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Armed officers were sent to the supermarket in Blackheath, West Midlands, on Saturday and several roads were closed.
A teenager has been charged with making an explosive substance and maliciously causing an explosive substance to endanger life.
The boy has also been charged with possession of a bladed article.
West Midlands Police confirmed the teenager was remanded in custody on Monday.
"No members of the public were hurt during the incident and road closures have now been lifted in the area," police added. | A 15-year-old boy has been charged after a fire in a Sainsbury's toilets led to the store being evacuated. | 40083510 |
Some have questioned whether or not the picture is real.
But we're in less doubt about the authenticity some of the memes that have come out since.
Enjoy!
Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter, BBCNewsbeat on Instagram and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube | Once again the internet has exploded and this time it's down to a woodpecker caught carrying a weasel on its back. | 31710591 |
The 24-year-old has signed a three-year deal with the Irish province and will move to Belfast after finishing the 2016 Super Rugby campaign with the Sharks.
Coetzee has 28 Springboks caps, having made his debut against England in 2012.
"It is a major coup for us to sign a player of Marcell's quality and experience," said Les Kiss, Ulster's director of rugby.
"His age, profile, positional versatility, leadership ability and character were some of the key ingredients as to why he was such an important target for us.
"He has played most of his international rugby between six and seven, but he has also played a huge amount at number eight, where we feel he could have a big impact for Ulster.
"Being appointed as the Sharks' vice-captain for the season shows that even at the young age of 24, Marcell has undoubted leadership ability.
"When you factor in the additions of Charles Piutau, Rodney Ah You and Kieran Treadwell, it will give us improved quality and depth across the squad in the coming seasons."
Current Ulster number eight, Nick Williams, is leaving to join Cardiff Blues at the end of the season. | South Africa back row Marcell Coetzee is to join Ulster in the summer. | 35549078 |
Crime Reduction Minister James Brokenshire said the Birmingham-based service was losing about £2m a month and could run out of money in January.
Its evidence was key to the arrest of serial killer Steve Wright and in the case of missing girl Shannon Matthews.
The Prospect union, representing 1,000 FSS professionals, said the decision made a "mockery" of the justice system.
Its deputy general secretary Mike Clancy said: "Cost will now determine justice in the UK. The government is putting its faith in an untested market to deliver forensic science at a time when it has never been more important to the detection of crime."
The decision would "destroy a world-class body" that was envied by international police and lead to an over-emphasis in profits in the sector which could threaten the quality of the science, he added.
However, the FSS had faced increased private-sector competition for police contracts and Mr Brokenshire told the BBC this was enabling forces to achieve greater efficiency.
"They're seeing better turnaround in terms of the way in which forensics are being processed," he said.
The FSS has two offices in Birmingham and sites in Chepstow, Chorley, London, Huntingdon and Wetherby.
In a statement, the FSS said spending cuts meant police forces had less money for forensics consultancy and were increasingly taking such work in-house.
It said it had raised such concerns to the Home Office and was "disappointed" that they had not been addressed before the winding-up decision was made.
In a written statement to MPs, Mr Brokenshire had said it was vital for the government to take "clear and decisive action" to sort out the FSS after it got into "serious financial difficulty".
"The police have advised us that their spend on external forensic suppliers will continue to fall over the next few years as forces seek to maximise efficiencies in this area," he said.
"We have therefore decided to support the wind-down of the FSS, transferring or selling off as much of its operations as possible."
DNA evidence gathered by the FSS led to the arrest of Ipswich murderer Wright within days of the discovery of his fifth victim.
The company also provided toxicology evidence against Karen Matthews and Michael Donovan which helped ensure their conviction for kidnapping and drugging schoolgirl Shannon.
BBC legal affairs analyst Clive Coleman said the FSS had enjoyed significant successes and had a good reputation, despite one or two failures such as the Damilola Taylor murder inquiry where DNA evidence was initially missed.
He said private enterprise, which already made up 40% of the market, should expand to fill the gap left behind by the FSS.
However, there were concerns that commercial pressures might mean additional tests and analysis were no longer done.
"There is a concern from some lawyers that perhaps if you're simply looking at the bottom line… critical evidence might not come to light and be produced in court," he added.
The FSS has been government-owned since 2005.
Scotland is unaffected by the announcement, as the Scottish Police Services Authority is responsible, while Nothern Ireland has its own agency, Forensic Science Northern Ireland. | The government-owned Forensic Science Service, which employs 1,600 people, is to be wound up - closing by 2012. | 11989225 |
Nolito, 30, joined City for £13.8m from Celta Vigo in July and has made 19 Premier League appearances for Pep Guardiola's side, scoring four goals.
However, he has only started the FA Cup draw with Huddersfield in 2017.
Betis, 15th in La Liga, would be his fourth Spanish club - though his reported £100,000-a-week wages could prove an issue for them.
Nolito appeared to be firmly in Guardiola's plans after signing a four-year contract last summer and he scored twice at Stoke in his second league outing.
But his role has diminished and he has played just 42 minutes of league football since the turn of the year.
Guardiola is planning significant changes to his squad after a season without a trophy and has said previous clubs Barcelona and Bayern Munich would have sacked him for underachievement.
Defender Pablo Zabaleta has announced he will be leaving and his nine years at the club will be marked after Tuesday's game against West Brom. | Real Betis are in talks with Manchester City over signing Spain striker Nolito for a fee of about £3.4m. | 39933205 |
Sean Kelleher monitored the 310-mile (499km) stretch along the border from Carlingford Lough in the east to Lough Foyle in the west.
He said Revenue would be required to increase staffing to deal with "challenging" post-Brexit issues.
The UK is due to leave the EU by the end of March 2019.
The former customs manager, who served between 2007 and 2015, said commercial traffic would be subjected to certain customs controls but private vehicles should not face too much disruption.
"The reality is we will be obliged to maintain EU regulations and that will determine how those checks are carried out and to what level," Mr Kelleher told BBC news NI.
"For commercial cargo moving north to south, I would expect that all importers and exporters will register with Revenue for online declarations."
Mr Kelleher said "trade facilitation stations" should be "judicially placed somewhere near the border" to carry out checks on commercial traffic.
"You won't need too many if you are only doing a percentage check," he said. "For example, if you have traffic going west from Derry to Donegal, you may require a facilitation station, one at least in Donegal.
"For the midlands, you would need one certainly around the Monaghan border or somewhere close. For the east coast, one perhaps around the Dundalk area.
"It's all subject to what Revenue decides. They may not necessarily be in those areas but they would be the locations I would believe are where the trade facilitation stations should be located," he added.
The border separating Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic will become an EU-UK frontier after Brexit.
Mr Kelleher said he could not see a return of fixed customs posts that existed from 1923 until the creation of the EU Single Market in 1993.
"Logistically it wouldn't prove possible and politically it's unpopular," he said.
The former customs manager said "all crossings points would have to be monitored" as they would be ideal for people "with a mind to do a bit of smuggling".
He also said that random checks could be carried out by mobile patrols on crossing points and roadways along the border.
"There's going to be some disruption. It may not be major but if vehicles are called to trade facilitation stations, that's a disruption.
"It means that vehicles are going to be delayed until goods are examined and documents processed. If there are problems, the goods may be detained."
In a statement, Revenue said its focus was on facilitating trade by maximising the free flow of goods.
A spokeswoman said it was in the early stages of developing its main customs processes to cater for the phased introduction of the Union Customs Code which it said "envisages paperless customs systems, managed by electronic processing".
"The operation of customs post-Brexit and the resulting impact on business will be defined to a great extent by the terms of the agreement between the EU and the UK," she said.
"The full impacts will not be clear until negotiations have been finalised."
A series of papers is being published, including one this week covering what will happen to the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic after the UK has left the EU.
Mr Kelleher said a generation had grown up in the border region facing no checks, and would find changes difficult to accept.
"The reality is there is no border. People can drive across the land frontier and not realise they're in Northern Ireland.," he said.
"How you control that will be a major challenge for Revenue." | The Republic of Ireland's customs authorities do not have the resources to deal with a hard Brexit, a former enforcement manager has warned. | 40900189 |
Annie Bradley, 78, died in 2008 from a head injury after being lifted from her bed at the Harley House Nursing Home in Stoneygate, Leicester.
Fatima Mawji, 45, and Munira Mawji, 44, from Scraptoft, were prosecuted for failing to ensure her safety.
The hoist was described in court as "totally defective".
In addition to the fines the sisters must pay costs of £20,000 each and a victim surcharge of £15.
Judge Robert Brown said there had been significant failings in the maintenance of the hoist and sling and insufficient training of staff.
He said: "Both of the defendants lacked any expertise or sufficient expertise in healthcare and nursing.
"The home was purchased as a financial investment in the hope of making money.
"Health and safety must always be the primary consideration of any owner of a care or nursing home," he said.
Miss Bradley, who was known as Vera and described to the court as vulnerable, elderly and immobile, fractured her skull when she fell from the hoist, hitting her head on the floor on 19 July 2008.
The former nurse died from her injuries in Leicester Royal Infirmary the next day.
The Health and Safety Executive brought the prosecution following the pensioner's death.
Prosecutor Jonathan Salmon told Leicester Crown Court the hoist was in such poor condition it could not be safely used.
It was "beyond its sell-by date" and the incident was "avoidable and clearly foreseeable", he said.
In mitigation, Mark Balysz QC, said that at the time of the incident the home was well-managed and run.
He described the sisters as hard-working women.
At a hearing at the court in March, the sisters, both mothers of three, admitted breaking health and safety laws.
A coroner recorded a narrative verdict into Miss Bradley's death last year.
Harley House Nursing Home is now under new ownership but the sisters still own three care homes in Leicestershire. | Two sisters have been fined £50,000 each after an elderly resident died after falling out of a hoist at the nursing home they owned. | 19424998 |
19 December 2016 Last updated at 17:03 GMT
And, it seems he's still on a high because when Martin bumped into him on the SPOTY red carpet, Ore was still beaming after his big win.
He told Newsround 'I am loving life' and admitted he can be an emotional guy!
Aw, we think Ore will be smiling at that Glitterball trophy for quite a while yet. Congrats Mr. Oduba.
Take a look at the happy dancer chatting to Martin above. | Strictly Come Dancing finished on Saturday night with former Newsround presenter Ore Oduba being crowned King of the ballroom, but fans of the show will know Ore can get a little emotional at times! | 38372353 |
That makes it more serious than a technical correction, normally thought of as a fall of 10%. However, it is not yet a bear market, which is the term used when the index drops 20% or more.
The index of the next biggest companies - the FTSE 250 - is down by 10% since its peak on 3 June.
While the current rout of prices was initially confined to commodity and mining stocks, hit by the slowdown in China, the slump now looks much more widespread.
"We are in the midst of a full-blown growth scare, with China at the epicentre," said a note from analysts at JP Morgan.
So how worried should we be by such events - or is there even a silver lining to this crisis?
Monday's fall on the FTSE 100, of 4.67%, is not that big in historical terms.
On 19 October 1987, otherwise known as Black Monday, the index fell by 10.84%. The following day, it fell by a further 12.22%.
On 28 October 1929, at the start of the Wall Street crash, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 12% - and a further 11% the day after.
What is more significant, however, is not the individual one-day falls, but the longer-term declines.
In 1987, for example, Black Monday was followed by a true bear market. By the end of the month, the FTSE 100 had fallen by more than 26%.
During the financial crisis of 2007-08, the FTSE 100 peaked at 6,724 on 12 October 2007, reaching a trough of 3,512 on 3 March 2009 - in all, a drop of 47%.
One immediate impact of the current market turbulence is likely to be a further delay in an interest rate rise.
The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) primarily looks at inflation expectations when considering any change in rates - but it also looks at wider market confidence as well.
Despite recent suggestions by the governor of the Bank of England that a rise might be expected as soon as the end of 2015, analysts now expect that rise to come considerably later.
In other words, those on variable-rate mortgages can now breathe more easily, and may not have to hurry to switch to a fixed-rate deal.
"I think it's good news for mortgage holders, as it must put back the date of the next rate rise," said mortgage expert Ray Boulger of brokers John Charcol.
On the other hand, the news will inevitably not be so good for savers, who will have to stomach record low savings rates for a while longer.
How much you should worry about the stock market fall probably depends on your age.
Those in their 50s, approaching retirement, will have much more to be concerned about than younger people. In particular, anyone about to take out a pension, or indeed thinking of cashing in their pension, may have to think again. (See pensions below).
But younger people with pensions, or those investing in the stock market directly, may have little to fear.
Admittedly, some analysts worry that the markets have further to fall.
"Against this backdrop, it would take an investor with nerves of steel to contemplate dipping back into the market at this point," said Michael Hewson, analyst at CMC Markets.
But other experts say that young investors will have plenty of time to make their money back - and indeed could make a lot of money by investing now.
"For younger investors, falls like this are great," says Mark Dampier, investment analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
"You're buying the market way cheaper. You should be adding."
But you don't need to hold shares directly to be hit by the current slump.
If you are paying into a pension, the chances are that about 70% of it is invested in shares or share-based funds.
While you will now be feeling considerably poorer, it only really matters if you are about to cash in your pension, buy an annuity or set up a drawdown policy.
In that case, your capital will have shrunk, and now may not be the best time to buy a pension.
Mark Dampier is particularly concerned about those who already have a drawdown scheme in place.
Pensioners in drawdown leave their capital invested and "draw down" an income from it. But falling share prices can erode the capital quickly.
"If you are in a drawdown plan, this is definitely the time to check you are not drawing down too much from your capital," he told the BBC.
Those who do are in danger of running out of money before they die.
On the other hand, many pension pots will not have fallen in value by as much as the FTSE 100.
Smaller companies - particularly those not in mining or commodities - have fared better.
And while many funds typically invest 70% in shares, 30% is often invested in bonds - which may even have gone up in value over the last few months.
Those whose pensions are in so-called lifestyle funds will anyway have seen some of their capital gradually transferred into bonds, as they get nearer retirement age.
The outstanding question, as ever, is whether the slump has further to go, and how long it may take markets to recover.
"This is a nasty correction," said Mark Dampier. "And nobody knows whether there's more to come. That's what makes it scary. But unless this is the death of capitalism, stock markets do recover." | The index of the UK's biggest 100 companies, the FTSE 100, has now fallen by 15% since its all-time high on 27 April 2015. | 34039767 |
The Football Association had written to all 3,000 travelling England fans asking them to behave in the Irish capital and any fears of more trouble were unfounded as the friendly was played out in a peaceful atmosphere.
Both anthems were immaculately observed before kick-off, and the only sign of any tension came when some Ireland supporters whistled as England fans sang God Save The Queen during the game.
The game itself was a massive disappointment, however. England and Ireland were using the game to prepare for their Euro 2016 qualifiers next week but it was almost totally devoid of the intensity they can expect in those competitive encounters.
It took England 44 minutes to muster an effort at goal, when Adam Lallana fired over from distance, and they did not force Keiren Westwood into a save until Wayne Rooney's tame free-kick just before the hour mark.
Rooney had few opportunities to get any nearer to Sir Bobby Charlton's goalscoring record of 49, but his below-par display was summed up by a terrible touch when he was put through on goal.
Raheem Sterling also had an ineffective afternoon and could not escape his contract issues at Liverpool either, with some fans booing him until he was replaced midway through the second half.
Ireland, who host Scotland here on Saturday in a game that is crucial to their chances of reaching France, fared slightly better when they came forward.
But Daryl Murphy wasted their best first half chances, firing wide when the ball dropped to him in the box and failing to find the target with a header from Seamus Coleman's free-kick.
That sort of finishing meant England keeper Joe Hart's only save of note came when Ireland substitute Jon Walters fired straight at him midway through the second half.
A flurry of changes from both teams followed, including the introduction of Jamie Vardy, who replaced England captain Rooney to make his international debut.
Sadly for Vardy, the former Stocksbridge Steels striker did not get a single sniff in front of goal during his 16 minutes on the pitch and Hodgson will have learned little about his credentials at this level.
Few of Vardy's team-mates did anything of note either. Andros Townsend tested Ireland's substitute keeper Shay Given with a low drive before the end but that was the best England could muster in front of goal.
England's wait for a first win over Ireland since 1985 goes on but they did at least extend their unbeaten run since last summer's World Cup to nine games.
However, this lacklustre display did little to reflect the improvements they have made in recent months and Hodgson must hope it is not repeated when they play Lithuania next weekend.
Match ends, Republic of Ireland 0, England 0.
Second Half ends, Republic of Ireland 0, England 0.
Phil Jagielka (England) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Jonathan Walters (Republic of Ireland).
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Delay in match Jonathan Walters (Republic of Ireland) because of an injury.
Hand ball by Andros Townsend (England).
Attempt missed. Ross Barkley (England) left footed shot from the left side of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Andros Townsend.
Substitution, England. Theo Walcott replaces Adam Lallana.
Foul by James Milner (England).
Jonathan Walters (Republic of Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt saved. Andros Townsend (England) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Ross Barkley.
Attempt missed. Ross Barkley (England) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right. Assisted by James Milner.
Attempt saved. Chris Smalling (England) header from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by James Milner with a cross.
Attempt missed. Phil Jones (England) header from very close range misses to the left. Assisted by Andros Townsend with a cross following a corner.
Corner, England. Conceded by Robbie Brady.
Substitution, England. Jamie Vardy replaces Wayne Rooney.
Substitution, England. Phil Jagielka replaces Gary Cahill.
Attempt missed. Harry Arter (Republic of Ireland) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.
Substitution, Republic of Ireland. Paul McShane replaces John O'Shea.
Foul by Gary Cahill (England).
Shane Long (Republic of Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
James Milner (England) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Harry Arter (Republic of Ireland).
Attempt blocked. James Milner (England) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Ross Barkley.
Chris Smalling (England) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Jonathan Walters (Republic of Ireland).
Attempt missed. Ross Barkley (England) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Jordan Henderson.
Substitution, England. Ross Barkley replaces Jack Wilshere.
Substitution, England. Andros Townsend replaces Raheem Sterling.
Attempt missed. Jordan Henderson (England) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Chris Smalling with a headed pass following a corner.
Corner, England. Conceded by Marc Wilson.
Substitution, Republic of Ireland. Harry Arter replaces Glenn Whelan.
Ryan Bertrand (England) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Aiden McGeady (Republic of Ireland).
Attempt saved. Jonathan Walters (Republic of Ireland) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by James McClean.
Substitution, Republic of Ireland. Shay Given replaces Keiren Westwood.
Foul by Raheem Sterling (England).
Seamus Coleman (Republic of Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Phil Jones (England) header from the centre of the box is too high following a corner. | England's first visit to Dublin since the riot that caused the abandonment of their infamous 1995 friendly ended in a dismal draw with the Republic of Ireland. | 32949838 |
The league and Irish Cup winners had to come from behind after Josh Carson slotted in against his former club to put the Bannsiders in front.
Linfield were quickly level when Aaron Burns fired home after a one-two with Jordan Stewart.
Andrew Mitchell volleyed in to make it 2-1 in the second half and a Paul Smyth lob sealed success for the Blues.
Burns headed wide from the first opening before Darren McAuley volleyed just off-target for beaten Irish Cup finalists Coleraine.
Jamie McGonigle created the opener, his run and delivery across the face of goal setting up midfielder Carson to net on 33 minutes.
Burns equalised four minutes later after a classy move with former Glentoran player Stewart.
Blues keeper Roy Carroll made good save to keep out an Aaron Traynor snapshot early in the second half.
Two goals in five minutes ensured the first silverware of the 2017/18 campaign was destined for Windsor Park.
New signing Andrew Mitchell connected with Kirk Millar's cross at the backpost to give David Healy's side the lead after 73 minutes.
Millar also set up the third, his throughball putting Smyth clear and the forward lifted the ball over Chris Johns and into the Coleraine net. | Linfield started the season by securing a 3-1 victory over Coleraine in the Charity Shield game at the Oval. | 40838812 |
The home secretary told MPs that "some work" had been done to ensure material was not included in the report which could damage national security.
But she said claims she discussed it with US officials were "inaccurate".
She said was not aware of "any evidence" the UK had been involved in torture, which she said was abhorrent.
The US Senate report, which alleged the "brutal" interrogation and treatment of al-Qaeda suspects in the wake of 9/11, contained no reference to UK agencies.
After it was published last week, Downing Street initially said no requests for redactions had been made but later stated that requests were made by British intelligence agencies to the CIA for reasons of national security.
The government has insisted none of the details blacked out were related to British involvement in the mistreatment of prisoners.
Appearing before the Home Affairs Select Committee, Mrs May said suggestions that she or her officials had met Senator Dianne Feinstein, who chaired the inquiry, on multiple occasions in recent years to discuss the report were "wrong and inaccurate".
She added: "I have not asked for any redactions. Any such request will only have been in relation to the need to ensure that nothing damages our national security."
Asked about the case for a public inquiry into any UK complicity in illegal activities, Mrs May said the US inquiry had been conducted by the US Senate and it was appropriate for Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee to continue its work.
The security services, she stressed, would co-operate fully with the investigation, adding that the committee was "not tainted by party political issues in the way it does its job" and acted "with integrity and thoroughness".
Keith Vaz, the Labour MP who chairs the cross-party Home Affairs committee, said he would be asking Mrs Feinstein to appear before MPs herself next year. | Theresa May has said she did not ask for any details about the UK security services to be redacted from a report about alleged torture by the CIA. | 30486061 |
That is despite the fact the Italian club have accepted an identical offer from Serie A rivals Napoli.
Liverpool hope a deal can be done as Zielinski wants to join them, having indicated he is prepared to see out the remaining two years on his Udinese contract and leave on a free transfer.
Meanwhile, Mario Balotelli is back at Anfield after a loan spell at AC Milan.
The Italy striker, who signed for Liverpool from Milan in August 2014 in a £16m deal, returns to a much-changed squad following his season-long loan at the San Siro.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has made four major signings ahead of the new Premier League season, adding £34m forward Sadio Mane, goalkeeper Loris Karius, midfielder Marko Grujic and defender Joel Matip to his squad,
Balotelli returned to the San Siro on loan in August 2015 after a disappointing first season at Anfield, where he netted just four times in 28 appearances.
The 25-year-old started pre-season training with Liverpool on Saturday.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page. | Liverpool have had an £11.7m bid for Poland midfielder Piotr Zielinski rejected by Udinese. | 36695597 |
But it slightly reduced the fine from 899m euros ($1.12bn; £719m) to 860m euros.
The fine was imposed four years ago and was a record at the time.
It was imposed because Microsoft had not provided certain information about its products to competitors as it had been ordered to do in 2004.
EU anti-trust regulators originally fined Microsoft 497m euros in 2004 for abusing its dominant market position to block competitors.
Microsoft was ordered to make the code for its server software available to competitors so their products could work alongside it.
In 2008, Microsoft was given an additional fine for failing to comply with the 2004 order.
The latest decision, "rejects all the arguments put forward by Microsoft in support of annulment", a statement from the EU General Court court in Luxembourg said.
At a hearing in May 2011, Microsoft's lawyers had argued that the fine was excessive and undeserved. | Europe's second highest court has upheld a competition ruling against Microsoft saying it "essentially upholds the Commission's decision". | 18606813 |
The Portugal forward opened the scoring with a deflected free-kick that wrong-footed Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
Ronaldo added a second from the penalty spot before he completed his treble when he tapped in Gareth Bale's cross.
Real now have a four-point lead over second-placed Barcelona, who were held to a goalless draw by Malaga earlier.
Ronaldo has scored eight La Liga goals for the European champions this season, to draw level with Barcelona duo Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.
The 31-year-old's treble also saw him go one goal of clear of legendary Real forward Alfredo Di Stefano's individual total of 17 goals in the Madrid derby.
His total could have been more had Oblak not produced a stunning diving save to keep out Ronaldo's powerful header when the scoreline was goalless.
The result - in what was the last Madrid derby at the Vicente Calderon in La Liga - was also a blow to Atletico's title hopes with Diego Simeone's side now nine points adrift of Real.
Ronaldo recently signed a new contract with Real Madrid until June 2021 and claimed he can play on until he is 40.
In what was his best performance of the season thus far he certainly shows no sign of slowing up - much to the chagrin of Atletico's fans.
Even when Zidane substituted Ronaldo with seven minutes left he took it with good grace and maturity, with no evidence of the petulant sulks of the past.
Love him or loathe him, it looks like he will be around for some time to come.
Zinedine Zidane has been branded a 'lucky' manager by some but the Frenchman has more strategic acumen than perhaps he has been given credit for.
Against a formidable opponent in Simeone, his players executed the Real Madrid manager's gameplan to the letter to clinch a comprehensive win.
Zidane has still not lost a La Liga away game since he replaced Rafael Benitez in charge, with 44 goals scored and 12 conceded.
That's no fluke.
Match ends, Atlético de Madrid 0, Real Madrid 3.
Second Half ends, Atlético de Madrid 0, Real Madrid 3.
Attempt missed. Kevin Gameiro (Atlético de Madrid) right footed shot from the centre of the box is high and wide to the left.
Attempt saved. Yannick Carrasco (Atlético de Madrid) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Kevin Gameiro.
Attempt blocked. Yannick Carrasco (Atlético de Madrid) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Filipe Luis.
Attempt missed. Luka Modric (Real Madrid) with an attempt from the centre of the box is just a bit too high. Assisted by Daniel Carvajal with a cross.
Corner, Atlético de Madrid. Conceded by Keylor Navas.
