The Easter Road side have lost their last four league games and seen Falkirk open a six-point gap in second place. Boss Alan Stubbs has given his players some rest during the international break to renew their energy and focus. "The boys are getting time off. The manager said, 'you'd better come back refreshed', and it was an order rather than anything else," said McGinn. The midfielder joins up with the Scotland squad on Friday ahead of the second of their two friendlies against Denmark on Tuesday, and welcomes the change in scene. He told BBC Scotland: "It's good to get away. We've played a lot of games, and that isn't a complaint or an excuse, it's just that sometimes it's good to get away from it to recharge the batteries and that's what we'll be doing. "A big reason for being up near the top of the table was keeping clean sheets and being very astute defensively. Now we're conceding poor goals and not scoring goals at the other end. "It's a very confusing time for us, but we're determined to work as hard as we can. We're just not getting the breaks or producing the quality we did in the first half of the season and it's something we're trying to eradicate, and hopefully we will before the end of the season." Hibs have two games in hand on Falkirk, who lie in the promotion play-off spot, with Rangers a further 11 points clear at the top. But Falkirk could extend their advantage to nine points by beating Livingston on Saturday. "It's close and that's fair play to Falkirk, and something we're disappointed by," McGinn noted. "We're determined to get that second place and make sure we've got the best chance of going up. "I'm not playing as well as I was just before Christmas. As a team, we're all not playing as we can and that's evident in the results that are coming for us. We're working hard to try to nail down what the problem is and I'm sure we'll get back to winning ways sometime soon." McGinn feels he has developed as a player since his move from St Mirren to Easter Road last summer, and credits Stubbs and the Hibs coaching staff for his improvement. As captain of the Scotland Under-21s, he was one of several young players who impressed Gordon Strachan when he spent time with the squad last November. The 21-year-old aims to use his time training with the squad ahead of the Denmark game at Hampden to show he can make the step up to full international level. "It's a big step up and I'm really looking forward to showing I'm capable of making that step up," he added. "That's something myself and some of the other new boys will be looking to do. "The last trip with the 21s that Gordon was there, we knew from the stuff that Ricky [Sbragia] was telling us that he was really keen on how people conducted themselves about the place and in training. "We knew

Summary: John McGinn admits Hibernian's players are "baffled" by the team's recent slump in form in the Championship.


In Mid Dorset and North Poole, Conservative Michael Tomlinson beat Vikki Slade - a seat which had been held by Lib Dem Annette Brooke. The Tories held Bournemouth East and West, Christchurch, Dorset West, North and South and Poole. Tobias Ellwood was re-elected in Bournemouth East. After the count, which saw the Conservatives cross the finishing line with a 14,612 majority, Mr Ellwood said: "Two Conservative MPs return to Westminster, we're both elated." He said he aimed to support tourism in the town and would be tackling the "big challenge" of the proposed Navitus Bay wind farm. The former coalition partners lost 22.5% of their vote in that constituency. Ms Slade, the Lib Dem candidate who failed to hold on to her party's seat, tweeted: "I am looking for a job! Will consider anything that my skills fit..Please pass to anyone who may be looking!" Her CV lists dinghy sailing among her interests. Richard Drax will be returning to Parliament after winning the Dorset South seat with 23,756 votes over Labour's Simon Bowkett's 11,762. Conor Burns held the seat of Bournemouth West with 20,155 votes and Christopher Chope retained Christchurch for the Conservatives with 28,887. UKIP came second in both of these constituencies.

Summary: The Conservative Party has taken all seats across Dorset, claiming the one Liberal Democrat-held seat in the county.


It is a tale of billions of pounds for schools, hospitals and transport projects. At its heart is a question: if we leave the EU, will the cash dry up? The answer lies with a little-known bank that commands vast resources. Stand on the new tram stop in Exchange Square in Manchester and you can watch workers tear up concrete to lay tram lines. Greater Manchester is set to receive half a billion pounds to help develop its tram system. Walk away from the EU - say remain campaigners - and wave goodbye to fresh loans for schemes like this. Not so, say the Leave side; there is nothing the European Investment Bank (EIB) does in its Luxembourg offices that the UK couldn't do for itself at home. The EIB is handy for governments and councils because it helps pay for major projects, lends at cheap rates and guarantees those rates for years into the future. It lent more than £5bn in the UK in 2015. EU bank could fund big NI projects £230m loan for Welsh Water agreed The UK's EU vote: All you need to know No surprise then that it's a hit with some local politicians. Remain supporter and Labour leader of the City Council Sir Richard Leese says leaving the EU could put a stop to similar schemes in the years to come. "That would mean in the future that if we needed to do something on this scale, and we undoubtedly will need to do more things on this sort of scale in Greater Manchester, it would make it very difficult, if not impossible, to do so in a way that gives good value for Council Tax payers," he says. But the bank is just that: a bank, not a fairy godmother. It doesn't magic money from thin air. Instead, it uses capital from EU members including more than £3bn of the UK's cash, alongside guarantees that it could demand much more from them, to borrow on the markets. Then it lends out the money to individual projects. Mancunian and UKIP MEP for the area Steven Woolfe says there is no reason the UK couldn't create a British bank to do just the same thing if necessary. Surveying a new tram stop, Woolfe says: "Richard Leese is wrong to suggest that big infrastructure projects, whether it's here or in other places in Europe, wouldn't get funded. It just wouldn't get funded by the EIB." Where the bank makes loans to private companies, he says, it nationalises the risk of lending but privatises the profit; if a firm defaults EU taxpayers pick up the bill, if it prospers then shareholders benefit. The bank's vice president Jonathan Taylor is a former British Treasury official. I ask him why the UK couldn't simply establish its own bank, on its own terms, under its own control. He says: "Board members of institutions like mine, all of whom are nominated by the governments concerned and all of whom are accountable to those governments, will be making those decisions taking full account of

Summary: This is a story of money and power.


Collymore, 46, expressed an interest in the role at a meeting with Forest owner Fawaz Al Hasawi on Tuesday. But after "time to reflect" on the meeting and feedback from fans, he has now "withdrawn from any involvement". He had said: "I'm not convinced change will happen quickly or thoroughly enough under Fawaz's ownership." But following his decision to withdraw his interest, he explained: "As for fans which questioned my motive, I want the club to be in safe hands, competitive and in the top division. "My current business, career and health are way more important to me than pushing against a tide of doubt, spite and rabble rousing, so I'll stick to the odd Q&A in Nottingham now and again to say hello to those who supported me back in the day." Collymore was involved in a protest against Al Hasawi on 21 January, which followed the collapse of a proposed takeover of the club by a US-based consortium led by John Jay Moores. "I believe Fawaz will stay in the short/medium term," Collymore wrote on his blog. "Unless JJM [Moores] meet the asking price of £50m or as Fawaz said "the Chinese offer silly money", it is my belief that he feels he has the resources, passion and plan to move the club forward." Forest are currently 19th in the Championship, just five points above the relegation zone. They sacked manager Philippe Montanier on 14 January, making the Frenchman the seventh to leave the City Ground since the Al Hasawi family took over in July 2012. Meanwhile, the Nottingham Forest Supporters' Trust have been given an assurance by the city council that the land on which the City Ground is built will never be sold. The stadium is owned by the club, but the land still belongs to the council. The Supporters' Trust have also applied to register the City Ground as an Asset of Community Value, meaning they would have first refusal to purchase the stadium if it were ever to be sold, with six months to raise the required funds. "This is a key safeguarding measure for the future of our football club," a spokesperson said. "With our membership now live and having already seen hundreds of members join up, we have a huge wealth of skills to call upon to continue to push further initiatives forward."

Summary: Former Nottingham Forest striker Stan Collymore says he is no longer interested in a role as sporting director at the Championship club.


St Elijah's stood on a hill near the northern city of Mosul for 1,400 years. But analysts said the images, obtained by the Associated Press, suggested it had been demolished in late 2014, soon after IS seized the city. A Catholic priest from Mosul warned that its Christian history was "being barbarically levelled". "We see it as an attempt to expel us from Iraq, eliminating and finishing our existence in this land," said Father Paul Thabit Habib, who now lives in Kurdish-administered Irbil. IS has targeted Christians in Iraq and neighbouring Syria, seizing their property and forcing them to convert to Islam, pay a special tax or flee. The group has also demolished a number of monasteries and churches, as well as renowned pre-Islamic sites including Nimrud, Hatra and Nineveh in Iraq and Palmyra in Syria. St Elijah's Monastery, or Deir Mar Elia, was believed to have been constructed by Assyrian monks in the late 6th Century. It was later claimed by a Chaldean Catholic order. In 1743, its monks were given an ultimatum by Persian forces to convert to Islam. They refused and as many as 150 were massacred. Had it not been for these satellite images, we would probably not have learnt about the monastery's destruction. This is because journalists and archaeologists cannot go to IS-controlled areas for security reasons. But more importantly, IS did not release any video on its propaganda outlets showing the demolition of this particular ancient site. The jihadists have released footage showing themselves destroying shrines, churches and antiquities with sledgehammers and dynamite. More than 100 churches and monasteries have been razed to the ground in Mosul and the predominantly Christian villages surrounding it, like Bashiqa and Qaraqosh, since they took control of the area in 2014. The militants believe that Islam is the only religion that must be adopted by the followers of other faiths. And that is why they have targeted minorities and destroyed their places of worship. Those who have remained in these areas have been forced to choose between conversion and execution. Why IS destroys ancient sites Palmyra: Blowing ruins to rubble Understanding sadness at loss of sites Fr Thabit told AP that the monastery "became a spiritual place for Christians to visit and to have religious ceremonies, and to ask forgiveness from the saint who founded this monastery". "The monastery attracted all the people from Mosul - Christians and Muslims. All the poets, historians and travellers wrote about this monastery," he added. "It became a very important place for the history of the Church in Iraq." In the 1970s, the monastery became a base for the Iraqi Republican Guard, and in 2003 one of its walls was damaged by the impact of a T-72 tank turret that was hit by a missile during the US-led invasion of Iraq. The US Army used the monastery as a base itself, before a chaplain recognised its importance and a commander ordered it to be cleared. Stephen Wood of Allsource Analysis told AP that the satellite images published on Wednesday suggested the monastery was destroyed

Summary: Satellite images confirm that the oldest Christian monastery in Iraq has been destroyed by the jihadist group Islamic State (IS).


