Parsley, rapeseed, mustard and perilla were found to be affected, although the levels were far from life-threatening. It comes as more countries join Singapore in restricting food imports from the country over fears of contamination from the critical Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. The US, Australia, Hong Kong, Canada and Russia have all taken measures. The contaminated vegetables discovered in Singapore had come from the regions of Tochigi and Ibaraki - inside the affected area - but also more worryingly from two other areas, Chiba and Ehime. The radiation levels mean that an adult would have to eat 3.5kg to get the same exposure as from a single x-ray. Singapore has already stopped imports of milk, meat and related products from the affected area of Japan. The US, Australia and Russia have also banned certain foodstuffs from around the damaged nuclear plant. Hong Kong is requiring the Japanese authorities to screen exports, while Canada said it will carry out its own inspections. Both Australia and Singapore have banned agricultural food imports from the regions of Fukushima, Gunma, Ibaraki and Tochigi. Hong Kong included Chiba on its suspension list - the origin of one of the contaminated samples since discovered in Singapore. Japan's food producers are under pressure after a deadly earthquake caused radiation to leak from the power plant, contaminating produce. Australia's regulator, the Food Standards Australia New Zealand, said it was taking a precautionary measure that was consistent with approaches internationally. Three UN agencies have issued a joint statement saying Japan had been taking the right actions. "Food monitoring is being implemented, measurements of radioactivity in food are taking place and the results are being communicated publicly," said the International Atomic Energy Agency, the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization. The bans on food imports from Japan into other countries come after shipments of certain food products from the Fukushima area were halted domestically as well. The government has told people living in Fukushima not to eat 11 types of green leafy vegetable that are grown locally, amid fears of radiation contamination. Producers in the region have been asked not to send their goods to the market. In the Ibaraki prefecture, all shipments of milk and parsley have also been stopped. "Unfortunately, as the situation is expected to last for the long term, we are asking that shipments stop at an early stage," said Japanese Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano. "It is desirable to avoid intake of the foods as much as possible." Analysts say radiation fears are likely to hit domestic demand, as most agricultural produce from Japan is consumed within the country. Nonetheless, the effects of the earthquake and tsunami have thrown a shadow over Japan's exports. Analysts expect a negative impact on export growth in the months to come. The latest figures showed that exports had actually picked up in February. Exports rose 9% in February from the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Finance. However, those figures do not reflect the impact from the earthquake, which struck on 11 March. The expected slump

Summary: Singapore has reported finding low levels of radioactivity in four vegetable samples imported from Japan.


The Local Government Association is asking that councils in England be freed from restrictions on the ability to borrow to fund new home building. It is also calling for powers to replace every council home that is sold off, as quickly as possible. The government said it was delivering on its commitment to replace all properties sold on a one-for-one basis. But in a submission to the Treasury, the LGA said the scale of the housing crisis demanded that action to fix the lack of affordable housing was taken immediately. "The government's recent announcement of an additional Â£5bn investment in the form of loans to private sector organisations and for building homes on surplus public land is a welcome step," the LGA said. "However, councils are also well placed to bridge the gap between housing need and future building levels and are keen to see - and support - delivery at speed." The LGA wants to hold talks with ministers over whether councils' housing revenue accounts - the accounts covering rents and assets - could be removed from the public sector debt book so as to enable borrowing against these assets. "This would allow local government to rapidly contribute new homes in the market, meet a wide range of local needs and generate significant medium and long term returns," it said. Councils also want powers to replace council homes that are sold off under Right to Buy arrangements. Currently, the government only allows local authorities to keep 30% of the cost for replacement council homes. This means councils cannot build replacements - especially as they are unable to borrow to fund the rest. The call comes as new figures were released on the sales of social housing. These revealed nearly 22,000 social housing dwellings were sold from 2015-16 - 12,557 by local authorities and a further 9,435 by housing associations. The sales amount to about 0.5% of the total stock of four million social houses in England. There was a particular spike in the percentage of housing association homes sold to private firms. This was up 46% and government statisticians said this was likely to be because of housing associations taking a more active approach to managing their assets. The Department for Communities and Local Government said it was delivering on its commitment to replace all properties sold on a one-for-one basis. "As of June 2016, there had been 7,018 starts and acquisitions. "This delivers more than a one for one replacement on the 4,369 additional sales since the scheme was reinvigorated in 2012."

Summary: Town hall bosses want urgent talks with the government on how they can rapidly build homes where they are needed.


A suicide attacker detonated a vehicle and a fierce gun battle followed. Officials say the attack is now over and the area has been cleared. A Taliban spokesman said the group carried out the attack. It comes a week after it said it was launching its "spring offensive", warning of large-scale attacks. Tuesday's bombing happened during the morning rush hour in Pul-e-Mahmud, a busy neighbourhood where homes, mosques, schools and businesses nestle close to the Ministry of Defence, other ministries and military compounds. Soldiers and security officers are reported to be among the casualties, but the majority are civilians. The blast shattered windows up to 1.6km (one mile) away. The Associated Press quoted a police officer as saying it was one of the most powerful explosions he had ever heard, and he could not see or hear anything for 20 minutes after. It appears the initial blast cleared the way for Taliban fighters to enter the area - a commonly used tactic. "One of the suicide attackers blew up an explosives-laden truck in a public parking lot next to a government building," Kabul police chief Abdul Rahman Rahimi told AFP news agency. "The second attacker engaged security forces in a gun battle before being gunned down," he added. Hours after the assault was declared over, another blast rocked Kabul. Police told a BBC reporter in Kabul it was caused by an improvised explosive device (IED). "It was as huge as in the morning," said Afghan MP Elay Ershad. "So everyone [is] scared of this situation." Casualties are high because the assault happened in a densely packed neighbourhood during rush hour. Usually the Taliban does not say it is behind such attacks, which cause large numbers of civilian deaths. But today they did because the target was high-profile and it appears that, for them, hitting the target was worth the civilians killed and wounded. What we hear less of are similar planned attacks that are foiled by the Afghan security forces, and there are plenty. But preventing such attacks altogether is next to impossible. The country has been at war for three decades, explosives are easily available and bomb-making skills are common. The Taliban's "spring offensive" is part of a propaganda war. The group fights all year round and so do the Afghan security forces. It is the story of the past 37 years. In a statement on its Pashto-language website, the Taliban said several militants successfully breached the defences of the National Directorate of Security, Afghanistan's main spy agency which protects high-ranking government officials It is unclear precisely how many attackers were involved and the Taliban have been known to exaggerate details. The presidential palace - only a few hundred metres from the blast - condemned the attack "in the strongest possible terms". "Such cowardly terrorist attacks will not weaken the will and determination of Afghan security forces to fight against terrorism." A tweet from President Ghani's office's official account suggested the attack "clearly shows the enemy's defeat in face-to-face battle with ANSDF" - the Afghan National Security and Defense Forces. But

Summary: At least 28 people have been killed and 329 injured in a huge explosion in the centre of the Afghan capital Kabul, police and officials say.


These businesses are a cherished local species. Take the Denroy Group in Bangor, employing 200 people making plastic products as diverse as hairbrushes and plane parts. Its growth - and that of the wider economy - is all about external markets and it feels a UK exit from the EU is too much of a risk for business. It is not alone. Internal polling by three local business bodies suggests a majority of each of their memberships oppose a so-called Brexit. "The uncertainty of an exit worries us," said Kevin McNamee, the finance director of the Denroy Group. "It would mean new UK arrangements with the EU. "If the UK has to renegotiate trade deals are they going to involve tariffs which impacts on our sales and competitiveness?" But business supporters of a Brexit, such as William Wright of Wrightbus in Ballymena, argue the UK should see a bigger picture. Free of the EU collective, they say, the UK could strike its own trade deals not just in Europe, but in other world markets. Former Northern Ireland secretary of state Owen Paterson said: "We have an opportunity if we leave to really expand trade in the wider world." Figures from the Department for the Economy reveal Northern Ireland sold products and services to the value of £66bn in 2014. Leaving aside what we sell to ourselves (£43bn), Great Britain is our next biggest market (£13bn). Exports to the EU were worth nearly £6bn and to the rest of the world £4bn. It is those kinds of figures which are occupying minds in a good many boardrooms - if not necessarily the factory floor. "You might get a different story there," admits Denroy's Kevin McNamee. The priority issue at this referendum may divide boss and worker, but what they have in common is one vote.

Summary: Much of the EU referendum debate in Northern Ireland has been around the economy and what is at stake for exporters.


Mike Petter quit his post ahead of the publication, due on Friday, of a Care Quality Commission (CQC) report on Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust. He said leaving his post had been a "very difficult decision". Problems came to light at the trust when 18-year-old Connor Sparrowhawk drowned in a bath at a care facility. An inquest found neglect contributed his death, at Slade House in Oxford, in 2013. A report commissioned by NHS England, published in December 2015, discovered that only 272 of the 722 deaths in the trust over the previous four years were investigated. The trust was issued a warning notice by the CQC following an inspection in January. In a statement Mr Petter said: "The trust has recently undergone a significant amount of scrutiny in some service areas and, given the challenges it faces, I feel it is appropriate for me to allow new board leadership to take forward the improvements. "I have been involved in Southern Health since the trust was formed in 2011 as a non-executive director and since August 2015 as chairman. "It is with great sadness that I now leave the organisation. "I offer my support and best wishes to all our staff whose dedication and commitment I am continuously impressed by."

Summary: The chairman of a health trust under fire for not properly investigating the unexpected deaths of patients has resigned.