Attempt missed. Ángel Correa (Atlético de Madrid) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is close, but misses to the left.
Attempt blocked. Saúl Ñíguez (Atlético de Madrid) header from very close range is blocked. Assisted by Koke with a cross.
Corner, Atlético de Madrid. Conceded by Keylor Navas.
Attempt saved. Yannick Carrasco (Atlético de Madrid) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner.
Foul by Luka Modric (Real Madrid).
Ángel Correa (Atlético de Madrid) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Substitution, Real Madrid. Marco Asensio replaces Lucas Vázquez.
Foul by Daniel Carvajal (Real Madrid).
Yannick Carrasco (Atlético de Madrid) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Hand ball by Saúl Ñíguez (Atlético de Madrid).
Ángel Correa (Atlético de Madrid) is shown the yellow card.
Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Ángel Correa (Atlético de Madrid).
Substitution, Real Madrid. James Rodríguez replaces Cristiano Ronaldo.
Lucas Vázquez (Real Madrid) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Diego Godín (Atlético de Madrid).
Corner, Atlético de Madrid. Conceded by Daniel Carvajal.
Attempt missed. Koke (Atlético de Madrid) right footed shot from the left side of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Ángel Correa following a corner.
Corner, Atlético de Madrid. Conceded by Gareth Bale.
Substitution, Real Madrid. Karim Benzema replaces Isco.
Lucas Vázquez (Real Madrid) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Lucas Vázquez (Real Madrid).
Yannick Carrasco (Atlético de Madrid) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Goal! Atlético de Madrid 0, Real Madrid 3. Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Gareth Bale following a fast break.
Luka Modric (Real Madrid) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Filipe Luis (Atlético de Madrid).
Offside, Atlético de Madrid. Koke tries a through ball, but Antoine Griezmann is caught offside.
Hand ball by Lucas Vázquez (Real Madrid).
Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Juanfran (Atlético de Madrid).
Attempt saved. Yannick Carrasco (Atlético de Madrid) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Saúl Ñíguez.
Goal! Atlético de Madrid 0, Real Madrid 2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) converts the penalty with a right footed shot to the bottom left corner.
Diego Godín (Atlético de Madrid) is shown the yellow card. | Cristiano Ronaldo's 39th career hat-trick gave Real Madrid a derby win over city rivals Atletico to increase their lead at the top of La Liga. | 37972474 |
It is something Labour, the Liberal Democrats and Greens say they want to change.
Do you think head teachers should try every means possible to attract talented young people into teaching?
The Conservatives say it is essential to give many schools the freedom to recruit people without a formal teaching qualification.
UKIP agrees, arguing that you can have an experienced and outstanding teacher who is unqualified.
It is one of those muddling and muddied debates that is a dividing line between the political parties.
Depending on where you stand it is either a useful alternative way of recruiting a wide range of talents, or an excuse to lower the pay and status of teaching through deregulation.
While a newly qualified teacher can expect to start on £22,000 a year, an unqualified teacher can be paid as little as £16,000.
Qualified-teacher status is awarded after finishing an approved initial teacher training programme.
In theory you must have it to get a teaching job in a school run by your local council, but not in an academy or free school.
Labour says there are about 17,000 unqualified teachers in England's schools, and points to an increase in the number employed in academies.
This is true on both counts, but - as is often the case in politics - is just one slice of the truth, as the official workforce numbers show.
Schools have long been able to make an exception to employ unqualified teachers for their specialist skills, often in subjects such as music, art and sport.
Go back a decade to 2005 and the full-time equivalent of 18,800 unqualified teachers were working - 4.3% of all teachers in England.
The 17,100 employed today make up a smaller proportion - 3.8% of teachers in publicly funded schools.
That means all schools, including those directly managed by local authorities, free schools and academies.
If you look at the crude numbers, more unqualified teachers were working in local-council-managed schools in 2013 than in academies.
As more schools have converted to become academies, the number of unqualified teachers employed in academies has also gone up.
Less commented on is the significant increase in teaching assistants, with a starting salary even lower than an unqualified teacher at around £13,000.
Of course they don't take classes on their own, they are in class to help not to lead the learning as the teacher does.
But the figures show how their role in schools in England has grown.
So as far as those political positions on qualified versus unqualified teachers are concerned, it seems the parties' rhetoric is largely about staking out different visions of teaching and the school system.
One view is of a less regulated, more diverse teaching workforce; the other argues that formal training in the skills of being a teacher is an essential part of bolstering the status of the profession. | How much does it worry you when you hear that almost 400,000 children in England are being taught by unqualified teachers? | 32160792 |
Less than a month after it was announced he and his wife Beyonce are expecting twins - he is to receive a top songwriting honour.
Jay-Z is to become the first rapper ever inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in the US.
A handful of artists who are considered to have "enriched the world's culture" with their songwriting and music are selected for induction every year.
Joining the hall of fame is a huge deal - previous inductees include Marvin Gaye, Bob Dylan, Dolly Parton, Bruce Springsteen and Michael Jackson.
But no rapper has ever made the cut before.
Jay-Z will be inducted as part of the hall's class of 2017 alongside Max Martin, who has written songs for Taylor Swift, Katy Perry and Ariana Grande.
Other inductees this year will include Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The duo have written and produced number one singles for Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey and Usher, among many others.
Songwriters are eligible for induction after writing hit tracks for at least 20 years.
This explains why Jay-Z is being inducted now - as he recently passed the 20th anniversary of his debut album Reasonable Doubt, released in 1996.
Chic guitarist Nile Rodgers, who was one of last year's inductees, said Jay-Z had "changed the way we listen to music".
Madonna and George Michael were both nominated this year as well but weren't chosen this time.
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk. | Jay-Z has several reasons to be happy right now. | 39057229 |
"The company has acquired world publication rights for two books, to be written by President and Mrs Obama respectively," the publisher said.
Titles and other details have not been disclosed but the deal is believed to be worth over $60m (£48m).
Mr Obama is the author of the bestsellers Dreams from My Father and The Audacity of Hope.
Mrs Obama has written American Grown - a book about food and gardening.
"With their words and their leadership, they changed the world, and every day, with the books we publish at Penguin Random House, we strive to do the same," Penguin Random House CEO Markus Dohle said.
"Now, we are very much looking forward to working together with President and Mrs Obama to make each of their books global publishing events of unprecedented scope and significance." | Former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle have agreed a book deal with Penguin Random House. | 39124239 |
Last month, planners recommended the council should reject the proposal.
The units which Lidl pursued only have planning permission for the sale of bulky goods, like furniture.
The planners said changing the use would conflict with policies which favour the use of existing suitable sites.
Last year, the future viability of the shopping centre was called into question when both Tesco and Dunnes Stores pulled out of it.
Alliance councillor David Armitage, who abstained from voting so that he could speak in favour of approving the plan, said the right decision was reached.
"I'm absolutely delighted the initial decision to decline Lidl has been overturned," he said.
"While some still saw fit to argue against the application, hopefully the years of struggling for Connswater are now over and the local community can look forward a revived period for the centre."
However, the Green Party's Ross Brown said the approval leaves the council open to a potential legal challenge that could prove costly.
"I'm not at all against Lidl and in fact I think it would be a good addition to the area, but this opens the door for a judicial review by Tesco and ultimately it's the ratepayers who have to shoulder the cost if that happens," he said. | Belfast City Council has backed a plan to open a new Lidl store at Connswater retail park in east Belfast. | 36533869 |
With injured centre Jonathan Joseph missing the game at Twickenham, rugby league convert Sam Burgess is set to start alongside Brad Barritt.
Burgess, 26, will be winning only his third England cap.
Number eight Ben Morgan is also set to miss the match because of a minor knee injury, with Billy Vunipola coming in.
Morgan, 26, broke his leg in January, ruling him out of the Six Nations, but returned to regain his starting place ahead of Vunipola for England's tournament opener.
Wasps flanker James Haskell will step up to the bench to face Wales.
Bath centre Joseph, 24, injured his chest as the hosts beat Fiji 35-11 on Friday.
England attack coach Andy Farrell said Joseph's injury was "nothing too serious" and would probably keep him out for "not more than a week", although it is understood he is a significant doubt for the match with Australia on 3 October.
Joseph scored four tries in England's Six Nations campaign earlier this year and is one of the most dangerous runners in England's backline.
After facing Wales, England play Australia, followed by Uruguay on 10 October, with the top two teams from the group progressing to the quarter-finals.
Head coach Stuart Lancaster will announce his team on Thursday morning.
For the latest rugby union news, follow @bbcrugbyunion on Twitter. | England fly-half George Ford will be dropped for the World Cup Pool A match against Wales on Saturday, with Owen Farrell replacing him. | 34324696 |
Speaking in Santiago, Joachim Gauck said his country's diplomats should have said something about the atrocities committed at Colonia Dignidad.
But he said Germany did not share responsibility for them.
The enclave was used as a torture centre during the Pinochet era.
It was set up by a former Nazi officer, Paul Schaefer, in the 1960s as an agricultural commune of German migrants.
A Chilean congressional report said in 2010 that Colonia Dignidad - which means Dignity Colony - operated as a "state within a state" during the Pinochet regime, thanks to Schaefer's close ties to the country's ruling elite.
Thousands of children and young people were physically and psychologically abused there.
Germany said in April that it would release classified documents it has on the colony for research purposes. | The German president has condemned the human rights violations at a secretive colony of ethnic Germans in Chile in the 1960s and 1970s. | 36780312 |
Elizabeth Manley faces 30 misconduct charges between 2013 and 2015 when she was at Lumsden Primary, Aberdeenshire.
They include allegations she threatened a parent and acted aggressively towards staff.
Mrs Manley is expected to be struck from the register by her own consent during a hearing at the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS).
It is due to take place in Edinburgh on Thursday.
Aberdeenshire Council said it took appropriate action when the allegations came to light and Mrs Manley was no longer employed by the council. | A former primary school head teacher accused of a string of misconduct allegations faces being struck off. | 39792366 |
The 27-year-old has agreed a three year deal at Craven Cottage, with the option of a further 12 months.
Former Tottenham trainee Button moves across west London after playing 141 times during three years with the Bees.
"I understand if there are some fans who will be disappointed we have sold a player to our local rivals," Bees co-director of football Phil Giles said.
"However, I'm confident that we've made a decision that is in the best long term interests of the club."
Button becomes Fulham's seventh signing of the summer transfer window.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page. | Fulham have signed goalkeeper David Button from Championship rivals Brentford for an undisclosed fee. | 36840486 |
This apparent contradiction hangs on the disjunction between the resumption of growth in the US and UK, on the one hand, and the much more dour and downbeat message contained in the 25-year yield curve for government bonds of the developed economies (sorry if this sounds tediously technical but, cross-my-heart-hope-to-die, this stuff matters to you).
You can see the UK chart of the long term yield curve for British government debt or gilts here.
It is a representation of the implied cost of borrowing for the UK government for different loan maturities, or the length of time it wishes to borrow, ranging from nought to 25 years.
Now the chart to focus on is the "real" yield curve, or the one adjusted for inflation expectations.
What this shows is that the real cost of borrowing for the government is negative or zero for any length of time the government would wish to borrow, up to 25 years.
Or to put it another way, investors are prepared to incur a loss when lending to the public sector - which implies that money for the Treasury is better than free.
Now conventional theory says this ultra-cheap-debt phenomenon is a manifestation of a conviction among investors that the rich developed economies will stagnate, that they will enjoy no growth, for decades.
How so?
Well, investors see governments as the safest place to lend. And when they are prepared to lend to governments at a loss, that implies they don't see anywhere else they can confidently lend at a risk-adjusted profit.
Or to put it another way, they don't expect the economies of the developed world to grow fast enough for it to be wise to concentrate investment on the private sector.
This is a restatement of the famous or notorious hypothesis made a few months back by the former US Treasury Secretary, Larry Summers, to the effect that for the rich west, the so-called "equilibrium" interest rate that generates growth necessary for full employment may be negative - which is another way of saying our economies are seriously crocked.
Now it is important to note that the UK is not anomalous: investors are equally prepared to lose money when lending to the US and to most of the eurozone.
And the second thing of importance is that this curve has flattened and shifted downward by about one percentage point this year. Or to translate, as the evidence accumulated that we are enjoying quite a rapid recovery, investors became more pessimistic about the long term.
Strikingly therefore, investors reduced the implied long-term interest rate they charge rich governments, just as the top central bankers of the US and UK, Janet Yellen and Mark Carney, signalled that the momentum of renewed growth means it may not be long till they increase the short term interest rates under their control.
Yikes.
Investors seem to be saying, in how they place their money, that the UK's and USA's current reasonably rapid growth will turn out to be a short-lived period of catch-up, following the deep recession of 2008-9.
Why might they fear that?
One reason, which I have been banging on about for years, is that in Britain (though less so in America) the private sector, especially households, remains hobbled by record debts incurred during the boom years - whose burden, at a time of low inflation, remains oppressive.
Other possible apocalyptic jockeys - with a nod to the influential US economist Bob Gordon - include our ageing populations, inequality which channels the fruits of whatever economic success we see to low-spending rich people, inadequate education for an intensely competitive global economy and the putative end of the West's capacity to make society-transforming innovations.
So far so gloomy.
But it might not be as dour and depressing as all that. Or at least it might be differently dour and depressing.
Investors might be taking a much shorter-term view in their gloom and preference for chucking cheap money at Western governments.
They may simply be saying that the world remains a hairy and uncertain place, such that they want their cash placed with those they are certain will and can repay it - viz the governments of strong stable countries - till the hairiness abates.
What makes investors anxious right now is:
1) a Middle East on the brink of total chaos, thanks to the caliphate-building ambitions of Islamic State,
2) a China awkwardly and belatedly recognising the risk of a crash as it tries to wean itself off its addiction to debt-fuelled investment and growth,
3) a Russia under Putin seemingly intent on provocative territorial expansion,
4) and a eurozone seemingly constitutionally unable to make the structural economic reforms that could end its remorseless economic decline.
If any of these dramas went from hairy to horrendous, the economic implications for the world would be nasty. So buying supposedly high-quality government bonds might be sensible insurance.
On this view, investors are not taking any long-term view about the supposedly dire prospects for the US, UK and other developed economies, but simply want a safe haven for their cash till the immediate uncertainties blow over.
Which would be less dismal, except for one thing.
In making these supposedly safe bets with their cash, investors are not putting enough of their money where it might help make us more prosperous - namely in the productive, wealth-generating private sector.
So their preference for supposedly safe government debt might not be a statement that they anticipate long-term secular economic stagnation. But it might end up causing such economic stagnation, by starving those who create our prosperity - small businesses in particular - of risk capital.
Which suggests that the brilliant thing for the British government to do, for example, would be to take advantage of its ability to borrow for 25 years at less than zero cost to throw money at investment in infrastructure - to generate both short-term growth and enhance long-term productive potential.
That would mean Labour's ambition to balance the current budget, but still borrow for investment, might be more sensible than the Tories' plan to create a surplus on the overall budget.
Except for one thing. None of us can know for sure if fickle investors would continue to give the government free money if the government were to elongate the timetable for deficit reduction by doing something economically useful with the money it borrows. | Depending on which central banker I bump into, or what day of the week it is, those charged with providing some kind of momentum to our economies and maintaining financial stability tell me either that the rich world is at long last at the beginning of an economic recovery strong enough to require a rise in interest rates or is doomed to decades of stagnation. | 29377075 |
But a finance expert said the growth needs to reach other parts of Wales.
Chris Parry, from Cardiff Metropolitan University, has called for a "northern powerhouse" and "mid Wales powerhouse" in a bid to boost other areas.
It came as GDP figures for the UK showed a slower growth for the economy than predicted.
There are no separate Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures for Wales. The best guide is using GVA - Gross Value Added - which is in effect GDP minus taxation and those figures are expected before the end of the year.
Cardiff is the only part of Wales that has GVA above the UK average.
The service sector now accounts for more than three quarters of economic output in the UK.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) which produces the GDP figures said there had been a "robust" growth in the service sector - a quarterly increase of 0.7% - but both manufacturing and construction output had shown falls.
Mr Parry said: "In Cardiff and the surrounding areas it's showing signs of being really good.
"When you move north and east of Cardiff it's still struggling a little.
"To really get a balanced economy in Wales we need to be doing more than drinking coffee but doing renovations to our homes, decorating, that sort of stuff."
Phil Morris, partner with EJ Hales property agents, said the companies wanting to open restaurants in Cardiff city centre are mainly from London.
He said Cardiff is now in "tier one" of the cities that London restaurants want to locate to.
CASE STUDIES: MEXICANS IN CARDIFF'S HOTSPOT
Wahaca opened its first Mexican restaurant outside London in Cardiff city centre, serving around 5,000 people a week.
Manager Megan Roberts said: "People in Cardiff are eating and drinking out, it's becoming a social occasion more than going out binge drinking or whatever.
"We always hoped it would take off, but never imagined it would be so busy and so successful."
Tortilla's UK managing director Richard Morris opened up a Cardiff restaurant at the start of the Rugby World Cup.
"We're growing every day and every weekend," he said.
He said choosing Cardiff was a "no brainer" given the numbers of office workers and students.
But he said the sector was already moving to cities like Swansea too.
Robert Peston: No growth without services
Mr Parry said professionals in financial and legal services and students who put a lot into the economy.
"There's good gross income in Cardiff. It's rising as well, not as much as in London and the other big cities but it's growing," he added.
Wages are picking up and job security is improving in the city but he said Wales' service sector was struggling to pick up as a whole.
"The challenge for the sector is to say it's not just about Cardiff but the rest of Wales which is something Ireland did quite well," he said.
"In Wales we need to develop a northern powerhouse and a mid Wales powerhouse in the country."
MANUFACTURING IN MERTHYR
D and M in Merthyr Tydfil employs 25 people making metals used in railings and road building.
When the recession hit Welsh manufacturing hard, the firm turned its attention to the service sector in the south east of England, making shelves for supermarkets and bakeries.
Managing director Phil Corke says the supermarket contracts have slowed down but still represent one third of his companies work.
Generally across the UK he thinks the economy is doing reasonably well.
"It was really bubbling a couple of months ago, it's a little bit slower at the moment," he said.
"We're in so many different markets that really something is always up with us. You have to go out there and tell customers what you do and deliver that." | Cardiff's service sector appears to be booming with one estate agent claiming more than 60 restaurant firms want to open in the Welsh capital. | 34641734 |
Wearing an EEG monitor strapped to his head he collected millions of snapshots of the activity in his brain as he crossed 69 cities over seven months in the UK from June last year.
The monitor measures the electrical activity of the brain from sensors located across key areas of the scalp.
Its software provided metrics on how stressed, relaxed, excited, focused, interested and engaged he was during his walks.
He says the monitor helped him become more aware of his response to his surroundings.
"You become more attuned to the things you find interesting, uninteresting, stressful, unstressful.
"If you scale that principle up that could be very powerful for the design of cities in the future."
Of course it is far from infallible and the readings can also be affected by many things beyond the environment.
A moment when his stress, excitement, focus and engagement levels peaked while walking across Cardiff was not down to its beauty but rather his need just at that moment to go to the toilet.
Climbing hills in the Lake District created stress, as did crossing busy dual carriageways, but the machine does not differentiate between experiences that are pleasurable and those that are not.
Although the monitor helped him become more aware of his surroundings, he said: "What's interesting is that for about half my walk across cities I'm not focused and I'm not actually in tune with my emotions."
However, the monitor did pick up on key times when his stress levels altered in line with his environment.
His trip across Cardiff started well, with low levels of stress as he began his walk in woodland, although he came across the more familiar sight of a pile of rubbish.
Indeed, fly-tipping was a recurring blight that seemed to prompt a rise in his stress levels.
Similarly each time he encountered a road, his stress and focus levels increased, whereas by contrast water had an immediate calming effect on him.
As he continued his walks, he often found himself alone although many cities could be crossed in around an hour or less.
In Aberdeen, its appeal was that much of his route followed an old railway line.
"It's full of interest and completely functional. Aberdeen as a walk just worked," he says.
Out of all the cities he visited, Swansea was one of his favourites to walk through as he described it as "surprisingly green with a ribbon of woodland".
Indeed, he was surprised by how green many cities are.
Elsewhere he found Newcastle to be the "best city for seeing children playing out in the wild" while in Wolverhampton he loved "Dudley with its hills and great views across the city".
If there was anything he could change immediately having travelled through so many cities on foot, he said: "I would speak to people about not putting dog poo in bags and adorning trees at head height for other people to pick up, it's all over the country and it's a shameful problem we need to deal with."
Most of his journeys began with either a rail or bus journey to the outskirts of a city.
Accommodation was often a tent or a B&B and given he is a vegan, he made more than a few visits to curry houses. To avoid blisters he put a plaster on the problem area before the walk.
For the most part the weather was good and perfect for his walks.
"I did have to protect my headset from the elements though, so always carried a sturdy umbrella with me," he said.
His walk, which began in June last year with a walk across St David's in Wales, ended in December in Birmingham.
Along with 69 cities, he also visited 15 national parks to compare urban and rural environments.
Having completed his trips, he said: "If lots of people were wearing these monitors it could inform how we build cities to make them less stressful and more interesting to walk."
Now he will upload the data to begin to build an "emotional" map of Britain and hopes others will follow.
"I'm going to be using the five million points of geolocated data to see how my emotions changed across different kinds of places.
"My plan is to release all of the data as open data, so that anyone can interpret it and present it in interesting ways."
The information is now going online. | National Geographic explorer Daniel Raven-Ellison has just completed a 2.5 million step walk across Britain's cities and parks and electronically measured his changing mood with each step. | 38788928 |
A University of Leicester team installed a seismometer near Leicester City's King Power stadium and reported a minor quake with a magnitude of 0.3.
The tremor was attributed to a "sudden energy release" made by Foxes fans when Leonardo Ulloa scored a last-minute winner against Norwich, in February.
The event has been labelled the "Vardy Quake" after top scorer Jamie Vardy.
Live updates and more from Leicestershire
A seismometer was installed by geology students, and the British Geological Survey (BGS), at Hazel Community Primary School, 500m (0.3 miles) from the King Power Stadium, as part of a project to detect earthquakes around the world.
However, Paul Denton, a seismologist from the BGS, said the team wondered if football fans would affect the detectors.
He said: "The seismometers were actually closer to the Leicester Tigers [rugby] ground and so we were expecting stronger signals from there but we can't find anything.
"It says something about the nature of football, it's so tense and then we get four or five seconds of unexpected magic.
"[In Leicester's case] it was in the 89th minute, the game was practically over.
"It wasn't just a case of cheering or clapping, it was 30,000 people standing up at the same time - an awful amount of energy."
The scientist who recorded similar results at the Reading music festival and freight trains passing through the city, said he would like to see how Leicester compares with other football clubs.
He said it could inspire children to get more interested in science.
Leicester City have been the surprise package in the Premier League this season and are clear at the top by five points with nine games left to play.
The students will continue to monitor the Foxes' home games and will provide updates via the @VardyQuake Twitter account. | An "earthquake" made by football fans celebrating a goal has been recorded for the first time in the UK. | 35752099 |
The settlement is expected to be announced later this week.
It follows a lengthy investigation of European banks by US authorities into illegal dollar transactions.
In 2013, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) was fined $100m by US regulators for violating sanctions against Iran, Sudan, Burma and Cuba.
Credit Agricole stands accused of transferring billions of dollars to accounts held by entities from those same countries between 2003 and 2008.
The bank is paying the fine as part of a so-called deferred prosecution agreement.
The agreement means the bank will not have to plead guilty to any charges as long as it meets certain requirements.
It is understood that some of the bankers responsible for the wrongdoing have already been dismissed from their jobs at the bank.
In August, Credit Agricole set aside $350m in provisions in relation to the case, saying it was at an "advanced stage" in discussions over the alleged sanctions violations and expected to reach a settlement in autumn 2015.
Rival French bank BNP Paribas was ordered to pay a record $8.9bn fine earlier this year for similar alleged violations.
Other European banks including Deutsche Bank, Societe Generale and UniCredit have already said they are co-operating with US investigations into alleged sanctions violations. | French bank Credit Agricole is understood to have agreed to pay $800m (£516m) to settle charges it broke US sanctions in Iran and other countries. | 34578865 |
The study, by the Press Association (PA) news agency, showed London had the highest application rate of 47%, while the South West had the lowest at 32%.
It found four times as many teenagers in Wimbledon, south London, applied compared with Havant in Hampshire.
Universities UK acknowledged institutions should do more to boost social mobility within their regions.
Sir Peter Lampl, chief executive of the Sutton Trust education charity, said the "massive difference... reflects the fact that the chances of getting to university are very much dependent on where you live and where you go to school".
The researchers analysed data from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) on 18-year-olds applying this year.
According to the calculations, 55% of 18-year-olds in the top 10% of parliamentary constituencies in terms of university applications, had applied for a degree course by the main 15 January Ucas deadline.
But only 24% of those in the bottom 10% had applied by the same date.
In the Conservative seat of Wimbledon, south London, 70.3% of 18-year-olds applied.
But in Havant, Hampshire, also a Tory seat, the application rate was just 17.4%.
Sir Peter said work by charities like the Sutton Trust, running summer schools and providing extra support for able pupils in poorer areas, was crucial.
Research last year by the Universities UK Social Mobility Advisory Group urged universities to become "anchor institutions within their local communities to promote economic, social and cultural regeneration".
