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28,640,787 | The tiny probe is set to rendezvous in a few hours with one of the strangest objects in the solar system.
The latest in a series of manoeuvres will bring Rosetta to within 100km of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
One of the scientists leading this European Space Agency (Esa) venture described it as "the sexiest, most fantastic mission ever".
Confirmation of Rosetta's rendezvous with 67P - the start of its extraordinary trek alongside the comet - should come by 09:35 GMT (10:35 BST).
Throughout human history, comets lighting up the night sky have triggered fascination and fear but their speed and distance have made them difficult to investigate.
One theory is that they delivered water, carbon and other essential building-blocks for life to the early Earth.
Previous missions have had to be fly-bys - brief encounters crossing a comet's path to gather data or collect samples of dust.
By contrast, Rosetta is designed to fly around comet 67P in a form of orbit for more than a year, its 20 instruments providing unprecedented information about the comet's structure and composition.
If all goes according to plan by November, mission managers will pick a spot for what will be an audacious attempt to send a lander, known as Philae, to touch down.
For the moment though, all eyes will be on Wednesday's landmark manoeuvre which should bring Rosetta into a controlled flight in a triangular pattern around the comet.
With 67P hurtling along at 55,000 km per hour (34,000 mph), the spacecraft's speed has been adjusted so that in relative terms it will be flying beside the comet at a slow walking pace of 1m/sec (2.2mph, 3.6kph).
This has never been tried before - and because radio signals take more than 22 minutes to travel between Earth and the spacecraft, the main moves have to be pre-programmed.
Project scientist, Dr Matt Taylor, said: "We have to make baby steps as we approach it, because we don't know exactly how the comet is behaving and how the spacecraft will behave around it.
"We have a rough idea but we have to take a gradual approach to really get a handle on how to fly around a comet.
"For me this is the sexiest, most fantastic mission there's ever been. It's ticking a number of boxes in terms of fascination, exploration, technology and science - predominantly science."
One surprise is the comet's bizarre shape, with what look like two parts joined together, some of the earliest images giving an impression of a rubber duck.
This irregular structure may complicate attempts to calculate the comet's gravitational pull, vital to planning how to steer the spacecraft as it accompanies the comet through space, and how to attempt a landing.
Early measurements have shown that the comet's surface is about -70 degrees C, indicating a covering of dust rather than ice, but much about the object remains to be discovered.
The mission was named after the Rosetta stone which helped unlock the hieroglyphic language of the ancient Egyptians.
And since comets are the remnants of the earliest days of the solar system, it is hoped that the spacecraft will help reveal how the system evolved and whether there is a link to the emergence of life on the early Earth.
Planned back in the 1990s, hundreds of scientists and engineers have been on tenterhooks for this moment.
They watched the launch back in March 2004 and then waited as Rosetta was sent on a long trek through space to allow it to pick up speed, orbiting the Sun five times and using the gravity of Earth and Mars to accelerate to catch up with 67P.
During one phase as the spacecraft was on the most distant and coldest stretch of its journey, it was put into hibernation for more than two years to save power - and its reawakening last January was a cause for relief and celebration.
Prof Monica Grady of the Open University, which has designed and built an instrument for the lander, is among those excited about now getting results.
She said: "This is the culmination of a scientific project that for me has been going on for more than two thirds of my scientific career.
"It is going to be the crowning moment of something that I have been working on for so long."
Like many of the scientists involved, Prof Grady is keen to see if the comet's water, locked in the form of ice, bears any relation to water found on Earth, and to understand more about its chemical composition.
"The biggest question that we are trying to get an answer to is: where did life on Earth come from?
"How did life get going? Was it the building blocks of life that were brought to us from comets or did it get going on Earth? Did the water on Earth come from comets? Are we reliant on these bodies to have brought water to us?"
The plan is to measure the ratio of hydrogen and deuterium in the comet's ice to provide a comparison with water on Earth.
Researchers also want to see if the comet contains amino acids, molecules that are essential ingredients for life.
A Nasa mission called Stardust, which gathered samples of dust from a comet, found evidence of the amino acid glycine.
Follow David on Twitter @davidshukmanbbc. | After a journey that has lasted a decade, Europe's Rosetta spacecraft is now on its final approach to a comet. |
23,924,145 | The accusations relate to violence outside the presidential palace in Cairo last December when at least seven people were killed in clashes.
Fourteen other members of the Muslim Brotherhood are to stand trial on the same charges.
Mr Morsi has been held at a secret location since he was deposed in July.
He faces a number of charges but this case is his first referral for trial.
Since he was ousted from power, the military-backed interim government has cracked down on Brotherhood supporters, who are demanding Mr Morsi's reinstatement.
Last month, hundreds of protesters died when security forces stormed pro-Morsi camps in the capital.
The state prosecutor referred the former president for trial late on Sunday, Egypt's state media reported.
They said he would go on trial on charges of "incitement to murder and violence" in December 2012.
The date for the trial is yet to be announced.
The case relates to clashes outside the presidential palace in early December 2012.
Tens of thousands of demonstrators had rallied outside the building on the night of 4 December and the following day in protest at what they described as Mr Morsi's illegal decrees giving him sweeping powers and also his drive to change the country's constitution.
On Sunday, state media said an investigation revealed that Mr Morsi had asked the Republican Guard and the minister in charge of police to break up the protesters' sit-in, but they had refused to obey the order.
Mr Morsi's aides are then alleged to have called their supporters to deal with the demonstrators.
At least seven people died in the clashes and hundreds more were injured.
Mr Morsi's supporters say they were defending the palace after being attacked by opposition activists.
Among the other 14 suspects due to go on trial with the ousted president are leading figures in the Brotherhood's political wing, Mohammed al-Beltagi and Essam El-Erian.
Mr Morsi has previously been accused of the "premeditated murder of some prisoners, officers and soldiers" when he and several Muslim Brotherhood leaders were freed during a breakout at a Cairo prison in January 2011.
He is also alleged to have plotted attacks on jails in the uprising that overthrew President Hosni Mubarak and of conspiring with the Palestinian militant group Hamas. | Egypt's state prosecutor says he has referred ousted President Mohammed Morsi for trial on charges of inciting the murder of protesters. |
39,534,509 | The Grand National will attract about £225m in wagers across the betting industry, William Hill predicted.
Combined with other sporting fixtures it expects to take "the highest turnover levels on any weekend in history", the bookmaker said.
Saturday's race is expected to be seen by 600 million people globally.
"The Grand National is the public's race and we will see millions of once-a-year punters coming in to betting shops or downloading the app," William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams said.
The race is set to attract over 35 million bets with the average being worth £4.41.
William Hill is also hoping for another big-priced winner in the Grand National this year. The last five races have produced winners at odds of 33/1, 25/1, 25/1 and 33/1.
Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary owns five of the 40 horses in Saturday's field. He is hoping to become the first owner to win consecutive Nationals with different horses since 1954 after Rule the World, ridden by David Mullins, claimed victory.
Last year the start time for the Grand National was moved by an hour to 17:15 BST. The decision proved to be a boost for turnover and William Hill expects that trend to continue.
"The experiment of moving the start time really paid off and we expect the Grand National to smash betting records this year," Mr Adams said.
Last year the number of bets placed on the Grand National on William Hill's online and mobile channels peaked at about 10,000 a minute.
It is the first year that the race has been sponsored by Randox Health, which analyses blood and urine samples to detect and prevent illnesses.
The Northern Ireland-based firm was set up in 1982 by Dr Peter FitzGerald - a keen horse racing fan.
Meanwhile, the meeting at Aintree could be affected by a 24-hour strike involving members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) at Merseyrail and Arriva Trains North.
Tens of thousands of people travel by train from central Liverpool to the racecourse.
Jan Chaudhry-van der Velde, managing director Merseyrail, said the operator had devised a timetable aimed at transporting as many passengers as normal on Grand National day. | A bumper roster of sport including the Grand National, the Masters and Premier League games, is expected to produce a record weekend for bookmakers. |
32,599,111 | Across the UK, there are an estimated 3.3m people eligible to vote for the first time on 7 May.
Since last summer, the Electoral Commission has been working with student bodies and youth groups to encourage them to use their vote.
Traditionally, 18-24 years olds are least likely to turn out, with 44% making it to the ballot box at the 2010 general election.
A range of schemes have been launched to try and get young people more involved in politics, using apps, video blogging and social media campaigns.
Ebun Bola-Shadipe, Cardiff community engagement officer for Bite the Ballot, a not-for-profit movement encouraging young people to vote, said: "In Wales, there are approximately 298,000 18-24 year olds. Just imagine if they all went out and voted.
"Let's take the opportunity on Thursday to make a change, let's make sure we're represented and prove to decision-makers that we want more from our democracy.
"If young people in Wales want change then they need to get out and vote."
However, fears are mounting that turnout among young people will fall at this election, with changes to the way people register to vote meaning tens of thousands are missing from the electoral roll.
The Electoral Reform Society has warned that Wales is facing a "turnout time-bomb", calling for a "radical overhaul" of politics teaching in schools.
NUS Wales is planning a big campaign for 7 May to get its members out to vote.
Tara Edwards, 18, and Lyam England are eligible to vote for the first time on 7 May.
But while Lyam is determined to do so, Tara is not so sure.
The students at Coleg Sir Gar in Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, debated the issue face to face.
"I don't really have that much of an interest in politics - I'm not sure what they're going on about half the time," Tara said.
"I feel like my vote would be a waste, so I'll leave it to people who know what they're talking about."
Tara said most of her friends will not vote either as they believe that politicians do not do enough to target them.
"I don't feel like I should have to go to them - they should come to me and get me interested.
"If they came to colleges and talked to groups of young people in a more informal and simple way, they'd get more young people on board."
Lyam, on the other hand, thinks it is "really important to have a voice".
"As a young person we have to remember that we're the future. It may be old people who vote the most, but it will be us who experience what they vote for."
He believes first time voters should "stand up, take some responsibility for our country and go out there and vote." | With one day to go until polling day, first time voters in Wales are being urged to turn out. |
33,317,636 | Lisa Burbidge, from Whickham, Tyneside, was among 38 people killed by a gunman at a beach resort near Sousse.
Her family described her as the "most beautiful, amazing, caring and gentle person in our lives".
Flowers have been laid on the green outside St Mary's Church, where prayers have been held for Mrs Burbidge and her family.
They said in a statement: "We have been left with a massive hole in our hearts.
"She leaves behind many family members including four fantastic grandchildren who were her world and will miss her tremendously."
Local councillor Peter Craig said: "I have been in touch with friends of the family to see if we can think of a way of showing support.
"We are working on that today and consulting with them but we want to take our time rather than rush into anything."
Rev Barry Abbott, Rector of Whickham St Mary the Virgin said: "Our prayers are with the family and the community who have been greatly affected by this atrocity against humanity.
"We are here for both family and the community at this time and the church is open for prayer on weekday mornings." | Tributes have been paid to a grandmother of four who died in Friday's terror attack in Tunisia. |
14,949,700 | Lance Corporal Jonathan McKinlay, of Gloucestershire-based 1st Battalion The Rifles, was killed by small arms fire on Wednesday.
L/Cpl McKinlay, 33, from Darlington, was based at Check Point Chaabak in the Nahr-e-Saraj South district of Helmand.
A total of 381 British troops have been killed in Afghanistan since military operations began in 2001.
L/Cpl McKinlay had been on patrol in a village with his team and members of the Afghan police when he was killed.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said he deployed to Afghanistan in June.
Commanding officer Lt Col James de Labilliere said: "To anyone who met him, Lance Corporal Jon McKinlay made an instant impression.
"On the one hand a hard professional soldier who demanded the very highest standards from himself and his men and yet on the other a man of great compassion, humour and somebody who had time for others.
"He had irrepressible energy and was industrious to the core."
L/Cpl McKinlay was married with one daughter and two step-children.
His wife Lisa said: "He was a true friend to others and a loving husband, a real joker and my one in a million."
L/Cpl McKinlay joined the Army in 1996 and had previously been deployed to Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Defence Secretary Liam Fox said: "I was very saddened to learn of the death of Lance Corporal Jonathan McKinlay whilst serving in Afghanistan.
"Throughout the 15 years he served in the Army he showed great professionalism and commitment." | A British soldier who was shot dead while on patrol in Afghanistan has been named by the Ministry of Defence. |
41,045,279 | Warner was the last of the three big record labels to agree to renewed terms to make its catalogue available to Spotify's 140 million users.
However, Spotify has been forced to agree to some limitations to get the labels to sign.
Artists and labels have in the past complained about minuscule revenue from steaming sites when compared to downloads or physical sales.
But with the deals with Sony, Universal and now Warner in place, Spotify is expected to float on the New York Stock Exchange as early as this year.
"Our partnership with Warner Music Group will help grow the new music economy where millions of artists can instantly connect with fans, and millions of fans can instantly connect with artists,” Spotify’s chief content officer Stefan Blom told the BBC.
Posting on Instagram, Warner Music chief digital officer Ole Obermann said: "It's taken us a while to get here, but it’s been worth it, as we've arrived at a balanced set of future-focused deal terms.
"Together with Spotify, we've found inventive ways to reinforce the value of music, create additional benefits for artists, and excite their fans all over the world. Even with the current pace of growth, there’s still so much potential for music subscription to reach new audiences and territories.”
The “inventive ways” were not outlined, but if Warner Music’s deal is similar to those agreed with Sony Music and Universal, it is likely to include a clause allowing the labels to hold back certain songs from Spotify’s non-paying users for a limited period of time. Such a move would increase the royalties for artists who are unhappy at the lower earnings generated by streaming services.
Speaking about the Universal deal agreed in April, Spotify founder and chief executive Daniel Ek explained that "artists can choose to release new albums on premium only for two weeks, offering subscribers an earlier chance to explore the complete creative work, while the singles are available across Spotify for all our listeners to enjoy”.
According to the latest public figures, Spotify has 60 million paying customers - just under half of its entire user total. Its nearest competitor, Apple Music, has 27 million subscribers.
Spotify has long been expected to float on the New York Stock Exchange, but was holding off until the major deals were struck to offer clarity to investors over future expenses.
Reports suggest Spotify will not have an initial public offering (IPO) when it does go public.
Almost all companies IPO when going public to raise money and offer shares to more investors, but Spotify is expected to simply list on the NYSE without a sale. That tactic which would mean an increase in share value for its existing, private investors.
___________
Follow Dave Lee on Twitter @DaveLeeBBC
You can reach Dave securely through encrypted messaging app Signal on: +1 (628) 400-7370 | Spotify has signed a new licensing deal with Warner Music Group, paving the way for the music streaming service to go public. |
37,037,527 | Sadie Hartley, 60 was stunned with a cattle prod and stabbed 40 times in Helmshore, Lancashire, on 14 January.
Sarah Williams, 35, and Katrina Walsh, 56, both from Chester, deny murder.
The prosecution claimed the pair were "determined and methodical" in their plot to fulfil Ms Williams' desire to be with the man she loved by killing his partner.
In his closing speech to jurors at Preston Crown Court, prosecutor John McDermott QC said the defendants were "cold-blooded murderers" who were attempting to deceive them.
He said: "Sarah Williams spent four days in this court in front of you, cool, calm and collected and as matter of fact as she could pretend to be.
"But the real Sarah Williams is a bitter, obsessive, arrogant woman who stops at nothing to get her own selfish way."
He asked them to recall the evidence of a witness who said Ms Williams went "feral" and acted like "a wild thing" during a row on a ski trip.
Mr McDermott said: "Imagine what it is like when she really hates somebody, as she did. The savagery inflicted on Sadie Hartley takes a special kind of mindset to deliver."
Sales adviser Ms Williams was previously in a relationship with Ian Johnston, 57, which ended when he refused to leave Ms Hartley, the court heard.
The 35-year-old earlier told the jury she was ill in bed at the time of the killing and said the evidence pointed to her co-accused Ms Walsh.
Horse riding instructor Ms Walsh, who did not give evidence, told police she thought she was participating in a game of the Channel 4 programme Hunted - in which teams of two try to go "off the grid" and avoid detection.
She told officers she did not believe Ms Williams was going to harm anyone.
Mr McDermott said the idea she thought she was in a game was "absurd" as discussions of the murder plot appeared in her diary before the programme was broadcast.
He said Ms Walsh had done her best to "remain anonymous" during the trial and she had created "a caricature of a fool" in her police interviews by playing "a grotesque parody of a half-baked, befuddled loon".
"These two were in fact hunters, not hunted. They hunted down Sadie Hartley as you might stalk a deer and then went in for the kill," he added.
Ms Williams, of Treborth Road, Blacon, Chester, and Ms Walsh, of Hare Lane, Chester, deny murder.
The trial continues. | Two women accused of murdering a businesswoman "hunted" her "as you might stalk a deer", a jury has heard. |
34,143,736 | The blasts happened in the Kerawa region, where Cameroon's army is fighting Nigeria's Boko Haram militants.
There have been a spate of recent attacks in northern Cameroon blamed on jihadists from Boko Haram.
The authorities in August said that the militants are believed to enter Cameroon disguised as refugees.
Boko Haram fighters were accused of a series of suicide bombings in the northern town of Maroua, that killed dozens of people in July.
The first explosion on Thursday went off just after 0900 local time (0800 GMT) in the market in Kerawa.
The second was detonated soon afterwards, about 200m (218 yards) from the military infantry camp, an army officer based in the north told Reuters.
Some reports say at least 30 people were killed.
A local government official told Reuters that the attacks were carried out by female bombers although there has been no independent conformation of this.
Boko Haram militants have increased the number of attacks on countries bordering its north-eastern Nigerian stronghold - Chad, Niger and Cameroon - after they participated in a regional offensive against them earlier this year.
Cameroon has deployed thousands of troops to its northern border where militants regularly carry out raids, killing some villagers and kidnapping others.
Boko Haram has vowed to attack Cameroon because the country is supporting the Nigerian military's mission to defeat them - and is part of a newly boosted multi-national force to battle the militants.
Female suicide bombers were behind several blasts in northern Cameroon in July and the regional governor has banned the Islamic veil as part of counter-terror measures.
Why Boko Haram remains a threat
Who are Boko Haram?
Cameroon profile | At least 19 people have been killed and 140 wounded in two bomb attacks in northern Cameroon, officials say. |
12,990,109 | Karen Edwards was joined by about 20 friends and family at the site where Becky Godden-Edwards was discovered.
They laid flowers and a white teddy bear in tribute to Miss Godden-Edwards, who would have been 29 on Monday. She had been missing for eight years.
Her remains were found in a field in Eastleach by police investigating the murder of 22-year-old Sian O'Callaghan.
Taxi driver Christopher Halliwell, 47, of Ashbury Avenue, Swindon, has been charged with the murder of Miss O'Callaghan and is due to appear before Bristol Crown Court on Friday.
Officers said at a news conference on Tuesday detectives would be questioning Mr Halliwell as part of their inquiries into Miss Godden-Edwards' disappearance.
Mrs Edwards wrote on a card: "When you were born and put into my arms, I cried with joy.
"I love you so much. But today I am crying for you, my beautiful girl. I loved you the day you were born and I love you even more today.
"I was always there for you, my baby girl, words can't be said about how I feel. Sleep tight my darling. Love Mum and Charlie."
As the family paid their respects, they stood together with their arms around one another and hugged each other.
They stayed at the field at Baxter's Farm for 15 minutes before driving away.
Miss Godden-Edwards' family did not initially report her missing to the police as they thought she was living in the Bristol area.
It was not until 2007 they contacted the National Missing Persons Helpline. | A woman has laid flowers at the spot where the remains of her daughter were found in Gloucestershire. |
38,729,862 | The latest National Rail Passenger Satisfaction (NRPS) figures showed that 83% of those surveyed said they were satisfied with their ScotRail journey.
This was four percentage points lower than the previous survey last June, and seven points lower than a year ago.
The figure for the UK as a whole in the most recent survey was 81%.
The fieldwork for the survey, carried out by Transport Focus, was conducted between September and November 2016.
Transport Minister Humza Yousaf said he was "disappointed" by the survey results, but said ScotRail's improvement plan was "delivering some results".
It was the first to be carried out following the five month closure of the upper platforms at Queen Street Station and last summer's industrial action by RMT union members.
ScotRail Alliance Managing Director Phil Verster - who announced last week that he will be leaving his post - said the rail operator was disappointed that its satisfaction figures had not increased.
Mr Verster added: "However, they come on the back of a difficult year for our customers. Operating a busy and complicated network is challenging at the best of times - and we are doing so during one of the largest investments in modernisation since Scotland's railway was built in Victorian times.
"There is no alternative, though, to doing the work.
"The decision to invest in the railway's future has been put off too many times and it is in the best long term interests of passengers that we get on and do it. It is then our job to do whatever we can to keep people moving during this work and to better communicate when things go wrong and explain why they go wrong."
The work at Queen Street followed on from a similar project at Winchburgh Tunnel, and is part of the multi-billion pound investment in Scotland's railway network.
It also includes the electrification of the line between Glasgow and Edinburgh, similar work on the Shotts line, electrification of the line between Stirling, Dunblane and Alloa and a major upgrade of the line between Aberdeen and Inverness.
There were also several large-scale incidents during the survey period - including a major one at Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh that caused widespread disruption.
Transport Focus chief executive Anthony Smith said: "The results around the country are disappointing. Scottish passengers and those travelling in peak hours in London and the south east are bearing the brunt of poor performance.
"The timetable on parts of the London and South East's railway can be a work of fiction which passengers cannot rely on. As passenger numbers rise, parts of the rail network will remain brittle until welcome improvements are in place and working."
Last November, Transport Minister Humza Yousaf apologised to ScotRail passengers following criticism of ScotRail's reliability since Abellio took over the contract in April 2015.
Mr Yousaf, who also suggested rail services could be taken into the public sector in the future, had previously ordered ScotRail to draw up an improvement plan, which was published in full on 29 November.
Figures published earlier this month showed the reliability of ScotRail trains significantly improved in the weeks after the improvement plan was published.
The PPM data showed 89.7% of trains arrived within five minutes of schedule in the four weeks to 7 January. This was a 6% rise on the previous four weeks, and a 2.8% improvement on the same period last year.
But ScotRail's annual performance was 90% - below the 91.3% target set in Abellio's contract for the franchise.
Mr Yousaf was questioned by MSPs about the latest figures at Holyrood.
He said he was "disappointed" by the results, but insisted progress had been made during "an exciting and challenging period for rail in Scotland".
He said: "Let me be clear, ScotRail is not yet performing at the level I would like it to. However, let's also be clear, neither is the situation the apocalyptic scenario often painted by our opponents."
Scottish Conservative MSP Liam Kerr said it was right Mr Yousaf came to the chamber in the wake of the change of management at ScotRail, saying the government had "driven Mr Verster from his post".
He said the government had been responsible for "ill-thought-through announcements regarding public sector bids and the future of the franchise", "uncosted raids" on funds and "the situation on the ground deteriorating" for commuters, asking if new boss Alex Hynes would be given the government's full support.
Mr Yousaf replied that he would not take lectures from a Tory on rail services, adding that he did not recognise the Scottish rail service described. He added that the government would back Mr Hynes, and hoped all MSPs would.
Labour's Neil Bibby said passengers were fed up with the level of delays, cancellations and skipped stops, asking if Mr Yousaf would take responsibility if targets were not hit.
The minister replied that "it must be very depressing to live in the mind of Neil Bibby, where everything seems to be going wrong", insisting there had been improvements in services. | Passenger satisfaction with ScotRail services has fallen but remains higher than the UK as a whole, despite problems with delays and cancellations. |
39,228,076 | The left-armer took five wickets in the first two Tests, with the four-match series tied at 1-1.
The 27-year-old will return to Australia for treatment and rehabilitation.
He has been replaced by pace bowler Pat Cummins, 23, ahead of the third Test which begins on Thursday in Ranchi. | Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc has been ruled out of the final two Tests in India after suffering a stress fracture to his right foot. |
34,734,402 | He said the cost would be "way below that", but he could not put a figure on it, saying the work would go out to tender to get the best deal.
Previous plans for an M4 relief road were scrapped in 2009, when Welsh ministers said the costs had risen to £1bn which they judged "unaffordable".
Mr Jones told BBC Radio Wales "we want to get it built".
According to project details on the Welsh government website which were last updated in July, the estimated cost of the relief road remains around £1bn.
Speaking on the Jason Mohammad programme on Thursday, he said: "There's got to be an environmental assessment and there's probably going to be a public inquiry - now we've got to go through that process.
"Once that's done, we'll get cracking with it."
Plaid Cymru favours an alternative, cheaper plan to relieve M4 congestion, rather than the so-called black route Welsh ministers propose.
Plaid transport spokesman Rhun ap Iorwerth said: "Not only do I think it would be £1bn, the black route, it would likely be way over that because this kind of project always leads to overspend."
Mr Jones also defended his sacking of a Labour AM from a key post for criticising the Welsh government for spending £20m preparing for the road.
Jenny Rathbone was removed as chair of the committee overseeing EU spending in Wales.
Mr Jones said: "It's the same as if you're a cabinet minister - you can't attack your colleagues in public.