Father-of-two Greg Gilbert, 39, from Southampton, has been diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer. His fiancée Stacey Heale said his only chance of survival was to go abroad for treatment which she said was not available to him on the NHS. GoFundMe said the appeal was one of the "fastest ever" campaigns on its site. More than 4,000 people have so far donated to the fundraising page, posted at 10:30 GMT on Wednesday, including music stars Craig David and Ellie Goulding. In a Facebook post, Mr Gilbert said the response was " truly humbling". "I can't begin to express our gratitude - not a penny is being taken for granted and we've been moved to tears many times over the last few days reading the supportive messages from not only friends and family but also strangers from all over the world." Ms Heale said she and Mr Gilbert had been "in tears and holding hands" as they watched the pledges come in. She said: "It's been overwhelming; our phone has been ringing off the hook. I was refreshing the page this morning and were just like, 'oh my God, we've done it'. "Grateful doesn't cover it. We've had one person donate £2,000. After such a difficult year for people, to have this at Christmas is so hopeful for us." Ms Heale said she was researching options for treatment, including personalised immunotherapy in Germany and the USA. She said she was considering posting a new fundraising target of £250,000, after a private specialist warned that Mr Gilbert's medical bills could amount to £100,000 a year. Writing on the funding page, Ms Heale said her fiancée had begun chemotherapy for the cancer, which had spread to his lungs. She said she was disappointed the drug Avastin, for advanced bowel cancers, was currently not routinely available on the NHS. A fundraising gig has been organised on 5 January at the Southampton venue, the Joiners, where Delays have played many times during their career. The band was formed in Southampton in 2001 by brothers Greg and Aaron Gilbert with Colin Fox and Rowly.

Summary: An appeal to pay for cancer treatment for the lead singer of indie band Delays has reached its £100,000 target in 48 hours.


Ministers say it is necessary so police and security services can access the data they need after a legal ruling which declared existing powers invalid. The proposed law has the backing of Labour and the coalition parties. A special cabinet is being held to agree the planned laws, which will only last until 2016. Prime Minister David Cameron and his Lib Dem Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg will tell a special cabinet meeting on Thursday that emergency legislation is necessary to keep the country safe. A recent ruling of the European Court of Justice has removed the obligation on telecoms companies to retain records of when and who their customers have called, texted and emailed. Without a new law Mr Cameron and Mr Clegg will claim that that information could be destroyed within weeks by companies fearing legal challenges. Labour is backing emergency legislation after all-party talks agreed that this law would enshrine existing rights and not be used to extend them by re-introducing the so-called "snoopers charter". It will also bring in so-called safeguards including: Critics will no doubt argue that the time for that debate is now. To pass any new law in just a week is rare. So too is it to have the backing of all three main parties even before it is published. On a subject as sensitive as giving the police and security services access to phone and internet data this is bound to be controversial. Update 08:45 BST: The emergency legislation will oblige telecom firms to retain data for 12 months. Under the European law which it replaces companies could be asked to retain data for 24 months. More controversially the new law will also produce what is being described as a "clearer legal framework" to allow access to the content of calls, texts and emails after a warrant is signed by a senior government minister. Telecoms companies are said to have warned ministers that after the Edward Snowden revelations they are vulnerable to legal challenge by their customers. The Labour MP Tom Watson has condemned the plans as a "stitch up" which prevent MPs from considering the legislation properly.

Summary: Emergency legislation will be brought in next week to force phone and internet companies to log records of customer calls, texts and internet use.


Police said the 34-year-old had been dropped off by taxi in the Milton area when he became involved in an argument. The man was then attacked and badly injured after making off into Ashgill Road at about 00:25 on Saturday. He was taken by ambulance to Glasgow Royal Infirmary where his condition was "critical but stable." The stabbing is being treated as attempted murder. The attackers are described as white, all aged in their 20s. Det Sgt John Dowds, of Police Scotland, said: "The injured man had just been dropped off by a taxi in Balmore Road near to Ashgill Street where it is believed he became involved in an argument with some people in the area. "However, he made off into Ashgill Road where he was attacked by four men. "He was very seriously injured with what was originally thought to be life-threatening injuries, however, thankfully now he seems to be in a critical but stable condition." Police are urging anyone with information about the attack to come forward.

Summary: A man is critically ill in hospital after being stabbed by four men in a street attack in Glasgow.


"Swachh Bharat is an oxymoron," says stand-up comedian Sanjay Rajoura, referring to PM Narendra Modi's Clean India campaign. "Just like good Taliban. Just like intelligent Rahul Gandhi. Just like happy marriage." The audience applauds with loud cheers and clapping. Besides Rajoura, Aisi Taisi Democracy comprises writer-lyricist Varun Grover and singer-musician Rahul Ram. The men say their 90-minute show - a mix of stand-up comedy, storytelling and songs parodying popular Bollywood numbers - reflects the "bizarre experience" of Indian life and offers a "nuanced critique" of its democracy. The group, which debuted last year, has just kicked off its second season with a show in Gurgaon and performances planned for Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) and Delhi over the next month. There are no holy cows for the performers - they make fun of the recent ban on porn sites, health food fads and fashionable diets, the craze for selfies and Mr Modi's controversial monogrammed suit. "We are a bizarre country with a million prejudices - a country that would be really sad if it was not this funny," says Grover, adding that their intent is to "expose our darkest secrets as a nation" through irreverent political humour and songs. "We do lots of political content in this atmosphere where people are always ready to take offence, so it's really encouraging to see people applaud," he adds. "It's a very political show," says Ram. "We get inspired by events taking place around us all the time in this amazing democracy." As he breaks into song on what is sometimes described as the schizophrenic India-Pakistan relationship, many in the audience join in, clapping and singing. "They say the enemy lives across the border, but when I look closely, he looks just like me," the lyrics say. Political satire has been growing more popular in recent years, with UnRealTimes, FakingNews and spoofs on elections trying to tickle India's funny bones. However, most stand-up comedy shows stick to poking fun at regional differences, accents, marital issues and families. "Comedy that relies on ethnic differences is limited and limiting. It's true that politics is a minefield but it's a never-ending source of inspiration. So I don't think we would ever run out of inspiration," says Ram. Grover says the group comments on people's choices, "rather than what they are born with, like their caste, colour or religion". "We talk about the choices they have been making and these choices make them vulnerable to comedy."

Summary: At a nightclub in Gurgaon, an upscale suburb of the Indian capital Delhi, about 100 people are watching the popular political satire show, Aisi Taisi Democracy, which translates from the Hindi as Democracy Be Damned.


The deal means viewers will be able to watch every Olympic sport live for the duration of the summer games through their TV sets. Previously, the BBC had only planned to broadcast the streams online. It will be the first time viewers have been given the opportunity to follow one particular sport throughout the day. The services will be in addition to coverage on BBC One and BBC Three, which will air all of the key moments from the Olympics, as well as other platforms including Radio 5 live. Together, this coverage will deliver around 2,500 hours of live sport coverage through the various BBC platforms during the Games. "These are the first truly digital Olympics, where we'll offer more choice than ever before,"said Roger Mosey, the BBC's director of London 2012, on his blog. The BBC's home of 2012: Latest Olympic news, sport, culture, torch relay, video and audio "You'll be able to watch sport from every venue from first thing in the morning to last thing at night... Hockey fans can watch live uninterrupted hockey, and table tennis fans can stick all day with their sport too." Mr Mosey said the BBC had agreed with Sky and Freesat to show the live streams across 24 channels, with more announcements from other providers expected soon. "The aim is that you'd be able to pick from watching BBC Olympics 1 right through to BBC Olympics 24 with full programme guides and the ability to record your favourite sports," he said. However Mr Mosey added: "Not every platform will be able to accommodate such a huge technical offer, which amounts to 48 channels in total if you count 24 SD (Standard Definition) plus 24 HD." Freeview users will have access to two additional channels available through the BBC Red Button, providing up to four channels at peak times.

Summary: The BBC is to make 24 live HD Olympic streams available to cable and satellite providers.


Police were alerted to an incident in Coilte Cresent in the Highland village at about 22:00 on Sunday. A man wearing dark clothing and carrying what appeared to be a gun entered the house and demanded money from the homeowner, police said. A man was later arrested in Cumbria and has been assisting officers investigating the incident. A four-figure sum of money was stolen from the house in Drumnadrochit's Kilmore area. Police Scotland said: "A high visibility police presence remains in area at this time to provide reassurance to the local community. "Police are keen to hear from members of the public who may have seen any suspicious activity in the area prior to the incident. "In addition, officers would like to hear from anyone who may have seen a silver VW Passat in the area earlier that day."

Summary: A man has been arrested in Cumbria following reports of an armed robbery at a house in Drumnadrochit.


Seven separate failures affected Southeastern passengers through London Bridge, which then created overcrowding at Victoria and Canada Water. Network Rail and Transport for London apologised to customers saying cable damage and signalling problems had caused delays. Most faults were repaired by 08:00 BST. Points problems led to suspensions on the District, Circle and Hammersmith and City lines. Overrunning engineering work and signalling problems resulted in delays of up to 90 minutes for passengers using London Bridge. It is the latest in a series of problems at the station. On the Tube, a signal failure, at Edgware Road in north west London, resulted a part-suspension of the District line as well as severe delays on others. Sasha Simic, who was caught up in the disruption, tweeted: "Nightmare Monday for commuters after underground suffers severe delays." Another passenger, Warren Geraghty, tweeted: "Delays in and out of Paddington. Tube has "severe delays". I think my commuting days are coming to an end!!" Both Network Rail and Transport for London apologised to customers. A Network Rail spokesman said: "The causes were a mixture of cable damage, component and asset failures. "Many of those faults were repaired before 8am but by that point the damage was done and trains were severely delayed as a result."

Summary: Rush hour travellers have had a "nightmare Monday" commute across London after a series of unrelated rail and Tube train delays.


