Media playback is not supported on this device Chris Kane struck six minutes from the end in Perth to claim a hard-fought 1-0 Scottish Premiership victory against Inverness Caledonian Thistle. It was only their second success in the last 12 league matches but was enough to move them on to 39 points - level with fourth-placed Ross County. "Overall we are having not too bad a season," said Wright. "I mentioned to the players that we are now just two points worse off than we were this time last season. "Hopefully we build on this now as I think we deserved the win." Saints, who have nine games to play, were made to wait for their win with David Wotherspoon having a penalty saved by Owain Fon Williams shortly before Kane's winner. "I thought we looked more likely to score but we have missed a few penalties and I feared the worst when that happened," Wright said. "But fair play to David as he didn't let that get to him and he had an excellent game and contributed in the build-up to the goal." Caley Thistle manager John Hughes reckons his team were responsible for their own downfall in a game they finished with just 10 men. Captain Gary Warren was sent off in the second half for two yellow cards, the second of which was for conceding the spot-kick. "I said to them at half-time, 'only one team can beat you here and that's yourself' and that's what happened," said Hughes. "There's no way we can feel sorry for ourselves. If we had kept 11 players on the park we might have got something. "I was a little bit disappointed that even with 10 men we couldn't see the match out and get a draw. "St Johnstone have thrown the kitchen sink at us and we nearly got the draw even if we lacked a bit of penetration up top. "We were trying to hang on a bit after Gary was sent off and he was just caught out a couple of times. "I really feel for the boys as they put their bodies on the line but it didn't work out after putting in so much effort. "Especially for the goalkeeper as Owain made a great save and I thought at that point it might be our night but it wasn't to be." The Highlanders remain ninth, five points clear of the relegation zone and three points off the top six. "It is very tight in the league at the moment and it is going to be nip and tuck right until the split," added Hughes. "We do still want to get into the top six and while we have had a hard programme there are no excuses. "There is still a lot to play for this season and I am hoping to have more numbers to pick from in the weeks ahead."

Summary: Tommy Wright insists St Johnstone are on course to equal last season's points tally of 57 despite a recent poor run.


The two parchment books dating from 1727 record the setting up of Burwash Charity School with a legacy of Â£100 from the Rev George Barnsley. Other subscribers were Thomas and Henry Pelham and local landowners and businessmen. The books, which have been in the hands of a local historian, are now being held at The Keep in Brighton. They cover 150 years up to 1877, recording some of the pupils' names, the teachers and the school accounts. Two of the first three teachers employed in 1727 were unable to write, and when asked to sign receipts for their wages, could only sign with a line or cross. "They probably weren't trained at all," said senior archivist Christopher Whittick. "This was a charity school for poor children." He said the books would be of interest to many different people. "If you are interested in education that's the most obvious but if you are interested in Burwash, or the families of Burwash, or if your ancestor was one of the children there is something there for you." The Keep at Falmer, which opened in 2013, holds the historical records of East Sussex Record Office, Brighton Royal Pavilion and Museums and the University of Sussex.

Summary: Documents thought to be the earliest school records in Sussex have been deposited in county archives.


The bank's monthly Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) is a survey of a panel of firms that tracks indicators such as new orders, employment and exports It had shown growth for 17 months in a row but in December it indicated a slight drop in economic output. The bank's chief economist said it is not clear if this is a blip or if it signals "the start of a significant deterioration in business conditions." Richard Ramsey said that Northern Ireland is "not unique in experiencing an economic slowdown". The equivalent PMI survey for the UK shows the weakest rate of growth in 19 months, while global output growth slipped to a 14-month low in December. Mr Ramsey said external economic conditions have a major bearing on Northern Ireland's economic performance, particularly for exporters. Economic stagnation in the Eurozone and the wider global economic slowdown has impacted upon the local manufacturing sector in particular. Northern Ireland's manufacturing firms reported their first decline in output, new orders and employment since mid-2013. The economist said it was "perhaps concerning" that Northern Ireland's slowdown has been more marked than the rest of the UK. However, he added that with Northern Ireland's two most important trading partners - the UK and the Republic of Ireland - are still posting strong rates of expansion and said this should drive growth in the local economy for some time to come.

Summary: The NI economy stalled in December, research by the Ulster Bank suggests.


Marc Jones claimed the force spends hundreds of thousands of pounds maintaining the building that should be spent on front-line police services. He said staff based at West Parade will be relocated to the Â£16m joint ambulance, fire and police station, due to be built at South Park. The City Centre Neighbourhood Policing Team will move to City Hall, he said. More stories from across Lincolnshire "We will definitely dispose of West Parade," Mr Jones told BBC Radio Lincolnshire. "We are spending hundreds of thousands of pounds just keeping the rain out of the leaky roof at the moment and that's money that should be spent on front-line police services. "Hopefully around March 2019 everybody will move from West Parade to the new station at South Park." The construction of the new joint ambulance, police and fire station is part of the county's Blue Light Collaboration programme. On Wednesday, Lincolnshire's Fire and Police services moved into a shared headquarters in Nettleham, in the first phase of the scheme.

Summary: Lincoln's West Parade police station will close by 2019, the Police and Crime Commissioner has said.


A demonstration was held at the weekend by animal rights campaigners in Derby over the planned facility near Foston. Midlands Pig Producers (MPP) said allegations its pigs would be kept in cramped conditions were untrue. The farm would hold 2,500 sows and 20,000 piglets and use biogas from the slurry to produce electricity. MPP has finished giving extra information to Derbyshire County Council as part of the planning process. It said it had addressed concerns about animal welfare and emissions. A company spokesman said: "We are astonished at some of the highly misleading claims and accusations. "Claims that pigs will be crammed into narrow crates are simply not true. "Our acclaimed 360 Farrowers were named because the sow can turn around 360 degrees at will. "We urge people to either contact us, or refer to the planning application so that they may ascertain the facts of the matter for themselves." About 100 animal rights protesters marched through Derby on Saturday claiming the large-scale development would be cruel to pigs. Critics said that the only time the pigs would see the outside world would be on their way to slaughter. It has also been claimed the site could put small-scale farmers in the area out of business. MPP said the farm would observe the highest welfare standards and pointed out there was already a unit in the UK containing 3,500 sows. South Derbyshire District Council handed over duties for dealing with the application to the county council because of its waste implications. If planning permission is given, construction on the farm will take about a year.

Summary: The company behind a proposed large-scale pig farm in Derbyshire has hit out at "misleading" claims surrounding its plans.


The Sky Blues had the better of a tight contest and came closest to finding a winner when a 25-yard strike by Jacob Murphy hit the post after the break. Gillingham had started brightly with Dominic Samuel wasting a good opening when he slipped at the vital moment. Gael Bigirimana also went close with a curling shot for City, who dropped to 11th, nine points off the play-offs. The Gills are now 10 points off top spot following Wigan's win over Shrewsbury, but they have a game in hand on the Latics and second-placed Burton. Covnetry City boss Tony Mowbray told BBC Coventry & Warwickshire: "I think late on we should have won that. It was alright, although for most of it was a pretty poor football match. "We had a gameplan and it nearly paid off. We nearly came away with a 1-0 victory but it wasn't to be."

Summary: Mid-table Coventry City earned a point from a drab match as Gillingham missed the chance to go third in League One.


His side have won only two of their first seven league games following promotion and lie in seventh place. "What I said at the start of the season, and I was very, very clear, was that we'd be highly competitive," the English manager told the media. "You guys said about challenging Celtic and challenging Aberdeen." Rangers are seven points behind reigning champions Celtic and three adrift of the Dons, who were last year's runners-up, after losing to both in recent weeks. "I said we'd be highly competitive and that won't change," he said of a side beaten 2-1 at Pittodrie in their last outing. "I think you saw on Sunday we were highly competitive, but we have to get the rewards for it. "What we have to do is to turn our domination and ball possession into rewards. "That's what we did against Queen of the South. Between the Ross County and Queens match, there was no difference between the displays, but in one game we were far more clinical than the other." Warburton, who has received a one-match touchline ban for comments made after the loss to Aberdeen, insists it is still early in the season to express disappointment at Rangers' league position. "You can say you are four points from the bottom or three points from second," he said ahead of Saturday's Glasgow derby against Partick Thistle. "At this stage of the season, in any league, you win two games and the whole picture changes. The same if you lose two."

Summary: Mark Warburton says his goal at the start of the season was simply to be "highly competitive" in the Scottish Premiership and Rangers have done that.


Media playback is not supported on this device The New Zealand-born flanker was part of the Scots' 36-20 win over Italy in Rome, their first Six Nations victory in two years. "Hopefully now that the pressure is off a bit, we can really express ourselves in our last two games against France and Ireland," Hardie said. "I think we can now look to end on a couple of really good wins." Hardie scored his side's second try as Vern Cotter's men put an end to a nine-match losing run in the Six Nations with victory in the Stadio Olimpico. He believes putting that losing streak behind them will give the squad a confidence boost. "We were never too far away," the Edinburgh back-row explained. "We were just one or two performances away from opening this Six Nations up. "We tried to stay positive. We knew we were close to a big display and it is great to get that pressure off our shoulders. "I'm really proud of how the boys did on Saturday. The defence was solid and the attack was really good too. I loved it. "We're good enough to win these next two games and really push on. "If we do that I will be really happy with how we are progressing as a team." Greig Laidlaw delivered a man of the match performance in Rome, contributing 21 points with the boot. Media playback is not supported on this device Hardie says it was not only Laidlaw's near-flawless goal-kicking that helped Scotland to victory, but the captain's leadership when the Italians applied the pressure to move within six points in the second-half. "Tempers flared a bit in the last 10 minutes but that's rugby. "It was a heated game and Italy were at home - they were always going to make it hard. "But we came and weathered the storm and ended up running away with it. "Greig's leadership in those final stages was so important. I came into this environment last year and already I've built up so much respect for the guy. "He has been so good to me and I've really enjoyed playing under him. I listen to everything he says."

Summary: John Hardie says Scotland can finish off their Six Nations campaign with victories over France and Ireland.


