She outlined her concerns about the consequences of the Brexit vote in a letter to Theresa May on Wednesday. Mrs Foster and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness highlighted five key priorities to the prime minister. On Thursday, Mrs Foster said: "Brexit means Brexit, but that doesn't mean that we close our eyes to the challenges that are there." She emphasised that Northern Ireland's border must not become a catalyst for illegal activity, nor create an incentive for those who wished to undermine the peace process. "In the past, terrorists have used the border as a way of evading justice and that can not be the case in the future," she said. "We need to make sure that we have strong mechanisms in place to make sure that they don't get away with that sort of activity." In their letter, the first and deputy first ministers highlighted to Mrs May that Northern Ireland was unique as the only part of the UK that has a border with an EU member state. They also referred to costs, the energy market, drawdown of EU funding and treatment of the agri-food sector as other priorities. During the referendum, Mrs Foster's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) campaigned in favour of Brexit, while Martin McGuinness's Sinn FÃ©in wanted to stay in the EU. When it comes to the economy, they said they wanted to "retain as far as possible the ease with which we currently trade with EU member states". "It would be negligent of me not to point out where I believe the challenges are," Mrs Foster said. "We're extracting ourselves from European Union and it is of course right that we identify where those challenges lie, but I fundamentally believe that there are huge opportunities." Speaking on Thursday, Mr McGuinness said the letter was "a very important indication" that he and Mrs Foster "recognise our huge responsibility to the people we represent". "I think we would've done a grave disservice if we hadn't articulated the differences and challenges we might face in times ahead," he said. "This is about how we protect the interests of the people we represent and the challenges that lie ahead." He added that it was important the he and the first minister "come together in the aftermath of the vote" in spite of having been on different sides of the referendum debate. "My gripe isn't with Arlene Foster, my gripe is with David Cameron who called the referendum in the first place," he said. "This is too big, too serious for us not to be joined up in relation to how we take this process forward." Stormont's opposition parties criticised the letter, with the Ulster Unionist Party's (UUP) economy spokesperson Steve Aiken asking "whether this is a DUP u-turn on their position on the referendum". Mrs Foster replied that the UUP's position on Brexit had been "comical". She added: "Poor Steven Aiken has been sent out once again to be the attack dog against the executive, and frankly he comes across more as a Chihuahua." However, the SDLP's Claire Hanna said: "The

Summary: First Minister Arlene Foster has denied that campaigning for the UK to leave the EU was a mistake.


Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he said he would build on the support he received at rallies to reconnect the party to voters. He rejected criticism from those who say he is mistaking the enthusiasm of his backers for wider electoral appeal. Ex-leader Neil Kinnock said Labour appeared unelectable under Mr Corbyn and faced its "greatest crisis". Labour will announce whether Mr Corbyn or Owen Smith have won the leadership contest on 24 September. Ahead of the vote, Mr Smith accused Mr Corbyn of seeking to "deepen divisions" between the party's membership - seen as overwhelmingly in favour of the leader - and its MPs - who are largely opposed to him. But asked if he would quit as leader if he thought he could not take the party to power, Mr Corbyn told Today he was "determined" to lead it into the next general election and said it could win. Referring to the "diverse" crowds of tens of thousands of people who have attended his leadership rallies in recent weeks, Mr Corbyn said they showed "there is an interest in politics... that then becomes surely a very strong campaigning base for the Labour movement". He added: "I think you'll see it begin to play out, particularly in the local elections next year and after that." In June, 20 members of the shadow cabinet resigned, and one was sacked, over differences with Mr Corbyn. Five told the BBC on Sunday they would return if asked by Mr Corbyn should he be re-elected, while nine others said they would stand if shadow cabinet elections were revived. Mr Corbyn told Today he would "reach out to" Labour MPs who have opposed his leadership "as I've reached out to them in the past". He said: "I have made it my business to talk to quite a lot of Labour MPs and will continue to do so and I hope they will understand that we've been elected as Labour MPs... "It doesn't mean everybody agrees on everything all the time - that I understand - but the general direction of opposition to austerity, opposing the Tories on grammar schools, those are actually the kind of things that unite the party." On Tuesday, Labour's national executive committee meets and will consider a plan put forward by deputy leader Tom Watson to allow the parliamentary party - its MPs and peers currently serving in Westminster - to elect the shadow cabinet, as part of efforts to reunite the party as a whole. At the moment they are appointed by the leader. Newspaper reports suggested that, under the new plan, a third of Labour's top team could be elected by the parliamentary party, another third by the party membership, and the final third chosen by the leader. Mr Corbyn has not given his support to the proposal but has indicated he would back members having a say.

Summary: Jeremy Corbyn has said he will "reach out" to Labour MPs if he is re-elected as the party's leader this week.


It follows the arrest of an former ombudsman investigator over an alleged theft of sensitive security documents. It is understood the documents contained information the police and security service MI5 believe could put the lives of individuals at risk. The PFNI said it was an "astounding and very worrying state of affairs". A 69-year-old man was arrested in Dartford, Kent, on Sunday after detectives from the PSNI's Serious Crime Branch conducted a joint search with local police. It is understood he retired from the ombudsman's office a number of years ago and that the documents do not refer to any case currently being investigated by it. Mark Lindsay, chair of the federation, said there had to be an element of fairness for police officers under investigation. "They need the same protections that a normal member of society would have and that doesn't exist at the moment with the ombudsman's office," he told the BBC's Good Morning Ulster programme. "There is a real role for the Police Ombudsman's office, but that office has to hold the confidence of police officers." The police have begun a criminal investigation into the issue and have also suspended the release of any further sensitive material to the ombudsman's office until a review of security protocols is carried out. The Ulster Unionist MP Tom Elliott said the ombudsman's office had serious questions to answer. "When there's alleged wrongdoing, the PSNI should be called in at an earlier stage to investigate these matters so that they can be independently investigated," Mr Elliott told the BBC. "There is a failure and a gap there that needs to be resolved." In a statement to the BBC, a spokesman for the ombudsman confirmed he was alerted by police last week about the theft of sensitive material originating from the office. The office of the Police Ombudsman said it was anticipated that this suspension of the sharing of sensitive material "will be temporary."

Summary: The Police Federation of Northern Ireland (PFNI) has called for a "full inquiry" into the operation of the police ombudsman.


Police said the accident happened at just before 13:00 at the event in Blaxhall, north-east of Ipswich. The air ambulance service attended and the man was pronounced dead at the scene, a police spokeswoman said. She said there were "not believed to be any suspicious circumstances" surrounding the incident and a file would be prepared for the coroner. Club secretary Lyn Berwick from Woodbridge DMCC, which is based at the Blaxhall track, confirmed it was not one of their riders who had died, but said the man had been competing at the purpose-built circuit. At the time it was hosting the penultimate round of Eastern Centre Championship, with riders from across East Anglia. She said members of the club were with the deceased's family but declined to comment any further.

Summary: A man in his 20s has died after falling from his bike at a motocross event in Suffolk.


Atletico lost Tuesday's quarter-final first leg 2-1, with goalscorer Fernando Torres sent off when they led 1-0. Luis Suarez scored both home goals, but earlier appeared to kick Juanfran. "I don't know what Barca players have to do to get sent off just like us," said Brazil left-back Luis. Holders Barcelona, aiming to become the first team to win back-to-back Champions Leagues, take a slender advantage into the second leg at the Vicente Calderon next Wednesday. Atletico scored a potentially valuable away goal through Torres, but the game turned when the Spain striker was sent off for two needless bookings inside seven minutes. Atletico manager Diego Simeone was incensed by the decision of German referee Felix Brych, who also seemingly missed Suarez lashing out at Atletico right-back Juanfran near the byeline. Media playback is not supported on this device "We shouldn't have got the red card, it was totally unfair," said former Chelsea defender Luis. "It is not easy to play against Barcelona in the Champions League. We know it is really dangerous if they go out in the quarter-finals. We have to play against everyone and everything. "You can tell there is fear that Barca will be eliminated." Luis acknowledged Atletico faced a "really difficult" task to reach the semi-finals but added: "We are still alive. It is possible." Simeone said he was not "angry" with Torres, though the 32-year-old former Chelsea and Liverpool forward later apologised and took responsibility for his dismissal.

Summary: Atletico Madrid defender Filipe Luis believes "there is fear that Barcelona will be eliminated" from the Champions League, and claims his side were treated unfairly at the Nou Camp.


The agreement, reached late on Friday after two days of talks in Brussels, gives the UK power to limit some EU migrants' benefits. It also includes a treaty change so the UK is not bound to "ever closer union" with other EU member states, he said. EU exit campaigners said the "hollow" deal offered only "very minor changes". Mr Cameron is set to the announce the date of a referendum on whether Britain should remain in the EU after a cabinet meeting which is happening at 10:00 GMT - the referendum is widely expected to be on Thursday, 23 June. Once the date is announced, ministers will be allowed to campaign for whichever side they want - one of Mr Cameron's closest political allies Michael Gove has already been named as supporting the Leave camp. Others, such as Iain Duncan Smith are expected to follow - but a question mark remains over which way London Mayor Boris Johnson will jump. The key points of the deal are: The prime minster had to make concessions to get a deal with the leaders of the 27 other EU members. Mr Cameron had originally wanted a complete ban on migrants sending child benefit abroad but had to compromise after some eastern European states rejected that and also insisted that existing claimants should continue to receive the full payment. On how long the UK would be able to have a four-year curb on in-work benefits for new arrivals, Mr Cameron had to give way on hopes of it being in place for 13 years, settling for seven instead. The agreement on renegotiating the UK's EU membership was announced by European Council president Donald Tusk, who tweeted: "Deal. Unanimous support for new settlement for #UKinEU." German Chancellor Angela Merkel predicted the package of reforms would "elicit support in the UK for the country to remain in the EU". Mr Tusk said it "strengthens Britain's special status", while EU Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker described it as "fair". Mr Tusk added: "We didn't walk away from the negotiating table. We were willing to sacrifice part of our interests for the common good, to show our unity. "I deeply believe the UK needs Europe and Europe needs the UK. But the final decision is in the hands of the British people." The ink is hardly dry on the UK's EU deal, but immediately the focus has switched to the substance of what David Cameron has achieved and - possibly an awkward question - how many of his colleagues will argue against him. The focus will move to whether the prime minister can keep his party politely together during a period of public disagreement. The ability to restrict benefits to migrants is an important victory for Mr Cameron - ammunition for his argument that he has achieved changes to help reduce the number of EU migrants coming to live and work in the UK. The proposals are complicated and do not exactly match the promises he made in the Conservative Party manifesto. But with it - and the other commitments -

Summary: David Cameron says a deal struck with EU leaders will give the UK "special status" and he will campaign with his "heart and soul" to stay in the union.