The BBC understands 39 children have arrived this week, but there have been questions whether some may be adults. Conservative MP David Davies called for mandatory teeth checks to reassure the public, but the British Dental Association said this was unethical. The Home Office said the migrants would face different checks once in the UK. "We do not use dental X-rays to confirm the ages of those seeking asylum in the UK. The British Dental Association has described them as inaccurate, inappropriate and unethical," the Home Office said. It is understood that further checks to be carried out will include interviews with relatives in the UK and fingerprinting to cross-check with other records which may contain age details. One 14-year-old migrant, who arrived from Calais on Monday to be reunited with his older brother, said he had to get documents to prove his brother was in the UK, and was interviewed twice in Calais by French authorities and the British. He was interviewed again once in the UK. In Calais, the young Afghan boy looked strained, rubbing his hands together nervously on a chilly morning. But, after a 100-mile journey, and on the other side of the Channel, his face broke out into a broad grin. His dream of a new life was within reach. The setting was a back entrance to a drab government building in Croydon, but as officials ushered him towards the next step in the asylum process, well-wishers greeted the 13-year-old with whoops and cries of "well done". His long journey, which he shared with singer Lily Allen in a BBC Victoria Derbyshire film last week, began when he fled his home country to escape the Taliban. His father sold his land to pay to send his young son to Europe. But the slow legal process in Calais kept him there for two months, and every night he made a fresh attempt to stow away on lorries to reach the UK. Now, he can look forward to being reunited with his family and starting school in England. The new arrivals were placed on a list drawn up by the charity Citizens UK, which is working with the government to bring unaccompanied minors over from Calais. The list was ratified by French authorities, who would have carried out interviews with the children before they could travel to the UK. If they have no proof of age, officials consider their looks and demeanour. But since the migrants' arrival in the UK, photographs of some have appeared in newspapers alongside headlines questioning their age. Mr Davies, Monmouth MP, said that one of the migrants arriving had "lines around his eyes and looks older than I am". He said: "If they are jumping on lorries, they are not going to be adverse to lying about their ages. We should do the tests." Fellow Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg, who is also calling for more stringent checks, said it was "very worrying" that "older migrants are reported to be pushing children out of the way". But the British Dental Association, which represents UK dentists

Summary: Child migrants from the Calais "Jungle" camp will not face dental checks in the UK to verify their age, the government has insisted.


Arriving at 01:00 (22:00 GMT Wednesday) in cars, they fired on a traffic police checkpoint before attacking a media building and a school. An Islamist group said it had launched a suicide attack to avenge attacks by security forces on Muslim women. Chechnya's Moscow-backed president said the situation was under control. Ramzan Kadyrov said none of the attackers had escaped. The controversial Chechen strongman has suppressed rebel activity in Chechnya since Russia ousted the separatist government there at the beginning of the century. The attack was a rare breach of the heavy security which surrounds Grozny. Russian President Vladimir Putin said from Moscow he was confident Chechen security forces could handle the militants by themselves. This is the most serious violence in Grozny for some time and will be another worry for President Putin, amid a serious downturn in the Russian economy, the BBC's Sarah Rainsford reports from Moscow. Mr Putin prides himself on bringing stability to Chechnya after two bloody, separatist wars there since the break-up of the Soviet Union, our correspondent adds. Three traffic policemen were killed as they tried to stop the gunmen's cars, Mr Kadyrov said. Nine militants died in the subsequent fighting, the Chechen leader said. According to the Russian government, a further four people died and 21 were injured during the fighting. Inhabitants of the city woke to the sight of smoke rising from the gutted shell of the publishing house, where both Chechen and federal Russian media had offices. Covered stalls at a market were also burned in the fighting. There were no reports of any children being inside the school when the rebels seized it. Mobile phone videos posted during the night attested to the ferocity of the fighting. An Associated Press reporter saw the publishing house in flames and heard the continuing sound of gunfire before dawn. The same reporter also saw the body of someone in civilian clothing in the street near the building. "Not one bandit managed to get out," Mr Kadyrov later announced. "I directly ran the operation myself." In a grainy video posted on YouTube, a gunman said he and a group of others had attacked the city in a "revenge operation" to avenge Muslim women harassed by the security forces. He said the attack had been carried out on the instructions of Chechen rebel figure Aslan Byutukayev, an associate of Doku Umarov, the rebel leader believed to have been killed earlier this year. The attack on Grozny came hours before President Putin gave his annual state of the nation address at the Kremlin. Dmitry Trenin, who heads the Carnegie Moscow Center, wrote in a Twitter post that the night attack in Grozny looked "senseless except as an attempt to embarrass Putin hours before his annual address".

Summary: Rebel gunmen have shot their way into the heavily fortified Chechen capital, Grozny, in a night-time attack which left as many as 16 people dead.


In mid-May, Gen Gholamreza Jalali, the head of Iran's Civil Defence Organisation, said he saw the mainly Sunni kingdom as his chief threat in the coming year. Mainly Shia Iran and Saudi Arabia have long been regional rivals but tensions worsened dramatically last year, partly because of the conflicts in Syria and Yemen. Within days of Gen Jalali's remarks, Iranian and Saudi hackers were attacking websites in each other's countries in what Iranian media called "all-out cyberwar". On 25 May, a self-proclaimed hacker from Saudi Arabia calling himself "Da3s" apparently attacked the websites of Iran's Statistical Centre and Registration Office, defacing the homepages with a photo of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, who fought an eight-year war with Iran in the 1980s. Many Iranian media sources thought the hacker had misspelled his name and that the attack was the work of the Sunni jihadist group Islamic State - widely known in the Middle East by its Arabic acronym, "Daesh". The Saudi hacker said on Twitter - where he identified himself as Salman al-Harbi - that he was not a member of the militant group, and that Da3s was the correct spelling of his nickname. Since the Stuxnet computer worm hit Iran's nuclear facilities in 2010, the country has invested heavily in cyber capabilities and set up a team of trained hackers known as the Iranian Cyber-Army. Saudi Arabia has also stepped up its investment in cybersecurity in the past year in efforts spearheaded by its National Centre for Cyber-Security. A day after Da3s's attacks, a group calling itself "Iran Security Team" retaliated by targeting Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Statistics and King Abdulaziz University, defacing their websites with a jeering message of its own. Another team of Iranian hackers, calling themselves "Digital Boys Underground Team", hacked the Saudi Commerce Ministry's website. Over the next few days, a series of apparently tit-for-tat attacks saw more websites targeted, almost all of which were defaced or rendered inaccessible by attacks. Iran's police and cyber-police force, its judiciary, national postal service and culture ministry were all targeted. There is no evidence that official organisations in either state have been directly involved in the attacks. Iran's cyber-police chief, Gen Kamal Hadinafar, said the hackers' IP addresses had been traced back to Saudi Arabia but he did not accuse the Saudi authorities. As the attacks continued, the messages left by hackers became increasingly political and hostile. Tension between the two countries rose further when Saudi Arabia executed a prominent Shia cleric and opposition figure in January. Protesters in Tehran ransacked and set alight the Saudi embassy. Riyadh responded by severing all diplomatic ties with Iran. With relations at an all-time low, Tehran announced a few days ago that it would bar its citizens from attending this year's Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) after negotiations over safety broke down. Last year, more than 400 Iranian pilgrims had died in a stampede, leading to a war of words between Iranian and Saudi officials. After hacking the website of Iran's foreign ministry, a hacker group calling itself "Team Bad Dream" branded the

Summary: When Iran's top civil defence official said his country was preparing for major cyber-attacks from Saudi Arabia, perhaps even he did not think it would take such a short time for his warnings to become reality.


Sheikh Nawwaf al-Melhem, a leader of the officially-tolerated opposition People's Party, told the BBC he had brokered an agreement between the state and inmates at Hama Central Prison. The prison's power and water supplies had now been restored, he said. Interior Minister Mohammed Shaar said the situation at the prison was normal and denied there had been any disorder. Human rights and opposition activists say the prisoners took guards hostage about a week ago as they tried to halt the transfer of several inmates to another facility where they believed they might be executed. Security forces reportedly surrounded the jail and twice failed to retake it by force. Sheikh Nawwaf, who is also a prominent tribal leader in central Syria, said he travelled to Hama Prison on Saturday afternoon. The inmates' demands focused on ensuring fair and speedy trials for those detained without trial, and the release of those held without charge, he added. Sheikh Nawwaf said he had presented the demands to Mr Shaar and Justice Minister Najm Hamad al-Ahmed in Hama on Sunday. He said a deal to end the mutiny was reached later that day and included a promise from the government of fair trials for political detainees. Leading rights activist Mazen Darwish, who is in touch with the prisoners, confirmed that a verbal agreement had been reached, but did not give any details. Another activist told Reuters news agency the government had "agreed to most of our demands to release those political detainees held without charge". The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based group that monitors the conflict in Syria, reported that 26 detainees would be released soon. Later on Monday, the official Sana news agency reported that Mr Shaar and Mr Ahmed had visited the prison, and that they promised to "provide inmates' needs" and ensure that none were mistreated. But it also cited a statement by the interior minister as saying that the situation there was "normal, contrary to the lies and fabrications spread by malicious media outlets as part of their anti-Syria propaganda". The reported deal came after conditions worsened inside the prison, with authorities cutting electricity and water supplies, and inmates reporting a food shortage and serious medical cases. Security forces also tried to storm the cell block where the prisoners were holding out on Friday and Saturday, using tear gas, rubber bullets and live ammunition. The BBC was told that 15 prisoners were shot and wounded. The revolt was sparked by a move to transfer several detainees to the notorious Sednaya Prison near Damascus. "You can't imagine, even in your worst nightmare, what kind of torture [takes place] in Sednaya," a lawyer who is in contact with the prisoners told the BBC. One activist group, the Syrian Network for Human Rights, has documented the arrest and detention of more than 117,000 people in Syria since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011.

Summary: A deal is reported to have been reached to end a mutiny at a prison in Syria by hundreds of mostly political detainees.