"That's the simple rule of any cabinet anywhere in the world."
Are the terms of the debate on the M4 relief road changing?
The choice has been framed in a £1bn new motorway, also known as the black route, to the south of Newport versus an upgrading of the southern distributor road, or the blue route, at around a third of the cost, or substantially cheaper at least.
Now, according to the first minister, that price difference is shrinking.
He has already referred to the blue route as costing between £600m to £800m, and now the black route is coming in much cheaper than originally thought.
The first minister has not said on what basis he has come to this conclusion, other than he won't give a specific figure because he doesn't want to show his hand to potential contractors.
What is puzzling is the Welsh government website has put the cost at around £1bn in its summary of the project, which names the engineering consultants Arup and Atkins.
In the meantime, preparatory work continues for a new motorway, even though no final decision has been made.
Last week, Economy Minister Edwina Hart told AMs 160 people are working on the project. | A planned M4 relief road around Newport would cost "nowhere near" £1bn, First Minister Carwyn Jones has said. |
17,615,810 | He installed the webcams on Tuesday to mark the anniversary of his 81 days of detention during a crackdown on political activists last year.
The Chinese authorities called him on Wednesday afternoon ordering their removal, he said.
Ai is currently fighting tax evasion charges related to his company.
Tax evasion charges were brought against his design company, Fake Cultural Development Ltd, when he was released from detention last June.
Activists have argued that the charges are politically motivated, as the internationally renowned artist has at times been an outspoken critic of the government.
Speaking to the BBC, Ai said he did not know the reason behind the order to shut the webcams.
"I don't even have a reason for why they put me away for 81 days," he said. "There's never clear, rational discussion."
Ai described the project as "a negotiation between private space, the public nature of security, and the power of the state".
Following his period of detention last year, many people were concerned about his activities and whereabouts, he said.
He had decided to put up the webcams so that his family and friends, and the authorities, could see his every movement.
He said that he had hoped to encourage transparency and openness from all sides.
Following the closure, Ai announced on his Twitter feed: "The cameras have been shut down. Bye-bye to all the voyeurs." | Chinese artist Ai Weiwei has turned off the four live webcams in his home following orders from the Chinese authorities. |
38,294,776 | Du Plessis led the side to a series victory in Australia last month, as De Villiers sat out with an elbow injury.
De Villiers, 32, was expected to return for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka, but has not recovered in time.
"His decision to step down confirms his attitude to put the team first," said Cricket South Africa chief executive Haroon Lorgat.
"AB has always carried himself as a true team player."
Wicketkeeper-batsman De Villiers, who has scored 8,074 runs in 106 Tests at an average of 50.46 since his debut in 2004, only captained the Proteas in two Tests after taking over from Hashim Amla during their series defeat by England in January.
He remains the one-day international captain, and is targeting a return ahead of the ODI leg of Sri Lanka's tour of South Africa in January.
"The interests of the team must always outweigh the interests of any individual, including me," he said.
"It was a fantastic honour for me to be asked to captain the Test side but I have missed two series and I am still in doubt for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka.
"Following the squad's outstanding performances in Australia, it is clearly in the greater interests of the team that Faf du Plessis should be confirmed as the permanent Test captain."
Du Plessis, 32, is also captain of the Twenty20 side, and excelled as Test captain in Australia, despite being fined for ball-tampering after the second Test.
Despite being the same age as fellow batsman De Villiers, he did not make his Test debut until 2012, and has scored 2,029 runs in 32 Tests, averaging 43.17. | AB de Villiers has stepped down as captain of South Africa's Test team, with Faf du Plessis taking over. |
38,719,037 | The Panthers needed to beat Cameroon on Sunday but could only draw 0-0.
Aubameyang said: "It is really annoying because we had chances. Sadly there are days when it doesn't go in, like my first chance from two metres out.
"We are all really disappointed. We didn't really have the time to prepare (for the tournament)."
Aubameyang reacted angrily after final whistle, storming off, kicking a ball off the pitch and not shaking hands with anyone.
Coach Jose Antonio Camacho told him to calm down but Aubameyang waved him away as he walked down the tunnel.
"Of course everyone is disappointed, it is usual in these situations," said Aubameyang. "The players feel it the most."
Aubameyang also appeared to be unhappy that the team did not begin their preparations for the tournament on 3 January as planned.
"We did not start on that date, we started a little bit late," he said. "But I am really proud of all the players, because everyone gave their all.
"I think we were stronger than every other team in the group, but it is about everything, the preparation, the change of coach, it wasn't easy."
Aubameyang, who scored in the opening two games, also admitted that his own contribution could have been better.
"I know there was a lot of expectation around me," he said. "I'm not entirely satisfied with my performances, I think I could have brought a little more. Sure I scored two goals but I wasn't at 100%."
Spaniard Camacho was appointed as Gabon coach only 43 days before the tournament started, replacing the sacked Jorge Costa.
It was always going to be a tough task for him to creative a cohesive unit with the players and Gabon misfired at the tournament, drawing all of their games and only managing to score two goals.
Camacho believes conceding a late equaliser to debutants Guinea-Bissau in their first game set them back and they failed to recover.
"I am very sorry for the fans. And the players, who did their best. I think today we did not qualify because we dropped two points in the first match against Guinea-Bissau," he said.
"The most important thing is to score goals. Against Burkina Faso we had lots of opportunities but did not score and the same was true against Cameroon.
"The reality in football is if you do not score goals you cannot qualify."
Burkina Faso qualified for the quarters-finals as Group A winners and Cameroon joined them as runners-up. | Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang believes insufficient time together led to the hosts' group-stage elimination from the Africa Cup of Nations. |
41,026,591 | The "crude improvised explosive device" was found in Nadeem Muhammad's luggage as he passed security on 30 January to try to board a plane to Bergamo, Italy.
After sentencing Muhammad, 43, the judge criticised both airport staff and police who did not initially think the device was "potentially viable".
Greater Manchester Police said security procedures had been reviewed.
Muhammad, of Tinline Street, Bury, had denied possessing explosives with intent to endanger life but was previously found guilty by a jury at Manchester Crown Court.
He was attempting to board a Ryanair flight when the item was discovered and told airport officials someone else had put it in his luggage.
A forensic examination of the device later found it contained nitroglycerin and nitrocellulose, which led to Muhammad's home in Italy being searched.
After being questioned by Italian police, he was released and boarded a flight back to the UK on 12 February and arrested by UK officers shortly after landing.
A forensic examination of the device later found it was "potentially viable", his trial heard.
Judge Patrick Field QC said there was no obvious motivation for Muhammad's actions.
After sentencing he was "alarmed" about some of the evidence in the case and about "the lack of concern" expressed by both airport officials and police.
"Airport security staff reached a wholly erroneous and potentially dangerous conclusion - as a result one member of staff even put the device in her pocket and tested it in the shoe X-ray machine," he said.
He said that had "put herself and fellow employees and members of public at risk".
"The situation was compounded when the police became involved because they too readily accepted it wasn't dangerous and an early opportunity to arrest him was missed."
Judge Field QC said there was "a risk he could have escaped justice altogether" and it was "good luck rather than good judgement" that "this matter came to a satisfactory conclusion".
He added: "In these dangerous times there is no room for complacency and I hope security at Manchester Airport will be subject to a review at the highest level."
In response to the judge's comments a Manchester Airport spokesman said: "Security is our number one priority and we work closely with [the] government, police and other agencies to provide passengers with a safe and secure environment.
"In this instance, our security team successfully detected a device hidden inside the lining of a suitcase. It was deemed to be a suspicious item and passed to police to investigate further."
It added: "These actions prevented a potentially dangerous item being taken on board an aircraft and, ultimately, to a successful prosecution."
Greater Manchester Police Assistant Chief Constable Russ Jackson said: "Both the airport and police have reviewed our security procedure to ensure that operating procedures are followed on every occasion when there's a suspicious incident."
He said it was "without a doubt an extremely serious incident at a time when people are concerned about terrorism, especially here in Manchester".
"Whilst it should be acknowledged that security checks were effective in finding the item, the assessment of the device should have been more comprehensive and should have taken place much sooner."
ACC Jackson added: "These lessons have been learned and reviews of our operating procedures have already taken place." | A man who tried to smuggle a pipe bomb on to a plane at Manchester Airport has been jailed for 18 years. |
19,191,501 | The Linda McCartney factory, in Fakenham, is to be expanded by the company's American owners Hain Daniels.
Marketing director Nigel Parrot said as more consumers eat less meat "we need to expand that factory to meet our future demand".
Investment on the Holt Road site is expected to be completed by the autumn.
"The investment involves the installation of new production facilities and upgrading existing plant and equipment in order to meet growing demand for the extensive range of meat-free products, crumbles and hot desserts made at the Fakenham site," said chief executive Rob Burnett.
"It's great news for the local economy as we will be able to provide long-term employment and excellent career prospects for people."
The decision to invest in the factory reflects a turnaround for the site, which was on the brink of closure four years ago.
"The brand is growing at about 20% and food growth at about 4%," said the Fakenham site's group operations director David Betts-Grey.
"We think that is going to continue for many years so we're sure all the new jobs will be pretty secure for the long term." | Up to 150 new jobs are to be created in Norfolk following a multi-million pound investment at a frozen food factory that specialises in meat-free produce. |
35,815,722 | Many comment on the fact that taking a job as a minister could shield Lula from prosecution on recently filed money laundering charges.
Under Brazilian law, cabinet members can only be investigated, charged and tried by the Supreme Court.
A federal judge would therefore not be able to touch Lula should he decide to hear the case.
Right-leaning magazine Veja reflects this in its headline: "To save Lula from (Judge Sergio) Moro, Dilma's government is on the verge of announcing a super-ministry for the former president".
But centre-right newspaper Estado de Sao Paulo does not think a cabinet post would necessarily protect Lula, pointing out he could still be tried by the Supreme Court.
In its article it quotes Supreme Court Justice Marco Aurelio Mello, who said that there were no guarantees that the Supreme Court would be "benevolent" towards Lula.
Right-leaning O Globo says that Lula's greatest challenge will be to convince the public that he is not just accepting a cabinet post to avoid possible prosecution by Judge Moro.
Daily newspaper Correio Braziliense argues that having Lula in her cabinet would benefit President Rousseff, who is facing moves to impeach her over allegations she manipulated Brazil's account books to hide a growing deficit.
Its headline reads: "Lula is the last chance for President Dilma to escape impeachment".
It argues that Lula could use his influence with members of Congress to get enough of them to vote against impeachment.
Centre-right newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo thinks that Lula will drive a hard bargain and demand guarantees that the government's economic policy will change before he accepts a cabinet post.
Brazilians have been expressing their views on Twitter. Several hashtags have emerged reflecting the deep divisions among them.
The most popular have been #LulaMinistro (Lula Minister), #ForaDilma ("Dilma Out") and, in reference to Judge Moro, #Somostodosmoro (We are all Moro).
Twitter user Roberto Silveira (@btpsilveira) welcomed reports of Lula's possible new post, alluding to what some see as a right-wing campaign against the former leader: "#LulaMinistro because we have to respond intelligently to brutality and fascism".
Guily (@guibomeny), on the other hand, was critical of the planned move to make Lula a minister.
Guily tweeted BBC World and BBC News saying: "The most corrupt man in the world will receive a ministry to escape justice! I'm so ashamed of my country! #lulaNaCadeia" (Lula in prison).
BBC Monitoring reports and analyses news from TV, radio, web and print media around the world. You can follow BBC Monitoring on Twitter and Facebook. | Brazilian media are analysing reports that President Dilma Rousseff has offered her predecessor in office, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a post in the cabinet. |
40,497,091 | The Newcastle United owner is being sued by Jeffrey Blue at London's High Court.
Mr Blue said he was promised £15m if he managed to increase Sports Direct's share price to £8, but that he only received £1m.
But Mr Ashley said their meetings were drink-fuelled "banter".
Mr Blue says Mr Ashley, who runs Sports Direct, did not stick to a commercial agreement.
But in a written statement, the sportswear tycoon said: "I can't believe that [Mr Blue] is now trying to take me for £14m off the back of some drink banter that he is seeking to engineer into something more."
Mr Justice Leggatt has heard that the dispute between Mr Blue and Mr Ashley relates to a conversation in a London pub called the Horse & Groom in 2013.
Mr Blue came under attack from Mr Ashley's lawyers as he gave evidence during the second day of the hearing.
Mike Ashley 'vomited into fireplace at pub meeting'
David Cavender QC, who leads Mr Ashley's legal team, accused Mr Blue of "making up evidence" and said the claim was an "opportunistic try-on".
Mr Cavender also said Mr Ashley "fairly" said he could not recall details of conversations in the Horse & Groom, "particularly in the light of the amount of drinking".
"He does recall 'that there was a lot of banter and bravado'.
"He does not recall any discussion about whether Mr Blue would be paid a sum of money if the share price reached £8 a share."
Mr Ashley is due to give evidence on Wednesday.
The hearing continues. | Billionaire Mike Ashley has dismissed claims he owes a finance expert £14m and said their conversations were "drink banter", a court has heard. |
25,838,721 | Media suspect the outage on Tuesday may have been caused by hacking groups.
Chinese netizens were denied internet access for at least an hour during the disruption. Two-thirds of the websites, including the popular Baidu and Sina portals, were affected, the China National Radio reports.
The Global Times reported that domestic internet traffic was redirected to a website owned by US company Dynamic Internet Technology. The company has denied any involvement in the outage.
According to Reuters news agency, the company "sells anti-censorship web services tailored for Chinese users".
"The incident is possibly caused by a hacker attack, but the real attacker remains unknown as the hacker could have used the Dynamic's IP address as a shield," the Global Times quotes an unnamed security expert as saying.
Several experts tell the China National Radio that the attack is "not malicious" and will not cause an information leak for the users, while an article on the China.org.cn, a government-authorised internet portal, says the outage once again brings the problem of internet security into focus.
The Chinese edition of the Global Times adds that experts do not think the attack originates from the US.
"The US is already a 'super super' big country in cyberspace. It holds the majority of internet resources, so such an attack will not benefit the US government or the military, but will only alert China about the importance of internet security," it quotes another unnamed cyber expert as saying.
In other news, the China Daily calls for the world's policymakers to tackle income disparity after an Oxfam report revealed that the world's richest 85 people own as much wealth as half of the world's population.
The paper, however, says that China has achieved "some progress" in closing the rich-poor income gap.
Official data released on Monday shows that China's Gini coefficient, a measure of the income gap between the rich and the poor, has dropped slightly from 0.473 in 2013 compared with 0.474 in 2012.
The China Daily points out that the Gini coefficient "has eased from 0.491 in 2008 to 0.473 in 2013" which "bears testimony that the inclusiveness of the country's economic growth is increasing".
The Shanghai Daily, however, notes that the income gap in China is still higher than the warning level of 0.4 set by the United Nations.
In similar vein, state-owned Economic Information observes that this is the first time officials have published the figures in the past 10 years.
The website praises the effort of the new leadership in closing the income gap and says that releasing the figures is a "positive sign" and such "important" information will make the work of tackling income disparity easier.
Meanwhile, several media outlets are also reporting that China is building the world's largest (10,000-metric tonne) marine surveillance ship, which surpasses Japan's 7,175-tonne patrol boat.
Official channel CCTV says state-owned China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation has signed the contract to construct the ship.
"If the rest of the massive vessel is fully completed, China will overtake Japan as owner of world's biggest surveillance ship," the CCTV adds.
However, the company appears to have retracted the information on its website and has "declined to confirm the news", reports the Global Times.
In regional politics, China's Foreign Ministry has announced that President Xi Jinping will not be meeting Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during the opening ceremony of the Sochi Winter Olympics.
The Global Times says Japan likes "corridor diplomacy" or "chance encounter diplomacy", which means creating an opportunity to meet informally, but now China has "blocked the door" to such meetings with an "insincere" Mr Abe.
Elsewhere, the paper also reports that Chinese activist Xu Zhiyong's trial has started at the Beijing No.1 Intermediate People's Court.
Mr Xu is charged with "gathering crowds to disrupt public order". He is one of several activists from a transparency movement who are facing trials this week.
The Global Times' Chinese version and other state media outlets appear to be not covering the story.
And finally, reports of the New York police's alleged beating of an elderly Chinese man who jaywalked has also grabbed the Chinese media's attention.
At least 30% of netizens who took part in an internet poll on popular portal Sina support the actions of the police.
The Global Times observes the "double standard" view that many hold and comments that if Chinese police were to beat a jaywalker, people will immediately start criticising the force.
BBC Monitoring reports and analyses news from TV, radio, web and print media around the world. For more reports from BBC Monitoring, click here. You can follow BBC Monitoring on Twitter and Facebook. | A major internet outage, income disparity and reports about China building a new surveillance ship are the main themes in the Chinese media on Wednesday. |
33,475,173 | The global addressing system needs to be updated because the older scheme, IPv4, is running out of space.
The small-scale trial involves BT staff being switched to a network that runs only on IPv6 technology.
News about the test leaked because the technical changes made to BT's network for the trial accidentally included some customers' connections.
A small number of customers who use BT's Infinity fibre optic service spotted that they had been given an IPv6 address rather than one for IPv4, reported ISP Review.
In a statement, BT explained that the address change came about when it tinkered with its network to test IPv6 equipment.
"For some tests, we have to fully enable very small parts of the network for IPv6 for a limited period of time," it said. "During this window of time, a very small number of customers who are not BT employees may get an IPv6 as well IPv4 address."
It added: "They are not included in the trial and they should not notice any issues at all with their internet experience."
BT would not be drawn on when IPv6 would be used for all customers. It said the technical change would be made "in good time".
The BT test comes soon after Sky started to update the internal software on some customer routers to support IPv6. The small-scale test is being conducted before Sky uses the protocol across its entire domestic broadband network.
The switch to IPv6 is being made because almost all the 4.3 billion addresses available via IPv4 are used up. Everything connected to the net needs an IP address to ensure data reaches the right place.
Progress towards switching to IPv6 has been slow because it would cost so much to swap equipment in homes and businesses that can only handle IPv4. Statistics gathered by Google suggest about just over 6% of all net traffic travels using IPv6.
Adrian Kennard, boss of ISP Andrews & Arnold which has offered v6 services for years, said most ISPs currently mix the two addressing schemes.
"Each device on the network can use either protocol to connect to the internet," he said. "Devices will typically try to use IPv6 where possible, using IPv4 only if there is no choice."
ISPs use technology inside their networks to handle translation between the two protocols, he said.
"This has a number of detrimental effects on the way things work," he added. "It adds unnecessary complexity and restrictions to the way things work and can mean some things break.
"It is a shame that ISPs have left it so long to deploy IPv6," said Mr Kennard. "Had this been done decades ago then IPv4 would have become unnecessary before addresses had run out and started to cause problems." | BT has started trials of the next version of the net's addressing scheme known as IP version 6. |
35,334,902 | The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 85 civilians were killed in the attack, as well as 50 Syrian soldiers.
Syria's state news agency Sana reported that around 300 civilians had died in the Baghaliyeh area of the city.
Meanwhile, the UN warned of "sharply deteriorating conditions" in the besieged areas.
Around 200,000 people were in these areas, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.
The IS assault on government-held areas in the city began at dawn on Saturday, Syria's Local Coordination Committees (LCC) said.
A car bomb explosion was followed by a ground attack, the LCC said.
Government forces retaliated with air strikes and heavy artillery, the report said.
Russia said it had dropped aid to civilians caught up in the siege. There have also been reports of Russian airstrikes in the vicinity.
According to the Syrian observatory, IS now controls around 60% of the city.
More than 250,000 people have been killed and millions displaced after almost five years of conflict in Syria.
Blockades have been a feature of Syria's civil war. Up to 4.5 million people live in hard-to-reach areas, including nearly 400,000 people in 15 besieged locations who do not have access to life-saving aid.
March 2015: Foah and Kefraya in Idlib province are besieged by rebel groups and the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front, with an estimated 12,500 trapped.
July 2015: Madaya, near Damascus, is besieged by government forces and their allies in Lebanon's Shia Islamist Hezbollah movement.
September 2015: The situation in Foah and Kefraya worsens after the fall of a nearby government air base, where helicopters had been able to land with food supplies. Reports emerge of people eating grass to survive.
October 2015: UN delivers one month's supply of food rations for 20,000 people in Madaya.
December 2015: Dozens of wounded civilians and fighters evacuated from Foah, Kefraya, Zabadani and Madaya. Reports begin to emerge of people starving in Madaya.
January 2016: UN says it has received credible reports of people dying of starvation in Madaya. Warns of "sharply deteriorating" conditions in parts of Deir al-Zor
What's happening in Syria?
More than 250,000 Syrians have lost their lives in almost five years of conflict, which began with anti-government protests before escalating into a brutal civil war. More than 11 million others have been forced from their homes as forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and rebels opposed to his rule battle each other - as well as jihadist militants from Islamic State.
Why are civilians under siege?
All parties to the conflict are using siege warfare, encircling populated areas, preventing civilians from leaving and blocking humanitarian access in an attempt to force opponents to surrender. Shortages of food, water, medicine, electricity and fuel have led to malnutrition and deaths among vulnerable groups.
Where are the sieges?
Government forces are besieging various locations in the eastern Ghouta area, outside Damascus, as well as the capital's western suburb of Darayya and the nearby mountain towns of Zabadani and Madaya. Rebel forces have encircled the villages of Foah and Kefraya in the northern province of Idlib, while IS militants are besieging government-held areas in the eastern city of Deir al-Zour. | Dozens of people have died in an offensive by so-called Islamic State on government-held areas of Deir al-Zour in eastern Syria, local media say. |
31,733,842 | In a keynote speech at the Oxford Media Convention, Rona Fairhead said reform of the current model was the "minimum" required.
She said an external regulator would need to have "fairly strong powers" to hold the BBC to account.
The Trust is the body in charge of overseeing the BBC.
Mrs Fairhead said responsibilities for strategy, financial and operational management needed to sit with the BBC Executive, to allow them to respond to "a rapidly changing environment".
However, responsibilities for regulation and broader accountability needed "to sit at one remove", she said in her speech on Wednesday.
"That way, there should be no possibility of vagueness or uncertainty about who will be held responsible for what, when the chips are down," she added.
"The cleanest form of separation would be to transfer the Trust's responsibilities for regulation and accountability to an external regulator," she went on.
"That's an approach we want to explore further. I think it's the front-runner."
The external regulator she proposed, Mrs Fairhead continued, "would have responsibility for all matters of regulation and those matters of licence fee payer representation which require a broader, more regulatory perspective.
"For it to work, the regulator would need to have fairly strong powers and levers - to hold the BBC to its public purposes and to the standards that audiences expect; and to prevent undue damage to the commercial market."
The BBC Board and its regulator, she said, would need to be able to act as "a protective buffer" between the government and BBC management, to ensure the organisation's independence.
There needed to be a "bespoke regulator" for the BBC, she continued, because of the "higher expectations" that audiences have for its editorial and creative standards.
"There should be a single body responsible for setting those standards for the BBC, licensing and regulating its activities, and holding it to account for the way it spends public money."
The Trust, she said, had "some concerns" about MPs' proposal for a public service broadcasting commission to monitor the corporation's performance.
The proposal was made in last month's report about the future of the BBC by the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee.
"We question [a commission's] ability to exert real authority if it were unable to set BBC service licences and editorial standards," said Mrs Fairhead.
Mrs Fairhead, former head of the Financial Times Group, replaced Lord Patten as chair of the BBC Trust last year. | The chair of the BBC Trust has suggested an external, "bespoke" regulator could take over the Trust's role as overseer of the corporation. |
35,086,886 | Amy, directed by Asif Kapadia, was named best documentary at the European Film Awards.
The film was condemned by her father Mitch Winehouse for painting the singer's family in a negative light.
Best European film went to Youth while British actress Charlotte Rampling was given a lifetime achievement.
Rampling also won best actress for her role in the British drama 45 Years at the event in Berlin on Saturday night.
Veteran actor Michael Caine received two trophies - he was presented with an honorary award and was also named best actor for Youth.
He said: "It's been 50 years and I've never won an award in Europe. And now I've won two in one evening. It's so strange because I (usually) sit in these audiences and just clap someone else."
The film, which co-starred American actors Paul Dano and Harvey Keitel, earned Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino the award for best director.
Greek director and writer Yorgos Lanthimos picked up the screenwwriting award for his surreal drama The Lobster, which starred Irish actor Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz.
The Irish film Song of the Sea was given the animation award.
German-Austrian star Christoph Waltz, currently on screens in the latest Bond adventure Spectre was presented with the award for European achievement in world cinema.
The European Film Academy was founded in 1988 and aims to promote films from across the continent. | A controversial documentary about the life and death of British singer Amy Winehouse has been honoured by the European Film Academy. |
29,672,030 | The Simushir cargo ship is carrying hundreds of tons of fuel, prompting fears it could run aground and cause a spill along the pristine coast.
A Canadian ship is now towing the vessel away at a speed of 1.5 knots.