Thick smoke has been billowing from the fire in Slitting Mill Road in Rugeley, Staffordshire, since the blaze began on 5 September. The fire service said a controlled burn was taking place over fears water supplies could be contaminated. It is not known how long it will take to put the fire out. More updates on this and other stories in Staffordshire Resident Steve Povey said he and others were also concerned about "something toxic" in the air that could affect people's long-term health, including his pregnant daughter. Alison Shaw, manager of the nearby Horns Inn, said the pub's takings were also down because of the blaze. "Last week alone we have been down Â£3,000... we're very angry about it." MP for Cannock Chase Amanda Milling also said it was "unacceptable" the fire was still burning. The fire service said it was informed there was to be a two-hour controlled burn on the land on 5 September, but later received a 999 call to say it had got out of control. Dermot Hogan, group manager of Staffordshire Fire Service, said he was aware of residents' frustrations. Crews have been smothering part of the fire with soil, using foam to suppress the smoke and trying to remove burnt waste, he said. The Environment Agency said there were fears the water run off could contaminate the local watercourse and potentially impact groundwater supplies. Staffordshire County Council confirmed the land owner was instructed to remove rubbish from the site in June, and has since been served with enforcement notices.

Summary: Residents are angry they have to keep their doors and windows shut 10 days after 1,000 tonnes of waste caught fire on farmland.


The victim who cannot be named to protect her safety, was abused for more than 10 years, bearing two children. Violence against women is endemic in Afghanistan and victims of sexual abuse are often themselves jailed for "moral crimes". I met the victim, who is in her early twenties, for the first time last year after the trial against her father was suspended with the judge asking for DNA evidence. She was pregnant as a result of the abuse and held her four-year-old on her lap. "This is my daughter and my father's daughter," she said. "She is the result of my father raping me. We are both mother and daughter and sisters at the same time." As sunlight streamed through the drawn curtains of the impoverished home she shares with her mother, she told me the story she had presented in court for the first time last summer. According to the victim, the abuse began when her father returned from Iran after eight years abroad. She was 12 years old. "I was expecting that my father will love me the way my uncles love their children because I was thirsty for a dad's love during all the years I was deprived of him," she says. "But when I found myself in my father's arms it was too much." She recalls how he touched her intimately, making her feel uncomfortable. "I went to my grandmother and complained but she blamed me. I was told that every father caresses his children." Then one night her father raped her: "I was scared badly, I was shocked and lay in the corner of the room and didn't know what to do." When she became pregnant, the father moved the family to another province. The baby was born but he took it away - she never saw it again. The abuse lasted more than 10 years, during which the daughter went through multiple pregnancies and abortions. She says that her father used a variety of drugs which she later learned were attempts at contraception. Eventually another child was born. "When I became pregnant again, I kept the baby and didn't abort my child," she says: "I kept it to have proof for my claims against my father - my child was my only evidence." With the support of her mother, she finally managed to end the abuse. The final attack, she told me, happened in July last year, one day before Eid. "Me and my mother had told the whole story to the mullah, neighbourhood elders and the district police and they told us to inform them if I was attacked again." That night the father sent his wife out of the home before assaulting his daughter again. He was arrested as the mother returned with police and elders as witnesses. Even though he was put on trial, the daughter's ordeal was far from over. As the father denied all charges, claiming his daughter had extramarital relationships with other men, the victim herself was challenged in court. "The judge questioned me, asking why I didn't kill

Summary: An Afghan court has passed a landmark judgement, using DNA evidence to convict a man for the multiple rape of his daughter.


The fatwa, which is not legally binding but will be influential, was issued after a three-day congress of female clerics in the country. The clerics urged the government to raise the minimum legal age for women to marry to 18 from the current 16. Indonesia is a majority Muslim country and has among the highest number of child brides in the world. According to the UN's children office Unicef, one in four women in Indonesia marries before the age of 18. Fatwas are issued regularly in Indonesia, but usually by the Indonesian Ulema Council - the highest Islamic authority in the country which is made up almost entirely of men. Hundreds of women descended on Cirebon, on Java Island, for the Indonesian KUPI Women's Ulema Congress. Most of the clerics - experts in Islamic sacred law and theology - were from Indonesia, but speakers travelled from as far away as Kenya, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to take part in the conference, said to be the first major gathering of female Muslim clerics. Female clerics, or "ulema", have existed in Indonesia for hundreds of years, but their role has been played down previously. Nowadays, they help empower their communities and lead educational institutes, organisers say. It is hoped the congress will highlight the vital role they play. Steering committee chairman Badriyah Fayumi told the BBC: "Through this conference, we want to state that female clerics exist, and have been proven to contribute, and this is the time to acknowledge their existence, and to give an appreciation for the... contribution of the female clergy." The committee will now present its recommendations to the relevant groups - including the government - which will then decide on whether or not to take them any further. The fatwa called underage marriage "harmful" and said preventing it was mandatory. "Female clerics know the issues and obstacles women face, we can take action and do not just wait for the government to protect these children," Ninik Rahayu, the conference organiser, told Reuters. The female clerics cited studies which highlight that many Indonesian child brides are not allowed to continue their education and half the marriages end in divorce. The child marriage fatwa was one of a series issued during the congress. There were also edicts against women being sexually abused, and environmental destruction. You can read more coverage of the conference from the BBC's Indonesian language website.

Summary: Female Islamic clerics in Indonesia have issued an unprecedented fatwa against child marriage.


On Wednesday the US Congress voted for a law allowing families of nearly 3,000 people killed in the attacks to sue. In doing so they overrode a veto by President Barack Obama, who said it would set a "dangerous precedent". Fifteen of the 19 hijackers that day were Saudi nationals, but the kingdom has denied any role in the attacks. In a statement, the country's foreign ministry said: "The erosion of sovereign immunity will have a negative impact on all nations, including the United States." The 9/11 bill row, explained Their argument parallels the one made by Mr Obama. He said on CNN after the vote that the law set a "dangerous precedent" and could lead to the US being opened to "a situation where we're suddenly exposed to liabilities for all the work that we're doing all around the world and suddenly finding ourselves subject to private lawsuits". Meanwhile, leaders of the Republican party in Congress have said they want to reconsider the law. The Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell admitted that lawmakers had not understood the possible consequences of the legislation. "Everybody was aware of who the potential beneficiaries were but nobody really had focused on the downside in terms of our international relationships,'" Mr McConnell said. The White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it was "a pretty classic case of rapid onset buyer's remorse". On CNN, Mr Obama also suggested that that voting patterns in Congress were influenced by political concerns. "If you're perceived as voting against 9/11 families right before an election, not surprisingly, that's a hard vote for people to take," he said. "But it would have been the right thing to do." Saudi Arabia, an oil-rich kingdom and key US ally in the Middle East, had lobbied furiously against the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism (Jasta) legislation. It has stopped short of specifying how it might retaliate but has called on Congress to reverse the decision. Relatives of those killed in 9/11 have welcomed the bill's passing. "We rejoice in this triumph and look forward to our day in court and a time when we may finally get more answers regarding who was truly behind the attacks," said Terry Strada, national chair of the 9/11 Families & Survivors United for Justice Against Terrorism.

Summary: Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry has said it is a matter of "great concern" that 9/11 relatives in the US may be able to sue the kingdom for damages.


Mr Bell made the allegation while speaking under parliamentary privilege. The advisers named by Mr Bell, Timothy Johnston and John Robinson, have denied the claims. The DUP said the claims were "outrageous". MLAs were debating the RHI scheme at Stormont. A motion to delay the debate by a week, in the wake of the Secretary of State James Brokenshire's announcement of an election, was interrupted when Mr Bell made dramatic claims about the DUP. Mr Bell said when he was enterprise minister his special advisor, Timothy Cairns, told him "he will not be allowed to reduce the tariff on (the RHI) scheme" because of Mr Johnston and Mr Robinson's "extensive interests in the poultry industry". He added that he has "kept the records in many, many formats" and that he had been suspended from the party for "telling the truth". He also claimed that Mr Robinson and Dr Andrew Crawford, a DUP party adviser, had issued instructions to "try not to get Arlene called to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC)" and "under no circumstance allow Jonathan Bell to be called" over their roles in the RHI scheme. The DUP said the claims were "outrageous, untrue and unfounded" and "nothing short of mud-slinging". They said that neither Mr Johnston nor Mr Robinson have interests in the poultry industry, and added that Mr Robinson's "family home farm have chicken houses but are not part of the RHI scheme and never have been recipients or applicants". Mr Johnston, the special adviser to Arlene Foster when she was first minister, said: "I have no family connections to the poultry industry and I have no connection to the RHI scheme. "These are unsubstantiated allegations. I have two brothers-in-law in the poultry industry. They have no connection to RHI." Mr Robinson, special adviser to Economy Minister Simon Hamilton, said: "I have no personal interest in the poultry industry. Two of my brothers are poultry farmers but they have no connections to RHI." Dr Crawford, a former special adviser to the Department of Finance, told the BBC last month that his brother is the director of a company which successfully applied to the RHI scheme. He said: "I never sought to keep the RHI scheme open at the original higher tariff against the wishes of the minister." Mr Bell broke ranks with his party and made serious allegations against the DUP over the scheme's operation in a BBC interview in December. He claimed that DUP advisers had attempted to remove Mrs Foster's name from documents linked to RHI. Mr Bell was later suspended from the DUP. The RHI scheme was set up by former first minister Arlene Foster in 2012 when she was enterprise minister. Its aim was to increase consumption of heat from renewable sources. However, businesses received more in subsidies than they paid for fuel, and the scheme became heavily oversubscribed. It could lead to an overspend of Â£490m over the next 20 years.