The beavers were temporarily captured for testing from the River Otter in Devon, where they have been living wild for at least three years. Tests revealed they were free of bovine TB and a parasitic tapeworm. Devon Wildlife Trust said it was "delighted" the animals had returned to the river. DNA tests also confirmed the animals were Eurasian beavers, a species found in the UK before being hunted to extinction several hundred years ago, rather than North American beavers. Evidence emerged in 2014 they had produced young, known as kits, and ministers said they intended to trap the beavers, test them for disease and rehome them in captivity. The move was opposed by wildlife experts, who put forward plans for a five-year trial monitoring them in the wild, with the support of local people, and Natural England, who gave the scheme the go-ahead subject to the mammals being found clear of disease. The five beavers - two adult pairs and one kit - have been temporarily homed in captivity in Devon with access to water and artificial lodges. Devon Wildlife Trust's Peter Burgess said: "Today's re-release means that these beavers are back where they belong, in the wild on the River Otter. "We're delighted and relieved they've coped very well with a short period in captivity and have been given a clean bill of health. "They've tested free of serious infectious diseases and we're now looking forward to starting the next phase of our work: studying the long-term effects of these wild beavers on the local landscape, on local communities and local wildlife."

Summary: The only wild beavers in England have been released back into their river home after being given a clean bill of health.


The Dons twice led in the first half, through David Fitzpatrick's 20-yard strike and Tom Elliott's volley. But Compton levelled on both occasions, running through to slide home and curling in a free-kick from out wide. And the winger sealed his treble from the penalty spot after substitute Kevin Dawson was fouled by Callum Kennedy. The home side drop to 10th in the table after seeing their four-game winning run come to an end, while the Glovers are three points ahead of Dagenham & Redbridge, whose match was postponed. AFC Wimbledon manager Neal Ardley told BBC Radio London: Media playback is not supported on this device "You concede three goals at home, that's not good enough. "I knew this would be tough and I drummed it into the players. That's the sort of game I expected. "We struggled at times and we had too many players who probably didn't perform to the levels they have performed at. We're giving away really, really poor goals. "We ran out of ideas trying to chase the game in the last 20 minutes."

Summary: Jack Compton hit a hat-trick to earn a shock comeback win at AFC Wimbledon and take Yeovil Town three points clear of the League Two relegation zone.


About 10 "non-sponsored sleepovers" have been logged across the world by the Swedish furniture giant this year. In the past, people have hidden themselves in stores in the US, Canada, UK, Belgium, Netherlands, Japan, Australia and Poland. Most recently, two 14-year-old girls were caught after spending the night at the branch in Jonkoping in Sweden. The craze appears to have been started by two Belgian YouTubers in August. Their video, which has had 1.7 million views, documents their exploits - including jumping on beds - after they hid in a wardrobe for three hours to avoid detection. Unlike the 14-year-old girls, however, they were not caught and walked out after spending another few hours in the wardrobes waiting for the store to open. Ikea has decided not to formally charge the Jonkoping teenagers because of their young age, but two girls who were caught in Malmo, Sweden, in October were not so lucky. According to Sydsvenskan, the 15-year-olds had been too scared of setting off the alarm to leave the cupboards they were hiding in, and were reported to police for trespassing when they were discovered in the morning. An Ikea UK spokesperson told the BBC: "We appreciate that people are interested in Ikea and want to create fun experiences. However, the safety and security of our co-workers and customers is our highest priority and that's why we do not allow sleepovers in our stores." A Swedish spokesman added: "Maybe needless to say that the fun in it is overrated. A long night of sitting still, only to then risk getting into trouble with the law." Ikea owns and operates nearly 400 stores in almost 50 nations.

Summary: Ikea is urging teenagers to stop creeping into its stores and having illegal sleepovers.


The SNP leader was speaking as the leaders of Scotland's six largest parties clashed in a BBC Scotland debate ahead of the Holyrood election. Scottish Labour's Kezia Dugdale questioned why Ms Sturgeon had ruled out introducing a 50p rate next year. But Ruth Davidson of the Conservatives warned against making Scotland the highest taxed part of the UK. The panel also featured Willie Rennie of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, who spelled out his plans for pay for a "transformation" of education by raising all income tax bands by 1p - a policy his party shares with Scottish Labour. Patrick Harvie of the Scottish Greens called for the "outdated" council tax to be scrapped, while UKIP MEP David Coburn warned against "frightening people away" from Scotland by raising taxes. The debate, which was broadcast on BBC1 Scotland on Thursday evening, was held as the election campaign officially began ahead of the vote on 5 May. It was largely dominated by the key question of how best to use the Scottish Parliament's new powers over tax and welfare. The parliament will have the ability to set income tax rates and bands from 1 April next year, making the issue key in the run up to the election. Scottish Labour has challenged the SNP to raise the income tax rate for the 17,000 people in Scotland earning more than £150,000 from 45p to 50p - higher than elsewhere in the UK. But speaking in the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday, Ms Sturgeon said it would be "reckless" and "daft" to do so straight away. During the BBC Scotland debate, Ms Sturgeon again pointed to civil service analysis which suggested the move could actually leave Scotland £30m worse off. That was because some high earners would either move their money out of Scotland or find other ways of avoiding paying the tax. Ms Sturgeon, whose party will be looking to win a third consecutive term in government, told the studio audience she would attempt to find ways to mitigate that risk if she was re-elected as first minister. She added: "I think there should be a 50p top rate of tax, but you don't set tax rates if it is going to lose you money. "I don't want to turn around in two years time and say we have less money to spend on our health service". Ms Sturgeon said her party would not follow UK Chancellor George Osborne in raising the level at which people pay the 40p rate of tax from £43,000 to £45,000. And she said she was asking the 10% of highest earners to "shoulder a bit more of the burden" in order to invest in areas such as the health service, and to "protect against Tory austerity". Ms Dugdale responded by saying Scottish Labour wanted to put up taxes to increase investment in education in order to bring more high skilled jobs to Scotland. She added: "What I cannot believe is that Nicola Sturgeon, who has made her name as this great socialist, this great crusader against austerity, is standing here tonight

Summary: Nicola Sturgeon has reiterated that she wants to eventually see a 50p top rate of income tax in Scotland.


Firefighters were called to the Italian's detached Cheshire house when the explosive set alight his bathroom in the early hours of Saturday morning. Police said it was an accident and have decided not to take any action. The incident happened less than 48 hours before leaders City travel to neighbours Manchester United in a table-topping Premier League clash. Officers confirmed Balotelli, 21, was inside the property in Mottram St Andrew but it is believed he did not set off the firework. PC Shelley Williams, from Cheshire Police, told the Manchester Evening News newspaper: "At just before 1am on the morning of Saturday 22 October, Cheshire Police were called to a report of a house fire at a residential home on Oak Road, Mottram St Andrew near Macclesfield. "Police provided assistance to Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service in ensuring residents were accounted for and there was no danger to surrounding properties. "At this time the cause of the fire is being examined by fire investigators and police. However, it is not thought to be suspicious." Four firefighters arrived wearing breathing apparatus and used two hose reel water jets to douse the flames and a large fan was also used to clear smoke from the house. Balotelli has been involved in a number of controversial incidents since joining City in a reported £24m move from Inter Milan in August 2010. He was sent off against Premier League rivals West Brom in November before his manager Roberto Mancini labelled him "stupid" for seeing red again in a Europa League game against Dynamo Kiev. Only last week he was embroiled in a spat with Aston Villa fans after netting in City 's 4-1 win against their side. And City officials launched an investigation in March after the Italy international threw a dart towards a youth team player at the club's Carrington training ground.

Summary: Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli escaped unhurt when a firework was launched inside his home.


The Dutch-owned firm suspended deliveries last month after losing funding. It had been delivering about 3m letters every week in the three cities, in direct competition with Royal Mail. The private equity arm of Lloyds bank decided not to invest, triggering a review. Parent group PostNL said the firm had begun a consultation with affected staff "to minimise the impact of the decision". The company also pointed out it would continue to collect 80m items a week to be fed into the Royal Mail system for final delivery. A statement released by PostNL said: "Following the termination of the discussions on the proposed investment in Whistl UK to fund the further rollout of its current end-to-end (E2E) activities, we have assessed alternative scenarios for Whistl's E2E operations. "Further to this assessment, it has been decided to end Whistl's E2E operations. "Whistl remains committed to further developing its successful activities in the UK, including downstream access (DSA) service, door-drop media, packets and parcels and logistics." About 1,800 workers were employed by Whistl, with many on zero-hours contracts. Whistl is the second largest postal operator in the UK.

Summary: Postal business Whistl has confirmed it is ending its home delivery service in London, Liverpool and Manchester, putting up to 1,800 jobs at risk.


The singer was diagnosed last year after two tumours - including one the size of a golf ball - were found at the back of his tongue. "You can imagine to get rid of that with radiation - the inside of my head has been cooked pretty effectively," he told the BBC. He added although his voice was fine, it will take a while "to heal up". "I can sing, I can talk - I haven't gone out and done the equivalent of trying to run 100 metres in the same way I used to sing before," he told the BBC's Colin Paterson. "I only finished coming out of treatment two months ago and the doctor said it will take a year to be better. "We've beaten that by about six months so far, but I'm not going to push things to prove a point." Iron Maiden announced in May the band would not be touring or playing any shows until next year when Dickinson will be "back to full strength". The singer said since he was given the all clear by doctors, he was now "looking forward to having a bit of a knees up" because "it's a good excuse to celebrate a wonderful thing". "I've been through what a load of people go through every day," he said. "There's thousands of people every day in the UK and around the world who have treatment for this kind of thing. In that respect the only thing that's special about it is that I'm quite a well-known person. I've been very fortunate. I've had a really good bounce back." Talking about when he was first diagnosed with cancer, Dickinson said the only symptoms he had noticed was a lump in his neck - cause by the second, smaller tumour. "I went to the doc and he went 'oooh that's a bit weird'," he said. "He took a scan of it, had a look, had a poke around, and went 'you have head and neck cancer'. So I went 'that's a bit of a blow' - but you crack on and you get on with it." Dickinson was speaking at the Silver Clef Awards in London, where Iron Maiden were honoured for their outstanding contribution to UK music. Other winners at the event - in aid of charity Nordoff Robbins - included Rita Ora, who was named best female, best male Jake Bugg and James Bay who won best newcomer. Arctic Monkeys were also voted best live act of the year, Kasabian won best group, Gladys Knight collected the international award and Duran Duran were honoured with the lifetime achievement award.

