one day Daniel will tell the truth, as there are several gaps that only he can fill."
A statement issued on behalf of the family said: "We find it so hard to explain what we are going through.
"There are no winners here because not only have we lost Jacqui, but we have lost Daniel too because of what he's done.
"We know it was the right result at court, but trying to understand how a boy you have loved for 14 years can do something like this is so difficult.
"To find out that Daniel planned to kill his own mother and then hear all the details, it is all so hard to believe.
"The most difficult part for us and something that only Daniel can answer is 'why?'" | A 15-year-old boy who murdered his mother with a hammer and set her body on fire has been detained for a minimum of 16 years. | 17540452 |
The new positions at PRA Health Sciences have been backed by £990,000 funding from the Welsh government.
The US company has had a base in the city since 1996 and already employs about 200 people.
Economy Minister Edwina Hart said: "I am delighted that PRA is further expanding its operational centre in Swansea creating high skilled, graduate level employment.
"It is also a superb endorsement of Wales as a great business location."
The operation in Swansea collects, analyses and interprets data from clinical trials - with 5,000 employees in more than 50 offices across the world. | A clinical research company is creating 87 new graduate jobs in Swansea. | 32335312 |
Ministers are considering applying for an exemption to European Union laws which prohibit electro-fishing.
They have launched on consultation on the proposal.
Razor clams - or spoots - are increasingly in demand by overseas markets and fishermen can command a high price for their catch.
An environmental group said law enforcement agencies had "lost the battle" to stamp out illegal electro-fishing.
And Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing admitted that Marine Scotland had found it difficult to clamp down on the activities of some fishermen.
Mr Ewing said: "Electro-fishing is currently illegal in Scotland and Marine Scotland Compliance has taken a range of measures to tackle this illegal activity.
"Enforcement has proved to be very difficult, and changes need to be made to either make it easier to enforce the current law or, if electro-fishing is to be legalised, to ensure any electro-fishing is undertaken safely and sustainably in a properly regulated environment.
"As a result of this advice and extensive consultation with the industry, we have now decided to consult on proposals to amend the current law to allow electro-fishing to be a legal method for catching razor clams.
"This is an issue that has evoked much interest and debate. This is why I would urge all those with an interest, in particular from fishermen and people in coastal communities where such fisheries might be conducted, to respond to the consultation."
The move comes after a report by Marine Scotland found that electro-fishing had a lower environmental impact than methods like dredging and it had little short-term effect on other species.
As part of the practice of electro-fishing, electrodes shock razor fish in the seabed, causing them to rise up.
At that point they are easily collected by divers.
It is the "least worst option", according to RSPB Scotland.
Alex Kinnimouth, the charity's head of marine policy in Scotland, said: "The status quo of an illegal, unregulated and unreported razor clam fishery is clearly unacceptable.
"Marine Scotland and the police seem to have lost the battle to stamp it out and so there is a real risk that this highly efficient fishing method could cause 'spoots' to be wiped out in areas that are being repeatedly targeted.
"Alternative capture methods such as dredging are highly disruptive to the seabed.
"So on the basis of the most recent published research, a closely regulated fishery using electricity, perhaps on a pilot basis, with tight controls on method, quantity of catch, and where it can occur could be seen as the least worst option."
Food journalist and campaigner Alex Renton told BBC Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland programme that he believed the practice was extremely dangerous.
"When you put enormous voltages of electricity down on to beaches in Scotland, you can cause enormous damage.
"And the reports say that the other fish - and of course beaches are where young fish grow - suffer epileptic fits, haemorrhages, their spines break."
High-profile chefs Andrew Fairlie and Tom Kitchin have also voiced their opposition to the "idiocy" of uncontrolled electro-fishing.
In a letter published three years ago, they warned that, unless the practice was done very carefully, it could kill "nearly everything else in the vicinity" as well as the razor fish.
The consultation was welcomed by the Scottish Conservatives whose fisheries spokesman, Finlay Carson, called for further scientific research into the sustainability of the razor clam beds.
He added: "I also hope that every effort will be made to seek as many views and expert opinions as possible during the consultation.
"It's imperative that the potential positive economic impact on coastal communities from razor clam fishing is founded on proper scientific research with sustainability as a primary concern."
The Scottish government has previously taken a hard line with fishermen caught using the technique.
In May 2014, it announced tougher licensing measures in a bid to clamp down on the illegal practice.
In the two years before that announcement, 11 vessels were issued with a fixed penalty of up to £2,000 for electro-fishing.
Diver Graeme Mackie drowned during an electro-fishing expedition for razor clams in the Firth of Forth in 2011.
Dunfermline Sheriff Court heard that there was no evidence that the electric current directly caused Mr Mackie's death.
Skipper Ronald MacNeil was ordered to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work after admitting safety failings. | A controversial method of catching razor clams using electricity could be legalised, under new Scottish government plans. | 37088967 |
Abas Abdullahi Siraji was in his car near the presidential palace in Mogadishu when he was killed by Ahmed Abdullahi Abdi, who reportedly mistook him for a militant Islamist.
The minister's death caused shock and anger at the time.
The military court which sentenced the soldier said he can appeal.
His lawyers argued that the killing was an accident, the AFP news agency reports.
They said that the minister's car attracted suspicion after it drove up behind the car carrying the auditor general, who the soldier was protecting.
At 31, Mr Siraji became Somalia's youngest-ever member of parliament last November before becoming the minister of public works earlier this year.
He grew up as a refugee in neighbouring Kenya, home to hundreds of thousands of Somalis who fled drought and conflict, and was seen a role model for his widely admired determination to succeed.
Sensing his popularity with the youth, President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed Farmajo appointed him to the cabinet.
When Mr Siraji was killed, the president cut short a visit to Ethiopia to attend his state funeral.
Somalia has been wracked by conflict since the long-serving ruler Siad Barre was ousted in 1991.
It is currently battling militant Islamists from the al-Shabab group, which is affiliated to al-Qaeda. | The Somali soldier who shot dead the country's youngest-ever cabinet minister last month has been sentenced to death by firing squad. | 40326812 |
10 February 2015 Last updated at 16:05 GMT
It's thought to have been caused by a build up of cooking fats and oils that people have washed down their sinks.
This video was taken during an attempt to clear the sewer this month and shows a blockage roughly one metre wide.
The company that look after the drains in Wales has started a campaign to get people to think more about what they put down their sinks.
Although a 'fatberg' isn't dangerous for our health, blocked sewers can cause flooding in homes and communities.
It isn't the first time it has happened in the UK - last year a fatberg was discovered in West London. | A gigantic 'fatberg' has been discovered deep down in the drains underneath the Welsh capital, Cardiff. | 31365972 |
Asked to explain whether the government has quietly abandoned its pledge, the Treasury said the UK would probably have to accept the status quo on EU migration as the price of continued access to European markets. "No country has been able to agree significant access to the single market without having to accept EU regulations, financial contributions to the EU and the free movement of people" it said.
Critics have suggested the Treasury's "Brexit" calculation demonstrates that the department has no real ambition to see radical reductions in net migration. In the year to September 2014, net migration to the UK was 323,000, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Last month the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said that "net international migration to the UK is an important driver of the economy's underlying growth potential" and leads to a higher employment rate and lower dependency ratio (the number of children and elderly compared to the total population).
The OBR's central budget projection assumes net migration of 185,000 by 2021 (they clearly think it unlikely the government will be able to get net migration down to the levels they promised), and it is this modelling that was included in the Treasury report on the costs of leaving the EU.
The OBR also looked at higher and lower migration scenarios. A "zero net migration" model, it suggests, would lead to GDP 1.9% lower than currently projected and a fall in house prices of 3%, while a higher net figure of 265,000 by 2012 would see GDP 0.8% higher and house prices up an additional 1.3%.
While the OBR assumes that net migration has a positive impact on the economy in the medium-term, those wanting to leave the EU argue that controlling our borders and reducing immigration would be in Britain's long-term interests.
"At the moment any EU citizen can come to the UK to settle, work, claim benefits and use the NHS," leave supporter Michael Gove said at a Leave campaign event today. "We have no proper control over whether that individual's presence here is economically beneficial, conducive to the public good or in our national interest."
The pressure group Migration Watch argues that the effect of immigration on the UK economy is "essentially negligible" and claims there is broad agreement that it harms the earnings of the most poorly paid UK-born members of the labour force.
The OBR also makes the point that looking ahead 50 years, immigrants arriving now would add to age-related spending pressures. "Higher migration could be seen as delaying some of the fiscal challenges of an ageing population rather than a way of resolving them permanently", it argues.
Nevertheless, it is surprising that the Treasury's calculations don't engage with the immigration debate, given its centrality in the leave campaign's argument. Many economists argue that Vote Leave's aim to reduce net migration from the EU following "Brexit" would have a negative impact on economic growth, at least in the short term.
It is likely those making the pro-EU case would rather the referendum debate was focused on household incomes rather than immigration and that may be why the impact of changes to net migration was curiously lacking from yesterday's Treasury report. | The Conservative manifesto promises to reduce net migration to the UK to the tens of thousands by 2020, but in calculating the cost of Britain leaving the EU in yesterday's report, the Treasury assumes a level still well in excess of that - of 185,000 per year in 2021 and beyond. | 36082472 |
Mr Harris, 87, is accused of touching the schoolgirl after he had filmed an episode of the BBC's Saturday Superstore in 1983, jurors were told.
Prosecutors alleged the Australian-born star then said: "Do you often get molested on a Saturday morning?"
Mr Harris denies four charges of indecent assault against three girls between 1971 and 1983.
Prosecutor Jonathan Rees QC told the jury Mr Harris had approached the girl in a room after filming of the show - which also featured pop group Wham! - had ended.
Mr Rees said: "She recalls him sliding his open right hand across her back over her clothes and touching her breast.
"He then said 'Do you often get molested on a Saturday morning?', which the prosecution suggests clearly shows the sexual nature of the touching."
Mr Harris, who appeared via videolink at Southwark Crown Court, is also alleged to have indecently touched a 14-year-old girl in 1971 and twice groped a third teenage girl in 1978.
The trial is due to last three weeks. | Former TV star Rolf Harris touched a 13-year-old girl's breast after filming a children's TV show, a jury has heard. | 39930046 |
Guptill, sidelined for a month with two separate hamstring strains, had an lbw dismissal on 62 overturned on review, as he put on 180 with Ross Taylor (66).
Skipper AB de Villiers had hit 72 in 59 balls in South Africa's 279-8, but the Kiwis won with five overs to spare.
The series is tied at 2-2, with the decider in Auckland on Saturday. | Martin Guptill struck 11 sixes in an unbeaten 180 as New Zealand levelled the one-day series against South Africa with a seven-wicket win in Hamilton. | 39126513 |
The 34-year-old was driving a Fiat Seicento which collided with a Land Rover Defender which was turning right at the junction to Appletreehall, north of Hawick, at about 11:45 on Saturday.
The 86-year-old driver of the Land Rover suffered minor injuries.
Police officers investigating the crash have appealed for information from anyone who witnessed it.
Sgt Andy Gibb said: "Our inquiries into this collision are at an early stage and we would welcome information from any members of the public who witnessed this collision or who saw either the silver Fiat Seicento or the Land Rover Defender before the collision happened at 11.45 am." | A driver has been seriously injured in a crash involving two vehicles on the A7 road in the Borders. | 36635486 |
Patients with this sign on scans more often develop serious problems like heart failure, says the Glasgow team.
It's hoped the discovery could help with preventing such complications.
Half a million UK people have heart failure and heart attacks are the leading cause.
Heart failure can leave people unable to do simple everyday tasks, such as climbing the stairs.
Symptoms occur because the damaged heart doesn't have enough strength to pump blood around the body efficiently.
This makes the person breathless, tired and, untreated, means fluid can gather in the legs and lungs.
There are drugs that can help, but these have to be taken long-term.
Some people with heart failure may need heart surgery too.
The British Heart Foundation-funded work followed just over 200 patients to see how well they fared in the hours, weeks and months after being admitted to hospital with a heart attack.
The researchers, who are presenting their work at a heart conference in Manchester, ran extra tests on the patients while they were in hospital.
Prof Colin Berry and his team found that patients who had signs of bleeding in their heart muscle were more likely to develop later complications than patients who didn't have this damage.
This type of knowledge could ultimately help when doctors are deciding what treatment they should give and how long the patient should be closely monitored, says Prof Berry, research director at the Golden Jubilee National Hospital in Clydebank, Scotland.
He suspects the bleeds may partly be caused by the blood-thinning drugs that doctors need to give to patients to treat a heart attack. Heart attacks occur when the main blood vessels supplying the heart get blocked by a clot.
Prof Berry says the tiny blood vessels in the heart muscle tissue itself can also get blocked, and this makes them leaky.
He says nearly half of heart attack patients probably have some bleeding or bruising of the heart - although not all of them will develop heart failure.
"This might explain why patients who have had effective treatment for their heart attack can still have adverse outcomes.
"We now know heart muscle bleeding is an adverse complication that we want to avoid," he said.
His team is now investigating whether there might be a better way to treat patients who have had a more severe heart attack - by injecting blood-thinning or clot-busting drugs directly into the heart's blood vessels rather than intravenously, for example.
Spotting a heart attack
Not everyone experiences the same symptoms, but common ones include:
Chest pain - this may feel like pressure or squeezing and can radiate from the chest to the jaw, neck, arms and back
Shortness of breath
Feeling weak and/or lightheaded
It is important to seek urgent medical help if you think you or someone you know is having a heart attack because prompt treatment saves lives | UK researchers say they have found a new way to tell if a heart attack is more severe and might cause lasting harm - by looking for bruising or bleeding in the heart muscle. | 36467445 |
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The Scot, 38, was honoured at the SSE Hydro arena in Glasgow.
"It's very hard not to get emotional when you hear amazing words from people you respect and get this amazing reception," said Hoy.
"I never thought I'd see my name alongside Sir Steve Redgrave, David Beckham and Seve Ballesteros."
He added: "I became a dad eight weeks ago. He was in hospital for eight weeks and finally came out last week and we got him home.
"I'm sure he'll be watching it on telly."
Four-time Olympic cycling gold medallist Sir Bradley Wiggins has paid tribute to the 11-time world champion.
"He is the marker for everybody else because he was, in some ways, the model athlete off the bike as well as on it," said Wiggins, the 2012 Sports Personality of the Year after winning the Tour de France.
"He's right up there, not only for British athletes but in terms of world athletes. I put Chris up there with the Usain Bolts of this world."
Hoy was the first British Olympian for 100 years to claim three golds at one Games at Beijing in 2008, having won his first Olympic title in Athens four years earlier and a silver at Sydney 2000.
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The track cyclist from Edinburgh picked up the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award in 2008 following his hat-trick and was given a knighthood in the New Year Honours list.
At the 2012 Olympic Games in London, Hoy claimed his fifth and sixth gold medals - the most won by a British athlete in Olympic history.
He also secured two gold and two bronze medals for Scotland at the Commonwealth Games.
Barbara Slater, BBC Sport director, welcomed the award for Hoy, who has turned his attention to motor racing since his retirement from cycling in 2013.
"As a former BBC Sports Personality of the Year winner, Sir Chris Hoy has been a tremendous ambassador for sport and, although he has retired from cycling, he continues to be an inspiration to young athletes," she said.
"It's fantastic that he is not only being recognised for his exceptional achievements, but also that it is being awarded to him in his home country." | Six-time Olympic cycling gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy was given the lifetime achievement award at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year. | 30391315 |
Matthew Liam Whelan, 29, from Mancot, appeared via a video link at Mold Crown Court charged with attempted murder after the alleged attack at a Costcutter store in Queensferry.
Shopkeeper Imtiaz Ul Haq, 58, suffered serious knife injuries to his throat in the incident.
Co-defendant Leslie Baines, 47, from Connah's Quay is accused of robbery.
It is alleged a till drawer containing an unknown amount of cash was taken in the incident on 8 December.
Judge Rhys Rowlands agreed that the defence should have the opportunity to view the CCTV footage from the shop before formal pleas were entered.