It had been thought the ship might hit Haida Gwaii, known as the Queen Charlotte Islands.
Further bad weather is expected and government officials say preparations are being made in the event of a fuel spill.
A nearby First Nation community said that would be a "catastrophic event".
The Canadian coast guards' ship the Gordon Reid arrived late on Friday. A tugboat is set to join both vessels early Saturday morning and help tow the Simushir to Prince Rupert, British Colombia.
Sub Lt. Melissa Kia of Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt said three more vessels, including a US coast guard ship were also on their way.
The ship, with a crew of 11, lost power early on Friday morning as it made its way from the US state of Washington to Russia.
The captain was rescued by a Cormorant helicopter because he was injured.
Memories of oil spills loom large in British Columbia, where residents remember the Exxon Valdez oil spill of 1989. | Canadian coast guards have attached a tow line to a Russian container ship drifting without power in rough seas off British Columbia. |
34,403,907 | Lawro's opponent for this weekend's Premier League fixtures is former NFL star Osi Umenyiora, who will be making his predictions on Friday.
Umenyiora, born in London, played football as a child before switching to gridiron when he moved to the United States as a teenager.
Make your predictions now, compare them to Lawro and other fans and try to take your team to the top of the leaderboard by playing the new BBC Sport Predictor game.
Our scoring system has changed this season and a correct result (picking a win, draw or defeat) is now worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.
Last weekend, Lawro got seven correct results from 10 Premier League games, including one perfect score.
His score of 100 points saw him beat Stereophonics frontman Kelly Jones, who picked one correct result with no perfect scores, for a total of 10.
We are keeping a record of the totals for Lawro and his guests (below), and showing a table of how the Premier League would look if all of Lawro's predictions were correct (at the bottom of the page).
All kick-offs 15:00 BST unless otherwise stated
Lawro's prediction: 1-1
Osi's prediction: 2-1
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 1-2
Osi's prediction: 2-0
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 2-1
Osi's prediction: 1-1
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 2-0
Osi's prediction: 3-0
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 2-1
Osi's prediction: 0-1
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 2-0
Osi's prediction: 2-0
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 2-1
Osi's prediction: 2-1
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 1-1
Osi's prediction: 0-2
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 2-0
Osi's prediction: 0-2
Match report
Lawro's prediction: 1-1
Osi's prediction: 0-3
Match report
Lawro was speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan.
Lawro's best score: 140 points (week three v Jack Whitehall & week four v Darren Campbell)
Lawro's worst score: 20 points (week one v Graeme Swann) | BBC Sport's football expert Mark Lawrenson is pitting his wits against a different guest each week this season. |
36,934,853 | Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, the prime minister called it "the great human rights issue of our time".
She said a new UK cabinet taskforce would tackle the "sickening and inhuman crimes" while £33m from the aid budget would fund initiatives overseas.
Labour said the police needed better funding if they were to tackle slavery.
UK slave victims 'not getting proper support'
What does modern slavery look like around the world?
The most recent Home Office estimates suggest there are between 10,000 and 13,000 victims of modern slavery in the UK, with 45 million estimated victims across the world.
Victims are said to include women forced into prostitution, "imprisoned" domestic staff and workers in fields, factories and fishing boats.
Mrs May said: "From nail bars and car washes to sheds and rundown caravans, people are enduring experiences that are simply horrifying in their inhumanity.
"Vulnerable people who have travelled long distances, believing they were heading for legitimate jobs, are finding they have been duped, forced into hard labour, and then locked up and abused.
"Innocent individuals are being tricked into prostitution, often by people they thought they could trust. Children are being made to pick-pocket on the streets and steal from cash machines."
Modern slaves in the UK, often said to be hiding in plain sight, are working in our nail bars, on construction sites, in brothels, on cannabis farms and in agriculture.
Traffickers are using the internet to lure their victims with hollow promises of jobs, education and even love.
Albania, Nigeria, Vietnam, Romania and Poland are the most likely countries of origin, but some victims are from the UK itself. In 2013, 90 were UK nationals.
There is no typical victim. They can be men, women or children of all ages but it is normally more prevalent among the most vulnerable, minorities or socially-excluded groups.
Many believe they are escaping poverty, limited opportunities at home, a lack of education, unstable social and political conditions or war. But their slave masters are usually out to make financial gain.
Sexual exploitation is the most common form of modern slavery reported in the UK, followed by labour exploitation, forced criminal exploitation and domestic servitude.
In 2014, the Home Office estimated there were between 10,000 and 13,000 potential victims in the UK - just 2,340 of those were officially reported and recorded.
Sources: Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner Strategic Plan 2015-2017 and Modernslavery.co.uk
Mrs May said a review to mark the first anniversary of the Modern Slavery Act, which she drew up as home secretary, found there had been 289 modern slavery offences prosecuted in 2015 - and a 40% rise in the number of victims identified.
But barrister Caroline Haughey, who carried out the review, said she found that police and criminal justice agencies lacked consistency in dealing with the issue.
Mrs May said the first government taskforce on modern slavery would see ministers "get a real grip of this issue right across Whitehall and co-ordinate and drive further progress in the battle against this cruel exploitation".
Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary will also be asked to carry out an investigation to make sure that all police forces in England and Wales "treat this crime with the priority it deserves".
"[The government] must work collaboratively with law enforcement agencies across the world, to track and stop these pernicious gangs who operate across borders and jurisdictions," Mrs May said.
She added: "These crimes must be stopped and the victims of modern slavery must go free...
"Just as it was Britain that took an historic stand to ban slavery two centuries ago, so Britain will once again lead the way in defeating modern slavery and preserving the freedoms and values that have defined our country for generations."
Sarah Champion, Labour's shadow minister for preventing abuse, said government cuts to police forces and local authorities had left professionals without the resources to stamp out slavery.
"We must be doing more to prevent this horrendous crime but, looking at her [Theresa May's] track record as home secretary, I'm not optimistic," she said.
She cited figures that last year 982 children were identified as victims of modern slavery and taken into local authority care, but within days, 60% had gone missing, presumed to be back with their traffickers.
The Modern Slavery Act 2015 states an offence is committed if someone holds another in slavery or servitude or requires them to perform forced or compulsory labour.
The legislation increased the maximum jail term for people traffickers from 14 years to life, and gave courts in England and Wales powers to impose orders to restrict the activities of suspected traffickers.
It was aimed at consolidating offences used to prosecute those who enslave others into a single act. | Britain will lead the fight against modern slavery, Theresa May has said, vowing to make it her mission to help rid the world of the "barbaric evil". |
39,052,979 | Tumble dryers sold under the Hotpoint, Creda and Indesit brands have been behind a series of fires.
Whirlpool, which owns the brands, had said they were all right to use, providing someone was in attendance.
But following advice from Trading Standards, the new guidance is not to use them until they are repaired.
A statement on the Whirlpool safety website says: "If your tumble dryer is affected by this issue, then you should unplug it and do not use it until the modification has taken place."
At the same time the consumer group Which? has called for a full recall of all the machines involved.
Some owners have been waiting up to a year for a free repair programme to be carried out.
Fires have been caused by excess fluff, which can come into contact with the heating element and so catch light.
One machine awaiting repair caught fire in London last August, causing a blaze in a tower block that took 120 firefighters to bring it under control.
The dryers subject to the repair programme were manufactured between April 2004 and September 2015 under the Hotpoint, Indesit, Creda, Swan and Proline brands.
Background: Truth, fires and tumble dryers; are our home appliances safe?
Hotpoint - Online checker
Indesit - Online checker
Whirlpool freephone helplines: 0800 151 0905 for the UK, or 1800 804320 for the Irish Republic
Whirlpool has written to 3.8 million owners of the affected dryers, but as many as 2.4 million have not responded. The company has written to them again, offering to repair their machines.
A further 100,000 customers have registered, but not yet organised a repair.
"Since the launch of this campaign, safety has been our number one priority," Whirlpool said.
"We have consistently responded to the advice of Trading Standards and continue to do so. Trading Standards have now notified us that updated usage advice should be communicated to consumers and we are implementing this."
Which? called for a full recall programme of the faulty machines.
The consumer group has already launched a legal bid to force Trading Standards to take stronger action over the tumble dryers.
"Fundamentally, we now believe a full recall is necessary, and the Government must urgently address the issues with the product safety system as it shouldn't require the threat of judicial review to ensure that consumers are protected from dangerous products," said Alex Neill, managing director of home and legal services at Which?
"Despite updating the safety notice on its websites, Whirlpool still needs to do a lot more. Our advice is to go straight to Whirlpool to demand your machine is fixed, but also try speaking to the retailer you bought it from."
The Trading Standards office in question - in Peterborough - has said that the threat of legal action was premature.
The London Fire Brigade, which tackled the blaze in Shepherd's Bush last August, said it agreed that owners should not use the dryers until they were repaired.
It said it had already asked Whirlpool to give out that advice.
The Brigade's assistant commissioner for fire safety, Dan Daly, said: "This change of advice could save lives and we are extremely relieved that, after six months of campaigning by the Brigade, Whirlpool has finally brought its advice in line with our own.
"We attend nearly one fire a day involving white goods, and strongly believe that if your appliance is subject to a safety or recall notice, or you think there is something wrong with it, you should unplug it immediately and contact the manufacturer or a qualified repair technician."
Jill Paterson, a partner at Leigh Day, the law firm acting for some of those affected by the Shepherd's Bush fire, said the advice from Whirlpool was long overdue.
"There should have been more urgent action taken to protect consumers - it should not have taken enforcement action by Trading Standards for this to happen," she said. | Millions of owners of potentially lethal tumble dryers have been warned not to use them until the machines have been repaired. |
35,739,778 | Saturday's defeat at Stirling Albion left The Red Lichties sitting eighth.
"After a disappointing run of results and a poor league position, Arbroath FC have parted company with Todd Lumsden and his assistant, Steven Hislop," the club said in a statement on Sunday.
"The club would like to publicly thank them for their efforts and will now actively seek a new management team."
Lumsden, 38, enjoyed a lengthy playing career in Scotland, including spells with Albion Rovers, Hamilton Academical and Raith Rovers.
After being dismissed as Albion Rovers manager in 2013, Lumsden coached Rangers U17 before being appointed assistant to Allan Moore at Gayfield a year later.
He succeeded Moore following the latter's sacking at the end of last season. | Arbroath have sacked manager Todd Lumsden after the League Two club went six games without victory. |
30,815,059 | The plan has been implemented in Dedham, near Colchester, after parking meters were pulled from the ground and their coin slots filled with glue.
The meters have been targeted since parking charges were introduced last year.
Dedham Parish Council chairwoman Sheila Beeton said she hoped the "novel" idea would end a "persistent problem".
Colchester Borough Council, which manages the car park with the parish council, is offering two years' free parking for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever is responsible for causing the criminal damage.
The parking would be worth up to £2,920.
The borough council originally attempted to introduce parking charges in 2013, but shelved the idea because of concerns about the effect on tourism and businesses.
But the charges of up to £4 a day for those using the Mill Lane and Mill Pond car parks were introduced in April 2014.
Within days of the new regime, coin slots in the meters were filled with glue, preventing their use.
And in November, a 4x4 was used to pull one of the meters out of the ground. At that stage all of the main meters were removed.
Mrs Beeton said: "There is no reason to believe there is a huge vendetta by the whole community. I tend to think it is just a couple of people."
The parking meters are set to be restored with barriers used as protection.
Mrs Beeton said the majority of people who used the car park were visitors and that any money raised would be used for community facilities.
Colchester borough councillor Nick Barlow said the council was "determined" to find the vandals and urged anyone with information to come forward. | Vigilant drivers are being encouraged to help catch vandals by the offer of two years' free parking. |
36,407,562 | The nearby town of Karma, the first line of IS defence, is now in the army's hands, a BBC correspondent says.
Large numbers of elite combat troops have also been deployed near Falluja, about 45km (28 miles) west of Baghdad.
But IS hit back north of Falluja, killing and injuring some Iraqi forces in a suicide car bomb attack.
A counter-attack south of the city was repelled with the help of helicopter gunships, the BBC's Jim Muir in Karma reports.
This comes just days after the IS commander in Falluja, Maher al-Bilawi, was killed along with dozens militants in US-led coalition air strikes, according to Washington.
How tough will it be to take Falluja?
Islamic State: The full story
Karma is now firmly under control of government forces, including rapid reaction troops and federal police, our correspondent says.
Iran-backed Shia militias, which also took part in the fighting, have left graffiti on the walls of buildings in the town, including one saying: "Thank you, Iran."
But Karma is now a ghost town, with not a single civilian to be seen and with rows of shops battered and burnt out and some bigger buildings badly damaged, our correspondent adds.
Large number of the elite Counter-Terrorism Force have been brought up in preparation for an assault on the city itself.
However, it is not clear when the attack will begin.
Some 50,000 civilians remain trapped in the city and have been told via leaflet drops to avoid IS areas and put white sheets on their roofs, the US military says.
The UN says it has reports of people dying of starvation and being killed for refusing to fight for IS.
Falluja fell to IS in 2014, a key moment in its rise that saw it declare a caliphate across swathes of Iraq and Syria.
The other major Iraqi city still controlled by IS is Mosul. | Iraqi government forces have made gains in their offensive to drive Islamic State militants from Falluja - one the country's two major cities in IS hands. |
33,074,314 | They say Cpl Eric Casebolt, aged 41, submitted his resignation "on his own will" earlier on Tuesday.
In a video - filmed on Friday in McKinney - Cpl Casebolt, who is white, is seen pinning 15-year-old Dajerria Becton to the ground with his knees.
Police said he was responding to disturbances reports at a pool party.
Cpl Casebolt was placed on administrative leave following the incident.
Hundreds of people later marched at the scene, demanding that the corporal be dismissed.
At a news conference on Tuesday, McKinney police chief Greg Conley described Cpl Casebolt's actions as "indefensible".
"Our policies, our training, our practice, do not support his actions. He came into the call out of control and as the video shows, was out of control during the incident.
"I had 12 officers on the scene and 11 of them performed according to their training. They did an excellent job."
Mr Conley added that the authorities were continuing their investigation of Friday's incident.
In a video that is more than seven minutes long, Cpl Casebolt is shown swearing at a number of black youths, pointing his gun at others, and pulling the girl by her arm, before pinning her to the ground with his knees.
"Call my momma!" the girl screams several times as she struggles with the officer.
Dajerria Becton, later told the Texan broadcaster KDFW: "Him getting fired isn't enough."
In a statement posted on Facebook, McKinney police said they were called because a number of uninvited people refused to leave the swimming pool.
A fight then broke out, and more calls were made to police.
On Monday night, close to 800 people marched through McKinney, a city of almost 150,000 people.
They walked from a school to the swimming pool, carrying placards with slogans including "My skin colour is not a crime" and "Don't tread on our kids".
Civil rights leaders in McKinney said they wanted an investigation by the US justice department.
However, some local residents defended the policeman's actions.
Cpl Casebolt resigned after almost 10 years of service.
His lawyer Jane Bishkin confirmed he had stepped down, but declined to reveal his current whereabouts, according to the Associated Press news agency.
The lawyer also said her client had received death threats.
The incident comes at a time of heightened scrutiny about how US police forces respond to minorities.
Protests have followed the deaths of several African Americans in police incidents since July 2014 - Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, Eric Garner in New York, Freddie Gray in Baltimore and Tamir Rice in Cleveland, Ohio. | The US police officer filmed wrestling a black girl to the ground and pointing his gun at teenagers in Texas has stepped down, officials say. |
13,882,166 | 3rd-7th centuries AD - Berber and Arab migrants arrive in present-day Mauritania.
9-10th centuries - Empire of Ghana has its capital in present-day south-west Mauritania.
1076 - Berber Almoravid warriors defeat the Empire of Ghana.
1500s - European mariners and traders establish settlements.
1644-74 - Mauritanian Thirty-Year War: Berbers unsuccessful in repelling Arab warriors.
1850s-60s - French forces gain control of southern Mauritania. In 1898 France wins the allegiance of Moors in the region.
1904 - France establishes Mauritania as a colonial territory.
1920 - Mauritania becomes part of French West Africa, and is administered from Senegal.
1946 - Becomes a French overseas territory.
1958 - Mauritania becomes self-governing.
1960 November - Mauritania becomes independent.
1976 - Mauritania and Morocco divide up Spanish Sahara, now known as Western Sahara, after Spain pulls out. Guerrillas of the Polisario front, aiming to establish an independent state in the territory, fight the forces of both countries.
1978 - First post-independence president, Moktar Daddah, is deposed in a military coup, prompted partly by pressure of Polisario campaign.
1979 - Mauritania signs a peace agreement with the Polisario front and renounces its claim to Western Sahara. Morocco annexes Mauritania's former share of the territory.
1984 - Coup brings Colonel Maaouiya Ould Sid Ahmed Taya to power.
1989 - Race riots erupt in Mauritania and Senegal after a border dispute. Tens of thousands of black Mauritanians are driven out of the country into Senegal. Others become the targets of attacks and land seizures. Hundreds of people are killed.
1992 - Colonel Ould Taya elected president.
1993 - US ends development aid over Mauritania's treatment of its black population and its support for Iraq in the 1991 Gulf War.
1997 - President Ould Taya re-elected in a poll boycotted by the main opposition parties.
2002 January - Opposition party Action for Change, which campaigns for greater rights for blacks and descendants of slaves, is banned.
2003 June - Attempted coup: Troops loyal to President Ould Taya regain control of the capital after heavy fighting with rebel soldiers.
2003 November - President Ould Taya re-elected with 67% of vote in first round of elections. Opposition alleges fraud.
2004 September - Government says it has foiled a coup plot - the third in 15 months. In October President Taya accuses Libya and Burkina Faso of financing recent coup attempts.
2005 January - UN calls for food aid in the wake of locust invasions in 2004. Mauritania was the African country worst hit, with its crop production obliterated.
2005 August - With President Ould Taya out of the country, troops seize government buildings and a group of officers announces the overthrow of the president and the formation of a military council.
2006 February - Offshore oil production begins.
2006 June - Voters in a referendum approve constitutional changes which will limit the president to two five-year terms in office.
2007 March - Presidential elections won by Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi.
2007 April - Mauritania is readmitted to the African Union, having been suspended after the 2005 coup.
2007 August - Parliament outlaws slavery, a practise still widespread in spite of a 1981 ban.
2008 January - The 2008 Dakar Rally is cancelled following the murder of four French tourists in Mauritania in December, allegedly by attackers linked to al-Qaeda.
2008 April - Eight al-Qaeda suspects alleged to have been involved in killing of French tourists and attack on Israeli embassy are arrested.
2008 May - Members of moderate Islamist opposition party join government for first time.
2008 August - The military overthrows President Abdallahi - the country's first democratically elected leader - and forms a state council to rule the country. The move came after the president tried to dismiss several senior army commanders.
Al-Qaeda activity
2009 July - Gen Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz - leader of the August 2008 military coup - wins presidential elections.
2010 April - Mauritania, Mali, Niger and Algeria set up joint command to tackle threat of terrorism.
2010 August - Two Spanish aid workers kidnapped in Mauritania by al-Qaeda in November are set free in Mali after nine months in captivity.
2011 November - Government approves new radio and TV stations following an announcement of media liberalisation.
2012 January - Malian refugees stream into Mauritania over several months, fleeing a Tuareg rebellion in the north of their country.
2012 April - Public burning of religious texts allegedly condoning slavery sparks widespread controversy. Abolitionist leader Biram Ould Abeid is detained.
2013 December - President Ould Abdel Aziz's Union for the Republic party wins a majority of seats in the first parliamentary polls since 2006. The vote was boycotted by most opposition groups.
2014 June - President Ould Abdel Aziz wins another five-year term in elections boycotted by the opposition.
2014 July - France announces establishment of a long-term military operation aimed at preventing jihadist groups from establishing safe havens in the Sahel, including Mauritania.
2014 December - A blogger, Mohamed Cheikh Ould Mohamed, is sentenced to death for supposed blasphemy against the Muslim prophet, Muhammad. He awaits the decision of the Supreme Court.
2015 January - Three activists, including former presidential candidate Biram Ould Abeid, are sentenced to two years in prison for their part in anti-slavery protests. | A chronology of key events: |
37,049,812 | McDonald will join the Renegades during the English off-season, with their first game taking place on 22 December.
"I'm really looking forward for that period of time to come round, but first and foremost we've got a job to do here," he told BBC Radio Leicester.
"The focus is fully on Leicestershire and the end of the season." | Leicestershire elite performance director Andrew McDonald has agreed to coach Melbourne Renegades in the 2016-17 Big Bash League. |
36,661,032 | Maguire stroked the ball home to earn his side a vital away goal in the first round qualifying tie, ahead of next week's second leg at Turner's Cross.
Linfield debutant, Northern Ireland goalkeeper Roy Carroll, made a number of fine saves to deny Cork a second.
Paul Smyth headed over the bar from six yards in the first half for the hosts.
Beaten Irish Cup finalists Linfield, who were also runners-up in the Irish Premiership, were without injured defender Sean Ward, while Jimmy Callacher is on honeymoon.
Cork came into the tie in confident mood as they lie second in the Irish Premier Division, three points behind leaders Dundalk.
Visiting goalkeeper Mark McNulty tipped Ross Gaynor's free-kick over the bar in the 15th minute, then Maguire's shot across goal was well gathered by Carroll, who returned home from France as part of Michael O'Neill's Euro 2016 squad on Monday.
McNulty was called into action again before the break as he denied Kirk Millar, pushed away Karl Sheppard's defensive corner and made a fine stop from Andrew Waterworth.
Smyth squandered his chance when his headed effort went agonisingly over the bar and Carroll saved from Garry Buckley.
After Maguire broke the deadlock, the same player forced the busy Carroll into a point blank save and Stephen Lowry cleared Kenny Browne's goal-bound effort off the line.
The Blues keeper was then equal to Kevin O'Connor's 16-yard volley and the lively Maguire flashed a shot narrowly wide. | A 63rd-minute penalty from Sean Maguire saw Irish League club Linfield go down 1-0 to League of Ireland counterparts Cork City at Windsor Park on Thursday. |
32,515,816 | Jordan Haines, 14, from Roche, Cornwall ran in front of an oncoming car to grab the buggy, "without thinking".
The parents of three-month-old Josie Sztajnert were unloading shopping from a bus, on Saturday, when her pram came off the pavement.
Her father Pete Phillips said it was "a parent's worst nightmare".
Josie's parents, Mr Phillips and Vicky Sztajnert, had just returned from a shopping trip from St Austell with their two young children.
"I turned around for two seconds to pick the bags up, I just saw the buggy running off the pavement and Jordan pretty much leapt across the road," said Mr Phillips.
"It all happened so fast, I just froze so it was lucky Jordan was there to grab the buggy.
"I don't know what I can say to him to express how grateful we are," he said.
Jordan said he was "at the bus stop with mates messing around" when spotted the pushchair.
"I saw this Land Rover coming down the hill and I ran as fast as I could to the buggy not thinking of the traffic and saved the baby's life," he said.
"I feel proud of myself but I don't think other people would've done it", he said.
Jordan's mum Michelle Haines said: "I am so so proud of Jordan and to call him my son". | The parents of a baby girl whose pushchair rolled into a road when its brakes failed, have thanked the teenager who "saved her life". |
33,684,670 | Relatives of possible victims held a ceremony at the site on the outskirts of the city of Medellin before the excavation started.
The bodies of 90 to 300 people are thought to be buried there.
The disappearances date from 2002, when the army launched an operation against left-wing rebels in the area.
The operation was ordered by Colombia's president at the time, Alvaro Uribe.
Right-wing paramilitaries filled the void when the rebels left the Comuna 13 shantytown area and they are blamed by many for most of the killings.
Criminal gangs are also accused of involvement in some of the disappearances.
Medellin was once considered one of the world's most violent cities.
It was the home of the Medellin Cartel, the drug-trafficking organisation led by Pablo Escobar, who was killed in 1993.
Some 20,000 tonnes of earth will be removed over the next five months in the search for the bodies, reports the BBC's Natalio Cosoy in Bogota.
A ceremony at the site, including a religious service, marked the beginning of the excavation.
"It took us 13 years to get here. This is a drop of hope," said Luz Elena Galeano, leader of an organisation of women fighting for justice for their missing relatives.
Relatives laid flowers and images of their loved ones on the site.
"The ceremony was moving and a commitment to peace and reconciliation," said Colombia's Interior Minister Juan Fernando Cristo.
More than 200,000 people have been killed since hostilities between the army and Colombia's main rebel group, the Farc, began in 1964.
Both sides have been engaged in nearly three years of peace negotiations, which are being held in Cuba.
Earlier this month, the Colombian government announced a de-escalation of attacks against the rebels, who had announced a unilateral ceasefire.
The talks are aimed at ending hostilities, which would lead to the Farc giving up its armed struggle to join the legal political process.
Margarita Selene Restrepo stares out over the corrugated roofs of Comuna 13 - one of Medellin's poorest and most violent districts. From here, a few steps from her home, she can see a huge, deforested, earthen scar on the hillside opposite. In Spanish it is known as la escombrera - the dump. And Margarita can just make out areas recently fenced off with flimsy green plastic.