Mark Donnelly, 23, from Greencastle, denies killing the 19-year-old from Tydavnet, County Monaghan in 2012. Mr McGovern died after being punched during a night out in Omagh, County Tyrone, on New Year's Eve in 2012. Jurors will return to Dungannon Crown Court on Friday to resume their deliberations. In his closing speech to the jury, a prosecution lawyer said Mr Donnelly was either a "cowardly liar" or the "unluckiest man alive". However, a defence lawyer said evidence from a key witness identifying Mr Donnelly as the attacker was "a catalogue of errors" and "mistaken in a number of key respects". The judge told jurors the key issue was the question: "Did the defendant strike the blow in the Weigh Inn car park?" The prosecution lawyer said Mr McGovern, despite "extreme provocationâ€¦ did his best to defuse a volatile situation". He said Mr Donnelly was "a man who would do anything to save his own skin" and had attempted to "hoodwink" and "pull the wool" over the eyes of the jury. He claimed the defendant was responsible for both a "cowardly punch" and a "cowardly denial" and he was "not brave enough to admit" what he had done. The prosecutor said if Mr Donnelly was innocent, he was a "very unlucky man" in being identified by a witness, and being filmed on CCTV in the area seconds before and after the assault. He told the jury: "Because the (CCTV) camera doesn't show him hitting Jason McGovern he's thinking he's going to fool you into thinking he didn't throw the punch. It's just a charade." He added: "You may think he is the unluckiest man alive or he is guilty. I say there is no doubt about that. Mark Donnelly is guilty of manslaughter. Mark Donnelly is guilty of punching Jason McGovern." In summing up the defence case, a lawyer told the jury that there were "too many problems with the evidence of (the key prosecution witness) for you to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt of the guilt of this young man". He said the witness had admitted that she could have made a mistake and pointed to the evidence in the witness box of Mr Donnelly, who had said: "I say that she is mistaken. I did not strike anyone down by the Weigh Inn car park." He said even if the jury took the view that Mr Donnelly had been lying, the jury "must not assume for that reason the defendant is guilty of the offence of manslaughter". The judge told the jury that the death of Mr McGovern was "very emotive", but they must approach their task "quite clinically".

Summary: The jury in the trial of a man accused of the manslaughter of Jason McGovern has been sent home for the day after hearing lawyers sum up their cases.


It is under suspicion of meddling in the democratic process, of hacking computer systems and spreading disinformation with the alleged aim of helping a pro-Moscow candidate win the vote. We heard such accusations this year in France and last year in America. Indeed, the US intelligence community has already concluded that Russia ran a campaign to influence the presidential election. So, what about Britain's general election? Is the UK vote in the crosshairs of the Kremlin? Has it already been targeted by Russia's foreign intelligence service? Last month UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said there was a "realistic possibility" Russia might try to meddle. Has it? Does Moscow really care who wins the keys to Number 10? I suspect not. In the run-up to the American and French presidential elections, it was clear that the Kremlin did have preferences. The Russian state media was full of praise for candidates Donald Trump and Marine Le Pen, and scathing of candidates Hillary Clinton and Emmanuel Macron. Hardly surprising when you consider that both Mr Trump and Ms Le Pen promoted closer ties with Moscow. But ahead of Britain's election, the Russian media hasn't come down on one side or the other. Indeed, there hasn't been much coverage at all of the campaign. So why not? "In Russia we don't see Great Britain as a fully independent country," says political analyst Sergei Markov, who is close to the Kremlin. "We see it as part of America: a very junior, junior partner of Washington." In other words, in the eyes of the Kremlin, Britain is irrelevant. Ouch, that hurts. But that is only part of the story. Crucially, a UK vote has already given Russia the result it wanted - last year, when Britain voted to leave the EU. Ahead of the UK referendum, the Kremlin officially remained neutral. But state media here were clearly backing Brexit. Britain leaving was viewed as a body blow to the EU; that, in turn, was seen as a good thing for Russia, which has been on the receiving end of EU sanctions. Welcome to the world of the zero-sum game. But away from the corridors of power here, are ordinary Russians interested in the UK election? Do they even know that Britain is going to the polls? To find out I drove to the town of Reutov on the edge of Moscow. It's twinned with Mansfield in Nottinghamshire. There I chatted to the ballet teacher at the local youth centre, to a workman on the street, to young mums pushing their prams round the statue of Vladimir Lenin - founder of the Soviet state - and to pensioners on park benches. Everyone I spoke to knew a great deal about Britain. "It's the home of football", Ilya told me. "Big Benâ€¦ the Queenâ€¦ Five o'clock Tea," said Ekaterina. But of the people I spoke to, no-one knew that the UK was holding an election. Indeed, no-one could tell me the name of our current prime minister. Perhaps that isn't so surprising when you consider that since the turn of

Summary: These days, it feels like every time there is an election in Europe - or in America - Russia is cast in the role of bad guy.


Unions say there have been 20,000 job losses in the country since a Supreme Court ruling on 17 July which made it easier for companies to sack employees. The ruling allows employers to fire any worker without any benefits as long as they are given three months' notice. The Zimbabwe Federation of Trade Unions has described the ruling as "madness". ZBC will close a TV channel, according to the Zimbabwean news site the Daily News. In addition, the offices of the state radio station Voice of Zimbabwe have also closed, reports Voice of America. Last week the Daily News reported that state-owned newspapers had fired hundreds of workers. This, it added, was despite the state-owned media "leading a crusade against scores of other companies, including media organizations", that have laid off staff. Local media reported that over the weekend heavily armed police blocked the country's main workers' union from protesting against the recent wave of job losses.

Summary: The state-owned Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) has fired almost 300 employees, including managers and journalists, state-run media report.


This could include fining motorists who stop on a box junction or those who drive in bus lanes. Currently only police officers can punish motorists if a vehicle is moving. The Welsh government won the right to grant councils those extra powers last March and Cardiff is now making a bid. Local authority traffic wardens are currently only able to issue penalty charge notices (PCNs) for parking offences. Cardiff council's cabinet has given the authority the green light to make a request for the additional powers, which it says would improve traffic flow and ease congestion. It is expected that income generated from the scheme would help pay for the service and the staff who run it. A Cardiff council spokesman told the BBC's Welsh language news website Newyddion Ar-lein: "The intention of all of these measures is to ensure drivers drive responsibly and in accordance with the basic principles of the highway code. "If the Welsh government approves, specific emphasis will be placed on enforcement of bus lanes to ensure that public transport runs efficiently and is an attractive option for commuters. "Enforcement of yellow box junctions is also necessary to avoid grid lock which disrupts traffic flow and to ease the frustration caused to the majority of drivers who abide by the law." A Welsh government spokesman said it had yet to receive the council's request, but was aware of it. The process of considering the request could take up to four months, the spokesman added. Many councils in London use traffic cameras to enforce the rules. One camera on a yellow box junction in Bagley's Lane in Fulham caught 29,000 drivers last year making over Â£2m in fines for Hammersmith and Fulham council. Cardiff council said it was unsure if it would ask for powers to use cameras to enforce the rules. If granted, the authority could start using the new powers towards the end of the summer.

Summary: Traffic wardens in Cardiff could become the first outside London to get powers to issue tickets for moving traffic offences.


Jones, who led by three strokes heading into Sunday, dropped three shots in his first two holes and triple-bogeyed the ninth but rallied to end eight under. American Spieth, who missed an eagle putt on the last to force a play-off, carded a 71 to finish joint second. He was joined on seven under by Scott, who shot a superb six-under 65. The round of the day, though, came from another Australian, Rod Pampling, who made a 60-foot eagle putt on the 18th green for a course record 10-under 61 to earn him a fourth-place finish on six-under. This bettered the 63 Spieth carded in the final round to win the title last year. Despite the leader's poor start and two birdies of his own on the front nine, 22-year-old Spieth was unable to capitalise before Jones' two birdies on the back nine gave him the win. "That was very stressful, it wasn't comfortable out there for me," said Jones, whose victory earns him a place in next July's Open Championship at Royal Troon. "I've watched the Australian Open for many years and just to have my name on that trophy is something I'll never forget." Joining Jones at next year's 145th British Open Championship will be fellow Australians Pampling and Nick Cullen. Cullen shot a 68 in his final round to share fifth place and earn the third qualifying place. England's Lee Westwood carded his best round of the tournament - a two-under 69 - to finish tied for 18th on two under, while a 76 from Northern Ireland's Darren Clarke left him joint 30th on four over.

Summary: Matt Jones held off a challenge from world number one Jordan Spieth and fellow Australian Adam Scott to win the Australian Open by a shot.


Public policy researcher Dr Mark Lang said his study in Pontypool, Torfaen, showed real diversity within a single town. What this type of "deep place" research does is look in fine detail at different neighbourhoods and avoid generalisations with both stereotypes and statistics. He believes looking at economic data on too-wide a scale can miss entrenched pockets of poverty within communities, which on the face of it look to be doing well. "Pontypool is a real mixture of people clearly with little money and people who are relatively affluent, living in close proximity," he said. "Many of those who don't have a great deal of resources use the town centre while those who do have, tend by and large not to come here. As a focus of community attention, I think that's a shame." Dr Lang, who has published similar work about Tredegar, is hoping the approach can help create jobs and revitalise town centres. Pontypool is a town with a population of about 23,400, six miles south of the Blaenavon world heritage site. Its iron forging dates back to Tudor times and the "Pontypool front row" were Wales rugby stars the 1970s. Nearly 3,700 people live on the Trevethin estate, over the Afon Lwyd river, which stands on a hill overlooking the town centre, a mile away. More than half of those are in a part of the estate - classified as "Trevethin 1" - which all figures point to as being the poorest area. It also has the densest population and the largest proportion (28.3%) of under-15s. POCKETS OF POVERTY Source: All Around Us - The Pontypool Deep Place Study When looking at relative economic deprivation, Wales is split up into 1,900 different districts. "Trevethin 1" is classed as 35th most deprived in this often-used index. Three other districts in Pontypool come into the top 20% most deprived in Wales. Trevethin also scores 22nd worst in Wales when it comes to health factors. A total of 60% of housing in Trevethin is rented. There is plenty of visible work going on to improve housing by Bron Afon, the social enterprise which has rented homes in place of the council for the past eight years. Torfaen council, with £8.2m from the Welsh Government's Vibrant and Viable places programme, has earmarked money for housing improvements and regenerating town centre properties. This report points to the link between poverty and rent arrears - and there are 5,475 homes owing money in Trevethin. At the heart of the report is the argument that local solutions are needed to tackle these very local problems. This means "far greater empowerment" of people and local communities. VIEWS FROM THE MARKET STALLS A key part of the report looked at Pontypool town centre, which "needs to be designed as the heart of the community" and its future prosperity will depend on local people's continued relationship with it. This includes a "concerted effort" to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour to make it a place to go in the evenings. Pontypool Indoor Market dates back more than 120 years but

Summary: Sometimes living in Wales it is too easy to look around and conclude there are simply "rich" areas and "poor" areas.