Summary: MLA Jonathan Bell has claimed he was told he would not be able to challenge the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme because two DUP special advisers "have extensive interests in the poultry industry".


Presiding officer Tricia Marwick shed tears after veteran Labour MSP Duncan McNeil bid farewell to the parliament. And she was again visibly emotional after Mr Salmond told the chamber: "It's goodbye from me... for now". Ms Marwick, Mr Salmond and Mr McNeil are among those standing down as MSPs ahead of the election on 5 May. Mr Salmond, who served as first minister between 2007 and 2014, used his valedictory address to repeat a belief he expressed in his very first speech in the parliament that Scotland was "not divided, but diverse". He said both the country and parliament were on a journey, and added: "Yes we are a country of different views, but we are not divided. There is in fact a broad consensus on the need for this parliament to assume greater responsibility for the governance of Scotland. "And we are definitely stronger - so much stronger - as a result of that". He welcomed the transfer of powers to Holyrood under the Scotland Bill, but again insisted the bill did not fulfil the pledges which he said had been made by unionist politicians in the last days of the referendum campaign. There were lighters moments as Mr Salmond, who was speaking before the Chancellor delivered his UK budget, joked that he was aware that he faced competition from a "major attraction down south today". He then added: "However, on balance, I feel that the champion chase at Cheltenham racecourse will not be overshadowed by my remarks." And the former SNP leader joked that he wished everyone standing in the forthcoming election good luck, "albeit with varying degrees of enthusiasm". He concluded his address by saying: "Let me leave you with these final thoughts - there is no greater honour in public life than to be a member of this parliament. "There is no greater task than to mould the public purpose of Scotland. There is no greater cause than to serve the people of this country. "And so with that it is goodbye from me... for now". Ms Marwick thanked Mr Salmond for his contribution both as an MSP and as first minister, and added that he had "served the parliament and Scotland with distinction". The presiding officer had earlier been moved to tears by a powerful final speech by Scottish Labour backbencher Duncan McNeil, who is stepping down as an MSP after serving in the parliament since it was established in 1999. Mr McNeil used his address to warn that Holyrood had things to learn from Westminster, particularly with regard to the committee system. He said: "It will be this parliament's responsibility to ensure there is accountability, there is scrutiny and even opposition when that is necessary. "We must ensure we are capable of meeting that challenge, or we will face the consequences." He recalled how former Labour MP Robin Cook came to Holyrood to look at the lessons that could be learned when it came to reforming Westminster. But Mr McNeil said: "It saddens me to say we now have to do a bit of learning from

Summary: Former first minister Alex Salmond has made his final speech in the Scottish Parliament amid emotional scenes in the Holyrood chamber.


The 75-year-old, from London, admitted the abuse of 11 boys as young as eight. He denied three other offences. Denning, who was arrested in a police inquiry into the Walton Hop Disco for teenagers in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, will be sentenced on 6 October. He was part of the original line-up that launched Radio 1 in 1967, but left two years later. The prosecution said it did not intend to proceed with a trial on the three charges to which Denning had pleaded not guilty. He is currently serving a 13-year jail term for sexual assaults against 24 victims aged nine to 16 from the 1960s to 1980s. He will be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court by the same judge who jailed him for those offences in 2014. The latest offences Denning admitted included indecent assaults on men and boys and inciting boys aged under 16 and 14 to commit acts of gross indecency. The offences he denied were three counts of indecent assault. Surrey Police said the case against the former DJ formed was part of its Operation Ravine investigation into non-recent sexual offences linked to the Walton Hop Disco which ran between 1958 and 2001. Det Ch Ins Jo Hayes said: "Denning, who was looked up to and sometimes idolised by many young people, has used his status to prey on innocent children which he has now admitted to." Four of Denning's victims were in court to see him plead guilty. Det Ch Insp Hayes said: "The four boys who Denning abused had moved on with their lives and were now adult men with families and careers. Often, they had not spoken to those closest to them about their ordeal as a child and only recently, as part of this investigation, have been able to do so... "We can never go back and take away the abuse these four men suffered as boys but I hope, in some way, today's guilty plea brings some closure for them." Chris Denning rose to prominence in the 1960s on BBC television and radio. He was one of the first announcers heard on BBC Two when the channel began broadcasting in 1964 and went on to be one of the original Radio 1 DJs. Denning helped launch the careers of the Bay City Rollers and Gary Glitter, and ran his own music and video production business. He remained a well-known DJ and presenter into the early 1970s. The allegations that led to his conviction in 2014 arose after the sex abuse perpetrated by late Radio 1 DJ Jimmy Savile came to light. Denning's arrest was under the strand of the investigation into offences not connected to Savile, but the court heard he did use his fame to "entice" boys. This included taking some victims to recordings of Top of the Pops, and in other instances, introducing them to celebrities including Savile. Denning had a number of previous convictions for abusing young boys. In 1974, he was convicted of gross indecency and indecent assault but was not imprisoned. He was then jailed for 18 months in

Summary: Former BBC DJ Chris Denning has pleaded guilty to 21 child sex offences committed between 1969 and 1986.


Defender Ofuso Appiah clattered into the 22-year-old in the closing stages of the Europa League qualifier. It left a sour note on an afternoon when Hearts won 6-3 on aggregate. "I was really disappointed with it and I think the referee got done," Neilson told BBC Scotland. "Jack's got the ball in his hands and the boy comes in and smashes him then goes down and plays dead so he doesn't get booked. "These challenges shouldn't be allowed in football. That wasn't acceptable today." Callum Paterson and Igor Rossi had Hearts 2-0 ahead within the opening eight minutes before Alim Ozturk made it three. Ozturk then sliced into his own net, but Rossi soon restored Hearts' three-goal lead before a strike from Vladimir Voskoboinikov. Hearts will now face Birkirkara of Malta next week in the second qualifying round. "We showed a real sharpness in the first half, something we missed last week fitness wise," said Neilson. "We tired around the 60th minute, but hopefully this game has helped us and we can get geared up for Malta next week. "We knew we could get at them. The work rate from the players was fantastic. "To have such a hard game last week with the expectation of it and then to come here tonight and go and perform like that was great. "We're still in pre-season. Generally it's six week and we're only three weeks in." Neilson warned that Birkirkara will not be a walkover and pointed to them taking West Ham United to penalties in last season's Europa League qualifiers. "They're a good team, they're a very good team," he explained. "You think when you're going to Malta with a Scottish team you should be winning, but they're invested a lot of money, they had a great result last year against West Ham, they've got some real quality players."

Summary: Hearts head coach Robbie Neilson labelled a challenge on Jack Hamilton unacceptable after the young goalkeeper was left needing stitches after the 4-2 win over Infonet Tallinn.


Michael Fallon said the date for cutting the first steel would safeguard hundreds of skilled jobs until 2035. He also announced that a contract for two new offshore patrol vessels would be signed shortly, securing jobs before the Type 26 frigate work is under way. Unions welcomed the news but said the UK government had not delivered on all promises made to the Clyde shipyards. Mr Fallon also announced a £100m contract with the consortium MBDA to deliver the Sea Ceptor missile defence system for the ships. The Type 26 frigate is principally designed for anti-submarine warfare and will partially replace the current Type 23 frigate. Each ship will carry a crew of 118, have a top speed of more than 26 knots and a range of 7,000 nautical miles. The first vessel is due to enter service in the early 2020s. An £859m initial development deal to build the combat ships, at BAE's Govan and Scotstoun yards on the River Clyde in Glasgow, was signed in February 2015. But the project has been scaled back from an initial 13 ships to eight and hit by repeated delays, with concerns that jobs could be lost as a result. Mr Fallon, who is visiting the BAE yard at Govan, told the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme that the announcement was a "huge moment for the Clyde". "We are confirming we are going ahead with the steel cut next summer, quite a bit earlier than some suggested, of the first of the eight Type 26s that we pledged to in the strategic defence review last year," he said. "This is work for the next 20 years building these eight Type 26 anti-submarine frigates." The defence secretary added: "We also hope to conclude, before Christmas by the way, the negotiations on the two offshore patrol vessels that were also promised in the strategic defence and security review last year, which will help fill in the gap before the work on the Type 26 starts." The promise of new Royal Navy orders to secure the Clyde shipbuilding industry was made before the Scottish independence referendum in 2014. The number of planned new frigates was later scaled back from 13 to eight in the Strategic Defence Review, with the MoD now planning to build five smaller Type 31 warships in addition to the Type 26 fleet. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon welcomed the announcement but pointed out that it was not the same deal that was promised before the referendum. "The promise hasn't been kept in full, so the number has reduced and there has been a real delay in getting this work started," she said. Ms Sturgeon described the delay as "regrettable" and "disappointing" and said it had been a source of anxiety for the workforce at both yards. She added: "Nevertheless, it's a welcome announcement and I really hope now that it doesn't slip any further and that the commitment that has been made today is delivered in full." Gary Smith of the GMB union said it was "fantastic news" for the upper Clyde shipyards -

Summary: Work on building eight Type 26 frigates at shipyards in Glasgow will start next summer, the defence secretary has said.