The hearing was adjourned and a trial will take place on 22 May, and is expected to last five days.
Both accused men remain in custody. | A man accused of trying to murder a Flintshire shopkeeper in December will go on trial in May. | 38530908 |
Moncur, 23, turned down the chance to join Posh this summer to move to the Tykes from Colchester for a fee believed to be about £500,000.
But he has made two appearances for Barnsley so far and has been allowed to leave on loan.
Neither McGee or Oduwa, both 20 have made a Spurs first-team appearance.
However, Oduwa has had loans at Luton, Rangers and Colchester, while McGee comes in following the release of keeper Ben Alnwick from his Posh contract because of "family and geographical reasons".
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.. | Peterborough have signed Barnsley midfielder George Moncur and Tottenham goalkeeper Luke McGee and winger Nathan Oduwa on loan until January. | 37231755 |
The 31-year-old, who played for Lincoln Ladies last season, has won 116 England caps.
She joins Liverpool's Kolo Toure, West Ham's Matt Jarvis and Wigan's Grant Holt as new members on the committee.
Read more about Casey's journey to top
"It is an honour and a privilege to be appointed and I'm really looking forward to the new role," she said.
"I want to take women's football forward. This enables us to have a voice for the women's game and spread awareness of the great things the PFA do and can offer."
Stoney, who is yet to decide where she will play next season, was involved with the PFA when the England team were renegotiating their central contracts with the Football Association earlier this year.
Those contracts increased by £4,000 to £20,000 and Stoney sees that as evidence the union has played an important part in the growth of the women's game ahead of the Women's Super League (WSL) expanding to two divisions next summer.
The England squad have been members of the PFA since 2011, with WSL players joining the union last year. The PFA has 100 members from the WSL, compared to 3,500 in the men's game.
Stoney told BBC Sport: "[The PFA] were key in moving things forward for us. Even from the PFA annual general meeting on Wednesday, women's football was high on the agenda.
"Being on the management committee now, I will try and engage more female members.
"It's a massive step forward for the women's game." | England women's captain Casey Stoney has become the first female member of the Professional Footballers' Association's management committee. | 24935248 |
Michael Flynn quit on Monday over claims he discussed US sanctions with Russia before Donald Trump took office.
On Tuesday, a White House spokesman said Mr Trump knew weeks ago there were problems with the Russia phone calls.
But calls for an independent investigation have encountered a cold reaction from some senior Republicans.
The development came as the New York Times reported that phone records and intercepted calls show members of Mr Trump's presidential campaign, as well as other Trump associates, "had repeated contacts with senior Russian intelligence officials in the year before the election".
He stood down over allegations he discussed US sanctions with a Russian envoy before Mr Trump took office.
It would have been illegal for Mr Flynn to conduct US diplomacy as a private citizen, before he was appointed as national security adviser.
The retired army lieutenant-general initially denied having discussed sanctions with Ambassador Sergei Kislyak, and Vice-President Mike Pence publicly denied the allegations on his behalf.
Acting Attorney General Sally Yates had warned the White House about the contacts and that Mr Flynn might be vulnerable to Russian blackmail on 26 January, said White House spokesman Sean Spicer.
Mr Trump had initially concluded that Mr Flynn's actions did not violate any law, according to Mr Spicer.
The White House counsel then conducted an extensive review and questioned Mr Flynn on multiple occasions before arriving at the same conclusion as Mr Trump, Mr Spicer added. But the trust had gone.
"In the end, it was misleading the vice-president that made the situation unsustainable," White House Counsellor Kellyanne Conway said on Tuesday.
Mr Flynn was also reportedly questioned by FBI agents in his first days as national security adviser, according to US media.
In an interview conducted with the conservative website The Daily Caller on Monday, but published only on Tuesday, Mr Flynn said he "crossed no lines" in his conversation with the ambassador.
He said he was concerned that the apparently classified information had been leaked.
"In some of these cases, you're talking about stuff that's taken off of a classified system and given to a reporter. That's a crime."
In his first public comments about the controversy, President Trump tweeted on Tuesday: "The real story here is why are there so many illegal leaks coming out of Washington? Will these leaks be happening as I deal on N Korea etc?"
Republican John McCain, chairman of the Senate armed services committee, said Mr Flynn's resignation was a "troubling indication of the dysfunction of the current national security apparatus" which raised questions about Mr Trump's intentions towards Russia.
Senator Roy Blunt, a Republican member of the Senate intelligence committee, called for an investigation into any alleged connections between Mr Trump and Russian officials.
Texas Senator John Cornyn, the second-ranked Senate Republican leader, echoed calls for an investigation.
Meanwhile, US House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, also Republican, told reporters on Tuesday he wanted to investigate the leaks that led to Mr Flynn's resignation. He also said the FBI should explain why Mr Flynn's conversation had been recorded.
However, House speaker Paul Ryan sidestepped questions on whether he backed an independent investigation. The Senate's most senior Republican, Mitch McConnell, said the intelligence committee was already looking into Russian influence on the election, indicating there was no need for a new investigative panel.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia would not be commenting on the resignation.
"This is the internal affair of the Americans, the internal affair of the Trump administration," he added. "It's nothing to do with us."
Senior Democrat Adam Schiff said Mr Flynn's departure would not end questions about contacts between the Trump's campaign and Russia.
Congressional Democrats John Conyers and Elijah Cummings have demanded a classified briefing to Congress on Michael Flynn by the justice department and FBI.
"We in Congress need to know who authorised his actions, permitted them, and continued to let him have access to our most sensitive national security information despite knowing these risks," their statement said.
Several House Democrats had already called on Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz to launch an investigation into Mr Flynn's ties to Russia.
On another busy day for the Trump administration: | Leading members of the US Republican Party have joined calls for a wide investigation into the former national security adviser's links with Russia. | 38977644 |
Ministers are to takeover decisions on what language rules, or "standards", apply to which organisations.
Welsh language minister Alun Davies said he wanted to make the system as efficient as possible.
Commissioner Meri Huws called for evidence that changing the current system would lead to improvement.
Campaigners at Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg, who held a protest at the launch of the proposals at the National Eisteddfod on Wednesday, are concerned it will lead to a weakening of Welsh-speakers' rights.
Instead of a single figurehead, the Welsh Government wants to create a Welsh Language Commission to promote the language.
Like the current commissioner, the body would also be responsible for policing the system.
The changes are the Welsh Government's preferred options in proposals for new legislation outlined in a White Paper launched at the National Eisteddfod on Wednesday.
Any shake-up would need to be approved by AMs before becoming law.
Banks, supermarkets and other organisations in the private sector would not immediately face new rules, despite such suggestions earlier this year.
"We are not proposing that the Welsh Government will imminently be imposing Standards on bodies which do not currently come within the Standards system," the white paper said.
"Given the current economic uncertainty following the decision to leave the EU, further pressures on private sector companies and inward investment would certainly carry a risk."
Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg responded by claiming the proposals were aimed at "just making civil servants' jobs easier".
Chairwoman Heledd Gwyndaf told the BBC's Good Morning Wales programme she feared a new body would not have the same clout as a commissioner, and that being both promoter and regulator would result in a "clash of interests".
"It seems that our Welsh Labour Government are looking after big corporations and big companies... at the expense of the Welsh people," she said.
Plaid Cymru chairman Alun Ffred Jones, a former minister with responsibility for the Welsh language, said it was simply "rearranging the deckchairs".
"The government has failed miserably to promote the language," he added.
Mr Jones called for better co-ordination in Welsh Government departments covering areas such as schools, education and planning to increase the use of Welsh.
The changes to the commissioner's role are likely to be amongst the most controversial.
The current commissioner, Meri Huws, has been in post since the job was created in 2012.
Earlier this week she launched an investigation into claims retailer Sports Direct had instructed staff to converse in English only.
Asked about the proposals, she said: "I think it's a case of my job expanding. I think it's a case of my job moving forward.
"I think there is a need to look at the role of regulator and promoter - regulator and advocate side by side.
"Can they coexist in one structure? I believe they can, and if that means then that the Welsh Language Commissioner becomes a commission with that all encompassing role I would welcome it."
Ms Huws added: "I think change is acceptable if it is change that which lead to improvement.
"We need the evidence that any structural change will lead to that improvement, will lead to that strengthening of the Welsh language.
"Change for change's sake is not acceptable. And I don't think we should do that, because I think we will lose momentum.
"We cannot afford to lose momentum in terms of the Welsh language and of the government targets."
Mr Davies said a consultation earlier this year indicated there was too much "bureaucracy" involved in the "standards" system, which sees individual organisations given bespoke official requirements to provide certain services in Welsh.
"We want to refocus our efforts on promotion and make changes to the way the Welsh Language Standards system works to make sure it is as efficient and effective as possible in giving people rights to use Welsh," he said.
"I believe the Welsh Language Commission will be a powerhouse for achieving both these aims."
He later told BBC Wales he was "not here to please" Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg.
Mr Davies launched the Welsh Government's strategy to meet the target of one million Welsh speakers alongside First Minister Carwyn Jones and Wales football manager Chris Coleman in July.
The 2011 census had reported a drop in the number of Welsh speakers from 582,000 in 2001 to 562,000, about one in five of the population.
It's clear from reading today's proposals that ministers in Cardiff Bay do not think the system works at the moment.
The document talks about a system which is "too complex, time consuming and costly to implement" and "an urgent need to make changes so we avoid undermining the confidence of Welsh speakers and the goodwill of people who don't speak Welsh".
But it's also clear there isn't a silver bullet which means Welsh speakers can access services without hindrance while avoiding "a bureaucratic and costly system which threatens to choke off goodwill towards the Welsh language".
The answer, according to today's proposal from the Welsh Government, is to get rid of the arms-length Welsh Language commissioner and bring its responsibilities in-house.
The relationship between ministers and Meri Huws has, at times, been strained. Her attempts to create Wales-wide standards for public bodies in 2013 were rejected as being too complex.
While the proposals outlined today accepts there aren't any easy answers, it's also clear that ministers think they have a better chance of finding the best solution. | The job of Welsh language commissioner is to be scrapped as ministers try to hit an ambitious target of one million Welsh speakers by 2050. | 40865834 |
Now it is up to Russell Slade and his squad to lift the post-relegation blues which endured last season.
Even with the support of owner Vincent Tan, the affable Slade is in one of the most pressurised jobs in the Championship.
The way Cardiff cope with a tough looking opening group of fixtures may give us a decent indication of how much that pressure will build.
For the most part it was absolutely dismal, an immediate return to the Premier League never looked remotely possible. But there were signs of improvement towards the end.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's frenzied recruitment resulted in a squad of quantity, not quality. He departed after just nine games.
Slade, lured from League One side Leyton Orient, was the unexpected choice of Vincent Tan.
A section of Cardiff fans remain sceptical - though his main drawback initially appeared to be his name was not Tony Pulis.
Slade brought a degree of stability at a club where that is often in short supply, while instigating the owner's austerity measures in slashing the wage bill. Sometimes it was not pretty.
But January's return to playing in blue removed a hugely divisive negative, Paul Trollope's arrival on the coaching staff seems inspired and Cardiff's late season form brought an 11th placed finish.
The unveiling of their new blue kit this summer, brought the most positive reaction from fans towards the club since promotion to the Premier League.
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Now there is some sort of reconnection, the Bluebirds players need to inspire the supporters and use the fervent backing to help make the Cardiff City Stadium a fortress, as it was in the Championship title season of 2013.
The loss of goalkeeper David Marshall - linked with West Brom - would be a real test, but at least Cardiff have defensive depth and no little ability in the impressive Bruno Ecuele Manga.
An influential Peter Whittingham would be a real boost, particularly for striker Joe Mason. If Anthony Pilkington and Kigasho Dikgacoi can remain injury free, Cardiff have a sound base.
A good start seems essential, not least for Slade to convince the doubters he can cut it at this level - and keep owner Tan sweet.
If Cardiff can be challenging in January, the fans will hope the lucrative lure of the new Premier League television deal to start next season will encourage Tan to loosen the purse strings in the winter for the final push.
But as Solskjaer and Malky Mackay found - for different reasons - getting to the new year is not a given for a manager.
The Championship is a famously tough division. But Cardiff fans will demand their team are in contention towards the end.
It's a huge opportunity for Joe Mason. After three loan spells at Bolton he now has the opportunity to call Cardiff City home once again.
Mason seems to be the focus of the Cardiff attack and has the intuitive movement and cool finishing ability to prosper. Fingers crossed he avoids injury and Whittingham can supply him with plenty of ammunition..
Simon Moore may have to step out of the considerable shadows of David Marshall and with (hopefully) the Euro 2016 finals to think about it would be great to see Wales international Declan John find his best position, get a chance, and fulfil his obvious potential.
Title - 25/1
Relegation - 15/2
Manager sacking - not available
Odds supplied by William Hill
A roller-coaster, headline-grabbing ride with plenty of distractions - it is what we have come to expect at Cardiff by now.
They still need attack and midfield reinforcements before this window shuts, but the squad is fitter, better organised and seems relatively settled.
Play-offs have to be the aim but they probably need to strengthen to secure that.
Championship: 8th. FA Cup: Fourth round.
Russell Slade: "Our aim? It will be top six despite the ins and outs and whatever goes off. We're trying to keep the group really tight that we've got and we know we can focus on and move forward with and that's important for us. We can't allow anything else to distract us.
"I think we're all on the same page now and we know what's required.
"I'm optimistic, but I think I am that by nature. If we can build on where we were last season when we were in the top six over the last 10 games we have to progress from there, and if we can then the future is going to be bright for the football club."
Former Wales striker and BBC Wales pundit Iwan Roberts: "To finish top six, I think it is a tall order. You feel for Russell Slade because they haven't got millions to spend, they're going to go in a different direction.
"I think the players have to take responsibility; you can't always hide behind your manager. You need big personalities in that dressing room.
"I think they are good enough though, they've got good players, players who've played in the Premier League." | For the first time in four seasons, Cardiff City start a campaign in a blue strip. | 33748827 |
The Centre for Cities said the Granite City and the Scottish capital were both doing well because of high-skilled jobs.
But it warned that competitive salaries were also driving up housing costs.
No Scottish cities were in the top 10 for "low-wage, high-welfare" economies.
The 2016 report - described as a "health check" for the 63 largest UK cities - focused on Chancellor George Osborne's vow to build a "higher wage, lower welfare" economy, as set out in the Summer Budget 2015.
It argued that nearly a million new jobs had been created in cities since 2010 - but that the average salary had also dropped by £1,300 per resident.
London topped the list of "high-wage, low-welfare" city economies, with an average weekly salary of £629 and welfare spend per capita of £3,045.
Aberdeen sat at number four with an average weekly salary in 2014 of £548 and welfare spend of £2,513. Edinburgh was eighth, with figures of £524 and £2,809, respectively.
The think tank said the two areas' ability to attract high-skilled jobs - in the oil and professional services industries for example - was the key to their success.
It argued that cities with high wages had seen faster jobs growth, with employment rising by 10% since 2010, compared with 3% in low-wage cities.
But it also found welfare spending had grown at a much faster rate in high-wage cities, with benefit payments more than 50% higher than in other places.
The report attributed this largely to high demand for housing, resulting in increased housing benefit payments.
The report added that welfare spending in high-wage places like Milton Keynes and Cambridge had risen by 4% since 2010, but had fallen in low-wage cities like Liverpool and Glasgow. | Aberdeen and Edinburgh are among the top 10 UK cities for their high wages and low welfare payments ratio, according to a report from a think tank. | 35395876 |
It is the second time it has shown a united stance on Syria in under a week, following last Friday's resolution on eliminating Syria's chemical weapons.
Disarmament experts began their work inside Syria on Tuesday.
But they will be hampered by ongoing fighting around the country - including clashes between anti-regime factions.
At least 19 troops and pro-government militiamen have been killed since Monday in rebel attacks on Barzeh district, to the north of Damascus, reported the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
And in the town of Azaz on the border with Turkey, the UK-based activist group reported heavy clashes between al-Qaeda-linked fighters and Western-backed rebels on Wednesday.