"Every day when I look across there it causes me such a lot of sadness. If she's there, she's so close. Yet at the same time, she's so far away."
The dump that holds the secrets of the disappeared | Forensic experts in Colombia have begun a search for dozens of bodies at a landfill site believed to be one of the largest urban mass graves in the world. |
32,698,253 | That is a reflection of David Cameron's long-held belief that ministers need time to master their briefs so moving them merely strengthens the hands of those inside and outside departments who are resisting their agenda.
It would be a mistake, however, to see only the continuity and not the change.
The prime minister wants his new majority government to prove that the Tory election slogan - the real party of working people - is just that.
Hence Tory HQ's desire to highlight the appointment as business secretary, Sajid Javid, whose father was a bus driver and a new party vice chairman, Robert Halfon, who's argued for what he calls blue collar conservatism.
That, though, is not the change that really matters.
It is the fact that there are no Liberal Democrats in this cabinet, there is no deputy prime minister, there is no "Quad" - in which David Cameron and George Osborne were forced to negotiate with Nick Clegg and Danny Alexander before any important policy could be announced.
This is a Tory cabinet unbound. The question that remains unanswered is how much that will change what they want and feel able to do. | At first sight it felt less like a reshuffle and more like a re-appoint with more than half of the old cabinet - and almost all those in the top jobs - keeping their old posts. |
30,458,049 | The problem has prevented incoming calls to parts of the Gartnavel campus.
The board said the fault has not affected internal lines between departments and had no impact on patient care.
It added that engineers were working hard to solve the problem. | Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board have apologised after a technical fault prevented one of its hospitals receiving external calls. |
12,216,776 | What is the legacy of the New Cross fire?
The victims, aged between 14 and 22, were killed in the blaze as they attended a 16th birthday party at 439 New Cross Road, Deptford, in 1981.
London Fire Brigade also held a guard of honour for the young victims.
Up to 300 people listened to a poetry reading and observed a two-minute silence as the plaque was unveiled.
On the night of the fire more than 100 guests had gathered at the flat for Yvonne Ruddock's birthday party. She was among those who died in the blaze.
In addition to the 13 youngsters who were killed in the fire Anthony Burbeck, who was at the party, died two years later.
Many people believe Antony took his own life as a result of what he saw that night and losing several of his friends and the plaque refers to 14 deaths, including his.
The original inquest, which began within months of the incident, returned open verdicts.
The investigation into the fire was reopened in 1997, following lobbying by members of the victims' families, and a second inquest was ordered in 2002.
That inquest also recorded an open verdict in 2004. | A memorial plaque has been unveiled in memory of 13 black youngsters who died in a fire at a flat in south-east London 30 years ago. |
33,044,766 | Chancellor Angela Merkel wants the group to reach an agreement on limiting global temperature rises.
She is also calling on the G7 members to contribute to a fund for poor countries suffering the worst consequences of climate change.
There are also talks on the threat from radical extremism with the leaders of Nigeria, Tunisia and Iraq.
The summit is being held at the picturesque Schloss Elmau hotel in Kruen in the Bavarian Alps.
The leaders of the US, UK, Japan, France, Canada and Italy are attending the talks, hosted by Ms Merkel.
The first working session on Monday focused on climate and energy, with Chancellor Merkel trying to get leaders to agree to keeping temperature rises within 2C of pre-industrial levels.
She is hoping to secure commitments from her G7 guests on tackling global warming to build momentum before a major United Nations climate summit in Paris in December.
G7 leaders were then joined by Iraqi PM Haider al-Abadi, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi to discuss the threat posed by groups like Islamic State (IS) and Boko Haram.
On Sunday, Prime Minister David Cameron said the UK was sending an extra 125 military trainers to Iraq to help in the battle against IS, describing the militants as "the biggest threat" G7 leaders had to address.
IS continues to control large swathes of Iraq and Syria despite being the target of a US-led air campaign against them.
In Nigeria, a similar regional battle is being fought against Boko Haram militants who have carried out attacks since 2009 to try to create an Islamic state. | Climate change and terrorism are top of the agenda on the second day of the G7 summit of economic powers in Germany. |
32,620,313 | Chan, whose son was jailed for drugs offences, said that with drugs "you're hurting thousands of young children".
Jaycee Chan spent six months in prison in China after police found marijuana in his home.
Jackie Chan is Singapore's first celebrity anti-drug ambassador. He was named official Narcotics Control Ambassador by Chinese police in 2009.
Both Singapore and China have enforced capital punishment for drug trafficking.
In an interview with journalists conducted in both English and Mandarin, he said drugs were not only hurting young people, they were hurting his family.
"On some issues, I do support the death penalty," he said.
"When you're hurting thousands and thousands of young children, I think these kind of people are useless.
"You should get the right punishment."
He added: "[Young people say] 'it's okay, it's just like a cigarette'. I say 'it's not okay, not in my family'."
Jaycee, 32, was imprisoned for not just using drugs, but for the additional and more serious crime of "providing a shelter for others to abuse drugs", Beijing police said at the time.
When asked about Jaycee's time in prison, Chan said he felt "ashamed" and "shocked" and that he was now more focused on his son.
"I'm more concentrating on him now, used to be just, 'you are a grown man.' But now I find out, he's still a boy," Chan said. | Hong Kong actor Jackie Chan has said he supports the use of the death penalty for some drug offenders. |
13,080,333 | There are an average of 7,500 reported incidents a year, including 50 assaults involving weapons, a BBC Wales investigation shows.
At the same time, prosecutions and other sanctions have reached their highest rate.
There has been a Welsh Government drive to cut abuse, and it says the rise is due to more incidents being reported.
Last year 300 incidents resulted in prosecution or other action.
The Welsh Government said that improved safety measures are in place to protect staff and it is making progress.
Data shows that much of the abuse is carried out by patients with mental health problems like dementia and is unintentional.
The figures were obtained by BBC Wales using the Freedom of Information Act and show that the reported violence has remained fairly static over six years despite targeted measures to tackle the problem. However, it was down this year, from 8,343 last year to 7,558.
More than 9,000 incidents in the past four years resulted in injury to staff and led to thousands of days of work lost.
The most serious assaults included more than 80 sexual assaults of staff at hospitals across Wales. A further 50 involved weapons.
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board even had figures showing that since 2007, 258 members of staff had suffered abuse - either verbal or physical - at the hands of their co-workers.
They said that around 60 were reported each year with most relating to claims of verbal abuse or perceived disruptive behaviour.
A spokesman said: "While occasional disagreements will inevitably occur between colleagues, especially working in an environment that at times can be pressured and stressful, the fact that the number of incidents that are reported formally is so low shows that most of these are resolved at a local level."
Neil Evans, 40, is an A&E nurse at Bridgend's Princess of Wales Hospital.
He says violence and aggression is a fact of life for most staff.
"We do have a zero tolerance policy and there is a lot of support at our hospital.
"The police do intervene but it would be good to have more feedback on how these people are being dealt with and if they are being prosecuted."
He says he has been threatened and almost punched a few times and colleagues do experience regular threats from drunken patients.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) applauded the work being done but questioned why some health boards are still referring so few cases to the police.
Tina Donnelly, director of the RCN in Wales, said: "It is pleasing to see an increase in the number of prosecutions and the number of reported cases has increased due to a zero tolerance policy.
"Our anecdotal evidence is that nurses in Wales are delighted things are changing as four years ago eight out of 10 reported being a victim of violence," she added.
In 2009 a cross-party group of AMs said aggression against NHS workers in Wales had been tackled with a "lack of urgency".
CCTV was installed at four hospital A&E departments and in five ambulances, while thousands of lone workers were given panic buttons.
Last December then Health Minister Edwina Hart launched a new drive with the NHS, the police, and the Crown Prosecution Service.
But Dr Charles Allanby, a Cardiff GP who was been a victim of violence and once foiled a knife-wielding patient in his surgery, said more needs to be done to tackle the root cause - alcohol.
He told BBC Wales: "Attacks on doctors or nurses are indefensible.
"One does have to accept it's something you come across and is sometimes the result of people having mental health problems.
"In A&E departments there is a clear association with alcohol and it is directly to do with the longer licensing hours.
"People should be lobbying their councillors and local MPs to see this problem tackled."
His view was shared by the Welsh Ambulance Service, which saw attacks rise to 257 in 2010.
A spokesman said the causes of violence are "societal".
"Incidents experienced by ambulance crews are often associated with excessive alcohol consumption by the assailants.
"We uphold a zero tolerance policy against this form of abuse and do our utmost to report this behaviour to the police to pursue prosecution against offenders."
The Welsh Government said that when the programme started in 2008, prosecutions were in single figures.
In 2010-11 there were 126 successful prosecutions with some leading to custodial sentences.
In addition, there were 143 other sanctions, such as fixed penalties and anti-social behaviour orders.
A spokesperson said: "Case management is a key component of the Welsh Government's approach to protecting staff against violence and aggression, while supporting those who have been affected by it.
"There is still much to do, but the early indicators are that, working together, we are making progress.
"Pressure to reduce the risks of violence and aggression towards NHS staff will continue."
Reassurance
Encouraging staff to report incidents is a key priority, the spokesperson said.
In future hospitals in Wales are to try to reduce the levels of crime in their A&E departments through the use of better design.
Cwm Taf Health Board said: "Whilst no prosecutions have been made, there has been a noticeable rise in reassurance and a reduction in the fear of crime in all staff groups."
It said there have been 75 incidents in which the police were involved and in the period April 2010 to March 2011 there were 13 Asbo referrals while there are two incidents currently under investigation by the police.
Powys, which does not have any A&E units, said most incidents were connected with patients with mental health issues or elderly patients.
"It should be noted that the number of incidents has fallen considerably in the last year or so despite an increased awareness amongst staff in terms of reporting." | Hospital staff and paramedics are the victims of thousands of violent attacks each year, latest figures show. |
35,846,096 | Sion Bedwyr Evans, 41, of of Llanrug, and Garry Vaughan Roberts, 43, of Caernarfon, had faced 50 charges between them.
They were alleged to have happened at Canolfan Brynffynnon in Y Felinheli between September 2006 and March 2014.
The Crown Prosecution Service said the charges had been dropped after new information from the police.
Catrin Evans, head of the CPS Cymru-Wales Complex Casework Unit, said they had written to the court confirming the prosecution will offer no evidence against Mr Evans, who was acting head teacher at the unit, and his colleague. | Two members of staff at a Gwynedd education referral unit have had child cruelty charges against them dropped. |
31,243,486 | The Institute of Cancer Research's (ICR) first phase of Sutton for Life is the Centre for Cancer Imaging, which will assess new cancer drugs.
Plans for the site also include a new school offering apprenticeships in life sciences at the centre.
ICR said the project could eventually create up to 10,000 new jobs.
Sutton Council said, when complete, the cancer research campus would be second only in size globally to the MD Anderson campus in Texas, United States.
The newly-opened Cancer Imaging Centre allows researchers to assess and monitor the effectiveness of cancer drugs as well as develop new imaging techniques to view tumours.
Cathy Scivier, ICR's chief operating officer, said: "Our long-term plan for this site is to create a second town centre for Sutton which includes coffee shops and a crèche."
Ms Scivier said the estimated investment for the project did not include the costs of any new transport infrastructure, which includes a proposal to extend a tram link up to the site.
Researchers are expected to move into the cancer imaging centre over the next few months. | The first phase of a £170m project to build the UK's biggest campus specialising in cancer diagnosis is complete in south west London. |
38,381,491 | The move will mean the closure of surgical services in Edinburgh for the condition, which affects 100 babies born in Scotland every year.
Campaigners against the proposal said it would make life more difficult for families on the east coast.
But Health Secretary Shona Robison insisted it would ensure a "safe and sustainable service" for patients.
Surgery can help babies born with cleft lips or palates to eat and talk when they are older, with Scotland currently having two clinics - in Edinburgh and Glasgow - which specialise in the procedure.
Ms Robison said the two expert surgical teams would now work together as a single team, with all cleft surgery now performed at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.
The new services will start early next year, with a transition period of six months towards a single surgical team.
It will only apply to surgical procedures, with no reduction in the number of local outreach clinics.
The wider teams involved in cleft care including speech therapy, orthodontists, ENT surgeons and paediatric dentistry will also continue to be delivered locally.
The recommendation from NHS board chief executives and experts has been accepted following a review into the current set-up.
Ms Robison said: "We will have cleft surgeons working alongside one another and sharing best practice and knowledge, with an even distribution of surgical procedures, which means patients will get the treatment they need when they need it.
"In any scenario like this it's important to spend time listening to patients, families, stakeholders and experts, which is what I have done, so we can come to a fully informed decision that is in the best interests of cleft patients."
Supporters of a 6,200-signature petition opposing the move staged a protest outside Holyrood ahead of a parliamentary debate on the issue in September.
Conservative MSP Miles Briggs, who backed the campaigners, said the centralisation decision was "one of the worst decisions regarding our health service this SNP government has taken".
He added: "Ministers have completely failed to listen to the views of clinicians, patients and campaigners and have made the wrong decision.
"The Edinburgh surgical unit is led by an internationally renowned surgeon and the audited outcomes it achieves for babies and children are among the best, if not the best, in the whole of the UK. The health secretary's decision now risks the loss of all of this."
Dr David Stokes, chief executive of the Cleft Lip and Palate Association (Clapa), said he was pleased a decision had been made following a "considerable period of uncertainty" for parents and patients.
And he said he was confident that the surgical teams involved will continue to provide first-class care to everyone born with a cleft in Scotland.
Dr Stokes added: "Many people have valid concerns about what these changes might mean for them and their families, and it is important that these are addressed directly.
"We urge NHS Scotland to work with Clapa and the cleft community to ensure that everyone impacted by this change is well supported, both during the transition period and beyond, and that their voices are taken into account now just as they were throughout the lengthy consultation process. | Plans to centralise cleft palate and lip surgeries in Glasgow have been approved by the Scottish government. |
38,457,495 | The blaze broke out at a bungalow on the Foreglen Road, Dungiven, just after 19:00 GMT on Wednesday.
Two Shih Tzu dogs died in the fire, which the Fire Service (NIFRS) believes was accidental.
A fire in a rear bedroom had been extinguished prior to the arrival of firefighters.
The owner told the BBC he and his wife tried to save their dogs while the house was on fire. | A man and a woman in their 50s have been treated in hospital for smoke inhalation after a fire at a house in County Londonderry. |
40,405,377 | The £10.5m package will see 40 new jobs at the broadcaster, including 25 additional journalist posts.
It will support the equivalent of 100 jobs across the independent TV sector.
Director Rhodri Talfan Davies said it would ensure BBC Wales was "a bold and ambitious broadcaster for the whole nation, young and old".
According to BBC Wales, £8.5m of the investment is new funding and follows pledges to spend more on programmes in February.
It follows announcements last week on plans for a new monthly debate programme and a new weekly current affairs programme for Wales.
The broadcaster has also said it will expand FM coverage for Radio Wales in north and mid Wales, and is launching a new morning service for Radio Cymru.
"Audiences in Wales already rate the BBC more highly than any other UK nation, but this is an unprecedented opportunity to deepen our connection with viewers and listeners in every part of the nation," added the BBC Wales director.
"We're putting entertainment right at the heart of our plans - and we have an exciting range of new comedy and drama projects in the pipeline with some of our nation's biggest and brightest talents. | BBC Wales will deliver its biggest single investment for two decades for television, radio and mobile services, it has been announced. |
34,346,158 | Ex-minister Liam Bryne, a member of the group called "Red Shift", said Labour needed to embrace an English identity.
He told the BBC the party had lost touch with its roots and people did not know who it stood for anymore.
Asked if Jeremy Corbyn could reconnect with voters, Mr Byrne said he "can definitely start us on the route back".
It comes after Jon Cruddas, who wrote Labour's 2015 manifesto and then led the review into its defeat, warned that Labour had "lost its connection with the English people".
He has called for the creation of an English Labour Party "to help identify the politics and policies we will need to win a majority of English seats", saying that "England will decide Labour's future".
Labour was reduced to its lowest number of MPs since 1987 at May's general election, after failing to breakthrough in England and suffering heavy losses at the hands of the SNP in Scotland.
The Red Shift group - which also includes shadow education secretary Heidi Alexander, Labour MPs Shabhana Mahmood and MP Nic Dakin and Labour councillor Caroline Badley - has been touring the country speaking to voters about why they did not support Labour in May.
In its report, the group outlines 10 "key shifts" it says Labour needs to make in order to win a majority in England.
Among its recommendations is for the party to fix its "badly damaged" brand, by becoming "proud of our roots" and embracing the "politics of English identity".
Labour also needs to address its "credibility deficit" on the economy and broaden its appeal "to include the successful, the self-employed and entrepreneurs, and the over 55s", the group says.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, shadow skills minister Liam Byrne said that at the time of the last election people did not know what Labour stood for.
"We had lots of people who just thought we had lost touch with our roots, we had lost our soul and they just weren't sure what to make of us.
"I'm afraid that went alongside distrust of our record and our plans for public spending."
Reminded that as outgoing Treasury chief secretary following Labour's defeat in 2010 he famously left a note to his successor saying "there is no money", Mr Bryne said it was a "regrettable" thing to have done.
The Birmingham Hodge Hill MP said the party lacked a plan on business and on the economy, which it needed to address if it was to win again.
Asked if Jeremy Corbyn was the right man to reconnect with voters who had deserted the Labour Party, Mr Byrne said he thought he was, saying the new leader had brought a bit of "soul force" back to the party.
"In many ways he is the craft ale of the Labour movement. He's authentic, he's got strong flavours and he's seen as something different to bland mediocrity of politics," Mr Byrne added.
But Labour also needed "a bold vision" for how it "owns the future", he added, saying it needed to become the party of the self-employed, entrepreneurs and high-tech jobs. | A group of Labour MPs has published a "route map" for winning back voters in England, where the party performed badly at the general election. |
37,090,314 | Brendan Rodgers' Celtic host Israel's champions in Wednesday's play-off first leg.
Hibs boss Lennon twice guided Celtic through tricky qualifiers to reach the group stage of the competition.
"I think Brendan knows what's at stake. It sets the whole season up brilliantly," Lennon said.
"I have spoken to him about it personally. I said, 'Look, these are your biggest games of the season'.
"The build-up is awful - it's just like a Celtic-Rangers game. But once the game's underway, it's great.
"They are awful to negotiate. You don't know who you're going to get, you don't know if the players are ready yet.
"I think the Celtic players are up to speed now, judging by the performances of late.
"Knowing you're going back in [to the group stage] and what it means to the club and all those big games to look forward to, it's special."
Hapoel beat Greek side Olympiacos to reach the play-off stage.
"They've got a tough draw," added Lennon, who managed Celtic from 2010 to 2014. "I've signed an Israeli goalkeeper [Ofir Marciano]. I asked him about Hapoel, he said, 'They're a very good side'.
"I think Celtic will need to take something from Glasgow to there to protect because I think they're a good side at home.
"Olympiacos - they've been regular last-16 campaigners over a number of years so if it can happen to them, it can happen to anyone." | Celtic are "up to speed" as they bid to get past Hapoel Beer Sheva and reach the Champions League group stage, their former manager Neil Lennon says. |
30,288,049 | Phil Rudd was excused from appearing in New Zealand's Tauranga District Court, with his lawyer entering his plea.
The 60-year-old Australian-born musician was originally charged with attempting to procure the murder of two men.
That charge was dropped because of a lack of evidence.
In an earlier ruling, the names of the alleged murder targets and that of the alleged hit-man were suppressed.
Crown prosecutor Greg Hollister-Jones on Tuesday applied for witness names and any statements they made to be suppressed, according to New Zealand media outlet stuff.co.nz.
The court agreed but ruled that because of strong public interest in the case, details of the charges and a summary of facts should be released by the Crown.
Mr Rudd remains on bail and his case will be called again in February.
The drummer was kicked out of AC/DC in 1983 and rejoined in 1994.
He did not appear in a new photo of band members released in October to promote their upcoming album Rock Or Bust, and was reportedly absent from the filming of a new music video, prompting online speculation about whether he was still in the band. | The drummer of rock band AC/DC has pleaded not guilty to charges of threatening to kill and possession of drugs. |
36,088,794 | South Korea forward Ji So-Yun put Chelsea ahead with a low first-half strike and Gilly Flaherty's header from a second-half corner made it two.
Liverpool went close through Katie Zelem and eventually pulled a deserved goal back through Caroline Weir.
But Chelsea held on to inflict a first league defeat of 2016 on Liverpool.
The defending champions had looked comfortable when Flaherty, who signed a new two-year contract earlier on Wednesday, nodded in their second.
But Chelsea goalkeeper Hedvig Lindahl, who had done brilliantly to deny Weir before the break, had to be withdrawn after taking a knock.
Her replacement, Rebecca Spencer, then produced a superb reaction save to keep out Niamh Charles' late effort.
Arsenal Ladies go third with win at Reading
Birmingham Ladies earn first points of the season
Liverpool boss Scott Rogers told BBC Radio 5 live sports extra: "I thought we deserved a point. I'm delighted with the performance.
"They (Chelsea) are the champions for a reason. They've probably not performed at their best but they've still managed to win the game.
"They're a top class team and we've caused them a lot of problems tonight."
Chelsea Ladies boss Emma Hayes told BBC Radio 5 live sports extra: "Credit to Liverpool. I thought they deserved something from the game.
"It just showed how much work we're going to have to do, if we're to progress any further. We lacked experience in the middle of the park." | Chelsea Ladies moved back to the top of Women's Super League One as they made it three wins from their first three matches by beating Liverpool. |
38,643,574 | Conservative AM Darren Millar said the coastline was further damaged by bad weather in early January, and is now in a "critical condition".
He has planned to raise the issue in the Senedd on Tuesday.
Network Rail said assessments show there is "minimal flood risk to the railway".
But Clywd West AM Mr Millar said he is "very concerned" and warned every storm "takes its toll" on the promenade.
"There was further damage last week to the railings and some of the walls on the sea defences," he added.
"It's just a matter of time before we see a serious incident like a loss of life or even some of the railway embankment coming down which would cause absolute havoc.
"It's essential that some work is done here - not just repairs, but a thorough job to bring it up to standard so that people can be protected from the sea."
The stretch of coastline consists of a narrow promenade, which is maintained by Conwy council, with the railway embankment immediately behind, and the main A55 road beyond it.
A Welsh Water storm drain also runs under the promenade.
Conwy councillor Cheryl Carlisle, who represents the area, said: "I'm very worried for the safety of people and the infrastructure. The bank supporting the railway line and the A55 has been badly eroded.
"It will only take a little bit more in future and they'll both go."
According to Mr Millar, a lack of agreement between different organisations over how to pay for works is holding up progress.
He said Conwy council cannot apply for money from the Welsh Government's fund to protect houses because there are no homes immediately nearby, which means it needs to find funding from Network Rail and other organisations.
"In spite of the council's best efforts, Conwy council, Network Rail and Welsh Water haven't managed to get together yet to agree a way forward," Mr Millar added.
"We need some leadership from the Welsh Government. We need the cabinet secretary to take responsibility to bring these partners together so we can realise the investment that these sea defences need."
A Network Rail spokesman said a number of improvements were made at Old Colwyn in 2014 and the firm would do what was needed to make any further improvements if necessary.
A Welsh Water spokesperson said sea defences fall under the responsibility of the local authority.
They added: "We understand that Conwy Council have requested funding from the Welsh Government to help undertake repair work and requested to be kept informed of developments." | Urgent action is needed to strengthen sea defences protecting the railway line and the A55 in Old Colwyn or lives could be lost, an AM has said. |
39,747,126 | Gavin Samuels, 26, was convicted after two trials at Luton Crown Court.
Sentencing Samuels on Friday Judge Lynn Tayton QC described him as "predatory and manipulative".
Samuels, the 2011 winner of the Faldo Series Grand Final and who coached two of the victims at a Bedfordshire golf club, was jailed for 14 and a half years.
Samuels, of Melfort Drive, Linslade, near Leighton Buzzard, was convicted of four counts of rape and six charges of various sexual assaults on two girls aged under 16.
Judge Tayton QC said: "I have been told that golf was your life but you were not deterred that you could lose your career. You were in a position of trust.
"There is evidence of a long history of your interest in young girls which manifested itself when you were 15 and continued until you were reported to police," said the judge.
The offences were committed between 2006 and 2014.
The first victim was about 12 when the abuse began and he was aged between 15 and 16 years.
She was 13 when he first raped her.
The two other victims were aged between 14 and 16.
He urged the girls not to tell anyone, saying it would ruin his career.
Sasha Bailey, defending, said before the sentence was passed: "Golf has been a major part of his life and career. He knows he is going to receive a lengthy sentence."
Det Insp Grant Maxted said after the case: "Samuels took advantage of the youth and naivety of his victims in a bid to sexually abuse them.