Gaby Scanlon, of Heysham, Lancashire, was served the Nitro-Jagermeister while celebrating her 18th birthday in 2012. Oscar's Wine Bar in Lancaster previously admitted health and safety failings, at Preston Crown Court. The court heard Ms Scanlon was left close to death after drinking the £3.95 shot. She was taken to Lancaster Royal Infirmary, where a CT scan found a large perforation in her stomach. Ms Scanlon, now 20, spent three weeks in hospital, undergoing surgery to remove her stomach and connect her oesophagus directly to her small bowel. Her solicitors told the court the experience, on 4 October 2012, had "completed changed" her life. She now suffers from "episodes of agonising pain", has to avoid some foods and can no longer enjoy eating, they said. Describing the moment she drank the shot, Ms Scanlon told the court: "I turned to the man and asked if it was okay to drink. He said 'Yes'. "Smoke was coming from my nose and mouth. Straight away I knew something was not right. My stomach expanded." Oscar's Wine Bar Ltd, registered in Swinton, South Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to one count of failing in the duty of an employer to ensure the safety of persons not in its employment, admitting it failed to ensure the shot cocktail was safe for consumption. No risk assessment was carried out regarding the potential dangers of the drinks. The firm's director Andrew Dunn, of Old Earswick, York, pleaded not guilty to his part in the company's failings. The prosecution said it would offer no evidence against him if he made a £20,000 contribution to the court costs prior to sentencing. A spokesman for Lancaster City Council said: "We took the view that in the public interest it was not necessary to prosecute Mr Dunn, taking into account the interests of the family." Passing sentence, Judge Pamela Badley said the bar's actions "fell very far short of standards". Liquid nitrogen was present in the Nitro-Jagermeister shot to create a cloud of smoke in the glass. While such drinks are not illegal, physicists say the liquid must completely evaporate before the drink is safe for consumption. The court heard the bar had sold a range of cocktails using the chemical after Mr Dunn saw similar drinks in the Berkeley Hotel in London. He was said to have found them "alluring and intrigued by the dramatic effect". But senior health and safety officer Peter Lord, who visited the bar in May 2012, said he had concerns about the drinks and sent a letter with guidance on liquid nitrogen usage, which was met with no response. The family-run bar's barrister Kevin McLoughlin said the family had been left "mortified" and apologised to Miss Scanlon and her family for the "errors and misjudgements that were made". He said: "The company and the family are truly sorry. At no time did they see anything warning them of the risks of ingestion. "The essence of this calamity was the ignorance on the part of the company."

Summary: A wine bar has been fined £100,000 after a woman drank a cocktail containing liquid nitrogen and had to have her stomach removed.


The Shrimps lost their opening game of the season at newly-promoted Grimsby but then knocked Championship side Rotherham out of the EFL Cup 5-4 and have won three straight league games. "It's nice but it is early days," 40-year-old Bentley told BBC Radio Lancashire. "You're never too high and never too low and I keep saying that." He added: "It's important everyone keeps their feet on the ground - likewise when you have a sticky spell that everyone keeps check and sticks together." Kevin Ellison, 37, got the only goal of the game as Morecambe's 1-0 win at Yeovil on Saturday moved them to the top of the league. "People say about his age and this and that but if you work with him day in, day out you see how he rubs off on other people," added Bentley on Ellison. "His desire, his attitude towards training and his own recovery and own professionalism, he's a credit to himself and his family. "A lot of young people should look at him up and down the country because he is that good at what he does."

Summary: Morecambe must not get carried away despite sitting top of League Two, says Shrimps boss Jim Bentley.


The shooting occurred at a hostel attached to the private Pragati Residential School in Bangalore city. Police say the alleged gunman, identified as Mahesh, was working as an office assistant in the school. Incidents of gun crime at schools and colleges in India are very rare. It is not clear what prompted the shooting. Police said on Thursday that Mahesh had been remanded until 12 April. Mahesh is alleged to have barged into the room of 18-year-old Gautami and shot her in the head with a pistol on on Tuesday evening. He then shot another student, Sirisha, who suffered severe injuries but is believed to be out of danger, say police. He was arrested on Wednesday after a manhunt. India has strict control laws, although a large number of feuds are settled with firearms. In 2007, a 14-year-old schoolboy was shot dead by two fellow students at a school campus near the capital, Delhi.

Summary: A man arrested on suspicion of shooting a female student dead and wounding another at a school in India has been remanded in custody.


Payments have been stopped to the West London Vocational Training College and its students in the Welsh capital. Education Minister Huw Lewis said there were concerns over "unusual student recruitment trends". The college said as far as it is concerned, all of its students are genuine. The Cardiff branch runs various IT and business courses and has been designated as suitable to offer HND business courses, which attract tuition fees of Â£6,000 per student, funded by the Welsh government. Students on those courses can also apply for Student Finance Wales loans and grants. Week In Week Out has been investigating offers made by a local agent recruiting for the college. Some students have been told by him they can use faked documents to access those loans and grants and they do not have to attend regularly to get the cash. He also said if they do not go on to earn more than Â£21,000, they will not have to repay the money - which is true. The college has denied any knowledge of that scam. In a statement to AMs on Friday, Mr Lewis said: "Allegations have since come to light to suggest that one or more individuals within the college may have colluded with prospective students deliberately to defraud the student finance system by falsifying academic records and records of attendance at the college. "I would expect any allegations of criminal activity to be referred to the police so that they may be investigated fully." Pearson UK - which validates colleges - carried out a review of the Cardiff campus, visiting the site on 21 October. The education minister said that "no substantive concerns came to light at that time".

Summary: Payments to a college's Cardiff campus have been suspended after a BBC Wales' Week in Week Out investigation into fraud allegations.


Christian Englander will now face trial, with jury selection scheduled for 23 September, Assistant District Attorney Anastasia Martin said. Each charge carries a maximum jail term of six months and a possible $500 fine. Police said Englander had acknowledged throwing the peel after he was offended by jokes Chappelle made about a friend. "If I can, I would like to avoid a trial," Englander said on Monday, following a brief hearing before Judge Donita Sena in the magistrates' court. "I'm not afraid of the end result, but it's a waste of human resources." There are "real criminals out there that they can try. If there is a plea offering, I'll take it," Englander added. The case has attracted attention after Chappelle said throwing a banana peel was a racist act. On Monday, Englander, who is white, said that after the police apprehended him on 30 March, Chappelle came to the police station to speak to him. According to Englander, Chappelle asked him: "Don't you know bananas are racist?" Englander said he told Chappelle, 41, that he did not agree. Lieutenant Andrea Dobyns of the Santa Fe Police Department confirmed that Chappelle attended the police station that night to talk to Englander.

Summary: The man accused of throwing a banana peel at comedian Dave Chappelle during a New Mexico show has been charged with disturbing the peace and battery.


The prime minister "is committed to free school meals in England", an official spokesman told the BBC. The coalition government introduced the meals a year ago for all pupils in the first three years of school in England. But there has been speculation the meals are at risk, after Chancellor George Osborne demanded cuts of between 25% and 40% from unprotected budgets. The spokesman said the prime minister had made the point that "it was in the manifesto, the manifesto words are very clear - we're proud of what we've done with free school meals". The Conservative manifesto says: "We will support families by providing free meals to all infants". The chancellor called for the cuts in July, as part of his spending review, due to be published in November. The free school meals budget has cost about Â£600m each year, and there had been speculation over its future. But the Department for Education has indicated that free school meals will be protected in the spending review. "We believe that every child, regardless of their background, should have the same opportunities," said a spokesman. "That is at the heart of what we are doing with school food. "No child should be hindered because they are not eating a nutritious meal at lunchtime. "We have provided significant financial support to schools to help them deliver universal infant free school meals. "We have come a long way, and the new School Food Standards mean pupils of all ages are eating good food that sows the seeds for healthy eating for life." At the weekend some 40 top health professionals signed a letter warning that scrapping the meals could harm children's health. "It would be short-term thinking indeed for the government to cut the funding for universal infant free school meals," said the letter. The National Association of Head Teachers called for "a swift and unequivocal statement" from government that it would honour its general election pledge to fund a meal for all infant children. "That message could and should be delivered straight away," said NAHT general secretary, Russell Hobby. "Schools signing contracts with catering companies this term can't afford to wait until the November spending review only to find out the policy has been changed."

Summary: David Cameron has dismissed speculation free school meals for all infant children could face cuts.


The Perth club has suspended the team-mates pending a club investigation. Wright told BBC Scotland that "if what's alleged" to have occurred did in fact happen "we'll come down severely hard on both". Referee Don Robertson sent off both players during the break. Wright, whose side confirmed their top six place due to results elsewhere, says he did not see the incident as he had already started walking up the tunnel following the half time whistle. BBC Scotland reporter Jonathan Sutherland saw Foster throw a punch at Swanson, who retaliated by aiming a kick at the defender after he had slipped. "I haven't seen it with my own eyes but obviously something happened," said Wright. "I'm going to wait and see for myself. The players have been told they let themselves down, and let the team down. We should be celebrating confirming our top six place tonight. "Under no circumstance will they get off lightly if what is alleged to have happened has happened. The hardest punishment I can do legally with them, I'll do it." Media playback is not supported on this device Wright was angry that the incident left his side up against it in the second half, and that the shine was taken off the Saints confirming a top six berth. "It's another great achievement getting the top six," he added. "We showed a lot of character and should have had a penalty. (Georgios) Sarris has got arms all over Murray Davidson and that should have been a penalty kick. "The boys were magnificent and probably deserved a point but they didn't get it." Hamilton player Ali Crawford was shown a yellow card and assistant manager Guillaume Beuzelin sent to the stand after becoming involved in the chaotic scenes that followed the incident between Foster and Swanson. However, manager Martin Canning told BBC Scotland: "I would rather be talking about us. It is not something you want to see, but it is a passionate game and sometimes it spills over. "My players acted well. I think Darian MacKinnon was just trying to separate them and calm things down. "I don't think I have to take any action against my players." Hamilton moved off bottom spot in the table thanks to the win, sealed by a late Alex D'Acol goal. They are 11th on 27 points, two clear of bottom club Inverness Caledonian Thistle. "With 11 against 11 in the first half, I thought we were excellent and we kept going and got a huge three points," Canning added.

