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'Home Alone' Arrest Made Every Day - Report

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 27 Maret 2015 | 16.12

Every day a parent is arrested on suspicion of leaving one or more of their children at home alone, according to new research.

A study by the Press Association found 105 mothers and fathers faced criminal investigation for leaving youngsters unsupervised in the last three months of last year.

The cases involved children aged between just a few weeks old and 14 years old.

There is no law to specify at what age children can be left alone - but if they're placed at risk parents can be arrested and prosecuted for cruelty and neglect.

Figures provided by police forces in England and Wales following Freedom of Information (FoI) requests showed that 30 of those arrested were released without further action, 24 accepted a police caution and 19 were charged.

In other cases, investigations were ongoing or details of how suspects were dealt with were not available.

Liberal Democrat MP John Hemming, who has called on the Government to provide clarity over the issue, said it was difficult to comment on whether police actions covered by the FoI responses were reasonable without knowing the circumstances of individual cases but described the findings as "important research".

"Parents often get confused by what is happening," he said.

"The Government claims that the judgement as to whether it is right to leave a child home alone is made by the parents. However, in fact the judgement is made by the police and local council workers.

"Potentially, someone who leaves a baby in a car seat in a petrol station could face prosecution. Similarly, whereas an eight-year old can be sent to go swimming or to the park on their own, they are not allowed to stay at home (alone). There does need to be more clarity on this.

"This is where the state interfaces into ordinary life and people's lives can be massively disrupted merely for doing what they thought was right for their children."

Chris Cloke, head of child protection awareness at the NSPCC, said: "Children mature at different rates so it's vital we have a common sense approach that ensures flexibility for parents, as they are best-placed to know what is right for their child."


16.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Policeman Held For Allegedly Murdering Wife

A policeman has been arrested on suspicion of murdering his wife at their home in Northampton.

The 49-year-old, who is a serving officer with Northamptonshire Police, was held after police arrived at a house in Wootton Hall Park at around 1pm on Thursday.

He has been taken into custody and will be questioned by detectives from the East Midlands Special Operations Unit.

A post-mortem examination is to be carried out by a Home Office pathologist in Leicester.

Det Supt Kate Meynell said: "A full and proper investigation is taking place.

"Northamptonshire Police will not be making any further comment on this investigation at this stage."

The incident has been referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission as a matter of course.


16.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

One Quarter Of Students Consider Sex Work

By Becky Johnson, North Of England Correspondent

Nearly a quarter of students in the UK have considered sex work as a way to fund their time at University.

A study carried out by academics at Swansea University has found that 5% of students have actually worked in the sex industry.

More than half of those said they did so in order to pay for basic living expenses.

In a lap dancing club in Liverpool one of the dancers who calls herself "Isobel" when at work told Sky News she began working as a stripper when she realised how much money she could earn.

She is on one of the most competitive courses at a top university and says the bar job she had previously meant working many more hours a week, which interfered with her studies.

"What I earn in a week is what I'd earn in a month in the bar job, so it just kind of made sense to me to work here rather than do that." she said.

"I think it's a no-brainer for anyone really. Rather than doing all those hours I do less than half the amount of time for a lot more money - three times as much money. It's crazy."

Other students are prepared to go further, advertising themselves as escorts on adult-only websites.

One student who works as a prostitute agreed to speak to Sky News on the condition that we did not reveal her identity.

"I think it is still very much stigmatised and that can make life very difficult for student sex workers," she said.

"It isn't something for everybody, and that's totally fine, but it was the best choice of the choices that I had available to me."

"Obviously I think there should be a better funded education system - I think there should be grants for students.

"But at the minute while we don't have any of that support or money in place this is the best option."

The debate over the cost of going to university will continue ahead of the General Election, with Labour pledging to cut tuition fees by a third to £6,000 a year.

In the three years since fees were raised to £9,000 the students union at Manchester University has been contacted by more students who are working in the sex industry.

Women's Officer Jess Lishak told Sky News: "We've definitely seen an increase in the people we see in our advice centre that are turning to sex work.

"In terms of the reasons for that, there's a huge variety and I think it's too complex to break down to just fees, just austerity, just cuts. They all play a part".

The Student Sex Work Project has found that while 56% of students who engage in sex work said they do so to pay for basic living costs, 45% said it was to avoid debt and 39% said it was to reduce debt at the end of their course.

Dr Tracey Sagar, who jointly led the research, said: "We now have firm evidence that students are engaged in the sex industry across the UK.

"The majority of these students keep their occupations secret and this is because of social stigma and fears of being judged by family and friends.