"There are no quick and easy solutions," said UUK chief executive Nicola Dandridge.
She said the report had recommended universities work "even more closely with schools and colleges" to boost young people's uptake of higher education in areas where it is lower than expected given their attainment at GCSE.
Overall, young people in Tory seats are slightly more likely to apply than those in Labour seats.
The average application rate in 328 Tory seats was 38%, compared with 34% across 231 Labour seats.
Schools and colleges in challenging areas were "working incredibly hard to close the attainment gap and support pupils who do not have the same advantages in life as their wealthier peers", according to Malcolm Trobe, interim general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders.
"However, the education system cannot solve the impact of significant socio-economic inequality on its own," he said.
"There are a range of social factors which must also be addressed in disadvantaged areas, such as improving the provision of secure, well-paid employment, and good-quality, affordable housing."
England's Department for Education said applications from 18-year-olds, particularly those from poorer backgrounds, were at record levels.
A spokesman said the government was spending £120m on outreach, while further reforms would "mean even more people can benefit from a university education". | Teenagers' likelihood of applying to university depends heavily on where they live, according to new figures. | 38996267 |
Mohammed Abdul Kadir remains on the run following the bludgeoning of Jalal Uddin in an attack in Rochdale.
On Friday, Mohammed Hussain Syeedy, 21, was convicted of murdering the 71-year-old after driving Mr Kadir to the scene of the killing. He was jailed for life.
An international warrant has been issued for the arrest of Mr Kadir.
Syeedy, of Ramsay Street, Rochdale, acted as a getaway driver but Manchester Crown Court heard Mr Kadir is thought to have used a hammer to deliver the fatal blows.
Det Ch Supt Tony Mole, of the North West Counter Terrorism Unit, said: "Mr Kadir left the country before he was declared a suspect.
"We are working very closely with all our international partners to trace him. If we can find him we will bring him lawfully back to the UK, where he will stand trial."
The trial heard Mr Uddin was "brutally" killed because he practised taweez faith healing, regarded by extremists as "black magic".
The prosecution said Mr Kadir, of Chamber Road, boarded a flight from Manchester to Copenhagen, Denmark, on 21 February and from there flew to Istanbul.
His whereabouts are unknown although it is thought he may have travelled onwards to Syria, the jury was told.
Murder of an imam - the interpretation of 'magic'
Mr Uddin's son, Saleh Al-Arif, said he will be greatly missed.
"My father was the greatest man in our lives. His smile will never be replaced," he said.
"They say perfection cannot be achieved, but my father came close, as demonstrated by his principles, his mannerisms and his incredible love for his family and his religion." | Police have vowed to hunt down a suspected Islamic extremist thought to have fled to Syria following the murder of an imam in Greater Manchester. | 37395521 |
The break-in at Goodwood House in West Sussex took place at about 04:15 GMT on Wednesday, Sussex Police said.
The intruder used a ladder to get into the house through an upstairs window before being disturbed by 54-year-old Lady March.
The man pushed her, and hit Lord March, 61, on the head before tying the pair up and taking the jewellery.
Staff at the 17th Century home, near Chichester, found the couple still tied up when they arrived for work at 06:30.
A 26-year-old man from Hampshire has been arrested in connection with the raid and released on bail until February.
A diamond tiara and a ring given by Charles II to his mistress were among more than 40 items stolen from Goodwood House.
Sussex Police said the stolen tiara, dating from 1820, was worth in the region of £400,000.
Lord March, who founded the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 1993, and his wife, also known as Jane Astor, were "devastated" at the theft of "priceless" items, police said.
Gems expert Filippo Guerrini-Maraldi, of insurance broker RK Harrison. said the jewellery was likely to be broken up and sold on.
"The chances are they will dismantle the tiara to take the diamonds," Mr Guerrini-Maraldi said.
"The metal will be melted down and used for another item."
Mr Guerrini-Maraldi said the thieves may not have been looking for specific items.
"They might be main-chancers and if they stumble across a tiara such as this they have hit the jackpot," he said.
Ch Insp Justin Burtenshaw, of Sussex Police, said: "They [Lord and Lady March] are devastated at the loss of these priceless items.
"I would like to praise the courage of both of them, both during the ordeal and afterwards now as we investigate." | Lord and Lady March have been assaulted and tied up by a burglar who stole more than £700,000 of family heirlooms. | 35323810 |
Tipped for the top job long before Alastair Cook resigned in February, a quirk of the fixture list has meant a five-month wait for Root to lead his country against South Africa.
The 26-year-old is a prolific run-scorer, a proud Yorkshireman and a new father - that much we know.
Here, those who have been with Root at key moments in his life reveal what has made him into a leader; from the baby with a bat in his hand, to teenage prodigy, a "cheeky chappy" who became a captain.
Root's grandfather was one of five boys, all of whom played cricket. His father Matt, good enough to represent the MCC at Lord's, turned out for Sheffield Collegiate, the club that produced former England skipper Michael Vaughan. Root's younger brother Billy currently plays for Nottinghamshire.
"I made him a little cardboard bat and he had it in his hand on the day he came out of hospital," said Matt. "As soon as he could walk, we put him into one of those things where he could wheel himself around and he was whacking furniture with a bat.
"When he was old enough, he would field when the Sheffield Collegiate first team were netting, then he would insist on having some throw-downs until it went dark or the thrower got tired. On Saturdays, I'd be playing, Joe and Billy would put their stumps in on the other side of the boundary and have their own game all day.
"When Joe was about eight, I was playing for the Yorkshire League against the Bradford League. We were fielding and the ball went towards the boundary. He ran on to the pitch, picked it up and threw it in, straight into the wicketkeeper's gloves. He got a round of applause from the crowd.
"He was opening the batting in under-13 cricket at the age of nine or 10. He was very small, so the ball was always around his shoulders. That's probably why he's so good off the back foot now.
"Joe just used to grind out runs. He really, really didn't want to get out. He loved batting at a really early age. More often than not he'd be run out, either because he didn't cover the ground very quickly, or team-mates would get fed up with him occupying the crease all the time.
"There was always cricket, but Joe also played football for Nottingham Forest under-eights. He packed it in because it interfered with his Sunday morning nets.
"When he was about 11, I asked Joe what he wanted to when he grew up. He said he wanted to play for England. Someone has got to do it and, maybe because he'd seen Michael Vaughan do it, he didn't see any reason why he couldn't be one that got the privilege."
At 13, Root became the youngest player to be given a scholarship by Yorkshire. As part of his introduction to the club he went to Headingley one winter evening to meet batting coach Kevin Sharp. Before the meeting, ex-Tykes batsman Sharp had been working with Anthony McGrath, who played four Tests for England in 2003.
"The way he talked, he could have been an adult," said Sharp. "He knew the strengths of his game, what he needed to work on in order to get better. It was quite remarkable. I thought 'if he can bat as well as he can talk, he's going to be very good'.
"He said he wanted a challenge, the same session that [former Yorkshire captain] McGrath had just had. I'd been training McGrath for Championship cricket, bowling with a new ball off only eight yards. I said to Joe 'we can't do that, I'll hurt you'. He just smiled and said that he'd be all right. I said 'put all your protective equipment on, because I'm coming for you'.
"We had 20 minutes of very quick, very intensive stuff and Joe dealt with it unbelievably well. He had a great technique. He knew when to play, when to leave. He loved the short ball. I bowled a bouncer, which I shouldn't have done because if it had knocked him out I would have lost my job. It clipped his helmet grille. He just smiled and said 'that was a good ball'.
"He always challenges himself to get better, practises out of his comfort zone, as if he is getting ready for the next level. He makes training harder than matchplay, so he is prepared for whatever may come.
"Once, when he was about 17, we were on a pre-season tour to Barbados. We were at the Three Ws ground [named after Windies legends Frank Worrell, Everton Weekes and Clyde Walcott] and there was a dark indoor school with a concrete floor. He went in and set up an eight-yard pitch, put his gear on and then came to me with a new ball.
"He said 'coach, we're going to play Test cricket for 15 minutes. All you have got to do is run in and hit me on the head'.
"I did as he asked. I hit him on the head, the chest and the throat. He just kept smiling and nodding at me. After 15 minutes, I said 'I've done what you asked. I've hit you on the head four times'.
"He said 'I know, but you haven't got me out'."
Root made his Yorkshire debut in 2009 at the age of 18, scoring 63 in a one-day game against Essex. Less than two years later he was opening the batting for England Lions in a side captained by fellow future Test batsman James Taylor.
"When people say that he arrived in the England team as a fully formed batsman it makes me laugh, because we never saw it with the Lions," said Taylor. "When he went on to play for England, we were thinking 'where has this come from?'.
"I didn't see that period of progression from Lions to England. When I saw him playing for England I was thinking 'how's he got this good?' We were all baffled because we didn't see him growing up and all the hard work that went into it. We saw a guy that, in the Lions, was technically good but didn't score too many runs. Underneath that, the talent was unbelievable.
"We played with him a fair amount and never saw him being that good. It was phenomenal how quickly he learned and progressed.
"I'm a big believer that the best players are the quickest learners, and Joe is an exceptionally quick learner. He went on England's tour of India in 2012 and that's where he made massive strides forward, making huge progress in the nets.
"He didn't play in the first three Tests. Some people, when they are out of the side just think 'oh, I'm carrying the drinks' and they sit on their backside wishing they were playing.
"Others use that time to learn, work hard, get better and fitter. Joe did that and that was the difference between having the potential to be exceptional, and actually being very good in the England team straight away. Not many people perform on debut and Root did it."
Root, aged 21, had only played two full seasons of first-class cricket when he was called into the England squad for the tour of India in late 2012. His selection was more on potential than weight of runs. That summer, he had managed 738 in Division Two of the County Championship.
He joined a team full of Ashes winners that had topped the world rankings the 12 months beforehand - the likes of Cook, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior and Graeme Swann. He was such a rookie, that some of them barely knew who he was.
"I'd never come across him before that tour," said Swann. "I knew his name, but knew nothing about his game. When he turned up I thought 'brilliant, we've got a mascot to take on tour with us', because he looked about 16 at a push.
"When you haven't seen anyone before, you sum them up the first time you bowl at them in the nets. Straight away I thought 'wow, this kid can actually bat'. Instantly he was the best player of spin in the team. He was very confident, punchy and almost arrogant in a good way.
"I think all the bowlers were chivvying Andy Flower, the coach, saying that we had to get him in the team because he was brilliant. I certainly was.
"In the dressing room, it was like having your cheeky little brother around. He was always there being a pest, doing stupid little jokes, or getting stuck into the cake trolley. He was a breath of fresh air compared to a lot of youngsters who were straight-down-the-line robots.
"From the first time I saw him in the nets I thought he would be an England player for the rest of his life. That was confirmed after he had faced about 15 balls in his first Test."
Root made 73 on debut in the final Test as England secured a first series win in India for 27 years, and was in the side for the back-to-back Ashes series that followed. However, with England having a miserable time down under in 2013-14, he was left out of the final Test in Sydney.
His return at the beginning of the following summer sparked a remarkable period of run-scoring. Just over a year later, he was ranked as the number one Test batsman in the world.
"It wasn't like he was getting dropped and being tossed aside," said England fast bowler James Anderson. "It was pretty obvious he was going to play a big part in the future of English cricket, but he was still very young. It was probably a clever thing to take him out of the firing line in order to look after him.
"Clearly, it wasn't a great trip. When you're 20 years old, all you want to do is go out there and play cricket. At the same age I was at the 2003 World Cup in South Africa and we had all the distractions of whether we should go to Zimbabwe or not. It was probably a shock for Joe that international cricket isn't just turning up and scoring runs.
"I remember how hurt he was when he did get dropped. He has always been desperate to play for England and to get a taste of that and then have it taken away can be difficult to deal with. I think that showed in the way he went away and worked on his game. He went to the relevant coaches and picked some brains to figure out what he could do to develop his game.
"I like the way that he prepares individually for series - he knows who he is going to come up against, so he'll tailor his game. That's something you think is a given in a lot of players, but even in international cricket you'll see some that, once they have had a few good scores, they will keep practising nicely at the things they are good at.
"Joe is someone who takes himself out of his comfort zone in practice. It's tough to bowl to him in the nets. I always think I can get him out, but then there are times when you can see how good he is. He's probably not the best guy to bowl at when you're trying to build confidence in preparation for a Test.
"People talk about Joe, Virat Kohli, Steve Smith and Kane Williamson as the best four players in the world. If Joe was to rank them, he'd put himself at number four. He's that sort of person. Because he's quite shy, I don't think he likes that praise too much."
Root was named England vice-captain in the summer of 2015, confirmation that he was Cook's successor-in-waiting. When Cook resigned in February this year, Root's elevation was close to a formality. He was made skipper a month after the birth of his first son, Alfred.
"He's always been the cheeky chappy off the field, in the dressing room and even on the pitch," said England all-rounder Chris Woakes. "He's always smiling and joking around. I think that's his way of staying in the zone, not getting too serious.
"People talk about him being a prankster, but that's not what I see in Joe, it's more the banter. He's very happy to give it out in the dressing room, but he also occasionally keeps himself to himself, especially on tour.
"You might not see him for a couple of days and you might think 'where's Rooty been?' There was one tour when he was in his room for a couple of days and the lads were calling him Casper the ghost. Then, all of a sudden, he's at the forefront again. He probably needs to take himself away, have his little bit of 'me time', then come back champing at your heels again.
"Being a dad has matured him a fraction. From a social side it does change your life a bit - you're not always going to be the first one in the bar. You have other duties. Still, he's very much a team man and will try to spend as much time with the team as possible.
"Fatherhood will help his time away from cricket. As an international, you're always thinking about cricket, so that might be good for him to get away from it. It might even help his batting.
"He hasn't changed in the months since he was made Test captain, but that will probably have to come because captains need to have difficult discussions with players. I think he'll embrace the job and I'm sure he'll pick the brains of Alastair Cook. The more he stays himself, the better he'll be."
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Additional reporting by Tim Peach. James Taylor was talking to BBC Test Match Special. | On Thursday, Joseph Edward Root will walk out at Lord's to toss the coin as the 80th man to captain England in Test cricket. | 40474015 |
John Brown, 25, from Motherwell, admitted carrying out the offences at two separate games at Ibrox stadium.
He targeted Cowdenbeath's Kudus Oyenuga as he celebrated a goal on 28 March, and disabled Falkirk fans on 3 October.
Brown was also given a community payback order and told to carry out 70 hours unpaid work.
Glasgow Sheriff Court heard that Brown "made monkey gestures using his arms and directed them towards the Cowdenbeath football player" as he celebrated a goal.
Police then approached Brown at the stadium and told him he was being arrested.
Brown committed the second offence after Falkirk scored and equalised at the game in October.
The court heard that he reacted by shouting towards the Falkirk away fans and gestured towards the disabled section.
Following sentencing, Stephen Ferguson, football liaison prosecutor for the west of Scotland, said: "Brown's behaviour was utterly reprehensible and choosing to vent this kind of hateful abuse at football matches is no excuse at all.
"There is absolutely no place in modern Scotland for individuals who commit crimes motivated by prejudice towards a person's race or disability.
"Police and prosecutors take such offences very seriously and will continue to do all we can to bring those who persist in committing them to justice." | A Rangers fan who made monkey gestures to a black player and abused fans with disabilities has been given a 12-month football banning order. | 34766798 |
Many functions have been passed to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, which have their own elected bodies. However, they don't all share the same level of authority.
There have long been important distinctions in the way different parts of the UK work - for example, the separate education and legal systems in Scotland. But in 1997, devolution - the transfer of some powers from central to regional bases - entered a new phase.
That year, referendums were held in Scotland and Wales, with both parts of Ireland following in 1998.
These resulted in the creation of the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Another major shake-up came in the form of 2014's Scottish referendum. Although voters said "No" to full independence for Scotland, the period leading up to the vote led to an intense debate over what Scotland should be able to decide for itself.
The debate has already resulted in more powers being offered to the Scottish Parliament - and is likely to influence how the process of devolution continues, not just in Scotland, but across the UK.
The table below gives an overview of the main powers given to the Northern Irish and Welsh assemblies, and the Scottish Parliament.
* Scotland has always had its own legal system
The UK government, led by the prime minister in Downing Street, is responsible for national policy on all powers which have not been devolved - known usually as "reserved powers".
The main areas which are reserved to Westminster are:
The Scottish Parliament sits at Holyrood in Edinburgh and is made up of 129 elected Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs), who scrutinise and pass bills in various areas of its many devolved responsibilities.
In addition to the main devolved powers, the Parliament can legislate on tourism, planning, natural and built heritage, sport and the arts, statistics, public registers and records.
But Holyrood will soon get control over more areas of Scottish life.
In the wake of the "No" vote in the Scottish independence referendum, all parties participated in the Smith Commission, which recommended:
Backed by the three largest pro-Union parties, these changes form the basis of legislation which is expected to be passed after the general election.
The SNP, which currently controls the Scottish government at Holyrood, maintains the Smith Commission blueprint falls short of the mark and continues to argue for full independence.
More powers for Scotland explained
The National Assembly for Wales sits at the Senedd in Cardiff Bay, and is made up of 60 elected Assembly Members (AMs). The Welsh government is its executive branch.
Since 2011 the Welsh assembly has had primary law-making powers over devolved areas, and in 2014 it gained tax-raising powers including stamp duty and landfill tax.
Arrangements are also in place for some powers over income tax, subject to approval in a referendum.
In addition, the assembly can make laws relating to ancient monuments and historic buildings, public administration, sport and recreation, tourism, town and country planning, flood defences, the assembly itself, and the Welsh language.
Constitutional upheaval in Scotland helped focus fresh attention on devolution to Wales, with UK ministers promising "ambitious" further proposals by March 2015.
This is expected to include a "reserved powers framework" for the Welsh assembly, meaning everything is considered to be devolved to Wales unless legislation specifically says that it is not.
UK devolution: What's next for Wales?
The Northern Ireland Assembly sits at Stormont in Belfast, and is made up of 108 elected Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs).
The power-sharing agreement between the nationalist and unionist communities in Northern Ireland is critical to the functioning of the assembly; devolution of powers has been suspended and reinstated several times since it started in 1998.
Devolution here is slightly different to Scotland and Wales, with government powers divided into three categories: transferred, reserved and excepted.
In addition to the main devolved powers, the assembly can also legislate on culture, arts and leisure, learning and employment and regional and social development.
In March 2010, an agreement was passed to transfer powers of justice and policing to Northern Ireland.
Devolution: the pathway ahead for NI
As devolution to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland has gathered pace, many people have argued there is not enough devolution to and within England.
There are two particular sources of tension.
The Treasury gives block grants to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to spend on devolved policy areas, calculated through the Barnett formula on the basis of population.
Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish MPs' can vote on laws that only apply in England - which some people believe should be addressed through English votes on English laws, the idea that only English MPs should be able to vote on laws which predominantly affect England.
The Barnett formula is set to be revised as Scotland gets more tax-raising powers, but it is not clear whether there will be any similar reconsideration of the way it funds Wales and Northern Ireland.
The parties at Westminster disagree over the best way to address the puzzle of which MPs get to vote on which laws, and have set out competing solutions.
On top of that, there have been renewed calls for devolution to England's cities and regions.
English devolution - the options | The general election on 7 May will determine who is in charge at Westminster, but the UK government's power to make laws across the land is limited. | 31502626 |
The song, written by John Christopher, Mark James and Wayne Carson, was first made famous by Brenda Lee and Elvis Presley in 1972.
Johnny Cash's cover of Nine Inch Nails' Hurt came in second place, followed by The Stranglers' version of Dionne Warwick's Walk On By.
Jimi Hendrix's take on Bob Dylan's All Along The Watchtower came fourth.
Jeff Buckley's cover of Leonard Cohen's classic Hallelujah completed the top five.
The public voted for their favourites from a top 50 compiled by BBC producers and DJs including Fearne Cotton Trevor Nelson, Simon Mayo and Steve Lamacq.
BBC Radio 2 and 6 Music's head of music Jeff Smith said: "The Pet Shop Boys have an enviable catalogue of hits and there have been lots of great versions of this classic song.
"Whittling down the long list for the vote was tough but it's great to see that this track still resonates with people today."
The Pet Shop Boys reached number one in the UK and number four in the US with the track in 1987.
Willie Nelson also won a Grammy for his version in 1982.
The top 10 tracks in the vote are as follows: | The Pet Shop Boys' Always On My Mind has been voted the top cover version of all time in a BBC Music vote. | 29791820 |
North Wales Police said the pedestrian died following a collision with a lorry at at the UPM plant in Shotton, at around 11:30 GMT on Monday.
A man is currently in custody helping police with inquiries.
The site is now closed as police and Health and Safety Executive investigators interview witnesses and staff.
General manager David Ingham said: "Our immediate thoughts are with the individual's family and colleagues.
"We will provide full support to all staff involved and investigate fully with all parties." | An investigation is under way after a man died at paper mill in Flintshire. | 38885721 |
The announcement was made at a scientific workshop in Brussels that focused on the most effective ways to tackle Xylella fastidiosa.
First recorded in southern Italy in 2013, the disease has since been detected in southern France.
Experts describe it as one of the "most dangerous plant pathogens worldwide".
The funding, which comes from the EU's Horizon 2020 programme, is part of the effort to tackle the agent before it spreads more widely to other key olive-producing regions within Europe.
Globally, the EU is the largest producer and consumer of olive oil. According to the European Commission, the 28-nation bloc produces 73% and consumes 66% of the the world's olive oil.
Closing the gaps
The workshop, convened by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on behalf of the Commission, was designed to bring together the world's leading experts on the disease in order to help identify where further research was needed.
"The outcomes from this workshop could help steer where the money should go in terms of the most pressing aspects of the issue," a EFSA spokesman told BBC News.
Speaking after the two-day workshop, one of the scientists - Stephen Parnell from the University of Salford, UK - said that there had been a particular focus on surveillance and improving ways to detect new outbreaks.
"This is a key area for researchers; how do we monitor the epidemic?" he told BBC News.
"What research do we need for more advanced methods of detection and how do we improve our ability to detect the pathogen, because it is very good at hiding from us so we need very good detection methods.
"We also discussed how we targeted our inspections on a larger scale so we are looking in the right place."
Since it was first detected in olive trees in Puglia, in southern Italy, in October 2013, it has since been recorded in a number of other locations, including southern France. To date, it has yet to be recorded in Spain, the world's largest olive oil producer.
Experts warn that should the disease, which has numerous hosts and vectors, spread more widely then it has the potential to devastate the EU olive harvest.
The EFSA Panel on Plant Health produced a report in January warning that the disease was known to affect other commercially important crops, including citrus, grapevine and stone-fruit.
The Xylella fastidiosa bacterium invades a plant's vessels that it uses to transport water and nutrients, causing the infected plant to display symptoms such as scorching and wilting of its foliage, eventually followed by the death of the plant.
Dr Parnell, who was a member of a working group that contributed to the EFSA report, said the disease posed a threat to the whole EU.
But he added: "The good thing about this workshop was that it was bringing in experts from places such as Brazil and the US who have a lot of experience of working with the pathogen.
"Getting them onboard means that we can learn what worked for them and how we can apply it in our own context."
The disease has plagued citrus farmers in North and South America for decades. It remained confined on these continents until the mid-1990s when it was recorded on pear trees in Taiwan.
According to the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organisation (EPPO), the pathogen had been detected by member nations on imported coffee plants from South America. However, these plants were controlled and the bacterium did not make it into the wider environment. | The European Commission says it will provide seven million euros (£5m) to fund research into a disease that poses a "very serious threat" to olive trees. | 34809894 |
The 19-year-old, a member of the Scottish Rugby Academy who can also play full-back, has started the U20s' recent matches with Ireland and France.
Graham, the nephew of ex-Scotland lock Scott MacLeod, came to prominence with a sensational score against Australia in last year's World U20 Championship.
He will join Edinburgh for the start of next season.
"Darcy is one of the most exciting prospects in Scottish rugby," said Edinburgh's acting head coach, Duncan Hodge, who will remain backs coach when Richard Cockerill takes over this summer.
"He's an extremely talented rugby player and a natural athlete. With the commitment and competitive drive he possesses, we're sure he'll thrive in a fully-professional environment."
Graham said: "I'm fully aware the professional environment will be a big step up but I'm excited to get involved and challenge myself to keep learning from the coaches and players around me." | Edinburgh have signed Hawick's Scotland Under-20s wing Darcy Graham on a two-year professional deal. | 39051890 |
The joint Chief Officers Group of Fife and Edinburgh said it would not be appropriate to release the full report.
It concludes that the ability of Mikaeel's mother, Rosdeep Adekoya, to physically care for the three-year-old was never in question.
Adekoya was jailed for 11 years in July after admitting culpable homicide.
Mikaeel died two days after being beaten by Adekoya at the family's flat in Edinburgh in January 2014.
She put his body in a suitcase, which she dumped behind her sister's house 20 miles away in Kirkcaldy, Fife.
However, she told police that Mikaeel had disappeared from her home, leading to a major two-day search.
Mikaeel's father Zahid Saeed, said: "Firstly the report offers no real answer about what actually happened in this particular case.
"Secondly, the biggest disappointment is Fife Council took no responsibility for their dealings with Mikaeel and his siblings.
"I feel that the social work department have failed in their duties to protect my children. "
The report identified examples of good practice but also identified 13 areas for future learning and action for NHS Fife, Fife social work services and other organisations including the Scottish government.