Grimsby pressed to break the deadlock when Pat Hoban struck from range and Andy Monkhouse headed wide. Darren Carter came close for the hosts but hit the side netting after rounding the Grimsby backline. Disley headed home to seal three points with 19 minutes left when he converted Monkhouse's cross from the left wing. Forest Green boss Ady Pennock told BBC Radio Gloucestershire: Media playback is not supported on this device "Obviously we're disappointed and I didn't think we tested their keeper enough, Stevie Arnold made three or four good saves, but the game should have been 0-0. "I didn't think in the final third we were that great, but all credit to Grimsby they've done a good job on us and won the game 1-0. "It's three points - we're not going to lose the title by losing today and we're not going to not get in the play-offs, so it's three points, that's all it is." Grimsby manager Paul Hurst told BBC Radio Humberside: "Second half we had to withstand some pressure without James McKeown really being called upon to make any real saves of note, but you know you're going to have to defend a lot of set plays into the box. "You wondered with their record if they were going to get that late goal but thankfully we kept that clean sheet and sent a lot of fans home very happy. "Automatic promotion is still a big ask. Its two teams we've got to catch and they don't have to play each other."

Summary: Craig Disley scored the only goal as Forest Green Rovers were denied the chance to go top of the National League with defeat by Grimsby Town.


The stand-in captain faced 535 balls across two innings, moving from 174 not out overnight to end 219 not out in Surrey's first-innings score of 483. Following on, he then made 68 in Surrey's 166-3 to keep Hampshire at bay and prompt handshakes at 16:50 BST. The draw sees third-placed Hampshire claim 12 points, while Surrey take 10 points and stay sixth in Division One. Burns' epic effort saw him stay in the field for all but 10 overs of the entire match, as he defied Hampshire's bowling efforts on a flat Oval pitch. The left-hander was dropped twice in the slip cordon in his career-best 219, but was the only one to resist as Ian Holland (3-37) dismissed Tom Curran (53), Amar Virdi and Mark Footitt to force the follow-on after Surrey began the day on 410-7. Mark Stoneman (47) and Burns then put on an opening stand of 109 before Holland's medium pace had Stoneman lbw and Scott Borthwick bowled in a single over. Sean Ervine became the only man to dismiss Burns in 756 minutes of play when he missed a ball down the leg side, but Jason Roy and Dominic Sibley continued on until the conclusion. Surrey captain Rory Burns told BBC Radio London: "I'm really pleased that we've fought that hard to get the draw and the extra five points, and obviously pretty happy with how I've played. "We had to bat seven sessions to get us to safety and that's all I was thinking. "There were some jitters in the nineties and I got a lifeline, which was quite nice. When I was getting close to 200, I was more thinking about the situation of getting to the follow-on mark. "They're a good side and they played really well. We managed to hold on and get ourselves to safety, so it was honours even on a flat wicket."

Summary: Rory Burns scored 287 runs in more than 12 hours at the crease to earn Surrey a draw with Hampshire at The Oval.


The US Navy said on 8 April that the Carl Vinson strike group was travelling to the Korean peninsula amid tensions over Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions. Last week President Trump said an "armada" was being sent. But the group was actually farther away over the weekend, moving through the Sunda Strait into the Indian Ocean. The US military's Pacific Command said on Tuesday that it had cancelled a port visit to Perth, but had completed previously scheduled training with Australia off its northwest coast after departing Singapore on 8 April. The strike group was now "proceeding to the Western Pacific as ordered". It is not clear whether the failure to arrive was a deliberate deception, perhaps designed to frighten North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un, a change of plan or simple miscommunication, the BBC's Korea correspondent Stephen Evans says. Either way, US Vice-President Mike Pence was undeterred as he spoke aboard the USS Ronald Reagan - an aircraft carrier docked in Japan - during his tour of the region, vowing to "defeat any attack and meet any use of conventional or nuclear weapons with an overwhelming and effective American response". North Korea and the US have ratcheted up tensions in recent weeks and the movement of the strike group had raised the question of a pre-emptive strike by the US. On Wednesday, Mr Pence described the country as the "most dangerous and urgent threat to peace and security" in the Asia-Pacific. His words came after the North held a show of military might in a parade over the weekend and tested another missile on Sunday, which blew up almost immediately after launch, the Pentagon said. The US also accused North Korea of trying to "provoke something", with US Defence Secretary James Mattis calling the test a reckless move on Tuesday. He said the US was "working closely" with China to engage North Korea. Pyongyang said it may test missiles on a weekly basis, and warned of "all-out war" if the US takes military action. "If the US is planning a military attack against us, we will react with a nuclear pre-emptive strike by our own style and method," Vice-Foreign Minister Han Song-ryol told the BBC on Monday. Sign-up to get news from the BBC in your inbox, each weekday morning

Summary: A US aircraft carrier and other warships did not sail towards North Korea - but went in the opposite direction, it has emerged.


The centre-back, 30, left the pitch just before the end of Wednesday's 2-1 EFL Cup victory over Swansea. Kompany, who had thigh surgery during the summer, was making his first appearance since May 4. His injury is not a recurrence of the calf problem that restricted him to 14 league appearances last season. City have stayed in south Wales since Wednesday's match, as they are away to Swansea again on Saturday (15:00 BST) in the Premier League.

Summary: Manchester City have set no date on a return for captain Vincent Kompany, who is having treatment on the groin injury suffered during his comeback match.


The Coronation Fountain, a landmark in Welwyn Garden City, had to be turned off due to the hosepipe ban. However, the council is now paying Â£450 to fill it up again, so that the town looks its best for key 2012 events. It will be working on the 4 and 5 June and when the Olympic torch relay passes through the borough on 8 July. The fountain on Parkway in the town was built to celebrate the Queen's accession to the throne in 1952. It is supplied by an underground tank, but had to be switched off after the water level dropped and could not be refilled. The council is buying water from a landscaping firm which already supplies water from a natural lake source, to maintain the borough's open spaces. It cannot be drunk so is permitted under the hosepipe ban regulations. Council chief executive, Michel Saminaden, said: "They have told us that there is an abundance of water in this lake so we are probably doing them a favour by taking it." Mr Saminaden added that the council decided against asking the Veolia water company for a special dispensation. "I thought that wasn't the right thing to do because we would be using precious water," he said. "What we are doing now is using water that is surplus and we have been told categorically that there is no problem in using it. This is a better all round sustainable solution. "I am extremely pleased that we have been able to find a solution which will enable everybody to see the fountain in all its glory on the occasion of these two great celebrations."

Summary: A Hertfordshire council is buying in water from a local landscaping company so that a town fountain can be switched on for Jubilee celebrations.


The result was further embarrassment for Michael O'Neill's side after their 3-2 defeat by Luxembourg last month. Paterson was among Northern Ireland players to miss great chances before the hosts scored two second-half goals. "If you watched that game you're probably scratching your head wondering how have we lost 2-0. We are," he said. Media playback is not supported on this device "People might see the result and say 'Northern Ireland lost 2-0, what a poor result that is' but they don't see how we've played. "Saying that, we've only got ourselves to blame. We dominated the game for 45 minutes but didn't take our chances and their goalkeeper played very well. "Then we just switched off for a couple of minutes, conceded, and the game changes. "In the second half I hit the bar - it's a game of inches - and their second goal was just frustration." Another night of Northern Ireland ignominy ended with Jonny Evans being sent off for a crude foul, with Mahir Shukurov punishing the foul by netting the free-kick. After a night that proved a body blow to the team's hopes of a bright finish to their campaign, Paterson still felt able to tentatively look on the bright side. With two points taken from a possible 12 against Luxembourg and Azerbaijan in the campaign, that might seem a stretch, but the 26-year-old gave it his best. Media playback is not supported on this device "There are positives to take, as mad as that sounds," said the Huddersfield striker. "I don't think we're miles away but it's a fine line. We had four or five good chances, they got one break and scored: that's international football. "But we are still a young group. We've got to learn quickly and turn results around. "If we do we have a chance of really pushing in the next campaign, but we have to work harder as a unit." Manager Michael O'Neill, who cut a frustrated figure in his post-match media duties, now faces the unenviable challenge of lifting a depleted squad for Tuesday's final match in Israel. Joining Evans in being suspended for that match are defensive talisman Gareth McAuley and midfielder Oliver Norwood, who each picked up their second bookings of the campaign. Northern Ireland are unlikely to add to their squad in Tel Aviv, leaving O'Neill to sift through his current group for answers. "We have three players out but we also have men to come in - particularly the likes of Sammy Clingan and Chris Baird," added O'Neill. "We'll have to look at the centre-back situation because of the players we've lost to suspension and that is self inflicted."

Summary: Striker Martin Paterson said Northern Ireland were left dumbfounded by their latest World Cup qualifying humiliation as they lost 2-0 in Azerbaijan.