"And, we have to keep in mind that not all students engaged in the industry are safe or feel safe.

"It is vital now that universities arm themselves with knowledge to better understand student sex work issues and that university services are able to support students where support is needed."


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Prince Charles 'Black Spider Memos' Ruling Due

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 26 Maret 2015 | 16.12

By Rhiannon Mills, Royal Correspondent

The UK's highest appeal court is set to rule whether the government acted unlawfully by preventing the release of Prince Charles' so-called "black spider memos".

The judgement from the Supreme Court is the latest step in a fierce 10-year legal battle to establish what the Prince has written to politicians about, and whether in the process he has overstepped the mark of political neutrality.

The notes have become known as the "black spider memos" because of the Prince's sprawling handwriting.

In 2005, Guardian journalist Rob Evans submitted a Freedom of Information request to find out how many letters Prince Charles had written to MPs between September 2004 and April 2005.

He told Sky News he has been amazed at just how drawn out the process had been, as the Government has fought to keep the memos private.

"There's a lot of talk and speculation about what Prince Charles writes to the Government about and I just think actually we should get to see those letters and be able to make up our own minds, whether or not we think he should be doing that and whether or not they're important," he said.

Last year, judges at the Court of Appeal ruled the Attorney General, on behalf of the government, had "no good reason" to stop the 27 letters from being released.

But in a final attempt to prevent their publication, the government has turned to the Supreme Court to ask them to overturn that ruling.

It has been argued that any perception that Prince Charles disagreed with ministers would be seriously damaging to his role as future monarch.

Prince Charles is well known for his strong opinions on a range of topics from the environment and farming, to complementary medicine and architecture, and he has always argued his campaigning is a catalyst for change.

But there are those who believe, as heir to the throne, he goes too far, potentially straying into party-political matters.

We know he has written to politicians and prime ministers for at least the past 40 years.

Paul Richards was a special advisor to a number of Labour MPs and saw the impact his letters would have.

He said: "It was treated as though it had come down from the mountainside and treated like holy writ, taken straight into the private office of the minister, put on top of the pile for the minister's attention and then interestingly acted upon very soon afterwards in a way that no other organisation I can think of would have the same sort of interest and then action."

It is unclear what the 27 letters are about but they were written to seven government departments, including the Cabinet Office.

Catherine Mayer, author of 'Charles - The Heart of a King', has spoken to MPs, friends and staff who have all received letters from the Prince, often delivered inside three envelopes for extra security.

She believes most of the memos may be fairly mundane.

She said: "For Clarence House, they are in a no-win situation here.

"If the letters come out clearly there will be some embarrassment relating to maybe a couple of them, if they do not it will look like they have had assistance to bury something, they can't win," she said.

Even if the Supreme Court judges rule in favour of The Guardian, it is unclear when the letters would be released.

However, whatever the judgement, the letters continue to hold a wider significance, representing the uneasy balance between a Prince's privacy and the public's right to scrutinise the man preparing to be king.


16.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pothole Repairs To Cost '12bn And Take 13 Years'

It will cost more than £12bn and will take 13 years to fix all the potholes on roads in England and Wales, a report has claimed.

Despite more being filled in, the Asphalt Industry Alliance (AIA) claims the cash spent on repairs in the last 12 months has been "wasted".

The group's annual survey also found an increase in the amount paid in compensation to motorists in England to more than £20m.

Local authority staffing costs, to process the claims, have increased to around £18m, the report said.

Alan Mackenzie, chairman of the AIA, said: "Essentially, the money spent on filling the 2.7 million potholes reported is wasted - it is inefficient and short term in its effectiveness.

"So, while we understand that the Department for Transport is promoting permanent repairs, the point remains that money would be better spent preventing potholes forming in the first place.

"The £6bn of funding pledged between 2015 and 2021 is welcome, and hopefully will be confirmed by an incoming government.

"But the truth is that although it sounds like a big investment, it will only be enough for local authorities to tread water and it will do nothing to tackle the backlog or prevent continuing deterioration."

Peter Box, transport spokesman at the Local Government Association, said: "Councils need billions, not millions, to bring our roads up to scratch.

"Every mile of motorways and trunk roads will receive £1.4m funding over the next six years compared with £31,000 per mile for local roads.

"This makes little sense given the Government's own traffic projections predict an increase in local traffic of more than 40% by 2040."

A Department for Transport spokesman said: "Well maintained local roads are vital for our transport network and it is for local councils to maintain them properly."


16.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Lloyds Share Sale Raises Another £500m

Another chunk of shares in Lloyds Banking Group has been sold back to private hands by the Treasury.