Steve Grimmond, chairman of the group of senior council officers for Fife and Edinburgh which commissioned the review, said it had been led an independent expert with vast experience in the field of child protection.
He said: "Over the past few months Moira McKinnon has conducted interviews with all relevant staff from each of the agencies involved in this case and scrutinised files, policies and procedures.
"What is being published today is an independent, thorough and comprehensive summary of her findings and it is important to stress that we are being as open and transparent as we can possibly be."
He said it would not be appropriate to publish the full report as it contained detailed, personal and private information.
Mr Grimmond said: "The central finding of the report states that the circumstances that led to Mikaeel's death could not have been predicted.
"Ms Adekoya's ability to physically care for him was never in question.
"She felt a need for space and time that resulted in him being left unattended and is the reason he was placed in foster care. It's important to stress that professionals who had regular contact with the family never had any concerns about the physical care of Mikaeel throughout this case.
"The decision to return Mikaeel to his mother's care was taken by a range of professionals who agreed that he was well looked after and that he had been in foster care long enough.
"All agencies involved with Mikaeel were clear in their view that he should return home and this position was fully endorsed by a Children's Hearing."
Mr Grimmond said the report did identify "some learning points" to improve and strengthen its practices.
A Scottish government spokesman said: "The sudden, un-natural death of any child is a tragedy and the untimely death of Mikaeel Kular continues to reverberate across Scotland and in particular the communities in Fife and Edinburgh where he lived.
"The Scottish government therefore welcomes the urgency with which this significant case review was undertaken and its speedy conclusion and focused actions, which we are sure will now be considered and acted upon by all the appropriate agencies timeously.
"We accept the recommendation directed at the Scottish government and we will consider the implications of the report very carefully." | A significant case review into the death of toddler Mikaeel Kular has found that the circumstances leading to it "could not have been predicted". | 32392803 |
A statement by his office said anyone acting in the name of the rebel Seleka Coalition would be punished.
The rebels have been blamed for looting and many deaths after former President Francois Bozize was ousted in March.
Supporters of Mr Bozize have recently staged an offensive, leading to the death of nearly 100 earlier this week.
The UN has warned that CAR could become a failed state, threatening the region.
A statement issued by Mr Djotodia's office on Friday said: "The Seleka Coalition is dissolved over the length and breadth of the Central African Republic's territory. Only the Central African security force is in charge of protecting our territorial integrity.
"Any individual or group of individuals who acts in the name of Seleka after the publication of the present decree... will incur the full sanctions under the law."
Mr Djotodia, a former rebel leader, was sworn in as president earlier this month after his forces ousted Francois Bozize in March.
Aid workers have accused undisciplined former rebels of looting the healthcare system, as well as robbing civilians, since the Seleka coalition of armed groups took power in March.
CAR has huge deposits of minerals such as gold and diamond deposits but has been plagued by chronic instability since independence in 1960.
Mr Djotodia has promised to relinquish power after elections scheduled for 2016.
Mr Bozize is currently in France after initially fleeing to Cameroon when Seleka fighters seized the capital, Bangui.
Earlier this week, his force launched an offensive north-west of the city - the first large-scale operation the former president's forces have staged since he was forced from power. | President Michel Djotodia of the Central African Republic has dissolved the rebel group that helped bring him to power in a coup six months ago. | 24088995 |
The snow should fall in the north and west but some areas in the south could also get a dusting.
Roads are likely to be busy and if the snow is heavy, some schools could even close.
But will there be enough snow for a snowman or sledging?
Our weather man Simon King is on SnowWatch for us, watch our video to see if it's coming your way....
Thank you for sending us your own weather reports! This page is now closed. You might find some of the pictures you sent in in our gallery. | The UK is expected to get some serious snowfall in the next few days. | 38581292 |
Aaron Goodwin, 29, was working at Cardinal Hume School, in Gateshead, when he accessed the dating app.
A disciplinary panel found he also used Skype outside work to say he had carried out a sex act on school premises. He had denied the allegation.
He was found guilty of unacceptable conduct and banned from teaching.
The National College of Teaching and Leadership hearing was told Mr Goodwin admitted accessing Grindr in 2014 to check messages, which was in breach of the school's social media policies.
In May 2013, Goodwin conducted a conversation with a male on Skype in which he revealed he was a teacher, said he was attracted to boys in their early teens and masturbated at work, the panel found.
Fifteen months later, he used the software application to contact a different person and requested they resend a number of explicit videos involving underage boys.
Goodwin claimed he had not been responsible for those conversations - blaming an individual he said had access to his flat and laptop between 2012 and 2014.
However, the disciplinary panel ruled against him and described his actions as "calculated".
While finding there was no evidence he had caused direct harm to any pupils, it said he had "encouraged the distribution of illegal sexual content involving minors".
An allegation he used Grindr to invite a member of the public to meet him in a toilet was unproven.
The indefinite teaching ban comes into force immediately. He had worked as a teacher since 2008.
Goodwin has 28 days to appeal against the decision. | A supply teacher who used Grindr on school premises and boasted of being attracted to young boys has been banned from the classroom. | 39004623 |
Two casualties were taken to hospital in a serious condition following the blast, near the Hebron Road.
A police statement said bomb disposal experts had determined that a device exploded in the back half of the bus.
Many of the injured were on the bus but others were in a passing car. The car caught fire along with a second bus that was empty.
The head of the emergency department at Jerusalem's Hadassah Medical Center told Israeli Army Radio that some of the injuries were caused by flying metal nails and nuts.
A police spokesman told Israeli Channel 2 television that investigators were still trying to determine who had planted the bomb.
He declined to confirm reports that one of the two people in a serious condition was not carrying any identification papers and was considered a suspect.
The explosion happened in the evening rush hour sending up a huge cloud of dark smoke over the city skyline.
Emergency workers were quick to remove the charred wreckage of the two buses and a car from the road and reopen it to traffic.
For many, images from the scene here will bring back worrying memories of the bomb attacks by Palestinian militants that last took place in this city more than a decade ago.
This blast comes just over a week after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that a decrease in the wave of attacks seen over the past six months was due to the "aggressive, responsible and systematic policy" of his government.
Palestinian militant group Hamas, which carried out a wave of bus bombings in the city in the early 2000s, praised Monday's blast, calling it "a natural reaction to Israeli crimes".
Over the past six months, 29 Israelis have been killed in a wave of stabbings, shootings or car-ramming attacks by Palestinians or Israeli Arabs.
About 200 Palestinians - mostly attackers, Israel says - have also been killed in that period.
The assailants who have been killed have been shot dead either by their victims or by security forces as they carried out attacks. Some attackers have been arrested.
Other Palestinians have been killed in clashes with Israeli troops. | At least 21 people have been wounded by a bomb explosion on a bus in south Jerusalem, Israeli police say. | 36075442 |
About 5,500 people are due to be transported from Norway to Russia. Many crossed the Arctic border by bicycle as part of the influx of migrants to Europe in 2015.
Norway announced in November it would immediately deport people who had arrived from a country deemed safe.
The first bus left a refugee shelter in the town of Kirkenes earlier.
Norway previously planned to send the migrants back to Russia by bicycle due to rules that banned vehicles from transporting people across the border without the necessary documents. People were also prohibited from crossing on foot.
Thousands of migrants used bicycles to cross the border last year after discovering a loophole in the law.
Most of them had fled the conflict in Syria.
Seeking asylum on children's bicycles
Migration to Europe explained in graphics
The move to deport the migrants has been condemned by human rights groups. The daytime temperature at the border is about -30C.
It comes after Russia agreed that Norway could return migrants with a Russian visa by bus rather than bicycle.
A coach with 13 people on board drove to the airport in the Russian port city of Murmansk on Tuesday night, according to Norwegian public TV.
Tor Espen Haga, a spokesman for the Norwegian police immigration service, told the broadcaster NRK (in Norwegian), that all those transported had either a valid Russian visa or other residence permit.
He said deportations would continue, and "what happens next is up to the Russians".
Over the weekend, about 70 people were brought from other asylum centres in Norway to the reception centre in Kirkenes, about 8km (5 miles) from the Russian border, according to reports.
About 40 people have fled a centre in Vadso for fear of being returned to Russia, Norwegian media quoted the head of the centre as saying.
There were also reports that a group of migrants in Kirkenes had started a hunger strike to protest against the planned deportation.
Norway's police authorities say 5,500 people arrived from Russia via the border crossing in Kirkenes in the second half of 2015.
All of them had visas or other permits allowing them temporary or long term stay in Russia and will therefore be returned, reports the BBC Russian Service's Oleg Boldyrev.
Human rights groups have condemned the move in a letter to the UN's refugee agency, our correspondent adds. They say Russia should not be considered a safe place for refugees.
Increasing numbers of migrants began crossing Russia's border with Norway by bicycle last year, in an attempt to avoid the perilous journey across the Mediterranean to Europe.
Although Norway is not a member of the EU, it is part of the Schengen Agreement which is designed to provide border-free travel.
A note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants. | Norway has sent 13 migrants back to Russia under new rules expected to see thousands deported by bus, reports say. | 35355727 |
The Chancellor has not spoken publicly since the Leave campaign won Thursday's referendum.
His aim will be to provide reassurance about the UK's economic and financial stability, a Treasury official said.
Before that statement the pound fell further, down another 2.6% against the dollar at $1.34.
Mr Osborne will publish his comments before European markets open at 08:00.
A Treasury spokesman said: "The Chancellor will make a statement to provide reassurance about financial and economic stability in light of the referendum result and the actions that he and the rest of the government will be taking to protect the national interest over the coming period."
The UK's credit rating outlook was downgraded on Friday night by Moody's, one of the three main ratings agencies, and banks expect sterling to remain volatile following the dramatic slide in the pound on Friday.
Economists expect the UK economy to fall into recession, which could force the Bank of England to cut interest rates later this year.
Governor Mark Carney said on Friday said the Bank was ready to provide £250bn of additional funds to support financial markets.
Leave campaigner Boris Johnson - a contender to become Conservative party leader - said Mr Carney should remain in his job despite coming under fire from some Brexit campaigners for highlighting the risks of leaving the European Union.
He claimed the UK would continue to have access to the single market despite the vote, adding there was "no great rush" to leave the EU.
Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Economics, said the UK's "extremely fluid" political situation meant "it would be risky automatically to assume that the UK is heading for Brexit. Although the prime minister has resigned, his attempt to hold out until October to begin the formal process of exiting the EU signals that he may be seeking to engineer a revised deal".
Meanwhile, the Chancellor will also need to clarify whether he intends to announce the emergency Budget that he insisted during the referendum campaign would be necessary in the event of Brexit.
Mr Osborne said that £30bn in tax rises and spending cuts would be necessary to compensate for the negative effects of voting to leave.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn - himself under pressure following a string of resignations from the shadow cabinet on Sunday - and pro-Leave Tory MPs have said they would try to block such a financial package if Mr Osborne tried to get it through the House of Commons.
The Government is also being pressed by European leaders to set out a timeline for starting negotiations with the EU on the terms of Britain's departure.
David Cameron, who resigned as Prime Minister on Friday in the wake of the Leave vote, said his successor should be invoke article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty to begin the formal withdrawal procedures after he leaves Downing Street in October.
However, EU leaders want the process to begin as soon as possible to minimise uncertainty.
French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke on Sunday night about how to respond to the UK's Brexit vote.
An aide to the French leader said both were in "full agreement on how to handle the situation" and the need to act quickly to "avoid uncertainties".
Mrs Merkel will hold talks in Berlin on Monday with Mr Hollande and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. | George Osborne will issue a statement early on Monday morning in a bid to calm markets after the surprise Brexit vote triggered turmoil on Friday. | 36636762 |
For their manager Chris Coleman, however, the sight of the River Liffey will be an opportunity for a fleeting moment of reflection.
This is where Coleman scattered the ashes of his late father, Paddy, three years ago; dropping them into the water along with a pint of Guinness, as is tradition.
Born and bred in Dublin before moving to Swansea at the age of 20, Paddy had requested that his ashes be sprinkled into the river in this manner.
And although Coleman will not be returning to that very spot on this occasion, even as he prepares Friday's enormous match, he will carry the memory of his father.
"We did it outside the Brazen Head pub next to the River Liffey, which is the oldest pub in Dublin," Coleman says.
"It dates back to 1198 and the history is incredible, unbelievable. I thought it was poignant.
"I used to take him back most summers for a few days. He would have a little roam around where he was brought up.
"He always said make sure you do it there. It was his request. The Guinness into the Liffey is a done thing there, especially where he is from.
"You throw a pint of Guinness into the Liffey. If I'm honest with you I did have a little drop first - it was eight Euros a pint!"
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Coleman bursts into laughter at this point, a broad smile unfurling across his face as he regales the room with tales of his father.
With still a few days before the match, he can afford to relax.
But when he is asked if he will return to the same spot this week, even the raconteur in Coleman makes way for solemn professionalism.
"No, it's not a friendly visit. I won't be thinking about anything else," he says.
"I will think about my father because it's his city and he would have wanted us to do well."
Coleman will not allow emotion to distract him, but he is a master of harnessing strong feelings and channelling them into his team's performances.
While leading his country to the uncharted territory of the Euro 2016 semi-finals, the 46-year-old spoke with statesmanlike grandeur - urging a nation "not to be afraid to dream" - as well as striking candour in his admission of having endured "more failures than success".
Those five weeks in France were the greatest of Coleman's career, but his one regret was that he was unable to share the moment with his father.
Paddy had died at the age of 74 two years before the tournament, and Coleman said in France how dearly he wished his father could have seen the success, having watched his son toil in previous years.
While Coleman's father was alive, Wales finished their 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign second from bottom of their group, languishing as low as 82nd in the world rankings.
They are a side transformed now, qualifying for their first major tournament since the 1958 World Cup and exceeding all expectations by reaching the last four in France.
It might have been a different tale for Coleman, whose Dublin roots could have seen him represent the Republic of Ireland rather than Wales.
So did Paddy ever want his son to play for his homeland?
"No, he never ever did," Coleman says.
"He always pushed me to play for Wales Under-15s in my day. If you had shown a bit of talent then you would play for south Wales. You would play against north Wales. It was all about playing for Wales.
"There was talk about it when Jackie Charlton was manager of the Republic and there was a tentative phone call that came my way. But he [Paddy] was always Wales."
It proved to be sage advice as Coleman accumulated 32 caps at centre-back for Wales, albeit in a career cut short by injury.
The positive effect of a premature end to his playing days was an early introduction to management, becoming the youngest man to take charge of a Premier League team when he succeeded Jean Tigana at Fulham at the age of 32 in 2003.
Coleman's journey to the pinnacle of Welsh football has been a tempestuous one at times - between Fulham and Wales, his stints at Real Sociedad, Coventry and Greek club Larissa were short-lived - but that turbulence has made the recent success sweeter.
And it was his father who first set Coleman on the path to this point.
"He was a huge football man, he loved football. He was a good parent, a great father. Like any normal parent. He was brilliant with me," he says.
"I started playing football at seven and he was one of those who never raised his voice. He guided me.
"I watched parents sometimes on the touchlines at youth games and they are screaming and shouting which is not the way to go.
"But he was the opposite of that. He was always a quiet talker, but he was massive for me as a youngster coming through.
"It was huge. I wouldn't have got to different levels I got to without his guidance. He was brilliant, fantastic.
"He lived in Swansea for 50 years, he still had his Dublin accent and never changed.
"Unfortunately for him it was going wrong for me with Wales so he never got to see us at the tournament. I was very close to him."
It is clear Coleman will have Paddy on his mind in Dublin, as will his mother, Eileen, and sisters, Beverley and Joanna.
The memory of his father will live long in his homeland, not only in the Liffey but in the city's famous Temple Bar area, where his brother Michael, an artist, resides.
And once Wales' match has finished, Coleman will afford himself more than just a sip of Guinness.
"I'll have a pint after the game definitely, and that will be remembering him," he says.
"But beforehand it will be business." | When Wales make their way to the Aviva Stadium for their World Cup qualifier against Ireland on Friday, Dublin's landmarks will probably pass the players by as they focus on the task ahead, oblivious to the sound and fury around them. | 39336755 |
In August last year, ANA said it would pay some $25m (2.5bn yen; £16m) for a stake in the Burmese carrier.
ANA Holdings is the parent company of Japan's All Nippon Airways.
In a statement, ANA said rising competition in Myanmar was one reason for cancelling the deal.
"Competition between new and old airlines in Myanmar has intensified," ANA said, "bringing rapid changes in the external environment, and calling into question the assumptions made at the time of the original decision."
It also said it had been unable to reach an agreement on capital participation with AWA.
The deal was part of ANA's plans to expand its business internationally.
At the time, it would have been the first investment in a Myanmar-based commercial airline by a foreign airline.
AWA, which is based in Yangon, was launched in 2011 and operates domestic flights within Myanmar.
It also offers flights to Chiang Mai in Thailand and has plans to further expand its international service.
Since political reforms have led to the easing of international sanctions in Myanmar, many foreign firms have looked to the country for business opportunities.
After a 12-year hiatus, All Nippon Airways resumed its service between Japan and Myanmar in October 2012. | Japan's ANA Holdings (ANA) has cancelled its plan to buy a 49% stake in Asian Wings Airways (AWA), an airline based in Myanmar, also known as Burma. | 28560924 |
Businessman Sir Philip Hampton told the Evening Standard newspaper in London that in contrast to men, he had "never, ever had a woman ask for a pay rise".
BBC presenter Jane Garvey said he seemed "peculiarly out of touch".
The corporation has faced criticism since it revealed last week that its top earners were largely men.
The list showed that Chris Evans was the the top-paid male star on between £2.2m and £2.25m, while Claudia Winkleman was the highest-paid female celebrity, earning between £450,000 and £500,000 last year.
It also revealed that two-thirds of the 96 presenters and celebrities paid more than £150,000 were men, and director general Tony Hall admitted there was "more to do" on the gender pay gap.
Sir Philip, the co-author of the government's Hampton-Alexander review looking at ways of increasing the number of women in top paid jobs, was asked about the situation by the newspaper.
He said: "How has this situation arisen at the BBC that these intelligent, high-powered, sometimes formidable women have sat in this situation?
"They [the female broadcasters] are all looking at each other now saying: 'How did we let this happen?' I suspect they let it happen because they weren't doing much about it."
Sir Philip, who is chairman of global drugs company GSK, where he earns £700,000 a year, added: "It's just a difference between men and women: men go for promotions and leadership roles, women are less proactive in asking for more money.
"I've had lots of women reporting to me or coming in to talk to me about their careers - either for general guidance or employees of companies where I've been working. I have never, ever had a woman ask for a pay rise.
"There isn't a list long enough for all the men who've asked. Lots of men have trooped into my office saying they are under-paid but no woman has ever done that."
But Ms Garvey, who presents Radio 4's Woman's Hour and organised a protest letter from the BBC's top female stars to Mr Hall, told the Standard: "The likes of Sir Philip Hampton can never begin to understand. He seems peculiarly out of touch given the task he has.
"Many women have learnt to question their position in the workplace, partly because of the dominance and success of people like him."
And Liberal Democrat deputy leader Jo Swinson accused him of heaping "insult on injustice", adding that his comments were "at best, astonishingly ill-judged".
"His remarks that the BBC women 'let this happen' display a worrying lack of understanding of the structural gender, race and class bias across all of society at all levels, including the BBC," she added. | Female staff at the BBC let the gender pay gap happen "because they weren't doing much about it", a government adviser on equal pay has said. | 40744426 |
The £68m scheme between Leigh and Manchester is expected to cut journey times by up to 30 minutes.
Eight buses per hour will serve the four-and-a-half mile (7km) stretch along a disused railway line.
The scheme has three park-and-ride facilities for more than 400 cars and links to bus priority routes through Salford on East Lancashire Road.
The new section is part of a £122m 14-mile (21km) bus priority route connecting Atherton, Leigh and Tyldesley with Salford and Manchester city centre.
Work began on the guided busway in July 2014 but was criticised by local businesses and residents following significant delays.
Andrew Fender, chairman of the Transport for Greater Manchester committee, said: "By prioritising buses, we not only make journey times quicker, more reliable and more attractive for passengers, we also help to tackle congestion and reduce emissions.
"I am grateful to those communities for their patience while the scheme was being completed." | A new guided busway aimed at reducing congestion in Greater Manchester has opened. | 35958074 |
Organised by the Children of Far East Prisoners of War (COFEPOW) group, it included an address by former peace envoy Terry Waite CBE.
It was one of dozens of events taking place across the country.
Paul Watson, chairman of COFEPOW, said it was important to remember those who experienced "immense suffering" in the region during World War Two.
He said many former prisoners of war had died and the period was in danger of being forgotten by the younger generation.
While the war in Europe ended in May 1945, the Japanese did not surrender until 14 August 1945 after the dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, together killing more than 200,000 people.
Britain suffered more than 90,000 casualties in the war against Japan.
The Queen attended a remembrance service in London, while a minute's silence was held at a ceremony in Tokyo. | A service has been held at Lichfield Cathedral to mark the 70th anniversary of VJ Day. | 33947580 |
The on-loan Cardiff midfielder turned home David McGoldrick's cross for his first goal for Town to leave Steve Bruce's Villa winless in eight.
Huws' effort came moments after McGoldrick had cleared a header from Villa forward Scott Hogan off the line.
Villa's Birkir Bjarnason earlier hit the crossbar in the first half.
The defeat was Villa's first at home this season and they slipped to 16th in the table.
McGoldrick tried to double the away lead, but although his ambitious curling effort went just over the bar, Ipswich held on for their first league victory over Villa since March 1994, and climbed to 13th.
Bruce gave Neil Taylor, Conor Hourihane, Hogan and Bjarnason home debuts and Hourihane tested Ipswich keeper Bartosz Bialkowski early on.
But after a goalless first half, Ipswich improved, with Jordan Spence just wide from a set-piece before McGoldrick cut in from the left to slide a low ball into the middle which Huws finished off.
Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce:
"It's tough at the minute. We certainly didn't deserve to lose. We had some really good opportunities and didn't take them.
"Once again we made one mistake and we were punished. Hopefully we have fallen as far as we can because the next few games are going to be important.
"It is time to batten down the hatches and face the flak. But we need to take some of the chances we are creating.
"The Ipswich goal was an individual mistake. Unfortunately every time we make a mistake we are punished. We now have to find some form to get a win to restore the confidence in the team."
Ipswich Town boss Mick McCarthy:
"It was a great win. I have never doubted the character of the team.
"We have always been good at disrupting teams and regaining the ball, as we proved against Villa.
"Huws has made a real difference to the team since he joined us from Cardiff. He wants to play and he took a cut in wages to play football. That tells you a lot about him as there are not too many players who would do that.
"The win is a big boost for me, the team, the club and Marcus Evans, who gets plenty of flak despite sticking in £6m a year to keep the club going."
Match ends, Aston Villa 0, Ipswich Town 1.
Second Half ends, Aston Villa 0, Ipswich Town 1.
Attempt saved. Jonathan Kodjia (Aston Villa) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Albert Adomah.
Corner, Aston Villa. Conceded by Luke Chambers.
Foul by Andre Green (Aston Villa).
Joshua Emmanuel (Ipswich Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Conor Hourihane (Aston Villa) left footed shot from outside the box is too high from a direct free kick.
Hand ball by Kevin Bru (Ipswich Town).
Andre Green (Aston Villa) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Joshua Emmanuel (Ipswich Town).
Substitution, Aston Villa. Leandro Bacuna replaces Tommy Elphick.
Corner, Aston Villa. Conceded by Joshua Emmanuel.
Substitution, Ipswich Town. Kevin Bru replaces Emyr Huws.
Attempt missed. David McGoldrick (Ipswich Town) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Grant Ward.
Goal! Aston Villa 0, Ipswich Town 1. Emyr Huws (Ipswich Town) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner.
Foul by Nathan Baker (Aston Villa).
Luke Chambers (Ipswich Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner, Aston Villa. Conceded by Jordan Spence.
Attempt blocked. Tommy Elphick (Aston Villa) header from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Conor Hourihane with a cross.
Corner, Aston Villa. Conceded by Grant Ward.
Attempt missed. Nathan Baker (Aston Villa) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Conor Hourihane following a set piece situation.
Toumani Diagouraga (Ipswich Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Albert Adomah (Aston Villa) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Toumani Diagouraga (Ipswich Town).
Attempt saved. Jonathan Kodjia (Aston Villa) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the top right corner. Assisted by Conor Hourihane.
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Substitution, Aston Villa. Andre Green replaces Neil Taylor.
Jonas Knudsen (Ipswich Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Delay in match Tom Lawrence (Ipswich Town) because of an injury.
Jonathan Kodjia (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Jonas Knudsen (Ipswich Town).
Attempt saved. Henri Lansbury (Aston Villa) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Conor Hourihane.
Conor Hourihane (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Emyr Huws (Ipswich Town).
Corner, Aston Villa. Conceded by Jordan Spence.
Substitution, Aston Villa. Albert Adomah replaces Alan Hutton.
Foul by Tom Lawrence (Ipswich Town).
James Chester (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt blocked. Emyr Huws (Ipswich Town) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Delay over. They are ready to continue. | Emyr Huws scored a late goal to give Ipswich Town a dramatic victory at Aston Villa and end their five-match winless run in the Championship. | 38864226 |
The consortium, which also includes George Taylor and Douglas Park, offered to invest £6.5m in the club recently.