Summary: St Johnstone players Danny Swanson and Richard Foster are set to face "severe" punishments for brawling with each other in the 1-0 defeat at Hamilton, manager Tommy Wright says.


Former Chilean Football Association president Harold Mayne-Nicholls, 56, was one of five senior officials Fifa said were being investigated. Mayne-Nicholls has served the suspension because the initial seven-year ban was issued in 2015. He admitted speaking to officials from Qatar's bid about work placements for relatives at the Aspire youth academy. Fifa's ethics committee felt those conversations provided "cause enough to doubt the integrity of the inspection process", according to leaked emails between a committee member and Mayne-Nicholls. The Chilean's ban was initially reduced on appeal to three years, but on Friday it was further cut to two by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Mayne-Nicholls chaired Fifa's bid evaluation group for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, which were awarded to Russia and Qatar respectively. In his 2010 report to Fifa, Mayne-Nicholls expressed serious concerns about conditions in Qatar, where summer temperatures can reach 50C. Mayne-Nicholls was one of several senior Fifa officials to call for an independent report into the award process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to be published in full.

Summary: A Fifa official who assessed bids for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups has had his ban from football cut to two years.


Their Mercedes team said they had "strengthened our rules of engagement to include much greater deterrents to contact between our cars". Boss Toto Wolff said the drivers faced "sporting and financial consequences". Wolff refused to give details of the potential sanctions but hinted it could include suspensions from races. "You know how a driver is calibrated and what is important for them," Wolff said before this weekend's British Grand Prix at Silverstone. "It is clear if it would happen again it would be something that has a negative outcome for their campaign." Mercedes added that team orders - which define the order in which the cars finish a race - could be imposed "as a solution of last resort" if the drivers failed to abide by their new guidelines. The move follows their last-lap collision when Hamilton was trying to pass Rosberg for the lead at Sunday's Austrian Grand Prix, their third contact in five races. Hamilton went on to win the race, while Rosberg dropped down to fourth place with a damaged car. Wolff said he had given Hamilton and Rosberg guidelines about their conduct on track but repeatedly refused to detail what they were or the potential penalties that could be imposed if they were not followed. However, the only penalty the team could impose that would have any significant deterrent effect would be a fine or suspension from a race. Hamilton earns a reputed $31m (£23.9m) a year and Rosberg about half that, so it can be assumed any fine would likely run into the millions for it to have any deterrent effect. In terms of sporting penalties, the only realistic serious threat the team have at their disposal would be to exclude a driver. Wolff admitted that what he was asking of the drivers was "difficult because they drive in a certain way and they are at Mercedes because they are like that". He added: "It is tricky because if you have a yellow card, will it change the way you tackle or not because you know what happens with a second yellow card?" Hamilton said the discussions had been "private and confidential" and refused to give details. But he was asked whether he was still able to perform the same manoeuvres as he had in races in Japan and the United States last year, when Rosberg felt he had pushed him off the track on the first lap. Hamilton replied: "In all those races, the stewards deemed that racing. So I will still race like that." Rosberg said his "battle" with Hamilton "remains nearly unchanged," adding: "It is a serious matter. We must avoid contact and collisions. We have had a discussion about the best way to move forward and now we are going racing again." The German said his ongoing contract extension negotiations were unaffected by the new deterrents. "It is a monetary thing which does not have an impact on the long-term happiness of the team with me, and me with the team," he said. The title rivals were given the ultimatum in meetings with

Summary: Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg are on a "final warning" that they will be severely punished if they crash again but remain free to race.


A survey carried out for the Local Government Association (LGA) by estate agents Savills showed that just 20% of those aged 25 own their own property, compared with 46% two decades ago. The LGA said social housing was vital to enable families to save for a home. It asks the government to recognise a "renaissance" in house building by councils is needed. The LGA said government needed to tackle the shortage of affordable homes to rent and buy. It says it found that, on average, private renters pay 34% of their household income on rent, while social and affordable renters pay 29%. Homeowners, however, spend an average of 18% of their household income on their mortgage. But the average size of a deposit to get a mortgage is 62% of annual incomes, or 131% in London. Lauren Cox is 23 and has just bought a two-bedroom semi on a new estate in Widnes, in Cheshire. "I'm the first person among my friends to buy a house. I'm pretty proud of it to be honest, because I know how hard it's been for me," she says. Lauren studied maths at university, and then got a job with accountancy firm Deloitte. But rather than finding a flat, she decided to live with her parents so she could save money. "I never wanted to rent because I think you just get stuck in a cycle of renting." She cut back on treats like takeaway coffees and made sandwiches to take to work for lunch. "It really did feel like a sacrifice. When I went out with friends in Liverpool they always went out later and I always had to get the last train home [but] I felt I had to prioritise being sensible and saving." Her parents charged her a lower than market rate to live at home and, thanks in part to a bursary she received at university, she saved enough for a 10% deposit. The government's help-to-buy scheme has made her mortgage payments more affordable. Where can I afford to live? The LGA survey has been released ahead of a government White Paper on housing supply due to be published in January. Martin Tett, LGA housing spokesman, said it presented an opportunity to boost housing supply and affordability. "It must recognise that a renaissance in house building by councils will be crucial to helping ensure the mix of homes to rent and buy that are affordable for those people that need them," he said. "This means powers and funding given to councils to replace sold homes and reinvest in building more of the genuinely affordable homes our communities desperately need." The LGA wants more power to tell property developers how many affordable homes to include in a development. In addition, it wants to be able to keep more of the cash raised by selling council houses to reinvest in building new homes. The association also wants an increase in how much councils can borrow to build new homes. Responding to the LGA survey, a Department for Communities and Local Government spokesman said: "We've

Summary: Home ownership among 25-year-olds has fallen by more than half in 20 years, according to council leaders.


The "witches' marks" were often carved near entrances to buildings, including the house where Shakespeare was born and the Tower of London. The symbols were believed to offer protection when belief in witchcraft and the supernatural was widespread. But heritage agency Historic England says too little is known about them. This Halloween it is calling for people to document the marks, which can be found in medieval houses, churches and other buildings, most commonly from around 1550 to 1750. The symbols, which were intended to protect inhabitants and visitors of buildings from witches and evil spirits, took many forms, including patterns and sometimes letters. The most common type was the "Daisy Wheel", which looked like a flower drawn with a compass in a single endless line that was supposed to confuse and entrap evil spirits. They also took the form of letters, such as AM for Ave Maria, M for Mary or VV, for Virgin of Virgins, scratched into medieval walls, engraved on wooden beams and etched into plasterwork to evoke the protective power of the Virgin Mary. Known examples include several found at Shakespeare's birthplace in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, carved near the cellar door where beer was kept, and at the Tithe Barn, Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire, to protect crops. Others have been found in caves, such as the Witches' Chimney at Wookey Hole, Somerset, which has numerous markings. Duncan Wilson, chief executive of Historic England, said: "Witches' marks are a physical reminder of how our ancestors saw the world. "They really fire the imagination and can teach us about previously-held beliefs and common rituals. "Ritual marks were cut, scratched or carved into our ancestors' homes and churches in the hope of making the world a safer, less hostile place. "They were such a common part of everyday life that they were unremarkable and because they are easy to overlook, the recorded evidence we hold about where they appear and what form they take is thin."

Summary: Members of the public are being asked to help create a record of ritual markings on buildings that were once believed to ward off evil spirits.


The degrees form part of the UK's cyber security strategy published in 2011. The strategy recognised that education was key to improving defences against hackers and online fraud. Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude said internet cyber security was a "crucial part" of the government's long-term plan for the British economy. He said the courses would help to make the "UK one of the safest places in the world to do business online". He said: "Through the excellent work of GCHQ, in partnership with other government departments, the private sector and academia, we are able to counter threats and ensure together we are stronger and more aware." UK universities were invited to submit their master's degree courses for certification. The universities now running GCHQ-approved programmes in cyber security are Edinburgh Napier University, Lancaster University, the University of Oxford and Royal Holloway, University of London. GCHQ has also given provisional accreditation to Cranfield University's cyber defence and information assurance course, and the University of Surrey's information security course. A spokesman for GCHQ said the universities "were judged to provide well-defined and appropriate content, delivered to the highest standard".

Summary: Intelligence agency GCHQ has accredited six UK universities to teach specialist master's degree courses to future internet security experts.