The disposal of the 1% holding takes the taxpayers' stake in the bank to just below 22%.

The Government has so far raised a total of £9bn from Lloyds share sales and a dividend payment since the £20bn bailout in exchange for a 40% stake at the height of the financial crisis.

The Chancellor George Osborne announced in December he planned an "orderly and measured" sell-off of up to 5% over six months, raising about £3bn.

He pledged then that no shares would be sold below the price the Labour Government paid for them, which was 73.6p.

Lloyds closed at 80.5p last night.

Mr Osborne tweeted today: "We have raised a further £500m through Lloyds share sales.

"£9bn now recovered & being used to pay down our national debt."

He had confirmed in his Budget earlier this month that the Government planned to sell a further £9bn of shares.

A Lloyds spokesman said on Thursday: "Today's announcement shows the further progress made in returning Lloyds Banking Group to full private ownership and enabling the taxpayer to get their money back.

"This reflects the hard work undertaken over the last four years to transform the group into a low-risk and customer-focused bank that is committed to helping Britain prosper."


16.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Infected Blood Donations: Warnings Ignored

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 25 Maret 2015 | 16.12

By James Matthews, Scotland Correspondent

A public inquiry into why thousands of people were infected by contaminated blood donations has found warnings were ignored by the NHS, Sky News has learned.

The report, by Lord Penrose, also criticises a medical team in Edinburgh for failing to inform patients they were HIV positive until several years after diagnosis.

The judge is publishing his findings today, following a public inquiry into the scandal. 

It was ordered by the Scottish Government and has looked at around 480 Scottish cases.

There has been no equivalent inquiry south of the border, although campaigners hope the Scottish process will help the fight for  compensation of around 7,000 victims across the UK. 

Sky News understands that following publication of the Penrose inquiry report, the Scottish Government will issue an apology to those affected.

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  1. Gallery: Hepatitis C: The Facts

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The victims are mostly haemophiliacs who were infected by HIV and hepatitis C after being given contaminated blood or blood products in the 1970s and 80s.

Haemophiliacs need an agent to help clot their blood, but 30 years ago, many were given clotting agents from infected blood.

Donations had come made from a variety of risk groups, including prisoners in American jails who had given blood for money which was was then sold on to the NHS in Britain.

Lord Penrose has established that a series of warnings were ignored by the NHS.

After Britain's first case of AIDS in Cardiff in the early 80s, a senior public official called for the Department of Health to ban US imports of the clotting agent, Factor 8, because of the risk of infection.

Haemophilia campaign groups believe that if the warnings had been heeded, a "disaster" could have been averted. 

Bill Wright, Chair of Haemophilia Scotland, told Sky News: "For far too many people, there are too many unanswered questions with this whole disaster. One of the things that I think people generally feel that they want to see is the truth, whatever that is."

"Whether that is achievable remains to be seen, frankly, because far too many people have died, far too many medical records have gone missing, there are one or two key official documents that have gone missing, and some of the key expert witnesses are no longer with us either."

Lord Penrose is critical of an NHS haemophilia unit in Edinburgh for not telling patients they were infected with HIV.

One of them, Robert Mackie, became HIV positive in 1984 but wasn't informed by medical staff until 1987.

Fortunately, he did not pass the virus on to his wife, family or anyone else.

Mr Mackie told Sky News: "It's unacceptable. I could have infected my wife, I could have infected family, I could have infected friends. 

"Fortunately for the world community, I was not promiscuous.  The risks were horrendous."


16.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Armed Officers Cleared Over Mark Duggan Death

Armed Officers Cleared Over Mark Duggan Death

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Police involved in the fatal shooting of a suspected gang member whose death sparked the worst riots in modern English history have been cleared of any wrongdoing.

The armed officers were cleared by the police watchdog - the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) - following a three-and-a-half year investigation.

But the IPCC has called for urgent improvements in the accountability of police operations.

It found a lack of audio or video material made it impossible to know with certainty exactly what happened when Mark Duggan died in Tottenham, north London, in August 2011.

All radio communications taking place during undercover firearms operations should be recorded, the IPCC recommended.

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  1. Gallery: In Pictures: Duggan Vigil

    Around 200 people gathered outside Tottenham Police Station, including Mark Duggan's mother Pam (centre)

Carole Duggan, Mark's aunt, spoke at the vigil

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She said "we have to remember Mark is not the first person to die at the hands of the police"

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The crowds gathered to protest against deaths in police custody

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The occasion was an emotional one for Mark's mother

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Armed Officers Cleared Over Mark Duggan Death

We use cookies to give you the best experience. If you do nothing we'll assume that it's ok.