They have bought 13m shares at 20p each and are now the group with the single largest shareholding at the club.
And Laxey have revealed they made the deal in a bid to stop Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley taking control.
Laxey were the largest shareholder in the club but have now sold their stake for almost £2.7m.
And the investment firm's chief Colin Kingsnorth has revealed he sold the shares to Park, Letham and Taylor, who have been labelled the Three Bears, in order to stop Ashley taking over at Ibrox.
Ashley, who owns around 9% of Rangers, has loaned the club £3m in recent months but his plan to use a share issue to increase his stake to just under 30% was rejected by the Scottish Football Association because of his dual interests.
Kingsnorth also admitted his disillusionment with the ruling Ibrox regime after Norman Crighton, Laxey's man on the board, decided to quit earlier this month.
"I sold because a fans-based group were hopefully going to be the best placed to take on Ashley's power," Kingsnorth said.
"After Ashley removed Norman Crighton, Ashley's most vocal critic, it was obvious David Somers [chairman] was just a wet fish agreeing anything Ashley wanted.
"I am sure the Three Bears are an upgrade on us for fans and hopefully this is the start of the ownership being in the right hands."
Rangers recently revealed they need £8m of new funding to stay afloat in 2015.
Park, Letham and Taylor made their funding offer in the wake of the club's AGM and have had contact from the Rangers board regarding the proposal.
Letham has already loaned the Scottish Championship club money.
Park, who owns coach firm Parks of Hamilton, is one of Scotland's most successful businessmen, and Taylor currently owns 3.2% of Rangers. | BBC Scotland has learned a consortium including businessman George Letham has bought 16% of Rangers from the investment group Laxey Partners. | 30644025 |
The 80-year-old was in a stable condition in hospital in London, his agent John Grant confirmed.
Wilson had been due to reprise his role as Victor Meldrew, the grumpy pensioner in BBC comedy One Foot In The Grave.
His 12-night run, billed as I Don't Believe It! An Evening with Victor Meldrew, was due to begin on Tuesday at the Assembly Roxy.
The show's promoters, Assembly, confirmed the cancellation of the production.
In a statement, they said: "Due to ill health, Richard Wilson has taken the decision, to take some time out.
"He is sorry to have to disappoint those hoping to see him in Edinburgh.
"We hope to plan further shows for later in the year."
Mr Wilson was born in Greenock and came to acting relatively late.
He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art after completing national service in the army and working as a hospital lab technician.
He later won plaudits in the acclaimed 1987 series Tutti Frutti, which also starred Robbie Coltraine and Emma Thompson,
He first appeared as the curmudgeonly Meldrew in 1990. The BBC One show went on to run for six series, winning the Bafta for Best Comedy in 1992.
Mr Wilson won individual Baftas for his performance in 1992 and 1994.
Lead character Victor was killed off in the final episode but the actor was due to bring him back to life for the new stage show.
People with tickets can claim a refund or exchange them for another production at the same venue. | Actor Richard Wilson has pulled out of his Edinburgh Festival Fringe show after suffering a heart attack. | 37056850 |
Ashers bakery was ordered to pay £500 for refusing to make a sponge cake with a pro-gay marriage slogan on it.
A Belfast court found that customer Gareth Lee had been discriminated against on the grounds of his sexual orientation.
He was backed in the case by the NI Equality Commission.
The commission paid almost £39,000 in legal fees.
In a statement, the McArthur family who run Ashers, said: "After much careful and prayerful consideration given to legal advice, we have decided to appeal the judgement handed down last Tuesday.
"We continue to insist that we have done nothing wrong as we have discriminated against no individual, but rather acted according to what the Bible teaches regarding marriage.
Last week a judge said that, as a business, Ashers was not exempt from discrimination law.
The firm was found to have discriminated against Mr Lee on the grounds of sexual orientation as well as his political beliefs.
The judge said she accepted that Ashers has "genuine and deeply held" religious views, but said the business was not above the law. | The Christian-run bakery at the centre of a discrimination case over a so-called 'gay cake' has decided to appeal. | 32913283 |
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Williams signed a permanent deal on Wednesday, having won six of his ten League One games since being given the job on an interim basis in December.
The 35-year-old joined the Robins as first-team coach in 2013, but has no previous managerial experience.
"I'm really pleased because it's huge backing from the chairman," he told BBC Wiltshire.
"It's quite out of the blue. I'm sure the chairman spent a long time considering everything and only brought it to my attention when he was absolutely sure of what direction he wanted to go in, so it was a pleasant surprise."
Swindon are 13th in the League One table, seven points outside the play-off places. | New Swindon head coach Luke Williams says he was surprised to be given a five-year contract with the Robins. | 35784692 |
The Orkney inter-isles air service is famous for the 1.7 mile jump between Westray and Papa Westray.
Orkney Islands Council awarded the contract to Loganair for at least the next four years, despite what was said to be "stiff competition".
Loganair said it was a privilege to be selected again.
Managing director Jonathan Hinkles said: "The contract award is a testament to the dedication of our team of pilots, engineers and ground staff in Orkney who operate these essential air links every day.
"This year's contract award is particularly special as it will take us into and beyond the 50th anniversary of our presence in Orkney."
Orkney's inter-isles air service links Kirkwall with North Ronaldsay, Sanday, Stronsay, Eday, Westray and Papa Westray.
The shortest leg should take two minutes, but can be done in 47 seconds if the wind helps.
The inter-island air service in Orkney recently welcomed its one millionth passenger.
In December, two schoolchildren won a competition to redesign the tail fins of aircraft used on the service. | The air service which includes the shortest scheduled flight in the world will continue to be operated by Loganair, it has been announced. | 38747436 |
Chemical analysis of the meteorite shows it to be rich in the gas ammonia.
It contains the element nitrogen, found in the proteins and DNA that form the basis of life as we know it.
The researchers say meteorites like this could have showered the early Earth, providing the missing ingredients for life.
Details of the study by researchers at Arizona State University and the University of California, Santa Cruz, are published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The new study is based on analysis of just under 4g of powder extracted from a meteorite called Grave Nunataks 95229 (named after its place of discovery in Antarctica), discovered in 1995.
On treatment, the powder sample was shown to contain abundant amounts of ammonia as well as hydrocarbons.
Professor Sandra Pizzarello, who led the research, says the study "shows that there are asteroids out there that when fragmented and become meteorites, could have showered the Earth with an attractive mix of components, including a large amount of ammonia".
Meteorites like this could have supplied the early Earth with enough nitrogen in the right form for primitive life forms to emerge, she says.
Previous studies have focused on the "Murchison" meteorite, which hit Australia in 1969, which was found to be rich in organic compounds.
The professor says Murchison is "too much of a good thing" and contains hydrocarbon molecules which you would expect to find at the end rather than the start of the life story.
She believes the composition of these compounds are too complex and too random in their molecular shape to have played a role in life on Earth.
The theory that our planet may have been seeded by a comet or asteroid arises partly from the belief the formative Earth might not have been able to provide the full inventory of simple molecules needed for the processes which led to primitive life.
The suggestions is that the Asteroid Belt, between Mars and Jupiter, away from the heat and pressure of the forming planets, could have been a better place for such processes.
Collisions between asteroids within the belt produce meteoroids which shoot off around the Solar System and which can carry materials to the Earth.
Dr Caroline Smith, a meteorite expert at London's Natural History Museum agrees the important element in the new study is the nitrogen, even though she would like to see similar results repeated in other meteorites.
"One of the problems with early biology on the early Earth is you need abundant nitrogen for all these prebiological processes to happen - and of course nitrogen is in ammonia.
"A lot of the evidence shows that ammonia was not present in much abundance in the early Earth, so where did it come from?"
What specifically caused life to begin on Earth remains a mystery. Professor Pizzarello hypothesises material from a meteorite may have interacted with environments on Earth such as volcanoes or tidal pools, but says all remains a matter of guess work.
"You find these extraterrestrial materials (in meteorites) which have what you need," she says, "but on the how and when, in which environments and by what means - really, we don't know."
"You can only say that yes, it seems that the extraterrestrial environments could have had the good stuff." | A meteorite found in Antarctica could lend weight to the argument that life on Earth might have been kick-started from space, scientists are claiming. | 12597564 |
He has purchased the entire South Ayrshire complex, including the hotel, from Dubai-based group Leisurecorp for an undisclosed sum.
In a statement, Mr Trump said it was "an honour and privilege to own one of golf's greatest and most exciting properties".
The course will continue to be managed by Starwood Hotels & Resorts.
Turnberry is the only course in the Open circuit to be owned privately. Mr Trump has ambitions to host the Open at his other course in Aberdeenshire.
In a statement, Mr Trump said: "I intend to invest many millions of dollars (pounds) in order to bring the hotel to the highest levels of luxury.
"When completed, I believe that the Turnberry Hotel will be the finest and most luxurious hotel in all of Europe."
In February, Mr Trump indicated he had no further plans to invest in Scotland following a long-running dispute over a planned offshore wind farm.
He and his company had consistently opposed the plan, which he claimed would spoil the view from his development at the Menie Estate.
When the Aberdeenshire plan was approved, Mr Trump said: "We will appeal this decision, and in the meantime we will be focusing all of our investment and energy towards our new acquisition on the Atlantic Ocean in Ireland."
His campaign against the wind farm included an open letter to First Minister Alex Salmond.
In it he said: "Taxing your citizens to subsidise wind projects owned by foreign energy companies will destroy your country and its economy.
"Jobs will not be created in Scotland because these ugly monstrosities known as turbines are manufactured in other countries such as China.
"These countries are laughing at you."
In his response, Mr Salmond said he was "determined that communities across Scotland will benefit directly from offshore wind, which is forecast to generate about £30bn of investment and lead to the creation of up to 28,000 Scottish jobs".
Turnberry has hosted the Open Championship four times, most recently in 2009.
That year, it was won by Stewart Cink of the United States.
It has also been the venue for the Senior's Open and the Women's British Open.
The golf resort comprises three courses, a hotel, self-catering accommodation and a spa.
Its official website claims it was the first purpose-planned golfing resort in Britain. | US property tycoon Donald Trump has confirmed that he has bought the Turnberry golf resort. | 27203208 |
And the Conservative Party was denied overall control of Northumberland County Council after losing the unusual decider to the Liberal Democrats.
The South Blyth ward result followed two recounts and left the Conservatives with 33 of the 67 seats available.
Liberal Democrat candidate Lesley Rickerby described her defeat of Tory Daniel Carr as "very traumatic".
Ms Rickerby said: "It's unbelievable that, when you consider we have a democratic service, that we end up having to draw straws.
"I certainly would have preferred it to be a majority, but the way our system works, after a couple of recounts, we had no choice."
In addition to the 33 seats won by the Conservative party, Labour won 24, the Lib Dems three and Independents seven.
Ms Rickerby added: "The returning officer decides if we would flip a coin or draw straws and he went with straws.
"I certainly don't want to do that again in a hurry - it really was the last straw."
In another result, Labour retained control of Durham County Council despite losing 20 seats.
The party won 94 seats in the 2013 election and that has now fallen to 74. Independent candidates have the second highest number of seats (28) followed by Liberal Democrats (14) and Conservatives (10).
Council leader Simon Henig said he was "very pleased" to have retained a majority in a "challenging" election.
In North Tyneside, Labour's Norma Redfearn was re-elected as the area's directly-elected mayor with 56% of the vote.
Results for seats on Durham County Council are due to be announced later. | The battle for control of a council ended with the drawing of straws after a dead heat in the crucial final ward. | 39814634 |
Four banks are so far affected, all of which have links to Russians blacklisted by the US.
Visa and MasterCard, both US-based companies, are forbidden from having any dealings with those targeted by the sanctions.
The banks, which said card services stopped without warning, have described the move as unlawful.
One of the banks affected, Bank Rossiya, is described by the US as Russia's 15th largest, with assets of $12bn (£7.27bn).
The St Petersburg-based bank has been singled out by Washington as the personal bank for senior Russian officials. US officials said it would be "frozen out" from the dollar.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Bank Rossiya had nothing to do with events in Crimea and promised to transfer his wages there.
"I personally don't have an account there, but I certainly will open one on Monday," he told a meeting of Russia's Security Council.
President Putin also instructed the Russian central bank to step in, if needed, but the latter said the sanctions on Bank Rossiya did "not have a serious bearing on the lender's financial stability".
Visa and Mastercard also confirmed they had stopped providing services to SMP Bank, which is controlled by US-blacklisted brothers Arkady and Boris Rotenberg.
The bank, which is Russia's 39th biggest with $5bn in assets, called the actions "illegitimate" because its owners, rather than the bank itself, were the subject of sanctions.
Bank Rossiya's affiliate banks, Sobinbank and InvestKapitalBank, were also affected.
But Visa said more than 99% of its business in Russia was untouched by sanctions.
Russian shares fell sharply on Friday as investors weighed the impact of western sanctions over Ukraine.
The MICEX index, which is priced in roubles, fell as much as 3% and the RTS, which is priced in dollars fell 3.6%.
Stocks slumped after US President Barack Obama said sanctions might be extended to key parts of the Russian economy if Russia took further action in Ukraine.
Russia's mining, defence and natural resources sectors could all be targets.
Stocks recovered some ground during the day after Russian President Vladimir Putin moved to restore calm following the introduction of asset freezes and visa bans by the US against high ranking Russian officials.
The MICEX closed down 1% and the RTS index was down 1.3% at the end of the day.
Although only banks with connections to high-ranking Russian officials have been targeted, Russian bank shares were broadly lower.
Shares in Sberbank, Russia's largest bank, closed 1.17% lower - having fallen 2.9% earlier on Friday, while shares in VTB Bank were 2.61% lower after falling 4.3% earlier in the day.
Other sectors were also hit. Gas giant Gazprom was down 0.9%, oil firm Lukoil ended the day 1.36% higher. Russian steel company NLMK closed 1.94% lower.
Shares in gas producer Novatek closed down 9.63%. The company is part owned by Gennady Timchenko, a shareholder in Bank Rossiya and one of the wealthy Russian businessmen targeted by Western sanctions.
Ratings agencies S&P and Fitch warned they were changing their outlook for the Russian economy to "negative" from "stable" - the first stage before a possible downgrade in the country's credit rating - because of the potential impact of sanctions.
Fitch said: "Since US and EU banks and investors may well be reluctant to lend to Russia under the current circumstances, the economy may slow further and the private sector may require official support."
President Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov criticised the move, suggesting it was not an objective decision and that somebody "ordered" it.
Russia's credit rating is currently BBB.
Meanwhile the rouble was stable on Friday having previously fallen sharply on Thursday evening in response to the announcement of further US sanctions.
Later on Friday morning Germany said it had decided to suspend approval of all defence-related exports to Russia.
Berlin ordered defence contractor Rheinmetall to halt delivery of combat simulation gear to Russia earlier this week.
The ministry spokesman said this was a "one-off" case, but future deals would also be blocked.
"The (Rheinmetall) case that you are talking about is a one-off case. Nevertheless it is true that given the current situation in Russia, we are not approving any exports of defence goods to this country at the moment," the spokesman said. | Visa and MasterCard have blocked credit card services to some Russian bank customers as a result of US sanctions. | 26678145 |
Labour's Rutherglen MSP, James Kelly, who is a Celtic fan, said it was "time Celtic remembered its origins" and paid all staff the £8.25 an hour rate.
However, the club said that he had "no knowledge of the workings of Celtic".
Last year, Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell said the club was being used over the living wage campaign.
Mr Kelly's comments came one day ahead of Celtic's AGM, where fans will table a resolution calling on the club to become an accredited living wage employer.
The rate, set by an independent foundation to make wages match the cost of living, has been adopted by about 380 firms across Scotland.
It is nearly a fifth higher than the national minimum wage, set by the UK government, of £6.70 an hour and over £1 more than the new minimum wage premium for over 25s of £7.20 an hour that will come into force in April.
Last year, Hearts became the first football club in Scotland to implement the living wage.
Mr Kelly said: "The Celtic board has the opportunity to make a commitment to hundreds of the club's staff.
"Celtic has a proud history of combating poverty. But in 2015, they are refusing a guaranteed fair wage to a great number of staff, many of whom are on casual contracts.
"It's time Celtic remembered its origins and became an accredited living wage employer: tomorrow presents the board with this opportunity which I hope they grasp."
At its AGM last year, Celtic said it was prepared to enter discussions with its permanent workforce on the issue but not with others including part-time and external workers.
Now a club spokesman has accused Mr Kelly of using the issue for his own agenda.
"Mr Kelly has no knowledge of the workings of Celtic but yet again seems to be involved in this issue for his own political purposes," the club spokesman said.
"We have done all that we said we would do at last year's AGM. 98% of the colleagues with whom we consulted were in favour of the proposed pay rise and structure, because they would be significantly better off with the higher hourly rate, rather than a discretionary bonus that could not be guaranteed.
"We have also met with the Poverty Alliance, who have welcomed the positive steps we have taken. It is totally misleading to suggest that this is anything other than a very positive step, overwhelmingly welcomed and supported by affected staff." | An MSP who called on Celtic to become an accredited living wage employer has been accused by the club of using the issue for his own political purposes. | 34867305 |
The Sun quotes anonymous sources, one of whom claims to have witnessed a "bust-up" between the Queen and pro-EU former Deputy PM Nick Clegg in 2011.
The palace insisted the Queen was "politically neutral" while Mr Clegg called the story "nonsense".
But the Sun said it stood by its story and would defend itself "vigorously".
All you need to know about the EU referendum
UK and the EU - better off out or in?
Under the headline, "Queen backs Brexit", the Sun said the Queen's exchange with Mr Clegg at a lunch in 2011 left "no room for doubt about her passionate feelings over Europe".
It said her "reprimand" of Mr Clegg "went on for some time and stunned other guests".
The paper says the Queen also revealed her feelings about Europe during a separate conversation with MPs at Buckingham Palace "a few years ago".
It claims the Queen told them: "I don't understand Europe" - words an unnamed parliamentary source says she spoke with "venom and emotion".
Following the complaint the newspaper said: "The Sun stands by its story, which was based upon two impeccable sources and presented in a robust, accessible fashion.
"The Sun will defend this complaint vigorously."
By Peter Hunt, BBC Royal correspondent
It is unusual for the Queen to take action against a newspaper.
It is a sign of the depth of regal displeasure.
It is the Sun headline, "Queen Backs Brexit" which is both toxic and very troubling to an institution which prides itself on remaining above the political fray.
But the course of action the palace has now embarked upon brings with it risks. It's a far cry from the "never complain, never explain" mantra once deployed by officials in the past.
The letter to the press watchdog ensures that the Sun story continues to be debated.
And there continues to be a focus on what the Queen chose very deliberately to do four days before the Scottish referendum.
When she told a well-wisher in 2014 "I hope people will think very carefully about the future", it was interpreted as support for Scotland remaining within the UK.
It was a planned remark the Queen and her senior advisers may come to regret.
Read more from Peter
A Buckingham Palace spokesman said: "We can confirm that we have this morning written to the chairman of the Independent Press Standards Organisation to register a complaint about the front page story in today's Sun newspaper.
"The complaint relates to Clause One of the Editors' Code of Practice."
The Editors' Code of Practice is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). Clause One refers to accuracy, saying "the Press must take care not to publish inaccurate, misleading or distorted information or images, including headlines not supported by the text".
It also states "while free to editorialise and campaign, the Press must distinguish clearly between comment, conjecture and fact".
The Sun's political editor Tom Newton Dunn wrote that the paper would not have reported the Queen's remarks "had they not come from two different and impeccably placed sources".
He says the Queen must remain "above the fray" of political issues, but added: "If she has a view on Brexit, don't voters have a right to know what it is?"
Professor Vernon Bogdanor, constitutional expert at Kings College London, told the Press Association it was "absurd" that the Queen would break from her tradition of political impartiality after decades as monarch.
"I'm very dubious. The Queen speaks and acts on the advice of ministers," Prof Bogdanor said. "What she said on the Scottish referendum was that people should think carefully before they vote - and that's a very sensible comment, I would have thought." | Buckingham Palace has complained to the press watchdog over the Sun newspaper's article claiming the Queen backed "Brexit" from the European Union. | 35762443 |
The visitors held out until two minutes before half-time, when Carey's shot found the top corner past Joe Day.
In a frantic finale Newport substitute Zak Ansah saw his curled effort crash into the crossbar.
Carey then almost grabbed a second as the playmaker hit the Newport bar from a free-kick.
Newport County manager Terry Butcher told BBC Wales Sport: "We weren't good enough, nowhere near good enough.
"We never reached the standards that we've set in every match this season so far and paid the price.
"Had we got something at the end I felt it would have been a bit of a robbery job, although we did push four men forward at the end to try and get something." | Plymouth Argyle climbed to second in League Two thanks to Graham Carey's fourth goal of the season against Newport County, who are now bottom. | 34025228 |
Never before has a Briton won a diving gold. Never before has a Briton won a gymnastics gold. There have been champions across 15 different sports, a spread no other country can get close to touching.
It enabled Liz Nicholl, chief executive of UK Sport, the body responsible for distributing funds from national government to Olympic sports, to declare on the final day of competition in Rio that Britain was now a "sporting superpower".
Only 20 years ago, GB were languishing 36th in the Atlanta Olympics medal table, their entire team securing only a single gold between them. This is the story of a remarkable transformation.
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As that nadir was being reached back in 1996, the most pivotal change of all had already taken place.
The advent of the National Lottery in 1994, and the decision of John Major's struggling government to allocate significant streams of its revenue to elite Olympic sport, set in motion a funding spree unprecedented in British sport.
From just £5m per year before Atlanta, UK Sport's spending leapt to £54m by Sydney 2000, where Britain won 28 medals to leap to 10th on the medal table. By the time of London 2012 - third in the medal table, 65 medals - that had climbed to £264m. Between 2013 and 2017, almost £350m in public funds will have been lavished on Olympic and Paralympic sports.
It has reinvigorated some sports and altered others beyond recognition.
Gymnastics, given nothing at all before Atlanta, received £5.9m for Sydney and £14.6m in the current cycle. In Rio, Max Whitlock won two gymnastics golds; his team-mates delivered another silver and three bronzes.
As a talented teenage swimmer, Adam Peaty relied on fundraising events laid on by family and friends to pay for his travel and training costs. That changed in 2012, when he was awarded a grant of £15,000 and his coach placed on an elite coaching programme. In Rio he became the first British male to win a swimming gold in 28 years.
There are ethical and economic debates raised by this maximum sum game. Team GB's 67 medals won here in Brazil cost an average of £4,096,500 each in lottery and exchequer funding over the past four years.
At a time of austerity, that is profligate to some. To others, the average cost of this Olympic programme to each Briton - a reported £1.09 per year - represents extraordinary financial and emotional value. Joe Joyce's super-heavyweight silver medal on Sunday was the 700th Olympic and Paralympic medal won by his nation since lottery funding came on tap.
"The funding is worth its weight in gold," says Nicholl.
"It enables us to strategically plan for the next Games even before this one has started and makes sure we don't lose any time. We can maintain the momentum of success for every athlete with medal potential through to the next Games."
The idea of marginal gains has gone from novelty to cliche over the past three Olympic cycles, but three examples from Rio underline how essential to British success it remains.
In the build-up to these Olympics, a PhD student at the English Institute of Sport named Luke Gupta examined the sleep quality of more than 400 elite GB athletes, looking at the duration of their average sleep, issues around deprivation and then individual athletes' perception of their sleep quality.
His findings resulted in an upgrading of the 'sleep environment' in the Team GB boxing training base in Sheffield - 37 single beds replaced by 33 double and four extra-long singles; sheets, duvets and pillows switched to breathable, quick drying fabrics; materials selected to create a hypo-allergenic barrier to allergens in each bedroom.
"On average, the boxers are sleeping for 24 minutes longer each night," says former Olympic bronze medallist and now consultant coach Richie Woodhall.
"When you add it up over the course of a cycle it could be as much as 29 or 30 days' extra sleep. That can be the difference between winning a medal or going out in the first round."
In track cycling, GB physio Phil Burt and team doctor Richard Freeman realised saddle sores were keeping some female riders out of training.
Their response? To bring together a panel of experts - friction specialist, reconstructive surgeons, a consultant in vulval health - to advise on the waxing and shaving of pubic hair. In the six months before Rio not a single rider complained of saddle sores.
Then there is the lateral thinking of Danny Kerry, performance director to the Great Britain women's hockey team that won gold in such spectacular fashion on Friday.
"Everyone puts a lot of time into the physiological effects of hockey, but what we've done in this Olympic cycle is put our players in an extremely fatigued state, and then ask them to think very hard at the same time," Kerry told BBC Sport.
"We call that Thinking Thursday - forcing them to consistently make excellent decisions under that fatigue. We've done that every Thursday for a year."
Britain won that gold on a penalty shootout, standing firm as their Dutch opponents, clear favourites for gold, missed every one of their four attempts.
Success has bred British success.
That hockey team featured Helen and Kate Richardson-Walsh, in their fifth Olympic cycle, mentoring 21-year-old Lily Owsley, who scored the first goal in the final. A squad that won bronze in London were ready to go two better in Brazil.
"We've retained eight players who had medals around their necks already," says Kerry. "We added another eight who have no fear.
"It gave us a great combination of those who know what it's all about, and those who have no concept at all of what it's all about, and have just gone out and played in ruthless fashion.
"We get carried away with some of the hard science around sport, but there's so much value in how you use characters and how you bring those qualities and traits to the fore. You see that on the pitch. Leverage on the human beings as much as the science."