Summary: Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson has said he is healing well since being treated for cancer earlier this year.


Two other boys, aged 15 and 16, were assaulted and required treatment. Police were called to reports of a large number of teenage boys involved in a disturbance at Auchinairn Gardens in Bishopbriggs at about 00:05. The 16-year-old who was seriously assaulted was treated at Glasgow Royal Infirmary and later released. Police are seeking witnesses to the incident. Det Sgt Jas Juttla said: "Inquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances surrounding this disturbance and I would appeal to any witnesses to come forward."

Summary: A 16-year-old boy has been seriously assaulted in what police said was a "large-scale disturbance" near Glasgow.


Sally Ann John, who disappeared from Swindon, aged 23, in 1995, had been working as a prostitute. On Thursday police arrested three men in their 50s on suspicion of her murder. "Every day is difficult without Sally Ann and I appreciate the understanding I have been shown," said Lesley John. In a statement released through Wiltshire Police, she said: "The police have been keeping me informed of progress with the investigation into Sally Ann's disappearance and the arrests yesterday give me hope. "I feel it is important that the police are able to continue to investigate without speculation from anyone and I hope that the community will support me in this." The trio, including two men from Swindon aged 50 and 52, and a 52-year-old from Chippenham, are still being held on suspicion of kidnap and murder. Sally Ann's disappearance was initially classified as a missing person but police launched a murder investigation in 2014. She was last seen on Aylesbury Street on the morning of Friday 8 September 1995. Her body has never been found.

Summary: The mother of a woman who went missing 20 years ago and is believed to have been murdered has said the recent arrests have given her hope.


The pontiff called for reconciliation as he addressed the Friendship Stadium in Cotonou, Benin's main city in the heartland of the Voodoo religion. The 84-year-old handed over a document showing how doctrine in the Roman Catholic church could heal rifts. The liturgy was delivered in at least 10 African languages and also broadcast in St Peter's Square, Vatican City. Many in the crowd dressed in colourful robes emblazoned with the Pope's image, and some of those who had not made it inside, kneeled and prayed in the car park. The Pontiff urged them "to be attentive to the cry of the poor, the weak and the outcast" as well as "those affected by Aids or other illnesses". His spiritual vision for Africa - contained in a formal treatise - has been called a "papal road map" for the continent. It applies doctrines like turning the other cheek and forgiveness to try to address the conflicts in Africa, such as those fuelled by ethnic divisions. By Virgile AhissouBBC Afrique, Cotonou Voodoo is recognised as an official religion in Benin, followed by some 40% of the population. People across West Africa, especially Togo, Ghana and Nigeria hold similar beliefs. Voodoo has none of the negative connotations it has in the West and many of those who are officially Christian or Muslim also incorporate some Voodoo elements into their beliefs, especially in times of crisis. But Voodoo is more than a belief system, it is a complete way of life, including culture, philosophy, language, art, dance, music and medicine. Voodoo priests ask the gods to intervene on behalf of ordinary people but local adherents stress that they have nothing to do with sorcery or black magic. People here do not stick needles into dolls to cause misfortune to their enemies, as you see in some Western films. It also calls for good governance and the abolition of the death penalty, and condemns abuse of women and children. The document was drawn up two years ago at a meeting in Rome by Catholic bishops from all over Africa. Witchcraft warning On Saturday, the second day of his visit to Benin, the Pope travelled to the city of Ouidah where he called for respect for traditional beliefs but also issued a warning against witchcraft. Voodoo is widely practised in Benin, where it has none of the negative connotations often associated with it in Western countries. The Pope's first public engagement on Friday was at the presidential palace in Cotonou, where he again issued an appeal for reconciliation in front of politicians, diplomats and Church figures. The rise of Catholicism in Africa is in sharp contrast to Europe, which has seen a steep fall in the number of active faithful.

Summary: Pope Benedict has said an open-air Mass for tens of thousands of people as he wrapped up his three-day African tour.


About 1,700 people were asked for their opinions on proposals which were unveiled in June. They involved new housing, a business hub and expansion of Liverpool FC's stadium, creating up to 700 jobs. Mayor Joe Anderson previously said it was "shameful" there had been years of delays to improving the area. The plans, drawn up by a consortium made up of Liverpool City Council, housing providers and Liverpool FC, would also see the creation of a wide avenue through Stanley Park ending in a new public square. About 250 new homes would be built, with 296 removed to make way, and a 100-bed hotel constructed. Feedback from residents during a six-week community engagement project will now be considered as more detailed plans are drawn up. They will be subject to consultation before planning applications are submitted next year. Mr Anderson said: "People have given us invaluable information about the entire range of regeneration ideas and concepts which we unveiled. "In the coming weeks we will use this information to refine our proposals and to undertake another listening and consultation exercise. "We believe the plans are exciting and will deliver a massive improvement in quality of life for many thousands of people and be of major benefit to the city, not just Anfield."

Summary: More than 80% of people living and working in the Anfield area of Liverpool are backing plans for a £260m regeneration, according to a survey.


20-year-old Shaw will have an operation on his return to Manchester, the club said. He was treated on the pitch for 10 minutes after Hector Moreno's tackle. "It was a very bad tackle. He had the oxygen mask on and was crying in the dressing room," said boss Louis van Gaal. Shaw has started all of United's eight games this season, as well as playing in England's European Championship qualifiers against San Marino and Switzerland. Yet with just nine months to go until Euro 2016, Shaw has faces a tough battle to get himself fit and ready in time to get into the England squad again. Less than an hour after suffering the injury, Shaw wrote on Twitter: "Thank you everyone for your messages, words can't describe how gutted I am, my road to recovery starts now, I will come back stronger." Memphis Depay scored the opener for Manchester United before Hector Moreno, who has apologised for his tackle on Luke Shaw, headed in an equaliser just before half-time. Luciano Narsingh then nodded home in the second half to secure victory for PSV Eindhoven.

Summary: Defender Luke Shaw broke his right leg in two places in Manchester United's 2-1 Champions League loss at PSV Eindhoven in the Netherlands.


Enda Kenny said that the draft bill would bring certainty to pregnant women and legal clarity to doctors He was speaking after the cabinet reached agreement on the proposed Protection of Life in Pregnancy Bill. It includes the credible threat of suicide as grounds for a termination. The taoiseach told a news conference on Wednesday that the issue had been "divisive and contentious" for more than 30 years. By Shane HarrisonBBC Ireland Correspondent Since 1983, when voters put an amendment into the constitution giving the mother and unborn child equal rights to life, doctors and medics have been operating in a grey area as to when a pregnancy can be terminated to save the mother's life as distinct from her health. Their difficulty was compounded by the 1992 Supreme Court ruling that the credible threat of suicide - though extremely rare - was grounds for a termination. The heads of the bill agreed last night should bring some clarity to those issues and should eventually become law given the size of the government's majority. But Enda Kenny knows that several members of his Fine Gael parliamentary party are prepared to lose the whip because of their anti-choice views. For them, in any pregnancy, there are two lives with equal rights at stake and they believe the suicide threat could eventually lead to abortion on demand. That scenario is rejected by the government and pro-choice activists. The right-to-choose campaigners say that 11 women leave the republic every day for British terminations and that situation is unlikely to change. "This bill restates the general prohibition on abortion in Ireland. The law on abortion in Ireland is not being changed," he said. "We are a compassionate people. This is about women; it is about saving lives, the life of the mother and the life of the unborn. "Our country will continue to be one of the safest places in the world for childbirth." The tanaiste (deputy prime minister), Eamon Gilmore, said there had been been a "pall of uncertainty" over the issue. "Women have a right to know that, if the worst happens, they will be able to have life-saving treatment. For years they have been denied that right," he said. Irish Health Minister James Reilly said for two decades governments had failed to deal with the issue. He said the bill would "put in place a certainty about how to deal with medical emergencies during pregnancy". The Irish government published the draft legislation on Tuesday night. It allows for terminations when there is a real and substantial threat to the life of the mother, including the threat of suicide. The draft bill states that terminations must be carried out in public obstetric units, except in emergencies, when a single medical practitioner can approve an abortion. In the case of a risk of loss of life from physical illness, two doctors must certify that there is a real and substantial risk to the mother's life. In the case of a risk of suicide, three doctors must jointly sanction an abortion - an obstetrician and a

Summary: A controversial abortion bill in the Republic of Ireland does not amount to a change in the law, the Irish prime minister has said.