Switzerland has been investigating Malaysia's scandal-hit 1MDB fund since last year. Last week, its Attorney-General Michael Lauber said $4bn (Â£2.8bn) may be missing from Malaysian state firms. A Malaysian minister said this was not possible due to extensive audits, and called the statements "premature". The indebted 1MDB state fund, set up by Prime Minister Najib Razak to pay for socioeconomic projects, has been at the centre of a political scandal in Malaysia. Mr Najib was himself cleared of any wrongdoing by Malaysian prosecutors last week. The full background to the 1MDB scandal Malaysia PM in the clear? Swiss authorities opened their investigation after 1MDB amassed more than $11bn (Â£7bn) of debt. Mr Lauber's office said on Friday there were "serious indications that funds have been misappropriated from Malaysian state companies". Some of the money, he said, had been transferred to Swiss accounts held by Malaysian former public officials and current and former public officials from the United Arab Emirates. He said the Malaysian companies concerned had made no comment on the losses believed to have been incurred. In a strongly-worded statement on Tuesday, Malaysia's communications minister Salleh Said Keruak said 1MDB had undergone extensive audits, some by international firms, and that billions of dollars "simply could not have been misappropriated under such conditions". The fund had also issued explanations and financial breakdowns about alleged losses, he said, and other state-linked firms had made public filings that showed they did not sustain losses caused by misappropriation of funds. He said Mr Lauber's comments were "very unusual and against normal protocol", and criticised him for speaking to the media, rather than to Malaysian authorities who he said had been waiting to hear from Switzerland. "These premature statements appear to have been made without a full and comprehensive appreciation of all the facts," said Mr Salleh. Mr Lauber's office told the BBC it would not comment on political statements. But it said it "took note with satisfaction of the reaction of its Malaysian counterpart and of its commitment to fully support Switzerland's request for mutual assistance". Singapore, the US and Hong Kong authorities are also probing the fund. On Monday, Singapore said it had seized a large number of bank accounts as part of an investigation into possible money-laundering linked to 1MDB. The city-state had already frozen two accounts last year. Officials said they were working with counterparts in Switzerland, the US and Malaysia in their investigation.

Summary: Malaysia has rejected allegations from Switzerland that billions of dollars may have been stolen from the South East Asian country's state fund.


The oil painting was commissioned by Royal Northern Sinfonia, which wants to challenge the Austrian's "chocolate box" portrayal, ahead its new season. "Somehow we've come to think of his music as pretty," said the orchestra's music director Lars Vogt. "But that music is often dramatic and dark. Those qualities must have been there in the man." The portrait was painted by renowned American artist Tim O'Brien, and will be projected onto buildings around the orchestra's home towns of Newcastle and Gateshead over the coming months. Regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time, Mozart wrote more than 600 works, including some of the most celebrated and enduring pieces of classical music, before he died at the age of 35. Only 14 images of the composer are known to have been created during his lifetime, but many are stylised or incomplete. The best physical description came from baritone Luigi Bassi, for whom Mozart had written the role of Don Giovanni. "Mr Mozart was an extremely eccentric and absent-minded young man, but not without a certain spirit of pride," he said. "He was very popular with the ladies, in spite of his small size; but he had a most unusual face, and he could cast a spell on any woman with his eyes." Describing the existing portraits as "cosy and pretty", O'Brien explained the thinking behind his new painting. "I know of few musicians of real depth where you can't see some of that complexity in the face. So to find the Mozart who was obsessively driven, who pushed boundaries and who lived in a world where harsh poverty and crime were a very real facts, I looked at musicians from our own era to provide some inspiration. "Photos of Johnny Cash and Eric Clapton suggested both obsession and some kind of danger. Johnny Rotten provided a certain precocious brilliance, and I related to those for Mozart." O'Brien previously made headlines by creating a portrait of Beethoven for the cover of Gramophone magazine, which was inspired by U2 singer Bono. The portrait accompanies the Northern Sinfonia's new season, which includes a series of concerts called Reclaiming Mozart. They begin on Friday, 18 September with the first movement of Mozart's Symphony No. 25, and will also include his Clarinet Concerto and the rarely performed Symphony No. 33. Musical director Vogt will be the soloist in the Quintet for Piano and Wind, of which Mozart once wrote: "I myself consider it to be the best thing I have written in my life." The German concert pianist and conductor, who recently played the first night of the Proms, is an avowed Mozart fan - whose desert island disc would be a box set of the composer's works. In his first season as director of the Sinfonia, he plans to stage a number of "pop-up" concerts in venues that echo the "darker corners of Vienna" that Mozart would have frequented in the 18th Century.

Summary: A new portrait of Mozart imagines the composer as a "daring" and "edgy" musician in the mould of Johnny Rotten.


The items have been highlighted during recent sonar scanning of the waterway in an effort to locate the remains of 11-year-old Moira Anderson. She left her grandmother's house in Coatbridge on 23 February 1957 to go to the shops but never returned. Convicted paedophile Alexander Gartshore is suspected of her murder. Det Supt Pat Campbell said: "There are five distinct areas which have been identified which relate to items or structures within the silt layer. "We are going to deploy divers from Police Scotland to remove these objects." He said specialists from the University of Dundee would then identify the objects and determine whether any of them are bones. The first phase of the operation last week focused on a 170m (185 yards) stretch of canal at Carnbroe. Although it is 3.5m (11.5ft) deep, around 2m (6.5ft) of that is silt. The team were joined by leading experts including soil forensic expert Prof Lorna Dawson and forensic anthropologist Prof Sue Black. The search involved the use of ground-penetrating radar, sonar scanning and magnetometry, which identifies magnetic anomalies within the water and silt layer of the canal. Bus driver and convicted paedophile Alexander Gartshore, who died in 2006, is suspected of murdering Moira and disposing of her body. When she left her grandmother's house during a heavy snowstorm, she boarded a Baxter's bus that was driven by Gartshore. Later that year, he was jailed for raping a 17-year-old babysitter. In 1999, convicted child abuser James Gallogley named his former friend Gartshore as Moira's murderer. Gartshore's own daughter Sandra Brown was convinced he was the killer and campaigned to have him charged. In 2014, prosecutors announced that Gartshore would have faced prosecution for the schoolgirl's murder if he were still alive. A previous search has focused on the theory that he may have buried her body in Monkland Cemetery, in the family plot of an acquaintance, but an excavation in 2013 found nothing. The latest searches were prompted by a sighting, reported in 1957 but not followed up, of a man carrying a large heavy sack towards the canal.

Summary: Police divers are to retrieve objects from a canal for assessment by forensic experts in the search for a schoolgirl who disappeared 60 years ago.


Media playback is not supported on this device Doull emulated fellow Welshman Geraint Thomas, who won at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, by helping Great Britain win team pursuit gold in world record time. The 23-year-old joined record-breaking Sir Bradley Wiggins, Steven Burke and Ed Clancy to beat the world champions. "That was just surreal, it feels dreamlike" said the Cardiff rider. Media playback is not supported on this device "We've been in situations like that before when we've been so close and have lost so to pull it off now is unbelievable." He had previously won silver medals at the 2015 and 2016 World Championship - this year to the Australian team - but Doull earned Olympic redemption to add to the four Welsh silver medallists in Rio. "I've dreamt of this moment for so long," added Doull. "It's what gets you out of the bed in the morning. I've pictured crossing that line first and winning the Olympics and to finally be here and do it, it's just surreal. It's a culmination of four years of hard work." Swimmer Jazz Carlin, rower Victoria Thornley and rugby sevens players Sam Cross and James Davies had already enjoyed podium finishes before Doull secured Wales' seventh gold in the last three Olympics. Wales had not won an Olympic title in 36 years when Nicole Cooke stormed to women's road race gold in 2008 - the first Welsh cycling medal ever at an Olympics. But since Cooke's win in Beijing, Wales have won three more cycling gold medals - and could win a fifth on Saturday when Elinor Barker will help the British world record holding women bid for team pursuit gold. Doull - who started cycling at the Maindy Fliers club in Cardiff like Thomas and Barker - had helped the Great Britain team to lower the world record in their heat demolition of New Zealand. But Team GB were quickly behind in Friday's final as Australia led by 0.7 seconds at the halfway mark, before GB reeled them in and then pulled away in the final 500m to win the 4km race by 0.83 seconds - in a world record time of three minutes, 50.265 seconds. Doull's team-mate Wiggins became the first Briton to win eight Olympic medals - five golds, one silver and two bronzes - as GB won a third successive team pursuit Olympic title. "It gives you such confidence....you've got Brad on my right behind me and I've got Burke and Ed down below me," said Doull. "It's Burke's second Olympic title in his discipline, it's Ed's third and he's the most decorated Yorkshireman, so he keeps telling me, so to have that calibre of team is just massive and it gives you such confidence."

Summary: Owain Doull has won Wales' first gold of the 2016 Olympics as he helped the Great Britain men's team pursuit defend their cycling title in Rio.


The new world was found beyond our Solar System, 100 light-years away. It's been named 51 Eridani b and is only 20 million years old - very young by astronomical standards. The alien world could give us more information about the formation of our Solar System. The find was made by the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI), which looks for young planets orbiting bright nearby stars. Our own Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system - it's so big you could fit over 1,300 Earths inside it! It's also the fastest rotating planet too, with 1 day only lasting 10 hours - but a year on Jupiter lasts for 12 Earth years. Jupiter doesn't have a solid surface and is made up of gas, giving it the name 'gas giant'. The baby Jupiter has the strongest methane gas signature ever found on an alien planet. The astronomers also detected water using the GPI's spectrometer instrument. Scientists hope that by studying far away worlds, they can learn more about how common the structure of our Solar System is. Astronomers believe the gas giants in our Solar System formed slowly - by building up a large core over a few million years and then pulling in a huge amount of hydrogen and other gases to form an atmosphere. This is known as a "cold-start". But the Jupiter-like planets that have been discovered so far are much hotter than scientists have predicted. Which could mean they formed quickly - as gas collapses to make a scorching planet in what is known as a 'hot-start'.

Summary: Astronomers have discovered a baby planet which looks like a young version of Jupiter.