Find out how to get into just about any sport with our special guides
In the velodrome, experience and expertise is being recycled with each successive Games.
Paul Manning was part of the team pursuit quartet that won bronze in Sydney, silver in Athens and gold in Beijing. As his riding career came towards the end, he was one of the first to graduate through the Elite Coaching Apprenticeship Programme, a two-year scheme that offered an accelerated route into high-performance coaching for athletes already in British Cycling's system.
In Rio he coached the women's pursuit team to their second gold in two Olympics, his young charge Laura Trott also winning omnium gold for the second Games in a row.
Then there is Heiko Salzwedel, head of the men's endurance squad, back for his third spell with British Cycling having worked under the visionary Peter Keen from 2000 to 2002 and then Sir Dave Brailsford between 2008 and 2010.
Expertise developed, expertise retained. A culture where winning is expected, not just hoped for.
"We have got the talent in this country and we know that we can recruit and keep the very best coaches, sports scientists and sports medics," says Nicholl.
"It is now a system that provides the very best support for that talent."
Funding has not flowed to all British sports equally, because in some there is a greater chance of success than others.
On Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas, Britain's rowers dominated the regatta, winning three gold medals and two silvers.
With 43 athletes they also had the biggest team of any nation there. Forty-nine of the nations there qualified teams of fewer than 10 athletes. Thirty-two had a team of just one or two rowers.
Only nine other nations won gold. In comparison, 204 nations were represented in track and field competition at Rio's Estadio Olimpico, and 47 nations won medals.
British efforts in the velodrome, where for the third Olympics on the bounce they ruled the boards, were fuelled by a budget over the four years from London of £30.2m, up even from the £26m they received in funding up to 2012.
In comparison, the US track cycling team - which won team pursuit silver behind Britain's women, and saw Sarah Hammer once again push Trott hard for omnium gold, has only one full-time staff member, director Andy Sparks.
Then there is the decline of other nations who once battled with Britain for the upper reaches of the medal table, and frequently sat far higher.
In 2012, Russia finished fourth with 22 golds. They were third in 2008 and third again in 2004.
This summer, despite escaping a total ban on their athletes in the wake of the World Anti-Doping Agency's McLaren Report, they finished with 19 golds for fourth, permitted to enter only one track and field athlete, Darya Klishina.
Australia, Britain's traditional great rivals? Eighth in 2012, sixth in Beijing, fourth in Athens, 10th here in Brazil.
As Team GB have risen, others have fallen back.
In Rio, 129 different British athletes have won an Olympic medal.
It is a remarkable depth and breadth of talent - a Games where 58-year-old Nick Skelton won a gold and 16-year-old gymnast Amy Tinkler grabbed a bronze, a fortnight where Jason Kenny won his sixth gold at the age of 28 and Mo Farah won his ninth successive global track title.
The abilities of those men and women has been backed up by similar aptitude in coaching and support.
In swimming there is Rebecca Adlington's former mentor, Bill Furniss, who has taken a programme that won just one silver and two bronzes in London and, with a no-compromise strategy, taken them to their best haul at an Olympics since 1908.
In cycling, there has been the key hire of New Zealand sprint specialist Justin Grace, the coach behind Francois Pervis' domination at the World Championships, a critical influence on Kenny, Callum Skinner, Becky James and Katy Marchant.
"We have got the talent in this country, and we know we can recruit and keep the very best coaches, sports scientists and sports medics," says Nicholl.
"It is a system that provides the very best support for that talent. We do a lot in terms of people development. We are conscious when people are recruited to key positions as coaches they are not necessarily the finished article in their broader skills.
"We provide support so that coaches across sports can network and learn from each other. That improves their knowledge expertise and the support systems they've got."
It is an intimidating thought for Britain's competitors. After two decades of consistent improvement, Rio may not even represent the peak.
Subscribe to the BBC Sport newsletter to get our pick of news, features and video sent to your inbox. | It has been an Olympic fiesta like never before for Britain: their best medal haul in 108 years, second in the medal table, the only host nation to go on to win more medals at the next Olympics. | 37150155 |
The 32-year-old is a leading contender on the British short circuits and is in his second year with the Tyco BMW team.
"I'm really keen to do a comprehensive roads campaign and of all the circuits to start with I think the Ulster would be the best for me," explained Iddon.
"It's a mass start on an incredible circuit and doesn't need the same level of homework as somewhere like the TT."
The former 10-times British Supermoto champion, whose father Paul raced on road circuits, admits he has "been contemplating road racing for quite a while now and every year it gets stronger and stronger".
"It just interests me. The buzz you get from a circuit is immense so I can only imagine what it's like to race on the roads.
"Of course though, I want to win a title at BSB so I have to consider whether doing other races like the Ulster is going to detract from that."
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Should he make the jump to the roads, Iddon could have the backing of one of the most successful teams in the sport, as Philip and Hector Neill's Tyco TAS squad have enjoyed years of success at Dundrod with the likes of the currently injured Ian Hutchinson, Guy Martin and Bruce Anstey.
"With Tyco I would be in seriously good hands. Their pedigree on the roads is arguably even better than on short circuits so who better to go racing with.
"We'll have to wait and see though. I think if it was down to Hector it would be it would be a yes immediately and I'd be at the Ulster Grand Prix.
"Philip is keener for me to focus on the short circuits, as 'Hutchy' is their man for the roads. I can see the logic but who knows if I can twist an arm or two."
Ulster Grand Prix Clerk of the Course Noel Johnston commented: "My instincts are that he would be a very, very quick on the roads if he gets the chance, so hopefully we can make it happen.
"With backing from the Tyco boys, there's no reason why he couldn't be one of our fastest ever newcomers, and he'd be a great character to have the paddock as well." | British Superbike rider Christian Iddon says he is keen to make his debut at the Ulster Grand Prix in August. | 40384864 |
The 23-year-old, who mostly played for the second XI in 2016, featured in two first-team T20 Blast matches.
The seamer has played in 15 T20 internationals and two one-day games for the Netherlands.
"He's shown he offers something a bit different," director of cricket Matt Maynard told Somerset's website.
"We look forward to having him here with us for at least the next two seasons." | Netherlands bowler Paul van Meekeren has been rewarded with a two-year deal at Somerset following an initial three-month contract with the county. | 37643192 |
Plans for the West Way shopping area in Botley include restaurants, a hotel and student accommodation.
The "walk-through" video was produced by developer Doric Properties following a request from North Hinksey Parish Council.
It is based on plans submitted to the Vale of White Horse District Council in December 2013.
It is claimed the development will create 600 jobs in construction and 480 jobs when it is operating.
Opponents have previously raised concerns about the development being too large for the site.
Other concerns include increases in traffic and congestion. | A video has been released of how a planned £100m shopping development near Oxford would look. | 28276994 |
The extent of the intelligence agencies' computer and internet spying operation has recently become clear.
The draft Investigatory Powers Bill is meant to put it on a firm legal footing.
But the Intelligence and Security Committee says the bill lacks clarity and is a "missed opportunity".
"Given the background to the draft Bill and the public concern over the allegations made by Edward Snowden in 2013, it is surprising that the protection of people's privacy - which is enshrined in other legislation - does not feature more prominently," says the committee's report.
"One might have expected an overarching statement at the forefront of the legislation, or to find universal privacy protections applied consistently throughout the draft Bill.
"However, instead, the reader has to search and analyse each investigatory power individually to understand the privacy protections which may apply.
"This results in a lack of clarity which undermines the importance of the safeguards associated with these powers."
Committee chairman, Conservative MP Dominic Grieve, said: "We have therefore recommended that the new legislation contains an entirely new part dedicated to overarching privacy protections, which should form the backbone of the draft legislation around which the exceptional powers are then built. This will ensure that privacy is an integral part of the legislation rather than an add-on."
Mr Grieve added: "The draft bill appears to have suffered from a lack of sufficient time and preparation."
The Home Office is due to publish a final, amended version of the bill later this year.
The draft bill, which is one of the longest pieces of legislation to be considered by MPs in recent years, would force internet service providers to store web browsing records of everyone in the UK for a year.
This is meant to help the police and security services keep pace with technology being used by terrorists and organised criminals.
But security chiefs told the ISC, a cross-party committee of MPs and peers, that they already "have a range of other capabilities which enable them to obtain equivalent data" so this part of the bill will mainly be used by the police.
The ISC wants to restrict the scope of proposed "equipment interference" warrants, allowing spies to hack into suspects' smartphones and computers and download data from them. either within the UK or abroad.
Given that the "targeted" warrants could cover "a target as broad as an entire hostile foreign intelligence service" it is not clear why "bulk" warrants are also included in the bill, the committee says.
The committee is also concerned about the downloading of large databases, which might include medical or bank records, known as bulk personal data sets, to aid investigations.
Dominic Grieve said: "Given that each Bulk Personal Dataset potentially contains personal information about a large number of individuals - the majority of whom will not be of any interest to the agencies - the committee considers that each dataset is sufficiently intrusive that it should require a specific warrant.
"We therefore recommend that Class Bulk Personal Dataset warrants are removed from the legislation."
The draft bill allows the security services to hold - but not use - bulk personal data sets for a temporary period without a warrant in certain circumstances.
This could happen, the report says, when the data has been acquired "opportunistically," without the time to apply for a warrant, but it means the agencies could hold the data without authorisation indefinitely which was clearly "not appropriate".
The committee is also calling for more clarity about the privacy safeguards to be applied to the examination of material gathered by the trawling of internet traffic passing through the UK, a practice revealed by US whistleblower Edward Snowden.
The draft bill is being scrutinised by a joint parliamentary committee which is due to report on Thursday.
The ISC, which took evidence in private from Home Secretary Theresa May and the heads of MI5, MI6 and GCHQ, has confined its scrutiny to the parts of the bill that relate to secret intelligence material, which other committees cannot see.
Sir Francis Richards, a former head of GCHQ, said said the agencies already had most of the powers they needed but the bill was needed to increase transparency and public confidence in a "post-Snowden" world.
"The old legislation was designed to be obscure because there was not supposed to be any public understanding of the agencies' techniques," he told BBC Radio 4's the World at One.
There was now a need to "put the record straight" but the draft bill, in his view, struck the right balance between security and privacy.
The ISC report was welcomed by civil liberties campaigners.
Jim Killock, of the Open Rights Group, said: "Rushing through legislation has to stop. It's time for a proper debate about whether bulk surveillance powers are acceptable in a democracy like the UK." | Plans to authorise mass data collection and hacking by Britain's spies do not do enough to protect privacy, a watchdog has warned. | 35531721 |
An online petition has been set up and a pan-African women's organisation is mobilising to get the president to apologise and reverse his comments.
Mr Magufuli warned schoolgirls at a rally on Monday that: "After getting pregnant, you are done."
A law passed in 2002 allows for the expulsion of pregnant schoolgirls.
The law says the girls can be expelled and excluded from school for "offences against morality" and "wedlock".
Women's rights groups have recently been urging the government to change the law.
Mr Magufuli, who was speaking at a public rally in Chalinze town, about 100km west of the main city Dar es Salaam, said that young mothers would be distracted if they were allowed back in school:
"After calculating some few mathematics, she'd be asking the teacher in the classroom: 'Let me go out and breastfeed my crying baby.'"
He said that men who impregnate the schoolgirls should be imprisoned for 30 years and "put the energy they used to impregnate the girl into farming while in jail".
I had just finished my primary education; I was supposed to go to secondary education but could not afford the fees.
I met this smart boy, who promised that he would ask his parents to help me go to secondary school if I agreed to be with him.
I didn't date him, like girlfriend and boyfriend.
The first time I met him was the first time I got pregnant and that was the last time I saw him.
Because I was kicked out of school, my grandfather chased me out of home.
I eventually found work as a maid. When the family left, they asked me what I would like as a goodbye gift.
I said I wanted to go to school. It was a shock but they eventually agreed.
It is a big disappointment to hear such a statement from our president. It is only education which can help any country in this world overcome poverty.
'I was a teenage mother'
President Magufuli also criticised rights organisations who have been pushing the government to reverse the law:
"These NGOs should go out and open schools for parents. But they should not force the government [to take back the pupils].
"I'm giving out free education for students who have really decided to go and study, and now you want me to educate the parents?"
The BBC's Sammy Awami in Tanzania reports that the crowd at the rally applauded the president's comments.
At least 8,000 Tanzanian girls drop out of school every year due to pregnancy, according to a Human Rights Watch report.
The online petition says that the president's support for the expulsion law would end the education of many girls and "propagate more discrimination".
It instead calls for the girls to be protected from early pregnancies while in school.
The African Women's Development and Communication Network, Femnet has also expressed its outrage.
"With all the work we have done to emancipate Africa's girl-child from the shackles of discrimination and violation, a sitting president turns around to "re-victimze" and treat their situation like a terrible infectious disease which other girls must be protected from," said its head Dinah Musindarwezo.
Lawyer Kavinya Makau called Mr Magafuli's sentiments a" betrayal of the highest order."
Two weeks ago, Tanzania's Vice-President Samia Suluhu called for young mothers to be readmitted to school, saying they should not be denied a right to education. | Tanzania's President John Magufuli has been condemned for comments that girls who give birth should not be allowed to return to school. | 40379113 |
The eight men fled in a helicopter to Greece after the coup attempt but say they were not involved.
Turkey has demanded they return to stand trial. The soldiers say their lives would be in danger.
The case has presented a diplomatic dilemma for Greece.
Senior prosecutors had argued against agreeing to extradition on human rights grounds. The court's decision is final and cannot be appealed against.
The eight soldiers - three majors, three captains and two sergeant majors - have been labelled traitors by the Turkish government.
The issue has created new tensions between the Nato allies, who are currently working together to help negotiate a peace deal in divided Cyprus.
In the wake of the coup attempt, tens of thousands of people from every level of Turkish society have been purged from their jobs, including military officers, government officials and schoolteachers.
Critics of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan say he has used the failed uprising as a way of removing his opponents and tightening his hold on power. | Greece's Supreme Court has ruled against extraditing eight Turkish soldiers whom the Turkish government accuses of being involved in last July's attempted coup. | 38754821 |
24 July 2015 Last updated at 18:58 BST
In 2006, he visited Kenya as Senator, but this will be the first time in his presidency that he enters his father's homeland.
When he came to power in 2009, there were high hopes for relations between Africa and the US, but has President Obama delivered?
BBC Africa takes a quick look at Mr Obama and his relationship with the continent.
Produced by Baya Cat | Barack Obama is making his fifth trip to Africa as US president. | 33659836 |
Loghman Sawari used fake documents to fly to Fiji to seek asylum, saying he did not feel safe in PNG.
But on Friday the 21-year-old was stopped by police as he went to meet immigration officials and deported.
Rights groups have condemned the move. Amnesty International said it had "grave concerns" about his wellbeing.
Loghman Sawari arrived in PNG in 2013. He was one of about 1,250 asylum seekers detained by Australia in two offshore camps, in PNG's Manus Island and on the Pacific island of Nauru.
Australia refuses to accept refugees who arrive by boat, and says they must resettle in Cambodia or PNG. Rights groups say the policy contradicts international obligations and that conditions in the camps are deplorable.
Mr Sawari was recognised as a refugee and released from the Manus Island camp into the community. But there have been many reports of tensions and violence between refugees and PNG residents.
In September 2015 he told Britain's Guardian newspaper he had been assaulted by a guard at the transit centre because he asked for more washing powder, and required hospital treatment.
He was later resettled in the city of Lae, but lost his job and became homeless.
In February 2016 he told the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper that he wanted to return to the detention centre because life in Lae left him scared, lonely and poor.
"I was never, not for one day, safe in PNG," he told the Guardian earlier this week.
He arrived in Fiji last week. His lawyer, Aman Ravindra Singh, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that a meeting had been arranged on Friday for his asylum application to be lodged.
But he said police stopped their vehicle as they drove there, shouted at Mr Sawari to get out and bundled him into a car bound for the airport. He said he hadn't been able to speak to him since.
"I am not aware of what grounds the Fijian government used to unleash their thuggish ways against this young, desperate victim of persecution," he said.
"The Fijian government has miserably failed in using its own domestic laws to deal with this situation."
Fiji says he was deported because he had not applied for asylum straight away and because he had entered on a false passport.
Describing his case as "extreme", rights group Amnesty said: "The Australian government forced him into this position, they've pushed him to his limits and now they must take responsibility to provide him with the protection he needs."
Australia had agreed a deal with the Obama administration under which refugees detained in its offshore camps could apply to be resettled in the US.
But the deal appears to be in doubt, after new US President Donald Trump described it as "dumb" and reportedly cut short a call with the Australian prime minister. | Fiji has deported an Iranian refugee back to Papua New Guinea, where he spent years detained under Australia's controversial immigration policies. | 38851941 |
Alex-Marie Quinn had 65 other injuries, pathologist Prof Rupert Risdon told St Albans Crown Court.
Carl Wheatley, 31, from Hatfield, Hertfordshire, denies murder but admits Alex-Marie's manslaughter.
Concluding the bruise led to her death, Prof Risdon told the court he had never seen such an injury.
Prosecutors have alleged Mr Wheatley lost his temper and beat his daughter to death with "sustained persistent hard hitting". He had gained custody of her just a few months earlier.
Prof Risdon found 65 marks of injury across her body, head and arms but a "66th" area of bruising had caused Alex-Marie's death.
Bruising covered the lower body and legs from above her belly button ending shortly before her ankles, in the front and back.
Alex-Marie's soft tissue was damaged under the skin releasing a massive amount of fat cells into her blood stream, the court was told.
The cells then travelled to her lungs, blocking them and causing an embolism.
Prof Risdon said: "It's an unusual finding. I've never seen anything quite like it."
Jane Bickerstaff QC, defending, asked him to consider a "scenario" where the little girl had been repeatedly smacked over her clothing.
But, for a period of up to 36 hours before her death, she had not been hit anymore as she lay "moribund" on her mattress.
Prof Risdon said: "I find that scenario hard to accept because once the fat lodged in the lung the subsequent deterioration and demise would be fairly quick and not over a period of days."
Mr Wheatley denies murdering Alexa on 12 March 2014, but admits manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility. | A four-year-old died at the hands of her father after sustaining a "massive" bruise from her stomach to ankles, a court heard. | 32554362 |
Even at its emergence, it was dismissed as just another of the multitude taking advantage of the chaos created in Syria by the wide-ranging conflict with President Bashar al-Assad.
In January 2014, US President Barack Obama downplayed the capabilities and threats posed by those flying the al-Qaeda flag in Falluja and elsewhere across Iraq and Syria.
But within a few months, IS controlled a vast and valuable swathe of territory across northern Syria and Iraq.
Former US Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel described IS as being as "sophisticated and well-funded as any group that we have seen". "They're beyond just a terrorist group… they are tremendously well funded," he said.
Islamic State: sale of oil, tolls and 'taxes' $2bn
Afghan Taliban: donors, sale of drugs $400m
Al-Shabab: sale of charcoal and 'taxes' up to $100m
Boko Haram: kidnap for ransom, fundraising $10m
Al Nusra Front: donations, kidnap for ransom $ unknown
More than with any other militant group perhaps, the focus of the international community's attention is on the finances of IS - the revenue it earns from oil, taxation, extortion and looting.
The US-led coalition has directed a considerable portion of its air strike effort against the oil refineries and smuggling routes believed to be the mainstay of the group's financial survival in the belief that disrupting funding sources will ultimately precipitate its demise.
The importance of financing in conflict is as old as conflict itself. The Roman orator Marcus Tullius Cicero observed that "the sinews of war [are] a limitless supply of money."
More recently, during the Cold War, states sponsored political violence by funding and supporting proxies.
However, the end of the Cold War, and the use of UN Security Council resolutions against countries such as Libya and Sudan, saw a dramatic decline in state-sponsored terrorism.
Whilst organisations such as Hezbollah continue to operate with state backing, post-Cold War terrorist organisations have mostly been unable to rely on state sponsorship, thus needing to source their own financing.
Skilful financial management is at the heart of the success of any terrorist or insurgent organisation - it represents their lifeblood but is also one of their most significant vulnerabilities.
Securing and maintaining reliable funding is the key to moving from fringe radical group to recognised terrorist organisation - from a hand-to-mouth existence to a more planned and organised model.
Successful groups are often defined as much by their skills as financial managers as they are by their military expertise and ability to recruit fighters.
In general, terrorist groups can draw on financing from two primary sources
Donations are also sometimes transferred between like-minded terrorist groups. For example, the Nigerian group Boko Haram reportedly received $250,000 from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) in 2012.
In a letter from 2005, al-Qaeda's former deputy leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, called upon al-Qaeda in Iraq to transfer $100,000 (£63,700) because many of its own funding lines had been cut.
Whilst donations can provide a source of initial "seed-funding", they are vulnerable to disruption by the authorities and the supply is unreliable.
To establish financial independence, terrorist groups need to move from primarily external funding to internal, self-generated funding that is more difficult for the international community to disrupt.
Al-Shabab in Somalia is a good case in point. Whilst the group receives some limited funding from external sources, it has developed a highly effective charcoal export business which generates up to $80m a year, according to the UN.
Al-Shabab has also mastered another funding tool - business, personal and transport tax. Like IS, al-Shabab controls territory and population, operating a form of quasi-government in the areas under its control - raising taxes and offering some services, particularly security and justice, in return.
IS promises services and food supplies to Muslims in areas it controls.
The control of territory also allows lucrative businesses, such as the growing of opium poppies in Afghanistan, to flourish.
Over $7bn has been spent on fighting the drugs trade in the country yet despite 13 years of a Nato-led effort, poppy cultivation is at an all-time high, with the Taliban exploiting Afghanistan's position as the supplier of over 90% of global opium output to earn up to $150m a year.
But not all groups control territory containing populations ripe for taxation and extortion.
Based in the vast, sparsely inhabited regions across the Sahara and Sahel, AQIM raises its funding from two main sources
The Haqqani Network, based in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region, also relies on smuggling as a key source of finance.
With its roots in the opposition to the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, it controls long-established smuggling routes that benefit from the instability in Afghanistan and Pakistan to support the funds it raises from its extensive criminal activity.
Kidnap for ransom is increasingly used by terrorist groups.
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which is based in Yemen, is estimated to have earned $20m this way between 2011 and 2013.
The UN underlines the profitability of this trade, revealing recently that terrorist groups are estimated to have earned $120m in ransom payments from 2004-2012.
IS alone is believed to have raised up to $45m in just the past year.
So if terrorist groups are to establish themselves, survive and thrive, they need to develop reliable sources of financing based on the territory, population and resources where they operate.
That Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) recognised the critical importance of finance is clear from declassified documents captured in Iraq following the 2003 invasion in which the group identified poor money management and irregular income as critical contributors to the group's failure.
Funding is clearly the lifeblood of a terrorist organisation. It is also its Achilles' heel.
Since the 9/11 attacks, the international community has sought to disrupt terrorist groups by targeting their finances.
The first step in US President George W Bush's so-called "war on terror" was to launch "a strike on the financial foundation of the global terror network".
Yet, as we are witnessing across northern Syria and Iraq, starving extremists of financing is no easy task once they evolve from external reliance to internal self-sufficiency. | Twelve months ago, the group now known as Islamic State (IS) was little recognised on the international stage beyond those inspired to travel and join the group as fighters or those in the security and academic worlds monitoring developments in Syria and Iraq. | 30393832 |
A spokeswoman for the Assembly Commission, which runs Stormont, said its guidelines stated the building cannot be used for election purposes.
The guidelines were issued to all political parties and individual MLAs.
UKIP's David McNarry told journalist the party had sought and been granted permission to use Parliament Buildings.
"We're only following in the footsteps of others. We made an application to do what we're doing," Mr McNarry said at the launch.
In a statement to the BBC, the Assembly Commission spokeswoman said: "The use of Parliament Buildings as a venue for election purposes is not permitted under the Use of Assembly Resources During the 2015 General Election guidelines which were issued to all political parties and individual MLAs on 2 April 2015.
"The Northern Ireland Assembly Commission is aware that the guidelines may have been breached and is currently reviewing the matter." | UKIP is believed to have broken Northern Ireland Assembly rules by using Stormont's Parliament Buildings for its election manifesto launch. | 32299148 |
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Despite an encouraging first-half performance, Villa lost 1-0 at the Liberty Stadium to sit 12 points from safety with nine games remaining.
Federico Fernandez bundled the ball in to hand Villa a sixth defeat in a row.
"Once again it is frustrating to get nothing out of the game," the 49-year-old Frenchman said.
"Until mathematically it is not possible why should we give up?"
Off the field, Tom Fox stepped down from his role as chief executive at Villa Park this week, while sporting director Hendrik Almstadt also left the club.
There have been a number of changes recently, with ex-Football Association chairman David Bernstein becoming a director and former boss Brian Little taking an advisory role to the board.
"We showed as a team that we were not too much affected by the board stuff," added Garde. "We have to concentrate on our business and that is football and that's what we showed today.
"Today I'm quite pleased with the way that we played. When you've lost you're not happy, but the character that the players showed today we have to do every game." | Aston Villa will not give up on survival in the Premier League according to manager Remi Garde despite another defeat at Swansea. | 35854164 |
Hope Not Hate says the two main groups - the BNP and EDL - are splintered and directionless amid a loss of leadership.
The results mirror academic analysis which has found the far right split in the UK despite its growth elsewhere.