Maya Kantengule was found at the bottom of a swimming pool at Waveney River Centre holiday park in Burgh St Peter, Norfolk, on May 1 2016. She was declared dead later that day at James Paget University Hospital. South Norfolk Council environmental health officer Chris Coker said people swam at the centre at their own risk. Maya's father, Livial Kantengule, said in a written statement at the inquest in Norwich that he spoke to Jane Rainer, the mother of his daughter's best friend, as he arrived and decided not to wait at the pool during the party. He returned there with his wife, Glenda, after receiving a message there had been an accident. Maya had already been taken to the hospital near Great Yarmouth. Her parents were at her bedside when she was pronounced dead. Mr Kantengule said he did not ask if there was a lifeguard. "Jane used to volunteer to help with the swimming lessons, so we assumed Maya would be adequately supervised while in the pool," he said. Maya, from Smith's Walk, Oulton Broad, near Lowestoft, Suffolk, attended Dell Primary School. Jaqueline Bell, a teaching assistant at the school, said in a written statement that Maya started weekly swimming lessons in reception year. "She was nervous in the water and would use armbands and a woggle," she said. Mr Coker told the inquest the indoor pool at Waveney River Centre could be privately hired. He said it was 1.5m (5ft) at its deepest and signs were up stating there were no lifeguards on duty and that people swam at their own risk. The inquest, expected to last two days, continues.

Summary: A seven-year-old girl drowned at her best friend's birthday pool party while there was no lifeguard on duty, an inquest heard.


A defence official said in a statement on Wednesday that its nuclear programme had "long been in the full-fledged stage of miniaturisation". However, analysts say while there is evidence the programme is advancing, it is difficult to assess its true extent. The claim comes hours after North Korea cancelled a planned visit by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Mr Ban was due to visit an industrial complex in the Kaesong economic zone run jointly by the North and South and would have been the first UN chief to visit North Korea in more than 20 years. Speaking at a forum in Seoul, he said the move was "deeply regrettable" and that no explanation was given. North Korea previously claimed it had miniaturised a device for the nuclear test it conducted in 2013 but experts have continued to debate how far along that process it is. Dr John Swenson-Wright, head of the Asia programme at the Chatham House think-tank, said that while there was "growing evidence of the North's increasing technical sophistication", caution was necessary in interpreting North Korea's latest statement. Some have interpreted the latest moves, together with some recent high-profile executions, as attempts by leader Kim Jong-un to assert his authority. The latest announcement on nuclear advances follows the publication earlier this month of pictures apparently showing a missile being launched from a submarine. Some experts have said the images may have been doctored. Responding to the latest claims, the South Korean defence ministry urged the North to stop developing nuclear weapons. An anonymous South Korean military official said it was believed to be true that Pyongyang had made significant progress in miniaturising its nuclear weapons. "But South Korea and the US share the assessment that it is not at a stage where it has completed the related technology," the official told the Yonhap news agency.

Summary: North Korea has claimed it has the technology to make nuclear warheads small enough to fit on a missile.


Media playback is not supported on this device When Liverpool host Wolves in the FA Cup fourth round, it will be over two years since boyhood Reds fan Coady, now 23, was allowed to leave the club. And he is intent only on helping his side become the third in a week to win at Anfield. "We're going there to win and hopefully take the game to them," he told BBC WM. Coady never got to play a home game in his three years at Anfield, with both his first-team appearances coming on the road, the second as a late sub for Philippe Coutinho in a 3-1 win at Fulham, his only one in the Premier League. After a season-long loan with Sheffield United, he eventually moved on to Huddersfield Town in August 2014 and then Wolves a year later. But Coady knows, from his experience watching the Reds as a boy, that Liverpool do not have many slumps of the current magnitude and Wolves might have timed their trip to Anfield just right. "We've got a great chance the way Liverpool are playing," he said. "They're a top team but they've had quite a lot of games." Since Wolves won 2-0 in the third round at Stoke on 7 January, Paul Lambert's men have only played twice, while Liverpool have been in action six times. Of those six games, they have won only once - the FA Cup third-round replay at League Two side Plymouth - have failed to score in three of them and have lost their last two at home. Following the shock home defeat by Swansea City which damaged their Premier League title hopes, Wednesday's League Cup semi-final exit to Southampton has cast a cloud over Anfield. "We've got to take that into account," said Coady. "We've got go there on the front foot, try to stop them playing, hopefully nick the ball and see if we can get something out of it." And what if Coady himself were to find the net? "It would be what dreams are made of," he grinned. "I'm not one of those who wouldn't celebrate. I'd go ballistic to score for this club. It doesn't happen very often." Wolves boss Lambert knows what it takes to win at Anfield. His Aston Villa side did so in December 2012, and Wolves loan signing Andreas Weimann was one of the Villa scorers that day in a 3-1 victory. So can he do it again? Fourth in the Premier League v 18th in the Championship? "We're up against an iconic club, and we're going to have to handle the atmosphere and the crowd, but I'd be disappointed if we couldn't handle the occasion," Lambert told BBC WM. "If we can do that, we can win the game. And I believe in them. Mentally, they're ready for it. They'll handle it." Lambert is keenly awaiting his reunion with Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who he first met when they did the Pro Licence coaching course together in Germany in 2004. He was playing for Celtic by then,

Summary: Wolves midfielder Conor Coady will be fulfilling a boyhood dream when he finally gets to play a first-team game at Anfield on Saturday.


Poole Borough Council plans to put charges up by 10% in 2017 and by 5% every year until 2020. Poole Beach Hut Association said beach huts were being treated as "cash cows". The authority said the rent rise "reflected high demand". Almost 1,400 names are on the waiting list for hiring its 1,100 seaside huts annually. Council figures show prospective beach hut tenants could face a minimum wait of up to 18 years at some of its seven locations. Bob Lister, from the association, said demand was lower due to the fact applicants could pay to apply for huts in more than one site. "We know that most of those members who got huts last year had waited less than two years," he said. "We've found there are people waiting for a specific hut and that is distorting the figures." Mr Lister said rent on his own hut would be more than Â£2,500 by 2020- an increase of Â£1,100. "For a lot of beach hut owners who live in flats, the hut is their life, their garden, their community - at these prices they'll be for the holiday home people and the 'Sandbanks set' who can afford them, rather than the people who actually need it," he added. Kevin McErlane, from the council, said: "Demand for our beach huts continues to rise and for those people who do not wish to hire a hut on an annual basis there are a number of alternative options available."

Summary: Beach huts at a Dorset resort could become unaffordable following rent hikes, tenants have claimed.


It was a statement from Susan Alexander, Azelle Rodney's mother. She wrote about how her 24-year-old son's death in April 2005 was "avoidable" and called on the Metropolitan Police to say sorry. Significantly, she also asked for an "unreserved apology" from the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPPC) for conducting a "wholly inadequate investigation" into the shooting. "A better investigation may have resulted in a trial nine years ago," she said. "I can never get those years back - the IPCC must stop failing families in this way." It is strong criticism that has frequently been levelled at the IPCC since it replaced the Police Complaints Authority - an organisation which was derided as ineffectual - in 2004. The intention was that the new body, with offices across England and Wales, would bring more rigour, transparency and independence to the system for investigating allegations of police wrongdoing after failings were exposed during the Macpherson inquiry into the murder of Stephen Lawrence. But relatives like Susan Alexander, whose family members have died at the hands of the police, have often found themselves let down by the way the IPCC has handled their cases. Helen Shaw, co-director of Inquest, which helps the bereaved following deaths in custody, says although the IPCC is trying to improve the way it deals with families, they are still not at the "centre" of the process. "During the last few years they've made some real effort to consult with families and stakeholders - and they want to talk to us again. But there's not a lot of progress," she says. Susan Alexander's concerns in the Azelle Rodney case centred on the initial IPCC investigation, which found no significant fault with the police operation that led to her son's death and which did not lead to criminal charges against the officer involved. A prosecution was brought only after an inquiry, held in public in 2012, uncovered new evidence. In its defence, the IPCC says it carried out an extensive investigation into Azelle Rodney's death but it was advised at the time that it was not possible to obtain some of the material which later emerged during the inquiry. Nevertheless, there are echoes of that case in the flawed IPCC investigation into the death of Sean Rigg in south London in 2008. After fresh evidence emerged at the inquest, an external review was ordered which said the IPCC hadn't been "robust" enough in its inquiries. The IPCC conducted a new investigation and last week, a police sergeant involved in the case was charged with perjury in relation to evidence he gave at the inquest. Ms Shaw says even though the watchdog appears to make steps in the right direction in the immediate aftermath of a critical report, its investigations are sometimes still "not good enough". "There's learning when there's a lot of pressure, but it doesn't seem to be an organisation that's able to sustain the learning," she says. "It takes it on board then slips back to its old ways." It is, of course, an enormously challenging task to maintain the

Summary: When the policeman who had shot dead the suspected armed robber, Azelle Rodney, in north London was cleared of murder earlier this month, an email quickly dropped into my in-box.


The lawsuit accuses Jean Kasem of elder abuse and inflicting emotional distress on Kasem's children by restricting their access to him before his death, according to the AP news agency. Kasem was known as host of the American Top 40 radio show and as the voice of Shaggy in the TV animation Scooby Doo. He died last June at the age of 82. He had been suffering from dementia, and the battle between his children from a previous marriage and their stepmother Jean began before his death. They claim she abused him before he died, moved him from Santa Monica to Washington without telling them and, after his death, had him buried in an unmarked grave in Norway despite his wishes to be laid to rest in Los Angeles. "What she did to my father is reprehensible," daughter Kerri Kasem said, according to AP. "It's disgusting. It's horrific." Jean Kasem's lawyer H Michael Soroy did not immediately return a request for comment to the news agency. Kerri Kasem said the family members were taking legal action after US prosecutors decided not to bring criminal charges against Jean Kasem, who was married to the star for more than 30 years. In May, Los Angeles prosecutors said they could not prove at trial that her actions led to his death. Kerri has taken out the lawsuit with siblings Julie and Michael Kasem and their uncle Mouner. They are seeking damages of $250,000 (Â£166,000). But Kerri Kasem said: "We would rather see her in jail than receive one dime. We don't care about the money. We care about justice." Casey Kasem began his career in the 1950s and found fame with the chart programme in the 1970s. He famously ended his broadcasts with his signature sign-off: "Keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars."