At least 44 more have been injured in the crush, which was reportedly triggered by a road accident. The pilgrims were returning from the Hindu shrine of Sabarimala, which is in a remote, mountainous, densely-forested area. Kerala Governor R S Gavai has said he is "deeply shocked and saddened". "We have recovered 102 bodies. The rescue work is almost over," local police official Sanjay Kumar told the Associated Press news agency. The stampede happened at Pulmedu, near the town of Vandiperiyar in Idukki district, Indian media reported. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims had gathered at the hill shrine on Friday, the last day of an annual festival. The festival runs for two months and attracts millions of visitors every year. Reports differed as to exactly how the deadly crush was triggered. The Indian PTI news agency said a jeep carrying pilgrims had driven into a crowd returning from the shrine, starting a panic. However, the Times of India reported that the incident happened when the jeep broke down and overturned as pilgrims tried to move it. It crushed a number of people and caused others to stumble, which then triggered the stampede, the report said. Correspondents say deadly stampedes are not unusual at Indian temples, where huge crowds gather in small areas with few safety measures or crowd controls. A similar tragedy happened at Sabaramila in 1999, when more than 50 people died in a stampede after a landslide on a crowded hillside.

Summary: Officials say 102 pilgrims have been killed in a stampede at a religious festival in the southern Indian state of Kerala.


Mr de Mistura said the agenda would include the formation of a transitional administration and elections. But it is not clear who will attend the indirect talks in Geneva, with some opposition leaders yet to confirm. On the ground in Syria, a partial truce that began 12 days ago has considerably reduced the intensity of the fighting. Mr de Mistura said the cessation of hostilities was holding "by and large" and was open-ended as far as the UN was concerned. The first round of talks on a political solution to the conflict in Syria was suspended last month while still in the "preparatory" phase, with both sides blaming each other. It came as government forces, backed by Russian air strikes, launched a major offensive on opposition-controlled areas around the northern city of Aleppo. The government succeeded in cutting a key rebel supply route from Turkey to Aleppo before the US and Russia brokered the cessation of hostilities agreement, which does not include the jihadist groups Islamic State (IS) and al-Nusra Front. At a news conference in Geneva on Wednesday, Mr de Mistura welcomed what he described as "a sustained reduction of violence". "Incidents are taking place, no question and they are. I'm expecting even worse incidents to take place, probably caused by spoilers," he added. "The secret will be whether the sides are in a position, as so far touch wood has been the case, [to] contain them, make them not become an unravelling of what has been after five years quite a change... for the life of every Syrian." Mr de Mistura said he expected informal discussions to begin at hotels across Geneva immediately, but that formal talks would not resume until Monday. He added that they would once again be indirect "proximity" talks, with representatives of the warring parties located in separate rooms, and would last only 10 days before pausing for a week. "We believe that having a timetable and a time limit is healthy for everyone so that we don't think that we can go onâ€¦ for two weeks hoping to get into substance - we go seriously into substance as soon as we can." The BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva says the focus of the talks will be a transitional government, a new constitution, and elections. Humanitarian access and ceasefire violations will not be on the agenda. The UN has set up two taskforces to deal with those issues, and clearly wants the opposition and government representatives to concentrate on a political settlement, our correspondent adds. UN aid agencies say good progress has been made getting supplies to besieged areas, with almost 240,000 people reached, most of whom received nothing in the last year. But our correspondent says it remains unclear exactly who will arrive in Geneva on Monday, with some opposition leaders suggesting they have not yet decided whether to attend. Meanwhile, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad Al Hussein told the BBC that the international system had failed Syria. "We've seen in this conflict... almost every conceivable war crime allegedly being committed, in

Summary: The UN special envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, expects "substantive, deeper" talks between the government and opposition to begin on Monday.


Norman Rimmington, also known as "Rimmo", signed with Barnsley in 1945, earning £3 a week as a goalkeeper. He worked for the football club in many roles after he hung up his gloves, including coach, assistant manager, groundsman, physio and kit man. Fans of the club applauded as the funeral procession passed the Tykes' Oakwell stadium. Mr Rimmington, who was born in Staincross, was described by the club as a "fearless" keeper who made 27 appearances for the side, before moving to Hartlepool United in 1947. The goalkeeper, who also worked as a pit fitter and a mechanic, returned to the South Yorkshire side in 1952 and never left. He died in late December aged 93. Family members, friends, colleagues and former team-mates attended a service at All Saints Church, Darton, followed by a ceremony at Barnsley Crematorium. In an interview with BBC Sport, Mr Rimmington said he "used to get some stick as a goalkeeper" during his playing days. "They could knock you into back of net and it were a goal; it's not the same game," he said. "Now they go down as if they've been shot and there's nothing wrong with them." Shortly before his death, he was informed he had been awarded the British Empire Medal for services to football. Discussing his deep connection with the club, he said: "I were born in Barnsley, brought up in Barnsley and played at Barnsley. "I love the club and everything I've done here." In a statement, the club said: "Rimmo was a true club legend and a man who represented the club with the upmost pride and dedication throughout his life." •Born: 29 Nov 1923, Staincross, near Barnsley •Occupations outside football: Pit fitter and mechanic •1946-47: Barnsley FC (27 appearances) •1947-52: Hartlepool Utd (127 appearances) •1952-61: Barnsley 'A' team coach •1961-1972: Head coach and physio •1972-1978: Groundsman and physio •1978-1980: Assistant manager and physio •1980-1985: Physio •1985-2016: Kitman and laundry

Summary: The funeral of a "club legend" who worked for Barnsley FC for more than 65 years has been held.


Research by The Local Data Company (LDC) and the University of Stirling found the average retail vacancy rate dropped from 14.5% to 13.7%. East Kilbride has the highest rate of all Scottish towns, at 33%, while Inverurie has the lowest, at 1%. The study found that 40% of Scotland's empty shops have remained vacant for more than three years. It also suggested that town vacancy rates have improved at twice the rate of Scotland's cities. The most improved towns were Anstruther, Clydebank, Dumfries, Inverkeithing, Lochgelly, Peterhead and Pitlochry. Five towns have maintained vacancy rates at less than 6% for the last three years - Inverurie, Ellon, North Berwick, Dunbar and Biggar. At the other end of the scale, rates in five towns have remained above 22% over the last three years - Banff, Dumbarton, Cumbernauld, East Kilbride and Ardrossan. Dundee had the highest proportion of persistent vacancy, at 11%. Anstruther was found to have the highest proportion of independent shops (86%), while Gretna had the lowest (5%). Leisure is an increasingly significant presence in cities and towns, accounting for 39% of total stock in Edinburgh and Glasgow. Leisure businesses also account for more than 30% of shops in Renfrew, St Andrews, Lochgelly and Fort William. Aberdeen has the highest proportion of charity shops for a city, at 4.2%, while Penicuik in Midlothian has the greatest proportion of charity shops for a town, at 8.9%. Matthew Hopkinson, director at the Local Data Company, said: "The report identifies important trends as well as quashes common perceptions that deprived towns can't succeed. "Of particular significance is that in many Scottish towns almost 40% of the vacant units have been vacant for more than three years. "Such a stark figure implies obsolescence and a major barrier to healthy and sustainable places and communities." The study looked into the health of high streets in more than 100 cities and towns north of the border.

Summary: The number of empty shops on Scotland's high streets has fallen in the past year, according to a new report.


John Morley, 29, of Deanstown, Finglas West, is alleged to have carried out a sustained weekend attack at the Chimney Corner Hotel in Mallusk. The victim, Derek White, was said to have been stabbed in the chest and leg. Mr Morley, is charged with the attempted wounding of Mr White and possession of an offensive weapon with intent to commit an offence. He is further accused of disorderly behaviour and possession of Class B drugs, namely cannabis. He will not be released from custody until all conditions are met - including the lodgement of a Â£2,000 cash surety. Police detained him after being called to the hotel just outside north Belfast in the early hours of Sunday. Paramedics were already on the scene treating Mr White, who is believed to be aged in his 30s. At the defendant's first appearance before Belfast Magistrates' Court it was alleged that he chased the victim through the hotel with a flick knife. A police officer revealed the two men had travelled to Northern Ireland with their children for a football match.

Summary: A Dublin man accused of stabbing his friend in a County Antrim hotel has been granted bail.


Lib Dem Lord Oates accused Labour of being prepared to "concede everything", and the opposition's leader in the Lords, Baroness Smith, responded that his party was giving people "false hope". The two parties had teamed up to help inflict defeats on the government concerning the rights of EU citizens and parliamentary approval for a Brexit deal. But that co-operation went out the window when MPs rejected those amendments - with Lib Dems determined to insist on them and Labour prepared to defer to the Commons. A Labour source in the Lords told the BBC it was "fairly obvious grandstanding" by the Lib Dems, and geared towards content for their campaign leaflets. "It's pretty unforgiveable to build up false hope with people genuinely worried about their future in Britain, when you already know that MPs were ready to dig in behind the government," the source said. For their part, the Lib Dems' Europe spokesperson Baroness Ludford accused Labour of "waving through the government's plans" and "lining up with the Conservatives as they drive forward with a hard Brexit". It's not just on Brexit that the two biggest opposition parties have a track record of forming alliances - they have trooped through the lobbies together to impose government defeats on bills dealing with issues from higher education to housing. Baroness Ludford seemed sanguine about their chances of coming together again, saying: "The Liberal Democrats will continue to work with peers from across the House to fight for the issues we agree on." But the Labour source predicted "residual tensions", adding: "I can't imagine there'll be much demand here to organise a 'progressive consensus summer drinks' gathering. "Our respective leaderships will of course continue to keep things business-like."

Summary: There were angry scenes on Monday night as the bill enabling the government to trigger Article 50 cleared the Lords.