The clashes, between militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) and the Free Syrian Army (FSA), have erupted since ISIS forced FSA rivals out of Azaz last month.
The discord - driven by claims over territory and resources as well as ideological differences - adds a new layer of complexity to the conflict which has killed over 100,000 people in two years.
More than two million Syrians have fled the conflict in their country, and many more have been displaced internally.
The statement agreed by the Security Council on Wednesday highlights those displaced and trapped by the "unacceptable and escalating level of violence" in Syria.
The nearly six million of internally displaced, "nearly half of whom are children, are in need of immediate humanitarian assistance" without which "their lives will be at risk".
It condemns "widespread violations of human rights and international humanitarian law by the Syrian authorities", as well as "any" such violations by armed groups.
And it deplores the heavy price paid by civilians caught in the conflict, saying Syrian authorities "bear the primary responsibility to protect their populations" - urging them to provide safe and unhindered access to populations in need of assistance.
Aid agencies complain that the Syrian government has hindered access to visas and tried to limit the number of foreign groups operating in the country.
Following the adoption of the statement, UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos said the Council's task was now "to turn these strong words into meaningful action".
Syria's ambassador to the UN, Bashar Jaafari, said the Syrian government would study the council statement before responding.
On Tuesday, the opposition Syrian National Coalition warned that thousands of families around Damascus, in an area under siege from pro-government forces, were at risk of starving to death.
It said seven people had already died of starvation in the suburb of Moadamiye, and called for aid to be delivered to them. | The UN Security Council has expressed alarm at the "rapid deterioration" of the humanitarian situation in Syria and demanded immediate access for aid. | 24374088 |
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On a febrile night of track and field, Mo Farah's own finale ended with 5,000m silver as he was beaten in a global final for the first time in six years.
But with the young GB women's sprint quartet storming to a silver of their own it felt like a generational shift as the stadium came alive just as it had at the 2012 Olympics.
Never before has a British team won a world sprint gold, but the quartet of CJ Ujah, Adam Gemili, Danny Talbot and Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake ran a near-perfect race to hold off the fancied US team, with Japan taking bronze as Bolt collapsed halfway down the home straight.
It was a horrible way for Bolt to end his career, his hamstring appearing to go as he attempted to chase down the two men in front of him.
A wheelchair was brought to his side before he was helped to his feet and managed to limp away, but it means he leaves his final championship with only a bronze from the individual 100m to show.
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Farah's defeat had threatened to suck the noise out of the packed stadium, with Ethiopia's Muktar Edris holding off his desperate late charge to become the first man to beat the Briton in a major final since his compatriot Ibrahim Jeilan did so over 10,000m at the 2011 Worlds in Daegu.
But then the British quartet of Asha Philip, Desiree Henry, Dina Asher-Smith and Daryll Neita went one better than their bronze at the Rio Olympics a year ago to take a brilliant silver behind the USA in 42.12 seconds, Jamaica taking bronze as that country's disappointing World Championships continued.
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The host nation had only Farah's 10,000m gold to show for the first eight days of competition, the mood reflective rather than celebratory as the team racked up five fourth places.
In the space of 15 minutes, that mood was transformed.
Britain's men had looked smooth in qualification on Saturday morning, and they then produced their best to shock the American favourites and light up the London Stadium.
Ujah got out of the blocks brilliantly, his reaction time to the gun of 0.124 secs the best in the field, before Gemili - who only a few weeks ago at the national trials looked a shadow of the athlete who finished fourth over 200m in Rio - powered down the back straight.
With each baton change exemplary, Talbot backed up the personal best he ran in the individual 200m with a fine bend, before Mitchell-Blake held his nerve and form to keep 100m silver medallist Christian Coleman at bay.
Not since GB's team won gold at the Athens Olympics 13 years ago have they delivered in such glorious style, the display a vindication for both the practice the team have put in and the closeness between the individual components.
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CJ Ujah: "I am proud of these guys and those behind the scenes. It is crazy to do this in London. I can't even talk right now."
Adam Gemili: "We are world champs! To run it with Danny Talbot after such disappointment in London 2012, it is so special to come back. Thank you to everyone. It's crazy. Honestly a dream and a reality tonight. Wow!"
Danny Talbot: "2012 didn't go our way and we have been working hard since then. It's a massive team effort and we win as a team and lose as a team. We are world champions at home. We will never get this feeling again."
Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake: "I wasn't sure if I had won or not, I gave it my all but I could see Christian Coleman out of the corner of my eye. The feeling of euphoria was from infinity. I can't register it. We smashed the British record to pieces."
Jamaica had been in third when Bolt took the baton, and the Usain of old would have believed he could have chased his rivals down.
But in his valedictory season, the three-time Olympic 100m and 200m champion is no longer the force he was, even as his draw remains undimmed.
And 50m down the straight, he grimaced and pulled up before collapsing into his lane, his fall lost in the bedlam for the British triumph.
Few had seen the greatest career in athletics history ending like this, and Bolt must now regret not stepping away after his three golds in Rio.
Along with Farah, he has been the untouchable, unbeaten star of the last decade, but the mantle - and the baton - has now passed to the next generation.
Eight-time world champion Michael Johnson on BBC One
This wasn't a win where the USA dropped the baton or Jamaica ran out of the zone - Great Britain beat everyone fair and square. That was an amazing performance in front of a crowd that has been wanting a gold medal.
They delivered it on a night where everyone was here maybe not necessarily to see this - but it is an amazing story for a team who worked really hard.
Adam Gemili was just ridiculous down the back stretch. He opened such up a gap that was always going to be hard for anyone to chase down.
This is a special gift to this crowd and for those guys to go out there and put on a performance like that is fantastic. They deserve this.
Daryll Neita, who held off Jamaica by 0.07 on the anchor leg, said: "We smashed it. We worked so hard for this.
"I tried my best down that last stretch and I'm glad to bring the team home to silver. We work so hard as a team so we are delighted."
Dina Asher-Smith, who finished an agonising fourth over 200m after an injury-hit season, added: "To upgrade from Olympic bronze to world silver with these girls has been absolutely incredible, and to do it at home means so much." | Great Britain's men claimed a stunning 4x100m relay gold at the World Championships as Usain Bolt pulled up injured in his final ever race. | 40913478 |
Iraqi-born, this year she was the first woman to receive the Royal Institute of British Architects (Riba) Gold Medal in recognition of her work.
She died following a heart attack on Thursday in a Miami hospital, where she was being treated for bronchitis.
Her designs have been commissioned around the world, including Hong Kong, Germany and Azerbaijan.
Collecting her Gold Medal in February, Dame Zaha said she was proud to have been the first woman to win in her own right.
"We now see more established female architects all the time," she said.
"That doesn't mean it's easy. Sometimes the challenges are immense. There has been tremendous change over recent years and we will continue this progress."
Dame Zaha's other creations include the Serpentine Sackler Gallery in London, the Riverside Museum at Glasgow's Museum of Transport, and Guangzhou Opera House in China.
She twice won the Riba Stirling Prize, the UK's most prestigious architecture award. In 2010 she won for the Maxxi Museum in Rome, winning again in 2011 for the Evelyn Grace Academy in Brixton.
Born in Baghad, she studied maths at the American University of Beirut - where she later designed a building on campus which was completed in 2014 - before embarking on her career at the Architectural Association in London.
In 1979 she set up her own company - Zaha Hadid Architects.
Her first major commission to be constructed was the Vitra Fire Station in Weil am Rhein in Germany.
The striking London Acquatics Centre in Stratford, which resembles a wave, features two 50-metre pools and a diving pool. After being used for the Olympics and Paralympics it was opened to the public in 2014.
"I love the London Aquatics Centre because it's near where I live," Dame Zaha said at the time.
London Mayor Boris Johnson wrote on Twitter: "So sad to hear of death of Zaha Hadid, she was an inspiration and her legacy lives on in wonderful buildings in Stratford and around the world."
She designed one of the stadiums that will take centre stage at the Qatar World Cup in 2022.
Last year, however, the Japanese government scrapped plans to build the futuristic-looking stadium she designed for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, opting instead for a scaled-down, less costly design.
Riba president Jane Duncan said: "This is absolutely terrible news. Dame Zaha Hadid was an inspirational woman, and the kind of architect one can only dream of being.
"Visionary and highly experimental, her legacy despite her young age, is formidable. She leaves behind a body of work from buildings to furniture, footwear and cars, that delight and astound people all around the world. The world of architecture has lost a star today."
Dame Zaha Hadid was an extraordinary human being. She was not only one of Britain's greatest architects, but one of the world's great architects of the 21st Century and late 20th Century.
She was most famous in the UK for the Aquatic Centre for the 2012 Olympic Games and for Maggie's Centres in Scotland.
She won the Stirling Prize for architecture twice and was the first woman to win the Pritzker Prize for architecture - Dame Zaha was an extraordinary woman considering where she came from and what she made of her career.
It was very much a man's world but she was determined to shape it and bend into the way she saw it, into Zaha Hadid's world.
Her architecture was modern and futuristic with very noticeable sensuous lines, she brought a femininity to Modernism.
Dame Zaha always had a problem in Britain to be taken as seriously as she should have been.
People tried to knock her quite a lot and she didn't get the commissions she thought she should. She was very frustrated by that especially as she traded very well overseas. I don't know what the reason for that is but it wasn't because she wasn't a great architect.
Her legacy is to prove what can be done; that you can be a Baghdad-born British citizen who can cut through all the red tape, all the machismo, all the macho behaviour and become an internationally-respected architect who creates buildings which will stand the test of time.
And Dame Zaha will be seen as a leading light for any architect, especially female architects who have come from abroad and are living in Britain, to show that they can succeed in this country even through all the brickbats you receive along the way. | Architect Dame Zaha Hadid, whose designs include the London Olympic Aquatic Centre, has died aged 65. | 35936768 |
But these are not normal times in Greece and such cases have been making national television bulletins.
In a soulless white concrete court building, leaders of the I Won't Pay movement have been turning routine eviction proceedings into the frontline in a popular fight-back against austerity.
The protesters - noisy and feisty but non-violent when we saw them - turn out in force to block the progress of cases where banks seek to repossess houses where loans have fallen into arrears.
It can be a short, dramatic and effective piece of direct action.
On the afternoon we went to court, the demonstrators, chanting and cheering, crowded onto the judicial benches and spilled over into the witness box.
A lawyer representing one bank found himself hemmed in and surrounded, unable to make his case because he was unable to make himself heard.
The case was adjourned and the housing activists cheered and whistled what they saw as a rare victory for ordinary Greek people over a kind of international machinery of austerity.
One of the leaders, Ilias Papadopoulous, said: "More than half of the Greek people live in poverty below the level where they have any dignity. The government won't protect them so we are here to protect them."
The victory, of course, isn't final - it's hard to believe that the bank will give up on its money and its reasonable to assume that its lawyer will be back in court one day soon.
But the case provided an insight into the popular mood in a country worn down by years of austerity.
Even the European Commissioner for Finance Pierre Moscovici has spoken of the need to provide the Greek people with some kind of light at the end of the austerity tunnel. He's even pronounced himself "hopeful" on the issue.
But it is hard to find many Greek people who share in his share of optimism.
In a week in Athens I met a couple planning to emigrate in search of work immediately after their wedding next month, the manager of a TV station whose staff have not been paid for months and a young man with an MBA working as a taxi-driver, who told us he saw "absolutely no hope" for the future.
So the mood could hardly be bleaker as the Greek government prepares for another round in its apparently never-ending dance with its main international creditors - the eurozone and the IMF.
Greece is hoping that the previous formula whereby it signed up to painful economic reforms in return for phased bailouts might now be relaxed.
Why is Greece back in the headlines?
Greece: EU and IMF in 'common position'
In big picture terms, the Greek position remains dauntingly bad.
Its ratio of debt to GDP - how much it owes compares to how much it earns - stands at an eye-watering 180% and its long term hope has to be that at some point at least some of that debt will be written off.
In the short term though that's highly unlikely. The leaders of the eurozone face elections this year in the Netherlands, France and Germany - not a good moment to tell their taxpayers that they will not be getting their money back from Greece.
And the IMF, which is sympathetic to a write-off, would only want to see it happen in the context of further structural reforms which would try the patience of the Greek voters to breaking point.
"The idea of reform has become toxic in Greece," says Nick Malkoutzis, editor of the influential economic intelligence website MacroPolis, "because when the other side says, 'This is what you need to do in order to put your economy on a better footing', what the average Greek hears is that 'I'm going to take another hit in my pocket'".
The Greek government, though, senses a moment of opportunity in a world where its debt crisis has been overshadowed at least for now by the dramas of Brexit and the election of US President Donald Trump.
They intend to push for a different framework for negotiations with their creditors where in future on direct concessions on pension reform would be balanced out by, for example, a possible tax cut.
Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Georgios Katrougalos calculates that what he calls a global elite which has already suffered a series of shocks in recent months won't want to resist provoking the anger of the Greek people.
"There is a general disenchantment in Europe," he told me, "especially in Greece because we have been hit harder by austerity.
"So the real question now is how to reverse austerity and I think there is hope in that because I think that the elite know they can't govern as they did before - the election of Trump shows that and shows the people won't consent to be governed as they were before."
We will not know if the minister's calculation is correct until Greece begins formal negotiations with its creditors again.
If he's right then perhaps the pervasive mood of gloom in Greece might begin to lift - but for now when Greeks hear talk about "light at the end of the tunnel" they feel the tunnel remains dauntingly long and the light remains frustratingly dim. | In normal times, in a normal country, court proceedings over mortgage arrears would not be the stuff of headline news. | 39080435 |
Northern Ireland's world number two is recovering from a stress fracture of his rib and had already withdrawn from next week's Dubai Desert Classic.
Four-time major winner McIlroy, 27, is in the early stages of rehabilitation and has been able to start putting.
His planned return comes just a month before the Masters.
He will aim to complete the career Grand Slam at Augusta, the one major he has yet to win.
McIlroy complained about back pain during this month's South Africa Open, at which he lost in a play-off to England's Graeme Storm.
He played in Johannesburg with his back taped up and having taken anti-inflammatory tablets. | Rory McIlroy will miss next month's Genesis Open and Honda Classic and hopes to make his comeback from injury at the WGC event in Mexico in March. | 38733872 |
The bank is apologising to customers trying to login to its online banking which, for many, was unavailable.
It said it was working with the authorities to "pursue the criminals responsible".
The final Friday in January is payday for lots of people and is also two days ahead of a key deadline for paying tax.
Sunday is the last day for filing self-assessment tax forms online and is when millions of the self-employed and others settle their tax bill with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Late payments face a 3% interest charge from HMRC, but the tax authority said there were many different payment options that could be used by the end of 31 January.
"Where taxpayers need information from their HSBC account, and they are currently unable to access this they can include an estimate in their return in order to file by 31 January. They have 12 months from the date they file to amend this with the correct information," a spokesman for HMRC said.
HSBC said that no customer details had been compromised by the attack and that it was "working closely with law enforcement authorities to pursue the criminals responsible".
"HSBC internet banking came under a denial of service attack this morning, which affected personal banking websites in the UK," said a spokesman for the bank.
"HSBC has successfully defended against the attack, and customer transactions were not affected. We are working hard to restore services, and normal service is now being resumed. We apologise for any inconvenience this incident may have caused."
The service had not resumed for most customers by mid-afternoon and the bank confirmed it was still working on a complete fix.
Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks work by overloading websites or other online services with traffic. They have the power to knock whole sites offline.
Victims of such attacks in the last month include the Irish National Lottery and the BBC. Banks are said to face these attacks on a daily basis, according to banking sources, and some of the High Street names have seen their websites affected.
It is not the first time this month that HSBC customers have faced a suspension of the service. HSBC customers faced two days of problems with online banking at the start of January.
The upheaval on that occasion was blamed on "a complex technical issue within our systems" by the bank.
More significant payment failures last summer at HSBC were this week revealed to have been the result of a backlog caused by a mega-payment sent to BACS - the system that processes electronic payments in the UK - exceeding the £1bn limit placed on the system.