The Speaker announced the clerks, who advise him on conduct and constitutional issues, would also no longer wear wing collars and white tie. Conservative Sir Gerald Howarth said the tradition of wearing wigs went back "several centuries". But Mr Bercow said there was an even older tradition of not wearing wigs. He announced the changes on Monday, but added that clerks would keep part of their garb - black gowns, to signify they are experts on procedure and constitutional issues. Mr Bercow said changes to clothing and headgear represented the "overwhelming view" of clerks themselves. They would "convey to the public a marginally less stuffy and forbidding image of this chamber at work". But Sir Gerald, MP for Aldershot, raised a point of order, telling the Commons: "I was surprised by [the] statement, which had the sort of appearance of an executive order." He added that traditional clerks' dress was "key to the dignity of the House" and had been so "for several centuries", adding that MPs "should discuss this". Mr Bercow replied that it was "a matter that can properly be decided by the Speaker", adding that the House of Commons Commission had approved the changes, which clerks themselves had suggested. He said that, if one went back more than a "couple of hundred years", the situation was different from that presented by Sir Gerald, and that "several centuries ago", clerks "did not wear wigs". Mr Bercow has refrained from wearing a wig himself in the Commons since becoming Speaker in 2009, as did his predecessors Michael Martin and Betty Boothroyd.

Summary: John Bercow has defended the decision that Commons clerks will no longer have to wear wigs, after one MP likened the move to an "executive order".


The 26-year-old Scottish forward was sold to the Ibrox club by Saints for £500,000 in February 2016. But he found starts hard to come by despite 24 appearances last season and has been sent back to Perth on loan. "He knows when I need a kick up the backside or an arm round the shoulder," O'Halloran said of Wright. O'Halloran joined Saints after leaving Bolton Wanderers in January 2014 and, after 16 goals in 90 appearances, was persuaded to move down a division to join Mark Warburton's Rangers. He scored three goals as he helped the Glasgow side win the Championship title, but he failed to find the net last season and fell out of favour under new manager Pedro Caixinha. "I came here a few years ago from Bolton and, at the time, it felt right when I spoke to the manager and again it feels right," said O'Halloran of his six-month loan. "He knows me as a person and how to get the best out of me as a player and I trust him and I think he trusts me, which is important. "You also see how he is with the boys, it is such a tight group, a family club and we work hard for each other. "The manager, the staff and the boys were a big part in coming back and I am just looking forward to it." O'Halloran came on at half-time in Saturday's friendly against East Fife and is hoping to start in this weekend's Premiership opener against Kilmarnock. "The last game I started was in January," he added. "I haven't done a lot of training sessions and pre-season has been on my own as well. "It was good to get training with the boys again and get some minutes on the pitch on Saturday, which was important as well going into the season."

Summary: Michael O'Halloran believes St Johnstone manager Tommy Wright is the best man to help him rediscover the form that led to a transfer to Rangers.


RWE Npower is planning to bring down the remains of the boiler house at the Didcot A plant which partly collapsed in February, killing four men. Three bodies are yet to be recovered. The energy company said using remote-operated vehicles (ROVs) was preferable "since it limits the risk to life". It called the conditions caused by the collapse "unprecedented at this scale in the UK". A spokesman said the "traditional demolition method, which would require people to go underneath the structure to place demolition charges to bring down the building" would risk lives "because the building cannot be proven to be stable". "The ROV option is the preferred route, with the traditional method being prepared as a back-up, should the robotic option not prove reliable." Plans are being finalised and are due to be submitted to the Health and Safety Executive. The spokesman added: "We understand that the time taken to recover the families' loved ones is deeply upsetting... our priority remains the recovery of the missing men and we are doing everything that is within our power to ensure it is progressed as fast and safely as possible." Work to recover the men's bodies had been halted because contractors have reached a 50m (164 ft) exclusion zone. In Oxfordshire County Council cabinet papers published earlier the cost to Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service of attending the incident and subsequent search and recovery operations stands at Â£300,000. The length of time to recover Christopher Huxtable, 34, from Swansea, Ken Cresswell, 57, and John Shaw, 61, both from Rotherham, has previously been criticised by some family members. John Howley, the uncle of Mr Cresswell, described it as "diabolical". Labour MP for Rotherham Sarah Champion also branded it a "national scandal".

Summary: Robots should be used to place demolition charges at the base of the collapsed Didcot power station because using people "carries inherent risks to life", the site owner has said.


William Carlin, 52, did not return to Castle Huntly prison near Dundee after a period of temporary release. He was last seen near the city's King's Cross Hospital at about 09:00 on 5 November. He has connections in Ayrshire and Newcastle, and Northumbria Police are helping with the search. Carlin was jailed in 2013 after being caught with a security box containing Â£40,000 from a Sainsbury's in Prestwick. He is described as 5ft 11in, with a slim build, short brown or grey hair and blue-grey eyes. Police Scotland have warned members of the public not to approach him.

Summary: Police in Scotland and England are searching for a convicted armed robber who has been missing from prison for nearly two weeks.


One hundred tracks by artists including Ben Howard, Kendrick Lamar and SBTRKT have been shortlisted with voting open until 9pm on 27 November. Lana Del Rey, You Me At Six and Eminem also feature on the list. Zane will count down from 100 to one between 1 to 4 December. The 1975, whose track Chocolate topped the poll in 2013, also appear in this year's list with their track Medicine. Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High? by Arctic Monkeys and Shadow Moses by Bring Me the Horizon completed the top three last year. Ed Sheeran's Sing and Stay With Me by Sam Smith, which both went to number one in the UK, also appear on this year's shortlist. Gecko (Overdrive) by Oliver Heldens and Becky Hill and Clean Bandit's Rather Be, which also topped the chart, feature in this year's top 100 too. Mercury Prize nominees Bombay Bicycle Club, FKA Twigs, Royal Blood, Jungle and Nick Mulvey all appear as well. Voting for the 100 Hottest Records is limited to one per person, full terms and conditions can be found on the Radio 1 website. Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube

Summary: Throughout 2014 Zane Lowe has picked his hottest records in the world, and now it's time for you to pick your favourite.


Natural Energy Wyre Ltd said the Duchy of Lancaster has given it an exclusivity deal to create the UK's first tidal energy power station. If approved, it will be built on the Wyre estuary, which belongs to the Queen in her role as Duke of Lancaster. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds said it had concerns about how the scheme could affect wildlife. Natural Energy Wyre Ltd said it now needed to find £10m to proceed with a formal planning application. It said the power station would support the government's renewal energy objectives, create thousands of jobs and attract 600,000 visitors to the region, as well as help with flood defences. A barrage, which would span the mouth of the river with six turbines, would take three years to build, the firm said. It will produce renewable energy four times a day, on the turn of the tide, for more than 100 years, Natural Energy Wyre Ltd added. Graeme Chalk, head of project management for the Duchy of Lancaster, said the tidal barrage would "provide a source of green and affordable energy for many years to come". Tim Melling, RSPB senior conservation officer, said: "Climate change is the biggest threat to the natural environment so it's vital we invest more in renewable energy. But tidal barrages are not the right option and this proposed scheme on the Wyre would cause major damage to the estuary. "A barrage would knock the tidal system out of sync and destroy this prime feeding habitat by reducing the size of the feeding areas and making them available for less time."

Summary: Plans to build a £200m tidal barrage in Lancashire that will power tens of thousands of homes have been announced.


Angela Reakes, 24, of the ACT Meteors in the Women's National Cricket League, was guilty of breaching Cricket Australia's (CA) anti-corruption code. She pleaded guilty to placing five bets on the Australia v New Zealand final man-of-the-match betting market. CA integrity unit chief Iain Roy said: "Angela knows she made a bad mistake." He added: "All elite cricketers are reminded regularly that betting on any form of cricket is strictly prohibited." Australia won the World Cup final in March, beating New Zealand, with James Faulkner named man-of-the-match.

Summary: An Australian cricketer has received a two-year suspended sentence for bets totalling Aus $9 (£4.36) during the 2015 Cricket World Cup.


His 110 means he has scored 323 runs in a week after an unbeaten 93 against Glamorgan in the One-Day Cup and 120 not out against Kent in the T20 Blast. Tim Murtagh (2-85) reduced Surrey to 23-2 inside the first six overs, before Rory Burns (88) aided the recovery. Burns and Roy put on a 118-run fourth wicket stand as Surrey closed on 384-8. Roy's century was a fine retort against Division One leaders Middlesex, who dismissed the England limited-overs opener for a first-ball duck in the One-Day Cup on Tuesday. After paceman Murtagh removed both Zafar Ansari and Dominic Sibley early on, Surrey's slump continued as James Franklin trapped Aaron Finch (37) to leave them 70-3. Burns helped turn their fortunes around as he hit 15 fours in his 127-ball knock as the visitors seized the initiative. Roy hit 16 fours himself as Surrey edged close to the 400 mark by the end of the first day's play, with Ben Foakes unbeaten on 53.

Summary: Jason Roy continued his fine form with a second century in six days as Surrey made a strong start with the bat against Middlesex at Lord's.