"He gave them gifts and items such as cigarettes in exchange for attention and sexual acts, as well as bombarding them with inappropriate messages." | A former professional golfer who raped a teenage girl and sexually assaulted two others has been jailed. |
28,844,162 | Special Report: The Technology of Business
Smartphone stress: Are you a victim?
Quantum computers to crack the world
The world is not enough
Keeping the cyber thieves at bay
Nollywood finds its global audience online
Epilepsy affects about 50 million people around the world and is the most common serious brain disorder, according to the World Health Organization.
Diagnosis isn't easy.
A seizure has to be recorded while a patient is hooked up to an electroencephalography (EEG) machine.
"Epileptic symptoms vary widely and... many different types of epileptic disorders exist that react differently to various medical treatments," says Dr Vincent Navarro, a neurologist at the Pitie-Salpetriere Hospital in Paris.
"Moreover, seizures happen at an irregular rate. It is therefore rare to record a seizure while doing a standard EEG recording of 20 minutes to one hour.
"Finally, non-epileptic events are in nearly 20% of cases wrongly considered to be linked with epilepsy when they could be of a completely different origin, for instance loss of consciousness that can be cardiac or psychiatric."
The hospital is working with a start-up on something it hopes will make diagnosis easier and faster.
Instead of being hooked up to a machine via an array of cabling, patients wear a t-shirt and optional cap at home, and biometric sensors feed information to a smartphone app.
"Instead of using desktop computers that force patients to remain in bed, we can use smartphones and use a wireless connection," says Pierre Frouin, the chief executive of Bioserenity, which makes the Wemu system.
"You need to record the brain's electronic activity, an electroencephalogram. That signal is actually very, very hard to catch - it's a signal that's a microvolt, as opposed to an electrocardiogram which is a millivolt, so it's a thousand times smaller."
"The smartphone will do the first level of intelligence, and the internet connection will send that information to a cloud system [to be analysed]."
A firm diagnosis can be reached in a matter of days or weeks instead of potentially years - giving access to appropriate treatment.
"Epilepsy is not simply a one-off diagnosis. It can severely disable people in terms of their capacity to live meaningful, independent lives," says Carol Ireland of Epilepsy Action Australia, who are backing the project.
Developing technology like this means navigating complex regulatory frameworks.
Working with clothing also brings particular challenges. "The limitation would be on the sensors, how durable they are," says Paul Sonnier, publisher of the Digital Health Post.
"When you integrate electronics into clothing, you've got to think about the use case, is it alright washing? And how do you have it in the clothing so you can use it all the time?"
Complex technology also takes time.
A bra to detect breast cancer has been debated in various quarters over the past 20 years.
Then a company called First Warning Systems announced a prototype in 2012 that claims to use thermal dynamic measurement - which records differences in body temperature that are then analysed using a predictive algorithm - to find tumours.
Despite some initial scepticism from some in the field, the company remains confident the technology is sound, and has continued to develop the bra further. This includes using a removable insert for the version intended for use in healthcare institutions rather than embedded sensors, and further refinements of the algorithm that reads the data.
"Our technology [during clinical trials] was able to detect cancers in cases where mammography missed the diagnosis in tumours which were smaller than mammography would normally detect, or in those cases where the patient was listed as 'technically difficult to image', or those patients with dense tissue," says company president Rob Royea.
A fourth round of clinical trials is planned for October, and the company is in the process of applying for a CE mark (product approval) in the EU, and for FDA clearance for the current iteration of the product in the US.
Another problem can be persuading the medical profession of the merits of this type of technology, according to Paul Sonnier.
"The big challenge is doctors didn't want to look at that stuff in the past because... they didn't trust the data."
OMsignal manufactures a range of smart exercise clothing with biometric sensors that measure performance and gives you an electrocardiogram (ECG) reading.
The data is collected by a separate device, which communicates with an app on a smartphone, which then connects with the cloud where it can be analysed by a series of complex algorithms.
The company has carefully placed sensors with patented technology in the fabric. It claims that as the sensors will read vital signs when both wet and dry, it is more accurate than a wristband, for example.
"We need to wear clothes and so we figured that that's the best place to put these sort of sensors," says Dr Jesse Slade Shantz, OMsignal's chief medical officer.
"It is right in the clothes that you wear on a day to day basis."
Dr Slade Shantz was originally tasked with exploring whether the technology could replace the Holter monitor - a wearable heart tracker.
"The idea was that there's such a huge market there for us. It's something you would think that's like a golden goose right?" he says.
"But I know what doctors are like because I am one. And to get a doctor to accept that sort of technology, to replace something they're already using that fits into their daily routine is very difficult.
"Not to mention the fact that, particularly in the US, which is one of the major markets for these technologies, the physicians actually make money putting Holter monitors on people. They won't make money unless we somehow cut them in.
"So we had to be realistic and figure out what would make a sustainable business and then bridge into that."
Shipments of smart wearables are expected to grow from 9.7 million in 2013 to 135 million in 2018, according to CCS Insight.
As we get better at embedding technology into our clothing, and arguably become more comfortable with the idea that our knickers could know where we're going and what we're doing, smart clothing might just prove to be the most accessible and familiar way to sell wearable tech to the man in the street.
Wemu's Pierre Frouin is banking on it. Diagnosis is just the beginning - he wants the technology to tell the people around an epileptic what to do during a seizure.
"The final step is to get it to a point where it can predict when a seizure is likely to happen. This would revolutionise the life of patients and what those patients are allowed to do," he says.
Epilepsy Action Australia's Carol Ireland agrees.
"In many countries there is still misunderstanding and even stigma surrounding the condition," she says.
"Many people who have epilepsy are confronted by the dilemma of whether to 'go public' and risk the negative reaction of others in the community. Depression and even suicide is more common in those with a diagnosis of epilepsy than for the general public.
"Accurate diagnosis of epilepsy and seizure syndrome and effective management of the condition is core to patients achieving the best possible life quality and outcomes." | The ancient Greeks called it "the sacred disease". |
37,985,667 | The men reportedly face charges of "kidnapping and assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm".
The 20 second video showed a white man forcing a black man inside a coffin, and threatening to pour petrol over him and set it alight.
The video, which was circulated on social media, has caused widespread outrage.
The men are due to appear in the Middleburg Magistrate Court on Wednesday.
Africa Live: More on this and other stories
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The victim, Victor Rethabile Mlotshwa, was resisting and could be heard screaming as his captors - named as Willem Oosthuizen and Theo Martins Jacksonthen - threatened to put a snake inside the coffin.
It is not clear what happened to Mr Mlotshwa after the filming ended.
The opposition Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) said: "This humiliation can be based on nothing else but his blackness, which means it is in actual fact a humiliation of black people as a whole."
The incident is said to have taken place at JM De Beer Boerdery next to Komati Power Station, close to Middelburg in Mpumalanga, the eNCA website reported.
South Africa has seen a spate of racially charged incidents in recent history, such as videos of white people calling black people monkeys, but the coffin case has sent shockwaves across the country - due to its horrific nature.
It is not clear when the video was shot but the incident has opened old wounds, with some likening it to the torture black people endured at the height of white minority rule here.
But is South Africa more racially divided now?
The South African Human Rights Commission does not believe so but adds that more cases are being reported - mainly because social media has helped break the silence and made it easier for people to share their stories.
The commission has also found that people are more educated about their rights and what recourse they can take.
As a result of the well-reported incidents in the media, South Africa is in the process of introducing specific laws to prosecute race related crimes. | Two white South Africans have been arrested over a video in which a black man was forced into a coffin. |
18,158,646 | The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) said it had received a complaint from solicitors after the photograph was published in December.
The magazine printed an apology on its
emails page
.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's main home is on Anglesey, where he is a search and rescue pilot at RAF Valley.
The
complaint
was made under clauses in the editors' code of practice relating to privacy and harassment.
The magazine said: "In our issue cover-dated 3 - 9 December 2011, we published a photograph of the Duchess of Cambridge, taken while she was shopping in a store.
"We now accept that we should not have done so, and apologise to her for our actions."
It will be printed in its edition for 26 May - 1 June. | Celebrity magazine Heat has apologised to the Duchess of Cambridge after publishing a photograph of her shopping at a supermarket last year. |
38,757,658 | The Devon-born musician, the only person to have won the prestigious Mercury Prize twice, tops the bill at the 15th annual festival at Glanusk Park, Powys, on Saturday, 19 August.
Grammy-nominated Ryan Adams, on Sunday, and Future Islands, on Friday, have been named as the other headliners.
The festival was a sell-out last year, with about 20,000 people attending.
Festival director Fiona Stewart said: "We are beyond ecstatic to welcome PJ Harvey.
"The sheer thought of it is already giving us goose bumps," she added.
The 47-year-old, whose full name is Polly Jean Harvey, became the first woman to win the Mercury Prize, when her Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea won best album of 2001.
Ten years later, her album Let England Shake, a collection of songs inspired by conflicts around the world, won the prize.
And last year, her ninth studio album, The Hope Six Demolition Project, became her first number one in the UK album charts.
She has not played in Wales for more than 10 years and the Green Man festival, situated in the Brecon Beacons National Park, will be her only UK show in 2017.
Other acts booked for this year's festival include the two-time Mercury nominated Michael Kiwanuka, Lambchop, Conor Oberst and Angela Olsen.
Among the other prominent acts appearing are BBC Radio 6 Music's album of the year winners BadBadNotGood, as well as DJ Jon Hopkins, Field Music and Julia Jacklin.
Previous headliners have included legendary Belfast-born blues and rock singer Van Morrison, ex-Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant, US singer-songwriter Patti Smith, Cardiff rockers Super Furry Animals, alt-folk singer-songwriter Laura Marling, Fleet Foxes, Jarvis Cocker and Doves.
Founded in 2003, Green Man has become one of the most popular alternative festivals.
It won the 2010 best medium-sized event and 2012 best "grass roots" event at the UK Festival Awards, and 2015 best festival at the Live Music Business awards. | Singer-songwriter PJ Harvey has been unveiled as the headline act for the 2017 Green Man festival. |
40,133,949 | After arriving from Italian team Asiago last summer, Bentivoglio played a big part in helping the Devils become Elite League Champions.
In 63 games last term, the 31-year-old scored 20 goals and added 39 assists for 59 points.
Devils coach, Andrew Lord, said: "He is a great team player with loads of character and he is a proven winner." | Cardiff Devils have re-signed Canadian-born forward Sean Bentivoglio for the 2017-18 season |
36,791,126 | Evan Mawarire told the BBC people should stay at home as part of a campaign against corruption, economic mismanagement and unemployment.
He said the campaign was serious about wanting change.
Mr Mawarire was freed on Wednesday when a court in Harare dismissed a legal case against him.
His lawyers successfully argued that the charge of subversion had been added at the last minute, denying him a fair trial.
The pastor has been at the heart of a social media campaign denouncing the government's management of the economy.
He said the #ThisFlag movement's goal was to "get as many citizens as possible involved in nation-building".
The crowds that gathered for the court appearance of Pastor Evan Mawarire show the power of social media in Zimbabwe. Those who were able packed into the courtroom and reacted in shock and then derision when prosecutors added a new charge of subversion, meaning the state believed the preacher was attempting to overthrow President Robert Mugabe.
But the ambush tactics did not work as the defence team was able to argue that the last-minute charge denied the pastor a fair trial. It was still a brave decision by a magistrate given the prevailing difficult political circumstances.
Many of those who showed up in solidarity were draped in the national flag: It is no longer just a symbol of national pride, but a statement that the country should not be monopolised by a political elite. Social media activists have taken the fight for political reforms to new levels and the authorities are having difficulty controlling and monitoring them.
It is a pastor with no known political credentials who has managed to galvanise the nation, calling for an end to corruption. The stay away call may be muted - with civil servants not wanting to give the authorities an excuse not to pay them - but the unprecedented scenes outside court mark a change of tone in Zimbabwean activism.
The pastor's latest call for people to stay away from work in protest at the economic crisis went largely unheeded, with most businesses opening as normal on Wednesday.
Mr Mawarire admitted the protest was not as successful as last week's - when the country's cities were deserted - but said the strike should continue on Thursday.
He said: "Let's all shut down and send a message to our government that enough is enough, we need changes in very simple things, in very simple areas.
"And our protest - non-violent, non-inciting, stay-at-home - is the best because it is within the confines of the law.
"Every Zimbabwean who does not participate is robbing us of a great opportunity to add to the momentum of where our country is going." | A Zimbabwean pastor who was detained after organising a nationwide strike last week has called on people to keep protesting. |
37,604,083 | News agencies reported Samsung had temporarily halted production after talks with safety regulators.
Samsung told the BBC it was "adjusting the production schedule to ensure quality and safety matters".
The company has been forced to issue new models of the smartphone following complaints of faulty batteries.
It issued a recall of the Galaxy Note 7 in September and later assured customers that the fixed devices were safe.
But there have now been several reports of replacement phones starting to emit smoke.
In a further blow, two US mobile networks have stopped replacing or selling the phone.
The AT&T and T-Mobile networks said they would no longer replace the devices in the US, while the latter said it would halt all sales of the phone.
"While Samsung investigates multiple reports of issues, T-Mobile is temporarily suspending all sales of the new Note 7 and exchanges for replacement Note 7 devices," T-Mobile said on its website.
Meanwhile, AT&T said: "We're no longer exchanging new Note 7s at this time, pending further investigation of these reported incidents." It advised customers to exchange them for other devices.
Samsung said in a statement last month that the issue of overheating was caused by a "rare" manufacturing error that resulted in the battery's "anode-to-cathode [negative and positive electrodes]" coming into contact.
But last week, a domestic flight in the US was evacuated after a replacement Note 7 started emitting smoke in the cabin. And a man in Kentucky reportedly woke up to a bedroom full of smoke from a replaced Note 7.
In an update on Monday, Samsung said it understood the concerns of carriers and consumers about the newly released replacement Note 7 devices.
"We continue to move quickly to investigate the reported case to determine the cause and will share findings as soon as possible," Samsung said.
"If we conclude a product safety issue exists, we will work with the CPSC (US Consumer Product Safety Commission) to take immediate steps to address the situation."
Shares in Samsung Electronics closed down 1.5% in Seoul.
Eric Schiffer, a brand strategy expert at Reputation Management Consultants, said the company needed to take action to limit the harm to its image.
"If the Note 7 is allowed to continue, it could lead to the single greatest act of brand self-destruction in the history of modern technology," he said.
"Samsung needs to take a giant writedown and cast the Note 7 to the engineering hall of shame next to the Ford Pinto."
In 1977, the Pinto was the subject of a then-record US recall to address safety concerns. | Smartphone giant Samsung has reportedly stopped production of its Note 7 phone amid claims that replacement devices are still at risk of catching fire. |
38,572,082 | His appointment as lead counsel was confirmed by the inquiry's fourth chairwoman, Professor Alexis Jay.
He replaces Ben Emmerson QC, who quit in September and was subsequently cleared of allegations of sexual assault and harassment.
He has served as first senior treasury counsel - prosecuting serious cases for the Crown Prosecution Service.
The inquiry, which was set up in July 2014, has previously experienced a string of problems.
Mr Altman said: "The Government and the public have set the inquiry a huge challenge to investigate institutional responses to child sexual abuse in the past, and to report and make recommendations in order to prevent such abuse happening in the future.
"I am delighted to have been appointed to lead a team of lawyers dedicated to completing the task of the inquiry.
"I will work to ensure that the investigations and the public hearings are kept on track in order to deliver the terms of reference of the inquiry."
Professor Jay said: "This is an important appointment for the inquiry and I look forward to working with Brian as we take forward the work of the inquiry."
Mr Altman spent 16 years as treasury counsel, the latter two-and-a-half years as first senior treasury counsel, advising on and prosecuting some of the most high-profile cases of the time.
Among them was the abduction and murder of Milly Dowler by Levi Bellfield and the case of John Downey, the man accused of killing four soldiers the 1982 IRA Hyde Park bombing, who was given a guarantee he would not face trial.
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse was set up to investigate allegations made against local authorities, religious organisations, the armed forces and public and private institutions in England and Wales, as well as people in the public eye.
Justice Goddard, a New Zealand high court judge, Baroness Butler-Sloss, the former President of the High Court Family Division, and Dame Fiona Woolf, a leading lawyer have all previously stood down from leading it. | Brian Altman QC is to take over as the most senior lawyer in the inquiry into child sex abuse in England and Wales. |
19,393,402 | Media playback is not supported on this device
The Welsh club rejected an initial bid of £6.2m for the winger but the Premier League champions included add-ons, taking the fee to £8m.
Sinclair, 23, recently played in the Olympics for Great Britain and could now be in Roberto Mancini's squad to face Queens Park Rangers on Saturday.
"I'm just glad everything is settled and I'm now a City player... I can't wait to get started," Sinclair said.
"There were times when I thought it might not happen so I'm relieved that I'm here.
"Playing alongside some of the best players in the world is exciting for me. When you see two Champions League fixtures against Real Madrid on the horizon, it brings it all home."
Swansea boss Michael Laudrup said: "Scott is going to a huge club with a lot of great players. He has a lot of quality but he will have to fight for his place in the first XI."
Sinclair is a former England Under-21 international and began his career at Bristol Rovers before joining Chelsea.
But he struggled to make many first team appearances at Stamford Bridge, moving on loan to Plymouth, QPR, Charlton, Crystal Palace, Birmingham and Wigan before Swansea paid £500,000 for his services in August 2010.
Sinclair made 82 league appearances for the Swans, scoring 28 goals.
He scored within four minutes of coming on as a substitute during Swansea's 5-0 win at QPR on the opening day of the Premier League season. | Manchester City have signed Swansea's Scott Sinclair on a four-year deal. |
22,620,207 | The plan marks a climbdown from ministers who had decided they should not get the same UK resettlement rights as interpreters in the Iraq conflict.
A five-year visa will be offered initially to those who worked on the front line for a year or more - covering around half of interpreters.
But there were concerns that a large number of them could be excluded.
A Downing Street source said the proposals would give interpreters a choice either to go on working in Afghanistan or "make a new start in Britain".
While details of the scheme are not expected until the end of May, lawyers said "large numbers" of interpreters might be not be covered.
Rosa Curling, who acts for three of the interpreters, said she was pleased the "bravery of the Afghan interpreters now seems to have been recognised.
"We are, however, concerned that some interpreters may not qualify if the scheme is only available to those employed between December 2012 and December 2014 and limited to front-line staff only, she added.
"This would completely undermine the purpose of the policy."
One interpreter, "Abdul", told the BBC: "We risked everything to do this job. We are glad that the British government has recognised our service and the sacrifices we made for them."
The Downing Street source said: "We should recognise the service given by those who have regularly put themselves in real danger while working for us," the source added.
But campaign group Avaaz, which is behind an 83,000 signature petition calling for all Afghan interpreters to be given asylum, said the plan was "too limited".
It claimed to have seen documents suggesting the scheme would only be open to those who had been made redundant on or after 1 January 2013, although Downing Street said it was more likely decisions would be made on a "case-by-case basis".
The Ministry of Defence said no final decisions had yet been made.
Earlier this month, the prime minister had said the UK should encourage "talented Afghans to stay in their country", including a "really generous" package of support for interpreters.
Labour's Yvette Cooper welcomed what she called the government's "u-turn", saying it was the "right policy" for those who risked their lives.
Many of the interpreters who will be helped say they have received serious threats to their lives, while some have already fled to the UK to claim asylum.
"One of my colleagues was captured, held for months and killed by the Taliban. They returned his body to his family in exchange for ransom," one former interpreter told the BBC.
"Ahmad" - who worked alongside British forces at Camp Bastion - said he had grenades thrown at his house and had to leave the job because the Taliban threatened to kill him.
It means a lot to me to my family and to all those interpreters who have served the British government in Afghanistan.
We risked everything to do this job and we are glad that the British government has recognised our service and the sacrifices we made for them.
Our friends did not abandon us to be persecuted by the Taliban.
The British government has given us the chance to live once more in peace and prosperity.
I would like to thank all our supporters and the British media from the bottom of my heart. They have supported us to get a peaceful life.
Afghan interpreters: 'No life for us here'
Under the plans, those allowed into the UK on a five-year visa will then be able to apply for indefinite leave.
The Border Agency will approve how many close family members they are allowed to bring.
Interpreters who choose to stay in Afghanistan will be allowed to sign up for fully-funded training and education for five years, or instead be paid at their current rate for a further 18 months.
Under the new plan, some other locals who had helped British soldiers in non-front-line roles, such as cooks and security guards, will also be given the choice of training and education, or further payments.
After the Iraq war, Britain gave Iraqi interpreters either one-off financial assistance or exceptional indefinite leave to remain in the UK with help to relocate, or the opportunity to resettle through the UK's Gateway programme run in partnership with the UN's High Commissioner for Refugees. | Up to 600 Afghan interpreters who worked alongside British troops are to be given the right to live in the UK. |
38,658,644 | Josh Davey took four wickets as the Scots prevented the Dutch reaching their target of 149.
Davey ended a 53-run opening partnership between Ben Cooper and Michael Rippon and Con de Lange's two for 17 also proved crucial.
Earlier, all-rounder Richie Berrington top-scored for Grant Bradburn's side with 38 runs as they reached 148-7.
The Scots beat opening Group B opponents Hong Kong on Saturday and the top two from the two four-team sections will progress to the semi-finals.
In Group A, Ireland recovered from an opening loss to Afghanistan by beating Namibia. | Scotland beat the Netherlands by seven runs to claim their second Desert T20 Challenge victory in Abu Dhabi. |
38,331,366 | Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union employed by contractors Servest UK walked out at 06:00 GMT.
The RMT union is calling for agency workers to be made members of GWR staff to end the current situation of a "two tier" workforce.
GWR said it is aware of the action by one of its contractors but added it would not impact on rail services.
The dispute, involving almost 200 workers, is over a number of issues including pay, annual leave and the use of agency workers.
Mick Cash, RMT general secretary, said affected members had voted "decisively" for action.
"GWR and Servest UK need to do the right thing and immediately resolve the issues relating from the transfer of staff and bring these workers back in house so that they are on the same terms and conditions as the rest of the staff."
A second 24-hour strike by the RMT is planned for 23 December. | Cleaners on the Great Western Railway have gone on strike in a dispute over pay and conditions. |
32,499,852 | Some 4,300 soldiers and their families will be arriving from Germany and other UK bases across the next six years.
However, there is concern that more money is needed to ensure the area can thrive with the increased population.
The five candidates listed schools, housing and public transport among the biggest needs for greater investment.
Liberal Democrat Manda Rigby told a BBC Wiltshire election debate it would be "quite difficult" to avoid an unhealthy split between military and civilian residents.
She said schools needed "more capability and more capacity" before the first families begin arriving in September.
Claire Perry, from the Conservatives, said the Devizes constituency faces "huge challenges" around schools, healthcare, housing and roads, and it was important to ensure the investment was there.
"Tidworth will probably end up being the biggest town in the constituency once the troops and their families have moved back," she added.
Emma Dawnay, of the Green Party, said Tidworth was in need of "a thriving local community" with more shops, more leisure opportunities and cheaper public transport links to neighbouring towns.
Labour's Chris Watts said the relocation of army families "will have a positive effect on the area" with David Pollitt, of UKIP, praising the boost to the local economy and the "huge amount of planning that has been done so far".
The candidates for the constituency are:
Claire Perry, Conservative
Emma Dawnay, Green
Chris Watts, Labour
Manda Rigby, Liberal Democrats
David Pollitt, UKIP | An influx of thousands of army families into Wiltshire is a huge but highly positive challenge, the election candidates for Devizes have agreed. |
37,912,859 | A section of wall at the memorial in Gloucester Park was spray painted overnight on Monday, Gloucestershire Police said.
A spokeswoman said the graffiti appeared some time between 17:00 GMT and 07:00 GMT on Tuesday.
The monument remembers people from the city who died during both World Wars and the Korean War.
The spokeswoman said: "This graffiti tag is used regularly around Gloucester and we are eager to trace the offender.
"Vandalising the memorial is very disrespectful and will not be tolerated by police."
The memorial is due to be used for the annual Remembrance Sunday event on 13 November. | Part of a war memorial has been vandalised a few days before Remembrance Day. |
37,512,115 | The Celtic boss spoke after his side's 3-3 Champions League draw with Premier League leaders Manchester City.
"There's no doubt Celtic are a major threat to nearly every English club," said the former Liverpool boss.
The EFL announced last week that no Scottish clubs would be invited into any expanded set up in the future.
"If Celtic were in England, they would be in the top four/top six clubs there," said Rodgers.
"If you are another club playing in that league or Championship, or League One, would you want that type of threat coming in? I don't think you'd want it and that's the reality.
"It is going to be difficult for Celtic to be in the English pyramid system because of the sheer scale of the club. Most of our games are packed out now.
"Can you imagine Celtic with that resource? Then it can go as far as it wants then. It would be frightening prospect but an exciting prospect."
Rodgers also said that the performance against Manchester City provided proof that the Champions League should not become a closed shop to all but clubs with the biggest finances.
"Wednesday was a perfect example of that," said the manager, whose side bounced back from an opening 7-0 defeat by Barcelona.