Many banks suffer technical glitches with online banking, but the speed with which these issues are resolved is often the key source of concern for customers.
Your comments
Russell Ellis emails: I am in the Ukraine and was supposed to transfer funds to Germany to complete on house today!
Wanda Reece, Montchevrier France: I receive my monthly private pension into my UK account and transfer it, online, into my French account. In "normal" circumstances it will be in my French account by the afternoon. Not today though. This has left me with no money in the bank to buy food for the weekend, and if it takes much longer, bills will not be paid either.
Sujata Rath is still having problems: I've been trying to log in to my account since this morning but couldn't get through. Telephone lines are constantly on hold. When can I access my account?
An employer who wanted to remain anonymous comments: I have been overdrawn twice due to this problem. I will now go overdrawn again due to this issue. I have multiple accounts with HSBC and am now beginning to think about transferring all my accounts to another bank. I cannot have all my employees going without wages for the third time now in nine months. | HSBC says it "successfully defended" an attack on its online banking system but services were disrupted on a key day for many people's personal finances. | 35438159 |
European Commission vice president Kristalina Georgieva said "every effort" was being made to avoid this scenario.
She was speaking after Tony Blair predicted a UK vote to leave the EU would lead to Scottish independence.
The UKIP leader Nigel Farage said this was a "scare tactic" that would not work.
A referendum on UK membership of the EU is due to be held by the end of 2017.
Prime Minister David Cameron could call the vote as early as June if he secures revised terms of UK membership at next month's meeting of EU leaders.
Mr Cameron is due to continue his renegotiation talks later when the president of the European Council Donald Tusk visits Downing Street.
Earlier this week, former prime minister Tony Blair told French radio that if the UK voted to leave the EU, Scotland would vote to leave the UK.
Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has previously said the EU referendum could create the circumstances for another vote on Scottish independence.
In Brussels, Kristalina Georgieva told the BBC's Sunday Politics Scotland that the UK would lose more than it would gain by leaving the EU.
"You will have a very high opportunity cost of this decision" she said.
"I think it would be best if we concentrate to make sure that the UK - a beloved member of our family - stays in the family".
The commissioner did not want to speculate on how the EU might deal with the UK voting to leave and Scotland voting to remain.
"We make every effort for the Scottish people not to have to face a choice between Britain and the EU" she said. "So, that is not a choice that we would like to ever face."
UKIP leader Nigel Farage rejected the idea that leaving the EU would fuel demands for Scottish independence.
"I think this is another scare tactic" he said.
"You know, if we vote to leave the EU the United Kingdom will break up. We'll all be living in poverty.
"We've heard all this stuff before and I don't think it's going to work." | A top EU official has said Scotland should not have to choose between membership of the UK and the EU. | 35454450 |
While White House advisor Kellyanne Conway recently complained that the media have an "obsession with covering everything he says on Twitter and very little of what he does as president", Mr Trump is the pot-stirrer-in-chief, who has the power to drive debate and shape events.
Words, whether spoken or tweeted, have consequences. The president's Monday morning fusillade about his immigration policy is no exception. Here are five things we learned.
The lynchpin of the White House's defence of Mr Trump's two controversial immigration executive orders that set restrictions on immigration from a handful of majority-Muslim nations was that they had no connection to the anti-Muslim travel ban candidate Trump proposed back in December 2015.
The executive actions, they argued, constituted temporary restrictions and not a "ban", Muslim or otherwise.
The president has occasionally undercut that defence, by using the b-word in the past - leaving his aides to clean up the mess.
"It's not a Muslim ban. It's not a travel ban," Press Secretary Sean Spicer said back in January. "It's a vetting system to keep America safe."
On Monday morning, however, Mr Trump applied kerosene to that defence, set it ablaze and danced around its ashes.
"People, the lawyers and the courts can call it whatever they want," he tweeted, "but I am calling it what we need and what it is, a TRAVEL BAN."
Speaking of the judicial branch, the president on Monday morning went on the attack against the US legal system, calling the courts "slow and political".
The line is reminiscent of one of the president's more inflammatory tweets, when he lashed out against the federal judge who struck down his original immigration order.
"The opinion of this so-called judge, which essentially takes law-enforcement away from our country, is ridiculous and will be overturned!" he tweeted on 4 February.
The following day he issued an even more ominous warning, tweeting that the judge put the nation in peril and "if something bad happens blame him and the court system".
According to one theory, advanced by Lawfare blog's Jack Goldsmith, Mr Trump's seemingly ill-considered comments are all part of a plan to get the courts to strike down his immigration orders, freeing him to blame the judiciary for any subsequent attacks.
It may, however, be just another case of "what you see is what you get" with Mr Trump. He has feuded with judges throughout his professional life, including criticising the Mexican heritage of the man who was presiding over a lawsuit against his for-profit "university" during last year's presidential campaign.
President Trump is the same as candidate Trump is the same as businessman/TV star Trump. The stage may be different, but the man doesn't change.
Trump turns on his own
One of the more unusual components of Mr Trump's Monday morning diatribe was that he turned his Twitter invective on his own administration.
He lashed out at the Justice Department, headed by his close political confidant Jeff Sessions, for focusing its legal defence on what he called the "watered down, politically correct" second executive order on immigration and not the more sweeping first version that explicitly mentioned religion and caused confusion when it was first enforced at airport immigration checkpoints.
Justice Department lawyers have tried to decouple the second order from the original, arguing that it remedied the discriminatory portions of the earlier effort, clarified that those with legal residency were unaffected and focused exclusively on nations that had previously been determined to be of concern to US.
When the president signed that second order in early March, Spicer tweeted that it would "keep the nation safe".
"This revised order will bolster the security of the United States and our allies" Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said.
Now the president is bad-mouthing the very same action his aides had resolutely defended. He is clearly irked that his administration abandoned that first travel order, particularly after he told its critics that he would see them "in court".
If Mr Trump continues to casually undercut his own people, however, they'll be less willing to rush to his defence in the coming days - when the president may need them most.
Last week, for instance, multiple officials doggedly refused to say whether the president believes climate change is caused by human activity - a position most conservative officeholders, including the president's own Environmental Protection Agency head, accept. Such reluctance may be just a taste of things to come.
Why go out on a limb for a president who is standing by the tree with a saw in hand?
The president also dusted off one of his favourite terms from the 2016 campaign - "extreme vetting" - which he said is helping "keep our country safe".
The original justification for the travel ban orders was that they were a temporary measure to allow a rigorous review process to be instituted for all individuals entering the US. The first action's time frame for implementation was 90 days - which would have set the mark at 27 April.
The second order, signed on 6 March, reset the 90-day clock again - a point that was reached on Sunday.
The Weekly Standard's Michael Warren reached out to the Trump White House for further clarification on what vetting measures had been put in place and was directed to the State Department, which has yet to give respond.
Before Monday morning the last time the president himself had mentioned "extreme vetting" was in mid-February, when he said it "will be put in place, and it already is in place in many places".
Now extreme vetting - as a term at least - is back. But what is it? And if it's already in place, doesn't that erase the justification for implementing the travel ban?
It might - unless, of course, the ban was never intended to be temporary. That's a question the "slow and political" courts are likely to consider.
The president's social media onslaught comes after the latest round of stories about how the president was going to be more disciplined and focused, and less prone to Twitter tirades. Mr Trump's lawyers, we were told, were counselling him to tamp things down, lest his comments land him in more hot water.
The president has apparently disregarded this advice yet again and is trying his best to fight old battles and rekindle old feuds.
Why? Perhaps it's because there is a very dark storm cloud on the horizon. On Thursday former FBI Director James Comey - the man Mr Trump dramatically fired and has since very publicly insulted - will testify under oath before a Senate inquiry into Russia's meddling in the US presidential election. He's expected to discuss reports that the president asked him to pledge his loyalty and pressured him to back off from his investigation of Trump foreign policy advisor Michael Flynn.
Given Mr Comey's reputation for political independence and morale certitude - combined with the possibility that he has contemporaneous memos documenting his interactions with the president - the testimony could be disastrous for the White House.
At the very least, it will be a spectacle the likes of which Washington has not seen in decades.
The president could be eager to change the subject or, at the very least, deflect some attention. If so, the past few days of Twitter invective could be just the start. | The London Bridge attacks set Donald Trump off on an extended Twitter rant over the past few days, reviving his calls for sweeping immigration action and renewing old feuds with Democrats, gun-control advocates and even the mayor of London. | 40138441 |
Sir Ian Wood said that if prices stayed where they were then more tax breaks would be needed to ensure continued investment in the North Sea.
He said crude prices below $50 a barrel were unsustainable.
There have been recent concerns expressed that prices could slip to as low as $30 a barrel.
The economic slowdown in China is seen as a major factor.
Sir Ian told the BBC: "The industry is right now facing as tough a time as it has ever faced.
"I think government and industry must get together and talk about the tax regime.
"There must be some clever thinking to incentivise investment.
"Otherwise we will not be in a position to take advantage of the upturn."
Earlier this month, the lower oil price forced Premier Oil to re-negotiate its debt conditions with lenders. | Oil firms are facing some of their toughest times due to the latest falls in the price of crude, a leading industry figure has said. | 34084437 |
Liz Skelcher was feeding her 11-week-old daughter, Evie, in Nando's when the incident happened last week.
Nando's says it is a breastfeeding-friendly restaurant that welcomes nursing mothers.
But it was other female customers who targeted their abuse at Ms Skelcher, who described the experience as both intimidating and upsetting.
Speaking to BBC's Talkback programme, Ms Skelcher said: "I was in the restaurant with my partner and mother-in-law when Evie woke up and needed a feed, so I lifted her and latched her on discreetly.
"There were three young women at the next table and one, in particular, seemed to have an issue with me feeding Evie.
"She told me we were putting her off her food and that it was disgusting to feed a baby in a restaurant.
"She kept mouthing off in front of her friends and when my partner asked what her problem was, she said she didn't want to see my breasts when she was eating her dinner."
Ms Skelcher explained the situation to a manager, who, she said, was sympathetic and stressed to the other customers that women are "more than entitled" to breastfeed anywhere in Nandos, Belfast Live reported.
However, when the manager of the Victoria Square restaurant invited the three women to move to a different table if they felt offended, they refused.
Ms Skelcher's group was then offered another table, but they also refused.
"I felt like I hadn't done anything wrong, in fact I had specifically selected a table in a quiet corner of the restaurant so that I could be discreet.
"It's not a display, it's not exhibitionism - it's just me trying to feed my daughter quietly."
SDLP MLA Claire Hanna said more protection was needed for mothers like Ms Skelcher.
Ms Hanna has proposed new legislation which would protect the rights of mothers and babies to feed in public and help promote the benefits of breastfeeding.
"Breastfeeding mothers and their babies are protected by legislation in the UK and Ireland, but there is no specific protective legislation in Northern Ireland," she told Talkback.
Ms Hanna said her bill would be modelled on recent Scottish legislation, which "created a clear and easily-cited piece of legislation for any mother or business owner to rely upon if challenged about breastfeeding in a public place".
"Part of the problem is that those young women aren't seeing other women breastfeeding in public enough in Northern Ireland. There's a cultural and attitudinal problem that needs to be addressed."
A Nando's spokesperson said: "We always encourage our staff to welcome breastfeeding mums in our restaurants." | A mother has spoken out about the verbal abuse she received for breastfeeding in a Belfast restaurant. | 37939718 |
Titled Life on the Road, the movie, unveiled in London, is a spin-off from the hit BBC TV series The Office.
While some critics thought it "excruciatingly brilliant", others judged it a "slowly unfolding disappointment".
The movie sees the former office manager now selling cleaning products but dreaming he is a rock star.
He decides to pursue his goal of stardom by touring with his self-funded band Foregone Conclusion.
As part of the movie's launch, Gervais performed on a makeshift stage in Leicester Square as his smarmy alter ego with his fake band.
The film is released in UK cinemas on 19 August. Here is a selection of the critics' opinions:
Robbie Collin - the Daily Telegraph (4*)
"If Gervais was working with more resources here than he was 13 years ago, there's zero evidence of it on screen. Happily, what's in no short supply is the same mix of uproarious failure and sledgehammer pathos that Brent at his best was always all about."
Sean O'Grady - The Independent (4*)
"If you have missed Brent, more or less absent from our screens in the 12 years since the last episode of the original The Office series was run, then you will be pleased to learn that he is back, and more grotesque, more embarrassing, and more humiliated by life than ever."
Henry Barnes - The Guardian (2*)
"It's clear from early on that this is a Ricky Gervais solo outing. The moderating influence of his Office co-creator Stephen Merchant (not involved - something about 'schedules') is missing, leaving a patchy comedy that lacks discipline. The mockumentary format, used so brilliantly in the original show, goes for a wander once the action gets going."
David Edwards - Daily Mirror (5*)
"Hilarious, horrifying and even heartbreaking - Ricky Gervais has made a movie that is somehow unmissable and often unwatchable at the same time... Not since Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat 10 years ago has there been a mockumentary that is so appalling funny."
Brian Viner - Daily Mail (2*)
"Alas, this big-screen 'mockumentary' sequel, written and directed by Gervais alone, is a slowly-unfolding disappointment. Comic characters conceived for TV very often misfire in the cinema, but there's an even more worrying development here as the line between Gervais and his embarrassing alter ego, Brent, becomes blurred."
Stephen Dalton - Hollywood Reporter
"This time around, Gervais is sole writer, director and star, and keeps the focus firmly on himself... Consequently, much of Life on the Road feels like the debut solo album by the lead singer of a once successful band, who is now surrounded by paid session musicians unwilling to challenge the boss over his substandard, self-indulgent coasting.
"David Brent remains an enduring comic grotesque, but this sporadically amusing big-screen resurrection is more cash-in reunion tour than killer comeback album."
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram at bbcnewsents, or email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk. | Ricky Gervais's feature film outing as David Brent has received mixed reviews following Wednesday's world premiere. | 37044396 |
Yn 2018 fe fydd yr ŵyl ieuenctid yn ymweld â Brycheiniog a Maesyfed, gyda'r maes wedi'i leoli ar safle'r Sioe Frenhinol yn Llanelwedd.
Llynedd cafodd Rhiannon Walker ei phenodi'n Swyddog Datblygu newydd y mudiad yn yr ardal, er mwyn hybu gwaith yr Urdd cyn y digwyddiad.
Mae hi eisoes wedi bron a threblu'r nifer sydd wedi cystadlu mewn cystadlaethau chwaraeon yn yr ardal - o 368 i 1,063 - gyda chynnydd hefyd yn nifer y cystadleuwyr yr eisteddfodau cylch a sir.
"Dros y flwyddyn ddiwethaf mae cynnydd mawr wedi bod yn ymhob elfen o waith yr Urdd yn yr ardal, ac mae'n deimlad gwych i weld," meddai wrth BBC Cymru Fyw.
"Yr adborth dwi'n ei gael gan athrawon a rhieni yn yr ardal, maen nhw'n dweud eu bod nhw wedi bod yn gofyn am fwy o weithgareddau'r Urdd ers blynyddoedd, a nawr maen nhw'n ei gael e.
"Dwi'n meddwl fod e wedi dod ar amser perffaith, achos nawr mae pobl mor gefnogol i bopeth ni'n neud yn yr ardal, yn enwedig codi arian tuag at yr Eisteddfod y flwyddyn nesaf."
Er yr her o geisio cynyddu gweithgaredd yr Urdd mewn ardal ble nad yw'r mudiad wedi bod mor gryf yn draddodiadol, mae Rhiannon Walker yn dweud nad yw'r swydd wedi bod yn un anodd.
"Yr oll mae pobl angen yw'r gefnogaeth yna, a bod gweithgareddau'n mynd ymlaen yn yr ardal," meddai.
"Mae'n rhaid bod wyneb yn yr ardal yna, allwch chi ddim jyst anfon e-bost neu ffonio a gobeithio fod pobl yn dod.