Locals fear it will damage the environment and pollute their water sources. La Colosa, in Central Colombia, has the potential to become South America's largest gold mine. Mr Arce said the town's decision could not be applied retroactively. The minister added that the South African mining giant AngloGold Ashanti had already been issued an exploration licence, which would retain its validity. Mr Arce also said that while the land was under the control of local authorities, any subterranean riches were under the control of the national government. The minister said that if AngloGold Ashanti was awarded the environmental licence it needs to proceed with the project, the courts or Colombia's congress would have to decide whether the local or national authorities prevailed. Mr Arce insisted that the referendum vote would not affect foreign investment in Colombia's mining sector. "For the first time in 20 years we will have three major projects in execution phase," he told RCN. He said campaigners had misinformed voters. "We're not talking about an open-air mine here," he said. "Nor are there a hundred rivers at risk." Campaigners were angered by Mr Arce's comments. The opposition to President Juan Manuel Santos also criticised the government's stance on the issue. "Santos and the Mining Minister agreed to disregard Cajamarca's decision on La Colosa. Democratic mobilisation will also defeat them," tweeted opposition Senator and presidential hopeful Jorge Robledo. Only 76 residents of Cajamarca, in the central province of Tolima, voted in favour of the mining project in Sunday's referendum, while more than 6,100 of the town's 19,000 inhabitants voted against. Several other Colombian cities and towns are planning to hold similar votes to try to block mining projects in their area. Correction 29 March 2017: This story has been amended to clarify the government's position on the mining ban.

Summary: Colombia's Mining Minister German Arce has questioned whether the result of a referendum held in the town of Cajamarca, where 98% of residents voted against a major gold mining project, will prevail.


A letter from Petitions Committee chairman William Powell to the education minister said there was widespread confusion over the policy. The committee is investigating after thousands of complaints from parents. It comes as figures show the number of fines varies between councils. A BBC Wales Freedom of Information request found Cardiff council issued 370 fixed penalty notices between January and May. During the same period, 10 other councils, including Monmouthshire which has not yet introduced fines, did not issue any. In his letter to Huw Lewis, Mr Powell said the committee was concerned many councils were incorrectly advising schools only to authorise term-time holidays in "exceptional" circumstances, with some asking head teachers not to authorise any at all. Speaking on the issue, before the letter, Mr Powell said: "The relationship between parents and schools is absolutely crucial and I think it's potentially very damaging to have this rather aggressive approach being brought in. "We need to have a degree more common sense." The Welsh government has said parents do not have an "automatic right to withdraw pupils from school for a holiday and they must apply for permission in advance". But it does give schools "discretionary power to authorise up to 10 days absence during a school year for family holidays during term time". Two campaign groups have drawn up petitions calling for children to be allowed term-time holidays. The largest petition, with 18,000 signatures, is from a group called Let Children in Wales Have a Family Holiday During Term-Time. The other petition has been drawn up by Pembrokeshire Parents Want a Say. Campaigner Bethany Walpole-Wroe, from Llanybydder, Carmarthenshire, said many families could not afford to go away during school holidays. "The prices more than double usually in July and August, so they either can't afford them or they can't get time off due to various circumstances," she said. But the Welsh government said school attendance should come first. Education Minister Huw Lewis said: "Prolonged absence from school really does damage the attainment prospects of young people and that's why I, and I think most parents, would put learning as a priority." Head teachers' union National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) Cymru said while everything possible should be done to ensure children have the least amount of time out of school, it would not encourage its members to fine parents. Campaigners will find out in the new year if the committee intends taking any action.

Summary: Some parents who have been fined for taking holidays in term-time may have been dealt with unfairly and unlawfully, an assembly member has claimed.


President Cecile Richards told members of Congress on Tuesday she was "proud" that Planned Parenthood donates foetal tissue for research. The anti-abortion group behind the videos has alleged that the healthcare provider profits from the practice. The allegations have set off an effort to pull the group's federal funding. Ms Richards said foetal tissue donation is legal and noted its small role in what Planned Parenthood does. Planned Parenthood has said it charges small fees - between $30 (Â£20) and $100 - to cover processing costs, but does not make a profit from foetal donations. "These outrageous accusations based on videos are offensive and untrue," Ms Richards said. "But facts have never gotten in the way of campaigns to keep women from getting healthcare." Planned Parenthood is a non-profit group that provides reproductive health services to mostly lower-income Americans. Some of its locations perform abortions. Federal funds make up about 40% of its annual budget, but federal law prohibits the funding of abortions except in rare cases. Conservative Republicans in Congress have threatened to shut down the government in hopes of ending federal support for Planned Parenthood. However, Republican congressional leaders have opposed a shutdown and President Obama has vowed to veto any attempt to defund Planned Parenthood. During a hearing on Tuesday, Republican lawmakers scrutinised the organisation's finances and chided Ms Richards for her salary, travel budgets and the organisation's rate of health screenings. Representative Elijah Cummings, a Democrat, said he was in full support of keeping the organisation funded. "For many poor women, Planned Parenthood may be one of their only services of medical care in underserved or rural communities," he said. "Big question for my Republican colleagues: Do you really want to do this? Align yourself with radical extremists who manipulate the facts?" Some lawmakers told Ms Richards that Planned Parenthood's funding should be re-directed toward other US health clinics that would supposedly provide more services. "The taxpayers... have a right to know how this money is being spent," said Representative Cynthia Lummis, a Republican from Wyoming. "They have a right to know if if taxpayer dollars are being used to free up services you provide that are abhorrent services in the view of many taxpayers when there are alternatives in this country." Republicans argued during the hearing that those other health centres across the US would be able to handle the influx of patients should Planned Parenthood lose its funding. Representative Brendan Boyle, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, said he disagreed and that unintended pregnancy and abortion rates would actually go up if Planned Parenthood ceased to exist. Citing a Congressional Budget Office study, he said that 390,000 women in the US would lose access to health care without Planned Parenthood. Both anti-abortion activists and Planned Parenthood supporters could be seen on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, with many wearing pink T-shirts to show their support for Ms Richards' organisation.

Summary: The head of Planned Parenthood has defended her organisation before Congress, calling a series of secretly recorded videos a "smear campaign".


Dreamland theme park in Margate - home to a Grade II* listed wooden Scenic Railway roller coaster - has been restored after an arson attack in 2008. John Challis, who played Boycie in the BBC comedy Only Fools and Horses, exchanged memories with the crowd. The show filmed in Margate in the 1980s with the characters riding on Dreamland's rollercoasters. "I have always remembered it because it was special," said Challis. "It was a jolly boys' outing - a bunch of hooligans got on a coach in London and came to Margate." Dreamland's website crashed because of high demand as tickets went on sale for the park, which is to reopen on 19 June. People in the queue said they had visited during their childhoods and wanted their own children to do the same. The funfair, once home to Europe's largest big wheel, was bought by Thanet council through a compulsory purchase order in 2013. Dreamland was one of the country's oldest amusement parks. At one time, the 16-acre site held a zoo and miniature railway, a cinema, cafes, restaurants, bars, shops and a 2,000-capacity ballroom. Work on the restoration of the Grade II* listed Scenic Railway ride began in September to replace all the wooden parts. Most of the funding was granted by the Department for Culture Media and Sport's Sea Change programme, the Heritage Lottery Fund and Thanet District council. Vintage fairground rides from around the UK have been restored and re-created for the new fun park, which will be run by the Dreamland Trust. Classic sideshows, vintage cafes, restaurants and gardens have also been installed at the site.

Summary: Crowds of people have queued for tickets for a 1920s funfair which is to reopen after an Â£18m restoration.


Current chief executive Don Mattrick, who joined the company in 2013, will leave, effective immediately. "I am returning to the company that I love in order to accelerate innovation," Mr Pincus said in a statement. He will receive a salary of $1. Mr Mattrick said he will return to his native Canada, adding: "I believe the timing is now right for me to leave as CEO [chief executive officer] and let Mark lead the company into its next chapter given his passion for the founding vision and his ability to couple our mobile progress with Zynga's unique strengths." Although Zynga - known primarily for its once-popular Facebook games like Farmville and Words with Friends - has stabilised under Mr Mattrick, the company has continued to struggle. In its most recent earnings release, Zynga said it lost $225.9m (Â£152m) in 2014, compared to $37m a year earlier. However, it said its mobile audience continued to grow - showing that it no longer relied on Facebook to generate a majority of its traffic. Shares in the company were up more than 3% in trading after US markets had closed.

Summary: Troubled game maker Zynga has announced that founder Mark Pincus will return to lead the company, as it struggles to repeat the success of hits like Farmville.


The rally is being held to mark the 25th anniversary of the creation of the Islamist militant movement, Hamas. There were also reports of clashes between protesters with Israeli soldiers elsewhere in the West Bank. On Thursday, a Palestinian teenager was shot dead by an Israeli border guard at a checkpoint in Hebron. Israeli police said he had attacked a guard and threatened him with what turned out to be a metal toy pistol. Tensions have been running high in Hebron in the past week following repeated clashes between soldiers and stone-throwing youths. Hebron is home to about 180,000 Palestinians and some 500 Jewish settlers who live in the centre of the city, guarded by Israeli troops. On Thursday, the Palestinian Authority allowed Hamas to organise a rally in the West Bank for the first time since 2007. Some 5,000 people took to the streets of Nablus to celebrate the group's anniversary. Hamas and the rival Fatah faction, which dominates the PA, have made conciliatory gestures towards each other since the end of last month's Israeli offensive on Gaza, which Israel said it launched to stop rocket-fire. "Hamas steadfastness and victory in Gaza was a big victory for all Palestinian people," Amin Makboul, a Fatah leader, said in a speech at Thursday's rally in Nablus. A rift developed between the two groups after Hamas won legislative elections in 2006 and came to power in Gaza a year later. Repeated attempts at reconciliation have so far failed.

Summary: About 3,000 Palestinians are marching towards an Israeli checkpoint in Hebron, not far from Jewish settlements in the centre of the West Bank city.