"After the Barcelona game, there were critics, which is natural when you lose so heavily.
"But I think, when you put it into perspective, there has to be opportunities for clubs like Celtic - one of the great clubs of world football - to play in this competition and the competition is better for a club like Celtic being in it.
"I know League One clubs that probably have greater resources than Celtic, but that shouldn't stop us having an opportunity."
Following pressure from Europe's richest clubs, Uefa agreed in August to guarantee each of the continent's top four domestic leagues four places each in the group stage.
However, Rodgers thinks Celtic proved that they deserved the opportunity to be in Europe's elite club competition.
"It was an incredible advert for Glasgow Celtic," he said of the draw with Pep Guardiola's City.
"Manchester City, competing in the most competitive league in world football with the most resources in world football, won 10 out of their 10 games and came up to here and had without question the hardest game they've had all season.
"So, okay, Scottish football may not have the platform of the Premier League, but the clubs here, and the passion here, is equal to anywhere in the world, if not better." | Brendan Rodgers says he understands why the English Football League has closed the door on any notion of the Scottish champions joining their set up. |
32,942,512 | Brighton's i360 - designed by the team behind the London Eye - will be 162 metres tall, with an observation pod at 138 metres.
Two hundred lorry loads of concrete are being driven to Brighton seafront at regular intervals for the work on Saturday.
The concrete will arrive one truck at a time "to minimise disruption".
Eleanor Harris, i360 CEO, said the progress was "exciting".
A steady flow of trucks, arriving every five minutes since the early hours of the morning, will bring 2,640 tonnes of concrete to the site.
Ruth Chapman, from the firm, said the trucks waited at a holding area in Shoreham to minimise disruption along the King's Road promenade.
The tower will be situated on the axis of the city's Grade II listed Regency Square.
Developers hope it will attract at least 700,000 visitors per year, which would make it the city's most popular paid-for attraction.
Construction will be completed this summer before the tower officially opens in mid-2016, they said. | Construction workers have begun to lay the foundations for England's tallest observation tower outside of London. |
34,826,870 | Media playback is not supported on this device
The Serb won 6-1 6-1 in 61 minutes to seal his 15th consecutive win at the O2 Arena, a run stretching back to 2011.
Roger Federer beat Tomas Berdych 6-4 6-2 in 69 minutes, in the opening day's other round-robin match in London.
Britain's Jamie Murray won on his debut as he and doubles partner John Peers beat Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini.
All the players wore black ribbons on their shirts as a mark of respect to the victims of Friday's deadly attacks in Paris.
"All my heart goes out to the families of the lost ones, it's really devastating to see those images and that footage," said Djokovic.
The world number one needed just 65 minutes to see off eighth seed Nishikori, and ended the afternoon with a trophy in his hands as he was confirmed as the 2015 world number one.
Djokovic, 28, won the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open, and went within one match of the calendar Grand Slam, losing to Stan Wawrinka in the French Open final.
"Undoubtedly it has been the best season and the best year of my life - I became a father and I got married. Those are the kind of trophies and milestones that mean the most to me.
"I've been experiencing the peak time right now of my abilities. I was very consistent with my results, 2011 and 2015 definitely stand out.
"My team plays a big part in this - I have a great team of experts and most of all they are my friends and people I can rely on."
Nishikori, 25, did not serve well enough to give Djokovic any trouble and was broken five times as the Serb extended his latest winning streak to 23 matches.
Djokovic might be the dominant force right now but Federer holds a record six end-of-season titles and remains the fans' favourite.
A large number of travelling Swiss swelled the capacity evening crowd as their man found his form to rack up his 49th win in 60 matches and 14 trips to the season finale.
Federer started surprisingly poorly, double-faulting twice as he dropped serve to love in game three, only for Berdych to return the favour in the next game, almost tripping over when a drop shot caught him out.
The Czech, 30, was struggling to find any rhythm and eventually paid for a first-serve percentage of just 41% as three errors handed over the key break at 4-4.
Federer took complete control with seven games in a row for a 4-0 lead in the second set and wrapped up victory after 69 minutes.
The Swiss will take on world number one Djokovic in the second round of Stan Smith Group matches on Tuesday.
Jamie Murray and Australian Peers won a dramatic opening match against Italians Bolelli and Fognini 7-6 (7-5) 3-6 11-9.
That gives them an early lead in the round-robin stage, with Bob and Mike Bryan to face Rohan Bopanna and Florian Mergea later on Sunday.
Murray and Peers are seeded fourth for the tournament and could end the year as the world number one pairing, but have already agreed to go their separate ways in 2016.
"I didn't really think about it that much," said the 29-year-old Scot, who will play with Brazil's Bruno Soares next year.
"From my point of view, we just try to do the best we can, finish on a high and try to make a great year even better."
Murray also has Great Britain's Davis Cup final against Belgium to look forward to later this month.
"It's an exciting time for me," he said. "It's lots to look forward to, obviously starting with today.
"It's a huge event for us which we're really excited to be a part of. We worked hard all year to qualify for this tournament.
"We want to make the most of our time here. When that's done, then I'll think about Davis Cup." | Novak Djokovic began his bid for a record fourth straight end-of-season title with victory over Japan's Kei Nishikori at the ATP World Tour Finals. |
38,948,928 | 12 February 2017 Last updated at 11:29 GMT
The show which winds through the city's Chinatown district is one of the largest in the United States.
It features more than 100 groups with elaborate costumes, brightly coloured floats, lion dancers, marching bands and more.
The parade has been running in San Francisco since the 1860s - not just to welcome in the Lunar New Year, but to also educate people about Chinese culture and traditions.
One of the highlights was this 81m Golden Dragon that needed a team of more than 100 people from the White Crane martial arts group to carry it through the city! | Check out this video of massive golden dragon which led San Francisco's annual Chinese New Year parade. |
40,484,051 | The Batley & Spen MP becomes a shadow education minister, with responsibility for early years provision.
Chris Williamson gets the key role of shadow fire services minister while former Manchester police commissioner Tony Lloyd becomes housing spokesman.
Three shadow ministers were sacked last week after they defied the leadership in a Commons vote over Brexit.
Ruth Cadbury, Catherine West and Andy Slaughter were dismissed after they backed a motion calling for the UK to remain in the single market - having been instructed to abstain.
Mr Corbyn already had some long-standing gaps to fill after a wave of resignations in the wake of last year's EU referendum, which prompted a challenge to his leadership, and February's Commons vote on Article 50.
Since the party's better-than-expected performance in the general election, Mr Corbyn's authority has been enhanced and deputy leader Tom Watson said over the weekend he would lead the party "for years".
Monday's mini reshuffle by the Labour leader sees up to 20 roles filled below shadow cabinet level.
Among those returning to the frontbench after quitting in the past are Rachael Maskell and Gloria De Piero, who will speak on transport and justice respectively.
Mr Corbyn has bolstered his home affairs team with four appointments.
Mr Williamson, a close ally of the leader's, has been given the sensitive fire services brief, which he held under Ed Miliband between 2010 and 2013.
He said his immediate priority would be to secure justice for the victims and survivors of the Grenfell fire and that he would be pushing, as a bare minimum, for the retrofitting of sprinkler system in tower blocks.
Nick Thomas-Symonds, Louise Haigh and Afzal Khan - who was elected to Parliament for the first time last month - also join the home affairs team under shadow home secretary Diane Abbott.
Other first-time MPs to get roles include Paul Sweeney (Scotland) and Anneliese Dodds (Treasury) while Carolyn Harris and Gerald Jones, both first elected in 2015, will speak on women and equalities and defence respectively.
There is also a return to the frontbench for Tony Lloyd, who served as a minister under Tony Blair and was chair of the Parliamentary Labour Party before being elected Greater Manchester's Police and Crime Commissioner in 2012. He returned to Parliament as MP for Rochdale last month. | Ex-Coronation Street actress Tracy Brabin is among Labour MPs to have been given frontbench jobs by Jeremy Corbyn. |
39,778,231 | Katy McAllister, 31, denies causing the death of Louise McGowan, one day after she allegedly supplied her with substances in May 2015.
Lawyers acting for the medic entered not guilty pleas on her behalf on the first day of proceedings at the High Court in Edinburgh.
She faces a total of 18 charges.
Prosecutors allege that on 9 May, 2015, at her home address, and Voodoo Tattoo in the city's Perth Road, Ms McAllister "did recklessly and unlawfully" supply controlled and "potentially lethal" drugs to Ms McGowan.
The Crown alleges that the drugs supplied to Ms McGowan were tramadol, diazepam and temazepam.
Ms McAllister is also alleged to have supplied Ms McGowan with codeine, diphenhydramine and cyclizine.
The indictment states Ms McGowan, of Dundee, "ingested" the drugs and died a day later.
Ms McAllister also faces an allegation that she stole quantities of the class C drug midazolam from Ninewells Hospital in Dundee between June and August 2014.
Prosecutors also claim that Ms McAllister supplied or offered to supply drugs to a number of individuals in the Dundee area.
Jurors also heard from a statement of evidence which has been agreed between prosecutors and Ms McAllister's lawyers.
The facts agreed include that Ms McAllister graduated from Dundee University in 2009 with a Batchelor of Medicine and a Batchelor of Surgery degree.
It is also agreed that agreed that Ms McAllister was admitted as a "fully registered medical practitioner" with the General Medical Council in August 2010.
They also agree that Ms McAllister worked as a specialist registrar in acute medicine at Ninewells Hospital and that she began working there in June 2014.
The trial, which is being heard before judge Graham Buchanan QC, continues on Tuesday. | A Dundee doctor has gone on trial accused of killing a woman by allegedly giving her prescription drugs at a tattoo parlour. |
16,547,479 | It said France was violating Sikhs' religious freedom by forcing them to remove their turbans when having photos taken for passports and ID cards.
Ranjit Singh, 76, said he had turned to the UN because he found the French policy disrespectful and unnecessary.
The ruling is not legally binding. France was asked to respond by March.
Mr Singh welcomed the decision, telling the BBC: "[The turban] is part of my body. It is my identity and I cannot part with it."
Sikhs in France have been fighting a long battle over the turban.
In 2004 France passed a law banning religious signs in schools. This included turbans and Muslim headscarves.
In the following years, people renewing passports and certain official documents were also asked to remove the religious headgear for photographs.
In the case of driving licences, French regulations said that motorists must appear "bareheaded and facing forward" in their photographs.
But some Sikhs like Ranjit Singh refused to take off their turbans for these official photographs.
As a result, they were refused ID cards and passports.
For Mr Singh it was not a decision he took lightly.
He has been ill for some time and without official ID he was barred from receiving medical treatment and national and local government help and services.
"I cannot get myself treated," he said. "I cannot get X-rays, I cannot get my blood test done, I cannot get admitted to hospital."
He and a fellow Sikh, 55-year-old Shingara Singh, started their fight against the policy in the French courts.
But when they lost their cases, they took the matter to the European courts.
In 2008 the European Court of Human Rights dismissed an appeal on grounds of security.
It said that whilst Shingara Singh's religious rights had been infringed, France was justified to ban the turban on the driver's licence photo because the turban posed a security risk of fraud and falsification.
That is when Ranjit Singh decided to file a case to the UN Human Rights Committee (UNHRC). It has now judged that a turban does not pose a risk to security.
In its judgement, reached in July but only now revealed, the UNHRC said: "Even if the obligation to remove the turban for the identity photograph might be described as a one-time requirement, it would potentially interfere with the author's (Ranjit Singh's) freedom of religion on a continuing basis."
The committee also said that France had failed to explain how the Sikh turban hindered identification since the wearer's face would be visible and he would be wearing it at all times.
Therefore, it argued, the regulation constituted a violation of Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
"I had faith that truth and justice would prevail and I patiently waited for this day," said Ranjit Singh.
"I pray that France will now fulfil its obligation and grant me a residence card bearing my photo without baring my head."
Mejinderpal Kaur of United Sikhs, which backed Mr Singh's case, said: "We now look to France to fulfil its treaty obligations under international law and its moral duty to ensure that the freedom of religion and belief is upheld for everyone who lives within its territory."
The news was welcomed by Sikhs around the world.
Mrs Praneet Kaur, Indian minister of state for external affairs, said she was "very happy with the UN's decision and... for making everyone realise what the turban means to Sikhs". | A Sikh man in France has won the backing of the United Nations Human Rights Committee in his fight over religious headgear. |
37,298,949 | Amber Rudd told the Home Affairs Select Committee the inquiry must "look at the historic element of these abuses".
She also said that criticisms from the inquiry's former chairwoman, who wrote to the committee, were "not correct".
Justice Lowell Goddard's letter said the inquiry should focus on current child protection and future changes.
The inquiry was set up in 2014 and announced that 13 initial investigations would look into allegations against local authorities, religious organisations, the armed forces, public and private institutions and people in the public eye.
It has been beset by problems, and last month Dame Lowell became the third chair to quit the inquiry.
Giving evidence to the committee, Ms Rudd said there would be no review of the inquiry's terms of reference.
"Understanding what happened is so important to getting right what we think is going to help now and in the future," she said.
Asked why she thought Dame Lowell had stepped down from her role, Ms Rudd said she believed "ultimately she found it too lonely, she was a long way from home".
"I never met her, so I can only conclude from what she set out in the letter that she knew what she was doing, because I thought that the letter was pretty well informed about what the issues were and really show that she cared about the issues.
"But she did set out in the letter that she didn't feel she could actually deliver on it," she said.
MPs raised a number of questions about the truth of some of Dame Lowell's criticisms, which included saying the inquiry was under-resourced and that she had felt she did not have enough independence in her role.
Ms Rudd said it was "incorrect" of Dame Lowell to suggest that the inquiry had suffered from "operational difficulties" and a lack of resources, because the inquiry had spent less than it was allocated last year and returned about £2.5m to the Home Office.
"The Home Office and the now-prime minister were always determined to ensure that there were sufficient resources available," she said.
Ms Rudd was also asked to respond to Dame Lowell's comments that she had been "handicapped by not being given a free hand to recruit staff".
The home secretary said the chairperson could "appoint who they want to the inquiry" and encouraged the committee to put the issue to Dame Lowell "if you feel it is of such importance".
Professor Alexis Jay, Dame Lowell's replacement, will be able to reassure the public and survivors, Ms Rudd said, because she is confident the chairwoman aims to "proceed with pace, clarity and confidence" and does not want the inquiry to "go on endlessly".
Ms Rudd added Prof Jay would be paid "substantially less" than the £500,000 a year paid to Dame Lowell, and she promised to disclose the new chairwoman's salary to the committee as soon as it was finalised. | The scope of the independent inquiry into child sex abuse in England and Wales will not change, the new home secretary has told MPs. |
30,818,059 | A review found pupils from Wales are less likely to get into Oxbridge than those in England and Northern Ireland.
The first three of 12 centres offering specialist support are set to start in south, north and south west Wales.
Oxford applications in 2013 were the lowest since 1999, figures show.
A total of 105 students from Wales were accepted at Oxford and Cambridge, down from 144 five years earlier.
A review led by former Welsh secretary Paul Murphy found low self-esteem and a lack of academic self confidence were part of the problem.
In 2013, Cambridge had 255 applications from Welsh students, just below its average in recent years.
Oxford has not yet published its 2014 figures but a spokeswoman said: "Fluctuations in application and acceptance numbers from year to year are entirely normal.
"In fact, for 2014 entry, Oxford made the highest number of offers to Welsh candidates in four years."
Education Minister Huw Lewis said successful applicants often benefited from the help of a particular teacher with experience of the admission process.
"The idea of the hubs is that they remove this element of chance and allow our most academically talented pupils to develop their skills, confidence and intellectual thinking in a supported environment," he said.
Mr Murphy, a history graduate from Oriel College, said: "Studying at Oxford University was a life-changing experience for me and I want more Welsh students to have the kind of opportunities I had."
A lot of the discussion around the declining numbers of pupils from Wales getting into the best universities has centred around the Welsh Baccalaureate.
Paul Murphy, the Oxbridge ambassador for the Welsh government, said the baccalaureate was raised repeatedly as a concern for teachers "as it does not currently meet the requirements of academically more able and talented students" and takes up valuable space in their timetable.
There will be changes to the baccalaureate from September this year; it will be more challenging, it will be graded and will more closely resemble academic courses.
These changes have been widely welcomed but there are also those who say the changes should have been made much sooner.
Another reason given by Mr Murphy for fewer Welsh pupils getting into the top universities was that upper-end A-level performance declined between 2008 and 2012.
Put simply - if the pupils are not getting the grades, there is no way they will get in.
That situation has started to improve - last year's A-level results at A and A* were better than 2013, though still not at the same level as 2008.
So, while there is still disappointment at the current low numbers of pupils from Wales getting into Oxford and Cambridge, it seems the circumstances could be changing so the picture may well improve in future. | New centres aimed at getting more Welsh students places at top universities have launched as the number of applications for Oxford hits a 14-year low. |
34,660,716 | The first four months of tickets, for performances from 7 June-18 September 2016, went on sale at 11:00 GMT, selling out in several hours.
Many fans experienced technical difficulties trying to buy tickets.
The play is based on an original JK Rowling story.
It has been co-written by Jack Thorne and director John Tiffany,
Billed as the "eighth Harry Potter story and the first official Harry Potter story to be presented on stage", the two-part play makes its world premiere at the Palace Theatre in London's West End next summer.
Producers say more than 120,000 fans went online this morning to try and buy tickets, some of which appeared on re-sale ticket websites soon after, priced at more than £1,000.
The play's official Twitter account warned fans not to use the sites, writing: "Please do not attempt to resell your tickets on alternative platforms, as patrons will not be admitted into the theatre."
Tickets for the second round of dates, until January 2017, are now on sale to people who registered for priority booking. Producers say a third booking period will be opened up on Friday when seats go on sale to the general public.
Many fans expressed their frustration on Twitter, complaining of hours spent online trying to buy tickets.
Em Maree wrote: "Finally got my three tickets for the #CursedChild play but am shocked by the shambles that was the booking. 4 hours is a joke!"
Nikki Alden was one of many people reporting being bumped out of the queue, writing: "There was and error on the site right before I was about to pay for my tickets and now I'm 33,084TH in line!!!"
Meanwhile Lisa Cooke directed her frustrations directly at Potter author Rowling, writing: "This play better blow my mind @jk_rowling @HPPlayLDN ... Never been so stressed buying tickets before #CursedChild."
Producers told the BBC "the vast majority of customers had their bookings processed within an hour."
They added: "Customers who are having difficulties with the online booking system can be assured we are doing everything we can to ensure the process is a smooth and efficient as possible."
Once tickets sell out, there will be a weekly and daily lottery for all performances nearer the time. Both parts are designed to be watched in the same day - matinee and evening - or on two consecutive nights.
Previews begin on 7 June 2016 with the official opening performances of both parts on 30 July.
The story takes place several years on from the end of the last Potter book, when Harry is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three children.
His youngest son Albus has to take on the weight of the family legacy, and "both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places." | The first round of tickets for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child have sold out, with producers releasing a second batch, available to fans who registered for priority booking. |
39,688,263 | The 22-year-old cousin of former world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury was set to face WBO champion Parker in Auckland, New Zealand, on 6 May, in his first world title fight.
A statement from Team Fury and Hennessy Sports said Fury had been advised to "rest for three to four weeks".
Parker's promoters, Duco Events, said work had started to find a replacement.
The Fury statement continued: "Understandably, Hughie is devastated by the injury which has temporarily halted his dream of fighting for the world heavyweight title - but the fight will be rescheduled and a new date will be announced shortly." | Hughie Fury has pulled out of his world heavyweight title fight against Joseph Parker after suffering a back injury. |
38,510,102 | Gunmen claiming to be security personnel took Afrah Shawqi al-Qaisi from her home in Baghdad.
After being freed late on Tuesday, she told NRT television: "The treated me well. They just interrogated me and thank God they found me not guilty."
Hours earlier, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi had said investigators believed the kidnapping was both politically and criminally motivated.
Ms Qaisi, who writes for the London-based pan-Arab newspaper Asharq al-Awsat, and is also an employee of the Iraqi culture ministry, campaigns against corruption and government mismanagement.
The day before she was abducted, the 43 year old had published an article expressing anger at how armed groups were able to act with impunity.
"If the state is anxious to preserve its prestige, it should hold accountable whoever uses weapons illicitly," she wrote for the Aklaam website.
Iraq is considered one of the most dangerous places to be a journalist. Seven were killed in the country in 2016, according to press freedom group Reporters Without Borders. | A prominent Iraqi female journalist who was abducted last week has been freed. |
26,418,358 | The device has arms and legs and is suspended by ropes from a metal frame. Its only other tether is a thick umbilical cable plugged into its back.
After a few final checks, research engineer Gianluca approaches the machine, turns, and puts his feet on its feet and buckles them in. He straps himself in across his chest and puts his arms into its arms.
With a finger he then presses a button, and the machine jolts into life, lights flashing and joints whirring as he cautiously steers his body suit across the floor.
The machine is called the "Body Extender" and has been developed at the Perceptual Robotics Laboratory (Percro), part of the Pisa's Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna.
It can lift 50kg (7st 12lb) in each extended hand, can exert 10 times the force the user applies to an object, and its makers claim it is the most complex exoskeleton yet built.
"This is the most complex wearable robot that has been ever built in the world," says Percro's Fabio Salsedo who leads the project. "It's a device which is able to track the complex movement of the human body and also to amplify the force of the operator."
The machine has 22 degrees of freedom each actuated with an electric motor, and is made up of modular components, which means the robot can be easily rebuilt to suit the application, says its designer.
"There are several possible applications. For example if you have to assemble a very complex product like an aircraft, this is a machine which is very flexible. You can lift the panel, rotate it and position it in the right position."
"Another application is the rescue of victims in case of an earthquake. You need something very flexible in order to intervene rapidly without damaging the victim."
Meaning "outer skeleton", exoskeletons are common in nature. Grasshoppers, cockroaches, crabs and lobsters have exoskeletons rather than an inner endoskeleton like humans, providing both support to the body and protection against predators. Turtles and tortoises have both an inner skeleton and an exoskeleton shell.
Robotic or mechanical exoskeletons could offer humans the kind of protection, support and strength they afford in nature.
The Body Extender is just one of a host of machines now being developed or marketed around the world by researchers and companies.
A subsidiary of Panasonic recently unveiled its Powerloader, which it's claimed can also lift a total of 100kg and walk at 8km/h (5mph). The plan is to bring the machine to market in 2015 for work on the factory floor or any other application customers can imagine.
Another Japanese company, Cyberdyne, has developed its hybrid assistive limb or Hal system, a range of machines designed for rescue recovery or "back load reduction" in the work place.
The military application of exoskeletons has become quickly apparent. US corporation Raytheon has developed the XOS 2 for combat soldiers in the field, while Lockheed Martin has the Hulc, a hydraulic exoskeleton that provides soldiers with the ability to carry loads of about 90kg.
Then there are the medical uses. Israeli company Argo Medical Technologies markets its ReWalk device to help those with lower limb disabilities to walk upright using crutches, while Cyberdyne and Ekso Bionics - which developed the Hulc originally - offer similar devices.
Swiss company Hocoma offers a therapeutic device called the Lokomat, robotic trousers worn by a user on a treadmill designed to help stroke patients and others improve their walking, while a similar device called Lopes has been developed by Dutch researchers.
Prof Chris Melhuish, director of the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, believes exoskeletons will have a place in the future of robotics where it's deemed humans are still required to steer or control a robotic device or quickly and adaptively respond to environmental hazards or changes.
"It's a technology which is growing fast and maturing," he told BBC News. "The type of functionality of the exoskeleton depends on what you want it to do and to what degree you want it to be autonomous."
"They can have a medical restorative function, or it can extend to augmenting human function and that might be the case for military systems, rescue services or in factories where perhaps large or heavy materials need to be handled."
He said the three main issues were developing the control systems, the materials and, crucially, the power systems.
"If you're doing this and you don't have access to sufficient power that's a problem. If you can plug yourself into the mains it's absolutely fine but then your movement is limited by an umbilical power supply.
"The evolution of the exoskeleton will go hand in hand with the evolution of batteries or other high density storage systems as well as lightweight structural materials."
Fabio Salsedo believes the simpler medical devices will become commonplace before the more complex full-body exoskeletons researchers such as he and his team are developing.
"There is still a problem with the overall equilibrium of the [Body Extender] machine so it is very difficult at the moment to guarantee the machine won't fall down on uneven terrain," he told BBC News.
"But there are other applications of these kinds of platforms which need a simplified version where not all the articulations are actuated but only a subset. In this case the machine can be lighter and more simple to control."
Rich Walker, of the London-based Shadow Robot Company, told BBC News: "Exoskeletons have a really important role in keeping older people active and healthy for longer, whether at work or at home. Much of the Japanese effort is focused on delivering systems that can help older people help their spouses without injury."
But he agrees safety issues will have to be overcome with some of the more complex devices.