The report says online far-right activity appears to remain strong - but new groups have failed to translate this into action on British streets.
The annual survey by the anti-racism monitoring group says that 2014 saw a string of events that would have been previously used by far-right groups to seek recruits - including the Rotherham sexual grooming scandal, new terrorism threats and a rise in immigration.
But Hope Not Hate said that no far-right group had shown itself capable of building significant new numbers of active supporters as the two main organisations have faltered.
The British National Party was electorally all but wiped out at the May 2014 elections, including party leader Nick Griffin losing his European Parliament seat. In October the party threw him out after 15 years in charge.
Meanwhile, the English Defence League, which once attracted thousands to its largest and most confrontational marches, has fragmented after its former leader Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, also known as Tommy Robinson, quit in October 2013.
Although a string of new groups have emerged in the wake of BNP and EDL in-fighting, Hope Not Hate said none had built significant momentum offline.
"One of the problems facing the British far right is over its own identity," says the report. "The British far right enters 2015 as a divided and weak movement but, while this is likely to remain the case over the next year, the conditions exist for this to change very quickly."
Germany has seen the rise of the "anti-Islamisation" Pegida movement, capable of mobilising thousands onto the streets, but there has been a fragmentation of far-right movements in the UK.
Some former BNP voters have drifted to UKIP - although Nigel Farage's party has banned former members of extremist organisations from joining it.
Matthew Goodwin, associate professor of politics at the University of Nottingham and an expert on political extremism, said events in the UK have been moving differently to those in Europe.
"The rise of UKIP has created a dilemma for activists in the far-right," he said. "Do these far-right activists give up and go into political apathy, or do they go back to their confrontational roots?"
Hope Not Hate warned that individuals obsessed with right-wing ideology could still pose terror threats as "lone wolves".
Last year Ryan McGee, a serving soldier, was jailed for two years for making a nail bomb at his family home. | British far-right groups are at their weakest for 20 years, according to a report by anti-racism campaigners. | 30802767 |
Cameron Comey had been playing with his brother by the swollen River Towy in Carmarthen on 17 February, 2015.
The inquest in Milford Haven heard Cameron's brother Anthony ran home and said the boy had fallen into the river at the bend known locally as "the 22".
Coroner Gareth Lewis concluded the death was accidental.
He added it was a "truly awful case".
Mr Lewis told the hearing he had been authorised by the chief coroner to proceed with the inquest in the absence of the body.
A full scale search involving fire, coastguard, search and rescue and dogs was launched after the incident and continued for several months, but Cameron's body has never been found.
Pembrokeshire Coroner's Court heard Queen Elizabeth High School pupil Cameron had earlier been out shopping to Carmarthen with his mother Amanda, his brother and baby sister before returning home.
Coroner's officer Malcolm Thompson said the youngster had asked his mum if he and younger sibling Anthony could go out and play - which she agreed as long as he had his mobile phone with him.
The hearing was told that at around 14:45 GMT an unnamed businessman saw the two brothers playing near the riverbank.
Mr Thompson added: "The brothers must have seen the man because he saw them trying to hide behind a pile of logs.
"He returned to the area (around 10 minutes later) but could not see the two brothers."
Then at around 3.30pm, nine-year-old Anthony ran back home - arriving out of breath and covered in mud - saying Cameron had fallen into the river.
Neither of Cameron's parents were at the short hearing into their son's death on Thursday. | The danger of playing near rivers has been highlighted by the death of an 11-year-old boy whose body has never been found, a coroner has said. | 36670947 |
His comments, including accusing the US president of "racism and sexism", had been made "honestly and honourably" and were within his remit, he told MPs.
Several Conservatives have criticised the Speaker, one saying his career could be in "jeopardy" and another that he had damaged the national interest.
Downing Street called his comments "a matter for Parliament".
The US president has accepted an invitation from the Queen for a state visit to the UK, which can include an address to both Houses of Parliament, later this year.
However, responding to a point of order in the Commons on Monday, Mr Bercow said he was opposed to Mr Trump speaking to MPs and peers - as some other international leaders have done. He said it was "not an automatic right", but an "earned honour", to applause from Labour and SNP MPs.
Questioned in the Commons on Tuesday about his remarks, he replied: "The House has always understood that the chair has a role in these matters."
He added: "I was honestly and honourably seeking to discharge my responsibilities to the House."
Mr Bercow said it was time "to move on to other matters".
Conservative MP Sir Gerald Howarth said there had been a "rather subdued aspect" among his party's MPs when Mr Bercow had spoken.
He added: "I do hope that you will help us to ensure that we can have full confidence in your impartiality, because that's the way for the House to proceed."
The "relationship between the United Kingdom and United States is an extremely important one", Sir Gerald also said.
However, Labour MP Paul Flynn said the Commons owed Mr Bercow "a debt of gratitude for deciding that in this case such an invitation should not be supported by this House."
And SNP MP Alex Salmond, who had several run-ins with Mr Trump when he was Scottish First Minister, told Mr Bercow: "If ever a statement deserved clapping, then yours did yesterday."
Mr Bercow is one of three "key holders" to Westminster Hall - where Mr Trump's predecessor Barack Obama spoke in 2011 - along with the Speaker of the House of Lords, Lord Fowler, and the Lord Great Chamberlain, a hereditary peer in charge of certain parts of the Palace of Westminster.
All three must agree in order for an address to take place there.
Lord Fowler addressed peers on Tuesday, saying Mr Bercow had not informed him ahead of voicing his opinion on Mr Trump, adding that Mr Bercow had told him he was "genuinely sorry" for this.
He added: "I don't intend to argue the case for or against Mr Trump's visit. That's not my role as Speaker.
"But let me say I have spent the last 30 years campaigning against discrimination, particularly against LGBT people and people with HIV/Aids."
As speaker, Mr Bercow is the highest authority of the House of Commons and must remain politically impartial.
Several senior Conservatives have been highly critical of his comments.
One unnamed Tory MP and former cabinet member told the BBC he "must be close to standing down" as Speaker, while another said his remarks had gone "way beyond what is acceptable".
Conservative MP Nadine Dorries said: "When he loses support for what was a very partisan moment I think his position will become more and more in jeopardy."
Crispin Blunt, the Conservative MP who chairs the Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee, said Mr Bercow was going to have to deal with "the consequences" of his comments. He added that the Speaker, "who's meant to referee all of this, should keep himself above that".
What is a state visit?
Former Culture Secretary John Whittingdale told Sky News: "It was a performance, it was John Bercow playing to the gallery and I think it was damaging to the national interest. I think it is regrettable that he did it."
Fellow Conservative Nadhim Zahawi, who has been critical of Mr Trump's travel ban on nationals from seven mainly Muslim countries, said the Speaker prided himself on his neutrality and to become the story was "a bad place to be".
He said Mr Bercow had opened himself up to accusations of hypocrisy after allowing other controversial leaders, like the Chinese president, to speak, and urged him to explain his thinking to MPs.
Meanwhile, Joe Wilson, a Congressman for Mr Trump's republican Party, told the BBC's Newsnight programme Mr Bercow's interjection had been "very disappointing".
"If ever in recent years there's been a more pro-British president of the United States, it's Donald Trump," he said.
Former UKIP leader Nigel Farage said Mr Bercow had "abused his position" and that to have expressed his opinions in the way he did "devalues this great office".
But Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who has called for the state visit to be postponed, welcomed the intervention, while Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said Mr Trump was "not welcome".
A petition to withdraw the invitation to the US president - and another one backing the visit - will be debated by MPs later this month.
No date for Mr Trump's visit has been announced. | Commons Speaker John Bercow has defended voicing his opposition to Donald Trump addressing Parliament. | 38889941 |
The dogs will help authorities detect ivory, weapons, ammunition and animal products including elephant and buffalo meat.
They will be placed under the care of Tanzania National Parks.
The dogs belong to Flintshire-based Wagtail UK, which was awarded the contract, along with Conservation Dogs, by the Wildlife Conservation Society. | Sniffer dogs from north Wales are being flown to the east African country of Tanzania to help catch smugglers. | 32594167 |
Bake A Cake Catering, in Halesowen, ceased trading in August 2015, failing to deliver wedding services that people had paid for.
Wolverhampton Crown Court heard there were 700 victims, with some forced to cancel their weddings.
Lisa Holt, 41, was described by the judge as "irresponsible, cruel and deceitful" as she was jailed.
See more stories from across Birmingham and the Black Country here
Her husband Ryan Holt, 42, received nine months for laundering the proceeds.
Sentencing Lisa Holt, Judge Barry Berlin, said she was "callous".
He added: "You had hardened yourself against human anxiety."
Dudley Council said it received 150 complaints about the firm, and trading standards investigators said some brides had to cancel their weddings.
While the majority of customers had booked weddings, others were using the company for birthdays and there was also a funeral.
At a previous hearing, the court also heard how Holt defrauded online company Wowcher after she claimed she owned 16 photo booths and employed 10 staff, the council said.
The authority said this left Wowcher to refund customers for services that had not been delivered to the value of £46,000.
The fraud totalled £104,000, the court was told, with £46,000 defrauded from Wowcher and the remainder directly from customers.
Jemma Cooper, from Dudley, paid £250 for a photo booth, chocolate fountain, two buffets and table decorations at a reduced price due to Black Friday deals.
"She didn't look like the sort of person that was going to rip you off," she said.
She realised something was wrong after seeing Facebook comments.
"You start to worry," she said. "I did get in touch with her and she said 'it's a hate campaign against me, everything's going to be fine, I'll be at your wedding'.
"And then she started doing it to me - not getting back in touch with me."
With just a week before her wedding, Jemma relied on help from family and friends to ensure her big day went ahead.
"I just wanted to cry, it was a nightmare," she said.
"Some women had to cancel. I was luckier, I managed to get stuff together to do it.
"I don't know how she could do it and live with herself afterwards."
Holt, of Albert Road, Halesowen, had previously pleaded guilty to three counts of fraud.
Ryan Holt had admitted one count of money laundering after using his bank accounts to receive payments.
The court heard that the couple have no assets, however Lisa Holt has repaid £14,000 to customers. She apologised to her victims through a letter to the court.
The court was told some customers are being repaid by as little as £1 a month. At this rate, one bride would be fully reimbursed in 125 years' time, the court heard.
In a statement Wowcher said: "As soon as we became aware of the issues that our customers were experiencing with Bake-a-Cake, where possible, we sought to find replacement suppliers so that our customers could redeem their vouchers for similar services to ensure that they were not disappointed.
"Where this was not possible, we provided our customers with a full refund for their vouchers.
"Wowcher had paid Bake-a-Cake £45,996.30 for vouchers that were redeemed with Bake-a-Cake but which were not honoured by Bake-a-Cake." | A wedding company boss who conned brides-to-be out of thousands of pounds has been jailed for three years. | 38842311 |
Land Rover Bar, who started the day as leaders, won the first race before defending champions Oracle Team USA claimed victory in the second.
The Britons' second-place finish in a closely fought final race was enough to secure a one-point victory.
The result means that Ainslie's team are top of the 2016 series leaderboard.
Ainslie, who raced with Oracle at the last America's Cup in 2013, is leading the team's bid to become the first ever British winner of the America's Cup.
"I think that for a new team to be leading the World Series now is a good indication of how far we've come, but there's still a long way to go," Ainslie said.
"The guys did an incredible job with the boat handling and that's what really got us out of some of the tough situations." | Britain's America's Cup team, led by Sir Ben Ainslie, claimed a tight victory on the final day of the World Series event in Portsmouth. | 36879733 |
The PM will visit the Queen for a final audience ahead of the 7 May poll, marking the end of the five-year coalition government.
Later, he is expected to say the UK is on the "right track" and a Labour government would be "economic chaos".
Mr Miliband will say the Tories pose a "clear and present danger" to UK firms.
After months of unofficial campaigning, the five-and-a-half week race for No 10 begins in earnest.
Parliament is formally dissolved under the terms of the Fixed Term Parliaments Act.
Government ministers remain in charge of their departments until a new administration is formed but MPs will cease to be members of Parliament and writs will be issued for elections in all 650 constituencies.
Issues likely to dominate the campaign include the economy and spending cuts, Britain's EU membership and immigration.
Full BBC Election 2015 coverage.
After meeting the Queen at Buckingham Palace, Mr Cameron is expected to make a statement outside Downing Street in the afternoon.
It is understood he will say that "after five years of effort and sacrifice... this election is about moving forward".
What are the top issues for each political party at the 2015 general election?
Policy guide: Where the parties stand
He will say the "next prime minister walking through that door will be me or Ed Miliband" and a Conservative government would oversee "an economy that grows, that creates jobs, that generates the money to ensure a properly funded and improving NHS".
He will say Labour leader Mr Miliband "pays lip service to working people while planning to hike taxes and increase debt".
But setting out Labour's policies on business on Monday, Mr Miliband is expected to warn that the Tory promise of a referendum on Britain's EU membership poses a "clear and present danger" to jobs and prosperity.
It also risks an "extraordinary loss of British influence", he will say, as he promises to "return Britain to a leadership role" in Brussels under Labour.
Labour has said the economic recovery under the coalition has been the slowest in more than 100 years and resulted in a cost-of-living crisis.
It has pledged to raise living standards of "everyday working people by ensuring those with the broadest shoulders bear the greatest burden" while cutting the deficit and securing the future of the NHS.
Elsewhere, Deputy Prime Minister and Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg will have a separate private audience with the Queen on Monday in his capacity as Lord President of the Privy Council.
Campaigning in Oxfordshire on Sunday, Mr Clegg said leaving the EU would be an act of "self-harm" and risked the UK's economic recovery. It came as one of his senior colleagues, Energy Secretary Ed Davey, suggested the Conservative's commitment to an in-out EU referendum would make a second coalition with them "incredibly difficult".
On Sunday, the Conservatives accused Labour of planning tax rises to meet deficit reduction targets, while Labour said the Tories should "come clean" on "secret" plans for further welfare cuts. | David Cameron is to tell voters they face a "stark choice" between him and Labour's Ed Miliband as the election campaign officially gets under way. | 32109172 |
Troops guarding the site in the major port city of Mukalla, Hadramawt province, have fled, they said.
AQAP has exploited the chaos gripping the country, overrunning Mukalla earlier this month and freeing inmates from a prison.
A Saudi-led coalition has been bombing Shia Houthi rebels, who have been advancing across the country.
The Houthis swept into the capital Sanaa last September, eventually forcing President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi to flee abroad.
AQAP fighters have also reportedly took control of a sea port and an oil terminal in southern Yemen.
As the coalition strikes continue against the Houthis, Yemeni Vice-President Khaled Bahah said he did not want a Saudi-led ground offensive.
With the raids failing to stop the rebels, there has been speculation a ground campaign could be launched.
But Mr Bahah said: "We are still hoping that nothing will happen, and we are not expanding the war, but we are trying to stop the war."
Earlier, it was announced the UN's special envoy to Yemen, Jamal Benomar, has stepped down from his post.
The UN said it would name a successor "in due course" and "spare no efforts to relaunch the peace process".
The Moroccan diplomat is believed to have come under pressure to resign from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states after he failed to get the warring Yemeni factions to attend peace talks.
Who is fighting whom in Yemen?
Houthis - The Zaidi Shia Muslim rebels from the north overran Sanaa last year and then expanded their control. They want to replace Mr Hadi, whose government they say is corrupt. The US alleges Iran is providing military assistance to the rebels.
Ali Abdullah Saleh - Military units loyal to the former president - forced to hand over power in 2011 after mass protests - are fighting alongside the Houthis.
Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi - The president fled abroad in March as the rebels advanced on Aden, where he had taken refuge in February. Sunni Muslim tribesmen and Southern separatists have formed militia to fight the rebels.
Saudi-led coalition - A US-backed coalition of nine, mostly Sunni Arab states says it is seeking to "defend the legitimate government" of Mr Hadi.
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula - AQAP opposes both the Houthis and President Hadi. A rival affiliate of Islamic State has also recently emerged.
Are you in Yemen? Have you been affected by the recent violence? You can share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk. If you are available to talk to a BBC journalist please include a telephone number. | Militants from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) have seized an airport in southern Yemen, officials say. | 32341836 |
HMS Hermes was sunk in 1914 by a German submarine in the Dover Strait, with the loss of 44 lives.
A 56-year-old man, from Winchelsea, in East Sussex, and a 55-year-old from Teynham, in Kent, were arrested on suspicion of theft.
Items believed to be from the ship were found during the arrests, police said.
The Kent Police investigation was carried out alongside the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the Marine Management Organisation, the Receiver of Wreck, Sussex Police, Historic England and the French authorities.
PC Preston Frost of Kent Police said: 'We are proud of our close working relationship with our partner agencies and take a robust approach to ensuring important historical artefacts do not end up in the hands of people who are not entitled to them." | Two men have been arrested following reports "historic artefacts" were stolen from a sunken Royal Navy warship in the English Channel. | 34626118 |
BBC Radio Leeds reports that the ex-Spain international, 44, is close to signing a deal to replace Garry Monk.
Christiansen led Apoel to the Cypriot First Division title and the Europa League last 16 in 2016-17 in his sole season in charge before leaving in May.
The former Barcelona striker will be the club's sixth boss since Brian McDermott left in May 2014.
His only other managerial experience is with AEK Larnaca, also in Cyprus' top tier, who he led from 2014 to 2016.
Monk left Elland Road in May after failing to agree terms on a new deal with new owner Andrea Radrizzani and was appointed Middlesbrough boss earlier this month.
Denmark-born Christiansen, who qualified to represent Spain through his mother, played in Spain, Greece, Denmark and Germany during his career and finished as joint top scorer in the Bundesliga while playing for Bochum in 2002-03.
More to follow. | Leeds United are set to appoint former Apoel Nicosia manager Thomas Christiansen as their new head coach. | 40287680 |
The MoD said fighter jets from RAF Lossiemouth intercepted Russian "blackjack" aircraft flying in international air space on Thursday.
The Typhoon pilots escorted the Russian planes "whilst in the UK area of interest".
Air-to-air refuelling was provided by an aircraft from RAF Brize Norton.
Sqn Ldr Jim Calver, who flew one of the RAF Typhoons involved in the mission, said: "Given the Royal Air Force's enduring commitment to secure the UK's skies, yesterday's sortie once again proved Typhoon's capability to successfully scramble and intercept Russian long-range aviation.
"Protecting our skies is especially poignant in this 75th anniversary year of the Battle of Britain. Working together with ground-based radar and air-to-air refuelling aircraft today's RAF continues to come together as a team to protect our country." | RAF Typhoons were scrambled to intercept two Russian aircraft flying over the North Sea, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed. | 34227249 |
Mr McCarthy, 49, will replace outgoing Republican Majority Leader Eric Cantor in the role.
Mr McCarthy is the current majority whip, the third-ranking member.
Mr Cantor, 51, unexpectedly lost a Republican Party primary election last week, throwing the party's House caucus into turmoil.
After his shock defeat in his Virginia constituency at the hands of David Brat, an economics professor, Mr Cantor said he would step down from his leadership position at the end of July.
Mr Brat will face a Democratic challenger in November's general election, and the winner of that race will assume Mr Cantor's seat in January.
Winning the leadership vote on Thursday places Mr McCarthy of California next in line to House Speaker John Boehner.
In the House of Representatives, the majority leader is tasked with scheduling legislation for consideration on the House floor, planning the legislative agenda, and consulting with party members to gauge sentiment.
The majority leader is also a highly visible representative of the party in negotiations with the White House and the Senate, both in Democratic hands.
In Thursday's party leadership vote, Mr McCarthy beat Congressman Raul Labrador for the role.
Republican Congressman Steve Scalise was subsequently elected to replace outgoing-Mr McCarthy as House majority whip.
The Republican Party is still reeling from Mr Cantor's surprise defeat on 11 June after nearly 14 years in the House.
Some Republicans have expressed concern over what Mr Cantor's defeat means for the party, which analysts say is struggling to broaden its appeal beyond its core base of conservative suburban and rural white voters. | US Congressman Kevin McCarthy has become the second-ranking member of the House of Representatives in a Republican caucus leadership election. | 27926908 |
The former Lord Chancellor told the BBC: "We didn't find weapons of mass destruction there and that was the basis by which we went in.
"So on that basis, we weren't right to go in."
The existence of chemical and biological agents in Iraq had been a key justification for the invasion.
Charles Falconer shared a flat with Prime Minister Tony Blair during their time as young barristers in the 1970s and was a close friend and confidant, as well as a minister, during his time in government.
The former Labour government minister, who was born in Edinburgh and went to the private Glenalmond College in Perthshire, told a BBC Scotland programme on the Fall of Labour in Scotland: "I think the Iraq war damaged Labour everywhere, and I think that the Iraq war is perceived to be a mistake."
Lord Falconer was asked by whom it was thought that the Iraq war was a mistake.
He said: "By Labour, by Tony Blair. That damaged Labour right throughout Scotland and England, but I'm not sure that it necessarily damaged Labour more in Scotland than it did in England."
Asked whether, in retrospect, he and Mr Blair regarded it as a mistake, Lord Falconer said: "Well, what I'm saying is, it did do us some damage. I supported the invasion.
"We didn't find weapons of mass destruction there and that was the basis by which we went in. so on that basis, we weren't right to go in."
A dossier of evidence produced before the invasion, in September 2002, declared intelligence had established "beyond doubt" that Iraq's leader Saddam Hussein had continued to produce chemical and biological weapons and was making efforts to develop nuclear weapons.
It also claimed Iraq could deploy biological weapons within 45 minutes of an order to do so.
The claims of the dossier and a later document making similar claims were called into question when weapons of mass destruction (WMD) were not found in Iraq.
The invasion of Iraq in 2003 was a deeply divisive move.
Weeks before the invasion hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets of the UK in protest against the proposed war.
Police said the London march was the UK's biggest ever demonstration with at least 750,000 taking part, although organisers put the figure closer to two million.
The Chilcot inquiry into the Iraq invasion was set up in 2009 and finished hearing evidence more than four years ago.
It has still not produced its report.
An earlier review by Lord Butler said key intelligence used to justify war with Iraq had been shown to be unreliable.
BBC Scotland Investigates: The Fall of Labour is on BBC One Scotland at 21:00 on Monday 22 June. | UK forces should not have gone into Iraq in 2003, according to Lord Falconer, one of Tony Blair's closest allies during the build-up to war. | 33198974 |
A largely peaceful march on 20 November over the disappearances of 43 students in Guerrero state ended with riot police dispersing the crowd.
Mr Rodriquez gave no reason for his departure and the city mayor said he had stepped down immediately.
Earlier this week President Pena Nieto announced new justice and police plans.
After the 20 November protest, Mr Rodriquez Almeida said he had "congratulated his personnel for their work," in particular for "restoring public order, no matter whether others like it or not".
Lawyers for 11 people who were arrested on the day called for his resignation.
They said the protestors were arrested with no proof of criminal action and arbitrarily taken to a high security prison.
They were freed a week later due to a lack of evidence provoking accusations of abusive police practices.
Human rights groups also accused the police of indiscriminate violence during the protest against activists, journalists and bystanders.
Mr Rodriguez' departure comes after President Enrique Pena Nieto's announcement of a series of proposals to reform Mexico's security system.
Included in the plans is the replacing of local municipal police forces, which are more vulnerable to corruption, with state-level security officers.
Correspondents say Mr Rodriquez's resignation may signal a reshuffling of top police chiefs going on behind the scenes as the government attempts to plan out its new justice and policing framework for Mexico.
The 20 November protest took place during months of nationwide outrage and demonstrations against the abduction by police in the Guerrero state city of Iguala of 43 students.
State prosecutors say the municipal police were ordered by the local mayor to hand the students over to criminal gangs who executed them. | Mexico City's police chief, Jesus Rodriguez Almeida, has resigned after strong criticism of his handling of protests in the city. | 30357772 |
It follows violence at the England-Russia Euro 2016 match in Marseille.
Alexander Shprygin was among 43 Russian fans detained on Tuesday while on their way to Lille to watch Russia's second fixture, against Slovakia.
More than 12 Russians who were arrested following the trouble have been released without further action.
Three other detained Russian fans have been given jail sentences of up to two years over the violence in Marseille.
Separately, Marseille prosecutor Brice Robin said he was investigating an attack on two England fans ahead of the 1-1 draw with Russia as attempted murder.
Six English fans have been given shorter jail sentences for the violence.
The Russian foreign ministry said the 20 fans would be placed on a flight from Nice to Moscow on Saturday.
The arrests have angered the Russian government, which summoned the French ambassador to protest.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday called the fighting "a disgrace" but added that he did not "understand how 200 of our fans could beat up several thousand English fans".
He called on Russian fans to behave appropriately when they face Wales on Monday.
"I hope that there are sober-minded people among them who really love sport and understand that any violation is not supporting their favourite team but damaging to the team and to sport," Mr Putin said.
A group of 150 Russian hooligans were involved in the trouble on 11 June, according to French officials. They say they have viewed more than 200 hours of footage but were unable to identify all those responsible.
Mr Shprygin's All-Russia Supporters Union is backed by the Kremlin. He is reported to hold far-right views and has been photographed giving a Nazi salute.
Russia and England fans clashed before and after the two teams played last Saturday.
Afterwards, Russia was hit with a fine and a suspended disqualification, meaning the team will be thrown out of the Euro tournament if their fans cause more trouble inside stadiums.