The incident happened at the new hospital on Garroch Loaning overnight between Thursday and Friday. Electric drills, a plunge saw, a jig-saw, two laser-levels and various hand tools, drill bits and batteries worth more than Â£3,000 were taken. PC Emily Conroy said: "We are keen to hear from anyone who may have any information about this theft. "Likewise we would want to hear from anyone who may be offered any similar tools for sale."

Summary: Thieves have made off with a haul of tools from a multi-million pound construction site in Dumfries.


In a letter to Pope Francis this month, Krzysztof Charamsa accused the Church of making the lives of millions of gay Catholics globally "a hell". He criticised what he called the Vatican's hypocrisy in banning gay priests, even though he said the clergy was "full of homosexuals". Pope Francis has yet to respond. Until 3 October, Monsignor Charamsa held a senior post at the Vatican at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the department that upholds Roman Catholic doctrine. The Vatican immediately stripped him of his post after he held a news conference in a restaurant in Rome to announce that he was both gay and in a relationship. Roman Catholic priests are meant to be celibate. At the time, the Holy See said the priest's decision to come out on the eve of the Vatican's synod on the family had been "irresponsible, since it aims to subject the synod assembly to undue media pressure". The Polish priest has released to the BBC a copy of the letter he sent to the Pope, written the same day as the announcement, in which he criticises the Church for "persecuting" and causing "immeasurable suffering" to homosexual Catholics and their families. He says that after a "long and tormented period of discernment and prayer", he had taken the decision to "publicly reject the violence of the Church towards homosexual, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual and intersexual people". The 43-year-old says that while the Roman Catholic clergy is "full of homosexuals", it is also "frequently violently homophobic", and he calls on "all gay cardinals, gay bishops and gay priests [to] have the courage to abandon this insensitive, unfair and brutal Church". He says he can no longer bear the "homophobic hate of the Church, the exclusion, the marginalisation and the stigmatisation of people like me", whose "human rights are denied" by the Church. The priest goes on to thank Pope Francis - who is thought to have a more lenient attitude on homosexuality than some of his predecessors - for some of his words and gestures towards gay people. The Pope recently met a gay former student of his during his recent visit to the US, and has previously said that gay people should not be marginalised in society. But Krzysztof Charamsa says that the pontiff's words will only be worthwhile when all the statements from the Holy See that are offensive and violent against homosexuals are withdrawn. He also urged the Church to annul a decision taken by his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, to sign a document in 2005 that forbids men with deep-rooted homosexual tendencies from becoming priests. The Polish priest terms "diabolical" Pope Benedict's statement that homosexuality was "a strong tendency ordered toward an intrinsic moral evil". The priest writes that LGBT Catholics have a right to family life, "even if the Church does not want to bless it". He later criticises the Vatican for putting pressure on states which have legalised equal or same-sex marriage. He also expresses his fears about the impact his coming out may have on the treatment

Summary: A senior Vatican priest, stripped of his post after admitting being in a gay relationship, has launched a scathing attack on the Roman Catholic Church.


Bryony Nierop-Reading's home went over the cliff at Happisburgh in Norfolk in the 2013 winter tidal surge. The local council said she could not live in her caravan instead, but the Planning Inspectorate ruled she can stay until other arrangements are made. Ms Nierop-Reading, 71, said it was a "very, very fair decision". The former teacher moved to her 1930s bungalow on Beach Road in the erosion-hit village in 2008. As the cliff-face disappeared, all her neighbours moved out two years later after accepting compensation from North Norfolk District Council. Believing she would enjoy another 20 or so years of spectacular sea views, she declined. But a few harsh winters, along with a clear-up of the ageing sea defences on the beach, left her home teetering on the edge within five years. Following the events of the tidal surge in 2013 she moved to her caravan on her adjacent field. However, the council issued an eviction notice saying she could not live in it long-term unless she got planning permission - which was unlikely given its proximity to the sea. The notice was appealed and the Planning Inspectorate has now ruled the council was not wrong to issue it, but it should increase its grace period from six to 12 months to give Ms Nierop-Reading more time to make permanent living arrangements. She now has until the end of next year to vacate. She said the first option was for her daughter and son-in-law, who are tenants in her Witton Heath home three miles inland, to buy it from her, giving her money for another house in Happisburgh. But failing that she said she had "a number of other options". Ms Nierop-Reading said she believed common sense had prevailed, but "only because the inspectorate forced it". "I am beginning to come to terms with it all and I can now think about the bungalow and some very happy times we had there," she said. Judy Oliver, North Norfolk District Council's cabinet member for legal services, said: "The planning inspector dismissed the appeal on three of four grounds. "On the fourth, the period of compliance was extended from six to 12 months. It's important to note that although the enforcement notice has been varied in this way, it has also been upheld. "We thank the inspector for his decision."

Summary: A woman who lost her bungalow to the sea and faced being evicted from a temporary home on her land has been allowed to stay put for another year.


The model, called Look At All of Me, has been designed by Frances Duffy, a clinical psychologist in the Northern Health Trust. It aims to equip care home staff with information so they can understand and assess behaviour, particularly when it is most challenging. Dr Duffy said the new model can meet a patient's specific needs. "What is so important is that we remember that the patient is still a person and we look at the person's entire behaviour and not just as someone who has been labelled with dementia," she said. The tool is quite simple - by using initials including A, S, I and P, it records at what time of the day a person is aggressive, sleeping, incontinent or pacing. Dr Duffy said challenging behaviour is not an inevitable symptom of dementia but often a sign of stress, anxiety and frustration. She explained how the model worked using the chart of a woman called Elizabeth, who has been diagnosed with dementia. "The As show when she has been seen as being aggressive," Dr Duffy said. "That happened every morning between 8am and 9am during personal care. That means she became agitated when people came in to undress and wash her. "Can you imagine how you would feel if someone that you don't know very well came into your room, perhaps rushed and not very friendly, and started to undress you? "Of course, you would feel agitated and may come across as aggressive." She added: "The chart also reveals that every day, between 3pm and 4pm, Elizabeth paces. "Staff noted that seemed to happen during visiting time when there are lots of strangers in the care home, which can be off-putting and even stressful." The message is that people with dementia continue to behave and react to situations around them just like anyone else. Just because they have dementia does not mean they will react differently. Dr Duffy said that the chart allows staff and families to understand a dementia patient's actions and reactions. "Of course, it is very difficult but when we understand what might be causing the challenging behaviour - which may look like aggression - we can make changes to how that person's care is being delivered," she said. The model, developed by the Northern Health and Social Care Trust, is being implemented by Avon & Wiltshire and Devon Health Authorities in England. While the scheme has been rolled out across independent residential care homes in the Northern Trust, the aim is for all health trusts to benefit.

Summary: A new assessment tool has been developed to help evaluate people diagnosed with dementia.


Daw'r newid arfaethedig wedi i berchnogion clybiau a thafarndai ar Stryd Womanby yng Nghaerdydd alw ar gyngor y ddinas i newid statws y stryd yn un "diwylliannol", er mwyn gwarchod sîn gerddoriaeth y brifddinas. Roedd ymgyrchwyr yn pryderu nad oedd rheolau mewn grym i amddiffyn y clybiau a'r tafarndai, yn dilyn nifer o ddatblygiadau adeiladu yn yr ardal. Dywedodd Lesley Griffiths ddydd Gwener ei bod am gyfeirio at yr egwyddor o 'Asiant dros Newid' o fewn y polisi cynllunio cenedlaethol. O dan yr egwyddor yma, os caiff datblygiadau newydd fel fflatiau neu westai eu hadeiladu yn agos at leoliad cerddoriaeth fyw, cyfrifoldeb y datblygwr fydd rheoli effaith y newid a rheoli'r sŵn. Fe wnaeth Lesley Griffiths gadarnhau hefyd y bydd Polisi Cynllunio Cymru yn cael ei ddiweddaru i ddynodi "ardaloedd o bwysigrwydd diwylliannol" ym maes cerddoriaeth o fewn Cynlluniau Datblygu Lleol. Yn ystod yr ymweliad â Stryd Womanby dywedodd: "Mae lleoliadau cerddoriaeth fyw yn cyfrannu'n fawr at ddiwylliant Cymru a'n heconomi liw nos. "Dwi'n ymwybodol o'r ymdrechion i ddiogelu'r lleoliadau hyn at y dyfodol, gan gynnwys ymgyrch "Achub Stryd Womanby" yng Nghaerdydd, a hoffwn dalu teyrnged i waith caled ac ymrwymiad pawb fu'n rhan o hyn. "Er bod bywiogrwydd ardaloedd fel Stryd Womanby yn dibynnu ar nifer o wahanol garfanau, gan gynnwys awdurdodau lleol, y lleoliadau eu hunain a'u cwsmeriaid, rwyf wedi clywed y galwadau i ddiweddaru ein polisi cynllunio cenedlaethol er mwyn diogelu lleoliadau cerddoriaeth fyw. "Dwi'n falch iawn, felly, o gadarnhau fy mod wedi gofyn i'm swyddogion ddechrau diwygio Polisi Cynllunio Cymru cyn gynted â phosib." Wrth ymateb i'r newyddion, dywedodd Guto Brychan, Prif Weithredwr Clwb Ifor Bach ar Stryd Womanby, ac un fu'n ymgyrchu i ddiogelu cerddoriaeth fyw ar y stryd: "Ers i ni ddechrau'r ymgyrch rhyw ddau fis yn ôl, dau brif amcan oedd ganddo ni. "Un oedd dod a'r egwyddor 'Asiant dros Newid' i mewn i'r canllawiau cynllunio cenedlaethol a'r llall oedd i newid designation y stryd i fod yn un diwyllianol a bod hwnna'n rhywbeth oedd yn cael ei fabwysiadu o fewn polisiau lleol y cyngor. "Dyma'r ddau beth sy'n cael ei gyfeirio ato yn y datganiad yma felly mae hyn yn arwyddocaol iawn."

Summary: Mae Lesley Griffiths, Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet dros yr Amgylchedd a Materion Gwledig, wedi cyhoeddi ei bod yn bwriadu diwygio'r polisi cynllunio mewn ymgais i gefnogi lleoliadau cerddoriaeth fyw.