"Safety will be vital for 'on the body' robotics. There is a new ISO standard covering this, but we haven't yet seen what happens when an exoskeleton goes wrong." | On the outskirts of Pisa in a back room of a modern block, a machine is waiting for its operator. |
34,365,866 | Citing the need to prevent "irreparable harm" to the institution of Congress and avoid a leadership struggle, Speaker of the House John Boehner announced on Friday he was resigning at the end of October.
This was far from the first time Mr Boehner has faced challenges to his authority as the top Republican in the House of Representatives. Over his five years as speaker he's faced withering criticism from the right wing of his party as he balances the necessity of passing essential legislation to keep the US government operating with calls to be more forceful in advancing conservative priorities.
But this time, it seems, was different. Although Mr Boehner asserted that he would once again defeat those who wanted to remove him from office, he wasn't going to wage the pitched political battle that would require.
This time around, Mr Boehner faced a different kind of adversary. Where before the challenges to his authority came from within the halls of Congress, now calls were reverberating across the nation, inspired and egged on by Republican presidential candidates who were campaigning against the Republican leadership in Congress with the kind of vehemence that was traditionally the province of Democrats.
Real estate mogul Donald Trump has shot to the front of the Republican field with his pox-on-both-houses condemnation of business as usual in Washington. Texas Senator Ted Cruz, long a thorn in the side of Republican congressional leadership, regularly garners his biggest cheers when he bashes Mr Boehner and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell by name.
"We win elections, and then the people we elect don't do what they say," he told a grass-roots conservative audience in Atlanta in July. "Our team is playing for the other side."
As it so happened, the news of Boehner's impending resignation broke as many Republican hopefuls were gathering at a Washington, DC, hotel for a conference of evangelical conservative activists called the Values Voter Summit.
Florida Senator Marco Rubio was the man who broke the news to a packed ballroom, and the crowd celebrated the announcement with a standing ovation.
"I'm not here today to bash anyone," the senator said. "But the time has come to turn the page and allow a new generation of leadership in this country."
Other candidates taking the stage that day were less circumspect. Mr Cruz, during his speech, pointed to the audience and said Mr Boehner's resignation was evidence that grass-roots conservatives like them "terrify Washington".
He followed it up by warning that if Mr Boehner negotiated an agreement with Democrats over the budget that funds Planned Parenthood and Obamacare on his way to a cushy private-sector job, "that is not the behaviour one would expect of a Republican speaker of the House".
Mr Trump said that while some people may like Mr Boehner on a "personal basis", he ended up just like all the other politicians who get elected promising change.
"They're full of vim and vigour," he said. "Then they come down to these magnificent vaulted ceilings that you see all over Washington. And what happens? They become different people."
Notably missing from the parade of presidential contenders at the Washington gathering were former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, Ohio Governor John Kasich and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, none of whom is much loved by the type of conservative true believers in attendance.
Perhaps not surprisingly, then, the three candidates who are perceived to be vying for support from the party's establishment praised the speaker.
"Ohio and America are stronger today because of John Boehner," Mr Kasich said. "He leaves a legacy of unparalleled integrity and steady, mature leadership during difficult times that will be a model for future speakers and anyone interested in public service."
Mr Bush tweeted that Mr Boehner "dedicated his life to public service" and praised his part in bringing Pope Francis to the Capitol on Thursday.
Such kind words were a marked contrast from the views expressed by the Values Voter Summit attendees as they filed out of the event hall for lunch. Candidates like Mr Bush should be concerned that the anti-establishment tide that felled Mr Boehner may signal trouble ahead for their presidential aspirations.
"I been working for three or four years trying to get that man," Carl Jernigan of Shoal Creek, Alabama, said of Mr Boehner. "He's a big part of the leadership which has failed us over and over again, giving Obama everything he wants."
He added that he has more disdain for Republicans like the speaker than he does Democrats.
"Boehner is just the first step," he said. "We've got to clean up the whole mess."
Larry Farnes of Missoula, Montana, noted Mr Boehner's propensity for tears and said Republicans need "a leader who rallies the troops and rallies Congress".
"It's time for change," he concluded.
The initial front-runner to replace Mr Boehner as speaker is his second in command, Kevin McCarthy of California. Given that he's part of the same Republican leadership team, however, he's already being targeted by some of the same grass-roots conservatives who celebrated Mr Boehner's impending departure.
"McCarthy is a non-starter for conservatives, and the bad blood will continue," writes Erick Erickson of the conservative RedState blog.
Daniel Webster, a junior congressman from Florida, has already announced his candidacy for the speakership, indicating that the protracted House leadership fight that Mr Boehner had hoped to avoid may happen anyway.
Outside the hotel where the Values Voter Summit was being held, Dean James stood on a corner, hold two large placards condemning Planned Parenthood and illustrated with photographs of dismembered foetuses.
For him, the current abortion fight in Congress is the central political issue facing the US, but he was far from heartened upon hearing the news that Mr Boehner was heading for the exit.
"Have they done anything?" he asked. "Until they act, I haven't seen anything. It's just business as usual in Washington."
Washington business may be about to change, however. | The anti-establishment forces that have roiled the Republican Party over the past few months have claimed a big prize. |
38,403,232 | Media playback is not supported on this device
Buckingham became part of horse racing folklore when steering the 100-1 shot through a mass of fallers at the 23rd fence to win at Aintree 49 years ago.
Of 44 starters, only 18 finished.
"It was havoc. Three jockeys turned Foinavon down but I'd have ridden Dick's donkey to be in the Grand National," said Buckingham in a BBC interview in 2010.
"What people don't realise is that we'd got it all planned before we left the weighing room!"
BBC horse racing correspondent Cornelius Lysaght:
Buckingham might not have been the best-known jump jockey of modern times but, unlike many of his higher-profile contemporaries, he has an indelible place in racing history.
Foinavon really was a complete no-hoper in the 1967 Grand National, and was so far behind when the melee took place that Buckingham was able to steer past the incident, and go so far clear that they weren't caught up.
It was quite likely the most dramatic staging in the race's history - at, ironically, the smallest fence on the track, later renamed Foinavon - and even to this day, a regular racecourse refrain is that such and such is "the biggest shock since Foinavon". | Former jockey John Buckingham, who famously won the 1967 Grand National on board Foinavon, has died aged 76. |
38,697,457 | On Friday UUP MLA Robbie Butler posted a 'joint statement' from the DUP, UUP, SDLP and Alliance on Facebook.
It said that each party had signed up to a voluntary ban during their respective campaigns.
It was also posted by the DUP's Paul Givan and SDLP councillor Pat Catney.
However on Friday evening, spokespersons for the SDLP and the Alliance Party said no final agreement has yet been reached.
The so-called joint statement read: "As political parties in Lagan Valley, we recognise the desire from the public to minimise disruption during this election campaign and believe this is the right step to take.
"Engagement with the electorate will be focused on the door step."
According to the statement, the agreement is in place until 18:00 GMT on 1 March, at which point candidates may place a limited number of posters outside each polling station.
Current MLAs in the constituency, which takes in Lisburn and Banbridge, include Paul Givan, Edwin Poots and Brenda Hale of the DUP, Jenny Palmer and Robbie Butler of the UUP and the Alliance Party's Trevor Lunn.
The statement said that no posters will be placed on main or arterial roads unless directly outside a polling station, adding that it does not extend to billboard or mobile advertising.
"If this agreement is broken by one party, it is no longer valid," the statement added.
The spokesman appealed to other parties campaigning in Lagan Valley to follow the lead being given by the agreement.
A Northern Ireland-wide ban was proposed by Ulster Unionist chair Lord Empey last year.
At the time, the idea was dismissed by the DUP as "a stunt". | There is confusion over whether agreement has been reached by assembly candidates in Lagan Valley on banning election posters in the constituency ahead of the election in March. |
38,727,181 | Peter Whittingham scored from the penalty spot and a fine individual goal from Kenneth Zohore earned the points for Neil Warnock's side.
The result was a blow to the play-off hopes of Preston who had lost just once in nine away games before the defeat.
The Bluebirds have pulled 11 points clear of the relegation places at the other end of the table and are 15th.
The visitors came closest to open the scoring early on when Jordan Hugill was just inches away from forcing home an Aiden McGeady cross.
But it was the Bluebirds who took the lead on 18 minutes when Daniel Johnson brought Junior Hoilett down in the box.
Whittingham stroked home coolly from the spot for his 97th goal in a decade at the Welsh club.
Just 10 minutes later Warnock's men doubled their advantage thanks to Zohore.
The Danish striker surged forward from the halfway line, beating three Preston players before dinking the ball over the advancing Chris Maxwell in the Preston goal.
It was the perfect way for Zohore to celebrate his 23rd birthday.
Preston almost got a goal back when Ben Pearson forced a good save from Allan McGregor, but then Cardiff saw Hoilett divert a Sean Morrison header onto the bar on the stroke of half-time.
Despite early Preston pressure at the start of the second period, Zohore almost scored again on the break on 63 minutes, but this time Maxwell made the save.
With striker Jermaine Beckford brought on at the interval Preston pushed to cut the deficit, but found the Cardiff defence, marshalled by the impressive Sol Bamba, in uncompromising form.
Warnock's side held out with the minimum of fuss to earn three home league victories on the bounce for the first time in two-and-a-half years.
Cardiff City manager Neil Warnock told BBC Radio Wales: "It was comfortable, quite professional. We could have been a bit more greedy and got a few more goals.
"It showed how far we have come really. In every area it was pleasing.
"You're only as good as your forwards and I thought they were all a threat. Midfield did well too. It was a pleasing night."
Preston North End manager Simon Grayson: "It was a disappointing performance and Cardiff haven't worked too hard for it tonight.
"We've based our success on being hard to beat and playing attractive football, but we didn't do that. We didn't get anything out of the game and that's what we deserved.
"You can't give teams easy goals. We should've managed the game better but we have to accept it, move on and be better."
Match ends, Cardiff City 2, Preston North End 0.
Second Half ends, Cardiff City 2, Preston North End 0.
Corner, Cardiff City. Conceded by Tom Clarke.
Corner, Cardiff City. Conceded by Tyias Browning.
Corner, Cardiff City. Conceded by Aiden McGeady.
Substitution, Cardiff City. Rhys Healey replaces Sol Bamba.
Foul by Tyias Browning (Preston North End).
Kadeem Harris (Cardiff City) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Attempt missed. Junior Hoilett (Cardiff City) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left from a direct free kick.
Foul by Alan Browne (Preston North End).
Aron Gunnarsson (Cardiff City) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Tyias Browning (Preston North End).
Kadeem Harris (Cardiff City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Callum Robinson (Preston North End) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Matthew Connolly (Cardiff City).
Foul by Paul Huntington (Preston North End).
Junior Hoilett (Cardiff City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Paul Gallagher (Preston North End).
Aron Gunnarsson (Cardiff City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution, Cardiff City. Greg Halford replaces Peter Whittingham.
Substitution, Preston North End. Alan Browne replaces Ben Pearson.
Attempt blocked. Callum Robinson (Preston North End) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Jermaine Beckford.
Jordan Hugill (Preston North End) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Sean Morrison (Cardiff City).
Greg Cunningham (Preston North End) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Kenneth Zohore (Cardiff City).
Aiden McGeady (Preston North End) is shown the yellow card.
Offside, Cardiff City. Peter Whittingham tries a through ball, but Kenneth Zohore is caught offside.
Attempt saved. Aiden McGeady (Preston North End) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Callum Robinson.
Substitution, Preston North End. Callum Robinson replaces Daryl Horgan.
Foul by Jordan Hugill (Preston North End).
Sean Morrison (Cardiff City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt saved. Matthew Connolly (Cardiff City) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Aron Gunnarsson.
Kadeem Harris (Cardiff City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Ben Pearson (Preston North End) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Kadeem Harris (Cardiff City).
Corner, Cardiff City. Conceded by Paul Huntington.
Corner, Cardiff City. Conceded by Chris Maxwell.
Attempt saved. Kenneth Zohore (Cardiff City) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Matthew Connolly.
Attempt blocked. Peter Whittingham (Cardiff City) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Sol Bamba. | Cardiff City made it three Championship home wins on the bounce with a comfortable defeat of Preston. |
22,511,792 | The glasshouse at Wentworth Castle Gardens near Barnsley was dismantled and sent for renovation and repair.
Now parts of 4,000-piece frame are being reassembled as the latest stage of the £3.7m restoration project.
The Grade II listed structure, built by Thomas Wentworth in 1885, is due to reopen to visitors in the autumn.
The frame had been dismantled, labelled, cleaned and re-cast where necessary, managers at the castle said.
The plight of the conservatory, which had fallen into disrepair, came to national prominence in the BBC 2 Restoration programme in 2003.
Claire Herring, a director of the Wentworth Castle Trust, said: "We are delighted the conservatory is returning to our site after its sympathetic restoration.
"We are all very excited about seeing this part of Barnsley's heritage restored to its former glory.
"We'll be welcoming visitors from autumn."
Wentworth Castle Gardens said the glasshouse had received funding from a European Regional Development Fund, as well as cash raised by volunteers.
The Wentworth Estate has spent more than £17m on the 500-acre site since renovation work began in 2004.
It has renovated areas from gardens, parkland and woodland through to the Grade I listed circular outbuilding called the Rotunda. | The iron frame of a Victorian conservatory has been returned to a South Yorkshire stately home after months of renovation work. |
39,543,119 | Media playback is not supported on this device
The hosts earned the spot-kick when Alex Schalk went down under Erik Sviatchenko's challenge, but it seemed a clear dive from the County man.
Kieran Tierney had fired Celtic ahead before Michael Gardyne nodded the home side level after the break and Patrick Roberts made it 2-1 to the champions.
Celtic skipper Scott Brown was sent off after the penalty for a lunge on Boyce.
But Celtic are set to appeal against the red card, with the hearing not taking place until 28 April, meaning Brown is likely to be available for next Sunday's Scottish Cup semi-final against Rangers.
The result takes Ross County on to 33 points, two behind seventh-placed Kilmarnock and three clear of the relegation play-off spot.
Taking a point against the champions is a significant outcome for County, although the circumstances in which it was earned were far from ideal.
Whatever reason Schalk may offer for going down, Sviatchenko was not even close to making a tackle and it looked like obvious simulation.
Schalk simply threw himself to the ground and it is difficult to fathom how the officials managed to miss that and award a penalty.
Boyce showed tremendous nerve to drill home the spot kick to boost County's quest to avoid relegation.
Things got worse for Celtic when captain Brown earned a straight red card for a reckless late challenge on Boyce.
There had been some earlier niggle between the pair but Brown's anger over the penalty call may have been behind this rash moment.
Before Schalk's intervention, Celtic had reasserted their authority thanks to a piece of fine play from Patrick Roberts, who brilliantly nutmegged Kenny van der Weg before firing the ball through keeper Scott Fox.
The goalkeeper had to do better as he got down slowly and he also might have been at fault at Tierney's first-half opener which fizzed into the corner from 25 yards.
Celtic had regained the initiative in the latter stages and Stuart Armstrong was very unlucky with a free-kick that cracked off the crossbar.
The visitors were well in control before the late drama.
Jim McIntyre's County side were solid until Tierney's opener but once they conceded they faced something of a conundrum.
Goal difference is important so should they sit in and hope for a chance, or go for broke and risk further concession?
They came out after the break on the front foot and it paid off. Ryan Dow swung a deep cross in from the left and Gardyne powered a superb header in off the bar for his first goal of the season.
County kept going forward with Andrew Davies and Boyce going close.
The hosts' improvement prompted Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers into three substitutions, with one of those, Roberts, delivering what looked like the winner.
The conclusion was very unfortunate but it could be the difference between County staying in the Premiership or not.
Match ends, Ross County 2, Celtic 2.
Second Half ends, Ross County 2, Celtic 2.
Andrew Davies (Ross County) is shown the yellow card.
Liam Boyce (Ross County) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Scott Brown (Celtic) is shown the red card.
Foul by Scott Brown (Celtic).
Liam Boyce (Ross County) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Liam Boyce (Ross County).
Scott Brown (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution, Ross County. Jonathan Franks replaces Michael Gardyne.
Goal! Ross County 2, Celtic 2. Liam Boyce (Ross County) converts the penalty with a right footed shot to the bottom left corner.
Penalty Ross County. Alex Schalk draws a foul in the penalty area.
Jozo Simunovic (Celtic) is shown the yellow card.
Penalty conceded by Erik Sviatchenko (Celtic) after a foul in the penalty area.
Tim Chow (Ross County) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Leigh Griffiths (Celtic).
Jason Naismith (Ross County) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Leigh Griffiths (Celtic).
Stuart Armstrong (Celtic) hits the bar with a right footed shot from outside the box from a direct free kick.
Substitution, Ross County. Christopher Routis replaces Jim O'Brien.
Foul by Jason Naismith (Ross County).
Scott Sinclair (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt saved. Leigh Griffiths (Celtic) left footed shot from long range on the left is saved in the centre of the goal.
Substitution, Ross County. Alex Schalk replaces Reghan Tumility.
Jim O'Brien (Ross County) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Jim O'Brien (Ross County).
Kieran Tierney (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner, Ross County. Conceded by Erik Sviatchenko.
Michael Gardyne (Ross County) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Stuart Armstrong (Celtic).
Goal! Ross County 1, Celtic 2. Patrick Roberts (Celtic) left footed shot from the right side of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Cristian Gamboa.
Attempt saved. Leigh Griffiths (Celtic) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Delay in match Liam Boyce (Ross County) because of an injury.
Substitution, Celtic. Patrick Roberts replaces James Forrest.
Substitution, Celtic. Leigh Griffiths replaces Moussa Dembele.
Substitution, Celtic. Cristian Gamboa replaces Tomas Rogic.
Foul by Ryan Dow (Ross County).
Jozo Simunovic (Celtic) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Tim Chow (Ross County).
Scott Brown (Celtic) wins a free kick in the attacking half. | Liam Boyce earned Ross County a precious point against 10-man Celtic with a controversial late penalty. |
25,165,623 | The Cricket Australia's Chairman's XI reached 254-8 declared on the second and final day in Alice Springs, with Steven Finn ending wicketless and Boyd Rankin taking just one at the death in temperatures that hit 39C.
Graeme Swann took four wickets and Monty Panesar three to provide some optimism from a game that otherwise did little to aid the tourists before they fly to Adelaide on Sunday to resume the Test series against Australia.
"Three years ago, Andrew Strauss's team would have obliterated the Chairman's XI. But this England team are not sure of a lot of things. They are not sure of their best bowling attack or their best batting order.
"Wicket-taking was Steven Finn's knack but he can't get it together at the moment. He is tall and athletic and yet his bowling - although fast - is just not doing the job."
When England batted again in the final hour, a nominal 42 runs behind after their own 212-7 declared on Friday's first day, Joe Root was caught behind for one before Michael Carberry (37 not out) and Gary Ballance (eight not out) saw them to the close at 47-1.
Swann's figures of 4-56 reflected the opposition's desire to go after him, much as Australia had with success in the first Test at Brisbane, with three of his wickets caught in the deep.
Panesar's three wickets - in his first appearance of the tour's five weeks thus far - came off 19 steady overs as stand-in captain Ian Bell gave both spinners long spells in the fierce heat.
Panesar bowled opener Steve Cazzulino for 48 after Swann had broken the opening partnership of 78 by having Marcus Harris caught by a back-pedalling Finn at mid-on for 49.
The same combination accounted for Michael Hill for 13, but with the ball in hand Finn was too short too often, his 15 overs going for 61 as the Chairman's XI unheralded and inexperienced batsman enjoyed themselves in front of a refreshed crowd in Alice Springs.
For much of this match, the atmosphere was akin to a low-key county game at a festival ground, which made the struggles of Finn and Rankin all the more chastening.
Three years ago Finn was England's leading wicket-taker after three Tests; he was also the second fastest Englishman to 50 Test wickets after Sir Ian Botham.
31 Oct-2 Nov: drew with Western Australia Chairman's XI, Perth
6-9 Nov: drew with Australia A, Hobart
13-16 Nov: beat Australian Invitational XI, Sydney
21-25 Nov: First Test, Brisbane: lost by 381 runs
29-30 Nov: drew with Chairman's XI, Alice Springs
5-9 Dec: 2nd Test, Adelaide
13-17 Dec: 3rd Test. Perth
26-30 Dec: 4th Test, Melbourne
3-7 Jan 2014: 5th Test, Sydney
But his underwhelming tour this time - 11 wickets at a cost of 38.9 runs apiece - and the similarly unimpressive form of Rankin mean that Tim Bresnan is now the clear favourite if England wish to replace Chris Tremlett for the second Test.
Rankin ended with a weary 1-52 on Saturday, his sole wicket that of number nine James Muirhead, to leave him with eight wickets from 88 overs against limited opposition on tour. All-rounder Ben Stokes bowled 13 wicketless overs at a cost of 37 runs.
Josh Lalor was able to compile an unhurried 45 before becoming Panesar's third victim, while Muirhead's 29 came off only 17 deliveries as the second new ball was clouted around the Traeger Park Oval.
England came on this tour with three tall fast bowlers in Tremlett, Finn and Rankin, looking to exploit the hard, bouncy pitches down under as both Tremlett and Finn had been able to on the corresponding tour in 2010-11.
But none of the three men has carried a sustained threat, leaving the door open to Bresnan as he continues his rapid rehabilitation from a stress fracture of the back.
Ballance's 54 in England's first innings here in Australia's Red Centre make him the most likely man to replace Jonathan Trott in the Test side after the experienced number three returned to the UK with a stress-related illness.
Whether he would bat in Trott's position at three or lower down the order is less clear, with Root failing as an opener on Saturday afternoon and Bell unlikely to move up from five.
With Australia coach Darren Lehmann insisting that he will pick his strongest side when the second Test begins at the Adelaide Oval on 5 December, it leaves England with all the selection headaches as they look to fight their way back into the series after the 381-run thrashing at the Gabba. | England's final outing before the second Ashes Test drifted to the expected draw as their second-string pace bowlers once again failed to impress. |
37,545,953 | They grab the attention - which is of course the aim of a headline - but talk of a breakthrough is premature.
The Sunday Times reported that a British man with HIV was receiving a prototype therapy designed to eradicate the virus from his body.
Early tests from the clinical trial have apparently shown no signs of the virus in his blood.
That may sound astonishing unless you know that conventional antiretroviral therapy (ART) - which the patient was also taking - already reduces HIV to undetectable levels.
Sarah Fidler, Prof of HIV Medicine at Imperial College London, who is leading the trial, told me: "All the participants are taking antiretrovirals and so will have an undetectable viral load, which shows the great success of current treatment."
It does indeed. HIV medication has turned the infection from a death sentence to a chronic, manageable condition, which is remarkable.
The limitation of ART is that it cannot eliminate HIV.
The virus remains dormant in some immune cells and will start replicating if patients stop taking their medication.
That's why antiretrovirals must be taken for life.
The RIVERS trial - which stands for Research in Viral Eradication of HIV Reservoirs - is trying to rid the virus completely from the body.
'Kick and kill'
So far, 39 out of a total of 50 patients have been recruited to the trial. All will receive ART but half will also be given a drug which forces the virus to emerge from hiding places in the body. These chosen patients will also receive two vaccines which aim to boost the immune system so that it can attack HIV-infected cells.
The strategy is called "kick and kill".
The anonymous patient quoted in the newspaper article is simply the first of the participants to have completed the kick and kill treatment.
No results are expected until 2018.
The trial is being conducted by a consortium of research teams at Imperial and King's College, London, Oxford and Cambridge Universities and University College London.
The partnership began six years ago, and set out to search for a cure for HIV.
Mark Samuels, managing director of the National Institute for Health Research Office for Clinical Research InfraÂstructure, which set up the medical consortium, told me: "This is an unprecedented collaboration and to get to clinical trials in six years shows remarkable progress."
So how will the researchers know whether their trial has been a success?
This will take some time and involve detailed analysis of blood samples from volunteers.
Viral reservoir
John Frater, Prof of Infectious Disease at Oxford University, told me: "We will carry out a very targeted genetic test to look for HIV lying dormant within immune cells."
All the trial volunteers are newly infected HIV patients which means they will have a small viral reservoir and their immune system will not have been repeatedly damaged by the virus.
If it is possible to cure HIV, these patients represent the easiest target.
But even if the trial is a complete success, caution will be required in interpreting the results because it may not work in long-standing HIV patients.
Dr Michael Brady, medical director Terrence Higgins Trust told me: "In test tubes it has been shown that you can drive the virus out of dormant cells, but we will have to wait and see whether it works in patients.
"Even if it works we can't talk about a cure for everyone and there would need to be bigger trials."
To date, only one person appears to have been cured of HIV infection.
Timothy Ray Brown, the so-called Berlin patient, received a bone marrow transplant from a donor with natural immunity to the virus.
However, bone marrow transplants are potentially dangerous and so not an approach that is recommended.
Earlier this year I reported on a gene editing trial in California involving 80 HIV patients.
They had immune cells in their blood removed and editing to try to mimic the gene mutation which gives some people a natural immunity to HIV.
One of the volunteers, Matt Chappell, has been off all antiretroviral medication for two years since having his immune cells gene edited.