"Mae pobl yn gorfod dod i'ch nabod chi a gwybod fod pethau'n mynd mlaen, cael y pwynt cyswllt yna, a gwybod lle i fynd i gael y wybodaeth yna."
Er y bydd lleoliad y maes yn un cyfarwydd i rai ymwelwyr, mae Rhiannon Walker yn benderfynol y bydd yr Urdd yn rhoi eu stamp unigryw eu hunain ar y lle.
"Dyna'r her i ni, gwneud yn siwr fod y maes yn edrych fel Eisteddfod yn hytrach na mynd i'r Sioe," meddai.
"Bydd dim pebyll yn cael eu codi ar y maes, byddwn ni'n defnyddio'r adeiladau sydd yno, ond bydd ardal Pentre Mistar Urdd gyda'r ffair a'r ardal chwaraeon i gyd yr un peth ar y maes.
"Bydd e'n deimlad gwahanol. Ond bydd popeth ry'n ni angen yno'n barod felly bydd e'n wych yna dwi'n siwr." | Bydd "teimlad gwahanol" i Eisteddfod yr Urdd yn 2018 o'i gymharu â'r arfer, yn ôl un o swyddogion y mudiad sydd yn gweithio yn yr ardal. | 40134121 |
Selman's unbeaten 116 anchored Glamorgan's pursuit of 266 in 51 overs, before hitting 14 off the first three balls of the last over.
Four wickets for debutant spinner George Harding also kept Durham in the hunt in the evening gloom.
Paul Collingwood declared when he was on 92 not out to set up a competitive contest.
The Durham captain was set to record his second century of the match, but brought an end to the innings after bad light and rain cost an hour of play after lunch.
Earlier Graham Clark took his first-class best to 72 while Ryan Pringle made a hard-hit 41, but two wickets apiece for Michael Hogan and Andrew Salter prevented Durham accelerating too quickly before lunch.
Glamorgan reached 37-1 by tea, but the game exploded into life in the closing stages as Aneurin Donald hit 28 off 17 balls, Colin Ingram smashed 42 off 31 deliveries, and Chris Cooke 31 off 20.
Harding's mature display under pressure kept Durham's hopes alive deep into the last hour as both sides strove for their first win of the season.
But Selman, who had never hit a professional six before this innings, took on the responsibility as he cleared the ropes twice with the first two balls of the last over before running a two to complete the chase.
Glamorgan batsman Nick Selman told BBC Wales Sport:
"It was good to get a win and to bat that well puts us in good stead in the future, everyone played a role and it was good to get over the line.
"We wanted to keep wickets in hand, then play it as a one-dayer with a game plan of right-handers coming in against the spin, me and Chris Cooke played well to get it that deep and to finish it off was great.
"The boys reminded me I'd never hit a six so it was good to clear the fence and whack a few."
Durham captain Paul Collingwood told BBC Newcastle:
"We could have batted longer and batted for the draw but the position we're in [with a points deduction], if something special's going to happen this year we have to take the odd risk.
"We knew we'd have to give them a chance, and for a game to go down to the last over with all three results possible.
"It was a good game - unfortunately we came off on the wrong end of it but there's no shame in trying to win matches." | Nick Selman's century took Glamorgan to an unlikely three-wicket win over Durham in a dramatic finish in Swansea. | 40079895 |
Germany midfielder Sami Khedira controlled Paul Pogba's pinpoint pass with his chest to fire in a stunning volley from 15 yards on 10 minutes.
Pogba added the second after break, eluding his marker at the far post to bundle in Alvaro Morata's flick.
On-loan Chelsea winger Juan Cuadrado whipped in from 18 yards, before Simone Padoin slid in a late fourth.
Juve are nine points clear of second-placed Napoli with five games left.
Massimiliano Allegri's team could clinch the Scudetto at Fiorentina next weekend - if Napoli drop points against Bologna on Tuesday and Juve beat Lazio on Wednesday.
However, Juve could be without Italy midfielder Claudio Marchisio for the run-in after he was taken off on a stretcher with a knee injury.
Meanwhile, Francesco Totti came off the bench to score a late equaliser for Champions League-chasing Roma in a thrilling 3-3 draw at Atalanta.
The 39-year-old forward earned a potentially vital point for the Giallorossi when he drilled in with five minutes remaining.
Roma led 2-0 after strikes from France left-back Lucas Digne and Belgium midfielder Radja Nainggolan, but Luciano Spalletti's side allowed the bottom-half hosts back into the game.
Former Roma midfielder Marco D'Alessandro reduced the deficit on 33 minutes, before Marco Borriello - another ex-Giallorossi player - netted twice after the break to put Atalanta ahead.
However, Roma legend Totti - whose contract expires at the end of the season - levelled just eight minutes after replacing Daniele De Rossi.
Third-place Roma remain in Serie A's final Champions League spot, although Inter Milan are only four points behind with five games left.
Fiorentina remain on course to clinch Europa League qualification after Paulo Sousa's fifth-placed side won 3-1 against Sassuolo.
At the other end of the table, Frosinone boosted their survival hopes by nicking an injury-time 2-1 win at bottom club Verona, while fifth-bottom Udinese are five points clear of the relegation zone after a goalless draw against Chievo. | Juventus moved within touching distance of a fifth successive Serie A title by cruising past lowly Palermo. | 36028911 |
Neath Road in Hafod is long and narrow which means at busy times and in warmer weather, air cannot escape.
Air, traffic and weather monitoring equipment will send messages to electronic signs in the city telling traffic to use other routes when pollution reaches higher levels.
The system has been trialled in Sweden.
In the short term, motorists will be asked to use alternative routes, but plans are in place to create a relief road in the next few years.
John Hague, Swansea council's cabinet member for the environment: "We have been monitoring air quality in the Hafod part of the city for many years after declaring the area an air quality management area.
"The latest plan will enable us to monitor traffic flows on main routes into and out of the city through Hafod, along with monitoring air quality.
"The data collected will be used to inform motorists about alternative routes during their journey. This should help improve air quality along the routes."
The section of Neath Road that is affected runs from the Liberty Stadium to the traffic lights at Dyfatty.
It is mostly a narrow street with terraced housing and shops running virtually all the way along it on both sides.
It has suffered for a number of years with traffic problems and Hafod has been designated as an air quality management area since 2001 because pollution in the air exceeds safe levels.
Heavy goods vehicles are already banned from driving on the road in 1999, and speed bumps were removed in 2007 to help ease traffic flow.
Buses have also been diverted from Neath Road to another road running alongside.
The new system, known as the "Swansea Nowcaster System" will be able to measure the traffic flow, air quality and weather in real time.
It will use all the information together to determine if the pollution levels are likely to break European restrictions within a few hours.
The software, which is being tailored for use in Swansea, will then be able to send messages to electronic road signs near to Neath Road which warn people to use other routes.
The whole project is costing around £100,000 and is expected to start in the next few weeks.
Swansea council says this is the first time in the UK that such a scheme has been used.
"The problem has got worse over the last few years," said councillor Rob Speht, who serves the Landore ward.
"Neath Road is a very built-up residential area. The houses are continuous along each side creating a canyon effect.
"As the cars go along the road, particularly going slowly at peak times and if it's not very breezy, a lot of the exhaust emissions cannot escape.
"It's quite dangerous for residents who live there."
The EU restricts emissions of nitrogen dioxide and other pollutants because of their health impacts. Very high levels can cause inflammation of the lungs.
In 1999, the EU set an objective for every member state to lower nitrogen dioxide levels to fewer than 40 micrograms per cubic metre of air by 2010.
But many EU countries, including the UK, had problems meeting this deadline and were granted extensions until 2015.
Mr Speht said "several times" a year the emissions along Neath Road break the law.
A relief road, known as the Morfa Distributor Road, is being planned and will run from the Liberty Stadium along the River Tawe to a new housing development behind phase two of Parc Tawe shopping outlet.
It is hoped the road, which is driven by private developments, would open in the next couple of years and act as an alternative route to Neath Road.
See an air quality webcam of Neath Road in Hafod, Swansea | A main road into Swansea city centre is to have traffic diverted elsewhere to stop it breaking European pollution levels. | 16924170 |
Subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services such as Amazon's have sent shockwaves through the broadcast world, as they gain millions of new viewers each year and produce ever more of their own award-winning content.
Netflix, the market leader, is now in over 15% of British homes, while Amazon's market share is about 5%.
And new technologies that let us watch what we want on whatever device we want are transforming traditional television viewing habits.
According to UK regulator Ofcom, household subscriptions to the top SVOD services - Netflix, Amazon Prime and Sky Now - shot up from 4.2 million to six million in the 12 months to March.
Forecasts from Mintel suggest that UK streaming video subscription revenues will rocket from £437m to £1.17bn between 2014 and 2019 as users more than double.
199m
estimated households by 2020
65m Netflix
40m Amazon Prime
9m Hulu
750,000 Sky Now TV
For the broadcasters, this comes at a time when the number of people who own a TV set is falling in the UK and the long-term viability of the licence fee is in question.
Research from media consultancy SNL Kagan has also found that in the US, take-up of cable, satellite and other pay-TV services is falling fast as lower-cost SVODs undercut them.
Mark Mulligan, an analyst at media consultancy Midia, says that Netflix and Amazon have big advantages over broadcasters in their ability to target programmes at specific audiences and lavish budgets "measured in the billions" on their productions.
"A traditional cable company has to worry about filling entire programming schedules of a vast selection of channels - SVOD companies have no schedules at all," he says.
"So they can afford to be highly selective about what they want to commission and then pay over the odds to get it."
Last year, director of BBC television, Danny Cohen, admitted the corporation had been "blown out of the water" when bidding against Netflix in one deal.
And Mr Clarkson's new driving show on Amazon Prime - with its global subscriber base of 40 million - is reported to have a budget of about £160m for just three seasons.
No wonder Amazon founder Jeff Bezos recently admitted that the show will be "very, very, very expensive".
The difficulty for SVOD services in the past was that you could only watch the programmes on a laptop or desktop, which meant they weren't ideal for collective family viewing.
Now internet-enabled smart TVs are bridging the gap, and new technologies, such as Amazon's Fire Stick and Google's Chromecast, are enabling viewers to beam content wirelessly from any connected device to their TV sets with relative ease.
Many cable TV services, such as Virgin's Tivo, also offer Netflix as part of their packages, again widening access.
But SVOD's Achilles heel is currently internet bandwidth - or lack of it.
Average download speeds in the UK are still around 23 megabits per second (Mbps), so viewing SVOD on more than one device at the same time can lead to jerky, stuttering pictures, says Michael Underhill, an analyst at media consultancy Enders.
When you think about all the connected devices in the average home fighting for a share of bandwidth, ultrafast wi-fi connections - 100Mbps and above - are likely to be needed for SVOD to continue its rapid growth.
And it's important to put SVOD growth numbers in context.
Such services accounted for about 3% of total UK viewing in 2014, while around 90% went to live, recorded and on-demand television - the domains of the traditional broadcasters and cable channels.
"For all the impressive headlines that companies like Netflix and Amazon generate, they are still only used by a minority of the population," says Enders' Mr Underhill.
"While Netflix dramas like House of Cards generate a lot of attention, the majority of viewing on these platforms goes to existing broadcast content," he adds.
"So the content that people like the BBC and ITV have funded and created has gone some way to making Netflix as popular as it is."
For now, SVOD platforms are mostly a "complementary" form of viewing, says Ofcom, used primarily to access films and US TV shows.
They also face fierce competition from mainstream and cable channels, which are themselves offering new digital services, not to mention from recorded TV and free video-on-demand services like YouTube.
"SVOD is just one reflection of an overall media landscape that's in the midst of fundamental change," says Phil Stokes, a media expert at PwC.
"In part, the traditional broadcasters are capitalising on changing viewing habits and the opportunities from technology by launching their own time-shifted catch-up channels, families of channels, mobile apps and video platforms."
Another point Mr Underhill makes is that services like Netflix have largely produced dramas which, despite critical acclaim, do not attract the mega audiences of shows like Downton Abbey or Strictly Come Dancing.
"Platforms like Netflix have shown no interest in commissioning shows like the X-Factor or The Only Way is Essex or Springwatch, or indeed live sport or news," he says.
"In these areas TV broadcasting companies are producing the bulk of content and accounting for a large share of audiences."
"Whereas Top Gear will likely reinvent itself after a few years without Clarkson, it is much less likely that Clarkson's brand will be as robust after a few years hidden behind the online pay walls of an SVOD service," believes Midia's Mark Mulligan.
While Chris Evans may not need to be too worried just yet, PwC's Phil Stokes warns that broadcasters cannot afford to be complacent.
"They must innovate constantly," he says. | When former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson revealed he would be making a new show on Amazon Prime after being dropped by the BBC, his successor, Chris Evans, must have felt a little nervous. | 34050865 |
GMB union said the university planned to stop the £142,000 a year it pays to run the day nursery and play scheme.
The union said the move would have a negative impact on women in the workplace and student parents.
The university said the nursery was heavily subsidised and it was consulting with staff and users on an alternative way of operating it.
GMB said the current makeup of nursery users was 43% staff, 31% students and 26% community users.
A spokeswoman said closing the nursery would impact on staff, largely women, who were already facing job cuts as part of savings announced by the university on Thursday.
"A potential closure of the provision will have a double negative impact on women in the workplace and students who have chosen to study at USW because of the on-site provision.
"Some students will potentially have to reconsider their learning if the play centre provision was to be removed.
"In addition, students studying at USW utilise play centre work placements to compliment their studies for courses at USW i.e. nursing and psychology."
The University of South Wales said it was a parent-friendly institution and it hoped funding support would always be available for student parents with financial hardship.
A spokesman added: "The current play centre provision on one of our campuses is heavily subsidised by the university and used by a relatively small number of staff, with a smaller proportion of students and community users.
"We are open to proposals for different operating models and are consulting on how it could be configured another way without that extra subsidy which comes ultimately from all students, including those on other campuses." | Funding for the children's nursery at University of South Wales' Treforest campus could be withdrawn. | 39467635 |
Oliver Mauricio Funes Machada, 18, was arrested after he alerted authorities himself and was still on the scene when Franklin County deputies arrived.
The teen was seen walking out of his house holding his mother's head in one hand and what appeared to be a large knife in the other, police said.
Mr Funes Machada was taken into custody and charged with first-degree murder.
Police found the body of 35-year-old Yesenia Funez Beatriz Machado inside the home along with two young girls, who were unharmed. A fourth child was at school.
Franklin County Sheriff's Office Chief of Staff Terry Wright said Ms Machado's husband arrived on the scene hours later.
"It's a terrible situation for the family, a terrible situation for the neighborhood and this county. I'm just glad things worked out the way they did and no one else was hurt in taking the suspect into custody," Mr Winstead said.
A motive for the killing is still unknown. | A teen in rural North Carolina has been charged with decapitating his mother in what police called a "gruesome scene". | 39198075 |
The clips, which sound like the Daleks from Doctor Who, can be difficult for humans to understand but still trigger a phone's voice control functionality.
The commands could make a smartphone share its location data, make calls and access compromised websites.
One security expert said users could switch off automatic voice recognition.
The researchers - from the University of California, Berkeley and Georgetown University - explored whether audio commands "unintelligible to human listeners" were still interpreted by smartphones as voice commands.
They took a series of voice commands, such as: "OK Google, call 911," which would activate an Android phone's voice control if enabled, and heavily distorted the audio so that it was difficult for human listeners to understand.
The low-pitched speech could be hidden among background noise and still trigger smartphone features.
"Our research was mostly geared towards answering the scientific question: can one leverage the differences in how computers and humans understand speech to produce commands that could be understood by the former and not by the latter?" said Micah Sherr, one of the researchers from Georgetown University.
"We found that the answer to this question is yes - but there's certainly a lot more work to be done to investigate what it would take to make these attacks more practically deployable.
"While the attack should be considered seriously - especially given the growing popularity of voice-only interfaces such as Amazon Echo, Apple Watch and Android Wear - we aren't trying to make the case that these attacks are easy to conduct."