Acting Taoiseach Enda Kenny of Fine Gael and Micheál Martin of Fianna Fáil hope to avoid a second election. Mr Martin has said his party will facilitate a minority government, but will not support a programme for government. Water charges are one of the main sticking points to reaching agreement. A commission to consider the future of national water utility Irish Water is one of the proposals being considered. Fianna Fáil want to see the immediate removal of water charges, but Fine Gael see a role for them. Following the election, almost two months ago, Fine Gael had 50 seats, Fianna Fáil 44, Sinn Féin 23 and the Labour Party got seven. But no party was able to form a majority government and TDs have so far failed to elect a taoiseach.

Summary: Negotiators from Ireland's two biggest parties are to meet for a final effort to form a minority government.


Scientists found that even the lowest expected levels of warming could decimate populations. However the researchers found that restoring connections between butterfly habitats could help modify the worst impacts. The research has been published in the journal Nature Climate Change. Although many people believe that butterflies are creatures that love the warmth, periods of extremely hot and dry weather can significantly reduce populations. In this study, British researchers looked at the impact of an extreme drought event in 1995 on butterfly species. This was the most arid summer since records began in 1776. They identified six species, including the Cabbage White and the Speckled Wood butterflies, that were particularly sensitive to heat. They then looked at what might happen to these creatures under different levels of warming up to 2100. If emissions of carbon dioxide continue on a "business as usual" model, and warming is more extreme, then extinctions of some of these species could begin in England as early as 2050. "We looked at the extent to which populations crashed from the drought and how long it takes them to recover," said lead author Dr Tom Oliver from Nerc Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. "What we're asking is, as droughts become more frequent whether the return time of the drought was more frequent than the recovery of the butterflies." "And when that was the case you'd get this gradual population erosion and in those places you'd get local extinctions." The researchers say that areas of the south east of England would be worst affected. However they argue that under less extreme warming conditions, changes to butterfly habitats could ameliorate the worst impacts. The team found that restoring connections between habitats that have been fragmented by human activities such as agriculture, was capable of making a big difference. Under a low emissions scenario, bridging these connections could improve the probability of butterfly survival by 50%. "If our habitats are very fragmented, the impacts will be much more severe. In places where it isn't those populations might persist," said Dr Oliver. "It allows us to buy time until we get those global emission cuts in place." The researchers believe their study is a conservative estimation of how warming might impact these fragile species. They are concerned that, because of landscape changes in the UK throughout the 20th century, populations of some of the threatened species might be too low for them to recover from frequent droughts. The authors say that even people who are not impressed by the aesthetic appeal of butterflies should still be concerned about their demise. "Butterflies are important culturally as part of our natural heritage, but there are other functions that could be impacted by their extinction including pollution, pest control and decomposition of waste," said Dr Oliver. "Those un-swayed by the beauty and importance of having butterflies in the countryside ought to be concerned about the disruption to these functions provided by these species." Follow Matt on Twitter @mattmcgrathbbc.

Summary: Global warming could drive drought sensitive butterfly species to extinction in the UK by 2050, according to new research.


Mr Kim was speaking after twin tests on Wednesday of the Hwasong-10 missile, known internationally as the Musudan. The US and South Korea say the first test failed, but the second travelled about 400km (250 miles) and reached an altitude of 1,000km. The UN Security Council expressed its opposition after an emergency meeting. Alexis Lamek, France's deputy UN ambassador, said all 15 members had "expressed a strong concern as well as their opposition to these launches," Reuters reports. A spokesman for Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the tests were "a deliberate and very grave violation" of North Korea's international obligations. Existing UN resolutions, brought in because of its continuing nuclear and conventional weapons programme, ban North Korea from using ballistic missile technology. The Musudan, named by outsiders after a North Korean village, is believed by outside observers to have range of up to 4,000km (2,500 miles). That is far enough to reach the US territory and military bases in Guam, though it has never been fully flight tested. Four tests in recent months have ended in failure. The first missile launched from the North's eastern coast on Wednesday is believed to have flown about 150km before landing in the sea. But a second one launched hours later travelled at least 400km and reached a height of 1,000km. North Korea's KCNA state news agency said it had been successfully conducted, without endangering surrounding countries. Mr Kim, who as always was said to have supervised the test, said it had been "a great event". "We have the sure capability to attack in an overall and practical way the Americans in the Pacific operation theatre," he said. South Korea has not officially said whether it is considering it a successful launch. But an analyst at the state-funded Science and Technology Policy Institute said it had to be seen as such. "No other missiles fired by North Korea have ever flown that high," Lee Choon-geun was quoted as saying by the Associated Press. Japan said the launch showed "a certain level of capability" and could lead to a further strengthening of North Korea's ballistic missile capabilities that could cover Japanese territory. US Defense Secretary Ash Carter acknowledged that one of the missiles "flew for a long time". In addition to a flurry of missile tests, North Korea conducted its fourth test of a nuclear weapon in January. But despite its claims, it remains unclear whether it has the ability to make a nuclear device small enough to mount onto a warhead.

Summary: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has said his country's latest missile tests show it has "the sure capability to attack US interests".


Hamdi Alqudsi, 42, was found guilty of violating Australia's foreign incursion laws for making travel arrangements for a group of would-be jihadists in 2013. Giving evidence for the first time at a sentence hearing, he expressed regret and said that he loved Australia. Alqudsi also claimed he thought that IS would help civilians. He faces a maximum 10 years in jail for seven counts of providing services with the intention of supporting hostile acts. "As an Australian I should have minded my own business," Alqudsi told the New South Wales Supreme Court. "I love Australia, I always have." On Wednesday, Alqudsi admitted for the first time that he knew the seven men he assisted in 2013 planned to take up arms against Syrian government forces. He said he should have limited his involvement to taking donations for Syrian civilians trough registered charity groups. Alqudsi broke down in tears while giving evidence, saying he now realises he was breaking the law. "At the time, I felt it was the right thing to do," he said. "I am really, really sorry for what I have done." Two of the seven men Alqudsi helped were killed in Syria. Two others have returned to Australia, another was arrested before he could leave the country, and the fate of two other men is unknown. Alqudsi said his first impression of the Islamic State group was that they were a force for good. The prosecutor put it to him that it was obvious the men intended to travel to Syria to fight. "You knew these men were going to be out in the fields of Syria engaging in warfare," David Staehli SC said. "Yes, I did," Alqudsi replied.

Summary: A Sydney man who helped seven young men travel from Australia to Syria to join the Islamic State conflict has told a court he is "not a terrorist".


About 568,000 people have backed a petition calling on the tycoon to be barred for comments he made about banning Muslims from the US. Labour MP Paul Flynn will lead a debate in Westminster Hall on 18 January. David Cameron has condemned Mr Trump, who has major business interests in the UK, but said he should be allowed in. The Commons petitions committee decided to hold a debate on the issue after considering the matter at a meeting on Tuesday. Under the current rules, MPs have to consider any petition with 100,000 signatures for discussion in Parliament. The debate will be held in the Commons' secondary debating chamber rather than the full chamber and there will be no vote at the end of it. Helen Jones, the Labour MP who chairs the committee, said it would allow for "a range of views" to be expressed. "By scheduling a debate on these petitions, the committee is not expressing a view on whether or not the government should exclude Donald Trump from the UK," she said. "As with any decision to schedule a petition for debate, it simply means that the committee has decided that the subject should be debated." But Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron questioned the decision to allocate parliamentary time to discussing Mr Trump. He tweeted: "Trump is a bloviating billionaire with downright offensive views. But I'd rather we debated inequality or the NHS." Mr Trump is currently the frontrunner, in some opinion polls, for the Republican nomination but he has been roundly criticised for comments he made about Muslims in the wake of December's fatal San Bernardino shootings - remarks which critics said were offensive and inflammatory. Home Secretary Theresa May, who makes decisions on banning orders, has said she cannot comment on the case. A rival petition opposing a ban on Mr Trump as illogical has been signed by nearly 40,000 people. This will also be debated by MPs.

Summary: MPs are to debate whether to bar Donald Trump from entering the UK in response to a public petition calling for action against the US Presidential candidate.


The 12-year old was snatched by the crocodile while swimming with friends in a water hole in Kakadu National Park, in the Northern Territory. Rangers said neither of the two crocodiles appeared to be the attacker, and that the search would continue. Another boy was also mauled by the crocodile, but managed to escape. Australian police searched overnight for the crocodile and the seized boy. They said that two crocodiles, one measuring 4.3m (14ft) and the other 4.7m (15ft), had been shot and examined in the course of their search. "We've since had a look at both crocodiles and neither of them had anything in their stomachs," Sergeant Stephen Constable said. "We're going to continue the search today," he added. Officials say visitors are warned not to swim in Kakadu's watering holes because of the risk of crocodile attacks. Saltwater crocodiles can grow up 7m (23ft) long and weigh more than a tonne. They are a common feature of Australia's tropical north. In August, a man was killed by a crocodile as he swam in a river in the north during a birthday party.

Summary: Australian police have shot two crocodiles dead in a search for a missing 12-year-old boy attacked by a crocodile on Sunday.


Prisoner distress, self-harm and suicide attempts are too often seen as signs of manipulation, rather than vulnerability, research by the Centre for Mental Health and the Howard League for Penal Reform found. A record number of prisoners killed themselves in 2016, figures have shown. The government said an internal inquiry into deaths in custody was under way. The report by the two charities, which is based on interviews with healthcare staff working in prisons, found that the majority of prisoners have multiple and complex needs, including poor mental health. But many do not get access to mental health support. The report claims that staff shortages, a "toxic" working environment and a failure to recognise the impact of prison on both prisoners and staff, all contribute to an "unsafe environment". It recommends three steps to help prisons shift away from a "primarily punitive approach" to a culture centred on wellbeing, recovery and rehabilitation: Sarah Hughes, chief executive of the Centre for Mental Health, said: "We need to bring about a culture change in prisons that puts safety top of the agenda, that understands the traumas both prisoners and staff too often live with, and that means people get the right help when they need it." Last month, the Ministry of Justice said there were 119 self-inflicted deaths in prisons in England and Wales in 2016 - 29 more than the previous year and the highest number since records began in 1978. Frances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said it was "time for action". She added: "No-one should be so desperate while in the care of the state that they take their own life. "Staff who work in prisons should never feel so under pressure that they cannot stop and listen." A government spokeswoman said: "Increased support is now available to those at risk of self-harm or suicide, especially in the first 24 hours, and we have invested in mental health awareness training for staff. "An internal inquiry is also under way looking at all deaths in custody in the last year, to further our understanding of why these events happen."