Five England fans were jailed for throwing bottles at police and a sixth jailed in connection with the violence. | The far-right leader of the Russian football supporters' association is due to be deported from France later, along with 19 fellow fans. | 36563022 |
3 November 2016 Last updated at 00:06 GMT
Lord Kerr of Kinlochard told BBC Scotland political correspondent Glenn Campbell that leaving was "not irrevocable".
He added: "You can change your mind while the process is going on.
"During that period, if a country were to decide actually we don't want to leave after all, everybody would be very cross about it being a waste of time.
"They might try to extract a political price but legally they couldn't insist that you leave." | The Scottish cross-bench peer who wrote Article 50 - the agreement which the UK would use to end its EU membership - said leaving was not inevitable. | 37854483 |
Ransomware, which makes devices unusable until their owners pay to unlock them, has become increasingly prevalent in the past year, they say.
Devices holding photos, emails and fitness information could be targeted.
The risk to business is "significant and growing", the National Crime Agency and National Cyber Security Centre say.
The joint report from the NCA and the NCSC says cyber crime is becoming more aggressive.
More devices connecting to the internet meant opportunities for criminals, the report said.
Any devices containing personal data such as photos, that people consider sufficiently valuable to pay for, are likely to be targeted by criminals.
Such devices often have limited security built in.
In their report, aimed at businesses, the agencies say: "This data may not be inherently valuable, and might not be sold on criminal forums but the device and data will be sufficiently valuable to the victim that they will be willing to pay for it.
"Ransomware on connected watches, fitness trackers and TVs will present a challenge to manufacturers, and it is not yet known whether customer support will extend to assisting with unlocking devices and providing advice on whether to pay a ransom."
The report also raises concerns about the ability of the most sophisticated criminal gangs to use the same high-tech tools as states to target financial institutions.
Others, it adds, can download more basic software to carry out attacks on smaller businesses and the general public which require very little technical ability.
As many as 21 billion devices used by businesses and consumers around the world are forecast to be connected to the internet by 2020.
Ciaran Martin, chief executive of the NCSC, said cyber attacks would continue to evolve and the public and private sectors must continue to work at pace to reduce the threat to critical services and deter would-be attackers.
The report also says there is no clear understanding of the true scale and cost of current cyber attacks to the UK, as they believe they are under-reported.
In three months after the NCSC was created, there were 188 "high-level" attacks as well as "countless" lower-level incidents, it says.
Donald Toon, director for economic and cyber crime at the NCA, told the BBC devices that helped businesses control operations remotely had an online capability built into them.
"They're mass-produced and the security may not be particularly good," he said. "Businesses often don't change the basic security software that's in there, or change the passwords."
The report will be published on Tuesday as the NCSC hosts a major conference, CyberUK, in Liverpool. | Smartphones, watches, televisions and fitness trackers could be used to hold people to ransom over personal data, cyber security experts have warned. | 39260174 |
After spurning two good opportunities, Stephen Gleeson fired the only goal of the game, finding the top corner from David Cotterill's neat ball.
Cotterill hit the post as the hosts looked for a second, while Blackburn's best chance saw Tommie Hoban fire over from Craig Conway's free-kick.
Defeat keeps Blackburn in the bottom three while Birmingham are up to sixth.
Rovers, who have conceded in all 11 of their league games so far, pushed for a late equaliser but goalkeeper Jason Steele - up for a last-gasp corner - could not quite reach Sam Gallagher's squared header.
Birmingham's Che Adams shot just wide and Jacques Maghoma inadvertently blocked Jonathan Grounds' far-post header as the hosts edged the first half.
Marvin Emnes' brilliant shot for Rovers was saved by Adam Legzdins before Gleeson opened the scoring with a neat finish and it could have been 2-0 but Jonathan Spector fired over from close range.
Blackburn, who have now won just two of their past 12 games in all competitions, pushed forward in stoppage time but it was too little, too late.
Birmingham City manager Gary Rowett told BBC WM:
"You can play against teams near the bottom who can turn you over. We have to be mindful of these teams.
"We caused them problems but they caused us one or two. Our second half was better.
"We tend to start slowly but get stronger and that is testament to our experience and game management.
"The key moment for me was early in the second half when Adam Legzdins made a fantastic save from Marvin Emnes. It was a crucial save and we went away to score the winner."
Blackburn manager Owen Coyle:
"It was a hard-fought game. The margins were very fine.
"We could have picked up a point. If we had scored the first goal it could have been different as we had a couple of opportunities to score.
"The disappointment was that we were in possession before they scored the goal. Saying that, it was a wonderful finish from Gleeson.
"From our point of view it was avoidable as there were enough bodies around. It made it difficult because we had to make substitutions because of injuries."
Match ends, Birmingham City 1, Blackburn Rovers 0.
Second Half ends, Birmingham City 1, Blackburn Rovers 0.
Attempt blocked. Danny Guthrie (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Jason Lowe.
Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by Stephen Gleeson.
Foul by Paul Robinson (Birmingham City).
Elliott Bennett (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Delay in match Jonathan Spector (Birmingham City) because of an injury.
Delay in match Sam Gallagher (Blackburn Rovers) because of an injury.
Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by Diego Fabbrini.
Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by Michael Morrison.
Substitution, Birmingham City. Paul Robinson replaces David Davis.
Diego Fabbrini (Birmingham City) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Gordon Greer (Blackburn Rovers).
Foul by David Davis (Birmingham City).
Darragh Lenihan (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Offside, Birmingham City. Jonathan Spector tries a through ball, but David Cotterill is caught offside.
Foul by David Davis (Birmingham City).
Sam Gallagher (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Substitution, Birmingham City. Rhoys Wiggins replaces Jacques Maghoma.
Jonathan Spector (Birmingham City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Sam Gallagher (Blackburn Rovers).
Attempt missed. Jonathan Spector (Birmingham City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is high and wide to the left. Assisted by David Cotterill.
Attempt saved. Lukas Jutkiewicz (Birmingham City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal.
David Cotterill (Birmingham City) hits the left post with a left footed shot from the right side of the box. Assisted by Jacques Maghoma with a cross.
Attempt saved. Ryan Shotton (Birmingham City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by David Cotterill with a cross.
Corner, Birmingham City. Conceded by Tommie Hoban.
Tommie Hoban (Blackburn Rovers) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Lukas Jutkiewicz (Birmingham City) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Tommie Hoban (Blackburn Rovers).
Corner, Birmingham City. Conceded by Tommie Hoban.
Michael Morrison (Birmingham City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Sam Gallagher (Blackburn Rovers).
Offside, Birmingham City. Stephen Gleeson tries a through ball, but David Cotterill is caught offside.
Offside, Blackburn Rovers. Danny Guthrie tries a through ball, but Craig Conway is caught offside.
Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by Stephen Gleeson.
Attempt blocked. Diego Fabbrini (Birmingham City) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by David Cotterill.
Substitution, Blackburn Rovers. Elliott Bennett replaces Marvin Emnes because of an injury.
Diego Fabbrini (Birmingham City) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Darragh Lenihan (Blackburn Rovers). | Birmingham City stretched their unbeaten run to seven Championship games with a home win over Blackburn. | 37458624 |
Midfielder Jones found the corner from 25 yards in the second half after receiving the ball from Matt Palmer.
Aaron Amadi-Holloway shot just wide earlier on, with Spireites keeper Tommy Lee doing well to foil Curtis Main.
Lee also tipped over Tommy Thiele's volley following the goal, while Chesterfield failed to muster a clear-cut chance despite late possession.
Oldham remain in the bottom four despite the three points, but behind Fleetwood on goal difference only, while the visitors are just two points above them in 18th place.
Oldham boss John Sheridan told BBC Radio Manchester:
Media playback is not supported on this device
"I thought we thoroughly deserved the three points.
"First half, I thought we were the better team, had one or two half chances. Their keeper has been involved a lot more than ours has.
"We kept going and pushing on, leading up to the goal. Obviously (we were) panicking in the last probably 10 minutes, they were throwing balls in the box and we're a bit edgy clearing things. It's a massive win for us.
"It's about the team, not the individuals, me or anyone, it's about us as a group. As a team, we were probably a seven out of 10, and that's what got us the result." | Mike Jones scored a crucial winner for Oldham against Chesterfield to improve their chances of avoiding relegation. | 35858856 |
A man in his 70s, who was a pedestrian, died following a crash involving three vehicles near Ballyhornan village.
In Dungannon, Phelim Brady, 69, died following a collision between a tractor and a lorry on the Killybracken Road.
On Tuesday evening, man in his 80s died after it is believed he was struck by a tractor at a farm on the Loughnamarve Road, Pomeroy.
The Health and Safety Executive are investigating the accident.
Police said a 30-year-old man has been arrested for a number of offences in connection with the crash near Ballyhornan.
A 19-year-old man believed to have been involved in the accident was taken to a nearby hospital for injuries, that are not believed to be life-threatening.
Meanwhile, police said two men, aged 50 and 43, have been arrested in connection with the crash near Dungannon.
Police have appealed for witnesses to any of the incidents to contact them. | Three elderly men have been killed in separate traffic accidents in Counties Down and Tyrone. | 28012693 |
The man, aged between 65 and 75, was found fully clothed near Dove Stone Reservoir, Oldham on 12 December, 2015.
The day before, he had gone into a pub and asked the way to "the top of the mountain" after travelling by train from London to Manchester.
Toxicology reports found traces of strychnine poison but police say they still do not know who the man is.
Strychnine is now used primarily as a pesticide, particularly to kill rats.
Greater Manchester Police said no wallet, mobile phone or other identification was present when the man's body was discovered by a cyclist. Their investigation is on-going.
A spokeswoman said: "The cause of death is provisionally strychnine poisoning pending confirmation by the coroner at [the] inquest."
The man had £130 in cash and three train tickets, including a return to London Euston, in his pocket.
In January, police released CCTV images of the man in the hope somebody would be able to identify him.
He arrived at Ealing Broadway just after 09:00 GMT on 11 December and was next picked up by CCTV at 09:50 at Euston, buying a return ticket to Manchester Piccadilly.
After arriving in Manchester at 12:07, he spent 53 minutes wandering around the station before heading into the city centre.
The next sighting was at the Clarence pub in Greenfield, Saddleworth, where he asked the landlord how he could get to the top of the hill.
Police describe the man as white, of slim build, with a receding hairline with grey hair to the side and back.
He had a large nose that may have been previously broken, and was clean shaven.
He wore a brown heavy jacket, blue jumper, white long-sleeve shirt, blue corduroy trousers and black slip-on shoes. | A mystery man found dead on Saddleworth Moor died of "strychnine poisoning," police have confirmed. | 35802769 |
Deirdre Michie told a gathering in Aberdeen that the industry needed to adjust and find a fresh way forward.
Oil prices have fallen from about $115 a barrel to $63 since last June.
The annual oil and gas industry conference also heard from First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who wants no new tax rises for the sector.
It is the first gathering since the slowdown in the sector.
Thousands of job losses have been announced in the industry in recent months, and thousands more are expected, despite measures announced in the last Budget designed to help the industry. A recent survey found contractors' confidence was at a "record low".
North Sea exploration reached its lowest level in at least two decades in 2014, with 14 explorations wells drilled compared with 44 in 2008.
Ms Michie said: "We have paid more to the Treasury than most other industrial sectors, we generate hundreds of thousands of skilled jobs, we have a vibrant supply chain, at home and abroad, and make a key contribution to the UK's security of energy supply. It is an industry that has grown and evolved for 50 years.
"However, we now face real and present threats that are challenging our future. At $60 oil, 10% of our production is struggling to make money and there is a shortage of capital and a shortage of investors willing to place their money here.
"Therefore it is not unreasonable for the North Sea to set out its stall at being sustainable in a $60 world. As a target, it's one that we as a trade association can champion, government can align with and the regulator can pursue as an enabler, for example, to focus on key infrastructure."
She added that focusing on efficiencies would be a key factor for the industry's future.
Ms Michie also believed it was vital for clients, employers, employees, unions, trade associations and governments to work together.
She said: "This is not a time for conflict or entrenched positions.
"We don't need to wait for consensus, but we do need leadership in this industry to drive co-operation and an 'early adopter' culture from companies willing to rise to the challenge."
When Oil and Gas UK, the trade body, convened this conference last year, the oil price was about to start its slide from $115 per barrel. By January, it hit $45. It's now in the mid-60s, with conflicting signs of its future direction of travel.
Few think it will rise much above $70, because that's the point at which fracking starts again in North America, pushing up supply. Fracking is much more responsive to price than offshore producers can afford to be.
That plunge in the value of this asset has focused attention on the problem of the high cost of operating in British waters. Along with some North American reserves of oil and gas, this is seen in a global context as among the most expensive places to operate.
Costs per barrel have been rising very steeply; partly because fewer barrels are flowing from older, smaller and hard-to-reach reserves: as old equipment needs more and longer shutdowns for maintenance: and partly because the industry had become inefficient through recent years of booming investment.
Much of the talk in Aberdeen this week will be about driving those costs down further, including the tax bill. Frustration about tax, along with regulation, was found to have soared in a recent survey of industry concerns in north-east Scotland.
However, the industry's requests for reduced tax were largely answered in George Osborne's March Budget. The unfinished business is on incentives for exploration, which has been particularly weak of late, and eventually removing Petroleum Revenue Tax altogether.
Read more from Douglas
The Scottish government previously said changes to the industry brought by the chancellor in his recent Budget had not gone far enough to support the oil and gas industry, with particular mention of exploration credit.
Ms Sturgeon reiterated these calls when she opened the conference.
She said: "At this time in the previous parliament nobody in the industry had any inkling that the UK government might decide to increase the supplementary charge from 20% to 32%. Indeed, even on the morning of the announcement, nobody expected it.
"The Scottish government argued strongly for reversing that increase - and also for replacing the current system of field allowances with one unified investment allowance. We are pleased that the UK government has introduced both measures.
"But it now needs to go further.
"The UK government should make a commitment that there will be no tax increases for the industry for the whole of this UK Parliament.
"Even more importantly, it should promise that all significant policy proposals will be subject to consultation with the industry and the Oil and Gas Authority.
"The UK government should demonstrate that it has learnt from the mistakes of five years ago. Working in partnership is far more effective than operating in isolation."
Scottish Labour's Shadow Finance Secretary Jackie Baillie said government at all levels "must work together to support workers who have lost their jobs and attract further investment to secure existing jobs".
She added: "One thing Nicola Sturgeon yet again failed to do today was publish an updated oil and gas bulletin, so that workers and investors can properly understand the future of the industry.
"Last week the independent Office for Budget Responsibility cut its forecasts for future oil and gas tax receipts by £35bn.
"The fact that this blew a hole through the SNP's disastrous plan for full fiscal autonomy shouldn't be an excuse not to publish an updated oil and gas bulletin.
"The SNP should put party politics aside and give an honest assessment about the future of one of Scotland's most important industries."
A spokeswoman for the Treasury said the UK government wanted to ensure the oil and gas industry was in the best possible position to manage the current decline in investment.
She added: "We can't control the oil price - but we've delivered on the Wood Review recommendations and established the Oil and Gas Authority.
"In addition, the package of support announced in the Budget in March is expected to encourage over $4bn of additional investment in the UK's oil and gas industry over the next five years.
"We look forward to the industry capitalising on this, to deliver efficiencies and make the industry more robust now and for the future."
Gordon Colborn, from PwC in Scotland, believed the industry could have a sustainable future.
He added: "We need to take a more strategic and integrated view if we are to extend the life of the North Sea for everyone involved and for future generations. It's time to act." | The new boss of the UK's oil and gas body has warned that the sector faces a future in which long term oil prices are about $60 a barrel. | 33157196 |
The snooker supremo, Matchroom Sport mogul and boxing promoter-turned-Leyton Orient chairman, claims to be the "best in the world" at what he does.
Since his return to his first sporting love nearly four years ago, even his harshest critic would struggle to argue that Hearn has not made a significant impact.
At the time, Hearn said snooker was in desperate need of salvation.
"It was much too cosy," he told BBC Sport. "It was dying, it was dormant, it was moribund.
"It was a part-time sport and in today's world you can't be a part-time sport.
"When I took it over I said I would blow it up and start again and that is effectively what we have done - and it's working.
"To me, the opportunities were so obvious and crystal clear that the job was easy. This is what I do for living. I have done it for 40 years and I think I am the best in the world at what I do.
"It has been fantastic. When I looked at it four years ago I saw a sport where the management was non-existent, and everyone was going through the motions built around a BBC contract. They had settled for a slow decline."
Slow decline was never going to lie comfortably with Hearn and the progress has been clear. Snooker is once again enjoying something of a boom period.
Much of that is down to the the sport's new-found worldwide appeal - which has tapped into the explosion of interest in China, India, parts of Europe and other destinations around the world.
"The globalisation is the biggest success without a doubt," Hearn added.
"We all knew China was going to be big and we have made it bigger. We thought we should have an event in Australasia and we did. We thought we should try South America and we did - and we may return there.
"We think the biggest breakthrough is potentially the Indian Open. The Indian sub-continent is a massive potential market for us.
"The overseas audience is bringing new players to the table.
"We haven't got a major event in the Middle East at the moment, so is that the next one?
"India has gone really well. Do they just want one a year? China is a massive market but we can't be complacent. We will be more a global sport."
Television and online "exploitation" has meant the prize money has more than doubled from £3m to more than £7m.
"In a recession market. It is difficult to criticise," Hearn said.
The snooker calendar is also stacked to such an extent that players now pick and choose events.
Current world number nine Mark Allen warned that travel expenses could decimate player numbers, while there has even been talk of snooker burnout, with world number two Mark Selby blaming his early exit from this year's World Championship on fatigue.
Former world champion Peter Ebdon was against Hearn's takeover of the sport from the start.
And snooker's biggest draw and current world champion, Ronnie O'Sullivan, pulled out of the 2012-13 season because of "personal issues" after previously refusing to sign World Snooker's official players' contract earlier in 2012 because he felt it was "too onerous".
Hearn gives the dissenting voices short shrift. The UK Championship's new format is the perfect example of what he believes is the right way forward.
The tournament at York's Barbican Theatre features 128 players in the first round, with the top seed playing the number 128 and so on. No longer are the world's top 16 guaranteed places in the latter stages of most ranking events.
"It's one of those opportunities in the 'Brave New Aldous Huxley World of Snooker' where ability is the only criteria and you find out how good you are," Hearn said.
"Players will only ever look at a system and ask the question 'How does this affect me?' That is a natural reaction from human beings - selfish, but natural.
"My responsibility is to ask how will it affect the game. This is competition in its purest sense. It is absolutely on merit, on the day.
"The fascinating thing will be round one. Of the top 64 seeds in the world, playing the next 64 in the world, how many upsets will we get and how many people will grasp the opportunity?
"Then you really see who you are dealing with and who is the best."
Hearn expects 10-16 shocks in the first round at "top whack". But says surprises and a shake-up are exactly what was needed.
"The old system was so protective of the top players," the 65-year-old said.
"They were guaranteed a certain amount of money and ranking points. To my mind life is not about guarantees, and sport is not about guarantees. It is about the unexpected.
"This system is so brutally fair that it will cause some ripples - and that's what I want to do."
The ripples have been felt. But most appear to have slowly warmed to the new regime. The financial rewards have clearly helped appease some of those who doubted.
Hearn knows he cannot please everyone but, unsurprisingly, he does not care anyway.
"Sport is about giving players opportunities, it's not about giving them money," he explained.
Money talks:
"Sport is about money. All the glories are down the road. Initially it is all about cash. How do you get the top players? Easy. Push the money up. If you want the top players in golf, snooker and tennis you have to come up with the top prize money and if you don't you get what is left."
Winning the player battle:
"Life's tough but the rewards are great. In any industry where the rewards are good it comes at a price. The players have to trust me and I think I have won over the trust of most of them."
Overkill:
"There is always a danger of overkill and I think I did it myself in the late 1980s and 90s. We learnt from it. It wasn't a colossal mistake, but I am aware of it much more now. You have to make sure the product is at a premium. If you supply more than the demand you will devalue the product."
The 1985 World Championship final:
"Our global audience is at a level we have never seen before but people get parochial and say 'When are you going to get 18m again on the BBC?' (viewing figures for Steve Davis v Dennis Taylor). Answer? Never. The world has changed and we have to change with it."
"If they are good enough to take their opportunity they deserve the money they win. First-round losers get nothing, no matter who you are.
"They either improve or they get another job. I have no sympathy with them. Once I give them the opportunity, my job is over.
"There will always be a few because their life has changed. It's not peaceful and getting yourself ready for a tournament every two or three months. If they are not prepared to join me, get off at the next stop."
Hearn has no intention of slowing down just yet.
A "bloody nuisance" of an Achilles injury sustained in the gym may have hindered his movement and temporarily scuppered his own golfing exploits, but nothing seems to have affected his passion for what he does in the 31 years since Matchroom was a tiny operation run out of a small office in Romford and he had his hands on everything.
He has learned to let go a little bit. Son Eddie is now the main man for Matchroom's boxing arm, and Hearn says it is an interesting adjustment.
"It's tough to let go," he admitted. "But when you appoint someone to manage, you have to let them manage.
"My son is a better promoter than me, though I would never tell him, but it does not stop me having my opinions.
"I have opinions about football, but if [Orient manager] Russell Slade started being influenced by my opinions, I would sack him. And the same with Eddie."
Hearn is still involved in the boxing as well as darts, and with his boyhood football team. Even ping pong got the Hearn treatment in January.
He has not finished with snooker yet either.
"We are a class sport and I think we provide entertainment, but we have not exploited ourselves properly," he said. "That has changed massively but there is still more change to come.
"The world has changed and we have to change with it. The answer is to push on and be as big as you can be. We are on that way."
Hearn believes he will know when he is no longer the man to lead from the front and it is time to completely relinquish control.
"In my dotage, they still give me a free ticket," he added.
"One day my son will probably charge me. Then I will know the end of the empire is nigh." | World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn does not believe in false modesty. | 25108165 |
He used a much stronger word in Spanish but you get the gist.
It is a feeling shared by many, one that basically says: "Look out for yourself because nobody else will" - and if it means breaking a few rules in the process, then so be it.
Jorge Castaneda, a former foreign secretary and author of Manana Forever? Mexico and Mexicans, says it is an attitude that goes back to colonisation and spills over into politics and business.
"The rules were laid down in Spain but it took months and months for the rules to get here," he explains.
"In the meantime somebody had to get things done so the rules didn't really matter because they were irrelevant.
"And the rules that were made here were relevant but they weren't really legal. So you have this sort of split between what was legal and what was relevant almost from the very beginning."
This rule-breaking attitude was something that Mexico City native Arturo Hernandez wanted to address after living in Miami for several years.
"I realised that in some way in the US they have authority and when you have an authority, people respect the rules," he says.
"In Mexico, people don't respect the rules. I began to think we should do something with comedy to take this authority and change this bad behaviour."
And so the comedy duo Supercivicos (Super civic-minded ones) was born.
Arturo Hernandez goes by the name of Comandante Hernandez.
His partner in crime, Alex Marin y Kall, is better known as "ese wey", Mexican Spanish for "that bloke".
Together they are trying to make things better.
Each week they plot what they call "happenings", little films illustrating a troublesome issue of the week.
It can be anything from confronting people who do not clear up after their dogs to people parking in spaces reserve for disabled drivers.
Once they are done with filming, they upload the video skit to YouTube and some of the less controversial ones air on television, too.
Their most successful video to date was one in which they removed campaign messages illegally plastered around Mexico City ahead of this year's mid-term elections.
It got more than nine million views and won them instant fame.
But it is not without its risks.
"There are some mad people about," says Comandante Hernandez, recalling how someone once threatened to pull a gun on him.
The happening I went along to was not nearly so controversial but concerning nonetheless.
Members of the public got in touch through social media to tell them about various road safety issues across the city.
They hired a hearse and a coffin for the day.
Comandante Hernandez dressed up as Death, complete with a skull mask and a sceptre while ese wey came dressed as a grave-digger with his eyes blacked out and carrying a spade.
Their aim was to mockingly thank the authorities for giving them work because of the potential deaths caused by these dangerous spots.
First up was a pothole more than 1.5m (5ft) across and at least half a metre deep.
A member of the public had put some bricks around it and tape saying "caution" but according to Comandante Hernandez, the pothole had been there for two weeks and the authorities had done nothing.
Anybody driving over it would have their car written off and could face severe injury, too.
While they filmed the scene, crowds gathered, fascinated by the cackling comedians.
"In rainy season the potholes get much bigger - it's a crater," says bystander Loren Villalobos who works along the road.
"It's a total lack of responsibility of the local authorities - they don't keep us drivers safe."
Once the scene is filmed, they move on to the next "happening".
This time it is a bus stop on a busy road so badly positioned that passengers have to run across several lanes of fast-moving traffic to catch their bus.
As they are filming police arrive and tell them to move along because it is dangerous.
This is exactly what the Supercivicos want - attention from the authorities to shame them into doing something.
They keep filming while Comandante Hernandez chats to the policeman to explain why they are there.
It is all very amicable and they hope it has an effect.
"We're bringing the message to the people that everybody can make a little change to create a better place to live," the comedian says.
"Little by little everybody's taking small actions and I think it's working. It's a small effort but it's the best proof that two people can change things."
Change or not, it gives Mexicans plenty to laugh about in an enormous city the chaos of which can sometimes bring you to tears. | One of Mexico's most famous writers and intellectuals, Octavio Paz, once said that the life of a Mexican is either about being done over or doing people over. | 33779204 |
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