Manchester City and Liverpool played out a pulsating 1-1 draw and Manchester United moved into fifth as a 3-1 win at Middlesbrough saw them move above Arsenal, who lost 3-1 at West Brom. Elsewhere, Bournemouth steered well clear of the drop thanks to a 2-0 victory over Swansea, while there were wins for Everton, Crystal Palace and Leicester City. Pick your XI from our list and share with your friends. Do you agree with my team of the week or would you go for a different team? Why not pick your very own team of the week from the shortlist selected by BBC Sport journalists and share it with your friends? Two of the best saves you will see from Kasper Schmeichel, and reminiscent of his father Peter Schmeichel at his best. The save from Andy Carroll's header was immense and the shot stop from the same player was even better. It could be argued that Schmeichel has been Leicester's most consistent player in what can only be described as a complicated season for the Foxes. However, what has been most impressive from the young keeper has been his honesty off the field around all the speculation involving Claudio Ranieri's departure. He fronted up for interviews and spoke with clarity and maturity about a very difficult situation, giving Leicester fans (and the public at large) some indication of what was happening behind the scenes. It was not an easy situation for the goalkeeper but he stood up to the challenge. The Dane now faces a different test and that is having to maintain the sort of performance he showed against an unlucky West Ham to ensure his team remain in the Premier League. They can flirt with the Champions League all they want, but their Premier League status is what really matters. A point Ranieri apparently failed to understand. Arguably against the tallest back four in the Premier League, Arsenal were in complete disarray when defending set-pieces and Craig Dawson took complete advantage. His two goals from almost identical set-pieces told the story. Arsenal did not, and could not, handle West Brom's aerial power. If ever there was a time to bring on Per Mertesacker and plonk him in the heart of the Arsenal back four then this was it. So what was the point of having the German defender on the bench if you were not going to use him when necessary? Was Arsene Wenger waiting for Laurent Koscielny or Shkodran Mustafi to pull a white handkerchief from out of their shirt sleeve and wave it to the bench to signal that they couldn't cope? No, of course not, that's the manager's job to see the faults in his team and correct them as quickly as possible. If you were ever going to bring on the big German, wasn't this the game? It was so obvious to me that no-one in the Arsenal back four fancied taking on West Brom's aerial threat. Which brings me to a much more worrying point for Wenger. It's one thing his team not having the

Summary: Chelsea maintained their 10-point lead at the top of the Premier League with a 2-1 win at Stoke, while Tottenham beat Southampton 2-1 at home to stay second.


His side's 20-16 victory ended a run of seven consecutive defeats for the Welsh region and seven wins in a row for Connacht. It was only the third home league match of the season for Blues, and Wilson hopes it can lead to improved form. "Hopefully it's given us a springboard to build some confidence," he said. "I'm relieved after the last seven minutes of that game, but pleased with a big effort form the players to beat the league leaders." Wilson believes the lack of home games has been a factor in the Blues' poor start to the Pro12 season. "It's only our third home game of the season and people forget that and we've had two wins at home and a loss to Glasgow. "We've talked about building that home record and if we are ever to give ourselves a chance to get where we want to be we have got to be winning at home." The Blues' Cardiff Arms Park ground was out of commission during the Rugby World Cup when it was used as a fanzone. It meant the Blues playing five of their opening seven Pro12 matches away from home - and losing all of them. The former Wales Under-20 coach says it is important for his players to bond around the victory. "I want the boys to have a beer and get that winning feeling back," he added. "Winning pulls the squad together. "It's not coming to work on a Monday on the back of another loss because that can get negative. "We can gel from this win - pull together and get close and enjoy it. When you get the win you cherish it and build on it."

Summary: Cardiff Blues' win over Pro12 leaders Connacht can act as a springboard for the rest of the season, according to head coach Danny Wilson.


It cost Charles Clarke his job as home secretary when back in 2006 it emerged that more than 1,000 foreign prisoners who should have been deported hadn't been. It's also been the subject of several select committee inquiries. And it continues to vex the Conservative MP for Kettering, Philip Hollobone. Throughout his time as an MP he has raised concerns about the number of foreigners in our prisons and our failure to send them back home to serve their sentences. Now a government minister not only praised him for his campaign, but admitted that he too shares Mr Hollobone's frustration. Mike Penning, minister for policing and criminal justice, told Parliament that while being briefed by officials he was "very surprised... about some of the things that are being done" and found it "mind bogglingly difficult to work out why, in many cases, things do not happen." He was replying to a debate called by Mr Hollobone who had come up with some new figures about the extent of the problem. There are, he told MPs, 10,837 foreign national offenders in our prisons which make up 13% of the prison population. The highest number of offenders (938) come from Poland, followed by Ireland (779) and Jamaica (737). The cost of looking after them, he said was "north of £300m" a year. "Such people need to serve their sentences in secure detention in prisons in their own country," he said. "At a time of severe constraints on public expenditure, that is far too large a bill to ask British taxpayers to pay." Mr Hollobone is particularly angry that many of these countries do not have prisoner transfer agreements with the UK. A compulsory agreement with Jamaica is still awaiting ratification by the Jamaican government, there is "only" a voluntary agreement with Pakistan and India and no agreement with Somalia or Bangladesh or several EU countries including Poland. "Poland, which is top of the list with almost 1,000 of its nationals in our prisons, has a specific derogation from accepting prisoner transfers under that EU agreement until the end of December 2016," said Mr Hollobone. "That is an absolute outrage. Poland should be securing those people in secure detention back in Poland, at the expense of Polish taxpayers." He is also calling for the British government to use "the huge and increasing international aid budget to build suitable prisons in countries that provide us with a large number of prisoners." He has discovered that in 2012 we gave £973m in aid to Jamaica, Pakistan, Nigeria, Somalia, India and Bangladesh who have a total of 2,900 of their citizens in British jails. "It costs this country more than £100m a year to incarcerate these people in our jails. "It would be a good idea to spend some of that £973m on building prisons in those six countries," he argued. Mr Penning admitted that he had been briefed by his officials "to ensure that I stuck to the line and read the speech, which I will not do". He went on to admit that he agreed with

Summary: The issue of foreign prisoners in England's jails has long been a contentious one.


The musician penned the haunting track, He Was Alone, after spending time at a refugee camp in southern Turkey on the Turkish/Syrian border. "We see this human disaster and we see numbers in millions and we're trying to make sense of it," he told the BBC. "We've forgotten how to understand the human story behind this." Three-year-old Syrian boy Kurdi made headlines around the world in September when he washed up on a Turkish beach. "What I came to realise is that it's the reductionism which has caused much of the problem," said Yusuf. "That we've forgotten how to understand the human story behind this and so it's that young soul that I visualised in my head when I wrote this this song." He said that, when the shocking pictures of Kurdi appeared in the press and on TV in 2015, "suddenly people woke up a bit for a while and said, 'Oh God, that looks like my little nephew or my little son', and so that came to my mind." But he also lamented any initial public galvanisation over the humanitarian crisis in the West, saying it had long since dissipated. "It's kind of, 'Well that's news today and tomorrow it's old - and people move on and politics gets involved. It is quite sad that this happens and it is the politics which I think interferes with it." Proceeds from the new record will go toward the #YouAreNotAlone campaign and Save The Children.

Summary: Singer-songwriter Yusuf, formerly known as Cat Stevens, has said the harrowing death of Syrian toddler Aylan Kurdi inspired his latest song.


The plans are part of reforms which would see the House of Commons reduce from 650 MPs to 600. A public consultation is now under way and final proposals will not be made until 2018. Under the proposals: England would change from 533 seats to 501, losing 33 constituencies but gaining one when the Isle of Wight is divided into two seats. Wales would lose 11 of its 40 seats, leaving it with 29. This is the biggest proportional change across the nations and reflects that fact that many of the Welsh constituencies have low numbers of registered voters. It would be the biggest single change to Wales' electoral map since the Boundary Commission was created in 1944. Scotland, which will announce detailed proposals next month, would change from 59 seats to 53. Northern Ireland has already unveiled its plans which see its constituencies reduce from 18 to 17. In England, all but 68 of the current 533 constituencies will see some change with 33 being abolished entirely. The Isle of Wight will become two constituencies meaning that the net reduction in seats is 32. Some of the changes are minor with single wards swapping constituency or boundaries simply becoming aligned with local authority divisions. The North West loses seven constituencies and 14 of the current 75 remain unchanged. The West Midlands loses six constituencies and seven remain unchanged. London loses five constituencies - so will end up with 68 rather than 73. Four constituencies remain unchanged. Jeremy Corbyn's seat Islington North is being divided between two new seats - Finsbury and Finsbury Park and Stoke Newington. Every single constituency in Wales will change and 11 will disappear under the proposals. Sixteen existing constituencies would be wholly contained within new ones. Full proposals have been published by the Boundary Commission for Wales. Each constituency in the UK should contain roughly the same number of eligible voters, the so-called "electoral quota" which is reached by dividing the total electorate of the UK by the number of required constituencies. After excluding the Isle of Wight and two Scottish island constituencies, the quota currently stands at 74,769, based on the electoral register as it stood on 1 December 2015. This cut-off date has caused some controversy because the switch to individual electoral registration meant that 770,000 names dropped off the list. However, the Electoral Commission has said that it is unclear how many of those were eligible voters and how many were just people who were no longer eligible through moving house or other reasons. The list also does not reflect those who registered to vote ahead of the EU referendum in June. Apart from the Scottish constituencies of Na h-Eileanan an Iar, Orkney & Shetland and Caithness, Sutherland & Easter Ross, all the smallest constituencies are in Wales. The proposed reforms will see Wales reduced from its current 40 seats to 29 with no constituency left unchanged. Full results service This map shows the areas with the biggest change in electorate between the 2010 and 2015 general elections. As it shows change in numbers

Summary: Detailed proposals for massive changes to parliamentary constituencies have been announced.


Fellow Briton James DeGale, 29, who was the mandatory challenger, will now fight for the vacant title. Froch, 37, wants to defend his WBA super-middleweight title this summer. Talks have taken place over a potential bout against Mexico's Julio Cesar Chavez Junior in Las Vegas, or two-weight world champion Bernard Hopkins, 50, in Froch's home city of Nottingham. Froch told BBC Radio 5 live a fight in Vegas or at Nottingham Forest's City Ground would be motivation to continue his career, although he has not ruled out retirement. "Something needs to happen soon because if it doesn't, I will be retiring," added the boxer, who has won 33 of his 35 fights. The four-time world champion said he felt frustrated at having to pull out of a fight with Chavez which was originally scheduled for March. "I know what it's like to wait for a shot and I didn't want to hold James up in fighting for a world title," he said. "James is a great fighter and I hope he can go out and win that title. Who knows... we may even meet later in the year." DeGale earned the right to face Froch after beating Brandon Gonzalez on the undercard of Froch's Wembley fight against George Groves in May 2014. Promoter Eddie Hearn is in negotiations for Degale to fight American Andre Dirrell for the IBF title and hopes the clash can take place on 25 April at London's O2 Arena. "I'm making history," said DeGale. "I'm going to be the first British Olympic gold medallist to win a world title."