The researchers have uploaded a sample of their garbled voices commands to YouTube, but have pointed out that the online clips may not activate a smartphone.
"The hidden voice commands are quite fragile. We tried to produce audio files that sit right on the intersection between what a human cannot understand and what a computer can understand," said Mr Sherr.
"Depending on the setup in your room, the quality of your loudspeaker, and the distance between the speaker and the smartphone, the audio might have been sufficiently 'pushed' in a direction that prevents computer understanding.
"Apple's Siri seems to be much more conservative as to what it accepts as human speech. Our attacks worked best against Google's app."
The team also highlighted that people found it easier to understand the garbled speech once they were aware of what was being said.
Although such an attack is unlikely to be deployed in the wild, Ken Munro from cybersecurity company Pen Test Partners said changing a smartphone's settings remained a good idea.
"It's a really interesting attack and serves to reinforce why it's so important to disable voice recognition without authentication," he told the BBC.
"It may be possible to broadcast obfuscated speech to get a mobile browser to visit a rogue web site, or dial a premium rate phone number that the hacker owns, creating large-scale fraud.
"It is easy to set up a phone to require authentication such as a fingerprint before the device will recognise voice commands. Do that, then the problem is fixed."
The researchers will present their paper at the Usenix Security Symposium in August. | Researchers have demonstrated how garbled speech commands hidden in radio or video broadcasts could be used to control a smartphone. | 36763902 |
The 20-year-old joined the Robins from Northern Ireland side Glentoran in August but has only featured once for the League One team.
He could make his debut for the Mariners in Saturday's home match against Wrexham.
Paul Hurst's men are currently third in the table, 14 points off league leaders Cheltenham with three games in hand. | Grimsby have signed Swindon striker Jordan Stewart on loan until the end of the season. | 35892571 |
Zhang Lidong and his daughter Zhang Fan were members of the banned Church of the Almighty God cult.
They were part of a group who attempted to recruit the 35-year-old victim, Wu Shuoyan, in the restaurant in the town of Zhaoyuan in May 2014.
When she refused to give her phone number, they beat her to death.
The Shandong Yantai Intermediate People's Court announced the Zhangs' execution on its Weibo account (in Chinese) on Monday morning, noting that the father and daughter had "committed murder and used a cult to intentionally break the law".
The group was found guilty in October last year. Three others were give jail sentences ranging from seven years to life imprisonment.
The court's statement said that Zhang Fan had asked Ms Wu for her contact details twice. When the victim refused, the group believed that she was "possessed by an evil spirit", and Zhang Fan threw a chair at her.
The rest of the group joined in the attack and beat her with mops brought by Zhang Lidong, who also stamped on Ms Wu's head and face. She died at the scene from her injuries.
Zhang Lidong said in an interview later that he believed Ms Wu was a demon and that "we had to destroy her".
Since the killing, which sparked public outrage, the Chinese authorities have detained hundreds of members of the cult.
The cult's core belief is that God has returned to earth as a Chinese woman to wreak the apocalypse. The only person who claims direct contact with this god is a former physics teacher, Zhao Weishan, who founded the cult 25 years ago and has since fled to the United States.
It claims on its website that it has millions of followers and says nearly 400,000 have been arrested between 2011 and 2014. | Two members of a cult in China have been executed for murdering a woman in a McDonald's restaurant in Shandong, according to a local court. | 31087839 |
They said they want to devise a new method of transferring pupils from primary schools within two years.
The party launched its assembly election manifesto on Thursday.
The UUP said successive Sinn Féin ministers have pushed for an end to academic selection, but there is no evidence that this would shorten the tail of underachievement.
Instead the Ulster Unionist manifesto says the party will pursue numeracy and literacy initiatives and provide extra help for children through a "book buddy" scheme.
They believe a new method of transferring Year 7 pupils should be based on continual assessment of pupils during the course of their primary education.
Last year, the party pulled out of the Northern Ireland Executive in a protest over IRA activity in the wake of the murder of Belfast man Kevin McGuigan.
The manifesto says they will rejoin the power sharing coalition, provided its programme for government is progressive, and there is a collective political will to deliver it.
The manifesto does not link the UUP's participation in government to the question of IRA activity. Instead, the party says it has engaged positively with the group established under the Fresh Start agreement to recommend ways to end paramilitary groups.
The Ulster Unionists say the next executive must prioritise tackling what they describe as the current "crippling hospital waits". They pledge to increase the number of GPs here by 400 over the next five years.
On the economy, the party pledges to implement a strategy to tackle the high level of economic inactivity in Northern Ireland. That strategy was drawn up for the last executive, but was not funded and so not implemented.
The party wants to celebrate the centenary of Northern Ireland in 2021 with new community facilities in each of the six counties.
They propose a centre piece could be a "people park", as a tribute to the famous people born in Northern Ireland or who have chosen to settle there.
They suggest the new park could be sited in the Titanic Quarter and argue that the cost to the public purse would be minimal as the development would be attractive to commercial and philanthropic funders.
"The main message of the manifesto is that we are offering real choice to the electorate on 5 May because we are now refreshed and we are, as it were, reborn," Ulster Unionist leader Mike Nesbitt said.
"We've gone through a bad period and now we're saying to the electorate we have the vision to make this work, we have the policies to make it work and we have the people in terms of our 33 candidates." | The Ulster Unionists say if they join the next Stormont executive their priority department will be education. | 36046119 |
At least seven people died and more than 50 were injured when the quake struck in the early hours of Sunday.
The magnitude six tremor, centred north of Bologna, destroyed or badly damaged many historic buildings.
Italian officials say the priority is to find safe accommodation for an estimate 3,000 displaced people.
Civil protection officials in the town of Finale Emilia organised the setting up of tents on a football pitch to accommodate hundreds of residents.
Many had seen their homes destroyed but others were simply too afraid to return home.
"The current situation is really tense but not dramatic," said co-ordinator Diego Gottarelli.
"People are obviously afraid of staying inside their homes so we are setting up these emergency camps to let them spend the night and maybe some days in a safe environment, until these earthquakes finally stop. We are trying to make the citizens feel safe."
In pictures: Italy earthquake
One woman said she just wanted her elderly parents to have shelter for the night.
"We are going to sleep in the car, it is not a problem for us. The important thing is that they (Civil Protection authorities) finish setting up the camp so that my parents can go inside," she said.
A 5.1 magnitude aftershock struck Sunday afternoon, destroying several buildings already weakened.
One firefighter was seriously injured after falling from a wall in Finale Emilia.
The original earthquake struck at a relatively shallow depth of 10km just after 04:00 local time (02:00 GMT) on Sunday.
Its epicentre was between the towns of Finale Emilia, San Felice sul Panaro and Sermide, about 35km (20 miles) north of the city of Bologna.
It was felt across a large swathe of northern Italy, as far away as the cities of Milan and Venice.
Italian TV showed many historic buildings reduced to rubble. Cars lay crushed under fallen masonry.
The roof of a recently renovated sixteenth-century chapel in San Carlo, near the city of Ferrara, collapsed, leaving statues of angels exposed to the elements.
Architect Claudio Fabbri told AFP news agency that the restoration had taken eight years, adding despondently: "Now there's nothing left to do."
Firefighters in Finale Emilia rescued a five-year-old girl from the rubble of a house after a series of phone calls between a local woman, a family friend in New York and emergency services, AP news agency reported.
Officials said that warehouses storing more than 300,000 wheels of Parmesan and Grana Padano cheese - with an estimated value of more than 250m euros (£200m; $320m) - also collapsed.
Stefano Berni, head of a consortium that protects the Grana Padano designation, told Ansa news agency: "It's a very heavy loss, but there have been no casualties, which is a great relief."
The victims included two workers at a ceramics factory in Sant'Agostino.
Another person - believed to be a Moroccan national - died in Ponte Rodoni do Bondeno and a worker in Tecopress di Dosso died when the roof of a foundry collapsed, local media reported.
Three women were also reported to have died as a result of heart attacks or other illness induced by the tremors.
Sunday's earthquake was the worst to hit Italy since the L'Aquila tremor killed nearly 300 people in 2009.
Northern Italy is frequently rocked by minor earthquakes, but the country is well-prepared to deal with them, the BBC's correspondent in Italy, Alan Johnston says. | Thousands of people left homeless by a powerful earthquake in northern Italy have spent the night in shelters as aftershocks continue to hit the region. | 18140543 |
West Ham - inspired by the superb Dimitri Payet - and Manchester United could not be separated and still have it all to do with a replay at Upton Park.
In the Premier League, Tottenham trimmed Leicester's lead at the summit with an efficient win at Aston Villa and Bournemouth all but secured safety with a superb victory against Swansea.
But who were the outstanding performers? Here are my selections...
The save by David de Gea to deny West Ham's Michail Antonio in the dying minutes of their FA Cup encounter was enough to keep Manchester United in the tie. It was the sort of save that may prove to be West Ham's undoing come the replay at Upton Park - the last time the competition will take place at the old Boleyn Ground.
The big question at Old Trafford, and arguably the turning point, is did Bastian Schweinsteiger actually impede Darren Randolph for Anthony Martial's equaliser? Former World Cup referee and now analyst Howard Webb thought he did. But would Webb have actually awarded the free-kick against Schweinsteiger had he been in charge?
Irish eyes are certainly smiling on Seamus Coleman at the moment. The Everton full-back is playing some wonderful football again after a number of niggling injuries. During some of the most intense moments of the pulsating game between Everton and Chelsea, Coleman showed a remarkable ability not to panic when deep in his own half, which must please Republic of Ireland manager Martin O'Neill before the pressure-cooker atmosphere of the European Championships this summer.
Everton needed their win against Chelsea. Their Premier League form has been so disappointing and their manager appears to be in denial. However, the cup tie against Chelsea could have gone up in smoke in a heartbeat, such was the nature of the game.
Fortunately Everton had within their ranks Phil Jagielka, who is, by far and away, the coolest, if not the most sensible, footballer around. Whenever there was any danger of the game exploding into a brawl - and there was on a few occasions - Jagielka was there, either pulling the main protagonists away or keeping his team-mates from getting involved. Jagielka is a very valuable asset to have in your team, especially when egos are running wild.
Bournemouth have won back to back home games in the Premier League for the first time, and the financial difference it could make to the club is incalculable. I've no doubt this was the last thing on Steve Cook's mind when he rose above the Swansea defence to nod home the winner to seal three points, but that is the reality. What manager Eddie Howe has achieved during his time at Dean Court with his players, who frankly have surpassed all expectations, has been remarkable and must place him in contention as a front-runner for the England job should it become available after the European Championships in France this summer.
If not Howe, name me another English candidate who is currently worthy of the appointment?
Nathan Ake is starting to fulfil his true potential. Against Arsenal, he displayed such acute defensive awareness I am starting to think that Chelsea should seriously consider bringing the on-loan full-back back to Stamford Bridge. Ake's first-half tackle in his own penalty area on Alexis Sanchez was a game-changer. It's one thing seeing the danger but it's something entirely different when a defender takes the responsibility to alleviate the problem - and Ake did just that. Chelsea are about to start a rebuilding process at Stamford Bridge and Ake should be central to it.
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Whenever West Ham produce a result these days it seems as though Dimitri Payet is at the heart of it. His arrival at Upton Park has got the fans talking about the Frenchman in the same terms as Sir Trevor Brooking and Paolo di Canio. However, I doubt whether either of those West Ham legends could have scored a better free-kick than the one Payet netted against Manchester United.
Quite apart from anything else, Payet was facing one of the best goalkeepers in the world in David de Gea and still made the set-play look routine. The tie now goes to a replay but I wouldn't bet against Payet doing it again.
Watford produced a monumental performance at Arsenal, led by their skipper and talisman Troy Deeney. Arsenal, on course for a third consecutive FA Cup final, were stopped in their tracks by the sting of the Hornets. Not since the days of Graham Taylor with John Barnes in their ranks have I seen a Watford team capable of winning the FA Cup. Arsenal were very lucky and should have taken advantage of still having 11 men on the field after Gabriel escaped a red card for a reckless two-footed lunge into Deeney. Nevertheless the Gunners did not profit from the situation afforded them by referee Andre Marriner and now find themselves out of the competition as a consequence. Barcelona now await, hosting the Gunners in the Champions League in midweek. Good luck with that.
It's official - Bournemouth are staying up! Premier League survival now looks certain after beating Swansea in a terrific game of football to achieve a points tally many thought was impossible for the Cherries. Swansea keeper Lukasz Fabianski made a mess of the cross which lead to Max Gradel opening his account but if anyone was going to score, Gradel was. The Ivorian was already wreaking havoc in the Swansea ranks before he set up Bournemouth's second goal for Josh King. Those two players also destroyed Newcastle last week at St James' Park, a loss which got Steve McClaren the sack.
I'm told that Spurs fans got upset with me via social media last week when I maintained that Hugo Lloris struggles in big games. Well, true to form, he was outstanding against Aston Villa and I'm not surprised. However, there is one player Spurs can rely on in any game and that's Harry Kane. The striker simply blew Villa away after his side suffered a heavy defeat in the Europa League in Dortmund in midweek.
Nevertheless, with the assistance of Dele Alli, Tottenham have recovered. I noticed that Gary Lineker insists that Kane and Alli are 'musts' for the England starting XI come the European Championships - but at whose expense Gary? That's what Roy Hodgson is going to have to consider.
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What a performance by Romelu Lukaku against his old team. In fact it was the former Chelsea striker's all-round display that made the performance and sending off of his striking counterpart Diego Costa look so tasteless. Lukaku does not possess the aggression or ruthless instincts of Costa and yet still has the ability to terrorise defences without being utterly obnoxious.
I didn't think that Lukaku was capable of scoring his first goal which was, without doubt, the best finish I have ever seen him produce in arguably his best performance in an Everton shirt. In the meantime I suggest Chelsea Football Club make it abundantly clear to Costa that he needs to grow up and start behaving like an adult instead of a spoilt child who throws his toys out of the pram the moment he doesn't get what he wants.
Pelle had a blinder at Stoke. He hadn't scored in the Premier League for 12 games and suddenly netted two of the most well-taken goals he has scored all season. His first, a glancing header from a corner, would have struck at the heart of some Stoke fans and evoked memories of a legendary former Potters centre-forward and legend John Ritchie, who scored similar goals for the Potters throughout the early '70s and strangely enough had a remarkable likeness to the Italy international.
However, it was the performance of referee Lee Mason that caught my attention. It has been a long time since I have seen such incompetence from a referee. Not to award Southampton a penalty for Jack Butland's tackle on Dusan Tadic was bad enough but sending off Sadio Mane for his perfectly acceptable challenge on Erik Pieters was a shocking verdict by any standards. Granted, we all make mistakes, but errors of this nature and at this level are totally unacceptable. | Watford, Everton and Crystal Palace all booked their places at Wembley after a typically captivating and combustible FA Cup quarter-final weekend. | 35799862 |
Michael Harnett grows crops in County Down and he loves big machines.
He also uses a huge landing craft to access a sheep farm he runs on an island off the County Mayo coast.
He believes farmers would be better off out of the European Union, producing food that people want and innovating to add value to it.
His family uses the crops he grows to produce artisan cooking oils that are sold in shops and used in restaurants.
He says people need to place a lot more value on their food and the people who grow it.
"Farming used to be something you were proud of," he says.
"You'd have been proud for your daughter to marry a farmer, now that's the last person you'd want them to marry - it's all stress and no money."
His daughter Jane helps run the farm but she is a committed European.
She has held that view since a school trip to the war graves and believes the EU has cemented peace on the continent.
"I believe in what it stands for," she says.
And while she knows things are not perfect, she thinks there is still a future in farming for young people like her.
The LacPatrick Group is a dairy co-operative with 1,100 farmers, half of them in Northern Ireland.
Its County Monaghan headquarters is just a few miles from the former customs post at Aughnacloy in County Tyrone.
Thousands of litres of milk collected in Northern Ireland cross the Irish border every day for processing.
Gabriel D'Arcy, the LacPatrick's chief executive, worries about the impact of an exit on his business.