Summary: Prisons in England and Wales need a "profound culture change" which focuses on inmate safety, a new report says.


NHS Tayside had the highest number followed by NHS Lanarkshire and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. The figures also revealed that more than 560,000 people missed at least one NHS outpatient appointment in 2014/15. Each missed appointment is thought to cost the NHS Â£120, putting the total cost to the health service at Â£100m. The figures were obtained by the Scottish Conservatives through a Freedom of Information request. The statistics revealed: The Scottish Tories have previously suggested those who fail to show for appointments on a certain number of occasions could face some sanction from the health board. The party has also urged the Scottish government look at more innovative ways of reminding patients to turn up at appointments. Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said: "Missing a hospital appointment can happen to anyone, and for a range of reasons. "But when you're getting to the point where you are missing five or more in the space of just a year, something really has to be done. "That is costing the NHS thousands of pounds, wreaking havoc with hospital planning, and of course potentially harming the health of the patient involved. "We've been critical of the NHS in the past for cancelling appointments and procedures, so it's only fair we do everything we can to make sure patient no-shows are limited too. "We need to find ways to ensure people turn up at the appointments that are made and stop showing contempt for our NHS, doctors and nursing staff." Health Secretary Shona Robison said the percentage of patients missing appointments has decreased slightly over the last five years. She added: "However, it is important that all health boards understand why patients are not attending appointments and look at ways to reduce this. "The Scottish government is committed to supporting health boards to deliver secure messaging services, including reminders. "Health Scotland also recently published a report looking at those who did not attend appointments over a 10 year period from 2002/03 to 2011/12. "We welcome this report which will provide boards with further learning on the issue of non-attendance."

Summary: Nearly 17,000 patients in Scotland failed to show up for an NHS hospital appointment on at least five occasions last year.


Fay, 33, should win a record 185th cap when Scotland play Slovenia in their opening Euro 2017 qualifier on Tuesday. She made her debut in 1998 against the Czech Republic. "The Holland matches were the first time I really took a step back to see if it was time to stop," Fay said. Having played in eight major championship campaigns - all unsuccessful - Celtic keeper Fay had a big choice to make after Scotland lost over two legs to the Netherlands in a play-off for the World Cup in Canada. "I asked myself several questions and the desire to reach a major championship was one of them," she said. "If we qualify for Euro 2017 it will probably be the most special moment of my career." Scotland, under coach Anna Signeul, have never been given a better chance. The draw - which includes Belarus, Macedonia and top seeds Iceland - is the kindest ever. With the tournament in the Netherlands in two years time having been expanded, two teams will also qualify from most of the groups. "Externally there is an expectation on us to qualify, but you can never underestimate any team," Fay said. "We're not a team that has the arrogance to say we will definitely qualify. We are a team that says we know we have good players and we work hard in every game. "We will give every team the respect they deserve. If we do that I'm confident we will do well in this group." The Scots are based at Nova Gorica, which is almost on the Italian border, but the game is being played at Ajdovscina, some 30 minutes away. "It's a beautiful setting," said Fay of a venue which lies in a valley under towering mountains. "The pitch is a decent size for us and hopefully they will water it a bit before the game. It looks like a good place to start our campaign."

Summary: Scotland women's captain Gemma Fay admits the prospect of playing in a major championship was one of the main factors in deciding not to retire last year.


Security experts warn that African governments and commercial online services are vulnerable to criminals, who have the potential to disrupt critical infrastructure. But critics say that these laws could also be used to clamp down on the use of online platforms that promote good governance, express dissent and mobilize citizen engagement. The measures have not only been implemented in countries known for strict media controls such as Ethiopia, but are also being introduced in democracies such as Kenya and South Africa. While rising internet use is driving the rapid growth of the digital economy and enhancing access to information and government services in Africa, it has also exposed users to new and sophisticated threats. The two largest economies in Africa - South Africa and Nigeria - are each estimated to lose $500m (Â£375m) annually to cyber criminals, according to a 2016 McAfee report. In addition, African governments are fighting against local and international hacktivist groups who have carried out several disruptive attacks in recent years. Anonymous Africa claimed responsibility for several attacks that targeted the website of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) in July over the broadcaster's ban on broadcasting violent protests. The group also shut down the website of the Zimbabwe's ruling Zanu-PF in support of anti-government protests. Many African governments have appeared unprepared for these threats and are now racing to tighten their telecom laws. With social media platforms being used to organise political activity, the continent's political elite seems worried that such platforms could be used to foment revolt. In the past months, authorities in Uganda, Gabon, Chad, Burundi and Congo-Brazzaville have shut down internet services during disputed elections, raising fears that more governments could take similar measures. Over the past year, South Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Angola, Madagascar and Zimbabwe have passed or proposed stringent laws to fight real and imagined threats. South Africa has been accused of proposing "Africa's worst new internet censorship law". The draft Films and Publications Amendment Bill seeks to "protect the public and children", but critics say its vague language and definitions will "stifle the empowering, democratising potential of the internet" and scare away potential business investors. In June, Ethiopia passed the Computer Crime Proclamation, which criminalises defamatory speech, spam and pornography, among other offences, with jail sentences of up to 10 years. Activists say it could also be used to silence government critics, who are reliant on online publishing due to the country's rigid media controls. In Nigeria, journalists and bloggers have criticised the 2015 Cyber Crime (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc) Act, saying it has been used by politicians to curtail freedom of expression. Two prominent bloggers have been arrested on allegations of "cyber stalking" under the Act. Kenya is preparing legislation to curb cyber crime and regulate social media, and has been accused of plotting to use the law to shut down social media. The government already has a history of going after internet users: Among Kenyan social media users arrested in 2015 was a prominent blogger accused of insulting the president. Kenyan officials have also blamed "the spread of hate

Summary: As the mobile revolution continues to drive change across Africa, governments are rushing to introduce legislation to curb cyber crime and to regulate the use of social media platforms.


Kirsty Parkes, who was a history and English teacher at a school in West Lothian, cannot apply to be re-registered for one year. It follows a hearing held by the General Teaching Council for Scotland over two days in June. Ms Parkes did not attend or seek representation. The incidents happened during the 2012/13 school session. The written decision from the hearing said: "The panel was of the view that the conduct found proved had clearly called into question the respondent's fitness to teach. "The respondent had failed to maintain appropriate professional boundaries in using a personal email account to contact a pupil." The panel said the teacher had also "failed to act as a role model to pupils" and had "failed to uphold the integrity of the exam process". The statement added: "This was in relation to the inappropriate storage and loss of papers; allowing the SQA rules in relation to exams to be breached and in providing essays for pupils to use in exams. "The panel was of the view that public confidence in the respondent and teaching as a profession had been undermined by the conduct." The panel also found that the teacher's conduct "fell significantly short of the standards expected." The complaint also included allegations that school procedures were not followed and that the teacher was dishonest.

Summary: A school teacher has been struck off the teachers' register for helping pupils to cheat in their exams.


Gerry McGowan, Michael Toner, Stephen Crumlish and Gerard Kelly were all teenagers when they were accused of killing Lt Steven Kirby in 1979. The so-called Derry Four fled Northern Ireland until their acquittal in 1998. They are now involved in a civil case against the police for wrongful arrest. They four men also say they were subjected to false imprisonment, assault, battery and malicious prosecution. The PSNI told the BBC it would be inappropriate to comment due to legal proceedings. On Friday, lawyers for the PSNI chief constable submitted documents to the High Court in Belfast indicating that all original interview notes from 1979 were missing. "I suppose my first reaction was one of disbelief but at the same time it was not surprising," said Gerry McGowan. "These documents could have been forensically tested to determine whether the statements were tampered with. "Were they wilfully destroyed or was it just complete incompetence?" It is understood that no explanation was provided as to how the notes had gone missing. It is yet another twist in a long battle for justice, according to Paul O'Connor from the Pat Finucane Centre. "It is an incredible coincidence that in this particular case the interview notes have gone missing," he said. "It would be vital to get to the bottom of this to see what was written in the original interview notes and this is quite a blow for them. "My heart goes out to the four men, clearly they have been vindicated in terms of having the charges withdrawn but they've had no justice." The four men have now lodged an application for the release of covert tape recordings of the interviews, which they believed were made by the security services.

Summary: One of four men wrongly accused of murdering a British soldier has said he is "devastated, but not surprised" to learn that interview notes relating to the case have gone missing.


14 January 2016 Last updated at 07:55 GMT A special ship will drill more than 5000 metres down through the ocean floor to reach the super hot rocks of the planet's crust. The team have picked an area in the Indian Ocean because the earth's crust is thinner there than in other places. They also hope to find out if anything can survive the heat and pressure to live down there. Watch Leah's report to find out more...

Summary: Scientists hope to find out more about how our planet was formed by studying the rocks buried deep under our feet.