An exhibition in London explores the global refugee crisis through the eyes of eight photographers reporting from 13 countries on behalf of Oxfam. The pictures aim to capture something of the personal stories behind the migration facts and figures. Photography director Rebecca McClelland said: "My aim was to be as sensitive as possible to the subject, whilst stretching the limited language of crisis photography." The Stand as One exhibition can be seen at 4 Holywell Lane, London from 8-15 September 2016.

Summary: All photographs courtesy Oxfam


Ashleigh Harris was 14 when she broke her back after falling from Polly Perks, owned by Rachel Miller. She now has no function in her legs. She was riding Polly in a field in Mathern, near Chepstow, Monmouthshire, when she was injured in 2012. Miss Harris, 18, of Lydney, Gloucestershire, is suing Mrs Miller at London's High Court. She claims Polly "misbehaved" and broke into a canter of her own accord, throwing her off in the process. But Mrs Miller says the horse was blameless and Miss Harris fell after losing her balance as she descended a "short and gentle slope". The court heard Ashleigh had been taken to a field on 22 September 2012 by Mrs Miller, the mother of her then boyfriend, Keiran Miller. Miss Harris described Polly as "fidgety" and said the thoroughbred mare had been nipping at her and others. She added: "She then went to canter and I held her up because I didn't ask her to. She was throwing her head around and bucked, then I came out of the saddle and went over the horse's head." Her barrister, David Westcott QC, said she should never have been allowed into Polly's saddle as she had only ever ridden ponies. He also said the mare was "bred for racing" and had not been well schooled. Mrs Miller said the teenager fell as she was riding Polly at a walking pace down a hill in the field. She also said she spoke to Miss Harris's mother before letting her ride Polly and believed Ashleigh was a more experienced rider. Winston Hunter QC, for Mrs Miller, said: "Ashleigh gave Keiran an impression that she was indeed a competent rider. "There's no evidence Mrs Miller was aware that she had only ridden ponies." Judge Graham Wood QC will give his ruling on the claim at a later date.

Summary: A teenager who was paralysed after falling off a horse is suing her ex-boyfriend's mother for £3m.


There was no secret that the picture today's Autumn Statement would paint would not be pretty. But more than £100bn of extra borrowing, roughly equivalent to the entire NHS budget - nearly £60bn of that the costs of Brexit - make a brutal backdrop for Theresa May's government as it only just gets going. Remember all the figures ought to be taken with a giant pinch of salt. Forecasts like these have so often been wrong. And no one is forecasting a recession. But what the chancellor said today and the Office for Budget Responsibility has calculated have big implications. First off, with the goal of balancing the books now an aspiration to be met as "early as possible", next Parliament, the Tories will be going into the next election, a decade after they took charge, without having kept the central promise they made 10 years before of clearing the deficit. Yes, you read that right - a full decade. As political promises go, that is a less than glorious record. Voters will see the national debt hitting 90% of GDP, not shy of £2 trillion, 10 years after being told that tough spending cuts were worth it, because within five years we would be on our way back to the mythic sunlit uplands. There is a separate debate about whether that was ever achievable, and how much Brexit can be blamed for the fact Mr Hammond has pushed those targets back again. But at the very least, it means the Conservatives will still be borrowing, and borrowing significantly, busting their own timetable by at least five years. And with wages predicted to slow, and inflation expected to rise, the public will feel the pinch too. Simply, if today's forecasts are right, the government's finances are set to be shaky for a lot longer, and more voters will feel skint. Despite Theresa May's repeated desire to help families who are finding it hard to make ends meet, there were few measures that will make a big difference. Privately, Treasury sources acknowledge they haven't done that much, despite Number 10's hopes. The truth is that they didn't have much cash to play with. And Mr Hammond's ambitions to rebuild the fundamentals of the economy were clearly his priority, rather than major concessions to help some groups of voters feel a bit more flush. Indeed, the charts that estimate who is bearing the brunt of the government's policies suggest that when everything is taken into consideration, not just today's measures, the three poorest groups are all slightly worse off. The only group that loses more is the top 10%. Beyond all the charts and tables and documents, though, Mr Hammond dropped one giant hint which is perhaps politically one of the most important things of the day. He was talking about the "triple lock", the guaranteed increases in the state pension, seen by many in Westminster privately to be completely unaffordable in the longer term, but few will yet say it in public. He said: "And we will meet our pledge to our country's

Summary: Ouch!


Leading an opposition day debate on education and social mobility, Ms Rayner urged ministers to drop plans to expand the grammar system. She called for a more wide-ranging approach to improving standards. Education Secretary Justine Greening said grammars boosted social mobility. Speaking in the Commons, Ms Rayner said: "The purpose of today's debate is to send a message that members of all parties are committed to an evidence-based approach to education policy and not pursuing the failed policy of academic selection - because we know that this policy is not the answer to Britain's social mobility crisis and the government knew that too until very recently." She said: "Already in the consultation document launched in November, the government pledged Â£50m to help existing grammar schools expand. "The same green paper made a series of substantial un-costed pledges to those schools that want to become grammars, or the academy chains that want to open them. "Now, just this weekend, government sources have briefed the Sunday Times that there will be tens of millions more to help grammar schools expand. "The idea that this is the way the government should spend taxpayers' money is simply baffling when nurseries across the country are facing closure because the government will not deliver the investment needed to deliver on their manifesto pledge to deliver 30 hours of free childcare a week, when our schools are facing deeper cuts in their budgets than any time since the 1970s." But Ms Greening said the expansion of selective education could help promote social mobility. "In reality, as challenging as it is for our country, there is no country in this world that has managed to crack the issue of social mobility yet," she said. "The reality is that grammars can have potentially a transformational impact in some of the most deprived communities where we want to see the biggest changes." Later in the debate, Conservative MP for Croydon South, Chris Philp, spoke of "the terrible, terrible unfairness that in our system today, very often, the only way to be sure of an outstanding education is to pay for it - either by going private or buying a much more expensive house in the catchment area of a good school". He said: "And it is a disgrace that the only way to be sure of an academically elite education is to pay for it today." Mr Philp also cited evidence he said suggested children from "ordinary" backgrounds did better in grammar schools. White boys from under-privileged backgrounds who attended a grammar school had a "30% higher chance of going to university" than those who did not," he said. But former shadow education secretary Lucy Powell accused him of "absolutely rubbishing" the existing system. Intervening in Mr Philp's speech, Ms Powell said: "I think any parent or teacher watching this and hearing somebody from the government benches saying that the only way to guarantee an excellent education is to pay for it is absolutely rubbishing our excellent education system." Former Tory cabinet minister and MP for Wokingham John Redwood said new grammar

Summary: Allocating cash for the expansion of grammar schools in England when other parts of the education sector face funding concerns is "baffling", shadow education secretary Angela Rayner says.


Almost 1.7m euro (£1.3m) has been paid out by the Erne Trust since 2012. The money was for legal bills and other fees incurred by the Quinn family. The receiver for the assets of various Quinn family members took legal action to have the trust's donors disclosed to him. He suspects it is a "sham trust", which is a conduit for assets which have been concealed from him. Declan Taite was appointed receiver in 2012 at the request of IBRC, formerly known as Anglo-Irish Bank. He told the court that it is his job to identify, locate and collect assets. He added that the Quinn's have "openly admitted" they put property assets beyond the reach of IBRC and that those assets have "generated tens of millions of euros". He said he is trying to "understand the provenance" of the money in the trust to determine that it does not originate with the Quinn family. A list of donors including names, addresses and sums donated has now been given to Mr Taite. His barrister said the close family connections includes siblings, however, a barrister for the trust said he was "not aware" of a sibling connection. The trust's barrister added that it was "not surprising" that Mr Quinn's business acquaintances should support him. Mr Taite's barrister said that having received the list of names there may now be a need to gather further affidavit evidence. The case was adjourned until September.

Summary: The donors who have effectively been paying Seán Quinn's legal bills include business acquaintances and "close family connections", the High Court has been told.


The Dons can move level with Celtic at the top of the Premiership with victory at Firhill, albeit having played two more matches. "The players are eager to get back to winning ways," McInnes said. "It's important to keep the games we lose to a minimum and try to make sure we bounce back with three points." McInnes stressed that his side will face a stern test against Thistle, and warned the condition of the pitch could also make life difficult. "They're a good team. They're a team that I admire greatly, how they go and try and win games. I think they're who will still have top six aspirations. "They are a side who are capable of getting results against anybody so we've got our work cut out. Equally they've got their work cut out against us, and we need to go down there and show what we are capable of. Media playback is not supported on this device "It'll be a tough game for us. The pitch might be difficult. It might not be pretty on the eye at times for both teams but we have to try and find a way to win." McInnes, who confirmed that winger Jonny Hayes will miss up to a month's action with a hamstring injury, expressed his "surprise" that no retrospective action has been taken over the penalty awarded to Inverness Caledonian Thistle in Monday's loss in the Highlands. The Dons boss was furious after the Dons' 3-1 defeat, saying Ross Draper had "conned" referee Willie Collum to set up the spot-kick converted by Greg Tansey. "There was anger and frustration at the time but it's done and dusted and we move on," said McInnes. "There's no real merit in us getting involved in that. "While there is anger from everybody at the club, you just hope that things get dealt with properly." Media playback is not supported on this device The penalty was given when Draper and Aberdeen defender Ash Taylor both had their feet up high when challenging for the ball. And the Caley Thistle midfielder was adamant that there had been sufficient contact for him to go down. Draper was quoted saying: "Just say what you believe. I thought it was a penalty. That's me being honest. If he [McInnes] thinks it's a dive then say so." Asked to respond to Draper's remarks, McInnes replied: "I said what I had to say afterwards and that was clear. I think the incident is clear as well."

Summary: Derek McInnes wants to see his side bounce back from defeat at Inverness and keep their title hopes alive with victory at Partick Thistle on Friday.