Would controls mean delays which would cost money and dent profits?
Would the company face trade barriers like quotas or tariffs?
Mr D'Arcy also worries about how long it would take the United Kingdom to negotiate trade deals with west African countries.
LacPatrick exports lots of milk powder to those countries from its facility at Artigarvan in County Tyrone, which is undergoing a £30m upgrade.
Those shipments are covered by an EU trade deal.
Mr D'Arcy says: "What would be the terms of those agreements that would have to be renegotiated with Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Cameroon?
"They're our main markets for the products coming out of the Artigarvan facility."
While big business can see the benefits of EU membership, the self-employed fishermen from Northern Ireland's coastal communities take a vastly different view.
Almost to a man, they want out and some are even flying flags on their vessels in support of the leave campaign.
Kilkeel fisherman Trevor McKee blames the EU's common fisheries policy for decimating an industry that he says had been sustainable for decades.
"Europe dictates how and when I can fish and what I can catch," he says.
"Fishermen have a better understanding of the stocks in the Irish Sea than a Brussels bureaucrat."
Rules on stock sustainability have cut the white fish fleet to just a handful of boats and most of them are now fishing for prawns.
Mr McKee worries about the future of fishing if the UK stays in the EU.
"Everybody who goes to sea to fish is for out," he says.
"It's a no-brainer, because of the EU." | Farmers, fishermen and firms are divided in their opinions about a possible so-called Brexit - a UK withdrawal from the European Union - ahead of the 23 June referendum. | 36437157 |
Tools based on the way the birds co-operatively hunt for fish are being developed to test different ways of organising in-car software.
The tools look for safe ways to organise code in the same way that penguins seek food sources in the open ocean.
Experts said such testing systems would be vital as cars get more connected.
Engineers have often turned to nature for good solutions to tricky problems, said Prof Yiannis Papadopoulos, a computer scientist at the University of Hull who, together with Dr Youcef Gheraibia from Algeria, developed the penguin-inspired testing system.
The way ants pass messages among nest-mates has helped telecoms firms keep telephone networks running, and many robots get around using methods of locomotion based on the ways animals move.
Penguins were another candidate, said Prof Papadopoulos, because millions of years of evolution has helped them develop very efficient hunting strategies.
This was useful behaviour to copy, he said, because it showed that penguins had solved a tricky optimisation problem - how to ensure as many penguins as possible get enough to eat.
"Penguins are social birds and we know they live in colonies that are often very large and can include hundreds of thousands of birds. This raises the question of how can they sustain this kind of big society given that together they need a vast amount of food.
"There must be something special about their hunting strategy," he said, adding that an inefficient strategy would mean many birds starved.
Prof Papadopoulos said many problems in software engineering could be framed as a search among all hypothetical solutions for the one that produces the best results. Evolution, through penguins and many other creatures, has already searched through and discarded a lot of bad solutions.
Studies of hunting penguins have hinted at how they organised themselves.
"They forage in groups and have been observed to synchronise their dives to get fish," said Prof Papadopoulos. "They also have the ability to communicate using vocalisations and possibly convey information about food resources."
The communal, co-ordinated action helps the penguins get the most out of a hunting expedition. Groups of birds are regularly reconfigured to match the shoals of fish and squid they find. It helps the colony as a whole optimise the amount of energy they have to expend to catch food.
"This solution has generic elements which can be abstracted and be used to solve other problems," he said, "such as determining the integrity of software components needed to reach the high safety requirements of a modern car."
Integrity in this sense means ensuring the software does what is intended, handles data well, and does not introduce errors or crash.
By mimicking penguin behaviour in a testing system which seeks the safest ways to arrange code instead of shoals of fish, it becomes possible to slowly zero in on the best way for that software to be structured.
The Hull researchers working with Dr Gheraibia turned to search tools based on the collaborative foraging behaviour of penguins.
The foraging-based system helped to quickly search through the many possible ways software can be specified to home in on the most optimal solutions in terms of safety and cost.
Currently, complex software was put together and tested manually, with only experience and engineering judgement to guide it, said Prof Papadopoulos. While this could produce decent results it could consider only a small fraction of all possible good solutions.
The penguin-based system could crank through more solutions and do a better job of assessing which was best, he said.
Mike Ahmadi, global director of critical systems security at Synopsys, which helps vehicle-makers secure code, said modern car manufacturing methods made optimisation necessary.
"When you look at a car today, it's essentially something that's put together from a vast and extended supply chain," he said.
Building a car was about getting sub-systems made by different manufacturers to work together well, rather than being something made wholly in one place.
That was a tricky task given how much code was present in modern cars, he added.
"There's about a million lines of code in the average car today and there's far more in connected cars."
Carmakers were under pressure, said Mr Ahmadi, to adapt cars quickly so they could interface with smartphones and act as mobile entertainment hubs, as well as make them more autonomous.
"From a performance point of view carmakers have gone as far as they can," he said. "What they have discovered is that the way to offer features now is through software."
Security would become a priority as cars got smarter and started taking in and using data from other cars, traffic lights and online sources, said Nick Cook from software firm Intercede, which is working with carmakers on safe in-car software.
"If somebody wants to interfere with a car today then generally they have to go to the car itself," he said. "But as soon as it's connected they can be anywhere in the world.
"Your threat landscape is quite significantly different and the opportunity for a hack is much higher." | Hungry penguins have inspired a novel way of making sure computer code in smart cars does not crash. | 38637006 |
The agreement was signed in Congo-Brazzaville between mainly Muslim Seleka rebels and the largely Christian anti-Balaka militia.
The BBC's Andrew Harding says despite the deal fighting has continued in the volatile central town of Bambari.
Almost a quarter of the 4.6 million population have fled their homes.
Muslims have been forced to flee the capital city and most of the west of the country, in what rights groups described as ethnic cleansing.
Both sides have been accused of war crimes such as torture and unlawful killing.
The ceasefire agreement did not last long in Bambari. Two ex-Seleka soldiers were shot, and one killed, in a roadside ambush in town on Thursday morning, by suspected anti-Balaka fighters.
Even before the incident, the ceasefire had been dismissed as worthless by Muslim civilians and fighters in a town at the centre of a new surge of violence.
Dido Ibrahim Mahamad, a local captain in the ex-Seleka alliance, told the BBC that the only way to resolve the conflict in CAR was to partition the entire country, dividing it between Muslims and Christians.
In the dilapidated but still thriving Muslim neighbourhood of Bambari, shopkeepers said they had no confidence in the French peacekeepers, accusing them of bias towards Christians. A man called Moussa described the ceasefire as "worthless."
French troops - who first arrived here in January - continue to patrol the town. Christian civilians have abandoned their neighbourhoods and are living in three crowded camps on the outskirts - thousands of families sheltering from the ferocious seasonal rains in makeshift straw huts. Some said they welcomed the ceasefire and the promise of elections next year but were doubtful about the prospects of reconciliation in Bambari.
Andrew Harding: CAR's road to anarchy
The negotiations began in the Congolese capital of Brazzaville on Monday.
"We have signed this ceasefire agreement today in front of everyone. Our commitment is firm and irreversible" said Mohamed Moussa Dhaffane, who headed the Seleka delegation.
Patrick Edouard Ngaissona, head of the anti-Balaka negotiating team, said anyone caught violating the ceasefire would be arrested.
The president of Congo-Brazzaville and mediator of the talks, Denis Sassou Nguesso, said the talks were a success.
"The longest journey begins with the first step... Brazzaville is the first step," he said after the agreement was signed.
The Seleka rebels dropped their demand for CAR to be divided into a Muslim north and a Christian south.
Further talks are due to be held in CAR to decide details such as disarmament and the country's political transition.
The latest violence in CAR began when mainly Muslim rebels seized power in March last year.
Source: Index Mundi
The majority Christian state then descended into ethno-religious warfare.
The presence of some 7,000 international peacekeepers has also failed to put an end to the violence and revenge attacks.
Earlier this month Amnesty international named at least 20 people it says are suspected of ordering or committing atrocities and suggests they should be tried under international law by a hybrid court using national and international experts. | Rival armed groups in the Central African Republic have signed a ceasefire agreement aimed at ending over a year of religious conflict. | 28457599 |
Charles Pickering, 69, from Driffield, had not contacted his family since 4 July.
His yacht, Equinox, which is based in Scarborough, left Kiel in northern Germany last week, heading for the UK.
Humber Coastguard said he had been found 80 miles off Spurn Point after he set off an emergency positioning beacon from onboard his 17ft (5m) yacht.
Mr Pickering's family reported him missing on Thursday after he failed to contact them.
A police investigation found he had not used his bank cards since 3 July, said Humber Coastguard.
A huge search operation, involving a rescue helicopter from RAF Leconfield, scoured the area from Scarborough to the median line in the middle of the North Sea.
Coastguards in Germany also carried out a similar search from Helgoland, a small island in the North Sea, and French, Belgian and Dutch authorities were alerted to his disappearance.
An appeal to all vessels in the North Sea was put out before the shipping forecast on BBC Radio 4 earlier.
People were asked to look out for the yacht, and the skipper was urged to make contact with the coastguard.
Mike Green, watch manager at Humber Coastguard, said: "We are all absolutely delighted that this gentleman has been found alive and well.
"It is important that yachtsmen planning this sort of passage have adequate communications and log a passage plan with a shore contact." | A lone yachtsman from East Yorkshire who went missing in the North Sea has been found alive and well. | 28258843 |
Gwynedd council confirmed action has been taken involving two members of school staff in the authority.
Ysgol Pendalar has about 90 pupils aged between three and 19-years-old, all with special educational needs.
The council said an internal investigation is currently under way.
"It would not be appropriate for the council to make any further comment whilst the investigation is ongoing," added a spokesman. | Two members of staff have been suspended from their posts at Ysgol Pendalar special school in Caernarfon, Gwynedd, BBC Wales understands. | 35103202 |
Mr Turner is a spokesman for Born Free, a charity which is actively campaigning for the closure of all dolphinaria worldwide.
"These animals have no life worth living in captivity, devoid of any form of stimulation and social interaction, unable to swim hundreds of kilometres a day or live in family groups," he says.
"If people really want to engage with these animals to truly be inspired by their intelligence and see how they live, they need to see them in the wild; there's plenty of opportunity for them to do so."
Many of the million-plus tourists who visit the tiny Caribbean archipelago of Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) each year hope for just such an encounter with a wild dolphin.
A friendly bottlenose called Jojo has been interacting with people voluntarily since the 1980s and is popular with locals and tourists alike.
Tim Ainley, a tour operator on the TCI island of Providenciales, has been swimming regularly with Jojo since 1985.
He echoes Mr Turner's sentiments.
"You learn nothing about a dolphin watching it jump through hoops," he says.
Despite a recent popular backlash against sea mammal parks triggered by the documentary Blackfish, which accused SeaWorld of mistreating killer whales, such facilities remain popular in parts of the Caribbean, driven by a thriving cruise industry.
Jamaica-based Dolphin Cove - billed as the island's number one attraction - plans to spend several million dollars rolling out parks across the region.
The company has proposed building attractions on two TCI islands.
TCI has long been considered a haven for wild dolphins and whales with laws forbidding their confinement.
When Dolphin Cove's plans first became public in 2012, a maelstrom of controversy ensued.
Thousands signed a petition demanding the application be thrown out, and planning chiefs were bombarded with more than 100 angry letters from across the globe.
There was further contention when it emerged that the TCI governor had amended regulations to allow marine mammals to be kept for display, exhibition and performance.
At the time, the then Governor, Ric Todd, lauded the economic boost he said would "significantly complement" the British Overseas Territory's tourism offerings.
He is not alone.
Many residents in TCI's sleepy capital island Grand Turk welcome the fiscal stimulation they believe will be triggered by the facility, which recently secured outline planning permission.
But for its opponents - still staunch after a three-year fight - the real battle is just beginning.
Barbara Young, of environmental non-government organisation Pride, argues that tourists who visit dolphin parks are often ignorant of the animals' plight.
She alleges that dolphins are routinely fed medication to prevent stress-induced ulcers and given regular invasive endoscopies to monitor their condition.
One of the most outspoken critics of building dolphinaria on TCI has come from within government itself.
Former Director of the Department of Environment and Maritime Affairs Kathleen Wood described the "exploitation of dolphins for economic gain" as "the moral equivalent of slavery".
In a letter she sent to the TCI Planning Department last year she recommended the scheme be turned down.
Ms Wood argued that it would have a disastrous effect on the country's image as a green destination and could alienate the growing number of tourists and travel agencies which boycott places that allow marine mammal parks to operate.
She also spoke of the adverse ecological impact it could have on the proposed North Creek site, a critical habitat for 500 greater flamingos, along with conch and mangroves.
Globally, marine parks have been slammed for fuelling the trade in capturing wild animals and for high mortality rates among their animals.
Dolphin Cove did not provide a comment, despite repeated requests, but its website describes its facilities as "among the best in the world".
It has operated an in-house breeding programme for several years.
Back in Providenciales, Mr Ainley hopes the campaign by environmentalists and activists will be successful in blocking Dolphin Cove's plans.
"We're so busy exploiting dolphins but if we stopped and listened we'd find they had a lot to teach us instead."
And speaking of JoJo the friendly wild bottlenose, he adds: "This is a fight I know he'd want me to make." | "They're nothing more than water circuses," Daniel Turner says of dolphinaria, or animal parks featuring dolphins. | 33991679 |
Margaret Grieve, 53, said she was a single mother to qualify for the cash but she was caught out when investigators checked her social media.
Dundee Sheriff Court heard she claimed to have split from her husband - but a picture of the couple together was her profile photo on Facebook.
Grieve, of Dundee, was jailed for nine months by Sheriff Tom Hughes.
The court was told that the NHS Tayside employee worked at Dundee's Ninewell's Hospital in its sterile services department.
Between 2008 and 2011, she claimed child tax and working tax credits to which she was not entitled after claiming she had separated from husband Frederick Grieve.
However, Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) investigators found she was still living with him, and splitting the cost of shopping and looking after the children.
They discovered a profile photograph of the pair attending a ball together in 2011 on her Facebook page.
And that year a friend wished Grieve a happy anniversary on the page - with Grieve replying to thank them.
Fiscal depute Eilidh Robertson told the court that the DWP also found that Mr Grieve's car insurance was paid from his wife's bank account.
She added: "Some household bills including the council tax on the accused's home were paid from that account.
"Both were jointly liable for council tax there and no single person's discount was applied.
"When he took out AA membership in October 2011 the address was given as the accused's.
"His home address with his employer, Dundee City Council, was also the accused's."
Defence solicitor David Sinclair said Grieve would lose her job if she received a custodial sentence.
"However, she is ready for what may be visited on her," he added. | A hospital worker has been jailed after she admitted fraudulently claiming £32,000 worth of benefits. | 35559755 |
22-year-old James signed for Yeovil on Tuesday after her departure from the defunct Notts County Ladies.
The former Arsenal and Bristol Academy player has won more than 50 caps for her country.
"Yeovil have been great to me and it's great to now have a club sorted," she told BBC Radio Wales Sport.
She continued: "I'm hoping that finding a club will help me stay in the squad and the team."
Wales boss Jayne Ludlow and assistant Rehanne Skinner will name her side for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers later in the year and James says she was given plenty of support from the pair after Notts County folded.
"They [Ludlow and Skinner] put no pressure on me finding a club, they understood the circumstances I was going through.
"It was important for me to find a club to get minutes to be in Jayne's mind for the selection of the next squad."
James will see some familiar faces at Yeovil, having linked up with Wales internationals Nadia Lawrence, Nia Jones and Sarah Wiltshire at the club.
"It was easy for me to settle in. I've only been to a few sessions so far," she added.
"The transfer across was good. I know most of the players there from previous clubs and playing with Wales, so it was an easy decision for me to make." | Yeovil Town Ladies midfielder Angharad James says signing for a new club will help her chances of selection for the Wales national team. | 39949924 |
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano called the rioters demonstrating against Milan's Expo trade fair "spoilt brats with Rolexes".