Jon Schueler, who died in New York in 1992 at the age of 75, created many of his pieces from a studio in Mallaig in the Highlands. He was inspired by views of the Sound of Sleat and also of Skye, which lies across the stretch of sea. An arts symposium and exhibition at the college runs from Friday to Sunday. Called An Linne: Echoes, Reflections and Transfigurations, the events mark the centenary of the artist's birth in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1916. The painter, who served as a navigator on US bombers flown out of England during World War Two, moved to Mallaig in 1957 and he continued to visit and work in the village in the north-west Highlands throughout his career. Many of his pieces were influenced by the changing weather on the west coast and the effect the conditions had on the sea. Magda Salvesen, curator of the Jon Schueler Estate, said: "The Sound of Sleat became to Schueler a place of experience, memory and mood. "The specificity of this body of water fed Schueler's paintings - their imagery enlarged through layers of memory. "How appropriate and challenging that the symposium celebrating the artist's centenary should be held on Skye, an island seen through changing weather from his studio in Mallaig." The celebration at SMO - Scotland's National Centre for Gaelic Language and Culture, and which offers a Jon Schueler Residency scholarship - includes talks on Schueler's life and work and an exhibition of selected pieces from his time in Mallaig. Donnie Munro, director of development, fundraising and the arts at SMO, described the artist as having a "profoundly deep experiential affinity with the Sound of Sleat". He said this connection led Schueler to create some of his most celebrated works.

Summary: The life and work of an American Expressionist painter is being celebrated at Skye's Gaelic college Sabhal MÃ²r Ostaig (SMO).


Together with her business partner Joan Murphy, each jogged with their toddlers in front of them in pushchairs. It's this serious passion for health and fitness that brought the two then-20 somethings together when they met on a trip to Cornwall with mutual friends back in 2007. Forming a bond over surfing, they lamented what they both saw as a lack of fun fitness options available in the UK capital. Returning to London, they batted around business ideas during runs in Hyde Park, or over a few gins and tonics after work in the advertising industry, where both were employed. Meanwhile, weekend mornings were spent researching possible locations to open a gym. Within a month the duo had hatched their plan to create a new type of female-friendly gym called Frame. The aim was to run energetic and feel-good classes covering everything from dance to "rocket yoga", and "dynamic Pilates". Their ambition was to radicalise the fitness market, which they felt was staid due to a lack of innovation. Crux to the strategy was introducing a pay-as-you-go model, giving their customers the flexibility to drop in on classes, such dance sessions as "Frame Rave", "Music Video" and "80s Aerobics", without having any commitment to go to more. Armed with a bank loan, the pair quit their jobs and launched Frame's first gym, or as they call it, "fitness studio", in Shoreditch, east London, in 2009. "It was all a bit of a whirlwind," recalls Ms Black, 33, a former England hockey player. "We just clicked. Joan had just returned back from New Zealand [her home country], and had looked at what was happening in the fitness industry there "And in true Joan style she sucked me in and decided to tell me what we were going to do, which is quite useful in a business partner. I quite like that." Ms Murphy, 35, says Frame was unique when it started out. "We were the first multi-disciplined pay-as you-go studio," she says. "If you wanted to go to Pilates [at a studio] you had to pay up front for 10 classes. There was no fitness pay-as-you-go. "If you didn't want to buy gym membership because you only wanted to go once or twice a week there was nothing. We wanted to put all the disciplines under one roof and make it accessible." However, before their venture even got off the ground, Frame faced a major setback. Days before their Shoreditch venue was set to open, a road closure meant there was no access to the gym. "There was no through road," says Ms Black. "So we had to wait six months before opening. We had handed out flyers, recruited teachers." With the postponement of the fitness studio and bills mounting, they both took temporary jobs - Ms Murphy as a carer for the elderly, and Ms Black looking after children. When Frame was eventually up and running, both got stuck into the day-to-day operations, each clocking up 30 hours a week either on reception, or as an instructor, on top of running the

Summary: While most of us spend the day before our wedding doing last minute preparations, Pip Black was happily running around London's Victoria Park.


He told MPs the UK would never be a world-beating economy unless young people were better educated. And he called for "much bigger devolution to the people who know where the [failing] schools are". On improving literacy and numeracy, he added: "We need it across the country and we need it yesterday." The Conservative grandee, who was deputy prime minister in the 1990s and subsequently advised David Cameron on regional strategy, made the comments as he gave evidence to the Commons Business Innovation and Skills Committee alongside former chancellor George Osborne. Claiming that the UK is "29th as a country in the world league of education" - it was 23rd in reading in 2015, according to the OECD's Pisa rankings and 26th in maths - he stressed: "If we accept that - we'll never be a world beating economy in the future because it's all about people - it's about education and then about skills. "And if you want to have skilled people, you'd better educate them properly before you start making them skilled." Lord Heseltine, whose leadership challenge helped trigger Margaret Thatcher's departure from Downing Street in 1990, said standards need to be set by a strategic commission, chaired by the prime minister "that are relevant to the best in the world and not the 29th". "If I could design an industrial strategy it would start in the primary schools," he said, adding that about a quarter of children leaving primary schools are "illiterate and innumerate" by modern employment standards. "My own view is clear - there needs to be a much bigger devolution to the people who know where those schools are and they know the people that run them and they know where the inadequate results are coming from - in my personal experience of life: show me the problem, show me the person in charge." Lord Heseltine cited one success story - Northamptonshire's "Race to the top" initiative - which aims to make Northamptonshire one of the highest performing counties for education by 2020. "We spend a lot of time discussing the theories of education and the structures of education, but what we want is good head teachers," he said. "Wherever you go in this country there is a skills shortage - that is a serious problem facing the expansion of the economy and it's a highly centralised process - not devolved on the scale that it would seem to me reflect the market opportunities."

Summary: Lord Heseltine says the UK's skills shortage is a serious problem - and if it was up to him he would start industrial strategy in primary schools.


A Wallabies win will knock England out of the World Cup and send Wales, who beat Fiji 23-13 on Thursday, through to the quarter-finals. New Zealander Gatland said: "If we were being selfish about our own destiny Australia can do us a big favour. "But it's a bit hard for a Kiwi to be cheering Aussies, so I think I'll be quite neutral for this weekend." Media playback is not supported on this device Wales's win over Fiji saw them move to the top of Pool A on 13 points - four ahead of Australia and seven in front of England. Wales, England and Australia can all still qualify for the quarter-finals but only the top two in Pool A will go through. With four points for a win, one bonus point for a team that scores four or more tries in a match, and one point if you lose by seven points or fewer, the permutations are many. If England beat Australia, then the tournament hosts will be favourites as their final game on 10 October is against minnows Uruguay - both Wales and the Wallabies recorded bonus-point victories over the South American side. A bonus-point win for England would mean the match between Australia and Wales, earlier on the same day at Twickenham, would decide the other qualifier from the so-called pool of death. There is a scenario that could see Wales and England finish on the same points. If that were to happen, Wales would go through because they won last Saturday's pool match. Should Australia lose to England and then beat Wales there is also the possibility of all three teams finishing on the same points and then points difference comes into play. The Welsh have lost their last 10 meetings with Australia, but captain Sam Warburton believes there has been little between the teams. The last five meetings between the sides have seen the Wallabies win by five points or fewer. "We take a lot of confidence from those defeats because it's been a penalty decision, or one guy coming out of the line in the last minute - really the finest margins you can probably get in Test rugby," said Warburton. "So we know that we have the makings to get a win against Australia, but I've seen some of their games recently and they are looking particularly good. "It's going to be another huge battle between England and Australia and then between us and Australia - it's going to be an exciting week."

Summary: Wales coach Warren Gatland admitted he will find it hard to support Australia when they play England on Saturday.


The White Garden, at Kensington Palace, was planted to mark 20 years since Princess Diana died in a car crash. The Duchess of Cambridge joined the princes on the garden tour. A spokeswoman for Kensington Palace said: "The engagement will allow the princes to pay tribute to the life and work of their mother." They met representatives from the causes and charities supported by Diana, including the Royal Marsden and Great Ormond Street hospitals, the National Aids Trust, Centrepoint youth homelessness charity and the Leprosy Mission. Members of the public have been leaving tributes and flowers at the gates of the palace to mark the anniversary of Diana's death. The Princess of Wales died on 31 August 1997 in Paris, when William, now the Duke of Cambridge, was 15 and his brother was 12. The garden at their mother's former home has been inspired by memories of her life, style and image, such as her white "Elvis" Catherine Walker dress. The White Garden, as it is known, follows a tradition first established at Sissinghurst Castle in Kent, famous for its own white garden created in the 1930s. Their Royal Highnesses met gardener Sean Harkin who designed the display and Graham Dillamore who knew the princess when he worked there some 30 years ago. The garden has been open since spring and will continue into September with white roses, lilies, gladioli and cosmos. It is the fourth London memorial created in tribute to Diana - the others are the Diana Memorial Playground at Kensington Palace, the Diana Memorial Fountain in Hyde Park, and the Diana Memorial Walk at St James's Palace.

Summary: Prince William and Prince Harry have visited a London memorial garden for their mother on the eve of the 20th anniversary of her death.


Richard Duffy fired Vale in front after Neil Collins headed down a corner for the defender to coolly latch onto. Scunthorpe's Paddy Madden could have levelled later on but fired the ball over the crossbar from close range. But Wootton's late goal rescued a point and prevented the visitors from taking their first win in eight games. The Iron remain in 17th, a point above 18th-placed Vale who are three points above the League One relegation zone. Scunthorpe manager Mark Robins told BBC Radio Humberside: Media playback is not supported on this device "We were by no means at our best tonight but we've created enough chances to win the game. "We gave them one shot at goal and they scored. "The changes we made had an impact no doubt about that - I told Kyle (Wooten) to go make a name for himself which he has thankfully gone and done."

Summary: A dramatic injury-time equaliser from teenage substitute Kyle Wootton gifted Scunthorpe a point against relegation rivals Port Vale.