These were small trials so caution is needed before reading too much into the results, but they are nonetheless promising.
The British trial is taking a different approach but with the same aim - trying to free patients from the need to take daily medication.
But talk of cures is premature. | Beware of headlines which suggest scientists are "on the brink of HIV cure", or "HIV cure close". |
40,344,591 | The 29-year-old was on loan at Walsall in 2016-17, making 26 starts in League One after joining the Iron in 2015.
The former Scotland youth international has also previously played for Preston, Stevenage, Torquay and Plymouth.
"I'm from Somerset so it's nice to be able to move nearer home," Laird told the Gloucestershire club's website.
"I haven't been able to do that for 10 years in my football career. It's great to be a part of something that can really kick on."
Meanwhile, Forest Green have named Helen Taylor - an ambassador for the club's sponsor - as the club's new chief executive, while long-serving supporter Phil Butterworth replaces David Drew - Stroud's new Member of Parliament - as vice-chairman.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page. | Newly-promoted League Two club Forest Green Rovers have signed left-back Scott Laird on a two-year deal after his release by Scunthorpe United. |
33,622,408 | The frozen peaks were found on the lower-left edge of the dwarf world's "heart" and are 1-1.5km-high.
They sit between a patch of icy, flat terrain, called Sputnik Planum, which scientists believe is less than 100 million years old, and a dark area dating to billions of years ago.
More close-ups will be unveiled on Friday at a press conference.
Jeff Moore, who leads the geology, geophysics and imaging team on New Horizons, said: "There is a pronounced difference in texture between the younger, frozen plains to the east and the dark, heavily-cratered terrain to the west.
"There's a complex interaction going on between the bright and the dark materials that we're still trying to understand."
The newly spotted mountains are about 110km away from another range, which is now known as Norgay Montes, which appeared in some of the first images returned from last week's fly-by.
Those peaks are much more lofty: standing at about 3.3km-high, they rival the Rocky Mountains in size.
The New Horizons spacecraft has also zoomed in on two of Pluto's five moons.
An image taken by the probe's high resolution camera, Lorri, reveals the most-detailed-view yet of Hydra, which is about 55km-long and 40km-wide.
The little satellite seems to have at least two large craters, and its top half looks darker than its bottom, suggesting the make-up of its surface may be varied.
Another picture snapped by the Ralph instrument reveals Nix with its colours boosted, which is a technique that helps scientists to identify details on the surface they would otherwise be unable to see.
Through this, the team has identified a reddish spot, which may be a crater.
"Additional compositional data has already been taken of Nix, but is not yet downlinked. It will tell us why this region is redder than its surroundings," said mission scientist Carly Howett.
"This observation is so tantalizing, I'm finding it hard to be patient for more Nix data to be downlinked."
Follow Rebecca on Twitter. | The latest images from the New Horizons spacecraft have revealed another range of ice mountains on Pluto. |
34,063,584 | Labour is at a crossroads.
There are two roads it can go down, says Andy Burnham - the shadow health secretary who wants to lead Labour back to government but recognises his party isn't necessarily on the road to recovery from its recent general election defeat.
Burnham believes - despite having nearly 100 seats fewer than the Conservatives - that Labour can unite and win the next election.
But there are some signs too - especially with left-winger Jeremy Corbyn setting the pace - that it might take a different route.
The leadership contest "could be quite polarising, if we are not careful," says Burnham.
And the party could yet split: "There is a very real danger - the parallels with the mid-to-late 1980s are very, very strong right now. Labour must have one eye on its history all through this."
The Leigh MP is speaking to me just ahead of a rally at St Pancras Church in central London.
He is proving it's not just Jeremy Corbyn who has resurrected well-attended public meetings.
About 1,000 people packed in to the pews to hear Burnham and his supporting cast of Sir Keir Starmer, now the local MP but until recently the Director of Public Prosecutions, shadow minister Luciana Berger and former deputy leader Lord Prescott.
So just as well this was a very broad church - but whether Labour can remain so itself is in doubt.
In a barnstorming speech, John Prescott denounced two shadow cabinet members for setting up a 'Common Good' group and suggested this was a similar initiative to the Gang of Four who later formed the SDP in the early 1980s.
This time there was 'a Gang of Two' - and Prescott disparagingly denounced the pair of them: "Chuka (Umunna) and some guy called Tris-teeh-yan (Tristram Hunt)".
The crowd went wild.
It would be a hard act to follow. Burnham praised Prescott as "the best warm up act" and "the original Northern Powerhouse".
Then he, too, addressed the issue of splits, in a way that was perhaps designed to reach those who couldn't recall his party's meltdown of the 1980s.
He announced boy-band One Direction had broken up - and added he didn't want the same to happen to Labour.
He had told me that he would be the person that could "knit the party together again" and told the audience now he was "Labour to the core".
I'd asked if that meant he would serve in a Jeremy Corbyn shadow cabinet if he himself failed to win the leadership. His rivals Liz Kendall and Yvette Cooper had said respectively "no" and "not likely" to that question.
Burnham said there has been no discussions "of any kind" but "generally I will try to help - I am on the uniting front".
It took a bit of pressing for him to say that both Cooper and Kendall would feature in his shadow cabinet if he won: "It's the wrong time to do a reshuffle but I praised Liz Kendall on what she was saying about devolution, that needs to be part of Labour's story.'
But would he bring all his rivals in to his shadow cabinet?
"I could imagine that - I want to bring people back together."
But yes, he is at his core a party man.
He told me he had started attending local Labour Party meetings of his Culcheth and Glazebury ward - in the Warrington North constituency - in 1984 when he was just 14, officially signing up to the party when he was permitted to do so the following year.
Both national and local factors had brought him in to the Labour fold.
He was impressed with the then leader Neil Kinnock, who is backing his leadership bid.
"He was the figure I related to, when he really hit his stride.. attacking Militant, taking Derek Hatton on. I remember that very vividly. It's a great source of pride to have his support.'
(Kinnock famously denounced the far-left, Militant-controlled Liverpool City Council from the platform at Labour's 1985 conference.)
Unlike some people of his generation, Andy Burnham was not attracted to political activity through CND.
He attended one meeting in Leigh - the nearby Greater Manchester constituency he now represents - with his brother "because we were all worried about nuclear weapons at the time, it loomed large in the minds of young people - Threads was on TV." This was a BBC drama which simulated a nuclear attack on Sheffield.
But he didn't go back - he was ultimately less concerned about abstract threats than what he regarded as the suffering in people's everyday lives.
Another BBC drama, this time set in his native city of Liverpool - Boys From the Blackstuff - had been more influential.
One of its characters - Yosser Hughes - had had his dignity destroyed by unemployment and would utter the desperate catchphrase: "Gizza job - I can do that!"
And the real-life drama of the miners' strike had been unfolding before his eyes.
Although even as a teenager Burnham had been worried about a lack of a ballot before industrial action began, he had been struck by the hardships which those on strike were enduring.
"My school was right by Parkside colliery (in Newton-le-Willows, which closed in 1993) and we went past the picket line every day. I had a lot of friends whose dads were miners."
So Andy Burnham's background wasn't the most obvious for a Cambridge graduate. His father was a telephone engineer, his mother a receptionist and he attended the local catholic comprehensive, St Aelred's High.
But his time amid the cloisters shaped his thinking as much as what he had seen on his doorstep.
"I didn't think I would fit in at Cambridge, got rejected, and told my mum and dad I was going to Newcastle instead.
"And this letter came out of the blue to go back and they urged me to give it another go.
"I don't regret it but it changed my world view. When you come from the place I was in - with low horizons - then you arrive at university and see what other people take for granted. That shaped me, seeing those two worlds and the disparity between them. I have used the phrase before but the postcode of the bed you are born in still determines where you end up."
He now wants to burst the "Westminster bubble" which he believes insulates those inside it from everyday life - but wasn't he for a long time an occupant?
He had worked for Tessa Jowell when Labour had been in opposition in the 1990s and then had been Chris Smith's special adviser at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport during Tony Blair's first term in office. He then became an MP at the age of 31.
'I went back to where I grew up after leaving university because I couldn't get a job.
"I worked unpaid on a local newspaper (he now wants to end unpaid internships) - I eventually got a job at a publishing company.
"I have always represented the seat where I grew up. Most MPs can't say that - it does give you a different perspective. It doesn't make you a creature of Westminster. My family are based there - I don't pay it a fleeting visit."
And he tells me he is thinking about how to change Labour's method of selecting candidates in future.
It had been felt by party organisers that selecting a candidate early in a target seat would give them time to build up their profile but these selection contests can take some time - and the long haul to the election might deter people from some backgrounds and limited incomes.
'To win a Labour Parliamentary selection you probably need to have a job where you can take three to five months off and probably need five or ten grand disposable income.
"It favours certain people with certain backgrounds. There should be much shorter timeframes for selection, which would be less favourable to those who build up all those connections from living in that political world. We need a big change."
He says he detected public disillusionment with politics towards the end of the last Labour government, when it hadn't heard the cries of the whole city of Liverpool over Hillsborough. where 96 football fans had died, and malicious and untrue stories had circulated about their behaviour.
After Labour came to power in 1997 they considered, then ruled out, a fresh inquiry.
Burnham was heckled by Liverpool fans when he spoke at Anfield, at the invitation of then Liverpool mayor Steve Rotherham, on the 20th anniversary of the disaster in 2009 - not because he was an Everton fan but because families felt the government was not listening to them.
He raised the issue at the following day's cabinet meeting. This led to the Hillsborough Independent Panel being set up and the truth about the tragedy emerging.
While he was proud of his role here, he says he became increasingly aware that his party was failing to connect with those it claimed, or sought, to represent.
'I have been feeling for a while that Labour's offer has been too timid. When I stood for leader in 2010 (he came fourth) it was part of my critique that modern politics isn't capable of giving people solutions that are big enough to inspire, that it throws out gimmicks and small scale policies that don't make a difference."
So how would he be different?
Back at the St Pancras meeting, 17-year-old George Rogers asks the candidate if he is "continuity Miliband".
Burnham chose to define his differences with the former leader by moving to his left flank, not his right.
Unlike Miliband, he wouldn't just reduce tuition fees in England, he would scrap them. He is looking at a graduate tax, though, and admits higher education cannot simply be free for all.
There were other crowd-pleasers too - opposition to right to buy for housing association tenants, renationalising of the railways - incrementally, as franchises come up for renewal - and an end to charitable status for private schools.
So, I wondered, if he had become victim of the "Corbyn effect" - ramping up radical rhetoric to try to win a contest which, on the surface, might be attracting new members and supporters because the left-winger was offering an alternative to austerity and mainstream politics.
Or was he - as one of his rivals had put it (without mentioning Burnham by name) - "pandering" to Jeremy Corbyn?
"I don't see it that way, for obvious reasons," he responds.
"The party hierarchy have been misreading the mood amongst members - they want a different kind of politics to the insipid stuff Labour has been serving up in recent times.
"We can't lecture people. It's not a case of me veering completely to the left, or whatever. The substance of what Labour was saying has been too shallow. I'd already felt that. Jeremy has come in, of course, and really spoken to that."
But what appeared to put rocket boosters under Jeremy Corbyn's candidacy was the decision by the shadow cabinet to abstain on - rather than oppose - the Conservatives' Welfare Bill.
This had been at acting leader Harriet Harman's insistence - though in the end she tabled what is called a "reasoned amendment" setting out Labour's differences. Burnham had argued for outright opposition.
He was barracked by one of the political congregation at St Pancras over why he hadn't opposed legislation that could in future see child tax credits restricted to a family's first two children.
He replied that unity was strength and that he hadn't risked splitting the party on the issue.
And this is what he told me: "It was a turning point in the campaign, definitely.
"I argued twice in shadow cabinet that we should oppose. In the second discussion Harriet asked for everyone's views.
"There were a range - abstain; a reasoned amendment then abstain; and a reasoned amendment then oppose. I supported that.
"But too late in the day it looked like we were just going to abstain.
"Under the pressure I applied, the party moved to the position of a reasoned amendment. In effect this was opposition.
"Having forced the change I then had a decision. Did I resign from the shadow cabinet and walk my supporters through the opposite lobby from the rest of the shadow cabinet - or abide by a collective decision that was a compromise?
"It's different for Jeremy - he is not in the shadow cabinet and isn't bound by collective responsibility.
"So it was a no win situation for me - but had I resigned and possibly won the leadership at that moment, it wouldn't have been me. I have never undermine the Labour Party in Parliament.
"If the party becomes divided how do we put it back together on 13 September?' (the day after the new leader is announced). But It's frustrating."
So if he overcomes this political obstacle, and wins the contest, I wanted to find out what the priorities would be for a Burnham leadership.
He's already talked of setting up a new "Beveridge-style commission" after Sir William Beveridge's wartime Social Insurance and Allied Services report, which led to the setting-up of the welfare state.
Burnham's commission would look at reviewing the delivery of a National Health and Care service; the introduction of a universal graduate tax, and funding for apprenticeships.
But he is promising action before words: "The first thing you have to do as leader of the Opposition is do what it says on the tin - oppose.
"I will deliver the most energetic, hard-working Opposition that this party has seen in a long time - I will run the government ragged. That's how I was forged.
"That's what we did pre-1997. Being an effective opposition is crucial. But the second thing is correcting the record over the economy."
And for all the left-wing rhetoric, Burnham is determined to address two issues which Labour's own pollsters say became barriers between the party and some of its target voters - the deficit and immigration.
The former is, he agrees, his main point of difference with leadership rival Yvette Cooper.
"I acknowledged the deficit was too high in 2007 - I was Chief Secretary to the Treasury back then, and was asked to bring it down.
"I don't take the view that Yvette seems to - that you just say we got everything absolutely right. It just doesn't wash with people.
"It may work with an internal audience to say that but you have remember you can't just talk to the Labour Party here - you have got to talk to the party and the country. If you are honest about where you went wrong people are more likely to trust you going forward."
But he says the deficit can and should be brought down through tax rises, not just spending cuts and he isn't afraid to say that some taxes will need to go up.
On immigration, he says he has seen the adverse effects in his own constituency: "I will talk about this a lot as leader. I don't want Labour people avoiding voters' eyes on the doorstep on this subject.
"I have seen people's wages undercut and agency staff brought in to do shifts. I have spoken out about someone I met on the doorstep in West Leigh who said he was the only person on his shift who spoke English. People talk about pressures on primary schools."
But Ed Miliband shifted Labour's policy - he emphasised he would tackle exploitation and advocated a two-year wait for benefits for EU migrants. So I explored whether Andy Burnham was offering merely a change in tone, or in substance.
"I am pro-European and believe in free movement of labour.
"But what I have pressed with the European Parliament President (German social democrat) Martin Schulz is that there are EU structural funds which haven't been drawn down - why can't that money be designated as a migration fund?
"Communities most affected would apply for this and get help for, say, extra primary school teachers or extra GPs. Europe has to understand some communities - especially the poorest - are changed by migration"
And he promises to "go after UKIP" on the issue and "be in as many pubs as Nigel Farage".
But were those who had turned out on an unseasonably wet, cold August night to attend Andy Burnham's London rally about to raise a glass to his leadership ambitions?
With all the talk of potential splits, it was perhaps encouraging that the first person I spoke to in the audience was called Unity. Yes, she really was.
"I always liked Andy Burnham. I have had my eye on him for a long time."
Her companion, Annabel, too was pretty positive: "I like the talk of another Beveridge government. I think he doesn't scare the horses."
Hazel, on the other hand, wasn't sure whether to opt for Yvette Cooper instead. She did find Jeremy Corbyn "wonderful and energising" but "No, no I remember the eighties".
Rienzi said he was also old enough to remember the divisions of that decade too: "I saw what ultra-left wing politics did to the party. Labour will never get in if it goes back to that."
So he wasn't backing Jeremy Corbyn but wanted to see "if Andy Burnham is up to it." And he defended the Leigh MP for not attacking Corbyn: "It might go negative on him."
But for Josh "it's between Andy and Jeremy Corbyn. Jeremy might have a problem winning over dyed-in -the-wool Tories and we could struggle on 2020".
Young voters Anna and Serena were yet to cast their ballots.
Serena said it was important to "hear things from the horse's mouth - so far there has been a lack of clarity".
She had seen Yvette Cooper and Jeremy Corbyn and the latter - even if he was "unrealistic" was at least clear.
Anna said Corbyn's inclusion in the contest "had made me more engaged but I am unlikely to vote for him. Now it's up to us to look at the policies and decide who should lead the party".
Andy Burnham will be hoping that sober reflection - rather than anti-austerity enthusiasm for Jeremy Corbyn - will allow him to snatch victory.
It's been a long haul. Indeed, he tells his church audience that the campaign "has gone on so long I can just about remember when I was the frontrunner".
He gave an impassioned performance - now he'll be hoping he can make a second coming. | In the second of a series of in-depth profiles of the four Labour leadership candidates, Iain Watson catches up with Andy Burnham and his supporters at a campaign rally. |
33,816,707 | He was taken ill on Tuesday while visiting the country to support his daughter Tracey, who is the England netball coach, during the World Cup.
England Netball confirmed the 65-year-old died in hospital in Sydney on Friday evening local time.
Mr Neville was a former commercial director of Bury Football Club.
The League One side said he was in Sydney with his wife, Jill, who is also club secretary for Bury FC.
In a statement, the club confirmed Mr Neville's death "with deep regret and extremely heavy hearts", and said it would pay tribute at a future date.
"Where would this Club be without Neville? Rest in Peace big Nev," the club said, adding players would wear black armbands during their match with Doncaster on Saturday.
Mr Neville was involved in the fans' group Save Our Shakers, which was formed when the side faced bankruptcy in 2002.
His sons, Gary and Phil, both started their lengthy football careers with Manchester United in the early 1990s. Gary won 85 England caps, while Phil won 59.
Manchester United tweeted: "We are sad to learn that Neville Neville, father of Gary and Phil, has passed away. Our condolences go out to his family."
An emotional Tracey Neville led her England side out on court on Friday just hours after it emerged her father had been taken ill.
Local media reported Gary and Phil Neville were in the Sydney crowd to watch England win their first match 60-19 against Scotland on the opening day of the World Cup.
An England Netball spokesperson said: "Our immediate thoughts are with Tracey and the Neville family and we please ask that the privacy of the family is respected at this time.
"Tracey has chosen to remain with the England team for the remainder of the World Cup and has the full support from everyone at England Netball." | Neville Neville, the father of former England and Manchester United footballers Gary and Phil, has died in Australia. |
32,729,943 | Ogmore MP Huw Irranca-Davies said in a statement: "The decision is entirely my own. It has been a privilege to serve as a Minister and Shadow Minister alongside passionate and talented colleagues, and I do not rule out a return to the frontbench in future if the opportunity arises.
"But for now I intend to play a full and constructive role in the rebuilding of the Labour party in Wales and the UK from the backbenches, speaking up as always for my constituents, putting forward ideas which will reconnect people with politics, and working for Labour success in the elections for the National Assembly for Wales next year."
Mr Irranca-Davies, who was part of Labour's DEFRA team, tells me he wanted more freedom to contribute to policy development and campaign strategy in the run-up to next year's elections - although he won't be a candidate for Cardiff Bay.
He says that in the general election people understood the difference between parliament and the assembly but also saw how they were linked on issues such as health and social care and work and welfare.
The former Wales Office and DEFRA minister says he hasn't decided who to vote for in the Labour leadership election but was struck by a comment made by a constituent during the campaign that has just ended.
A constituent told him: "You are playing some good notes but you haven't got the whole symphony yet". Whoever can get the whole symphony - as leader and deputy - will get the Irranca-Davies vote.
Would-be candidates and their teams have already been taking soundings among MPs as they seek the nominations needed to enter the contest but few Welsh Labour MPs appear ready to offer their endorsement until more candidates declare.. | A Welsh MP who was a minister under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown has quit the Labour frontbench. |
23,666,314 | The cockpit of a Horsa glider is being re-created as part of an exhibition for the new Jet Age Museum at Staverton.
Made by cabinet makers, the wooden giants, with a 88ft (27m) wingspan, were designed to carry large numbers of troops and supplies to an enemy target.
Co-ordinator Trevor Davis said: "They were disposable and never designed to come back that's why there are so few."
Manufactured by 30 different companies, including Gloucestershire based HH Martyn, the fragile aircraft were designed to glide into a drop zone delivering troops and supplies.
Assembled at Minchinhampton and Little Rissington in the county, they had the advantage of landing soldiers and supplies together, rather than scattered by parachute and allowed troops to be deployed without parachute training.
"They delivered not only troops but armaments and vehicles in a very economical way when resources were very difficult," said Mr Davis.
"I've heard stories of jeeps, artillery pieces as well as 15 or 16 troops as well as two pilots.
"But they [the gliders] were only planned to go once and most broke up on landing".
They were most famously used in Operation Market Garden, the assault on Arnhem in September 1944. The Glider Pilot Regiment suffered 90% casualties during the battle.
Operation Varsity in March 1945 was more successful, with Horsas helping to land 14,000 British and American troops on the east bank of the River Rhine.
Ken Ploughman, a former RAF pilot who flew in Operation Varsity, said he "thought more about what the troops were thinking" behind him than the risks.
"I never thought about it and we didn't have parachutes either - I mean it was a job and our main concern was to get them into operation," he said.
He also said the Gloucestershire built cockpit had saved his life.
"We'd landed on the banks of a little stream - struck it - had to because I had no choice as to where we were landing and the nose broke off with us in it," he said.
"It remained in one piece and rolled into the field - well it saved my life, it really saved my life."
The Horsa glider cockpit will be on display at the Jet Age Museum, which is due to open next year. | Part of a World War II glider is being built by enthusiasts in Gloucestershire on the site it was originally made. |
29,959,593 | A message has been published under her name which appears to promote "fat-burning" methods and contains a link to Tumblr.
The account is currently set to private but users who already followed her were able to see the message.
"It's obviously been hacked and is pretty crude," a family spokeswoman said.
Twitter have yet to respond with a statement.
Peaches died in April. Initially the cause was unknown, but it was later linked to heroin use.
Her body was found by her husband Tom Cohen at their home in Wrotham, Kent.
She had two sons, Astala, two, and Phaedra, one.
In an interview last month, Sir Bob Geldof said he "blames himself" for the death of his daughter.
He described the journalist, model and TV presenter as "super bright" but "frantic" in her private life.
"You blame yourself," he said. "You're the father who is responsible and clearly failed.
"For anybody watching, who has a dead kid and you're a parent, you go back, you go back, you go over, you go over.
"What could you have done? You do as much as you can."
Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube | The Twitter account of Peaches Geldof, who died earlier this year at the age of 25, appears to have been hacked. |
33,751,853 | Officers were called to North Street, Grangetown, at about 04:20 BST on Saturday.
The 35-year-old later died in hospital sparking a murder probe.
One man was arrested on Saturday and South Wales Police confirmed on Sunday a second man had also been arrested in connection with the incident.
Anyone who was around North Street, Thomas Street and Penarth Road between 03:30 and 04:20 is asked to call 101. | Police investigating the murder of a man who died after being found unconscious on a Cardiff street have named him as Russell Peachey. |
34,957,994 | The 73-year-old, who died on 17 September, presented the Sunday Morning Gardening Show for 22 years and had been the station's on-air gardening expert for more than 40 years.
His co-presenter Tim Crowther led the service at St Peter's Church, Leeds.
Family and friends were joined by 100 Radio Leeds listeners.
Speaking at the time of his death, former editor of Radio Leeds, Rozina Breen, described Mr Maiden as "a gentleman".
She said: "We will miss Joe enormously: his enthusiasm, energy, generosity and kindness - not to mention his stellar knowledge of horticulture.
"He was a gentleman in every sense of the word and it was a complete privilege to work with him.
The memorial service will be played on Radio Leeds on Sunday, 6 December at 11:00 GMT. | A memorial service for BBC Radio Leeds' long-serving gardening expert Joe Maiden has been held. |
38,518,227 | Devon and Cornwall Police have discovered 14 such establishments in Newquay alone since July.
Officers say sex workers typically rent the properties out for a week, advertising their services online, before packing up and moving on.
Det Insp Dave Meredith said he believed sex workers were being trafficked into the seaside resort by organised gangs.
Speaking on BBC R4's PM, he said it was virtually impossible for owners to know about the activities taking place in their holiday homes.
The problem is not believed to be confined to Newquay, Mr Meredith said, adding it was proving difficult to disrupt.
More on the 'pop-up brothels' and other stories
"It's very probable that there's organised crime behind these sex workers and that organised crime is certainly skimming off some of the money they make," he said.
One guesthouse owner, who gave her name as Ellen, said the first she knew about a temporary brothel on her street was when a man knocked on her front door last July.
"He asked me how much I charged, assuming I was part of it. I just told him to go away - I was shocked," she said.
She added that she had a duty to protect her guests and, with young families living nearby, it simply was "not what you want in the area".
The force is urging residents in Newquay and people living alongside holiday lets to be vigilant and contact police with concerns. | Police are warning owners of holiday lets to beware of sex workers using their properties as pop-up brothels. |
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