Police involved in the fatal shooting of a suspected gang member whose death sparked the worst riots in modern English history have been cleared of any wrongdoing.

The armed officers were cleared by the police watchdog - the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) - following a three-and-a-half year investigation.

But the IPCC has called for urgent improvements in the accountability of police operations.

It found a lack of audio or video material made it impossible to know with certainty exactly what happened when Mark Duggan died in Tottenham, north London, in August 2011.

All radio communications taking place during undercover firearms operations should be recorded, the IPCC recommended.

1/9

  1. Gallery: In Pictures: Duggan Vigil

    Around 200 people gathered outside Tottenham Police Station, including Mark Duggan's mother Pam (centre)

Carole Duggan, Mark's aunt, spoke at the vigil

]]>

She said "we have to remember Mark is not the first person to die at the hands of the police"

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The crowds gathered to protest against deaths in police custody

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The occasion was an emotional one for Mark's mother

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16.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Salmond Reveals Plans To 'Lock Out' Tories

By Anushka Asthana, Political Correspondent

Alex Salmond has said that the Scottish National Party will attempt to "lock" David Cameron out of Downing Street if the Conservatives try to form a minority Government after the General Election.

Scotland's former First Minister, who hopes to be an MP himself, said his party would vote as a block against Tory policy in a bid to trigger a vote of no confidence.

Critics accused him of trying to sabotage the will of the British public - should the Conservatives be the largest party on 8 May.

The comments come as Mr Cameron and Labour leader Ed Miliband prepare to clash in the final Prime Minister's Questions of this Parliament.

The intervention is significant because the two biggest parties are now neck-and-neck in the polls, meaning neither is on track for a majority.

In that situation, they would be heavily reliant on other parties to get votes through Parliament. But the SNP - whose own surge in the polls could leave them with 50 MPs compared with just six now - have long been hostile to the Conservative party.

"The Tories would have to go straight effectively for a vote of confidence, usually the Queen's Speech, although it could be otherwise, and we'd be voting against it," Mr Salmond told the New Statesman magazine.

"So if Labour joins us in that pledge, then that's Cameron locked out."

That would then trigger a vote of no confidence and give Labour two weeks to try to form a Government.

Mr Salmond's interview took place over a fish and chip lunch, at which he ordered a bottle of pink champagne to celebrate the publication of his new book about the referendum campaign: The Dream Shall Never Die.

During the interview, Mr Salmond also revealed that Nelson Mandela was the historical figure with whom he most identified.

The Conservatives hit back at the SNP figure last night, with deputy chair Bob Neill describing it as a "sinister threat".

Labour may not find it helpful either.

Its leader in Scotland, Jim Murphy, who is giving a speech later today, has warned that votes for the SNP can only serve to weaken Labour's position overall, making them less likely to win the election.


16.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

UK 10 Years Behind Europe On Cancer Survival

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 24 Maret 2015 | 16.12

Survival rates for cancer in the UK are trailing behind other European countries by 10 years, a charity has warned.

Macmillan Cancer Support analysed the most recent results from global research into cancer survival and found many countries were doing better in the 1990s than the UK has managed to date.

The charity's chief executive has urged political leaders to commit to tackling the "shameful" survival rates ahead of the General Election.

"This analysis exposes the harsh reality that because UK cancer survival rates are lagging so far behind the rest of Europe, people are dying needlessly," Lynda Thomas said.

"What we can see here is that better cancer survival rates are not unachievable.

"If countries like Sweden, France, Finland and Austria can achieve these rates, then the UK can and should bridge the gap."

While 14% of patients in Austria diagnosed with lung cancer between 1995 and 1999 survived, just 10% of patients diagnosed between 2005 and 2009 in the UK have done so.

Between 2005 and 2009, 19% of people with stomach cancer survived in the UK - the figure was 31% for those diagnosed in Italy between 1995 and 1999 and 30% in Austria.

Just over half (54%) of people diagnosed with colon cancer in the UK between 2005 and 2009 survived, but 59% for those diagnosed in Finland between 1995 and 1999 survived.

While 81% of people diagnosed with the most common type of the disease - breast cancer - between 2005 and 2009 in the UK survived, 84% did in Sweden and France during the earlier period, and 83% did in Italy.

National clinical director for cancer at NHS England Sean Duffy said: "We are diagnosing and treating more people than ever before in this country and as a result the NHS is helping more people than ever survive cancer.

"We have come on leaps and bounds since this 2009 data highlighted by Macmillan, but we have an ambition to save even more lives and it's time to take a fresh look at how we can do better."


16.12 | 0 komentar | Read More
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