Summary: Carl Froch has vacated his IBF super-middleweight belt as he recovers from an elbow injury.


They will be published by Esquire magazine on Friday and submitted to a scientific journal. Froome, 30, chose to share the data because he wants to prove that people can "trust" his achievements. The Briton was spat at by some spectators during this year's Tour following media claims of doping. Pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline performed the tests in its human performance laboratory. Froome, who won the Tour this year and in 2013, wanted to determine the characteristics which make him an exceptional athlete. Team Sky manager Sir Dave Brailsford said: "There are opportunities to do what we can to make the unbelievable believable. "I think the independence thing is a good thing. And why not? I can't see the negative in it. "There's a lot of talk about transparency these days, trying to have a leadership role. He's won the Tour twice, we should make the effort."

Summary: Britain's double Tour de France winner Chris Froome is to reveal the results of his independent physiological testing this week.


The Iraqi authorities hope the joint offensive will succeed in pushing IS out of the city, which would be a crushing defeat for the militants and leave them with very little territory in Iraq. But over the past week IS has been hitting back hard on the battlefield, and in various towns and cities. It is gradually revealing a battle plan which it has probably been working on since it seized control of Mosul in June 2014, knowing that this day of reckoning would eventually come. This is the latest tactic deployed by the militants since the offensive began, with a spate of attacks around the country starting last Friday in the strategic, Kurdish-controlled city of Kirkuk. At least 100 IS gunmen and suicide bombers, including some who had been members of sleeper cells living inside the city, tried to take control of key government and police buildings as well as attacking a power station being built there. As they entered Kirkuk, they called on Sunni Muslims to come out of their homes and fight with them and some heeded the call, according to one source who spoke to the BBC. At least 98 people were killed in the attack, most of them civilians. Sources say 2,000 Kurdish fighters (known as the Peshmerga) were pulled back from the Mosul offensive, to help bring the situation in Kirkuk back under control. The security forces' commander in Kirkuk, Halo Najat, told the BBC he believed the militants also planned to cut the main road from Baghdad to Kirkuk and the road from Kirkuk to Mosul to disrupt supply lines for Iraqi and Kurdish troops involved in the Mosul offensive. However, they were killed before they could do this. Since the assault on Kirkuk, there have been attacks on the town of Rutba in western Iraq and the Sinjar region to the west of Mosul. The sight of a cluster of cars or trucks speeding towards the front lines of the Mosul offensive has sparked panic among some Iraqi troops and Kurdish fighters, who know it is highly likely the vehicles are packed with explosives and driven by suicide bombers. This is a new tactic by IS designed to make it difficult for troops to stop all the vehicles reaching their positions. Small arms fire is not effective as the vehicles normally have armoured plating around them. Destroying them requires several anti-tank missiles to be fired rapidly. The alternative is to call for air strikes, if there is time. The militants try to conceal suicide vehicles before they are used. As the Iraqi army and Kurdish forces have advanced towards Mosul, regaining control of towns and villages which had been in the hands of IS, they have discovered networks of tunnels dug in many areas, a classic tactic for guerrilla warfare. They seem to be primarily defensive, designed to protect the militants from air strikes, artillery and other attacks. Inside the tunnels troops have found sleeping bags, food supplies, water, and even electricity cables so the users have light. The tunnels are often dug beneath

Summary: After more than a week of fighting, the Iraqi army and Kurdish forces are now getting close to the eastern outskirts of Mosul, the last city in Iraq still under the control of so-called Islamic State (IS).


Poverty is deep and widespread, but Bangladesh has in recent years reduced population growth and improved health and education. Formerly East Pakistan, Bangladesh came into being only in 1971, when the two parts of Pakistan split after a bitter war which drew in neighbouring India. Bangladesh spent 15 years under military rule and, although democracy was restored in 1990, the political scene remains volatile. Islamist extremism has been rising in the usually tolerant country. The low-lying country is vulnerable to flooding and cyclones, and stands to be badly affected by any rises in sea levels. Population 162 million Area 143,998 sq km (55,598 sq miles) Major language Bengali Major religion Islam, Hinduism Life expectancy 69 years (men), 70 years (women) Currency taka President: Abdul Hamid Abdul Hamid, formerly the Speaker of parliament, was elected unopposed to the ceremonial post in 2013. Prime minister: Sheikh Hasina Sheikh Hasina started a third term as prime minister in January 2014 after her Awami League won elections boycotted by the opposition amid an ongoing political crisis. Politics has long been dominated by bitter rivalry between two women: Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Both have been prime minister at various times since 1991. Their hostility stems in part from differences over who played a greater role in the country's independence struggle - Hasina's father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, or Khaleda Zia's husband, General Ziaur Rahman. They sank their differences when military ruler Hossain Mohammad Ershad was in power from 1982 to 1990, but they have been uncompromising rivals ever since. Four bloggers who criticised religious fundamentalism were murdered in 2015. One of them was reportedly on a hit-list of bloggers published by a Bangladeshi Islamist group at the end of 2014. Some key dates in the history of Bangladesh: 1947 - British colonial rule over India ends. A largely Muslim state comprising East and West Pakistan is established, either side of India. The two provinces are separated from each other by more than 1,500 km of Indian territory. 1971 - Independence after a nine-month war, with India backing the Bengali nationalists against Pakistan. 1973 - First parliamentary elections give the Awami League a landslide victory. 1975 - A military coup sees founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most of his family members killed, putting an end to civilian rule. 1979 - Second parliamentary elections brings former army chief Ziaur Rahman's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to power. 1981 - Ziaur Rahman assassinated during abortive military coup. 1982 - General Ershad assumes power in army coup. He suspends the constitution and political parties. 1991 - Fifth parliamentary elections, brings the BNP under Zia's widow, Khaleda Zia, back to power. The country returns to a parliamentary system of government.

Summary: Bangladesh is one of the world's most densely populated countries, with its people crammed into a delta of rivers that empties into the Bay of Bengal.


A group of about 20 caravans moved on to the recreation ground at Muscliffe last week and the council is taking legal steps to remove them. MP Tobias Ellwood, councillors and residents called on police to "act immediately". Dorset Police said it would only move travellers on in "exceptional circumstances". Bournemouth Borough Council said it had no traveller sites and there were no pitches available for travellers in the borough. Mr Ellwood, MP for Bournemouth East, said police had powers to go in "firm and fast" and "if there's six or more pitches, then they have the right, straight away, to tell these individuals to move on". Supt Mike Rogers said: "We will only move travellers on in absolute exceptional circumstances, in a last case scenario. "The basic situation would be one where the community... are denied, in entirety, the facilities of a particular area or a particular piece of land. "In this situation, this has not occurred." On Friday, Bournemouth Borough Council said it was aware of the unauthorised encampment and the site was being visited and monitored daily. On Monday it announced it had started legal proceedings to repossess the land. Bournemouth and other councils across Dorset began a consultation in 2011 to identify potential sites to accommodate Gypsies and travellers. The plan, required by government, will allocate permanent and transit sites for the next 15 years, is due to be adopted by the end of this year. A 2013 report found, while there was a need for 88 pitches across Bournemouth, Poole and Dorset, the total supply was eight. Bournemouth Borough Council leader John Beesley said: "The council's position remains the same as it has done for the past three years. "We do not believe that there are any suitable sites for a permanent transit facility within the Bournemouth boundary."

Summary: Police say they have no power to remove an illegal encampment in Bournemouth, despite calls for them to act.


In 2006, a court found them to be the leaders of a group of nine Australians arrested in Bali with more than 18lb (8.3kg) of heroin. Their families say they were rehabilitated while in prison, but Indonesian President Joko Widodo rejected their clemency pleas, saying there can be no compromise on the issue of death sentences for drug traffickers. He has described the drug trade as a scourge that kills up to 50 Indonesians each day, though correspondents say the statistics he used have been called into question. Indonesia's National Narcotics Agency puts the figure at 33 a day. Chan and Sukumaran recruited seven Australians to travel to Bali in 2005 to bring heroin back to Australia. Balinese police swooped on the group after a tip-off from Australian police. Four of the seven mules were arrested at Denpasar airport with heroin strapped to their bodies, while Sukumaran and three others were detained at a Kuta hotel in possession of heroin. Chan, arrested at the airport, was not carrying drugs. Convicting them in February 2006, the court said the pair were guilty of "illegally exporting first-class narcotics in an organised way". It said Chan and Sukumaran had provided money, airline tickets and hotels to the seven mules. "There are no mitigating factors. His statements throughout the trial were convoluted and he did not own up to his actions," Judge Arief Supratman said of Chan. Another judge, Gusti Lanang Dauh, said Sukumaran "showed no remorse". Multiple advocates for the pair said they became very different in jail to the young men sentenced to death by the court. Chan, 31, ran Bible study classes in Bali's Kerobokan jail, while Sukumaran, 33, became a keen artist. The son of restaurant owners, and a former part-time cook, Chan also ran a cooking school in Kerobokan prison. And he featured in a documentary seeking to educate secondary school students about the dangers of drug taking. The film includes a six-page letter written by Chan entitled "Dear Me: The Dangers of Drugs". In it he writes: "Dear Me, when you are older you will be in a Bali prison and you will be executed. This happened to you because you thought taking drugs was cool.... Your family and friends are heart broken... Underneath you are not a bad person." He also addresses young people in the film. "I have missed weddings, funerals, just the simple presence of my family. The hurt and pain that I don't just put onto myself, but my family, is agonising," he says. "My life is a perfect example of an absolute waste. That does not have to be [the case] for you." The director of the film, Malinda Rutter, met Chan in prison and said he was a transformed man. "He's funny, articulate, he is charismatic and has a very caring personality," Ms Rutter told News Limited. She said that his unhappy childhood led him into criminal activity. "He was a really troubled kid and he wanted to be tougher and bigger than the other kids," she said. Chan tells the documentary that he

Summary: Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran have been executed in Indonesia for drug-smuggling.