Those banned are believed to include general secretary of the EU council Uwe Corsepius, and former British deputy prime minister Nick Clegg. Russia shared the list after several requests by diplomats, the EU said. The EU called the ban "totally arbitrary and unjustified" and said no explanation had been provided. Many of those on the list are outspoken critics of the Kremlin, and some have been turned away from Russia in recent months. The EU said that it had asked repeatedly for the list of those banned, but nothing had been provided until now. "The list with 89 names has now been shared by the Russian authorities. We don't have any other information on legal basis, criteria and process of this decision," an EU spokesman said on Saturday. "We consider this measure as totally arbitrary and unjustified, especially in the absence of any further clarification and transparency," he added. A Russian foreign ministry official said that the ban was a result of EU sanctions against Russia. "Why it was precisely these people who entered into the list... is simple - it was done in answer to the sanctions campaign which has been waged in relation to Russia by several states of the European Union," the official, who was not named, told Russian news agency Tass. EU sanctions were imposed after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea region in March 2014, and they have been extended amid ongoing fighting between government troops and pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told journalists on Friday that the list had been shared with EU diplomats and that three Dutch politicians were on it. He said that the Netherlands would not abide by the ban as it was "not based on international law". British intelligence chiefs appear to have been targeted, with a leaked version of the list (in German)naming MI5 director general Andrew Parker and the former MI6 chief Sir John Sawers. Former British foreign secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind told the AFP news agency that he had "read the reports in the media [of his ban] but not a word from the Russians". Britain's foreign office said: "The Russian authorities have not provided any legal basis for the list or for the names on it. "If Russia thinks this action will cause the EU to change its position on sanctions, it is wrong." Also on the list are the French philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy, former Belgian prime minister Guy Verhofstadt and the EU's former enlargement chief Stefan Fule. 'A decent club' Sweden's foreign minister, Margot Wallstrom said that her country has asked for an explanation from Russia. Eight Swedes are on the list, including Swedish MEP Anna Maria Corazza Bildt. "I'm more proud than scared and this gives me more determination to continue... If the Kremlin takes me and my colleagues seriously it means we're doing a good job," she told AFP. The former Czech foreign minister, Karel Schwarzenberg, also said he was pleased to have made the list. "When I saw the other names (on the list), I found out I was in a

Summary: The European Union has responded angrily to Russia's entry ban against 89 European politicians, officials and military leaders.


The Richard III Society branded the decision as a "monumental mistake" which would be "humiliating" to the king. However, the Very Revd David Monteith, Dean of Leicester, said the play would be "sensitive" towards him. He was reburied at the cathedral in 2015 in a specially designed tomb. The remains of the last Plantagenet monarch were placed under the cathedral two years ago, after they were discovered under a car park in the city in 2012. Shakespeare's play is critical of the king, calling him a "poisonous bunch-back'd toad." Philippa Langley, from the Richard III Society, is not against the play but is opposed to it being performed in Leicester Cathedral. "To perform this play right beside this man's grave is quite frankly, a deliberate humiliation," she said. "This is not what the great city of Leicester and its people is about." Source: Royal Shakespeare Company The Cathedral has said the show will go ahead as planned in July, despite the criticism. "King Richard III lies in peace," Revd David Monteith told BBC East Midlands Today. "What we now know is that he belongs to the whole nation and not just to one section of people particularly committed to his story. "I've heard most people say how glad they are that Richard III, the Shakespeare play, will be performed here." The play will also be performed at Peterborough, Ely, Gloucester, Bristol and Salisbury cathedrals in July.

Summary: Leicester Cathedral has defended its decision to stage Shakespeare's Richard III a few feet from the monarch's final resting place.


The Spain international has scored five goals in his last six games to help the Swans pull five points clear of the relegation zone. Four of those have been headers, and Clement believes his aerial prowess compares to the world's best players. "Llorente is wonderful at heading the ball," he said. Clement continued: "[Cristiano] Ronaldo is also fantastic, [Gareth] Bale also good from a striker perspective. "You have to look at John Terry and Sergio Ramos, central defenders who always did so well when they went forward into the box. "He [Llorente] is doing very well and he's proven to be a key player during this period." Clement worked with Ronaldo, Bale and Ramos at Real Madrid, while he coached Terry during his time with Chelsea. Since taking over at Swansea, the former Bayern Munich and Paris St-Germain assistant manager has overseen five wins from eight Premier League matches. That run of results has lifted the Swans from the foot of the table to 16th place, and Llorente has been pivotal to their upturn in fortunes. A summer signing from Sevilla, the 32-year-old scored two goals to give Swansea a vital 3-2 win over Burnley on 4 March and take his personal tally for the season to 11. "He's scored five goals since I've been here - the two at Liverpool, one at Chelsea and then the two against Burnley," said Clement. "What's helped him is he's getting good supply into the box, and that was very clear in the game against Burnley - not just the two that he scored but other opportunities he had as well. "He's a very good player when you get crosses into the box for him." Meanwhile, Swansea will be without right-back Kyle Naughton for Saturday's trip to Hull with what Clement described as a "minor" hamstring injury. The 28-year-old is expected to return for the match at Bournemouth the following weekend.

Summary: Swansea City striker Fernando Llorente's form is "key" to their hopes of Premier League survival, says head coach Paul Clement.


Poysden and Mellor, both 25, have committed to the Bears until at least the end of the 2018 season after five Championship games each this summer. Warwickshire chief executive Neil Snowball said: "Josh and Alex have big futures here at Edgbaston. "They played important roles in 2016 and proved that they can compete at the highest level of the domestic game." Poysden, who was already tied to Edgbaston to the end of 2017, has worked with the England Lions at the National Cricket Centre in Loughborough this autumn and is currently with the Lions squad at their training camp in Dubai. He has made 16 one-day and 19 T20 appearances for the Bears since initially joining on trial after leaving Cambridge University ahead of the 2014 season. He also made a late-season breakthrough in the County Championship this summer, taking 15 wickets in his five appearances, including a career-best 5-53 against champions Middlesex at Edgbaston. Former Staffordshire player Mellor, who first joined the Bears at the end of the 2015 season on a one-year deal, has now signed a new two-year contract. Mellor, whose late-season Championship appearances came as cover for the injured Tim Ambrose, has also played three limited-overs games. Warwickshire are still without a director of cricket following the departure of Dougie Brown in October. They have been strongly linked with a return to Edgbaston for former Bears boss Ashley Giles, who is still contracted to his current county Lancashire for another year. BBC Sport understands that negotiations remain ongoing with Lancashire over Giles, who still lives in the Midlands. Chief executive Neil Snowball reiterated last week that they would like to make an appointment before Christmas.

Summary: Warwickshire leg-spinner Josh Poysden and wicketkeeper Alex Mellor have signed contract extensions.


Megan Bannister, 16, from Leicester, was dead before the collision between a car and a motorbike in Enderby, Leicestershire, on Sunday, said police. The force said a post-mortem examination was inconclusive, but it revealed her injuries were not consistent with a crash. Two men, aged 27 and 28, have been arrested on suspicion of murder. Updates on this story and more from the East Midlands Megan was due to take the first of her GCSE exams on Tuesday, said her school. She wanted to become a midwife. Her family said in a statement: "Megan was our beautiful, talented, loving daughter and sister, and our hearts have been utterly broken by her death. "The thought of life without Megan is impossible to imagine, and we cannot adequately express in words the sense of numbness and overwhelming grief we feel at her loss. "She was bright, clever, and a responsible person who loved her family and her many friends. "She had a strong self-will and had set her heart on training to becoming a midwife. "Knowing how confident and determined she was, we have no doubt she would have realised that dream." Wigston College, where Megan was a student, said in a statement: "Megan was funny, friendly and good. "She was popular and had a wide range of friends. She liked people and they liked her and this is how we will remember her. "Our thoughts are very much with her family at this impossibly difficult time."

Summary: A teenager whose body was found in the back of a car following a crash with a motorbike has been named by police.


There were 5,423 assaults on prison staff in the 12 months to the end of March - a rise of 40% on last year, the Ministry of Justice said. Self-inflicted deaths in the year to the end of June were up from 82 to 105 - a rise of 28%. Meanwhile 65 prisoners were released in error in 2015-16 - the highest total for six years. Overall, the performance of prisons appears to have worsened, with six jails giving "serious concern" - Bristol, Doncaster, Hewell, Isis, Liverpool and Wormwood Scrubs - compared with only three in 2014-15. Justice Secretary Elizabeth Truss said the level of violence in our prisons was "unacceptable" and highlighted the prevalence of psychoactive substances as a problem. "I am clear that safety in prisons is fundamental to the proper functioning of our justice system and a vital part of our reform plans," she said. "There are a number of factors including the availability of psychoactive substances in prisons which must be tackled. It will take time to address these long-standing problems. I am determined to make sure our prisons are safe and places of rehabilitation." The government figures also revealed that: Shadow prisons minister Jo Stevens said the figures highlighted "the absolutely unacceptable state of our prison and probation system", adding that "neither prison staff nor prisoners are safe". "Fifteen assaults on prison staff every single day cannot continue. Prisoner suicides have increased and the number of people who've been accidentally released from prison is at a six-year high," the Labour MP added. Andrew Neilson, director of campaigns at the Howard League for Penal Reform - a national charity that campaigns to have fewer people in prison - said the figures showed "the urgent need for prison reform". "Prisons are not only becoming more dangerous; they are becoming more dangerous more quickly," he said. "That more prisons have been awarded the worst-possible performance rating provides further indication of how the system is failing after years of rising numbers, chronic overcrowding and deep staff cuts." Mr Neilson said it was "particularly shocking" to see increases in the number of women taking their own lives, adding: "The high levels of violence and deaths should shame us all, and the new secretary of state for justice and her ministers must set out concrete plans to reduce them." Last week the Chief Inspector of Prisons, Peter Clarke, warned that jails had become "unacceptably violent and dangerous places". In his first annual report, Mr Clarke said the "grim situation" revealed in last year's report was now "even worse" in some areas.

Summary: Assaults on prison officers in England and Wales have risen to their highest level on record, official figures show.