Summary: Three of US DJ Casey Kasem's children and his brother have sued the late star's widow for wrongful death in the latest move in a bitter family feud.


Thousands more had official guest status and got a slightly closer view from inside the spaceport itself. A magnificent morning ascent for the youngest of the Nasa spaceplanes as it began its final mission - the delivery of the $2bn Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) instrument to the International Space Station. There will, however, be a group of British engineers for whom Monday's lift-off was a bitter-sweet moment. These are the people whose technology got dropped from AMS in the year before launch. For those not familiar with this story, let me back up and reprise events. They have some potentially fascinating implications for deep space travel. AMS is one of the most expensive science experiments ever put in space - probably the most expensive. It has taken a group of 600 or so researchers from 16 nations a total of 17 years to prepare it for flight. It promises some dramatic new insights into the origin and make-up of the cosmos. AMS will do this by studying the storm of high-energy particles (cosmic rays) that are hurled at Earth from the deepest reaches of the Universe. Critical to its operation is a very strong magnet. As the particles enter AMS, they will bend through this magnet. How they bend reveals their charge, a fundamental property that says a great deal about the nature of those particles and where they came from. The UK at a programmatic level never got involved in AMS, presumably because it was a space station project (and the UK doesn't engage with human spaceflight), but one British company was contracted to build the all-important magnet. Scientific Magnetics (formerly Space Cryomagnetics) of Culham, in Oxfordshire, spent 12 years developing this super-cooled beast, and it was - so the project leaders on AMS told me - a marvel. It was incredibly powerful and directed its entire field inwards, like an enclosed bubble. From the outside, the magnet appeared as an inert beer can. This was really important because if you put such a device on a shuttle or a space station and it hasn't been carefully designed, it will start to interact with its surrounding - even try to orientate itself with the Earth's magnetic field. Not what you want on a space vehicle. But to cut a long story short, the British magnet's super-fluid-helium cooling mechanism meant that it was only ever going to be a short-lived device. And when the space station's life was extended last year to 2020, the AMS project leaders took the decision to remove the UK magnet and replace it with a less powerful, but much longer-lived, Chinese one. Now, as I say, this is a story with some interesting outcomes. The British magnet is currently sitting in store at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (Cern) where AMS was assembled and tested, and there's a lot of interest in seeing its technology put to other uses. The first of these is astronaut protection. The cosmic rays that AMS is trying to characterise are particles that also represent a hazard to humans in space.

Summary: It's thought as many as half a million people crammed the roads and beaches outside the Kennedy Space Center to see Endeavour's final launch.


A report by the organisation suggests men, women and children are being abused "to eliminate public protest". Many are subjected to virginity tests, rape and gang rape after arrest. Egypt's Interior Ministry said it would not comment until it had studied the report. The study notes a surge in sexual violence after the Egyptian military takeover in July 2013. The perpetrators are rarely held to account and the impunity points to a "cynical political strategy aimed at silencing all opposition". Police, intelligence officers and members of the military are guilty of targeting male and female detainees, according to the report. Among the victims are student demonstrators, human rights activists, gay people and children. Student's ordeal I saw an officer who was grabbing a young woman by the breasts and I said to him: "If you want to arrest her, then arrest her, but you have no right to touch her breasts." He grabbed me exactly as he had her, before calling two other police officers to come and hold me. They beat me, insulted me. In the van they insulted me and beat me so much that I could no longer stand up. Two soldiers started to sexually assault me. The officer from the start got into the van and said to me: "Come here I'm going to show you if I'm a man." He sexually assaulted me, the soldiers laughed, and then he raped me completely. I was paralysed, I started to vomit blood. My life is ruined. I'm afraid of my son, my husband and even my father. The authors said they did not have evidence that commanders were giving the orders, but the scale of the violence - and the impunity - suggested there was a political strategy. They claim that victims who file complaints are systematically obstructed by the justice system, and face threats and reprisals by police officers and prison guards. Sexual violence has long been a problem within the general population in Egypt, with assaults dramatically increasing in the years since Hosni Mubarak was removed from power. Last year, President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi ordered police to launch a crackdown amid growing public anger. He said sexual assaults, were "an unacceptable form of conduct" and called for citizens to "reinstate moral values in society".

Summary: Egyptian security forces are using sexual violence against detainees on a massive scale, according to the International Federation for Human Rights.


From next season, the Championship winners will go up automatically if they meet 'minimum standard criteria'. Jersey and Yorkshire Carnegie are among clubs that are in favour of the change. "I hope it doesn't lead to the Championship becoming a non-entity," said Pirates chairman Paul Durkin. "If you're relegated from the Premiership you're put in the naughty boys corner, which is in the Championship, for a year and expected to come back up. "That's what it feels like to us, the way that it's going - it takes away from the competition, I think." As part of the new agreement between the Rugby Football Union and Premiership Rugby, Championship clubs will be given increased funding. Durkin told BBC Radio Cornwall that second-tier sides will share £2.7m between them over three years, but relegated Premiership sides will receive a parachute payment of "over £3m". "While first past the post is a good idea, and I would be in favour of that if there was a level playing field, this is not a level playing field," he continued. The majority of Championship sides, including Jersey Reds, are not eligible for promotion, as they lack the required ground facilities. "You've got London Irish sitting top of the Championship, 15 points ahead of Yorkshire Carnegie - they're undefeated," Reds chairman Mark Morgan told BBC Radio Jersey. "It would be very unfair to get to the end of the season and, just because they have one bad game in a knock-out situation, they don't go to the Premiership." The 2015-16 Championship play-off final was held on 25 May, with the new Premiership campaign starting 100 days later. "To be in the middle of May recruiting for a new season that is just two or three months away is impossible - and we can see the result that's had on Bristol," Morgan added. "Although they would not say that they have ring fenced the Premiership, to all intents and purposes on a financial basis that's really what's happened." Yorkshire Carnegie were in the top flight as recently as 2011 - they are now second in the Championship, which will put them in the promotion play-offs this term but count for nothing from next season. Although scrapping the play-offs could arguably make it more difficult for them to go up, executive president Sir Ian McGeechan, the former British & Irish Lions coach, supports the RFU change. "Having been part the play-off system for a number of years, I am pleased to see the return of the first-past-the-post system," he said. "The decision to make this announcement now is particularly welcome for all the clubs and allows the Championship sides the opportunity to get their financial and personnel planning in place for 2017-18 at the right time of year." The Championship play-offs were introduced for the 2009-10 campaign, with Exeter Chiefs the side to gain promotion despite finishing second in the regular season. Bristol - the side Exeter defeated in the final - have been the side most affected by the play-offs, finishing top of the league on five occasions

Summary: The Championship has become a "naughty boys corner" for relegated Premiership sides, according to the Cornish Pirates chairman, after the scrapping of play-offs from the second tier.


Media playback is not supported on this device The tournament kicks off with France playing Romania on Friday, 10 June and the final will take place at the Stade de France in Paris on 10 July. Spain are hoping to retain the title they won in 2008 and 2012. England will be appearing at their ninth finals, while Wales and Northern Ireland have qualified for the first time. Good question - because, for the first time, there are 24 teams competing in the finals. That is an increase from the 16 that had taken part in every edition since it was hosted in England in 1996. With six groups of four teams, it means the top two will qualify for the last 16, plus the four best third-placed finishers. In other words, only eight teams will fail to qualify from the group stage. One point could be enough to put your team into the last 16 - and from then the tournament goes to a knockout format. As Greece proved by pulling off a sensational triumph at Euro 2004, trying to predict a winner is a difficult game. World champions Germany are understandably one of the favourites, while holders Spain are also short odds with the bookmakers. Germany finished top of their qualification group but booking their place in France was not without its hiccups - with defeats by Poland and the Republic of Ireland. They have been beaten by France and England since qualifying but remain one to watch. Spain dominated international football between 2008 and 2012 but failed to qualify from their group at the 2014 World Cup. Could this be a last hurrah for Vicente del Bosque's ageing but brilliant side? France won the World Cup as hosts in 1998 - can they repeat the famous success of the team led by Didier Deschamps, Zinedine Zidane and Laurent Blanc? A run into the latter stages by Les Bleus is likely to help restore national morale in a country still recovering from last year's deadly Paris attacks. France are the bookmakers' favourites to win the whole thing, but their form is tricky to gauge because they did not have to qualify for this tournament. Fast on the counter and unified after years of internal division, watch out for talented midfielders Paul Pogba and Blaise Matuidi. But they cannot call upon prolific Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema. The French Football Federation (FFF) said he would not be picked after being investigated for his part in an alleged plot to blackmail Les Bleus team-mate Mathieu Valbuena, who did not make the squad. Well, there are three of them in France - only Scotland missed out - plus the Republic of Ireland. It is going to get crowded too, because England and Wales are both in Group B, along with Russia and debutants Slovakia. Don't expect much work to get done when England and Wales play each other - that match in Lens will be shown live on BBC One, kick-off 14:00 BST, on Thursday, 16 June. Roy Hodgson's England have a good

Summary: Euro 2016 will be contested by 24 teams over 30 days at 10 different venues in France.


It issued a yellow warning of wind, saying gusts of up to 75mph (120kmph) could occur locally, particularly to the west of the mountains. It added the unusual easterly direction could add to the impact of the winds. Forecasters said disruption to travel on roads and at sea was likely. The affected counties are Conwy, Anglesey, Gwynedd, Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Powys. Gusts overnight brought a tree down in Menai Bridge on Anglesey, closing one of the main routes into the town. The council said Telford Road was expected to remain closed for most of Monday to allow clean-up work to be carried out.

Summary: The Met Office has warned of very strong winds along the western coastlines of Wales throughout the day on Monday.