The decision to discontinue operations followed an "extensive review" of the business. Renishaw said it had tried to find a collaboration or acquisition partner for the diagnostics unit but had not received any acceptable offers. Renishaw Diagnostics (RDL) was spun off from Strathclyde University in Glasgow. It develops technologies to detect infectious diseases in humans. In a stock market announcement, Renishaw said: "We continue to look at opportunities for the sale of RDL assets and to support employees in finding alternative employment. "We would like to express our thanks to the employees of RDL for their considerable efforts since the company was formed in 2007." In a separate development, Ayrshire-based Lamar Group Ltd, which supplied materials and products to the UK printed circuit board industry, has been placed in provisional liquidation with the loss of 11 jobs. Provisional liquidators Johnston Carmichael said cheaper competition from China had had "a profound impact" on the UK circuit board manufacturing industry, with more than 90% of production shifting to the Far East. Donald McNaught, restructuring partner at Johnston Carmichael, said: "Lamar Group has been a very well-run business and retains a portfolio of valuable assets - the management team has been proactive in trying to head off the impact of cheaper Chinese manufacturing, but ultimately they have recognised there is nothing more they can do. "Despite several attempts to diversify into new markets the business has been unable to stop the decline in sales volume. We're actively seeking buyers for the assets which remain."

Summary: Precision engineering group Renishaw is to close its diagnostics unit in Glasgow, with the loss of up to 33 jobs.


The scheme would be similar to 'Sarah's Law' - the law introduced in England, Scotland and Wales in 2011.. It allows a parent or guardian to ask police if a person who has contact with children is a child sex offender. Hundreds of paedophiles have been identified in Great Britain since the introduction of the scheme. Two DUP assembly members, Paul Frew and Lord Morrow, have tabled an amendment to the Justice Bill due to be discussed in the assembly on Tuesday. The amendment says that guidance for statutory agencies managing the risks of offenders must "contain arrangements for the consideration of disclosure, to any particular member of the public, of information in the possession of the agencies about the relevant previous convictions of any specified sexual or violent offender, where it is necessary to protect a particular child or children from serious harm caused by the offender." The amendment also states that members of the public provided with information may be prevented from disclosing it to any other person. Sarah's Law was named after eight-year-old Sarah Payne, who was murdered by paedophile Roy Whiting in July 2000.

Summary: The DUP is proposing the introduction of a paedophile disclosure scheme in Northern Ireland.


A surge in the Â£60 charges followed a change in government guidelines which said such absences were only permitted in "exceptional circumstances". But the policy was thrown into confusion in May when the High Court ruled a single holiday did not break rules on regular attendance. Now Derbyshire County Council has said only extreme cases will be fined. In the 2014/2015 school year, Derbyshire County Council handed out nearly 3,200 of the Â£60 per child, per week fines - the fifth highest number in the country. The High Court ruling, which is the subject of an appeal, left education authorities having to decide how to apply the existing rules and subsequently a number of court cases were abandoned. Derbyshire County Council has confirmed its "interim arrangements", which state if attendance is above 94% - equivalent to missing 11 or 12 days - over the previous 12 months, only a warning letter will be issued. Katherine Boulton, the council's service director for schools and learning, said: "We strongly recommend that pupils should not be taken out of school during term time. "But there are always exceptional circumstances and the council believes these measures are fair and proportionate." Craig Langman, of campaign group Parents Want A Say, said: "This is great news. We have heard of some parents who were facing action, checking on the progress of cases against them, only to be told their child's attendance now comes within acceptable limits. "But this is the first instance I know of where a education authority has clearly stated new guidelines. It's a great step and we encourage others to follow suit."

Summary: Fines for taking children on holiday in school term time are being largely abandoned by a local authority.


Ian Brunner, 47, and John-Mark Duffy were both part of Bedford's "town centre drinking community", Luton Crown Court heard. Brunner admitted murdering Mr Duffy, 39, at a flat in Byron Crescent, Bedford, in January. Judge Richard Foster said Brunner must serve at least 12-and-a-half years before becoming eligible for parole. The court heard both men had ended up in the flat with a third man, Steve Matthews. Anne Evans, prosecuting, said: "At some point Mr Matthews remembers Mr Duffy asking Ian to make a joint. It seems he couldn't find any and Mr Duffy started to get agitated." Brunner and Mr Duffy argued in the hallway before returning to the living room, grappling one another, the court heard. Mr Duffy lifted his shirt and told Mr Matthews he had been stabbed. Brunner left the flat and Mr Duffy died at the scene. Brunner told police Mr Duffy had been his friend and he had not intended to kill him.

Summary: A man who stabbed his friend to death in an argument about a cannabis joint has been jailed for life.


While opinion is divided, Mrs Clinton is largely thought to have come out on top in Sunday's debate in St Louis. But columnists raised the issue of her failure to tackle Mr Trump effectively, allowing him to "exceed expectations". "The smiling Hillary we saw throughout the first debate on Long Island? She didn't make the trip west." Fox News concludes that Mr Trump managed to pull off a surprising performance, although the news channel does not explicitly state that the Republican candidate won the debate. The conservative network says he performed well, pivoting and manoeuvring through questions, allowing him to save his presidential hopes. Political analyst William Whelan said the night fell into the hands of Mr Trump. He said the Republican defended his record and unlike the first debate, when he was often blown off course by the former secretary of state and "torpedoed by his own badgering performance", he improved as the night went on. Mr Trump's decision to launch a blistering attack against Hillary Clinton and her husband is described by Fox as the equivalent of "Hillary dropping Alicia Machado on Trump" in the previous debate. That was the line used by Breitbart news, which is in a minority in handing the title to Mr Trump. In a leading story quoting comments from former mayor of New York City, Rudy Giuliani, it reports that Mrs Clinton was "pounded on bad decisions". It refers to accusations from Mr Trump that Mrs Clinton and the Democratic Party helped "create the vacuum in the Middle East" that allowed so-called Islamic State to form. The hard-right news website, whose executive chairman Stephen Bannon was appointed Mr Trump's campaign chief in August, is running its own readers' poll, the results of which have yet to be announced. The site also highlights support from Republican vice-presidential nominee Mike Pence, who said in a tweet that he was proud of Mr Trump and congratulated him on "a big debate win", while ending it with a shortened form of Mr Trump's 'Make America Great Again' slogan. "All Hillary Clinton had to do was remain upright for 90 minutes." The Washington Post's verdict is that the debate highlighted an "increasingly isolated" Mr Trump during an "unusually dark and bitter face-off". Over the past year, the newspaper has been at the forefront of investigations into Mr Trump, and has published several editorials condemning the candidate. On the news site's Right Turn blog, Jennifer Rubin says Mrs Clinton had very little to do in order to go "the last little way in wrapping up the election". She writes that Mrs Clinton handled the audience well when answering questions, adding that the former secretary of state effectively won the debate early on by "simply keeping her cool". Issues ranging from Mr Trump's tax payments to his foreign policy have, according to the Post, given Mrs Clinton plenty of material for a new raft of political ads. In a separate piece for the Post, opinion writer Eugene Joseph Dionne Jr writes that Mr Trump's "petulant" and "boorish" approach on the night was

Summary: The US media have given their verdict on who won the second presidential debate after Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton engaged in attack and counter-attack.


It follows concerns highlighted in a recent UN committee report about race discrimination. It also recognises the recent sharp increase in racist hate crime following the EU referendum. The report also calls for better accommodation for the traveller community in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland's traveller community still faces problems with health, education, housing and employment, adds the UN report. NIHRC chief Les Allamby welcomed the call supporting Northern Ireland's travellers. "The committee has highlighted the disparity in equality protection between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, calling for a Single Equality Bill to address this problem," he said. "We raised these concerns directly with the committee in July and welcome that they have been incorporated into the UN report. "We now need action to be taken by the Northern Ireland Executive to tackle these important issues and improve the quality of life and experiences of people from minority ethnic backgrounds in Northern Ireland."

Summary: The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission has called on the Executive to do more to improve life for people from minority ethnic backgrounds.


The 48-year-old singer and actor Joshua Sasse, 28, announced their engagement earlier this year. The couple subsequently vowed to postpone their nuptials until same-sex marriage becomes legal in Australia. Dressed in "Say I Do Down Under" T-shirts at the Arias in Sydney, the pair urged the change to come next year. "We're here to introduce a shining light in the Australian music industry," Minogue told the audience on Wednesday night. "But we're also here to say thank you to everyone who has supported Josh's campaign for equality." Sasse, who founded the "Say I Do Down Under" campaign, said: "This is more than a movement, this is people's lives and we want to say to every single member of the LGBT community that you are not alone. "You have a voice and if we all stand together we can bring Australia back on the right side of history and make 2017 the year that we can all say 'I do' down under." Australian pop star Sia also used the awards night to address the issue, sending a same-sex marriage campaigner to collect her award for best female artist. The Australian government's plan to settle the same-sex marriage debate through a public vote early next year was blocked by the Senate two weeks ago. Critics said a nationwide campaign would be expensive, unnecessary and unleash a torrent of homophobic rhetoric. Sasse's "Say I Do Down Under" campaign, along with other lobby groups, is now pushing for parliament to change the law. His campaign has attracted celebrity supporters including Chris Martin, Ellie Goulding and Sir Ian McKellen.

Summary: Kylie Minogue and her British fiancÃ© have called on Australia to legalise same-sex marriage in an appearance at the nation's top music awards.


The excess expressed milk is sold through specialist websites and social media groups. The Queen Mary University of London team claimed the milk was unpasteurised and could carry dangerous germs. They said claims that the milk boosted the immune system were misleading and could be dangerous to cancer patients. It is unclear how much of the product - often called "liquid gold" - is being traded, as it is always an arrangement between two parties. Dr Sarah Steele, from Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, told the BBC News website the market had "shown consistent growth around the world". She is one of the authors of a report in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. It says 93% of breast milk sold online contains detectable levels of bacteria, as non-sterile equipment is used to express or store the milk. Threats include hepatitis B and C, HIV and syphilis. The trade started to help women who were not producing enough breast milk themselves. However, it is also bought for its supposed health benefits such as building muscle, by fetishists and even some "foodies". But Dr Steele said breast milk did not have the same rigorous safety standards as anything sold as food. She was particularly worried about the milk being marketed at cancer patients. She added: "For cancer patients and other immuno-compromised people, the immune system is not functioning the same as in a healthy adult. "It is advertised with an immune benefit, but actually it poses real risks, and you're exposing yourself to bacteria and viruses that could complicate the medical condition in a dangerous way." One of the websites that facilitates its sale, onlythebreast.com, told the BBC it advised all milk be pasteurised before use and that most onlythebreast.com members were honest and "simply looking to provide safe milk for babies in need". A representative added: "Those conducting the study did not follow our posted safety guidelines, [which] potentially skewed the results of the study."