The state is the biggest in the US. The Forestry Division says the fires were started by ''human activity'' but it's unclear if they were accidental or deliberate. They say the specific cause is still under investigation. Many people have had to move out of their homes. Some houses have been ruined and huge areas of land have been destroyed. 40 miles north of Anchorage is where the Iditarod, Alaska's famed sled-dog race, typically kicks off. Listen to this man talking about the efforts to make sure the teams of dogs living and working there, stay safe. There are many separate fires in different areas. Water-scooping aircraft and helicopters with water buckets have joined hundreds of firefighters to try to stop the fires spreading further. There has been a late spring heat wave after record breaking temperatures in May. There have been lots of thunderstorms. Alaska Govenor Bill Walker says, '' It's pretty powerful. The fire itself is very powerful but the human response has been, I think, equally powerful to me. To fly over and see what's been burnt and what's been left boy, we are so sorry about the losses of structures that have taken place. I'm very pleased there has been no loss of life, I know we've lost some animals in the process and that's most unfortunate."

Summary: Teams of firefighters and special aircraft are working around the clock to try to put out huge wildfires that are raging across parts of Alaska.


Godden, 24, joined the Fleet from Scunthorpe in 2014 and scored 30 goals in National League South last season. "I dropped down to Ebbsfleet to rejuvenate and get regular football," said Godden, who has joined on a free. "The main aim was to bounce back and make a name for myself in the Football League and I thank Darren Sarll and Stevenage for this opportunity." Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.

Summary: Ebbsfleet striker Matt Godden has become Darren Sarll's first signing as full-time manager of Stevenage.


The first session for the event, which includes the Classic TT and Manx Grand Prix, opened with a speed-controlled lap for newcomers on the TT course. Saiger's opening lap of 117.18mph on his Greenall Racing Kawasaki was the quickest of the evening session. The second practice session will be held on Tuesday. Monday's scheduled second qualifying session has been cancelled due to rain and low-lying mist on the Mountain. Double Manx Grand Prix race winner Andrew Dudgeon was second fastest on the night with 115.39mph, with Australian David Johnson and Lee Johnston both averaging more than 114mph. Fifteen-time TT winner Michael Dunlop missed the session to compete in the Ulster Rally, whilst Kiwi Bruce Anstey topped the Lightweight timesheets. Thirty-eight Manx Grand Prix newcomers completed their compulsory speed-controlled lap under the guidance of experienced TT racers. Santon-based Michael Evans topped the qualifying board on his Senior Martin Bullock Motorsport Suzuki with 114.518mph. Meanwhile, Brendan Fargher (114.236) Tom Robinson (113.988) and Glenn Harrison (113.828) all posted competitive times on their 600 machines. Six newcomers slid off on their opening laps with Lief Williams and David McConnachy taken by ambulance to Noble's for check-ups. All have been reported as okay.

Summary: Austrian Horst Saiger has gone quickest in the opening practice session for the 2017 Festival of Motorcycling on Saturday.


Olivier Ntcham's first-half goal proved decisive as Kris Doolan headed over a glorious chance before Nir Bitton appeared to clip Miles Storey late on. "It's a foul anywhere else on the pitch," said Archibald. "It's a big call in the last minute against Celtic. "You don't often get them. We had one in midweek, we usually get one a year so we're not getting two in four days." Celtic dominated possession but lacked a finishing touch with Leigh Griffiths starting on the bench and Moussa Dembele still missing. Despite debuts for Conor Sammon and Miles Storey, signed from Hearts - on loan - and Aberdeen respectively, Thistle carried little threat until a late rally. "We had one good chance [Doolan's] and the late penalty shout," Archibald told BBC Scotland. "We worked ever so hard, it's not easy to contain them. "I know it's frustrating for our fans that we didn't come out and have a real go but you saw at the end there when we went with two strikers and they can quickly turn you over." Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers believes referee Andrew Dallas was in a good position to make the penalty call, and felt his side deserved to claim all three points. "I'd need to see it again," said Rodgers. "It looked from where I was that Nir (Bitton) got a toe to it, and he was the right side of the defender. "The pitch was maybe a bit slippy at that stage which is perhaps why the boy went down, but the ref was in a great position and he didn't give it. "We will play better, of course - we were outstanding in the week [the 5-0 win over Kilmarnock] - but tonight is a game we will look back on at the end of the season and hopefully say it was an important three points. "We could have been more comfortable in the game if we had put our chances away, but when it is still 1-0 you have to defend, and I thought the players were comfortable even though there was bit of pressure around our 18-yard box. "We didn't quite perform as well as I would want - our standards are much higher than we showed - but it shows the resilience and mentality in the team to get the result tonight. "That's maybe one of the games we would have drawn last season. So it's good the players can now see out games." Rodgers revealed he could sign a new striker before the Champions League play-off first-leg tie against Astana on Wednesday. Griffiths could only start as a substitute due to ongoing calf concerns, while French striker Dembele is out until September with a knee injury. The Celtic manager said: "James (Forrest) is doing great playing in there, Tom Rogic has played up there and done brilliant for us but the dynamic of the team is better when you have a number nine who can play the role. "It is really about the availability of a player. "We will look to bring in

Summary: Partick Thistle boss Alan Archibald felt his side should have been given a penalty in their 1-0 defeat by Celtic.


The tale, designed to while away a long car journey, turned into a best-seller. Yet Richard Adams, who has died aged 96, spent his first 52 years in relative anonymity. And when he did complete his book, he struggled to find anyone to publish it. Richard George Adams was born on 9 May 1920, in Newbury, Berkshire. He was the son of a country doctor and was brought up in the rolling countryside with views towards the real Watership Down, on the Hampshire border. One of his earliest memories was seeing a local man pushing a handcart full of dead rabbits down the street. "It made me realise, in an instant, that rabbits were things and that it was only in a baby's world that they were not." He suffered the fate of many middle-class boys of the period when he was sent to boarding school at the age of nine, where, by all accounts, he had a miserable time. He won a scholarship to Worcester College, Oxford, but his education was interrupted by World War Two and he served for five years in the Army before returning to his studies. He joined the civil service and spent part of his career managing the clean air programme designed to reduce pollution, especially that caused by the many coal fires still burning in British households. The event that changed his life occurred on a car journey with his family to see Twelfth Night at Stratford-upon-Avon. His bored children asked for a story and he began telling them a tale about a group of rabbits attempting to escape from their threatened warren. Adams was persuaded to write it all down, a process that took him more than two years, but he was, at first, unable to find a publisher. Many of his rejection letters complained that the book was too long and his characters did not fit the common perception of cuddly bunnies. His rabbits were described with biological realism; they defecated, had sex and engaged in violent battles for dominance. Eventually, in 1972, after 14 rejections, the publisher Rex Collings saw the potential and agreed to take it on with an initial print run of 2,500 copies. It was hailed as a children's classic, going on to sell more than 50 million copies, helped along by readings on BBC radio, and a dramatic performance in London's Regent's Park. Watership Down sold particularly well in the US where canny distributors placed it on the adult publishing list. On his promotional tours across the Atlantic, Adams played the American idea of the archetypical Englishman, wearing a bowler hat and insisting on English marmalade and mustard wherever he went. The book, and a subsequent animated film in 1978, became synonymous with rabbits and at least one enterprising butcher advertised: "You've read the book, you've seen the film, now eat the cast." Inevitably it attracted criticism from some highbrow reviewers. "There is something to be said for myxomatosis," was one caustic comment. The sudden flow of wealth enabled Adams to retire from the civil service and become

Summary: Once upon a time there was a middle-aged civil servant who told his children a story about rabbits.


It has estimated that Â£5bn will have been spent in Britain's shops over the weekend, as millions of people stocked up on food, drink and presents. The BRC says many shoppers waited until the last minute to pick up a bargain. Meanwhile, several retailers are reportedly bringing their online sales forward to Christmas Eve. High streets, shopping centres and supermarkets were reportedly packed with shoppers on the last few trading days before Christmas. Many retailers have already started discounting products in advance of the traditional "Boxing Day" sales. Saturday was expected to have been the busiest day of the year on the high street, with credit card company Visa Europe predicting more than 31 million transactions. Richard Dodd, head of media and campaigns at the BRC, said: "People have left it very late this year because of their reluctance to spend. They are holding out for bargains. "It's been a very busy weekend which will be crucial to delivering a Christmas that is acceptable, rather than exceptional," he added. Supermarket chain Sainsbury's said the hour between 12:00 and 13:00 GMT on Sunday was its busiest hour ever in terms of the number of customers served. The company said it expected to sell 225,000 bottles of champagne, 56 million mince pies, 52 million Brussels sprouts and 6,500 tonnes of potatoes over the festive period. Traders in London's West End had predicted that one million people would shop in the area during the three days leading to Christmas Eve, spending an estimated Â£100m. At Brent Cross shopping centre in north London, centre manager Tom Nathan said the weekend would be their busiest period because schools had broken up late and Christmas Day was on a Tuesday. Elsewhere, Bluewater shopping centre in Kent expected more than 275,000 shoppers to pass through in the days before Christmas Eve, while Birmingham's Bullring centre predicted it would welcome about 340,000 consumers. Bullring general manager Tim Walley said: "This Christmas we essentially have an extra weekend of trading in comparison to December 2011, so we're expecting a bumper weekend." But despite optimism in some quarters, the Local Government Association (LGA) said confidence on the high street remained low. Its annual Christmas survey found that 84% of town centre managers said confidence among shoppers had either not improved or worsened compared to Christmas 2011. A cold and wet start to the winter could also be taking its toll on the number of shoppers visiting town centres, the LGA concluded.

Summary: Christmas sales figures are likely to be "acceptable" rather than "exceptional", the British Retail Consortium (BRC) has predicted.