The committee believes it has been sent by Malcolm McKibben to the permanent secretaries of government departments. Committee chairman Daithi McKay of Sinn Féin said: "I am keen to see that very soon because I am aware there are some efforts to stymie this inquiry." No witnesses appeared at the hearing. Most of the session on Thursday was held in private. The committee took stock of correspondence it has been sent, including from loyalist Jamie Bryson, who claims to have information about the loan sale. Sinn Féin MLA Michaela Boyle said: "Reading Mr Bryson's letter he is a person of interest and we did put out the call for anyone who may have factual information to bring that forward. "We are not in the business of shutting doors on anybody. Factual information should be brought forward." The committee agreed to write back to him, asking for any evidence "within its terms of reference". The Law Society is due to appear next Thursday. The Nama Northern Ireland loan portfolio was sold to the US investment fund Cerberus for more than £1bn last year. Irish politician Mick Wallace has alleged that £7m was due to be paid to a Northern Ireland politician in the wake of the deal. Mr Wallace told the Irish parliament the money had been moved for that purpose to an Isle of Man bank account controlled by the Belfast solicitor Ian Coulter. Mr Coulter is the former managing partner of Tughans solicitors in Belfast and worked on behalf of the buyers in the Nama deal. He said he had directed that money be transferred to the Isle of Man account for "a complex, commercially and legally-sensitive" reason. He said no politician, nor any relative of any politician, was ever to receive any money. BBC Northern Ireland's Spotlight programme has established the Isle of Man account was intended to facilitate payments to non-lawyers or deal fixers.

Summary: Stormont's finance committee has said it wants to see a letter the head of the civil service has written regarding the National Crime Agency's investigation into the NAMA loan sale.


Two other injured men were taken to hospital, where a 25-year-old with knife wounds is in a critical condition, West Midlands police said. A 22-year-old is being treated for gunshot injuries that are not thought to be life-threatening. Four of the arrested men are suspected of violent disorder, and the fifth man of possessing a class-A drug. The dead man has been named locally as Ikram Elahi. One witness claimed "about 200 to 300 lads" had gathered in the area around Stratford Road in Sparkbrook prior to the killing on Wednesday evening. 'Pool of blood' The A34 Stratford Road was closed throughout Thursday morning but reopened at lunchtime. Farm Road and Grantham Road remain sealed off as part of the police investigation. Supt Bas Javid, from Birmingham East Police, said it was unsettling for communities when guns or knives are used. "There is nothing to suggest there will be any further issues," he said. "We would encourage people not to speculate and I would reiterate that there is nothing to suggest this will spark any further disorder." Following a private meeting held for residents at the Christ Church centre on Sampson Road, Mohammed Ashraf, a member of the Sparkbrook Faith Forum, said: "We urge all families to look carefully into their hearts in this holy month of Ramadan and hand in any information they have. "Any individuals involved in this, could they please report to the police." One shopkeeper, who did not want to be named, said he had been leaving the area on a bus when he spotted the scene. "I saw a man lying in a pool of blood by the side of the road," he said. "People were surrounding him and trying to help. I didn't understand what I was seeing, whether he had been shot or stabbed. "It has made me scared. I'm worried about my shop." Ann Taylor, who lives locally, said she also was worried about the area: "I'm not surprised what happened here really, it's not very nice. "I'm not very happy now. I feel like I can't go out at night any more. " A second shopkeeper, who also did not want to give his name, said he had been locking up for the day at about 19:20 when he saw a "large group" had gathered. "There were about 200 to 300 lads hanging around, it was a large number," he said. "Then after that lots of police came down. He added: "It does happen around here, groups fighting among themselves. "You do see large groups of young lads hanging around, but it doesn't usually escalate to this kind of violence." Birmingham City Councillor Mariam Khan said: "Any loss of life is a waste, especially young life." She said, as chair of the social cohesion and community safety committee on the council, she would look closely at issues around gun and knife crime and "focus on what makes young people turn to violence". Parish priest of the Small Heath area of Birmingham, Father Oliver Coss, offered his condolences and said: "The only thing we

Summary: Five men remain in police custody in connection with the fatal shooting of a 28-year-old man in Birmingham.


The track's release date was brought forward by five weeks after a cover version by X Factor's Fleur East topped the iTunes chart last week. Ronson thanked "boy wonder" Bruno Mars, who features on the track, "without whom there would be no jam". Ed Sheeran, who scores a 10th week at the top of the album charts, fell to number two in the singles chart, while Band Aid 30 climbed to number three. The physical release of Do They Know It's Christmas? saw the charity track climb nine places, but it was kept off the top spot by Ronson and the ubiquitous Sheeran. East, who is the favourite to win this year's X Factor, performed the Ronson track during the show's semi-final on Saturday 6 December. Her mentor Cowell, who chose the track after Ronson and Mars pulled out of performing the song themselves on the talent show, called it "one of the top three performances" in X Factor history. East later apologised to Ronson, calling it "an amazing song". "I don't think anyone expected my performance to be as popular as it was," she added. Speaking to the Official Charts company, Ronson refrained from mentioning East, but thanked "everyone who bought, downloaded or DJ'd Uptown Funk this past week." "It's pretty much the coolest thing ever," he added. Featuring Mars on lead vocals, Uptown Funk is the first single from British producer Ronson's fourth album, Uptown Special. Inspired by the feel-good funk of the 70s and 80s, it was already available in several countries around the world. Two Ronson tracks - Stop Me and Valerie, a collaboration with Amy Winehouse - reached number two in previous years.

Summary: Mark Ronson has clinched his first UK number one with Uptown Funk.


According to the corporation, "the extended Ten will give audiences even more news analysis and explanation". With additional news from the Nations and Regions, the programme will be 45-minutes long from Monday through to Thursday, starting from 11 January. The move follows a five-month trial in the run-up to the General Election. "Along with its sister programme at 6, The BBC's 10 o'clock News is already the most popular news bulletin in the UK and, in the New Year, it will offer even more," said Gavin Allen, controller of daily news programmes. "Viewers will continue to see the fullest range of stories - and now we'll have still more scope to explain the events that impact the country and help to make sense of the changing world around us." It's always been a bit odd that the BBC's highest profile news bulletin (if not highest rated - the audience for the Six o'clock News is bigger) has also been the shortest. Of course, the official duration hasn't always been stuck to. People who tune in just for the weather at the end of the bulletin will already know this - the news is sometimes two, three or even five minutes longer than it says on the schedules. It is, though, an interesting symbolic move. ITV's News at Ten presenter Tom Bradby has questioned the BBC scheduling its main news at 10pm, and so too has the culture secretary John Whittingdale. This certainly makes clear the BBC isn't planning on vacating the spot, but is digging in even deeper. Yet it does present a quandary for those who like to tuck in to Newsnight after the Ten. Newsnight's start time is usually around 22:32. In future, if you stay with the News at Ten until the end of the weather, you will have missed the first 13 minutes of the programme. And finally, for fans of the red chair and the celebrity sofa, this is a Monday to Thursday-only change. Question Time on Thursday can be shunted, but Graham Norton, it appears, is sticking to his 22:35 slot.

Summary: The BBC's News at Ten is to run 10 minutes longer in the New Year, with the bulletin set to end at 22:45 GMT on every weekday except Friday.


The anti-secrecy website has published thousands of the US spy agency's secret documents, including what it says are the CIA's hacking tools. Founder Julian Assange said that, after some thought, he had decided to give the tech community further leaks first. "Once the material is effectively disarmed, we will publish additional details," Mr Assange said. US federal agencies have launched a criminal investigation into the release of the documents. In response to the revelations, CIA spokeswoman Heather Fritz Horniak told the BBC: "As we've said previously, Julian Assange is not exactly a bastion of truth and integrity. "Despite the efforts of Assange and his ilk, CIA continues to aggressively collect foreign intelligence overseas to protect America from terrorists, hostile nation states and other adversaries." Microsoft told the BBC: "We've seen Julian Assange's statement and have not yet been contacted. "Our preferred method for anyone with knowledge of security issues, including the CIA or Wikileaks, is to submit details to us at secure@microsoft.com so we can review information and take any necessary steps to protect customers." The weird names given to hacking tools Security flaws 'undiscovered for years' CIA hacking tools: Should we be worried? Criminal probe launched into CIA leaks CIA faces huge problem over malware claims In the first tranche of leaks, Wikileaks alleged that the CIA had developed what Mr Assange called "a giant arsenal" of malware to attack "all the systems that average people use". Tech firms, including Google and Apple, have said that they are developing counter-measures to combat any malware that the CIA may have developed. Mr Assange said that his organisation had "a lot more information on the cyber-weapons programme". He added that while Wikileaks maintained a neutral position on most of its leaks, in this case it did take a strong stance. "We want to secure communications technology because, without it, journalists aren't able to hold the state to account," he said. Mr Assange also claimed that the intelligence service had known for weeks that Wikileaks had access to the material and done nothing about it. He also spoke more about the Umbrage programme, revealed in the first leaked documents. He said that a whole section of the CIA is working on Umbrage, a system that attempts to trick people into thinking that they had been hacked by other groups or countries by collecting malware from other nation states, such as Russia. "The technology is designed to be unaccountable," he said. He claimed that an anti-virus expert, who was not named, had come forward to say that he believed sophisticated malware that he had previously attributed to Iran, Russia and China, now looked like something that the CIA had developed. "The type of attack system corresponds to a description we published of that attack system unless of course China has already got hold of these parts of the CIA arsenal and is using it to pretend to be the CIA," said Mr Assange. He said that the intelligence agency could potentially be causing the tech industry "billions of dollars of damage".

Summary: Technology firms will get "exclusive access" to details of the CIA's cyber-warfare programme, Wikileaks has said.