In response, the company took out advertisements in Italian newspapers saying their image had been unfairly sullied, arguing it was difficult to tell whether a timepiece seen on a protester's wrist really was a Rolex.
But was this the right reaction? Dr Ben Voyer, a marketing professor at ESCP Europe Business School and visiting fellow at the London School of Economics, said firms risk overreacting when responding to events beyond their control.
"Replying is not necessarily is a good thing," he said. "It is very difficult to dispel negative stereotypes - a quiet press release might have been better for Rolex."
Brands face a constant battle to control their image. Here are some other times when companies became unwittingly caught in major events.
BlackBerry has seen both the good and bad sides of popular endorsement - the firm's PR department must have rejoiced when it emerged US President Barack Obama was a fan.
Once the must-have smartphone, the company won a reputation for innovation.
But how that innovation is used is difficult to predict, as BlackBerry found when some of those involved in the 2011 London riots used their devices to organise lootings.
Teenagers were attracted to the company's phone-to-phone messaging service, long before the likes of WhatsApp made free messaging widespread.
BlackBerry, in response, offered to assist police, but then was attacked by hackers angry that the company was prepared to hand over user data to the authorities.
Skittles became an unlikely symbol of the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, who was shot dead by neighbourhood watchman George Zimmerman in Florida in 2012.
Martin was carrying a bag of the sweets and a bottle of iced tea at the time of the incident.
Bags of Skittles were a common presence at the protests that followed his death. To demonstrators, they represented his youth and innocence, with the "Taste the Rainbow" slogan taking on new significance given what they believe was a racially-aggravated murder.
Some were uncomfortable with the commercial aspects to the protests, calling on Skittles to donate any increased profits.
Wrigley, Skittles' makers, would not be drawn in, offering condolences to Martin's family and saying it would be inappropriate to comment further.
As the Trayvon Martin case shows, anything can become an icon.
A stuffed toy wolf called Lufsig inspired by the fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood sold out in Hong Kong in 2013 as it surged in popularity among anti-government protesters.
A protester had flung one of the toys at Hong Kong's leader, CY Leung. Its name also sounded similar to a Chinese profanity, and Mr Leung had been nicknamed "the wolf".
Ikea would not comment on the political connotations the toy wolf had developed, but did say that none of its products in Hong Kong, including its soft toy range, had Chinese names.
Mr Leung later posted a picture of him posing with Lufsig, praising Hong Kongers' "creativity".
A number of famous brands have been linked to authoritarian leaders. Former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein reportedly enjoyed Bounty chocolate bars while trying to evade capture from the US, and it emerged that Syria's Bashar al-Assad was a keen user of Apple products when a batch of his emails leaked.
Neither though could be said to be one of the companies' main buyers, as former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il was with Hennessy cognac.
Kim, who ruled over a country mired in poverty, reportedly spent hundreds of thousands of dollars a year on the product.
A Hennessy spokesperson said after his death the endorsement had not hurt sales, and that it was not unusual he would want their product.
"It's a very large status symbol, and we're one of the premier luxury cognacs in the world, and it's not surprising that he would gravitate towards that," Jennifer Yu told Foreign Policy.
Dr Voyer said consumers are unlikely to blame companies for unwanted associations: "There's nothing you can do about it. Of course some people are not the intended target for a brand." | Luxury Swiss watchmaker Rolex has demanded an apology after the Italian government linked the brand to violent clashes in Milan on Friday. | 32622717 |
Three other men were injured just after 08:20 BST near Warsash Maritime Academy, off Hamble, Hampshire.
The teenager was taken to hospital in a critical condition, the ambulance service said.
It was reported the boat had crashed into a marker buoy and capsized, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency said.
The coastguard received multiple 999 calls about the crash.
Eyewitness Ray Dittrich said: "The boat came clean out of the water like a rocket and then it flipped over and landed on its back."
Mr Dittrich, who was fishing on his boat nearby, said he and the crew of another vessel helped pull the speedboat's passengers from the water.
French national Daniel Ubertini, 66, was working at a yacht charter company in Hamble and photographed the crashed.
He described conditions on the water as "very calm ... with not much wind" and said he had seen the craft heading towards the Isle of Wight.
"On her way back I did follow the boat constantly until she started to fly.
"Ten minutes minutes later four or five boats were on the scene plus a helicopter from the coast guard for assistance." | A teenager has suffered life-threatening injuries after the speedboat he was travelling in crashed and overturned in the Solent. | 32719919 |
The attacking midfielder, 20, has started only three games since joining the Championship club in August.
But he has made nine appearances from the bench and scored a 90th-minute equaliser against Wolves in September.
Brewers manager Nigel Clough said: "He's a great lad, he's improving and getting acclimatised to the physical aspects of the Championship," | Burton Albion have extended Will Miller's loan deal from Premier League Tottenham until the end of the season. | 38522833 |
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) predicts four to eight of those storms will become hurricanes, a "near-normal" season.
The six-month Atlantic hurricane season begins on 1 June.
One tropical storm formed in the Atlantic on Saturday, while Hurricane Bud in the eastern Pacific has been upgraded to a category two hurricane.
Noaa predicts one to three storms will become major hurricanes, which are category three or higher storms, with sustained winds of 111mph (178km/h) or higher.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Andrew, a category five storm that wreaked havoc on southern Florida.
Between 1981 and 2010, an average season produced 12 named storms, six hurricanes and three major hurricanes. | US weather officials predict there will be nine to 15 storms during this year's Atlantic hurricane season. | 18198681 |
In an address on state TV, Mr Santos said he was fulfilling his "duty to seek peace". Media reports say a deal on further talks was reached in Cuba.
The Farc has been fighting the Colombian government since 1964.
The president said the second biggest rebel group, the ELN, had also indicated a readiness to talk.
'Learning from mistakes'
Mr Santos gave no details about the exploratory talks with the left-wing Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc).
1964: Farc founded, aim to install Marxist regime
1990s: Farc increasingly fighting paramilitary groups as well as troops. Involved in drugs trade
1999: President Pastrana demilitarises vast zone to facilitate peace talks
Feb 2002: Peace process breaks down, Farc rebels seize presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt
Aug 2002: Alvaro Uribe elected president, vows hard line against rebels
Mar 2008: Senior rebel leader Raul Reyes killed, Farc founder Manuel Marulanda dies of natural causes
July 2008: Betancourt and 14 other high-profile hostages freed in military raid
Sep 2010: Farc military chief Jorge Briceno killed
Nov 2011: Top Farc commander Alfonso Cano killed
Feb 2012: Farc announces end of kidnapping for ransom
Colombia country profile
According to the regional media network Telesur, negotiators from the two sides signed a preliminary agreement in the Cuban capital Havana on Monday.
Telesur said the first round of peace talks would be held in the Norwegian capital Oslo on 5 October. Negotiators would then continue holding talks in Havana, it added.
Referring to previous failed talks with the Farc during the government of then-president Andres Pastrana, Mr Santos said his government had "learned from the mistakes committed in the past".
Mr Santos said military operations would continue and that "each centimetre of the country would have a military presence".
As part of the peace talks launched in 1998, Mr Pastrana had granted the Farc a safe haven the size of Switzerland in the south-east to help move peace talks along.
The zone was off-limits to the army and the rebels used it to train and regroup.
Mr Pastrana ordered the rebels out of their safe haven after the peace talks failed in February 2002, but part of the area remains a rebel stronghold to this day.
Farc approaches
Last August, the Farc leader at the time, Alfonso Cano, said the group was ready for peace negotiations.
Since then, rumours have circulated about secret meetings between government representatives and the rebels in the Cuban capital.
Upon taking office just over two years ago, Mr Santos signalled his willingness to open peace talks.
He has come under severe criticism for this from his predecessor, Alvaro Uribe.
The Farc also re-stated their openness to talks in March. Following the death of Alfonso Cano in a bombing raid, the Farc's new leader, known as Timochenko, said it was "worth betting on peace".
Colombian security forces have achieved a series of successes against the rebel group in recent years, killing some of its key leaders and arresting many others.
But officials estimate that some 8,000 Farc guerrillas are still fighting Latin America's longest-running insurgency.
Referring to the ELN, Mr Santos said that if the group was serious about an end to the armed conflict, it too could be part of peace talks.
In a recent interview, ELN leader Nicolas Rodriguez said he was willing to hold negotiations but refused to end the group's campaign of kidnapping and bomb attacks ahead of any talks.
While it is too early to say whether this latest attempt at talks will work, it does seem as if Colombia is ready for peace, Peter Hakim from US-based think-tank Inter-American Dialogue told the BBC.
"One senses that both sides see themselves at an impasse. The guerrillas are not going to be able to do much more than... hit-and-run activities. The government, to wipe out the last group of guerrillas, it's going to be very costly," he said.
Readers contacting the BBC News website from Colombia broadly welcomed the latest developments, but many indicated that lasting peace means much more than signing any document.
"The breeding ground for these kind of organisations such as guerrillas and paramilitaries is inequality and partial, in some cases, complete absence of a state providing security, health and education to its population," wrote Javier Pardo in Bogota.
Patricia in Bogota also identified the need for the state to be present in rural areas where guerrillas hold sway.
"People in these areas need more opportunity to participate in the progress and prosperity the people in the cities are enjoying," she wrote. | Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has confirmed his government is holding exploratory talks with the country's largest rebel group, the Farc. | 19393096 |
Some key members of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi have left to form a splinter group in central Hyogo prefecture, Japanese media report.
One member said they were unhappy at the way their former gang chief was collecting money.
Police said they would be on alert for any possible violence.
The Yamaguchi-gumi gang is the largest of Japan's organised crime syndicates, known as the yakuza. Police say it has about 23,000 members.
Yakuza gangs have been part of Japanese society for a long time; there are believed to be about 60,000 members nationwide.
The gangs themselves are not illegal, although much of their earnings are gained illicitly through gambling, prostitution, drug trafficking and, increasingly, cyber-hacking.
The new group told reporters it would be called Ninkyo Daintai Yamaguchi-gumi and, although it would not have a boss, would be represented by Yoshinori Oda, 50, a former executive of the old gang.
The Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi gang was formed two years ago after powerful factions split away from the main Yamaguchi-gumi group. | One of Japan's largest organised crime gangs is reported to have split into rival factions, sparking fears of a turf battle. | 39771584 |
8 April 2016 Last updated at 11:35 BST
Video showing the trio throwing petrol bombs and shooting weapons can be shown for the first time after an anonymity order expired.
Jacob Crouch and Ryan Towell, who are both now 20, had fought to prevent their identities being revealed, but the Court of Appeal overturned the order.
They appear in the video alongside Michael Piggin, who was detained indefinitely in 2014 after he was found to have masterminded the thwarted assault on Burleigh College, Loughborough. | Footage of three 17 year olds making preparations for a Columbine-style attack on an English school can be shown for the first time. | 35997309 |
It means his main rival - reformist PM Nguyen Tan Dung - has little chance of taking the leadership role, they say.
But complicated voting procedures mean another candidate could still be named before the congress ends on Wednesday.
Conservatives, led by Mr Trong, are concerned that Vietnam is abandoning its socialist past under Mr Dung.
During his 10 years in office Mr Dung has driven the reforms which have seen Vietnam grow quickly as it has been integrated into the global trading economy, reports the BBC's Jonathan Head from the Vietnamese capital Hanoi.
However, he adds, the speed of the reforms and rising corruption have been criticised by the conservative camp.
The Communist Party congress - which is held every five year in the one-party state - is meeting in Hanoi.
Behind closed doors, the 1,510 members will nominate the party's general secretary and the next president and prime minister.
Mr Dung is seen as modern, and friendly towards the US. He has also gained popularity domestically with strong anti-China rhetoric when it comes to disputed territory in the South China Sea.
Mr Trong is seen to be more friendly towards China - Vietnam's largest trading partner. | The General Secretary of Vietnam's Communist Party, Nguyen Phu Trong, will be the only candidate for the post at a party congress, state media report. | 35394333 |
They say the gunmen were shot dead by the security forces soon after the bomber detonated his device.
Medics told the BBC that at least nine people were injured. Consular officials said none of their staff were hurt.
Jalalabad is often targeted by Taliban militants.
A suicide bomber killed at least 13 people in the city in January.
That attack took place at the home of a prominent local politician who backed President Ashraf Ghani's peace talks.
It took place a few days after a gun battle near the Pakistani consulate in Jalalabad in which at least seven Afghan security personnel were killed.
Jalalabad is the capital of Nangarhar province, where two districts are controlled, or at least influenced, by the Islamic State group - a rival of the Taliban.
In the violence on Wednesday, police say a bomb in a car driven by one of the attackers was detonated near the Indian consulate, destroying other cars and shattering doors and windows.
In the aftermath there was a gun battle between gunmen accompanying the bomber and security forces, witnesses said. So far no group has claimed the attack.
The Afghan government has been locked in a bloody conflict with Taliban militants for more than a decade.
The Taliban have launched several high-profile attacks in recent months. The army recently said the militants were on the verge of capturing the key district of Sangin in Helmand province.
On Wednesday at least 25 people were killed in two suicide attacks in the capital Kabul and in the eastern province of Kunar.
In September, the Taliban briefly overran the northern Afghan city of Kunduz, in one of their biggest victories since they were ousted from power in 2001. | An attack near the Indian consulate in the Afghan city of Jalalabad has left five militants dead, including a suicide bomber whose device killed only himself, police have told the BBC. | 35705774 |
Fr Paul Symonds stepped aside from ministry in County Antrim in 2009 to facilitate a police investigation.
After a decision was made to not to prosecute him, the Catholic Church resumed its internal inquiry.
The Down and Connor diocese said this concluded he will "live as a retired priest without any public ministry".
Fr Symonds is originally from England, but was working as a priest in Ballymena, County Antrim, when the police investigation began.
The BBC tried to contact Fr Symonds on Friday, but without success.
In a statement, a spokesman for the Diocese of Down and Connor said: "In 2011, after statutory investigation, with which the Diocese and Fr Symonds co-operated fully, and during which Fr Symonds was never charged with a criminal offence, the determination of the Prosecution Service was not to prosecute.
"Thereafter the Church's own internal canonical inquiry resumed.
"The canonical investigation has reached the decision that Fr Paul Symonds will live as a retired priest without any public ministry." | A priest who was investigated but never charged after concerns were raised about the safeguarding of children is to retire after a Church inquiry. | 35388046 |
Dundee-based Be Charlotte will perform at the golf event's closing ceremony.
It will be broadcast live into more than 350 million households around the world, including on NBC in North America and Sky Sports in the UK.
The band was chosen by agency EventScotland as part of the official handover ceremony for the Solheim Cup coming to Scotland.
The next cup will be staged in September 2019 at Gleneagles, which was host venue of the 2014 Ryder Cup.
The Solheim Cup is one of the biggest events in women's golf, pitting a team of Europe's top female golfers against their US counterparts.
Be Charlotte, which is fronted by 20-year-old Charlotte Brimner, recently toured in 15 countries over eight months, including shows in Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand and Vietnam.
The band also played at the TRNSMT festival in Glasgow and Carnival Fifty Six Festival in their hometown of Dundee.
Lead singer Charlotte Brimner said: "I am a huge supporter of women's sport and to be able to help celebrate strong and successful female role models is a huge honour.
"As proud Scots we will be ready to put on a great performance for the US fans and we look forward to representing Scotland and even making some new fans of our own."
Paul Bush, director of events at VisitScotland, said "We are delighted that Be Charlotte will be supporting Scotland, the home of golf, by performing at the closing ceremony for the 2017 Solheim Cup.
"Be Charlotte is a young, original and inspiring act who will represent Scotland perfectly ahead of the staging of the 2019 Solheim Cup at Gleneagles.
"It is important that Scotland is represented by someone that young people look up to and who reflects the guiding principles of Scotland's staging of the event in 2019."
Be Charlotte is expected to launch a debut album in 2018, supported with funding from Creative Scotland. | A Scottish band is to perform in front of a global audience at the Solheim Cup in Iowa, USA. | 40986085 |
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