Summary: Human breast milk being bought online by fetishists, bodybuilders and cancer patients is a danger to health, UK researchers say.


This time last year rugby club Wasps was putting the final touches to its move from High Wycombe to Coventry, a 75 mile journey it hoped would transform it from a club losing more than £3m a year into a thriving leisure business. As part of its relocation Wasps did not just move into, but acquired, the Ricoh Arena stadium complex in the West Midlands city for £20m. The fact that the Barbadian artist - famous for hit singles like Umbrella, We Found Love, and Diamonds - is kicking off her high-profile tour in their stadium is a source of pride to club executives, and an indication of how far financially as well as geographically they have come. It also illustrates how the Premiership club sees its new commercial model as being as much about leisure as it is about sport. "The entertainment side is where we see the biggest commercial growth," Wasps Group chief executive David Armstrong tells me. It was 13 months ago that Wasps, then based in Buckinghamshire, announced they would play their home games at the Ricoh Arena, completing the stadium purchase a month later. Their first game as owners of their new home was a win against London Irish in December 2014. A year on, the club is no longer the tenant of Wycombe Wanderers football club, but a multi-venue, multi-use business. Moving a major sporting "franchise" lock, stock and barrel from one city to another is not uncommon in the United States, but in the more conservative UK, such uprooting is greeted with suspicion. "The primary reason for moving was commercial," Mr Armstrong said, speaking to the BBC at the annual Rugby Expo conference at Twickenham. "We were looking to create a stable long-term business model that would take us forward over the next 250 years," he adds, referring to the length of their Ricoh lease. "With our previous business model, we were losing in the region of £3m to £4m a year. Our only revenue then was ticket sales. Food and beverage sales went to the football club, while other revenue went to our sponsors. "We were a shell of a club, and couldn't be competitive and make money." As well as its new income strands, earlier this year, the club raised £35m with the issue of a seven-year bond, paying a fixed gross rate of interest of 6.50% a year until 2022 . Funds raised were used to restructure the club balance sheet and pay down existing debt, including loans acquired with the Ricoh Arena. According to Mr Armstrong the banks backed the bond issue because of the strength of the club's various income strands. Ownership of the Ricoh Stadium complex gives Wasps control over other income streams, not just from rugby matches. As well as the main sports stadium bowl, the purchase also saw the club acquire the indoor 12,000-standing-capacity Jaguar Exhibition Hall, which hosts smaller music concerts, and can also be hired for trade shows, company presentations and other business use. And the Ricoh also contains three restaurants, five bars, 20 retail

Summary: When pop superstar Rihanna last week unveiled her 2016 UK concert tour dates, her choice of opening venue was seen as a vindication for an English rugby union club that has financially come back from the brink.


Households were sent a leaflet giving "three reasons to back Beverley Nielsen for West Midlands Labour mayor". One reason not to do so would be that Ms Nielsen was actually standing for the Liberal Democrats. A campaign spokesman said the leaflet had been created by the local party - the Hall Green group. Read more Birmingham and Black Country stories Ms Nielsen said: "This leaflet was home published by a volunteer, not professionally published. It's clearly a mistake that is embarrassing to the person who made it, so we're not going to investigate further or name and shame. "Our mayoral campaign relies heavily on volunteers and doesn't have the luxury of the big budget funding that some of the other candidates have, so I'm very grateful that supporters are contributing their time and effort in the Lib Dem fight back." Other candidates include Graham Stevenson (Communist Party), Andy Street (Conservatives), James Burn (Green), Sion Simon (Labour) and Pete Durnell (UKIP). They are bidding to become the first elected mayor of the West Midlands, leading the Combined Authority. The polls open on 4 May.

Summary: A Lib Dem mayoral candidate was mistakenly billed in campaign material as standing for Labour.


He worked closely with owner Randy Lerner, who put the club up for sale last May but is yet to find a buyer. The resignation of American Fox after 18 months at the Premier League's bottom club follows the departure of sporting director Hendrik Almstadt and three new appointments to the board. Fox said "it makes sense for me to seek another challenge" following the changes in the Villa boardroom. Villa are nine points from safety at the foot of the league and Fox and Lerner have been the target of fans' anger over their struggles. Steven Hollis became the club's new chairman in January while former Governor of the Bank of England Lord King and ex-Football Association chairman David Bernstein have become directors at Villa Park. And Gulf War commander General Charles Krulak is now listed as a director on the Companies House website. In a statement Fox said: "The owner made it very clear last summer that he and I would seek to recruit a board that would put the club in a stronger position in the event that a sale didn't happen. "As the board has taken shape, however, it has become clear that my role also has changed. While I am supportive of where the board is trying to take the club, it is my feeling that given the changes they are making, it makes sense for me to seek another challenge."

Summary: Aston Villa chief executive Tom Fox has stepped down with immediate effect.


Kieran Davies, 28, had denied murdering Ashley Hawkins, 32, from Barry in Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, who was found dead in a flat in Scotland Street on 2 December 2016 at 05:30. Sentencing was deferred for background reports at the High Court in Edinburgh. Lord Boyd told jurors: "Murder cases are always difficult." He added: "They are emotionally draining for everybody involved in it." Police who were called to the second floor flat at 7 Scotland Street and forced entry found Mr Hawkins dead with catastrophic head injuries. Unemployed Davies was the only other occupant of the locked property and was found topless, wearing jogging bottoms and trainers extensively stained with the dead man's blood. A Reebok top, which Davies had earlier been seen wearing, was found in a washing machine, saturated with the victim's blood, along with brain tissue. The court heard Mr Hawkins had suffered at least 24 blows to the head and a metal pole and broken hammer recovered from the flat could have been used as weapons in the fatal attack. Davies, a prisoner in Edinburgh, was found guilty of murdering Mr Hawkins by repeatedly striking him on the head with weapons and repeatedly stamping and kicking him on the head and body. Police were alerted to the incident in the early hours of the morning after neighbours heard banging and shouting coming from the flat. One teenager was aware of 15 to 20 bangs and screaming which had stopped by the end of the disturbance. The witness was confident that no one left the premises from the end of the banging until the arrival of officers. Police found the front door of the flat was locked and entry was forced and an attempt was made to resuscitate the victim who was lying face down covered with a blanket and surrounded by a pool of blood. Prosecutor David Taylor told jurors: "When police came into that locked flat there were two people there - one alive, covered in blood and one dead, violently murdered. There is no mystery in this case." He said Davies and Mr Hawkins had come to Edinburgh from Wales "as best of friends" but added there was evidence that changed and there was friction between them. Davies told police that he had taken Valium and claimed that he also had a needle of heroin and ecstasy. A blood test later proved negative for ecstasy and opiate drugs but gave an indication that he had taken diazepam and cannabis. Mr Stewart told the court that previously consideration had been given to Davies' fitness to stand trial and a psychiatrist who had seen him reported that he suffered from a delusional disorder. Det Insp Stuart Alexander, of Police Scotland's major investigation team, said: "Davies continued to maintain his innocence throughout the investigation and trial, despite significant evidence of his guilt. "When officers found him in the flat, he claimed to have no recollection of Ashley's death and has given no explanation for why he took the life of a friend. "Davies subjected Ashley to a brutal

Summary: The former best friend of a man found bludgeoned to death in one of the most exclusive streets in Edinburgh has been found guilty of the murder.


There was little to choose between the sides in the first half, before the goal deluge began with two inside a minute just after the interval. Kane Richards' pass released Johnny Hunt to put Chester ahead on 51 minutes before James Alabi quickly doubled their lead after a powerful run. Chester then scored three more in the final 11 minutes, triggered by Elliott Durrell firing home from the penalty spot after being fouled himself. James Akintunde then teed up winger Craig Mahon to blast in a piledriver. Substitute Akintunde still had time to get in on the act, heading in Durrell's left-wing cross, to complete City's biggest win in seven months and lift Jon McCarthy's side into the National League top half. Chester's fifth successive game without conceding a goal is their best run at this level or above in 14 years, matching the five clean sheets with which they started the 2002-03 season. Report supplied by the Press Association. Match ends, Chester FC 5, Dover Athletic 0. Second Half ends, Chester FC 5, Dover Athletic 0. Goal! Chester FC 5, Dover Athletic 0. James Akintunde (Chester FC). Sam Magri (Dover Athletic) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Substitution, Dover Athletic. Mitchell Pinnock replaces Sammy Moore. Goal! Chester FC 4, Dover Athletic 0. Craig Mahon (Chester FC). Aswad Thomas (Dover Athletic) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Goal! Chester FC 3, Dover Athletic 0. Elliott Durrell (Chester FC) converts the penalty with a. Substitution, Chester FC. James Akintunde replaces Kane Richards. Substitution, Chester FC. Wade Joyce replaces Tom Shaw. Substitution, Dover Athletic. Ayo Obileye replaces Jack Parkinson. Substitution, Dover Athletic. Ira Jackson Jr replaces Moses Emmanuel. Moses Emmanuel (Dover Athletic) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Ross Lafayette (Dover Athletic) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Goal! Chester FC 2, Dover Athletic 0. James Alabi (Chester FC). Goal! Chester FC 1, Dover Athletic 0. Johnny Hunt (Chester FC). Substitution, Chester FC. Luke George replaces Ryan Astles. Second Half begins Chester FC 0, Dover Athletic 0. First Half ends, Chester FC 0, Dover Athletic 0. First Half begins. Lineups are announced and players are warming up.

Summary: Chester scored five second-half goals as they recorded their biggest win of the season at home to Dover.